Around the Bay

Check back here each week for new community events we're sponsoring.

San Francisco Decorator Showcase: 2800 Pacific Avenue
Benefit for University High School

Don't miss the San Francisco Decorator Showcase, on display through Memorial Day! See how an elegant mansion has been transformed for the home tour. Proceeds from tickets benefit the Financial Aid Program of San Francisco's University High School. (www.sfuhs.org)

It is the West Coast's premiere design event. Known as Herbst Manor, 2800 Pacific Avenue is a remarkable Georgian mansion and a stunning display of old world craftsmanship. Built in 1899 by renowned architect Ernest Coxhead, this house was constructed and designed to take advantage of the flat, hilltop exposure and sweeping views of San Francisco. The elegant home features spacious formal rooms, a dramatic grand stairway, and a beautiful penthouse suite with a wraparound terrace and 360-degree views.

More than two dozen of the West Coast's preeminent designers will transform this elegant mansion for the annual walk-through tour. GUESTS, PLEASE NOTE: Comfortable, low-heeled shoes are recommended. There is no elevator in this year's home.

Now in its 36th year, the San Francisco Decorator Showcase serves as the major fundraiser for financial aid at San Francisco University High School and has celebrated the design talents of more than 1,000 interior designers and landscape architects. University High School is dedicated to providing a stimulating educational environment where young people can grow and excel, and to ensuring that these opportunities not be denied to qualified students because of a lack of financial means.

Through Memorial Day, May 26
Hours:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (last entry)
Friday: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. (last entry)
Sunday and Memorial Day: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (last entry)
Monday: Closed (except Memorial Day)
2800 Pacific Avenue, San Francisco
Tickets: $30 General, $25 Seniors (60 and older)
(415) 447-5830
www.decoratorshowcase.org

Marin Home & Garden Expo
Marin Builders Association

Raise your home's IQ at the Marin Home and Garden Expo at the Marin Center Fairgrounds in San Rafael. Learn about smart home products, green technology, home automation, and more!

Learn from expert lecturers on subjects such as sexy low energy LED lighting and rainwater storage And, experience an interactive Smart Home technology exhibit that puts audio/video and lighting control right at your fingertips.

You'll see a fully integrated exhibit where Expo attendees can experience firsthand how one smart device such as an iPad can be used to control lighting, window shades, and audio/visual and gaming systems

Exhibitors, lectures and demos will showcase how to make your home smarter with innovative ideas and sustainable trends in how we build, live in and care for our homes and gardens. Looking to sustainably remodel, plant an edible garden or add the latest in technological innovations to your home? The Marin Home & Garden Expo will connect you with hundreds of local businesses who are experts in helping you create your ideal dwelling and show you how to get your home working for you.

Having fun is smart too, so hold on to your hardhats! In addition to the over 200 exhibitors, demos and lectures, at this year's inaugural Marin Builders Competition & Games, the foremost contractors in Marin will go head-to-head to show off their skills. The whole family will enjoy watching heavy equipment operators deftly perform feats of magicplacing small objects on a road cone using an excavator or shooting soccer goals with a 20,000 lb. backhoe.

Marin's community music groups of all ages will entertain attendees on the Home Grown Marin Music Stage. Bring the kids. There will be activities and fun for all. This community event is a benefit for the Marin Builders Association Scholarship Fund.

Tickets: $10 adults, $6 seniors, FREE for kids under 12
Saturday, June 1 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday, June 2 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Marin Center Fairgrounds & Exhibit Hall, 10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael
(415) 507-1537
www.marinhomegarden.com

"Inspire Change Gala"
MISSSEY -- Motivating, Inspiring, Supporting, and Serving Sexually Exploited Youth

Help fight child abuse and the human trafficking of our most vulnerable youth. Look for ABC7 Morning Traffic Reporter Leyla Gulen at MISSSEY's "Inspire Change Gala" as she co-MCs the event with Co-Founder and Executive Director Nola Brantley.

Enjoy a delightful reception with silent auction, dinner, live auction, and DJ dancing! Keynote speakers include Minh Dang, Executive Director of Don't Sell Bodies, and Jessica Midkiff, Youth Advocate at Mary Magdalene Project. They are examples of MISSSEY's successful collaborations that have brought awareness, resources and energy to the movement.

The scale of this event, its anticipated attendance and fundraising goals are a testament to the incredible growth and development that MISSSEY has undergone in the last year under the leadership of Nola Brantley, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the organization. Nola's skill at building partnerships and inspiring leadership in volunteers has done much to increase the organizations reach without detracting from its core function of delivering services to the victims and survivors of commercial sexual exploitation.

Individual tickets are now on sale for $125, couples for $200.

MISSSEY is a community-based organization in Alameda County, founded in 2007 to respond to the heartbreaking epidemic of sexual exploitation. They provide comprehensive services in a safe environment to support and serve sexually exploited youth. They also work to provide information to the community and government about the commercial sexual exploitation of children.

Saturday, June 15, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.
The Rotunda, 300 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Oakland
(510) 251-2070
www.misssey.org

"Mourning Mothers Walk to Prevent Violence"
1000 Mothers to Prevent Violence

Join ABC7's Cheryl Jennings at the "Mourning Mothers Walk to Prevent Violence" to remember our loved ones who have been victims of homicide and to help other families and friends heal.

1000 Mothers to Prevent Violence -- Mourning Mothers Walk is intended to raise awareness for the ongoing need for therapy, advocacy and resources for those coping with the loss of a murdered loved one. The 2k walk at your own pace even is expected to draw hundreds of grieving families and concerned citizens from all over the state. Enjoy lunch, live music, a raffle, silent auction, t-shirts, and comedy!

"We want to encourage grieving mothers and family members to not isolate and suffer in silence," says founder of 1000 Mothers to Prevent Violence Lorrain Taylor. She knows firsthand the emotional and psychological trauma victim survivors experience and why it is important to honor those mothers. After her sons, twins Albade and Obadiah were tragically murdered in 2000 at age 22 years old, Taylor says that feeling of depression and isolation she experienced was at times almost unbearable "After experiencing serious effects to anti-depression medication, I prayed for an alternative solution" she said. Taylor began walking around the San Leandro Marina and joined a prayer group. She then found amazing relief. In 2010, Taylor organized the first Mourning Mothers Walk in hopes that other grieving mothers would find similar relief from grief-related stress.

1000 Mothers to Prevent Violence is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to alleviating the detrimental impact of violence through direct, practical and compassionate outreach services to victim-survivor families in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Proceeds from walk will help provide therapy for children of murdered parents. Registration is $20 (includes lunch)
Saturday, June 8, 9 a.m.
Marina Park, 13801 Monarch Bay Drive, San Leandro
(510) 583-0100
www.1000mothers.org

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