PMC Headers pedal for a purpose
BIRDS, BEES & MORE Merrigan ponders limits of human understanding Page 5
FIRST WAVE
Injured resident urges town to warn about recycling-bin hazard
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Mary McAllister returned to the Board of Health July 28 with a simple request: Warn residents before someone else gets hurt.
The 77-year-old Jersey Street resident told board members she suffered serious injuries after falling into one of the town’s new 95-gallon recycling carts earlier this month and said she hopes her experience
will prompt the town to better educate residents about safely moving the bins.
“I’m not here to blame anybody here,” McAllister told the board. “The main focus is that we get the word out that these can be dangerous so this doesn’t happen to anybody else.”
McAllister first spoke to the Board of Health several weeks ago, when residents raised concerns about the size of the
town’s new recycling and trash carts. Tuesday marked her second appearance before the board.
She recounted how she was moving her neighbor’s recycling cart about 5 feet after it had been emptied and left at the bottom of her driveway.
“The barrel tipped toward me,” she said. “I stepped on the lid and went flying into the barrel.”
Couple launches magazine to help kids explore community
BY LEIGH BLANDER
When Marblehead author and journalist Garrett Callahan published
“M is for Marblehead in 2022,” he saw firsthand how excited children were to recognize their hometown in a book.
Now, Callahan and his wife, Meredith, are expanding that idea with a new quarterly children’s magazine designed to help kids across the North Shore learn about — and explore — the places around them.
and community features. The couple’s goal is to create a screen-free resource that children can take with them as they discover the region.
McAllister said she suffered a bloody nose, hit her head and replacement knee, and crushed her hand between the cart’s handle and the body of the bin.
“I was now in the barrel with this hand between the handle and the barrel, with the full weight of the barrel and my weight on it,” she said. “I couldn’t extract myself.”
Neighbors came to her aid, called 911 and helped free her
the publication. A Marblehead couple has created a new children’s magazine focusing on the
Tidelines is a 52-page, ad-free publication that combines stories, activities, puzzles, recipes, art projects
“I got blown away by how kids just love seeing Marblehead and their town in print,” Callahan said. “It’s neat to expand that to kids across the North Shore.”
Callahan, who grew up in Marblehead and returned to town with Meredith in 2020, said he wanted Tidelines to have a more personal, local focus than other children’s publications.
“Kids can see the places they go to every day and learn about it,” he said.
before police, firefighters and EMTs arrived.
McAllister spent more than five hours at the hospital, where doctors performed a CT scan and three X-rays. She said she is still recovering and appeared before the board with two black eyes from the fall. She said she later discovered a warning printed on the cart
“You have that personal touch that makes the region so special.”
The magazine is meant to serve as both a guidebook and a way for children to connect with their community. Stories highlight local
culture, nature and people, while activities encourage kids to get outside and participate in the places they are learning about.
history,
COURTESY PHOTOS Garrett and Meredith Callahan are partners in the magazine project. Their two young daughters help with
Board of Health weighs repealing Marblehead’s social host bylaw
BY LEIGH BLANDER
The Board of Health is considering asking Town Meeting to repeal Marblehead’s 31-yearold social host bylaw, arguing that the state’s stronger law may make the local ordinance unnecessary and potentially confusing.
The discussion Tuesday night came weeks after Marblehead Police responded to a “spring-break-type party” at Crowninshield Island on July 4. Officers reported hundreds of youth, many drinking alcohol. Some of those juveniles now face court hearings, according to Chief Dennis King.
Board Chair Dr. Tom Massaro said the idea grew out of an April panel discussion with Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker, King and Superintendent John Robidoux, who talked about how public health, public safety and public education could work together to address underage drinking.
“In that session, we discussed the commonwealth social hosting law, and we discussed the town social hosting bylaw,” Massaro said.
Massaro said King supports keeping both the state law and the town bylaw because he believes having both provides flexibility. He said Tucker took a different view.
“Paul clearly sees the commonwealth’s (law)— which is stronger, longer and clearer in its action — as the better of the two,” Massaro said.
Contacted by the Current, Tucker’s office said the district attorney does not have a position on Marblehead’s bylaw.
Marblehead’s social host bylaw was adopted in 1995 and approved by the Massachusetts attorney general that same year. However,
SCHOOLS
Massaro said Town Counsel Lisa Mead recently advised him that similar local bylaws in other communities have not held up in court in recent years because of their wording.
“My thought was, why have a weak law on the books?” Massaro said. “If we remove the bylaw, then the stronger one would become the law driving the town culture.”
Massaro proposed that the board consider sponsoring a Town Meeting article next spring to begin a public discussion.
“I’d be happy if the board were to get an article in the Town Meeting and we discussed it in the Town Meeting,” he said. “If the existing bylaw got re-voted, that’d be great. ... We would have had the discussion.”
Massaro said the conversation itself could help educate residents about underage drinking and the legal consequences of allowing minors to consume alcohol.
Board member Dr. Julie Selbst, who is also an attorney, agreed the issue deserves review from a legal standpoint.
“It doesn’t make any sense to have something on the books that does nothing or at worst confuses the issue,” Selbst said.
Selbst volunteered to review the legal issues surrounding the bylaw and report back to the board with a recommendation on whether it should pursue a Town Meeting article.
‘Major tipping point’
Board member Tom McMahon argued that the larger issue is enforcement rather than the wording of the law.
“The first issue is neither of them are getting enforced, which is ridiculous,” McMahon said.
McMahon said he believes Marblehead is
approaching “a major tipping point” regarding underage drinking and read a social media comment from a friend who graduated from Marblehead High School in 1999.
The statement recalled three fatal drunk driving crashes involving local young people between 1999 and 2003 and warned that another tragedy is inevitable unless the town changes its culture around youth drinking.
“If you woke up on a Saturday morning to hear ... somebody died last night drinking and driving or was a passenger in an accident, would you be shocked?” McMahon read.
“Don’t be shocked. Not only will I not be shocked, but I am now conditioned to expect it to happen.”
Parents are increasingly discussing taking matters into their own hands to protect their children from underage drinking in town, McMahon added.
Asked by the Current to elaborate, McMahon said, “What would you do if some other parent was putting your kid in danger?
I mean, this is getting to a point where you hope you can rely on the police, but if the chief basically says he believes in education, then he’s not even enforcing what laws we have on the books. As a parent, at some point, you do have to step in, and that’s the conversations that are being had now. I don’t know what that entails. I know what I do. I think that’s human nature to want to protect your own kids when no one else is protecting them.”
The board took no formal action Tuesday night but agreed to have Selbst research the legal status of the bylaw and advise on whether it should recommend a Town Meeting article to repeal the local ordinance.
MPS names new Glover principal
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Marblehead Public Schools has announced that Mary LeBlanc is the new principal of Glover Elementary School following an extensive search process.
An educator with more than two decades of experience in Marblehead Public Schools, LeBlanc “brings a deep-rooted commitment to student success and a wealth of instructional expertise to her new leadership role,” according to Superintendent John Robidoux. LeBlanc has been a member of the Marblehead educational community for 24 years. Most recently, she served for five years as a literacy coach at Glover and Brown schools, where she collaborated with staff
The Current welcomes 150- to 200-word submissions to News in Brief. Send them to info@ marbleheadnews.org.
BY LEIGH BLANDER
6th District candidates forum Thursday
The six candidates vying to be the Democratic party’s nominee in the Massachusetts’ 6th Congressional District race will face off at a forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts in conjunction with the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus and the North Shore Juneteenth Association. The event will be held Thursday, Aug. 6, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Rantoul Vault Theater, 25 Exchange St., Lynn. The public is invited to attend in person, and the event will be live streamed by Lynn Community TV and distributed to MHTV and community access media in the district. Check schedules.
The current holder of the seat, Congressman Seth Moulton, announced he would not run for re-election and is instead challenging Ed Markey for his seat in the U.S. Senate. A forum for Republicans is not being held as there is only one candidate, Micah Q. Jones of Essex.
Running as Democrats in the
state’s Tuesday, Sept. 1 state primary are Bethany Andres-Beck of Middleton, John Beccia of Lynnfield, Jamie Zahlaway Belsito of Topsfield, Dan Koh of Andover, Mariah Lancaster of Salem and Tram T. Nguyen of Andover.
Chief: Marblehead Police access Flock cameras in other communities
While more communities debate whether to stop using Flock surveillance cameras due to privacy concerns, Marblehead Police Chief Dennis King told the Current that there are no Flock cameras in town. MPD does access cameras in other communities, however.
“We access them regularly for serious crimes we are investigating, like stolen vehicles or a crime of violence where we have a license plate (vehicle) to search,” King said. “The use of the system is case specific and timely. It’s not used for creating aggregate data. We also access them to help locate missing people when a known vehicle is involved. We do not access them for routine activity, like a car stop for a CMVI (civil motor vehicle infractions) or car accident ... Flock requires that you state a reason for each inquiry, which is logged in their system. Our users are trained and authorized by
to implement evidence-based literacy curricula and advance equitable learning through the district’s multi-tiered system of supports framework. She previously spent 14 years at Village School as both a classroom teacher and teacher leader.
“Mary’s long-standing dedication to the students of Marblehead and her proven track record as an instructional leader make her the ideal choice to lead Glover School,” Robidoux said. “Her deep understanding of our district’s goals and her existing relationships with our staff and families will ensure a seamless transition and continued
Flock to search their system.”
Ban on ‘gas station heroin’ mulled
The Board of Health is considering banning kratom from being sold in Marblehead.
Kratom is a plant native to Southeast Asia that has become popular in the United States where it’s often sold as powders, capsules or extracts. It is commonly referred to as “gas station heroin” as it is readily available at gas stations. While not an opioid, its compounds act on users’ opioid receptors. It can become addictive and have adverse effects, including seizures and liver damage.
Health Director Andrew Petty said he does not believe any retailer is currently selling kratom in Marblehead.
Abbot Library summer food drive
Throughout August, Abbot Public Library will be hosting a community food drive to help restock the shelves of the Marblehead Food Pantry. Drop off your donations right inside the library’s main entrance during the library’s regular weekly service hours.
The pantry is currently experiencing high demand for specific pantry staples, baking
excellence for our students.”
LeBlanc holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from North Adams State College and a master’s degree in elementary education from Salem State University. She also earned a certificate in leadership from Salem State University.
LeBlanc is a longtime Marblehead resident, where she lives with her husband. She is the mother of three grown children and remains deeply invested in the community.
Glover School families are invited to meet LeBlanc at a Coffee with the Principal event on Thursday, Aug. 13, at 9 a.m. at the school.
basics and essential toiletries.
Community members are encouraged to focus their donations on the following highpriority items:
» 1 lb. carton of sugar
2 lb. bag of flour
2 lb. bag of white rice
24 oz. bottle of cooking oil
» bar soap
» canned chicken
» canned sardines
» canned tuna coffee
condiments (mayo, ketchup, mustard, salad dressing)
» dry beans
» jelly » oatmeal
pasta sauce
shelf-stable milk toothpaste
» unsweetened cereal
To ensure the safety of our neighbors and remain in compliance with the Marblehead Food Pantry operating guidelines, please note that the drive happily accepts any non-perishable food items, shelf-stable goods, paper products, and unopened toiletries. However, expiration dates matter, and all donated items must have a current expiration date; expired or near-expired goods cannot be accepted.
Additionally, all food and
The first issue includes contributions from organizations including The Trustees of Reservations, which provided content about birds and local dunes, and Essex Heritage.
Local meteorologist
Vicki Graf, who lives in Marblehead, contributed a spread about North Shore weather and a recurring feature answering children’s questions about meteorology.
Marblehead artist Elizabeth Bradley and Marblehead Mercantile owner Peter Schlack also contributed.
“We’ve been blown away by so many businesses and families,” Callahan said.
“It’s been really fun to
see.” The magazine also includes a “Your Voice” section where children
remains open for 48 hours.
personal care items must be factory-sealed and entirely unopened. Please do not donate items in damaged containers, including significantly dented cans, rusted tins or bloated packaging.
Every donation makes a tangible difference to a family right here in town.
To learn more about the pantry’s mission, go to marbleheadfoodpantry. org.
Survey says…
The town of Marblehead is partnering with FlashVote, a public survey platform that helps local governments gather timely resident feedback. The goal is to help inform municipal decisionmaking. Registration takes less than one minute at flashvote.com/ marbleheadma.
Each survey takes about a minute to complete and
After a survey closes, participants automatically receive a summary of the overall results and can compare their responses with those of other Marblehead residents. All responses are anonymous. Personal and demographic information provided during registration is never shared with the town or any third party.
Property inspections underway
The Marblehead Board of Assessors is conducting site inspections of properties that have recently been offered for sale or are part of the town’s ongoing property valuation review process. According to the town, the inspections are intended to verify and update property information used to determine fair and equitable assessed values. Accurate property data is
ages 4 to 12 can contribute their own thoughts, drawings and ideas.
“We want their voices
essential to maintaining a consistent assessment system for all taxpayers, officials said.
A complete inspection may include both an exterior and interior review. Interior inspections are generally brief and involve viewing areas such as the basement and living spaces to confirm property characteristics and features.
The Board of Assessors has contracted with Catalis to assist with
heard,” Callahan said.
“We want to build that community.”
Families have used “M is for Marblehead” in creative ways, turning it into scavenger hunts and other activities. Some grandparents have used it as a guide while visiting with their grandchildren.
The Callahans saw an opportunity to create something similar for the entire North Shore.
The magazine draws on both of their backgrounds. Callahan, a longtime journalist and children’s author, previously worked as a full-time sportswriter for CBS Sports and Paramount before being laid off in the fall. Meredith brings experience in education and child development.
The couple’s daughters,
the inspection process. Representatives from the company will conduct inspections on behalf of the Assessors Office. If no one is home or if a homeowner declines an interior inspection, the representative will complete an exterior inspection, including measuring buildings on the property. Residents with questions may contact the Assessors Office at 781-631-0236.
Catherine, 4, and Charlotte, 1, have also been involved. Catherine helped create a seaweed art project after collecting seaweed at the beach and painting with it.
“They’re our junior editors and morale boosters,” Callahan said.
The couple has selffunded the project and plans to mail the first printed copies to subscribers this week.
The magazine is available by subscription, with a single issue costing $20 and an annual subscription costing $70. A higher-level membership includes an annual subscription, a North Shore passport book and additional perks.
They also hope to partner with local stores, including children’s retailers and community
Jimmy Fund Walk registration open
Registration is open for the 2026 Jimmy Fund Walk for Dana-Farber.
Scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 4, the walk raises funds to support all forms of adult and pediatric care and cancer research at DanaFarber Cancer Institute.
businesses, to make the magazine available throughout the region.
The first issue is available through the Tidelines website. The couple also sends twicemonthly emails with additional learning activities, partner content and interviews.
The next issue is planned for early November. While the magazine is currently a side project, Callahan and Meredith hope it can eventually become a lasting resource for North Shore children.
“We want Tidelines to become a useful and engaging and fun tool for these kids to have and take with them while they explore,” Garrett said. He added, “I wish it was something I had growing up here.”
This year’s event aims to raise $10 million in support of Dana-Farber’s mission to defy cancer by leading the way in groundbreaking research and lifesaving patient care. More info at danafarber. jimmyfund.org. Look for the link “Jimmy Fund Walk for Dana-Farber.”
Opinion
E-bike safety is everyone’s responsibility
Summertime in Marblehead is hard to beat. Every type of summer activity can be found here: swimming, fishing, sailing, paddle-boarding and kayaking, historical and cultural attractions, camps, and all the athletic and artistic programs the town and other groups offer. There is something for everyone to enjoy.
But in recent summers, there has been a less idyllic situation with the increase in the number of e-bikes, e-scooters, mopeds and electronic motorcycles (micromobility devices) on our roads and bike paths. While the majority of these devices are operated safely and riders adhere to local regulations, some violate traffic laws, riding against the flow of traffic on one-way streets, neglecting to use hand signals when passing, using sidewalks to bypass traffic on the roads and overtaking pedestrians on the bike path without warning.
The Police Department has documented several e-bike-related incidents during the summer. The most serious incident occurred in mid-July, involving an e-bike and an automobile, at the intersection of Atlantic and Ocean avenues. As a result of the collision, one individual was transported to the hospital.
The weekly police log provides limited information about other less-serious events, including where and when they occurred. Notably, all of July’s incidents took place at 8 p.m. or later.
Across the state, police departments have observed an increase in crashes and near-miss incidents involving e-bikes and other e-vehicles. These incidents have
raised safety concerns, particularly for young riders. Several accidents involving electric-powered devices have resulted in hospitalizations, medical helicopter transports and substantial injuries. In June, a 12-year-old girl, one of two riders on a motorized scooter, tragically lost her life after colliding with a school bus in Haverhill.
While Marblehead has not experienced such a serious incident, the increase in the number of electric devices on our roads and public spaces heightens the likelihood of a similar event unless riders and non-riders collectively prioritize safety.
State leaders have been working on legislation to enhance safety regulations and classifications for all micromobility devices. Last month, the Massachusetts Senate approved legislation that would establish a speedbased framework to regulate mobility devices, including e-bikes and e-scooters. This forward-thinking legislation is intended to accommodate technological advancements as e-vehicles continue to evolve.
The Senate’s version of the legislation would prohibit children under the age of 14 from operating powered mobility devices and restrict mopeds and similar devices from utilizing bike lanes and shared-use paths. The default speed limit on shared paths would be set at 20 miles per hour. Additionally, electrical safety standards for lithium-powered devices will be established to mitigate the risk of fire.
The legislation extends youth helmet laws to encompass all micromobility devices, mandating that all users, irrespective of age, wear protective headgear.
Unfortunately, the legislative session ended without the Senate and House completing their negotiations on a number of proposals, including the e-bike regulation regime.
That’s a shame, as it would have been great to have a single, consistent set of rules and regulations in place by the time school reopens in the fall.
The town’s Traffic Safety Advisory Committee could still incorporate the concepts embodied in the Senate bill into the safety guidelines they offer riders and parents.
Other actions the committee should consider include:
» Engaging the Public Schools and Police, Public Works and Highway departments, and Marblehead Cycle to offer hands-on e-bike safety courses, bike rodeos and drills in the fall.
» Encouraging the placement of signage along key bicycle routes to and
Growing Up at 120 Pleasant St.
BY DONALD ORNE
Part 2: A home, a
barber
shop and a
new
beginning
Editor’s Note: Donald Orne, 84, is a lifelong Marblehead resident whose family has been part of the town for generations. His father, Bud Orne, owned the barber shop at 120 Pleasant St., where the family also lived. This series shares Orne’s memories of growing up in Marblehead during the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s. The essays have been edited only for length, grammar and clarity.
After entering 120 Pleasant St, my father found only one person inside: an elderly woman named Mrs. Reed. She and Bud had a long conversation.
Mrs. Reed had been left the property but could no longer keep up with the taxes and other expenses. Bud presented her with a solution that would help both of them.
She could remain in her firstfloor apartment, paying no bills, until she passed away. Bud would sell his little home on Sewell Street and purchase the property for about $7,000.
It would become his future. His plan was to build a fourchair barber shop on the first floor, provide a home for his family on the second and third floors, and begin what would become his lifelong love of 120 Pleasant St.
Bud was a carpenter and renovated the entire inside of the two floors where we lived with the help of his buddies from
the war.
Over time, he replaced every wall, ceiling and window. He extended the back stairs and built a porch for my mother to dry the towels from the shop and the family laundry.
My father literally never stopped working. When he wasn’t cutting hair or working on some other project, he painted the entire house, one side each year.
While Bud was doing all this, my mother ran the house like a Swiss watch. She went food shopping, prepared three meals a day, cleaned the house, knitted, sewed and presented each of us with a hand-knit sweater at Christmas.
Every day she laundered the 50 towels I brought up from the barber shop. She had a washing machine but no dryer. She put hundreds of Bud’s barber towels out to dry, first on a clothesline in the yard and later on a porch he built for her.
The house was becoming more than a place to live. It was becoming the heart of our family.
A backyard full of adventures
For a kid growing up in Marblehead, our backyard at 120 Pleasant St. was a magical place.
My father loved flowers and planted hundreds of roses and other flowers for his girl, Muriel. Six different kinds of trees surrounded the yard, making it feel like our own little world in the middle of town.
Then Bud built us a real clubhouse.
This wasn’t just a few boards nailed together. It had a foundation, a trap door, an escape hatch, a skylight, two large double windows and even a secret tunnel. To us, it was the greatest clubhouse in Marblehead.
We spent countless hours there. We had sleepovers, played card games and staged water pistol fights. Every day seemed to bring another adventure.
Looking back, it was a magical childhood from start to finish.
As I got older, I began helping out in my father’s barber shop.
During my grammar school
from schools so e-bike riders are aware of speed limits and other rules of the road that are crucial for their safety and that of pedestrians and drivers.
» Seeking more comprehensive information from the Police Department on any e-bike incidents, along with the department’s recommendations for preventing repeat incidents. This would enable the committee to identify areas where training should be targeted if patterns are identified.
For parents of riders, now is the time to shift their perspective on e-bikes, recognizing they are not toys or extravagant conventional pedal bikes. They should understand the different types of e-vehicles and ensure any e-bike purchased aligns with the family’s needs and is age-appropriate for the intended user. They should appreciate that some of the same skills required to operate a car apply to e-bikes and e-scooters.
Parents should also ensure that the e-bike they acquire is not susceptible to tampering that can increase its speed. Additionally, they should conduct regular inspections of the brakes and lights. If the vehicles are used after dark, they should make sure their children wear reflective clothing to enhance visibility on the road.
Marblehead offers so many recreational activities and opportunities for everyone in the summer. E-bikes can be part of that picture, too. But it requires everyone committing to following the same standards and rules of the road and making safety a top priority.
years, before supper each day, I went downstairs to sweep up the hair and clean the shop. That little job stayed with me all the way through high school. Things were different then. People were allowed to smoke almost everywhere, and every barber chair had two built-in ashtrays. Nearly everyone smoked.
My father installed a threefoot-by-three-foot fan to blow the smoke outside, but the nicotine still found its way onto everything. One of my jobs was taking a garden hose and washing the brown nicotine stains from the side of the house. I also washed and buffed the floors, cleaned the mirrors and straightened the magazines customers read while waiting for a haircut.
My father never smoked a day in his life, but secondhand smoke affected everyone in one way or another.
‘Kick the Can’ kind of fun
The cellar beneath the house had another purpose. Bud stored hockey equipment there
for local boys and girls. Many of us, including me, earned our equipment by selling Fanny Farmer chocolates that Bud bought on consignment. Cases of candy were stacked in the cellar waiting for young salespeople to carry them around town. Whether it was figure skating, boys and girls ice hockey, tennis, or street hockey, it always involved kids having fun. “Kick the can” kind of fun. I had a white bunny that was given to me on Easter. He had his own special safe place away from danger with all he could eat or drink. He lasted 10 years. His name was Pinky Pop. I had a little cat collar and leash and walked him around our block. During these years my grandfather took Bud and me to the White Mountains to hike and enjoy the majesty of the mountains and streams in all the seasons.
Orne will share memories of his father starting Marblehead’s youth hockey program in his next installment.
COURTESY PHOTO
Bud Orne, right, in his barbershop at 120 Pleasant St.
120 Pleasant St. today. The property is owned by the Shrine of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and affiliated with Father Andrew Bushell of Marblehead. CURRENT PHOTO / LEIGH BLANDER
Bees on the wing
BY COURT MERRIGAN
Avoiding some unpleasant piece of business, one of those phone calls you’d rather not make, I started paying attention to the birds flitting around outside my office window. Just out there doing their thing, effortlessly darting through branches with their little bird brains. In rather stark contrast, overhead the big jets lumber into Boston Logan Airport on a straight flight path, no deviations. A path chosen, presumably, for its fuel-efficient obedience to Newtonian physics. Whereas those birds are like quantum quarks, or what I imagine quantum quarks to be. Flipping, twisting, ducking and bobbing and weaving, perfect motion with no error, no onboard computer, and brains the size of an almond.
We don’t typically credit birds with much in the way of intelligence. We tend to think the 747 is the marvel, not the sparrow. We even go so far as to disparage birds.
But this is our own lack of understanding, not the bird’s. Clearly that sparrow outside my window possesses a rather impressive form of intelligence, navigating that maze of branches and open sky at Mach speed. It is just that we cannot comprehend it and we, possessed of opposable thumbs and a hyperenlarged frontal cortex, make of ourselves the measure and standard of intelligence. Even if we would be totally helpless in a bird’s world, the first fall from a tree branch would kill us.
“A very small part of this great system, during a very short time, is very imperfectly discovered to
us; and do we thence pronounce decisively concerning the origin of the whole?” - David Hume Thus from our small sliver of understanding do we propose to order the world and even the universe, and decree decisively upon what is and what is not.
The birds have a different opinion, but no one asks them.
No one asks the octopuses, either. Perhaps even more so than the birds, octopuses have a completely unintelligible intelligence. A decentralized brain, two-thirds of their neurons located in their tentacles. Not only do they see and feel with their thousands of individual suckers, they somehow think through them, too. Think that one through. Try to picture what that existence must be like. Navigating oceanic depths via tentacle-thought. Yeah, I can’t do it, either.
But very clearly our cephalopod friends possess intelligence. They’ve figured out how to escape from tanks, they can solve puzzles and demonstrate abstract thought, they protect their young, they’ve been surviving in oceanic depths for 300 million years. (They predate the dinosaurs by 50 million years.) That we don’t understand them does not make them less smart. Our evolutionary paths diverged some 600 million years ago, the octopus joining the ranks of the invertebrates and humans going on to become glamorous, bipedal apes who make jet planes and punch holes in the ozone layer.
Leaving aside the question of who is more likely to still be around in another 300 million years, what happened was, nature came up with intelligent minds not once, but twice.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Town has abundance of green space
To the editor: Those who are dedicated to green space and open public lands have a worthy goal. I’m certainly not in the camp of those who want to “pave paradise and put up a parking lot.”
But we of the Marblehead Housing Coalition feel that the need for more moderately priced housing in town for seniors, town workers, young people, teachers and veterans, and the corresponding need for modest development to add to the town’s tax base has become over the past few years much more pressing than the laudable goal of adding more green space. Today I happened to walk past a sign for Steer Swamp, and saw “48 acres,” and started wondering just how much of the town is currently marked for conservation land, parks, recreation and other green space open to the public.
My new best friend ChatGPT gave me some estimates but directed me to the Marblehead Open Space and Recreation Plan. It’s a bit dated, but it revealed an astounding number of public spaces for a densely populated town of this size. The sites on which they listed the acreage — Audubon Sanctuary, Chandler Hovey, Crocker Park, Fort Sewall, Forest River, Wyman Woods, Steer Swamp, the Rail Trail and many others added up to over 325 acres. And their list didn’t include acreage
Knowing what you don’t know is half the battle. This, of course, is why we do our best to make the universe explicable.
Perhaps many more times than that. The other day I spotted a bee crawling across the driveway. She looked tired, she was definitely going to get crushed if a car came along. So I gave her a lift. I made a little bee friend. Bees, too — with brains one one-millionth as complex as a human’s — can recognize human
faces. They’ve demonstrated a capacity to learn. You think imagining what it would be like to be a bird is hard — try to be a bee for five minutes. Zipping through a meadow in 4D with infrared and ultraviolet vision far, far from home, seeking the right kind of pollen, the only food source that will sustain you and your sisters back home.
LETTERS POLICY
Good freaking luck. Knowing what you don’t know is half the battle. This, of course, is why we do our best to make the universe explicable. Why we strive to draw the best possible property lines and the state seeks to make the land legible. You can’t let the birds run things, still less the octopuses or the bees. (Some might argue that the birdbrains nevertheless seem to be.)
Mysteries abound. Our efforts to eradicate them notwithstanding. The mystery of flight, the mystery of God’s grace. Did you know the universe is 93 billion light years wide and still expanding? Expanding into what?
And all of this, this whole rabbit hole, came about because I was seeking to avoid a bad bit of business. Discomfort comes with the territory in my line of work, sometimes you have to make hard phone calls. You can’t solve the mysteries. The word itself is a bit of a misnomer, it implies a solution. That, for instance, we’ve figured out the mystery of flight because I can log on to FlightAware, track a plane from Baltimore from Boston (really remarkable tech, all the way around, though). The birds outside my window say different. They say we don’t even know how to fly. How would an octopus make this phone call? A bee? Lucky ducks, they don’t have to. I picked up the phone and made the call. When it was finished, the birds were still flying, the bees were still buzzing and the octopuses (I presume) were still swimming. Lucky ducks.
Court Merrigan is a father, writer and broker. He lives in Marblehead.
for Old Burial Hill, Fountain Park, Waterside Cemetery, Fort Beach, Riverhead Beach, Grace Oliver’s Beach, Redd’s Pond, Crowninshield Island, Gerry Island, Castle Rock, the several publicly accessible small beaches on the Neck, and several of the playgrounds. With these last additions, Marblehead’s acreage would surely be 500–550 acres and would support ChatGPT’s estimate that between 18-20% of the town’s 2771 acres are currently dedicated to green/ open/public space.
The percentage in neighboring towns, admittedly a guestimate, is Swampscott at 10-13%, Salem at 12-15% and Beverly at 15-18%. And none of these towns is as densely populated as Marblehead. Marblehead has approximately 25 acres of open space per 1,000 residents. Salem and Swampscott are far behind at 10–15 acres per 1,000 residents. We all want the best for Marblehead, but we also want to preserve the unique character, part of which in the past has come from the variety of the population. Lobstermen can chat with college professors at the Driftwood! Many residents have lived here for generations and want their children to be able to afford to live here. I for one would hate to see it become a place only millionaires can afford.
Ruth Sigler Front Street
Protect the right to vote
To the editor: In the early 1900s, “The
National Association OPPOSED to Woman Suffrage” (founded by women) distributed a pamphlet outlining the reasons to vote no on woman suffrage, including:
Because 90% of the women either do not want it, or do not care Because it means competition of women with men instead of cooperation
Because 86% of the women eligible to vote are married and can only double or annul their husband’s vote
Because it can be of no benefit commensurate with the additional expense involved
Because in some states more voting women than voting men will place Government under petticoat rule
Because it is unwise to risk the good we already have for the evil which may occur
With that kind of thinking permeating the narrative, it took pro-suffrage women over 70 years to earn the right to vote in 1920, after a long and grueling struggle. Fast forward 106 years to 2026 when the proposed SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act) could threaten the right to vote of over 69 million women who do not have a birth certificate that matches their marriage certificate but would be required to re-establish their identity to vote.
According to Vote.org, other groups that would be affected by this legislation include rural Americans, young and first-time voters, low-income voters, people of color, military members and Americans abroad, and transgender Americans. So, who would that leave with
We want to hear from you
The Current welcomes letters to the editor and strives to represent a range of viewpoints on our opinion pages. Generally, letters should not exceed 500 words. Letters over the word limit may be returned to the writer for editing.
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the right to vote? Certainly not me, unless I can find my birth and marriage certificates. (Now where did I put them?)
Bonnie Grenier Sagamore Road
Don’t miss
‘The Gilded Lily’
To the editor: Last Sunday, I attended the showing of a film called “The Gilded Lily.” As a former teacher, I wanted to support a film created, written and filmed by high school students from our own Marblehead High School. This “story within a story” was quite sophisticated and technical to both write and film. Moreover, it was filmed here in Marblehead. The acting was terrific! It played to a full house — a supportive audience of family, friends, fellow high school students and others. I am quite proud of the Warwick Cinema management for supporting the efforts of these young students who are now off to colleges to study film production and screenwriting. It may be shown again. Don’t miss it!
Ann McGreevy Prospect Street
COURTESY PHOTO / COURT MERRIGAN
Did you know bees can recognize human faces?
Temporary dock to restore Crocker Park access soon
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Good news for people who enjoy swimming at Crocker Park.
Marblehead Harbormaster
Mark Souza told the Current that a replacement swim dock is expected to be installed this month.
“We have secured a dock for temporary use from Mid-Harbor Mooring and Launch Services at no cost,” Souza said.
“Once we complete our safety inspection then we need to go
Dan Koh: $7,000
Tram Nguyen: $2,700
John Beccia: $500
Jamie Belsito: $250
Bethany Andres-Beck: $0
Mariah Lancaster: $0
Jakious was a natural favorite for many Marblehead voters. He and his family live in Swampscott. As Moulton’s chief of staff, he spent significant time in Marblehead. Jakious’ wife is a teacher in Marblehead, and he has served on several local nonprofit boards.
One of Jones’ biggest Marblehead donors, Rich, called Jones “a fine young guy who would make a good representative for our district.”
Added Rich, a philanthropist and retired discount store chain president and shopping center developer, “We need a Republican in the Massachusetts delegation. That’s my point of view.”
David Rosenberg, principal of automobile dealership group DSR Motor Group, is also a top Marblehead donor to Jones.
“I’m actually a registered
independent, but I’ve seen Democratic politics, especially in Massachusetts, take a hard turn to the left,” he said. “I don’t like what has happened. I’m Jewish. I see a lot of antisemitism, anti-Zionism on the left. Micah Jones is a centrist. I do not think he’ll be kowtowing to the far right of the Republican Party.”
Rosenberg added that he believes Jones is more in the mold of former Gov. Charlie Baker, a moderate Republican.
On the Democratic side, Nguyen’s financial support has been steady but shallow. Most of her Marblehead donations are modest. Of her 42 individual contributions, 19 are between $100 and $250. Some of her supporters have donated multiple times.
Michele Baillie of Marblehead is one. She has donated four times, totaling $700. She has supported Nguyen since the beginning of the campaign.
“What I like about Tram is that she is truly a grassroots candidate,” Baillie, a patent and trademark prosecution attorney.
“She has no personal wealth to contribute to her campaign, but she’s out there pounding the
pavement. I like her progressive values. I am also an immigrant, so I respect her for that.”
Nguyen immigrated from Vietnam to the United States with her family as a young girl.
But does a quiet donor base in Marblehead suggest the town’s Democrats are still weighing its options, or did they simply check out after their preferred candidate left the field?
For Nicholas Ward, it is the former. Ward, an early supporter of Jakious, said he has not yet finalized his vote in the Sept. 1 primary.
“I supported Rick Jakious at the outset of this primary because he most clearly understood the moral responsibility of safe-seat Democrats to seek liberal outcomes while recognizing that politics is about reconciling competing interests and coming to a compromise,” Ward said. “It is not about who can pump the base full of unrealistic promises in a way that is totally divorced from the rest of the country’s perception of the Democratic Party.”
Ward added: “That said, the two candidates who stand out most clearly as understanding
through and start retrofitting the float so that it can be attached and located properly. Once we get to that point, then we will need to find a way to get a contractor to install the gangway and attachment points. We just have to make sure that we’re properly going through town procurement policies on having these services done. We are doing as much as we can in-house to save money and time.”
The Crocker Park swim dock
was removed after an early July storm damaged its permanent flotation log.
Souza said the Crocker dock may stay in the water a little later than usual.
“We will be attempting to extend its use past its normal removal time, which is usually one to two weeks after Labor Day, due to fall weather systems such as tropical systems and hurricanes that affect that location drastically,” he said.
* Data from raw/unprocessed filings with the Federal Election Commission
what is required to not just feel good but do good in this seat are Tram Nguyen and Mariah Lancaster. During the candidates debate at Salem State, they both made clear that any meaningful federal reforms that actually deliver for the people of this district and for America are going to require Republican votes, and they’re willing to go get them.”
Ward, a vice president at Fidelity, said that the more any candidate talks about fighting Donald Trump, “the less enthusiastic I become.”
“There’s no fighting Donald Trump from Massachusetts,” he said. “That’s political fantasy to give the base warm feelings
inside. It’s theater. Opposing Donald Trump and MAGA’s agenda means winning races in places like Alaska, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Michigan and North Carolina.”
“Blue state Democrats need to adjust their policy expectations accordingly,” he said. “I want a representative who is clear-eyed and understands this.”
Democrat Renee Keaney of Marblehead said many Democrats she knows still haven’t made up their minds. Keaney herself remains uncommitted.
“It’s summer, and people aren’t really paying attention,” she said.
COURTESY PHOTO
During a July 6 rainstorm, the permanent flotation log beneath Crocker Park’s dock broke free.
Marblehead Counseling Center offers tips for surviving college dropoff
BY PAMELA WHEATON SHORR, MARBLEHEAD COUNSELING CENTER
Summer is nearing the halfway mark, but for families sending a child off to college for the first time, the end feels very near. Your teen may seem blasé about leaving, but chances are there is at least some anxiety about navigating a new place, meeting new people and doing well in new classes. Meanwhile, daily parenting duties for mom and dad are disappearing, often leaving parents feeling equal parts excited, grief-stricken and confused about how to fill up their normally jam-packed schedules.
According to Gregg Mulford, LMHC clinical supervisor at Marblehead Counseling Center, who has counseled families and individuals for the past 35 years, when a child goes to college, it’s a period of both redefining the overall family dynamic and reinvention by the individuals within it, and it can be tough for everyone.
“It’s not surprising that parents and teens often feel insecure and overwhelmed,” he says. A child’s whole identity can be shaken during the transition to college as they are forced to redefine themselves without familiar peers or social structures they know, Mulford notes.
“If they already have feelings of insecurity or inadequacy, these can be amplified. And although empty nest syndrome is not considered a clinical disorder or diagnosis, it is a real moment of transition for parents that can bring about anxiety, depression, fear for a child’s mental and physical health while far away and emotional ambivalence about newfound freedoms with the kids out of the house.
“In addition,” Mulford says, “when parental control starts shifting away from mom and dad, it can feel very similar to rejection.” Although your roles may be changing, Mulford says your college student still needs you to be a touchpoint at a time that can be very challenging. One out of two college students reports feeling lonely on campus, according to Mental Health in College: What Research Tells Us About Supporting Students. The 2025 National College Health Assessment found one out of three had received psychological or mental health services within a 12-month period. And, about 45% binge drink in order to cope with stress. Help your child understand that these feelings are not unusual, and remind them of other times when they’ve successfully worked through stress or loneliness.
Sarah Flatley, former assistant dean of students at Harvard
Mary McAllister, 77, describes how she suffered serious injuries while moving a new recycling bin.
CURRENT
University, a residential advisor at Harvard for six years and president of FlatleyWheaton Educational Consultants, says her biggest piece of advice to parents is to start talking to kids now.
“Your goal in sending your child to college is to help them transition to being a capable adult, able to manage their own lives and solve their own problems,” Flatley says.
“Colleges are filled with trained professionals who can help your young adult thrive. It’s a pretty safe place to learn these skills.” She says kindergarten and college dropoff are two of parenting’s most difficult moments, but it’s really important to take a step back and give your student a chance to gain confidence that they can do it on their own.
“Parents are most useful when they help kids prepare for issues beforehand,” she believes, and step one is having an open discussion about communication expectations. Every family will have a different answer, but if mom is expecting nightly phone calls and junior is good with a once-a-week text, you’ll need to come up with a plan. She says it’s also great to brainstorm solutions to issues that might arise, such as a disagreement over a grade or a problem with a roommate.
“Role playing or practicing what to say can be helpful,” Flatley says. College schedules typically include big chunks of unscheduled time, and kids need to be prepped for it.
“They’re going to have to figure out a system to manage their time and responsibilities and how to structure completing their academic work, while also learning to do laundry and pick up after themselves. Summer is a good time to practice or try
out time management systems.” Kids who are trying to redefine themselves while figuring out their new environment might be too embarrassed to say they need help, Mulford notes, and often imagine they’re the only ones having a tough time.
“Talk to your kids before they leave home about becoming overwhelmed. Strategize about finding support on campus if they need it, staying connected when they’re feeling lonely, and ways to successfully meet others.” National Institutes of Health research has alerted colleges to a growing mental health crisis in colleges around the world, and the upside is campuses are working hard on new mental health offerings to help students cope. Peer mentoring, mental health course offerings, anti-stress programs and other innovative ways to support students are increasingly popular.
Flatley says that statistically, students who take part in extracurricular activities are happier at school. Encourage your child to join a wide variety at first in order to find friends and activities they like, with the understanding that they might try new things that won’t be a good fit. Check out the school website for available clubs, public service and volunteer activities. Remind your kids that there are more passive ways to connect on campus, as well, such as going to the gym or library, taking a run on campus, reading in the quad or going to the dining common.
Joining activities and making an effort to be around people will help stave off loneliness, but if you suspect your child might really struggle, Mulford says you and your child might decide to speak to a therapist before they leave for school.
“Talking with a mental health professional about their anxiety and brainstorming how to manage can be really beneficial,” he says. “You might even set up some check-in therapy sessions
Bins
From P. 1
advising users not to move it with the lid open but argued the text is too small for most residents to notice.
“Did any of you know that there was a warning on the barrels not to move them without closing the lids?” she asked the board. “Most people did not read that.”
McAllister said she has since found videos online showing similar accidents involving the same style of wheeled bins.
Rather than seeking compensation, she urged the town to launch a public awareness campaign through
over Zoom if that would ease your freshman’s mind.” Mulford says it’s normal for upheaval to cause stress for parents and kids, even teens who are already pretty self-sufficient.
Teens who suffer from depression or anxiety disorders will require a different level of emotional support, and he suggests checking out campus resources prior to departure, so your teen is armed with information should they feel they need it.
“This is where being proactive, talking about concerns, and brainstorming solutions can make a real difference,” Mulford believes.
Keep in mind, though, the rules about your kids’ school records are about to change.
Parents are often shocked to find that under FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, your student’s academic, disciplinary and health and medical records transfer to your adult (over 18) child. Colleges do not generally share grades or attendance unless your child has signed a waiver, nor are colleges required to inform you about alcohol or controlled substance violations. They also cannot legally share medical history, diagnoses or records, including mental health status.
Students and parents should discuss these privacy issues ahead of time, and why and when a parent might need or want access. If comfortable, students can opt to sign FERPA waivers for specific records they will allow their parents to access.
“You’ve gotten your kids to college, which is such an accomplishment,” Mulford says.
“We know that there are going to be bumps and struggles, but the more you see your role as believing they can do it and supporting their efforts, the better it will be for you both in the long run.”
Learn more about Marblehead Counseling Center at marbleheadcounseling.org.
the town website and emergency notification system.
“I’m sorry it happened to me,” she said. “But I’d rather have it happen to me than somebody who’s less fit, who really could have a serious injury.”
Board member Dr. Alison Ritvo expressed sympathy and asked her colleagues if they could publicize the safety warning.
“I think it’s worth considering putting it on the (town) website,” she suggested.
Health Director Andrew Petty also addressed concerns about requests for smaller recycling carts, which many residents have sought since the automated collection program began July 1.
Petty said the town has received about 400 requests
TIPS TO HELP YOUR CHILD TRANSITION TO COLLEGE
Remember, your goal is to help your child make this next transition into adulthood. Brainstorm, role play, talk through scenarios that might be difficult, but don’t step in to do it for them. Colleges have trained professionals whose job it is to help your child make a healthy, happy transition.
Encourage your child to get involved in something — statistically students say they are happier when they have extracurricular activities at school. Many options might be unfamiliar. Encourage them to try something new – even if it’s just for a few weeks.
» Remind your student to take care of themselves physically. Your child is almost certain to get sick in the first few weeks of school, as they won’t be eating right, sleeping well, and they’ll be exposed to many new people. Send a care package of over the counter medicines in their luggage. Encourage them to get some exercise, try to eat healthy meals and start a routine that includes sleep.
» Talk to your child about the transition you will both be making when they leave. Be sure they know that it is OK to feel overwhelmed as they adjust to their new life away from home, and remind them that you are feeling some anxiety, too. It’s natural.
Listen to your child and encourage them to talk about the stress they are feeling. If you get a call at 11 at night from a weeping child, try and put it into context. Are they just having a moment where they are exhausted and overwhelmed?
Encourage them to get out of their dorm room. Don’t forget the more ‘passive’ activities that connect people: going to the library, the gym, reading in the quad, or going to the dining hall. Most colleges also have loads of opportunities for public service, and most don’t require signing up beforehand. » Find small ways to connect, through Zoom calls, small care packages or cards.
Agree ahead of time on how often to reach out. Give them time and space to make new friends and not rely on family.
» Educate yourself about the resources available to your child, such as academic tutors, on-campus support groups and counseling centers. Plan tele-health sessions with your child’s regular therapist at home if it seems advisable.
Sarah Flatley, FlatleyWheaton Educational Consultants
for smaller carts but initially received only 180 from the manufacturer.
“We’re waiting on the delivery of the remaining barrels,” Petty said. “Once we receive those, we’ll begin the distribution process.” He said residents who requested a smaller cart should have received an automatic email confirming their request and said the Health Department will notify residents when replacement carts are available.
McAllister also told the board she was upset no one contacted her after she emailed the Health Department following her accident.
“I did send that email, and nobody reached out to me,” she said. “That was disappointing.”
Rock n Row celebrates 20th anniversary with … what else? … a harbor parade
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What InsuranceDoesn’t Cover
Most people thinkabout insuranceonlyafter somethinggoeswrong.A stormdamages aroof. Apipebursts. Abusinesssuffersa cyberattack. Theexpectation is that insuranceexiststiabsorb theshock.Often it does. Butevery polic yis also builtarounddefinedlimits, andthose boundaries reveal alot about howmodernriskis changing.
Insuranceworks best when lossescan be measured acrosslargegroupsovertime. Ahouse in oneneighborhood is manageable because insurers have decades of date andmosthomes don’tburnatonce. Themathgets harder when losseshit largeregions simultaneously or spread throughconnected systemsfasterthanmodels cantrack.
Floodingisacommonexample.Standard homeowners insurancegenerallydoesnot cover flood damage,whichiswhy separate coverage existsthrough programs like theNationalFlood InsuranceProgram.A burst pipe is an isolated event. Astorm surge hittingthous ands of coastal properties is adifferentcategor yofrisk.
TheCOVID-19 pandemic exposed asimilar boundary.Manybusinessinterruptionpolicies required directphysical damage to property before coverage applied, andsomecarried communicable diseaseexclusions Thelosses were real
Thechallenge washow aprivate insurance systemabsorbs an eventaffecting millions of businessesatonce.
Cyberattacks raisethe same questionsat digital speed The2017 NotPetya attack spread internationallywithin hours, disruptingshipping andmanufacturing companies acrossmultiple countries andcausingmillionsindamage. Some disputes centeredonwhether theevent counted as cybercrime or cyberwarfare,since many policies exclude acts of war.
Insurancealsogenerallyexcludes normal wear, maintenanceneglect,and ordinar yinvestment losses. When BaringsBankcollapsed from derivatives tradinglossesinthe 1990s, insurance did notstepin, andthe same held true for Long-TermCapital Management in 1998.
None of this meanscoverage gaps areinevitable. Theright combinationofpolicies, riders, or standalone coverage canclosemanyofthem. Butinsuranceisrarelyone-size-fits-all,and the boundaries that matter most often dependon wheresomeone lives, what they own, andhow their risk is changedovertime. Aconversation with an agentbeforesomethinghappens is usuallywhatsurfaces thegapsa homeowneror businessowner didn’t know existed.
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Marblehead’s Rock n Row club celebrated its 20th anniversary with a neon tide water parade and party.
“All the boats (and rowers) were decked out in neon, we rowed from Little Harbor to State Street Landing in a two-by-two formation,” said Rock n Row’s Tracy Lessor. “When we got to the landing, we received a cannon salute.”
The rowing club has more than 70 members.
“Rock n Row is a vibrant group of people that share the love of ocean rowing,” said Caroline Wojtas of Marblehead. “We have something special that transcends rowing and helping our communities; it’s a bond I’ve never experienced before. This collection of diverse individuals inspires me to think bigger and moves me to do better.”
Rock n Row President Sherry Jones Maspons added: “For me, Rock n Row is where adventure meets community. Every time we launch from the dock, we’re reminded that it’s never too late to try something new, make lifelong friends, and experience the magic of Marblehead from the water.”
Learn more about Rock n Row at rocknrow.org.
COURTESY PHOTOS
Members of Marblehead’s Rock n Row head to the water for a neon-tide parade celebrating the group’s 20th anniversary.
Marblehead’s Rock n Row celebrates its 20th anniversary with a harbor parade and party.
Sports
Local riders complete Pan-Mass Challenge to support cancer research
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Dozens of Marbleheaders joined 6,500 cyclists and more than 3,500 volunteers at the PanMass Challenge last weekend, with the shared goal of raising a record-breaking $79 million to support critical cancer research and care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The annual bike-athon, which raises more money for charity than any other single athletic fundraiser in the world, was aiming to raise
Dozens of Marbleheaders joined 6,500 cyclists and more than 3,500 volunteers at the Pan Mass Challenge last weekend, with the shared goal of raising a record-breaking $79 million to support critical cancer research and care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The annual bike-a thon raises more money for charity than any other single athletic fundraiser in the world.
“The theme for this year’s PMC, which is ‘now, more than ever,’ underscores the paramount importance of every single dollar raised in fueling the search for a cure,” said Billy Starr, founder and chairman of the PMC. “We are endlessly grateful to every rider, volunteer, donor and sponsor who makes the PMC possible. Because of their training miles, long hours of volunteering, generous support, and unwavering commitment, we are moving ever closer to a world without cancer.” Since its inception in 1980, the
PMC has raised $1.125 billion for Dana-Farber
Every year, riders choose from various courses and cross the finish line in Provincetown.
Among this year’s Marblehead riders was Angus McQuilken, who has participated in the PMC for 18 years since his diagnosis with colon cancer at age 36.
“The PMC has been part of my life for 18 years, since my diagnosis with colon cancer at age 36,” McQuilken told the Current. “I ride with Team Kermit, and they are like family to me. The PMC has always been
Corinthian Classic set for Aug. 8-9
BY LAURIE FULLERTON
The Corinthian Classic, a longtime Marblehead favorite, returns Saturday, Aug. 8, and Sunday, Aug. 9, celebrating vintage and classic yachts in Marblehead Harbor.
With nearly 30 boats registered, every entry has its own story. This year, however, one international crew from France is expected to be among the highlights.
“Every Corinthian Classic is outstanding and unique, for sure. This year will be incredibly special as we have the honor of hosting Viola, a 49-foot gaff cutter designed by the famed William Fife III and built in Scotland in 1908,” said longtime regatta director Tim Dittrich of the Corinthian Yacht Club.
“What’s spectacular is that Viola is visiting from France and sailing as the representative of the Yacht Club de Monaco. She is gorgeous, and her condition is beyond Bristol in every way. Their crew has been together for years and certainly are classic characters.”
Spectators should keep an eye on the mouth of the harbor for Viola and its predominantly French crew, who will be flying the burgee of the Yacht Club de Monaco. Normally competing throughout the Mediterranean under longtime skipper Fabien
Despres and his close-knit crew, Viola crossed the Atlantic to honor America’s 250th anniversary. Nearly 30 boats are expected on the starting line, divided into three classes: Vintage, Classic and Modern Classic. Also returning to the regatta is the America’s
Hovey Park.
COURTESY PHOTO / BRUCE DURKEE
The Corinthian Classic returns to Marblehead Harbor this weekend.
Dozens of Marblehead riders and volunteers participate in last weekend’s Pan-Mass Challenge, raising money for cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute COURTESY PHOTOS
From left, Marbleheaders Anastasie Sycheva, 15, Angus McQuilken, David Manganis and Jack Manganis, 15, celebrate finishing 50 miles of the PMC on Sunday.
Marblehead Youth Baseball 11-year-old all-stars complete successful summer
BY JOE MCCONNELL
The Marblehead Youth Baseball 11-year-old all-star team had a great summer season, starting with the Cal Ripken Tournament in late June, where it earned a spot in the Cal Ripken District Crossover Round that consisted of Districts 1 and 7. Medford also made it out of Marblehead’s bracket. The Junior Mustangs went 3-0 in pool play, while the Marblehead boys were 2-1. Revere and Winchester were the other two teams in that bracket. All of those games were played in Burlington.
The crossover round was single elimination, and as a result Marblehead lost its game to powerhouse host Natick on June 27. But baseball was far
from over for these all-stars, who went on to compete in the Bay State League.
The Marblehead boys completed the regional portion of the Bay State League Tournament with a 6-2-2 record, edging out second place Haverhill. The Hillies were 5-13. Both teams then went on to Trophy Weekend in Sudbury, where Marblehead defeated Brookline in the semifinals, 8-6, but lost to South End (Boston) by the exact same score in the gold medal game to take home the runner-up silver trophy.
The Junior Magicians then continued on to the second round as an upper division finalist, only to finish up with a 3-7 record. However, their last game was a win against North Andover, 7-6 on July 31.
this year. His story can be found at https://profile.pmc.org/ AM0227.
This year’s Marblehead riders included:
» Kathleen Vander Laan
my way of giving back to DanaFarber, in appreciation of the world-class care that I received there.”
McQuilken has raised more than $118,000 through his previous 17 rides and set a goal of raising an additional $12,000
» Mark Meyer
Martha Willis
Ian Boldt
Moira James
» David Manganis
» Craig Carpenter
» Chris Morrissey
Despite the loss, North Andover advanced to the Final 8, while Marblehead went home after winning 12 games this summer.
These Marblehead stars have been together since they were eight, and their manager Carl Iannacci likes their progression as ballplayers. “They have grown a lot since they came together as a team when they were eight,” he said. “They had to learn the game from scratch, but their dedication made this year’s success possible.”
As eights, they won just one game. But as 10s, they were able to win five games, setting the stage for this year’s successes.
“We are now hitting and pitching well, and with improved defense we can be competing in next year’s Tournament
Neill Silva
Jack Manganis
Mark Pappas
» Adelaide Egan
» William Kirby
» Rebecca Pappas
» James McCarthy
Kris Dabrowiecki
George Abatjoglou
Anastasie Sycheva
» Christopher Cohen
» Andrew Bendheim
» Howard Needel
of Champions (the Final 8 Bay State League teams) next summer,” said Iannacci. Iannacci utilized six pitchers on the mound this year that included Luke Murphy, Cam Oak, Reid Benoit, Luke Williams, Gavin O’Sullivan and his own son, Cam. Williams and Oak also split time behind the plate. When he wasn’t pitching, Iannacci was at first base.
Will Papalardo was the team’s regular second baseman. Oak and O’Sullivan also manned the shortstop and third base positions, respectively. Colton McNulty, Holden Melanson and Flynn Kelly were the starting outfielders from left to right.
Matt McCarthy filled in nicely at second base and in right, while Miles Hench split his time between left and right this summer.
Louis Mayle
Kristin O’Neil-Callahan
Angus McQuilken
» Gabrielle Coffman
» Nathan Van Houzen
» Caroline McCarthy
» Michael McLaughlin
Stephen Garfield
Tom Cushman
Robert Rieckelman
» Tara Mathison
» David Kennedy
» Bill Willis
The coaching staff is already looking forward to another summer with these boys, who are expected to win more games, while also being among the Top 8 Bay State League clubs, a feat that they came close to achieving this year.
Iannacci had these closing thoughts on the 2026 summer season: “I can’t say enough about how well our boys played this season. This is a special group that has been playing and growing together throughout the last four years. They should be proud of how they have competed, overcame adversity and supported each other as teammates, as well as representing our town in this competitive (Bay State) league that featured them securing the runner-up silver trophies.”
Emma Garfield
Peter Reuter
Phoebe Burr
Several Marbleheaders also volunteered during the event. They included Ed Stern, David Manganis, Karen Meyer, Jack Manganis, Ellen Jarrett, Brenda Beaton, Jack Grady, Angus McQuilken, Stacey Kraft and Erin McCarthy.
COURTESY PHOTO
The 2026 Marblehead Youth Baseball 11-year-old all-stars proudly hold up their Bay State League runner-up silver trophies after falling to South End (Boston) in the gold medal game earlier last month. They are, from left, second row, Luke Williams, Luke Murphy, Holden Melanson, Gavin O’Sullivan, Colton McNulty and Reid Benoit. Front row, Matt McCarthy, Cam Oak, Cam Iannacci, Flynn Kelly, Will Papalardo and Miles Hench. Manager Carl Iannacci and his assistant coaches Paul Melanson and Cory Oak are in the third row.
Marblehead’s best bets
Current Events spotlights notable happenings in the coming week. If you’d like to contribute a listing, please email
marbleheadnews.org.
Slavery to Freedom walking tour
Thursday, Aug. 6, 4 p.m.
Join Jarrett Zeman from Marblehead Museum for a walking tour on the history of slavery and the abolition movement in Marblehead. You’ll see local sites where enslaved people worked and lived, and where white abolitionists fought for freedom from the pulpit, ballot box and Underground Railroad. Tickets are $15.90 for the general public. Go to marbleheadmuseum.org.
Marblehead’s Liquor War
Wednesday, Aug. 12, 7 p.m.
Marblehead Museum, 170 Washington St., will present a program on the history of drinking in town. Fed up with their unruly men, the local temperance movement made Marblehead a dry town for 50 years. Barmen kept liquor in secret hiding places, and shoemakers sold moonshine out of their kitchens.This led to an all-out war complete with police raids, street violence, attempted murder and courtroom drama. Tickets start at $10.60. marbleheadmuseum.org.
MHD Cruise-In
Tuesday, Aug. 11, 6-8 p.m.
Spend a summer evening at the August Marblehead Cruise-in where car enthusiasts come together and appreciate all makes and models of cars. Held in the Devereux Beach parking lot. You can bring your own special vehicle, just sign an online waiver first. More info at mhdcruisein.com.
Marblehead Farmers Market
Saturday, Aug. 8, 9-noon
The Marblehead Farmers Market features locally grown fruits, vegetables and flowers, as well as prepared food and artwork. Location is behind the Veterans School, 217 Pleasant St.
By Leigh Blander
Make your own: Beach treasures necklace
Wednesday, Aug. 12, 4-5:30 p.m.
Turn a favorite beach treasure into a oneof-a-kind necklace. Students will learn how to wire-wrap sea glass or shell focal pieces and combine them with beads to create a beautiful beach-inspired design. Perfect for kids who love the ocean and handmade jewelry. Space is limited to 12 kids ages 8-12, and online registration is required at abbotlibrary.org. The event is free.
for the
Aug. 9, 2-4
8 Hooper
reception of its new exhibit, which
through Sept. 19. Come see the works of five artists, along with a themed exhibition called “The Spirit of ‘76.” More info at marbleheadarts. org.
‘10 Ways to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse’
Friday & Saturday, Aug. 14, 15
This music is produced as an intensive two-week program by MLT’s Children’s Program featuring middle and high school actors (ages 11-16). When zombies attack, a ragtag group of survivors is thrown into a chaotic fight for their lives. Enter Jimmy, Christy, Susan and Sam — four not-so-qualified heroes who stumble through 10 outrageous methods to survive the zombie apocalypse. Tickets and info at mltlive.com.
America 250: Writing Workshop for Kids
Saturday, Aug. 15, 11 a.m.
This three-week writing workshop is designed to help students ages 8-12 strengthen their writing skills and enjoy the creative writing process, all while celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. Each session will combine ageappropriate instruction with entertaining and engaging activities to reinforce core writing fundamentals, using America’s founding and history as inspiration for original work. Students will practice developing narratives, work on sentence structure and word choice, and develop their creative voices as writers. They will leave the workshop with a collection of their own original work to share, an enthusiasm for storytelling, and
Debut novel spotlights neurodivergent heroine
BY GREY COLLINS
Marblehead author Jennifer Rizzo is set to release her debut historical novel, “Uprising,” on Sept. 1, blending her love of medieval history with her experiences raising two neurodivergent children. The story follows a 14-year-old girl whose heightened sensory abilities help her navigate England’s 14th-century Peasants’ Revolt.
The book is set in 14th-century England during the Peasants’ Revolt, featuring a 14-yearold neurodivergent girl with extraordinary sensory abilities.
For Rizzo, the novel combines two of her lifelong passions: history and story-telling. Although she had written extensively as a freelance journalist, she eventually decided to tell stories through historical fiction, a genre she has always loved. She began writing the novel in 2023, while also juggling a full time job in human resources.
The story follows Blanche Fitzjohn, the illegitimate daughter of a noble. An outcast in her coastal village, Blanche is neurodivergent and possesses miraculous sensory abilities. When an arranged marriage brings her to the Tower of
Local author Jennifer Rizzo’s book, “Uprising,” will be released Sept. 1. Her debut novel features a neurodivergent female character.
London just as a rebellion sweeps across England, she must rely on those abilities to survive. It started as just one book, but Rizzo and her publisher decided to split it into a duology.
Rizzo moved to Marblehead 14 years ago with her husband and is now raising their two kids here. After moving to the Boston area, Marblehead’s rich colonial history and New England charm quickly drew them in, eventually convincing them to make it their home.
“We just fell in love with the town. It definitely has the European antique feeling, and
TOWN OF MARBLEHEAD REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFP) 27-05 FITNESS INSTRUCTORS FOR THE COUNCIL ON AGING
The Town of Marblehead is soliciting proposals from qualified instructors to provide fitness instructor services for our seniors at the senior center located at Judy and Gene Jacobi Community Center in Marblehead.
The procurement documents for this Request for Proposals (“RFP”) will be available beginning August 5, 2026, and may be obtained from the Town’s procurement portal at https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/marblehead.
Proposals are due on August 20, 2026 at 10:00 am.
The Town intends to award multiple contracts under this RFP
The Town reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, waive any minor defects, informalities, or irregularities, and award contracts or cancel this RFP if it is determined to be in the Town’s best interest.
it has so much history, which I love,” said Rizzo.
Rizzo’s novel was inspired not only by her love of medieval Europe, but also by her experiences as the mother of two neurodivergent children. Her son has autism, while her daughter has ADHD and epilepsy. As she learned more about the middle ages, she wondered how someone with similar traits might experience that period in history centuries before those conditions were understood, or even named.
“I have a child with autism, and two kids who
MARBLEHEAD STAGE STAR
are neurodivergent. And as a medieval history fan, one of the things I had always wondered is what would it be like to be autistic in that time period?” said Rizzo. “It was definitely something people were completely unaware of. There was no word for autism. There was no word for neurodivergent. It was more that certain people were different.”
But rather than portray neurodivergence simply as hardship, Rizzo wanted to imagine how those differences could have been strengths, allowing them to contribute to their communities and alter the course of history.
“I can’t get enough of researching it. I also did a lot of research into neurodivergence and mental illness in the middle ages, how it was treated and how it was talked about,” said Rizzo. “I also researched witchcraft and the witch trials, because the 14th century was just before the witch trials in England. At that time it was largely accepted as a part of English culture.”
The research and writing process was extensive, and Rizzo dove deep into historic accounts of life in 14th century England, and how neurodivergence was looked at throughout history.
MHS student actor takes the stage in Greater Boston Stage Company
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Marblehead High School student actor Ronan McKiernan will take the stage this month with the Greater Boston Stage Company, appearing as Wes Warnicker in “Footloose:
AND CONTROLS REBUILD at 7 Woodfin Terrace in Marblehead, Massachusetts, in accordance with these specifications. Copies of the Request for Proposals Request for Proposals may be obtained via the Town’s Procurement Portal https://procurement. opengov.com/portal/marblehead Bids are subject to Massachusetts General Law c.164, §56D, and c.30, §39M and to minimum wage rates required by M.G.L. c.l49 §26 to 27H
The Musical.” The production is part of Greater Boston Stage Company’s Summer Festival 2026, which features five fully staged musicals performed by students in grades four through 12.
Running Aug. 6-16,
than required Lot Area and Frontage located at 9 BALLAST LANE in an EXPANDED SINGLE RESIDENCE DISTRICT The proposed construction will be partially located in the Side Yard Setback and will increase the Gross Floor Area by more than the allowed ten (10%) percent for a pre-existing non-conforming structure. The hearing will be held in accordance with the provisions of the Marblehead Zoning By-Law and Chapter 40A of the General Laws, as amended. The hearing will be held remotely in accordance with Chapter 2 of the Acts of 2025, a.k.a. An Act Extending Certain COVID-19 Measures Adopted During the State of Emergency Interested person(s) may request an appointment to review plans and information by e-mailing lyonsl@marbleheadma.gov For any questions, please call (781) 631-1529. Details on how to access the hearing remotely via the internet will be included on the meeting agenda posted at least 48 hours prior to the meeting (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays). The agenda can be found on the following link: https://www.marbleheadma.gov/events
Town of Marblehead
Request for Proposals
W. Lewis Barlow IV Secretary
Marblehead Municipal Light Department is requesting proposals for:
DIELECTRIC, MATERIAL-HANDLING BUCKET TRUCK
Pursuant to Massachusetts General Law c.164, §56D, Marblehead Municipal Light Department (MMLD) invites vendors to submit proposals for furnishing MMLD with adielectric, material handling,bucket truck. Additional details may be obtained via the https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/marblehead
Bids will be received until August 19, 2026, at 10:00 am and unsealed via the Procurement Portal at that date and time. Bids should be submitted via https://procurement.opengov.com/ portal/marblehead
MMLD reserves the right to reject any and all proposals, to waive any informality in the proposals received and accept the proposal that it deems to be most favorable to the interest of the MMLD.
Marblehead Municipal Light Department
Jonathan Blair,General Manager
Town of Marblehead Request for Proposals
Marblehead Municipal Light Department is requesting proposals for:
SPACER CABLE AND PARTIAL POLE REPLACEMENT
The Marblehead Municipal Light Department (MMLD), the Awarding Authority,invites sealed bids from Qualified Vendors for the SPACER CABLE AND PARTIAL POLE REPLACEMENT in Marblehead, Massachusetts, in accordance with these specifications. Copies of the Request for Proposals may be obtained via the Town’sProcurementPortal https://procurement. opengov.com/portal/marblehead Bids are subject to Massachusetts
She was also interested in the various ways witchcraft was viewed in the middle ages, and made some interesting discoveries.
“I can’t get enough of researching it. I also did a lot of research into neurodivergence and mental illness in the middle ages, how it was treated, and how it was talked about,” said I also researched witchcraft and the witch trials, because the 14th century was just before the witch trials in England. At that time it was largely accepted as a part of English culture.”
Through her research, Rizzo actually started to realize that she was most likely neurodivergent as well.
“It was really a journey of selfdiscovery,” she said.
“Uprising,” book one of the Fitzjohn duology, will be released on September 1. Rizzo says that she is in the final revising stages of the second book in the duology, which follows the same character, Blanche Fitzjohn, in the years after the peasant revolt.
Coincidentally, a film called Uprising, starring Andrew Garfield, also depicting the events of the England Peasants’ Revolt, will premier just 10 days after Rizzo’s book hits the shelves.
the festival brings together nearly 100 young performers from 22 Greater Boston communities. The students work with professional directors, choreographers, music directors, designers and theater artists to create full-scale productions.
“Footloose” will be performed Friday, Aug. 7, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 8, at 8 p.m.; and Sunday,
Aug. 9, at 5 p.m. For more information and tickets, visit greaterbostonstage.org.
Department
COURTESY PHOTO Marblehead student actor Ronan McKiernan is having a dramatic summer.
COURTESY PHOTOS
First Art Crawl invites visitors into local artists’ studios
BY LEIGH BLANDER
Marblehead’s creative community will throw open its doors for the town’s first Art Crawl & Open Studios on Sunday, Aug. 16, giving residents a chance to step inside artists’ workspaces, discover hidden creative corners and meet the people behind the art.
The free event, hosted by the Marblehead Arts Association, runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and features more than 30 artists at studios throughout town. Visitors can follow a selfguided map, stopping to watch artists at work, learn about their creative process and purchase original artwork.
Organizer and printmaker Amy Hourihan said the idea grew from a desire to showcase Marblehead’s rich artistic community in a new way.
“This is an innovative idea that hasn’t been tried here before,” Hourihan said. “There’s been a lot of enthusiasm.”
The inaugural crawl will feature a wide range of artistic disciplines, from jewelry, ceramics and woodworking to fine art, photography, cyanotype, sculpture and printmaking. Visitors will also find music instruction, working studios and, at some locations, artist demonstrations.
As a printmaker herself, Hourihan said she’s especially excited for visitors to experience studios that aren’t usually open to the public. Little Harbor Studios, she noted, houses several well-known local artists working in a variety of media.
“It’s three large rooms divided into smaller workspaces,” she said. “There are some really well-known artists there, including Kiki Kenney, along with oil painters and watercolorists.”
Perhaps the biggest draw, she said, is the opportunity to discover artists who quietly create in home studios throughout Marblehead.
“There are so many people who fly under the radar and work out of home studios,” Hourihan said. “I’m always saying, ‘Wow, I had no idea they even lived in Marblehead.’
I’m excited for people to discover them.”
Marblehead Arts Association Director Xhazzie Kindall described the crawl this way:
“Marblehead Art Crawl and Open Studios is a wonderful gift from our artists to the public. Studios tend to be
sanctuaries from the rest of the world, a place where artists work alone and only the piece one is working on at that moment matters. Even letting friends into one’s studio, let alone members of the public, can really push some artists out of their comfort zone, which makes this event all the more special.”
Artwork of all kinds will be available for purchase, from greeting cards to large paintings and other pieces.
Maps for the self-guided
tour will be available one week before the event at marbleheadarts.org/ mhd-art-crawl.
COURTESY PHOTOS
Marblehead artist Elizabeth O’Shea rolls out ink at Little Harbor Studios in preparation for a monotype. O’Shea’s studio will be open
COURTESY PHOTO / MICHELE BONNER
Artist John Bonner at work in his studio.
The Arnould Gallery will be open for the Art Crawl. Three local artists — Charlie Allen, Bill Cloutman and Frank Costantino will be painting outside the shop.
Dennis P. Curtin (1941- 2026)
Dennis Paul Curtin, known affectionately to everyone as “Denny,” of Marblehead and veteran of the United States Air Force, passed away peacefully on April 20, 2026, at Massachusetts General Hospital with his loved ones by his side. He will be greatly missed for his warmth, humor and spirit of service to the community he so deeply cherished.
Born on Jan. 30, 1941, to the late Paul and Dorothy Curtin in Williamsville, NewYork, Denny answered the call to serve his country as a member of the U.S. Air Force from 1958 to 1962. For 61 adventurous years, he was married to the love of his life, Peggy Curtin, sharing a lifetime of deep companionship. Denny first met Peggy while in second grade. He loved to tell the story of how he fell in love with her during rehearsals for a student play about the newly formed United Nations, in which she played the Statue of Liberty, and he, a Royal Canadian mounted
POLICE LOG
policeman. He didn’t pursue romance at this young age and even lost track of her for a few years as they both moved through the school system. It wasn’t until seventh grade while at her house, he noticed a photo of her as the young Statue of Liberty. He realized at that moment he had serendipitously reunited with his childhood crush.
Professionally, Denny enjoyed a long and distinguished career in publishing with Prentice Hall. A lifetime highlight was meeting legendary photographer Ansel Adams while the publisher worked on one of Adams’ early foundational photography books. This profound connection to the medium shaped Denny’s own path. He went on to
become a prolific author and photographer himself, writing 100+ books on photography and cameras through his company, Short Courses. Yet his greatest professional joy came in his later years, sharing stories about his beloved adopted hometown of Marblehead. He authored three distinct books to celebrate the community, donating them entirely to local causes: “Discovering Marblehead,” a collaborative town gem mapping local open spaces, which he co-authored alongside a dedicated group of other principal creators and donated to the Marblehead Conservancy; “Marblehead Vignettes,” capturing the colorful histories of local characters, which he donated to the Marblehead Council on Aging; and “An Illustrated Guide to our Rail Trails,” which he donated to support the nonprofit local news outlet Marblehead Current.
You may have known Denny from a walk around town as a passionate local photographer. He could frequently be found sharing his vast knowledge of local flora, leading popular wildflower walks along the Rail Trail for neighbors and friends, or quietly scanning the waters of
Ware Pond for snapping turtles. Denny once traveled to Mexico for the fall migration of monarchs with Dr. Orley “Chip” Taylor who founded Monarch Watch, which protects monarch habitats. Denny and Peggy loved to raise monarchs from their home in the summer, and guests would often be told to watch where they sit so as not to disturb a chrysalis that could be found hanging under a porch chair.
Denny found his deepest joy and fulfillment through time spent with his family. When his grandchildren were young, he was known to drop everything if they wanted to go on an adventure, whether it be as small as a stroll around Chandler Hovey or as grand as a weekend escape to Manhattan for a Broadway musical or two. While Peggy clearly ran the show, Denny deemed himself merely the “entertainment committee” for the many friends, family and strangers who became friends that crossed the threshold of the Curtin household.
He is survived by his two daughters and sons-in-law, Cathy and Mike Morin, and Suzy and Stephen Dougherty; his loving grandchildren, Emily Morin and her husband Viren Shinde, Matt
Morin, Quinlan Dougherty and Connor Dougherty; and his two cherished great-grandchildren, Meadow and Adrian Shinde. He is reunited in peace with his beloved wife, Peggy Curtin.
If you look close enough, you’ll still find imprints of Denny’s creative and generous spirit throughout town — the ultimate sign of a true ‘Header,’ whether it be the Marblehead Doors poster at Abbott Hall, or the small library and garden of Peggy’s Park on the trailhead by Preston Beach. Denny will be so deeply missed and remembered for his love of family, his ability to tell a great story and his devotion to preserving and celebrating the history, open spaces and unique spirit of Marblehead.
Please join us for a celebration of Denny’s life, which will include military honors, and will be held at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (135 Lafayette St., Marblehead on Sept. 27, at 1 p.m. In honor of Denny’s lifelong habit of giving back to his town, the family requests that donations be made in his memory to the Marblehead Conservancy, the Marblehead Council on Aging or the Marblehead Current.
Online rug sale goes awry; dropped lip gloss leads to SUV crash
Sunday, July 12
» Alarms: 1
» Building/property checks: 10
» Abandoned 911 calls: 2
» Vehicle stops, citations: 2
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 0
3:02 p.m. A citizen was given assistance on Maverick Street.
5:11 p.m. Officers investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Nahant Street. The vehicle could not be located.
6:55 p.m. An officer on patrol on Nahant Street ran a search on the license plate of a vehicle parked in front of the Corinthian Yacht Club. The officer was already aware of certain information about the vehicle, including that a sergeant had already given the vehicle’s owner a courtesy verbal warning about the vehicle’s status while he was working a private detail for a graduation party hosted by the vehicle’s owner. The officer confirmed the vehicle’s status with a dispatcher and then called to have it towed after he removed the license plates.
» 7:43 p.m. A resident came into the police station to report that he had lost his backpack. Later, he provided an update: He had found the backpack, and nothing was missing.
9:20 p.m. An officer investigated a general complaint on Devereux and Pleasant streets. The issue could not be located.
9:25 p.m. A wallet was found on Front Street.
9:45 p.m. Officers stopped an e-bike on Atlantic Avenue and issued its rider a citation.
11:34 p.m. An officer investigated a general complaint on Devereux Street.
Monday, July 13
» Alarms: 0
» Building/property checks: 6
» Abandoned 911 calls: 3
» Vehicle stops, citations: 0
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 1
3:36 a.m. An officer investigated a report of suspicious activity on High Street.
9:25 a.m. No action was required after a general complaint on Franklin Street.
9:31 a.m. An officer spoke with an Atlantic Avenue resident regarding a case of fraud. The man explained that, two days earlier, he had used his American Express card to purchase a membership to BJ’s Wholesale Club online. Later on in the day, he received emails from Sam’s Club advising him of his recent enrollment for membership, and a $25 charge had been applied to his American Express credit card. The man had never applied for this membership. In addition, two Disney 200 eGift cards valued at $190 each, had been purchased for $380 through Sam’s Club. The following day, he discovered another purchase through the Sam’s Club account of a Southwest gift card for $478.98; however, the credit card that was used was not his, leading the man to surmise the scammer had added another stolen credit card to the fraudulent account. The man had contacted American Express, which confirmed the fraud, and he cancelled the credit card in question. In addition, he reported the fraud to Sam’s Club and notified BJ’s of the possible data compromise. The man notified all three credit bureaus and froze his credit for seven years. He had also notified the Federal Trade Commission. The man just wanted the incident documented with police as well.
11:10 a.m. An officer responded to the scene of a vehicle crash on Atlantic Avenue and filed a report.
11:55 a.m. An officer rendered services after investigating a complaint about a moving vehicle on Ocean and Harbor avenues.
12:12 p.m. An officer responded to the scene of a vehicle crash on Atlantic Avenue and filed a report.
12:58 p.m. A citizen was given assistance on Front Street.
1:40 p.m. An officer rendered services after investigating a general complaint on Pleasant and Maverick streets.
7:35 p.m. An officer rendered services after a general complaint on Front Street.
8:32 p.m. An officer investigated a general complaint on Atlantic Avenue and filed a report.
10:01 p.m. Officers investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Front and State streets.
Tuesday, July 14
» Alarms: 1
» Building/property checks: 8
» Abandoned 911 calls: 1
» Vehicle stops, citations: 1
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 2
1:59 a.m. Officers investigated a disturbance that proved to be unfounded on Russell Street.
7:02 a.m. Officers assisted with a disabled vehicle on Washington Street.
11:02 a.m. Assistance was given to a citizen on Front Street.
12:18 p.m. Assistance was given to a citizen on Whittier Road.
12:48 p.m. A vehicle was towed after a traffic stop on West Shore Drive.
2:28 p.m. Officers responded to the scene of a vehicle crash on Essex Street.
4:25 p.m. An officer rendered services after investigating a complaint about a moving vehicle on Franklin Street.
6:18 p.m. An officer investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Pleasant Street and Ocean Avenue. The vehicle could not be located.
6:46 p.m. An officer by phone with a woman who wanted to report a “sketchy” interaction she had with a man from whom she had bought a rug on Facebook Marketplace. After feeling “uncomfortable” during their interaction, the woman got home and inspected the rug and found that it was not what had been advertised. The woman reached back out to the man to explain that she was not happy with the rug, and he said he was sorry but that it had been his uncle who had posted it online. The woman was concerned that the man had her name and
number. The officer advised the woman to file a complaint with Facebook Marketplace and suggested that she could block his number and cease communication. The woman was satisfied with this advice and said she would decide later whether to report the incident to Facebook.
6:50 p.m. An officer spoke by phone with a man who reported that someone had hacked into his home-based company’s email system and tricked an employee into sending out a $16,000 check to a Wisconsin resident. The man added that he had already spoken to a police officer in the town to which the check had been mailed. The officer told the man that it would be more helpful and official if he compiled documents and brought them to the Marblehead police station to begin a formal investigation, even though it may be out of the local police’s jurisdiction. The man had since notified his bank of the scam and said he would return to the police station the following day with the requested paperwork. The officer also offered to have the man share his contact information with the Wisconsin police officer to whom he had spoken.
10:47 p.m. Officers investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Ocean Avenue.
Wednesday, July 15
» Alarms: 1
» Building/property checks: 6
» Abandoned 911 calls: 0
» Vehicle stops, citations: 0
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 4
8:08 a.m. A low wire was reported on Blueberry Road.
8:55 a.m. Officers investigated a general complaint on Elm Street. The issue could not be located.
9:02 a.m. An officer investigated a possible violation of a non-criminal town bylaw on Humphrey Street. The alleged violation could not be located.
10:32 a.m. An officer investigated a possible violation of a non-criminal town bylaw on Clark Lane.
11:02 a.m. An officer investigated a possible violation of a non-criminal town bylaw
on Village Street. The alleged violation could not be located.
11:45 a.m. An officer investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Lee and Gregory streets. The vehicle could not be located.
11:53 a.m. Services were rendered after a general complaint on Green Street Court.
12:32 p.m. A citizen was assisted on Shetland Road.
3:42 p.m. An officer responded to the scene of a vehicle crash on Palmer Road and Humphrey Street and filed a report.
6:33 p.m. Officers investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Ocean Avenue.
9:27 p.m. An officer investigated a complaint about an e-bike on Front and State streets. The e-bike could not be located.
Thursday, July 16
» Alarms: 1 » Building/property checks: 6 » Abandoned 911 calls: 1 » Vehicle stops, citations: 1 » Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 0
6:53 a.m. A dead skunk was reported on Tedesco and West streets.
10:25 a.m. An officer investigated a report of a violation of a non-criminal town bylaw on Gallison Avenue. The report proved to be unfounded.
10:58 a.m. An officer assisted a citizen on Lafayette Street.
11:40 a.m. A complaint was made about a moving vehicle on Middle Street.
1 p.m. An officer investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Smith Street and Atlantic Avenue.
1:36 p.m. An officer rendered services after a general complaint on Atlantic Avenue.
2:43 p.m. Services were rendered after a report of larceny, forgery or fraud on Pleasant Street.
4:54 p.m. Officers, firefighters and an ambulance crew responded to the scene of a single-vehicle crash on Ocean Avenue. An officer spoke with the “visibly upset and shaken” driver of the vehicle who explained that she had dropped
Seal-ebrity sightings off Marblehead
BY RICK CUZNER
These are photos of grey seals snapped off the coast of Marblehead at the Great Pig Rocks in July.
I am always amazed by the number of seals out there. Low tide seems to be the best time to spot them, when plenty of rocks are exposed for the seals to lay on and sun themselves.
Grey seals are one of the largest marine mammals in New England. Adult males can reach 7 -8 feet long and weigh 600800 pounds, while females are typically about half that weight. They’re easy to identify. Grey seals have a long, sloping snout that gives them a distinctive “horsehead” profile. Harbor seals, the other common seal in Massachusetts, have shorter, rounder faces.
Their population has made a dramatic comeback. Grey seals were nearly wiped out in New England by hunting in the 1800s. Since receiving federal protection under the Marine Mammal Protection Act in 1972, their numbers have rebounded, and they’re now common along the
Massachusetts coast. They’re found all along the Massachusetts shoreline. You can see them from Cape Ann and Marblehead to Cape Cod and the Islands, although the
her lip gloss on the floor of her SUV and accidentally struck a utility pole in the process of retrieving it. Her vehicle had sustained moderate damage to the right front, and the pole sustained some damage as well, though the Light Department came to the scene to inspect it and deemed the pole to be safe. The vehicle was towed.
5 p.m. Services were rendered after a boat complaint on Salem Harbor.
6:41 p.m. An officer investigated a general complaint on Devereux Street.
7:14 p.m. Officers investigated the report of a disturbance on Devereux Street.
9:10 p.m. An officer rendered services after a general complaint on Meadow Lane.
9:17 p.m. Services were rendered after a boat complaint on Doaks Lane.
9:47 p.m. An officer was dispatched to West Shore Drive to take a report of suspicious activity that had occurred earlier in the night. The resident reported that, about 90 minutes earlier, she had discovered a man in her backyard. The resident’s husband had gone out to confront him, and the man said he was checking the plot lines for a local bank. The residents said they had never been told about
any lot line inspection nor did they expect anybody to be there, though the sale of their home was under agreement and closing in a matter of days. The man in the backyard also could not produce any identification and said he came in through the side gate. He then left but did not appear to be heading toward any vehicle in the area. The woman had been able to take a photo of the man, which she shared with the officer. The woman had also contacted her real estate agent who was also unaware of any planned visits to the property. The resident had locked all the doors and windows to the home and said she would continue to research whether the man’s visit was legitimate. After the officer had returned to the station, the resident provided an update that it appeared to have been a legitimate visit from the plot plan company because she and her husband discovered that they had received an email during the day about the outstanding need for such an inspection.
Friday, July 17
» Alarms: 1
» Building/property checks: 3
» Abandoned 911 calls: 1
» Vehicle stops, citations: 0
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 2
12:13 a.m.
A 30-year-old Salem woman was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, negligent driving
largest colonies are around Monomoy, Muskeget and Nantucket.
They spend plenty of time on land. It’s normal to see grey seals “hauled out” on rocks,
and driving after her license had been revoked after a vehicle crash on Pleasant Street.
7:14 a.m. A disabled vehicle was reported on Lafayette and Birch streets.
7:40 a.m. An officer investigated a possible violation of a non-criminal town bylaw on Beringer Way. The alleged scofflaw could not be located.
10:45 a.m. An officer assisted a citizen on Pearl Street.
10:49 a.m. A complaint was made about a moving vehicle on Smith Street and Atlantic Avenue.
10:55 a.m. A citizen was assisted on Sheldon Road.
1:54 p.m. The report of a trashbag in the road on Rainbow Road and West Shore Drive was referred to another agency.
2:44 p.m. A detective assisted a citizen on Barnard Hawkes Court.
2:50 p.m. A citizen was assisted on Westport Lane.
3:26 p.m. A citizen was assisted on Ocean Avenue.
4:31 p.m. An officer investigated a report of suspicious activity on Susan Road.
6:35 p.m. Officers rendered services after general information was provided on Atlantic Avenue.
6:54 p.m. An officer assisted another agency on Maverick Street.
7:12 p.m. Officers investigated a disturbance on Creesy Street.
or beaches, where they rest, warm up and molt. If you encounter one on the beach, the best practice is to keep at least 150 feet away and never try to approach or feed it..
8:01 p.m. Officers responded to the scene of a crash in which an e-bike struck a car on Ocean and Atlantic avenues. The log indicates that at least one person was transported to the hospital with unspecified injuries.
8:58 p.m. An officer investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Pleasant and Smith streets. The vehicle could not be located.
9:33 p.m. Officers investigated a general complaint on Crowninshield Island.
9:56 p.m. An officer assisted at the scene of a vehicle crash on Humphrey and Lafayette streets.
10:38 p.m. Officers investigated a general complaint on Pequot Road.
11:25 p.m. A complaint was made about a moving vehicle on Green Street and Pitman Road.
Saturday, July 18
» Alarms: 2 » Building/property checks: 11
» Abandoned 911 calls: 2
» Vehicle stops, citations: 1
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 3
12:14 a.m. An officer investigated a complaint about a moving vehicle on Orne and Washington streets.
1:53 a.m. An officer was dispatched to Casino Road to take a report of an alleged case of fraud. The resident explained that at about 9:30 p.m. he had received an email from Xfinity,
years.
thanking him for registering his new iPhone XR. He stated he did not click on anything in the email and did not have an iPhone. Shortly after this email, the man’s cell phone started acting weird and then shut down, causing him to lose access to his email. The man feared that someone had hacked into his phone and email. The officer advised him to closely monitor his bank accounts and gave him advice on how to protect his identity. The man was satisfied with their conversation and said he would call the police again if anything escalated.
10:04 a.m. A general complaint was made on Harvard Street.
12:15 p.m. An officer investigated a general complaint on Pleasant Street.
12:28 p.m. Annoying phone calls were reported on Gerry Street.
1:16 p.m. An officer responded to the scene of a vehicle crash on West Shore Drive and filed a report.
5:51 p.m. A citizen was assisted on Abbot Street.
11:08 p.m. An officer investigated a general complaint on Pleasant Street.
Sunday, July 19
» Alarms: 4
» Building/property checks: 1
» Abandoned 911 calls: 2
» Vehicle stops, citations: 0
» Vehicle stops, verbal warnings: 1
sandbars
The Marblehead Current is proud to partner with photographer Rick Cuzner, who has been photographing local wildlife for nearly 20
Police
From P. 14
COURTESY PHOTOS / RICK CUZNER
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Marblehead Counseling Center 781-631-8273
Marblehead Housing Authority 781-631-2580
Marblehead Council on Aging 781-631-6225
Marblehead Food Pantry
