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I met with poet Andrea Read after I heard about her work for the Somerville Cultural Capacity Plan (https://somervilleartscouncil.org/culturalcapacity) that will happen in late April. This project will involve conversations with artists and writers. Read will lead the discussion with writers, asking them pointed questions about their needs in the community.

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Our poet writes: Stephen Palencar was born and raised in Maryland, in a suburb of Baltimore. He experienced heavy trauma through his developmental years and uses writing as an outlet rather than an outlook. He calls his struggles a “beautiful burden.” He pulls on his background in philosophy, psychology, and transcendentalism as inspiration for his writing. He aspires to give more back to these fields than he has taken. It is a self-proclaimed improbable goal, but those make the greatest stories. He now studies at Endicott College.

The City of Somerville and Pathways for Immigrant Workers will host a free immigration legal information session for small employers and lower-wage workers on Wednesday, April 12, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. at the East Somerville Community School Cafeteria located at 50 Cross St.

By Nathan Lamb

Returning home after a hospital stay can be tricky, but Somerville-Cambridge Elder Services (SCES) is expanding a program dedicated to helping older adults navigate that transition.

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the Department of Veterans’ Services are pleased to announce Somerville’s Memorial Day parade will return this year on Sunday, May 28 (rain date: May 29).

Community members sought for anti-violence working group to collaborate with RSJ, city staff, and the Urban Peace Institute to Help Create Violence Reduction Proposals

As part of Public Safety for All efforts, the City of Somerville is bringing in the nationally recognized Urban Peace Institute for an anti-violence initiative that will include the creation of a community-based Anti-Violence Working Group. Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the city’s Department of Racial and Social Justice (RSJ) announced today that Somerville residents and workers are invited to apply to join the working group, which will collaborate closely with the Urban Peace Institute, on community safety and violence reduction including  gun and gang violence in Somerville. Applications are available starting the week of April 3 and must be received by Friday, April 28, at 7:00 p.m.

Voices of Poetry is pleased to present a free program of exceptional poetry on Saturday, April 22, at 2:00 p.m. at Cambridge Public Library. This event will feature five acclaimed poets: Toni Bee, Eileen Cleary, Deborah Leipziger, Michael McInnis and Lloyd Schwartz.

By Jim Clark

Somerville Police officers were dispatched to an Assembly Row place of business last week on reports of a man masturbating.

Upon arrival, the officers were met by the store manager, who directed them to the dressing room area, and to a stall around the corner where the defendant was.