Sharon FD Assists with Two-Alarm Christmas Eve Fire in Stoughton

A two-alarm fire on Kenmore Road in Stoughton caused extensive damage, but there were no injuries.

Sharon fire officials aided the Stoughton Fire Department with a two-alarm fire that caused extensive damage to a Stoughton home on Christmas Eve, according to Stoughton Fire Department officials. The Stoughton Fire Department received a call at 9:13 p.m. on Dec. 24 for a fire at a single-story wood-frame dwelling at 38 Kenmore Road in Stoughton, SFD Captain Don Jasmin said. A fire on the first floor extended in to the attic space, according to Jasmin. The home has extensive damage, but there were no reported injuries to any of the home's occupants or to the first responders who were on scene, Jasmin said. The Stoughton Fire Department was led by Group 4 under the command of Deputy Chief Greg Goldberg and Captain Bob O'Donnell, according …

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Share Photos and Videos of Your Children Opening Their Christmas Presents

There's not much better than a child's face when they run to the tree in the morning and start ripping into all the gifts Santa brought them. Share your moments of joy!

"Opening presents is like playing air hockey with God," is what Matthew Inman of The Oatmeal once wrote in trying to capture the joy of children opening gifts on Christmas morning.  There's not much better than a child's face when they run to the tree in the morning and start ripping into all the gifts Santa brought them. Let's share those moments here and put a smile on everyone's face with a gallery of kids opening their gifts on Christmas morning. Click the "Upload Photos and Videos" button to add your photo or video to our gallery. Who knows, your kid might go viral like the Nintendo 64 kid (see attached video).

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How Do You Balance Greed and Gifts?

Consumerism surrounds the holiday season: is greed inevitable, and how do you avoid it?

For those children who celebrate, Christmas' biggest connotation can be a pile of gifts under the tree.  With this in mind, a panel of staff contributors at The Chicago Tribune tackled the question of whether it's inevitable to see greed in their kids around Christmastime. The parents weighed in on suggestions to remind kids of Christmas spirit. Among their suggestions? Help your kids round up some old toys to donate to charity before giving them new toys. Sign them up to participate in a community service project. The Tribune's advice got us thinking at Patch about how we were taught or are teaching our kids to be less greedy around the holidays. Some of our suggestions? Find a giving tree and let your child pick a name or two off of it, …

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MBTA Announces Holiday Schedule

All subway, bus and commuter rail lines will be free after 8 p.m. on New Year’s Eve.

The MBTA has announced its holiday season schedule. Some highlights include: 

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TELL US: Does 'Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer' Condone Bullying?

Does the lovable children's holiday classic send the wrong message? Tell us your thoughts.

In October, Patch asked readers how they felt about one parent's view that "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" condoned bullying. Specifically, blogger DadCamp wrote that the show sends the wrong message to children because of its "continuous teasing and bullying" It's not the first time a parent has spoken out against a classic children's program with such a claim. Last December, news spread that author and special ed professor George Giuliani said that "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was also a program laden with the theme of bullying, considering how much Rudolph was an outsider due to his glowing red nose. Giuliani, as such, wrote a book titled "No More Bullies at the North Pole," which re-tells the story of Rudolph. What do you …

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Betty Smith

8:10 am on Tuesday, December 11, 2012

I do see your point.   more ›

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VIDEO: Sharon Celebrates Christmas

Sharon Patch looks back at its favorite Christmas moments in Sharon this holiday season.

Santa Claus came to Sharon on Dec. 3, and the Christmas spirit never left town. Community members repeatedly shared cups of holiday cheer the past three weeks: from the First Congregational Church of Sharon's annual evergreen bazaar, Christmas tree sale and tree lighting; to the Sharon Concert Band's annual holiday concert; to the Sharon Adult Center and Council on Aging's holiday party, where the Sharon High School Show Choir sung carols. Here are highlights from some of Sharon's Christmas events. And Sharon Patch hopes Santa has brought its readers everything on their wish list.

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Track Santa’s Journey on Patch

Where is Santa? Patch will be offering NORAD's reports about Santa Claus’ whereabouts on Christmas Eve.

Santa Claus is preparing his sleigh and his workshop is putting the final touches on the toys. On Christmas Eve, Santa will make his worldwide trek – and Patch will be there to let you know his location and when he comes to Massachusetts. Check back with Patch on Christmas Eve (Saturday, Dec. 24) and we’ll provide NORAD's latest information about Santa Claus’ location. You can check Santa's current whereabouts with the map above (from NORAD) or by clicking here: http://www.noradsanta.org/en/

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Patch Poll: How Would You Spend $100,000 On The Sharon Schools?

Many Sharon homes have great Christmas displays. Enter them to win Patch's Best Decked House contest.

If you won $100,000 and could give it to the Sharon public schools, how would you want it spent? Nominate your home, or a neighbor's home, for Patch's Deck the House contest, at http://deckthehouse.patch.com/. The winning entry will be forwarded to a national Patch judge that will select 24 finalists. Each finalist will receive $500 that they can apply to their December electric bill. From Dec. 30 through Jan. 8, you will be able to vote for the Best Decked House in all of Patch. The grand prize winner's school district will receive a $100,000 check from Patch.

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This, That And The Family Thing

Early Christmas Cheers? Bah

Starting Yuletide celebration before Halloween is batty.

In a holiday music video, Justin Bieber croons the song "Mistletoe" under a night snowfall. The snowflakes settle everywhere, but they bypass his perfectly styled hair. He sings about how Christmas is the most beautiful time of year. "Mistletoe" was released two weeks before Halloween. Really, Justin? I blame you for our pre-Halloween storm. You had to go and rile the weather gods with your greedy jump on the commercialization of Christmas and your snow-repellent hair. Bieber was riding the wave of a trend taking over our country: cashing in on Christmas before the trees have barely had time to change color and drop their leaves. In the weeks leading up to Halloween, CVS shelved the ribbon candy and Christmas gift tags an aisle away from …

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Elissa C. Rosenthal

6:47 pm on Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Diane, your 2 cents is worth millions to me. I appreciate where you are coming from as a musician. Guess there isn't any Halloween music that is humable. Are there even any Thanksgiving songs? Some balance at this time of year would be nice...   more ›