Survey says: Independent poll indicates support for open space, performance venue on HRA land

According to a new survey sponsored by SOS Hull, residents and visitors do not want the Hull Redevelopment Authority land to be heavily developed.

The survey was conducted as a pro-bono project by Humans, Not Consumers, for SOS (Save our Space) Hull, an organization that opposes large-scale development of the HRA property. Between April and July, 631 Hull residents and 239 visitors were asked 20 questions, focusing on perceptions about Hull and what respondents believe would help the town’s future.

When asked to select their top several choices for the use of the land, 80% of Hull residents surveyed want walkable park space, while 57% want a music or event performance space. Only 7% of residents surveyed would like the land developed into condominiums, according to Erin Swenson Gorrall, a Hull resident and founder of Humans, Not Consumers.

Additional findings of the survey of Hull residents include:

• 65% see the cost of climate change as the biggest issue in the future.

• 62% see the overdevelopment of land by private investors as the biggest issue in the future – more important than taxes, schools, traffic, and crime.

• 63% believe halting additional condo and apartment developments will help Hull in the future.

With a population of just more than 10,000 people and 631 Hull resident respondents, Gorrall said the survey size is statistically significant and offers a 99% confidence with a +/- 5% margin of error.

To determine if SOS Hull member responses swayed the survey results, Gorrall looked at the data after excluding the responses from SOS Hull members. While 99 members of SOS Hull participated in the survey, when those respondents were removed, the survey still found that walkable park space (79%) and a music or event performance space (56%) were the most desired uses of the HRA land. Just 8% of non-SOS members were in favor of condominiums and apartments.

Other choices that ranked significantly higher than condominiums for non-SOS Hull members include pop-up retail (26%), a community and cultural center (25%), a fitness space (24%), a dog park (23%), a skate/bike/surf park (20%), parking (16%), and having no development of any kind (18%).

“My 20-year background in market research gave me the skills to help share the larger perspective of Hull residents,” said Gorrall, who is considering presenting the full survey results this fall in a public forum. “I’m excited to share the results with the broader community, as I believe the unbiased data should help guide critical decisions that will impact Hull’s future for years to come. Decisions made today will have a lasting impact on this beautiful community, and the responsible thing for leaders is to make these decisions with data that demonstrates what residents and visitors want, not simply listen to and be influenced by the loudest voices in town.”

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

As Hullonians use less water, sewer bills to jump 2.5% beginning next month

By Carol Britton Meyer 

A townwide reduction in water usage means that sewer bills are going up, begnning next month. Ratepayers will notice a sewer rate adjustment of 2.5% on their August bills, along with a $10 a month base rate increase. 

“The typical increase will amount to about $144 per year, which includes the $10 a month base rate increase,” Director of Wastewater Operations and Assistant Director of Public Works John Struzziery told The Hull Times. 

Although the Hull Sewer Department was not expecting an increase for the new fiscal year, water consumption (which is the basis for sewer bills) is below anticipated levels for several reasons, resulting in an unanticipated loss of revenue, according to the town’s recent newsletter. 

Contributing factors could include water conservation measures taken by ratepayers resulting in reduced water usage, roughly 250 outdated water meters indicating erroneous zero-use readings, inaccessible water meters resulting in estimated water usage that is normally lower than the actual amount used, and an increase in ratepayers who delay bill payments for multiple quarters. 

Town officials – including Struzziery — continue to work with Weir River Water System staff to examine the reasons for the lower consumption and revenue. 

“We’ve always tracked this trend in ratepayers using less water – which is nothing new – but the decrease last fiscal year is more than we anticipated, and sewer department revenues aren’t meeting expenses,” Struzziery said. “The sewer department’s budget for FY25 represented only a 1.1% increase.” 

The sewer department is an enterprise fund, which means its operating expenses must match the revenue received. 

“The Massachusetts Department of Revenue, which monitors enterprise funds, has indicated that a sewer rate adjustment needs to be implemented so the sewer operating budget will not go into deficit,” according to the newsletter. 

“This past fiscal year, the DOR placed a hold on the sewer department’s capital improvement accounts in the operating budget – a total of $576,063 – due to FY24 revenues falling short of the projected revenues,” Struzziery explained. “This is the first time this has happened to my knowledge. Those accounts are not being held any longer, so those funds got rolled over into the Fiscal 2025 sewer department budget.” 

Although in the past the sewer department has taken other measures to minimize rate impacts by delaying capital improvements and other major projects, recent sewer breaks have shown the vulnerability and impact that such incidents have on the town's sewer system and the need to continue to invest in it, Struzziery said. The two recent sewer breaks (Nantasket Avenue at Edgewater Road in June 2023 and George Washington Boulevard in January 2024) cost about $500,000 each to repair. 

“Investing in the infrastructure now is less costly than repairing multiple sewer breaks,” Struzziery noted. 

This latest increase will contribute toward paying operating expenses, he said. 

“Forty-seven percent of the sewer department budget currently goes to wastewater operations costs, which include paying the plant operator Woodard & Curran for its services, with about 34% going toward debt service to pay off prior bonded projects related to system upgrades,” he said. 

The town continues to seek grant funding to help offset the costs of future projects after receiving – or expecting to be awarded – more than $9.7 million in grants, in addition to $12.3 million in low-interest funding over the past eight years.  

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Residents air concerns about traffic plan for Allerton seawall project

By Carol Britton Meyer 

A large crowd gathered Monday in the high school exhibition room for an update on the Nantasket Avenue seawall project and a discussion of the temporary traffic plan, asking dozens of questions, sharing a number of concerns, and making suggestions. A traffic study is still in the works. 

The purpose of the project is to reduce the risk of flood damage and coastal erosion, increase resilience against projected future sea level rise, and maintain critical links to the infrastructure, homes, and businesses on Pemberton Point. 

OFF THE WALL. Kevin Mooney, a senior engineer on the Nantasket Avenue seawall project, addresses Allerton Hill residents at Hull High School on Monday night. With the Nantasket Avenue straightaway along the seawall closed as of August 12, residents expressed concerns about safely exiting and entering Allerton Hill, as well as the lack of a pedestrian and bicycle path leading toward Hull Village. [Photo courtesy of Frank Kerr] 

Concerns related in part to the planned one-way road (the direction will be determined later in the 18-month construction process); providing accommodations for pedestrians and bicyclists during the construction; additional expected traffic on Allerton Hill due to detours; and whether these changes should have gone before the select board acting as the town’s traffic commissioners. 

Project manager Kevin Mooney of Waterways Project Management said he will look into the question, posed by resident Pat Finn, related to pedestrian and bicycle accommodations along Fitzpatrick Way, working with town officials, the Hull police and fire departments, and the DPW “while considering pedestrian and vehicular safety.” 

Town Manager Jennifer Constable acknowledged that Fitzpatrick Way is not safe for pedestrians and bicyclists now – to which Finn concurred, noting that project engineers will have the added challenge of dealing with this existing condition once a portion of Nantasket Avenue is closed. 

Concerns voiced about temporary intersection change 

A number of residents expressed concern about a proposed temporary change to the Beacon Road/Fitzpatrick Way/Nantasket Avenue intersection on the opposite side of Allerton Hill, in large part due to safety. 

This change relates to opening up the intersection for additional turning room and the painting of new traffic lines to create a safe turning lane for vehicles – including school buses – heading left from Fitzpatrick onto Nantasket and Beacon.  

This requires the movement of the stop sign and stop line to be parallel with the travel lane of Fitzpatrick to gain a clearer line of sight in all directions, according to Mooney. The end result will be a painted island. Construction on this part of the project is expected to begin immediately. 

Project engineers will perform additional traffic studies after Nantasket Avenue is closed to ensure the Allerton Hill traffic pattern and other detours are working properly, with adjustments made as needed. 

While project engineers deem this to be a good temporary solution, one resident countered: “The experts on the Hill trump traffic experts.” 

Paul Falletti, a 30-year resident, asked a number of questions and noted that the presence of invasive knotweed in the construction area would need to be controlled. “It’s everywhere,” he said. 

Climate Adaptation and Conservation Department Director Chris Krahforst said he will look into this issue and find ways to mitigate the problem as necessary. 

‘The low wall is in complete failure’ 

This project is of high importance, town officials and project engineers emphasized, because the existing deteriorating seawall – which was named the top priority in a recent study of Hull seawalls and other vulnerable structures in need of repair – overtops during some storm events and is in bad shape due to its age and erosion. 

“The low wall is in complete failure,” Mooney said. 

If the seawall were to fail, everything north of the structure would be cut off from the rest of the town and vice versa – including two schools, the wastewater treatment plant, the U.S. Coast Guard station, the commuter ferry, and hundreds of homes. 

The work involves replacing a large portion, about 1,675 feet, of the seawall along a section of Nantasket Avenue across from Mariners Park (in front of the Hull Yacht Club and the Nantasket Beach Salt Water Club) that includes the section behind 948 Nantasket Ave., Point Allerton Avenue, and Stony Beach, as well as placing the utilities underground as a first step in the project, intersection improvements, raising a portion of the road, and creating an overlook with a view of the ocean, which some residents support and others don't due to concerns about pedestrian and bicyclist safety. 

The plan calls for the new seawall to be constructed landward of the existing seawall, with armor stone between the walls. 

The town’s share of the $15.6 million project is $6 million, approved at town meeting earlier this year. 

Full project details are posted at https://www.town.hull.ma.us/home/pages/nantasket-avenue-seawall-project-0. 

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Road closure near Allerton seawall to begin next month

By Carol Britton Meyer 

Starting Aug. 12, Nantasket Avenue will be closed from Point Allerton Avenue to Fitzpatrick Way as the town gears up for construction of a new seawall across from Mariners Park during an 18-month period. 

Detour signs and signboards announcing the closure will be installed well ahead of that date to allow residents and visitors time to become accustomed to the changes, project manager Kevin Mooney of Waterways Project Management told residents during an update Monday. (See related story by clicking here)

“The contractor is responsible for maintaining the signage” and is aware of the windy conditions that sometimes cause them to fall down, Mooney explained in response to a related question from the audience. 

The time span for the project extends through Dec. 21, 2025. Construction is expected to take place five days a week from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. 

“If additional hours are needed, the contractor would need to ask permission,” Mooney said. An emergency access plan will be in place. 

Mooney will be stationed in a trailer in Mariners Park throughout the project and will be available to residents who wish to stop by with questions or concerns. He may also be reached at waterwayspm@gmail.com or (781) 856-8935. 

Project details and maps are posted at https://www.town.hull.ma.us/home/pages/nantasket-avenue-seawall-project-0. 

A replay of the July 22 meeting at the high school for the purpose of providing a project update and information about the temporary traffic plan is available on hulltv.net. 

There will be further public discussions near the end of the construction period related to the plan to change Nantasket Avenue along the seawall to a one direction to determine in which direction the traffic will flow. 

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Select Board devising process for annual evaluation of town manager’s job performance

By Carol Britton Meyer 

The process for evaluating the town manager’s performance – a review that has not taken place at least in recent years – was discussed at length by the select board this week, with a vote expected at the next meeting on which evaluation document to use. 

The town’s labor counsel, John Clifford, who earlier provided the different forms to board members, explained this week the recommended process based on its success in other communities. Board member Greg Grey was not present. 

Town manager Jennifer Constable

The process involves Town Manager Jennifer Constable filling out a self-assessment form and each of the five select board members completing individual assessments of her performance – citing, for instance, areas of needed improvement and specific examples. 

The board is permitted to talk with town staff and department heads about how they rate the town manager’s work. 

After the five assessments are compiled into one summary document by the human resources director, the select board chair, or an outside party or town counsel, the results will be presented during a public meeting and voted upon. 

Board members are not allowed to take a look at each other’s evaluations until after that vote. The summary document, which will not be available to the public, will become part of Constable’s personnel record, along with any responses she makes about the contents of the document, once presented. 

‘Fully and fairly vetted evaluation’ 

Constable said she would be most comfortable with town counsel compiling the assessments into one document and favors a “full and fairly vetted evaluation.” 

Performance evaluations are “a critical part of the board’s relationship with the town manager and [his or her] relationship with the board,” Clifford said. “This should be viewed as an ongoing annual process, and if there’s not enough information available the first year, more will be available to consider later in the town manager’s tenure. A performance evaluation is not a snapshot.” 

Because there is not already an evaluation process in place, Chair Irwin Nesoff said it’s important to take the necessary time to do it right. 

“This needs to be done properly, and next year we’ll be able to move forward with a process in place,” he said. 

The select board will receive the summary document well before the public meeting during which it will be discussed. 

In other business at the meeting… 

• Jason McCann was appointed as the board’s designee to serve on the MBTA Advisory Board as well as the ferry subcommittee. 

• Robert Pahl, an architect who said affordable housing is needed in Hull “big time,” was appointed to the affordable housing committee and Scott Plympton and Judeth Van Hamm were reappointed to the Weir River Estuary Committee, while Pat Finn was reappointed to the zoning board of appeals. 

• Tami Schein, whose family has been summering in Hull for generations and who moved her permanently a year ago, was appointed to the beach management advisory committee. “I want to help protect the beach as much as I can,” she said. “It’s the biggest thing in Hull that brings everyone here.” 

• At James Ianiri’s request, the select board agreed to appoint him to a vacant permanent seat on the No Place for Hate Committee once he officially resigns from the alternate position the board appointed him to earlier, which has no voting rights. 

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Contaminated soil, decades-old gas tank removed from former 7-11 site

A decades-old underground storage tank at the former 7-Eleven store at the corner of A Street and Nantasket Avenue has delayed the potential sale of the property while soil contamination is cleaned up and monitoring wells installed. 

HEAP OF A JEEP. The disabled SUV parked on the site of the closed 7-11 at A Street was used this week to train firefighters on rescues from vehicles that crashed or rolled over in an accident. Hull Police had received several calls reporting an abandoned or stolen vehicle in the parking lot of the abandoned store.

The building has been vacant since the 7-Eleven store closed in 2021. It previously housed a franchise of the Tedeschi Food Shops chain; A Street Liquors occupied the second unit before relocating across the street. 

In June 2022, surveyors discovered a gasoline storage tank near the Nantasket Avenue border of the half-acre site, which is believed to remain from its previous use as the Waveland Garage from about 1922 through 1966. The gas station on the property contained at least three underground tanks over the years, according to property records reviewed by the environmental consultant hired to supervise the cleanup of hazardous materials. 

A grocery store or convenience mart has been at the site since the late 1960s; 7-Eleven bought the property in 2016 when it took over the Tedeschi chain. 

“The suspected source of the release is the UST [underground storage tank] that was removed in June 2023, combined with the historic use of the site as a gasoline service station,” according to the report by AECOM of Chelmsford. “As previously discussed, the UST was observed to be damaged upon removal.” 

The consultant reported that seven 55-gallon drums of a mixture of gasoline and water were removed from the 1,000-gallon tank, along with 45 tons of soil and several groundwater samples. Three monitoring wells were installed in the excavated area on May 14, 2024. 

The cleanup is being supervised by the state Department of Environmental Protection. 

In the meantime, the town has used the property, which is across from Central Fire Station, for water distribution and firefighter training exercises. 

Fire Chief Chris Russo said the disabled vehicle parked on site during the past few weeks was used this week to train firefighters on rescues from vehicles that crashed or rolled over in an accident. Hull Police had received several calls reporting an abandoned or stolen vehicle in the parking lot of the closed store. 

-- Christopher Haraden

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Assistant principal who quietly resigned from Hull High hired in similar position in Mansfield

By Christopher Haraden 

Hull High School’s former assistant principal, who stopped reporting to work in early May and resigned on June 12, has been hired as the assistant principal at Mansfield High School. 

JULIE BURKE ISRAEL

Julie Burke, now known as Julie Burke Israel, was mentioned among other hires by Mansfield Superintendent Teresa Murphy in a district newsletter on June 20. 

When questioned about Burke’s absence from Hull High in May, former Superintendent Judith Kuehn asked that the public “respect her privacy” and would give no further details about the administrator’s prolonged absence. Burke Israel did not attend Hull High’s graduation, and her resignation was not discussed at the school committee’s June 24 meeting. The Times’ request to committee Chair David Twombly about why the district did not announce Burke Israel’s departure has gone unanswered.

Burke Israel was replaced by former Memorial Middle School Principal Anthony Hrivnak, whose appointment was announced in an email to school families on June 28. Burke Israel’s resignation, which created the vacancy, was not mentioned in that email, causing confusion among parents. 

The Times requested a copy of Burke Israel’s resignation letter from the superintendent’s office but was refused; the newspaper filed a formal request under the state’s Public Records Law on July 9. 

On July 23, Superintendent Michael Jette provided Burke Israel’s letter, in which she said she “write[s] to confirm my decision to resign from my position as assistant principal of Hull High School, effective at the close of business on June 30, 2024.” The letter is dated June 12, 2023, presumably a typographical error. 

Click here to see Burke Israel’s letter of resignation

Burke Israel is the second administrator at Hull High School to resign this year, after Principal Michael Knybel resigned on May 3. Robert Shaw was hired to replace Knybel. Hrivnak, whose position at the Memorial School was eliminated by the closure of the building in June, began his new role at the high school on July 1. 

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Poles to stay on railroad bed pending AG decision; two dozen residents named to committees

By Carol Britton Meyer 

No longer allowing telephone poles to be placed along the railroad bed in the northern alphabet section of town, a stipulation that was included in a town meeting-approved warrant article this spring, isn’t yet in effect because the town is awaiting Attorney General approval of the policy, Town Manager Jennifer Constable reported to the select board last week. 

In the meantime, poles have been placed this year “while the town decides the ownership of particular land and the best mitigation for that stretch,” Constable reported. “Technically, it’s not a roadway, although we know it needs to be accessed by residents.” 

Constable asked that the poles not be removed, as some residents have requested. 

Photos courtesy of Katherine Borsody.

“They are there for a reason,” she said. “We will meet with the neighborhood to discuss possible options once we have a potential recommendation.” 

This relates to a policy developed in the 1990s that telephone poles could be laid across the property from roughly M to X street to block the passage of vehicles, as well as obstruct pedestrian and bicycle access. The goal now is to make the area safer and more appealing for pedestrians and bicyclists while considering input from residents living in the area. 

In other business at the meeting… 

Interviewing 24 candidates for seats on 10 boards, commissions, and a task force took up almost the entire agenda at last week’s select board meeting. These ranged from the board of health and No Place for Hate Committee to the historic district commission and opioid abatement task force. 

The board appointed the following citizens: 

⦁ Board of Health: Sarah Chorney, a registered nurse who said she will work to support wellness in the community. 

⦁ Economic Development Committee: James Ianiri, Jennifer Mullin, and Susan Vermilya. Ianiri said he’s deeply invested in the town and wants it “to thrive,” while Mullin thinks there’s a need for the EDC to “focus on helping local businesses survive during the off-season,” and Vermilya is interested in finding out what “causes people to leave town,” seeking services in neighboring communities when similar services are offered here in town, and also suggested an associated “Invest in Hull” campaign. 

⦁ Historic District Commission: Current chair Julia Parker and 30-year member Don Ritz were reappointed, along with new members Bruce Miller – who went before the commission while purchasing a second home and became interested in the process – and Peter-Michael Preble, who also went before the commission with an earlier project and has served in a similar capacity in other communities. 

⦁ Historical Commission: Dennis Riley was reappointed; there were no other applicants. 

⦁ No Place for Hate Committee: Founding members Rhoda Kanet and Pam Wolfe and Celia Nolan were reappointed, along with new member Susan Neiman, who became aware of the committee through a Martin Luther King Day event and wanted to get involved. 

⦁ Parks and Recreation Commission: AnnMarie Dunn and Gary Twombly were reappointed to the two positions. 

⦁ Beautification Committee: Camellia Bloch, Maureen Koelsch, Michael Parks, and Amy Russell were appointed, joining other citizens who were named to the committee earlier. Bloch and Koelsch, who summered in Hull as a child but is now a resident, have already been involved with helping to beautify the town by picking up trash when they walk around town and wanted to join the committee to assist with other efforts. Parks noted that since he moved to Hull in 2007, “I have seen this town get better and better. It’s a community to be proud of,” he said. Parks suggested that the commission gather ideas from citizens who would like to see additional improvements “but are not sure how to get them done.” Russell said she loves “this beautiful town” and wants to help out in any way she can. 

⦁ Conservation Commission: Tammy Best, who has served on the commission for eight years, was reappointed. 

⦁ Clean Energy Climate Action Committee members Ben Maitland-Lewis, Mark Kohn, and Judeth Van Hamm were reappointed. Kohn, who was present at the meeting, shared his interest in tidal power. “We have an ocean here,” he said. 

⦁ Opioid Abatement Task Force, created by this year’s town meeting: Scott Miller, Scott MacDonald, Richard Schutte, and Deb Silverman were appointed as citizen members. 

The task force is charged with developing a planning process and strategy associated with the expenditure of the town’s opioid abatement settlement allocation and will provide an annual report identifying the town’s guiding principles, strategies for implementation, and identify populations served. The task force will also include various town departments, such as public health, police, fire, and town manager’s office, as well as local partner programs. 

Miller, MacDonald, and Schutte all have recovery coach or other experience helping those suffering from substance misuse, while Silverman has a nursing education background. 

“I think this will be an impactful, well-rounded group,” Constable said. 

A member of the audience commented that it was a good sign that there were so many interested candidates for such a wide variety of positions. 

Like what you’re reading? Stay informed with a Hull Times subscription by clicking here.

Do you have an opinion to share? Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

Lifesaving Museum’s annual Harbor Illumination to light up Hull’s shoreline on July 20

NIGHT LIGHTS. The annual Harbor Illumination is set for Saturday and lights up the shoreline from James Avenue in Hull Village to A Street. [Photo courtesy of the Hull Lifesaving Museum] 

By Carol Britton Meyer 

The harbor will be lit with more than 1,000 flares on July 20 as part of the Hull Lifesaving Museum’s 15th eye-dazzling Harbor Illumination event to celebrate the town’s maritime heritage. 

In carrying out this time-honored tradition. often referred to as “magical” by spectators, residents and visitors gather along the bayside shoreline to view the flares in a spirit of camaraderie, engaging the entire town and many non-residents as well. 

Hull Lifesaving Museum Director of Development Maureen Gillis said this year’s theme is “honoring, celebrating, and remembering the lifesavers from the past and our loved ones from today.” 

The illumination will extend from the A Street Pier to James Landing in Hull Village, with a day of special activities planned: 

⦁ 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.: The Point Allerton Coast Guard is partnering with the lifesaving museum for the Harbor Illumination by hosting an open house at the Point Allerton Coast Guard Station. This is an opportunity to meet local Coast Guard members, tour the station and boats, learn how to tie knots, play a game of cornhole with the “Coasties,” and for the whole family to enjoy a fun-filled day. 

⦁ 5 p.m.: Coast Guard City Commemoration, Hull Village Cemetery 

⦁ 6 to 8 p.m.: Open house, Hull Lifesaving Museum 

⦁ 7:30 p.m.: Forever Flare Ceremony, A Street Pier. This year’s ceremony “will shine brightly as we honor our brave lifesavers and pay tribute to two remarkable individuals who were very special to the Hull Lifesaving Museum family – Tracy Hyde and Neilie Ann Heffernan Casey,” Gillis told The Hull Times. “With the support of participants from the Cardinal Cushing Centers and friends of the museum, we will lovingly recite the names of all our Forever Flare honorees, ensuring their memory and contributions are celebrated.” Forever Flares are lit in a special location during the current Harbor Illumination. 

⦁ 8:30 p.m.: Harbor Illumination begins. 

The flares are set up by volunteer “captains” along the shore. Those who sponsored the flares have the opportunity to light them or to ask the captains to light the flares for them. To sponsor flares to honor, remember, or celebrate an individual or a meaningful cause, visit the museum’s website at www.hulllifesavingmuseum.org. Individual flares are $10 each; Forever Flares are $300 each. 

“We invite the Hull community [and beyond] to come together with us to reflect on the courage and dedication of our lifesavers, celebrate the lives of our honorees, and remember the loved ones who have touched our hearts,” Gillis said. “This ceremony is not just a commemoration, but also a celebration of the spirit of our community and the enduring legacy of those who have served it.” 

In Hull, lighting the harbor with candles and torches began as an end-of-summer celebration, with the first illumination organized by the yacht club in 1881. It continued until the early 1900s when it was discontinued, but in recent years has once again become an annual event sponsored by the museum. 

This year’s Harbor Illumination sponsors include Keohane Funeral and Cremation, Procopio Companies, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay, Local 02045, Clean Harbors, Safe Harbor Sunset Bay, Nantasket Beach Salt Water Club, Nantasket Chamber of Commerce, O’Donoghue Insurance, Rockland Trust, Cohasset Collision, and Woodard and Curran. 

“None of this would be possible without these generous sponsors,” Gillis said. “All proceeds go to keep HLM’s year-round programs affordable and in some cases, remove the financial barrier altogether.” 

The HLM mission celebrates the lifesaving spirit of skills, courage, and caring and the relevance of that history to Hull residents’ daily lives. Those driving principles of the 19th-century coastal lifesavers are the foundations of the museum’s commitment to impact individual lives for the better. 

For further information about the Harbor Illumination and other HLM summer activities, visit www.hulllifesavingmuseum.org or call (781) 925-5433. 

Shorelines - News about your neighbors

• Katelyn Breen received a bachelor of science degree in both finance and marketing from Providence College on May 19. Katelyn graduated summa cum laude and is now employed with Fidelity Investments in Smithfield, R.I., working in the Institutional Sales Division. 

• Ryan Hanlon graduated from Plymouth State University during its 153rd anniversary commencement ceremony on May 11. Hanlon graduated with a bachelor of science in business administration. 

THE FRENCH CONNECTION. Select board members Irwin Nesoff and Greg Grey enjoyed the Bastille Day concert at Fort Revere on Sunday, along with Dave Walsh. The celebration recognizes the partnership of the French during the American Revolution, in particular the French soldiers who were stationed at the fort’s earlier incarnation, Fort Independence. Behind them are Villagers – and strong fort advocates – Randy Gould and Pat Finn. [Photo courtesy of Judeth Van Hamm] 

• Norah C. White was named to the Dean’s List at Saint Michael’s College for the spring semester. Students who complete at least 12 credits of classes and achieve a grade-point average of at least 3.5 in are cited on the Dean’s List for that semester. 
• In addition to being named to the Dean’s List for the spring semester at Saint Michael’s college, Caitlin Elizabeth Canavan graduated cum laude with a degree in history. 

• Patrick Dromey graduated from Santa Clara University on Saturday, June 15 during the university’s 173rd commencement ceremony on its campus in California. Dromey graduated cum laude and received a bachelor of science degree in computer science and engineering with a mathematics minor. Established in1851, the Jesuit university is located in the heart of Silicon Valley and is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. Dromey is the son of John and Vicki Dromey. 

• Haley Walsh-Pederson received a master of science in molecular cell biology from Quinnipiac University during a commencement ceremony held in May. 

• Elise Ryan was named to the College of the Holy Cross spring Dean’s List. A member of the Class of 2025, Ryan was named to the Dean’s List for outstanding academic achievement; to qualify, students must pass four or more letter-graded courses with no failing grades during the semester and earn a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher. 

• The graduation exercises and end-of-year celebration for Wellspring Multi-Service Center’s Adult Education Program were held on Thursday, June 20 at the Bernie King Pavilion on Nantasket Beach. This graduation celebration highlighted the exceptional accomplishments of these students, as well as closing out the end of the year for students in the ESOL program in Weymouth.  

GLAD GRADS. Wellspring held its annual Adult Education Program graduation ceremony; earning diplomas were, in the back row, Joseph Lombardo of Hull, Stephen Wilson of Weymouth, David Brown of Hull, Michael Saniuk-Collins of Hingham, and Zachary Costa of Hingham. In the front row are Ella Benzan-Vazquez of Weymouth, Kayla Whiteley of Weymouth, and Julissa Jean of Hingham. As part of the ceremony, former Hull resident and Wellspring Foundation Trustee Laura Avakian, presented Kayla Whiteley and Cooper Edgren with the Avakian Pathways to Success Scholarship. [Courtesy photos]

The recipients of the Steve and Laura Avakian Pathways to Success Scholarship, Kayla Whiteley and Cooper Edgren, shared their stories during the ceremony: 

“Wellspring gave me hope that I could have a life after failing high school, and they opened my eyes to the fact that college is still attainable,” Cooper said. “Because of the opportunities Wellspring provided me, I have been accepted to the New England Institute of Technology where I will pursue a degree in video game design.” 

“Next year, I plan on attending Quincy College to earn a degree in psychology,” Kayla said. “I want help others feel understood and focus on how mental health issues affect the lives of many every day.” 

Members of the Wellspring graduating class of 2024 are: David Brown of Hull, Ella Benzan-Vazquez of Weymouth, Zachary Costa of Hingham, Julissa Jean of Hingham, Joseph Lombardo of Hull, Michael Saniuk-Collins of Hingham, Kayla Whiteley of Weymouth, and Stephen Wilson of Weymouth. 

For more information on the education program and to learn how to enroll, visit wellspringmultiservice.org/adult-learning. 

If you have news about Hull residents to share – birthdays, anniversaries, career and education  achievements, weddings, births, and other milestones – send your information to us at news@hulltimes.com. If you include a photo, please be sure that everyone in the image is identified. Thank you!