Post on 21-Apr-2018
Volume 9, Number 9 – 16 Pages Friday, March 11, 2016
THE
Local news. Local stories. Local advertisers.
STURBRIDGE –– In honor of National Women's History Month, Old Sturbridge Village has invited four women authors to talk about their creative pro-cesses in writing nonfi ction and historical fi ction on Thursday, March 31, from 6 to 9 p.m.
This is the fi rst program of the 2016 OSV Speaker Series, and it will feature The History Girls, which will include a dialogue with the audience. The reception, with hors d'oeuvre and a cash bar, will begin at 6 p.m., and the panel dis-
cussion will start at 7 p.m.This program is ideal for any-
one interested not only in history, but also in the process of writing about it as well. The panel dis-cussion will include topics such as how to break writer's block, tips on how to conduct histori-cal research and how to interview eyewitnesses, advice about how to get your work published and what the future looks like for his-torical fi ction and non-fi ction.
"The History Girls" panel is composed of four women authors:
Theresa Mitchell Barbo is an award-winning journalist and author of nine books in histori-cal non-fi ction specializing in 19th and 20th century maritime and cultural history. She is also a noted lecturer before audiences in academic and military circles throughout New England.
Sally Cabot Gunning is the au-thor of four critically acclaimed his-torical novels: “The Widow’s War,” “Bound, The Rebellion of Jane Clarke,” and “Benjamin Franklin’s Bastard.” Her latest novel, “Mon-
ticello -- The Story of a Daughter and her Father,” will be released this coming September.
Nancy Rubin Stuart is an award-winning author of seven books about women and social history. Her journalistic work has appeared in the New York Times, Huffi ngton Post, The New Eng-land Quarterly and other nation-al publications.
Deborah Swiss is the award-winning author of “The Tin
History Girls to share creative process
Sally Cabot Gunning, the author of four critical-ly acclaimed historical novels: “The Widow’s War,” “Bound, The Rebellion of Jane Clarke,” and “Benjamin Franklin’s Bastard,” is one of four women that will speak about their creative writing processes at Old Sturbridge Village on Thursday, March 31, from 6 to 9 p.m.
– WEST BROOKFIELD –
By Douglas FarmerStaff Writer
The paddling may have been slow getting the Chicopee 4Riv-ers Watershed Council going, but at least it’s fl owing in the right direction, said Keith Da-vies, coordinator of the fl edg-ling organization. And the council hopes to have a portion of their journey mapped out for posterity, after a public meeting in West Brookfi eld this week.
Davies, a resident of Ware, has been spreading the word about the Watershed Coun-cil, which was reestablished in 2014 to both promote rec-reational opportunities along the Chicopee, Swift, Ware and Quaboag rivers as well as help to ensure the health of water and the surrounding fl ora and fauna. With the aid of labora-tory testing made possible by
the Connecticut River Water-shed Council, a round of bac-teria testing was conducted last year, which the CRWC posted online, and several cleanups were held to beautify river ac-cess areas as well as instill an appreciation for the natural en-vironment in the region.
To help further promote passive recreational use of the river, the council also hopes to identify “Blue Trails,” or sec-tions of river identifi ed by lo-cal communities to promote paddling and preserve the sur-rounding environment. And one such Blue Trail, said Da-vies, is a portion of the Quabo-ag River from Quaboag Pond in East Brookfi eld to near the Warren line, a distance of about 10 miles.
So on Thursday, March 17, the Chicopee 4Rivers Water-shed Council will be hosting a
Blue Trail meeting on draft map
– BROOKFIELD –
By Sloane M. PerronStaff writer
On Sat., March 19 from 6:30 to 9 p.m., the Brookfi eld Unitar-ian Universalist Church in will
continue their annual tradition of giv-ing back to the community through their 21st Annual Goods and Services Silent Auction.
Hosted by the Women's Alliance, the goal of the auction is to raise money to assist charitable causes. Each year a dif-ferent charitable organization is selected as the Church and the community come together as one in order to raise funds. This year the Tri-Town Domestic Vio-lence Task Force was selected as this year's recipient of charitable donations. In past auctions, money has also been raised for the Heifer Project , Camp Put-nam, the Haiti Relief Fund and Hurri-cane Katrina, among many others.
Barbara Hale, secretary of the Wom-en's Alliance, and Donna Sullivan, a member for 15 years, described the his-tory of the Women's Alliance. Formed in 1850, the mission statement of the Wom-en's Alliance is to “serve the social and spiritual needs of women through fel-lowship, group expression, and programs of education, service, and community and the Brookfi eld Unitarian Univeral-ist Church, community and ourselves.”
On Sat., March 19, the Women's Alliance of the Brookfi eld Unitarian Universalist Church will be hosting a Goods and Service Silent Auction from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The church is located at 9 Upper River Street in Brookfi eld. Registrations and participation in the Chili Cook Off are free.
‘Little S tone Church’IS HOSTING
A BIG EVENT
– WEST BROOKFIELD –
By Wyatt AloisioStaff Writer
Local resident Doris Dumas says that the first hundred years of living is the hardest part. Everything from there on out comes easy.
This past Sunday, March 6, surrounded by her family and several friends, Dumas cel-ebrated the momentous occa-sion of her 100 birthday during an intimate gathering hosted at the Quaboag Rehabilitation and Skilled Care Center, where she currently resides.
Her daughter, grandchildren and great-grandchildren greeted astounded Dumas as she entered the center’s meeting room, with her many family members com-
ing together to celebrate with her and to show their love and support.
“I was so surprised,” said Dumas who was blown away by the number of people who had turned out for the event. “I didn’t think that everyone here knew just how old I was!”
Along with the members of Doris’ immediate family and several of her friends from the center, local and state officials were also invited to attend that day to congratulate her on reaching such a milestone.
Warren selectmen Robert E. Lavash, Sr. and James A. Gagner, Jr. attended and pre-sented Dumas with a citation from the town of Warren as well as State Sen. Anne Gobi (D-Spencer) and State Rep. Todd
Local Centenarian honored by family, town and state reps
See HISTORY I PAGE 9
See BLUE TRAIL I PAGE 9
See STONE CHURCH I PAGE 8
See CENTARIAN I PAGE 9
PAGE � A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016
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CURRENT EVENTS
Compiled by Eileen Kennedyekennedy@turley.com
ORIGAMI SUNDAY The Joshua Hyde Library in Sturbridge will hold Origami Sunday on Sunday, March 13, from 2 to 4 p.m. This season's theme is cards, boxes and more, using paper folding to create useful and decorative items. The models being taught this Sunday are frogs and a bucket/basket. You can see a sample at SLFriends.org. All ages are wel-come but children age 10 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Materials are supplied and it is free of charge. The event is funded and sponsored by the Friends of the Joshua Hyde Public Library.
IRISH DINNER The Publick House Irish Dinner to benefit The Fed-erated Church of Sturbridge and Fiskdale will be held on Monday, March 14. Seatings are from 4:30 to 6:15 p.m. or 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Dinner includes corned beef and cabbage, potatoes, carrots, turnips, Irish soda bread, tossed green salad, dinner rolls, dessert and drinks. Tickets are now on sale. Adults are $14 and children, ages 4 to 12, are $5. Tickets can be bought at Sturbridge Federated Church, 8 Ma-ple Street, Sturbridge, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 9 am and Noon. For more information, call 508-347-3915.ST. PATRICK'S DAY LUNCHEON Brookfield Elementary School will host a St. Patrick's Day luncheon with a performance by the school's chorus along with a corned beef and cabbage dinner provided by the school's cafeteria staff on Thursday, March 17, at 12:45 p.m. Songs will sung and poetry will be recited. There is no cost for the dinner but any cash donations will be given to the Brookfield Food Pantry.
CORNED BEEF DINNER Trinity Episcopal Church, at the corner of Park and Pleasant Streets, in Ware will be holding its 5th annual St. Patrick’s Day corned beef and cabbage supper on Thursday, March 17, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the church hall. Bring your family, friends and neighbors for an enjoyable evening and a delicious supper cooked by members of the parish. All proceeds benefit the missions and outreach programs of the parish. Suggested donation is $8 per adult, $5 per child (10 and under), $6 Seniors- 62 and over. Families of four or more are $25. The meal includes corned beef and cabbage, potatoes, carrots, Irish soda bread and homemade desserts. Eat in or take it to go.
SILENT AUCTION The Women’s Alliance of the Brookfield Unitarian Universalist Church, located at 9 Upper River Street (on the Brookfield Common) is sponsoring its 21st annual Goods and Services Silent Auction on Saturday, Saturday, March 19, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The event is open to the public and refreshments are served. There is no admission fee. A portion of the proceeds from this year’s Silent Auc-tion will benefit the Tri-Town Domestic Violence Task Force. This year, the auction will also feature a chili cook-off presented by members of the Alliance.Questions regarding the silent auction or information on how to donate goods or services for the auction may be directed to Barbara Hale at 508-347-5912.
TRIVIA NIGHT The Warren Cultural Council is sponsoring a Trivia Night on Saturday, March 19, at 6 p.m. at the Warren Senior Cen-ter, 2252 Main St. in West Warren. Admission is $10 per person and includes refreshments. There will also be a beer and wine cash bar. Call 423-436-9268 for more information or to reserve a team table. There is a maximum of 10 people per team table.
GOSPEL CONCERT A gospel festival will be held on Saturday, April 16 at 6 p.m. at the Ware Town Hall on Main Street in Ware. Four gos-pel choirs and two jazz ensembles will play during the free concert. Donations are gladly accepted. The choirs are Amherst College Gos-pel Choir, UMass Gospel Choir, Goodwin AME Amherst Area Gospel Choir and Belmont Zion AME Church of Worcester Gospel Choir. The Ware Jazz Ensemble and UMass Jazz Ensemble will play as well.The proceeds will benefit the Jubilee Ministries of Trinity Episcopal Church of Ware.
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A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016 PAGE �
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WEST BROOKFIELD – The Rotary Club of the Brookfields is committed to servicing the towns of Warren, the Brookfields, and Spencer. On Feb. 25, 2016 at a regular meeting of the Rotary Club of the Brookfields, the Scholarship Chairperson Charlie Haddock presented $1,000 scholarship awards to one stu-
dent from each of the four high schools: Tantasqua Regional High School, Quaboag Regional Middle High School, David Prouty High School and North Brookfield High School. The recipients of the scholarship awards were: Catlin Worthington, Casey Lecaire, Victoria Blair and Madison Thompson.
courTesy PhoTo Far right, in the back, Rotary Club of the Brookfields Scholarship Chairman Charlie Haddock and Rotary Club of the Brookfields President Lynne Duffy O'Shea, far right, are seen here with scholarship recipients and their families at recent club meeting.
Scholarships awarded to four students
- community -WEST BROOKFIELD – The West
Brookfield Council on Aging has an-nounced some of the upcoming activi-ties for March and April at the West Brookfield Senior Center.
New directorMeet the Director, Linda MacCoy,
at Coffee Hour on Friday, March 18 at 10 a.m. Drop in for coffee and pastry and say hello.
Makeover tipsTips on a Spring Makeover with
Sharon Nolli will be held on Wednes-day, March 30 at 11 a.m. This event will cover how to choose colors for spring clothes and makeup, sample some blushes and eye shadows, how a scarf enhances your wardrobe (please bring a scarf), and trying on silver jewelry versus gold and see what is best for you. A few people in the audience will get a makeover!
More BingoPeople are saying that they would
like more bingo. Beginning in March, play Bingo at the Senior Center on the first and third Thursdays of the month, starting at 12:30 p.m. The cost is $3. No need to sign up or pay in advance for bingo; if you would like to come at 11:30 a.m. for lunch, call Rosalie two days in advance so she can order a meal for you. You can get a copy of the month’s menu in the main dining room. There will be an extra bingo on Thurs-day, March 24 starting at 10 a.m. It will feature bingo followed by an Italian buffet, and a 50/50 raffle. The cost is $5 and includes both lunch and the bingo. Take a chance on a gift card—drawing is on March 24. Call Rosalie at 508-
867-1411 by Monday, March 18 to sign up for the bingo and Italian buffet.
Sheriff to discuss heroin, pain medication
The Worcester County Sheriff’s Of-fice will present “The Heroin Epidemic and Pain Medication—The Local Im-pact and How to Protect Your Pills” on Wednesday, March 23, at 11 a.m. They will provide much needed informa-tion on the current heroin and opioid epidemic on a local level. Learn how to properly dispose of unused medica-tion. How to identify potential drug users, and the law enforcement strate-gic response will be discussed. All are welcome to attend, but please call the senior center so that they can arrange for enough seats.
Senior companionsThe “Senior Companions” presen-
tation will be on Monday, April 4 at 11 a.m. The Senior Companion program is a part of the National Senior Service Corps. Senior Companions are volun-teers 55 years of age and older who de-vote 15 to 40 hours per week providing individualized care and assistance to frail, often isolated, elders in the com-munity. The Senior Companion Pro-gram also exists to give back to our se-nior volunteers by providing them with a heartwarming volunteer opportunity and other benefits that include reim-bursement to volunteers for travel and meal expenses, an income eligible tax free stipend, annual recognition, ongo-ing training, and networking opportu-nities. Joy Rehfeld will be at the Senior Center to discuss more on Monday, April 4 at 11 a.m. Please call to reserve your seat.
West Brookfield senior citizen activities
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Don’t forget to spring forwarD this weekenD!
PAGE � A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016
editorial
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OPINION PAGE/ LETTERSPOLICY
Letters to the edi-tor should be 250 words or less in
length, and guest col-umns between 500 and 800 words. No unsigned or anonymous opinions will be published. We require that the person submitting the opinion also include his or her town of residence and home telephone number. We authenticate author-ship prior to publication. We reserve the right to edit or withhold any sub-missions deemed to be libelous, unsubstantiated allegations, personal at-tacks, or defamation of character.Send opinions to:Letters to the Editor, 80 Main Street, Ware, MA 01082 OR e-mail to ekennedy@turley.com. Deadline for submis-sion is Monday at noon for the following week’s edition.
Those in the community who are not familiar with the work of the Quaboag Hills Cham-ber of Commerce should have an interest in
the upcoming Choice Awards program in Hardwick next month, particularly the Citizen of the Year and Teacher of the Year awards. For it's not just about the Chamber, it's a reflection of what makes the communities that make up the region special, which when you get down to it, is the people that live here.
As QHCC President Lenny Weake aptly put it, there are many events in the area from the Hard-wick Fair to Concerts on the Common in numerous towns to the Monson Summerfest without which the towns would lose some of their distinct char-acter. Usually, there are those whose guiding hand sets everyone around them at ease, and with a pur-pose. There are also numerous hard workers within groups – or even on their own – that have reached out to help those less fortunate in the schools or elsewhere, or have been willing to handle the nitty gritty details of beautifying a space or neighbor-hood. The wonderful thing about these folks is that more often than not, they feel like they deserve no recognition. They just do what they do because they care, and that's why their friends and neighbors care so much about them.
What many may not know is that affection translates into the ceremonies itself. There are hugs, tears and of course, numerous thanks dispensed – all capped off with thunderous applause. It is so much better than the overhyped award shows on television because these are people you know, work with and admire.
This year's QHCC Choice Awards program, supported by “Oscar Award Sponsor” North Brookfield Savings Bank, will be held on Saturday, April 23, at the Cultural Center at Eagle Hill in Hardwick. On tap will be the Citizen of the Year and Teacher of the Year presentations, along with others for Business of the Year and Volunteer of the Year (chosen by Weake and QHCC Director of Member Services Patty Clark). Trophies will be made with clay by Juliet Bacchas and Linda Spelko of Juliet Rose Gallery and Studio in Monson.
Last year's Citizen of the Year, the late Patricia A. Donovan of Palmer, who helped run the Library Loft in support of the Palmer Public Library, and the Co-Citizens of the Year in 2014, Beth Beardslee-Romeo and Keith and Kim Goodreau of Ware, for their work in support of the Purple Project in fight-ing addiction, nearly broke down on stage for how much the award – and their work – mean to them. So it's not just a pat on the back; it's an affirmation of the very causes the hard workers in these com-munities pour their hearts and souls into.
Candidates for these awards can be from the QHCC towns of Belchertown, Brimfield, Brook-field, East Brookfield, Hardwick, Holland, Mon-son, New Braintree, North Brookfield, Palmer, Spencer, Wales, Ware, Warren or West Brookfield. For a nomination form, call the Chamber office in Palmer at 413-283-2418, visit www.qhma.com or email patty@qhma.com.
You help run this award show
NOTICEERRORS: Each advertiser is re-quested to check their advertise-ment the first time it appears. This paper will not be responsible for more than one corrected inser-tion, nor will be li-able for any error in an advertise-ment to a greater extent than the cost of the space occupied by the item in the adver-tisement.
Every year the Massachusetts De-partment of Elementary and Sec-ondary Education publishes the
“per pupil e x p e n s e ” for all dis-tricts in the Common-wealth.
The MA DESE recently released the per pupil expense data for fiscal year 2015, which is the most current data to date. The per pupil expense includes spending from all funding sources, in-cluding the operating budget, federal, state and private grants and revolving funds, such as school lunch and athlet-ics, broken down per student for every district. Spending on capital improve-ments and debt are not included.
In this article I will provide you with a list of how Quaboag compares to our neighbors regarding per pupil expense. As I have stated before, my goals in writ-ing this column are to keep our local communities informed about Quaboag, provide transparency in all aspects of school finance and to proactively seek input from the community as we move forward.
The following information has been obtained from the MA DESE’s website (http://www.doe.mass.edu/finance/sta-tistics/ppx15.html).
Pathfinder $22,343.36State average $14,919.84Palmer $14,119.70Quabbin Regional $13,957.09Monson $13,955.42Southbridge $13,692.45North Brookfield $13,335.25Ware $13,208.06
Leicester $12,761.79Tantasqua Regional $12,745.01Spencer/East Brookfield $12,730.89Oxford $12,425.26Quaboag Regional $11,990.64
As you can see, most districts in the
immediate area fall below the Massa-chusetts state average per pupil expense for fiscal 2015, which is $14,919.84. The Quaboag Regional School District has one of the lowest per pupil expenses in our area. The data tells a story and the taxpayers in Warren and West Brook-field are getting a first-rate school sys-tem. Quaboag Regional Middle High School is ranked in the top 50 high school by US News and World Report and is a level 1 by MA DESE, at a lower than average cost.
The QRSD consists of the Warren Community Elementary School, the West Brookfield Elementary School and the Quaboag Regional Middle High School.
Quaboag’s budget meetings are as follows:
• March 14: Initial Budget Presenta-tion to full School Committee 6:30 p.m. at QRMHS library
• March 21 QRSDSC votes 2016-2017 QRSD budget at 6:30 p.m. at QRMHS library
Ultimately, Quaboag’s budget for next year will be decided at the annual town meetings. Below are the dates for the annual town meetings.
• May 10, Warren Town Meeting at 7 p.m. at QRMHS in the auditorium.
• June 7 West Brookfield Town Meet-ing at 7 p.m. at West Brookfield Elemen-tary School in the cafeteria/gym.
I can be reached at bkustigian@quabo-agrsd.org if you have any questions.
SUPER K’S CORNER
By Dr. Brett KustigianQuaboag Regional School
District Superintendent
✦
Per pupil expenditure explained
FiSCAl 2015 PEr PuPil ExPENSEDiStriCt
NEWS & FEATURESAs a paper of record, we attempt to cover all general news, personality profi les, and community
features that we know about. This includes all selectmen and school committee meetings as well as spot planning board, board of health, fi nance, and other town meetings determined by the issue’s relevance to our readers. There are the annual major community event features that we should always cover, but we are more than open to suggestions of other features to celebrate the fabric of our communities and their many interesting occupants. Our loyal advertisers provide funding for this paid staff coverage.
For more information on news or community features for the Quaboag Current/The Town Common, please email ekennedy@turley.com.
Shadesof Green
In shades of greenI lie beside the flowing silver streamcooling in the forest green deep and darkwith shapely leaves and green vine heartssoft colored shades of pastel greensand every shade of plant life in betweenI rest my soulupon the long stemmed grasses lowand dream a dreamof moist soft living shades of green.
– Nina Anderson
A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016 PAGE �
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NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING CONCERNINGBAYSTATE MARY LANE HOSPITAL
WARE, MA The Massachusetts Department of Public Health has received notifi cation of Baystate Mary Lane Hospital’s intent to discontinue providing inpatient medical and surgical services at 85 South Street, Ware on June 1, 2016; and notice from Baystate Wing Hospital and Medical Center, 40 Wright, Palmer with respect to a change of ownership of Baystate Mary Lane Hospital, 85 South Street, Ware through which Baystate Mary Lane shall merge with and into Baystate Wing Hospital. Pursuant to 105 CMR 100.603(B), and 105 CMR 130.122(E), the Department will conduct a hearing on these proposed changes at 6:30 PM on Tuesday, March 29, 2016, at the Ware Middle School, 239 West Street, Ware, MA 01082. This hearing will not be adjudicatory in nature, but rather a public forum for the presentation of any comments which may be relevant to the Department’s consideration of the proposed changes.Proposed Closure of Inpatient Services:Written comments concerning this matter may be submitted to the Department of Public Health, Division of Health Care Facility Licensure and Certifi cation, Attn: Closure Coordinator, 11th Floor, 99 Chauncy Street, Boston, MA 02111 through the period up to and including the date of the hearing on March 29, 2016. All written or oral comments submitted to the Department may be posted on the Department’s website and released in response to a request for public records. Proposed Change of Ownership:Persons wishing to make their views known may appear at the hearing or may submit written comments to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Determination of Need Program, 99 Chauncy Street, Boston, MA 02111. Written comments may also be emailed to the Determination of Need Program at dph.don@state.ma.us. Written comments will be accepted up until 5:00 P.M. Friday, April 8, 2016.
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In 1957 I reported to Grand Coulee Dam National Recre-ational Area to begin my duties
as a National Park Ranger. My wife and I were given an
old trailer home dat-ing back to the 1930s, when the dam was built. When I came home the first day my wife was waiting in the doorway. She told me there was a rattlesnake un-der the house in the area where the water and sewer lines were connect-ed to the trailer. I, being a typical young male, thought she was exag-gerating, however I did use a stick to flip the wooden cover off the hole down which the pipes could be reached. When I did so, I heard the rattle of the snake and I could see a good sized snake at the bottom of the hole, perhaps two feet below where I was standing. I jabbed at the snake from above and it slith-ered further under the house. We had noticed a musty smell in the bathroom, but just assumed it was from the place being shut up during the winter.
That late afternoon we were in-vited to the district ranger’s house for supper. When I drove on the road above the house I realized I had run over a snake. I stopped and found a dead rattlesnake. I cut off the rattles (12 in number, and the most I saw on a rattlesnake) and made the mistake of mailing them to a friend back east. Another truck
stopped while I was doing this, and a middle-aged man told me that he had lived in Coulee Dam for over 25 years and had never seen a rattlesnake despite the hill behind
the town being called Rattlesnake Hill. I mention this to show how rare rattlesnakes interact with man in a town where they are commonly found
a short distance away.During my time in the Park Ser-
vice I saw a few more rattlesnakes. One had a sunning spot at the en-trance to a pit toilet and had to be destroyed. One was found in a small beach area on Lake Roosevelt and had to be killed, and one slithered across my nephew’s foot when he was working one summer with me during his summer vacation.
Thus I have no problem with the proposed rattlesnake refuge on Mt. Zion in the middle of the Quabbin Reservoir. Snakes are not prone to travel more than a couple of miles if sufficient food is found in the area, as is true of Mt. Zion Island. Sure, snakes can swim, but they don’t like to and any that escape from the island would be alone and not likely to live long on the mainland. If you go out of your way to seek them out you could get bit, but that would mean you would be breaking the law by being on the island.
Another thing I should men-tion, when I joined the Park Service I was given the oldest pickup they
had as the bottom-ranked ranger. I was interested when I took it over to find that it had a snake bite kit in the glove compartment and it had been used! In those days you were given a tourniquet, a razor and a suction cup, as a bite was treated by a tourniquet to stop the venom from spreading up a leg or arm, the razor was to make cross cuts over the bite and the suction cup was to drain the blood and poison out.
Nowadays we have anti-venom medicine, and as rattlesnake venom is not one of the more deadly va-rieties nearly anyone bit is easily saved. Only if you travel alone, and have no cell phone communication might you be in danger.
I think it is forward thinking to make a refuge for rattlesnakes on Mt. Zion Island and see no hazard to law-obeying citizens. We have copperheads in Massachusetts, and I hear no outcry about them. I’ve seen them in Dudley perhaps 50 or more years ago and they, like any snake, would rather avoid human contact.
Don’t let yourself be panicked just because it is a snake. I know of a person who had a garter snake carried into her home by a pet cat—cats love to bring snakes indoors—and demanded that the next door neighbor capture and kill it. He calmly picked it up, carried it outdoors and set it free in the brush at the edge of the property.
Snakes kill mice and frogs for their food and are part of our eco-system.
What’s that noise?
By Loren GouldGuest Correspondent
Bernadette, a long-time reader who gardens in Monson, wrote in with a question regard-ing summer bulbs: “Could you please tell
me when it is time to pre-start my caladiums, elephant ears and dahlias?” I would love to give you that infor-mation…because if we are preparing for summer bulbs than spring must be right around the corner!
The fancy-leaved caladi-um is a plant I came to know and love while gardening at Old Sturbridge Village. Ca-ladiums are grown strictly
for their distinctive foliage - heart-shaped and var-iegated in greens, pinks, reds and white in an as-sortment of unique patterns. I first used them in a shady spot as a background to some impatiens. Admittedly they didn’t do well there; the impatiens swallowed them up. I later learned that caladiums like shelter from the wind (check), and rich, loose soil (no check), not to mention humidity (ditto) and warmth (half-check). They also enjoy being kept moist but never saturated…sorry plants, you never had a chance. Fast forward 20 years and I still grow caladiums, but usually in a shady window box situation where they thrive.
I remember reading somewhere that a collector in the 1920s had no less than 1,500 named varieties. All white-leaved “Candidum,” circa 1899, was like-ly among them, and luckily is still available today to brighten up a dark spot in your yard. To answer your question, Bernadette, pre-starting caladiums indoors is an absolute must. Have the corms de-livered as soon as it is safe for them to be shipped. Eight to 10 weeks before our last scheduled frost (March 20 to April 3), bury them two inches deep in a five-inch pot and provide as much heat as possible; heat cables that you germinate seeds on work great. Worcester County gardening guru and friend Paul Rogers jokes that you have to nearly light them on fire before they “pop.” It makes me
Spring ahead to summer bulbs
Roberta McQuaid
Turley PublicationsColumnist
i n t h eGaRden
BROOKFIELD –– The town of Brookfield will be holding a ra-bies vaccination clinic on Saturday March 12, at the Brookfield Fire Station located at 4 Central Street from 8 to 11 a.m. Dr. Mark Ledoux will be onsite to administer the vacci-nations. The cost of the vaccination is $12 per animal. A combination
vaccination for dogs and cats will be available for an additional $8.
The clinic is open to all. Brook-field Town Clerk Mike Seery will also be available to license dogs from the town of Brookfield at the Town Hall located at 6 Central Street. The cost of a dog license is $7 per spayed or neutered dog, and
$11 for all others. All dogs must be licensed by the
end of March for Brookfield dog owners. If you have any questions please call Mike Seery at 508-867-2930, ext. 12, or email mseery@brookfieldma.us. Brookfield Dog Officer Eileen Vitello can be reached at 508-525-5776.
Brookfield rabies clinic, March 12
See GARDEN I PAGE 6
PAGE � A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016
- public safety - Police logs
Editor’s Note: People in this country are presumed to be innocent until found guilty in a court of law. Police provide us with the information you read on this page as public record information. If you or any suspect listed here is found not guilty or has charges dropped or reduced, we will gladly print that information as a follow-up upon being presented with documented proof of the court’s final disposition.
Brookfield Police LogBetween Feb. 29 and March 7 Brook-
field police made two arrests. A 17-year-old male was arrested on March 1 on an arrest warrant. Jodi F. Latino, 40, of 3 Country Wood Circle, Brookfield, was arrested on March 3 on an arrest war-rant.
Police made 31 motor vehicle stops, one building and property check, one welfare check, one motor vehicle inves-tigation, served four warrants, served paperwork once, served four sum-monses, and assisted two citizens. They responded to three alarms, one medical emergency, one fire, one safety hazard, and one motor vehicle accident. They appeared for court-related matters five times and officers were initiated seven times.
There were 11 911 calls. Of these, nine were for medical emergencies, one was for a safety hazard, and one was for a motor vehicle accident.
East Brookfield Police LogBetween Feb. 22 and March 6 ,East
Brookfield police made one arrest. Trevor L. Begin of 1 Chestnut Street, Spencer, was arrested on Feb. 26 on a warrant.
Police made 29 motor vehicle stops, eight building and property checks, one welfare check, one motor vehicle inves-tigation, four investigations, two repos-
sessions, performed harassment preven-tion once, traffic control once, served one warrant, served one summons, and assisted one citizen. They responded to one report of a lost or stolen plate, one parking complaint, one report of found or lost property, four safety hazards, one report of scam or fraud, two complaints about motor vehicle operations, one medical emergency, two animal calls, and two alarms. They appeared for court-related matters three times, and officers were initiated six times.
There were 11 911 calls. Of these, three were for medical emergencies, two were for safety hazards, two were for complaints about motor vehicle opera-tions, one was for a report of suspicious activity, one was for a motor vehicle ac-cident, one was for a structure fire, and one was for a report of an unattended death. East Brookfield police assisted one other agency.
North Brookfield Police LogBetween Feb. 29 and March 7, North
Brookfield police made 31 motor vehicle stops, five building and property checks, seven motor vehicle investigations, eight investigations, one records check, one repossession, served one warrant, and assisted three citizens. Police responded to one fire, four alarms, seven safety hazards, one report of gunshots, one re-port of suspicious activity, five lockouts, one 911 hang-up call, one complaint of motor vehicle operations, one report of a missing person, one animal call, and one auto fire. They appeared for court-related matters twice, and two officers were initiated.
There were 10 911 calls. Of these, two were for reports of runaways, three were for medical emergencies, one was for a safety hazard, and four were hang-up calls. North Brookfield police assisted one other agency.
CLUES ACROSS 1. Exclamation that
denotes disgust 4. Climbed over 10. Has 50 states 11. Able to move 12. Prime Minister
(abbr.) 14. Cotangent
(abbr.) 15. Particle 16. Fastened 18. Wonders 22. Surpassing all
others 23. Provides
basement access 24. Daily 26. North Dakota 27. Related to gulls 28. Provoke 30. Lake __, one of
the Great 31. Police
department 33. Throat illness
35. South Dakota 36. Contains iron
(Brit.) 38. Sees what the
future holds 39. The extended
location of something
40. Cobalt 41. Dwells 47. Reprimand 49. Agree to a
demand 50. Talented in or
devoted to music 51. Gospels 52. European
defense organization (abbr.) 53. Edge of a cloth 54. Equally 55. Experience again 57. Female sheep 58. Made vanish 59. Unit of force
(abbr.)
CLUES DOWN 1. ___ up 2. Rear of
(nautical) 3. Purses 4. Samarium 5. A way to take
forcibly 6. On or into 7. Metric capacity
unit (Brit.) 8. Assign to a
higher position 9. Delaware 12. Post-traumatic
stress disorder 13. Island 17. Central
processing unit 19. Pitchers 20. Long-winged
member of the gull family
21. Auld lang __, good old days
25. Term of
affection 29. They __ 31. Polynesian
wrapped skirt 32. Far down areas
in the sea 34. Delivered a
sermon 36. Any physical
damage 37. A Seattle
ballplayer 40. Raccoonlike
animals 42. Odd 43. Delivery boys 44. Billy __
Williams 45. Icelandic poems 46. A Scottish tax 48. Central Florida
city 55. Rhenium 56. -__, denotes
past
feel better to soak them for an hour beforehand in hot water to soften the corm - whether this little trick does anything to hasten growth I am not sure. When fall rolls around, dig up the plants and allow them to dry for a few days before removing the foliage and storing at temperatures between 60 and 65 degrees.
Elephant’s Ears is easily the most dramatic of the bulbs you mention, and I wonder why you are asking me for advice on this plant. The first time I saw these plants outside of a catalog was at your house and all I could say was “Amazing!” If a gardener is look-ing to bring the tropics home, this is the plant that will do it. Think colos-sal, with an overall height between five and nine feet and a girth of five feet or more per plant. Each heart-shaped leaf can easily be three feet in length. Try it as the focal point of a circular garden, or use it as a summertime screen. The green leaved species (Colo-casia esculenta) can take full sun; most cultivars prefer shade to partial shade. If the dimensions alone don’t set the stage for theatrical, try “Black Magic,” and enjoy deep purple-black foliage throughout the growing season.
To get a good head start on all of that wonderful foliage, plant Ele-phant’s Ears indoors at the same time you’d start the caladiums in good-sized pots. Bottom heat will hasten growth. Once the threat of frost has passed, transplant them 3 to 6 feet apart in deep, rich soil. This plant can tolerate
a variety of growing conditions - from wet to average. Do provide water con-sistently or the long, heavy leaves will droop terribly when thirsty.
As far as dahlias go, the sky is the limit. According to one source, there are no fewer than 50,000 named variet-ies – 15,000 were in existence by 1936. Dahlias range in height from six inches to 20 feet, with six different size flowers and 14 possible shapes. They are strik-ing in the vase and most are equally appealing in the garden, although they do have the reputation of being “high maintenance.”
I know of few gardeners who pre-start dahlias indoors. The few times I have done it at OSV, I was amazed at just how fast the plants grow, and how quickly they outgrow their pots and be-come leggy. The idea is good in theory; anything to get these plants to set bloom earlier than August is worth some ex-perimenting. If you give it a try, I’d sug-gest no sooner than four weeks prior to the last frost; the last week of April would be just perfect! Begin to pinch the growth point of each stem after the second set of leaves forms. This will en-sure a sturdy plant in the garden.
Roberta McQuaid graduated from the Stockbridge School of Agriculture at the University of Massachusetts. For the last 26 years, she has held the position of staff horticulturalist at Old Sturbridge Village. She enjoys growing food, as well as flowers. Have a question for her? Email it to dfarmer@turley.com with “Gardening Question” in the sub-ject line.
GARDEN I FROM PAGE 5
WARREN – The Rotary Club of the Brookfields held a pancake breakfast on Feb. 28, at the Warren Senior Center. A big thank you goes out to all those who helped to support their efforts. The Rotary Club of the Brookfields will present a check from the proceeds from
the breakfast to Elyse Henault to help defray the costs of the loss of her barn and hay, which burned in a suspicious fire earlier this year. The presentation took place at the regular meeting of the Rotary Club at the Wok Inn in West Brookfield on March 3.
Volunteers at the recent Rotary Club of the Brookfields pancake breakfast. Rotary pancake breakfast a success, with the proceeds going to Warren resident Elyse Henault to help her with the loss of her horse barn and hay in a suspicious fire earlier this year.
Rotary pancake breakfast a success
WEST WARREN –– The Rotary Club of the Brookfields will hold a ham raffle fundraiser on Saturday, March 19, from 1 to 3 p.m., at St. Stan's Polish Club on South Street in West Warren.
The proceeds from the raffle will help the Rotary Club carry out com-munity service projects. For more information call Lynn Duffy O'Shea at 413-262-8783, or Patti LeBoeuf at 413-813-8854.
Rotary Club of the Brookfields to hold ham raffle
A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016 PAGE �
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Area residents share many concerns – WARE –
By Sloane M. PerronTurley Publications Staff Writer
Area residents peppered Baystate Health officials with questions and comments about the decision to merge Mary Lane and Wing hospitals last Thursday dur-ing a forum at the Ware Junior Senior High School.
The officials told the audience that the decision to seek a single license for both hospitals and transfer all in-patient services to Wing, was made after much thought and analysis, and had become necessary due to low patient census numbers at Mary Lane.
Interim president and chief administrative officer of the Baystate Health Eastern Region Mike Moran Dr. Mark Keroack, president and CEO of Baystate Health and Nancy Shendell-Falik RN, senior vice president of Baystate's community hospitals, were there to provide answers.
Moran, who took most of the heat during the eve-ning, introduced himself before taking questions. “You will find that I speak the truth,” he said. “ I am going to give you an honest answer, and if I don't know the answer, I will find the answer.”
Moran said the merger would avoid duplication of services. He also compared Mary Lane's daily in-patient census of 6 to 9 patients compared to Wing's 20 to 30 patients a day. He said that sometimes only three patients are at Mary Lane overnight. “I am not clos-ing it, that is not the plan,” he said. “There are plenty of opportunities to grow.”
Moran was asked about Baystate's commitment to keeping Mary Lane's ER open, he said it would do so for two years, which was met with laughter from the crowd. Moran said that they could not guarantee the future, and that if the 14,000 emergency room visits a year did not continue, other plans would have to be made.
Keroack was also asked if a board could be formed so that Mary Lane could have a voice during the pro-cess, and he agreed that the board should be formed. “I believe the voice of the community was lost,” he said, and the new board will have members from Ware.
Ware resident Carol Zins also voiced her concern Mary Lane patients, specifically for the elderly, for those without vehicles and for those in rural areas like North Brookfield and New Braintree, who are far from Wing. “I don't see any specialist worth his salt going to Mary Lane when it is going to close in two years, oh I know it's not going to close,” she said.
Roy St. George, a resident and business owner in Ware, asked about Baystate's ability to control the emer-gency room visits if the company was already sending people to Wing. “Your numbers will drastically go down in two years,” he said. “I know that is not the plan, but you can't tell me those things are not going to happen.” He said that ambulances would go to Wing instead of Mary Lane.
“If emergency services know they can get their patients cared for at Mary Lane, then they will continue to come,” Moran said.
“What makes you think any different that by clos-ing Mary Lane Hospital that people won't, one, be upset with you because that often happens, or two decide to go to another hospital?” asked Cindy Moulton St. George, Roy's wife and co-owner in their business. “You started a downslide many, many years ago that has been, that now has affected every single one of us and it is very, very sad.” Moran said he would, “do his best to turn that around” to which Moulton St. George coun-tered, “But you can't turn around closing in-patient.”
Bill Braman, member of the Ware Business & Civic Association, said that the discussion about changes should have taken place before the decision. He also said that Worcester County towns were a major part of Mary Lane's service area, such as Barre and Hardwick. He explained that “it is not just a 10-minute ride from Mary Lane to Wing,” but a 20-minute ride from other towns, which may not have 24-hour ambulance service. “I would not be here standing in front of you if it was not for Mary Lane,” he said about having a heart in Town Hall. Moran said that the goal was to have emer-gency services stay open.
“There is going to be change. Change is going to happen. With all change comes opportunity,” said Warren selectman James Gagner, who also serves on his town's fire and ambulance squads. He said there
was an opportunity to use Mary Lane as a drug reha-bilitation center to combat the opioid crisis. “Passion is a beautiful thing,” he said, but urged members to be less passionate. “Clear your mind in order to see which opportunities may be available.”
Paul Opalinski, resident and business owner from Ware, questioned Baystate's financial information. “Mary Lane Hospital has a very strong balance sheet,” he said. “It would make money, it has $5 million in assets, $7 million dollars in endowments and probably $18 million dollars in equity.” When the two licenses merge, Mary Lane will cease to become a hospital and will instead become an outpatient center, he said. He questioned Moran's figure of 14,000 patients to Mary Lane's ER annually, and said that it has been “consis-tently” 15,516. Opalinski said that Moran was lowering all of his numbers by 10 percent.
He emphasized that Wing Hospital had a $60 million dollar commitment from Baystate, and that has its ser-vices were guaranteed for 10 years. It will have a new emergency room built while Mary Lane's emergency services are only guaranteed for two years, he said.
“The numbers that I have quoted are the truest num-bers that I have, I believe that they are accurate,” Moran said. “We we are open today, we were open yesterday, we will be open until receive auditory approval,” Moran said. We are obliged to.”
Ware resident Dave Gravel then asked Keroack about the motivations behind closing in-patient care. Rev. Charles Taylor from the United Church of Ware asked Moran, “Can I pray for you? I specialize in people and in institutions that have lost their way, and you are lost,” Taylor said. He urged Moran and other Baystate mem-bers to remember compassion, humbleness and that “you are a part of a larger community that depends on you.” Taylor asked Moran in honor of the season of Lent to “take a chance” on a small community hospital.
“I think it is unfair to have Mike stand up and explain the rationale behind this decision,” Keroack said. After the crowd objected, Keroack said that the decision to merge the hospitals and move services was made by him, not Moran. “Well you should have been up there since the beginning then,” a voice from the crowd called out.
Ware resident and former Mary Lane Hospital employ-ee Kathy Cascio said that people have lived in Ware their whole lives and will die there, which is the source of their passion about the hospital. When Baystate first bought Mary Lane, she said she thought it was a good idea. However, as soon as Baystate also bought Wing, Cascio said, she knew it wasn't good for Mary Lane.
Buying a hospital 10 miles from Mary Lane did not make sense, and Baystate is forming a monopoly, she said, a situation that the state Department of Public Health may look at during the merger approval process.
“You just see the writing on the wall,” she said. “We may be from Ware, but we are not stupid. We will fight. You may not want us, but someone will, and we will find that person in order to keep this community hospi-tal growing and thriving.”
PhoTo by sloane M. PerronInterim president and chief administrative officer of the Baystate Health Eastern Region Mike Moran talks about the company's decision to merge Mary Lane and Wing hospitals, and move in-patients services to Wing at a recent question and answer session.
Baystate officials defend decision to merge hospitals
Kindergarten information for Brookfield Elementary School
BROOKFIELD – Students who are 5 years old on or before Aug. 31, should sign up for kindergarten.
Parents and guardians are encouraged to visit or call the Brookfield Elementary School office to pick up a registration packet. Along with the completed packet, the school requires two forms of identification to show proof of residency, a birth certificate and health/im-munization records.
Kindergarten screening will be held Monday, April 11, Tuesday, April 12 and Wednesday, April 13. Please call the school during the week of March 28 to sched-ule a screening appointment. Children who currently attend the Brookfield Preschool will be screened dur-ing their preschool session; there will be no need to call for an appointment. Please send your registration packet into school with your child, or mail it prior to Friday, April 1.
Preschool registration is also underway. In order to be eligible for preschool, your child must be 3 years old by Aug. 31 and independently toilet trained. If in-terested in applying, please fill out an application and return by Friday, March 11.
For more information, or questions, please call the school at 508-867-8774.
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SPRING LUNCHEONRichie Mitnick Performing
Wednesday, April 27 Social hour: 11 am, Luncheon and dancing: 12–3 pm Chez Jozef, 176 Shoemaker Lane, Agawam $30 per person
RSVP BY CALLING 413-967-2200
The Alliance is open to all members of the com-munity. “You don't have to be a member of the Church to be a member of the Alliance,” Hale said.
The Alliance provides spiritual retreats and educational opportuni-ties for women. Trips to the Senexet House in Woodstock, Connecticut, day retreats to Elm Hill Farm, yoga classes, craft-ing opportunities, spa days and herbal medicine classes are just a few of the many programs that the Alliance sponsors for its members. However, the Silent Auction is one of the biggest events for the group as it's the main fundraiser of the year as well as a 21-year-old tra-dition. Hale has been an Alliance member for 25 years and recalled that Nancy Hyde, a former Church member, was the one who originally devel-oped the Silent Auction.
Donna Sullivan de-scribed the schedule for the night's activities. At-tendees register fi rst and receive a number. The auction items are all dis-played on tables. Sullivan said that the MC for the night is very funny, “kind of like Saturday Night Live.” The participants get 30 minutes to browse and write down their bids before the announcer
starts calling out the high-est bidder. There are three to four rotations of items with the best items being held for the fi nal round.
Hale and Sullivan described the wide va-riety of items available throughout the night including, gift cards, art-work and homemade items donated by mem-bers of the Church and the community. Sullivan added, “We try to encour-age if people don't want to donate an item-item to donate services instead!” This unique idea has re-sulted in some interesting bids for yard work, baby sitting services, knitting classes, math tutoring, and even a homemade la-sagna dinner. Hale talked about the donations of goods and services, “Peo-ple are very generous.”
Hale and Sullivan de-scribed some of their fa-vorite treasures that they have bid on and won throughout the years. Hale said that she loved “independent artwork.” Newton Frost was a local artist and former Church member. “Throughout the years, I was able to get three of his paint-ings,” Hale said. “That is my favorite.” Sullivan said that her favorite item was a ruby red rose bowl that she won. “It was just beautiful and clearly an antique,” she said, adding that there are some items that are donated from other countries. These are items that people do-nated during their travels.
“I think that people are truly creative in what they make or donate,” Sulli-van said. “You just never know year to year.”
In addition to the Si-lent Auction, gift baskets will be raffl ed. Attendees can also participate in the 3rd annual Chili Cook Off. A variety of local cooks make their best batches of chili, which are then judged and rated by the bidders. “It is nice because you can actually come and have a small dinner and there is no charge for the chili,” Hale said. Vegetarian varieties of chili are also available as well. Hale said, “At the end we set out a good va-riety of desserts. Plenty to eat and plenty to bid on.” Refreshments will also be available throughout the night.
Sullivan said that the Women's Alliance works hard to prepare and set ev-erything up for the event. “But once I get there [to the auction], it is a lot of fun, a lot of socializing,” Sullivan said. “When you work together with some-one on a project like this, you really get to know them,” Hale said. “And it is nice.” However, as much as Sullivan and Hale love seeing the familiar faces of Church members, they also want to encourage the outside community to attend this eventful night as well. “It is a fun night,” Sullivan said. “It is a church community event that we get to spend time together and give money
to a good cause.” Whether at the Si-
lent Auction or during one of the Church's free concerts, Sullivan would like to see more outside people participating in events. Community out-reach is of great impor-tance to the Women's Al-liance.
Donations of goods and services will be ac-cepted until March 13. With the exception of large, bulky items, most items are accepted for the auction. Sullivan said items must be able to fi t on a table or a picture of a bigger item can be dis-played.
In addition to donat-ing, the pivotal way that the public can help raise funds for the Tri-Town Domestic Violence Task Force is by simply show-ing up at the “Little Stone Church on the Brookfi eld Common”on March 19.
“By attending, we would just love to have people come in and enjoy the night,” Sullivan said.
STONE CHURCH I FROM PAGE 1
SPRINGFIELD –– On Saturday, March 19 the club will offer a full-day hotline trip to the Massachusetts coast to look for rare sea birds and ducks mentioned on various bird reporting sites. For more informa-tion on the trip, go to the club web-site at www.allenbirdclub.org.
Also, on Sunday, March 27 there will be a “Walk and Wok”
half-day trip to the Turners Falls area for wintering birds and migrat-ing ducks, followed by an Asian cuisine lunch at China Gourmet in Greenfield. Meet in the back park-ing lot of Holyoke Pediatrics just west of Exit 15 off I-91 at 8 a.m. For more information on the trip, refer to the club website listed above.
Allen Bird Club fi eld tripsNew Boy Scout Troop forming
BROOKFIELD –– Due to the ever-growing popularity of Brookfi eld Cub Scout Pack 159, now 34 boys strong, local leaders in concert with the Mo-hegan Council BSA have decided to form a new Boy Scout Troop in Brookfi eld this winter into spring.
Led by Scoutmaster Tim Kane of Brookfi eld, who is also the current Cubmaster of Pack 159, the new troop with fi ve current members is currently en-rolling new recruits for boys ages 11 to 17, or for those students who will complete the fi fth-grade by this June. Current Webelos Cub Scouts age 10 who are willing to complete Arrow of Light requirements by this summer are also encouraged to apply. You do not need to be a Cub Scout fi rst in order to join Boy Scouts. You also do not need to be a resident of the town of Brookfi eld. Enrollment and equipment fees will be kept very low due to a recent monetary donation to help start the troop.
Some of the activities Boy Scouts typically do during the year include: Trail building, ziplining, ex-ploring snow caves, throwing ninja stars and knives, camping, using the Jaws of Life, canoeing and kaya-king, bicycling tours, geocaching, campfi re building, climbing and rappelling, surviving a zombie attack, obstacle course, rifl es/shotguns/blackpowder, skiing and snowshoeing, blacksmithing, tomahawk throw-ing and much more.
Parents interested in learning more or signing their boy up now to help build the new troop should contact Tim at 774-757-7636 or email him at bsa-pack159@gmail.com
You can learn more about the Boy Scouts and Mohegan Council at http://www.mohegancouncil-bsa.org/
Spring is in the airNEBRASKA CITY, NEBRASKA – The Arbor
Day Foundation is making it easy for everyone to celebrate the arrival of spring by planting trees. Join the Arbor Day Foundation in March 2016 and re-ceive 10 free white fl owering dogwood trees.
“White fl owering dogwoods will add beauty to your home throughout the year,” said Matt Harris, CEO of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Dogwoods are known for their showy spring fl owers, scarlet au-tumn foliage, and red berries that attract songbirds during winter.”
The free trees are part of the nonprofi t Founda-tion’s Trees for America campaign. With planting instructions included, the trees will be shipped at the right time for planting, between March 1 and May 31. The six- to 12-inch trees are guaranteed to grow or they will be replaced free of charge.
Arbor Day Foundation members also receive a subscription to “Arbor Day,” the Foundation’s bi-monthly publication, and “The Tree Book,” which contains information about tree planting and care.
To become a member of the Foundation and re-ceive the free trees, send a $10 contribution to Ten Free Dogwood Trees, Arbor Day Foundation, 100 Arbor Avenue, Nebraska City, NE 68410, by March 31, 2016. Or join online at arborday.org/march.
A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016 PAGE 9
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Ticket” and three other non-fi ction books. She has appeared on The Today Show and NPR, and her work has been featured in The New York Times, Time, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, and The Sydney Morning Herald.
Tickets are $10 for OSV members and $12 for nonmembers, and can be purchased at osv.org.
HISTORY I FROM PAGE 1
discussion of the potential trail, complete with an enlarged black and white version of a draft map, at the West Brookfi eld Town Hall at 7 p.m.
“People have been talking about setting up a Blue Trail in this area for a long time, so we fi gured this was a good place to start,” he said. “What the meet-ing on March 17 is about is opening up the discus-sion to the larger community, and seeing what we missed and things people might think are highlights in the area.”
Davies said that in its complete form – likely pro-duced with the aid of donations and grant money – the map will have displayed on one side the natural layout of the river and nearby land and numerous points of interest, and on the reverse, a brief explora-tion of the region’s natural history and further expla-nation of some of the natural and historical features along the way. He explained that once the Quaboag River reaches Warren, it becomes whitewater rapids.
“That’s a whole different paddling experience,” he said. “Hopefully as this moves forward, we’ll have a couple paddles during the summer.”
He said if successful, the project could serve as a model for other potential Blue Trails in the water-shed, such as one on the Chicopee River from Red Bridge into Ludlow.
“I created this kind of map on the Millers River north of here,” said Davies, referencing a project he was involved with in conjunction with an Americorps grant in recent years, which helped generate interest in the river as well community events and partner-ship in Orange and nearby towns.
“When you create a Blue Trail, it helps to bring real form and life to the vision that we have at the council. Interest has been modest so far, but the word is spread-ing.”
In the near future, Davies said he hopes to help coordinate additional water quality and stream tem-perature measurements. “You might call it entry-level monitoring, but that’s one way we’re trying to make connections in the communities,” he said. “In the future, we might hopefully establish a schedule and develop an annual report about the health of the rivers. It gives people peace of mind when they know the rivers they live near and recreate on are safe.”
For more information, visit chicopeewatershed.org or email Davies at chicopeewatershed@gmail.com.
BLUE TRAIL I FROM PAGE 1
TURLEY PUBLICATIONS STAFF PHOTOS BY WYATT ALOISIODoris Dumas receives a citation and letter of recognition from State Sen. Anne Gobi (D-Spencer) and State Rep. Todd Smola (R-Warren) commemorat-ing her 100-th Birthday during a special gathering held from family and close friends this past Sunday, March 6 at the Quaboag Rehabilitation and Skilled Care Center in West Brookfi eld.
CENTARIAN I FROM
PAGE 1Smola (R-Warren) who both presented Dumas with official citations and letters of recognition from the state legislature]
“I can tell that you have a loving family by how many of them are here with you today,” said Gobi to Dumas. “We are hon-ored to be able to be here to celebrate it with you and them.”
“All of the wonderful things that you’ve seen in your life, and what a great example you have set for all of us who are here,” said Smola. “All of your family, the gen-erations that are here. We are so blessed to be here with somebody who has reached such a milestone in her life.”
One of three daughters of Lillian Porter-Boutote and Henry Porter, Doris has been a life-long resi-dent of Warren and the Brookfield area. Together with her late husband,
Albert “Lefty” Dumas, she owned and operated Willow Brook Farm until their retirement. She is a faithful member of the Saint Thomas Aquinas Church as well as an avid Red Sox Fan.
“When she began to lose her hearing you could hear the game being played from her
TV before you were even near her room,” said her daughter Nancy Dumas-Reusch who together with her husband Buz and the members of Quaboag Rehab worked to orga-nized the gathering that day. Along with Nancy, Doris’ grandsons Todd and Shawn Baldwin and Kerrie Lee worked to help
in making the gathering possible bringing together her many great-grandchil-dren as well.
Reusch remarked on her mother’s adoration for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, refusing to be called any-thing other than “Mim” after the first of them were born. Members of the family recalled sto-ries of the matriarch and the impact she made throughout her life and on their own.
Doris’ grandson Shawn Baldwin fondly recalled his grandmother’s cooking and the delicious meals that he and his siblings would look forward to when going over to visit.
“We use to go out ice fishing during the winter at the pond,” said Scott. “We would wake up early and always have big breakfasts before we went out.”
“She was a spectac-ular person then,” said Scott. “And she still is for all of us.”
Doris Dumas prepares to blow out the candles on her birthday cake held by her granddaughter Kerri Lee.
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COURTESY GRAPHIC A draft map created by the Chicopee 4Rivers Watershed Council has cre-ated for a Blue Trail on a portion of the Quaboag River. A public meet-ing on March 17 in West Brookfi eld will be a chance for interested area residents to come give their input about the proposed blue trail and offer new ideas.
NEWS & FEATURES
As a paper of record, we attempt to cover all general news, personality profi les, and community features that we know about. This includes all selectmen and school committee meetings as well as spot planning board, board of health, fi nance, and other town meetings determined by the issue’s relevance to our readers. There are the annual major community event features that we should always cover, but we are more than open to suggestions of other features to celebrate the fabric of our communities and their many interesting occupants. Our loyal advertisers provide funding for this paid staff coverage.
For more information on news or community features for the Quaboag Current/The Town Common, please email jgrybowski@turley.com.
PAGE 10 A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016
SPORTSacebook.com/turleysports@turleysports www.turleysports.comdforbes@turley.com8
- AMHERST -
By Dave ForbesTurley Publications Sports Staff Writer
Sometimes the big shots in the big games can come from the most surprising
sources.With the game tied 41-41
as the clocked ticked down to the final minute of regulation, it was an eighth-grader that stepped up and delivered the key hoop.
Guard Kiarra Dorman got the ball near the top of the key and drove to the hoop for the go-ahead lay in to give the Lady Cougars their first lead since early in the first quarter.
“She has ice water in her veins,” Quaboag head coach Cliff Lanier said. “She has no fear when it comes to taking shots late in the game.”
Dorman’s basket helped pro-pel the Lady Cougars to a 46-43 win over Ware in the semifinals of the Western Massachusetts Division 4 Tournament at the Curry Hicks Cage on the campus of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst on Monday evening.
Dorman (team-high 14 points) would add a free throw a few seconds later to stretch the lead to three at 44-41.
Ware senior forward Sadie Simons (eight points) then answered with a free throw down the other end to cut the Quaboag lead back to two at 44-42.
Older sister Shaylah Dorman (eight points), a junior, then hit a big shot of her own. Shaylah found an opening and hit a tough little floater in the lane to
Dorman sisters clutch for QuaboagOn tO the Finals
- AMHERST -
By Dave ForbesTurley Publications Sports Staff Writer
Three years ago when sev-eral Central Massachusetts schools were shifted to Western Massachusetts for the basketball playoffs, it was doubtful that anyone thought the same pro-gram would win the same divi-sion three times in a row.
The Quaboag girls basket-ball team is on the precipice of the makings of that dynasty as they go for their third straight Western Massachusetts Division 4 Tournament championship when the fourth-ranked Lady Cougars take on the top-seeded Mt. Everett Eagles in the first title game of the day at 10:45 a.m. Saturday at the Curry Hicks Cage on the campus of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
“We are going to need to play more like what we did in the second half,” Quaboag head coach Cliff Lanier said. “We
On the verge of greatness
Quaboag forward Lexi Paquette (13)
splits two defenders on her drive to the
basket.
Turley PublicaTions sTaff PhoTo by Dave forbesQuaboag guard Emma Stanton (3) shoots a 3-pointer from the corner.
- AMHERST -
By Dave ForbesTurley Publications Sports Staff Writer
When it comes to the bright lights and the big moments there
are two players that shine on this year’s Quaboag squad brighter than any other — Dylan Perry and Dillon Antonopoulos.
While Perry was clutch t h r o u g h o u t t h e We s t e r n Massachusetts Division 4 Tournament semifinal contest against Granby on Monday night at the Curry Hicks Cage on the campus of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Antonopoulos delivered the game’s biggest shot when his team needed it the most.
With the Cougars holding on to a narrow 50-49 lead inside the final minute of regulation, the senior (eight points) had
the ball in his hands on the left side with the shot clock wind-ing down and he stepped up and drilled a 3-pointer from the left side to push the Quaboag advan-tage to 53-49.
“He is just unconscious as a shooter,” Quaboag head coach Chris Reilly said. “He wants the ball late in the game, and he is the kid that I want taking that shot. It only takes him a split second to get his shot off.”
After Granby junior Zachary Gorham (team-high 16 points) made one at the line to slice the Quaboag lead to 53-50, Quaboag junior guard Brady Antonopoulos (14 points) knocked down both portions of the one-and-one to give the Cougars a 55-50 lead with 12.6 seconds left.
Gorham then knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the key to pull the Rams within two at 55-53 with 4.5 seconds left, but that is as close as the Rams would get the rest of the night.
Perry (team-high 16 points) got the Cougars off to a great
Perry, Antonopoulos big in key moments - AMHERST -
By Dave ForbesTurley Publications Sports Staff Writer
With their win in the Western Massachusetts Boys Division 4 semifinals over Granby earlier in the week, the Quaboag boys basketball has earned the right to be one of the last eight teams play-ing across the state.
Quaboag will look to take that next step when the Cou-gars face top-seeded Hop-kins Academy in the finals at the Curry Hicks Cage on the campus of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst at 12:30 p.m. Saturday.
“It feels good to have the opportunity to play in the finals again,” Quaboag head coach Chris Reilly said.
Since the Cougars made the move to Western Mas-sachusetts for a tournament play three years ago, Quaboag has become one of the peren-
nial teams that has been in the hunt for the championship.
Last year, Quaboag made it to the semifinals before losing to Monson in double overtime, while two years ago the Cougars topped Lenox in the semifinals and Smith Academy in the finals and made it all the way to the state finals.
To be successful in the fi-nals this season, the Cougars are going to need to get offen-sive contributions from the likes of junior guard Brady Antonopoulos, junior guard Ben Wisniewski, senior guard Dillon Antonopoulos and se-nior forward Dylan Perry as Quaboag always seem to play at its best when they get sev-eral players getting in on the offensive side of the game.
For the defending champi-ons in Hopkins, they had to overcome a slow start against Lenox to just reach the fi-nals.
One more battle
Turley PublicaTions sTaff PhoTo by Dave forbesQuaboag senior forward Dylan Perry goes up for a one-handed shot in the paint.
See GIRLS I PAGE 11
See BATTLE I PAGE 11
See QUABOAG I PAGE 12
See COUGARS I PAGE 12
A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016 PAGE 11
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- sports -
- NORTH BROOKFIELD -
By Dave ForbesTurley Publications Sports Staff Writer
If the game had just been a couple of minutes longer.
The eighth-seeded North Brookfield boys basketball team trailed by as much as 14 points late in the fourth quarter and made a furious comeback to climb back within four points before falling to ninth-seeded Sizer, 48-40, in the first round of the Western Massachusetts Division 4 Tournament on Tuesday evening.
Trailing 43-29 with 4:22 left, the Indians started to make an amazing comeback that almost ended in a com-plete and thrilling comeback. Junior center William Mendala (game-high 16 points), who battled down on the low post all night, started the rally by mak-ing 1-of-2 at the line. He then made a nice pass to teammate Connor Hibbard (six points) for a hoop and the foul to bring the Indians back to within 11, and it brought the North Brookfield fans back to their feet.
After a Sizer free throw, junior guard David Rumph (15 points) came up with a steal and dished the ball ahead to Hibbard for the layup. Mendala added an inside basket and the momentum continued with a Rumph steal and layup to close the gap to just six at 44-38 with 1:50 left.
Rumph then closed the gap to four at 1:07 when he snaked his way to the bas-ket after a nice pass from Mendala.
Sizer would put the game out of reach in the game’s final 52 seconds by making four free throws.
The reason the Indians fell into the
big gap in the first place was the tough luck that the Indians faced in the third quarter. At the start of the second half the Indians trailed 27-21, but by the time the 8:00 frame ended, the gap had stretched to 37-22.
However, it was not because of the Sizer defense that the Indians fell further behind, as much as it was just a stretch of bad luck shooting the ball. Much like they had in the first half, the Indians were getting good looks at the basket, but the shots just were not falling. On occasions too many to count in the third quarter, the Indians had shots that tantalizingly hung on the rim, but would not drop through the net for them.
In fact, the only points of the quarter for the Indians came on a free throw from junior Adrian Aponte (one point) with 25
seconds left in the quarter.North Brookfield did get off to a fast
start in this one as they scored the game’s first five points on a layup straight off the opening tip and a 3-pointer from the left corner, both by Rumph. Rumph would ended up scoring eight points in the first quarter as he would hit his second 3-pointer of the opening frame late in the quarter.
The Indians would take one more lead later in the first quarter on a Mendala jumper.
Sizer advanced to face top-seeded Hopkins Academy in the quarterfinals.
Dave Forbes is a sports editor for Turley Publications. He can be reached at dforbes@turley.com or by calling 413-283-8393 ext. 237.
Turley PublicaTions subMiTTeD PhoTo
Antonopoulos wins Free Throw Championship
WEBSTER - Congratulations goes out to Quaboag's Dillon Antonopoulos. He made 25 out of 25 free throws to win the SWCL free throw competition held at Bartlett High School.
Comeback falls just short for the Indians
North Brookfield sophomore guard Ayden Farrington (33) brings the ball up the court.
Turley PublicaTions sTaff PhoTos by Dave forbesNorth Brookfield junior guard Daniel Gale (25) spots up for a 3-pointer from the corner.
Haley Fountain returns for Bison
DUDLEY – Nichols softball senior and Warren resident Haley Fountain will be back in the circle this season for the Bison.
Fountain led the Bison last year in innings pitched (100.0), wins (eight) and strikeouts (51). She was also a threat at the plate as she tied for the team lead in home runs (two) and led Bison with 13 RBI.
WARREN – Quaboag Youth Football and Cheerleading will be holding signups for the 2016 season on Tuesday, March 15 and Thursday, March 24.
The signups will take place from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Warren Elementary School.
QYF players line in West Brookfield, Warren, West Warren, Brookfield, East Brookfield, North Brookfield, Leicester, Spencer, Sturbridge, Wales, Southbridge, Brimfield and Holland.
Team practices and home games are held at Callahan/Landers Field
Quaboag Youth Football and Cheerleading signups
need to get off to a better start in that game than we did in this one [against Ware].”
Since the Lady Cougars were playing in the second game of the day, Lanier had the chance to watch much of the Mt. Everett versus Lee overtime contest that was played right before Quaboag’s semifinal contest against Ware.
“It was a great game between those two schools,” Lanier said. “I thought that Lee was going to pull the game out in overtime.”
The player that will be toughest for the Lady Cougars to stop will be f r e shman guard Gwendo lyn Carpenter, who finished with a game-high 29 points against Lee, including making 17 free throws.
“I had the chance to watch her play as an eighth-grader last season and I
was very impressed,” Lanier said. “It is going to be a challenge for us to try and stop her, but I am glad that we are going to have the opportunity to try and do that in the finals on Saturday.”
Senior Emily Coon will also be another key player for the Lady Cougars to try and stop as well. She had 10 points in the semifinals against Lee.
For Quaboag to be successful in defending their title they are going to need to follow the same recipe that they had against Ware — contributions on offense from a number of players, including Lexi Paquette, Emma Stanton, Cassidy Paquette, Shaylah Dorman and Kiarra Dorman.
Dave Forbes is a sports editor for Turley Publications. He can be reached at dforbes@turley.com or by calling 413-283-8393 ext. 237.
GIRLS I FROM PAGE 10
Hopkins fell behind early, but used a 19-7 run in the second quarter to build up a double-digit lead before halftime that they did not relinquish.
Offensively the Cougars are going to have to look to shut down Sam’l Roe, who is the son of Umass men’s basketball great Lou Roe. The other tough players for Hopkins are John Earle, Brett Morrison and John Mor-rison.
BATTLE I FROM PAGE 10
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Quaboag Current
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PAGE 1� A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016
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push the Quaboag lead to four at 46-42.
“That was a great shot,” Lanier said. “I saw the opening at the same time she did, and then she just took off and went to the hoop. It was a great play by her.”
Ware guard Jordan Halgas (game-high 22 points) then con-verted one of two free throws to cut the Lady Cougars lead to 46-
43, and then the Lady Indians had a chance to tie the game with a 3-pointer in the final seconds, but the opportunity bounced off the rim as time expired.
After a slow start for the Ware offense, Halgas took over and gave the scoring a jumpstart for Ware. Down 5-0 in the first quarter, Halgas went on a per-sonal 5-0 run to tie the game as she scored on an old-fashioned three-point play and then came
up with a steal and knocked down a jumper in transition to even the score at 5-5.
Halgas, Ashley Eskett (eight points) and Olivia Balicki (two points) scored all 19 points for the Lady Indians in the first half.
Quaboag will face Mt. Everett in the finals at 10:45 a.m. Saturday morning. The Lady Cougars will be looking for their third straight Western Massachusetts title.
QUABOAG I FROM PAGE 10
start as he scored the first four points for the Cougars on a pair of nice inside baskets.
Stepping up and playing well in the postseason is something that happens quite frequently for the senior, according to Reilly.
“He plays very well in the big games,” Reilly said. “In our last game against Hampden Charter, he finished with 19 points and 22 rebounds. When we were in the Clark Tournament two years ago, he had a couple of big games. When it comes to tournament-time he makes big plays. I think he likes playing with the pressure on.”
Quaboag led by as many as 11 points in the third quarter before the Rams came charging back. Senior Colby Forbush (five points) started a 15-0 run for the Rams with a pair of free throws. Junior Michael Sosa added back-to-back hoops (six points), then it was four straight points from junior Joe Desormier (15 points) that pulled Granby to within 39-38 before senior Anthony Gaj (three points) hit three free throws in the closing seconds of the third quarter to give the Rams the two-point lead at 41-39.
“I told the guys in the huddle at the end of the third quarter that we have faced this time of adversity all season long where we had given up big leads and that we had shown in the past couple of games that we can respond well to that, and that I wanted to see them respond well one last time,” Reilly said.
Quaboag will now face Hopkins Academy in the finals at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at the Cage.
Dave Forbes is a sports edi-tor for Turley Publications. He can be reached at dforbes@tur-ley.com or by calling 413-283-8393 ext. 237.
COUGARS I FROM PAGE 10
Quaboag senior guard Dillon Antonopoulos (23) gets ready for a long jumper from the corner.
on Cottage Street in West Brookfield across from the town beach.
There are three divisions for cheerleaders: Pee Wee (K-2), Junior (3-5) and Senior (6-8), and for football: Pee Wee
(grades 2-4), Junior (grades 5-6) and Senior (grades 7-8).
Registration fee is $125 for football and $150 for cheer-leaders. Family discount for more than one child. A birth certificate copy will need to be provided at registration.
For questions, contact coach
Moe or either phone call or text at 774-200-3171, send an e-mail to quaboagyouthfoot-ball2000@yahoo.com or quabo-agyouthcheer@yahoo.com.
You can also find informa-tion at quaboagyouthfootball.com or on Facebook at: quabo-agyouthfootball2014.
SIGNUPS I FROM PAGE 11
H O L Y O K E – T h e Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council will host a state plan public input forum from 10 a.m. to noon on March 16, at Holyoke Community College, Kittredge Center, Room 303.
T h e M a s s a c h u s e t t s Developmental Disabilities Council is an independent agen-cy funded by the federal gov-ernment to work with the state of Massachusetts to better sup-port people with developmental disabilities and their families. MDDC’s mission is to help
people with developmental dis-abilities have opportunities to lead successful lives in their com-munities by supporting inclusive education, greater employment opportunities and the right to make choices about where, with whom and how they live.
The Council develops a state plan every five years to address the most important issues affect-ing people with developmental disabilities. The Council talks with individuals with developmental disabilities, their families and advocates about how to improve the system of services and sup-
ports over the next five years. The Council is hosting two
public forums—one in Quincy and one in Holyoke—and invites individuals with developmental disabilities, their families and others to voice their thoughts on: Self-Advocacy/leadership, acces-sible recreation, transition, hous-ing, transportation, family sup-ports/respite, human rights, direct care/support, employment, life skills, and access to healthcare.
The event is free. Please RSVP to Faith Behum, Faith.Behum@state.ma.us or call 617-770-7676, ext. 107 by March 11.
Developmental Disabilities Council to hold state plan forums
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Armand A. Thibert & SonPainting & Wallpapering
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Hay For SaleHAY AND STRAW for saleKoran’s Farm (413)267-3396.
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WANTED ANTIQUES &COLLECTIBLES Furniture,Advertising signs, Toys, Dolls,Trains, Crocks & Jugs, MusicalInstruments, Sterling Silver &Gold, Coins, Jewelry, Books,Primitives, Vintage Clothing,Military items, Old Lamps.Anything old. Contents of attics,barns and homes. One item orcomplete estate. Call (413)267-3786 or (413)539-1472 Ask forFrank. WE PAY FAIRPRICES!!!
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ACE CHIMNEY SWEEPS.Cleanings, inspections, repairs,caps, liners, waterproofing,rebuilds. Gutterbrush Installations.Local family owned since 1986.HIC #118355. Fully insured.(413)547-8500.
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CHAIR SEAT WEAVING &refinishing - cane, fiber rush &splint - Classroom instructor, 20+years experience. Call Walt at(413)267-9680 for estimate.
DRYWALL AND CEILINGS,plaster repair. Drywall hanging.Taping & complete finishing. Allceiling textures. Fully insured.Jason at Great Walls.(413)563-0487
PAINT AND PAPER Over 25years experience. References. Lic#086220. Please call Kevin 978-355-6864.
ServicesHANDYMAN SERVICES
One call does it allStorm Clean-upSnowplowing,
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Fully insured. Free estimates.Reasonable rates
www.rlhenterprises.net(413)668-6685.
WE RENOVATE, SELL &PURCHASE (any condition) horsedrawn vehicles such as sleighs,carriages, surreys, wagons, dr’sbuggies, driveable or lawnornaments. Some furniture andother restoration servicesavailable. Reasonable prices.Quality workmanship. Call(413)213-0373 for estimate andinformation.
Demers & SonsBelchertown, MA
Child Services*NEW STATE LAW. Anyoneadvertising caring of children mustlist a license number to do so ifthey offer this service in their ownhome.
SPECIAL EDUCATION ADVO-CACY- Need assistance- Let ushelp! From birth to age 22.Special Ed Advocates of Western
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ElectricianDEPENDABLE ELECTRICIAN,FRIENDLY service, installsdeicing cables. Free estimates.Fully insured. Scott Winterselectrician Lic. #13514-B Call(413)244-7096.
K & S ElectricIndustrial, Commerical, Residential Electrical Installations, Fully Insured
Kenneth F. LolosMA Master’s License #A12700CT Master’s License #E1-125711169 Ware St., Palmer, MA 01069413-283-6881 • 413-813-5547 (Mobile)klolos@comcast.net
FinanceSELL YOUR STRUCTUREDsettlement or annuity payments forcash now. You don’t have to waitfor your future payments anylonger! Call (800)938-8092.
Heating & Air Cond.HVAC / DUCTWORK. LocalSheet Metal shop fabricatingDuctwork to your specifications.Plenums, Filter Arrangements, etc.Repair/changes of existingductwork. Insulating and DuctSealing of existing Ductwork. NOjob too small. Fully Licensed.FREE Estimates. JM Sheetmetal413-883-2433
Home ImprovementC-D HOME IMPROVEMENT. 1Call for all your needs. Windows,siding, roofs, additions, decks,baths, hardwood floors, painting.All work 100% guaranteed.Licensed and insured. Call Bob(413)596-8807 Cell CS Lic.#97110, HIC Lic #162905
CERAMIC TILE INSTALLATIONKitchen, bath, foyers. References.Lic #086220. Please call Kevin(978)355-6864.
HOME IMPROVEMENTS. RE-MODELING. Kitchens, baths.Ceramic tile, windows, painting,wallpapering, textured ceilings,siding, additions. Insurance work.Fully insured. Free estimates.413-246-2783 Ron.
WATER DAMAGE-CALL JAY (413)436-5782-
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Garage Door Serv.MENARD GARAGE DOORSAuthorized Raynor dealerspecializing in sales, installationservice and repairs of residentialand light commercial overheadgarage doors and openers. Fullyinsured. Free estimates. Call(413)289-6550 orwww.menardgaragedoors.com
Instruction
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QUABBIN PAINTING INTERIOR/EXTERIOR PAINTING, handy-man, house and deck power-washing, deck staining, gutterscleaned. Prompt professionalservice. Fully insured.Call 413-323-6425gershemtebah2@yahoo.com
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We are a 147-bed skilled nursing facilitylocated in West Brookfield, MA and have
the following opportunities available:Now offering higher,competitive wages for
Unit Manager - Long Term Care UnitFull-time Monday through Friday. Possess strong management, clinical and organization skills. Self-motivated with excellent problem-solving andcommunication skills. Team player.
Unit SecretaryMonday through Friday 7am-3pm. Must be a CNA. Will work as a CNA 7am-11am and a secretary 11am-3pm. Good communication skills, profes-sionalism and a self-motivated individual. MUST be flexible! This position will entail working as a CNA on the floor from 7am-11ap and then moving to the desk as a secretary 11am-3pm.
Join our team... a great communityfacility providing great care!
Baylor Shifts Available, Walk-in Interviews, Competitive Benefits Package Including
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Kim Moynahan at: kmoynahan@QOTCMA.comor (508) 867-0626. Applicants may apply on
Indeed.com as well.
$2000 Sign-on Bonus$1000 referral bonus for Full-time Nurses
$500 Sign-on & ReferralBonus for all Full-time CNAs!
EOE
Spring into a new career!Visit us at our Job Fair
Thurs 3/10 • 4 - 6 and Sat 3/12 • 9 - noon
LPNs/RNs/CNAsFull-time, Part-time & Per Diem
Manufacturing Mechanical EngineerBASIC FUNCTION AND PURPOSE: To improve manufacturing processes and products by developing improved and new machinery and process design, through technology, automa on, fi xture innova on, and advanced materials engineering.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: Include the following (other du es may be assigned).• Design and supervise the building of produc on machinery and fi xturing including safety
guarding.• Understand the areas of Dexter metallurgy, dimensional controls, heat trea ng and
inspec on methods.• Support the Heat Treat Department with metallurgy, process knowledge, and failure
analysis.• Support injec on plas c molding in house and at custom molders.
Educa on and/or Experience: • B.S. Mechanical Engineering• 5-7 years of manufacturing experience (small metal products, metallurgy, heat trea ng,
grinding methods, machine design, automa on and/or injec on molding• Working knowledge of electrical circuits, pneuma cs, hydraulics, PLC logic, and CNC controls
desirable.• Profi cient with Auto Cad, Solid Works, and Master Cam.
Qualifi ed candidates should send resumes to:Dexter-Russell, INC., 44 River St., Southbridge, MA 01550 or by email to hr@dexter1818.com
An Equal Opportunity Employer
Job Title: Customer Service Representa ve
Reports to: Customer Service Manager
Basic Func on and Purpose: Will take telephone orders from customers; o er service regarding customer complaints, back orders, etc. Will code orders and order entry. Will work with Produc on Control Department on scheduling of shipments. Will send catalogs, ship show materials and type le ers concerning customer requests. Will work closely with outside sales force. Will ac vely look for sales growth opportuni es while talking to customers. Candidate must be profi cient in Microso Windows Professional, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Visio, Outlook, etc.
Educa on and/or Experience: High school diploma or equivalent, and two years of progressively responsible related work experience, or any combina on of educa on, experience and training that provides the required knowledge, skills and abili es.
Language Skills: Strong English and grammar skills to write, edit and proofread business materials. Also, the ability to orally communicate using the English language is a must. Fluency in Spanish would be a plus.
Qualifi ed candidates should send resumes to:
Dexter-Russell, INC., 44 River St., Southbridge, MA 01550 or by email to hr@dexter1818.com
An Equal Opportunity Employer
C.N.A. AND HOME HEALTH AIDES needed for Assisted Living Facility.Full-Time and Part-Time Positions
with Benefi ts. Must be reliable, energetic and personable.
Pleasant working environment. Apply in person at the Arbors at Amherst, 130 University Drive, Amherst, MA 01002
(413-548-6800)
Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation
WINGATE AT WEST SPRINGFIELD42 Prospect Avenue • West Springfi eld, MA 01089
Tel: (413) 733-3151
wingatehealthcare.comAn equal opportunity employer.
If you are unable to stop by any of our
WALK-IN WEDNESDAYS, please contact Maureen Butts
at: 781-707-9209 to make other arrangements.
Stop by on any of our
WALK-IN WEDNESDAYSMARCH 16, 23 & 30 • 8am - 4:30pm
On-site Interviews • Door Prizes • Refreshments
Wingate Healthcare offers competitive wages, shift differentials,
and generous benefi ts.
RNs, LPNs & CNAsFull-Time, Part-Time • Various Shifts
PlumbingLINC’S PLUMBING LIC #J27222
Scheduling Replacement Heating Systems Now
Call LINC’S For Your Connection
(413)668-5299
RoofingFREE ROOF INSPECTIONS. ALLTYPES OF ROOFING, shingle,flat and slate. Call Local Builders(413)626-5296. Complete roofingsystems and repairs. Fullylicensed and insured. MA CS#102453, CT Reg. 0615780.Lifetime warranty. SeniorDiscount. 24 hour service.
NEW APPLICATIONS, GEN-ERAL repairs, leaks fixed.Specializing in flat or low slopedrubber membrane roofs. Qualitywork. 25 years experience. Call(413)668-7223.
RoofingSKY-TECH ROOFING, INC. 25years experience. Commercial,residential. Insured. Shingles,single-ply systems. Tar/ gravel,slate repairs. 24 hour EmergencyRepairs. (413)536-3279,(413)348-9568, (413)204-4841.
Tree WorkAAA1 - TROM’S TREE SERVICELet me save you money. Treeremoval, hazard tree removal,cordwood, stump grinding. We’refully insured and workmen’s comp.for your protection. Freeestimates. Mon.-Sun. Call Jason.413-283-6374.
ATEKS TREE- HONEST, qualitytree service. From pruning tohouse lot clearing. Fully insured.Free estimates. Firewood sales.(413)687-3220.
PetsGERMAN SHORTHAIR POINT-ERS Puppies, $850.00. Purebred,1st vet visit, docked tails. Readythe end of March. Contact Mystie413-289-4249.
KLARA IS A pocket sized terriermix, 2 years of age. Klara is aperfect average rated girl, perfectfor a first time dog owner. Cratetrained, walks great on a leash!Ok with other dogs! Located inWorcester, MA, completedapplication/home visit/$200adoption fee.Applications found at
www.destinysroadanimalrescue.com
RETIRED RACINGGREYHOUNDS AVAILABLE
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teeth cleaned
Make a Fast Friend!
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HorsesHORSEBACK RIDING LESSONSoffered year round at our state ofthe art facility. Beginner toadvanced. Ages 4 years to adult.Boarding, sales and leasing alsoavailable. Convenient location atOrion Farm in South Hadley.(413)532-9753www.orionfarm.net
Help Wanted
CNA’s, PCA’s, HHA’S,SIGN ON BONUS
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mileage paid. EOE.Call Denise. (413)289-9018
FOSTER CARE: YOU can helpchange someone’s life. Provide asafe home for children and teenswho have been abused orneglected. Call DevereuxTherapeutic Foster Care at 413-734-2493.
HELP WANTED- ACCOUNTSReceivable/Bookkeeper.Education and/or experiencerequired. Computer knowledgeincluding Microsoft Office andQuickbooks preferred. FAXresume to 508-867-3048. Emailresume totim.s.reeves@gmail.com
HELP WANTED: GENERAL farmwork at a Tree Nursery in NorthBrookfield, Part Time, Will Train,Call Dennis (508) 826-0643
IRRIGATION AND LANDSCAPE
Foreman and Laborers needed.Must have license and reliable
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MECHANIC NEEDED P/T forlocal golf course. Call (413)222-1884
PART TIME LPN, MAP certifiedor CNA capable of becoming MedCertified at BH for Med pour-passand direct care.PART-TIME Kitchen + DiningRoom Service 4 Hrs PART-TIME housekeeping +direct care Possible live-in position for LPN,CNA or Housekeeper Brookhaven Assisted Care 19West Main St., West Brookfield,MA 508-612-7525
PART TIME WANTED to stackfirewood and run equipment. Mustbe consistent. Tetreault & Son(413)245-9615
PART-TIME POSITION WAIT-STAFF. Tues- Fri. 11am- 4pm.Apply in person Wong Garden,147 North Main St., Belchertown.
SERVICE TECHNICIAN NEEDEDfor busy local office. Must be over18 and have own, reliabletransportation. Ask for Lisa(413)289-9733.
SHARED LIVING PROVIDER –(Ware/Palmer Area) Provide in-home support and assistance toshared living client. A qualifiedhost will teach individualindependent living skills andprovide a safe and stable livingenvironment. Create andsupervise outings and activities inthe community. Tax free stipendbetween $30,000-$45,000/year• Must own or rent a home with anavailable bedroom•Valid driver’s license, acceptabledriving record, and vehicle•Physical ability to perform therequirements of the positionincluding CPR (agency will providethis training)To apply: Please get applicationfrom our current openings page atservicenet.org. Send completedapplication, resumé and coverletter citing Search #116 in thesubject line tocemerson@servicenet.org
WEEKEND HOUSEKEEPERNEEDED for Assisted LivingFacility. Must be reliable,energetic, and a self-motivatedteam player. Apply in person atthe Arbors at Amherst, 130University Drive, Amherst(413-548-6800)
A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016 PAGE 1�
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Town: _____________________________________________________ State:_______ Zip:_____________
Number of Weeks: _________________________________________ X per week rate = $______________
Credit Card: ❏ MasterCard ❏ VISA ❏ Discover ❏ Cash ❏ Check# ___________
Card #: _________________________________________________________________________________
Amount of charge: ___________________________________________________Date: _______________
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Health CareASST DIRECTOR A full timeposition is available in our dayprogram serving adults withdevelopmental disabilities, locatedin West Springfield. 34 paid daysoff per year and partially paidhealth, dental, life and disability.Bachelor's degree with staffsupervisory experience stronglyrequired. Position is 75% directcare and 25% administrative. FaxResumes to 877-335-2671 oremail KrisN@Baroco.com.EOE/AA/ADA. No Phone callsplease.
GOT KNEE PAIN? Back Pain?Shoulder Pain? Get a pain-relieving brace at little or no costto you. Medicare Patients, callHealth Hotline now! (800)279-6038.
LPN NO WEEKENDS, nights orholidays. A part time 27.5hours/week position is available inour day program serving adultswith developmental disabilitieslocated in West Springfield.Primary duties are LPN tasks andteaching adults in our program.Benefits include 34 paid days offper year and partially paid health& dental. Fax resumés to 877-335-2671 or email KrisN@Baroco.com.No phone calls please.
Business Opp.
ESTABLISHED FLOOR FRANCHISE
for sale, in operation for 3years, steady increase inrevenue, very unique floorrestoration concept that can beused on all types of floorsurfaces. No need to rent alocation, home based, lowfranchise fee with hugepotential. Everyone who hearsabout this concept loves it.Franchise territory is all ofWestern Massachusetts.Vehicle, equipment, facebookpage, website and suppliesincluded in the sale. Allmarketing collaterals preparedthrough local printing company.Plus wonderful franchisecompany support as needed.Owner will provide sometraining and financing. Price:$27,500.00 Call Chris 413-204-5387
Real Estate
Buy Now! BE IN FOR SPRING!
WARE: NEW To The Market, Bestthree family on the market, ingreat shape, also 2 car garage,won’t last!!
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It’s EASY!!!
DorrindaO’Keefe-Shea 978-434-1990Jill Stolgitis 413-477-8780Mary Hicks 508-612-4794Alan Varnum 508-867-2727Bruce Martin 508-523-0114Joe Chenevert 508-331-9031MichaelMcQueston 508-362-0533
TOOMEY-LOVETT109 West St.
Ware, MA 01082www.Century21ToomeyLovett.com
413-967-6326800-486-2121
West Brookfield:508-867-7064
Real Estate
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7 days a weekfor any of your
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Mobile HomesLUDLOW- MILLER STREET.Furnished, 2 bedroom, 12’x68’,new heat, H2O, shed, appliances,porch, deck. $29,900. 413-593-9961 DASAP.MHVILLAGE.COM
For Rent
ALL REAL ESTATE advertisedherein is subject to the FederalFair Housing Act, which makes itillegal to advertise “anypreference, limitation, ordiscrimination because of race,color, religion, sex, handicap,familial status, or national origin,or intention to make any suchpreference, limitation, ordiscrimination.” We will notknowingly accept any advertisingfor real estate which is in violationof the law. All persons are herebyinformed that all dwellingsadvertised are available on anequal opportunity basis.
HILLSIDE VILLAGEAPARTMENTS
Applications now beingaccepted for one, two andthree bedroom apartments
•Heat and hot water included•Ample Closets•Fully Applianced•Community Room•Laundry Facilities•Cats Welcome•Extra Storage•24 Hour Maintenance
For Information call(413)967-7755 EHO
17 Convent Hill, Ware, MA
For Rent
All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1968, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status (number of children and or pregnancy), national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, or any intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate that is in violation of the law. Our readers are hereby informed that all dwellings advertising in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. To complain about discrimination call The Department of Housing and Urban Development “ HUD” toll-free at 1-800-669-9777. For the N.E. area, call HUD at 617-565-5308. The toll free number for the hearing impaired is 1-800-927-9275.
FOR RENT
GILBERTVILLE- 3 BEDROOM.Stove/ Fridge included. Washer/dryer Hook-up, wall to wall. First,last, security deposit. References.No Pets. (413)477-6650
MONSON ONE BEDROOM,everything included. 1st, last. Nopets, no smoking $650/ mo.(413)250-8701.
MONSON- 2ND FLOOR Studioapartment, electric heat, full bath,newly renovated with all newappliances. First & Last $600.00Available immediately. 413-267-0246
WARE TWO BR, 2nd fl. $700.Clean, safe, sunny, yard, deck,laundry, parking. Close todowntown. Call (508)867-3823.No Pets
WARE- 1 BD, off-street parking,call (413)436-5600.
WARREN- 1 BEDROOM, offstreet parking. Call (413)436-5600.
For RentWARE- BEAUTIFUL, SUNNY 3BR TOWNHOUSE APT. $850plus utilities, w/d hook-up, storage.No smoking, no pets. Creditcheck/references (413)320-5784.
WARE- SPACIOUS 2 bedroomapartment, third floor, electricheat. Good area. $575 monthly,water, sewer, trash removalincluded. 1st & security. No Pets.Available April 1st! Call (413)967-7772.
WARREN: 2 BEDROOM apt. forlease. 2 BR, wall-wall carpeting,full appliances, washer/dryer onpremises. 1 year lease$650/month. (413)436-9367.
WEST WARREN, SMALL 1 BR,off-street parking, stove. (774)922-0529.
WEST WARREN- SMALLapartment. Appliances, heat,parking included. No pets/smoking. First/ Last $700. Call(413)813-8683.
Vacation RentalsWARM WEATHER IS year roundin Aruba. The water is safe, andthe dining is fantastic. Walk out tothe beach. 3-bedroom weeksavailable. Sleeps 8. $3500. Email:carolaction@aol.com for moreinformation.
Auto For Sale1986 MAZDA 626, blue, 166,693miles, Alarm, Bucket Seats, Powerdoor locks, Power windows,$400.00, Air Conditioning, AM/FMRadio, CD Player / many newparts, does not run? Best Offer/Restoration project 413-436-9783
Auto PartsUSED AUTO PARTS, 91-dayguarantee. Large inventory,engines, transmissions, radiators,tires, glass. Excellent service, junkcar removal. Amherst-OakhamAuto Recycling Coldbrook Road,Oakham. 1-800-992-0441.
BoatsPELICAN PREDATOR10’ 3” V HULL BOAT,
electric motor 46 lb thrust,2 paddles
413-436-9552 $650 OBO
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PAGE 16 A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Friday, March 11, 2016
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Volume 9, Number 24 20 Pages
Friday, February 26, 2016
The ONLY local coverage in Brookfield – West Brookfield – East Brookfield – North Brookfield – Warren – West Warren & New Braintree
CURRENT
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Pride of ownership in this spacious 2 bedroom ranch with a 1 car garage that’s minutes to major routes!! This home features a newly renovated fully applianced eat-in kitchen, a formal dining room, spacious living room with custom built in’s. Enjoy the relaxing 3 season porch that’s perfect for en-tertaining. Master bedroom with hardwood fl oors. Beautifully landscaped yard on a level lot.
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WARE•WEST BROOKFIELD175 West St., Ware413-967-5121 • 967-3184Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8-7; Sat. 8-3; Sun. 9-2
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Breakfast and Lunch Daily Dinners - Thurs, Fri, & Sat
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(All available after 4 pm Thurs, Fri, Sat) (Fish ’n Chips, Baked, and Nantucket Haddock avail also at lunch)
PO Box 748, 9 West Main St.West Brookfield, MA 01585
Phone: 508-867-2777 Fax: 508-867-2779Most dental insurances accepted including:Mass Health, Aetna PPO, Blue Cross & Blue Shield, Cigna, Delta Dental, Guardian, Metlife and Fallonwww.9-westmain.com
Hurray for Dentists! What would our teeth do without them!
March 6th is
DENTIST’SDAY!
9 W. Main Dental9 W. Main Dental
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New Customer Special!
10% Off Your 1st VisitAUTOSERVICE
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SHOP LOCAL & SUPPORT YOUR HOMETOWN BUSINESSES
413-967-7601 • Route 32, Ware, MA Handicapped Accessible
Teresa’s RestaurantCelebrating Over 36 Years of Service Open 7 Days for Lunch & DinnerAccommodations for Up to 200 Guests
Weddings • Showers • Special Occasions
BENNIE & THE JETS
Sat., March 26, 2016Tickets $45/person includes Dinner & ShowCall 413-967-7601 for Tickets
Cocktail Hour 5-6pmDinner 6pm • Showtime 8pmIncludes 6 Course Family Style Meal
Tax & Gratuity Included
an ELTON JOHN TRIBUTEStarring John Ransom
Your Hosts - The Ferrentino
FamilyLive Music
Friday Nights!
STEWART & STEWART413-387-8608Nathan.Stewart@NEMoves.com • StewartandStewartHomes.com
BUYING • SELLING • RELOCATING
COMING SOON! STURBRIDGE, MA4 Bed - 21/2 BathOpen Floor Plan
Cathedral Living RoomGas Fireplace
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ch 13th, March 20thFebruary 28th, March 6th, March 13th, March 20th
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WARRENA great start to
school vacation, p7
WEST BROOKFIELDTeachers discuss
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Lady Cougars knock off Douglas, p10
Calendar 2Editorial/Opinion 4Police Logs 6
Sports 10Classifieds 13/15
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Volume 9, Number 24 – 16 Pages Friday, February 26, 2016
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A great start to school vacation, p7
WEST BROOKFIELDTeachers discuss
co-teaching model, p3
SPORTSLady Cougars knock
off Douglas, p10
Calendar 2Editorial/Opinion 4Police Logs 6
Sports 10Classifieds 13/15
North Brookfi eld Police Chief Mark Smith began his position in the fall. His ap-proach emphasizes the importance of open communication as well as “breaking down barriers”.
– NORTH BROOKFIELD –
By Sloane M. PerronStaff writer
Throughout his 18 years in law enforcement, new North Brookfi eld
Police Chief Mark Smith has discovered a method for breaking down bar-riers between police of-fi cers and the public by welcoming open com-munication.
Smith always knew that he wanted to be a police offi cer, even as a child. Born and raised in Woburn, he recalls one distinct memory of sitting on a stack of pro-grams talking to his father. In that moment he told his dad that when he grew up he wanted to be a police of-fi cer. During the course of his career Smith has been able to successfully do that job.
His journey in law enforce-ment began at the Granby Po-
Police Chief Mark Smith
– WARREN –
By Colleen MontagueCorrespondent
Selectmen Chairman Dario Nardi announced that a link had been posted on the town website for well water testing companies for residents who needed contacts to have their well water tested. At their last meeting on Feb. 16, selectmen were notifi ed that dioxane de-tected in residential well water on Reed Street at levels above drinking water standards.
Nardi said selectmen taking this seriously by coordinating meetings with some of the de-partments in town and seeking assistance through the state. Selectmen Robert Lavash re-ported that the state was go-ing to come out and do some more testing further down the street.
BudgetsTree Warden Kenneth
Lacey discussed his fi scal 2017 budget with selectmen Tues-day night. He explained that his budget was down now to about $15,000, though at one point, in fi scal 2013, it had been as high as $21,000 before it went back down a little each year. He also provided select-men with a quote for doing some pruning of tree lights for the LED conversion, about 12 poles, which came to $9,000. He added that they needed to get some immediate work done on the cemetery, with one whole tree and the pruning of several others needing to be
Assistance sought for residential wells
opens his door to residentsopens his door to residentsPresident says Village will apply again
– STURBRIDGE –
By Douglas FarmerStaff Writer
Massachusetts Commis-sioner of Education Mitchell Chester recommended last week that two proposed char-ter schools be granted licenses in the state, but the Old Stur-bridge Academy Charter Public School was not among them.
In a Feb. 12 memo to mem-bers of the state Board of El-ementary and Secondary Edu-cation, Chester said he weighed the strengths and weaknesses of four applications but ulti-mately decided that proposed charter schools in Springfi eld and Brockton had provided satisfactory evidence of po-tential success. But two other applications, including one on the Old Sturbridge Village grounds and another in Fitch-burg, were not recommended for approval.
“As a result of the review process, I determined that these
OSV charter school not advised
– WEST BROOKFIELD –
By Ruth M. LyonCorrespondent
What's so good about quilts? To discover the an-swer to that ques-tion, one might look no further than the sofa in the TV room, the baby's crib, or any bedroom. Quilts, those cozy sources of warmth and comfort, are never scratchy, they're colorful and good until their tattered remains are used for the dog's bed.
Then, there are those adorn-ing our walls as the works of art they are, or used to upholster a treasured rocker, or brighten a well-scrubbed pine table from
yesteryear. Palmer resident Lynne Zacek
Bassett, noted authority on tex-tiles, will appear at West Brook-fi eld Town Hall Sunday, March 6, to take a learned look at your
quilts, informing us as to the age, design, ma-terial; the story your treasure has to impart. And while you may know how and why you've loved it, There might be more in that homely, stitched-up creation than you've considered.
In a recent inter-view, Bassett said her
interest and love of those hand-sewn treasures is due to their unique primary sources, of the history of a family, a communi-ty, even a country. They inform
Quilts tell a family, town and national history
COURTESY PHOTOS Wool embroidered and appliqued quilt made by Emily Wiley Munroe of Lynnfi eld. Its history was researched by Lynne Bassett as a portion of her exhibition and book "Homefront & Battlefi eld: Quilts & Context in the Civil War."
Lynne Zacek Bassett
See CHIEF I PAGE 8 See OSV I PAGE 9
See QUILT I PAGE 8See WARREN I PAGE 8
Coverage area changes begin next week
Editor’s note: Coverage of Warren and West Warren news will now be in our sis-ter paper, The Ware River News, beginning with the March 3rd and 10th issues. The Ware River News will be sent to all homes in Warren and West Warren for free to introduce this change and welcome subscribers.
– STURBRIDGE –
By Lydia GrossiCorrespondent
Saturday saw 11 different restaurants competing to be crowned with the winning chowder while mon-ey raised for the Tri-Community Exchange Club.
The club had its 7th annual Chowder Fest fundrais-er this past Sunday afternoon at the Sturbridge Host Hotel.
The Tri-Community Exchange Club has sponsored many projects aimed at benefi ting the needy, senior citizens, honoring the youth and police and fi refi ghters. The annual chowder fest assists the club in being able to conduct its programs of service, including several awards they give out for young citizenship and public safety workers.The club itself is made up of eight to 10 volunteers meeting every fi rst and third Monday of the month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Duck in Stur-bridge.
Tri-Community Exchange Club’sTri-Community Exchange Club’s7th annual chowder fest fundraiser7th annual chowder fest fundraiser
President says Village will apply again
– STURBRIDGE —
By Douglas FarmerStaff Writer
Massachusetts Commis-sioner of Education Mitchell Chester recommended last week that two proposed char-ter schools be granted licenses in the state, but the Old Stur-bridge Academy Charter Public School was not among them.
In a Feb. 12 memo to mem-bers of the state Board of El-ementary and Secondary Edu-cation, Chester said he weighed the strengths and weaknesses
of four applications but ulti-mately decided that proposed charter schools in Springfi eld and Brockton had provided sat-isfactory evidence of potential success. But two other applica-tions, including one on the Old Sturbridge Village grounds and another in Fitchburg, were not recommended for approval.
“As a result of the review process, I determined that these proposals require further development and revision with respect to the charter school approval criteria,” he wrote. “These applicant groups will be invited to participate in a debriefi ng session with the de-partment to further explain the
OSV charter school not recommended
– NORTH BROOKFIELD –
By Sloane M. PerronStaff writer
Throughout his 18 years in law enforcement, new North Brookfi eld Police Chief Mark Smith has discovered a method for breaking down barriers be-tween police offi cers and the public by welcoming open com-munication.
Smith always knew that he wanted to be a police offi cer, even as a child. Born and raised
in Woburn, he recalls one dis-tinct memory of sitting on a stack of programs talking to his father. In that moment he told his dad that when he grew up he wanted to be a police offi cer. During the course of his career Smith has been able to success-fully that job.
His journey in law enforce-ment began at the Granby Po-lice Department where he start-ed as a part-time offi cer before being promoted to full-time of-
Police Chief Mark Smith opens his department door
– WEST BROOKFIELD –
By Ruth M. LyonCorrespondent
What's so good about quilts? To discover the answer to that question, one might look no further than the sofa in the TV room, the baby's crib, or any bed-room. Quilts, those cozy sources of warmth and comfort, are nev-er scratchy, they're colorful and good until their tattered remains are used for the dog's bed.
Then, there are those adorn-ing our walls as the works of art they are, or used to upholster
Quilts tell a family, town and national history
– STURBRIDGE –
By Wyatt AloisioStaff Writer
“Attention Heroes! Enlist Now!” read the sign in bold let-ters. The notice could be seen from across the room and drew the attention of dozens who read it. The unexpected part, perhaps, was for the cause in which it advertised:
“Worthy of your notice all real volunteers. For the Honor and Glory of Old England!”
The posting was for His Maj-esty’s Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Foot and was one of several sim-ilar groups present in the build-ing that day at the fourth annual New England Re-Enactors Faire hosted at the Sturbridge Host Hotel and Conference Center this past Saturday, Feb. 20.
The gathering of historical re-enactors and vendors selling
period specifi c clothing, weapon replicas, and various other wares has blossomed into a widely at-tended event over the past four years with hundreds traveling
from across New England and as far as Illinois to visit the event.
Thirty-eight vendors were featured at this year’s faire with products ranging from the Rev-
olutionary War to World War II, and even several vendors and artisans with Renaissance and medieval-style items for sale.
“We’ve grown tremendously in the past several years,” said event co-organizer and Palmer resident Caren Harrington. A long-time re-enactor in the area, Harrington noted that the hobby is, despite common misconcep-tion, an extremely popular one and that many at the conven-tion were from the immediate surrounding towns. “You never really know just who is one (re-enactor). We’re hiding in plain site.”
Harrington said that re-enact-ing presents the opportunity for the public to experience a “living history” and that it is an impor-tant teaching tool in helping to preserve American heritage.
“Each year we try to expand the show a little bit and it has-
Re-enactors Faire opens up doors to the past
TURLEY PUBLICATIONS STAFF PHOTO BY WYATT ALOISIOA recruitment station for His Majesty’s Fifty-Fourth and Ninth Regiments at the New England Re-Enactors Faire hosted this past weekend at the Sturbridge Host Hotel and Conference Center.
B.T.’s Smokehouse serving there rock shrimp corn and bacon chowder, with (Brian Treitman, owner of B.T.’s pic-tured left during Tri-Com-munity Exchange Club had their 7th annual Chowder Fest fundraiser Saturday.
Sturbridge Seafood, winner of the chowder fest, serving there lobster bake chowder Saturday during the charity chowder fest for the Tri-Community Exchange Club.See CHOWDERFEST I PAGE 9
See CHARTER I PAGE 8
See CHIEF I PAGE 8
See QUILT I PAGE 16 See FAIRE I PAGE 16
The Town Common will now be part of the Quaboag Current – a sister publication of
Turley Publications, Inc.!SAME STURBRIDGE COVERAGE, SAME STAFF,
SAME DEDICATION – NEW NAME PLATE!
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