Thank you!
Dear Editor,
I would like to take this opportunity, long overdue, to publicly thank the members and officers of Winthrop lodge of Elks #1078 for their continued support. A special shout out to the Daly sisters for spearheading the efforts.
Whether it’s the veteran BBQ/Horseshoe tournament, fishing charters, to the incredible Christmas party which not only are Winthrop vets in attendance.
The lodge invites veterans from the Chelsea Soldiers Home and New England Shelter for veterans, some of our most vulnerable folks spreading cheer at a very challenging time for many.
In addition, they purchase gift cards for needy veterans and Welcome Home baskets for our returning troops. The lodge holds annual events such as ?Flag Day, Purple Heart Day, and POW/MIA Day. They welcome all veterans ?back to the Elks after the Town holds Memorial and Veterans Day ceremonies ?for refreshments. As we say in the 2nd Infantry they are Second To None!
??On behalf of all veterans, we commend you on your benevolence, ?charitable efforts, and kindness to all who served our great nation.
??God Bless,
??Phil Ronan
??Veterans Service Officer, ??Town of Winthrop
Facing the end of life
Dear Editor,
I wrote a letter to the Winthrop Transcript last year urging support for moving the Medical Aid in Dying bill forward in the Massachusetts Legislature. Since then, New York’s Governor Hochul signed such legislation into law, with full implementation slated for later in 2026. It will be one of 13 states plus the District of Columbia legally permitting medical aid in dying. There are 12 additional states including Massachusetts that are currently considering such legislation.
To clarify what medical aid in dying is, sometimes it’s best to distinguish it from assisted suicide, which is legal in Canada and in a number of other countries. In Canada, people seeking assisted suicide do not need to present with an immediately foreseeable death and will be able to access the option beginning in 2027 even if mental illness is their only medical condition. Medical Aid in Dying in this country by contrast gives a mentally capable, terminally ill adult the option to request and self-ingest prescription medication to peacefully end their suffering if it becomes unbeaerable. Among other safeguards are the requirement that two healthcare providers certify that a patient has a prognosis of six months or fewer to live and that s/he is found to be mentally sound by a mental health specialist. It also makes it a crime to coerce a terminally ill person into using medical aid in dying.
Lest someone think that there is a slippery slope leading from medical-aid-in-dying as practiced in the United State to assisted suicide as practiced in Canada, little has changed in almost thirty years since the law first went into effect in Oregon in 1997. In fact, fewer than 9,000 individuals in the U.S. have used medical aid in dying through 2022, and 30-40% of those who opt for medical aid in dying never actually end up using it to end their lives. The discussion of medical aid in dying has been incorporated into many hospice and palliative care programs, and its presence is said to have promoted pain management and end-of-life care more broadly.
I’ve observed previously that many people out of personal religious or philosophical conviction would not choose such a path as they approach their final days. I’m fully respectful of their right to hold such beliefs. All I’m asking is that I and others like me be given a similar right to live out our final stage of life according to our own personal beliefs.
If you agree that medical aid in dying should be an option in Massachusetts, please contact Senator Lydia Edwards at Lydia.edwards@masenate,gov or 617-722-1634 and urge her to support Senate bill S.1486.
Bill Demo
Winthrop