Briefly In The News

Fundraiser nets $7,000 for mammal center

The Pacific Marine Mammal Center raised $7,000 at its Martini Madness fundraiser at the Madison Square Garden Café on Saturday.

There were 175 people at the fundraiser lending support to the center and helping it provide medical care to its patients.

“We are grateful for the support of the community and the generosity of Jon Madison that has allowed us to have a successful fundraiser for the third year in a row!” Melissa Sciacca, PMMC director of development, said in a statement.

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Monks will come to Laguna for Tibet Cultural Week

Buddhist monks from a monastery in southern India will be in Laguna Beach to celebrate Tibet Cultural Week from Sept. 21 to 26.

The monks will build a mandala out of sand and sculptures made out of butter. They will teach what these visual symbols mean at an opening ceremony at 10:15 a.m. Sept. 21 at the Neighborhood Congregational Church, 340 St. Ann’s Drive.

Construction of these items will continue through Sept. 24 at the church. The public may attend a discussion on the sand mandala technique at 2 p.m. Sept. 23.

From 7:30 to 9 p.m. Sept. 24, the monks will chant and perform sacred dances. There is a suggested donation of $10.

On Sept. 25, the church will host a Tibetan Bazaar. The mandala will be dismantled at 7 p.m., and a fundraising dinner for the monks will follow.

The monks are from the Gaden Jangtse Tsawa monastery.

For more information and a complete schedule of events, call the church at (949) 494-9061 or Tenpa Dorjee at (714) 342-7998.

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Chabad hosts events for High Holidays

The Chabad Jewish Center is hosting events and services for the High Holidays.

A three-part adult education course begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday with a Rosh Hashana class, followed by a class on Yom Kippur on Oct. 4 and a Sukkot and Simchat Torah class on Oct. 10.

A Rosh Hashana-themed Friday Night Live for kids will be from 5 to 6 p.m. Sept. 23. The evening includes crafts, holiday stories and games, Shofar blowing and cake decorating. Admission is free.

Rosh Hashana events include: service at 7 p.m. Sept. 28; service at 10 a.m. Sept. 29; a Shofar Sounding at 12:30 p.m. Sept. 29; Tashlich service at Montage Beach at 3:30 p.m. Sept. 29; service at 10 a.m. Sept. 30; and a Shofar Sounding at 12:30 p.m. Sept. 30.

All services and programs are open to the community. To RSVP for programs, call the center at (949)499-0770 or visit https://www.chabadoflaguna.com.

Chabad Jewish Center is at 30804 S. Coast Hwy.

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Weekly update from the city manager

•Trolley ridership this year was up 20% over last summer, according to City Manager John Pietig. Over the 60-day period the trolleys ran, there were 581,700 riders.

•City tree trimming began Monday and involves the following streets: Coast Highway, Forest Avenue, Ocean Avenue, Second Avenue, Third Avenue and Glenneyre Street. The trimming is expected to continue through October.

•City crews will work on cleaning more than 900 drain inlets and more than five miles of storm drain lines over the next eight weeks. This is a twice-yearly job, done in the spring and the fall.

—Kelly Parker

Twitter: @KellyParkerTCN