Friends of Fellsmere Heights’ upcoming events – Big changes for the Lantern Walk

The Lantern Walk, the Friends of Fellsmere Heights’ annual celebration of creativity, community and Fellsmere Pond, will be held on August 24 (Rain date: August 25) from 4:30 to dusk at the Savin Street entrance to Fellsmere Park, as usual, and will conclude with a walk around the Pond. However, the time is the only “usual” thing about it. Some health and logistical challenges, as well as safety concerns, have led the Friends to make the following changes:

• They will offer reusable, battery-powered LED string lights to light the lanterns, rather than candles. Lights will be multicolored or “warm” white.
• Participants will be invited to draw their own designs on pre-papered lanterns, rather than covering empty bottles with glue and tissue paper.
• Some options: bringing lanterns from a previous Lantern Walk, using a decorated lantern that the Friends saved from a previous Walk, or simply bringing a clear plastic bottle, such as a water or seltzer bottle with the label removed. As you can see from the examples below, a plain bottle – in this case, a Smartwater bottle with the label pulled off – makes an exciting lantern all on its own.

The Friends hope that this will make it easier for people to drop in, be as creative as they want to be and join the Walk! The Friends will provide plenty of washable markers. The Friends VP in charge of magic, Bob Doolittle, will be there with his bag of tricks, and there will be other entertainment.

Go to https://www.fellsmereheights.org/lantern_walk_2024?utm_campaign=fofh_august_2024_meeting&utm_medium=email&utm_source=fellsmereheights for more information and to volunteer. (Many thanks to the Malden Cultural Council and the Mass Cultural Council for sponsoring the Walk.)

The next monthly meeting will be in person! The Friends supporters are invited to this monthly meeting, which will be held in person on Saturday, August 10. Light refreshments will be provided. The Friends will be showing off the Lantern Walk lanterns and going over plans, looking at more drone pictures of progress at the former Malden Hospital site and planning future community engagement opportunities. The Friends of Fellsmere Heights board will meet in informal session from 9:30–10:30 a.m.; the regular meeting with supporters will begin at 10:30. The meeting is expected to close by 12 p.m.

The location: My Little Best Friends Early Learning Center, 384 Main St., Malden. Many thanks to Hilda Torres, the director of My Little Best Friends, for allowing the Friends to use this space.

Please go to https://www.fellsmereheights.org/august_2024_meeting?utm_campaign=fofh_august_2024_meeting&utm_medium=email&utm_source=fellsmereheights to RSVP. The Friends hope to see you at this meeting and at the Lantern Walk!