Pack a picnic, bring your blanket and settle in for an evening of entertainment at a free outdoor concert Friday, August 27 at 6 pm in WSU Vancouver’s amphitheater. Everyone is welcome, and admission and parking are free.

Local favorite Pepe & the Bottle Blondes will spice up the evening. The Copacabana-style band combines an eclectic ensemble of saxophones, trumpets, congas and percussion with bold singing by Pepe and silky harmonies by his back-up blondes. Pepe & the Bottle Blondes successfully blend dance, opera and musical theater with original songwriting and comedic wit to deliver a fresh and innovative experience.

The visually arresting performances of Pepe & the Bottle Blondes are enhanced with extravagant costumes and makeup that echo the indulgence and glamour of a 1950s nightclub. Their repertoire includes popular songs from the 30s to the 60s, a strong selection of tangos, boleros, rumbas, sambas and many other Latin-American rhythms.

Pepe & the Bottle Blondes have performed in San Francisco, Seattle and Los Angeles. Pepe has sung in Madrid, Paris and Las Vegas, including appearances with Pink Martini at the Cannes Film Festival and with the Oregon Symphony.

WSU Vancouver is located at 14204 NE Salmon Creek Ave., east of the 134th Street exit from either I-5 or I-205, or via C-Tran bus service. Concessions will be available. Dress for the weather. No tents or alcohol, please.

This post: “Pepe and the Bottle Blondes Concert”
was originally featured at Salmon Creek Live!

For more detailed neighborhood coverage of the People, Places, Activities and Events in Salmon Creek, please visit Salmon Creek Live!

Washington State University Vancouver (WSUV) in Salmon Creek will be hosting  two more Financial Aid and Scholarship Workshops this Summer; one July 15th at 5:30 and the other August 3rd at 6 pm.  Click link for more information on available dates and times.

If you have questions about how to pay for your college education, what scholarships are available, how to apply for financial aid, how to get your money, and more, this event is for you.

The workshop is free, parking is free, and it may help you find some free money, too.

Click Campus Map for directions on how to get to WSUV, including public transportation,  parking information and, of course, a map of the Washington State University Campus in Salmon Creek.

This post: “Show Me the Money”
was originally featured at Salmon Creek Live!

For more detailed neighborhood coverage of the People, Places, Activities and Events in Salmon Creek, please visit Salmon Creek Live!

Make a great gift of nontoxic home cleaning products for friends and family and learn how to keep your home free of chemicals during a free workshop!

Make green cleaning gifts for the holidays at a workshop co-sponsored by the Washington State University Clark County Extension Watershed Stewards and the Clark County Clean Water Program.

Watershed Stewards will provide practical tips on “green” cleaning using everyday inexpensive household products such as baking soda and vinegar. Learn how you can replace expensive and potentially toxic cleaners with earth-friendly products for a healthier environment for your family and pets.  Make a green gift this holiday season!

The FREE workshop will be held on Thursday, December 10^th, 2009 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Three Creeks Library, 800-C NE Tenney Road, Vancouver, WA. Pre-registration is required: Call WSU Clark County Extension at 360-397-6060 x 7703. Class size is limited to 25 participants. Participants can pre-purchase the $15 cleaning kit (optional) with materials to take home.

Kit includes: spray bottles w/waterproof labels for glass cleaner, furniture polish, “safer scrub” along with handy bottles of hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol, baking soda, borax and vinegar.  You’ll also receive two microfiber cloths, a recipe book and a handy carrying case.

WSU Extension programs are available to all without discrimination. If you require special accommodation, call WSU Extension Clark County at (360) 397-6060 ext. 0 prior to the event.

Bats turn into Vampires at night.  If you get bit by a bat, you’ll get rabies. Bats are just flying mice.  Actually, none of these myths about bats are true.  You can find out more about bats at WSU Vancouver in Salmon Creek on Halloween (I don’t think they could have picked a better day for a class about vampires…er, I mean, bats!)

“VANCOUVER, Wash. – Christine Portfors, associate professor of biology at Washington State University Vancouver, and Peter Ritson, instructor of chemistry at Clark College will give their seventh annual presentation on bats Oct. 31, from 2 – 4 p.m. in Administration building, room 110. The event is free and open to the public. It’s an ideal activity for families with children 4 to 12 years old.

At a time of year when bats are often portrayed as blood-sucking, vicious animals, local families have an opportunity to see live bats up close, and learn why bats are largely misunderstood. In addition to teaching the visitors about bats, Portfors and Ritson will read a short story and lead the group in making bat crafts.

In the presentation, Portfors dispels popular folklore and teaches about the beneficial role bats play in nature managing insect pests, pollinating plants and dispersing seeds. She shows pictures of different bats, as well as a few of her captive tropical fruit bats.

“Many people want to get rid of bats and consequently, certain species are becoming endangered,” she said. “These misunderstood animals need to be understood in order to protect them. My role as a scientist is to help educate the public about their importance, and kids especially have a lot of fun coming to see the live bats.”

Portfors is a biologist and neurobiologist who has studied bats in the wild and in the lab for more than 15 years. For more information about her research, visit her website, “The Bat Lab,” at www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/portfors/portfors_home.html

WSU Vancouver is celebrating 20 years of bringing quality education, research and service to the citizens of Southwest Washington. The campus is located at 14204 NE Salmon Creek Ave., east of the 134th Street exit from either I-5 or I-205, or via C-Tran bus service. WSU Vancouver offers 16 bachelor’s degrees, 10 master’s degrees, one doctorate degree and more than 36 fields of study. Learn more at www.vancouver.wsu.edu “

via Discover the Unspooky Side of Bats on Halloween at WSU Vancouver – WSU Vancouver Press Releases.

You don’t have to use harsh chemical products to clean your house. Learn how to make simple nontoxic products for pennies per ounce. These products are effective and are safer for your children, pets and your health.

This workshop, sponsored by WSU and Clark County Clean Water Program, will be held at the Three Creeks Library in Salmon Creek on December 10, 2009. For more information, call 360.397.6060 x 7703, or click for WSU Clark County Extension.

Workshop is free, but $15 buys a green cleaning kit to give to a friend for the holidays. 

Washington State University Vancouver in Salmon Creek is currently displaying a group exhibition of selected Watercolor Artists from the Southwest Washington Watercolor Society in the Engineering Life Science Building through November 6.

The Southwest Washington Watercolor Society was established in 1979 to bring fine art to the community and to encourage a higher experience and education for both artists and the community.  WSU Vancouver Art Galleries are free and open to the public 8 am to 9 pm Monday through Thursday, and 8 am to 5 pm Friday.

It’s time for the WSU Clark County Extension 11th Annual Harvest Celebration, celebrating the diversity of farming in Clark County, Saturday, September 19, 2009 from 10 am to 3 pm.  Visit participating farms for free during this time, many offering tours and other informational classes during the day.

“As a society, we are rapidly losing our connection to the land and our food sources. Today, vegetables come out of a can and meat comes home from the store neatly wrapped in plastic on styrofoam trays. These come to us after being shipped hundreds or thousands of miles from where they were produced. Many consumers do not give much thought to the farmer who grows and raises this food.”

Many children (and adults) do not know what their favorite vegetable, fruit, or type of meat looks like as it is being grown or raised; and many have never visited a farm.  Now is the time to change that.  There are many different farms open, from Alpacas to Zinnias, Goats to Grapes and everything in between.

For more information, participating farms and map, click here.

Do you have diabetes? Has your doctor told you that your sugars may be a little high? If the answer is “Yes”, then you may benefit from this free program.

This series of five classes will discuss the 5 important test all diabetics should be doing regularly and what the numbers mean, how to select the correct foods and portion sizes that keep your diabetes in control, the importance of exercise, how to eat out successfully and general tips for preventing serious complications.

Classes will begin Monday, September 14 at the Memorial Health Center.  The classes are free, but registration is required.  To register or for more information, call (360) 397-6060, visit the WSU Clark County Extension website, or view the Living with Diabetes flyer .