Greater Boston Food Bank President/ CEO Catherine D’Amato, left, presents the Public Advocate of the Year Award to local state Rep. Sean Garballey.

State Rep. Sean Garballey (D), who represents Arlington and West Medford, has been awarded the Public Advocate of the Year Award. 

This honor was given by Greater Boston Food Bank as part of its annual Partner Appreciation Awards — a ceremony celebrating advocates dedicated to hunger relief, according to a press release from The Castle Group.

 Garballey was honored several weeks ago as the State House of Representatives Public Advocate of the Year Award during GBFB’s annnual FreshFest event. 

“I am honored to partner with The Greater Boston Food Bank on so many issues in the State House,” Garballey wrote in a news release. “The Greater Boston Food Bank does tremendous work on combating hunger across the region. I have been proud to work with them on the Hunger Free Campus Initiative, passing free school meals and prohibiting the practice of ‘meal shaming’ in our schools.”

 Garballey is a member of the Joint Committee on Higher Education; a supporter of the Hunger-Free Campus Initiative, which aims to support colleges in implementing hunger relief initiatives on campus; a strong advocate towards ensuring student success in Massachusetts; and is committed to preventing student hunger, the statement said.

UPDATED April 12: Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Medford Chief of Police Jack Buckley confirmed that Chenghai Xue, 44, has been charged with murder in connection with fatally shooting his nephew, a 23-year-old Revere man, outside the Cambridge District Courthouse in Medford, YourArlington Patch reported.

A not guilty plea was entered on Xue’s behalf in Somerville District Court, and his court-appointed lawyer didn’t immediately return an email seeking comment from The Boston Globe on Friday, April 8. Xue appears to live at 35 Forest St., Arlington.

The victim's name was not released during the arraignment. In a statement from the district attorney's office, the preliminary investigation "suggests that Mr. Xue and the victim had been at the courthouse for a hearing, where Mr. Xue was seeking an extension of a restraining order against his nephew."

Less than 24 hours earlier, the Globe reported, Xue and his nephew, Cong Wang, had appeared on opposite sides of the court in Medford, where a judge had declined to extend a restraining order Xue had filed against his nephew, who’d previously had a romantic relationship with Xue’s former wife, legal filings show.

Globe, April 12: Victim remembered as star NU student

 Prince Hall's groundbreaking work as a black leader in the late 18th century is expected to be recognized during Arlington's annual Town Meeting.

Cambridge Day, a YourArlington partner site, has published an account about how our city neighbor has honored the man. A tour highlighting several city monuments cites one established in 2010 about Hall, founder of the first black Masonic lodge. Born circa 1735-1738, he born into slavery but emancipated as a young man and became a leader in the free black community in Boston.

Read more here >>

'... so many lives in recovery.'

Just over the Arlington border, the nonprofit Restoration Project works with adolescents and adults with emotional and neurological challenges who restore themselves while restoring furniture and finding boosts in confidence as they learn retailing.

"Our participants trust us with their hopes and dreams," said its founder and director, Eloise Newell. "We're grateful to be part of so many lives in recovery."

The grass-roots vocational-rehabilitation program at 334 Pleasant St., in Belmont, operates on the assumption that recovery is possible. Individuals with mental illnesses and brain injuries are valued for their strengths and potential. A creative endeavor in a congenial atmosphere, individually chosen and self-paced, challenges and nurtures their abilities.

Newell says the process builds confidence, perseverance and a set of work skills that are transferable to new situations. The program has helped more than 300 participants return to the world of work, 70 percent of whom remain employed long term.

The effort moved from West Concord last year, aiming to reach more participants and to offer another road to rehabilitation -- a retail thrift store where clients can get ready for competitive employment.

Jeffrey Yao, 24, of Winchester, was indicted Thursday, Sept. 20, by a Middlesex Superior Court grand jury and charged with murder, armed assault with intent to murder a person over the age of 60 and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on a person over the age of 60 in connection with the Feb. 24, 2018, fatal stabbing of Deane Kenny Stryker, 22, of Winchester, and the nonfatal stabbing of a 77-year-old Winchester man in the Winchester Public Library.

Yao was expected appear in Middlesex Superior Court for arraignment midmorning Friday, Sept. 21.

The prosecutors assigned to this case are Assistant District Attorneys Kate Cimini and Carrie Spiros.

On the Winchester street where Jeffrey Yao lived, neighbors saw many signs of trouble over the years, but who could have predicted those signs would lead to murder?

A Boston Globe report documents what neighbors told police with growing unease. A picture emerges of a family who wanted to help their son but did not know where to turn. Read here and here >> Now, his attorney, J.W. Carney says he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, BostonGlobe.com reports April 11.

March 11, 2018: In Winchester murder, questions linger about why suspect was able to roam free

Globe, March 7, 2018: Winchester suspect had two dozen encounters with police in 6 years

This news announcement was published Sunday, March 4, 2018, and update Oct. 8.

BostonGlobe.com, March 2: Loved ones recall aspiring doctor

UPDATED, March 2: The usual quiet of the Winchester Public Library was shattered Saturday, Feb. 24, when a 23-year-old town man allegedly slashed a woman from behmnd with a 10-inch hunting knife before he was subdued. 

Jeffrey Yao entered a not-guilty plea at his arraignment Monday, Feb. 26, in Woburn District Court in the death of Deane Kenny Stryker (at right), 22, and an injured man, 77, who tried to intervene. In court, Yao's attorney, J.W. Carney, cited his client's "chronic mental illness" and offered more details.

A March 2 report says he is at Bridgewater State Hospital.

A report in The Boston Sunday Globe cited fears by a number neighbors about Yao, but police have not disclosed a motive. For more, read here >> 

A story later Feb. 24 reported her identity as well as reactions from those who knew her >> 

Perry

Town resident, 31, also charged

UPDATED, Oct. 17:  Jonathan T. Perry, 17, of Somerville, has been indicted as a youthful offender and charged with manslaughter and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury in connection with the Aug. 29, fatal shooting of Tenzin Kunkhyen, 16, of Malden.

In an Oct. 17 news release, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has announced that Perry expects to be arraigned in Cambridge Juvenile Court on Wednesday, Oct. 18.

In juvenile court, youthful-offender cases are open to the public.

A second individual, Keith R. Harlow, 31, was arrested Sept. 5 at the same Arlington apartment. The location was not identified, but a police log notes arrests at a Medford Street location.

In a Sept. 5 town news release, Chief Frederick Ryan reported the arrest by Arlington police investigators, working in conjunction with Somerville and State Police detectives. The news release does not name the suspect, because he is a juvenile, but he was previously identified by the DA's office.

The shooting took place at 14 Farragut Ave., in Somerville, four blocks from the Arlington border.

The release says he was  arrested without incident Sept. 5 He is being held on a warrant out of Middlesex Juvenile Court. 

He is to make a first appearance in Cambridge Juvenile Court, likely at an arraignment Sept. 6.

He is being held without bail pending arraignment. He also has an outstanding arrest warrant from Worcester Juvenile Court.

Harlow was held on three outstanding arrest warrants charging him with:

• Possession of a Class A Substance (Heroin)
• Resisting Arrest
• Disorderly Conduct
• Operating a Motor Vehicle with a Suspended License.

Report adds details 

BostonGlobe.com reported Sept. 5 that shortly after Kunkhyen’s death, Harlow had posted a television news report about the shooting to Facebook and wrote above the link, "I never wanted this day to come but when [your] sister told me what you was doing i knew it was just a matter of time."

Harlow did not elaborate in his posting, the website reported.

Also Tuesday, the website said, a friend of Kunkhyen's who performs rap music under the moniker Gold Brick Ghost said in an email that acquaintances believe the shooting was accidental.

"They were friends and everyone knows it was an accident man," the musician, who says on Twitter that he is based in Florida, wrote, according to BostonGlobe.com. “[P]erry aint no killer and definitely dident [sic] kill his best friend man.”

Harlow's Facebook posts identifies him as "R. Keith Harlow."

Earlier report 

An Aug. 30 Globe report said the victim is of Tibetan heritage, had moved from India, had gone to Somerville High and later to Malden High. 

Shortly before 5 p.m. Aug. 29, Somerville police responded to a Farragut Avenue residence for reports of a shooting and found the teen suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. The victim was transported to Mount Auburn Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

A preliminary investigation suggests that the victim was in the residence with other individuals who were known to him and that this is not a random act, a statement from District Attorney Marian Ryan says.

No one has been charged. Conducting the ongoing investigation are Ryan's office, State and Somerville Police. The circumstances surrounding how the shooting occurred are part of this investigation. The identity of the victim was withheld pending official identification from the Office of the Medical Examiner and notifying next of kin.

The DA's office reported no other updates in the investigation on Wednesday, Aug. 30.

The Boston Globe has published a photo of the location. 

This news summary was published Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017, and updated Sept. 1, to add a photo of the suspect. YourArlington publishes photographs of minors (those 18 and younger) only in circumstances where the seriousness of potential charges warrant. It was updated Oct. 17, to report the indictment.

      Harvey GoFundMe photo related to Rockport, Mass., effort

UPDATED, Sept. 4: Historic flooding in Houston trapped an Arlington woman inside her apartment for two days, Boston 25 News reported.

The station spoke to her brother, Robin Chhetri, after he received a call from her on Tuesday, Aug. 29, when she feared for her life.

Chhetri and his sister, originally from Nepal, but he lives in Arlington while she is attending a nursing program at a Houston community college.

She told her brother she are two roommates were trapped on the second floor after the water had engulfed the first floor of the two-story structure.

Later, after rain subsided, floodwaters receded far enough for the women to get out of the apartment.

Arlington residents, with millions of others in greater Boston, have access to clean water from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). The clean water is pumped from the Quabbin Reservoir in the central part of the state through a network of pipes and smaller reservoirs. The water is treated and tested along the way to ensure it's free from lead and other toxic substances.

"We’ve been blessed with huge reservoirs that are protected," MWRA Executive Director Frederick Laskey, a Medford resident, told InsideMedford.

Laskey said the MWRA buffers the water to control its acidity, which makes it less corrosive and less likely to cause lead to leach into it from pipes.

A recent Boston Globe article pointed out the large number of lead service lines in several MWRA communities, including Medford, Malden and Somerville. Communities with older homes often have lead service lines, the pipes that carry water into homes.

Laskey told InsideMedford there is no lead in the water mains operated by the MWRA and the City of Medford. Homeowners are responsible for the replacement cost of the lead service line from the curb into their homes.

Despite the concern with lead service lines bringing water into homes, Laskey said Medford has passed lead tests the last three years without a problem. He said homes that are known to have lead pipes are intentionally tested and that 98 percent of all water tested is below the allowable threshold.

"The numbers from Medford are good; water quality tests are good," Laskey told InsideMedford. "Overall, as a system we do very well."

Having a lead service line into a home doesn’t automatically mean the water isn’t safe. Laskey recommends running water after it has sat for a few hours in pipes until it’s cold, such as when waking up in the morning or returning home from work. He also said hot tap water should never be consumed.

The MWRA recently published a document about lead and the steps it takes to keep our water clean.

The MWRA also has a webpage with facts about lead, including how to limit exposure and how to get water tested. Read it here >>

This report, originally published at InsideMedford, a YourArlington partner, was published Sunday, Feb. 21, 2016.

In the mid-1960s, an increasing number of young families began moving into "Turkey Hill" in Arlington and "Pepper Hill" in Winchester, increasing the Catholic population in those areas and creating a need for a new parish.

Cardinal Richard Cushing decided to build a new church to serve the two communities.

St. Eulalia parish soon became known for its contemporary music ministry, particularly its Wednesday night masses, but it also became known for its strong participation by laypeople and women religious, as well as its commitment to social outreach, supporting human rights and encouraging programs to support the less fortunate and those facing prejudice.

The 50th-anniversary year opens with a Mass celebrated by Bishop Peter J. Uglietto on Sunday, Jan. 24, at 11 a.m.

Throughout the year, the parish plans to host a series of events, and all are welcome to attend.

Events include a lecture series about the evolution of the Catholic Church over the last 50 years, as well as a parish reading and discussion of Matthew Kelly’s book [The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic.

There will be social events, including a family festival, a fashion show sponsored by the youth ministry, a social-justice project with an African ministry and a gala dinner at the Café Escadrille in Burlington.

Cardinal Sean O’Malley will celebrate Mass at St. Eulalia’s on Sunday, Oct. 16.

For more details, please see St. Eulalia’s website.

This announcement was published Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016.

The state’s Ethics Commission has imposed a $37,500 civil penalty on Joseph F. Tulimieri, the former executive director of the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority, and has required him to pay $21,245 in restitution to the authority.

In 2013, in response to issues in Cambridge, Arlington selectmen voted not to reappoint Tulimieri to the Zoning Board of Appeals, where he had served as chairman and had been part of Arlington's development picture since the 1960s.

Citing an Ethics Commission spokesman, Cambridge Day has reported that Tulimieri has admitted to violating the law and agreed to pay.

He was executive director of the Cambridge agency from 1982 until his forced resignation Sept. 27, 2012, after a period in which he worked for the agency hourly.

The agency’s five-member board, all of whom became active in April 2012 after a 32-month with no board activity, identified irregularities in how Tulimieri assigned himself salary, bonuses, part-time wages and retirement compensation, the website reported.

For more details, read Cambridge Day >> 

June 4, 2013: Longtime zoning chairman passed over; current member quits

This report was published Wednesday, June 24, 2015.