Riding nonprofit needs volunteers

Free Rein Therapeutic Riding, a new nonprofit organization that provides horseback riding activities for people with disabilities, needs volunteers to learn how to lead horses during classes, walk beside a horse and rider, help in the arena, and help in fundraising and photography/videography.

Informational meetings for volunteers will be held Monday April 28, 6:30 p.m., at Moran Prairie Library, 6004 S. Regal St; Thursday, May 1, at 7 p.m., Spokane Valley Library, 12004 E Main, Spokane Valley; and Saturday, May 3, at 10 a.m., at Moran Prairie Library. Required volunteer trainings will be offered in May with classes beginning in June.

For more information, e-mail freereinspokane@hotmail.com or go to www.freereinspokane.org.

Junior Lilac princesses named

The 2008 Junior Lilac princesses were announced at the sixth annual Royal Tea Party, held at the Davenport Hotel on April 13, by the Spokane Lilac Festival Association.

The 2008 Salute to Service Royal Court also hosted little Spokane princesses and their chaperones for tea and afternoon festivities. The little princesses will ride on the Spokane Lilac Festival float with the Royal Court in the Spokane Rotary Junior Lilac Parade on May 10.

Riding with Queen Sarah Crowley will be Paige Headrick, daughter of Curtis and Kim Headrick; with Princess Alyssa Robinson will be Hannah Pelkie, daughter of Rick and Melissa Pelkie; with Princess Kaylee Van Gelder will be Christine Stephens, daughter of Kelly and Rob Stephens; with Princess Alexandra Cozza will be Helen Garabedian, with Princess Kylee Denevan will be Ginny Lou Garabedian daughters of Jennifer Troiano; with Princess Marilis Earle will be Kaitlyn Ward, daughter of Tina and Mark Ward; and with Princess Jeannette Thompson will be Stephanie Sawchuk daughter of Amie Sawchuk.

Cliff/Cannon

Help clean up at Pioneer Park

A volunteer cleanup is planned at Pioneer Park at Seventh Avenue and Stevens Street on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon.

The cleanup is being done in advance of historic preservation month in May. The park includes the Corbin Art Center in the historic Corbin House and the Moore-Turner Heritage Gardens.

Volunteers are asked to bring gloves and a rake and to be ready to sign a waiver and learn instructions for the cleanup. The event is the first in what is expected to become an annual cleanup.

Downtown

Singers compete this weekend

Sweet Adelines from Washington, Alaska and North Idaho will gather this weekend for a competition in downtown Spokane.

Over 900 barbershop singers will compete in quartets and choruses and the winners will move on to an international competition in Honolulu.

The competition starts today at 7:30 p.m. in the DoubleTree Hotel City Center Ballrooms, 322 N. Spokane Falls Court, with a kickoff show. Tickets are $10 at the door.

On Friday, the quartets will compete at 5:45 p.m. in the INB Performing Arts Center, 334 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. Tickets are $18.

The chorus groups will compete Saturday at 11:45 a.m., also in the INB Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $18.

The competition will wrap up with a Festival of Champions Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at INB. Tickets are $20.

For information about purchasing tickets, call TicketsWest at 325-SEAT.

Fairy tale ballet at the Bing

“The Magic Hamster,” a fairy tale ballet with a magical twist, will be performed on April 27, at 2 p.m. at the Bing Crosby Theater, 901 W. Sprague Ave., by Ballet Spokane professional dancers. The ballet is a student-created story, a collaboration by Ballet Spokane and local sixth-grade students who participated in Whitworth University’s annual Writing Rally for the second year.

Tickets are $5 and are available through TicketsWest at 800-325-SEAT or www.ticketswest.com.

Guests are invited to donate a new children’s book that will benefit Page Ahead’s book drive. Page ahead provides books free of charge for area children through community events and schools.

For more information call 354-4555.

Spokane Valley

Volunteers needed for dog park

Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service will hold a Friends of SCRAPS Dog Park meeting today from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the La Quinta Inn & Suites conference room, 3808 N. Sullivan Road, Spokane Valley.

Volunteers are needed to help with the off-leash dog park located in Gateway Park just off Interstate 90 at the Stateline exit.

For more information about volunteering call SCRAPS at 477-2532.