Building a home at the Hersey Family Farm
By Diane Ried Hersey, for the Beacon
When Jim Hersey Jr. left the family farm in Andover to set off for college, he may not have given much thought to returning to his Andover roots someday. Folks who travel Route 11 see Jerry and his brother Jim daily. They are tending the Herefords, haying, splitting wood, or repairing the fence line, year […]
President's List for a perfect 4.0!
Alicia Barry of Andover, a 2015 Proctor graduate, received this letter from the Dean of the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health, where she is studying: “Congratulations for making both University of South Carolina’s President’s List and the Arnold School’s Dean’s List in recognition of your excellent performance during the 2015 fall […]
Preserving stories and stimulating learning
By From Encore.org

This story about Mary Keuchenmeister of Andover is part of a national online collection of Stories from the Encore Movement. It is reprinted with permission from Encore.org, a nonprofit building a movement to tap the skills and experience of those in midlife and beyond to improve communities and the world. “I am challenged by those […]
Working on 10th "Bodyguards" book
Press release
Turns out it's a car with a history
By Lindy Heim, for the Beacon

Steven Hunt is not the kind of person you come across every day. Steven is a 20-year-old who has accomplished something quite extraordinary for such a young man. Motivated by a strong desire to restore an old car, it took Steven a full year and a half, but he did just that. Now he has […]
Newlyweds living in Andover

Shawna Barton, daughter of Jeff and Tina Barton of Andover, was married to Jacob Otis, son of Steve and Cindy DelBene of Boscawen. The nuptials took place in Salisbury on October 3. Shawna is a lifelong Andover resident and graduated from Merrimack Valley High School in 2011. She graduated from Colby-Sawyer College this May with […]
Farm-to-table dinner, a starry sky, and candlelight

Philippa Ratzki and Leopoldo Guerra were married on September 6 in an outdoor ceremony at the home of the bride’s parents, Mario Ratzki and Caroline Moulton, in East Andover. The groom’s parents, Leopoldo Guerra and Gloria Naranjo, traveled from Colombia to attend. Vera Broekhuysen, the bride’s oldest childhood, officiated. The ceremony took place in front of […]