Author: Laila Bondi

The power of a mustache is truly an undeniable force to be reckoned with, and now that force can be used to help raise money for charity. The brave men of Buffalo Whiskerino will be starting their mustache growing season on March 15th to help raise money for Compass House. Compass House is a safe shelter for runaway and homeless youth and the donations raised by Buffalo Whiskerino will go towards this worthwhile cause. The way it works is pretty simple. You register on www.buffalowhiskerino.org, then you start to get your friends and family to make donations towards the duration…

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Toshiko Mori, as many of you know from this post two days ago and other past posts, is the architect who designed the new glass visitors’ pavilion being added to the Martin House Complex. I was fortunate enough to be given some time to speak with Mori about the structure as well as her feelings about Buffalo. A principal of Toshiko Mori Architect in New York City since 1981, she is also the Robert P. Hubbard Professor in the Practice of Architecture and is the chair of the Department of Architecture, Harvard University Graduate School of Design. From the press…

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Beginning on March 14th at the Albright-Know Art Gallery and running through June 29th will be a unique exhibit of video installations by Jennifer Steinkamp. These enveloping exhibits are meant to create an awe-inspiring experience that balances between the virtual and the real. These eight installations by Steinkamp were completed between 1995 and 2004. The works rely on inclusion of the viewer and the viewer’s complete immersion into the space. Steinkamp uses her computer as if it was paint, palette, and brushes and she utilizes the technology to bring about a heightened sensory experience. Steinkamp studied at Cal Arts and…

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Tomorrow night from 5:30pm-8pm there is an exciting event being held by the WNY Women’s Fund at the 100 Level of the Harbour Club at HSBC Arena. The event is being held in cooperation with the Buffalo Sabres to support the fund. Women and girls age five and above will get to try on Sabres equipment, learn hockey moves, and go through agility tests with Sabres Forward Paul Gaustad, Sabres alumni, scouts and coaches as onlookers. The fund is a collaborative effort between the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo and the United Way of Buffalo & Erie County. It provides…

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After a successful run last year, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Buffalo/WNY Education Team was pleased to announce that they received a grant from the New York State Council of Arts. Their program for 2008/2009 is called Architecture+Education (A+E) and will be a partnership with Buffalo Public Schools. The program will allow about 500 students from ages 4-18 who are in Buffalo Public Schools to create a project during the fall that will be exhibited at the CEPA Gallery in January of 2009. 20 architects will partner with 20 classroom teachers to create a curriculum that explores architecture. The…

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Buffalo Homecoming 2008 will be holding a press conference at 5pm today in the Terrace room at The Statler. There will be a number of people speaking but the main thrust of the conference is to speak about some of the events for this upcoming celebration of the best of Buffalo. Included this year from June 26-29 are plans for a Career Fair, a Homecoming Concert, the annual Sunday Brunch, dozens of tours, and more. At the conference, Erie County Executive Chris Collins will speak to his firm belief that Erie County needs to either grow or die and introduce…

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If you’re downtown tonight and walking by Hemingway’s on Pearl and something smells a little spicy, it probably isn’t the food they’re cooking. Head on up to the second floor and take in the aroma of Argentine Tango. The first Monday of the month is a free milonga put on by Buffalo Tango. Milonga is an Argentinean and Uruguayan form of music, as dance, as the term for the place where tango is danced. Though Buffalo Tango puts on a weekly milonga, the first Monday of the month is free to encourage newcomers. It begins at 7:30pm where beginners can…

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Are you an artist with some free time? Would you like to mentor a child for a couple of hours a week? Compeer of Greater Buffalo is looking for artists who want to mentor a child for a program that is in the planning stages and are attempting to gauge interest before allocating funds. Compeer is a group of volunteers and mentors who provide one-on-one relationships between adults and children. They have been in the area since 1985 and have over 300 volunteers working to make a difference in the life of a child that is in need of a…

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Yesterday was an exciting day for the Seneca Street Business District. Though a lot is already happening with the district since it is undergoing a $1.3 million infrastructure improvement effort, Mayor Byron Brown announced that they City of Buffalo would be providing $300,000 for new streetlights. Using money from the Grow Buffalo Fund that Mayor Brown created in 2007, the contribution will cover the purchase and installation of 80 new streetlights. This change will help the overall appearance of the district which is already being worked on through the road being repaved, sidewalks being improved, upgrading the crosswalks, and new…

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For those concerned about the environment, the beauty of Buffalo, trees themselves, or just looking for something to do for a weekend, take a good look at Re-Tree WNY. This organization is dedicated to repairing the damage done by the storm in October of 2006 that some call the “October Surprise” but some prefer the name of “Thunder-snow.” The organization says that around 30,000 trees were damaged or destroyed in the storm and they have already made huge steps toward replacing many of those trees. In 2007, they planted over 1,400 trees throughout the city of Buffalo. This year the…

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