South Boston Today October 13 2022

Others Addressing Teacher Shortage.

to develop and recruit minority teachers at an all-time high

One of the recurring educa tion headlines over the last year has been America’s unprecedented teacher shortage — especially as Black teachers quit at previously unseen rates. Plenty of experts have ideas about how to end the mass exodus of educators from the classroom, but Eric Duncan, the assistant director of P-12 policy at

EDITORIAL

Could It Be Time For A Neighborhood Watch?

Traditionally, the South Boston Community has been secure in the knowl edge that compared to some other Boston com munities; crime was not a major issue here. Things like muggings and home break-ins, car theft, van dalism and certainly rapes and shootings, while not completely unheard of, they were by comparison, few and far between. Res idents and police always had that friendly and open relationship and walk ing home or even along the beach at any time of night was never a cause to worry. And for the most part, and again we say by comparison to other parts of the city, Southie is still a relatively safe place. But lately, there seems to be a slowly rising concern that things might be starting to get out of control and that maybe now there IS a reason to worry. We’ve all seen the reports and police press releases recently about women being accosted

and assaulted with rob bery as the motive. The occasional house breakins are troubling as well and now, on more than one occasion during the last few weeks, cars have been set on fire for no apparent reason other than vandalism.

To quote legendary TV deputy sheriff Barney Fife, it might be past the time to “nip it in the bud”, before it contin ues and even increases in frequency. Maybe it IS time to look into organizing a neighbor hood watch.

South Boston is fortunate in many ways and one way in particular that is com forting to residents here is that we have a great squad of police officers assigned to the local station ‘C-6’. The men and women in blue at C-6, along with their excellent Captain, Joseph Boyle, like working here, always do an excel lent job and have a sincere affinity for local residents and make that extra effort to be responsive to the

needs and concerns of South Bostonians. The cooperation between police and residents is excellent and very much appreci ated. But most people are aware of the circumstances the BPD is facing. The department is shorthanded city wide by at least 400 of ficers. In short, they can’t be everywhere at all times. A neighborhood watch is just that – a ‘watch’. It doesn’t mean armed civilian patrols pulling people over and patting them down. Although if people have extra time, cruising local streets making sure all is well with phone in hand might not be a bad idea. What it does mean is creating a network where suspicious activity is re ported to police as soon as it’s noticed.

With a growing num ber of people having security cameras, shar ing the captured video of that suspicious activ ity with C-6 can be a big help as well as still photo shots. The term ‘If

you see something, say something’ takes on a special meaning in times like this. If it appears someone is breaking into a neighbor’s home or even lurking around it in a suspicious manner, let them know you’re watching, ask them who they are and what they want. Or just dial 911. All of these suggestions couldn’t hurt but maybe becoming more orga nized would be an even better way to go. In the coming weeks, meetings with law enforcement to discuss neighbor hood watch options and method would be a good way to begin the process of keeping our streets safe for everyone except potential criminals.

Gate of Heaven and St. Brigid Parishes and St. Augustine Chapel News Religious Education Grades K – 6 Classes 2022-2023

It’s not too late to register! Next CLASS Dates: Fall 2022 Oct 16, 23, 30 Classes are held on Sunday mornings 9 am - 10:15 am in Cushing Hall, followed by 10:30 am Mass at St. Brigid Church. You can Register your child in person or go online on our website: www.gateofheavenstbrigid. org/religiouseducation

•Our Sacramental Program is a twoyear program in accordance with Archdiocesan Guidelines.

•Please note that parents should enroll their children in the 1st Grade Pro gram for their child to receive their Sacrament of First Holy Communion in the 2nd Grade in 2024.

•For those students enrolling in 1st Grade who were not Baptized in either St. Brigid or Gate of Heaven Church, please provide a copy of your child’s Baptismal Certificate to register.

•Any questions, please visit our web site at www.Gateof HeavenStBrigid. org/religious-education and fill out our Online Registration Form under “Religious Education” or you can come and fill out a form in person on Sunday, October 16, at Cushing Hall, downstairs St. Brigid Church.

“As a combat veteran, I know the cost of war” - Tulsi Gabbard

Information Center

As Our Strategic Reserves Are Drained, Will Gas Prices Skyrocket Again?

Are we going to see another huge spike in gas prices at the pump? And of course, those are always followed by a nearly equally huge spike in the price of heating fuels like oil, natural gas and propane. What’s going on? – some who haven’t been paying attention might ask. Haven’t the prices at the pump actually been dropping over the past few weeks? Well yes, they have. And why? Most of our readers know but let me explain it to those who may not.

As of 2020, before Biden’s inau guration and under the Trump presi dency, after many years of being held hostage to OPEC , Venezuela and other countries that hate the US, America was finally, once again, en ergy independent. That means we no longer had to go hat in hand begging for the world’s oil producing nations and organizations to produce more and gouge us with the price per barrel a little less. It was embarrass ing to be sure but a mechanized and industrialized country like ours has to do what needs to be done some times to stay prosperous and power ful. Though America has possibly more untapped oil resources than the rest of the world combined, we weren’t pumping and producing as much as we could and therefore had to import much of what we needed. Now, like him or hate him, I per sonally like the guy a lot, in came President Trump, lifted many of the regulations that were crippling our own oil production and turned on the spigots and let our oil flow. This enabled our prices to US households and other consumers drop to levels that hadn’t been seen in decades.

OPEC and the other oil ‘cartels’ couldn’t compete and what do you know? Now THEY were buying American oil and we didn’t need foreign oil anymore. America found

itself in the proverbial ‘catbird seat’. With the cost of oil dropping to American businesses and fami lies, the prices on most necessities dropped to affordable levels. Food, clothing, building supplies, utility costs, in fact just about everything was priced reasonably.

But then, as sure as day turns to night, a dark cloud rose above our nation and much of the rest of the world and Joe Biden was inaugurat ed and democrats took over the na tion. And with their assent to power, they vowed to go to war and cripple the Fossil Fuel industry and replace it with the fantasy of the Green New Deal. They shut down domestic pipelines, cut back on permitting on new oil, natural gas and shale drill ing, eliminated some of our already established wells and raised the cost through the roof for others. The cost was passed on to the consumer in ways that affected nearly everything we needed to live.

But as the November midterm elections are getting close, the party in control began reading their own polling data and it’s not looking good for them. Americans are struggling because of the terrible policies Biden and those who are pulling his strings burdened most American families with. Yup, the people are ticked off and the DNC knows it. So, time to shift gears – FAST! That large pool of oil and gas sitting in our country’s emergency Strategic Petroleum Re serve must be tapped (drained is more accurate a term) so they can spread it around in an effort to temporarily bring prices at the pump down before the election to make it look like they have prices under control.

Well, they may have acted too fast because that great big pool of emer gency oil is at its lowest level in forty years. By some accounts, it’s at critically low levels. Let us all

that our country isn’t attacked and drawn into a war. So now, with not much left to drain, the prices are beginning to tick up again. Now we have Biden being sent out to once again, have our country beg for oil from the likes of OPEC. But OPEC and the other oil producers view America as weak once again under the Democrats and view Biden as next to useless. To say they have little if any respect for him would be an understatement. So, in response to his begging for oil, their answer last week was a firm and blunt ‘NO’! Or to paraphrase the Soup Nazi featured on the Seinfeld TV

Show ‘NO Oil For You!!’ And what they do sell us will be cut way back and cost way more.

In short, OPEC has us by the – ears. Panic is setting in for the party in power and they will be getting desper ate in these next few weeks leading up to the election. Brace yourselves for tricks, smears and outrageous propaganda. And by all means, all stops must be pulled out to make sure every last vote cast is counted ac curately. November 8th is the chance for Americans to take the nation back from those who seem to be doing their very best to drag our beautiful country into Third World status.

Family Help

Funeral & Cremations

David

-- Voting With Their Feet ?: A new analysis of IRS and Census data performed by the Tax Foundation found that Massa chusetts lost 36,982 taxpayers in 2019 and early 2020 at the start of the pandemic, enough to rank it fourth from the bot tom nationwide in terms of states losing population. The out-migration accounted for 20,395 filers and about $2.5 billion in adjusted gross income, according to the re port, with 2,116 returns with income over $200,000 coming off the books.

Massachusetts trailed only Illinois, California and New York - much larger states - in overall population loss. While the Tax Foundation allowed for the fact that many factors can contribute to

Window Into The State House

Window Into The State House provides our readers a synopsis of important issues of interest, past and current, that are being proposed, debated or acted upon by the Massachusetts Legislature. Many issues that are not related to local city government services are acted upon and have a direct impact on daily life. They are tax policy, transportation infrastructure, judicial appointments, social services and health, as well as higher education.

We will excerpt reports from the gavel-to-gavel coverage of House and Senate sessions by news sources focused on this important aspect of our lives. These sources include a look ahead at the coming week in state government and summaries and analyses of the past week, re-caps of a range of state government activity, as well as links to other news.

someone’s decision to move, the report flagged that states with “progressive tax codes,” or those that charge steeper rates as you move up the income ladder, have seen the greatest loss of popula tion. Massachusetts voters next month will decide whether to add a surtax of 4 percent on all income above $1 million, which would be the state’s first move away from a flat income tax.

--Mr. Popular: Gov. Charlie Baker is not on the ballot this fall, but he’s back on top of the pedestal once again as the na tion’s most popular governor. Morning Consult’s quarterly survey of voters and their views on their home state gover

nor put Baker’s approval rating at 74 per cent. It was enough to earn the top spot ahead of Vermont Gov. Phil Scott and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan after Bak er fell to third (gasp!) during the second quarter with a 73 percent approval rating.

-- Baker legacy embraced by un likely candidate

Given his popularity, it only makes sense that someone running to succeed Gov. Charlie Baker would campaign in the twoterm Republican’s mold. It’s just a bit sur prising that it’s Democrat Maura Healey. With the state’s Republican Party running away from the legacy of its standard-bearer for the past eight years, the Globe’s Matt Stout chronicles how it’s Healey - and not GOP nominee Geoff Diehl - who’s been the quickest with a compliment for Baker and the candidate least likely to try to un due what Baker has accomplished if and when she gets into office.

-- Wu weighing whether to reject Council-backed raises

It was Boston Mayor Michelle Wu who first proposed raising salaries for members of the City Council and the mayor. But what got approved might be even too much for Wu. The council went above and beyond Wu’s recommenda tions to approve raises of 20 percent for themselves, and to boost the salary of the mayor $43,000 to $250,000 a year. All the raises would not take effect until af ter the next election for each office. But GBH’s Saraya Wintersmith reports that Wu is not comfortable with the Coun cil’s decision and could veto the raises.

-- Lawsuit alleges state failing dis abled confined to nursing homes

Gov. Charlie Baker and his adminis tration are being sued by six residents with disabilities who say the state has not done enough to provide services that would help them transition from a nurs ing home to a more independent living facility. The Globe’s Nick Stoico has more on the class action lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court.

-- MBTA needs new leadership, top Dems say

The chairs of the Transportation Committee are putting the next ad ministration notice: We will look for more financial resources to help the MBTA, but a change in leadership must be part of the solution. Com monWealth Magazine’s Bruce Mohl has more from Rep. William Straus and Sen. Brendan Creighton, who went on the Codcast.

-- The process of banning flame retardants

The Eagle-Tribune’s Christian Wade re ports on how Massachusetts is implement ing a new ban on the use of flame-retar dant chemicals in products like children’s toys, furniture and carpeting after they’ve been shown to cause health problems. But the process of developing regulations has not been easy, with some businesses like those in the window treatment industry saying there are just no alternatives.

-- Halloween with a little green Spooky treats are everywhere this time of year. But if you’re looking for a little something extra in Halloween candy, you may have to go looking. The BBJ’s Cassie McGrath reports on one canna bis company’s efforts to make holidaythemed products, and why testing re quirements, restrictions on marketing and other hurdles make selling seasonal pot products an ordeal.

-- Treasury investigating use of relief funds for migrant flight

The U.S. Treasury Department’s In spector General has told members of the Bay State delegation it is investigating whether Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis im properly deployed federal relief funds to deliver planeloads of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard last month. George Brennan of the MV Times and Politi co’s Lisa Kashinsky report the inquiry comes after several lawmakers called for scrutiny over whether APRA funds were used in the scheme.

Rep. Lynch To Host Service Academies Information Session on October 30th

Sunday, October 30th, 2022, Congressman Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA-08) will host an infor

mation session at East Middle School in Braintree for all high school stu dents interested in applying to one of

the United States Service Academies.

Representatives from each of the following academies will make brief presentations and be avail able for questions:

United States Military Academy at West Point, NY

United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD

United States Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, CO

United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, NY

United States Coast Guard Acad emy at New London, CT

Massachusetts Maritime Academy

Bus Network Redesign Virtual Public Meeting

DATE: Wednesday, November 2

the Bus Network Redesign Program. Bus Network Redesign is a once-in-ageneration opportunity to make bold improvements to the bus network for the people who depend on it most.

changes to the draft network based on this feedback.

At this virtual public meeting, MBTA staff will present a revised net work and answer questions about it.

at Buzzards Bay, MA

All students and their families are welcome to attend.

WHAT: Congressman Lynch’s Academy Day

WHEN: Sunday, October 30th, 2022, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

WHERE: East Middle School, 305 River St., Braintree, MA 02184

CONTACT: Joseph Weydt, 617428-2000

For those unable to attend, more information on the Service Academy nomination process is available on our website: https://lynch.house.gov/ service-academy-nominations

TheMBTA will host a virtual public meeting on Wednesday, November 2, at 6 PM to discuss

The MBTA is making changes based on feedback from the public. Since re leasing the draft map in May 2022, the MBTA has received over 20,000 com ments. The MBTA has reviewed these comments and is evaluating potential

Trick or Treat on Broadway Set for Oct. 31

South Boston Chamber of Commerce businesses and the South Boston Neighborhood Development Corporation invite neighborhood children in costumes to “Trick or Treat along East and West Broadway” on Monday, Oct. 31, 2022, from 4-6 p.m.

Participating establishments will be clearly marked with orange and black posters inviting the children to stop by for a treat.

For the safety and enjoyment of all participants, we are asking that

trick-or-treaters walk in the same direction. If you are starting on West Broadway going toward East Broad way, walk on the odd-numbered (southern) side of the street. If you are starting on East Broadway head ing to West Broadway, walk on the even-numbered (northern) side of the street.

Broadway businesses that would like to participate but haven’t re ceived a poster via email yet should contact Karen at 617-990-7062 or Karen@vibrant-events.com.

The meeting will be held virtu ally via Zoom. The meeting will be recorded and posted online for those who cannot attend.

Accommodations:

These meetings are accessible to

people with disabilities and those with limited English proficiency. Accessibil ity accommodations and language ser vices will be provided free of charge, upon request, as available. Such services include documents in alternate formats, translated materials, assistive listening devices, and interpreters (in cluding American Sign Language).

For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation and/or language services, please email Bet terBusProject@MBTA.com or call (617) 651-1363.

Teacher Shortage continued from front page

The Education Trust, says there’s a solution we need to talk about more: If we had better recruitment success bringing and keeping Black educators in the classroom, the same shortage issues wouldn’t exist.

“If we want to address teacher shortages, teacher diversity is not only a key lever,” Duncan says, “it could be the key lever to addressing some of the long-term chronic shortages that affect some of our most vulnerable schools and student population.” In the Education Trust and Educators for Excellence joint 2022 Voices from the Class room report, results showed that 86% of teach ers nationally said they would spend their entire career as a classroom teacher, but that number dropped to 52% when looking only at responses from teachers of color.

It’s no secret that teachers don’t get paid enough. But in most surveys of Black educators, earning a higher salary is not usually the top strat egy for recruitment or retention.

However, the narrative shouldn’t be that Black educators don’t want to get paid more, Duncan says. Instead, it shows that Black educators face so many challenges at work, that when given an opportunity to share, higher pay doesn’t land at the top.

“Of course, those are the things that I’m going to bring up as really important to change because they’re affecting my ability to even be a strong pro fessional,” Duncan says. So instead of looking at it as Black educators don’t want to get paid, because they do, it’s more that “they have so many other challenges that are unique to being a Black educa tor— or the only Black educator in the classroom — that they are elevating those issues when they actually have an opportunity to share that.”

It also comes down to the reason that people go into teaching: They want to make a difference. And when they face obstacles like increased class sizes and secondhand books, they lose autonomy in the classroom. There needs to be less interfer ence so there are more “lightbulb moments,” Ingram says, and more of the magic that happens between a teacher and a student.

Research has proven that students of color who have teachers — and principals — who look like them achieve higher academic success, including higher reading and math scores. They also have higher high school graduation rates, and are more likely to enroll in college. But it’s not just students of color who benefit from having teachers of color — white students benefit socially, emotionally, and academically, too.

A popular strategy is grow-your-own programs, which are community-based efforts to support and encourage students through the process of becom ing an educator. For example, the American Federa tion of Teachers runs a program in New York that creates a pipeline of students that are supported and nurtured throughout high school to get their educa tion degrees from Montclair State University.

Not only are they surrounded by “master teach

ers,” Ingram says, but they’re given internships and proper resources to know what to expect when they go into the classroom. “That’s a model that we are push ing across the country,” Ingram says.

Washington State, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indi ana, Nevada and New Mexico –

The Community College Approach

In her second-grade classroom outside Seattle, Fatima Nuñez Ardon often tells her students stories about everyday people realizing their dreams. One day, for example, she talked about Salvadoran American NASA astronaut Francisco Rubio and his journey to the International Space Station. Another day, she told them her own life story — how she, an El Salvadoran immigrant who arrived in the U.S. in middle school speaking very little English, came to be a teacher. Nu

ñez Ardon took an unusual path to the classroom: She earned her teaching degree through evening classes at a community college, while living at home and raising her four children.

Community college-based teaching programs like this are rare but growing. They can dramatically cut the cost and raise the convenience of earning a teach ing degree, while making a job in education accessible to a wider diversity of people. In Washington state, nine community colleges offer education degrees for teaching grade school and up. All of the programs started within the last decade.

The expansion comes at a good time: Teacher short ages have worsened in the past decade, and fewer un dergraduates are going into teacher training programs. The number of people completing a teacher-education program declined by almost a third between the 200809 and 2018-19 academic years, according to a report in March from the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. To fill gaps in staffing, schools in Washington State have had to turn to underqualified employees. The number of waivers granted for staff who had not completed certification requirements rose to 8,080 in the 2019-2020 school year, from less than 2,800 a decade prior, according to a 2021 report from the state’s Professional Educator Standards Board.

More community colleges around the country are starting to offer teacher education, said CCBA President Angela Kersenbrock. In all, 51 community college-based teaching programs have launched across

the country since the early 2000s.

Not surprisingly, there has been pushback against community college degree programs in education in Washington and nationally, as universities with teacher education programs grapple with declines in enrollment, said Debra Bragg, the founder and former director of the University of Washington’s Community College Research Initiatives.

Is Recruiting Retired Teachers An Option? Ten nessee, New Jersy, New Mexico and parts of New York Allow ‘Double-Dip’.

To fill teacher vacancies, states are luring retired educators back into the classroom with financial incentives—including letting them “double dip” by earning a paycheck on top of their pension.

At least a half-dozen states have passed or are considering legislation this year to entice teachers out of retirement, an EdWeek analysis has found. Typically, states have policies that limit the amount retired educators can work or earn while collecting retirement benefits, but many of these new laws are lifting those restrictions in the face of shortages.

“Generally, bringing back retired teachers is probably a better approach than simply lowering the bar for new teachers,” said Heather Peske, the president of the National Council on Teacher Quality, which advocates for more-rigorous teach er preparation. (This year, some states have eased certification requirements and, in a couple cas es, even gotten rid of bachelor’s degree require ment to bring new teachers into classrooms.)

Teachers often retire in their 50s or 60s, after 25 or 30 years of experience. In many cases, those teachers want to continue working, Aldeman said, but they have no incentive to do so without re ducing their pension wealth in the long term. Although veteran teachers are at the high end of the pay scale, there are diminishing returns to their retirement benefits after a certain point in their career, and it’s not in their best financial interest to keep working past that point, Aldeman said.

Retired teachers who want to still work in some capacity often turn to substituting but finding another full-time job has typically been out of reach without jeopardizing their pension.

What is Boston’s strategy?

Alanna Devlin Ball - A True Champion Breaks Warrior Games world record

by Kevin Devlin

Alanna Devlin Ball, who recently retired from the United States Navy as a Lieutenant Commander, competed in the Department of Defense (DoD) Warrior Games held 19-28 August in Orlando, Florida. The games are composed of over 200 wounded, ill, and injured U.S. and International service members and veteran athletes.

Alanna, a cancer survivor and indeed a brave warrior beyond words. won five gold medals, a silver medal, and crushed a Warrior Games world record in the 50-meter backstroke swimming event.

She won a silver medal in wom en’s powerlifting, along with gold medals in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, 50-meter breaststroke, 200-meter mixed relay,

and 50-meter backstroke event as previously mentioned.

Alanna grew up in South Boston, attended Boston Latin Academy and excelled in swimming. She swam for the South Boston Boys and Girls Club, Quincy YMCA, USS Swimming and Boston Latin Acad emy, perennial Boston City League Champions. At BLA, she was the first seventh grader in MIAA history to be selected as an all-scholastic.

Alanna flourished academically receiving undergraduate and gradu ate degrees, subsequently earning her Naval Officer Commission at Officer Candidate School in New port, Rhode Island.

After serving both overseas and stateside for the United States Navy for 12 years, she was diag nosed with brain cancer. The tumor was completely removed, and she

underwent proton radiation and chemotherapy treatments.

In 2020, Alanna was contacted by the USSOCOM Warrior Care Program Recovery Care Coordi nator assigned to Naval Special Warfare Group TWO in Virginia Beach, VA. She encouraged Alan na to try out for Team USSOCOM at their selection camp held in Tampa, Florida.

Alanna knew it would be fun and allow her to concentrate on some thing other than treatment. So, she trained every day and was selected to compete in swimming, rowing and powerlifting events.

Alanna was excited and grateful to represent Team USSOCOM. Being focused on these games and training for them provided her with a wel come respite from her daily concerns.

“Participating in this camp en

abled me and my husband to focus on something other than the im mense physical, psychological, and emotional effects my surgery and treatment had on me…while provid ing (her) incredible opportunities to explore and experience alternative avenues to both heal and thrive.”

Injuries are not always visible to the general onlooker, but Alanna is fully aware of that.

“One of my biggest things I have experienced is that people cannot always see an injury. You will see people in the DoD Warrior Games who do not show an injury, but there is a reason they are here. That’s why I am there.”

The Devlin and Ball families are proud of Alanna’s accomplishments at these Warrior Games.

Her bravery is immeasurable.

Her desire to compete and win is insatiable.

Her love of life is undeniable.

Her sense of purpose and willpow er are without equal.

And our admiration and respect for her courage burns brighter.

Alanna pictured at the Warrior Games wearing her medals with her husband James

Alanna pictured diving off the block to begin another winning event

Alanna pictured exploding off the block as the anchor for the 200-meter mixed relay event

Alanna pictured powerlifting

The Wine

Guy

opinion I respect, especially when it come to this region. The Famille Perrin, Reserve Cotes du Rhone Blanc, 2020 ($16.99) is one that she’s followed over the years, and she says of the latest vintage: “this is an excellent value. Dry, full-bodied Cotes du Rhone with notes of dried pineapple and citrus zest…soft citrus, mineral and ginger flavors on the palate”. Try it with Roast Chicken, Vegetarian Quiche or your favorite seafood dishes.

this wine is undeniably delicious. The full-bodied palate is rich and silky, loaded with ripe raspberries and cream. For value-seeking consumers, this is one release to watch for down the pike.”. Marinated Flank steak done on the grille, Bison beef and Smoked Gouda burgers with Parme san-crusted red potatoes or ovenroasted Prime Rib and vegetables will all complement this one.

Lastly, I’m going to let the Wine maker from Vidal-Fleury describe his

2018 Saint- Joseph : Quite a full red with some black highlights. On the nose, blackcurrant, spice (nutmeg and pepper), strong and elegant tannins, fresh in the middle, with a touch of oak. A complex and long series of finishing elements, based on blackcur rants, smoked ham and some black tea. By the way, All of these wines a particularly good with ham and prok dishes, but especially good with Roast Boar. If you haven’t haven’t tried boar, you’re missing out.

InFrance’s Rhone Valley, the north ernmost point contains an Appela tion Controllee called Saint-Joseph. The area itself has been growing wines since its days as part of a Roman outpost and, apparently, the experience hasn’t been lost on the local families. A number of these familles vignerons, literally, “wine families”, make some of the world’s most delicious wine; here are a few to consider…

My friend and fellow writer, Natalie McLean, is someone whose

Nearby the Perrin family proper ties, Chaves St. Joseph Offerus, 2019, ($28.99) offers a wine that is rich and chewy, with distinctive notes of blackberries, cherries and caramel. Like many other wines in this area, this one is ready to drink now and will be enjoyable through 2025. Enjoy it with grilled beef, Roast Duck or Pheasant in a red Bourgogne-style sauce.

The list of wines under $50.00 that Robert Parker has given 90 points or more to is a very short one. E. Guigal St. Joseph, 2018, ($44.99) is on that list and Parker said, among other things: “Purists may cringe, but

SaintJoseph TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER

American Airlines Canceled My Flight and Charged Me An Extra $1,147

When American Airlines cancels the last leg of Sandy Burchett’s flight, it offers to cover the cost of her next flight. So what’s with the $1,147 charge on her credit card?

BY CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT

Q: I have a problem with an American Airlines ticket. I recently flew from San Angelo, Texas, to Washington, D.C. On a stopover in Dallas, American Airlines canceled my connecting flight. The airline rebooked me on a flight later that day, but it also canceled that one.

I received a notice on the American Airlines app saying I

could book another flight at no charge. I booked another flight. As soon as I did, I noticed the airline had charged me $1,147. I called immediately, and a representative assured me she would fix the charges. But when I went to pay my bill for the original ticket, the $1,147 charge was still on my card. I called American Airlines and my credit card, and they both said I had to submit a written request for the ticket I had purchased. I submitted that request, but my credit card denied it because I had a nonrefundable ticket. Can you help? -- Sandy Burchett, Appomattox, Va.

A: American Airlines should have rebooked you on the next available flight without charging you. But the rules are a little different. If an <a href= “https://www.elliott.org/ ultimate-consumer-guides-

smart-travelers/what-shouldi-do-if-my-flight-has-beencanceled-or-delayed/”>airline cancels your flight</a>, federal regulations require it to offer a full refund or a flight of its choosing -- not yours. American Airlines appears to have gone off-script by offering you a flight of your choosing through its app.

Fortunately, you had that prom ise in writing. You kept a screen shot of the offer.

I can’t overstate how impor tant a reliable paper trail is to resolving a complaint like this. If you don’t have it in writing, it’s American Airlines’ word against yours. And I think we all know how that will end.

You tried to appeal this through the regular customer service channels. And I should add that your flight experience on Ameri can Airlines was less than ideal. It involved numerous delays, a

missed day of work, and a night spent on the airport floor. To your credit, you didn’t ask the airline for any compensation other than the refund it said it would give you.

You might have tried ap pealing this to one of the <a href= “https://www.elliott.org/ company-contacts/americanairlines/”>American Airlines executive contacts</a> I pub lish on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org. A brief, polite note to one of them with all your documentation might have fixed this.

I contacted American Airlines on your behalf. A representative called you and apologized for a “system glitch.” The credit for your ticket showed up the next day.

Christopher Elliott’s latest book is “How To Be The World’s Smartest Traveler” (National Geographic). Get help by con tacting him at http://www.elliott. org/help.

Virtual Public Meeting

207 E Street Public Meeting

Thursday, October 27

6:00 PM

Project Proponent:

South Boston NDC

Project Description:

Zoom Link: bit.ly/3Cjlyjq

Toll Free: (833) 568 - 8864

Meeting ID: 160 392 4737

Public meeting to discuss and take comment on the proposed 207 E Street Project in South Boston. Project Description: South Boston NDC is proposing an adaptive reuse of the former McDevitt Hall, a former convent of the St. Augustine Parish. The proposed program consists of the renovation and an addition to the existing building. The program will include 36 residential units, 35 of which will be senior affordable housing and one will be a resident manager unit.

mail to: Caitlin Coppinger

Boston Planning & Development Agency

One City Hall Square, 9th Floor

Boston, MA 02201 phone: 617.918.4280 email: caitlin.coppinger@boston.gov

Bo@BostonPlans stonPlans.org

Teresa Polhemus, Executive Director/Secretary

Virtual Public Meeting

7 Channel Center NPC & PDA Amendment

Thursday, October 27

6:00 PM to 7:30 PM

Project Proponent:

7 CC 73 Owner, LLC

Project Description:

Zoom Link: bit.ly/3EusU6f

Toll Free: (833) 568 - 8864

Meeting ID: 160 216 7935

7 CC 73 Owner, LLC (the “Proponent”) proposes to redevelop 7 Channel Center Street in the Fort Point neighborhood of Boston (the “Redevelopment Site”), by constructing a new office/research and development (“R&D”) building (the “Redevelopment”). The Redevelopment is a part of the Channel Center Project (the “Channel Center Project” or the “Project”) which was originally reviewed by the Boston Redevelopment Authority (“BRA”) in the early 2000s. Since that time, six Notices of Project Change have been submitted for review and approval. This seventh Notice of Project Change (“Seventh NPC”) is for the Redevelopment Site only; the remainder of the Channel Center Project will remain as previously approved.

mail to: Daniel Polanco

Boston Planning & Development Agency

One City Hall Square, 9th Floor

Boston, MA 02201 phone: 617-918-4460 email: dan.polanco@boston.gov

Virtual Public Meeting

Public Meeting: 776 Summer St.- Phase 1

Wednesday, October 26

6:00 PM - 7:30 PM

Project Description:

Zoom Link: bit.ly/3TAVJD1

Toll Free: (833) 568 - 8864

Meeting ID: 161 593 2722

The Phase 1 Project will be located on 8.4 acres / 364,409 square feet within the approximately 15.2 acre (approximately 661,500 square foot) parcel of land known as and numbered 776 Summer Street in South Boston. The Phase 1 Project includes the rehabilitation of the Edison Turbine Halls 1, 2, and 3 and the construction of the buildings on Blocks D and F.

mail to: Stephen Harvey

Boston Planning & Development Agency

One City Hall Square, 9th Floor

Boston, MA 02201

phone: 617.918.4418

email: stephen.j.harvey@boston.gov

Bo@BostonPlans stonPlans.org

Teresa Polhemus, Executive Director/Secretary

Close of Comment Period: 11/7/2022

Bo@BostonPlans stonPlans.org

Teresa Polhemus, Executive Director/Secretary

Faith And Blue Celebrated At Lawn On D

The City of Boston was selected as a marquee event host for this year’s national Faith & Blue Weekend, which was scheduled from Friday, October 7 to Monday, October 10, 2022. The last event of the weekend was held on Columbus Day at Lawn On D and what a powerful event it was as community, faith leaders and law enforcement came together to eat,

pray, sing, dance and have a great time as one in the same.

Mayor Wu, Commissioner Cox and his Command Staff, Suffolk County DA Kevin Hayden, Mass State Police, Mass Bay Transit Po lice, Suffolk County Sheriff and our own Captain Boyle C-6 and his team were all present at this wonderful event representing the Blue. Cardi nal Sean O’Malley, Fr. Conway, Fr.

White, Deacon Paul, Rev. Hutchins, Bishop Dickerson II, Rev. Groover, Rev. Bodrick and many more were representing multiple faiths and cel ebrating everybody. Council Presi dent Ed Flynn with his wife Kristen and State Rep. David Biele were in the crowd socializing with guests, LEO and enjoying the event. “It is always an honor to assist our friends at the Boston Police Department and

the faith based community. Thanks to our partners at the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority, we were able to ensure this special event took place right here in South Boston at the Lawn on D.” said Haley Dil lon, Legislative Director for Senator Collins who coordinated the event.

Maybe if we had more of these events, it could be a way for the City of Boston to come together.

South Boston Catholic Academy News New Playground at South Boston Catholic Academy

Early Childhood Center In Mem ory of Colin McGrath

You will notice a new play ground at the former St. Brigid Con vent lawn on East 4th Street. In

Cooperation with Colin’s Joy Proj ect this playground will be a welcome addition to our new Early Childhood Center at South Boston Catholic Acad emy. Colin was enrolled in our Early Childhood Program before his unex pected death in the summer of 2018. In his memory, this playground will keep Colin’s spirit of joy and laughter alive in the lives of the children at our Early Childhood Center. On October 4, 2022 the McGrath family along

with the Toddler and K0 students, families, faculty and staff and Ms. MaryKate Bourdon, the Director of our Early Childhood Center celebrated the opening of the new playground. Dr. Helenann Civian, our Principal, expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the McGrath family on behalf of all us at SBCA, and Father Robert Casey, our Pastor, lead us all in a special prayer and Blessed the playground, then the McGrath Family officially dedicated and opened the playground in the memory of their son, Colin, with a rib

bon cutting ceremony. Not only do the Toddlers and K0 students love playing in this new playground, the K1 students also enjoy playing in this fantastic and wonderful new playground! All of us at South Boston Catholic Academy are so thankful to the McGrath Family and the Colin’s Joy Project for giving us this amazing new playground - we will forever be thankful! The New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacad emy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

St. Peter Academy

We Love Our First Responders

Last Friday, St. Peter Academy had the pleasure of host ing C-6 Community Service Officer Ayesha, Officer Robert and Cadet Dorvens in our Community Room. They discussed Bullying and Halloween Safety with the students. The presentation was informative and

there was a great question and answer session. Thank you for coming!

In honor Fire Prevention Week, Grades Toddler through 2 took their annual trip to our local D Street Fire house. The friendly firefighters gave us a tour of the firehouse. They let us check out the fire trucks and their

heavy equipment and even let us spray the hose. The students had a blast!

Thank you to all out First Respond ers, you are such an important part of our community! Stay safe!

St. Peter Academy is continuing to accept applications for the 20222023 school year. St. Peter Academy is an independent, community-based private school and serves students from ages 15 months through grade 6. SPA is currently accepting appli cations for the limited spaces avail able in the year-round toddler pro

gram (beginning at age 15 months) and for students in Pre-K (School Year and Full Year Programs), Kin dergarten and grades 1-6. Financial Aid Available. Two Scholarships will be offered this year for applicants for Grades 1 through 6. You may request scholarship informa tion from the Front Office (spa@ stpeteracademy.com). Appointments for individual virtual tours can be made by contacting Maria Blasi, at 617-268-0750 or by emailingspa@ StPeterAcademy.com.

This week,

Danny reacted to the latest big-name pro athlete to invest in the ‘sport’ of pickleball:

What the heck is pickleball?

That’s the question I’ve asked myself many times over, even after somehow stumbling upon it on TV.

I watched. I wasn’t impressed.

Maybe it’s because I’ve never played pickleball, but I just wasn’t feeling it. Could I be wrong about this? I’m open to that. Especially seeing several bigname pro athletes begin to invest their money into what I was previously calling a recreational activity.

Some of those big-name athletes include LeBron James, Draymond Green, Kevin Love, and Drew Brees. And now, the latest?

That’s right. Tom Brady.

Brady is now part of an ownership group for an expansion team in Major League Pickleball. Yes, you read that correctly. Major League Pickleball, or, the MLP.

Here locally, there’s even a new pickleball facility in Southie, down on C Street. So make sure you go check it out, because it definitely looks pretty cool.

Brady posted an instagram this week promoting his new in MLP in vestment. Here’s the full release from the league:

Austin, TX., Oct. 12, 2022 An ownership group headlined by 5-time

NFL Super Bowl MVP quarterback and entrepreneur Tom Brady and Former World No.1 tennis player Kim Clijsters has purchased an expan sion team for the 2023 Major League Pickleball (MLP) season. The group, led by Knighthead Capital Manage ment, LLC, includes co-founder of Knighthead Tom Wagner, acclaimed producer Matt Alvarez, Wall Street bond saleswoman Callie Simpkins, and financial advisor Kaitlyn Kerr, who will serve as General Manager.

“Tom Brady, Kim Clijsters, and Knighthead Capital Management are champions in their fields and will now be champions for Major League Pickleball,” said MLP Founder Steve Kuhn. “What really shines through in working with these amazing individuals is their passion for the sport. We are thrilled to welcome them to our unrivaled roster of strategic partners, who are individually and collec tively instrumental in helping us elevate professional pickleball, showcase the joy it brings to millions of people around the globe, and further our ’40 by 30’ cam paign – our mission to reach 40 million pickleball players by 2030.”

The expansion team is a part of a three-pronged growth plan for 2023, which will see 12 teams grow to 16, three events double to six, and player prize money and payouts surpass

$2M. MLP is the standard-bearer for pickleball in the United States, delivering the highest-quality and most exciting experience in the sport as well as the largest prize money payouts per event to its players.

“Of course, I’m excited at the invest ment opportunity,” said Clijsters, the sixtime tennis Grand Slam Champion who regularly plays pickleball with Simp kins and Kerr. “But what excites me the most about becoming an MLP owner is that I get to help shape the future of pickleball, a sport I have come to love, with great people – who also happen to be some of my best friends. I’m thrilled to help showcase professional pickle ball and make an impact on the sport through my experience gained in the top levels of professional tennis.”

With the investment from Clijsters, Simpkins, and Kerr, the new team will also be 50% female-owned, a testament to the league’s foundational mission of gender equality. MLP is one of, if not the only professional sports league where men and women compete on equal footing. Co-ed teams play two rounds of mixed doubles, in addition to men’s and women’s doubles, and could even have men and women face off against each other in singles in a Dreambreaker™, a unique tiebreaker only found in MLP. The ownership group adds even

more credibility to MLP’s already stacked roster of high-profile owners and strategic partners, who offer unparal leled expertise across marketing, media, entertainment, branding, and more.

Other team owners and partners include NBA icons LeBron James, Draymond Green and Kevin Love, Super Bowl Champion Drew Brees, entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk (Gary Vee), famed lec turer and research professor Brené Brown, co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks Marc Lasry, former World No.4 tennis player James Blake, healthcare executive Molly Joseph and from Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing New York and Founder and CEO of Serhant, Ryan Serhant.

The 2022 MLP season finale will see 48 players descend on Columbus, Ohio from October 14-16 to compete for the largest single-event prize purse ($319,000) in the history of pickleball, with the winning team taking home $100,000. Fans can attend the event live at Pickle & Chill in Columbus or catch all the action on YouTube globally, MSG Networks in NY, NJ, CT, and PA (group play, quarterfinals and semifinals – Fri day-Sunday) and CBS Sports Network (finals – Sunday at 7:30pm ET).

I guess I’m going to have to try pickleball.

Follow Danny on instagram @ DannyPicard.

SPORTS TODAY

PATS SHUT OUT LIONS

AS ZAPPEMANIA HITS

FOXBORO

Tweet of the Week

TheBailey Zappe era — for as long as it’s going to last — is off to a solid start.

Zappe led the Patriots to their second win of the season last Sunday, as New England defeated the Detroit Lions, 29-0, at Gillette Stadium. It snapped a two-game losing skid for the Pats.

Bill Belichick continued to own Li ons quarterback Jared Goff, keeping him off the scoreboard entirely. Goff is now 1-3 in his career against the Patriots, which includes Super Bowl LIII while Goff was with the Los Angeles Rams.

On Sunday in Foxboro, Goff fin ished the game 19-of-35 for 229 pass yards and one interception, while being sacked twice and losing a fumble.

The fumble was a game changer, late in the second quarter, while the Patriots led 6-0. Detroit got the ball

back after a Zappe interception, but a Matthew Judon sack on Goff forced the ball loose, and Kyle Dugger picked it up and ran 59 yards the other way for the touchdown, putting New England up 13-0. The Patriots added a field goal minutes later to take a 16-0 lead into halftime.

New England opened up the second half with a field goal, and then a 24yard Zappe touchdown pass to Jakobi Meyers, to take 26-0 lead. Then with five minutes left in the game, Nick Folk kicked his fifth field goal of the afternoon, making it 29-0, which is how it would end.

Zappe finished the game 17-of-21 for 188 pass yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He also rushed five times for five yards.

The rookie quarterback’s leading receiver was Meyers, who caught seven of his eight targets for a game-high 111 receiving yards. Tight end Hunter Henry

finished second on the team in receiv ing, making four catches for 54 yards.

On the ground, Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson had a gamehigh 25 carries for 161 rush yards.

The Patriots are now 2-3 on the season, and are still in last place in the AFC East. The Buffalo Bills are in first place at 4-1, while the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins are tied for second place in the division at 3-2.

Now, the Patriots head to Cleveland to take on the Browns in Week 6, this Sunday at 1 p.m. The Browns are 2-3 and have lost two straight games, to the Falcons in Atlanta, and at home to the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Browns — led by former Patri ots quarterback Jacoby Brissett — are a three-point favorite in the game.

Statistically, the number that jumps off the page heading into this one is Cleveland’s rush yards allowed. The Browns are the fifth-worst team in

BRUINS BEGIN 2022-23 REGULAR SEASON

Feels like it was just yesterday that the Colo rado Avalanche were hoisting the Stanley Cup. Well, the Cup is back in its case, and a new NHL season begins this week.

For the Boston Bruins, they opened their season on Wednesday night in Washington. They’ll play

their first home game at the TD Garden this Saturday night against the Arizona Coyotes.

The B’s have the 12th-best odds of winning the Stanley Cup in 2022-23, at +2800. Colorado is the favorite to repeat, at +450.

Boston begins the season without two of their

WHAT

NFL

MONDAY,

MONDAY, OCT.

the NFL against the run, allowing 138 rush yards per game. So, it could very well be a big day on the ground for Stevenson, who is expected to be New England’s lead back in the wake of Damien Harris’ hamstring injury that he suffered in Sunday’s win over the Lions.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Harris is likely to miss multiple games because of the injury.

The good news for Stevenson and the Patriots is that the Browns allowed 238 rush yards to the Chargers last week, and 202 rush yards to the Falcons two weeks ago.

For the Patriots, all eyes will be on their quarterback situation leading up to kickoff in Cleveland. Mac Jones practiced in a limited fashion last week, but he’s missed the last two games because of a high ankle sprain he suffered in Week 3 against the Baltimore Ravens.

best players in veteran winger Brad Marchand and defenseman Charlie McAvoy.

Marchand had hip surgery in late May. He’s re cently returned to the ice, but he isn’t expected to return to game action until around Thanksgiving.

McAvoy had left shoulder surgery in early June, and his return timetable is similar to Marchand’s.

Last season, the Bruins lost in the first round of the playoffs, in seven games to the Carolina Hurricanes.

SBT Staff