🗞️ Riverside News- March 1, 2026

Sunday Gazette: March 1, 2026

Hello Riverside, and Happy Sunday! Welcome to March — and happy National Barista Day to the folks who keep us caffeinated and smiling. You know the one: they see you walk in and your order's already in motion. If your favorite barista deserves a little extra recognition, nominate them for our Neighbor of the Week feature We'd love to highlight them!

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HISTORY

The Writer Who Told Frank Miller's Story

Zona Gale won the Pulitzer Prize, planted a tree in Riverside, and became the first to chronicle the life of Mission Inn founder Frank Miller.

Like Frank Miller, Zona Gale was a native of Wisconsin. Unlike Miller, she continued to return to live in her home state. Her mother, Eliza Beers Gale, wrote in her journal:

…A Darling Blessed daughter – Little Zona, to gladden our hearts and make our home O so bright with her glad voice and sweet smiles. Yes, we have a daughter, born on the 26th of August 1874, and O how we love her, how good that God should send us such a treasure. (Derleth, Still Small Voice, page 3).

Born in 1862 to Charles and Eliza Gale in Portage, Wisconsin, a small village at the confluence of the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers, Gale returned repeatedly to her roots. As one biographer wrote: "The two words: 'Portage, Wisconsin' signified life to Zona Gale. There she was born, and there she was secured by ties of home and parents. These two words, written by her thousands of times, became charged, she said, in a way unknown to the casual visitor."

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RAINCROSS RUNDOWN

Raincross Rundown: The Best of Riverside in March 2026

A curated list of upcoming events and happenings The Gazette team is most excited about.

March arrives with a lot to say. Women's History Month fills the calendar with voices worth hearing — poets, photographers, painters, and community builders who remind us that art has always been how Riverside tells its own story. Throw in a few unforgettable nights of live music, some hands-on creativity, and a one-year anniversary worth celebrating, and you've got a month that moves. Check our community calendar for even more ways to get out and get involved.

This month has something for everyone — catch the Body of Freedom exhibition opening, see RUSD students take the Fox stage for REEF's ninth annual showcase, make your own mosaic Raincross stepping stone with the Mission Inn Foundation, or spend a Sunday afternoon at Fairmount Park for International Women's Day. Farmhouse Collective turns one, Riverside Reads kicks off, and the Heritage House gardens are going full fairy tale. The full list is below.

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CREATIVE PROMPTS

Pivot Player

A prompt to encourage your practice of creativity this week from Riversider and local author Larry Burns.

Our next creative nudge is less about what gets you through the door and more about door mechanics; our nudge this week is a hinge. Not the glamorous part of the door. The hinge hides in plain sight, screwed into place, doing the humble work of allowing movement. It only gets your attention when it’s in bad shape. All that open, close, repeat business wears down this true team player.

I don’t think much about hinges until one starts failing. A high-pitched squeal from the bathroom door at three am reminds everyone in the house that it’s time to buy some WD40. A squeaky front gate can give you time to pretend you are not home before a solicitor approaches. But the sounds they make are the least interesting things about hinges. 

Read and share this week's full Creative Prompt...

This Week in Riverside

Sunday, March 1

• Prayers and Public Information Meeting at Riverside Baha'i Center
• English Country Dance at First United Methodist Church of Riverside
• Evergreen Cemetery Tour at Evergreen Cemetery ($21.20)
• Family Fun Day: Celebrating 30 Years of UCR Gluck Fellows at Culver Center of the Arts
• Joseph the Reptile Hunter - MoR at First Sundays at Downtown Riverside
• Learn Origami at UCR Botanic Gardens
• Origami with Michelle at Botanic Gardens
• Storytime in the Gardens at Botanic Gardens
• American Patchwork: A concert by the Raincross Master Chorale at Calvary Presbyterian Church ($10- $20)

Monday, March 2

• Volunteer Interest Hour at Riverside Meals on Wheels
• Goeske Bingo at Janet Goeske Center ($20- $100)
• R'Hours at the R'Garden at University of California, Riverside
• Monday Carillon Recitals at University of California, Riverside

Tuesday, March 3

• Inland Empire Chorus Rehearsal at Temple Beth El Synagogue
• UCR Jazz Ensembles at Culver Center of the Arts

Wednesday, March 4

• Riverside East Rotary Club at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
• Stretch & Dance Class at Janet Goeske Senior Center
• Reading Assistance Program at My Learning Studio
• Fortuitous Encounters: A Conversation with Lenard Smith and Rebecca Morse at UCR ARTS
• The Importance of Being Honest A Modernized Script. at UCR Bell Tower
• Riverside Mission Belles at Victoria Presbyterian Church
• Riverside Open Mic Music Series at Back to the Grind
• UCR Wind Ensemble at University Theatre

Thursday, March 5

• Lincoln Park Community Group at Lincoln Park Community Center
• CBU versus Abilene Christian: Hometown Heroes Night at Fowler Events Center ($8- $30)
• Women's Basketball vs Hawai'i at SRC Arena
• FREE ADMISSION - First Thursday of every month during Riverside ArtsWalk at Riverside Art Museum
• Her EARS: A Women's History Month Open Mic at The Barn
• History on the Rocks! Presented by The Mission Inn Foundation at Mission Inn Foundation Store ($60)

Friday, March 6

• Certified Farmers Market at Farm House Collective
• UC San Diego Track & Field at Riverside City College Invitational at RCC
• Paint your Pet, a Comedy Paint and Sip at Carbon Nation Brewing ($39.19)
• Rethinking Bodyminds at Downtown Riverside

Saturday, March 7

• Cars and Coffee at Harvest Church at Harvest Church
• Afternoon Tea Fundraiser for The Mission Inn Foundation at Historic Battles House ($71.21)
• Author Iván Aguirre In-Conversation with Rocío Pichón-Riviere at Cellar Door Bookstore
• Cherries & Berries | DIY Keepsake Box at Marcy Library
• The Inland Empire Strikes Back 2026 at North Park
• Live Rock en Español classics at The Hideaway Cafe & Lounge ($12.51)
• Native and Honey Bee Care at Land Use Learning Center
• Riverside Reads Kick-Off Event | Virtual Author Screening: Chantha Nguon at Main Library
• William H. Reynolds Memorial Carillon Recital at UCR Bell Tower

Save the Date

• March 9: REEF's Best Event Ever! Take 9! at Fox Performing Arts Center ($10- $75)
• March 14: Riverside Sunrise Rotary 22nd Annual Black Tie Bingo at Riverside Convention Center ($130- $250)
• March 19: Empowered Leadership: Cultivating Influence and Impact at Work Well ($165)
• March 21: LiTEArature: A Fairy-Themed Afternoon Tea at Heritage House ($25)
• March 30: Sip with a Scientist at Bar Ni Modo

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