Albany’s Biggest Street Fair: 2008 Solano Stroll

Did you take a stroll on Solano Avenue yesterday? Did you see faces familiar, faces new, and faces  smiling everywhere? Watch the slideshow below on Albany’s biggest street fair, and share with us your strolling stories.

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Albany school board meetings will be broadcast live

According to the Superintendent’s Office of Albany Unified School District, meetings of the Board of Education of  the school district will be broadcast live on Cable Channel 33, and webcasted on the new Web site of the City of Albany from July 15. The meetings will be held at the Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Avenue, from then on. 

Community Events: Support Albany High School Library

The Albany High School will hold a fundraising book fair at the Barnes and Noble Bookstore in El Cerrito Plaza Sunday, June 8th.  You can also donate a book to the library if you want to help it directly.  Click here to see the wish list and contact librarian Rosalie Gonzales at (510) 558-2528 or email her at  rosgonza@albany.k12.ca.us

Karen Nierlich: my children led me into the world of photography

Albany artist Karen Nierlich smiled at her photo show “Fragile and Resilient”at Albany Art Gallery. Nierlich wrote an article below about how her children helped her to enter the fascinating world of photography. Photo by Linda(Linjun) Fan.

As they say “kids change everything”. When I had my second child, one change I made was switching from painting to photography. I’d been a painter for 20 years, but now as a parent with two kids, I found I had little time for the solitary and intensive pursuit of painting.

Albany kids study cooking at MacGregor’s Culinary Arts Program

Alexia Richie, a teacher of the Culinary Arts Program of MacGregor High School greeted several dozen excited third-graders, who walked from Cornell Elementary to take their first cooking class. MacGregor has been offering weekly cooking classes to Albany children since Feburary. Photo by Linda (Linjun) Fan.

Slideshow: 2008 Albany Art and Music Festival

Albany’s young singers and musicians touched a chord in the community with their performance at the city’s Art and Music Festival Sunday. Watch the slideshow below for the fascinating moments of the festival:

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Albany celebrates cultural diversity at music festival

Albany resident Carol Ginsburg sang a Yiddish folk song at a storytelling and music festival at the Albany Community Center Saturday. Community members enjoyed a lively performance of Jewish songs, Native American stories, African American drumming, and Latin American instruments at the festival. Photo by Linda (Linjun) Fan.

Centennial banners appear on Albany streets

 

Allen Cain, Executive Director of Solano Avenue Association, put up a banner on Solano Avenue Sunday to celebrate Albany’s 100^th birthday. Several dozen banners, with various historical photos of Albany printed on them, are being posted on major streets of the city. Photo by Linda (Linjun) Fan.

Spring Art and Music Festival at Memorial Park

The Spring Art and Music Festival of Albany is coming this Sunday, May 4th. From 11:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m., the Albany Memorial Park will have art exhibitions, live music and performances by Albany’s local talents, and various games for kids.

Community Event: Storytelling workshop

Liz Mangual, a dedicated storyteller and teacher, will host a storytelling workshop Saturday, April 19,  at the Albany Community Center. Participants will learn about and practice this age-old craft in a supportive atmosphere at the workshop. All members of the community are welcome.

Albany’s first community garden opens with laughters

Jennifer Carlson (right) joked that she would get back the communal life she missed in the 60s at the opening event of Ocean View Community Garden Saturday, arousing laughters among the families at the event. Photo by Linda (Linjun) Fan.

There were waves of laughters, story sharing and a strong sense of community at the opening event of Ocean View Community Garden, Albany’s first community garden.

Although a lottery was drawn to assign the 12 available plots to 17 applicants, even those who lost the lottery were happy — because they were invited by the others to share the plots.

Lottery will be drawn to assign Albany’s Community Garden Saturday

A lottery will be drawn at 12:00 pm., Saturday to assign a dozen plots of Ocean View Community Garden to members of the community. Lottery tickets will be distributed at 11:00 am at the garden (900 Buchanan Street, behind the Tennis Courts and Teen Center) .  All Albany residents are invited to attend the event.

City of Albany looks for volunteers to serve on IPM committee

The City of Albany is looking for several members from the community to serve on an oversight committee for its Integrated Pesticide Management Program. Click here to read more about the program, and contact Community Services Director Penelope Leach (510-559-7227, pleach@albanyca.org) if you have any questions.

Albany celebrates centennial this weekend

The Veteran’s Memorial Building in Albany. Photo by Linjun Fan.

The City of Albany will celebrate its centennial with various activities at the Veteran’s Memorial Building Saturday.

There will be swing dancing and live music in the auditorium of the building from 1 pm to 5 pm. There will also be exhibition of Albany’s historical pictures, Bingo games, and kid’s games at the celebration.

Slideshow: Fascinating moments at the Lunar New Year Celebration in Albany

Did you see a martial arts performer jump five feet high in Albany Sunday? Did you watch Albany seniors practice Tai Chi, teenagers perform various Chinese ethnic dances, and little kids weave a giant dragon up and down? If you missed the shows at Albany’s Lunar New Year celebration, you can still catch the fascinating moments of it on the slideshow below.

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Photos by Linjun Fan and Francesco Papalia.  (Special thanks to Albany resident Papalia, who captured the spectacular jump of the martial art performer with his camera. )