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Come Enjoy Art on the Ave

Come Enjoy Art on the Ave

Art and music will highlight an annual event that celebrates Rochester's arts community.

Art on the Ave will be held Saturday, June 4 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the 900 block of Ninth Avenue Southeast in Rochester -- one block west of Slattery Park.

The market will showcase 25 local artisans, with a mix of painters, glass blowers, metal workers, and jewelers.  There will also be folk artists who will perform along with the huge chalk street mural, which encourages participation.  Food will also be available for purchase.

Graham Park Legacy Festival

Graham Park Legacy Festival

The Graham Park Legacy Festival is Saturday, May 21st at Graham Park in Rochester. It goes from 1:00 to 7:00.  The festival is free and will offer fun for the entire family in the hopes of raising awareness of the site and its potential. Special guest vendors and exhibitors include the Rochester Downtown Farmer's Market, Whiting's Nursery, Family Tree Nursery, Master Gardeners, Horses and Heroes, and many more.  In addition, there will be presentations on water conservation and energy efficiency plus walking tours of the historic structures and a children's storytelling session.  Elsewhere on the 55-acre property will be House of Bounce attractions for kids as well as youth hockey and youth soccer matches for participants to enjoy. For more information go to http://grahampark.org/.

 

Help Harvest for the Hungry

Help Harvest for the Hungry

(ABC 6 NEWS) -- Have some extra cucumbers in your garden? Or so many tomatoes you don't know what to do with them?  The United Way of Olmsted County has a pretty good idea.

For the 6th year now, they've teamed up with Channel One Food Bank in Rochester, for a program called "Harvest for the Hungry."

All together, they've collected 62,000 pounds of fresh produce, but hope to reach 100,000 pounds this year.

And the United Way says now is the prime time to get involved.

"Finally, we have warm enough weather, the ground is ready, so you can plant an extra row, you can plant more than one row, and bring that food in to Channel One when it's ready," said April Sutor of the United Way.

They'll also be starting an effort at the Rochester Farmer's Market this year, asking people if they'd like to buy an extra bag of veggies from the vendors to donate to the cause.

OMC Hosts Honor Planting at its "Still Missed" Garden

OMC Hosts Honor Planting at its "Still Missed" Garden

(ABC 6 NEWS) -- Dozens of people gathered together at Olmsted Medical Center this week, to pay tribute to the loved ones they've lost.

This is the 10th-annual Honor Planting Service at the "Still Missed" Garden at the Hospital site.

The idea is for family members to pay tribute to patients who lost their lives.

Today's service included a poetry reading, a balloon release, and some musical tributes.

"It's a time for them to come out and remember the ones they lost.  We offer them to bring a flower and plant it in the garden as a remembrance of those that they lost here," said Emily Lorenz, a Social Worker for OMC.

Family members had the option of either planting it themselves, or letting staff members plant it for them.

Officials there say, it's therapeutic for those family members to visit the plant as part of their mourning process.

Kids Learn Garden Basics

Kids Learn Garden Basics

Your child can learn to love growing plants and produce in the first of a weekly series at a Rochester nursery.

Wee Wednesdays takes place monthly at Sargent's North, 7955 18th Avenue NW, starting April 20.  The next session -- called "Get Growing" -- shows preschool and kindergarten aged kids how to plant seeds and watch them grow.  Parents can also learn some gardening tips.

Rochester Hosts Arborist Workshop

Rochester Hosts Arborist Workshop

From the nursery, to the city, to the woodpile, that's the theme behind this year's arborist workshop in Rochester.

The event brought out dozens of arborists, one even came from Florida to speak.

The theme this year was "A Tree's Life", and event organizers say the 11-hour workshop covers every aspect of it.

"So, it's actually looking at the tree from the seed in the nursery, through its establishment, through different containers, and different kinds of things all the way through very mature trees, and how can we prune a master tree to extend its life and to prevent decay and things like that. So it's the whole gamut," said Event Coordinator Jay Maier.

Maier says the program is a great benefit to homeowners too, because the lessons learned today, could be put to use in your yard.

Removing Snow? Don't Forget About Your Gas Meter!

Removing Snow?  Don't Forget About Your Gas Meter!

 The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Office of Pipeline Safety is asking everyone to check your gas meters on homes and buildings and make sure they stay free of ice and snow accumulation that can block the regulator vent.

The gas meter has a pressure regulator vent that must be unobstructed to work properly. If that vent is covered by ice or snow, gas may not shut off properly, resulting in too much pressure in the gas lines and cause possible gas leaks inside your home.  A blocked regulator can also cause the gas to shut off causing a loss of service, frozen pipes, and typical problems that arise when there is a lack of heat.