Matthew Wong, BPTA webmaster mjwong59@comcast.net

Space for all Berkeley PTA sites  have been generously donated by transbay.net

PTA Community Calendar

July | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June

April, 2004

1April Fool's Day. also called All Fools' Day first day of April, named from the custom of playing practical jokes or sending friends on fools' errands on that date. Although it has been observed for centuries in several countries, the origin of the custom is unknown. It resembles other festivals, such as the Hilaria of ancient Rome (March 25) and the Holi festival of India (ending March 31). (from britannica.com)

Birthday of Alberta Hunter, singer (biography) and Toshiro Mifune, actor (biography)

2  Birthday of Casanova, libertine (biography) and Camille Paglia, social critic, philosopher (biography)

3  Birthday of Henry R. Luce, publisher (biography) and Herb Caen, columnist (biography)

4 Birthday of Marguerite Duras, writer. (Biography at about.com )and Maya Angelou, author (biography)

5 Birthday of Thomas Hobbes, philosopher (biography) and Colin Powell, Secretary of State (biography)

6  Birthday of Harry Houdini, magician (biography) and Bob Marley, musician (biography)

7  Birthday of Ravi Shankar, musician (biography) and Jackie Chan, actor (biography)

8 Birthday of Lewis Morris, signer of the Declaration of Independence (biography)

9  Birthday of Eadweard Muybridge, photographer (biography)

10 Birthday of Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers. (Biography at about.com)

11  Birthday of Christopher Smart, poet (biography) Dean Acheson, statesman (biography)

12  Birthday of Henry Clay, politician (biography) and Lionel Hampton, musician (biography)

13  Birthday of Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President (biography) and Garry Kasparov, chess Grandmaster (biography)

14  Birthday of James Branch Cabell, author (biography) and Robert Mugabe, President of Zimbabwe (biography)

15  Birthday of Leonardo da Vinci, artist, scientist, the original renaissance man (biography)

16  Birthday of Charlie Chaplin, actor (biography) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, athlete (biography)
Please join us in the 2005 Run for Life, a 3K, 5K and 10K walk /run, which takes place on April 16, 2005 in and around the UC Berkeley campus. The event is produced by the Run for Life Foundation as a fundraiser for children and youth groups as well as a wonderful opportunity to teach and benefit from community service.

Run for Life 2005 provides a ready-made opportunity for you to raise funds for your favorite youth-serving non-profit organization. You can do this one of two ways – you can run/walk as an individual garnering pledges for your favorite organization or school, or you can organize a team for your favorite youth agency or school and raise funds as a group. There is no limit to what you can raise!!!!

Best of all Run for Life 2005 takes place on the morning of Cal Day, the annual open house at the University, so there will be hundreds of athletic, artistic, scientific, and youth-oriented and adult-oriented exhibitions and events which takes place throughout the day. Even complimentary hot showers at the Recreational Sports Facility are available after the walk/run.

Under the Pledge Program, if a youth or adult raises at least $50.00 or more, 75% of what is raised will be donated back to the non-profit youth group of their choice.

The Team Registration Program allows groups to compete for team awards in various categories.

All the information, registration forms and rules may be found at www.runforlife.net including a wonderful video to give you a picture of the event.

Please take this ready-made fundraising opportunity to financially help your youth-oriented organization and bring your kids to Cal for a wonderful day!

17

18

19  Birthday of Glenn Seaborg, chemist (biography) 

20 Birthday of Adolf Hitler, German Dictator (biography) and Harold Lloyd, actor (biography)

PTA Meeting at King Middle School. 1781 Rose Street. 7 p.m. In the library.
BHS CURRICULUM NIGHT AND COURSE/SCHOOLS SELECTION FOR INDEPENDENT SCHOOL FAMILIES CLASS OF 2005  BHS Student Union Rotunda, 6:45-9 p.m.
An evening presentation focused on the 9th grade program, math and science progressions, academic and behavioral expectations, BHS graduation and College Eligibility Requirements.  Students will complete course & school selection forms. Families that come to this meeting need to have completed enrollment in the BUSD and at BHS.

21 Birthday of Charlotte Bronte, writer. (biography at about.com)
PTA Council Meeting. Starts at 7 p.m. Place to be announced.

22 Earth Day. Earth Day was first observed on April 22, 1970. The goal of the day was to attract public attention to the growing needs for cleaner air and water. Additionally, the need to conserve the earth's natural resources was emphasized. 

Former Senator Gaylord Nelson first proposed the idea for Earth Day in 1969. He came up with the idea while reading about anti-war teach-ins which were occurring on several college campuses in the United States. Nelson's idea was to have a nationwide teach-in on the environment. His idea became very popular and in 1970, more than 20 million people participated in the first Earth Day.

On the 25th anniversary of Earth Day in 1990, more than 200 million people worldwide participated in activities designed by the Earth Day Network to "increase awareness, responsibility and action toward a clean, health future for all living things". (from the University of Kansas Medical Center)

23  Birthday of William Shakespeare, playwright (biography) and Roy Orbison, musician (biography)

24  Birthday of Anthony Trollope, author (biography) and Barbra Streisand, singer/actress (biography)

25  Birthday of Edward R. Murrow, journalist (biography) and Ella Fitzgerald, singer (biography)

26  Birthday of I. M. Pei, architect (biography) and Jet Li, actor (biography)

27 Arbor Day. Founded by J. Sterling Morton, Secretary of Agriculture under Grover Cleveland (1893-97).

Birthday of Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President (biography)

28Birthday of James Monroe, 5th President (biography) and Saddam Hussein, Iraqi dictator (biography)

29  Birthday of William Randolph Hearst, publisher (biography) and Duke Ellington, composer (biography)

30 Beltane. Beltane is a Celtic festival which signals the beginning of the bright half of the year. Beltane may be translated as "fires of Bel" or "brilliant fire" and is name after the god Belenus. The festival begins on Beltane Eve with two bonfires started from nine different woods. Domestic animals and people pass between the bonfires to eliminate disease and misfortune. In the days before electricity, the bonfire was used to light brands which rekindled lights throughout households in the village. Ancient Beltane festivals customarily included sexuality, dancing around the maypole, and singing.

Modern pagan celebrations include maypole dances and jumping the cauldron for fertility purposes. Fertility in this sense is extended beyond reproduction and includes fertility of imagination and other similar concepts. (from the University of Kansas Medical Center)