Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Local notes
Architect to lecture
Architect John Ronan will speak at 4:30 p.m. Monday in Ken and Linda Sue Shollmier Hall, Room 250 of Vol Walker Hall, on the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville, as part of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design lecture series.
Ronan is founder and principal of John Ronan Architects in Chicago. He is also the Fay Jones School’s John G. Williams Distinguished Visiting Professor in Architecture this semester.
Ronan serves as lead designer on all projects his office undertakes, and he is known for his abstract yet sensuous work, which explores materiality and atmosphere.
In his lecture, titled “Out of the Ordinary,” Ronan will discuss his attempts at transcending pragmatism within cultural and professional contexts.
The public is invited to attend. Admission is free, with limited seating.
Information: (479) 5754704 or fayjones.uark.edu.
Blood Center seeks donors
The Community Blood Center of the Ozarks strives for area blood reserves to be at around a three-day supply for all blood types. A Positive and O Negative blood types are currently under optimum levels, with O Negative approaching the critical stage. Healthy donors are strongly encouraged to give at a CBCO blood drive or donor center near you.
Upcoming blood drives include:
■ Holiday Island: 11 a.m.4 p.m. Monday, Holiday Island Elks Lodge, 4 Parkcliff Drive
■ Lowell: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Thursday, Central States, 302 Jane Place
Information: (800) 2805337 or cbco.org.
Buffalo River to be topic
The public is invited to attend a free evening presentation and panel discussion focused on the latest developments in the ongoing efforts to protect the Buffalo National River and addressing the larger issue of sustainable agriculture. The presentation will be hosted by the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday at Mount Sequoyah Conference Center, 150 N. Skyline Drive in Fayetteville.
Speakers will be Gordon Watkins, Kelly Hunter Foster, Peter Lehner and Terry Spence.
Information: (870) 4385537.
Cemetery to hold meeting
The Association will meet at 7 p.m. April 9 at the Mount Comfort Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall, 3816 W. Mount Comfort Road in Fayetteville.
All association members, those who own burial rights in the cemetery or are decedents of someone in the cemetery, are welcome to attend the meeting.
Annual reports will be given, projects discussed and board members elected. Please consider leaving a living legacy in your will to the Mount Comfort Cemetery Association. Tax deductible donations for maintenance can be mailed to Mount Comfort Cemetery Association, 3878 W. Mount Comfort Road, Fayetteville 72704. Please make checks payable to the Mount Comfort Cemetery Association.
Information: (479) 7553874 or email mt.comfort. cemetery.assoc.ar@gmail. com.
NWA Gives sets date
Northwest Arkansas nonprofit organizations are joining together to promote an online day of giving to benefit the community. NWA Gives formed to continue the fundraising efforts previously sparked statewide by the Arkansas Community Foundation’s spring giving day.
The NWA Gives day will be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. April 5. All local 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations are invited to participate. Each participating nonprofit will be listed on the NWA Gives website and will have a form for online donation available on their individual websites.
NWA Gives has partnered with local businesses and networking partners including the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, Rogers-Lowell Chamber of Commerce, Bentonville-Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce, The Center for Nonprofits at JTL Shop, The Center for Nonprofits at St. Mary’s, KLRC, Rogers Ministerial Alliance and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. Each of these organizations will assist in encouraging the people of Northwest Arkansas to give from their hearts.
Information: (479) 2255253 or nwagives.org.
Council seeks applicants
The Arkansas Arts Council, a division of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, is accepting applications for its Individual Artist Fellowships. The deadline to apply is April 13.
Up to nine fellowships worth $4,000 each will be awarded.
The Individual Artist Fellowships annually recognize individual artistic ability and creative excellence to encourage the continuing artistic development of the selected recipients. To be eligible for a fellowship, an artist must be at least 25 years old and must have been an Arkansas resident for at least one year at the time of application. Recipients are selected by a panel of arts professionals.
Information: (501) 3249348 arkansasarts.org or email robin.mcclea@ arkansas.gov.
OLLI classes announced
Classes offered by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Arkansas include: ■ The Impact of Technology on the Workplace Environment: April 3, members $27, nonmembers $42.
■ Disruption in Retail: April 3, focus on current retail trends and discuss how retail has evolved, members $27, nonmembers $42.
■ Solar Energy Fundamentals: Wednesday and April 4, the history and evolution of solar energy, members $33, nonmembers $48. ■ Exploring the Exodus — From the Egyptian Plagues to the Conquest of Canaan: April 5, members $37, nonmembers $52. ■ Internet Basics: April 5 and 12, conduct proper internet searches, navigate social media securely, members $35, nonmembers $50. ■ Rediscovering Cycling, Beginner Maintenance and Local Riding: April 6 and 13, get back into cycling and learn the basic tools and skills you need at this classroom session at Drake Airfield and on the Razorback Greenway, $27 members, $42 nonmembers. ■ Entrepreneurship in Northwest Arkansas: April 9, 16 and 23, let Startup Junkie Consulting expose you to the multifaceted entrepreneurial landscape that is Northwest Arkansas, $35 members, $50 nonmembers. ■ Economic Development in Arkansas, What It Is and Isn’t in 2018: April 10, join Arkansas historian Rex Nelson to discuss the the rapid changes in economic development plans, $47 members, $62 nonmembers. ■ Organizing Your Digital Photos With
Lightroom: April 10 and 17, students will learn to use the software Lightroom to manage photos from all sources, $30 members, $45 nonmembers.
Information: (479) 5754545 or olli.uark.edu.
Family History Conference set
The eighth annual Family History Conference will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 21 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) Church, 6738 Lynch’s Prairie Court in Har-Ber Meadows in Springdale. There will be more than 30 classes for all levels of family history enthusiasts.
Costumes and old-fashioned cookies can be enjoyed during the day at this free event.
Information: (918)4706634 or email hammon treesteve1@gmail.com.
Fort Smith holds Volunteer Fair
All Fort Smith area locals are invited to attend the seventh annual Fort Smith Volunteer Fair from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 14 at the River Park Events Building, 121 River Park Drive in Fort Smith. This event will include two dozen local historic and natural sites as well as volunteer organizations throughout the Fort Smith area. Interested volunteers will have a chance to see all the local sites that they could become a part of. These volunteer positions include anything from staffing front desks, to grounds maintenance, to giving tours. Come on out and see what position best fits you and your talents. It is a great chance to build your resume, share your skills, make new friends and strengthen your community.
Free sub sandwiches, chips and a drink will be available from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Information: (479) 2263727 or email cody_faber@ nps.gov.
Deadline approaching
The Northwest Arkansas Senior Games days provide an opportunity for fun, fitness and competition through a wide array of events including runs, dashes, walks, javelin, discus, shot put, air rifle, spincasting, basketball shoot, archery, bowling and more. The dates for this year’s games are as follows: ■ April 13: Women’s 8-Ball
Pool
■ April 20: Men’s 8-Ball Pool, both held at the Fayetteville Senior Activity and Wellness Center in Fayetteville
■ April 26: Bowling, Cottonwood Bowl in Harrison ■ May 4: Track, Field and Fun Events, Harrison High School F.S. Garrison Stadium
■ May 5: Archery, Bull Shoals City Park.
The track and field events draw entrants not only from the agency’s nine-county area, but also from across the state and nation. Last year the games had more than 297 entrants with ages ranging from 50 to 94.
Anyone age 50 or over is invited to participate. Registration fee is $10. Registrations need to be postmarked by April 13. Late registrations will be accepted through April 20.
Information: (800) 4329721, aaanwar.org or email adunlap@aaanwar.org.
MRS hosts flotilla
Join the Mulberry River Society for a special Earth Day celebration and flotilla honoring the society with special guest Smokey the Bear on April 20. The Forest Service has nominated the MRS for the National Enduring Volunteer Service Award in recognition of their 27 years of annual river cleanups at Turner Bend and the restoration of two Mulberry River access points at High Bank and Indian Creek.
The restoration of these access points is the result of a collaborative effort between MRS volunteers, the United States Forest Service, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and the Arkansas Canoe Club.
Information: (479) 6773036 or friendsoftheMRS. com.
Human Library collecting books
The Human Library Organization is partnering with Fayetteville Public Library and the University of Arkansas department of communication in bringing a Human Library to Fayetteville on Sept. 8. The Human Library Organization is a global movement working to build spaces in the community for personal dialogue about issues that are often difficult, challenging or inspiring.
The goal of the Human Library of Fayetteville is to help build social cohesion and a greater understanding for diversity and belonging in the community — to live a story beyond your own.
Currently, the Human Library has been presented in more than 70 countries worldwide, and Fayetteville is joining the list this fall. The library publishes people like open books on a given topic. Readers ask questions and get answers from their “book.” Volunteer books help create dialogue and understanding all over the world based on their own personal stories. They are willing to enter dialogue, to break taboos and to show that everyone’s story needs to be told.
If you would like to be considered for a book, please complete the human library registration form to the best of your ability. The form is available on the library’s website at faylib.org/human-library-book-recommendation. Recommendations will be accepted through April 30. If selected, you will be contacted in May with further information. Volunteer books will be required to attend a training in early August, and their images will be used to help promote the event.
Information: (479) 8567210 or email wfitzgibbon@ faylib.org.
Drone class to be held
The FAA anticipates as many as 6.12 million drones in the air by 2021, which is an increase of 58.6 percent annually, beginning from 2016. Drone hobbyists and recreational users are expected to triple, while commercial use drones will increase tenfold and possibly more.
Drones are the wave of the future and now Northwest Technical Institute of Springdale and Aerobotics LLC will be offering a new Introductory Drone Class called UAS 101: Introduction to Drone Ownership on April 22 at the Springdale campus.
Students will receive valuable information on FAA rules and regulations regarding drone operations, and other topics such as safety, airspace, weather and more, along with a hands-on drone flight and time in the First Person View Goggles.
Information: (417) 3660422.