HUDSON – Hundreds of residents filtered through Main Street on Friday when Boston 25 News came to Hudson to highlight the town as part of their summer Zip Trip series.
Zip Trip sees the channel come to cities and towns throughout the state to highlight their unique attractions and people. For the seventh installment this summer anchors Shiri Spear, Catherine Parrotta and Lilly Hopkins showcased Hudson’s businesses, government officials and everyday people who are proud of their town.
Speaking to the Community Advocate, Hopkins said while many communities today are somewhat transient, Hudson residents have bought into the town.
“The evidence of that is this beautiful downtown street where on a random morning at 6 a.m., people wanted to come out and tell us about their community,” Hopkins said.
She added that the town had been extremely welcoming to the Boston 25 production team, and that she was “absolutely charmed” by downtown Hudson.
“It’s no surprise that this is the best downtown in the country,” Hopkins said, referring to a 2021 award Hudson won for the Best Main Street in the nation.
Businesses, organizations share their stories
One of the people Hopkins interviewed was Sue Waudby, a co-founder of the Fresh Start Furniture Bank, which is a volunteer-run charity that distributes free furniture, linens and housewares to Massachusetts families in need.
Waudby said Fresh Start has helped settle 577 Afghan refugees in six months and delivered more than 23,000 pieces of donated furniture to 388 families.
“It’s just so exciting, I love the energy,” Waudby told the Advocate about the atmosphere of Hudson for the Zip Trip. “This town supports us so much.”
At the Digital Federal Credit Union booth during the broadcast, representatives of the credit union presented Fresh Start Furniture with a Home Town Hero award.
The anchors talked to people from several businesses in town including Lamacchia Realty, Decanted Wine Trucks and Silva’s Bakery.
Sam Gomes of Silva’s, a longtime family-owned and operated Portuguese bakery, said he had not expected Hudson to be as busy as it was for the broadcast.
“The town is so diverse, and the town is so friendly,” Gomes said. “It doesn’t matter where you’re coming from, you’re welcome here.”
Zip Trip features public officials, residents
The anchors also spoke with town officials, like Department of Public Works Director Eric Ryder and Select Board Chair Scott Duplisea.
Duplisea said it was good to see so many residents from the town come out for the broadcast, that the Zip Trip crew told him the town had been great to work with.
“I think it’s fantastic that they came here today,” Duplisea said. “It really goes to show you how far Hudson has come in terms of popularity.”
Zip Trip brought out a lot of unique residents who wanted to show their pride in Hudson. One was Esperança Stevens, who hula hooped throughout the entire broadcast holding a sign that said, “Trust, peace, joy, love for all!”
She started hula hooping four years ago and would hula hoop everywhere when the pandemic started because she could do it while socially distancing from other people.
Stevens, who immigrated from Portugal when she was seven, loves Hudson. She is also a big fan of Zip Trip and previously went to a broadcast from Millbury when she lived there.
“There is a lot to highlight in this town,” Stevens said. “My favorite part is watching the kids because they see everything with fresh eyes.”
Speaking to the Advocate after the broadcast, Spear said that she felt like she was in a Hallmark movie standing in Hudson’s downtown area.
Noting how enthusiastic the residents at the broadcast were, Spear said the pride Hudson’s people – from government officials to everyday residents – had for their community was remarkable.
“Everyone had such amazing things to say about this town,” Spear said.
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