Category: Spotlight

Local companies highlighted in Newton, MA.

BSO: New Sheriff in Town for Youth & Family Concerts, Family Concert April 21

Boston Symphony Orchestra’s New Sheriff

What do you get if you cross Bill Cosby with Pastor Archibold Epps and teach them to conduct a first rate orchestra? Why, Thomas Wilkins, the new permanent Boston Symphony Orchestra Youth Concert Conductor.

Technically, he’s the Germeshausen Youth and Family Concerts Conductor. He makes classical music fun and accessible to kids and families while also relating the program to big ideas like perseverance, dreams and goals. And, all the while, he’s scampering up and down the aisles making everyone laugh. He’s truly a charismatic and entertaining performer!

The next Family Concert is “Notes in Bloom” is on April 21 at Noon. This is the final concert of the season. Go here to purchase tickets.

Thomas Wilkins, Music Director

Thomas Wilkins is the music director of the Omaha Symphony, a position he has held since 2005. Additionally, he is principal guest conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and was recently appointed the youth and family concerts conductor for the Boston Symphony Orchestra.Past positions have included resident conductor of the Detroit Symphony, as well as the Florida Orchestra (Tampa Bay), and associate conductor of the Richmond Symphony (Virginia). He served on the music faculties of North Park University (Chicago), the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga and Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.

Committed to promoting a life-long enthusiasm for music, Thomas brings energy and commitment to audiences of all ages. For his significant contribution to the children of Tampa Bay, the Pinellas County Music Educators Association named him 1998 Friend of the Arts and the Hillsborough County Elementary Music Educators recognized him as 1998 Music Educator of the Year.

During his conducting career, Thomas has been featured with orchestras throughout the United States, including the Dallas Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic, Houston Symphony and the National Symphony in Washington, D.C. He is also a frequent guest conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, the New Jersey Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Recently he debuted with the Utah Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Rochester (NY) and Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestras.

Thomas serves as a director at large for the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, and has served on the board of directors of such organizations as the Center Against Spouse Abuse in Tampa Bay, the Museum of Fine Arts and the Academy Preparatory Center for Education, both in St. Petersburg. Currently, he serves as chairman of the board for the Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund.

A native of Norfolk, Va., Thomas earned his bachelor of music education degree from the Shenandoah Conservatory of Music in 1978. In 1982, he was awarded the master of music degree in orchestral conducting from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Thomas and his wife, Sheri-Lee, reside in Omaha with their twin daughters, Erica and Nicole.

April 16, 2012
Book Giveaway: Rebel Moms by Davina Rhine

Rebel Moms: The Off-Road Map for the Off-Road Mom by Davina Rhine

Congrats to Becca! You won the book!

Review written by Leah Drichel for The Bloomington Roller Derby Examiner:

Reader Review of Rebel Moms: “In the current political climate, with the Occupy Movement, and people across the globe beginning to take a stand for what they believe in, Davina Rhine has produced a timely and poignant piece of work that communicates to mothers that it’s perfectly OK (beautiful, even!) to be who you are and to believe what you believe and to model this for your children. In the average day, a Mom can fight a soul-wearying battle with Judgment and Guilt, but Ms. Rhine’s work frees a mother from this burden, by showcasing real-life moms that are “off the beaten path”. Truly refreshing. Truly encouraging.”

To win this book, please leave a comment. If you also subscribe to blog, you can DOUBLE your chances of winning! Just leave a second comment that you subscribed. TRIPLE your chances by following me on Pinterest. Leave another comment to say you followed me on Pinterest.

To examine more closely at Amazon, please click on image of book.

March 8, 2012
Meet Best Women’s Travel Writing Contributor Carol Reichert

Carol Reichert writes in the sensory deprivation chamber that is the Newton, Massachusetts public library. She has served as a midwife to a cow giving birth in New Zealand, danced flamenco in the mountain caves outside of Granada, and learned lomi lomi massage in Hawaii. In addition to writing, she dances flamenco in Boston and Spain and wherever the rhythm moves her. She is currently working on a memoir about her family’s life in a village in southern Spain.

When did you first know you were a traveler?

When I was nine years old, my family – two parents and five children – traveled to Canada. One day we went to a bank to cash some travelers’ checks and while my parents were busy with the teller, I watched the electronic marquee advertise the latest mortgage rates. The numbers zipped around and around in flashy colors, and I was mesmerized. When I looked away to locate my family, they were gone. They had left me behind in this bank in downtown Toronto. I didn’t run to a bank authority to help me find them. Instead, I started to plan how I would live without them in a foreign land.

What’s one place that has moved you or changed you in a significant way?
My family and I moved to a tiny mountain village outside of Granada, Spain for 14 months. The simplicity of our lives there – no afterschool activities, no carpools, no night spots, really, nothing to do – forced us to redefine entertainment. My kids played with feral cats, and for several weeks we climbed a mountain to observe the decomposition process of a dead badger. Time seemed to stand still.

What’s one memorable travel experience you’ve had?
On my honeymoon, I helped a cow give birth on a roadside in New Zealand. After the calf was born, it wouldn’t stand up. So we put it in the trunk of our rental car and brought it to the farmer’s house. He carried it to the living room and laid it on a sheet of plastic. We fed it milk and whiskey until the calf stood up. The farmer named the calf after me. I often wonder what she’s doing now?

Is there something you always do (or search out, buy, learn, pack, drink), whenever you’re on a trip?
I try to eat foreign food in a foreign country. I’ve eaten sushi in Spain, lasagna in Guatemala, Thai food in Lichtenstein. I love experiencing the local spin countries put on food that’s foreign to them. Serrano ham in a tekka maki roll is very tasty.

How do you balance your home and travel life?
Now that we have children, we take them with us everywhere. They began traveling as infants. I’ve nursed in the Paris subways, treated the flu in a Marrakesh riad, and told bedtime stories in Seville. My kids know that traveling is part of our family ritual. They’ll probably rebel when they’re teenagers by never leaving the neighborhood.

What’s on your list of future destinations?
Iceland, Madagascar, and Argentina.

In your opinion, what is the greatest reward of traveling?
I love how traveling changes my life back home. This year I planted seeds in my vegetable garden for pimientos de padron, an heirloom pepper I ate in Granada. I was introduced to a chef in Morocco, and I make her tagines at home. I studied flamenco in Spain, which inspired me to uncover the subterranean flamenco community in Boston. These are the souvenirs I’ve brought home, and they’ve changed the way I live.

Thank you to Lavinia Spalding, editor of The Best Women’s Travel Writing, for letting me use her post. Her wonderful blog is here.

The Best Women’s Travel Writing 2011: True Stories from Around the World (Travelers’ Tales) edited by Lavinia Spalding

Click on book to view more closely at Amazon.

March 5, 2012
2 MOMtrepreneurs Juggling It All: Meet Celeste and Laura of Well Within, Massage and Integrated Health

Starting a business with a friend can be tricky endeavor, but it’s working for Celeste Woodside and Laura Viale of Well Within on Washington Street (between Cabots and Whole Foods). As business owners, they each balance the other’s strengths and weaknesses. In fact, it’s this collaborative culture that infuses Well Within with an integrative approach.

Not only do they offer multiple modalities that includes massage (many, many types!), yoga, accupuncture, mat pilates, guided meditation, Reiki and holistic health coaching for nutrition, but they will actually refer clients to outside wellness practitioners if they feel that is best for the client!

Let’s meet them!

1. When did you decide to work together?
Celeste Woodside

Celeste: “We have worked together in the integrative health community for 8 years and have developed a wonderful friendship during that time. We both shared office space in Newton for about 5 years before coming together in October of 2010 to form Well Within.”

2. Tell me about your families. How many kids and what ages?

Laura Viale

Laura: “I remember the day we were running around Newton Town Hall with kids in tow and thinking, “What are we getting ourselves into??” I had my 2 year old daughter, and Celeste had her 4 year old daughter and her 6 month old son. We had just made the decision to create Well Within and had to file the proper documents with the town. Since we were in a time crunch, we had to get many things done without childcare – it was a bit interesting, but we pushed through and made it happen. Celeste and I are blessed with supportive, loving husbands, and our joyful children.

Celeste has two beautiful children: her super smart, energetic 5 year old daughter, who is an avid gymnast and clearly has her parents’ gifts of creativity; and her adorable son, who will be 2 in a couple weeks and just idolizes his big sister. My happy 3 year old daughter keeps us entertained with endless “dance recitals” in every room of our house. Our extended families have also been incredibly supportive of us in every way allowing us extra time to do what it takes run a proper business.”

3. What is the most challenging aspect of juggling your own business with parenting and taking care of yourself?

Celeste: “Time. More specifically, not having enough. We are definitely learning (on the job training) the delicate and unique art of how a work-from-home-and-also-in-the-office-stay-at-home(ish)-PTO-Mom gets the job(s) done. The gas in the tank comes, not-surprisingly, from practicing what we preach … eating well, moving our bodies, being mindful, getting good sleep (when children allow) and making time for relaxation. With this fuel, we are more grounded and energized and can use our time more thoughtfully. We’ve learned that turning off all devices, getting down on the floor and building a block tower for 20 minutes or so, followed by a good snuggle is a really effective way to get a toddler to understand that sometimes you have to answer emails.”

4. What made you decide to take an integrative approach to health?

Laura: “One of the reasons our private practices were quite successful was because we actively sought out opportunities to work in combination with other health care practitioners to improve the results of our clients’ treatments. The dramatic improvements our clients experienced when integrating treatments really inspired us to create a place where our clients could come and utilize both massage and acupuncture, for example, to relieve their symptoms. The team approach of our staff and the variety of services available, gives us a great opportunity to really make a difference in the health and wellness of our clients.”

5. You also have a blog? Tell me more! What do you write about?

Celeste: “In our blog we talk about all things integrative health. We share articles we love, have guest posts by other local wellness professionals (and authors!) and sometimes we even talk about our kids!”

Well Within is going to host a FREE event in March for cancer patients and their caregivers. They will enjoy a day of pampering and treatments and go home with a goody bag. More on that later…

February 17, 2012
Meet Your New Neighbor: Dr. Dave Oliver of Newton Wellness Center

Would you like to meet your new neighbor? Meet Dr. Dave Oliver, a chiropractor. He hails from New Jersey but has lived in the Boston area for the past five years. A little over a year ago he took over Newton Wellness Center in Piccadilly Square in Newton Centre — you know, right above Rosenfeld’s Bagels. He also is a new Newton resident. You might have seen him and his dog Marley in Newtonville.

1. What made you decide to move to Newton from New Jersey?

After chiropractic school I moved back to New Jersey where I did my internship. I started looking around for an associateship but didn’t find anything that I felt fit right. A little while after I graduated I took a trip up to Boston to visit my sister who has been living in Burlington the past 15 years. I had always enjoyed visiting Boston and really loved the area! I decided while I was up here I would see if there were any offices looking for an associate. I happened to find an office in downtown Boston that needed a new doctor to take over their patients. It seemed like a great opportunity so within a month I moved up to the area and started working. After spending 4 years working there and learning a great deal about running a chiropractic office, I decided it was time to start my own practice. After looking around a bit, I found a practice for sale in Newton that matched well with my style and was in a great location. I had always heard good things about Newton and as I began to look into the area I became more excited about starting a business here. I took over Newton Wellness Center in October 2010.

2. What did you do before taking over Newton Wellness Center?

I graduated Cum laude from Palmer College of Chiropractic in San Jose CA. While I was in school I had the opportunity to travel to Fiji where I spent several weeks traveling to the under-served areas and provided free chiropractic care to the local residents. Many of these people had never even seen a doctor in their lifetime and I found it to be one the most rewarding experiences in my life. I treated several hundred people during that trip and hope to do something similar in the future.

Shortly after, my move to Boston happened and I started working at Boston Chiropractic Associates in downtown Boston. I was the main clinic doctor in a very busy office so I learned a lot about running a business and what it takes to succeed. I established trust and great relationships with my patients – many of whom have followed me to Newton to continue their care.

3. I noticed that you have a large exercise room in your office. I’ve never seen that in Chiropractor office before and I’ve been to a few. Tell me about it and your philosophy on treating chronic pain.

I believe chiropractic care is a very effective treatment for a variety of conditions but I think there is far more we can do for our patients than simply adjust them and restore proper spinal motion. Many of the symptoms people come to me with – whether it be lower back pain, neck pain, headaches, etc.. are coming from the joint fixations/ misalignments in their spine. By adjusting them and restoring proper motion I can alleviate most of their symptoms.

However, when patients go back to their normal lives sitting at computers for hours, chasing their children, etc. (activities that most likely brought them into my office in the first place) more than likely their symptoms will come back. This is something I noticed working in Boston. Many of my patients would get a lot of relief from treatment but would inevitably come back in a a year or two and say their pain was back again. Unless they were under consistent care, many of them would have these recurrences.

This was a problem to me! There had to be a better solution, one which could provide longer lasting results. I began looking into the things that were really causing patients to come to me in the first place. I determined it was due to poor ergonomics at work – mostly desk workers and weakened or unconditioned muscles around the spine. I started learning as much as I could about proper ergonomics and spinal rehabilitation and started using what I learned on my patients. Low and behold their results were much better than before. They started to see/feel longer lasting relief and were still able to enjoy all the things they loved in life. So, when I looked for an office to open it was very important to me that I find one with a large space in which I could teach my patients simple stabilizing exercises which they could perform in the office and then perform on their own at home.

4. If I come to you in pain — headache, neck or back pain — what is the first thing that you do?

The first thing that is done is that we sit down to go over your history to get a clear picture of who you are and get clues as to why you are experiencing these symptoms. Then an exam is performed to check range of motion to see if there are any restrictions to movement as well as specific orthopedic tests. Finally I will examine your spine by gently assessing for motion. At this time, I will determine if chiropractic adjustments are appropriate in order to treat you. I will let you know what I have found, what I believe to be the cause of your symptoms and if and how I can help you. Many patients tell me that they really appreciate this portion of the initial meeting. They feel that a lot of doctors don’t give them true explanations for their symptoms. I find it is essential that my patients understand why they are in my office and what has caused their problem(s). If they don’t understand this, then how are they going to prevent it from from coming back? My goal is not to make people dependent upon me. It is to empower them to take control of their health.

5. How do you like Newton and where might we bump into you?

So far my time in Newton has been great. I moved to Newtonville 6 months ago and have to say I really love the area. I have a black lab who loves walks so I try to take him as often as I can! It’s great that there are a lot of other dog lovers in the area. I have also taken trips over to the dog park at Crystal Springs. My patients have definitely made me feel more at home here – always recommending great local hangouts and restaurants to try. My girlfriend and I enjoy going out to eat on the weekends and have found several great restaurants in the area. We are big fans of Paddy’s, The Local and the newly opened Max and Leo’s for pizza. I also love to travel and get away when possible on the weekends often heading up to Maine or visiting family in New Jersey.

Running a School Auction? Take Note!

To introduce himself to the Newton Community, Dr. Oliver would like to donate gift certificate for a massage and chiropractic consultation/examination to any school auction in Newton including preschool, public or private school. Please email him at droliverdc@gmail.com to arrange to pick up your school auction item donation.

Introductory “Meet Us!” Rate

Dr. Oliver is offering a special Introductory Rate of $49 for a 50 minute massage and chiropractic consultation/exam — normally $230. He’d love for you to come in with no strings attached and see for themselves what his office is about. And on top of that, you get a 50 minute massage!

I’ve asked Dr. Oliver to be a regular contributor to this blog. Look for future posts from him on Top 10 Ergonomic Safety Tips!

Newton Wellness Center is a an chiropractic office which is dedicated to helping you become the healthiest person possible. Besides chiropractic care and spinal rehab instruction we have an excellent massage therapist who has a lot of experience and is highly trained in treating musculoskeletal conditions.

February 15, 2012
GIVEAWAY AND DISCOUNT: Newton Face Painter Extraordinaire Marisol Santana and GIVEAWAY for Zeebree Crayons

Congrats to Ina. She won the Cupcake Crayons!

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Check out these extraordinary faces painted by Newton Elementary School Special Education Aide and an Afterschool Teacher Marisol Santana! She really has fanciful creations and is available for birthday parties or events! She can be reached at marisol (at) zeebree (dot) com . She is offering a discount of $25 off any face painting party of 2 hours or more if you mention this post.

In addition, she also has a recycled crayon business and she is giving away a set of 6 Cupcake Zeebree crayons. To win, please leave a comment.

p.s. Yes! These are all crayons! You can actually color with them!!!

p.p.s. She is always looking for large crayon donations to repurpose into these cool crayons. If you have a crayon donation, please email her or leave a comment and she will pick up herself.

January 27, 2012
Yoga at L’Aroma Cafe Monday Mornings with Bea Abascal
Please join us for Slow Flow Vinyasa in the upstairs secret room at L’Aroma Cafe in West Newton (behind the movie theater).
When: Mondays, 9:30-10:45

Session 1: January 9-March 26 (no class 1/16 and 2/20)

Session 2: April 2-June 11 (no class 4/16 and 5/28)

Cost: $150 for the session, $48 for 3 Pass

Bea Abascal, CYT, RYT provides a warm and playful environment for your practice. Alignment, breath and core work are the primary focus, along with a soothing energy to refuel you for the day. You will be nurtured and challenged. And then stay for tea … or espresso.

Beginners welcome … this is a small class setting so you can get extra attention if you want it.

For more info on Bea, please visit her website or her blog.
January 11, 2012
New Funnel Playground Toy at Peirce Elementary: Temple and Dartmouth Street

This new Funnel Ball makes shooting baskets much easier. You just aim for the big funnel at the top. This was the Class Gift from Peirce’s Class of 2011 5th Graders and was recently installed.

The next time you drive by the 4-square courts along Temple Street take a look … it’s the tall blue pole with a red bucket sitting on top. Balls are tossed into the large hole on top and then they exit through 1 of 3 different holes. It should offer added fun to the playground for many years to come. Bring your 4 square ball!

Peirce Elementary School is located at 170 Temple Street in West Newton.

Thank you again to Peirce’s Graduating Class of 2011!

January 8, 2012
Featured Store: Kiki D. Design & Consign

Beth Kurson has been a jewelry designer for a number of years and just this past year she decided to combine her love of designing jewelry and high end designer clothes and opened Kiki D. Design & Consign on 214 Sumner Street in Newton Centre. This lovely shop has designer clothes beautifully displayed and in fantastic condition. Recent finds: Chanel jacket, Malo cashmere sweater, Louis Vuitton and Coach bags in perfect condition. Beth is meticulous and also has a great eye. Have a designer item in your closet that is getting no wear? Bring it by and have Beth look it over. You will most likely leave with a new addition to your wardrobe! Ask her to put together a new look for you – she can work with existing pieces and really pull an outfit together.

From the website:

At Kiki D. Design & Consign, owner Beth Kurson has filled her store with a fantastic array of consigned high end designer clothing, handbags and accessories for women. Bottega Veneta – Prada – Girbaud – Marni – Jimmy Choo – Louis Vuitton and so much more is waiting for you when you walk in the door!

The shop also houses Beth’s own line of jewelry, Kiki D. Design. The line includes an eclectic mix of vintage and new elements, creating at once, classic and contemporary designs for today’s fashionable woman. You will find her layering one-of-a-kind pieces that mix rough cut pave diamond beads or pendants with vintage watch chains and findings, pearls mixed with antiqued sterling silver chain and even a stingray cuff with a vintage rhinestone shoe buckle.

Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 10am-5pm

All major credit cards, debit cards, checks and cash accepted.

Kiki D. Design & Consign is conveniently located in Newton Centre at 214 Sumner St. right next to Lee’s Burgers and across the street from Home on Sumner and the old post office.

January 7, 2012
Wegmans Food Market Coming to Newton!!

Wegmans Food Markets Inc. said Monday it plans to bring a smaller urban concept store to Newton, Mass.

The Rochester, N.Y. family-owned supermarket chain, which opened a full-scale store in Northborough in October, plans to build a 70,000-square-foot food store at the Chestnut Hill Square development on Route 9 (Boylston Street), directly across from The Mall at Chestnut Hill in Newton. The company does not have a construction schedule or opening date planned, however, according to a press release.

“Though smaller in size, this store will have almost everything customers have come to expect from Wegmans, including a Market Café,” says Bill Congdon, vice president and New England division manager, in a press release. “We are thrilled with the success of our Northborough store, which broke every previous grand opening record set by our company.

“We’re delighted that Wegmans will be part of our Chestnut Hill Square development,” said Douglass Karp, executive vice president of New England Development, in the release. “We’ve always wanted to have a grocery store as part of this development – a sentiment that has been expressed both by Newton residents and by prospective retailers. Wegmans, with its emphasis on customer service, quality, value pricing, and community outreach, is the ideal grocery store for this location.”

Founded in 1916, Wegmans Food Market is a 79-store supermarket chain with stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland and Massachusetts.

p.s. This exciting news is via my mom friend Nathalie and The Boston Business Journal.

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They will be hiring for the new store and CNNMoney voted Wegmans #3 for Best Companies to Work For.

Rank: 3 (Previous rank: 3)

What makes it so great?

This customer-friendly supermarket chain cares about the well-being of its workers, too. This year, 11,000 employees took part in a challenge to eat five cups of fruit and vegetables a day and walk up to 10,000 steps a day for eight weeks.Another 8,000 took advantage of health screenings that included a flu shot and H1N1 vaccine — all covered by Wegmans.

Headquarters:
1500 Brooks Avenue

Rochester, NY 14603

2009 revenue ($ millions): 5,193
Website: www.wegmans.com

December 9, 2011