Eighty-four students, thirty-seven performances, six acts, and two teachers add up to one great night of entertainment. The talents showed through at Sippican School’s “Sippican’s Got Talent” this evening. There was dancing, there was singing, magic and even stand up comedy, they had it all.
Photos by Paul Lopes
Dig Into Reading!: Children ages 2-12 and their families can discover the joy of reading at the Elizabeth Taber Library this summer. The fun begins on June 24 and continues through August 1. Play the “Dig Into Reading Game” for fun, prizes and a good cause.
Ed the Wizard: June 24 at 2:00 pm. Young audiences will enjoy mystifying magic, juggling, colorful costumes and comedy. Performance will be held at the Music Hall (corner of Front and Cottage streets). This performance is made possible in part by the Marion Cultural Council.
Lunch Bunch I begins June 25 at 12:30 pm at the Elizabeth Taber Library. Children ages 7-10 can bring lunch and a drink (we supply dessert) and listen as we begin reading aloud. Contact the library to join this group.
Summer Story Time begins June 26 at 10:30 am for 2-4 year olds (accompanied
by enthusiastic adult companions). Sign up today and enjoy the fun!
Lunch Bunch II begins June 27 at 12:30 pm. Children ages 5-7 can bring lunch
and a drink (we supply dessert), and listen to a book being read aloud. Contact the
library to join this group.
Drop-in Activity Days are every Friday and Saturday during the summer program at the
Elizabeth Taber Library. Instructions and materials are available in the Children’s Room during regular library hours.
Pre-Readers: Help decorate our “Cave” by putting up a sticker each visit to the library.
Junior Volunteers: Students going into grades 5-9 can become junior library aides
for the summer. Contact Mrs. Grey at the library or by email at rgrey@sailsinc.org before June 17 for more information and to fill out an application.
All events are free of charge! For more information, call the library at 508-748-1252, and check our website at www.elizabethtaberlibrary.org.
Team oN A Mission is a group of 12 riders; nine college students, two ORR seniors and our athletic director, Bill Tilden, all from the Tri-Town area riding in the 34th Annual Pan-Mass Challenge taking place August 3 and 4. As a team, we have a minimum fundraising goal of $51,600, with 100 percent of that money going to Dana-Farber Cancer Research Institute via the Jimmy Fund. Team oN A Mission is holding a two-mile run/walk with a 1/4 kid’s run on June 22, with 100 percent of the registration fees and other donations going directly to Dana-Farber, which will impact research and treatment at the world’s best cancer research and treatment institute.
Team oN A Mission was started last year by Sarah Marchisio and cousin Beth Peucker to ride in memory of Nancy and Richard Marchisio (Sarah’s parents), as well as Maura Scanlon-McRae (the duo’s aunt) and every other human that has been touched by cancer. We are all riding the 192-mile journey from Sturbridge to Provincetown with heavy hearts yet hopeful ones, and are joined by 4,000-plus other riders who will not stop until a cure is found. Registration for the run/walk online can be done at http://racewire.com/register.php?id=3202, and more information about the team and individual riders can be found at http://www2.pmc.org/profile/TG0112.
Water bills are due next week in Marion and at the end of the month in Mattapoisett. A little blue slip of paper included in the mailing notifies residents of a water restriction in effect from June 15 through September 15.
“This is a conservation restriction,” says Rob Zora, Superintendent of the Department of Public Works in Marion. “We’ve had the restriction for many years, and it’s primarily to keep people from watering their gardens and lawns in the midday because of evaporation. You can do more harm than good watering in the middle of the day.”
According to Zora, July and August are the highest water usage months, with the town using from 800,000 to 1 million gallons of water a day. This month’s estimate is approximately 550,000 to 600,000 gallons a day.
In Mattapoisett, this past Saturday, June 1, the town used 577,000 gallons and on Sunday, June 2, the town used 621,000 gallons.
“This past weekend was hot, and we expected a higher usage, but it didn’t happen,” said Nick Nicholson, Superintendent of the Water and Sewer Department in Mattapoisett. According to Nicholson, the weekends almost always show a spike in water usage.
Rochester primarily uses well water and septic systems but has approximately 200 homes connected to the Marion water system. Only a dozen or so homes in Marion operate on a private well system.
The water restriction prohibits outside watering except between the hours of 6:00 and 8:00 am, and between the hours of 6:00 and 8:00 pm, Monday, Wednesday and Friday for even street-numbered homes, and Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday for odd-street numbered homes. Residents may wash vehicles and water plants on Sundays by means of a hand-held hose between the hours of 6:00 am and 12:00 pm.
Nicholson echoed Zora’s comments by saying that outdoor watering in the summer is an issue.
“It’s about education,” Nicholson said. “You really only need to water once a week and only an inch of water. Watering in the midday isn’t effective and should be done early in the morning or in the late afternoon.”
According to the American Water Works Association (AWWA), at least 50 percent of water consumed by households is used outdoors. Inside your home, bathroom facilities claim nearly 75 percent of the water used.
Indoor usage varies by household, but estimates by the AWWA show that nearly 40 percent gets flushed down the toilets. More than 30 percent is used in showers and baths, while the laundry and dishwashing take about 15 percent. Leaks claim 5 percent or more, which leaves about 10 percent for everything else.
Both Zora and Nicholson stressed the importance of taking care of leaks immediately.
“A leaking faucet goes 24/7 and can add up very quickly and should be fixed immediately,” said Zora. A faucet or toilet leak that totals only two tablespoons a minute becomes 15 gallons a day and 105 gallons a week.
Other suggestions for cutting the water bill include covering your swimming pool to prevent evaporation, mowing your lawn once a week, using low-flow showerheads, and avoiding leaving the water running while shaving or brushing your teeth.
By Joan Hartnett-Barry
The Joseph H. Plumb Library in Rochester kicked off their summer reading program entitled “Dig Into Reading” last Friday evening, where “Mad Scientist” Laser Leigh presented a group of K-6 graders from the Tri-Town area with several scientific experiments and an informative, yet fun, lecture on the wide scientific world.
The presentations included segments on gravity, the earth’s surface, inertia, and even a portion where students created volcanic models out of a beaker and some different chemicals provided by Leigh.
“Dig Into Reading” officially started June 1, and this recent presentation was an example of what’s in store for the summer. The program includes weekly activities for children to participate in, as well as features several other performers.
This particular event was held at the Congressional Church, because it is bigger than the library and able to house the 30 or so students that attended the event, as well as their parents and relatives.
“We’re lucky that we’re having it here,” said Lisa Fuller, who runs Children’s Services at the library. “Our neighbor let us have use of the building, so we have no space limitations.”
From the looks of it, students can expect an action-packed summer at Plumb Library.
Registration is still open, so anyone interested in signing up for the free “Dig Into Reading” program can do so at the Plumb Library or at their website, which is www.plumblibrary.com.
By Nick Walecka
Roland R. Dumas, age 97, of Fairhaven, formerly of Mattapoisett and New Bedford, passed away Tuesday, June 4, 2013. He was the husband of Yvonne (Caissie) Leblanc and the late Edna (Brasseur) Dumas.
Born in New Bedford, he was the son of the late Louis and Orephise (Trahan) Dumas. Mr. Dumas served in the US Navy during WWII and later became the owner and proprietor of Roland’s Markets, retiring in 1980.
He was the past President of the New Bedford Grocer Association. He was also an avid square dancer and enjoyed boating and fishing.
The family would like to extend their deepest gratitude to those at the Atria in Fairhaven for the care Roland received and a special thanks to Luisa for all that she did.
Besides his wife he is survived by three sons, Robert Dumas and his wife Helen of S. Dartmouth, Marcel Dumas and his wife Michelle of Smithfield, RI and Normand Dumas and his wife Ines of Colorado; three daughters, Rolande Gordon-Keopke and her husband Richard of Mashpee, Suzanne Rodrigues and her husband Robert of Popano Beach Gardens, Florida and Michelle Forand and her husband Steven of New Bedford; step-daughter, Aimee Marx; two brothers, Laurier “Rudy” and Ronald Dumas; fifteen grandchildren; twenty great grandchildren; one step-grandson and several nieces and nephews.
He was also the father of the late Jean Paul Dumas and Paulette Dumas.
His funeral will be held Monday, June 10, 2013 at 8 AM from the ROCK Funeral Home, 1285 Ashley Blvd., followed by his funeral mass at 9 AM in St. Mary’s Church, 440 Main St., Fairhaven, Burial with military honors will follow in Sacred Heart Cemetery. Visiting hours, Sunday 4-7 PM. Memorial contributions in his honor may be made to Community Nurse & Hospice Care, P.O. Box 751, Fairhaven, MA 02719.
•Editors note: This story has been serialized into six parts which will appear weekly in The Wanderer and at wanderer.com
By Rudd Wyman
Part II
In 1938, like everyone on Point Connett, the Warren family had to rebuild. Bob and Grace Warren had twins, Jack and Jill, who became my summertime pals. An older sister, Joan, won regional sailing awards; an older brother, Bob Jr., became a B-26 pilot, shot down and badly wounded over Germany, he was surgically healed by a skillful enemy doctor. Returning to Point Connett, Bob married Debbie and they sired four boys.
Jill became my favorite twin, like the sister I never had. We rode the roller coaster at Lincoln Park six times, and crashed bumper cars at the Brockton Fair.
On one July night, Jill and I prowled the Point, howling and hooting like wounded elephants waking neighbors and alerting Oman. After a homeward bound marathon, Guntha, Oman’s German Shepherd, sniffed me cowering under Peck’s Jeep. With Oman’s bright light in my eyes, I invited man and beast next door to my folk’s house, lit up like a casino. With Mom and Dad in Bermuda, Oman accepted and suggested future primate behavior in moderation, while Guntha snored. Jill escaped.
In the early 1940s, the threat of German submarines passing through Buzzards Bay became a reality and for several months, the Coast Guard maintained scrutiny and security from our summer home. Nightly blackouts interrupted early evening cocktail and bridge parties. Dad bought a surplus Navy searchlight and mounted it on the front porch railing. During the early war years, a fatal shark attack happened off Pease’s Point, but I do not recall any foreign submarine sightings.
Dressed in camouflage with BB guns at the ready, Point Connett special forces borrowed Guntha to search for spies behind scrub pines and boulders. Most of my friends, energized commandoes, belonged to the Angelica Yacht Club, and sailed 12-foot, gaff rigged, two-person catboats. AYC sailors raced for weekend flags and the Beetlecat Cup, a pewter replica of America’s Cup.
While colored flags seemed important to enthusiastic parents, only a few yellow flags for third-place finishes graced the Wyman Rafters. Consistently, the Warren family won the blue and red flags, as well as many trophies. Sailing the Bobbin with her black hull and orange sail, my friends deserved every award.
For myself, racing was not a serious pastime, and I carried a fishing rod. Named after my favorite Disney song, Hi Ho, crossed the finish line long after the race committee and spectators had left the stone pier. Fresh striped bass, or bluefish for the Wyman family Sunday dinner was a treat, with milk toast for back up.
The course was to sail around the Angelica Red buoy, leave Cleveland Ledge to Port and home. Point Connett odds favored Jill in the Bobbin, with Dave Barker for her crew, at 2-1; a few sympathetic gamblers had Hi Ho, with Polly Anderson (my crew) at 12-1.
Between Point A and B, and in last place, I noticed gulls frantically diving over a school of Blues. Casting a popping plug, immediately I was onto a good-sized bluefish. That was when Polly noticed a shark fin, and suddenly water exploded as Sunday dinner got sliced in two.
“I’ll never sail with you again,” Polly said And, she didn’t, but she kept my school ring.
My Dad thought that Sunday racing was excellent therapy for shark hunters who drank too much beer on Saturday night. Sleeping late on one Sunday morning, he carried and dumped me from the stone pier, reiterating words of Polly Anderson’s dad, Andy, “When will you get a life?”
This happened on the same weekend that I declined my Grandmother’s offer and financial incentive to quit smoking on my seventeenth birthday. Beach bumming could be a risky livelihood.
Continued Next Week
The Marion School Committee on Wednesday approved funding a tuition-free Full Day Kindergarten program for the 2013-2014 school year, despite the Finance Committee’s recommendation to hold back.
With Vice Chair Christine Winters and member Jay Pateakos dissenting, the School Committee voted 3-2 in favor of the measure.
“I’ve received e-mails from a significant number of families who are really onboard with this, really supportive,” member Michelle Ouellette said. “Their reasons are financial, academic, and social.”
Superintendent Doug White told the Committee that the district would have a roughly $5,000 shortfall, “worst-case scenario,” in the case of state grants not coming through as promised for Full Day K.
Winters expressed concerns about a lack of “modeling” the program for future kindergarten cohorts. The current cohort is small – 33 families – and Winters said that the Finance Committee had not gotten the opportunity to project the program’s financial implications in the long term. She asked that the Committee consider 2013-14 as a “transition year.”
Pateakos agreed. “The Finance Committee recommended waiting until they can see the numbers.”
But the majority, including new member Christine Marcolini, responded swiftly.
Citing Mattapoisett’s recent passage of Full Day K, Ouellette said that Marion must act to “keep our students on level ground with the rest of the Tri-Town.” She also lamented the “serious disadvantage” that half-day kindergarteners face.
“This is for the good of the students and the good of the community,” member Joe Scott said. “We will have plenty of time to do our due diligence in the future if things look different.”
A Marion resident and parent of an incoming kindergartener agreed.
“A worst-case $5,000 shortfall for a potentially great program doesn’t seem like a very difficult decision to me,” the parent said. “It makes a ton of sense to do it now.”
On top of the Full-Day K decision, the Committee’s last meeting before the summer break featured an extensive agenda. Included among numerous items was the approval of a new in-ground basketball hoop and two soccer nets for Sippican School; a 2% increase in the YMCA’s lease; and the School Committee’s meeting dates for 2013-14.
Meanwhile, the Committee heard from Sippican Principal Lyn Rivet, who reported 97% overall attendance for 2012-13 and Director of Food Services Caitlin Meagher, who reported a 41% participation rate that she said the district will focus on increasing.
In addition, the Committee recognized the service of Dr. John Conway, who submitted his resignation as physician for Old Rochester Regional High School and Junior High School, and Lisa Horan and Mary Jane Menezes for the 2012-13 Marion Teachers Association Merit Award.
After most new business had been navigated, the Committee reorganized, with Scott ascending to chair, and Jay Pateakos taking over as Vice Chair.
By Shawn Badgley
Art in Bloom: The Marion Art Center, located at 80 Pleasant Street, is pleased to announce the opening of two exhibitions on June 7. An opening reception in honor of the artists will be held from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. In conjunction with the two exhibitions, members of the Marion Garden Discussion Group will interpret the select paintings using floral arrangements. The floral arrangements will be on display during the opening and will be part of the exhibitions as long as the arrangements last. Members of the Marion Garden Group have presented Art in Bloom every year for many years. Gallery goers are always delighted by the many ways the paintings are interpreted: sometimes dramatic, sometimes humorous, and always worth a second look!
Marion artist Mary Jane McCoy will be exhibiting her acrylic and oil paintings in the Cecil Clark Davis Gallery, and New York artist Arthur Kvarnstrom will be exhibiting his plein air watercolors in the Patsy Francis Gallery. The two exhibitions will run from June 7 through July 13.
The Marion Art Center Gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm, and on Saturdays from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm. Admission is free and open to the public.
2013 Summer Musical Theater Program Accepting Applications: The Young People’s Musical Theater Class is for boys and girls who will be entering grades 4-8, and will take place each Tuesday and Thursday afternoon from 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm for four weeks. The first class is July 9 through August 1.
Classes will focus on developing stage presence, creativity, and talent through acting, singing, dance, theater games and improvisation. The final class on August 1 will be a performance of a Musical Revue featuring the students in solos, duets and group numbers. Leading the program will be Kimberly Teves, a veteran performer with over 30 years of experience in musical theatre. Local audiences may remember her from performances in MAC’s productions of: Sylvia, Rumors, Imagine: An American Girl Revue, Gold in the Hills, Love Changes Everything, and last summer’s musical, I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change! Kim has been teaching this class for the last four years.
The fee for the four-week session is $160 for MAC members and $175 for non-members. To register and pay for this program online, please visit the MAC website at www.marionartcenter.org and click on “Register.” Then click on “2013 SUMMER Young People’s Musical Theater Class – On Line Registration Form.” For more information, please call 508-748-1266 or stop by the Marion Art Center at 80 Pleasant Street in Marion during Gallery Hours: Tuesday through Friday from 1:00 to 5:00 pm or on Saturdays from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Applications Are Now Being Accepted for ARTSTART: Marion Art Center’s summer art program for children ages four-and-a-half to nine is back! Founded in 1985, ARTSTART meets Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings from 9:00 am until 12:00 pm. The activities include arts & crafts, theater, music, stories and dance. Children are grouped by age and participate in all three activities every day. Snacks are provided by the MAC. There are three two-week sessions beginning June 26. Each session has a unique theme, and there is an informal production at the end of each session where the children act, create costumes, sets and help write the plays.
The staff is made up of certified teachers as activity heads supported by caring and talented counselors. Nancy Sparklin is the Program Director. For more information, please call 508-748-1266 or visit our website at www.marionartcenter.org and click on the ARTSTART tab to Register and Pay online.
Seventh Annual Arts in the Park: On July 6 from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, the Marion Art Center will host its Seventh Annual Arts in the Park at Bicentennial Park. A wide variety of fine art and crafts will be displayed in tents throughout the Park. Arts in the Park is a juried show and sale featuring local artists and artisans who will be offering jewelry, glass, paintings and prints, ceramics, textiles, collage, photography, turned, carved and painted wood, garden sculpture and garden furniture. There will be food, music and more. Over 40 artists and artisans will be exhibiting their work. Food and beverage will be offered by Harriett’s Catering.
There will be a raffle of artwork that has been donated by the artist exhibitors. Raffle tickets will be $1 and can be purchased throughout the day. The proceeds of the raffle will benefit the Marion Art Center.
Bicentennial Park is located at the corner of Main Street and Spring Street, where there is plenty of free parking. Admission is free.
This year’s exhibitors will include:
Ceramic artists: Kim Barry, Chrissy Feiteira, Karen Zaharee, Sheilagh Flynn, Teri MacMillan, Tessa Morgan, Liz Rodriguez and Pat Warwick. Fiber creations will be offered by Liz Howland (hand-dyed silk scarves and shawls, as well as cloth bags by Michelle Dodd). Fine jewelry will be offered by Adler Grier, Emily Condon, Lynn Hahn, Trish Kozub, Karen Silvia, Sarah Morse, Toni Cardoza, Julie Andrews-Maness, Julie Kohaya and Harmony Winters. Paintings, prints, photographs and collage will be offered by Mary Ross, Kim Weineck, Alice Shire and Claudin Poyant. Handcrafted bags and accessories will be offered by Sophie Truong (leather bags) and Michelle Dodd (cloth bags). Barbara Harrold will be selling her whimsical puppets. Painted objects and furniture will include Sarah Brown’s hand-painted chairs and tables, Lissa Magauran’s painted cans and Sarah Minor’s painted floor cloths. Garden sculpture and furniture: Stephen Koleshis and Paul Trenouth. James Gallagher will offer his delightful folk-art fish. Glass creations will be offered by Jackie Pinheiro and Liza Abelson, and hand-crafted soaps by Jennifer Marie Hofman will round out the show.
Marion Art Center’s galleries will be open during the event. Visitors are invited to come inside and see the current exhibition of paintings in the Galleries as well as check out a “Remainder Sale” of art, books and more!
For more information, please visit: www.marionartcenter.org and click on the Arts in the Park tab, or call 508-748-1266.
Nick Claudio is known as the “Renaissance Man” from Mattapoisett because of what he has accomplished in spite of debilitating cancer treatments. Among other accomplishments, in March he became the inaugural recipient of the Cam Neely Award for Courage, and he’s just 12 years old.
Nick’s first tumor left him blind at the age of 9. He’s currently undergoing treatment for a second round of brain tumors. With bills for non-reimbursable medical treatment, technology and travel expenses mounting daily, a group of friends and family have come together to help ensure that Nick has the opportunity to participate in outreach programs for the visually impaired along with obtaining the necessary equipment and technology to keep him connected with the world.
The Freedom Fund for Nick Claudio (FFFNC), with support from the Devin Laubi Foundation, is holding a fundraiser, emceed by Jim Mathes, at 6:00 pm on June 23 at the Century House in Acushnet. Tickets are $30 each and $20 each for children 13 and under. Tickets can be obtained by calling 508-996-3425.
FFFNC Committee Chairperson Melinda Tveit says, “People who attend the fundraiser will have the opportunity to learn about a young man who embodies the potential and resiliency of the human spirit. The ticket price includes a really good meal and the chance to bid on some amazing donated auction items, with John George as auctioneer. In addition, several levels of giving and sponsorship opportunities are available.”
Nick receives assistance from the Perkins School for the Blind, the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, the Mattapoisett Lions Club and the ORR School District. Learn more about Nick at facebook.com/fffnc1.