THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, AUGUST 15, 2025 Page 13 The Sounds of Saugus By Mark E. Vogler Good morning, Saugus Officially, I’m on vacation for this week and next week. I plan to enjoy some time off with friends, complete as many household projects as I can and get some rest as the summer winds down. But, like in recent vacations, I will be around to answer my emails and assist on a limited basis in the preparation of this week’s Saugus Advocate and next week’s paper. I just won’t be covering events in Saugus until the week of August 25. But feel free to submit story ideas and announcements. Old newspaper guys like me never really take conventional vacations unless they leave town. And sometimes they use the time off to embark on a working man’s vacation. It was about 50 years ago when as a young reporter at the now-defunct North Adams Transcript I took a week’s trip to Washington, D.C., to attend congressional hearings about Karen Silkwood, the whistleblowing plutonium worker at an Oklahoma plant who died in a mysterious car crash. I used the hearings as part of my research to report and write a series on nuclear power after I returned from “vacation.” Quite often, dedicated journalists pursue projects on personal time and at personal expense, because they are committed to getting important projects done. The campaign is on! The Nov. 4 Town Election is 11 weeks away from this coming Tuesday (Aug. 19). That’s a long time to campaign. But things have definitely been heating up in the School Committee and Board of Selectmen races since the nomination papers became available to aspiring candidates on July 21. Former School Committee Member Arthur Grabowski pulled some papers this week, making him the sixth potential challenger to the five incumbent School Committee members. Former Committee member Joseph “Dennis” Gould (he never served as a chair, as we incorrectly noted last week) is SAUGUS BASEBALL TRADITION REVIVED: Here is a scene from the 2011 Saugus High Baseball Alumni game. After an absence of several years, the Annual Saugus High Baseball Alumni Game will return to World Series Park tomorrow (Saturday, August 16) at 4 p.m. (Courtesy Photo to The Saugus Advocate) among the candidates who are eyeing a two-year term on the School Committee. Also pulling nomination papers for a run for the town’s top elected education post are Shannon McCarthy of Precinct 6, Andrew T. Finn from Precinct 4, Roberto F. Bruzzese from Precinct 9 and Finance Committee Member Brian J. Doherty from Precinct 1. As of early this week, when we checked the candidates’ list at the Town Clerk’s Office, no incumbent School Committee members had pulled papers yet. But it’s still early. Candidates have until 5 p.m. on Sept. 12 to obtain nomination papers from the Town Clerk’s Office. The deadline for filing those nomination papers is 5 p.m. on Sept. 16. Meanwhile, three incumbent selectmen have already pulled papers: Board of Selectmen Chair Debra Panetta and Selectmen Anthony Cogliano and Mike Serino. Former Selectman Jennifer E. D’Eon heads the list of challengers, which includes Precinct 1 Town Meeting Member Stacey Herman-Dorant, Precinct 7 Town Meeting Member Frank Federico and Sandro Pansini Souza, an unsuccessful candidate for selectman two years ago when he finished seventh in a field of seven candidates. He currently serves as treasurer on the Saugus TV Board of Directors. Precinct 8 Town Meeting Member Kristi Talagan, who ran for the Saugus Housing Authority four years ago and lost, has pulled papers to run for a seat on the Housing Authority again. Stay tuned. School Days nearing Hope you are having a fun, safe and productive summer. Tuesday, Aug. 26 is the first day of the new school year. That’s just one week away from this coming Tuesday (Aug. 19). Not long from now, we’ll be admiring the fall colors and the start of the football season. Founders Day is little more than a month away. That’s always a big deal for Saugonians. And the campaigns for the various town political candidates should be in full spring by then. Stay tuned. World Series Park will host alumni game The Annual Saugus High Baseball Alumni Game will return to World Series Park on Saturday, August 16, at 4 p.m. After an absence of several years, the alumni game will offer the opportunity to former Saugus High School baseball players to play in a game. Anyone who would like to play should contact Saugus High coach Mike Mabee at 781941-0775. This week’s “Shout outs” For this week’s column, we received several nominations for “Shout Outs” from our readers: Precinct 6 Town Meeting Member Jeanie Bartolo submitted two: “This sad ‘Shout Out’ is for Deb Dion Faust who passed away last week. Deb was the Town of Saugus Woman of the Year a few years back and a former member of the Board of Trustees for the Saugus Public Library. She was the backbone of the American Legion Post 210 Friday morning Breakfasts and from this day forward they will seem hollow without her. I can picture her in heaven knitting away for all the Angels. Rest In Peace. “A second ‘Shout Out’ for Town Hall’s Jeannie Meredith to wish her a great big HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! And many more on August 18th!” Jeanie and Jeannie share the same birthday. Happy birthday to you both! Precinct 6 Town Meeting Member Karen Rakinic offered the following “Shout Out”: “I would like to give a shout out to Saugus library director, Alan Thibeault, for his help with the ‘Young at Art’ show currently at the library reading room until the end of August. All the artists from the Saugus Senior Center would like to thank him for his help and encouragement in putting up our show. His passion for community and culture is most appreciated!” Rick Fail: “I’d like to give a ‘Shout Out’ to The Saugus Advocate for their recent story on community biking and safety. I’ve noticed the number of kids wearing helmets seems to be increasing noticeably. I also want to ‘Shout Out’ to the Saugus Police Department bike patrol.” Want to “Shout Out” a fellow Saugonian? This is an opportunity for our paper’s readers to single out – in a brief mention – remarkable acts or achievements by Saugus residents or an act of kindness or a nice gesture. Just send an email (mvoge@ comcast.net) with a mention in the subject line of “An Extra Shout Out.” No more than a paragraph; anything longer might lend itself to a story and/ or a photo. 20 Veterans Food Pantry Aug. Former Saugus Veterans Service Officer Paul Cancelliere submitted the following message: Attention Saugus veterans. The next Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) mobile monthly veterans food pantry is Wednesday, August 20, at 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Saugus Senior Center. Volunteers are needed to assist with the breakdown of the delivery and distribution of the groceries to veterans and their spouses. This program supports veterans and their families who may be struggling to meet the rising costs of groceries by supplementing fresh produce, and protein each month. Moving forward, a schedule is planned to offer this supplemental program on the third Wednesday of each month for veterans who are residents of the Town of Saugus. THE SOUNDS | SEE PAGE 14
14 Publizr Home