An approximately $50,000 grant from the Children’s Fund of Metropolitan Washington will be made by the end of the month, Friends of the Planetarium president Alice Monet said today.
Up to this point, the Friends had raised about $22,500. The group is trying to raise $400,000 by next summer to upgrade the 40-year-old planetarium facility.
Want to have fun, learn something new, get some exercise, meet cool people and raise money for a good cause? If so, there are three great events to attend this weekend, starting tonight. (Is it wishful thinking to consider Thursday night the weekend?)
Tonight, the Chris4Life Colon Cancer Foundation is partnering with the Colon Cancer Alliance, Harry’s Tap Room and socialite/blogger Pamela Sorensen to throw a happy hour fundraiser, part of the DC Goes Blue Week for Colon Cancer. It’s taking place from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Harry’s Tap Room (2800 Clarendon Blvd). The happy hour will include a silent auction, raffle prizes, a signature “Blue Life” cocktail specially created for DC Goes Blue week, as well as special guest celebrities. A portion of all sales from the event will go to benefit Chris4Life and the Colon Cancer Alliance.
The program will start at 3:00 p.m. with a “Solar System Tour” for ages 3 and up, followed by a show called “Hubble Vision II” for ages 8 and up.
From 5:00 to 9:30 p.m., space fans will be able to look at real stars thanks to a collection of telescopes that will be set up outside the planetarium.
Planetarium Group to Sell Seats — You can now have your name etched permanently in the David M. Brown Planetarium. The Friends of the Planetarium, which is raising money for much-needed renovations, is offering to engrave brass plaques on the back of one of 55 seats, for a donation of $1,000 or more.
BRAC Meeting Gets Rowdy — For the most part, it was an informative and respectful discussion. But some folks couldn’t contain their anger at the lack of transportation planning related to Alexandria’s massive Mark Center project. Military officials heard an earful. The meeting was organized by Rep. Jim Moran, who has sponsored legislation to delay the move of 6,400 military jobs to the building until sufficient transportation infrastructure is in place. More from the Washington Post.
Circulator Bus Service Comes to Arlington — On Sept. 1, DDOT will begin operating a new Circulator bus route between Georgetown and Arlington. More from the Washington Examiner.
Planetarium Fundraiser Draws a Crowd — More than 400 people attended the “Night at the Planetarium” fundraiser at the David M. Brown planetarium Saturday night, organizers said. The event raised about $4,500 to help save the planetarium from closure.
Rosslyn’s “I Love the 90s” outdoor film festival has been been plagued by rainy weather this summer. But not tonight. Expect perfect clear skies and comfortable temperatures for tonight’s screening of 1994’s “Dumb and Dumber” in Rosslyn Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway). The movie starts around 8:00.
On Saturday, more perfect weather is expected for the Friends of the David M. Brown Planetarium fundraiser. From 4:00 to 9:30 p.m., the Friends and the Northern Virginia Astronomy Club will be holding a marathon session of planetarium shows, to be followed by a chance to look at real stars through NOVAC’s telescopes. The event is being held at the planetarium, near Washington-Lee High School (1426 North Quincy Street).
Woman Locked Inside Virginia Square-GMU Station — A 25-year-old woman said she felt “completely terrified” when she found herself alone locked inside the Virginia Square-GMU Metro station Tuesday night. Metro says the station manager, who is supposed to walk the length of the platform before locking up at night, will receive some “retraining,” Fox5 reports.
Planetarium Group Doesn’t Expect to Meet Fundraising Goals — The board president of the Friends of the Arlington’s David M. Brown Planetarium says the fundraising goals set by the school board are “unrealistic” and she doesn’t expect to be able to meet them. Alice Monet says she hopes that showing a large base of support will convince the board to keep the aging planetarium open. More from the Washington Post.
From 4:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 31, the Friends and the Northern Virginia Astronomy Club will be holding a marathon session of planetarium shows, to be followed by a chance to look at real stars through NOVAC’s telescopes.
The stargazing will take place outside the planetarium (1426 North Quincy Street). The County will shut off the lights at the nearby Washington-Lee High School track so the dark sky will be visible.
Not bad for a grassroots community organization. But in order to meet the first fundraising goal set by superintendent Dr. Pat Murphy, the group will have to raise another $158,620 over the next 100 days. In order to meet the final goal, the group will need to raise another $400,000 over the next year.
The daunting goal is more than the group thinks it needs to raise to upgrade the 40-year-old planetarium. School officials have included a $162,000 dome replacement in the cost — an expense the group disagrees with. Instead of squabbling over the dome, however, organizer Raphael Perrino says the group has decided to focus on raising money.
Notably, funding for the David M. Brown Planetarium was partially restored. Originally set to be closed and converted into classroom space for Washington-Lee High School, the planetarium will now be staffed part-time.
Instead of serving K-5 students five days a week, starting this fall the planetarium will serve K-2 students two days a week. There will also be some flexibility to hire a an hourly worker to open the planetarium on weekends.
On Thursday, the board will vote on the school system’s FY2011 budget, which would include any planetarium funding or lack thereof. Leaders of the “Friends of the Planetarium” group, who are actively representing more than 3,200 Facebook “fans” and 900 petition signers, say they are not sure which way the board will vote.
At this point, it’s also not clear which of three possible “scenarios” the board would be voting on. The scenarios range from retaining one full-time planetarium teacher for K-5 students and hiring hourly staff as needed on weekends, to using the planetarium as classroom space during the week and only hiring for weekend shows (while also funding K-2 field trips to the Einstein Planetarium at the National Air and Space Museum).
Armed Robbery Suspect Arrested — A man who’s suspected in three armed robberies in Arlington, and at least 15 throughout Northern Virginia, has been apprehended. Eugene Athony Thomas, 24, was arrested in Fairfax County on Monday after a joint investigation by Fairfax and Arlington County police. More from the Falls Church News-Press.
Parks Dept. Creating “Arlingtonopoly” Game — The county’s parks and recreation department is creating a “Monopoly” knock-off called “Arlingtonopoly.” Local landmarks and businesses (who fork over several hundred dollars) will substitute for Boardwalk, Park Place and rest of the original board game’s familiar properties. More from the Sun Gazette.
