Summer of 2012 started with a bang, as parts of New England experienced the first official heat wave of the season.  Temperatures hit the mid 90s on Wednesday, June 20, which also marked the summer solstice, and continued straight through Friday, leaving people clamoring for relief.

“We’ve been inundated with a lot of calls,” said Christine Hiller of Hiller Fuels in Marion, which offers air conditioning repair and maintenance.  “A lot of them are for frozen coils.  They freeze when people turn on their units too high the first time.  We’ve also fixed a few condensers and broken control panels,” she said.

Despite the intense heat, the Mattapoisett Police said that there haven’t been any reported incidents related to the hot weather.  “We haven’t had any outstanding emergencies.  No medical situations or electric failures,” said Officer Mitchell Suzan.

The Tri-Town offers no shortage of options for folks to get their cool on, from shady groves of trees, to the beaches, to indulgence in chilly treats (hopefully before they melt).

“We’ve served lots of ice cream,” said Liz Ackerman of the Oxford Creamery in Mattapoisett.  “If the sun is out, we’re busy.”

In the last few days, the Creamery has seen a strong influx of customers in the afternoon and early evening.

“We’ve done a lot of take out for people going back to the beach or the pool.  Business is steady when it’s hot because people don’t want to cook,” Ackerman said.

According to meteorologists, this summer could be one of the hottest on record, with many predicting it may stretch into the early part of the autumn.  Just in case this heat wave wasn’t our last, here are some tips from the Massachusetts Health and Human Services department on how to stay safe and cool this summer:

• Drink plenty of water, even if you don’t feel thirsty.
• Avoid strenuous activity, especially outside during peak heat times.
• Eat regular and balanced meals to keep your metabolism steady.
• Never leave children or pets in enclosed vehicles.
• If you don’t have air conditioning, stay on the lowest or coolest level of your home.  You can also cover doorways and windows with towels or other heavy cloth to block the sun.

For more safety information, visit http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/feature-story/summer-heat-precautions.html.

By Eric Tripoli

It’s been two years since the last historic barn, home, and garden show, organized by the Rochester Land Trust.  This year saw the return of some old favorite places as well as the addition of a couple new locations.

The self-guided tour was held on Sunday, June 24, and included five total stops along the route map.

“We’ve had a lot of different properties in the last few years, so it’s been really nice,” said Norene Hartley, of the Rochester Land Trust, who was situated outside the Town Hall, seeing tickets, t-shirts, and passing out maps to the interested parties.  “This is the third one we’ve had. We go to the landowners to find out who would be willing to participate, then we decide who to include based off that.”

This year saw the premier of Sterling Point Farm on the tour, located up on the Middleboro line on Walnut Plain Road.  The farm is home to several horses of various breeds.

“We have painters, saddlebreds, and quarter horses,” said caretaker Cheryl Lavoie.  Being on the tour increased their foot traffic by a few dozen people throughout the course of the day.  “It’s nice to have different visitors and to have people look around.”

A few miles south, you arrive at Englenook Farms, on High Street, also a first timer on the tour.  The farm has a wide variety of livestock, from horses to chickens to llamas and alpacas.  Many of the animals there are also rescue animals, and most are exceedingly friendly.

Joanie Chapman is in charge of the animals there and makes sure they get the kind of care that may have been denied them by previous owners.  She feeds all the animals specific organic diets.

“Here it is as close to organic as you can get without being certified,” she said, citing the expensive and extensive process many farmers go through in order to be officially recognized as proprietors of organic foods.

The next stop on the tour was at the home of Mark Whalen and Randall Elgin, who four years ago, built a completely eco-friendly home that features a wide variety of green materials used to reduce the amount of energy used by the building.

“The best investment you can make is in good insulation.  If you have good insulation, you can have a smaller furnace and use less energy,” Whalen said.

The furnace at their home on Foss Farm Road is mounted on the wall in the basement and isn’t much larger than an industrial electrical control panel.  The insulation in the walls is made up of rebar-enforced cement, sandwiched between interlocking bricks of Styrofoam.

“We just wanted to show people how accessible this technology is and how much it can help,” he said.

Down on Vaughan Hill Road, people could tour the Rusinoski property; a large home designed and built by a Boston stonemason, with a three-car carriage house-style garage.  The home features large, sprawling lawns and top-notch wood and stonework.  Don’t have a car?  The property (which is for sale) is suitable for easily landing a helicopter.

The final stop on the tour was down on Mattapoisett Road at the locally famous George Church Museum, featuring an array of antiquated, largely manual, farming and industrial tools.     “My family had the first saw mill on the Mattapoisett River,” Church said.  His ancestors arrived here in the mid 1700s and the home he lives in dates back almost as far.  “I ran the saw mill until maybe 20 years ago,” the 10th generation American said.

His museum is an open floor barn and contains hundreds of tools and machines, many of them powered by man or horse.  “I used to live in Marion and New Bedford.  I just gathered the pieces up.”

For more information on the Rochester Land Trust and how you can help, visit http://home.comcast.net/~rochesterlandtrust/

By Eric Tripoli

He loved the water. He inspired us all to be kind, happy, better people.  He loved all kinds of children.  He brings creativity to everything.  He always, always, always smiles.

These are the words of family, friends, and students describing Charles Pickles of Marion, a former junior sailing instructor at the Beverly Yacht Club and avid cook, who died in a skateboarding accident in 2005.  He was not yet 30 years old.

For the last few years, his parents, Diane and Ray, have organized a boat cruise benefit, to honor the memory of their late son.

“For me, this benefits his memory in a way he would have wanted.  It’s all about people coming together, having fun, and sharing time and stories about him together,” his mother, Diane, said.  “Charles would make everything fun.”

The event was attended by almost 100 people, which in itself stood as a testament to the power the young Pickles had on the people who meant most to him, from the closest members of his family to his favorite sailing students.

Everybody on the boat seemed to have a story to tell about Charles.  Many of those stories were compiled by his mother into a couple hardcover memory books she brought for people to read.

The result was a tome of joy, thanks, remembrance, and sorrow, stuffed with photos, letters, poems, and drawings, each evoking special and personal memories of Charles.  As the cruise continued, dozens of people sat and pored through the volumes, some together, some alone, and each person seemed to strengthen their connection to Charles and his memory.

There’s the story about three year-old Charles and his penchant for sticking chewing gum in his own hair, and his resulting fussiness over the peanut butter and ice cube process employed by his mother to remove it.  Then there was the three-week family trip to Calgary, Canada in August of 2000, where they hiked the Rockies, visited Olympic Park, and picnicked at Lake Minnewanka.

Don’t forget about the time he took his friend, Ben, out sailing, when Ben was contagious with chicken pox and couldn’t be in public.  Or the time he arranged for a special table at his restaurant for his cousin Stephanie and her beau Ken on Valentine’s Day, where they could watch him in the open kitchen preparing their meals.  These are all small but immensely important pieces to the mosaic that was a life dedicated to happiness and fearlessness.

“He had as much fun as he possibly could at all times,” said Margaret Evans of Marion, who was a lifelong friend of Charles.  “He was a gentleman.  He had this amazing aura.  Whenever

“The essence of it all was to have a great time,” said Paul Fathallah of Marion, who knew Charles for over 10 years.  He told the story of how he and Charles were on the water when Fathallah, who has a strong aversion to jellyfish, saw a big one floating in the water near the boat.  “He was looking for it and looking for it and when he finally saw it, he tried to jump in

“He was so daring,” said Sarah Gaunt, who met Charles when they attended the International Institute of Culinary Arts in Fall River. They were partnered up for many projects together during their two years of study.  “The first day I met Charles, he greeted me at the door, and even held it open for me and said, ‘My name is Charles Pickles, but my friends call me Pickles, so you can call me Pickles, too,” Gaunt said.

The proceeds of the event go to benefit the junior sailing program at the Beverly Yacht Club, as well as the Community Boating program, which provides opportunities for students from New Bedford to learn how to sail.

 By Eric Tripoli

On Saturday morning, over 400 runners participated in the 16th Annual Marion Village 5K.  Congratulations to all participants! Photos by Katy Fitzpatrick.

The Rochester Historical Society held a special event on Wednesday June 20 at the East Rochester Church & Museum, built in 1857.  A nostalgic narration and slide show presentation, called Three Centuries at Eastover Farm and the Sippican Mill, dated history back from the sixteenth century and on.  The silent audience listened intently and applauded loudly at the end.

This step back in time featured the beautiful Rochester farm and the families responsible for its preservation.  The event marked the one hundredth anniversary of the Hiller family involvement in the property.  The land was handed down through four generations.  Robert Hiller III was present with his wife and family.

“I am honored to have had the property for one hundred years in my family and proud to keep it as it is.  I am happy it has been put into trust,” said Hiller.

The historic East Rochester Church & Museum building stands out for its character.  Priceless antiques and relics are displayed throughout the inside of this cherished museum including a pipe organ, old fashion sewing machine, farming tools and quilts.

“The mission of the historical society is to research, educate and preserve Rochester’s heritage.  I grew up in Rochester and loved my simple life which was very different from the way life is today with all the technology.  We should try to preserve the history and educate.  That is very important,” said Betty Beaulieu, Treasurer and narrator.

“Here we promote the preservation of history.  I’ve always liked history ever since I was a young child in school.  I loose interest with the twentieth century.  I am very proud of the work that we do here at the Rochester Historical Society,” said Sue LaFleur Recording Secretary.

Following the event, people gathered to socialize and refreshments were served in celebration of history and its preservation to be passed on to the next generation.

By Deb Burdock

The 16th Annual Marion Village 5K kicks  Saturday morning, June 23, at 9:00 am.  Even though the race is tomorrow, there’s still plenty of time to register! Sign up online at www.marionrecreation.com or at www.jbrace.com.

Prize money is offered to the top three men and women finishers and merchandise or gift certificates are awarded to the top ten men and women in the race. Gift certificates are awarded to the top male and female finishers from Marion.

Young runners in the 13 and under age group will receive certificates for free ice creams from Kool Kone. There is also a post race raffle open to all competitors.

The racecourse starts in front of Baxter House on Front Street, heads north on Front Street, then left on Ryder Lane and left again on Spring Street. At the end of Spring Street, the course takes a left, then a quick right on Pleasant Street.

After climbing slightly for a quarter mile, the course takes a left and drops downhill on Holmes Street and continues through the two-mile mark turning left on Water Street. Then left again on Vine and right back onto Front Street for the final half mile ending in the driveway of Tabor’s Hoyt Hall on the waterfront.