Essex Heritage

Essex Happenings…May 18, 2012 Heritage Hero Event On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 I was thrilled and honored to receive the 2012 version of the Essex Heritage Hero Award in a sensational setting at the fabulous Peabody Essex Museum. It was most pleasant to receive this prestigious award from Essex Heritage and the National Park Service in front of family, friends, numerous associates and a sensational group of elected officials and former award winners. The attendance at the event totaled nearly three hundred people. The evening was orchestrated by the Director of Development of Essex Heritage Deb Payson and was catered by a talented staff from the historic Hawthorne Hotel in Salem. The hotel is owned and operated by Michael Harrington, whose relationship with me goes back to our days as elementary school classmates in Salem six decades ago. I am particularly indebted to the Museum and my former long time employer the Salem Five Bank for their sponsorship and friendship. I also want to thank the many folks who took the time to both be in attendance, to offer toasts and said many nice things about the honoree. This award means a great deal to me, as it is an important culmination of the years that I have been associated with Essex Heritage and its mission. I am indebted to the hundreds of people who joined with me as I was truly honored. It is now most wonderful to be added to the list of former winners of this prestigious award. I promise to continue to work collaboratively with all of them to assure that this region will continue to grow, prosper and to be a better place for all of us and for future generations that will follow us in this place. Essex Vocational and Technical School I recently attended my second meeting of the Danvers Finance committee for 2012 after missing all of 2011 due to illness. The 2012 season is almost over as I am unable to attend any additional presentations, my year is complete. I am very pleased that I was able to attend a couple of meetings this year as I have every intention of seeking a re-appointment by the Town Moderator to the committee in future years. I am also pleased that I was in the audience when the leadership of the Essex County Vocational School visited for their annual visit to the Town of Danvers Finance Committee. I was particularly pleased to learn of their exemplary record of student’s graduation results, the lack of students that drop out or the positive MCAS Testing and many other general educational endeavors. The current facility that houses the Essex County Agricultural School and Peabody Vocational School into a new almost 1500 regional vocational school scheduled to open in 2014. Planning for that new school is well underway and the groundbreaking for that new building occurred in Danvers. Excavation is scheduled soon and as you drive up Route 62, as you approach Middleton, please watch as construction will soon begin. Danvers Finance Committee generally accepted all we heard about the school. There are several members of the committee that wish that participation/activity fees would be charged by the school for athletic teams as has become the norm for students attending public schools in the vast majority of the region served by the school. Salem Five Annual Meeting Earlier this week, we attended the annual meeting of the Salem Five at the historic Hawthorne Hotel on the common in Salem. The meeting was presided over by President Joe Gibbons who introduced three new Trustees who replaced long-term board members that had retired. He also introduced new corporators added from the Stoneham Savings Bank and for a three-year period they will continue to operate as a stand-alone organization and then join the Salem Five family. We were expecting to hear from long time New England Patriot player, Rodney Harrison, but he unexpectedly had to go to the west coast to attend the tragic funeral of Junior Seau. Harrison had played on two teams, first in San Diego and then in Boston with Seau and funeral attendance was a must. He sent a most suitable substitute speaker. We were suitably informed about the Patriot way of doing things by of the best players ever to play for the New England team, Troy Brown. His presentation was excellent and he spoke of how a football team is built and how that format also works when building a banking team. He indicated that doing your job and doing it well is a method of operation that works for both entities. Congratulations to Endicott College It appears that the athletic programs at the Beverly educational institution are winning championships in a most consistent manner. Now it is the woman’s lacrosse team from the college that has recently captured their seventh consecutive Commonwealth Coast Conference Title. Congratulations. Spaulding Hospital Celebrates Nurses Week At Spaulding, we don't think of them as just nurses. To us, they are heroes. Have you been helped by an outstanding nurse who provided unmatched compassionate care to you or a loved one? If so, join us as we celebrate National Nurses Week, May 6-12, 2012 by honoring a special nurse with a donation to Spaulding. With a gift to Spaulding Rehabilitation Network you can honor a nurse's dedication while helping our patients find their strength. Your special nurse will receive a letter of recognition with your personal message of thanks, informing him or her of your generosity. With your support, our nurses are able to provide exceptional care to our patients and their families. Thank You for recognizing the vital role nurses play in the care we provide. Spaulding Hospital Celebrates Nurses Week At Spaulding, we don't think of them as just nurses. To us, they are heroes. Have you been helped by an outstanding nurse who provided unmatched compassionate care to you or a loved one? If so, join us as we celebrate National Nurses Week, May 6-12, 2012 by honoring a special nurse with a donation to Spaulding. With a gift to Spaulding Rehabilitation Network you can honor a nurse's dedication while helping our patients find their strength. Your special nurse will receive a letter of recognition with your personal message of thanks, informing him or her of your generosity. With your support, our nurses are able to provide exceptional care to our patients and their families. Thank You for recognizing the vital role nurses play in the care we provide. After Camelot I recently had a family member forget that I have been doing my reading on an electronic device and provided me with a bookstore gift card at a recent event. I used that card to purchase a new book that has chronicled the history of the Kennedy family from the assassination of President John F. Kennedy until today. The book is written by long time Kennedy family biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli and after only reading a couple of early chapters. I have found the reading fascinating. Senator Ted Kennedy was a long time friend and supporter of the work of Essex Heritage, and some of the revelations in the biography were interesting.