• The Otterbein Neighborhood group encourages residents to come to the next neighborhood meeting on May 21st at 7 p.m. at Otterbein UMC. Otterbein UMC is located at 5005 E. 21st St. The Otterbein neighborhood spans from 16th street to 21st, Sherman to Emerson. A summary of KIB’s Adopt A block will be the main topic. If you live in this area, please come on out and be part of the solution!
• May brings a lot of racing events to Indianapolis. Satisfy your need for speed during a series featuring historic Indianapolis 500 highlight films, some not shown in years, as part of the Indy 500 Movie Nights on Tuesday, May 12 and Tuesday, May 19 at 7 p.m. at the Irvington Branch, 5625 E. Washington St. These films, typically 25-30 minutes in length, present a time capsule of the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. On May 12, the theme of the evening’s films is “Bob Clidinst Tribute Night.” Clidinst worked in the IMS Media Center from 1968-2013 and attended the race each year from 1946-2013. Bob’s favorite races are represented by “The Crucible of Speed” (1946), “Speedway Sound Of The Sixties” (1960), and “Run Fast Run All Day” (1971). On May 19, the celebration will be A.J. Foyt’s eightieth birthday. Films shown will be “The Golden Festival Of Speed” (1961), “The 51st Indy 500” (1967), and “A.J. Foyt: The 18th Challenge.” For more information about these free programs, call 275-4450.
• On May 16, there will be a spring Pennsy Pocket Park Cleanup from 9 a.m.-noon. The native plant garden near Irvington Plaza needs tending, so if you’d like to help with some light weeding and mulching, come by with gardening gloves and garden tools.
• There will be a public input meeting about the Mass Ave./Brookside Corridor Study on May 13 at the Spades Public Library, 1801 Nowland Ave. from 6-7 p.m. The meeting is an opportunity for residents to share ideas on a variety of topics including job creation, buffering, infrastructure and vision for the area.
• The Mind Trust will host its fifth in a series of “Educational Bus Tours,” which highlight high-performing public schools in Indianapolis for local parents, educators and community members next week. The tour will be on May 11 from 8:30 a.m.-noon and include IPS #91 and the Phalen Leadership Academy. The tour meets at the Julia Carson Government Center, 300 E. Fall Creek Pkwy. For more information or to sign up for the bus tour, visit tmtbus.eventbrite.com or call (317) 803-7082.
• The Mass Ave. Tour de Tire is a must-see for anyone interested in the creative re-use of tires. Start where Mass Ave. meets 10th and work your way down to see the inventive ways merchants revisioned tires as art.
• Quilters are invited to attend the May 14 Quilters Guild of Indianapolis General Meeting at 7:00 p.m. at the Second Presbyterian Church, 7700 N. Meridian St. Raymond K. Houston, quilter from St. Louis, will give a talk on constructing visual puzzles and exquisite Celtic Knots. Visit www.quiltguildindy.net for more information.