Take me to temple in Wellesley — Temple Beth Elohim

July 6, 2018 by Caleb Brown Leave a Comment

Part of a weekly series of posts profiling places of worship in Wellesley

Temple Beth Elohim Glass, Wellesley

Wellesley’s Jewish community does not have many local houses of worship compared to the plethora of churches in town, but Temple Beth Elohim has stepped up to the challenge of serving not just the Wellesley community, but much of the surrounding area as well.

The temple began as a Jewish community organization in 1949, however the group did not establish its own building for a temple until 1961. The current temple was built in 2010 in light of a steady increase in membership, and can be found at 10 Bethel Rd. near Schofield Elementary School.

Since 2000, Temple Beth Elohim has been headed by Senior Rabbi Joel Sisenwine. He has been widely recognized as a leader in the larger Jewish community, having served on several statewide and national councils.

Temple Beth Elohim is affiliated with the Union of Reform Judaism, a popular branch Judaism which boasts over 800,000 members.

Summer Services:

Shabbat Services:

Fridays 6:00pm

Saturdays 10:30am & 5:00pm

Candlelight vigil in Wellesley draws large crowd

July 2, 2018 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

Religious and community groups in Wellesley took place in an organized a candlelight vigil over the weekend in front of Wellesley Village Church at 2 Central St. The vigil, attended by about 100, was in support of keeping families together in light of the recent events on the United States – Mexican border in which over 2,000 children were separated from their families as they tried tor cross the border from Mexico to the US.

Wellesley candlelight vigil — At Wellesley Square. Photo credi: Nell Simister

In Boston protesters gathered at City Hall plaza and marched, over 15,000 strong according to organizers, through the streets to Boston Common. They held signs and shouted their message of zero tolerance for President Trump’s zero tolerance immigration policies that allow families to be separated at the United States/Mexico border. Under the administration’s policies, due process for those detained at the border is not ensured.

Hundreds of similar events were held in other cities throughout the US.

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Wellesley Village Church turning “heat island” into an oasis

June 2, 2018 by Deborah Brown Leave a Comment

Wellesley Village Church, Spring planting — Wellesley Village Church, where earlier this month enthusiastic volunteers led by the church’s Environmental Ministry helped plant trees and shrubs in the churchyard and cemetery. Photo credit: Paul Cramer

A wise king once said “To everything there is a season…” Earlier this month at Wellesley Village Church, volunteers led by the church’s Environmental Ministry took Solomon’s words to heart. On a seasonal spring day, 20 enthusiastic gardeners showed up with shovels and gloves to help plant trees and shrubs in the churchyard and cemetery in an effort to reduce the “heat island” effect of having a large yard with no canopy.

They didn’t do it alone. The United Church of Christ MassReLeaf program provided to Village Church $1,700 in Redbud trees, Cherry Dogwoods, and pink azaleas that were planted in the cemetery along Abbott Street in the cemetery along Church Street. Church volunteers pitched in to plant and do some maintenance to numerous existing small plants on the church property. Then, since the trees will need more than faith alone to grow, the Board of Properties helped out by providing watering bags for the trees, which will be tended until the plantings are well established.

It’s all part of a plan for the church’s Environmental Ministry and its Energy Task Force, which over the past several years have been evaluating ways that Village Church could be better stewards of the Earth. The result of that work has been a recommendation to adopt a goal of the church becoming a net zero user of energy, and to take the necessary steps over time to achieve that goal. To become a net zero user of energy, the church building and its operations would need to generate as much energy from renewable sources as it uses on an annual basis. Part of their action plan has been to take advantage of the beating sun by installing solar panels on the church’s roof. Part of it has been to pay attention to ways the beating sun might not advantage the church property, and thus the wider world, and remedy that by planting trees.

This isn’t the first time the MassReLeaf Ministry has partnered with Village Church to facilitate a tree-care project. The group, which has recently completed ten years of facilitating tree-care projects led by local religious organizations of any faith on public and access-qualified lands across Massachusetts, in 2015 gave funding and technical support to another project in town. During that project, parishioners left the pews and went out into the town to work on a tree, perennials and wild flower planting event. At the Wellesley/Newton Housing Authority sites at Morton Circle and Weston Road in Wellesley, seven trees, 44 perennials and several wildflower meadow test sites were planted on Housing Authority and Natural Resources Commission (NRC) land.

Village Church, which in 2014 was accepted for inclusion on the National Registry of Historic places, invites the public to tour the churchyard and enjoy the new plantings.

Let there be light as historic Wellesley Village Church celebrates installation of solar panels

April 18, 2018 by admin Leave a Comment

Date:April 22^nd 2018 (Earth Day!)

Time: 11:15 am

Location: Wellesley Village Church, 2 Central Ave, Wellesley, MA

Wellesley Village Church will celebrate God’s creation with a unveiling ceremony marking the installation of solar panels on our roof. In support of our objective to honor and protect the health of our community and our home, Wellesley Village Church is committed to a net zero impact on the environment. When complete the system should provide about half our current electrical usage.

Lunch will be served.

10 holiday happenings in Wellesley, 2017 round-up

December 1, 2017 by Deborah Brown 1 Comment

Here’s a rundown of assorted end-of-year holiday activities taking place in Wellesley. The upcoming weekend is especially busy as Wellesley welcomes December.

Boy Scout Trees and Greenery sale, Route 9

Saint John School Trees & Trimmings sale

Festival of Trees, Mass Hort

Mass Hort, Wellesley — “Flocked,” by SK Designs, Wellesley

Massachusetts Horticultural Society’s 9th annual Festival of Trees will take place through Sunday, December 10, at Mass Hort’s Elm Bank property, 900 Washington Street, Wellesley. The festival will showcase over 70 trees and feature Snow Village, an extensive model train and holiday village collection. The Festival of Trees, in the Hunnewell Building, offers beautifully decorated holiday trees that are donated and decorated by local businesses, garden clubs, and individuals. Visitors “vote” with their raffle tickets in hopes of being the tree winner at the end of the Festival. Visitors can enjoy the decorated buildings and grounds at Elm Bank with a stroll or a horse- drawn wagon ride. For the young at heart, there are visits from Santa and fun activities in the Parkman room.

Crafts sale at Wellesley Village Church

A beautiful assortment of crafts will be sold at the Village Church (2 Central Street) on Saturday, December 2, 10am – 4pm; and Sunday, December 3, starting at 11am. A van load full of crafts will arrive at the church from H.O.M.E. (Homeworkers Organized for More Employment) in Orland, Maine and will provide a wonderful selection of gifts for all ages and price ranges.

H.O.M.E. was founded in 1970 as a crafting co-op to enhance the quality of life for low income and homeless families and serves one of the poorest areas in northern Maine. The program has grown over the years to assist with food, jobs, shelter, low income housing, education, and self sufficiency. H.O.M.E sells crafts in their own shop on campus as well as at craft fairs in MA and CT during the holiday season. Their on-campus facilities are dedicated to weaving, ceramics, leather work, stained glass and stitchery, and crafters and artists in the local community can use space on H.O.M.E.’s campus.

To facilitate parents being able to work, H.O.M.E. runs a licensed day care center. Their food pantry offers community access to food throughout the year which comes from their organic gardens and green houses, and they also offer hot lunches Monday through Friday. The income from the sales totally goes back to the individual crafters. You will find a wonderful selection of pottery, hand knit hats, mittens, socks and sweaters, beautiful quilts, stuffed animals, wooden toys, jewelry, and a large selection of jams, jellies, and maple products, to name just a few of the items. Hand made wreaths will also be for sale.

Wellesley Square Holiday Stroll and Art Walk

December 3, noon – 6pm

Free parking. Great deals. Lots of family-friendly fun. More info here.

Carillon Holiday Open Tower, Wellesley College

Christmas Vespers, Wellesley College

Wellesley Theater Project presents A Christmas Carol

This Wellesley Theatre Project adaption of Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol is the story of a bitter old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge and his transformation into a gentler, kinder man after visitations by various ghosts. Join us for this uplifting holiday story of redemption, magic, and hope. This is an audition-based production features a limited number of students.

Performances:

Friday December 8th at 7pm
Saturday, December 9th at 2pm and 7pm
Sunday, December 10th at 2pm
Satuerday December 16th at 2pm & 7pm
Sunday December 17th at 2pm

Location:

Babson Hall at The Wellesley Community Center
219 Washington St. Wellesley, MA 02481

Tickets:

In Advance:
$15 Adults
$10 Students & Seniors

At The Door:
$18 Adults
$12 Students & Seniors

Purchase tickets online HERE or by calling 781-235-1550. Please note all sales are final and we are unable to issue refunds or exchanges for tickets purchased.

Linden Square, dine with Santa Claus

Saturday, December 9

Breakfast with Santa at The Cottage with Wellesley Bank (https://www.cottagewellesley.com)

Lunch with Santa at The Linden Store (http://lindenstore.com/)

Luminary Night — Sunday, Dec. 10

The 11th annual Wellesley Hills Junior Women’s Club’s (WHJWC) 11th Annual Luminary Night will take place on Sunday, December 10. On Luminary Night, families and businesses throughout Wellesley light luminary candles along their streets, sidewalks and doorsteps, creating a beautiful town-wide display that welcomes the holiday season.

Luminary kits can be purchased online or at the Roche Brothers Customer Service Desk; the Wellesley Holiday Boutique; or Wellesley Dental Group. December 5 – 10 kits will be for sale outside Roche Bros. at the WHJWC table.

Luminary kits are $20 each and include materials to create ten luminaries. Kits ordered on-line will be delivered to your home by a member of the Wellesley Hills Junior Women’s Club.

Here’s more information about how you can help set the town aglow on Luminary Night.

Religious services

*Visit our Where to Worship page for links to houses of worship, so you can get details on services of interest.