Seattle News and Events for Jan. 23 - Feb., 2015

PHOTO: Officer Sam Brayboy talks with young people during a Donut Dialogue one of 3 workshops held as part of a youth organized march and celebration in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan. 17. The teens walked from Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Park to Rainier Community Center during the 10th Annual MLK Youth March. Susan Fried photo

Kappa Alpha Psi Celebrates Founder’s Day

The men of the Seattle Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. hosts the Pacific Northwest Cluster National Founder's Day Program on Saturday Jan. 24.

The site for this closed banquet is the Seattle Central Area Senior Center, located at 500 30th Avenue South. The keynote speaker is Eric Pettigrew, Washington State Representative of the 37th District and a distinguished member of the fraternity.

The celebration’s theme is, "Kappa Men- Servants of the Community."

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity is a collegiate Greek -letter fraternity with predominately- African American membership. Since the fraternity's founding on Jan. 5, 1911, on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind., the fraternity has never limited membership based on color, creed or national origin.

The fraternity has over 150,000 members located on more than 406 college and university campuses and Alumni chapters arrayed in some 367 cities in the United States and 9 foreign countries. Kappa Alpha Psi sponsors The National Guide Right Program which provides educational and occupational guidance for youth.

For membership information call Ron Bennett at 253-561-9704 , or go to www.pnwkapsi.com.

Parks Hosts Momentia! Event to Support Dementia-Friendly Community

On Tuesday, Jan. 27, Seattle Parks and Recreation invites persons living with dementia, family, friends and all who support a dementia-friendly community to the 2015 Momentia! New Year Celebration at China Harbor restaurant.

The Momentia! New Year Celebration will offer refreshments, drinks, musical entertainment, dancing and karaoke. To register, call Cheryl Brown, Seattle Parks and Recreation, at 206-386-9106 before Jan. 23. Tickets cost $12.

Seattle Parks and Recreation piloted dementia-friendly recreation in 2014 in response to the growing number of community members living with memory loss and the firm belief that people living with memory loss should remain a vital part of our community.

With the official launch of the program in 2015, Parks is working with a variety of local partners to offer engaging programs like watercolor painting in the park, walks at the zoo, volunteering at the food bank, and more.

Programs are mainly geared toward persons living with Early Stage Memory Loss. Friends and family are also welcome to get involved. We’re glad to help determine which programs might be a good fit, within our own offerings and among the other options available in the community.

There will be limited van transportation to the event available from Greenwood Senior Center and Rainier Community Center. Reserve a seat when you register for the event. Sponsors include Greenwood Senior Center, Full Life Care and CareForce.

For more information on dementia-friendly recreation, please visit http://www.seattle.gov/parks/Seniors/dementiafriendlyrecreation.htm.

Mutlicultural Health Insurance Events in South Seattle, North Seattle

Local organizations, the Mexican consulate and Public Health–Seattle & King County host a health insurance enrollment event in Seattle’s South Park neighborhood on Saturday. Washington Healthplanfinder hosts another event at Northgate Mall on Sunday. Trained enrollment experts will: 

• Enroll residents in the plan that best fits their needs
• Determine whether or not residents are eligible for financial help
• Compare brand new plans side-by-side
• Review the website in Spanish and other languages (including Russian, Tagalog, Somali, Amharic, Vietnamese).

Support for Saturday’s event in South Park comes from Public Health, SPIARC, Consulate of Mexico, SeaMar, WithinReach, Denise Louie, Western WA National Hispanic Nurses Association, and the UW School of Nursing.

With less than one month before a Feb.15 deadline to enroll in a health insurance plan through Washington Healthplanfinder, local organizations are reaching out to include non-English speakers. Saturday Jan. 24, 2 to 6 p.m., South Park Information and Resource Center, 8201 10th Ave S., Seattle; and Sunday Jan. 25, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Northgate Mall (Ben Bridge Court), 401 Northeast Northgate Way.

For more information go to http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices.

Art Panel For 'Texture: Visual Artists and Poets Create' 

Artists and poets featured in the Method Gallery's TEXTure exhibit will read from and discuss their work with curator Mary Coss from 6 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29 at the Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium.

In this panel discussion, poets and artists will discuss the reaction-based artistic process that led to the TEXTure exhibit. The poets will read from work that inspired artwork, as well as new poetry responding to the artwork. Poet and artist collaborations will include the following creative groups.

• Poet Sherman Alexie with artists Lia Yaranon Hall and Cedar Mannan
• Poet Jeannine Hall Gailey with artist Carol Milne
• Poet Daemond Arrindell with artist Maura Donegan

After the readings and discussion, a free public reception will follow at Method Gallery in Pioneer Square, 106 Third Ave. S., info@methodgallery.com.

Method is a non-commercial exhibition space in Pioneer Square. It strives to present unconventional art that is predominantly based in sculpture, installation, new media or performance. The TEXTure exhibit is funded in part by the Seattle Office of Arts and Culture, as well as a Neighborhood Matching Fund award from the City of Seattle, Seattle Department of Neighborhoods.

Library events are free and open to the public. Registration is not required. Parking is available in the Central Library garage for $6 after 5 p.m.

For more information, call the Library at 206-386-4636 or www.spl.org.

Biography of Mixed Race Abolitionist Featured

Community leader Carver Clark Gayton will read from his book "When Owing a Shilling Costs a Dollar: The Saga of Lewis G. Clarke, Born a 'White' Slave" from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29 at the Douglass-Truth Branch, 2300 E. Yesler Way.

Library events are free and open to the public. Registration is not required. Street parking is free and available near the Library branch. Copies of the book will be available for purchase.

Gayton, a descendent of Seattle pioneers, will recount stories in the life of his great grandfather, Lewis G. Clarke, a famous black abolitionist. Clarke's experiences as a slave significantly influenced the narrative of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowe.

For more information, call the Library at 206-684-4704 or wwwspl.org.

The Writer's Craft at Madrona K-8 School Feb. 2

Author Ben Mikaelsen will present an informative and entertaining discussion of the challenges he faced in creating his books from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 2 at the Madrona K-8 School Library, 1121 33rd Ave., Seattle, WA 98122.

Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is not required. Free child care will be provided for children ages 3-12 by the Madrona Community Council.

Mikaelsen will present a slide show of his experiences as he tries to uncover the "soul of a story." These experiences include raising a 700-pound black bear, living with the homeless, working with dolphins, attending space camp, going undercover with Drug Enforcement Administration agents and living with the Maasai in Africa.

Mikaelsen is an award-winning children's fiction author whose novels include "Touching Spirit Bear," "Stranded" and "Jungle of Bones." He lives in the mountains near Bozeman, Montana with his wife.

This event is presented in partnership by Madrona PTSA, The Seattle Public Library and Seattle Public Schools.

For more information, call the Library at 206-386-4636 or www.spl.org.

Alexandra Fuller Reads from 'Leaving Before The Rains Come'

Memoirist Alexandra Fuller will read from her latest book, "Leaving Before the Rains Come," from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5 at the Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium.

Library programs are free and open to the public. Registration is not required. Parking is available in the Central Library garage for $6 after 5 p.m.

Fuller takes on the rise and fall of her marriage and addresses how her father shaped her view of the world in her new memoir. In hopes of understanding what went wrong and finding ways to rebuild her life after a painful divorce, Fuller turns to her African past for answers. As she explores the memories of her childhood, she hunts for clues as to what it means to live life completely and without regret.

Fuller is the author of "Don't Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood," a memoir about coming of age in Rhodesia as a long civil war raged in neighboring Mozambique, and the follow-up memoir "Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness."

For more information, call the Library at 206-386-4636 or www.spl.org.

For more Seattle and Portland area events, check our Community Calendar.