Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Scripps Ranch!
While Scripps Ranch might not host a big St. Patrick’s Day parade, hold an Irish street fair or turn any of this community’s ponds green, some of the local establishments will celebrate in their own way. Here is a brief list of their offerings and events today.

Dry Irish Stout returns
Celebrate the return of Make Your Own Luck Dry Irish Stout with $4 pints at Savagewood Brewing Co. on March 17. Enjoy green beer all day. Free pizza served at 2 and 6 p.m. Open 1 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Savagewood Brewing Co., 9879 Hibert St., suite F.

St. Patrick’s Day Yappy Hour
Newtopia Cyder will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by helping charity with a dog adoption event. On Sunday, 20 percent of cyder sales and 10 percent of food sales will be donated to It’s the Pits Dog Rescue. Cuddle some cute adoptable pups while sipping cyder and eating delicious BBQ from Coal & Barrel. Celebrate Yappy Hour 3-5 p.m. Sunday. 10045 Carroll Canyon Road, suite A.

Corned beef & cabbage
The word is that Filippi's Pizza Grotto Scripps Ranch will put some Irish on it’s menu Sunday by offering corned beef and cabbage in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. Open Sunday 10:30 a.m.-10 p.m.; 9969 Mira Mesa Blvd.

Celebrate at Old Grove
Say cheers to Ballast Point Scripps Ranch, known by locals as Old Grove, with a keep the pint offer and old school pricing this weekend through Sunday, March 17.

The Scripps Ranch brewery on Old Grove Road gave Ballast Point Brewing Company the opportunity to take one step toward reaching its goals. Since then, the Scripps Ranch community has participated in events at Ballast Point Scripps Ranch like the Barking Brigade dog walks to nearby Newtopia Cyder.  Soon, Ballast Point Scripps Ranch will turn the keys over to local kombucha producer JuneShine later this spring.

Now it’s time to celebrate all the award-winning beers and brewers that have flowed through the brewery as the team remembers the “good old days” on Old Grove Road. Grab a commemorative pint glass with the keep-the-pint special and enjoy your favorite drafts with old-school prices from the summer of 2013. Ballast Point Scripps Ranch, open Sunday 11:30 a.m.-8 p.m., 10051 Old Grove Road.

Internationally acclaimed multilingual vocalist and recording artist Allison Adams Tucker returns to the informal and intimate setting of the Scripps Miramar Ranch Library Center this weekend. She will be performing “Jazz Mediterraneo,” her mix of jazz inspired by the sun and infused with the sounds of France, Spain, Italy and beyond in the “Pleasure of Your Company” music series on Sunday, March 10, starting at 2:30 pm.

Adams Tucker has been hailed by critics as “an astonishing singer with impeccable pitch and crystal clear diction,” with a voice as “supple as silk and smooth as cashmere ... like shaking hands with a smile,” and “...mesmerizing, whether in English, Japanese, French ...”

Featuring guitarist Joe Amato and drummer Claudio Rochat-Felix, their program will include gypsy jazz music of Django Reinhardt.     

Meet the musicians and mingle with fellow jazz aficionados at a complimentary post-concert reception.

There is no charge for the concert, which is sponsored by the Scripps Ranch Friends of the Library, although donations are appreciated.

Scripps Miramar Ranch Library Center is located at 10301 Scripps Lake Drive. Overflow parking is available on Meanley Drive off Scripps Ranch Boulevard. Visit srfol.org or call (858) 538-8158 for information.

Scripps Ranch resident Cliff Huckleberry devoted his career to making semi-conductors for 21-years. Upon retiring, he decided to write a book. A year-and-a-half later, he had a 600-page novel on his desk.

“I retired three years ago and just started writing,” Huckleberry said. “My wife and I are empty nesters; our kids are on their own. So, I got up one rainy day, poured a cup of coffee and had an idea for a fiction adventure story; and now it’s a published book titled ‘Indomitable.’”

“Because I was in technology, a lot of people were surprised when I came out with a fiction adventure book,” Huckleberry said. “Based on my background, writing a book was not a normal thing to do, but it stretched me, and I needed that.”

When this father of four began writing, he was advised to focus on a subject he was familiar with. Since he and his wife, Cathie, frequently traveled to exotic locations such as Spain, Italy, Slovenia and Croatia, this became the perfect backdrop for his novel.

Scripps Ranch resident Christina Erdey returned to San Diego after having moved away for 13 years, only to find that her old friends were no longer in the area, and she was left with a sense of loneliness and isolation. 

After two years of living back in San Diego, Erdey decided it was time to make local friends, and also help other women find friends as well.

“Many people who live in San Diego are not originally from here,” Erdey said. “That, combined with the rise of primarily communicating through social media channels and the virtual digital world, people are losing the in-person connection that is important to socializing. ‘Non-digital’ socialization is needed to cultivate authentic friendships.”

Erdey has organized meet ups such as monthly outings to Yanni’s Bar & Grill, and monthly gatherings at the Scripps Poway Parkway Starbucks she calls “Coffee and Conversation.” Saturdays at 9 a.m. (except the third Saturday of each month), she also invites women to join Gaggle Girls on a walk at Miramar Lake. It was during one of these walks that Erdey came up with the name for the group, inspired by the geese at the lake.

“A gaggle is a flock of geese and they were gaggling away, just like we were, so I thought it made sense,” Erdey said.

While she leads in the organization of larger group events, Erdey still encourages all women who join Gaggle Girls to connect with each other individually, to engage outside of the group activities and to cultivate meaningful personal relationships.

“My ultimate goal is to just create a positive, nurturing environment that is all-inclusive and supportive,” Erdey said.

Gaggle Girls is varied in its members, but is made up of single women, women with and without kids, and mostly women between the ages of 35 and 70. Erdey wants to encourage younger women to participate in Gaggle Girls and take advantage of the wisdom and advice the diverse group possesses.

“Right now, I am completely focused on creating the baby steps that it takes for women to build authentic relationships with each other inside of this group,” Erdey said. “We women are too hard on ourselves and tend to have a negative voice in our head telling us that we don’t measure up in so many ways, so we need to create positive relationships with others to encourage each other.”

Gaggle Girls is a passion project for Erdey. While she earns no income from it, puts in several hours organizing events and maintains the Facebook page, Erdey feels tremendous satisfaction putting it all together and seeing the joy in the participants faces.

“People saying thank you to me is payment enough,” she said.

When she’s not helping cultivate relationships among women, Erdey spends time with her husband Jacques, who she said is just as adventurous and young at heart as she is. Jacques is a software engineer who is dedicating his free time to building the future Gaggle Girls website. Erdey is a self-employed information technology instructor.

School of Rock Scripps Ranch, 12090 Scripps Summit Drive, held a very successful grand opening event on Saturday, Feb. 9.

Owner Steve Peterson did an incredible job preparing the music studio spaces for the big day. Peterson greeted guests and thanked the crowd before introducing the first rock combo. The youngsters were nothing short of impressive as they performed like pros.

The rock ’n’ roll decor was carried throughout the studio spaces with black and gray walls occasionally accented by contrasting colors. Vivid photos of rock bands hung from hallways, along with a few painted murals featuring rock legends.

The opening day gathering including a typical San Diego rock crowd: polite and appreciative. The one element that was somewhat different was the fact that this group included parents looking for quality, fun music lessons for their children. All-in-all, it made for a great vibe.

Scripps Ranch artist Erin Hanson invites the public to celebrate two years of The Erin Hanson Gallery in San Diego with an anniversary event from 5 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 9705 Carroll Centre Road.

Those attending the celebration can expect to view vibrant colors, bold lines and vast landscapes. Guests may enjoy Hanson’s most recent works along with live music and refreshments.

The Erin Hanson Gallery moved to San Diego from Los Angeles two years ago, allowing the artist time to explore the area’s diverse environment. Erin Hanson is a modern master impressionist, capturing landscapes across the U.S. and the world. She has recently painted pieces depicting local, San Diego landscapes including Torrey Pines, Black’s Beach, La Jolla and the local eucalyptus in Scripps Ranch. Many of Hanson’s pieces celebrate the natural beauty of the California coast, the local wine country, vast deserts and diverse plant life.

A life-long painter, Hanson began her study of oils as a young child. Her passion for natural beauty can be seen in her work as she transforms both familiar and rare vistas into stunning interpretations of bold color, playful rhythms and raw emotional impact. Her frequent forays into national parks and other recesses of nature include backpacking expeditions, rock climbing and photo safaris. Hanson's unique painting style has become known as Open Impressionism.

The Scripps Ranch Friends of the Library sponsors the “Pleasure of Your Company” music series at the Scripps Miramar Ranch Library, with monthly concerts on special Sunday afternoons from September through June. 

For a change of pace, on March 10, internationally acclaimed vocalist and recording artist Allison Adams Tucker will perform “Jazz Mediterraneo,” her mix of jazz inspired by the sun and infused with the sounds of France, Spain, Italy and beyond. Featuring guitarist Joe Amato and drummer Claudio Rochat-Felix, the program will include gypsy jazz music of Django Reinhardt.

A trio of veteran beer industry partners are set to open a new brewery and tasting room in Scripps Ranch this spring. Dubbed “Harland Brewing Company,” the new facility will feature up to 24 craft beer taps to suit a variety of tastes ranging from blondes to lagers to IPAs. Construction is currently underway at 10119 Carroll Canyon Road with an anticipated opening date of mid-April.

Harland is one of three businesses under the umbrella of Ocotillo Holdings LLC, which also includes wine label Claxton Cellars, as well as Scout Distribution, which focuses on distribution of craft beer, wine, hard cider and hard kombucha. According to Chief Operating Officer Jeff Hansson, the ideation for the businesses came about collectively last year with partners Josh Landan and Anthony Levas. The three had formerly worked together at St. Archer Brewing, which Landan co-founded in 2013. Following the brand’s sale to MillerCoors in 2015, however, the team noted feeling a sense of loss of the entrepreneurial spirit that accompanied their business venture, as well as longing for involvement in the beer business, specifically.

“We missed owning a brewery. We missed walking in and smelling the beer being brewed and working with our teams,” Hansson said. “We feel like we’re good at what we do and we love what we do.”

Hansson also noted the team’s collective passion for building brands with their friends. Different from their previous endeavor with St. Archer, Harland has positioned itself as a gritty brand with a strong, masculine feel. The aesthetic, according to Hansson, is Americana-inspired with very clean design elements. Their target audience is craft beer drinkers, and this time around, their vision for the business is to maintain a local focus.

“We’re building out our production facilities, so we’ll have the capability if we want to sell our products in other counties in California, but right now, San Diego is 100 percent the focus,” Hansson said. “We wanted to build a brewery that we’re very proud of where we can just make great beers and sell to bars, restaurants, hotels, concessionaires and grocery stores in San Diego.”

Production facilities for the new business are under construction in Carmel Valley and in Scripps Ranch, just down the road from Newtopia Cyder. Compared to their previous experience producing their brews within a business park in Miramar, Hansson said that the Harland team is excited about its new location in Scripps Ranch because it has a genuine community, neighborhood feel.

“We’re really excited about being in Scripps Ranch,” he said. “This is a great fit for us [and] we’re really excited to try to immerse ourselves in to the community as much as possible.”

While no food items will be produced on-site at the new tasting room, Hansson said that the team will be working to contract with food trucks to have light bites available for their patrons.

For those anxious to try the new brews prior to the opening of the new Harland tasting room this spring, Public House 131 will soon add Harland to its selection of beers on tap.

As we embrace a new year, the Scripps Ranch Women’s Club offers opportunities for increased fitness. The accompanying photo shows the Women’s Club members who enjoy walking some of the pathways along Miramar Lake. This group of walkers meets on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings to enjoy each other’s company and exercise at the same time. This is a casual, open meet-up and those who attend will vary from time-to-time, depending on personal schedules. Often afterwards, the walkers gather for coffee at Starbucks to continue their friendship and conversation.

In addition, in January, Women’s Club walkers will head to La Jolla Shores. There, club members will become beachcombers for part of the morning as they appreciate the sounds of the sea washing across the sands. Group members plan to carpool to the beach to make the outing more convenient. Following the walk, the group will lunch in La Jolla. 

Theater fans are in for a night of smiles and interesting characters when Scripps Ranch Theatre (SRT) presents Mark St. Germain’s ‘Dancing Lessons,’ Jan. 25-Feb. 24.

Dancing Lessons is described as a heartwarming and humor-laced story of Ever Montgomery, a young man with Asperger’s syndrome, who seeks instruction from Senga Quinn, an injured dancer, so that Ever can prepare for an upcoming awards ceremony. As the lessons and a relationship unfolds, both student and teacher make interesting discoveries about each other and themselves.

Director Megan DeBoard noted that at first look, the characters in the play — there are only two — are the type of New York neighbors who live in the same building two floors apart but have never communicated.

“As you get to know these characters, you see that they’re both a little socially awkward; they almost don’t have the patience for each other’s unique personalities,” she said.

But that awkward stage of the relationship changes over time.

“It’s not quite a romantic comedy, but there’s maybe a little bit of romance and a lot of comedy,” DeBoard said. “Mainly, it’s a lot of communication and learning how to communicate with someone who isn’t like you, and what kind of friendship can grow from that.”

The dancer, Senga, will be played by Michelle Marie Trester, who has starred in previous productions at SRT. Ever will be played by Andrew Gumm in what DeBoard said will be his first performance at the local theater.

A native of Oahu, Hawaii, DeBoard completed her undergraduate studies at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, where she is now the director of the theater department and has directed numerous plays. Her local directing experience also includes plays at Grossmont College, San Diego Junior Theatre, Cygnet Theatre and Diversionary Theatre. “Dancing Lessons” marks DeBoard’s first time directing at SRT.

“What I love about ‘Dancing Lessons’ is that the entire play takes place in a New York studio apartment, so we don’t have walls that are getting in the way of various sight lines,” she said. “We’re just able to live in this New York apartment, and hopefully the audience will feel like they’re peeking in the windows.”

The “Pleasure of Your Company” music series rings in the new year with “From Beethoven to Broadway, music for Horn and Piano,” featuring the San Diego Chamber Music Society on Sunday, Jan. 13, at 2:30 p.m. in the Scripps Miramar Ranch Library Center.

The French horn/piano duo of Bruce Dorcy and Beverly Reese Dorcy will perform selections from famous composers of the past including Beethoven, Mozart, Strauss, Mendelssohn, Saint-Saens and Cherubini, plus 20th century American composers like Alec Wilder, Burt Bacharach, Mitch Leigh, Jerry Herman and Henry Mancini. There will be an interesting dialogue about the pieces and composers and perhaps an amusing anecdote or two. 

Beverly Reese Dorcy, piano/percussion, was formerly principal percussionist with the Fresno Philharmonic, Tacoma Opera, Bellevue (Washington) Philharmonic, Women's Philharmonic, Monterey Opera, Golden Gate Opera and Classical Philharmonic. She has also performed extensively with the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, San Diego Opera and Sun Valley (Idaho) Summer Symphony.

Bruce Dorcy, French horn, was a member of the National Ballet of Canada and Canadian Opera Orchestras for 24 years, and the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra for 11 years. He also played on Broadway in New York for six years (“Man of la Mancha,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Promises, Promises”) as well as occasional performances with the New York City Opera, Seattle Symphony, Seattle Opera, Toronto Symphony, San Francisco Opera and San Diego Chamber Orchestra.

Meet the musicians at a complimentary reception following the concert. There is no charge for the concert, although donations are appreciated.

Scripps Miramar Ranch Library Center is located at 10301 Scripps Lake Drive near Miramar Lake. Overflow parking is available on Meanley Drive off Scripps Ranch Blvd. Call (858) 538-8158 or visit srfol.org for more information.