EAGER TO HELP | FROM PAGE 1 Page 2 their families informed of services the town provides. Town officials, including Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree and members of the Board of Selectmen, have praised Connell’s credentials and the background he brings to Saugus. Connell achieved the rank of Colonel during a 30-year active-duty Army career that included senior command and leadership assignments in the United States, Iraq and Afghanistan. He commanded approximately 500 soldiers with the 2nd Battalion, 11th Field Artillery Regiment during a 15-month deployment to northern Iraq in THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, OCTObEr 2, 2026 support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, where his battalion conducted combat and stability operations. Connell later served with the 101st Airborne Division in Afghanistan and subsequently became Chief of Staff for the Commander of United States Forces– Afghanistan, helping lead and coordinate a complex multinational and interagency headquarters during a significant period of U.S. operations in Afghanistan. From 2010 until his retirement in 2014, Connell served as Senior Army Advisor to the Adjutant General of the Massachusetts National Guard, advising senior leadership on organization, personnel, training, operations, logistics, mo“WE’RE STILL HERE!” Since 1947 MALDEN AUTO BODY Book online: Maldenauto.com 49 Robin St., Everett, MA 617-389-3030 * Maldenab@yahoo.com Over 79 years of exceptional service! Massone Family Owned & Operated bilization planning and military readiness. His military decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Iraq Combat Service Medal and Afghanistan Combat Service Medal, among numerous other awards and honors. Connell also served as a senior trainer at the Army’s Joint Readiness Training Center, where he trained, coached and mentored battalion commanders and units preparing for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. Connell also brings extensive municipal and community service experience. He is a former Chairman of the Lynnfield Select Board and has served on numerous municipal boards and committees. He serves as Chairman of the Lynnfield Veterans Memorial Committee and served as Project Manager for Lynnfield’s new Veterans Memorial, overseeing implementation of a major community project honoring those who served. The new VSO said he and his wife are both ardent volunteers and he plans to continue the Saugus’ new Veterans Service Officer Joseph Connell said he hopes to put in “between 10 and 15 years” at the job he began about a month ago. (Saugus Advocate photo by Mark E. Vogler) same along with his job. “I feel very appreciative of all of the support I received when I was in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Connell said. “Now, it’s important for me to give back to the people who supported me,” he said. There has been great turnover in the VSO position, which only about a year ago became fulltime. Previously, the town shared a VSO who worked part-time for the towns of Saugus, Wakefield and Melrose. Connell said he hopes to be the full-time VSO in Saugus for at least a decade. “During my job interview, I told them [the town manager and the human resources officer] I’m hoping to work between 10 and 15 years,” he said. Veterans, active-duty military service members and family members seeking assistance with benefits, programs or available resources are encouraged to contact the Saugus Veterans’ Services Office at 781-231-4010 at Town Hall. Two decomposed bodies discovered in a tent in wooded area off Route 1 are the subject of police probe T he Essex County District Attorney’s Office along with Saugus Police and several other law enforcement agencies are investigating the deaths of two people whose decomposed bodies were found in a tent on Route 1 (Broadway) last month. Police were initially alerted on Sept. 20 by a caller who reported seeing a body inside a tent in a wooded area along Route 1 North, behind the Walmart Supercenter. Responding police later discovered two bodies, according to a statement released this week by Michael Keefe-Feldman, a spokesperson for Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker. “At this time, it remains active and under investigation by the Saugus Police Department, Massachusetts State Police (MSP) detectives assigned to DA Tucker’s office, MSP Crime Scene Services Section, and the Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME),” the statement said. “No preliminary determination as to cause and manner of death was made given the significant decomposition. Findings from OCME are pending.” Authorities did not release the identities of the two people. No further information was available at press time.
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