Here’s our weekly round-up of upcoming events from July 9 – 15 on Mercer Island:
Community Coffee Hour
Wednesday, July 10 & Friday, July 12, 9 – 10 am
Mercer Island Community & Event Center, 8236 SE 24th Street
Community Coffee Hour is offered every Wednesday and Friday. Stop by for a hot cup of jo’ and socialize with fellow community members in a fun and engaging atmostphere.
For more information, call MICEC at 206-275-7609 or email at [email protected]
Kaleidoscope Play & Learn
Wednesday, July 10, 10:30 am – Noon
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
Bring your kids ages 5 and younger to enjoy stories, songs, rhymes, art, and play!
Storybook Corner
Wednesday, July 10, 10:30 – 11 am
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
Bring your little ones in to enjoy popular picture books read by our staff or special guests.
Open House
Wednesday, July 10, 4 – 7:30 pm
Mercer Island Law Group, 2448 76th Avenue Southeast, Suite 100
Mercer Island Law Group is proud to announce it’s newest attorneys, Patricia Kuderer and Andre La Roche! Join us for a fun open house event. Meet our attorneys, mingle with local professionals, and enjoy light appetizers and drinks.
Wine Wednesday
Wednesday, July 10, 5 – 9 pm
Caruccio’s, 2441 76th Ave SE, Suite 100
Stop by for the community-inspired Wine Wednesday. When you purchase your wine by the glass or bottle from our rotating selection of wines, you may enjoy an aperitivo-style buffet on our 21 foot curved countertop.
Live Music
Wednesday, July 10, 6 – 8 pm
Barrels, 7605 SE 27th Street, Suite 107
Stop by for a glass of wine and listen to Patrick Daugherty sing and play guitar. He is occasionally joined by other musicians, and he plays great covers of the songs that we grew up listening to. Add a couple of glasses of wine and the experience just gets better.
Look Up! Stories in the Sky
Wednesday, July 10, 7 – 8 pm
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
Hear stories, music and folktales from around the world about the constellations, moon and planets, presented by The Whitman Tellers. Join in the fun with dance and movement games. Family program, all ages welcome.
Infant Story Time
Thursday, July 11, 10:30 – 11:30 am
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
An introduction to stories, rhymes and songs for ages, newborn to 12 months, with an adult. Designed for baby to be in caregiver’s lap while caregiver helps baby participate. Social time follows.
Summer Tween Book Club
Thursday, July 11, 4 – 5:30 pm
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
Mrs. Behnke and Ms. Bowman of Mercer Island Middle School are hosting a summer tween book club for middle school students, and incoming 6th graders. They’ll share their famous cookie bar treats and chat about the book and why they love them. The Book Club will be reading Breakout by Kate Messner.
Mostly Music in the Park: Duende Libre
Thursday, July 11, Pre-concert activities at 6 pm | Live music at 7 pm
Mercerdale Park, 77th Avenue SE and SE 32nd Street
Round up your friends and family, pack a picnic, and meet us in the park for free performances every Thursday, July 11-August 15. Arrive early for arts activities, opening acts, and more before the headliners take the stage. To kick off this year’s Mostly Music in the Park series, Duende Libre will be joined by guest vocalists Frank Anderson and Chava Mirel. The pair’s compelling vocals, engaging presence, and original interpretations of jazz, R&B, gospel, and West African songs offer a potpourri of soul-satisfying music. Duende Libre is a high-energy, dynamic power trio based in Seattle. Their vibrant and danceable sound draws on a range of global and local influences, from Afro-Cuban Jazz to Brazilian Samba to American Funk & Soul, earning them an Earshot Jazz Golden Ear Award for 2018 NW Jazz Recording of the Year.
Shakespeare in the Park
Twelfth Night: July 11-13 & 18-20; August 8 & 11
Romeo and Juliet: July 14, 21 & 25-27; August 1-4 & 9-11
Luther Burbank Park, 2040 84th Ave SE
Join the Mercer Island Arts Council, Mercer Island Parks & Recreation, and Seattle Shakespeare Company for productions of two of Shakespeare’s most recognizable plays – Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night. Find a spot in our open-seating amphitheater at Luther Burbank Park, and watch the Bard’s stories come to life in their originally intended setting. All performances are free and begin at 7 pm, with a special “doubleheader” performance of both plays beginning at 2 pm on Sunday, August 11.
Live Music
Friday, July 12, 6 – 8 pm
Barrels, 7605 SE 27th Street, Suite 107
Chris Stevens and Jack Cook will play some great Jazz and Blues numbers. Kick back and you might find yourself dreaming about that “Girl from Ipanema” (Stan Getz), or that “Magic Man” (Grover Washington Jr.), by the end of the evening. And again, add a couple of glasses of wine and the experience just gets better.
Second Friday Art Walk
Friday, July 12
Come out for Mercer Island’s Second Friday Art Walk. Art galleries on Mercer Island will be hosting their art walk events on the second Friday of the month (and some have free wine!). Clarke + Clarke, MIVAL Gallery, SZ Gallery, and Barrels Wine Bar will be participating.
Clarke & Clarke Art + Artifacts
Hours: 5 – 8 pm
7605 SE 27th St, Suite 105
Suzanne Zahr / SZ Gallery
Hours: 5 – 8 pm
2441 76th Ave SE, Suite 160
MIVAL Gallery
Hours: 5 – 8 pm
Avellino Building, 2836 78th Ave SE
Barrels
Hours: 5 – 9 pm
7605 SE 27th Street
Lights for Liberty
Friday, July 12, 8:30 – 9:30 pm
Mercerdale Park intersection, 78th Ave SE and SE 32nd Street
Concerned citizens will gather at the intersection of 78th Ave SE and SE 32nd Street (Post ooffice/Mercerdale Park intersection), joining with hundreds of groups around the country who are calling for a nationwide peaceful vigil in protest of the inhumane conditions faced by migrants. At 9:00 pm, we will light candles and share a moment of silence. Together we will light up the world (and social media) to demand an end to inhumane conditions and policies at our border. Bring signs. Candles will be provided.
Please RSVP here
Restoration Event
Saturday, July 13, 9 am – 1 pm
Mercerdale Hillside Park, 7415 SE 27th Street
Mercer Island is graced with 35 parks, over 300 acres of natural areas, and more than 50 miles of trails. Popular among joggers, walkers, and families, Mercerdale Hillside provides an urban open space experience for residents of all ages. However, the natural area has become over-run with non-native ivy, laurel and holly which threaten its ecological diversity. Volunteers will be crucial to the restoration of this local forest by returning over the next few years to remove invasive plants, plant native conifers, and support the growth of these young trees. Through these persistent and targeted efforts by volunteers, Mercerdale Hillside will be become, once more, an ecologically diverse forest.
The God of the Sun Art Workshop
Saturday, July 13, 12:30 – 2 pm
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
Create your own symbol of Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec God of the Sun, using basic metal tooling techniques for ages 10 and older. Presented by Art-Maranth Mobile School. All supplies provided.
Farmers Market
Sunday, July 14, 10 am – 3 pm
Mercerdale Park, North End, 77th Ave SE & SE 32nd Street
The Mercer Island Farmers Market is open every Sunday from June – October. Enjoy the sunshine and check out the freshest fruits and vegetables of the season, as well as locally made food and drinks, artisan crafts, and fun activities for the whole family. Visit the website for weekly updates and special events.
Basic Cooking Skills for Young Adults
Sunday, July 14, 21, & 28th, 11 am – 2 pm
Caruccio’s, 2441 76th Avenue SE, Suite 100
Many young adults are ready to move out on their own, but don’t have basic cooking skills! They usually find themselves eating ready-made convenience foods, or worse, fast-foods. This series of 3 Sundays from 11-2pm is a great opportunity for them to learn basic skills that will last a lifetime and will provide a great base to expand on.
Incoming Kindergarten Playdate
Sunday, July 14, 2 pm
Island Park, 5437 Island Crest Way
Do you have an incoming kindergartner or know someone who does? Come and join us at Island Park playground for one of our PTA-hosted summer playdates. Siblings are welcome. Hope to see you there!
For more information, call the Kindergarten Ambassador, Trudi Hoogenboom at (281) 768-1209 or email [email protected].
Game Night
Sunday, July 14, 5 – 7 pm
Stroum Jewish Community Center, 3801 East Mercer Way
Games from Chutes and Ladders and Candy Land to Catan and Monopoly, game night is for all ages. The J Café will be open for lattes and juice boxes. If you’ve got a new game to share, let’s play!
Talk Time
Monday, July 15, 1 – 2:30 pm
Mercer Island Library, 4400 88th Ave SE
Improve your speaking and listening skills in this conversation group for English language learners. Walk-ins welcome.
Daytime Open Book Club
Monday, July 15, 6:30 – 9 pm
Island Books, 3014 78th Ave SE
In July, our Daytime Open Book Club will read and discuss If I Had Two Lives by Abigail N. Rosewood. This luminous debut novel follows a young woman from her childhood in Vietnam to her life as an immigrant in the United States – and her necessary return to her homeland. All are welcome to attend, and if you purchase the book in the store you’ll get a 10% discount.
