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Body search: 2025

By ALEXANDER RAPP and DAN ATTORRI

Concord High’s 2024 softball season ended in heartbreak. After a strong 15-3 regular season, the No. 3 Crimson Tide were shut out in the prelims by No. 14 Portsmouth and sent home much earlier than expected.

By ALEXANDER RAPP and DAN ATTORRI

Concord has brought in a new head coach to take the program to new heights. Mike Zahn, who previously coached Hopkinton girls’ lacrosse, made four straight Division III championship appearances and won two titles with the Hawks. Zahn also led Hopkinton to four straight girls’ soccer championships.

By JONATHAN P. BAIRD

Jonathan P. Baird lives in Wilmot.

By RICHARD MINARD

Richard Minard is executive director of Building Community in New Hampshire, a nonprofit organization based in Manchester that works statewide to help refugees and other immigrants navigate their way to safe, healthy, prosperous, and productive lives in New Hampshire.

The Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce’s annual leadership program for area professionals is accepting applications for the class of 2026. Leadership Greater Concord has introduced over 650 community members to civic activity and volunteer possibilities in NH’s Capital Region for over 30 years.

“Hide under your desks.” Directions given to students in 1950s air raid drills seem to be our Democratic senators’ response to MAGA bullying and menacing. Their support of the Continuing Resolution (H.R. 10545) passed under House Majority Leader Mike Johnson legitimized cruelty and destruction straight out of Project 2025. By voting with the MAGA House majority, Senators Shaheen and Hassan signaled approval of activity that would transfer Social Security and Medicaid dollars to plutocrats who pay no taxes — and eventually the funding of Medicare — from accounts we built with money taken from our paychecks. For many retirees and disabled people, that’s a death sentence, as even those of us who planned ahead rely on Social Security to meet basic expenses. Without Medicare or Medicaid, we cannot afford even basic medical care. For all their talk about veterans, our senators approved deconstructing the Veterans Administration at a time when many vets need extra services. No excuse is adequate in the face of capitulation to the party of greed, grift and despotism. Only fear explains their votes. Neither party stands up for us at the moment. It’s time for “good trouble,” as John Lewis would say. Attend a rally on April 5. Pick a topic: education, veteran’s affairs, Social Security, health care, environment, science, national security or any other one under attack. Resist! Our senators betrayed us. We have to defend ourselves. The cavalry isn’t coming.

Gov. Ayotte plans to rein in spending by instituting a work requirement for persons receiving Medicaid. The New Hampshire Senate promoted her plans when it passed SB134 on party lines, 16-8, on March 6. The idea is as old as the Poor Law of Queen Elizabeth I and is found most recently in the Trump-MAGA playbook, Project 2025. In 2019, New Hampshire attempted a Medicaid work requirement only to have Gov. Sununu end it after spending $130,000 because it proved to be onerous and difficult to implement. A court order closed a similar program in Arkansas in 2018.

Why is everyone so shocked at the devastation being wrought on federal services? This is exactly what many experts and letters to this newspaper and others tried to warn about: Project 2025! They’re getting rid of credentialed, honest, experienced civil servants (yes, that title applies to those being dropped) who will eventually be replaced with people groomed by the Heritage Foundation to be Trump sycophants, regardless of whether that would violate Congressional authority or our Constitution.

By CHARLOTTE MATHERLY

The House Finance Committee approved its version of the next state budget last week, which will go to a vote before the full House of Representatives on Thursday. Their proposal cuts more than 320 state jobs and slashes more than $271 million from the draft presented by Gov. Kelly Ayotte in February.

By ALEXANDER RAPPand DAN ATTORRI

Concord High’s tennis team is growing. Fast.

By MICHAELA TOWFIGHI

Cassandra Sanchez hadn’t left the parking lot before she hit send on the email.

The highly anticipated 5th Evolution Expo is set to take place on Sunday, April 6, 2025, at the Grappone Conference Center in Concord. Hosted by Holistic Pros, this event is dedicated to empowering individuals with alternative and complementary care options.

By DAVID BROOKS

The northbound high-speed toll lanes on I-93 in Hooksett will close Tuesday and the southbound lanes close Wednesday as work begins on replacing the technology that lets E-ZPass drivers get billed without slowing down.

By CHARLOTTE MATHERLY

New Hampshire’s prison system is on the verge of losing funding for nearly 200 positions after the House Finance Committee endorsed reducing the Department of Corrections’ spending by 10%.

By DAVID BROOKS

Blasting is scheduled to take place Tuesday at the Swenson Granite quarry in Concord as the Canadian firm that owns the company continues preparations for what could be a resumption of granite-cutting operations.

By CHARLOTTE MATHERLY

From a ban on cat declawing to designating the state’s official marsupial, New Hampshire lawmakers thought outside the box when filing legislation this year.

By REBECA PEREIRA

Brandon Gauthier approached his online search for a band partner with the practicality of a Craigslist veteran. His priority heading into a public meet-up with Ross Krutsinger, then still a stranger, was simply to avoid getting stabbed.

By JUDITH KUMIN

Judith Kumin lives in Contoocook. She is a retired official of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

By MICHAEL J. COHEN

Michael J. Cohen is a principal consultant at MJC Health Solutions, LLC, and a mental health advocate. He lives in Amherst.

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Narrowly turning down the addition of a School Resource Officer at the middle school while increasing facility maintenance spending, the Concord Board of Education unanimously approved a roughly 2.75% budget increase for 2025-2026, bringing its general fund spending to $111.5 million.