Welcome to our third annual holiday letter.
2022 is a wrap! The prevailing feeling is it could have been a lot worse. Throughout the year there were several forks in the road that could have been disasters.
In the spring, there was discussion about whether we might be facing nuclear war in Europe.
This fall, we were met with what was called a triple pandemic with Covid, RSV, and Flu all hitting hard. Although the three pandemics are real, we seem to be getting by.
On the economic front, inflation and the economy in general were troublesome, but fear seems to be subsiding.
On the national political stage, the general feeling is the temperature has been lowered – at least a little. The fears that democracy was under threat are still there, but a little muted-and it could have been a lot worse.
Locally, things certainly had a sense of returning to normal. In-person learning, Pole Capping, summer concerts, football in the fall, Bedford Day, Bedford Community Santa all brought back some of our favorite traditions. The Bedford VA also hosted The Wall that Heals, a traveling version of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington DC.
On the retail front, we lost The Paper Store, Painted Burro, and the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel (known to us for many years as the Bedford Glen Hotel). We added Incognito Travel and the Purple Pencil. Bedford Florist marked their 40th year here in town.
Bedford also established the long sought-after Cultural District.
We welcomed a new Police Chief and honored Sarah Dorer as Citizen of the Year. Bedford also had a brush with fame as our town became a location shoot for a major Hollywood movie.
All of us were faced with our own existential crises. Learning the Bedford Flag might not be the oldest flag in the country after an older flag was discovered in Bristol, Rhode Island. Say it ain’t so!
On the sports front, the Bedford High School girls’ volleyball, basketball, and lacrosse teams all had outstanding years. The boys’ tennis team reached the state finals. The BHS football and soccer team came up just a little short of a state championship. One of the most-view stories this year involved the undefeated John Glenn Middle School boys’ soccer team.
The local politics were a bit contentious. In March, we had a town election with lots of interest shown in the candidates – more than in many previous years.
At the Annual Town Meeting, nothing illustrated that contention more than the paving of the reformatory rail trail extension. When it came back for a second time at the Special Town Meeting in the fall, residents divided literally in half with a 537-537 tally. Equally divided, but a tally well short of the two-thirds minimum required to authorize the town to acquire easements to move forward.
The Bedford Citizen celebrated its 10-year anniversary. Founder and long-time editor Julie Turner stepped away from the helm she handled so well to begin her well-deserved retirement. Wayne Braverman and Jenny Stewart joined the team.
This year, The Bedford Citizen reached a million page views for the first time and cemented its position as the news source for the town. New features this year include a baking column, a column on classic cars, The Places They’ll Go, catching up with BHS grads, a Bedford Explained Podcast, and many more. We also published our fourth annual Bedford Guide.
We wish you the best this Holiday Season and look forward to what 2023 may bring.
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