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Athletes from the Greater El Paso area will compete in an area-wide basketball competition Wednesday – Saturday.

More than 300 local Special Olympics Texas athletes ranging in age from 8 to 65 will take over the gyms at Del Valle High School for the annual Area 19 Basketball Competition from April 18-21. The four-day event opens with an Individual Skills Competition and Team Skills Competition on Wednesday night, starting at 6 p.m. Games will also be played Thursday and Friday from 6-9 p.m. and then from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Saturday. A complete schedule is below.  The event is open to the public and free to attend.

Athletes as young as eight years old will show off their skills on the hardwood, while teams with players 12 years and up will be playing as a means to qualify for the upcoming statewide tournament, Summer Games, which will take place in Arlington from May 25-28.

This weekend’s basketball competition will also include Unified play, featuring athletes with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities on the same team.

Awards will be presented to competitors at the conclusion of the tournament, based on results.

Approximately 20 volunteers are still needed.

To volunteer or for more information on the competition, contact Monica Vargas (mvargas@sotx.org) at 915.533.8229

2018 Area 19 Basketball Competition

Wednesday, April 18, 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.: Individual Skills and Team Skills Competition

Thursday & Friday, April 19-20, 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.: Basketball Competition

Saturday, April 21, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.: Continue Basketball Competition

The El Paso Community College (EPCC) – Northwest (NW) campus faculty received the 2018 Library Project of the Year Award during the 2018 Texas Library Association Annual Conference held in Dallas, Texas, April 3-6, 2018.  The Library Instruction Project of the Year Award is presented annually by the Texas Library Association’s Library Instruction Round Table (LIRT). This award recognized an innovative or creative library instruction project or initiative in Texas.

“The project, led by Lorely Ambriz and Michael Duncan, was impressive because of the evidence they provided showing how their collaboration has positively impacted their students,” Joshua Wallace, LIRT Chair said.

The project, Improving College Students’ Literacy Skills Through Embedded Librarianship and Faculty Collaboration for Lifelong Learning was led by Lorely Ambriz, Head Librarian, and Michael Duncan, English Discipline Coordinator at the NW campus. The project involves embedding library skill into course curriculum. Developed as a hypothesis by Ambriz, the project became an actual action research project as part of her participation in the EPCC Teachership Academy under the leadership of Dr. Lydia Tena, EPCC Northwest Campus Dean and Teachership Academy Coordinator. The Teachership Academy is an EPCC faculty development program focusing on teaching and learning.

Since the implementation of the project to embed literacy and library skills into course curriculum, out of the average student population of 2,800 students at the NW Library, the project has been able to outreach to 82% of the student population. The students, having attended at least one library session becoming aware of library services, learned how to perform basic library research, how to evaluate information sources and how to properly cite them. Overall, faculty have seen the average score on -and quality of -the students’ annotated bibliographies and papers go up significantly over the past few semesters thanks to the literacy skills they have built, which leads to overall student success.

EPCC provides a focus on quality education by maintaining a focus on involvement and assessment that is supported by creating a culture of excellence.

City Spray Parks to Open with New Amenities

The Parks and Recreation Department has made improvements to the City’s eight spray parks that will open for the season on Saturday, April 14.

All spray parks have additional areas for shade, such as canopies, more benches and trash containers and landscaping improvements that include trees and shrubs and additional ADA sidewalk connectors. Also, there are sunscreen dispensers for public use donated by the Rio Grande Cancer Foundation in partnership with the Parks and Recreation Department.

The improvements at the spray parks cost approximately $1.3 million and were funded by 2017 Certificates of Obligation.

The Parks and Recreation Department invites everyone to enjoy the free spray parks that open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Sunday. All spray parks will remain open through October 30. In addition, dog owners can take their pets to the City’s only spray park designed for dogs located at Pavo Real Park, 9301 Alameda. The spray parks are located throughout the city at the following parks:

Spray Park Locations:

• Sue Young Park, 9730 Diana Dr.
• Hidden Valley Park, 200 Coconut Tree
• Grandview Park, 3100 Jefferson Ave.
• Westside Community Park, 7400 High Ridge Dr.
• Marty Robbins Park, 11600 Vista Del Sol Dr.
• Braden Aboud Memorial Park, 4325 River Bend Dr.
• Salvador Rivas Jr. Park, 12480 Pebble Hills Dr.
• Pavo Real Park, 9301 Alameda Ave. (two separate spray parks –  of one for humans and one for dogs)
• San Jacinto Plaza – Splash Pad, 114 W. Mills Ave.

For more information on the spray parks, call the Parks and Recreation Department at (915) 212-0396 or click on the El Paso Summer Splash banner at www.elpasotexas.gov.

An endowment to benefit students was instated at a ceremony on March 26, 2018 at El Paso Community College (EPCC). The Dr. Ernst Roberts II Endowment is honors this 40-year EPCC veteran. Roberts career spanned tenures as a professor, dean, administrator and Interim President.

With the generosity of the Gifford Foundation, the Roberts Family and donations made from EPCC students, faculty and staff, this endowment will assist students to obtain their educational goals through scholarships.

Known to his colleagues and friends as Ernie, Dr. Roberts was remembered as a man who was always om a mood and who helped anyone that asked. “Dr. Ernie Roberts has done so much for our community, Aliana Apodaca of the Gifford Foundation said. “He was just a good man with a good heart.”

Over the past 10 years, EPCC has awared over two million dollars in scholarships.

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Pictured left to right are Thomas Ahmann and Dr. Dolores Gross of the Foundation for EPCC; Laurel Roberts; Aliana Apodaca and Stafford Thurmond of the Gifford Foundation.

The theater company Jazz Vilá Projects will be presented on Wednesday, April 11 at 7:00 pm at the Chamizal National Memorial (USA) as part of the international program organized for the New Century Golden Festival.(Festival Nuevo Siglo de Oro)

This 43rd edition will be the first to have a group from the island, which will offer a contemporary version of the classic “La vida es sueño” by Calderón de la Barca with a cast made up of Cuban and Mexican actors, which highlights the participation of the multi-awarded Afro-Cuban actress Yordanka Ariosa, winner of the Silver Shell.

To offer all the details of this historic presentation, the Consulate of Mexico in El Paso will host a press conference on Tuesday, April 3 at 11:00 a.m., which will be attended by the director Jazz Vilá and the cast of the play.

About JAZZ VILÁ PROJECTS

It is a theater company based in Havana, founded in 2015 under the artistic and general direction of Jazz Vilá. Its main objective is to recover the attention of the young audience through themes such as love, diversity, sexuality, fear and isolation, from a contemporary perspective.

After winning the public and critics with its debut play “Rascacielos”, the company became a reference for staging where commercial projection and artistic sense coexist, achieving a result that enhances the play-spectator interaction.

JAZZ VILÁ PROJECTS stands out for the economy and simplicity of scenographic elements, the inclusion of pioneering mechanisms of co-production within the Cuban theater, the development of strong promotional campaigns and the collaboration with important national and international artists of various manifestations.

With a bilingual repertoire and in just three years, this group has been consolidated with presentations at festivals and tours in Cuba, the Dominican Republic and the United States.

About Jazz Vilá

Actor, director, producer and dramatist of Cuban origin. Winner of the Incubator Artist Program in the city of El Paso (USA) in 2017. VISTAR magazine included him in the list of the six most recurrent young actors of Cuban cinema in 2015, highlighting in films such as El Acompañante (Pavel Giroud), Fátima or the park of the Fraternity (Jorge PerugorrÍa), or Juan de los Muertos (Alejandro Brugués).

Due to his increasing artistic level, he has been invited to prestigious events such as the Festival de Avignon and the Festival de Cannes (France), the Talent Campus Guadalajara (Mexico) and the Berlinale Talent (Germany). He has reconciled his commitments as an actor with the management and training of new talents; teaching workshops and as an interpretation teacher at prestigious institutions such as the Complutense University of Madrid, the Shakespeare Foundation of Spain and the National School of Arts of Cuba, the center of which he graduated in 2004.
In 2015 he founded the company Jazz Vilá Projects and premiered Skyscrapers and later Eclipse. Both productions marked audience milestones and garnered excellent reviews, making Vilá a reference point for success in Cuban contemporary theater.

The El Paso Community College (EPCC) Diversity Programs celebrated Women’s History Month with its annual Diamond Awards. The theme for this year’s event was Nevertheless, She Persisted: Women Who Fight Against All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. The ceremony consisted of a panel discussion, luncheon and honoring Diamond Award inductees.

“Women’s History is important to remember the milestones women have achieved,” Olga Chavez, Director of EPCC Diversity Programs, said. “The goal of the Diamond Awards is to honor the commitment and hard work of women employees at EPCC.”

Shoshana Johnson was the Keynote Speaker. The former POW and EPCC graduate spoke on how her journey through life has transformed her today.

The EPCC Diamond Awards are in its 10th year of honoring EPCC staff for their hard work mentoring students. The Diamond Awardees are the positive face of EPCC diversity.
As part of this event, a powerful panel discussion to take action on discrimination that occurs against women everyday was held. The event was moderated by Dr. Mozella Garcia and Arlene Alarcon with panelists Rebekah Bell, EPCC Faculty Association President; Dr. Xiomara C. Chianelli, EPCC faculty; Ouisa Davis, Attorney and Zahara Taki, former EPCC student.
EPCC promotes equality, diversity and inclusion by encouraging personal responsibility to further student success.

The City of El Paso is offering various fun and educational activities for kids and teens during spring break.

Spring break programs will take place at the El Paso Zoo, museums and libraries across the city. In addition, all of the City’s parks and recreation centers will be open during spring break.

A complete list of programs and activities may be found on the Spring Break 2018 banner on the City’s website at www.elpasotexas.gov.

Vince Neil, tattoos, fun highlight Showdown Fest at Coliseum
Tattoos, music and fun come together at this year’s Showdown Festival on Friday through
Sunday, March 16-18, at the El Paso County Coliseum, 4100 E. Paisano.

More than 300 tattoo artists from around the world, including stars from the popular reality
TV show, “Inkmaster,” will highlight this year’s event, which gets underway at noon each
day. The fest also will feature a variety of music and entertainment, including Vince Neil,
the voice of Mötley Crüe, performing on Friday, March 16, the Long Beach Dub All Stars on
Saturday, March 17, and Jack Russell’s Great White on Sunday, March 18. Other acts will
include Cold Kingdom, Sleep Signals, Not My Master, Dicodec, Gold, Frankincense & Myrrh,
Andromeda Theory, Trip Wire, Sancho Villa, King Octopus and Metallica tribute band One.

There also will be food and beverage booths, sideshows, art exhibits, hundreds of vendors
and more, as well as the Border Bike Run and Rally, featuring custom motorcycles.
Tickets are $25 each day or $60 for a three-day pass, plus fees, and free for ages 11 and
under. They are available at the El Paso County Coliseum Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets,
by phone at 800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com.

The Showdown Festival, created by George Galindo, an El Pasoan who owns House of Pain
Tattoo, has been internationally recognized, including, at one time, being named one of the
five best tattoo conventions in the world by Tattoosday, a tattoo blog.

Information: 533-9899; showdownfest.com; @TxShowdownFest on Twitter;
instagram.com/showdown_fest; facebook.com/texasshowdownfestival; @ElPasoColiseum on
Twitter; instagram.com/elpasocountycoliseum; facebook.com/EPColiseum.

Presentará este jueves en conferencia de prensa Tercera Feria Internacional del Cerrajero; generará una gran derrama económica a Ciudad Juárez

  

Este jueves por medio de un desayuno informativo, la Asociación de Cerrajeros Profesionales del Norte de esta ciudad, anunciarán de manera oficial la Tercera Feria Internacional del Cerrajero, en la que exhibirán nuevos avances tecnológicos en la materia y tendrán muestras de los mejores proveedores a nivel mundial.

Así mismo con esta actividad generará una gran derrama económica a la localidad, ya que vendrán cientos de expositores de cerrajería del interior del país y de los Estados Unidos.

Directivos de la Asociación de Cerrajeros Profesionales del Norte, invita a los representantes de los medios de comunicación de la frontera, a esta conferencia de prensa, que se llevará a cabo a las 10:30 horas en el restaurante Playa Bichis, ubicado en la avenida Manuel Gómez Morín 8125, enseguida de la Plaza del Carmen.

 AGENDA

Jueves 22 de febrero de 2018

 

Desayuno informativo: 3era. Feria Internacional del Cerrajero

Hora: 10:30 horas

Lugar: Restaurante Playa Bichis, ubicado en la avenida Manuel Gómez Morín 8125, enseguida de la Plaza del Carmen.

 

www.facebook/Eventos Juarenses

www.twitter/Eventsjuarenses

10 percent of food purchases will be donated to support this local cause

Satisfy your craving for amazing Tex-Mex food and help support a good cause, next week at Chuy’s.

On Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2018, join El Paso Children’s Hospital at Chuy’s, 8889 Gateway West, Suite 1500, for Chuy’s Fundraiser Day. Chuy’s will donate 10 percent of guest’s total food purchase to El Paso Children’s Hospital.

So, whether it’s one of our Famous “Big As Your Face” Burritos, a house specialty, like our Elvis Green Chile Fried Chicken or anything else on Chuy’s one-of-a-kind Tex-Mex menu, guests may present the attached invitation to support El Paso Children’s Hospital in providing quality healthcare to kids in the Borderland all day Tuesday.

Visit facebook.com/chuyselpaso for more information.

What: Chuy’s Fundraiser Day
When: Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2018
Where: Fountains at Farah, 8889 Gateway West, Suite 1500
Info: 10 percent of food purchase will be donated to El Paso Children’s Hospital

ANNUAL EL PASO FIRE TRUCK PULL SCHEDULED FOR FEB. 24 TO SUPPORT LOCAL SPECIAL OLYMPICS ATHLETES

The El Paso Fire Truck Pull is an annual Law Enforcement Torch Run fundraiser that is open to the public and supports more than 2,300 local Special Olympics Texas athletes.

Members of the community will come together to use their strength for a good cause on Saturday, February 24 as they attempt to haul a 55,000-pound El Paso fire engine for 75 feet in the fastest time at the Fire Fighters Academy at Ascarate Park. The annual Fire Truck Pull is a team-building activity and fundraiser that is open to the public and supports Special Olympics Texas athletes in the Greater El Paso Area.  Registration can be completed in advance online here.

The Fire Truck Pull requires teams of 10 friends, family members and colleagues to put their biceps and working together to pull the emergency vehicle. All teams are required to have at least one female on the squad. Teams with fewer than 10 members should indicate that when registering, as “fill-ins” can be found. The challenge will wrap up with an awards ceremony for the Fastest Team Pull and Most Money Raised.

Event sponsors for this year’s Fire Truck Pull include Casa Ford, the El Paso Fire Department, Whataburger and the El Paso Police Department.

Check-in and walk-up registration begins at 8:00 a.m. and the first pull is slated for 9:00 a.m. The entry fee is $25 per person or $250 per team (10 people). The parking fee at Ascarate Park is $2.00 for each vehicle.

Teams and individuals are encouraged to collect additional funds in an effort to compete for the “Most Money Raised” award. All funds collected through this event will go to SOTX to provide sports programming and competition training for more than 2,300 children and adults with intellectual disabilities in the Greater El Paso Area.

This event operates under the Law Enforcement Torch Run (LETR), which is SOTX’s largest grass-roots fundraiser and public awareness vehicle. Through efforts like the Fire Truck Pull, Texas LETR raised over $1.4 million in 2016 to support more than 58,300 SOTX athletes across the state.

For the first time in Texas, the El Paso Museum of Art (EPMA) presents the Papel Chicano Dos: Works on Paper from the Collection of Cheech Marin exhibit that will be on view from February 16 through June 17. 

 

The exhibition features 65 works from the esteemed private collection of actor, comedian, and philanthropist Cheech Marin. It explores Chicano identity from the Chicano Revolution to the present day. As a collector, Marin is dedicated to bringing Chicano art to the forefront of the American art scene.

 

Using pastels, watercolors, acrylic and spray paint, each of the artists explore universal themes of identity, political and social revolution and the experience of living between and within many cultures. The exhibition includes large-scale works by seminal Chicano artists like Frank Romero, Carlos Almaraz, Glugio “Gronk” Nicandro, and Benito Huerta and prominently features Chicana artists such as Diane Gamboa, Sonia Romero, and Sonia Fe. Also included in Marin’s collection are works by local artist and teacher Gaspar Enriquez, whose large-scale installation, Color Harmony en la Esquina, has found its home in EPMA’s Grand Lobby since 2013.

 

“In many ways, Cheech Marin’s collection of Chicano art is at home in El Paso. It features artists who embrace a multicultural heritage and artistically reinvigorate, critique, and transform traditions familiar to us along the US-Mexico border,” said exhibition curator Kevin Burns.

 

Papel Chicano Dos will be supplemented by various community and educational programs that are free and open to the public.

 

·         Saturday, March 3: Papel Chicano Celebration, Noon to 4 p.m. Art-making activities, food trucks, a display of classic low-rider cars, and live music and vinyl sessions by Mother of Pearl Vinyl.

·         Saturday, March 31: Baikas!, 12 – 4 p.m., join local Chicano artist and muralist Jesus “Cimi” Alvarado for a guided bicycle tour of El Segundo Barrio’s murals. The tour begins and ends at EPMA; bring a bicycle and water. RSVP for the mural tour at EPMArsvp@elpasotexas.gov or 915-212-3068.