Worcester Magazine March 28 - April 3, 2019 by Worcester Magazine

MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

NEWS • ARTS • DINING • NIGHTLIFE

FREE

Robert Goddard, father of modern rocketry

F R O M W O R C E S T E R

T O T H E

M O O N

2019

Summer Guide M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Reach more than 200,000 consumers — looking to have a

Fun-Filled Summer!

Features* may include, but are not limited to:

Outdoor Dining and Drinks Indoor Fun Road Races Recreational Parks & Trails Local Breweries and Wineries Ice Cream and Frozen Yogurt Beaches! - Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island Fresh and Local - Farmers’ Markets Golf Courses Local Arts Fairs and Festivals Sounds of Summer Summer Theater

Contact your media consultant today! 508-767-9574 or via email at WMSales@gatehousemedia.com

*subject to change without notice

COMING JUNE 13, 2019 • SPACE RESERVATIONS CLOSE MAY 15, 2019

Inserted in: Worcester Magazine, The Landmark, Millbury-Sutton Chronicle, Leominster Champion, The Grafton News, The Gardner News, The Item and The Telegram & Gazette

in this issue M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ V O L U M E 44 I S S U E 31

the cover

From Worcester to the Moon Robert Goddard, father of modern rocketry Story on page 12 Photo courtesy of Clark University Archives Design by Kimberly Vasseur

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

news Flare-up reveals deep divisions on School Committee D

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

BILL SHANER

eep into the fourth hour of a School Committee meeting last week, tempers between Committee member Dante Comparetto and Mayor Joe Petty flared. Comparetto had accused member Brian O’Connell of canceling a subcommittee meeting last year to evaluate a comprehensive sex ed proposal, and as the words came out of his mouth, Petty shot back. “You’re making accusations with every member of the Committee. You’re doing it on Facebook, you’re cutting every one of these members up,” he said. “It’s disgraceful what you’re doing, absolutely disgraceful.”

“Actually,” Comparetto said. “I would say those actions are disgraceful, Mr. Mayor. We should not be engaging in background conversations ...” Petty ruled him out of order before he could finish the thought. The exchange was the culmination of tension built through the meeting, which saw disagreements on the issue of whether to move toward self-run school buses and a long list of items filed by Comparetto addressing contentious issues such as racial disparities in school punishment, school resource officers and involving the community in school department decision making. It was an unusual exchange for the School Committee, typically a much less argument-

prone body than City Council. It also comes as the School Committee is preparing for a 13-person race, with seven challengers, many of whom are avowed progressives, more likely to align with Comparetto than with more conservative members like O’Connell and John Monfredo. The long and contentious debate over what to do with sex education in Worcester laid the ideological differences of committee members bare, and is a central campaign issue of at least four of the seven challengers. Following that marathon meeting last Thursday, every School Committee member said, in his or her own way, the committee is more divided now than it has been

in recent memory. For his part, Comparetto said divisions on the School Committee became pitched during the fight over sex ed, and recently grew worse when Monfredo and O’Connell were quoted in a local blog condemning a comment made by Comparetto to supporters about the existence of systemic racism in Worcester Public Schools. “All of this stuff, it really gets to me. It is going to create a divided School Committee,” he said. His positions of late have left him somewhat on a political island, alienating both the conservative members and the mayor. If that’s the case, he said, so be it. “I stand by my fight against

injustice,” he said. “I’m bringing this stuff up because no one is bringing this stuff up and someone has to.” Monfredo and O’Connell, naturally, see the situation differently. Monfredo said he doesn’t agree with the argument that systemic racism is behind the suspension issue, in which Latino students are suspended at twice the rate of white students. “I think we do a disservice by saying there’s racism in the schools,” he said. O’Connell doubled down on Comparetto’s behavior at the meeting Thursday, saying he agreed with the mayor’s assessment that the accusation leveled at him was disgraceful. “Mr. Comparetto is only one of

Mayor Joe Petty, center, and School Committee members Dante Comparetto (left) and Brian O’Connell FILE PHOTOS

news

City officials see positive impact in fight against Hepatitis A BILL SHANER

t appears Worcester has the Hepatitis A outbreak — a cause of concern throughout the winter — under control. In a report to the City Council this week, Public Health Commissioner Dr. Mattie Castiel said no new cases were reported for the week of March 9-15. In total, there have been 59 confirmed cases and five probable cases

Dr. Mattie Castiel, commissioner of Health and Human Services. FILE PHOTO

since last June, and only one case has been confirmed since vaccination outreach in February. District 4 Councilor Sarai Rivera, chairman of the Public Health Subcommittee, said the report speaks to Worcester’s proactive approach. Hepatitis A has spread further in other cities where vaccination efforts weren’t so immediate, she said. “In order for us to be a thriving community, we need to be a healthy community,” she said. Last October, Worcester was among several cities notified by the state Department of Public Health as being the site of a Hepatitis outbreak. The other

cities, per Castiel’s report, were Boston, Brockton, Lowell and Lawrence. The virus, which spreads typically from contact between mouth and feces, infects livers and causes inflammation. It can spread rapidly if not addressed, per the report. After the city was notified, it partnered with AIDS Project Worcester and Community Healthlink to identify and vaccinate people most at risk, while Umass Memorial Medical Center and Saint Vincent Hospital worked to take action in emergency rooms against the virus. Dozens of clinics were C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 7

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

news seven members of the Committee, and I still believe that all other Committee members are wellequipped, and well-prepared, to continue to work respectfully with one another, focused on the wellbeing of our students and staff,” he said. “Whether Mr. Comparetto will choose to join us in this respect depends, of course, on Mr. Comparetto.” O’Connell wasn’t the only member to focus the issue of division on decorum within the School Committee chamber. Monfredo, Dianna Biancheria, Molly McCullough and

the idea of the school system running its own bus company, and was particularly taken aback by O’Connell’s motion to strike a comparative cost analysis from the request for a report. On the issue of sex education, Foley is with Comparetto in feeling the subcommittee meetings to address Making Proud Choices should not have been canceled – regardless of who canceled them. Curriculum proposals, he said, follow a process of going to the full School Committee, then to subcommittee, then back to the

“I think we do a disservice by saying there’s racism in the schools.”

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

- School Committee member John Monfredo, who doesn’t agree with the argument that systemic racism is behind the suspension issue, in which Latino students are suspended at twice the rate of white students. Petty also pointed to the need for polite behavior on the floor. “We all have our disagreements. That’s what we get elected for,” said Petty. “I’ve been in this business almost 22 years. You can’t allow accusations to go unchallenged, otherwise you get nothing done. I’m here for the kids, and I think it’s getting lost a bit.” But, similarly, Comparetto isn’t on his own in thinking the divisions are coming from a deeper place than behavior on the floor. Committee member Jack Foley said he feels the issues of busing, sex education and racial disparities in punishment have all exposed riffs on the School Committee. He said he was dismayed at the opposition from O’Connell, Monfredo and Biancheria to even look into

full committee for a vote. “This didn’t follow that pattern, and that creates more controversy and more tension,” he said. On the issue of racism, Foley said he prefers the term “unconscious bias,” but acknowledged it is a problem, saying everyone has inherent biases, which have to be addressed, examined and worked around. The biases, be it for race, class or gender, pervade institutions and need to be actively combated, he said. As for the flare-up one week ago, Foley chalked it up to the late hour. “People were tired,” he said. Bill Shaner can be reached at 508-767-9535 or at wshaner@ gatehousemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Bill_Shaner.

LAST CHANCE! VOTING ENDS AT MIDNIGHT, MARCH 28!

news H E PAT I T U S A

C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 5

held throughout the city, per the report. “I am pleased to report that the collective efforts of the City and our dedicated community partners is having a positive impact,” Castiel wrote. In total, more than 5,000 vaccines were administered between the city, aid organizations and hospitals. The vaccinations were accompanied by education about Hepatitis A and other diseases impacting the homeless population. Castiel said clinics, education efforts and public advisories will continue until the outbreak fully subsides. The homeless, she said, can be a difficult population to vaccinate as they are transient and often do not want the vaccine.

meetings,” he said. Residents would complain about illegal add-ons and apartments, and other possible code violations. Now, he said, neighbors have the ability to self-police the neighborhoods by checking the database. “I credit the manager for his attention to using technology to make the city better,” Wally said. District 1 Councilor Sean Rose praised Cazaropoul as a valuable asset to the city whose work flies under the radar. At-Large Councilor Khrystian King echoed Wally’s sentiment

that the new database allows the public to hold each other accountable. “I certainly appreciate the responsiveness to the order,” he said. At-Large Councilor Konnie Lukes pressed for the same treatment to be applied to health inspection reports for restaurants within the city. She said she’d like to see a database on the website and information in the windows of restaurants.

SCHOOL INTERFERENCE

ukes had previously asked city lawyers for an opinion on what jurisdiction the City Council had in the hiring of school resource police officers. Before she could speak on City Solicitor David Moore’s opinion, which was included in correspondence from the city manager, Mayor Joe Petty held the item for discussion next week. Per Moore’s memo, the Council

has no authority over policies, practices or programs of the school department. It still remains unclear what Lukes intends to do with this information, but it comes after District 4 Councilor Sarai Rivera publicly criticized the school department for moving to install a full-time SRO at Claremont Academy. Bill Shaner can be reached at 508-767-9535 or at wshaner@ gatehousemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Bill_Shaner.

PERMIT DATABASE

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

any councilors praised city officials for the creation of a new online database displaying myriad different building permits. The new feature tracks building, electrical, gas, plumbing and mechanical permits. The new component is in response to an order filed by District 5 Councilor Matt Wally last summer to improve transparency in government. The database, which goes back to 2000, is available on the Inspectional Services sub-page. Wally at the meeting Tuesday praised the city’s chief information officer, Eileen M. Cazaropoul, for the new feature. “This is an order born of complaints I heard at neighborhood

news

worcesteria

WAIT, WHAT: When’s the last time you’ve heard the City Council take a 5-6 vote on something without talking about it at all? It happened Tuesday, and it was very unusual. Community organizer Bill Coleman put on a petition to have the Council consider a roll call vote to support state legislation — filed by our own state Sen. Harriette Chandler no less — to lower the voting age to 16 in Massachusetts. All seemed well until Konnie Lukes got up and motioned to file the petition, blasting it as absurd after saying something about juvenile court that was probably problematic. After Lukes, the roll call, and it died. Very weird. MUNILECTION MADNESS: Alright, that’s for sure over-selling it, but hey,

this is an important time for local elections and I’ve got some news. Last week, I reported that organizer James Bedard had taken out papers to run for City Council, but I didn’t say anything about his campaign. Here’s a line from his campaign blurb, of which I found one word especially interesting. “I’m fully committed to working hard for all our neighborhoods, residents encountering economic hardship, addressing rising rent, and providing a much-needed comprehensive plan for Worcester youth. My campaign’s focus is lifting everyone up.” Rising rents, eh? A City Council candidate talking about rising rents? Woah! I happen to know Bedard is himself a renter and if elected, he’d be the only renter on the Council. Also in election news, the aforementioned Bill Coleman was the first to return his nomination papers with the 300 required signatures earlier this week, and I saw that Donna Colorio got her council papers back on Tuesday as well.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

SIGNING PARTY: Now here’s a novel idea, and one I think speaks to the unique moment we’re in, with such a groundswell of interest in both the School Committee and City Council races. This afternoon, from 3:30-5:30 p.m. at Bull Mansion, organizers are hosting a nomination paper signing party plus potluck. The event will allow people to come hang out and talk with candidates — of which there are many both new and unfamiliar — and help them get their signatures in. That’s collaboration among candidates right there. AND THE AWARD GOES TO… Kyle Moon. The man behind the Summit Lounge, Worcester’s very own private cannabis consumption club on Water Street, has been named New England Entrepreneur of the Year by the New England Cannabis Network. So far, the Summit Lounge is the only private cannabis club in the state, and Moon got his city permits by slightly obscuring exactly what they would be smoking when he applied for permits – a hustle I respect, but many in City Hall did not, though it seems they’ve given up on this one. SKATE CAMP: Really neat idea from the Worcester Community

Skateshop I want to signal boost. They’re raising money right now for a program this summer called the Worcester Community Skate Camp, in partnership with the Recreation Worcester program. The idea is to give kids from age 16-21 the reigns to teach kids between ages 7-13 how to skate and fall and get back up. The mission statement: “This program will provide youth with opportunities to gain workforce and leadership skills, while being compensated for their work in the community. They will develop supportive relationships with adults from the skateshop, and younger youth from Rec Worcester. The youth participants of skate camp will be exposed to an alternative activity to mainstream organized sports and arts programs, and will develop skills in skateboarding, teamwork, critical thinking, and creative problem solving.” Right on. Of course, this brings up the question of, you know, where they’re going to learn how to skate. But hey, we’ve beat the city up on Worcide plenty. Good for Rec Worcester for supporting this program. Bill Shaner, reporter Twitter: @Bill_Shaner

news

the beat The St. Patrick’s Day Parade went off without a hitch Sunday,

WALTER BIRD JR

though it came two weeks late due to weather. Thousands attended the annual parade in warm sunny weather, a better scene than it would have been had the organizers not canceled the parade due to projections of wintery mix.

As of last week, the CAT III landing system at Worcester Regional Airport has been in place for three years and the director of the

airport, Andy Davis, told Worcester Magazine the investment has been a good one.

The state Land Court ruled against the town of Uxbridge in a case filed by a soil operator in town who was ordered to stop dumping contaminated soil in 2017. The town issued a cease and desist order in 2017, after the farm had been accepting soil from construction projects for several years. The land court judge ruled the soil dumping was related to agriculture, according to the Telegram & Gazette. The land court battle is just one of several ongoing legal battles between the town and the soil operator. MARK LEVISAY/COMMONS.WIKIMEDIA.ORG

It was a busy week for layoffs and downsizing at area companies. Man-

The former owner of Escape Games is looking at a Grafton Street location for an arcade bar. The bar, called Pixels and Pints, is up for

License Commission approval to take over a space adjacent Crown of Thorns Tattoo. The bar would feature retro arcade games like PacMan, according to the Worcester Business Journal.

Holy Cross next week will host a lecture by psychologist Jonathan Haidt, a leading expert on morality,

This Thursday, Clark University will hold an event with climate activists Tim DeChristopher and Terry Tempest Williams on how to live with the reality that a climate crisis is on the horizon. The event takes place tonight at 7 p.m. in Tilton Hall.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

called “Politics and Polarization.” The lecture takes place next Tuesday at 8 p.m. as part of the HanifyHowland lecture series. Haidt is the author of a book called “The Coddling of the American Mind,” a criticism of new ideas on college campuses like micoaggressions and intersectionality.

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

agement at the Weetabix plant in Clinton is preparing to lay off 181 workers between June and July. The factory produces Post brand cereals. The layoffs come after a $1.8-billion acquisition of Weetabix by Post in 2017. At the CSX rail yard in Worcester, 53 people will be laid off on May 23 by Parsec, the rail yard management company, after CSX ended its contract with the company. CSX will instead use its own laborers, which may involve rehiring those laid off.

opinion editorial

Time is now for state ed funding formula fix

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

he testimony was jarring. From school superintendents, mayors, parents and others, the message was clear: the state’s education funding formula is outdated and must be changed. Well-intended and suitable for its time, the education reform bill of 1993, which established the Chapter 70 formula through which schools receive state funding, now is coming up well short where it matters most: the overall education of our children. There is great disparity when it comes to which cities and towns are able to meet the needs of it students, and which are struggling every day to do so. Worcester is in the latter category. The school system in the state’s second largest city does, as Mayor Joe Petty and School Superintendent Maureen Binienda explained during a lengthy Statehouse hearing before the Joint Committee Friday, March 22, face unique challenges. “We face difficulties that surrounding communities never confront,” Petty said, as reported online at worcestermag.com. “Our students face many issues at a disproportionate level. Every day our teachers work to fill the gaps.” From a sharp increase in

the percentage of English Language Learners (23 to 42.8 percent since 2008, according to Binienda), which far exceeds the statewide average, to a high percentage of high-needs students, to a rise in students identified as homeless, and more, Worcester certainly faces its share of challenges. The current method of establishing school aid simply isn’t cutting it. The Foundation Budget Review Commission, established in 2015, found the Chapter 70 formula underfunded three specific areas — health insurance costs, special education funding and ELL — between $1-2 billion annually. For health insurance and special education, when comparing what was spent to the state formula, Worcester alone faced budget gaps in fiscal 2017 of $34.9 and $34.6 million, respectively. It represented a combined shortfall of almost $70 million in those two areas. If there was more than a hint of exasperation and anger from some of those who spoke on Beacon Hill Friday, it is understandable. In a state where so much money tends to flow freely, so many schools have been left with hands out due to a 25-year-old formula that simply no longer works for them. Editor Walter Bird Jr. Culture Editor Joshua Lyford Reporter Bill Shaner

100 Front St., Fifth Floor Worcester, MA 01608 worcestermag.com Editorial 508.767.9527 WMeditor@gatehousemedia.com Sales 508.767.9530 WMSales@gatehousemedia.com President Paul M. Provost Publisher Kathleen Real-Benoit

Contributing Writers Stephanie Campbell, Sarah Connell, Janice Harvey, Jim Keogh, Jim Perry, Kristina Reardon Director of Creative Services Don Cloutier Creative Director Kimberly Vasseur Multi Media Sales Executives Diane Galipeau, Helen Linnehan

Quoted in an Associated Press report earlier this year, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh put it best when he said, “When education reform happened in 1993, it was landmark. It was great, it was groundbreaking. But that was the 20th century. And that 20th century formula doesn’t work for a 21st century education anymore.” On Friday, Petty spoke up for cities like Worcester, gateway

cities that face the unique challenges he and Binienda referenced, in accusing the state of failing to meet its basic obligations to all students. “At present,” he said, “the state is not fulfilling the constitutional requirement of the Commonwealth for our gateway cities under the current law … Children from gateway cities deserve the same education as children from higher-

performing cities.” It should not come to cities and towns being pitted against each other, but it has. The state can fix it – and the time is not next the next legislative session. The time is now.

WORCESTER MAGAZINE is an independent news weekly covering Central Massachusetts. We accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts. The Publisher has the right to refuse any advertisement.

Distribution WORCESTER MAGAZINE is available free of charge at more than 400 locations, limited to one copy per reader. Unauthorized bulk removal of Worcester Magazine from any public location, or any other tampering with Worcester Magazine’s distribution including unauthorized inserts, is a criminal offense and may be prosecuted under the law. Subscriptions First class mail, $156 for one year. Send orders and subscription correspondence to GateHouse Media, 100 Front St., Worcester, MA 01608.

Advertising To place an order for display advertising or to inquire, please call 508.767.9530. WORCESTER MAGAZINE (ISSN 0191-4960) is a weekly publication of GateHouse Media. All contents copyright 2019 by GateHouse Media. All rights reserved.

Legals/Public Notices Please call 978.728.4302, email cmaclassifieds@gatehousemedia.com, or mail to Central Mass Classifieds, 100 Front St., 5th Floor, Worcester, MA 01608

WORCESTER MAGAZINE is not liable for typographical errors in advertisements.

opinion Why can’t we be friends? JANICE HARVEY

culture

Artist spotlight

Sam Harnois is a senior studying communication and Spanish at Worcester State University. Harnois uses his camera and Photoshop to bring the impossible to reality. Harnois seeks to provide “an escape from the immediate world we live in,” and his work “places a spin on the laws of the physical world and replaces them with endless possibilities of dreams.” While some of his imagery appears upbeat and happy, he hopes they will force the viewer to continue thinking about them as time goes on. Harnois currently has a photo on display in the downtown Worcester Windows exhibit, “Rebirth,” and has shown in several ArtsWorcester shows. You can find more of the artist’s work online at Samharnois.com. A P R I L 5 - 11, 2018

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Let us feature your artwork in Worcester Magazine’s Artist spotlight! Contact Joshua Lyford at jlyford@gatehousemedia.com for more information!

wanted

Maria paid for parking and left the hospital badly shaken. A series of phone calls from hospital administrators followed. The offending employee was placed on unpaid leave and is facing possible termination. Maybe dealing with the public isn’t his forte. Maria sighed. Because she is a person trained in dealing with erratic behaviors, she simply shrugged again, perhaps to shoo away that little black cloud. “Maybe,” she said, “he was just having a bad day.” Maybe the woman who inserted herself into the fray was coming from a situation as harrowing as Maria’s. Maybe we should stop seeing one another as the enemy.

Janice Harvey contributing writer

Letters to the editor are a great way to share your thoughts and opinions with thousands of readers and online viewers each week. There is no word limit, but we reserve the right to edit for length. If handwritten, write legibly - if we cannot read it, we are not running it. A full name and town or city of residence are required. Please include an email address or phone number for verification purposes only. That information will not be published. Make sure your letter makes it into Worcester Magazine in a timely fashion — send it in by the Monday of the next issue. Please note that letters will run as space allows. Send them to Worcester Magazine, 100 Front St., 5th Floor, Worcester, MA 01608 or by email to WMeditor@ gatehousemedia.com.

artists

be like telling a blind person to read something. He told me I was disrespectful to the people that come to this country to work and make a better living. This was even more vile, considering that I have an accent because I am myself an immigrant.” Maria asked for his supervisor’s name and phone number. She was given a phone number with only six digits. He refused to give her the complete number. That’s when the situation got worse. “A woman behind me pushed her way into the whole scene, saying, ‘Give me your supervisor’s name. These two white bitches will try to do you harm.’ I felt threatened, and no one from security came forward.Thankfully, a colleague was with me. We looked at each other and wondered what happened. We were shocked. We agreed that we have never had a more unethical surreal and unprofessional experience in our lives.“

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Letters to the Editor Policy

car in the hospital parking garage, she realized she hadn’t validated her ticket. “I asked the man at the information desk if he could validate,” she said. “He was very rude to me and told me I had to return to the unit for validation. I asked if he could just call that unit for me, since it was way on the other side of the building and difficult to enter, as it is a locked facility. He was angry. He made the call, but got into a screaming match with the male unit nurse.” The “gentleman” working the info desk insisted the units validate parking; however, the unit nurse said the mental health unit was the exception. The nurse, who heard the way Maria was being treated, headed to the desk to apologize. Suddenly, the employee accused Maria of mocking his accent by faking hers. “I told him I cannot talk any other way,” she said. “It would

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

Born in Spain, she arrived in the United States 25 years ago, and has made a life here through hard his is a tale about aswork and determination. sumptions made, of Maria’s immediate concern is misdirected anger and her children, as one would expect, ignorance on display. It’s and particularly her middle child, an ugly little story that perfectly who suffers from mental illness. illustrates how our common Maria says the words without threads seem to be suspicion and shame, as a woman well-schooled resentment, not peace, love and professionally and personally in understanding. But first, meet the struggles of the mentally ill. Maria. Maria is a woman so full of posi- She often finds herself battling miles of red tape in the search for tive energy, it’s hard to imagine a black cloud has chased her for the treatment and an available hospital bed, as she did recently when better part of the last year. How a crisis arose. (Maria will tell you anyone can remain sunny after the woefully-inadequate number losing a spouse in a horrific car of treatment facilities for the mencrash is a mystery, yet Maria has kept her dazzling grin as she raises tally ill is a story for another day.) “The only bed available immedithree children alone and works as a guidance counselor to inner-city ately was in Cambridge,” she said She drove there with her child students. Add to the anguish of and spent an entire evening sudden widowhood the ongoing registering her, driving back to struggle of mothering a teen with Worcester at sunrise to report to an eating disorder, and Maria has work wearing the same clothing every reason to turn that smile she dressed in the day before. upside down. She doesn’t. “Without so much as a toothAll the things she didn’t do bebrush. You do what you gotta do,” fore, she does now, like shoveling she said with a shrug. snow. She’s suddenly the only set Returning to Cambridge to of wheels for doctor appointments, meet with a team of doctors and athletic events and you name it. All of these changes she faces with therapists, Maria spent several hours discussing the best course her chin up, on 3-inch heels that might bring her up over 5 feet tall. of treatment for her child. It was a draining experience, one that led She weighs 100 pounds soaking to the decision to return to her wet, with a ponytail that bounces homeland to live, since insurance when she clips down the hallway. And when Maria speaks, her words coverage here cannot provide the help her daughter needs. When are wrapped in a Spanish accent with her volume knob set to “high.” she and a therapist headed to her

feature FROM W O R C E S T E R TO THE MOON

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

Robert Goddard, father of modern rocketry

JOSHUA LYFORD

ntering Worcester on Interstate 290, you would be forgiven for missing the sign dedicated to Robert Goddard. Stating simply that you have entered the birthplace of the father of modern rocketry, and covered with years of salt and sand buildup, it belies the man’s history and accomplishments. According to NASA, Dr. Robert Hutchings Goddard is considered the father of modern rocket propulsion, and his inventions were instrumental in getting man to the moon. His story is even more fascinating, and while well-known to physicists, scientists and astronomical-enthusiasts, the Worcester-native can slide under the radar for everyone else. From patents to explosions, cherry trees to gyroscopes, from Aunt Effie to Charles Lindbergh, Goddard was a singularly unique individual and has earned his quiet place in the history books. With the 83rd anniversary of Goddard’s liquid-fueled rocket having just passed and the 50th anniversary of NASA’s Apollo 11 moon landing coming up July 20, there is no time like the present to explore the captivating life of Robert Goddard.

Robert Goddard works through his rocket propulsion theory at the chalkboard. COURTESY OF THE CLARK UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

feature

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

feature ANNIVERSARY DAY

significant step in terms of something that has become so exciting now. Space brings out the best of us, it’s cross-disciplinary. You have 14 countries living in a little tin can for months at a time not yelling or shooting at each other. It’s such a noble task at its best.” Goddard’s story didn’t begin at the Auburn launch, however, and it didn’t end there, either. The man was far from finished with his goal to reach for the stars while teaching at Clark University, where much of his collection remains to this day.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

obert Hutchings Goddard was born Oct. 5, 1882 at Maple Hill in Worcester. His family would move to Roxbury shortly after his birth before returning to Worcester in 1898. Goddard was a sickly child, but imaginative. He loved H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. Like George Washington before him, Goddard’s path — as we know it today — began with a cherry tree on his family’s Worcester property. “When Goddard was 17, he went out to trim a cherry tree at his grandmother’s house,” said Fordyce Williams, the Clark University’s coordinator of archives and special collections. “He took a saw, he actually kept the saw for the rest of his life. He had a little ladder on the side of the tree. As most 17 year olds might, he got to day dreaming and looking off into the distance. He imagined what it would be like to have a vehicle of some kind that made it possible to visit Mars. He got this whole image in his mind of what that would be like. He came down and said later, when he descended the tree, his life had a purpose.” Goddard never forgot that moment and called that day at the cherry tree, Oct. 19, 1899, “Anniversary Day.” For the rest of his life, Goddard would make a special note in his diary when late October arrived. Goddard attended Worcester’s South High School, going on to study physics at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. It was around this time that the wheels would begin turning for Goddard and he would explore the mathematics of rocket power. “He didn’t necessarily have his eyes set on the skies in flight,” said Doug Petkie, head of WPI’s physics department. “He had his eyes set on the moon the stars and the planets. He skipped a generation in his thinking. He was thinking about going to the moon and Mars. That kind of vision is very inspirational. Don’t think linearly, what if I do this? What could I unlock?”

Goddard and his family on their Maple Hill home stoop in 1890. COURTESY OF THE CLARK UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

THE CABBAGE FARM

n March 16, 1926, after years of theory and testing, Goddard would successfully launch the first rocket using liquid fuel from a small cabbage farm owned by a woman known colloquially as Aunt Effie. “It wasn’t his aunt, everyone called her Aunt Effie,” said Vanessa Bumpus, the exhibit coordinator at the Worcester Historical Museum and self-proclaimed fan of Goddard. “She had a cabbage farm. He launches the rocket, it goes, I believe, 41 feet in the air and 184 feet to the right in 2.5 seconds. Rockets had existed, it’s the liquid fuel that makes this a big deal. If you think about it, without Robert Goddard, we wouldn’t have cell phones or satellites” The launch itself was exciting, but it is the groundwork the launch laid that truly changed the world. From cell phones to satellites, to space exploration and his own goal of interplanetary travel and putting human beings on soil in space, it started in Auburn. “In the history of technology, it is such an amazing feat in terms of what it laid the groundwork for,” said Charles Slatkin, president

of Worcester’s WOW Inc. “In the same way the Wright brothers weren’t the first of everything, they were the first Americans that got off the ground, space exploration is becoming so much grander in terms of the exploration of space. We’re sort of on a new cusp of space exploration. It was such a

Above, the cherry tree at the Goddard family home, where a young Robert Goddard would imagine humanity’s future in the stars. Right, a cherry tree display at the Robert H. Goddard Library at Clark University. COURTESY OF THE CLARK UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

ONE BRUTAL LIBRARY

lark University’s Robert H. Goddard Library first opened in 1969. Designed in the brutalist form by architect John Johansen, the building is a place for students to research, work and meet. It also houses a deep collection of the scientist and inventor’s work. The collection hosts things you might expect: Goddard’s lab notebooks and patent material, photos of his experiments and reports, but also works such as Goddard’s own paintings and letters. “There is a letter to H.G. Wells and Wells’ response to him,” said

feature Williams. “There are all kinds of things like that, as well as his scientific reports. His manuscripts, the things he wrote, letters to industry people.” Williams said people from all over the world use the library’s collection as a resource. The collection has one especially interesting piece of Goddard history tucked away inside: a miniature book called “Robert Hutchings Goddard: Father of the Space Age.” The book was published by Worcester’s Achille St. Onge in 1966, and a few years later was taken to the moon with astronaut Buzz Aldrin. The copy that travelled to space was signed by Aldrin and remains in the university’s collection to this day.

THANKS, NELL Goddard and his wife, Esther, 1937. COURTESY OF THE CLARK UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

oddard had successfully launched the world’s first liquid-fueled rocket and he was certainly in the public

eye, but that didn’t mean the path was easy and it didn’t shield the man from criticism. A few short years before that first successful launch, Goddard had married Esther Christine Kisk. She worked at Clark while he taught there. Esther proved to be a remarkable boon for the inventor; most of the photographs remaining of Goddard’s experiments are credited to her and much of his legacy was due to her diligence following his passing. Long before that, and just a few years after the Auburn launch, Goddard would attract some unwanted attention. On July 17, 1929, he launched a rocket containing instruments from the Auburn site. This launch would not match his earlier success. “He launched a rocket that exploded as it hit the ground,” explained Williams. “It was such a loud explosion that cars and two ambulances came to the site, because they thought a plane had crashed. Everyone descended on the spot, including an airplane sent up from the Grafton airport

to fly around and find where the crash happened. Along with the individuals and the ambulances and fire trucks, reporters came. Goddard at the time tried to say something like, ‘Can you not report on this?’ The reporters had already arrived, that was impossible. It got in all the newspapers, the wire services picked it up. It got in so many newspapers that everyone got involved.” That involvement would eventually include the Massachusetts fire marshal, who banned Goddard from continuing his experiments in the entire state. While he would eventually end up finding a home in Fort Devens — federal-owned property rather than state-owned — the experiments could not include actual launches, just onsite tests. During this time, however, a notable aviator would become interested in the Worcester inventor. Just a few months after Goddard’s launch, Charles Augustus Lindbergh had become the first person to successfully make a solo, nonstop transatlantic flight from

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

feature New York to Paris. Lindbergh was close with Harry Gugenheim and the Guggenheim family. Both men would become advocates for Goddard in the coming years. It was Guggenheim’s wife who would set the wheels in motion. “So the story goes, Guggenheim’s wife was a little bored with the fact that Guggenheim and Lindbergh were off talking and she was left sort of flipping through magazines and killing time,” said Williams. “She came across an article about this launch and she brought it to Lindbergh’s attention. In November, Lindbergh visited Goddard. That was really the start of how he got funding from the Guggenheim foundation. Her name was Nell and thereafter, Goddard called all his rockets Nell.” Armed with funding, Goddard was off to the desert of Roswell, N.M., where he could continue his launches free of worry.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

HANDSON

ven though Goddard was far away in New Mexico, he did not give up his chairmanship of Clark University’s physics and mathematics departments. Given technological limitations at the time,this proved to be a difficult arrangement. “After he started burning down barns and things like that, he moved to New Mexico,” said Charles Agosta, a physics professor at Clark University. “He didn’t give up his chairmanship of the department. He ran it remotely. In those days, there was no email, of course.” Goddard would begin developing a gyroscope to assist his rockets’ navigation while in New Mexico. He would occasionally return to Worcester to teach during this time. To demonstrate to students how a gyroscope worked, he would sit in a wheeled chair and spin a bicycle wheel. With his feet off the ground, the tilting of a spinning wheel would turn the man in his chair. “The neat thing is that we still have these things, we have the original chair and wheel,” said Agosta. “Not just in the collection, in the department. For my first 10 years here, I didn’t even know it

Clockwise from below: April 19, 1932 flight; December 1928 with a crashed rocket; Goddard with an early precursor to the bazooka; Goddard with rocket in New Mexico, Sept. 29, 1931. COURTESY OF THE CLARK UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

was Goddard’s. To this day, I use it for demonstrations in class.” That sort of local hands-on access to an inventor directly tied with America’s space race success is unique and doesn’t end with the bicycle wheel. “We got a call from an emeritus professor here in Worcester, he was a professor back in the 50s,” said Agosta. “When he retired, he was interested in woodworking. There was an old laithe in the machine shop that no one was using. He took it home and used it. He called us and said, ‘I have this old laithe, it actually belongs to Clark,’ and he’s moving down to Florida. He said, ‘If you want it back, come and get it.’ We went and got it, this

heavy thing. We checked it out and we realized it is almost certainly the laithe Goddard bought when he got his money from the Smithsonian. It’s probably the laithe that the first liquid-fueled rocket was built with.”

MOONY GODDARD

hose interested in the inventor’s history know him as Dr. Robert Goddard, or perhaps the father of modern rocketry. In his time, however, Goddard was known by several other — less flattering — names. “He is making news, the Tele-

feature

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

gram writes about him and a lot of other national newspapers are writing about his research,” said Bumpus. “They think he’s crazy. They call him Crazy Bob, they call him Moony Goddard. They are not nice.” In 1920, for example, the New York Times mocked his experiments in an editorial, saying the man “seems to lack the knowledge ladled out daily in high schools.” They didn’t issue a retraction until 1969, when America first landed on the moon. The detractors did nothing to slow Goddard’s experiments. Einstein’s “If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it” quote seems to apply here. “You can’t have the fear of failure. We’re getting toward a cycle of rapid learning. You want to think linearly,” said Petkie. “If you have an idea, get out there and talk about it, propose it. Goddard was criticized and at the end of the day, he was right, Some crazy ideas are transformational. That’s what science is about, transforming society for the better. We’ve all done things that are wrong, that’s the only way we learned the right way.” Back at Clark University, Agosta said those sorts of reactions are “often a sign of a successful inventor.” What wasn’t exactly typical of a successful inventor was Goddard’s intense focus on patents. “There are all sorts of rules for keeping lab notebooks,” said Agosta. “One of the rules is that you always start at the top of a page on a new day. You date everything, you have to use a pen, you have to sign every day. Every page, every day, has to be signed by a person other than the person who took the notes for a valid lab notebook. Goddard had every page of his lab notebook signed every day by his lawyer. He was dead set on getting his patents and proving that they were his. That kind of attention to detail and attention to making sure he did it not only right, but better than right, he didn’t just one day invent the rocket and think, ‘Ah, I should patent that.’” Many of those patents are in the Clark University collection today, and Goddard’s focus on obtaining patents could be attributed to the age in which he lived. “I think that with what was going on in the world, he thought that was important,” continued Agosta.

feature “This was a time when there was a lot of technology change going on. We think that’s happening now and that’s true, but back then, Edison was still alive, the world was getting electrified, we’re on the edge of electricity becoming universal. There was a lot of change going on and I think Goddard wanted to be a part of it, but he knew the competition was stiff.” That focus on obtaining patents would work in his favor after his death in 1945, as his wife Esther sued the United States government over copyright infringement. The government would pay out $1 million. The earnings would be paid to the Guggenheim Foundation.

THE BIG TIME

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

obert Goddard, the father of modern rocketry, was buried at Hope Cemetery in 1945. His name pops up in pop culture from time to time, as the name of Jimmy Neutron’s dog in Nickelodeon’s “The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius,” on book covers in “The Big Bang Theory” spinoff “Young Sheldon.” There is a visible crater on the moon named after him as well as NASA buildings and awards. With a newly-forming interest in space returning to the public consciousness, through Elon Musk and SpaceX, Richard Branson and Virgin Galactic, a new space race is beginning to form. Perhaps it is time to elevate Robert Goddard to the levels other American inventors have been afforded, from the Wright Brothers to Thomas Edison, George Washington Carver to Alexander Graham Bell. “He was lost to history a little bit,” said Slatkin. “Each kid in school is taught about the light bulb at some point. We’ve had light for awhile, it’s time for some more heroes. Especially now, where there’s so much happening in space. It’s poised to become a billion-dollar business in the next decade.”

Goddard with the liquidfueled rocket that started it all. Aunt Effie’s cabbage farm, Auburn. COURTESY OF THE CLARK UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

culture

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Easy Being Green

PHOTOS BY WALTER BIRD JR.

The 2019 St. Patrickâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Parade in Worcester may have been a couple weeks late in stepping off, but it proved well worth the wait Sunday, March 24. Thousands took to Park Ave., lining both sides of the street, plopping themselves down in folding chairs, standing against barrier fences along the street, even climbing up on poles and sitting atop roofs to catch a glimpse of the two-plus-hour parade and the road race that preceded it. Favorable weather conditions, save for a slight windy chill, made for the perfect day to get your Irish on.

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

culture PHOTOS BY WALTER BIRD JR.

culture

Artist spotlight

After a brief (ok, ok, it was more than brief) hiatus, Artist Spotlight is back! We can only run Artist Spotlight if we have artists to spotlight. See how that works? So, if you are an artist, or know of a local artist then email Joshua Lyford at jlyford@gatehousemedia.com. Fair warning, in order to publish your work, you’ll need to provide a small bio and high resolution digital copies of some of your art. We reserve the right to choose what will run, based on resolution and what will reproduce best on newsprint.

Massachusetts, but has spent time across the United States. Her watercolor paintings are inspired by the places she’s visited and the people she’s met along the way. She has shown her work numerous times at ArtsWorcester, across the city and throughout Massachusetts. You can find more information about Christina and her art online at Artbychristina.faso.com.

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

Christina Giza lives in Central

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

culture Lyford Files JOSHUA LYFORD

GOODBYE JOE: I’m kicking things off this week without a joke, which is quite rare for me. I will keep this short. The world lost Joe Meszaro back in February. While we spent plenty of time bickering over which bands were garbage and which were not, Joe was a good guy and I know plenty of people will miss him a whole hell of a lot. He booked a ton of benefit shows over the years. Most recently (to my knowledge) was a benefit for Aids Project Worcester at the Hotel Vernon. Well, friends have a chance to do some benefit work of their own this Saturday, March 30 at a memorial show for Joe at the Vernon. While no one will be turned away for lack of funds, the $5 suggested donations will go to Joe’s family, so help if you can. With High Command, Mountain Man, Facepaint, Eaten, Marrow, Moss Folk and cover sets of Leftover Crack and Against Me!, the show will be one to remember. Sleep easy, buddy. BACK TO OUR SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING:

I’m writing this so fast, my carpal tunnel and tennis elbow are acting up. I just finished the cover story and I need to get this thing in pronto, or risk losing the space forever. So here is another show coming up. I guess it’s a festival. Either way, it’s three days at the Raven beginning on March 29 and running through April 1. It’s called Northeast Dungeon Siege and there is a wild amount of bands coming in. Algis Dawn, Sombre Arcane, The Oracle, Tyrannus, Malfet and a ton of other scary sounding bands on the flyer. I don’t want to spoil any surprises, but I recently saw a 9-foot tall crucifix being built (this isn’t a joke) for one set here, so expect things to be pretty wild.

IT’S PRONOUNCED DAY-PRAY: Yeah, I did a full story

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

about this a few weeks back and sure, I wrote a little column note about it a week or two before that, but whatever, I like Louie and I do what I want (laughs maniacally while staring longingly out of a cubicle). Louie Despres’ solo exhibition is on Saturday, March 30 and it’s going to be great. It’s not what you might expect if you are a fan of Despres. It isn’t the nightlife and band shots you may be used to, and that’s a good thing. Get to the Sprinkler Factory and grab a drink, kapeesh?

SIGH: The Worcester Railers. Boy, they have shown flashes of brilliance haven’t they? But they’ve also shown stretches where they have played flat. The combo is not ideal. As of this writing, it’s March 26. The Railers sit in sixth place in their division, three points out of the fourth and final playoff spot. With six games left to play, a lot has to go right for the team to make it in. Of course, if they can, anything goes. The playoffs tend to be a reset button in hockey and it certainly is possible for them to make it, but I’ll be the first one to say it publicly: it is unlikely. That should temper your expectations, but luckily I happen to really enjoy underdog stories and in this, if they do manage to scrape their way back into the playoff picture, we will find the ultimate come-from-behind tale. Don’t make me have to wait until next October for more hockey please boys. WALLET RETRIEVED: I can’t remember if I ever wrote about this in my column, but here is a quick refresher: a few months ago I was snowboarding with colleague Bill Shaner at Wachusett Mountain. I lost my wallet and keys to the snow and assumed it was gone forever. Yesterday, I got an email that my wallet had been found (no keys, bummer), which was shocking, so I have picked one event at random to give a shout out to right here: The Cardboard Box Race heads to Wachusett on Saturday, March 30. Grab some boxes and tape, make a cardboard box sled and bomb the mountain. Actually, that sounds sick.

Joshua Lyford Culture editor @Joshachusetts

culture Lifestyle SARAH CONNELL

Girls with Grit

The Center for Women and Enterprise hosted a panel conversation last week in the White Room titled “What It Takes.” CWE is a nonprofit

that helps women start and grow businesses. The panel was moderated by

Michelle Miller of CWE and included Amy Lynn Chase of The Haberdash and Crompton Collective, Renee King Diaz of The Queen’s Cups, Kristie Laskes of Nkd Salon, Kim Golinski of Tree House Brewing Co. and Lisa Welch of U.S. Small Business Administration. I felt moved by

The Center for Women and Enterprise hosted a panel conversation last week in the White Room at Crompton Collective.

SARAH CONNELL

an anecdote from Chase about how difficult it was to give herself permission to buy a new car after years of hard work. Learning that even a thriving business woman can struggle with imposter-syndrome gave me a great deal of hope. Ms. Chase deserves a lot more than a new car. The panelists all shared admirable senses of vulnerability, grit and charisma. I look forward to attending more events like this in the city of Worcester.

Hot Power Hits Tatnuck Plaza

Hot Power Yoga Center announced the opening of a second location last week led by co-owners Brittany Ford and Kristin Marengo. Hot Power’s Grafton Street studio was voted Best Of Worcester by our readers last year. The new studio is set to open by late-summer at 638 Chandler St. As a Doherty alumna, I spent a lot of time hanging around the Tatnuck Square parking lot when I probably could have used a good dose of Vinyasa. Thank you, Hot Power, for making the plaza a Fribble-free zone with plenty of flow.

A Bright Spot

Bitters and soda has long been my go-to drink order on nights when I’m not drinking, but I find myself out at a bar. Hella Bitters & Soda combines their Gentian Tincture from the South of France with the effervescent bubbles of seltzer water. Co-Founder of Hella Cocktail Co. Eddie Simeon says, “Hella Bitters & Soda transports you to another world. On a beach in Capri. In the shade of a palm tree in Tulum. Under a string of lights on a Brooklyn rooftop.” I told Eddie that, personally, I think Worcester is a fine place to be all on its own and he agreed, but assured me that sipping on Hella Bitters & Soda would make me feel like a sophisticated romantic nonetheless. Hella will offer two variants this spring, including a Spritz they liken to a non-alcoholic Negroni and a dry version designed to stimulate healthy digestion and provide crisp Sarah Connell refreshment. contributing writer

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

I am honored to be a member of the event committee for the inaugural Alzheimer’s Association Dinner on Thursday, April 4. I find that food shapes a lot of my own memories with friends, family and loved ones. This multi-course experience is designed to do the same while championing the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. The evening will be shaped by honoree state Sen. Harriette Chandler, D-Worcester, and host Dr. Charles Steinberg, president of the Triple-A Minor League affiliate for the Boston Red Sox. Contributing restaurants include El Basha, Maddi’s Cookery + Tap House, UXLocale and Lock50, along with a mezze table from Worcester Technical High School and dessert by Asylum Popatorium. Join me as I take advantage of the open bar under St. Vincent’s waterfall and tap my foot to the musical stylings of the talented Cara Brindisi. Ticket inquiries can be directed to caleary@alz.org.

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

End ALZ

culture Food is Medicine at Terra Brasilis 480 Shrewsbury St., Worcester 508-752-0390 terrabrasilisrestaurant.com SANDRA RAIN

W O R C E S T E R M A G A Z I N E . C O M M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

he neighbors can smell smoke wafting outside Terra Brasilis from two blocks away. A summertime seat on the porch can take the place of an outdoor barbeque for many local residents who, like me, do not possess outdoor space of their own. We are accustomed to the charms of city living at the tip of Belmont and Shrewsbury

streets. Terra Brasilis is part of the appeal. Inside, every member of the staff oozes charisma. They don’t expect guests to know how it all works, and thereby place a lot of value on the security and comfort of each and every individual who walks through the door. At most churrascarias or traditional Brazilian steakhouses, servers arrive at the table with knives and skewers of meat to divvy onto guests’ plates. At Terra Brasilis, visitors navigate a buffet line, approach the barbecue, weigh their plates and then pay by the pound. The staff is omnipresent, pleased to give advice and talk through the finer points of Brazilian cuisine in English or Portuguese, depending on your preference. At the bar, five TVs are tuned to various soccer matches while only one monitor features the NCAA basketball tournament. The decor is made up of bright pine everything and brassy stools. An experience at Terra Brasilis is interactive, peppered with

briney green olives and a familiar crunch of canned potato sticks. The guacamole is slick with garlic and cilantro. Feijao tropeiro is the most memorable of all, served with pinto beans, eggs, collard greens, kielbasa and yucca flour. The dish is finished with torresmo, fried pork skin that is as buttery and spongy as it is crunchy. The sirloin itself will melt in a flourish of salt and smoke that offers the experience of a churrascarias without the formality. Terra Brasilis’ dishes possess strong emotion. This is one of few establishments in Worcester where food is truly medicine. On my last visit, a full plate came to $9.55. questions such as, “Do you like your sirloin well done, medium, medium rare?” and “Fat or no fat?” and “Isn’t it good?” The latter response is affirmative. Terra Brasilis is quite good. Terra Brasilis is limited to counter service, but I think it bears mentioning the rarity of encountering so many good look-

ing people behaving with such patience and kindness under one roof. The omnipresence of wine, beer and live music doesn’t hurt. You cannot go too wrong on the buffet, but there are highlights. The macarronese has the grit of tabbouleh with acidic pops of tomato and parsley. The chicken salad comes alive with

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: HHHH Ambience: HH Service: HHH Value: HHHH

culture

All about ‘Us’ JIM KEOGH

“I

nvasion of the Body Snatchers” envisioned a horrorscape in which each human being is replaced by a zombie-like duplicate incapable of human emotion. Jordan Peele’s “Us” moves that notion sideways. The doppelgängers who show up one night in the driveway of a happy family are perfect physical replicas of Mom, Dad and their two children, but these interlopers are far from emotionless. They bristle with anger and resentment, and the long, pointy scissors they clutch in their fists are clearly not for clipping coupons. This is war.

“Us” follows Peele’s hugely successful debut film “Get Out,” which earned him an Academy Award for screenwriting. Few sophomore efforts receive this level of hype, but the anticipation was merited. “Get Out” signaled the arrival of a bold new voice, unafraid to wrap social commentary in a horror package so it carries the potential to enrage even as it creeps you out. Making it work so well proved the kind of foundational accomplishment upon which a career gets built. “Us” is a different animal, and a less satisfying one. Peele deftly strings together the story line and ramps up the tension before falling back on a bunch of Twilight Zone-like tropes, then deliv-

ers an ending with whiffs of M. Night Shyamalan at his most irritatingly precious. Let’s start with the good stuff. Lupita Nyong’o is terrific as Adelaide, a mother and mom with a traumatic childhood memory of wandering into a house of mirrors at a beachside amusement and encountering a girl who could be her identical twin. Flash forward to modern day, where a grown Adelaide vacations with her family at the very same beach, and feels increasingly uneasy. With good reason. That night, the mysterious family appears at her house with scissors in hand, and

Adelaide’s young son marvels, “They’re us.” Who exactly “us” is, and what they want, forms the core of Peele’s story. These “tethered” beings (Red, Adelaide’s husky-voiced counterpart, also refers to her ghostly family as “shadows”) are modern versions of the poor boy in Mark Twain’s “Prince and the Pauper,” living parallel lives of misery while Adelaide’s clan enjoys a blissful existence. It’s not too far a reach to see the allegory about the widening gap separating the haves and have-nots, and the potential for revolution if those with nothing decide to get some. Unfortunately, Peele devotes too much time and attention to literal depictions of how this all comes about. (No wonder Red sounds so raspy — she has an insatiable need to explain plot points.) “Us” feels fraught, with Peele overexplaining core story elements lest they seem confusing or vague. His tonal shifts from terror to humor are also nonchalant, with family members taking time out from fighting for their lives to deliver the perfect quip and making questionable choices about how not to stay out of harm’s way. Has no one in Adelaide’s

family watched a scary movie? (Something that goes unexplained: Why do their assailants toy with the family rather than follow through on their declared intention and just kill them without hesitation?) As a thriller, “Us” has inspired moments, including a memorable attack on Adelaide’s friends (played by Elisabeth Moss and Tim Heidecker). Peele maximizes the talents of his actors — especially Nyong’o, doing double duty as the heroic Adelaide and the vengeful Red, and Winston Duke as Adelaide’s bearish, gentlespirited husband. The conclusion involves a twist, not entirely unexpected if you’re paying attention, and leaves the viewer with serious concerns about the fate of humanity. Given what’s transpired, how could it be any other way? Jim Keogh contributing writer

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019 WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

calendar Thursday through Saturday March 28-30 Italian Film Festival

Fitchburg Art Museum, 185 Elm St., Fitchburg The Fitchburg Art Museum presents a collection of Italian Cinema, from classics to contemporary films. Head to Fitchburgartmuseum.org for full schedule.

Thursday through Sunday, March 28-31 On Your Feet!

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

Hanover Theatre, 2 Southbridge St. Follow the story of Gloria and Emilio Estefan, from coming to America, to their incredible success in the music industry.

Thursday, March 28 The Transformations Suite

Brooks Concert Hall, College of the Holy Cross, 1 College St. Samora Pinderhughes’ The Transformations Suite heads to Holy Cross with its musical look at the current states of social injustice and inequality. Presented by Arts Transcending Borders.

Friday, March 29 Twiztid

The Palladium, 261 Main St. Twizted returns to the Palladium with the “Mystery Era Weekend” tour.

calendar The Score Worcester Railers Friday, March 22 The Railers (30-24-6-4) fell, 2-1, in overtime at home to the Maine Mariners. Saturday, March 23 On the road against the Manchester Monarchs, the Railers (3025-6-4) lost, 4-1. Sunday, March 24 Battling for their playoff lives, the Railers (30-26-6-4) fell once more, this time on the road to the Reading Royals, 4-1. (Upcoming: The Railers host the Brampton Beast Saturday, March 30 and Sunday, March 31, then welcome the Manchester Monarchs Wednesday, April 3.)

Sunday, March 31 Olivia Frances

Redemption Rock Brewing Co., 333 Shrewsbury St. Olivia Frances brings her “Sunshine-story-pop” to Redemption Rock Brewing Co.’s taproom.

Saturday, March 30 Worcester Railers versus Brampton Beast

The Massachusetts Pirates signed former University of Tennessee Chattanooga Quarterback Alejandro Bennifield and defensive lineman Joshua Augusta for the 2019 season.

Thursday, April 4 Make A PodCast Presentation

Technocopia, 44 Portland St. Join instructor Jacob Haller in learning how to make your own podcast. Visit Technocopia.org for details.

Wachusett Mountain 499 Mountain Road, Princeton Build a vehicle out of cardboard and duct tape and race it down Wachusett Mountain. If you can make it to the bottom, you can win prizes.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Saturday, March 30 Cardboard Box Race 2019

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

DCU Center, 50 Foster St. The Worcester Railers continue their push to get back into the playoff picture while taking on the Brampton Beast.

Round-Up

culture

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.

SHERI BREADY PHOTOGRAPHY

W O R C E S T E R M A G A Z I N E . C O M M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

Mocha was brought to WARL because she wanted to be the queen of her castle. That didn’t go over well with the her cat and dog housemates! Despite the mutiny, Mocha is very lovable. She can be shy at first, but warms up quickly. Mocha is eager to please and even more eager to snuggle with you. She LOVES bringing toys with her on walks. Mocha enjoys the company of some larger, easy-going dogs. So why has this girl been looked over day after day? Mocha has a mild urinary condition that makes her more prone to infections if she’s not monitored. It’s fairly common and is easily manageable with a daily wipe and medication. We all have our issues, right? In the grand scheme of things, this isn’t too big of a deal. Do you have a kingdom that Mocha can reign over? Mocha is 1 1/2 years old, spayed and ready to go home today.

Can’t adopt, but still want to help? Here are some of WARL’s regular needs: Pet Supplies: Dog and cat food (both canned and dry). Purina brand preferred. Please no grainfree; Non-clumping kitty litter; Bedding, comforters, blankets and towels (not pillows & sheets); Kuranda Beds; martingale collars.

against; For dogs: Kongs, Ruff Wear, Jolly Balls, Tuffies, tennis balls. Office Supplies: Copy paper (white and colors), postage stamps, pink and blue post-its, etc. Staples gift cards are always welcomed!

Pet Toys – For cats: furry mice and balls with bells, stuffed animals for orphaned kittens to snuggle

Computers, Laptops, Printers: Newer models or gently used models are welcomed.

Medical Supplies: Latex gloves, gauze, anti-bacterial hand sanitizer, popsicle sticks, Dixie cups, One Touch Test Strips.

depend on the heartfelt outpouring of people like you. Donations can be given online, mailed, or given in person at WARL.

Monetary Donations: WARL is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and your donations of money, time, supplies, homes, and love are vital to our cause and the lives of the animals in our care. The animals

Cleaning Supplies: Paper towels, 33-gallon trash bags, sponges, bleach, dish soap, “HE” (high efficiency) laundry detergent, Lemon Joy soap.

Amazon Wish List: Can’t stop in? Do you like the ease of shopping online? Visit our Amazon Wish List, and the items will be shipped directly to WARL!

games “Mighty Good Connections” – two letters in a row. by Matt Jones

J O N E S I N’ Across

Down 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

55 56 57 58 59

Prime seating choice Sandal strip Karaoke selection Harvard color Park employee Big name in baby food And others, in footnotes Painter’s purchase TV Street celebrating a 50th anniversary More than enough, for some Currency symbol that looks like a C crossed with an equals sign Some humongous ref. books Electronics dept. displays “You think that’s the right answer??”

Last week's solution

Strengthen, as security Custard-filled pastry Ireland’s ___ Bay Boat’s bottom Chest bone Detonation sound Physical, e.g. Pictographical Zapf typeface characters 9 Selena’s music genre 10 Carolina Panthers safety Reid 11 Tommy’s cousin on “Rugrats” 12 Smoke, informally 13 “Over here” 21 Renaissance ___ 22 Sign of oxidation 27 Opposing opinion 28 Serf 30 Boggy area 31 Fizzle out 32 Cartoon skunk Pepé 36 “Mad Men” star Jon 37 Reunion attendee 38 Petroleum product and long-time pageant secret used on teeth (ew)

39 40 42 43 45 46 47 48 49

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Call 978-728-4302 or email cmaclassifieds@ gatehousemedia.com today to place your ad here!

66 Exhausted 67 “Your excellency”

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

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!

1 Morty’s mom, on “Rick and Morty” 5 Short timetable? 9 Drop knowledge 14 Beige shade derived from “raw” 15 2004 Queen Latifah/Jimmy Fallon movie 16 He wears the horizontal stripes 17 Airline with only kosher in-flight meals 18 Former Israeli politician Abba 19 Word in a 1997 Will Smith title 20 Loss of prestige, perhaps 23 180, slangily 24 “I guess that’s ___” 25 Hair knot 26 Indy 500 unit 29 Fill-up option 33 Throwing ability 34 Fred who sneezed for Edison’s first film 35 Prefix for morph or plasm 36 Le ___ (French port city) 39 Their workers go to blazes, for short 40 He won “The Masked Singer” (sorry for the spoiler) 41 “Pity, that... “ 42 ___ Ranganathaswamy Temple (Hindu pilgrimage destination) 43 “Evita” role 44 Much of their cultivation is in the dark 50 Abbr. on a French envelope 51 True crime author Rule 52 Article in Berlin? 53 Boot part 54 Future aspirations 58 Noun category 60 Meat seasoning mixtures 61 “Boo’d Up” singer Mai 62 “Riptide” singer Joy 63 Cookie with a 2019 “The Most Stuf” variety (around 4x) 64 “Carpe ___!” 65 See-through

classifieds

Where I ďŹ nd such cool stuff and helpful services? My secret is

CLASSIFIEDS!

Over 90,000 Readers! Call 978-728-4302 or email cmaclassifieds@ gatehousemedia. com

Sudoku Answers

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

SERVICE DIRECTORY Call 978-728-4302 or email cmaclassifieds@ gatehousemedia.com today to place your ad here!

last call Elizabeth Wambui Nativity School of Worcester

lizabeth Wambui is the director of advancement at Nativity School of Worcester, a private, tuition-free middle school for boys from low-income backgrounds. Wambui was a member of the Leadership Worcester Class of 2017 and the Worcester Business Journal 40 Under 40 Class of 2014. Nativity School’s Annual Spring Auction will take place Friday, April 5. Auction items include a ceremonial first pitch at a 2019 PawSox game with a Worcester Red Sox Jersey and two tickets to the Patriots home opener game.

DYLAN AZARI

been a blessing to be at Nativity with great kids and great staff members.

watch them get these acceptances and see their fulfillment. They feel success not only for themselves, but also for their families.

– Sarah Connell

I’m curious about your upcoming fundraiser. On April 5 we have our Annual Spring Auction. The Auction is one of our major fundraising events each year. It’s held right in our school gym, which is great because it gives people an opportunity to come in and experience the building and walk the halls and interact with our

students. We usually have tours. Students are always very eager to show off what they’ve been working on. We have four awards that are given out every year. One of the highlights for a lot of people is the student speaker. We actually hold auditions schoolwide. It’s a huge deal. Some of those speeches are incredibly powerful. More than anything, the Auction showcases what we’re all about. It’s all about the school. Proceeds from that night will help fund the things we need to operate every day. We are not asking parents to pay for their students to be in our school. It’s tuition-free. To provide a rigorous academic experience, we need everybody’s help. We’ve been incredibly lucky and humbled by how this community has come together to raise up our guys.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Do you place a lot of emphasis on family engagement? I think the most poignant and moving experience at Nativity is attending graduation and witnessing these young men with their families. I love seeing the look on their grandmothers’ and their mothers’ faces and the swelling pride for what their kids have been able to do. It is absolutely tremendous. The family commitment is something that happens from the get-go. We don’t put our application online. It’s very intentional that parents have to come in and sit with us to discuss what the application process looks like. We really get them to understand that we want them and need them to

be involved in the life of Nativity and certainly the lives of their young men. We’re a school that doesn’t have buses. Parents have to drop off the students every morning. They have to pick them up every night. Once a month we actually have what we call hot lunches. Parents get to prepare food and serve the entire community. Not only are we bringing the parents in, but students get to engage with one another’s traditions.

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019

Can you talk about the unique mission and philosophy of Nativity? We are a middle school, grades five-eight, for all boys. It’s tuition-free, so we look to our community to help us. Our students’ families fall at or below the poverty line and that’s really our biggest criteria. We take them through the application process and we end up with amazing kids. We are in our 16th year, which is really spectacular. The first tenant of Nativity School is small class size. None Have you lived in Worcester your whole life? Yes. I grew up in of our classes have more than Worcester and went to Roosevelt, 17 students in them. We run on an extended-day, extended-year East Middle, North, and then model. So our students are at ended up at Holy Cross, which school from 7:30 every morning was fabulous. After graduating to 6:30 every night. We also have from Holy Cross, I got my first extended-year, allowing students job working in Boston. It’s funny, to engage in summer service during my junior and senior year, starting in July. One of the best I remember saying, “I never plan aspects of Nativity is our graduto stay in Worcester.” I could not ate support program. We’ve got wait to leave the city. I thought, two-and-a-half staff dedicated it’s time to go and do something different. Now I’m really glad that to working with our graduates. We help students apply to high I decided to stay because it’s neat schools and then help them navito tangentially feel like a part of gate what it means to leave our everything that’s happening. very small, comforting environment to attend some amazing How did you end up at Nativity School? Prior to coming on board schools where we work to connect at Nativity, I was at the American them with resources. We help provide tutoring. And then, when Red Cross and I was splitting my it comes time for college applicatime between the Worcester and Cambridge offices. It so happened tions, we’re there. We are really making a 12-year commitment to that in the middle of the presidential transition at Nativity, they our students, and we have seen amazing progress and amazing were looking for an advancement director. I put my name in the hat stories that have come through and I was lucky enough to get the our halls, as you well know. Our job and it has really been spectac- current eighth-grade class has ular. Talk about living the mission, spent the last year preparing and applying to high schools. We’ve right? Everybody in that building got students who have been acis doing it every day. The mission cepted to Saint John’s, Bancroft, is staring at you when you’re filland Worcester Academy. I mean, ing your coffee mug or walking down the hall. And so it has really it has just been so amazing to

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

M A R C H 28 - A P R I L 3, 2019