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IN THIS ISSUE
FOOTBALL
ASK LIZZIE
PICKLEBALL
Magicians advance to Elite 8
Teaching your kids ‘self-kindness’
Court battle at Seaside
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November 08, 2023
| VOLUME 1, ISSUE NO. 48
| MARBLEHEADCURRENT.ORG
| ON SOCIAL @MHDCURRENT
SCHOOL NEWS
Video shows ‘unauthorized’ removal of BLM flag BY LEIGH BLANDER The recent removal, and return several days later, of the Black Lives Matter banner at Marblehead High School prompted another wave of impassioned comments from parents, community leaders and students at a School Committee meeting on Nov. 2. Many speakers referenced
Marblehead mother Sharman Pollender who confessed to removing the flag in a story published by the Marblehead Beacon. The Current has obtained surveillance footage of the flag being removed. You can watch it at https://loom.ly/2v48vnY. “My son is not going to feel safe; he is not going to feel welcome,” said Tinieya Searcy,
Surveillance video shows a woman removing the Black Lives Matter banner at Marblehead High School. The banner has since been returned.
whose child attends the high school. “That parent [who took down the banner], she should have to pay for that. Someone there needs to say, ‘No, we’re not doing that.’” “It’s very uncomfortable for me,” Searcy added, wiping tears away from her eyes. Four MHS students spoke SCHOOLS, P. A4
INCLUSIVITY
70TH ANNIVERSARY
‘Make sure you stay best friends’
Public spaces require $3.6M in ADA upgrades, study reveals ‘Unprecedented’ report provides roadmap for upgrades over five years BY WILLIAM J. DOWD
COURTESY PHOTOS
The happy couple on their wedding day, Oct. 24, 1953.
Exactly 70 years later: Beverly and Paul ‘Buck’ Bucknam on their recent anniversary.
Local couple celebrates big milestone BY LEIGH BLANDER Beverly and Paul “Buck” Bucknam just did something very few couples get to do. On Oct. 24, they celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. “We never gave up on each other,” Beverly said as the couple sat down with the Current recently. They shared their secret to a long and happy marriage. “We were married for four months when Buck was deployed to Korea,” Beverly said. “He was gone for 16 months. It wasn’t a very happy time. So, we already knew what it’s like to be apart. And we never wanted to be apart again.” The couple met in 1951 after a football game at Norwich University. Buck was from Winthrop and
Beverly from Shrewsbury. After they married, they moved to the North Shore, where they raised three sons. They now have 10 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. The family is spread across the country. “Make sure you stay best friends,” Buck said about making a marriage work. “You know what the other needs.” Buck, who worked as a civil engineer, worked late many nights, traveling for meetings around the state and beyond. But he came home most nights, “no matter how late,” he said. “I always wanted to have breakfast with the family,” he said. Buck said it helps when husband and wife share interests. For the Bucknams, those interests are sailing and traveling. They’ve
sailed up and down the East Coast. They’ve visited 48 of the 50 states.
Date nights
As a young couple, the Bucknams enjoyed eating at a neighborhood Italian restaurant. “You really only went out on New Year’s Eve in those days,” Beverly said. Now their favorite date night is dinner at the Corinthian Yacht Club. “There’s no place better than the Corinthian’s porch,” according to Beverly. The couple has been celebrating their anniversary, and Beverly’s June birthday, with family members and friends for the last few months. So, what’s next for the happy couple? “Staying healthy together and visiting our kids,” Buck said.
A new study of accessibility barriers at more than 40 public parks, beaches, cemeteries, schools and municipal buildings in Marblehead identified needed improvements totaling $3.6 million. The study, conducted by the Edward J. Collins Jr. Center for Public Management at the University of Massachusetts Boston, evaluates every publicly owned facility and property for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The study was funded through a $50,000 grant from the state’s Community Compact Cabinet program. Laurie Blaisdell, chair of the Marblehead Disabilities Commission, called the study “unprecedented in scope” and said she is “really proud of the town for getting on board and recognizing this is an important issue. It affects everyone.” Blaisdell said the study now makes it easier for Marblehead to compete for full implementation grants. The 78-page assessment states that while Marblehead is committed to accessibility, “the town has limited resources with which to address accessibility issues and competing priorities.” It includes transition plan checklists prioritizing short- and long-term improvements such as re-striping parking lots, installing automatic door openers, replacing toilet fixtures and amenities, rebuilding ramps and stairs and replacing small elevators with larger ones over the next one to five years. Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer said the town views the report as a road map to guide annual budget and capital planning processes.
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ADA, P. A4