#Petaluma’s Tolay Creek Watershed Getting Help From AmeriCorps

An AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) team, known as Blue One, is in town assisting with local watershed protection and restoration. The team, consisting of seven members ages 18-24, is lending a hand to Point Blue Conservation Science from April 1st until May 22nd.

Point Blue Conservation Science is a local nonprofit which serves the community through ecologically friendly and socially conscious wildlife and habitat conservation. The organization’s STRAW program – Students & Teachers Restoring a Watershed- gives participants a hands-on learning experience with ecosystem restoration, while also promoting environmental stewardship amongst its members.

Blue One is assisting Point Blue with the planting of native vegetation – over 1,700 plants in total – as well as installing an in-ground irrigation system at the Tolay Creek watershed. This work is helping to restore the natural ecosystem and encourage native birds and wildlife to repopulate to historical averages.

Kara Peterson, member of Blue One, reflects upon STRAW and its mission: “It is amazing to know that the STRAW program started from one child’s curiosity about helping the environment, and a teacher’s response was to step up and take action.” Furthermore, Peterson stated, “Now, over 35,000 students, 400 teachers and 12 years later, a number of ecosystems have been positively impacted from STRAW’s work and it is an honor to be a part of that legacy.”

The AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) and its FEMA Corps units engage 2,800 young Americans in a full-time, 10-month commitment to service each year. AmeriCorps NCCC members address critical needs related to natural and other disasters, infrastructure improvement, environmental stewardship and conservation, and urban and rural development; FEMA Corps members are solely dedicated to disaster preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery work. The programs are administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). CNCS is the federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through its AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, Social Innovation Fund, and Volunteer Generation Fund programs, and leads President’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.

For other positive stories on Petaluma visit our web page PositivelyPetaluma.com. 

Get Ready For The Great #Petaluma Chili Cook-Off

On Saturday May 9, 2015 over 1500 people will converge on Behrens Park, Herzog Hall at the Sonoma Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma for the 18th annual Great Petaluma Cook-Off, Salsa and Beer Tasting event starts as usual at 1 pm.. Will you be there too? You will not only experience great food, beer, and entertainment, but you will also be supporting over 1200 kids in the Cinnabar Theater (a non-profit) Children’s Programs. Want to know how to double your donation? Ocean State Job Lot Foundation will match your donation made between now and May (a grant that they have been providing over the past 10 years each year raising the bar). Tickets are free for kids under 5, $10 for ages 5-11, $25 for adults, or $40 with beer. To purchase a ticket, or for more information, call 707-763-8920 or visit GreatChiliCookOff.com. You can also purchase your tickets at the gate on the day of the event.

Entertainment expected this year at the popular Stony Point band with opening act from Don’t Tip The Tweetster (Ska Band) followed by Sister Sirens and Zyphire Belly Dancers, then the Hip Hop Dancers from the Fierce Dance Company. Also The Amazing Caine will be walking around dazzling guests with his illusions and magic.

Click here to see a list of long time supporters and breweries and WHY THE STAKES JUST GOT HOTTER for this year Grand Champion.

#Petaluma’s Kitsbow Chosen 1 of 15 Companies That Make Clothes You Can Feel Good About Wearing

We thought it was appropriate considering in the previous weeks there were thousands of high school mountain bike riders competing in Petaluma this weekend to highlight a Petaluma clothes manufacturer Kitsbow who makes mountain bike wear. They were featured in an article yesterday by Outside Online Magazine highlighting 15 companies they call progressive and making sustainable clothing that looks as great as it wears. We only feature the Kitsbow product below, but if you want to see the other 14 companies highlighted please click on the article link below.

From Outside Online by Will Palmer:

The 21st century seems like a mess so far. Gridlock in Washington. Rising seas. Corporate domination. Kardashians. But if you’ve been paying attention, you know that there are positive things happening all over the place as well, and with accelerating frequency. Consider the clothes you wear. While mass-produced, polluting sweatshop apparel isn’t going away overnight, there are people all over the world—from Portland to Brooklyn to Addis Ababa and, yes, China—who are trying to make style sustainable.

Click here to learn more about what Outside magazine had to say about Kitsbow and its recommended and featured product, and a video recently released #obsessives spotlight on Petaluma bike maker Bruce Gordon.

Find That Perfect Something at #Petaluma’s Spring Antique Faire

“Antique” is of a latin origin “Ante” meaning before, and “Anticus” or “Antiquus” meaning former or ancient. “Antiquing” is action verb for the word Antique and means the process of making something old OR someone who “shops ’til they drop for cool old stuff”, and must find that unique piece that no other store has (not even Amazon or eBay) and must have it for your hutch, nook, porch, garden, entry way or favorite antique collection. As you are aware the high-tech revolution has born with it new words like SoLoMo or De-dupe. We decided to come up a new retro word of our own. It’s “Lumantiquing”. The word “Luma” is the latin word for the coolest historic down town on the west coast, and – – well you know the rest. So Lumantiquing is the process of getting out your sunscreen and tape measure and heading to PetaLUMA for the Spring Antique Faire where thousands will come together on April 26 to shop for antiques in our quaint historic downtown. Why do we call it a ‘Faire’ and not a ‘Fair’? Faire is simply the old fashioned spelling for Fair and pairs well with the word ‘antique’.

The Antique Faire happens twice a year – this year 2015 the Spring Faire is just a day following the Butter & Egg Days parade (See our recent post Which Came First—the Butter or the Egg?) on Sunday April 26 8AM-4PM, and the Fall Faire will be Sunday September 27th (Mark Your Calendar). In past years this event has exceeded 10,000 visitors and shoppers. Marie McCusker, Executive Director of the Petaluma Downtown Association, said this week that the Petaluma’s faire is ranked in the top 100 in the United States for antique faires.

Click here to see testimonials from prominent visitors to this event, photos from last year, and Frances Rivetti reviews what to wear to the antique faire.

Click here to learn more about the great things happening in Petaluma.

VIDEO: Smart Phone Captures SMART Train’s First Trek over the #Petaluma Bridge

This raw cell phone video shows the SMART Train crossing the Petaluma Bridge for the first time.

Click here to see a better quality video of the entire journey including a segment through the downtown Petaluma train station.

What’s Going On In #Petaluma This Week? Through April 25th

11th Annual Petaluma Footrace – Sun., April 19, 8:30am: Family friendly 3 & 5 mile footrace starts and finishes at the Petaluma Marina.

Boating at the Barn – Sundays, 10am-1pm: Pick a rowboat, canoe, kayak or sailboat. River Heritage Center in Steamer Landing Park. Call 769-0910 for information.

Red Hot Chachkas – Sun. April 19, 7:30pm: New world klezmer band performs at Cinnabar Theater, 3333 Petaluma Blvd. North. For more info & tickets, call 763-8920 or visit .

East-Side Farmers’ Market – Tuesdays, 10am-1:30pm: Year-round, rain or shine! Petaluma Community Center Parking Lot, 320 N. McDowell Blvd. 415-999-5635.

Screening of “The Celebration” – Wed., April 22: Petaluma Film Alliance’s Cinema Series. Pre-film lecture 6pm; Film 7pm; Held at the Carole Ellis Auditorium, SRJC Pet. Campus, 680 Sonoma Mtn. Pkwy.

Butter & Egg Days Parade – Sat., April 25, Noon: Cow Chip Contest 10am; Cutest Chick 10:15am; Kids Parade 11:30am; Main Parade at 12pm; Kid’s area, music, booths & more!

Petaluma Antique Faire, Sunday April 26, 2015, 8 am to 4 pm in downtown Petaluma.

VIDEO: #Petaluma Father & Son Build Lego Robot That Solves Rubiks Cube Puzzle

For generations Legos are very popular with kids growing up and their legend lives on thanks to Petalumans. Our very first post was a New York Times article about Petaluma’s Kevin Tsujihara Warner Bros. CEO Credits ‘Petaluma’ for His Winning Style & Success” who had recently released “The Lego Movie”. In that article he credits his ambassadorial style – “behaving like a human being” is how he put it – reflected his unpretentious upbringing in Petaluma, Calif.”

The following video shows a project combining software, legos and robotics to solve a Rubiks Cube! It was a father and son project, one that I am sure the son will remember for a lifetime. It’s simple stuff like this that matters. When we saw this we had to share it.

The video was posted on YouTube by the father who said:

“My six year old son and I decided to build this together. It was our first Mindstorms project and loads of fun.”

“ MindCub3r is a robot that can be built from a single LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 home set or from EV3 Education Core and Expansion sets to solve the well known Rubik’s Cube puzzle. All MindCub3r software releases works with LEGO firmware versions.

Please share your father and son projects in the comments below. Also thanks in advance for sharing this cool project with your friends and family on your social media pages.

#Petaluma Current Exhibits and Upcoming Events

Special Exhibits

• “Showing on the River,” 5^th Annual Juried Photography Show, through May 3. Riverfront Art Gallery, 132 Petaluma Blvd. North.   775-4ART.
• “Art Shapes the World: 4^th Annual Youth Arts Exhibition” through April 5.  Petaluma Arts Center, 230 Lakeville St.  See website for schedule of events & exhibits: Call 762-5600.
• “The Many Faces of Petaluma” Exhibit, showcasing Petaluma’s Ethnic & Cultural Groups, through April 26.  Petaluma Historical Library & Museum, 20 Fourth St. 778-4398.
• “Focus on Nature” Exhibit through May 3. Four different views of Nature. Gallery One, 209 Western Ave. 778-8277.
• “Systems of Constructing” Exhibit, Opening Reception Griffin Map Design & Gallery on Saturday April 11th from 6-10pm and runs through May 2. 405 East D Street Suites D&F.

Upcoming Events

Mark Your Calendar for these great upcoming events:

4/19: 11^th Annual Petaluma Footrace

4/25: 34th Annual Butter & Egg Days Parade

4/26: Spring Antique Faire

5/9:  Great Petaluma Chili Cook-Off, Salsa & Beer Tasting

5/14-17: Salute to American Graffiti

5/23: Sonoma County Home Brewers Competition

5/31: Down Home Day at the Homestead

What’s Happening This Week in #Petaluma April 3rd through April 11th

Tom Stoppard’s “Arcadia” – April 3-19: Cinnabar Theater, 3333 Petaluma Blvd. North. $25 adults, $15 ages 21 & under. For tickets & show schedule, call 763-8920.

Easter Eggstravaganza – Sat., April 4, 11am-12:30: Egg hunt, games, giant slide and food for sale. $5 per family.Adobe Christian Center, 2875 Adobe Rd. 763-2012.

20th Annual Children’s Easter Fair at Outlets – Sat., April 4, 12- 3pm: Children’s crafts, games, face-painting, balloon animals, a strolling Easter Bunny and more! Petaluma Village Premium Outlets, 2200 Pet. Blvd. North.

Meet & Greet the Authors – Sat., April 4, 7pm:Brian Murphy and Brad Mangin, authors of “Championship Blood” book about the SF Giants at Copperfields, Petaluma Store.

Boating at the Barn – Sundays, 10am-1pm: Pick a rowboat, canoe, kayak or sailboat. River Heritage Center in Steamer Landing Park. Call 769-0910 for information.

Butter & Egg Days Lagunitas Fundraiser – Mon., April 6, 5:30-8:30pm: Live music by Randy & the Special Agents and Blue Moment. Dinner catered by Lombardi’s BBQ. $20 in advance/$25 at door. Call 762-9348 or go to

East-Side Farmers’ Market – Tuesdays, 10am-1:30pm: Year-round, rain or shine! In the Petaluma Community Center Parking Lot, 320 N. McDowell Blvd. For info call 415-999-5635.

Petaluma Film Alliance’s Cinema Series presents “Under The Skin” – Wed., April 8: Pre-film lecture at 6 pm; Director Jonathan Glazer’s 2014 film at 7pm; $5 general/$4 students & seniors. Carole L. Ellis Auditorium, SRJC Campus, 680 Sonoma Mountain Parkway.

Sheep Shearing at the Petaluma Adobe – Sat., April 11, 11am-1pm: At Adobe State Historic Park, 3325 Adobe Rd. 762-4871.

Second Look Sunday: A Positively #Petaluma Weeks In Review

Over the last few weeks many of the stories below were created by us, or scattered over several different media and social media sources. The Petaluma Magazine was created to collect them all in one place with easy navigation either by a click of a mouse or swipe of your finger on your smart devices. The Second Look will be a reflection of some of the posts from the previous weeks.

1000’s are enjoying their free subscription with thousands of positive articles including these highlights from the last few weeks:

• #Petaluma Current Exhibits and Upcoming Events
• Petaluma Stay at Home Mom has 500K Instagram fans for surreal photos of her children
• Final Farewell To Mister McGoos
• What’s Happening This Week in #Petaluma April 3rd through April 11th
• Fresh from Our Farmers: Bloomfield Farms becomes Bloomfield Organics
• Petaluma Enters a Tight Industrial Market
• Petaluma Eats! And Drinks at Jamison’s Roaring Donkey
• Can You Say Chevre? Culture Fans Flock to SoCo for 9th Annual California Cheese Festival
• Petaluma Peoples Choice Award Winners
• 5 Tips For Homebrewers Entering The Sonoma County Home Brewer’s Competition
• Which Came First—the Butter or the Egg?
• Petaluma Roads Slated For County Repairs
• World Food Champs Chow Down in #Petaluma
• Lacrosse: The New Kid on the Block
• Devoe All NCL II First Team
• VIDEO: World War II Vet, #Petaluma’s Arthur Wedel, On The Price Is Right Show
• Home on the “Free” Range (Provisions)
• #Petaluma’s CamelBak® chooses Yingo Yango to power its extensive health & wellness program
• History of Petaluma Eggs
• “I Drink Beer For A Living”: An Interview with Petaluma’s Ken Weaver
• Hotel Petaluma Sold Again City’s Iconic Downtown Building

Other posts can be found on our home page. Also check out the sidebar Categories, Archives and Tag Cloud. Thanks also for “Like”ing us on Facebook and following us on Twitter. Thank you for following, recommending and sharing this post and website.

#Petaluma Eats! And Drinks at Jamison's Roaring Donkey

Houston Porter, writer for Positively Petaluma, captures the essence and character of "The Donkey" becoming popular as the neighborhood bar.

My first foray into Jamison’s Roaring Donkey came one warm and sleepy August afternoon. Barkeep Justin knew his stuff and suggested a Petaluma Hills Porterluma…which scored huge points as it is one of my favorites. But what to call this place? …Jamison’s, JRD, The Roaring Donkey, or maybe just the Donkey? In time, it has become affectionately known as either Roaring Donkey…or to the regulars among my drinking crowd, simply as the Donkey, because nothing piques the curiosity of bystanders more than say, “Who wants to grab a drink at the Donkey?”

Although pleasant and comfortable, when I first looked around I had trouble figuring out what kind of bar Roaring Donkey was trying to be. There are big screens, like a sports bar, but there is also a separate room for hosting bands, open mic nights, or a DJ, like a club. There is a booth in the back, like a lounge, but there are also darts and a pool table, like a pub or tavern. The dual-station bar has a massive list of hip cocktails, serves Jameson’s Whiskey on tap, and has a “shot” counter on the wall, kind of like a college bar, but is complemented by an impressive tap station, like a brewpub taproom, even sporting multiple nitrous taps…one of which is always pushing out Guinness. Topping it all off, the bar has a diverse list of libations, including a “Bling Box” for displaying a variety of top of the line elixirs that are not usually available by the glass, like a classy gin joint. “We will offer shots at our cost,” says co-owner Brian Tatko. “We want to make it easy for people to celebrate their special occasions with us.”

Click here to read the entire article.

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