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Tag Archives: Laura Drinan

Medfield teen releases debut novel

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Most high school juniors spend their third year participating in extracurricular activities, spending hours studying for tests and quizzes, preparing for the SATs, and going on college visits. Medfield High School’s Tatum Samson accomplished all of that and published her debut novel, “Plugs.” On June 9, Tatum visited the Medfield...
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Walpole High grads toss their caps

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter In September of 2014, Walpole High’s freshmen sat in their homerooms for the first time, wondering what the next four years at the high school would bring them. Perhaps some days in those last four years seemed to be never-ending, but on June 3, these students could officially say...
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Powisset Farm serves up brunch

By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter If you’ve ever wondered how to make the perfect meal, you might want to befriend some of the seniors in Dover and Westwood who frequently participate in the in the “Powisset Cooks!” program at Powisset Farm. These Council on Aging members have honed their knife skills, refined their palates, and, most...
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Elm Bank beckons anew

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter For some, the start of spring is the date of the March equinox. Others don’t consider the season to have arrived until the snow melts away and the trees and flowers begin blooming. However, for many, the spring finally springs when the Massachusetts Horticultural Society opens the Gardens at...
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Library exhibits ‘Green Politics’

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Although climate change is a controversial topic in the United States, many countries around the globe have agreed that it is happening and is negatively influencing the planet. In the past few decades, activist groups have attempted to raise awareness for global warming and the need for environmental protection....
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Thurston Middle performs amazing musical

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Thurston Middle School’s seventh and eighth grade students may be young, but they are bursting with talent. They proved that with their performances of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” at Westwood High School from April 5 to 7. The middle school thespians followed the script of Tim Rice and...
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Medfield Winter Carnival is a blast

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter It’s a longstanding tradition that every elementary school student in Medfield looked forward to this year: the annual Winter Carnival at Memorial School. For years, the Memorial and Wheelock School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) teamed up to host a day of carnival games and prizes, silent auctions, and baked goods...
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The art of appreciation

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter A group of seniors sat around the conference table at the Westwood Council on Aging, each studying a handout with three different photographs printed on it. On the left side of the page was a photo of Donatello’s bronze sculpture of David, who stood with a feminine build, a...
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Tech Time offers Bristlebot playtime

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By Laura Drinan
 Hometown Weekly Reporter The Dover Town Library’s Community Room was abuzz with Bristlebots on February 8. Bristlebots, thumb-sized vibrating robots made from a toothbrush head, double-sided tape, a battery, and a pager motor, have become quite popular at Tech Time, one of the library’s STEAM-based programs for children 8 to thirteen years...
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‘Radium Girls’ illuminates Footlighters stage

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Imagine it’s the 1920’s and at the age of 15, you abandon your studies to earn money at a factory job. The work is easy, the pay is phenomenal, and the other girls in the factory make the time pass quickly with their chatter and antics. You touch a...
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NHS experiences ‘One Day’ author panel

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Have you ever finished a book that just left you so astounded and inspired to write your own novel? It has certainly happened to some of the students at Needham High School. For their half-day schedule on January 31, Needham High students participated in the “One Day” experience, with this...
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COA builds strength and stability

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter The leftover snow lining Springdale Ave was brown with dirt as it began to melt. I carefully stepped over the puddles, making sure to not ruin my brilliant white running shoes, as headed for the entrance to the Caryl Community Center. Hesitantly, I pulled on the door, thinking about...
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The Party Elements amp up chemistry

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter On the top floor of the Sherborn Community Center, Children’s Librarian Cheryl Ouellette stood beside a huge tarp, surrounded by children who were eagerly awaiting the start of The Party Elements’ science experiments. Promising elephant toothpaste, soda explosions, and balloon skewers to the aspiring young scientists, the hosts, Mindy Levine...
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Wolverines score community service wins

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter “High school sports and being together only comes once in a lifetime, so let's make the absolute best of it,” Coach Ed Amico said to the players on the Westwood girls ice hockey team.

Amico doesn’t just mean on the ice, though. For the past few years, the team...
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TPC welcomes senior pool hustlers

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Since the new Council on Aging (COA) building opened its doors in October, Wellesley’s seniors have had no issues moving in to their new home away from home. The multipurpose room is regularly used for luncheons and guest speakers, and seniors frequent the Mary Bowers café for a cup...
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COA transforms into laugh factory

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By Laura Drinan 
Hometown Weekly Reporter “When you see somebody laughing, you want to laugh, too,” said Certified Laughter Leader, Trevor Smith, explaining that laughter is like a social glue. “It’s contagious.” Wellesley’s Tolles Parsons Center was certainly filled with laughter at Trevor’s program, which taught seniors about the health benefits of laughter and had them...
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Library tees up mini-golf event

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Over time, many public libraries have evolved to be the hub of the community. Friendly librarians, a wealth of information available through books and computers, and plenty of programming for all ages draw masses to libraries. Well, at least that’s the case with the Needham Free Public Library. The...
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COA hosts annual bingo luncheon

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter “G52… O73… N43… B4…” Sue Sheridan, the administrative assistant at Dover’s Council on Aging, called out. As she read the letters and numbers aloud for all to hear, the seniors meticulously checked their boards, making sure they caught each number on their card and marking it off. After drawing...
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Historical musical promotes social equality

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter At the Women’s Journey Conference in California in 2010, Dr. Thea Iberall premiered a play that could change America’s views on women in society. Women are no longer the damsels in distress in need of rescue by Prince Charming – and they have not been for a long time. Proving...
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COA continues intermediate German course

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By Laura Drinan Hometown Weekly Reporter Sprechen Sie Deutsch? Perhaps you might not speak German, but there is a group at Wellesley’s Council on Aging that does. The dedicated Germanophiles meet each week at the Tolles Parsons Center to speak, read, write, and translate German under the instruction of German native and COA volunteer Gerda...
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