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Old Colony Elder Services hosts annual Volunteer Appreciation and Awards ceremony

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More than 150 volunteers recently attended Old Colony Elder Services (OCES) Annual Volunteer Appreciation and Awards Ceremony held at Indian Pond Country Club in Kingston. Eight volunteers received special awards.

OCES, the non-profit agency proudly serving older adults and individuals with disabilities throughout greater Plymouth County, honored their volunteers, who generously donate their time to help others, with a Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon.

Armindo Rocha, Volunteer Programs Manager and Cidalia America, Volunteer Program Assistant hosted the event and presented President’s Volunteer Service – Lifetime Achievement and Annual Gold awards along with OCES’ Make A Difference awards to the eight volunteers.

OCES is a National President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) Certifying Organization. The PVSA honors outstanding volunteers and recognizes the impact they make. The PVSA’s highest honor, the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award recognizing 4000+ volunteer hours in a lifetime, was presented to two volunteers. Joseph Tyler Jr., a resident of Halifax, MA, has impacted others with his smile and sense of humor for many years as a volunteer; and Bill Raymond, a resident of Middleboro, MA, who volunteers by transporting seniors to their medical appointments regardless of location and will volunteer 8 hours a day driving if needed.

The PVSA’s Annual Gold Award, marking 500+ volunteer hours for the year, was presented to four volunteers: Steve Sundell of Easton, MA, a SHINE Counselor for 12 years; Fred Ciliberto of Hanover, MA, a volunteer for many years at the Hanover COA; Walter Hempel of Duxbury, MA, a long-time volunteer of both the Duxbury COA as well as the Project Gurnet & Bug Lights, Inc.; and John Ruthkowski of Duxbury, MA who has been involved with AARP tax preparation for several years, devoting well over 700 hours each year to the Kingston and Duxbury COAs to prepare taxes for more than 250 clients.

The Make a Difference Award is given by OCES and the RSVP-PC to recognize exceptional volunteers for their dedication to helping others making a big impact on the community. This award was presented to: John Durnan of Duxbury who has been traveling to Brockton to deliver meals since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020; and G. Mike Pauley of Brockton who is a longtime volunteer at the Caffrey Towers and Campello High Rise buildings in Brockton and was instrumental in delivering meals during the pandemic.

“We truly appreciate all of our volunteers for their dedication to helping others, assisting those in need in our communities, and making the world a better place,” said Armindo Rocha, OCES’ Volunteer Manager.

More about the PVSA
In 2003, the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation founded the President’s Volunteer Service Award to recognize the important role of volunteers in America’s strength and national identity. This award honors individuals whose service positively impacts communities in every corner of the nation and inspires those around them to take action too. Led by AmeriCorps and managed in partnership with Points of Light, this program allows Certifying Organizations to recognize their most exceptional volunteers.

As an AmeriCorps Seniors grantee, OCES receives funds through the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) for volunteers age 55+. RSVP of Plymouth County (RSVP-PC) volunteers help OCES and other local agencies that are OCES Community Service Partners.

Volunteering for OCES
Our Volunteer Program supports OCES and other Community Service Partners. With the help of Nutrition Program volunteers, OCES serves 1,800 meals each weekday as part of its MOW Program. Money Management Program (MMP) volunteers assist older adults and individuals with disabilities with bill paying, reconciling bank statements, balancing checkbooks, and in special cases, negotiating debt with creditors. Volunteers also serve on the OCES Board of Directors, MMP and RSVP Community Advisory councils and contribute with many other important efforts.

To learn more about becoming an OCES volunteer contact Armindo Rocha at 508-584-1561 x355 or visit ocesma.org.

About OCES
Founded in 1974, OCES proudly serves greater Plymouth County and surrounding communities. OCES is a private, non-profit organization headquartered in Brockton with a second office in Plymouth. OCES is designated as one of 24 Aging Services Access Points (ASAPs) in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. OCES’ mission is to support the independence and dignity of older adults and individuals with disabilities by providing essential information and services that promote healthy and safe living.

Furry friends strut their stuff at the Holmes

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It was an epidemic of cuteness at the Holmes  Public Library Annual Pet Show Monday night.  Dogs, a rabbit, guinea pigs, a baby turtle, and a couple of snails, the show went on and on with each entrant winning an appropriate certificate.

Emceed by Plympton Library Director Mike Slawson, with Holmes Children’s Librarian Holly Ianucci, wife to Mr. Mike, the children and their furry, fuzzy, and slimy friends took center stage.

They were called to the stage and each told of their pets’ special features.

Nate, three years old, brought his dog Teddy who Nate said likes to chase balls.  Teddy won “Most Playful.”

Ed brought his dog Pandora, a Cardigan Corgie who protects their chickens from marauding hawks and helps round up the chickens when it’s time to go in.  Pandora was deemed “Best Behaved.”

While Luke was busy at the nearby playground, Mom introduced his two guinea pigs, George and Allie.  Miss Holly held Allie and learned that she likes to chew on hair.  They were awarded “Cutest Duo.”

Nathan brought his Golden Retriever Hudson up to the stage and for the dark stripe in his fur was deemed “Most Unique.”  He was named after Doc Hudson.

Next came Emma and her pet dog Callie, who plays fetch and speaks on command.  Emma was named “Most Talkative.”

Stevie and Holden brought their American Staffordshire terrier named Bluey, who was awarded the certificate for “Happiest Friend.”

Sophia brought her large, lop-eared white bunny named Marshmallow.  She likes to play with balls, according to her friend.  Marshmallow was awarded the prize for “Most Athletic.”

Nelda, Kayla and Joel introduced Coral, a four-months old Giant Snoodle who likes belly rubs!   Coral was judged “Fluffiest Friend.”

Jayden brought Shadow, a rescue dog who, according to her owners, “likes to sit on your lap and lick you ‘til you can’t stand it anymore!”  Shadow was named “Friendliest.”

Mattie brought in Minnie the Guinea Pig whose favorite thing is  to eat pepper hearts.  Minnie was named “Life of the Party!”

Ryan brought his dogs Sierra and Bella, announcing, “They don’t get along.”  Mom stepped in to help and settled everyone down with a treat or two.  Bella knew she had to sit for a treat and so she did.  Sierra was awarded the certificate for “Most Beautiful” while Bella got the “Best Trick” designation.

PJ brought his pet Bubbles, a baby painted turtle he had found in his yard.  Bubbles won the prize as “Most Polite”.

Harper and Nick introduced their snails to the audience.  Harper said that it isn’t easy to tell them apart except for Lucky, so named because when Harper dropped him accidentally she broke his shell.  “Mom fixed it with a Band-Aid and Lucky survived.”  The snails won the certificate for “Most Chilled.”

Mattie brought her dog Charlie onto the stage to display his talent.  He howls very easily, Mattie said.  Dad came up and howled at Charlie to start the chorus.  Charlie was awarded “Best Howler.”

People from a number of surrounding towns came to see the Holmes Public Library Pet Show in Halifax and kids of all ages enjoyed the performance.

Leigh & Friends Puppet Show at Kingston Library

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Through Me To You Puppetry invites everyone to join Newton and the gang on Friday, Aug. 5, at 11 a.m. for some storytime fun!

Newton and his puppet friends take turns reading stories and singing songs with the kids.At the end of the show, the kids are invited to say hi to Newton and give him a high-five. They can even play with some of Newton’s puppets during a hands-on Puppet Free Play session! This program is recommended for ages 0-5 and will be held in the Library Tent.

If it rains this program will be held in the children›s room.

No registration required.

Southeast Mass in Level 2 Critical Drought

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The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has declared the eastern half of Massachusetts to be in a Level 2 Significant Drought with severe consequences to local agriculture and private wells.   

Bill Lindsay, Halifax Water Superintendent, said Tuesday that the town is in reasonably good shape as far as water is concerned.  Over the weekend, he told The Express, the town pumped three quarters of a million gallons of water from the town’s wells, but residents seem to be following the water restrictions to safeguard the town’s supply.

To get from the town’s wells into a Halifax faucet, Lindsay explained, the water is pumped up into the big blue water tank that makes the water pressure necessary to flow throughout the town.  The wells pump into the system until it reaches 34 feet in the tank and then they shut off.  As long as people keep adhering to the restrictions, Lindsay doesn’t foresee any problems.

Just to review – The following Halifax water restrictions were revised due to the declaration of a Level 2 – Significant Drought in the Southeast Regions of the Commonwealth.

As of July 14, 2022, the following outside water restrictions are in place.

SUNDAY: No Watering

MONDAY: No Watering

TUESDAY:

ODD NUMBEREDdHOUSES before 9 a.m. or after 5 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: No Watering

THURSDAY: EVEN NUMBERED HOUSES before 9 a.m. or after 5 p.m.

FRIDAY: No Watering

SATURDAY: No Watering

Sprinklers are allowed during the above-specified hours. Washing cars, boats, or equipment is no longer allowed.

As the drought conditions worsen across parts of the Commonwealth, MEMA reminds residents to exercise caution when using charcoal grills, backyard fire pits, and other open flame outdoor activities to prevent outdoor fires,” said Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) Acting Director Dawn Brantley. “Residents can also assist during the drought by minimizing water usage and following any local water restrictions for their area.”

Please refer to the Water Department page, on the Town of Halifax website for full description of restrictions and enforcement policies.

The Board of Water Commissioners appreciates your cooperation and will continue to modify and/or relax restrictions as we navigate this season.

If these restrictions are not adhered to the following fines will be enforced:

   1st Offense –  Verbal Warning

       2nd Offense –  $50 fine

       3rd Offense –  $100 fine

       4th Offense – TERMINATION OF WATER SERVICE AND $250.00 TURN ON FEE.

If you have a well, please go to the Board of Health and obtain a well or irrigation well number.  This number must be posted on the front lawn to avoid the Water Department or Police from stopping at your house to enforce this policy.

WATER RESTRICTIONS in KINGSTON

As part of the Town of Kingston’s water withdrawal permit, the Board of Water Commissioners has issued the following water restriction to be effective immediately: Even numbered houses may water on even numbered days before 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m. Odd numbered houses may water on odd numbered days before 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m.

Top state officials are urging water conservation and fire vigilance.

Kirby to be inducted into Hall of Fame

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Matt Kirby, 63, an award-winning hammered-dulcimer musician originally from Whitman, will be inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame in a ceremony to be held in Lawrence, Kan., on July 30.

Kirby, son of Mary Alice Kirby and the late Senator Ned Kirby, discovered hammered dulcimers in Brockton at Summerfest 1975 while a student at Sacred Heart High School in Kingston. He ordered a basic wooden instrument and spent the rest of the summer playing it.  Matt continued to design and build his own dulcimers during his studies in Art and Sculpture at the Kansas City Art Institute. After graduating he performed with other musicians in a Celtic string band, Scartaglen.

Over 40 years of festivals, appearances, concerts, and forming other bands he is primarily known as a member of the Alferd Packer Memorial String Band, named after the wry legend of the hungry mountaineer in Colorado. The Packer Band enjoys popularity throughout the Midwest.

Matt resides in Baldwin City, a small town near Lawrence, Kansas.

Quick action prevented a nightmare on Elm Street prevented tragedy

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Christine Akusis of Winnetuxet Road, Plympton, said, “It was one of the scariest moments of my life” on her Facebook post Tuesday.   She and her husband were out for an evening walk with their dog Ace on Monday when a silver truck sped down Elm Street in Plympton.  When the driver saw the couple he swerved and lost control of his vehicle, according to neighbors, snapping the utility pole.  Acting quickly, her husband threw Christine and Ace into the wooded roadside, out of harm’s way.  He was hit and thrown by the truck according to witnesses, but is also going to be all right.  Ace spent a hard night Monday night and was off to the vet Tuesday morning, according to Christine’s post.  The young male driver who was on his way to West Street, was taken by Halifax ambulance to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth to be checked out.  Plympton Police Chief Matt Ahl said that charges will be filed.

Alexus Stanley of Plympton named to University of Hartford’s Dean’s List

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WEST HARTFORD, CT (07/08/2022)– The University of Hartford is pleased to announce Alexus Stanley of Plympton has been named to the Dean’s List for Spring 2022.

Spread across seven dynamic schools and colleges, the University of Hartford has been guiding the purpose and passion of students for over six decades. On our 350-acre campus alongside Connecticut’s capital city, approximately 4,000 undergraduate and 1,900 graduate students representing 49 states and 44 countries come together for a common purpose: to collaborate across different disciplines, diversify perspectives, and broaden worldviews.

University of Hartfrd is a four-year private university focused on advancing the public good through meaningful connections within our communities. Our unique approach to comprehensive education gives us the critical perspectives that lead to impact change, regionally and beyond. With degree programs spanning the arts, humanities, business, engineering and technology, education, and health professions, we focus on doing the work that matters. Visit hartford.edu to learn more.

Learning an ancient art at the library

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Residents who attended the Plympton Library Saturday, at 2 p.m., learned a lot about the ancient art of Mehindi, or artwork painted on the bodies of women and girls with stains made from ground up leaves of the henna shrub that grows abundantly in India, Pakistan, Africa, and the Mid-East.  Henna art can be traced back more than 5,000 years.  Some say it can be dated to more than 9,000 years ago.

Shruthi Reddy, of Iska Designs, brought the art to life with her demonstration at the Plympton Public Library last weekend, showing how the henna leaves are harvested from the henna shrub, dried, and crushed with a mortar and pestle, to the very finest consistency.  Then you add essential oils, water, lemon juice, and a bit of sugar to help bind the henna stain to the skin and give it some elasticity.

Shruthi learned her art watching and helping a henna artist in her town during school vacations.  She helped mix the paste and make the cones to apply the paste in the very tiniest fine lines.  After years of “apprenticeship”, she was confident to apply the art herself.

Each attendee at the demonstration was given a bag with all they would need to make their own henna stain: crushed henna leaves, a vial of lemon juice, a packet of fine sugar, and plastic material to roll the cone shapes that hold the henna stain.

Henna art, Shruthi told the group, although an ancient form with many cultural aspects, is trending now as a new expression of body art that is beautiful and inexpensive.  Henna parties are now often held during wedding showers or other happy times.  Just for fun.

Henna designs can be as simple or as ornate as you like – but, we were told, all designs have their origin in a few simple lines and shapes:  straight lines, dots, spirals, humps, and esses.  By breaking down each design into the five shapes listed, it is easier to recreate even the most complex of designs.

Henna, Shruthi explained, is completely organic.  Applied properly it will dry on the skin and transfer its color over a period of an hour or so while it dries.   Once the pigment flakes off, the color stain is left behind to develop on the skin over the next 24 hours or so.  Even with repeated hand washing, the stain will remain for several days and even perhaps a week.  What a good idea for a less than permanent tattoo!

Some commercial stains claim their color is instant, but beware, Shruthi advises, that probably means that they have added artificial dye to their pigments.  She wouldn’t call them safe to use.

Mehindi henna art is inexpensive, and it also has a cooling effect.  In India, where daytime temperatures can get well over 100, henna is still used on hands and feet to draw heat from the body.  Men and women paint henna pigment on their palms and the soles of their feet to help cool off.

The next time Shruthi will bring her henna cones and pigment to Plympton will be August 12 at Plympton’s National Night Out, at the Holt Field behind the Town House, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Special election for Halifax treasurer/collector

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There will be a Special Election on Saturday, July 30, 2022 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Halifax Elementary School to elect a new Collector/Treasurer for an unexpired term.

On the ballot are Karen M. Fava and the current assistant Treasurer/Collector Linda Anne McCarty.

Today is the last day to register to vote in this election, Friday, July 8.  Any updates or additional information pertaining to Town Elections can be found online at www.halifax-ma.org/Elections.

If you have any questions, please contact the Town Clerk’s Office at (781) 293-7970 or by e-mailing ClerksOffice@halifax-ma.org.

Rep. LaNatra supports step therapy legislation

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BOSTON – Tuesday, June 29, State Rep. Kathy LaNatra joined her colleagues in the Massachusetts House of Representatives to pass legislation limiting the use of step therapy protocols, in which insurance companies refuse to pay for the prescription drugs prescribed by a patient’s health care provider until the patient first tries cheaper, and oftentimes ineffective, alternatives. The legislation establishes exceptions a patient can use to avoid their insurer’s step therapy protocol and requires both MassHealth and commercial insurers to provide a clear and transparent process for patients and their care team to request an exception.

“Health care decisions and decisions regarding which medications to take should be made between a patient and their doctor, not insurance companies looking for a healthier bottom line,” said State Rep. Kathy LaNatra (D – Kingston). “I was proud to support this crucial piece of legislation to ensure that people with a myriad of diseases and conditions don’t have to delay care with ineffective treatments that worsen their condition, simply to cut costs for insurance companies. That is not the way to cut health care costs in the Commonwealth. Thank you to Speaker Mariano and Chairman Lawn for their leadership on this bill.”

The legislation outlines four different circumstances that trigger the patient exception process, including:

The required treatment will harm the patient,

The required treatment is expected to be ineffective,

The patient previously tried the required treatment, or similar treatment, and it was ineffective or harmed the patient,

The patient is stable on a current treatment, and switching treatments will harm the patient.

Additional highlights of the legislation include:

• A requirement that MassHealth and commercial insurers adopt a “continuity of coverage” policy to ensure patients do not experience any delay in accessing a treatment when requesting a step therapy exemption.

• A requirement that MassHealth and commercial insurers approve or deny a step therapy exemption request within three business days, or within one business day if a delay would cause harm to the patient.

• A requirement that commercial carriers annually report data related to step therapy exemption requests and related coverage determinations to the Division of Insurance.

• The creation of a commission on step therapy protocols tasked with studying, assessing, and bi-annually reporting on the implementation of step therapy process reforms made in this legislation.

“An Act Relative to Step Therapy and Patient Safety” (H.4929)passed the House of Representatives 153-0. The legislation now heads to the Senate for their consideration.