Sports

Watertown Hosts Mid-Summer Basketball Interleague Classic

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The following piece, and all the photos, were provided by the Watertown Recreation Department:

For the first time, three premier summer basketball leagues met on the Saltonstall Court on Wednesday, July 2. Watertown Recreation hosted the Portsmouth (N.H.) Serious Summer League and the Honan League, of Allston-Brighton for a pair of friendly interleague contests.  

The first game of the night was also a first, featuring a competitive women’s game between the Honan League and the Portsmouth Women, before the defending champion Watertown Men’s League New Day hosted the Portsmouth Men. Harvard Head Coach Carrie Moore took time out of her busy schedule to visit Saltonstall Park for a few hours along with Harvard men’s Assistant Coach Matt Fraschilla. Community involvement and outreach is paramount for both Crimson basketball teams.

We thank both Carrie and Matt along with Portsmouth’s Harry Rafferty and Honan League’s Shawna Kelly for coming down for a historic night. Also a huge shout out to our scorekeepers Morgan Macomber, Emilio Berndt and Andrew MacDonald as well as Steve Shorter, Dave Engelson and Michal Ksiadz for outstanding officiating.

Entertainment

Families Invited to Teddy Bear Picnic for Games, Crafts, a Raffle & More

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The following information was provided by Brigham House and Watertown Families Together:

Brigham House Assisted Living is teaming up with Watertown Families Together to host a Teddy Bear Picnic on July 31 at 10 a.m.

Do you have a favorite teddy bear or stuffed animal?Bring them to the Teddy Bear Picnic! This family event includes music, crafts, stories, treats, well bear check-ups, a free raffle and more. Call 617-923-7779 TO RSVP

Brigham House is located at 341 Mt. Auburn St. This event is brought to you by Watertown Families Together and Brigham House through a grant from the Marshall Home Fund.

Letters

LETTER: Praise to DPW for Response to Trash Strike, Concerns About Utility Work Notifications

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(This letter was sent to Department of Public Works Director Tom Brady)

Hi Tom,

Thanks for following through and getting our garbage collected on Saturday! We were one of the first streets to be “struck” and then one of the last streets to be picked up. I have to tell you, it made a big difference in the quality of life around here! One of my very rugged neighbors, seeing me on my front porch after the garbage was collected, stopped, put his hands over his head in a ballet pose, turned his head to the left and sniffed, then to his right and sniffed. Then he did a happy dance.

Schools

Students from Watertown Make Dean’s List, Graduate from College

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Watertown students made the dean’s list at UMass-Amherst, Roger Williams, Tufts, and William & Mary. Also, local students received their degrees from Plymouth State and Tufts. Dean’s List

UMass-Amherst

The following students from Watertown were named to the Spring 2025 Dean’s List at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Students are appointed to the Dean’s List at the end of a semester in which they have completed a minimum of 12 graded credits and have earned a grade point average of 3.500 or better.  Gayane Badalyan Gabriela Bondaryk Philip Centola Aidan Conneely Lana Curic Carina DeLorio Riley Donlan Ronan Greene Levon Gukasyan Benjamin Heep Jackson Helie Olivia Hoover Rosha Jalalian Saeb Awais Khan Ilana Krebs Robert Martirosyan Veronica Merhy Selina Nebiye Roy Nicolas Sophia Noble Ruari O’Sullivan Vishakha Rath Giulia Salvucci Oscar Shepard Adelle Sheynkman Mason Smith Benjamin Surenian Daniel Tattrie Gregory Venizelos Anna Zarkadas

Roger Williams

Bella Johnson, of Watertown, MA 02472 has been named to the Spring 2025 Dean’s List at Roger Williams University, in Bristol, R.I. Full-time students who complete 12 or more credits per semester and earn a grade point average of 3.4 or higher are placed on the Dean’s List that semester.

Around Town

Focus on Missed Trashed Pickups, Drop Off Site Open for Trash & Recycling All Week

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Watertown DPWCurbside composting toters, like the one on the left, will be part of the Watertown trash and recycling program starting in August. On Monday, replacement crews during the trash strike continued to collect any missed pickups from last week, so Monday pickups may not all be collected on July 14. The City will keep the drop off area for trash and recycling open from Monday to Friday during the week of July 14, with a limit of three bags of trash or equivalent recycling. City officials also requested that residents wait 48 hours to report a missed pickup as crews try to catch up. See below the update from the City of Watertown regarding trash and recycling curbside pickup:

Republic Services is doing trash and recycling curbside pickup today, Monday, July 14, 2025, completing any final missed pickups reported from Thursday and Friday of last week.

Elections

LETTER: School Committee Candidate Joins Race, Lays Out Priorities

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Sheila Krishnan (Photo by Cydney Scott)

My name is Sheila Krishnan, and I’m excited to share my candidacy for one of the three School Committee seats up for election in Watertown this November. I have long appreciated the role that public education plays in contributing to a thriving, healthy democracy as someone who has worked in public health and higher education for over 17 years. Over the past five years, I have been an active Watertown Public Schools parent volunteer and community member through a variety of roles. Understanding how decisions are made in our district is important to me, not only for my children but so that I can advocate on behalf of students and families in the district. Now more than ever, having engaged, informed citizens will be vital to the future of our communities and the challenges we face ahead.

Around Town

Seniors Hear About Fire Department’s Paramedic Services at Coffee with the Chiefs

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Watertown Firefighters Tony Caruso and Katie Boudreau demonstrate paramedic services at the Coffee with the Chiefs with the Senior City. (Contributed Photo)

By Alison Clapp

As many of you may be aware, there was an effort in the town to approve a second ambulance for the Fire Department. Tuesday, April 29th the City Council’s Committee on Budget & Fiscal Oversight took up the proposal which had strong support from many residents including a broad group of seniors. The case for a second ambulance was based both on the increased demand for the current ambulance based out of the Orchard Street station and response time when waiting for a contracted private ambulance to arrive at calls. The Council approved the request in mid-May which means the addition of eight firefighter/paramedics to staff a second ambulance.