^[2]Tickets are now on sale for the 2010 Ice Gala, a fund-raiser for Davidson’s Ada Jenkins Center, which is scheduled Jan. 23 at the Peninsula Club. Also, a concert by The Beggar Boys at St. Alban’s Sunday will benefit the Mooresville Soup Kitchen. Meanwhile, the North Mecklenburg Rotary holds its annual Golf for Food fund-raising tournament on Monday, Dec. 14. And a series of special youth performances of “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” at Armour Street Theatre Dec. 19 will raise money for the Davidson-Cornelius Day Care. Read on for details about those and other fund-raisers.

STAGE: ‘CHARLIE BROWN’ HELPS DAY CARE

Davidson Community Players will produce three special performances of the beloved musical “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” at the Armor Street Theater in Davidson on Saturday, Dec. 19 at 11 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 4 p.m.

Organizers hope the production, featuring student actors and a student director (James Kennedy), will raise $1,200 for Davidson-Cornelius Day Care, on Gamble Street. There’s no admission charge; patrons are asked to make a donation at the door.

Since opening its doors in 1969, the center has existed to help children reach their full potential without regard for family income. Over the years, the day care has been an important part of the lives of hundreds of local children and their families. Due to unusual financial challenges this year, the center faced the possibility of closing unless it received immediate financial support.

The play follows Charles Schulz’s beloved characters through a magical day of childhood drama and imagination. When Charlie Brown feels pressured to be the “good man” his friends believe he is, he spends the entire day trying to discover what exactly a “good man” should be and whether he truly lives up to such a lofty title.

Reservations are not required but seating is limited.

ICE GALA

Tickets are now on sale for the ICE 2010 fund-raising gala to benefit the Ada Jenkins Center, a regional community services center at 212 Gamble Street in Davidson. This year’s event is Saturday, Jan. 23, at 6:30 p.m., at The Peninsula Club in Cornelius.

The gala is one of the major annual fund-raisers for the Ada Jenkins Center, where services include the After-School Program, which provides tutoring for 60 area elementary children; the Mobile Community Dental Clinic; the Free Clinic of Our Towns medical clinic; the Loaves & Fishes food pantry; and a variety of other youth education, crisis assistance and economic independence programs.

ICE 2010 tickets are $100 per person. For reservations, sponsorship information, or other details, go to www.adajenkins.org/ice ^[3]. Or call 704-896-0471, ext. 102.

TRAINS FOR A CURE

The Montalbano family of Cornelius presents its 4th annual “Trains for a Cure” ^[4] display this month, inviting visitors to view a holiday model train display and contribute funds to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure ^[5] Charlotte Affiliate, which supports breast-cancer research.

John Montalbano and daughter Jaclyn started the display in 2005, inspired by Pam Greenwood, a close friend who had survived breast cancer. “Moved by her courage, the family decided to build and dedicate a neighborhood Christmas model train display to Pam and her strength of character,” the family says on its website.

The display of a holiday-themed model train layout runs nightly, 7-10 p.m., through Dec. 30 at the Montalbano home, 20133 Beard St., Cornelius.  Directions and more information at www.trainsforacure.org ^[4].

HELP WITH A GIFT TO THE ANGEL TREE

The Davidson Police & Fire Department needs a few more Angels to visit its Angel Trees at Town Hall and St. Alban’s Church. More than 30 tags remained this morning, and the deadline for returning gifts has been extended, according to Kathleen Rose, who is helping to manage this year’s drive to provide holiday gifts for families in need.

Most of the remaining tags are gift card requests. The deadline for gifts/donations has been extended until Monday, Dec. 14, at 5 p.m. The Angel Trees are organized by Davidson police and firefighters. See our Nov. 23 news item, “Help a local family with an Angel Tree gift.” ^[6]

GIFTS TO HABITAT

With the holiday season upon us, Our Towns Habitat for Humanity is inviting donors to make gifts in honor of friends, family and/or colleagues. For information on giving, call Donna Nestor at 704-896-8957, ext. 1122, email her at donna@ourtownshabitat.org ^[7], or visit our website at www.ourtownshabitat.org ^[8].

The organization is in the midst of raising money in hopes of building 21 homes in this fiscal year.

ANGEL TREES NEED YOUR HELP

A variety of organizations have “angel trees” set up this holiday season, inviting you to buy gifts for those less fortunate by picking up a tag with a wished-for item to shop for. The Davidson police and fire departments have trees set up at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church and in the lobby of Town Hall, 216 S. Main St. There’s also one at Davidson College Presbyterian Church. Read more about how to help in our Nov. 23 news item, “Help a local family with an Angel Tree gift.” ^[6]

‘SHELTER OUR SISTERS’ RAISES $400

Shoppers on Nov. 22 helped The Village Store and Sanctuary of Davidson gallery on Main Street raise $400, as well as many needed items, for the Salvation Army women’s shelter in Charlotte. The “Shelter Our Sisters” benefit included 10 percent of the stores’ proceeds for the day and a prize drawing.

“Many of our guests brought in large bags of items for the shelter,” said Kristen Feighery of Sanctuary Gallery. “We had stacks of diapers and boxes of towels and deodorant. People were very generous.”

Added Megan Blackwell of The Village Store: “Our goal was to raise both money for, and awareness of, the Center of Hope. The Salvation Army’s shelter provides food, shelter, clothes, medical care and training to homeless women and children. While the facility has 204 beds, it frequently houses as many as 300 people – making it the largest women and children’s homeless shelter in the southeast. They really need our help; we’re hoping to do this again next year and include even more stores.”

To learn more about the Salvation Army women’s shelter, visit www.salvationarmycharlotte.org ^[9]/.

FUND-RAISING CALENDAR

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FRIDAY, DEC. 11, 8 p.m., Grand Central, 1000 Central Ave., Charlotte – 15th annual Jingle Bell Ball, benefit for United Family Services’ Shelter for Battered Women in Charlotte, which helps domestic violence survivors and their children recover and begin their lives anew through housing, counseling, assistance with clothing, and living basics. Tickets are $65 in advance, $75 at the door, and include music, heavy hor d’oeurves, cash bar, valet parking, coat check, silent auction, and mini live auction. Details: www.jinglebellball.com ^[10]

SUNDAY, DEC. 13, 3 p.m., St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, 301 Caldwell Lane – Music at St. Alban’s series presents The Beggar Boys, featuring Kate Minogue. A portion of the proceeds from this concert benefit Mooresville Soup Kitchen. Details: 704-941-0650. www.saintalbans-davidson.org/musicatstalbans.htm ^[11]. See a preview in our Dec. 6 news item, “St. Alban’s concert series presents ‘A Celtic Christmas.'” ^[12]

SATURDAY, DEC. 19, 11 a.m., 1:30 and 4 p.m., Armour Street Theatre, Armour and Watson streets – Davidson Community Players presents the musical “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” featuring local student actors and a student director. Admission free, but donations accepted for Davidson-Cornelius Day Care. Reservations are not required and seating is limited. More information: www.davidsoncommunityplayers.org ^[13]

MONDAY, DEC. 14, 11 a.m., Birkdale Golf Club, 16500 Birkdale Commons Parkway, Huntersville – Rotary Club of North Mecklenburg will hold its annual Golf For Food tournament. Entry fee is $45 per golfer and a donation of $35 worth of groceries (or a $35 Food Lion gift card) to benefit families in need as part of the North Meck Rotary’s Christmas project. Entry fee includes 18 holes of golf with cart, lunch and dinner. Check-in at 10 a.m. with a shotgun start at 11 a.m. For registration please call Julie Mills at 704-517-7993 or David Keith at 704-655-9100. You can also register on line for the event at www.northmeckrotary.org ^[14].

DEC. 17-19, Warehouse 242, 2307 Wilkinson Blvd., Charlotte – Lake Forest Church in Huntersville and other churches have collected hundreds of toys, hats and mittens for a Christmas Village Toy Store. The store lets at risk, low-income families buy Christmas presents at reduced cost. Proceeds will go towards college scholarships for inner city youth and a summer camp for homeless children. Details: www.christmasvillagetoystore.com ^[15] or call 1-877-310-8697.

SATURDAY, JAN. 23, 6:30 p.m., Peninsula Club, Cornelius – Annual Ice gala, to benefit the Ada Jenkins Center in Davidson. Tickets $100 per person, available at www.adajenkins.org/ice ^[3] or by calling 704-896-0471 ext. 102.

SATURDAY, APRIL 17, Ada Jenkins Center, 212 Gamble St. – Second annual Fire BBQ and 5K run. The 5 K will be held at Ada Jenkins first thing in the morning, followed by a BBQ sale, BBQ competition and food from area restaurants. More details as the date gets closer. www.adajenkins.org ^[16]

SUBMIT YOUR EVENT

Send listings and press releases to us at editor@davidsonnews.net ^[17]. Don’t forget to include a contact phone number, in case we have questions.

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