It's summer in Newton! We hope you've been enjoying the sunshine (and today, some much-needed rain!) and wonderful local events and community opportunities. This month, we have a combined newsletter with information on helping and connecting with neighbors, as well as fun events and information on what's happening in town.
Please consider sharing this newsletter and our website or brochure with a new neighbor.
August 1 - 18: School Supply Drive
Newton Neighbors is collaborating with the Street at Chestnut Hill and the Village Bank to collect school supplies for children in Newton and neighboring towns. Drop off your donations at any Village Bank location in Newton. Back to School on a chalkboard
Our goal is to collect school supplies for 200 children. Donations will be distributed in time for the first day of school.
We would appreciate donations of:
good-quality new or gently used backpacks (backpacks for middle and high school students are the most needed). Please do not donate backpacks with monogrammed names or initials or company-specific logos.
good-quality new or gently used lunchboxes. Please do not donate lunchboxes with monogrammed names or initials or company-specific logos.
water bottles
new or used graphing calculators
notebooks (composition, spiral, and graphing)
pens and pencils
$25 gift cards to Star Market or Target for purchase of school supplies
Donations can also be purchased via our Amazon wish list.
Summer Food Assistance
Summer can be particularly difficult for food-insecure families whose kids are out of school and cannot rely on school lunches to supplement already stretched budgets. Here are some opportunities to provide fresh and healthy food for families in our community.
Bulk Food Delivery
NN’s bulk food delivery program is looking for short- and long-term volunteers to join us in delivering fresh produce from local food rescue organizations to MetroWest and South Area food pantries. Help bridge that last link in the distribution chain and provide good food to so many who need it. Commitments range from once in a while to once every 4-6 weeks, or even more. Please reach out to us at newtonneighborshelping@gmail.com to volunteer or find out more.
Freedge
Every other Thursday volunteers from Newton Neighbors pick up and deliver food to the Freedge from the Newton Food Pantry and business partners like Sweet Tomatoes, Tatte, and Sandwich Works. Our volunteers ensure that the Freedge is clean and organized. If you’d like to get involved with our Freedge team, we’d love to have you on board! We have slots available for July and August.
Sign up at volunteersignup.org/4CD7T
If you have food or personal care items to donate to the Freedge, you can take them directly to the Freedge at 420 Watertown Street (in the parking lot of Central Drapery and Dry Cleaning) or drop them off at 174 Oliver Road, Waban.
Food Pantry Delivery: Looking for Volunteers for July and August
We are looking for volunteers to help us deliver from food pantries in Newton to families who are unable to access the pantries themselves. We need drivers for July and August! Delivery usually takes about an hour to complete. You can sign up to deliver during one or more of the following times:
Tuesday afternoons in July from Centre Street Food Pantry, pick up food between 12 - 12:30pm before the pantry is open to the public.
Wednesday afternoons from Newton Food Pantry, pick up food at assigned delivery times between 12:15 - 2:45pm.
The 3rd Friday of the month from the American Legion Nonantum Post 440 Mobile Food Bank, pick up food 9 - 9:15am before the pantry opens to the public
The first Saturday in August from Centre Street Food Pantry, pick up food between 1:30 - 2:30pm after the pantry is open to the public.
July signups: https://volunteersignup.org/RKA3A
August Signups: https://volunteersignup.org/QHAD3
Community Events & Information
Shop local!
This a particularly important time to support our local businesses. The Charles River Chamber of Commerce has a list of their local retail members - you can browse for local shopping options here.
Summer Concerts!
July 10 - August 14: free Sunday evening Newton Centre Summer Concert Series at the Newton Centre Bowl (off Tyler Terrace). 6:00 - 7:30pm. Click HERE to see who’s playing each week.
Summer concert series
The Hyde Center's Summer in the Highlands series continues throughout the summer with concerts and a movie on Friday evenings. More details and schedule here.
July 22 - 24: Linda Plaut Newton Festival of the Arts
20+ Performances – 4 Stages – 3 Days
The 7th annual Linda Plaut Newton Festival of the Arts will span many facets of arts and culture including genres of music from blues to baroque, classical guitar to R&B, and opera to jazz. The Festival has served as a catalyst for
the cultural life in the city since 2015 and has been a showcase of Newton’s talent and Newton Cultural Council grant recipients for many arts organizations and artists over the years. In addition, this year All Over Newton is working with local businesses and restaurants to offer for deals and sales throughout the festival weekend!
Are you a Newton resident renting your home?
Join the Newton Theater Company’s upcoming project: The Monologue Project: Renters Edition. Spend the summer bonding with fellow renters and exploring different story-sharing and performance techniques before sharing your story with a broader Newton audience in October. Newton Theatre Company is proud to offer an encouraging and meaningful experience to renters of all ages and backgrounds, whether you have any experience performing or not. Find your voice, share your story, and become an integral part of the Newton Renter community! More information at https://www.newtontheatrecompany.com/.
Enjoy the summer!
As always, thank you to all of you for efforts to build community and support one another. Have a great summer and stay cool!
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