The Center was named the local collaborating organization for the nationwide fund-raiser Dining Out for Life. The event will take place on April 26 and will raise funds locally for The Center’s HIV/AIDS services and programs.

Everyone can participate simply by dining out for breakfast, lunch or dinner at select local restaurants throughout the day. Local businesses will donate 25 percent of their food and liquor sales on that day to benefit the cause.

Each year, more than 2,500 restaurants in more than 30 cities throughout the United States and Canada donate a portion of their proceeds from this one special day to the agencies in their respective cities. More than $2 million dollars is raised each year through Dining Out for Life. This year marks the first time San Diego has participated in this event.

Establishments that have already committed to serve as Dining Out for Life participants include Bacchus House, Baja Betty’s, The Brass Rail Nightclub & Lounge, Café 2121, Café au Lait, Café Eleven, The Caliph, DeMille’s Italian Restaurant, Flicks, Jimmy Carter’s, Lei Back Café, Lei Lounge, Lucky Buck’s, Martinis Above Fourth, Parkhouse Eatery, Pecs Bar, Ponce’s Mexican Restaurant, Redwing Bar & Grill and Urban Mo’s. Additional participants will be announced in the coming weeks.

Organizers of the event are still looking for other restaurants to participate. If you would like to get your establishment involved in the cause, contact Donnie Luehring at 619- 692-2077, ext. 246 or e-mail at dluehring@thecentersd.org.

If you’d like to make a suggestion of a San Diego County restaurant to get involved in Dining Out for Life, e-mail diningout@thecentersd.org.

Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) will present Woofstock: A Festival for Dogs & People in Balboa Park on Saturday, April 14, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Registration for the Peace, Love and Walk ’n’ Roll Fun Dog Walk will begin at 8 a.m. There is a $35 registration fee for the mile-long walk through Balboa Park, which includes admission into the festival, a Woofstock tie-dye T-shirt and a “sWAG” bag filled with goodies.

Participants are urged to gather pledges to help raise funds for the cause. The top fund-raiser for CCI will get his or her dog’s photo on a new canine product package.

At the Woofstock event will be canine agility and fly ball courses, along with best trick and grooviest costume canine contests. Demonstrations will be given by CCI assistance dogs, San Diego K-9 Unit, Search & Rescue and Southern California Disc Dogs.

The festival will have a variety of booths with many of the latest products to sample or purchase for pooches and their owners. There will be a children’s fun zone, informational booths, activities, food, live music and a drawing with prize winners announced each hour.

All proceeds from this event will benefit the Southwest Regional Center for Canine Companions for Independence, a non-profit organization that enhances the lives of people with disabilities by providing highly trained assistance dogs and ongoing support to ensure quality partnerships.

The festival is open to the public and well-behaved dogs on a leash. Parking is free and admission is $5.

For more information, visit www.cci.org/woofstock2007.

AIDS Walk San Diego announced that Nordstrom donated $45,000 to become the presenting sponsor for the 2007 AIDS Walk San Diego.

The 18th annual AIDS Walk San Diego, in partnership with Nordstrom, will take place on Sept. 30 in Balboa Park. AIDS Walk San Diego is the largest one-day HIV/AIDS fund-raiser and the largest non-governmental provider of funds for San Diego County HIV/AIDS service organizations.

Corporate sponsors are still being accepted for the 2007 AIDS Walk San Diego. To obtain a corporate sponsor package, contact Ken St. Pierre at 619-692-2077, ext. 104 or e-mail ken@thecentersd.org.

For more information about registration for AIDS Walk, contact Donnie Luehring, AIDS Walk coordinator, at 619-291-WALK or e-mail info@aidswalksd.org.

Patrick Weiss is currently collecting information to help in the implementation of AB 458 – the Foster Care Non-Discrimination Act.

If you feel you have been mistreated in the foster care system due to sexual orientation, gender identity or the perception of either, contact Weiss at 619-846-4667 or e-mail patrickdowdweiss@gmail.com. Weiss may also be contacted by writing to P.O. Box 3454, San Diego, CA 92613.

J?Pride, a program of the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, Jacobs Family Campus, that reaches out to the Jewish GLBT community of San Diego, recently announced that its third annual Passover Seder will be held for the first time at The Center.

The Seder will take place on Sunday, April 8, at 5 p.m., and will feature a catered, kosher meal and an evening of songs, celebration and reflection.

The Passover Seder is a retelling of the ancient exodus from Egypt. During the uplifting and empowering evening, the group is able to make relevant the oppression felt by their ancestors, who were freed from the bondage of slavery, by comparing it to the status of GLBT people in society today

J?Pride welcomes people of all faiths to join us for this celebration. Children and families are welcome and encouraged to attend.

The cost for Jewish Community Center members is $36 for adults and $18 for children. The cost for non-members is $42 for adults and $20 for children. There is no charge for children under 3 years old. Limited financial aid is available, as are student discounts.

For more information, contact Brian Schaefer at 858-362-1347 or visit http://jpride.lfjcc.org.

Positive Action and The Center’s Senior Services and Digital Storytelling Project will host an evening with author Sharon Lund on Wednesday, March 28, from 7-9 p.m.

Lund will present “A Life to Remember,” an uplifting, informative and supportive interactive presentation, taken from the questions and resources in her recent book. The presentation is designed to inspire individuals to create their own mini-autobiographies.

For more information, contact Jennifer Gunsaullus, the Positive Action coordinator, at 619-692-2077, ext. 133 or jgunsaullus@thecentersd.org.

The Cathedral of Saint John the Beloved, located at 3900 Cleveland Ave., celebrates Catholic Mass every Sunday at 11:30 a.m., followed by fellowship.

For more information, call 619-295-1489 or visit www.oldcatholicroman.com and click on the “St. John the Beloved” link.

The Center announced that the San Diego Community Wall of Honor is accepting nominations for its 2007 inductees.

The San Diego Community Wall of Honor is a landmark commemorative display that recognizes and celebrates those San Diego GLBT community members who have made significant lifetime contributions to the San Diego community. Located in the auditorium of The Center, the Community Wall of Honor was created in 2004 by Nicole Murray- Ramirez, the Imperial Court de San Diego and The Center.

“This is an open nomination process to help select a wide diversity of inductees. We rely on community input to make this truly a community Wall of Honor,” said Jennifer Jones, director of development for The Center. “It is important that we look back and take time to recognize those who came before us and helped build our San Diego LGBT community. This is an opportunity to do just that.”

Wall of Honor nominee criteria and nomination forms are available online at www.thecentersd.org. The deadline for submissions is March 30.

For more information about the Community Wall of Honor, contact Jennifer Jones at 619-692-2077, ext. 204 or at jjones@thecentersd.org.

Graphic artists and those with creative imaginations are invited to submit designs for a T-shirt contest being held by San Diego Pride.

Designs must incorporate the 2007 logo (available on Pride’s Web site under “contest”) as well as the theme, “United for Equality,” and dates of Pride weekend, which are July 21-22.

The winning designer will receive $250, a T-shirt and two tickets to the Balboa Park festival.

According to Ron deHarte, Pride’s executive director, there are no color or style demands, although entries must be received by April 1 as either a jpeg image (1050-by-1050 pixels, 150 resolution) or mounted on to a 15-by-10-inch black board with the image measuring 7-by-7 inches.

Send submissions to info@sdpride.org or P.O. Box 34366, San Diego, CA 92163. All entries will become the property of Pride and will not be returned.

For more information, call the Pride office at 619-297-7683.