Boston is going through a period of historic growth -- the kind our city hasn’t seen in decades. More people are choosing to put down roots and start families here. More businesses are choosing to open their doors here. Students from all over the world come to attend our universities and colleges each year. As Boston grows, we must keep our focus on the families and communities that make our our city the diverse, welcoming and world-class place it is.
Early on in my first campaign for mayor, I realized I had to be open about my recovery from alcoholism. I had been working on addiction prevention and recovery issues for my entire 16 years in the State Legislature, and I knew I wanted to make it a priority for the city if I were elected. But my friends in the recovery community encouraged me to also tell my own story, as a way of breaking down stigma and bringing hope to people suffering from substance use disorders and their families. So I did, and the response was, and still is, profound. Connecting with people in recovery, talking to young people about their choices and their challenges, having people approach me quietly, after an event, about a struggling family member -- these are among my most meaningful experiences as mayor.
Applications for the 2019 Boston Cultural Council Organizational Grants are now open. Building on Mayor Walsh’s commitment to expanding and supporting arts in Boston, this year’s round of funding marks the largest ever and totals nearly $500,000 available to arts organizations. The grants are a partnership by the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture, the Boston Cultural Council (BCC) and the Mass Cultural Council (MCC). “Boston is home to so many great arts organizations who are making significant impacts on our communities with their programming,” said Mayor Walsh via press release. “I am so proud that we are able to support their efforts through these grants, and I can’t wait to see the variety of arts opportunities that each neighborhood takes advantage of in 2019.”
The BCC works under the umbrella of the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture and distributes funds annually from the city of Boston and Mass Cultural Council that support innovative arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences programming with the goal of enhancing the quality of life in Boston.
Mayor Marty Walsh wrapped up the 22nd Annual Boston Main Street Awards with the annual mayor's trolley tour to a dozen Main Street districts, including stopping off at two Jamaica Plain Main Street districts. Walsh visited the Egleston Square Main Streets district and the Jamaica Plain Centre/South Main Street (JPCSMS) district on July 11th. On South Street Walsh honored Kacy Hughes as the Volunteer of the Year and Fresh Hair Salon as the Business of the Year for JPCSMS.
In Egleston Square Walsh honored Northeastern University AIAS students as the Volunteers of the Year and Sandy Wireless as the Business of the Year. Christine Lau was named the Volunteer of the Year for Hyde/Jackson Square Main Streets, and El Oriental de Cuba Restaurant was named Business of the Year.
The Hennigan K-8 School, English High School, JFK Elementary School and Community Academy are four of dozens of schools that are receiving more than $450,000 in grants to provide arts instruction. The grants are part of the Boston Public Schools (BPS) Arts Expansion initiative, which has schools working with more than 30 arts partners to provide long-term direct arts instruction for the 2018-2019 school year. These grants are supported by BPS Arts Expansion funders including the Barr Foundation, the Boston Foundation, Katie and Paul Buttenweiser Foundation, Klarman Family Foundation and Linde Family Foundation. Boston officials, BPS and EdVestors announced the latest round of grants as part of this week’s BPS Citywide Arts Festival on June 14. “We believe that all Boston residents should have the ability to engage in creativity and be part of Boston’s rich arts and culture scene, so it is so exciting to have so many of our BPS students showcasing their talents throughout the Citywide Arts Festival this week,” said Mayor Martin Walsh via press release.
Celebrate the one-year anniversary of the renovated Jamaica Plain Branch Library with Mayor Marty Walsh with a potluck on Saturday. The Friends of the Jamaica Plain Branch Library (30 South St.) are hosting the potluck on Saturday, June 16 from 12:30 to 2 pm. But come early at 11 am to hear a musical performance by Cardamom Quartet in the library's community room. Please bring a food item to share with your fellow library lovers. No word on what Mayor Walsh plans on bringing to the potluck.
Community Servings, a nonprofit provider of medically tailored meals and nutrition services to individuals and families living with critical and chronic illnesses, broke ground on May 30 on an expansion project in Jamaica Plain that will broaden its caring mission and its leadership role in furthering the power of food as medicine. The $21 million “Food Campus,” now under construction on the site of Community Servings’ headquarters in Jamaica Plain, consists of a three-story addition and kitchen expansion in the existing space. The 31,000-square-foot project will enable the organization to triple the production of medically tailored meals to meet increasing demand, double the capacity for daily volunteers, and double the number of food service job training graduates. “We are extremely excited about our project, especially with how the new building’s design will open up our organization to the community like never before,” said David B. Waters, CEO of Community Servings. “Tall windows will afford views of the dynamic work of our daily volunteers, while new classrooms will provide ample space for nutrition education and job training for our neighbors.
Every spring, the city of Boston releases our Imagine Boston Capital Plan for the next five years. It outlines where our city’s budget will be focused, our longer-term plans, and our priorities. Essentially, the capital plan details what initiatives and projects in your neighborhood and across the city that we’ll be investing in to make Boston’s future brighter. From Jamaica Pond to the Curley K-8 School, it’s my priority to create growth and opportunity for every Bostonian in every neighborhood. Boston will be at its best when all its residents have the support and opportunity they need to thrive.
For the first-time ever Boston is hosting the Geek Bowl, a huge trivia contest of more than 100 competing pub teams and a Jeannie Johnston Pub crew is competing this year. At last year's Geek Bowl, Boston Mayor Walsh announced through a hilarious video that Geek Bowl XII would be held in our hometown. In the video Mayor Walsh reminisces about the New England Patriots last second Super Bowl victory against the Seattle Seahawks and says everyone is welcome in Boston "unless you're from Little Rock, Arkansas." He also provides directions to get to Boston, which includes giving directions based upon all of our Dunkin' Donuts stores, rotaries and the Mass Pike. Check out the video below:
To all Bostonians: happy new year, and may 2018 bring you happiness and health in Boston. As we enter into the new year, I’m grateful for the people of Boston -- I continue to be inspired by our residents’ big hearts and deep love of community. 2018 brings a new year in Boston, and it also marks inauguration for myself, and for the Boston City Council. I’m humbled by the opportunity to serve a second term as mayor of Boston. Inaugurations are often a time for celebrations and special events across the city.
