Healing AdVentures

12/21/2025

If this season feels heavy, you don’t have to carry it alone.

The NAMI HelpLine is here for you. Call 1-800-950-6264 or text 'NAMI' to 62640.

12/19/2025

Megan Piphus Peace has made Sesame Street history as the first Black woman puppeteer to perform on the show, and later as the show’s first full-time Black female puppeteer.

Her breakthrough came in June 2020, when she performed as Gabrielle during CNN and Sesame Street’s special “Coming Together: Standing Up to Racism,” created to help families talk with children about racism. Gabrielle is a confident young Black girl Muppet, and Piphus Peace has brought her warmth, joy, and authenticity in a way kids instantly understand.

In September 2021, she joined Sesame Street full-time, making her place on the Street official. Her role matters because representation is not just about who appears on screen, but also about who gets to create the characters children grow up loving. When a Black girl Muppet is performed by a Black woman puppeteer, it expands what children see as normal, possible, and welcoming.

Gabrielle’s presence reinforces Sesame Street’s core message: every child belongs, every voice matters, and learning can be rooted in kindness and respect. For many young Black viewers, that reflection can be powerful, not as a lesson in permission, but as a simple reminder that they are already included.

Sources:
Page, S. (2022). ‘Sesame Street’ has its first Black female puppeteer. The Washington Post.
Rascoe, A., and Radcliffe, M. (2022). Sesame Street’s first Black female puppeteer wants to keep inspiration flowing. NPR.
Sesame Workshop. (2022). Megan Piphus (Gabrielle). Sesame Workshop Press Room.
CNN and Sesame Street. (2020). Coming Together: Standing Up to Racism (Town Hall special). CNN.
Image: CNN

12/18/2025

It's official... yet still so much to learn... and that's part of why I want to...

12/18/2025

We are approaching the longest night of the year. This time of darkness and cold can be really hard. Many of us are facing holidays that have changed in big ways after the death of someone important to us, and can really intensify the feelings of missing them.

To give yourself some extra support and nourishment through this time, we encourage you to check out the Winter Solstice Grief Care Booklet we created last year that includes a link to a guided grief walk, a link to a playlist of songs, recommended books and podcasts, some poetry, tea and simmer pot recipes, and some grief activities. Find it here: https://www.wildgrief.org/blog/winter-solstice-grief-care

12/17/2025

Community care doesn't end with the growing season.

All year long, UFI shows up to provide nourishing food, build partnerships, and support neighbors when resources are stretched.

Programs like our weekly meal bags bring folks nutritious cooked food during winter and spring because our community steps up.

We are all one community.
Help keep this work going with a year-end gift.

🔗Donate today: https://www.urbanfarminginstitute.org/donate

12/17/2025

Something is coming to Nubian Square! 😍

We know the JAE Community is patiently awaiting the opening of the JAE Dance Center. The wait is almost over! Stay connected with us here on social media to hear what classes we will start offering in the new year! 🎉

12/17/2025

12/17/2025

12/17/2025

It's cold outside! To stay warm during the day, visit a local library. For overnight protection from the cold, local warming centers include Cambridge at the back entrance of 437 Green St. (7pm-7am), Somerville at 42 Prescott St. (5pm-8am--opens 12/8), and Malden at 529 Eastern Ave. (7pm-7:30am).