Eagle Feathers #227 – Fort Sumter

By Bob (Monty) Doherty

One hundred and sixty years ago this coming week, the American Civil War began in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. After years of smoldering pressure between the abolitionist North and the slave-holding Southern states, Fort Sumter became the war’s first battle site.

The more the merrier, so they say. And when it comes to the latest political season that is currently coming into full bloom, we should all indeed be prepared for some merry times ahead of us.

Along with the regularly recurring contests for various seats on the City Council and School Committee, the current mayor’s recent announcement of his decision to not run again to retain his seat at City Hall has upped the ante in the upcoming power plays soon to unfold.

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A Born Storyteller brings us the saga of our city on the screen
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Like myself, Kat Powers has had a long love affair with the City on the Mystic, Somerville, MA. Kat has a long and accomplished journalistic background, and will continue to bring the saga of our unique burg to the TV screen, through the Somerville Media Center.

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Mary Surabian is a senior at Endicott College graduating this May. She has been studying education and psychology. In her free time, writing poetry has been as escape for her in periods of stress. Some of her hobbies include: shopping and reselling secondhand clothes, cooking Italian food, and trying out new kinds of iced coffee.

The third webinar of the Climate Forward Ambassador Webinar series focuses on the priority transportation strategies from Somerville Climate Forward. This webinar features presentations by Brad Rawson, Director of Mobility, and Hannah Payne, Climate Change Program Manager for the City of Somerville. Find out more about this series at somervillema.gov/cfa

Arrests:
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Theresa Alves, of Fall River, March 30, 12:57 p.m., arrested on warrant charges of conspiracy and assault to murder.

Adan Avalos, April 2, 4:24 p.m., arrested at Davis Sq. on charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.

The City of Somerville’s Elections Department has set up an online appointment system to allow candidates for municipal office to safely pick up and drop off nomination papers and speak with Elections staff while City Hall remains closed to the public. Candidates can sign up for a 30-minute appointment between May 3 and June 9 at www.somervillema.gov/elections.

Senator Pat Jehlen (D) was one of the lead signers of an open letter to Gov. Charlie Baker and Education Commissioner Jeff Riley last week calling on them to postpone MCAS administration till fall.

Thirty-fourth Middlesex District State Rep. Christine Barber.

Representative Christine Barber of Somerville and Medford led a sign-on letter campaign with 84 members of the House and Senate to call on Governor Baker to prioritize individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and their caregivers in the second phase of the state’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

Somerville firefighters responded to a 4-alarm fire at a Morrison Ave. around 12:30 p.m. Saturday. First company found fire in a house under construction at 195 Morrison Ave, Somerville. The house got fully involved, a second alarm was sounded. Due to the extreme fire conditions at this address and having exposure issues, fire caught on the left side of the fire building and adjacent houses to the right, to the left, and the rear of the fire scene causing the call for third and fourth alarms be transmitted which brought in several communities to assist with the fire.  The fire companies made an excellent stop on the fire to the house on the left side of the original fire scene.