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Plympton’s first Flower Show blooms

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Saturday was a beautiful day for the first Plympton Flower Show held on the town Green.  About a hundred selections were entered into the adult categories of Species, Arrangement, or Produce, with children’s categories in Produce and Fairy Garden.

Gabby Falconieri and Stephanie Teran, of the Friends of the Plympton Garden Club, spearheaded the event that ran from registration from 9 to 10 a.m., then judging from 10 to 11 a.m., followed by audience appreciation from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Children were happy to see their Fairy Houses, many of which were made earlier in the week as a special project at the Plympton Library.   Fashioned out of various bits of vegetation and forest litter, the unlikely elements were transformed into cozy cottages for tiny fairies.   One little guy even added a twig ladder to his, “… because they’re very small and the ladder will help them get in,” he explained to the photographer.

Waiting for the judges, children also got to play with the bubble machine, color and coloring books, and photo-op with flower cutouts.

Floral arrangements were judged by well-known South Shore horticulturalist and designer George Stanchfield; gardener and chef of Just Right Farm fame Kimberly Russo; and Elise Freda, flower farmer extraordinaire from Crooked Barn Flowers in Kingston.

The upbeat tunes of Plympton’s Old Time Jam gave a country feel to the event as the group got together to perform on the Gazebo.  Barry Decristofano played his mandolin, while others played their mandolins, guitar, and fiddle.   Plympton Old Time Jam gets together twice a month and is open to anyone who likes to “play our kind of music.”  What’s the difference between a fiddle and a violin?  “Attitude!” was the answer.

Acting as Master of Ceremonies was Plympton’s own Mike Lemieux of “Houses with History” fame.

Awarded the prize for Best in Show was Dave Alberti whose pumpkin was a real show stopper!  The cucurbitacae, a French strain with light peach skin draped with a veil of beige netting here and there, definitely had an attitude!  The judges appreciated it and awarded Dave the grand prize.   

All the children were awarded Participation ribbons.

The often-heard sentiment throughout the crowd was “I hope they do this again next year!”

Proceeds from the event will be used for the Plympton Garden Club.

North Easton Savings Bank Once Again Named a Top Bank in Massachusetts by Forbes and Statista

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EASTON, MA – For the second consecutive year, North Easton Savings Bank has been named by Forbes as a top-ranked bank in Massachusetts on Forbes’ most recent listing of America’s Best Banks and Credit Unions in each state.

 “It’s an honor to once again appear on this prestigious list,” stated Rich Spencer, president and CEO of North Easton Savings Bank. “This distinction is a direct reflection of our staff’s hard work and dedication to the communities we serve. Our consistent presence on the Forbes list reinforces that we can deliver premium experiences equal to, if not better than, those provided by national brands, all backed and serviced by our amazing local team.”

 The Bank’s partnership approach combined with its belief in local investment reinforces its mission of improving the quality of living, working, and raising a family in the communities they serve.

 About North Easton Savings Bank

Rated as one of the top banks in Massachusetts by Forbes, with over $1.3 billion in assets, North Easton Savings Bank is uniquely situated to provide personal and commercial banking and lending solutions to southeastern Massachusetts. Founded in 1864, North Easton has a proven track record of growing the community through fair banking practices, financial advising, and local philanthropy. Looking forward,

North Easton is well-positioned as the preferred area banking partner with a powerful combination of convenient features like mobile and online banking and the personal, hometown touch of a local bank.

North Easton Savings Bank is fully insured by the FDIC and the DIF and is an Equal Housing Lender. For more information, please visit NorthEastonSavingsBank.com.

SCARLET SUNSET

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A band made up of current Silver Lake students and recent graduates, came together over the summer with a plan to showcase their talents.  Many practices, and fun times, culminated in an end-of-summer live performance for friends and family held at the Carver School of Music on Friday, Aug. 12.   Pictured are, front row: Nathan Saad, guitar.  Back row, from left, are Rosella Hoffman, piano/vocals; Patrick Bray, vocals; Laurel Fallis, vocals/guitar; Brennan Fallis, drums; Connor McKinnon, MC/vocals, and Ben Webby, bass.      Photo by Roseann Fallis

Halifax 18th annual Summer Smash

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This past weekend saw some gruesome heat but young softball players laced up their cleats and oiled their gloves and took the field for some challenging competition.  It was the three-day Halifax Softball Summer Smash – the largest ever for this 18th annual event.

Three divisions brought teams together from throughout the South Shore: 10U, 12U, and 14U girls demonstrated that softball is in good hands with plenty of talent making its way through the grades.  The Halifax Hurricanes took top place in the U12 Red category.

Pete Barone, founder and president of the HGSL, began the Halifax Summer Smash in 2005 so his daughter Alex, then 8-years-old, and her teammates could play in their own tournament.   She is now 26 and runs the concessions and raffles with his other daughter Maddy.

“It started as 11 teams and quickly grew each year,” Barone said.  “We use all five fields at Halifax Elementary and both fields at Vaughan, next to the police station.  All the fields are full on Friday evening and from 7:30 a.m. to  7:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. “  This year’s Summer Smash hosted 45 teams from throughout the area and it has become the largest “Town-Al-Stars” team tournament anywhere.

Barone credits the number of Halifax parents who volunteer their time each tourney to work on the fields, cover the snack shacks, set everything up and break it all down at the end with the continued success of the event.

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.

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.

Silver Lake School District closes FY22 Close-Out Meeting

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The Silver Lake Regional School Committee met in-person on Thursday, July 14. They began with a moment of silence in honor of seventh grade student Charles Demuelle who passed away in late June. Superintendent Jill Proulx was unexpectedly unable to attend the meeting.

Seaview Learning Academy Approval

Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch explained to the Committee that Camp Norse is a micro school known as Seaview Learning Academy that wishes to extend from K-8 to K-12. Lynch said that when a school wishes to operate in the same municipality as a main district, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) requires that permission be granted from the other district. Lynch said the intent was for the Director of Camp Norse to come and explain the request, but they were unable to attend that night. Proulx called in to the meeting to provide further explanation. Committee member Summer Schmaling said she was in favor of alternative schools and learning opportunities but said she would like to hear from the Director before approving. The Committee agreed to hold off on approving until their September meeting.

Whitman-Hanson De-regionalization Update

Committee Chair Paula Hatch told the Committee that while Hanson had previously expressed interest in potentially leaving Whitman-Hanson and regionalizing with Silver Lake, they no longer wish to explore that option.

Preschool Changes

Hatch also told the Committee that they received an email from DESE that week regarding the Silver Lake Preschool. “We all did receive an email from Jill updating everybody that we did have a discussion with DESE on Monday and we will need to make some changes to that program,” Hatch said. She said the matter would be discussed further in executive session.

Policy Updates

Lynch told the Committee that per DESE the District is required to have a wellness committee that meets a minimum of four times per year. He said that himself, Nutrition Director Megan Ahrenholz, the school nurses, and the Director of Wellness and Athletics serve on the Committee. “We make sure that the wellness policy is aligned with DESE and federal guidelines,” Lynch explained. He said that there were a few updates to the District’s policy to bring them up to date with those guidelines. Committee member Gordon Laws asked why the minimum 20-minute time frame for lunch was struck from the updated policy. Lynch said that while the goal is certainly to ensure that students have an adequate time to eat lunch, they didn’t want the policy to be too restrictive in the cases of things like grab-and-go lunches.

Lynch also provided an update on the homeschooling policy. He said that a parent intending to homeschool must provide written consent and information at least 14 days prior to the beginning of the school year. The Superintendent and School Committee must then evaluate the request against the criteria stated in the policy.

Technology Director Steve Pellowe requested that an update be made to the technology policy. “It would be against school policy for students or employees to run a mobile device as a hotspot during school hours because it would interfere with the school’s wi-fi. Another thing Mr. Pellowe brough up is if a student or staff member were to create a hotspot and use a school issued device, they would be sort of skirting the filters and other pieces like that the school has in place to ensure that students are accessing educationally appropriate and relevant content,” Lynch explained.

Financial Update

Director of Financial Services Christine Healy provided a budget update. “So with the funding of the operating budget this year, we received $561,000 in addition to what we had budgeted for revenue from a couple of different sources; one of those sources is the Pembroke CTE tuition…this year for the first time more than half of our eighth graders applied for the CTE program for next year so we do not have room for Pembroke students in the ninth grade for next year… so that number will not be the same for next year,” Healy explained. She also said that they received 100 percent reimbursement for homeless transportation this year which she explained was much higher than previous years. She also explained that additional reimbursements would be coming from ARPA expenditures. “It will be about $681,000 that will be going back to E&D [excess and deficiency account],” she told the Committee. The money in that fund is used to fund the Capital Plan on an annual basis.

District Update

Lynch began the District update by introducing the new HR Director David Turcotte. “We are really excited to have David on board in this position; he was a teacher and an administrator in Newton as well as an administrator in Canton and filled the role of HR Director in Salem,” Lynch said of Turcotte.

Donation Request

A donation request was made for a piano from Committee member Leslie-Ann McGee.  The Committee voted to approve the request and the associated costs of moving the piano.

SLEA Update

SLEA President Jon Lay spoke to the Committee requesting more money for paraprofessionals to stay competitive with other local districts. “A lot of other districts are realizing that paras are chronically underpaid for what they do and I do think we are going to see more and more difficulty attracting paras,” Lay said.

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.

Thank you Halifax for fireworks!

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THANK YOU! To the sponsors who made last week’s giant fireworks display possible, bringing back a Halifax tradition that had stopped since 2019 due to the pandemic.  Those attending proclaimed it the best ever, with some estimating that the crowd topped 2,000.  The family-friendly event included a DJ, food trucks, and games for everyone.