George Dilboy, Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company H, 103rd Infantry Regiment, 26th Division is thought to be the first Greek-American to receive the Medal of Honor during World War I.

 Honoring George Dilboy

Good Afternoon, When my dad shared with Dilboys life story over 50 years ago, I have been fascinated with heroism ever since. I compiled highlights of his short life to honor his memory and share with you all the importance of Dilboys actions during WWI. Hopefully you will take-away something new about our local Somerville war heroes short life.
Continue reading Through the camera lens of Harry Agritha in Somerville honoring Private First Class George Dilboy as one of the 10 greatest heroes of World War I →

By Bob Katzen

“All bodies are different, elite athletes have always reflected a wide spectrum of natural variation. This decision is rooted in a fundamentally unfair and deeply misogynistic premise, that women’s bodies must be policed, scrutinized and deemed ‘acceptable’ in order to compete. It targets transgender and intersex women, but in doing so, it undermines all women by reinforcing narrow and exclusionary definitions of womanhood that have no place in sport or society.” Continue reading THIS WEEK’S QUOTABLE QUOTES ON BEACON HILL →

By Bob Katzen

House GOP Minority Leader Rep. Brad Jones (R-North Reading) surprised everyone when he announced that he will not seek re-election in 2026 but will serve out his current term which end in January 2027. Jones, who represents Lynnfield, Middleton, North Reading and Reading, said, “After 32 years serving in the House of Representatives, I have decided that I will not seek re-election to another term this fall. Serving as state representative has been a tremendously meaningful part of my life, and while difficult to leave behind, I eagerly look forward to my next chapter. It is a profound and distinct honor for which I will be eternally grateful. Representing the community where I was born and raised has made this even more of a privilege.”
Continue reading HOUSE GOP MINORITY LEADER BRAD JONES WILL NOT SEEK RE-ELECTION →

By Bob Katzen

Another bill heard by the Committee on Public Health would establish a 3-year pilot program to evaluate the potential of including the screening for Celiac disease by health care providers when conducting screenings for cholesterol and lipids for 12-year-olds.

Continue reading CELIAC DISEASE (S 2928) →

By Bob Katzen

The Committee on Public Health held a public hearing on legislation that would require food trucks to be subject to an annual health inspection by the state. The Commissioner of Public Health would establish regulations for the annual health inspection of food trucks and would prescribe rules and regulations related to inspection schedules, documentation of inspections, standards for acceptable cleanliness and the costs of these inspections.
Continue reading FOOD TRUCKS (H 5115) →

By Bob Katzen

The Senate, on a voice vote without a roll call vote, approved and sent to the House legislation that would create a public database of violations of the state’s fire prevention laws and a public notification system to alert workers of violations. The bill would require the state to track written notices of code violations related to “hot work”—welding, plasma cutting and spark-producing construction—and make the information available to the public through an online database and an automated notification system.
Continue reading SAFETY FOR FIREFIGHTERS (S 1646) →

By Bob Katzen

House 154-0, approved an amendment to a section of the bill that prohibits providing advance notice of the pending release of a prisoner who is the subject of an (ICE) warrant. The amendment would allow for ICE to be notified of a prisoner’s pending release if they have been convicted of certain serious crimes.
Continue reading PENDING RELEASE OF A PRISONER (H 5305) →

By Bob Katzen

House 135-18, approved an amendment that would require the governor to publish, prominently on the state’s website, multilingual guidelines for all school districts, on how to handle interactions with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and other law enforcement officers regarding civil immigration enforcement.
Continue reading ICE IN SCHOOLS (H 5305) →

By Bob Katzen

House 134-21, approved and sent to the Senate the PROTECT Act that supporters said would establish statewide standards governing interactions between state and local systems and federal immigration enforcement. They said the measure would strengthen due process protections, limit civil immigration enforcement in courthouses, expand protections for victims of crime and increase transparency, accountability and clarity for correctional facilities and law enforcement.
Continue reading THE “PROTECT ACT” (H 5305) →