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The Swellesley Report

Since 2005: More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

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Top Stories

Annual Town Meeting dissolved
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Education

Wellesley Middle School Civics Project looking for volunteers

March 19, 2026 by admin

8th graders in Wellesley participate in a Civics Project where groups pick a school, town, or state issue they think could be improved and work on ways to advocate for a specific change and/or to raise awareness about the issue.

Here’s a list of topics students have chosen and are just now getting started researching. Department Head Adam Blumer is looking for volunteers who might be willing to answer some basic questions or give advice to students. If you are willing to be a contact on a particular issue, please let him know on this form.

You don’t need to be an expert in any way or be involved in local government—just be willing to give some basic information or point students to resources (online or real life) that you know of to help build their knowledge and shape their project.

If you volunteer, at some point in the next week or two you might get an email from a group asking for information or clarification on something they’re learning about. The goal is to avoid having the same adult field requests from multiple groups, so the lift should be manageable.

If you have questions or need clarification, please reach out to Adam at Blumera@wellesleyps.org


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Filed Under: Education, Volunteering, Wellesley Middle School

     

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Tickets available now for Wellesley Rotary Club’s “Dinner On Us” Sweepstakes

October 18, 2025 by admin

SPONSORED CONTENT: The time is NOW to enter for a chance to win a Wellesley Rotary Club’s 5th annual “Dinner On Us” Sweepstakes prize. DONATION DEADLINE: November 30, 2025 at 10:55pm.

The Wellesley Rotary Club has purchased gift cards from over 40 Wellesley restaurants, and many restaurants donated gift card prizes of $100, $50, and $25.

Tickets are going fast, so don’t miss out on YOUR chance to win big!

FUNDRAISER: “Dinner On Us” Sweepstakes
DONATION: $20 and up. Entries available now, here.
DONATION DEADLINE: November 30, 2025, at 10:55pm EST
DRAWING: December 3, 2025, at 7pm EST

Wellesley Rotary, Dinner On Us

Win dinners. Fuel good. Every donation supports Rotary programs fighting food insecurity and lifting our community.

So many prizes, so little time! The Wellesley Rotary club has purchased gift cards from your favorite Wellesley restaurants, and many restaurants donated gift card prizes of $150, $100, and $50, so now it’s your turn to step up and win–Donate for chances to WIN BIG!!!

Why enter the Sweepstakes?

In our own backyard, there are individuals and families facing the harsh reality of food insecurity, unsure of where their next meal will come from. It’s a challenge that touches lives right here in Wellesley, and it’s up to us to step forward and make a difference.

It’s a win-win. With your Dinner On Us donation, you’re doing more than entering a sweepstakes—you’re feeding momentum. Winners enjoy gift cards to our favorite local restaurants, and proceeds power the Rotary Club of Wellesley’s service work: addressing food insecurity and advancing community projects that make Wellesley a healthier, more connected place to live. Your night out can be someone else’s helping hand.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Clubs, Food, Volunteering

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Volunteering in Wellesley: MassBay/Temple Beth Elohim join forces to pack meals; Council on Aging seeks drivers

August 17, 2025 by Bob Brown

The latest volunteer news in Wellesley, Mass.:

MassBay/Temple Beth Elohim join forces to pack meals

MassBay Community College President David Podell and Special Assistant to the President Adam Nelson recently rolled up their sleeves alongside volunteers at Temple Beth Elohim (TBE) in Wellesley to pack meals for people in the community facing food insecurity. The effort is part of TBE Table, which supports MassBay students and members of other local organizations with nourishing meals.

Through the MassBay Meals initiative, students can take home restaurant-quality, ready-to-heat meals—offered in both vegetarian and meat options—at no cost. Volunteers from TBE make it possible by shopping for ingredients, prepping, cooking, and packaging meals each month.

TBE Table Meal Packing Pres Podell and Adam Nelson1
TBE Table Meal Packing (courtesy photo)

 


Council on Aging seeks drivers

The Wellesley Council on Aging  (COA) needs volunteer drivers this summer. Volunteers provide rides using their own vehicles, taking seniors to medical appointments, social engagements, shopping, and more. 

Most volunteer shifts are during the daytime or early evening.

Volunteers can commit to a regular schedule or be on-call intermittently.

Interested individuals should complete the COA Volunteer Application.


Now, thanks to Swellesley’s partnership with Tiny News Collective, you can make tax deductible contributions to support our work.

Filed Under: Charity/Fundraising, MassBay, Volunteering

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Know your elected officials—Wellesley Municipal Light Board

The five-person, Municipal Light Board oversees the Wellesley Municipal Light Plant. The board consists of the three elected Board of Public Works Commissioners and two members appointed by the Select Board.

Municipal Light Board members, 2026

Ned Hall, Chair
Scott Bender, Vice Chair
Paul Criswell, Secretary
Michael McManus, appointed by Select Board
Jeff Wechsler, appointed by Select Board

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Know your elected Wellesley officials—Board of Public Works

This page was updated March 2026.

The Town of Wellesley elects a Board of Public Works consisting of three residents who each serve a three-year term. The Board has the general duties of road commissioners, surveyors of highways, superintendent of streets, water commissioners, and sewer commissioners.

Board of Pubic Works members

Jeffrey Wechsler, Chair—term ends 2029
Scott Bender, Vice Chair
Michael McManus, Secretary—term ends 2029


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Public Works event, May 2025.
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Volunteers in Wellesley dress veterans’ graves with new flags ahead of Memorial Day

May 10, 2025 by Bob Brown

Dozens of volunteers, including a strong turnout from the Wellesley High School football and lacrosse teams, headed to Woodlawn Cemetery on soggy Saturday morning to dress veterans’ graves.

Some of the student-athletes ran there from the high school field where they play. Elected town officials,  sports coaches, and families, were also among the volunteers.

dressing of graves woodlawn cemetery
 
Wellesley’s Pete Jones, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, said 1,500 flags were being placed at graves at Woodlawn, and more would be placed elsewhere in town, including at memorial markers. Volunteers returned old flags, where at the back of a pickup truck Jones and others worked to dislodge round memorial markers from old sticks and replace the sticks and flags with new ones.

dressing of graves woodlawn cemetery
Pete Jones, left, had plenty of assistance in swapping out old flags for new

 
Volunteers, going quadrant by quadrant, were given instructions to replace all existing flags, Select Board member Beth Sullivan Woods said. Flags are disposed of through a controlled burn on Flag Day in June.

Young and old took part, with all being careful to treat the flags and graves with respect.

The town will celebrate the 250th Anniversary of U.S. Army, Navy and Marines on May 18 with the 57th Annual Wellesley Veterans Parade.

Wellesley recognizes Memorial Day on May 30, and will have a short ceremony at Woodlawn Cemetery at 7pm followed by a gathering in front of Town Hall that Friday night.

dressing of graves woodlawn cemeterydressing of graves woodlawn cemeterydressing of graves woodlawn cemeterydressing of graves woodlawn cemetery
 


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Filed Under: Military, Volunteering

Wellesley Village Church Rummage Sale, Nov. 2

November 1, 2024 by admin

On Saturday, November 2nd, the early birds will start lining up before outside Wellesley Village Church, 2 Central St., for the annual Rummage Sale. At 9am, the doors will open and the crowd will start shopping the sale in the church basement. This sale features thousands of gently used items for sale at bargain prices.

Wellesley Village Church Rummage Sale

Items are organized into departments, with dedicated spaces for women’s clothing, accessories and shoes, children’s clothing and toys, men’s wear, kitchen and home goods, and more. The Chic Boutique is a perennial favorite, specializing in higher-end women’s designer clothing, purses and shoes.

More than 100 volunteers work together to make the sale the “best one day thrifting event in Boston.” Rummage Sale co-chair Cherie Hoffman says, “For over 80 years, this sale has brought community together, saved lots of volume from the landfill and generated about $400,000 that has been deployed to charities helping children and families nearby and farther away.”

Shop the sale November 2nd, 9am-1pm. $2 entry fee. Come find your treasure!

Filed Under: Shopping, Volunteering

Wellesley Celebrations Committee announces 2024 theme for annual Veterans Parade—hint: hug a medic

February 1, 2024 by Deborah Brown

The Wellesley Celebrations Committee has announced that the theme for the 2024 annual Veterans Parade, slated for Sunday, May 19, will be the “200th Anniversary of Modern Battlefield Medicine Advancements.”

There’s much to celebrate on that front—over the past 200 years, combat soldiers have benefited from the emergence of anesthesia, X-rays, antibiotics, and blood transfusions. That time period also saw the development of the modern triage system, which puts the most severely wounded soldiers first for care, and the development of new strategies and equipment for the evacuation and transport of casualties to medical facilities. If you ever saw the 1970s TV show M*A*S*H (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) starring Alan Alda, and set during the Korean War, you saw these advancements portrayed.

Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend, encampment
Military encampment reenactment in front of Wellesley Town Hall, 2018

 

Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend, encampment
Military encampment reenactment in front of Wellesley Town Hall, 2022

The 56th Veteran’s Parade will be one of many events held during Wellesley’s Wonderful Weekend including a town picnic, concert, and fireworks. The weekend will kick off on Friday, May 17 with historical displays at the library and culminate on Sunday, May 19, with the fireworks display.

Here’s the schedule of events.

How to help the Celebrations Committee

Volunteer—from parade day management, to the antique car and convertible committee, to fundraising, there’s plenty to do to prepare for the big weekend.

Too busy to volunteer? Make a tax-deductible donation.

Nominate an honoree—Typically there are over a dozen honorees across the following categories:

  • Community Service Awards (For those whose have volunteered their skills, ideas and devotion, making the town a better place.) Can be an individual, or a business know for its willingness to help out.
  • Dedicated Service Awards (For those who have changed the community for the better through their commitment, compassion, and vision.) Often a Town employee.
  • Special Recognition Awards (Often long-time local businesses.)
  • Learn more about honorees from previous years.

Be in the parade—community groups, marching bands, circus acts, and more join in the madness every year. So should you.

Calling all Wellesley veterans—sign up to participate in the parade, reviewing stand, and reception.


Every day is Wellesley Day at The Swellesley Report—please support us.

Filed Under: Entertainment, Holidays, Volunteering

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Calendar

Upcoming Wellesley events

Upcoming Events

Apr 10
8:45 am - 9:45 am

Walk with a Doc, sponsored by Olive Tree Medical

Apr 10
9:15 am - 6:00 pm

Friends of the Wellesley Free Libraries book sale

Apr 10
11:00 am - 12:30 pm

Wellesley Planning Board office hours with Jim Roberti

Apr 11
9:15 am - 5:00 pm

Friends of the Wellesley Free Library book sale

Apr 11
4:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Wellesley College Choir—The Baum Memorial concert

View Calendar

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Wellesley in Bloom starts May 2!

Wellesley in Bloom starts May 2!

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