Page 16 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2022 The Sounds of Saugus By Mark E. Vogler Happy Fourth of July, Saugus! Best wishes to all Saugus citizens — from its kids to senior citizens — for a happy and safe July 4 weekend. Be careful, not only while you’re on the roads driving to reach a holiday destination, but at all of the summertime fun events that present dangers for people who don’t practice safe conduct. Whether it’s at a family swimming pool, a lake or at the beach, the weekend news usually includes a drowning tragedy around July 4. Sometimes it’s a kid and sometimes it’s an adult. I’ve had to cover both sad scenarios over the years. Then, there are the sad stories linked to fi reworks, which happen to be illegal in Massachusetts. It’s against state law to use, own or sell fireworks. And it’s also illegal to buy them elsewhere and bring them into the state. But the worst thing that can happen is for somebody mishandling fireworks to receive serious injuries — or worse. Yes, they can be deadly ammunition. The fi reworks ban includes sparklers, which can melt glass when they heat up. Misuse or reckless handling of fi reworks can also lead to fi res. As a reporter who worked July 4 weekend a number of times in the course of my career, I handled my fair share of July 4 tragedies. I also covered fi res set by kids playing with matches or fireworks. And, unfortunately, I had a few stories to write about murder or other violent crimes fueled by heavy drinking. The job also included reporting on the highway death toll. —Contest— CONTEST SKETCH OF THE WEEK So, whatever your plans are for the weekend, be careful out there. Beware of the computer scams It is getting to the point where I don’t trust most of the emails I receive unless I recognize them — and even those ones aren’t safe sometimes. I don’t know how many times I have been bombarded over the past two years by emails threatening me that my Comcast email service will be shut down immediately if I don’t agree to have my service “updated.” And many of these emails try to mimic Comcast and are crafted so well that they can convince the average computer user to fall for the scam known as “Phishing.” And once you make the mistake of pressing that highlighted bar in the email, you open your computer system up to being hacked and having your identifi cation and fi nancial information compromised. Recently, I had an unscrupulous company representing themselves as a computer security system that I don’t even subscribe to warn that my computer system would be shut down if I didn’t renew my subscription. I started getting pop-up ads warning that I would be shut down and my computer system harmed if I didn’t click the bar. Finally, a woman’s voice began screaming at me repeatedly through my computer monitor, telling me that I had been locked down and advising that I shouldn’t try to shut my computer down. This woman’s voice kept repeating to the point that I did shut my computer system down instead of touching the highlighted bar to “renew” my computer security subscription. The lady’s voice went on to cite fi ve or six alarming events which had happened to my computer because I didn’t have a security system in place. GUESS WHO GOT SKETCHED! If you know the right answer, you might win the contest. In this week’s edition, we continue our weekly feature where a local artist sketches people, places and things in Saugus. Got an idea who was sketched this week? If you do, please email me at mvoge@comcast.net or leave a phone message at 978683-7773. Anyone who between now and Tuesday at noon identifi es the Saugonian sketched in this week’s paper qualifi es to have their name put in a green Boston Red Sox hat with a chance to be selected as the winner of a $10 gift certifi cate, compliments of Dunkin’ in the Food Court at the Saugus Square One Mall. But you have to enter to win! Look for the winner and identifi cation in next week’s “The Sounds of Saugus.” Please leave your mailing address in case you are a winner. (Courtesy illustration to The Saugus Advocate by a Saugonian who goes by the name of “The Sketch Artist”) But none of it was true. It was all part of an elaborate Phishing scam. Several times a week, I receive emails from a fake attorney who represents an alleged relative that I never heard of about a massive fortune that I have just inherited. But none of these emails ever address me by name. Those are obviously bogus. And then there are the emails with an attached bill, saying “thank you” for buying a product that will be shipped to some place in the Midwest or on the West Coast. If this was sent in error, I am instructed to hit the bar or call an 800 number to report the mistake. I just hit the “delete” button. I get more concerned when I receive these authentic-looking emails representing themselves as banks, fi nancial institutions or utility companies. I hit the “delete” button again. Several years ago, I transferred these emails to a Comcast Fraud address. But I never saw the value in doing that because the emails kept coming. Comcast didn’t do anything to reassure me that they were protecting me. A word of advice: If you receive an email that looks offi - cial, don’t fall for it. Your bank, your utility company or internet provider isn’t going to email or call you with instructions about something you need to do. Don’t fall for the Phishing. And if you receive a familiar email from somebody you believe is a friend or acquaintance asking you to do them “a favor” — like buy some gift cards and provide the numbers — don’t fall for that one. A friend or acquaintance probably isn’t going to ask you to do a favor for you via email. They would do it in person or call you. Your friend or acquaintance likely got hacked and they may not even know about it. Saugus Portuguese Feast returns tomorrow After the COVID-19 pandemic led to its cancellation for the past two years, Imperio Mariense is back in Saugus for the July 4 weekend. The annual feast, which is held in Saugus to celebrate the coronation of the Holy Ghost emperor and empress, gets underway tomorrow (Saturday, July 2) at 5 p.m. at 262 Lynn Fells Pkwy. and continues through Sunday at 11 a.m. “Imperio Mariense of Saugus is more than just our annual event,” says the Imperio Mariense De Saugus Facebook page. It continues, “It is our heritage, our roots, our journey from the Azores to the United States, it is our story. Established in 1927, when a dozen immigrants from the island of Santa Maria, Azores decided to bring their own feast and tradition to their new home and share its celebration with the community. “The feast is held on Lynn Fells Parkway for two days. The feast is put together in large part by the dedication and hard work of the board members and volunteers, who get together to bake and prepare a week leading to the event. “Imperio Mariense Feast visitors are Portuguese natives or descendants who come from surrounding cities such as Cambridge, Hudson, Stoughton, Taunton, Bridgewater and many other out of state cities. Visitors can expect plenty of entertainment over the weekend as there are usually bands and surprise guests that will take stage.” The custom starts with a procession, followed by mass and coronation before the Holy Ghost soup lunch. The Holy Ghost celebration is specific to Azorean natives — established to reinforce a sense of community between the islands, according to the Facebook page. For more information, go to http://imperiomariensedesaugus.org/ or email imperiomariense@ gmail.com. Summer Concert Series begins Wednesday The National Parks Service and Saugus Public Library are cosponsoring a free Summer Concert Series that begins next Wednesday (July 6) at 6 p.m. at the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site (244 Central St. in Saugus). Tony Malionek & Company — with music from the 60’s, 70’s & 80’s — will lead off the Wednesday evening series, which will last through Aug. 24. Here is the rest of the Summer Concert Series at a glance: • July 13 — Atwater & Donnelly: American & Celtic folk music & dance. • July 20 — Ditto Band: American rock and folk from the 60’s & 70’s. • July 27 — Jump Street: pop, r & b, blues, jump, classic rock. • August 3 — Squeeze Box Stompers: Cajun & Zydeco. • August 10 — Memorylaners: 50’s, 60’s & 70’s music. • August 17 — Decades of Rock Band: classic rock — 70’s, 80’s & 90’s. • August 24 — Marina & Bernardo: acoustic folk. Each concert will be held outdoors, weather permitting (see SaugusPublicLibrary. org for updates/cancellations). Bring your own chair or blanket. Picnics welcome! Saugus seeks student poll workers Town Clerk Ellen Schena is circulating that “Uncle Sam needs you” flyer again, in THE SOUNDS | SEE PAGE 17
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