Learn about Warblers: Warbler Workshop

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Learn all about warblers at this free event hosted by the Nasketucket Bird Club on Thursday, April 27 at 7:00 pm at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library. Spring is one of the best times to see warblers. This workshop is devoted solely to the hard-to-see, but incredibly beautiful warblers. We will learn about tips and tricks for finding and identifying warblers, as well as learning which birds call this area home and which ones are just here for a short visit. Light refreshments will be served after.

            The meeting, open to the public and handicapped accessible, is held at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library, with access via the south door entrance on Barstow Street in Mattapoisett. Meetings are also available via Zoom. Learn more by going to nbcbirdclub.com.

Mattapoisett Library Hosts North Sea Gas

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The Purrington Lecture Series presents a concert with Scotland’s beloved folk group, North Sea Gas, on Tuesday, May 2 at 6:00 pm in the Community Room of the Mattapoisett Free Public Library, 7 Barstow Street.

            Forty years and stronger than ever. “North Sea Gas” is one of Scotland’s most popular folk bands with great vocals and tremendous three part harmonies. Guitars, Mandolin, Fiddle, Bouzouki, Harmonica, Whistles, Bodhrans, Banjo and good humor are all part of the entertainment. They have received Gold and Silver Disc awards from the Scottish Music Industry Association and regularly have sold out shows at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and around the world.

            Their show, and their albums, consist of traditional, contemporary and self-penned material put together, in a style all their own, along with their humor and story-telling. This proves popular during their regular tours of Scotland, America, Canada, Germany, Austria, Estonia, Turkey, and many other destinations both in and outside of their home in Scotland. Every year there are appearances on TV and Radio on both sides of the Atlantic including “Late Night Saturday,” “Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour,” and “Song of the Mountains” shown on select PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) TV stations in the U.S. In the past, the band recorded for Chinese television with an estimated audience of 800 million, played in Istanbul, Turkey for the British Consulate, and recently had the honor of performing at the famous Rosslyn Chapel.

            The Purrington Lecture Series is sponsored by the Mattapoisett Library Trust, is a not-for-profit charitable organization dedicated to expanding the role of the Library in the community. For more information about this program, send an email to Jennifer Jones at jjones@sailsinc.org. Visit mattapoisettlibrary.org for more details and to see other upcoming events.

ORRJH Students of the Month

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Silas D. Coellner, Principal of Old Rochester Regional Junior High School, announces the following Students of the Month for February, 2023

Green Team: Addison C. Roy & Grace M. Hebert

Orange Team: Caitlin J. Wilson & Krishi J. Patel

Blue Team: Lilyann M. Rounseville & Oliver W. Hannack

Red Team: Karley A. Pinto & Alexander C. Dai

Exploratory Team: Torrin M. DaCosta & Olivia C. Lane

Joseph T. Bowers

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Joseph T. Bowers, 95, of Fairhaven passed away Friday, April 14, 2023 at home. Born in Dorchester, MA he was the son of the late Joseph L. And Catherine R. (Barrett) Blowers. He was predeceased by his wife of 61 years, Cecile M. (Gauvin) Bowers and his son, Michael R. Bowers.

            A WWII Navy veteran, he attended New Bedford Vocational High School and was an Electrician and member of the IBEW for over 70 years in both Brockton Local 223 and New Bedford Local 224 for which he served as President for 10 years.

            Joseph was a lifelong member of the American Legion Post #166, a member of the Knights of Columbus and a communicant of St. Joseph’s Church in Fairhaven.

            He is survived by two daughters, Terry Bowers of Fairhaven and Catherine Francazio and her husband David of Tiverton, RI;  two sons, Steven Bowers and his wife Holly of St. Croix USVI and Joseph Bowers, Jr. and his wife Nancy of Ft Myers, FL; 11 grandchildren; 14 great grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. Mr. Bowers was the brother of the late Adrien L. And Stanley L. Blowers.

            The family would like to extend a special thank you to Community Nurse and Hospice Care of Fairhaven and also to their private team of caregivers, Natalia Ciriello, Denise May, Maddy Pires, Laura Ramirez and Carmen Motha for their wonderful and compassionate care.

            In accordance with his wishes he will be cremated and memorial calling hours are Thursday, April 27, 2023 from 4-7pm in the Fairhaven Funeral Home, 117 Main St., Fairhaven. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Friday, April 28, 2023 at 10am in St. Joseph’s Church, Fairhaven followed by interment in Riverside Cemetery, Fairhaven. For memorial register or facility directions please visit, www.hathawayfunerals.com.

            In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made in Joseph’s name to the Wounded Warrior’s Project, P.O. Box 758516, Topeka, KS 66675-8516.

John Anthony Potito

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John Anthony Potito, 81, of Wareham passed away at home on April 19, 2023. He was the husband of Rosary Ann (Wilbur) Potito and the son of the late John A. Potito, Sr. and Shirley (Blanchard) Laflamme.

            He was born in Springfield and lived in Wareham for over 50 years.

            Mr. Potito served in the United States Coast Guard from 1960 to 1982, retiring as Chief Engineer. He was a Vietnam War Veteran. After retiring from the Coast Guard Mr. Potito worked as a teacher for Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical High School in the marine services department and as an Assistant Harbormaster for the Town of Marion.

            He enjoyed spending time with family and friends, and taking his dog Chico for walks. He also enjoyed wintering in Florida where he was a representative of the Florida mobile home association. The Patriots, Giants and Red Sox were among his favorite sports teams to watch. He especially loved dancing to music from the 50s and 60s.

            He was a member of the Rusty Nuts Car Club and enjoyed taking his 1967 Plymouth to shows with his wife and car buddies.

            Survivors include his wife of 62 years, Rosary Ann (Wilbur) Potito; his children, Jeanne Tetrault and her husband Paul, Glynn Potito and his wife Pam and Andrew Potito and his wife Ann all of Wareham; his siblings, Richard Laflamme and his wife Louise, Lori Cole and her husband John and Renee Laflamme all of western MA, and Wayne Laflamme of Florida; 6 grandchildren, Mollie Griffin and her husband Ryan, Stephanie Tetrault, Naomi Correia and her husband Joshua, Noah Tetrault, Debra Potito, Cherlynne Joseph and Ethan Potito; 9 great grandchildren.  He was the brother of the late Donna Bassette.

            Visiting hours are from 4 to 7 pm on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 at Chapman Funerals & Cremations – Wareham, 2599 Cranberry Hwy., Wareham.

            A graveside service will be held at 10:00 am on Wednesday, April 26, 2023 at the Massachusetts National Cemetery, Connery Ave., Bourne. Please go directly to the cemetery and arrive at 9:45 am Plan according due to bridge construction and traffic.

            In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the ASPCA, P.O. Box 96929, Washington, DC 20090-6929 or online at aspca.org in memory of John, who was a lover of all kinds of animals.

Housing Production Plan Approved

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            Marion Planning Board member Chris Collings has been skeptical about housing developments that at market value are still out of economic reach for young families. So he was quite enthused to read the latest iteration of the 2022 Housing Production Plan.

            “What really caught my attention was Page 32, Implementation Strategies … I thought this report made the case … if Marion was to impact helping people live in their homes …,” noted Collings in support of the plan that Planning Board Chairman Norm Hills would later explain has had two prior iterations of greater length.

            The vote to approve the Housing Production Plan during Tuesday night’s public meeting of the Planning Board was the culmination of what Planning Board Chairman Norm Hills estimated was 18 months of effort by the Affordable Housing Trust.

            “This is the third iteration. The first iteration was 130 pages, the next one 71 pages, this one we’re down to 39 pages,” said Hills. “This time, we generally use things to get to a goal; it doesn’t specify a number of years like it did in years past.”

            Collings thought of a River Road neighbor whose most-affordable solution was to stay in his home and have people visit to provide care. “Now they had to change the house around,” he said. “I like that there was space in this report for exactly that kind of thing. This report shows that the largest segment in town is the oldest.

            “If we can help them make the house suitable … Marion is a very affordable place. It may always seem a little bit more, but the world has caught up. … These small (replacement) homes won’t be any cheaper than the ones they’re selling.”

            The members present voted to approve with the exception of board member Andrew Daniel, who felt that the information about different affordable-housing scenarios dominated the report.

            “By reading it, I was surprised to see how much ahead of other communities we are … It seemed the goal of (the plan) was to create 40A’s and 40B’s and smart 40B’s. I don’t know if that’s the direction we want to go,” he said.

            Hills countered that the information presented only represents options.

            “I don’t think that it hinders us any way going forward,’’ said Hills. “This doesn’t walk us into anything.”

            “Knowing we had to put this plan together to meet state regulations, we certainly did that,” said board member Alanna Nelson. “It offered a lot of ways we can get our (affordable-housing) numbers above 10%.”

            Daniel asked for the cost of the Housing Production Plan. Board administrator Terri Santos said she would get Daniel that information, noting that it was accomplished with the assistance of the Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD) with Community Preservation Act funding.

            Board member Eileen Marum, who motioned for support of the Housing Production Plan, also made the motion to endorse the Marion Open Space Recreational Plan (MOSRP), a 215-page report generated by the Stewards of Community Open Space over the last two years.

            Hills told the board the final version was achieved with the Stewards of Community Open Space two weeks ago, and the document was awaiting the Planning Board’s endorsement. This vote was without exception.

            Marum called the content “excellent and thorough.”

            Nelson concurred, especially regarding a background section she called, “really well done. I was really impressed. … a lot of opportunities and whoever in town wants to move it ahead can move it ahead.”

            In answer to Collings’ question, Hills said that 31% of Marion land is permanently protected and that 40% is open (the difference being properties such as the cemetery.)

            Member Jon Henry was unable to attend Tuesday night’s meeting. Henry’s absence meant that the Village Style Smart Growth District (VSSGD) will go on the board’s next agenda.

            A planned discussion with developer Sherman Briggs regarding Section 230-8.11 of the Marion bylaws (erosion control at his Spring Street property) was moved to the board’s next meeting at Briggs’ request.

            The next meeting of the Marion Planning Board is scheduled for Monday, May 1, at 7:00 pm at the Police Station, also accessible live via Zoom.

Marion Planning Board

By Mick Colageo

So You Think You Know Teaching

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            I needed a job. Right out of college my father informed me that I had six months to get one or get married. With no marriage prospects on the horizon, I signed up to substitute teach at Old Rochester. It would keep Dad off my back, and with the military draft looming, my plan was to wait it out, then pursue my artistic career.

            I am still indebted to the many teachers who feigned sickness enough times that I was able to work 140 days before Uncle Sam called. Much to my surprise, Sam did not want me. Something about my eyesight. But that’s another story for another time. Suffice it to say, my “real” career beckoned. If the art thing didn’t work out, I could always fall back on teaching. Ya, right. Little did I know that years later, I would choose to become a teacher.

            Education has taken heat lately in the culture wars and teachers are feeling the burn, so I feel obliged to offer up a few thoughts on my second profession.

            Everyone went to school. Right? So, it follows that everyone thinks they can teach. After a successful 30-year career in the “real” world, I taught some 21 years at all levels except elementary school. (Those kids ask too many questions.) I have been away from the hallowed halls of academia for a while, but I know this: Kids are smart, and the job is tough! If you think you know teaching, you don’t.

            If you haven’t memorized Bloom’s Taxonomy or paid $80 bucks for a paperback copy of “Skillful Teacher” (required reading for professional advancement) or studied the State Frameworks, you don’t know teaching.

            If you haven’t endured a two-hour meeting with an irate parent who thought their son should have gotten an A grade instead of a C, you don’t know teaching. (The son later apologized for his parent’s behavior.) Or mourned the death of four of your brightest and most talented students in car accidents, you don’t know teaching. If you hear on the radio that grief counselors will be available, and you’re told you are the counselor though you’re not trained in psychotherapy, you don’t know teaching.

            If you haven’t had your art-supply budget rescinded halfway through the year so the principal’s office could buy copy paper requiring you to teach 100 ways to be creative with newspapers or been told not to display your students’ best work in the hall showcase because it might discourage the less-talented kids, you don’t know teaching.

            If you haven’t experienced the indignity of your superintendent leaving a pencil in your mailbox as a gift on Teacher Appreciation Day; if you work through the anxiety of budget season waiting to see if your job is cut in a RIF (Reduction in Force); if you haven’t sat in a meeting with the principal telling you are doing a great job, then finding a pink slip in your mailbox on the way out of the meeting, you don’t know teaching.

            But it is not all gloom, doom and hard work. Sitting outside the restroom on bathroom duty is a real joy. Walking to your classroom on a Saturday to do some extra work to find it is being used as a dressing room for a body builders’ annual competition and filled with nearly naked men covered in lotion is enlightening.

            When you experience the joy on the faces of your students when the theater sets they helped paint get a standing ovation and an award, or one of their paintings wins a national prize and is hung at the U.S. Capitol or when they get accepted at their dream college, then you’ll know teaching.

            Editor’s note: Mattapoisett resident Dick Morgado is an artist and retired newspaper columnist whose musings are, after some years, back in The Wanderer under the subtitle “Thoughts on ….” Morgado’s opinions have also appeared for many years in daily newspapers around Boston.

Thoughts on…

By Dick Morgado

Art in Bloom Returns in June

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The Marion Art Center announces the return of its three day festival, Art in Bloom, June 22-24, with a reception scheduled Thursday, June 22 from 5-7 pm. The MAC will host several events over the three-day period. Anyone is invited to create an arrangement for Art in Bloom, and designers may work in pairs or teams. Designers may visit the MAC May 12-June 21 to view the exhibit featuring paintings by Anne Carrozza Remick & Stephen Remick. Choose one of the works on display to inspire your artistic floral creation. There will be only one designer or design team per artwork. Designers may use any available MAC pedestals for displaying arrangements but are encouraged to bring their own unique stand of appropriate size and height. All arrangements must be delivered to the Marion Art Center no later than Thursday, June 22 at 12:00 pm.

            Other events include: Jill Sanford’s Art for Your Mind presentation Landscapes Old and New on Thursday, June 22 from 1:00-2:00 pm ($5 MAC members, $8 for nonmembers); Artful Flower Pressing with Meagan Souza on Saturday, June 24, 10:00 am-12:30 pm ($35 for MAC members, $40 for nonmembers); a watercolor painting workshop (details TBA), and more. Learn more at marionartcenter.org/events. Art in Bloom also coincides with the Marion Garden Group’s Secret Gardens of Marion event scheduled on Friday, June 23 from 10 am-3 pm. Two gardens will feature a MAC member artist (Jay Ryan and Barbara Healy) who will be plein air painting on site. Tickets to the garden tour can be purchased on the MGG website at mariongardengroup.org.

More Yoga at the Marion Art Center

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The Marion Art Center will run a new session of Yoga at the MAC in May with instructor Elke Pierre. Classes will meet Tuesday mornings for four weeks in May in the MAC’s Patsy Francis Gallery (upstairs). Enjoy an hour of yoga while viewing beautiful artwork in the gallery. May 6, 9, 16, and 23. Students can sign up for all four sessions or choose from four dates. The cost for MAC Members is $20 per session or $70 for all 4 weeks; the cost for nonmembers $25 per session or $85 for all 4 weeks. Learn more and register online at marionartcenter.org/events. Space is limited to 10 students, and early registration is recommended.

            About the class: Appreciate and treasure the practice of yoga. This is a slow-moving practice with the goal of reducing tension in the body to relax the mind. In each class, we will explore a handful of common postures in depth. Once learned we will move them together in a honey flow. Elke uses clear language to help students find safe alignment and to notice how this affects the busy mind. Finish with a few restorative postures, guided meditation, and deep relaxation. This experience will be calming, mindful and complete. This class is good for beginners and great for seasoned students who want to relearn, go deeper, and practice with attention to detail. This is not a vinyasa class; expect longer holds and hands-on assists (optional). Because this class is small each student will receive individual attention. Reiki Energy Healing in savanna if you wish. Please bring a mat and a blanket.

Values

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Dear Editor,

            I would like to talk about values. Values serve as a guide for human behavior and here are some examples of Values.

Honesty, the quality of being honest.

Integrity, the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness

Kindness, the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate

Generosity, the quality of being kind and generous.

Courage, the ability to do something that frightens one.

Confidence, the feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something; firm trust.

            Let us put this all together and apply it to everyday living, schools, work, and home. Values serve as a guide for human behavior. Values also help us to decide what is right or wrong, good, or bad. Values are at the core of all of us. So please with everything happening in our little town let’s apply Values to all and everyone

            Remember a person’s most beautiful asset is not a head full of knowledge, but a heart full of love, an ear ready to listen and a hand willing to help others.

Diana Harlfinger, Mattapoisett

The views expressed in the “Letters to the Editor” column are not necessarily those of The Wanderer, its staff or advertisers. The Wanderer will 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 Wanderer reserves the right to edit, condense and otherwise alter submissions for purposes of clarity and/or spacing considerations. The Wanderer may choose to not run letters that thank businesses, and The Wanderer has the right to edit letters to omit business names. The Wanderer also reserves the right to deny publication of any submitted correspondence. All letters must be typed and submitted directly to: news@wanderer.com.