Hi all,
It’s week two of our good news(letter)! This week is Easter and Passover – holidays of hope for Christians and Jews. The message of both holidays – rebirth and overcoming oppression – are especially relevant during these times. I grew up anticipating the joy of Easter midnight mass and the Easter bunny basket delivery and now enjoy Seders with my husband’s family and our friends – our first Seder by zoom this week was wonderful, albeit not as nice as in person.
I should have mentioned this last week – if you have good news worth sharing please write to me so I can include it! While this crisis continues to wreak havoc across the world, I have found myself perpetually amazed by the Cambridge community stepping up to take care of our most vulnerable populations. So much is being done to try and mitigate the ramifications of COVID-19, but as always, we can and must do more.
I hope that the list below – which includes just a few good things that are happening – provides some inspiration and hope.
The effort I mentioned in last week’s email has launched!
As people around the country seek ways to help during this crisis, one way is to provide meals for health care workers with a focus on those dealing directly with the Covid19 pandemic. In Cambridge, some community members (Jen Fries, Sarah Bloch and I) started a local program FeedTheFrontlines – Cambridge. The goal is twofold: support Cambridge restaurants which are hurting and worried about their ability to stay in business, AND give tangible appreciation to workers in Cambridge hospitals and Boston Health Care for the Homeless. We are affiliated with FeedtheFightBoston, and there are other similar efforts across the country (including Off Their Plate, which has strong Cambridge connections). Please support any of these efforts!
Mutual aid groups have formed around the country and Cambridge is no exception – people have stepped up in a big way to help their neighbors over the past month. Here is a description of their work:
The purpose of this group is to enable Cambridge residents to request or provide support from and to their neighbors throughout the COVID19 emergency and beyond. Founded in March 2020, we have more than a dozen core volunteer organizers, 400 community volunteers, and 40 neighborhood pods across the city. We are committed to the values of solidarity not charity, choosing to trust each other, transparency, and respecting the dignity of all. For more information go to their website or email cambridgemutualaid@gmail.com.
All the Cambridge City Councilors with our masks!
Masks, masks and masks. Local folks are volunteering to make masks for anyone in need – especially residents who are compromised. One of the many examples: my 80 year old neighbor asked me about getting a mask – I said I didn’t sew but would get her one. Sure enough, I posted on NextDoor and within a day a neighbor had made some masks and delivered them. And Cambridge students are making masks for anyone who needs one! Check out their work (and request a mask if needed)!
Get your kids searching for bears with the help of this awesome map (click here) that some folks put together in Cambridge and Somerville. It was inspired by the book We’re Going On A Bear Hunt by Helen Oxenbury and Michael Rosen and I have been amazed by the number of stuffed animals I’ve seen just in my neighborhood.
Good News about actual news...
The NYTimes is offering free access to high schools during this challenging time when educators across the country are scrambling to figure out how to provide learning for students remotely. If you know of folks who could benefit, please share. During this time, I am especially grateful for news organizations, who are continuing to provide us all with information necessary for a functioning government and essential for democracy. If you don’t already support the news, and can – I encourage you to consider it.
Historic New England sites continue to provide us with wonderful animal content. Last week at Casey Farm, four ducklings were born and after an online vote it was decided that they will be known as Dodge, Duck, Dip, & Dive.
If you need an update on Comet (the baby goat in my email last week), check out this tweet.
Our mailing address is:
Councilor Patty Nolan
184 Huron Ave
Cambridge, MA
02138