Welcome to the Great Outdoors! If you like hiking, nature activities, animals and roaming the forest then you’ll be excited to hear of the GRAND OPENING of the Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center in Cedar Hill!! On the weekend of September 10th and 11th the Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center officially opens its doors as well as trails to the public.
Bring the family and some friends to explore this wild, adventurous place. The Grand Opening will run from 9am to 5pm on Saturday and noon to 5pm on Sunday. It’s a FREE 2-day event that includes family fun festivities like guided hikes, arts & crafts, building tours, guest speakers and nature play activities for kids.
GRAND OPENING 9/10 & 9/11
The New Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center is located about 16 miles south of Dallas off 1382 between Joe Pool Lake and Hwy 67. You can also get there from I-20 traveling to 1382. There will be parking and shuttle service provided. In fact, the shuttle is strongly recommended as there is limited parking and lots of other wild 4-limb creatures are expected to attend. You can park for Free at Uptown Village shopping center just a few miles away) in the Dick’s Sporting Goods and Kirklands parking lots which face FM 1382. The shuttles will run during the Grand Opening Hours on both Saturday and Sunday. If you need to see a map click here.
Audubon offers education programs, tours, facility rentals, and a nature store.
This Labor Day Weekend don’t call Tyrone, but instead hit up his bare-all boo Erykah Badu and her good friend Isis Brantly owner of Naturally Isis who are presenting the 2011 Natural Hair Parade and Festival! On September 3rd Dallas native Erykah Badu won’t be strolling down Dealey Plaza naked this time but Illinois to Beckley in her “normal” natural state rather. Badu (as well as the Institute of Ancestal Braiding) is sponsoring this Free event which is a celebration of both natural hair and African economic power. Isis Brantley is the first entrepreneur to own a natural braiding salon in the DFW area and she continue advocating economic empowerment and pride within the African American community of North Texas. Isis is the brains behind The Natural Hair Parade and Festival set to take place on September 3rd at the Wynnewood Shopping Center located at 655 W. Illinois Ave. The parade will continue on down to the Naturally Isis Beckley location found at 2642 S. Beckley.
The parade and festival will include: Happy Hair Village, vendors, Grooming and natural hair demonstration, a hair show and other fun activities for the community!
Natural Hair & Parade Festival Schedule
8:30am – Parade Assembles at Wynnewood Shopping Center
10:30am – Parade Commences
12:00pm – Festival Begins (Naturally Isis and Beckley Saner Park)
5:00pm – Festival Ends
Isis’ Window-Seat supporter has put her frequent flyer miles on hold for a couple days and challenged her friend to get 400 people to march and participate in the parade. She will be speaking at the event as well. Let’s hope they’ll ALL be fully clothed, but we can certainly expect some eccentric natural hair styles to compliment the streets of Oak Cliff/Dallas. Isis says they chose September 3rd as the date of The Natural Hair Parade and Festival because “it is a labor of love”. Tell your friends and loved ones about this unique Labor Day Weekend event and when Tweeting about it mention the hashtags: #NaturalHair and #LaborofLove. If you’d like more information on sponsorship and exhibitors click here, as The Natural Parade and Festival is still open to more. Late registration is $150, and you can also donate or make payment here.To volunteer contact Naturallyisis@yahoo.com or call 214-329-3820.
About $38 million is spent monthly on natural hair care & hair care products
<This past June we had the NBA Championship parade through downtown, but now Dallas is Pleased to host the Nation’s First World Natural Hair Parade and Festival September 3rd starting at 10am!
Verizon’s annual How Sweet The Sound experience will be at the American Airlines Center in Dallas on September 15th at 7:30pm. Area choirs and gospel celebrities come together under one roof but the same stage for an amazing evening of praise. It’s like Sunday’s Best but on a choir level as they search for the best choirs in America. The performances made by these Texas gospel choirs are ones that you won’t want to miss (especially if you’re a big Gospel/choir fan) as they compete to win the yearly choir competition. Verizon’s “How Sweet the Sound” is hosted by Donald Lawrence and Dorinda Clark-Cole, with one of my own favorite Gospel artists, Marvin Sapp who will be performing as well as judging. Here are some of the choirs participating in Dallas’ How Sweet the Sound 2011:
For the Large choir category:
United Voices of Concord (Concord Church- Dallas)
St. John Music Ministry (St. John Baptist Church- Grand Prairie)
God’s Tabernacle of Deliverance Bishop’s Choir (God’s Tabernacle of Deliverance- DeSoto)
Greater Sweethome Missionary Baptist Church Sanctuary Choir (Greater Sweethome Missionary Baptist Church- Forest Hill)
In the Small/Medium Choir category:
Bethel Tabernacle Choir (Bethel Tabernacle – Houston)
Christ Church Concert Chorale (Christ Church Apostolic- Houston)
Inspiring Voices (Inspiring Temple of Praise Church – Fort Worth)
The Levites (Greater Emmanuel Family Worship Center- Houston)
The program begins at 7:30pm but doors will open at 6pm! Tickets to How Sweet The Sound Dallas can be purchased here. They’re also available for only $10 and/or $15 (not including fees) at the AAC Box Office, Ticketmaster outlets and Ticketmaster.com. Some of the other stops How Sweet The Sound will be making this month include: Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington D.C., Detroit, St. Louis, Chicago, LA & Oakland!
Hosted by Donald Lawrence
Even if you can’t attend How Sweet the Sound live you can still vote for the choir of your choice here! Just follow the instructions and stay tuned for the V Cast People’s Choice Award winner at each regional show! I may be slightly biased but DFW has some of the best gospel choirs in the nation. If you’d like to be a part of this event get your ticket, take some friends or even your own church choir as Marvin Sapp and other gospel choirs rock the house and turn the American Airlines Center into a supersized sanctuary on Thursday, September 15th! Remember online voting is only from August 17th to August 31st! Support your local choirs and see How Sweet the Sound really is 🙂
September 10th 2011 marks an important day in history. It is the day that the Cancer Support Community North Texas (aka Gilda’s Club) has their Inaugural One Run! On Saturday 9/10, our unique North Texas community of cancer survivors, fighters and supporters will gather for a 5K Run/ 1K Walk and 100 Yard Children’s Dribble & Dash at Reverchon Park in Dallas. The ONE RUNunites all cancer diagnoses and survivors of cancer into one event. Teams and race participants of specific diagnosis will be identified during the race too. If you’d like to create your own team with family and friends you can do so as well. There are already some really cool teams signed up. To register for the ONE RUN, visit One Run Texas. It is $25 to register before Aug. 31st, and $35 after that or on the day of the race.
You can Walk or Run at the ONE RUN
I actually joined CSC North Texas just this year and am excited to be a part of such an event. I’ll most likely do the 5K Run, even if I’m walking at an upbeat pace, but there’s a 1K Celebration Walk for those who are interested. Other exciting activities will also take place. The Cancer Support Community North Texas (formerly Gilda’s Club) is the ONLY Texas affiliate of Cancer Support Community which is the largest international non-profit organization dedicated to providing support, education, hope and community to those affected by cancer. With support groups, workshops, networking groups, educational presentations and social events CSC North Texas is located right in the Oak Lawn area not far from downtown or uptown Dallas. The clubhouse is an awesome facility that hosts an assortment of activities from yoga, pilates and meditation, to painting, scrapbooking and drumming. It has a very warm at-home feel and a full-on library of books/videos too. The Collin County location is in Allen at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital.
I almost forgot to mention that Vocal Trash (one of CSC’s favorite groups) will also be performing at the ONE RUN and other family friendly activities are planned for that day.
Make your own T-shirts for the race- The feeling is mutual
Here’s a schedule of events:
7:00AM…………Race Day Registration
7:45AM…………Kids’ 100 Yd Dribble & Dash
8:10AM…………1K Celebration Walk
8:30AM…………5K Run/Walk
8:45-11AM………Celebration (Post-Race Party) & Entertainment by Vocal Trash
Be sure to register online at http://www.OneRunTexas.org, and keep in mind that if you do so before 8/31, you only pay a $25 registration fee. If you’d prefer to volunteer on the day of the race, you have that option as well. You’re also welcome to make donations to the Cancer Support Community North Texas. Registration starts at 7AM Saturday 9/10! See you then!
If you or someone you know has been affected by cancer in some way or another and are interested in receiving more information on the disease and/or a support system visit the Cancer Support Community North Texas website for more information. The have new member meetings just about every week.
From August through November the relatively new AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas is having Free Sunset Screenings every 3rd Saturday of the month in Strauss Square. Sunset Screenings begin showing at about sunset time, but we know that time changes as we transition into fall so check below for the schedule. The free outdoor shows, presented by the Dallas Film Society allow North Texans to come and relax in the Arts District while viewing a movie. If you haven’t been able to enjoy this trendy new downtown venue, here’s good reason to. There are only 500 reserved seats in chairs in the front of the lawn so the remaining seats will be on the lawn. That means you might carry your own lawn chair just in case or RSVP here so they know that you’re coming!
Watch a Free movie in Strauss Square at Sunset
Being that it’s summer in August in DALLAS, the only thing preventing the Sunset Screenings from taking place is if a Heat Advisory has been issued for that day or if the temperature is expected to be 100 degrees and up. We don’t want anyone passing out! Plus you will be miserable sitting outside when it’s THAT hot. The good news is that once we get into the Fall months it will be a lot cooler. In fact, check out the lineup for AT&T Performing Arts Center’s Sunset Screenings this year:
August 20: “Exit Through the Gift Shop” (8:30pm)
September 24: “Waiting for Guffman” (8:00pm)
October 15: “Almost Famous” (7:00pm)
November 19: “Walk the Line” (7:00pm)
*To watch trailers, RSVP or learn more about each movie/documentary click here!
Thanks to the Dallas Film Society you can enjoy 4 Free movies over the next 4 months and enjoy the view AT&T Performing Arts Center in the District Arts area. The Dallas Film Society is a non-profit organization that celebrates films as well as their impact on society. Not only do they recognize and honor filmmakers who enhance the creative community, but they also provide educational programs to students to help them develop a better understanding of the role of film in today’s world. The Dallas Film Society promotes the City of Dallas and its commitment to the art of filmmaking so join them in celebrating film at Sunset Screeningsevery 3rd Saturday of the month from now through November!
The only catch to this Free event is that you cannot bring your own food and drinks into Annette Strauss Square, but concession stands have refreshments available for purchase.
It’s that time of year again! Time to find new backpacks, lunchbags, wide ruled paper and take advantage of the annual Tax Free weekend! In Cedar Hill, it’s time to celebrate Uptown Village’s first ever Back-To-School Kid’s Fest & Concert August 20th! It’s still pretty hot outside in Texas so this Back-To-School Fest will only last about 4 hours. Throughout the entire Saturday event Two-Wins Foundation will be accepting $25 donations to help provide local underprivileged children with school supplies.
Expect exciting Drumline performances
During the first two hours (4-6pm) of Back-to-School KID’S FEST Stacia’s School of Dance, the Duncanville Cheerleaders and DeSoto High School’s Drill Team will give dance performances. Attendees will also get the opportunity to meet the 2011 Cedar Hill High School football team.
Meet this year's CHHS Fball team
Face painting, balloon art, bounce houses, crafts and other fun activities will keep attendees engaged.
The Back-to-School Concert will take place from 6:00 – 8:00pm. The concert will feature local party and dance band Top with drumline performances during intermission. Between JAM to Give, Wine Walks, Family Movie Nights and great shopping, Uptown Village is quickly becoming the place to go! Now as the summer comes to an end, the Village Green events don’t stop. Support Two-Wins FoundationAugust 20th as we come together to make the schoolyear a little better for those who have less than what’s needed.
Donations will go towards school supplies for local underprivileged students
So as some of us gear up for school again let the rhythms of Soul II Soul get you back in the mode of homework, sack lunches & good ole’ PTA meetings!
On Saturday, August 13th & 27th Half Price Books will have their Free movie showings in the parking lot. They’ve been showing flicks in the parking lot since June and it’s their 3rd annual Movies in the Parking Lot event. Come out to the Half Price Books located at 5803 E. Northwest Highway in Dallas at 8:45pm to see “The Incredibles”. If you can’t make it that weekend join us the 27th for “The Chronicles of Narnia- The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe”. Feel fee to bring your favorite lawn chair and even some snacks or cold drinks as we close out the month with Movies in the Parking Lot. There’s plenty room for you and the fam in the “outdoor movie theatre”! You may even find a great book to buy before the show! Half Price Books is open every day from 9am to 11pm. The only thing that’ll stop this event is bad weather (rain) and we all know that’s been far from the forecast nowadays. Enjoy a Free movieSaturday nights under the stars with Half Price Books of Dallas. (only one block east of Central Expressway)
Budweiser Superfest presentsJill Scott’s Summer Block Party with special guests Anthony Hamilton and Mint Condition! Music will be provided by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the block party is hosted by Doug E. Fresh. Jill Scott is taking over North America yet again with her 2011 Summer Tour.
Jill Scott featuring Anthony Hamilton & Mint Condition
The Grammy award winning singer and actress presents her highly antcipated album The Light of the Sun which came out in June, with a debut single featuring Anthony Hamilton “So In Love”. Texas is the last stop for the Summer Block Party Tour and what better place to end it! Her final show for the tour will be in Houston on the 28th.
For those of you still trying to figure out what Gexa Energy Pavilion is and where it came from, it is the former Smirnoff Music Centre and Superpages.com Center located in Fair Park. This outdoor performing arts center in Dallas (renamed Gexa just this year) has a stage/production area and covered pavilion that seats 7,533 persons while a sloping lawn accommodates another 12,578. It’s still gonna be a little hot, but true JILL / Anthony / Mint Condition fans won’t care. Within a matter of days one of my FAVORITE R&B/Neo-Soul artists of all times will be occupying this “Gexa” place with classic hits like “Golden”, “Long Walk”, “Crown Royale” and a host of new tracks from “The Light of the Sun” album too! If your a Jill fan like me go ahead and get your ticket(s) here so you don’t have to miss the Best Block Party of the Summer!
Here’s a video of Miss J-I-L-L S-C-O-T-TeeeeEEEeeeeEEEeeeeEEEE performing live last June at the AAC during her 2010 Summer Tour with Maxwell:
“Golden”
“Not Like Crazy” snippet
This will be a Block Party you WON’T forget! Bring some water, cool clothes and a camera to capture all the fun as some of R&B’s finest hit the Gexa Stage!
Each year Women of Faith takes a group of amazing women filled with God-given talents and gifts to share with other women across the U.S. Other “women of faith” are able to hear these inspiring stories, testimonies, drama productions, participate in praise & worship and fellowship with sisters. Last year’s theme was “Imagine”, and this year it is “Over the Top”. I got the opportunity to attend the 2-day spirit-filled event last year and was blessed by the testimonies of Sheila Walsh and Karen James; but those were only two of an entire host of great speakers during “Imagine” like the charming and witty Marcus Buckingham, determined “Biggest Loser” contestant Michelle Aguilar, hilarious Lisa Harper and veteran Luci Swindoll. The captivating Nicole Johnson did a few monologues that not only tugged at the heart but dealt with real-life issues many women face. A pregnant and glowing Natalie Grant blew us away with her songs of praise and personal testimony while Mary Mary gave a concert encouraging ladies from all over the metroplex to never give up and never be ashamed to represent the “God in Me. The P&W team leads out in an energy-filled worship in song as we begin each program and takes us out of the arena just the same with a song left in your heart.
This year is no different, although they claim to be going “Over the Top”! Dallas is pleased to have Women of Faith return to the American Airlines Center on August 26th and 27th. There’s something for everyone whether you’re a young single woman, a divorcee, a newlywed, mom-to-be or even a seasoned woman of faith who’s still growing and learning more about how God can work in her life. Every woman has their own story and their own daily challenges. This is a place where you can gather together with your sisters to share those experiences but also regain strength and enrich your soul to keep pushing on.
This year’s lineup for Over the Top includes: Patsy Clairmont, Marilyn Meberg, Lisa Whelchel, Sandi Patty and Brenda Warner. Our “drama girl” for the weekend will be Katharine Everett and musical artists Amy Grant and Mandisa with special guest Andy Andrews.
Mary Mary performed one of their newest tracks last August (Imagine 2010)..
Here are a few pics from last year’s Women of Faith Conference..
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The cost for each individual is $99, and if you want to bring your Women’s Ministries group, coworkers, fellow sisters or any group of women (10 or more) you each get a discount of $10 and pay $89 per person. Lunch is also included in the package. For about two days you can tune out the worries from work, home and other stresses of life and have a spiritual getaway to gain the victory on Victory Ave in Dallas. Have your soul warmed and connect with other women from North Texas as well as other parts of the world. Plan for a full Friday and Saturday (9am – 10am & 8am – 5pm) with multiple sessions and breaks in between to just let your hair down and experience the love of Christ with other women who share a common faith no matter your color, size, weight or age.
Join other Women of Faith as we discover that God really does love us more than we realize or can even Imagine. He can bless you exceedingly and do more for you than you can think to ask! Unrestricted…He’s just Over the Top!
Ask for a day off work from now – Friday, August 26th – for “Over the Top” at the American Airlines Center.
Click here to register today!
If you would like to “share the wealth” with your out-of-town girlfriends, here are the remaining tour stops for 2011!
**OVER THE TOP TOUR DATES**
September 9-10…….Anaheim, CA (Honda Center)
September 16-17……Spokane, WA (Spokane Arena)
September 23-24……Phoenix, AZ (US Airways Center)
Sept 30- Oct 1……Denver, CO (Pepsi Center)
October 7-8………Portland, OR (Rose Garden Arena)
October 14-15…….Sacramento, CA (ARCO Arena)
October 21-22……San Antonio, TX (Alamodome)
October 28-29…….Seattle, WA (KeyArena)
November 4-5…….Kansas City, MO (Sprint Center)
November 11-12…..Oklahoma City, OK (Ford Center)
With August being the BEST MONTH OF THE YEAR your Saturday nights are about to get even better!! Spice up your Summer with live salsa music every Saturday at Beckert Park in Addison Circle. Addison’s Summer Event Series continues with Salsa Saturdays. You can learn to salsa dance from experts of The Dance Council at 7:00pm and admission is free! It’s all done outdoors so bring some dancing shoes, sneakers or even go barefoot! (If you’d just prefer to learn by watching, be sure to carry a lawn chair, blanket or picnic mat But try to stay outta the way!) The live music will continue on at 8:00pm with a different band/group featured each week. Continue to salsa as the music fills the air of Addison Circle. If you’ve got ants in your pants and you need to dance, then head over to Addison for the Free Salsa dancing and music this Saturday, or next Saturday or even the one after that! So long as it’s within the month of August!
Here’s a schedule for the entire month:
August 6
Orquesta Sabor
August 13
Mi Son, Mi Son, Mi Son
August 20
Havan NRG
August 27
Parranda Venezuela
Join us in Addison as we’re Dancing in the streets! It’s HOT enough outside but summer in North Texas just got even spicier with Summer Salsa Saturdays! See you at Bekert Park!
By the end of the night you may be dancin’ like these two!
dfwhappenings 