Around Town: George Benson and Morris Day headline Newport Beach Jazz Festival

George Benson and Morris Day will headline the Newport Beach Jazz Festival, which plays Saturday and Sunday.

Doors will open for the annual festival at 10:30 a.m. each day at the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, 1107 Jamboree Road.

Morris Day and the Time will perform at 6:40 p.m. Saturday. Benson will take the stage at 6:30 p.m. Sunday.

Other performers include Jeffrey Osborne, Derek Bordeaux, Poncho Sanchez, Marcus Johnson, Oreo Divas and the Braxton Brothers.

General admission tickets are $85 for a single day and $135 for Saturday and Sunday. VIP single-day passes are available for $175. They include reserved seating in front of the stage and access to a beverage tent.

For more information and tickets, visit festivals.hyattconcerts.com/tickets.

Gay pride festival and beach party in Laguna this weekend

A Laguna Beach gay pride festival will be held from 3 p.m. to midnight Saturday at Seven 7 Seven at 777 Laguna Canyon Road.

Entertainment will include specialty vendors, “go gos,” “queens,” disc jockeys and other performances.

General admission is $15. Early-bird tickets are available online for $12.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2JMg3kj.

On Sunday, a West Street Beach Pride Party will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1 Camel Point Drive, featuring a DJ, entertainment and dancing.

For more information on that event, visit bit.ly/2JJgjR2.

Chargers’ camp starts July 25 in Costa Mesa

The Los Angeles Chargers will begin their third summer training camp in Costa Mesa on July 25, the team announced.

Camp will again be held at the Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex at 2750 Fairview Road. Additional details on this year’s schedule will be unveiled in coming weeks, the team said.

The Bolts are coming off a 12-win season in which they secured their first playoff berth since 2013.

Huntington Beach academy to perform final dance concert of season

The Huntington Beach Academy for the Performing Arts’ dance department will perform its final concert of the season Friday and Saturday at the Huntington Beach High School Theatre, 1905 Main St.

“Syn*er*gy” will begin at 7:30 p.m. Friday and 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The performance will include tap, jazz, ballet, modern, commercial and repertory ensembles.

For tickets, visit hbapa.org/see.

Blood drive to be held Friday in Newport Beach

A blood drive will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday at the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce parking lot, 4343 Von Karman Ave.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2JMOlUx.

Huntington Beach Concours d’Elegance events to feature classic cars, motorcycles and bikes

The annual Huntington Beach Concours d’Elegance will bring classic cars, motorcycles and bicycles to Huntington Beach Central Park this weekend.

A hot rod and custom show will run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday with live entertainment, food and vendors.

The main Concours d’Elegance will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday with vintage and modern cars, motorcycles and bikes.

General admission is $10. Children younger than 16 get in free.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2EJAxGm.

Corona del Mar 5K coming Saturday

The Corona del Mar Scenic 5K will be held along the bluffs above Corona del Mar State Beach on Saturday.

Event-day registration begins at 6 a.m. and warmups start at 7:30 a.m. at 3001 Ocean Blvd.

The event will include a 5K run, 2-mile walk, 2-mile youth run and 1K kids’ run.

Advance registration costs $40 for the 5K run, $30 for the 2-mile walk and 2-mile youth run and $20 for the kids’ 1K. Same-day registration is $5 more.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2r99KNy.

Huntington Beach Art Center hosts plein air art competition

The Huntington Beach Art Center will hold a Plein Air Paint-Out art competition at 10 a.m. Saturday at the 5th & PCH outdoor marketplace, 155 Fifth St.

The works of more than 25 competing artists will be on display and judged for cash prizes.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2EJXh9b.

Balboa Peninsula Trolley running throughout summer

The Balboa Peninsula Trolley is now running from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday through summer, along with the Fourth of July and Labor Day.

The free shuttle has 22 stops, arriving in 15-minute intervals.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2WxdVTn.

Volunteer orientations set for Costa Mesa homeless shelter

Volunteer orientations for Costa Mesa’s new homeless shelter will be held Saturday and June 15.

On both days, a general volunteer orientation will begin at 10 a.m. at Crossing Church, 2115 Newport Blvd. A food service volunteer orientation will be held at 1 p.m. at the Costa Mesa Senior Center, 695 W. 19th St.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2W1zrLO.

Costa Mesa fashion show to raise money for charity

The Harbor Mesa Lions will present a fashion show from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Costa Mesa Country Club, 1701 Golf Course Drive.

There will be shopping opportunities and an auction, with proceeds going to partnering charities.

Tickets are $35. For more information, visit bit.ly/2W1WaaO.

Newport Beach event to teach how to create a quilt

Artist and author Jamie Fingal will hold a quilting workshop from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Furnishing Hope Gallery, 1062 Irvine Ave., Newport Beach.

Admission is $40. For more information, visit furnishinghope.org/category/events.

Tickets going on sale for El Fantasma at OC Fair & Event Center

Tickets will go on sale Saturday for Latin artist El Fantasma’s performance at the OC Fair & Event Center on Aug. 14.

For tickets, visit bit.ly/2JLHWZU.

Balboa Island Parade set for Sunday

The 26th annual Balboa Island Parade will begin at 11 a.m. Sunday at 127 Marine Ave., Newport Beach.

Floats, marching bands, local dignitaries and drill teams will reflect the year’s theme, “Our Treasured Island.”

Visitors are encouraged to cross the island’s bridge before it closes at 10:45 a.m.

For more information, visit bit.ly/30QqRmO.

Newport Beach mayor to hold town hall meeting

Newport Beach Mayor Diane Dixon will hold a town hall meeting to discuss various city issues with residents from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Monday at Marina Park, 1600 W. Balboa Blvd.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2Kdmigt.

Huntington Beach 5th-grader wins $10,000 for creating wildfire early-detection system

Huntington Beach fifth-grader Ryan Honary recently won $10,000 for inventing a wildfire early-detection system that enables firefighters to activate an app on their cellphones by using a wireless router in the field.

The Pegasus School student was presented with the award May 24 for competing in the Ignite Innovation Student Challenge, in which students create digital solutions to problems.

The competition is held by Tata Consultancy Services, a consulting and business solutions organization.

Costa Mesa city planners to attend community event

Residents can chat with Costa Mesa city planners during an event from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday at Fete the Venue, 3101 Red Hill Ave.

Admission is $20 for Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce members and $25 for nonmembers.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2QCa7Lb.

O.C. Fair to be topic of discussion at Newport Beach event

Kathy Kramer, chief executive of the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, will be a featured speaker at a Wake Up Newport event from 7:15 to 8:30 a.m. June 6 at the Newport Beach Public Library, 1000 Avocado Ave.

Kramer will discuss the upcoming Orange County Fair and other community programs.

For more information, visit bit.ly/2JTabpJ.

Laguna Beach art organization celebrating 20th anniversary with exhibits

The Artist Fund will celebrate its 20th anniversary at the Festival of Arts with a reception at Laguna Beach City Hall from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. June 6.

Exhibits will include 40 neckties decorated by festival exhibitors and 35 “Art-to-Go” pieces.

Visitors can vote for their favorite works and qualify for a free prize drawing.

The show will run through June 27 at 505 Forest Ave.

For more information, visit foa.org or call (949) 612-1949.

Orange Coast College names 2019 Faculty Member of the Year

Fashion instructor Christina Amaral was recently selected Orange Coast College’s 2019 Faculty Member of the Year.

During her 35-year career at the Costa Mesa college, Amaral has focused on mentoring and helping students prepare for careers.

“I’m a strong believer in education and continuously working to create a connection between students, faculty and industry,” Amaral said. “I believe that if we, as faculty, take the time to get to know our students, we can build solid relationships that will continue to grow and benefit many future generations.”

Laguna Beach school district names top employees of the year

The Laguna Beach Unified School District recently named high school teacher Steve Sogo and library media specialist Nikki Romano as Teacher of the Year and Classified Employee of the Year, respectively.

Sogo is a science teacher at Laguna Beach High School and Romano works at Top of the World Elementary School.

“Steve has led the science department for a number of years and is amazingly knowledgeable in the content area,” said Laguna Beach High Principal Jason Allemann. “Steve creates an environment where students are able to apply sound lab practices to their learning experiences that deal with current and real-life issues and challenges.”

Top of the World Principal Michael Conlon said: “Nikki is a ray of light on campus. She has built such warm working relationships with staff, parents and students. Nikki goes above and beyond to help out around campus, and I am so thankful to have her as part of the [Top of the World] family.”

Support network raises record $165,000 at Epilepsy Walk

More than $165,000 was raised for the nonprofit Epilepsy Support Network of Orange County at the 10th annual Epilepsy Walk Orange County.

The organization raised the record amount during the “Star Wars”-themed event May 4 at TeWinkle Park in Costa Mesa.

The program included raffles, a silent auction, games, dancing and carnival activities.”Star Wars” characters Han Solo, Darth Vader and R2-D2 made an appearance.

UCI professor receives grant to study mental health issues

Stephen Schueller, a UC Irvine assistant professor of psychological sciences, recently received a three-year, $680,000 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to develop a crowd-sourced program to tackle mental health issues.

“This project is designed to increase understanding of various problems such as depression, anxiety and eating disorders by collecting information from the 3,000 daily visitors to the nonprofit Mental Health America’s online screening questionnaire,” Schueller said. “We want to develop evidence-based intervention strategies to help treat these types of issues.

“Current mental health services are insufficient to meet the huge demand. One in four people will experience a mental health issue in their lifetime, and through a crowd-powered platform, we can harness the wisdom of millions to help treat millions.”

UCI entrepreneurial platform to be renamed after Beall family

UC Irvine’s Applied Innovation program will be renamed after the Beall family following a multimillion-dollar donation that pushes the family’s philanthropic contributions to the campus over $30 million.

The program was established by Chancellor Howard Gillman in 2014 as a platform for collaboration among the Irvine campus, entrepreneurs and investors across Orange County to connect to campus-based discoveries. The university said in a statement that the program aids job creation and economic development through the county.

“The impact the Bealls have on furthering the mission of UCI is remarkable,” Gillman said. “From the arts to business to innovation, their generosity is felt throughout the campus, and we are grateful for their support.”

Newport Beach private school names new senior executive advisor

Carden Hall, a private school in Newport Beach, recently appointed Leslie Smith as its senior executive advisor with the goal of bringing a “new perspective” to the school.

Smith spent 12 years at Orange Lutheran High School as principal and head of school.

“The success that is Carden Hall was not made by chance, and I believe that the future of education can be found in the timeless truths and treasured values of [founder] Mae Carden’s classical model of education,” Smith said at a recent event. “I’m convinced that the solid foundation of strong character and the sound academic and interpersonal skills that are developed on this campus lead to a meaningful life of purpose, service and leadership — what … Carden called ‘life triumphant.’”

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UPDATES:

This article was originally published at 7:15 p.m. May 30 and was later updated with the Chargers item.