Inauguration of Elected Officials
I attended the ceremony because many questions needed confirmation. I was pleasantly surprised that the audience behaved properly even though they were showing their concerns and displeasure quietly in the back of the auditorium where I was sitting.
Vladimir Acevedo, the losing candidate in the District A contest was staging a demonstration outside the school. He was joined by Victor James and Noe Gonzalez, and I would have only if they told me. Meanwhile, Fidelina Santiago was looking confident sitting in the front row on stage.
That’s why I had to copy these pictures from the interview on Telemundo by David De Matteis. He did a good job, and you can find his report on their website Telemundo/Boston.
They were holding signs saying ILLEGITIMATE SWEARING-IN and TODAY THE FRAUD IS SEALED.
I hope this is not the end of this controversy.
Latinos are always late!
It was very noticeable the two empty chairs on the front row during the ceremony of inauguration. The event began at 7 o’clock and everyone was asked to be there at 6:30. On the right, it was Celina Reyes who arrived at 7:13 PM but the empty seat on the left remained empty throughout. It was Estela Reyes who perhaps was embarrassed to arrive so late that she stayed standing in the back of the auditorium.
I don’t think they understand how this behavior validates the images people already have of us, besides being very disrespectful to the audience.
Improving the PEG channels
David Pekarski, manager of Lawrence Public Schools media has informed me that Comcast just put all 3 Lawrence PEG channels (Public-Education-Government) on the fiber network so you should see a big improvement in picture quality.
Verizon made the switch 8 months ago. The picture quality is great and now we can enjoy the wonderful shows from the schools much better.
Andrea Traficante is back!
Would you believe that Andrea is back working for the city?
She is now Fund Management Director in the Lawrence Redevelopment Authority (LRA) earning $7,000 each month since last August.
During the LRA meeting of August 28, 2023, Andrea’s position and Jacqueline Mercedes’ were approved. Jacqueline’s husband is José Javier who is also working at City Hall with Carlos Matos under a grant for the LRA plans with the properties the city wants them to take over.
Andrea and Jacqueline were both recommended by Executive Director Octavien Spanner. According to the minutes of that August 28th meeting, “Mr. Spanner mentioned that after reviewing all applications, he recommends Andrea McCann because he has seen her raise funds and has seen her work on several successful fundraisings.”
Thus far, I could not find any evidence that she has brought in any funds to the LRA.
Some of us remember the 2007-2009 period when Andrea was constantly news complaining about how stressing was working for the city, how she was making everyone’s life miserable at City Hall giving orders outside of her authority just because she was having a romantic relationship with Frank McCann until finally, they got married – then she only got worse.
There were scandals until she went on medical leave due to stress and we paid her salary while staying home for two years. Even when her doctors said she could come back to work, she refused to put up with the stress again. At the same time, she was applying for jobs for which she was unqualified to do in Haverhill.
I will follow up with this story next week because there’s a lot more to it. Their next meeting will be on January 17 at 6 o’clock at City Hall.
Take care of your health
We tend to think that COVID is something that happened a few years ago and it’s over, so we have become a bit careless associating with people in public places thinking that the danger is over.
If you check the newscasts, you’ll see that it’s making a comeback, and every week, thousands of people are dying in this country. Don’t be reckless!
Scientists from the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority are finding that wastewater data, an early indicator, shows a rise in COVID-19. The hospital is seeing more COVID along with RSV and flu cases.
Christina Wolf, MSN, RN, CNL, Executive Director, Population Health & Care Continuum at Lawrence General Hospital told me, “I urge anyone who hasn’t gotten their COVID booster to get it now, RSV and flu vaccines are also still available at drug stores across the state. As you may know we have moved back to universal masking within the hospital.”
Lawrence General Hospital’s Emergency Room is the go-to place for most people no matter how simple the ailment. I have mentioned in the past how busy they are and how people complain about having to wait many hours in the reception area to be treated.
There are many situations that could be handled by Urgent Care Centers or ExpressCare that can provide all kinds of services for minor conditions. Alberto and I have used them and cannot complain about the service and attention we received. This will alleviate the burden at the hospital and the frustration with the long wait.
The data shows that only 18% of the population is up to date on their COVID vaccines, compared with 37% who got the flu shot this season. For now, the best we can do to avoid getting sick is get your vaccinations.
Be safe and stay well!
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