Spokane calendar

Today

Humanist Focus Group meeting – 8 a.m. at the Old Country Buffet, 5504 N. Division. Program will be presented by Charlie Mason, geologist; breakfast will be available for $7. Call 448-2516 for more information.

Whitworth Hawaiian Club, Na Pu’uwai o Hawai’i (the Heart of Hawai’i) annual Luau – This year’s theme will be “The Polynesian Islands,” and will include Polynesian food and cultural events and information, 5 p.m., at the Whitworth Fieldhouse, 300 W. Hawthorne. Tickets are $15/adults, $8/children ages 6-12, and free to children under age 5. Call 777-4233 or e-mail na_puuwai@hotmail.com for more information.

Elks Lodge Inaugural Ball – 7 p.m., at the lodge, 2605 N. Robie Road, Spokane Valley. Includes prime rib dinner and dancing. Tickets are $15; call 926-2328 for more information.

Upcoming

St. John’s Lutheran Church of Sprague, Wash., 20th annual Sausage Feed – Sunday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. in the Sprague Community Hall. Includes smoked sausage, mashed potatoes, vegetable, sauerkraut, applesauce and dessert. Admission is $8.50/adults, $4/children ages 6-12, and free to children under the age of 5. Call (509) 257-2806 for more information.

Spokane Parks and Recreation Department Sausage Feed Trip – Sprague, Wash., Sunday. Along the way to the feast, the group will tour rock formations, scablands in Lincoln County as well as small Washington towns. Meet at Pioneer Park at 11 a.m. Cost is $25, includes meal and transportation. Call 625-6200 to register.

Sons of Norway Pancake Breakfast – Sunday and April 17 at the Sons of Norway Lodge, 6710 N. Country Homes Blvd. All the pancakes you can eat with sausage, eggs, juice and coffee. Admission is $4/adults, $2.50/children. Call 326-9211 for more information.

Compass Club luncheon and lecture – Tuesday at Prospector’s Bar and Grill, 12611 N. Highway 395. Program will be “Lewis and Clark’s Journey,” presented by Ed Lecter. Doors open at 11 a.m.; lunch will be served for $14 at 11:30 a.m. Reservations must be made by contacting Joyce Colclough at 927-4673.

Oceanography lectures – Two lectures Tuesday will be given by Deborah Kelley, Ph.D., associate professor of the School of Oceanography and the astrobiology program at the University of Washington: “Life Within the Endeavour System: One of the Most Extreme Environments on Earth,” 1 p.m., in the Eric Johnston Science Center Auditorium, Room 233 at Whitworth College, 300 W. Hawthorne; and “Discovery of the Lost City Hydrothermal Field: Implications for Life in the Oceans of Our Solar System,” 7 p.m., in the Globe Room at Gonzaga University, 502 E. Boone. For more information, call 777-4210 or 777-3265.

“Contemporary Muslim Thinkers and Islam: Exploring New Ways of Engagement with a Religious Tradition,” lecture – Presented by Carool Kersten, educator, researcher and freelance writer, Thursday, 7:30 p.m. in the Robinson Teaching Theater in Weyerhaeuser Hall, Whitworth College, 300 W. Hawthorne. Kersten directs a study-abroad program, teaches history and lectures on Islam at Payap University in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and is a translator with the Dutch District Courts. For more information, call 777-3253.

Elks Lodge Spaghetti Feed – Friday, 5:30 p.m. at the lodge, 2605 N. Robie Road, Spokane Valley. Call 926-2328 for more information.

Railroad history on bikes – Presented by the Friends of Turnbull, next Saturday, beginning at the Turnbull Wildlife Refuge, Cheney. Charles Mutscher, Ph.D., Eastern Washington train historian, will lead a tour of the former rail line, which is now the Columbia Plateau Trail State Park, and will present a history on trains in Eastern Washington. More than four miles of the trail covers the north end of the refuge. Class size is limited; call 235-6448 to make reservations.

Parking Lot Sale – The Sinto Senior Activity Center, 1124 W. Sinto Ave., is hosting a parking lot sale from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. next Saturdry. Anyone wishing to sell anything at the event can buy spots in the parking lot for $20. For information, call the center at 327-2861.

United Nations Association, Spokane Chapter presentation – April 11, 7 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 4340 W. Fort Wright Drive. Topic will be “The World Water Decade 2005-2015: Water for Life,” presented by Rachel Osborn, director of the Columbia Institute for Water Policy and instructor on water/environment at Gonzaga University. Call 624-3608 for more information.

Jane Jefferson Democrats meeting – April 13, 11:30 a.m. at Old Country Buffet, 5504 N. Division. Political issues and information for all voters. For more information, contact Irene at 535-0171.

“Indigenous Peoples’ Rights and Native Forest Restoration,” lecture – Presented by Dennis Martinez, Takelma Intertribal Project representative, April 14, 11:30 a.m. in the Lair-Student Center Auditorium, Spokane Community College, 1810 N. Greene. Call 533-7370 for more information.

Community Colleges of Spokane Leadership Development Program – April 15, 11:30 a.m. in the Music/Performing Arts Building Auditorium on the Spokane Falls Community College, 3410 W. Fort George Wright Drive. Presented by Tom Jeannot, professor of philosophy at Gonzaga University. For more information, call 533-8196, 533-7015, 433-7137.