SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2016 Peabody is in quite the pickle By Adam Swift ITEM STAFF PEABODY — It’s Friday morning at Corbeil Park, and the competitive juices are owing. Gary Pen eld twirls his racket, getting ready for mixed-doubles action with his partner, Kathy Pierce. Peter Sullivan, one of the foremost ambassadors of the game on the North Shore, rules one of the far courts. Sue Trainoff, only a year into the game, wipes the sweat from her brow. And Rob Eisenhauer sends his re- grets, taking his place on the disabled list after spraining his shoulder going for a ball earlier in the week. Tennis? Ping pong? Racquetball? While many of the athletes come from those racket sport backgrounds, what brings them to the West Peabody courts up to three times per week is pickleball, considered one of the fastest growing sports in the country. If you doubt its growing popularity, all you have to do is try to nd a parking spot on Hoover Ter- race after the games begin. “It’s a very popular sport down in the Southeast, in Florida and the Carolinas,” said Eisenhauer, who got interested PHOTOS | BOB ROCHE in the sport when he visited one of his Rob Evans, right, makes contact with a volley as his Joyce Finn, left, watches as Shirley Gallo returns a volley partner John Donovan stands at the ready during a during a pickleball match at Corbeil Park in Peabody. PICKLEBALL, A7 pickleball match at Corbeil Park. STEVE KRAUSE COMMENTARY Swampscott Harbormaster in hot water By Thor Jourgensen mine if criminal charges should be led terim harbormaster. North is ITEM NEWS EDITOR for use of an expired license plate. Ross- “I think we should go in a different di- man, a town resident, declined to elabo- rection,” Younger said. SWAMPSCOTT — A storm is brewing rate on the charge except to say, “It is a around town Harbormaster Lawrence Younger would not elaborate on why South and Bithell with a District Court appearance complaint regarding a boat trailer.” he will recommend against Bithell’s re- pending and a push by Town Administra- Younger on Friday said he has in- appointment. But Rossman said Bithell tor Thomas Younger to not have Bithell formed the Board of Selectmen that has worked for the town more than 20 South is reappointed to his job. he will not recommend Bithell’s reap- years and enjoys tenure status as har- Bithell’s attorney, Neil Rossman, said pointment as harbormaster. He said he bormaster. Bithell is scheduled to appear at a Sept. will ask the board to name assistant North 19 clerk magistrate’s hearing to deter- harbormaster Mounzer Aylouche as in- HARBORMASTER, A7 You’ve undoubtedly heard of the term “gerrymander” that describes bizarrely-drawn House and Senate Lynn’s Byrne to be districts, generally constructed to bene t political parties or demo- graphics. The term came to use thanks to honored as hero an effort by Massachusetts Gov. By Gayla Cawley O’neil Elbridge Gerry, who redistricted ITEM STAFF Gray, the cities and towns on the North left, talks LYNN — A Lynn street advocate and re- Shore of Boston in 1812 in an ef- with Pat tired postal service worker is receiving na- fort to keep his Democrat-Repub- Byrne, a lican party in control of the Bay tional recognition for helping to turn the personal tragedy of his son’s death to addic- street ad- State legislature. When one of his vocate. redrawn districts was said to re- tion into help for others for their substance semble a salamander, the Boston abuse, mental illness or suicidal thoughts. Gazette coined the term “gerry- On Sept. 21, Patrick Byrne, 65, will be ITEM PHOTO | mander” to describe it. honored by the National Association of Let- OWEN O’ROURKE Coincidentally, the gerrymandered ter Carriers in Washington D.C., which has district in question included Lynn, recognized him as one of their Heroes of the Marblehead, Salem and Danvers — Year, and has awarded him the Education cities and towns that comprise ve of Award. the teams in the Northeastern Con- “I found it kind of strange,” Byrne said of winning the award. “I don’t think anything ference (Swampscott was then a part North Shore reaches I’ve done is heroic. My fellow honorees have of Lynn, so make that six). I thought of this after writing a col- BYRNE, A7 umn for Friday’s paper in which I de- out a helping hand tailed the Northeastern Conference football con guration for 2016, which By Adam Swift Twins Michal has English, Classical, Marblehead, ITEM STAFF and Baytah Peabody, Beverly and Danvers in the Lipsker were North; and Winthrop, Swampscott, SWAMPSCOTT — Louisiana has seen among the vol- Gloucester, Salem, Saugus and Re- more than its share of disaster and heart- unteers on a re- vere in the South. break in recent years. lief trip to help For those well-versed in North This week, a group of local volunteers led ood victims in Shore geography, this presents a by Rabbi Yossi Lipsker of Chabad of the Baton Rouge. few obvious logistical problems. By North Shore headed to Baton Rouge to help whose orientation is Gloucester — victims of the recent ooding that left 13 which sits squarely on Cape Ann dead and thousands homeless in the state. and is the northernmost community in the conference — a “South” team? LOUISIANA, A7 And since Salem is north of Lynn and Marblehead, how are the Witch- es in the South? NEC, B2 NSCC building big on Broad Street campus David By Adam Swift Erazo, left, ITEM STAFF INSIDE and Miguel Vasquez of LYNN — The beginning of fall is always busy at In Sports North Shore Community College, and never more Finally, live action Salem Glass so than this fall. on the gridiron. B1 prepare the front of the As students hit the books at the Lynn campus 41,000-foot on Tuesday, they are crossing paths with workers expansion from DeIulis Brothers Construction Company as at NSCC for work continues on the three-story, 41,000-square- window in- foot addition at the college. stallation. Work on the $20-million project got underway in September 2015. The addition should be com- pleted by February or March of next year, accord- ITEM PHOTO | ing to Chris DeIulis of DeIulis Brothers. OWEN O’ROURKE “Seventy- ve percent of the mechanical work is completed - the plumbing, electrical, and HVAC,” NSCC, A7 OBITUARIES ..............................A2 LOOK! .......................................A8 DIVERSIONS .............................B5 HIGH 73° VOL. 138, ISSUE 231 OPINION ...................................A4 SPORTS ................................ B1-3 CLASSIFIED ........................... B6-7 LOW 61° POLICE/FIRE .............................A6 COMICS ....................................B4 REAL ESTATE .............................B8 PAGE A8 ONE DOLLAR A2 THE DAILY ITEM SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2016 OBITUARIES Police losing battle to get drivers Gloria J. Drown, 72 1943-2016 to put down their phones HARDIN, KY — Glo- sons, Daniel Chatel ria Jean Drown (Tar- Jr. (and wife Annette) By Denise Lavoie box), 72, of Hardin, Anthony DePaolan- ASSOCIATED PRESS KY passed away from tonio Jr. (and wife illnesses on August Chalyn), daughters WEST BRIDGEWATER 23, 2016. Gloria was Cheryl Sullivan (and — State troopers in Chat- born in Lynn, on Sep- husband Philip), tanooga, Tennessee, have tember 13, 1943 to Deborah DePaolan- been known to patrol in parents Everette and tonio. Also grandsons a tractor-trailer so they Dorothy Drown. She Tommie, William and can sit up high and spot graduated from Lynn English Sean, granddaughters Rox- drivers texting behind the High School class of ‘61. She anne, Crystal, Desirae, Allieya, wheel. was a loving partner, amazing Mikayla and Stella, brothers In Bethesda, Maryland, mother, grandmother and a Mike (and wife Susan), Sandy a police officer disguised true friend to many. She loved (and wife Cynthia), sister Vir- himself as a homeless gardening, cooking and her ginia (and husband Ken). man, stood near a busy grandchildren. She worked for Service information: intersection and radioed Reliable Fabrics in Mass. for There will be a small gath- ahead to officers down the many years. She is survived by ering for family & friends road about texting drivers. her partner Daniel Chatel, her planned at a later date. In two hours last October, police gave out 56 tickets. And in West Bridgewa- ter, Massachusetts, south of Boston, an officer reg- Hermine slams ularly tools around town on his bicycle, pedals up to PHOTO | ASSOCIATED PRESS drivers at stoplights and In this July 20 photo, police officer Matthew Monteiro speaks to a mo- Florida, threatens hands them $105 tickets. torist about texting while driving while patrolling on his bicycle in West Texting while driving in Bridgewater. the U.S. is not just a dan- East Coast gerous habit, but also an in crashes involving dis- phones,” said Deborah including talking. infuriatingly widespread tracted drivers in the Hersman, president and While efforts to discour- one, practiced both bra- mainland U.S. and Puerto chief executive of the Na- age texting have increased zenly and surreptitiously Rico in 2015, up from al- tional Safety Council and in recent years, the con- by so many motorists that most 3,200 in 2014. The former chairwoman of the sensus among police, safe- police are being forced to number of deaths in which National Transportation ty advocates and drivers get creative — and still cellphones were the dis- Safety Board. “Certainly, is that the problem is only can’t seem to make much traction rose from 406 in law enforcement can ask getting worse. headway. “It’s everyone, kids, old- 2014 to 476 in 2015. people, ‘Can I see your In New York, texting er people — everyone. But many safety advo- phone?’ but people can re- tickets soared from about When I stop someone, cates say crashes involv- fuse, so they then have to 9,000 in 2011 to nearly they say, ‘You’re right.