U.S. Navy SEAL Eric Greitens, CEO of The Mission Continues delivers the commencement address at Tufts University's 156th Commencement on Sunday, May 20, 2012. ~Photo by Alonso Nichols/Tufts University

3,360 Tufts graduates receive degrees
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Eric Greitens, humanitarian, award-winning author, and decorated Navy SEAL officer, delivered Tufts University’s commencement address on Sunday, May 20, and received an honorary doctorate of humane letters.

It began as a way to memorialize the military casualties of the Civil War, and was originally termed Decoration Day. Decorating the graves of the countless multitudes of fallen soldiers helped to console the grieving survivors of the debacle while uniting the once divided nation in a worthwhile common cause.

Arrests:
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Jesus Huertas, 30, of 55 Ruggles St., Roxbury, May 14, 3:48 p.m., arrested at 133 Middlesex Ave. on charges of violation of city ordinance possession of a dangerous weapon and shoplifting by concealing merchandise, and on warrant charges of larceny under $250, trespassing, and shoplifting by asportation.

Kesner Lubin, 19, of 125 Alewife Brook Pky., May 14, 8:07 p.m., arrested at home on warrant charges of assault and battery and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

The Somerville News Person of the Week, Leigh Harkins Gerow.

Meet Leigh Harkins Gerow, our choice as The Somerville News Person of the Week this week, May 23, 2012. Leigh is a lifelong Somerville resident, grew up here, went to school here, and was recently married. Leigh grew up in the Berkeley Street section of Somerville where a lot of other families with kids lived. She attended Somerville schools, and while at Somerville High was part of the Drama Club and was in many plays over the years. After graduating in 1993, she went on to Northeastern University and while going to school she also worked at the Perkins School for the Blind.  There she met her husband, Christopher Gerow, and they married about a year ago. Leigh taught herself sign language and is now a self-employed sign language interpreter, working from her home here in Somerville.

Winning the GBL Championship Meet was a great way for the SHS seniors to finish their track careers at SHS. The seniors will graduate with a four-year indoor/outdoor record of 31-1 and eight consecutive GBL Championship Meet titles for Indoor and Outdoor.

One Saturday morning in March Lisa Doyle negotiated the riotous terrain of the Bagel Bards meeting at the Au Bon Pain in Davis Square to meet with me for an interview. Doyle, a longtime Somerville resident, has created along with her sister Lisa and her brother Mark a sophisticated collection of songs for children titled “Lion Face Song.”

Somerville poet Reza Tokaloo sent us this poem he wrote while he was away in the woods involved with a psychodrama retreat. Tokaloo is studying for his M.S. in Social Work at Simmons College in Boston.

Musicians and bands throughout Somerville celebrated and utilized an underused public venue: the porch.

~Photo by William Tauro

At 10:16 a.m. Somerville 911 received report of a hold up alarm from the Century Bank, 102 Fellsway West.  Simultaneous calls came from bank personnel.  The suspect reportedly passed a note demanding cash and fled the bank on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash, including bait money.

Residents are invited to help shape the meeting agendas by visiting the ResiStat Web site, www.somervilleresistat.blogspot.com, where they can take the Meeting Survey to propose topics for discussion. Residents may also call ResiStat Coordinator Denise Taylor at 617-625-6600 ext. 2103.