Page 10 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – Friday, March 15, 2019 ASKS | from page 4 the School Department about that, or the Town? A: As a matter of fact, The Saugus Advocate published a lengthy letter about this (Aug. 25, 2017), and there was no response from anybody, but I think the Board of Directors of the cable station should – rather than investing any money in old infrastructure – should consider the new school. You have to make it so the kids will come. As it is today, they are not going to go out of their way to go to a different facility. Q: And to have a facility that is available to the community as well as the kids. A: Absolutely. Q: And it could become part of the curriculum? A: Yes, and they could have it all there – computer graphics to art to theatre – everything. There is already a fiber optics linkup within the educational community. Back when I was executive director, we had supplied every school in Saugus with production capabilities. We gave them a three-camera studio – to the Junior High. Q: So, what does this say to you? You have the studio currently housed in the High School, but there are no plans to include them in the new High School. A: Well, it takes somebody with some patience and drive to push something like that through the community. But the problem is it actually has to be supported by the community and the powers that be. It really has to come from the Town Manager and the Board of Selectmen, as it should. They should see the value of having that kind of facility available to the students and the community in the new facility. I mean, everything would be beautiful. Like I said, just take a look at Concord and take a look even at Wakefield, which has a similar facility. People forget … PEG [Public, Educational and Government] access was created for the community so different voices could be raised and alternative opinions – and not necessarily the mainstream. Q: So, this kind of setup could be an adjunct to the video classes they have. A: Absolutely. When I was there, we had a video club. We had students in classrooms learning about video. Q: So, you wrote the Letter to the Editor and you never got any kind of response? A: Not from anyone. Q: Did you ever approach the current cable board or the selectmen? A: No. That’s kind of my fault, but that’s what you get when you’re used to the normal response you get from them. Q: So, you just didn’t feel comfortable approaching them? A: No, I didn’t. Q: Because you didn’t think they would take your idea seriously after everything that had happened? A: No, I didn’t. Or, if anything, it would go the other way [against] because of my involvement; because I’ve seen that, too, and I was the only one pushing this agenda. I had been in the community and had been in all of the schools, and they took that all away. Q: So, what else do you see of the potential here with a new school being built? A: It’s a remarkable opportunity. I’m just a firm believer in communications: the more, the better. If they don’t have that in their new educational facility, it’s a missed opportunity. Students could be receiving training in video production, graphics, arts, entertainment and so many other educational activities in a studio with all of the latest gadgets right inside the new school. The entire community would benefit from having the new facility located in the new school complex. There are many factors why it is smart to incorporate such a new facility in the new school complex, including incorporating an up-to-date facility, which will both help and facilitate teaching media and communications; a centralized location offering ease of access by all in the community – along with being ADA-compliant – without incorporating additional construction costs, and plenty of parking and use for current and future municipal purposes. I just don’t see why they would want to take that opportunity away from the kids, especially in today’s digital age. Q: You approached us and requested to do this interview, so what is the main thing you want to put forth? A: The main thought that I would like to leave everybody with is that to proceed into the future, the best opportunity – especially for the school system – wouldn’t it be enticing to have all of the new technology in the school and available to the students, rather than not? How can you not want that? How can you not want upto-date communications and state-of-the-art studio stuff and all be paid for by the station – so that it’s not even an investment? Q: So, the main point you are trying to make is that the cable television studio really belongs in this new educational facility? A: Absolutely. I would back that all the way. That would be my number one goal and total satisfaction for me. The other thing is just accountability and transparency, which all communications is about. Q: So, you feel that the public is entitled to know what happened to that money that you say is missing and unaccounted for? A: It’s at least a million dollars; so when I left, there was a million dollars and now it’s unaccounted for. Where is it? Where did it go? Q: You’re requesting information that other people in town have made similar requests for, but never received. A: Absolutely. I had to account for the money when I was there, so why shouldn’t that apply to others? Q: Anything else that you would like to share? A: During my tenure as executive director, 2007-2013, we successfully built a two-channel, old municipality infrastructure, one-person operation with minimal programming into a powerhouse of community involvement ultimately generating over 80 hours a week of original programming. This growth in programming allowed us to incorporate another channel in our lineup, establishing a third channel for dedicated programming. This took vision and much community and internal support to accomplish. This support – seven fulltime employees, several parttime workers, including High School students on stipends – were all Saugus residents. We had a mission statement to give back to and increase community involvement, which we accomplished. We also gained complete autonomy from the Town of Saugus, which included funding distributed by Comcast. This we maintained openly and with fiduciary responsibility as dictated by our charter. I never had any signatory control over funding and had to get Board approval for any expenditures deemed necessary for the continued growth of the then Saugus Community Television station. Upon my termination in May 2013, due to a change in community political direction, the funds that were in control of Saugus Community Television were 1) savings account, totally approximately $650,000.00; 2) two CD’s in accounts, totally $300,000.00. Myself and several other Saugus citizens, although using the Freedom of Information Act, have been unable to discover what specifically happened to this $1 million. Where did it go? Who was accountable? Why is there no record of where it went? This is our money as Saugus community members and Comcast users. We deserve to know what happened to it. A rtist Emmanuelle Le Gal lives in Lynn. But she’ll be a big part of the town this month as the Saugus Public Library will feature her watercolors. The subjects of her work range from places in France to more local environs, like the City of Lynn and the Saugus River. It will all be on display in the first floor Reading Room at the Saugus Public Library this month. Le Gal came to Boston and studied at the Massachusetts College of Art, earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in Graphic Design. She focuses on water colors for their immediacy and simplicity and explores different subject matter depending on what catches her eye, constantly changing herself. Art has always been an integral part of her life and her desire to express beauty through art continues. Emmanuelle Le Gal: An area artist displays her work at the Saugus Public Library this month Sixth annual Chili Chowder Challenge to benefit local veterans – March 24 C ome join us for a fun day of FUNdraising to benefit local veterans and our Melrose Veterans Memorial Middle School Veterans Club at the sixth annual Chili Chowder Challenge! It will be held on Sunday, March 24 from noon until 3 p.m. at the Prince VFW Post #1506 (428 Main St. in Melrose). Your $10.00 donation at the door will give you the opportunity to taste all that you can of the many different chili dishes, chowders, soups, etc., prepared by local organizations, groups and several restaurants. Your entry fee will give you tickets which will allow you to vote for your favorite among the chilies, chowders and soups. The Melrose Emblem Club #89 hopes you’ll once again vote their clam chowder Number 1! All funds raised will benefit Operation Resilient and this year will pair local veterans who have served in Afghanistan with 8th grade students from our Middle School for a once in a lifetime trip to the war memorials in Washington, D.C.
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