Category Archives: News & Events

New six-week Writers’ Workshop begins April 16 at Dog Ears Bookstore

A new six-week session of the Writers’ Workshop for adults is slated at Dog Ears Bookstore & Café, 688 Abbott Road, Buffalo. Classes will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. beginning Thursday, April 16 and ending May 21.

To register for the Writers’ Workshop, please call the bookstore today!

To register for the Writers’ Workshop, please call the bookstore today!

All participants will present current writing efforts that will be gently critiqued. Light refreshments are included, and the cost is $75 for all six Thursday evening meetings.                          

To register for the Writers’ Workshop, please call the bookstore at (716) 823-2665 or email John Schreier at jmarkschrei@aol.com. For more information on Dog Ears Bookstore, please visit http://dogearsbookstore.org. You can also follow Dog Ears Bookstore on Facebook for frequent updates.

Dog Ears to host Words Colliding With Art workshop

Words Colliding With Art, a six-session creative workshop designed for adults 55 and older that explores the dynamic relationship between poetry and visual art, will take place at Dog Ears Bookstore & Café, 688 Abbott Road, Buffalo. Sessions will be held at 11:30 a.m. on April 15, 22 and 29, May 6 and 27, and June 3. Each session will last from 90 minutes two two hours.

The goal of the program is to reduce the fear often associated with making art.

The goal of the program is to reduce the fear often associated with making art.

Gatherings will begin with a poem used as a shared reference point, serving not as an instruction manual but as a spark. Participants will respond by creating a visual artwork in various mediums, allowing language to move off the page and into form, color, texture and symbol. No prior experience in poetry or visual art is required; curiosity is the only prerequisite.

Following the creative portion of each workshop, participants will engage in a short guided discussion focused on process rather than product. Session criteria will encourage the use of symbolism drawn from the poem as it resonates personally with each participant, as well as the intentional connection of elements across different visual mediums. These discussions will offer participants a vocabulary for talking about their work and an opportunity to reflect on how meaning shifts when an idea moves from words to images — and back again.

The goal of the program is to reduce the fear often associated with making art, particularly later in life, and to expand participants’ confidence in their own creative instincts. By emphasizing exploration over outcome, the workshop affirms the deep individual reservoirs of experience, insight and imagination that participants already possess. This program fosters creative risk-taking in a supportive environment, reinforcing the idea that artistic expression is not a fixed talent but a lifelong, evolving practice — one that becomes richer, not riskier, with age.

For more information or to register, please stop by the bookstore or call (716) 823-2665.

Dog Ears Bookstore to host author Amber Partisano

Local educator and children’s book author Amber Partisano will visit Dog Ears Bookstore from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 25 for a book-signing event. The nonprofit community bookstore is located at 688 Abbott Road in South Buffalo.

Amber Partisano

Amber Partisano

Partisano has dedicated over 22 years to education in the East Aurora School District and lives in Lancaster with her husband and their five children. Outside of the classroom she enjoys reading, outdoor adventures, gardening and cheering on the Buffalo Bills.

In March of 2023, her youngest daughter Tessa was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder, FOXG1 Syndrome. Tessa’s diagnosis and her family working through these new steps in life is what motivated Amber to write and publish a book.

The message in her book can parallel that of anyone with a rare genetic disorder who relies on friends and family — and the bond those caregivers bring. She hopes to bring awareness of her daughter’s rare genetic disorder and to help other children, parents and families understand what a rare disease looks like and how a family works together to help their child and each other.

Partisano’s newly published children’s book, Our Fox Rocks, is a metaphorical tale of Fox, who was born into the woodland forest a little bit different from the other foxes around her. Fox can’t eat, drink, walk, talk or play by herself like the other foxes and woodland animals. However, Fox is safe and happy in her woodland forest because she has her family to take care of her and protect her. In this story, readers will meet all those that Fox holds dear to her heart: Docile Deer, bright Squirrel, wise Owl, tiny Hedgehog and big Bears all guide her and ensure she doesn’t get lost in her forest. Our Fox Rocks is an inclusive story that helps children and their families understand the beauty of love and collaboration to help the differently abled thrive.

WNY Red Cross partners with Dog Ears on volunteer recruitment efforts, preparedness training event

The American Red Cross of Western New York announced its partnered with Dog Ears Bookstore & Café, located at 688 Abbott Road, Buffalo, to help support local volunteer recruitment and preparedness training efforts in the community. Starting this week, coffee sleeves at Dog Ears Bookstore & Café will feature Red Cross graphics, contact information and a QR code to direct customers to more information on some of the most-needed volunteer positions and how to get involved.

In addition, Dog Ears Bookstore & Café will host a Red Cross preparedness training event on Sunday, March 29 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event will include free Hands-Only CPR training, information on Red Cross disaster preparedness, as well as volunteer recruitment team members who will be on hand to discuss local volunteer opportunities. 

“Volunteers are the backbone of the Red Cross workforce, helping to deliver our mission here at home and across the country for more than 140 years,” said Nick Bond, CEO, American Red Cross Western New York region. “Whether it’s signing up to volunteer or learning a lifesaving skill like Hands-Only CPR, we are grateful to community partners like Dog Ears Bookstore & Café for helping to highlight the need for volunteers and encourage the public to learn more about opportunities to join our humanitarian mission.”

“When disasters strike, the American Red Cross is there. I am proud to partner with the Red Cross to help educate the local community on the importance of preparing for life’s emergencies, as well as helping to support recruitment efforts in the event that a disaster strikes,” said Tom McDonnell, executive director of Dog Ears Bookstore & Café. “I am looking forward to more collaborative efforts to come.” 

While the Red Cross offers a number of volunteer opportunities to match a wide range of interests and time commitments both in-person and virtually, recruitment efforts through Dog Ears Bookstore & Café include some of the following positions: 

Blood Donor Ambassador – Greet blood donors and help them sign in for their appointment and monitor their well-being after they have donated. Flexible schedule willing to commit to one shift per month. Must be at least 16 years old.

Disaster Action Team (DAT) Specialist – DAT members provide assistance to individuals and families who have been impacted by a home fire or other local disaster.

Disaster Services – Sheltering Volunteer – Sheltering volunteers support day-to-day activities within a shelter before, during and/or following a disaster, which can include working in reception, feeding, dormitory, information and other areas. 

Disaster Services – Feeding Volunteer – Supports efforts on a disaster relief operation to ensure food safety and proper food service delivery in a variety of work locations.

Shelter Resident Transition Caseworker – This position supports the mission of the American Red Cross by helping individuals and households more quickly transition from a shelter, thus alleviating human suffering by shortening the time of their disaster-caused displacement and jumpstarting their longer-term recovery.

For more information, grab a cup of coffee or contact RecruitWNY@redcross.org. Those interested in additional opportunities are encouraged to visit redcross.org/volunteer. 

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org.