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Vol. 47 | No. 4 | April 2021
In Brockton, boxing legacies run deep, loss of Hagler stings
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New AARP Analysis Shows COVID Crisis Continues in Nursing Homes: Massachusetts Death Rates Remain Staggering By Mike Festa, State Director AARP Massachusetts
WE MAY BE APART, BUT WE'RE NOT ALONE SOMEONE WHO CARES IS JUST A PHONE CALL AWAY. If you or someone you love is feeling isolated or anxious in these challenging times, a friendly phone call may help. That's why we created the AARP Friendly Voice program—a trained, caring group of volunteers standing by ready to chat, listen, or just say hello. It's easy. Request a call by dialing AARP at 1-888-281-0145 for English or 1-888-497-4108 for Spanish, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. local time.
The latest release of AARP’s Nursing Home COVID-19 Dashboard shows that the crisis in these facilities continues as deaths and new infections rise in Massachusetts. From December 21 to January 17, deaths among residents increased Mike Festa to 1.9 per 100 residents. Additionally, the rate of coronavirus cases per 100 residents increased from 5.7 to 6.3 among residents and from 5.4 to 6.2 among staff. The dashboard found that staffing and PPE shortages remain a significant problem. Shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) have declined slightly over the same period, from .082% of nursing homes without a one-week supply in January to .017% in February. Any nursing home without a one-week supply of PPE is concerning. Meanwhile, staffing shortages remain a persistent problem, with .064% of facilities reporting a shortage in the most recent dashboard. Since the beginning of the pandemic, roughly 34% of COVID deaths involve residents in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. AARP has been urging Massachusetts Legislators to protect nursing home residents and staff from COVID-19. We are approaching the one-year anniversary of the first known coronavirus cases in nursing homes, yet the number of deaths and cases in these facilities remains appallingly high. The devastation this pandemic has brought to nursing home residents and their families has exposed fundamental reforms that must be made in nursing homes and to the long-term care system. We cannot lower our guard. The nursing home industry in Massachusetts has struggled with quality care and infection control for years. AARP urges elected officials to act immediately, focusing this year on: • Enacting or making permanent the components of AARP’s fivepoint plan: • Prioritizing regular and ongoing testing and adequate personal
protective equipment (PPE) for residents and staff—as well as for inspectors and any visitors. • Improving transparency focused on daily, public reporting of cases and deaths in facilities; communication with families about discharges and transfers; and accountability for state and federal funding that goes to facilities. • Ensuring access to in-person visitation following federal and state guidelines for safety, and require continued access to virtual visitation for all residents. • Ensuring quality care for residents through adequate staffing, oversight, and access to in-person formal advocates, called long-term care Ombudsmen. • Reject immunity and hold longterm care facilities accountable when they fail to provide adequate care to residents. • Establishing minimum nursing staffing standards. • Improving minimum wages for staff in residential and home care settings. • Ensuring progress is made so that in-person visitation can safely occur and facilitating virtual visitation. • Creating a pathway for single occupancy rooms in nursing homes. • Additionally, our leaders must reject policies that take away the rights of residents to hold nursing homes accountable when they fail to provide adequate care. Now is not the time to let nursing homes off the hook for abuse, neglect, and even death. The AARP Nursing Home COVID-19 Dashboard analyzes federally reported data in four-week periods going back to June 1, 2020. Using this data, the AARP Public Policy Institute, in collaboration with the Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University in Ohio, created the dashboard to provide snapshots of the virus› infiltration into nursing homes and impact on nursing home residents and staff, with the goal of identifying specific areas of concern at the national and state levels in a timely manner. The full Nursing Home COVID-19 Dashboard is available at www.aarp.org/nursinghomedashboard. For more information on how COVID is impacting nursing homes and AARP’s advocacy on this issue, visit www.aarp.org/nursinghomes.
Mike Festa is the State Director for AARP Massachusetts. For more articles visit www.fiftyplusadvocate.com.
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Intergenerational friendship Hudson dancers/gymnasts continue evolving their 60-year relationship By Ed Karvoski Jr. Culture Editor
Jean BeddowArnth toasts her signature drink, Absolut Vodka Gimlet straight up, with Linda LeSage.
HUDSON – The 60-year relationship between Hudson residents Linda LeSage and Jean Beddow-Arnth continues to evolve. In 1961, the 6-year-old LeSage began taking dance and gymnastics classes from Beddow-Arnth, better known as “Miss Jean.” They ultimately became close friends, business partners and travel companions. Now, LeSage is the healthcare proxy for Beddow-Arnth at age 96. “Jean is like a second mother,” LeSage shared. “I oversee her care. This expresses my love for her.” Entertaining from London to Hudson Originally from England, Beddow-Arnth began performing in the 1940s as a ballerina and acrobat at London theaters. She came to America while traveling as an acrobat with the Cole Brothers Circus in 1953.
Soon afterward, she opened Jean’s School of Dance in the basement of her Hudson home where she still resides. “Jean taught us a sense of disci-
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pline and to value our creative abilities,” LeSage recalled. As a favorite memory, LeSage cites the annual recitals based on classic fables that Beddow-Arnth
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produced with elaborate scenery at Hudson Town Hall. “Her end-of-the-year dance recitals were unlike anybody else’s in the area because of her huge entertainment background in London,” she relayed. “Jean worked at all the big theaters.” LeSage learned to teach dance and gymnastics as a teenager assisting with classes. While attending Salem State College, she participated in its gymnastics team. Upon graduating in 1977, she and Beddow-Arnth opened Jean’s Gymnastics in downtown Hudson. It expanded in 1986 with a move to Marlborough. Jean’s School of Dance continued in Hudson until 1988. When they sold Jean’s Gymnastics in 2009, Beddow-Arnth retired from teaching at age 85. “Jean never lost her grace and her balletic ability to teach,” LeSage noted. Friendship | 5
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Jordan Rich proclaims his 50-year love affair with Boston radio By Ed Karvoski Jr. Culture Editor
Jordan Rich at the WBZ-AM studio
Productive college days and beyond Rich chose to study at Curry College in Milton specifically because freshmen could work at the student-run station WMLN-FM. “The idea was to get in there and learn; make mistakes, so you can get better,” he explained. “I worked there
my entire four school years.” Before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in communications in 1980, Rich landed his first radio job at WRKO-AM in 1978. He reported weather forecasts from Logan Airport. “It was the break of a lifetime,”
PHOTO/DAN THIBEAULT
REGION – Jordan Rich started becoming a familiar voice on Boston airwaves at age 19. Now residing in Framingham, he candidly chronicled his longtime passion in a memoir titled “On Air: My 50-Year Love Affair with Radio.” During his childhood in Randolph, he discovered love at the first sounds of late-night talk shows on his transistor radio. As a member of Randolph High’s radio club, he determined his destiny after interviewing school administrators. “I learned the importance of creating a bond with people and being courteous on and off the air,” he recalled. “Being around a microphone early on convinced me that I’d do this for a career.”
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he declared. “I went from 10 watts on Curry’s WMLN to 50,000 watts in one day.” Soon afterward, he was promoted to morning co-host with legendary broadcaster Norm Nathan. Rich is grateful for the on-the-job training from Nathan, who was posthumously inducted into the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame. “Norm was a mentor who didn’t know he was a mentor,” Rich relayed. “When he was being funny – which was all the time – it was always self-deprecating. He never intended to hurt anybody’s feelings. He taught me to have respect for the audience.” Following his mentor at WBZ-AM 1030 After Rich worked at WLLHAM and WSSH-FM, his association with Nathan recurred over a decade later. Nathan was hosting WBZAM’s overnight shift when he died in 1996. Several radio personalities filled-in until WBZ announced the debut of “The Jordan Rich Show.” “There’s always a transition when anybody leaves – or sadly passes on – but you don’t replace that person,”
Below: Emmy Award-winning actor William Shatner poses for a photo with Chart Productions coowners Ken Carberry and Jordan Rich. Shatner has been a guest on Rich’s radio show and podcast.
Rich said. “Norm was a great influence for me and many people who loved him.” Throughout 20 years, Rich interviewed countless guests for listeners in 38 states and Canada. Unlike some broadcasters, he was as respectful as his mentor. “I wouldn’t be successful in an antagonistic role where I’m shouting people down – it’s not my nature,” he noted. “I’ve always enjoyed listening as well as speaking up.” While this show ended in 2016, Rich continues hosting several WBZ projects including “New England Weekend,” “Connoisseur’s Corner” and “The Upside with Jordan.” Podcasts: ‘the great renaissance of audio’ Now, he’s also podcasting his “On Mic with Jordan Rich.” “The great renaissance of audio is because of digital podcasting,” he proclaimed. “For me, it was a natural outgrowth of doing the ‘BZ show to create my own podcast and continue the one-on-one interviews that I love.” Rich’s podcast is one of many Radio | 5
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Jordan Rich: a familiar voice on Boston airwaves Radio | from page 4
produced by the Braintree-based Chart Productions, which he coowns with his fellow Curry College alum Ken Carberry. Among their longstanding clients is a 35-year working relationship with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Rich does voice-over work for the now-online BSO concert series conducted by Keith Lockhart. “Working directly with Keith and representing an organization that’s known worldwide has been a great honor,” Rich said. “Also, I love classical music.”
Personal chapters Rich’s book includes personal topics. He shared about the loss of his first wife, Wendy, to cancer when they were married for 31 years. “We had a lot of years with cancer treatments and remissions,” he noted. “I helped heal my audience; they helped heal me.” He also described overcoming bouts with depression. “In my late 30s, I was totally exhausted – mentally and physically,” he acknowledged. “I felt horribly down. I didn’t have the right therapy and medication until 2010. Once I learned about sleep, stress reduction and be-
Intergenerational friendship
Keith Lockhart and Jordan Rich are backstage during a rehearsal for the Fourth of July celebration “Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular.”
Amid the first snowfall of the season, Jean Beddow-Arnth gets “flocked” by the Hudson Girl Scout Troop 75242 fundraiser on her 96th birthday, October 31, 2020.
came more spiritual, it all eased out.” Rich advises, “If you’re well and take care of yourself, then you can help other people.” He’s currently helping by donating all book proceeds to Boston Children’s Hospital. Learn more about Jordan Rich at jordanrich.com. His book is available at Amazon.com.
NOW OPEN! Friendship | from page 3
Traveling locally and globally With Beddow-Arnth retired and LeSage working as a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist, they continued their mutual interest in traveling near and far. They discovered this shared interest when LeSage was a Hudson High School sophomore and ski team member. Beddow-Arnth chaperoned the team’s trip to Germany. “I remember saying to Jean at the time, ‘When I get older, I’m going to travel the world,’” LeSage relayed. “The summer that I graduated from college, we went to Kenya. After that, we’d take a big trip each year in the summer and we’d go to the Caribbean in the spring.” In 2012, LeSage accepted a colleague’s offer to join him in his box seats at Gillette Stadium. She brought Beddow-Arnth as her guest to the AFC Championship game with the Patriots versus Ravens. The Patriots won and advanced to Super Bowl XLVI. Also in 2012, they traveled to England to visit Beddow-Arnth’s hometown, Surrey. A highlight of their trip was attending a performance at the London Palladium.
There, in the 1940s, the 20-year-old Beddow-Arnth performed before King George VI. Unbeknownst to Beddow-Arnth, LeSage arranged for the Palladium’s red-coated butlers to royally welcome her. “They all lined up and made a corridor for her to pass through,” LeSage recounted. “They brought her to box seats and served her champagne. Her face lit up with joy.” In 2021, they returned to Gillette Stadium – this time, for COVID-19 vaccines for Beddow-Arnth. “Jean was enthused to get the vaccines,” LeSage noted. “She kept complimenting everyone for being so kind.” Sharing intergenerational quality time Now, they regularly view photo albums of their past trips together. “It brings back memories for Jean, so she has a basis for conversation,” LeSage explained. “It’s been a huge gift for her.” LeSage appreciates not only learning dance and gymnastics from her mentor, but also life lessons. “Regardless of age, we’re all the same,” she said. “We all have the same wishes, dreams and needs.”
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In Brockton, boxing legacies run deep, loss of Hagler stings By Dakota Antelman Contributing Writer
PHOTO/ALAMY
BROCKTON – Joe Angelo remembers barnstorming around the country, following hometown hero Marvin Hagler through an iconic and unrivalled career at the pinnacle of competitive boxing. Indeed, he and a group of fellow residents from Brockton, which Hagler called home, chased their superstar around the country, putting massive bets on his bouts and sitting in front rows as opponents withered under his blows. “We took the ride with Marvin,” Angelo said. “That ride was a great ride to be on...It was the greatest boxing you’ve ever seen in your life.” As Hagler fought, his career only continued a local boxing legacy that had already seen fellow Brockton athlete Rocky Marciano dominate the fighting world through the 1950s. Over 50-years after Marciano died in a plane crash in 1969, Hagler’s sudden death, just last month, continues another grim legacy of sports heroes taken at relatively young ages.
Larger than life outside the ring and merciless with gloves on, Hagler set records for knockouts and pummeled opponents who challenged him. “He could hit anybody with either hand,” Angelo said of Hagler. “You couldn’t hurt him.” Local bar owner collects boxing memorabilia These days, Angelo is a historian, of sorts. He runs a Marvin Hagler hits fellow boxer Tony Sibson during a fight at the DCU Center in Worcester bar near downtown in 1983. Brockton that regularly bustles with Two champions fights and is still remembered as a boxcustomers. from the same city er capable of delivering titanic knockInside, he’s decorated the place Marciano dominated the ring for outs to men much bigger than him. with old photos, framed news clipeight years between 1947 and 1955. Hagler, meanwhile, moved to pings and painted portraits that tell He held the world championship town in 1967. Six years later, he made the stories of both Marciano and title for four of those years and finhis professional debut in the boxing Hagler. ished his career as the only undefeatring, kicking off a career that would Behind one projector screen, a ed heavyweight champion in history. culminate with seven years spent as massive floor to ceiling mural shows He won all 46 of his professional the middleweight world champion. Boxing | 7
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www.fiftyplusadvocate.com + APRIL 2021 + fiftyplus advocate tality sparked a series of deadly riots in his neighborhood, his family first slept beneath their beds to hide from gunfire. Then, they moved to Brockton. “They wanted to get out,” Angelo said of both Marciano and Hagler. “They wanted to make something of themselves. Boxing was their tool.”
PHOTO VIA BOSTON CITY ARCHIVES
Rocky Marciano (second from left) stands with Former Boston Mayor John Collins and others. Boxing | from page 6
Marciano grinning through a ruffled brow in the midst of a fight. When Angelo retracted that screen for a photo, recently, the still running projector splashed bright footage of modern Bruins hockey players across Marciano’s big red 1950s gloves. “Everybody is family in this city,” Angelo said of local attitudes towards Marciano and Hagler.
Driven by pain, boxers seek a way out Reflecting on the records of both Marciano and Hagler, Angelo sees twin stories of hunger. Marciano grew up in the Great Depression. He watched his parents struggle and felt his own anxieties as a young man. Hagler grew up Black in Newark, New Jersey in the era of racial strife that was the 1960s. When police bru-
Boxing legacies stretch onward for decades Decades after Hagler left the ring, boxing’s place in Brockton has endured. After he died in a plane crash in 1969, just two years after Hagler arrived in Brockton, Marciano’s community mourned him. It still does, to this day. He’s got a statue memorializing him. The local post office bears his name. Marciano Way, in town, is named after him. His son has spent the last three years selling a line of wines named after Marciano. “Rocky died way too young,” Angelo said. “He could have done a lot of good things with the rest of his time. But it just wasn’t to be. He got on that plane and didn’t make it.” Hagler’s story is different and alike. He passed just last month in Bartlett, New Hampshire where he
Boxers exist as role models for Brockton residents Ultimately, as Brockton’s boxers introduced this sometimes-struggling city to the world, legacies feel local in 2021. Those legacies live on even as both Marciano and Hagler have passed away. “Everybody aspires to be [like them],” Angelo said. “When you have success, people want to be around success.”
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had spent large chunks of time since he retired. He was 66. Announcing the news, Hagler’s wife Kay provided no specifics on how Hagler died, just saying his passing was unexpected. Until very recently, Hagler had continued to pass through town from time to time, visiting Angelo’s bar and appearing at retirement ceremonies for younger area athletes. As of January of this year, Angelo was working to get a statue erected in Hagler’s honor. While Brockton mourned his death, meanwhile, Gov. Charlie Baker formally declared March 23 Marvelous Marvin Hagler Day in recognition of Hagler and the “Marvelous” nickname he enshrined as his legal name during the height of his boxing career.
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Boston salesman changed the way the world shaves Left: King Camp Gillette, the Boston salesman who created the first disposable razor blade
B O ST O N –
By Brett Peruzzi, Contributing Writer
A
s the 20th century neared, the era of long beards was coming to an end. King Camp Gillette, a traveling salesman who lived in Boston, who was clean-shaven save for a trim mustache, saw an opportunity. The idea came to him through his own daily shaving routine. “Standing at his sink in the early morning, King C. Gillette realized his permanent blade razor was dull and required professional sharpening,” Gillette, the business he founded, states in the company history on its website. “In that moment of frustration, he saw that the only necessary part of his blade was the finest part of the tip. He quickly envisioned that tip on a flattened piece of steel, sharpened on both sides, produced at such a low cost that it was easily and quickly replaceable.”
Turning an idea into a viable product But the gulf between Gillette’s revelation in 1895 and bringing a viable product to market was a wide one. Existing razors were large, thick blades made of carbon steel that required regular sharpening and were used for many years. He wanted to produce a very sharp disposable blade on a small plate of sheet steel that could be discarded once the edge became dull. He consulted with metallurgists at the Massachusetts
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Below: The patent for Gillette’s pioneering invention, which changed the way the world shaves
Institute of Technology (MIT) who told him what he wanted was impossible. After pursuing his idea for six years, he finally got the solution from a chemical engineer, William Emery Nickerson, who, interestingly, had graduated from MIT. Nickerson said he could produce the type of blade Gillette had envisioned. The origins of a household name That year, 1901, the American Safety Razor Company (later renamed Gillette) was established by the duo in South Boston, where it remains to this day. Production began two years later. The following year, in 1904, Gillette received US Patent No. 775,134 for his invention. Within two years the company was selling 300,000 units per year. Razor blades were sold for the first time with many to a package, 12 in this case, for $1, while the handle only needed to be purchased once. The business continued to grow dramatically, often fending off competitors by buying them. During World War I, the US government issued over three million Gillette razors and tens of millions of blades to all of its servicemen. By the time the war was over, a sizable portion of that generation of American men had become loyal Gillette customers. Innovations continued over the decades, as multiple blades to enable a closer shave were mounted in the head of the handle. The razor handle also eventually became made of plastic and disposable as well.
Life after a groundbreaking invention While King Gillette became rich from his groundbreaking invention, he wasn’t as enthusiastic a capitalist as one might imagine. He became a strong supporter of utopian socialism when he was older, and published three books on the topic. His plans for a massive utopian community in upstate New York, powered by Niagara Falls, never came to fruition. He tried to enlist Theodore Roosevelt as president of the planned community, at a salary of $1 million, but Roosevelt declined. Gillette nearly went bankrupt towards the end of his life, due to over-investing in property and because of the decline in the value of his stock holdings in the Great Depression. He died in Los Angeles in 1932 at age 77, but the company he founded, now owned by Proctor & Gamble, is still thriving over a century later, commanding more than half of the $4 billion disposable razor market, with its products sold in over 200 countries.
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Lisa Ryan, Plymouth psychologist, caring for our minds in a pandemic By Peg Lopata Contributing writer
A New Way of Doing Things Like many of us, Ryan is now meeting with people using online platforms, such as Zoom. She said, “I miss the in-person contact. While teleconferencing is less limiting than I thought it would be, it cannot compare with working with a person present in my office.” Ryan’s finding that she is not only busy as a psychologist--she’s also been doing Zoom tech support
PHOTO COURTESY OF LISA RYAN
PLYMOUTH - It has been busy and challenging times for psychologists, including Lisa Ryan, 70. Not only are people getting sick in their bodies--minds are also being highly affected by this pandemic. For Ryan it’s an opportunity to make a difference by providing highly needed mental health support. Ryan, who has a doctorate from Boston University in counseling psychology, has been a practicing psychologist for over thirty-five years. “I wanted a career in which I could make a difference by helping others,” she said.
Lisa Ryan
for some of her patients. “Thank goodness Zoom is such a simple program,” she said. Experience, there’s nothing else like it Ryan not only has a great deal of experience as a psychologist, she has always enjoyed the variety of doing this kind of work. “Patients are all different,” she
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explained. “It’s a job that requires creativity.” Never quite knowing what problems will arise has honed Ryan’s skills. “Prior to the pandemic, I also did Critical Incident Stress Debriefings,” said Ryan. “This meant going to sites where something stressful had happened. I have done psychological first aid in utility closets, loading docks, and airplane hangars.” Circle of support Workers in our hospitals and many others need mental health services as we cope with this pandemic. Ryan says she has more requests for service than she can provide. “Like many other aspects of our healthcare system, there is more demand than there is capacity. The pandemic has highlighted this,” she said. Ryan is seeing patients who have suffered serious losses: jobs, certainty, confidence in government, income, interpersonal contact and more. Healthcare workers have shouldered an especially high level of stress. “There are enormous demands and sacrifices for healthcare workers taking care of COVID patients,” said Ryan. “My wish to make a difference
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Elders staying resilient While the coronavirus has disproportionately killed more elders than any other age group, Ryan thinks many elders can come through this pandemic without post-pandemic psychological damage, perhaps even better than younger people will. “Elders potentially have more resilience than younger people because we’ve lived through many experiences,” explained Ryan. “There is a certain confidence and a sense of mastery that comes from this---provided our health and social supports have remained intact.” She knows resilience is strengthened by staying connected to others, being mentally stimulated, and keeping active. For some that means doing something creative. This is the case for Ryan. She co-organizes a photography meetup group. “This helps me stay connected to others and doing something I love to do.”
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Delshan Eddins all about making people smile Dorchester medical assistant finds ways to keep spirits up By Peg Lopata Contributing writer
B
ic serv
Delshan Eddins
It didn’t get easier once she found work, but because she loves helping people in need, she was glad to get up every day and do her job. She said, “I have been both fulfilled and extremely satisfied.” Her dedication is evident. Her patients know they are in good hands with her. “It is my hope and prayer that
sponsibilities as a medical assistant. She makes sure that even if she can’t hug patients, she gives more than just what’s required. “I help patients in whatever way they need. I will take a patient to the garage to find their car, or ride on the elevator with them if they are afraid. I try to give the very best care, physically and emotionally,” said Eddins. “I listen to and comfort my patients. I love putting a smile on their faces. I love hearing them laugh. It truly brings joy to my heart.” Other interests round out her life: her children, grandchildren, a kitten, going to the beach, and reading. But it’s her faith that keeps her strong and helps her understand what’s going on. Said Eddins, “I tell you sometimes bad things happen to good people and it can be a bitter pill to swallow. People are dying all around us. But I feel if I can get a better understanding what Jesus did and the example he set, I can get a better grip on my surroundings.”
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eing in healthcare, as we all know, has been and continues to be very challenging. But Delshan Eddins, 57, a certified medical assistant in an oncology office at Mt. Auburn Hospital, Cambridge, is finding many ways to keep her spirits up--and those of her patients too, many of whom are elders. For herself, she has her faith, her family, music, and her love of caring for patients. Eddins, a mother of three children, graduated from Bunker Hill Community College after her career in business was over. She had been out of school for over twenty years. “It wasn’t easy. I didn’t know if I could do it. I had a child in high school, middle school and the youngest in daycare. I didn’t know how I was going to do it, but I prayed and asked God to help me,” said Eddins. Not only did she graduate, she made the dean’s list and her grade average was an ‘A’.
every patient and person I come in contact with feels my sincerity,” said Eddins. The pandemic made caring for people more challenging. In the early days of the pandemic, everything changed in Eddin’s home life and work world, as for the rest of us. Her youngest had to do all her schooling online. Not able to see her friends got her down. At Eddin’s hospital employees were separated, lots of departments were closed and she moved into the temporary, but very necessary job of screening patients entering the building. “The hospital,” said Eddins, “seemed like a ghost town.” The difficulties were especially compounded for her by the fact that she could not and still can not not touch patients. “I cannot hug our patients or even give a small peck on the cheek,” said Eddins. “No contact is allowed. This is the worst for me.” This deprivation makes her work even harder to go beyond just her re-
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• 11
Somerville artist, Randal Thurston, says art is what completes him Guided to give Thurston is motivated, no matter what the upheaval, to give. He wants to use his time to do things that matter. His guiding philosophy? Pay it forward. “I believe,” said Thurston, “that the best way to live is to think about what you can do to bring about positive outcomes. In my experience, that takes the form of sharing what I know.” And in that spirit, to all artists, Thurston shares this: “The voice each of us has when we enter the studio is unique. If you focus on that alone, you’ll make work that is true.” Learn more about Thurston and see his artwork here: http:// www.randalthurston. com/.
Randal Thurston
By Peg Lopata Contributing Writer SOMERVILLE - Living the creative life doesn’t require magic. Just ask Randal Thurston, 65. He said, “One of the stereotypes about creativity is that it magically appears. It doesn’t.” Thurston should know as he’s been an artist for decades. His most recent pieces have been a mix of public art and large museum-based installations. Though he usually works in paper, he also translates his designs into more durable materials, such as glass, enamel and metal. For example, his most recent public piece is a perforated aluminum mural at a school in Cambridge, MA. He’s developed artwork for the elevators and station platforms at Cambridge’s new Lechmere station. His most recent cut paper exhibition was at the Art and Museum Center Sinkka in Finland. Creativity 101 According to Thurston, what artists need in addition to creativity is commitment and a strong work ethic. He explained, “If you can’t combine awareness, curiosity and technical skill with learning how to just put your head down and work, even when you aren’t feeling particularly inspired, you won’t creatively evolve.” Thurston believes creative ideas only make up for about five percent of the whole process. The remaining ninety-five percent is the work itself. Teaching Art in a Pandemic For Thurston a portion of that ninety-five percent is his work teaching printmaking and drawing at Suffolk University, Boston. He ad-
“Memoria Palatium” (detail) 2019. Cut paper. Art and Museum Centre. Kerava, Finland
mits these are challenging times for everyone, teachers especially so because they are used to doing in-person demonstrations and one-on-one critiques. “I focus on evaluating and offering both technical and conceptual insights,” said Thurston. “That’s really hard to do in a Zoom environment.” But he’s reworking his classes to face this new situation. “My personal challenge is to ensure that my students feel a sense of connection and that our discussions combine both learning and empathy.” It’s also a difficult time for young artists at the beginning of their careers. “Some may be scarred or emboldened by this experience,” said Thurston. “But artistic expression survives wrenching upheaval. Art will be an important part of how we experience, and, more importantly, remember this moment.”
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Massachusetts is the perfect home for Gregory Maguire, author of By Jane Keller Gordon Assistant Editor
The perfect home “Wicked” was created in Massachusetts, where Maguire has lived for the past 42 years, apart from five years spent in London. Here in Massachusetts, Maguire and his partner, Andy Newman, adopted three children and then married in 2004. “We have never had any difficulty, social or political, with being two men raising three children from infancy—indeed, we might have found ourselves in the most welcoming haven possible, given Massachusetts’ leadership in the matter of legalizing gay marriage,” he said.
T
wenty-five years ago, “Wicked” exploded into our consciousness. Gregory Maguire’s bestselling book—and its spinoff blockbuster musical—helped us see the Wicked Witch of the West in a different light. Maguire’s green-skinned witch, Elphaba, taught us about the ambiguities of evil.
Elphaba’s name was created with thought and intent Using the initials L, F, and B, Maguire honored Lyman Frank cepts Baum, the author of 1900s “The Group Wonderful Wizard of Oz.” He said, “I liked the word (Elphaba) because it carries sonic echoes of words like ‘fabulous,’ ‘elfin,’ or ‘alphabet’; or, vised one might say, the magic set of letters needed to spell a magic spell. It had to have a certain unsavory quality—a word we might wrinkle our lips over, not embrace as a sonorous sound for a blameless sweetheart…”
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co-founded a nonprofit, Children’s Literature New England, Inc. Maguire published many children’s books, including “Egg and Spoon,” which has been optioned by Universal Studios to be made into a live-action major musical film. Then there was “Wicked,” which changed Maguire’s life. “Quite simply, the financial security that arrived in the wake of ‘Wicked’’s publication allowed me the confidence to begin the adoption process. So “Wicked” has always been at the top of my list of favorite publications of mine because it allowed me my family,” said Maguire. Maguire’s reimagining of classic children’s tales has been the basis of many other bestselling books, including “Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister” (“Cinderella”), “After Alice” (“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”), and “Lost” (“A Christmas Carol”).
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Eventful childhood Maguire grew up in Albany, New York, the fourth of seven siblings. Tragically, his mother died while giving birth to him. His father eventually remarried his mother’s childhood best friend and, from his toddlerhood on, Maguire was raised by his second mother and his father. The seeds of Maguire’s storytelling were planted when he was a child. He said, “I was encouraged by the benign neglect of my parents and by general scantness of family funds for other entertainments. Making things up with paper and pencil was fully engaging for me when there was nothing else to do. My parents were both writers, one professional and one avocational. Their love of language, story, and the benefits of reading permeated the household.” Finding his voice Maguire’s entrance into adult fiction with “Wicked” was preceded by a career focused on children’s literature. He earned a master’s in the subject from Simmons College (now university) and a Ph.D. in English and American Literature from Tufts University. He taught at the Simmons College Center for the Study of Children’s Literature and
Unexpected inspiration during pandemic During these past few months, COVID has impacted Maguire’s writing schedule. “I didn’t intend to write a book in the year 2020. I had done a book last year, and I keep saying it is time to slow down a little. But COVID kept me from my annual trips to Greece and to France and locked me inside my own habits,” he said. Continuing, “One of my habits is looking out the windows of my imagination as well as of those over my kitchen sink. Before I knew it, by mid-March, I was back to writing fiction—and finished, revised, and sold the book, “The Brides of Maracoor,” which will come out in October 2021.” Cherishing each moment As for aging, Maguire summed up his view, “Every day of my life, I am enriched by two sets of apprehensions. They give me a kind of binocular appreciation. One perception is that of my own animal sense of being alive hour by hour and day by day; the other is that of my moral sense, intensified by knowing I owe my very existence to the life my mother gave me. In this way, I am grateful and shall cherish every day, even painful, worrying, or down-hearted days, with as full a regard for the nuances of human experience as I can muster.” For more information about Gregory Maguire, visit www.gregorymaguire.com.
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The ‘live in’ look By Marianne Delorey, Ph.D. Executive Director, Colony Retirement Homes
M
y 13-year-old son suggested I write an article about cleanliness. I wonder if it was an attempt to get me to back off on my prompting for him to clean his room (because it IS clean, Mom *eye roll*). But I also thought it was timely because about now people are starting to think about spring cleaning. When you have lived your life by your own standards, but then you move into an apartment, why do your standards have to change? Why does your landlord have the right to tell you to clean your apartment? The answer is pretty simple. In multifamily housing, what affects one apartment often affects another, so many cleanliness issues can become the neighbor’s issues. There are also legal reasons you should listen to your landlord. Most leases do have sections requiring the apartment be kept in “a clean and sanitary condition.” There are also laws in Massachusetts, the most important of which is the State Sanitary Code. This code covers a lot of topics, most of which are not about cleanliness, so here is my summary of the relevant parts. The landlord is responsible for providing a place that meets minimum standards. The tenant cannot jeopardize those standards. For instance, there must not be holes in the wall that harbor pests. Tenants must not accumulate garbage that draws pests. If pests become an issue, they need to work together to solve the problem. As a landlord, my definition of acceptable is “clean and clutter free, such that there are no odors, no pests, and you can easily move around the apartment and out the doors.” Of course, my history affects how I see the world and one of my bigger concerns is clutter. I am the daughter of a firefighter. When I talk to people about clutter, I appeal to their duty to care for our first responders. To me this means seeing their apartment through their eyes. You were just called to a fire. Someone might be inside. You put on 40 pounds of protective equipment, making some passageways a tight fit. You try to follow the wall, but there is so much furniture. You keep tripping because there is so much stuff in the way. Are you going to stay in there any longer than you have to? You found someone, how can you carry them out through the clutter? The state sanitary code backs these concerns, but I find that many people need something more concrete than, “keep egresses clear.” For people who need something more concrete, here are my standards: No storage (not even temporary) on stairs or behind doors. No storage where items do not typically belong (no papers in oven, no clothes in tub, and yes, I have seen them both). No overloading outlets or cords across the floor (many people who have large furniture will overload the most accessible outlet and have extension cords around their apartment to that outlet). Stuff must not be piled higher than 3 feet. A pathway must be clear from each entrance and through each room in the apartment. The pathway must be as wide as a doorway. Most residents keep their apartments very tidy. As a landlord, I do not care about dust or when the windows were last washed. I do care about the safety of my residents and about the first responders who take care of them. Ok, so my son was right. He does not have piles of junk impeding egress or pests. His room sometimes smells like 13-year-old boy, but if that is the worst I can say, maybe I need to look from his perspective. That might hurt, though, because I think he strained his eyes from rolling them at me.
Marianne Delorey, Ph.D. is the executive director of Colony Retirement Homes. She can be reached at 508755-0444 or mdelorey@colonyretirement.com and www. colonyretirementhomes.com. Archives of articles from previous issues can be read at www.fiftyplusadvocate.com
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viewpoint Oddity lies in the eye of the beholder
By Janice Lindsay I told myself,“Don’t be intimidated.” I was attending an art workshop, preparing to paint. We were eleven women, ten who were for-real artists or had at least taken lessons, and me. While the instructor explained the activity, I said to myself, “Self, you don’t belong here.” But myself answered, “Will the world come to an end if you can’t do this? Just relax and enjoy yourself!” There is so much freedom in learning to do something when you don’t have to do it well. But it’s not easy to convince yourself of that. We live in an achievement-oriented society. We’re all expected to accomplish stuff, preferably good stuff. The workshop description said, “Don’t consider yourself an artist? It doesn’t matter. This isn’t about representational art. The focus is on the process, not the end results.”
While the instructor explained the activity, I said to myself, ‘Self, you don’t belong here.’ But myself answered, ‘Will the world come to an end if you can’t do this? Just relax and enjoy yourself!’ That afforded some reassurance. I knew I could not do “representational.” I could not paint anything that looked like something, at least not on purpose. On the other hand, I knew that, when we finished, we would all see everybody’s work. I hoped for results that, if they were not good, would at least not be embarrassing. Further workshop description: “The process invites deeper creativity and imagination to flow by using your intuition as your guide. You might be surprised at the talent you have. The workshop will be loose, fun, and freeing – and messy.” I did not expect to be surprised at my talent. But I knew I could do messy. We each tacked an 18-by-24-inch sheet of paper, in my case placed vertically, on the studio walls lined with newsprint. Small jars of brightly colored
paints waited, with assorted brushes, on tables behind us. My intuition-as-guide said, “Start with a purple spiral.” I had never touched a brush full of such paint; an artist friend described it as a high-quality gouache or tempera. It was thick, luscious, and altogether satisfying. I did not know how to accomplish a spiral. The closest I could come was a thick, curvy line, wide at the top, narrow at the bottom. Now intuition said, “Yellow.” Paint yellow around the purple. Decorate the purple with white dots. Outline curves with red. Stroke green swatches on the yellow. Plaster the yellow with black circles with red centers. I was having a fine messy time. After a while, the curvy line reminded me of a snake. I gave it eye dots, breaking the rule about “representation-
al.” But are there rules in art? Not that this looked like art. Or a snake. My result: an oddity whose primary, if not only, appeal was bright colors. When time was up, we strolled the studio, contemplating each other’s work. I saw ten works of art and one something else. “Self,” I said, “you tried something new and you had fun. What more could you ask?” At home, I transferred the oddity directly from my car to the trash bucket in the garage. An important part of creativity – just like an important part of life – is learning to let go. But the next day, my husband glimpsed the oddity. He liked it! He wanted to hang it! I gave him permission to hang it –in the garage. So, on our grayish garage walls, amidst all the dull-colored paraphernalia people store in garages, next to the faded instructions for the snow blower, hangs a bright purple curvy thing on a brilliant yellow background. They say that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder. So, just in case, if you ever visit our house, please don’t come in through the garage. Contact jlindsay@tidewater.net.
SUPER CROSSWORD PUZZLE
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Hetty Friedman: Weaving as a Way of Life By Peg Lopata Contributing Writer NEWTON - Being downsized does not necessarily have to mean being downgraded. For Hetty Friedman, 68, leaving her thirty-year corporate career in clothing manufacturing when she was 55 meant starting her own business. “ N o w, I combine my love for weaving and design with my experience in business to run Hetty Friedman Designs,” said Friedman. Friedman loves being a weaver—she began weaving when she was 13 years old and only stopped when she had two children and a full-time job. “Weaving for me is a place of comfort,” she said, “I noticed the year my mother died, I wove more than I’d ever done before. No matter what’s going on, I can weave and feel a ‘knowing.’” She loves working with fibers, especially rayon and bamboo, for her scarves, shawls, and other wearable art. She uses cotton for table linens. “They are very soft, hand-washable, very drapey,” says Friedman who also expressed her fondness of looms. “I love the order and structure of the loom,” she said. “I find color emits emotions. The textures and colors of the yarn seduce me,” says Friedman of her love for color. “The rainbow is my inspiration.”
Answers to Super Crossword (puzzle on page 14)
Hetty Friedman
She is not hesitant to use multiple colors. In one of her shawls, she used about seventeen different colors. “When customers react to my work, it is the color that usually grabs them first,” she said. A vast array of colors is available to Friedman because she dyes her yarns. She explained, “I apply dye to white yarn as a painter would to a canvas.” She also works with a group of Mayan women backstrap weavers in Guatemala for dyeing. “I’m able to design color combinations that they dye under my supervision. The combinations are limitless,” she said. Working with these weavers has been and still is an important part of her life. While in college, she was told to visit Central American weavers. “A professor said to me that if I was going to be a weaver, I should visit the women who weave as a part of their everyday life and where weaving is fundamental to their society,” said Friedman. “I spent the year after graduating from college waitressing to make money to make that visit.” On that journey in 1974, she learned the art of backstrap weaving. Friedman did not return to Guatemala until 2006 when she volunteered with a fair-trade weaver’s cooperative there. “Now I bring down yarn and commission them to weave my designs that I sell here in the U.S.,” said Friedman. “I usually go two or three times a year to work with the weavers. I lead educational and cultural tours where women learn about indigenous culture, meet artisans, visit a Mayan shaman, and with non-profits that work in reproductive health and education. It’s all
about women supporting women.” With travel not possible at the moment, she uses online tools to maintain her personal connections and continue her business. In fact, she’s currently working with the women’s weaver’s co-op to make handwoven masks. “These should be available in my online shop by the end of October,” said Friedman. Her work can be found here: https:// www.etsy.com/shop/ hettyfriedman, and to learn more about her, visit her website: www. hettyfriedman.com. People are also welcome to visit Friedman by appointment in her studio in Newton or watch her at work here: https:// w w w. y o u t u b e . c o m / Handwoven Mobius shawls made of watch?v=J6YSGofkX- rayon boucle, lurex yarn, plus ribbon and KI&feature=emb_logo. supplemental yarns. Credit: Gayle Zucker.
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League of Women Voters member challenges climate change By Jane Keller Gordon Assistant Editor
C
arlisle resident Launa Zimmaro walks the talk. She and her husband Richard Kane both drive electric vehicles, compost, and utilize solar panels to supply most of their home’s electricity. Zimmaro is actively taking a deep dive into climate change issues through town committees and the League of Women’s of Massachusetts (LWVMA). She is one of 3,000 LWVMA members throughout 47 local Leagues in Massachusetts. The organization’s mission is, “… to empower and educate Massachusetts voters and effect change on a wide range of issues, including election laws and campaign finance, natural resources and the environment, women’s health, children’s issues, state budget and finances, public education, and public safety.” What to do next Zimmaro retired from a rewarding career as a special education teacher, Title 1 administrator, and school principal. She said, “At that point, I had an identity crisis about
Launa Zimmaro
Launa Zimarro testifying
what I was going to do. I wasn’t calling meetings and communicating with staff and parents anymore. I needed to figure out what I wanted to do… My focus was going to be on environmental issues, which is what I really care about.” In 2007, Zimmaro joined a grassroots group and the Carlisle Household Recycling Committee and Carlisle Energy Task Force. She proposed and spearheaded a schoolwide composting program called
Carlisle Grows Green. “I’m a foodie but I care about the food system,” said Zimmaro. The program is still going strong, offering discounted bins, collecting compostables at the school, and providing drop-off bins at the town’s transfer station for items not suitable for backyard compost, such as meat scraps.
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The League was a perfect fit Zimmaro connected with the LWVMA through a local colleague. “The organization is nonpartisan and deals with a breadth of issues that I care deeply about,” she said. By 2009, Zimmaro had joined the LMVMA Legislative Action Committee. “As an educator, I was known as a data queen. I’ve always searched for the cause, not the symptoms,” Zimmaro added. Using those skills, Zimmaro focused on an effort at LWVMA called Life in the Balance. Over the course of two years, she helped organize forums on the food system, waste, water, and energy. Democracy in the Balance In response to the Supreme Court’s decision, Citizens United, Zimmaro and another volunteer, Becky Shannon, organized a pro-
gram about money and politics for LMVMA called Democracy in the Balance. Over 500 people attended a presentation anchored by NPR’s Tom Ashbrook. Zimmaro and Shannon went on to present the content at national League conventions. “We held a caucus that had a huge attendance,” which generated greater focus at the national level. Next-Generation Roadmap In Massachusetts, Zimmaro lobbied the state house for a bill that would create a Next-Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Policy. “This is the first comprehensive climate bill since 2008. It sets ambitious and achievable targets for reductions of emissions in every sector. It sets standards for appliances and for higher energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings,” said Zimmaro. Zimmaro’s efforts helped move the LMVMA membership to vote to declare a climate emergency in 2018. On a national level, Zimmaro is a member of the executive committee of the LMV US Climate Task Force (LWV USCT), serving as chair of the transportation team, and as a member of the renewable energy team. She views the need to reduce emissions from the transportation sector as the largest regional and national source of emissions is essential to addressing the climate crisis. For more information about the LMVMA, www.lwvma.org.
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• 17
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Country singer-songwriter cherishes ‘heroes and honky-tonks’ By Ed Karvoski Jr. Contributing Writer
Passions with hometown roots Growing up in Northborough, David developed dual passions: music and hockey. He sang for nursing home patients and in choruses from elementary to middle schools. Concurrently, he played hockey in the town’s youth program with his sights set on going professional. David attended Marlborough’s Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School, which didn’t have
PHOTO/MATTHEW ALLEN
NORTHBOROUGH – Mychael David, a Northborough native now residing in Dudley, scheduled concerts throughout 2020 to promote his album “Heroes & Honky-tonks.” Pandemic restrictions forced cancelations of his shows. The country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist longs to once again share his ever-growing passion with live audiences. “I was raised on country music,” he noted. “I listened to my father’s Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash records and fell in love with songs about everyday life.”
The Mychael David Project: (l to r) drummer Steve Kruglewicz, bassist Ed Lanzilotta, vocalist and percussionist Susan Jayne, vocalist and guitarist Mychael David, guitarist Jerry Prejean and keyboardist Glenn Stegner.
a hockey team at the time. He was allowed to play hockey for Northborough’s Algonquin Regional High School. An injury altered his extracurricular activities. “I blocked a slap shot and shattered my knee,” he explained. “That’s when I turned to my other passion: music.”
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Rocking the club circuit A year before his 1987 high school graduation, David joined a Hudson-based rock band called The Suspicions. They played that era’s popular club circuit, spanning from Boston’s now-closed The Channel to Worcester’s still thriving Ralph’s Chadwick Square Diner. David’s roles were songwriter, lead singer, guitarist and keyboardist. Between rehearsals, he frequently jammed with the band’s drummer. “We’d play ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ for hours and hours,” David recalled. “Southern rock is like country with an edge. I’ve always liked rock, but country music has always been my passion.” From New England to Nashville Following his five-year rock stint, David joined a country group called Sugarcreek with New England and on-the-road gigs. They worked alongside acclaimed artists such as Charlie Daniels, Big Al Downing, George Jones, Colin Raye, Pam Tillis and Mark Wills. With Sugarcreek, David per-
Mychael David’s album “Heroes & Honky-tonks”
formed his first of many shows at Indian Ranch in Webster. Working at this venue sparks childhood memories for him. “As a kid, I’d sit up in the stands, watching all the big country people,” he recounted. “Now, I’m up on the stage. It’s pretty cool.” Concerts and traveling increased for David in 2001 when he began co-fronting the band Susan Jayne and Help Wanted. David’s travels ultimately brought him to Nashville. There, he recorded his 2011 album “Long Hard Road” including its single titled “Nothin’.” “’Nothin’ spent 34 weeks on the independent world charts and went to #1,” he noted. Also in 2011, David and Jayne got married. Help Wanted disbanded in 2015. Honoring military heroes In 2018, David released his second album, “Heroes & Honky-tonks,” consisting of originals and covers. He included Billy Ray Cyrus’ song “Some Gave All” in honor of Army Spc. Brian Arsenault, who was killed in action in Afghanistan in
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Mychael David takes the stage at Stonehenge Music Festival in Jermyn, Pa.
2014. David grew up as friends with Brian’s parents Leslie and Dan. “Their son went to Afghanistan and never came home,” David relayed. “I wanted to do this as a tribute to him, and all the other men and women who put their lives on the line.” David accepted the Arsenaults’ invitation to sing “Some Gave All” at Northborough’s 2019 Memorial Day ceremony. He planned to sing at the 2020 ceremony, but it got canceled.
Power of music on the horizon His other 2020 return engagements that got canceled range from a pre-game concert outside of Fenway Park to Hampton Beach’s Seashell Stage. “With everything that’s going on nowadays,” David said, “people need something positive like music to look forward to.” Learn more about Mychael David at mychaeldavidmusic.com and follow him on Facebook.
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Susan Jayne and Mychael David entertain at a concert during a Worcester Sharks game at the DCU Center.
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