Articles by Anne D'Urso-Rose

About Anne D'Urso-Rose
Anne D'Urso-Rose has been working at the intersection of community media, arts and civic engagement for over three decades. She is the coordinator of Neighborhood View and a contributing reporter.
LinkedIn
Features

A Tale of Two Festivals: Fairy Houses and Hispanic Heritage

October 9, 2026 Anne D'Urso-Rose 0
By Anne D’Urso-Rose New Englanders know that outdoor events have a short window of time to be enjoyed in these parts. So in a city like Malden with a vibrant community life, there are often overlapping events. Here’s a reflection on two events that took place on the same afternoon, Sept. 19. Fairy Houses flourish at Pine Banks Park There was no housing shortage for fairies on a sunny Saturday afternoon when families from Malden and surrounding communities gathered at Pine Banks Park for the annual Fairy House Festival.  “What I saw was four hours of parents and kids, on their hands and knees, making stuff together in the woods,” said Paul Hammersley, official photographer for the event. “And no one was on their phone.” Barbara Murphy, former Malden City Councilor and current Police Commissioner, said she started the event in 2015 “to bring children and parents back to nature.” She was inspired by the children’s storybook “Fairy Houses” by Tracy Kane and thought it would be a great idea to start a tradition here […]
Arts

186 books and reading: Reflections from a local book club

November 1, 2023 Anne D'Urso-Rose 1
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.” –George Martin By Anne D’Urso-Rose At a time when reading for pleasure is on the decline, a Malden-based women’s book club believes there is much value to be found in the pages of a good book. As of October 2023, the club has read and discussed 186 books together. Members have come and gone since the group was formed 15 years ago, but several core members and later additions have two things in common: a love of reading, and a desire to read more.  “Rarely does a day go by when I don’t put aside time to read,” says Angela Allen, a current and original member of the group. “One day, my neighbor who often stopped to chat, asked “Do you like to read?” She mentioned her idea for a book club.” That was the spring of 2007. The neighbor was Sue Scarborough, who at that time lived in the Oak Grove area of Malden. Scarborough was a principal […]
Arts

Community Comes Together at 6th Annual Malden Juneteenth Freedom Day Celebration

June 26, 2023 Anne D'Urso-Rose 0
By Rachel Sorlien, Malden Juneteenth Committee (special to Neighborhood View) It may have rained all day, but that didn’t dampen the spirits of hundreds of attendees at Malden’s 6th Annual Juneteenth Freedom Day Celebration this past Saturday, June 17th. In a quick pivot and with the steadfast support of Superintendent Ligia Noriega- Murphy and custodial staff at the Ferryway School, the event location was moved indoors from Lincoln Commons to the Ferryway School. Opening presentation for the Juneteenth celebration in the lobby of the Forestdale School. Lydia Harrell (at podium) leads attendees in the Black National Anthem. Photos by Anne D’Urso-Rose. The Freedom Day Celebration began in the Ferryway lobby, where former U.S. Marine Eric Henry raised the Juneteenth flag as Lydia “Lovely Singer” Harrell sang the Black National Anthem “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” A crowd filled the atrium and waved miniature Juneteenth flags, as Mayor Christenson gave his annual Juneteenth Proclamation and Malden Juneteenth committee member Erga Pierrette made a stirring statement about the need to center humanity and acknowledge the continued impact […]
Education

Indigenous wisdom, poetry and history guide community event at Malden River

November 15, 2022 Anne D'Urso-Rose 1
By Anne D’Urso-Rose I know that our ancestors are really happy for the work that we’re doing. It’s been a 400-year fracture – with colonization and assimilation – and it’s really going to take all of us to come together, in ways like this, to bring balance back to the land and to the water. Andre StrongBearHeart Gaines, Jr. – Malden, MA, 9-24-22 As the country recognizes indigenous Peoples Month this November, Neighborhood View reflects on a recent community event that embodied the spirit of remembering, understanding and connecting with Native people, history and culture. “Words on the Water” (morning) and “Project Misik” (afternoon) was a combined day-long event on Sept. 24 in a spot along the banks of the Malden River that is generally hidden from public view. In that space, more than 200 residents, a sampling of Malden’s diverse community, gathered over the course of the day to take part in an Indigenous blessing ceremony, paddle canoes on the waterway, share a meal of Haitian food from “The Island” restaurant, and learn how […]