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Community Corner

Schools Lured Swierzewski to Hamilton

Have you seen a Vespa speeding through town?

Name:  Kathy Swierzewski  

Street: Honeysuckle Road, Hamilton 

Family: Husband: Irv Levy, Children: Kristen, Heidi, Stephanie, Matt and Tim along with one beautiful grandbaby Abilgail. 

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Occupation: Clinical Research Nurse, MGH 

Hobbies/interests: cooking, gardening, H-W Friends of the Arts 

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What are you passionate about? Supporting our schools: the programs and faculty along with my special interest in the arts. I am proud to be one of the founding members of FOTA. This is a community-based group whose goal is to keep the arts alive in our schools. 

Favorite movie: I arrived at this answer by thinking of my favorite song, "Rainbow Connection" sung by Kermit and then realized my favorite album is "John Denver & The Muppets A Christmas Together." All of these pieces fit together to make my favorite movie the "The Muppet Movie." This interview has helped with some serious self-realization. Thank you, Jen. 

Favorite book: "Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln" 

Dream vacation: Driving cross country with my husband on our Vespas. All back roads to San Francisco to give our daughter Heidi one of the bikes. Someday we will realize that dream. 

How long have you lived in HW? 14 years 

How come you chose HW? Solely based on the schools. My two oldest daughters were in private school and because of necessary life changes we needed to relocate. Even though that sounds as if we were placed in the witness protection program, I can guarantee it was not something as exciting. Wherever the best school system in Massachusetts was, that is where we were going. It was between Acton-Boxborough and Hamilton-Wenham; we made the right choice. 

What is your favorite place in Hamilton Wenham? My kitchen. Especially when there is a hungry group of kids at the house or when prep work is being done with a group of friends for a FOTA or school event. ---- OR----- The Ferrini Auditorium at the High School. I have always been delighted with the concerts and plays. I often leave amazed at the amount of talent we have locally and this has been consistent throughout the years. 

What is your favorite shop? Crosbie's, I love the convenience of having such a well stocked market local. 

What is a fact about you that most don’t know? I am a freak about flying. I will do it, but it is not pretty in the Swier/Levy household for about a week before the flight. It is the only time I will agree with my husband that I am being a bit challenging to live with, all the other times he says that he is just wrong, I am only delightful! 

Do you have an usual or funny story having to do with Hamilton Wenham? Yes, but most fall under the previous question "fact about you that most don't know," it's best that way. 

Where would someone see you around town? Under my helmet riding my Vespa (blue with flowers). It makes the mundane errand running fun and I'm averaging 75 MPG! 

Which local services and programs do you support? H-W Friends of the Arts, Young Life, Appleton Farms CSA, Hamilton-Wenham Curbside Composting, and Gordon College.

What is your most hopeful goal for the town in the next five years or so? That's dead easy! Our Ferrini Center needs a face-lift. I hope to see a top-notch performing arts center in our town which could become a year-round performance venue. The possible uses for such a facility are endless, bounded only by our creative use of the space.

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