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National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu announced Tuesday that the Capital City Arts Initiative is one of 919 nonprofit organizations nationwide to receive an NEA Art Works grant.

CCAI is recommended for a $10,000 grant to support an exhibition by artist Katie Lewis in the CCAI Courthouse Gallery. Ms. Lewis’ show will open in September 2015.

Time is running and you still can’t figure out what to get that special angler, hunter or outdoor enthusiast for the holidays? If you are still searching for the perfect gift for your sportsman, the Nevada Department of Wildlife has some ideas that might help.

Two new members of the South Lake Tahoe City Council were sworn in Tuesday as was a longtime council member who was reelected, plus the city's clerk and treasurer. The council also agreed to retain its current mayor, Hal Cole.

Councilmember Tom Davis was reelected in the Nov. 4 General Election and Wendy David and Austin Sass were both newly elected and all will hold their seats in City Council through November 2018. City Clerk Susan Alessi was reelected as well as City Treasurer David Olivo for additional four-year terms.

Good news from the North Pole: Santa Claus is coming to the Children's Museum of Northern Nevada on Friday Dec. 12 from 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. Bring your cameras because photo-ops and crafts are included in the $5 per child admission. Parents are admitted free. Please note: special event admission is not included in membership.

As I look forward to the year of 2015 with high expectations, hopes and dreams, this is a good time to reflect back on some selected personal memories from the rapidly ending year of 2014.
Here are my top memories of this year, ranging all the way from right here in our very own Carson City to two islands in faraway Hawaii.

Hello, Carson City! The holiday season is in full swing with tree lightings, craft fairs, Santa sightings all around the area. Every week, I create a list of the fun stuff and events going on around the Carson City area for my Facebook page, I love Carson City. I follow the pages of local businesses and organizations, search website calendars, keep my ear to the ground, and compile a list of anything and everything going on in this community.

Nevada comes to life through vibrant photographs of cherished state lands in the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology’s 2015 calendar. For the first time, it highlights photographic work submitted by individuals around the community.

reAlign, LLC, a Movement-based Pilates Studio, officially opened their doors at 623 W. Washington Street by holding a ribbon cutting at their new Carson City location.

Owner Bonnie Lafave was assisted in the ribbon cutting by Assemblyman-elect “PK O’Neill” who congratulated her on choosing Carson City to open her business.

J Kyle Horvath, social media director of the Carson City Visitors Bureau, is now president of the Brewery Arts Center Board of Directors.

Chris Bayer, who was the president, stepped down from the board. The BAC has faced serious financial hardships this year, in which its executive director, John Shelton, was laid off. His family members, who also worked for the BAC, left when Shelton was let go Aug. 26.

With the holiday season now in full swing, it’s only appropriate that the Reno Jazz Orchestra (RJO) brings Jazz for the Holidays to northern Nevada for all to enjoy on December 20, 2014 at The Nightingale Hall - University of Nevada. Accompanying the 17 piece band of the RJO is award-winning jazz vocalist Madeline Eastman, international tap and ballet stars, the Reno Youth Jazz Orchestra, and other special guests who will all perform their holiday magic on Saturday night beginning at 7:30 pm.

Well, the weather forecasters got it wrong today, but that's OK. They usually do get it right. What was supposed to be rain in Carson City, forecasted by the National Weather Service, has been, mostly wet, slushy snow and snow showers, beginning at around 11 this morning, then falling as rain and then picking up late this afternoon and early this evening as snow.

The University of Nevada, Reno’s Winter Commencement will take place Saturday, Dec. 6 at Lawlor Events Center. A total of 1,475 degrees – 1,094 bachelor’s degrees and 381 advanced degrees or certificates (master’s and doctoral degrees) – will be awarded.

Graduating students and faculty leaders will assemble at 8 a.m., and the ceremony procession will begin at 8:15 a.m. University President Marc Johnson will deliver welcoming remarks.

The University awarded 1,461 degrees at the December 2013 ceremony, and a total of 3,712 degrees were granted last academic year.

Free radon test kits are available from Dec. 1 through Feb. 28 at University of Nevada Cooperative Extension offices and partner offices statewide. Nevadans are encouraged to take advantage of this free offer to test their homes for this radioactive, colorless gas that comes from the ground, accumulates in homes and can cause lung cancer.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates 21,000 Americans die each year from radon-caused lung cancer, killing more people than secondhand smoke, drunk driving, falls in the home, drowning or house fires.

Salute to the Military concert, "Musical Memories: Pearl Harbor and World War II," with a bit of Christmas cheer on Dec. 7 at 3:00 p.m. in the Bob Boldrick Theater at the Carson Community Center, 851 E. Williams St.

Making that first-year milestone as a business is always noteworthy. One Carson City mother-daughter team counts on the day-to-day growth of their clients for their success.

When it comes to growing toddlers to pre-teens, the demand for clothing is always there. And that’s why Claudia and Anastasia Chambers opened Little Monsters, a children’s resale shop located at 444 E. William St., Suite 1 in Carson City on Dec. 1, 2013.

The region's finest Nevada-made art will be featured Saturday, Dec. 6 at St. Mary’s Art Center in Virginia City with its first Artists and Artisans Art Faire on the Comstock.

Not only will all galleries be filled with art, the entire building will be full of local artists and creative folk from all over the Comstock region, showing and selling their work. The faire will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The art works range in style, medium, size and price from $5 to $8,000, so there will be something for everyone’s holiday shopping budget.

The national business movement Independent We Stand this week announced Artsy Fartsy Art Gallery in Carson City among the quarter finalists for the 2014 Independent We Stand Small Business of the Year Award.

The Carson City Visitors Bureau is hosting a Social Media Symposium for rural marketing and tourism organizations in the state.

“It’s an opportunity for the marketing community to come together,” said Kyle Horvath, social media director for the visitors bureau. “It’s a place people can feel comfortable to bounce ideas off each other and learn from others’ mistakes.”

The symposium will begin at 9 a.m. Dec. 5 and 6 at the Adams Hub for Innovation, 111 W. Proctor St.

Those colorfully lit reindeer that you see all over Carson City, Douglas County, and Reno are the passion of one man, Willow Bill. For the last 18 years he has involved area school-children in the building of the holiday decorations, and the world's largest art project now covers over 60 miles of Nevada highway.

Happy Black Friday, Carson City! I hope you have all survived the gluttony and gratitude that is Thanksgiving and are ready for the weekend. I am once again pleased to bring you the event list that is featured on my Facebook page, I love Carson City. I follow the pages of local businesses and organizations, search website calendars, and compile a list of anything and everything going on in this community weekly.

Did you know the average person gains an average of between 7 to 9 pounds between Thanksgiving and the New Year? Put a stop to the weight gain by joining us at Well Being, a new private fitness studio in Carson City.

We offer personal training, massage, group-x classes, and small group camps to our private members. The training center is clean, spacious, never fully crowded, and we have shower facilities and changing rooms as well. Our group exercise schedule offers unique formats that keep you from getting bored and you will notice results over time with consistent attendance.

The 2014 Toys For Tots season is in full swing and we need your help. The local Toys For Tots campaign will be helping thousands of children in Carson, Douglas, Lyon and Storey counties with toys this holiday season.

Marines from the Bridgeport Warfare Center will be at all three Walmart stores in the Carson City and Douglas County area on Friday and Saturday accepting donations. Come out and support our local children. Every child deserves a Happy Holiday.

The Carson City Photo Club will meet this Tuesday, November 25th at 6:30 at the Carson City Sheriff's Office. The theme this month is "Fall Colors." New photographers of all levels are welcome to join. See our Facebook Page or our website for more information.

The Traditional American Music Project and The Brewery Arts Center present "Strange on the Range" Saturday, Nov. 29, 7 p.m. in the MHJ Black Box Theater in Carson City.

It didn't look good earlier this year for a 39 pound bear cub after being caught in a 400 square-mile forest fire this summer in Washington State. But thanks to the efforts of wildlife rehabilitation caregivers at Lake Tahoe, the bear has since made a sweeping recovery and will return to the wild this spring.

This is my annual reminder that November 18 was a significant date in the lives of some 4,212 hardy Alaskans (as of the 2010 census). Those folks live in a unique location known as Barrow, Alaska, which is the northernmost community in the United States.

It is located on the edge of the Arctic Ocean, about 320 miles north of the Arctic Circle, and roughly about 1,300 miles south of the North Pole. On November 18, the sun set below the horizon at Barrow and it will not peek back up over the horizon until January 23 (weather permitting).

This week's Women to Women Nevada is with Brenda Hungerford, a successful woman and business owner. Brenda grew up in Oregon on ranch property where she and her siblings explored the acres of wildlife and the world of ranch animals.

The Reno-Sparks NAACP this week asked the Nevada State Assembly Republican Caucus to reconsider its recent unanimous election of Assemblymember Ira Hansen, R-Sparks, as speaker of the lower house for the 2015 legislative session.

"We were very disappointed by the decision," stated Reno-Sparks Branch President Jeffrey Blanck.

"We understand that the caucus has many newly elected members who may not be as familiar with Mr. Hansen's past as we are. They need to know he has beaten the drum of intolerance for decades," Blanck said.

The Nevada 150 Commission announces the final sales of the popular Nevada Sesquicentennial medallions. There are two opportunities for Nevadans to purchase or complete a set of the series of four medallions that have been produced throughout the year.

Join us as we explore and enjoy the harvest of Churchill Vineyards of Fallon, Nevada.
Ashley Frey, Co-Founder, will be our guest as we dine on the special selections expertly prepared by Sierra Gourmet Grill & Wine Bar Chef and Owner Larry Rice.

Our Menu for this special evening includes:

• Local Artisan Cheeses
• Grilled Romaine Hearts with a warm Bacon Dressing
• Grilled Filet Mignon
• Grilled Lobster Tail
• Chef's Surprise for Dessert

RSVP (775) 392-2370 $45 per person