Due to a scheduling conflict with the Marion Concert Band’s performance at Island Wharf Park on Friday, July 19, the Sippican Historical Society/Marion Council on Aging’s presentation of the film Inherit the Wind on that evening has been canceled.
Newly Formed Little League a Success
In any merger, there’s an adjustment period when the two sides, generally unfamiliar with each other, are suddenly thrust together and forced to iron out their differences while they build toward the greater good of the now combined entities.
For the pre-existing leagues known as Old Rochester Little League and Rochester Youth Baseball League, this year was that adjustment period, but after one full season together, the newly formed Old Rochester Little League, which now includes players from Rochester, Marion and Mattapoisett, has been a success, and the players are reaping the benefits, both on and off the field.
“It was a little bit of a culture shock when we brought the two groups together – some little bumps along the way, some hiccups here and there – but I think by and large, those are temporary, one-year type of things where people are getting used to the new league structure, and also getting more familiar with where their child would be appropriately placed,” Commissioner Peter Johnson said.
Johnson said that the league has about 400 participants from ages 4-12. Players play at multiple complexes across Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester.
“The idea is to mix all the kids together, and have them play across all three towns,” Johnson said. “It’s a true Tri-Town experience for the kids.”
Not only has the number of players doubled, but they’ve also been able to fine-tune the age groups to a point where players can be placed within similar age and skill levels, which allows coaches to properly appropriate playing time while also keeping the leagues competitive.
“I think it really worked out well where it allowed finer gradation and the kids play in a peer group – both age and ability – with the idea to provide the best opportunity for the kids,” Johnson said. “Nothing’s more frustrating then when a kid’s not with the appropriate group.”
Under the new system, players are divided into 5 different age groups: T-Ball, for 4- and 5-year-olds; Double-A, for 6- and 7-year-olds; Triple-A, for advanced 7- and 8-year-olds, where players start to pitch and hit live pitching; Minor League, for 9- and 10-year-olds with some 11-year-olds mixed in; and Major League, for 11- and 12-year-olds.
This year, champions were crowned in three leagues, with the Braves winning in the Major League Division, the Padres winning the Minor League Division, and the Mud Hens winning the Triple-A Division.
The Old Rochester Little League also sent 10-, 11-, and 12-year-old teams to the District 7 Little League World Series Tournament, and though no team made it onto the next round, they were all very competitive.
“The nice thing, though, when you play in these tournaments, you never know what type of competition you’re going to come across,” Johnson said. “I would say that each one of our teams competed very well. We’re very competitive for the small footprint that we have – we’re probably one of the smallest programs in the district.”
One team that was very successful was a group of 9-year-old all-stars from the league, who recently won the Sandwich Summer Blast Tournament.
The league will also field teams for the upcoming local all-star circuit.
All in all, the entire merger can be considered a success, especially off the field, with friendships being formed that may not have ever existed without the leagues’ unification.
“We didn’t play cross-town baseball back [when I was a child],” Johnson said. “There weren’t any youth organizations that spanned the Tri-Town area, perhaps with the exception of hockey. These kids are forging these bonds across the Tri-Town area, which really helps as they transition into the Junior High and the Senior High. They walk in, and they already have all these friendships.”
By Nick Walecka
Gardens Galore in Marion
Overcast skies didn’t hold back the crowds that came on Friday to see magnificent, private gardens that were open to the public for only one day.
Gardens by the Sea is an annual fundraiser for St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church, which uses the money raised for global and local outreach programs.
The tour included handouts for each garden, detailing which way to walk, with explanations on plants, trees, and shrubs, as well as specifics about the history and work that went into water features, ornamental statue placement, birdbaths, bird-feeders, trellis, and other auxiliary garden items.
Six private home gardens were on display, one of which was in Marion Village, another at The Moorings, and several in the Point Road area. The Sippican School Edible garden was also on the tour. Diane Cook and fourth grader Bella Romig gave a walking tour around the various vegetable beds, blueberry bushes, strawberry stack, and potato beds.
A fundraising bake sale organized by Community Resources Network was held in the Captain Hadley House parking lot, where tour tickets were sold. CRN helps those in need by offering limited emergency utility assistance, food, furniture, and referrals to social service agencies.
Three of the gardens were waterfront properties, with sweeping views of Wings Cove, Marion Harbor, and Buzzards Bay. The homes had many interesting garden amenities, including tree houses, pools surrounded by beautiful plantings, koi ponds, water features, blooming water lilies, grape arbors, herbs, vegetables, apple trees, interesting bird feeders, and creative ways to keep deer away.
One home had a pet cemetery with small gravestones with names including: Mittens, Minnie, Cinder, Suzi, Lillabet, Spooky, and Roxanne. “My Lillabet is buried here,” hostess Sandy Dawson said. One home had soda cans strung with fishing line along a fence to scare deer. Another used pet hair combings, cat litter, and torn up old T-shirts to keep deer away.
“I think people come on the tour to get ideas for their own garden,” organizer Hannah Milhench said. “I also think that curiosity plays a part. They want to look around a beautiful home and see what others have done in the garden and go home and try to replicate some of it.”
Milhench said that it takes many volunteers’ time and effort to plan a successful garden tour. Each of the six gardens had volunteers working two-hour shifts, along with a head hostess who was responsible for each garden.
When asked how she gets people to agree to show their gardens, Milhench said that she has lived in Marion for over 45 years and asks her friends to be on the lookout for gardens that could be on the tour. “I have a lot of help and depend on the many wonderful people who have suggested spectacular gardens,” she said. Milhench is a gardener and her own home has been on the tour in the past. “I also walk around Marion a lot.”
Eleven years ago, St. Gabriel’s had a shortfall to fund the Barbara Harris Camp, a retreat and camp for youth. The assistant rector at the time, Cynthia Bell, came up with the idea of a garden tour to continue funding the camp. The Gardens by the Sea was born. Since then, the tour has grown by word of mouth, and funds raised help not only the camp scholarships, but other global mission needs as determined by the St. Gabriel’s mission and outreach committee.
When asked about next year’s garden tour, Milhench said that she already has a great start.
“We hope to have one really special garden on the water, that encompasses the Marion waterfront feeling,” she said.
Although it sprinkled at times during the tour, rain makes the flowers grow, and that’s what it was all about.
By Joan Hartnett-Barry
40B No Bridge/Wave Access Presented
The lengthy wooden bridge access (shading valuable wetlands) to and from the proposed Baywatch Realty Trust (40B) property on Route 105/Front Street in Marion was eliminated from the revised plans presented on Thursday at the Marion Zoning Board of Appeals meeting.
The presentation by Kenneth Steen, of Kenneth Steen Real Estate Inc. and Edward Gless, Existing Grade, representing Baywatch Realty Trust, shows a revised plan eliminating the bridge and presenting a new access, adjacent to the Wave Restaurant recently acquired from owner Todd Zell. The revised plans show an access point coming in and on property adjacent to the restaurant parking area, now in a wooded area. None of the existing parking of the Wave Restaurant would be impacted by the project.
The other substantial change in plans was the roadway in, out, and through the proposed development. The previous roadway varied from 22 feet to 24 feet. At issue was whether a 49-foot ladder fire truck could make its way through the complex, with the existing landscape design, as presented, in an effective and timely manner. The new design has the entire project having a 24-foot street width.
“We needed to have a full 24-foot street width and a 100-foot radius for fire trucks that could handle a fire in the area with this density,” Building Inspector Scott Shippee said. “I’m glad to see that you’ve addressed this concern.”
During the 14-year effort to develop the 40B Baywatch Realty Trust property, the Marion Conservation Commission, along with residents, were dismayed by the wetlands that would be shuttered from sunlight by the length of the bridge.
“A wood bridge of that size was not a good option,” said Shippee said. “This is a better proposal, if the radius of the fire truck is addressed and the landscaping on the turn is also modified to not interfere with the height of the truck which would turn at that bend.”
The public is welcome to view the plans, which contain considerable changes, at the Marion Town House or at the meeting and weigh in and provide comments on the proposed 92-unit development, which will take shape after permits are approved.
At issue was whether the changes presented were substantial or insubstantial. Marion ZBA Chair Eric Pierce deemed them substantial, prompting a public hearing to be held on July 25 at 7:45 pm at the Town House. The audience applauded his and the board’s decision to see the final proposed plans, with the landscape, roadway, and other issues discussed in a final plan to be presented to the Marion Conservation Commission for final approval.
In discussing another item, the board agreed to continue a request by Kathleen Mahoney, 40 Dexter Rd., until July 25.
Elsewhere on the agenda, the board continued the application for a Special Permit for Matthew Stelmach Jr. who applied to the ZBA to allow the construction of a sunroom and garage addition at 5 Spinnaker Ln. The request was continued to July 25.
By Joan Hartnett-Barry
State Soccer Tournament
The U12 Mariner Sonics & the U18 Mariner Comets recently competed for a state championship at the MA Tournament of Champions in Lancaster, MA. The U12 Mariner Sonics qualified for the state tourney by achieving an impressive perfect 10 – 0 season in the South Coast Soccer League to earn their first South Coast Championship. The U18 Mariner Comets have enjoyed tremendous success as they became MA State Finalists for the 3rd time in 4 years.
Back row, from left: Assistant Coach Doug Barresi, Delaney Pothier, Ryley Costa, Breanna Demanche, Gabby Barresi, Tali O’Leary, Maddie Demanche, Coach Dave Francis. Front row, from left: Brianna Cruz, Anya Aadland, Jillian Kutash, Alex Fluegel, Nicole Fantoni, Arissa Francis
Back row, from left: Assistant Coach Mike Bouvette, Nora Saunders, Tori Vargas, Amanda Frey, Andrea Chaput, Katie Langlois, Mackenzie Macuch, Alex Gordon, Caitlin Haefner, Sydney Mota, Coach Dave Francis. Front row, from left: Carly Ciccatelli, Kayli Berche, Ally Smith, Abby Adams, Allison Francis, Hannah Bouvette, Michaela Bouvette, Ashley Pereira.
ORR’s Irving Berlin Revue
The Old Rochester Regional High School Drama Club is at it again. It’s time for their Alumni Involved Summer Show! What are they doing, you may ask? Another first! Under the direction of Paul Sardinha, with costumes by Helen Blake, sound by John Farrell, and music conducting by Michael Amaral, the Drama Club will present an “Irving Berlin Revue.”
The show will feature alumni from years past along with current students. This revue will showcase 44 of Berlin’s 1,200 songs with such favorites as “Puttin’ on the Ritz,” “Alexander’s Ragtime Band,” “You’re Just in Love, How Deep is the Ocean,” “God Bless America,” and many, many more! A musical revue of this kind has never been done before at a high school, and the kids love learning the “oldies but goodies” and can’t wait to present an “Irving Berlin Revue.”
The performance will take place at the Gilbert D. Bristol Auditorium in Mattapoisett August 1, 2 and 3 at 7:30 pm, and August 4 at 2:00 pm. Ticket prices are $12 for students and senior citizens and $15 for the general public! Tickets may be purchased at the door, and will also be sold at The Pen and Pendulum in Mattapoisett, Plumb Corner Market in Rochester and the Marion General Store in Marion. For ticket reservations, please phone Lisa Cardoza at 508-758-6762.
Mattapoisett Native Returns for Booksigning
Krista Russell was back in her hometown on Thursday afternoon for a reading and booksigning at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library. The event took place hours before Russell was to receive a Massachusetts Book Award for young adult literature that evening.
Russell’s novel is set in New Bedford in the mid-1800s, as protagonist Lucky Valera – a Cape Verdean kid who has been forced to give up his whaling dreams – gets caught up in dangerous times. Lucky bravely joins the abolitionist movement and works on the Underground Railroad, leading to adventures that have left readers and critics alike spellbound.
Dozens of fans – mostly children and their parents – packed the Mattapoisett Public Library to hear Russell read from Chasing the Nightbird, and stuck around for the cookies, punch, and signing afterward. Russell fielded questions from curious readers of all ages, and said she was thrilled to be back on her old stomping grounds.
“Growing up in this area, there’s a lot of history and so many interesting stories,” she told the audience. “We used to go to the whaling museum all of the time, and it was very inspiring to walk those streets and think about the stories I could tell, what the characters would have done in the past.”
Russell said that her next book – to be released in October – will be set in 18th-century Florida, while she has already started working on the subsequent novel, taking place in ancient Rome.
Attendees marveled at the amount of research Russell undertakes for her historical fiction.
“I love that part of it,” the author said. “There are a lot of great resources out there – photographs, firsthand accounts – and sometimes I get so swept up in them that I have to remind myself I have a book to write.”
By Shawn Badgley
Overflow Crowd for Trailside Hearing
Abutters and other residents came out in force on Thursday to register their opposition to a variance request by Coastal Realty and Development LLC for its Trailside Estates project.
The developers were originally approved for the age-restricted condominiums on Snipatuit Road in 2006, but later received two cease and desist orders from the Rochester Planning Board for environmental concerns, which delayed and “effectively killed” it, according to the LLC’s attorney, Michael Kelley. The developers owe tens of thousands of dollars of back taxes on the land.
In order to get the project “back on track” in a roller coaster housing market, Kelley asked that the Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals allow Coastal to remove the age restriction – 55 and older – for the condos, allowing other buyers to purchase units. Trailside’s plans call for 60 luxury units on 38.4 acres, and such infrastructure as drainage, gas, cable, septic, and other utilities have already been installed. Principals said that they have spent $1.3 million already, and that financing would be difficult – if not impossible – to secure for housing available only to those 55 and older.
But a skeptical ZBA expressed concerns about the potential toll on Rochester’s school system, while frustrated abutters lamented the noise, run-off, and other problems they say they have experienced since construction began more than five years ago.
“I live right next door, and I was very much affected,” Bruce Duffy said. “If this moves forward, and they get stuck again, where does that leave us?”
Susan Owen agreed.
“Every time there’s bad weather, we’re underwater. It never used to be that way,” Owen said. “It’s not fixed. We’re just living with it.”
Owen and other neighbors said that they did not believe Coastal had operated in good faith, with several demanding that the developers pay their back taxes.
“I had a thought in the back of my head from the beginning that the over 55 thing was a farce just to get the thing approval from the town,” Owen said. “And now we’re looking at more kids in our schools, more traffic, and more flooding.”
After nearly an hour and a half of testimony, the ZBA voted to continue the hearing to Aug. 1 at 7:30 pm. In the meantime, members said, the developers would have to consult the Treasurer and town bylaws before any cooperation from officials would be a possibility.
By Shawn Badgley
Marion Concert Band’s Friday Series
On July 12, the Marion Concert Band will open its Friday evening concert series with a program featuring music from movies and TV shows. The program, which includes soundtrack music from some major motion pictures, is as follows: “Thundercrest March” – E. Osterling; “Manatee Lyric Overture” – R. Sheldon; “The Sounds of Hollywood” – J. Higgins; “Star Trek Through the Years” – J. Moss; “Raiders of the Lost Ark Medley” – J. Williams; “Prime Time Toon Revue” – arr. T. Ricketts; “Florentiner March” – J. Fucik; “Batman Theme” – N. Hefti; “Pirates of the Caribbean Symphonic Suite” – K. Badelt; “The Blues Brothers Revue” – arr. J. Bocook; “Hooray for Hollywood” – arr. W. Barker; and “The Trombone King” – K. L. King.
The concert will be held at the Robert Broomhead Bandstand, Island Wharf, off of Front Street in Marion. The program, under the direction of Tobias Monte, will begin at 7:30 pm. All concerts are free and open to the public.
Plumb Library Events
Howl at the Moon: Tom Sieling, widely acclaimed singer and songwriter from Newfield, New York, will perform a free, very participatory family program called “Howl at the Moon with a Ground-Dweller Tune!” at 6:00 pm on July 22 at the First Congregational Church Fellowship Hall, Constitution Way, Rochester. This show consists of participatory, humorous children’s songs that are guaranteed to engage everyone. Tom accompanies himself on guitar, banjo, harmonica and a drum machine, and all songs include parts for the whole family. Pre-registration is requested. Call the library at 508-763-8600 or email info@plumblibrary.com.
Café Parlez’s selection for July is Saturday, by Ian McEwan, chosen by book group member Bev Farwell. February 15, 2003, starts as a regular day for Henry Perowne, a successful neurosurgeon, husband and father of two grown children. A minor traffic accident brings him in contact with Baxter, an angry, aggressive young man on the edge of violence. Later, during a family reunion, Baxter appears at Henry’s home, with extraordinary consequences. With McEwan’s usual graceful prose and with more drama, this book shows how life can change in an instant, for better or for worse. We will be discussing this book on July 25 at 6:30 pm. Books are available at the desk, or bring your own copy. Café Parlez is sponsored by the Friends of Plumb Library. We will also be holding the annual Café Parlez Book Swap and Trivia Quiz. Bring a book to share with the group.
Just the Facts, the nonfiction book discussion group, will be reading Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood, by Alexandra Fuller. Born in England in 1969, she moved with her family in 1972 to a farm in Rhodesia. After that country’s civil war in 1981, the Fullers moved first to Malawi then to Zambia. Amid all of the unrest, not just in the country but in her home, Alexandra grew up to be a writer. This is more than a survivor’s story. It’s the story of one woman’s unbreakable bond with a continent and a people. We will be discussing this book on July 18 at 6:30 pm. Copies are available at the desk. At this meeting, we will also be having a book swap. Participants are invited to bring a copy of a book to share with the group.
Universal Class: Don’t let summer “brain drain” happen to you! Sign up for our free online classes at Universal Class. You can choose from over 500 classes in topics like Haunted Places, Microsoft Word 2010, GED Test Prep, Card Games Basics, UFO Studies, Chemistry 101, Bird Watching 101, Caring for Seniors, Retirement Planning, and many more. Teachers can earn professional points. All classes take place at your home computer on your own time. Participants are in contact with a retired educational professional through email. Also, all programs are free of charge, and are available through the Plumb Library website to Rochester cardholders. Go to www.plumblibrary.com and click on the “Register Here” button near the Universal Class icon. Ask at the desk for more information or for assistance in signing up.
Wednesdays: Writing club from 2:30 to 3:30 pm. Ages 9 and up can meet to share their writings, learn tips and practice writing in different styles. Guest authors may pop in from time to time to give advice. July 17: High school teacher Sarabeth Morrell; July 24: Kathleen Brunelle, author of The Search for Maria Hallett of Cape Cod. From 2:30 to 3:00 pm, Kathy will meet with the Writing Club. From 3:30 to 4:30 pm, she will be doing a reading from her book and will have copies for purchase and signing.