L to R: Rick’s sister Jeaneen Barletta, Mass Motorcyclist Survivors Fund President Paul W. Cote, Sue Hart and Mike “Ironside” Carpenter, BAMR President.

By William Tauro

A benefit fundraiser was held this past Saturday evening for local Rick Barletta to help support with the recovery from his horrific accident whereby he sustained permanent injuries in a near fatal motorcycle crash this past May. The event took place at the Winter Hill Yacht Club in Somerville and helped raise well needed money to help with his care for him and his family as well as monies needed towards purchasing a wheelchair accessible van. Also in Rick’s support that evening in attendance was Paul W. Cote, President Mass Motorcyclist Survivors Fund/New England Regional Road Riding Delegate to the AMA Congress and Mike “Iron Side” Carpenter President of BAMR (Boston Area Motor Cycle Riders) as well as Cindy Hickey from the City of Somerville COA Director/Toys for Local Children organizer. Also, special thanks to the Massachusetts Motorcycle Association for all there continuous support.

Victorious members of the St. Clement Anchormen (L to R): Captain John Posada, Alberto Lopez named game MVP and Jesus Gambaro.

The St. Clement Anchormen kept the St. Joseph’s Prep Phoenix from rising on Thanksgiving by stuffing them 27-8. It was the fifth straight Thanksgiving victory for the Anchormen, bringing their season record to 6-4.

The Somerville High School and Cambridge football teams kicked off a new Thanksgiving Day pre-game tradition on Tuesday, November 20. Captains of both teams came together for the first of what will become an annual pre-game luncheon, hosted by the home team. Mayors of both cities, coaches and headmasters of each team, and Superintendent Pierantozzi also joined in the inaugural luncheon. The game winner will lay claim to the Thanksgiving Day Bowl for the year.

Book Launch Dec 2, 2012: With Robert Lowell and His Circle Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Elizabeth Bishop, Stanley Kunitz, & Others by Kathleen Spivack

My friend, the acclaimed poet Kathleen Spivack has a new memoir out: With Robert Lowell and His Circle. I had the honor to interview Kathleen in 2010, and had a chance to question her about the Boston and Cambridge literary scene in the 50s, 60s,and 70s. She told me about playing ping-pong with Elizabeth Bishop, and her tutorials with Robert Lowell. She also told me about Anne Sexton and Sylvia Plath and the Robert Lowell workshop at Boston University they were all in. Kathleen also has a big Somerville connection. She lived in Somerville as a single mother some decades ago, and is currently a member of the Somerville Bagel Bards. This important new memoir was reviewed in the Globe recently.  Here is some information about the book and the book launch that is to happen on Dec.2:

Somerville Poet Afaa Michael Weaver. – Photo by Rachel Eliza Griffiths

Somerville Poet Afaa Michael Weaver has a new collection of poetry out The Government of Nature (University of Pittsburgh Press). He wrote the LYRICAL:

Lori and Peter Cote of Somerville proudly show off the $37M check benefitting the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.– Photo by Jay Baronowski

The 2012 Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC) raised $37 million for cancer research and patient care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute through the Jimmy Fund. The 2012 fundraising total is $2 million more than the PMC gave in 2011 and brings its 33-year Jimmy Fund contribution to $375 million.

By Jim Clark

Police were dispatched to the Kmart store on Middlesex Ave. for a reported shoplifting incident last Saturday afternoon.

Officers arrived at the store’s loss prevention office and questioned the suspected thief, who appeared to be very nervous and was sweating profusely, according to reports.

Kara – Kara Fili in We are here now. – Photo by Jim Coleman

Somerville residents Rose Abramoff, Kara Fili, Mark Kranz, Amy Mastrangelo, and Julia E. Wagner are now busy preparing for Luminarium Dance Company’s closing performance of its highly successful second season with Mythos:Pathos at OBERON, the American Repertory Theater’s second stage.

City seeks public input at November 28, 29 meetings for Gilman, Magoun and Ball Square GLX station planning

The final two planning sessions of the city’s new “Somerville by Design” initiative – which will assist in the implementation of urban design and land use goals of the SomerVision Comprehensive Plan – will be held on Wednesday, November 28 and Thursday, November 29 at the Center for Arts at the Armory at 191 Highland Ave.  Somerville by Design is the City of Somerville’s latest community planning initiative, designed to help residents and business owners visualize positive change in their neighborhoods.  SomerVision and Somerville by Design are results of funding through a Challenge Grant from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Sustainable Communities Program.

This week marks the beginning of the annual holiday gift-buying season. Each year, more and more shoppers are using on line or catalog services to order gifts to be delivered at their homes. Unfortunately, this is also the season when the theft of delivered packages increases across the nation and Somerville is no exception.

In 2011, there were 56 reported thefts of packages from the porches or doorsteps of Somerville residents.  Thirty of those thefts happened from mid- November through the end of the year.  Some arrests were made and some items were recovered.  But our goal this year is to reduce this type of theft from happening at all.