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“Stories of Summer: Fireside Open Mic”

Farrington Nature Linc and the Nature Connection will host “Stories of Summer: Fireside Open Mic” at FNL on Friday, June 26 from 6:00pm to sunset. Come share a poem, story, or musical performance around the fire circle as we celebrate the official start of summer from 6:30–7:30pm. Tickets are required and include herbal mocktails and s’mores. They have some seating around the fire circle and also encourage attendees to bring their own camping chairs or blankets and bug spray.

Lincoln Land Conservation Trust news

• Firefly walk — Avalon Owens returns to Lincoln on Monday, June 29 at 8:00pm starting at Lincoln Town Hall to lead a firefly walk through one of the fields that she has studied extensively. Participants will meet for a brief tutorial on firefly behavior and then head out to a nearby field. Register here.

• Saturday ranger walks — Explore Lincoln’s open space with Conservation Ranger Will Leona, visiting a different trail on select Saturdays of each month from 9:30–11:30am. Register here.
  • Twin Pond/Harrington Woods — July 11
  • Pierce Park and Pierce Hill — August 1
  • Flint’s Pond East and Gasline Trail — September 12

• Wildlife column — “Eastern Massachusetts is in critical drought; ponds are low and watering restrictions are in place. Even so, the landscape is lush with blossoms and greenery, helped a bit by showers,” Gwyn Loud writes in the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust’s June wildlife newsletter. Click here to see her column and numerous photos of Lincoln flora and fauna.

Water main project update

During the week of June 22, water main work will focus on continuing temporary bypass installation, testing the bypass system, and pre-digging tap holes. Crews will also be completing final paving of Lincoln Road from the five-way intersection to Ballfield Road on Wednesday, June 24. Next week, crews are expected to connect houses and tap holes to the temporary bypass and begin laying new water main. Drivers should expect alternating one-way traffic on Lincoln Road during active work hours.

SSEF wins $500,000 grant

The Lincoln-based South Sudanese Enrichment for Families will receive $500,000 over ten years as its share of $35 million awarded to 150 local nonprofits through the Cummings Foundation’s major annual grants program. SSEP was selected from a total of 959 applicants during a competitive review process. For over 20 years, SSEF has assisted South Sudanese immigrants and their children in navigating social systems, accessing resources, building skills, and creating opportunities.

“We are extremely grateful for this transformative investment in our community,” said Panther Alier, SSEF’s executive director. “SSEF’s Educational Empowerment Initiative serves under-resourced children and parents, and connecting the families we serve to existing educational resources and making sure the children of immigrants are receiving quality enrichment is our goal.” With the grant from Cummings, SSEF will increase the scope and efforts of this initiative.

Lincoln history: Did you know…

…That Lincoln is the home of a “Century Farm”? And it’s been around for a lot longer than just a single century. To be honored as a Century Farm, the farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 consecutive years, and a family member must be living on the premises. For the Flint family and their Matlock Farm, these were easy qualifications to meet, though the actual labor of farming and maintaining an historic property has involved generations of hard work. The land was acquired by Thomas Flint in the 1640s and has been farmed by Flint family members continuously since the early 1700s.

Learn more on the Lincoln Historical Society website — and read a reminiscence of Matlock farm by Warren Flint Sr., published in the Lincoln Review in 1978.