FOXTROT FOR THE FOXES: SoCalers who need an island getaway don't need to glance longingly at tropical spots half a world away; they don't even need to look to an airport. We know that Santa Catalina Island is just 22 miles, give or take, across the ocean, and a day spent on a history-laden, bison-o-riffic land mass that's completely surrounded by the Pacific is a day that can be had without a daylong flight. One of the best bits of Catalina is, of course, the Casino Building, which just happens to be its most iconic structure, the one you see pictured on the postcards and brochures. You can enter it, of course, on tours and special events and New Year's Eve, too, which makes it a slice of living history, a place that's still very robust and very much alive. So that it becomes a place that salutes, and holds dear, the robust life on the island every now and then charms and brings comfort. We speak of the Catalina Island Conservancy Ball, which will again take to the ballroom to waltz it, rumba it, and, yes, perhaps even foxtrot it, on Saturday, April 11. Yes, you got us, we *are* being slightly winky about the whole foxtrot-fox connection, but that's because the evening of dance and dressing up is all about supporting the island's foxes, and bison, and bald eagles, and the many beasties of wing and paw who make Catalina their roost and den.
TICKETS: A single ticket is $275, but if you move upward to some of the larger packages, which may include admission for multiple people and other goodies, you get to be a Southern Alligator Lizard Sponsor or Slender Garden Salamander Sponsor or such. Fun fun, to put on a fancy frock and know that just beyond the Casino Ballroom's grand balcony there are foxes and lizards and birds nearby, all of which are going to benefit from your Conservancy-directed money. It's a way to enjoy an iconic human-built structure while saluting those animals that give the island its nature magic. Few events build a bridge between the two as well as the Catalina Island Conservancy Ball. Can't make the party? You can still get involved with the organization and help out. We mean... the bison of Catalina Island. Aren't they forever splendid? Time will never dull the wonder, nor should it.
