Floathouse fundraiser and others

FLOATHOUSE FUNDRAISER

Online fundraiser to help complete downtown Petaluma Boat Rental Center

WHAT'S HAPPENING? Now through the end of the year, the Floathouse Holiday Fundraiser is raising funds to finish The Floathouse Small Craft Rental Center in order to open to the public in the summer of 2021. Donations can be made online at Thefloathousepetaluma.org/donate.

WHO DOES IT HELP? The Floathouse is a project of the Petaluma Small Craft Center (PSSC) and will be an exciting fixture on the waterfront — a bright, vibrant magnet for public access to the river. This “beacon of boating” will offer one of the widest varieties of small craft rentals anywhere, along with programs and events for people of all ages — launching more river fun and adventure for everyone.

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE KNOW? The Floathouse has been 10 years in the making and is fully permitted, approved and under construction. The pilings are driven, the docks are in and the countdown has begun. For more information please visit us at Thefloathousepetaluma.org

LEND-A-HAND TO EDUCATION

Petaluma Sunrise Rotary, Petaluma Valley Rotary raising school project funds

WHAT'S HAPPENING? For the 17th year, two of Petaluma’s three Rotary clubs are joining forces as leaders of the annual Lend-a-Hand to Education fundraising effort. “2020 has been a challenging year for teachers and students alike,” explains Jennifer Carter, a Petaluma Valley Rotary member and the Community Leader of the Lend-a-Hand program. “Remotely teaching students at home creates an increased requirement for additional books, creativity and development tools, music, arts and science projects, and more.” Even small projects, says Carter, ”can make a big difference for our teachers and their students.“

WHO DOES IT HELP? The Lend-a-Hand to Education program funds educational grants for special projects and resources throughout Petaluma’s public and private school systems.

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE KNOW? A GoFundMe page has been created to make donating easy. Go to GoFundMe.com and search Lend-a-Hand to Education.

POLLY KLAAS COMMUNITY THEATER

GoFundMe Campaign

WHAT’S HAPPENING? The Polly Klaas Community Theater project, which will gorgeously transform the building named for child safety icon Polly Klaas, is within $30,000 of raising the funds needed for stage one of the long-delayed endeavor. Once the current health crisis subsides, Petaluma has many youth-based groups in need of a space to develop their theatrical skills, and the beautiful little theater on the corner is waiting to be filled with children who eager to learn, practice, play and perform.

WHO DOES IT HELP? The Polly Klaas Community Theater is a project of the Polly Klaas Foundation. It was made possible through a partnership with the City of Petaluma which, on September 14th, 2020, began the transfer of the theater to the Foundation. Transfer is dependent on the raising of $600,000 in cash and in-kind support, considered Stage One of the entire project. Additional funds needing to be raised include $200,000 to complete construction (Stage Two) and $100,000 for lights, sound and curtains (Stage Three).

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE KNOW? To make a donation, go to GoFundMe.com and search “Polly Klaas Community Theater.”

‘IN LOVE WITH EARTH’ CALENDAR

Daily Acts fundraiser

WHAT’S HAPPENING? Every year, Petaluma photographer Leslie Curchack releases a calendar that combines jaw-dropping images of the natural world with brief musings on nature or stories of how she captured that particular shot, all augmented by carefully excavated quotes from authors, poets and scientists. Curchack sells the calendars through her wenbsite, and donated the profits to Petaluma nonprofit Daily Acts. The 2021 “In Love With Earth” calendar is now available, and include a portrait of a rainbow over Drake’s Beach, a vast sand mountain in Nevada, intimately nestled gourds and a snow-covered ground-scape polka-dotted with leaves and dramatically striped by the shadows of neighboring trees. Calendars are $16, with discounts for orders of 10 or more.

WHO DOES IT HELP? Daily Acts is a Petaluma-based nonprofit encouraging civic engagement and focusing on local efforts that promote heath, sustainability and environmental education. For more information, visit DailyActs.org.

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE KNOW? To purchase a 2021 “In Love wIth Earth” calendar, visit EarthLovingLens.com or send Leslie Curchack an email at lesliecurchack@gmailcom.

SAVING THE HIDEAWAY (AND OTHER LOCAL BUSINESSES)

GoFundMe Campaign offering COVID relief for beloved bar

WHAT’S HAPPENING? “I am doing this for my friend John Hankins,” writes Rick Meyer on the GoFundMe page he recently set up to help save downtown Petaluma’s iconic Hideway Bar. “I know he’s going to be mad for me for creating this, but I feel as a community of friends we should do something to help. We have all enjoyed going to the Hideaway and it would be nice if it survived this pandemic mess.” The campaign hopes to raise $5000 to assist Hankins in expenses incurred during this time of bar closures.

WHO DOES IT HELP? “The Hideaway,” says Meyer, “is a place that supplied a lot of good times for many of us, as well as John’s livelihood. He was able to briefly reopen it and when he did he followed all the rules. He supplied social distancing, Plexiglas barriers, and made sure everyone followed the county’s guidelines. Then he had to close doors again. Now, without any income for the last seven months and expenses still coming in (for example rent, utilities, taxes, permit fees, licenses along with medical and other bills) I am starting the Go Fund Me page to save the Hideaway. I have had a lot of good times at the Hideaway and would like to have more.”

WHAT ELSE SHOULD WE KNOW? To make a donation, visit the Save the Hideaway page on GoFundMe.com. Another campaign was instablished in late October, hoping to raise 2 million dollars to help struggling small business owners throughout Sonoma County. That campaign, “Save Local Sonoma County Small Businesses,” can be found on GoFundMe as well.

(Know of an upcoming benefit or fundraiser? Please send information about the needs of local groups and nonprofits. Any special requests or online donation drives can be posted in this column. Send all the Wheres and Whys (What’s happening? Who does it help? What else should we know?) to Community Editor David Templeton at david.templeton@arguscourier.com.)