Tech Help for Seniors
Sat, April 23 | 1:00 – 3:00pm
Armatage Community Center
Come to the Armatage Community Center for free tech help on Saturday, April 23 from 1:00-3:00pm! We’re partnering with Cyber Seniors, a nonprofit that provides free tech help, youth training, and connects generations!
Bring your phone, tablet, computer, or other device AND your questions on troubleshooting issues, apps, content, and more to get help from friendly, trained Minneapolis teens who will walk you through step by step. Please wear a mask to keep the event safe for all. Learn more at armatage.org/techhelp/
Spring Earth Day Clean-up
Sat, April 23 | 9:30am – 12:00pm
Armatage Park
Join the Armatage Green Team and the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board (MPRB) for the annual Earth Day Clean-up at Armatage Park on Saturday, April 23 from 9:30am – 12:00pm! This is a great, meaningful opportunity for kids, teens and adults to show our neighborhood pride and clean up neighborhood streets, sidewalks, and parks to keep trash and recycling from polluting our waterways. Every single person who volunteers makes a huge impact! Learn more at armatage.org/events/clean-ups
Save the Date: Armatage Pet Fest
Sat, May 14 | 2:00 – 4:00pm
Armatage Park
Bring your furry, feathered or scaled friends to Armatage Park for our first-ever Pet Fest on Saturday, May 14 from 2:00-4:00pm! Promenade in the pet parade. Enter the pet contest to win fabulous prizes donated by Zeroish and more! Visit a pet chiropractor, get nail clips, grab human treats from Sparrow Cafe, meet other Armatage animal lovers and more! All are welcome, whether you have a pet to bring or not. Hosted by the Community Engagement Committee. Learn more and register for the contest or parade at armatage.org/petfest
Save the Date: Garden Tool Swap
Sat, May 14 | 9:00am – 12:00pm
Armatage Park
The ANA Green Team is excited to host one of the citywide Garden Tool Swap sites this year at Armatage Park! With the weather warming (thinking positive here), many of us are turning towards our homes and our green spaces. When cleaning out your storage, hang on to unused yard tools, planting equipment and gardening items and bring them to the citywide Garden Tool Swap. From first time gardeners to those with green thumbs, all are welcome at this free event.
Mark your calendars for Saturday, May 14, 2022 9:00am – 12:00pm and bring your unused items to Armatage Park. You do not need to bring items to the event to take items home with you. Learn more at https://www.minneapolismn.gov/resident-services/garbage-recycling-cleanup/garden-tool-swap
Stream Armatage Neighborhood Workshops
Missed the Soil Health Panel? Want to get some practical solutions to use less plastic? Curious about solar options? The Armatage Neighborhood Association’s virtual workshops are now available to stream on our Youtube channel! Check them out and subscribe here.
Protect Pollinators & Wait to Rake
Bees often nest in broken stems of plants, and butterflies overwinter in leaf piles. Please wait to cut back perennials, rake leaves, and clean up yard waste in your yard until daytime temperatures are consistently above 50 degrees (mid-April or early May) to protect pollinators.
Spring Street Sweeping Starts April 19
It doesn’t feel like spring but street sweeping is coming soon! The City of Minneapolis will start sweeping more than 1,000 miles of streets on April 19. Look for no parking signs to avoid a ticket or tow!
Blue Thumb Workshops: Resilient Yards & Pollinator Lawns
Register for Blue Thumb’s low cost virtual workshops this spring! Workshops teach earth-friendly actions that mitigate the impacts of heat waves, flooding rains, and habitat loss through rain gardens, native planting, and other do-it-yourself tactics. Resilient Yards will cover resilience, site assessment, rain gardens, native planting, designing with trees and shrubs, turf alternatives, and other information for an eco-friendly yard. Pollinator Lawns/Turf Alternatives will focus on options to traditional turf lawns including flowering lawns that support pollinators and that require less watering and mowing.
Workshops cost $15 and will be offered throughout the spring. Full scholarships are available. Learn more and see a schedule of workshops by visiting https://bluethumb.org/events/ or calling 651-699-2426.
TRUST, Inc. is Hiring
Local non-profit TRUST, Inc. offers home and chore services to people 55+ and those with disabilities in Minneapolis and the south metro area. TRUST is currently hiring workers to help with yard/garden, housekeeping, repair work, spring cleaning and organizing. This is a great option for teens 16+, college age youth looking for summer work, and adults looking for PT options working with area seniors. Call 612-827-6159 to learn more and apply.
Work with Minneapolis Parks
The Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board is hiring for a wide range of summer jobs! Whether you want to gain experience at your first job, or grow your skill set for a future career, there are a lot of great positions open.
Learn About and Celebrate Ramadan
Ramadan Mubarak to all our neighbors who are celebrating this month. As one of the most important months in the Muslim calendar, Ramadan is a sacred month of fasting, prayer, and reflection. It is a time when followers of Islam celebrate the “Night of Power” when Muhammad received the initial revelations of the Quran, the sacred book of Islam. This year Ramadan is celebrated from April 2 until May 1. During Ramadan, Muslims fast every day from dusk to dawn. The fast is supposed to cleanse the soul and make the believers empathize with those in the world who are hungry and less fortunate.
Amidst the time of Ramadan, most Muslims go to the Masjid (Mosque) and spend several hours praying and studying the Quran. Every day they recite a special prayer called the Taraweeh Prayer (Night Prayer), which is usually twice or three times as long as the daily prayers. Minneapolis City Council Member Jamal Osman announced this week that mosques will be allowed to play the adhan, or call to prayer several times between the hours of 7:00am and 10:00pm daily and all year round. The City Council unanimously supported the broadcasts and the recognition of Ramadan. Thanks to Safety, Equity & Outreach Member, Sheila Dingels, for this write-up!
Here are some ways to celebrate Ramadan in Minneapolis:
- Try a halal meal from Hamdi Restaurant in the Phillips neighborhood.
- Make these fun paper lanterns. How to make paper lanterns Ramadan Decoration, Ramadan Decoration Idea/s 2019, Ramadan Decoration DIY – Bing video It is believed this tradition was started in Egypt more than a thousand years ago when lanterns were used by people to light their homes and the streets at night. One evening in 969 AD, on the first day of the Holy Month of Ramadan, the Caliph Al-Mu’izz li-Din Allah came to Egypt. The military commander commanded the people of Egypt to light the Caliph’s path with lanterns so he could see where he was going as he walked through the streets.
- Listen to the podcast Tell Them, I Am. While not about Ramadan specifically, but over the course of the series, host and producer Misha Euceph interviewed 22 people, all Muslims, about the defining moments of their lives. Megaphone: A Modern Podcasting Platform
COVID-19 Vaccines and Testing
Vaccines: if you haven’t been vaccinated or gotten a booster yet, get a free vaccine as soon as you can. Visit mn.gov/vaccine to use the Vaccine Locator Map (more options listed below). Learn more about boosters here.
Free Rapid Tests: you can now order four totally free COVID-19 rapid tests per residential household at https://mn.gov/covid19/ Ordering takes just a couple minutes.
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The Armatage Neighborhood Association works to make Armatage a place where all are welcome, empowered, and connected through safety initiatives, community-building events, environmental work, advocacy and communications that keep you informed and engaged.
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