Oktoberfest in West Acton
From West Acton Village Merchants Association
Join us for Oktoberfest 2024 on September 28th from 10am to 3pm at Gardner Field! Come catch fantastic live music, enjoy a cold drink, tasty snacks, local shopping and the opportunity to get to know local organizations!
Elementary Budget Community Survey
From Superintendent of Schools Peter Light
We are inviting Acton and Boxborough community members to provide us with important feedback. Our district is partnering with New Solutions K12 to review the elementary school budgets and identify opportunities to balance the needs of our students, staff, and taxpayers. This study is a comprehensive review. Part of this review includes a public process to engage community stakeholders in developing recommendations to the school committee. This includes a public survey that will be used to collect community input on the elementary school experience and better understand both the strengths and challenges. This survey will be anonymous and I encourage you to fill it out honestly and with as much detail as you’d like.
The survey will be available until Friday October 11, 2024. Thank you for taking the time to help ensure the best experience for students, staff, and the community.
You can access the survey at https://tejoin.com/scroll/271779644.
New School Committee Website Launched
From Superintendent of Schools Peter Light
We are excited to announce the release of a new school committee website designed to increase transparency and streamline operations. The new website can be found at: https://abschools.diligent.community.
Using the new website, community members will be able to:
- See a list of upcoming and recent meetings
- Dive into upcoming meeting agendas
- Read and search district policies and procedures
- Explore discussions and decisions in previous meetings
- Search for topics that interest you
- Subscribe to notifications about upcoming meetings
The school committee invites members of the community to explore the new website where you can subscribe to future meeting notification for the full school committee and each of its subcommittees.
See something that’s not quite right? Feedback on on the website can be emailed to: plight@abschools.org.
Thrifty Thursdays
Thursdays, 3:00-6:00 pm
West Acton Baptist Church Coatroom, 592 Massachusetts Ave., Acton.
Entrance next to Mini Food Pantry.
Pop-up thrift shop featuring vintage clothing and accessories. New items added weekly.
Presented by West Acton Baptist Church.
Questions? Contact West Acton Baptist Church
AB Farmers Market
Sundays through October 13, 10:00 am-1:00 pm
Elm Street Playground, Acton.
Stock up on local produce and artisanal goods while you enjoy music, artisan offerings, our community table, friends and neighbors. Free yoga classes. SNAP match for EBT cardholders.
Latest updates available at https://abfarmersmarket.org/
Acton Center Walking Tour
Saturday, September 28, 12:50 – 2:30 pm
Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton.
Event is free but registration is required at the website.
Professional tour leader Amy Cole grew up near Acton Center and has a wide-ranging interest in Acton’s unique history. Walking Acton’s historic civic center, you will learn about the people, places and practices that shaped the town’s history and our nation’s as well. Topics include Native American history, the role of the church, the importance of Captain Isaac Davis and the Acton Minutemen, nearby historic buildings, memorials and more.
Presented by Acton 250 Committee.
More information at the website.
Mushroom Forage
Sunday, September 29, 10:30 am-12:30 pm
NARA Park, 25 Ledge Rock Way, Acton.
To register, click here.
This fall, Acton Conservation Trust will again hold a joint Mushroom Forage event with Boston Mycological Club (BMC.) We will not be eating any of our foraged finds, just identifying them with the help of BMC’s fungi experts. All ages are welcome but no pets (except service animals) are allowed. More information will be sent a few days before the event. Lightning will cancel the walk.
Presented by Acton Conservation Trust with Boston Mycological Club.
Questions? Contact Jody Harris by email.
Children’s event: Children of Hope – Raising Peacemakers
Sunday 29th September, 3:00-6:00 pm
NARA Park Pavillion, 25 Ledge Rock Way, Acton.
Event is free for children, $5 per adult.
This event is to honor the thousands of children who have been killed in the Gaza war and who have not been able to attend school for the 2nd year in a row now. Proceeds will go towards GINA (Gaza Infant Nutrition Alliance), an NGO focused on helping infants in Gaza get the nutrition they need to survive.
For more information, contact thepeacemakersnetwork@gmail.com.
Pathways to Equality: A Forum on Inequality
Monday, September 30, 7:00 pm
Acton Town Hall, 472 Main St., Acton.
Free and open to the public. Register here.
This forum will address wealth, income, and racial inequality in Massachusetts and across America. Moderated by Senator Jamie Eldridge, this event features a distinguished panel of experts ready to ignite critical discussions. Panelists include Dr. Jeff Fuhrer, former Executive Vice President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and author of “The Myth That Made Us;” Colin Jones, Deputy Policy Director at the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, who focuses on education policy and its intersection with economic disparity; and Geeta Pradhan, President of the Cambridge Community Foundation, renowned for her philanthropic efforts to combat income inequality. As Pradhan states, “Change begins with understanding the root causes.” Join us for an engaging conversation that aims to pave the way toward a more equitable future.
Presented by AB United Way, Na’aseh-Congregation Beth Elohim, Housing for All, Acton Housing Authority, Acton Food Pantry, and the Democratic Committees.
More information at the website.
Help Green the Red House
Monday, September 30-Friday, October 4, 9:00-11:00 am
Monday, September 30 & Thursday, October 3, 3:00-5:00 pm
Red House next to Town Hall, 468 Main St., Acton.
Sign up here.
Volunteers will create multiple pollinator gardens and restore a meadow with over 100 native plants. Join other volunteers to create everlasting habitats that you can visit any season.
Presented by Town of Acton Conservation Division.
Questions? Contact Ian Bergemann by email.
EV Driver Meet-Up
Monday, September 30, 5:00-7:00 pm
Rapscallion, 5 Strawberry Hill, Acton.
Open to the public.
Are you a current EV driver? Share notes with other EV drivers about your vehicle, its range, charging, etc. Are you a future EV driver? Come ask questions, see various models, and find out why we LOVE our electric vehicles. Make it a family affair and bring the kids. We will have coloring and crafts for them.
Presented by Energize Acton as part of National Drive Electric Week.
For more info, go to EnergizeActon.org or click here.
Colonial Books and Brew 21+ After Hours Event
Tuesday, October 1, 6:00-8:30 pm
Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton.
Free admission. Beverages and merchandise available for purchase.
This 21+ event features the Acton Minutemen, Dirigible Brewing’s Isaac Davis Brown Ale, the unveiling of the main Isaac Davis Plow Mural, colonial themed activities, food and beverages.
Presented by Acton 250 Committee and Acton Memorial Library Foundation.
More information at websites here or here.
Pay and Play Like it’s 1982 at the Discovery Museum
October 1-8, 9:00 am-4:30 pm
Discovery Museum, 177 Main St., Acton.
Advance reservations are recommended through the website.
Discovery Museum is a hands-on museum for families that blends science, nature, and play. In recognition of the Museum’s founding in October 1982 and to thank its community for more than four decades of support, the cost of admission will be $2.50 per person during “Pay and Play Like it’s 1982.” Existing discount programs that offer deeper discounts will be honored and include EBT, WIC, ConnectorCare, active-duty military families, teachers, and children under 1.
More information at the website.
Iron Work Farm Open Tap Room Fundraiser
Saturday, October 5, 4:00-8:00 pm
Faulkner Homestead, 5 High Street, Acton.
Tickets are $50.00 and include 3 drink/food tickets. Kids are free.
Family-friendly event. Enjoy lawn games and live music by Babylon, dig into a tasty beef stew, apple crisp, or burrito, take a “colonial” selfie at the photo booth, roast popcorn or marshmallows on our fire pits. Enjoy Acton 250 Committee’s Isaac Davis Brown Ale by Dirigible Brewing.
Presented by Iron Work Farm.
Purchase tickets and get more information at Iron Work Farm website.
Maynard Porchfest
Sunday, October 6, 12:00-5:00 pm.
Multiple porches throughout Maynard.
Free and open to the public.
Maynard Porchfest is a community gathering of friends and neighbors sharing music and art with the community. Porches throughout town are set up as stages where the community can visit and mingle as they choose. Performances at:
12 Durant Avenue
53 Thompson Street
174 Great Road
100 Acton Street
11 Field Street
86 Powdermill Road
35 Thompson Street
27 O’Moore Avenue
14 Chandler Street
78 Concord Street
7 Lincoln Street
82 Main Street
Produced by Elizabeth Barren. Sponsored by Sanctuary.
More information at Maynard Porchfest.
Open House at Jonathan Hosmer House
Sunday, October 6, 2:00-5:00 pm
Jonathan Hosmer House, 300 Main Street, Acton.
The Hosmers were an early Acton family, serving the town from its beginning. Jonathan Hosmer (1712-1775) was a selectman and town clerk for many years as well as one of the first Deacons of Acton’s church. Jonathan Hosmer (1734-1822), like his father, was a brick mason and farmer. Jonathan married Submit Hunt (1737-1812) in 1760 and built the Hosmer House. Though records are not perfect for the time period, it appears that Jonathan and several of his brothers did military service during the Revolutionary War. His younger brother Abner was killed at the North Bridge in Concord, April 19, 1775. In addition to other roles in Acton, Jonathan served on the town’s Committee of Correspondence in 1777 and a committee to provide for soldiers’ families in 1779 and 1780. Seven children were born to Jonathan and Submit Hosmer. Their eldest Jonathan died in service in Bennington in 1777.
Presented by Acton Historical Society and Acton 250 Committee.
More information at https://www.actonhistoricalsociety.org and https://www.actonma.gov/250
Archaeological Discoveries in New England
Wednesday, October 9, 7-8:30 p.m.
In person at the Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton and via Zoom.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Peabody award winning Smithsonian filmmaker Ted Timreck shares documentary footage from two little known discoveries that show the potential of what might be found anywhere in the New England countryside.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Acton Center Walking Tour
Friday, October 11, 12:50 – 2:30 pm
Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton
Event is free but registration is required at this website.
Professional tour leader Amy Cole grew up near Acton Center and has a wide ranging-interest in Acton’s unique history. Walking Acton’s historic civic center, you will learn about the people, places and practices that shaped the town’s history and our nation’s as well. Topics include Native American history, the role of the church, the importance of Captain Isaac Davis and the Acton Minutemen, nearby historic buildings, memorials and more.
Presented by Acton 250 Committee.
More information at the website.
Acton Raas Garba & India Mela
Saturday, October 12, 5:00-11:00 pm
McCarthy-Towne Elementary School, Parker Damon Building, 11 Charter Road, Acton.
Tickets: Kids ages 5-10 years $5; Adults $15. Limited spots available.
Immerse yourself in the vibrant rhythms and colorful traditions of Garba music and dancing, a joyous Indian dance form. Event highlights include live Garba music, Indian fashion clothing/accessories, artifacts and jewelry shopping, Mehndi and face painting, and delicious Indian food. Prizes will be awarded for best dressed and best dancer. The funds raised on this occasion will be used for the Autistic Foundation Center, Boston.
Tickets at this website and this website.
Questions? Contact 774-330-9872.
Ancient Winters at the Flagg Swamp Rockshelter
Tuesday, October 15, 7-8:30 p.m.
In person at the Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton and via Zoom.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Eric Johnson of UMass-Amherst provides a retrospective on the excavation of this remarkable 4,000-year-old site in Marlborough, Massachusetts.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.
Adult Archaeology Walk
Saturday, October 19, 10 a.m. to noon
In-person only. Limited to 20, ages 17 and up.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Bettina Abe, Acton trail volunteer and retired member of Acton’s Conservation Division, will lead a brisk hike along the Nashoba Brook Trail, with stops at the stone chamber and Native American ceremonial sites. Trail conditions can be rocky, uneven, and often wet, and thus participation is limited. Registrants will receive a detailed email several days before the walk.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of PIne Hawk
Burying the Trowel: A History of Controversy and Innovation in New England’s Cultural Stone Features Debate
Tuesday, October 22, 7-8:30 p.m.
In person at the Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton and via Zoom.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Unusual stone features dot the woodlands and hillsides of New England and their provenance has been subject to many theories and debate. Cultural anthropologist Caitlin O’Riordan will give an overview of the changing ways these features have been understood over time and the friction this has caused between avocational researchers and professional archaeologists.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.
Acton’s and Concord’s Roads to Revolution
Wednesday, October 23, 7:00-8:30 pm
Acton Town Hall, Room 204, 472 Main St., Acton.
Robert Gross, renowned author of The Minutemen and their World, will share the unique conflicts and changes Acton and Concord citizens experienced in their economic and social lives that led up to the dramatic events of 250 years ago.
Presented by Acton 250 Committee.
More information at the website.
Acton-Boxborough Family Network Spooktacular Halloween Party
Saturday, October 26, 10:00 am-12:30 pm
RJ Grey Junior High School Gym, 16 Charter Road, Acton.
Open to the public. Members: Free. Non-members: $10 per family, must pre-register at www.abfamily.org
Halloween Spooktacular event includes a magician and other fun activities provided by local preschools and businesses. The magic show will be from 11:00-11:45 am. There will also be a family costume contest, so come dressed for a chance to take come home cool prizes donated by local businesses.
Presented by Acton-Boxborough Family Network.
Questions? Email Acton-Boxborough Family Network.
Green Acton Fixit Clinic
Saturday, October 26, 10:00 am-1:00 pm
Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton.
Event is free; you may be asked for a donation to defray supply costs.
If you have a non-functioning item that seems repairable, bring it to the Fixit Clinic where knowledgeable coaches will help you troubleshoot, tinker and maybe fix your item. Coaches will also sharpen dull kitchen knives and garden tools. Items can include small appliances, toys, devices, clothing, electronics, bikes, and anything else you can carry. Future Fix-it Clinics dates are January 11, 2025 and May 24,2025.
If you want to bring an item and have time to check in before the event, click here.
Presented by Green Acton.
Open Houses at Iron Work Farm
Sunday, October 27
Jones Tavern, 128 Main St., Acton. 1:00-3:00 pm
Jones-Faulkner Homestead, 5 High St., Acton. 3:00-5:00 pm
Event is free.
Both buildings played important roles at the start of the Revolutionary War. Jones Tavern was first built in 1732 and operated by Samuel Jones as a tavern by 1750. At the Jones-Faulkner Homestead, visitors can explore the restored rooms of this 1707 architectural gem, the oldest house in Acton and home of the owners of the longtime fulling and grist mills on Fort Pond Brook. It was from this house that Acton’s West Militia marched to Concord on April 19, 1775 under Capt. Simon Hunt, while Capt. Francis Faulkner assumed the leadership (as Colonel) of the 3rd Middlesex Massachusetts Regiment. Parking is available on-site or nearby.
Presented by Iron Work Farm.
More information at the website.
Changes in the Land: Book Discussion
Tuesday, October 29, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
In person at the Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Join a group discussion of this landmark environmental history by William Cronon, which offers an original and profound explanation of the effects European colonists’ sense of property and their pursuit of capitalism had upon the ecosystems of New England.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.
Hidden History of Black Boston
Wednesday, November 6, 6:00 pm
Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton.
Discover Boston’s rich 400-year African American history with Joel Mackall. Many vibrant Black communities flourished in Boston stretching back to early colonial times.
Presented by Acton 250 Committee.
More information at the website.
Community Service Day at Trail Through Time
Sunday, November 10, 1-3 p.m.
In person. Limited to 25, ages 13 and up.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Assist with trail and site maintenance on the Nashoba Brook Conservation Land’s Trail Through Time, a multicultural heritage trail in North Acton. The focus of this annual effort will be trail and site maintenance as well as cleaning trail kiosks. Rain date is Sunday, November 17.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.
“One for the Revolutionary Road: Taverns and the American Revolution”
Tuesday, November 12, 7:00 pm
Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton.
Malcolm Purinton will show there were few places more important in Colonial and Revolutionary America than local taverns. Taverns were the gathering spot to discuss the news and politics of the day.
Presented by Acton 250 Committee.
More information at the website.
Acton Arboretum Walk
Saturday, November 16, 9:30-11:00 am
Acton Arboretum, 2 Taylor Rd., Acton. Limited to 12, adults only.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
Join Friends of the Nashobah Indians members Kevin Gallant and Bettina Abe for a walk through the Acton Arboretum to observe what may be Native American Ceremonial Stone Landscapes (CSLs). Many cultural structures have been destroyed by development but some may still exist. The walk will be on and off the trail over uneven ground.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.
A Day in the Life of a Local Archaeologist
Wednesday, November 20, 7:00 pm
In person at the Acton Memorial Library, 486 Main St., Acton and via Zoom.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
David Gutbrod, professional archaeologist and Chair of Westford’s Historical Commission, conducted research in North Acton, the first application of Acton’s new Archaeological Protection bylaw. He will share significant highlights from the Acton project as well as remote sensing projects conducted in Tampa Bay’s lost cemetery and the hidden remains of Ethel, Florida.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.
Native Americans and the Revolution: The Times are Exceedingly Altered
Thursday, December 5, 7:00-8:30 pm
In person at the Acton Town Hall, Room 204, 472 Main St., Acton and via Zoom.
Event is free, but registration is required at tinyurl.com/pinehawk-2024
At the end of the 1780s, a group of Mohegans bemoaned that “[t]he times are exceedingly altered, yea the Times have turned everything topside down.” That was true for indigenous peoples in southern New England who survived the devastations of King Philip’s War a century earlier, as well as those between the Appalachians and the Great Lakes who were subject to a half-century of displacement and wars between European powers. Daniel Mandell, Professor of History Emeritus, Truman State University, and author of Tribe, Race, History: Native Americans in Southern New England, 1780-1880, will present how thousands of Native people were involved in and impacted by the Revolution and how they sought to secure their rights in different ways.
Presented by The Friends of Pine Hawk. Funded by Freedom’s Way and cosponsored with Acton 250.
Questions? Email Friends of Pine Hawk.