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THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, October 24, 2025 Page 15 COMMUNITY | FROM PAGE 1 Solomon Davidoff, a political newcomer challenging for one of the three At Large seats at stake in the Municipal Election 11 days from now, summed it up well, his sentiment echoed at times by each one of the other four candidates. “Communication is key. Understanding is key,” Davidoff said. “Reaching to as many people and as many groups as possible is necessary for our community to grow and succeed.” Three incumbents — Councillors At Large Craig Spadafora, Karen Colón Hayes and Carey McDonald — participated in Monday’s forum, as did two challengers: Davidoff and Michelle Luong. Spadafora has been a member of the City Council for over 20 years; first elected in 2002 and seeking reelection to his 12th consecutive term. McDonald and Colón Hayes are both seeking reelection to their third terms, both elected in their first try at public office in 2021. Davidoff is a political newcomer in his first political campaign, while Luong is former longtime Ward 7 School Committee member. In opening statements, each Councillor gave a brief biography, and some cited accomplishments they had achieved. McDonald noted his leading role in helping save Malden residents thousands of dollars in electricity costs by working to establish the Malden Community Electricity Program, which provides competitive pricing and renewable energy options. He also noted work he has done along with City Council colleagues in replacing lead water lines in Malden and addressing speeding and street safety by supporting speed bumps in various parts of the city, including Bainbridge Street. McDonald also mentioned he was instrumental in helping establish the recently initiated Malden Police Reform Commission, which monitors the policies and procedures of local policing. The two-term Councillor At Large also stated the City Council was aware of actions of the federal government toward immigrants and was ready to shield Malden residents from threats if needed. McDonald said he was a parent of two children now enrolled in Malden Public Schools and added, “I believe we need leaders who will fight for our values, fight for our neighborhoods, fighting for our people and fight for what works.” Spadafora noted the length of his service and how the landscape of his service as a Councillor has changed. Since first elected in 2002, he is now the father of three children who are all in high school at the present time. “They have had the opportunity to attend schools in the city and are benefitting from those years now. Now as a parent, you certainly realize it is even more important to work toward making a successful future for our community,” Councillor Spadafora said. “We are in a bit of a challenged time, but I see it as an opportunity for our city to establish and show resilience as a community.” Spadafora, who has been a consistent voice on the city’s finances, said he would continue working to grow the city’s commercial tax base, keep neighborhoods safe and keep housing affordable. Davidoff cited his background as an educator and his strength as a communicator who has been able to bring people and groups together. “I am very good at helping people understand the point of view of others. That is so important to the overall goal of improving communication,” he said. When everyone is focused so much on their own message, they may miss opportunities to hear the message of others, he added. Luong told the audience she and her husband, who was a native of Vietnam before immigrating to the United States, are small business owners and “part of a multicultural family” and members of the large Malden Asian-American community for 25 years. She said she serves as Treasurer of the Greater Malden Asian American Community Coalition (GMAACC) and has been a multi-term Malden School Committee member. She said she was proud of her work on the School Committee in developing an official Anti-Bullying Policy, vision improvement through the Lions Club, working with the Malden Lions Club and “standing up for women with the Zonta Club.” “I will continue to help to build a Malden we can all believe in,” said Luong. Colón Hayes in her opening statement told the audience she was a social worker and active in many groups and community activities and cited examples, such as mediating a ping-pong games dispute that drew the attention of the Mass. Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) through a complaint from Malden Senior Center residents in the year 2015. “We used restorative justice with the assistance of the Chinese Culture Connection and were able to use an East Meets West strategy to resolve the issue.” Councillor At Large Colón Hayes also noted she was a founding member of Malden Community Organizing for Racial Equity (MaldenCORE), which held rallies and led forums against what it said was systemic racism it believed was present in the city of Malden and the Malden Public Schools, in 2020 and 2021. Colón Hayes said she also participated in vigils she helped organize in Malden to mourn the deaths of victims in Florida in 2023 that were termed motivated by Asian hate, and through Malden CORE, rallies to speak out against Asian hate the group said it believed existed in Malden. Answering a question posed by Leverett Wing of Commonwealth Seminar, the moderator, on “What does partnership mean to you, and how would you work to establish partnership across age, race and religion?” Councillor Colón Hayes called herself “a born collaborator” who brought many groups together, including MaldenCORE, and then established Malden’s PROMISE in 2021. Malden’s PROMISE, she explained, was a collaboration of many different groups in Malden that worked on different issues, one of which was school dropout rates. “We can use resources and work together, as I have done all my life, and will continue to do for Malden with all of my heart and soul,” Colón Hayes said. Luong said she started community advocacy 30 years ago with the Fight to Save Ferryway Green, when the city took the park, built the new school in its place and replaced the green space farther down Cross Street and Lincoln Common. She said she has been active many years in very visible groups, such as Malden Lions, Malden Zonta and Greater Malden Asian American Corp., where she led the successful push for transliteration voting ballots in English and Chinese. Davidoff said his idea of partnership is to reach out to as many people as possible and to make sure that translation was available at every step of this reaching out. “There is so much that is translated on the city website, and that is tremendous,” Davidoff said, “but there should be more — more information and more translation.” Spadafora said he was proud of how Malden has handled transparency and information sharing. “I think Malden has done an exceptional job in the past 20 years in reaching out to citizens and including engagement and outreach to all parts of our community: Senior Center, Teen Center, through our schools, lots of festivals and workshops. It’s amazing,” Spadafora said. “I’m very hopeful and very excited about Malden moving forward.” McDonald recalled a vote he almost made on a city budget in the recent past. “I said I would not vote for this budget if, as had been discussed, funding for a dedicated translation push for city services was not included. It was just about equity and I am glad my Council colleagues agreed,” he said, noting that translation service funding as a city-run offering is now a regular part of the budget. He also referred to his present work as chairperson of the City Council’s Finance Committee, ongoing work with the Malden Police Advisory Committee and work in helping establishing both the Climate Action Committee and the Malden Electricity Program. —More on the Councillor At Large Forum will appear online this week at advocatenews.net/ malden ~ HELP WANTED ~ Type of Person Needed: * Are you an experienced/willing to learn, motivated person looking for a shop where your skills can be valued? 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Perform light duty mechanical preventive duties, including Fleet preventive maintenance. * State Inspection Services * Miscellaneous shop duties Requirements: * Valid driver’s license with good driving history * Possess or pass the required State Inspector License Hours: Tuesday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM Saturday 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM * Rate will be based on experience Contact: Ed Hyde or David Morovitz Call: 781-322-9401 Email: ehyde@maldentrans.com Website: www.maldentrans.com

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