Resilient Communities Series
The Northampton Department of Health and Human Services and community partners will sponsor a screening of the film “Mosaic” at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 24, at the Academy of Music, 274 Main St., followed by a panel discussion on public health equity, justice and representation.

“Mosaic,” commissioned by the Western Massachusetts Health Equity Network and created this year by local filmmaker Michelle Falcón Fontánez, tells the stories of people of color across western Massachusetts working toward healthier communities. Some of the leaders who appear in the film will take part in the panel discussion. There also will be updates on the Department of Community Care and Community Resilience Hub in Northampton.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for this free event and masks are encouraged.

The film will be preceded by a gathering in Pulaski Park from 4 to 6 p.m. with representatives from Community Action, Tapestry Health, Hampshire HOPE, and the Department of Health and Human Services providing resources including COVID tests, harm reduction information and free Narcan. Dinner at 6 p.m. will be provided by Manna Community Kitchen.

Forum for Hampshire County sheriff candidates
The Daily Hampshire Gazette and the Northampton and Amherst chapters of the League of Women Voters will sponsor the final forum for Hampshire County sheriff candidates at the Northampton Center for the Arts, 33 Hawley St., from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 25. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for this free event and masks are encouraged.

Northampton Open Media and Amherst Media will broadcast the forum live on their community public access stations, and a live stream will be available at northamptonopenmedia.org. Recordings in English and Spanish will be available Aug. 26 on YouTube.

Incumbent Patrick Cahillane of Northampton, Yvonne Gittelson of Goshen and Caitlin Sepeda of South Hadley are the candidates on the Democratic ballot in the Sept. 6 state primary election. There are no candidates for sheriff on the Republican ballot.

The candidates will be questioned by a panel of representatives from the Gazette and League of Women Voters, and audience members may submit questions in writing.

Massachusetts primary election
Saturday, Aug. 27 is the deadline to register to vote or change party enrollment for the Sept. 6 Massachusetts primary election. Final registration will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in the city clerk’s office, Room 4, City Hall, 210 Main St.

Early voting for the state primary also begins Saturday, Aug. 27, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the City Hall hearing room, second floor, 210 Main St. That is where early voting will be held also Monday, Aug. 29, through Friday, Sept. 2, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The application deadline for a mail-in ballot for the state primary is 5 p.m. Monday, Aug. 29. Mail-in ballots are available online at https://www.sec.state.ma.us/MailInRequestWeb/MailInBallot.aspx or by contacting the city clerk’s office. Mail-in ballots must be received at the city clerk’s office by 8 p.m. Sept. 6. They may be dropped off in person at the service window at the clerk’s office inside City Hall or the drop box near the front steps outside City Hall. Mail-in ballots CANNOT be dropped off at a polling place on Sept. 6.

Ward 1 residents will continue to vote at the Jackson Street School. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sept. 6.

The primary ballot lists candidates for governor; lieutenant governor; attorney general; secretary of state; treasurer; auditor; 2nd Congressional District; 8th District governor’s councilor; Hampshire, Franklin, Worcester Senate District; 1st Hampshire House District; Northwestern district attorney; and Hampshire County sheriff.

Overdose Awareness Event
The Northampton Department of Health and Human Services with community partners will hold a Remembrance and Survival Overdose Awareness Event from 6 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 31, at Pulaski Park, 240 Main St.

There will be information about harm reduction and recovery resources, testing, syringe access programs, peer groups and Narcan training.

Beginning at 7 p.m., speakers will reflect on the impact of drug overdoses on individuals, families and the broader community.

Volunteer bicyclist counters
Safe Streets Northampton, a citizens’ advocacy group, is seeking volunteers to count bicyclists at Northampton Intersections between 7 and 9 a.m. one day from Monday, Sept. 12, through Thursday, Sept. 15.

Volunteers will be asked to count bicyclists on a day that it is NOT raining and record information on a tabulation sheet that will be provided. The data will help the city develop a safe cycling infrastructure.

Volunteers may sign up online by Sept. 2 at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdM9CKC_uMvH-oNj6s6J4l0vEbtFX5ZoE74wyrtml2z9UtVmg/viewform.
Further information is available by emailing Elena Huisman at [email protected].

Friends of Northampton Trails
Anyone interested in volunteering to help improve the bicycle trail network in Northampton and to support the community of bicyclists is encouraged to contact Friends of Northampton Trails at http://fntrails.org/