Around Town

Watertown Boys & Girls Partners with Philanthropic Group to Get New Solar Panels

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The Watertown Boys & Girls Club received new Solar panels (not shown) thanks to a partnership with Rise Up Solar and SunBug Solar. The following information was provided by SunBug Solar:

Watertown Boys & Girls Club, a local non-profit, has partnered with Rise Up Solar, a philanthropic solar investment firm, to turn rising energy costsinto an opportunity to go green and save big. After some renovations to the facilities in 2016, the Watertown Boys & Girls Club’s utility bills skyrocketed. Renee Gaudette, Watertown BGC’s executive director, recognized that this extra cost took money away from the kids they serve. The organization had already been investigating a solar solution, but years of searching ended due to difficulty with the roof, somelofty trees, and a steep initial cost to invest.

Around Town

Snowshoeing with the Watertown Recreation Department

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The Watertown Recreation Department sent out the following information:

Join us for a fun and active Friday afternoon! Participants will receive a basic snowshoeing lesson. Then, explore our Victory Field Complex through the snow. Please dress warmly in layers with waterproof pants, heavy socks, mittens, waterproof boots, and a hat. Community Snowshoeing – Friday, December 18 – 3:00 to 5:00

Pre-Online Registration is Required – First Come First Serve Basis

Around Town

Watertown Group Making Banners Celebrating Civil Rights for Unity Breakfast

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Members of Sunrise Watertown with one of the banners made for the 2021 Watertown Unity Breakfast. They invite others to make their own banners. The following announcement was provided by Sunrise Watertown:

The past three Sundays, Sunrise Watertown, Uplift Watertown, and the Kingian Response Team partnered to create art for the upcoming Unity Breakfast (January 18, 2021). At the event, they painted banners with quotes from past and present civil rights activists that will be used to decorate the town in January as part of their #readthestreets campaign. 

“The Kingian Response Team was formed to develop a united local response to the murder of George Floyd. Over the past few months, this team has developed and proposed an antiracist Listen-Learn-Grow-Act pledge for both individuals and institutions in our town, in particular for our educational and public safety institutions,” writes Ruth Henry, founder of the Kinging Response Team and teacher at Watertown Middle School.

Letters

LETTER: Councilor Concerned About Impact of Proposed Closing of Little Greenough Blvd.

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NOTE: The original letter by Councilor Angeline Kounelis was sent to State Sen. Will Brownsberger when a petition was circulated in August calling for the closing of Greenough Boulevard between North Beacon and Arsenal streets. The Town Council is considering whether to ask the Department of Conservation and Recreation do a pilot program closing “Little Greenough” on weekends this spring, summer and fall. Will,

Many thanks for taking the time to share the petition, addressed to the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), that is being circulated to permanently close “Little Greenough Blvd.” to vehicular traffic. I was not aware of the petition. 

Open green space and recreation are the ideals that all communities strive to encourage and implement.

Charity

Watertown Mall & Police Department Collecting Toys for Local Children

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The Watertown Mall is collecting toys for the Watertown Police Department’s Whooley Foundation’s Annual Gift Drive. The following announcement was provided by the Watertown Mall:

This year the Watertown Mall teamed up with the Watertown Police Department to help collect gift donations for the Sonny Whooley Foundation’s Annual Gift Drive. The Watertown Mall will continue to collect donations until Monday, December 21st. If you would like to participate, please visit the Giving Tree located inside the mall’s back hallway across from Carter’s and Target. 

Around Town

Uplifting Title Chosen for Library’s 2021 One Book, One Watertown

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The Watertown Free Public Library. The following information was provided by the Watertown Library:

Each year the Watertown Free Public Library invites everyone to read the same book during the same period of time and then explore the themes and messages together. After an incredibly trying 2020, with relief just barely in sight, the librarians were in search of a title to lift up spirits and warm the heart. They landed on The Humans by Matt Haig. The Humans tells the story of a reluctant alien who arrives on Earth with the goal of erasing all traces of a monumental scientific discovery.

Schools

Minuteman Teacher Receives Award from National Group

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Minuteman High School design and visual communications teacher Allison Barry won an award from NOCTI. The following information was provided by Minuteman High School:

Allison Barry, a Design and Visual Communications teacher at Minuteman High School, is the winner of the 2020 Carl J. Schaefer Memorial CTE Teacher Award from NOCTI, the nation’s largest provider of industry partner certifications and industry-based credentials for career and technical education programs.

The award was established in 2013 to honor Dr. Carl J. Schaefer. As a lifelong champion in career and technical education (CTE), he gained national recognition as a CTE educator and author. He was also one of NOCTI’s founding fathers. This memorial award is a tribute to Dr. Schaefer’s memory and recognizes an outstanding CTE teacher or CTE teacher candidate.

Around Town

Watertown Unity Breakfast Going Virtual in 2021

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The following information was provided by the Unity Breakfast Planning Committee:

Watertown will celebrate its 21st annual Unity Breakfast on January 18, 2021 – Martin Luther King Day. For the past 20 years, the World in Watertown event has brought together hundreds of people at for a hearty breakfast and program that celebrates and honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his commitment to racial justice. This year, however, the Unity Breakfast will be different – it will be a virtual event presented in partnership with Watertown Cable Access Corp (WCA-TV). It will be streamed at 10:00 am on January 18, 2021 (MLK Day), on the 2021 Unity Breakfast website and the WCA-TV FaceBook page, and simultaneously broadcast by WCA-TV on channels 9 (Comcast) and 3 (RCN). The program will be recorded so that it will also be available for subsequent on-demand viewing.