Choose Granite Countertops Near Me Hanson, MA for Elegance and Durability

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The Patriot Ledger

HANSON ‒ The bigger you are, the harder you fall ‒ even if you're Father Christmas.

Last year, a severe windstorm took down the enormous fiberglass Santa Claus who stood outside the Hanson Fire Department for the past decade. Town officials feared he might never get up again.

"It snapped in the middle and at the knees," said Deputy Chief Charles Barends. "As big and strong as he looks, he is pretty fragile."

Enter the students of South Shore Technical High School in Hanover, who gave the big guy two months of TLC, mending his breaks and touching up his paint. At the end of November, the students stood the 25-foot Claus back up in his great boots.

"They made him look great," Barends said. "He's stronger than ever."

The Hanson Fire Department received the fiberglass Santa from a private resident about 10 years ago. Since then he has graced the lawn of the fire department every winter. Over the years, Hanson firefighters would do their best to clean up the old and fragile statue.

But this year he needed special attention. Barends said a number of shops at the technical school collaborated on the restoration project, including carpentry, metal fabrication and automotive.

"Everyone got involved," he said.

In recognition of their contribution to Hanson and the holiday season, the fire department and town selectboard publicly commended the students at a holiday festival and tree lighting last Saturday.

"It goes to show the work ethic they instill in these kids," Barends said of South Shore Technical School.

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After two years at M-A, Administrative Vice Principal Amy Hanson will move to Woodside High School to be an AVP next year.

Prior to moving to M-A as an AVP, Hanson was a Spanish teacher for 18 years in Chicago and Woodside. During her time at M-A, she became a vital staff member through her bonds with students and staff.

Hanson began her journey in education after scoring highly on a Spanish placement test in college and realizing her expertise in the language. She started taking Spanish classes and looked for a way to use it in a job. “I was tutoring little kids in Spanish through a class, and I thought, ‘Oh, maybe I could be a Spanish teacher,’ so I started exploring that,” Hanson said. “One thing led to another, and that’s how I ended up becoming a Spanish teacher.”

Hanson was a Spanish teacher at her former high school in Chicago for 10 years, and then taught at Woodside for eight years after moving to California. “I worked at my old high school, so I am very community-oriented. When I came to California, I knew no one in this entire state. When I got a job at Woodside, I made that my community, and it was a place that became my home,” she said.

In 2021, the District received a grant that supported current teachers interested in becoming administrators. Since her administrator credential from Illinois didn’t transfer to California, Hanson decided to apply. “They paid for us to get our credential, and the goal was for us to become administrators in the District,” she said. “When I was finished with my credentialing program, there was an open position here and I applied, and the rest is history.”

Over the course of two years, the AVP office has faced various changes, but M-A’s three AVPs and three AVP secretaries have created a tight-knit office. “I really enjoyed this year in particular. I enjoyed working with the AVP office, the six of us really work as a team. I’ve really enjoyed building a working environment with them. Building relationships with staff and students has really been the best part of the job,” Hanson said.

In addition to the AVP office, Hanson has also bonded with students across the campus. “I’ve really enjoyed being out and getting to know all the students,” she said. “I love going to classrooms and seeing how the kids are and how they are working and what they are learning.”

As a uniquely diverse school, Hanson has faced the beauties and challenges of it. “Staff and students come from all walks of life. What’s unique is that so many kids are from so many different places, and teachers are from all over. I think that sometimes all of those differences, while awesome, can be challenging to make sure that you find opportunities for every person, making sure there are activities for every different type of student we have,” she explained.

Looking back, Hanson will miss the relationships she formed at M-A. “I’m going to miss the students, I really enjoyed being with all of them. I’ve also made some really great friends here among the staff, so in the same way that the best part of the job was building all of those relationships, the saddest part is leaving them,” she said.

Hanson decided to return to her roots at Woodside to be an AVP. “I just have really strong memories and strong bonds with the community there,” she said. “I think it’s an intangible ‘going home’ feeling. When I saw there was an open position, I applied not knowing what would happen, and when I was offered the job I took it. It had nothing to do with anything about M-A—I really think this is an amazing school and I’ve learned so much here and I respect everyone here—it was really just a personal decision about going back to where I started.”

On her return to Woodside, Hanson is looking forward to bringing her M-A AVP experience. “This has been a really awesome experience and I’ve learned so much about the people that have mentored me here. I think that I will have a lot to offer in terms of new ideas and different ways that we can do things at Woodside, so I’m excited to implement new things,” she said.

“I hope that students look back on interacting with me and feel as though they know I cared about them and that I tried my best to make sure that students were supported academically and emotionally, and that they had a safe place on campus,” Hanson said.

Hanson’s advice to future administrators: “Get to know the kids and the staff, all of the emails can wait until later. The most important part is being out with people at lunch and brunch and getting to know everybody. If you’re visible and people know that you’re listening and you care, I think that makes it so when difficult situations arise, it makes it a lot easier.”

“I think that this is an amazing place, and that if I could make a T-shirt that was half a Bear and half a Wildcat, I would love to have that, because part of my heart will always be here,” Hanson said.

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Tessa was a journalist for the M-A Chronicle from 2022-25. In her senior year, she served as Sports Editor, and was a member of the Editorial Board. She loved writing about football games from the sidelines and was a part of the design team for The Mark. When not editing or writing for the Chronicle, she spent most of her time on the tennis court.

BOSTON — John Murphy, 51, became the first person in Massachusetts to receive a federal sentence for possessing dogs and for participating in a dogfighting venture, according to a release from the Department of Justice.

U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young sentenced Murphy on April 9th to one year and one day in prison. The father of four was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and prohibited from possessing pit-pull type dogs.

Murphy pleaded guilty in November 2024 to nine counts of possessing animals for use in an animal fighting venture, which violates the federal Animal Welfare Act.

According to the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s Director of Law Enforcement, Karen LoStracco, “It would be good to see a higher sentence, just as a potential deterrent for others out there that may be committing this activity.”

However, she noted that the sentence is a positive move because Murphy is banned from owning pit-bulls in the future, and all the dogs involved in the fighting are now safe.

LoStracco said crimes like these are challenging for law enforcement to uncover because they’re well hidden from the public. In some cases, it can take years of investigation.

“It’s sometimes hard to infiltrate these groups to find out exactly what’s going on and who might be involved,” she explained.

Court documents show federal authorities became aware of Murphy’s involvement in dogfighting in 2021 on recorded calls with a dogfighting target based in New York. Just over one year later, they started closely monitoring his property using aerial and ground-level cameras.

In June of 2023, Boston 25 News was on scene as federal agents swept his home, and seized nine pit-bull type dogs that had scars consistent with organized dog fighting.

Photos taken inside Murphy’s home showed dogs tethered to treadmills in his basement, and dog fighting paraphernalia such as several types of steroids and painkillers.

LoStracco said dogfighting is a lot more involved than putting dogs in a ring to fight, there’s a lot of preparation leading up to that point, which includes purchasing or creating training equipment for the animals.

Court paperwork also showed a forensic examination of Murphy’s cell phone had revealed his involvement in breeding and conditioning dogs for 25 years. It also showed him stating he would “never never never” quit what he is doing with the dogs.

For that reason, LoStracco said they will do the best they can to keep an eye on the situation.

As for the dogs involved in fighting, ARL described what happens to them after they’re seized.

“They’re vetted very carefully and deemed fit to be in a shelter environment to be around people, and other animals,” said Animal Rescue League of Boston Media Relations Manager Mike Defina. Subsequently, they’re sent to organizations across the country to receive the care and treatments they need.

He said it can take weeks, even months, for the dogs to trust others again, but he has seen many success stories.

Boston 25 News has reached out to Murphy’s attorney for comment but hasn’t heard back as of Friday, April 11th.

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