Updates on the Cooper Center for Active Living

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Upcoming Meetings

Join the monthly community construction meeting on the 1st Tuesday of the month at 6pm. Zoom Registration: https://newtonma-gov.zoom.us/j/87604182709.

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C lick here to visit the NewCal project website and view previous presentations. To receive electronic email updates on the project, please email newcal@newtonma.gov.

Project Highlights:

The Groundbreaking Ceremony on March 7, 2024
Mayor's State of the City Address - Building Naming, February 20, 2024

Our superpower here in Newton is our people, amazing people who are deeply engaged in making our future better . . . People who care passionately about the needs of our community - our youngsters and our elders, our body politic and our centers for community building and learning, the vulnerable among us living on tight budgets and facing difficult life circumstances, and the interconnectivity of our neighbors across all 13 villages.

Let me talk about one woman who embodied all that is good about our City and serves as a role model and inspiration as we rebuild, reengage and reconnect.

This woman cared about everyone in our community. She was passionate about children and students. She served as a secretary at the Underwood Elementary School for 27 years. She tirelessly committed time and energy at the non-profit Newton Community Service Center (now known as Family Access), helping to establish Head Start, day care, teen programs and health initiatives. She gave much of herself to the Newton Free Library as a volunteer and trustee. She used her voice and her many talents to advocate for our older residents, breathing life into our first ever Newton Senior Center at what had been the Newtonville Branch Library – soon the site of our new center, something I’m happy she helped move forward until she passed in 2021 at the age of 97.

This woman was gentle and kind and yet was one of the strongest and most determined people I’ll ever know. She was a positive, infectious force. I’m talking about Audrey Cooper.

Mayor & Audrey Cooper

Photo: With Audrey Cooper in June of 2019 at a celebration in
her honor at the Newton Free Library.)

Tonight, I’m honored to announce that the center we’ve informally called the Newton Center for Active Living or NewCAL will officially be the Cooper Center for Active Living in the City of Newton.

This building will be a forever reminder of how a person with a very big heart, a deep commitment to community, a readiness to collaborate, and a dedication to the joy of volunteering can make a permanent, positive difference.

I’m grateful to the leadership of Newton’s Council on Aging for suggesting that I consider this name.

This will first and foremost be a place where older residents can explore their interests, share their insights, obtain critical services and connect with others, as well as be a welcoming place for Newton residents of all ages where we can learn, grow and have fun.

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Thank you! So many people deserve praise for the hard work that has gone into this project. More than 4 years, 350 meetings, over a million people-hours of dedication to the cause, and we have done it! We are so blessed to be surrounded by so many incredible people working together.

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