The Developing Brain and Addiction

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St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church and the Healthy Tri-Town Coalition are pleased to announce that the Old Rochester Regional School District will be hosting a presentation by renowned speaker Dr. Ruth Potee on “The Developing Brain and Addiction,” on Thursday, April 27 at 7:00 pm at the Old Rochester Regional High School Auditorium. Dr. Potee is one of the state’s foremost experts in the physiology of addiction and the teenage brain. This presentation will help us to understand how addictions develop and how young brains are particularly susceptible. Whether to nicotine, sugar, video games, caffeine, risky behaviors, alcohol, or drugs, understanding how addiction “re-wires” the reward pathways in the brain, especially in the developing brain, gives us a better understanding of who is at risk, how to prevent, and how to treat addiction. The presentation will be followed by a discussion with Dr. Potee and local public health professionals.

We feel that this is an extremely important offering for parents of students of all ages, preschool through senior year, in understanding how to protect young people from addiction. We highly encourage students to attend the presentation with their parents. This event is free and open to all members of the community. Refreshments will be available.

Enhanced Safety Signaling Planned

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During the April 12 Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen meeting, members of an ad hoc safety advisory committee – a group brought together by the selectmen to study means and methods for improving safety at the bike path crossings located at Brandt Island Road and Mattapoisett Neck Road – gave their report.

The group comprised of Police Chief Mary Lyons, Planning Board member Nathan Ketchell, Highway Superintendent Barry Denham, and cycling advocate Bonne DeSousa have researched the problems and possible solutions for nearly a year, finding it to be a rather complex issue indeed.

Also present was Bill DeSantis, principal corporate director of Bicycle Transportation Planning and Design of VHB, a consulting group recently tapped by the town to complete engineering processes for Phase 1B of the bike path.

DeSantis’ inclusion became necessary when the committee learned just how difficult an issue it was to try and improve safety at these critical crossing.

During a March Mattapoisett Bike Path Committee meeting, DeSousa reported that a “traffic engineer” was needed before the state would consider or allow the town to make changes. She said at that time, “Any changes have got to comply with the uniform traffic control division … it’s more confusing than you can imagine.…” She also explained that the federal government oversees all manner of traffic safety signage to ensure national uniformity. “We have to spend the money to do a traffic study, then get it blessed,” she said.

With VHB on board, the town could now engage a professional to look at the situation. To that end, DeSantis proposed flashing red lights on the bike path to alert pedestrians and cyclists that they are approaching the intersection and a yellow caution light that would be triggered simultaneously to alert motorists.

Selectman Tyler Macallister has been very vocal in his comments that cyclists were the biggest problem at the crossings, going so far as to say, “The number one problem is the cyclist not the drivers … they are blasting across … how do we get them to stop!”

DeSantis explained to the surprise of some in attendance that, “Cyclists are not required to stop … it is not law.”

Selectman Paul Silva wondered aloud about changing the design on the bike path to make it necessary for cyclists to stop. Denham said that the path had been designed to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation requirements. “What we’ve got now complies,” said Denham.

DeSousa added, “We stopped talking about redesigning the bike path. We found something we thought would work but needed engineering help to do it.” She also reminded the selectmen that the Howard Stillman Bates Foundation had offered a “substantial donation” last August, monies that she thought might help with safety modifications.

Although the selectmen weren’t completely sold that these additional visual warnings would translate into improved behavior on the part of cyclists, Silva said, “It’s worth it if we save even one life.” The selectmen voted to spend up to $35,000 of money that was previously allocated for this project at the fall special town meeting.

By Marilou Newell

 

Regulations Adjusted for Dinghy and Kayak Racks

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If you utilize any of the public dinghy or kayak racks, you will notice a few minor revisions to the town regulations this year.

Marion Harbormaster Isaac Perry emphasized to the Marion Board of Selectmen on April 18 that the regulation changes were minor, but any residents who use the racks should pay attention to the changes.

For one thing, there will now be a limit of one dinghy rack per household.

“There’s a waiting list for just about everything that we offer,” said Perry. “In an effort to be fair … we feel one rack per household is the way to go.”

According to the new regulation, with harbormaster’s approval, a rack may be used by a family member for up to 14 days, but the rack holder may not rent out the rack. The date of boat removal has been set at November 1, and any boats not removed by then will be subject to a $25 handling fee. In the case of a hurricane watch, the dinghy must be removed or that $25 handling fee will be charged.

Perry said there are over 50 kayak racks between the three locations of Islands Wharf, Old Landing, and Wings Cove.

With kayak regulations, said Perry, the same limitations of supply versus demand have led to a limit of two kayak racks per household. As with the dinghy racks, a rack can be used by a family member for up to 14 days, but the rack cannot be rented to a third party. The same $25 handling fee also applies.

According to Perry, there are 64 kayak racks available now at Island Wharf.

The Island Wharf boat berth regulations have also been adjusted, with the boat removal date being extended from October 15 to November 1. At Old Landing, boats shall be removed by December 1 unless the harbormaster grants permission for it to remain longer. That $25 handling fee also applies if the boat is not removed in time or if the boat remains during a hurricane watch.

As for the Island Wharf Commercial Float Rules and Regulations, said Perry, “These are an entirely new set of regulations.”

“We’ve always had an issue when it comes to access [for commercial vessels],” said Perry. “I’d like to give them spots. I’d like to open this up to everyone … [including] commercial.

It’s a limited amount of space that we have…”

There is only about 100 feet of linear dock, said Perry, so vessel sizes would be limited to about 20 feet, although no maximum length is stated in the regulations. The harbormaster, said Perry, will be the one to deem a boat’s appropriateness for the site.

A single vessel fee is $600, and an additional rafted vessel fee is $400. Non-resident business permits for Old Landing are an additional $100.

Vessels are allowed any time after May 1 and must be removed by November 1.

There are designated commercial gear loading and unloading locations, unless the harbormaster says otherwise.

With permission, permit holders may also raft a second vessel in their assigned spot.

“It’s not as cut and dry as some of our other waiting lists,” sad Perry. “It’s going to take some oversight on our part to make this work.”

The selectmen approved the regulations as presented.

In other matters, the board approved the establishment of a new open space committee recommended by members of the Master Plan open spaces subcommittee.

The committee will be referred to as the Marion Stewards of Community Open Space, a collaborative of the many public and private entities that manage and oversee open space and conservation land in the Town of Marion.

This committee will be comprised of one representative from the following town entities: the Open Space Acquisition Commission; Conservation Commission; Planning Board; Marine Resources Commission; Pathways Committee; Recreation Department; and the Tree & Parks Committee. The Sippican Lands Trust and the Trustees of Washburn Park are also invited to participate, but it has not yet been determined if the two groups will choose to do so.

The stewards will submit their requests for member appointments at a later date.

In other news, the board unanimously approved a sewer tie-in extension to Tabor Academy for two additional dormitories to be constructed. The school has no plans to expand its student body and will retire or re-purpose the two older dormitories being replaced.

The board also approved the permanent use of board and committee remote attendance via telephone and wireless phone technology.

Twenty-seven households in Marion that have not effectively responded to the Town’s efforts to communicate regarding the need to enter the property to replace old water meters with updated water meters may find their water service shut off in a matter of weeks should they fail to respond to one last attempt by the Town to make arrangements for the replacement. Town Administrator Paul Dawson said one house in Wareham receiving Marion water has already been shut off due to no payment.

“It’s a drastic measure and one that I’d hate to recommend, but at this point … this remains unresolved,” Dawson said.

Another 30 residences that have not responded to Town attempts to address illicit connections to the sewer system have prompted the Town to look into enforcement possibilities to force compliance. This matter, as well as a proposal for compliance enforcement, will come up again in future Board of Selectmen meetings.

The next meeting of the Marion Board of Selectmen is scheduled for May 2 at 7:00 pm at the Marion Town House.

Marion Board of Selectmen

By Jean Perry

 

Marion Natural History Museum

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The Marion Natural History Museum’s after school group wishes to thank Rochester Herring Warden Dave Watling for sharing his knowledge of this important species. We covered the development of this anadromous species, its diet, and where it stands in the food chain. The students learned about herring eggs and how neutral buoyancy plays an important role in their development. We also had a look at what type of equipment is being used to count the herring, and how our local populations have risen and fallen in the last few years. Now is the time to start checking out our local fish runs to see these animals in action. Photos courtesy Elizabeth Leidhold

Tabor Academy to Adjust Schedule

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Striving deeper learning and greater engagement for students, Tabor Academy is making exciting and important changes to the academic daily schedule and calendar for the 2017-18 school year.

The new schedule, which will employ a 7-day rotation, will feature an 8:30 am start time, and four, 75-minute classes meeting each school day, with classes condensing to 50 minutes on Wednesdays to maintain the early release for athletic contests. With significantly fewer transitions in a school day – both mental and physical – there is more opportunity for greater engagement for student learning.

“Tabor’s Academic Council has worked extensively on the changes, researching possibilities, speaking with peer schools that have made similar shifts, and thinking through and preparing for the rollout,” says Dean of Studies Eileen Marceau. “The new schedule is really developed with the student experience in mind.”

“We want our students to view school as much more than learning what to know, and instead about learning and practicing how to think,” says Marceau. Longer classes will provide the opportunity to move routinely beyond topic coverage to true engagement with the material for the purposes of thinking and learning. Marceau adds, “It will provide us the opportunity to be more responsive to a variety of learners. In short, it allows us to move our students more frequently beyond ‘doing school’ to more authentically engaging in deeper learning.”

As part of the change, the school is employing a robust professional development plan to provide ongoing support for the curricular revision over the next 18 months. In service to that plan, Tabor has entered an exciting partnership with the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning, a center of innovation and Mind-Brain-Education research. Working with the CTTL, Tabor faculty will continue to grow their understanding of neuroscience-based teaching strategies to bring to bear in the classrooms. Tabor’s first cohort of 14 teachers and administrators will attend the CTTL’s Summer Academy in July.

Alongside the schedule change, Tabor will shift its academic calendar to a trimester-based system for the 2017-2018 school year. Opening up a third academic term also will give students more choice and opportunity to take advantage of the breadth of Tabor’s academic offerings. Creating greater synergy with the athletic seasons and a break in between academic terms, the new calendar stands to benefit everyone.

St. Gabriel’s Collaborative Community Forums

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St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church’s collaborative community forums presents “Hope and Despair in These Times,” a public forum at the Marion Music Hall, 164 Front Street, Marion on April 23 from 4:00 – 5:30 pm.

All members of the community are welcome for this discussion of personal courage and engaged citizenship. Prof. Barry O’Connell, professor of English and American Studies at Amherst College, describes his topic as follows: “For us all despair is a temptation at times: when a child dies, or a young woman or man before his or her time, in the face of the cruelties of war, or when the problems of our nation appear beyond us, overwhelming. How do we, how can we, choose hope in response to grief and loss? Faith is always a miraculous choice, the great irrational leap, and the foundation of hope. I look forward to exploring these matters so at the heart of being human.”

This will be the fifth of St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church’s collaborative community forums.

The Lofty (But Not So Regal) Bald Eagle

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I saw a bald eagle yesterday soaring over the Buzzards Bay shoreline, clearly identified by its awesome wing span with striking white head and tail.

As our largest and most impressive local bird of prey, it is nevertheless an enigma to many bird watchers how such a carnivorous raptor could have been selected by our founding fathers as the national symbol of a peace loving country.

The winged symbol permeates almost every federal event, announcement, and public occasion, and a clue to the reasoning behind its selection can easily be found on the back of a one-dollar bill. In one talon the eagle clasps thirteen arrows, closely united as the solidarity of the Iroquois Federation, much admired by architects of our own new government. In the other talon is a branch of olive leaves as a universal symbol of friendly intentions to balance out a two-fisted show of both peace and strength.

However, in actual aerial behavior, the bald eagle might be said to soar on gossamer wings of evil intention with a bad habit of stealing fish from the osprey, who is better at catching them with light hollow bones able to dive completely under water and then surface holding its catch with curved claws, head first for aerodynamic efficiency. At speeds of up to one hundred miles an hour, the eagle can knock the osprey’s prize out of its grasp to then catch it before it hits the water.

Because of this bad behavior, Benjamin Franklin advised against selecting the eagle for such an honorary title, as a thief stealing others’ food, keeping a messy dead fish smelling eerie, and a coward often letting a much smaller territorial king bird chase it away from its own imperial perch.

Instead, Franklin nominated the wild turkey for a profile of clean living and a reputation of quietly minding its own business. But his suggestion was turned down because turkeys become rattled when felt threatened with danger, flying scatterbrained in all directions, not deserving to take wing as a symbol of national fortitude. So, the eagle remains to this very day, with questionable credentials.

We all have our own personal opinion about the interpretation of what is and what is not acceptable in human behavior and, through anthropomorphism, we often project those mortal values into the lives of animals that share the environment with us.

When rising sun of spring brings the welcome dawn through our windows looking at the osprey nest platforms of our nearest neighbor, I hope my narrative and image of the eagle painted for you does not materialize with the first light of day.

By George B. Emmons

 

Board Signs Off on Borrowing

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The Marion Board of Selectmen held a special early morning meeting on April 14 to sign a bond anticipation notice (BAN) in the amount of $3,779,778.

A BAN is a short-term borrowing instrument for periods of one year or less, but it can be rolled over into the next year, which municipalities often do.

This particular BAN was signed for the Mary’s Pond well replacement for $630,000 and wastewater lagoon improvements for $938,000, both already approved by Town Meeting.

The Town, with its AAA bond rating, secured a 1.25% interest rate on the BAN, which is “pretty low,” said Selectman Stephen Cushing. The Town will see some savings, said Town Treasurer Gary Carreiro.

Town Administrator Paul Dawson said that due to the Monday holiday, the selectmen had to hold the special meeting in order to have the BAN signed and submitted to the bank in time. The BAN is dated for April 21, 2017, with a maturity date of April 19, 2018.

In other matters, the board authorized community electricity aggregate program representatives from Good Energy to put the town residents’ electricity rate back out to bid.

Town Meeting had approved the electricity aggregation program, which allows a third party to negotiate with electricity providers for a lower electricity rate, a program residents are allowed to opt-out of.

“They’ve done some scouring and determined that now is a most favorable time for everyone. They are going to be putting this out to bid again to enter into a new agreement,” said Dawson.

That day will be April 19, and the Town will have a two-hour window to decide to accept the bid amount. Cushing was appointed again by the board to act as representative in the bidding process.

Before adjourning, Dawson announced that just an hour prior he had received the anticipated final NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Dawson had not yet had a chance to give the 190-page document a thorough read through, but he did forward it to the DPW and the Town’s engineering firm.

“I don’t anticipate any surprises in the critical terms we’ve been talking about,” said Dawson. “I think we will need to discuss what segments of this do we appeal…. We need to have the science checked and what the permit requirements are.” In particular, he said, the compliance schedule.

Marion Board of Selectmen

By Jean Perry

 

Giselle D. Bessette-Wiswell

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Giselle D. Bessette-Wiswell, 62 0f Mattapoisett died April 20, 2017 peacefully at home surrounded by her family.

She was the wife of Philip M. Wiswell.

Born in New Bedford, the daughter of the late Roland P. and Dorothy E. (Borges) Bessette, she lived in Mattapoisett all of her life.

Giselle was formerly employed as a paper carrier with the Standard-Times and Boston Globe in Mattapoisett for many years.

She enjoyed spending time with her children and grandchildren and attending the sporting events, plays and musicals of her grandchildren. Giselle also enjoyed music and the company of her dogs, Bear, Bailey and Midgey.

Survivors include her husband; a son, Aaron Hussey and his wife Aimee-Beth of New Bedford; 2 daughters, Brianne Lienkamp and her husband Christian of Mattapoisett and Kyla Hussey and her fiancé Darrell Charron of Mattapoisett; 2 sisters, Jo-Anne Bessette of Northampton and Carole Hedrick of Chelmsford; 6 grandchildren, Cassandra, Keelin, Trystan, Aiden, Eric and Austin; and many nieces and nephews.

She was the sister of the late Kevin Bessette and Jacqueline Bessette.

Her Funeral Mass will be celebrated Saturday, April 29th at 10 AM in St. Anthony’s Church in Mattapoisett. Burial will follow in St. Anthony’s Cemetery. Visiting hours are omitted. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to Southcoast VNA Hospice and Palliative Care, 200 Mill Rd., Fairhaven, MA 02719. For online guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.

Destination Imagination! Destination Knoxville!

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The name Destination Imagination says it all. This volunteer organization’s mission is to teach kids the creative process while working with a team to develop a solution to a problem. The teams may choose a challenge from a series of topics: technical, scientific, engineering, fine arts, improvisational, and service learning. Additionally, there is a Rising Stars! program for pre-school through second grade that is non-competitive. The teams compete at a local and state level, culminating in the annual Global Finals tournament. This year, there are three – yes, you read it correctly, three! – Tri-Town teams heading to the Global Finals in Knoxville, Tennessee on May 24.

Going to Global Finals is no small feat for the teams. Not only do they need to excel at their regional and state tournaments, but they also must raise the funds to travel to the site of the final tournament.

Each of the local winning teams will be fundraising over the next month to offset the cost of the trip, which can be as much as $1,400 per participant. The teams pay for registration, lodging, and food at the University of Tennessee campus, in addition to their travel costs and shipping of sets and props.

Sarah Cecil is the team manager for the Lightning Bolts, a group of seven fifth-graders from Rochester Memorial School, which chose a Fine Arts challenge for their project. The team placed first among three teams at the regional tournament at Dennis Yarmouth High School, and tied for second place at the state finals at Worcester Polytechnic Institute against nine other teams.

This is the third year the team has competed together, and Cecil says she just stands back and lets them work.

“They have all learned to work well together; they know each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” said Cecil. “If someone is melting down or struggling, someone else will help bring them back to the project.”

The participants develop their project entirely on their own, and there are no wrong solutions or ideas. It is an open-ended process, Cecil added.

“It’s thinking outside the box. The kids can make it whatever they want it to be; it’s driven entirely by them,” Cecil said.

The team developed an eight-minute presentation in which they were to pick a color and determine its meaning and make one element of the story disappear. The team chose the color red, and wrote a story in which the meaning of the color – anger – was illustrated through the impact of its disappearance from a fictional town on the town’s inhabitants.

The team was required to develop the characters, costumes, set and lighting, all to further the plot of their story. One of the Lightening Bolts team members Eva Hartley told Cecil, “[I] like Destination Imagination most because it gives me the opportunity to do things and try stuff that I didn’t think I could do before.” Most recently, Hartley was using a power saw to cut plywood, a task she may not have tried on her own.

Sometimes parents are puzzled by the idea that there are no wrong answers in solving the challenges, but it appears the kids’ creativity thrives under these conditions – Tri-Town teams have made it to the global finals four times over the past five years.

The DI Dazzlers (and sparkle) is a team of sixth and seventh-grade Rochester students, which recently won their regional and state competitions against seven other teams in their age group, to qualify for the Global Finals. The team meets weekly all winter to develop and create their project.

DI Dazzlers (and sparkle) team manager Jennifer Hunter underscored the value of participating in the program.

“It’s a great way to build relationships and work together as a team,” said Hunter. “My daughter isn’t the sports type, so this is a great alternative and still allows her to work as a part of a team.”

The team chose the engineering challenge, in which they were charged with designing and building a load-bearing structure using only balsa wood and glue. Their creation, at less than nine inches tall and weighing no more than 50 grams, at the state tournament successfully held 530 pounds before breaking.

Team member Emma Jones described her dedication to the program when she said, “I love Destination Imagination because it gives me a chance to use my imagination and creativity in order to solve problems. I am able to work together with my teammates to solve challenges that I might not ever try on my own.”

Hunter said being part of Destination Imagination “builds great character and helps make [the participants] so well rounded.”

The veteran Destination Imagination team H Squared is heading to the Global Finals this year for the third time. This close-knit team, made up of three sophomores and two juniors from Old Rochester Regional High School, has been working together for four years, with two of the members having been on the same team together for the last eight years.

Team manager Tina Rood has been managing the team since its inception. She also is the coordinator for the district, working to recruit new participants and team managers.

Rood’s co-manager for the team, Dr. Kerry Bowman, passed away last summer, and Bowman’s family created a fund to help ensure that the Tri-Town Destination Imagination program continued to expand and succeed.

The H Squared team chose the Fine Arts challenge, researched the meaning of a color, and developed an original story in which the color disappeared. As Rood described it, the love story centered on a cartoonist who suffered from unrequited love and in response made the color red disappear from his cartoons.

The team developed costumes and sets for the story, and won a Renaissance Award for the non-human element of the story: a pencil that functioned as the narrator.

The Renaissance Award is given in recognition of excellence and extraordinary effort in engineering, design or performance.

The team was given additional accolades at the regional tournament, receiving the Spirit of DI award, which Rood says was given “in honor of the team’s perseverance this year.”

Rood extolled the values of the Destination Imagination commitment, saying, “We get to the end of the year, and we see what these teams have created, and we say wow! And then when we start again next year, we ask how can we do it again, and the kids do – and it’s better than last year!”

Teams begin working on their challenges in October and work through March of the following year, working weekends and school vacations, putting in an incredible amount of time with their teams to develop their solution to the chosen challenge.

It can be overwhelming for new team managers, Rood noted, and as the district coordinator she works with other veteran team managers to mentor new recruits, helping the managers through the process and guiding them on how to best facilitate their team’s efforts.

“Once you get bitten by the bug, you say to yourself, ‘Oh, my gosh, I have to do this again!’”

Going to the regional, state, and Global Finals is a reward for a year of hard work. Teams have become experts in their particular challenge, and by going to the tournaments they get to see teams from all over their state, and ultimately from throughout the country and the world, present unique solutions from a whole different perspective.

“There are as many unique solutions as there are teams,” Rood said.

Each of the three Tri-Town teams will be hosting fundraising events throughout April and May to ease the financial burden to the participants. Also, donors have the opportunity to “Flamingo Flock” a friend or neighbor. From now until May 20, for a donation of $20, a flock of 20 flamingos will visit the front yard for 24 hours of a person of the donor’s choosing. For information about these or future events, call Lightning Bolts team manager Sarah Cecil at 508-322-0226.

The DI Dazzlers (and sparkle) team has a GoFundMe page: www.gofundme.com/send-the-di-dazzlers-to-globals. They also will be hosting a raffle with prizes from local businesses, and other community-based fundraisers, such as a car wash on Saturday, May 13, from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm at the Mattapoisett Fire Station. The team has set up a Youcaring Compassionate Crowdfunding page at www.youcaring.com/2017ORRDIGlobals. The H Squared team will also be collecting donations through direct solicitation in front of local businesses.

Donations for each of the teams can be made directly to Destination Imagination, Inc. at 1111 South Union Avenue, Cherry Hill, NJ 08002 Attn. GF Donation Dept. Make checks payable to Destination Imagination and include the team number on the check: DI Dazzlers #119-30259; Lightning Bolts #119-58196; H Squared #119-89977. Donations are tax deductible if made before May 1.

Hunter’s daughter Isabella reflected on her team’s achievement: “I do DI because it allows me to use my imagination and I enjoy performing. This year has been incredible. I never thought we would make it this far. I can’t wait for Globals!”

By Sarah French Storer