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Tag: Community Center

REACH potluck set for March 7 at Community Center

Citrus Heights Community Center, file photo. // CH Sentinel

Promising a night of networking and education, the Residents’ Empowerment Association of Citrus Heights (REACH) is inviting residents to “bring a dish” and attend a volunteerism workshop and potluck at the Community Center on March 7.

The evening is scheduled to kick off with a “meet and greet” from 6 to 6:30 p.m., followed by a potluck dinner and presentation by guest speaker Karen Baker, who heads up CaliforniaVolunteers, the State’s service and volunteer arm.

Anyone in the community is invited to the potluck to “enjoy an evening of laughter, good food, and great people,” according to an event flier.

The volunteerism-themed event will appropriately be held in the Citrus Heights Community Center, which bears a plaque outside dedicating the building “to the hundreds of volunteers past, present and future, whose devotion and commitment to the community of Citrus Heights has made a difference.”

The plaque also includes a quote from actor and director Edward James Olmos which reads, “What volunteers bring is the human touch, the individual, caring approach that no government program, however well-meaning and well-executed, can deliver.”

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“Volunteerism plays a very important part of what the neighborhoods do for our city,” said REACH President Tonya Wagner, whose organization puts on the annual potluck and helps the city’s 10 neighborhood associations collaborate together throughout the year.

Unlike fee-based homeowner’s associations, the neighborhood groups have no required dues — and anyone residing, working, or owning property within the neighborhood’s boundaries is able to be involved in the association.

[Learn more about REACH and find out which neighborhood area you live in: Neighborhood groups REACH out to connect Citrus Heights residents]

For more information about the potluck, or to RSVP, those interested are asked to contact Anna Portillo at (916) 459-7890, or by email at annaportillo@surewest.net.

Date: March 7, 2016
Time: 6:00 pm to 9 p.m.
Place: Citrus Heights Community Center
6300 Fountain Square Dr.,
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Event flier: REACH Potluck 2016

March 4, 2016
Citrus Heights Christmas tree arrives; lighting ceremony set for Dec. 3

Workers help unload Citrus Heights’ new 2015 Christmas tree, Tuesday. //CHSentinel

Updated Nov. 20, 5:33 p.m.–
A 30-foot tall, 400-pound Christmas tree arrived by trailer at the Citrus Heights Community Center Tuesday afternoon, in advance of the City’s 19^th annual tree lighting ceremony on Dec. 3.

[Updated story here: Citrus Heights Tree Lighting set for Dec. 3 at temporary site]

This year’s festivities will begin with a 6:30 p.m. lighting ceremony outside the Community Center next month, followed by free refreshments, cookie decorating, train rides, and pictures with Santa inside the Center. According to the City’s web site, there will also be special performances by the Citrus Heights Community Marching Band, and dance performances by the Ukrainian Heritage Club of Northern California and Folsom-based Aradhana Arts.

Although the ceremony was previously held at the corner of Greenback Lane and Fountain Square Drive, the relocation of city hall and the new medical office building project underway at the corner necessitated a change in location this year. As of Friday, Community Center Technician Michele Saario said the tree will be located at the Center’s main west entrance on Fountain Square Drive — but indicated that could change.

Police Lt. Jason Russo said various proposed tree locations had encountered different problems, with a primary concern coming from trying to avoid blocking off Fountain Square Drive due to the nearby Post Office and Sam’s Club each having night deliveries. He said the tree location had changed three different times on Thursday afternoon, but a plan was eventually settled on Thursday night.

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Russo said crowds will gather across the street in the police department parking lot, with police closing the road briefly during the actual lighting of the tree. The road will then re-open after attendees move inside the Community Center for the rest of the festivities.

The lieutenant also said donation bins for unwrapped toys and food will be set up after the ceremony to go towards the police department’s annual Holiday Referral Program, which helps out local families who experienced a hardship over the past year.

[Related: Holiday police program benefits in-need Citrus Heights families]

Future tree lighting ceremonies are expected to be held at the new city hall, where a permanent tree will be planted, according to Saario.

The annual tree lighting drew over 1,000 people last year, and is sponsored by the City of Citrus Heights, along with Sunrise Mall and Marketplace, and Republic Services.
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Event info:
Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015
Location:
Police Dept., Citrus Heights Community Center
6315 and 6300 Fountain Square Dr.

November 18, 2015
Citrus Heights This Week: what’s happening around town (May 11-17)

Updated May 12, 7:27 a.m.–
Some highlights of local events going on around town this week include a free camp for kids, a health event for seniors, several police-related events, and two public hearings at the city council meeting.

Wednesday: a “Citizen Police Academy” graduation will be held a the Citrus Heights Community Center for those successfully completing a 10-week, 30-hour course offered by the City’s police department. Although the graduation is not open to the public, courses are offered twice a year, with the intent of giving citizens who live or work in Citrus Heights an opportunity to learn more about the justice system, criminal investigations and the responsibilities of a police officer, according to an Academy application form.

[Document: Academy Info/Application form]

Thursday: The 8th annual Senior Health Fair will be held at the Citrus Heights Community Center, offering health and crime prevention workshops, various screenings, and a “Health Walk & Roll.” The four-hour Fair will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and will be chaired by Sacramento County Supervisor Roberta MacGlashan.

[Document: Health Fair flier]

On Thursday night, the City Council meeting will be held for the first time in the Community Center, in anticipation of demolition of the old city hall. Council members will be holding public hearings on both a request by Stones Casino to revise the City’s electronic sign prohibitions and a request by Smart & Final to allow sales of alcoholic beverages once its new store opens at the corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Madison Avenue. Council members will also consider approving several items related to various pedestrian and roadway projects around the city.

[Document: Council meeting agenda]

Friday: The Citrus Town Center will be kicking off its first free “Summer Safari” kids camp, inviting children out to learn about “everything green” – from planting veggies and shrubs, to learning about reptiles and amphibians, and playing some leap frog. The event will be from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Friday at 7925 Greenback Ln.

[Event info: “Summer Safari” camp]

Saturday: The Citrus Heights Police Activities League will be hosting its 2015 “PAL” banquet fundraiser, featuring dinner, auctions, entertainment and a raffle for an original CHPD Harley motorcycle. Proceeds go to support the League, which was formed to help foster good relationships between youth and law enforcement through various programs and activities. Tickets are still available, as of Monday.

[Banquet/Raffle info: http://www.citrusheightspal.com/raffle.html]

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May 11, 2015
Sold-out weekend fundraiser benefits Citrus Heights marching band

The Citrus Heights Marching Band plays for a sold-out crowd at their 2015 Spaghetti Dinner.

With horns blasting and drums beating, Citrus Heights Community Marching Band members treated a sold-out audience to an evening of music, food and raffle prizes for their 6th annual Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser in the Community Center, Saturday.

The event kicked off around 5 p.m. with a team of more than 50 volunteers serving the packed room with platefuls of spaghetti, while the Golden State Accordion Club played some tunes for the crowd in the background.

Mid-way through the evening, marching band members filed in and began playing “America the Beautiful” for the crowds, with the City’s police chief, council members and Sacramento County Supervisor Roberta MacGlashan all in attendance.

“You’ve become the heart and soul of Citrus Heights,” Mayor Sue Frost told assembled band members, after they finished playing a theme song from “The Magnificent Seven” film. “You bring music and joy to all of us.”

Hundreds of raffle tickets were also sold throughout the evening, with a 20 dollar bill earning the purchaser a string of tickets from the floor up to as high as the buyer could reach in the air. Prizes included various donated bags full of gifts, which were raffled off toward the end of the three-hour fundraiser.

Founding the community band in 2005, Kathy Cook and her husband, Bill, were credited on stage for their leadership in getting the Band started and helping its work continue for the past 10 years.

The all-volunteer marching band has become known for its performances at community events around the region, annually playing at the Citrus Heights Tree Lighting ceremony and organizing a flash-mob at Wal-Mart each December. Organizers say anyone age 12 and up is welcome to join the group, as long as they can read music.

[Related: watch the marching band’s flash-mob performance at Wal-Mart last year]

The Spaghetti Dinner was sponsored by Hearts for Parks, Sunrise Recreation Park District and the City of Citrus Heights.

March 23, 2015
Citrus Heights Marching Band to host dinner event March 21

Offering a night of spaghetti, music and raffle drawings, the Citrus Heights Community Marching Band will be hosting its annual Spaghetti Dinner on March 21 at the Community Center this year.

Citrus Heights Community Marching Band members perform during the 2014 Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony at the Community Center.

Entertainment is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. with a performance from the Golden State Accordion Club, followed by the marching band and raffle drawings at 6:30 p.m., according to an event flier.

Access to the three-hour evening and spaghetti meal is available for a ticket price of $7 for children and $10 for adults, with early ordering recommended, as the event is “always a sell-out.”

The all-volunteer marching band is known for its performances at community events around the region, annually playing at the Citrus Heights Tree Lighting ceremony and organizing a flash-mob at Wal-Mart each December. Organizers say anyone age 12 and up is welcome to join the group, as long as they can read music.

[Related: watch the marching band’s flash-mob performance at Wal-Mart last year]

The Spaghetti Dinner is sponsored by Hearts for Parks, Sunrise Recreation Park District and the City of Citrus Heights. Those interested in more information or donations are invited to contact Kathy Cook at (916) 725-0198 or via email at abusycook@aol.com.

[Update: as of March 7, organizers said the dinner had sold out. Tickets are no longer available for purchase.]

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Ticket order form: http://www.citrusheights.net/DocumentCenter/View/3138

Event info:
Marching Band Spaghetti Dinner
Saturday, March 21, 2015
5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Citrus Heights Community Center
6300 Fountain Square Dr

March 4, 2015
Citrus Heights Community Center hits 5-year milestone; hosts nearly 5,000 events

Updated Jan. 31, 11:55 p.m.–
With open doors for community rentals and use since 2010, the Citrus Heights Community Center celebrated five years and nearly 5,000 events on January 25 this year.

Citrus Heights Community Center, stock photo. //Citrus Heights Sentinel

“[The] Community Center is one of Citrus Heights’ great success stories,” said Mayor Sue Frost, crediting the City Manager Henry Tingle and other staff for their involvement. “Our City saved and planned over time, and then paid cash for a facility that has become known in the region as one of the premier event venues.”

Envisioned since the inception of the City, the 29,000-square-foot $14 million Center features a reception hall holding nearly a thousand people, a large kitchen, senior center, patio and several smaller rooms.

Along with a fountain and palm trees near its Fountain Square Drive entrance, a dedication plaque outside the Center commemorates the community’s volunteers with a quote reading, “What volunteers bring is the human touch, the individual, caring approach that no government program, however well-meaning and well-executed, can deliver.”

The Community Center’s entertaining areas and rooms can accommodate events from 12 to 966 people, making it “the perfect venue” for birthdays, parties, luncheons, dinners and other large gatherings, according to a brochure. In the past, it’s also been used to host large weddings, annual crab feeds, various town hall meetings, and the memorial for fallen Sacramento Sheriff’s Deputy Danny Oliver.

The Center offers discounted rentals for Citrus Heights residents, with costs ranging from $45 an hour for a small room, up to $175 an hour to rent the full 11,000-square-foot reception hall — with catering options and event packages available as well. For non-residents, the hourly rates are slightly higher, ranging from $50 to $200, according the Center’s advertised rates.

A total of 4,796 events have been hosted in the Community Center, according to staff, with more added every week.

January 30, 2015
Benefit for war-torn Ukraine held in Citrus Heights

The Citrus Heights Community Center was filled with Ukrainian orchestra music, prayers and presentations Thursday night, as churches, business owners and political leaders joined together to support the relief effort for those caught in war-torn Ukraine.

Large-screen projectors were utilized in the Citrus Heights Community Center during the Ukraine Relief benefit, Thursday night.

“We are Christian people, and our faith must be shown by acts of love,” said organizer Stephan Skots, of the Citrus Heights-based Ukraine Relief group who put on the event. “We live in America, and we have learned from our American brothers and sisters to help others.”

Showing the mixed heritage of many of the participants, the evening began with the national anthems of both America and Ukraine, before progressing somewhat like a church service, with opening and closing prayers, scripture references peppering speeches, and a call for donations.

As the orchestra played, the room filled with folks of differing ages and backgrounds, some dressed in traditional Ukrainian embroidered attire, called “vishivankas.”

Though different in background, they were united in purpose – to help the hurting in Ukraine, where more than six months of the violent conflict with Russia has resulted in thousands dead or injured, and hundreds of thousands of refugees who have fled the war zone or had their homes destroyed.

Between presentations, attendees shared some food and fellowship, with an “old immigrant” from Ukraine, Paul Ilyin, sharing how his family had fled to China from Ukraine during the communist takeover, only to have the communists come to China later and force them to flee again — this time to South America. Eventually, he ended up in the US, but never forgot his roots.

“Nobody could understand Slavic people like Slavic people,” said Ilyn. “Most of us went through that [what Ukrainians are currently experiencing].”

With headquarters off Auburn Boulevard in Citrus Heights, organizers say Ukraine Relief is one of the leading US charity groups seeking to provide humanitarian aid for the victims of war in Ukraine – already having sent five large shipping containers full of relief from the Sacramento-area.

Residents and business owners from Sacramento’s large Slavic population have contributed shoes and other articles of clothing, and American companies have also donated food and funds for the shipment of aid, according to coordinators. Efforts are now underway to send off another container of mainly rice, as it can sustain the long transport time without spoiling.

Those interested in learning more about the local relief effort for Ukraine can visit www.UkraineRelief.org

October 19, 2014
Gun Owners to Host Fundraiser in Citrus Heights

A statewide gun rights group has chosen the Citrus Heights Community Center for its April 25 crab feed, citing its growing numbers as a primary reason for the venue.

With an auction, gun raffle, and games planned — and $55 dollars a seat, or $800 for a table — the gun rights group is hoping to raise money to “Get out the vote” this election year, as well as gain some new members.

Boasting nearly 10,000 supporters on Facebook, the organization seeks to distinguish itself with a “no-compromise” approach to its lobbying efforts, drawing support from gun owners who say other groups are not strong enough on 2^nd Amendment issues.

“Our focus this year will be centered on the upcoming elections,” said Sam Paredes, executive director of Gun Owners of California. “We are dedicated to electing pro-gunners and defeating gun-controllers throughout California.”

The Folsom-based organization is also the state affiliate of Gun Owners of America – a national gun rights organization calling itself “The only no compromise gun lobby in Washington.” The GOA Political Action Committee has already donated $4,500 to Republican Congressional Candidate Igor Birman, whose district includes Citrus Heights.

Additional ties to the city include the support of Shooters Warehouse in Citrus Heights, a local gun shop whose name is prominently shown as a sponsor on the GOC website.

GOC was founded in 1975 by former Senator H.L. Richardson, who served in the California legislature for 22 years. He also authored “Confrontational Politics,” a book that encourages conservative activists to organize issue-focused lobbying groups like the one he formed.

The crab feed is scheduled for this Friday at 5:30 p.m. at the Community Center in Citrus Heights.

April 21, 2014
Business Expo Draws Diverse Crowd to Citrus Heights

Attendees discuss information on one of the tables at an Expo booth

A business and career expo brought together over a thousand job-seekers, local employers and educators at the Citrus Heights Community Center, yesterday, in an effort to create jobs, promote local business and encourage education.

“It was great to see people of all walks of life here,” said event organizer Olga Ivannikov, highlighting the diverse attendees at the 5^th annual Multicultural Business and Career Expo.

The all-day event provided an opportunity for attendees to meet local employers, learn about open positions, and get familiar with the job application process.

Gabe Stein, 19, who attended the event, said “it was filled with great opportunities” for those seeking employment, as well as for business owners.

Although hoping for a bit more attendees, the Citrus Heights Police Department was able to recruit “four strong applicants” for entry-level job positions at its table, according to Community Service Office Larissa Wasilevsky.

The event was organized by Russian-American Media, and gained the support of the Citrus Heights Chamber of Commerce and former Senator George Runner.

Organizers said Citrus Heights was chosen to host the event due to its friendly business climate, saying the City is “extremely proactive in helping small business owners.”

April 17, 2014
Business Expo to be Held in City

A business and career expo is promising to bring together local employers, educators and job-seekers at the Citrus Heights Community Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today.

“It’s an event that’s aimed to create jobs, promote local business and advance education,” said Olga Ivannikov, who helped organize the 5^th annual Multicultural Business and Career Expo. “Anyone who’s looking for a job, anyone who’s thinking about education — anywhere from K to 12 to post-graduate — and anyone who has their own business can be our guest.”

An ad for the event says job-seekers will be able to meet local employers, learn about open positions, and get familiar with the job application process. Attendees might even want to bring a few copies of their resume as well, since there could be opportunities to “submit your resume right at the spot,” according to the Expo’s ad.

The event is organized by Russian-American Media, and has gained the support of the Citrus Heights Chamber of Commerce and former Senator George Runner.

The Expo will be held at 6200 Fountain Square Dr. in Citrus Heights. Admission and parking are free.

April 16, 2014