Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/author/guest-writer/page/150/)
Grace Chapel in Watertown will host Jingle Jam on Dec. 21. Find out more below. Looking for a fun-filled Christmas experience the whole family will enjoy? Take a break from baking, shopping, and wrapping, and join us for Jingle Jam!
A view of the proposed project at properties on Franklin and Washburn streets looking south from the entry drive. NOTE: This meeting has been postponed. The date has not been announced. A Community Meeting about a project proposed on properties for Franklin and Washburn streets will be held on Dec. 11.
Watertown artists will be showing their work as part of the Turtle Studios Open Studios. See more information below:
Turtle Studios Newton will fling open its doors to the public for its semiannual Open Studios art exhibition and sale at 213 California Street, Newton on December 7 and 8, 2024 from 12 noon to 5 p.m.
Turtle Studios has an exciting and eclectic mix of members who keep art in their lives and bring their lives to their art in a supportive community that values the creative process, experimentation and self-expression. They are joined by a handful of guest artists who will also display and sell.
The event is free, open to the public and family-friendly. Gourmet gift baskets will be raffled off, with proceeds to benefit Turtle Studios, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, and its Scholarship Fund. Vendors handle their own sales, and typically accept cash or credit through Venmo, Square or PayPal.
Bring your holiday shopping list!
Revival Cafe sent out the following announcement:
We are hosting a Toy Drive for the Boys & Girls Club of Watertown at Revival Cafe! Feel free to send this information around so we can get as many gifts for children in need as possible! Revival Cafe is located at 99 Coolidge Ave., Watertown, and gifts will be accepted seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Dec. 13. Popular gift categories:
Sports Balls: Soccer/Basketball/Football/Volleyball
Action Figures or Soft Toys (e.g. Squishmallows)
Science/STEM Kits
Board Games/Small Electronic Games
Gift Cards (for Teens)
Lego Sets
Pokémon sets
Arts & Craft kits
The following announcement was sent out by the City of Watertown Board of Assessors and first published on Nov. 26:
Following state statutes and Department of Revenue (DOR) regulations, the Board of Assessors is completing the FY2025 Quinquennial Revaluation of all real and personal property in Watertown. Revaluation is a year-long process when the DOR examines in detail all assessing methodologies used by the city, as well as the values derived through the mass appraisal system. These valuations are pending preliminarily approval by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. The values are subject to change within this disclosure period.
The Watertown Free Public Library (WFPL) is thrilled to announce our 2024—25 Winter Concert Series! Join us at the Library, December through March, one Sunday per month. As in previous years, our concert series features talented, local artists. Performances are free and open to all and registration is not required. Violinist Joshua Peckins
Sunday, Dec.
Watertown gallery Storefront Art Projects will host Family, Creativity, Continuity, and Art | Interrupted from Dec. 7 to 28, featuring the art of Lisa Olson and Mary Beth Muscara. A Reception will be held Saturday, Dec. 7, from 1-4 p.m. Gallery Hours: Thursdays and Saturdays 1-4
Find out more in the following information provided by the gallery:
Lisa Olson and Mary Beth Muscara share two grandchildren, but their lives and art practices are as far apart as their studios in Lexington, MA and Baltimore, MD. They both explore the fragility and danger of life and the relentlessness of time with collaged, painted, sculpted, corporeal, and somatic interruptions.
Lisa is living with Parkinson’s disease which has robbed her of her manual dexterity and strength but her art is still flowing.
Arto Vaun
Little Local Conversations Podcast creator Matt Hanna recently profiled the executive director of the Project Save Photograph Archive, as well as a local real estate agent and business leader. In “Little Local Conversations,” discover the people, places, stories, and ideas of Watertown. Hanna has conversations with various businesses owners, community leaders, creatives, and other interesting folks in Watertown to learn about what they do and get to know a bit about the people behind the work.
Arto Vaun
Meet Arto Vaun! He’s Executive Director of Project Save Photograph Archive and a musician and poet here in Watertown. We talk about his own journey as a self-described late bloomer in owning his artistic identity to now getting public acclaim for his music, how he came to be interested in joining Project Save and his vision for reimagining it for the future to have a broader scope outside of just the Armenian community, and we dive into the backstory of Project Save and its founder and how it’s a truly incredible 50 year old cultural collection that is unique not only in the region, but the country and world.