A free event during Fleet Week will honor K-9 heroes and their human friends.
Bark at the Park takes place Saturday, October 8 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Duboce Park in San Francisco's Duboce Triangle neighborhood.
People can watch and learn about working K-9s from the I Marine Expeditionary Force, Commander, U.S. Third Fleet, San Francisco Police Department, San Francisco Sheriff's Department, San Francisco Fire Department, U.S. Customs Border Protection Agency, Canine Companions for Independents, the California Rescue Dog Association, and others.
Bay Area Reporter society columnist Donna Sachet will emcee the program.
Organizers said the family-friendly event is open to the public.
Bark at the Park is produced by the San Francisco Fleet Week Association and the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management and is sponsored by Lyft and Pet Food Express.
For more information about Fleet Week festivities, visit http://www.fleetweeksf.org.
Shanti to honor Hernandez, Bernal
The Shanti Project will honor two out leaders at its fall benefit Thursday, October 13 in San Francisco.
Dr. Sandra Hernandez, a lesbian who was the former health director for the city, and Dan Bernal, a gay man who's a top aide to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), will be recognized at Compassion is Universal, which will be held at the Palace Hotel, 2 New Montgomery Street.
Hernandez will receive the Nancy Pelosi Lifetime Achievement Award. She is currently president and CEO of the California Healthcare Foundation.
Bernal, chief of staff to Pelosi, will receive the James C. Hormel Community Spirit Award.
The evening begins at 6 p.m. with a reception and silent auction, followed by dinner and the program at 7:30. Tickets are $285 and can be purchased online at http://www.shanti.org/pages/tickets_ciu_2016.html.
Shanti provides practical support to people living with HIV/AIDS and other illnesses. It also operates Pets are Wonderful Support.
First Girls' Festival in SF
World Wide Women has partnered with top business, technology, and entertainment experts for the first-ever Girls' Festival that will take place Saturday, October 15 at Fort Mason Center in San Francisco.
Organizers said the day is to celebrate daughters, nieces, and granddaughters by bringing them to the all-day festival that will be filled with over 100 activities, interactive skill-building workshops, and resources.
Special guests include filmmaker and Representation Project CEO Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Olympic soccer player Brandi Chastain, Silicon Valley venture capitalists Tim Draper and Sue Siegel, and Shark Tank investor Mark Cuban.
The Girls' Festival is meant to create a powerful and game-changing day of exploration and empowerment for thousands of Bay Area girls and their families.
There will be a Maker's space featuring everything STEAM (science, tech, engineering, art, and math) and BizWorld will host its own "Girlpreneur" competition.
World Wide Women was founded by Maureen Broderick and is dedicated to building a global movement for women and girls' equality through technology, philanthropy, and advocacy.
All-day festival passes are $10. Kids under 12 are free.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit http://www.worldwidewomenfestival.com.
Herrera to guest host ALRP benefit
San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera will be the special guest host at From the Heart, the fall benefit reception for the AIDS Legal Referral Panel that takes place Wednesday, October 19 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Julia Morgan Ballroom at the Merchants Exchange, 465 California Street.
The reception will honor outstanding attorneys and is expected to draw 300 attendees.
"ALRP is so proud to honor the tremendous contributions of longtime volunteer panel attorney Jerome Fishkin with our ALRP 2016 Clint Hockenberry Leadership Award in recognition of his years of work on behalf of people living with HIV/AIDS," said Executive Director Bill Hirsh in a news release.
The agency will also recognize immigration attorney Okan Sengun with the Attorney of the Year Award, and the law firm Morgan, Lewis, and Bockius LLP with the Firm of the Year Award.
The reception is a tribute to the dedication of ALRP board members, staff, and volunteer panel attorneys who contribute their time and energy on behalf of people living with HIV/AIDS. Despite a difficult economic climate for fundraising and a 50 percent increase in its caseload over the last decade, ALRP continues to provide free and sliding scale legal services to over 1,500 PWAs each year, the organization stated.
From the Heart will include wine and food, and a silent and live auction. Live auction items include getaway week vacations to Fiji and Italy, a Bay Area restaurants and wineries package, and use of an AT&T Park luxury suite at a San Francisco Giants baseball game.
Individual tickets start at $100 and can be purchased online at http://www.alrp.org or contact ALRP development director Jim McBride at (415) 701-1200, ext. 301 or [email protected].
Historical society to honor 3 at gala
The GLBT Historical Society has announced the recipients of its three annual awards for contributions to the advancement of LGBTQ history. The awards will be presented at the society's Living History gala, Saturday, October 15 from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Green Room of the War Memorial Performing Arts Center, 401 Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco.
Tamara Ching will receive the History Makers Award in recognition of her contributions on behalf of transgender people, Asian Pacific Islanders, people with HIV, and sex workers.
David Weissman will receive the Clio Award for his contributions promoting understanding of LGBTQ history through film.
Elisabeth Cornu will receive the Willie Walker Award in recognition of her leadership, generosity, and steadfast support of the society's work in the field of LGBTQ public history.
The evening will also mark the first gala for Executive Director Terry Beswick, who joined the society in February. Since coming on board, Beswick has overseen the move of the society's archives to its new home at 989 Market Street (lower level). The society also operates the GLBT History Museum, 4127 18th Street in the Castro.
Tickets for Living History are $125 and can be purchased through the society's website at www.glbthistory.org/gala.
TLC benefit to honor Atlanta organizer
Spark, the Transgender Law Center's annual benefit, will honor a longtime organizer from Atlanta Thursday, October 20 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Julia Morgan Ballroom, 465 California Street in San Francisco.
Last year TLC began a partnership with an Atlanta-based organization, Southerners on New Ground, as it seeks to become more involved in national issues.
The agency's Vanguard Award recipient is Dee Dee Ngozi Chamblee, founder and executive director of LaGender Inc., and the co-director of Solutions Not Punishment Coalition. She was the first trans woman to be inducted into the 20/20 Leading Ladies Society, an award given to women who have been living with HIV/AIDS openly and advocating for more than 20 years. Recently, Chamblee helped develop standards of procedures and training for the Atlanta Police Department specifically around interacting with trans and gender nonconforming people.
TLC will also honor the Porter family with its Family and Youth Award. Zeam Porter is a member of the joint TLC-GSA Network national trans youth advocacy board, TRUTH. He has worked with various groups in Minnesota, including the Minnesota Transgender Health Coalition. His father, Louis, is the executive director of the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage and his mother, Ea, is the community liaison manager for the University of St. Thomas College of Education, Leadership, and Counseling.
According to TLC, when Zeam Porter came out as queer and trans, his parents were supportive and became vocal advocates for trans and queer youth.
Slack Technologies will receive the Community Partner Award for being a visible supporter of trans advocacy.
Tickets for Spark are $150 and can be purchased online at www.transgenderlawcenter.org.