The Massachusetts Dept. of Public Health reminds people in moderate to high risk areas, such as Whitman, Hanson, Halifax, Plympton, and Kingston, that the threat continues for both Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and West Nile Virus (WNV). To date, two males, one in Hampden County, in the 40-49 year old age group and one in Middlesex County, in the 70-79 year old age group, have contracted WNV. One animal has been found with EEE..
These mosquito-borne illnesses continue to be a threat to health and residents should take precautions when outside from dusk to dawn, prime time for mosquito bites. The threat will continue until a hard frost, usually in October..

Kristy Zamagni-Twomey
Express correspondent
The Plympton Board of Selectmen met on Monday, July 22. Rick Burnet appeared before the Board to discuss the flags on the Town Green. “The flags are in disrepair. I hear that you guys are basically in charge of the flags, so they need to be fixed… there’s five in disrepair between my house and here.” Selectman John Traynor agreed saying, “there’s one in front of the house that’s just torn to shreds… and another one is just hanging by a thread.” Town Administrator Liz Dennehy said, “they’re very expensive… we spent a small fortune on them.” Traynor said that he initially advocated for the flying of the flags and that he wanted to follow the example set by Kingston. He said that they may need to rethink the size of the flags, etc.
Briggette Martins, who spearheads the Memorial Day activities in town, said, “I think it would be great to have them up for Memorial Day… and we take them down after the Fourth. I did speak to the Veteran’s Agent, and she said that as long as… for Veteran’s Day our main flags are flying, that is what she’s concerned with.” The flags were being flown longer than typical in the last year which has led to additional wear and tear.
Regarding cost, Selectman Mark Russo proposed that it be funded by a Town Meeting article. “Let the townspeople decide,” he said. Dennehy proposed having Highway Superintendent Rob Firlotte take all the flags down. “I would just take all of them down and then we can look at everything – our inventory, what it would cost to replace, what it would cost to convert to a banner system and then we’ll have something in place for Veteran’s Day,” Dennehy said. Traynor said, “I would rather see them flying.” Russo agreed with Traynor. Instead of Dennehy’s proposal, they agreed to have Firlotte take down the damaged flags only while looking into cost for replacement and alternative systems as well as funding it through an article at Town Meeting.
Before leaving the meeting Burnet said, “It’s a respect. There’s texts that need to be followed and we don’t follow them even having them all repaired; they need to be lighted at night… there’s a lot to it. I’ll put up with not having that part, but having them flying correctly.”
The Director of Elder Affairs Colleen Thompson appeared before the Board to provide a departmental update. She began by saying that they are well within their budget and noted that they have been offering luncheons every other month and other activities. The Friends of the COA also help with putting on programming. Upcoming activities include a cookout at the Upland Club on August 21. She said that attendance at yoga has grown enough that they have added a second class. A monthly newsletter is also distributed.
Regarding the food pantry, Thompson said it serves about 30 people across 18 households. Thompson said, “we don’t restrict the use of the pantry; I suspect there are some people that don’t have a financial need that use it, but if somebody tells me they want some food, it’s not that big of a deal.” Thompson said, “I do want to mention that the church is very supportive of the COA.” She said that they don’t charge for use of the building.
The nurse that has been working with the COA is leaving and a new one is in the process of being hired. “The biggest thing is getting our new driver in place… I’m really hoping we can find someone that is already certified,” Thompson said. She said that it is over 40 hours-worth of time to get trained. She said that the driver would be in addition to the Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA).
Selectman Mark Russo said, “I think you guys, along with the Historical Society, are ripe, sooner or later, for a major donation. I think dropping that hint every once and a while and planting that seed – sooner or later someone is going to recognize their frailty and their age and have some wherewithal and what better way to support the town that they’ve enjoyed their whole lives?”
Police Chief Matthew Ahl also appeared before the Board to provide some updates. He said that the elementary School successfully started a garden club. Ahl said, “My school resource officer team has executed plantings out there and got the students involved which has been great.” He told them that the same school resource officer team participated in D.A.R.E. camp at Whitman-Hanson. Ahl also told the Selectmen that they have been working on many grants and recently appropriated “a few hundred thousand dollars” toward different things as well as acquiring an ATV.
Ahl said that as part of SEMLEC, he runs a multi-agency/unit for civil disturbance. “It’s unfortunate that we’re here in this climate based on what’s going on politically and around the world, what we’ve found is that in this immediate Southeastern MA area is that there is a need to create a unit around rioting and protesting,” he explained. Ahl is running and fielding the unit. Ahl also said that on August 16 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. they will be holding National Night Out which will include many town departments, touch-a-truck, etc. Ahl said that Library Director Mike Slawson has been incredibly helpful bringing in fun activities like face painting, etc.
Dennehy told the Selectmen that they need to name a new nominee to the Old Colony Planning Council. “But before we do so, I was wondering if the Board would entertain authorizing Selectman Russo and myself to pursue other planning agencies?” Dennehy asked. She said that they were specifically interested in Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD). The Selectmen agreed to pursue looking into SRPEDD.
Dennehy also read a letter from Cathy Ferguson, in the capacity of a resident, regarding some of her concerns. She first said that the decision to ban alcohol on town property should not be revisited. She also expressed concern about using the Old Townhouse as a venue open to the public citing concerns about it sitting on a cesspool septic system.
Regarding the Old Townhouse, Traynor said, “it’s owned by the people and I think we need to have as much going on there as possible.” He said that they would need to do some more homework regarding the septic situation.
For raves, Traynor said that while it wasn’t directly tied to Plympton, the waterfront concerts sponsored by Plymouth are wonderful.

By Linda Ibbitson Hurd
Special to The Express
Across the street from our house on Elm street in Hanson when we were growing up was a cozy little house that my Grandfather Ibbitson had owned and lived in until he and my grandmother moved their expanding family directly across the street into a big blue shingled house. The little house had a nice living room, a kitchen, bath and two bedrooms with a small upstairs room that overlooked the big front lawn. The living room led to an enclosed porch which was across the front of the house and had many windows. Inside the porch was what looked like a long built-in bench that was actually storage for toys and an assortment of other things such as blankets, towels and clothing. The house and yard were taken care of by a man who owned it back then and my grandparents had a key as some of their things were kept in the storage bench until the owner could find a tenant.
On summer evenings my grandmother could be seen sitting in her Adirondack lawn chair in the front yard of the little house with her teenagers, my aunts, Sally and Sam and two of my uncles, Richard and George. My sister Penny and I were allowed to go over and some of the neighborhood kids would end up there as well and also friends of our aunts and uncles. The gathering usually evolved into a fun fest for the kids.
We’d lay on the ground looking up at the clouds, watching them change shape while we called out what they looked like. When we got restless or bored we’d pluck the stems off the narrow leaved plantain weeds with the little black heads on them that looked like raisins and curl the stems upwards to snap off the little black tops at each other while running around the yard. Inevitably one of the kids would end up falling or crying if they got snapped and Gramma would put a stop to it.
Richard and George would start swinging us around and we’d laugh and scream until they set us down and we’d stumble around from being so dizzy; we always went back for more. Sally and Sam would go into the porch and come out with a couple of blankets. We all took turns laying down in the blankets while our uncles, aunts and their friends, Rita and Loraine who were sisters, helped by picking up either end of the blankets that now looked like hammocks with a kid in them and they swung us back and forth into the air while we giggled and shrieked with delight. Gram approved, commenting it was safer than swinging kids around any other way.
Aunt Sally was very good at doing and teaching us hand stands. She and Sam and their friends also showed us how to do cartwheels. When we played games like Red Light or Simon Says, some of the dogs and barn cats liked to join in. When we tried LeapFrog one time, Gram put her foot down making it clear it wasn’t allowed on her watch.
To the far right of the front lawn was a lilac grove where my siblings and I played as did our aunts and uncles before us. It magically transformed into anything we wanted it to be. In the spring it was fragrant and beautifully dressed in its white blossoms. Further out in the yard beyond the lilacs was a small pond. Around its edge were pussy willows in early spring and also the home of cattails that both Gram and my mom loved putting in vases. We made a few rafts out of barrels and boards and had fun floating around on them pretending we were pirates until they sank. It wasn’t too deep of a pond; we always landed on our feet and were careful of the turtles and frogs.
We watched many a sunset from the lawn of this house and when it got dark, the lilac grove and the woods beyond became enchanted with fireflies. We knew once it got dark it wouldn’t be long before our parents would call us in. Sometimes my dad would come over and Penny and I would get to stay until the moon came out. When dad was there he and Gram would sing an old song I came to love called, “The Old Lamplighter” That would prompt more singing and we’d all join in. Two favorites were “K-k-k-Katy” and “Oh Susanna”.
The little house is still there and I’m happy to say a family member lives in it. I may not frequent it like I did growing up but the memories of those simpler times and what we did for fun stay with me. I still love watching the clouds, a sunrise, sunset, fireflies and the magic of a full moon. It brings back those simpler times and the faces and voices of my grandparents and all my aunts and uncles.

The Halifax Board of Selectmen met Tuesday, July 9. Chair John Bruno introduced the general bylaw review revisions. Bruno asked Town Administrator Cody Haddad to draft some anti-littering bylaws for their review. “I think we need to look at a lot of our bylaws, so that’s a good start,” Selectman Jonathan Selig said. Selig asked if police would enforce an anti-littering bylaw and Bruno said he was unsure. Bruno mentioned that it had been proposed to him to introduce a bylaw regarding motorized vehicles, such as dirt bikes, on town property.
Haddad addressed a proposed amendment to the master agreement with Thorndike Development. Thorndike Development is building condominium buildings in Halifax along with a new senior center and pickleball courts. Haddad said that the dimensions of the parcel were amended to more accurately reflect the actual measurements. “The second is we had initially proposed 72 installments for the payment to the town to be used toward the senior center. We are reducing that to 66 installments so it is beneficial to the town, so the amount per unit increases… the total amount is still the same at the $2.3 million, but it increases each payment amount because it is divided by 66 rather than 72,” Haddad said. The third change, according to Haddad, is that once they gift the senior center parcel to the town, up until they start building, they are allowed to utilize that parcel to place construction equipment there.
A representative from Thorndike said that the original language of the agreement talked about having a sidewalk from the entrance to the larger parcel and up to the main intersection near Walmart. He said that the language was incorrect, and it should state that Thorndike would build a sidewalk from the entrance of 265 down to the Housing Authority property. It was asked if there would be further changes and the representative said that they didn’t anticipate that though they noted the enormity of the project. The representative said that the changes were to maybe 1 percent of the total paperwork while Selig noted that the changes are mostly in the town’s favor. Haddad told those assembled that they were “looking to break ground” this coming fall.
The Selectmen discussed a new organizational chart and reporting structure policy. “The thought here is we are organizing the government we’re responsible for, in, what I’m going to call, a CEO structure in that we hire the Town Administrator who’s responsibility… is to handle day to day operations… and what this does, is it makes that clear,” Bruno said. Bruno also said that he wanted to make it clear that although they are an elected board, individually, the Selectmen have no authority to do anything. The Selectmen agreed to take the policy under advisement and revisit it at a later meeting to see if there were any changes, etc. that were thought of in the interim. Bruno clarified that the policy only makes official the way the government is already working.
Haddad introduced the winning bid for street paving with Highway Rehabilitation Corp. in the amount of 50,000 sq. yards or less at $5.72 per sq. yard and anything over 50,000 sq. yards at $5.62. The Selectmen voted to approve the contract which was supported by the Highway Department as well.
Regarding the MBTA Action Plan, Haddad said they got “some preliminary good news from the State.” He said that the meeting between the Department of Housing and Livable Communities (HLC), Town Counsel, the Building Commissioner, and himself “went well.” He said that the draft bylaw that the Zoning Bylaw Review Committee voted to put forward is in compliance pending a few small, technical changes. He said that the hope is to present the plan during an upcoming meeting and eventually prepare for special town meeting in late October or early November.
Haddad also provided a staffing update saying that they were still looking for a Town Accountant. He said that interested parties should apply. He also said that Bridgewater has started the process of finding a shared Conservation Agent.

Stop and Shop announced Friday, July 12, that eight stores in Massachusetts, including the 341 Plymouth St., Halifax location, have been deemed underperforming and will be closed by Nov. 2 of this year.
Of the eight Massachusetts locations, half are in Plymouth County, including, in addition to Halifax, the Brockton, Raynham, and Mattakeesett St., Pembroke stores. The full-size 125 Church St., Pembroke location will remain open.
Stop and Shop said in its announcement, that the store closings are “…to create a healthy base for the future growth of our brand… “Stop and Shop associates at impacted locations will be offered other opportunities within the company.”

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) announced that it has found the Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) virus in mosquito samples collected in Carver on June 30.
No human or animal cases of EEE have been detected so far this year.
The Carver findings increase the risk level of EEE to moderate in the communities of Carver, Kingston, Plympton, Middleborough, Plymouth, and Wareham.
Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD, said, “Today’s finding alerts us to the presence of EEE in Massachusetts this year. Combined with the announcement of West Nile virus in mosquitoes in Massachusetts, we are asking everyone to take the necessary precautions to prevent mosquito bites.” The commissioner further recommended that people use mosquito repellent when they are spending time outdoors so they can safely enjoy outdoor summertime activities without being bitten.
EEE is a rare but serious and potentially fatal disease that can affect people of all ages. It is generally spread to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito. According to the DPH there were 12 human cases of EEE in Massachusetts in 2019, with six deaths. In 2020, there were five human cases and one death. There have been no human cases of EEE in Massachusetts in 2021, 2022, or 2023.
State Epidemiologist Dr. Catherine M. Brown said the EEE activity in Massachusetts tends to occur in outbreak cycles. “When EEE is found in mosquitoes like this at the start of the season, the risk may increase throughout the rest of the summer. We rely on our mosquito surveillance program to monitor for the presence of virus to let people know when and where the risk is occurring.”
There are simple steps that you can take to protect yourself and your family from mosquito bites, and the illnesses they can cause.
Protect yourself from illness by doing simple things:
• Use insect repellents any time you are outdoors
• Wear long-sleeved clothing
• Schedule outdoor activities to avoid the hours from dusk to dawn during peak mosquito season
• Repair damaged window and door screens
• Remove standing water from the areas around your home
Animal owners should reduce potential mosquito breeding sites on their property by eliminating standing water from containers such as buckets, tires, and wading pools – especially after heavy rains. Water troughs provide excellent mosquito breeding habitats and should be flushed out at least once a week during the summer months to reduce mosquitoes near paddock areas.
Horse owners should keep horses in indoor stalls at night to reduce their risk of exposure to mosquitoes. Owners should also speak with their veterinarian about mosquito repellents approved for use in animals and vaccinations to prevent WNV and EEE. If an animal is suspected of having WNV or EEE, owners are required to report to the Department of Agricultural Resources, Division of Animal Health by calling 617-626-1795, and to the Department of Public Health by calling 617-983-6800.

PLYMPTON – June 13 compliance checks were conducted at Plympton Gas and Convenience (AARTI Corp) and Plympton Convenience and Liquor on Wednesday afternoon and both businesses were issued fines for selling tobacco to a 19-year-old male party without asking for ID or verifying age. The fines are in the amount of $1,000.00 and $2,000.00 respectively and are collected by the Town. The fines for selling tobacco to underage parties are $1,000.00 for the first offense, $2,000.00 for the second offense, and $3,000.00 for the third offense.
The Plympton Board of Health is a member of the Southern Plymouth County Public Health Excellence Collaborative, a group comprised of the Carver, Duxbury, Kingston, Plymouth, Plympton, and Wareham Boards of Health. The purpose of the Collaborative is to facilitate cross-jurisdictional sharing of public health services and is funded through a state grant for shared services. This grant has made it possible for the Plympton Board of Health to have these compliance checks done bi-annually without a direct personnel cost to the town.
The Public Health Excellence Collaborative program has also provided the town with other public health related services without a cost to the town residents. This includes a public health nurse that holds a wellness clinic on the first and third Wednesdays of the month in the COA office. Cholesterol and/or blood sugar checks are also available on the first Wednesday of the month. On the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month the nurse holds an Educational/Ask A Nurse Session in the Deborah Sampson

The Town of Halifax Water Dept. sent out a release specifying a strict water ban effective June 21, “in order to reduce the amount of water purchased from Brockton.
Sunday: NO WATERING
Monday: Even numbered Houses 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Tuesday: Odd – numbered Houses 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Wednesday: NO WATERING
Thursday: Even-numbered Houses 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Friday: Odd-numbered Houses 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Saturday: NO WATERING
Car washing and the use of sprinklers are allowed during specified hours only. Due to high demand, watering on the weekends is not allowed.
The Board of Water Commissioners appreciates everyone’s cooperation in conserving water to avoid a total water ban.
If these restrictions are not adhered to, the following fines will be enforced:
First Offense – Verbal Warning
Second Offense – $50 fine
Third Offense – $100 fine
Fourth Offense – TERMINATION OF WATER SERVICE. $250 TURN-ON FEE.
The increased demand we have experienced can threaten public safety and the quality of public drinking water. In extreme cases, high water use can threaten the ability of Municipalities to store water for water pressure and fire protection purposes.
Watering during the heat of the day does not help your lawn and wastes water.
If you have a well, please visit the Board of Health, 499 Plymouth Street to obtain a well or irrigation well number. This number must be posted on the front lawn to prevent the Water or Police Departments from stopping at your house to enforce this policy. For questions, you should contact the Water Department by visiting their office at 500 Plymouth Street or calling (781) 293-1733. The Board of Water Commissioners appreciates your cooperation.

The Town of Halifax’s Fireworks Celebration, coordinated by the members of the Halifax Fireworks Committee, is scheduled for Saturday, June 29, from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. behind the Halifax Elementary School, 464 Plymouth St. A variety of activities will be available during the event such as a DJ, food vendors, face painting, and more.
The Fireworks Committee is also seeking volunteers on Sunday, June 30, to assist with post-event cleanup. If you’re interested in volunteering, please e-mail Janice Hayward at [email protected] or Susan Hill at [email protected].
In the event of inclement weather, the Fireworks display will be rescheduled to Sunday, June 30, and the post-event cleanup will take place on Monday, July 1.
This event is made possible by the support and funding from residents, guests, sponsors, and local businesses. We are thankful to all who have contributed towards continuing the tradition.
Everyone is invited to take part in watching one of Halifax’s grand community events as we celebrate our nation’s birthday alongside friends, family, and neighbors. We hope to see you there!

The Halifax Board of Health is partnering with Dr. Finney from the VCA Hanson Animal Hospital to offer a Rabies Clinic on Saturday, June 15, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Halifax Highway Barn, 60 Hemlock Lane.
One (1) and three (3) year vaccines will be available at the clinic. Proof of a valid (unexpired) rabies certificate is required for your dog or cat to be administered a three (3) year vaccination.
The fee per vaccination is $15.00 regardless of which vaccine is administered. Only cash or check payment methods will be accepted; credit or debit card payments will not be available.
For questions or additional information, please contact the Board of Health by calling (781) 293-6768 or e-mailing [email protected].