Calendario Comunitario!

CareerLink Companies and Attitudes & Attire™ have announced the launch of the Best Foot Forward Shoe Fund Program, benefiting the clients of Attitudes & Attire™, a Dallas-based nonprofit agency dedicated to promoting personal growth for women seeking self-sufficiency. Founded by Suzanne Collins, president of CareerLink Companies and board member of Attitudes & Attire™, Best Foot Forward will help women in the Attitudes & Attire™ program put their “best feet forward,” boost their self-esteem, and present a polished image as they enter or re-enter the workforce by providing professional footwear to complete their workplace outfits.

Best Foot Forward hopes to provide fashionable, affordable footwear for 1,200 women a year who are seeking self-sufficiency in the Attitudes & Attire™ program. For just $20, the public can provide a new pair of professional shoes to a woman at Attitudes & Attire™ to help in her quest for success. We hope you can help us get the word out about this important new program. For more information, please visit www.bestfoot.org. For media inquiries, please feel free to contact me at the numbers or email address below. Photo IDs are also included for you below. Thanks so much!

Latino Cultural Center presents

Tradición y Evolución: Santos de Palo from Puerto Rico

The Latino Cultural Center is proud to present: “Tradición y Evolución: Santos de Palo from Puerto Rico”. The exhibit explores the diverse traditions of religious art and looks more closely at one country’s interpr9etation of the santos tradition. Works are from Mr. Hector Puig’s collection and exhibit is co-curated by Mr. Puig and Ms. Viola Delgado. The Latino Cultural Center will open the exhibit beginning November 3, 2005 at 5:30 pm with an opening reception that is free and open to the public. Also being offered in culmination with the exhibition, The Latino Cultural Center presents two wood carving workshops for “Santos de Palo,” taught by Senior Artisan, Pedro Pablo Rinaldi Jovet. Learn the wood carving techniques of “Santos de Palo” creation. This workshop will be presented to the public November 4 from 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm and November 5 from 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm for adults and children 12 and up. Open to the Public. Workshop Registration Fee; $20.00 per class, includes materials. Only cash or checks will be accepted and checks must be made to Pedro Pablo Rinaldi Jovet. Space is limited; reservation is required. To reserve your space call: 214-670-3320. Air transportation provided by American Airlines.

The term santo, a Spanish word meaning “saint” or “holy”, refers to an image of a saint or other holy figure from the Catholic celestial pantheon. Devotion to saints was introduced to Puerto Rico in the sixteenth century by Spanish colonists who used representations of saints for devotion and prayer as well as aids in the conversion of native Taínos and Africans who had been brought to the island as slaves. These small portable figures, ranging in height from four to twenty – five inches, were created by self – taught rural carvers known as santeros or “saint – makers”, whose figures were revered as manifestations of the saints’ spirits and as objects of devotion. Most santos originate from the rural farming region of the Cordillera Center or the mountainous southwestern part of the island. During Puerto Rico’s pre-industrial period, from about 1850 – 1940, carved images of the saints served an important role in rural communities, where churches were scarce and poor road made access to churches difficult. For the believer, the santos were and are more than sculptural representations of popular saints and legends. Devotees believe that each figure is imbued with the saint’s spirit whom they invoke through prayer to intercede with God on their behalf.

The Latino Cultural Center is supported by the City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs. The mission of the Latino Cultural Center is to serve as a catalyst for the preservation, development and promotion of Latino and Hispanic arts and culture in Dallas. The Center is located at 2600 Live Oak, Dallas, Texas 75204 and is open Tuesday through Friday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturday 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For additional information, call 214-670-3320.