Agape Love Feast

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Mattapoisett Congregational Church, 27 Church Street, offers an Agape Love Feast on May 12at 10:00 am.  All are invited to be a part of this very unique and engaging table fellowship worship experience; one that is based on ancient Christian practices and sacred text. This worship experience is casual and will include sharing a simple meal, singing, a Good News message, prayers, and conversation.  Agape Feasts, Lovefests, focus on God’s immeasurable love, unity, goodwill, forgiveness, kinship, and living out the missional message.   This worship will be led by Patricia Berry, a United Church of Christ Member in Discernment for Ordination, who is attending Boston University’s School of Theology where she is working on her Master of Divinity degree.

Selectmen Deem Dog ‘Dangerous’

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            During the May 7 Marion Board of Selectmen meeting, the board voted to classify a dog 

belonging to Michael and Kate Devoll as “dangerous” during a dog hearing pertaining to an alleged attack on March 3, during which the Devolls’ dog was reported to have attacked two dogs and their owner in the Olde Knoll Road neighborhood.

            Diane Kelly of Olde Knoll Road said she witnessed the attack and, in a letter dated March 16 and signed by several neighbors, described various incidents of dog aggression and barking at the Devolls’ property.

            According to Michael Devoll, although he did not witness the entire encounter, he is uncertain whether it was actually an attack and not a “dog fight.” He said once he came out and picked up his dog, the incident was over. He also stated that his dog had two bites on both front paws.

            “The dog’s no longer at our home, much to the chagrin of a sad nine-year-old boy without a dog,” Devoll said. He reported that the dog was relocated to a farm in Westfield, Massachusetts.

            Animal Control Officer Susan Connor said she was called to the scene on March 3 and saw the woman who was attacked being treated by EMS; however, she did not speak to the victim directly.

            At the Devolls, she said she did not observe any injuries on the Devolls’ dog, and no injuries were reported; otherwise, the other dogs would have had to be quarantined, as well, a standard consequence of a dog attack.

            Connor stated that there were subsequent reports of the dog being loose on the property and of quarantine orders being violated, but there was no proof. 

            Margie Baldwin said her son owns the two dogs (small terriers) that were attacked and she dog-sits them during the day. She did not witness the attack, but described the dogs’ scars and how the owner’s experience was “extremely traumatic.”

            Police Chief Jon Garcia said Town Counsel advised him that should the board determine the dog is “dangerous,” it should be reported to the town where the dog now lives.

            If a dog is deemed dangerous, Connor stated, “That will follow that dog anywhere in the Commonwealth.”

            Before the hearing was over, Devoll stated, “I live and work in the community. I don’t want this played out in the press – and it is. We want to be good neighbors and we want to do the right thing and we think we’ve done those steps.”

            The board ordered that, should the dog ever return to Marion, that it be confined at the property either indoors or in a secure pen, and muzzled and leashed securely when out in public.

            Also during the meeting, the board spoke with Zoning Board of Appeals Chairman Marc LeBlanc about televising the ZBA meetings, which will indeed be recorded from now on with ORCTV. LeBlanc wanted to know the real reason behind the request to televise, and Waterman told him the only reason was to open the communication better with the public, not because the board was being “picked on,” as Hills put it.

            In other matters, the board approved a fireworks proposal from Atlas Pyrotechnics for the Marion July Fourth fireworks display.

            The next regular meeting of the Marion Board of Selectmen is scheduled for May 21 at 7:00 pm at the Marion Town House.

Marion Board of Selectmen

By Jean Perry

Weigel Sworn-in as First Full-time Fire Chief

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            Firefighters of all ranks from Rochester and other area towns lined the perimeter of the Rochester Town Hall in formal dress on May 6 to witness a moment of Rochester history.

            During the Rochester Board of Selectmen meeting that evening, the selectmen signed the employment contract appointing current Fire Chief Scott Weigel as the town’s first ever full-time fire chief.

            An emotional Town Clerk Naida Parker swore the chief in in front of a room packed with Weigel’s family, friends, and fellow firefighters, with some representing the towns of Bridgewater, Freetown, and Raynham.

            Outside Town Hall, the group converged for photos before climbing aboard their various fire apparatuses with red lights flashing and celebratory sirens sounding as the procession paraded out onto Route 105.

            Weigel has been fire chief of Rochester for 10 years, beginning in July 2009, first as the interim fire chief when former fire chief, Scott Ashworth, retired on short notice. He was then appointed as permanent part-time chief.

            In other business, the board entertained a visit from three representatives of Rochester Affordable Housing, Inc., a group of citizens tasked with exploring various options for providing affordable housing for Rochester senior citizens.

            Now a 501(c)(3) non-profit, the group says it will begin fundraising soon to assist in the process of searching for and eventually acquiring land. During the meeting, the three affordable housing representatives – Richard Cutler, Mark Wallington, and Gianno Lettieri – described various properties around town that might be suitable for future development, such as a five-acre lot near the intersection of Ryder Road and High Street.

            “What we’re looking to do is one-bedroom units, perhaps 500 to 800 square feet,” said Cutler. “We’d like very much to keep the rental numbers down as low as possible.”

            The group said it didn’t think the new 40R affordable housing was affordable enough for seniors priced at $1,350 for a two-bedroom unit and $1,150 for a one-bedroom.

            “We’d love to see something in the neighborhood of $500 to $800 a month,” said Lettieri, although he added that he had no real numbers to calculate just yet. “But we do want to keep it as low as possible.”

            Selectman Greenwood “Woody” Hartley cautioned the gentlemen not to get “too excited with too low a number,” since the investment would have to at least cover its own costs.

            “We’ll do some scouting and find out where the vacant parcels are that might be available and get back to you,” said Cutler. “Ideally, it would be down here in the village,” he said, where folks wouldn’t have to drive in order to shop or go out for dinner.

            “It’s great that you’re making progress,” Hartley said, adding that the board was happy to assist in whatever ways it can.

            In other matters, Rochester is pressing ahead with its application for a $30,000 grant from the state to improve recycling practices in Rochester through printed educational materials, curbside recycling compliance enforcement, and data tracking, all funded through the grant. According to Town Administrator Suzanne Szyndlar, the Town hopes to implement curbside enforcement by mid-September, which will entail bin inspections of 20 percent of bins in town to test for compliance.

            “If it has one (restricted) item in there, it’s not going to be rejected,” Szyndlar clarified. But if the workers find three or four or more, the bin will be tagged and rejected for that week.

            Also during the meeting, Szyndlar announced the passing of Rochester’s oldest resident, Marion Thomas at age 102. The selectmen will schedule an event soon to present Rochester’s next oldest resident, Edna Chadwick, 101, with the Boston Post cane. Chadwick will turn 102 July 31.

            The board also signed the Annual Town Meeting Warrant.

            The next meeting of the Rochester Board of Selectmen is scheduled for May 20 at 6:15 pm at Rochester Memorial School before the start of Town Meeting, which begins at 7:00 pm.

Rochester Board of Selectmen

By Jean Perry

Marion Garden Group 4th Annual Plant Sale

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The Marion Garden Group has been hard at work dividing our most beloved perennials, starting flower and vegetable seeds, bottling honey from our own hives and crafting special gifts.

            All of this is in preparation for our 4th annual Plant Sale to be held on Saturday, May 18from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm at Bicentennial Park Marion.

            If you want to add something new or unusual to your garden, spark ideas for a new portion of your yard, or find a special decoration, you won’t want to miss this.

            Marion Garden is a non profit 5013c organization. We gratefully accept donations toward our ongoing initiatives including village beautification, nursing home programs, local library outreach, school programs, pollinator habitat maintenance, and education.

Academic Achievements

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Bryan D. Coffey, Kristoffer Thomas Johansen, and Alyssa Marie Seifert of Rochester earned Bachelor’s degrees from UMass Amherst in February.

Alexander Marsden

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Alexander Marsden, 86, of Rochester died Monday, May 6, 2019 at Alden Court Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Fairhaven. He was the husband of Doris B. (McMahon) Marsden and was happily married for 58 years.

            Born in Newcastle, England, he was the son of the late Alexander and Dorothy (Kelly) Marsden. Growing up as a boy during the war in England, he had a unique and adventuresome childhood. Before he came to the United States, Mr. Marsden served as a paratrooper in the Royal Air Force. He completed more than 75 jumps and was stationed in the Suez Canal and Cyprus.

            After his arrival in the U.S. in 1968, Mr. Marsden worked as a typesetter and eventually owned and operated his own business, AJ Typesetting in Holliston. After retirement, he moved to Marstons Mills, where along with his wife Doris, he owned and operated the Village Café on Main Street in Falmouth. They moved to Rochester in 2011.

            Mr. Marsden was a member of the Gleason Family YMCA in Wareham where he enjoyed exercising and spin class with his spin friends well into his eighties. He was an avid hockey fan and for someone that never played hockey, he had a great understanding of the game. He was a man that enjoyed “a couple of pops” and good company. Mostly he enjoyed his family and grandchildren. Whether attending sporting events, theatre performances, or building play houses, he took great pride in his grandchildren’s lives and accomplishments.

            Survivors include his wife, Doris of Rochester; his daughter Jacqueline Arsenault and her husband Patrick of Plymouth; his son, Alex Marsden and his wife Beth of Marion; his sister, Patricia Edwards of Cumbria, England; and grandchildren, Brett, Ryan and Meaghan Arsenault, and Kate and Alec Marsden.

            Private graveside services were held in Old Landing Cemetery, Marion. Donations in his memory may be made to Damien’s Pantry, P.O. Box 111, Fairhaven, MA 02719.

ORR Restoration

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To the Editor:

            Along with public safety, education is the primary responsibility of any community. As a conversation with any college or university admissions officer will confirm, extra-curricular activities such as drama and athletics, are pivotal components of this education. They provide real-world experience in team work, self-sacrifice, problem solving, resiliency, and sportsmanship. These experiences, not to mention the life long health benefits of participation in sports, will serve OR students well beyond graduation. Therefore, we, the residents of this community, must be committed to ensuring that the facilities for these activities not only are safe and meet the minimum requirements for participation but also promote participation among students and the desirability of our school system among potential property owners/new families.

            The safety of the current facilities is, at best, debatable. The grassless, frequently muddy, and severely rutted nature of OR fields have and will continue to expose our children to lower extremity injuries such as ACL tears, sprained or broken ankles, and groin pulls. More ominously, these same defects and the bare hard packed dirt we call fields promote head injury from collisions and turn any fall into a potential concussion. If we agree the extracurricular activities benefit our children now, in their pursuit of higher education, and throughout their lives, we are obligated to provide safe facilities.

            As they now exist, neither the drama facilities nor athletic fields meet the bare minimum standards for participation. The lighting system in the auditorium is non-functional, requiring rental of a temporary system to put on any performance. Without the rentals (and associated costs), drama members are left with only few rapidly failing manually operated spot lights. Additionally, the rigging system is failing and the sound board is aging. Playoff games have been moved to Tabor because of the state of our fields. Games are routinely cancelled due flooding and poor drainage. The possibility of opposing teams refusing to play at OR or officials deeming the fields unsafe for play becomes more likely with each season of use. Despite a perennially powerful track program, our track is in disrepair. The surface is worn in areas to pavement limiting traction and worsening the physical stress of impact. Subsequently, we are unable to host the conference championships or invitationals and have, to ensure top times for our athletes, moved meets to our opponent’s tracks.

            Our fields and auditorium are (quite literally in the case of the auditorium where the town meeting and other town events are held) the gathering place and center pieces of our community. We should ensure they are, at least, safe and functional and, at best, a source of pride and a concrete manifestation of our commitment to our children and their education. Additionally, when restored both facilities promise to bring in revenue from rental to private groups and youth athletic programs.

            Opponents have raised many objections to this program. It has been described as Olympic style and promoted by a special interest group. This hyperbole could not be further from the truth. The proposal has been scaled back dramatically in scope and cost (at least 2.5 million dollars less than the original plan) as the committees and individuals involved worked with the towns to decrease the financial impact. There is no allowance for bathrooms, new score board, permanent concession stand, redone baseball and softball fields, or a second turf field. Hardly an Olympic worthy plan. As for the alleged special interest group, if you mean parents, coaches, directors, actors, actresses, and athletes who share pride in our school and towns and are giving of their time, money, and effort to make it the best it can be … guilty as charged. Others have inspected (or walked on) the facilities and deemed them not as bad as portrayed. Having not coached or run track, played teams sports, or acted in or produced a play at OR, I defer to those who have and are pleading for functional facilities. Some question the safety of turf fields, especially the filler. There are no scientific studies substantiating any lifelong risk to athletes who play on turf fields only hearsay, fear mongering, and hyperbole. As parents of a lacrosse and field hockey goalie who has spent the last 6 years playing and often lying on turf and as emergency and family physicians, we have absolutely no concerns regarding the safety of turf. … none.

            Finally, there is the cost. Simply put, if we are not willing to make this investment in our school – arguably the most visible and used symbol of our community – what are we willing to invest in? For approximately the price of 2 family pizzas per year per household, we can restore the pride, image, and safety of our school and, by extension, our community.

            Sincerely,

Mark J. Tenerowicz

Caitlin L Mann 

Mattapoisett

The views expressed in the “Letters to the Editor” column are not necessarily those of The Wanderer, its staff or advertisers. The Wandererwill gladly accept any and all correspondence relating to timely and pertinent issues in the great Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester area, provided they include the author’s name, address and phone number for verification. We cannot publish anonymous, unsigned or unconfirmed submissions. The Wandererreserves the right to edit, condense and otherwise alter submissions for purposes of clarity and/or spacing considerations. The Wanderermay choose to not run letters that thank businesses, and The Wandererhas the right to edit letters to omit business names. The Wandereralso reserves the right to deny publication of any submitted correspondence.

Inside the Budget Process

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On May 1, the Mattapoisett Capital Planning Committee (CPC) met to prioritize its list of projects priced over $10,000 to be advanced at Town Meeting. The year-long process of receiving requests from town departments including the two schools, Center and Old Hammondtown, takes into consideration the town’s ability to afford the projects without increasing taxes.

            The Capital Planning Committee was created about 15 years ago as a method to judge requests based on the need of the department and the ability of the taxpayers to bear the financial burden, and then the committee decides which requests to present to Town Meeting.

            The capital planning process focuses on a 10-year schedule where some projects advance up the priority list while others remain lower on the list for future consideration. Department heads meet with the committee to justify their requests and, where applicable, also provide the method by which the request will be paid for.

            This year the list is rather short, but with a big financial impact – a new fire station is listed as priority numero uno.

            Town Administrator Michael Gagne told the committee that $310,000, partly from free cash and partly from previous appropriations not spent, may be used to fund the design, engineering, bidding, and selection of a construction company for the new station.

            The estimate for the new building is just over $9 million.

            Gagne said that by deploying those prior unspent appropriations instead of borrowing new money means that the balance for the project would not have to be bonded until March 2020, with a first payment due in March 2021.

            “By doing it this way you’d be further ahead on the retiring debt schedule,” Gagne said. He has stated in previous meeting that through retiring debt, the town could build a new fire station with only a slight impact on taxpayers.

            The FinCom members agreed that the Fire Station was a highest priority, with Gagne expecting property owners to see a $13.38 increase based on a median-home assessed at $440,000.

            Next in line is $210,000 needed to finish safety improvements to Highway Department buildings on Mendell Road, bringing them into OSHA and ADA compliance.

            Number 3, also for the Highway Department, is $12,000 for a trench-shoring box to prevent trench cave-ins.

            Fourth, and last to make the list, was $49,500 for school curriculum modules, which is also a line item in the local school budget.

            The committee also discussed the ORRHS athletic fields and auditorium improvements.

            CPC member Chuck McCullough said of the $2.5 million the school committee requested, “It’s a bit disjointed, not really a plan…”

            CPC Chairman Alan Apperson said, “We’re being asked to make a decision on incomplete information.”

            Gagne said ORR should have a 10-year plan for improvements versus trying to pay for a single project in the absence of financial impact studies.

            There is no future meeting of the Capital Planning Committee scheduled at this time.

Mattapoisett Capital Planning Committee

By Marilou Newell

Poetry is Pugilism

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            I bet the real Emily Dickinson would never have walked onto a stage and read her poems aloud in something called a “poetry knockout.” Walt Whitman, though? The no holds barred self-proclaimed “America’s Poet” would, and I bet he would have loved the chance to “celebrate myself and sing myself” in front of an audience. And to hold the company of a recluse, for a man like Whitman, would seem a compliment of sorts.

            The Marion Art Center (MAC) was onto something when it included this particular event in its Art Week lineup. “Dickinson vs. Whitman, the Poetry Knockout” was an idea that folded together the arts of theater and poetry and presented us with Annemarie Fredericks as Emily Dickinson and Stephen Collins as Walt Whitman in a box topped with a bow of sublime purple lighting.

            With the event came the assumptions, like the one in me very first sentence – the two are polar opposites; their poetry is so different – her poems short and structured, and his prose book-length, rambling, and untamed – their lives so unalike, she secluded in her home while his home was ‘out there’ in the world. But as two of the most influential poets of the 19thcentury, how might they be the same?

            Emcee and poetry referee Kate Fishman helped build the connection between Emily and Walt in our perception of the pair by restricting their poetic punches to the topics of immortality, nature, love, society, and God – by far each poet’s most obsessed about subjects. And while Fredericks presented Dickinson in the quiet, reserved reverie many imagine her, and Collins bellowed his breath into the life of his character, the two indeed appear distinctly unrelated. But even without the history lesson behind the performance, some similarities were clear: the two poets exposed themselves in their poems, they contradicted themselves in their poems, their final lines hit you with a figurative blow to the chest, and they both defied the conventional in their work, which was characteristic of a new 19thcentury poetry – an American poetry, to which they both influenced equally.

            ‘Emily’ was first to throw a ‘punch’.

            “What I see not, I better see –/Through Faith – my Hazel Eye…” She stood still in her full, long dress in her side of the stage as ‘Walt’ leaned back in his chair in a relaxed, confident pose, ready to throw his first poem across at Emily.

            “It’s stuffy in here, I think!” he said taking a jab at Emily as he took to his feet.

            “Is it wonderful that I should be immortal?” Then, taking from another of his leaves of grass, “Nor do I understand who there can be more wonderful than myself.”

            Come on now, girl. Team Emily is waiting for your comeback!

            “A Coffin – is a small Domain,/Yet able to contain/A Citizen of Paradise/ In it diminished Plane…”

            So reserved, so mildly she stood and read and stood as Walt read and boasted, book in hand.

            “Because I could not stop for Death…”

            “And as to you, Death, and you bitter hug of Mortality, it is idle to try to alarm me…” he tossed back at her defiantly.

            “I heard a Fly buzz – when I died … And then the Windows failed –/ I could not see to see,” she began and ended her poem, eliciting a giggle from Walt before he stood to say, “Your fly makes me think of my spider…

            “A noiseless, patient spider…” he spoke, commanding our attention while also mildly taunting Emily.

            Their shadows floated nearby them on the wall outlined by the violet haze of the purple lights above that spattered onto the stage floor like spilled wine.

            “My life had stood – a Loaded Gun…” she recited from a poem written in alternating lines of iambic trimeter and tetrameter. “For I have the power to kill,/ Without – the power to die –“

            Walt (or, perhaps, Stephen) let out a sigh.

            For some time thereafter the pair led the proverbial punches with their proverbial knuckles, knocking at each other places where they each found their weak spots. For Emily, it was the sensual; she stood silent as each descriptive anatomical image tried to knock her down. For Walt, it appeared the element of pure surprise at her words that seemed to shake him.

            “Sweet – You forgot – But I remembered/ Every time – for Two –/ So that the Sum be never hindered/ Through Decay of You.”

            At times, Walt appeared barely able to take a sip from the cup he could barely hold. He was tossed to his knees at times as he recited his next assault, but she stood her ground as if she had heard it all before; which, perhaps, she had, since Walt was a self-published man in Emily’s time. Ten of Emily’s poems appeared in newspapers, all anonymously and possibly without her consent. 

            At one point Walt admitted, “I’m getting kind of tired,” and he acquiesced to allowing Emily one final punch.

            “It’s all I have to bring today –/ This, and my heart beside/ This, and my heart, and all the fields,/ And all the meadows wide./ Be sure you count, should I forget,/ Some one the sum could tell, –/This, and my heart, and all the bees/ Which in the clover dwell.”

By Jean Perry

Pickleball Season is Here

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Mattapoisett Recreation is pleased to announce Adult Pickleball drop-in on Tuesday and Thursdays from 4:00 pm until sundown and Saturday mornings from 9:00 am – 11:00 am.  Three courts will be running for beginners to advanced players. Children’s Pickleball is on Wednesday afternoons from 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm. This is an unstructured/unsupervised time slot, but priority will be given to children wishing to meet other interested players. Please contact Mattapoisett Recreation at mattrec@mattapoisett.net to inquire about borrowing pickleball rackets and balls.