All stories for July 10, 2009

Board

Bulletin Board

Dance

* Up Close and Personal - The Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company performs July 14, 8 p.m., National Yiddish Book Center, 1021 West St., Amherst. Part of the Paper Bridge Summer Arts Festival. $18. 256-4900.

Opinion

ABC's new ‘parents'

Jamie and Talib Sadiq say they believe in change that begins locally. They are about to double down on that commitment.

News

Couple with diverse backgrounds to lead ABC house in Amherst

AMHERST - A commitment and dedication to social justice and making the country a better place motivated a couple to become resident directors of the ABC program.

Shaffer looks east for rail line

Focusing on improvements that could be made to an east-west rail corridor may be the best way for Amherst to keep its railroad station open if efforts to bring the Amtrak Vermonter closer to the Connecticut River are successful.

Rosenberg's revelation applauded

Perhaps the most remarkable thing about a newspaper column in which longtime state Sen. Stanley Rosenberg stated that he is gay is the unremarkable way he did it.

Pelham girl takes cause straight to the top: Camryn Adams makes case on type 1 diabetes with president

About three years ago, just before Camryn Adams turned 6, she was suddenly plagued with fatigue, weight loss and excessive thirst and urination.

State wind gust rule delays Stan Ziomek's scoreboard

The installation of a scoreboard honoring youth baseball booster Stan Ziomek is being held up because it could not withstand a 100-mile-per-hour wind gust.

Town manager does the Planning Board shuffle

Bringing balanced viewpoints to the Planning Board, as well as an ability to attend meetings on a regular basis, are ideals for the town manager as he continues an overhaul of the board.

July 4th celebrations go off with a bang

With Fire Chief Keith Hoyle and Police Chief Charles Scherpa serving as grand marshals before their retirements, and a series of floats, farm vehicles, fire trucks and police cruisers following them, Amherst celebrated the Fourth of July with a parade that everyone seemed to enjoy.

Amherst Insider: Film camp teaches girls to believe in themselves

Who do girls have to look up to these days? Is it Paris and Lindsay? Maybe Barbie or Bratz? Sadly, for girls aged 11 to 14, these are the negative images of females - oversexualized and skin deep - that flood our advertising-based culture.

Trees to mark town's 250th

More than three-quarters of the anniversary trees residents can buy and plant in recognition of the town's 250th anniversary are still available.

Around Town: Morton's service to town to be honored

Brian Morton's 13 years on the Finance Committee will be honored during a public reception later this month.

Network Amherst: The Lehrer Report

Garden report: the sweet peas have bloomed and smell heavenly. The peppers, eggplant and basil have not grown and must be waiting for the sunshine.

Amherst Regional High School underclassmen awards

Amherst Regional High School held an awards night for underclassmen. The following students were recognized.

News Briefs

Crafts on Common event to be held

The 29th annual Amherst Crafts on the Common Fair will be held, rain or shine, July 11, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. The fair features more than 100 juried artisans from around New England that offer jewelry, paintings, photos, pottery, clothing for children and adults, glass, baskets, candles and cards.

Living

Valley Gardens: Confessions of a gardening addict

Exuberant might be Michael Erard's middle name. His gardens, which will be featured on the Belchertown Garden Tour Saturday, are definitely exuberant and his enthusiasm for gardening is infectious.

Table Talk: New cookbooks to whet the appetite

Summer rolls out before us, promising lazy days with time for a good read.

A literary trip down memory lane

A community of writers will step into the past when they gather on the back veranda of the historic Porter-Phelps-Huntington House Museum Sunday to read from their works exploring the ghosts of family, history and memories.

Lifestyles: Eat the Rich -- that's saying a mouthful!

The hardest part about preparing our recent Fiscal New Year's Eve party was the catering.

Boston aquarium targets fitness: Athletic seals used to inspire kids

Yes, he's obsessed with grooming, and he occasionally barks at you, but in most ways Isaac is not your typical fitness instructor. He weighs in at 350, eats 16 pounds of food at a time and he's only 9 years old. Oh, and he's a seal.

MuseFlashes

19th-century circus comes to Amherst

Following long Dickinson-family tradition, The Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst presents "Creatures of Bliss and Mystery: A 19th-Century Circus" Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. on the grounds at 280 Main St.

Movie Times

July 10-16

Opinion

Education Matters: Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate

As members of the School Committees, we hear frequently about the outstanding teachers we have in our schools and occasionally about teachers who fail to live up to expectations. As parents, we know first-hand how great it is when a child spends the year with a fabulous teacher who "gets" each of the children in the classroom. Research, including work conducted by Steve, supports the belief that there are substantial differences in teacher effectiveness, even among teachers in the same school.

Don't count Mark's Meadow out

The Bulletin's editorial of June 26, "Making a final year the best it can be," is well-intentioned, but, I believe, somewhat premature.

Demonizing of state workers must stop

Why is it when the mainstream media in Massachusetts is allergic to heavy lifting that it trots out unions and state employee bashing?

Letters

Mixed-up priorities

To the Bulletin: In their most recent Amherst Center column, the authors discuss Town Meeting's approval of a budget that will board up a school, shut down pools, lay off teachers and town workers and "offload services for our poorest and hungriest to the vagaries of the grants process." These budget cuts were necessary, they write, because "we just don't have the dough."

Submission Guidelines

The deadline for submissions for next week's Bulletin is 9 a.m. on Monday, July 13. Letters become the property of the Bulletin and the editor reserves the right to edit, condense or reject any submissions. Writers are limited to one letter in a 30-day period. Letters should be no more than 400 words long, and columns no more than 650. The Bulletin also accepts submissions of cartoons. Please send cartoons as high resolution jpg images. All letters must be signed, with a return address and a phone number for verification. Addresses and phone numbers are not published. Please put "Letter to the editor" in the subject line of an email. Please send letters by electronic mail to letters@amherstbulletin.com, or by fax to 549-8181, or by post to Letters, Amherst Bulletin, 100 University Drive, Amherst, MA 01002. The Bulletin will strive to publish as many letters as space permits. All letters that meet the requirements for publication will be posted at www.amherstbulletin.com.

Briefs

Police Report

Amherst Police

* Oscar A. Sanchez, 24, of Belchertown Road, was arrested Tuesday at 12:35 a.m. on South East Street at Eveningstar Drive on a charge of unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, police said.

Deaths

Barbara E. Storey

HADLEY - Barbara E. (Ellsworth) Storey, 69, of Hadley, died June 30, at the Hospice of the Fisher Home in Amherst, after a courageous 2½-year battle with cancer.

Tamara Renee Hull & Alexander Rosenthal

Tamara Renee Hull and Alexander Rosenthal were married May 30 at the Round Top Farm in Damariscotta, Maine. The ceremony was performed by the Rev. Dr. Peter B. Ives of Northampton.

Allison Dale & Matthew Riddle

DeAnne and Chris Riddle of Amherst announce the engagement of their son, Matthew Riddle of Ann Arbor, Mich., to Allison Dale, also of Ann Arbor, the daughter of Georgeanne Paul and William Crivello, both of Helena, Mont.

Amanda Wonsey & Scott Amaral

Leonard and Nancy Wonsey of Hadley announce the engagement of their daughter, Amanda Marie Wonsey of Wakefield, to Scott Richard Amaral, also of Wakefield, the son of Anne Amaral of Lawrence and Richard Amaral of Salem, N.H.

Karen Maksimoski & Josh Laber

Linda and James Maksimoski of Hadley announce the engagement of their daughter, Karen Maksimoski, to Josh Laber, the son of Patty and Gregg Laber of St. Albans, Vt.

Marriage Intentions

The following marriage intentions were filed with the town clerk's office.

Births

SCOTT - Carter James Ashlaw, son of Megan R. Scott and Timothy A. Tauscher of Florence, was born April 4 at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton. The maternal grandparents are Kenneth Scott Jr. of Florence and Pamela Scott of Hatfield. The paternal grandparents are Cheri Bowling of Hatfield and Paul Tauscher of Holyoke. The maternal great-grandparents are Maryellen Scott of Florence and Kenneth Scott Sr. of Florence, and Floyd Ashlaw of North Hatfield and Ann Arnold of Sunderland. The paternal great-grandfather is Pete Dion of Easthampton.