The towering O-shaped Julie Penrose Fountain in the America the Beautiful Park will operate 6 ½ hours a day for the next three months, the Parks Department said today.

Between May 23 and Aug. 22, the fountain will spray water from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Kim King, parks administration manager, said in an e-mail.

The fountain will continue to operate from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. between Aug. 23 and Labor Day, but only on weekends, she said.

The Friends of the Julie Penrose Fountain are inviting the public to a “Turn on the Fountain” celebration in the park this Sunday from noon to 2 p.m.

The friends group, which raised the $25,000 needed to the fountain on this summer, is still asking for donations “to ensure the fountain’s continued operation.”

“People are already asking if we still need donations now and we definitely do!” Kristen Downs, chair of the friends group, said today in an e-mail.

“Please direct people to visit our website at www.juliepenrosefountain.org to donate,” she said.

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