Area residents who enjoy eating locally grown and produced food should mark May 5^th on their calendars for the season opening of the Keller Farmers Market at 8:00 am.

Opening day will feature jazz music by The Matt Larsen Quartet, and a seed and plant exchange for gardeners looking to trade extra seeds and plants with other gardeners. The exchange is a fun and practical way to meet other gardeners, discuss gardening issues and to exchange a plant for another plant to diversify their own harvest. Tables will be set-up at the entrance to the market, staffed with volunteers who can assist.

“We are expecting local favorites as well as surprise plants at the swap. We hope this is the first of many seed and plant exchanges at the market,” says Keller Farmers Market Executive Director Bridget Rodewald. 

May 18 – Collective Impact    

Panel Featuring Susan Hoff of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, Regina Nippert of the Center on Communities and Education at Simmons, Todd Williams of Commit!, and Danny Henley of the Zero-to-Five Funders Collaborative   

Stanford Social Innovation Review’s 2010 feature, “Collective Impact,” asserts that large-scale change requires broad, cross-sector coordination.  Dallas is home to several such programs who share the ambitious mission of improving student educational achievement.  DSVP will assemble a stellar panel of local thought leaders, including Susan Hoff of United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, Todd Williams of Commit!, Regina Nippert of the Center on Communities and Education at Simmons, to discuss how this model is impacting our region.

Tickets $50.00

http://dsvp.eventbrite.com/

http://www.dsvp.org/p/sils

The event will bring local farmers, chefs and purveyors together at Lee Park in Dallas. From 1 to 5 p.m., patrons will enjoy bites by more than 30 of the area’s most talented chefs, sip on great wines and cocktails, and listen to tracks spun by local DJs. In addition, event goers can visit a pop-up farmers’ market featuring products by local artisans.  Tickets and more information here.

Tickets $60 each or $110 for two 

You must be at least 21 years old to attend "Mixin' It Up On The Boulevard"

http://www.chefsforfarmers.com/

April 13 – Capitalism for Good 

Dan Pallotta, Author of “Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential“ & Founder of the Charity Defense Council 

A pioneering social entrepreneur and expert in nonprofit sector innovation, Dan Pallotta’s “Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential” has been acclaimed by The New York Times, The Economist, and The Stanford Social Innovation Review.  He is the founder of Advertising for Humanity and the Charity Defense Council.  Pallotta is a William J. Clinton distinguished lecturer and a regular contributor to The Harvard Business Review Online, where he writes about transforming the nonprofit paradigm.   

We are excited to have Kief Schladweiler, Coordinator of Cooperating Collections of the Foundation Center (New York), conducting the class.  Please take advantage of this opportunity. 

Non-profit Grantseeking Basics with Foundation Directory Online

Thursday, March 15­ 10:00 a.m.

George W. Hawkes Central Library, 101 East Abram Street 
Community Room, Lower Level

If you work with a non-profit organization, or are new to grantseeking  and want to learn about obtaining grants, this workshop will provide you with:

· an opportunity to network with other organizations.

· an overview of the funding research process: building a credible nonprofit organization; the world of grant makers; finding funding partners; and grantseeking resources.

· tips on how best to identify funding sources, using the free electronic and print resources available at the George W. Hawkes Central Library.