It's time to make Boston winter better for all the young people who live, work and play here. As a MA native, I grew up playing outside in the snow, skiing and going outside in the winter. After graduating Tufts in 2014, I noticed my peers struggling to stay motivated in their day-to-day lives through 4pm sunsets and bone-chilling weather.

In 2014, 20 million Americans were diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder. That number has only gone up. While at Tufts, I started struggling with winter blues myself until a friend invited me up to Igloofest, Montreal's outdoor music festival in the middle of January. Bored with nothing else to do, I packed my snowsuit and hand warmers, and made my way up to Montreal. The temperature was 11 degrees when we got there. I had no idea what to expect.

At Igloofest, I found myself surrounded by hundreds of people, bundled up from head to toe, smiling and dancing to techno music. It reminded me of the power of dance and music to bring people together and warm up even the coldest of nights.

When I returned to Boston, I realized that we don't all have to suffer through winter alone or drive 2+ hours to the mountains. There are too many people (like myself) itching for something to get excited about right here in the city.

In partnership with the founders of EchoMe - a brand new music synchronization app that facilitates silent disco parties, this January we will launch Boston's first outdoor moving silent disco dance party. Complete with a custom winter workout run by Chris Capozzi of The November Project, we will dance our way through the city, goof it up along the way, and end at a landmark location in Boston with hot apple cider (provided by Red Apple Farm) and hearty soup.

This is my way of fostering community and spreading joy here in Boston Proper by inspiring people to embrace winter in all its awesomeness.

Thank you so much for this opportunity!

With warmth & appreciation,
Lilly