July 2, 2025 By Carol Britton Meyer
Former Select Board chair and now-Sewer Commissioner Joseph Fisher is this year’s Hingham Anchor Hinghamite of the Year, nominated by Fourth of July Parade Co-Chair Jim Murphy for Fisher’s many contributions to the town and overall community.
After moving to Hingham from the D.C. area in 1992, Fisher and his wife Laura “were raising a wonderful family, and he was running a thriving legal business (actually, more than one!) when he decided to get more involved with their community,” Murphy said. “Joe chose to volunteer at many roles in his adopted home of Hingham, across faith, education, and local politics.”
The Fishers are the proud parents of Rebecca and Benjamin, both Hingham High School graduates, and have one grandchild, Ezra.
Fisher also served on the Conservation Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, and for two terms on the Select Board most recently — and now as a newly-elected member of the Sewer Commission.
“Joe moved from being a Water Commissioner (as a Select Board member) to a Sewer Commissioner. There must be a few jokes in there somewhere, but I look past them and see Joe as a current day John Quincy Adams, who after serving as Sixth President of the U.S., went on to serve more than 17 years in the U.S. House of Representatives for Massachusetts!” Murphy quipped.
Fisher’s first participation in Hingham town government was with the Long Range Waste Disposal and Recycling Committee (now known as Cleaner Greener Hingham).
In 2000 he was appointed to the Conservation Commission, where he was elected chair in his second year. “Joe presided during the most transformative period in Hingham’s recent past, with projects such as The Hingham Shipyard; the return of the Greenbush Line — including the tunnel under downtown Hingham; Black Rock Golf Club and residences; Derby Street Shops; the new DPW facility and Bare Cove athletic fields; many 40B (comprehensive permit) projects; Baker Hill residential development; projects along Hingham’s inner harbor; Linden Ponds; Boston Golf Club; and determining where the Back River both starts and ends!” according to Murphy.
Fisher next moved to the Zoning Board of Appeals, where he presided over numerous variance, special permit and 40B hearings, including applications to allow bed & breakfast establishments, permits for the Hingham Farmers Market, permits for the Avalon projects at the Hingham Shipyard, improvements at Worlds End Reservation, construction and improvements at the Derby Street Shops, build-outs at the South Shore Industrial Park, and the River Stone condominium 40B project off Ward Street that is still on appeal in the courts.
In addition to his present service on the Sewer Commission, Fisher is also Hingham’s representative on the MBTA Advisory Board and was recently appointed by the Select Board to serve on the Planning Board’s Residential Compatibility Standards Subcommittee.
Fisher is an attorney at Fisher Law Offices in Hingham and also president of The Notice Company, Inc., a class action notice and claims management company.
As a Select Board member who also served as chair, Fisher helped steer the town successfully through the dangers and disruptions that accompanied the COVID pandemic.
He also took part in locating, planning, and funding a much-needed public safety building “where the Town’s police and fire departments can best serve Hingham’s residents in a safe and modern work environment that our employees deserve,” Fisher told the Hingham Anchor. Fisher was also involved with bringing the new Foster Elementary School to reality.
Joyful experience
One of his most joyful experiences as a Select Board member was offering congratulations and good wishes to longtime Hingham resident Phyllis Chapman on the occasion of her 107th birthday last October.
His saddest experience was saying goodbye to and mourning the passing of his mother, Mildred Fisher, in June 2024 — two weeks after she celebrated her 100th birthday.
Working hand-in-hand with Mark Cullings to secure a home for the Hingham Farmers Market is a fond memory, followed by a sad one — “Mark’s passing too soon in August 2024.”
Select Board members Chair William Ramsey and Liz Klein, who served with Fisher on the board, shared their thoughts: “Joe embodies everything that is special about Hingham’s volunteer spirit. He is dedicated, kind, and cares about our community beyond imagination,” Ramsey told the Hingham Anchor. “At every turn, he has stepped forward to help others. I can’t think of a more deserving person to be named Hinghamite of the Year.”
‘Very well deserved’
Klein said she’s “thrilled for Joe — very well deserved. He does so much for our community.”
Fisher also shared a proud and humorous experience: “At the conclusion of one of several lengthy hearings on a controversial 40B development project while I was chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals, I was approached by a Hingham resident who had attended multiple hearings. The resident asked if I would consider running to become Pope. She stated she was Catholic, was very impressed with the way I conducted public meetings and how I actively listened to the concerns of residents, and she thought I would be an excellent Pope. I thanked her and explained that would not be possible for at least two reasons. First, I am Jewish and, second, the office of Pope is not one where someone submits candidacy papers in order to run for office. The resident responded that religion should not be an issue and that she would continue to support me no matter what office I sought.
“And indeed, through the years, this resident has volunteered her time and effort for the benefit of the town, including at the Hingham Center for Active Living where she has continued to support my efforts at planning for a larger and modernized Center for our town’s seniors,” Fisher said.
‘He listens thoughtfully and respectfully’
Former Select Board member Paul Healey, who now sits on the Zoning Board of Appeals, said he “always enjoyed working with Joe here in Hingham. He is unfailingly pleasant and listens thoughtfully and respectfully to the views of others. His continued service to our community is Hingham’s good fortune.”
Fisher is a past president of Congregation Sha’aray Shalom and also Old Colony Montessori School, where he made decisions that helped secure its future expansion and financial security, according to Murphy.
As Fisher starts his first term as a Sewer Commissioner, “it’s time for the town to thank him for decades of making Hingham a much better place to live and raise a family — Hinghamite of the Year for 2025 is a nice place to start!” Murphy said.
Congratulations, Joe!
Other nominees this year were: Anita Ryan for her work in protecting Bare Cove, “with the health of the forest, wildlife, and community in mind”; Danielle Lavoie, a “happy volunteer” at the Hingham Swap Shop; Hingham Anchor photographer Joshua Ross for “always being there for the kids” in sports and other activities; select board member Liz Klein for her involvement with the Hingham schools, the Hingham Education Foundation, and past president of the Hingham Downtown Association and also Hingham Maritime Center; longtime (20 years) former Hingham Public Library trustee David Mehegan, a library supporter for decades; Robert F. Beal, Jr. for helping others in need, giving back to the community, and supporting veterans needing assistance; Pam Berigan, co-founder of the South Shore Special Needs Athletic Partnership, which provides athletic and recreational activities for children and young adults with disabilities; Paul Healey for his role in town government over the years and for his “leadership, wisdom, and devotion” to the community; Margaret Curtis for her involvement with Hingham Maritime Center, Wellspring Multi-Service Center, South Shore Conservatory, St. John the Evangelist, New England Wildlife Center, and as a youth lacrosse referee; Patrick Shaughnessy for his work with the Laboure Center, Rodman for Kids, and BC High giving; Colin Pomeroy for his leadership of the bowling and Hingham Hackers Golf groups at South Shore Country Club; George Ford, who walked the Fourth of July Parade route as Uncle Sam for nearly two decades and is a former town counsel, among other roles in the community; and William Ramsey for his role as a select board member “and basically everything!”
Deirdre Anderson, a former Hinghamite of the Year winner, received two nominations this year.