– Youth orchestra will perform at Brookdale
The Bravura Youth Orchestra of central New Jersey will hold its year-end concert at 7 p.m. May 17 at the Performing Arts Center of Brookdale Community College, 765 Newman Springs Road, Lincroft.
The free concert will feature three winners of the 2015 Bravura Youth Young Artists Concerto Competition: Iris Kwak, Sabrina Park and Kaylee Wang.
Iris Kwak, 15, is a pianist from West Windsor. She has won prizes in the New Jersey Music Teachers Association competitions and she has performed as a soloist in Lincoln Center and Carnegie Weill Recital Hall. Iris will play the first movement of the Grieg Piano Concerto in A minor.
Violinist Sabrina Park from Colts Neck is a high school senior at the Ranney School, Tinton Falls. Sabrina has participated in music programs at the New England Music Camp and Meadowmount School of Music.
Sabrina was awarded first place at the Crescendo International Competition and Count Basie’s Competition for Young Violinists, and she has been a member of the New Jersey All-State Orchestra. Sabrina will perform the first movement of Saint-Saens Violin Concerto No. 3.
Kaylee Wang, a 14-year-old flutist from Marlboro, is a freshman at High Tech High School, Lincroft. Kaylee has won first prize in the New Jersey Music Teachers National Association winds competition and advanced to be one of five national finalists. Kaylee will perform the Fantasia by George Hue.
– Chamber to hold business expo May 13
The Greater Ocean Township Chamber of Commerce (GOTCC) will hold its annual Business and Consumer Expo from 5-7 p.m. May 13 at the Jumping Brook Country Club, 210 Jumping Brook Road, Neptune.
The event will feature free admission, culinary samplings, exhibitors and door prizes.
For more information or sponsorship opportunities, call 732-660-1888 or visit www.gotcc.org.
– Artists to hold workshops at benefit
Back on the Racks will host a weekend of art demonstrations, workshops and pop-up shopping from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. May 16 and 17 at its new Space to Create location at 659 Broadway, Long Branch.
The event is free and open to the public, and weekend sales will benefit the organization Puppy Mill Awareness Day (PMAD). A representative from PMAD will be on hand May 16.
Artists from Back on the Rack’s new Space to Create program will hold demonstrations to preview their upcoming adult and children’s art workshops. Demonstrations will include painting furniture and other objects. Guests can learn simple ways to explore their own creativity with projects inspired by everyday items.
Participating artists will include Mary-Lou Fiorillo, Laurie Ruggeri, Pat Ristaino Dutton, Arleen Swart and Carol Azhadi.
Fiorillo, known for “refunking” junk, is a furniture designer and teaches furniture-painting techniques to students at Back on the Racks.
Ruggeri paints furniture and other items for businesses. She runs an art camp at the Middletown Arts Center and is an instructor at Back on the Racks, where she leads art workshops.
Dutton is an herbalist gardener who holds workshops on the making and sampling of herbal products.
Swart is a landscape designer, horticulturist and owner of Sea Grass Design and Landscape, who leads workshops on gardening.
Azhadi is a nail artist who holds workshops on garden-themed art on clay pots, rocks and other objects.
For more information about the event, visit www.backontheracksnj.com.
For more information about PMAD, visit www.awarenessday.org.
– Chambers to hold network event May 14
The Eastern Monmouth Area and Greater Long Branch chambers of commerce will hold a Business After Hours Networking event from 5:30-7:30 p.m. May 14 at the Holiday Inn Express, 294 Route 36, West Long Branch.
The event will feature networking opportunities and giveaways. Hot dogs, French fries and soft drinks will be served from Max’s Famous Hot Dog food truck, along with complimentary beer and wine.
Registration is $10 for chamber members and $20 for non-members. For more information, call 732-741-0055 or visit emacc.org.
– The Long Branch Elks Lodge 742 will host an “All-You-Can-Eat Italian Buffet” May 15 6-8 p.m. at 150 Garfield Ave., Long Branch. The buffet is open to the public.
The cost is $8 per person and includes meatballs, sausage, chicken Parmesan, linguine with clam sauce, stuffed rigatoni, pasta fagioli, bread, salad, coffee and dessert.
For more information, call the lodge at 732-222-9742.
– Program helps youth to learn, serve others
The Charles Lafitte Foundation’s (CLF) Kid’s Corner has a Champions of Change program, which helps children develop the power to change the world through community service, volunteerism and philanthropy.
The program teaches children how to run a book drive to benefit a non-profit organization of their choice. Youth learn to choose a non-profit beneficiary, find a location and collect and distribute books to the selected organization. The toolkit includes a sample letter to the non-profit beneficiary, permission letter, thank-you note and social-media graphics.
“I have seen the efforts of running a successful book drive firsthand, and I am extremely excited to share this program with kids across the country,” said Kyra Citron, director of CLF’s Kid’s Corner, in a press release.
Citron has run three book drives and collected a total of 10,000 books, which were donated to the Bridge of Books Foundation.
CLF’s Kid’s Corner is run by children for children and encourages them to not only have a voice, but also a role in helping better their communities. For more information, visit www.charleslafitte.org/kids-corner
– Baroque-style concert slated for May 17
A quintet of soloists and a period orchestra featuring Baroque instruments will join the Monmouth Civic Chorus for the concert, “Vespers Fusion,” at 4 p.m. May 17 at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, 101 Chelsea Ave., Long Branch.
A 3:30 p.m. talk on the unique Baroque-style instruments utilized by the orchestra will precede the concert.
Led by Artistic Director Dr. Ryan Brandau, the concert will include sopranos Abigail Lennox and Melanie Russell, mezzo-soprano Luthien Brackett, tenor Steven Caldicott Wilson and baritone Scott Purcell.
The orchestra will use reconstructions of instruments that Mozart and Monteverdi would have used, such as Baroque violins, violas, cellos, a violone, portative organ, natural trumpet and sackbut.
Tickets are $30 for adults, $27 for seniors, $25 for individuals in a group of 10 or more and $5 for students. Tickets and information are available by calling 732-933-9333 or visiting www.monmouthcivicchorus.org.
– Dog walk raises $140K for homeless animals
EATONTOWN — The Monmouth County SPCA (MCSPCA) celebrated 21 years of Paws Walking for a Cause at the annual Spring Dog Walk & Pet Fair held April 25 at Brookdale Community College. The event, held in conjunction with corporate partner Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, surpassed all fundraising goals, raising $140,000 for thousands of homeless animals that pass through the shelter each year.
Over 2,000 people and their pets enjoyed the festivities and supported the mission of the MCSPCA, according to a press release. Guests enjoyed a variety of gourmet food vendors, a demonstration by the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit, dog agility competitions, an alumni parade for dogs and a Cutest Tricks Contest.
Over 150 vendors displayed their products, with many donating 10 percent of their sales back to the shelter. One lucky winner took home over $11,000 through the 50/50 raffle, and six dogs found forever homes through the event.
For more information, visit monmouthcountyspca.org.