Page 6 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, MAY 7, 2021 Health & Wellness Center to reopen May 10 M ayor Carlo DeMaria recently announced that the Everett Community Health & Wellness Center will reopen on Monday, May 10. The center will be open Monday–Friday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday–Sunday from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. “The Everett Community Health & Wellness Center was forced to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said DeMaria. “Re-opening the center has been a long time coming. Due to the size of the space, we will be able to welcome up to 2,000 people in the center. I look forward to adding programs and classes as guidelines lessen.” The cost for new members is $15 per month for a family membership, and those with active gym memberships will not be charged any membership fees until January 2022. All fitness class schedules will be determined at a later date. Please remember that the City of Everett will be following all COVID-19 protocols as dictated by the Commonwealth. The Everett Community Health & Wellness Center will be operated and managed by the Push. Lift. Accelerate. You. (PLAY) Fit Lab. The PLAY Fit Lab was formed in late 2016 by Everett native and minority female business owner Kahlea Brown. Brown is a graduate of Everett High School and has carried her Everett pride with her throughout her life. Brown moved on to study at Bay State College and the University of Massachusetts Boston to earn her bachelor’s degree in Business Management. Brown had spent more than 14 years in the hospitality industry before moving to Dubai in 2013 for a few years. During her time in Dubai, she started personally training people in her building with exercise equipment, and it was here that Brown discovered her passion for health and wellness. When Brown moved back to the United States at the end of 2015, she decided to pursue her passion of fitness. She became certified by the National Academy of Sports Medicine and began working at Crunch Fitness in Medford, where she helped to open the facility. Brown quickly became certified to teach spin and other group classes, and she enjoyed her experience there. Around 2016, Brown had a conversation with DeMaria, and shortly after she began working at the Everett Community Health & Wellness Center as a personal trainer, group fitness coordinator and instructor for group fitness classes. This is where Brown was inspired to branch off and start her own business, the PLAY Fit Lab. REOPEN | SEE PAGE 18 Zion Baptist Church attacked by vandal Mayor calls incident a hate crime Security footage shows the alleged suspect in front of Zion Baptist Church at 2:20 a.m. on April 29. (Courtesy Photos) By Christopher Roberson Z ion Baptist Church was recently the target of vandalism when the seven-foot wooden cross in front of the church was yanked from the ground and hurled into an adjacent property. Bishop Robert Brown, the church’s senior pastor, said the office manager first noticed that the cross was missing when she arrived at work at approximately 9 a.m. on April 29. “The cross will go back up. We’re not going to be deterred from doing that,” Brown said in an interview with WBZ. “It is a symbol of our faith and we’re not going to let anybody move us from that at all.” Mayor Carlo DeMaria said this was more than an act of vandalism. “This was not an accident but a hate crime against Zion Ministries and their community,” he said. “As mayor, I’m repulsed and distraught that someone would intentionally vandalize a religious organization in our community. There is absolutely no room for any hate in Everett.” City Council President Pro Tempore Anthony DiPierro said the church has been a landmark in Ward 3 for more than two decades. “To see something like this happen so close to home truly saddens me,” he said. “I hope the individual responsible is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” Ward 1 Councillor Fred Capone said the incident is more disturbing because it happened at a place of worship. “When vandalism targets a religious group or property, the deplorable act takes on an even more despicable nature,” he said. “We, as a community, stand in friendship and support with the Zion Baptist Church congregation.” Security footage indicates that the incident occurred at 2:20 a.m. on April 29. However, no arrests have been made as police continue to search for the suspect. Anyone with additional information is urged to contact the Everett Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Unit at 617-394-5063.
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