Dine out, do good

All through September, 30 area businesses, about half of them restaurants, will donate a portion of their proceeds for one day to Cookies for Kids' Cancer, a national nonprofit that raises money for pediatric cancer research. The effort was designed to honor Charlotte kindergartener Grier Christenbury, a 6-year-old who has battled neuroblastoma since he was 2 1/2 and is in treatment again, and children in similar circustances. September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness month. Each day's business also presents an opportunity to celebrate a simple pleasure, say organizers: "a family dinner, eating ice cream on a hot summer night or getting your nails done with your mom." Check out the calendar here; find out more about Cookies here.