SOUTH COUNTY HAPPENINGS

City councils

Imperial Beach, 6 p.m. Wednesday

Free block party Friday in Chula Vista

Chula Vista Champions will be honored at a free downtown block party from 4-9 p.m. Friday. The Chula Vista Champions were nominated by fellow residents as having made diverse contributions to the city, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Applaud them and their work at 5 p.m. on the main stage, and also visit downtown between E and Park Way to check out the restaurants, breweries, and other stores on historical Third Avenue. The block party will feature a lowrider car show, Las Jefas Market, live music and entertainment. And at 6:40 p.m., there will be a San Diego Padres Watch Party on a giant screen at Third Avenue and Davidson Street. The Padres vs. Giants game also will be aired in many Third Avenue businesses. Visit https://bit.ly/3yjn3zg.

Museum to hold reception, workshop

Members of San Diego Book Arts explore the design of handmade books during the new exhibit, “Shelter in Place,” at the Bonita Museum & Cultural Center. An artists reception will be held from 4:30-7 p.m. Saturday at the museum, 4355 Bonita Road in the Greg Cox Civic Complex. The exhibit, which runs through Aug. 26, showcases art created during a Collaborative Mail Art Project that

marked the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown. As part of the exhibition, members of San Diego Book Arts will teach free workshops at the Bonita Museum and the San Diego County Bonita-sunnyside Library branch, which shares the same complex. The first workshop will be “Zines and Fun Things in Book Arts!” at 3 p.m. Friday at the library. To register for classes, call (619) 475-4642. Museum hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Find more at bit.ly/3baheji.

Annual pancake breakfast Saturday

The annual Pancake Breakfast sponsored by the Chula Vista Firefighters Foundation returns from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday at Fire Station 5, 341 Orange Ave., while supplies last. Register at www.cvfirefighters.org/posts/pancake-breakfast

to guarantee breakfast, but walk-ins are still welcome! CVFD personnel and volunteers from CAST (Citizens’ Adversity Support Team) and CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) will be cooking. Suggested donation is $8. Proceeds go to the Chula Vista Firefighters Foundation, which underwrites fire safety programs, supports those displaced by fire, and encourages fire suppression careers. Parking available at the South Chula Vista Branch Library at 389 Orange Ave., next door to the station. After breakfast, visit the free Fire Department Centennial display at the library, open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

San Ysidro art gallery hosts exhibits Casa Familiar has opened the exhibition “New Native Narratives” at The FRONT Arte &

Cultura gallery, 147 W. San Ysidro Blvd. This show is the final presentation of Casa’s apprenticeship program of the same name. The program gave 17 young artists the opportunity to be mentored by established artists. The artists were selected by an open call focused on south San Diego and Tijuana. They are Leslye Villaseñor, Carlos Luna, Natalia Ventura. Rianne Elyse Magbuhat, Vanessa Rishel, Casiel J. Sanchez, Rodrigo Jimenez, Evan López, Marcela Alarcón López, Adrián del Riego, Jafet Arzate, Marlon PV, Alex Guzmán, David Peña, Luisa Martínez Villalón, MUXXXE and Jon Villanueva. The FRONT Arte & Cultura has also opened “Emerging Pasts,” a solo exhibit by Tijuana artist Guillermo Echeveste. The exhibits run through Aug. 27. The gallery is operated by Casa Familiar, a community

development agency in south San Diego. Go to thefront.casafamiliar.org.

The Elizabeth Hospice invites people interested in helping those facing a life-limiting illness and those grieving a death to a free virtual volunteer orientation. Attendees will learn about virtual and inperson opportunities throughout the county. An email address and a device with a camera interface are needed to participate in the session, or attendees can join by phone. The next session will be from 10-11 a.m. July 12. Register to the Volunteer Department at (800) 7972050 or email volunteer@ehospice.org.

Send items to fyi.south@sduniontribune.com at least two weeks before events.