Page 6 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2021 SWEARING | FROM PAGE 1 seat. The committee that Superintendent McMahon has been working with for the past four months remains mostly intact, with former School Committee Member Vincent A. Serino joining Gould, School Committee Chair Thomas R. Whittredge and veteran members Ryan P. Fisher and John S. Hatch. Whittredge will serve another term as committee chair after finishing as the top vote getter for the second-straight town election, with 2,095 votes. Serino won the honor of serving as vice-chair after finishing second in the election with 2,030 votes. Hatch finished third with 1,852 votes. Fisher, the vice-chair during his previous two years, finished fourth with 1,816 votes. Gould had 1,666 votes, beating out Leigh Michelle Gerow for the fifth seat. With a small audience on hand and four of the committee members wearing face masks, Town Clerk Ellen Schena presided over a swearing-in ceremony in the School Committee Room at the Belmonte School Administrative Offices early last Thursday night. Gould was absent from the meeting after being forced to follow COVID-19 protocol, according to Whittredge, who noted that Gould was greatly disappointed in not being able to attend the ceremony. Over the past year, Grabowski had come under heavy criticism STARTING A NEW TERM: Left to right: School Committee Members Vincent A. Serino, Ryan P. Fisher, Thomas R. Whittredge and John S. Hatch took the oath of office last Thursday (Nov. 4) during a swearing-in ceremony conducted by Saugus Town Clerk Ellen Schena. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Dawn Trainor) from his committee colleagues, who had called for him to resign after he made comments they called racist. Grabowski refused to step down, but the committee voted to censure him and strip him of his committee assignments. During the election campaign, Whittredge had accused Grabowski of threatening a school employee and ordered the meetings to be conducted remotely by Zoom videoconferencing to protect the staff member and others who didn’t feel safe. But during a brief meeting following last Thursday’s (Nov. 4) swearing-in ceremony, Whittredge publicly thanked Grabowski for his service to the town. “I do want to wish Mr. Grabowski the best,” Whittredge said. “He served a long time on the School Committee. Thank you for your service, Mr. Grabowski, and best of luck in the future,” Whittredge said. Whittredge told his colleagues that it was “an honor” to serve as School Committee chair again. “Everybody who got reelected deserved to be reelected,” Whittredge said. Then he praised his new vicechair, Serino, noting “his experience is going to be invaluable.” “I’m really looking forward to some good things happening in the future,” Whittredge said. Serino said he welcomes the next “great couple of years” and “moving the district forward.” Hatch expressed similar sentiments. “This board really understands what our mission is. It really knows what the role of a School Committee is, and I’m SWEARING | SEE PAGE 17 The Savings Bank donates $1K to Light the Way program The Savings Bank (TSB) recently presented a $1,000 donation to MelroseWakefield Healthcare for its Light the Way program. TSB Executive Vice President/Senior Retail Banking Officer Raichelle Kallery (second from right) presented the donation on behalf of TSB to (from left) MelroseWakefield Healthcare Chief Development Officer Rose Fisher, Chief Marketing Officer, Executive Director Corporate Communications Lori Howley and Senior VP, Clinical Operations/Chief Medical Officer Dr. Steven Sbardella. The Light the Way fundraiser will illuminate the courtyard entrances at both MelroseWakefield Hospital and Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford as a tribute to “Healthcare Heroes” as a symbol of community support and solidarity for caregivers. (Photo Courtesy of The Savings Bank)
7 Publizr Home