By Douglas Yu

“Let’s go all around and say what you are thankful for, but you don’t have to say anything awkward or uncomfortable,” Benjamin Lovenheim was playing a peaceful tune with his guitar and was saying this in front a group of people who came together to share a warm and musical moment for Thanksgiving Day.

Santa and all his friends are making big plans to entertain and provide wonderfully gift shopping opportunities for Somerville residents over the next few weeks.

By Jim Clark

Somerville is gearing up for some very special celebrations and events as the holiday season approaches.

The annual tree and Menorah lighting at City Hall, the Arts Council’s Illuminations Tour, and a first-ever “Holiday Arts and Eats” Festival at Assembly Row, sponsored by Federal Realty Investment Trust, are among the highlights of this year’s holiday festivities in and around Somerville.

By Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and  do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff  or publishers)

This week we celebrate Thanksgiving and the beginning of Hanukkah, spending time with family and friends, and hopefully taking a moment to reflect on what we’re thankful for. I’m thankful for my family, my wife and four sons, and that every day in my job I have the opportunity to make life a little bit better, a little easier for the people of our community. Wrapped up in the day-to-day concerns of our own lives, it can sometimes be easy to forget how blessed we are and the opportunities we’ve had because someone—a family member, a friend or even a complete stranger—lent us a helping hand and gave us the support we needed to make our lives better.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and  do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff  or publishers)

Alas, another Thanksgiving in Somerville. With all the craziness in the world today, I’m thankful for just making it through another year. It’s time to be thankful for the things we have and the people we cherish. Sometimes we are just too busy to stop and count our blessings. We have schedules that need to be met each day. We usually go to bed, wake up, shower (hopefully), make lunches, walk dogs, drop kids off, and head to work at roughly the same time each weekday.

Brickbottom and Joy Street host open studios
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Four-year-old Vienna Reichert of Somerville checked out a painting at the Brickbottom Open Studios last weekend, accompanied by her dad Christopher. – Photo by Elizabeth Sheeran

By Elizabeth Sheeran

You couldn’t move more than a few feet in the Brickbottom Artists Buildings last weekend without coming face-to-face with art in one form or another. More than 100 artists who live and work in Brickbottom and the Joy Street studios welcomed the public into their homes and workspaces on Saturday and Sunday for their 26th annual Open Studios event.

UMass Lowell Students helped distribute 5,000 meals this Thanksgiving.

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Boston partnered with the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley to distribute nearly 5,000 Thanksgiving meals to families in need throughout Boston and the surrounding communities this month. The event in Somerville took place Saturday morning, November 23 at Catholic Charities Greater Boston, 270 Washington Street, Somerville.

Everett plan moves forward
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This architect’s rendering of the proposed development, taken from the Wynn Everett website, shows the casino complex that Wynn Resorts plans to build if all of the legal hurdles can be cleared.

By Elizabeth Sheeran

It’s been a “good news, bad news” month for casino opponents in Somerville. The good news: public support for gaming in Massachusetts looks to be waning, with a wave of casino proposals going down to defeat in recent host community referendums. The bad news: those defeats elsewhere are improving the odds for a Wynn Resorts casino just across the Mystic River in Everett, which passed its own local referendum months ago.

By Sophia Carafotes /Photos by Harry Agritha

From Mount Athos, Greece, to Somerville, from ancient history to the path towards the future. The Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church fulfilled their vision of bringing the Holy Icon of Panagia Axion Estin from Mount Athos, Greece this past Saturday evening on November 23, at 7:00 p.m.

Happy Thanksgiving to all here in the Ville and elsewhere. We wish everyone a great family day for all. It will be a long weekend with crazy shopping, but don’t forget our local merchants here in Somerville. They too want your business, they are part of our community. Happy Thanksgiving!