Electrified EMC Eager to Help Shape New Marion

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            As the Marion Energy Management Committee strategizes to reidentify and rename itself to emphasize its climate change stream of consciousness, the cart and the horse are neck and neck racing around the backstretch toward the committee’s next iteration.

            Closing in on maximizing the town’s net-metering credit capacity and dissatisfied tinkering with ideas that nibble at the edges of what else can be done to nudge Marion toward a little less dependence on fossil fuels, the dialogue among the committee’s members during Monday’s Zoom meeting focused on mountains rather than molehills.

            Dissatisfied with what is perceived as relegation to the kids’ table, the EMC wants to sit with the grownups and have input so it can have impact on the two major municipal construction projects facing Marion: the new Department of Public Works and Marine Center buildings.

            “It’d be a cool precedent to set for our town if we could have it that we won’t invest in any more fossil fuel for our infrastructure,” said EMC member Jennifer Francis, suggesting that the committee pursue some form of document or agreement that would prohibit the use of any new fossil fuel infrastructure in any new public construction.

            EMC Chair Christian Ingerslev mused about putting something before the citizens on Town Meeting floor – a Special Town Meeting will be held on October 19 – and member Alanna Nelson asked if such a resolution should take the shape of a bylaw or statement of policy or intent.

            Massachusetts’ Stretch Code was discussed, but the net-zero banter of months-ago meetings did not resurface, indicating that the EMC is trying less to think pie-in-the-sky about impending construction of new headquarters for the DPW and harbormaster and is more preoccupied with identifying a strategy that will lead to meaningful involvement in these projects.

            While going electric is a main goal of the EMC, member Bill Saltonstall reminded the committee that “electric depends on fossil fuels sometimes. It doesn’t necessarily mean you’re off of fossil fuels.” Member Eileen Marum concurred, saying, “Electricity produced by fossil fuels is not clean energy.”

            “It would be nice if by 2030 we were buying our electricity from a greener source than we are buying right now,” said Saltonstall.

            Francis estimated that Eversource produces 75-percent of its electric power from fossil fuels.

            “A lot of their projects seem really large and not easy to see where the benefit would be, whereas I thought National Grid had more targeted projects,” said Nelson. “So, even how they’re spending their money that would help make everything go greener, you’re not sure what you’re going to get out of it.”

            It was noted during the meeting that Marion is in an aggregate for residential electricity rates but not municipal. The town is a member of CVEC but cannot become a member of the Cape towns’ aggregate.

            Ingerslev said, before the EMC can take any substantial action, the town must first complete and officially adopt its Hazard Mitigation Plan, an action Marum said is expected in January. Even so, said Ingerslev, the EMC will then “have to get everything through the [Select Board] before we go out to the town.”

            Marum suggested asking Senator Marc Pacheco, the founding chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Global Warming and Climate Change in Massachusetts, to address a local meeting on the matter. Marum said that Pacheco has traveled to Norway to study the country’s wind farms setup.

            “It might be good to hear from him as a speaker in the education component. He was very enthusiastic when he was talking about renewable energy,” said Marum, also suggesting an invitation to the entire Tabor community, including the prep school’s students.

            Francis told the committee that she will draft a letter to the Select Board.

            Reporting on the Mass Energy Insight program, Saltonstall told the committee that while engineers were completing design for new equipment proposed for the Music Hall and Elizabeth Taber Library, he has until the end of November to complete Marion’s annual energy consumption report. He said Marion is applying for the maximum $150,000 in grant funding for the two projects and expects he will receive the necessary information in time to complete the report for Green Communities.

            Saltonstall said that Facilities Manager Shawn Cormier has taken a lead in dealing with the engineers. Heat pumps have been proposed for both buildings and a new system should include thermostats that can be controlled online.

            “The shortage of wires that prevented us from putting in a thermostat is going away, and I think we’re going to get the kind of control I need,” he said, suggesting an occupancy sensor of some kind capable of meting out fresh air as needed. “I think the air requirement is around 20-percent. At Sippican School, sensors measure CO2 in each classroom and turn up as needed. I’m hopeful they’ll put something like that in the Music Hall space.”

            One of the challenges is in old buildings where heat is not distributed evenly. The goal is to get an unoccupied facility down into the 50-55-degree range.

            To achieve greater public awareness on electric power, Nelson discussed showcasing electric cars in public places like school parking lots where citizens can discuss them with the owners and learn facts in a grassroots atmosphere. When she lived in Melrose, Nelson helped hold three such events.

            Francis spoke about taking out advertising space in the local newspaper to offer tips on energy conservation.

            The next meeting of the EMC is scheduled for Monday, October 25, at 5:00 pm.

Marion Energy Management Committee

By Mick Colageo

MLT and MWC Connect with Center School Science Program

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            In early August when Ben Squire, ORR Elementary Science Coordinator, requested 200 daffodil bulbs for Center School’s third grade life science program, the Mattapoisett Land Trust Education Committee decided to partner with Mattapoisett Woman’s Club Garden group to make this happen.

            Cindy Turse, co-chair of MWC Garden Group, said that since 2019 the members have established planting areas around town for daffodils. The Police Station, the flagpole at the Library, the welcome sign at the entrance to the Industrial Park, the triangle east of Oxford Creamery, and the Town Hall. “What started out to be a low-scale daffodil beautifying project morphed into a full on fundraiser, and high on the heels of success, the Garden group’s 2021 order was for 4,000 bulbs,” said Turse, who also serves on MLT ED committee.

            So, the Education Committee chose to partner with the MWC Garden group and ordered 200 daffodil bulbs for the Center School Science program. On Wednesday, September 22, Cindy Turse and Ellen P. Flynn, MLT Board of Directors and chair of Education, arranged for pick-up and delivery to Ben Squire at Center School.

            Ben Squire said the “project will start immediately examining the plant life cycle, plant structures of root, and ultimately stem and leaves after planting.”

            The Land Trust ED committee has ordered the book titled “From Bulb to Daffodil” from Scholastic News, by Ellen Weiss, and will create a StoryWalk around the school.

            Flynn said this collaboration brings two non-profit organizations together with the common goal of supporting science education and conserving lands for our future generations.

Cultural Club of Old Rochester

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September 23 marked the Cultural Club of Old Rochester’s inaugural meeting. This club had over 50 students at the first meeting and looks forward to expanding from here. As an affiliate chapter of the Cultural Clubs of America, Inc. (CCA), our students will attend educational field trips and conferences with other Southcoast school chapters. The group seeks to raise awareness of cultures, educate students about different life experiences, and unite students across different schools. Our chapter is run by Senora Diana Carreira and was introduced to ORR by Cultural Club of America, Inc. CEO/Founder Edward Gonet IV.

            The students started off the meeting with an activity involving potatoes. Students were instructed to make friends with their potato and get to know them. Then, they mixed up the potatoes and tried to find their original one. Remarkably, students were able to find their original potato. The moral of this activity was “Perhaps potatoes are a little like people. Sometimes, we lump people of a group all together. When we think, ‘They’re all alike,’ we are really saying that we haven’t taken the time or thought it important enough to get to know the person. When we do, we find out everyone is different and special in some way, just like our potato friends.”

            Students were also given the opportunity to examine one-thousand-year-old Peruvian artifacts that were donated to Cultural Clubs of America, Inc. They will research the artifacts throughout the year and learn about the items’ backgrounds and heritage.

            Their first trip will be to the Brazilian Grille in Dartmouth to celebrate Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month along with other Southcoast Massachusetts CCA Chapters. There will be a Hispanic Guest Speaker and students will learn about the similarities and differences between Hispanic and Latino cultures. 

            ORR is proud to host a Cultural Clubs of America Cultural Conference with the theme of “Know Your Roots,” starting with an exploration of indigenous cultures in our communities, and also an exploration our personal roots and backgrounds.

            Many Old Rochester staff and students are a part of the executive board of Cultural Clubs of America, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit, including Treasurer Michael Nailor, Secretary Emerson Gonet, Director Kelly Ochoa, Director Isabella Hunter, and Director Allison Ward. Other community members including Aliyah Jordan (junior from Tabor Academy), Tabor’s Director of Equity and Inclusion Lorraine Snead, Showstopper’s Performing Arts, Inc. Director Kelly Zucco, and Berklee College of Music Professor Marcelle Gauvin.

Center School Classroom To Learn Remotely Due To Covid-19 Cases

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            Superintendent Michael S. Nelson and Principal Rose Bowman report that as the result of an increase in students testing positive for COVID-19, one classroom at the Center School will be transitioning to remote learning.

            Through its participation in the state’s Symptomatic and Test and Stay testing options, and in coordination with the Mattapoisett Board of Health and Public Health Nurse Emily Field and Center School Nurse Jaime Balsis, an increased amount of positive COVID-19 cases has been

Identified among students in a second grade classroom at the school. Under state and federal health privacy laws, no further information is available about the individuals.

            After assessing the situation in conjunction with the Mattapoisett Board of Health and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), it was determined that, out of an abundance of caution and to limit possible in-school transmission, it was in the best interest of the school and its students and staff to transition the students in the affected classroom to fully remote learning. Based on the appropriate quarantine and isolation periods, the affected students are currently expected to be able to return to school on Oct. 12.

            Students that have been identified as a close contact were contacted by the school nurse and provided close contact protocols. All students in the affected classroom and their families will be provided with remote learning resources.

            The district will conduct a deep and thorough sanitization and disinfection of the Center School this weekend. All schools district wide continue to be cleaned daily.

            “Given the multiple positive cases and subsequent close contacts in one classroom, we believe it is in the best interest of all of our Center School students and staff for those students to learn remotely for the appropriate time period in accordance with state protocols,” Principal Bowman said. “We appreciate the continued cooperation and understanding of our school community and encourage our Center School families to reach out with any questions or concerns.”

            Families are reminded to monitor their children’s health and be alert for COVID-19-like symptoms, including fever, cough, respiratory illness, vomiting, fatigue, body ache, sore throat and chills.

            “The health and safety of our students and staff remains our top priority and we have many protocols in place to respond to situations like this,” Superintendent Nelson said. “We will continue to follow all protocols and guidance of our local officials as well as the Massachusetts Department of Health and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and we would also like to thank our local board of health and school nurses for their assistance and guidance as we continue to navigate through the pandemic.”

            The Old Rochester Regional School District and MA Superintendency Union

#55 has a dashboard in place to track all reported cases of COVID-19. The dashboard can be viewed here [2]. Additionally, families are encouraged to visit the district’s 2021-2022 Reopening of Schools Information webpage [3] to view COVID-19 protocols and guidelines.

Reorganized FinCom Seeks New Blood

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            The Marion Finance Committee met on September 15 to vote its recommendations on financially impactful Warrant articles for the October 19 Special Town Meeting at Sippican School.

            The Finance Committee, which is down a full member and an alternate, also reorganized. Town Administrator Jay McGrail said it is likely an alternate member will be elevated to full-member status and that two alternates will be recruited to join the committee.

            On the recommendation of the Appointment Committee, the committee has done away with its co-chairs arrangement and has voted former co-chair Shea Assad as a single new chair for the next 12 months. Assad had joined former Chair Peter Winters in the role of co-chair in 2021 but said he thinks the role should rotate.

            Member Charlie Larkin said it’s been harder this year to deliberate with co-chairs and move as efficiently and recommended the FinCom go with one. Members Jay Pateakos and Bill Marvel agreed that the committee functions better with a single chair that would be rotated.

            Pateakos will continue as clerk, and Marvel will representative FinCom to the Capital Improvement Planning Committee.

            Before the committee got that far, it first heard McGrail present the articles for the Special Town Meeting Warrant. FinCom either approved each article as presented or voted against making any recommendation on the basis of no financial impact to the town. No article was voted for recommendation against.

            Article 1 asks voters to approve the transfer of $175,000 from the Capital Stabilization Fund or from free cash to be used for electrical upgrades at the Town House as directed by the facilities manager. Transferring the funds from Capital Stabilization would require a two-thirds majority vote at Town Meeting.

            McGrail told the committee he underfunded the project, previously set at $150,000 before it was learned that the utility pole closest to the Town House does not carry the necessary three-phase power required by the project. It would have cost $1 million to run three-phase power from Route 6, so the revised plan calls for three-phase power to feed the Town House from across Spring Street and abandon the Main Street power source.

            The new below-ground service will run across Spring Street to a transformer under the gazebo and to the Town House from there. The results of the bidding process underway since the day after the meeting will not be known until late October, but McGrail believes based on the article’s passage and discussions with potential vendors that he will be turning back appropriated money to the town.

            As McGrail explained, Eversource would dig into Spring Street and run wire underground. The power company would continue to run the wire on town property but digging would necessarily be done by an excavator contracted by the town.

            McGrail told FinCom the town is closing in on certifying free cash, but that the method of funding the project is not finalized. He said that, while the town waits on the state Department of Revenue to complete certification, the Capital Stabilization Fund can more than make up the difference.

            Town Accountant Judy Mooney estimates that Marion has a total of nearly $2,900,000 in its regular Stabilization Fund, $234,450 in its Capital Stabilization Fund, and $370,000 in the School Stabilization Fund.

            Since McGrail has been town administrator, Marion has only added to its stabilization funds, but should free cash not be certified by the October 19 Special Town Meeting, the Stabilization Fund would be the only option for Articles 1 and 2.

            Winters was happy to hear Mooney say she intends to put the money back into the Stabilization Fund in the spring.

            Article 2 asks for the transfer of $35,000 from the town’s Waterways Account to meet the 25-percent matching requirement of the state’s Seaport Economic Council-sponsored grant for the design and bid documents for a new harbormaster facility.

            The state is crediting Marion for its prior investment in the feasibility study as part of its 25-percent match.

            Marion will apply for two more Seaport Economic Council grants, according to McGrail, the first for $1 million and the second for less. A 20-percent town match will be required for the future grant applications, so it has yet to be determined if the town will be in a position to ask voters to appropriate that money at the 2022 Spring Town Meeting.

            In summarizing the town’s commitment to the new grant process for the harbormaster facility, McGrail said it will be an investment of 20-percent of a total cost of $2 million. The tentative plan is to borrow in concert with other projects, the debt service being paid off with Waterways Account funds over a 20-year period.

            The public will be invited to view the proposed footprint as revised from the original pitch in an open house event at Island Wharf.

            McGrail believes that with investment in the Waterways Account over the next five years, the town will also be able to fund a new harbormaster boat without needing to borrow.

            The committee voted to recommend Article 6, the Old Rochester Regional School District Agreement, and Article 7, the creation of ORR’s Stabilization Fund.

            “They’re going to be under the constraints of [Proposition 2 ½],” said Winters, who figures it will be difficult for the school district to significantly build the account. FinCom votes to recommend.

            While it took little to no deliberation to make the ORR-related approvals, the subject sparked big-picture conversation where it concerns the downtrend in student enrollment.

            The Town of Marion is applying on behalf of the Tri-Town to the state’s Community Compact for a grant to conduct a future trend enrollment study in public schools in the district and a study specifically on Sippican Elementary School. The study will include assessment and capital projections, according to McGrail.

            “I think that’s going to be important to manage expenses,” said Marion Select Board member John Waterman, who noted that Sippican was down 40 students last year, and ORR was down 150. “If we’re headed into a period of secular decline in enrollment, I think there is a lot more opportunity to rein in expenses.”

            Waterman anticipates the study informing the town’s elected officials charged with vetting proposed residential projects.

            One of those projects, the Heron Cove residential development proposed by Ken Steen, will, in exchange for allowing an increase in the number of units from 96 units to 120, yield $1.1 million to the town in increased infiltration and inflow (I/I) sewer revenue. The 20-percent affordable housing component puts Marion over the 10-percent state requirement.

            “We feel that this new growth is something that will help us pay for some things like the village infrastructure project when that comes up in a couple of years without having to do tax overrides,” said Waterman, citing the adjacent residential project proposed by Matt Zucker along with Sherman Briggs’ proposed project off Spring and Mills Streets.

            The next meeting of the Marion Finance Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, November 3, at 7:00 pm.

Marion Finance Committee

By Mick Colageo

Bumblebees in Tragic Decline

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            There was a time when you could find bumblebees anywhere across North America, from Quebec to Florida, westward to South Dakota, then into the central mountains of Mexico. However, in the past 10 years, the surplus of numbers has collapsed almost entirely.

            It is now suspected that the critical devastation took place when our American bees were infected with a deadly virus after European bees were imported into North America for the sole purpose of pollinating greenhouse tomatoes for the growing market. Bumblebees were essential to pollinate flowers in our gardens as well as crops in our farm fields to provide us with essential fruits and vegetables.

            What happened to this very day was a sad trend that insects beneficial to human beings are still being more threatened due to multiple issues such as habitat loss, pollution, mites, and an even more deadly used class of new insecticides called “neonics” that are many times more toxic to bees than the chemical compound dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane more commonly known as DDT.

            That’s truly scary when we depend on bees to pollinate at least 70 out of 100 major crops from apples and blueberries to watermelon and zucchini. Simply put, fewer bees means less food and spiraling food costs to hit low-income communities already suffering under a shortage.

            Honeybees were brought to this country as early as 1630 by settlers as a source of wax and sugar. To Native Americans, they became known as “white man’s bee” because they became known by them even before the many settlers found that you could box up honeybees and move them around to the countryside wherever needed to pollinate crops. There are more honeybees on this planet today than any time in history.

            The queen honeybee has a solitary iconic status in the hive to deserve a metaphoric importance of royal majesty among her bevy of dutiful workers. She rules her domain supremely in a hollow tree that can be located by her attraction to the treasure trove of rich honey by measuring the angle and time of flight to the return of her subjects to deposit their contribution to her hive.

            Many businesses and homeowners today are trying to compensate for the modern shortage of bumblebees by installing honeybee hives on rooftops and backyards across the country.

            The tiny but essential profile of industrious insects has a myriad of magical phenomena in our daily environment worth our awareness and evaluation more than generally recognized by humans.

            The bumblebee and honeybee may both be largely out of sight and mind in our everyday observations around us, but science and natural history can raise them up to a level of importance worth thinking about with our own, God-given, intelligent appreciation and understanding.

By George B. Emmons

From the Files of the Rochester Historical Society

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            To begin, I want to apologize for any confusion in last week’s article. Instead of the picture of the old Union Meeting House, there was the photo from the previous week.

            In L.C. Humphrey’s papers, he details the original size of Rochester. Rochester, as it was set off to the original proprietors, extended north to Nemasket in Middleboro, west to Dartmouth, east to Agawam plantations, and south to the sea, and that was the size of the town when it was incorporated in 1686. With the passage of time, the land area changed. First, the section of Rochester that extended deep into Wareham was set off in 1735 when the Town of Wareham was created out of both lands from Plymouth and Rochester. Later, in the 1800s, both Marion and then Mattapoisett were set off as new towns.

            Because of this unique association with neighboring towns, Rochester’s history includes the history of other localities. As someone mentioned recently, a child living in Acushnet or another nearby town might go to church or belong to a youth group in Rochester. When my grandfather went to high school it was in Fairhaven. My mother attended Wareham High, while later students went to New Bedford High.

            Our museum and society reflect these connections. The building is on County Road on the Rochester side of the road, and West Wareham is just across the street. Our membership includes residents of Marion, Wareham, of course Rochester, and also towns throughout Massachusetts and beyond.

            Our new exhibit, supported by the Rochester Cultural Council, a local agency, supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, includes in part town bounds, tools, and local military items. The exhibit will open at 10:00 am on October 2 and last until 3:00 pm. In addition to the Curator’s Show Part II, we are planning a cranberry bake sale, a veteran’s tour of the Woodside Cemetery, and, at noon, an Honor Guard salute by the Wareham Minutemen Militia. There will also be an outhouse tour and sales of our Rochester clothing, books, and other items.

By Connie Eshbach

Heron Cove Case Continued

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The Marion Zoning Board of Appeals met briefly on September 23 to continue the case of Heron Cove, LLC’s Comprehensive Permit application for the construction of a residential development on Wareham Road (Route 6). The continuance, considered at the applicant’s request, was voted onto the agenda for the ZBA’s meeting scheduled for Thursday, November 18, at 6:30 pm.

            Because the ZBA’s regular schedule of second and fourth Thursdays of any month would have conflicted in November with Veterans Day and Thanksgiving, Heron Cove will next be heard on the third Thursday in November.

            In June, the 40B affordable housing development proposed by Ken Steen of Steen Realty changed course from a prior proposal for 96 residential units to 120 units in order to offset costs associated with infrastructural requirements. The revised Local Initiative Program (LIP) application proposed eight new buildings, each consisting of three two-bedroom, triplex units mainly focused on using an area of land previously reserved for Approval Not Required (ANR) development.

            Steen is also building a large, residential-commercial 40R development near the intersection of Route 28 and Route 58 in Rochester.

            The next meeting of the Marion ZBA is scheduled for Thursday, October 14, at 6:30 pm.

Marion Zoning Board of Appeals

By Mick Colageo

COA Opens Walking Path

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            Successful projects always start with great imagination, into which seeds of “what can be” are planted. Nurtured by stick-to-it-iveness and community involvement, public works projects can and do see the light of day. Case in point, Marion’s Cushing Community Center.

            The former V.F.W. hall, now fast becoming a crowning jewel and hub of multi-generational activity, houses the Marion Council on Aging and the Recreation Department offices. The interior spaces are used by both departments, but with a heavier focus on the senior community.

            For seniors and those with mobility issues, COA Board President Harry Norweb said that a walking path is an important part of an overall improvement plan for the grounds of the community center. Noting that people with mobility issues have a hard time finding a level safe surface to take a walk, plans for a walking path grew.

            On September 24, with Norweb and Select Board members Norm Hills and Randy Parker present with Friends of the Marion COA President Merry Conway, Police Chief Richard Nighelli, Community Preservation Committee Chair Jeff Doubrava, Donna Hemphill, the Select Board administrator and member of the Friends of the Marion Recreation Department, and Town Administrator Jay McGrail, the 200-meter long, smooth walkway was ceremoniously opened with a ribbon cutting.

            Norweb said that the work taking place on this municipal property is truly a commitment from the entire community. While he said that fundraising done by the Friends was critical, it wasn’t solely how this project was funded. “There were three sources for funding,” Norweb stated. “The CPC, FMCOA, and the Friends of the Marion Recreation Department each contributed $4,500. … The town has been a full partner.”

            Norweb said that fundraising will continue for some time for the project that will feature a 36-by-26-foot covered pavilion positioned in the lawn space, where all types of community events will be possible. Originally, the plan called for placement of the structure in the center of the lawn fronting on Route 6. Upon further consideration, planners are rethinking and moving the structure closer to the existing community building. Norweb said this would allow for better movement between the kitchen and bathroom facilities and a larger open space on the lawn for children’s games and other activities.

            Of the walking path, Norweb stated that it is critical to keep the walkway as level as possible with special consideration for those using wheelchairs. “We had to keep the grade no more than 2 degrees of elevation. It’s fully ADA compliant.”

            Plans for the walkway include some additional landscaping and possibly the placement of signage indicating how many laps it takes to reach a certain goal such as, “X number of laps and you’ll be in New Bedford,” Norweb said with a chuckle.

By Marilou Newell

ORRJH Students Raise Nearly $17,000 During Boosterthon Fundraiser

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Superintendent Michael S. Nelson and Principal Silas Coellner are pleased to share that Old Rochester Regional Junior High School held a school-wide celebration last week to mark the end of a successful two-week fundraising effort.

            The school took part in “Booster Bash 2021” on Thursday, September 23. It marked the end of their Boosterthon fundraiser, which took place from September 10-23.

            This is the second year the school has participated in a Boosterthon fundraiser, which allows students to register and solicit donations for their school through the site’s online interface. The school then provided prizes for those who secured donations.

            Unlike traditional fundraisers, prizes were not given solely to the students who raised the most money. Instead, students could raise money in any amount and be entered to win a variety of prizes through various challenges. Prizes ranged from gift certificates to a mountain bike, a drone, and more.

            Boosterthon supplied the funds for the prizes as part of the partnership with the school.

            In total, the school raised nearly $17,000 with all the proceeds going directly back to student activities, such as after-school programs, field trips, and more.

            Booster Bash 2021 was held to mark the end of the fundraising event, and all students at the school, regardless of their participation, were able to take part. It involved color day activities, relay races, games, and more.

            “The kids had a great time, and it was an awesome way to end a very successful fundraising effort,” Principal Coellner said. “We held a Boosterthon fundraiser in 2019 but we were unable to last year due to COVID, so to be fully back in school this year and be able to do more programs like this is such a good thing for our entire school community.”

            Physical Education teacher Karen Horan served as the school’s Boosterthon liaison, making sure the donations were collected properly, assisting students as needed, and helping to organize the Booster Bash celebration.

            Old Rochester Regional Junior High School is a pilot school for Boosterthon fundraisers at this grade level in the northeast part of the country. Typically, the company sponsors fundraisers at the elementary level.

            The fundraiser had the support of the school administration and the Old Rochester Regional School Committee. Local businesses also served as sponsors.

            “We are thrilled with how many students took part in this event, and how much money they were able to raise for their school,” Superintendent Nelson said. “We had donations come in from all over Massachusetts and from around two dozen states in total. The generosity of our school community has always been very strong, and it certainly showed with this fundraiser.”