Photo: A menorah.
Hanukkah, the Jewish observance celebrating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem during the Maccabean Revolt, begins on sunset on Sunday, Dec. 6, with the lighting of the first candle on the menorah.
The festival is observed by the kindling of the lights of the nine-branched menorah, one additional light on each night of the holiday, progressing to eight on the final night which takes place on Dec. 14.
Photo: Someone wants mom more than Santa.
Before taking part in the 25th Annual Turn on the Town on Thursday, Dec. 3, Mr. and Mrs. Claus were seen looking at hockey equipment in the basement of Champions Sporting Goods on Leonard Street.
“Doing a little holiday shopping,” said Santa.
I guess there are no elves with hockey making skills at the workshop.
And since the reindeer were not available – they are resting up for the 24th – Santa and Mrs. Claus arrived via Belmont Fire Department fire engine, with Santa strapped on top, to turn on the lights of the town’s Christmas tree adjacent to Bellmont Cafe.
Then hoping on a horse-drawn carriage, the couple from the North Pole took a quick trip to Belmont Savings Bank (the event’s main sponsor) where they took pictures with children, some parents and a pet or two.
Photo: Don’t be shy; say hello to Santa at the Belmont Savings Bank.
Santa and Mrs. Claus are visiting Belmont Center tonight as the main attraction of the 25th annual Belmont Center Business Association’s “Turn on the Town” celebration taking place Thursday, Dec. 3 beginning at 6 p.m.
The Claus’ will arrive via Belmont Fire Department truck to the town’s Christmas Tree located adjacent to the Bellmont Cafe at 6:20 p.m. and then head over to the Belmont Savings Bank – the event’s main sponsor – headquarters at 2 Leonard St. where children (and some adults and pets) can have free photos taken with Jolly Ol’ St. Nick from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. While inside, enter to win Holiday Prize Stockings stuffed with goodies!
Hammond Residential is sponsoring the annual Belmont Food Pantry Drive. The Belmont Food Pantry is providing assistance to a record number of Belmont families and needs to fully stock its shelves in time for the holidays.
For every food item donated to the Belmont Food Pantry during the food drive, Hammond Residential will donate $1 to the Foundation for Belmont Education. For a list of the most needed items at the Belmont Food Pantry, please click here.
In addition, during the Food Pantry Drive, Hammond will match any cash/check donations made to the Belmont Food Pantry with a matching gift to the Foundation for Belmont Education.
Enjoy free trains on Moore Street provided by Belmont Savings Bank and the Petting Zoo in the bank’s parking garage.
While at the bank, residents can purchase tickets for next week’s Holly Jolly Trolley tours, which benefits the Parents of Music Students at Belmont High School.
See you there.
On the government side of “This Week”
• Music & Movement with Rubi, a movement and music program recommended for ages 3 to 5 (but 2-year-olds are welcome) will be held in the Assembly Room on Monday, Nov. 30. There will be two sessions: 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
• ESL Conversation Circle for beginners takes place on Monday, Nov. 30 from 10 a.m. to noon in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.
• Belmont Against Racism will be holding its monthly meeting on Monday, Nov. 30 from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library.
• The Belmont Food Collaborative – the people who run the Belmont Farmers Market – is meeting on Monday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m., in the Flett Room of the Belmont Public Library.
Tuesday is story time at both of Belmont libraries.
• The Teen Book Club for 9th-12th graders will be discussing “Half Brother” by Kenneth Oppel on Tuesday, Dec. 1, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Young Adult Room of the Belmont Public Library. Any teen who has read the book is welcome to attend, no sign up necessary. There will be pizza and snacks. If you have any questions, please e-mail Kylie Sparks at ksparks@minlib.net or call 617-993-2873.
• Yoga for Everyone at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Dec. 1, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.: Join Susan Harris, a registered yoga teacher and associate professor of Nutrition at Tufts University for this Iyengar-inspired class which practices yoga postures slowly and with attention to alignment and safety, adapted to the abilities and needs of individual students. Practice is done with bare feet; mats and props are provided. Cost: $15/class. Non-seniors, beginners and experienced are welcome. This is a non-Council on Aging class held at the Beech Street Center. For more information, call Susan at 617-407-0816.
• Infant Storytime, for infants up to 12 months and pre-walkers, includes a short program of songs and rhymes followed by time to play and socialize. The fun takes place on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.
• Sustainable Belmont will be meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 2 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.
• The monthly meeting of the Belmont Historical Society Board is taking place on Wednesday, Dec. 2, from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Claflin Room of the Belmont Public Library.
• A special night for many Belmont High School students as they will be inducted into the National Honor Society at a ceremony in the school’s auditorium on Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m.
• Meeting of the Friends of the Belmont Public Library is taking place on Thursday, Dec. 3 from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the library’s Assembly Room.
• Belmont’s own Harry Potter Fan Club will magically meet on Thursday, Dec. 3, from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Flett Room of Belmont Public Library.
• The Claus’ are coming to Belmont on Thursday! The 25th annual Turn on the Town Celebration will take place at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 3 along Leonard Street in Belmont Center. Santa and Mrs. Claus will arrive aboard a Belmont Fire Engine then help turn on the Christmas tree next to the Bellmont Cafe at 6:20 p.m. before heading to Belmont Savings Bank – this year’s main sponsor – where they will have their photos taken with good boys and girls until 8 p.m. There will be music, food, hot stuff to drink, fake snow, bank employees dressed up, animals and lots more.
This year, you can help those in need and education in Belmont at the same time by participating in the Hammond Residential’s “Belmont Food Pantry Drive” For every food item donated to the Belmont Food Pantry during the food drive (Nov. 30 to Dec. 3 at Hammond Residential, 84 Leonard St. and on Turn on the Town in front of il Casale, 50 Leonard), Hammond Residential will donate $1 to the Foundation for Belmont Education. In addition, during the Food Pantry Drive, Hammond will match any cash/check donations made to the Belmont Food Pantry with a matching gift to the Foundation for Belmont Education.
• Literacy Playgroup is a parent and child group that supports child’s language and literacy development on Friday, Dec. 4, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Flett Room. You’ll play, read, sing and take home new ideas. Presented by educators from the CFCE grant program; for children age 4 and under.
Photo: Stealing the show: Author Jason Gay with his proud mother, Marilyn.
You can go home again. But you’ll probably have to share the moment with your mother.
And that was the case for the Wall Street Journal sports columnist Jason Gay as the Belmont-raised writer came back to his old hometown for a reading of his first book, “Little Victories: Perfect Rules for Imperfect Living” (224 pages, Random House) at the Belmont Public Library on Nov. 12.
While the night was advertised as a night with Gay, someone forgot to tell his “mommy,” long-time and well-known Winn Brook Elementary teacher Marilyn Gay, who, like any proud mother, was ever present to provide praise and more than a few words of encouragement for her son.
Gay did note his mother rated his book on the book website Goodreads with four stars out of five. While saying he’d happily take a four-star review from any other reviewer, “this is my mother!”
“Even if mom thought the book was above average, four-star material, isn’t your mom suppose to give you a charity star?” pondered Gay.
“Had I done something to offend mom?” said Gay, going so far as to think maybe the fourth star was the charity star. When he finally broached the subject with her, Gay’s mother said, “I thought I gave you four our of four. Let me change that right NOW!”
“Anyone who knows me knows about my immense technological skills,” said Mrs. Gay.
“Mommy, this is my reading,” said Gay, to the amusement of the overflow crowd.
“For those of you who bought the book, Marilyn Gay will be signing them at the end of the evening,” he said.
It was more a reunion than a book reading as the Assembly Room was well-packed – Gay said he was thankful a fire official wasn’t in attendance – with longtime friends, his mother’s longtime friends, relatives, family, neighbors, former Chenery Middle School English teachers, those who took tennis lessons from Jason and on-and-on.
“This is not necessarily thought I would say when I left Belmont in 1988 … There’s nothing like the passage of time to make you appreciate a place. And there is certainly nothing like having children of one’s own to understand what brought your parents to a place like this,” said Gay.
After a journalistic odyssey that included stops at a weekly newspaper in Martha’s Vineyard, the Boston Phoenix, New York Observer, GQ, and Rolling Stone, Gay is the WSJ’s humorous sports columnist, which he wrote in the book is “about as stupid as lucky a job you can have.”
“The kind of job that makes you think that one day a stern-faced man will appear at the door and say, ‘There’s been a terrible mistake. You’re supposed to be managing a karaoke bar for dogs’.”
Gay’s quirky and wry observations of sports and its absurdities has won him a following among Journal readers. He is also known for his annual column on rules for the Thanksgiving afternoon family football game.
The book has been receiving outstanding reviews – People magazine called it “Hilarious … a tasty collection of advice about, for instance, mastering the office Christmas party or how to dress a slightly exhausted hipster dad.” – making it an Amazon Best Book for November.
The collection of “advice” trends from the humorous (the family Thanksgiving chapter), pointed (the impact of being fired) and heartfelt.
Gay said with two very young children back with his wife in Brooklyn, “I will go anywhere to support this book. This could be a truck stop on Route 9,”
When asking a fellow writer from Brooklyn who Gay calls “the cynical author guy” told Gay to get used to readings at libraries or bookstores “where no one will be there!” Gay pulled out his phone and took a “selfie” with the overflow audience to send to his “grizzled” acquaintance.
“I’m going to send this to Sebastian Junger,” said Gay, noting his fellow Belmont-raised author “got just about the same number of people.
Little Victories “began as a silly idea” as “a rule book basically for people who can’t follow rules,”
But it changed to a collection of incidents, events in Gay’s life that were every day but still important.
“This is the truth. I don’t really believe that … the most important things in life are these seismic events, whether it’s going to college or having a family or … swimming under all the chairs at the Underwood Pool. The truth is it’s often the little things – if I can remember to plug my cell phone in before going to bed, if I can get the children out the door without either one of them crying, if I can get the children out the door without me crying – those are little victories.”
Gay then relayed the story of his father, educator and Cambridge Ringe and Latin tennis coach Ward Gay, and his diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in 2014, and how friends and colleagues would be there for him, providing “simple things such as companionship, a conversation, a walk around the block when he felt up to [it].”
“These were small things, mundane life events but they became incredibly meaningful to all of us,” Gay recalled. And towards the end of his father’s life, it was “giving my dad these little victories, a little happiness, a little joy.”
“This isn’t just a business trip for me to come here to talk about a book. This is very personal not just because I grew up here but because my family has the deepest of deep roots here. This community has been here for my family repeatedly so thank you so much for that,” he said.
“That got a little heavy there for a second,” Gay said, flashing his trademark impish smile.
The remainder of the night was filled with stories, acknowledgements, and readings before both Gay and his mother ended the night autographing books.
Photo: 2014 Thanksgiving Game between Belmont and Watertown.
On the government side of “This Week”:
• Music & Movement with Rubi, a movement and music program recommended for ages 3 to 5 (but 2-year-olds are welcome) will be held in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room on Monday, Nov. 23. There will be two sessions: 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
• ESL Conversation Circle for beginners takes place on Monday, Nov. 23 from 10 a.m. to noon in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.
• Help test a new product before it goes into production. WatchRx is holding a focus group meeting open to all, on Monday, Nov. 23 at 1 p.m. at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. Their device, now in development, reminds wearers when they need to take medications. Give your feedback on how it works and how it could be improved. Please stop by to share your opinions with staff from the WatchRx company.
• The holidays are underway with the first of the “Rama”s as Belmont’s Fine and Performing Arts Department hosts “String-a-Rama,” the town-wide orchestra concert. The concert is being directed by orchestra director Margot Reavey. The concert begins at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 23, in the Belmont High School auditorium.
• Wednesday, Nov. 25, is (yet another) Early Release Day for all grades in the Belmont Public Schools. Using a baseball term, Wednesday is a Getaway Day. But before closing, Belmont High School will be holding its annual shenanigans known as the Pep Rally with each class attempting to best (or embarrass) their peers.
• If you’re looking for a great book or a holiday movie to watch over the holiday weekend, remember the Belmont Public Library will close early Wednesday, Nov. 25, at 5 p.m.
• Thursday, Nov. 26, the annual Belmont/Watertown Thanksgiving Day Football game will this year take place at Watertown’s Victory Field with kick-off scheduled at 10:15 a.m. Also featured will be the 100+ member Belmont High Marching Band. And, yes, they do serve hot dogs at the Watertown concession stand.
• All Belmont town offices and the Belmont Public Library will be closed on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 26 and 27, for the Thanksgiving
• Saturday, Nov. 28 is Small Business Saturday, the relatively new annual event – conceived and promoted by American Express – encouraging holiday shoppers to patronize small and local businesses in their hometown and surrounding communities. This is especially true this year in Belmont as all three business centers experience (or are continuing to experience) big construction projects impacting the bottom line.
On the government side of “This Week.”
Tuesday is story time at both of Belmont libraries.
• A talk on “How to Help Kids Manage Stress & Stay Alcohol & Drug-Free” will be presented at the Chenery Middle School on Tuesday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. Will Slotnick, founder and director of the Wellness Collaborative will lead the discussion.
• The Belmont Board of Library Trustees is holding a public meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 17 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Assembly Room to help generate new long range ideas for the future of Belmont Public Library.
• Wednesday, Nov. 18 is an early-release day for all students in Belmont Public Schools. It’s also parents/teacher conferences today.
• Chenery Middle School students are invited on early release Wednesday to head over to the library’s Assembly Room on Wednesday. Nov. 18 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., to do your homework while enjoying some hot chocolate. This is for middle schoolers only, so high schoolers are on their own. This event is provided for free, thanks to the Friends of the Belmont Public Library.
• Belmont High Fall Athletic Awards Night will be held on Thursday, Nov. 19, at 6 p.m. in the Belmont High School auditorium.
• The Belmont Public Library’s International Fiction Book Club will discuss White Dog Fell from the Sky by Eleanor Morse on Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. in the library’s Flett Room. Join us on the third Wednesday of the month for fun conversation, tea and snacks. Everybody is welcome. If you have questions or need help finding a copy of the book, contact Kylie at ksparks@minlib.net.
• The National Weather Service is sponsoring a severe weather spotter training session as part of its SKYWARN program, in Belmont. The class happens on Wednesday, Nov. 18 from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the auditorium at Belmont High School. Bring pens and paper.
• Storytime for 1’s for walkers and toddlers under 24 months will take place Thursday, Nov. 19, at 10:30 a.m. in the Flett Room, sharing simple stories, songs, and nursery rhymes and end with time to play.
• The Belmont Public Library is hosting the Harry Potter Fan Club on Thursday, Nov. 19 from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Flett Room.
• The 5th annual Wellington Shopping Night, this year in Belmont Center, takes places on Thursday, Nov. 19, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Do your holiday shopping at bessie blue, Marmalade, Revolve, bells&whistles, Thirty-Petals Boutique and il Casale to benefit the Wellington.
• Karen Halloran of the Lexington Health Care Center will present a documentary on the benefits of music for people with dementia while discussing activities and topics that help loved ones feel good and engaged at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St., on Friday, Nov. 20 at 1:15 p.m.
• The Belmont Public Library has begun its OTAKUrabu program. Watch anime, do a craft/activity, plan for future events and nibble on some Japanese snacks (while they last – they’ll go fast) on Friday, Nov. 20 from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Assembly Room. Provided to you for free, thanks to the Friends of the Belmont Public Library. Just drop in, no registration required.
Photo: Spelling Bee.
Belmont School District students will be lining up to show off their spelling prowess as the 15th annual Foundation for Belmont Education Spelling Bee takes place on Saturday, Nov. 14
WHEN: Saturday, Nov. 14, 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
WHERE: Belmont High School Auditorium
WHERE TO PARK AT BHS:
RULES: Click HERE for the Fall 2015 Spelling Bee Rules.
FAQ: For a list of frequently asked questions click HERE.
ARRIVAL TIME FOR SPELLERS: Check the latest list.
Spellers may participate in three or four-person teams. On the day of the Bee, teams go on stage in groups (swarms) and are given words from the list to write on a small team whiteboard (teams can designate one writer or rotate).
The K-4 swarms are non-competitive. Teams will be told if their word is correct or incorrect, but there is no elimination.
The 5th and 6th grade swarms are competitive using our famous “two stingers before you’re out” rules. Challenging, off-list words may be used, if needed.
In preparation for the Bee, each team picks a name and is encouraged to wear attire (shirts, hats, etc.) to show their team spirit. Pizza, drinks and desserts will be available for sale in the cafeteria. Family members and friends are welcome to come and watch! Participants should check the FBE website before the Bee to determine approximately what time their team will be on stage.
Still have questions? Contact the Spelling Bee Co-Chairs, Christa Bauge or Jacqueline Kaiser, at beemaster@fbe-belmont.org
Photo: Yard sale in Belmont.
Yard sales in the “Town of Homes.”
• 29 Cowdin St., Saturday, Nov. 14, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Estate sale.
• 225 Orchard St., Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 14 and 15, 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Photo: Selectman Jim Williams at the rededication of the WWI monument.
The rain fell lightly across Belmont as the community came together to remember its dead on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, and to rededicate a staid and beautiful monolith bearing the names of the nine residents who gave their lives in the struggle known as the “War to end all wars.”
After reading the names and telling the stories a few, Belmont Selectman Jim Williams read from Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Voluntaries” of which the last lines are laid on the back of the Bethel white granite monument and dedicated on this day in 1923.
“So nigh is grandeur to our dust,
So near is God to man,
When Duty whispers low, ‘Thou must,’
The youth whispers, ‘I can.”
The Navy veteran of the Vietnam war checked his emotions, which wavered a bit, before saying that “we are humbled today to honor the town citizens who gave their lives to stand up to tyranny,” as he looked up to those who died nearly a century ago in the First World War.
With honor guards from Belmont Police and Fire departments as well as the VFW, town and state dignitaries along with many veterans and family, Belmont came to the delta between Common Street and Royal Road and across from the commuter rail station, to view the renovated monument.
After falling on hard times in the past decades, the monument has been restored through the efforts of several private citizens lead by Retired Army Gen. Kevin Ryan, leader of the Belmont Veterans Memorial Committee.
Ryan pointed to residents such as Bill French, Sr., who sought to remember his friend who was killed in Vietnam, as pushing forward the idea of renovating Belmont’s two existing outdoor memorials – the WWI monument and the flag pole at Clay Pit Pond – with the creation of a third made up of small, low stones with plaques honoring veterans from the Civil War to the Iraq conflict at Clay Pit Pond. So far, money has been provided from the town’s Community Preservation Committee and private individuals; more will be needed to complete the work.
Saying that the misty, cool weather was “great infantry weather” – which a few of the older vets quietly disagreed – Ryan detailed the lives of those from Belmont who did not return from WWI. A barber, congregates from nearby St. Joseph’s, a pilot, a lifelong sailor, a husband; they lived varied lives within the same community, but all volunteered to take up the cause of liberty and country.
A prayer, then a military salute, before “Taps” played by Belmont High School musicians Eleanor Dash and Alex Park brought to an end the day’s remembrance.
