Category Archives: Other

Seeking a first floor apartment

Dear fellow Newton Parents:

I hope everyone has had a great start to the New Year.

My name is Demarys and I am the mother of two girls, ages 6 and 12. Catherine is in the 6th grade at Day Middle School. Angie attends the Boston College Campus School due to multiple health problems. My younger daughter cannot walk or talk, is legally blind and fed by a G-tube. She is completely dependent on us. We currently live on Cherry Street in an apartment on the 2nd and 3rd floor of a house. Every day I carry Angie up and down the stairs so that she can attend school. As she gets bigger, this is becoming very difficult for me. I would love to find a first floor apartment as this would be more appropriate for my family at this time. This is the reason that I am sending this letter. I have been looking for apartments in Newton and they are very hard to find. I am hoping that with the help of my community, I can find a new apartment. I have written this letter in Spanish and had it translated into English so I hope this makes sense! Please contact me at damarys2012@icloud.com with any information on apartments to rent.

Thank you!
Damarys Silva
damarys2012@icloud.com

Newton Auxiliary Police

Newton Auxiliary Police is looking for men and women who want to serve their community. Interested in joining the Newton Auxiliary and/or want to learn more?

They’ll be holding two Open House informational sessions in the Community Room at NPD Headquarters, 1321 Washington Street and hope you can attend one. Please also feel free to share to help get the word out.

March 1st, 7:00 – 9:00 pm
March 6th,  11:00 am – 1:00 pm

Community Needs Assessment Survey

The West Suburban YMCA wants to hear from as many Newton residents as possible! The Y, a cause-driven organization, is hosting an Online Community Needs Assessment Survey to seek input from community members.

Based on the survey findings, the Y will design and deliver new programs and services that address critical issues in the areas of youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. To participate, please click here: http://surveys.ymcaexchange.org/f/178236/1d38/

Newton Food Pantry needs help

The Newton Food Pantry is in great need of additional volunteers on Monday mornings to help unload and store food that is delivered from the food bank. The work only takes about an hour of time. However, the exact time when they need volunteers at the pantry to do this work changes from week to week depending upon the food bank schedule. Typically they need people for an hour, sometime between 9:00 and 11:30 am, and they send out an email a few days in advance advising volunteers of the time. Unloading and storing inventory is crucial to pantry operations and their core group on Mondays is small and desperate for help. Please email newtonfoodpantry@gmail.com if you can help.

As you know, the Newton Food Pantry is an all volunteer non-profit that has been providing food for over 30 years to those in our community who experience food insecurity. They presently provide a 5+ day supply of non-perishable and healthy fresh food to approximately 600 Newton residents each month. But they need your help in order to continue to serve our neighbors in need.

Help wanted

Newton Community Farm is looking for a part time administrator/event coordinator. Do you like to be involved in your community, organizing volunteers, putting on events, and keeping operations running smoothly? Come work for NCF, and be a part of your local community farm. This position is approximately 625 hours per year, with most hours occurring April through November. A more complete job description with application information is available on the Farm website at http://newtoncommunityfarm.org/.

Children and their Parents Needed for Paid Research Study

Children and their Parents Needed for Paid Research Study on Child Emotion Regulation Strategies and Parent-Child Relationships. Researchers at Harvard University are seeking children ages 6-9 and their parents to participate in a single-session study. The primary goals of the study are to further research on child development and emotion regulation strategies. This research serves to promote child emotional and behavioral functioning along with future health outcomes. During their visit to our lab in Cambridge, children will also have the opportunity to learn effective coping skills.

Eligible parents will receive $50.00 and children will receive a prize for their participation. Interested parents can call 617-702-2016 or email at familyemotionstudy@gmail.com .

Do you have an instrument that you don’t need or want anymore?

Abigail Miller, a tenth grader at Newton South High School, is running an instrument donation drive because she really enjoys playing music and hopes she can help others get the chance to love it as much as she does.

Through a partnership with Berklee College of Music, the instruments she collects will be donated to local nonprofit organizations and schools who provide music education to underserved populations. Berklee’s Office of Community and Government relations oversees a donation program to donate quality computer hardware, musical instruments, and production equipment to communities in need. Examples of their partner organizations include the Boys and Girls Clubs, various Boston Public Schools, the Haley House, Girls Rock Campaign and several locations of YMCAs.

If you have instruments that you are no longer using and may like to donate, please contact Abigail at music.drive@yahoo.com. For more information or questions, you can visit instrumentdonationdrive.blogspot.com or email.

Thank you very much!

Williams Camp & Snow Auction

The Williams PTO Camp & Snow Auction is now open. Check out the day and overnight camp options, winter activities like ice skating, skiing, and watching the Providence Bruins.

You can bid on these and many more items to help raise money for the PTO – they raise 45% of their budget through auction fundraising which funds children’s programming at Williams Elementary school including Creative Arts & Sciences, Understanding Our Differences, field trips, instructional technology, physical education equipment, library books, and more.

Why So Early?

Rethinking the High School Start Time: A Community Forum

Can’t wake up your teen for school? Tired of grumpy, groggy kids? Concerned about the impact of limited sleep on your student? There is a lot of evidence that delaying the start time for high school can improve the physical and mental health of students, reduce tardiness, and improve learning in school. Newton is in the process of studying a later start time for the two high schools. The School Committee has formed the High School Start Time Working Group to study the benefits and challenges of doing so. Find out more at http://www.newton.k12.ma.us/laterstarttime.

The Newton North School Council is sponsoring a forum to inform the community about the benefits and challenges of a later high school start time in our city. We are pleased to be joined by Superintendent David Fleishman, Working Group and School Committee members Ellen Gibson and Ruth Goldman, and Dr. Christopher Landrigan, a Newton parent and a physician and researcher in the Division of Sleep Disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. We will also hear from high school students and faculty about their experiences. We welcome your participation in the conversation about a later high school start time in Newton.

January 26th,  7:00 – 8:30 pm
Newton North cafeteria

If you are unable to attend the event, but would like more information about this topic, please visit: http://newtonsouthptso.org/school-info/school-council/, where you will find resources and can sign-up for periodic updates.