Busy
Take it easy. Christmas will get here no matter what. Stop to smell the roses (yes, we have them here in December) or at least admire the poinsettias. Remember to take some time for yourself and just enjoy the wonderful gift of living in this beautiful place and time.
Thanks
These kids found the opportunity to thank the foreign community at Lakeside for their good works. The kids and the sign came out at the local security meeting on December 7.
Celebration of life
An informal gathering of friends and acquaintances of recently deceased Joan Aslin will be held on Wednesday, January 4, 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the front “Blue Umbrella” patio of the Lake Chapala Society. Anyone who wishes to do so is welcome to bring botanas to share.
Cancer support
The Cancer Support Group meets on the first and third Monday of each month. The next meeting will be held on Monday, December 19, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The group is open to people in treatment, people with life-altering conditions and recent survivors. The group is free and run by a professional counselor. For more information contact Valerie Rhoda at 766-4522 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Tarahumara Christmas
There are still tickets for the Tarahumara Project Christmas party to be held Sunday, December 18, 4 p.m. at the home of Libby Townsend, Ocampo 98, Interior 2 at Seis Esquinas in Ajijic. Tickets for 100 pesos include great hors d’ouevres and drinks. All proceeds go to buy food for the indigenous Tarahumara of Copper Canyon. Call 766-1167 for more information.
Los Niños de Chapala
Los Niños de Chapala y Ajijic (NCA) has scheduled the next board meeting for Tuesday, December 20, 10 a.m. at its Chapala office (Chacalita 20A, Colomos del Lago).
NCA aids about 185 families who lack the funds to keep their kids in school.
Check out the website at www.lakesideninos.org. For more information, attend the meeting or call 765-7032.
The van
Thanks to the Jalisco Department of Human Services and an anonymous donor, Love in Action Children’s Center has received a brand new 15-passenger van.
The expense of the van was shared equally by the state and by the donor.
The van is a 2011 Nisson four-cylinder, gas efficient vehicle that will be a great, money-saving help to the center. It will be used to transport kids to their schools and for scheduled outings. Center founder Anabel Frutos extends her thanks and those of everyone at the center for this generous gift.
ABC
Animal Buddies Committee wants to thank everyone who made such a success of the recent ABC Christmas Bash held at Salvador’s on December 9. They raised more than 8,000 pesos to aid Anita’s Animals with neutering and spaying. Volunteer Dottie Matsumoto thanks all of the members and anyone who donated and participated in one way or another.
UVA
Sunday, December 11, more than 50 sponsors and students gathered at Panino’s Restaurant to attend the annual holiday party for the University and Vocational Assistance program. Dona Johnson organized and directed the creation of greeting cards to be distributed to sponsors in January after the scholarships for the spring semester are given out.
UVA currently sponsors 33 students in course studies ranging from medicine and law to civil engineering, history, accounting, education and computer-related fields. This educational assistance program has been in existence for more than 35 years and is unique in that 100 percent of donations received are distributed to the students. Those interested in participating should contact either Lynn Hanson at 766-2660 or Sue Torres at 766-2932.
Polar Bears
Get set to shiver. The third annual Red Cross Polar Bear Swim is on for Sunday, January 1, 2012, in front of the Beer Garden Restaurant on Chapala’s malecon.
The festivities will begin with varied dance music by DJ Howard at 12:30 p.m., followed by the actual “Swim” at 1 p.m. Polar Bear sponsors will want to cheer on the Bears as they cavort in Lake Chapala (make reservations for lunch as soon as possible).
The Swim will be followed by the Polar Bear Swim Raffle, wherein the Red Cross will be giving away two cash prizes. The Gold Raffle winner will receive 40,000 pesos and the Platinum Raffle winner will receive 100,000 pesos. Tickets are 200 pesos each and 500 pesos for three in the Gold Raffle and 500 pesos each and three for 1,200 pesos for the Platinum Raffle. They are on sale where you see volunteers (mostly at SuperLake Market) and will be on sale at the Polar Bear event.
Mexican history
Wayne Palfrey will give four lectures with illustrated PowerPoint presentations on the Mexican character entitled “Why Your Neighbor Behaves the Way he Does,” divided into four sessions on Mondays, January 9, January 16, January 23 and Friday, February 10, all at 3 p.m. in the Sala of the Lake Chapala Society. Titles of the sessions are “Mexican Masks,” “The Role of the Catholic Church, Past and Present,” “Corruption, Glue and Lubricant” and “Mexico and Globalization.”
Palfrey, a long time resident of Mexico and the director of the Loyola Institute, is an active and dynamic teacher and a student of Mexican history for 30 years. He is totally immersed in Mexican culture and completely bilingual; but carries his American heritage and point of view with him. His earlier lectures on Mexican history have been extremely popular.
The classes are open to everybody; but space in the Sala is limited. Interested parties can sign up for individual sessions or the entire course in the Lake Chapala Society (LCS) office. The charge is 120 pesos for each session or 400 pesos for the set. Fees are not due until the opening of the classes.
Estrella del Lago
Hotel Monte Carlo was the locale for the December 7 Installation of 2012 officers for the Estrella del Lago Chapter 10, Order of the Eastern Star: (L-R front row) Ana Maria deFry, Associate Conductress; Ron Burdenuk, Worthy Patron; Betty Anne Burdenuk, Worthy Matron; Lee Acott, Associate Matron; Dean Burk, Associate Patron; (L-R back row) Bev Cofell; Karen Doyle, Martha; Rhoda Wamboldt, Conductress; Margaret Addy, Ruth; Heather deKergommeaux, Esther; Graham Paull, Installing Officer; Karyn Tetrault, Martha; Fran McCarthy Electa; Barbara Whilldin; Connnie Gauvreau, Secretary; Brain Gauvreau, Chaplain and B. J. Wallce, Past Matron. Announced charities for 2012 include the Shriners Children’s Hospital in Mexico City and Cruz Roja Chapala Delegacion. For meeting times and other information go to www.oesestrelladellago.org.
Learning seminar
The next Lake Chapala Society (LCS) Learning Seminar will be held Tuesday, December 20, noon in the Sala. It will feature (via a TED Internet podcast) Edward Tenner, who says that every new invention changes the world – in ways both intentional and unexpected. Historian Tenner tells stories that illustrate the under-appreciated gap between our ability to innovate and our ability to foresee the consequences. The seminar, led by Bill Frayer is open to all LCS members.
Nominations
The Community Awards Committee is pleased to have received many nominations for folks to be recognized at a ceremony scheduled for the early spring. There is still time to get nominations for hardworking people in our community to the committee. The deadline is December 31. Send your nominations by letter to Tod Jonson at the Lake Chapala Society or email them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Christ Church Anglican
Christ Church Anglican Fellowship will not meet on December 18. They will join St. Andrew’s Anglican Church in celebrating the ordination of Rev. James Priddy as an Anglican priest. Christ Church will celebrate Christmas with a Holy Eucharist, Rite 1 at the house of Kay and Danny Borkowski, Javier Mina 2 on December 24 beginning at 5 p.m. Father Borkowski’s sermon topic will be “Do not be afraid,” based on Luke 2: 1-20. There will be a potluck supper following the service.
Unitarians
The Lake Chapala Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (LCUUF) will meet Sunday, December 18, 10:30 a.m. at Sta. Margarita 113 in Riberas del Pilar. The service will be given by Trudy Crippen and is entitled “The Moon Belongs to Everyone.” They will discuss the Chinese Dong Zhi Winter Festival and will consider some of the cultural insights this festival offers. There will be a coffee hour social following the meeting. For more information please call 766-1119 or email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
St. Andrew’s Anglican
St. Andrew’s Anglican Church will celebrate the ordination of Rev. James Priddy as a priest in the Anglican Church at their service on Sunday, December 18, 10 a.m. Officiating will be The Rt. Rev. Lino Rodriguez Amaro, Bishop of the Western Diocese of the Anglican Church of Mexico. Bishop Rodriguez will also welcome some other members of St. Andrew’s into the Anglican Communion. Father Winston Welty’s sermon, “Someone Said Yes” reflects on all the ways in which our “Yes” to God prepares us for God’s coming to us at Christmas. St. Andrew’s will hold just one service on December 18, at 10 a.m. There will be a special reception to follow and all friends and neighbors of St. Andrew’s are invited. St. Andrew’s is located at Calle San Lucas 19, just a block south of the Carretera in Riberas del Pilar and there’s easy parking available on the street and in the church parking lot.
Christmas services at St. Andrew’s will begin on Christmas Eve at 6:16 p.m. when they gather in the Church for season carols that introduce the Festal Choral Christmas Eucharist at 7 p.m. After the service the traditional bonfire will be built in the church garden accompanied by home baked holiday goodies. Christmas Day services will be combined into one at 10 a.m. complete with music and a sermon entitled “Invitation from the Manger.” Whether on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, all are welcome.
Baptists
Lake Chapala Baptist Church will celebrate Christmas Eve with a special presentation of “Behold the Lamb of God,” a concert and a communion in two services, 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on December 24. The musical presentation has songs and instrumentals that reflect the birth of Christ and the times leading up to it. Patrick DuMouchel, Judy Hendrick, Miguel Nguyen, Eric Callis and Bob Hendrick communicate the story with voice, guitars, mandolin, banjo, lap steel, rhythm and strings.
As has become Christmas Eve tradition at Lake Chapala Baptist, the auditorium will be rearranged to place the Lord’s Supper at the center of the room, as well as the center of attention. There will be room for only 50 people per service. Free tickets are available at Lake Chapala Baptist or tickets can be reserved by calling the church at 765-2925 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to choose the 5 p.m. or 7 p.m. service.
“Behold the Lamb of God” will be presented, without Communion on Christmas day at 11 a.m., the only service of the day. No reservations are necessary.
Lake Chapala Baptist Church is located at the corner of San Lucas and Santa Margarita, on the mountain side of the Carretera in Riberas del Pilar. Regular Sunday services are worship at 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. with Sunday School Bible study with classes for all ages at 9:45 a.m.
Jewish congregation
The Lake Chapala Jewish Congregation will celebrate with their Annual Chanukah Latke Party on Wednesday, December 21, 2 p.m. Tickets are 100 pesos per person for non-members. Please take a salad (the latkes and trimmings will be provided). Please no meat, poultry or shellfish. Make reservations (a must) at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..