Here’s our weekly round-up of events from January 23 – 29 on Mercer Island:
Storybook Corner
Wednesday, January 25, 10:30 am
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
Bring your little ones in to enjoy popular picture books read by our staff or special guests.
Learn more >>
Kaleidoscope Play & Learn
Wednesday, January 25, 10:30 am – Noon
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
Have fun singing songs, telling stories, reading books, creating art and playing. Kaleidoscope Play & Learn is in English. Ages 5 years and younger with caregiver. Sponsored by the Friends of the Mercer Island Library.
Downsize to the Right Size
Wednesday, January 25, 1 – 3 pm
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th ave SE
Catherine Arendt, downsizing expert and Aljoya’s At Your Service Manager, works with families from start to finish as they transition from their homes to retirement communities. She presents “Downsize to the Right Size” workshops to help you plan your project. Learn tips and techniques to sort through your home and identify what you would like to keep and how to disperse the rest. Receive a Downsize Guidebook along with other resources.
Cookbook Book Club: Recipes by Diana Henry
Wednesday, January 25, 7 – 9 pm
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
Simple: Effortless Food, Big Flavors is the 10th cookbook from Northern Ireland-born, London-based cookbook author Diana Henry, who won a James Beard Award for her 2015 cookbook A Bird in the Hand. We’re excited to try out her delicious recipes and look forward to seeing old and new faces alike at our first Cookbook Book Club of 2017. In case you’re new to this popular recurring Island Books event, our Cookbook Book Club meets every other month to explore different cuisines and cookbooks and taste the dishes we’ve made. A festive potluck meal, in other words, and we’ll supply the drinks.
Learn more >>
Story Times at the Library
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
Join the Mercer Island Children’s Librarian for stories, songs, rhymes and fun in these 30 to 45-minute programs designed especially for you and your young child.
Thursday, January 26
Infants (0 – 12 months) – 10:30 – 11 am
Preschoolers (3 – 6 years) – 1 – 1:30 pm
Open Book Club: In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O’Brien
Thursday, January 26, 7:30 pm
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
This riveting novel of love and mystery from the author of The Things They Carried examines the lasting impact of the twentieth century’s legacy of violence and warfare, both at home and abroad. When long-hidden secrets about the atrocities he committed in Vietnam come to light, a candidate for the U.S. Senate retreats with his wife to a lakeside cabin in northern Minnesota. Within days of their arrival, his wife mysteriously vanishes into the watery wilderness. Island Book’s open book club meets the last Thursday of every month at 7:30pm. Our staff facilitator chooses both fiction and nonfiction titles. All are welcome to attend, and if you purchase your book here in the store you’ll always get a 10% discount.
Learn more >>
Youth Theatre Northwest presents Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka JR.
Opening Night: Friday, January 27, 7 pm
January 27 – February 12, Saturdays, 2 pm & 7 pm; Sundays, 2 pm
Closing Performance: Sunday, February 12, 3 pm
Stroum Jewish Community Center Auditorium, 3801 East Mercer Way
Willy Wonka, the secretive candy maker, offers an exclusive tour of his factory and a lifetime supply of candy to the five lucky winners who each find a golden ticket hidden in his chocolate bars. With every contest there are rules as well as severe consequences when those rules are broken. Can you pick out who will make it to the end of the tour in one piece? Based on the classic book and featuring songs from the 1971 film adaptation, Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka JR. is a scrumdiddlyumptious musical audiences (and Oompa Loompas) of all ages can enjoy.
Classics on Film Winter Series
Friday, January 27, 7:30 – 9:30 pm
Aljoya – Theatre, 2430 76th Ave SE
This week’s film is They Won’t Forget (1937). The Mercer Island Arts Council, with support from The Mercer Island Sister City Association, present the Classics on Film Series. Screenings begin with an introduction by film historian Lance Rhoades and end with a Q&A session. Free and open to the public, with refreshments provided courtesy of Aljoya. All films are presented with English subtitles unless otherwise indicated.
Planting Event
Saturday, January 28, 10 am – 2 pm
Clarke Beach Park, 7700 East Mercer Way
Want to make a difference in 2017? Great news! We are kicking off the 2017 season with more planting and invasive plant removal work parties scheduled in January and February! As always, bring your enthusiasm, a water bottle, and dress for the weather! We’ll supply the tools, supplies, and plants.
January Jumpstart: Eat your Veggies with our Nutritionist
Saturday, January 28, 10 – 11 am
New Seasons Market, 2755 77th Ave SE
Adopting healthy eating is one of the most common New Year’s resolutions. Join our nutritionist for a series of store tours focused on the foundational concepts and tools you need to develop one new healthy habit each week. Free. Registration required.
Learn more >>
What’s the Buzz about Bees? A World Without Bees
Saturday, January 28, 1 – 3 pm
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
We have bees to thank for one of every three bites of food we eat! But honey bee colonies are in serious trouble. Find out why from MIHS student Paloma White, who will present her award-winning short film, A World Without Bees, and explain the phenomenon of Colony Collapse Disorder. Learn how you can become a pollinator promoter at home from members of the Puget Sound Beekeepers Association. Munch on bee-dependent snacks, pick up bee facts, and bee grateful. Sponsored by the Friends of the Mercer Island Library.
Parents’ Night Out
Saturday, January 28, 5 – 10 pm
Mercer Island Community & Event Center, 8236 SE 24th St
Fee: $20/Child; $10 Sibling Fee
Leave the kids with us – go get dinner, grab a movie, go shopping, or enjoy some alone time. You deserve it! Your little minions will have a blast with our staff – eating pizza, watching a movie, doing arts and crafts, and, of course, playing a ton of games. Must register (Course #16539). For kids ages 4 to 12.
Mercer Island Parks & Recreation Guide (pg 16) >>
Will Schwalbe, Author of Books for Living
Saturday, January 28, 5 – 6:30 pm
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
Island Books welcomes Will Schwalbe, author of The End of Your Life Book Club, for a special event and reading of his latest book, Books for Living. “I’ve always believed that everything you need to know you can find in a book,” writes Will in his introduction to this thought-provoking, heartfelt, and inspiring new book about books. In each chapter he makes clear the ways in which a particular book has helped to shape how he leads his own life and the ways in which it might help to shape ours. He talks about what brought him to each book–or vice versa; the people in his life he associates each book with; how each has led him to other books; how each is part of his understanding of himself in the world. Books for Living is a treasure of a book for everyone who loves books, loves reading, and loves to hear the answer to the question: “What are you reading?”
Learn more >>
Community Swing Dance
Saturday, January 28: Dance Lesson at 7 pm | Dance from 8 to 11 pm
VFW Hall, 1836 72nd Ave SE
Enjoy an evening of swing dance with the Casey MacGill Band! New to swing dancing? We’ve got you covered with an Eastern Swing Dance lesson given by Ari Levitt at 7 pm followed by the dance at 8 pm. Refreshments will be available for purchase during the evening. Need someone to watch the kids? Check out Parents’ Night Out event – described above.
Paco Diez in Concert
Sunday, January 29, 7 pm
Stroum Jewish Community Center, 3801 East Mercer Way
Paco Diez is one of the most widely recognized and important interpreters of Judeo-Spanish music and Sephardic ballads on the international stage. He has recorded 17 CDs and delivered more than 2,500 concerts throughout the world, garnering acclaim as an outstanding ambassador of Ladino language and culture. Hazzan Isaac Azose of Congregation Ezra Bessaroth and Rabbi Frank Varon of Sephardic Bikur Holim also performing. Co-presented by Seattle Sephardic Network.
Learn more >>
