Weekend slate full with party, tennis

Rome’s string of downtown block parties begins this Saturday, a weekend sure to be bustling with the inclusion of a large USTA tennis tournament and college graduations.

First Friday events in Rome have been replaced this year by Downtown Saturdays, or Saturdays Between the Rivers.

Activities will begin at 11 a.m. and continue through 10 p.m.

The free events will include the annual International Festival, which moves from Bridgepoint Plaza to Broad Street, and the Rome Area Council for the Arts Ellen Axson Wilson Art Walk, along with other children’s activities and musical events.

The evening music will be provided by the Shawn Mack Band and the Thunderbolt Patterson Band.

Another major part of Saturday’s events will involve the unveiling of five brightly painted pianos, the Keys to Rome, which will become a part of the street art scene here. All five will be located at different intersections downtown.

Ann Pullen, a longtime organizer of the International Festival, said the event this year will feature a number of different food and craft vendors from countries such as Germany, Bolivia and the Kurdish region. Ruth Demeter, another leader of the International Festival, said someone will be selling Irish food and another will be offering what she termed “Persian Fusion” cuisine.

Pullen said a group of international students who attend Darlington will also have a booth set up for the event. “The purpose of the festival is to highlight the many diverse groups that are living in Rome and to educate people about the diversity that exists here,” Pullen said. “We hope our residents become more familiar with the many cultures that make up our town and appreciate their contributions to it.”

The Ellen Axson Wilson Art Walk will feature booths set up in front of stores on Broad Street with photographers, painters, potters, ceramics, custom jewelry and much more.

Mandy Maloney, executive director of RACA, said about 20 artists will actually have booths set up and as many as 100 will have art displayed in windows downtown, some of which will be for sale. “It’s going to be a mixed bag of everything,” she said.

“Mostly it’s going to be lot of fun.”

Another big tennis tournament is coming to Rome this week, which will add to crowds in hotels and restaurants across the community.

USTA Georgia League State Championships are slated for the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College beginning Thursday and continuing through Monday.

Kevin Brundle, director of tennis at the tennis center, said 900 adults are registered for the event.

Berry College and Shorter University both have graduation exercises planned this weekend.