Waltham's Most-Read Stories: 2020 Year In Review

WALTHAM, MA — If there's one thing to say about 2020, it's that it was a year unlike any other.

While the coronavirus pandemic undoubtedly dominated the headlines this year, other stories caught our readers' attention, including from the updates on the closings and openings of businesses, to local Black Lives Matters rallies and the abandoned Fernald property.

Before we step into 2021, Patch looked back over 2020 and, using reader input and online data, identified the top stories of 2020:

Waltham Lions To Bring Holiday Light Show To Fernald Property

In November, the Waltham Lions Club announced they were taking over the former Fernald Property for the holiday season with a light show. From Nov. 27 after Thanksgiving through Jan. 3, the group hired the company they usually have work on the annual carnival there cover the property in holiday lights to blink in coordination with music on a radio channel. But, this year the civic club's annual fundraiser was met with a challenge from advocates, frustrated that the city, hadn't moved forward on plans to protect the property or to install a museum remembering the horrific legacy and honoring the changes that happened there for people with disabilities.

Waltham Serial Attacker: Police Release List Of Assault Sites ...

A random attacker put residents on edge and stumped police this November when they started jumping men and hitting them with a hard object from behind, in several cases sending them to the hospital with serious injuries. Police released a list of locations where 11 men, including one postal worker, reported being attacked in Waltham between Nov. 10 and Nov. 27. They released a grainy video of a suspect, and they implored residents to be careful out there at night. And then they offered a $5K reward for any information that might lead to an arrest. So far, no arrests have been made in the case, and police say the attacks appear to have ended.

• Waltham Man Says He Was Attacked At Gardencrest

Customer Leaves $700 Tip At Waltham Restaurant

It's been a difficult year for everyone, so when one customer left a tip that was out of proportion, the restaurant staff did a double take. $70 would have been a shock. But he left $700. A few months later, another person left another impressive tip for the staff down the street. Acts of kindness are contagious, too, it would seem: Customer Leaves $500 Tip At Waltham Restaurant.

Tents On Waltham Common Put A Spotlight On Homeless ...

About 30 men were told to bring their pillows and blankets from the emergency night shelter where many of them have been staying for the past month and move to cots set up inside a large tent on the Waltham Common in April. It prompted a Patch series that got a number of people talking.

• What Do Homeless People In Waltham Do Amid Coronavirus Crisis?
• Tents To House Homeless Go Up On Waltham Common
• Could You Hold It For 8 Hours? Advocates Ask For Public Bathrooms
• Advocates For Waltham's Unhoused Population Rally For Day Shelter

Pizza Food Truck To Open In Waltham

First off, who doesn't like pizza? But this is the famous Sal's Pizza to boot. And then there is the lure of the food truck. Food Trucks Popped Up In Waltham Neighborhoods this year amid the pandemic.

HBO Show On Chef Julia Child Films At Waltham's Wilson's Diner...

Lights and cameras and directors chairs showed up in Waltham this fall to film for an HBO show based on the life of famous chef Julia Child. But Wilson's wasn't the only restaurant in town to get in the spotlight: Waltham's 'In A Pickle' Restaurant Was Featured On Cooking Channel...

Waltham Teacher Runs NYC Virtual Marathon To Raise Awareness...

Just about nine months after this Waltham middle school teacher tragically lost her son, she planned to run a marathon in his honor, and to put a spotlight on the needs of people with mental health issues.

An Act Of Kindness Multiplied: Waltham Patch Hero

Liz Dragone's act of kindness during the coronavirus crisis multiplied quickly into near daily acts of kindness for workers and families.

Waltham Closes Moody Street To Help Restaurants

It's been tough for restaurants and local businesses, but in an effort to help restaurants out a bit, Waltham piloted shutting down Moody Street to cars for the summer. It was so successful the city extended that closure.

More Than 1000 March In Waltham Rally Against Racism...

It was a sight to behold: Lexington Street was filled with a sea of people holding signs as some 1,000 people marched more than a mile from the high school to Leary Field in a rally organized by Waltham Against Racism to protest racial injustice. Neighbors came out of their homes and lined the way, cheering, chanting and holding fists in the air in solidarity.

What Waltham stories made the biggest impact on you this year? Comment below.

Jenna Fisher is a news reporter for Patch. Got a tip? She can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how.