***************

Our sympathies to
the family of Ralph Russo who late last week passed away from a bout
with cancer. Ralph was an outspoken neighborhood activist in Ward 5 –
constantly in the mix of the long disputed MaxPak site. Ralph did a lot
of good work and he will be missed by many – but his legacy will live
on.

***************

The 13th annual Illuminations Tour
will be on Saturday, Dec. 19th. Tours leave at 4:30pm, 5pm, 5:45pm,
6:15pm, 7pm, 7:30pm, 8:15pm, 8:45pm and 9:15pm. If there is bad
weather, the rain date will be Sunday, Dec. 20th. Tour guides lead
trolleys past the city's most spectacular residential displays of
holiday pomp, sharing stories about the families that decorate and
local historic trivia en route. Tours begin and end at City Hall at 93
Highland Ave. Tickets are $10, $5 for children 12 and under and seniors
60 and up, and are available at Blue Cloud Gallery at 713 Broadway in
Ball Square.

***************

Ball Square Fine Wines and
Liquors at 716 Broadway will hold its second "Boisterous About Bubbles"
sparkling wine tasting this Saturday, Dec. 12th from 3pm to 5pm. Taste
and learn about some of the finest grower champagnes available,
discover other staff favorites from around the globe, and enjoy gourmet
nibbles. Admission is free and open to ages 21 and up.

***************

The
Music Department of the Somerville Public Schools will present its
annual All City Elementary Winter Concert this Thursday, Dec. 10th at
7pm at Somerville High School (81 Highland Ave.) Performances include
the All City Chorus, All City Band, and All City Orchestra. Also – next
week – Somerville High School students will perform their annual winter
concert on Thursday, Dec. 17th at 7pm at the school. It will feature
the SHS World Percussion Ensemble, SHS Guitar Ensemble, SHS Band and
SHS Orchestra, with special appearances by the SHS Dance Team. Free
tickets are available at the main office of Somerville High School and
many other community organizations.

***************

Send
us your favorite photo of your choice of "The Best of Somerville – Best
Decorated House for Christmas" Send your photos to
photos@thesomervillenews.com and share it with the rest of the 'Ville!

***************

On
Thursday, December 17th, Teen Empowerment will hold a youth holiday
gathering from 7pm to 9:30pm at the Somerville Youth Program (165
Broadway). The event will feature original poems, songs, skits and
speeches, written and performed by Somerville teens that reflect on
2009 and focus on hopes for 2010.

***************

Congratulations
to Rafael from Sagra Bar and Restaurant in Davis Square – the upscale
and popular restaurant will be one of this months Phantom Gourmet pick
and the show has considered Sagra "a hidden jewel" and will be
featuring them on their December Holiday program.

***************

Celebrate
the spirit of winter and its various holidays through the winter
concerts in the Somerville Public Schools. Elementary students will
perform on Thursday, December 10th and high school musicians and
singers will take the stage on Thursday, December 17th. Both are free
concerts featuring student singers, musicians and other performers –
starting both nights at 7pm in the auditorium of Somerville High School
(81 Highland Avenue).

***************

Happy 90th Birthday to Rita Capuano who recently celebrated with her family last week. Rita is the mom of our own Mike Capuano.

***************

Community meetings this coming week to keep in mind:

SomerVision:
Join friends and neighbors at a "World Caf√©" style sessions –
structured, facilitated conversations aimed at creating greater
community connection and drawing out the best ideas from a broad range
of community members who care about the future of our city. The next
meeting is tonight, Wednesday, at the Holiday Inn (30 Washington
Street) at 6:30pm.

There will be a community meeting to discuss
the renovation of Dickerman and Morse-Kelley Playgrounds. The meeting
will include presentation of schematic designs for both parks by CBA
Landscape Architects. The meeting will take place tonight, Wednesday,
at 7pm at the Kennedy School library (5 Cherry Street). The meeting is
free and open to the public.

The Ward 7 ResiStat Meeting will be
this Thursday at 5:30pm at the Tufts Admin. Building (167 Holland St.)
– the meeting, sponsored by Mayor Curtatone and Ward 7 Alderman Trane,
deals with statistical data and issues relating to Ward 7. Citizen
input from these meetings are compiled into yearly reports on the
status of Somerville available from the ResiStat office at City Hall.

***************

Last
week one of our Somerville News correspondents witnessed firsthand
heroics at its very best. The Somerville News recently wrote a story
about a heroic Somerville Police Officer and a Somerville 911 control
dispatcher and how they both handled a call and did what it took to get
their jobs done regarding the situation at hand. We were there to
witness the situation evolve and captured on film how Officer Eddie
Soares responded to the call that was routed to him via Dispatcher
Terry Medeiros – when he arrived at the scene he jumped into action to
revive a man that was on the pavement unconscious. This officer did
what he had to do with caring passion and professionalism rubbing the
victim's chest and talking to him.

***************

The
annual Somerville High School musical is looking for advertisers and
donations to perform their annual musical which this year will cost
around $12,000. More than 40 actors, musicians and technicians from
Somerville High School will stage Disney's Beauty and the Beast from
February 4th to 6th in the auditorium of Somerville High (81 Highland
Avenue). Show times are: Thursday and Friday at 7pm and Saturday at
2pm. Ticket prices are $7.00 – $6.00 for senior citizens and youth ages
12 and under.

***************

Don't forget the Somerville Schools annual Christmas Tree sale at Foss Park, help support the various programs.

***************