Community Corner
ABOUT TOWN: Mass. Memories Road Show is Coming to Stoughton
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THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES: The Town of Stoughton will be hosting the Mass. Memories Road Show, sponsored by the University of Massachusetts Boston, on Sunday, May 5, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Stoughton Senior Center at 110 Rockland Street. Although the event is months away, volunteers are needed NOW.
Do you live or work in Stoughton? The history of Stoughton is YOUR STORY. Bring one to three photos of any format and they will scan and return them to you right there. If hundreds of people come to this event, then we'll create a very effective snapshot of Stoughton in 2013. Bring photos of yourself, your family, your friends, your favorite places - in short - anything you love in your community.
Share your memories and help preserve the past! Historian David Allen Lambert will man a StoughtonHistory.com table. The Stoughton Historical Society will be there.
Find out what's happening in Stoughtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Everyone who brings photos (remember, the limit is three) will get their photo taken, and be able to take it home. That photo of you holding your photos will also be a part of the collection! Remember, all photos will be scanned and immediately returned. If your photo is more recent, feel free to bring a memory drive with your photos embedded on them. The archivists will download them and add them to the archive.
Dwight MacKerron, the president of the Stoughton Historical Society told me, “It’s a record for the future to show who is in Stoughton today. It’s really part of the history of our town. It is important because it records what Stoughton is right now, with a connection to the past through the photos people bring in. One of the challenges when you study history is to blend what is happening now with what has happened in the past. This is a perfect event to do that.”
Find out what's happening in Stoughtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The event will be divided into different "stations", and (thankfully) will include refreshments. There will be a welcome station, information station, scanning stations, video station, keepsake photos section, preservation station, and a local history station.
Caroline Goldstein and Heather Cole of UMass Boston have been working with a large committee of volunteers to make this event happen. The Committee of 30 or so, could use EVEN MORE members. To volunteer for the Committee, contact Stoughton Library Director Pat Basler at 781-344-2711.
Basler tells About Town, “The Stoughton Historical Society and Public Library have had a long cooperative relationship over the years, and when one of their members, Ruthie Fitzpatrick, suggested that I apply for a Mass. Memories Road Show grant, it seemed like a great idea. The goal is to provide a town-wide public history event that allows us to capture and preserve photos and memories of the people and families that make up the wonderful Town of Stoughton.”
This is a public event and you MUST be there to add your photos to the archive. There will be a lot of sharing photos, memories and stories. This digital collection will be available online, as part of the archival record of Massachusetts communities.
Stoughton residents, Stoughton business owners or businesses, and employees of Stoughton are invited to participate. Volunteers are still needed! If you have a Stoughton-based organization, be a part of this!
For more information, see www.massmemories.net or pre-register by calling 781-344-2711. Visit the archves so far at http://openarchives.umb.edu/. Transportation is available to the event by calling 781-344-8882 to reserve a ride through the Council on Aging.
The event is sponsored by the Joseph B. Healey Library @ UMass Boston, Mass Humanities, Stoughton Historical Society, Stoughton Public Library, and the Stoughton Council on Aging.
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CONGRATULATIONS: to James Dolan of Stoughton, son of Tracy DolanConforti, and stepson of Stoughton Police Officer David Conforti, who is graduating the school portion of his training at the Marine Corps CampPendleton Tuesday and will be on a plane Tuesday afternoon heading to CampLejeune North Carolina!
Says Tracy, "Words can not express how proud of you I am and what you have accomplished so far! This is just the start of wonderful things that you will do in your lifetime!!"
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BELATED BIRTHDAY GREETINGS! Last Saturday, Randi Renzi, owner of Why Weight Fitness, celebrated her birthday. Local realtor Audrey Blanchard and former Boston newswoman Gail Huff, wife of former U.S. Senator Scott Brown, as well. On Sunday, Susan Hardy, owner of Hardy Insurance Company, celebrated. Her husband is Stoughton Police Detective Roger Hardy.
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