Visit the Somerville Museum on Wednesday, March 22, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. for a celebration of World Water Day and the closing of the Waterlines: Stories of Urban Ebb and Flow exhibition by Community Curator Arlinda Shtuni. This experience invites you to consider water in its many forms and evocations–rebirth and renewal, reflection and purification, longing and loss. Poets Dara Barrois/Dixon, Beth Ayer and Dan Chelotti will share a selection of their new and well-loved poems. The evening will conclude with a water meditation lead by one of the participating artists in the exhibit, Faith Johnson. For more information visit www.somervillemuseum.org/waterlines

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Have ideas for the city budget? This financial document dictates how public funds will be allocated to support public services, including day-to-day expenses and longer-term investments. Mayor Katjana Ballantyne will present her proposed fiscal year 2024 budget in late May. All Somerville residents are invited to learn about the budget, how it’s created, and to share thoughts on what should be prioritized at a virtual workshop on Tuesday, March 28, at 7:00 p.m. Learn more at: www.somervillema.gov/. Also, Community members ages 12 and older can now submit ideas for funding online, by phone (617-863-6622 or call 311), and in person at City Hall (93 Highland Ave.) and all library branch locations through Saturday, May 20. Ideas will be reviewed by Budget Delegate volunteers and presented for Somerville residents to vote on later this fall. For more information and to keep up with the Participatory Budgeting process, visit somervillema.gov/pb

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The March SDCC Meeting will be held on Monday, March 27, at 7:00 p.m. The March meeting will be held on Zoom. Hear updates about the legislative session, which started in January, and discuss advocacy opportunities for SDCC. RSVP here to receive the Zoom link: https://www.somdems.org/march_sdcc_meeting_2023

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Happy birthday this week to the following: Happy birthday to Rachael Hart-Adams. We wish her the very best of birthdays, celebrating with her great family. Happy birthday to MaryLynn McWatters O’Malley. We hope she has a great day. Happy birthday to great guy and lifelong resident, Ed Bean. We wish him the best. We wish all of our Facebook friends such as Dottie Poudrier a very special day, and another special person, Karen Michelle, we hope has a great birthday, along with Shirley Benoit McMenimen, Michael Cirrone, Byron Mitchell Wilks, Paul Carafotes, Roy Bertocchi, Linda Sirignano, Rhonda Annette, Beth Redmond, D.J. Dabenigno, Judy McCollem and Maureen D. Kelleya very happy birthday. To all those that are also celebrating this week, we wish them a happy birthday.

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Register your child for middle grades sports. Middle grades student athletes must attend Medical Clearance on March 29, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Middle graders have several opportunities to join high school teams. Eighth grade students may try out for Boys Volleyball, Boys Tennis or Boys Baseball. 7th and 8th grade students may try out for Girls Softball. Students start the try out process by contacting the sports team’s head coach and following the SHS Athletics Registration Process. More about Middle Grades Athletics: https://somerville.k12.ma.us/mgathletics SHS Coaches: https://somerville.k12.ma.us/teams.

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Proactive maintenance is essential for healthy tree growth. Now in its fourth year, the city’s Parks Tree Health Program is currently underway, providing health assessments to 232 trees throughout seven parks this spring. To do this work, temporary park closures are required. Check park, closures before planning an outing to city parks at: https://www.somervillema.gov/treehealth.

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Congratulations, SHS Highlanders Robotics Team! They won first place with their alliance at the Reading FIRST Robotics competition on Sunday, after a weekend of intense matches. It was a rollercoaster ride. Watch the next competition at Revere High School in person or online, March 25 and 26: https://twitch.tv/nefirst_red

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The Somerville Council of PTAs is organizing an awesome fundraising event for the Somerville High School Scholarship program. Come to the high school auditorium on March 31 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. to cheer on SPS teachers and staff as they compete against teams from other Somerville schools in a “survey says” style game show. Tickets are required and are limited. Buy them at bit.ly/PTA-Gameshow. On the website you’ll also find a silent auction and the link to the GLX and Somerville Public Schools t-shirt sales that are all part of the scholarship fundraiser.

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Consider donating to the Salvatore and Peter Albano Memorial Scholarship Fund. This is a new award given annually to a deserving Somerville High School student, established in cooperation with the Somerville High School Scholarship fund. Contributions can be made at the event or by mail: c/o Julie Abruzzio, 10 Buttonwood Lane, Peabody, MA 01960.

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The signup form for vendors at this year’s Carnaval is now open. For more details on the vendor application please apply at: https://forms.gle/1kVUujfvhGdwtxm1A.

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Kitty Connection, an all-volunteer non-profit dedicated to rescuing and finding safe, loving homes for local cats and dogs, will hold a Spring Online Auction from Friday, March 24 through Sunday, March 26. Auction proceeds will go toward the cost of pre-adoption medical procedures. Visit https://www.myminiauction.com/kittyconnection for more information.

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Call of Art for the Somerville Art Council’s Inside-OUT Gallery SOS Artists Members showcase exhibit. The submission deadline is March 30. To register, please submit via the Google Forms at https://forms.gle/WTnBDny1MnoauSESA. Somerville Open Studios, the Somerville Arts Council and the Inside-OUT Gallery once again welcome seasoned members and newcomers alike to submit pieces for the annual SOS members’ exhibit. While all works will be considered, we do encourage applicants to respond to this year’s theme. This is a closed call for current registered SOS artists. Please note that this is a juried exhibition and not all submitted work will be accepted. Applicants’ work must be available from April 18 to May 18.

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The Powder House Blvd. detour has begun at North St. to Alewife Brook Parkway. Vehicles travelling both eastbound and westbound on Powder House Blvd. between North St. and Alewife Brook Parkway will be detoured during construction hours (weekdays 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.). Westbound traffic will be directed south on North St., west on Broadway to return to Alewife Brook Parkway. Eastbound traffic will be directed south on Alewife Brook Parkway, east on Broadway, north on North St. to return to Powder House Blvd. Anticipated detour duration: 3 months (weather permitting). For more information and updates visit voice.somervillema.gov/intersection-redesign.

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Somerville PorchFest 2023 will take place on Saturday, May 13 (rain date May 14) from 12:00 to 6:00 p.m. Perhaps you’ve sat on your porch and overheard a neighbor strumming guitar on another porch? Porchfest takes this idea and multiplies it. This is not a festival per se but rather a community event where Somervillians share their love of playing and listening to music … from their porch, driveways, yards, etc. Registration is now open: https://somervilleartscouncil.org/porchfest.

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The Somerville Public Library in partnership with the St. Mark Community Education Program is offering a free, 10-week U.S. Citizenship Preparation class. The class will prepare students for the citizenship interview including the 100 civics questions, the reading and writing sections, and interview questions based on the N-400 application. The class will be held in-person at the Central Library (79 Highland Avenue) on 10 Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. from March 4 to May 6. Requirements: Basic level of English and 5 years as a U.S. permanent resident (green card holder) or 3 years, if married to a U.S. citizen. Visit https://www.somervillepubliclibrary.org/ell-citizenship to register.

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Free COVID-19 test kits also continue to be available by request at all Somerville Public Libraries, at City Hall, and at the City Hall Annex.

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The City of Somerville continues to host weekly walk-in vaccination clinics for residents through the end of March, with both flu vaccines and the bivalent Moderna COVID-19 booster available. Clinics will take place each Wednesday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the City Hall Annex, 50 Evergreen Ave., through March 29. Advance registration is recommended to save time but not required. Pre-register online at somervillema.gov/vaccineclinics or by calling 311 (617-666-3311). Flu vaccines and updated COVID-19 boosters are also available at many pharmacies and other locations. Find a provider at vaccines.gov.

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