Events and gatherings are happening again. Things are opening up. State restrictions are being eased.

Let’s not forget why these things are happening: because our nation’s mass vaccination rollout has been fast enough to keep the new coronavirus strains relatively under control. We should be grateful for how others have helped us and keep doing our part to keep our neighbors safe: Get vaccinated if you haven’t already, and wear a mask and social distance any time you’re in a group setting with unvaccinated people.

We’re doing much better than most of the planet. Globally, COVID-19 cases have spiked back to their January peak. In neighboring Ontario, Canada, where vaccine orders have been slow to arrive, people are back under a strict stay-home order. They’re arguing over whether playgrounds should be closed, or whether police should be stopping anyone who is out and sending them home unless they are out on essential business.

Here, bars are reviving open mic nights, high schoolers are playing football and volleyball games deferred from the fall, and a wide array of spring and summer events are being planned.

We want to get all these happenings into your local newspaper, to share them with the community.

If you’re organizing any kind of event, please send us the details so we can put it in our calendar (in our website’s top menu and in print on page A5). If you write up a press release about your event, we can run a short news article as well.

Also, our Religious Directory needs updating. Churches and synagogues stopped in-person services 13 months ago, and we removed all service times from our Religious Directory page, published on Saturdays. These services restart bit by bit, and some religious communities reached out to us to provide their service times — which are not always the same as before the pandemic. We want to get all of the active ones back in our directory, but there are so many of them that we could really use their help.

Probably the easiest way to submit events and religious service times is to email us at news@adirondackdailyenterprise.com. You can also click “Submit News” at the top of this website or call Managing Editor Peter Crowley at 518-891-2600, extension 22.

We don’t charge anything for these basic news services, but to really get your event, business or service stuck in people’s heads, you will need to put it in front of them more than once, and in an eye-catching way — more than a calendar listing or a one-time news brief can do. Advertising in the Enterprise really works; just ask any of the many businesses and organizations that advertise with us. Call 518-891-2600 during weekday business hours and ask to speak to one of our advertising representatives: Susan Moore (extension 19) for the Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake areas, Carol Swirsky (extension 18) for the Lake Placid area, and Lindsay Munn for real estate and classified display ads (extension 20). Any of them will happily price out some options for you.

But before you deal with advertising or press releases, at least drop us a line with the basic information such as the name and nature of the event, time, date, location and price — the who, what, when, where and how much.

We encourage everyone to take responsibility — again, get vaccinated — but also to take joy from being able to gather again this spring and summer.