BOSTON – A Methuen woman pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to stealing Social Security benefits intended for her child. Karen Silva-Brown, 57 pleaded guilty to one count of theft of public funds before U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs, who scheduled sentencing for March 7, 2024. Silva-Brown was arrested and […]
PDF of the December, 2023 Valley Patriot
Dec. 5, 2023 Yesterday afternoon members of the Lawrence Police School Resource Officer Unit and the Patrol Division responded to Sullivan Park, which is located adjacent to the Lawrence High School Campus, for a report of a male being assaulted. Upon arrival they encountered a juvenile male laying on the basketball court located in the […]
Will House Largest Solid-State Battery Line in the US Factorial Inc. (Factorial), an industry leader in the development of solid-state battery technology for electric vehicle (EV) applications, today announced the opening of its new battery manufacturing facility in the Boston suburb of Methuen. The state-of-the-art facility represents a significant step in scaling up the […]
PODCAST INTERVIEW HERE Nov. 2023 Last month, Lawrence Mayor Brian DePena appointed former law enforcement officer William Castro to be the acting police chief. Castro was DePena’s chief of staff and immediately came under fire from city councilors and city council candidates for being a “political appointment”. One candidate even posted on Facebook that […]
By: Philippe Thibault – Nov. 2023 Maybe it is the crisp air, the smell of fallen leaves, the sound of a crackling fire, the long shadows on midafternoon walks, or the plastic Santa Clauses that have been in stores since Labor Day, but this time of year brings out philanthropic qualities of goodwill that we […]
Residents of Methuen Village since February, Larry and Ann DeAngelis, were recently celebrated with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Raised in Stoneham, Ann worked at Grants Department Store during high school and enjoyed going to dances. In fact, it was at a dance at the Greenwood School in Wakefield that Ann met Larry! Larry was […]
For the second year in a row, Mayor Brian A. DePeña and City Councilors chose not to increase property taxes by the allowable Proposition 2.5 limitation, therefore, assuring the lowest split tax rates since 2007 and the third lowest in over two decades. The proposed FY2024 Residential Tax Rate is $9.28; this is a decrease […]
By: Brian Genest – Nov. 2023 ‘Tis the season to count your blessings and there are plenty of reasons to be grateful in Dracut. Strong town government is at the top of the list. Things have been going well in Dracut and it’s not by accident. It’s because the right people have been in charge […]
Nov. 2023 Emails obtained by The Valley Patriot reveal that a number of voters in Rowley had their ballots discarded and uncounted in last November’s election where Kristin Kassner (D-Hamilton) won the 2nd Essex State Representative seat by one vote over Lenny Mirra (R-Georgetown). Minutes taken during the recount in that race reveal that […]
By: John Cuddy – Nov. 2023 Hailing from the long-gone Boston neighborhood, once known as the West End, Methuen’s James Fiorello graduated from Boston’s Mechanic Arts High School with the class of 1941. He then enrolled at Fitchburg State College, with the intent on becoming a teacher. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December […]
PDF of the Valley Patriot, November, 2023
Here are my endorsements in the 2023 Lawrence Elections LAWRENCE CITY COUNCIL AT-LARGE (Elect three): Most of the time in an At-Large election, it’s hard to find three good candidates. I usually support one or two and then struggle with coming up with a third to endorse. Not so this year, as there are actually […]
By: Pierre Ghassibi 10-23 I do not know why we do not talk more about the effect on our health of the chemicals that surround us every day. Many of us are turning vegan because we know about the cruelty to animals in our slaughterhouses, because animal farming has a worse effect on pollution and […]
By: Philippe Thibault 10-23 All communities serviced by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and those communities adjacent to this public transit provider will be required to create zoning supporting the production of housing. A total of one hundred and seventy-seven communities in eastern Massachusetts are required to comply. Boston is exempt from the regulation. […]