Arrests:
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Deborah Winter, 52, of 43 Bow St., April 25, 7:08 a.m., arrested at home on a warrant charge of shoplifting by concealing merchandise.

Joseph Keohane, 53, of 23 Blanchard Rd., Cambridge, April 25, 7:08 a.m., arrested at 43 Bow St. on a warrant charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

Jorge Miguel, 44, of 41 Franklin St., April 25, 7:53 a.m., arrested at 41B Franklin St. on a warrant charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

By Carrie Stanziola

People may not associate Somerville with toy manufacturing, but in 1922, when Jennie Graves started making doll clothes out of her Liberty Avenue home in Somerville, she started a minor Massachusetts manufacturing empire.  As Evelyn Battinelli explains, the 8 inch tall Ginny doll went through several phases.  Initially, Ginny’s wardrobe was reflective of women’s roles, and she wore nursing and Girl Scout outfits.  However, her wardrobe evolved over time, offering girls a greater variety of clothes to choose from. 

- Photo by Andrew Firestone

Update: It is with a heavy heart that we at the Somerville News inform you that Fred Lund, city draftsman since 1953, died last Wednesday night at age 90.  Hired by the City in 1953, Lund had continued to work part-time after 2008, and was the longest tenured employee.

To honor his memory we present this article, originally printed September 8, 2010. We extend our condolences to his family over his loss.

By Andrew Firestone

Fred Lund is a guy who knows Somerville like the back of his hand. The oldest and longest serving city employee travels down every Somerville street in his work as the city cartographer and draftsman, designing maps of the city by hand.

If enacted by the State Senate, the reform bill could save Somerville $8.3 in health care costs, preserving City services and jobs
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Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone is lauding the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Speaker Robert A. DeLeo for the 111-42 passage of a municipal health insurance reform bill that could save Massachusetts cities and towns more than $100 million.

Originally proposed by Governor Patrick earlier this year, the House bill would allow cities and towns to enter the State’s Group Insurance Commission (GIC) or a similar plan in order to reduce the exploding cost of providing health coverage for municipal employees. Somerville’s healthcare costs have more than tripled during the past decade, rising to $36 million in the current fiscal year.

On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

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

It’s been quite a while since this article which is called “On the silly Side” was really, literally silly. Well, here goes.
Cambridge City Councillor Ken Reeves said recently that Cambridge is a more interesting city than Somerville. This is part of what he said, “Somerville has a very short list of not-that-interesting places. But they don’t have a lot of interesting places.” I have lived in Somerville for almost 58 years so who better to defend its gilded banners?

Somerville Open Studios will showcase works of over 300 artists, while the Historic Walking Tour - Hidden in Plain Sight: Eyes on East Somerville will open participant’s eyes to the many vestiges of the Victorian era that still exist in the area.

By Cathleen Twardzik

Over 300 artists in greater than 100 venues will open their homes and studios for the 13th Annual Somerville Open Studios Event (SOS) on April 30 and May 1 from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on both days.

During this free showcase of the arts, which is open to the public, mid-career, as well as emerging artists, the work of whom covers a broad spectrum of fine art styles and craft media, will exhibit their work, according to a press release.

By William C. Shelton

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

The best social program is a job. Jobs bring income, self-esteem and opportunity to workers. They bring revenue rather than expenses to government. They stimulate a community’s economy when workers purchase goods and services.

But Somerville is poor in jobs. We have two workers for every Somerville job, as opposed to Boston and Cambridge that have two jobs for every worker, a four-fold difference.

- Photo by William Tauro

By William Tauro

Nearly three months after Somerville News staff assisted and reported on a story about a disabled man in a wheelchair who got stuck in the snow two days after a snowfall due to a unshoveled walkway and handicap ramp, the station has closed.

Somerville resident Mike Cote of Brady Towers was stuck in the snow of the handicap ramp at the Sunoco Gas Station on McGrath Highway.

The Reverend Molly Baskette's emotional return to the pulpit was an inspiring and gratifying event for both herself and her congregation. - Photo by Andrew Firestone

By Andrew Firestone

Easter is a holiday of rebirth and jubilation, when the spirit of life that has been lost comes once again renewed upon the world. The celebration was even more special in Somerville’s United Church of Christ, Sunday, April 25, when Reverend Molly Baskette was reinvigorated upon the pulpit, returning to lead her congregation in an Easter sermon for the first time since taking a leave of absence following her diagnosis with Ewing sarcoma.

“What an amazing thing it is to have what we went through as a church and then what we went through in our family in the rear-view mirror,” said Rev. Baskette who returns to full duties in June, “to be able to mark this day putting death behind us and having life before us.”

By Andrew Firestone

Mayor Joseph Curtatone came out April 26 in his unequivocal support for the State budget plan, which would allow the city to enter into a newer, cheaper healthcare plan. By having all city employees and retirees join onto the Group Insurance Commission (GIC), the City projects a budget saving of around $8 million dollars for the fiscal year, going a long way towards bridging the City’s 7 million dollar budget gap.

“As you saw in this fiscal year that’s about to end, in the [City] budget presentations, that you have a crossroads where you have local aid on the decline and you have healthcare costs that are going up. That’s the first time in history, so every new tax dollar is going to pay for healthcare,” said Curtatone.