By William S. Bike
FREE DAYS
Free admission is available at the:
Adler Planetarium, 1300 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr., every Wednesday after 4 p.m.
DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, 740 E. 56th Pl., every Wednesday.
Field Museum, 1400 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr., every Wednesday.
Shedd Aquarium, 1200 S. DuSable Lake Shore Dr., Tuesday evenings through June 25.
STORY TIME
The Canaryville Library, 642 W. 43rd St., hosts story time for youngsters age five and younger and their caregivers on Thursdays from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Call (312) 747-0644.
CANARYVILLE LITTLE LEAGUE
The Canaryville Little League seeks coaches and volunteers. Registration to play is open for boys and girls ages three through 13 for baseball, softball, tee ball, and peewees. To get involved, log on to https://www.facebook.com/TheLittleLeague or https://www.cvillell.com. For any questions, email [email protected].
ITALIAN LANGUAGE LESSONS
Casa Italia, 3800 Division St., Stone Park, IL, is offering Italian language classes. Call (708) 345-5933.
POLLWORKERS NEEDED
The Chicago Board of Elections needs election judges and election coordinators for the Tuesday, March 19, election. Log on to pollworker.chicagoelections.gov.
KEEP FIT
Chicago Women’s Park and Gardens is hosting Hulatics fitness classes Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. through March 24. Log on to www.hulatics.com. Jazzercise classes are Mondays and Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. Log on to https://www.jazzercise.com/location/chicago-women-s-park-garden.The park is at 1801 S. Indiana Ave.
POLAR PLUNGE
The Chicago Polar Plunge, in which participants take a winter swim in Lake Michigan, is scheduled for Sunday, March 3, and registration is open. Log on to chicagopolarplunge.org.
AI COURSES
City Colleges of Chicago is offering two generative artificial intelligence (AI) classes, Prompt Engineering for Everyone–Non-Coding Accelerated and Machine Learning for Leaders-Generative AI. Classes meet the first two Saturdays of each month through May. The cost for each is $80. For more information, log on to www.ccc.edu.
HEATING REPAIR PROGRAM
The City of Chicago Emergency Heating Repair Program provides grants to assist owner-occupants of properties with emergency heating system repair or replacement. Call (312) 744-3653 to request an application.
VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT
The Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community seeks volunteers for phone banking, canvassing, and translating through Tuesday, March 19, to help local residents with voter registration and voting. Call (312) 358-7951 or email [email protected]. CBCAC is located at 311 W. 23rd St.
COLUMBIA NEWS
The Columbia College Chicago Dance Centerat 1306 S. Michigan Ave.on Thursday, March 7, through Saturday, March 9, will hostthe Chicago premiere of LaTasha Barnes’s Jazz Continuum. The work features an 18-person collective of dance artists, a DJ/turntablist, and live musicians performing jazz, lindy hop, hip-hop, house, and other social dances. Shows run from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $40 to the general public and free to Columbia students. Get tickets at http://tinyurl.com/JazzContinuum.
Columbia has received National Endowment for the Arts grants totaling $110,000. The grants will go to Columbia’s Museum of Contemporary Photography and its Dance Center. For more information, go to www.colum.edu.
MANUFACTURING REINVENTED
Cook County has expanded Manufacturing Reinvented, a $5 million grant program supporting manufacturers in improving their competitiveness and resiliency, into the City of Chicago. Previously, grants were available only for suburban businesses. Learn more or apply by visiting www.ccmfg.org.
DE LA SALLE NEWS
The De La Salle Institute Class of 2028 will register on Saturday, March 2. National Honor Society students will be inducted from 6 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26. De La Salle is at 3434 S. Michigan Ave. Call (312) 842-7355 or log on to dls.org.
ARTS CLASSES
Donovan Park, 3620 S. Lituanica Ave., hosts arts classes for both youngsters and adults. Call (312) 747-6111.
MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
The Encompassing Center provides services including counseling, psychiatric and substance abuse services, anger management, and parent coaching. Call (773) 638-5703 or (312) 723-8679 or log on to encompassingcenter.org. The center is located at 3019 W. Harrison St.
FREE NURSE VISITS
Family Connects Chicago provides a free in-home nurse visit to mothers who deliver their babies at Mount Sinai Hospital, Rush University Medical Center, St. Anthony Hospital, or the University of Chicago Hospital. Log on to www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/onechifam/home/family-wellness/family-connects.html.
BOOK DISCUSSION
The Fine Arts Buildingand Exile in Bookville will co-present an evening with author Percival Everett at the Studebaker Theater, 410 S. Michigan Ave., Thursday, March 28, at 7 p.m. Everett will talk about his new novel James,an action-packed reimagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn told from the enslaved Jim’s point of view. Tickets are $10. For more information and to purchase event tickets, visit fineartsbuilding.com/events/percival-everett.
GIRLS OPPORTUNITY ALLIANCE
Former First Lady and founder of the Obama Foundation’s Girls Opportunity Alliance, Michelle Obama, announced a new commitment to empower and uplift girls in Chicago. The Girls Opportunity Alliance will distribute $500,000 among 14 Chicago-based girl-serving organizations, with plans to distribute additional funding later this year. The Alliance also will provide organizational support to more than 60 girl-serving organizations across Chicago through the Girls Opportunity Alliance Network. Groups receiving funding are Black Girls Dance, Black Girls Jump, GirlFoward, Girls Inc. of Chicago, Girls in the Game, Girls on the Run Chicago, Gyrls in the H.O.O.D Foundation, Ladies of Virtue, M.E.A.N. Girls Empowerment, Polished Pebbles, Praize Productions Inc., Restored Hope, SHE Chicago, and Sista Afya Community Care. To learn more, visit: gofundme.org/girls-opportunity-alliance/.
GLESSNER HOUSE NEWS
Glessner House, 1800 S. Prairie Ave., offers docent-led 75-minute tours on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and 1 and 2:30 p.m. Tours are $20 for adults and $17 for seniors and students. For more information, visit glessnerhouse.org.
THE PENELOPIAD
Goodman Theatre will present The Penelopiad, the story of Penelope, Odysseus’s wife, from Saturday, March 2, through Sunday, March 31. The theater is at 170 N. Dearborn. St. Call (312) 443-3800.
JOBS WITH TRAINING
Greencorps Chicago offers paid employment with training in green jobs. For more information log on to www.greencorpschicago.org or call (312) 746-9777.
ART TOURS
The Heritage Museum of Asian Art, 3500 S. Morgan St., offers third Friday tours at 6:30 p.m. This month’s tour will be Friday, Feb. 16. Log on to www.heritageasianart.org.
IMMUNIZATION RECORDS
Get your or your child’s lifetime immunization record from the Illinois Department of Public Health by logging on to https://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/prevention-wellness/immunization/icare.html and clicking on Immunization Record Request.
BUSINESS LEADER RECEIVES AWARD
Chinatown community leader and local business owner Shitan Zheng of the River Sun Group recently received a $25,000 award from Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago. The award was facilitated by his business banker at International Bank of Chicago. For more information, log on to www.inbk.com.
HELP FOR HEATING BILLS
Families may apply for the State of Illinois Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program to receive assistance with natural gas, propane, and electricity bills. LIHEAP provides one-time payments directly to energy service providers on behalf of recipients. All income-eligible households can apply for assistance through Thursday, Aug. 15, or until funds are exhausted. For more information or to apply to the program, visit HelpIllinoisFamilies.com.
AIDA AT LYRIC
For the first time in more than a decade, Giuseppi Verdi’s romantic and political drama Aida returns to Lyric Opera of Chicago, Saturday, March 9 to Sunday, April 7. Lyric Opera is at 20 N. Wacker Dr. For information, call (312) 827-5600.
ST. JOHN PASSION
Music of the Baroque will present the St. John Passion Monday, March 11, at 7:30 p.m. at the Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph St. Call (312) 551-1414.
HELLENIC HEADS
The National Hellenic Museum has extended the touring sculpture exhibition Hellenic Heads by George Petrides through Sunday, March 24. The museum is at 333 S. Halsted St. For information, visit nationalhellenicmuseum.org or call (312) 655-1234.
NEWBERRY CONSORT PERFOMANCES
The Newberry Consort will present I Sing a New Song: The Epic Journey of a Traveling Musician in the Middle Ages from Friday through Sunday, March 1 through 3, at three locations. The Friday, March 1, performance will be at Bond Chapel at the University of Chicago, 1025 E. 58th St., at 7:30 p.m., the Saturday, March 2, performance at Ganz Hall at Roosevelt University, 430 S. Michigan Ave., at 7:30 p.m., and the Sunday, March 3, performance at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 939 Hinman Ave., Evanston, IL, at 4 p.m. Tickets range from $45 to $65, or $10 for students with a valid student ID. The Newberry Consort also will offer a post-produced virtual version of the concert, available for streaming online from Wednesday, March 20, through Thursday, April 18. Tickets for the virtual concert are $25 per household, with a pay-what-you-want option as well. To purchase tickets, visit www.newberryconsort.org.
OUR LADY OF THE HOLY FAMILY NEWS
Our Lady of the Holy Family, 1334 W. Flournoy St., holds Sunday Masses at 9 a.m. in English and 11:30 a.m. in Spanish as well as a Saturday evening Anticipatory Mass at 5 p.m. in English.
Mass is held at 6 p.m. in the church on Mondays followed by the Holy Rosary at 6:30 p.m. and Confessions. Tuesday through Thursday Masses are at 8 a.m. in the chapel at 1335 W. Harrison St. On Friday, Mass is held in the church at 6 p.m., followed by Adoration and Confessions.
OLHF offers a Friday Food Pantry for area residents facing food shortages. Contact the parish office or just come to the pantry, located behind the church at 1334 W. Flournoy St., from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Fridays.
Episodes of The Chosen,a television show about the life of Jesus, will be shown at 6:30 p.m. in the rectory on the Wednesdays of March 6, 13, and 20 and April 3, 10, and 17.
Call (312) 243-7400, email [email protected], or log on to www.olhfchi.org.
SCHOLARSHIPS AWARDED
The Posse Foundation has awarded college leadership scholarships to Chicago Public Schools Back of the Yards College Prep High School students Wendy Geronimo, who will attend DePauw University, and Maria Martinez, who will attend the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
RUN AND WALK
A running and walking group meets every Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Precision Human Performance,1613 W. Monroe St. For more information, call Michelle Amore at (312) 550-9468 or email [email protected].
SAINT IGNATIUS NEWS
Saint Ignatius College Prep students have voted to give the school’s mascot a new name: Iggy, which won over Wolfgang (the old name), Lobo, and Wolfie. For more information, log on to www.ignatius.org or call (312) 421-5900. The school is located at 1076 W. Roosevelt Rd.
ST. JAMES ON WABASH NEWS
St. James Catholic Church celebrates Sunday Mass at 9:30 a.m. in English and 1 p.m. in Spanish in the church at 21 E. 29th St. The church celebrates daily Mass Monday through Friday at 7:30 a.m. in the Tolton Chapel at the rectory at 2942 S. Wabash Ave. All Masses available both in person and on Zoom. The parish offers Eucharistic adoration and reconciliation on the first Friday of every month at 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. and 6 to 7 p.m. in the rectory, and on Saturdays from 3 to 4:20 p.m. at 3347 S. Michigan Ave. The parish office, 2907 S. Wabash Ave., is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday.
A Taize prayer service will be held Wednesday, March 13, at 7 p.m. in the church.
Holy Week Masses, all in the church, are: Palm Sunday, March 24, at 9:30 a.m. in English and 1 p.m. in Spanish; Holy Thursday, March 28, 6:30 p.m. bilingual Mass with adoration afterward until 10 p.m. in the rectory; Good Friday, March 29, Stations of the Cross, 3 p.m., Viernes Santo in Spanish at 5 p.m., and the Passion of Our Lord at 6:30 p.m.; Easter Vigil, Saturday, March 30, 8 p.m.; Easter Sunday, March 31, services at 9:30 a.m. in English and 1 p.m. in Spanish, with an Easter egg hunt following the 9:30 a.m. Mass.
All Zoom links and more information can be found at www.stjameswabash.org. Email [email protected] or call (312) 896-1910 for more information.
CHILDHOOD LEARNING CENTER
St. Pius V School opened its new early childhood learning center in January at 1919 S. Ashland Ave. and named it for former teacher and principal Nancy Cullinan Nasko. The facility serves children ages three through five. For more information, call (312) 226-1590.
SHRINE NEWS
The Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii will have Stations of the Cross every Friday in Lent through Friday, March 22, at noon. The shrine is located at 1224 W. Lexington St. Call (312) 421-3757 or log on to ourladyofpompeii.org.
PAGLEES ART EXHIBIT
The South Asia Institute, 1925 S. Michigan Ave., is hosting an art exhibition of the work of the Paglees, a feminist collective of artists of South Asian origin, in The Paglees: Between Reason and Madness through Saturday, April 27. For information, log on to www.saichicago.org or call (312) 929-3911.
EASTER EGG HUNT
The Prairie District Neighborhood Alliance will present the South Loop Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 30, noon to 2 p.m. at Chicago Women’s Park, 1801 S. Indiana Ave. Tickets required. The event will include an animal petting zoo, face painters, and games. Log on to southloopeasteregghunt.com or call (312) 401-2688.
COCKTAIL PARTY
The South Loop/Greater Bridgeport Chamber of Commerce’s annual cocktail party will be Thursday, March 7, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Bridgeport Art Center, 1200 W. 35th St. See www.southloopchamberofcommerce.com.
FARMERS MARKET
The South Loop Indoor Farmers Market will be held Saturdays through March 30 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 150 W. Roosevelt Rd. Log on to www.SouthLoopFarmersMarket.com.
PEOPLE
Near West Sider Amarria Brown has made the Dean’s List at Georgia State University. Local resident David Luna-Pascua made the Dean’s List at the Citadel in Charleston, SC.
Rush University named Robert S.D. Higgins, MD, president and chief academic officer.
The Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community has named Sarah Tang assistant director of programs.
Send news of events held “around the neighborhood” by the 15th of the month before the month they are to occur to William S. Bike, Around the Neighborhood, Gazette Chicago, 1335 W. Harrison St., Chicago, IL 60607-3318, fax (312) 243-4270, or email [email protected].
SEND INFO FOR ATN
Local schools, churches, and institutions are welcome and encouraged to send information to Gazette Chicago for inclusion in the Around the Neighborhood section free of charge. News of upcoming events; student, faculty, staff, and parishioner accomplishments; and photos of events that have occurred are welcome. Please send information to [email protected] in the month preceding the event—for example, news promoting April events should be sent to Gazette Chicago in March. The next deadline is Wednesday, March 20, for the April 5 issue.