Helping Out highlights some of the many charitable events and activities going on in the Charleston area. Submissions should be sent to dailyjournal@scbiznews.com.

The Sustainability Institute will host a party to premiere a short film about the impact the organization has had on individuals, businesses, organizations and municipalities across the Lowcountry in the past 10 years to educate consumers on being energy-efficient.

A Night for our Future will be held from 7-10:30 p.m. Nov. 10 at the Hippodrome Widescreen Cinema. The event includes live music from Joel Hamilton and the Shrimp Family Collective, as well as food and cocktails.

According to a news release announcing the event, the institute has trained more than 6,000 local residents and documented more than $1.8 million in energy savings as a result of their programs since 2003.

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October is “Adopt a Shelter Dog” month, and the Kiawah Island Community Association is holding Dogtoberfest on Saturday on the Village Green at Freshfields Village.

The event, from 2:30-6 p.m., features pet service vendors, live music and drinks. Karen’s K9s, Pet Helpers, Carolina Coonhounds Rescue, Grateful Goldens Rescue, Great Dane Rescue, Waters Edge Animal Rescue and Shih Tzus & Furbabies Rescue will have adoptable dogs and will pre-screen potential owners.

Presentations will be made by Tanya Dowdy of Angel Oak Animal Hospital.

Vendors at the event will include Star Therapy, The Charleston Dog Show, Middleton Place Hounds, Pawsitive Style, Lowcountry Dog, Gentle Grooming by Jacqi, Laura Olsen Imagery, Melissa Gray Design, Patti Lawson (author of The Dog Diet), Charleston Veterinary Referral Center, Complete Animal, The Beached Dog, Purely Pawsitive Pet Training, Veterinary Specialty Care and Paws ’n ’ Bows.

A costume contest will take place, with winners receiving a gift certificate to The Brick House Kitchen in categories such as Crowd Favorite and Most Creative Costume. Dogs must be on a leash to enter.

Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the gate. For information, call Freshfields Village at 843-768-6491.

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Possibilities without Borders, a local nonprofit organization supporting international causes, and students at the College of Charleston School of Business are holding the fourth annual A Global Affair gala and silent auction to celebrate Water Missions International’s 10th anniversary and raise money for the Water for Kenya project, which will help bring clean drinking water to a village in Kenya.

The black-tie event will be held Nov. 10 at Lowndes Grove Plantation in Charleston.

This year, the event is largely being planned and executed by College of Charleston students in Andrea Canberg’s event management course.

Funds raised at A Global Affair will allow Possibilities Without Borders to give a Kenyan community a water treatment system and will support a group of students from the College of Charleston traveling to Kenya next spring to install the water system.

Tickets are $75 in advance, $85 at the door.

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The Charitable Society of Charleston and the S.C. Lowcountry Environmental Education Programs will hold an oyster roast from 3-6 p.m. Nov. 6 at Bowen’s Island Restaurant.

Tickets are $25 in advance, $30 at the door, and include oysters, hot dogs, chili and more, plus beer, wine and Firefly cocktails.

Funds raised will go the education programs of S.C. LEEP.

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The second annual Avondale 5K Run & Walk for Special Kids, hosted by the Avondale Business Association and Triangle Char and Bar, takes place Saturday.

The race, which begins at 8:30 a.m., starts on Magnolia Road in front of Triangle Char & Bar and winds through the Avondale neighborhood. Triangle Char & Bar is hosting the after-race party with live music and all-inclusive food and drinks.

The Avondale 5K is a “green” event. Top finishers in each category will win a recycled glass trophy from Chris Fisher of Fisher Recycling, attendees are asked to recycle and reuse items, to bring refillable water bottles, and to bike, carpool, walk, run or take the bus to the event.

Proceeds benefit The Charles Webb Center, a nonprofit day care center for children ages six weeks to 10 years old who have developmental disabilities and special needs.

$30 race registration includes a T-shirt, the race and entry to the after-race party. Admission to just the after-party is $20.

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Slow Food Charleston is showing the film Truck Farm! at 5:45 p.m. Oct. 27 at the MUSC Institute of Psychiatry auditorium on President Street.

The 50-minute film is part of the Slow Food Film Series sponsored by Whole Foods Market in Mount Pleasant. The series works to educate about food and social justice issues.

Truck Farm! is a true story about urban farms in New York City, including a self-sustaining Staten Island barge and a 6,000-square-foot market garden atop a Brooklyn roof.

Admission is free.

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Mount Pleasant painter Chevis Clark will be the featured artist at Moments on Canvas, a tribute to the creative spirit that continues in spite of Alzheimer’s disease.

The Nov. 10 event will include Clark’s paintings in a retrospective assembled by his wife, Carol McDaniel. Some works will be for sale to benefit Respite Care Charleston.

There also will be an art show and sale of works created by others who benefit from Respite Care.

The event will take place from 6-9 p.m. Nov. 10 in the Cooper River Room at Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park.

Tickets are $30 and include food, beverages and live music.

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Pet Helpers’ Fur Ball, Disco In“fur”no, will take place from 6:30-11 p.m. Oct. 29 at the Charleston Marriott Hotel on Lockwood Boulevard.

The dog-friendly event includes dinner, an open bar, live and silent auction and dancing. Dog handlers and a disco dog park will be available all evening.

The dress code is Studio 54, Saturday Night Fever, and sequins.

Tickets are $150 per person and $75 per dog. Get tickets online.

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The Charleston chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier International, a philanthropic society of professional women leaders in the food, fine beverage and hospitality industries, will hold their annual fundraiser next week.

An Autumn Affair: A Celebration of Wine and Artisan Food will take place from 6-9 p.m. Oct. 27 at Lowndes Grove Plantation.

Tickets are $45 and are available online, at The Wine Shop on Lockwood Drive or at Charleston Cooks on East Bay Street. The event includes a wine tasting, with more than 100 wines to choose from, local artisan foods, live music and a silent auction to benefit Les Dames scholarships.

Additionally, locally produced items for sale include food items and books by authors including Nathalie Dupree, Marion Sullivan, Holly Herrick, Danielle Wecksler, Sarah O’Kelly, Susan Slack, Nancie McDermott, Cathy Forrester and others.

Featured chefs include Nathan Thurston of The Sanctuary at Kiawah and Chris Stallard of Chai’s; local vendors include Charleston Cheese House, Olinda Olives, Jestine’s Sweet Shop; and local farmers and growers include Kennerty Farms, Celeste Albers Eggs.

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The Carolina Studios celebrity Pro Am Jam, featuring Mark Bryan and Friends, takes place Tuesday at the Daniel Island Club.

Guest musicians will include Branford Marsalis, Pat Green, Colt Ford and Johnny Lee.

The event benefits Charleston-based Carolina Studios, a nonprofit youth music and media arts program led by Mark Bryan of Hootie & the Blowfish.

Gates open at 6 p.m., the show starts at 7. Tickets are $25 and are available online.

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The Nationwide Tour Championship at Daniel Island begins Monday. The tournament is the Nationwide Tour’s season-ending event, with the top 60 money winners competing for 25 PGA TOUR cards.

The tournament takes place Oct. 27-30 at the Daniel Island Club’s Ralston Creek course.

A weekly pass is $30, or daily tickets can be purchased for $10. Tickets are available online.

In addition, military personnel and their families will be given free admission at the ticket office to every session of golf Oct. 27-30 as a result of a partnership between the Daniel Island Club and Navistar Defense.

Tournament proceeds benefit the Student Transportation of America Education Foundation, which has raised nearly $200,000 and awarded 100 scholarships to students for academic achievement, community service and leadership.

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The Roper St. Francis Ryan White Program is holding its third annual AIDS Walk to raise awareness about HIV and AIDS at 9 a.m. Nov. 5 at Hampton Park. The walk is two miles, or two laps around the park’s central pond.

The Ryan White Program coordinates comprehensive medical care for people living with HIV and AIDS. All money raised through the walk will go to the program’s Medication Endowment Fund, which has been established to provide emergency medication and care to its patients.

According to Roper St. Francis Hospital, the Charleston-North Charleston metropolitan area ranked 20th in the nation in the number of AIDS cases last year, joining larger cities such as Baltimore, New Orleans and Orlando, Fla.

Registration is $20. Walkers may register online or in person at the Ryan White Program, Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital, 2095 Henry Tecklenburg Drive, Suite 201W. Registration will also be available starting at 8 a.m. the day of the event.

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Charleston County Adopt-A-Highway will hold its next litter cleanup Nov. 5. In case of bad weather, the cleanup will be held Nov. 12.

Throughout the county, volunteers will be picking up trash on the roadsides. Volunteers can pick up supplies from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Nov. 2 at the S.C. Department of Transportation’s facility at 2401 Maintenance Way in North Charleston.

Last year, 2,336 volunteers removed 53,726 pounds of litter from primary and secondary roads.

In Charleston County, the Adopt-A-Highway program is coordinated by Community Pride Inc., an organization sponsored by the Clemson Cooperative Extension service.

For more information, contact Angela Crouch at 843-722-5940, ext. 112, or by e-mail.

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The Bee Street Lofts and Carolina One broker associate Josephine Traina are sponsoring a Halloween party Oct. 30 to raise money for research at the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center.

The event starts at 7:30 p.m. and admission at the door is $15. The Bee Street Lofts are at 150 Bee St. For reservations and details contact Traina via email or at 843-793-4023.

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Getting Ahead by Giving Back, a fundraiser for East Cooper Community Outreach, will be held from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday at Juanita Greenberg’s on Coleman Boulevard in Mount Pleasant.

The event is being organized by Shari Chavez Ergle, who recently completed ECCO’s Getting Ahead workshop, which is aimed at providing participants the tools to combat poverty and increase financial independence.

Chavez, an independent sales representative for Silpada Designs jewelry, will be taking online orders and selling gift certificates and jewelry during the event and will donate 100% of the profits to East Cooper Community Outreach.

For more information, contact Chavez at 843-408-1997 or via email.

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The 10th annual Rein and Shine Barn Raiser will be held Oct. 29 at the Rein and Shine barn in Awendaw. The event, a 10th anniversary celebration for the organization, will include food and drinks, live music, silent and live auctions, beer, wine and champagne, plus pony rides, face painting, pumpkin carving and costume contests.

Tickets are $30 per person in advance, $40 after Tuesday; $50 per couple in advance, $60 after Tuesday; and $10 for children ages 5-15 in advance, $15 after Tuesday.

Get more information or purchase tickets online or at 843-849-0964.

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The third annual Red Party to benefit the American College of the Building Arts will take place from 7-11 p.m. Oct. 27 at the Old City Jail in downtown Charleston.

Each year, the college hosts the fundraiser to support its efforts to encourage preservation, enrichment and understanding of the world’s architectural heritage.

This year’s party, a 1920s vintage circus theme designed by Charleston-based interior designer Cortney Bishop, will include craft cocktails, gourmet fare and “The Greatest Auction in the World,” which features luxury trips and handcrafted works of art.

Guests are encouraged to dress in the spirit of 1920s glamour.

Tickets are $65 in advance or $80 at the door. Special Big Top tickets are available for $150 per person and will include access to a private lounge and full bar with drinks and hors d’oeuvres. Purchase event tickets online. Get more information via email.

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Cupcake is issuing the Cupcake Challenge next week at Wings for Kids programs at Chicora, North Charleston, Memminger and James Simons elementary schools.

From Monday through Nov. 4, each student in the program will demonstrate what they have learned from the Wings Creed, and staff members will give sweet stamps to the individuals or small groups.

At the end of two weeks, the group from each school with the most sweet stamps will be awarded the grand prize, a birthday party at Cupcake’s Belle Hall Shopping Center location.

Each winning small group will be taken to Mount Pleasant on a different day during the week of Nov. 14 to celebrate. The other students participating in the Cupcake Challenge will be visited by the Cupcake Mobile.

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Front row: Trident Literacy Association development director Judianne Schmenk, and Santee Cooper controller and Trident Literacy Association board member Glenda Gillette. Back row: Trident Literacy Association board member Merv Gibson, board chairman Kevin Smith, and board member Maggie Bullwinkel.

Trident Literacy Association has received eight laptop computers from Santee Cooper as part of the company’s computer recycling program. Santee Cooper controller and Trident Literacy Association board member Glenda Gillette presented the computers at a recent board meeting.

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Goodwill Industries of Lower South Carolina will host an iQor information and recruitment session from 11 a.m. to noon Friday at its community service center in North Charleston.

The information session will inform candidates about career opportunities currently available at iQor. It will also answer questions about the company and what candidates can expect from working at an iQor call center.

The Goodwill community service center is at 2150 Eagle Drive in North Charleston.

IQor is a global technology and service company that provides business process outsourcing to companies worldwide, with 31 locations in seven countries and four continents.

To register, call 843-566-0072.

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After-school programs across Charleston County will participate in the 12th annual Lights on Afterschool nationwide rally on Thursday. More than 1 million people will gather at some 7,500 sites across the country and U.S. military bases worldwide to rally for after-school programs that help working families, keep kids safe and inspire them to learn.

Wando Community Education after-school sites will rally at the Mount Pleasant Farmer’s Market at Moultrie Middle School. The event takes place from 6-7:30 p.m.