By Chip Chandler — Digital Content Producer
A quartet of fundraisers and parties will compete for attendees this weekend. Which one(s) will you choose?
Create!
The second Create! downtown family arts festival will include a first.
The festival from Center City of Amarillo will kick off Friday with a VIP preview party from 6:30 to 11 p.m. in the new Embassy Suites Amarillo Downtown, 550 S. Buchanan St. — the first event held at the new hotel.
Admission is $75 for the party, which features painting with Burn Studio, food and beverages, a photo booth, caricatures done by Kyle Singleton, and art show and sale, silent auction items and a performance by The Cassettes, an Amarillo '80s cover band.
"Center City is proud to announce that our Create! VIP party will be the first event at the Embassy Suites Amarillo Downtown hotel and convention center," said Beth Duke, executive director of Center City. "This new property promises to be a new attraction for Amarillo with its modern décor and open meeting spaces."
The festival itself runs 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Amarillo Public Library downtown branch, 413 S.E. Fourth Ave., and its parking lots.
Saturday's party will feature food booths, arts and crafts, children's activities, film screenings, story time and more, as well as music by Andy Chase, The DustJackets and Mike Fuller.
Admission is free.
Proceeds from the VIP party benefit Center City and the Amarillo Cultural District.
Call 806-372-6744.
The 806 Extra Vaganza
The 806 Coffee + Lounge, 2812 S.W. Sixth Ave., will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a two-day party.
The party kicks off with a collection of artists under the Tnglwd umbrella — The Trees, MachineSix, UglyChulo and Nobody Cares — performing from 9 to 11 p.m. Friday in an all-ages show.
The party continues with birthday cake and a bake sale, a silent art auction and raffles beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday, followed by a performance by Maggie Burt and Wade Tosh and a birthday roast of the coffee shop at 9 p.m. Saturday. The day conclude with an afterparty featuring Amarillo instrumental rock band Glyphs and post-punk gothic rock band Deathbelles at 11 p.m. Saturday at Golden Light Cantina, 2906 S.W. Sixth Ave.
"True to our community roots, every year we raise money on our birthday to buy school supplies for the kids at San Jacinto Elementary School," 806 owner Jason Barrett said. "We opened at a time when there weren't many coffee options around town, nor art and community options, and Sixth Street was considered a thing of the past.
"We've watched Sixth Street and the identity of 'SanJac' grow up around us in these past ten years, even when people said Sixth Street and San Jacinto were dead," he continued. "We've been what we feel is a major part of Amarillo culture in a state of expansion, discovery, and growth. We've fought against many odds, and our clientele has been here to support us and the community the entire time. It will always be unfinished, but 10 years is a milestone, and we will all evolve together."
Admission is free for all events at The 806 and cover is $5 for the Golden Light show. Donations will be accepted for school supplies for children at San Jacinto Elementary School.
Call 806-322-1806.
Texas Panhandle's Craft Beerfest
Hoist your glasses at this annual tasting of more than 50 types of beers from several breweries and distributors.
The Texas Panhandle's Craft Beerfest, hosted by Townsquare Media, runs from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday in the Amarillo Civic Center Complex North Exhibit Hall, 401 S. Buchanan St.
"Craft beer is always changing and evolving," 94.1 FM DJ Lori Crofford said, "and this event gives our patrons a chance to sample all the new crafts of the upcoming season. So when you add the live music, the food, the other vendors, along with the craft beers it's an event people don't want to pass up."
Amarillo singer-songwriter James Owens will perform.
Tickets are $100 for VIPs, which includes early admission at 3 p.m., a catered meal and more; or $35 in advance and $45 day of event, which includes a souvenir tasting glass.
Proceeds benefit Hands On Amarillo, an organization which connects volunteers with nonprofits in need.
Call 806-355-9777.
EQTX Summer Soiree
A casual EQTX Summer Soirée cocktail and dinner party will feature a seafood meal with lobster and shrimp.
The party, which also will include an open bar and games, is set for 6:30 p.m. Saturday at 1201 N. Western St.
Tickets are $85 at the door and will benefit Equality Texas.
"We are continuing the tradition that Amarillo has set for years: Even though we're a smaller market, we consistently provide 10 percent of Equality's annual budget," said committee member Whitney Kelley, who will be one of the first people inducted to Equality's emeritus council for past board presidents. "Even though we're in an area known as a very conservative area, we're still very passionate about treating people equally."
Call 806-570-7889.
Chip Chandler is a digital content producer for Panhandle PBS. He can be contacted at Chip.Chandler@actx.edu, at @chipchandler1 on Twitter and on Facebook.
