In the face of a lukewarm housing market, Charlestown Mortgage decided to up the stakes — and its profile — when it moved into its new fifth-floor office at One Thompson Square four months ago.
“The time to make all your changes is when [the market] is in chaos,” Charlestown Mortgagee co-founder and partner Stuart Fraass said, adding that 20 to 30 percent of mortgage companies have gone out of business in the past 10 months. “When the market turns, there will be three or four years of pent-up demand.”
Fraass launched Charlestown Mortgage with his wife, WHDH-TV news anchor Frances Rivera, from their Auburn Street home five years ago. The firm handles mostly residential loans, as well as some small commercial loans. Today, Fraass said he has a working relationship with more than 50 banks, both locally and nationally, to provide his customers with the best rates possible.
“With one phone call, it’s like shopping,” Fraass said in describing service he provides. “I’m different from going to Bank of America for a mortgage because they have just their own products to choose from.”
Fraass also said he provides his customers with an honest second opinion at a time when newspapers and the Internet are often disseminating inaccurate information about mortgages.
But, above else, Fraass attributes the success of Charlestown Mortgage to customer service
“My philosophy is you just take care of your customers and they come back to you, kind of like a good restaurant,” he said. “You make a little less on each deal because they will come back to refinance or buy another home, or tell a friend about us. The only thing that has saved me is how I treat my customers, and the phone is still ringing.”
For more information about Charlestown Mortgage, call 617-242-1851 or visit www.charlestownmortgage.com.

Many kids tend to read less during the summer months, but Charlestown Lacrosse & Learning Center is launching two programs this summer in the hope of reversing that trend.
“It is the hope of the volunteers’ board of directors and staff of Charlestown Lacrosse & Learning Center that every child from Charlestown develops a love of reading, regardless of their interests,” said the program’s Executive Director Bob Cutler
For the second consecutive year, Charlestown Lacrosse will offer a reading program for kids entering the fourth through twelfth grades in the fall. The program, sponsored this year by the Ronald McDonald House Charities, Inc., is offering a special incentive for students who read one book from the Charlestown Lacrosse recommended reading list and another three books of the their own choice. Kids who achieve this goal will receive a back-to school pack consisting of a backpack and three-ring binder embossed with the Charlestown Lacrosse logo, as well as pencils, paper, a calculator and “anything else they would need on the first day of class,” Cutler said. The Charlestown Lacrosse reading lists can be found online at www.charlestownlacrosse.com/summerreading.
Charlestown Lacrosse will also host four weekly reading groups to assist fourth- through twelfth-grade students with summer reading and written projects. The reading groups will teach younger kids the fundamentals of reading and how to identify story elements, including plot and character development. For older students attending Boston Latin School and Boston Latin Academy, the groups are designed to help them manage their summer reading and complete written assignments based on the books.
For more information on the summer reading programs or ides on how to interest your child in reading, contact Charlestown Lacrosse & Learning Center Executive director Bob Cutler at 617-242-1813 or visit www.charlestownlacrosse.com.

Pictured, left to right, are Cdr. Robert Gillen; Cdr. William Durette, Chief Marshall of the 2008 Battle of Bunker Hill Parade; Mayor Thomas M. Menino; Arthur Hurley, chairman of the Battle of Bunker Hill Parade Committee; and Jack Kelly, Mayor Menino’s Charlestown liaison.

On June 15, the Charlestown Boys & Girls Club hosted its annual run through the streets of Charlestown, the Battle of Bunker Hill Road Race. Nearly 500 runners participated in the two-mile novice race or the 8K, and the town was represented in the top finishers. This year’s principle sponsors were MGH Charlestown and Partners HealthCare, with Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Network. Marker/Water stop sponsors included Bunker Hill Florist, C & S Chemical, Charlestown Liquors, Charlestown Mothers Association, Cold Stone Creamery, The Constitution Marina, The Cooperative Bank, Citizens Bank, Gilchrest Associates, Hammond Real Estate, The Law Offices of John M. Iacoi, JWF Analysis and Michael J. McHugh, P.C.
Thanks to others who made donations for the race including C & S Chemical, Mamma Maria, Saucony Running Shoes, Finagel A Bagel, Doherty’s Flower Shop, 99 Restaurant and Pub and Johnnies Foodmaster. The Club would like to also thank Fallon Ambulance, Captain Bernie O’Rourke and all the Boston Police officers who kept our runners safe. Thanks also go out to all the volunteers from the community without whose help this race would not be possible. We appreciate your support of the Club!


40th Battle of Bunker Hill 8K Road Race
Navy Yard, Charlestown, Mass.
June 15, 2008

TOP FIVE MEN OVERALL

1. Ben Schmeckpeper Charlestown 25:06
2. Jeff Boyd Somerville 25:53
3. David Bedoya Everett 25:59
4. Brendan Prindiville Boston 26:13
5. Jeff Paterno Malden 26:53

TOP FIVE WOMEN OVERALL

1. Emily Enstice San Francisco 31:56
2. Farrah Stewart Tuscaloosa AL 32:16
3. Larrisa Park Somerville 33:23
4. Kimberly Owen Charlestown 33:57
5. Ellen Flipse Charlestown 34:32

MALE 17 and under

1. Ryan DeRosa Charlestown 37:51
2. Paul Myers Charlestown 39:02
3. Brian McGoff Medford 39:04
4. Brendon Collier Charlestown 39:27
5. Paul Wrenn Charlestown 40:33
6. Mather Hoyt Charlestown 40:49
7. Patrick Wrenn Charlestown 41:13
8. James Lawton Charlestown 44:24
9. Jake Dougherty Charlestown 47:01
10. Quinlan Locke Charlestown 49:00

FEMALE 17 and under

1. Meaghan Carey Needham 40:44
2. Sophie Von Hunnius Charlestown 52:05
3. Grace Coviello Charlestown 52:05
4. Shannon Considine Charlestown 56:14
5. Meaghan Doherty Charlestown 56:15
6. Brittany McLaughlin Charlestown 56:16

FEMALE MASTERS 40-49

1. Gina Frandaca East Boston 37:44
2. Gretchen Wilson Andover 37:53
3. Sally Walker Charlestown 37:54
4. Jackie Trudel Charlestown 40:56
5. Jane Shapiro Charlestown 41:01
6. Karen Fabian Charlestown 41:18
7. Lindsay Hue Charlestown 41:42

MALE MASTERS 40-49

1. Stephen Sergeant Andover 27:21
2. Terry McNattt Needham 27:23
3. Matt Quinn Somerset 32:12
4. Harry Duvall Boston 33:54
5. James Shaw Charlestown 34:09
6. Ben Starr Boston 34:22
7. Gerard Kennedy Charlestown 34:38
8. Donald Davis Reading 34:42
9. Kevin Fitzpatrick Charlestown 35:03

FEMALE SENIORS 50-59

1. Barbara Ryan Biddeford Maine 38:00
2. Christina Williamson Charlestown 42:21
3. Kris Guyot Charlestown 43:57
4. Suzanne Fragnoli Charlestown 45:17
5. Ruth Raphael Charlestown 46:01
6. Barbara Grandberg Somerville 46:30
7. Joanne Culhane Methuen 48:05
8. Laura Carroll Charlestown 49:04
9. Pat Grobecker Salem, N.H. 50:55
10. Alison Verglund Charlestown 52:53

MALE SENIORS 50-59

1. Rich Grobecker Salem, N.H. 35:30
2. Peter Klinefelter Cambridge 35:52
3. John Conforti Charlestown 36:50
4. Jeffrey Ferris Jamaica Plain 37:21
5. Peter Bloom Bonita Springs, Fla, 37:41
6 .Joe Griffin Hingham 38:40
7. Mark Fragnoli Charlestown 39:51
8. John Caldwell Charlestown 39:56
9. Mark Eisenberg Charlestown 42:03

FEMALE VETERANS 60 and over

1. Mary Ciampa Saugus 48:15

MALE VETERANS 60 and over

1.Frankie Keane Charlestown 36:58*
2. Noel Robinson Boston 37:44
3. David Fay Still River 38:18
4. Philip Howe Boston 42:01
5. Cliff Balkam Bethesda, Md. 42:02
6. Frank Donovan Charlestown 42:56
7. Paul Farrell Long Beach, Calif. 44:39
8. Arthur Colpack Charlestown 44:58

*under UST&FA guidelines for age category

TWO MILE RACE RESULTS

FEMALE 17 and under NOVICE 2 MILE RACE

1. Meaghan Doherty Charlestown 15:15
2. Jacqueline Sindoris Charlestown 15:28
3. Annie Coviello Charlestown 17:26
4. Carly Heffernan Boston 17:29
5. Louisa Carroll Charlestown 18:01
6. Rose Sullivan Charlestown 18:17
7. Genevieve Dougherty Charlestown 18:29
8. Bridgette Collier Charlestown 18:29
9. Mauve Shea Charlestown 18:55
10. Kori Erica Garland Scituate 20:02
11. Teaghan McLaughlin Boston 20:05


MALE 17 and under NOVICE 2 MILE RACE

1. Daryn Zimmerle Charlestown 13:25
2. Michael Yandle Charlestown 13:46
3. Liam Lynch Charlestown 14:54
4. Jimmy Gautreau Wilmington 15:04
5. Joe Evers Charlestown 15:29
6. James Lawton Charlestown 15:38
7. Danny Murray Charlestown 16:30
8. Nolan Doherty Charlestown 16:49
9. AJ Murphy Charlestown 16:53
10. Keaton Quinn Charlestown 16:59

On Tuesday, June 10, the rededication of Jim “Butsy” McGrath’s memorial to fallen veterans took place at Green Street veterans club Memorial Hall. The event was sponsored by Bunker Hill Associates, Charlestown Against Drugs, Abraham Lincoln Post II G.A.R. and family and friends of Butsy McGrath.
A lifelong Charlestown resident, McGrath served in the 9th Armored Division in World War II. He was awarded two Bronze Stars for fighting in the Battle of the Bulge and helping to capture Remagen Bridge. McGrath also created the Veterans Court and Garden at 105 Bunker Hill St. He was a member of Bunker Hill Post 26, the American Legion and a retired Boston firefighter. McGrath died in 1990.

PHOTOT 1 CREDIT: Jim Conway, past commander of Post 26 and past national historian of The American Legion and president of Bunker Hill Associates, addresses the crowd.

PHOTO 2 CAPTION: McGrath’s son, Billy Boyle Jr., points to the plaque that was installed in McGrath’s honor at Memorial Hall.

PHOTO 3 CAPTION; Pictured, left to right, are McGrath’s grandson, Billy Boyle III; McGrath’s great-grandson, Nolan O’Keefe; McGrath’s great-grandson, Ned O’Keefe; McGrath’s son, Billy Boyle Jr.; and McGrath’s grandson, Jay Ryan.

PHOTO 4 CAPTION: Judy Evers, City Councilor Sal LaMattina’s Charlestown liaison, and Florence Johnson, Memorial Hall veteran board member and past president of Gold Star Mothers of Massachusetts and Rhode Island.