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Independence
Welcome back! The 4th of July is just around the corner, and the summer vibes are intensifying (along with the sun burns…).
Here’s what we have for you this week:
Parade Watch
Residents Sound Alarm on UniUni Deliveries
Hosmer House Welcomes Public on July 4th
School Roof Projects Advance Through MSBA Process
Summer Is Here!
Peace, Not Quiet.
Let’s get into it!
Parade Watch
EVENTS
By The Sudbury Chamber of Commerce
One week from today! The 4th of July Parade will start at 1 pm. Information about the 4th of July Parade including the route, hours, etc. can be found in this link https://www.sudbury.org/4th-of-july-parade
The Sudbury Chamber of Commerce is grateful for the commitment of so many in our town. Just yesterday, the Sudbury Police Association posted their support of the parade on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SudburySPA/
Residents Sound Alarm on UniUni Deliveries
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
Sudbury residents have taken to social media regarding a string of failed deliveries from a company called UniUni. Residents took to social media to share false delivery confirmation messages complete with pictures of houses where the driver allegedly delivered the packages. Each time, the driver had submitted a picture of the wrong house. Residents took to social media in an attempt to identify the houses in the pictures, though many didn’t look like pictures of Sudbury properties according to commenters.
Hosmer House Welcomes Public on 4th of July
EVENTS
By The Sudbury Historical Commission
The Sudbury Historical Commission welcomes the public to visit the Hosmer House on July 4th between 10am and 2pm. The docents will be available to explain to visitors the history of the House and its collections, and there will be light refreshments served on the first floor. We look forward to your visit.
School Roof Projects Advance Through MSBA Process
NEWS
By Kevin LaHaise
Articles 40 and 41 were indefinitely postponed during Sudbury’s 2025 Annual Town Meeting. The articles would have funded the replacement of the Josiah Haynes and General John Nixon elementary school roofs.
The indefinite postponements were necessary because the Town was still waiting on estimates through the process required by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). If completed through the MSBA “Accelerated Repair” program, the Town could be reimbursed 31% or more of the total project costs.
Summer Is Here!
FEATURES
By John Palmieri
Thought I would share my thermograph or temperature trace from the last 2 days. By all measures we did eclipse 100 today! We do need some rain though.
Peace, Not Quiet.
FEATURES
By Rev. Eric Wolf
One reason my faith has become so politically outspoken owes to the attention the hardline conservatives get from the media, which leads people to believe that this is the most active form of Christianity in the nation. It’s popularity isn’t because this movement represents Jesus as much as it is that this is America’s civil religion. I think this civil religion is as spiritually corrosive as our addictions to individualism and transactional relationships are to our cultural ethics.
Until I began writing The Myth of a Dying Church recently, I didn’t appreciate how deeply entrenched my work to create an alternative dialogue to this harmful trend really is within me. I laid the groundwork to identify and debunk what I now call the American Christic Cult as a teenager, when my Southern Baptist friends started getting baptized in middle school and asking me in earnest if I was saved. Even when I told them I was baptized as an infant, and maybe especially when they found out I’m Lutheran, they were worried about my soul!
Parting Thoughts
“Independence” is one of those concepts that can mean radically different things depending on the context. Independence is learning how to ride a bike, but it’s also sending the redcoats packing at the end of a brutal war.
In the American context, annually we come together to reaffirm, and celebrate our independence. Maybe independence is just a dish best served family style?
While the 4th of July is an opportunity to be together, not every community hosts festivities. Sudbury is one of the communities that has a robust 4th of July parade, thanks to the Sudbury Chamber of Commerce and dedicated volunteers. They provide an opportunity for Sudbury residents, and neighbors in the region, to gather and celebrate.
If the Declaration of Independence was an act of profound defiance, then celebrating the 4th of July by gathering with people of varied political persuasions feels like its own act of defiance against a modern narrative that we hear all the time: America is polarized!
The pollsters may tell Americans that they are epically polarized, but has anyone ever argued about political affiliation on a group road trip to New Hampshire to buy fireworks in bulk? Sure, that would be a weird thing to bicker about while conspiring to break Massachusetts laws. But being united is being united, regardless of the nature of the activity, right?
Onward!