Above: In media profiles, one Southborough professional focused on the power of touch while another spoke about managing the challenge of working as a deaf person in a hearing world. (Images posted to Facebook, left by BabyKneads and right by Expressions Art Bar)
Several professionals who live or work in our community have made headlines, recent and not-so-recent. So, it’s time to catch you up on community news.
(I’m expanding this beyond Southborough, because one member of Algonquin’s community is definitely worthy of inclusion here.)
Walsh: 61 years, still counting – The Algonquin Harbinger:
After a controversy over a beloved staff member’s limited duties at the high school, it appears a compromise was reached allowing him to work some hours in the cafeteria again. The school newspaper shared the news in this thoughtful profile on Dick Walsh:
Richard “Dick” Walsh shuffles through the halls and cafeteria often pausing to pick through a trash can or to crack a joke with a passing teacher or student. His unassuming frame carries a long history of hard work and passion for ARHS. He is a man who has spent 61 of his 83 years contributing to Algonquin’s legacy. . .
Walsh, in fact, gives the food scraps [from the cafeteria trash cans] to his two beloved dogs and recycles the aluminum cans for the deposit money, which he keeps until a new project needs funding at Algonquin. (read more)
[One of Walsh’s past projects was a new ticket booth. He commissioned a woodworking class to construct it using wood he paid for. Now on his wish list is a shelter between the soccer fields.]
Southborough family thrives on challenges and joys of being deaf – Community Advocate:
Mary Silvestri Simmons leads a busy life in Southborough as a wife, mother, artist, member of the Southborough Cultural Arts Council (SCAC), and owner -along with her husband Justin – of a new business, Expressions Art Bar.
Although both she and her husband are deaf, it has not prevented them from doing what they love and being a force in the community. (read more)
Southborough Residents Named 2015 Mass. Super Lawyers – contributed:
Southborough residents Ted Bassett and Elizabeth Greene from Mirick O’Connell have been named to the 2015 Massachusetts Super Lawyers list. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor.
Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. The result is a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of exceptional attorneys.
Note: I learned this morning that Chair of the Board of Selectman, John Rooney, is also a MA Super Lawyer – and has been for the past five years.
Business Leader Profile on Southborough’s Greg Riddle – Metrowest Daily News:
A Q&A with the Southborough resident who runs Premier Martial Arts in Marlborough.
Tell us how you ended up in this line of work.
Eighteen years ago, while successful in a career I didn’t enjoy, I was determined to find a new career that I could be enthusiastic about in the long run. I took a mental inventory of what I liked most about my current job: profit and loss responsibility, training others and physical activity, and then combined that with my passion for martial arts training. The rest is history. (read more)
Benefits of Infant Massage Demonstrated at Library Workshop – Bellingham Bulletin:
This one I’m way overdue in sharing. But I haven’t run a “professionals roundup” since this made the news!
Parents with a new baby at home want to build a connection with their little one, as well as be able to help them when they are being fussy. Infant massage can help with both. Certified Infant Massage Instructor Sheryl White (pictured above) spoke at the Bellingham Library on Jan. 13 about the power of touch and the benefits of infant massage.
White has been educating the public for 15 years on how powerful infant massage can be when done regularly. Infant massage creates a special time for you and your baby each day. Both baby and parent receive benefits during this bonding time, which means it is important for the caregiver to take a few deep breaths and release any tension from her/his own body before practicing infant massage on the baby. (read more)
Updated (10/29/15 8:50 am): I learned that we have at least one other Super Lawyer living in town – Board of Selectman Chair John Rooney. And I fixed the missing link to the article on Sheryl White.
