Around Town: Balboa Island Museum celebrates Valentine’s and Kewpie dolls
In honor of Valentine’s Day, the Balboa Island Museum will host a champagne and chocolate event from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday while welcoming visitors to the museum’s new exhibit of Kewpie dolls.
The dolls — one of the first types of mass-produced toys in the world, dating to the early 1920s — are on loan from museum President Shirley Pepys.
Forty-eight Kewpie dolls fill two display cases in the museum, accounting for almost half of Pepys’ collection.
The Balboa Island Museum is at 331 Marine Ave., Newport Beach. For more information, visit balboaislandmuseum.org or call (949) 675-3952.
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Hiking and story time await guests at Environmental Nature Center
The Environmental Nature Center in Newport Beach will host a Reading in the Redwoods event from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Sunday in which guests can hike through the facility’s redwood forest.
Naturalist Valerie Bain will lead the hike and read Doris Burns’ book “Andrew Henry’s Meadow” for visitors.
Admission is $10 per child ($5 for children of Environmental Nature Center members). Adults will be admitted free.
The center is at 1601 E. 16th St. To register for the event, visit encenter.org.
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Teens can compete in ‘Cupcake Wars’ in H.B.
The Huntington Beach Central Library will host a “Cupcake Wars” event Feb. 18 in which teenagers can craft their own cupcakes and be judged by library staff.
The free event will be held from 2 to 3 p.m. in the Maddy Room at the library, 7111 Talbert Ave.
Youths in grades six through 12 can enter. To register, visit hbpl.libcal.com/calendar/events.
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Unload unwanted electronics at free recycling event in H.B.
The public can get rid of unwanted electronics at a free recycling event Feb. 24-25 in Huntington Beach.
The Public Works Department and Beachside Recycling will offer the drive-through service from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days in the parking lot of the Huntington Beach Library, 7111 Talbert Ave.
Computers, monitors, televisions and cellphones are among the items that will be accepted. Batteries and light bulbs are not permitted.
The nonprofit Friends of the Library will receive a donation based on the amount of electronics collected, according to a news release.
For more information, call the Public Works Department at (714) 375 5010 or Beachside Recycling at (714) 969-7638.
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Bar crawl in Newport to benefit Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
A charity event dubbed Winter Bar Crawl for a Cause on Feb. 25 in Newport Beach will benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Orange County.
The five-hour event will begin at noon at Malarky’s Irish Pub, 3011 Newport Blvd. Other participating bars are Stag Bar + Kitchen, The Blue Beet and Baja Sharkeez.
The event will include drink specials and a raffle for prizes.
Tickets are available for $20 the day of the event or at barcrawlforacause.eventbrite.com. Additional raffle tickets are $10.
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Registration open for Huntington Beach Marine 5K
Registration is open for Huntington Beach’s 5K Marine fun run, which will raise funds for families of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines.
The run along the coast will start at 8 a.m. March 11 in the beachfront parking lot at Beach Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway.
The Huntington Beach Fire Department will provide a pancake breakfast, which is included in the registration fee.
Tickets are $40 until Feb. 19 and $45 afterward.
To register, visit bit.ly/2kNsT2o.
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Wine and cheese fundraiser set for Huntington nonprofit
Tickets are available for Project Self Sufficiency’s annual wine and cheese fundraiser April 8.
The “Wine, Cheese and Chocolate, Please” event will be held at 5 p.m. at the SeaCliff Country Club, 6501 Palm Ave.
Project Self Sufficiency aids low-income single parents.
Tickets, which include dinner and entertainment, can be purchased for $75 at winecheeseandchocolateplease.com.
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Registration open for H.B. walk/run to benefit library volunteers
Registration is open for the Huntington Beach Central Library’s annual 5K walk/run.
“Walk Run Read” will start at 8 a.m. April 8 at Huntington Beach’s Central Park, 18000 Goldenwest St.
Proceeds will benefit the Literacy Volunteers program at the Central Library.
Tickets are $35 before March 22 and $40 afterward. To register, visit walkrunread.com.
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BofA awards Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast with $200,000 grant
Bank of America recently gave the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast, whose facilities include clubs in Costa Mesa and Newport Beach, its Neighborhood Builder award that came with a $200,000 grant.
The bank credited the nonprofit for its work in “transforming young lives” through comprehensive after-school enrichment programs. The money will be used to aid various youth services.
With the Neighborhood Builder designation, Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast will have access to a network of peer organizations throughout the United States and the opportunity to access capital, according to a news release.