Owning His Story
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1 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2018 FREE c harlestown PATRIOT-BRIDGE PUMPKIN PAINTING Owning his Story Jack Kelly begins book tour at Charlestown Library By Seth Daniel story, he said this week in antici- pation of his ‘Sharp Needle’ book Charlestown’s Jack Kelly has release and tour that starts at the become very well known for his Charlestown Library on Monday, activity in politics, and also for Oct. 22, 6:30 p.m. his very public acknowledgement “I don’t look good in the of his life as a person in recovery book,” he said. “I don’t want to from substance abuse. look good. I’m not a hero. There His story has been inspirational are a lot of things I put in there I Cyan to many in the Town and beyond, am uncomfortable with. I’m not a but so many times when he heard cool convict in it. That’s the most others tell the story, he said it just important part of this book for me Magenta wasn’t exactly how it should be. and I think for everyone else.” Now, he has taken up the pen (KELLY Pg. 8) and taken control of his own Yellow Yellow Bloodwell, Myerson team up in the ring on Haymakers for Hope Black By Seth Daniel the fight card for the sixth annual Belles of the Brawl cancer fund- When Grace Bloodwell and raiser on Oct. 17 at the House Photo by Katy Rogers Andrew Myerson cemented their of Blues in Fenway – facing off Steph and Chris Dedels helps their son, Ewan, decorate a small pumpkin on the John Harvard Mall last Sunday, Oct. friendship as neighbors, Bloodwell and winning her “brawl” against 14, during the Charlestown Pumpkin Painting Festival. Scores of families came out to enjoy the wonderful afternoon had no idea that first meeting in Boston therapist Kristie Bezreh. and get ready for the fall season. See Page 4 for more photos. Charlestown would lead to her “The purpose of the Brawl was getting in the boxing ring and duk- you get two people in a ring who ing it out for charity. otherwise have no experience box- Yet, that’s exactly what hap- ing, give them a little bit of training Edwards calls for new, expanded IAG pened last week as Bloodwell, a and let them experience a real fight local realtor and governor of the (HOPE Pg. 3) By Seth Daniel Hearing on the renewed develop- appointments. It should also dou- Friends of City Square, was on ment plan today, Oct. 18, at the ble in size to about 25 or 30 peo- City Councilor Lydia Edwards Harvard-Kent School. ple. It’s a huge project and should is calling to revamp and expand “When the appointed the IAG have many eyes on it.” the Impact Advisory Group (IAG) the first time, I wasn’t a city coun- The IAG has been very active that was put in place a few years cilor,” she said during Monday’s in the One Charlestown project, ago during the first run of the Friends of City Square meeting. calling for a moratorium in the Bunker Hill Redevelopment, also “We have a new day and a new fall of 2016 that effectively put the known as One Charlestown. councilor and a new design too. I The announcement comes on think we should have a new IAG the heels of Edwards’s Council too. I think we should have new (IGA Pg 5) No plans as of now for replacement of tattered turf field By Seth Daniel lets become more of a play thing capital budget for replacement. for kids than a protection. “The artificial turf field at When the Charlestown High That said, the Parks Department Charlestown High was installed in turf field was put down in 2007, said this month there isn’t any plan 2007, and the average life span is it was the highlight of the region right now to replace the field – 10-12 years on average,” he wrote when it came to youth sports and despite such fields having a life of in an e-mail. “We are inspecting high school sports. only about 10 years. the field to see what can be fixed Photos by Lindsay Hite But that was 2007, more than a Ryan Woods, a spokesman for until a field renovation is funded in Charlestown’s Grace Bloodwell delivers a hard right hand last week during decade ago, and now the turf field the Parks Department, said they an upcoming capital budget.” the Belles of the Brawl event in the House of Blues, an annual boxing event is in dire need of major repairs as are inspecting the field now to Allen Reitz of Charlestown that raises money for Haymakers for Hope. The organization, co-founded by holes and cracks in the carpeting see what can be done, but at the Charlestown’s Andrew Myerson, and benefits cancer research and the Dana (TURF Pg. 3) cause injuries, and the rubber pel- moment there is no plan in the Farber. 2 PAGE 2 THE CHARLESTOWN PATRIOT-BRIDGE OCTOBER 18, 2018 editorial STUDY THE THREE BALLOT QUESTIONS There are three questions on the ballot for the upcoming state election on Tuesday, Nov. 6. The three are about as unrelated and disparate as one could imagine. The first question asks voters to adopt a proposed new law that would require minimum staffing by nurses in every hospital in the state. We have to admit that when we started reading the full text of the very lengthy proposed new law, our eyes began to glaze over because of the use of terminology that may be common to doctors and nurses, but which means little to the rest of us. However, what is clear is that those who proposed this question have a good idea of what they're doing. We doubt there is anyone who would dispute that nursing care in hospitals is critical for patients. It also is beyond dispute that avoidable mistakes in hospital care are a leading cause of death of patients in even the best hospitals. In our view, this ballot question comes down to a cost/benefit analysis: Is the added cost of minimum staffing for nurses (and by the way, no PRESIDENT - STEPHEN QUIGLEY - [email protected] one really knows what that dollar figure might be) worth the undisputed MARKETING DIRECTOR - DEBRA DIGREGORIO - [email protected] benefits for patient care? REPORTER - SETH DANIEL - [email protected] Question 2 seeks to amend the U.S. Constitution to limit the spend- ing by corporate entities. The amendment is designed to overturn the Citizens United decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, which declared unconstitutional the limits imposed by Congress on campaign spending by corporations. Black In deciding this question, voters would do well to recall the words of Louis Brandeis, "We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both." The only way to change Citizens United is to amend the Constitution -- a drastic measure, no doubt . Question 3 seeks approval of an already-existing state law, that was GUEST OP-ED approved by the legislature in 2016, that bans discrimination against transgender persons. The law has been working well and is endorsed by many groups and organizations, including the Mass. Police Chiefs Don't forget to sign up for Medicare drug coverage this fall Association. A "Yes" vote keeps in place the current law. By Peter J. Pitts drug program. Since 2006, it negotiating or setting prices. The has helped seniors fill billions of end result is quality coverage at an Fall has arrived, which means prescriptions. Currently, three in affordable price. it's time for flannels, football, and four Medicare beneficiaries -- or Part D is a literal lifesaver. finding the perfect health insur- more than 40 million people -- are Seniors who enroll in Part D The Independent Newspaper Group reserves the right to edit letters for space ance plan. enrolled in a Part D plan. coverage experience an 8 per- and clarity. We regret that we cannot publish unsigned letters. Please include That's right -- nestled amidst Part D plans aren't one-size- cent reduction in hospitalizations, your street and telephone number with your submission. The Independent all the seasonal festivities is fits-all. In some states, seniors according to a recent study by have as many as 30 different plans Johns Hopkins University and Newspaper Group publishes columns, viewpoints and letters to the editor as Medicare's open enrollment sea- son, which kicked off Oct. 15. to choose from, each of which fea- University of Illinois research- a forum for readers to express their opinions and to encourage debate. Please Seniors will have until Dec. 7 to tures different premiums, co-pays, ers. A 2016 analysis from North note that the opinions expressed are not necessarily those of The Independent select their Medicare plans for the and covered drugs. Carolina State University, mean- Newspaper Group. Text or attachments emailed to [email protected] coming year. However, all plans must meet while, revealed that Part D shrank are preferred. Seniors have a cornucopia certain standards. For instance, beneficiaries' likelihood of devel- of coverage options to choose every plan must cover at least oping high blood pressure, which from. In particular, they should be two drugs in six vital categories: can lead to heart attacks and thankful for the Medicare Part D immunosuppressants, antidepres- strokes. Part D has curbed senior prescription drug program, which sants, antipsychotics, anticonvul- mortality by 2.2 percent each year enables tens of millions of seniors sants, antiretrovirals, and antineo- since its implementation, accord- to afford their medications.