Kids get first crack at San Jose musical swings
There was a great moment Thursday at the opening ceremony for the musical swings in Plaza de Cesar Chavez.
All the usual laudatory speeches were given about the fun, interactive art installation — and it’s worth lauding — when Kerry Ad
ams Hapner, San Jose’s cultural affairs director, said it was time for all the sponsoring partners to take the first official ride.
Well, a bunch of kids in attendance weren’t having any of that and elbowed past Adams Hapner, Mayor Sam Liccardo, Danny Harris of the Knight Foundation and Melissa Mongiat of Daily Tous les Jours, among others, to grab a swing.
It was a fun scene. It was also almost certainly staged, but that didn’t matter. You couldn’t fake the glee on those kids’ faces as they glided through the air, making musical notes along the way. Mayor Liccardo, finally, did get to take a ride, too, and was given a few pushes by a precocious youngster.
The swings are open now, from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m., and will be in the park through Oct. 2. FASHIONABLE FOLKS: The Silicon Valley Education Foundation has put together a great lineup of volunteer models for its second annual fashion extravaganza, Style of STEM, on Aug. 17 at Santana Row.
Among the local luminaries who’ll be strutting the runway in threads from Santana Row retailers are 49ers President
Al Guido, with his two daughters, Estella and Sloane; philanthropist
Maria Amundson and her husband, Dr. Elliot Krane of Stanford Children’s Hospital; East Side Union High School District Superintendent Chris Funk; Alum Rock Union School District Superintendent Hilaria
Bauer; Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager; SPUR San Jose Director
Teresa Alvarado; and San Jose City Councilwoman Magdalena Carrasco.
There’ll also be two sets of San Jose mayoral couples: current Mayor
Sam Liccardo and wife, Jessica Garcia-Kohl, and former Mayor Ron
Gonzales (now CEO of the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley) with his wife, Guisselle Nunez.
The show starts at 5:30 p.m. and tickets are available for $30 at http://tinyurl.com/jjsmss3.
PURR-FECT COUPLES: Not everyone has found their lifelong match, of course. And The Dancing Cat — San Jose’s cat lounge and adoption center — is looking to make some connections between people who have a love of cats in common.
The Speed Dating/Cat Social will take place Aug. 12 and 13, allowing singles to mingle with one another and the feline residents at The Dancing Cat (702 E. Julian St.). Each night is open to only 12 people, with Friday night aimed at folks ages 38-50 and Saturday night for ages 50-62. The cost is $40, with proceeds benefiting the Dancing Cat. I’ve heard there is a definite need for more guys to sign up, so take this as a challenge. There must be a few eligible, cat-friendly men out there, right?
Check it out at www. thedancingcat.org or call 408-459-9644.