The Spirit of Giving: Heather Capes Lends a Helping Hand

Local volunteer is painfully aware of how important volunteer work is, and how important it is to teach that awareness to children.

Editor's Note: This story, which originally ran in December 2011, has been republished in our quest to highlight the good deeds Northborough natives and residents are doing. Three years ago, Heather Capes spotted an ad looking for volunteers to assist homeless children. She had always wanted to donate her time, but "taking that first step was the hardest part." She took that first step and is now a devoted volunteer, her face a familiar one at many of the local fundraisers. "I think once you start volunteering," Capes said, "you are inspired by the generosity that you witness and the reward of knowing that you are doing something small to help make life a little easier for others." Capes gives much of her volunteer time to two specific …

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So, What Are You Doing on New Year's Eve?

Do your plans for New Year's Eve involve noisemakers, or fluffy pillows?

Last week, Northborough Patch offered up a list of local events and places to go on New Year's Eve. And by now, you must have a plan of action. For some, New Year's Eve means ordering mounds of Chinese food and watching the ball drop on TV at home. For others, it's a wild night out at a club, or a house party, popping champagne, blowing noisemakers and kissing at midnight. So what about you? What are your plans?

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5 Last-Minute Christmas Gifts You Can Buy Locally

If you forgot someone on your list or missed a shipping deadline, you can still find great gifts in Northborough.

1. Armeno Coffee Roasters, Ltd. is featuring the "Coffees Around the World Sampler." Available only during the holiday season, you get four, half-pound bags of Armeno's single-origin coffees roasted everyday on the premises for $26.75. Included in the sampler is Holiday Cheer, a rich, full-bodied blend and one bag of coffee each from The Americas, Africa and Indonesia/Asia. Call 508- 393-2821 or visit the website for more information. Armeno is closing at noon on Saturday, Dec. 24 and reopening at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2012. 2. Northborough is in love with Wegmans. Why not pick up a logoed, 16 oz. travel mug? You can choose from four different designs: Love & Peace, Earth Day, Splash or Patriotic. Now through Dec. 31, you …

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A Perry Merry Christmas: Longtime Peanuts Decorations Live On in Rutland

For the fist time, the familiar Charlie Brown display isn't in Northborough this year, but the Perrys granddaughter keeps the legend alive.

Since the late '40s, a defining sign that Christmas had hit Northborough was the display of a "Perry Merry Christmas" on the Perrys' lawn on West Main Street. As Jessica Perry Stowe said on her Facebook page, "These mean more to me than I can put into words. A few of you will understand." The Christmas lawn decorations that feature wooden Peanuts figures sat on the Perrys' property in Northborough since shortly after Donald and Mary Perry bought the house, in 1946.  Made by Perry Stowe's grandfather, Donald, they carved a place in Northborough nostaglia and many from town are familiar with "A Perry Merry Christmas" and those wooden Peanuts characters that sat in the front yard during the season. Donald died in December, 1998, but his wife…

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POLL: What Do You Leave Out for Santa on Christmas Eve?

What do Santa and his reindeer get for treats from you on Christmas Eve?

Americans have a long standing tradition of not only letting Santa in to their homes through the chimney, but leaving him, and his reindeer, some nourishment for the long journey. Most opt for the plate of cookies, milk and some carrots for Rudolph and the boys. But others have another tradition. And...how many of you wake to a sooty footprint in front of the fireplace in the morning? That proves he was there!

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Shop Local: Holiday Gift Series, Part I

Each week until Christmas, Northborough Patch will let you know about some items you can pick up locally that might just do the trick under the tree.

Have an Epiphany...in a box: Epiphany Children's Boutique is offering specialty gift boxes for a variety of ages. The "Angel Face" gift box is geared for the newborn boy or girl. For girls six to 24 months, there's a "Little Darling Bundle" and for the boys that same age, there's a "Little Man Bundle. Consierge serve, too, is offered (as it is all year). Email, message, stop in or call the store, and they'll do the shopping for you based on your suggestions and ideas (for sizes 2T through 6). They'll have the gift box ready at the store. The most meaningful gifts are homemade. Well, sometimes. You've got your hands on this one before it hits the kiln, as PYOP Studio has more than 300 styles of pottery that people can come in and paint. …

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Local Lens

Say Cheese, Reindeer

Wegmans employee decks out in reindeer gear for the season.

Laurie Wilken, Grafton resident who works in the cheese department at Wegmans, dished out samples to the hungry crowds this weekend. She's a self-declared "cheesemonger."

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Hark! 5 Shows and Events for the Holiday Season

Get in the spirit with one or more of these local events and shows, including the Holiday Trolley and Messiah Sing.

1. The best ride around: The Holiday Trolley is happening Saturday, Dec. 10, in town. This day of the trolley, an annual one, gives locals and shoppers from out of town a chance to ride, for free, all day in and around Main Street, hitting stores and other trolley stops. The day ends at 5:30 p.m. with a tree lighting and caroling in the center. 2. The fantastic Assabet Valley Mastersingers bring their Messiah Sing to Trinity Church on Sunday, Dec. 11, at 3:30 p.m. The Mastersingers perform Handel's oratorio, in addition to "Hallelujah Chorus." The audience is invited to sing along during certain parts, and the voices are accompanied by organist Brett Maguire. Aocal soloists are soprano Leslie Leedberg, mezzo Catherine Hedberg, tenor Joshua…

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Who Is the Patch Teacher of the Year?

This month, vote in our second annual teacher of the year contest.

Chances are when you think back to those who have made a different, an impact, in your life, on that list is one or more of your teachers. The affect a teacher can have is remarkably powerful, and affects our society in ways that aren't even measurable. Teachers deserve a heck of a lot of credit. They're in the trenches every day with the kids—some who want to learn, some who don't, some who are challenged, and some who aren't. The skill and organization it takes to coordinate a class is only matched by a teacher's ability to translate the desire to learn to the kids. So, you've got to be smart, and have a personality on top of it! Let us recognize the teachers of Northborough this year in a big way. This is how it works: Send us an email…

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