Held at the Soper-Reese Theatre starting at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, this beautiful and fun event includes wine, appetizers, silent auction and raffle – all to raise funds for the worthy goal of helping people with disabilities to live independently.

Tickets are $40.

Bayberry Inc. of Clearlake and Napa, is a nonprofit organization offering people with developmental disabilities the opportunity to make life choices and set their own goals within their chosen communities.

In collaboration with local agencies, Bayberry provides the resources needed to work toward each individual’s personal goals.

Tickets for Winterfest 2010 are available online at www.SoperReeseTheatre.com or at the Theatre Box Office, 275 Main St., Lakeport.

The box office opens on Thursdays, noon to 5 pm, and on the day of the show, for two hours before show time.

Tickets also are on sale at Catfish Books in the Safeway Center, Lakeport; at the Lower Lake Coffee Company on Main St. or by phone at 707-263-0577.

The Soper-Reese Community Theatre is a restored, historic, performing arts venue established in 1949 and seating up to 300 patrons.

Run by an all-volunteer organization, the theatre operates under the guidance of the non-profit Lake County Arts Council.

The Soper-Reese brings dance, music, plays and poetry to all members of the Lake County community and to visiting tourists.

Legendary guitarist Mike Wilhelm, photographed by Edward Woods.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Locals Mike Wilhelm and Hired Guns welcome their very special guest, fiery blues guitarist Mighty Mike Schermer at the Blue Wing on Monday, Nov. 29.

Schermer is known for his stint with Elvin Bishop's band as well as fronting his own west coast outfit. He has since relocated to Austin, playing with Marcia Ball's band.

When Blue Wing proprietor Bernie Butcher suggested the pairing Wilhelm jumped at the chance to trade licks with Schermer.

Filling out the band will be Jim “Jimmy the Lion” Leonardis on tenor sax, Randy Hare on bass and the the always energetic Scott Slagle on drums. Show time is 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

There is never an admission charge at the Blue Wing Saloon & Café but reservations are recommended if you want an inside table for this very special chance to catch two virtuoso blues players together for the first time.

Call 707-275-2233.

For further information: www.bluewingsaloon.com, www.mike-wilhelm.com and www.mighty-mike.com.

Carmichael is known as one of the biggest creative forces in the development of contemporary Christian music.

He has also had great success on the secular side of the music industry, working with such legendary performers as Ray Charles, B.B. King, Nat King Cole, Lena Horne, Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Roger Williams, Count Basie and Bing Crosby.

This free concert will be held at Elmshaven Church, 15 Woodland Road, next to St. Helena Hospital (across from the Emergency Room).

Doors open at 5 p.m. for the 6 p.m. performance, and refreshments will be served following the concert.

Seating is limited. For more information call 707-963-6488.

Ted Kooser, US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. Photo by UNL Publications and Photography.

The first poem we published in this column, back in the spring of 2005, was by David Allan Evans, the Poet Laureate of South Dakota, and it’s good to publish another one today, having recently had our five-year anniversary.

Girl Riding a Horse in a Field of Sunflowers

Sitting perfectly upright,

contented and pensive,

she holds in one hand,

loosely, the reins of summer:

the green of trees and bushes;

the blue of lake water;

the red of her jacket

and open collar; the brown

of her pinned-up hair,

and her horse, deep

in the yellow of sunflowers.

When she stops to rest,

summer rests.

When she decides to leave,

there goes summer

over the hill.

Ted Kooser was US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. He is a professor in the English Department of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He lives on an acreage near the village of Garland, Nebraska, with his wife Kathleen Rutledge, the editor of the Lincoln Journal Star.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2009 by David Allan Evans from his most recent book of poems, This Water. These Rocks. San Francisco Bay Press, 2009. Reprinted by permission of David Allan Evans and the publisher. Introduction copyright ©2010 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

The Yule Logs will perform at Molly Brennans in Lakeport, Calif., on Friday, Dec. 10, 2010. Courtesy photo.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Christmas and Hanukkah Rock n' Roll band, The Yule Logs, will be playing at Molly Brennans on Main Street in Lakeport on Friday, Dec. 10.

The show will begin at 7:30 p.m.

The group released its sophomore album, “Walked With A Reindeer,” on Nov. 9.

The Yule Logs are made up of Marty Parker, vocals; Kirt Lind, bass; Maurice Spencer, guitar; and Jake Sprecher, drums.

Formed in the University town of Chico, Calif., the boys have been topping Christmas trees and lighting the Menorah of rock since 2005.

As lead singer Parker states, “We were sick of our parents absolutely hating our bands. We wanted to be in a band that our grandparents, as well as our friends, would actually want to listen to,” and this band will immediately cast the holiday spirit on you.

“Walked With A Reindeer” is chock-full of the pop punch/tongue-in-cheek attitude that has made The Yule Logs an eggnog-chugging holiday free-for-all.

Molly Brennans is located at 175 N. Main St.

For more information and to hear the band's music, visit www.yulelogsmusic.com/ .