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Page 4 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2023 Need a hall for your special event? The Schiavo Club, located at 71 Tileston Street, Everett is available for your Birthdays, Anniversaries, Sweet 16 parties and more? For more info, call (857) 249-7882 8 Norwood St. Everett (617) 387-9810 Open Daily 4:00 PM Closed Sunday Announcing our Classic Specials Dine In Only:Dine In Only: * FREE Salad with purchase of Entree, Monday & Tuesdays * Cheese Pizza - Only $10 Catch ALL The Live Sports Action On Our Large Screen TV’s HOLIDAY SHOP LOCAL & DROP BY FOR DINNER! www.eight10barandgrille.com Like us on Facebook advocate newspaper Facebook.com/Advocate.news.ma ~ LETTER-TO-THE-EDITOR ~ A Farewell Address to the Residents of Revere Dear Residents of Revere: Apologies for not being able to deliver this at our regular meeting of the Revere City Council on the 18th of December, but as I thought about what I wanted to say at our last meeting as I conclude this tenure as Ward Six Councillor, fi rst and foremost, I wanted to say thank you to the people of Ward Six. Refl ecting back, I am truly humbled. It has been the greatest honor of a lifetime to have been twice elected by my neighbors to collectively represent them at City Hall, and I’ll fondly look back at this journey for the rest of my life. The residents of West Revere and North Revere are truly some of the best people you’ll ever come across – good, decent, hardworking, passionate, people who are engaged in and care about their community, and who take immense pride in their homes, in their neighborhood, and in their city. I’ve met a lot of amazing people through this experience who are neighbors that I didn’t know before running for offi ce, and I’m grateful for those interactions. I ran for the City Council because I wanted to help people and do some good for our little corner of the city. Contrary to what some might have thought when I was fi rst elected, I did not intend to stay many terms, and I was never one of the ambitious ones who aspired to higher offi ce in the city. I was a Ward Councillor – here to serve the people and make a bit of an impact. And an impact, I believe I made. Be it by providing support to the veterans of Revere, allowing the public citizens a greater opportunity to participate in the public process, ensuring diligent guardianship of taxpayer dollars, or completing the mundane tasks of getting streets repaired, sidewalks replaced or “Stop” signs and speed tables installed, there were some successes during my tenure. It can also be objectively measured where there was more that could have been done or in hindsight to see how things could have played out diff erently. There might have been an issue here or there that I was unable to resolve for reasons beyond my control, and some residents may not have agreed with some of the decisions that were made along the way, or how I handled a particular matter. However, I want the residents of Revere, especially in Ward Six, to know and understand that I did my very best and that I gave this job my heart and soul. While on the topic of giving 110% to this job, I also want the people of Ward Six to know that I always had their back, even when they weren’t looking or may not have realized it, because I love my city and I would always go to the wall to protect the quality of life of my constituents. The residents of this city who watch these meetings or call or email us as elected offi cials know us, but most times, they know us superficially. Every one of us up here, in some way, make sacrifi ces in our personal and professional lives to serve in this role. It sometimes gets lost in the noise of Revere politics that we are all regular people, and we balance this role with everything else going on in our lives. The unseen time and dedication that many of these people have to this work is remarkable and admirable. I say all of this because tonight, I want to share a story that I have never really publicly shared before regarding a sacrifi ce that I made in my professional life to protect the quality of life for the people of my Ward, particularly the North Revere neighborhood. Two years ago, as many know, I left my position in the offi ce of Revere’s State Representative. I went into the private sector to work for a regional healthcare system – and no, it was in no way a lobbyist role. The job, however, was life changing for me professionally, in terms of opportunity and salary. When I was interviewing for the position in the Summer of 2021, I disclosed that I was a member of the Revere City Council, and I inquired if that would present an issue or a confl ict, as that would have ended the process right then and there. I was told multiple times throughout the hiring process that my service in my community would not be an issue. Fast forward to a little more than a month into my new role, I determined that the job was not the right fi t for me. Why was that? Because I would have had to compromise my morals and I would have had to sell my constituents down the river if I chose to stay. You see, the healthcare system was based in the City of Boston, and in September, 2021, the Acting Mayor of Boston came out with a plan to plop people from Mass and Cass and put them up at the Quality Inn Hotel in North Revere. On its face, the plan was cruel, as there was no plan to provide any kind of needed services to these folks; and of course, the neighborhood was very concerned. To his credit, Mayor Arrigo strongly opposed this plan, and the entire City Council backed him – to my recollection, this was the one time in my four years up here that the Mayor and the City Council were 100% on the same page – We were not going to let the City of Boston steamroll over our city. As the Ward Councillor, I came out strong, and said that the “City of Boston ought to have been ashamed of itself” for shifting the issue onto a neighboring municipality without productively trying to fi nd a collaborative solution to help these folks. My employer, however, took exception that I was taking a stance on this issue because the company had a working relationship with offi cials in City of Boston, and they feared political consequences against the company if someone from Boston City Hall connected that a Revere City Councillor was in their ranks. My superiors at this company urged that I issue a public apology to the City of Boston for my opposition to the Acting Mayor’s plan for Mass and Cass AND that I do not seek re-election to the City Council in 2021 in order to minimize potential negative impacts on the company’s end. I was faced with a dilemma – do I shut up and do what my bosses are asking to preserve my full-time career at a job which provided signifi cant opportunity for professional growth, or do I continue to stand with my constituents and my city? For me, it was a no-brainer; I had been FAREWELL | SEE Page 17

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