• To honor the life of Angela Summers, the USPS carrier who was shot and killed on her near-eastside route on April 27, fellow workers and friends gathered on Monday, May 4 at the post office at Linwood Square to release balloons in her memory.
• Cindy Keown, outreach lead at Street Outreach Animal Response Initiative (S.O.A.R.), is among the finalists for the Petco Foundation’s national Unsung Hero award. The Petco Foundation and Victoria Stilwell are honoring five Unsung Heroes for their extraordinary, lifesaving efforts on behalf of animals with a $10,000 grant award for their animal welfare organization. One honoree will be awarded the national Unsung Hero award by Petco Foundation and earn an additional $50,000 to support their lifesaving work. Animal lovers across the nation will select the national awardee through popular vote. Visit petcofoundation.org/unsunghero to see Cindy’s story and to vote for her and S.O.A.R.
• Indiana Family and Social Services Administrations Division of Aging has announced that nominations are being accepted for the 2020 Golden Hoosier award. The award honors older Hoosiers for their lifetime of service and commitment to their communities. To be eligible, the nominee must currently be an Indiana resident, aged 65 or older, and have been a volunteer in the community for the past three years. Deadline to submit applications is June 30. Visit in.gov/lg/2732.htm to fill out an application.
• Heavy Trash Pickup has resumed! Depending on your district, Heavy Trash Day can be the first, second, third or fourth week of the month. To find out when you can put out heavy trash, visit indy.gov/workflow/trash-pickup — and please, don’t put the heavy trash out for weeks on end in the hopes it will get picked up! A better solution for lots of stuff would be to hire a professional hauler (see our Home Service Guide on page 7).
• Remember that Marion County (Indianapolis) is still under a stricter Stay-at-Home rule than neighboring counties. Non-essential businesses and services are still prohibited, and non-essential travel is still banned. The county has the highest number of COVID-19 cases, and the number of cases continues to grow. The mayor has announced that restrictions will be in place until May 15, unless the city continues to see continued (or accelerated) spread, when it might be extended. Please continue to wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds regularly, stay home if you feel ill, wear a mask in public, and keep at least 6 feet away from other people.
• On Thursday, May 28, Jockamo will host a blood drive and carry out event in the parking lot behind the Irvington location, 5346 E. Washington St. Order dinner and donate at the same time! Time slots are available between 3-8 p.m. To sign up, visit https://bit.ly/JockamosIRV-BloodriveandCarryOut
• On Monday, May 11, there will be a virtual acoustic open mic session thanks to the Irving Theatre. Starting at 7 p.m., you can enjoy local musicians online on Facebook on the Irving Theatre page. For more information, visit www.attheirving.com