Public Safety Director's Spotlight - Correctional Officers and Employees Week

 

National Correctional Officers and Employees Week

Correctional officers and employees are some of the most capable, committed, patient and persistent professionals in our nation.  They serve admirably in correctional facilities all across the country.  They help keep our citizens and communities safe, but their job isn't simply to secure the facility and the people in it.  In the City's Department of Public Safety - Corrections Division, we strive to help those who come into our system to improve themselves while they are in our care and custody, and to gain skills and resources to help them for reentry and life outside of corrections.  I encourage you to join me in recognizing all those who currently serve in the corrections profession.  They are most deserving of our respect and our gratitude.  National Correctional Officers and Employees Week will be observed from Sunday, May 4 through Saturday, May 10.

Upcoming Events

May 2 -- Fridays on Clark, Ballpark Village, 5 p.m.

Every Friday from 5 to 7 p.m. Ballpark Village hosts the biggest Friday Happy Hour event in St. Louis on Clark Avenue.  Happy Hour starts with the delivery of a special featured beer for the evening, the first keg is tapped, a toast is made and free samples are distributed.  After the opening festivities, a live band performs for free for the public.  Invite your co-workers and friends to join you Downtown at Ballpark Village after work for Fridays on Clark. Visit the stlballparkvillage.com web site for more information.

May 2 & 3 -- STL Outsider Art Fair 2014, Koken Art Factory's Pingle Building, 6 p.m.

The 2014 St. Louis Outsider Art Fair will be held this Friday and Saturday at the Koken Art Factory's Pingle Building located at 2655 Victor Street in the Fox Park neighborhood.  The opening reception will take place from 6 – 10 p.m. on Friday.  Suggested donation is $5.  The second day of the exhibit will run from Noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday.  The exhibit will feature pieces in all visual art mediums from both local and national outsider artists.  Visitors to the exhibit will also be able to enjoy live music, local food and more.  Invite your family and friends to stop by and support local artists.  For more information, visit the stloutsiderartfair.com web site.

May 3 – Downtown Living Tour 2014, register at 314 N. Broadway, Noon

Explore urban living at the 2014 Downtown Living Tour this Saturday from Noon to 6 p.m.  The tour will feature nearly 15 unique homes.  Participants will view a range of units on this energizing self-guided tour, from apartments and one-bedroom studios, to condominiums and penthouses.  Stroll down the streets of Downtown, see firsthand the amazing views that Downtown residents wake up to each day, and witness the many projects and development currently underway. The cost is $14 with online registration at the downtownstl.org web site.  Online registration ends on Friday, May 2 at 5 p.m.  On the day of the Tour, register at 314 N. Broadway in the Marquette Building.  The cost will be $20.  There will be access to a free shuttle.  For more information, contact Lindsay at (314) 436-6500 ext. 237.

May 3 – Cinco De Mayo on Cherokee Street, 11 a.m.

Everyone is invited to celebrate Cinco De Mayo on Cherokee Street this Saturday.  The Festival area will start at Iowa and Cherokee Street, and the fun activities will run from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.  The parade will start at 1:11 p.m. at Minnesota & Cherokee and will wind through the Benton Park West neighborhood, ending at Texas & Cherokee.  For all the particulars, visit the cincodemayostl.com web site.

May 3 – Yoga, Gateway Arch Grounds, 9 a.m.

Come to the Gateway Arch Grounds this Saturday for a free outdoor yoga session hosted by the National Park Service and led by experienced yoga instructors from South City YMCA.  The workout session is open to everyone from beginners to advanced yoga enthusiasts.  For more information, call (877) 982-1410.

May 3 – Plant Flowers, Benton Park, 9 a.m.

Everyone is invited to help plant flowers this Saturday in Benton Park, located at Jefferson Avenue and Arsenal Street, from 9 a.m. to Noon.  Bring work gloves, rakes, garden forks and wheelbarrows.  To sign up, go to the http://www.bpnastl.org/volunteerform/ web site. 

May 4 -- International Barefoot Running Day, Forest Park Visitors Center, 11 a.m.

The Barefoot Runners Society will hold its Fourth Annual International Barefoot Running Day event this Sunday starting at 11 a.m. from the Visitors Center in beautiful Forest Park.  This free, fun event will promote barefoot running as a healthy and viable way to run.  Invite your family and friends to join you and the thousands of people worldwide that will be running barefoot in observance of the day.  Questions?  Call (314) 397-1095.

May 4 – Polish Constitution Day Celebration, PNA Sports Club, 11:30 a.m.

The PNA Sports Club will hold a Bar-Be-Que this Sunday in celebration of Polish Constitution Day.  Eat in or carry out from 11:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. Enjoy pork steaks, polish sausage and all your favorite sides including dessert and coffee, all for $8.50 per person.  The Club is located at 3606 Bates Avenue (at Grand Boulevard) in the Holly Hills neighborhood.  For information or directions, call (314) 351-3620.

May 4 – 2014 Lecture Series, Tower Grove Park, 3 p.m.

The Friends of Tower Grove Park 2014 Lecture Series will conclude this Sunday.  Park historian Pamela Sanfilippo will explore Ulysses S. Grant's strong connection to St. Louis in the same antebellum time period as Henry Shaw.  The free lecture will begin at 3 p.m. at The Stupp Center in Tower Grove Park, located just inside the park's Grand Avenue entrance (near the intersection of Grand and Arsenal).  For more details, visit the towergrovepark.org web site.

May 4 – Taste of Serbfest, Holy Trinity Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church, Noon

Invite your family and friends to join you this Sunday for a Taste of Serbest.  Holy Trinity Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church at 1910 Serbian Drive in the McKinley Heights neighborhood will be preparing delicious authentic Serbian dishes from Noon to 3 p.m..  Dine in or carry out.  The price is $10.  Need more information?  Call (3314) 776-3262. 

May 6 – Twilight Tuesdays Spring 2014 Concert Series, Missouri History Museum, 6 p.m. 

The Missouri History Museum's Twilight Tuesdays Concert Series will continue on Tuesday, May 6 with a free concert by the Soulard Blues Band.  Festivities will run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on the Museum's front lawn on Lindell Boulevard at DeBaliviere in Forest Park.  For the complete schedule of concert performers, log on to the mohistory.org/twilight-Tuesdays web site.

Save the Date

May 9 -- The Faces Project Exhibition, Soulard Art Market, 6 p.m.

May 9 -- Food Truck Friday, Tower Grove Park, 4 p.m.

May 9 -- Gateway to the Stars:  Ghosts of the Arch Grounds, Gateway Arch Grounds, 8 p.m.

May 10 -- Girls on the Run 5K, Soldiers' Memorial Park, 8 a.m.

May 10 -- Heart Walk 2014, Busch Stadium, 9 a.m.

May 10 -- Train Exhibits, St. Louis Union Station, 11:30 a.m.

May 10 -- Peace Festival, Amherst Park, Noon

May 10 -- Tower Grove Better Block Festival, 3200 Block of Morganford, Noon

May 10 -- Spring Fling in the City, Crown Square, 10 a.m.

May 11 -- South Grand Cyclofemme Bike Ride, Grand & Juniata, 10 a.m.

Promoting Your Neighborhood Activities

Is there a neighborhood event on the schedule that you would like noted in the Spotlight? If so, you may email the information about it to me at GrayR@stlouis-mo.gov or to Cathy Smentkowski at smentkowskic@stlouis-mo.gov for consideration. You may also post it on the City's Calendar of Events on the City's web site:  http://stlouis-mo.gov.  The link to submit an event is at the very bottom of the home page. The listing is free. I encourage you to take advantage of this free way to promote your event.

Give STL Day

Everyone has at least one favorite charity.   In a few days you will have a unique opportunity to help raise money for your favorite nonprofit organization.  The Greater St. Louis Community Foundation is sponsoring Give STL Day on Tuesday, May 6.  From midnight to midnight, you may go to www.GiveSTLDay.org, find your favorite nonprofit and make an online donation directly to them.  It's that simple.  What can we do in one day for area nonprofits that do so much in and for our community?  We'll find out on May 6.  I encourage you to use this opportunity to make a donation to the local nonprofit of your choice.

Col. Richard Gray
Director of Public Safety
City of St. Louis