A board of directors meeting for Community Connections Inc. will take place from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Wednesday in the Lupine Conference Room at Community Connections, 281 Sawyer Drive, Suite 200.

For more information, call 259-2464.

Onward! is taking grant applications

Onward! A Legacy Foundation is accepting applications for nonprofit enhancement grants.

Onward! is offering these grants to nonprofit organizations and associations in the five-county region: Montezuma, Dolores, La Plata, Archuleta and San Juan counties. Last year, eight grants were awarded across the spectrum of arts and culture, youth programs, elder care and basic social services.

Onward! A Legacy Foundation was started in Cortez in 2002 with local seed money. The grant cycle will close Oct. 31. Grant documents and information are available at www.onwardfoundation.org. About eight short-term (maximum one year) grants ranging from $500 to $2,000 will be disbursed this cycle.

To be eligible, an organization must: Be a nonprofit project or organization located in and providing services to Montezuma, Dolores, La Plata, Archuleta or San Juan County; have 501(c)3 status or other nonprofit designation; have an organizational structure that demonstrates professionalism and accountability; and have well-defined goals and a method for evaluating success for the grant activity proposed.

For more information, email [email protected].

Tractor Supply to host pet event Saturday

The Tractor Supply Co. store, 1175 Dominquez Drive, will host activities for families and their pets, including pet adoptions, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday as part of Pet Appreciation Week.

Held Wednesday to Sunday, Pet Appreciation Week or P.A.W. is Tractor Supply’s annual event to celebrate pet owners and their pets. As part of the main event Saturday, Tractor Supply will feature pet adoptions, demonstrations on pet nutrition, drawings for $200 worth of gift cards and giveaways, including a tennis ball and pet food mats while supplies last.

In addition to finding homes for dogs and cats, Saturday’s adoption events will also raise awareness of the importance of spaying and neutering pets and provide information about proper pet care and nutrition. Several activities will take place during the main event, including pet adoption, vaccinations, dog wash and gypsy horse awareness.

For more information, call 375-6283, visit Facebook.com/TractorSupplyCo or TractorSupply.com.

Mosquitoes to be discussed Thursday

The Life-Long Learning Lecture Series at Fort Lewis College will present “La Plata County Mosquitoes – Philosophy and Practices of Abatement” at 7 p.m. Thursday in Noble Hall, Room 130.

Animas Mosquito Control District staff members collect, test and identify local mosquito populations.

The mosquito is without rival as a vector of human disease, carrying malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, encephalitis and West Nile virus.

This presentation will provide a basic education of mosquito biology and life cycle. It will explain the philosophy and practices of mosquito abatement in La Plata County.

For a schedule of lectures, visit www.fortlewis.edu/professionalassociates.

Prescribed burns planned near Bayfield

The Columbine Ranger District plans to conduct prescribed burns, beginning Saturday and continuing through the next week, in the Yellow Jacket and the First Notch areas of the San Juan National Forest east of Bayfield.

The fall burns will reduce the risk of high-intensity wildfires in these areas and increase forage on big-game winter range.

The Yellow Jacket prescribed burn encompasses 2,539 acres within two burn units.

Daytime smoke is expected to be visible to the north and east into the Piedra River drainage, while nighttime smoke is projected to settle in the Beaver and Sauls Creek drainages. Smoke will be heavier in the mornings after burning operations, and should dissipate by mid-day.

The First Notch prescribed burn encompasses 1,336 acres within four burn units. Daytime smoke is expected to be visible to the north-northeast, with smoke impacts during the day predicted to be minimal. Nighttime smoke will settle in the Piedra River drainage, with heavier smoke in the mornings, lifting and dissipating by midday.

For more information, call 884-2512.

La Plata Quilt guild to host show, sale

The La Plata Quilt Guild Show and Sale will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds Extension Building, 2500 Main Ave.

Admission is $3, and children 12 and younger are free. On display will be Gold Star Mothers’ quilts and a small quilt sale to support Project Linus. The guild will also have raffle tickets for the Colorado quilt and themed baskets will be raffled.

Annual river cleanup will be Saturday

The annual Animas River Cleanup will take place at 10 a.m. Saturday at Santa Rita Park.

Volunteers are needed for the cleanup, coordinated by Five Rivers Chapter-Trout Unlimited.

The objective of the event is to remove trash along the riverbanks.

The city of Durango will provide trash bags and retrieve the collections. Attendees are encouraged to bring work gloves. This cleanup is not related to the recent mine spill.

For more information, call Julie Brown at 759-5877.

Herald Staff