Pabst Blue Ribbon’s First Friday event will feature art, music by Steven Lee Moya, and more. Photo: Pabst Blue Ribbon, used with permission.
Pabst Blue Ribbon will host a First Friday event at its Southtown gallery in San Antonio this coming Friday, May 7 from 4p.m. to 10p.m. The free event will feature music by local DJ Steven Lee Moya, refreshments and more. DJ set by Moya will be from 7p.m. to 10p.m. Guests can hang out, enjoy the music and view art from Pabst Blue Ribbon’s annual can design competition, which highlights the work of emerging artists across America.
Pabst Blue Ribbon Studios 1112 S St. Mary’s St. San Antonio, TX 78210
Since 1844, Pabst has been American-owned and operated, and is North America’s largest privately held brewing company. Pabst’s portfolio includes iconic brands with deep ties to American heritage, such as its flagship Pabst Blue Ribbon and others such as Lone Star, Rainier and Old Style. Their people and their brands are committed to embracing change and making a positive impact on the communities we serve.
Hopscotch welcomes the month of May with a variety of new programming including live music, yoga, Mother’s Day specials, and more. Photo: Hopscotch, used with permission.
Hopscotch, the new immersive art gallery in downtown San Antonio, is excited to announce a variety of programming, specials, and more for the month of May. (Hopscotch, 2021)
Hopscotch is an immersive and experiential brand that brings together artists in collaborative environments to create distinctive shared experiences. Co-founded by entrepreneurs Nicole Jensen and Hunter Inman, Hopscotch provides distinct experiences through the curation of local-centric, immersive, and experiential art. Hopscotch creates platforms for local, national and international artists to experiment with a wide spectrum of mediums and technology. Hopscotch’s aim is to elicit a sense of joy and wonder in the curated spaces, where guests may explore beyond their day to day reality. Hopscotch strongly believes in cultivating lasting relationships and a synergy with artists and their local communities.
Hopscotch’s May 2021 offerings include:
Expanded Hours – Starting May 7, 2021. Just in time for the summer months, Hopscotch will begin staying open longer for visitors to enjoy. The new hours are as follows: • Friday: 11a.m. – Midnight • Saturday: 11a.m. – Midnight • Sunday: 11a.m. – 7p.m. Guests can purchase their tickets online.
New Seasonal Cocktails Along with their expanded hours, visitors to Hopscotch can find new cocktails for the season, like the crowd favorite Sangrita Swirl which combines the new Secret Sangria and Hopscotch’s frozen Rabbit Hole Rita, perfect for spring and summer days on the patio.
Backwoods BBQ & Tacos + ChipKabobs Residency at Hopscotch every weekend in May Backwoods BBQ & Tacos, a food truck and DJ booth combined, will be stationed at Hopscotch every Friday through Sunday on the patio. The truck will offer items like brisket grilled cheese sandwiches, chopped BBQ sandwiches, mini tacos, and quesadillas. ChipKabobs will also be available every Friday and Saturday from noon to 5p.m.
Hopscotch Live featuring Sunday Salsa – Select Sundays from 2p.m. – 5p.m. Guests can now visit Hopscotch to hear various live music acts each weekend such as the musical stylings of Jose Amador. Visitors to Hopscotch are encouraged to stop by the gallery to listen to Latin Jazz and Salsa favorites on the Hopscotch patio while sipping on a cocktail and enjoying food from the Backwoods BBQ & Tacos food truck. There is no cover charge to attend. Jose will be performing at Hopscotch on the following dates: • Sunday, May 2, 2021 • Sunday, May 16, 2021 • Sunday, May 30, 2021 • Sunday, June 13, 2021 • Sunday, June 27, 2021
Parents Rock! – Sundays in May and June 2021 In celebration of Mother’s Day (May 9) and Father’s Day (June 20), Hopscotch is recognizing parents for all their hard work. Moms and Dads can use the code PARENTSROCK at checkout to receive 20% off their ticket order for the gallery every Sunday in May and June. Moms and Dads can also enjoy live music from Brass Tacs, complimentary Pop Rocks candy, and drink specials on May 9 and June 20. The 20% off tickets offer is valid on Sundays in May and June of 2021 only.
#OnlyinSA Mural Launch Weekend – Friday, May 14 – Sunday, May 16, 2021 In connection with Centro San Antonio,Wide Awake Creative, and the San Antonio Parks Foundation, Hopscotch will be celebrating the launch of a new mural in Travis Park on Friday, May 14. Hopscotch will offer drink specials, music, and more during the launch weekend, which will be free to the public (please note: the launch at Travis Park and in the Hopscotch lounge and patio is free but guests must still pay for tickets to experience Hopscotch).
Third Eye Awakening – Every 4th Saturday in May – August at 9:30a.m. Guests are invited to unroll their mat in a consciously curated yoga and art experience designed to awaken the mind and body while inspiring the soul with the immersive masterpieces at the gallery. Inspired by the mural Conscious by local artist Los Otros, the yoga class led by Mobile Om will interweave breath, mindful movement, and meditation into a holistic experience aimed to unlock guests’ connections to their third eye consciousness, the home of their intuition and imagination. After a blissful savasana, guests can awaken their taste buds with a refreshing Rabbit Hole Rita to sip while they enjoy exclusive access to browse the Hopscotch gallery. Mobile Om Yoga will set up at Hopscotch every fourth Saturday over the summer. The yoga sessions begin at 9:30a.m. and space is limited. Guests are required to bring their own mats. Dates for Third Eye Awakening include: • Saturday, May 22, 2021 • Saturday, June 26, 2021 • Saturday, July 24, 2021 • Saturday, August 28, 2021
Tickets for Third Eye Awakening are $45 and can be purchased online.
Love, Tito’s – Charity Event benefiting San Antonio Pets Alive – Friday, May 28, 2021 Hopscotch is Partnering with Tito’s Vodka to announce a monthly partnership that will benefit local nonprofit organizations. Their inaugural event, Bark on the Park will benefit San Antonio Pets Alive. The event will feature live music, give back opportunities, swag, and cocktails from Tito’s including Hair of the Dog (a Bloody Mary) and Tito’s Greyhound, a grapefruit and vodka concoction. Guests are invited to kick off Memorial Day weekend with their pups on Hopscotch’s patio at the Bark on the Park event and learn more about volunteer and adoption opportunities.
Surf dog Ricochet survived COVID and continued saving lives by training a service dog puppy for a combat marine veteran. Courtesy photo, used with permission.
Ricochet is a certified therapy dog, first-ever surf therapy dog, champion surf dog and celebrity star of the IMAX film, Superpower Dogs. She provides human-animal intervention for veterans and active-duty service members recovering from combat PTSD, moral injury, anxiety, and other mental health challenges. She has won scores of awards for her substantial work in human-animal intervention and healing. She also provides canine-assisted surf therapy and adaptive surfing to kids with autism and other special needs, differently abled individuals, wounded warriors and veterans with PTSD. (Surf Dog Ricochet, 2021)
Surf Dog Ricochet’s paw·té·gé, a seven-month-old black lab puppy named Balboa has been training with Ricochet as a service dog for Staff Sergeant Persons B. Griffith IV Ret (Griff), a Marine combat veteran with PTSD. Griff is Ricochet’s costar in the IMAX film, Superpower Dogs now showing at theaters that have finally re-opened, and is on Hulu as well. Ricochet worked with Griff as a therapy dog which ultimately led to their co-star status in the film. Ricochet and Griff originally met during a canine therapy clinic at Balboa Hospital, now called the Naval Medical Center San Diego. The puppy, Balboa was named after the place that brought Ricochet and Griff together.
Due to the stay-at-home orders and social distancing brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, Ricochet’s therapy dog work with the military, as well as her canine-assisted surf therapy and adaptive surfing were suspended in March of 2020. After two months, Judy Fridono, Ricochet’s guardian noticed that she appeared aloof and depressed. “Ricochet’s entire life had been remarkably busy providing in-person support to others. But when Covid arrived, everything came to a complete stop. Because Ricochet had too much time on her paws, coupled with her need for human interaction, I was afraid she would not survive the pandemic. She’s 13 ½ years old now and I worried she would feel her life no longer had meaning and would check out,” said Fridono.
That is when Fridono, a service dog trainer had the idea of enlisting Ricochet’s help in the training of a PTSD service dog puppy for Griff. Training is time intensive and they certainly had an over-abundance of time. So, Ricochet became a mentor to the puppy, and the puppy became a paw·té·gé to Ricochet.
Griff served our country, kept us safe, sacrificed family, and so much more but he returned home fighting PTSD. Military recruits go through rigorous training to learn how to fight a war, but nobody teaches them how to come home after experiencing horrific battlefield atrocities. Every 65 minutes a veteran takes their life by suicide. That is one of the reasons Ricochet is helping Griff continue his healing journey with a service dog. She is committed to helping him in his recovery through healing. The things Griff experienced and saw in Afghanistan are too horrific to utter out loud but Balboa will know when Griff is anxious, having a panic attack, or a night terror. Balboa will know how to calm Griff and help him navigate further through recovery. Balboa will know because Ricochet will teach him.
Recognizing Griff’s service to our country, Ricochet is providing Balboa at no cost to him with the help of her supporters. The cost of raising and training a puppy to be a service dog for a veteran is not cheap. In fact, it can run upwards of $25,000. This includes training, placing, providing support, vet bills, wellness checks, food, treats, bones, supplies, grooming, vaccinations, license, monthly preventatives, wellness checks, team training, and other miscellaneous expenses. But just as importantly, Ricochet’s legacy will live on through Griff and Balboa… and that is priceless.
SA Examiner 