The Swellesley Report

More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

Beyond Wellesley: TEDx Natick, Jan. 25th

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TEDxNatickThe fifth annual TEDxNatick will take place on January 25, 2020 at Natick High School. The event will feature 11 speakers who will tell their stories live and on stage, TED-talk style.

We’re most excited about investigative journalist and award-winning mystery author Hank Phillippi Ryan. Ryan is an on-air investigative reporter for Boston’s WHDH-TV, and winner of 36 Emmy and 14 Edward R. Murrow awards.  A nationally bestselling author of 11 mysteries, she also has won five Agathas, three Anthonys, and the Mary Higgins Clark Award. Hank’s 2018 Trust Me is an Agatha Nominee. Her newest novel is The Murder List.  Critics call her “a master of suspense”.

An all-volunteer, community-driven initiative, TEDxNatick brings together 800 community members, civic leaders, business leaders, technologists, artists, educators, and other professionals for a full day of thought-provoking talks, inspiring music, conversations and networking. This year’s event will have over 20 corporate and individual sponsors, and 12 fantastic speakers. Those interested in volunteering may contact [email protected]. Tickets are on sale at tedxnatick.org. Buy your tickets soon, every previous TEDxNatick event has sold out in advance.

More on the speakers:

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Linden Square

Wellesley summer camp listings 2020 — find the experience of a lifetime

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LINX Camps, Wellesley

The Swellesley Report’s Summer Camps page is now updated with over 75 camps in Wellesley and beyond. It’s time to sign your child up for the summer camp experience of a lifetime. Whether they’re into coding, arts and crafts, sports, drama, or nature, the perfect camp is out there for them.

Swellesley’s camps page is sponsored by LINX Camps. Over 40 Premier Camps. Perfect for your family.

Contact Deborah for more info on inclusion of your camp located in Wellesley or elsewhere, or for advertising on Swellesley. Camp parents and guardians: Please let camps know that you found them here, if you did…thanks.

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Beyond Wellesley: Lee & Newmarket NH for bookstore, walk & riverfront lunch

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Here’s a quick day trip we just took that might appeal to those of you who are both bookish and outdoorsy.

Book store adventure

Our primary destination was Avenue Victor Hugo Book Store, which opened in Lee, N.H., in late 2018 as a reincarnation of the shop that spent 30 years on Newbury Street in Boston until the rent got too ridiculous and it closed in 2004. The new store, open on Fridays and Saturdays, sits in a red barn about 90 minutes north of Wellesley. Owners Vincent McCaffrey and Thais Coburn also make their inventory browsable online, and their son-in-law has sparked interest in the shop through social media efforts.

Avenue Victor Hugo Book ShopAvenue Victor Hugo Book Shop

While the shop has only been at the barn for a bit more than a year, it feels like it’s been there forever. The shelves are packed with used and collectible books, magazines and maps. The fiction collection spans several aisles, and the shop includes lots of history, biography, and other books

The aisles are wide enough to browse comfortably even as other visitors pass through. Among our pick-ups, based on one of the Swellesley Jrs.’ random book selection system: Jo Sinclair’s “Wasteland,” a 1946 Harper Prize winner, and the work of an underrated author according to store owner McCaffrey.

A modest hike

Once we left with a bagful of books, we drove less than half a mile down the road to Little River Park on this slightly snow-and-ice covered day.

The park offers sports fields, a playground and events pavilion, but we were there to check out the walking trails. We thought about taking the ridge or forest trails, but settled on the modest Lamprey River Trail that kept us walking for a total of one mile. It proved rewarding with a great view from above of water gushing between thick chunks of ice surrounded by a forested embankment.

On snowier days the trail attracts snowmobilers. The day we went there, the most ambitious trail user sped along by fat tire bike.

Little River Park

Little River Park
Lamprey River gushing

 

Little River Park
Not so friendly signage

A cozy lunch

After working up an appetite from our grueling trip to the book store and our mini-hike, we headed for The Riverworks in nearby Newmarket, N.H.

This cozy tavern earned points right away for playing the Pixies “Where Is My Mind?” as we entered. Server Heather greeted us enthusiastically, and took orders for generous nachos, steak-and-cheese and veggie quesadillas, a hearty BLT with turkey, and more. The homemade salt-and-pepper chips that come with sandwiches were crisp and tasty, and the prices were reasonable, in the $9-$12 range for our meals.

While the Riverworks itself isn’t right along the river, we did a post-lunch constitutional by crossing the street and walking along the river behind a mill-turned-retail-and-residence building. The Lamprey River was much milder from this vantage point, largely still, with some ice here and there. We can imagine with the small park and boat launch area is a livelier spot when the weather is warmer.

Riverworks restaurant

More: Beyond Wellesley: Tuning into Nashville

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Happy 15th birthday to us: The Year in Swellesley

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Nothing ever happens in Wellesley. Except it does.

We’ve enjoyed another full year of sharing your stories, breaking news and watching it go viral, and weaving in our personal adventures.

Wellesley Town Hall
Wellesley Town Hall

 

With the Swellesley Jrs. aging out of the Wellesley Public School system, Mrs. Swellesley turned her attention to The Swellesley Report as her full-time job. Our goal for 2020, our 16th year publishing, is to have Mr. Swellesley do the same.

Thank you to everyone who sent news tips and financial contributions to Swellesley in what has by far been our top year for readership and reader support. And huge thanks to all of our advertisers, who help to make Swellesley possible from a financial standpoint.

Swellesley highlights this year included:

Wellesley boardwalk
Wellesley Ecocampers make use of the vernal pool overlook.

 

lynne smith elton john
Lynne Smith: Wellesley’s Rocket Woman

 

wellesley high senior tailgate
WHS surprise tailgate

 

organ wellesley
Estey organ left at Wellesley RDF (photo courtesy of Hilary Prus)

 

Wood carving, Overbrook Dr., Wellesley

 

On a more personal note:

Wellesley Wednesdays, Beth Shedd
The Swellesleys made the cut for Beth Shedd’s Wellesley Wednesdays by Beth Shedd

 

We finished the year by ringing the Salvation Army bells in Linden Square to help raise funds for local initiatives. We saw dozens of people we knew during our shift, and thanked many we didn’t know, but they all reminded us of the magical stuff we have here.

elsa in wellesley square

support swellesley

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City living in Boston’s Back Bay, presented by Compass Real Estate

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303 Berkeley Street, Unit 5, Boston

SPONSORED POST: Live in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood in this stellar 8-unit, 100% owner-occupied concierge building at 303 Berkeley St., Unit 5, presented by Compass Real Estate. Direct elevator access leads you into the stunning 2,000+/- single-floor residence.

This impeccable 2+ bedroom, 2.5 bath home comes with a full parking space in the heated garage and features extraordinary high ceilings and an open, spacious kitchen with a gleaming stainless steel gas range and a rectangular island. Enjoy meals in the separate dining room that overlooks the heart of the neighborhood. The living room’s beautiful gas fireplace, gleaming hardwood floors and abundant light highlight this lovely property.

Compass, Back Bay
Enjoy Boston with the convenience of living in a professionally managed building with concierge service, direct elevator access and heated garage parking.

Well-proportioned ensuite bedrooms offer generous, custom closets. Abundant natural light through oversized windows showcases elegant finishes and fixtures throughout this spectacular home. Additional amenities include Monday – Friday concierge and professional management in a pet-friendly, non-smoking corner building. $3,399,000

303 Berkeley St. is represented by Jeannemarie Conley of Compass. Jeannemarie is one of the foremost real estate brokers in the Boston area with public and private sales totaling nearly $500 million. Ms. Conley spent over ten years in the financial services industry in New York and Boston. She is a Certified Public Accountant, previously with Ernst & Young, and graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Providence College.

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Beyond Wellesley: Tuning into Nashville

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broadway nashville

You won’t find 2 more different places than Wellesley and Nashville. And that, of course, is the beauty of what people from either place will find visiting the other.

Nashville has so much to offer that you just don’t come across in Wellesley:

  • Vehicles driven by sober people lined on each side by drinkers peddling from their barstools while singing at the tops of their lungs.
  • Broadway, a non-stop party strip with country and other singers belting out tunes from open-air bars bearing the names of Kid Rock, Jason Aldean and others.
  • Pedestrians who more or less obey traffic signals.
  • A colorful pedestrian bridge linking the NFL’s Tennessee Titans football stadium to the central bar and restaurant area.
nashville at night
Nashville at night

 

peddlers nashville
A little rain didn’t stop the party bikes from cruising Broadway

On and under the surface, Nashville is more suited to grown-up visitors than families, though granted, we didn’t seek out activities such as the acclaimed zoo. We also traveled without renting a car, so confined our excursions to those within a reasonable walk, run or ride-share. 

I should mention that neither Mr. nor Mrs. Swellesley is much of a country music fan. We recognized some names and songs, but weren’t bowing at Music City’s altars like some visitors. We descended upon Nashville to attend a late-October journalism conference called the LION Publishers Summit, and take in the sights while there.

Nashville sights and sounds

 

We started off strong, taking a quick look at daytime Broadway after checking in to our hotel, which had a guitar-shaped pool we regrettably never used. Guitars are everywhere in Nashville, and southern charm and manners were alive and well, too. We made a concentrated effort to be friendly, and more or less succeeded.

We grabbed lunch at Acme Feed & Seed, which boasts a steady stream of customers and juicy brisket sandwiches. We ate on the rooftop bar, which

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Wellesley Schools roundup, explore Tenacre; WMS rows the Charles; Dana Hall welcomes author

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Our weekly roundup of Wellesley schools and education news is sponsored by Tenacre School. Visit Tenacre at Open House, Curriculum Night, or during a Tuesday tour.

 

Wellesley Middle School students row, row, row their boat

Wellesley Middle School’s (WMS) newest class of 6th graders participated in team-building exercises at the Community Rowing boathouse in Brighton, MA. The children rotated between rowing on the Charles River in barges, fitness training on ergs in the fitness room, and team-building games with their classmates.  The idea behind the field trip was to help to foster bonds and friendships between students who have come together as one large middle school class from Wellelsey’s seven elementary schools. Faculty, staff, and parents have noticed that bonds are sometimes slow to form as students leave their smaller elementary schools and come together at the 1,200-student middle school, which educates grades 6 – 8.  The WMS Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) funded a portion of the trip as a way to promote the development of social and emotional skills during the transition to the new school environment.  The WMS PTO is fully funded through charitable donations by WMS families.  Their generosity ultimately provides students with these exceptional opportunities for learning.

PTO-funded field trips at other schools

Fiske Grade 2 students visited the Mapparium at the Mary Baker Eddy Library in Boston; Bates Grade 3 students will visit Plimoth Plantation later this month to learn about the Wampanoag People and the Colonial English community in the 1600s; Hardy 5th graders will go to the Mass Audubon Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary in Natick; and Sprague 3rd graders are looking forward to a field trip to Boston’s Museum of Science.

Dana Hall welcomes disability rights advocate, author, poet to campus

On Oct. 21, Dana Hall welcomed LeDerick Horne, a disability rights advocate, author and poet, to speak to the entire community about his struggle with an early learning disability diagnosis. Horne continued the conversation at lunch with a group of students who wanted to know more about how his disability and the ways in which being a person of color influenced him.
Dana Hall, Wellesley
Horne with the two students who introduced him, Isabelle Varsa ’20 (left) and Ashleigh Chiwaya ’23

 

Here’s how to get your school’s news into Swellesley’s weekly Schools Roundup post:

Send in a short blurb and/or picture about news and events going on at your school. Email: [email protected]

Stuff that’s newsworthy:

Upcoming events such as bake sales, book sales, fairs, etc.
Dates such as for Back to School Night, meetings, etc.

Pictures of events that may not have been open to the public but that give people an idea of great things that are happening in your school, such as author’s visits.

Congratulations to faculty/staff who are retiring, or who are new hires.

The weekly deadline is Wednesdays at noon. The post will appear each Thursday.

Interested in underwriting our Wellesley Schools roundup? Here’s how to Advertise and/or Donate to support our independent journalism venture

School News Beyond Wellesley  — Riverbend in South Natick

Riverbend School, located at 39 Eliot Street, South Natick, held a groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday, October 16th to celebrate the construction of a new classroom building that will contain three purpose-built Lower Elementary classrooms and a Design and Art room space. A stand-alone, full-size gymnasium will also be built. The project is expected to be completed by Fall 2020.

Riverbend School, Natick
Riverbend School students get in on the act at the groundbreaking ceremony.

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Public invited to Natick Artists Open Studios on October 19 & 20

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Natick Artists Open StudiosMore than 65 artists who live, work or show in Natick, and guest artists, will throw open their doors to the public during Natick Artists Open Studios on Saturday, October 19 and Sunday, October 20, 11am – 5pm on both days. The area’s creatives have committed to bringing art to the local community for the 20th year by welcoming visitors into their workspaces. It’s the perfect opportunity to see art, learn about how art is made, and buy local art directly from the artists.

Participants include painters, photographers, designers and creators of jewelry, ceramicists, sculptors, woodworkers as well as paper, fabric, and glass artists. There are 9 group and 12 individual studios to visit as well as a bake sale at the Annunciation Orthodox Church, a new venue this year.

Event runs for two days, Saturday, October 19th & October 20th, 11 am – 5 pm. Click HERE for more details.

Visitors to Natick Artist Open Studios can pick up a Passport at any location, have it stamped at each place they visit and then leave it at their last location. The Passport enters them (no minimum) into a drawing for a $50 Natick Artists Open Studio gift certificate, good at any participating artist. There will be a new card and drawing each day.

DATES: Saturday, October 19 & Sunday, October 20
TIME: 11am – 5pm, both days
PRICE: Free to the public
LOCATION: Natick Center and surrounding locations
ORGANIZATION: ArtNatick.org, https://www.artnatick.org/

Natick Artists Open Studios
“For Your Own Sake” by Suzanne Stumpf, ceramic artist (photo by John Polak Photography)

Natick Open Studios 2019 locations

Morse Institute Library
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Annunciation Orthodox Church
First Congregational Church
The Studios @ 3 Adams
20 Main St.
43 Main St. Studios
Winchell Building
The Barn @ 3 Malden
Neighborhood Studios

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Arts round-up in Wellesley and beyond

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Here’s a round-up of recent and upcoming Wellesley, Mass., art-themed news and activities:

Overbrook Drive deer sculpture — finished product

When it was time for a diseased tree to be removed over the summer at a residence on Overbrook Drive, the homeowners decided to take the opportunity to give the tree a new lease on life. Thanks to the talents of  woodcarver Michael Legassey of Wood Wizard Carvings out of Athol, Massachusetts, an impressive stag now stands watch where a shade tree once did duty.

We posted about the work-in-progress in July. Here’s a look at the finished product:

Wood carving, Overbrook Dr., Wellesley

“Windswept — Impressions of the Cape & Islands” through Sept. 28

Page Waterman, Wellesley
Beached, by Peggy Ellis

An artist event featuring Peggy Ellis is taking place through September 28th at Page Waterman, Gallery & Framing in Wellesley Square at 592A Washington St. “Windswept — Impressions of the Cape & Islands” will showcase works in oil and watercolor that showcase the artist’s colorful, beautiful, and expressive paintings.

The Davis Museum at Wellesley College

Davis Museum, WellesleyThe Davis Museum has five special installations on display for Fall 2019 that bring spectacular energy and creative artistic innovation to the Wellesley College campus. The major exhibition is, Fatimah Tuggar: Home’s Horizons. Also on display are:

Kanishka Raja: I and I

Recent Acquisitions: New Photographs (Haley Morris-Cafiero and Habiba Nowrose)

Hidden Histories: Revealing the Life of a Painting

Alexandria Smith: Seed to Harvest, the third “Windows Invitational” commission

In the museum’s Permanent Collection Galleries, look for a combination of old favorites as well as works that have been taken out of storage as the curators encourage visitors to look at the art with renewed perspectives.

Wellesley Art Tour, October 5

The Wellesley Women Artisans invite the community to the Wellesley Art Tour on Saturday, Oct. 5 from 11am to 5pm.

More than 30 artists from Wellesley and surrounding towns will exhibit work at 9 locations throughout Wellesley. Many artists will open their studios.

This event is free and open to the public. Maps for a self-guided tour as well as a list of exhibiting artists are available at www.WellesleyWomenArt.com/Tour.

Wellesley Art Tour

 

Natick Artist’s Open Studios, October 19 & 20

Natick Artists Open StudiosMore than 65 artists who live, work or show in Natick, and guest artists, will throw open their doors to the public during Natick Artists Open Studios on Saturday, October 19 and Sunday, October 20, 11am – 5pm on both days. The area’s creatives have committed to bringing art to the local community for the 20th year by welcoming visitors into their workspaces. It’s the perfect opportunity to see art, learn about how art is made, and buy local art directly from the artists.

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