In today’s daily 5 Things You Need to Know feature, ThisWeekinWorcester.com explores five important items and stories that Worcester and Central Massachusetts residents should keep a close eye on.
These five things can cover a whole range of subjects and issues that we feel are pertinent to understanding what’s going on in the city and the cities and towns surrounding Worcester.
In today’s edition – Wednesday, October 5 – the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office kicks off its annual winter coat drive, Worcester announces a Movie on the Common for Hispanic Heritage Month, Massachusetts is one of five states selected to host a regional pathogen center, buy a bouquet at Stop & Shop to support Meals on Wheels and AAA has advice for booking your Thanksgiving season travel.
Sheriff’s Coat Drive Kicks Off Thursday
The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office hosts its annual Winter Coat Drive kick-off on Thursday, Oct. 6, from 4 PM to 7 PM at Pepe’s Italian Restaurant at 178 Shrewsbury St. in Worcester.
The event is a fundraiser to support the collection of roughly 4,000 new coats to be distributed between Oct. 12 and Oct. 25.
Winter coat drop-off locations will be at the Gun Parlor at 170 Prescott St. in Worcester and the Sheriff’s Office at 240 Main St. in Worcester.
Movies on the Common for Hispanic Heritage Month
The public is invited to a free screening of Disney PIXAR’s “Coco” on the Worcester Common on Friday, Oct. 14.
The movie will begin at 6:30 PM. Movie-goers are advised to arrive closer to 6 PM to find seats. Attendees are welcomed to bring their own seating or use seating available on the Common. Attendees should dress warmly and bring blankets to enjoy the movie comfortably. Audio for “Coco” is in English. Spanish closed captioning will be available.
The selection of “Coco” was made in conjunctions with Casita Cultura Latina.
Valerie Zolezzi-Wyndham, co-founder of Casita Cultura Latina, said, “’Coco’ offers more than just entertainment – the movie gives context to importance of Día de los Muertos to the Latino/a/e/x community, in a way that’s accessible and enjoyable for people of all ages and backgrounds.”
CDC Selects DPH to Lead Regional Pathogen Center
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) selected the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) as one of five national recipients to establish a Pathogen Genomics Center of Excellence to foster and improve innovation and technical capacity to better prevent and respond to infectious disease outbreaks.
The selection comes with $25 million over five years to establish DPH as a regional center for developing state public health laboratory genomics capability and epidemiologic application of genomics to public health. DPH will partner with the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as lead academic partner along with Boston University, Yale University, Fathom Information Design, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Theiagen Genomics.
State health departments in Georgia, Minnesota, Virginia, and Washington were also selected by CDC to establish regional centers.
Buy a Bouquet to Fight Hunger
During the month of October, buy a “Bloomin’ 4 Good” bouquet at Stop % Shop on West Boylston Street in Worcester and $1 will be donated to the Elder Services of Worcester Area’s Meals on Wheels program.
See details below.
This October fight hunger locally, purchase a #Bloomin4Good Bouquet at the #Stop&Shop on West Boylston Street in #WorcesterMA. $1 is donated to ESWA’s #MealsOnWheels program with each bouquet purchase (the one with the red sticker)! pic.twitter.com/X0vx1ShZWu
— ElderSvcsWorcArea (@ESWAorg) October 4, 2022
AAA Provides Advice on Booking Thanksgiving Travel
According to AAA, now is the time when most people buy their Thanksgiving flights. AAA says if you are willing to wait a few more weeks, you could find cheaper prices if you are flexible on preferred times and connecting flights.
According to recent AAA booking data, most travelers book one or two months before Thanksgiving and still get an average ticket price. However, those who book closer to the holiday – less than a month before – get the best deals. The exception is waiting until Thanksgiving week itself to buy, when the average ticket price creeps back up.
When looking at which days to travel during Thanksgiving week, Tuesday appears to be overtaking Wednesday as the busiest, while Sunday is the most expensive. Monday flights tend to be cheaper, but if you want to save the most money – and avoid the travel rush – book a flight on Thanksgiving Day.
