Hingham Life Magazine

T. M. Sullivan Contruction is a clientfocused, full-service design, build, and remodel contractor serving residents of the South Shore. We deliver a broad range of services, including home renovations, large and small scale additions, and new construction.

Lauren Walsh Interiors Jessica Delaney Photography

CONTENTS

37 CHASING

SUNSETS

Photographer Kjeld Mahoney captures the spectacular beauty of an evening sail in Hingham Bay.

40 CUSTOM HOME WITH HEART

Hingham-based Oak Development & Design goes above and beyond to create their client’s dream home.

48 THE WONDERS OF WORLD’S END

Exploring the history and highlights of Hingham’s beloved natural refuge.

60 STYLE MAKERS

Fueled by creativity, the founders of three fashion-forward Hingham businesses have developed a local following by designing boutique apparel and accessory brands.

68 HISTORICAL SCAVENGER HUNT!

A tour of markers and memorials dedicated to people who have made a difference in the Hingham community.

74 THE NATURE OF THINGS

Hingham Land Conservation Trust Turns 50

92 CULINARY GAME CHANGER

Bringing city flair to Hingham, NOMAI impresses diners with an inviting atmosphere and innovative menu of Asian-inspired New American dishes.

HINGHAM

What a fabulous place to call home! Offering a wealth of excellent restaurants, unique shops and boutiques, a top-notch school system, public parks and beaches, sailing and boating, walking trails, and so much more…It is to no surprise why our community is one of the most desirable places to live on the South Shore.

Hingham

I’m

Follow Your Bliss

Welcome to Hingham Life, a new annual magazine committed to showcasing the inspiring people, places, businesses and local culture that make Hingham an incredible place to live, work and visit!

Earlier this summer, I arrived at Hingham Yacht Club on a balmy evening for our Hingham Life cover shoot and was struck not only by the spectacular beauty of the location, but also by the fact that in my 19 years of exploring and writing about the main streets and back roads of Hingham, this would be my first trip out into Hingham Bay. As our hosts Alicia Secor and Jim McGorry prepared to set out in their beautiful Saber 386, MOTU, photographer Kjeld Mahoney and I hopped aboard a chase boat to capture the supreme serenity of a sunset sail. I later asked Secor to describe what she loved best about sailing, and she answered with a sentiment I completely identify with.

The experience of making a magazine is itself a creative journey—a culmination of many memorable moments and captivating conversations. For this issue of Hingham Life, our team of freelance writers, photographers and graphic designers spent many months uncovering Hingham’s hidden gems. Writer David Kindy’s “Historical Scavenger Hunt,” for example, offers a tour of notable but often-overlooked historical markers, memorials and landmarks. Readers can also test their knowledge of Hingham by trying to identify all of the local spots featured in photographer Jack Foley’s “Hometown Close-Up.”

This issue features profiles of several amazing artists, chefs and entrepreneurs who are making an impact in the Hingham community. Read about the town’s newest “Culinary Game Changer,” a trio of fashion-forward “Style Makers,” and a tale of one local photographer’s mission to create community, one photograph at a time.

Since Hingham’s natural beauty is one of its greatest assets, we sent writer Jen McInerney to explore “The Wonders of World’s End,” while John Galluzzo’s feature “The Nature of Things,” highlights Hingham Land Conservation Trust’s 50th anniversary. In addition, the feature “Custom Home with Heart,” takes a look inside a gorgeous property newly renovated by the talented team at Hingham’s Oak Development & Design.

No matter how well you think you know a community, there are always new surprises just waiting to be discovered. Join us as we explore the very best things about Hingham! Visit us on our website, Hinghamlife.com, and be sure to tag us @HinghamLifeMag when you share your own adventures.

Enjoy!

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / CO-FOUNDER

Maria Allen

maria@southshorehomelifeandstyle.com

CHIEF REVENUE AND MARKETING OFFICER / CO-FOUNDER

Jane Cournan

781-243-1263

jane@southshorehomelifeandstyle.com

ART DIRECTOR

Eric Brust-Akdemir

DESIGNERS

Rachel Clayton, Kendra Sousa

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Claudia Oliver, Kathy Rusinoski

WRITERS

John Galluzzo, David Kindy, Jen McInerney, Kathleen McKenna, Stephanie Neil

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Lisa Czech, Jack Foley, Alyssa Fortin, Richard Green, Kjeld Mahoney, Kate Rogan, Elyssa Scheck, Derrick Zellmann

MARKETING INTERN

Sarah Tormey

SUBSCRIPTIONS

South Shore Home, Life & Style

Att: Subscriptions

P.O. Box 588, North Pembroke, MA 02358 781-243-1263

PageView Media, LLC

781-243-1263

P.O. Box 588, North Pembroke, MA 02358

“It’s not about the destination. It’s about the journey.”

Photo by: Michelle Doherty

Photo by: Michelle Doherty

CONTRIBUTORS

LISA CZECH is a photographer based on the South Shore who specializes in commercial photography as well as photography of live bands. She loves creating unique photos for each job. She recently took on the challenge of styling and photographing glittering diamond and gemstone jewelry at two of Hingham’s top jewelry stores. When she is not taking photos, Czech enjoys traveling, going to concerts, and hanging out by the pool.

Photographer KJELD MAHONEY is known for his spectacular scenic fine art photography, wedding photos, family portraits and food photography. He displays prints of his work and the work of other local artists at his gallery in Scituate, nestled on the banks of the North River. Mahoney recently took a sunset boat ride out of Hingham Yacht Club to photograph a beautiful sailboat, which is featured on our cover.

KATE ROGAN is an award-winning photographer who was named one of the 12 Best Editorial Photographers in Boston by Peer Space in 2022. Her work has appeared in such publications as South Shore Home, Life & Style, Chatham Living, and Cape Cod and The Islands. Her specialties include print editorials, personal branding and senior portraits. She lives in a tiny seaside village with her two children for whom her business Ellie Finn Photography is named after. You can find more of her creative and published work on Instagram @elliefinnphotography.

DERRICK ZELLMANN is an award-winning photographer whose work has been published both nationally and internationally. His specialties range from wedding photography and family portraiture to real estate and food photography. For this issue, Zellmann visited Hingham’s new culinary hot spot, NOMAI, where he photographed owner Brian Moy and captured images of the restaurant’s spectacular atmosphere and food.

Success. The feeling’s mutual.

South Shore Bank is proud to serve the communities we call home – with flexible, secure and convenient banking and lending options, and service that treats you like a neighbor, not a number. You, your goals, our commitment; together, we’re quite the team.

southshorebank.com/success

#WeAreHingham

Fostering community one photo at a time.

By MARIA ALLEN

In a world that too often feels socially disconnected and politically divided, photography has become a tool for bringing diverse groups of people together and fostering a sense of unity. Inspired by French artist JR’s global Inside Out Project, Hingham photographer Brooke Bartletta set out to showcase the spectrum of different kinds of people who live, work, study or worship in the Hingham community.

Specializing in fine art and documentary-style photography, Bartletta launched the #WeAreHingham project in early 2022. Over the course of the previous year, she photographed and collected submissions of dynamic black-and-white portraits of more than 85 individuals, spanning ages, races, religions, sexual orientations and political affiliations.

“We have a rich fabric of people who make up our community,” says Bartletta. “I really wanted to show that we all matter and everyone deserves to be seen, supported and celebrated.” Bartletta transformed the photographs into a series of eyecatching posters and partnered with the Hingham Unity Council to host a free community dialogue in May. The photographs were also posted on Bartletta’s website along with five words that each person used to describe themself. Bartletta hopes to expand the #WeAreHingham project in the future, helping more people feel seen, heard and celebrated and inspiring local residents to get out and meet their neighbors. She is currently planning a #WeAreHingham event for the fall. For more information, visit wearehingham.com.

Photography by BROOKE BARTLETTA

Family Music Time

Hingham educator brings interactive musical play to children and their families

By JENNIFER H. MCINERNEY

Two mornings a week at the Hingham Community Center, it’s Family Music Time! Babies and toddlers reach into their own little bag of instruments and props to pull out egg shakers, rhythm sticks, handheld bells, and colorful scarves and ribbons in preparation for each new song.

Longtime music educator Jana Kahn, who previously taught at South Shore Conservatory in Hingham, leads her classes through rousing renditions of family favorites and traditional tunes, such as “Old MacDonald” and “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” The little ones jump to their feet for the “Hokey Pokey,” enthusiastically thrusting their arms to and fro, and shaking them all about.

“We play a lot of traditional and familiar songs that the parents already know, and they’ll sing along with the children, which helps them learn and makes it fun for

everyone,” says Kahn, also a Hingham resident.

All of the Family Music Time songs and activities are interactive, designed to encourage participation and creative play among infants and toddlers, ages 0 to 5. During “Old MacDonald,” the children imitate the movements and “moo” sounds of a cow and, in turn, flap their bent arms and quack like ducklings. The tapping, rattling and jingling of the percussion instruments echo throughout the spacious community room, which provides ample room to spread out and dance around.

“When they’re introduced at a young age, it lays the foundation for music in their lives,” Kahn observes. “It’s uplifting being around music and my hope is that the experience that begins here continues at home.”

She believes strongly in the notion of allowing children to express themselves freely through singing, dancing, and any other movement that music inspires in them—whether that means simply sitting and clapping their hands or jumping up and down and playing with every instrument in their bags at the same time. “I start with the foundation that all children are musical and music is for everyone.”

Kahn initially launched Family Music Time in response to the pandemic, offering online and outdoor classes to families seeking creative outlets for their children. She continues to teach private family and small-group classes, as well as sessions at the Hingham and Cohasset Community Centers and special events at Weir River Farm.

For additional information about Family Music Time, visit familymusictime.org.

Japanese Language Enrichment

HINGHAM STUDENTS EMBARK ON A CULTURAL JOURNEY.

Written by JENNIFER H. MCINERNEY

Photography by KATE ROGAN

At first glance, the students gathered in front of the blackboard at the Hingham Community Center may look like any other class—but listen closely and you’ll discover that they’re greeting each other not in English, but in Japanese. The six classmates address each other with the suffix “san,” a title of respect—such as Emma-san, Christian-san—and practice asking, “How are you?” Each student responds from a list of vocabulary words reflecting their moods, including translations of happy, sad, sleepy, and full of energy.

Welcome—or irasshaimase—to the Hingham Japanese School, the only program of its kind on the South Shore, taught by Melissa Takenoshita, an educator and Japanophile who moved to Hingham nine years ago. Each week, over a ten-week session, Takenoshita leads students in grades five through nine on a journey through Japanese language, culture and customs right here in their own community.

“They all come with eagerness and excitement,” she says of her students. “I hope to keep that spirit alive in the class. Japanese is one of my favorite things of all and I just want to share it.”

Takenoshita traces her lifelong love of Japanese language and culture to her childhood, while spending time with the family of her best friend, who is half-Japanese. In college, she enrolled in Japanese language classes and had the opportunity to study abroad at International Christion University in Tokyo. During that brief period, Takenoshita’s immersion in Tokyo quickly gave her the confidence to engage in conversations with her Japanese dorm-mates, ask for directions at train stations, shop in grocery stores, and order meals at restaurants.

Immediately following graduation from the University of California at Santa Cruz, she returned to Japan as part of the JET Programme, sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of Education, to teach English in public junior high schools. As part of the program, she took advanced Japanese classes as

well as a course in teaching Japanese. Takenoshita then spent a decade working in Tokyo as a corporate communications translator. She also met and married her husband, an Osaka native.

Now, at Hingham Japanese School, Takenoshita strives to instill in her students a level of confidence that will help them pursue an appreciation and mastery of the language. Her teaching approach includes short conversational dialogues, “touching on all the grammatical points in the speech, practicing and then reciting the grammar in a personal way,” and learning the basic components of the writing system: hiragana and katakana. She also introduces her students to the customs and rituals that are the keystones of Japanese culture to “help bring the language to life.”

Each week, Takenoshita builds on the previous week’s lesson, using repetition to strengthen fluency. While she doesn’t assign homework (given the students’ full academic schedules outside of her class), she does provide worksheets for practice and strongly encourages writing the kana, which loosely equates to an alphabet, at home.

Lisa Adams, Owner and Principal Bookkeeper

When Lisa Adams established Adams Financial LLC, a full-service bookkeeping agency, in 2014, she knew that she wanted her company to empower individuals—both clients and employees. A mother of two, she set out to provide job opportunities for highly educated women who yearned for a similar work/life balance. Her “family first” motto not only supports her team of four bookkeepers, but also provides an unmatched benefit to clients as the members of her team work meticulously and harmoniously to attend to their clients’ every need. Based in Hanover, Adams Financial provides top-ofthe-line professional bookkeeping services to a range of businesses. Following an in-depth audit of the client’financial situation, Adams’ team gets to work organizing and recording expenses through an individualized approach.

Providing financial support for businesses and non-profit organizations

For additional information about the Hingham Japanese School, please visit hinghamcommunitycenter.org/pages/ programs.education.

Hometown Close-Up

Photography by JACK FOLEY

How well do you know Hingham? We sent photographer Jack Foley out to capture closeup snapshots of local sights around town. See if you can recognize where each image was taken. Turn the page to check your answers!

Answers:

A. “A Bale of Turtles, a Croak of Frogs” sculpture by David Phillips, located at Founder’s Park at intersection of North and South Streets.

B. Wire flower sculpture at Derby Street Shops

C. Hingham Liquors Sign

D. Bronze sculpture of St. Paul at St. Paul’s Parish by artist Susan Luery

E. Hingham Maritime Center

F. Heart on the road by Glastonbury Abbey

G. Hingham Maritime Center

H. Bare Cove Fire Museum

I. Mural behind The Snug

J. Scarlet Oak Tavern

K. Derby Pride Mural - Snap a photo and share it on social #DerbyPrideWall and Derby Street Shops will donate a dollar per photo to Hingham Pride Project (up to $1,000).

L. A rock gifted from Hingham, England, located near the door to Hingham Memorial Bell Tower.

M. Iron gate by Old Ship Church

N. Intersection of North and South Street

O. South Shore Model Railway Club

If you’re considering investing in a special piece of diamond or gemstone jewelry, it’s important to go to a trusted source. Here in Hingham, we’re lucky to have local experts who are happy to answer all of your questions. We stopped by two local jewelery stores to highlight a few of their exquisite pieces and gather a few helpful tips for buying and caring for gemstone jewelry.

Photography and Styling by Lisa Czech

LOCAL EXPERT: DESCENZA DIAMONDS

114 Derby St., Hingham | 781-740-2070 | descenza.com

ONE-OF-A-KIND

Like a human fingerprint, each diamond is unique and has distinctive characteristics. The 4Cs (cut, color, clarity, and carat) set the standard when assessing a diamond’s value. The word carat derives from the word carob, a Mediterranean seed, which has an extremely consistent weight for measuring. The greater the carat weight, the more valuable the diamond is.

CONSIDER COLORS

September’s Birthstone is the sapphire. The word comes from the Greek Sappheiros, which means blue stone. While it is most common to see deep blue sapphires, they also come in a range of other colors, including pale pink, orange, green, yellow and violet.

TIMELESS TREASURES

High-quality jewelry is always a good investment. Not only will you feel elegant when you’re wearing it, but it also holds its value and can become a cherished family heirloom. Jewelry that is made from superior materials is also easier to have reshaped, resized, or redesigned without losing quality.

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1. Fope Flex It Solo Venezia Collection bracelet showcasing an 18k yellow gold flexible chain with an 18k white gold flower-like station embellished with .44ctw pave diamonds.

2. DeScenza Signature Collection sapphire and white gold necklace with fan pendant featuring .96 ct of sapphires and .26 ct of diamonds.

14k white gold inside-out diamond hoop earrings with 52 diamonds, 2.88 ctw

Fope Aria Collection 18k yellow gold adjustable lariat necklace with sliding diamond clasp

5. 18k white gold ring with 46 diamonds .37ctw, and five oval pink sapphires 1.47ctw 6. Sasha Primak 14k white gold double-row diamond ring 2.25 ctw

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Hingham Jewelers is a local business with deep roots in the Hingham community. Founded in 1948 by Angelo “Mike” Manjos in a tiny storefront in Hingham Square, the business has continued to expand its offerings over the years to best serve its customers. The family-owned business is now located on Whiting Street and is managed by Stacey Page (Mike’s daughter), her husband Dave, and their son Michael, who joined the business full-time in 2020.

LOCAL EXPERT: HINGHAM JEWELERS

35 Whiting St., Hingham | 781-749-2108 | HinghamJewelers.com

WATCH FOR WEAR

Your jewelry, particularly your rings, should be inspected twice a year. This will ensure your stones are tight, and secure with properly built-up prongs.

Hingham Jewelers offers free inspection and while-you-wait cleaning.

DAMAGE CONTROL

Don’t wear your jewelry to the gym. Exercising with your jewelry on can change the shape of your rings, in particular, which can result in metal fatigue, or losing stones.

RENEWED STYLE

Don’t let your jewelry sit unworn in your jewelry box! Your gems and gold can be repurposed into a new custom piece of jewelry made to match your style. We offer free custom jewelry design consultations, and many pieces can be made by our team of goldsmiths on the South Shore.

1. A. Jain two-tone sterling silver and 18k yellow gold Swiss Blue Topaz Timeless bracelet, accented with 0.40 ctw of diamonds. 2. 18k Yellow gold geometric diamond necklace featuring 1.40 ctw of diamonds.

3. 18k Yellow gold geometric diamond necklace featuring 1.40 ctw of diamonds. 4. 14k Yellow gold triple-row diamond bangle bracelet, featuring 2.32 ct. of diamonds. 5. 14k White gold emerald-cut diamond eternity band, featuring 4.72 ctw of diamonds. 6. 14k White gold with sapphire and diamond eternity band, featuring 1.84 ctw of diamonds and 2.36 ct. of sapphires. 7. 14k White gold with sapphire and diamond bracelet. Sapphire total weight: 5.73 ctw, diamond total weight: 4.48 ctw.

The 12 Celebration

On June 22, NVNA and Hospice held its annual The 12 Celebration on the grounds of the Pat Roche Hospice Home in Hingham. Nearly 500 guests gathered for a beautiful cocktail party in the garden and dinner under the tent while helping to raise money for the Pat Roche Hospice Home, the region’s premier non-profit, independent Hospice Home. The evening was capped off with a spectacular performance by Grammy Award winner Marc Cohn.

Photos by Scott Eisen

Stacey Page and Molly Smith

Monica Smith and Heather Ludlow

Michael Baker, Marc Cohn, Renee McInnes and Karen Mullaney

Jenn Reilly and Kelsey Reilly Kincade

Jason and Tracy Clifford

Nicole Graf, Jill Tallman and Kirk Ryan

True Colors Pride Prom

Hingham Pride Project hosted a 21+ True Colors Pride Prom on April 29 at South Shore Country Club. Hosted by Provincetown’s well-known entertainer Anita Cocktail, the evening was an opportunity for members of the LGBTQ+ community and their friends to enjoy an evening of dancing and fun while supporting Hingham Pride Project, an organization that works to increase LGBTQ+ visibility in Hingham and surrounding towns and raise funds for organizations that provide community programs and activities for LGBTQ+ youth.

Photos by Irish Eyes Photography

Anita Cocktail

Tim and Daniel Miller-Dempsey

Moira, Finn and Cameron Congdon

Heather Henderson, Michelle Larned, Kerstin Dobert, Katie McBrine, Johanna Basser and Kerry Railey

Marc Boles, Michelle Larned, Daniel Miller-Dempsey, Kerstin Dobert, Katie McBrine, Finn Congdon

Inly’s student-centered approach cultivates each child’s natural curiosity, inspiring them to become passionate thinkers, joyful learners and confident leaders.

NEW! Round Trip Hingham Bus Service

With stops at the Shipyard Ferry Terminal, Bathing Beach and on Rt. 228. Learn more at www.inlyschool.org/bus

Best Private Elementary School

Roaring 20s Night of Revelry

Hingham Education Foundation, a non-profit, community-based organization committed to enriching the quality of public education in Hingham, hosted a Roaring 20s Night of Revelry fundraiser on April 30. South Shore Country Club was decked out like an old fashioned Speakeasy/Casino and attendees dressed as flappers in glittering gowns, gangsters, and silent screen stars to help raise money for Hingham Public Schools.

Kate and Scott Dennis

Eddie Steele and Yonca Ural

Alyssa Stone, Alison Douglass, Anya Reppucci, Jennifer Korn

Ally Hart and Emily Dowal

Photos by Anya Reppucci

Photo by Jessica Delaney

CHASING SUNSETS

By MARIA ALLEN Photography by KJELD MAHONEY

At the end of a long day, the one thing Hingham’s Alicia Secor wants to do more than anything else–is set sail.

“It has been my lifelong passion,” says Secor, who first learned to sail at the age of 14, cruising a daysailer around Cotuit Harbor on Cape Cod. She later got into racing at the University of New Hampshire and has continued to work on advancing her sailing skills in her spare time. She and her husband Jim McGorry have lived in Hingham for the past 20 years and enjoy recreational cruising aboard their Saber 386, MOTU, which they purchased in July of 2020.

(continued on page 38)

Sailing from Hingham Yacht Club, they glide past the picturesque sloping hills of World’s End and the Boston Harbor Islands while on their way to destinations like the Elizabeth Islands, Martha’s Vineyard or Maine. “There is an unbelievable sense of freedom when you’re out on the water,” says Secor, who in addition to being the boat’s captain is also the president and CEO of Atalanta Therapeutics, a company working to pioneer treatments for neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. Out on the water, the stress of the day-to-day-grind floats away on a salty breeze.

“It’s incredibly peaceful out on the water, and when you’re cruising along it can be exhilarating,” says Secor, who embraces the thrill of sailing in different weather conditions. “Every sailing experience is unique,” says Secor. “It sounds cliche to say, but it’s not about the destination–it’s about the journey.”

By JENNIFER H. MCINERNEY

Photography by JACK FOLEY

ocation, location, location” has long been the familiar refrain in the real estate business. Any structure can be redesigned, expanded, or even torn down and rebuilt, but not the land on which it stands.

When the Sartor family purchased their fourbedroom home in the heart of Hingham in 2015, they were immediately enamored with the private 4-acre wooded lot. The house, however, “needed some love,” recalls homeowner Jessie Sartor, but the couple could clearly see its untapped potential.

The couple enlisted Hingham-based Oak Development & Design who reconfigured the existing home’s layout, adding more than 3,000 square feet of living space and incorporating several custom touches that have enhanced their family’s lifestyle for the long term.

“The outcome is exactly what we dreamed of,” Sartor says. “The house is open, yet cozy. It feels intimately connected to the surrounding landscape, and the layout works much more efficiently for our busy family of five.”

“When envisioning their forever home, the couple carefully considered how to make the most of their living spaces. For example, the music room contributes to the open flow of the floor plan, but it has pocket doors so it can be closed off to create privacy,” says lead designer Lizzy Antonik, who coowns Oak Development & Design together with her husband, PJ.

As one of the central gathering areas of the home, the spacious kitchen has been extended to nearly triple its original size, with beamed cathedral ceilings and two large islands ideal for prepping and serving food. One full wall of glass overlooks the backyard and a bifold door opens all the way across for seamless indoor-outdoor living.

Off the kitchen, a RootCellar walk-in refrigerated pantry features an automated pocket door and provides an abundance of food and drink storage.

It eliminates

for an additional freezer in the basement or garage. All the food is in one place, and we can see everything and can fit everything easily. There’s much less food waste this way and nothing is hiding in the back of a cramped fridge drawer!

— HOMEOWNER JESSIE SARTOR

On the opposite side of the kitchen, a RootCellar walkin refrigerated pantry, made by a company in Wenham, Massachusetts, houses L-shaped shelves displaying perishable food items as well as a freezer with double glass doors. Given the Sartors’ affinity for entertaining, this innovative all-in-one appliance presented a “truly practical solution to our food storage problems,” says Sartor. The ample storage space fits large party platters and even kegs, and the automatic door offers convenient, hands-free access.

“It eliminates the need for an additional freezer in the basement or garage,” she adds. “All the food is in one place, and we can see everything and can fit everything easily. There’s much less food waste this way and nothing is hiding in the back of a cramped fridge drawer!”

“This is the first one of these we’ve ever done,” Antonik notes, standing inside and admiring the RootCellar. “It’s amazing.”

Just outside the kitchen, a separate butler’s pantry with soapstone countertops, walnut drawers and cabinets, and an additional sink provides a tucked-away area for organizing, storage and clean-up. The pantry also features a beverage refrigerator, a dishwasher and a built-in coffee maker.

Upstairs, the customizations continue with a home gym, a kids’ playroom, and a rooftop deck with a hot tub.

For this busy mom of three boys, elevating the laundry room from conventionally functional to highly efficient topped her list of priorities. “I wanted a space that actually made my life easier, so we expanded the laundry room into two connected areas. One serves as a dressing room/closet area with individual cubbies and hanging space for all five members of the family,” Sartor explains. “I’m able to do the laundry in one side of the room and then simply put everyone’s clothes in their respective cubbies.”

the need

Like the open kitchen downstairs, the main bedroom suite highlights the home’s natural surroundings with multiple windows framing a flatscreen TV on the wall overlooking the backyard.

The main bedroom suite also reveals a unique surprise—where form meets function meets fun. What appears to be a full-sized built-in bookcase is actually a Murphy Door: a bookcase disguised as a secret passageway to a hidden spiral staircase that leads upstairs to Jessie’s husband Michael’s home office on the third floor.

“The bookshelf/Murphy Door was something my husband dreamed up,” she says. “We didn’t love the idea of having an exposed spiral staircase in the middle of the main bedroom so we decided to enclose it. The idea of using a hidden door to access it was very exciting to my husband and three boys.”

“Our team is always striving to think outside the box and this project is a great example of that,” says PJ Antonik, owner of Oak Development & Design.

Now able to enjoy their home’s custom features, “we wouldn’t change a thing,” says Sartor. “We look forward to entertaining and enjoying the house with our family and friends.”

PJ and Lizzy Antonik are the husband-and-wife team behind Oak Development & Design, based in Hingham. Specializing in custom-built homes on the South Shore and Cape Cod, the company offers a comprehensive approach to home renovation projects and new construction. In addition, Oak Development & Design produces Heart of Oak TV, an unscripted home-improvement reality series that follows the Oak Development & Design team’s progress at its various project sites. Seasons 1-4 are now available for streaming on both of the company’s Websites: oakdd.com and heartofoaktv.com.

Behind a built-in bookcase in the master bedroom is a Murphy Door that opens to a spiral staircase, which leads upstairs to a home office.

Exploring the history and highlights of Hingham’s beloved natural refuge.

By JENNIFER H. MCINERNEY

Photography by JACK FOLEY and TRUSTEES OF RESERVATIONS

s far back as colonial times, the 251-acre expanse of undeveloped land that juts out between Hingham and Hull Bay has been fittingly referred to as World’s End. Situated at the back of a wooded residential neighborhood that hugs the town’s coastline, World’s End encompasses four drumlins described as “spoon-shaped hills formed by glaciers” that spread forth and eventually spill out into the Atlantic Ocean. Rocky shoreline, open fields, forests, thickets, and grand lanes all coexist in this singular landscape, which culminates at its highest elevation with unsurpassed views of the Boston skyline, Hull, and beyond.

The Trustees of Reservations, a Massachusetts-based member-supported organization that protects and

preserves 120 properties statewide, including World’s End, has no specific records detailing the origin story of the name behind this exceptional site.

“World’s End is a double peninsula that was, effectively, off the cultural map for early colonists,” says Alison Bassett, manager of the Trustees Archives and Research Center and a champion of Trustees Trivia. “No roads went through it to some other town. No house stood on it. No newsworthy event took place there. World’s End was just what its name suggested: an out-of-the-way spot.”

Fortunately for local residents, this precious parcel of land has been rescued multiple times from development and preserved in perpetuity as an everlasting sanctuary.

ELYSSA SCHECK

Olmsted— and What Almost Wasn’t

While standing atop Planters Hill, the highest point at World’s End, and gazing beyond the rolling hills out toward the Boston Harbor Islands, it’s hard to imagine that this undisturbed natural setting nearly became a 163-home residential subdivision.

John Brewer, who built a mansion for his family at World’s End in 1856, proceeded to acquire most of the peninsula’s acreage over the ensuing three decades. In 1890, he sought the services of well-known landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, whose legacies include New York City’s Central Park and Boston’s Emerald Necklace Conservancy of interconnected parks. As requested, Olmsted presented a proposal to subdivide the World’s End property, but the plan never fully came to fruition.

“One story is that John Brewer never intended to build the subdivision,” says Anne SmithWhite, portfolio director of seven Trustees properties in the South Shore region, including World’s End.

A rendering of the subdivision plan Olmsted designed for World’s End hangs in SmithWhite’s Hingham office. “He had Olmsted draw up the plan and design the carriage roads and tree plantings. Brewer and his sons cut the paths and planted the trees, but they didn’t go any further with the plan.”

Two later proposals—a United Nations Headquarters in the 1940s, and a nuclear power plant in the 1960s—also never came to pass. In 1967, concerned neighbors Sam Wakeman and Tom O’Donnell spearheaded a fundraising campaign and joined forces with The Trustees to purchase the property and prevent future proposals from being considered. This summer, World’s End will open the doors to its brand-new Wakeman & O’Donnell Education Building, in their honor.

The Lasting Landscape

In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, World’s End became a more popular destination than ever, as people sought a safe, open-air, socially distanced alternative to sitting at home. Visits to the reservation increased by 214 percent, according to Trustees records, prompting the organization to implement timed ticketing entry—a practice that continues—to ensure parking availability and minimal disturbance to the neighborhood.

With its wide-open spaces and breathtaking vistas, “World’s End has become a place of solace for a lot of people,” says Smith-White. The options and opportunities for exploration are also wide-open, and have been expanded over the past two years to include guided bird walks, moonlit tours, off-the-beaten-path excursions, and more (see sidebar).

The Trustees continue their dedication to preserving and prolonging the natural wonders of World’s End with a multipronged approach to habitat restoration. The oldest trees still standing at World’s End are known as The Seven Oaks—though only six remain. The Brewer family planted these oaks 200 to 250 years ago to serve as a dividing line between their fields. About 15 years ago, the seventh tree fell victim to a lightning strike, reports Wayne Ciullo, Stewardship Manager for the South Shore Trustees sites, including World’s End.

Most of the other original and native plantings from the Brewers’ days have died off, due to disease, erosion, climate change, and the inevitable passage of time. But, thanks to the ongoing efforts of the Trustees, visitors to World’s End do not encounter a devastated wasteland. Quite the contrary: the biodiversity here is highly rated by the National Parks Survey. World’s End teems with a growing, thriving landscape that’s being continually protected and renewed with more resilient species that are better suited to weather the northeast climate. As an example, Ciullo points to Norway maples, whose brittle nature is susceptible to breakage. Planted in their place are sweet gum, hardwood trees that have leaves similar in shape to maples and produce brilliant red foliage in the fall; in addition, their pods provide food sources for native wildlife.

“World’s End is known for its varied mosaic of habitats,” says Ciullo.

Perhaps one of the most unique habitats is the Maritime Juniper Forest, located in the Rocky Neck coastal area at World’s End, which is home to a species of butterfly called the Juniper Hairstreak, also known as Olive Hairstreak for its green-hued wings.

“We have a stable population of Juniper Hairstreak, which live only in maritime juniper forests like the one on Rocky Neck. This habitat is fairly rare in New England,” says Ciullo. “It’s a transitional ecosystem that we’re trying to preserve by removing invasive tree and plant species.”

To promote healthy ecosystems throughout the entirety of World’s End, the Trustees have embarked on a multi-year Pollinator Habitat Enhancement Plan, developed with the Trustees’ ecology team and the National Resource Conservation Service (NRCS). The goal is to gradually remove and reduce invasive plant species and replace them with pollinator-friendly plants, such as goldenrod, trefoil, clover and other wildflowers.

“Over time, visitors may notice an increase in the number of wildflowers and a decrease in encroaching vines.”

Depending on the time of day, the season, the temperature and weather conditions, every visit to World’s End will be different and memorable in its own way. Whether wandering and meandering or trekking purposefully, the range of elevations and types of terrain offer endless possibilities.

Upon entering the property and crossing over the bridge, visitors can veer right onto the Barnes Road carriage path, past the Damde Meadows, or continue straight ahead up Planters Hill—to admire the sweeping views—via the Planters Hill Loop or the Brewer Road path. Heading in an easterly direction toward the Weir River eventually leads out to Rocky Neck—home to the Juniper Hairstreak butterflies and a trove of coastal treasures. Descending the other side of Planters Hill leads to “The Bar,” a stretch of land that connects the double peninsula and the outermost portion of World’s End.

And if the array of carriage paths, wooded trails, rocky shoreline, open fields and hills overlooking the ocean and beyond ever lose their luster, the Trustees also offer specialized outings for adventure seekers year-round.

Taking a Walk on the Wild Side at World’s End

JACK FOLEY

In Search of Feathered Friends

Among its abundant charms, World’s End boasts superb bird-watching opportunities. Its diverse habitats, from thickets to tidal mudflats, attract an assortment of bird species—both local and migrating.

Over the past 15 years of record-keeping, avid birder Sally Avery has sighted 143 different species of birds at World’s End. In early 2021, the Trustees enlisted Avery’s expertise and guidance to lead bird-watching outings at World’s End. Offered on a monthly basis, these guided excursions are always fully booked. “Winter weather is not a deterrent for birders,” Avery adds. “Every time you go birding, you never know what you’ll see.”

As an example, Avery cites a weekend in mid-February, when the temperatures soared into the 60s and, suddenly, “There were bluebirds everywhere. The snow was melting, so the bluebirds were out looking for insects.” Normally, at that time of year, the most prevalent birds are the yearround residents: titmice, chickadees, cardinals, nuthatches, woodpeckers and ducks.

As one might expect, bird sightings change with the seasons. In the spring, World’s End is the place to go to see warblers—some 30 different species of warblers. “These are 4- to 5-inch birds in shades of yellow, black, white and a touch of red,” Avery describes. “It’s really something to see them all at once.” Warblers have made an annual habit of stopping at World’s End each spring on their way to Canada, to breed in the Boreal Forest.

Summertime brings red-winged blackbirds by the hundreds to World’s End, according to Avery. “The sight of these black birds with their bright-red epaulets really surprises people.” And just as impressive are the multitude of bobolinks, a relative of blackbirds and orioles which birders often describe as “wearing a tuxedo backward.”

For birders hoping to spot a rarity, autumn presents the most likely prospect, as birds migrate south for the winter. “In the fall,” Avery explains, “birds aren’t in as much of a hurry as they are in the spring, when they’re migrating north to claim their breeding territory. So the fall is a protracted migration period; plus, hurricane season can sometimes throw unexpected birds off their intended paths.”

In the fall of 2000, a few months after Avery took up birding seriously, she had a record-breaking sighting at World’s End: a Tropical Kingbird, the first of its kind ever identified in Massachusetts. These large yellow-and-gray flycatchers are popular in Middle and South America and are regular fall visitors to the Pacific Northwest—not typically the Northeast. Needless to say, Avery’s unusual find had birders from all over “flocking” to World’s End during the Tropical Kingbird’s one-month stay.

JACK FOLEY

Now, as part of the monthly Bird Walks at World’s End, Avery takes birders to “The Valley,” located on the farthest-reaching drumlin, one of two areas on the reservation featuring untouched thickets, a favorable habitat for migrating birds. “As World’s End is one of the few undeveloped properties along the coastline, birds like to stop here along their migration routes,” says Avery.

For prime viewing of shore birds and wading birds, including egrets, heron and osprey, she brings birdwatchers to the bird blind at “Bird Alley,” overlooking Damde Meadows. “There have also been lots of sightings of bald eagles in the last year,” says Avery.

Recently, on the west side of World’s End, looking out toward Hingham Harbor and Martin’s Cove, the birding group has glimpsed great egrets, black-crowned night herons, and oystercatchers. Registration is required for bird walks at World’s End and space is limited.

By the Light of the Full Moon

Only a fortunate few have enjoyed the rare privilege of viewing World’s End under the full moon’s glow. Each month, when the moon grows to its roundest shape and fullest size, Trustees Educator Robin Steele sets off at dusk with an intrepid group on a Moonlight Hike at World’s End. After hours, the reservation’s gates are closed to all but those who’ve registered for the Moonlight Hike.

“This is a unique opportunity to see World’s End at a time of day when most people don’t get to see it,” Steele remarks. “Most people have never seen the sunset or the moonrise over World’s End.”

Moonlight Hikers ascend Planters Hill as the sun makes its descent, turning the sky several shades of orange and pink as the sunset hovers over the Boston skyline to the west.

“When we get to the top of the hill, there’s always a lot of oohing and ahhing as people take in the view,” she says.

A few minutes later, as the sun disappears, Steele directs participants in an easterly direction, where the full moon has begun to make its presence known amid the darkening sky. Facing the wind turbine and the Hull coastline, the group climbs slowly down the drumlin for a closer view of the rising moon.

“As we descend, we keep an eye out for crepuscular wildlife—animals that are active at twilight—such as white-tailed deer, red fox, raccoons and skunks,” says Steele. “We also discuss the significance of that particular month’s moon—the Wolf Moon in January, the Snow Moon in February, the Worm Moon in March, and so on.”

Continuing down the hill, the group pauses for a few moments in the cedar grove between the carriage path and the Damde Meadows to admire the moon’s reflection sparkling on the water. Then they veer left on a shortcut that takes them through woodlands to the Bird Blind, surrounded by tidal mudflats and the “ghost trees” that did not survive the opening of the dam decades ago.

“With the moon so bright in the sky and illuminating the ghost trees, it’s quite a mood,” Steele observes.

In the wintertime, when the days are shorter, the Moonlight Hikes begin as early as 5 p.m., but as summer approaches, the start times can be as late as 8 or 8:30 p.m.

“Each month’s full moon is special in its own way, but the Supermoons tend to be the most dramatic and exciting,” Steele notes. “When the moon is closer to the earth, it looks bigger, like you can reach out and touch it.”

Registration is required for Moonlight Hikes at World’s End and space is limited.

Celebrating Summer

Since 1984, World’s End has heralded the arrival of summer with an annual Summer Solstice celebration. The event welcomes a limited number of registered guests to drive their cars across the bridge and park in the field for an evening of food, beer and ice cream trucks and entertainment by the Aldous Collins Band.

“People play lawn games and frisbee and there are kids running around. It’s such a beautiful community gathering,” says Smith-Gillen.

Don’t miss the Summer Send-Off that will take place at World’s End on August 27. Gather your friends and family to celebrate the end of another beautiful season. Sit atop Planters Hill and enjoy live music, great food and craft brews, and an incredible sunset over the Boston skyline. Entertainment will be provided by Duppy Conquerors, a Bob Marley tribute band. (check their website for details). Pre-registration is required. No tickets will be sold onsite.

World’s End Walks for Every Pace

In addition to Bird Walks and Moonlight Hikes, the Trustees offer excursions designed to appeal to different interests and activity levels:

Off the Beaten Path: for more adventurous hikers and families, these guided outings venture off the oft-traveled carriage paths and woodland trails, including Rocky Neck to explore the shoreline and juniper maritime forest.

Mindfulness Walks: these guided meditative walks make the most of the natural serenity of World’s End, inviting participants to relieve stress while reconnecting with nature.

Women’s Walks: occurring at World’s End as well as other Trustees properties statewide, these walks encourage women to come together as a community, enjoying the safety of walking trails together in a comfortable and supportive environment.

Natural History Walks: these family-friendly excursions focus on different themes in nature, such as the spring equinox/signs of spring, tree tours, insect investigations, geology explorations, and more.

Each of these walks will convene at the new Wakeman O’Donnell Center, near the entrance to World’s End. Registration is required.

Campouts and Summer Camps

Imagine pitching a tent under the stars atop a glacierformed drumlin at World’s End! In July and August, a limited number of registered campers will have the opportunity to set up camp, picnic in the great outdoors, toast marshmallows and tell stories around the campfire.

“This is a special opportunity to camp out overnight at World’s End,” points out Elyssa Scheck, Engagement Manager for the reservation.

For youngsters who’d like to explore World’s End by day, summer camps are offered in one-week sessions from late June to mid-August.

“Each week features different activities and adventures,” reports Jasmine Smith-Gillen, Education Manager and Camp Director at World’s End. Guided by rangers and educators in the field, activities include exploring the natural landscape; searching for snails, crabs and other marine life; building forts and fairy houses; educational games; bird-watching at the bird blind; crafts, reading and more. Early registration is recommended.

By KATHLEEN MCKENNA

Photography by KATE ROGAN

Fueled by creativity, the founders of three fashion-forward Hingham businesses have developed a local following by designing boutique apparel and accessory brands. Each has found a way to balance the demands of work and family and adapt to the challenges of a global pandemic, all while transforming their dreams into a reality.

Falk Jewelry Designs

Kerrin Falk began designing jewelry at the age of 10, and sold her earliest designs from a driveway stand at her family’s home in Madison, Connecticut. Her creativity was inspired and encouraged by her grandmother, Patricia, an artist and outdoors enthusiast who was affectionately known to her fellow fisherfolk as “Bluefish Patty.”

“She would give me her old tackle boxes and I used them to organize my beads,” says Falk, who recalls taking trips to Providence, Rhode Island, and spending “every penny of her babysitting money” on tiny seed beads.

Falk’s grandmother worked in different artistic mediums, often including a seagull design in her artwork, in memory of her late husband. While she never had the opportunity to meet her grandfather, Falk has carried on her family’s legacy by using a seagull in the logo of her own small business, Falk Jewelry Designs.

“I think because I grew up with art and artists all around me, it became ingrained in my brain,” says Falk, whose father is a wellknown art appraiser and younger sister is a fine artist.

Educated at Tabor Academy in Marion, Falk excelled in painting, drawing and sculpture. “By studying all forms of art, you learn to pay attention to the smallest details,” she says. She went on to study art history at the University of Texas-Austin, with a focus on Byzantine, Meso-American, and African art and jewelry. After graduation, she moved to Denver, Colorado, to work at an art gallery, and it was there that she officially launched her jewelry business in 2010. Two years later, she and her husband moved back to the east coast and Falk began honing her jewelry making skills at Rhode Island School of Design. She learned the art of lost-wax casting, an ancient process where metal alloys are made into a design using a wax mold. As her business has grown, this unique form of jewelry design is one of the things that has set her apart.

Now settled in Hingham with her husband and three young daughters, Falk spends much of her time designing jewelry in her home studio. She sources precious and semi-precious stones from all over the United States and says that her jewelry designs are inspired by both the urban landscape of Boston and the beaches of the South Shore.

Tiny shells, bits of coral and twigs are cast into one-of-a-kind sterling silver and gold-plated pendants (her collection also includes baby shoelace castings). Custom-made jewelry is Falk’s specialty and she particularly loves working with customers to design pieces that suit their personalities or for special events such as bridal parties and graduations.

Birthstone necklaces are a customer favorite and something that is also close to Falk’s heart; she wears a necklace with citrine (November) and sapphire (September) stones in honor of her daughters’ birthdays. “I’ve barely taken it off since I had my third baby, and she’s now 3,” says Falk. On special occasions, she likes to layer her birthstone necklace with one of her “flock” necklaces, an original design that features a series of delicate brass “birds” perched on a chain.

“Jewelry can be so meaningful, with birthstones or healing stones, but you can also make it so sexy,” says Falk. “You can have a simple, elegant piece, or a bold statement piece. I love it all.”

Balancing being a business owner and a parent isn’t always easy. “The days that I don’t set time aside for my business and for myself are hard days,” she says. “But when I get my work hours in, that time counts as meditation to me because I love it that much. I’m so grateful for that.”

For more information, follow @falkjewelrydesigns on Instagram, or visit falkjewelrydesigns.com.

Cushette

Creative career paths are often a long and winding road. This was certainly the case for Catherine McCavanagh, the founder of the handbag brand Cushette. Back when she was a teenager at Notre Dame Academy, she knew she had a passion for fashion, but opted to follow a more traditional academic route, majoring in English at St. Michael’s College in Vermont. After college, McCavanagh had a series of corporate office jobs, but found the work to be unrewarding and she longed to find a way to express her creativity. It wasn’t until she was in her 30s and living in Hingham with her young family that she finally felt empowered to follow her heart and start her own business.

Known for her keen sense of fashion, McCavanagh’s first venture was as a personal shopper and wardrobe stylist. She called her business “The Honest Eye,” and served South Shore clients who needed help curating their wardrobes.

During this same time period, she was busy raising three young children and working as a stylist for the Boston-based agency Anchor Artists, dressing models and assisting on fashion shoots for a variety of retailers (she also helped style and accessorize gymnast Aly Raisman for a profile in People magazine).

McCavanagh’s entrepreneurial spirit really kicked into gear one fateful afternoon when she was flipping through the pages of a coffee table book produced by Vogue, which showcased the interiors of celebrity homes. She found her eyes drawn to a handbag that was resting on the floor of director Sofia Coppola’s office.

“The photo showed a messy artist’s office, with a bag tossed haphazardly on the floor,” McCavanagh recalls. “My eyes went straight to the bag, and for some reason I couldn’t get it out of my head.” McCavanagh started scouring stores to find something similar, but all she found were leather bags, which she knew could easily become damaged. “I’m the kind of person who always spills her water bottle in her purse,” she says.

For McCavanagh, this was an epiphany moment. She decided that if someone like her—with a proven flair for shopping—was unable to find the perfect bag, she would just have to design one herself.

She began sketching out a design for her dream handbag–a luxurious and oversized carry-all with a stylish D-shaped handle. She then started searching for unique cruelty-free fabrics, eventually settling on a durable velvet, normally used in upholstered furniture.

McCavanagh added a crossbody strap to her design so she would have the option to either carry the bag or sling it over her shoulder, and she placed pockets and zippers where appropriate. She also selected an incredibly soft faux suede for the lining of the handbag to ensure the interior wouldn’t tear under pressure.

“All my bags have the same dusty-pink lining,” she says. “Because when the lining is too dark, you can’t find anything, and if it’s too light, it can look dirty. My bags are almost softer on the inside than the outside. Everyone who touches them loves the lining.”

McCavanagh hired a company to create a prototype for her design and after months of fine tuning, she finally had a completely customized bag. McCavanagh officially launched her business in April of 2021 and named her new line of handbags Cushette, which was a nod to their soft, velvety fabric patterns. She started taking her new accessory everywhere she went and named it The Duchess, after a childhood nickname her father gave her. McCavanagh also started posting photos of Cushette bags on social media and before long, orders were pouring in. “A lot of my early purchasers were friends,” she says. “Then the word got out.”

McCavanagh has since created more handbag designs, each with the same distinctive style and fabrics. There’s The Midgie, a petite belt bag named after her mother, and The Jane and The Bryce, which were named after her children.

McCavanagh currently sells her designs on her website and through a few select retailers. On most days, while her kids are at school, she fills orders from a sunny workspace in the corner of her living room. McCavanagh takes the time to personalize each package with a handwritten thank-you note. “I write, ‘thank you for purchasing your Cushette, I hope you have fun with it!” she says. “I figure I can take a few minutes to do that.” She also stashes a tiny mesh bag with a pyrite gemstone inside the pocket of each Cushette bag that goes out the door, for good luck. “I always carry it around with me,” she says. “And it turns out, people love it.”

For more information on Cushette, follow @shopcushette on Instagram, or visit shopcushette.com.

Call to Action Clothing

The Hingham-based apparel company Call to Action Clothing (C2A) is poised to make a big splash in the fashion world this summer when it showcases its 2022 swimwear collection at Miami Swim Week. The brand, which announced its official launch at a pop-up event on Nantucket this past May, is the brainchild of designer and founder Jill Palese, who spent several years perfecting gorgeous designs that are figure-flattering and made as sustainably as possible. Ironically, Jill Palese isn’t an avid swimmer. “I’m actually not much of a beach person,” Palese says with a laugh. “I’ve got really fair skin.” When it comes to textiles, however, there’s a close connection between swimwear and figure skating attire, and Palese grew up as an avid skater. In high school, she created ice-dancing dresses for herself and her teammates.

“I was sewing by the time I was 5 years old,” says Palese, who was born in Wisconsin and raised in New York. “The whole idea of spandex fiber rocked my world.”

Palese earned a degree in design from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City before pursuing a career as an activewear designer. A self-professed “textile nerd,” she worked for a swimwear manufacturer early in her career that supplied suits for multiple brands. She recalls being 24 years old and designing a plus-size women’s swimsuit.

“I just thought about what I would want to wear myself,” she says. “Looking good in a swimsuit isn’t about size, it’s about being confident.”

She put her career on hold while she was raising her family—her daughter is now a sophomore in college and her son is a junior at Hingham High School. But she kept her fashion-industry contacts and nurtured her dream of eventually starting her own swimwear company.

Palese was determined that her company would embrace “slow fashion” and the principles of sustainability. Throughout her career Palese had seen the growing trend toward “fast fashion,” which refers to inexpensive and cheaply-produced clothing that has a notoriously short lifespan, and will quickly be replaced when it wears out or its owner tires of it.

“I really believe in designing clothes that people will wear for a very long time,” says Palese.

She set out to produce a line of swimwear that made women feel comfortable and look beautiful, and that was also built to last. Her company name was inspired by Palese’s hopes for the future of the planet. Her products are designed and manufactured with sustainability practices in place, including reducing the use of water, energy, chemicals and waste, and working with suppliers who share the same environmental practices. Palese has also earmarked a portion of C2A profits to be donated to environmental nonprofit organizations.

Palese hired fellow Hinghamite and technology and apparel executive Dan Rakauskas as her company CEO. Rakauskas has built a niche working with companies that care about sustainability, so Call to Action was right up his alley.

Together, they were just about ready to launch the business when the pandemic hit, and everything turned upside down. A company like C2A, based in the travel and leisure sector, seemed unlikely to survive. Moreover, their factory in the Dominican Republic was deemed non-essential, and forced to shut down. Faced with these barriers, some entrepreneurs would have thrown in the towel, but Palese and her team decided to pivot.

“We looked at each other and said, ‘we’re going into the worst global crisis of our lifetime, and starting this company right now just doesn’t seem like the right thing to do,’” says Palese.

They’d already raised $50,000 in startup capital. They put their product line on hold and decided to use their funds, not to make bathing suits, but to help people on the front lines of the pandemic. They appealed to fashion partners and added to their seed amount, and they called in a few favors from friends. In short order

they raised an additional $25,000 and were shipping bolts of fabric to the Dominican Republic.

Ultimately, Call to Action Clothing was able to singlehandedly keep the factory open during the early weeks of COVID. It achieved essential status since Palese arranged for the factory to make 8,500 woven and reusable hospital gowns. Those gowns, crafted from 17,000 yards of nondisposable fabric, were supplied for free to healthcare workers by C2A.

“This was a literal call to action,” says Palese of the steps she had to take for her company’s pandemic pivot. “I knew the factory employees; they’re wonderful people. For them to go for weeks without income, we just had to do something to help.”

Last summer she and her team pivoted again, from hospital gowns back to swimwear.

“I love creating solutions and solving problems,” says Palese of Call to Action’s stalled start, then soft launch, and its current potential. “Now we’re all ready to forge ahead.”

Follow Call to Action Clothing on Instagram @c2aclothing and shop the collection at Bloom Lingerie Boutique in Cohasset, or online at c2aclothing.com.

Historical SCAVENGER HUNT!

Hingham

Written by DAVE KINDY Photography by JACK FOLEY

Where It All Started

In September 1635, Rev. Peter Hobart and other English settlers arrived on these shores and established the town of Hingham. Though it’s hundreds of feet from the coast today, a bronze plaque on North Street marks the place where they landed and set up shop nearly 400 years ago.

First Meeting House

A lot happened here! Located near the intersection of North and South streets, the Hingham plaque marks the sites near where First Meeting House (1635), First Burying Ground (1635), First School House (circa 1661), Fort (1676) and Derby Academy (1784) were all established. Quite an impressive array of firsts!

Abraham Lincoln Statue

Just across the street from the Samuel Lincoln House is a memorial honoring the builder’s distinguished descendant. The bronze statue of a solemn, seated Abraham Lincoln bears the inscription “With malice toward none, With charity for all.” It was created by sculptor Charles Keck and dedicated in 1939.

is filled with markers and memorials dedicated to those people—and pets—who made a difference in the community’s success

Veterans Memorial Park

Veterans Memorial Park at Common and Main streets honors Hingham residents who made the ultimate sacrifice. It includes monuments and markers for those who fell in World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam. The park was formerly known as Matthew Hawkes Square, named for an early settler of the town.

Old Ship Church

Built in 1681, Old Ship Church is the oldest ecclesiastical church building in continuous use in the United States. The ceiling of oak beams looks like an inverted ship’s hull, hence the name. Services are held by the Unitarian Universalists, a Protestant denomination descended from the original Puritans, at the Main Street church.

POW/MIA Chair

Hingham has more monuments honoring veterans at Town Hall. Inside is a plaque listing the names of residents serving in the “World War 1917-1918.” In front of it is the empty POW/MIA Chair honoring those who never returned. Just outside Town Hall is the Veterans Memorial with a large bronze globe.

Loring Hall

When Hingham needed a “building for Lectures, Picnics and Social Meetings of all kinds,” native son Col. Benjamin Loring donated the money for it. Today, Loring Hall still stands on Main Street but with another role added to the list. Originally built in 1852, it was refurbished as a movie theater in 1964.

Hingham Deed

Stored at the Hingham Public Library is the original deed for Hingham. Signed in 1665, the patent granted English settlers title to the community “from the beginning of the world” by the Massachusetts Indians and includes the mark of their leader Sachem Wompatuck. A copy is displayed at Town Hall.

Benjamin Lincoln House

Major Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, who blazed a trail to glory during the American Revolution, accepted Lord Cornwallis’ sword of surrender at the Battle of Yorktown. His great grandfather Thomas— another Abraham Lincoln ancestor—built the Benjamin Lincoln House in 1665. Eleven generations of the family lived in the home on North Street.

Old Ordinary Tavern

For 150 years, weary stagecoach travelers on the road from Boston stopped at the Old Ordinary Tavern to refresh with “an ordinary meal” and a pint or more of cider. Built in 1686, the museum is located next to the Hingham Historical Society’s Olmsted Garden, Old Fort and Arts and Crafts Annex.

Soldiers and Sailors Monument

During the Civil War, Hingham sent hundreds of young men to fight for the Union cause. Many did not return home. The Soldiers and Sailors Monument at Hingham Cemetery honors those brave 74 citizens who made the ultimate sacrifice. The 30-foot monument made of Quincy granite was erected in 1870.

Herbert Lewis Foss Grave Site

Hingham’s only Medal of Honor recipient is buried at Fort Hill Cemetery in Hingham. During the Spanish-American War, Herbert Lewis Foss cut a communication cable in Cuba under heavy fire that had already wounded several sailors. The U.S. Navy seaman received the nation’s highest honor for valor on July 7, 1899.

Angel of Grief

Hingham’s Angel of Grief is a copy of a famous 1894 statue on a grave in Rome that American sculptor William Wetmore Story made for his wife. The figure has been replicated at many graveyards, including Hingham Cemetery. This large depiction of a weeping angel was erected in 1912 over the grave of Maria L. Hooper.

Memorial Bell Tower

Erected in 1912, Memorial Bell Tower near the Old Ship Church was built to commemorate the 275th anniversary of the founding of Hingham. Restored in 2019, the town-owned structure includes 10 bells similar to those at St. Andrew’s Church in Hingham, England, where many of the town’s original settlers first lived.

Bare Cove Fire Museum

Sound the alarm! The Bare Cove Fire Museum is your place for four-alarm fun on the history of firefighting in New England. Located on Bare Cove Drive, the museum includes a large collection of artifacts, equipment and documents, as well as restored motorized fire apparatus, including a 1922 Maxim Motors ladder truck.

Old Derby Academy

Established in 1784, Old Derby Academy was the first coeducational school in America. Now it is home to the Hingham Historical Society and its collection of 18th century artifacts, portraits, documents and more depicting the community’s proud heritage. The building is available to rent for meetings and social gatherings.

Gloria War Memorial

Dedicated in 1929, the Pro Patria et Gloria War Memorial at Victory Park on Hingham Harbor is often called the “Iron Horse” statue, even though it is really bronze. It also features a young man holding a torch honoring those who served in the military. The Latin inscription means “For Country and Glory.”

POW Memorial

In 1986, residents dedicated the POW/ MIA Memorial on Hingham Harbor to remember those prisoners of war and missing in action in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam conflict. All three flags—United States, POW/MIA and Blue Star—will continue to fly until all service members are accounted for.

Landing Ship Tank Memorial

During World War II, Hingham Shipyard was an important manufacturing site for the landing craft that brought Allied troops ashore on D-Day. The LST (Landing Ship Tank) Memorial at the shipyard remembers the sailors who died piloting these vessels at Normandy to help liberate Europe during World War II.

A Salute to Bismark and Butch

Hingham is home to graves of two other veterans: Bismark and Butch, U.S. Marine Corps mascot dogs. They are buried in Bare Cove Park, next to the Department of Public Works Building, which once housed the U.S. Naval Ammunition Depot. The dogs received full honors, including firing squads, when they died.

EEL RIVER WOODS

HINGHAM LAND CONSERVATION TRUST TURNS 50

Written by JOHN GALLUZZO

Photography by JACK FOLEY and HINGHAM LAND CONSERVATION TRUST

way from Hingham’s busy streets, are peaceful parcels of land where the only sounds are from birds and the soft breezes that flow through the trees,” says Don Kidston, a board member for the Hingham Land Conservation Trust. “Twisting trails lead through woods, along small streams, and uphill to rocky outcrops with views of blue skies and bright white cumulus clouds. Trails continue past old stone walls to open fields, with benches to sit on and perhaps observe deer and nesting birds while absorbing the peaceful sights, sounds, and feeling of the natural surroundings.”

The Hingham Land Conservation Trust, a private non-profit conservation organization, is marking its 50th anniversary this year. The group is marking this milestone by celebrating its history and launching programs for the decades ahead.

In the 1960s and 70s, town and community leaders in Hingham took steps to help preserve the town’s meadows, hills, wetlands, and forests, including creating the town’s Conservation Commission. At the time, environmental concerns were growing nationwide about pollution of land, air and water (the Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1970 and the first Earth Day “Teach-in” event took place that same year).

Locally, the opening of the southeast expressway in 1959 made the commute in and out the city easier, and many Boston-area residents started looking down the coast to towns like Hingham and all the open, buildable space with longing eyes. If small towns were to retain their natural character, residents would need to act fast.

“Live each season as it passes”

— H.D. Thoreau

Hingham Lnad Conservation Trust Board Members Joel Goloske, Don Kidston and Mark McLoughlin

Sally Goodrich, an early member of Hingham’s Conservation Commission, led the effort to create the Hingham Land Conservation Trust in 1972. The Hingham resident was concerned that open spaces, especially those with wetlands and streams important to the health of the town’s watershed and the Weir River might be threatened by a development push. After learning how land trusts elsewhere in Massachusetts worked as independent conservation stewards, Goodrich brought together founding board members with similar concerns—some who owned parcels they wanted to conserve as open spaces for future generations.

“We’re proud to be celebrating 50 years as an important conservation organization in Hingham,” says Eileen McIntyre, who was appointed HLCT board chair in 2019. “We stand on the shoulders of giants. Just last year we paid tribute to the late Helen Burns, a founding board member whose gifts of land to the HLCT and to the Hingham Conservation Commission created Jacobs Meadow – a 50-acre conservation area and parkland opened in 1991.”

Today, in addition to some smaller wetland parcels, the trust owns three properties accessible to the public: Eel River Woods (a gift of the late Mary Niles) and Whortleberry Hollow (a gift of the late Suvia Whittemore) – both off Cushing Street, along with Jacobs Meadow – entrance behind the Wilder Memorial Building on Main Street, a total of 65 acres. The HLCT also holds conservation restrictions on 118 acres, annually surveying and inspecting those lands for environmentally sensitive care.

“The trust’s founders focused on three main goals,” says McIntyre, “enhancing neighborhoods through gifts of land; holding restrictive covenants preserving land for recreational or open space uses; and working with the town to develop and recommend plans for open space. Today, the mission has evolved.” Much land in Hingham now has been saved or protected by conservation restrictions. Hingham voters’ approval in 2001 of a Community Preservation Act surtax, in part to fund acquisition of parkland, has been helpful too. One example: in 2017 Hingham town meeting approved use of CPA funds for the Town to acquire the Lehner Conservation Area—50 acres adjacent to Jacobs Meadow in the heart of our watershed.

“The trust’s role now is more focused on education and collaborative outreach to foster appreciation of open space,” says McIntyre. “We also want to help the community understand the local impact of climate change.” In 2020 the HLCT led a collaborative effort with the Bare Cove Park Committee, the local chapter of Wild Ones, a native-plants-focused organization, and local volunteers to create a native pollinator garden at Bare Cove Park. The goal is to allow visitors to observe how pollinator gardens not only are helpful for the ecosystem but create natural beauty, and once established, survive without watering.

In anticipation of its 50th anniversary this year, the trust began planning additional initiatives, and this May, at their annual meeting, they announced three new ventures. First, the trust is creating an online tool, called “50 Walks,” to more easily locate open spaces to enjoy in Hingham. This interactive guide, developed by Kidston, is available on the group’s website and allows residents and visitors to select a walk that meets their needs, whether they are interested in a rigorous hike, are walking with children or dogs, or have limited mobility.

Hingham Lnad Conservation Trust Board Members Helmut Fickenwirth and Tom Bright

The trust’s role now is more focused on education and collaborative outreach to foster appreciation of open space. We also want to help the community understand the local impact of climate change.

— Eileen McIntyre

Secondly, thanks to a generous bequest from the estate of founder Sally Goodrich, the trust has created a fund, enhanced through the generosity of current and former HLCT board members and longtime supporters, enabling the trust to begin awarding annual environmental research grants. Universities, town conservation departments, and nonprofit organizations that can define and execute an environmental research project for Hingham or surrounding towns on the South Shore can apply for a grant of up to $5,000. Information about how to apply for a grant will soon be available.

Lastly, the trust is digitizing its “Parklands for the Public” open space map of Hingham. This popular map, first printed in 1982, is being updated using GIS information and, at launch of the digital version this year, will include trail information on the trust’s three parklands. Over time, the digital map will be enhanced to provide additional trail level information for other parklands in Hingham. This initiative is funded by a gift from the estate of early supporter and board member, Mike Austin. Meanwhile, ongoing trust activities continue.

After a first-ever virtual walk last spring, the group returned to in-person seasonal walks last fall. In October, walkers enjoyed a vigorous hike while learning about kettle ponds at the south Hingham woodland owned by the Weir River Water System. This April, while walking along the Weir River near Triphammer Pond, participants heard about the importance of herring runs to the local ecosystem.

“It’s a big year for us,” says McIntyre, who handed the chair gavel to Art Collins in May. Collins, who previously served as vice-chair, organized the trust’s Pollinator Garden Initiative and is leading the digital Parkland Map project. McIntyre, who will stay involved as leader of the Goodrich Environmental Research Grant program, adds, “It is wonderful to see the Trust attract new supporters, board members and volunteers to carry our conservation mission forward.”

For more information, visit hinghamlandtrust.org.

EXPLORING THE ETHEREAL WORLD OF UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY WITH HINGHAM PHOTOGRAPHER ALYSSA FORTIN.

Since launching her business almost 25 years ago, Alyssa Fortin’s photography career has expanded to encompass a wide variety of styles and subject matter. Known locally for capturing gorgeous portraits of children and families in Hingham and across the South Shore, she has also spent a good deal of time traveling throughout the world creating dynamic cultural portraits. During the summer of 2020, Fortin embarked on a new personal project that would push her fine art photography skills to new limits. Her “Temps de Poisson’’ collection features underwater photographs of ballerinas. Appropriately named after a ballet jump that requires the dancer’s body to arch in the curved shape of a fish, her collection is filled with swirling skirts and elegantly outstretched arms. Ethereal and mesmerizing, Temps de Poisson is a dynamic celebration of grace and beauty.

HL: What is your photographic specialty?

For most of my career my specialty has been natural light portrait photography, both in film and digital. I know most of my clients very well, and have sometimes photographed them for decades. I am called on to shoot some of the most intimate moments of people’s lives. As a photographer you are a witness to life, in its entirety. Portrait photography has been a real honor, and given me the opportunity to be there for and explore all levels of that everchanging human experience.

HL: What do you enjoy about living and working in Hingham?

My studio is in the historic downtown of Hingham, which I love. The settings for my shoots have allowed me to explore the unbelievable natural beauty of the South Shore; its beaches, rivers, marshes, fields, meadows and parks. The historic architecture is utterly unique: the colonial buildings, antique barns, family and community owned farms, turn-of-the-century boardwalks, historic downtowns with ice cream and coffee shops. I’ve been blessed. When I look through the last 25 years of photos that I’ve taken it’s like reading a stack of love letters to New England.

“Out there in the darkness, I have seen such things...”

“Fleur de Lotus”

“Ophelia’s Great Escape”

HL: Who or what has inspired your photographic style?

I was strongly influenced by the work of American photographers Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans, Sally Mann, Annie Leibovitz, and New Zealand photographer Niki Boon. After a workshop with Cheryl Jacobs Nicolai in 2002, I was really inspired to develop my skills in film photography. You can see the impact of those artists on both my earlier and current portrait work–the use of black and white, natural light, the settings, composition, and down to the connection and mood of the images.

HL: Can you tell me about your work in other countries?

About a decade ago I began expanding my venues to other cultural landscapes, traveling through Ghana, Cuba, Colombia, continental Europe and Alaska. That became the basis for my Peoples and Places series. I was interested in taking the principals of portrait photography and placing them in the context of the countries, architecture and socio-economic reality my subjects lived in. These are more ethnographic - meaning that I’m trying to give a more in depth story of people, their lives, their work, how their communities function and survive. I am working on a number of books compiling country based narratives, interviews and photos. This project has been on hold thanks to COVID, but I am hoping to start it up again with a trip to Cuba in October.

HL: How did the Temps de Poisson collection come about?

The pandemic had a big impact on everyone. The normal individual and family rituals that everyone usually wants to document were canceled or put on hold. Similarly, since travel was out, my People and Places series was limited to editing photos and organizing the books at home. It was in that slower, quieter time I had the chance to think about doing something new.

I turned to friends who spent years of study and practice trying to learn the art of balance- yoga masters and ballet dancers. They became the subjects of my three most recent series: Transitions, Temps de Poisson, and Les Petits Poissons. All three are experiments in figurative art. Transitions is a series of crisp, highly graphic, black and white figurative studies of a yoga master at dusk on the beach. Temps de Poisson and Les Petits Poissons are more impressionistic, highly color saturated studies of underwater ballet dancers. Temps de Poisson focuses on adult dancers, while Les Petits Poissons focuses on child dancers. These last two series are the result of some 15 separate sessions. Each session experimented with increasing levels of abstraction.

HL: How did you approach these photos?

I have collaborated with a lot of amazing women over the years, from yoga masters and classical and modern dancers to clothing designers like my friend, Jill Palese, from Call to Action Clothing. In Transitions we took the subject to the edge of the water, to the place where land and sea meet. The pictures and lines were stark, clean, and powerful. The black and white simplified the visual so that the form and light were everything. In Temps de Poisson and Les Petits Poissons we took everything much further. No longer poised on the edge or resting on the surface, we completely submerged - subjects, photographer and equipment. It felt like going through the looking glass. Suddenly, in this weightless environment, bodies and materials became fluid. A breath of air from a dancer transformed into a stream of sparkling jewels. Colors were brighter and light reflected and refracted in a magical way. No longer pulled down by gravity and their own weight, dancers could leap, glide and float in position–higher, longer and without seeming effort. And when the dancers donned their flowered headdresses and their gauze and tulle, it was like a Pre-Raphaelite painting meets Frida Kahlo. The colors, the grace, the dreamlike beauty...I couldn’t believe what I was seeing during those shoots. It felt mythic. And the camera caught it all.

HL: What inspired you to photograph ballerinas?

It started with a shoot at a friend’s pool with a few of my creative friends. We each invited a friend and brought our ideas to play. One of the friends was a ballerina. I had just purchased an underwater case for my camera and I wanted to test it out. One image I captured from that day is still one of my favorites and started my underwater ballerina journey. I then reached out to South Shore Ballet Theater and they asked their students if any were interested in an underwater ballet photo shoot. Before I knew it, I had more girls who were interested than I had time and pools available for shoots.

After a few sessions with the young girls, I realized I wanted to concentrate on teenagers and adults. Again, the word got out pretty quickly on what I was doing and I had ballerinas from Boston, Cambridge, Wellesley, Jacksonville, Hingham, Cohasset and other towns all reaching out to me with interest. One of my favorite subjects was Matilda from the Koltun Ballet in Boston. I truly enjoyed getting to interact with these women who outside of the pool were young giddy girls having fun with their ballet friends and then as soon as it was their turn to perform they turned into mature, graceful, composed ballerinas who’s elegant athletic bodies could gracefully dance underwater.

HL: What was the experience like shooting underwater photos?

I used my Canon EOS Mark IV camera with a wide angle lens and a EWA Marine underwater camera case to protect it. The case is a glorified plastic bag! It had its limitations but I managed to work with it; a little bit of duct tape and a few extra rubber bands got the job done! I really want the professional hard plastic case made personally for each camera. Hopefully, that will come in the near future.

The ballerinas would take turns doing their poses and dances underwater while I photographed it. As soon as a good idea developed each girl would do it over and over again. It was exhausting to the ballerinas. They would do a few poses, then get a chance to rest while the next girl stepped in. It was underwater, I couldn’t completely see what my camera was recording and part of the exact moments that were being captured were up to chance. To make sure I recorded the perfect moment of grace, movement, reflection and abstraction there was A LOT of over shooting! One session could last three hours with 1,500 images recorded. Then I had to upload the photos to my computer and begin the editing. The water distorts the colors underwater and I would have to color correct the image in Photoshop and Lightroom. We played around with ballet skirts, tutus, plastic, tulle, and silk cloth as well as flowers, ribbons and swim caps. I was in the water with the girls. Sometimes the camera was completely underwater but most of the time, only part of the camera was underwater. This allowed me to compose the shot a little more.

HL: What do you hope to convey with your photography?

I’ve always been interested in the combination of fragility and power- in our planet and our bodies. I’ve been thinking about this a lot during the past two years, a time during which we have all been surrounded by more than our fair share of sickness, fear, and death. I have come to believe that there is a balance that must be kept -environmentally, physical, mentally, and spiritually. While it might sound easy to balance - it is not. It takes a lot of hard work, strength, thought, and self-control. But the beauty, tranquility and freedom that can be achieved is well worth the sacrifice. It’s then that I began thinking ‘what does balance, strength, and freedom look like in a human form?’

Temps de Poisson is an exploration of the female figure underwater where the effects of water and gravity create flow and movement. It’s a continual study and transformation of thoughts and ideas as one shoot’s results progress to a new concept and addition. At this point I am continuing to push the degree of abstraction of the human female figure underwater. I see the end printed result as very large images in which the viewer is lost in an undefinable feminine shape filled with light, movement and grace. I am also working on a project where the final images might be projected up on a screen as part of a larger mixed media performance.

HL: What did you enjoy most about this project?

One of my favorite parts of this project has been the creative journey. I have been taking portraits for a long time. It’s easy to slip into doing what you know will be successful and the client will buy. This project was not commissioned work so I had artistic freedom to create anything I wanted. Each shoot was a building on the last. I would evaluate the results and make changes or additions to continue to bring the image to a more abstract visual where the viewer could get lost in this large feminine image of lines and shapes.

HL: Are there any local charities/organizations that are close to your heart?

Over the years I have made amazing friendships with people who are working hard every day to keep those unique local spaces and places alive here in the South Shore. In the process I’ve collaborated with a lot of community organizations, a kind of give-back to the amazing places, organizations and people I have met on this almost three decade long journey. Among them are Weir River Farm, Holly Hill Farm, Hingham Community Center, Nona’s Homemade, and Soule Homestead Education Center. The shows, shoots and fundraisers we’ve done together have helped create great art for area residents, while supporting local farming, sustainable organic agriculture, family owned local businesses, and primary and secondary environmental education. My plan is to continue this work in the future.

For more information about Alyssa Fortin’s photography, visit alyssafortinphotography.com.

“Rocco Angel: The Fall”

Written by MARIA ALLEN

Photography by KJELD MAHONEY

Hingham artist Jen Kelly has painted many seaside landscapes over the years, often taking an easel down to World’s End to paint en plein air with a small group of artist friends. However, it is her latest collection of contemporary impressionistic works celebrating the essence of summer that has really been turning heads.

“My best memories from my childhood revolve around spending days at the beach,” says Kelly, who grew up in the seaside town of Point Lookout, Long Island, and took her first painting class at the age of 13. After studying psychology and art at Boston College (and also taking art courses while abroad in Florence, Italy) Kelly opted to put painting on the back burner to pursue a career in social work. As a busy working mom, art continued to be a muchneeded stress reliever and creative outlet. About 20 years ago, she decided the time had come to follow her heart and focus on art full-time.

Artist Jen Kelly’s paintings capture the essence of summer and bring joyful pops of color into local homes.

Working out of a sunny studio in her historic Hingham home, Kelly creates large-scale works of art inspired by the serene beauty of ocean waves and also the eclectic array of people who flock to New England beaches each summer. “I’ve always been obsessed with color,” says Kelly, whose popular “Beach Peeps” and “Beach Bums” paintings celebrate the simple joys of summer in a lighthearted and humorous way. “Beach Peeps,” for example, pictures an assortment of tiny swimsuit-clad figures lined up in rows and holding candy-colored towels, surfboards and umbrellas. Similarly, “Beach Bums” features an array of colorful board shorts, bikinis, and even a few bare bottoms. The paintings exude positive energy and offer a refreshing change of pace for interior decorators looking to add a pop of color to a coastal home.

“I like to use a lot of paint and build up the layers,” explains Kelly, who uses a palette knife and ruler to give her paintings texture and a grid-like pattern. “The boxes create a sense of order, which lends itself to interior design,” explains Kelly. She also paints ethereal seascapes, where the ocean and sky seamlessly bleed together. “More than anything, I aim to convey an emotion and I usually lean toward peaceful, happy feelings,” says Kelly, “I’ve had homeowners tell me that my painting makes them smile every time they walk into the room–and that’s what it’s all about.”

CUSTOM ART DECORATING TIPS

Whether you’re a professional decorator commissioning artwork for a client or a homeowner searching for a one-of-akind painting to hang over your sofa, custom artwork can help tie together different elements, colors and textures in a home’s interior decor. Here are a few of Jen Kelly’s tips for bringing custom art into your home.

Set the Tone

When commissioning artwork, be sure to work with an artist who has a style you already love. Go through their archives and highlight your favorite images. Bring these and other photos of artwork you like to your meeting to discuss the type of painting you’re looking for.

Art Before Pillows

If at all possible, consider your artwork before selecting your furniture. It is generally easier to find a couch to coordinate with a unique piece of artwork than the other way around. However, if you already have furniture you love, be sure to bring photos and possibly a fabric swatch to your artist meeting so they can see what would work best for your space.

Easy on the Frames

When it comes to framing your artwork, avoid overly ornate frames that will appear heavy and dated. Instead, opt for thinner frames with clean lines, which are less distracting and keep the focus on the art.

Keep An Open Mind

Even when you’ve clearly communicated what you’re looking for, it’s important to remember that no two works of art are completely alike. If you have an extremely specific expectation, you might be better off shopping for a piece of ready-made art.

View more of Jen Kelly’s work on her Instagram @jenkellydesigns and at jenkellydesigns.com. If you’re headed to the Cape this summer, be sure to check out her art show at the Chapman Art Gallery in Cotuit.

Bringing city flair to Hingham, NOMAI impresses diners with an inviting atmosphere and innovative menu of Asian-inspired New American dishes.

By Maria Allen

Photography by Derrick Zellmann

ipping on tiny cups of sake beneath the sunsetred canopy of a convincingly lifelike Japanese maple tree, guests dining at NOMAI in Hingham can’t help but feel transported.

The latest eatery to be launched by the team at Boston’s Shōjō Group, the restaurant showcases owner Brian Moy’s passion for creating unforgettable dining experiences.

Moy grew up surrounded by the restaurant industry. He watched his father work his way up from being a busboy to becoming the owner of China Pearl, a mainstay of Boston’s Chinatown neighborhood (with a second location in Quincy). Moy remembers spending countless hours as a kid hanging out at his family’s bustling restaurant and nearby barbecuebakery, collecting soda cans for recycling and washing dishes as soon as he was old enough to lend a hand. He continued to work at restaurants while studying business management at Boston University. After graduating, Moy found himself drawn back to the family business—albeit with a few new ideas up his sleeve.

While Moy continued to help manage his family’s business, he dreamed of opening a new restaurant that would break down cultural barriers and shake up Boston’s dining scene. He eventually did just that, striking out on his own in 2012 to launch Shōjō, a lively Asian gastropub known for its graffiti-style decor and kung-fu movies playing behind the bar. In 2017 he opened a second restaurant called Ruckus, which specializes in house-made noodle dishes.

When Moy first considered opening a new restaurant on the South Shore, he knew he would be taking a calculated risk. It was early 2020 and restaurants across Boston were temporarily closed due to COVID restrictions. The city felt like a ghost town. But rather than wait idly for the world to get back to normal, the Canton resident decided to take a leap of faith and set his sights on building a one-of-a-kind restaurant in the suburbs.

Brian Moy, Owner NOMAI

NOMAI officially opened its doors in January of 2022. Located in a prime spot at Hingham’s Derby Street Shops, the restaurant is unlike any other eatery on the South Shore. Its ornate design was inspired by the look and feel of a traditional Japanese home and garden, with a soaring wood “roof” over the dining room, delicate string lights hung above a large U-shaped bar, and three artificial Nomai Japanese maple trees that appear to magically grow from the tile floor.

“We aim to provide an excellent dining experience,” says Moy, who took extra care to ensure that every detail of the restaurant’s menu and interior design was on point. The trees, for example, were a key element of the restaurant’s design concept, intended to create an immersive dining experience. When Moy realized that it would be nearly impossible to maintain live trees indoors, he enlisted a company that crafts sets for Disney productions to build beautiful replicas.

“Every branch had to be assembled and put in place by hand,” says Moy.

The food and drink served at NOMAI is as distinctive as the restaurant’s decor. The menu changes seasonally features creative New American cuisine that is made using fresh ingredients and recipes heavily influenced by Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese and Malaysian flavors.

“I love being able to introduce guests to Asian ingredients in a nontraditional way,” says Moy, who points out that much of the menu is designed for sharing to encourage guests to sample different items. One of his favorite dishes on the menu is the wok charred cauliflower, which showcases Malaysian Penang spice and is served with sesame yogurt, herb salad and a sprinkling of pomegranate seeds. The menu’s “snacks” section features flavor-packed items like “orange chicken” chicken wings (a twist on the classic Chinese-American favorite) and homemade tofu with black truffle, a dish inspired by Moy’s father’s recipe for silken tofu that is available in fall and winter. NOMAI also offers a raw bar menu with items like chilled oysters and gulf shrimp as well as tuna spring rolls (a creative take on fresh summer rolls) that are delicately wrapped in sheets of daikon (a mild root vegetable) and dressed with rosemary apricot sauce. “We use radish sprouts in the spring rolls, which have a deeper flavor and also look pretty,” says Moy.

Culinary director Jason Hua, whom Moy first met while the two were at college together, helped create the menu at NOMAI and also contributed a family recipe for Grandma Hua’s carrot noodles in a savory-sweet beef bourguignon sauce. Guests can also dig into one of several other rice and noodle entrees, such as crab fried rice served with prik nam pla sauce (a Thai sauce that is slightly sweet, sour and savory, with a touch of heat). Signature entrees include fresh seafood dishes like seared sea scallops with bacon jam, Shishido pepper, yam and kumquat, and a steamed sea bass prepared with miso, nameko mushrooms, bok choy and served with crispy rice.

NOMAI also boasts an excellent dessert menu as well as an extensive list of wines, spirits, craft beers and creative cocktails. Favorite drinks include the Winter Strawberry in Japan, the Gogo 75, and the Umami Old Fashioned. Guests can also sample from a selection of high-grade sake or Japanese whisky (including an exclusive Yamazaki whisky).

The overall vibe at NOMAI is one of casually elegant city style, which is enhanced by Moy’s choice of unique and vibrant artwork, from a wall-sized painting by street artist Shepard Fairey in the dining room to displays of colorful figurines by graffiti artist Brian Donnelly, also known as KAWS. “I wanted to design the restaurant to be the sort of place I would want to hang out with my friends,” explains Moy, who is married and has two young children.

The restaurant also features a spacious temperature-controlled outdoor patio as well as a private event space where sake pairing dinners, Japanese whiskey dinners and other special chef events are hosted.

More than anything, he hopes the atmosphere at NOMAI serves as a place where Hingham residents and guests from across the South Shore can come together to share in delicious food and drink, and enjoy conversation and good times. We’ll raise a glass to that.

JULY - MID-AUGUST POLLY THAYER STARR: NEARER THE ESSENCE

Polly Thayer Starr was an artist who lived beyond tidy definitions. Classically trained and well-spoken, she bounded onto the 1930s art scene, gaining fame for her formal portraits of Boston’s elite. The artist spent much of her life in Hingham, living at what we now know as Weir River Farm and the Pat Roche NVNA Hospice Home. She donated Weir River Farm to the Trustees of Reservations in 1999. This exhibition contains not only her paintings of nature and portraits, but also many studies and sketchbooks to reveal the artist’s search for beauty and truth. In addition to never-before exhibited archival materials, personal effects, such as a spectacularly carved desk from her studio, will be on display. The exhibition is open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. –3 p.m. and by special appointment by emailing info@hinghamhistorical.org.

AUGUST 11

“DRINK AND DINE” EXHIBITION

Hingham Public Library’s Dolphin Gallery hosts

“DRINK and DINE,” an exhibition of artwork by Norwell artist Nancy Colella. Having been involved in the hospitality business for most of her life, Colella is continually inspired by the dramatic lighting, body language, and spontaneous interaction observed while “breaking bread” with others. She began a series of small oil paintings depicting people eating and drinking in restaurants and bars in 2019 and continued to explore and experiment with the subject during the pandemic. Whether it’s the hot frenzy during a rush in the kitchen, a man sitting alone reading a paper, or the mystery of a dark night club, these moments and more were the inspiration for this show. Colella also seeks to recognize all those who work in the hospitality industry and continue to be impacted by the devastating effects of the pandemic. An opening reception will take place August 11, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m., Hingham Public Library, 66 Leavitt St., Hingham, 781-741-1405, hinghamlibrary.org

AUGUST - DECEMBER THIRD THURSDAY STROLLS

Hingham’s Third Thursday Stroll happens every third Thursday from April to December. Participating shops stay open until 7 p.m. throughout town. Live music plays in the square and free 30-minute tours of historical downtown Hingham are offered on the hour at 5 and 6 p.m. (this is a shortened version of their normal tour). Ten strollers with proof of purchase from a local business are welcome at each tour. Tours begin at the black info kiosk across from Brewed Awakenings. discoverhingham.com

SEPTEMBER 11

BEANTOWN MARATHON

This Boston Marathon qualifier takes place at Bare Cove Park in Hingham and has been designed to give runners one last chance to qualify for the 2023 Boston Marathon. The field is being limited to just 500 runners and each runner will have the option to run with a designated pacing group.This is the final qualifying weekend before general registration opens for the Boston Marathon. www.events.racewire.com/beantown-marathon

OCTOBER 2

HISTORIC HOUSE TOUR

Hingham Historical Society is hosting its 97th Historic House Tour. From modest capes to grand estates, the featured homes reveal generations of stories of local families that have made Hingham their home. The tour is Hingham Historical Society’s biggest fundraiser of the year. For tickets and more details, visit hinghamhistorical.org

OCTOBER 8

BLUES AT THE RED BARN

Back by popular demand: the Boston All-Stars Blues Band returns to the Red Barn at Weir River Farm Saturday, October 8. Kick back and enjoy 2021 Blues Music Award winning pianist Anthony Geraci and his Boston All-Stars Blues Band. Bring a picnic or enjoy a snack from the Cruisin’ Cabby Shack food truck. Barrel House Z will be on hand to help you wash away your cares. This concert is outdoors, in the lower lawn next to the Red Barn, from 3-5:30 p.m. Audience members are encouraged to pack picnic blankets and folding chairs and leave an extra 10-15 minutes to enjoy the walk down to the barn from the parking field at 140 Turkey Hill Lane. A rain date is scheduled for Sunday, October 9. For tickets, visit thetrustees.org.

OCTOBER 15

HINGHAM FARMERS MARKET

The third oldest farmers market in Massachusetts, this popular event continues to bring the community together. In addition to fresh produce, shoppers can peruse prepared foods and dairy products, meats, seafood and unique craft vendors. This is a walk-through market but pre-order is also available for low-contact shopping. Market takes place every Saturday from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. from August through November, at the Station Street Parking Lot, 95 Station St., Hingham. hinghamfarmersmarket.org

Where you engage.

VISIT OUR WELCOME CENTER

Introducing the newest senior living community in Hanover. From a provider with 25 years’ experience.

OCTOBER 16

WEIR RIVER FARM TRAIL RUN

The 6th annual Weir River Farm Trail Run includes running the trails of Weir River Farm and neighboring Whitney and Thayer Woods. There are three race distances to choose from — 9.3 miles, 6.0 miles and 3.4 miles. The Weir River Farm Trail Run offers runners a first-class trail race, but is also designed to showcase and raise awareness for the Farm’s property, programs and CSA (community supported agriculture) operations. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the farm.Dogs are not allowed at Weir River Farm. barntorun.com

Where you connect.

Where you belong.

Visit our Welcome Center to see floor plans and interior renderings as well as learn about how Benchmark provides a premier senior living experience through exceptional care, programming, dining and social connections.

Call today to learn about our award winning assisted living and memory care opening summer 2022.*

OCTOBER 23 HINGHAM ARTS WALK

781.574.8350

1143 Washington St., Hanover BenchmarkAtHanover.com

*EOEA Certification Pending

The 17th Annual Hingham Arts Walk invites the community to experience the arts throughout downtown Hingham. Artists will display their talents in shops, on the sidewalks, open studios and in historic buildings. You will see fine art painting, illustration, photography, jewelry, mixed media, youth art, pottery, pastel, collage, wood and decorative arts in the exhibition. Artists will demonstrate, display and sell their work during the Arts Walk. While you stroll, browse, and chat with artists, you’ll enjoy music from local band Take Out.12 - 4 p.m. Discoverhingham.com

OCTOBER 29 TRICK OR TREAT IN HINGHAM SQUARE

Have your little ghouls and goblins dress in their best Halloween costume for the annual Trick or Treat in Hingham Square. Participating shops will distribute festive treats to children from 12 - 3 p.m. Join with your little ones for a fun filled afternoon in downtown Hingham. Discoverhingham.com

NOVEMBER 19

HINGHAM HOLIDAY FAIR

Browse the website to view vendor lists and pictures‘click’ on the picture or name and you are on your way to that vendor’s website or other contact information. Even more fun, you can reach vendors now! For questions regarding the event, please contact Lisa Lavieri by email at llavieri@hotmail.com or by phone at 781-740-8451. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Hingham High School, 17 Union St., Hingham, MA

NOVEMBER 26 - DECEMBER 17 HOLLY JOLLY HINGHAM

Come to Hingham Square to enjoy holiday festivities every Saturday between November 26 and December 17. Enjoy a horse-drawn hayride. Drop off letters to Santa in the designated mailbox, pose for festive photos and shop local for last-minute holiday gifts from 5-8 p.m. in Hingham Square.

DECEMBER 2 CHRISTMAS IN THE SQUARE

Downtown Hingham will be celebrating Christmas in the Square on Friday, December 2nd from 5-8pm. This Hingham holiday tradition has been enjoyed by thousands of residents and neighbors across the South Shore for over 40 years. We welcome all to join us in this old-fashioned, hometown seasonal celebration. Santa will arrive in Hingham Square atop a fire truck in a winter wonderland of white lights and festively decorated shops. Live music from local musicians and student groups. For more details, visit discoverhingham.com

“Springtime over World’s End”

Photo by Richard W. Green of Greenflash Photography

“The whole world is photogenic at an altitude of 150 feet,” says photographer Richard Green, who is known for capturing dynamic aerial photographs of the South Shore. Green has worked as a freelance photographer for almost 50 years, but about five years ago the Hull resident got a FAA Remote Pilot Certificate and began experimenting with aerial photography.

“Being able to place my mind’s eye both in and above the landscape had not been accessible before,” says Green, who frequently focuses his camera lens on the scenic coastline of Hull and Hingham. His image, “Springtime Over World’s End” was shot on a clear day and shows the spectacular view that extends from a grassy hill at World’s End all the way to Boston, on the horizon. To view more examples of Green’s work, check out his Instagram account, @greenflash.

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