Lucy Ferrante
Written and Photographed by Nancy Clover
Meet Lucy Ferrante. Lucy is proof of what can happen when great teachers and parents inspire curiosity and a student decides to run with it.
Honestly, it’s a little hard to figure out when she sleeps, because Lucy, a junior at Melrose High School, seems to be everywhere.
I first met Lucy at a meeting of the Melrose Historical Commission. Seeing a high school student there immediately caught my attention. But Lucy wasn’t just attending out of curiosity — she was already contributing.
She’s helped create social media posts for the commission, researched the lives of Melrose soldiers who died in Vietnam, and participates in the popular “Research Your Home” night, where residents learn the stories behind their houses.
Lucy loves history because, as she says, it helps us understand how we got to where we are today.
Her first love was ancient history, but she’s discovered something equally fascinating: local history and the stories of everyday people who shaped our community. Right now, she’s working on social media posts about inventors from Melrose, helping bring those forgotten stories back to life.
Lucy credits her passion for history to the incredible teachers she’s had along the way. From middle school through high school, she says, their enthusiasm and support helped inspire her curiosity and encouraged her to dig deeper.
And now she’s paying that inspiration forward.
Lucy recently secured a charter to start a History Club at Melrose High School — and their first meeting is this week. Not a bad accomplishment for someone who still has homework and exams to worry about.
This summer, Lucy hopes to take history classes at Tufts University. She plans to study ancient and art history in college, with a dream of one day working in a museum.
But history isn’t her only passion.
Lucy also works part-time at The Kitchen, where she recently had the opportunity to teach a gyoza-making class. Her mom is Japanese, and Lucy has been making the dumplings using her family’s recipe for years. She loved teaching the class—especially seeing how excited the kids were to learn something new.
And if that still sounds like a full schedule...Lucy also has a strong creative side. She draws, screen prints, and makes jewelry. Her only complaint?
There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to create everything she wants to make.
During the pandemic, Lucy’s family decided it was time for an adventure. Her parents, three younger siblings, and even the family cat piled into an RV and traveled across the United States. They visited incredible places like Yellowstone National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, and Badlands National Park.
The trip gave Lucy a whole new perspective on the country and the history that shaped it and bragging rights to say she has been to 47 states!!!!!
Lucy is quick to say she couldn’t do any of this without her parents, who she describes as supportive, encouraging, and always ready for an adventure. And it shows.
Because Lucy Ferrante is exactly the kind of young person who reminds us why communities like Melrose are so special. Curious. Creative. Thoughtful. Someone who cares about understanding the past so she can help shape the future.
Today she’s researching local history and starting a club at school.
Tomorrow? Don’t be surprised if she’s curating a museum, uncovering forgotten stories, or inspiring the next generation of historians.
Melrose has always been proud of its history — and thanks to students like Lucy Ferrante, that history is in very good hands.
