Earth Day, sponsored by OCRRA, is quickly approaching! This year, South Side TNT will have a Clean-up crew on Saturday, April 23, starting at 10 a.m. (for about two hours or as energy permits). Meet on Brighton Avenue near Danforth School to clean along the Creek Walk. Park anywhere on Brighton Avenue or near there. Contact Pauline Lozano at 877-3473 or lilyiris1@hotmail.com to learn more. Pauline will provide trash bags. Suggestions for additional things to bring: A bucket, grabber and/or garden gloves for safety and wear suitable clothing for visibility and warmth. Note: Please Do Not touch any sharps (syringe needles) you may find. These need to be safely placed in a plastic container, taped shut and labeled SHARPS.

The new Rotary Community Chat will continue each fourth Monday of each month beginning at 6 p.m. at the Grace Episcopal Church, 819 Madison St. In April, Leola Rodgers, president and CEO of Syracuse Community Health Center, will speak on her perspective for the needs of the Syracuse community on April 25. To RSVP, contact the City Rotary Club by the preceding Friday at RotaryCommunityChats@gmail.com or call (315) 468-1025

In collaboration with the Syracuse Chapter of the Links, Inc. CFAC artwork from local high school students will be on display during The 44th Annual Teenage Competitive Art Exhibition. An Opening Reception will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 7; exhibit continues through May 20, at the Community Folk Art Center (CFAC), 805 E. Genesee St. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Free and open to the public.

Preschool Dance Party will be held at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, May 11, at the library. Children from birth to 5 years old can move & groove to new songs and sing along to old favorites.

Rahma Clinic Health and Wellness Fair will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 14, at the Rahma Health Clinic, 3100 S. Salina St. Sponsored in part by a generous grant from The Gifford Foundation, this health fair will bring more than 15 health professionals to the clinic to offer educational materials, answer questions about preventive and integrative medical care, give away health-related products and provide free health screenings. Free to attend. For more information, call (315) 565-5667.

Big Rig Day will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 14, at Burnet Park, Coleridge and Burnet Park Drive entrance. Children and their families can climb in behind the big wheels of big trucks and other rigs from area companies and organizations. Free admission. For more information, call the City of Syracuse Department of Parks, Recreation & Youth Program at (315) 473-4330.

The Southwest Community Center’s Innovative Explorers Summer Camp will hold a fundraising concert at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 14, at the Palace Theatre featuring The Kings of the Falls band and students of Southwest Community Center's afterschool program. The Innovative Explorers Summer Camp seeks to raise $18,000 to support 125 campers this summer. Tickets are $30 each with reduced rates available for children under 12 years old and students with a student ID. If you or your organization is interested in sponsoring a youth or making a contribution to the 2016 Innovative Explorers Summer Camp, send all donations to Syracuse Model Neighborhood Facility Inc. For more information, contact Valerie Hill at (315) 671-5803.

A community forum will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, May 16, at Tucker Missionary Baptist Church, across from Dr. King School on Martin Luther King East. The topic will be I-81 & the South Side: Options & Impacts. Architect Robert Haley will give a presentation on the section of current I-81 between the interchange with I-481 and the elevated viaduct to be torn down and replaced with some alternative. The Department of Transportation in its Final Scoping Report proposed an exit and entrance to the highway at Martin Luther King East. This proposal and other possible designs for traffic flow will be outlined by Haley May 16. A panel of responders has been invited to offer comments on Haley's talk as well as to give their perceptions of the impacts these approaches will have on the South Side neighborhood. The public is encouraged to come and to weigh in during a question and answer period. The Moving People Transportation Coalition is offering this event as part of a series to better inform the community about I-81 redevelopment activities. Moving People is represented on and provides feedback to the official Department of Transportation Stakeholders Work Group advising the DOT I-81 project team.

The Cuse Cares Barbecues are hosted by a number of local anti-gang initiatives, including Save our Youth, SNUG and the Trauma Response Team. The barbecues are scheduled every other Friday at selected neighborhood locations.

Upcoming locations include:

5 p.m. Friday, May 20, at Rich Street and Bellevue Avenue
5 p.m. Friday, June 10, at Libba Cotton Grove, located at South State Street near Martin Luther King East
5 p.m. Friday, June 24, at Wilson Park, 1117 S. McBride and Taylor streets

A health fair will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 21, at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, 241 W. Lafayette Ave., on the South Side. It's an African-American congregation led by the Rev. Ashanti Dickerson. There will be free health screenings, free food, bounce house, etc.