The death of former city clerk and former alderman John Dalis this week comes very close to marking the end of an era in this city’s long history.
He was a powerful man who never abused his power. He was a sincere man who called them as he saw them. He was a good judge of character and when he gave his word – his word was his bond.
Mr. Dalis was not perfect, and he would be the first to admit this. But in a world of good guys and bad guys, he was one of the good guys.
He loved this city and he lived here for a lifetime. To him and to all his friends, Chelsea was a fabulous place, a place of enduring friendships, and of sometimes colossal challenges.
Mr. Dalis was always a gentleman in public and he wasn’t a different man in private.
He never married and so there are no sons or daughters left behind.
What is left behind is a good name and a solid reputation and the knowledge held among the thousands who remain who knew him when – that this was a good and decent man.
We mourn his passing.
May he rest in peace.