THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, OCTObEr 24, 2025 Page 13 The Sounds of Saugus By Mark E. Vogler Good morning, Saugus Does it have to take a presidential election to draw a respectable percentage of Saugus registered voters out to the polls? Apparently, and sadly so. Last November’s presidential election drew 15,174 out of 22,566 registered voters for a turnout of 67 percent. Go back a year to the 2023 town election, only 5,056 out of 21,560 registered voters cast their ballots – a pathetic 23.45 percent. Back in 2021, just 4,056 of 20,362 voted. That’s barely a 20 percent turnout. Even the recall election of 2015 didn’t stir up a lot of interest. It drew only 27.3 percent. And the turnout for Saugus voters for the June 2017 special election when voters overwhelmingly approved a new Saugus-Middle High School by about 70 percent was barely 26 percent. Hopefully, the upcoming Nov. 4 Town Election will show that more registered voters in the community care enough to participate. I remember my days as a newspaperman down in Florida, people took their voting seriously. The local elections would usually draw 60 to 70 percent of the registered voters. Saugus is not alone in its voter apathy when it comes to local elections. While national elections will capture about 60 percent turnout, many communities will be lucky to get a 20 percent turnout for the local elections. Hopefully, we’ll see a better voter turnout in Saugus this year. Stay tuned. Tomorrow is final day to register to vote The last day to register to vote is tomorrow (Saturday, Oct. 25) at the Saugus Public Library. The Community Room at the library will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for town residents wanting to register for the Nov. 4 town election. This will also be the only day for in-person early voting. Voters should use the Taylor Street entrance on that Saturday. Saugus Lions Club Food the bad. I thank you for giving me this opportunity.” Jean Swanson and the Saugus Historical Commission sent a “Shout Out” to Facilities Maintenance Manager Tommy Whittredge and his crew for power washing the cement pad at the Round Hill Historic Site: “They did an amazing job.” 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 (mvogeatcomcast.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. A SPECIAL NIGHT AT SAUGUS CENTER: Nine candidates running for the five seats on the Board of Selectmen are scheduled to participate in a public forum at 7 p.m. next Wednesday, Oct. 29, in the second floor auditorium in Saugus Town Hall. The doors open at 6:30 p.m. Here’s your last chance to see the candidates together before the Nov. 4 Town Election. (Courtesy artwork of Joanie Allbee) Drive tomorrow The Saugus Lions Club will hold a drive by/drop off food drive tomorrow (Saturday, Oct. 25) at the Senior Center (466 Central St.) from 9 am. to noon. Nonperishable food items are greatly appreciated for those who are experiencing food insecurities. For more information, email: pattyfierro@hotmail.com Deadline has passed for political announcements This week was the final week for candidates running in the Nov. 4 town election to submit free “political announcements” to be published in The Saugus Advocate. Any announcements that were submitted by 6 p.m. Tuesday (Oct. 21) will be published in this week’s paper or next week’s (Oct. 31) edition. There is still time for candidates who want to run a paid political announcement or ad in next week’s paper. Please contact Advocate Newspapers at 781-233-4446 for information about running political ads. This week’s “Shout Outs” We received several nominations from our readers this week who wished to offer praise to fellow residents contributing to the betterment of Saugus: Al and Joyce Rodenhiser offered a “Shout Out” for Pauline Gautreau and the New Friends of the Saugus Public Library. “Pauline very capably leads the New Friends and presents many interesting programs in the Community Room (most recently Sheryl Faye as Ruth Bader Ginsberg) as well as doing other volunteer work at the library every week. Sue Fleming lauded the efforts of Laurie Davis and her entire staff at the Saugus Senior Center: “They offer so many fun things to do....one of the newest is Chair Volleyball. We have nothing but laughs and a lot of fun. The entire staff works hard and we are lucky to have them. Thank you.” Outgoing Selectman Corinne Riley gave her final “Shout Out” as an elected official, as she doesn’t plan to seek another term: “I’d like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the voters of Saugus that supported my 3 terms on the Board of Selectmen. There were so many who were there for me whether placing signs, holding signs, or endorsing me in one way or another. I thank my fellow board members for 6 years of addressing so many important issues together from getting through Covid to cleaning up the area around 107 with the new UPS facility, making it a usable area as well as creating jobs. They also supported my initiatives that I brought to the Board like Saugus 4-1-1, Covid Vigil and pedestrian crosswalk lights to name a few. I want to thank Scott Crabtree for addressing issues I had, and all our departments that keep Saugus safe and a place to be proud of. Lastly, and certainly not least my family and husband Chris for being so supportive, because it isn’t easy at times. I hope I served you all well, because I made every decision on what I felt would be best for the majority of our town. I ran from day one that I wasn’t running just to occupy a seat but to do the work, and I believe I did. I will continue to serve my community every chance I get, and love this town through the good and WIN Waste holds its first Fall Fun Fest More than 200 children and families came to the first WIN Waste Innovations Fall Fun Fest, which was held on October 17 at Blessed Sacrament Church. The outdoor event on a perfect fall afternoon included pumpkin painting, a DJ, bounce house, pizza and snacks. Attendees were asked to make a donation of any amount to go directly to the Boys & Girls Club of Saugus. Including matching funds donated by WIN, the Boys & Girls Club will receive $1,000. “We wanted to have an event that was fun for kids and families and give something back to the community,” said Mary Urban, WIN Waste senior director of communications and community. “We have a longstanding relationship with the Boys & Girls Club and we’re gratified that they could benefit from this fun, family event. We were encouraged by the generosity of families and pleased to add to that to support the club.” Halloween Eve at Town Hall Town Manager Scott Crabtree is inviting Saugus children to stop by Saugus Town THE SOUNDS | SEE PAGE 15
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