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Lois C. (Phillips) Straffin, 81, of Rochester, passed away peacefully at home with her family at her side on September 22, 2022. 

Survivors include her husband, Richard W. Straffin, they were married for 48 years; her 6 children, Glen Jutras, Scott Jutras, Eric Jutras, Donna Nichols, Michael Straffin,  Patricia DeNardo and her husband Marc; 12 grandchildren; many great grandchildren.

She was born in Buffalo, NY and lived in Rochester, MA for 36 years.  She graduated from Canton High School.

She worked for many restaurants and retail stores in the area.

Lois was a great cook and wanted to make sure everyone was well fed.  She loved hosting cookouts and holiday dinners, especially Thanksgiving.

She was a longtime supporter of Damien’s Pantry where she served on the Board of Directors and ran a team of volunteers for 10 years. She was very religious and faithful and a member of the First Congregational Church in Rochester. She enjoyed attending Bible classes there.

She enjoyed traveling, camping in New Hampshire, dancing with her husband, and she was a voracious reader.

A memorial service will be held at a later date at the First Congregational Church in Rochester.

In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to Family Pantry, Damien’s Place, P.O. Box 730, East Wareham, MA 02538 or the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758516, Topeka, Kansas 66675-8516.

Arrangements are by Chapman Funerals & Cremations – WAREHAM, 2599 Cranberry Hwy., Wareham.  To share a memory or leave a message of condolence, visit: www.chapmanfuneral.com.

ConCom’s Limitations Felt by Abutter

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            Brian and Beth Keane received a Negative Box 2 Determination of Applicability for their plan to raze an existing house and garage and construct a new home with an attached garage, driveway, retaining walls, landscaping and utilities 8 Pie Alley, but the decision made by the Marion Conservation Commission on September 14 was made with respect to abutters concerned about flooding in their neighborhood.

            Bill Madden of G.A.F. Engineering, representing the applicant, explained stormwater-management improvements. Madden said he was asked by Will Saltonstall to add features to mitigate the runoff situation.

            “That’s what we did,” said Madden, who noted the work is in the flood zone so the mission is to capture roof runoff and store it and infiltrate it through a series of “filtration beds.”

            Other commissioners indicated they are satisfied with the plan.

            Abutter Michael Moore, who owns the adjacent property to the north, told the commission that the new garage will sit much closer to his lot line than the existing structure. Seeing that the applicant’s representatives reported on a 2-foot dig, Moore said he dug 4 feet down on the abutting property close to the lot line and found a layer of clay that he suspects lies beneath both properties. As a result, he articulated concern that the drainage plan next door will not be sufficient and will in the end add to the flooding problem there.

            In conceding a lack of rights where it concerns the specific project, Moore said there is a “regional problem” at Pie Alley and Lewis Street that the commission needs to address. He recommended pits be dug to 4 feet.

            Emil Assing, acting as chairman in the absence of Jeff Doubrava, discussed the limitations of the commission and sought corroboration from Conservation Agent Doug Guey-Lee and former commission chairman Shaun Walsh. Both gave it.

            Guey-Lee said the ConCom’s purview is only to approve the project if installed as permitted.

            Walsh agreed with Guey-Lee, adding that the Conservation Commission is reviewing a RDA in which the only resource area subject to the Wetlands Protection Act is land subject to coastal-storm flowage.

            “There are no performance standards associated with that resource area, but typically what we look for is we want to ensure that structures that are structured on land subject to coastal-storm flowage are not going to result in, sort of, creating these … areas that will increase the velocity of flood waters. This is … not a (velocity) zone,” said Walsh, reiterating the 10-day appeal period for abutter dissatisfied with a commission decision.

            Acknowledging the nuance in Moore’s question, Walsh said that, for instance, six months down the road if there is flooding, the commission is without recourse.

            “In my opinion, this project may result in an improvement over current site conditions,” said Walsh, noting the slope being put into the land and the introduction of stormwater structures that do not yet exist. “I don’t think it’s going to exacerbate the situation. … Not the answer I think you wanted to hear.”

            “It was the answer I expected,” said Moore, who graciously thanked the commission for hearing his concern.

            In his motion, Assing suggested erosion-control plans in the event a situation develops. Walsh agreed heavy rain could increase the problem. The commissioners conditioned the negative determination with erosion control, suggesting straw wattles as an example.

            The Enforcement Order for Unpermitted Activity at Marion Golf Club, 10 South Drive, is drawing toward a conclusion. Guey-Lee called the latest plan “a great step forward.” Walsh recommended that the club respond quickly to final suggestions with an eye on a September 28 vote to approve. “I think we’re 98 percent there, that’s my feeling, maybe even 99,” said Walsh.

            The representative for the Marion Harbor Trust, owner of the club, noted that the revision presented on September 14 was based on the commission’s recommendations and that the case has dragged on since June throughout the summer. She sought assurance that “a happy conclusion” was, in fact, being achieved.

            Assing said he anticipates the end of the process at the next meeting but did not want to speak for other commissioners. Guey-Lee furthermore noted that the chairman (Doubrava), not being present, should not be spoken for.

            Thomas Heiser’s Notice of Intent for beach nourishment at 5 Island Court was approved with an Order of Conditions.

            James Connolly received an Order of Conditions to construct a single-family house and associated utilities at Dexter Road.

            Tucker Burr was issued a Negative 2 and 3 Determination of Applicability, green-lighting his plan for general landscaping off Route 6.

            Michael Craffey’s NOI to repair an existing seawall and remove invasive phragmites was continued to October 26.

            The commission approved a three-year extension of the town’s permit to manage an overgrowth of invasive plants at the Sprague’s Cove retention pond.

            The next meeting of the Marion Conservation Commission is scheduled for Wednesday, September 28, at 7:00 pm.

Marion Conservation Commission

By Mick Colageo

Patnaude Paces Old Colony Runners

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Senior Jacob Patnaude led the Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School cross-country team in its first two meets of the 2022-23 season.

            The outmanned Cougars gave visiting Bristol Plymouth a tussle on September 14 before dropping a 24-33 decision that starts off Old Colony’s season at 0-2. The Cougars opened on the road with a 25-30 defeat against host Fairhaven on September 7.

            Complementing Patnaude’s performance of 20:21 against B-P on the Cougars’ 3.01-mile course were fellow seniors Nikolaos Sedell (21:10) and Grant Ashley (22:31), followed by freshmen Ryan Eby and Brady Maguire.

            Against Fairhaven, Patnaude set the Cougars’ pace with a mile average of 6:43. Sedell and Ashley were able to take the fourth and fifth overall positions as Old Colony placed three among the top five overall finishers. Maguire and Eby came speeding through the finish line next, impressing the crowd as they ran their first race.

            The Cougars host Bristol Aggie on Tuesday, September 20.

Sports Roundup

Fresnel’s Lens Still Sheds Light

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At the beginning of the 18th century, the basic design of lighthouse beacons was perfected by the French inventor Augustine Fresnel.

            In his research, Fresnel deducted that the power for electric light was pure energy sent out in waves through the air. He experimented with three types of light prisms to effectively focus their concentrated beams that are still in use today. They come out many times brighter and can be seen in a dark storm more than 20 miles away.

            The Bird Island Lighthouse in Marion (as in my illustration) is well known for sending out this kind of a long-distance sentinel signal to migrating terns during spring as they travel along the Atlantic flyway toward a perfect, low-lying island for nesting and seasonal reproduction.

            One of the endangered terns on the way is the Roseate species, saved from extinction by the town by donating and distributing hundreds of wooden nesting boxes to safely help new hatchlings survive. The terns that are saved every year just happen to comprise two-thirds of the Roseate world population.

            The Fresnel lens is the largest, most expensive, single piece of equipment in the beacon area of the lighthouse, responsible to get the critical warning message along a rocky coast in a storm with flashing rays of bright light, often synchronized with blasts of a loud foghorn with a throbbing message that real trouble lies waiting just ahead. Many lighthouses today are still equipped with Fresnel lenses, while only a few have very recently been replaced by a vastly different powerful electrical combination of beams.

            As well as future navigational and nautical conclusions, the combination of brilliant invention of Fresnel lenses is also coming to light for theory of modern day medical hospital clinics. Subsequently, Augustine Fresnel and his brilliance will even now still go down in history for showing modern generations a new way of thinking for the future.

By George B. Emmons

Learn New Photo Skills at the MAC

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The Marion Art Center welcomes photographer John Wiliszowski, who will give an educational lecture, Photography’s Path to Digital Expression, on Saturday, October 15 at 10:30 am in the MAC’s Anne Braitmayer Webb Theater. Tickets are just $15 for MAC members and $20 for nonmembers. The presentation is an introduction to a series created for artists interested in digital art. Wiliszowski details the creation of digital images as the canvas. He will decode the tools and techniques of digital artistry used to enhance and share the emotion, the spectacle and the dynamics of the moment as digital art. Learn how digital images can be rendered as giclées on canvas, watercolor paper, metal or glass. There will be time for a Q&A during the event. Space is limited, and advance registration is strongly recommended. Purchase tickets at marionartcenter.org/events.

From the Files of the Rochester Historical Society

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Once the early settlers of the New England colonies got past the first years of subsistence farming, they were ready to acquire items not easily found in the woods and fields of their new home. Bartering became a way to get the things that they wanted, but they were always looking for some form of a money payment when goods were exchanged. In 1637, the Native American’s wampum made of primarily quahog shells was considered legal tender and could for a while be used to pay taxes. Unfortunately, in 1661, the fragility of the shells led to it no longer being accepted. Different areas created paper money, but it would only be accepted in limited areas and its value fluctuated widely.

            Most of the items, animal skins, dried fish and tobacco, which Massachusetts colonists exported to England, were paid for by the English in commodities, like windowpanes, fabrics, mirrors, pewter dishes and tea. While the colonists wanted these items, they really wanted to be paid in gold coins. Being paid in coins made trading easier and also provided them with the ability to accumulate wealth. Neither of these were encouraged by the English government which ruled the colonies and wanted all trade by the colonists to be with Britain.

            Interestingly, the best sources for the most common coin, the Spanish dollar or piece of eight, were pirates who would spend their loot in New England’s Coastal communities. One particular pirate, John Avery, stole a fortune in gold coins from an Arab merchant in 1695. The New England colonists welcomed his spending in their ports.

            Eventually, in 1720, the lack of money (coins) was so great in Massachusetts that the province, much like the U.S. government during the worst of the Covid 19 Pandemic, made a plan to loan money to the towns. In 1720, the province made a grant of 50,000 pounds to be loaned in the towns. In 1721, Rochester voted to participate, and the town’s share was 365 pounds. The terms for the available loans were that each borrower was “to give bonds with a personal (not “real”) security” and would agree to pay a small interest to the town. The borrower would also have to pay four pence a pound to John Briggs and Benjamin Dexter who were the two men selected as agents to bring the money to town. The money could be held for four years unless the town “drew it in.”

            The 365 pounds were divided into 15 parts and those who had provided a bond drew lots. The 15 lucky winners were Capt. Isaac Holmes, Nathan Hammond, James Steward, John Randall, Samuel Griffith, Samuel Sprague, Moses Barlow, William Raymond, Ethien Holmes, Samuel Shearman, Joseph Haskell, John Dexter, Joseph Prince, William Noyes and Thomas Randall. There is no mention as to whether anyone was unable to return the money after the four years.

By Connie Eshbach

Final SEC Grant No Slam Dunk

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The plan to finance construction of Marion’s new Marine Center at Island Wharf was predicated on two $1,000,000 grants from the state’s Seaport Economic Council, which first granted Marion $300,000 before adding the first of the aforementioned $1,000,000 grants.

            “I don’t have high hopes for the final installment,” said Harbormaster Isaac Perry, who said he will send in the final grant application, “but … I’ll believe it when I see it.”

            All three harbormasters, Perry, Adam Murphy and David Wilson, were on deck for Monday night’s public meeting of the Marine Resources Commission at the Music Hall.

            Boat maintenance will be expensive this year, as Perry noted problems with the lower unit on the Harbormaster Department patrol boat. Having budgeted $10,000 for maintenance and repair, Perry said $11,000 has already been spoken for, and all three department boats still need to be winterized.

            Until Marion’s facilities are completed, boats like town vehicles have no sheltered storage. Perry said he will take funds from Marine Supply budget and told the commission the department has a spare 300 horsepower motor if something goes wrong.

            A motor for the town’s pump-out boat was ordered on September 1, 2021; Perry anticipates its delivery in January. “The Clean Vessel Act hopefully will cover some of those expenses,” he said. There are 1,600 hours on the current motor.

            Overall, Fiscal Year 2022 revenue is just shy of $467,000 against expenses coming in slightly over $466,000, so the Harbormaster Department is putting away approximately $10,000 into the Waterways Account.

            Perry’s perusal of social media indicates a lot more boaters are using the Bird Island dock, which was designed for center-console (smaller) vessels, but large ones are also docking there. That has prompted Perry to get that float out of the water earlier in the season than in the past. In October, the Harbormaster Department will remove many of the channel speed markers.

            The extra efforts put forth by the department thanks in large part to Perry’s experienced and knowledgeable staff will require some serious reinvention should the town not figure out a way to fiscally manage the effects of the national Police Reform Act of 2020.

            According to Perry, Chief of Police Richard Nighelli was scheduled to meet on Tuesday with other area police chiefs. “We’ll have a lot better idea of what that will entail … next couple of months we’ll know more,” he said.

            Centralized, standardized training will, on one hand, authorize the Harbormaster Department to act more confidently knowing it will have union backing in the wake of incidents or arrests, but the reconfiguration of leadership will come with financial leverages.

            “Day-to-day operations will run the same way,” said Perry, noting the added level of oversight. “The overriding concern is, if we don’t do this, the law-enforcement duties will fall to the Police Department rather than us. There are a lot of costs associated with that. … This police reform has been shaky at best … there are many, many questions. If we can get ourselves under the Police Department, then the Harbormaster Department continues as known … but if not, it changes drastically.”

            Core responsibilities would remain the same, stressed Perry.

            MRC member Scott Cowell asked the three harbormasters if they think that they should go under the Police Reform Bill. “Too many questions out there for the town to just accept it,” he said.

            “Absolutely,” answered Perry, noting that their training is right in line with police officers. “We have to maintain this for our certification to remain law-enforcement officers. … There is no other training.”

            What concerns Perry is, should the Harbormaster Department not become part of the Police Department, the resulting effects will have harbormasters seeking “better opportunities out there.

            “I’m not worried about civil service. I’m worried about the operations that I run. We need to get through this and get on with it.”

            According to Perry, police reform has far-reaching economic effects beyond harbormasters to campus police, hospital police, sheriffs, etc.

            MRC Chairman Vin Malkoski said, “If a town decides to go it alone, I don’t see the incentive. The town does all the problem solving.”

            “It’s a huge expense. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel,” agreed Perry. “Remember, we’re employees at will. (Once harbormasters become part of the Police Department), we will be afforded the protection of the union.”

            Murphy looks forward to the change and to be equipped with a body camera.

            “The Cape and Islands and North Shore are so far apart,” he said. “The North Shore is all going police … the Cape is holding strong at the bridge … ‘We’re not cops, we’re harbormasters.’ But now with police reform and no reserve academy … it’s going to go that way, it’s just a matter of time. We’re always going to do what Marion does and that’s the right thing.”

            A growing concern of entitlement among boaters has Marion’s Harbormaster Department looking forward to all the tools and protection of the Police Department.

            Finally, Malkoski noted that the Select Board has received the MRC’s recommendations and is interviewing candidates for commission membership.

            The MRC set its next meeting for Monday, October 17, at 7:00 pm, at the Music Hall.

Marion Marine Resources Commission

By Mick Colageo

Town Dogging Delinquent Pet Owners

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            Dog owners are on notice. Your time to own an unregistered pet without being fined is up.

            On Monday night, the Rochester Select Board signed the town’s Annual Dog Enforcement Warrant, notifying all dog owners in town their canine must be licensed.

            The warrant authorizes Animal Control Officer Anne Estabrook to catch and confine all dogs “not duly licensed or collared and tagged … for a period of not less than 10 days.” The fines imposed will be a $20 drop-off fee and $15 for every dog in the ACO’s custody. After the 10 days, the ACO may allow any person to adopt the healthy dog.

            It’s time for dog owners to act, Select Board Chairman Woody Hartley said.

            In other action, the board approved the use of town roads for Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School’s “Frosty Runner Road Race” set for January 23, 2023. “It will be a frosty one,” Hartley agreed as the board motioned its endorsement.

            The selectmen set February 21 as the rain date for the race. They explained later that this run will circle the North Avenue school property and include town streets such as Snipatuit Road.

            The board then approved a retirement citation for former Assessor Debra Lalli, “for 22 years of outstanding service and dedication.”

            Lalli had retired as Assessment administrator in June in order to collect her pension. She then reapplied unsuccessfully to be appointed as an assessor to fill her open seat. The opening instead was filled by Finance Director Suzanne Szyndlar.

            The board then accepted the resignation of Rochester Police Sergeant Alyson M. Rego, a full-time officer since 2017, effective Friday, September 23.

            Next, the board announced that three people have already applied for the at-large seat on the newly created Public Safety Feasibility Study Committee. The noteworthy names are Robert Francis, who is a former building commissioner, Brian Porter and Zoning Board of Appeals member Richard Cutler.

            The board, however, filed these applications until Thursday, September 22. That is when the Select Board will interview the three bidders to do the feasibility study itself. This meeting will start at 6:00 pm at the Rochester Senior Center. Hartley said any other interested volunteers should submit their application by the board’s next meeting on October 3.

            Next, Town Administrator Glenn Cannon announced that federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds totaling $500,000 are ready to be divided between the town and Bristol County. Cannon asked the board if it wanted to organize an ARPA committee to decide how the town’s share of that money should be spent. He said he will collect more data that will help the board decide for its October 3 meeting.

            Next, Cannon announced two flu clinics have been scheduled for Tuesday, October 4: at Rochester Memorial School and at the Senior Center.

            Cannon then announced he has received several proposals from departments wishing to use the town’s next receipt of SEMASS donation funds. The amount of that donation is not yet certain, Cannon said. Hartley said the Select Board will only consider proposals with backup documentation that explains their particular needs. Here, too, the board postponed a decision until its next meeting, which will be held on Monday, October 3, at 6:00 pm at Town Hall.

Rochester Select Board

By Michael J. DeCicco

Upper Cape Students Build Canopy

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            The sound of nails being hammered and the smell of freshly sawn wood permeated the air on September 16, as students from Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School in Bourne continued their in-field carpentry education led by instructor Andrew MacLeod at the Cushing Community Center in Marion.

            MacLeod, who previously owned a construction company and is a third-generation builder, said the students were motivated and enjoyed hands-on learning available through such schools.

            The Cushing Community Center has been metamorphizing since it came into the possession of the Town of Marion in 2016 as a donation from the Benjamin D. Cushing VFW post that was disbanding. What a difference six years can make.

            Since then, the town and significant grassroots volunteer efforts have phased in construction projects that have included necessary updates and repairs to the existing structure, ADA-compliant features, an outdoor walking path, a pavilion and the latest addition, a permanent canopy over the walkway to the main entrance. The end game is to provide the community with a center that serves people in all age groups.

            MacLeod said that the Upper Cape Tech students were from the junior and senior classes and were receiving real-world experiences that will lead to real-life skills. “We treat it just like any other job site,” he said. Those experiences include educating the students on proper safety measures, staging of materials and tools and the proper use of tools.

            Marion Town Administrator Jay McGrail said that it was important to phase in various projects and to find creative ways to secure funding. “I couldn’t cover the labor costs if the school didn’t agree to take this project on,” he said.

            This isn’t the first time Marion, as a member municipality in the school’s district, has benefited from the expertise available at Upper Cape (as it is known.) “They worked on Fire Station 2 on Point Road; it was top-notch construction,” said McGrail.

            Marion Facilities Director Shaun Cormier also praised the work done by the students. “The staff is very experienced, up-to-date on all the building codes and standards … we’re very happy to have the help, it’s a huge relief.” Cormier added a smile that his department is only himself and one other person.

            McGrail said that the town has earmarked $50,000 for a study of the parking lot, another improvement project on the horizon. But sooner than that will be an $80,000 garage addition that was approved at Town Meeting to provide dry storage.

            Without the commitment of volunteers to help him navigate all the moving parts of a construction project at the site, as well as selecting the right projects to advance, it would be very difficult, McGrail said.

            Enter Harry Norweb, Dianne Cosman and others.

            We caught up with Norweb who was quick to say, “it’s a team effort.” Norweb had been involved with the Marion of Council on Aging Board of Directors, which subsequently was dissolved when the Council on Aging staff expanded. But the need for community involvement to develop the former VFW site into a fully functioning community center did not abate. “The ideas got bigger and more diverse.”

            Today McGrail says he depends on Norweb and Cosman. Norweb pointed out the involvement of Nancy Braitmayer. Town departments are also part of the mix, Norweb said, from DPW member Jody Dickerson, Select Board Executive Assistant Donna Hemphill and Cormier.

            For now, Norweb said, they are focusing on what makes sense for the center in helping it become “vibrant.” He also took a moment to express his gratitude to Upper Cape, saying he strongly believes in technical education. “It’s a hot button for me.” He concluded by saying that having the students at the Community Center was, in a word, “exciting.”

By Marilou Newell

Mattapoisett Library Celebrates Climate Prep Week

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            The Mattapoisett Free Public Library is celebrating Climate Preparedness Week from September 24 to the 30. Climate Preparedness Week was established by Communities Responding to Extreme Weather (CREW) in 2018 and seeks to inspire “learning, service and actions to better prepare our communities for extreme weather events and the effects of climate change.”

            This year’s theme is The Planet’s Health & Yours: Facing The Invisible Impacts Of Climate Change. To celebrate, the library will be offering a variety of activities and displays. There will be climate change themed crafts at the Media Lab on Tuesday, September 27 and in the children’s room during the week. Climate change themed book displays will be visible throughout the library. Well Read Wednesday will be discussing Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert on Wednesday, September 28 at 6:30 pm. Those interested in participating can pick up the book at the library prior to the event. The library also has “The Climate Ribbon,” a participatory art ritual of love and hope for the Climate Justice Movement project available the entire month of September near the side entrance.

            For more information about these events, send an email to mskaar@sailsinc.org. Check the library’s events calendar for more upcoming programs and book discussions.