Debut Community Day event a success

Members of the Medford and Somerville communities joined together Saturday to participate in Tufts' first Community Day.

The academic quad was filled with town residents either volunteering or attending the event. Approximately 250 residents attended on the sunny Saturday. Participating groups included the Medford and Somerville fire departments, the Mystic Watershed Collaborative, and Medford for Saving Lives.

Twenty Leonard Carmichael Society (LCS) volunteers ran activity booths, and the Medford High School cheerleading team led pumpkin painting sessions for children.

Professors volunteered to give free lectures in the Cabot auditorium. Former Provost Sol Gittleman spoke about the continuing struggle of American immigrants. Other lectures included the history of Goddard Chapel, the Lost Theaters of Somerville, and foreign policy with the Muslim world.

President Bacow welcomed visitors with Somerville Mayor Dorothy Kelly Gay and Medford Mayor Michael McGlynn in Ballou Hall.

Bacow envisioned the event as a way to bring the community and university closer together.

"Tufts has enjoyed and valued our relationships with Medford and Somerville for more than 150 years," said Bacow in a press release. "We're excited to host our neighboring communities for a day of fun and learning for the entire community."

Organizers were pleased with the final product.

"It's been going wonderfully, a huge success," said University Relations assistant Ted Schwartzberg. "We have more people here than we ever expected."

"This is a great idea for bringing the community together. It's been very cool," agreed University Community Relations' coordinator Kelly Timberlake. Timberlake recruited volunteers from both town and campus organizations.

Director of Medford for Saving Lives Ben Averbook had a positive volunteer experience. "It's gone quite well. We've sold a few helmets, and people have been taking pamphlets about bicycle safety and buckling up."

The professors who presented lectures to the attendants were "extremely generous" and just as eager to volunteer, said vice president of University Relations Mary Jeka. The organizers were looking for a broad cross-section of ideas when reviewing varying professors and their lecture ideas, so that they could apply to a wide range of community members.

LCS volunteers attended balloon stands, arts and crafts booths, a reading corner, and led campus tours.

"We've had about 50 kids at our table," said sophomore LCS volunteer Ami Patel.

"Kids are able to get their pictures taken with Jumbo and then they can come here and make a picture frame for it. We also have some hoola hoops and bubbles that we haven't taken out yet," added Patel's partner, fellow sophomore Karissa Brazauskas.

By far, one of the most popular exhibits for children was by the fire departments of Medford and Somerville, who brought in fire trucks and a simulated smoke room, where children could practice what to do in case of a fire.

"We're having a blast," said Medford resident Patty Samuelson, who brought her five year old son, Josh, to the event. "I think we've been hanging out at this fire department display for almost an hour, [Josh] is really enjoying this. I wasn't sure what this would be like, but I thought we should go and check it out. It has definitely exceeded my expectations."

The event was organized completely by volunteers. The day's only expense, a catered lunch, was donated by the university. The successful debut has lead organizers to suggest making Community Day an annual event.

"Oh, absolutely," Jeka said. "We hope to someday see the 100th anniversary of Community Day. We've already begun to build on things, and we can see what we can improve and change over the years."