Advertiser specials

GiveNOLA Day 2020 is June 2!

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The seventh annual GiveNOLA Day, an initiative of the Greater New Orleans Foundation (GNOF), is on Tuesday, June 2 from 12:00 am to midnight. This is a 24-hour online giving event for the 13-parish Greater New Orleans region. “Now more than ever, our local nonprofits need your support,” said Greater New Orleans Foundation’s President and CEO Andy Kopplin. “COVID-19 has adversely impacted our region, let’s not let it impact our region’s giving spirit. “The challenges facing our families and neighbors during the COVID-19 crisis only magnifies the need for our nonprofit community to provide the critical resources our region depends on, and after this crisis ends, their work will be that much harder and even more important.”

GiveNOLA Day provides support for over 700 regional nonprofits in the 13-parish region (Orleans, Jefferson, St.

arts, books and music

NOFS Home Theater streaming new independent film each week

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With movie theaters out of commission, the New Orleans Film Society has created a way for enthusiasts to access select independent cinema from home while supporting the organization. The NOFS Home Theater is presenting a new title every week for a month, starting with “The Times of Bill Cunningham” on April 16 and ending with “Botero” on May 15. Each film will be available to stream for two weeks, and a portion of the proceeds from virtual tickets will help support NOFS. See all the featured titles and dates below:

The Times of Bill Cunningham
April 16-30
dir. Mark Bozek
Told in Bill Cunningham’s own words from a recently unearthed six-hour 1994 interview, the iconic street photographer and fashion historian chronicles his moonlighting as a milliner in France during the Korean War, his unique relationship with First Lady Jackie Kennedy, his four decades at The New York Times and his democratic view of fashion and society.

COVID-19

Krewe behind Feed the Front Line launches Feed the Second Line

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From the Krewe of Red Beans

Krewe of Red Beans, Rouses Markets, the Preservation Hall Foundation, Market Umbrella and the New Orleans Musicians Clinic & Assistance Foundation are partnering for a new effort to ease the pain of the pandemic, the Feed the Second Line program

On March 17, the Krewe of Red Beans, a group that holds a Lundi Gras walking parade, began raising money to buy food from locally owned New Orleans restaurants. Quickly, the effort grew. A month later, the Krewe of Red Beans was operating the largest such effort in the United States. As of April 19, the Feed the Front Line NOLA had sent over 60,000 meals to doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers engaged directly with COVID-19 patients, spending $566,000 in the local economy so far. 49 restaurants and coffee shops are being supported by the initiative.

business

Business Alliance establishes relief fund for gig workers

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From the New Orleans Business Alliance

As a result of the current and anticipated local economic impact of COVID-19, the New Orleans Business Alliance, or NOLABA, has set up a dedicated relief fund to meet the needs of gig economy workers who have been directly affected via loss of income. NOLABA is committing $100,000 to initiate the fund, with the goal of increasing its assets to a minimum of $500,000. The organization is also charging the New Orleans community to participate by encouraging business leaders, philanthropy and concerned residents to contribute here to increase the potential impact of this critical relief effort. As of 2017, gig economy workers represent more than 8% of the workforce in Orleans Parish, including rideshare drivers, musicians, arena workers and festival production staff. As contract employees of often large corporations, gig economy workers tend to lack access to minimum wage, paid sick leave, overtime pay, and standard employee benefits — making them particularly susceptible to changes within the economy.

events

Join Uptown Messenger for New Hampshire primary watch party

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The Uptown Messenger crew is inviting our readers, neighbors and any political enthusiasts to come and watch the New Hampshire Democratic Primary this Tuesday, Feb. 11, from  6:30 to 9 p.m. at Twelve Mile Limit, 500 S. Telemachus St. Thanks to you all who came to watch last week’s fiasco in Iowa with us. We plan for this primary to be less of a debacle but still worth conversing over. Political junkies of any affiliation are welcome, and the venue is for ages 21 and up.

food and drink

Uptown taco hotspots to defend Top Taco titles

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Barracuda, winner of the 2019 Top Traditional Taco award, has announced it will return to the one-night only taco and tequila throw down in March to defend its title. Barracuda, a walk-up taco restaurant with a tequila garden, opened at 3984 Tchopitoulas St. in 2019 after winning the Top Taco award. Also returning to defend a 2019 Top Taco title is Tacos & Beer, which won the Critic’s Choice for Best Creative Cocktail. Tacos & Beer is located at 1622 St.

events

Poydras Home to host inaugural holiday tree lighting event

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Poydras Home’s Magazine Street gate will open wide this Thursday as they welcome patrons and the public to their first Holiday Tree Lighting & Music Festival. From 7 to 8 p.m., this new Uptown tradition will feature a 30 foot lighted tree and holiday music on their front lawn, as well as a patron party from 6 to 8 p.m.

Everyone is welcome, free of charge, to hear holiday favorites and gospel music performed by the New Orleans Council on Aging Community Choir under the direction of Mrs. Rhea Dokes. CC’s Coffee House will provide hot cocoa provided, and Cookies will be compliments of Poydras Home for patrons, residents, resident families, neighbors and guests alike. The music begins at 7 p.m., and the majestic 30-foot tree will be lit at 7:30 p.m.

The Patron Party will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. inside Poydras Home’s historic 1857 Hall. It will feature musical entertainment by the New Orleans Center For Creative Arts (NOCCA) jazz and vocal students led by Vocal Coach Anne Sumich.

events

Danae Columbus: YWCA hosts Role Model Reunion to help fund rebuilding

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“We’re on a mission to rebuild our programs and physical structure,” said Dr. Shelia J. Webb, president-elect of the Young Women’s Christian Association in New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina and the levee failures decimated the YWCA building at 601 S. Jefferson Davis Parkway and forced a 14-year interruption of an agency that had been an integral part of New Orleans for almost a century. Under the leadership of current President Loyce Pierce Wright and a multi-generational group of volunteers, including judges Terri Love and Bernadette D’Sousa, the YWCA’s Legacy Circle will host a reunion of former Y Role Models on Sunday, Nov. 17, at the Holiday Inn New Orleans–Downtown Superdome, 330 Loyola Ave. Former New Orleans First Lady Sybil Morial and former U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, both 1989 Role Models, are co-chairing the event, which will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. Proceeds will be dedicated to the agency’s rebuilding campaign.

events

Stache Dash rolls through Central City on Sunday, followed by tailgate party

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The annual Stache Dash is dashing through Central City on Sunday, Nov. 17, from 8 to 9:30, followed by a tailgate party at Central City BBQ. The NOLA Stache Dash is a 2 mile competitive run and fun run held in conjunction with Tailgate for a Cause to raise money and awareness for prostate cancer, the nation’s third leading cause of death for men. Proceeds from donations, sponsorships, raffles, auctions and tailgate passes benefit patients of the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic, which provides health services to the city’s music community. Every $100 raised will provide one prostate cancer screening for a local musician.

arts, books and music

Tonight: Support ‘ARTrepreneurship’ at Just Say YAYA fundraiser

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YAYA Inc. will host their annual Just Say YAYA gala tonight (Nov. 15) to help support tuition-free arts and entrepreneurship training programs for local youth. The gala takes place from 6 to 10 p.m. at the YAYA Arts Center at 3322 LaSalle St. They will celebrate “ARTrepreneurs” and career development to benefit creative young people. Festivities begin with a patron party from 6 to 7 p.m., which includes an oyster bar by Superior Seafood, music by Amber Matthews, and a live glassblowing demonstration.