On a beautiful early fall Saturday, hundreds of Milton residents came together to enjoy Porchfest 2025. This year’s event was showered with tributes to Kate Middleton, the Milton native instrumental to the event, who unexpectedly passed away last year.
Sixty-five acts across almost two dozen porches performed for an elated Milton community. Acts spanned genres, from pop covers to folk to hard rock to soul.
The event had an unofficial kick off on Eliot Street, at the home of Select Board Vice Chair Winston Daley. Starting at noon on Saturday, Milton’s own “The Relegated” drew a large crowd in front of Daley’s parking garage, where they shredded through multiple punk rock classics.
Daley, a 12-year Milton resident and Porchfest lover, couldn’t turn down the opportunity to host. “The time I’ve lived in Milton I’ve been very much about having community events in community spaces,” Daley said.
He admires the event’s ability to bring people together, and “getting to know your neighbors differently” in a casual, upbeat setting. “That’s the great value of Porchfest,” he said, “not only seeing the great talents of people that live next door to you, but also having the time and space to just have off the cuff casual conversation with friends and future friends.”
The annual staple in Milton began in 2017 and has only grown, now in its eighth year (2020 was cancelled). Emily Mulla and her husband, Chuck Rogers, decided to start a Milton Porchfest after attending Somerville’s. Unlike Somerville’s Porchfest however, which is sponsored by their arts center, the Milton team is purely made up of volunteers. They’re composed of eight Milton residents including Mulla and Rogers.
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