Burnin’ For Cleo: Saturday’s Boot Camp Honors Athlete​ Memory

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Photo: Poster for the event this Saturday.

Join Belmont’s Burnin’ by Ray for an outdoor workout to celebrate the life of Cleo Athena Theodoropulos this Saturday.

The “Best of Boston”-winning gym is hosting a two-hour charity outdoor boot camp at the Winn Brook Elementary School field in Belmont on Saturday, Aug. 17 at 10 a.m. to honor Cleo’s energy, kindness, fierce athletic drive and abundant spirit. 

Tickets are $25 and can be obtained here. All proceeds and donations would benefit the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

Cleo, who was an outstanding figure skater and varsity field hockey player, was a junior at Belmont High School who died on April 22, less than one week after her diagnosis with Ewing sarcoma, due to a cancer-induced fatal stroke.

Meet Belmont Finds A New Home At Day School’s Gym

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Photo: Meet Belmont is happening at the Belmont Day School.

One of the many unintended consequences of the construction of the new Belmont Middle and High School is the loss of the school’s cafeteria for out of school activities. And one of the casualties was Meet Belmont, the end-of-summer communal get together for new residents and long-time townies.

But thanks to scrambling by the Meet Belmont Planning Committee, the annual event has a new home for 2019 as the 17th Meet Belmont Community Information Fair will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 27 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Belmont Day School Gymnasium, 55 Day School Ln. off of upper Concord Avenue.

This event brings together Belmont’s nonprofit/volunteer organizations, Town government and local officials, and new and settled residents in a fully accessible and friendly environment.

You can expect to:

  • Meet local government and nonprofit leaders—approximately 80 organizations have registered as exhibitors to date
  • Discover recreation and arts programs
  • Find community organizations, volunteering and other activities
  • Participate in our democracy—register to vote
  • and support the Belmont Food Bank with your contribution of nonperishable items

This is an ideal event for anyone interested in our schools, enrichment programs, other local nonprofits, volunteering and town government. The committee encourage you to attend.

 

Celebrate National Farmers Market Week In Belmont Thursday

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Photo: A special week at the Farmers Market.

It’s National Farmers’ Market Week, August 4-10.

Farmers’ markets stimulate local economies, increase access to fresh, healthy food, and promote sustainable farming practices. They reconnect residents to the bounty of their region, sharing knowledge about seasonality and the variety of local goods. 

Stop by to celebrate and support the local farmers and food entrepreneurs that are helping to make our community a better place. There will be fun activities for the family – a scavenger hunt, photo booth, prizes and more.

Expected vendors this week:

Produce: Dick’s Market Garden, Common Acre Farm, Hutchins Farm, C&M Farm, Flats Mentor Farm, Nicewicz Family Farm

Meat, fish and dairy: Hooked – Red’s Best & Boston Smoked Fish Co., Foxboro Cheese Co., Lilac Hedge Farm, The Little White Goat Dairy

Bread, pastry and sweets: Mamadou’s Artisan Bakery

Prepared foods: Del Sur Empanadas, Valicenti Pasta Farm, Keegan Kreations, This Haiti

And more: When Life Gives You Lemons, Recreo Coffee & Roasterie, Beverly Bees, Merton’s Maple Syrup

At the Events Tent

2 p.m.: Lindsay Straw
Traditional ballads have been a source of inspiration for guitarist, singer and Irish bouzouki player Lindsay Straw since her childhood in Montana. But she truly grew into the art when she became immersed in Boston’s Irish and folk music scenes. Once here, she began to tie together the threads of the traditions she was most passionate about: English, Scottish, Irish and American folk songs from the 60’s, 70’s and beyond.

2 p.m.: Face Painting with Nina White
Nina is a rising senior at Belmont High School. She is applying to art schools and hopes to be a professional artist in the future. She is very popular with kids and adults alike.

4 p.m.: Storytime
Belmont Public Library staff read to young kids at the Market each week.

4:30 p.m.: Ruth Rappaport and Friends
Ruth will return to the market this Thursday to play mountain ballads, blues, honky-tonk hits and old folk tunes. Ruth will be joined by Alan Kaufman on the fiddle and Gian Criscitiello on bass.

At the Community Table

2 p.m.: Pop Up Library
The Belmont Public Library will be ready to lend you some books, answer questions, and give recommendations.

Shoppers are reminded that the Market matches SNAP (formerly Food Stamps) dollars up to $20 per person per Market day and most produce vendors support the HIP program which provides free produce to SNAP recipients.

Purple Heart Ceremony Set For Wed., Aug. 7 Come Rain Or Shine

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Photo: There could a change of location of the ceremony due to the weather

The Town of Belmont will honor and observe National Purple Heart Day on Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 10 a.m.

Just where will depend on the weather. If the rain expected to arrive around noon stays away, the ceremony will take place at the main entrance of the Belmont Public Library, 336 Concord Ave.

If the waterworks starts early, the celebration will take place at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.

Residents of Belmont, veterans and their family members and in particular all of those who are Purple Heart recipients are invited to attend this special event. 

The Purple Heart is awarded to members of the United States armed forces who are wounded by an enemy and posthumously to the next of kin in the name of those who are killed in action or die of wounds received in action.

Opening Reception For Jones’ Solo Show Thursday At Belmont Library

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Photo: “Commuting” (detail) by S B Jones.

Nope, Mussorgsky isn’t on the bill this Thursday, Aug. 8 at the Belmont Public Library.

The Belmont Gallery of Art at the Belmont Library is holding an opening reception for artist Susan Jones’ Solo Show: Pictures at an Exhibition.

The reception will take place between 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the library’s Assembly Room. Jones will discuss her art: paintings, window pieces and woven multimedia pieces. There will be a vintage stereoscope demonstration and an art project to do yourself. 

There will be light snacks and art-making. The exhibit continues through the summer.

After Two Decades Of Wind and Weather, Boston Temple Replaces Its Angel

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Photo: Workmen securing the angel Moroni at the Boston Mass. Temple in Belmont.

Something was amiss on a recent Tuesday morning in Belmont. For commuters along Route 2 and residents on Belmont Hill, a familiar local landmark was not waiting for them. The golden angel Moroni that stood atop the Boston Massachusetts Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was missing.

While many mistakes the statue’s identity for Gabriel, another heavenly trumpeter, Moroni is the guardian of the golden plates which is the source of the Book of Mormon. And it wasn’t there.

Had it fallen off? Was it stolen? Did it take off and leave?

Turns out, it was being replaced by its doppelgänger.

Lloyd Baird, president of the Boston Massachusetts Temple, said Moroni which was was atop the steeple for nearly 18 years was showing its age. 

“The gold coating was wearing off and there was some wind damage to the steeple. So we took it down and replaced it with a new exact replica of the Moroni statue that was there,” he said in an email. The job was done using two cranes with workmen bolting the statue in place and securing it with caulk.

Some trivia about the statue: The angel Moroni is a casting of the statue created by Torlief Knaphus for the Washington D.C. Ward chapel, which he made as a replica of Cyrus E. Dallin’s statue atop the Salt Lake Temple. 

“It looks the same but the way it was originally before the New England weather took its toll.”

And in the process, the temple underwent repairs, replacing a couple of tiles in the steeple that were beginning to cause some damage. 

The Boston Temple’s broke ground on June 1997 and was dedicated on Oct. 1, 2000, by Gordon B. Hinckley, the 15th President of The Church. The steeple and the original angel was dedicated on Sept. 21, 2001.

Tour Belmont’s Community Of Gardens On Sunday, June 9

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Photo: Stones on the Belmont Garden’s Cultivating Community garden tour.

The Belmont Garden Club invites the public to participate in “Cultivating Community – A Tour of Gardens” on Sunday, June 9 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The self-guided tour will include nine private gardens and the Woodlands Garden located at the Belmont Public Library representing the Belmont community.

There will be scheduled demonstrations at the garden stops on containers and floral design, composting, the work of the club’s junior gardeners, and music and art in the gardens.

Tickets are $30 before Sunday (available at Westcott Mercantile stores in Cushing Square and Belmont Center or from a Garden Club member at 617-484-4889) or $35 day of the tour (pick up at the Belmont Public Library).

Proceeds from the tour along with sponsorships will help provide the Belmont community with horticultural enhancements and the continued beautification of community spaces. It will also assist our club programs such as:

  • Junior gardeners,
  • gardening workshops at the Belmont Manor Nursing facility, and
  • scholarships presented to Belmont High School students.

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Belmont Farmers Market Opens Thursday, June 6, At 2 PM

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Photo: Ribbon cutting Thursday at 2 p.m.

Roy Epstein, Belmont’s newest member of the Select Board, will join Miss Tomato on Thursday, June 6 at 2 p.m. for the ceremonial ribbon cutting, bell ringing and a trumpet fanfare, to celebrate the opening of the 14th season of the Belmont Farmers Market.

Not only will residents and visitors have great local produce, baked goods, dairy, meat and fish, and prepared foods to purchase like all farmers’ markets have, but the Belmont Farmers Market is more.

,There will be storytime, performances for kids and grownups, community information, chats with friends and neighbors, and much more.

VENDORS ON OPENING DAY

  • Produce: C & M Farm*, Common Acre Farm*, Dick’s Market Garden, Hutchins Farm
  • Meat, fish & dairy: Hooked (Red’s Best & Boston Smoked Fish Co), Foxboro Cheese Co., Lilac Hedge Farm*
  • Bread, pastry & sweets: Dulce D Leche, Mamadou’s Artisan Bakery, Mariposa Bakery*, Tick Tock Chocolates*
  • Prepared foods: Del Sur Natural Empanadas, Deano’s Pasta, Just Hummus*, Tex Mex Eats
  • And more: Beverly Bees,*, When Life Gives You Lemons.
  • Indicates a new vendor in 2019. Find out more about all of our vendors.

EVENTS TENT

The market match government benefits to help all families take home great, local food: SNAP (Food Stamps), WIC (for moms & babies) and FMNP (for seniors). Most of our produce vendors accept HIP.

  • 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.: Music by The Soundchasers
  • 4 p.m. – 4 p.m.: Storytime for kids and grownups. Reading by our friends at the Belmont Public Library
  • 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.: Music by LBE Brass

COMMUNITY TABLE

  • 2 p.m. – 3 p.m.: Talk with Mary Beth Calnan, Belmont’s Recycling Coordinator. She can answer questions about Belmont’s plastic bag ban, and about trash, recycling and yard waste pickup.
  • Kim Foster of Community Growing: Plant a seed with your kids to take home while learning about gardening and Belmont Food Collaborative’s Community Growing program.

Caps, Gowns and Beach Balls: Belmont High Class of ’19 Graduates 305

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Photo: Thumbs up on graduation, 2019.

As of 5 p.m. Sunday, June 2, the ranks of Belmont High School alumni grew by 305 when the Class of 2019 were proclaimed graduates of their new alma mater by Superintendent John Phelan.

In a packed and plenty warm Wenner Field House filled with family and friends wielding phones and cameras to capture the moment, the scarlet-robed graduate received their diplomas amidst cheers, speeches, motor boards thrown high in the air along with numerous beach balls that gave the ceremony the feel of a day in the Fenway Park bleachers.

Interim Belmont High School Principal Thomas Brow

The program began with Interim Belmont High Principal Thomas Brow recalling an incident with a small tree and an unnamed mischievous student when he was an assistant principal at the Chenery Middle School where he first met the class of ’19. In resolving the act of preteen vandalism in a quiet and private manner, Brow hoped the graduates will learn that “as you go on your life’s journey, you will have conflicts and challenges. The moral is it’s not the conflict that’s importanty, it’s how you handle it.”

“Please take that message on with you as you do great things with your life,” he said.

Brendon Hill, 2019 Belmont High School Class President.

The first of three student speakers, Class President and presenter of each graduate Brandon Hill celebrated achievements and events in the class’ shared history.

“There were a lot of memorable events the first day of freshman year. Showing up 20 minutes late to your Spanish class, and then claiming tp\o your teacher you thought you had a free.”

“Later on in life. When you think back to high school, and all the friends and memories that you created. Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile, because you’re a part of something special,” Hill said.

Vassilios Kaxiras, recipient of the School Committee Award for
Outstanding Achievement in Scholarship

Vassilios Kaxiras, recipient of the School Committee Award for Outstanding Achievement in Scholarship, the first of two academic honorees,

Speaking about “my knowledge of the people around me widened … every day I came to school. All 305 of us have was wildly different backgrounds as personalities,” Kaxiras said. “As a result, I’ve met countless people who shattered my stereotypes of countries I know visited. And I found a lot of interesting things I didn’t know anything about before. So just keep up. Perhaps because of this diversity, I’ve also found to be incredibly welcoming,” he said.

“Sometimes the best way to find your place in an unfamiliar world is to jump right in.”

Lara Zeng, recipient of the School Committee Award for
Outstanding Achievement in Scholarship.

The second academic speaker, Lara Zeng, recipient of the School Committee Award for Outstanding Achievement in Scholarship, reflected on the now and the future to come.

“I’ve heard it said that when adults ask us what we want to be when we grow up, it’s because they themselves don’t know what the future holds. And they’re looking for advice and guidance from us because they’re just as lost as we are. This side of it might be scary. It’s a testament to how our lives are never set in stone,” Zeng said.

“But I think it’s empowering to remember that we will always have the opportunity to reinvent ourselves. We can always grow into whoever we want to be. We know who you are right now; students, athletes, artists, musicians, siblings, friends. Like the adults, we don’t have all the answers. We don’t know who we’ll be in the future. But I hope we never stopped learning.”

“Our high school experience has prepared us for whatever lies ahead. I am so honored to have grown up with you all and I can’t wait to see what you accomplish next,” she said.

After the speeches, for an hour each now former student attending the ceremony strode up to the podium, shook Phelan’s and a School Committee member’s hand, received their diploma from Brown before walking towards a new part of their lives.

And then hats were thrown in the air (along with four beach balls) when Phelan proclaimed they had satisfied their requirements to graduate before heading out of the field house and into the bright sunshine of a Sunday afternoon.