April showers bring May flowers… and outdoor dining, and street cleaning, etc..
By Courtney Wright
I find this month’s column challenging to write because I know my words will fall short in adequately capturing the joy shared at many of the events over this past month.
At Main Streets, I am lucky to share an office space with the Boston Debate League. In the last year alone, they have engaged 423 Boston students in 20+ hours of BDL-led events and 747 students overall in after-school debate programming, including our neighbors at Fenway High and EMK. On March 7, Boston Debate League held its exciting City Championship Finals at the Museum of Science, bringing together over 200 supporters – school leaders, debate coaches, peers, and families – to celebrate the achievements of this season’s top debaters. With an inspiring keynote by Allison Cartwright, Suffolk County Clerk, and the presence of local leaders including City Councilors Sharon Durkan and Brian Worrell, the event featured intense debates on the topic of Artificial Intelligence. After months of preparation, students showcased their intellectual prowess in a memorable evening, with honors going to the winning teams from Kennedy/Brown Middle School, Fenway High, Brighton High, and Woonsocket High. Check out the blog post for more highlights from the end-of-season event and to learn more about BDL and how to support the great work they do for the students in our neighborhood and City https://www.bostondebate.org/2025/03/19/where-ideas-collide-city-championships/.
St. Patrick’s Day is always a big deal in Boston and while Mission Hill is acutely aware of the debauchery that accompanies it, we did our best to counter that and offer some festive entertainment in its place in Brigham Circle on the Saturday prior to the holiday. Beginning on Saturday afternoon, the community service arm of Northeastern’s Business fraternity, Delta Sigma Pi, contributed about 30 volunteers to pick up trash and clean shrubbery along the business district and helped prepare Brigham Circle for that evening’s event.
As students picked up trash outside, the Parker Hill Library hosted the annual Anthology Reading of the Mission Hill Women’s Writing Group. With a grant from the Mission Hill/Fenway Neighborhood Trust, the MH Women’s Writing Group works throughout the fall with writing coaches and others to create an annual Anthology of their work. Nancy Ahmadifar works hard to put this together and her efforts are appreciated by so many, as evidenced by the great turnout of over 40 people at their event. I encourage you all to purchase a copy of this Anthology- it’s wonderful.
Later that evening, the Boston Police Gaelic Column Pipe and Drum Band ended their activities for the day by performing amongst packed houses at both Penguin Pizza and the Mission Bar and Grill. I loved seeing people’s faces as they entered each of the businesses and began playing. For those who didn’t know it was happening, they were pleasantly surprised and joined in. It was a great night and judging by how long they hung out, I believe them when they say they can’t wait to come back next year. Thank you again to MHMS Board member and Penguin owner Pamela Carthy for making the connection that made the event possible and to Harry Walsh, owner at the Mission, for being such a gracious host to the post-performance festivities and collaboration all weekend. It was a great Saturday in Mission Hill and I’m so appreciative of everyone who helped to make it possible.
This past Tuesday, the 25th was a very bittersweet day in the neighborhood as a couple events took place to celebrate and thank David Passafaro, President of New England Baptist Hospital as he prepares for retirement next month. In the afternoon, NEBH and the Tobin Community Center hosted their quarterly birthday party for MH Seniors. It was such a fun event with a great mix of Mission Hill residents; including Mossy Martin (a great writer who puts this column to shame). David was in attendance and had the opportunity to hear directly from seniors, community leaders like Pat Flaherty and John Jackson, and City staff as they spoke with admiration and gratitude about the impact he and NEBH have had on the lives of so many in Mission Hill. Emily Shea, the Commissioner of Age Strong Commission was one of the speakers and presented remarks and a proclamation on behalf of Mayor Wu and the City declaring March 25th “David Passafaro Day” in the City of Boston.
That evening, an event was held from 5-7 p.m. at the Mission for David- a continuation of the afternoon party and a chance for people to come together and wish him well as he embarks on a new chapter. It was well attended by faces old and new; a fun evening to catch up with so many. City Councilors Erin Murphy and Sharon Durkan both presented proclamations on behalf of the Boston City Council acknowledging David’s contributions over his great and impactful career. Rep. Sam Montano was in attendance and presented a heartfelt acknowledgement on behalf of the State House, with Corey Jordan present on behalf of Rep. Chynah Tyler, who acknowledged his contributions over his career with a proclamation as well. In addition to participating on the MH Main Streets Board, NEBH under David’s direction and via the selfless work of Christine Dwyer, has contributed so much to our organization in so many ways beyond financial. We are so grateful for their partnership and mentorship and will miss David beyond what we can express.
As we prepare for ‘May flowers’, April is a busy month. April 1st means that street cleaning is back, but I encourage everyone to download the 311 app and report sidewalk and street trash as you see it. MHMS is working on efforts to get regular cleaning twice a week along the business district in the next month in the absence of the availability of hoakies, but in the meantime, the squeaky wheel gets the grease so I encourage you to join me in reporting regularly to 311- graffiti, litter, etc. Graffiti Busters- the city’s graffiti removal program starts back up the first of May but I encourage you to report it as you see it as well in the meantime. If you want an opportunity to get your hands dirty and participate in some neighborhood clean-up efforts, April 12th, is the City’s annual Love Your Block clean-up day for Mission Hill. MH Main Streets is one of the registered sites so if you would like to join our Board and other volunteers to participate in a clean-up during Love Your Block, please reach out to me at [email protected]. We will be meeting at Sheehy Park on April 12th at 9 a.m. and all are welcome (but if you plan to come and can let us know, please do so we can prepare supplies).
Councilor Henry Santana will be hosting office hours on Friday, April 18th at Mike’s Donuts beginning at 9 a.m. These office hours provide an excellent opportunity for you to engage directly with councilor Santana (and say hi to Maria) and his staff in a one-on-one setting. Whether you have concerns about constituent services, questions about quality-of-life issues, or ideas to improve our city, they’d love to hear from you. Visit their website to sign up for a timeslot in advance: https://www.henrysantana.com/office-hours.
Finally, this year’s Boston Marathon will be April 21st and Mission Grammar’s own Mr. Mike Morris is running for a second year in support of the brilliant scholars of Mission Grammar. Mr. Morris is a long-time teacher and current Dean of Scholars at MG, so if you’d like to show your support, you can donate at https://swipesimple.com/links/lnk_db73ed3e.
I am naturally long-winded and have much more to say but will save it for May’s edition. In the meantime, I hope to see you all at Henry’s office hours or at a neighborhood cleanup. Otherwise, I look forward to seeing everyone on outdoor patios when Outdoor dining starts May 1st.
If I missed anything or you would like something included, please feel free to get in touch at [email protected].