Free Family Events and Children's Programs in Hopewell and Colonial Heights: THE DIGEST.

Have an event or announcement you would like featured in THE DIGEST? It’s welcome! Please send an email to apitchon@gannett.com. Time sensitive announcements should be sent a week ahead of time.

Free Dino Explorers preschool program at the Colonial Heights library March 7

The Colonial Heights Recreation & Parks Department will be hosting a free Dino Explorers preschool program at the Colonial Heights library on Thursday March 7 between 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Recommended for ages 3 to 5, attendees will learn all about dinosaurs and the world they lived in. There will be a dinosaur hunt, book reading, crafts, and more. Parent participation is required. Registration by Wednesday March 6 is required to attend the event. You do not need a library card to attend.

Free Colonial Heights Leprechaun Trap Building event March 8

The Colonial Heights Recreation & Parks Department will be hosting a free Leprechaun Trap Building event at the Community Room of the Colonial Heights Community Center on Friday March 8 between 6 to 7:30 p.m. in anticipation of St. Patrick's Day.

Recommended for children of all ages, the event will be an hour and a half of family-fun crafting, at the end of which participants will have their very own trap to catch a leprechaun right in time for St. Patrick's Day! All equipment and materials will be provided. Parent participation is required. Attendees must register by March 7 to participate in the event.

Free Petersburg Community Shredding Event March 9

The City of Petersburg will be hosting a free community shredding event on Saturday, March 9 from 8 a.m. to noon in the Petersburg Sports Complex Parking Lot.

Securely destroy unwanted personal documents while protecting your identity. Attendees can bring up to two 32-gallon bags of sensitive documents to shred. Paper clips and staples may be left in the papers. No cardboard, binders or computer-related materials. Questions? Contact PublicWorks@petersburg-va.org.

Free Luck At The Lake event in Hopewell March 15

The Hopewell Recreation and Parks department will be holding a free Luck at the Lake event at Crystal Lake Park (3502 River Road) on Friday, March 15 between 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

The family-friendly event, which is advertised as fun for all ages, will include a kids zone, craft-making, food trucks and music as well as a 6 p.m. performance by the Heart of Ireland School of Dance. Please contact the Hopewell Recreation and Parks department for more information on the event.

Traffic Alerts for March 4 to March 8

PETERSBURG – The following is a list of roadwork that may affect traffic in the Petersburg transportation district throughout the coming weeks. Scheduled work is subject to change due to inclement weather and material supplies. Motorists are advised to watch for slow-moving tractors during mowing operations. When traveling through a work zone, be alert to periodic changes in traffic patterns and lane closures.

I-95 RAMP CLOSURE IN PETERSBURG FORBRIDGE RECONSTRUCTION

Weather permitting, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) will close the I-95 southbound ramp over Wythe Street starting at 9:00 p.m., Sunday, March 3 until 5:00 a.m., Friday, March 9 for joint reconstruction on the bridge.

Motorists should use the following detour: Continue west on E. Washington Street, turn left on S. Adamas Street, turn left on E. Wythe Street, and proceed to the I-95 southbound exit.

Anyone with questions about the project can call VDOT’s customer service center at 800-FOR-ROAD (800-367-7623). For the latest real-time traffic information or road conditions, call 511 or visit http://www.511virginia.org.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Free Family Events and Children's Programs: THE DIGEST.