SHARE YOUR MEMORIES/PHOTOS: Selectman Jerry Wasserman

Share your photos and any memories of Jerry Wasserman, help us build a memorial to his work in Needham.

Do you have any photos of Selectman Wasserman? Share them with your neighbors by clicking the "Upload Photo and Video" button to the left. It was last Friday afternoon that Needham lost Selectman Chair Jerry Wasserman, his memorial service took place over the weekend. At last night's meeting, Selectman Daniel Matthews noted that Wasserman had played a role in most of the major town decisions for many years. “If his contributions weren’t countless,” Selectman Dan Matthews said, “they would be hard to count.” He joined the Board in 1999, and was a member of Needham Town Meeting and School Committee before that, Town Manager Kate Fitzpatrick writes in an email. He has also served on a number of other committees around town. Beyond his town …

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Funeral for Jerry Wasserman Scheduled for Today

Ceremony scheduled for 3 p.m. on Sunday in Needham. Share your thoughts about his contributions.

Funeral for Jerry Wasserman Scheduled for Sunday

Ceremony scheduled for 3 p.m. on Sunday in Needham. Share your thoughts

  Yesterday afternoon, Needham lost Selectman Chair Jerry Wasserman. The funeral ceremony is at 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 3 at Needham's Temple Beth Shalom, Selectman John Bulian told Patch in a brief phone call yesterday. Wasserman joined the Board in 1999, and was a member of Needham's School Committee before that, Town Manager Kate Fitzpatrick wrote in an email yesterday. He has also served on a number of other committees around town. Beyond his town duties, Wasserman played with a folk band, Jerry and the Great Experiment, and had recorded a live album last July. Music was a passion of his. He died aged 65 at home on Feb. 28, he had been battling cancer. Readers and colleagues of Wasserman's responded to his life.  Patch User Michael L.…

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Needham Selectman Jerry Wasserman Dies at 65 [Updated]

Selectman Chair Wasserman passed at home Thursday afternoon.

  Earlier today, Board of Selectmen Chairman Jerry Wasserman died at home, aged 65.  He joined the Board in 1999, and was a member of Needham's School Committee before that, Town Manager Kate Fitzpatrick writes in an email. He has also served on a number of other committees around town. Selectman John Bulian said that Wasserman was a friend for many years.  "He will be sorely missed," he added. Beyond his town duties, Wasserman played with a folk band, Jerry and the Great Experiment, and had recorded a live album last July. Music was a passion of his. Bulian told Patch that the funeral ceremony is at 3 p.m. Sunday, at Temple Beth Shalom here in Needham. According to the Globe's YourTown Needham, Wasserman was battling cancer.  [Update: …

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Letter: Selectman Facing Challenges Ahead

This letter was submitted by a Needham resident and member of the Board of Selectmen.

Dear Needham friends, I want to share with you that I am dealing with some very serious medical issues concerning cancer. Despite those issues, I intend to continue fulfilling my obligations as a member of your Board of Selectmen and currently as the chairman. (Yes, I am also planning to perform with my band on New Year’s Eve.) The best aspect of being on the board has always been that it has made me feel so much a part of our community. I love this community and I find great joy in knowing that I can call so many of you my friends. I know I can count on your support at this difficult time and I am so very grateful. Jerry Wasserman Needham Board of Selectmen 

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PHOTOS: Needham Selectman Plays July 29 Market

The town official was part of a group of musicians who performed at the weekend event.

Needham Selectman Jerry Wasserman took a break from town business last weekend to perform with his band at the Needham Farmers Market. Called Jerry and the Great Experiment, the five-person band plays acoustic folk music, with several of the songs written by Wasserman. The selectman sings and plays guitar and other instruments and is joined by two other Needham residents, Bo Veaner and Bill Okerman, as well as Faith and Dan Senie of Bolton. In addition, the band often welcomes guest musicians.  Coming up this Sunday, the Needham Farmers Market will feature music by Euphonium Trio. The market is held every Sunday through October from 1-5 p.m. on the front lawn of First Parish in Needham.

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Needham Breaks Ground on New Senior Center

State and local officials, volunteers, seniors and others from around town gathered on May 3 for a ceremony marking the start of a long anticipated construction project.

A little rain and mud didn’t keep people from coming to see the first ceremonial shovel of soil lifted on the site of the Senior Center Thursday morning. More than 50 people—including state officials, selectmen, Senior Center staff and members of the Council on Aging Board, Friends of the Needham Elderly and the former Needham Senior Center Exploratory Committee—stood on the edge of the former MBTA lot at the corner of Hillside Avenue and West Street at 9 a.m. to celebrate the start of a construction project that has been about 20 years in the making. “I think it’s a wonderful testimony to how excited everyone is, to see how many people showed up on a very nasty day and how many people walked over, and that people took time out of their …

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Selectmen Reorganize: Wasserman Named Chairman

New and returning board members were sworn in on Wednesday, April 11.

After two months of being down one member, the Needham Board of Selectmen once again has all five seats filled. On Wednesday, April 11, the day after the Town Election, two returning members and one new selectman were sworn in to office, and the board reorganized for the coming year. New selectman Matt Borrelli joined the board for his first three-year term after winning a contested race on Tuesday against opponent Michael Greis. Borrelli's wife Alison and two children watched him take his oath of office, led by Town Clerk Tedi Eaton, before the board got down to business for their first meeting in April. Selectman Moe Handel, returning for his second term, and Selectman John Bulian, returning for his fourth term, also took the oath of …

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Stretch Code Back on the Table

Selectman agrees to study the issue further with the help of the town manager, then report back.

Needham Selectman Jerry Wasserman said Tuesday he would continue to study the Stretch Energy Code with the help of Town Manager Kate Fitzpatrick, gathering a list of questions residents still have about the code and coming back to the board with answers at a later date. At the Nov. 7 special Town Meeting, voters chose to send the issue of whether Needham should adopt the higher efficiency energy code back to selectmen for further review after just 30 minutes of discussion on Town Meeting floor. The article had garnered majority support from selectmen, the Planning Board, the Finance Committee and the Green Communities Study Committee after months of debate, but many still had questions. The stretch code would require major renovations and …

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