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Pay It Forward Tutoring at Leland High in Almaden Valley

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Pay It ForwardWhat does the term ‘pay it forward’ mean? It means if you have benefitted from a philanthropic act, you repay by helping another person in need instead of the one who was originally kind to you. In other words, instead of paying back, you pay it forward. In Almaden, a group of altruistic high schoolers are doing just that with ‘Pay It Forward Tutoring’.

The Pay It Forward team comprises a group of highly motivated students from Leland High who “understand the value and impact of education in their lives and in the community”. And their way of giving back to the community is by tutoring elementary and middle school children throughout the year in various subjects.

The program benefits Reading Partners, a non-profit organization that, in turn, works nationally to offer in-school, one-on-one tutoring to needy students as well as helps them develop literacy skills.

For their tutoring service, the Pay It Forward team accepts donations made out directly to Reading Partners. The team estimates that this year the donations received will help sustain individual tutoring for more than 1,300 students in the Bay Area alone. To this end, they expect to raise $10,000. So, if you have a child at home in need of tutoring, don’t wait. Reach out to http://www.payitforwardtutoringsj.org and help pay it forward!

New Almaden Day Jump-In Parade 2016

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New Almaden DayMark your calendars for this year’s New Almaden Day Jump-In Parade! The event will take place on Saturday, Sept. 10th in celebration of the 36th Annual New Almaden Day. The parade will begin at the New Almaden Community House on Bertram Road at 11am. The route will continue along Bertram Road and through the intersection of Almaden Road. Arrive early and get a parking spot at the Hacienda entrance to Almaden Quicksilver County Park, because the streets will be busy and parking will be tough. The parade will feature convertibles, antique cars, floats, equestrians and more. After the parade, awards will be presented for the “Best of Show” and a barbecue will start right after. There will also be live music, kids games, a raffle, a cake walk, and a bake sale. Come join New Almaden and Almaden residents in this fun Almaden Valley community event. For more information contact Kitty Monahan at 1-408-268-6541.

Almaden Valley Art & Wine Festival 2016

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Almaden Valley Art & Wine Festival 2016It’s that time of year again in the Almaden Valley! The 40th Annual Almaden Valley Art & Wine Festival 2016 will be held on Sunday, September 11, at Almaden Lake Park from 10am to 6pm. This year the community celebrates a milestone of four full decades of sponsoring the festival, which hosts over 90 vendor booths including a number of local artists and craftspersons selling their paintings, jewelry, sculptures, and much more.

The food at the festival will be local and diverse, including Indian specialties from Mayuri, pizza from Oak & Rye, Mexican cuisine from Carmen’s Taqueria, and Asian fusion from Cross Hatch Eatery. There will also be Gourmet Food Trucks offering even more variety, and of course you’ll find dessert favorites such as shave ice and kettle corn. The popular Premium Wine Tent will be offering selections from Rombauer Vineyard in Napa and Leal Vineyards in Hollister, along with selections from other local wineries. Not the wine connoisseur? Grab a beer from a beer truck and relax at the Beer Garden! Festival glasses with the Art and Wine Festival logo will be sold at local merchant booths.

The Kid’s Fun Zone will have a rock climbing wall, carnival games, and jump houses. The Fun Zone stage will feature performances by local school bands, dance groups, cheerleading squads, and professional entertainers. There will also be a Main Stage with performances by Joanne LeBlanc, Fog City Band, Big Mike and the HartBeats, Leland High School Cheer & Dance, and many more. The Main Stage and Kid’s Fun Zone entertainment schedules are available online at www.almadenwine.org/events. To top it all off, there will be a silent auction with items such as signed sports and entertainment collectibles, limited edition art, fabulous designer jewelry, and tickets to local attractions.

The Almaden Valley Art & Wine Festival is sponsored by the Almaden Valley Women’s Club, which raises funds for the festival every year. The festival is also made possible through the support of local sponsors as well as the City of San Jose. All proceeds from the festival are donated to non-profit organizations and local schools. As always, admission and parking are free, and a free shuttle service is available. Come join the Almaden Valley community in celebrating the 40th anniversary of this popular annual event!

Almaden Community Center Activity Guide – Fall 2016 – UPDATED 2022

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Almaden Community Center Activity Guide[CLICK HERE FOR ACCESS TO MORE RECENT ALMADEN COMMUNITY CENTER ACTIVITY GUIDE.]

Check out the Almaden Community Center Activity Guide for Fall 2016! The guide contains classes and programs for children of all ages from dance and music to health and fitness and specialty camps. There are also a variety of new classes including 3D Cartoon Drawing, Fundamentals of Drawing, Intro to Pastels, Preschool Artist, Little Medical School, and many more. The Almaden Community Center even offers a recreation preschool and KinderCare to prepare children for elementary school.

Make note of some important dates mentioned in the guide, such as the 9th Annual Harvest Festival happening on Saturday, October 22, from 11am to 4pm. The Harvest Festival is an opportunity for residents to enjoy local art, eat good food, and pick pumpkins out of a pumpkin patch just in time for Halloween. The guide also highlights Breakfast with Santa on December 10 from 9:30am to 12pm. Additionally, there are Free Movie Fridays in the Community Room on September 30, October 28, and November 18.

There’s something for all ages in the Almaden Community Center Activity Guide. Fall registration has already begun. Register directly at the Almaden Community Center (6445 Camden Ave., SJ 408.268.1133) or online at www.sjregistration.com.

Emerge 5K Run at Almaden Lake

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5k run Almaden LakeThis Saturday, August 6, take part in the “Emerge 5K Country Redneck Run” at Almaden Lake. The run is for adults and children alike, with a special starting time for the more serious timed runners. Registration opens at 8:30am. Country line dancing warm-ups begin at 9am and the race starts at 9:30am. The event will conclude with a closing ceremony, featuring a prize for best costume as well as running awards. Emerge 5K is presented by Journey for Jessica in partnership with The International Brain Research Foundation. For more information, visit emergejfj.com.

Almaden Valley Community Events in July

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Almaden Valley communityJoin the Almaden Valley community this July in attending Music in the Park on Thursday nights 6:30-8:30 PM at Greystone Park (Mt. Carmel @ Camden Ave.). This past week Old School Rock & Roll headlined. The upcoming acts for the month include The Houserockers, Free Fahlen, and Sage, each performing their own respective genres of music each upcoming Thursday this month. This event is open to all Almaden Valley residents and is a great way to relax and listen to music with the Almaden Valley community.

This past weekend the New Almaden community hosted one of its weekly Saturday events “What’s In a Ranger’s Truck?” At the Almaden Quicksilver County Park, all attendees were welcome to view the inside of a Park Ranger’s truck and learn about the various tools used by rangers on the job, whether used for helping aid others in an emergency or for search and rescue purposes.

4th of July in Almaden Valley! – UPDATED 2022

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Happy 4th of July in Almaden Valley! Here are some family-fun events going on in the Almaden Valley community this weekend… [CLICK HERE FOR MORE RECENT POSTS ABOUT 4TH OF JULY IN ALMADEN VALLEY]

Almaden Lake Park4th of July in Almaden Valley 1

Spend 4th of July at Almaden Lake Park’s 3rd annual Family Fun Festival and Firework Show! Performing for the Almaden Valley community on this Independence Day will be The Snarky Cats Band, School of Rock, Pete the Magician and Lyric Theater. All food at the lake will be available from local Almaden Valley eateries. Attendees are invited to support our troops abroad by writing a letter to a soldier in Afghanistan. The festival will be held from 3:00 pm to 9:30 pm (when fireworks are over). This family-friendly event is open to all Almaden Valley residents and is a great way to celebrate the upcoming holiday. For more information, click here. [EVENT IS CLOSED]

Montevideo Neighborhood4th of July in Almaden Valley 2

The Montevideo neighborhood of Almaden Valley is having its own Independence Day festivities featuring a race, a parade, and a pool and BBQ party. Children are encouraged to dress up as their favorite comic book heroes to fit the theme: Favorite Toys and Comics. The four-mile race begins at 8 am starting at Coleman Road and proceeding through the neighborhood. The parade begins at 11 am where there will be festive floats and residents with decorated bikes, strollers and wagons. The pool and barbecue party takes place from 12 pm to 5 pm. For more information, click here. [EVENT IS CLOSED]

As always, if you need any help with your Almaden Valley real estate needs, let us know.

Run Turkey Run!

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There’s excitement in the air and hundreds of Almaden residents are gearing up for the valley’s much-anticipated annual event, Run Turkey Run! This family fun run is hosted every year on Thanksgiving Day by the Bret Harte Middle School, San Jose. This year too, hundreds of families are gearing up to run the 10K and the 5K in aid of the Broncos on November 26, 2015.

At 8.30 am, Almaden parents and children of all ages will be gathering at Leland High School, 6677 Camden Avenue, for this exhilarating event. Both the 5k and 10k courses will be run on the paved Los Alamitos Creek Trail and the Open Space area and participants will circle back to Leland High.

The event is also a fundraiser for the Bret Harte Booster Club, which supports various academic, athletic and social programs for all of its students. So, go on and run. Join in the fun.

Tips on How To Prepare Your Home for Holiday Guests

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Article From HouseLogic.com By: Lisa Kaplan Gordon Published: November 14, 2011

Thanksgiving dinnerIs your home ready for holiday visits from friends and family? Here’s how to prepare for the invasion.

I’m lucky and have a guest suite always ready for holiday guests. But even with a dedicated space, preparing my home for the annual onslaught of friends and family takes time and forethought.

Some preparations for holiday guests take only a few minutes; some take a lot longer. My advice: Start preparing your home for the holidays now.

 

Prioritize

The day before guests arrive is no time to pull apart junk drawers and clean out linen closets. Declutter guest rooms and public areas — foyer, kitchen, living room, den, and dining room. Remove anything unnecessary from countertops, coffee tables, and ottomans; if it’s out of sight, keep it out of mind, for now.

If you run short of time, bag up the clutter and store it in car trunks, basements, and out-of-the-way closets. Sort and arrange after your guests depart.

 

Safety

Light the way: Even though you can navigate your home blindfolded, your guests can’t. Make sure outside lights are working so they don’t trip on the way to your door. Put motion-activated night lights in hallways, bathrooms, and bedrooms to ensure safe passage after the sun sets.

Child proofing: Ask parents to bring hardware that keeps their small ones safe, such as baby gates and cabinet locks. Transfer toxic cleaners and medicines from base to wall cabinets. Hide matches and lighters.

Fire prevention: If you didn’t freshen smoke detector batteries when you switched the clocks to Daylight Savings Time, change them now. After your guests arrive, run a quick fire drill: Make sure they can locate exits and fire extinguishers, and that they know how to open windows and doors.

 

Entryway upgrades

Your home’s foyer is the first place guests see, so make a good first impression.

  • Upgrade exterior entry doors or give old doors a new coat of paint. Polish and tighten door hardware, and oil hinges to prevent squeaks.
  • Remove scratches from hardwood floors, stairs, and wood railings. Place a small rug or welcome mat at the entrance to protect floors from mud and snow.
  • Clear out shoes, umbrellas, and other clutter.
  • Add extra hooks to walls so guests can hang coats and hats.
  • Add a storage bench where guests can remove boots and shoes.

Kitchen prep

Your kitchen is command central during the holidays, so make sure it’s ready for guests and extra helpers.

  • To increase storage, install a pot rack to clear cooking items off countertops and ranges.
  • Move your coffee station into a family room so guests don’t crowd the kitchen when you’re trying to fix meals.
  • If you like to visit while you’re cooking, place extra stools and chairs around the perimeter of your kitchen so guests can set a spell.

Sleeping arrangements

If you’ve got a guest room, replace the ceiling fixture with a ceiling fan and light combo, which helps guests customize their room temperature without fiddling with the thermostat for the entire house.?

To carve sleeping space out of public areas, buy a folding screen or rolling bookcase, which will provide privacy for sleepers. Fold or roll it away in the morning.

 

Bathroom storage

Bring toilet paper, towels, and toiletries out of hiding, and place them on open shelves so guests can find them easily.

If you don’t have enough wall space for shelves, place these items in open baskets around the bathroom.

Also, outfit each tub with a bath mat (to avoid falls) and each toilet with a plunger (to avoid embarrassment).

 

What tips do you have for getting ready for guests this holiday season?

Visit HouseLogic.com for more articles like this. Reprinted from HouseLogic.com with permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

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