Around Town

Bloomfield
Do you Knit? Scrapbook? Write the great American novel?  The Bloomfield Public Library is your one-stop community center for sharing your interests and hobbies with like-minded people.
The library’s Friday Morning Knitting Club is going strong every week at 11 a.m. in the conference room.  Bring your latest project, and look forward to a couple of hours of making new friends and sharing creative ideas. Beginners are welcome!
Beginning on Feb. 16, scrapbookers are invited to the library’s new Scrapbooking Crop, which will begin on Thursdays at 11 a.m.  What is a crop?  It’s where a group of people get together and work on their scrapbooking projects. Beginners are welcome!  Bring your supplies if you have them and a willingness to learn or teach your craft and share your ideas with like-minded crafters!
For those who like to piece together words, the library is beginning a writer’s workshop as well.  Come in and share your ideas and writings beginning Feb. 6 at 10 a.m.  The Get it Write sessions will be meeting on the first and third Mondays each month at 10 a.m.
Do you have a skill or hobby you’d like to share with the community?  Consider doing so at the library.  The above programs are all led by volunteer community members.  Consider sharing your interest in a club or a one-time program.  Interested?  Call or email Lisa Cohn at 973-566-6200, ext. 217 or lcohn@bplnj.org.

Harrison
Harrison Public Library will be offering “PAWS to Read” program to Harrison and East Newark Children, ages 4 through 7, on Thursday, Jan. 19, from 3:30 to  4:45 p.m. Come meet and read with Molly, a certified therapy dog. This will be a monthly event at the library and dates for Molly’s future visits will be distributed.

Kearny
The PBGC, 663 Kearny Ave., will hold its annual winter dance on Friday, Jan. 13, from 7 to 10 p.m. Guests are restricted to teens only. The dance will be supervised by Tom Fraser, former Lincoln School guidance counselor; Paul Viera, chairman of the board and members of the Board of Directors.
The Kearny Public Library Children’s Room announces free events for children in January.
At the Main library, Play/Story Times for preschool age children will continue on Tuesdays from 11 a.m. – noon, and also on Thursday mornings from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Branch library Play/Story Times for preschool age children will continue on Thursday mornings from 10:15 to 11 a.m. The Branch Library is located at 759 Kearny Ave.
In honor of the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the library invites children ages 3 1/2 and older to create floats of respect from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 19, art class with Mrs. Mills. Please bring a shoebox or two for creating your float. The library will provide all the additional art supplies. The class will be held on the lower level of the Main Library, 318 Kearny Ave. Space is limited, so please try to arrive on time. Seating will be on a first come, first served basis until available spaces are filled. The art class is free.
Registration is not needed for any program. The Main Library is located at 318 Kearny Ave. For more information, visit the library on the web at www.kearnylibrary.org or call 201-998-2666.
Kearny UNICO is sponsoring a fund-raising winter doldrums bus trip to the Showboat Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City on Sunday, Jan.  29.  Cost is $30 per person with $30 in slot credit back from the casino.  Bus will depart at 8:30 a.m. from the VFW parking lot on Belgrove Drive in Kearny.  Coffee will be served to participants in the VFW hall prior to departure.  For tickets, please contact Lou Pandolfi at 201-368-2409.

Lyndhurst
St. Michael’s Leisure Club, Lyndhurst, will have a bus ride to Mt. Airy Casino in Pennsylvania on Thursday, Jan. 19, leaving the church parking lot on Page Avenue at 10 a.m. For price and reservation, please call Georgianna at 201-438-7847.
The Third-Tuesday-of-the-Month Bird Walk, with the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and the Bergen County Audubon Society, is set for Tuesday, Jan. 17, at 10 a.m. This free two-hour guided nature walk will take place at Laurel Hill County Park in Secaucus. The group will meet at the big parking lot by the Laurel Hill ball fields at 10 a.m. or at the first parking lot in DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, the home of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, at 9:20 a.m. Check meadowblog.net for last-minute weather updates. You will have to sign a standard liability release that is good for NJMC/BCAS events throughout the year. To R.S.V.P., contact Don Torino of the BCAS at greatauk4@aol.com or 201-230-4983.
The Lyndhurst High School Academic awards dinner will be held May 1. Each year the dinner honors a former graduate of Lyndhurst High School who demonstrated scholastic excellence in high school, as well as in higher educational, career endeavors and community service. Each honoree should serve as a role model for the current student body.
The committee has established a “pool” of qualified candidates. Each year names are added to that “pool.” Candidates must have graduated at least 10 years ago from Lyndhurst High School. Anyone that knows of a person or persons whose name should be added to that “pool” please submit your recommendations to: Mrs. Lisa Klein, Academic Awards Committee, Lyndhurst High School, 400 Weart Ave., Lyndhurst, N.J. 07071. Please submit your recommendations no later than Jan. 26.
The Lyndhurst Public Library invites the community to join in a continuous program titled “Connecting With Your Inner Self”.  This program is geared for those 50+ years old.  The purpose is to get people to talk about topics such as fears, aging, changing obstacles into opportunities, dealing with problems optimistically and appreciating where you are in life.  The next meeting will be held on Thursday, Jan. 12, from 1 p.m.-2:30 p.m.  For more information, please call the library at 201-804-2478, ext. 7.

North Arlington
The North Arlington Board of Health will sponsor a free hearing screening for North Arlington residents on Wednesday, Jan. 25, from 9 a.m. to noon at the North Arlington Health Department, 10 Beaver Ave., North Arlington.  The screening will be done by audiologist Kirk Knutsen, MA, MS. For an appointment or further information, please call the North Arlington Health Department at 201-955-5695.

Nutley
A blood drive will be held at the Nutley Chapter of the American Red Cross, 169 Chestnut St., Chatham Room, 1st floor, on Tuesday, Jan. 17, from 3 to 8 p.m.

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