A "date night" idea

What if I told you that for $15 per person, you could enjoy cocktails and a variety of hors’douevres,
musical entertainment, suitable circumstances to meet people and chat with friends, and the
opportunity to view dozens of artistic creations, and buy/bid on many one-of-a-kind items?

Get your advance tickets to the VLSP Art of Lawyering (online at www.vlsprochester.org) using the
donate link and Art of Lawyering. The Wed., Oct. 7th art reception will be Wed., Oct. 7 from 5:30-8:30 at the Village Gate.

Tickets will be available at the door for $20 each. But for two tickets -- via the online pre-order process that’s only $30, saving you $10 -- perhaps enough to tip the waiter when you go out for dinner at one of the Village Gate restaurants after an hour or two enjoying the Art of Lawyering that evening.

Looking for a new “date night” idea? Surprise your significant other with plans to attend the Art of
Lawyering reception (October 7th) before a nice meal at Salena’s, Lento, Gate House or Good Luck. Sign up now for the VLSP Art of Lawyering at www.vlsprochester.org.

Past auction items have included dance lessons, gourmet dinners cooked by some of your colleagues, golf packages, and ski passes, along with metal garden sculptures, handmade pottery, paintings, Noro Wool scarves, and jewelry.

One of this year’s features will be a restored and furnished antique doll house! See a sneak peek at one of the rooms below.

Calling all artists and art lovers

Rochester’s legal community has lots of talent beyond the courtroom. I should know, I wrote nearly 100 articles about local attorneys who have creative passions and skills equal to their professional stature.

At one end of the spectrum you have woodworking sculptor Hon. Jerry Alonzo and photographer Louis Ryen. There is also painter Sharon Stiller and trombonist Anthony Piazza.

Not only are these attorneys multi-talented, they have used their craft to help raise money for
Volunteer Legal Services Project’s “Art of Lawyering” silent auction.

Wednesday, October 7 is your opportunity to participate in the 2015 Art of Lawyering reception to be held at Village Gate. Alonzo, Ryen and Stiller have all commited new items for this year’s fundraiser, and Piazza along with musician colleagues will be part of the musical entertainment that evening from 5:30-8:30.

Mark your calendar to attend, and meanwhile, see if one of your creative hobbies might generate a little cash for VLSP to continue to assist the growing number of impoverished families in Rochester who need civil legal services to protect their home and family.

You’re not an artist?

The Art of Lawyering committee is open to all kinds of creative submissions – from hand embroidery to button art bracelets. You might not call yourself an artist, but you’ve likely created something that others would admire.

Jewelry workshops in 2011 and 2013 inspired a number of auction pieces by first-time jewelry-makers. Those who knit, crochet, sew and quilt have also contributed beautiful hand-crafted goods that generate money for VLSP and joy for the buyer.

Join in the fun. Go to www.vlsprochester.org and under the donate prompt, click Art of Lawyering to get the details about donating art and attending the October event.

Help us out…. The auction typically nets $11,000. We need a wide variety of art and attendees to make our goal.

-Written by Nora Jones

Community through Beekeeping

Sweet Beez, Inc., Rochester’s urban beekeeping group dedicated to community development in the Southwest quadrant of Rochester, begins a unique program in El Sauce, Guatemala.

Sweet Beez has partnered with immigration advocacy not for profit, Alterna, to begin a community beekeeping cooperative in the hills of Northwest Guatemala. Sweet Beez has committed to financing the program that includes employing a local “Mam” beekeeper as the leader of the cooperative. Ten coffee farming families have each started their own honeybee hive for the purpose of increasing coffee yields (pollination) and, of course, providing the bonus of honey. The ten families have also each committed to donating a portion of their proceeds to their neighbors and to Sweet Beez, Inc. and Alterna.

Sweet Beez has plans to travel with teens from Southwest Rochester neighborhoods to visit the new beekeeping cooperative. A number of teens have taken special interest in honeybees through helping with community garden hives and taking part in some of Sweet Beez’ educational programs. The next trip is coming up quickly and promises to bring exciting new information about a local school that will be partnering with Sweet Beez to inspire future generations.

So, what does this have to do with Pro Bono Legal Services? You might recognize the founder of Sweet Beez, Inc. as VLSP’s very own Bryan Babcock!

For more information, check out: www.sweetbeez.org

miEl Sauce Beekeeping Cooperative, 2015