39th Annual Turf Day Golf Classic on May 7
The 39th Annual Turf Day Golf Classic is Friday, May 7 at the Madera Golf and Country Club. Registration is at noon and shotgun start at 1 p.m. There will be a social at 6 p.m. and a dinner at 6:30 p.m. Cost is $140 per player and includes green fee, cart, tee-prize, hot dog lunch, refreshments on the course, Fresno State sausage and dinner. For dinner only, the cost is $25 per person. To participate, please contact the Ag One Foundation at 278-4266.

Water Technology Conference May 11-12
The 2010 Water Technology Conference will focus on technology innovations that will best utilize future water supplies for California, the nation and the world when it convenes May 11-12 in Clovis. The conference is presented by the International Center for Water Technology (ICWT) at the Clovis Veterans Memorial Building (Hughes and Bullard avenues). The institute was established in 2001 as a public-private partnership to develop and apply advanced technologies that enhance water use for urban, environmental and agricultural purposes. An emphasis on water issues in the San Joaquin Valley will be portrayed through technical seminars, poster presentations, networking opportunities and exhibits. Conference details and registration info are available at www.icwt.net/WTC/index.htm.

Yellow Brick Road leads to Fresno State
The Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children’s Literature at Fresno State and the International Wizard of Oz Club are hosting a national Oz conference, “Oz: The Books,” May 14-16, on the Fresno State campus. Featured speakers will include authors Gregory Maguire, Michael Patrick Hearn, John Fricke, and Kathleen Krull, as well as graphic novelist Eric Shanower. The conference will feature a musical, Time Again in Oz, produced by the Fresno State Theatre Arts Department and directed by J. Daniel Herring. Playwright Suzan L. Zeder, who based this play on the third Oz book, Ozma of Oz, will also be a speaker. For more information, contact Angelica Carpenter, curator of the Arne Nixon Center, at angelica@csufresno.edu or 278-8116. This conference is planned for adults; older children are welcome if they are accompanied by adults. Information and registration forms are available on the Center’s website at www.arnenixoncenter.org. Thanks to a generous donor, a limited number of scholarships are available to help fund student attendance. Call 278-8116 to inquire about scholarships.

Leo Politi Garden dedication June 2
The dedication of the Leo Politi Garden at the Henry Madden Library is at 9 a.m. on June 2. The garden honors the friendship between Politi, Fresno's best-known children's illustrator and author, and his friend, the late Professor Arne Nixon. The garden is designed by Fresno landscape architect Robert Boro to represent Politi's artistic style and to present plantings typical of Southern California home gardens such as Politi's. "Because the garden is in a sheltered niche between the library's north and south wings, it can include delicate plants that need extra protection in Fresno winters," said Angelica Carpenter, curator of the Arne Nixon Center.