New vending machines dispense opioid harm reduction support
The four vending machines are part of a statewide program to install harm reduction dispensers — 14 of them across Massachusetts — stocked with things like Narcan and naloxone, clean syringes and fentanyl test strips, as well as other public health...

Program aims to bring health benefits, longer life to Black elders through social connection
Through a months-long pilot program, called Operation Elder Connect, run earlier this year, researchers at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Studies alongside the Elder Health Care Disparities Coalition connected community elders with students to prevent the health impacts that can come from extended loneliness and social isolation.

Meeting Jimmy Carter
In 1978, Robert M. Coard, former president/CEO of Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD) greets President Jimmy Carter at a Washington, D.C., meeting. Carter, the 39th president of the United States, died on Sunday.

T announces end of all subway slow zones
The event marked the end of the year-long Track Improvement Program, which saw segments of the MBTA system shut down for extended periods of time throughout 2024, making way for teams to replace 248,000 feet of track and clear out more than 200 slow zones across the system.

Wu appeals to BPS parents for soccer stadium support
Mayor Michelle Wu last week appealed to Boston Public School parents for support for her administration’s controversial plan to lease White Stadium to a professional soccer team.

First Black headmaster in Boston Public Schools leaves a long legacy
Robert Peterkin was born and raised in New York City, and was a lifelong Yankees fan and jazz enthusiast. He graduated from State University of New York at Albany, then received a doctorate from the University of Massachusetts. While at Albany, he met the love of his life, Louise Bauer.

Free community college faces ‘growing pains’
“Our dedicated faculty and staff, who are the backbone of our institution, often earn less than high school teachers,” said QCC President Luis Pedraja, noting that faculty salaries are controlled by the state.

Autoimmune disease research could help millions
Now, scientists at Stanford University have found that a faulty genetic molecule could be responsible for the immune system misidentifying healthy tissue as a threat.

Jimmy Carter, one of only a few presidents who lived up to his Christian faith.
Jimmy Carter, one of only a few presidents who lived up to his Christian faith..

President Jimmy Carter’s legacy is a challenge for us all
Jimmy Carter’s death this week was a stark reminder of how far our country has strayed from the mission of healing America’s racial divide and devoting our time and resources to uplifting the poor, the hungry, the homeless and the helpless in the richest nation on earth.

IN THE NEWS
Early in her career, Epperson-Temple began as an associate attorney for Boston’s Morrison Mahoney LLP, a firm that specializes in trial attorneys, before moving to her current position with Peabody & Arnold LLP, where she specializes in professional...

Climate change must be taught in our schools
Climate change instruction in our educational institutions is not where it should be currently. It’s a sad state of affairs when the world is visibly changing around us, and our youth don’t know what to make of it. It’s also unfortunate that our youth are witnessing climate change as a polarizing issue in our society.

The need to advance youth mental health advocacy
Resilience is a defining trait of Boston, evident in the strength of its families, the determination of its young people and the solidarity of its neighborhoods. As the chief behavioral health officer for the city, I witness this resilience daily — but also see the challenges that test it.

Hidden Treasures: Rituals, age and wisdom
My dad is a part of an older group of Americans who entered the early decades of the 20th century struggling with how they, as newly placed Americans from the deep South, were going to plant themselves, raise families and work toward realizing their American dreams.

Annual Menino Toy Drive
The family of former Boston Mayor Tom Menino keeps the 30-year tradition alive at their annual toy drive in Dorchester..

AccessMa Toy Drive
AccessMa Inc., an organization that addresses racial inequality in Black and brown communities held a toy drive with volunteers from its “From Liabilities to Contributors” initiative, comprised of returning citizens, who once harmed their communities, giving back to those respective communities through service.

Kwanzaa celebration at BPL Roxbury Branch
The Roxbury Branch of the Boston Public Library celebrated Kwanzaa with live performances, music, fashion, vendors, and refreshments. Festivities included making Kwanzaa affirmation keepsakes and Kwanzaa art..

Menorah Kindling on Boston Common
Puppies at play during the 41st Annual Menorah Kindling on Boston Common..

UConn Huskies win, Boston College Eagles fall short in bowl games
As the madness of the college football bowl season escalates toward the upcoming semifinal competition for the NCAA Division One National Championship, the University of Connecticut Huskies and Boston College Eagles concluded their seasons with bowl appearances at Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium.

Remembering Greg Gumbel
Greg Gumbel and I shared career paths in broadcasting. During my early years at WBZ-TV 4, he did his thing at the NBC television station in Chicago. I would use his network sports highlight packages, and he would use mine.

Patriots lose big but gain No. 1 2025 college football draft pick
The New England Patriots have secured the No. 1 pick in the 2025 Collegiate Draft following their embarrassing 40-7 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers before a half-empty Gillette Stadium.

Richard Parsons, esteemed corporate leader and jazz enthusiast, dies at 76
Parsons, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2015, had scaled back his professional commitments in recent years due to complications from the disease. Lazard, the financial services firm where Parsons was a longtime board member, confirmed his death.

With Trump on the way, look to states to pick up medical debt fight
Comprehensive health coverage that limits patients’ out-of-pocket costs remains the best defense against medical debt.

‘Crumbs From the Table of Joy’ opens 2025 lineup at Lyric Stage
Lyric Stage launches into 2025 with “Crumbs From the Table of Joy,” a play by Lynn Nottage that centers the experience of a young woman and her sister navigating the loss of their mother and the remarriage of their father in racially charged 1950s Brooklyn.

Read any good books lately?
The community turned out for the November grand opening of Just Book-ish in Dorchester. Founded by Porsha Olayiwola and Bing Broderick, the new bookstore aims to serve the surrounding community with a curated selection of reading material, arts events and gatherings at its book-café.

‘Nickel Boys’ an experimental must-see explores the loss of innocence in Jim Crow-era Florida
Sixty-two years ago, segregation under Jim Crow was completely legal and violently enforced in the South in states like Florida. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, which would end legal segregation, wouldn’t be enacted for another two years.