The Somerville Museum presents: Voices from Somerville’s Haitian Community. A local dancer whose work received a Governor’s citation. A son who runs a Somerville restaurant started by his mother. A pastor who co-leads a local congregation that purchased its church in 2008. Come hear members of the local Haitian community talk about their work in Somerville’s neighborhoods and listen to a historian from Somerville discuss connections between Haitian and U.S. history on Wednesday, October 14, 6:30 p.m. This event is part of a Somerville Museum Zoom Series called Voices from Somerville: Culture, Community and History. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84212593903?pwd=cEYzTXZTdEJCR1o5b1VQamhPUUlmQT09.

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ResiStat will host a series of virtual events in the coming weeks, giving residents the opportunity to engage with Somerville elected officials and staff on key topics. The fall ResiStat series kicked off with an arts community town hall on September 15 and will continue with five more installments beginning on Thursday, October 15, covering the City’s COVID-19 response, housing issues during this pandemic, mental health and wellness, racial and social justice, and senior issues. All meetings will start at 6:00 p.m. and are scheduled to run at least an hour. Residents can log in to the meetings through somervillema.gov/virtualtownhall. Live simultaneous Spanish interpretation and English captioning will be available. Portuguese, Haitian Kreyol and Nepali interpretation can be requested by emailing sbernt@somervillema.gov.

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Happy birthday greetings this week to several locals: Happy birthday to former Alderman Maryann Heuston, who is celebrating this week. We’re wishing her a very happy birthday. Happy birthday to Valerie Spinale, who grew up in East Somerville. We hope she has a great day. Happy birthday to Steve Hardy, a great guy who works very hard here in the city. Happy birthday to Naomi Harrison, daughter of Kaitlin Norton and the great granddaughter of the late Don and Pat Norton. We wish all of our Facebook friends, such as Ron Sensale, Mary Del Roccio, Courtney Nelson, Laurie Tierno Johnson, Byrne Lock, Darell Shanafelt and Michael Barry a very happy birthday. We hope everyone has a great day. To all the others we may have missed, we sincerely wish them the very best of birthdays.

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Early Voting for the 2020 State (Presidential) Election will begin October 17, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Somerville City Hall. Please be advised that early voting will be available exclusively at Somerville City Hall. Visit https://www.somervillema.gov/events/2020/10/17/early-voting-2020-state-presidential-election for a complete list of dates and times. If you are not registered to vote, or if you need to update your address or party affiliation, you have until Saturday, October 24 to do so. Visit the city’s Register to Vote page https://www.somervillema.gov/departments/elections/register-to-vote to learn more about your options for registering.

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Drive-up Flu Clinic for all residents will be held October 17. Pre-registration at somervillema.gov/flu is required for all city flu clinics. If you need assistance to sign up, call the Health & Human Services Department at 617-625-6600 x4300. For all clinics, up to four people per household can be registered for an appointment and face coverings must be worn. Those who have health coverage should bring their insurance cards (including MassHealth and Medicare) with them, but the vaccines are free to all Somerville residents regardless of whether they have insurance. Saturday, October 17, Somerville Department of Public Works site at 1 Franey Rd. from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

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The Jungle in Union Square will be closed for winter after their last concert on October 17 and operating the outdoor patio one more time for a day of activism for democracy on October 18. They will reopen in 2021 as soon as it is safe enough inside or warm enough outside. Concert schedule: 10/14 – Shotdy at 6:00 p.m.; 10/15 – Erin Powers at 8:00 p.m.; 10/16 – The Fools Agenda at 8:00 p.m.; 10/17 – Sierra & Andrew of Unnamed Colors at 7:00 p.m.; 10/18 – NC phone bank from The Jungle patio at 1:00 p.m. RSVP now. They are open 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday for dinner and full bar on the outdoor patio. No reservation required but they suggest calling to check if they are busy if you plan to arrive around the time of a show. Their neighbors are also small businesses with great food and patios, so you can livestream each show to a seat on a nearby patio if we are full. You can order takeout and delivery from the link on their website.

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As the weather gets colder, tents and outdoor heaters may be cropping up on Somerville streets as local restaurants dig in to continue outdoor dining during the cooler weather. The recent expansion of outdoor dining in Somerville in response to the pandemic had been scheduled to end November 1, but it will now be allowed to continue through December 31, 2021, weather and safety permitting.

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#WearAMask to protect your friends and family. Wear one for the people in your community you don’t know you’re connected to: the friend of a friend, the elderly neighbor, the person with an underlying condition who shops at your grocery store.

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Reminder: city buildings are still closed to the public. Although city buildings remain closed to the public, a number of city services are still available online or by calling 311. Check the “City Service Status” tab on the city’s COVID-19 page for more information.

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Don’t forget, if you would like to subscribe to receive a digital edition of our paper, go directly online to our website over to the right side and fill out your email address to receive a free, full PDF copy of the paper.

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Support your neighbors through the Somerville Cares Fund (or apply for assistance): Now that the additional $600 per week federal unemployment benefit has ended, more people in our community are facing financial hardship and making tough choices when it comes to paying for essentials. If you’re fortunate enough to be able to, please consider making a donation to the Somerville Cares Fund. If you are in need of assistance, you can apply to the fund via the same link. This donation-based fund gives direct assistance to Somerville residents, workers, and families to help cover basic needs like groceries, diapers, personal hygiene products, medical copays, and prescriptions. The community has been immensely generous, donating more than $650,000 so far, but the fund has run dry. Even a small donation will help.

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CHA Somerville Hospital offers free COVID-19 testing at Assembly Row by appointment. To make an appointment, call 617-665-2928 (Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.). The mobile testing unit also offers testing in our neighborhoods to make access easier for residents. Mobile testing schedules and more information on both can be found under the “Symptoms, Testing, & Medical Info” tab on somervillema.gov/covid19.