"The News Starts Here!"
April
3, 2011 — Last night at 11:38, troopers assigned to the Massachusetts
State Police Air Wing responded at the request of the West Bridgewater
Police Department to search for a man who got lost in the Hockomock
Swamp in that town five hours earlier. The 27-year-old man became lost
in the swamp after going in to retrieve his dog after the dog ran in.
The man initially utilized his cell phone to call for help, but his
phone lost power before his location could be ascertained by
dispatchers.
ONEONTA,
N.Y.—SUNY Oneonta seniors
The
Hopkinton High School Counseling Department presents
98 Hayden Rowe Street, Hopkinton, MA 01748
508-435-9222
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Another Friend of the Seniors in the Marathon
Walter Carrascal, 33, of Worcester will be running his second Boston Marathon this year to raise funds for Friends of the Hopkinton Senior Citizens.
Walter says he runs to be “a good role model for my daughters and to teach them the value of hard work and determination… as well as to run for a great cause.” Money raised will be used for Senior Center programs not covered by the town budget. |
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Hopkinton Babe Ruth open registration for baseball ends on April 11th. Please go to hopkintonbaberuth.com to register now! |
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Three's Company
April 3, 2011 — Three year-old Ellie Power smiles at the camera like a pro as she enjoys the company of Mom and Dad, Mara and Keith, and the shadows get longer on Hopkinton Common late Sunday afternoon. |
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Vigil
April 3, 2011 — Veterans Michael Whalen and Michael Shepard exchange some banter following the Taps Vigil ceremony at the Hopkinton Senior Center on Sunday. NOTE: HopNews broadcast its first live event webcast from outside the center during the ceremony. Keep an eye on the player at the top, where HopNews will present its live webcasts, such as person on the street interviews, sponsor giveaways, musical performances and live governmental meetings. |
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Arrow of Light
April 4, 2011 — Hopkinton's Pack 4 Cub Scouts held their annual Blue & Gold Banquet on Wednesday, March 23rd, a buffet dinner in celebration of the birthday of scouting. During the event, Ben Lozeau and Dante Sivo were awarded the Arrow of Light, the highest honor that can be earned in Cub Scouting. Cub Scouts who earn the Arrow of Light take key steps in transitioning into Boy Scouts, and this award marks their journey. Congratulations to Ben and Dante! |
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State Police Air Wing Finds Man, Dog Lost in West Bridgewater Swamp
Massachusetts State Police from Troop D coordinated the search with West Bridgewater Police and Fire Departments at a command post established on Maple Street. State Police patrols, as well as MSP K-9 units also responded to assist. One of the State Police helicopters, Air 2, quickly located the man who was on dry land surrounded by swamp, and remained overhead to assist rescuers until the aircraft needed to leave the scene to refuel. Upon refueling,
State Police Investigating Fall from Bus that Killed One, Injured Another They fell out through the bathroom window
April 3, 2011 — Last night at 10:22, troopers assigned to Massachusetts State Police Barracks in Leominster and Devens responded to an incident involving a tour bus on Route 2 westbound in Shirley that killed one passenger and caused serious injuries to another.
Trooper Michael Mayer was responding to an unrelated incident, when he observed two men lying in the breakdown lane of Route 2 westbound in the vicinity of Jackson Road. Shortly after calling for EMS and additional resources, a bus driver for Colonial Tours of Boston contacted the State Police Barracks in Leominster reporting that someone had fallen from his bus. The bus was returning from a trip to the Red Hook Brewery in Portsmouth, N.H. and was en route to Gardner, Mass., at the time of the incident.
Initial investigation indicates Thomas Johnson of Gardner and Seth Davis of Winchendon fell out of a bathroom window on the bus and onto Route 2. Johnson succumbed to his injuries on scene. Davis was transported from the scene by ambulance to the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester with serious injuries, where he is in critical condition. Alcohol is believed to have been a contributing factor. No charges have been filed at this time and the incident remains under investigation. |
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Kramer and Lamonica
selected as Scholar All-Americans
Red Dragons earn team recognition for 6th time
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SAFEGUARDING YOUTH, PREVENTING TRAGEDIES AND BUILDING RESILIENCY
Guest Speakers : Kelley Cunningham and Kim Kates Of Samaritans, Inc.
Wednesday, April 6 7 p.m. HHS Auditorium
All parents and members of the community are welcome. |
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Taps Vigil Sunday, April 3, 2011 7:00 pm Hopkinton Senior Center 28 Mayhew Street Hopkinton |
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BOARD OF SELECTMEN - SCHOOL COMMITTEE PUBLIC FORUM April 13, 2011
NOTE: The Permanent Building Committee on behalf of the Library has scheduled two public information sessions, one of which falls on this same date. Inasmuch as they did not want the event publicized until next week, we'll wait to see if they reschedule. |
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Dr. Ritchie
Shoemaker leads a Complimentary 2 day advanced training event
“Treatment and Diagnoses of Biotoxin Related Illness” Newton Wellesley Hospital - Shipley Auditorium Saturday April 9, 2011 9am to 5pm Sunday April 10, 2011, 9am to 1pm Sponsored by Hopkinton Drug Event Summary Dr. Shoemaker will speak on the diagnoses and treatment behind biotoxin illnesses including mold, Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and more. Program Objectives:
Registrations To Hopkinton Drug Inc. attention Michael Macione (800) 435-4441 x111 mmacione@rxandhealth.com http://www.rxandhealth.com/ |
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Governor
Honors Rescuers
“This act of heroism helped save Edward Rowe’s life, and I want to extend my thanks to these brave firefighters for acting quickly and professionally in the line of duty,” said Governor Patrick.
During today’s meeting, the Governor thanked Ballin Wright and Gary Dardia, the two Boston Firefighters from Rescue 1, who lowered themselves into the shaft, and hoisted Rowe out during the rescue. Boston Fire Department Commissioner Rod Fraser, Acting Chief John Hasson, members of the command staff, and men and women from Rescue 1, Engine 4, Engine 10, Ladder 24, and Tower Ladder 3 were also present.
On Wednesday, March 30,
Edward Rowe, an MBTA electrician who was cutting power to the third rail
to allow fellow repair workers to safely access the
Photo by Matt Bennett, Governor's Office |
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Ready For Spring
April 1, 2011 — The overnight snow storm that will likely be remembered as the April Fool Snow Storm brought some new members to the Antaki family, who, if the picture tells the story. are all prepared for some spring planting. |
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THE FEAST - EVERY FRIDAY Enjoy the FEAST* at the Golden Spoon, 85 Main Street in Hopkinton like you do every Friday afternoon and evening, but now you may use your major credit card or debit card if you wish to!! * The Golden Spoon is open for breakfast and lunch every day, but Friday is a special feast, all of the way into the evening. |
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April snowstorms are unwelcome and unusual, but not
unheard of in Northeast
Arthur DeGaetano, director of the NRCC, says: “Snow in Upstate New York and New England is not all that uncommon in April, as most cities can expect to see an inch of snowfall on average every other year. But big snowfalls, while not unheard of, are more unusual.
“At most locations a 6-inch April snow is a once-in-a-decade event, and a foot of snow is something you might see once in your lifetime, even in northern Maine. April 6, 1982 is a date that continues to live in April snowfall infamy, as stations across New York and England saw their biggest one-day April snowfall on that date. More than 17 inches of snow fell on Albany, N.Y.”
Jessica Rennells, extension support specialist at the NRCC, says: “The probability of April snow is less than the winter months, but still fairly common – and it’s still possible to see some large snowfall amounts. Snow amounts forecasted for this storm range from 4 to 16 inches. Many cities haven’t seen April snow like this since the 1980s. HopNews photo |
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Ciao Time Goes Back to it's Roots
"I am delighted with the calls I have already been getting to cater family functions such as Baptism and Confirmation luncheons, Mother's Day brunches and Graduation parties."
In addition to providing the fine fare for many of Hopkinton's parties
and events year after year, Denise announces that she will now offer her
culinary talents as a private chef. Denise will now cook in your home;
whether it be for just your family or for a special dinner party, you
can be certain it will be delicious. All the details about these new services she is offering, as well as her long time catering menus are available on her new website. Please check it out! |
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Leave It To Beavers
March 31, 2011 — HopNews previously photographed this beaver dam in its infancy a few weeks ago. But now it is complete, and a neighbor at North Mill Pond appears to be doing his best to help undo the rodent's handiwork. Beavers constructed a large lodge just downstream from Blood's Pond, off of South Mill Street, where they had also built a dam along the connected waterway. Neighbors there, according to one, spent a tidy sum to get rid of the creatures professionally. And when the rodents appear in a public water supply, some say, they are removed immediately due to a bacteria they carry. In addition, their prolific breeding in recent years in the local area has brought unacceptable changes in the human environments they impact. And according to experts in field, beavers that become pests are not relocated, they are captured and euthanized.
Below is the work of one or more beavers on Clinton Street next to the former Busconi Farm. Although beavers fell trees to aid in construction of a lodge or dam, they also knock them down to enjoy the tasty small branches; in this case, birch, the taste of which many humans also enjoy [e. g. birch beer].
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Nevermore...
March 31, 2011 — There may not be an Edgar Allen Poe ditty here, nonetheless, a black bird in a graveyard is still a little creepy to some people, and especially as the headstones appear to lean toward it while it tries to escape a photo opportunity. |
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 March 31, 2011 — Hopkinton resident Mackenzie Fairbanks, a sophomore at Joseph P. Keefe Technical School, was chosen this term as "Outstanding Electrical Student of the Term" and honored today at a luncheon. Last month, he was chosen to partake in Skills USA, a written exam about electrical codes. He came in second place out of all the electrical students from surrounding technical schools. This allowed him to move onto the Skills USA State competition to be held in Marlborough at the end of April. He was also awarded a $50 gift certificate to Monnick Supply. |
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Town Sends Letter to Massachusetts School Building Authority [MSBA] Puts best face on losses at Special Town Meeting and Election
March 31, 2010 — Hoping to keep funding alive for the Center School Project, the Superintendent of Schools on his letterhead, and with his and Selectmen Chair RJ Dourney's signature, have composed and sent a letter to the MSBA following a brainstorming session at the Middle School Library during a joint meeting of the School Committee and the Board of Selectmen Tuesday evening. THE LETTER details the resounding defeat at Special Town Meeting and the Special Election of the School Department's plans to district three schools, including a new $38 million school at Fruit Street. The letter sets a timeline to inform the MSBA of the town's progress in seeking a solution to Center School, and also seeks their guidance. The letter distills the opposition to the project as belonging to three main reasons. An excerpt follows:
It is our belief that a combination of at least three factors contributed to the project not passing at this point in time:
1) a change in the grade configuration from grade level schools to K-5 neighborhood schools; 2) the location of the school at Fruit Street; and 3) the economics of the project.
While the residents did not approve the project, the level of engagement in the community has been incredible. We intend to capitalize on the community's interest in facility improvements by conducting public forums, surveys, and listening sessions to better understand the community's priorities specific to a project addressing the needs at Center School.
Read the entire LETTER |
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Swan Pond
March 30, 2011 — The roving HopNews HD Video camera captured this image in a small pond in Linwood today of a mute swan that wondered if the photographer had any food, as its mate followed behind. |
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The Latest HillTopper Now Available. Just Choose the
Seniors
Button Above Anytime
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Hopkinton vs. Westborough
The HHS varsity girls tennis started their 2011 season today with a match against Westborough High School. The photo above is HHS #1 singles player, sophomore Denny Lamachia. |
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IT TAKES A COMMUNITY TO “BE THE CHANGE”
With Judy Giovongelo, Ben Speaks Louder Than Words Tuesday, April 12th, 7:00-8:00 p.m. Hopkinton Public Library, Main Street Hopkinton, Ma.
Senior Citizens, Parents, Middle & High School Students, School Staff, Community Care Providers, Clergy, Local Business are invited to attend: This forty minute presentation includes a mother’s account of her teenage son’s struggle with bullying, drug/ alcohol abuse and eventual teen suicide and offers an inspirational proposal to find ways to positively support and empower our youth. Hosted by The Hopkinton Youth Commission, Hopkinton Youth Services and The Hopkinton Public Library |
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 Glen Layton Withdraws School Committee Candidacy Still leaves four candidates for two seats March 30, 2011 — Citing federal law, the Hatch Act, prohibiting a federal employee running for public office in a partisan election, Candidate for School Committee Glen Layton, who has led the charge against building a new school on town-owned Fruit Street property, has announced by telephone to Town Clerk Ann Click that he is dropping out of the race for School Committee. Mr. Layton has previously confided that such a move was possible, and that if he wanted to remain as a candidate, he might have had to quit his employment with the General Services Administration. His withdrawal from the race for two open seats leaves incumbents Republican Nancy Alvarez Burdick and Democrat Richard deMont as well as newcomers to the School Committee race, Republican Scott Aghababian and Democrat Beth Malloy. Text of Mr. Layton's letter to Town Clerk's Office:
It is with regret that I announce that I am required to rescind my nomination papers for running for school committee. Governmental employees that are bound by the Hatch Act are restricted in performing certain political activities geared around partisan elections. The School Committee election campaign is clearly a partisan election due to there being two Democrat, and two Republican candidates who qualify for candidacy. Prior to pulling nomination papers I was under the impression that I could run for an elected school committee position because it is typically a nonpartisan position within a community. Unfortunately this is where the uniqueness of Hopkinton comes in to play.
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School Committee Vows to Move More Slowly to Build Consensus Board of Selectmen, School Committee mull MSBA letter language
by Muriel Kramer March 30, 2011 — The big question is what’s next for Center School? And perhaps more importantly this time, how does the leadership in town build consensus on a specific approach with the voters? The School Committee, Board of Selectmen and Elementary School Building Committee (ESBC) met in a well attended joint session to specifically discuss their joint letter to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) following the failed votes at both the Special Town Meeting (STM) and Special Town Election (STE); that response is due to the MSBA on Thursday. According to Superintendent of Schools, Jack Phelan, “The MSBA will then be able to determine whether they will be able to keep us in the (funding) pipeline.”
According to Dr. Phelan, “in simplest terms, the MSBA wants to know ‘Are you committed?’ If that is the case, we should state so right up front in the letter.” The letter also needs to include a plan to get to a favorable vote as well as a timeline to do so.
School Committee Chairwoman and ESBC member Rebecca Robak acknowledged the substantial “No” heard from the voters at the ballot and speculated that districting, cost and location were the big obstacles to broad public support of the project. “We need to get the entire school crowd supporting it. We need a plan that everyone can agree on to get the necessary support and funding. We need to take a step back and re-evaluate where we want a school.”
School Committee member Richard deMont asserted that comments he was hearing from people strongly suggest that cost is the major issue for voters. “If we entertain a project that costs more than we already asked for, we are spinning our wheels. What we do (going forward) needs to be more palatable financially.”
For his part RJ Dourney, Chairman of the Board of Selectmen, didn’t fully agree. “I don’t necessarily agree; the issue was districting not the cost. We have a history of providing for excellence in education.”
Agreeing on the need for a plan, a workable timeline and gathering necessary feedback, Robak asked the group, “Do we want to aim for a September Special Town Meeting.”
Disagreeing sharply Selectman Ben Palleiko, argued that the Boards need to be careful about setting expectations going forward. The School Committee has to first decide the educational model to pursue and then plan. “We need to be careful about setting expectations about the process going forward.” He argued that a large part of the town felt the proposed solution (building the new school at Fruit Street with districting) was imposed on them. He noted that 72% of the voters that turned out Monday voted “No.” “72% of anything is stunning. We have a very fragmented community right now; a Fall STM is not in the cards.” Continuing, he asserted that it would be wrong to expect 40% of the voters that are engaged on this issue to “magically turnaround.” This project was “jammed on people. I don’t want to debate it; I heard it loud and clear. At this point it would be quite frankly fanciful to expect an accelerated timeline.”
Robak agreed that the timeline had been too fast. “Let’s make sure we take the time to understand what the community wants.” Regarding the letter to the MSBA, “We know we are probably not going to keep the option for this $14 million.”
Reluctantly agreeing, Dourney insisted that the letter needs to instill confidence that we remain committed to education and a school project. “They (MSBA) should feel that if we didn’t deliver this time, we will the next time.”
In the end there was agreement of the form of the letter, with Superintendent Phelan and Dourney charged with specific wording. The letter will broadly assert the community’s continued commitment to quality education, reflect the voting results highlighting districting, cost and location as the major drivers of the failed vote as well as commit to providing a substantive timeline to the MSBA within 6 months.
No public comment was solicited or entertained at this meeting, no mention was made of connecting with the data collected at an exit poll conducted on Monday at the polls, and despite some discussion pointing to the need for a joint meeting to discuss civic engagement, no meeting time was set for this purpose.
Highlighting the botched process was the realization that necessary repairs at Center School will go largely unaddressed for the next year; the warrant for ATM is closed and there are no articles on the warrant for repairs at Center School with the exception of the possibility of ADA repairs in the article put forward by the ADA Oversight Committee. Jennifer Parsons, Center School Principal, spoke just once at the meeting but it was a point well taken and missed in the process to date. Center School is desperately in need of some immediate repairs, and it is now too late to address those substantively at ATM in May. |
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The
Board of Selectmen in conjunction with the School Committee will hold a
public meeting on Wednesday, April 13, 2011 at the Hopkinton Senior
Center’s main meeting room at 7PM. The Boards will provide the community
a forum to voice opinions and share ideas on how to best move forward
with the Center School. Comments or suggestions can be submitted in
advance to
March
31, 2011 — Researchers at the Cornell University-based Northeast
Regional Climate Center comment on the pending April Fools’ Day
snowstorm and how it fits into historic trends.
