Busy weekend sees one cancellation

Carson City's annual Salsa y Salsas! Festival has been canceled due to the terrorist attacks in the East, while the Brewery Arts Center will donate money from its weekend fund-raiser to victims' families.

Several other events scheduled for the weekend are going ahead as planned.

Salsa y Salsas, which celebrates Hispanic culture, was to have taken place the Pony Express Pavilion on Saturday and Sunday.

The event was called off because of Tuesday's terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., said Raquel Knecht, director of the Carson City Nevada Hispanic Services.

"We feel in light of what's happened, we feel a need to be respectful and supportive of everyone else," Knecht said. "We're all feeling what's happening. It's something we want to do."

Knecht said it was a tough decision for the group who organizes the event.

"We had everything scheduled and ready to go, but first things first," she said. "We're thinking of the people and families. Everyone should be understanding, especially in light of what happened."

Knecht said the event, which is attended by 6,000 people a year, likely will not be rescheduled for this year.

The Brewery Arts Center board decided Wednesday to go ahead with Friday evening's Beer Tasting fund-raiser, but will donate half the funds from auction sales to the families of firefighters and police who perished in Tuesday's attacks.

The event has been toned down in the wake of the attack, said Brewery Arts Center executive director Joe McCarthy.

"Everyone associated with making this event possible, from the donors who provided auction items to the vendors providing beer, will know a portion of the proceeds will go to help those in need," said McCarthy.

"We wanted to show our support by donating a substantial amount of our fund-raising to the relief effort," he said. "These are difficult times and we don't know what end result will be."

Janice McIntosh of the Carson City Senior Center said the third annual "Bluegrass in the Garden" fund-raiser will proceed.

"We hope it will help people move on with their lives," she said.

Other events going forward this weekend are:

-- Dayton Valley Days, Saturday and Sunday

-- St. Teresa's Basque Festival, Saturday

-- Carson River Clean-up Day, Saturday