THE PRINT EDITION
THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020
VOLUME XIX- ISSUE 74
The 2020 Marathon by Rick Winterson
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early 1, 0 0 0 Marathons are run worldwide each year. But only two Marathons are both historic and globally famous everywhere on Earth. The first one was the original Marathon, which took place in Greece during the summer of 490 B.C., over 2,500 years ago. This event wasn’t a race at all. Although there are disagreements about the exact historic facts, the basic story tells about a Greek soldier named Phidippides, who fought in the decisive Greek victory over the invading Persian army on the Plains of Marathon. After the Marathon victory was won, Phidippides then ran 40 kilometers – approximately 25 miles – back to Athens, nonstop. When he arrived, he burst into the Athenian assembly, shouted “We have won!”, and immediately died of exhaustion from his efforts.
The other world-famous Marathon is our own 26-mile, 392yard race between Hopkinton and Copley Square in Boston, usually held on the Patriot’s Day Monday Holiday in mid-April. The Boston Marathon is a truly worldwide race that attracted 30,000 entrants and a million spectators last year. It ranks in importance with other key Boston events like Boston’s recent professional sports championships and our own St. Patrick’s Day Parade. It was first run back in 1897, a year after the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896; the 2020 race will be our 124th consecutive Boston Marathon. But you don’t have to be told about the Coronavirus and the plague called COVID-19. Crowds and indeed any public gathering of any size are quite correctly forbidden by “Social Distancing” until COVID-19 is over with. “Social Distancing” is a (very) effective Continued on Page 2
SB Catholic Academy Students “Thank Thier Heroes” Thank you to all our Doctors, Nurses, our First Responders (Fire, Police, EMS) and our National Guard and Military and all those workers who everyday sacrifice keeping us healthy, fed and safe, going above and beyond to protect and care for people in the community during this coronavirus pandemic. (More photos on Page 8 & 9)
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THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM
Continued from Page 1 way of combatting the spread of Coronavirus, so the Boston Athletic Association (the BAA), following the lead of Boston Mayor Walsh and Massachusetts Governor Baker, has postponed this year’s 2020 Boston Marathon for five months, until Monday, September 14. The BAA is working closely with the City of Boston, Hopkinton, and the six other communities that host the Boston Marathon to ensure the event will be completely safe. This is fitting in many ways, not least because it gives us all something to look forward to – to anticipate near summer’s end! There’ll be a large number of world-class Marathon participants running. Let’s see if there’ll be new, faster times turned in. Anything under two hours and ten minutes – two hours and twenty for the lady runners – is an excellent time. And there’s an upfront wheelchair Marathon as well. The other Marathons in the world are now approaching run times that
are very near an even two hours, so why do the Boston Marathon times stretch out several minutes longer? That’s because the Boston Marathon course is tougher than others – you have certainly heard the expression “Heartbreak Hill”, which describes a half-mile incline in Newton, before B.C. and Cleveland Circle. At Mile #20, Heartbreak Hill is not only a great place to view the race, but is also the ultimate Boston Marathon gasper!
In Memory of Steve Allen,62 of Dorchester
The Boston Marathon had “its tragic moment” back in 2013, when two bombs were exploded in Copley Square. Three spectators died; Martin William Richard, Krystle Marie Campbell, Lü Lingzi and Sean A. Collier, MIT Police Officer. From this immense tragedy came the expression “Boston Strong”, perhaps best exemplified by eight-year-old Martin Richard’s family, who gave South Boston the striking area next to the Children’s
Museum they named in memory of Martin. And highly typical of the Boston Marathon was one of its most famous runners - Johnny “the Elder” Kelley. A winner in both 1935 and 1945, Johnny ran (and finished) his last Marathon in 1992 at age 84. It was his 61st entry into the event. So join us in looking forward to the Boston Marathon on Monday, September 14. It’ll be worth waiting for.
Thank You USS Constitution showing our One Boston Day message of thanks for first responders, medical professionals, and delivery and grocery workers who are on thefrontlines of the fight against Coronavirus (COVID-19).
Mr. Allen a lifelong Dorchester resident passed away on April 13th. He was the Publisher of The Neighborhood Photo News with content that focused mainly on South Boston and Dorchester.
Thoughts and Prayers to his Wife,Children and Grandchildren
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SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020
Helping Others – Part Five by Rick Winterson
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outh Boston Online will never run out of items to report on, especially about how most of us are helping the rest of us cope with and get through this Coronavirus crisis. We can only list a few of these, especially the many local acts of kindness, but good works seem to be extending from coast to coast, all across America these days. Locally, the Convention Center on Summer Street in the Seaport has been converted into a field hospital with 1,000 beds. Half of these will be used for intensive care for homeless individuals who need it; the other half may be used for those who are convalescing, but we understand their use can be f lexible, as needed. And this particular project was completed in a matter of days. Nice going! And special thanks to the Center’s Executive Director David Gibbons and his (very) cooperative staff. The Mayor has announced that the City of Boston’s “Resiliency Fund” has exceeded $25 million ($25,000,000) from over 3,500 doners. Very nice work also, and this has taken only a few weeks so far. The Celtics’ Jason Tatum has made large contributions, as has David Ortiz. This next item is a worldwide event: according to Matthew Gilbert in the Boston Globe on Monday, Lady Gaga is arranging a two-hour TV benefit for health care workers at 8 p.m. this Saturday evening, hosted by Jimmy Fallon (NBC), Stephen Colbert (CBS), and Jimmy Kimmel (ABC), and featuring over a dozen worldfamous performing stars. South Bostonians, tune in, please! In an incident both local and small, we watched a woman purchase a large bag of ALPO for a homeless man, who keeps his pet dog in an old baby carriage. Yes, this was a small, local act, except for the lovely thought
behind it. And there’s the care shown by those who are calling on shut-ins and the elderly, using lists provided by agencies, and by volunteers out of Councilor Flynn’s office. Literally tons of food are being distributed every week to hundreds of people by Monica’s Kitchen, the Neighborhood House, the Fourth Church, and many others. And we must close this article with a loud, lengthy round of electronic applause for the absolute saints who are providing us with medical care of any kind. All of them are risking their health, and in a few unfortunate cases, risking their lives as well, in order to care for the rest of us. Coronavirus and its disease COVID-19 are extremely contagious, and most medical care
is performed up close, frequently surrounded by other patients with the same sickness. How about those nurses who came here from Florida to work in local hospitals? And isn’t it fitting, even uplifting, that medical personnel are being applauded nowadays when they show up for work? That’s visible evidence that they are appreciated! The rest of us should be
grateful if we merely must put up with a lot of handwashing, a face covering, and “Social Distancing”, broken up only by the TV and an occasional solitary walk. COVID-19 is a deadly, ongoing emergency unlike anything any one of us has ever experienced before – an ongoing emergency that has even forced us to call out the militia – the National Guard.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM
Sen. Collins, Rep. Biele Support Vulnerable Residents And Students Impacted By COVID-19 Legislative action helps homelessness, addresses MCAS testing requirements
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s the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact all facets of daily life, State Senator Nick Collins and State Representative David Biele joined their colleagues in the Massachusetts Legislature in passing legislation that supports those experiencing homelessness and provides testing and budgetary f lexibility to school districts. The legislation repurposes existing homelessness f unds for ser vices that cannot be provided due to the COV ID19 outbreak and redirects that funding to support immediate
a nd c r it ic a l home le s sne s s need s re su lt i ng f rom t he publ ic he a lt h e mer g enc y. To add re ss d isr upt ions caused by the closure of K-12 schools due to COVID-19, the legislation waives the MCAS requirements for the 2019-2020 academic year. The legislation a lso a llows the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to modify or waive competency determination requirements related to high school graduation and provides budgetary f lexibility for schools a s a result of COV ID-19. Additiona lly, under t he provisions of t his session’s Student Opportunity Act, school districts were required to submit three-year academic plans to
DESE in April. The legislation extends the deadline to May 15, 2020, or later, as determined by the Commissioner, to provide f lexibility for school districts i mp a c t e d by C OV I D -19. The l e g i s l a t i on also provides the MBTA additional bud get a r y f le x ibi lit y a m id t he COV ID -19 emergenc y. “Supporting those most vulnerable in our communities is our number one priorit y r ig ht now,” sa id Senator Collins. “Providing services and resources to those without stable housing, and giving our students a nd schools much needed f lexibility will relieve some of the stresses associated with this crisis, and help our communities get t h rou g h it toget her.”
“ T h i s le g i sl at ion w i l l provide crucial support to our most vulnerable residents while giving relief to our communities f ac e d w it h u npre c e dente d disruptions caused by COVID19,” said. Rep. Biele. “This legislation will help provide life-saving resources to those most in need, ensure that students and educators focus on staying healthy, and provide municipalities muchneeded f lex ibilit y to focus on protecting t he public’s he a lt h w h i le r e s p ond i n g to ne w d a i ly cha l lenge s.” The bill passed both the Ma s sac hu set t s S enate a nd the Massachusetts House of Representatives and was signed into law by Governor Baker.
South Boston Gillette Employees Help the During Crisis
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any of Gillette employees have been reaching out, bringing ideas and expressing a desire to help – particularly how they could put their R&D and Manufacturing expertise to use to make equipment to protect health workers in Massachusetts. They zeroed in on Face Shields. These are worn over N95 masks and are considered critical in protecting front line healthcare workers from the virus – and there is dire need for more at area hospitals. With the encouragement of our CEO, we assembled a small team who wanted to help, built a prototype and began manufacturing the Face Shields in under 14 calendar days. We officially began production in South Boston and donations to area healthcare facilities started this week. We’ve made 15,000 already and plan to make 100,000 in the next few weeks. We are donating the Face Shields through Massachusetts Emergency Management Authority (MEMA) and directly to area healthcare facilities. This is part of our work the Manufacturing
Emergency Response Team (M-ERT), an effort created by the Massachusetts Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative to support the battle against COVID. Our CEO highlights this effort in a linked in posted below: ht t ps : //w w w.l i n k e d i n . com/feed /upd ate/ur n:li:activ i t y : 6 655 49 6 3 0 376 3 6 0 3 456 / It’s been incredible to see the passion, speed, teamwork and dedication on this project. This is also just one of many ways in
which we are trying to help. We have already shared over 55,000 N95 masks and razor donations to healthcare workers (in line with CDC recommendations to be clea n shaven when wearing masks). And, the team at our factory in Andover is producing hand sanitizer—we began donating hundreds of gallons to the community last week with a second round of community deliveries planned for this week. This will be used
for first responders in the City of Boston as well as distributed t hrough orga niz ations like Greater Boston Food Bank.
SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020
A Piece of Good News
Which Came First? The Tree or That Cloud? Was that Y-shaped tree somehow planted by the wispy, white cloud overhead, or did the tree mysteriously emit that similarly shaped cloud?
Only in South Boston! And along Broadway, yet.
You may remember the Boston Police Department’s Captain John Greland. He commanded South Boston’s Station Six before Capt. Boyle was appointed there. Capt. Greland was diagnosed with COVID-19 a few weeks ago, and needed extensive treatment. We are pleased to report that he has weathered the storm and seems to be on his way to complete recovery.
All the best, Captain; here’s to your complete recovery.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM
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Helping Neighbors Through South Boston Aid Network
t was late on a Friday afternoon when the South Boston Neighborhood Aid Hotline received a call from a hospital social worker: A young woman was about to be released from the hospital. She was still very sick, and had no family or friends to help make sure there was food in her apartment for the weekend. “I’ve been making call after call just trying to find this woman some food. Someone said you might have volunteers who could help?” Within an hour, South Boston residents had stepped up to shop and deliver groceries to her door, and were even standing by to help walk her dog. None of the volunteers knew the woman, but that didn’t matter. Continuing a long tradition of neighbors helping neighbors, the South Boston Neighborhood Aid Network (SBNAN) was launched in March to support South Boston
community members throughout the duration of the coronavirus pandemic. SBNAN was established by South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation, which serves as the principal agency and central coordinator. More than 30 residents and virtually all members of the South Boston Association of Nonprofits, including the South Boston Neighborhood House, have joined the effort. SBNAN has two main goals: 1. Centralizing information and resources so they are kept up to date and accessible by residents, nonprofit staff and other community members, and 2. Connecting neighbors in need with volunteers and programs that can help them. To accomplish the first goal, the SBNAN website at www. SBNeighborhoodAid.com features a growing list of resources – from how to find food pantries and meal
The South Boston Neighborhood Aid Network is a group of community members working together to collect information and resources in one place, and help neighbors connect with each other to ask for and offer assistance. TO GET HELP ● Visit www.SBNeighborhoodAid.com – Submit a help request, and find resources and information ● Call or Text our Hotline: 617-221-7594 ● Email Us: SBNeighorhoodAid@gmail.com TO GIVE HELP ● Visit www.SBNeighborhoodAid.com – Volunteer to help neighbors, and find information and resources to share ● Email Us to Get Involved: SBNeighorhoodAid@gmail.com FOR MORE INFORMATION ● Visit www.SBNeighborhoodAid.com ● On Facebook: Search for “South Boston Neighborhood Aid” ● Email Us: SBNeighborhoodAid@gmail.com
sites across South Boston, to how to apply for benefits or keep your kids busy at home. SBNAN’s emphasis is on providing information specifically relevant to people living and working in South Boston. “Information is emerging and changing all the time, and it can be difficult to sift through it all,” said Donna Brown, Executive Director of South Boston NDC. “For our neighborhood nonprofits, centralizing information in one place frees us up to devote more resources to delivering services to the community. And for residents, it’s important to know where you can go to find the latest and most relevant information when you need it.” “Families may not need help finding a food pantry today, but if they have those needs in the coming weeks or months, we want to make sure they know where to find the answers they need,” said Brown. SBNAN organizers recognize that not every need can be resolved with an informational website. For the many residents who need material support with specific things, like grocery or supply pick-ups, SBNAN is organizing a growing base of volunteers from across South Boston. Residents with such a need have many ways to request help: they can submit an online form, send an email, call or text the hotline, or send a Facebook message. SBNAN then screens the request and sends it out to volunteers who have signed up to help. More than 30 volunteers have stepped up so far to be “on call” for help requests. Several have even committed to being Neighborhood Point People, helping match volunteers to make sure that every help request is fulfilled. In the few short weeks SBNAN has been operational, volunteers have fielded help requests for setting up online orders, pet care, finding washable face masks for seniors, and more. But by far the most common request is for groceries. Over the first two weeks of April, requests
for food assistance doubled. The Network has helped families get access to emergency food and made sure each family was connected to programs that would help sustain them throughout the pandemic. South Boston residents who would like to volunteer w it h t he Neig hborhood Aid Network can sign up at www.SBNeighborhood Aid . c o m / g i v e - h e l p . Residents can request help however they prefer: E m a i l SBNeighborhoodAid@gmail.com Visit www. SBNEighborhood Aid .com/ get-help to fill out a form Call or Text the SBNAN Hotline, 617 - 2 21-7 5 9 4 Send a Facebook message at www.facebook.com/ SouthBostonNeighborhood Aid “We expect that help requests are going to continue increasing as more people are impacted by the ongoing closures,” said Brown. “The nonprofits are working closely together and meeting frequently to make sure we are coordinating our services. There will always be a need for volunteers who can step in and help us meet some of this unprecedented demand.” SBNDC is South Boston’s nonprofit affordable housing and community development organiz ation . Since the organization’s founding in 1983, SBNDC has developed more than 300 units of affordable housing in South Boston. SBNDC also currently owns and manages more than 120 affordable homes, provides housing counseling to neighborhood residents, operates the South Boston Farmers Market and the local Chamber of Commerce, and organizes the South Boston Street Festival, Taste of South Boston, and the Christmas and Spring Strolls. Visit www. sbndc.org to learn more.
SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020
by Rick Winterson
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n recent years, South Boston Online has covered the Easter sunrise services first thing in the morning at Castle Island – Masses said by Father Casey, the Pastor of St. Brigid/ Gate of Heaven Church. Sunrises are one of the symbols of Easter, in part because they are the first thing visible on a new day and in part because the day’s first light is so vivid and full of life. In many ways, that’s the reason why eggs and newborn young animals also are used as Paschal symbols. Even more pertinent, according to St. John’s Gospel, the arrival of Mary Magdalene and the Apostles John and Peter at Christ’s tomb on the first Easter Sunday took place at sunrise or shortly after dawn This year, the ongoing Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic meant that sunrise services, which in the past had attracted gatherings of hundreds and even thousands, necessarily had to be canceled. And we all felt that something
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Eastertide, 2020 was missing. Indeed, even though it was done remotely and online, sunrise was included in many Easter services. And the sunrise at 6:07 a.m. on April 12, a beautifully clear Easter Sunday morning this year, was certainly striking. Last year, we wrote about the nearly complete destruction by fire of the iconic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. To emphasize the staggering loss this was, we entitled that article “The Eighth Sorrow” (of the Virgin Mary) – “Notre Dame” means “Our Lady” in French. As a metaphor, could the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic be thought of as the Ninth Sorrow? That’s too much of a theoretical and theological question for us to answer, but please remember that the Virgin’s Seven Sorrows really ended with Christ’s burial in Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb. Please also remember that Mary experienced a series of exalting events we now call her “Seven Joys”. Three of these “Joys” occurred during Eastertide, which extends from the Resurrection on Easter Sunday morning, through Ascension Thursday (May 21), to Pentecost Sunday on May 31 in this year of 2020 A.D.
The Curley Community Center silhouetted by Easter sunrise. This year’s Eastertide – a word medicine! It’s good for you; it’s good for that really means “Easter Season” all of us. Perhaps a period of waiting – approximately corresponds to the and watching will bring each of us to expected revival of America’s well-being, our own Pentecost experience this year. And specifically, as a key step our re-joining the society of others, and the start of economic recovery from the in being a good neighbor, let’s stay COVID-19 devastation. The current home and continue our practice of practices of staying home and “Social “Social Distancing”. Yes, that is a kind Distancing” last at least until Monday, of low-pressure exile, but everyone May 4. Even the most optimistic – both optimists and pessimists people realize that the transition back alike – predict a major increase in to normal life will be slow – so let’s be COVID-19, if and when we start patient. In this case, patience is good getting together again too soon. So let’s not. for us – better than the most expensive
“Distance Worship” by the Fourth by Rick Winterson The Rev. Burns Stanfield is the Pastor of the Fourth Presbyterian Church here in South Boston. He was featured in a front page spread in the Boston Herald’s Easter Sunday edition, which described the need for online “Distance Worship” this year. Joined by the Rev. Liz Walker, Pastor of the Roxbury Presbyterian Church, they captured the 2020 Easter sunrise at 6:07 a.m. on Carson Beach that they later used in their online “Distance Worship” services on Easter Sunday morning.
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unrise and Easter go together on all levels. That is as true now in 2020 as it was in 33 A.D. (or C.E., if you wish). Sunrise services were planned by many Christian
denominations this year, until the absolute need for separating members of congregations due to the COVID-19 plague became apparent. But social media allowed the 2020 Easter sunrise to be recorded, thus letting it be made part of the first-ever “Distance Worship” later on Easter morning. On Easter Sunday morning, the Rev. Burns Stanfield, Senior Pastor of South Boston’s Fourth Presbyterian Church, joined forces with the Rev. Liz Walker, who is Senior Pastor of the Roxbury Presbyterian Church (do you remember Rev. Walker from her years as the WBZ TV News anchor?). They met at the McCormack Bathhouse complex and delivered a sung, trumpeted, and spoken salute to the rising Easter sun, which featured the hymn “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen. This was all recorded via mobile phone when the sun rose at 6:07 a.m. on Easter, and then became part of their online Easter
(At left of photo) the Rev. Burns Stanfield salutes 2020’s Easter Sunday sunrise with a trumpeted hymn, as the Rev. Liz Walker sings the lyrics. services. It was “Distance Worship” of course, but none-the-less devout. Rev. Burns performed the trumpet instrumental; Rev. Liz sang the lyrics. You might ask how it’s even possible to celebrate Easter, when we are not together in church with the other members of our congregation.
Well, for an answer, hark back almost 2,000 years ago to the Gospel of John and the very first Easter. Except for a couple of comatose Roman soldiers guarding the tomb, the only persons who showed up on the first Easter were John, Peter, and Mary Magdalene. And all three of them arrived late.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM
South Boston Catholic Academy News
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his year in Music Class at South Boston Catholic Academy we focused on fostering a love of music throughout the grade levels. In K0 our youngest friends learn to keep a steady beat by matching colors to notes. The rainbow xylophones below help students review their colors, letters, and sounds! We were able to match the “G” note and “D” notes to their corresponding colors, and play along to “This Little Light of Mine”. Students had a wonderful time playing their first complete song on the xylophone! In the older grades we offer a “Ukulele Studio Class” in addition to their general music curriculum. Students learn chords, strumming patterns, and practice making their own tunes. Students in the picture below are writing their first song with chords, and strum patterns!
W hen f lu season began to ramp up, and the news of COVID-19 began to break, our Music Teacher, Ms. Eleanor Tyna n, bega n to consider how we can use music to help with our students’ safety. It is recommended that you wash your hands for a minimum of 20 seconds. For our little ones, this is still a new skill, so she made up a fun, easy song to help them remember how long to scrub their fingers. If you sing it two times through you are good to go! They practiced singing it with hand sanitizer in class several times! Since the children cannot be in their classrooms, Ms. Tynan, made a video so the children could see and sing along with her while her family, who are also teachers, showed the children how they should wash their hands.
The wash your Hand Song Lyrics are as follows: (To the tune of Row, Row, Row your boat) Wash, wash, wash your hands Wash away the germs Scrubbity, scrubbity, scrubbity, scrub Clean Hands are so fun (clap)! Again…
During Lent, 3B learned about almsgiving and students did a lot of projects (big and small) to help others. Today we, of course, have moved to remote learning and Lent is over, but that hasn’t stopped Ms. Elizabeth Dolan’s amazing students! 3B students completed a Spirit Project to thank our helpers and spread some cheer in our community. The faculty and Staff at South Boston Catholic Academy have been working diligently and are committed to continue to provide
our students/families with a highquality education be it in the classroom or by the great work that our teachers have been doing via online classes, websites, email, and phone calls during a very challenging time. We have heard from many parents that our teachers have been tremendous as they work with parents and students to make the best of a very challenging situation. We are so grateful to our teachers, aides and staff – they are the best and to our wonderful students, parents and families. We will be ready to welcome all our students/ families back when the state of emergency is lifted, and it is safe to do so. We pray that God will bless us all with good health and that we all have renewed strength when we return. God Bless Everyone!
SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020
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THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM
Comella’s Feeding Front-Line Workers Battling Coronavirus Pandemic Submitted by Brianne Fitzgerald
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he novel coronavirus p a n d e m i c has h it m a ny indu strie s ha rd, includ ing t he r e s t a u r a nt bu s i ne s s . But despite the challenge of not being able to host sit-down customers due to socia l-dista ncing g uidelines, JP C ome l l a , ow ne r of Comella’s Homemade Italian Fo o d re s t au r a nt s , k now s things are tougher for those battling the deadly outbreak. To help them, Comella’s recently created a fundraising group, Friends of Comella’s. It is made up of donors who, through Comella’s, are providing frontline workers meals on the go. Throug h t he progra m, they’ve been able to help hospital workers at Emerson
Hospital, Mass General, Boston Medical Center, Beth Israel Deaconess and others, along with the Boston Rescue Center, a 120-year-old homeless shelter. “Through that, it’s made
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us open our eyes to see what we can do in-store to help reach our customers,” Comella said. “The people are so gracious and still supporting our business.” Comella’s has adapted to a contactless transaction system where customers pre-pay over the phone or online so business can be conducted in a safe manner. “We’ve ta ken out t he credit card signatures,” he said. “We were sanitizing pens a f ter each transaction but even that became too risky.” “They are a ll part of Friends of Comella’s,” he said. “We have customers from each rotation basically step up and check in to feed these frontline workers, the population that is most at need. It’s really been nice to see people band together and help us provide this service to those most in need.” Comella plans to keep the fundraiser going until normal operations can resume. “A s long as there are generous friends of Comella’s who want to keep participating in feeding front-line workers in the population that is most at risk, we’re going to keep doing it,” he said. “We enjoy it. We try to provide a service with value.”
How it works To join the cause, you can make a call to any of the 12 restaurants, tell them who you want to feed and where they work, or donate money for the staff to use to help front-line workers. “We try to be as f lexible as possible,” Comella said. “It’s something that has come up from a horrible situation. There are generous people who want to contribute and we have vehicles in service to do that. We’re just trying to band together and bring people some joy.” To be a part of the Friends, email f r i e n d s o f c o m e l l a s@ comellasrestaurants.com.
Fun at home
Since customers can’t sit down and enjoy the famous Comella’s pizza inside one of the restaurants, Comella is now selling take-home pizza kits. “Cu rbside pick up ha s become a big (option,” he said. “We just try to limit the contact.” A three-cheese kit, which is a large pizza, sells for $7.49. “You can cut that dough up,” Comella said. “Personally, I make four mini pizzas mainly so my kids don’t break out into a brawl. It’s a lot of fun and something easy to do.”
SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020
The Moon and Venus Pay a Visit
The recent Super Moon at perigee, rising over a tree on Columbia Road. by Rick Winterson
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week ago, at 8:30 p.m. or so (but before the Boston curfew at 9, of course), the clear heavens put on a nice display. Venus, nearly due west of us and at about a 45 degree elevation in the sky, shone more brilliantly than
any star in the sky. That planet, the second from the Sun, comes close to us every now and then – close enough that its reflected glow from sunlight makes it appear brighter than anything else up there except for the Moon. Venus is now bright enough to be easily seen through the layers of moist air above South Boston, and it can be photographed with an ordinary Canon G16. Speaking of the Moon, the last full moon – nine nights ago on Tuesday, April 7 – was a so-called Super Moon or Pink Moon. That means it was at its “perigee” (which is the technical term for the Moon’s closest approach to the Earth), at the same time it was also a full moon. That will happen again next
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Ethos Receives $560,000 Grant From The Boston Resiliency Fund For Meals On Wheels And COVID-19 Response Funding Will Be Used To Expand Its Capacity And Serve An Additional 2,000 Meals Per Day For Seniors Ethos today announced it has been awarded a $560,000 grant from the Boston Resiliency Fund to temporarily expand, on an emergency basis, its city-wide Meals on Wheels program and serve an additional 2,000 meals per day, enabling older adults to remain in their homes, limit their exposure to COVID-19 and other people, and have healthy, nutritious meals. The COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented increase in the numbers older Bostonians seeking nutrition services. The Ethos Meals on Wheels program, which typically delivers 8,000 meals daily, is receiving more than 100 new requests for services each day, and anticipates scaling up to 10,000 to 12,000 meals per a day to meet the increasing demand. “For many of Boston’s seniors, the coronavirus outbreak, and subsequent business closures and social distancing and self-isolation advisories, are severely disrupting their lives and they are turning to Ethos and its Meals on Wheels program, as a vital lifeline during this crisis,” said Valerie Frias, CEO of Ethos. “The grant from the Boston Resiliency Fund will help us to deliver healthy meals to additional seniors who are increasingly food insecure in this time of crisis.” Even before the pandemic, one in four older Bostonians live in poverty
The planet Venus at nearly its closest approach to Earth, brighter than any star.
and facing food insecurity. Nearly two out of three older adults live with four or more chronic conditions, making them even more susceptible to the COVID-19. And long before this pandemic started, the Boston Globe declared elder isolation a “crisis” and cited half of older adults
A Good Question
sometimes or always feel alone. The Boston Resiliency Fund is the City of Boston’s effort to help coordinate fundraising and philanthropic efforts to provide essential services to Boston residents whose health and wellbeing are most immediately impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. ABOUT ETHOS Ethos is a private, non-profit organization that is dedicated to promoting independence, dignity and well-being among the elderly and disabled through quality, affordable and culturally-appropriate home and community-based care. Ethos coordinates non-institutional home and community-based services for elderly and disabled residents of the southwest Boston neighborhoods of West Roxbury, Hyde Park,
“Can I catch the bus to Copley from here?”
Roslindale, Jamaica Plain, and Mattapan and well as, provides Meals on Wheels city-wide. For more information, visitwww.ethocare.org.
SOUTHBOSTONONLINE.COM THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 THE PRINT EDITION
The State of Real Estate Besides following all the measures that the CDC urges all individuals to follow, Rooney Real Estate will be adding the following practices : • Our staff and agents will work from home as much as possible • Online virtual tours of each of our listings to limit showings • Personal / Private showings, not conducting open houses • We will provide sanitizers at all showings • Sales and rental contracts will be signed electronically
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R 69-1000 ithou 2 w 7 y 1 y t 6 r a : e M THE LIST r porop & E u K l o i y A r n M AN Ap ure o PERTY C t expos e O g R P o t R way W YOU O H N A great ETAIILS O D R O F CALL
Take advantage of a low interest rate today! Rooney Real Estate, LLC. 617.269.1000 | www.Rooney-RE.com Jackie Rooney | jackie@rooney-re.com