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August 27, 2006

Take It Easy ... Campy's coming back

"Well, Im a standing on a corner
In Winslow, Arizona
And such a fine sight to see
It's a girl, my lord, in a flatbed
Ford slowin' down to take a look at me"
-- From The Eagles' "Take It Easy"

More on that song later. For now, I want to assure all of the faithful readers of thesunblog.com that Thomas Paine, I mean Jim Campanini, will be returning to this space soon, after a well-deserved vacation. I was only too happy to fill in for a few days, and enjoyed the participation of readers in the discussion of the city budget. I'll use my last entry of the week to highlight some of the must-reads in today's Sunday Sun. It's the best $1.75 you can spend (savings from the coupons inside will more than pay for it), and it's a perfect day to curl up in your favorite chair with a cup of coffee and the local newspaper. Yes, this is a shameless plug, but somebody's got to do it. Here's only a sample of what you'll find in today's Sun:
-- Dave Perry, the New England Press Association's 2005 Journalist of the Year, captures all of the zaniness of the Patriots-themed wedding of Claire Catenacci and Dennis Cloutier, both of Lowell, on the grounds of Le Chanteclerc Club in Dracut on Saturday. This couple love the Patriots as much as they do each other.
-- In SundayStyle, reporter Rachel Briere takes a break from the baubles, bangles and beads beat long enough to take us inside the 125-year-old Merrimack River Valley House, which has been housing elderly women for 125 years. Anyone who's driven by the distinctive home on the edge of the Acre and wondered, "What's that place all about," won't have to muse anymore. Briere gets you inside.
-- Veteran Sun Sports scribe Carmine Frongillo profiles Westford's Mark Spinney, a standout lineman for the Bishop Guertin High School football team who's being heavily recruited by Division 1 colleges. Frongie also teams up with Lynn Worthy for coverage of the Lowell Spinners, who played at Fenway Park yesterday. And Dave Pevear's piece on the current state of the New England Patriots should cheer up Boston sports fans reeling from the recent unraveling of the Boston Red Sox.
-- Now back to that song at the top of this entry. It's been running through my head all morning, because "A corner in Winslow, Arizona" serves as the dateline to Dennis Shaughnessey's centerpiece on the Travel page. Shaughnessey was among nine New Englanders who traveled to Arizona to lend a hand to members of the Pima, Hopi and Navajo Indian tribes. The trip was organized by Paul Mangum, dean of students at the Northeast School of Theology and Missions in Dracut. Shaughnessey paints a compelling portrait that contrasts the enormous wealth and the abject poverty in the breakthtakingly beautiful Southwest. Funny, when I head west for vacation it's to try my luck at the card and dice tables of Las Vegas. When Dennis vacations in the West, it's to build homes and hope for people who really need it. I admire him.
Shaughnessey's selflessness also had me remembering what George Behrakis said last week as he was honored at the Saints Memorial Foundation's annual golf classic at Indian Ridge Country Club in Andover. Behrakis helped the foundation raise a record $261,000. The self-made millionaire from the Acre who never turns his back on his native city or to people in need, reminded all of us that night to "give from your heart, not from your pocket."
Advice a person of any means can take to the bank.
-- Posted by guest host Charles St. Amand, Sun managing editor

Posted by Charlie at August 27, 2006 12:10 PM

Comments

Posted by: Dr. No at August 28, 2006 1:37 AM