More Star Power coming to the East Side

One of the highlights of August will be the 12th annual Rhode Island International Film Festival, and to help spread the word organizers are reaching out for some East Side star power to help. Literally. On Thursday, June 19, RIIFF will be hosting a reception at the Ladd Observatory on Hope Street to introduce the community to new members of their advisory community, plus their cadre of ongoing supporters. This year, the festival has received over 3000 entrants they are boiling down to the ones they think we (and Oscar judges, since this is a screening event for them too) will like best. Contact them at www.film-festival.org to get the details how you can join the stars in what they promise will be an appropriately out-of-this world experience.

Fiddler on the Library

The Friends of the Rochambeau Branch of the Providence Public Library will be sponsoring a free family concert at the library on Thursday, June 19 from 7 to 8:30pm. Fishel Bresler’s Klezmer Hassidic Trio will ensure there won’t be a non-tapping toe in the audience for this addictively upbeat Eastern European music. For more info call 455-8198 or contact www.friendsofrochambeau.org. And on that note, let the fiddles begin!

Row, Row, Row Your Boat...

Is there anything more picture perfect here on the East Side than watching a scull gliding smoothly down the Seekonk in the early morning hours, or even late at night for that matter. If you’ve always been curious about what you had to do to dip your oar in the water... or maybe even learn what an oar is... contact the Narragansett Boat Club on June 6 during their open house. They’ll explain the how to, the here, the when and the how much of getting involved.

Clarity Amidst the Fog of War

One of the great, but lesser known, organizations on the East Side is the World Affairs Council. Every month, they bring in speakers who discuss the complex international issues of our day over a rather civilized dinner at the Hope Club. We are happy to report the food, the company, and the information are all first rate. June 5 marks the last meeting until the fall, although it actually is a road trip of sorts. The group will travel down to the Haffenreffer Museum in Bristol followed by a catered buffet dinner and then a presentation by Brown professors James Blight and Janet Lang who are the authors of the book The Fog of War: 11 Lessons from the life of Robert S. McNamara which was later turned into an Academy award-winning documentary. It should be a fascinating behind the scenes look at a period of our history that still impacts contemporary military decision-making. Call 228-8675 to reserve.

One of our Writers has Dun Good

Many of our regular readers probably know the name Nancy Kirsch. One of our favorite writers, she has written several cover stories for us along with pieces on everything from local educational opportunities to local characters. We’re happy to report that last month she won the prestigious Metcalfe Journalism Award for articles on diversity. True, she won it for another publication (The Jewish Voice/Herald to be specific) but we still take pride in the fact that she got her start with us. Nancy, congrats on a job well done!

Whatever Floats your Boat

One of the great things about living on the East Side is that you never know what to expect next. One recent morning, we stopped in for a cup of coffee at 729 on Hope Street. Parked in front of the store was a station wagon with a canoe on top. Out stepped an artist who started adding the finishing touches to the wildly colorful graphics that fully engulfed the craft stem to stern. Turns out the artist was Mike Bryce, whose paintings often adorn the walls of 729 (and, for you trivia fans out there, used to do a “Turtle Soup” cartoon for the Journal on weekends). He has been hired as part of a project for the Pawtucket Arts Council who has commissioned artists to paint up about a dozen canoes to place be strategically around the city.

Picnic with Your Friends

Looking for a nice way to kick off the summer? If you live on College Hill, you might want to drop in at Prospect Terrace on Congdon Street on Thursday, June 12 when the College Hill Neighborhood Association holds their annual meeting, cleverly disguised as a picnic. After a brief “business meeting,” there’ll be music, chitchat, food and games for the kids, in short a good time for everyone. The event is open to everyone and will run from 6pm to sunset. Come and join in the fun.