Puppies, ESPN, Edgewater NeighborFest, St. Demetrios, River Rally: 10 Cleveland Activities

CLEVELAND, OH — Whether you're artsy, sporty, eco-friendly or puppy preoccupied, we have an event — or two — for you.

The Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter is reducing adoption prices Friday through Sunday, so of course, you do need that cute puppy you've seen on the website. The ESPN Block Party is in full swing Thursday with local broadcasts and big money contests. They'll be donating their proceeds to a local rescue volunteer group, so check off sporty and check of helping animals.

The St. Demetrios Greek Festival runs Thursday through Sunday where you come for the amazing Greek food and stay for the rest.

In the spirit of environmentally conscious, an event at the library hosted by a local composting group will teach participants how to compost, and a celebration on Saturday revolves around the progress of the Cuyahoga River and the lifestyle improvements from it.

The Cuyahoga River Rally is a part of the Cleveland History Days events, and so is the Cleveland Baseball History event at the Baseball Heritage Museum that deep dives into the city's past with the sport.

The Edgewater NeighborFest has everything someone can want from an outdoor community party. Everyone can shop local, help the earth and learn about programs — all while having a great time.

Making plans is hard. Looking for events and finding kid-friendly fun (without boring everyone else) is an activity in itself.

Patch found the events and listed the details for you. All you need to do is click "buy tickets" or simply go to the event. Check out our list of Cleveland fun, with options for the whole family and some just for grown-ups.

Thursday

The St. Demetrios Greek Festival serves delicious Greek food, including gyros, stuffed grape leaves, pastries, lamb shanks, for indoor and outdoor dining with takeout and drive through options. Other features include indoor and outdoor bars, a cafe, vendors, live music and more. The festival begins Thursday and runs until Sunday. Check here for daily hours.

The Cuyahoga County Public Library's South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch is hosting local composting specialists Rust Belt Riders for the Composting at Home informational session. Attendees can learn about the benefits of composting as well as a few different methods for starting the practice, the best of which depends on the living situation. Registration is not required but is encouraged.

Sports! If you really like sports, this is a must. The ESPN Cleveland Block Party promises live broadcasts of local programming, live music, appearances by professional teams, a chance to win $20,000, a dunk tank (with the ESPN hosts inside!), games, food and more. The best part is yet to come; while the event is free to the public, all proceeds benefit Muttley Crue Rescue, "a volunteer/foster rescue group based in Cleveland, OH dedicated to rescuing homeless, death row and owner surrender dogs/puppies" with a focus on bully breeds.

Friday

Adopt 'til you drop at the annual Adopt-a-Palooza Adoption Event by Cuyahoga County Animal Shelter. Friday through Sunday, adoption fees are reduced to just $20. According to an email sent by the shelter to subscribers, adoptions will be first come, first served in person.

The shelter also listed the requirements everyone will need to have in order to adopt. Adopters must be at least 18 years old. Everyone planning to adopt should bring any resident dog to the shelter also for a meet and greet with the potential new dog (if applicable). The shelter requires proof of landlord approval if the potential adopter is a renter. This can be in the form of a lease, rental agreement or something else stating that a dog is permitted. Be sure to double and triple check that everything is set so that you can bring your new forever friend home. Meet the pups waiting for someone to choose them, here.

Saturday

Celebrate our river with The Cuyahoga River Rally at Hart Crane Park. According to the website, the event champions "the progress of the Cuyahoga River and the recreational and lifestyle enhancements clean water provides." The line-up looks great with tours of the river by kayak, foot, bike, or holiday boat. Dragon boat rides, live music and an afternoon festival village with a beer garden are also highlights of this celebration. Tickets to the event are not required, but pre-registration for tours is recommended due to space limitations. Find detailed descriptions of each tour, a schedule and registration information here. This event is part of the Cleveland History Days.

History plus sports equals the Cleveland Baseball History event at the Baseball Heritage Museum. The day-long celebration of Cleveland sports history starts with Wayne Pearsall about the Cleveland Buckeyes, followed by Scott Longert about the Cleveland Indians and Municipal Stadium, then Ken Krsolovic and Bryan Fritz about League Park and finally, Marc Bona about the hidden history of Cleveland Sports. Registration is preferred, and the event is free with a suggested donation. Visit the Baseball Heritage Museum here. This event is part of the Cleveland History Days.

For just $2 a day, per Patch, you can promote your local event and help support local news in Greater Cleveland. Click here to post your event.

Sunday

Sunday is funday at the Edgewater NeighborFest, featuring art, music, outdoor games, shopping and dining. A four-mile fun run starts at 11:30 a.m. along an out-and-back course to Edgewater Park. Twist Street Bar will be serving specialty cocktails, and the event features an entire vendors mart full of local artists and shops (plus desserts and street food!). Not to be forgotten, the pups have representation at the pets pop-up with accessories and food, plus City Dogs Cleveland is brining pups in need of a home.

This is a family-friendly event for sure — a kids' corner is devoted to children's entertainment and hands-on activities. There's also plenty of adult learning; this is the first year to have a resource fair at the event. It includes information on tons of different quality of life services from community organizations all in one place and a splendid sustainability opportunity. Cleveland's local environment-protecting shop Little Spark Refill Shop is accepting hard-to-recycle items like clean and dry toothbrushes, pill bottles, razor blades and more. A LGBT Hub will have free resources for the community as well. For much more information on all of these activities and to learn about the individual businesses, visit the neighborhood's website here.

Ongoing

"Waitress" is only in Playhouse Square until Sunday, so get your ticket to the Hanna as soon as possible. With music and lyrics by Grammy winner Sara Bareilles, the self-described "hilarious hit Broadway musical" has already proven itself to be worth the ticket. The production is going out with a bang after weeknight shows leading into the weekend and then a matinee and evening performance Saturday and Sunday. Purchase your ticket here.

The 10th annual Chamber Fest Cleveland continues for its second week. The chamber music festival lasts three weeks, with performances each Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at various locations around the Cleveland area. Most performances require paid tickets, but the festival also includes free events. Find the entire schedule here.

The Richard Andres: Selected Works 1950-1975 exhibition and sale is on display at Wolfs Gallery through August 20. According to the website, this collection is "a rare exhibition of a recently unearthed cache of his remarkable mid-century paintings, stored for decades beneath the iconic modernist home of his own design in Hudson." The gallery is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Learn more about the artist's work and the collection here.

READ MORE:

• $2M Cleveland: Luxury Downtown Glass Condo On The Lake, Amazing Views
• 5 Best Instagram Spots In Northeast Ohio, Flowers, Rockefeller, Sun
  
• $6.5M Lakefront Mansion With Private Waterfront Most Gorgeous In Ohio
  
• Shop These 5 Cleveland Area Farmers Markets Like A Pro, Info Here
  
• 12 Best Places In The Cleveland Area To Take Visitors