By: Brian Genest – Feb. 2022 Break out the party horns: February 26 is Dracut’s birthday. As the town turns 321, there’s a lot to celebrate about our past, present, and future. One of those things is Dracut’s rich agricultural heritage. “No farms, no food” isn’t just a catchy bumper sticker slogan, it’s also the […]
By: Brian Genest – Nov. 2021 Leadership and change begin at the top. In Dracut, you don’t have to look any further than the town manager for proof. In just 18 months, Ann Vandal has made a tremendous difference for our town. As reflected in the strong scores she was given by a majority of […]
By: Brian Genest – Oct. 2021 Blatant hypocrisy. Shameless double standards. Profiles in cowardice. All were on display at the recent meeting of the Massachusetts Republican State Committee. Not one establishment Republican had a word to say about Tom Mountain, the former MassGOP vice chair who has stepped down from the party’s executive committee. Not […]
Defendant allegedly robbed three convenience stores on Christmas Eve 10/8/21 BOSTON – A Dracut man was indicted today in federal court in Boston in connection with the armed robbery of three convenience stores in Lowell and Tewksbury on Dec. 24, 2020. Michael Vangpa, 32, was indicted on three counts of interfering with commerce by robbery […]
By: Brian Genest – Sept. 2021 There are a lot of lucky and loved kids in Dracut. If you saw the Dracut School Committee meeting about mandatory masks, you saw that love and caring for yourself firsthand from their parents. The usually silent majority stood up, spoke out and made impassioned pleas on behalf of […]
Sept. 2021 ARMY SPECIALIST DONALD JARVIS Haverhill resident Donald Jarvis was awarded the Purple Heart last month from injuries sustained over nine years ago in Afghanistan. Army Specialist Donald Jarvis was injured when an improvised explosive device (IED) struck his vehicle. As a combat engineer, the mission of his unit was to conduct route clearance in […]
PDF of the September, 2021 Valley Patriot Edition #215 HELP US KEEP THE NEWS FREE!
By: John Cuddy – Aug. 2021 Dracut’s Bob and Jeanette (Jenny) Iby, celebrated their 75th Wedding Anniversary on July 4, 2021. Married on July 4, 1946, after Bob finished his tour with the US Army Air Corp, as a Bombardier on a B-17 Flying Fortress. The couple attended high school together in Burlington, VT, and […]
By: Brian Genest – Aug. 2021 The sound of silence is stunning. And very telling. From Swampscott and Shrewsbury to Beacon Hill and beyond, some previously-vocal politicos are suddenly biting their lips. Not one establishment Republican has a word to say about Tom Mountain, the former MassGOP vice chair who stepped down from the party’s […]
Valley Patriot Mascot, Kane August, 2021 Kane knows Representative Colleen Garry. In fact, she is known by many as a strong supportive advocate of the medical front line workers, veterans, police officers, firefighters, EMS, and other first responders. What does she do that is so unique? Well, Kane says she does the most important thing […]
By: Brian Genest – July, 2021 Cancel culture is alive and well in Massachusetts. You don’t have to look any further than the establishment Republicans on the state committee, sadly. These RINOs are trying to use mob mentality, guilt by association and cancel culture to cancel conservative MassGOP Chairman Jim Lyons – over someone else’s […]
By: John Cuddy – May, 2021 Dracut’s Arthur Ducharme Sr. is a US Navy World War II Pacific Theater Veteran. He turned ninety-six on April 1st of this year. Arthur is the older brother of World War II Veteran, Joseph Alfred Ducharme, who served as a Military Police Officer at the Nuremburg trials in Germany […]
By: Brian Genest – May, 2021 When I make a mistake, I admit it. Three years ago, I said Phil Thibault wasn’t a bad guy. I was wrong. Don’t blame me for the confusion; blame perennial candidate extraordinaire Phil Thibault. He seems to fluctuate between nice guy and total jerk, depending on which year he’s […]
By: John Cuddy – April, 2021 Dracut American Legion Executive Board Members US Army Veteran Chris “Scrubs” Coakley and US Air Force Veteran Stephen “Professor” O’Donnell are both also members of a patriotic motorcycle group known as the Nam Knights. During the summer of 1989, a small group of Harley Davidson riders, who were also […]
By: Brian Genest – April, 2021 Can someone explain how Rich Cowan is qualified to serve as chairman of the Dracut Finance Committee? Rich Cowan provided zero answers when I reached out to him about his lack of relevant financial experience. That’s right, I gave Rich Cowan the courtesy he never gives anyone else: I […]