Around Town

Creative Chats Features Artist Julie Fei-Fan Balzer

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The following announcement was provided by Matt Hanna, host of Creative Chats:

Matt Hanna of Little Local Conversations will lead the featured conversation with painter, printmaker, and collage artist Julie Fei-Fan Balzer. They’ll chat around a question that Julie has been spending time pondering on within the topic of creativity and the creative life. Creative Chats is a way to gather creative people face-to-face to mingle, hear a featured conversation on the topic of creativity and the creative life, and then engage in the conversation themselves in small groups. Little Local Conversations Presents Creative Chats!: With Guest Julie Fei-Fan Balze

Friday, May 16th, 8:30 a.m.-10 a.m.

Mosesian Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal St. More info here (https://www.littlelocalconversations.com/events/creative-chats-with-guest-julie-fei-fan-balzer)

Come to get inspired, to reflect, and connect.

Letters

LETTER: Preserve the Shade Trees on Mt. Auburn Street

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Dear Mr. Micieli:

Removing urban street trees to facilitate so-called road improvements for the movement of pollution-belching behemoths challenges science and common sense in our time of crisis climate change. Scientists have documented the public health harm from tailpipe emissions, which is reduced significantly by the proximity of trees. Consider that urban street trees provide a canopy, root structure, and setting for important insect and bacterial life, an environment for songbirds, and a food source for urban wildlife. The importance of combatting increased temperature from climate change cannot be dismissed. Street trees lower temperature in urban areas where concrete, brick, and asphalt heat islands capture sunlight absorbing it into the pavement.

Obituaries

OBIT: Andrew Russo, 98, Grew Up in Watertown, Navy Seabee in World War II

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Andrew Russo

Russo, Andrew C. “Andy” of Arlington, died on May 4th at the age of 98. Beloved husband of the late Josephine A. (DiCecca) Russo. Loving father of Rosanne Rogers of Cape Elizabeth, ME, Andrew Russo of Littleton and Karen Moorehead and her husband, Michael of Warwick, RI. Dear grandfather of Justin Rogers, Jesse Moorehead, Brendan Rogers, Shane Moorehead and Kasey Moorehead. Brother of Thomas Russo, Eleanor Kallberg, David Russo and the late Francis Russo.

Schools

Watertown High School Teacher Named Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year

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Watertown High School chemistry teacher Liz Mundy was named Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year. (Contributed Photo)

A Watertown High School science teacher was recently honored as one of the two Massachusetts STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) teacher of the year by the New England Patriots. See the announcement from the Watertown Public Schools, below. The New England Patriots have named Watertown High School chemistry teacher Liz Mundy as one of their two Massachusetts STEM Teachers of the Year. Mundy was selected for her unwavering commitment to her students, her dedication to teaching, and her innovative work with CoLAB, a Watertown nonprofit where local life science professionals and high school educators collaborate to inspire students to pursue STEM careers.

Schools

Dozens of Local Students Earn Honors at Several Colleges & Universities

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Many Watertown students made the honors list at their college or university, another was part of an award winning project and one graduated. Among the colleges were UMass Amherst, Tufts, Emmanuel, Simmons, WPI, Wentworth, Wisconsin, Hamilton, Holy Cross, Minnesota, Salve Regina, William & Mary, Saint Anselm and Miami University. The following announcements were provided by the colleges and universities. UMass Amherst

The following students were named to the Fall 2024 Dean’s List at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.  

Students are appointed to the Dean’s List at the end of a semester in which they have completed a minimum of 12 graded credits and have earned a grade point average of 3.500 or better.  Ariana Aufiero Philip Centola Aidan Conneely Lana Curic Carina DeLorio Riley Donlan Ronan Greene Levon Gukasyan Benjamin Heep Jackson Helie Olivia Hoover Deion Howe Alyce Judge Lara Kebabjian Ilana Krebs Liam Lawn Maeve Lawn Robert Martirosyan Veronica Merhy Selina Nebiye Ruari O’Sullivan John Pavlidis Vishakha Rath Henry Sarris Oscar Shepard Adelle Sheynkman Benjamin Surenian Isabella Tancredo Daniel Tattrie Alexandra Thuene Hrachya Tonyan Gregory Venizelos Anna Zarkadas Christina Zouein

WPI

Marley Fortune is a member of one of two undergraduate teams that won first place in the 2024 President’s IQP (Interactive Qualifying Project) Awards at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI).

Entertainment

2025 Herring Festival Will be Held Near Watertown Dam

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The 2025 Herring Festival will take place near the Watertown Dam on Sunday, May 18 beginning at 11 a.m. The event is hosted by the Charles River Watershed Association. See more details in the CRWA’s announcement below. Join Charles River Watershed Association for the 2025 Herring Festival! Come and celebrate the annual migration of Alewife, Blueback Herring, and American Shad from the ocean into the Charles River. This free, family-friendly event will feature food trucks, community art activities, guided tours of the Watertown Dam, a live fishing demonstration and fun activities for all ages.

Around Town

Tree Group Concerned About Proposed Removal of 9 Trees on Mt. Auburn Street

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16″ DBH Honeylocust at 489 Mount Auburn Street in Watertown. The following announcement was provided by Trees for Watertown:

TREE HEARING this Wednesday for Nine Shade Trees MassDOT Wants to Remove

The Mass. Department of Transportation (MassDOT) wants to cut down nine shade treesalong Mount Auburn Street in order to make way for roadway modifications. This was unexpected by those of us who believed MassDOT’s assurances months ago that destruction of shade trees as part of the Mount Auburn Street Project would be minimal. If this destruction concerns you, the Public Shade Tree Removal Hearing for these trees is on Zoom at 10 a.m. this Wednesday, May 14.

Around Town

Mt. Auburn St. Project: Installation of Electrical Pipes Continues at 3 Intersections

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The Mt. Auburn Street project will continue during the week of March 12-16, including installation of electrical conduit (underground electrical pipes) at three intersections on Mt. Auburn: Common Street, Irving Street/ Palfrey Street, and between Bates Road and Garfield Street. See details in the announcement from the City of Watertown, below. Traffic and Sidewalk ImpactsDuring this work, you can expect temporary lane shifts and possibly lane closures, but one travel lane in each direction will remain on Mount Auburn Street.