By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The Select Board voted to appoint two new members to two different committees during a recent meeting.
Prospect Avenue resident Frank Armstrong was appointed to the Council on Aging Board of Directors.
“I have been a resident here for over 35 years,” said Armstrong. “I have been volunteering at the Senior Center for the last few months doing some music, breakfast and the Antique Car Show.”
Armstrong said he recently attended a couple of Council on Aging Board of Directors meetings.
“I understood there was an opening, so I decided to throw my hat in the ring,” said Armstrong. “I have experience on other boards. I am the past president of the Somerville Kiwanis Club and I am the past president of a church on the North Shore. I sit on a couple of other boards for a condominium association as well as American Legion Post 227 in Middleton. I have done some things with Rotary in the past.”
Select Board Chair Phil Crawford said he has known Armstrong for many years, and said he has volunteered with different organizations in town.
“It’s nice to see you volunteering your time,” said Crawford. “I think you would be a nice fit on the Council on Aging. There is a nice group of people there and we have a new Senior Center director. I think you would be a nice fit.”
After Armstrong’s interview concluded, Crawford and Select Board Vice Chair Alexis Leahy voted to appoint him to the Council on Aging Board of Directors. Select Board member Dick Dalton was not present at the meeting.
Crawford noted that Armstrong will be filling one of the two vacancies on the Council on Aging Board of Directors. Anita Migliore and Rod Boone both recently resigned from the Council on Aging Board of Directors, and Armstrong will be filling one of the vacant seats.
“We are still looking for someone for the other,” said Crawford.
RMLD Board
The Select Board voted to appoint Westover Drive resident Charles Ragusa to the Reading Municipal Light Department (RMLD) Citizens’ Advisory Board.
Ragusa said he has lived in town for 40 years. He served as Harbor Services Group’s president from May 2007 until his retirement in September 2019.
“I was the president of a mutual fund and financial services company with $93 billion in assets,” said Ragusa. “I was on the board for two of those companies. It was a family of three companies, and I was on the board for two. I was the board president of my condominium association in Chicago.”
Ragusa said he has strong management experience, which he said will be an asset for the RMLD Citizens’ Advisory Board.
“I think I can add some value and bring in some good points,” said Ragusa.
Crawford and Leahy voted to appoint Ragusa as the Lynnfield representative on the RMLD Citizens’ Advisory Board. Crawford and Leahy thanked him for volunteering to serve.
“You are on,” said Crawford. “Thank you Charlie.”
Retired Assistant Town Administrator Bob Curtin, who is still working part-time as a consultant for the town, said he will inform RMLD that Ragusa was appointed to the panel. The Select Board has been looking for a resident to serve on the board for a considerable amount of time after former RMLD Citizens’ Advisory Board member Ken Welter moved out of town.
Resignations accepted
The Select Board also voted to accept Housing Authority Board of Commissioners’ member James Wilkie’s resignation.
“I consider myself very fortunate to have been able to serve the residents of the Housing Authority as well as the town of Lynnfield as an elected official,” Wilkie stated in his resignation letter. “Throughout my tenure on the LHA Board, I’ve had the privilege of working with Daniel Macintyre, the Lynnfield Housing Authority’s executive director, as well as all of my fellow board members who have and I am sure will continue to serve the Housing Authority’s residents. As I remain dedicated to the Lynnfield Housing Authority’s mission of providing clean, safe, affordable housing to its residents, I’ll continue to support the Housing Authority’s executive director and Board of Commissioners in any way possible.”
The Select Board and the Housing Authority Board of Commissioners held a joint meeting to appoint an interim member of the board on Tuesday, Oct. 14, taking place after deadline.
“Come January, if this person or if other people want to run for the position, they can,” said Curtin during the recent Select Board meeting. “The person elected in April will take the slot.”
The Select Board also voted to accept Anne Patriquin’s resignation from the Board of Registrars due to her moving out of town.
“I have lived in Lynnfield for 46 years, and both Doug and I loved being a part of this community,” Patriquin stated in her resignation letter. “I will miss the relationships I have developed here. It has been a great pleasure to serve on the board under three town clerks, and I appreciate the collegiality and sense of purpose shown by my fellow registrars, especially Carolyn Scollard.”
Patriquin concluded her resignation letter by stating: “I wish the town and members of the Select Board all the best for the future.”
Crawford thanked Patriquin for her service on the Board of Registrars.
“Anne, thank you very much for your dedication to the town and your work on the Board of Registrars,” said Crawford.
Crawford said the town will be sending a letter to the Democratic Town Committee “seeking three candidates” to be considered to replace Patriquin. Massachusetts General Law Title 8, Chapter 51, Section 15 requires select boards and other appointing authorities such as a mayor to appoint board of registrar members who represent “the two leading political parties.” There can be no more than two members representing each major party serving on a board of registrars.
“Every such appointment shall be made in a town by the selectmen or the appointing authority from a list to be submitted to them by the town committee of the political party from the members of which the position is to be filled, containing the names of three enrolled members of such party resident in the town,” the law states.