The Tahoe Donner Giving Fund will host a Winter Speaker Series starting Jan. 16 in the Alder Room at The Lodge Restaurant & Pub.

New this winter, the speaker series is an opportunity for community members to come together while learning about local topics relevant for the Truckee and North Lake Tahoe area.

Each event is from 4:30-6 p.m. and cost $5 per date or $20 for all five dates. Proceeds from the series benefit the Tahoe Donner Giving Fund supporting local non-profits in the greater Truckee area providing deserving graduating high school students with scholarships to advance their educations.

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“We’re thrilled to introduce a new intellectual series for the community that benefits a great local cause,” said Suzanne Sullivan, chairperson at The Giving Fund. “Attendees will enjoy a wide-range of diverse topics presented by subject experts in a fun and relaxed atmosphere.”

The Lodge Pub will open for drinks at 4:30 p.m. on these select dates. Light appetizers will be served.

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Tickets to the speaker series can be purchased at tahoedonner.com/speaker-series.

SPEAKER CALENDAR:

JANUARY 16 | DRIVING IN SNOW + ICE

Officer Pete Mann, Truckee California Highway Patrol

Public Information Officer and Rangemaster at California Highway Patrol in Truckee, Pete also maintains the often hilarious and always informative Truckee CHP Facebook page.

FEBRUARY 6 | THE PHYSICS OF SNOW

Bernhard Bach, University Nevada Reno

Director of Undergraduate Laboratories, Physics Department, University of Nevada, Reno, Bernhard’s background is in the field of diffractive and reflective optics, as it relates to spectroscopic applications. He has had a hand in designing and fabricating optics that have seen use in various space programs and also worked as a scientist and climber in Peru.

FEBRUARY 20 | HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING TIPS

Daniella Luchian, Sierra Bakehouse

Daniella studied Baking and Pastry Arts at the Culinary Institute of America in New York. She has worked for Gary Danko’s Restaurant in San Francisco and The French Pastry School in Chicago. Daniella came to Truckee from the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Orlando and then Tahoe. She is the owner of Sierra Bakehouse, a commercial bakery in Truckee which is open to the public on Friday mornings.

MARCH 5 | THE ART OF GROOMING

Per Hurtig, Tahoe Donner Cross Country Ski Center

The son of a Swedish heavy equipment operator, Per is now in his eighth year of grooming at Tahoe Donner Cross Country and enjoys putting out the best product possible every night. Per also rowed in a four-man team in the 1980 Olympics and still competes with the same team at the World Masters level 40 years later.

MARCH 19 | MICROPLASTICS IN LAKE TAHOE + SIERRA NEVADA SNOW

Monica Arienzo, Ph.D and Meghan Collins, M.S., Desert Research Institute

Since 2016, Monica has been an Assistant Research Professor at Desert Research Institute (DRI), Division of Hydrologic Sciences, focusing on albedo impacts in seasonal snow areas and glaciers for hydrologic application, human impacts in high latitude environments and linkages between fire, temperature and hydrology. Meghan has been with DRI since 2015 focusing on STEM education and leading a citizen science project, Stories in the Snow. She also teaches environmental science topics at Nevada community colleges.

The Tahoe Donner Giving Fund was created in 2014 to pool contributions from association members to support the good work of local nonprofits through grants and provide academic and vocational scholarships to local high school graduates of need. Past grants have included the Tahoe Food Hub, Choices Transitional Services, Sierra Watershed Education Partnership and Arts for the Schools. Since its inauguration, the Giving Fund has awarded $139,090 in grants, $62,250 in traditional scholarships, and $200,000 in IMPACT scholarships.