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Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009

Debbie Croft: Breakfast, dinner and more in Gold Country

For being such small towns, the foothill communities sure have a lot going on.

Today at the Miners Inn Motel and Restaurant, the Run to the Mother Lode car and cycle show takes place from 8 am to 3 pm. Pre-1977 cars and motorcycles will be on display to benefit the John C. Fremont Hospital Ewing Wing's garden. This fundraiser costs $30, and provides two breakfasts, plus more. Miners Inn is located at the intersection of Highways 140 and 49 in Mariposa. Call Jody for details at (831) 724-2632.

After the car show, you could mosey back down the mountain to La Grange for the town's Improvement Association's all-you-can-eat spaghetti dinner and raffle fundraiser, which keeps the neighborhood's public buildings from falling into disrepair. Dinner will be served today from 4:30 to 8 pm. Take-out meals are available, too. With ice cream sundaes for dessert, the prices are decentand it's for a good cause. Adults pay $8 and children, ages 5-10 pay $5. Raffle prizes include sizable gift certificates, and tickets are only $1 a piece or $5 for six. The dinner will be held in the IOOF Hall on the main street of La Grange, located on Highway 132, just east of Highway J-59. For more information, call Marge Reeves at (209) 853-2515 or Chris Stevenson at (209) 853-2128.

Also in La Grange on the second Sunday of every month, which is tomorrow, the Odd Fellows cook a hearty breakfast at the IOOF Hall, from 7 to 11 a.m. for only $6 per person. And their sister group, the Rebekahs, hold their fundraiser breakfast on the third Sunday of each month: same time, same place, same price. Chris Stevenson knows more about these events, and may be e-mailed at renwah@sonnet.com.

Next weekend in Coulterville the Mariposa County Arts Council will present a musical performance by a bluegrass group called The Brothers Barton. This event is free and begins at 5 pm, Oct. 17. During the afternoon there will be a Soap Box Derby for young people to participate in. For more information contact Donna Brownell at (209) 966-3155, (800) 903-9936, or via e-mail: info@arts-mariposa.org. (You'll want to bring a warm jacket or a blanket, since this event will be held outside at the Coulterville Park, located near the junction of Highways 49 and 132.)

Then on Oct. 25 from 2 to 5 p.m., there will be a Celtic and old-time jam session at the Magnolia Saloon in Coulterville located at the same intersection as the park and the historic Jeffrey Hotel, since Coulterville only has one set of main crossroads. Contact Cherylann Schimmelfennig at (209) 878-3471 for more info.

And finally, the Mariposa Farm Bureau is holding its annual fundraiser dinner tonight, as well. Tickets may be purchased at the door: $30 for adults, children 12 and younger are free. Held in Building A at the Mariposa County Fairgrounds, dinner includes a meal with drinks and dessert. The social hour begins at 5 p.m. and dinner at 6. Both live and silent auctions will be held. The one coveted item for auction is the five-day guided anglers adventure trip (worth $3,000) given by the Kennedy Meadows Guest Ranch. The raffle prize is a wagon wheel bench made by FFA students. The Farm Bureau supports our FFA and 4-H members in a variety of ways, and funds raised by this event will be used for the students with projects and scholarships.

For continuous event information in the foothills, visit the Mariposa County Chamber of Commerce Website at www.mariposachamber.org.

Debbie Croft writes about life in the foothill communities. She can be reached at composed@tds.net, or at her Sun-Star blog: City Girl, Country Life.