From Needham To The World

From Needham
to the World

Needham People Who Changed The World In Positive Ways!

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Every profile is funded by donations from wonderful Sponsors who believe sharing these stories encourages others to pursue their dreams.

• Sunita Williams
• Robert Larsen
• Life Is Good
• "Tiger" Okoshi
• Frank Malzone
• Denys Zirngiebel
• N.C. Wyeth
• Gov. Charley Baker
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Each Profile Is on Display For 4 Months on Chapel St. Across from Needham Town Common

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Help us continue to share the stories of Needham people who changed the world in amazing, positive ways!

Sunita Williams Story: 

Sunita Williams is an American astronaut and navy officer, and proud 1983 graduate of Needham High School. Born in Euclid, Ohio, Sunita, her parents, and two older siblings moved to Needham, where Sunita spent most of her childhood.  

Upon graduation from Needham High School, Sunita attended the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, where she received a Bachelor of Science in Physical Science. Following her early career as a commissioned ensign in the U.S. Navy, Sunita trained at the Naval Test Pilot School, eventually becoming an instructor. Over the course of her career, she flew 30 different types of aircraft and logged 3,000 hours. She was deployed as a helicopter pilot in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Provide Comfort.  

Because of her experience and qualifications as a pilot, NASA selected Sunita for its astronaut program. Sunita spent a total of 322 days at the International Space Station over the course of four expeditions and served as commander of the ISS on her fourth, and final expedition, only the second woman to serve as commander of the Space Station.  

Over the course of her career in space, Sunita held the record for longest single spaceflight by a woman (195 days), total number of spacewalks by a woman (7), and most spacewalk time for a woman (50 hours, 40 minutes). In 2007 Sunita also became the first person to run a marathon in space – she completed the Boston Marathon on April 16, 2007 in just 4 hours, 24 minutes, and later became the first person to complete a triathlon in space. (Sunita was no stranger to the Boston Marathon – while a senior at Needham High School she unofficially entered the marathon, running from Hopkinton to Boston, completing the race barefoot when her shoes began to bother her).  

In September 2007, Sunita was awarded the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Vishwa Pratibha Award, named for the Indian politician Sardar Patel who played a leading role in India’s struggle for independence and helped it become a united, independent nation. Sunita became the first person of Indian descent who was not an Indian citizen to receive the prestigious award.  

In 2019 the Needham School Committee voted unanimously to re-name the newly reconstructed Hillside Elementary – from which Sunita graduated – as the Sunita L. Williams Elementary School, Needham’s first public building named after a woman. Sunita’s flight suit, Navy uniform, service pictures, and 5th grade school photo, are proudly on display in the school lobby.  

Watch Sunita’s Video Story: https://youtu.be/OyxYPjuywSs

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Robert Larsen Story

Bob was called to active duty during the Korean War where he received the Combat Infantry badge. He marched and participated in Needham’s Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Veterans Day celebrations. He is a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2498 in Needham. 

His commitments include 47 years as Town Meeting Member and service on several town committees, including the Memorial Park Gazebo Committee for which he created the fundraising lithograph.  

Bob served on the War Memorial Committee and designed the Fallen Brave bas-relief medallion sculpted into the granite memorial that honors Needham’s 92 fallen service people at Memorial Park. 

Bob completed his fine arts education at the Rhode Island School of Design. He has exhibited at the Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts, the Academic Artists Association, and the Copley Society in Boston.  

He is a past recipient of the Manship Prize from the North Shore Arts Association for excellence in drawing, and first prize from the New England Press Association for editorial cartoon that appeared in the Needham Times in 2003.  

Both his talent and wit were on display for many years as the editorial cartoonist for the Needham Times.  

For 40 years Needham residents have appreciated Bob’s artistic talent on the covers of the Needham phone book. Many have cherished the sketches of graduating Needham High School seniors that he made at their all-night party. His formal portraits hang in the Needham Library, the Needham History Center, and the Needham Community Council. 

Bob’s many contributions to the town and its citizens reflect 

his commitment to the importance of civic engagement. He has willingly and generously devoted countless hours of his time and talents to benefit the Needham community.  

He is a recipient of the 2014 Richard Patton Melick Foundation Award, the Superintendent’s Award for Distinguished Service, the Needham Exchange Club’s Extraordinaire Award, and the Needham Business Association’s Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award.  

In spite of his well-deserved recognition, Bob humbly and truly believes that whatever his service to the community, it is he who has received so much more in return. 

Watch Robert’s Video Story:  https://app.searchie.io/watch/P5qnv0Weqr

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Life Is Good Story: 

Bert and John Jacobs grew up as the youngest of 6 siblings in a close-knit, chaotic little home right here in Needham.  Their mother Joan was the first powerful optimist in their lives, choosing to navigate real challenges in life by focusing her family’s energies on positive creative outlets like drawing, storytelling, poor singing and physical play. 

Their father Al helped instill a deep appreciation in all 6 kids for good craftsmanship and the great outdoors.  

As Bert and John finished up college, they looked for a way to make a living creating art- and avoid getting a real job. For five years, they drove up and down the East Coast, selling their T-shirt designs on the streets and in college dorms. They slept in their van, lived on peanut butter and jelly, and showered when they could.  

Then in 1994, with just $78 to their names, they designed their first Life is Good T-shirt in an effort to counter the flood of negative news. They soon discovered how those three simple words could inspire people to focus on the good.  

As the brothers stumbled forward growing the business, an expanding Life is Good product line was soon sold on their own website and in thousands of retailers in the US and beyond.   

Meanwhile, they kept receiving inspiring letters from customers fighting to overcome adversity and feeling a deep connection to Life is Good. The Jacobs brothers were especially moved by stories from brave children facing challenges like violence, poverty and illness, which led them to team with Needham friend and clinical social work pioneer Steve Gross to create The Life is Good Playmaker Project.  

This groundbreaking non-profit teaches early childhood professionals to help kids heal from trauma, positively impacting over one million children every year. 10% of Life is Good’s annual profits are donated to the Playmaker Project.         

Joan Jacobs was the true inspiration for Life is Good, and her spirit lives on in the positive art and messages at the heart of this homegrown brand. Today, Bert, John and the ever-growing Life is Good community continue to create fresh, fun ways to spread the power of optimism.  

Fun fact: Rocket, the iconic dog featured on many Life is Good products, is named after the Needham High School mascot. 

Watch LIG’s Video Story:  https://qrs.ly/p1ex9d5

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“Tiger” Okoshi Story: 

“Paint The Air One Note At A Time” 

“When I play, i want to paint the air with my colorful tone. Choices between long or short strokes, quick or slow, high in the canvas or low, brighter color or darker, with a fat brush or a pen. Paint the air one note at a time.” 

— Toru “Tiger” Okoshi, jazz trumpeter and Berklee College of Music Professor 

Toru “Tiger” Okoshi was born outside of Osaka, Japan in 1950, the year of the Tiger. As a child, he was devoted to painting. When he was 13 years old, a friend took him to see Louis Armstrong, who was touring in Japan. “He was painting the air with his trumpet,” recalls Okoshi. He took up the trumpet and immersed himself in jazz. 

In 1972, after graduating from Kwansei Gakuin University, Okoshi married Akemi Usui and they took their honeymoon in the United States, riding a Greyhound bus across the country from Los Angeles to Boston.  

The couple remained in Boston, where Okoshi studied at Berklee College of Music and practiced by the Charles River, hoping someone would hear him and ask him to join a band. That in fact happened, and Okoshi graduated summa cum laude from Berklee in 1975.

He is the founder and leader of the group Tiger’s Baku and a member of the George Russell Orchestra. Okoshi has made numerous recordings as a performer and producer.  

He has performed with other jazz greats such as Tony Bennett, Buddy Rich, Gary Burton, Dave Grusin, Dave Liebman and Pat Metheny, as well as in numerous jazz festivals around the world.

Okoshi's pop and rhythm and blues work includes performances with Teddy Pendergrass, The O‘Jays, The Four Tops, Frankie Avalon, ‘Til Tuesday, and Brad Delp of Boston. He has performed the national anthem several times at Fenway Park, including playoff games in 2007 and 2008. 

Okoshi has received numerous awards for musicianship and contributions to international relations. He is currently a Professor of brass instruments at Berklee and operates two music camps worldwide devoted to teaching jazz to young musicians. Professor and Mrs. Okoshi have lived in Needham since 1982. 

Watch “Tiger”’s Video Story:  https://qrs.ly/5nekrnf

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Frank Malzone Story: 

Frank James Malzone (February 28, 1930 – December 29, 2015), a long-time member of the Needham community, was a third baseman for the Boston Red Sox and three-time winner of the Gold Glove.  

He was born in Bronx, New York in 1930 and was signed as a free agent out of his high school by the Red Sox. Mr. Malzone made his Boston debut in 1955. In 1957, he had a career-high 103 runs batted in, and tied an American League record for a third baseman with 10 assists in a game.  

He became the first player to lead the league at his position in games played, putouts, assists, double plays and fielding percentage. Mr. Malzone tied a record by leading American League third basemen in double plays over five straight seasons and enjoyed his best season in 1962, batting .283 with 21 home runs and 95 runs batted in.  

He was an All-Star eight times between 1957 and 1964 and won three straight Gold Gloves (1957-1959), including the first Gold Glove for a third baseman in Major League Baseball history.  

After eleven seasons with the Red Sox, Mr. Malzone played one season with the California Angels and then returned to the Red Sox, where he served as a scout and player development consultant for many more years.  

He was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in its inaugural Class of 1995, as well as the Massachusetts chapter of the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.  

Mr. Malzone and his wife Amelia were blessed with six children and many beloved grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  

After settling in Needham, they were active in the community. Both were long-time members of St. Bartholomew Church and active volunteers with the Needham High School Boosters Club.  

Mr. Malzone enjoyed throwing out many first pitches for the Needham Little League, and Mrs. Malzone devoted many volunteer hours to the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital and the St. Bart’s Book Club. 

Watch Frank’s Video Story:  https://qrs.ly/4ofbej4

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Denys Zrngiebel Story: 

Denys Zirngiebel (1829-1905) was the first person in the United States to cultivate the Giant Swiss Pansy, which became the town flower of Needham, leading him to be known as the “Pansy King.”  

As a young man, Denys immigrated to the United States from Switzerland, established a home in Needham, and then sent for his wife Henrietta and his son.  

Eventually, Denys and Henrietta had four children. Their daughter Henriette married Andrew Wyeth and gave birth to the renowned artist N.C. Wyeth. 

During the 1860s, Denys served as the director of the organization that later became the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University.  

After purchasing a 35-acre tract of land along the Charles River on South Street in Needham, he started a floral business. At one time he was making daily shipments of pansies to the White House and the War Department in Washington, D.C.  

The Zirngiebel family lived in the house at 178 South Street in Needham known as the Joshua Lewis House. Built in 1776, the house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and still stands.  

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a friend of Denys, was known to have visited the house. He is said to have referred to the property in his poem “To the River Charles.” N.C. Wyeth purchased the house in 1921, and used it as a home and studio for several years. 

Denys and Henrietta were laid to rest at the Needham Cemetery. Each spring, the Needham Historical Society hosts a Pansy Day festival at the Needham History Center and Museum, featuring pansies for purchase and activities for children. 

Watch Denys’ Video Story:  https://qrs.ly/osfmdwp 

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N.C. Wyeth Story:

The life is wonderful, strange – the fascination of it clutches me like some unseen animal – it seems to whisper ‘Come back, you belong here, this is your real home.’” – N.C. Wyeth

Newell Convers Wyeth, known as N.C. Wyeth, was born in Needham on October 22, 1882 to parents Andrew Newell Wyeth II and Henriette Zirngiebel Wyeth. His maternal grandparents had emigrated from Switzerland to Needham and built a floral business along the Charles River, where the Giant Swiss Pansy, later designated the town flower of Needham, was first successfully cultivated.

N.C. was a prolific and renowned painter and illustrator. He created more than 3,000 paintings and illustrated more than 100 books, including Scribner’s classics such as Treasure Island, Kidnapped, Robin Hood, The Last of the Mohicans and Robinson Crusoe. As a child in Needham, his family’s relationships with literary giants Henry David Thoreau and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow fostered his appreciation for literature. His mother encouraged his early inclination toward art. He was painting with watercolors by the age of twelve, and later attended the art school now known as the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, as well as two other art schools.

N.C. moved to Pennsylvania as a young man to study with artist Howard Pyle. His first commission was an illustration of a bucking bronco for the cover of The Saturday Evening Post in 1903. On trips to the western part of the country, he worked as a ranch hand and spent time on Native American reservations, experiences that helped him develop his iconic images of the Old West.

In 1906, N.C. married Carolyn Brenneman Bockius. They had five children, four of whom became artists themselves. Two of his grandchildren, Jamie Wyeth and Michael Hurd, continue N.C.’s legacy as artists. N.C. died in 1945 and is buried in Birmingham, Pennsylvania.

The largest collection of his works is housed at the Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. His work is also displayed at the Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, Maine, the Delaware Art Museum, the New York Public Library and the Philadelphia Free Library.

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Governor Charlie Baker Story:

A strong Commonwealth is built on a foundation of strong communities. Friendly, welcoming, bustling neighborhoods and downtowns. Great schools. Safe, accessible, attractive places to play. Growing local economies. And a belief that anything is possible.” – Governor Charlie Baker

 Charles Duane Baker Jr. served as the 72nd governor of Massachusetts from 2015 to 2023. He was born on November 13, 1956. He lived much of his childhood in Needham with his father, mother and two younger brothers.

He has noted that his father was a conservative Republican and his mother a liberal Democrat, and political debates at the dinner table were common. At Needham High School, he served on the student council, played basketball, and joined DeMolay International, a youth fraternity organization. He graduated from Needham High School in 1975, graduated from Harvard College in 1979 and then obtained a Masters of Business Administration at Northwestern University.

Governor Baker then embarked on a lengthy career in public service and in the private health care sector. He worked for the Massachusetts High Technology Council and the libertarian think tank Pioneer Institute. He served as Undersecretary of Health and Human Services under former Governor Bill Weld. He was later promoted to Secretary of Health and Human Services and then Secretary of Administration and Finance, a position he continued to hold after Weld resigned and Paul Cellucci took over as acting Governor.

After leaving state government in 1998, Governor Baker became Chief Executive Officer of Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates. In 1999, he was named president and CEO of parent company Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. Governor Baker served on the board of selectmen of Swampscott, Massachusetts for three years, and later was named to a Budget and Finance working group for incoming Governor Deval Patrick’s transition committee.

After running unsuccessfully in 2010, Governor Baker won the 2014 election. He was inaugurated as Governor on January 8, 2015, and then again on January 3, 2019 for a second term. A 2018 WBUR/MassINC poll gave Governor Baker a 74% approval rating, making him the most popular governor in the United States.

During his time in office, Governor Baker cited accomplishments in areas such as economic development; elimination of the budget deficit; growth of the Commonwealth’s Stabilization Fund; investments in education; addressing the opioid and heroin epidemic; progress toward the reduction of emissions and protection of environmental justice in communities; and leading the Commonwealth through the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Governor Baker announced that he would not seek a third term.

In March 2023, Governor Baker became the NCAA’s sixth president. As president he’s expanded support for student-athletes’ well-being through the NCAA’s Post-Eligibility insurance and enacted an array of policy changes to enhance rules and processes overseeing collegiate athletics.

Baker believes college sports are a uniquely American treasure, provide life lessons to its participants and contribute to society in many ways.