Photo: State Rep Dave Rogers at the Belmont Farmers Market
State Rep Dave Rogers has announced his June office hours in Belmont. They will be:
– Tuesday, June 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Beech Street Center in Belmont (266 Beech Street, Belmont, MA, 02478)
– Tuesday, June 20, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Bellmont Café in Belmont (80 Leonard Street, Belmont MA, 02478)
Photo: Pride is coming to Belmont on June 17
The Pride Parade, the highlight of Belmont Pride, will be a tad shorter this edition but for all the best reasons.
Hosted by the Belmont LGBTQ+ Alliance; and co-sponsored by Belmont Against Racism and the Human Rights Campaign, Belmont Pride takes place on the Town Green adjacent to 404 Concord Ave., First Church Belmont, on Saturday, June 17 at 12:45 p.m. The parade begins at 1 p.m.
The event begins with opening remarks before the parade. This year we’ve changed the march route to make it shorter, flatter, and more accommodating for everyone. (see map below)
After the parade, join us to celebrate Fran Yuan at 2:45 PM at Trinktisch (indoors, 2nd level) in Belmont Center on Leonard Street.
Photo: Belmont’s new adminstrative staff: Treasurer Leslie Davidson (left) and Kelli Spencer
The town of Belmont has filled a pair of critical administrative positions that have been empty for several months.
On Monday, June 5, the Select Board will ratify Town Administrator Patrice Garvin’s selection of Leslie Davidson of Beverly to be town treasurer and tax collector, while Kelli Spencer of Brockton has been appointed the town’s Human Resources director.
The appointments were announced at the June 5th Select Board meeting held before Town Meeting.
The annual salary and benefits for each position will be announced later.
Davidson has been treasurer in Lynnfield since November 2019. [Read about her experience before her appointment in Lynnfield in a profile in ItemLive.com] Davidson has nearly ten years of municipal experience in the treasurers departments in Marblehead and Wenham and 14 years at Beverly National Bank as an assistant cashier. Davidson has an associate degree from North Shore Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration manga cum laude from Endicott College.
Spencer is the human resources generalist in Norwood since September 2019 and has twice been asked to be the town’s acting human resources director in the past two years. She worked in human resources in both private industry and for the US Army before coming to Norwood. Spencer enrolled at Bridgewater State University, graduating in 2012, and last month obtained her Master’s in Public Administration from Suffolk University. She is last year’s recipient of the Massachusetts Municipal Management Association’s Gerry Whitlock Memorial Scholarship, a $2,000 award given to a Massachusetts graduate student who plans on a career in local government. Her dog is named Whiskey.
Photo: Belmont Town Meeting will take up an amendment to transfer free cash to the school department for SPED programs
In one of the most contentious votes in recent Town Meeting history, an amendment to transfer a little over a quarter million dollars from free cash to the school department will come before the town’s legislative body as the meeting debates the fiscal year ’24 operating budget on Monday, June 5.
Sponsored by former School Committee member Michael Crowley with the backing of several prominent Town Meeting members, the amendment has already shaken up the School Committee as half the members voted on Friday, June 2, their support of the measure when it comes before Town Meeting.
A protest rally outside Belmont High School is anticipated by some of the members backing the transfer, with leaflets expected to be distributed.
The amendment seeks to transfer $289,000 from the town’s “free cash” account to support much-needed funding for the special education program and personnel.
According to Crowley, the amendment will provide $189,000 to hire two FTEs in the SPED program and set aside $100,000 to design and develop a plan to return Belmont students currently being taught “out-of-district” back to district schools resulting in significant savings.
“Out-of-district tuition is a top cost driver for the district, and investing now can reduce future expenses,” said Crowley describing the amendment’s aims.
Members backing the amendment include Karen Bauerle, Heather Barr, Marty Bitner, Julie Crockett, Michael Gao, Kim Haley-Jackson, Paul Joy, Amy Kirsch, and Paul Roberts.
Members and town officials opposing the measure contend the amendment – being presented within the last week – is a last-minute financial interloper that, while admittingly not a budget buster, was not evaluated by the Warrant Committee, Town Meeting’s financial “watchdog.”
The action comes as the town is marshaling funds into free cash as an essential bulwark as the town prepares to present to voters a nearly $10 million Prop 2 1/2 override at the annual Town Election in April 2024. Town officials have stated in budget meetings that building up unreserved funds balance will allow the town to keep the override “ask” under $10 million – an amount many feels is more palatable for voters to accept – and will be a lifeline to town and schools if the override fails.
At a recent Select Board meeting, the board indicated the three members will speak out against the measure as will the Warrant Committee contending the amendments and its backers have subverted the budget process. In addition, a significant number of Town Meeting Members are expected to voice their concern the amendment is sowing division between Town Meeting members – the ultimate judge of the budget – and town and school officials and committees, which spent nearly ten months shepherding the budget to a vote.
That division could be seen taking place in the School Committee 3-3 vote where members Jamal Saeh, Jeffrey Liberty, and Jung Yueh voted “favorable action” to the amendment with Chair Meghan Moriarty, Amy Checkoway, and Amy Zuccarello in opposition. In the debate, the newly-elected Yueh said that Town Meeting is part of the budget process, as are budget amendments.
Crowley, when he was a member of the school committee until April, advocated using free cash to support the schools. He believes that an override will not pass or fail by Town Meetings’ acceptance of the transfer.
Photo: Caps tossed into the overcast as Belmont High School graduated 315 in the Class of 2023.
In weather more attuned for a fall football game, parents, siblings, relatives, and friends bundled up to witness the graduation of the members of the senior class of Belmont High School on Saturday, June 3.
The anticipated rain never came during the event, but the mist, wind, and 50-degree weather put an unseasonable chill on the ceremony underway at 10 a.m. outdoors at Harris Field. Retiring Superintendent John Phelan and retiring Assistant Superintendent Janice Darias (“I’m finally graduating,” she said before the ceremony) lead the long crimson procession for a final time from the high school to the field with the Belmont High School Wind Symphony playing Elgar’s “Pomp and Circumstance.”
With parents and friends taking photos and umbrellas opening in the stands and on the field, the graduates strode down the 50-yard line to their seats in the center of the field, where the ceremony began with the Belmont High Chorus performing the National Anthem.
In his speech, Belmont High School Principal Issac Taylor addressed the assemblage the “fear and uncertainty in a world that is undergoing enormous changes compressed into one generation.” And while these “new tools are powerful and where there is power, there is both opportunity and danger.”
“Technology responds to you, and you respond to it. And the ease with which you navigate the modern world is a dynamic tool that will help you succeed. You will also be the people who helped steer the direction we take as a species, how we use this technology, and to what ends. This is an enormous responsibility and a great opportunity,” said Taylor.
“I hope that you all find your version of success. In a world that is changing so quickly, defining a successful life can be elusive. Like happiness, success comes from within. Partly success and happiness comes from the skills that we develop. Partly they come from the experiences that we have. But mostly being successful comes not from the pride of what we know and what we can do.”
Class of 2023 President Nicky Mosharaf reminded her classmates and graduates, “the most abundant challenge for us this year was making a tough decision. Deciding which college you’re going to go to, if you’re going to go to college.”
“However, we haven’t gotten to life’s hardest decisions yet. From what I’ve seen, I think the most difficult life decisions are the ones where you have to decide whether to give up or not. Usually the first thing that comes to mind is never give up,” said Mosharaf, using her mother’s decision to return to school to seek her MBA with two small children and an infant.
“On the other hand, there’s a second option to give up. I know it doesn’t sound as motivational as never give up. But I think sometimes it can be better to scrap the current plan and go down a new path. Maybe sometimes it is better to give up.,” she said, remembering how she decided gymnastics wasn’t her cup of tea.
“So deciding between the two options is tough, and there’s no specific Tiktok that’s gonna give us the right answer,” she said. “Whether we give up or not … is not as important as we think. The most important thing is to make your decision positively and take joy in your decision and what you do.”
The Belmont School Committee awards for outstanding achievement and scholarship were presented to seniors Leo Son and Ana Lehmann. Son, whose accomplishments in the classroom and as a student leader run an entire printed page: he is a math and STEM scholar, took 11 AP courses, and plays and teaches chess, among numerous other accomplishments.
“And I’m sure many of us were thinking about this idea on our last day of high school, navigating thethe hallways for the last time on route from yellow to light blue to pink, already missing the comfort of a weekly club, where you found a community that you belong to.”
“But as this meeting place for all of us comes to an end … be proud of how far you’ve come. Remember all the connections and routines we’ve let slip by, and we look forward to the opportunity to find a new lunch table for the first time and new club communities again next year or sooner. Do not let go of what you’ve gained from the sources of joy that you once knew and grasp more tightly onto the experiences we have now.”
When Lehmann – an international Math Olympian, a harrier, and a talented German speaker whose language proficiency is at the university level – heard she would be receiving the award and expected to make a speech, “I procrastinated.” While admitting she was “mostly excited and honored to be speaking,” the suggested subject concerning the future was “nerve-racking.”
“What can I, a 17-year-old, impart to an audience – at least half of which has much more life experience than me – about the future? I don’t even know which college I’m going to in the fall!” Instead, Lehmann decided to speak “about the uncertainty of it all.”
Lehmann spoke of her parent’s immigration story – her Serbian mother and German father who came to the US and met in Pennsylvania – and how their journey became hers. “I’ll technically follow in their footsteps as immigrants. They didn’t know what to expect when they came here. And like many of us here today, we don’t know exactly what’s awaiting us at college.”
“On the journey into our inherantly uncertain futures, we can choose familiar constants to keep with us and help us along the way, whether it be family, friends, mentors, pets, or even hobbies. We’re not all about to be immigrants, but we are all starting an exciting and unknown new chapter in a new environment with new labels of high school, graduate or college students,” she said.
A rendition of “Landslide” by the Belmont High A Capella was followed by the presentation of diplomas – the names masterfully handled by Mosharaf – then the moving of tallases and tossing of caps into the air. And it wasn’t surprising that not that many people stuck around Harris Field as the chilly wind picked up had the clouds grew dark.
Photo: Memorial Day in Belmont, 2023
Memorial Day Monday arrived in Belmont under a brilliant blue sky as residents, town officials, and veterans came to the Grove Street Cemetery to commemorate the war dead since the Civil War two years after Belmont was incorporated.
For Select Board Member Roy Epstein, those sacrifices include the men and women who fell outside of the wars this country fought. In his speech before the hundreds at Grove Street Cemetery, Epstein told the story of US Army Air Corp Captain Billy Phelps, a pilot who flew B-17 Flying Fortresses over Germany during WWII, surviving the war after his plane was shot down and he was held as a POW.
Three years after that war ended, in June 1948, the Soviet Union, in an attempt to force the American, British, and French forces out of Berlin, blockaded all the roads and railroads to the western sectors of the city to ultimately claim most of post-war Germany for themselves.
“They cut off the supply of food, electricity, and coal to hold the civilian population hostage. President Truman responded by trying to break the blockade by air. This was the Berlin Airlift, which began almost exactly 75 years ago.”
“Amazingly, Phelps volunteered to go to occupied Germany for the Airlift, to fly coal to Berlin instead of bombs. It was again desperate, dangerous work. New Soviet jets harassed the flights and sometimes tried to force American planes down in the Russian zone. Coal dust in the planes caked the controls and blinded the pilots. In letters home Phelps wrote that their planes had become ‘flying wrecks.’ Twice his engines caught fire and he was forced to crash land.”
The few loads of food and supplies grew to a massive unbreakable lifeline thanks to the determination of American and British crews. They eventually delivered millions of tons. It was the Soviet dictator Stalin who gave up and called off the blockade in May 1949.
Epstein remarked that “the Berlin Airlift changed the course of the Cold War. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was created at the end of the crisis. The security created by that alliance has preserved Europe from again becoming a battleground. Our commitment to that alliance is still being tested.”
“In Germany today, memorials fittingly honor the Airlift by calling it ‘a gigantic operation that turned former enemies into friends.’ Do not forget what Germany had been. The Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in northern Germany, where Anne Frank and countless others perished, was only a few miles from Phelps’ airfield. The Airlift had much more than military importance.”
“Showing we could and would stand up against aggression and injustice helped Germany renounce the inhumanity of the Nazi past. It took another 50 years, but Berlin finally became the capital of a peaceful, united, and democratic Germany.”
“Captain Phelps was part of a small and very special group of pilots in the history of the Airlift. Here’s why. In December 1948, he had a few days left before rotating home to his wife and two new babies. He had to fly another mission after making three round trips the day before. A mile after taking off, his heavily loaded C-54 banked in the rain and fog – and plunged to the ground. Phelps, his copilot, and his flight engineer were all killed.”
Just like in 1948, “[a]s we confront problems in the world today, let’s remember and draw inspiration from people like Billy Phelps. Let’s hope that the American ideals, generosity, and sacrifice that made the Berlin Airlift possible will always be a beacon for those who struggle for freedom, dignity, and human rights,” said Epstein.
This year’s observance included speeches, prayer, and the Belmont High Marching Band accompanying the marchers from the cemetery to the Veteran’s Memorial at Clay Pit Pond.
Belmont Veterans Agent Bob Upton and Kip Gaudet, Jr., Waverley VFW Post 1272’s commander, hosted the annual event recognizing the town’s fallen heroes. “We remember those of Belmont who have served those who have made the ultimate sacrifice,” said Upton.
United States Army veteran and the newly installed pastor of the Open Door Baptist Church Tim Robinson, gave the day’s prayer, thanking those who had fallen for their courage, selflessness, and devotion to duty and praying for those who have lost loved ones and service to this great nation that you would continue to comfort them with the peace that only a supreme being can bring.
State Sen. Will Brownsberger and State Rep. Dave Rogers read a proclamation together from Massachusetts Governor Maura Healy, saying it was appropriate that all Massachusetts citizens remember the bravery of those who gave their lives so that their sacrifices serve as a reminder of the cost of our freedom.
Keynote speaker retired US Marine Colonel, combat veteran, and lifelong Belmont resident Mike Callahan spoke on learning more about those to sacrificed their lives for future generations.
“So as we read the names and play taps, and again recall stories of features that never played out,” said Callahan, the Belmont Veterans Memorial Committee chair. He encouraged residents to learn more about the men from Belmont who gave their lives, like James Paul White, for which the Field House at Harris Field is named, who was killed during the Battle of the Bulge, and MIA Jerry Burns, who was presumed died in the Korean War. There are Belmont football teammates Edward Teddy Lee and Walter Donny Ray, who both died in Vietnam, and Jonathan Curtis, who died in Kandahar nearly 13 years ago today.
“As we reflect on their ultimate sacrifice to the friend, the freedoms that we all enjoy each day, and freedoms that far too many Americans take for granted, let us pledge to keep their memories alive. Doing this is as much for them as it is for future generations. For if we are to retain our freedoms, that has been one for us, then similar sacrifices will almost certainly be required in the future.”
Photo: Belmont High attack junior Tess (the Nickel) Desantis reached 100 career goals against Milford High in the Marauders’ 17-6 victory.
On short notice due to graduation week events, three Belmont High teams found themselves battling the 90 degree-plus Thursday afternoon heat along with the
After the Dime (senior Mary Mullan) in Belmont’s Nickel and Dime attack partnership reached 100 career goals against Braintree, the wait began to see if junior Tess Desantis – the Nickel – would join her front line team mate and reach her own century of goals.
Late in Thursday’s dominating 17-6 victory over Milford High School (11-8) in Belmont’s (14-5) MIAA Division 1 play-in game held on the toasty Harris Field turf surface, Desantis took a pass from senior defender co-captain Nina Leveroni and reached triple digits with a bouncer by the goalie for Belmont’s 16th of the day.
With both teams under the pressure to accommodate their senior players to attend graduation week events, the game was moved up to the first day tournaments games were to be played. And the game was played at its earliest available time at 4 p.m., with temperatures reaching 92 degrees F with no wind under cloudless skies.
“It was brutal,” said Belmont High Girls’ Lacrosse Head Coach Dan O’Brien. “We were feeling [the heat] by the second half.”
After junior goalie Julia Herlihy stopped a one-on-one on the first offense turn by the Scarlet Hawks, Belmont countered quickly with Desantis scoring from a pass from senior midfield co-captain Stella Lesnik. The Nickel scoring her second from an 8-meter penalty just 40 seconds later and the Marauders were on their way to its first playoff win since 2012.
Desantis and first year mid Niamh Lesnik shared top scoring honors with six points with five goals and an assist each. Junior attack Carli Gaziano contributed three goals and a pair of assists with sophomore attack Charlotte Mayall and first year attack midfield Sydney Mun each with a goal.
“Our leading scorer [Mullan] had one goal but we don’t just rely on one player [scoring]. Everyone stepped up from the senior and juniors to our freshmen,” said O’Brien, who praised the first line defense
Belmont will have just a few days to savor this win as they will travel nearly the entire length of the state to take on perennial powerhouse Longmeadow High (17-3) in a first round match on Monday, June 5. The Marauders will spend more than two hours on the bus to go against a team that has reached the Division 1 final four in every MIAA tournament in the past two decades (last year the Blue Devils were eliminated in the round of 16), finally winning the state title in 2015.
“We will need a lot of breaks on ground balls and on defense. We can’t be put off by the competition. We need to keep the game close so we have a chance at the end of the game,” said O’Brien.
Eighth ranked Belmont High Boys’ Tennis began its playoffs with a stellar 5-0 sweep over Middlesex League rival Wakefield on Thursday, May 1 in the first round of the MIAA Division 2 tournament at the overheated Winn Brook courts. Number one singles senior Alek Karagozyan, second singles junior Charlie Osborn, and third sophomore Julian Wong led the team in the victory.
Next up for Belmont (12-6) will be hosting Marblehead (9th ranked at 16-3) in the Sweet 16 round on Monday, June 5, at 5 p.m. at Winn Brook. The Magicians swept Oliver Ames, 5-0, on Wednesday.
After missing the tournament last year, Belmont Girls’ Tennis return to the playoffs was a short one as the 17th-ranked Marauders lost to 16th rated Central Catholic, 4-1, at Lawrence High School on June 1.
Photo: Covid-vaccine clinic on Monday, June 5 at Belmont Town Hall
The Belmont Health Department is offering COVID-19 vaccines to eligible residents in partnership with VaxinateRX. Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will be available as detailed below:
The clinics are taking place on Monday, June 5, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Town Hall, Conference Room 1, 455 Concord Ave.
These clinics are by appointment only and will be operated through a partnership between VaxinateRX and the Belmont Health Department. Look here to register for a vaccine appointment. If you have difficulty with registration call 617-993-2720 or Email: lsharp@belmont-ma.gov for assistance.
Those under 18 need either a parent/guardian with them, or a signed and printed consent form.
Please present insurance cards and vaccination cards at appointment.
Current CDC/FDA Vaccine Recommendations:
Photo: The new record of 13 wins after the Marauders final regular season game.
The 2023 season has seen Belmont High Boys and Girls Lacrosse teams reach new heights having secured playoff berths and prepare for runs in their respective MIAA tournaments.
In its final game of the season on Thursday, May 25, the Girls’ set a program record 13 victories (against 5 losses) after defeating Arlington in a 17-13 slugfest.
The girls broke the previous record of 12 registered in 2011 and 2009. And the Marauders play has been heating up along with the summer weather. In its final 11 games in which they scored 158 goals or just over 14 per game, Belmont’s record was 9-2 with their two losses by single goals.
“We only only go up from here,” said first year Head Coach Dan O’Brien. “We still got a couple games left the season hopefully, because we’re going to make some noise in the tournament.”
“Making the playoffs is great for our seniors. We have ten of them,” he said. “The girls have done such a great job this year.”
The victory against the SpyPonders put a cap on an end-of-the-season five game winning streak. In a game that resembled a playoff contest, Belmont were in a scrap with Arlington with the hosts up 8-5 with seven minutes to play in the first half. It’s then Belmont’s captains on the field brought the Marauders back into the game. Senior midfield Stella Lesnik started the come back with a goal in the 14th minute, followed a minute later when senior attack Mary Mullan buried an eight meter penalty. Senior Layne Doherty took a pass from first-year mid Niamh Lesnik to score in the 17th minute with Mullan putting in her fourth of the half off an isolation with two minutes remaining in the half to tie the game at 9 at the break.
The Marauders showed their offensive prowess scoring four in four minutes early in the second half: Junior attack Carli Gaziano off a penalty, then the Marauders’ “Nickel and Dime” attack combo of Mullan and junior Tess Desantis scoring off the transition and from eight meters as Doherty finished off the goal burst with the Marauders leading 13-9. While the hosts narrowed the margin to two, Belmont’s defense led by junior goalie Julia Herlihy and senior defenders co-captain Nina Leveroni and senior Kiki Hovsepian put a halt to the comeback.
The Marauders are currently 27th in the final MIAA Division 1 Power Rankings. While its position should see them on the road for a first-round playoff match, there are eight to ten teams below the 32nd power ranking position – the tournament cut off – with records at or above .500 which makes them eligible for a play-in game, a match Belmont will host.
“[The squad is] really balanced and that’s what’s been great. It’s never one girl who’s just dominating the whole thing, it’s really been a team effort. And that’s what makes it so fun. And I’m glad we could celebrate and now we’re going to focus on the playoffs,” said O’Brien.
While Belmont High Boys Lacrosse is entering the Division 1 tournament with the offense stalling in the final two games, the squad’s 11-7 record marks a high for wins under the tenure of head coach Josh Streit and was one win away from tying the program’s record for victories with 12 set in 2009. As of Monday, Belmont is 26th in the MIAA Power Rankings, the second year running the Marauders have finished as an automatic qualifier for the playoffs.
“This group has really bought in to the program. They are a special group. They work really hard in the off season,” said Streit, pointing to senior co-captain Peter Grace and Peter Ausrotas in attack, the Pomer brothers, Matt and Mike, Mason Lemach-Bremen and Delan Doherty holding down the midfield. Senior defender Joe Gaziano anchors the long sticks with Joe Hanley and Collin Galloway in front of goalie Nate Moss.
Photo: Lawn or ditch; the Library Building Committee wants to use the site as a staging area for the construction of the new library
The patch of sunken land adjacent to the Underwood Pool and Concord Avenue doesn’t have an official name attached to it. Some call it the Underwood Lawn, but it’s sort of an extended ditch.
In winter, the town fills the basin with water, and it’s used for outdoor skating like the ponds the old timers talk about. It gets pretty swampy in spring and summer after a couple of days of rain draining into the space. It’s principally where youngsters eat ice cream while taking a break from frolicking in the pool.
But to the building committee overseeing the construction of the $39.5 million, 42,000 sq.ft. new town library, that “ditch” is the perfect location to become the main staging area for the project, where tons of steel, building materials, and parking for the construction team.
During a project update before the Select Board, Clair Colburn, chair of the building committee, presented a first draft plan in which the land would be fenced off and prepared for construction and parking use – mostly layering the site with stones and gravel – then returning the land to its present state. In addition, the committee will make pains to protect the existing culvert that takes Wellington Brook from the library property, under the ditch and Concord Avenue, to Clay Pit Pond.
The committee is eyeing the site for staging and parking to keep down expenses. Colburn said if they can not use this location, the committee will be required to rent a warehouse to store the material and truck it in and out on an already congested Concord Avenue. Also, without dedicated parking, construction workers will take up scarce spaces on Concord and residential side streets.
“The best option is to keep it there,” said Colburn.
Just how receptive town officials, residents, and especially the adjacent neighbors will be to a supply location and five-days-a-week parking for one “pool season” – spring through fall of 2024 – is a request the committee knows will come with its own issues.
“We know this will be a hot-button issue for some people,” said Colburn.
And the Select Board is already asking if transforming the drainage ditch with a culvert is possible.
“Can you park cars there? Can you do that?” queried Select Board Chair Mark Paolillo, who will either deny or approve the ask with his two fellow members. Town Administrator Patrice Garvin said several town offices are “running all that down” to determine if it can be done safely.
An official request will come for town consideration as demolition of the current library and the construction of the new facility are scheduled to begin around the New Year, according to Building Committee Member Kathy Keohane, who joined Colburn before the committee. However, before that occurs, the committee will hold at least two public forums to discuss the project.
In other news of the new library, one of the significant architectural features that library proponents pointed to for the past three years is receiving a haircut. The impressive main stairs that would allow patrons to work, seat and ponder life’s questions as patrons moved between floors is no more. Not that it’s gone; it’s just been squeezed a bit with only three levels of seating and a more typical turn (to the right) to reach the second floor.