A great time in Egleston Sq.

On behalf of the board of Egleston Square Main Street and the merchants of Egleston Square, I would like to thank everyone who made this past Saturday’s Holiday Celebration the very best ever. The Peace Garden was cleaned by volunteers from the Franklin Park Coalition and offered a central location from which to enjoy the festivities, including music offered by Skippy White CDs and Records that filled the square. Residents, merchants and friends enjoyed hot chocolate provided by the City of Boston, along with homemade goodies provided by parishioners of St. Mary of the Angels and Covenant Congregational Church.

Our non-profit neighbors were instrumental in making our holiday celebration a success, and we thank 826 Boston, Beantown Society, BNN, the Boston Climate Action Network, the Egleston Square library, ESAC, JPNDC, Rogerson Communities, Teen Empowerment, Urban Edge and the YMCA. Randace Moore, executive director of JP Centre/South Main Streets, very kindly volunteered her time to help many of our businesses jazz up their windows for the season.

We also extend a special thanks to all our friends and neighbors who sang Christmas carols throughout the business district to help celebrate our four new businesses in the community: Shoreline Shine Accessories, Millennium Restaurant, Mr. Shoes Plus and VIP Lounge Salon. We are grateful that even in this difficult economic climate, these four new businesses have created 17 new jobs and have hired many young people from the neighborhood.

Congratulations go to Egleston Square’s window display contest winner, Latino Beauty Salon, and thanks to Ace Hardware of JP Centre/South and La Personalidad Beauty Supply for contributing a great prize.

State Rep. Liz Malia and City Councilors Matt O’Malley and Felix Arroyo, we thank you for reminding us all of the importance of shopping locally as a strategy to build the neighborhood and promote peace. Finally, we thank Mayor Thomas Menino for his constant reinforcement of the Main Street message that our strength is in our neighborhoods, and wish him good health in the coming year.

It has been a difficult fall for all of us in Egleston Square and across all the neighborhoods of Jamaica Plain, and we continue to think of the families of the victims of violence. The positive vibrations in Egleston this weekend that came from far and wide give us hope, and demonstrate the power celebrating our neighborhood and supporting our local businesses can bring. Thank you, and see you in the Square!

Betsy Cowan
Director, Egleston Square Main Street

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