Art Alliance of Idyllwild's 12th Annual Juried Members' Show

Saturday, Sept. 11th 11:00am – 4:00pm Open Exhibition

Artist Reception: Saturday from 6 - 8pm, Sept 11th
Juror Awards, Artists’ & People’s Choice Awards
Refreshments

Sunday, Sept. 12th 11:00am – 3:00pm Open Exhibition

“Under $100” Affordable originals by our talented members offered for sale!

Event Sponsored by Grace Songolo
-------------------------------------------
Art Walk and Wine Tasting
Saturday, October 9th from 2 to 5 pm

A collector's wine glass is your "ticket" to the Art Alliance of Idyllwild's most popular event of the year, the Art Walk and Wine Tasting on Saturday, October 9, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

To purchase advance tickets:
http://www.shop.towncrier.com/category.sc?categoryId=15

ARF, ARF! What a joyful sound that can be when a happy pet is greeting its human companion. Unfortunately, that sound often becomes a plaintive cry for help from an animal that has been lost or abandoned. Idyllwild Animal Rescue Friends wants all ARFs and meows heard to be joyful sounds. But, because we average six or more calls a day (and that's just from the humans) about lost or unwanted pets, we know that not all ARFs are happy sounds.

ARF helps area dogs and cats by working to find permanent homes for animals that are homeless, unwanted, or otherwise neglected or in need of care. We find temporary homes until permanent homes are secured, offer spay and neuter assistance (a small donation is appreciated), and provide food for pets whose human companions are unable to supply adequate nutrition. ARF also helps to reunite lost pets with their humans when a pet is lost and/or found and assists in getting animals emergency veterinary care.

While ARF is a local, Idyllwild organization, the area served actually reaches quite far. Many animals have been rescued from surrounding communities and placed in good homes in places as far away as San Diego, Los Angeles, Temecula, and even Seattle in addition to placements in Idyllwild, Hemet, and the desert communities surrounding Palm Springs.

Our reason for being is to act as a non-profit association to support education in the arts, specifically the programs offered by the Idyllwild Arts Academy and Summer Program. We also provide cultural activities for the local community.

Idyllwild's Survival through Investment

A letter from Larry Allen.

Hi Everyone,
In case you've missed the Idyllwild Business Roundtable meetings with guest speakers from Palm Springs and input from Temecula, it has become very clear that we can drastically improve our own economy and enjoy prosperity, just as they have, through advertising and promotion of what Idyllwild has to offer. In both cases, there has been a very significant increase in business in these areas because they have been able to advertise themselves. This is exactly our problem. So many people that come to visit Idyllwild are here for the first time, and only discovered us because someone mentioned it, or now, perhaps because they saw us on a billboard. However, as you can tell from the quiet streets and the little foot traffic in town today, we're not where we need to be yet.

Let's face it, advertising is the way we will have to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps, but how do we pay for it when there's little extra money to part with? How much can we afford to give to create our own prosperity?

We can learn from the examples of Palm Springs and Temecula and how they took the steps to access experts in the field of marketing and promotion to change their fate so dramatically. Did you know that the Indian tribes who have gambling are mandated by the state to donate money to local communities? We don't have anyone in there pitching for us to get a slice of that pie, so we're left out. And this is just one source of funding we could be accessing to promote Idyllwild. We need someone pitching for us who knows how to access various funding sources, and can then direct these resources to most effectively promote Idyllwild.

What both Palm Springs and Temecula did to turn around their economies was to form a Business Improvement District, which allows them to add a small surcharge onto various kinds of tourist transactions. These small surcharges are submitted along with the usual tax they collect, but this surcharge gets pulled out of the pot and put into an escrow account for them to use for marketing and promotion. It also allows them to access expert marketing and promotion people who really know how to get things done.

Did you ever take a look at the receipt the last time you checked into lodging anywhere? You'll notice several kinds of small charges, usually not just one, that the city uses for their own marketing and promotion. You'll see the same thing when you look at your receipt for that Big Mac in San Francisco or many other destinations, as these cities and municipalities are using various mechanisms to generate funds they can use to promote themselves. Each location has decided for themselves that it's better to add on a small fee to each transaction than to sink into obscurity.

It's important to keep in mind that exactly how this fee is gathered is different in each community, so as we form our own Business Improvement District we will be able to arrive at a consensus (remember, this is Idyllwild, the home of easy consensus!) as to how we want to go about this. But the important thing is to not just sit back and keep watching businesses close their doors, and barely hang in there if we aren't closing our own doors.

The first step is to meet with the county experts who know the laws on how to go about this, so the Idyllwild Business Roundtable has drafted a letter to Supervisor Stone requesting a meeting with him to provide us with information and guidance in this process. By the way, we are much more likely to receive assistance from Riverside County if we are taking steps to help ourselves, like forming a BID. It is already being noticed, and could lead to better things down the road.....

It is important to have as many signatures on this letter as possible, so please stop by the Spruce Moose and sign this letter of intent as soon as you can.

Please stop by the Spruce Moose to sign this Letter of Intent!!!!! ASAP!!

ICRC's Mission:

The Idyllwild Community Recreation Council (ICRC) will create, support, coordinate and enhance recreational and educational activities and programs for Hill residents of all ages by utilizing all community resources.

The mission of the award-winning IAHS is to preserve the history of Idyllwild and neighboring communities in the San Jacinto Mountains, to maintain artifacts thereof in a manner accessible to the public and to promote public awareness of local history for the enrichment of visitors and residents.

The IAHS Museum at 54470 North Circle Drive is open to the public without charge from 11 AM to 4 PM Saturdays, Sundays, and major holidays. It will also be open Fridays from June 18 through Labor Day.

IAHS's preservation efforts have been recognized by the Society of California Archivists with their 2010 Archive Appreciation Award. IAHS is the only local historical society in California to be so honored.

Pick up your copy of two publications recently released by IAHS, both available at the museum:

"Idyllwild and the High San Jacintos," a photographic history of our mountains, published by Arcadia Publishing.

"Tahquitz: The Climbing Pioneers Reunion in Idyllwild," a DVD documenting the evening of November 18, 2009, when Royal Robbins and 6 other early climbers gathered to reminisce about their early exploits on Tahquitz Rock.

Idyllwild Arts Academy

Imagine a high school that has perfected the art of arts education. It’s Idyllwild Arts Academy, a close-knit, working community of students and teachers whose passion for the arts is balanced by a dedication to learning. Idyllwild offers a disciplined college preparatory program for grades 9-12 and post-graduates—along with world-class training in creative writing, dance, film & video, interdisciplinary arts, music, theatre, and visual arts.


Idyllwild Arts Summer Program
Year after year, Idyllwild's Adult Arts Center continues to attract adult students, drawn by its diverse offerings in contemporary arts and theatre, Native American arts and creative writing.

The Children's Center, Junior & Youth Artist Programs gives students the chance to express their creative impulse at a key time in their lives.

The goal of the Idyllwild Community Fund, whose capital assets consist of endowments and donations made by generous past and present members of the community, is to encourage and support programs run by local non-profit organizations that:

- nurture the arts
- foster the education of children and adults
- provide for the well-being of those in need
- protect the environment
- contribute to the safety of our Idyllwild community

Thank you to Conor o'Farrell, to the cast and to all the attendants: The Odd Couple was wildly successfull and a great fundraiser. More than $10,000 was raised for the Help Center.

BREAKING NEWS:
THRIFT STORE OPEN MORE HOURS!

The Idyllwild HELP Center Thrift Store is now open on TUESDAYS, from 10:00-3:00. We are grateful for all the shoppers and spenders so that we could open up one more day. Here are the Thrift Store Hours:

Tuesday-Saturday: 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Sunday: 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

We have really been receiving some fantastic items, from clothing to furniture, so stop by and get a deal!

PARTICIPATORY PUBLIC ARTS
AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER SITE


THIS SUMMER AND BEYOND:

Informal Brainstorming Sessions
MONDAYS, 4-5 at the Idyllwild Tea Company
1/2 OFF PASTRIES AND SLICES!!!!

Dear one and all,

I am happy to say that things are moving right along. The ICRC is providing amazing support for the idea of developing public, participatory performance and visual arts at the Community Center, and I'm doing whatever I can to find grants and other resources to make it happen.

We are all set for our first dance!
Thurs., July 1st, 6 - 8 p.m. Salsa night with Amanda and Alex (of the Liquor Store) providing instruction and music. They area also generously donating some refreshments for enjoyment and fundraising. This is the first of what we hope to provide for several of the Thursday Night Concerts - dance lessons beforehand, in the style of the evening.

For the dance, we could use help in the way of:

Hospitality: Folks to seek out additional donations (must be packaged or prepared in a licensed kitchen), gather everything and oversee it during the evening.

Promo: Help Amanda distribute fliers....stores, inns, post office, etc...

Set Up/Tear Down: We'll have table and chairs from Rainbow Inn, to set up for food, sitting area, info....may need a quick sweep before, and clear up afterwards.

Information Table: News of the Community Center, upcoming events, sign-up sheets to participate or write ideas, etc...

Drawing (?): (Can't use the word "raffle") - ideas, anyone?

Cashier: Someone to handle donations for refreshments, other donations and raffle.

We'd like to start raising funds, but mainly want to introduce the site to everyone to have a good time.

For more serious fundraising, there will be a huge ICC yard sale at the site, right after the Fourth of July parade (which is on Saturday, the 3rd - go figure). The Community Arts Network will be able to have its own table, so the funds we raise can be earmarked...to compensate the artists, musicians, teachers, facilitators we will need to make it a top-notch program! We could use help with that, as well...on the day or before...collecting items that people can donate for us to sell, pricing, "wrangling".

NOTE: The Community Arts Network is part of the Idyll Hours Time Bank. Anyone who is a member, or wants to become one, will have their donated hours added to their account. It is all much appreciated. I'm also attaching some recent notes about the whole project, for your perusal.


Judy

Living Free is a no-kill, non-profit animal sanctuary that saves and finds qualified homes for orphaned Cats and Dogs facing imminent shelter euthanasia.

We are located in the pristine San Jacinto mountains above the desert floor, near Idyllwild. We provide spacious yards and walking trails for the Dogs, and playrooms filled with climbers, toys and beds for the comfort of the Cats. There are no cages.

IDY4U.com is an Idyllwild Portal sponsored by local business. We support Idyllwild's two billboards (HWY 215 and HWY 10) through fundraising and donations. Anyone can be a billboard sponsor. Information is located at idy4u.com

We also have six E-Newsletters that you can subscribe to at idy4u.com:

E-Newsletter Weekly

E-Newsletter Monthly

Snow News

Important community updates

eIDY4u.com Billboard

Lemon Lily Festival