Meet Me in Medford | Natalie Breen, Lawrence Estates Ambassador

7 hours ago

6 min read

By 4Squares Residential Group with Judi 411

Lifelong Medford Resident and Lawrence Estates Neighborhood Ambassador

There are people in every community who somehow seem to know what’s going on.

They’re the people neighbors call with a question, text when they’ve heard something through the grapevine, or stop on the sidewalk to ask, “Hey, do you know what’s happening with…?”

In the Lawrence Estates, Natalie Breen is one of those people.

Long before Neighborhood Ambassador became an official title, Natalie was already connecting people with information, answering questions when she could, and figuring out where to point them when she couldn’t.

So when the opportunity came along to make that role a little more official, it felt like a natural fit.

Meet Natalie Breen, Neighborhood Ambassador for the Lawrence Estates.

You’re a Medford native. Tell us about your roots here.

I was born in Medford, and I’m a third-generation Medford resident. My parents both grew up in West Medford and actually met at Playstead Park.

Funny enough, that’s also where I met my husband. We’ve known each other since middle school, and we recently had our son, so now he’s a fourth-generation Medford resident. We live in the Lawrence Estates, so we definitely have deep roots here.

I’m also a proud Medford Public Schools graduate. I went through Medford schools from kindergarten all the way through 12th grade, although I think I attended five different schools along the way because that was when the new schools were being built, and everything was shifting around.

I started at the Forest Park School, which was tiny. There were probably only about 60 kids in the entire school, mostly from the Lawrence Estates. It felt like a little family. Eventually, my mom moved me to the McGlynn Elementary School because she wanted me to experience a bigger school before middle school.

I made so many friends growing up here. In fact, I spent this past weekend in Maine with someone I met in kindergarten in Medford. I think that says something about this community. We welcome new people, but there are also these incredibly deep roots and friendships that carry through different stages of your life.

What do you remember most about growing up in Medford?

Being outside! We spent so much time with all the neighborhood kids, running around and playing. The Middlesex Fells abutted our yard, so we were always in the woods looking for animals or down at the park playing sports and games.

I also worked at the West Medford Dunkin’ Donuts in high school, which was another way I got to know everybody. When you know people’s coffee orders and their routines, you get to know a community on a pretty intimate level!

My mom and I also made a point of going to different neighborhood parks. We went all over Medford. There are so many parks here, and I think sometimes we forget how lucky we are to have them.

And we spent a lot of time at the Medford Public Library. I still do. The library is completely different now, of course, but I’m there all the time. I’ve gone to floral arranging classes, puzzle races, author readings. They do everything there, and so much of it is free.

Now my son is going to the library for story times and music classes. He’s going to all my old stomping grounds, which is really special.

You’ve been involved in Medford in many different ways. What made you want to become a Neighborhood Ambassador?

I’ve always had a deep sense of commitment to Medford. I grew up here, and I want to contribute to making it the best community it can be.

I’ve run for City Council. I sit on the board of the Medford Public Library Foundation and was involved in fundraising for the new library. I’m also the current president of the Medford Chamber of Commerce.

Through all of those experiences, I’ve seen how difficult it can be to get information to everybody who needs it.

There’s so much happening in Medford. We have really important issues like zoning and the new Medford High School, but we also have all these great community events happening. And I can’t tell you how many times someone says to me, “I had no idea.”

People consume information differently. They interact with the community differently. Not everyone is getting their information from the same place.

When I heard about the Neighborhood Ambassador Program, it made total sense to me. You’re taking the city and breaking it into smaller pieces, with someone in each neighborhood who knows the community and can share information, gather feedback, and bring questions or concerns back to City Hall.

In the Lawrence Estates, we’re a relatively small and close community already, but there are still opportunities to make more connections with each other. This felt like a great way for me to do that and give back.

It also sounds like you were already doing some of this before you had the official title.

Definitely.

People frequently ask me things because they know I’m involved in so many different parts of the city. Even before I became a Neighborhood Ambassador officially, neighbors would call or text me, or I’d be walking with the baby, and somebody would stop me and ask, “What’s going on with zoning?” or “What’s happening with the high school?” or “Do you know what restaurant is going into the Square?”

So becoming a Neighborhood Ambassador felt like a natural progression.

And I think it’s important for people to understand that the program isn’t only about complaints.

For example, I recently learned that a woman in the Lawrence Estates organizes an annual neighborhood potluck in one of our green spaces. I live there, and I didn’t even know about it!

That’s exactly the kind of thing we can share more broadly and use to bring people together.

As Neighborhood Ambassadors, we’re also gathering information from residents and looking for themes. What are people asking about? Where are there gaps? Are people in different neighborhoods bringing up similar concerns? Is there an opportunity to connect people with DPW, economic development, or another City department?

It really works both ways: getting information out into the neighborhoods and bringing information from the neighborhoods back to the City.

What are some of your favorite Medford places?

This is hard for me because, as president of the Chamber of Commerce, I love all of our local businesses equally!

But there are some places and experiences in Medford that I really love.

One is the Clippership Connector walking path along the Mystic River. I take my son there all the time. We point out the ducks and turtles and all the nature along the river. We can walk through the Square, grab a coffee, go over toward the McGlynn, stop and look at the dogs at the dog park, and sometimes make it all the way over toward Wegmans for a snack. It’s such a beautiful way to experience Medford.

I also love the boating community along the Mystic River. My dad is on the board of the Riverside Yacht Club, and people don’t always realize how much boating activity there is right here in Medford.

And there’s the Mystic Wellington Yacht Club, which really may qualify as a hidden gem because it’s tucked away and a lot of people don’t know it’s there. They also do some wonderful things for the community.

Then there’s Carr Park. The renovations there are incredible. I brought my son there, and there’s a swing where I could sit facing him, plus the splash area, covered basketball courts, and walking areas. It’s such a great example of the kinds of community spaces we have here.

If someone told you they were thinking about moving to Medford, what would you tell them?

I’d tell them they’re making the right decision.

Photos, from upper left: Natalie on the job; a view from the Wellington walking path, towards the Mystic Wellington Yacht Club; Natalie networking; our Medford Wegman's, where you will run into a neighbor, ambassador or not!

In a world where people say you can’t have it all, I really feel like you can in Medford.

You have the location and access to Boston. Without traffic, I can get to Logan Airport in about 15 minutes. You can get into Boston easily or head up to the North Shore.

At the same time, you have neighborhoods where you’re close to your neighbors and have a real sense of community, but you also have an incredible amount of green space. We have the Fells, the walking paths along the river and all of these parks throughout the city.

You get that proximity to Boston while still having nature, neighborhoods, community and history around you.

I grew up with all of that, and now I get to watch my son grow up with it too.

Have a question or an idea?

The Neighborhood Ambassador Initiative is designed to strengthen connections throughout Medford by creating another way for residents and City Hall to share information with one another.

As the Neighborhood Ambassador for the Lawrence Estates, Natalie is a resource for neighbors who have questions about City resources, want to know more about what’s happening in the community, or have an idea or concern they’d like to share.

You can reach Natalie at lawrenceestatesmedford@gmail.com.