Harvest on Vine Director Receives Service Award

Tom MacDonald was honored last week at Charlestown Recovery House's annual gratitude fundraiser.

Submitted The Charlestown Recovery House recently held its fifth annual gratitude fundraiser at the new Knights of Columbus with a crowd of over 250 supporters. The annual gratitude fundraiser is an opportunity for the supporters of CRH to get together and reflect on the past year. Last year, the Charlestown Recovery House initiated the Peter Looney Public Service Award in memory of one of CRH’s greatest supporters, Peter Looney. CRH recognized Judy Evers at last year’s event for her public service and support of the House. This year, CRH presented the Looney Award to Tom MacDonald for his work at Harvest on Vine. MacDonald has been working in Charlestown for eight years as a director of Harvest on Vine and a member of the St. Mary and St…

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Applications for CHAD Looney Scholarship Available

Four scholarships will be awarded.

Applications for the CHAD Peter Looney Scholarship are now available.   Applications can be picked up at the Charlestown Public Library, The Lacrosse Center on Green St, the Cooperative Bank, and The Boys and Girls Club.  Applicants may also download the application at CharlestownAgainstDrugs.org. The Peter Looney Scholarship includes two High School Scholarships and two College Scholarships awarded annually. The High School Scholarship ($500 each) will be awarded to two middle school students who will be attending a private high school requiring tuition in Fall 2012. The College Scholarship ($1000 each) will be awarded to two high school students who will be attending college in Fall 2012. The deadline to apply is Friday, April 14, 2012. 

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Mass Set to Mark Peter Looney's 70th Birthday

Friends and family will recognize what would have been the late Peter Looney's 70th birthday this week with a Mass.

The late, long-time community leader Peter Looney will be remembered on what would have been his 70th birthday with a Mass at St. Francis de Sales Church on Friday, Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. A reception will follow in the Church Hall. Looney's friends, former co-workers, members of the many organizations he headed, friends and neighbors are warmly welcome to attend. Looney, 69, died on Aug. 11 after a battle with lung cancer. He was instrumental in organizing several of Charlestown's anti-drug, pro-youth programs, including Charlestown Against Drugs.

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5 Things

Charlestown Live Pays Tribute to Peter Looney

A few of Peter's dearest friends will lead tonight's show -- and take calls from anyone in the neighborhood who wants to share their thoughts and memories.

Today is Thursday, Aug. 18. Here are five things you need to know today. 1. There will be a special Charlestown Live airing this evening: a tribute to Peter Looney. Host Kathy Giordano will be joined by Billy Boyle and Leo Breen, two of Peter's closest friends. Others are invited to call in at 617-708-3290 during the live broadcast and share their thoughts and memories of Peter. The show airs live on BNN-TV Comcast Channel 9 and RCN Channel 15 on Thursdays from 6:30 to 7 p.m. 2. This week Patriot-Bridge will also feature a tribute to Peter Looney. Should be out today -- full of reader-submitted photos, letters and comments about the amazing work Peter did for the community. Be sure to pick one up. 3. I saw this in our events calendar for …

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The Town We Love So Well

Saying 'Adieu' to Peter Looney

On Monday, hundreds of neighbors, officials, family members and friends gathered at St. Mary-St. Catherine Parish to say goodbye to a legendary Townie.

How hard it is to say “adieu” to a friend. And when we’re talking about a man who had many, many friends, with that final nod of the head so full of personal memories, it’s an extremely difficult undertaking. This was the case when hundreds gathered to bid farewell to Peter Looney this past weekend. The official tribute began at Carr’s Funeral Home on Bunker Hill Street on Sunday afternoon as the family stood stoically in line to accept the condolences of those who came, some traveling many miles to be there. Elected officials who'd held high offices mingled with a neighbor, a recovering addict, a community leader, a friend, a fellow parishioner, doctors and nurses who tended to Peter's final needs, a high school pal, and members of any of…

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Peter Looney Services Set

A wake will be held on Sunday from 2 to 6 p.m. at Carr Funeral Home. A Mass will be held on Monday at 11 a.m. at St. Mary-St. Catherine's.

Carr Funeral Home is handling the funeral arrangements for Peter Looney, who died on Thursday, Aug. 11. Visiting hours will be held on Sunday, Aug. 14 from 2 to 6 p.m. and again on Monday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Carr Funeral Home at 220 Bunker Hill St. A funeral Mass will be held at St. Mary-St. Catherine's Church, 55 Warren St., at 11 a.m. on Monday. Interment will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery in Malden. In lieu of flowers, kindly make a memorial donation in Peter's name to Charlestown Against Drugs, C.H.A.D., P.O. Box 290035, Charlestown, Mass. 02129.

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Obituary: Peter Looney

Visiting hours will be held Sunday, Aug. 14 from 2 to 6 p.m. at Carr Funeral Home. The funeral Mass will be held on Monday, Aug. 15 at 11 a.m. at St. Mary's Church.

Peter R. Looney, a lifelong resident of Charlestown, died on Thursday, Aug. 11, 2011 at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston following a courageous battle with cancer and declining health. He was 69 years old. Peter was born in Medford on Nov. 18, 1941 to the late William and Agnes (Burns) Looney and was a surrogate son to the late Patrick and Alice Murphy. He grew up in Charlestown where he attended St. Mary's Parochial School and graduated from Charlestown High School in 1960. Peter worked for more than 27 years as a sheetmetal worker and was a member of The Sheetmetal Workers Union Local # 17. He also worked as a Clerk of Works for the City of Boston for more than 11 years and retired in 2006. Peter was a devoted Townie to the many …

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Charlestown Says Farewell to a 'Legend of a Townie'

Friends and neighbors reflect on the loss of Peter Looney, a lifelong townie and community leader who died on Thursday.

If there was ever a mayor of Charlestown, there's no doubt that Peter Looney would have been it. Looney, 69, died in the early morning hours on Thursday, Aug. 11 after a battle with lung cancer. Word of his death made its way around the neighborhood within hours -- a testament to how attuned Charlestown has been over the past year to Looney's health, how significant the news of his death was and the plain fact that just about everybody knew him. Over his lifetime, Looney -- a Charlestown native with a fierce Townie pride -- had his hands in dozens of community initiatives. "If you needed anything, you went to him," said Michael Charbonnier, a Boston police officer, Charlestown resident and friend to Looney. "The message he's left behind is…

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