By Ellen Walker
Special to the Gazette
“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” -Andy Warhol an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art in the 1960’s.
A welcoming and positive change is taking place in Mission Hill. Every community has a Center and neighborhood landmarks. This month, a former landmark of Mission Hill, Flann O’Brien’s Pub, is opening with a new owner and name. A new Chapter is about to begin with a restaurant named Yellow Door Taqueria located at 1619 Tremont Street that opened on November 1st. Do stop by, see the change for yourself, get a bite to eat and be sure to say hello to Colleen, Jarek and Brian!
Mission Grammar celebrated Halloween costumes with a parade in front of Mission Church. The laughter and applause could be heard for blocks as young students showed off their creative, colorful and fun costumes to the delight of onlookers and local drivers who happened to be passing by. As part of Mission Hill tradition, the annual Halloween party on the Hill organized by Tobin Community Center was a huge hit and enjoyed by hundreds of children, adults and families on Monday, October 31st!
Representative Nika Elugardo and Aaron Michelwitz, House Ways and Means Chair, are key players in the youth grants for the 15th Suffolk Youth Jobs in local main streets, including Mission Hill Main Streets. Elugardo and Michelwitz stopped by to personally thank the main street directors, community members and the business owners who were part of the grant process that provided jobs to local youth over the past two years.
For those of you who have an interest to learn about the history of Mission Hill, you can now drop into the Parker Hill Library and borrow a copy of the recently released “Mission Hill Through Time” by A. Sammarco. Here is a short excerpt to catch your interest – “The Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston has long been a thriving nexus of cultures, with residents of all walks of life, including numerous workers in the medical field, making it an inclusive, busy, and evolving neighborhood. Though Mission Hill is less than one square mile, it is a neighborhood constantly in transition … with a variety of housing, restaurants, and pubs, it also offers green spaces such as the Iroquois Woods, the Kevin W. Fitzgerald Park, and the Back of the Hill Urban Wild, making it a small neighborhood that has evolved over the last century as a destination.” We are certain that you will enjoy the story woven with history, immigration and politics.
We continue with our ongoing series of highlighting some of Mission Hill’s exemplary individuals who are true entrepreneurs. This month we meet Willy and Pamela Leins, owners of In The Cut Barbershop, who just celebrated three years at 1437 Tremont Street! When you walk in the door, you feel the “familia” energy. Customers range in age with artistic, trendy hairstyle requests and everyone is talking at once and smiling. Both Willy and Pamela are proud of what they have built. For years, they wanted a barbershop because of the culture it represents – it provides a safe place for men, personal respect is practiced and it creates a passageway to manhood as young fathers being their kids in for their first haircut.
From the beginning Willy and Pamela wanted to find a space here in Mission Hill and one day, by luck, they drove past the recently posted “for rent” sign and made that commitment. Pamela said her son Joao is her best marketing manager and Max knows, and is proud, it is his family’s shop. “The neighborhood has always been welcoming to us and we quickly became a staple. The fact the shop runs on its own speaks volumes to how much the barber’s care. It is their community and shop too!” Drop in, say hello and get a haircut.
We continue with our ongoing series of highlighting some of Mission Hill’s exemplary individuals who are true entrepreneurs. This month we meet Willy Garcia and Pamela Leins, owners of In The Cut Barbershop, who just celebrated three years at 1437 Tremont Street! From the beginning, Willy and Pamela wanted to find a space here in Mission Hill and one day, by luck, they drove past the recently posted “for rent” sign and made that commitment. Pamela said her son João (11) is her best marketing manager and Maxwell (5) knows, and is proud, it is his family’s shop. “The neighborhood has always been welcoming to us and we quickly became a staple here. The fact the shop runs on its own speaks volumes to how much our barbers care and feel like it’s their barbershop, their community, too!” Drop in, say hello and get a haircut.
Several celebratory neighborhood events are filling out the Holiday Calendar in the upcoming weeks. In addition to being Native American Heritage Month, the Mission Hill American Legion Post 327’s annual Veterans Day Ceremony is being held on Thursday, November 11th at 11:00am in Brigham Circle at the Hanlon Square memorial park – light refreshments will be served. This is one of those events that truly brings out the best of Mission Hill – old, young and students. We hope to see you there. Stay tuned for more details on the Mayor’s Trolley and Tree Lighting Tour and the launch of this year’s “Shop small, shop local!” Promotion.
Until next month, be safe!