03162015Mon
Last updateFri, 13 Mar 2015 5pm

Laguna Chapalac – March 13, 2015

Open House

The local Royal Canadian Legion is sponsoring an open house at the Jocotepec shelter for the elderly, Corazon del Anciano, on Saturday, March 14, from noon until 4 p.m. The building recently had major settling problems which caused a lot of damage, including cracks in the walls. Parts of the shelter, including the dining room and shower areas, cannot currently be used. 

While the elderly and the homeless miss their weekly Saturday lunches and access to the warm showers, they are continuing with dance, exercise and craft classes. 

The open house will allow area residents to visit the facility and see the extent of the work that needs to be done before the home can again offer full services to the poor of the area. 

St. Pat’s Day

The O’Leary, O’Malloys, Murphys and Bryans hungry for a taste of the old sod can enjoy shepherd’s pie, salad and ice cream with crème de menthe can head to American Legion  Post 7 in Chapala on St. Patrick’s Day, Tuesday, March 17. The event begins with cocktails at 4 p.m. followed by dinner at 5 p.m.  

Daniel Cordero with special guests Jimmy Barto and Rene Bon Ciric will entertain the group with music. Tickets for members are 120 pesos and 140 pesos for non-members. Tickets are available at the Post at Morelos 114 in Chapala.

Memory Loss

The interest expressed by the audience following the recent Open Circle presentation on dementia has spurred the speaker Karin Miles and others to continue the conversation. 

An introductory meeting for those afflicted by memory loss, their caregivers, and those interested in facilitating support groups will be held on Tuesday, March 17, 10 a.m. at Guadalupe Victoria 101 in Ajijic. The group will brainstorm methods to reach and assist others and to share resource materials. 

For more information contact Amara at (376) 765-2629 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

LCS Seminars

The Tuesday, March 17 noon seminar for LCS members will be chaired by Fred Harland. “The Long Reach of Reason” is an animated Socratic dialog between philosopher Rebecca Newberger Goldstein and psychologist Steven Pinker. During the presentation Newberger Goldstein gradually, brilliantly persuades Pinker that reason is actually the key driver of human moral progress, even when it takes generations to unfold.

Lakeside Freethinkers

Featured speakers at the Wednesday, March 18 meeting of the Lakeside Freethinkers will depart from the group’s usual topics. During a brief presentation, a member will relate a “supernatural” experience he had a few years ago and then request feedback and the group’s comment. Another member will present his personal take on spirituality and mysticism by reading poetry of the 13th century Persian poet, Rumi. 

Members may bring up other matters. The Lakeside Freethinkers meet on the third Wednesday of each month at 4 p.m. at a local restaurant. Dinner and additional discussion follow the meeting. 

The group defines a “freethinker” as a person who identifies as an atheist, agnostic, secular humanist, or skeptic. They reject ideas proposed as truth without recourse to knowledge and reason, and reject belief in the supernatural and rely on science and reason to guide their lives. Those who wish to attend or information can email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Wines and Tequilas

The Lake Chapala Society (LCS) Wines and Tequilas of Mexico visited the La Calera Tequila factory during the last class session. On Wednesday, March 18, 3 to 6 p.m., participants will meet in the LCS Sala to learn how to host a wine and tequila party. Discussions will include planning events, selecting the right beverage, knowing the quantity, the right temperature, and how to pair the drink with food for each occasion. Tickets are available in the LCS office and are 300 pesos for members and 350 pesos for non-members.

International Women’s Day

The Chapala Municipal Government celebrated International Women’s Day by hosting a sunset festival held Friday, March 6 at the waterfront events forum. Three women honored  for their outstanding contributions to the community were Amalia Morales Gutiérrez,  a nurse and midwife who has served the populace for 27 years; Cipriana Beltran Rojas,  liaison for the Diocesan Food Bank in San Nicolas de Ibarra; and Yolanda Martínez Llamas, the ever-active lakeside representative of the Guadalajara chamber of commerce. Morales is shown here holding the floral bouquet she received from First Lady Marisela Navarro Rodriguez, Mayor Joaquin Huerta Barrios (at left) and Councilwoman Maria Eugenia Real Serrano. 

Pet Bazaar

The members of the Lakeside Friends of the Animals are hosting a Spring Bazaar on Saturday, March 21, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.at the Pet Food Store on the Carretera in Riberas del Pilar. 

The volunteers have donated a large variety of items for the sale, including Easter decorations. Proceeds from the bazaar support the animal spay, neuter and emergency care programs. The Friends of the Animals also fund the program which has helped more than 3,000 area school children how to care for animals.

Mexican Cuisine

Chef Linda Harley has planned the remainder of the month’s classes to teach authentic Mexican cuisine. The 300-peso tickets for each class are available at the LCS office. Tickets must be purchased in advance. 

The Tuesday, March  24 class, from 4 to 6 p.m., will feature Jalisco’s tortas ahogadas with roast pork. The popular Tianguis to Table class will meet at Salvador’s Restaurant at 10 a.m. for a trip through the market. 

On Thursday, March 26, Harley will teach pork in pipian sauce with squash blossoms in the Mexican Soups, Stews, Salads and Salsas class. The exotic, delicate flavors of the chopped pork-stuffed squash blossoms pair nicely with vegetarian ceviche.

The Tuesday, March 31, 4 to 6 p.m. Mexican Specialties class will wrap up the month with a sampling of Mexico’s extensive culinary culture.

Singles

Lake Chapala Singles is holding its next event at Just Chillin’ on Tuesday, March 24, from 3 to 5 p.m. (or later).

The new restaurant/bar’s latest claim to fame is that their margaritas took first place in this year’s Chili Cookoff!

Those who wish to attend should RSVP to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Friday, March 20. Seating is limited to 40.  Just Chillin’ is located in West Ajijic, Carretera Poniente 162, on the lakeside parallel service road, directly across from the Villa Nova community.

Manager Pedro Rivera and Anahi Reyes happily greeted customers to the new restaurant at the Lake Chapala Society (LCS). Chillin’ Café, a spinoff of Just Chillin’ in west Ajijic, is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. First week favorite menu items were the three-cheese and the tuna Panini, espresso and cappuccino. 

Celebration and Wake

A wake for Maureen “Mo” Smith is planned for Wednesday, March 25, 1 p.m. at American Legion Post 7 in Chapala. Her friends urge others to gather to celebrate her and her unique signature in life. A light repast will be served at the event; an RSVP to Shannon at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. will help the organizers. 

Explore Your Past

Lakeside’s new Family History Center is now open and with plenty of materials available to help Lakesiders trace their ancestors. Center volunteers help visitors use Ancestry.com, Find My Past, My Heritage, Family Search and other computer programs that feature more than one billion names. There is no charge for searchers. 

The center is open Thursdays and Saturdays from 6 to 8 p.m., and on Thursday mornings from 10 a.m. until noon. The center is located in Ribera del Pilar at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, diagonally across the Carretera from Mom’s Deli. 

Lakeside Presbyterian

With crosses seen everywhere, on secular jewelry, topping every church, and even on clothing, it’s easy to forget that the cross began as a symbol of torment, torture and agonizing death. In his Sunday, March 15 sermon, “The Cross of Christ,” Pastor Ross Arnold will emphasize the importance of the symbol of the cross for Christians who believe, as Apostle Paul wrote: “Jesus has taken away our sins, he has canceled the charges against us … by nailing them to the cross!”

English-language worship services are at 10 a.m. and the Spanish language congregation meets at noon. Members of both groups gather in the garden at 11 a.m. for fellowship and refreshments. Lakeside Presbyterian Church is in Riberas del Pilar, on the mountain side on the Carretera beside S&S Auto.

Chavurah Chapala

All who wish are invited to join the Chavurah Chapala for the fourth annual Passover Seder at Restaurant 4 on Friday, April 3, 4 p.m. The menu includes many of the traditional foods of the holiday: gefilte fish, chopped chicken liver, chicken soup with matzo balls, a choice of brisket, Cornish game hen or fish, a special Passover dessert, the Kosher wine and matzo. The all-inclusive price, including tip, is 400 pesos.

For reservations and to specify the main course choice, contact Carol Bensman at (376) 766-5441 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Bensman will give attendees details for payment (before Monday, March 30) for the Seder. 

The Little Chapel 

A guest speaker, John Whitener, leader of Fuego del Cielo, will address the interdenominational congregation of the Little Chapel by the Lake on Sunday, March 15 during the 11:15 a.m. regular worship service. The church hosts the twice weekly classes. 

The Sunday schedule starts off with refreshments at 10:45 a.m. shared with the congregation of Christ Church Lakeside. Following the worship service, congregation members will adjourn to a local restaurant to continue their fellowship and discussion.

The Little Chapel by the Lake is located on the Carretera just east of the Chula Vista golf course. More information is available at the Facebook page TLCBTL.

San Andrés English

Guests from the barrancas about five hours from Tepic in the state of Nayarit (or 50 miles as the crow flies) visited the English Mass at San Andres church on Sunday, March 1. Accompanying Fray Miguel of the Fraile Franciscanos were a handful of the 200 children and five of the teachers and aides from the Los Amigos del Nayar Franciscan Mission in Guadalupe Ocotán, an indigenous Huichol community in the mountains. Fray Miguel asked for school supplies for the children: paper, pencils, pens, colored pencils, and crayons. He added that as with all children, candy and toys would also be welcome. Those who may want to help this isolated school and village can contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

“Our sins had made us exiles from God’s kingdom,” says Fr. Basil G. Royston, D.Min. “But just as God sent Cyrus, the King of Persia, to bring God’s people back from Babylon, so in God’s great love God sent God’s Son, Jesus Christ, to bring us back to the new Jerusalem to live the good life as from the beginning he had meant us to live it.” Royston will preside at the English Mass on Sunday, March 15, 9 a.m. in Ajijic’s Templo de San Andres. 

Royston celebrates a mid-week Mass for the English-speaking congregation at noon on each Wednesday of Lent. A one-hour study group meets at the church following Mass. 

Christ Church Lakeside 

Fr. Danny Borkowski will lead the congregation of Christ Church Lakeside as they observe the Fourth Sunday of Lent on Sunday, March 15, 9:30 a.m. in the Little Chapel by the Lake at Carretera 10 in Chula Vista. The Lenten message will be “Snakes and Faith” based on John 3:14-21.

The congregations of Christ Church Lakeside and the Little Chapel by the Lake share a common coffee fellowship time from 10:35 until 11:10 a.m. 

Deacon Rob Wells leads Bible study on Tuesdays at 10 a.m. The group continues the study of the Gospel of Luke.

Borkowski is leading a discussion of Islam on Fridays in March at 3:30 p.m. at the home of Aideen and Brian Howard in Rancho del Oro.

St. Andrew’s Anglican

A reading during the Sunday, March 15, 10 a.m. service at St. Andrew’s Anglican Church will say, “No one can boast,” either before God or one another. Building on that assertion, Fr. Winston Welty’s sermon requests, “Don’t Call Me a Christian.” The children’s bilingual Sunday School begins at 9:45 a.m.

The feeding program supported by St. Andrew’s welcomes donations of non-perishable items. Beans, rice, lentils, pasta, salt and oil can be left in the baskets at the church doors.

The fourth session of the Lenten Bible study, “Easter People,” highlighting six individuals whose journey to the empty tomb changed their lives is set for Wednesday, March 18, 11 a.m. This week Thomas the Doubter is introduced. Each session is distinct; attend when you are able.

A contest for the best hat will be a feature of the Ladies’ Spring Luncheon on Friday, March 27.

St. Andrew’s is at Calle San Lucas 19, a block south of the Carretera in Riberas del Pilar.

Unitarian Universalist

Pixie Frayer will present “What it Means to be Religious” during the Lake Chapala Unitarian Universalist Fellowship meeting on Sunday, March 15, 10:30 a.m. in Plaza de la Ribera, Rio Bravo 10A. 

Frayer says, “We live in a time when the world around us is so rife with political and religious conflict that is hard not to despair of it all. As Unitarian Universalists we are asking, ‘If we are a religious organization, then what does it mean to be religious?’” A coffee hour follows. 

Unitarian Universalists search for truth along many paths. They gather around common moral values that include the inherent worth and dignity of each person. They are a caring, liberal, open-minded community that encourages others to seek their own spiritual path wherever it leads. For further information, visit www.uuflc.org.

Buddhist Community

The dharma film for the Wednesday, March 18 sitting meditation and dharma teaching meeting is “Living in the Center of the Human Predicament.” The Heart of Awareness Buddhist Community meeting begins at 4:30 p.m. with 30 minutes of sitting meditation followed by a 10-minute walking meditation and another 10 minutes sitting. 

The sangha’s new location is in Plaza San Juan at Guadalupe Victoria 101 in Ajijic. Heart of Awareness is a non-sectarian Buddhist practice community grounded in the original teachings of the Buddha as preserved in the Theravada/Vipassana tradition. Membership is open to those with Zen, Tibetan or Shambhala backgrounds, as well as people with no previous meditation experience. For further information on the sangha, call Janet Reichert at (376) 766-6069.