Around Hear: AMOR, AMOR, AMOR

Free concert, Sunday, December 14th, 2025, 2-4pm, Mystic Activity Center, 530 Mystic Ave. Somerville, MA

All you need is love, but there are three kinds that you shouldn’t miss out on, at least according to the Ancient Greeks. There’s eros: that Valentine’s Day kind of love that makes the knees quiver and heart sing. There’s philia: the love of friendship, such as the warm bond we musicians feel as we play together. And there’s agape, a term that encompasses holy love and the goodwill shared and felt by people in strong community, such as the musical community that we are creating together, month after month, year after year, through Around Hear.

Information and registration event on Thursday, December 11, 5 to 7 p.m.

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the City of Somerville’s Health and Human Services (HHS) Department invite community members to an information session to learn more about the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), which can provide financial assistance with home heating costs this winter to eligible households.

The city’s warming center will reopen this winter with additional funding provided by a state grant.

By Harry Kane

More money is being allocated to help the homeless thanks to another generous grant from the state. The winter warming center will reopen on December 8 and provide safe sleeping spaces through April 12 at the former Cummings School building.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

Thanksgiving … gone. Black Friday … gone. A month of hectic, frantic, and desperate preparation for Christmas has begun. The commercials may tell us that prices are low, but shoppers are high-strung. You saw the news reports that showed crazed bargain hunters throughout the country acting like they were giving away wads of cash. They stood in line overnight, rubbing elbows with the same people they would be willing to fight to the finish, just to save $100 on a flat screen TV or an Xbox. You would have to pay me at least $300 just to stand outside in the dark, freezing my butt off.

Inclusivity was the focus at the at Hoyt Sullivan Playground ribbon cutting ceremony on November 17.

By The Times Staff

The inclusive swings ribbon cutting at Hoyt Sullivan Playground on November 17 brought community members together to celebrate the completion of an important accessibility project.

The Union Square Jingle takes place this coming Sunday in Union Square.

Union Square Main Streets (USMS) and 40+ local businesses turn on sparkle lights, dress up windows, and bring instagrammable inflatables to life at The Union Square Jingle: Shop, Sip & Mingle. This free, family-friendly celebration will have you jingling all the way on Sunday, December 7, from 1 to 6 p.m. (extreme weather date 12/14). Join in to revel in rad retail, unique eats, and much more throughout Union Square in Somerville!

Sara Halawa, parent to five Palestinian-American children and Somerville for Palestine organizer, spoke in favor of the resolution at the City Council meeting on November 25.

By Harry Kane

The viability of boycotting and divesting from companies complicit with Israel’s genocidal war is still up for debate, but city councilors adopted a resolution that may begin the process.

By Jeffrey Schwom

Fees for a popular public after-school program will rise for most children as the district tries to bring accounting out of the red before the end of the school year.