Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/author/guest-writer/page/645/)
A Funeral Mass for Lorraine A. LaRose will be celebrated on Thursday morning at 9 a.m. in the Church of Saint Patrick, Watertown. Miss LaRose passed away in Watertown on Sunday evening, July 30, 2017 after a period of declining health. A graduate of St. Patrick High School, class of 1963. She also received a degree at Boston University in 1979.
Mount Auburn Hospital will host a free mental health first aid for youth program starting on Wednesday. The hospital put out the following information:
WHAT: Although many individuals may know CPR and could assist someone having a heart attack, not as many may know how to assist a young person experiencing a mental health related challenge or crisis. Mount Auburn Hospital recognizes this concern and beginning in August, the hospital is pleased to sponsor a free Mental Health First Aid for Youth program. The 8-hour training program aims to help parents, educators, and others who work with youth learn how to provide initial help to them when it comes to a mental health or addictions challenge. In addition to teaching how to initially help someone who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge, this program will also teach how to help in a crisis.
Watertown Citizens announced it will hold its annual Hiroshima/Nagasaki Commemoration on Sunday, August 6 beginning with a silent vigil in Watertown Square at 7:30 PM, followed by music and testimonials at 8:00 PM at the Watertown Dock and ending with the floating of candle boats at 8:30 PM. Watertown Citizens sent out the following announcement:
Please join us as we reflect on the nuclear attack on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States in 1945 – the first use of nuclear weapons by any country – that caused over 210,000 deaths and years of misery and suffering for thousand of survivors. We must remember that these tragic events, often hailed as the reason WWII ended, were unnecessary. The U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey group, assigned by President Truman to study the air attacks on Japan, produced a report in July of 1946 that concluded, “Based on a detailed investigation of all the facts and supported by the testimony of the surviving Japanese leaders involved, it is the Survey’s opinion that certainly prior to 31 December 1945 and in all probability prior to 1 November 1945, Japan would have surrendered even if the atomic bombs had not been dropped, even if Russia had not entered the war, and even if no invasion had been planned or contemplated.”*
It is also important to remember that today, military spending accounts for more than half of the federal government’s entire discretionary budget, that nuclear weapons spending alone accounts for over $40 billion annually, and, most importantly, that there is a connection between the bloated Pentagon budget and the critical budget shortfalls facing communities across the country. Sponsored by Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment, New England American Friends Service Committee, and Mass Peace Action.
In an effort to be supportive of the sustainability movement and local food
production, the Board of Health updated its regulations regarding the keeping of
hens and honeybees in May of 2016, Town officials announced. The Health Department is pleased to report that there are currently five approved permits issued for the keeping of hens in Watertown, though there have been no requests for approval of honeybees. The new regulations followed over one year of research, discussions with industry
experts, and public hearings, and have resulted in relaxed standards on setbacks
that allow more properties to comply than had been able to in the past. The new
standards include provisions for setbacks from property lines and neighboring
properties, how much owners must know about caring for hens and honeybees,
restrictions on number of hives and hens allowed, and standards for storing feed
and waste. A permit is required for each location where hens or honeybees will be
kept, and approval from abutters is required.
Mount Auburn Hospital announced it will be hosting a free support group for family and friends of people with alcohol, drug or gambling problems.
The hospital sent out the following information:
WHAT: Are you being impacted by someone close to you who has an alcohol, drug or gambling problem/addiction? Mount Auburn Hospital has developed a support group to help. Beginning in August, the hospital will present the Family-Friends Support and Education Group focusing on how addiction impacts a family’s finances, physical health and psychological wellbeing. Participants will learn about options for support by understanding the short and long term impact of addiction on the family system and identify ongoing community supports that are available to improve your quality of life. The support group will be facilitated by Marianne Parent, LMHC MA. WHEN: The support group will be held monthly on the second Thursday of each month from 7-8 p.m. on the following dates:
Thursday, August 10, 2017
Thursday, Sept.
Watertown’s Daniel Pritchard announced his candidacy for Board of Library Trustees in November’s Town Election.
Pritchard sent out the following press release:
Writer, editor, and nonprofit professional Daniel E. Pritchard is a first-time political candidate running to join the Board of Trustees of the Watertown Free Public Library. Raised in Quincy, MA, Pritchard learned the values of hard work, common decency, and public service from his single mother, who also instilled a love of libraries that would set the trajectory of his life. “The library was a home away from home,” he remembers. “I read everything — fantasy, biography, crime, poetry, the classics. The library was my window to the wider world.”
A graduate cum laude of Boston College, Pritchard has pursued a successful career in the business of letters.
Tonight’s Summer Concert will be held in the Watertown Savings Bank Meeting Room at the Watertown Free Public Library, 123 Main Street, the Town announced. Heart Attack Ack Ack Ack Ack Ack is a Billy Joel cover band paying tribute to one of the most successful solo artists of all time. Anchored by a professional dueling pianist and lifelong Billy Joel fan, the band’s dynamic live shows focus largely on Billy’s more rocking mid-70s to early-80s output and have been converting ‘too cool for school’ Billy Joel doubters one by one, while giving lifelong fans a chance to sing along with their favorites at the top of their lungs. The concert begins at 6:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
The replacement of the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge will cause delays and detours for drivers, MBTA users, and others during construction. The construction will impact the Mass Pike, Commonwealth Avenue, the BU Bridge, Hubway, the MBTA Green Line and buses, the Commuter Rail and Amtrak. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) sent out the following information:
This is a reminder that the 2017 Construction Shutdown for the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge Replacement Project (http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/highway/HighlightedProjects/CommonwealthAvenueBridgeReplacement.aspx) is beginning at 9:00 PM on Wednesday, July 26, and will continue through 5:00 AM on Monday, August 14. Please note the construction-related impacts below:
For Drivers:
• I-90 (Mass Pike) Users:
From 9:00 PM on July 28 to 5:00 AM on August 7:
• I-90 between the Allston Interchange and the Beacon Street Overpass in Boston will be reduced to two lanes in both directions during peak hours (additional lane closures during off-peak hours, see below). • The I-90 Eastbound on-ramp from Cambridge Street/Soldiers Field Road will be closed.