Spontaneous Celebrations' Lantern Parade is on October 22 and 23 and there are many ways you can get involved leading up to one of Jamaica Plain's greatest traditions. You can make lanterns. Albeit this year, Spontaneous Celebrations is in need of 3-liter bottles. Members of Spontaneous Celebrations' Programming Circle have been exploring how to make lanterns in other ways, such as strings of LED lights and even cellphone lights. There are upcoming afternoons and evenings for community drop-ins to help make lanterns for everyone to use.
The second annual golf tournament to benefit Jamaica Plain nonprofit Spontaneous Celebrations will tee off on Sept. 22. This year’s tournament will be held at Franklin Park's William J. Devine Golf Course, and will be followed by a BBQ dinner, complete with prizes, and a raffle. The raffle includes four of the Red Sox tickets. Details on how to purchase raffle tickets are online.
Every year around Halloween, Spontaneous Celebrations leads one of the best neighborhood events -- lantern nights around Jamaica Pond. During the preceding weeks residents big and small create lanterns using three liter bottles. But unfortunately, the generous bottle donor that's provided the bottles is no longer making three liter bottles. "Have you seen any 3-liter bottles in a store near you? We’d love to find another supplier.
This year's Wake Up The Earth Festival is May 7 -- and there are numerous ways to still get involved with Spontaneous Celebrations' annual beloved tradition. The first WUTE festival took place in 1979 on land that was going to be a large highway that is now the Southwest Corridor with a community garden, and a playground. The tradition continues every year (except for the lousy pandemic interruption) by the Stony Brook T station. There are numerous ways to get involved with this year's festival. This year's theme is Power of the People, and there will be banners on the fence between the Stony Brook and Jackson Square T stations, celebrating the nonprofits, community groups and local businesses that helped stop the highway.
If you’re new to Jamaica Plain, you might not have experienced the Wake Up The Earth Parade and Festival that blossoms on the first Saturday in May each year in the Southwest Corridor Park, brought to life by Spontaneous Celebrations. There's music galore on three stages, food trucks, artists and clothing vendors, non-profit organizations tabling, face painting, mini golf, stilt walking, and toddler drumming. In just a few weeks, you’ll have a chance to experience the annual Lantern Parade at Jamaica Pond (Oct. 23 and 24 this year), also orchestrated by Spontaneous Celebrations. On those nights hundreds of homemade lanterns bob along the path around the pond, carried by children in Halloween costumes with their parents, and others who enjoy the spectacle each year.
Community cultural organization Spontaneous Celebrations is holding a block party on Sept. 11 to celebrate the reopening of its building. The renovations are continuing and the organization is inviting the community to come together for a potluck party (bring something to share with your neighbors), and free music. The ongoing renovations include a new front door design by local artist Connie Barbour, all new hardwood floor on the second floor, rebuilding of the stage infrastructure, and removal of the chimney. Kitchen and bar renovations are underway, including a new exhaust, plus new back stairs to the basement.
The damage wrought by COVID-19 is permeating all aspects of society. Our funerals are being affected, our woodworking classes are being cancelled, and our beloved Wake Up The Earth Festival is not happening May 2. The Forest Hills Cemetery was consecrated in 1848, and it's not clear if there's ever been restrictions placed on the number of attendees allowed at funerals. But now there are -- in accordance with Governor Charlie Baker's executive order, burials are now limited to 25 people, according to Forest Hills Cemetery's website. Along with the 25 person limit, there are other new protocols:
We are requesting that all family members remain in their cars until the casket has been placed at the gravesite and the Cemetery personnel have left the area.
If you're new to Jamaica Plain you're going to want to check out this weekend's Jamaica Pond Lantern Parades. Hundreds of people of all ages (and dogs), some costumed and some not, will gather for pre-Halloween fun in the annual presented by Spontaneous Celebrations and the Friends of Jamaica Pond. This year marks the 36th year of the Jamaica Pond Lantern Parades that happen on both Saturday and Sunday. Before the parade, people gather by the Jamaica Pond Boat House, and hang their lanterns to display for all to enjoy the varied designs. The parades start at dusk on both Saturday and Sunday, as people walk around the pond holding their lanterns.
The annual Wake Up the Earth Festival and Parades are one of the best days of the year in Jamaica Plain -- and the festival is this Saturday. This year is the 41st Wake Up the Earth Festival! The festival has a fascinating creation story. It began in 1979 when a group of local neighbors and activists came together to stop the Interstate 95 expansion into Jamaica Plain -- and won their fight! Organized by Spontaneous Celebrations, the parades are boisterous, creative, with bands, stilt walkers, dancing, giant puppets, and of course, dogs in costumes!
It’s been nearly two years since the inauguration of Donald Trump as president of the United States and January 20 is the actual anniversary – and it’s when local activist group Boston For All is “reclaiming this day in the spirit of goodwill, community, and inclusion.”
With District 6 City Councilor Matt O’Malley, Boston For All is inviting the community to join them at ‘Fun For All,’ a completely free community fun fair that will include a professional storyteller, a singalong, activist art activities facilitated by local artists and circus arts training with teachers from the Commonwealth Circus Center. There will also be opportunities for participants to write and draw messages for those held in detention centers. While this event is about enjoyment and fun, it does have a serious side, as it will also serve as a fundraiser for Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), a national organization providing free legal services for immigrant children. KIND has been at the forefront of efforts to assist migrant children separated from their parents. Representatives from KIND will be on hand to provide information about their work. “I am thrilled to be partnering with Boston For All for their first Fun For All event which promotes fun, kindness and inclusion while contributing to an important cause,” said O’Malley.
