Spokane calendar

Today

Engineers Forum of Spokane – at the Airport Holiday Inn, 1616 Windsor Drive. Topic will be “Travels in Nepal,” presented by Monica Spicker, Spokane Community College natural resource instructor. Lunch will be served for $11 at noon; program begins at 12:30 p.m. For more information, call 244-3467 or e-mail engineersforuminfo@att.net.

Spokane Mountaineers meeting and slide show – 7 p.m. at the Corbin Senior Center, 827 W. Cleveland. Slide show will include members’ “Ten Best Slides.” Call 838-4974 or visit www.spokanemountaineers.org for more information.

Upcoming

Free home improvement workshops – Offered at Home Depot stores. Workshops this month include: “You Can Lay Ceramic Tile,” Thursdays at 7 p.m.; “You Can Have Fun With Color and Faux,” Fridays at 7 p.m.; “You Can Measure and Install Window Treatments,” Saturdays at 10 a.m.; “You Can Prep and Paint the Interior of Your Home Like a Pro,” Saturdays at 2 p.m.; “You Can Use a Finish Nailer,” Sundays at 2 p.m.; and “You Can Install Laminate Flooring,” Tuesdays at 7 p.m. Call (800) 430-3376 or visit www.homedepot.com for more information.

Engineers Forum of Spokane – next Monday at the Airport Holiday Inn, 1616 Windsor Drive. Topic will be “Waste Water – How Are We Doing?” presented by Russell Mau, Gonzaga University and CT Engineers. Lunch will be served for $11 at noon; program begins at 12:30 p.m. For more information, call 244-3467 or e-mail engineersforuminfo@att.net.

Eighth annual Community Congress on Race Relations – March 30, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. in the Lair-Student Center at Spokane Community College, 1810 N. Greene. Presenters include Lee Gardenswartz and Anita Rowe, diversity consultants, and Jorge Cherbosque, clinical and industrial psychologist. Lectures are free; lunch is available for $5. Call 623-2050 for more information.

Humanist Focus Group meeting – April 2, 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, April 2 at 5 p.m. at the Whitworth Fieldhouse, 300 W. Hawthorne. Tickets are $15/adults, $8/children ages 6-12, and free to children under the age of 5. Call 777-4233 or e-mail na_puuwai@hotmail.com for more information.

Elks Lodge Inaugural Ball – April 2, 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.

Spokane Parks and Recreation Department sausage feed trip – to Sprague, Wash., April 3. 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.

Elks Lodge Spaghetti Feed – April 8, 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, April 9, beginning at the Turnbull Wildlife Refuge, Cheney. Dr. Charles Mutscher, 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. Over four miles of the trail covers the north end of the refuge. Class size is limited; call 235-6448 to make reservations.

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.

Washington State Quilters – Spokane Chapter meeting – April 14, 1 and 7 p.m. in the Common Room at Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute, 4000 W. Randolph Road. Guest speaker will be Rita Hutchens. Cost: $7. Call 467-6480 or visit www.geocities.com/wsqspokanechapter for more information.

Shuttlebirds ninth annual Tatting Workshop – April 16, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Spokane Valley Church of the Nazarene, 15515 E. 20th Ave. Admission is $35 if registered before April 1; $40 at the door. Call 624-7611 or visit www.shuttlebirds.com for more information.

Plant Identification at Turnbull Wildlife Refuge – Learn to identify the various native plants growing on the refuge in Cheney and the surrounding environment. Classroom and field session will be held April 16, and an all day field investigation will take place on May 21. Admission is $10 for one class, and $15 for both. Registration is required by contacting Ken Swedberg at (509) 235-4979.

Spokane City Forum – April 20 at First Presbyterian Church, 318 S. Cedar. Topic will be “Community Oriented Policing – How Can We Get Involved in Reducing Crime,” presented by Roger Bragdon, Spokane Chief of Police. Lunch will be served at 11:45 a.m. for $8.50; program begins at 12:15 p.m. Reservations must be made by April 18. For more information, call 777-1555, e-mail spokanecityforum@yahoo.com, or visit www.spokanecityforum.org.

Earth Day Celebration – April 23, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Riverfront Park’s Gondola Meadows, located by the Bloomsday runners. An Enviro-Film Festival will also be held in conjunction across the street in the city of Spokane Council Chambers, 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. The day’s events will also include children’s activities, live music, Procession of the Species, and a Reuse-A-Shoe collection. Call 477-4727, ext. 114, for more information.

Adult literacy programs – Education services provided by Rural Resources Community Action for Ferry, Pend Oreille and Stevens counties include English as a second language, adult basic education, GED preparedness, individual tutoring, family literacy and homeless/institutional education. For more information, call Jackie Henderson at (509) 685-6132, or Alva Palin at (509) 685-6133 or (800) 776-2178.

Neighborhood meetings – Held by the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office to discuss neighborhood problems and terrorism. Call 477-3055 for dates, times and location.

Family identification plan – Presented by COPS Northwest, offers IDs for all children and other family members at risk. ID packets are available at COPS Northwest on the first Saturday of every month from 10 a.m. to noon. Participants will receive a computer disk copy of their photo and a fingerprint card. A $1 donation is requested to cover costs, but no one is turned away. For more information, call or visit COPS Northwest, 2215 W. Wellesley, Suite D, Shadle Park Mall, on weekdays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information, call 625-3336.