Community Corner
About Town: Weekend Events In and Around Rye
A global adventure, Playland's opening, various benefits, tarot card readings, animal reiki, a kids' cooking class, a nature walk and a contemplative retreat.
There’s lots going on in and around Rye this weekend...
Friday
Westchester Children's Museum Benefit
Find out what's happening in Ryewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Westchester Children’s Museum benefit, 7 - 10 p.m. at the Ritz-Carlton, White Plains. Proceeds to help build WCM’s Museum Without Walls. WCM is slated for the boardwalk at Rye Playland. The museum will focus on an educational program to provide enriching, hands-on learning experiences to children and families who need it most. Information: 421-5050; www.info@discoverWCM.org.
Saturday
Find out what's happening in Ryewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Around the World in 80 Days
hosts 'Aroud the World in 80 Days,' a festive Mission and Outreach fund-raiser Saturday, 6:30 - 10 p.m. The globe-trotting adventure is sub-titled “Come Fly With Us” and will include a “Seven Seas Sampling” of wine, beer and hors d’oeuvres, surf & turf BBQ, silent auction, and more.
Dress is jalabas, turbans, cheongsams and spring casual. Best outfit wearers will be crowned the event’s Raja and Czarina and receive a wine prize. There will also be Polish/Greek line dancing, jet-setter music and free, on-site baby sitting. When the wine-and-dining is over, there will be a moveable feast of a silent auction continuing through Sunday, 11:15 a.m.
Items up for bid include vacation time shares, objets d’art, crystal and jewelry, fantasy golf outings, fun parties, fine dining, theatre and sports tickets, wine–by the bottle and case, and more.
All proceeds will go to worthy Community Outreach projects. Information: . 882 Boston Post Rd.; phone: 967-0842; www. ryepc.com
Grace's Garden, Jay Heritage Center
The Children’s Philanthropy of the Women’s Club of Rye will sponsor a cocktail reception at the historic , 210 Boston Post Rd., to raise funds to build a children’s exploratory space behind the 1907 Van Norden Carriage House.
The space will be named Grace’s Garden as a tribute to Grace Talcott Van Norden and her family’s philanthropy in the early 1900s. That’s when she and her husband Warner ran an early version of the “Fresh Air Fund” – inviting needy New York City children to their Westchester home as a kind of summer camp.
The garden will serve as an inspirational outdoor classroom and a lasting and green sustainable oasis. It will include native plants and herbs, whimsical topiaries, bird houses, twig arbors, sylvan glades for reading and more.
The garden’s location behind the 1907 Van Norden Carriage House is fitting because the edifice is the Jay Center’s primary learning facility. It is currently used for a range of curriculum-appropriate school programs in American history, architecture and environmental stewardship for ages 7-11, many from public schools.
The evening will begin with a tour of the Jay Mansion at 6 p.m. Reception starting at 7 p.m. at the Carriage House. Further information: 698-9275; www.jaycenter.org; gracesgarden1@gmail.com.
Rye Playland
will hold its 'soft' opening Saturday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. and Sunday, noon to 6 p.m. It has been providing family fun since 1928, and its more than 50 rides will be up and running for yet another season.
Middle School Cooking Class
Maria Reina, a private chef and caterer trained in NYC and Italy’s Parma and Rivisondoli, will present a Middle School Children’s Cooking Class from 1 to 3 p.m. at D’Agostino’s Kitchen, in the Rye Brook Shopping Plaza. She weaves basic cooking techniques into a fun and creative environment, giving kids the confidence and skills to make wholesome and delicious food. Information: www.communitypass.net/ryebrook.
Celebration of Learning Gala
The of Rye will host a Celebration of Learning Gala honoring community leaders for their commitment to Jewish education. The program will include a silent auction, cocktails, dinner, music and dancing. Information: 967-6262.
Tarot Reading, Animal Reiki, Prayer Mini-Retreat
hosts Michael Orlando Yaccarino’s “Heart Vision: A Tarot Happening,” 10 - 11:30 a.m. Animal Reiki with Eileen Savage, 1 - 5 p.m. Contemplative Prayer Mini-Retreat with Maureen Anderson, 8:30 a.m.- 1 p.m.
Information: Wainwright House, 260 Stuyvesant Ave.; phone: 967-6080; www.wainwright.org.
Sunday
Bird and Flower Walk
The Committee to Save the Bird Homestead will present a free guided Bird and Flower Walk at 2 p.m. on the Meeting House grounds, 624 Milton Rd. , and the adjacent Bird property. Both properties overlook significant salt marshes along the Blind Brook estuary and attract spring migrants.
Naturalist Alison Beal, Curator Emeritus of the Marshlands Conservatory, will lead the program. She will highlight the importance of this coastal habitat for wading birds and discuss the botanical characteristics of flowers in bloom. The walk will last about one hour. Bring binoculars if you have them. Information: 967-0383; www. preservehistory@earthlink.net.
So there’s lots happening ‘round town. Enjoy!