CP_MBHC_20221214_1_A01
IN THIS ISSUE
THEATER
HO, HO, ROW
SPORTS
Newsies opens Thursday
Santa Paddle, Year 2
Their ‘Lucky’ day
Page 11
Page 10
Page 13
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PAID
MARBLEHEAD, MA PERMIT NO. 25
NEWS FOR PEOPLE, NOT FOR PROFIT.
TM
December 14, 2022
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VOLUME 1, ISSUE NO. 4
| MARBLEHEADCURRENT.ORG
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ON SOCIAL @MHDCURRENT
Chief: Body-worn police cameras coming BY LEIGH BLANDER Marblehead Police officers may begin wearing body cameras within a year, joining police in Swampscott who started using the devices on December 2. Most Salem Police officers have been wearing the cameras since October 1st after a pilot program launched in January. “I think that body-worn cameras are a great use of technology with a benefit to police and the public,”
Marblehead Police Chief Dennis Kin told the Marblehead Current. “I’m in support of them. It’s just a process of the timeline and implementation.” In Swampscott, all 32 officers and Chief Ruben Quesada are now wearing cameras. “Honestly, we’re all really excited about it,” Quesada said. “We’re moving toward 21st century police transparency and accountability. This will enhance public safety and safety for our officers. There’s been no
negative reception to it.” In Marblehead, King is starting to look into the cameras and all they entail. “There are a lot of things you need to account for before you bring them into operation,” he said. Those considerations include cost. King estimates it will cost the town about $45,000 a year to lease and operate the cameras. “We need to identify where the funding sources are coming from,” he said. Then, there’s staffing. “Who
do we get to administer it?” King asked. “How do we handle the upkeep of the cameras, which is quite significant. In Marblehead, we’re running lean, staffing wise. How do we share those tasks because it’s quite a bit.” There’s also the question of who will handle requests for camera footage and any redacting or editing that may be involved. In Salem, those administrative CAMERAS, P. A3
A family that hurts … and helps Delaney’s new book ‘doing what it is supposed to do’ BY KRIS OLSON Marblehead native Rob Delaney can now add “New York Times bestselling author” to a resume that already included co-creating and starring in an award-winning television series (“Catastrophe”), and dozens of other credits on the big and small screen. But Delaney wishes this latest accomplishment never came to be. That goes doubly for his mother. Delaney’s book, “A Heart That Works”—No. 9 on the Times’ combined print and e-book nonfiction list in its first week of release—offers at-times brutal insights into the pain and heartbreak Delaney and his family continue to endure from the death of his son, Henry. Delaney and his wife Leah’s third child, Henry was diagnosed with a brain tumor at age 1 and spent much of his life in the hospital. Surgery removed the tumor, but Henry lost the ability to swallow and required a tracheostomy to help him breathe. Henry spent the last several months of his life at DELANEY, P. A4
Village School Winter Band Concert, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 6:30 p.m. » Village Grade 4 Chorus, Thursday, Dec 15, 2 p.m., at the Community Center for the Rec and Parks “Elves in Training” program » High School Winter Concert, CONCERTS, P. A4
BUDGETING, P. A3
Marblehead native Rob Delaney nibbles on the ear of his son, Henry. Rob writes about Henry’s death before the age of 3 and his family’s grief in his new book, ‘A Heart That Works.’
for performing and applied arts. “Parents can look forward to seeing their children shine.” Elementary through high school students performed at several venues during the Christmas Walk weekend. Here’s a look at what’s ahead. All performances take place at the Veterans School unless otherwise noted.
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From our Mariner family to yours, happy holidays. Thank you for your support. Heather, Michael & Phil To learn more visit www.marinermarblehead.com, or stop by our Welcome Center at 31 Atlantic Avenue.
BLACK CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW
Marblehead migrates to cloud-based budgeting software From debt-service to operational budgets, Marblehead’s fiscal year 2023 municipal budget registered around $110 million. Officials project a $114.5 million municipal budget for 2024, and $117 million for 2025. As Marblehead’s budget balloons and becomes more complex, Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer believes the town should not only modernize how it assembles budgets but also open municipal finances to the public. Enter ClearGov. Marblehead recently bought a subscription to the cloud-based budget and performance management software - and its implementation is underway. Kezer has characterized the town’s shift to ClearGov as significant because the town has spent years compiling the municipal budget in Excel spreadsheets. “Rather than relying on traditional Microsoft products, such as Excel, Word and PowerPoint, ClearGov provides a centralized tool to manage the inputting of requests, facilitate running scenarios based on the financial choices we make and effectively present this information for the internal users, decision makers and the pubic,” Kezer told the Select Board. “The software avoids the hassles of collecting and collating various spreadsheets and maintaining version control through the budget process.” Town and school officials and staff and Finance Committee members investigated a number of different software packages before settling on ClearGov. “It was a clear consensus that though there were similarities [among] ClearGov and other like services, ClearGov was the more user-friendly option for all various participants that will use the software,” Kezer
Students shine in holiday concerts all month Marblehead students are performing holiday concerts and entertaining audiences around town throughout the month of December. “This is a special time for many, including our young artists,” said Andrew Scoglio, the Marblehead High School choral director and lead teacher
MUNICIPAL MATTERS
BY WILLIAM J. DOWD
‘TIS THE SEASON
BY LEIGH BLANDER
COURTESY/ TOWN OF SWAMPSCOTT
Swampscott Police Chief Ruben Quesada wears his camera, along with 31 officers in his department.