Worcester Magazine July 26 - Aug 1, 2018 by Worcester Magazine

JULY 26 - AUG. 1, 2018 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

NEWS • ARTS • DINING • NIGHTLIFE

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in this issue J U LY 26 - A U G U S T 1, 2018 • V O L U M E 43 I S S U E 48

the cover

The EcoTarium: A Piece of Science History Story on page 12

Galileo Escobar, 3, Worcester, gets a closer look at the river otters that were playfully swimming in their habitat at the EcoTarium. Photo by Elizabeth Brooks, Design by Kimberly Vasseur

ofo bikes headed out of Worcester after failed try: The yellow bikes — useful to some and infamous to others — will soon be gone. 4 Beautiful Garbage: James Hunt is a working artist who makes lush, large-scale photographs of the material things that mark our human interaction with the natural environment. 21

Hedy’s beautiful brain: After an abbreviated spring schedule, Cinema 320 is experimenting with its first-ever summer series, showing three typically-offbeat films. 29

Find us on Facebook.com/worcestermag Twitter @worcestermag Instagram: Worcestermag

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news

Ofo bikes headed out of Worcester after failed try BILL SHANER

he yellow bikes — useful to some and infamous to others — will soon be gone. That’s right, Ofo, the Chinese company that brought the yellow, dockless

rideshare bicycles to Worcester and other Massachusett communities, is pulling out of the city and most of the country as the company reshapes its global strategy. “As we continue to bring bikeshare to communities across the globe, Ofo has begun to

prioritize operations in a number of successful markets, allowing us to continue to serve our customers at the high level of quality they have come to expect,” said Andrew Daley, head of North American operations, in a statement earlier this week.

A vandalized ofo bike on East Central Street. ELIZABETH BROOKS

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The bikes, which provided cheap rides at $1 per hour, were well used in Worcester, but contentious. City officials and others felt the company didn’t do enough to redistribute and maintain the bikes. In Facebook groups and other forums, the bikes were a hot topic of conversation, as people complain they were often damaged or appeared stolen. Still, just because Ofo is leaving, it doesn’t mean Worcester is giving up on bike share programs wholesale. Both the city and the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce said they’re searching for another company to bring another bike share service to town. “From Walk-Bike Worcester to Worcester Earn-A-Bike, Worcester has long been a welcoming city for bike share culture,” City Manager Ed Augustus Jr. said in a statement this week. “Moving forward, the city remains committed to working with the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce as well as several other local partners to identify the right bike share company for Worcester which will ensure safe, accessible and userfriendly alternative transportation in and around our community.” As for Ofo, Augustus said the city will work with the company to pick up the remaining bikes within the week. Worcester was the second city in the U.S. to welcome Ofo last September, behind Seattle. Since, Lynn and Quincy have also hosted the company. The bikes, which feature “dockless” technology, allow users to pick up and leave bikes wherever they please. Charged per hour of riding, users unlock and lock the bikes with an app. In Worcester, the service was especially well-used. In the first season, from last September until the end of November, the company logged an average of 352 trips a day, at about C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 7

news

Proposed RTA budget increase may not spare Worcester bus cuts BILL SHANER

ocal public transit advocates were offered a small ray of hope recently, when the state Legislature handed the governor a conference budget that included an additional $8 million for the statewide Regional Transit Authority, which funds the Worcester buses and other networks. The $88-million proposal in the conference budget is up from the flat $80 million Gov. Charlie Baker proposed in his initial budget earlier this year. His figure was the same as last year’s, making it an effective budget cut, as fuel, labor and other costs continue to rise. RTA networks around the state warned of service cuts and fare hikes. In Worcester, the proposed cuts were particularly austere – an ax to all weekend service, eliminating routes wholesale, and halving the frequency of certain popular routes, which

already run on roughly 45 minute schedules. When proposed earlier this year, the cuts were likened by some officials to a “death spiral,” pushing the WRTA past the point of any usefulness for most in the community. If the $88 million passes the governor’s desk without being vetoed – and that’s a big “if,” given the governor’s cold silence on the issue and his reputation as a prolific vetoer – the WRTA might dodge some, if not all, of those cuts. “It’s possible, but it’s still not 100 percent,” said Jonathan Church, WRTA administrator. “I don’t want to give the impression that ‘possible’ means no cuts.” The WRTA advisory board scheduled a meeting for Thursday morning to discuss scenarios should the conference budget make it past Baker. At play, however, are a dizzying array of uncertainties in the $88 million plan. Of the sum, $6 million is divvied into two pools of grants

ELIZABETH BROOKS

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ELIZABETH BROOKS

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news ofo

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two per person, according to data provided by the city. In total, Worcester riders logged 27,471 trips and 4,860 people tried it at least once. The service was especially well-used on weekends, and most commonly used along the downtown corridor and around Worcester State University, according to company data. But still, some complained the bikes were unsightly, often damaged, and sometimes stolen. Karen Pelletier, vice president of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, said internal issues at the company may have been at play. “This year we did have some challenges with ofo,” she said. The company was responsible for maintaining and redistributing the bikes throughout the city, and Pelletier said the city expressed frustration with the way in which they handled it. The follow-through the second season, she said, didn’t appear as good as the first.

“But now it becomes clear they were scaling back and may not have been fully staffed locally to do that sort of work,” she said. Last week, ofo announced it was dramatically downsizing its operation in North America. According to a report in QZ, the company told employees in North America it was “going into sleep mode,” and laid off the majority of its staff. The U.S. is not alone. The company recently pulled out of Germany, Australia and Israel as well. In an earlier interview with Worcester Magazine, Jordan Levine, head of northeast communications for ofo, said the service ran into some problems in Worcester. “What I can say is we’ve seen this in a handful of cities. We’ve had issues,” Levine said, adding it hasn’t been pervasive across the cities in which ofo operates. He never answered specifically whether the company was going to cease operations in Worcester. In an interview last week, City Manager Ed Augustus Jr. said he had not heard that the company was planning to pull its bikes from the city, but he expressed doubt about

its future. “I think the city is questioning whether we want to continue our relationship with ofo,” Augustus said, citing problems that have included stolen ofo bikes as well as bikes that have been discarded and, in some cases, not picked up by the company for weeks. The dockless bike system, new to Worcester and many other communities, afforded users the opportunity to rent the bikes and leave them wherever they finished their rides. More and more, however, discarded – and oftentimes vandalized – bikes have been seen resting against buildings and fences, or in some cases tossed into streams and other places and left. The city has questioned the company’s lag time in rounding up the bikes. “I think their follow-up has been poor,” Augustus said. “We’ve had a number of meetings with them, with the chief of police, about concerns, about follow-up. There seems to be a lack of concern for their bikes and concern for the brand and the community. The bikes get tampered with and stolen, and used in ways that are inconsistent with what the program is supposed to be about.” Despite the concerns with Ofo, both the

city and the Chamber indicated they’re still looking for new bike share services. Pelletier went far as to say there may be some news on that front soon. Overall, she said, the entrance of bike share companies in Worcester has been a positive development. “I think it’s been great. I’ve seen so much more private bike ridership, even,” she said. “I think it sort of opened the door a little bit for bike riders and the idea this could be a bike-riding city.” Bill Shaner can be reached at 508-749-3166 x324 or at wshaner@worcestermag.com. Follow him on Twitter @Bill_Shaner.

W RTA

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from the state Department of Transportation, Church said; $4 million is set aside for projects that would expand service, the other $2 million for repairs and other remedial work. “We don’t know the minutiae,” said Church, “how it will be divvied up.” Until then, Church said the board is still looking at all of the possible cuts. When asked, Church was unwilling to say whether any of the proposed cuts – say, for example, weekend service – would be taken off the chopping block should the $88 million pass. Among the proposed cuts are all weekend service and all community routes (29, 33 and 42), which would fully end service to Southbridge, Charlton, Spencer, Brookfield, Oxford and Webster. The WRTA is also considering reductions of service to routes 1, 4, 7 and 15. The 7 is a particularly popular route, servicing 100,000 passengers in the first half of 2018. Decisions on cuts will be based in part on feedback from the community, taken at several forums earlier this year. Residents who rely on the bus to get around complained the service is already poor and any further cuts could kill it. Baker has until the end of the week to submit any budget vetoes to the Legislature, which then has until next Tuesday to vote to override them. “We know [Baker] could veto the line item,” Church said. “We’re hopeful that won’t happen.”

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worcesteria UP, UP, AND INTO A TRUCK: Some really, really terrible person stole the iconic Lois Lane street sign marking the entrance to the That’s Entertainment parking lot, and the owners there want it back. Apparently, during some roadwork last week, the Department of Public Works took the sign and pole down to install some new sidewalks. They left the sign there overnight, attached to the pole, because who the hell would steal a whole street sign pole? Well, someone did. In the dead of night, someone took the whole pole — sign attached — and made off with it. That sign, for nerds everywhere, was a city landmark for a city institution, and it should be treated as such. If you took the sign, do the right thing: Bring it back. NOT OFO, BUT UBER? As you read in the news section this week, Ofo, whose “yellow bikes”

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pepper the city, will soon be gone. But both city and Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce officials said they’re in search of a new bikeshare program. Consider this, from Commonwealth Magazine: Uber and Lyft, which already operate in Worcester, are looking to expand into bikes and scooters by buying up start-ups similar to Ofo. Could they be the next companies to bring in bikeshares? It would be a sad day for Townie Facebook, that’s for sure. Rest assured, all you simple, hate-filled townies. You’ll have a new “yellow bike” to get mad online about soon.

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this week the internet was awash in defenses of the public library after some rich guy wrote a column in Forbes about how all libraries should be replaced by Amazon bookstores. This, he argued, would save taxpayers money and increase Amazon’s stock price. I could go on a rant about how bad, crooked, underhanded and democracy-shattering this idea is, but I think the majority of my readership already knows that. Instead, here are a few services the Worcester Public Library offers for free that Amazon wouldn’t: 1. Libby! The library has an app called Libby that contains a large collection of e-books and audiobooks (like, you know, Kindle and Audible). They’re all free and you check them out same as a library book, just on your phone. So instead of buying e-books from Bezos, check Libby first. 2. Fair treatment of everyone. If you think Amazon would abide the homeless using the library as a sort of day center/port in the storm, you should look into how they treat their warehouse workers. 3. Classes. The library hosts a plethora of classes and community events, from ESL to coding. So let’s all make our best use of the Worcester Public Library and not give billionaires any more money than we have to.

FREEDOM IS AN ENDLESS MEETING: Shouts out to the crew behind the now-demolished

Worcide skatepark, who are still hard at work organizing and working with the city to find a replacement plot of land and rebuild. Tonight, they’re meeting for a second time at WooBerry. I was talking to someone who went to the first meeting last week, and he said the Worcide folks had more energy and motivation than political campaigns he’d seen. Good. They’re going to need it to get the city to follow through quickly on its promise to help make a new Worcide. Also, for what it’s worth: We still don’t know who whited over the Worcide street art and why, but it bears repeating that that collection of art posed no public safety risk … so … what’s going on.

I AM A MONSTER: So last week, some of you may have read a piece of crass art criticism I put

Worcester-Boston Full Service Radio for New England 8

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online concerning the proposed Worcester Public Schools logo, which I still think is bad. What I didn’t know before posting is that WPS students were involved in the process of picking it. So basically, I used my platform to crap on kids. And that makes me a monster. And I have to live with that. But I’d like to think that my being a monster made a difference, because the School Committee a few days later, last Thursday, moved to go back to the drawing board and check out some other, hopefully better logos. The logo as proposed looked like arm wrestling to some and to other, more dirty-minded folks, a “swordfight” (I’m not explaining, you look it up if you want). If it was approved and rolled out to a wider audience, the jokes and memes would have been out of control. So hey, WPS kids involved with this, I was a monster to spare you from dealing with an entire Bill Shaner, reporter school district full of monwshaner@worcestermag.com sters. That’s at least how I’m Twitter: @Bill_Shaner rationalizing it to myself.

news

the beat ASSUMPTION.EDU

Assumption College no longer. Or at least

that’s the goal. Officials there are considering a push to make the school a full-on university, and in doing so are breaking fields of study into a more rigid, school-based structure, according to the Telegram.

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an increase in funding for school security at the state and federal level. In Worcester, that translates to “go buckets” in every classroom, filled with door stoppers, spray, first aid kits, and other items useful in the event of an emergency, or an active shooter situation. PHOTO SUBMITTED

Say hello to the new president of the EcoTarium: Lucy Hale, whose resume includes the

Dallas Zoo, Perot Museum of Science and Nature and the Trinity River Audubon Center in Texas. Hale will replace Jox Cox, who left the job earlier this year to take the top job at the Museum of Discovery and Science in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The Board of Trustees, in their announcement this week, praised Hale as a leader with a collaborative approach and a focus on results.

Uxbridge Selectman Chairman Justin Piccirillo resigned from the board this week, citing the need to move. Active in the environmental issues of the town, including a contaminated soil dumping site featured in this magazine (May 24 - 30, 2018), Piccirillo was part of a wave of activists to take leadership positions in the town, and work to ouster other officials, including selectmen and, most recently, the town manager. ZILLOW.COM

In case you didn’t know, Worcester has a real-as-heck, actual mansion.

And it was just listed for sale. Over the weekend, social media was abuzz with postings about the $2.1-million, five-bedroom home with an indoor swimming pool and an elevator from the garage. The house, tucked in a neighborhood of Salisbury Street, was built in 2001, in the French Rococo style.

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e g d i r b r u St p i r t y a d a n more tha Cheer the riders of the 39th annual Pan Mass Challenge on August 4th and 5th

kay aking

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Visit the Miltown Car Show on August 3rd and 4th at the Hamilton Rod and Gun Club

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See the annual Redcoats and Rebels at Old Sturbridge Village on August 4th and 5th Follow us on Twitter @visitsturbridge

Early voting will happen again this November in Worcester. This week, the Election Commission identified five spots for early voting, which happens over the 12 days prior to an election. They are: The Unitarian Universalist Church on Holden Street, The Worcester Senior Center on Providence Street, The Worcester Public Library on Salem Street (Precinct 3), Shaw’s Supermarket on Stafford Street, and Worcester State Temple Emanuel building on May Street.

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editorial

opinion

Ofo, we hardly knew ya

ell, that didn’t last long. The naysayers, of course, will have a good laugh at news that, after just two short seasons, the Ofo bike share company is pulling its shiny yellow bikes from Worcester. Cue the steady chorus of “This is why Worcester can’t have nice things.” To be sure, there is plenty of visual evidence to suggest a good number of the dockless rental bikes, which made quite the splash when they were introduced last year, ended up being stolen or vandalized. Several bikes have been spotted with tires or handlebars removed, handlebars torn off, or the locking mechanism pried off. Some of the bikes have been observed tossed in streams or thrown against or over fences. You don’t have to travel far, it seems, to find an abandoned Ofo bike in Worcester. Still, it’s hard to tip the fault meter totally against Worcester on this one. The very concept of a dockless bike system suggests one that would be ripe for problems. And, voila, there were problems. The city was attracted because it came at no cost to them, unlike, say, a docked bike share program. But this particular bike share would seem to require strong management and close oversight neither of which Ofo seemed to demonstrate, at least not in Worcester. While those who stole or vandalized bikes should be held accountable, the city has expressed frustration with the apparent lack of follow-up on the part of Ofo when it came to its bikes. As far as picking them up from where they were left, the company seemed to come up short.

The question becomes: can a bike share program work in Worcester? Cynics and critics might point to Ofo’s failure as Exhibit A in the case against bike sharing. However, other programs, like Blue Bikes in Boston, also known as Hubway, have enjoyed success. You’d be hard-pressed to prove Worcester poses more problems than Boston when it comes to just about anything, never mind bike sharing. If it can work there, it can work here. It will, however, require solid management and a good working relationship with the city. And it probably won’t be dockless. Not to say such a program is doomed for failure. Perhaps, when the kinks are worked out, or if a better-suited company is in charge, dockless bike sharing can thrive. For now, Worcester, which has worked hard to make its transportation system and network of roads inclusive of all modes, not just cars and trucks, can count the Ofo experiment as a learning experience. Certainly, Ofo may have learned a thing or two. The city, meanwhile, hardly seems poised to abandon the notion of bike sharing altogether. In a statement this week, City Manager Ed Augustus Jr. cited ventures such as Walk-Bike Worcester and Worcester Earn-A-Bike as evidence of the city’s desire to bring more, not fewer, bikes into the fold. He said the city is committed to “identify the right bike share company for Worcester, which will ensure safe accessible and user-friendly alternative transportation in and around our community.” That is a sensible approach. The next bike share company to set up shop in Worcester must demonstrate the same.

Photographer Elizabeth Brooks x323 Contributing Writers Stephanie Campbell, Sarah Connell, Janice Harvey, Jim Keogh, Jessica Picard, Jim Perry, Corlyn Voorhees Editorial Interns Samantha Bratkon, Sophia Laperle 72 Shrewsbury St. Worcester, MA 01604 worcestermagazine.com Editorial 508.749.3166 x322 editor@worcestermagazine.com Sales 508.749.3166 x333 sales@worcestermagazine.com President Paul M. Provost Publisher Kathleen Real-Benoit x331 Editor Walter Bird Jr. x322 Culture Editor Joshua Lyford x325 Reporter Bill Shaner x324

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Director of Creative Services Don Cloutier x141 Creative Director Kimberly Vasseur x142 Creative Services Department Becky Gill, Stephanie Mallard, Wendy Watkins Ad Director Helen Linnehan x333 Media Consultants Diane Galipeau x335, Cheryl Robinson x336, Sarah Perez x334 Media Coordinator Madison Friend x332

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feature Education program, 1960s

Polar bear exhibit

COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

The EcoTarium: A Piece of Science History

SAMANTHA BRATKON

visitors of all ages.

elcome to the screaming hours.” From the moment the EcoTarium opens its doors, up until the PA announcer informs guests they are about to close, children can be found scattered across the property of 60 acres. There’s no doubt you’ll be dragged by your child’s hand as they coerce you into taking off your shoes and exploring the flooded mush that was once the sand digging area. Children are swarming the outdoor play areas and on all three indoor floors: running, yelling, playing, and most importantly, learning. Using cutting-edge research and learning techniques, the EcoTarium aims to educate its

BECOMING THE ECOTARIUM

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efore it was Worcester’s beloved EcoTarium, the Worcester Lyceum of Natural History was created by 14 individuals who sought to appreciate and understand the natural world. Since its inception in 1825, the museum has undergone myriad changes. The Worcester Natural History Society formed in 1861. It was the second natural history society in the country, coming

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only a year after Philadelphia’s society formed. In 1884, the Worcester Lyceum of Natural History and the Worcester Natural History Society merged. They also started incorporating live animals into exhibits. In 1885, The Natural History Camp opened on Lake Quinsigamond. The early camp was geared toward boys ages 10-20, and focused on health and athletics in addition to nature and discovery. Now known as the Summer Discovery Camp, the experience is open to all genders and has a theme that changes weekly. Throughout its history, the institution has changed its public front on multiple occasions. With these name changes came tagline changes. While legally the name has remained the Worcester Natural History Society, the museum has also been known as the Worces-

ter Science Museum, the New England Science Center, and most recently, the EcoTarium. Taglines have included, “center for environmental exploration,” “science. nature. explore. connect.” and “museum of science and nature.” “The mission and the name and everything kind of captures the original intent about this. The Lyceum movement was about selflearning and self-education, and bringing that education to everyone, and a focus on the natural sciences, and really learning about the world around you,” said Betsy Loring, the EcoTarium’s director of Exhibits and Facilities. “ … we’re really just giving the 2000s interpretation of exactly that same mission and focus.”

feature African Communities is the longest running exhibit COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

Hands on wildlife, 1967 COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

Above, Model of Siegfried, 1967. Right, interior of the EcoTarium, 1970. COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

Katie Inderbitzen, JASON VI Expedition student Argonaut from Hudson, N.H., on-site in Hawaii while her classmates drive the Marsokhod (a robotic exploration vehicle developed by the Russians for a mission to Mars) via satellite from the New England Science Center. JASON VI Expedition broadcasted live four times a day through March 11, 1995. COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

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feature

Deputy Director Patricia Crawford, who has been serving as interim president, has worked at the museum for 17 years. ELIZABETH BROOKS

TELLING STORIES

From Left: Paris Fletcher, Richard C. Steele and Francis A. Harrington Fund Campaign Announcement of the Worcester Science Museum, March 1967. COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

oday the EcoTarium, which is about seven years out from its 200th anniversary, shares a mission with the Worcester Lyceum of Natural History that started almost two centuries ago. They have, however, made cultural changes that reflect modern times. “One of the original visions, I believe, for moving from downtown to [Harrington Street] was to sort of combine a science museum, natural history museum and zoo,” said Loring. At that point in the museum’s history, they had animals on exhibit that wouldn’t be found naturally in New England; for example, golden lion tamarins. “We had a small endangered species building,” Loring said. “Those animals were actually part of what’s called the SSP, Species Survival Plan, which is a program of international zoological associations in collaboration with other concerned agencies. “We were never a breeding facility, but we had animals that were here when they were not in the breeding program, but were part of that larger Species Survival Plan.” When the monkeys left to breed, the Endangered Species Building was transformed into J U LY 2 6 - A U G U S T 1 , 2 0 1 8

the Animal Corner. The EcoTarium is known for another nonnative attraction: its polar bear exhibit. Kenda, their most recent bear, was the first polar bear born and raised in New England and was the oldest living in captivity. Now, seven years after Kenda’s passing, the polar bear exhibit is being converted into Wild Cat Station. This came with a push toward housing native, or recently-native animals in Worcester. “That was definitely something that we made a conscious decision to do,” said former president Joe Cox, now the president and CEO of the Museum of Discovery and Science in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. “I’m very excited about the direction it’s going in.” When Kenda died, the museum started to think about its overall wildlife collection, according to Deputy Director Patricia Crawford, who has been serving as interim president (the museum this week announced the hiring of Lucy Hale as its new president). Crawford has worked at the museum for 17 years. The institution wanted to tell the story of the New England habitat. “We’re telling global stories,” Loring said. “When it comes to habitat and climate change, these are all global stories, but we have an ecosystem, too. And so this is the example and then we can jump into global stories that the native stories sort of show.” In addition to the visible science experience WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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feature

Bobcat wildlife habitat COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

going on at the EcoTarium, much research is being done behind the scenes. Not only do they base their exhibits of learning science and research, they contribute to it. “We are not just making cool stuff for people to come enjoy. Research shows the people learn better when they’re having a good time,” said Loring. The EcoTarium converts this research into an exhibit children and adults alike will learn something from. When guests visit the museum they are in an informal learning environment, also known as a free-choice learning environment. “We base our educational programs and our exhibits all on the findings of learning science,” said Loring. “When we build our interactives, like in City Science, we are doing years of prototyping.” From the guests’ perspective, this research appears to have been a success. “I’ll never forget two boys on a field trip come running down a flight of stairs,” Cox recalled, “and one turns to the other, had no idea of who I was, that wasn’t important, the important thing was one turns to the other and goes ‘Dude, this place is like a playground for your mind!’”

Top, the Explorer Express Train, 1979. Above, Astronomer exhibit, 1967. COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

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ANIMAL HOUSE

toad plays dead while Slydell and Daisy, the museum’s river otters, bat it around the tank, attracted to the creature’s buoyancy. The sleek brown coats of the pair allow them to glide through the water effortlessly, hypnotizing viewers. Socks the red fox is lazy and likes to nap in the sun. A number of turtles stretch their necks and paddle with thin, flat legs around rocks in the yellow-tinted water of their aquarium. An abundance of yellow moths flutter by visitors as they gaze at the white-feathered head of the bald eagle. While the animals are a considerable attraction, the EcoTarium is not a zoo. “Obviously,” Loring said, “animal welfare and the care of the animals is very high, but everything we do is centered on our visitors.” That being said, quite a bit still goes into animal care and exhibit upkeep. Fewer than 10 keepers look after the EcoTarium’s 100 animals. The animals represent 40-50 different species and receive care 365 days a year. Even more animals live at the EcoTarium than those on exhibit. The animals not on display are program animals that are incorporated into interactive learning opportunities for guests. They are typically smaller critters, inWORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

feature 1825 The EcoTarium is founded

1861 Worcester Natural History Society is formed

1942 Weather station

and telescopes added to museum

as the Worcester Lyceum of Natural History by 14 individuals who aimed to appreciate and understand the natural world

1884 Worcester Natural History Society is incorporated into the Worcester Lyceum of Natural History. The live animal collection included two snakes, two owls and one alligator 1960 The Worcester Natural His-

tory Society changes its name to the Worcester Science Museum.

1971 The establish-

ments moves to its current location on Harrington Way. Forty acres of land were donated for the purpose of expanding the museum. The name is changed to the Worcester Science Center.

1983 Kenda the Polar Bear is born at the Worcester Science Center.

COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM

1986 The name

changes to the New England Science Center

1999 The first tree

canopy walkway in the country opens at the EcoTarium, along with the addition of river otters, bald eagles and snow owls

1998 The name changes to

the EcoTarium

2000 Endangered Species Building opens. Also, a new three-story, glass wall, Hirsh Telecommunications Center and classroom wing, landscaped terrace and food pavilion, and new water-related exhibits.

2007 Alden Planetarium is

updated to digital technology 18

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Betsy Loring, the EcoTarium’s director of Exhibits and Facilities. ELIZABETH BROOKS

cluding snakes, hedgehogs, turtles and flying squirrels. Wild animals also visit the EcoTarium daily. In the award-winning City Science exhibit there are monitors displaying the feed from trail cameras around the property. Often foxes, groundhogs, coyotes, deer and fisher cats stop by. Children in rain boots squish in the mud on the banks of the pond. One enthusiastic summer camper offers passerbys a chance to hold the fish and tadpoles they have caught and are keeping in plastic buckets until it is time for their release. “Who’s our official frog inspector here?” one camper shouts as they decide which animals should be let back into the water first. “The campus is so full of life that you might be visiting the new mountain lion exhibit, but see a flock of turkeys walking past that just happen to live there,” said Cox. “There’s wildlife in the exhibits, but there’s also great wildlife to be seen just walking around the campus.” In fact, the staff is met daily by what they have informally deemed the “Turkey Greeting Committee.” Before hordes of rambunctious children arrive, a flock of turkeys can be found exploring the grounds. They even know what time the gates open. On some mornings, these turkeys can be seen hanging out with Siegfried, the museums model stegosaurus. The animals that are on exhibit, however, need to adapt to performing tasks they

wouldn’t encounter in the wild; for example, learning to get in and out of a crate without stress. Weights need to be taken weekly at a minimum, so critters must also master how to step on to a scale. In addition to daily feedings, physical and mental challenges are presented to animals throughout the day to keep them active. These exercises could include foraging for meals or clawing through ice to receive a fish. More intelligent creatures need mental stimulation to keep them from getting bored. Keepers sometimes have to tend to dangerous animals, such as when the EcoTarium housed the world’s largest land predator, the polar bear. When dealing with potentially-dangerous creatures, staff are never face to face with animals. There is always a barrier of some sort to protect keepers.

CHANGES TO COME

hrough name changes and culture shifts, the EcoTarium has advanced mightily since its inception, and those working at the museum say big changes are still to come. This week’s naming of Hale as the EcoTarium’s new president was among the biggest. Crawford has served as interim president since Cox left in January. “I think we could quote the search committee as saying they were really impressed with the quality of the pool, the diversity of

feature the locations people came from, the breadth of knowledge, they said it was a tough job, in a good way, because of the quality of the candidates,” said Loring. As far as for the 200th anniversary in 2025, plans are already in the works. “I think everybody is excited about it and talks about it already,” said Rachel Stoff, manager of marketing and communications. Another exciting addition currently in the making is the transformation of the polar bear exhibit into the Wild Cat Station. This follows the direction of incorporating native, or recently native, animals into the EcoTarium family. The stars of the exhibit will be mountain lions, which have not lived in Massachusetts since the 1800s. According to “Mountain Lions in Massachusetts” by MassWildlife Assistant Director Tom French, “The last Massachusetts Mountain Lion was killed around 1858.” The animals that will join the EcoTarium will be cubs and have not even been born yet. “We are hoping to have two on exhibit. Because cats are typically solitary animals, having two means they need to have been raised Dedication Day signed by Apollo 8, 13 astronaut James A Lovell Jr, 1971. from a very early age together,” said Loring. COURTESY OF THE ECOTARIUM Although mountain lions are no longer native to New England, they are still abundant in

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the Western United States. There, they are considered to be nuisance animals, often wandering into backyards and getting hit by cars. “Very likely, the cubs that we get would be orphaned because something happened to mom out West,” said Loring.

THE MISSION

he EcoTarium has changed dramatically since its inception and will continue to do so as culture transforms and the Massachusetts ecosystem adapts to species loss and climate change. Through every conversion, however, it will keep the same mission: to appreciate and understand the natural world. Guest of all ages will continue walking away with sticky hands and gritty feet, with the gears of curiosity curating a respect for science and nature. Speaking of the City Science exhibit, Cox shared a sentiment that could extend to the EcoTarium as a whole. “It celebrates Worcester’s past,” he said, “but really I think it was an incredible way to reflect the vibrancy and the energy that exists in Worcester.”

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e s v t a r H B e a e r h t T

ELIZABETH BROOKS

SHAWN JOSLYN’s heart gave out, but he did not give up

Joslyn during his sevenmonth hospital stay. PHOTO SUBMITTED

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When she was told one of her patients had been named Bravest Heart, Gretchen Duffy didn’t hesitate in responding. “Well deserved,” she said. “Well deserved.” Duffy is a heart transplant nurse coordinator at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, and one of the many medical professionals caring for Worcester’s Shawn Joslyn. That he was able to be nominated for the award, which Worcester Magazine hands out each year in partnership with the Worcester Bravehearts and Digital Federal Credit Union, is nothing short of a miracle because Joslyn could just as easily not have made it this far. The 48-year-old tattoo artist suffered congestive heart failure about seven years ago. Life since then has been a rollercoaster, with enough ups and downs to have Joslyn thinking he may not survive. “I didn’t think I was going to live through it, to tell you the truth,” he said. “I don’t think anybody else did, either.” But none of them, including Joslyn, his longtime girlfriend, Shannon, and now-17-year-old daughter, Meghan, quit, despite odds that at times may have appeared insurmountable. Joslyn, who grew up in Worcester’s Main South neighborhood and was a self-described “heavy metal kid” who met his girlfriend at the old Worcester Galleria, learned his heart was failing when he went to the hospital battling what he thought was the flu. He was, as it turned out, in congestive heart failure. First going to a clinic at UMass Medical Center, Joslyn was ultimately referred to Tufts Medical Center. As he tells it, his heart had deteriorated to a point where it was pumping out just 15 percent of the blood it could with each beat. “I actually went down to 6 percent,” Joslyn said. On March 3, 2014, Joslyn was admitted to Tufts with acute decompensated heart failure. He was in cardiogenic shock, requiring the “urgent placement” of an intra-aortic balloon pump, according to Tufts. His situation continued to worsen, and on March 13 doctors inserted a left ventricular assist device, or LVAD. In July that year, Joslyn was placed on a list for a heart transplant. Able to live at home on the LVAD, Joslyn suffered a setback in February 2015, when doctors had to replace the device. About two years later, in March 2017, a donor heart was made available, and on March 4 Joslyn received the transplant. But that, too, turned sour. The new heart did not take, requiring him to be hooked up to machines once again. He was placed on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation life support, or ECMO, while in the operating room. That was then converted to CentriMag ventricular assist devices. This time, Joslyn had to remain hospitalized. While machines pumped his new heart, he suffered two embolic strokes and also went into acute renal failure. Once again, he was placed on the list for a new heart. He was also a kidney transplant candidate. Over the ensuing six months, however, Joslyn’s condition started to improve. Finally, in October last year, he was found to be in stable condition and transferred out of ICU. After “extensive” physical and occupational therapy, Joslyn was discharged Oct. 25, more than seven months after being hospitalized. Now he returns to the Tufts clinic about every three months for aftercare. He said he will be going through rehab at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester. With at least a half dozen surgeries under his belt, and having been bed-ridden for months, Joslyn’s body remains weak. He is starting to regain weight. “I was 260 [pounds] when I first went in,” he said. “I came out 100 pounds lighter. Now I’ve gained about 20 pounds. Strength is an issue.” As for what caused Joslyn’s heart to reverse course and grow stronger, Duffy attributed it to medications, excellent staff care, Joslyn’s own determination and positive attitude, and the support of his family. “He has a wonderful family,” she said. Joslyn, who said heart issues run in his family, admits to not taking care of his body for years - he smoked for 30 years and enjoyed fast food and drinking. Now, he his working his body back to full strength. He wants to return to tattooing. “My motor skills are not good enough,” he said, “but I’m working on that.” Joslyn credits his girlfriend and medical staff for helping him through an ordeal whose outcome could have been much different. “Oh, yeah, definitely,” he said when asked if he feels he has been given a second chance. “Everything changed. Everything. For the better, though.” — Walter Bird Jr.

culture

The 16th running of the George Street Bike Challenge in Worcester didn’t go off as planned Sunday, with Mother Nature sending in enough rain to soak the roads and convince organizers to call it off. But that didn’t stop some riders from doing their thing anyway and tackling the steep hill that juts up off the north end of Main Street. Nathaniel Burke, pictured, was a rider who wasn’t about to go home without doing what he came for. And he had a long ride home. The 10-year-old Burke and his mother and father had traveled from Altamont, N.Y. and stayed overnight at a hotel in Worcester for the race. The young cyclist didn’t get to compete, but he did climb the hill three times. His mom was at the base of the hill keeping time on a stopwatch. ELIZABETH BROOKS

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culture

James Hunt, “People Do Try to Clean up the River, Thankfully,” archival inkjet print, 20-by-24 inches, 2016.

Beautiful Garbage AUTUMN PEREZ

Editor’s Note: This student art criticism is published by Worcester Magazine in partnership with ArtsWorcester and Clark University and is made possible by a grant from the Mellon Foundation.

ames Hunt is a professor of management at Babson College who lives a bit of a double life. He is also a working artist who makes lush, large-scale photographs of the material things that mark our human interaction with the natural environment. The Blackstone River, which Hunt has photographed in a current project on view at the Hanover Theater, is a part of thousands of people’s daily lives. It crosses through 12 towns, including Worcester, and stretches 48 miles long. Hunt has photographed something we often ignore: the trash that people choose to leave behind. By highlighting the things

we filter out, he finds human connection in the world around him and draws our attention to the human connection foundv within the Blackstone River. The history of human interaction with the Blackstone River is long and complex. The first water-powered cotton mill in America was established along the river in 1790. Soon after came a boom of industrialization, which led to immigration and job production. As time passed, the industry faltered and many hard working people were left without jobs, as factories and mills along the river began to close. By the mid-1900s the Blackstone River was already considered polluted by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. It grew worse, and by 1990 the Blackstone River became the poster-child for the Clean Water Act and was titled “The most polluted river in the country with respect to toxic sediments” by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Hunt, knowing this history, shared it with me, and I think it is essential to explain some of the context hidden in these images in order to really understand their depth. One photograph in the exhibition that conveys Hunt’s artistic vision is titled “Visitors to the River Do Not Always Treat It With Respect.” At the top left corner of the image is a plastic bag

full of trash emerging from the glassy reflections in the river’s surface. The water is an almost perfect reflection of the sky above and a slightly distorted tree that fans across the water. Some leaves, which must have fallen from the tree, float on the surface of the water and seem to reattach themselves to the reflection. A giant, jagged bag has been lodged into place and sits still in the running water. We do not know what is inside, but it must be heavy because it is not being pulled by the river’s current. Is the bag still interrupting the tree’s reflection till this day? Or has it dislodged in a storm and traveled downstream to a new environment? Did anyone ever manage to pull it out of the water? The dreamlike quality of the reflected skies and branches are rooted in reality when they are paired with a soggy bag of trash. Hunt makes stuffed-to-the-brim Worcester yellow trash bags look like art when paired with a bright green bridge and an ever-expanding sky in his photograph “People Do Try to Clean Up the River, Thankfully.” In the bottom right corner sits a heavy pile of sunshine-yellow Worcester trash bags. They are clumped together in various groups and, as they recede in space, begin to draw your eye to the slash of green that parallels them. The vivid green of the bridge and the J U LY 2 6 - A U G U S T 1 , 2 0 1 8

intense yellow of the garbage battle for attention and move your eyes across the image, back and forth. Some trees stand still and leafless in the background, and remind us that as one season ends, the cold is sure to quickly follow. Even the grass has begun to brown: as all of the natural color has settled down, the artificial colors persist. The clash between the muted background and the lively, man-made structures show the interaction of humans and nature. Who were the volunteers who spent their day cleaning the river? How many bags did they fill? Where are the bags now? Who put the trash there first? How long was it there? The more time spent with Hunt’s images the easier it is to imagine all the people zooming across the bridge, the construction workers who built it, the volunteers who cleaned up, or even people like Hunt who find beauty in the landscape and share it with us for free. Hunt’s Blackstone River Series is a must-see, and you can, at the Hanover Theater in downtown Worcester. Autumn Perez is a senior at Clark University studying art history and studio art. To schedule a free viewing of Hunt’s gallery, contact ArtsWorcester. WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

culture

Erotic art and a tragic life JOSHUA LYFORD

orn in December 1889, Worcester’s Scofield Thayer’s life was largely dedicated to collecting and showcasing modern art. His story is a fascinating one and not without its share of tragedy, but his legacy lives on in New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibition, “Obsession.” The exhibition, on display through October, includes largely nude works by Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele and Pablo Picasso. “It’s works by three artists who are generally accepted as modern masters,” said James Dempsey, Worcester Polytechnic Institute humanities and arts instructor and author of “The Tortured life of Scofield Thayer.” Dempsey co-wrote the “Obsession” exhibition catalog. “The works, most of them, haven’t been seen since almost a century ago, some of them,” Dempsey said. “That was because many of them were included in the so-called erotic portfolio that Thayer put together.” Thayer’s collection may represent a large portion of his public legacy in the art Met visitors will see, but his work in the arts stretched far beyond that. Thayer additionally took on the role of editor at modernist literature magazine The Dial in 1920. During Thayer’s tenure, The Dial saw an incredible glut of contributing writers in E. E. Cummings, Virginia Woolf, W.B. Yeats and Ezra Pound. It was that literary bent, and the art and art criticism within that, would eventually inspire Dempsey to author his book. “It was the literary side of it. The Dial published, often for the first time, a lot of the writers I really loved or knew of,” explained Dempsey. “T.S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, E.E. Cummings, Virginia Woolf, all these writers were fairly new at the time and The Dial was one of the magazines that made them known and in a sense kind of set the cultural agenda. They published [Eliot’s] ‘The

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Waste Land,’ the first published edition of ‘The Waste Land.’ That poem, whether you love it or hate it, is really the poem of the century.” Dempsey was working for the Worcester Evening Gazette when Scofield Thayer first caught his attention in a Thayer-standard unique way. “At the time, I had just started working for the Evening Gazette and I noticed the obituary and some of the follow up stories that were done on Scofield Thayer and then on his will,” said Dempsey. “I figured one day it would make a good research project. When I took a buyout in 2001, I started trekking around to the various archives that contained his papers and eventually put together a biography. I just have an ongoing interest in Scofield Thayer and The Dial and that period. I’m not an art historian.” Thayer was an unusual individual and struggled with mental illness for much of his life. He was psychoanalyzed by Sigmund Freud and would later be diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. He would eventually withdraw from public life entirely. “He had a mental breakdown in the mid20s, left public life and was eventually declared insane,” said Dempsey. “He was looked after by guardians until the last years of his life. He had a long go of it. He went to Vienna to be psychoanalyzed by Freud. It was while he was over there that he put together the art collection. It was a manic spending spree he was on. “What struck me was that he achieved so much and then just crashed. It was a real tragedy. The arc of the story is very moving. Someone with so much money and talent and ability was just removed from public life and then forgotten. I’m happy to see him get some recognition for what he did achieve.” The Met’s exhibition featuring Klimt, Schiele and Picasso is largely made up of watercolors and drawings and the collection of nudes are described by The Met as “evocative” and “erotic.” By their nature, many of the pieces are unknown to the public. “There is no way he could have gotten away with publishing at the time,” said Dempsey. “The obscenities laws were quite strict. The New York Society [ for the Suppression] of Vice had a lot of powers and could charge magazine with obscenity. Several were. If he had published them it would have basically meant the death of his magazine. He had to tread a delicate line. I don’t think any of the issues have really gone away. It’s still controversial. The fact that they are in an exhibition does demonstrate a certain change of standards. There [is] still a lot of criticism for this kind of art.”

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Head of a Woman, Pablo Picasso (Spanish, Malaga 1881–1973 Mougins, France), 1922, Chalk on paper METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART

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TRUCK LETTERING Wraps • Signs

Lyford Files JOSHUA LYFORD

Ease into it: So, the last few weeks I have gone full editorial in The Lyford Files and I have promised not to abuse my newfound power. Well, let me tell you, it’s difficult. One, you may have noticed that I love to ramble. Two, for several weeks straight there have been incidents that I’m extremely passionate about (violence against the press, Worcide being demolished, etc.), so I didn’t have much of a choice. Three, if you are a longtime follower of The Lyford Files, you may recall that for several years (right up until the redesign) I got to have a whole lot of secret fun in my contact section. Many people, including those who regularly read this space, didn’t pick up on it, but I’d like to think that for those that did it was a bit of fun we shared. All that is beside the point; however, I had a blast messing around. It didn’t really matter if anyone noticed. I just loved writing things like “To get in touch with Editor Joshua Lyford, email at Jlyford@Worcestermag.com, call 508-749-3166, ext. 325, or carve a pentagram into the wooden floorboards of Worcester City Hall’s third floor, demanding Satan grant you access, or check him out @Joshualyford on Instagram.” Ahh, the good old days. Anyway, that’s why I have the need to ramble these days. CINEMAGEDDON: Didn’t even have to think of a clever subheadline on this one, host Anthony Bridgford did all the work for me. This makes me happy on a heavily caffeinated Monday. If you are unfamiliar, Ralph’s Diner, 148 Grove St., projects films outside most Sundays (barring weather or special occasions) on their patio. The next go-round takes place on Sunday, July 29 with the classic “Killer Klowns from Outer Space” and boy, what a time to be alive. I have to say, the Facebook event page description of the film really nails the vibe, “Aliens who look like clowns come from outer space and terrorize a small town.” Yep, that’s about the gist of it. I’ll add, how many times do you get to see a classic horror-science fiction-comedy outside under the stars with a cool Genesee in hand? Not often, I’d suppose. NOT A BAD LITTLE HIKE: I don’t

think I really write about my hiking adventures in here. There are a few reasons for that. One, it isn’t really that badass sounding and I’m trying to cultivate a pretty specific brand here (hold on, give me a second, I can’t stop laughing) and two, I generally like getting up into the White Mountains specifically because my phone loses service and I can shut off from the “Hi, this is so-and-so, just wanted to let you know I hate your articles and column” emails. I spend a lot of time hiking, though, and my hound dog loves it too, so everybody wins. As a wise man once told me, “Hiking is just walking, further.” With that in mind, I’ve written about folk herbalist Amber Kennedy’s Plant ID hikes in the past, but alas have never been able to find the time to attend myself. Still, they always sound amazing and I’m going to loop you in again, dear reader. On Thursday, Aug. 2 at 5 p.m. Kennedy will lead attendees on a hike through Harvard Forest in Petersham, folks will learn how to use a plant ID guide, discuss native plants, learn about some of their history, learn about local folklore and more. All you need to do is bring water, a notebook and pencil, a camera, sun and bug protection and to register by emailing bohemebotanika@gmail.com.

HOMECOMING KINGS: Get prepped. On Saturday, Aug. 4, Seax returns home from their European tour. They are celebrating in style with a homecoming show at Ralph’s. They will be joined by Hessian, Warsenal, Reckless Force Joshua Lyford and Demon Chrome. It sure was awfully nice Culture editor of the diner staff to allow guitar player Razzle to @Joshachusetts have the night off. WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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culture Lifestyle SARAH CONNELL

You’re a Natural

General Manager and Wine Director Julia Auger is excited to announce that “a very last minute gathering” of friends and wine makers from the Bio Bio valley will take place at deadhorse hill on Thursday, July 26 at 7 p.m. Manuel Moraga Gutierrez and Paola Marini will pour the four wines they produce at their vineyard in Chile, Cacique Maravilla. “Manuel

ing William’s Brigham Hill Gardens and a sunset stroll through the flower fields. Tickets are limited and cost $100 ($40 will be donated to hunger relief.)

Namaste

Metrowest Yoga’s Worcester studio closed unexpectedly earlier this summer after a nearby demolition rendered the building unsafe. An email sent to members on Friday stated, “The abrupt ending of the Worcester location has left everyone in shock.” Owner Shawn Shaw arrived to find the building barricaded from the inside, further exacerbating her losses. Shaw is hoping there’s a yogi in her midst doubling as a commercial real estate attorney who will be willing to lend some assistance. If that fits your description, please reach out to info@metrowestyoga.net.

Your Next Instagram deadhorse hill General Manager and Wine Director Julia Auger met winemaker Manuel Moraga Gutierrez while traveling through the Bio Bio valley of Chile.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

and Paola called Friday night and said, ‘We’re coming to Massachusetts and we’re coming to see you!’ So, naturally they’re packing wine and we’re cooking dinner,” explained Auger. The event will consist of four paired courses; there are only 16 seats available, at $65 per guest. Auger says, “We’ll be talking about natural wine making, the history of cacique maravilla (Manuel is eigth generation!) and the environmental effects of wildfires and earthquakes on the terroir of Chile.

Date night alert! (Actually, date afternoon is more accurate.) You finally have your chance to recreate that boat scene from “The Notebook.” From now until Aug. 17, you can enjoy free Friday canoeing on Green Hill Park Pond, 2-5 p.m. Canoes, paddles, life vests and basic instruction are all supplied by Mass Audubon. Bring the whole crew; groups of six or more can pre-register by calling 508-753-6087. Just don’t rock the boat.

Mystery Solved

Centro’s food pantry hosted a taste testing of peanut butter and dishes made with peanut butter on Tuesday, July 24 in their center-city food pantry on Sycamore Street. Organizers shared, “Arguably, Centro serves the most diverse food pantry clientele in the city. Some 60 percent of our clients are Hispanic and the remaining 40 percent represent a good cross sampling of Worcester’s minority-majority population.” Most of Centro’s food comes directly from the WorcesGuac and Roll Mezcal has a new outdoor bar and they’re saying ter County Food Bank including basic staples such as flour, sugar, meat, dairy and canned bye to July with a Tequila Sunset patio party goods. “However, for immigrants – depending to showcase crafted cocktails, tacos, and “fresh on their country of origin—some of this food is a summer sides.” Tickets are $45 and grant access to all the guac you can candle. The menu kicks off mystery. Currently, peanut butter leads the list of these ‘mystery foods,’” says Food Pantry Coordiwith grilled shrimp tacos constructed with chorizo sofrito, smoked queso fresco, arugula, mango nator Merari Alvarado. lime crema and Mexican street corn salad paired The “Tasting” included a Thai noodle side dish, threewith a Frozarita made with Tres Generaciones ingredient peanut butter Blanco, Bauchant Liqueur, Lime, Lemon, Agave. cookies, and peanut butter Guests can also expect housemade pastrami hors d’oeuvres. Recipes were tacos and New England seafood chowder tacos available in Spanish. The to round out the evening. event was made possible through grants from Fallon Dining Far Afield Health and Project Bread. It’s time to check farm-dinner off your summer bucket list. On Aug. 9, the Community Harvest Project in Grafton is preparing a stunning feast Sarah Connell in the field with the help of Struck Catering. contributing writer Guests will also enjoy a tour of the neighbor-

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culture Holden Spencer

Blue Shades’ Liège-faire Attitude 256 Park Ave., Worcester 774-420-2718 blueshades.net SANDRA RAIN

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t’s possible you’ve had a Belgian waffle in Worcester before, but what you were probably enjoying was a Brussels waffle and there’s more to the story than that. The other Belgian waffle, less doughy and decorative, is the Liège waffle prepared with pearl sugar that melts into the dough like butter. These caramelized marvels of Belgian culture are more expensive and labor intensive than their counterparts from Brussels, but Liège waffles stand alone as the nation’s clear favorite. On Park Avenue, Blue Shades Coffee and Liège waffle shop is sharing these pearls of wisdom with Worcester. In fact, they claim to have brought the “world’s greatest waffle” to Worcester. I’m not sure I’ve ever claimed to be the world’s greatest anything, but one bite of these chewy street snacks is all it takes to condone a bit of hyperbole. A classic Liège ($3.95) offers the chew of a yeasted doughnut and the heft of a pizza crust, making it an ideal vehicle for both sweet and savory toppings. That said, in Belgium, Liège waffles don’t typically require toppings, serving instead as stand alone treats. At Blue Shades, customers choose between signature accoutrements like Fruity Pebbles, s’mores, oreos and bacon (all $5.50) in the spirit of a designer doughnut or cupcake shop. Savory options are very popular, like the California ($6.50), which teams up avocado and slivers of cucumber drizzled in “yummy sauce,” the house term for garlic aioli. The firehouse ($6.50) sports jalapeño, banana pepper and spicy mayo along with a gentle dusting of powdered sugar. The staff will suggest ordering the fruit split ($6.50) with strawberries, Nutella and a dose of whipped cream. Claiming one of the blue wooden chairs can be tricky mid-morning, given Blue Shades’ growing popularity, but nothing is trickier than sawing through a Liège waffle with plastic utensils, which comes back to the issue of toppings. In Belgium, these little treats are consumed by hand as snacks and require no forks or knives whatsoever. At Blue Shades you’re bound to make a mess, albeit a scrumptious one. Blue Shades’ lines are clean. A black felt letterboard hangs high on the stark white wall

The staff at Blue Shades suggests ordering the fruit split on your first visit, made with strawberries, Nutella and a dose of whipped cream. The California teams up avocado and slivers of cucumber drizzled in “yummy sauce,” the house term for garlic aioli. behind the counter, detailing available items. The gray laminate floor is spotless. A blue-patterned curtain blocks the customers’ view into the kitchen. The counter itself is masked by pine paneling which gives way to a glass display case. A fenced off area for children (and whimsical adults) holds games and pillows intended to entertain. There’s a touch of Worcester found in the vintage postcards tacked to a wall and the plank sign constructed from nail art that reads, “Wicked Awesome,” with a heart stenciled smack dab in the middle of its Massachusetts silhouette. A white frame holds 10 pairs of thick rimmed sunglasses, all in the hue of robin’s egg blue. Blue Shades serves their own roast from Flight Coffee Co. out of Bedford, New Hampshire. The cold brew ($3.50) is nuanced and sweet on its own, offering up hints of vanilla and cocoa. Their coffee program is still finding its legs as far as service goes, proving particularly troublesome on busy mornings. On my last visit, a French press for one ($2.75) took over 30 minutes to prepare, but not without warning from my barista that there would be some lag time. Blue Shades also provides a marketplace for their coffee as well as a selection of international snacks. An eclectic amalgam of specialty drinks and bubble teas shows off cultural depth to enhance rather than undercut their nod to Belgian nosh. Blue Shades is worthy of a weekend outing. Close your eyes and you’ll find yourself at a waffle cabin in the mountainous abyss of Aspen or Mammoth. Now, open them. A chair finally freed up. On my last waffle date, our bill came to $23.69. Explanation of Stars: Ratings are from zero to five. Zero is not recommended. One is poor. Two is fair. Three is satisfactory. Four is good. Five is excellent.

Food: HHH1/2 Service: HHH Ambience: HHH Value: HHH1/2

culture Hedy’s beautiful brain JIM KEOGH

fter an abbreviated spring schedule, Cinema 320 is experimenting with its first-ever summer series, showing three typically-offbeat films. First up is “Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story,” a fascinating documentary about the ravishing Austrian actress who arrived in the United States in the 1930s as a celebrated starlet, but whose offcamera exploits proved far more sensational than anything Hollywood could devise. While seducing the movie-going public, she moonlighted as an inventor, patenting a “frequency hopping” technology — designed to better guide Allied torpedoes during World War II — that would become the foundation for Wi-fi, Bluetooth, GPS and cell phone technologies. The film recalls a person of supreme confidence and independence who paid the price at a time when confidence and independence were not prized attributes — in a woman anyway. She scandalized moviegoers with her nude scene in the 1933 film “Ecstasy” (even that bastion of morality, Adolf Hitler, disavowed it), and defied the studio caste system to demand better roles and produce her own movies, blasphemous behavior under the old guard. Her seven marriages regularly enflamed the gossip pages. The first was to a wealthy Austrian munitions manufacturer who armed the pre-war Nazi army. Hedy, a Jew, saw the dark clouds forming and fled both her husband and her native country disguised as a maid. Lamarr later escaped by less dramatic means a series of unions with wealthy but dull men; languishing as a trophy wife was hell on earth for her. Much of this detail is supplied by Lamarr herself in a 1990 tape-recorded interview, her voice aged yet sure, and memory sharp. Through her narration, we learn how her intellectual contribu-

tions were overshadowed by her colorful persona and cinematic milestones. Even her renowned beauty — the inspiration for both Disney’s Snow White and Catwoman — impeded her being taken seriously. The U.S. military mocked her revolutionary work, then employed her radio-frequency concepts (still do) once the patent expired. They initially deemed her brainchild invalid because of her “alien” status — Lamarr hadn’t yet achieved citizenship — though brazenly encouraged her to use her alien star power to sell war bonds. A devout patriot, she did just that, raising the modern-day equivalent of $300 million. As so often happens with pioneers, Lamarr endured a rough ride. Her later years were marred by botched plastic surgeries and a battle against an amphetamine addiction (a common problem among actresses fed uppers by the studios to combat long work hours). She’s shown suffering through an insipid 1970s-era interview with Merv Griffin during which you can almost perceive it dawning on her that she’s transitioned from icon to punchine. Her career in decline, and robbed of any royalties from her invention, she eventually retreated to a New York condo, impoverished and in seclusion. Directed with grace and respect by Alexandra Dean, “Bombshell’ is a grand make-up call for Hedy Lamarr, a posthumous appreciation to a misunderstood genius. Everyone from Mel Brooks to mathematicians chimes in to attest to her impact on both the movie industry and the wider world, lauding the beautiful mind behind the beautiful face. Perhaps one day when you connect to a Wi-fi network, make a hands-free phone call, or have Siri shepherd you from Point A to Point B, you can thank Hedy. “Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story” will be shown at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, and 1 and 2:50 p.m. Sunday in the Jefferson Academic Center at Clark University. Jim Keogh contributing writer

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calendar Thursday, July 26 2018 Kunitz Medal Ceremony

Worcester Historical Museum, 30 Elm St. This free and public event honors Judith Ferrara with the Worcester County Poetry Association’s fourth annual Stanley Kunitz Award. The award is presented to someone from Worcester County who exemplifies Stanley Kunitz’s dedication to poetry and poets.

Thursday , July 26 Out to Lunch 2018

Worcester Common Oval, 455 Main St. The weekly summer event on the common brings food trucks, local vendors and features musical act the Whitney Doucet and Moonshine Band.

Friday, July 27 A night of Brass!

The Raven Music Hall, 258 Pleasant St., Worcester Wormtown Ska presents: A Night of Brass featuring the Dapper Brass, Revolutionary Snake Ensemble, Ghost Town Steppas and So Long Liberty.

Thursday , July 26 Movies on the Common

Worcester Common Oval, 455 Main St. The City of Worcester presents another Movies on the Common event, this time featuring 2016’s “The Secret Life of Pets.” The movie begins at dusk and attendees can begin setting up seats and blankets at 6:30 p.m.

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calendar Friday, July 27 Moonlight Hike & Campfire for Families

Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary, 113 Goodnow Road, Princeton The Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary welcomes families to experience the meadow by moonlight for a guided meadow walk. S’mores around the campfire follows. Registration is required. Call 978-464-2712.

Sunday, July 29 Goat Yoga on the Common

Worcester Common Oval, 455 Main St. That’s right. Goats and yoga are coming to the Common. Stretch out with live baby goats on July 29 from 10-11 a.m. The class is free, but participants must register in advance and be 18 and older. REBECCA HUMPHREY/THE LANDMARK

Friday, July 27 Worcester Youth Summer Concert

Worcester PopUp, 20 Franklin St. The Worcester PopUp plays host to local young talent with musicians ranging in age from 10-18. With solos, duos and ensembles from various genres, proceeds from the event benefit Main IDEA Youth & Arts.

Tuesday, July 31 The Thirst Lab Poetry Reading with Tony Brown The Thirsty Lab, 206 Worcester Road, Princeton Hosted by Susan Roney-O’Brien, the bi-monthly poetry series brings poet Tony Brown to the beloved liquor store, shop and social space.

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sports p ‘Devastation’ for A.J. Rivera as pro boxing debut nixed WALTER BIRD JR.

A.J. Rivera, after announcing he will not be fighting in an Aug. 17 event at The Palladium, where he would have made his pro boxing debut. WALTER BIRD JR.

The Score Worcester Bravehearts July 19 Coming out of the All-Star break, the Bravehearts continued their winning ways with a 9-1 breezer at home over the Brockton Rox to improve to 24-14 on the year. July 20 The Bravehearts stayed on a roll, sweeping a double-header with the Nashua Silver Knights at home, winning 7-2 in Game 1 and 3-1 in the nightcap. With the

wins, the Bravehearts improved to 26-14. July 21 Staying at home, the Bravehearts couldn’t solve the Pittsfield Suns, falling, 4-1. It was their first loss in 10 games. July 22 One night after falling to the Suns at home, the Bravehearts beat them on the road, 9-3, to move to 2715 on the season. July 23 An explosive offense propelled the Bravehearts to a 12-7, come-from-behind win over the Rox at home. July 24 The Bravehearts won again at home, downing the North Shore Navigators, 17-7, and improving to 29-15.

.J. Rivera had it all planned out – and what a plan it was. One professional boxing fight, but not just any fight. This one would be on the same card as his father, former three-time world champ Jose Antonio Rivera, who is returning to the ring at 45 years old for the first time in seven years. But wait, as they say in the commercials, that’s not all. The 24-year-old A.J. Rivera would also become the first pro boxer with spina bifida. He had already overcome long odds just to live and walk, never mind box, as he has as an amateur. Turning pro was another part of the dream. And to do it with his dad, well that just made it all the sweeter. “I mean, devastation,” A.J. Rivera said of what he was feeling recently after announcing publicly he would not be fighting as expected at The Palladium in Worcester on Aug. 17. “I wasn’t looking to make a career out of it. It was going to be one personal achievement. I did it as an amateur. I’ve been sparring. I’m good. It was just one pro fight. I was there throughout my dad’s whole boxing career. It would have been nice to end it with my dad.” A few weeks ago, however, as he went through medical tests for clearance to fight, a CT, or CAT, Scan revealed fluid on his brain. It is, A.J. Rivera said, associated with the spina bifida he was born with. “They wanted to scratch me [ from the fight] and I wasn’t OK with that,” he said. “I was like, ‘We gotta get a second opinion or something.’” A MRI was also done. After that, he said, he would also have to see a neurologist. In the meantime, he was told he could not fight. “I can’t spar at all,” A.J. Rivera said. “A huge chunk of my training is sparring.” He will have to settle now for watching his father make his comeback - one that could yield a title (Upcoming: The Bravehearts were on the road Wednesday, July 25 to play the Navigators. The team stays on the road Thursday, July 26 to play the Rox, before returning home Friday, July 27 to take on the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks. The Bravehearts play the Suns on the road Saturday, July 28, then come back home Sunday, July 29 to host the Bristol Blues. The team is at home again Tuesday, July 31 to play the Sharks.) Massachusetts Pirates July 21 The first-place Pirates improved to 10-4 and J U LY 2 6 - A U G U S T 1 , 2 0 1 8

shot in the not-too-distant future, depending on how the August bout shapes up. And while the disappointment of not being able to fight on his own looms large, A.J. Rivera is ready to cheer as loud as anyone else for Jose Antonio Rivera on fight night. “The respect is beyond just being my dad,” said A.J. Rivera, who with his father runs Rivera Promotions Entertainment and has already staged several boxing events in the city. “I was there for the stuff nobody knows about. I was there for the stuff people don’t see. They didn’t see him get up at 4 or 5 in the morning, go run several miles, come home, get me ready for school in time, drop me off at school and go to work. “My parents were divorced. He didn’t have a wife or girlfriend when I was growing up. It was just me and dad. He was handling the life of a single father, handling training, a job.” If his father does get another shot at a world title, which the elder Rivera hinted at during a recent press conference, it would be well-earned, his son said. “He wasn’t treated the way he should have been,” A.J. Rivera said of his father’s earlier boxing days. “He was treated differently than the other champions. Now we’re in a different age where promoters are paying a little more. Now this is the shot he deserves.” As for A.J. Rivera not taking part in what is now being billed as “Homecoming” because of the number of Worcester fighters, six, who will be on the Aug. 17 card, promoter Chuck Shearns said while it is difficult, it will not define the young man. “It’s tough. I felt bad for him,” said Shearns, whose Granite Chin Promotions is coordinating the event because, since he is fighting in it, Jose Antonio Rivera cannot. “It’s something [A.J. Rivera] wanted to do. You heard the story. It’s a true story. The three of us had been talking for months and months and months. The kid wanted to accomplish something. He’s got plenty left in his life he can accomplish without stepping into a ring, trust me.” Tickets for the Aug. 17 boxing show, at $45 general admission and $75 ringside, are available at ThePalladium.net, or Palladium box office, or by contacting Jose Rivera at elgallojar@gmail.com or 508-864-6954 or A.J. Rivera at anthoneerivera@ gmail.com or 774-272-2269. guaranteed the road to the 2018 National Arena League championship will go through Worcester with a 56-53 win over the Carolina Cobras at home. (Upcoming: The Pirates hit the road Saturday, July 28 to take on the Jacksonville Sharks.)

The Round-Up The Worcester Railers have re-signed forwards Tommy Kelley and Dylan Willick for the 2018-19 season. WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Adoption option Welcome to Adoption Option, a partnership with the Worcester Animal Rescue League, highlighting their adoptable pets. Check this space often to meet all of the great pets at WARL in need of homes.WARL is open seven days a week, noon-4 p.m., 139 Holden St. Check them out online at Worcesterarl.org, or call at 508-853-0030.

When a mother-in-law moved in with her family, the family decided to surrender their cats, Oreo and her son. The husband only brought Oreo to WARL. She is grieving the loss of her son, family and home. Oreo is a nice cat. She is 5 years old. She wants attention even though sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hiding in her cage. She leans into your hand when you pet her. Oreo is used to kids and probably cats. We donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what she feels about dogs. Above all, Oreo wants a home with a loving family.

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games “Bounce Back”--take a left at the circle... by Matt Jones

JONESIN’

Fun By The Numbers Like puzzles? Then you’ll love sudoku. This mind-bending puzzle will have you hooked from the moment you square off, so sharpen your pencil and put your sudoku savvy to the test! Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

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Across 1 Chamillionaire hit parodied by Weird Al 6 Kermit-flailing-his-arms noise 9 Air Force One occupant, for short 14 “Für ___” (Beethoven piece) 15 Purpose 16 Siskel was his partner 17 Good deeds 19 Maker of Posturepedic mattresses 20 “¿Como ___ usted?” 21 Printer adjunct, maybe 23 Feel remorse for 24 Its subtitle is “Day-O” 28 Ren Faire underlings 30 “Children of a Lesser God” Oscar winner 31 Tart glassful 36 Pre-euro electronic currency 37 DeVry or University of Phoenix 41 Quilting event 42 Distrustful about 43 The Suez Canal can take you there 46 Item increasingly made from recyclable material 50 Latkes and boxties, e.g. 55 It’s not a prime number 56 Fires up 57 Aquarium organism 58 Show disdain for 61 Manned crafts involved in atmospheric reentry 63 Having regressed 64 Fabric dye brand 65 “Chasing Pavements” singer 66 Declined 67 Sue Grafton’s “___ for Silence” 68 Jay-Z’s music service Down 1 Alludes (to) 2 “If you do that... see you in court!” 3 Mike Myers character who hosted “Sprockets” 4 “Insecure” star Rae 5 Duck Hunt console, for short 6 Desert plant related to the asparagus 7 Take ___ at (guess)

8 9 10 11 12 13 18 22 24 25 26 27 29 32 33 34 35 37 38 39 40 41 44 45 47

48 Bassett of “Black Panther” Question type with only two answers 49 Pop performer? Pre-euro coin 51 Prompt givers Conor of Bright Eyes 52 Computer code used to create some lo-fi artwork Rooibos, for one It contains (at least) two forward 53 John who wrote “Ode on a Grecian Urn” slashes 54 Paranormal skill, supposedly Pigpen Amino acid asparagine, for short 57 “Truth in Engineering” automaker To wit 58 Stockholm’s country (abbr.) “Yeah, right” 59 Corn remainder Couturier Cassini 60 Poetic sphere “Yeah, right on!” 62 Took a load off Wildebeest Progressive spokesperson Last week's solution Alyssa of “Who’s the Boss?” When aout occurs Term used in both golf and tennis Cannes Film Festival’s Camera ___ Amanda of “Brockmire” Decorate differently At a ___ (stumped) Direct deposit payment, for short Strapped support Hardly dense Made, as money ©2018 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords.com) Like some oats

J U LY 26 - A U G U S T 1, 2018

Reference puzzle #894

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May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be Adored, Glorified, Loved & Preserved throughout the world, now & forever. Sacred Heart of Jesus, please pray for us. Saint Jude, Worker of Miracles, please pray for me. Saint Jude, Helper of the Hopeless, please pray for us. Say this prayer 9 times a day for 9 days, by the 9th day your prayer will be answered even if you don’t believe. This Novena has never been known to fail. Publication must be promised. Thank you St. Jude and God. DCG

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LEGALS WORCESTER HOUSING AUTHORITY ADVERTISEMENT FOR PROPOSALS 7/26/2018

SEALED PROPOSALS shall be received at the Purchasing Office, 69 Tacoma Street, Worcester, MA 01605. RFPs may be picked up at the location above or may be downloaded from our website: www.worcesterha.org, or call (508) 635-3202/3203, TDD (508) 798-4530. Proposers are responsible for ensuring they have received any/all addenda prior to submitting a proposal. Separate awards will be made for each RFP. WHA reserves the right to reject any or all responses, in whole or in part, deemed to be in their best interest. Award of all contracts is subject to the approval of the WHA Executive Director or Board of Commissioners. The Operating Agency shall indemnify and hold harmless the WHA and its officers or agents from any and all third party claims arising from activities under these Agreements as set forth in MGL c.258, section 2 as amended.

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Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Worcester Probate and Family Court 225 Main St. Worcester, MA 01608 Docket No. WO18P2328PM CITATION GIVING NOTICE OF PETITION FOR APPOINTMENT OF CONSERVATOR OR OTHER PROTECTIVE ORDER PURSUANT TO G.L. c. 190B, §5-304 & §5-405 In the matter of: William Phaneuf Of: Worcester, MA RESPONDENT (Person to be Protected/Minor) To the named Respondent and all other interested persons, a petition has been filed by Dept. of Developmental Services of Worcester, MA in the above captioned matter alleging that William Phaneuf is in need of a Conservator or other protective order and requesting that Rebecca Amaral of Fitchburg, MA (or some other suitable person) to appointed as Conservator to serve With Personal Surety on the bond. The petition asks the court to determine that the Respondent is disabled, that a protective order or appointment of a Conservator is necessary, and that the proposed conservator is appropriate. The petition is on file with this court. You have the right to object to this proceeding. If you wish to do so, you or your attorney must file a written appearance at this court on or before 10:00 A.M. on the return date of 08/21/2018. This day is NOT a hearing date, but a deadline date by which you have to file the written appearance if you object to the petition. If you fail to file the written appearance by the return date, action may be taken in this matter without further notice to you. In addition to filing the written appearance you or your attorney must file a written affidavit stating the specific facts and grounds of your objection within 30 days after the return date. IMPORTANT NOTICE The outcome of this proceeding may limit or completely take away the above-named person’s right to make decisions about personal affairs or financial affairs or both. The above-named person has the right to ask for a lawyer. Anyone may make this request on behalf of the above-named person. If the above-named person cannot afford a lawyer, one may be appointed at State expense. WITNESS, Hon. Leilah A Keamy, First Justice of this Court. Date: July 17, 2018 Stephanie K. Fattman Register of Probate 07/26/2018 MSC

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last call Jen Compton

VP of Innovation and Brand for TD Garden

en Compton’s 17-year career has cemented her reputation as an indispensable creative within Boston’s sports and entertainment scenes. Compton is now the VP of Innovation and Brand for TD Garden, where she spearheads “creative transformation” of all business lines and key enterprise extension projects including the TD Garden expansion, The Hub on Causeway and the City Hall Plaza partnership. She has a knack for engagement, and aims to facilitate as many fan-focused experiences as she can on behalf of the best

a family. My husband and I have three young girls (plus a dog and chickens) and the good fortune of most of my family residing within a 2-mile radius. I grew up playing sports in the area, and its central role in my life continues in my professional career and personal life with my recent induction into the Grafton High Athletic Hall of Fame and my weekend role as sideline parent. As a family, we’re Central Mass. adventure seekers and small business supporters, and I’ve enjoyed my growing role as a volunteer within my community.

sion to be involved with fandom at the ground level, which I have found to be transferable between sports and brand affinity. My roles were mostly marketing and communications driven and I transitioned from my role as VP of Marketing for the Bruins and the arena three years ago to pursue my new role as VP of Innovation and Brand.

Nothing tests your abilities more, or is more gratifying, than a Stanley Cup or NBA Finals run where scenario-based planning is on overdrive. To confetti or not to confetti. Not bad work challenges to have

What is your role in the Boston Seasons activation of City Hall Plaza? Placemaker. From spearheading the original bid, working with our partner Berkshire Bank on develHave you faced any major challenges as oping the Seasons program, to the really a woman working in sports business? Fortunately, I haven’t. I’ve come to realize that fun part of coming up with crazy ideas and working extremely hard as a team to make my story is unique, though, and ELIZABETH BROOKS them a reality. We’re very proud of our curthe fact that I sit on an executive leadership team at the TD Garden rent installation, The Patios, presented by Berkshire Bank. We collaborated with Boston that is more than 50-percent female is rare, but a great example artist Jeff Smith to design the open space that for our industry. turns into a beer garden in the afternoon, featuring Wachusett Brewery pouring out of What does the day-to-day of their vintage Airstream. It’s an Instagrama professional innovator look worthy scene and has great programming, like? Innovation can be demystisuch as free mini-golf and adoptable puppies fied by defining it as “fresh thinkfrom Shultz’s Guesthouse. Let me repeat that ing that creates value or solves a – pints, putt-putt and puppies – what’s not to problem.” With that in mind, I’m love? usually juggling a multitude of projects, such as working on the Do you have advice for those struggling scoreboard of the future, the TD to bridge their creativity and business Garden’s upcoming expansion, sense? Find an outlet. Untapped creativity integration with the new Hub is a wasted resource. Whether it’s in your on Causeway development and exact role, volunteering to support other supporting our business teams on departments or branching out to freelance new approaches. In general, I’m work – continue to flex your creative muscles a little less day-to-day and more and test how best to apply your talents. I’ve focused on initiatives outside the experienced stretches in my career where four walls of the TD Garden. You other management responsibilities were more might find me on a trendspotting of a focus, but started to realize I gravitated trip — our latest was Chicago — to special projects in every spare moment and to do research on sports retail and management did as well. Now that creativity staying up-to-date on how other is front-and-center in what I do, I am much brands, teams and arenas are advancing. more fulfilled. sports city in the world. Compton comes from a marketing and communications background, Can you describe your career trajectory? Can you give an example from your proI went to Syracuse University for advertisWhen you aren’t working, where do you having served as VP of Marketing for the fessional career of a time when you had to like to hang out in Central Mass.? I have a Boston Bruins and TD Garden. In addition, she ing, and after seven internships landed my think on your feet? When your business is first job with the Kraft Group for the New passion for things old and new, which transworked for John Hancock, the New England England Revolution as “Community Outreach based on live sports and entertainment, being lates to knowing every good antiquing spot Patriots and the New England Revolution in nimble, responsive and opportunistic is in in Central Mass. and an itch to visit every various marketing and public relations capaci- and Grassroots Marketing Coordinator” (my your DNA. As social media has advanced, this cool new scene I hear about (disclaimer: 99 longest title to-date). I continued to work on ties. In 2017, Compton was Awarded a Sports has become the business norm for so many the Patriots side of the business during their percent of the time they serve or brew beer.) Business Journal Game Changer. marketers, but our marketing and communi- A perfect day is a visit to Crompton Collective early Super Bowl runs and moved to John cations groups are built to pivot on the fly and and Birchtree Bread Company. I’m a big fan of What is your history with Central Massa- Hancock to work on its sports sponsorships launch brand campaigns built on storylines their role in the Worcester renaissance. chusetts? I grew up in Grafton and returned portfolio, before coming to TD Garden 14 — Sarah Connell to my hometown almost 10 years ago to start years ago. The move was prompted by my pas- that develop on the ice or parquet each night.

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