Carolyn Jane Holmes Swanson passed away peacefully on April 7th, 2021. Carolyn was born on January 31st, 1936, in the town of Harwich where she resided for most of her life with her husband, Allen.  Carolyn loved collecting antique glass, reading, knitting, gardening and especially her Morgan horse, Pharaoh, who she rode late into her 70s.    Carolyn is survived by her three children, Kathryn, Eric and his wife K...

Stephen P. Ford August 7, 1952–April 9, 2021 Surrounded by his family, and with an Irish tune playing, Stephen P. Ford died peacefully just as the sunset left his room on Friday, April 9, 2021. He took on life with caring, spirit, commitment, and a side of humor, as all who knew him understood. Born in Virginia Beach on August 7, 1952, he was the loving son of the late Barbara Brett Ford. The youngest of five chi...

CHATHAM - Debra Lynn Eldredge, 65, passed away on Friday morning April 9, 2021. She was born in Weymouth, Ma. at South Shore Hospital on June 11, 1955 to Roy and Virginia “Gigi” Eldredge.  Debbie was the couple’s fourth child, and was 12 years younger than their youngest child at the time.  Love surrounded Debbie from her birth with three older siblings and two loving parents.   Though Debbie was born off-Cape, s...

Use of the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine was halted Tuesday in Barnstable County and across the state after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended a pause in its use nationwide. The move came after potentially dangerous blood clots were reported in six individuals who received the vaccine. In Barnstable County, 1,400 doses of the Johnson and ...

CHATHAM – The Coast Guard deliberately kept the public and town officials in the dark about plans to replace Station Chatham's 42-foot near-shore lifeboats with less capable 45-foot response boats, according to the select board. At a March 26 meeting, Coast Guard Commander Sector Southeast New England Captain Christian J. Glander told select board members that the pending action “was kept from the public and t...

CHATHAM – A town meeting article seeking $8.3 million to build a new senior center on Main Street in West Chatham was endorsed by the finance committee last week, but only just barely. The panel voted 3-2, with three members abstaining, to support the measure. It was clear that a number of members were struggling with the decision. Those who voted against the proposal generally thought the two story, 10,000...

CHATHAM – When the historic Stage Harbor Coast Guard boathouse makes its way from Quincy to Bridge Street, the cost of the journey will be covered by community preservation funds, if voters approve a request at the upcoming annual town meeting. In a unanimous vote, the community preservation committee last week endorsed the request for $243,250 to cover the cost of barging the structure to town. The finance co...

CHATHAM — Pending a successful contract negotiation, Chatham Fire Captain Nelson Wirtz, a member of the department since 1996, will become the next fire chief of Oak Bluffs. The selectmen in that Martha’s Vineyard town chose Wirtz Tuesday from a field of three finalists for the chief’s job, which oversees the town’s combined fire and EMS departments. According to the department’s website, the department incl...

CHATHAM — Under the current pact between the two towns, Orleans retains 75 percent of the proceeds of nonresident sticker sales for Nauset (North) Beach, with Chatham getting the remaining 25. The split acknowledged that Chatham once had only a tiny portion of the barrier beach within its town lines, and that off-road vehicles must travel through Orleans to reach it. But the Chatham select board says the time i...

CHATHAM — With some fine-tuning that boosted its support among select board members, a proposal to raise funds for housing projects using a one half of one percent fee on the sale of properties over $2 million will go before voters at town meeting. Board member Jeffrey Dykens, who proposed the so-called mansion fee, said it is not a regressive tax or an assessment on property, but simply a fee on property sa...

HARWICH — Ember Pizza, Inc. and The Port Restaurant and Bar, Inc. filed a lawsuit in Barnstable Superior last week charging that the board of selectmen is deliberately delaying renewing the establishments' liquor and entertainment licenses. The suit follows another filed in federal court in Boston a few weeks ago by restaurants owners Justin Brackett and Jared Brackett challenging the constitutionality of the ...

Changes have been implemented to the Monomoy Regional School District’s Equity Task Force. In the fall, the school district invited all of its parents and caregivers, teachers and staff, students and community members to be a part of a newly-formed Monomoy Equity Task Force, which was created to bring more equity to a school district with a population that becomes more diverse each year. “We initially start...

HARWICH — Town Administrator Joseph Powers has recommended that Cape Cod Commission Chief Regulatory Officer Jonathan Idman be appointed as the town's first director of planning and community development. “The combination of experience, education, knowledge and skills presented by the applicant made him an outstanding choice for this position,” Powers wrote in a memo to selectmen announcing Idman’s appointment...

Loses Battle With Cancer At 68 HARWICH — Selectman Stephen Ford passed away April 9 after a year-long battle with cancer. Mr. Ford was elected to the board of selectmen two years ago and was known as a voice of reason during his short tenure. Mr. Ford died while surrounded by his family, and with an Irish tune playing as the sunset left his room. He took on life with caring, spirit, commitment, and a side o...

Sister Town Seeks To Honor Program That Saved Thousands During WWII HARWICH — The southern border with Mexico is experiencing a massive surge of children seeking to escape poverty and injustices in their Central American countries. This past week federal officials reported 19,000 children are being held in camps along the border. How this country responds in a humanitarian way to the needs of these children...

The last time the Cape Cod Tech boys soccer program had a season was in 2019, when the Crusaders finished with a 12-7-2 record after advancing to the semifinals of the Division 4 South sectional tournament. That group was full of experienced upperclassmen — an advantage this year’s group doesn’t possess. The Crusaders boast a young roster during the Fall II season, with just three seniors and two juniors on a ...