Lewis Berk, a 49-year-old Coolidge Corner resident, never considered himself an athlete, nor a fundraiser. In 2022, he decided to become both. Berk, whose mother battled cancer throughout his childhood and died of the disease when he was 17, signed up for a 186-mile bike ride and fundraiser for cancer research called the Pan-Mass Challenge.… Continue reading Dozens of Brookline riders get ready to take on the Pan-Mass Challenge
Category: Nonprofits
Brookline.News Podcast, Episode 2: ICE comes to Brookline, a synagogue’s zoning victory and matcha mania
Episode 2 of the Brookline.News podcast is out now. On this episode, Brookline.News editor Sam Mintz and Jessica Smyser of Brookline Interactive Group discuss the latest news, including ICE arrests in Brookline, a synagogue’s zoning victory, an artificial blood philanthropist and matcha mania. Click the arrow below to listen, or find us on your favorite… Continue reading Brookline.News Podcast, Episode 2: ICE comes to Brookline, a synagogue’s zoning victory and matcha mania
Gateway Arts opens new expanded center on Station Street
The Brookline nonprofit Gateway Arts, dedicated to advancing the careers of artists with disabilities, opened a new 9,000 square-foot facility on Station Street on Tuesday. The new office on a street that has become a local arts hub represents a major expansion for Gateway, which is part of the larger nonprofit Vinfen. It expands the… Continue reading Gateway Arts opens new expanded center on Station Street
Photos: Reopening ‘Jennifer Coolfridge,’ the community refrigerator on Station Street
A month after being taken down because of health complaints, a community refrigerator has been re-installed on Station Street in Brookline Village. The new version of what volunteers have dubbed “Jennifer Coolfridge” is smaller and includes a built-in pantry. At an event on Sunday, June 29, organizers from groups including Brookline For The Culture, Bowls4Boston… Continue reading Photos: Reopening ‘Jennifer Coolfridge,’ the community refrigerator on Station Street
Coolidge Corner Theatre union gathers boycott support as contract talks continue
Over a year after it was formed and still without a contract, the union representing workers at the Coolidge Corner Theatre is collecting signatures for a pledge drive intended to gauge public support for a potential boycott of Brookline’s cinema. The Coolidge Corner Theatre Union (CCTU) has garnered over 400 signatures since it launched the… Continue reading Coolidge Corner Theatre union gathers boycott support as contract talks continue
Nick’s House, a home away from home for families of cancer patients, marks its first year in Brookline
Nick Colleluori was the kind of person who remembered to shake every coach’s hand, even after a championship game. He was a college lacrosse player at Hofstra University, an elementary education major, a future educator, a brother and, by all accounts, the heart of any room he walked into. Nick had many labels, but he… Continue reading Nick’s House, a home away from home for families of cancer patients, marks its first year in Brookline
A 40-year-old nonprofit dedicated to protecting the Muddy River is shutting down. Is its mission complete?
Nearly half a century ago, a single mother living on Bowker Street strolled down to the nearby Muddy River and was horrified at what she saw: A murky waterway whose banks were littered with auto parts, refrigerator doors and old tires. Some taxi drivers made a habit of changing their oil by the river. That… Continue reading A 40-year-old nonprofit dedicated to protecting the Muddy River is shutting down. Is its mission complete?
Brookline storytellers speak from the Coolidge Corner Theatre stage to mark second anniversary of Brookline.News
Six Brookline storytellers came to the main stage during Stories Live at the Coolidge Corner Theatre on Wednesday, May 21 to help celebrate the two-year anniversary of Brookline.News. This was also the second year for Stories Live, which was programmed by Iris Adler (a Brookline.News board member) and co-chaired by local volunteers Lucy Chie and… Continue reading Brookline storytellers speak from the Coolidge Corner Theatre stage to mark second anniversary of Brookline.News
Nonprofits and businesses on Station Street bring bustling art scene to Brookline Village
When Gateway Arts moves from its longtime home on Harvard Street to the Studios on Station Street on July 1, it will be the latest sign that the arts scene in Brookline Village is on a post-pandemic rebound. Gateway, which signed a 10-year lease late last year for more than 9,000 square feet of space… Continue reading Nonprofits and businesses on Station Street bring bustling art scene to Brookline Village
How a Korean church in Brookline became a spiritual anchor and home away from home for Boston-area students
In the basement of the Korean Church of Boston on a recent Sunday afternoon, the congregants gathered after services to share plates of bulgogi, kimchi and other traditional Korean dishes. The scene is warm and inviting, with college students mingling alongside congregants of all ages, enjoying traditional delicacies. For many young attendees, this weekly fellowship… Continue reading How a Korean church in Brookline became a spiritual anchor and home away from home for Boston-area students
News in brief: New rental assistance available, town gets $100k for climate plan, Goddard House plans an upgrade
The local nonprofit Brookline Community Development Corporation has brought back its emergency rental assistance program. For the second round of the program, which first launched in late 2023, BCDC will provide one-time payments of up to $5,000 directly to landlords on behalf of eligible renters who are behind on rent. The goal of the program… Continue reading News in brief: New rental assistance available, town gets $100k for climate plan, Goddard House plans an upgrade
Brookline’s poetry scene thrives in local venues
Walk into any café, bookstore, or library in Brookline, and you’ll find writers at work—graduate students on theses, aspiring novelists, and poets lost in their lines. These spaces offer more than just coffee and quiet; they foster a symbiotic relationship between local businesses and the writers who bring them to life. When Angela Divaris first… Continue reading Brookline’s poetry scene thrives in local venues
Boston Ballet School to acquire Brookline Ballet School
The Brookline Ballet School will be acquired this summer by the Boston Ballet School, a larger regional organization with locations across the Boston area. Trinidad Vives and Parren Ballard, who founded the Brookline Ballet School and have been running it for the past 15 years, recently took jobs at the Washington Ballet School in Washington,… Continue reading Boston Ballet School to acquire Brookline Ballet School
Brookline Community Foundation director resigns to join Boston nonprofit
Aba Taylor is resigning as executive director of the Brookline Community Foundation to take a position as president and CEO of YW Boston, a nonprofit organization focused on racial and gender equity. Taylor joined the community foundation in Sept. 2022. During her tenure, the organization’s assets grew from $9.3 million to$16.2 million, according to Gioia… Continue reading Brookline Community Foundation director resigns to join Boston nonprofit
A note of gratitude: Supporting local news
Dear Friends, Our team at Brookline.News has been busy in the new year, publishing stories about our local government, schools and public safety, as well as stories about everything from a community fridge in Brookline Village to the national championship aspirations of the high school’s squash team. These are the types of stories that we… Continue reading A note of gratitude: Supporting local news
Town aims to increase equitable early education access with new initiative
The town will soon launch a four-year initiative which will provide free early education for dozens of low-income families and give professional development to early education providers. Brookline’s Select Board chose Trust Early Learners, a Brookline-based preschool that delivers formal education to children as young as 3 years old, to partner with the town and… Continue reading Town aims to increase equitable early education access with new initiative
Chamber’s restaurant program serves up meals for community orgs
The Brookline Chamber of Commerce has revived its program connecting local restaurants with community organizations, paying them to make prepared meals for residents in need, which also helps provide the eateries with a steady stream of business. The initiative, which currently costs $52,000 to administer for each six-week period, involves about a dozen local restaurants… Continue reading Chamber’s restaurant program serves up meals for community orgs
Coolidge Corner Theatre names Indian director Payal Kapadia its ‘Breakthrough Artist of the Year’
When Payal Kapadia was growing up in India, she used to see her mother sit at their kitchen table, editing for her “video arts” that she filmed on VHS tapes. She was fascinated, as if “the matrix had been revealed,” watching movies in a different light, always on the hunt to find the rips that… Continue reading Coolidge Corner Theatre names Indian director Payal Kapadia its ‘Breakthrough Artist of the Year’
News in brief: Arts nonprofit Gateway plans expansion with Station Street lease
Gateway Arts, a Brookline organization which supports artists with disabilities is planning to expand, moving into a new building on Station Street. Gateway, which is a program of the health and human services nonprofit Vinfen, has signed a 10-year lease for more than 9,000 square feet of space at 9-21 Station Street, the organization announced… Continue reading News in brief: Arts nonprofit Gateway plans expansion with Station Street lease
Brookline Interactive Group, a hub for community and creativity, faces an uncertain future
After his father died in 2023, Jonathan Mande borrowed some equipment from Brookline Interactive Group, the town’s nonprofit community media hub, to film and photograph the funeral. That experience provided a creative outlet that changed Mande’s life. “It became a source of healing for me. I would go on long photo walks,” said Mande, who… Continue reading Brookline Interactive Group, a hub for community and creativity, faces an uncertain future