Handmade dirndl aprons traditionally worn in Austria and Bavaria will be all the rage at Octoberfest, set for Oct. 21, at the Woman’s Club of Erie, 259 W. Sixth St. The celebration begins at 5:30 p.m. with a social hour followed by a special ethnic dinner.
“Combining the celebration of German heritage with raising funds to preserve our beloved Woman’s Club mansion is deeply motivating as we approach our annual Octoberfest,” said co-chairwoman Nancy Rusnak.
She made all of the Bavarian-style aprons by hand, and each committee member will wear one at the event. A specially designed apron will be raffled off that evening.
Catered by Erie Maennerchor chef George Ferguson, the heritage cuisine is sure to please. Think Beef Roulade, Hot Potato Salad, Red Cabbage, Green Beans with Bacon, Black Forest Cake and beer and wine.
Entertainment will be provided by the German Cultural Society Dancers, and there will be a sing-around-the-piano session. Tickets are priced at $25 per person.
“The members are passionate about the mansion’s upkeep and restoration,” said dinner co-chairwoman Dina Reale. She added that funds raised by various events will go toward the mansion’s upkeep, particularly the roof repair which will ensure its place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Today’s club includes a membership of 82.
“Our Woman’s Club is one of only two clubs in Pennsylvania that owns a mansion,” said preservation chairwoman Marianne Heck. “We work tirelessly to make sure future generations will get to see its beauty.”
The Octoberfest committee includes Kathy Costello, Barbara Hourigan, Joyce Navecky, Maggie Dupre, Marj Inderlied, Trudy Sallach, Naomi Foust, Joann Kaufer, Marilyn Walker and Mary Jo Matheis.
Make your reservations for the benefit by Wednesday. Call Reale at 474-1585 or Rusnak at 864-3427.
Cultural extravaganza
Lourdes Romano-Jana will emcee the Filipino-American Heritage Day — a celebration of dance, song and instrumental performances — on Saturday. The free event will take place from 3 to 5 p.m. on the third floor of Gannon University’s Palumbo Center. Gannon’s Chris Magno, Ph.D., president of the Filipino-American Association of Northwest Pennsylvania, will welcome the crowd.
Krystina Presnede Corpuz, vice consul of the Philippine Consulate General in New York City, will also speak. Beginning with the Filipino-American symphony orchestra overture, festivities will include a parade of members in native dress, and performances will depict three popular festivals: Christmas, Flowers of May and Santacruzan.
Names in the news
Niken Astari-Carpenter was recently awarded a Career Development Grant from the American Association of University Women. She is pursuing a master of project management degree from Penn State Behrend.
Astari-Carpenter, formerly a district court judge in Indonesia, came to this country four years ago to join her husband, Erie radio announcer Allan Carpenter. She currently works for the Erie County Library System in Millcreek Township.
– Congratulations Ensign Nathan Lorei, USN, a recent graduate of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md. He is a first-year medical student at the F. Edward Herbert School at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md. He’s the son of Maureen and Christopher Lorei, of Frederick, Md., formerly of Erie, and grandson of Marge and Joe Lorei, of Greene Township.
– Former Erieite Sandra Domeracki, R.N., of Larkspur, Calif., was a keynote speaker in Asada, Japan, at a daylong meeting of the Association of Occupational Health Professionals in Healthcare.
Domeracki, who is regional manager of employee Health Services at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, is the daughter of Joanne Domeracki, Erie, a former nurse practitioner, and the late Edward Domeracki.
Cancer fundraiser
The StringsforaCure Pickin’ On Cancer fundraiser, on Oct. 4 at the Brewerie at Union Station, drew a standing-room-only crowd. A highlight of the evening came when cancer survivors in attendance sang “I Will Survive,” led by Robin Burick. She’s a local singer and songwriter, who is celebrating her first release, “Almost Forever.”
The event started with a VIP cocktail hour, which included hors d’oeuvres and featured acoustical guitar music by Sam Hyman. More than 40 beautiful gift baskets were raffled off.
Striking StringsforaCure jewelry — handcrafted by Elisa Guida from guitar strings donated by famous musicians — were available.
A preview of the Faces of Strings project, featuring a photo gallery of 12 breast cancer patients, was unveiled at the event.
Sally Leubin won the door prize, a Willie Nelson guitar string pendant.
There was dancing and music by Silverlight, whose band members are Bill Arnold, Rik Cass, Derf Hopsecger and Chuck Leone.
The committee led by Nicole Brugger included Carol Hirsch, Ed Saloum, Guida, Beth Dubik, Jan Minzenberger, Lisa Jenkins, Robin Fox and Patti Larson.
All proceeds benefit programs of the StringsforaCure Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides gas, grocery and pharmacy gift cards, comfort baskets and medical grants to help ease patients’ emotional and financial burdens as they cope with cancer.
The focus this year was on breast cancer patients who have been helped by the StringsforaCure Foundation.
POSTSCRIPT: Ideally, couples need three lives; one for him, one for her, and one for them together. — Jacqueline Bisset (b. 1946), English actress.
MEG LONCHARIC’s column appears in the Sunday Living section. Send e-mail to newsmeg@aol.com or write to her in care of the Erie Times-News, 205 W. 12th St., Erie, PA. 16534.