Assistance BBQ
Ranger BBQ will put on a fundraiser for the Lakeside Assistance Group (LAG), Saturday, August 26, 1 p.m. at the Centro Cultural Gonzalez Gallo.
This event will feature Redes y Cantos, a 19-person Mexican music group from Guadalajara.
LAG works with U.S. and Canadian firefighters and other groups to bring high-quality used equipment to fire departments in north shore Lake Chapala towns. Since 2015, LAG has delivered three containers of firefighting equipment from Ontario and British Columbia worth about $US10 million to 47 fire stations in Jalisco, with the priority going to nearby locations in Chapala, Jocotepec and Poncitlan.
Tickets are available at Diane Pearl, John Kelly, 331-768-0676 (cel), and Perry King, 763-5126.
LCS music festival
The Lake Chapala Society (LCS) is putting on a fun festival, Saturday, August 26, featuring Mike the Suspects, the Funky Drivers, La Catrina and Guadalajara band Roll Up. Food will be provided from Alex’s Pasta Bar and sweets and treats from the Café Corazon. A cash bar and Corazon de Malta craft beer will be available.
Tickets, 120 pesos for LCS members, 170 pesos for non-members and 200 pesos at the door, are available at LCS, Que Ganga and Diane Pearl.
Open Circle
Writer and adult educator Rachel McMillen will present “How Our Stories Find Us” at the next meeting of at Open Circle, held in the Lake Chapala Society (LCS) Sala, Sunday, August 27, 10:30 a.m. to noon.
She says: “In the world we live in today, with millions of people displaced by war or hunger – divided by conflicts and religion, divided by culture and politics – sharing our stories may be one of the most important and generous things we can do. Sharing our stories, talking together, communicating, is what makes us human. It’s what allows us to connect with each other, to understand each other. Without it we would be isolated islands that had no concept of how others felt or what others experienced. We would feel but we wouldn’t understand. We would sense but we wouldn’t empathize – and empathy is perhaps the most valuable thing communication provides. The pinnacle of our humanity.”
McMillen’s “Dan Connor” mystery series has been nominated for three awards, and her workshops are always in high demand.
For more information, go to opencircleajjic.org.
LCS seminar
Lake Chapala Society (LCS) members are invited to attend a TED seminar, hosted by Susan Weeks, on “The Case for Optimism on Climate Change” by Nobel Laureate Albert Gore, Tuesday, August 29, noon to 1:15 p.m. in the LCS Sala.
Gore poses three questions. The answer to the first question, “Do we have to change?” involves a bit of bad news. The answers to questions two and three, based on worldwide information on global policy changes and the development of workable solutions, suggest we have the means at hand and need only the will to prevail.
LCS Bus Trips
The Lake Chapala Society hosts a bus trip to Galerias Mall in Guadalajara Monday, August 28, where you can enjoy a free afternoon concert by groups participating in the International Mariachi Festival. The bus departs promptly at 1:30 p.m. from the sculpture in La Floresta. The cost for the trip is 350 pesos for members and 450 pesos for non-members. Sign-up is available at the LCS office during regular office hours, Monday through Saturday or via the LCS website, lakechapalasociety.com.
LCS Spanish classes
The Lake Chapala Society begins Spanish-language classes for LCS members Monday, August 28, running through October 14. Classes meet two days a week for 90-minute sessions at the Wilkes Education Center.
The LCS Spanish program uses the Warren Hardy Spanish language course, which is designed for the adult student. Several levels of instruction are available. The Program Manager’s assistant will be available to answer questions and take registrations every day during the week of August 21-25, 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on LCS’ blue umbrella patio. For more information, visit the LCS website: lakechapalasociety.com.
Heart of Awareness
The Heart of Awareness Community’s regular meditation and teaching session is on Wednesdays when the center opens at 3:30 p.m. and formal meditation begins at 4 p.m. August 30, the meditation period will be followed a video teaching by Ruben L. F. Habito, a Filipino former Jesuit priest turned Zen master. “We Are All Refugees: Seeking Our True Home” is the series title and this week’s talk is “Embracing the Spiritual Community.” The gathering ends by 6 p.m.
There are three additional hour-long silent meditation opportunities each week: Sundays and Mondays from 9-10 a.m. and Thursday from 11 a.m. to noon.
On Wednesday and Saturday mornings, from 9-11 a.m., Latika Pierrette Claude offers a gentle and spiritual yoga practice at the Center.
The Heart of Awareness is grounded in the teachings of the Buddha. Prior experience or affiliation is not required.
The center is located at Guadalupe Victoria 101 in Ajijic. For more information, go to heartofawareness.org, or call Janet Reichert, 331-043-4669.
Fundraiser for firefighter
The Cave is holding a fundraiser for injured firefighter Heriberto “Erick” Garcia Medina, whose family is facing a hefty hospital bill. The event is Friday, September 1, 8-11 p.m. and includes music and entertainment, raffle prizes and gifts, a DJ and dance competition and more. Tickets, 150 pesos, are available at the Cave, Diane Pearl, Mia’s Boutique or via Alicia, 331-466-9839 (cel), or Ady, 331-512-7961 (cel). The Cave is at Hidalgo 159 in San Antonio, next to Fenix Real Estate.
Tarahumara fundraiser
The Tarahumara Project will be raising funds to help support a free Tarahumara school in the Copper Canyon region at an event held at La Bodega in Ajijic on Sunday, September 3, noon to 5 p.m.
“Education is of the utmost importance for the survival of these shy people who inhabit the copper Canyon, and this school prepares them well for dealing with the outside world,” says said Libby Townsend, who with her mother Jeanne Chaussee began the Tarahumara project in 2006. “The students are willing to walk for miles in the snow, sometimes barefoot. The least we can do is make sure that they have the necessary supplies when they get there.
“At the school, the children are taught about different cultures and people, how to deal with them, and, most importantly, to be proud of who they are and where they come from.”
La Bodega will be offering up an Italian feast buffet for 190 pesos. All the proceeds will go to the school. The restaurant’s regular menu will also be available, with a portion of the proceeds donated to the cause.
All donations of cash or school supplies will be entered for a raffle of artwork.
Tarahumara handcrafts will be on sale, as well as donated jewelry and art. Also on the card for the afternoon is a 50/50 drawing and live music.
La Bodega is located at 16 de Septiembre 124. For more information, call Townsend, 333-495-7263 (cel).
British Society
The Lakeside British Society holds its monthly luncheon Saturday, September 2, 1 p.m. at Manix Restaurant, Ocampo 57, Ajijic.
The Lake Chapala Society turned 60 in 2016. As part of the anniversary celebrations, it embarked on an oral history project designed to capture the memories of expat pioneers, people who arrived on the shores of Lake Chapala before there were proper roads or grocery stores. These intrepid souls survived without all the comforts we take for granted, such as telephones and bank machines. Project Coordinator Harriet Hart has interviewed over 30 individuals and will share some of the highlights of their stories.
Menu choices begin with a small salad or vegetable soup, choice of steak pie with chips, fish and chips, pasta primavera or a large salad. Dessert is chocolate mousse. The cost is 150 pesos plus tip.
Contact Sue Morris at 766-0847 or Sue Sterlini at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to confirm your attendance and menu choice.
Lakeside Singles
Wednesday, September 6, the Lakeside Singles will meet at the Avocado Club in San Antonio Tlayacapan, 4-6 p.m. Reggae band Jamaica Me Crazy will entertain and margaritas and beer will be priced two for one. If you plan to attend, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..