My Busy Week in Amherst

I noticed recently that, while it’s summer and the pace is a little slower, there is still plenty to do in Amherst as well as in nearby towns.  Below, I share a rundown of my busy summer week at the end of June.  

The events began on Sunday, June 21, with a special workshop and concert with Dr. Kathy Bullock at Bombyx Center for the Arts in Florence. This was part of Bullock’s Singing a Journey of Freedom: Songs of Slavery and Emancipation Tour. 

Singing – so nourishing in these difficult times – continued on Tuesday, June 23, with a Summer Sing offered by the Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, where we had a chance to sing Gabriel Faure’s shimmery and beautiful Requiem. Here is a version of that piece by the King’s College choir in Cambridge, UK.

The next “Summer Sing” is on July 28, 2026 (see also here). 

Wednesday was another evening out for me, this time to UMass Downtown to hear a fascinating talk about museums, historic preservation, and Black history.  

I hadn’t been in this space before. Staff were welcoming and had lots of UMass merch to sell, but the location is much more than a retail stop. I was there for the second in a series of summer evening programs and I learned so much from the featured speaker, Marcus Smith, a UMass PhD student looking at the significance of Black grassroots museums. As the publicity brochure asked: “Have you ever wondered what happens to history when communities are left to preserve it on their own? Who bears the responsibility of preserving memory and history when those histories are absent from, or excluded by, formal archives and institutions?” That blurb really got my attention.

The talk traced how some Black grassroots museums—often built in living rooms, historical structures, and contested landscapes—sustain and contribute to the long struggle for Black freedom in our country. These included the Bellevue Passage Museum in Maryland and the A.L. Lewis Museum in Fernandina Beach, Florida. Smith has founded the Black Grassroots Heritage Preservation Network to build a comprehensive inventory of sites like these around the country.

My week continued with taking in a new movie on a very hot day at my favorite movie theater – Amherst Cinema. That included a sidestep for frozen yogurt at Go Berry (practically a ritual these days) and a slow wander around the neighborhood, checking out the Jones Library construction project and the ‘scene’ on the Town Common. On such a hot day, it struck me that the Women’s Christian Temperance Union fountain was more than just a nice thought–but a practical and thoughtful way of thinking about what we all need on a blazing hot day – a swig of fresh water from a cool fountain. This monument dates to 1904 and was restored as part of the renovations on the North Common, which, for some Indy readers, remain unsatisfactory.

Saturday took me south to Groff Park, to the annual picnic of the Amherst Community Land Trust (ACLT), at the park’s pavilion. 

The organization is celebrating a new project to build five affordable housing units on Amity Street. Those who gathered that day discussed upcoming board meetings and other programming. The sounds of children’s squeals of laughter came wafting over our meeting from the Splash Pad nearby.

I concluded my busy week ushering at a concert in Tillis Hall at the Bromery Center for the Arts at UMass, to hear some of Benjamin Britten’s music performed by the Berkshire International Chorale.

Staying Busy Throughout the Summer
My experience of living in Amherst since 2017 has been greatly enhanced by participating as a member of Amherst Neighbors  (see also here). They recently hosted their own summer picnic at the Mill River Recreation Area. While the organization offers a variety of events each month that are well worth checking out, their direct support to seniors is at the heart of what they do. Here is an excerpt from their mission statement: “Amherst Neighbors is a member- and volunteer-driven community helping older adults stay connected, supported, and independent while aging at home in Amherst and Pelham….Our mission is to create neighbor-to-neighbor connections, provide access to information and services, and empower older adults to maintain socially engaged lives while aging in their own homes.”

I have come to understand better that this organization owes its origins to the “Village” movement in Boston that began around 2002, at a time when many grassroots, neighbor-to-neighbor organizations aimed to allow older adults to age in place. The concept has been scaled nationally since then but, in the Valley, there are several local groups with local events both in person and online. Amherst Neighbors – that started in 2019 just before the pandemic – is similar to the one that serves the eastern hill towns of Shutesbury, New Salem, Leverett and Wendell. I have written about this wonderful Amherst resource before .  

Finishing up a short but much appreciated vacation out of state to see family, and celebrating the Fourth of July, I now hope to get back to the Mill River Recreation Area very soon to swim in their pool. Lap swim begins at 8 a.m. I am also a big fan of the staff and programs of Amherst’s Senior Center, where Lara Wahl conducts a favorite yoga class every Thursday. This may not be your ‘cup of tea’ but stay tuned for more music with the town’s summer concert series.

See related: What’s Happening in Amherst? (Amherst Indy)