CREDIT: Courtesy of Concise Design

CAPTION: An artist’s rendering of the Isabelle’s CurlyCakes display area.

Following in the footsteps of her celebrity chef father Todd English, 16-year-old Isabelle English will join him next month in opening Isabelle’s CurlyCakes, an all-natural gourmet cupcake shop at 81 Charles St.
“My interest in both business and design, and my family’s lineage in the culinary field is all coming together,” said Isabelle, whose burly brown locks inspired the shop’s name. “I can’t wait to open the doors.”
Located in the space previously occupied by the Ritz Camera shop, the modest storefront will offer 12 varieties of cupcakes baked each day in the on-site kitchen, as well as a selection of coffee, tea, espresso drinks, juices and other beverages. The décor will include photographs by Isabelle, who is also an accomplished photographer. A small sitting area for up to 12 people will be located adjacent to the window that looks out on Charles Street, but the business will focus primarily on take-out.
“The cupcakes will be displayed on top of the counter, so they are approachable, not like jewels in a display case,” said Andrew Falkenstein, the architect for the project and a principal of the Brookline firm Concise Design, Inc. “The palette is limited to allow customers to focus on the cupcakes and keep a natural, family friendly atmosphere.”
As for making Isabelle’s CurlyCakes a reality, Isabelle credits her father, her mother, Falkenstein and Katie Kimble, the Olives pastry chef who has helped Isabelle create the cupcake recipes.
“Between the delicious colors, the ‘sweet’ music mix, and the irresistible smell of fresh baked cupcakes, we hope our tiny shop will lure you in and send you out with a cupcake, or two, and a smile on your face,” Isabelle said.
Meanwhile, Todd English is pleased to have his daughter join him in his latest venture.
“Beacon Hill has become my new home and now it has an even more special place in my heart because it will be home to CurlyCakes, which my daughter Isabelle is helping me develop,” he said. “It has been a fun, bonding project for both of us, and we hope that the neighborhood enjoys the delicious fruits of our labor when it opens early next year.”

Beacon Hill resident and Newton Country Day School eighth grader Maeve Westover set three new, all-girl, course records this fall: at Newton Country Day (11:45), at Meadowbrook (16:45), and at the Roxbury Latin Jamboree (14:19) where in a field of 97 girls she broke the record she set in 2008. Finishing in first place at all seven regular season meets, Westover led her team to an undefeated season for a second consecutive year. The record setting NCDS team won the first place trophy at both the Park Invitational Meet held at Larz Anderson and the Roxbury Latin Invitational Meet. Westover was awarded a medal at the Invitational awards ceremonies for her first place female finish at both events. At the Newton Country Day Middle School Athletic Awards Assembly, she was presented the Most Valuable Player Award for Cross Country, an award voted upon by her peers.

King’s Chapel Church School to hold Christmas Eve pageant

On Christmas Eve at 4:30 p.m., the children of the King’s Chapel Church School will perform the church’s annual production of “The Miracle of Christmas.” Beacon Hill resident, Wendy Franco Almquist, the composer, lyricist and creator of the pageant, returns for her 17th year as artistic director of the pageant. Approximately 20 children will participate in this year’s production, many of whom are residents of the neighborhood.
The pageant takes its title from the miracle of Christ’s birth, and the production itself is a wondrous event. The children perform all the roles and are encouraged to participate at a very early age – some start as infants in the role of the baby Jesus. Most of the songs are retained from year-to-year, and because the children have learned the songs cumulatively, only four rehearsals are needed. When you consider the demands of homework, exams and sports, combined with a hectic holiday season, the production itself is a miracle.
The pageant includes a brief family service as well as sing-along favorites such as “Hark Ye Herald, Angels Sing” and “Joy to the World.” There is a colorful array of costumes, including the littlest Christmas dove, the Three Wise Men, donkeys, sheep and a glowing star angel. Lovely angels of the annunciation serenade from the balconies, and a beautiful candlelight Silent Night concludes the program. The pageant is performed at King’s Chapel, located on the corner of Tremont and Beacon streets. Everyone is welcome to attend and admission is free. Start time is 4:30 p.m. but don’t be late because there may not be room for you at the inn. For more information about the pageant, please contact King’s Chapel at 617-227-2155.

While now is the season to be jolly, Nancy Purbeck of Beacon Hill, co-founder of the nonprofit, Victory Over Violence, wants it to be every season of the year and she is actively doing something to make it a reality. Victory Over Violence, is an all-volunteer organization that was co-founded by Purbeck over twelve years ago with W. Watts “Buck” Biggers, former NBC Vice President and the creator of that plucky cartoon character, Underdog. “Victory Over Violence is working to inspire people, to save people’s lives from the stress and negativity we all experience,” Purbeck explains.
Victory Over Violence’s core message is that positive thinking and behavior tempered in kindness can conquer the violence that plagues our society. Through a large corps of volunteers, in an effort to extend a positive attitude to the community, Victory Over Violence began Positive People Day, held annually on October 29 and sanctioned by Mayor Thomas Menino as an official holiday. The holiday is also endorsed by several well known psychiatrists, Dr. Jerrold Rosenbaum of Mass General who is recognized as one of the world’s foremost authority on mood and anxiety disorders; Dr. Alvin Poissant, of Harvard Medical School; and Dr. Mary Anna Sullivan of the Lahey Clinic.
Positive People Day volunteers spend the holiday handing out cards, printed with Underdog’s image, with suggestions as to how to “Commit to Kindness.” The suggestions include simple and direct instructions such as, “Call your mom, family member or friend,” and “Give unexpected compliments,” among a few others.
“These ideas, although they may seem small,” Purbeck enthuses, “can do wonders for a person who may be having a hard time, a bad day. It can just turn someone right around, and then they can go home and be kind to those around them.” She laughs, “We’ve had entire offices from Fidelity asking for hundreds of our cards to hand out or businesses who kept them by their registers, and classroom teachers who want to canvas their student body.”
A former member of a New Hampshire task force for violence against children, Purbeck believes that so much violence, particularly in families stems from the everyday stresses that people encounter: “Very often stress turns into something else. People react violently. The victims are often those that they love. If people are shown kindness, even from a stranger, instead of taking their stresses out on their children, they might remember that someone else did something nice for them.”
Victory over Violence began as a reaction to a rude cab driver. Purbeck recalls, “I was coming home from a trip to Ireland with my mother, and our cab driver from Logan was just so rude!” As a former marketing specialist with a background in conflict resolution and family counseling, Purbeck found it took all of her skill to turn this driver’s attitude around. “By the time we made it to Beacon Street,” where she resides, “I was exhausted but I knew what I needed to do to make a difference.”
With the cooperation of Biggers, Purbeck realized that his character of Underdog would make a natural “spokesdog” for Victory Over Violence’s message. “Underdog never used violence when he fought the bad guys,” - for those of you that remember Dr. Simon Bar Sinister or Riff Raff – “He was clever in his fight for justice. He is a wonderful role model, using language to defeat his foes.” Biggers and Purbeck actually re-created a new radio episode of Underdog in 1999, supplying the voices for respectively Underdog and Sweet Polly Purebred, as part of Victory Over Violence’s outreach to local radio stations. The episode was narrated by Tom Ellis, veteran Boston newsman.
Purbeck has also used other media to extend her vision, hosting a live weekly television show called, “Positive People.” She has suspended production to help with her family but intends one day to return to producing and hosting.
Fresh from a holiday weekend in the arms of her family, Purbeck believes that kindness and a positive attitude is vital to our health and to the health of our families and communities. She believes that we must begin to practice kindness and gratitude even, or more accurately, especially if we are in the midst of crisis, “It’s important to acknowledge all the gifts we have, and to understand the urgency in creating positivity. For the sake of our children and our neighbors, we have to realize that the simple acts of kindness can make an incredible difference.”

After seven years marred by delays, the state has completed work on Cambridge Street and returned control of the roadway to the city.
Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) spokesman Colin Durant said the state was completing its final paperwork for the $6.6 million project after the installation of new traffic signals at six intersections.
"From our point of view, for all intents and purposes, the project is back in the hands of the city,” Durant said.
James Gillooly, deputy commissioner of the Boston Transportation Department (BTD), said the city sent a letter to MassDOT Friday, notifying the state that it would accept jurisdiction over Cambridge Street. The city had approved the hardware for the traffic signals about three weeks ago and accepted the schematics for the work last week, he said.
In June of 2002, the Massachusetts Highway Department (MassHighway) awarded the contract to Hyde Park-based Todesca Equipment Corp. for the Cambridge Street project, which intended to transform the roadway into what the Boston Herald described as a “Parisian-like boulevard.” Besides the installation of new traffic signals, the job included widening sidewalks, repaving the roadway, improving drainage, installing decorative lighting and landscaping.
Work on the half-mile-long site began in November of 2002 and was originally scheduled for completion the following year. The project encountered numerous obstacles along the way, however, including a construction suspension as result of the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
In 2004, MassHighway revoked Todesca’s qualifications for bidding on future state road projects. A MassHighway spokesperson later cited concerns over the firm’s work on Cambridge Street and Route 28 in Milton among the reasons for the revocation.
A Todesca spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.
Meanwhile, State Rep. Marty Walz (D-Back Bay), who has remained committed to the project’s completion since her election to the 8th District seat in 2005, holds both the state and city accountable for the lengthy delays.
“As it has been seven long years since the Cambridge Street project started, it is long past time for it to be finished,” Walz stated. “The state and the city should be embarrassed by the delay, and both must get a greater sense of urgency as they wrap up the final details.”

For the other three candidates running for Senate during last Tuesday's primary, overcoming Attorney General Martha Coakley's statewide name recognition was near impossible except here in Boston. While most political pundits argued that U.S. Congressman Michael Capuano's streetwise Boston politics and grassroots campaigning could match Coakley's popularity, the Attorney General was able to topple Capuano 2 to 1 in votes and easily cruised past Alan Khazei and Stephen Pagliuca for a place in the final election against Republican Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown on Tuesday, January 19
However, Capuano was able to carry Boston, which includes neighborhoods in his Congressional District like Back Bay, Beacon Hill and the North End, but could not pull of what would have become a huge political upset. Even in Boston, Capuano beat Coakley by only three percent.
"I would like to congratulate the next U.S. Senator of Massachusetts, Martha Coakley. She ran a good campaign. I am going to be there to help make her our next Senator, and when she gets elected, we are going to work hard to make sure she is successful," Capuano told supporters at the Copley Fairmont after the election was called for Coakley. "This has been an amazing time for me. Our campaign was about working from the bottom up. So many of you have done this in your own lives. And I thank you for helping us to do so in this campaign. You have all become a part of this family, and I will never forget what you all have done for me."
Statewide, Coakley ran away with 310,827 votes or 47 percent. Capuano was next with 184,791 votes or 28 percent. Alan Khazei came in third with 88,929 votes while Celtics owner Stephen Pagliuca, who spent nearly $10 million on his campaign, finished last with 80,248 votes or 12 percent.
"I am so grateful for your support in this campaign. With focus, grit, hard work, optimism, enthusiasm, commitment, and a sense of humor, you made tonight possible," Coakley told supporters after the election the Sheraton Boston. "I entered this race because I believe that Massachusetts needs a Senator who will work to restore a healthy economy, to reform our health care system, to protect our environment and seek energy solutions, to make our communities and our nation safer, and to protect and defend our civil rights. If we roll up our sleeves and work together, all of these are quite simply, possible. And I know that with your help and support we can defy the impossible and we will be successful in moving this Commonwealth and this country into a brighter future."
On the Republican side, Brown easily defeated Jackie Robinson and captured 89 percent of the vote to Robinson's 11 percent. In neighborhoods like Back Bay, Beacon Hill and the North End, brown was the clear choice among registered Republicans here. In Boston, Brown defeated Robinson 87 percent to 13 percent.
"With tonight's victory, we are halfway there -- and now the real race begins," said Brown after his victory. "In 42 days, the voters of this great commonwealth will have a choice, and tonight that choice became a lot clearer. We can send another partisan placeholder to the United States Senate, or we can try something new: We can elect an independent voice for all of Massachusetts -- and that's the United States Senator I promise to be. They say I’m the long shot, and if the same old powers-that-be get to decide this election, I guess that's right. But I'm betting that a new day is coming in Massachusetts. I am here in the name of every independent-thinking citizen, whether they be Democrat, unenrolled-independent or Republican, to take on one-party rule, and the Beacon Hill bosses, and their machine, and their candidate … and with your help I intend to win."

The ironies of Christmas in Boston

Beacon Hill and Back Bay are among the most affluent and architecturally pleasing and correct neighborhoods in America, let alone in the city of Boston.
It isn’t exactly a secret.
Residents take great pride in living in fabulous settings where nearly everything about life has a more genteel persona steeped in the feelings of a storied ages old past.
In these two neighborhoods live and have lived some of the most successful, highly educated, artistic men and women this society can produce, who live in residential settings that are among the best of their kind anywhere in the United States.
Enough said about the most obvious realities past and present having to do with life on Beacon Hill and in Back Bay.
Falling through the cracks on Beacon Hill and Back Bay, and in other neighborhoods in the city, are those for whom Christmas is just another day to be cold, hungry, sleepless and without a home or hope.
Therein lies the irony – that in two of Boston’s finest neighborhoods which seem immune to natural economic forces, there are dozens – even hundreds of men and women without homes.
Many of them live from day to day in parks or on back doorways or near to some form of heat coming out of buildings – or inside unlocked hallways. By day, they roam about the neighborhoods sucking in the warmth given off by the sun.
At night, they cover themselves with blankets and try to remain unseen.
Tuesday night this week, members of the mayor’s staff for the homeless will take the annual census on the city’s streets of those who live on them.
The mayor himself has led this census taking for the past decade but won’t be able to do so this year because of his recent knee operation which has left him temporarily hobbled.
It is almost incomprehensible that some of the poorest, most destitute and at risk men and women in this city live on the streets among the residents of Beacon Hill and Back Bay – but they do.
This is the irony.
This is the sad part about Christmas coming.
The city will do what it can to relieve the pain and suffering of the poor without homes.
Boston’s homeless are affected by the recession, too, amazingly enough.
The Pine Street Inn is being forced to cut back its services for the homeless because of a nearly $2 million funding shortage.
The city hospital facility on Long Island is also being forced to reduce its programs for the homeless, the sick and the destitute. Again, and to his credit, Mayor Menino is making an effort to identify donors who will make up the shortages in both these important places.
Christmas comes and Christmas goes.
For the city’s homeless- even in its finest neighborhoods – it is just another day of emptiness.