Local events and happenings around the community for the coming week.
TOUR THE “BEST SEAPORT IN NORTH AMERICA” Through October, the free Port of Long Beach harbor tours are taking place to give a behind-the-scenes look at the country’s second-busiest seaport. The reservation-only narrated tours take boatloads of residents through the Port for 90 minutes to see cargo operations close-up and to learn how the Port has become a leader in environmental stewardship. Reservations can be made by going to the “Community” section of www.polb.com. It’s recommended that residents seeking a berth on one of the 10 a.m. Saturday or 2 p.m. Tuesday cruises bookmark the Port’s Web site and check at the beginning of each month as additional reservations are opened up for August through October. Call the Port at (562) 590-4121.
WANA HELP CLEAN UP THE NEIGHBORHOOD?
The Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance (WANA) is encouraging the public to join them for the 6th District alley and street clean-up Saturday, May 10 from 9 a.m. to noon at 20th Street and Chestnut Avenue. Refreshments, tools and supplies will be provided, and high school students may earn community service hours. Contact Jill Hill at (562) 599-1822 to find out more.
Community Coffee With Rae Gabelich
Join Eighth District City Councilwoman Rae Gabelich for a morning of coffee and conversation Saturday, May 10 from 10 a.m. to noon at the North Neighborhood Library, located at 5571 Orange Avenue in Long Beach. The free event encourages the public to come and voice their concerns and suggestions on how to improve the neighborhood. For more information, call (562) 570-6685.
TWELVE INFLUENTIAL WOMEN
A book release and signing will take place for Breaking Through: Lighting the Way/Profiles of 12 African American Women Who Made A Difference in Long Beach History Saturday, May 10 from 11 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Historical Society of Long Beach, 4260 Atlantic Avenue. Books can be purchased from Carolyn Smith Watts by calling (562) 427-3702 or at the book signing. Costs are: book for $75; DVD interviews for $30; and boxed set for $100. For more information go to www.sunnynash.com
A WILD AND ENORMOUS MIRACLE
The next Bixby Knolls Literary Society meeting will discuss Ask the Dust by John Fante. Ask the Dust is a virtuoso performance by an influential master of the twentieth-century American novel. It is the story of Arturo Bandini, a young writer in 1930s Los Angeles who falls hard for the elusive, mocking, unstable Camilla Lopez, a Mexican waitress. Struggling to survive, he perseveres until, at last, his first novel is published. But the bright light of success is extinguished when Camilla has a nervous breakdown and disappears, and Bandini forever rejects the writer’s life he fought so hard to attain. The meeting will be Tuesday, May 13 at 6:30pm at the Dana Branch Public Library, 3680 Atlantic Ave. Call (562) 570-1042 for more info.
ANOTHER WAY TO GO GREEN
At the Westside Project Area Committee’s May meeting, Long Beach business owner John Morris will give a PowerPoint presentation outlining his thoughts on how the Port can take action toward cleaning up the air and water pollution troubling the Long Beach coastline. The meeting, which is open to the public, will be Wednesday, May 14 at 5 p.m. at the West Division Substation located at 1835 Santa Fe Avenue.
IT TAKES A COMMUNITY
The Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association is having a May happy hour on Thursday, May 15 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Karen Codman, FSC Securities Corp., 1165 E. San Antonio Drive. Special guest speaker will be Justin Rudd of the Community Action Team, who will be discussing how to create an active community. The event is open to the public, and there will be door prizes and refreshments. For more info, call (562) 595-0081.
