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Vol. 52 | No. 15 | April 10, 2026
Shrewsbury resident competes on ‘Jeopardy!’
‘It needs to be told’
A long-hidden story about a Northborough POW finally being shared
SHrewsbury | 2 How Jonathan Todd found confidence through comics
By Sophia Oppedisano Reporter NORTHBOROUGH – In 1984, Ralph S. Metcalf sat down with a tape recorder. “This is Ralph Metcalf – 86 Maple Street, Northborough, Massachusetts. I am 65 years old. I am recording this at the request of my grandchildren,” he spoke into the machine. After Ralph’s passing in 1994, his grandson, Eric, transcribed the tapes and turned them into a book. Forty years before creating the tapes, Ralph left for England aboard the Queen Elizabeth for his assignment to the 8th Air Force, 390th Bomb Group, 571st Squadron. He flew 16 missions between December 1943 and May 1944 in World War II. It was during his last mission – a 13-minute bomb run over an aircraft factory in Strasbourg, France – when Ralph and his crew were shot down
southborough | 7 An engineering battle at Westborough High
caption Ralph S. Metcalf (Photos/Courtesy)
over enemy territory. Those who survived were taken to a Nazi prison camp in Frankfurt, Germany. Ralph spent 13 days shy of one year as a Prisoner of War (POW) in three different Nazi prison camps. After he was liberated, he was awarded two Purple Hearts and promoted to Technical Sergeant. Recently, Ralph’s son, Dave, who works part-time for the Northborough Senior Center, sat in his kitchen with his wife, Barbara, at their home in
Shrewsbury. Their walls are adorned with photos of a big, loving family, and mementos of military service fill the space. On the kitchen table, a spoon from a Nazi prison camp rests next to two photos of Ralph: one when he left for England and weighed 155 pounds, and one when he was liberated and weighed only 100 pounds. Also on the table: a 50-caliber bullet that hit Ralph
WEStborough | 14 Shrewsbury’s new superintendent ‘can’t wait to get started’
POW | 5
Shrewsbury | 15
Grafton Select Board member wants say in teacher negotiations By Evan Walsh Managing Editor GRAFTON – Though nothing is official yet, it appears the Select Board is making a push to have greater influence in negotiating teacher contracts. On March 24, the board explored having Town Administrator Evan Brassard involved in
negotiations. Currently, the School Committee – in addition to the town’s labor counsel – is responsible for negotiating with schoolrelated unions. However, as Grafton worked to resolve an approximately $1.1 million budget deficit, Select Board member Craig Dauphinais continually said that teacher contracts could be bet-
Purchasing your home is a milestone.
ter negotiated to help the town overcome the delta. Dauphinais said in recent months that he has absolutely no ill will toward educators – he has many teachers in the family, he said – but that the largest chunk of the town’s budget goes to schools, and the largest part of the school
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Teachers | 4
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