November – A Month for Giving
Please collect your extra coats for the One Warm Coat Drive at The Orinda Association (OA) office. Drop offs begin Nov. 1 and run until mid-December. This past year has seen a large boost in donated eyeglasses. This tells me you are clearing out your closets and drawers.
Also, the power of our “double the donation drive” begins in seeking donations to Seniors Around Town. It runs through the end of the year. You can make an impact in Orinda.
The final local Friday night Miramonte Mats’ football game is Nov. 5, away at Campo (Beat Campo!). Show up to cheer our players and be cheered by the Miramonte Cheer Team. Orinda showers its football players and cheer teams with love in the OA 4th of July parade every year, and Cheer Team Captain Bridget Meagher has been a part of the parade most of her life.
Remember this past March when Daylight Saving Time started? On Sunday, Nov. 7 at 2 a.m., Daylight Saving Time ends (“Spring forward, Fall back”). Move your clocks back one hour. Use that extra hour for productive activity – or just sleep in.
The two days, six months apart, we change time are great days to remember to check batteries in your fire alarms and smoke detectors. Gene Gottfried also reminded me to check batteries in my personal alarm devices. Pulled my keychain alarm and expected a blast; instead I got a dull buzz …thanks Gene!
Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11, honors all members of the Armed Forces, particularly living veterans who served this country valiantly. Veterans gave their time and risked their lives to preserve our way of life. The Orinda Association will hang American Flags in Orinda this Veteran’s Day. Thank you, veterans!
World Kindness Day, Nov. 13, highlights good deeds in our communities, focusing on the positive power of kindness. Thank you in this context to our Senior Around Town drivers and shoppers who volunteer their time and vehicles to epitomize neighbors helping neighbors. Orinda has a great community of volunteers. We are thankful for their giving and kindness daily.
Nov. 17 is Take a Hike Day. Strap on your walkers and enjoy our beautiful town and hillsides. Orinda is a past recipient of a Trail Town USA designation for our great trail system.
The Orinda Woman’s Club (OWC) Festival of Trees is back Nov. 18. The OWC will again hold its fashion show and luncheon, which supports many deserving groups in our area with the funds raised at this single event. Come and encourage me as I model local clothing in a new, casual format. You can also bid on a cute miniature tree or festive basket.
Nov. 20 marks the last Farmers’ Market before Thanksgiving. Orinda’s Farmers’ Market is now open year-round, making it possible to get down to the market to fill your bags with fall vegetables and flowers.
Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 25, is an American celebration to give thanks for the harvest of the past year. Start your day with a parade and end it with a pledge to share your harvest with others. Support The Orinda Association’s community programs and events by donating your unused items to charity. Pack up your eyeglasses and warm coats for the OA boxes and bins.
Nov. 26 is Buy Nothing Day, a statement against consumerism and Black Friday, which is not the busiest shopping day of the year, but the Saturday before Christmas. My vote, though, goes to Giving Tuesday (Nov. 30), the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. Remember to donate to Seniors Around Town during the double the donation drive, and be thankful for our kind and giving Orinda residents!
