Tonight, Ward 7 Alderman and President of the Board Katjana Ballantyne is having a “Spring Fundraiser” tonight, Wednesday, May 30, at Sabur Restaurant from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., located at 212 Holland St. Join neighbors and friends at the fundraiser. She’s a very nice lady, informed and smart. We hope to see a lot of her friends and supporters at the event to encourage her on to do a great job as usual.

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We hope everyone in Somerville enjoyed the Memorial Day weekend with their families and friends. We here at the The Somerville Times thank all those that sacrificed to keep us free to live in a wonderful country that allows us many freedoms that others don’t have. We also want to thank all our police, fire, and EMT personnel who do a wonderful job in Somerville for us all so that we can be safe. Thanks to the men and women who serve the community. It looks like summer has arrived without a spring. Enjoy the summer here in Somerville with all the activity going on throughout the coming months.

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Somerville Education Foundation Funds Summer Learning Programs (SEF) is seeking additional donations from the public. The Foundation has funded expanded enrollment in summer programs across the city. SEF worked with the city and Somerville Public Schools to identify quality programming that could be expanded via targeted grants. During summer months, all students are at risk for summer learning loss – especially low-income students who lack access to high-quality enrichment that reinforces their school year gains. Fundraising from community leaders and businesses resulted in commitments of over $12,000 thus far. This will give 60 Somerville children free access to a variety of camps and activities, including programs with Parts and Crafts, Parkour Generations, Somerville Media Center and Mystic Learning Center. SEF continues to raise funds to further expand access for this summer and support future programming. SEF invites individuals, organizations and businesses to join their efforts. This is the first part of a longer-term program to raise and distribute funds to support educational excellence across the city. All donations are tax exempt charitable contributions and should be sent to: Somerville Ed Foundation17 Kidder Avenue, Somerville MA 02144.

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We do not usually mention the local Boston sports teams, but we have to congratulate the Boston Celtics for bringing a great season with all the difficulties’ and injuries they suffered while still getting the team to this point in the finals. We think that these young players are going to be stars bigger stars then they are now. They were entertaining and lots of fun to watch. Next year, with some of the injuries healed, they will go even further.

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Can you believe it? June starts this week. How many think the time has flown by? Six months into 2018 and six months to go to 2019. Time flies, enjoy it.

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We are wondering how many people here like Comcast and their constant rising prices? We watched the bill go from S199 to $244. Anyone notice that on their bills? Go online to our website and let us know: www.thesomervilletimes.com.

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Our lady Patti Norton was rushed again to MGH last week and is home now, on the mend and hopefully she will not be needing the great services of all those that are at MGH anytime soon again. She thanks them for all the care and comfort. Also in the hospital was our publisher and great friend Ross Blouin. He is also home recovering, after spending some time over at Mt. Auburn. We wish him a speedy recovery as well.

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So far, the fireworks haven’t been cancelled. Let’s hope whoever is in charge of the event here in the city that it takes place this year, and on time. But how many want to bet that the July 4 city fireworks – which are not even done on July 4 – will be canceled? What will be the excuse? Maybe it’s too hot? You fill in the blanks! What is going on? Has it really become a “cupcake administration”?

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Happy birthday this week to several locals: Happy birthday to Mary Hart, the matriarch of the Hart family. Even today while she could be enjoying retirement she works full time over at Malden Clinic as a nurse. A great lady and we wish her the very best of birthdays. Happy birthday to a great guy we grew up with down in East Somerville, Russell (Rusty) Smithe Jr. He’s well known in the entire area, a nice guy and a great musician. We hope he has a great time this week with his many friends and family members. Happy birthday to another local guy, Dan Rogovich, who is celebrating this week. Dan has asked his many friends to remember the Wounded Warrior Project, which is his favorite nonprofit and does so much for our veterans who served our nation. Happy birthday to good friend who grew up here in the city, who still has ties here and plans on moving back, David Byron. He owns his own masonry company in Harwich right now. We wish him the very best of birthdays. Another good friend and a great realtor, Nelson Zide, is celebrating this week as well. He works out of ERA Key Realty Services in Framingham. A great guy with a great reputation. Happy birthday to Kaitlin Coutomas, who is celebrating this week. We hear she’s the Mayor of Lexington Avenue Park. Also, happy birthday to Mary Coutoumas of Connolly Insurance, a lifelong resident. We wish both Coutoumas’s a great day. To all the others we may have missed – and yes, we must admit there are a few more out there – we sincerely wish them the very best of birthdays.

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David Epstein, a horticulturalist and meteorologist for over 25 years, will talk about how to attract butterflies and hummingbirds to your garden, vegetable gardening in small spaces, and dealing with the effects of climate change in our gardens in his presentation to the Somerville Garden Club, In your Garden: Attracting Butterflies and Hummingbirds, Planting Vegetables in Small Spaces. and Dealing with Climate Change on June 13. Epstein writes for The Boston Globe, The Press Herald in Portland, Maine, and is the meteorologist for many news outlets including WBUR. He is the founder of Growing Wisdom, a business producing videos for the green industry. He also publishes a video blog of topics for home gardeners and plant lovers. He is an instructor at Colby College and Framingham State College, and the author of Gardens of New England. Somerville Garden Club meetings are held 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the Tufts Administration Building, (TAB), 167 Holland Street, second floor, wheelchair accessible. Parking is available. For additional information please visit www.somervillegardenclub.org.

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The Somerville City Club is looking to increase its membership. For the time being, membership is open to any resident here in the city. It’s a great organization that has been around a long time, with lots of activities that support local charitable groups. Contact the club on Innerbelt Road across from Holiday Inn for more details.