Community Corner

Mahwah Grad: Boston 'United, Waiting for Answers'

As news is breaking of a confession from the suspect in the Boston bombing, a Mahwah native who was at the finish line of the race an hour before the bombing describes what the city is going through now.

Over the past week and a half, the city of Boston has been through a bombing that killed three and injured hundreds, a lock down during a manhunt for the bombing suspects, and now news of a confession from 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

According to Charles Scully, a Mahwah native who is currently a sophomore at Northeastern University, the city is standing together through all of it.

“More than anything, our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and everyone who was injured [in the bombing],” Scully told Patch Tuesday evening. “We are following the news, we are waiting for answers, but we are constantly thinking of them.”

Find out what's happening in Mahwahwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Scully spent much of last weekend on and around Boylston Street. During the lead up to the Boston Marathon, he and some of his fraternity brothers were fundraising for the Boston Childrens Hospital.

“We had a giant beach ball and were rolling it around Boston, asking for signatures. The number we got determined how many donations we got from our corporate sponsors,” he said.

Find out what's happening in Mahwahwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

On Monday, Scully’s friends were standing at the finish line of the Boston Marathon collecting signatures.

“I was working, but I stopped by during my lunch hour,” Scully said. He left the marathon at about 2 p.m. last Monday, and headed back to work. 

Scully said a confusion and eeriness that has not settled into the city started at about 2:50 p.m. that day, when he and co-workers heard unending police sirens and didn’t know why.

“There was just a lot of confusion, no one knew what was going on,” Scully said.

Scully's frat brothers were across the street when the two bombs went off.

As the week went on, Scully said he found himself doing what the rest of Boston was doing – solemnly traveling to school and work each day, heading straight home at night, and staying constantly connected to news sources to get some insight into the attack.

Scully spent much of Friday’s citywide lockdown at work, as he was already there when the lockdown was put into place.

“I went out for lunch. It was a beautiful day, but one of the eeriest things I’ve ever seen, going to what’s usually one of the busiest streets in Boston and just seeing no one,” he said.

That night, he went straight home awaiting news that Tsarnaev had been apprehended by police.

“After that news came out, I left [my dorm] to go to a friend’s house on Mission Hill,” he said. After being inside glued to TV news broadcasts for several days, Scully said he felt the need to connect to others. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one.

As he neared his friend’s house, a group of residents was gathering at a prominent intersection near the hill. By the end of the night, it had grown to hundreds of Bostonians, chanting ‘USA,’ thanking police officers and other emergency responders who had initially come by to investigate what was happening, and feeling a sense of camaraderie.

“We knew what happened wasn’t over, but there was a sense of relief,” he said. “A lot of times, in tragic events like this, people unite. That is exactly what happened last Friday.”

Since then, Scully said city residents are looking for more forms of closure, both for themselves and the victims. The over $2,000 his frat raised at the Marathon will be donated to the hospital, which has been treating many of the children injured in the attack. And, members voted to donate some of their operating budget to the One Fund, a charity set up by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino that gives money to the families most affected by the Boston Marathon bombing. So far, the fund has collected over $20.8M.

As details are emerging about Tsarnaev’s reported confession and apparent motives, Boston, he said, is staying strong.

“We want answers, but we are standing together,” Scully said. “Next year, I will be cheering at the [Boston Marathon] finish line. I think a lot of us will be.”

Submit your questions or news tips to jessica.mazzola@patch.com. And, remember to sign up for Patch's daily newsletter, and get updates on Facebook and Twitter.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here