More than you really want to know about Natick, Mass.
Good to know that St. Patrick is watching over Natick on St. Patrick’s Day.
As they say in Gaelic, lá Fhéile Pádraig sona duit (translation: Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you!). With such warm sentiments, go ahead and celebrate, no matter your ancestry. Everybody’s Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, dontcha know.
Natick will not hold its Independence Day parade for the third straight year, according to the Natick Friends of the 4th group. This time, it’s more a lack of resources to blame than the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in the last two parades being scrapped.
From the Friends’ Board:
After an almost complete dissolution of the previous board of directors in 2018, a small group of less than 10 brand-new volunteers stepped up and pulled off a wonderful 4th of July parade in 2019. Unfortunately, we were not able to hold the parade in 2020 or 2021 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic and associated financial changes for sponsors. Our group has now decreased to six volunteers and no longer has the bandwidth or resources to plan, fundraise for, or produce a parade.
Last year, the Friends morphed the July 4 celebration into a spirited house decorating contest.
For those of us who have fond memories that go back to Natick’s 4th of July road race finishing in Natick Center (I’m not making that up, right?), and seeing TV cowboy Rex Trailer wave from a float, a third straight parade-less July 4th is disappointing.
Hopefully, we’ll see a comeback down the road.
The Friends is an all-volunteer group that raises money and organizes the parade. If you have ideas or questions, you can reach out here: info@natick4th.org
Please send tips, photos, ideas to natickreport@gmail.com
Not the same as a July 4th parade, but one way to satisfy your parade fix this year could be moseying up the road to Wellesley for its Veterans Parade, slated for May 22. Like the Natick Friends of the 4th, the Wellesley Celebrations Committee that organizes the parade has found itself challenged to raise funds, especially because it just had a parade in October, delayed from May 2021 due to the pandemic.
We’re not suggesting all (or even many) of these Natick street names derive from the last names of U.S. Presidents, but we found quite a few street names in common with presidents’ names, so what the heck:
Happy Presidents Day, whether you live on one of these streets, or not:
Not quite here…(yes, this would seem to be for Admiral Dewey, not Thomas Dewey, who was upset by Harry Truman in 1948)
Natick’s Martin Luther King Jr. celebration took place online Monday, with participation from a who’s who of local residents, including talented singers as well as community leaders and town officials reading passages from Dr. King’s “Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution.”
The Natick Runners and a few of their associates kicked off the New Year with a quick Polar Plunge at Dug Pond, something that’s become a yearly tradition among the athletic and social group. About a dozen hearty souls met at the small beach at the boat launch area, counted to three, and dashed into the chilly waters. The air temps were in the high 40s, so there was much swagger and boasting about how this was really nothing, and you should have been here the year the ice had to be broken up for the plunge to take place.
Natick Select Board member Paul Joseph was there for what he said was his fourth or fifth time. “I’m going in,” he said. “The bigger question is if I’m coming out.” (Spoiler alert: Joseph’s term will not be cut short due to any mishap. All went fine.)
We weren’t sure if the pond was zoned for this type of activity, so we checked in with Zoning Board of Appeals’ Jason Makofsky, who also joined in the fun. “As long as we’re not building any permanent structures today, it should be fine,” he said.
Since we’re the types to take our time easing into the water on the hottest July day, we’re duly impressed by anyone willing to shrug out of their down jackets and so much as dip a toe at this time of year. “I like doing it,” Mikal Rosendahl said. “I don’t know why. It doesn’t make any sense. I just do.”
Meredith Bazirgan emerged positively glowing with good health and discreetly revealed that this was just her first plunge of the day. “I’m an ocean dipper, so this wasn’t that bad. It really wakes you up.” Next stop for Bazirgan was Salisbury, NH, where she was meeting up with some family members so as to wake up even further.
To Polar Plungers everywhere: I am not worthy.
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