March 3, 2020

March 2020 Palapa Society News

In this issue, check out our top events of the season, and get details on what’s to come!

11th Annual Todos Santos Open Studio Tour Event Recap

The 11th Annual Todos Santos Open Studio Tour was one for the record books! Over this 3 day event The Palapa Society Raised $10,740 USD. This total comes from our Wine and Cheese Sneak Peek and ticket sales for the event. This annual event is very well received in the community. Artists are delighted at the chance to show the magic of their work and to educate our guests about their craft. A few of our artists commented that this was their best year according to guests visiting their studios. This year we also had 63 volunteers that donated almost 400 hours of work! Thank you to each and everyone of you that dedicated yourself to this fun-filled cultural event.

Benito Ortega Vargas

Anne Hebebrand

Laurie Bauer

Photo credit: Vic Kirby

An Evening of Music with John Paul Jones, Miguel Ochoa and Friends

This year The Palapa Society had the honor of presenting a very special music event with John Paul Jones, Miguel Ochoa and musical guests from far and near. The show was an evening of traditional Mexican music that was born during John and Miguel’s casual sessions of playing together, and eventually grew into a full presentation including guests La Milpa de México from Mexico City, as well as talented local artists Divier Guive, Jorge Monteverde, Mateo Haeck, Leo Villalobos, Pepe Sosa, Jonathan Orozco and Julio Hanna, closing out the evening with the wonderful sound of La Todos Santos Cumbia Band. This special evening was one we will never forget. Our students started off the event with presentations about how The Palapa School has benefited their lives, followed by a short music and dance presentation. It was a moment we really enjoyed sharing with them. See the ¿Que Onda Palapa? section below for a special student report.

During this evening of music we raised $11,000 USD between donations, ticket sales, posters and the 50/50 raffle. So many of our donors were surprised that this event was priced so low, that they decided to give more. We still have a few donations filtering in from this grand event. Thank you all for your support! These funds will help more of our youth to obtain scholarships for our school.  "This was the most appreciative crowd I've played for in a long time." - John Paul Jones

Divier Guive

Mateo Haeck & John Paul Jones

John Paul Jones & Miguel Ochoa

Photo Credit: Laurie Bauer

¿Que Onda, Palapa?

from the students of The Palapa School Leadership Club

Concert Sets Fire to the Future! written by Sundury M., 10 th grade, Olivia L., 9 th grade & Pamela R. 8th grade The concert with John Paul Jones, Miguel Ochoa and friends at Doce Cuarenta café rocked the night for the Todos Santos residents and especially for tomorrow’s leaders. Sundury, Olivia and Pamela are sharing with you their experiences during this event. From Sundury, “It was such a new and good experience that taught me I can be brave and do things I never imagined doing before. I felt my stomach twist but it meant that I was really making it real and it was not just my mind.” Olivia says, “Being afraid to speak, then speaking in front of over 500 people was scary. But I did it and I learned a lot from it. It was fun to share a little bit about myself. I shared how The Palapa took me in and helped me to blossom.” Pamela, one of the dancers says, “I was afraid, but at the same time it felt so good. At the end of the event I thought all I did was worth it. We blew everyone away. We learned a lot about ourselves and how we can push ourselves to the fullest.”

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Valentine’s Day Rally written by Diego H., 9th grade The 9th graders organized an out-of-the- box Valentine’s Day rally in less than 24 hours. Last year there was a Valentine’s Day dance, but this idea didn't sound exciting for the students. Instead they mixed it up and created the event themselves. They started by organizing a rally map so they would know what materials and equipment were needed. Then, they organized teams by mixing grade levels which allowed for a mix of skills and creativity. Finally, they transformed the school to look like an amusement park! They had an absolute blast, and everyone was competing to be the team with the most points. It had such a big impact and will probably become an annual event.

Spotlight on… Volunteer Tim Doyle written by Kooper L., 7 th grade For the last 16 years Tim Doyle has put his heart and soul into volunteering for The Palapa Society. After decades in a successful career as a teacher and principal, Tim and his wife Susan moved to Todos Santos. They discovered The Palapa Society, not knowing how integrated Tim would become with the overall organization. For example, his ideas would steer The Palapa School to where it is now. Tim’s vision and commitment as a longtime member of The Board of Directors and on The Palapa School Advisory Committee have left an imprint that would not exist without his endless time and contributions. In the 30 minutes I talked with Tim I was blown away by his accomplishments and could have spent hours just listening to more.

Little Free Libraries written by Evie C., 9 th grade Little Free Libraries are in major cities all over the world and are now coming to Todos Santos. Donna Schultz, the director of the Biblioteca Elena Poniatowska, is leading the project. Three Little Free Libraries were installed in town at the beginning of February; one by Parque Los Piños, another by La Esquina Café, and the last by the Padrino Foundation office. Greg Thomas and Raye Schmucker are putting their time and hard work into constructing and painting them. The purpose of the Little Free Libraries is to get books out into the community. Donna wants people who do not have time, nor a way to get to the library, to have access to plenty of books. Donna says, “It is important to have access to books because a book is a gift you can open again and again.”

Viva la Tortuga

Susan Farrar visited our Puente al Inglés Program to share her knowledge about the ocean and the ways to protect it. This special lesson in mid-February helped our Puente students understand more about the importance of protecting our oceans and its inhabitants. Thank you Susan for this incredible experience for our Puente students. Susan not only gave her time, but also gifted our students with coloring books and pencils, which they used to learn English vocabulary related to the ocean. She was delighted at the response from the children: "It was gratifying to see the books I had purchased for them being enjoyed. Their facial expressions and excited voices were like a paycheck for me. As a former middle and high school English teacher and elementary teacher, my heart was bursting with happiness watching them consume the books."

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Did you know?

The children’s book ‘Chico, Dolor y Felicidad’ by local author Irma Arana Rodríguez is available at El Tecolote Bookstore in Todos Santos, with proceeds donated to The Palapa Society.

Please Help Our Programs

Adult English With the fast evolution in our local economy from fishing and farming to construction and tourism, The Palapa Adult English program would like to start vocational-specific classes for Spanish-speaking workers in the building and hospitality industries. To make this happen, we need your help. If you are interested in becoming an English Teacher for adults, contact Director Kate Lewis at adultenglish@palapasociety.org Puente Program (Bridge to English) Help our teachers in the Puente program! Become a Teacher’s Assistant for the beginner, intermediate and advanced classes for children ages 6-12. Contact Director Jayna Schweitzer for details at jayna@palapasociety.org.

Truffles and Titles

Thank you to the community for supporting the Biblioteca Elena Poniatowska Truffles & Titles used book sale. We are so grateful for your continued love and support for our Bi-lingual Community Library. We succeed because you care! Together we raised $400 USD to purchase new bestsellers. Be on the look out for them soon! 

Palapa Society Events 2020 Season

Tickets On Sale Now!

Sat, Mar 7, 2020 10:00 AM MST Historic Home Tour of Todos Santos Casa de Cultura Todos Santos, Todos Santos Tickets

Saturday Night Fever Feel the heat! A night of dancing, door prizes, and disco duds (optional)! Biblioteca Elena Poniatowska is the largest bilingual lending library in BCS whose shelves are primarily filled with gently used, donated books. To augment these donations as well as to continue to provide a variety of reading materials, both in English and Spanish, we need money - the proceeds from SNF will allow us to order new titles whether best sellers or classics, thrillers or trivia. Saturday Night Fever will take place March 21, 6—9pm , hosted by Alan Becerril of Gallo Azul with music provided by DJ Adrian. Local shardArtist, Cate Thomassen has created a special raffle item, “Succulent Table” a glass on mosaic valued at $1100 US for our event. Tickets are 50 pesos each or 3 for 100 pesos available at the library. (Need not be present to win) We ask you, our community, to join in the generosity of Alan, Cate and local businesses, to support this evening of food and fun. Your support will allow us to continue to grow and better serve Todos Santos. Tickets are $800 pesos/$40 US available at Liberia Tecolote and the library during business hours. Biblioteca Elena Poniatowska needs YOU!

Mark Your Calendars

May 17, 2020: Gastrovino Silent Auction to benefit The Palapa Society of Todos Santos, A.C. We are currently seeking donations of auction items and volunteers to help us with this pre summer event. Please contact events@palapasociety.org

Special Thank You's

Special thank you to Nancy Mills and Chuck Heron for their special help with Alejandra from Amor D’Vino for our Wine and Cheese Sneak Peek. Enriqueta Calderon and Guillermo Martago for yet another donation of books in Spanish for the Biblioteca Elena Poniatowska. Tori Sepulveda and Oscar Rosales for donating proceeds from sales of the book ‘Chico, Dolor y Felicidad’ to The Palapa Society. Kaitie Schneider of Colorado State University for donating books and art supplies for the Children’s Library Reading and Craft Hour. Teresa Laird for her donation of pipettes for our Science lab. Diane Knight for her special appearance and running our Wine and Cheese Sneak Peek Art Sale. Laurie Bauer for her beautiful photography

Jimena Garcia and Mateo Haeck for all of their hard work on the special music event. Ricardo Madrazo for videography and Master of Ceremonies. Carlos Gutierrez and Jorge Gutierrez for their videography. Peter Meister for donating NASA space-themed coloring books, calendars, and informative booklets in Spanish and English for use in the Children’s Library, Puente (Bridge to English) program, and Palapa School Science Lab.

Special Donors for An Evening of Music with John Paul Jones, Miguel Ochoa and Friends

Alejandra - Amor D'Vino Bryan and Sergio Jauergui - Todos Santos Eco Adventures Brian McGuffey Cate Thomassen Chris & Tracy LaCroy Dennis & Nancy Naigle Jan Turner Jason Jacobs - Latin Cruise Events Jene Buckner Kathy Warnert Larry Taub Miguel Ochoa Paul & Stacy Krogh Rachel & Noel - El Refugio Saskia Onvlee Taller

Thank you to Our February Donors

Bill & Cathy Nation Bonnie & AJ Johnston Cheri Myers Connie & Andy Mical Dennis & Nancy Naigle Dennis Canty Eric Zahm Golda Wentz Hal & Vickie Butler Jamie Sechrist Jane Gehring Janna Kinkade Jason & Tracy Durland Jorge Montverde Karen Haley  Kim Rust Kirstin Rust Laurie Bauer Lavenda Lee Liane Collins Linda Corbet Marjolean Brugman Mark Gabriel Marsh Laird Michael Panchuck Nancy Simpson Nanette Hayles Nina Tross Patrick Briggs Paula Kukla Peter Biagetti Peter Meister Roy & Susan Beaton Ruth Ann Welding Sakis Onvlee Taller Salesforce.org Sarah Givens Susan Farrar Suzanne Arnold Tori Sepulveda & Oscar Rosales Virginia Gollery

Make A Difference in a Young Life Today! Would you like to help our local youth and become a Palapa Society supporter? Click below to make your donation today.  Please Donate Today