Archive | FREE Stuff RSS feed for this section

Dallas Mavericks Winterfest 2011

7 Dec

The NBA is back!! Which means the 2011 Champions are too! Join Dirk and Santa as we celebrate the return of both the Holiday season and the Dallas Mavs season at Winterfest 2011. Winterfest will be held on Friday, December 16th at the American Airlines Center. Admission is FREE and the party starts at 3:00pm!

Some of the family fun activities you can expect include: Holiday movies (Shrek the Halls, Merry Madagascar & Kung Fu Panda) on the Big screen, Holiday carolers in the AAC and a special appearance from Old Saint Nick himself! Ice Skate on the AT&T Plaza, Meet Mavs dancers, the ManiAACs and even Dallas Maverick Legends! Watch a Free scrimmage in the AAC too! Apparently the Mavs were just that good that Santa had to travel all the way from the North Pole to commemorate the NBA season returning and the return of the CHAMPS! If you didn’t know already, Santa Claus is secretly a Mavs fan. Don’t be fooled by the red getup. 😉

The Last time we were all together at the Arena

You’ll also have a chance at winning an autographed pass for 2 to get up close and personal with your favorite Maverick players. Maybe you shouldn’t get too personal but autographs and photos will be cool enough. Tune in to ESPN Dallas 103.3 to find out your chance to win the tickets for autographs. Galloway & Company will be live on site.

There will be Mavs Championship Merchandise Specials that you can browse while you’re there and also support a great cause by bringing an unwrapped toy to benefit Operation Once in a Lifetime.

By the way, if you haven’t viewed it already click here to see the 2011-2012 Dallas Mavericks Game Schedule! (It may be a few games shorter, but I’d MUCH rather shorter, than none at all!) We’re opening the NBA season with a classic matchup against rivals Miami Heat on Christmas day!! Now that the lockout is finally over and everyone’s come to an agreement, tickets will be on sale December 10th at 10:00AM. See you Mavs fans Friday 12/16 in the Winter Wonderland of basketball champs. Winterfest begins at 3PM!

–SCHEDULE OF EVENTS–
2:30
Ice Rink on the AT&T Plaza opens
3:00
Doors open to the public
3:30
Showing of Shrek The Halls
4:00
Meet Dallas Mavericks Legends at the ESPN broadcast area!
4:15
Showing of Merry Madagascar
4:45
Showing of Shrek The Halls
5:15
Holiday Music from the House of Blues Gospel Choir
6:00
The 2011 NBA Champs take the floor

He can dunk more than cookies... Nicholas got UPs

KwanzaaFest 2011 – Dallas

5 Dec

Every year KwanzaaFest comes to Fair Park in Dallas and brings with it amazing talent! There’s always featured R&B or Hip Hop artists, and this year is no different. Prepare yourself to be serenaded by Tyrese and Eric Benet!! KwanzaaFest is a two-day festival that celebrates the African American culture and African Christmas traditions. Taking place Saturday and Sunday, December 10-11, at the Automobile Building, the annual festival offers free admission with tons of vendors. Although the event is Free, you still have to have a ticket to get in, so click here to find out all the different ways of getting your hands on a ticket! You can register here also for a ticket.

Here’s a clip of Jaheim performing at KwanzaaFest a few years ago (2007):



Although “Kwanzaa” to many North Texans simply means a good concert by a popular artist and getting together for Christmas arts and crafts, the history of Kwanzaa goes much deeper. Kwanzaa comes from the phrase ”matunda ya kwanza” which in Swahili means, “first fruits”. Professor and chairman of Black Studies at California State University – Long Beach, Dr. Maulana Karenga created Kwanzaa in 1966. After the Watts riots in LA, he searched for ways to bring African Americans together as a community. Each family celebrates Kwanzaa in their own way, but oftentimes celebrations include songs, dances, African drums, poetry reading, storytelling and a large traditional meal. There are seven principles (or Nguzo Saba) associated with Kwanaza and each day of Kwanzaa emphasizes a different principle. Click here to learn the set of 7 ideals created by Dr. Mualana Karenga.

KwanzaaFest takes place at the Automobile Bldg at Fair Park

KwanzaaFest certainly helps bring some unity to the North Texas African American community around the holiday season. Not only does it bring African Americans together, but residents of all colors and backgrounds also. The annual gathering of business owners and their products and services started back in 1990. Since then the event has grown into a yearly well-known cultural, educational, family-focused event that includes several worthwhile components. In the past singers like Mary Mary, Lloyd, Jaheim, Jazmine Sullivan, Jon B. and many other big headliners have performed on stage.

Eric Benet

Wale

Tyrese

Some of the other artists expected to perform at KwanzaaFest 2011, in addition to Eric Benet and Tyrese, include: Mindless Behavior, Wale, Durrough, Mario, Beat King, Kirko Bangz, Ace Hood, Treal Lee & Prince Rick and apparently the Free concert starts at Noon!



Another important aspect of KwanzaaFest is the health outreach. Last year KwanzaaFest reached a hallmark of providing more than $1 million dollars in FREE healthcare through more than 46,850 health services!

I have to note that Be the Match will also be on location registering bone marrow donors. Unfortunately, 28% of registry members are of diverse racial or ethnic heritage, and only 7% of that 28% is African American/Black represented on the Be The Match Registry of over 9 million members. (10% of 28% is Latino community) This makes it very difficult for patients with sickle cell and Leukemia that are from this heritage find the needed help and hope. Seventy percent of patients needing a marrow transplant who do not have a matching donor in their families. Four out of ten patients actually receive the transplant they need. Barriers to transplant include: lack of access to health care, no or limited insurance, lack of timely referral for transplant, decline in health status and inability to find a matching donor or cord blood unit. In either case, remember that you can help to save a life. If you’re a minority or of diverse/ethnic heritage it’s even more important that you do your part and not be dissuaded by the myths. Do your research! (well enough about that….for now)

The Annual Beat Obesity 5K Walk/Run and 1 Mile Kid’s Run will take place on Saturday morning, December 10, 2011. Click here for more info!

Get ready for KwanzaaFest 2011 at Fair Park’s Automobile Building!

–KwanzaaFest 2011 Dates–

Saturday, December 10
10:00AM – 7:00PM

Sunday, December 11
11:00AM – 6:00PM

Address:
Automobile Building
(Fair Park)
1010 1st Avenue
Dallas 75226

**PARKING: $10**

Holiday ATT The Center | AT&T Performing Arts Center Celebrates Christmas

16 Nov

There’s a whole lot going on for the Holidays at The AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas! Take a look at what’s lined up for Holiday At the Center:

TREE LIGHTING CEREMONY

For the second year AT&T PAC will be hosting their tree lighting ceremony on December 2, from 5:00 to 9:00pm in Sammons Park. Enjoy carriage rides, photos with Santa, live holiday music performances, children’s activities and for a grand finale, the lighting of a 30 foot Christmas Tree in the Performing Art Center’s Sammons Park. This Free event is open to the public with holiday treats available for purchase. Stay warm or just enjoy the taste of the holidays with hot chocolate, eggnog and cookies.

HOLIDAY TOURS OF THE WINSPEAR

Enjoy a Free guided tour of Winspear, a 2,200 seat opera house that was designed by Foster and Partners. Included in the tour you’ll get: Winspear history, 5th floor balconies that overlook the entire Arts District, a peak in the Opera Chamber and Orchestra Pit, Starlight Chandalier, Stage front, the Red Glass Winspear Drum, Curtain Wall, the Grand Staircase, the Annette Strauss Square and the Donor Reflection Pool. Please meet in the Winspear lobby for the 30-45 minute tour, at the following times:

Thanksgiving Public Tours
Wed, 11/23 ……11am & 1pm
Fri, 11/25 ……11am & 1pm

Christmas Public Tours
Tues, 12/20 ……1pm
Wed, 12/21 ……1pm
Thur, 12/22 ……1pm
Tues, 12/27 ……1pm
Wed, 12/28 ……1pm
Thur, 12/29 ……1pm

New Year’s Public Tours
Tues, 1/3 ……1pm
Wed, 1/4 ……1pm
Thur, 1/5 ……1pm


HOLIDAY CONCERTS

Wednesday, December 7
Charlie Daniels Band – Country, Rock, Bluegrass, Blues and Gospel all in one Southern styled show :: Click here for Tickets

Sunday, December 11
Linda Eder – A plethora of Broadway, pop, country and jazz sounds in one captivating contemporary voice :: Click here for Tickets

Friday, Dec 16 & Saturday, Dec 17
The Second City Dysfunctional Holiday Revue – a fast pace 45-minute interactive show of social and political satire, scenes both scripted and improve with Christmas carols and hilarity by The Second City Touring Company
Click here for Tickets

Holiday At The Center Dec 2 - Jan 5

All Holiday Shows/Concerts take place at the Winspear Opera House.

Address for Holiday At the Center:
2403 Flora Street, Dallas (corner of Flora and Leonard)

MetroPCS Fair Park Holiday 2011

14 Nov

On November 26th the Fair Park gates are open to all those celebrating the Christmas season at MetroPCS Fair Park Holiday!! The FREE holiday festival, great for the entire fam, will feature shopping at the Holiday Gift Market, crafts at Santa’s Workshop, the official City of Dallas tree lighting, dancing water shows and more. What’s a DFW event without some fireworks? Fair Park can’t have a big program without them, so enjoy rooftop fireworks (sponsored by Gold Metal Recyclers) at Fair Park Holiday as well! Thousands of sparkly LED lights will surround the Esplanade Fountain where a beautiful “dancing water” show will take place choreographed to Christmas music and popular classics. In addition to that you can enjoy Free OR reduced admission to all of the participating museums at select times.

Fair Park Holiday 2011, hosted by Friends of Fair Park, will be open from 11:00am to 7:30pm. Check below for a schedule for the day. What makes Fair Park Holiday so great is that it’s FREE to all the public! There’s no admission fee and you get to see so much cool stuff. This year the festival has been moved to Thanksgiving weekend, so as soon as you’re done eating some turkey leftovers, skip on over to Fair Park for free fun and Yuletide joy.

Some of the participating museums you may want to visit at a reduced price or “F0 FREEE” include:

The African American Museum
Children’s Aquarium
Museum of Nature & Science
Museum of the American Railroad
Texas Discovery Gardens
The Hall of State
The Women’s Museum: An Institute for the Future

Get some Xmas shopping done inside the Centennial Bldg

The kids will love crafts and activities in Santa’s Workshop, pictures with Santa and live entertainment at the Centennial Building. Saint Nicholas is going to stick around from noon to 5:30pm so get a snapshot with your own camera or purchase a photo button for $5! You’ll also find the Holiday Gift Market inside with an assortment of merchandise including holiday decorations and tasty treats. Holiday concessions will also be available for sale.

While admission is free, parking is likely not. Bring a $10 bill to park inside of the gates or venture out and use the Green Line (DART) to Fair Park Station.
Join the Friends of Fair Park for MetroPCS Fair Park Holiday November 26th for a jolly good time!

A Christmas in the Park you won't forget!

— FAIR PARK HOLI-DAY SCHEDULE —

11:00AM – 6:00PM
Free or reduced admission to participating museums
Dancing water shows at Esplanade Fountain
12:00PM – 5:30PM
Free Visits with Santa
5:15PM – 6:15PM
Dallas Wind Symphony Quartet performance
7:00PM
Official City of Dallas Tree-Lighting Ceremony
Esplanade Fountain dancing water show
Fireworks Finale
7:30PM
Fair Park Holiday Festival Ends


Fair Park
1300 Robert B. Cullum Blvd.
Dallas, 75210

City Lights 2011

9 Nov

CityLights 2011 from Downtown Dallas, Inc. on Vimeo.

Get your sunglasses ready because Downtown Dallas is about to be brighter than ever! Hundreds of other North Texans will be showered by lights on November 19th right in the heart of the city. This is a holiday spectacle you and Santa won’t want to miss. Every year they come out with some sort of new element or surprise and a unique way of Santa making his appearance in Dallas. This year will be no different at City Lights 2011! The party begins at 6:00pm as all of downtown Dallas will be laced with Christmas lights and eye popping displays.

From 6 to 10pm the Holiday Festival at Main Street Garden starts things off with the Outdoor Market, face painting, ornament making, music and food. These activities will be going on throughout the night.

At 7:00pm the Holiday Light Show at Main street Garden begins with a lighting ceremony of Downtown’s holiday tree. Standing 65 feet tall, it will be adorned with over 10,000 feet of lights. Watch how they lit the tree last year!

Neiman Marcus all Lit Up

The Promenade of Lights begins at 7:30pm from Main Street Garden all the way to AT&T Plaza. You get to roll through this promenade with Santa and the Hardin Simmons Cowboy Band right in the heart of downtown. Street vending, holiday activities, a Neiman Marcus crawl tube and other forms of entertainment will be going on along the way.

By 7:45pm the AT&T Holiday Spectacular will start at AT&T Plaza. (This night just gets better and better!) Get to where you can view the Comerce side of AT&T’s global headquarters so you won’t miss the Spectacular Light Show. Don’t forget to visit the Salvation Army Angel tree found in the lobby of the AT&T Whitacre Tower adjacent to the AT&T building.

One North Texas resident captured all the highlights of the evening last year! Take a look to get an idea of what you’ll experience at City Lights. This year is sure to be EVEN BETTER…

Click here to see a map of all the parking locations
throughout the Main Street District.

Click here to see a list of all the participating Main Street District restaurants and retailers offering holiday discounts and promotions for that night.

Just when you thought you had to wait another 6 months for crazy Fireworks, Downtown comes out with this. It’s like a preparation for New Year’s Eve! City Life’s not so bad when you’ve got so many City Lights to gaze at. Be a witness of the jaw-dropping displays that’ll have your heart pumping with excitement for the holiday season!

Don’t be afraid of taking public transportation downtown for City Lights 2011. I’m not saying do it alone by any means, but you may be able to avoid some traffic and get to where you want to be quicker if you have a group of friends or are traveling with the family. If I can do it for the Mavs parade, I’m sure you can too. Check out this nifty map of Downtown with the various modes of transportation to help ya out. Next time you see Santa he will probably be BLINGED out! Especially if he’s stopping by Neiman’s Saturday night!

— BreakDown of the Evening —

7:00 – HOLIDAY LIGHT SHOW / LIGHTING OF THE TREE
(Main St. Garden)

7:30 – PROMENADE OF LIGHTS
(Main St. Garden)

7:45 – HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR
(AT&T Plaza)

6:00 – 10:00 – HOLIDAY FESTIVAL
(All Night in Main St. Garden)

Main Street Garden - Where It All Goes Down

City Lights Locations: Main Street District, Main Street Garden & AT&T Plaza, 75201

Main Street Garden
1902 Main Street
Dallas

Dream Fund’s 15th Annual Chili Cook Off

7 Nov

One thing you’re sure to learn how to eat or cook in Texas is Chili!! So why not celebrate some of the best kinds while supporting a great cause? Don’t miss the 2011 Chili Cook Off sponsored by the Dream Fund. The 15th Annual Chili Cook Off, held at Addison Circle Park November 12th, is an annual fundraiser event where chili cookers all throughout the metroplex come together to compete for awards including: Best Themed Booth, Best Chili in 2 categories and People’s Choice Aaward. While the focus of the event is the chili cooking competition, there will be plenty of other entertainment to keep the crowds busy. Between the Live Entertainment Stage and Kids Zone your family is sure to remain pleased. Kids Zone has oversized bounce houses, fire truck tours, face painting and all that other stuff children enjoy doing outside of eating chili. Local bands and musicians will grace the stage for some spicy musical performances.

If you want to actually sample the chili, give a small donation for one raffle ticket and also get your People’s Choice voting ballot so you can cast your vote! As you may or may not know, the donations go towards the DREAM Fund which is a non-profit foundation whose mission is to aid colleagues in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas and Louisiana that face any unexpected medical emergencies or life crisis and are in need of emotional as well as financial support. Over the last 20 years, DREAM Fund has donated over $1 million to those in need. This support link is comprised of advertising, PR and media communities throughout the Southwest. The DREAM Fund, on average, helps 45-50 individuals and families each year. Anything from paying medical bills and providing emotional support to covering care flight costs or bone marrow transplants and giving rides to the doctor DREAM Fund strives to bridge the gap between crisis and a new normal. To learn more about this organization and how you can get involved, click here.

Firetruck tours for the Kids

Sign up your chili teams here if you’d like to participate in this year’s cook off! DREAM Fund’s Hot to Trot Walk is back to kick off the weekend November 12th at 9:30am. Registration will begin at 8am and the 15th Annual Chili Cook Off officially opens to the public at 10:00am and closes at 3:00pm. Register your team for the 2011 Chili Cook Off!

Spice up your Life Nov 12th: 10am-3pm




Addison Circle Park
4970 Addison Circle Drive
Addison, TX 75001

2011 TX State Veggie Fair | The 2nd Annual Texas State Veggie Fair at White Rock Lake

18 Oct

..Have we got a Fair for you!..

DallasVegan.com presents The Texas State Veggie Fair on Sunday, October 23rd!! The 2nd Annual Texas State Veggie Fair is back! Come enjoy a wide array of environmentally friendly as well as animal friendly vendors from 11am to 6pm at Winfrey Point – White Rock Lake. There will be Vegan Food sampling, carnival games, guest speakers, live music and entertainment. And guess what else? You get in Absolutley FREE!!

Just when you thought the State Fair of Texas overdid it with the Fried Foods, The Texas State Veggie Fair comes along with their Vegan Fried Foods competition! If you’re interested in applying yourself click here. One must prepare at least 5 servings of their fried food item, use ONLY and ALL vegan products (no milk, eggs, cheese, etc). Honey can’t be used either. There is a $100 prize for the winner! The entry fee is $15. (Just because we’re the “Fried Food Capital” of Texas doesn’t mean it always has to be fatty unhealthy fried food.)

Enjoy guest speakers for the 2011 Texas State Veggie Fair (I keep wanting to call it Vegan Fair). Julieanna Hever, Nathan Runkle, Nicole Sopko, Maria Miller Wolfson and Amber Shea Ford will present intriguing topics on vegan cooking, lifestyle, health & fitness. Read up on some of the outstanding speakers here.

You just might consider the main attraction of The 2nd Annual Texas State Veggie Fair to be the FOOD! If that’s the case, be on the lookout for vegetarian/vegan eateries like Hail Merry, Gennarino’s, Spiral Diner, NadaMoo!, Holy Kombucha, Denton Vegan Cooperative, Little Eden Baker and Jackaklope Mobile Kitchen. Sometimes you have to really look for a good vegetarian restaurant in the DFW but now you can get some of the best ones all in one location! In addition to the restaurants listed above, food sampling at the Veggie Fair will be available from: Gardein, Honest Tea, Sophie’s Kitchen, Starlite, Tofurky, Upton’s and WayFare.

Hit the Fair veggie style this weekend! You can jump for joy or skip for soy! Celebrate healthy living and an animal friendly lifestyle with other North Texans at the 2011 Texas State VEGGIE Fair. Make up for all those fatty fried foods you ate at Fair Park and bring your appetite to White Rock Lake on October 23rd for plenty of green and organic protein!

Winfrey Point – White Rock Lake
950 East Lawther Drive
Dallas, TX 75218

West Plano Family-pa-looza Benefiting Minnie’s Food Pantry

16 Oct

October 30th brings a FREE event that will benefit Minnie’s Food Pantry and give the family something fun to do for about 3 hours. West Plano Family-pa-looza is like Double Dare meets Fall Festival. Enjoy bounce houses, obstacle courses, carnival games, interactive games, rock wall, slides, face painting, crafts vendors and other outdoor entertainment from 3pm to 6pm on Sunday, Oct. 30th. West Plano Family-pa-looza will take place in the fields located between Gulledge Elementary and Robinson Middle School. Click here to see the entire list of activities you can expect.

The event’s beneficiary, Minnie’s Food Pantry, is a nonprofit organization that provides free quality food to feed families in need. Minnie’s Food Pantry distributes protein sources like meat (frozen or canned) peanut butter, fresh fruits, vegetables, milk and non-perishable items to clients. Eligibility to receive food is determined by the federal income guidelines which base a person’s need on their income. Every two weeks Minnie’s Food Pantry provides a free supply of emergency groceries per household for residents who do not have enough food because of their lack of resources to purchase it. Five dollars and forty cents can feed a family of four for a week. Non-perishable food items will be accepted at Familypalooza but monetary donations can go even further. Support Minnie’s Food Pantry at West Plano Family-pa-looza (Sunday, 3:00pm – 6:00pm) and ‘Just Feed One, while having some fun’!

*Raffle tickets will also be available for purchase soon. All proceeds from West Plano Family-pa-looza go to Minnie’s Food Pantry.

If you can’t make the festival,
you can still donate to Minnie’s Food Pantry online.

Location:
(Between Gulledge Elementary and Robinson Middle School)
6800 Preston Meadow Drive
Plano 75024

Uptown Village’s Fall Fest & Trunk-or-Treat

9 Oct

Uptown Village keeps the party “live” in Cedar Hill! There’s never a month that passes without some exciting event for Village shoppers/visitors. This month the “Fall Fest and Trunk or Treat” will be taking place on Halloween weekend, October 29th. The Village Green will be a pumpkin patch where different activities will occur, while Trunk or Treat will be behind the new Black-eyed Peas restaurant in their parking lot. What’s October without a great Fall Festival? Incomplete. Slap on some costumes and load up the kiddos (and doggies) for face painting, balloon art, pumpkin decorating, seed spitting, a pie eating contest as well as a Dog Costume contest! (Uptown Village has a thing for pups) Fall Fest & Trunk or Treat begins at 5pm on Saturday and lasts until 9pm.

The Village Green transforms into a Pumpkin Patch

It’s a great safe alternative for going trick-or-treating door-to-door, especially the Trunk or Treat which is brought by Midlothian Classic Wheels. They’ll have the scariest yet coolest looking cars over in the Black-eyed Peas parking lot fully equipped with treats! (If you don’t trust the neighbors might as well go for the trunks of some old classic cars right? lol KIDDING…It’s safe.) All the Village Green activities mentioned above will go from 5 to 7pm, and the Trunk or Treat is from 6 to 9pm.

Bring a camera if you like as the Village Green will be decorated just right for some great family shots and fall photos of the tiny tots with the pumpkins. Don’t get uneasy about suspect trick-or-treating plans. Just make a night of it over at Uptown Village’s Fall Fest & Trunk or Treat Saturday, October 29th!

WORLDFEST 2011 Addison

9 Oct



Travel the world in ONE weekend for FREE!! WORLDFEST in Addison grows a little more each year! On October 22nd and 23rd, Addison Circle Park will host WorldFest, a diverse culture festival celebrating all of the cultural communities that make up our metroplex. The Middle East, Africa, Asia, European and even the West Indies islands are represented. You can find cultural food as well as dancers and live performances. One year we went and were out beating drums and dancing with North Texans of all colors, ages and backgrounds. It was really fun. (see pics below)

The 4th Annual Worldfest has partnered with the following organizations for this year’s festival:

Bugarian American Cultural Center “Bulgare”
Consulate General of Mexico
Council of Ghanaian Associations – DFW
DFW Asian-American Citizens Council
FunAsiA
Italian Club of Dallas
Maharlika Dancers, USA/La Creme Ensemble
Maison de l’Artisan – Kingdom of Morocco
Romanian Food Festival DFW
Polish American Foundation of Texas
Turkish American Association of Northern Texas

Worldfest is produced in partnership with the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth.

At Worldfest you’ll find an International Marketplace divided in sections according to regions. Each region will feature exotic items from around the world, including clothing, fashion accessories, décor, art and more. Berlitz Language classes will also be offered at the festival. WorldFest is great for the little ones! The Kid’s Activities and Global Games at WorldFest will give children a hands-on intro to global cultures through arts, crafts and exciting games from around the world. On the International Business side of things, the Gobal Business Connection offers a new lecture series presented by WorldFest’s partner, the World Affairs Council, presenting programs throughout the year on a variety of international business topics. Network with professionals from around the globe or right here in North Texas. Come to Addison Circle Park for a cultural experience you and your kids are sure to remember!

Fun at the first ever Worldfest in Addison

Drumming & Dancing at the end of WorldFest '08

Worldfest '09

Worldfest '09

Worldfest '09

Worldfest '09

WorldFest will be open from 12:00Noon- 6:00PM
on Saturday, 10/22 & Sunday, 10/23.
Remember, Admission is FREE!!!

*Parking for Addison Worldfest is available for Free at the NW corner of Dallas Parkway and Arapaho Road.


WORLDFEST Address:
Addison Circle Park
4970 Addison Circle Drive

*ATMs are also available on site.