Savor the Flavor Benefits Valley Women and Children

Minden resident Pam Mann plays Megabucks at Carson Valley Inn last year. She won pulls on the Megabucks machine from the Soroptimist International of Carson Valley Savor the Flavor event. She won $502.

Shannon Litz / file photo

Soroptimist International of Carson Valley invites the community to have a drink, sample some food and support local women.

Their 17th annual Savor the Flavor event is 6 p.m. Saturday at Genoa Lakes Golf Resort.

“It's always nice at the club,” chairwoman Rosann Turigliatto said. “There will be lots of wine, beer, food, music, and everybody can have a good time.”

Tickets are $40 at the door, or $35 in advance at Battle Born Wine, Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce, Genoa Country Store, Nevada State Bank, Tahoe Ridge Winery, and US Bank.

Guests can wander upstairs or downstairs sampling food by Killer Salsa, Best BBQ, Genoa Cattlewomen's Association, Hamdogs, Papa Murphy's, Genoa Lakes and others. Wine will be provided by local distributors such as Tahoe Ridge Winery and Battle Born Wine.

Music will be provided by DJ Bill McClain and Vargas and Martin will play guitar.

For $5 a ticket, guests can enter drawings for 100 pulls on a Megabucks slot machine plus dinner for two and a one-night stay at Carson Valley Inn, or they can try their luck at winning a wheelbarrow of liquor.

There will also be a silent auction with prizes including spa baskets, dinner gift certificates and a stay at the Hilton in Huntington Beach, Calif.

“It's an assortment of things,” Turigliatto said. “Whatever businesses want to donate.”

Proceeds from the evening's ticket sales, silent auction and raffles support the women and children in the Valley through community grants, scholarships and awards to help women improve their lives through education and career advancement.

The Soroptimists donate regularly to Abbey Crossing, Backpack Buddies and Boys & Girls Club of Carson Valley. They also give monthly cash donations to student achievers from Douglas and Sierra Lutheran High Schools.

Membership is open to working women. For more information about Soroptimist International of Carson Valley, visit www.sicarsonvalley.org, or call Brynn Bertuchi at 782-2268.

IF YOU GO

What: Savor the Flavor

When: 6 p.m. Saturday

Where: Genoa Lakes Golf Resort

Tickets: $35 in advance, $40 at the door

Info: 782-2268

via Record Courier

Mounted Posse Rounding up Scholarship Applicants

The Douglas County Sheriff's Mounted Posse is awarding a $1,500 scholarship to a high school or home schooled student who plans to attend an accredited college in the fall of 2012. Interested students can obtain an application from Douglas High School, George Whittell High School, or from the Posse's website at www.dcsmposse.com . Applicants must have a 3.0 overall grade point average and plan to pursue further education in animal science, agriculture, or criminal justice.

The Mounted Posse has provided scholarships for many years with recipients attending Western Nevada College, UNR, UC Davis, Colorado State, Columbia College, Notre Dame, and others. The deadline for the scholarship application is February 24, 2012. If you need more information about the Posse's scholarship program, please call Sandy Jonkey at 782-4107.

The Douglas County Sheriff's Mounted Posse is a non-profit organization providing mounted and ground support to the Sheriff's Office, promoting charitable and public service activities within the community, and promoting health and safety among equine enthusiasts. The Posse participates in local parades and also assists other non-profit organizations for a joint effort in local events. Please visit our website for additional information about the Posse.

Take a tour - Kids and Horses

Take a Tour | Kids & Horses

www.kidsandhorses.org

Kids & Horses is now offering a one-hour program and tour of the ranch to create more community awareness about our work. Join us at the ranch on a date listed below to see what we do!

Defibrillator Donation to Schools Strikes Heart of Community

Minden Rotary members, far right, Tim Ghan and John Carne, recently presented school district nurses and staff with 8 Automated External Defibrillators to be used at school campuses. Pictured from left are, Susie Brumbaugh, Carol Mortensen, Jen Ellis, Lisa Noonan, Mary Lahlum, Pat Sturgess, Lyn Gorrindo, Diana Schefcik, Brian Frazier and Rebecca Oxoby.

Jim Grant

Mary Lahlum knows that tragedy doesn't discriminate. It befalls adults and children the same.

“When you lose a kid, it really takes a toll on the community,” she said Wednesday. “Every time I turn around, I hear about something else. A cheerleader in L.A. A guy running a marathon in Scotland. It doesn't discriminate.”

Lahlum expressed nothing but gratitude for those community members who recently came together to fund eight automated external defibrillators in Douglas County schools. At the same time, she hopes the machines will never be used.

“At least they'll be there,” she said. “Minutes count. If an AED is on the premises, it can buy time for the person until medical professionals arrive on scene.”

Lahlum is a health aide at Gardnerville Elementary School, but she has more than a professional stake in the medical technology.

“It's near and dear to me,” she said. “If it saves one life, then all the cost and work put into it is so worthwhile.”

In April 2009, Lahlum's 15-year-old daughter collapsed at a swim meet in Carson City. Molly Lahlum, a sophomore at Douglas High, was pulled from the water and given CPR on scene. She died two weeks later while in intensive care at Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno.

“Whatever it was, it chose them. Why? I don't know,” Lahlum said of her daughter and others who have suffered. “But now, if someone goes down here, we can give them a few extra minutes until paramedics arrive.”

The mother is not alone in her cause. Molly was the third student to die from an incident on school property, or at a school function, in the last five years.

In May 2007, Joe Molter, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Carson City, died after falling unconscious during a track meet at Pau-Wa-Lu Middle School.

In September of the same year, 8-year-old Britt Mattinson, a third-grader at Minden Elementary School, collapsed during football practice on the lawn of the Douglas County School District Office in Minden. Resuscitation efforts made at a nearby hospital were unsuccessful.

On Monday, Britt's family met Lahlum and Julie Molter at the district office for a presentation of eight AEDs, which will be distributed to every school site not already equipped. School nurses and staff members had spent the day training for first aid, CPR, and use of the defibrillators. Training will continue into spring with help from the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District.

“We're going to train approximately 10 more staff at each school,” said DCSD Chief Nurse Jen Ellis. “There will be a code-blue theme at each facility, and they'll be trained on this particular Powerheart AED. That way if something happens, we'll know who can respond. There should be plenty of trained staff on campus at any given time.”

Lahlum said the devices are easy to use.

“The machine talks and walks you through everything. You can't mess up,” she said. “I talked to our principal, Mr. Brown, and we're going to temporarily mount one close to the multipurpose room until the new multipurpose room is built. It's a great place because the room is used for all sorts of activities. An AED will be good not only for our students and staff, but for everyone who comes in.”

Ellis explained the origins of the donation. When she became head nurse in 2010, she realized only four of 12 schools had AEDs on campus. She then started a fundraising campaign to equip the remaining schools.

“After countless letters I had written in the winter of 2010 and spring of 2011, John Carne, president of the Minden Rotary Club, came through for us,” she said. “With the help of one very special woman named Ginger Easley, of ReMax Realty Affiliates, they together raised us nearly $14,000 through donations from various generous and caring people and organizations in our community.”

Donations came from organizations like Carson Valley Medical Center, and from individuals like Alex and Jessie Hilgenberg of Anytime Fitness.

“I'm still in shock that our community is so generous,” Ellis said. “This wouldn't have happened without them.”

Ellis hopes that other school districts take Douglas County's lead.

“I really hope that other districts in Nevada see this as an inspiration to do the same type of project,” she said. “There is no reason not to. It's such a life-saving machine.”

via Record Courier

Sock Hop Benefits Abused Children

The Tahoe-Douglas Elks Lodge No. 2670 is hosting a Sock Hop fundraiser with dinner, guest speaker and live music to benefit Project Safe Haven.

The event is 5 p.m., Feb. 11 at the Lodge, 1227 Kimmerling Road, Gardnerville. Tickets are $15 and must be purchased by Monday.

The Nevada State Elks Association designated Project Safe Haven, a statewide emergency shelter care program for abused and neglected children, as its state major project in 1990. It was initiated as a joint project between the Nevada State Elks Association and the State of Nevada, Department of Human Resources - Division of Child and Family Services.

Cocktails begin at 5 p.m., with a hamburger/hotdog dinner served at 6 p.m.

Marla Morris of the Division of Child and Family Services in Carson City will speak about Project Safe Haven following dinner.

There will also be a bake sale, silent auction and raffles. Fabrizio will provide the music entertainment, and attendees are encouraged to wear their best 1950s-style attire.

The money donated from the sock hop is used solely to support about 150 Safe Haven Homes that care for the children when they are removed from harms way and placed into Safe Haven foster care homes.

All of the Safe Haven emergency shelter care homes are nonprofit foster homes that undergo very stringent inspections and investigation before being licensed by the state. Often the Safe Haven Homes are called upon in the middle of the night, weekend and holidays to provide a nurturing and supportive home for children, who are traumatized as a result of abuse and neglect.

For more information or tickets, call Toni Wendt at 265-6136.

via Record Courier

Mardi Gras benefits Austin's House

The fourth annual Mardi Gras Magic Dinner & Dance to benefit Austin's House is Feb. 17 at the Carson Valley Inn.

The fundraiser recreates the party atmosphere of Bourbon Street in New Orleans on Fat Tuesday with food, music, dancing, raffle prizes and a grand prize drawing for a trip to “The Big Easy.”

“It's not only for a great cause, but it's a great time,” said Conrad Buedel, board of directors vice president. “Most people get dressed up in Mardi Gras costumes, and this year we have more space for dancing.”

The evening starts at 6 p.m. with a cocktail hour. Then attendees will feast on a Cajun buffet dinner featuring peel and eat shrimp, chicken gumbo, blackened fish, sausage steamed in beer and smoked rib eye roast with all of the trimmings.

After dinner, dancing music is provided by Fabrizio. Raffle prizes will be drawn every 15 minutes. The silent auction features tickets to a Reno Aces game, a flight in a 1942 Navy Trainer Biplane, Lake Tahoe lodging packages and Genoa Lakes golf packages.

Tickets are $50. Tables of 10 are available for $500. Only 200 tickets will be sold. Call Austin's House at 267-6711 to order your tickets. Visa and MasterCard are accepted.

You need not be present to win the grand prize drawing for a three day, two night vacation at the 4-Star Harrah's New Orleans including dinner for two at Besh Steakhouse, tickets to the Audubon Zoo, Aquarium of the Americas and Entergy IMAX theater plus $500 towards airfare. Tickets can be purchased for $20 from Austin's House or any member of the board of directors.

Austin's House is the only emergency children's shelter in rural Northern Nevada.

Austin's House provides services and care for up to 10 children from infants to age 18. The children are placed at Austin's House after being removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. Austin's House provides the basic living necessities including proper nutrition, hygiene, rest, nurturing, recreation, companionship, life skills training and education.

The facility depends on continued generous support from the community to keep the doors open. For more information or to make a donation to Austin's House, call 267-6711 or visit www.austin shouse.org.

via Record Courier