01907 Spring 2021

Big 

Blues 

SPRING 2021 

VOL. 6, NO. 1

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02 | 01907 

A publication of Essex Media Group 

Publisher 

Edward M. Grant 

Chief Executive Officer 

Michael H. Shanahan 

Directors 

Edward L. Cahill 

John M. Gilberg 

Edward M. Grant 

Gordon R. Hall 

Monica Connell Healey 

J. Patrick Norton 

Michael H. Shanahan 

Chief Financial Officer 

William J. Kraft 

Chief Operating Officer 

James N. Wilson 

Community Relations Director 

Carolina Trujillo 

Controller 

Susan Conti 

Editor 

Thor Jourgensen 

Contributing Editors 

Gayla Cawley 

Cheryl Charles 

Contributing Writers 

Mike Alongi 

Elyse Carmosino 

Gayla Cawley 

Daniel Kane 

Steve Krause 

Guthrie Scrimgeour 

Ann Marie Tobin 

Photographers 

Spenser Hasak 

Julia Hopkins 

Design 

Sean Casey 

Advertising Design 

Sean Casey 

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Advertising Sales 

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01907themagazine.com 

LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER 

04 What's Up 

06 Fun Facts 

08 Note by note 

12 House Money 

14 Hard hitters 

18 Write Stuff 

A foodie's delight 

INSIDE 

20 Town slice 

23 Bakery way 

26 Hope's Anchor 

28 History's house 

30 Pastor Power 

TED GRANT 

What is it about food anyway? We seem to pay an awful lot of attention to it. I know I do. Maybe it's 

because one of the few things we have left as this pandemic careens toward its first anniversary is food. 

We have three articles in this month's 01907 devoted to food -- two about the fun of it and one about 

the seriousness of it. 

We could call this first article "Hello, Newman's." In this case, it's Deb Newman, sister of Jessica, who 

is part of the family that ran Newman's Bakery on Humphrey Street since 1966. The bakery is closed, but 

Deb has opened "The Baker's Daughter," a meatless diner farther down the street, closer to Marblehead, 

than the bakery was. 

"I wanted people to see you could eat yummy food and it doesn't have to have meat in it," she says. So 

far, the response has been very positive. 

Gayla Cawley has the story. 

Next we take a peek into an old town standby -- Cindy's Pizza and Subs, another Humphrey Street 

eating establishment. Cindy's has been around for more than 40 years, and about the only thing that's 

changed is that it's middle school kids now, and not high school students, who patronize it. 

"It's been great living and working in town for this long," said Cindy's owner Nunzio Freddo. "You get 

to see kids who you saw when they were little, now bringing in their own kids." 

Guthrie Scrimgeour has the story. 

Now for the serious. When the Anchor Food Pantry was ready to open last year, nobody had any idea 

just how vital a place like that would be. But then COVID-19 pandemic swept through the North Shore, 

bringing with it business closures and loss of jobs, and all of a sudden, the food bank became a necessity in 

the town. 

Elyse Carmosino has the story. 

Elsewhere, Swampscott resident Carolina Velasquez is encouraging the community to "Adopt a 

Grandparent," a national initiative she has joined that aims to bring joy to seniors during the COVID-19 

pandemic. 

Gayla Cawley has the story. 

When town residents Eddie and Carley Alvarez opened the doors to Alvarez Family Boxing back in 

late November, it was a culmination of a lifelong dream and a full year’s worth of hard work. 

Mike Alongi has the story. 

For Swampscott native Douglas Volk, getting his novel, "The Morpheus Conspiracy," from his mind 

onto paper was a long process — 39 years long to be exact. 

Daniel Kane has the story. 

Is Swampscott home to the oldest wooden structure in North America? 

The answer is complicated but comes down to this — unless and until the John Humphrey Memorial 

House on Paradise Road undergoes a dendrochronology examination, nobody knows the answer. 

Anne Marie Tobin has the story. 

If you crossed the treacherous intersection of Humphrey Street, Atlantic Avenue and Puritan Road as 

a child sometime in the past 40 years, you met Irma Rubin. 

Guthrie Scrimgeour has the story. 

Also, The Rev. Jeffrey MacDonald is bringing new perspective to Nahant Village Church. Elyse 

Carmosino tells how; In the year since the pandemic shutdown, Edi Rovi and the Swampscott band have 

had to undergo many adjustments and changers. Mike Alongi explains it; and among some of the town's 

fun facts, learn the history of the Gen. Glover House on Salem Street. 

The menu is pretty diverse in this issue. Grab yourself something to eat and dig in. 

COVER 

A pandemic can't keep 

Swampscott High 

senior Kiki de Melo 

away from her music 

PHOTO BY 

SPENSER HASAK

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WHAT'S UP 

Pooch pass 

What: If your dog is licensed with the 

town and has a rabies certificate, you 

can get a pooch pass to the dog park. 

Where: Go to swampscottma.gov for 

registration and five dollar payment 

processing. 

When: The park is located on town land 

bordering Swampscott Cemetery off 

Essex Street. 

Time to vote 

What: It's town election time with 

eight town-wide office seats and 

at least 18 Town Meeting seats in 

contention. 

Where: Visit swampscottma.gov or email 

sduplin@swampscottma.gov for more 

information. 

When: Tuesday, April 27. The last day to 

register to vote is Wednesday, April 7. 

Show your love 

What: For the Love of Swampscott is 

always looking for residents interested 

in fostering love and enthusiasm for 

our community. 

Where: Visit fortheloveofswampscott.org 

for more information. 

When: To suggest activities 

or volunteer, email 

fortheloveofswampscott@gmail.com 

One with nature 

What: The Swampscott Conservancy 

is dedicated to helping support the 

town in preserving open space and 

conservation land. 

Where: The group currently holds talks 

and webinars on Zoom with organizations 

including Salem Sound Watch. 

When: For more information, email 

swampscottconservancy@gmail.com 

Wowbrary 

What: The Swampscott Public Library 

has a big selection of children's and 

young adult books. 

Where: Go to swampscottlibrary.org 

Look for the Wowbrary window and 

click on a book cover image to place a 

book on hold for borrowing. 

When: For more information, email 

swa@noblenet.org

Target your message 

to an affluent audience 

Milling around 

Madam Clerk 

Little big reader 

SPRING 2021 

VOL. 4, NO. 1 

Contact us at: 

781-593-7700 

info@essexmediagroup.com


Beach 

Grazers 

At one point the beaches of 

Swampscott weren't always just a 

nice place for the summer. They 

actually served as a pound. Back 

when farming was commonplace 

in town and animals like cows and 

horses would regularly venture off the 

land, they were impounded (like a car 

would be today) along the beaches, 

where owners had to pay to bring 

them back home. 

The facts of 

01907 

BY DANIEL KANE 

For the love of 

Glover 

The General Glover house 

located on Salem Street in Vinnin 

Square has been left unkempt 

for some time. During the 

Revolutionary War the property 

belonged to a British Loyalist, but 

was confiscated and given to war 

hero General John Glover as a 

retirement home. In more recent 

years, the property eventually 

became a restaurant before closing 

in the 1990s. Last year, it was 

issued a violation notice from the 

town of Swampscott for being a 

“blighted or unsafe structure.” 

Hallowed 

Ground 

Another piece of history is the 

Swampscott Cemetery. The town's 

only cemetery for more than 160 

years, it was established in 1852 as one 

of the first acts of the new community. 

The original section of the cemetery 

is listed on the National Register of 

Historic Places. Andrew's Chapel, 

located in the center of the cemetery, 

has been restored by the Andrew's 

Chapel Committee. 

Dory days 

Many years ago, the Naumkeag 

Native Americans fished the 

waters along Swampscott's coast 

and that tradition grew into 

some famous salt cod businesses 

throughout the years. The town 

even inspired the name of a 

traditional fishing boat called the 

Swampscott Dory. 

This Boston statue commemorates John Glover. 

SHUTTERSTOCK 

Wet walk 

Among the remnants of the town's 

fishing days is a set of stairs located 

across from St. John's Episcopal 

Church on Humphrey Street, which 

is only recognizable during the day's 

lowest tide.

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And the band 

played on 

On March 17, 2020, just one week away 

from its annual spring concert with the 

jazz and percussion ensemble, Swampscott 

High School band members were stunned 

to learn that the school was ordered shut 

down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“It was kind of surreal when it 

happened at first,” said Edi Rovi, who is 

in his sixth year as Swampscott’s band 

director. “We actually were talking about 

moving the concert up a week so we could 

get it in with no worries, but there were 

scheduling conflicts that got in the way so 

that didn’t happen.” 

In the year since, Rovi and the 

Swampscott band have had to endure 

a litany of changes, adjustments, 

disappointments and learning. 

The Swampscott High School band 

is a typical high school marching band of 

31 members, with woodwind, brass and 

percussion instruments making up the group 

— which Rovi calls “well-balanced” in terms 

of the numbers of each instrument type. 

There is also a separate jazz and percussion 

ensemble, and the band collaborates often 

with the Swampscott High chorus. 

The band is normally busy for the entire 

calendar year. Starting with band camp in 

August, a normal year for the musicians 

consists of performing at football games 

in the fall, visiting the annual University 

BY MIKE ALONGI 

of Massachusetts Band Day in November, 

holding concerts in December, March 

and May, performing at the graduation 

ceremony and performing at both the Lynn 

and Nahant Memorial Day parades. 

“Our schedule is usually pretty full for 

the entire year,” said Rovi, who teaches 

a host of music classes at Swampscott 

High including introduction to drums, 

introduction to guitar, history of rock, 

music technology and many others. “It 

was definitely a drastic change for us to go 

from always preparing for a performance 

to not having anything to look forward to. 

But we’ve been able to make the best of it 

regardless.” 

Naturally, every performance over the 

past 11 months has been canceled and the 

Swampscott band hasn’t performed for a 

live audience in over a year. But that doesn’t 

mean they’re not meeting. 

Band camp was canceled in August, but 

students began meeting again after school 

in late October. Rovi meets with his band 

members weekly, and the band has adjusted 

to not being able to all be in the same place 

at once due to safety protocols. 

“We started meeting virtually pretty 

early on after things were shut down, but 

we ran into the fact that performing via 

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BAND, continued from page 8 

Zoom was really tough due to the quality,” 

he said. “Once we were able to start 

meeting again after school, we’ve been able 

to fit 24 kids at a time in the auditorium 

and we have the rest watch via Zoom, and 

then we rotate those groups so everyone 

gets a little of both. 

“It’s definitely been a stressful time 

and lesson plans have had to be altered 

dramatically,” Rovi added. “You’re just trying 

to make each day enjoyable for everyone and 

keep all the students engaged every day.” 

Despite everything from meeting 

together to getting feedback being altered 

dramatically by the pandemic, Rovi has seen 

great enthusiasm from every one of the band 

members. And it looks like things are starting 

to have potential for getting back to normal. 

While the December concert was 

canceled a few months ago, there are talks 

about a smaller scale concert in March that 

will hopefully be held in the auditorium. 

The May concert will hopefully be held 

outdoors, with two to three members of 

each bandmate’s family allowed to attend. 

Football has been approved to start in late 

February and the band is in talks with the 

principal and athletic director to perform 

at games again — although there are 

potential issues in terms of cold weather 

affecting the instruments. 

And as far as the Memorial Day 

performances in Lynn and Nahant, Rovi 

says that if the parades are happening then 

the band will be there. 

“We’ve met with the principal and 

the consensus is that it would be best for 

everyone if we could manage to make this 

spring concert 

happen and get 

things started,” 

said Rovi. 

“We’d love to 

do football 

games and 

we’re waiting 

to hear about 

that, and we’re 

really hoping 

that Memorial 

Day will 

happen as well. 

We know that 

a lot can change in a short period of time, so 

we’re just staying hopeful.” 

According to Rovi, one of the key 

reasons that the band has been able to 

continue on its path without a single 

outbreak has been personal accountability. 

“We told everyone from the beginning, 

we all have to take this seriously if we want to 

remain healthy and start getting things back 

to normal,” said Rovi. “They all understand 

the responsibility they have and they have 

continued to take the proper precautions, and 

it’s kept everyone safe this whole time.” 

Rovi has also learned a lot about 

himself over the course of the year, both 

personally and 

professionally. 

“The biggest 

things I’ve 

learned about 

are patience and 

flexibility,” said 

Rovi. “Patience 

has been tough 

because there 

have been so 

many new 

things to learn 

and it can be 

frustrating at 

times. Even though we’ve had 100 percent 

attendance almost every day this year, you still 

have to learn to be flexible as kids are dealing 

with so many different things in their lives. It’s 

truly been a learning experience for everyone.” 

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The Alvarez 

family never 

gave up the 

fight 

Brandon Martinez, 9, of Salem trains at Alvarez 

Family Boxing. 

PHOTOS: SPENSER HASAK


Carley, Misty, 3, and Eddie Alvarez, of Swampscott, 

look out from their boxing ring in Salem. 


When town residents 

Eddie and Carley 

Alvarez opened the 

doors to Alvarez Family 

Boxing back in late November, it was a 

culmination of a lifelong dream and a full 

year’s worth of hard work. And if you ask 

them, it was all worth it. 

“It’s been a lot of work, but I always 

tell people that it took 25 years to get 

to this point and we wouldn’t change it 

for anything,” said Eddie. “This whole 

experience over the past year-plus has 

really centered us and made us realize the 

importance of your little 'pod' and the 

health of those around you.” 

“When we made the decision to move 

forward, we said that nothing would stand 

in our way,” said Carley. “We already had 

money saved and we’ve always wanted 

this, so there was no looking back once we 

decided to go for it.” 

But opening their dream business 

didn’t come without some pandemic-sized 

obstacles. 

On the day the Alvarezes were handed 

the keys to their new space back in 

March 2020, there were rumblings of the 

COVID-19 shutdown. One week later, the 

entire country shut down for the foreseeable 

future. 

“It all came down to one question for 

me, and that was, ‘would you let a hurricane 

stop your dream?’” Eddie said. “We just said 

to ourselves that we had to find a way. We 

gutted the whole place and worked on it 

every day.” 

“We had so many people step up to help 

us, and we honestly couldn’t have done all of 

BY MIKE ALONGI 

this without their help,” said Carley. “There 

were months where we only had enough to 

pay rent, but people still came through to 

help us keep pushing forward.” 

The Alvarez family, made up of Eddie, 

Carley and their three-year old daughter 

Misty, moved to Swampscott from 

Somerville a little over two years ago. Eddie 

and Carley have both been involved in the 

fitness industry for more than a decade, 

with Eddie working as a boxing trainer and 

Carley as a health coach. They had always 

wanted to own a gym of their own, but fulltime 

jobs and a young family made it feel 

like the dream was always just out of reach. 

But after the move to Swampscott, 

Eddie and Carley decided that the time was 

right. 

Alvarez Family Boxing, which is located 

at 17 Canal St. in Salem, is a smaller space 

where the focus is on training in a safe, 

family-friendly environment. The small 

size makes you feel like you’re training in a 

private facility, but the variety of workout 

programs and equipment means that there’s 

something for everyone. 

“There’s something about the feeling of 

being in a private gym that motivates you to 

work harder, and that’s something that we 

strive for,” Eddie said. “It’s an ‘Instagramfriendly’ 

space and that’s a draw for some 

people, but the majority of our clients have 

been families with kids. The kids can get 

a workout while the parents do their own 

thing and vice versa, which is really great.” 

One of the biggest draws for Alvarez 

Family Boxing is the fact that they don’t use 

the typical membership approach that many 

other gyms do. Instead of locking customers 

in for months or even a year at a time, 

Alvarez Family Boxing offers weeks-long 

memberships with much more flexibility. 

“We’ve both worked at big gyms 

and seen what it’s like to try and cancel 

memberships and how people get locked 

into long-term memberships,” said Carley, 

who has previously worked as a fitness 

director. “We understand that, especially in 

these times, people sometimes need more 

flexibility in their lives. That’s what we try to 

provide.” 

When the Alvarezes started building 

out their space and the gym began to take 

form, people walking by on the street began 

to take notice. Eddie says that they basically 

didn’t need to do any marketing for the 

gym because so many people had heard 

about it through word-of-mouth. That only 

intensified once they opened the doors, as 

the “Instagram-friendly” setup of the space 

acted as a marketing tool in itself. 

“People just walk in off the street to see 

what’s going on, and everyone we’ve met is 

glad to see that a healthy place where people 

can feel comfortable is close by,” Carley said. 

And the reception from the community 

has been remarkable, as Alvarez Family 

Boxing is currently booked to near capacity 

for the next two months. 

“The reception has been amazing and 

off the charts,” Eddie said. “I don’t think we 

realized the kind of market that a place like 

ours would have, and the support from the 

community has been unreal.” 

“It’s more than we ever expected,” 

Carley said of the reception. “We feel so 

ALVAREZ, page 16


ALVAREZ, continued from page 15 

lucky to have all these people that believe in what we’re doing 

and support us.” 

As far as the future is concerned, the Alvarezes want to 

continue to invest in their business so that they can give the best 

possible experience to anyone who walks through the door. 

“There’s no reason why regular, everyday people can’t have 

the same access to fitness that the elite athletes do,” Carley said. 

“We want to continue to build and expand training for women 

and young girls as well, but we really just want to be a great 

family place where everyone can come to get their workout 

done.” 

Alvarez Family Boxing is currently still open by appointment 

only, with one-on-one and family boxing sessions available. 

Misty Alvarez, 3, of 

Swampscott plays with a 

children's punching bag 

at Alvarez Family Boxing 

in Salem. 


Eddie Alvarez of Swampscott, owner of Alvarez Family Boxing in Salem, trains with 

Chelsea Martinez, 14, of Salem. 

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Well worth the wait 

BY DANIEL KANE 

For Swampscott native Douglas 

Volk, getting his novel, "The Morpheus 

Conspiracy," from his mind onto paper was 

a long process — 39 years long to be exact. 

Throughout those four decades, Volk 

wrote whenever he could, all while raising 

a family and becoming the chief executive 

officer of his Volk Packaging Corporation 

in Biddeford, Maine. 

"I would take whatever time I had, an 

hour here or an hour there, to write," Volk 

said. "Sometimes it was during lunchtime 

or when the kids were asleep, whenever I 

could find time. It just took over. 

"When the idea for the story first came 

to me, I didn’t know why," Volk added. "I 

had never done anything creative. But I 

was very focused. I tried to get the creative 

out and it was exciting. I had this story in 

my head for 10 years. It was all written in 

my head. It was something I had to do. If I 

didn’t, I felt like I’d be mad at myself." 

Flash forward to last year and Volk 

had not only completed "The Morpheus 

Conspiracy," but its two sequels, "The 

Surgeon’s Curse" and "Destiny Returns," 

all three a big hit with readers and critics. 

Together they tell the story of the Morpheus 

Curse, a paranormal curse that gives a 

Vietnam veteran the power to invade other 

people’s nightmares with deadly results. 

The idea for the horror/thriller trilogy 

itself had deep roots in Volk's own 

experiences that include growing up in 

Swampscott. Volk played on the Big Blue's 

golf team and still remembers attending 

football games in the freezing cold. Years 

later as a young adult he would serve in the 

Vietnam War himself. 

Volk remembers the time all too well. 

From watching Walter Cronkite report on the 

war to listening to President Richard Nixon's 

false promises of peace at his inauguration, 

which Volk himself attended, in 1969. 

"There were thousands of protesters 

and students," Volk said. "Nixon made 

a commitment to ending the war but he 

didn’t do that. That struck me and hit hard 

for me, I was very upset about the whole 

thing. I could’ve stayed home but joined a 

reserve unit. It was a growing experience 

for me. I wouldn’t want to do it again but it 

left a mark on me." 

The tragedies of the war kickstart the 

entire "Morpheus Trilogy." "The Morpheus 

Conspiracy" begins with a Vietnam veteran 

named David Collier returning home to 

Swampscott, mocked and ridiculed like many 

soldiers were at the time, but also carrying 

a curse that allows him to invade people's 

nightmares, often killing his victims. 

The curse itself is actually the curse of 

war, Volk says, and it has heavy inspiration 

from the post-traumatic stress disorder 

that has plagued many veterans. Volk also 

spent time in a sleep study lab at Duke 

University in order to make his nightmarefueled 

story as realistic as possible. 

"One of the symptoms of PTSD is 

recurring nightmares," Volk said. "They 

lose sleep because of it. That gave me 

the idea. It was very interesting to study 

sleep. This was before the internet. It 

was a real challenge. I spent time in the 

sleep laboratory and this was before 

HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and 

Accounting Act) so I was able to watch the 

doctors monitoring their patients (and) saw 

that firsthand." 

All that work helped the trilogy — now 

available to read on Amazon and Kindle 

— become a great success since the first 

novel was published in 2018. The response 

has been better than Volk himself ever 

imagined during all those years of creation. 

"It's all really exciting," Volk said. 

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Nunzio Freddo, owner of Cindy's Pizza & Subs in 

Swampscott, tosses dough as he prepares the first 

pizzas of the day. 



BY GUTHRIE SCRIMGEOUR 

For more than 40 years, Cindy's Pizza & Subs has been the local 

hangout spot for middle school kids, and even during the pandemic, 

that hasn't changed. 

"It's been great living and working in town for this long," said 

Cindy's owner Nunzio Freddo. "You get to see kids who you saw 

when they were little, now bringing in their own kids." 

"The parents always knew that if they were hanging out at 

Cindy's then they were safe," said Freddo. "They would always come 

in and ask if the kids were giving me any trouble." 

Freddo said that they rarely ever do. 

"It's important to lay down the rules," he said. 

The rules are simple — be respectful to the guests and pick up 

after yourself. 

"We say, 'your mom doesn't work here,'" Freddo said. 

Even in COVID times, Cindy's status as the spot for local kids 

has remained, with business staying strong. 

"We were lucky we weren't hit that bad," said Freddo. "In the 

beginning it was a little slow, but it picked up as the year went along. 

It gets better and better every month." 

The toughest part of the pandemic for him has been wearing a 

mask all day. 

"Especially when you're standing in front of a hot oven," he 

explained. 

Freddo has laid out a new set of rules for his young customers — 

stay socially distant and wear a mask. 

He thinks that the restaurant's ability to survive during the 

pandemic comes from the quality of its products. 

Freddo's father had a saying: It doesn't matter where you are — if 

you have a good product, people will always find you. 

"We've pretty much stuck with that," Freddo said. 

The menu has stayed nearly the same over the past 40 years, 

which features specialty pizzas, subs, salads, and fried foods. 

Freddo has been working at Cindy's since he was in sixth 

grade, which was more than 40 years ago when his dad bought the 

restaurant. 

On Sunday mornings, he and his family would wake up before 

the crack of dawn and commute from Somerville to open the 

restaurant — which at that point was also a convenience store — at 

4:45 a.m. The first thing he did was assemble the Sunday papers, 

section by section. 

"Back then we sold 300 Sunday papers, so it took a while," said 

Freddo. "That was our Sunday morning. It was tough, but as a family 

we all just did what we had to do. Growing up in a strict Italian 

home, whatever your dad 

PIZZA, page 22


PIZZA, continued from page 21 

said, that went." 

After the first year of operation, 

the family moved into a house in 

Swampscott a few blocks away from the 

restaurant. He was grateful he could walk 

to work. He attended Swampscott Public 

Schools and met his wife, who also grew 

up in town. 

"It was a small community and you 

knew everyone," he said. "And working 

here, everyone knew you. You couldn't do 

Nunzio Freddo, owner of Cindy's Pizza & Subs in Swampscott, puts an Italian cold cuts pizza out for 

display. 


anything wrong because if you did, they 

would tell your dad." 

He said he misses the sense of 

community that used to come with town 

events, which has been lost due to the 

pandemic. 

"Like anything else though, they're 

going to come back," he said. "We just 

have to be patient." 

Now, Freddo arrives in the restaurant 

a little later, at around 7 a.m. 

The first thing he does is prepare for 

the day, making the sauce and tossing the 

dough, an old family recipe. His mother 

Anna, who is 77, still comes in to help 

prep in the morning. 

Then comes the lunch rush, a brief 

lull, and the dinner rush. They finally 

close up shop at 9 p.m. 

It has been a little less active in the 

winter months, he said. 

During the summer, even in the 

pandemic, there is no lull. The restaurant 

stays busy all day. 

When the weather gets better, Cindy's 

plans to set up outdoor seating, and once 

again bring the neighborhood kids in 

for the classic pizzas, subs and fries they 

have been eating for the last 40 years. 

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Chip off the old bakery 

BY GAYLA CAWLEY 

Deb Newman stands in her new 

restaurant, The Baker's Daughter 

Diner, on Humphrey Street in 

Swampscott. 


For many in Swampscott, the 

Newman name immediately 

conjures up images of a 

longtime staple in the 

community, Newman's Bakery, which 

closed its doors this past September. 

At the time of its closing, siblings 

Bernard and Jessica Newman were 

operating the bakery, but it was their 

parents, Joe and Bertha Newman, who 

started the family business in 1966. 

Seeking retirement, Bernard and 

Jessica decided it was finally time to close 

the long-running bakery last year, but 

another sibling, Deb Newman has been 

working to keep the family legacy alive. 

Two months after Newman's Bakery 

closed, Deb Newman opened up a food 

establishment of her own, aptly named 

The Baker's Daughter Diner. Her sister, 

Jessica, is even involved, working in 

customer service at the front counter. 

However, while Newman learned the 

trade from growing up, and also working, 

in her parents' bakery, which they bought 

when she was only 10 years old, she is 

quick to differentiate between the two 

establishments. 

"My place is not Newman's Bakery, 

the second," she said. "It's different." 

Along with operating in an entirely 

different location on Humphrey Street, 

Deb runs a diner rather than a bakery, 

and one that also has a much different 

type of menu. 

The Baker's Daughter, located at 646 

Humphrey St. in Humphrey Plaza, is a 

meatless diner, borne out of Newman's 

desire to provide great-tasting vegetarian 

food, unlike the bland options the selfprofessed 

finicky eater has had to deal 

with in the past. 

"The reason I wanted to open up a 

meatless diner and bakery was because 

I'm a big animal advocate," said 

Newman. "I wanted people to see you 

could eat yummy food and it doesn't 

have to have meat in it. I have to say the 

response has been great, even from meat 

eaters." 

BAKERY, page 24


BAKERY, continued from page 23 

Although Newman, 65, said she has 

always been an animal advocate, she 

did not decide to become a vegetarian 

until her time in law school, when she 

began to read about animal law and the 

brutality of factory farming. 

"I decided, why am I even eating 

meat?" she said. "I thought to myself, if 

I really had my consciousness raised, I 

would have been a vegetarian long ago. 

I do aspire to become a vegan. That's 

something I hope to do also." 

On the diner's website, Newman 

describes her meatless dishes as "comfort 

food you'll crave. No more blah. No 

lowered expectations. Just yummy stuff 

made from scratch — appetizers through 

dessert," the website said. 

For a diner that operates from 7 

a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays, aside from 

Monday when it's closed, and from 7 

a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekends, what that 

boils down to is a lot of egg dishes, 

including a variety of omelettes and 

breakfast sandwiches, Newman said. 

"People love the bread pudding that I 

make," she said. "There's a lot of savory 

things too. The menu is quite extensive 

actually for a meatless place so I think 

The Baker's Daughter Diner owner Deb Newman plans to offer an extensive menu. 

people are surprised at all of the options 

there without meat and it tastes good." 

Deb has also kept a bit of Newman's 

Bakery alive in Baker's Daughter, noting 

that she couldn't help herself from 

making baked goods, some of which are 


made from recipes that would be familiar 

to longtime Newman's customers. 

"I have a whole case of baked goods," 

she said. "Some of them are recipes from 

my father, so people are happy about that." 

While Newman said the response 

70


from the community has been great so 

far, she is unsure if her business will 

survive given the hardship brought on by 

the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Baker's Daughter was only open for 

four months before she had to shut it 

down entirely in late December, as it 

became too cold for people to sit outside 

Humphrey Street has a new meatless restaurant owned by a familiar face. 

and eat. Even when the diner was open, 

Newman was not able to open up the 

actual indoor dining area. Patrons either 

ate outside or got takeout, she said. 

"I thought it would make more sense 

financially just to pay my rent rather 

than hope that people come in," said 

Newman. "Wintertime is typically less 


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busy for all food businesses, plus I think 

with the pandemic, people are staying in 

more and cooking for themselves more. 

Until it warms up a bit, I think I'll just 

stay closed." 

At the time of publication, Newman 

was hoping to reopen in early March, 

but had some doubts about the future of 

Baker's Daughter. However, unlike others 

at her age who have opted for retirement, 

Newman, who is also active on town 

boards and committees and with her 

animal advocacy, plans to keep working, 

even if it means starting something new. 

"I like to have something to do," 

she said. "I know it sounds ridiculous. I 

wanted to have a meatless diner. I had 

been thinking about it for a few years. 

I guess I just thought it would be fun. 

With everything that's happened with 

the pandemic, it may not last which is 

unfortunate, but I'll find something else 

to do. I need to be doing something. 

"I don't understand how people retire at 

my age and just sit around and do nothing. 

I'm very healthy and feel quite youthful 

and also my parents both lived into their 

90s and I probably will too. What am I 

going to do all day? Watch TV?" 

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Hope's 

Anchor 

BY ELYSE CARMOSINO 

When a small group of Swampscott 

community members decided in 2019 to 

open a food bank, they had no idea how 

soon or how desperately their services 

would be needed. 

Just days before the new pantry was 

set to open its doors in March 2020, the 

COVID-19 pandemic swept through 

the North Shore, shutting down nearly 

every aspect of everyday life and bringing 

with it a wave of job losses that caused 

communities everywhere to fear the worst. 

“Friday, March 13 was our last day in 

school,” said teacher Laura Spathanas, a 

former member of the Swampscott Select 

Board and one of a group of individuals 

who helped found what’s now known as 

the Anchor Food Pantry. “That Monday, 

March 16, we were up and running. 

“We opened our Facebook page and 

started getting funds, then we went to the 

store and bought enough food at that point 

to make 40 bags of groceries.” 

Currently located at the Swampscott 

Senior Center inside Swampscott High 

School, the food bank is actually an 

iteration of the town’s Interfaith Food 

Pantry, which was originally run by a group 

of four to six local churches. 

For nearly two decades, the involved 

parishes rotated duties, providing monthly 

food donations to approximately 30 to 35 

seniors and families. 

Then in the late summer of 2019, 

Spathanas and several others received some 

news. 

“Those churches reached out to a couple of 

community members, one of them being an 

employee at the Swampscott Senior Center, to 

say they couldn’t really sustain what they were 

doing but wanting to know if we had any ideas 

for how we could continue doing what they 

were doing in a different way,” Spathanas said. 

“That’s when I got involved.” 

Senior Center representative Gina Bush 

reached out to For the Love of Swampscott 

president Diane O’Brien for help, and 

O’Brien went on to recruit Spathanas. 

Unaware of what lay in store, the group 

quickly went to work. 

“The three of us met continually with 

the churches after that to answer (the 

question) ‘how can we help these 

families and even make it bigger? How 

can we make it a whole community 

pantry?’ We talked for several months 

and eventually came up with the 

concept for the Anchor Food Pantry,” 

Spathanas said. 

After researching Swampscott’s 

specific food needs, the three women 

created the pantry’s mission statement 

and found a temporary location in a 

central part of town. 

A board of directors was then 

appointed, and the pantry finally held 

its first board meeting in February 

2020. 

Then the pandemic hit. 

“At the time we thought, ‘oh this 

is a two-week shutdown. We’ll do 

what we can (to get food to families),’” 

Spathanas said. “Then things kept 

rapidly changing and we had to just 

keep plugging along.” 

Even before the pandemic, food 

insecurity had been a growing issue in 

Swampscott. 

According to the Massachusetts 

Department of Elementary and 

Secondary Education, 16 percent of 

Swampscott students identified as 

economically challenged during the 

2019-2020 school year — an alarming 

uptick compared to just 4 percent in 

2004 and 8 percent in 2009. 

Spathanas also noted that, according 

to data included in the Swampscott 

2025 Master Plan — which was 

adopted in 2016 — approximately one 

quarter of Swampscott households 

qualify as low-income and earn less 

than 80 percent of the Area Median 

Income, making them eligible for 

housing assistance through most state 

and federal programs. 

The need is just as pressing in the 

community’s senior households, with 

Spathanas adding that according to a 

survey conducted by the Swampscott 

for All Ages (SfAA) Needs Assessment 

Report in October 2019, 22 percent of 

respondents aged 65 and older reported 

a median area income of less than 

$25,000 per year. 

For many involved in the pantry, 

those numbers aren’t surprising. 

“When we did the research, the 

number of students coming from 

families below the poverty level was 

higher than what I think people expect 

for Swampscott,” Spathanas said. “But 

the teachers said, ‘we know. We’re 

TOP: Laura Spathanas helped found Anchor Food 

Pantry, located in the Senior Center. 

MIDDLE: Anchor Food Pantry board member Kayla 

LeClerc helps feed 50 households every month. 

BOTTOM: From left, Kayla LeClerc, Susan Cripps, and 

Laura Spanthanas said hunger in Swampscott is a 

reality. 

PHOTOS: JULIA HOPKINS


leaving food in their lockers. We’re making 

sure we have snacks in our drawer. We’re 

making sure they have food throughout the 

day and over the weekend.’" 

“People say, ‘why do you have to do this in 

Swampscott?’ It’s because this is the reality.” 

Since last spring, however, the Anchor 

Food Pantry has managed to help mitigate 

some community need by providing services 

to an average of 50 households each month. 

The frequency of each family’s visits is 

based primarily on individual needs, with 

some coming every week, some every other 

week, and some once a month. 

Spathanas added that although the 

pantry is currently focusing on keeping up 

with demand, the board eventually hopes to 

expand its services by providing families with 

the necessary tools to get back on their feet. 

“It’s definitely been a reactionary time, 

trying to get families what they need, but 

eventually we want to try to provide other 

things,” she said. “As amazing as it’s been 

opening this pantry, we want them to, at 

some point, no longer need to come.” 

The Anchor Food Pantry is open on 

Monday mornings and Wednesday evenings. 

Those interested in providing monetary 

donations can make checks out to Anchor 

Food Pantry at 43 Berkshire St., Swampscott. 

Due to an upcoming change in location, 

the pantry is not currently accepting 

food or item donations unless otherwise 

specified on the Anchor Food Pantry 

Facebook page or website. 

When reflecting on why she felt called on 

to assist with the pantry, Spathanas — who 

referred to the outpouring of community 

support for the pantry over the last year as 

“amazing” — recalled the help she received 

from family during her own difficult times. 

“Growing up I never needed to visit a 

food pantry, but when I was young and out 

of college and starting a job, I went every 

weekend to my mother’s food pantry. I went 

through her cabinets. I did my laundry there. 

If I didn’t have her, I would have struggled,” 

she said. “Right now, this particular year has 

been really hard on so many people, so we try 

to make it like that — like a family.” 

Laura Spathanas, president of Anchor Food Pantry, unloads donations brought by Jeff Gunther of 

Swampscott from the Unitarian Universalist Church of Greater Lynnfood drive. 

PHOTOS: JULIA HOPKINS 

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The house where history lives 

BY ANNE MARIE TOBIN 

Is Swampscott home to the oldest 

wooden structure in North America? 

The answer is complicated but comes 

down to this — unless and until the John 

Humphrey Memorial House on Paradise 

Road undergoes a dendrochronology 

examination, nobody knows the answer. 

What is known is that the home was 

built shortly after Sir John Humphrey 

arrived in America in 1634 with his 

wife, Lady Susan, and their children 

from Dorchester, England. Landing in 

Salem Harbor, the ship was loaded with 

ammunition, heifers and the bricks, oak 

beams and other products believed to have 

been used to build the home. 

A wealthy barrister and member of the 

Massachusetts Bay Company, Humphrey 

was the first deputy governor of the 

Massachusetts Bay Colony, serving under 

Gov. John Winthrop. Humphrey had 

received a land grant from King Charles I 

containing 1,500 acres in Swampscott. 

"The only way to determine the true 

age of a structure is dendrochronology," 

said Swampscott Historical Society (SHS) 

President Molly Conner. "Without that, we 

cannot know for sure. We know that it was 

built by the earliest colonists who settled 

here, so it is a First Period house. It's a socalled 

memorial house because we can't say 

for sure if it dates back to 1637, but we do 

think it was built by John Humphrey as he 

brought framing and brick from England. 

Until we have information that can only 

be obtained through dendrochronology, we 

don't know if this is one of the oldest, or 

the oldest wood-framed houses in North 

America." 

Dendrochronology is a scientific 

process in which core samples of wood 

collected from the structure are analyzed 

to determine the age of the wood, thereby 

narrowing down the date the structure 

was likely constructed. The process is more 

commonly used to determine the age of 

trees through the examination of tree rings. 

Conner said there are only two 

businesses left in the eastern United States 

in the dendrochronology business, one of 

which has a vast reservoir of wood samples 

from England with timbers dating back to 

the 17th century. 

Conner said an English historian found 

that the house has many features that are 

very similar to the Fairbanks Home in 

Dedham, which was built between 1637 

and 1641. Fairbanks Home is considered 

the oldest house of timber-frame 

construction in North America as verified 

by dendrochronology. 

Conner said the Humphrey family lived 

in the house for only a few years before 

Humphrey went off to the Caribbean and the 

home was sold to Lady Deborah Moody in 

1641. 

"She was one of the first women 

landowners in the New World," Conner 

said. 

For the past 100 years, the house has 

served as the home of the society, which 

purchased the home in 1921 with the help 

of public donations. 

The home was originally located on 

what is now Elmwood Road. The structure 

was moved in 1891 to its current location 

on Paradise Road to make room for a 

development designed by famed architect 

Frederick Law Olmstead. The original 

chimney, measuring 14 feet by 16 feet was 

left behind. 

There have been 11 owners of the home, the 

current one being the Swampscott Historical 

Society which purchased the home 100 years 

ago with the help of public donations. 

"If you drive around town you will notice 

their names in street names and beach 

names," Conner said. "Burrill Street (John 

Burrill, Sr. and Honorable Eberneser Burrill), 

Mudge Street (Hon. E. Redington Mudge) 

and King's Beach was named after the third 

owner, Daniel King," Conner said. 

The home has many fascinating features 

The Sir John Humphrey Memorial House 

on Paradise Road in Swampscott is 

thought to be one of the oldest 

wood-timber buildings in North America. 



and interesting details including original 

floorboards, a secret passageway and 

hand-decorated beams and paneling. 

The home contains an archive of 

memorabilia and historic photographs, 

documents and artifacts collected that 

document and preserve Swampscott's 

history. 

The first floor contains a parlor 

furnished with donated items from the 

Victorian period. In the kitchen, the 

pantry area was the original fireplace, 

with a small narrow passage to the main 

chimney of the house. The framing 

and handrail of the main staircase are 

believed to date to the mid-17th century. 

The kitchen stairs and the upper 

rail hall have wide boards called "king's 

boards" because the Massachusetts 

Colony was required to keep all wide 

timber for the king's fleet. The ceiling 

beams are original white oak with 

wooden pegs. 

The second floor has a museum 

room that displays a collection of 

artifacts and items donated to the SHS 

over the years. Many of the beams 

across the ceiling were decorated by 

Native Americans in the early 1700s, 

said Conner. A panel has been removed 

from the wall to expose handmade 

bricks and mortar mixed with seaweed. 

The third floor has a child's room 

and storage area, both with wide 

floorboards and original white oak 

beams. The set includes a settee, chair, 

rocking chair and table. All are handcaned 

with seats woven from rush with 

geometric designs that give a threedimensional 

appearance. 

Swampscott Public Library Assistant 

Director Susan Conner (no relation) said the 

house is a "really key element in Swampscott 

history, which after becoming the home of 

the Swampscott Historical Society, has had 

a long and interesting existence." 

Before the pandemic hit last year, 

Humphrey House opened its doors 

to the public every year on the Fourth 

of July and also hosted society events 

in September. The society's annual 

members' spring garden party was also 

held there. Prior to the pandemic, the 

annual (and popular) third-grade field 

trip was held at Humphrey House. 

"We've always had trouble finding 

volunteers to stay open, so we are 

limited," said Conner. "But we have had 

private group events at times and also the 

school tours, which we hope maybe will 

resume this spring. When you tour the 

house, you definitely step back in time." 

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Faith has a new voice in town 

BY ELYSE CARMOSINO 

The Rev. Jeffrey MacDonald 

is bringing new perspective 

to Nahant Village Church. 

As the congregation’s 

interim pastor and consultant, 

MacDonald, who began his tenure in 

January, has experienced a somewhat 

unusual career trajectory. 

The Marblehead native spent his first 

few years after graduating from Brown 

University as a news reporter, completing 

an internship at The Salem News before 

eventually moving on to a bigger 

newspaper gig in North Carolina. 

After spending a total of four years 

working full-time in the industry — a 

foray he described as a “great experience” 

— MacDonald said he wanted to explore 

different avenues, ultimately deciding to 

pursue a new role in the church. 

He went on to enroll in Yale Divinity 

School, although at the time, he was 

unsure of what exactly his next steps 

would be. 

“Reporters are interested in truth, 

and so are people who study the Bible 

and ask the big questions about life. It 

was sort of the next stage of my truthseeking, 

I think,” he said of his divinity 

school experience. “It sort of crystalized 

for me while I was there that I could 

continue to do journalism and I could be 

ordained and serve the church. 

“I could do both. I could write about 

the truth with a lowercase ‘t’ and the 

truth with a capital ‘t’ depending on 

which day of the week it is.” 

Since then, MacDonald has split his 

time between journalism and the church, 

managing to find fulfillment in both. 

“It’s evolved over time, what I do. It’s 

been an interesting journey,” he said as 

he recalled his first post-divinity school 

journalism appointment on Plum Island 

in Newburyport. 

“I was getting assignments from 

editors I had never met or spoken to who 

were emailing me while I was there,”


he said. “It was kind of a novelty at the 

time, getting assignments from people 

you didn’t talk to. I was just out there 

on Plum Island, which felt like the 

end of the world, carving out my own 

news bureau and serving at a great little 

church. 

“I was like, 'wow, this is a pretty cool 

life I’ve made for myself.' It was very 

meaningful work on both sides.” 

Since being ordained in 2000, 

MacDonald has had ample 

opportunity to cover both religion 

and hard news, and his unusual 

career path has provided him a 

front row seat to some of the most 

historic breaking news events of the 

21st century. 

He’s reported on the 9/11 

terrorist attacks and the Sandy 

Hook Elementary School shooting, 

and as a freelance writer for USA 

Today, he reported on the Whitey 

Bulger trial in 2013, and the 

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev trial in 2015. 

Rather than shying away from 

part-time reporters, MacDonald 

said news outlets often see value 

in hiring writers with diverse 

professional backgrounds. 

“They recognize that having 

someone with pastoral training 

doesn’t hurt on certain stories,” he 

said. “It can help bring a certain ear 

and certain sensibility to certain 

types of stories, including those 

that involve tragedy.” 

He added that the skills he 

employs as a journalist also play a 

strong role in how he conducts his 

congregations. 

“It affects the way I do ministry, 

too. Different pastors have different 

styles, and I think a lot of my style 

involves asking questions. Asking 

questions of the scriptures and 

questions of the parishioners that 

help bring out what’s there inside,” 

he said. “There’s so much richness 

in the Bible and there’s so much 

richness in our congregations. The 

stories people have to tell and the 

wisdom they have to share doesn’t 

always reach the surface unless it’s 

drawn out through questions. I 

feel like I’m using tools from my 

journalism toolbox frequently in 

ministry.” 

MacDonald most recently 

served at First Parish Church in 

Newbury from 2013 until this past 

October, when he left to become 

an interim pastor at a United Church of 

Christ in Kensington, N.H. 

Then late last year, he learned from 

his area minister that Nahant was also 

looking for an interim pastor after saying 

goodbye to former full-time pastor, the 

Rev. Megan Snell last year. 

After completing a series of 

interviews to determine whether it 

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Mindy McMahon 

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617.834.4439(c) | 781.631.9511(o) 

marbleheadandbeyond.com 

would be a good fit, the church made the 

decision to hire MacDonald for a fourmonth 

contract with the option to extend 

as needed. 

“It’s considered a specialized 

ministery to do interim work,” he 

said. “It’s a matter of shepherding a 

VILLAGE CHURCH, page 32 

The Rev. Jeffrey MacDonald ministered 

in Newbury and New Hampshire before 

coming to Nahant. 


Look your best 

online and in person 

“You never get a second 

chance to make a 

first impression.”


VILLAGE CHURCH, continued from page 31 

congregation from their prior pastor to 

the new one.” 

Inspired by his experience of 

balancing two careers, MacDonald also 

Rev. Jeffery MacDonald will remain 

Nahant Village Church pastor through at 

least April 30. 


published his latest book, “Part Time 

is Plenty: Thriving without Full-Time 

Clergy,” in 2020. 

His book explores the changing face 

of traditional worship by recounting 

his experience working with nearly two 

dozen churches across the United States 

that function without a full-time staff. 

Approximately 43 percent of mainline 

Protestant churches currently have no 

full-time clergy, and that number 

continues to grow, according to 

MacDonald. 

“I wanted to learn from churches 

that have done really well with clergy 

who are not full-time and in the office 

all week designing programs. That’s 

the type of church that I’ve always 

served and I know anecdotally that 

some churches have done extremely 

well with it,” MacDonald said. “I 

wanted to learn more about what’s 

happening in the churches that are 

growing and thriving, doing impactful 

mission, even when they don’t have 

full-time staff.” 

MacDonald will remain with 

Nahant Village Church through at 

least April 30. Until then, he looks 

forward to continuing his work with a 

new congregation. 

“I love to see people in 

congregations grow together, flourish 

together,” he said. “The process (of 

looking for a replacement) helps a 

church reconnect with its roots and 

its mission. Churches evolve, and 

you really want to crystalize what 

people are passionately perceiving is 

their mission and their calling at this 

juncture.” 

Anthony D. 

Speziale EA, MBA 

Founder • Enrolled Agent • Registered Representative 

38 Main St. Rear, Saugus 

Phone: 781-233-2003 • Fax: 781-233-2484 

aspeziale@taxshopsaugus.com • taxshopsaugus.com 

Securities offered through Advisory Group Equity Service Ltd. 

• 444 Washington St., Woburn • 781-933-6100 • 

Member of FINRA/SIPC/MSRB

Lynn Auditorium 

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01907 Spring 2021

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