Walczak’s new TV ad highlights his anti-casino stance

Do you want a casino, along with the problems they create? That question is posed at the start of a new televised ad by mayoral candidate Bill Walczak, who is hoping to draw a sharp distinction between himself and the other candidates over a proposed Boston casino. The ad—Walczak’s third of the campaign—will begin airing at 6 p.m. today on cable and local stations in Greater Boston, including on NECN during the first and only televised mayoral debate. The event is sponsored by the Boston Herald, Suffolk University, and NECN. All 12 candidates are expected to attend. The ad opens with Continue reading >>>

Community Call – creates a Greater Boston Young Leader Award – The Boston

As Boston-based nonprofit Community Call moves into its second year of working with at-risk high school students in the city, the organization has found a way to expand its focus to better serve the students in its program. Community Call works with high school students in its Community Call Event Planning Enrichment Programs where students plan and execute community events while getting hands on training in business, leadership and making a positive difference in the community. To further highlight the importance of community service, Community Call has created the Greater Boston Young Continue reading >>>

Hospice offers ALS program for healthcare workers

Hospice of the North Shore Greater Boston has announced that it will be sponsoring “The Many Faces of ALS,” a comprehensive educational program offered to health-care professionals focused on the latest developments to improve care for patients afflicted with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. This program is being made possible through a generous gift to HNSGB, which established the Robert Marder ALS Education Series, honoring the memory of  Marder, an HNSGB patient with ALS who died in 2009. The daylong event will be held from 8 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Continue reading >>>

‘Up, Up and Away’ fun for all ages

On one of the last days before school before the bustle of fall activities, 120 children and adults were treated to ice cream and entertainment by the Belmont Council on Aging at the Beech Street Center at their Annual Ice Cream Social and Mad Science’s entertaining program “Up, Up and Away!”  The program was aimed at the children, but enjoyed by the adults, as well. Mad Science’s Jesse transformed an everyday dry cleaning bag into a hot air balloon and explained how it worked. It’s similar, he explained to when you run around – you get hot! If you are air and Continue reading >>>

Nominate Your Favorite Green Restaurant for a Nature’s Plate Award

 The Nature Conservancy is asking foodies in Greater Boston to nominate their favorite green restaurants for Nature’s Plate, a contest to name the people’s choice for each area’s top green restaurant.  Whether you're a vegan, vegetarian or a meat-eater, it's a good bet the healthiest and tastiest food on your table came from nature. From the lobsters in the Gulf of Maine to the tomatoes soaking up the sun at the farm down the road, healthy food demands a healthy planet. And our planet is nurtured when food production is sustainable.  That's why The Nature Conservancy is to working Continue reading >>>

Boston theater, all in one place

“It’s almost like a farmers’ market,” David Colfer says. He’s talking about the Greater Boston Theatre Expo, coming Sept. 10 to the Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts. “You go to a farmers’ market and three vendors are selling tomatoes, and you just happen to find one whose tomatoes you like,” says Colfer. “I think some of that’s going to happen here. Everyone’s selling theater here, but they’re all doing it a little bit differently. It’ll give people the chance to browse, shop, pick and choose, and if they like what they see, they’ll come back for more.” Some Continue reading >>>

Survey says: Reading among top 50 schools in the area

A recent survey ranked Reading as having some of the best schools in the Greater Boston Area, while also illustrating how tight budgets in recent years have adversely affected the district. The Reading School District was ranked 50th in a 2013 Boston Magazine survey of the 50 best towns for schools in the Greater Boston area. The survey looked at twenty different categories for 147 municipalities. These included student teacher ratio, class size, spending per student, percent graduating, percent going on to college and test results such as SATs and MCAS. The most obvious Continue reading >>>

Cameron Diaz, School Rankings, and ‘Molly’

Magazine rankings, drugs, and movie stars. There's been a wide variety of topics covered on Reading Patch in the last week. Here is a look at the top stories from recent days on Patch.Boston Magazine Ranks Reading Schools in Greater Boston's Top 50Reading Public Schools made its way into the Top 50 of Boston Magazine's list of the top schools in Greater Boston. The school came in at No. 50, ahead of several nearby towns."I think for the investment our community makes, we get a tremendous output," Superintendent of Schools John Doherty told Patch. "We always look at trying to find different ways Continue reading >>>