While the price of movies at Edmond Town Hall Theatre is terrific; well, Parks & Rec Summer Jam Concert finale has them beat, just this once. A free movie night on the Fairfield Hills Campus (Soccer Field) takes place Tuesday, August 13, with a showing of Spider-Man, Into The Spider-Verse. Pre-entertainment begins at 6 pm, with Irish dancing, and there will be a DJ dance party from 6 to 8 pm and a bounce house (don’t forget your socks!); snacks and water for sale will be your only cash layout, if you forget your own goodies. Bring your chairs, blankets, and picnics for this family friendly event. (I’d suggest a spritz of bug spray, too.)

St Rose Bingo will return for the 2019-20 school year. The semi-monthly series will open Friday, September 13, and continue October 11, November 22, and January 17. Organizers — members of St Rose Home-School Association — have also set tentative dates of February 14, March 20, April 17, and May 8 for the remainder of the season. Additional details (start times, admission fees, etc) will be announced in a few weeks, but at least now we know how some of us will be spending some of our Friday nights.

Richard Harwood, founder of The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation in Maryland, who addressed the nascent 12/14 Sandy Hook School Building Task Force in June 2013, has written a new book, Stepping Forward: A Positive Practical Path to Transform Our Communities and Our Lives. “I wrote the book to sound a call that we don’t need to accept what’s happening in the country,” Mr Harwood writes in a notice to The Newtown Bee, “and that there is a more positive, practical way forward. The book is part of a two-year campaign where I am engaging people across the nation on how we can make real progress amid our differences and divisions.” He invites readers to join him October 1 for a live online event to celebrate the launch of Stepping Forward. Pre-order the book at steppingforwardbook.org, send your receipt to info@theharwoodinstitute.org, and you’ll get a link to the live event.

We still want to know what you think! If you are interested in being a part of a Newtown Bee Community Buzz, please send your contact information to editor@thebee.com. The Community Buzz is a Bee-moderated one-hour conversation, usually on a Friday afternoon. One topic will be posed, and five to six participants can chat about their opinions on that topic. The conversation may be recorded and may be used in a future Bee article.

These warm August days have me dreaming about ice cream. For those with children with upcoming birthdays, if you send in an original head/shoulders photo of your child, birth date, name, address, and a daytime phone number, they will be entered in a drawing to win a free ice cream cake from Ferris Acres Creamery. Send the birthday cake submission to The Newtown Bee, PO Box 5503, Newtown CT 06470, or e-mail information and a digital JPG photo to eliza@thebee.com.

Information is leaking out about our Newtown Labor Day Parade... rumor has it that there will be a Newtown Bee Associate Editor in the judge’s tent this year, though! That same editor is also a pretty active member of Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue, whose chief, Bill Halstead, is serving this year as the parade’s grand marshal. We all love the parade, right? If you haven’t made time to donate to support the fast-approaching end-of-summer event, please do so at newtownctlabordayparade.org or find the donation coupon offered in this week’s paper. Believe it or not, it costs nearly $30K to present it each Labor Day!

Jim Shpunt was the man of the evening on Monday, when his 50th anniversary with Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue was celebrated. Now a Life Member for the company, Jimmy has been with the fire company since August 1969. He was joined by nearly 40 members for dinner on Monday, following a company meeting. The firefighters enjoyed a dinner of cheese-steak sandwiches, salads and other sides, and plenty of dessert, all while catching up with Jimmy. Thank you, Jimmy, for half a century of service to this town. I’d say you are more than deserving of the Good Egg Award! Congratulations.

Sean Fitzpatrick, who has been leading the restoration of the vegetable garden at Sticks & Stones Farm this year, is seeking volunteers to help the Real Food Share program. The 501(c)(3) program is dedicated to reducing the number of Newtown residents who are food insecure by growing and providing nutrient-dense food to those who need it. To that end, Sean and the Real Food Share team are looking for additional volunteers to join the high school and college students already harvesting at The Giving Garden, located at 197 Huntingtown Road. The group gathers on Tuesday mornings (7:30 to 10:30 am), Thursday afternoons (4 to 6:30 pm), and Saturday mornings (7:30 to 10:30 am), to harvest, plant new beds, weed, water, and handle other chores as needed. The Tuesday and Thursday sessions are timed to coincide with the hours of FAITH Food Pantry. To reach Sean, call 907-575-6811, visit realfoodshare.com, or find the organization’s page on Facebook or Instagram.

Speaking of FAITH, a reminder for local gardeners that the pantry accepts fresh produce from anyone during its Tuesday sessions, which run 9:30-11:30 am. The pantry is at 46 Church Hill Road, on the campus of St Rose of Lima Church, southwest of the church building.

Howard and Jeanette Lasher were seen on August 2 sitting under the shade of a tree on a very particular bench at Dickinson Memorial Park. The bench was dedicated to Mr Lasher in October 2016 for his many years of support of the Newtown Parks & Recreation department. Mr Lasher, a Newtown resident since 1982, was president of the Lasher Group Inc, an institutional brokerage firm at the American Stock Exchange, and Mrs Lasher is an interior designer with offices in New York City and Florida. A plaque on the bench reads, “With love, Lash! To honor Howard Lasher for his love and care to the Newtown community.” Parks & Recreation Director Amy Mangold met the Lashers at the park on August 2, and she shared that the community is grateful for the continued support.

I will be as happy as a cat curled up on a park bench in the sun, as long as you promise next week to... Read me again!