James B. Duke was one of North Carolina’s towering figures in the early 20th century. Many of his lasting legacies, including Duke Power Company, Duke University and The Duke Endowment, began when Duke and his family lived at The Duke Mansion, now a historic bed-and-breakfast inn and meeting place in Myers Park. What did Charlotte look like when Duke walked and drove these roads? How did Duke, one of the world’s richest men at that time, affect the landscape and the city with his purchases of land along the Catawba River? Join us on Sunday, March 20 at 3 pm

Read more

24 Hours of Booty, Inc., which runs the Official 24-Hour Cycling Event of LIVESTRONG and the only national 24-hour road cycling charity event in the country, is teaming up with its partner Mountain Khakis to host an open ride with Team Mountain Khakis (Team MK). During their Charlotte visit for a Team Training Camp on Friday, March 11, Team MK will be spinning on the “Booty Loop” in Charlotte’s Myers Park from 4:00-6:00 p.m. Similar to the wildly popular “Twitter Rides” Lance Armstrong has done throughout the world, this ride is open to the public and offers the chance to

Read more

As hunger relief organizations continue to confront the alarming number of Americans at risk of experiencing food insecurity, Bank of America today announced a combined $1.5 million donation to Feeding America and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America through its newly established “Gift for Opportunity” fund. This donation, made possible due in part to Bank of America customers and associates who made charitable contributions to the fund over the course of six weeks starting in December, will help these organizations and their networks serve more than 40 million Americans, including children, families and individuals. The Bank of America “Gift

Read more

Comedy fans will have the opportunity to laugh with an all-time legend in an intimate setting when the one-and-only Gallagher takes the stage at Lake Norman Comedy Zone on Tuesday night, March 7 at 7 p.m. Gallagher became a household name in the 1980s smashing produce and other items with his trademark “Sledge-O-Matic.” A pioneer in prop comedy, Gallagher has written and starred in over a dozen television specials, which were heavily aired on both Showtime and Comedy Central in the 1980s and 1990s. Gallagher made headlines again in 2003 when he ran as an independent in the California gubernatorial

Read more

Celebrity Autobiography, the 2009 Drama Desk Award Winner and Off-Broadway sensation, will present a night of laughter and celebrity insight at Davidson College on Wednesday evening, March 9. The show begins at 8 p.m. in the Duke Family Performance Hall. Tickets are available online at http://www.davidson.edu/tickets. Created and developed by Emmy Award-nominated writer-performer Eugene Pack and Dayle Reyfel, Celebrity Autobiography features a first-rate comedic ensemble performing from the actual memoirs of a wide range of celebrities. It’s all in their own words! The passages run the gamut from the insight of Justin Bieber and the Jonas Brothers to the shocking

Read more

The spring 2011 issue of Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation’s Get Going Guide is now available online. This is the third edition of the guide’s new online-only format. This issue features a comprehensive list of Park and Rec summer camps that are now available for registration. The Get Going Guide is posted as a PDF and linked to download from other County sites. The new format allows for fresher content in each issue as well as quicker access to program and event registration since it will be linked directly to E-Parks. And, for extra convenience, the Get Going Guide is

Read more

Beer lovers in the Charlotte region and surrounding areas of York County have a great reason to celebrate St. Patrick’s day a little early this year at grapevine’s Third Annual Beertopia to benefit Pints for Prostates. Who: Pints for Prostates, a 501(c)3 campaign that uses the universal language of beer to reach men with a critical health message. www.pintsforprostates.org What: grapevine’s Third Annual Beertopia, an event that will feature: more than 40 different breweries and 150 craft beers; live music; delicious local food, vendors and prizes Where: grapevine, located in Baxter Village, 1012 Market Street, Fort Mill, SC When: Saturday,

Read more

The City of Charlotte’s Mayor’s Youth Employment Program (MYEP) has joined forces with Discovery Place to present a monthly youth workshop series titled, “MYEP Career Discovery”. The workshop series will give MYEP participants the opportunity to explore the various industries and sectors that Charlotte has identified as growth sectors – the jobs of the future that drive our local economy. These industries include Health Care, Energy and the Environment, Finance, Manufacturing, Defense, Tourism and Motorsports. Youth will have the chance to engage with industry representatives as they gain a greater understanding of the qualifications necessary for different careers. There will

Read more

Warm weather is almost here, and with it comes wheelbarrow loads of landscaping leftovers like grass clippings, hedge trimmings, weeds and other yard wastes. Instead of hauling all that stuff to the curb or dumping it into the garbage, why not put your yard waste to good use in your own backyard? Mecklenburg County will even show you how to do it for cheap. Composting is easy to do. You can make an inexpensive bin on your own with some simple wire fencing in corner of your back yard, or purchase a commercial composting unit. After that, build your pile

Read more

The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) will bestow its highest fundraising honor, the Campbell & Company Award for Excellence in Fundraising, Small Category (five or fewer individuals in the fundraising department) to the Arts & Science Council (ASC) of Charlotte-Mecklenburg. The award, which honors an organization that has developed campaigns, initiatives, projects or techniques that have grown and increased its fundraising infrastructure, program and results, will be presented at AFP’s Awards for Philanthropy Banquet during the International Conference on Fundraising on Monday, March 21, 2011, in Chicago ASC is being honored for its tremendously successful Campaign for Cultural Facilities, which

Read more