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2 WEEKLYNEWS.NET - 978-532-5880 OCTOBER 28, 2021 State Rep. Walsh steps up for homebuyers in Mass. By Anne MArie ToBin State Rep. Thomas P. Walsh (D-Peabody) has introduced a bill he hopes will protect the rights of first-time homebuyers. The proposed legislation is aimed at helping residents maneuver through an increasingly competitive real-estate market, which has resulted in prospective buyers waiving rights designed to protect them. “In just two years, the average price for a home in Massachusetts has increased more than 27 percent,” Walsh said. “The limited housing supply and stiff competition for homes on the market have pressured buyers to waive home inspections, pay over asking price, and make further concessions to the selling party. This legislation will serve to empower and protect Massachusetts residents during their most expensive financial transaction in their lifetime.” This legislation, if passed, VOTING From page 1 - Precinct 3A, at the MacIntosh Clubhouse, 300 Brooksby Village Drive; Ward 5 - Precincts 1, 2, 3, at Peabody Veterans Memorial High School, 485 Lowell St.; Ward 6 - Precincts 1, 2, 3 at the Burke School, 127 Birch St. Absentee ballots must be requested in writing at least four business days before election day. Applications are available for download, but any written request is acceptable if it has will require real estate agents and mortgage brokers to provide an informational guide to potential homebuyers; this guide will explain the homebuyer’s rights and protections under Massachusetts law. Walsh said he started hearing about anxious buyers who were increasingly waiving their customary rights about things like home and septic inspections about two years ago. At that time, he said, the real-estate market was “heating up” and prospective buyers were essentially placed in bidding-war situations. According to Walsh, the guide will help educate consumers by sharing helpful information pertaining to leadpaint disclosure requirements, septic-tank inspections, the importance of home inspections, and will also further other consumer protection considerations in connection with purchasing homes. House Bill 4072, “An Act your signature on it. For absentee ballot applications, a member of your family may also make the request on your behalf. To qualify for an absentee ballot, you must be away from your city/town on election day, have a disability that keeps you from voting at your polling place, or have a religious belief that prevents you from voting at your polling place on election day. Applications can be submitted by mail, email, or fax. If you are emailing your application, establishing a first-time homebuyers bill of rights,” is currently before the Joint Committee on Housing, where it is awaiting further action. Walsh said the committee hasn’t “reported it out” yet, but he hopes it will be before the Ways and Means Committee soon. “This legislation isn’t mandating anything, but will help first-time buyers become more informed,” he said. “I first started hearing about what was happening in the real-estate market from conversations I was having with people around town, and my concern is that when people are waiving these protections, they may get hit pretty hard in the next few years when serious problems come to light, things that they may have avoided had they known how to protect themselves. “You do have a lot of people whose eyes are wide open but many are not. This will help those people understand how to protect themselves.” Early voting begins Oct. 28 you may either scan or take a photo of your signed application and email it to your local election office, or you may sign your application using a mouse, finger, or stylus and email the completed and signed attachment. Typed signatures are not acceptable. Residents who are unsure about their ward and/or precinct are advised to contact the city clerk’s office. Additional information about the November election can be found on the city’s website at www.peabody-ma.gov. Elect Ray Melvin Light Commissioner Dear Voter, DO YOU KNOW YOUR LIGHT COMMISSIONERS??? I’LL BET MOST OF YOU DON’T!!! Well I’m applying for an important job at OUR Peabody Municipal Light Plant. That’s right it belongs to me and you!!! I’m a 40 year electric utility professional that is extremely experienced for this position. I am an advocate for green renewable energy such as a solar panel programs for commercial and residential customers. Also, I’m highly interested in installing a LOW cost or NO COST WIFI network on our electric system. PMLP is a great municipal company and we can only make it greater with qualified commissioners who effectively communicate with the voters and ratepayers and make smart informed decisions to keep rates at their LOWEST and make PMLP the best MUNI in New England. This is a challenge that I am ready for!!! I want to be YOUR advocate; I want to be YOUR Light commissioner! I Respectfully ask for your vote VOTE TO ELECT RAY MELVIN – LIGHT COMMISSIONER ON TUESDAY NOVEMBER 2nd, 2021 617.285.1500 Follow us on Facebook @Ray Melvin 4 Light Commissioner rmelvin28@aol.com Northeast Arc is given the experience of a Life Time LIFE TIME From page 1 currently has five job coaches. Palermo and the coaches check in with managers and with their clients about once a week or as needed. Palermo said that their clients enjoy working in the community, meeting new people, and learning new skills. Of course, earning an income is important, too. Palermo found the Life Time housekeeping job posting on the Indeed employment website. He sent in Sutherland’s resume and received a call back, which led to a couple of Zoom interviews. Sutherland was hired the last week in July. “Will is a great guy,” said Palermo, describing Sutherland as a hard worker with a great work ethic. Sutherland lives independently with a roommate in an apartment in Lynn, not very far from his parents. He said that his work at Life Time is easy and fun and that the people are nice. He said that his job coaches make sure that he does what he is supposed to do and, if there is any problem, they work on it together. In his free time, Sutherland likes to play video games and spend time at his parents’ backyard by the fire. Sutherland works on the operations team maintaining locker rooms, folding towels, performing cleanliness checks, and general upkeep throughout the facilities. He is compensated equally to his peers. His shifts at the club are typically five hours long and he works 15-18 hours a week in total, which is comparable with other employees. The average team member works about 12 hours a week, said Andrew Get your car looking great this Fall Before After Don Winslow’s AUTO B O D Y Celebrating 49 Years MON-FRI 8-5 • SAT. 9-12 166 Holten Street • Danvers (corner of Center & Collins) 978-762-6366 • 978-535-2474 www.DonWinslowAutoBody.com O’Donnell, the general manager of Life Time in Peabody. “When we build a club, we try to truly be a part of the community,” said O’Donnell. The club opened in July, and at the time, Life Time was hiring about 300 people. It is the 158th club nationwide and the first one to open in Massachusetts since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. O’Donnell, who grew up in Toronto, liked the idea of partnering with Northeast Arc in this instance because his father worked with young adults with special needs, helping them to develop personal and professional skills and finding employment for them. “That’s something I saw my dad do as a labor of love for years. He had a high passion for caring for people,” said O’Donnell. As soon as a manager came to O’Donnell with this idea, he said, he immediately wanted to step up. O’Donnell said that Sutherland was a good candidate because he had past work experience. Sutherland went through the interview process and got the job. After working for a while, Sutherland expressed through the Northeast Arc process that he wanted to stay with Life Time for the long term. O’Donnell said that Sutherland has quiet confidence and he is good at receiving and following directions and getting feedback. Sutherland is a great addition to the team and in return he seems to enjoy working in a group setting, O’Donnell said. Both Northeast Arc and Life Time are hoping that this partnership can continue and result in more people with disabilities working at the athletic resort. We want to hear from you! Send us a letter at editor@weeklynews.net. Letters should be no more than 300 words.
OCTOBER 28, 2021 WEEKLYNEWS.NET - 978-532-5880 3 COURTESY PHOTO | BRIDGEWELL Lois grabs a container of paint from the paint bar at Create and Escape in Peabody, where she works twice a week. By AlenA KuzuB Organizations like Bridgewell, that support and empower people with disabilities, help secure employment in different ways: through volunteer situations, direct employment, or a group-supported model. Group-supported employment means that, depending on their skills and personal situations, individuals come to work as a group with a job coach who can help them with any issues at the job site. There is usually a ratio in the group of the maximum number of clients per a job coach. One of the recent partnerships that Darren Goad, a career specialist at Bridgewell, was able to forge is with Peabody’s Create and Escape, a DIY party and workshop space on Main Street. Goad is in a unique position, because he looks for and creates opportunities for his clients based on their personal skill sets and goals. Goad had a client who loved to paint and he thought that Create and Escape might be just the place for her to get a job. Wendy Minton, co-owner of Create and Escape, said that Bridgewell has visited her business as customers, adding that she was also familiar with the supported employment concept because she has seen other businesses use it. So when Goad came to her with an idea to employ a few of his clients who loved art and being creative, she immediately said yes. The timing was perfect as well, said Minton, because the teenagers she employed over the summer were going back to school. Now, a group of two to four individuals from Bridgewell comes to Create and Escape twice a week. “When they come in, they EXPLORE THE BEST IN EDUCATION ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST SCHOOL OPEN HOUSE BY APPOINTMENT ONLY Kindergarten through Grade 8 Our Main Campus 19 Chestnut St, Peabody, 978-817-8282 Friday, November 12 9:30-11:00 am grab their aprons immediately,” Minton said, adding that she puts some Disney music on sometimes for them. The Bridgewell group helps refill the paint bar, which has 60 different paints and about 10 stains. They also clear off and set up tables that are used for painting and crafting by Create and Escape’s customers. Sometimes they might do some other cleaning and maintenance like dusting shelves. “They are very eager to do more; they ask really great questions about the things we do at the store and they love participating,” said Minton. “It is really a win-win situation.” Goad said that the group’s activity has been noticed by the neighboring businesses, as well as by the owners of Olio, the event space next door. Olio has also reportedly reached out to Goad about possible cooperation. Goad currently works with COURTESY PHOTO | BRIDGEWELL Rachel, a client of Bridgewell, refills a paint container using a funnel at Create and Escape in Peabody. Bridgewell partners with Create and Escape for group-supported employment program about 50 individuals. Employers contract with Bridgewell and pay for the cost of labor. Bridgewell then funnels these proceeds to its clients. A lot of Bridgewell clients also like to work with Meals on Wheels, Goad said. They enjoy direct interactions within the community and the ability to get to know long-term customers and form relationships. Some of Goad’s clients work at a local pizzeria, doing prep work and deliveries. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Bridgewell had a successful recycling program with Gordon College in Wenham, Goad added. Because of COVID, some partners have been slow to reopen and some opportunities were put on a back burner. But Bridgewell and Goad are always looking for more partners. Goad is open to talk to and brainstorm with any employer out there. “The big part of what we do is educating the community. People have preconceptions,” Goad said. “They just haven’t had exposure to individuals and to challenges our individuals face. So there is a hesitation sometimes to take us on board.” If Bridgewell can’t deliver what an employer is looking for, Goad said he would just tell them so. It would also be wrong for Goad’s clients, if the job is too much for them or they are not receiving enough support. Sometimes an opportunity at hand might not work out, he added, but the same employers might think of him again when something else comes up and they can get together again and renegotiate. “Be open minded. Give us a little of your time. Don’t be afraid to be creative,” said Goad. Prek 2.9 - 4 year olds Our New PreSchool Campus 9 Margin St, Peabody, 978-817-8282 Wednesday, November 3 3:30-5:00 pm COMMITTED TO LIVING OUR MISSION STATEMENT DAILY - Saint John The Baptist School is dedicated to providing a quality Catholic education that encourages its community to be life-long learners and leaders, to live their faith with high moral standards and to grow academically, spiritually & socially.
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