Touch-A-Truck this Weekend!

This is quite possible the coolest fundraiser we've ever heard of and even though it's a little out of our vicinity (South Slope) we had to share this because it looks worth the short subway or bus ride.  PS 295, which is on 18th Street between 6th and 7th avenues, is putting on "Touch-A-Truck".  It is exactly what it sounds like.  They'll have 25 vehicles that kids can climb in, including a school bus, garbage truck, ambulance and more! The operators will also be there to answer any questions. For more info check out this site.

Carroll Gardens Library Upcoming Events.

Here are a couple of cool events we spotted that are coming up at the Carroll Gardens Library.  This first one below is actually Brooklyn Public Library but we spotted this sign at CGL. 

It's on May 11th and it's a bike ride, where you get to choose your route and ride from branch to branch, and raise funds for Brooklyn Public Library.  Great idea! Click here for more info.
  
This event below is coming up very soon, next Tuesday April 23rd 6:30-7:30pm.  It's a family night geared towards younger children (it says they have Kindergarten kits for kids to learn math and science).  This event is on the main floor of CGL.

Fundraiser in the Park

What's a better way to kick off the summer than listening to great music and eating Caribbean food while soaking up the warmth of an evening outdoors. We're taking about Sunset Soca! This fundraising event takes place on Thursday, June 2nd from 6pm-9pm at Pier 1 of the Brooklyn Bridge Park. It's meant to raise money to support free programming in the park. So, if you have some to give click here to get tickets and enjoy the festivities listed below.

• Sure to get everyone on their feet, JahPan, an authentic Caribbean steel drum band, will provide the Soca, calypso, and reggae tunes. JahPan is based in New York City, but most of its musicians hail from Trinidad and Tobago, the country that created the steel drum!
  
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• Soca darling Lima Calbio will also perform a special musical set. Miss Calbio's dazzling vocal talent has made her one of the world's most popular Soca performers, performing alongside David Rudder, Arrow, Kassav, and many other artists. She won the Vocalist of the Year award at the International Soca Awards with her 2004 song "Di Garden." Most recently, she has been touring extensively with Byron Lee and the Dragonaires.


• The moko jumbies are sure to amaze guests with their gravity-defying dance moves. These traditional stilt walkers, popular at Carnival, will tower over the event in spectactular costumes and masks, all while dancing to the Caribbean beats!
  

A Taste of Red Hook

The fourth annual A Taste of Red Hook is right around the corner, both literally and figuratively if you live in the neighborhood. On Wednesday, October 6th, you can help raise money for the Red Hook Initiative, which is a local organization that works with lower income Red Hook residents. Here's a quote from part their mission statement: "The Red Hook Initiative works to confront and affect the consequences of intergenerational poverty through an approach that offers support in education, employment, health and community development." You can read more on their website. (http://www.rhicenter.org).

The event will have live music, food and beverages from the best of the best in Red Hook, including Red Hook Lobster Pound, Sixpoint Craft Ales, Steve's Key Lime Pie, and The Good Fork. They will also have a silent auction for gift certificates for Brooklyn area spa treatments, designer accessories, and more.

Tickets are $100 and are available at www.rhicenter.org. The event starts at 6pm and will go until 9pm at the Kidd Yellin Gallery, 133 Imlay Street.