The community is invited to an Oct. 6 benefit show hosted by Nathan Garcia, Miss Natalie Grace, and Rocky Rey. The show, which will be at the Brass Rail, is titled “Shackles and Chains” and will benefit the Benjamin F. Dillingham III Community Grant, and the San Diego Leather History Project. The night will include entertainment, an auction, a raffle and a buffet. The suggested donation at the door is $15.

The Benjamin F. Dillingham III Community Grant was established in July of 2000 and has provided burial expenses for many people, including a 12-year-old boy whose parents did not have the means to put him to rest; it has provided financial assistance to a lesbian member of our community who was viciously attacked by a pit bull and had no medical coverage; and it aided a 70-year-old man whose home was destroyed by a fire. In addition, The Benjamin F. Dillingham III Community Grant has made financial contributions to the GLBT Youth Center, Community AIDS Partnership, Gay Youth Alliance, Service Members Legal Defense Network and the Community Coalition of North County. The San Diego Leather History Project (SDLHP) was formed in early 2003, when a group of individuals collectively realized the need to preserve San Diego’s rich BDSM/leather/fetish history.

For more information contact Nathan Garcia at 619-795-3727 or nathangarcia67@yahoo.com.

Special Delivery San Diego will be having a fund-raiser at the Park Manor Hotel on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 5:30 p.m. on the roof-top bar. Special Delivery is a nonprofit organization located in San Diego and serves the Metro San Diego area by providing 300 meals a day for the critically ill. Since the group’s inception, more than 1,100,000 meals and grocery bags have been provided to its clients. Special Delivery’s clients suffer from brain cancer, breast cancer, AIDS, End Stage Renal Disease, and many other conditions. Special Delivery is an all-volunteer organization that has been providing service to the San Diego area for more than16 years. Community support is necessary for Special Delivery to carry out its mission.

The Oct. 17 event is being organized by Donna Cleary of SHA Events, with entertainment provided by David Patrone. A $50 suggested donation is requested. The host committee for the event includes County Supervisor Ron Roberts, State Assemblymember Lori Saldana, San Diego City Councilmembers Toni Atkins, Brian Maienschein, and Scott Peters, State Sen. Christine Kehoe, Congressmember Susan Davis, and San Diego Police Department Chief William Lansdowne.

The Park Manor Hotel is located at 525 Spruce St. in Hillcrest. For more information call 619-297-7373.

The Hillcrest Town Council (HTC) mission is “to provide a voice and enhance the quality of life for Hillcrest renters and homeowners while supporting actions that benefit our neighborhood.” In keeping with its mission, the HTC will host the first City Council District 3 Candidate Forum on Tuesday, Oct. 9 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Joyce Beers Community Center, located at 1230 Cleveland Ave. in the Uptown Shopping Center.

The League of Women Voters moderates the forum. The Candidates for District 3 include Todd Gloria, John Hartley, James Hartline, Kevin Mock, Robert Lee and Stephen Whitburn. Written questions from the audience will be accepted on the night of the event.

Questions about the forum should be directed to John Taylor at 619-997-5299 or jtlimo@cox.net.

The San Diego Democratic Club’s 2007 Freedom Banquet will take place on Saturday, Oct. 6 at the Holiday Inn on the Bay located at 1335 North Harbor Dr. (at Ash Street), in downtown San Diego.

The VIP reception with Assemblymember Mark Leno and awardees starts at 6 p.m., the general reception and silent auction starts at 6:30 p.m., and the dinner and program start at 7:30 p.m. VIP tickets (which include priority seating, VIP reception and dinner) are $160, or $1,600 for a table of 10. Dinner only tickets (which include the general reception and dinner) are $100, or $1,000 for a table of 10.

Marti Emerald, former Channel 10 Investigative Reporter, and 10News Troubleshooter, who is now a candidate for San Diego Council District 7, will serve as the Master of Ceremonies for the evening.

Several awards will be given out at the banquet. This year’s awardees include: A. Brad Truax Human Rights Award: Assemblymember Mark Leno; J. Douglas Scott Political Action Award: Greg Bolian; Gloria Steinem Communications Award: Doug Case; Eleanor Roosevelt Community Service Award: Pride at Work, San Diego Chapter; R. Steven Pope Volunteerism Award: Stephanie Moody–Geissler; Herb King Lifetime Achievement Award: Jeri Dilno.

For more information or to purchase tickets visit www.sddemoclub.org.

Sept. 29-30, San Diego EarthWorks will be hosting its sixth GreenBuilt Tour – a self-guided tour of homes and businesses that feature “green” architecture and construction. The GreenBuilt Tour is designed to inspire people to build sustainably with environmentally-friendly design, materials and methods.

This year the group will be hosting more sites than ever before, 17 in total. Each site will show participants different ways that their own building choices can save energy and resources and promote a clean, healthy environment.

EarthWorks is currently seeking volunteers for this event. According to Earthworks, GreenBuilt volunteering is not difficult work and no experience is required. Interested volunteers may register online at http://www.earthdayweb.org/GreenBuilt_Vol_Desc.html.

More information about the EarthWorks tour can be found online at http://www.earthdayweb.org/GreenBuilt.html.

For the first time since 2004, North County Pride will return to Carlsbad’s Stagecoach Park with the theme “Everyone’s Family, North County Pride.” The event will take place on Saturday, Oct. 13 from noon to 5 p.m. This family-friendly event will feature a clown, face painting, food, live bands and more. The purpose of the event is for North County GLBT residents and friends to meet other families that live in the area.

Vendors are still being sought. Businesses and organizations may get an application on the event Web site. More information about North County Pride is available online at www.northcountypridesd.org.

The Hillcrest Centennial Committee invites the community to a special evening in the grand ballroom at The Prado Restaurant in the heart of Balboa Park. The event is being organized to celebrate Hillcrest’s first 100 years with a dinner, dancing, honorees and a fabulous silent auction. Musical entertainment will feature boogie woogie queen Sue Palmer and her Motel Swing Quintet. Beginning at 5 p.m., a red double-decker bus will make the rounds through Bankers Hill and Hillcrest to Park Boulevard then south to Balboa Park, dropping off revelers at the front door of The Prado. After the event it will make a reverse trip along the same route to take guests home.

The event will feature a three-course dinner, wine, a champagne toast and live entertainment for $50. Tickets are selling fast and less than 100 tickets remain. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.hillcrestcentennial.com.

“Follow the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City” fund-raiser, benefiting San Diego Young Positives (SDYP), will take place Sunday, Oct. 21 at Martinis Above Fourth at 7 p.m. Fantastic local talent will appear, along with an opportunity drawing with prizes from local businesses, such as Tan Line, LIPS, Puppy Productions, Partylite, Estefan Gargost Art, Flicks and others. One raffle ticket is included with event donation, and additional raffle tickets will be available for $1 at the event.

Lola, one of San Diego’s favorite drag artists, will host the event. There will be a special live performance by the duo of Oscar Arroyo (vocalist) and Joseph Mitchell (pianist).

The suggested donation of $20 per ticket includes an appetizer ticket, raffle ticket and entertainment. For more information contact Rafael at rafael@youngpositives.com or by calling 619-723-3261.

As a service to the senior community, the San Diego LGBT Center offers the Olin/Grinchuk Senior Space. The resource room includes a computer equipped with wireless Internet access, a senior resources binder with contact information for a number of organizations including housing, legal, and employment resources. The space is also available for small meetings or workshops in a private space. The space offers drop-in hours on Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. For more information or to reserve the space, call 619-692-2077 or visit www.thecentersd.org.

The San Diego LGBT Center’s annual gala, which attracts San Diego’s A-list glitterati, has sold out. The 34th annual event, which will be held on Saturday, Oct. 13 at the Marriott Hotel & Marina, is known as GLBT San Diego’s premier black tie event. Last year’s gala was sold out, and more than 700 San Diegans attended the event and raised more than $100,000 for The Center’s programs and services. To add your name to the waiting list for tickets, please contact Terry Bishop at 619-692-2077.