Calendar of Events
See what's already planned for August 2010
Jul 18 - Aug 31, 2010
New events are being added all the time! If your neighborhood or organization would like to invite the public to your Tucson's Birthday celebration, click on the "Your Event" tab, above.
Click on the cascarón to see what's already planned!
July 31 Volunteer Clean-Up for Tucson's Birthday
Jul 15 - Jul 31, 2010
Time: 6 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
Admission: Free
Contact Name: Diana Rhoades
Email: diana.rhoades@tucsonaz.gov
Location: Immediately south of Mission Gardens on Mission Road
Address: the base of
Phone: 520.837.4263
Join Tucson City Councilor Regina Romero and staff to kick off Tucson’s Birthday Month with a volunteer clean- up at Tucson's birthplace - the base of "A" Mountain. Exit I-10 at Congress and head West to Grande (which turns into Mission). Head south on Grande just past Mission Lane to park in a vacant dirt lot. Tucson Clean and Beautiful, Pima Association of Goverments, neighborhood leaders and youth volunteers are just a few of the groups that will participate. Help us fulfill Cele Peterson's legacy. We'll have snacks and water. Bring sunscreen, gloves and your water bottle to refill.
Tucson's Birthday 2010 Honors Cele Peterson
May 20 - Jul 30, 2010
Tucson’s fifth annual month-long birthday celebration in August will honor Cele Peterson, its centenarian founder, and long time community and business leader, who died on May 6. Businesses and organizations large and small are urged to begin, now, to plan how they will celebrate what makes Tucson a special place.
Mrs. Peterson created the birthday month to encourage everyone who lives here to make connections. She believed people could connect across their differences, as at a family birthday party, through the affection they share for our home town. She chose August for the celebration not only because the Presidio de Tucson was established on August 20, 1775, but also because Tucsonans usually have the city to themselves. That makes August a good time for residents to explore Tucson and support their local businesses.
Planning for this year's celebration include two events Mrs. Peterson had long hoped and worked for: a To
hono O'odham event at San Xavier mission and an August 1 kick off at the site of the Mission Gardens, hosted by the Friends of Tucson's Birthplace. Also in the planning stages is a variety show at the Fox Theater as part of the city's Second Saturdays program. An annual event at the Presidio reconstruction site will feature the five flags flown over Tucson and a re-enactment by Spanish soldiers detached to the fort.
Activities already on the Birthday calendar at www.tucsonsbirthday.org range from educational and entertainment programs at Tucson nursing homes, to the annual Los Descendientes Gala, which attracts a “who's who” of local government, business and the non-profit sector.
DeGrazia's Gallery in the Sun will host one of dozens of events offering free birthday cake. The Loft Cinema and Arizona Historical Society docents both plan film events, and the Historical Society's youth curator program is preparing a special exhibit.
Most events are free and family-friendly. Anyone who would like to invite the public to their own Tucson's Birthday celebration should post their event to www.tucsonsbirthday.org. To qualify as a Tucson’s Birthday event, it must center on an aspect of Tucson's unique history, environment or diverse culture. It must be open to the public, but it does not need to be free.
The Birthday also is seeking volunteers for a number of positions. Anyone interested in volunteering should visit the Southern Arizona Volunteer Center website, www.volunteersoaz.org, Search on “Tucson's Birthday” under “Volunteer Opportunities.” They can also use the “Contact Us” tab at tucsonsbirthday.org.
Tucson’s month-long birthday celebration was conceived in 2006 by Cele Peterson. The month celebrates the contributions of many cultures and interests, as well as the environmental features and institutions that have made Tucson a unique community.
Tucson's Birthday Planners is a 501(c)3 corporation, registered in the State of Arizona. Its Board members are President and Executive Director Linda Ray, Chairman Jeffrey Nordensson, Treasurer the Hon. Richard Elias, Secretary Dave Fisher and at-large members the Hon. Regina Romero, Ray Davies, Lance Laber, Tom Prezelski and Art Pesqueira.
Celebrate with us in 2010!
Sep 2 - Jul 30, 2010
Now's the time to plan how you will celebrate Tucson's history, cultural diversity and unique, natural wonders in August 2010. If you need ideas for your own event, see our Resources page. You can also click here to see the wide variety of events that took place in August 2009. Think of it as a family birthday party — make some fun with whatever you have on hand! Once you have settled on a date and time, click the "Your Event" tab to enter the details on our 2010 calendar. It's never too early!
"The Pimería Alta has always been a crossroads for different cultural groups. It is appropriate that the wide array of birthday events reflects that diversity and rich cultural history. In the spirit of community and a shared history, we should recognize that all of us are descendents of the presidio." — Hon. Richard Elías, Pima County Board of Supervisors; co-chair, with Cele Peterson, of Tucson's Birthday, and fifth-generation Tucsonan.
