Around Town: Repticon animal show rolls into fairgrounds this weekend

Repticon, a reptile-centric animal show and vendor fair, returns this weekend to the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa.

The event, also featuring amphibians, exotic pets, pet products, educational seminars, door prizes and more, will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday in the Los Alamitos building at the fairgrounds, 88 Fair Drive.

Tickets are $10, or $9 for military service members with identification. Admission is $5 for children ages 5 to 12 and free for 4 and younger. Parking costs $8.

For more information, visit repticon.com/california/los-angeles-costa-mesa.

SOS dinner set for Friday in Huntington Beach

Share Our Selves, a Costa Mesa-based organization that provides medical, dental, behavioral health and social services and other programs to people in need, will present its 27th annual SOS Celebrity Chef Dinner from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Friday at the Paséa Hotel & Spa, 21080 Pacific Coast Hwy., Huntington Beach.

The event, featuring local chefs, will begin with an outdoor reception including hors d’oeuvres and wine tasting, followed by a ballroom dinner and live auction.

Proceeds will benefit the SOS Food Pantry and Comprehensive Service Center, which provides food and services such as rental and utilities assistance, transportation and seasonal programs to low-income individuals and families.

Tickets are $175. For more information, call Elizabeth Hopkins at (949) 270-2137 or visit shareourselves.org/events/#celeb-chef.

ARTventure juried show returns to Costa Mesa

ARTventure — a juried art show billed as “a fusion of the arts and entertainment” — will be held this week at SOCO and the OC Mix in Costa Mesa.

The event will run from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, featuring displays from local artists, live entertainment and hands-on art demonstrations.

Admission and parking are free. For more information, visit ARTventureCM.com.

Gardening talk Saturday in Laguna Beach

Master gardener Mary Duffy will lead a discussion titled “Beautiful Bulbs” on Saturday in Laguna Beach.

Guests will learn about the types of bulbs and how to plant them, with instructions on soil preparation and depth.

The class will be held from 9 to 10 a.m. at the Laguna Beach Community & Susi Q Center, 380 Third St.

For more information or to register, call (949) 464-6645.

Newport Beach accepting grant applications

The city of Newport Beach is accepting applications from community programs for a total of $75,000 in grants for fiscal 2017-18.

Applications are available at newportbeachca.gov/home/showdocument?id=57287 and are due to Kim Rieff at the city clerk’s office by noon Monday.

The applications can be emailed to krieff@newportbeachca.gov or mailed or delivered to Kim Rieff, Mayor’s Office, Newport Beach Civic Center, 100 Civic Center Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660.

For more information, call (949) 644-3004.

Port Theater to screen wheelchair documentary

The Port Theater in Corona del Mar will screen a new documentary, “Because No One Should Have to Crawl,” on Nov. 16.

The film, narrated by Sam Waterston, is about the Free Wheelchair Mission’s efforts to deliver wheelchairs around the world.

Doors will open at 6 p.m., with the screening starting at 7. Admission is free with an RSVP at freewheelchairmission.org/NewportBeach or by calling (949) 273-8470, ext. 227.

Free Medicare enrollment clinic on tap in Laguna

Counselors trained in the Health Insurance Counseling & Advocacy Program, known as HICAP, will provide health and drug comparison charts and conduct cost analyses of options during a free Medicare open enrollment clinic Nov. 17 at the Laguna Beach Community & Susi Q Center.

Appointments are available from 9:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. at the center, 380 Third St.

To make an appointment or for more information, call (949) 464-6645.

Huntington YMCA raises $20,000 with festival

The Huntington Beach Family YMCA recently raised more than $20,000 through its inaugural Fall Fitness Festival.

The event featured Jeremy Buendia, a Mr. Olympia champ. The money will go toward the YMCA, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Taidus Strong and the Red Cross.

Hoag honors organ donors and families

Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach and OneLegacy, a nonprofit for organ, eye and tissue donations, honored organ donors with an event Oct. 18.

Families of recent Hoag organ donors were given a certificate and a replica of a leaf bearing the name of their loved ones. The replicas will hang on the Tree of Life, a metal sculpture created by artist Tova Rotlevy Cohen, according to a news release.

Komen honors local residents at Corona del Mar banquet

Breast cancer charity Susan G. Komen Orange County honored area residents during a recent banquet at the Oasis Senior Center in Corona del Mar.

They included Fountain Valley resident Carla Cammack, who was noted for her fundraising abilities and position as a Komen Race for the Cure chairwoman.

Huntington Beach resident Louie Rodriguez, a retiree from the Long Beach Fire Department, also was honored.

With his family, Rodriguez, whose wife died of cancer in 2015, founded Pink Ribbons and Blessings, a breast cancer apparel and jewelry store based in Orange.

Laguna Beach police awarded grant from Office of Traffic Safety

The Laguna Beach Police Department announced it was awarded a $105,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety to fund special enforcement and public campaigns related to roadway safety.

The grant will fund educational presentations, DUI checkpoints, saturation patrols, bicycle, pedestrian, motorcycle and distracted driving safety enforcement and other initiatives.