Vote Yes on Overrides
Dear Editor,
As a former Winthrop teacher for 12 years and a parent of a severely disabled child, I whole-heartedly support the overrides for the schools. Due to shrinking budgets and increases in inflation, I received eight lay-off notices during my tenure in Winthrop. Luckily, another teacher agreed to share a position with me and I was able to stay on the teaching staff. I witnessed cuts after cuts in programs and the elimination of critical aspects of the curriculum including: developmental reading for all middle school students, art, music, home economics, woodworking, metals, and K Period activities. Also needed repairs and maintenance of the old Middle School were often cut due to the budget cuts.
I believe if we want to offer our children a decent education, which they deserve, we need to vote in favor of the overrides. ” You can’t get something for nothing.” If Winthrop residents want to keep the value of their housing, then it’s essential to have a good reputation for its schools. When the quality of schools go down, so do property values.
As a special needs parent, I can only thank Lisa Howard and other school leaders in the past for providing my son the services that he needed. I realize that his educational programs were costly, but are the needs of special needs students to be put in jeopardy because of budgetary issues? What will happen to the current special needs students if the override doesn’t pass?
I urge everyone in town to support our school children by voting yes for the overrides.
Ralph Tufo
Musician, Author and Playwright
USAID’s Destruction is Part of a Bigger Con
Dear Editor,
Here’s a question for Winthrop readers: If the government can dismantle an entire federal agency with no vote, no debate, and no accountability—what else can they get away with?
That’s exactly what’s happening with USAID, the agency that has delivered humanitarian aid for over 60 years. One day, it was funding disaster relief, famine prevention, and democracy-building programs. The next day, it was gutted with a stroke of a pen, cutting off aid to some of the world’s most vulnerable people while putting thousands of American workers out of jobs.
The excuse? A pack of lies spread by billionaires and political operatives who claim USAID is a “corrupt globalist scam.” Not a shred of evidence backs this up. But that didn’t stop the government from gutting it overnight. Sound familiar? It should. It’s the same playbook they used to tell workers their jobs were safe before offshoring entire industries. It’s the same way they broke unions, sold out small towns, and handed power to Wall Street and tech oligarchs.
This isn’t just about foreign aid. It’s about democratic institutions being dismantled while the public is distracted. It’s about lies being used to destroy what working Americans built over decades. It’s about the real winners—authoritarian regimes and corporate cronies—getting exactly what they want while the rest of us lose.
What happened to USAID is a warning. If we let disinformation and executive overreach kill off entire federal agencies, there will be nothing left to protect American workers, businesses, or our standing in the world.
Call your representatives. Demand accountability. Stop letting them dismantle America one institution at a time.
Leonora Foley, Precinct 6
Democracy Fellow,
USAID Regional Mission East Africa, 2001-2003
Tree Planting Season is Upon Us
Dear Editor,
We are quickly approaching tree planting season, and Tree Warden Tom Derderian and DPW Director Steve Calla will be quietly at work planting new public trees in the coming months. Dozens of trees were planted last year, and we expect the efforts to be very similar in 2025.
In addition to the yearly plantings conducted by the town, Winthrop residents can also donate street trees to be planted in front of their home (general donations to Tree Fund are also welcome), and now is a great time of year to do so. To donate a tree simply deliver a donation check for $350, payable to The Town of Winthrop Tree Fund, to the Department of Public Works located at 100 Kennedy Drive to initiate the process. Please indicate where you would like the tree to be planted, and also be sure to include your contact info. Both Director Calla and Tree Warden Derderian may be consulted as to what type of trees may be both available and appropriate for a planting location. Our street trees provide an immeasurable public benefit, and tree donations are wonderful way for us to create a greener town for the next generation.
Winthrop has also recently established an adopt a tree program that will match volunteers with young trees that may benefit from regular watering, especially in occasions of drought. If you are interested in adopting a tree, or in donating trees, please reach out to the Tree Warden ([email protected]) and see the tree donation form on Page 7.
Winthrop Tree Committee
Vote Yes on APRIL 5
Dear Editor,
Please vote YES on April 5 for the Winthrop school system and fire station.
I am resending some information from a letter back in the fall on the requested override as still completely relevant.
I have always felt that a good grade school education is critical and an important base for our society. It is the responsibility of the government and the communities we live in to provide this to the kids.
I re read an Op-Ed Article by Ray Leonardo from back in the fall and want to thank him for the information. No surprise, from an educator, that it was well written and full of facts. I fully agree with everything stated. I will reiterate some key points from the article
Cities and towns in Mass. pass budget overrides every 2-5 years on average. Winthrop has not passed a budget override for the schools in 15 years.
Winthrop’s tax rate is very low, in the 19th percentile, which means that 81% of other MA cities and towns have a higher tax rate. We also have very little commercial tax base which obviously hurts revenue generation for the town.
Total assessed value of property in Winthrop is in the 61st percentile, above state averages. This shows a strong mismatch between our property tax rate and total assessed value in comparison to the rest of the State.
Teacher salaries are in the 23rd percentile, thus 77% of other cities and towns in MA pay better. We have competitive starting salaries but drop off as teacher tenure grows thus making it more difficult to retain teachers as well as we should.
Ray noted the culture in the town where kids come back to live and raise their families. This seems quite evident to me over the years and reenforced by the strong showing of the town at the Boston Garden State Championship game. Lots of people I recognized and especially a lot of young adults that were classmates of our kids.
Congrats to the Vikings, Dale and crew, on an awesome win! This shows the character of our town and school system. Strong youth programs set the table for strong school programs, sports or otherwise. Sports and other programs aren’t everything, but they are an important part of the equation in giving kids a well-rounded education. These programs will be in jeopardy without this override.
We need to do our best as a town to provide as many options as possible to give the kids a good, well-rounded education and the base to go on to the next phase of their lives.
I noted Ray being defensive of the WTA. My only comment on that is if you are a teacher, you are not in it for the money as a vast majority of teachers know the importance of being a good educator. Any person in the workplace is going to ask for as much as they can and based on the teacher salary information above, the WTA is only asking for what is fair and equitable, while pointing out the difficulties in retaining experienced teachers with well below average salary levels.
I know a young teacher who started their career in a different school system and was miserable. Terrible culture with no support from the administration. Now, going into their 2nd year here in Winthrop, they are much happier with a noted difference in the school culture. A happy and motivated workforce is important for any organization, school system, business or other. Let’s give the school system the base funding they need to keep a good school system and positive culture in place.
I am also in support of the new fire station, which is obviously long overdue. I will say that I am disappointed that the Town Council has not been able to come to an agreement on a usage plan or opportunity for the Middle School property. Over all these years, that could have brought additional tax revenue to the town. But it is time to do something, and the new fire station is an immediate need. Certainly, the town will be able to sell the old fire stations much more easily with condos or other living structures a strong option.
This is an investment in our town that will pay dividends to our society and property value.
Please vote Yes for all questions on April 5!
Thanks,
Fred Loomis
Invest in Winthrop’s Future
Dear Editor,
We urge our fellow Winthrop citizens to vote “YES” on questions 1,2 and 3 on Saturday, April 5. The future of our children, firefighters and town is at stake.
Our current fire stations are outdated, undersized and incapable of supporting the needs of a modern fire department and the safety of our residents. At the same time, over the last five years our school district has made $4.8 million in cuts and that’s still not enough to keep up with rising demands of education. We’re asking our teachers and our firefighters to do more with less every day and it’s no longer sustainable.
Delayed action on a new fire station will risk our firefighters’ safety, make our residents more vulnerable during emergencies and reduce their ability to meet community needs. Delayed action to fund our schools means we can’t preserve the “status quo” for our students and their families, let alone strive for improvements, putting our teachers, staff, curriculum, clubs and athletics all at risk.
In Winthrop, we take pride in being a tight-knit community that is rooted in long-standing traditions. We have a history of showing up for our neighbors in times of need. It is now our collective responsibility to ensure that we continue to invest in the institutions that are the pillars of our community. We must recognize that our schools and first responders are inextricably linked – our firefighters and teachers are raising families in Winthrop, and the children in our community today will be the next generation to staff our schools and keep our town safe.
As long-time residents and leaders in this community, we urge our fellow residents to show your town pride by voting “YES” on questions 1,2 and 3 on Saturday, April 5th. When we invest in our schools and firefighters, we’re investing in a brighter and safer future for our town.
Robert DeLeo
Mike Eruzione
Rep. Jeff Turco
Sen. Lydia Edwards
Robert Travaglini
Terry Delehanty
Joe Aiello
Mary Mitchell
Cathy DelVento
Nick DelVento
Ron Vecchia
Jen Reth
John Macero
Joe Boncore
Susan Griffiths
Phil Boncore
Donna Reilly
Tom Reilly
Tracey Honan
Steve Ruggiero
Paul Flanagan
Bill Schmidt
Barbara Bishop
Shannon Poulos
Richelle Flavin
Richard Lawton
Rachele DeLeo Williams
Marc Chapdelaine
Peter Gill
Elaine Sullivan
Russ Sanford
Richard Gill
Barbara Flockhart
Lisa Alberghini
Andrea O’Leary
Deborah Kneeland Keegan
Vanessa Flavin
Gary Skomro
Carina Campobasso