The Swellesley Report

Weekend round-up—things to do in and near Wellesley

October 16, 2025 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

There’s lots going on in Wellesley (and slightly beyond) this weekend. Get to as many of these great events as your schedule allows.

Thursday stuff

EVENT: Heat Pump Pizza Party & Info Session
DATE/TIME: Oct. 16, 6:30pm-8:30pm
LOCATION: Wellesley Free Library
DESCRIPTION: Hear from neighbors, town staff, and heat pump experts and installers about heat pump technology, performance, and financial incentives.
HOSTED BY: Wellesley Municipal Light Plant in partnership with Wellesley Climate Action Committee

Friday and beyond stuff

EVENT: Wellesley High School Choral Department concert, “Acatober”
DATES: Friday, Oct. 17 & Saturday, Oct. 18
TIME: 7pm-9pm
LOCATION: Wellesley High School, 50 Rice St., Katherine L. Babson Jr., Auditorium
TICKET SALES: Available now. Reserve or buy at door.

Acatober, Wellesley

Wellesley Hills Congregational Church Pumpkin Patch
DATES: through Oct. 31
LOCATION: 207 Washington St., Wellesley
Visually fabulous, and sales support a good cause.

Saturday stuff

EVENT: The National Charity League (NCL) is hosting a food drive in conjunction with Roche Bros., Wellesley
DATE/TIME: Saturday, October 18, 9m–3pm
LOCATION: Roche Bros., Linden Square
DESCRIPTION: Purchase any wish list items and drop them off with the NCL volunteers on your way out.

EVENT: Wellesley Hills Walking Tour
DATE/TIME: Saturday, Oct. 18, 9am
MEETING SPOT: The Tollhouse, 229 Washington StreetWellesley, MA, 02481
SPONSOR: Wellesley Historical Society
COST: free for members and $10 for non-members

EVENT: Natick Farmers Market
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025
TIME: 9am-1pm
LOCATION: vendors will be lined up on Common Street, European style

EVENT: Boulder Brook Reservation Trails Walk—1.8 miles
DATE/TIME: Saturday, Oct, 18, 10am-11am
MEETING PLACE: Kelly Memorial Park parking lot on Elmwood Road. GPS: 61 Elmwood Road, Wellesley
SPONSOR: Wellesley Trails Committee

EVENT: No Kings Rally
DATE/TIME: Saturday, Oct. 18, 11am-12:30pm
LOCATION: Wellesley Town Hall Green

EVENT: Halloween-time fun
DATE/TIME: Saturday, Oct. 18, 1pm-3pm
LOCATION: Linden Square Courtyard
COST: FREE Halloween fun for kids ages 3-12! Trick-or-Treating; delicious samples; crafts; and more. Costumes encouraged,

Sunday stuff

EVENT: St. John School Open House
DATE/TIME: Sunday, Oct. 19, 10am-11:30am
LOCATION: 9 Ledyard St., Wellesley

EVENT: Wellesley Historical Society Speaker Series
DATE/TIME: Sunday, October 19, 2pm- 4pm
LOCATION: Wellesley Free Library
DESCRIPTION: In A House Restored, woodworker Lee McColgan trades the corporate ladder for a stepladder and takes on the daunting task of saving the 1702 Loring House in Pembroke, Massachusetts, using period materials and methods.

EVENT: Cider and donuts at Cronk’s Rocky Woodlands
DATE/TIME: Sunday, Oct. 19, 3:30pm-5pm (rain or shine)
LOCATION: 20 Crown Ridge Road, Wellesley
SPONSOR: The Wellesley Conservation Land Trust

Cronk's Rocky Woodland, Wellesley — Cronk’s Rocky Woodland

EVENT: Bach Vespers service
DATE/TIME: Sunday, Oct. 19, from 4p.m
LOCATION: Wallace Chapel at Wellesley Hills Congregational Church, 207 Washington Street, Wellesley
COST: Free will offering
DESCRIPTION: Vespers features Bach Cantatas performed with period instruments in the context of a worship service, as well as hymns, a capella choral music, prayer, and a sermon.

Please send tips, photos, ideas to theswellesleyreport@gmail.com
Subscribe to Swellesley’s weekday email newsletter.

Wellesley High Homecoming Weekend ’25: The Trailer

October 16, 2025 by admin Leave a Comment

Hardy School makes moves to keep rolling balls off busy Weston Road

October 16, 2025 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

Although Wellesley’s new Hardy Elementary School has been open for just a little over a year, it’s already time for a tweak. Ever hear the adage, “Where there’s a rolling ball, there’s a running child”? So has the school’s principal Grant Smith, who voiced his concerns about how errant balls have sailed over the 4-ft. high chain link fence separating the playing field from busy Weston Road. Brown, along with assistant Town engineer George Saraceno, appeared before Wellesley’s Design Review Board on Oct. 8, seeking approval to add five feet of netting to the existing fence.

You know how when stuff happens, people sometimes ask in despair, “How did we get here?”

Nobody asked that at the Design Review Board meeting. The 5-member Board saw this one coming a mile away. “We knew this was going to come up,” chair Juann Khoory said, recalling that the Board raised exactly the question of balls escaping from the playing field to busy Weston Road during the Hardy School planning process.

Saraceno laid out the specifics of the ask: to add 200 feet of netting along Weston Road; 40 feet of netting along Hardy Road; and 40 feet of netting along the parking lot. The overall height would come in at 9 feet. Saraceno compared it visually to the netting at Sprague School, albeit on a smaller scale—at Sprague, the netting height is 20 feet because kids up to high school age play there.

Hardy School field, Wellesley — Hardy School field. Wellesley Engineering Division image.

Sprague School fields, Wellesley — Sprague School fields. Not sure the Hardy School neighbors are going to love this visual, but safety first. Wellesley Engineering Division image.

The Board unanimously approved the addition of the netting, without even a, “We told ya so.”

“Good luck with the fence. The project looks amazing. We love it,” Khoory said.

Hardy Elementary School, new construction, Wellesley — The 18-classroom Hardy School opened in Aug 2024. The project was a teardown/rebuild of the old Hardy School, which educated students for 100 years.

Please send tips, photos, ideas to theswellesleyreport@gmail.com
Subscribe to Swellesley’s weekday email newsletter.

Wellesley Conservation Land Trust annual cider & donuts at Cronk’s Rocky Woodland

October 16, 2025 by admin Leave a Comment

DATE: Sunday, October 19th
TIME: 3:30-5pm (rain or shine)
LOCATION: 20 Crown Ridge Rd, Wellesley

DESCRIPTION: The Wellesley Conservation Land Trust invites you to an afternoon at Cronk’s Rocky Woodland for hot cider and donuts (courtesy of Wellesley Whole Foods).

Explore the Hansel and Gretel cottage, say hello to your College Heights and Wellesley neighbors, learn about the family that donated this property to the Land Trust for preservation in perpetuity, explore the rocks of the Rocky Woodland, and participate in the future of the Wellesley Conservation Land Trust—your trusted voice for protection of natural space in Wellesley.

The WCLT has begun a multi-phase restoration of platings at Cronk’s. Come join us as we work to restore this beautiful neighborhood treasure.

Wellesley police log: Phantom kitten; rogue candy seller; mysterious trunk; student photographed with firearm

October 16, 2025 by admin Leave a Comment

The latest Wellesley, Mass. police log:

On July 28, 2025, at 7:19 p.m. an officer spoke with a male reporting party regarding fraudulent checks he had received. He indicated he had been retained by a client to assist with mediation of a dispute. The payment received was in the form of a fraudulent check. His bank indicated they would refund the lost monies to his account. The incident is under investigation.

On July 28, 2025, at 7:39 p.m. an officer spoke to a female reporting party who wished to report her vehicle stolen. The reporting party stated that she believed her daughter’s boyfriend had taken the car without her authority. The officer inquired if her daughter is authorized to use the vehicle and the reporting party indicated she was, but she was unable to get in touch with her to determine if she had the vehicle. She was advised to attempt further to contact her daughter to determine if she had the vehicle and if she was driving the vehicle.

On July 29, 2205, at 9:42 a.m. an officer spoke with a male reporting party regarding fraud. The male party stated an unknown individual opened a PayPal account using his personal information in April 2025. He stated he contacted his bank and had the charges reversed and later received a collection letter from PayPal for the charges. The incident is under investigation.

On July 29, 2205, at 10:32 p.m. an officer spoke with a male reporting party regarding being struck by a scooter earlier in the day. The reporting party stated that while walking to the Wellesley Square train station around 10:20 a.m. a male party on scooter intentionally rode his scooter into him. He said he was struck so hard he dropped his coffee, and the male party did not stop and he smiled and grinned at him. He was advised to contact the police department if this sort of thing happens again.

On August 1, 2025, at 7:22 p.m. an officer spoke to a female reporting party regarding an online scam. The reporting party purchased a kitten online and paid $1,900 via Cash-App for the kitten that she had arranged for a pet transporter to pick up the kitten from the seller in Michigan and they did not show up. When she tried to contact the seller, the number was no longer functioning. The officer attempted to call the number as well without success and contacted the local police department in Michigan and was advised that there was nobody by the name of the seller at the address they provided.

Value having a dedicated local news source? Now, thanks to Swellesley’s partnership with Tiny News Collective, you can make tax deductible contributions to support our work.

On August 4, 2025, at 8:00 p.m. an officer spoke to a female reporting party regarding items stolen from their apartment. The female party indicated that a TV, headphones, videos games and other miscellaneous items had been taken from the apartment. The [Read more…]

Education resources in and beyond Wellesley, Mass.

October 15, 2025 by admin Leave a Comment

Thanks to St. John School for sponsoring our swell roundup of local education resources such as tutors, college consultants, private schools, and more.

St. John School—Open House, Oct. 19

St. John School at 9 Ledyard St., Wellesley, offers small class sizes, STEM in grades K-6, seven specialist classes, over 25 after school clubs, after school care until 5pm, athletics (cross country, golf, basketball, cheer), and more. Open House Sunday, Oct. 19, 10am-11:30am.

St. John School, Wellesley