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Update: This event has been moved inside the Valente Branch Community Room due to the heat emergency declared by the City of Cambridge. Join us for one, two, or all CPL Adult Summer Camp activities to meet new people and have nostalgic fun outside in Cambridge! Make Tie Dye T-shirts & Bags with us in the Reading Garden next to Valente. Rain/High Heat Location: Valente Branch Library Registration Required.

Alpacas from the Harvard Alpaca Ranch will be visiting the library for an educational program and meet and greet. Join us to learn more about alpacas and take some time to say hello! This event is intended for school-age children. Registration is not required. Funding for Summer Reading has been generously provided by the City of Cambridge, Cambridge Public Library Foundation and Friends of the Cambridge Public Library.

Alpacas from the Harvard Alpaca Ranch will be visiting the library for an educational program and meet and greet. Join us to learn more about alpacas and take some time to say hello! This event is intended for school-age children. No registration required. Funding for Summer Reading has been generously provided by the City of Cambridge, Cambridge Public Library Foundation and Friends of the Cambridge Public Library.

Join the Cambridge Public Library for a symposium exploring themes of the Revolution and the history of Mark, Phillis and Phoebe. Mark and Phillis were two enslaved people who were publicly executed in Cambridge in 1755 after being found guilty of fatally poisoning John Codman, the man who enslaved them. After the execution, Mark's body was gibbeted, displayed publicly in chains on Charlestown Common, for many years. Symposium participants will include Kyera Singleton, Executive Director of the Royall House and Slave Quarters and Postdoctoral Fellow at Tufts University's Slavery, Colonialism, and their Legacies at Tufts Initiative, as well as Brandeis University legal historian Dan Breen and others. The keynote speaker for the event will be Kellie Carter Jackson, Associate Professor of Africana Studies and the Chair of the Africana Studies Department Wellesley College. Registration is required.

With temperatures expected to rise into the 90s this week, the City of Cambridge is excited to welcome the return of waterplay season! Waterplay features at many neighborhood parks and playgrounds are now open for the summer and offer a fun, free way for kids to cool off and stay active. Children of all ages can splash, spray, and play in a variety of water features—like splash pads, sprinklers, and spouts—available seven days a week at select locations.  Note: Waterplay features at school playgrounds will be turned on after the school year ends, beginning June 26.

The City of Cambridge extends a warm welcome to returning university students and staff after a year and a half of interrupted academic life. COVID-19 vaccines and increased knowledge of measures that help control the spread of the virus will help students have a more traditional residential experience this fall. The City’s three largest academic institutions - Harvard, MIT, and Lesley - report high vaccination rates among their students and employees.

Participatory Budgeting is a democratic process that empowers community members to decide how to spend part of a public budget. In June and July 2022, community members submitted 1,320 ideas on how to spend $1 million of the City of Cambridge’s FY24 Capital Budget. From August to November, over 70 volunteer PB Delegates worked on five committees to research and evaluate those ideas and develop 20 final proposals for the PB ballot.

Learn how to manage and clean up your iPhone's memory. To view and register for other Basic Tech Classes at the Library, please go to tinyurl.com/basictechclass. Registration is encouraged, but not required.

In this year’s Fortune’s 50 Best Places to Live for Families list, the City of Cambridge ranked #1, topping the charts on metrics ranging from quality of healthcare, aging resources, and education, to community connectedness. For people looking to relocate, a great place to live is more than the resources offered—a strong sense of community is among the top considerations. Cambridge officials are taking note and investing in strengthening their residents’ bonds.

The Cambridge Summer Food Program ensures that youth ages 18 and younger have access to free, nutritious meals while school is out of session. In 2024, the program served over 80,000 meals at parks, sports leagues, summer camps, and community events across the city. Beyond meals, the program offers recreational activities and literacy support, including weekly visits from the Cambridge Book Bike, making summer a time for both nourishment and enrichment.