South Bay By Weekend Guide December 17, 2015

It’s been quite a holiday season so far…..mostly due to the very-unlike-So-Cal weather we’ve been experiencing. We braved the elements and attended the King Harbor Boat Parade, the Manhattan Beach Holiday Fireworks, and a couple of other events and parties last weekend. We alternately ended up frozen, wind-blown and/or soaked…..but they were all terrific events and much fun was had! Thank you, THANK YOU, to all the wonderful organizations that sponsor and support these time-honored traditions!

This is the final week to purchase raffle tickets for the most amazing stuffed stocking - the Manhattan Beach Chamber Holiday Stocking Drawing. The drawing will take place on December 23when one lucky person will win all the stuffings in the Manhattan Beach Stocking. The stocking will feature items from different businesses throughout the South Bay and is expected to have a value of over $10,000! Win it all in one stocking! Thousands of dollars in prizes - gift certificates, products and services from dozens of businesses. Tickets are $20 each or purchase 6 for $100. For additional information and raffle ticket purchase, visit the website at http://www.manhattanbeachchamber.com/2015-holiday-stocking-raffle/.

There will be lots of selling, swapping and singing at The Downtown Torrance Thursday Flea later today. The event features Vic Moraga performing holiday tunes; decorating Christmas cookies with Karren’s Krafts 4 Kids; antique appraisals for only $3 per item; and dinner and Happy Hour specials at the local restaurants! The event runs from 4 to 8 p.m. with FREE parking at The Depot Restaurant or the Public Parking Structure on Sartori. The Thursday Flea takes place at 1225 El Prado Avenue in Torrance. For additional information, visit the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/events/1059709284062327/.

The Redondo Union Band & Choir Programs present a Winter Concert tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Redondo Union High School. The concert features the Symphonic Band, Jazz Bands, Wind Ensemble, award-winning Marching Band & Dance Guard, and the Sea Hawk Singers along with a silent auction starting at 5:30 p.m. Admission is FREE and donations are gratefully accepted. For additional information, visit the website at http://www.redondounion.org. Redondo Union High School is located at One Sea Hawk Way, Redondo Beach CA 90277.

Hmmmm, registration is supposedly closed but you may want to try anyway……The City of Torrance Community Services Department hosts Breakfast with Santa on Saturday, December 19 from 9 a.m. to noon. How can you be sure Santa knows what’s on your wish list this year? This is important stuff and not something you want to take a chance on, so head to the Toyota Meeting Hall at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center for a meeting with the man himself. Guests will enjoy a delicious breakfast of pancakes, sausage, fruit, juice, milk and coffee. The event also features a puppet show by Jim Gamble Puppet Productions. Additional activities include cookie decorating, holiday carols, a picture with Santa, gift and a special treat. Tickets are $20 per person and can be purchased at the City of Torrance Registration Office located at 3031 Torrance Boulevard. Advance registration is required. No walk-ins will be admitted. Reservations can be made by phone at (310) 618-2930. Seating is limited and baby carriages and strollers are not allowed in the dining room. Children under 10 years of age must be accompanied by an adult. Don’t forget the camera! For additional information, visit the website athttp://www.torranceca.gov/events/webevent.plx?cmd=showevent;token=guest.f3fce200cecfb8f2c117db9548712ff7;eventID=123278. The Torrance Cultural Arts Center, Toyota Meeting Hall, is located at 3330 Civic Center Drive in Torrance.

The annual Beach Cities Toy Drive & Wrapping Party will take place in Hermosa Beach on Saturday December 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Hermosa Beach Community Center. The Beach Cities Toy Drive is held in cooperation with the Cities of Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach and will benefit children of local charities including: The Salvation Army, Richstone Center, 1736 House, LA County Toy Loan Program, Special Needs Network, Good Shepherd Center and the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Bring a new, unwrapped toy and help wrap hundreds of others! Free parking is available in the rear parking lot. The Hermosa Beach Community Center is located at 710 Pier Ave.

For the third year in a row, Cub Scout Pack 388 will host a FREE E-Waste Collection Event at St. Margaret Mary Church. This will allow the community to drop off unwanted electronic devices for responsible recycling while also raising money for Pack 388. This year’s event will take place on Saturday, December 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Cub Scout Pack 388 takes the environment very seriously. After an exhaustive audit of multiple recycling companies, Cub Scout Pack 388 has chosen to, once again, partner with All Green Electronics Recycling. “We choose to partner with All Green because they do a great job and have all of the required certifications in the industry,” said Byron Burkhardt, Committee Chair for the Cub Scouts. “They help us provide a safe, free and responsible option for recycling e-waste.” All Green is an e-Stewards and R2 certified e-waste recycler. In total, the Pack has eliminated 253 Tons of carbon emissions from polluting the atmosphere – a tremendous feat! “We hope this event will be even bigger than the last,” said Burkhardt. While electronic devices such as computers, laptops and cellphones are always accepted, Pack 388’s E-Waste Recycling Event Page provides a full list of all accepted and prohibited items for this particular event. It is important to check if your device qualifies for free recycling before going to the event. This event is a great opportunity for all of us to do a little pre-holiday cleaning to make some space for the holiday gifts by disposing our electronics in an environmentally friendly way. Additionally, Cub Scout Pack 388 earns a donation based on how much material is collected at the event. This funds programs developed by the Boy Scouts of America for the greater community. For more information about the event and a list of acceptable items, visit the website atwww.allgreenrecycling.com/cub-scout-pack-388-ewaste-recycling. St. Margaret Mary Church is located at 25511 Eshelman Avenue in Lomita, CA 90717.

Journey of Faith Church presents A Christmas Journey – a FREE musical experience for the whole family at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center December 19 through December 21. Celebrate the season of hope with singing, dancing and more. Invite friends and family to experience the Christmas season at one of the five FREE performances. In such a busy season, do we always get an opportunity to see, hear, and know the real reason for Christmas? A Christmas Journey will help you and your loved ones stop, remember and enjoy the true reason for the season! Tickets will be available at the box office one hour prior to each performance – they’re FREE and will be given out on a first come, first served basis. Show times are:

December 19 at 4 p.m. & 7 p.m.

December 20 at 4 p.m. & 7 p.m.

December 2 at 7 p.m.

For additional information, visit the website atwww.journeyoffaith.com or via email atcommunity@journeyoffaith.com. The Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center is located at 1935 Manhattan Beach Boulevard, Redondo Beach, CA 90278.

Alpine Village presents the annual Christmas Faire on December 19 and 20. The free event will take place from 4 to 8 p.m. both days. Guests will get in the holiday spirit with festive lighting, decorations and falling snow as Alpine Village is transformed into a cozy, snow-covered Bavarian winter wonderland. The event features arts-and-crafts vendors set up throughout the Village, a snow play area and craft area for kids to decorate stockings and ornaments. Santa will make a guest appearance each day of the Faire to take photos and hear what the children have on their wish lists for Christmas. Guests will enjoy holiday music by local artists and traditional German holiday fare including grilled bratwurst and Gluehwein (Glowing Wine), the German version of spiced mulled wine. For additional information, contact John Baumgaertner atjohnb@alpinevillagecenter.com or visit the website at http://www.alpinevillagecenter.com/events/holidays/. Alpine Village is located at 833 West Torrance Boulevard in Torrance.

The Torrance First United Methodist Church presents the South Bay Women’s Chorus Holiday Concert on Sunday, December 20 at 3 p.m. All are invited to this FREE event! A reception with refreshments will take place immediately following the performance. Torrance First United Methodist Church is located at 1551 El Prado, Torrance, CA 90501.

Saint Rocke presents a Holiday Party & Fan Appreciation Night with Lou Giovanetti on Sunday, December 20. In addition to Lou’s take on the Great American Songbook, the evening will also feature a wine tasting and complimentary appetizer buffet from 6 to 8 p.m. The doors open at 6 p.m. and the fun gets underway at 7 p.m. Tickets are $30 per person. This event is 21 and over. For additional information and ticket purchase, visit the website athttp://www.saintrocke.com/event/1024473-holiday-party-fan-hermosa-beach/. Saint Rocke is located at 142 Pacific Coast Highway, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254.

Adia presents Free Community Education Programs in collaboration with Hermosa Five-0. Classes will be taught by Adia Executive Manager of Corporate Education and Community Kinship, Khryste Langlais at Hermosa Five-0 Senior Activity Center located at 710 Pier Avenue in Hermosa Beach the third Monday of each month from 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. All presentations are free to the public. On December 21, attendees will learn about Identity Theft and Current Marketing Scams Directed at Older Adults. Understanding how to prevent becoming the next victim of identity theft is imperative and necessary. Unlike traditional crime, identity theft is invisible and very easy for fraudsters to do over a long period of time if not detected. Learn how to protect yourself and your assets by taking preventative steps of protection. In addition, learn about the most current marketing scams targeting the elder population. For additional information and registration, call Khryste Langlais at (310) 370-0555.

Here’s a heads up on a few future events you’ll want to plan for now!

http://www.southbaybyjackie.com/hermosa-beach-new-years-eve-extravaganza/

http://www.southbaybyjackie.com/club-countdown-2015-terranea-december-31-2014/

(I’ll be posting the rest of the big New Year’s Eve events next week!)

http://www.southbaybyjackie.com/redondo-beach-waterfront-deir-workshop/

(I went to the last one and it was very informative! If you have any comments, concerns or questions, you should definitely attend!)

One last note – there is FREE parking offered in several locations throughout the South Bay this holiday season to expedite your holiday shopping!

These are just a few of the events taking place, so be sure to check the Calendar links, Things to Do page and Daily Blog on my website http://www.southbaybyjackie.com for details on these and other events happening throughout the South Bay.

Yesterday morning on The South Bay Show: Redondo Beach: More to Sea our guest was Chris Cagle. Chris is a Regional Affairs Manager for the South Bay Workforce Investment Board, which is an organization that provides “no cost” business and employment services to the Los Angeles South Bay area of California. We learned all about the new website the WIB has recently launched. You can listen to yesterday’s show here: http://www.southbaybyjackie.com/chris-cagle-workforce-investment-board/. There’s ‘More to Sea’ every Wednesdaymorning at 8 a.m.!

This morning on The South Bay Show: South Bay Spotlight, our guest is Khryste Langlais, Executive Manager of Corporate Education and Community Kinship/Ambassador of Joyful Affinity with Adia. Khryste has been presenting a series of Free Community Education Programs – the next one will take place on Monday, December 21 at the Hermosa Five-0 Senior Activity Center located at 710 Pier Avenue in Hermosa Beach. Don’t worry, if you missed the program, you can listen to it here: http://www.southbaybyjackie.com/free-community-education-programs-with-khryste-langlais/. Tune in every Thursday at 8 a.m.to keep up with what’s going down in the South Bay!

Tomorrow morning on The South Bay Show: Manhattan Beach 360, our guests will be Sherry Kramer and Bob Tarnofsky from Continental Development Corporation and they’re going to tell us about several holiday promotions some of our local restaurants will be offering during this season of giving. You can listen to the showtomorrow morning here: http://www.southbaybyjackie.com/restaurant-holiday-promotions-with-sherry-kramer/. Tune in every Friday morning at 8 a.m. for the latest Chamber news!

Have a fabulous South Bay weekend!

Jackie

http://www.southbaybyjackie.com