By: Eric Spagnoli Although COVID-19 cases continue to rise, certain towns have adopted cautious optimism, as trends improve in some areas and some have received their first shipments of vaccines. LAWRENCE As of February 4th, Lawrence has reported 73 new positive cases, while the total number of COVID deaths stands at 220. The office of […]
By: John Cuddy – Feb, 2021 This is our third US Navy Seabee, who after serving in the Navy, became a police officer. Tom Murphy Jr. is a retired Lawrence Police Officer, who later retired from the Merrimack College Police Department as well. He grew up across the street from my father Jim, and my […]
Feb. 2021 Hello Valley Patriot Readers, Beyond the physical and financial anxiety that countless of us have felt since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many have also experienced feelings of loneliness and isolation. While many of us have gone through life without the internet and mobile devices in the past, we haven’t gone through […]
By: Rick Bellanti – Jan, 2020 Happy New Year everyone, yes that time again when everyone is gearing up with their 2021 New Year’s Resolutions and putting 2020 behind them. The stress from the past year is now behind us, even though we are still in the midst of this unprecedented pandemic. Yes, we are […]
“A Camping Trip with Automatic Weapons” By: John Cuddy “A camping trip with automatic weapons”, is how Hyde Park native and Boston Police Officer James LaCroix described his service in Bosnia with the US Navy Seabees as an Equipment Operator 3rd Class. James is not the only family member who served in the US Navy, […]
Planet Fitness, one of the largest and fastest-growing global franchisors and operators of fitness centers with more members than any other fitness brand, today announced its new club in Methuen is now open. It’s located in The Loop shopping center at 90 Pleasant Valley Street, recently relocated from the 40 Jackson Street location. Planet Fitness […]
By: Bill Cushing It’s that time of year again. That time when all TV people start thinking about the best shows that they watched over the past year. As usual, it was tough to leave some shows off the list, but here are my picks for the best TV had to offer in 2020. High […]
Kane turned off the news the other day after watching conflicting information on the Coronavirus that made his jaw feel tense and his mind feel foggy. He was tired from overthinking. Wow we have been doing this stay in your doghouse thing for a long time. What is a dog to do with this information? […]
Senate President Mitch McConnell and some of his Republican colleagues in Washington, D.C. are a disgrace to our country. Since March of last year, millions of Americans have been out of work because of government imposed shut-downs. In the first nine months of the COVID crisis the best our Congress could do for the American […]
By: Brian Genest It’s a Happy New Year at the Massachusetts State House. State legislators are kicking off 2021 with another pay hike. Talk about a kick in the teeth for taxpayers! Apparently, our state representatives and senators have done such an incredible job, they’re getting a 6.46% raise during the worldwide pandemic. Meanwhile, the state’s […]
By: Linda Dean Campbell The State Legislature extended its two-year session past the usual July 31st end date in order to continue legislating during the pandemic. While we have accomplished a great deal, so much remains to be done to continue state funding of critical services related to the pandemic, pass important legislation, support cities […]
By: Bill Cushing – Dec. 2020 You don’t have to know the game of chess to enjoy Netflix’s superb binge-worthy new series. ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ is a seven part limited series about a female chess prodigy coming of age during the Cold War. It begins in a Kentucky orphanage in the late 1950s. A young […]
By: Brian Genest – Dec, 2020 What a difference a year makes. Unlike 2019, which was filled with controversy and a management shakeup at town hall, 2020 was a time of positive change for Dracut. This year, Dracut got strong new leaders in the town manager’s office, at the police department and on the board […]
Kane visited the Lowell Humane Society to learn about the dog adoption program. Since he was a rescue himself, he wanted to understand how other dogs became homeless, how they prepared for adoption, and how could he support the resident dogs in finding a forever home. Kane decided the best way to go about this […]
December – Year in Review As I write this article, it is hard to believe that more than a year has passed since I was elected Mayor. As end of 2020 approaches, it’s a good time to take a look in the rearview mirror and highlight some of our accomplishments together over a very difficult […]