Columbia Citizens

Live locally.

Consult your community calendar.

• farmers market (Wed),
• Powerful Writers (Wed),
• library activities (Thu, Fri, Wed),
• BeatWalk (Fri),
• Rainier Valley Historical Society annual meeting (Sat),
• Social Justice Fund annual meeting (Sat),
• a Sunday brunch …on Saturday,
• a Hitt's Hill work party (Sat),
• a running group (Sat, Tue),
• Columbia City Community Council (Mon),
• CCBA's monthly meeting (Tue),
• HCBA meeting (Wed),
• and Citizens post more events all the time!

In the calendar, you can click through to each event's online information. If a local event is missing, please send a Citizen's alert.

Only $5 for all venues, and kids 14 and under are free.

BeatWalk happens at neighborhood businesses along and near Rainier Ave S between S Edmunds and S Ferdinand. Look for the wood musicians at participating venues.

We have a great line-up to kick off the season:

• Eduardo Mendonça Trio at Awash Ethiopian Restaurant, high-energy dance grooves and soaring vocals direct from Brazil
• Tor Dietrichson Blues Machine at Columbia City Fitness for your dancing pleasure
• Kane Mathis & Sahel at Columbia City Gallery, a genre-bending journey with African kora and a powerful infusion of world beat
• Miles & Karina at our newest venue, Retroactive Kids, delightful effervescence with a dreamland of melody and harmony
• Garfield High Jazz Band at the Bookworm, bulldogs, blues & beebop

Consider having dinner at Kallaloo, where there will be live music — no cover.

Hope to see you there!

The Forbidden Kingdom continues through Thursday.

Starting Friday, May 2, is Leatherheads, a thoroughly enjoyable homage to screwball comedy starring George Clooney as the incarnation of Cary Grant and Rene Zellweger as the His Girl Friday figure.

Be sure to check our website for the most up-to-date movie information! Or, better yet, sign up for our weekly newsletter and get movie times delivered straight to your inbox. See you at the movies.

Eat well, support local farms, and have fun every Wednesday, 3-7pm, through October 22, with all kinds of seasonal fruits and vegetables, organic meats, eggs, cheeses, seafood, artisan breads and baked goods, flowers, honey, ciders and more. The market is located at Rainier Ave S and S Edmunds.

• First Thursday Family Night is this week — Thursday, May 1, from 6:30-7:30 for kids from birth to age 12 and their grownups. Join us for stories, rhymes, art projects, dollhouse and lots of fun!
• Storytime will be at 10:30am, on Friday, May 2, and Play & Learn will be right after it at 11:30.
• SNAP! The Columbia Library is hosting the City of Seattle's SNAP Program: Seattle Neighborhoods Actively Prepare. It's the newest preparedness program for disasters being offered by the City. Thursday, May 8th 6:30-8 pm.

Wed — Jet City Burlesque presents Spring Cleaning (benefit for animals), 8pm $15 adv/$20 door
Wed — live music by Mishka's World in Lounge, 8pm, no cover
Thu — Double Barreled Burlesque presents All Star Burlesque Review (with The Heavenly Spies) 8pm, 21+ only, $15 adv/$20 door
Thu — Open Mic Night every Thursday with prizes!, 7pm signup, no cover
Fri — The Comedy Shop with Mark Howard & J Reid, 10:30pm, $10 adv/door
Fri — Infinity's Neo-Soul Lounge, 8:30pm, no cover
Sat — live music with John Bishop Group in Lounge, 9pm, no cover
Tue — live music by Kurt Crandall in Lounge, 8pm, no cover

Wed, May 7 — Big Night Out, Seattle Channel’s Live Variety Show & Taping, 7:30pm $10 adv/door

Beginning Tue, May 27, we're proud to announce the return of Columbia City Drinking Liberally every last Tuesday of the month at 6:30pm, no cover

adv = brownpapertickets.com

Columbia City Community Council meeting

at the public library, 6pm on Monday, May 5

It was so great to see so many folks at the neighborhood breakfast! To make more events like that happen and also to address the myriad of community issues that you and your neighbors have identified as important, please come to the next Columbia City Community Council Meeting this coming Monday, May 5th at 6 pm in the library's downstairs meeting room.

Hitt's Hill Park work parties

We hold work parties every second Saturday from 10am to 1pm. We serve refreshments donated by local businesses. The entrance to the park is located on S. Brandon St., just off 39th. Tools and gloves are provided. Please join us.

Powerful Writers Open Mic

Last Wed of every month through May, at Columbia City Starbucks

Sign-up begins at 6; readings from 6:30 - 8:00.

Join Powerful Writers, a program of the nonprofit Powerful Schools for its monthly student reading open mic. Starbucks provides the free hot chocolate to students from five Rainier Valley public elementary schools who read their stories, poems and more. A delightful family experience for all.

To learn more about Powerful Writers, a professional development writing instruction program for public elementary school teachers and students, and one of four literacy and arts programs of Powerful Schools, please visit our website or call 722-5543

March For Youth Against Violence

We are weary of hearing about young people being killed in SE Seattle neighborhoods. We are forging relationships and building a March For Youth; coming together to stand and march in remembrance and asking for a future. Remembering those we've lost and asking for the attention our youth need. Join us now! Show your concern for the youth of our neighborhoods.

Since the beginning of 2008, at least eight young African American men, really teenagers, have died due to violence in Rainier Valley. These are our children! Come out to plan and to march.

read more...

Columbia Citizens' posts

• Interested in biking? Morgan's ready to help out.
• more Caribbean fare?
• What about sushi?
• pizza?
• Thai?
• a townhome for sale
• a home burglary
• They may not be the sharpest tools in the shed, but there's hope.
• Safety Committee Powers… Activate