ATM Location Remains Unsettled

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            Rockland Trust and its customers will have to wait until at least mid-November to know if one of its ATM drive-up/walk-up kiosks will be built in the Plumb Corner mall parking lot.

            After hearing and voicing multiple objections to where it is being placed, the Rochester Planning Board continued its October 25 public hearing into the site-plan-review and permit application for the ATM’s construction to November 10.

            Bill Madden of G.A.F. Engineering, Rockland Trust’s design consultant, described the project as a 7×13-foot kiosk on an 8×19-foot concrete foundation that will take up two parking spots to the side of the landscaped island in front of Friends’ Marketplace. While the kiosk is being built, the site will be enveloped in a construction fence and a straw compost waddle that will control runoff, Madden said.

            Planning Board Chairman Arnold Johnson started the objections by noting the proposed work area “won’t work for the 53-foot trailer trucks that cannot make the swing to cut around there for deliveries.”

            “Why place it there?” board member Chris Silveira asked.

            Madden and Rockland Trust representative Stephen Carroll said they toured the plaza with mall owner Sophia Darras and agreed this was the spot where she wanted it placed. The company’s ATM currently inside the village mall building is being relocated, Carroll said in a previous meeting, because of the awkwardness of having to walk through the Countryside Day Care facility to service the equipment.

            On Tuesday night, Carroll said Rockland Trust would like to begin construction as soon as possible and open the ATM for business by the end of the year.

            Johnson said, if that’s the case, Rockland Trust needs its own snow-removal plan because its location stymies where plow operators clear and deposit the plaza’s snow.

            Friends’ Marketplace manager Rob Ciardi complained the kiosk is being built “right in front of store. We are the busiest business in the plaza,” he said. “The construction will be a big hindrance to our customer parking and coming to us.”

            Ciardi said the location is also a safety issue, suggesting that motor vehicles are likely to back up into ATM customers and other cars. Meanwhile, he said, there are dead spots elsewhere in the mall parking lot.

            Planning Board members proposed moving the kiosk to the other side of the landscaped island, farther away from the area of the market. That way, the construction can still utilize the same underground, utility-connection plan.

            Carroll said the plaza owner had picked this spot as the one she would accept for the relocation. Madden and the board agreed a written draft of the new location would need to be completed and sent to Town Planner Nancy Durfee and the plaza owner for their approval prior to the next meeting.

            The board changed its regularly scheduled meeting day from Tuesday, November 8, to Thursday, November 10, after the members realized that November 8 is Election Day, and they cannot legally meet that day. Per usual, the November 10 public meeting will be held at 7:00 pm at Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School Library.

Rochester Planning Board

By Michael J. DeCicco

Veterans Day Bell Ringing

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Once again, the bells will be ringing in the Tri-Town on Veterans Day, November 11, in honor of all veterans, past and present. The bell ringing honors the celebration that occurred on Armistice Day in 1918, signaling the end of World War I. In the past, the bells have been rung from churches, from town halls, from schools and firehouses. They’re all rung in celebration of all veterans, living and deceased, and the sacrifices they have made in the line of duty. Once again, the bell will be rung at the Mattapoisett Congregational Church. If you would like to be present for this special event, please plan to be at the church lawn at 11 am on November 11.

Trustees of the Mattapoisett Christian Church

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Trustees of the Mattapoisett Christian Church will host their annual ecumenical service on November 20 at 3 pm. The service will be held at the historical Mattapoisett Christian Church, home of the Mattapoisett Museum, at 5 Church Street, Mattapoisett.

            Rev. Dr. Richard Wolf of the Mattapoisett Congregational Church will lead the worship service with Father Chris Stanibula of St. Anthony’s Church and a representative from the Mattapoisett Friends Meeting participating. Michelle Gordon will lead the music.

            All are welcome; we hope to see you there.

Alewives Anonymous 2022 Herring Counts

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The results of the 2022 alewives (river herring) migration as recorded by an electronic fish counter on the Mattapoisett River at Snipatuit Pond have been completed. This year’s count of herring in the Mattapoisett River was 2,332, an increase of 446 over the 2021 total of 1,886. Counting conditions were ideal this past spring, the counter appears to have functioned without errors. AA did not set up an electronic fish counter on the Sippican River at Leonard’s Pond in 2022. The Buzzards Bay

            Coalition did set up their counter on the Sippican River at Hathaway’s Pond and recorded 37 fish. The moratorium against the taking or possession of herring from the Mattapoisett River and the Sippican River, as well as many other rivers in Massachusetts, remains in effect. Over the years that the moratorium has been in effect, the herring population in the Mattapoisett River had increased from about 6,000 to just over 55,400 in 2014 then was followed by some years of declining counts. The counting effort will continue and provide the necessary information to manage a future harvest in the Mattapoisett River; however, continued improvements in the counts are needed to support a sustainable fishery plan and to justify an opening. Once the herring population reaches a point where a sustainable harvest plan can be formulated, filed with Division of Marine Fisheries and approved, harvesting could be resumed.

Marion Cub Scout Soapbox Derby

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Marion Cub Scout Pack 32 is holding a soapbox derby and food drive on Saturday, November 5, from 10 am to 2pm.

            The derby will be held on Holmes Street Marion. If weather forces a cancellation, the derby’s rain date is Sunday, November 6.

            Starting at 10 am, the Scouts will be racing their homemade soapbox cars. Once the races are finished, the raceway will open up to family members, potential Scouts and other community members who feel the need for speed and want to take the soapbox cars for a spin.

            The Cub Scouts welcome everyone to the races, whether they want to try out the cars or just cheer on the competitors. If you have nonperishable food items to help support a local pantry, please drop them off at this event, and we will get them to those in need.

            There is still plenty of time for boys and girls from kindergarten through grade five to join the Cub Scouts. For more information, please contact marioncubscoutspack32@gmail.com. We cannot wait to see you at our annual race. Other packs or individuals who may want to participate, please contact the pack.

SHS Speaker Series

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The SHS Speaker Series presents Michael Moore discussing his recently published book, We Are All Whalers on Saturday, November 5 at 7:00 pm at the Marion Music Hall and via Zoom.

            For the past 25 years, Michael Moore has been privy to the trauma that North Atlantic right whales suffer when ships collide with them, and they get entangled in fishing gear. For those that die, he has documented how fatal trauma occurred. For those that survive, he and colleagues have been learning what that means in terms of reduced calving success. They have written academic papers and book chapters and made presentations at scientific meetings. But none of that has adequately communicated the needed remedies to those that can really make a difference: to the people whose voting and purchasing behavior can enable ethical consumption of shipped goods and seafood that allows both industries and whales to thrive. The goal of this book is to help consumers understand what is going on and what they can do about the problem: actively demanding truly sustainable seafood; telling your representatives how much you genuinely care to purchase goods and seafood that have been obtained sustainably.

            Michael Moore is a veterinary scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He has studied the effects of trauma from the shipping and fishing industries on North Atlantic right whale (NARW) survival and welfare. He is currently assessing NARW health using aerial photogrammetry and working with a group of stakeholders to establish buoy-less fishing systems as a viable tool to remove line from the water column.

Plumb Line Goes through Canada

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The new director of the Joseph Plumb Library, New Bedford native Kristen Cardoso, took a 17-year, step-by-step path to her new position, with a detour through Canada.

            Her fascination with books started very early. As a child, she said, “I was a huge reader.  So was my mother, and she always made sure we had access to books. When I was young, my grandfather would bring me to the Lawler library. ‘The Goosebumps’ series and scary books were my early favorites.”

            It’s no wonder Cardoso started her library career while still attending high school, as a volunteer page at the New Bedford Public Library. In 2004, around the time she worked under previous Rochester library director Gail Roberts, she went full-time, then became a librarian at the Wilks Branch library.

            After six years working in New Bedford, she left it all to pursue two master’s degrees, in English Literature of the 19th century focusing on New England authors and Library Studies at McGill University in Montreal. “It’s funny that I had to go to Canada to study English and American Literature,” she admitted with a bit of a laugh.

            But Montreal is also where the idea of becoming a full-time librarian really took hold.

            “That’s where I decided I did not want to be an English professor,” said Cardoso. “I wanted to pursue being a full-time, professional librarian. I was getting an understanding of how people can learn about American literature through me as a librarian.

            “Teaching is part of this job. In this role, I’m better able to help guide people to find information and books on their own, to empower them as readers and learners. We’re living in a world of information overload. Helping people sort through all that information is important.”

            When Cardoso’s husband went to study for his doctorate in Political Science at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California, she was able to follow him by becoming a librarian there, then in 2018 the head of Curriculum at the University of California Santa Cruz. Cardoso worked there until the pandemic hit and sent her and her husband back home, where she became the branch manager at the Howland Green Library in New Bedford in 2021.

            That’s where she was when the Rochester position came available. “This was my next step,” she said. “I was a little nervous taking on this job, but I’ve gotten a lot of support to at least try for this job. And now it’s working out.”

            What are her future plans as Rochester’s head librarian? “I am doing my best to be visible for people who need help,” she said. “Whatever I hear from people that they need or want will be the future of this library. It’s not my library. It’s our library.”

            Said Roberts, a mentor of Cardoso’s, “She’s always sweet and always helpful. She is a very good fit for the town of Rochester.”

By Michael J. DeCicco

Doris (Barrett) Boucher

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Doris (Barrett) Boucher, age 98, of Rochester, Massachusetts passed away on Thursday, October 27, 2022 in Middleboro, MA.  She was the wife of the late Hormidas R. Boucher.

She was born to Samuel C. and Laura (Duchaine) Barrett on November 12, 1923, in Fairhaven, MA and was a proud 1942 Honor Graduate of Fairhaven High School and of Kinyon-Campbell’s Secretarial Program in New Bedford.

Doris worked in various clerical positions, most notably for New Bedford Attorney George H. Young, and in the Trust Department at The Shawmut Bank from where she retired at the age of 65.  At age 62, she was elected Treasurer for the Town of Rochester, a position that she held for 10 years.  

Doris was an active participant and volunteer in her communities.  In earlier years in New Bedford, she was a Girl Scout leader, past President of the Bristol County Legal Secretaries Association and an active member of the National Association of Legal Secretaries.  Later in life, she served on the board of directors for the Rochester Council on Aging (COA) and was involved with the Rochester Friends of the COA.  Doris was elected Treasurer and served as State Commander for the State of Massachusetts Wives of U.S. Submarine Vets of WWII. She was an active member of her parish, St. Rose of Lima in Rochester.

Doris was happiest when surrounded by family and friends.  Famous for her big Sunday dinners, always ready to feed a crowd whether she knew anyone was coming or not.  She loved square dancing, ballroom dancing, flower gardening, sewing, crafts, cooking and travel.  A proficient seamstress, Doris made most of her clothing growing up including her own beautiful wedding dress.  She made matching square-dancing outfits for her & Butch, matching outfits for her girls and Halloween costumes for her children and grandchildren.

Doris was a caring wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt and friend.   All who knew her, loved her.  She leaves behind her children, Dorine Westgate, Ronald Boucher and his wife Lucille, Sharon McDuffy-Garbetti and her husband Paul and Susan Daniel and her husband Roy. 

She leaves her 11 grandchildren, Laurie Hesketh and her husband Scott Wybranski, Lynelle Smith and her husband Michael, Keith Boucher and his fiancée Danielle Knierim, Danielle Baldwin and her husband Chris, Christopher Savary and his wife Wendy, Daniel Savary and his wife April Lima, Jennifer Jensen, Jarred Boucher and his wife Ashley, Sarah Coucci and her husband Jake, Matthew Daniel and Sean Daniel.   

She leaves her 19 Great Grandchildren including Patrick Hesketh and his wife Yara; Justin, Evan and Kyle Smith; Nathan, Michael and Alyssa Baldwin;  Brooke, Kayla, Brandon,  and Jason Boucher; Christopher Savary; Devon Savary; Aleksandra Jensen; Annabelle and Sebastian Boucher; Molly, Maeve and William Coucci. 

She was pre-deceased by her loving husband of 71 years, Hormidas “Butch” Boucher, her son, Paul Boucher, her parents, all her siblings (6 brothers:  Edward, George, Roland, Leo, Samuel, and Wilfred Barrett and 2 sisters, Claire Cormier and Pearl Racine).

Her Funeral will be held on Wednesday, November 2, 2022 at 10:30 a.m. from the Waring-Sullivan Home at Fairlawn, 180 Washington St., Fairhaven followed by a Funeral Mass at 12 p.m. in St. Rose of Lima Church, 282 Vaughan Hill Rd., Rochester. Burial is private. Visiting hours Tuesday 5-8 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association, MA Chapter, 309 Waverly Oaks Rd., Waltham, MA 02452 or www.alz.org.

Artist Amy Thurber Demonstrates Leaf Pottery Process

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Stop by the Mattapoisett Free Public Library, 7 Barstow Street, on Sund, November 6 between 2:00 pm and 3:00 pm to see South Dartmouth artist Amy Thurber give a demonstration on the leaf pottery process. Amy uses this process to embed prints of real leaves onto her pottery, allowing all of nature’s details to appear on the finished work. You can also ask her about her sketches and pottery which are on exhibit at the Library until November 14.

Sippican Historical Society

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Marion (Old Rochester) is one of the oldest towns in the United States, and the Sippican Historical Society maintains an extensive collection of documentation on its historic buildings. In 1998, the Sippican Historical Society commissioned an architectural survey of Marion’s historic homes and buildings. Over 100 were cataloged and photographed. SHS will feature one building a week so that the residents of Marion can understand more about its unique historical architecture.

            Built around the time of the Revolutionary War, the Capt. James Luce House at 310 Front Street is a relatively rare example of a “pure” Federal-style residence in Marion. By the early 1800s, Old Landing was included as a stop on a stagecoach route linking Wareham with Wharf Village. This house served travelers as a stopover and was known as the Norton Tavern. From the 1810s until at least the first decade of the 20th century, this house was owned by Luces. Beginning in 1816, Captain James and Dolly Luce lived here, followed by Bessie D. Luce in the late 19th century and Henry C. Luce, a clerk, in the early 1900s.