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Celtics’ Jaylen Brown trade leaves Boston fans, community feeling bankrupt: ‘A huge void’

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Celtics’ Jaylen Brown trade leaves Boston fans, community feeling bankrupt: ‘A huge void’


Jaylen Brown came to Boston in 2016 as a raw lottery pick out of California; he leaves a decade later, following a stunning trade to Philadelphia, as an NBA champion and an essential piece of the city’s social fabric.

“What this trade does is show young fans what sports heartbreak is,” Celtics superfan Chris Soldani told the Herald. “There is now a huge void, and a lot of people don’t know how to process this situation.”

Look no further than Randolph for proof. Immediately after learning about the trade, 6-year-old Giovanni “Gio” Jean cried uncontrollably while wearing a No. 7 Celtics jersey autographed by Brown.

His mother, Gigi Durand, captured the moment on video as Gio sobbed, “You are my favorite player in the whole NBA.” Holding up a handmade sign pleading for his idol to “come back one day,” the youngster asked his mother to mail it.

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The footage went viral, racking up over 10 million views and drawing a direct response from Brown: “It’s ok lil bro,” he posted, adding a heart emoji. “We will always be friends.”

That instinct to connect directly with the fan base is exactly what drew superfans like Soldani to Brown.

In early May, Brown invited Soldani — known as “Caveman on Causeway” — and several others onto a Twitch livestream he hosted just after the 76ers eliminated Boston. The stream stirred controversy as the longtime Celtic described last year as the favorite of his career despite playing most of it without Jayson Tatum.

Soldani called the bond “one of the most unlikely connections.”

Under the blockbuster deal, Boston sends the 29-year-old 2024 Finals MVP to their bitter Atlantic Division rival for 36-year-old veteran Paul George and four draft picks. Fans say it will take time to overcome losing a superstar who doubled as one of Massachusetts’ most impactful civic anchors.

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“With all the impact that Jaylen has on the city, and the youth, and putting money into the city,” Soldani said, “it truly bankrupts the city as a community.”

This spring, Boston Magazine ranked Brown the eighth most influential Bostonian, detailing his work hosting fundraising bowling events and education fairs in Roxbury.

That legacy echoes across local sports talk radio as fans process the gamble taken by front-office architect Brad Stevens — a decision complicated by reports that Brown feels his decade of service ended without the mutual respect he earned.

Gov. Maura Healey noted on social media that it’s “hard to imagine” the Celtics without Brown. She added, “You’ll always have a home in Boston.”

In 2019, Brown founded the 7uice Foundation, a nonprofit providing healthcare, education, and digital literacy resources to underserved youth through its STEM-focused Bridge Program camp.

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The work recently drew criticism from the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, a state watchdog, after lawmakers approved a $700,000 state earmark for the charity.

“Jaylen Brown is expected to earn roughly $60 million this year,” the Alliance posted. “If he wants to support charitable work through his foundation, that’s commendable. But why are Massachusetts taxpayers being asked to subsidize the private foundation of a multi-millionaire?”

In 2024, Brown also launched the Boston XChange with teammate Jrue Holiday, an incubator aiming to generate $5 billion in wealth for communities of color by providing $100,000 in funding to 10 local businesses annually.

Superfan KJ Green, creator of the “Green Runs Deep” brand, cut straight to the raw reality: “I want to (expletive) die right now.”

Green, who also appeared on the May livestream, praised Brown for making fans feel seen and knowing them by name. “This guy cared about using his platform to build other people up,” Green said. “He helped so many businesses in Boston get to the next level.”

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For special education teacher Kaiya Santos, who partnered with Brown in 2023 to redesign a basketball court at Fenelon Street Playground in Dorchester, the loss is personal. “It was clear that the project was not just about beautifying a court,” Santos told the Herald. “It was about the role the space would play in the community. Boston will miss him.”

Mayor Michelle Wu thanked Brown for “shifting the energy” and always “showing up” for the city, even as he became a “Celtics great.”

“We won’t forget the looks on young players’ faces as you pulled up unannounced to tournaments in the park,” Wu posted, “or the hope and determination of entrepreneurs and students reaching for their dreams through the opportunities you made possible. Because of your example, kids in Boston know that faith, consistency, hard work pays off.”

For now, the city seems unwilling to let go: Brown’s larger-than-life posters still hang untouched inside the TD Garden ProShop and throughout the busy North Station concourses.

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Chickadee, the popular Mediterranean restaurant in Seaport, is shutting down – The Boston Globe

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Chickadee, the popular Mediterranean restaurant in Seaport, is shutting down – The Boston Globe


The half fried chicken served with black bean hummus and cauliflower cashew pilaf at Chickadee Restaurant in the Seaport.Matthew J. Lee/Globe staff

An Instagram post that announced their closure on Tuesday evening did not point to any reason for the closure, and requests for comment were not immediately returned.

“Eight years ago, we opened our doors at the Innovation and Design Building with a simple hope: to bring you honest, delicious food and a warm place to share it,” read the post. “What we found instead was a community – regulars who became friends, first dates that turned into anniversaries, celebrations, quiet lunches, and everything in between. You made this restaurant so much more than a place to eat.”

Globe Food Critic Devra First awarded Chickadee 3.5 stars in October 2018, where she wrote how some meals “are magic, everything cooked perfectly, making you swoon.”

At the time, it was also considered one of the earliest restaurants to have opened in the still-industrial far reaches of the Seaport, which was home to ship-repair facilities and cutting-edge design firms, seafood wholesalers, and biotech companies. In terms of location, some said it was ahead of its time.

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DaSilva, a three-time James Beard Best Chef: Northeast semifinalist, has led some of the top restaurants across the Greater Boston area. Aside from Barbara Lynch’s flagship No. 9 Park, he opened Spoke Wine Bar in Somerville in 2013. During his time at Spoke, he received a number of accolades and was named one of Zagat’s “30 Under 30” for Boston and earned the title “Rising Star Chef” from StarChefs.

Kilpatrick, who also left Lynch’s group in 2014, worked for the team behind O Ya to help open restaurants in New York. According to his LinkedIn, he started a new job as a regional operations manager for Lark, a boutique hotel management company, in April.


Alexa Gagosz can be reached at alexa.gagosz@globe.com. Follow her @alexagagosz and on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.





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GBH Daily: Come sail away

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GBH Daily: Come sail away


This is a web edition of GBH Daily, a weekday newsletter bringing you local stories you can trust so you can stay informed without feeling overwhelmed.

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🥵Very hot, with highs around 97 degrees. Sunset is at 8:19 p.m.

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GBH’s Dan Murphy captured Abby Evangelista and her corgi, Rocko, at Sail250 this weekend. “Rocko gets dressed up for lots of occasions … sometimes just to go to the store, and he does so great with meeting people,” Evangelista said. Keep reading for more photos from the tall ships. 

A year ago today firefighters were extinguishing flames at the Gabriel House, an assisted living facility in Fall River. Ten people died in the fire, a tragedy for their loved ones and a scary moment for about 18,000 people who live in assisted living facilities across the state.

Now state officials have created new regulations for fire safety in assisted living facilities, going into effect later this month. Fire departments will inspect these facilities once a year, and facilities will need to submit emergency plans and train their workers on what to do in case of a fire.

GBH’s Craig LeMoult found that neither the new regulations nor state or federal fire codes address checking sprinkler systems. Some of the sprinklers at the Gabriel House weren’t working the night of the fire, including the ones in the room where it started.

“Had the sprinklers functioned properly, we’re not having this conversation right now. It is maybe a single fatality fire, but certainly not more than that,” Fall River fire chief Jeffrey Bacon told LeMoult. “The good news is that some of the sprinklers did function. And had they not, we would be here talking about 20, 30, 40 victims.” You can read the full story here.

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Four Things to Know

1. Colleagues and friends are remembering Louisa Gag, a Boston transportation planner killed last week when a truck driver hit her as she rode her bike near the Roxbury Crossing MBTA stop. Gag grew up in Roslindale and worked for the city on expanding the BlueBikes bike-share program. Before that, she worked for the LivableStreets Alliance, co-authoring a plan to help cities stop traffic deaths. You can see her talk about her work in this 2019 video.

“In moments like these, there is a tendency to reduce the person to the way they died and to their activism,” said Stacy Thompson, a former executive director of LivableStreets. “While we may know Louisa as a deep champion of the city and a close advocate, she’s also a Boston Latin [School] kid. She’s also, like, the most infectious, hilarious person you’ve ever met. She’s also a daughter. It’s so important to us right now for her life to not be reduced to how she stopped living.”

2. More than 4,000 nurses are back at work at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. They went on a one-day strike last week, and hospital administrators kept them from returning to their jobs for another five days. The Massachusetts Nurses Association and Brigham management have been negotiating a contract for seven months, going back and forth over wages, health insurance premiums and staffing levels.

“It’s exciting, but also frightening,” said Christine Forgeron, a cardiac nurse at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “I don’t know what to expect when we go back to our patients. What happens next, because we still don’t have a contract,is the most unsettling part.”

3. Michael Walsh, a Republican candidate for state attorney general, will be on the primary ballot in September despite what Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Karp called “substantial evidence in the record of voter fraud.” The case began when Adam Roof, executive director of the Massachusetts Democratic Party, submitted a complaint accusing a signature gatherer Walsh’s campaign hired of either falsifying or not meeting state requirements for 1,021 of the 10,677 signatures they submitted. Candidates for statewide office need 10,000 signatures to get onto the ballot.

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Karp said that there was indeed evidence that the signatures came not from voters themselves but from a list of registered voters the state’s Republican party gave the signature gatherer. But the case fell on a technicality: state law required Roof, the Democratic party official, to submit his complaint by certified mail, and he did not do so. The state’s highest court still has to decide what will happen to Anne Manning Martin, a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor who used the same signature gatherer.

4. Residents of towns around the Quabbin Reservoir flooded into the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority meeting last week to ask for a better deal. The Quabbin supplies clean drinking water for dozens of cities and towns in the eastern part of the state. Right now, the state requires towns like Shrewsbury, Belchertown, Orange and Pelham to keep their development in check to keep the Quabbin clean. Though those towns get some money in return, local officials said it’s not enough to cover their costs.

“We are protecting this watershed by foregoing any type of economic development, which is a cornerstone of providing the basics of education [and] public safety,” said state Rep. Aaron Saunders, of Belchertown. “It’s time for a change, and not an incremental one.”

Tall ships sail into Boston

The Colombian vessel ARC Gloria passes spectators watching from Castle Island on Saturday, July 11 in Boston.


Dan Murphy / GBH News

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Tomorrow is the last full day of Sail Boston, the city’s tall ships celebration. The ships will leave our harbor Thursday morning. GBH photographer Dan Murphy was there over the weekend to capture the Parade of Sail.

People in white sailor's uniforms waving towards camera on white sailing ship flying Chilean flag

Chilean sailors aboard the Esmerelda wave to spectators on Castle Island during the Meet Boston Parade of Sail on Saturday, July 11 in Boston.


Dan Murphy / GBH News

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The Esmeralda, a ship from Chile, sailed by Castle Island.

Woman in navy shirt and black baseball cap points to ship out of frame for child in white pinstripe shirt sitting on her shoulders

Carolyn Gustine points out a ship to her son, Patrick Gustine, during the Meet Boston Parade of Sail on Saturday, July 11 at Castle Island in Boston.


Dan Murphy / GBH News

Carolyn Gustine carried her son, Patrick, on her shoulders.

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You can see the full photo essay here. 

Dig deeper: 

Spectators line Cape Cod Canal to see tall ships make their way to Sail250 in Boston

The World Cup transformed Greater Boston. Will it last?

Department of Agricultural Resources celebrates Ice Cream Trail program

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Boston man charged after allegedly assaulting Burger King employee, punching customer

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Boston man charged after allegedly assaulting Burger King employee, punching customer


Local News

The customer, who was evaluated for “visible lacerations to the forehead,” was punched three times while being called racial slurs, prosecutors say.

A Burger King sign in Erie, Pa.
AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File

A Boston man is facing charges after he allegedly lunged at a Burger King employee, punched a customer, and then resisted arrest at a nearby MBTA station in East Boston, authorities announced Monday afternoon. 

Patrick Donovan, 59, was charged July 1 with one count of assault and battery causing injury on an over 60 or disabled person, assault and battery, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, assault, and vandalism, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office said in a press release. 

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The charges stem from an incident shortly before 10 p.m. on June 30, when Boston police responded to a disturbance call from Burger King at 1 Maverick Square, Hayden’s office said.

A Burger King employee told officers that, after ordering his food and receiving it, Donovan yelled that he no longer wanted it and smacked a napkin holder off the counter. He then allegedly lunged at an employee and grabbed her by the arm, prosecutors said. 

Donovan subsequently shoved a customer from behind and allegedly punched him in the face three times while calling him racial slurs, the DA’s office said. 

Emergency medical services evaluated the customer for “visible lacerations to the forehead,” but the victim declined additional treatment, authorities said. 

Donovan fled the restaurant following the assaults, and officers tracked him to the nearby MBTA Maverick Station, prosecutors said. 

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“While officers tried to detain Donovan inside the station, he swung at them with a closed fist but did not make contact,” Hayden’s office said, noting that Donovan made racial slurs towards the officers. “Donovan was placed into custody after a brief struggle.” 

During his arraignment in the East Boston division of the Boston Municipal Court, Donovan pleaded not guilty and was released on personal recognizance. Court records show he was also ordered to stay away from Maverick Square and Burger King. 

He is scheduled to return to court Aug. 7 for a pre-trial hearing, prosecutors said. 

Officers obtained security footage of both assaults. Authorities said the incident remains under investigation and could result in further charges. 

“Our workers deserve to be safe in their workplaces and our consumers deserve to be safe in their shopping or dining places, without exception,” Hayden said in a statement. “Beyond that, none of our citizens or first responders should be subjected to racial slurs. These appalling words have no place in Suffolk County or anywhere else in our society.” 

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Attorney information for Donovan was not immediately available Monday afternoon.

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