Author: Joey Ciaramitaro

David Calvo submits-

CHILD-CENTERED FAMILY LAW BILL

On Thursday, January 15th a bill was filed call: “An Act Relative to Child-Centered Family Law” Docket number 1061. It was a two year project that started in 2010 with a meeting with Mo Cowan then chief legal counsel for the Patrick administration. Patrick then formed a working group of 18 people from a diverse group of representation in Massachusetts. It was titled Child-Centered Family Law Working Group so as to put the revision efforts focused towards the benefits to the child involved.

The Working Group consists of Probate and Family Court Chief Justice Paula Carey and now Chief Justice Angela Ordonez plus representatives of women’s groups and men’s groups, The State Office for the Child Advocate: Gail Garinger, Professor Marsha Kline Pruett and Psychologist Robin Deutsch, representatives of bars associations including Boston, LGBTQ, Massachusetts and Women’s, Community Legal Aid and staff members of the House and Senate Judiciary Committee and was facilitated by Attorney and Mediator Michael Leshin of Wellesley.

The bill drastically improves section 31 of Chapter 208 by defining the best interest of the child as the act of encouraging and supporting shared parenting in the absence of misconduct of parents of children of divorce. It redefines titles and language and replaces inflammatory words such as “physical custody” and “visitation” with parenting plans. It gives specific factors for judges to consider in defining parenting plans, and encourages parents to work out their own arrangements as best they can. It tries to support the attitude that the child is served best by having both parents involved to the best of their ability. As you can imagine there were numerous discussions amongst this diverse group over a two year period and in the end we came up with a product that we were all willing accept as a compromise between us, put our pens down and support without any minority report being filed. That was a big achievement.

This revision if voted into law will recast the family probate court with a new protocol and updated understandings in inclusive not exclusive definition of gender roles without any bias toward any parent. Facts be told: This revision will affect about 20,000 children each year. That is a lot of kids whose fate is being decided by the court system unbeknown to them and setting a trajectory for each of their lives.

The bill was filed after the swearing in of the new administration, Representatives and Senators and under the deadline of the 16th of January. We now only have two weeks to get co-sponsors on this bill. The more co-sponsors garnered the more support for the Bill whose eventuality and fate is decided when brought to a vote in the Senate and House.

We need to let the citizens of Massachusetts know that they have less than two weeks, until the end of the month according to the legislative calendar, to let their respective Representatives know that they are in support of this bill and petition them to co-sponsor it. To make this easy i have uploaded the Child Centered Family Law Bill Docket #1061 on my internet server along with the Report of the Working Group sent to the Governor’s office. Citizens can download both, read through them and bring them to their representative with the hopes of them acting on their behalf and co-sponsoring the Bill.

I was an appointed member of this Working Group. If you have any questions please let me know. This is a real turning point for how the court defines how children are raised in the Commonwealth when parents have divorced. It is an important positive change that will affect you, your children and your grandchildren if they choose to raise their family in Massachusetts and find themselves in unforeseen circumstances.

I have included the website for the download of the Bill and Report below. If you need anymore information please call me. Tel. 978-281-3227
Again, we only have until the end of the month to get co-sponsors.

www.davidcalvo.com/ccfl

Hello residents of Gloucester ,
As we prepare for the blizzard conditions Tueday, I ask for your help. Please watch out for each other especially our seniors. We are meeting tomorrow and will get emergency information out to you. Please take precautions, public roads will be plowed first, side roads secondary, and private roads will be plowed after the storm. This administration will work closely with the DPW director Mike Hale,  who has been working on a plan to make private roads public according law. My CAO Jim Jim Destino is working with with Mr. hale to make sure we get this started. So please take all precautions, stay off roads, make sure you have supplies for at least 3 days. Be prepared for power outages, due to flood warnings, high winds. You have 24 hours to prepare. So make sure you have your senior ready. Thank you ahead of time for your patience.
Mayor

Sefatia Romeo Theken

Sent from my iPad

Cat Ryan submits

Live blogging from Cape Ann Community Cinema premiere Amira & Sam

Louise Sarofeen submits-

RUN FOR RESEARCH MARATHON TEAM FUNDRAISER TO BENEFIT THE AMERICAN LIVER FOUNDATION

JANUARY 31, 2015 FROM 7-11PM

THE GLOUCESTER HOUSE

63 ROGERS ST GLOUCESTER, MA

TICKETS ARE $20

(DJ, LIGHT APPS, CASH BAR, DOOR PRIZES, RAFFLES AND MORE)

What is the American Liver Foundation? The American Liver Foundation® provides research, education, advocacy, and support for 30 million Americans affected by liver disease.

Our mission: to facilitate, advocate and promote education, support and research for the prevention, treatment and cure of liver disease.

We carry out our mission through education to promote liver health and disease prevention. Three national core programs are targeted to reach the public, at-risk groups, and patients with liver disease. We are the leading source of information on liver health and liver disease, through printed materials and www.liverfoundation.org. A toll-free national helpline and 16 offices across the country provide support to newly diagnosed patients, families, and the general public, through phone, email, and community outreach. We fund research that had helped to begin the careers of more than 750 scientists in the field of liver health in hopes of finding treatments and cures that will lead to a world free of liver disease.

Why am I running? A good friend, and fellow runner, of mine works for CVS Caremark and she is responsible for working with doctors to get expensive liver medications covered for their patients. She was introduced to the Run for Research at a conference she attended and is now working towards running her 3^rd Boston Marathon! Her dedication to this cause inspired me to want to join in and this fall I applied and was chosen to run the 2015 Boston Marathon on the Run for Research team! The team requires each runner to raise $5,000 towards this worthwhile cause. The foundation also pairs you with a patient partner to help inspire you through the tough winter training runs. I have been paired with a young girl named Ann Ford. Ann is a one year old baby girl, daughter of Patty and Jay Ford, and baby sister to John. Ann was diagnosed with Biliary Atresia when she was 10 weeks old, and underwent a liver transplant at 4 months old. Patty has told me Ann is thriving and meeting all sorts of milestones!

PLEASE JOIN ME IN RAISING MONEY FOR THIS GREAT CAUSE. ALL DONATIONS ARE TAX DEDUCTABLE! CHECKS CAN BE MADE PAYABLE TO THE AMERICAN LIVER FOUNDATION

http://go.liverfoundation.org/site/TR/RunforResearch/NewEngland?px=1790458&pg=personal&fr_id=4420
Tickets are $20 and the door prize is a pair of Bruins Tickets.
Raffle items/silent auction are: 
basket of French soaps and lotions from LaProvence in Rockport
large straw handbag from LaProvence
Lone Gull Gift card
Imbeault Photography gift card
1/2 day fishing trip for 3
Girls night in Basket (wine, wine glasses, movies, chocolate, popcorn, candy, slipper socks, nail polish)
EnVogue gift card
handmade glasses made from vodka bottles
herbal tea with mugs basket
accessories from Leavitt & Co
Franklin Cape Ann gift card
2 vouchers for paint night from Wicked Art Bar
Sparkly Soul Head bands
Marshalls Farmstand gift card
Marshalls Landscape supply gift card
Studio G one month credit
6 pool passes to the Cape Ann marina
Accessories and gift card from Magnolia’s Boutique
Sticky Fingers gift card
handmade wine rack with wine
Arbonne “GetFit Kit”
painting from Memory Lane
LoGrasso Auto gift card
handmade soaps from Melissa Cox
gift basket from Annisquam River Pottery
Unwind Hair and Make-up gift card
Framed professional photo of the Annisquam Light House
Celia’s Flower Shop gift card
3 month pass to MAC Fitness in Gloucester
2 whale watch passes from Capt Bills Whale Watch
Luna Day Spa gift card

On Saturday, February 7, at 10 am the Manchester Historical Museum will be offering a program about old fashioned valentines for children 3 and up. Come see examples of different types of antique valentines and make your own. $5 per child. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Please RSVP to info@manchesterhistoricalmusem.org or call 978-526-7230.

9^th Annual North of Boston Tourism Summit

on Friday, January 30^th at the DoubleTree by Hilton, Danvers

All are invited to attend the 9^th Annual North of Boston Tourism Summit on Friday, January 30, 2015 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Boston North Shore, 50 Ferncroft Road in Danvers. Presented by the North of Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau, the daylong event typically attracts more than 150 industry professionals representing a wide spectrum of the region’s tourism-oriented businesses, organizations and agencies.

The North of Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau is one of the 16 state-designated Regional Tourism Councils for Massachusetts. Our overall mission is to develop and implement effective marketing strategies to increase the number of overnight visitors to Essex County and to Massachusetts. In calendar year 2013, the tourism industry in Essex County generated more than $906 million in domestic and international expenditures, supported more than 7,000 jobs and generated close to $70 million in state and local taxes.

We have put together an exciting program, which includes Luncheon Keynote Speaker Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito.

Here is the timeframe of events for the day.

7:30 – 8:30am   –   Registration & Breakfast

8:30 – 9:00am – Breakfast Plenary Session Grand Ballroom I & II

• Welcome remarks by Steve Bartha, Town Manager, Danvers
• Remarks by State Senator Joan B. Lovely
• Remarks by Mayor Kim Driscoll, Salem

9:15 – 10:15am   –   Concurrent breakout session I: International Marketing & Cultural Tourism Marketing

10:30 – 11:30am   –   Concurrent breakout session II: Know Your Audience & Extreme Makeover

11:45 – 12:30pm   –   Industry Roundtables

12:30 – 1:45pm – Lunch and Plenary Session

• 12:30pm – Keynote Speaker, Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito

2:00 – 3:00pm – Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism Tourism U Session

To learn more about the program and to attend the Summit, please contact the North of Boston CVB at 978-465-6555 or visit www.northofboston.org.  The event web page can be accessed from the CVB homepage, where sponsorship packages and event tickets may be purchased online.

Conference Registration Pricing:

NBCVB Member – $60, Non-Member – $70, Student – $45

Thank you to the following event sponsors:

Title Sponsors:

• DoubleTree by Hilton Boston North Shore
• Salem Witch Museum

Presenting Sponsor:

• Cricket Press
• Universal Wilde

7:50AM #GloucesterMA Snow Update:

Stay off the roads unless it’s necessary.
Most roads are not currently plowed with over an inch of accumulation.
I saw two accidents driving through town.

VALENTINE’S DAY EVENT AT THE BLUE SHUTTERS BEACHSIDE INN.

Join Melissa Bourque and Julie Ann Gadziala for an evening of Crystal Bowl Channeling Connections 1/14/15 or book individual daytime sessions…
6:00 – 7:00 Appetizers & Dessert and Refreshments
7:00 – 9:00 Gallery with Julie Ann and Melissa.

Messages will be both Spiritual and Personal. Spiritual Channeling, Mediumship Connections with Loved ones in Spirit, and Healing Vibrations are all part of the evening.
Note… The sounds of Melissa playing her Moldavite Crystal Bowl are quite the intoxication. So deep, so healing and so very beautiful.

Cost is $40 and includes both the Gallery itself and the Food (appetizers & dessert) and Refreshments (beer, wine, coffee, tea) prior to the event.

This is an intimate setting. Reservations are required as there is very limited seating. RSVP directly to Julie Ann /Melissa or to the EventBrite link below:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/crystal-bowl-vibrations-with-messages-channeling-mediumship-gloucester-ma-february-14-2015-tickets-15421056796

PRIVATE SESSIONS ARE AVAILABLE WITH JULIE ANN OR MELISSA DAYTIME 2/14 & 2/15. $66 PER 30 MINUTE SESSION. CONTACT THEM DIRECTLY
Julie Ann:  978-387-5306 JulieAnn@NHMetaphsyical.com  (www.PsychicJulieAnn.com)
Melissa: 978-979-1212  MBourque1111@gmail.com  (www.MelissaBourque.com)

Consider booking a room and staying overnight at The Blue Shutters. Contact Innkeeper Eddie Comer for a reservation: info@blueshuttersbeachside.com (978) 283-1198 (www.blueshuttersbeachside.com)

Pop Gallery Has Football Fevah!

Who’s ready for our Patriots to cream the Seahawks?! WE ARE!!!

Starting TODAY, come into POP Gallery and enter our $50 RAFFLE!! You can enter up to the day before kick off (Jan. 31st)!

The winner will be announced before Sunday’s KICK OFF (Feb 1st)! And while you’re in, entering your name, scope out our cute pregame goodies! Sweatshirts, cozy lounge pants, and more!

IT’S TIME TO START THINKING ABOUT FALL ENROLLMENT AT EASTERN POINT DAY SCHOOL

Interested in exploring EASTERN POINT DAY SCHOOL? EPDS is currently enrolling for Fall. 

Next OPEN HOUSE will be Tuesday, Jan. 27th from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Tours of the school are always available as well. Please call us at 978.283.1700 or email at info@easternpointdayschool.org

WE LOOK FORWARD TO MEETING YOU! 

There have been examples of public art in the City of Gloucester that are a tribute to this city and are loved by the people here because they speak to the heart of who we are:
The Committee for the Arts has done a wonderful job in taking care of and publicizing the beautiful and historically significant City Hall Murals. 
seARTS did it right when the Partner with an Artist chose Tricia O’Neill’s downtown mural of her quote from Vincent Ferrini. 
Ken Hruby’s bronze in the courtyard of the Cape Ann Museum.
There is the bronze sculpture of Fitz Henry Lane next to the historic Fitz Henry Lane House, a historic house on the harbor side of Rogers Street.  The three story stone Gothic Revival building was built in 1849 by the artist and was his home until his death in 1865.
And we cannot forget the Man at the Wheel !!!!!!! A triumph of figurative public sculpture.
Now one would think…well those have gone well…why not just continue as we have been?
Because it is not enough that an individual, a sculptor, with a technically skillfully fabricated work, as nice as he is, and having connections to Gloucester, has offered to contribute his work to the city.
I trained as a sculptor at Boston University School for the Arts and got my Masters and Bachelors degrees there and taught there in sculpture and worked with some of the best sculptors of this century. I welded in steel and cast from clay to plaster to bronze. I would not expect because I live here that a work of mine, should I want to contribute it, would be placed in front of the community without a rigorous process to determine WHERE it should go and WHETHER it is right for Gloucester.

I am aware of a lot of discord and discomfort around this work.  It is not enough to say in time we will get used to it.   
Museums do not accept donations without a process of selection.
As Gloucester ventures more actively into the realm of more public art for this city we need to have a more critical process in place. It is important that a new Public Arts Policy be developed that sets the standards and that assures engagement by the people of Gloucester and our local artists in the selection of public art.
Other cities have done this…the City of Boston has had a specific “Task Force for Public Art”. They have worked with the neighborhoods.  I was a member of that task force for 2 years.
I therefore urge that the City of Gloucester delay any vote to set aside $30,000 of public funds for the installation of the David Black sculpture at Solomon Jacobs Park until a rigorous review and public discussion of the proposal and alternative locations is completed. 
Respectfully,
Ruth Mordecai
I am very sorry I cannot be at the meeting.  I have had a plan in place for several months to leave for 2 weeks on Monday morning.

Editor Note:
If someone feels strongly that the piece should happen I’d be happy to post their thoughts as well.
-Joey