May 2001
Assistance With Basic Needs
Food not Bombs serves free food every Sat. at 3 p.m. in the empty lot between 5 Corners
bar and the old Dania Hall site on Cedar Ave. Call 651-649-4557 for details.
Sisters Camelot distributes free organic produce three days a week from an old school bus.
Call 612-722-1627.
The Home Gardening Project, 916 2nd Ave. S., provides free raised-bed organic vegetable
gardens for low-income Twin Cities families with children under six years of age. We build
and install green beds, provide plants, seeds and gardening help throughout the summer,
free of charge. Applications are simple and can be done over the phone. Space is limited.
Se habla espanol. Volunteers also needed. Spanish speakers a plus. June - Sept. Call Susan
Davies at 612-813-5522.
The application deadline for the 2001 Metro Paint-A-Thon is May 31. Those eligible to have
the exterior of their homes painted by volunteers organized by the Greater Minneapolis
Council of Churches are: 60 years of age or older or under 60 with a permanent disability.
Income guidelines are: no more than $1,392 per month (household size of one) and no more
than $1,874 per month (household size of two). FFI call 612-721-8687.
For lower prescription costs, seniors can fill prescriptions by email from licensed
international pharmacies. To compare prices, check www.medicines.md for international
price lists of many prescription drugs.
The Senior LinkAge Line is a free telephone information and assistance service which can
help connect with services including transportation, housing, adult day centers, home
health care, housework, volunteering, hospice care, caregiver support, food/meal delivery,
legal assistance, financial assistance, financial assistance, snow/lawn care, employment,
minor home repairs, health insurance sounseling and more. Call 1-800-333-2433.
Free legal advice for small businesses is available at Trujillo Tax Services, 2929 4th
Ave. S., Suite. 100.
Legal Advocacy for Elder Americans is a project of the Legal Aid Society. Legal assistance
is available for eligible seniors residing in Hennepin county who are 60 years old or
older. The southside office is at 2929 4th Ave. S. Call 612-827-3774.
Grease Pit Bike Shop is open three days a week to provide help with do-it-yourself bike
repairs, cheap parts and tools. Sun., 4 - 7 p.m., Mon., 5 - 8 p.m., and Tue., 7 -10 p.m.
in the basement of Bedlam Theatre, 504 Cedar Ave. S.
Community Events
Bilingual Story Time
The Bookstore of the Americas, 3020 27th Ave. S. (near Lake and Minnehaha), holds
bilingual story time for children and parents the first and third Saturdays of the month,
10:30 a.m. The story selected for the first Saturday will be for children ages 5 - 9. The
third Saturday will focus on stories for 2 - 6-year-olds.
The Central Neighborhood Improvement Association (CNIA) will hold its general election on
Tue., May 22, at Richard Green Central Gym, 4th ave. & 35th street, 6:30 - 8:00 p.m.
The Metro Transit is holding a light rail construction update meeting about issues
surrounding the Lake St. Station on Wed., May. 23, 6:15 - 7:30 p.m. at the Midtown YWCA at
2121 E. Lake St. Hiawatha light rail construction update meetings are held on the fourth
Wed. of each month to update the public on construction activities for Minnesota's first
light rail transit line. The goal is to ensure that the public is heard during
construction and that those most impacted are aware of construction activities and able to
take action to lessen the disruption they may experience. In addition to a formal program,
there will be take-away materials distributed and staff at display tables to answer the
public's questions one-on-one.
For weekly construction updates, call the Hiawatha Construction Hotline at 651-284-0502.
The hotline is updated every Fri. morning.
The 5th annual Stand for Children event will be held Sat., June 2, 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. at
Loring Park in Minneapolis. An interfaith children's celebration begins the day, followed
by food, live music, interactive displays and resources and information on children's
issues for the whole family.
The Stand for Children Minneapolis Chapter, started in May 1997, moves people to action by
organizing a powerful citizen voice for the health, safety and education of all children.
For more information contact Tom Fitzpatrick of the Minnesota Humanities Commission at
651-772-4255; FAX: 651-774-0205; email: mplsstand@hotmail.com.
Parents and Elders of Africa in Common Efforts (PEACE), 3015 Franklin Ave., a resource
center for African immigrants of all ethnicities, is planning the third annual African
PEACE Festival for Sat., June 9, at Matthews Park. FFI contact PEACE at 612-339-7418. Or
look at www.africapeace.org
Redeemer Missionary Baptist Church, 116 E. 32nd St., is presenting a roundtable meeting,
“Historic Preservation in Neighborhoods,” co-sponsored by the Minneapolis Center
for Neighborhoods and the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota, Tue., May 22. The free event
begins at 5:30 p.m. with a guided tour of the church, the newly and beautifully restored
prairie style building designed in the early 1900s by William Gray Purcell. The rest of
the evening, until 8:30 p.m., will be spent discussing the philosophy and logistics of the
preservation of historic buildings. FFI call 612-823-1081.
Environment
The environmental activism group of the Women's Cancer Resource Center, 4604 Chicago Ave.
S., will meet Wed., May 16, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. The topic is “Got Milk? Be Sure It's
rBGH-Free.”
To support environmentally responsible local farmers, reserve a share in a community
supported agriculture (CSA) farm now. (CSA is an arrangement where people buy shares in a
farming operation on an annual basis in return for a weekly supply of fresh, natural
produce throughout the growing season — approximately June to October.) For a free
booklet on CSA farms serving the Twin Cities area, call the Land Stewardship Project at
651-776-8895. Or checkout www.landstewardshipproject.org (click on Food & Farm
Connection).
Employment
For the City's Summer Youth Employment and Training program list of work sites and
information on application procedures, call 612-673-3936.
Support
If you think your temper, over-protective tendencies and need to control your partner's
choices are standing in the way of a healthier relationship, think about calling the Men's
Line, a free service that provides confidential, short-term counseling for men and boys.
The Men's Line was started over three years ago by the Men's Messages Action Team of the
Initiative for Violence-Free Families and Communities (St. Paul-Ramsey County Public
Health) as a way of speaking out against domestic violence. The men's Messages Action Team
is counting on early-stage abusers and those who witnessed domestic violence as children
to use the Men's Line to get the support they need to break the cycle of violence. Call
612-379-MENS.
Chrysalis' Self-Empowerment Series for Women, an education and support series including
such topics as: Self-Defense Training, Empowerment Through Creativity, Journal Making and
Writing and Financial Health will be held Mondays, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m., May 14 - June 18, at
Chrysalis, 4432 Chicago Ave. S. The cost is $15 for supplies. Pre-registration is
required. Call 612-871-0118.
Volunteer Opportunities
Minnesota AIDS Walk
On Sunday, May 20, walkers will gather in Minnehaha Park to walk ten kilometers along the
Mississippi River, raising money for the Minnesota AIDs Project (MAP) and eight other
Minnesota nonprofit AIDS organizations that provide care and prevention programs. There's
still a little time to raise pledges. Register with the Minnesota AIDS walk at
612-373-2411 or online at www.mnaidsproject.org.
Pillsbury House, 3501 Chicago Ave. S., has several opportunities for volunteers. A
supervised visitation facilitator is needed every other Wed., 6:30 - 8 p.m.
Childcare providers are needed for special events. Payment is in credits, exchangeable for
shampoo, detergent, diapers and more for each hour of service.
A computer instructor, preferably bi-lingual in Spanish and English, is needed to teach
several classes each month. Knowledge of Windows 2000, Word, Outlook and the Internet
required.
English as a Second Language (ESL) instructors are needed for basic English classes. ESL
certificate preferred, experience required. Stipend and credits offered. FFI call
612-824-0708, ext. 110.
Minnehaha United Methodist Church, 3701 E. 50th St., invites people to donate blood at the
Red Cross Blood Drive, Wed., May 30, 1 - 7 p.m.
Memorial Blood Centers of Minnesota, sends out a monthly bloodmobile to collect blood.
This month it will be at Butler Square, 1st Ave. between 5th and 6th St. (Van Pool Lanes),
between 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Tue., May 22. It will be at Hennepin County Medical
Center, Chicago Ave., facing south between 6th and 7th St., between 8:30 a.m. and 3;30
p.m., Thu., May 31. FFI call 612-871-3300.
Computer Classes
Pillsbury House, 3501 Chicago Ave. S., offers basic computer classes on the second Thu. of
the month, 6 - 9 p.m., and advanced classes on the third Sat. of the month, 9:30 a.m. -
12:30 p.m. Call 612-824-0708, ext. 110 for more information.
Justice
The Twin Cities Coalition to Defend Mumia Abu-Jamal meets every Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the
Arise! Bookstore, 2441 Lyndale Ave. S. Call 651-649-4579 for more information.
Mental Illness
Mind Literary and Art Journal of, by and for persons who have experienced mental illness
or emotional disturbances, is seeking poetry, short stories and line drawings. Payment is
one copy. Contact James Livingston, c/o Walker Methodist Church, Box 7588, Mpls., MN
55407.
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