Around Town: Veterans’ brain symposium in Costa Mesa
The 2015 Think Tank Brain Symposium will bring together health and veterans organizations on Saturday in Costa Mesa to raise awareness of treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.
Local health experts also will provide counseling on suicide prevention.
More than 400 veterans are expected to attend.
The event, presented by the Brain Rehabilitation and Injury Network, will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hilton hotel at 3050 Bristol St. Registration for veterans is free; the cost for the general public is $100.
To sign up or for more information, call (714) 828-1760 or visit https://www.thebrainsite.org/think-tank-2015.
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Special Olympics fundraiser Sunday in CdM
The Bungalow Restaurant in Corona del Mar will host a fundraiser from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday for the 2015 Special Olympics World Games.
According to the event website, https://www.worldgamesnb.com, the fundraiser will feature the “Big Kahuna Charity Challenge,” pitting a team including Newport Beach Mayor Ed Selich, Chamber of Commerce President Steve Rosansky and Councilmen Kevin Muldoon and Marshall “Duffy” Duffield against a team including Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, Mayor Pro Tem Diane Dixon and Orange County Supervisor Michelle Steel to see who can raise the most money through donations, tips and ticket sales.
Newport Beach will be a host city for athletes from Mexico and Fiji before the Special Olympics World Games, which begin July 25 in Los Angeles.
Tickets to Sunday’s event cost $75 and include live music, craft beer, wine and appetizers. Tickets can be purchased on the website.
The Bungalow is at 2441 E. Coast Hwy. For more information, call Sue Adams at (949) 371-9764.
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Irvine woman finishes Iditarod
Cindy Abbott, a rookie musher from Irvine, took home the Red Lantern Award on Sunday as the last to finish this year’s Iditarod sled dog race in Alaska.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported that Abbott, 56, finished in 13 days, 11 hours, 19 minutes and 51 seconds. The winner, Dallas Seavey, finished in eight days, 18 hours, 13 minutes, six seconds.
It was Abbott’s third Iditarod attempt.
Seventy-eight teams started this year’s race; 66 finished.
* Ex-burlesque dancer celebrates 90th at Disneyland
Irene Jewell of Costa Mesa, who at 6-foot-8 was billed in the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s as the world’s tallest burlesque dancer, celebrated her 90th birthday last month by making her first visit to Disneyland.
Jewell, who was featured in a Daily Pilot story in December, performed with the stage name Ricki Covette during her 30-year career. She now manages the legacy of her late partner, Disney cinematographer Stuart Jewell, who died in 1997 at age 84.
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Irvine Unified rated high in music ed
The Irvine Unified School District was one of five districts in the state recognized as the 2015 Best Communities for Music Education by the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation.
The annual honor goes to school districts that demonstrate a commitment to music education. Irvine Unified also earned the honor in 2010.
After surveying nearly 2,000 schools and school districts, music faculty at the University of Kansas selected honorees based on criteria such as funding, staffing and access to music instruction.
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Woodbridge 8th in state Academic Decathlon
Students from Woodbridge High School in Irvine placed eighth in the 36th annual California Academic Decathlon March 19 through 22 in Sacramento, earning plaques, trophies and medals.
The students competed against 66 teams from across the state in contests that included multiple-choice exams, speeches, interviews and essays.
The top two schools in the California competition will advance to the U.S. Academic Decathlon.