Russ Gavitt has been a longtime supporter of the Davidson Lands Conservancy, but this year, he was looking for a way to do more. Over coffee with the conservancy’s executive director Roy Alexander recently, the photographer and Davidson resident helped come  up with the idea of staging an art and music fund-raiser.

On Friday, Feb. 24, Mr. Gavitt and other artists will be selling their work while a jazz quartet performs at “Spread the Love,” an arts reception to benefit three Davidson institutions: the lands conservancy, the Community School of Davidson and the Ada Jenkins Center. It will run from 7-10 p.m. at Homewood Suites, 125 Harbour Place Drive, off I-77 Exit 30 in Davidson.
Read the full story

Eight area restaurants brought their best soups Davidson College Saturday afternoon for the eighth annual Souper Bowl, a soup cook-off among local chefs that raises money for the Davidson Housing Coalition‘s HAMMERS emergency home repair program.

More than 400 diners were there, tasting the soups and picking winners in a variety of categories from most creative to best vegetarian. There also was a silent auction of pottery, jewelry and other art objects. And the Rusty Knox, Sands of Tyme, and Davidson College acapella groups provided musical accompaniment. Read the full story

Community members are invited to register for the first annual Swing Fore A Child’s Place golf tournament Tuesday, April 24, at River Run Country Club in Davidson. Players will enjoy a day of golf, food and prizes while helping impact the lives of homeless children in Mecklenburg County.

A Child’s Place provides homeless children with educational, emotional and health support, helping to keep them healthy and in the classroom. Read the full story

Rotary International announced at its assembly last week that it has exceeded its goal to raise $200 million for its End Polio Now campaign. And it did so more than five months before the official end of the challenge, which earned it another $50 Million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Also, The Rotary Club of North Mecklenburg plans its annual talent show and pancake breakfast to raise money for two nonprofits. Read below for details. Read the full story

Organizers hoping to open a planned end-of-life “comfort care” home in Davidson or Cornelius this year are continuing to search for a house or building along the N.C. 115 corridor in the towns. And as they search, they’re starting training for volunteer “angels” who would staff the home. Read the full story

Updated Sunday, 8 p.m.
About 425 cyclists – young and old, men and women, on road bikes and recumbent bikes – braved freezing temperatures Saturday morning at the 2012 Polar Bear Ride. The annual event is organized by the Rocky River Road Club and includes 100-kilometer and 50-kilometer rides through the countryside of Mecklenburg, Iredell, Rowan and Cabarrus counties.

The ride raised about $5,500 for the Ada Jenkins Center in Davidson, a regional community services center with free health and dental clinics, a food pantry, an after-school program and other social services.

Both rides started and finished at Ingersoll-Rand, off Beaty Street in Davidson.

“It was perfect weather for it, at this time of year,” said organizer Jim Mead, of the Rocky River Road Club. He said 58 members of the club volunteered for the day, providing support along the route and helping out at the start/finish.

Riders came from as far away as Illinois, West Virginia, Virginia and Texas. They included elite riders tuning up before the start of the racing season in a few weeks, Mr. Mead said.

While most riders enjoyed a nice ride in the countryside Saturday, those elite riders were riding hard. They average 23 mph over the 60 miles, he said.

More information about the ride or the club is at www.RockyRiverRoadClub.org.
GALLERY

See a gallery of photos from the ride by Ron Donson, http://www.donsonphoto.com/

Hundreds of cyclists are expected for Lake Norman’s 14th annual Polar Bear Ride on Saturday, Jan. 14, in Davidson. The Rocky River Road Club sponsors the half and full metric century bicycle rides through the North Mecklenburg/Lake Norman area, as a fundraiser for Davidson’s Ada Jenkins Center. Read the full story and find out how to register in HEALTH & FITNESS»

Brrrrr! The Lake Norman YMCA next Saturday hosts its inaugural Polar Bear Plunge for Community Support at the Lake Cornelius Waterfront. The Y aims to raise awareness of and support for YMCA-based programs, including Y-Readers, Adaptive Water Skiing, Summer Camp and OWLS. Read the full story