DEMS WELCOME HOLDEN FRIDAY: The Democratic Club of Claremont hosts a Community Conversation with Chris Holden beginning at 11 a.m. in Pilgrim Place’s Porter Hall Conference Room at 625 Mayflower Road, Claremont. The event is open to the public. Assemblyman Holden represents assembly district 41 and is up for reelection this year. The two-part meeting will begin at 11 a.m.
OLA FIESTA: The 71st OLA Fiesta at Claremont’s Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church, 435 Berkeley Ave., kicks off at 5 p.m. on Friday. Admission is free for the annual event, which features carnival rides, international food prepared by OLA’s Hispanic, Vietnamese and Filipino communities, and live music. Discount ride tickets are available until noon today through the parish office.
OH, NO IT’S CINCO DE MAYO Today’s unofficial tipplers’ bash is Cinco de Mayo, which translates loosely to, “I’ll have a triple margarita and some nachos.” Partiers, or those just really feeling wistful about the Mexican Army’s unlikely victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla, on May 5, 1862, have a few local spots from which too choose for their upcoming bad decisions: Claremont’s El Ranchero Restaurant, at 984 W. Foothill Blvd., hosts live Mariachi music beginning at 5:30 p.m. And there's more!
IT’S A ROCK, ROCK, ROCKABILLY BOOGIE Pitzer College’s 11th annual Rockabilly Festival takes place from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at The Mounds (Pellessier Mall), 1050 N. Mills Ave., Claremont. The free, family-friendly event includes local and regional acts that borrow in varying degrees from the template established by 1950s originators such as Carl Perkins, the Burnettes and Elvis’ early Sun Records recordings.
EARTH DAY, CICLAVIA Claremont’s 10th annual free Earth Day celebration takes place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Claremont Farmer’s and Artisan’s Market, which moves back to Second Street and Yale Avenue this Sunday to make room for CicLAvia. The event, which is sponsored by Sustainable Claremont and CicLAvia, features live music, hybrid and electric car show, an earth station, food trucks and a bike safety rodeo.
GARDEN CLUB TOUR The Claremont Garden Club hosts its annual garden tour and fundraiser today. This year’s theme is “Claremont Eclectic: a Tour of Six Local Gardens.” The tour runs from 1 to 4 p.m., offering a glimpse into some creative Claremont gardens, discussions with the gardeners, and inspiration for participants’ own gardens. Tickets are $20 and include admission to Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden on the same day and once again during the following month. To purchase tickets online, visit claremontgardenclub.org. Tickets can also be purchased at Garner House in Memorial Park, 840 N. Indian Hill Blvd., or at Rio de Ojas, at 250 Harvard Ave.
ASIAN FOOD IN A GLOBALIZING WORLD: Pomona College presents a free lecture, “Exploring Asian Chefs, Cuisines and Restaurants in a Globalizing World,” from 1:30 to 5 p.m. at Hahn Building, 420 Harvard Ave., Claremont. Join the Pomona College Asian Studies program for a mini-conference examining the ways in which Japanese chefs have situated an “authentic” cuisine in relationship to national boundaries and global networks. More information is at pomona.edu/events or (909) 607-2924.
CALLING CHOCOLATE BUNNIES: Today is the last chance to donate chocolate Easter bunnies to La Verne-based nonprofit Sowing Seeds for Life. The charity hopes to collect 200 of the confections to hand out to needy children at its March 21 Easter pantry. Sowing Seeds for Life is located at 1350 Arrow Hwy., La Verne. More info is at sowingseedsforlife.org, (909) 293-7735, extension 232, or via email at frobertson@sowingseedsforlife.org.
SILENT AUCTION: The Friends of the Bernard Biological Field Station’s annual silent auction is taking place through March 31. Funds raised over the course of the auction by the local nonprofit organization benefit the Claremont Colleges’ 85-acre natural laboratory on the north side of Foothill between College and Mills Avenues. Stop by the Folk Music Center, at 220 Yale Ave., to view the works by local artists and leave a bid. More info is at fbbfs.org or by email at friends@fbbfs.org.
SPIKED FRIDAYS Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, 1500 N. College Ave., Claremont, hosts Spiked Fridays in the Grove of Thorns, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. “Spiked plants make fabulous spiked drinks—get even with the plants that cause you pain and enjoy wicked cocktails made with spiny botanicals,” a Garden press release read. “Sip away in the Grove of Thorns, an installation of gigantic spines, prickles and thorns brilliantly lit on these magical evenings.
AUTHOR TALK: Pilgrim Congregational Church Memorial Library invites the public to attend its annual free and open library coffee at 10 a.m. The event features a talk from former COURIER staff writer Chris Bray, author of Court-Martial: How Military Justice Has Shaped America from the Revolution to 9/11 and Beyond. Pilgrim Congregational Church is at 600 N. Garey Ave., Pomona. Refreshments will be served, followed by Mr. Bray’s talk.
10-MINUTE PLAY FESTIVAL The Claremont Colleges’ free and open to the public 10-Minute Play Festival kicks off at 3 p.m. at Seaver Theatre, Pomona College, 300 E. Bonita Ave., Claremont. Each year, all members of The Claremont Colleges community are invited to submit new plays inspired by a common theme. This year’s theme is “Environmental Justice.” Winners are selected in December.
FREE SPEECH ON CAMPUS The Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum at Claremont McKenna College, 385 E. Eighth St., hosts a free 9 a.m. panel discussion, Free Speech on Campus, with panelists from the Claremont Colleges, Yale Law School, UC Berkeley and the American Civil Liberties Union, among others. “Free speech is once again the center of debate on college campuses. At several colleges, including at CMC, speakers have been shut down by protests for what was deemed offensive speech."
