North news briefs: Self-help legal center to open June 1

On Monday, June 1, the Tenth Judicial District will open a new self-help legal center in Anoka to assist litigants representing themselves. The center will be in the Anoka County Courthouse, but can also assist those from Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Pine, Sherburne, Washington and Wright counties.

Court employees will be able to help individuals locate pro-bono and low-cost legal services and mediation services and provide information about the court process.

The center will be on the second level of the Anoka County Courthouse (C-210), 325 East Main St., Anoka. It will be open Monday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. Help is also available via phone at 763-422-6963 or e-mail at 10CourtHelp@courts.state.mn.us Anoka

The Lyric Arts theater in Anoka has announced a 10-show lineup for the 2015-16 season, beginning with the farce "The Explorers Club" and wrapping up with the musical "Nice Work If You Can Get It."

But before then, there are still two shows remaining in the current, 2014-15 season: "Boeing Boeing," which runs on weekends and two Thursdays from June 5-21, and "Grease," with a four-weekend, three-Thursday run from July 10-Aug. 2.

Here's the 2015-16 lineup: "The Explorers Club" (Sept. 11-27); "The Spitfire Grill" (Oct. 16 – Nov. 1); "Christmas in the Airwaves" (Nov. 20 – Dec. 20); "Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas" (a Mainly for Kids production, Dec. 3–19); "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" (Jan. 8–25, 2016); "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" (a Theater for Young Performers production, Feb. 19–28, 2016); "Shrek the Musical" (March 18 – April 22, 2016); "Anatomy of Gray" (April 22 – May 8, 2016); "The Odd Couple" (June 3–19, 2016); "Nice Work If You Can Get It" (July 8 – Aug. 7, 2016).

For further information or to buy tickets for this season's remaining shows, call 763-422-1838 or go to www.lyricarts.org. Season tickets for the 2015-16 season go on sale on July 1 and single tickets on Aug. 3.

Blaine set aside 500 acres for the preserve, and the Kickoff will give people a chance to see concept plans and a timeline. They'll also be able to take a guided tour of a paved trail extending from East Lake Park that will offer a glimpse of the wetlands.

For further information, go to www.ci.blaine.mn.us/go/blainewetlandsanctuary, or contact Jim Hafner, stormwater manager, at 763-785-6188 or jhafner@ci.blaine.mn.us.

The Brooklyn Park Fire Department will hold open houses at its four stations on Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. The events are free and will feature a variety of activities, including tours of the stations and a chance to ask firefighters questions.

Here are the locations:

• East Fire Station, 1707 85th Av. N.

• West Fire Station, 7301 W. Broadway Av. N.

• North Fire Station, 9700 Regent Av. N.

Local author and historian John D. Cox will give a presentation on Tuesday, June 2, about the critical 1944 D-Day invasion of World War II. The presentation will take place at 6 p.m. in the Activity Room of the Columbia Heights Public Library, 1400 49th Av. NE. Registration is requested and can be done online at http://tinyurl.com/kabd92d or by calling 763-706-3690. Walk-ins are welcome.

The public is invited to an open house on Thursday, May 28, to learn about the Blue Line extension light-rail project and to provide feedback about the proposed station and light-rail alignment in Crystal.

It will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Crystal Community Center, 4800 Douglas Drive N., with a presentation and facilitated discussion at 6.

The Heritage Joyful Voices choir, conducted by Robert Graham of VocalEssence, will give a performance at 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 27, at the Heritage Park Senior Center Great Room, 1015 4th Av. N., Minneapolis.

The concert is free and open to the public and will include jazz, blues, spirituals, folk songs and more. One of the songs, "Put the World Back Together," was written by choir member James Samuel "Cornbread" Harris Sr., a member of the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame and the father of musician/producer Jimmy Jam.

Heritage Joyful Voices was created through a partnership between Augustana Open Circle adult day services and VocalEssence. It is part of a newVocalEssence program called Vintage Voices, which organizers say "integrates the arts into the lives of older adults by fostering the creation of choirs in assisted living communities and senior centers."

For more about the concert, call (612) 843-4940. For more about Augustana Open Circle, go to www.opencircle.org.

A prostate-cancer support group will meet at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 27, at North Memorial Medical Center, 3300 Oakdale Av. N. Robbinsdale. John Tiesberg, a technical illustrator/designer and prostate cancer survivor, will present his mechanical depiction of the structure and function of the prostate gland. A question-and-answer segment will follow. There is no charge, and family and friends are welcome. For further information, call 612-388-3588.

Northport Elementary, in Brooklyn Center, is one of four schools in Minnesota and 35 nationally that are "Turnaround Arts" schools. Turnaround Arts is a federal program that aims to use the arts to help schools close the achievement gap and increase student involvement. The Perpich Center for the Arts heads up the initiative in Minnesota.

Schools in the program get intensive arts education resources and expertise, and their communities are involved in strategic planning processes, the Robbinsdale school district says