The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center (MLK Center) has provided the following information in regards to their upcoming events and services during the gas emergency.

“The Center uses gas for heating/cooking but has additional electric heat pumps to help warm the building. We have minimal heat but it’s chilly. If you are coming to the Center, dress warmly.


Starting tomorrow morning, Wed. 1/22, we’ll be open as much as we can be:

Breakfast Program: Open, limited meal


Food Pantry : OpenWednesday: 10am – 2pm and 4pm – 6:30 pmFriday: 10am – 2pm


Food 2 Friends:Regular Tuesday & Thursday delivery schedule 

Preschool:Open

AfterSchool: Cancelled (Newport Public Schools closed remainder of week).

LivFit Cooking Class: Cancelled 

Ryan Belmore is the Owner and Publisher of What'sUpNewp. 
Belmore has been involved with What’sUpNewp since shortly after its launch in 2012, proudly leading it to be named Best Local News Blog in Rhode Island by Rhode Island Monthly readers in 2018, 2019, and 2020 and an honorable mention in the Common Good Awards in 2021.

Born and raised in Rhode Island, Belmore graduated from Coventry High School and the Community College of Rhode Island. In addition to living in Newport for 10 years, he has lived in Portsmouth, Coventry, Providence, Smithfield, Burrillville, and East Greenwich.

Belmore currently serves as Vice President of the Board Of Directors for Fort Adams Trust and on the Board of Directors for Potter League For Animals. He previously served on the Board of Lucy's Hearth and the Arts & Cultural Alliance for Newport County.

Belmore and his wife, Jen, currently live in Alexandria, Virginia, a move they made in 2021. Read more about that here - https://whatsupnewp.com/2021/09/letter-from-the-publisher-some-personal-news/

Belmore visits Newport every couple of weeks to support the 12+ paid contributors What'sUpNewp has on the ground across Rhode Island, a place he called home for 39 years.

Belmore is a member of Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers, Society of Professional Journalists, and the North American Snowsports Journalists Association.

In 2020, Belmore was named Member of the Year by LION and won the Arts & Cultural Alliance of Newport County's Dominque Award.
Belmore can be contacted at ryan@whatsupnewp.com and 401-662-1653.