The Lincoln Squirrel – News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

Letter to the editor: learn more about Islam at two events

letter

To the editor,

On Wednesday, March 30 at 7 p.m., all are invited for a cup of tea at Karibu Restaurant on 10 Crescent St. in Waltham. The purpose of this tea is to sit and talk with people you have yet to meet.

On Sunday, April 3 at 4 p.m., the Waltham Islamic Society at 313 Moody St. is opening the doors to their mosque to all of us who wish to see their place of worship. They will have people ready to answer our questions and show us around. This is a follow-up activity from the Meet Our Muslim Neighbor event in February. Well over 100 people (many from Lincoln) attended that event and many indicated interest in learning more.

I am writing this on Tuesday morning, March 29 having just read in the Boston Globe about the difficulties a group of Muslims are facing in Dudley as they try to get permission from the town to build a cemetery. We are all familiar with the fear of the unknown and have all heard the negative comments about Muslims in the media.

We are fortunate here in our community that we are all able to live in peace and respect for one another. That’s what was on display at the event in February, and our continued public acknowledgement of support for our Muslim neighbors is what will help inoculate us from some of the difficulties faced in other communities.

If you would like an opportunity to show your support for Muslims, please join us at the mosque on Sunday at 4 p.m.  If you are at all afraid, concerned or have lingering questions, please join us on Sunday. Ask your questions, voice your concerns and take the opportunity to better gain a better understanding of Islam.

Sincerely,

Sharon Antia
165 South Great Rd.
www.centerforcommunityengagement.org

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

Olson, Gladstone win Planning Board seats

In the two contested offices in the March 28 town election, Planning Board seats were won by incumbent Margaret Olson and Stephen Gladstone, while former Selectman Sara Mattes beat Stanley Solomon by a margin of nearly 2-1 in the race for Bemis Trustee.

Overall, the Planning Board votes were closely divided among the three candidates, with Gladstone taking the most at 37 percent, followed by Olson with 33 percent and Jennifer Morris Gundy with 29 percent. However, each of the town’s two precincts had different results. In a very close race in Precinct 1 (the southwest side of town), Olson, Gundy and Gladstone finished first, second and third respectively. In Precinct 2, Gladstone won by a wide margin, followed by Olson and Gundy.

Here are the complete unofficial results:

Town of Lincoln annual town election – March 28, 2016
Prec. 1 Prec. 2 Total
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
James E. Craig 215 94 309
Blanks 43 36 79
Write-in 2 0 2
BOARD OF ASSESSORS
John G. Robinson 214 93 307
Blanks 46 37 83
Write-in 0 0 0
BOARD OF HEALTH
Steven R. Kanner 206 88 294
Blanks 53 42 95
Write-in 1 0 1
CEMETERY COMMISSION
Conrad H. Todd 218 97 315
Blanks 40 33 73
Write-in 2 0 2
COMMISSIONER OF TRUST FUNDS
Douglas B. Harding 223 95 318
Blanks 37 35 72
Write-in 0 0 0
DeCORDOVA TRUSTEE
Dune D. Thorne 209 87 296
Blanks 49 43 92
Write-in 2 0 2
HOUSING COMMISSION
Sharon K. Antia 207 88 295
Blanks 51 41 92
Write-in 2 1 3
TOWN CLERK
Susan F. Brooks 228 110 338
Blanks 30 20 50
Write-in 2 0 2
LSRHS SCHOOL COMMITTEE (vote for 2)
Radha Raman Gargeya 199 79 278
Kevin J. Matthews 183 70 253
Blanks 138 111 249
Write-in 0 0 0
PARKS AND RECREATION
Patricia M. Donahue 212 95 307
Blanks 48 35 83
Write-in 0 0 0
PLANNING BOARD (vote for 2)
Setha Margaret Olson 146 59 205
Stephen R. Gladstone 135 94 229
Jennifer Morris Gundy 139 42 181
Blanks 99 65 164
Write-in 1 0 1
SCHOOL COMMITTEE
Timothy H.T. Christenfeld 207 34 241
Blanks 49 0 49
Write-in 4 0 4
BEMIS TRUSTEE (vote for 1)
Sara A. Mattes 151 84 235
Stanley J. Solomon 101 37 138
Blanks 8 0 8
Write-in 0 0 0
WATER COMMISSIONER
Patrick J. Lawler 213 39 252
Blanks 47 0 47
Write-in 0 0 0
LINCOLN LIBRARY TRUSTEE
Jennifer A. James 212 36 248
Blanks 46 0 46
Write-in 2 0 2
Question 1. To assess an additional $320,000 in taxes for DPW equipment
YES 206 22 228
NO 31 18 49
Blank 23 0 23
Question 2. Minuteman High School debt
YES 128 44 172
NO 67 40 107
Blank 65 0 65

 

Letter to the editor: Town Meeting is something to celebrate

letter

To the editor:

As outgoing Selectman Eckhouse so eloquently noted, our open Town Meeting, marked by civil debates and a search for consensus, is in stark contrast to what is happening in some quarters of the national political arena. He noted that the final votes—the outcome our collective investment of time and thought this past Saturday—proved the value of that investment and the importance of coming together to shape our future. Indeed, our Town Meeting is something to celebrate.

This year’s meeting was marked by its civil debates and creative, collaborative engagement over issues. The debate over the investment of a piece of land that is part of our rural viewscape, across from the Town Office Building and next door to the Old Town Hall Exchange, led to a creative compromise. In the course of questions, the quick thinking of the Green Energy Committee Chair John Snell resulted in an amendment that would allow the potential “swap” of the town center purchase restriction for other land that might serve to host solar panels elsewhere in town. This would potentially allow for the location of a solar field on the capped landfill at our town transfer station—a goal long desired by many. The amendment offered a win/win for the town and allowed for the near unanimous passage of the measure.

We saw the value of Lincoln’s civic education. Our Lincoln school eighth-graders brought forward a warrant article to ask the town to invest in a water hydration system—a spot where you can fill a water bottle rather than use disposable cups. The presentations were informative and artful. It was during the question-and-answer portion of the debate that the true savvy and sophistication of the presenters was displayed. On a question about the cost of maintenance, one of the proponents opened with, “Short answer…” and then went into a more detailed response. Such quickness, poise and clarity are the envy of many more long-in-the-tooth public officials.

Perhaps of greatest importance was the near-unanimous (only one “no”) vote to support our schools submitting a request for consideration by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). The School Committee, the Finance Committee and the Board of Selectmen made it clear that this was the only prudent and fiscally viable path to take. And the Town Meeting affirmed that in a resounding “yes” vote on Article 28. It is now universally accepted that out schools are in dire need of renovation and that we need the support of the Commonwealth to proceed. The message to the MSBA should now be clear and unambiguous: we are ready!

The importance of Town Meeting in reaffirming our faith in basic democracy and the importance of citizen participation was in full display this past Saturday. It truly was a day well spent and it truly was something to celebrate.

Sara Mattes
71 Conant Rd.

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

School hydration station OK’d at Town Meeting

water bottleBy Alice Waugh

There will be fewer crumpled paper cups in the Lincoln School’s future after one of the water bubblers is be replaced by a “hydration station,” thanks to a Town Meeting citizen’s petition by a group of eighth-graders.

Laura Appleby, Hannah Hwang, Keith Hylton, Roshan Kharbanda, Tara O’Malley, Simon Perry and Zach Tam wanted to come up with a more environmentally friendly solution for dispensing drinking water at the school. The bubblers have replaceable five-gallon jugs that dispense water into disposable paper cups, so each one has a wastebasket next to it filled with this trash.

After looking into alternatives, the students found that users could fill up their reusable water bottles at a “hydration station” that dispenses filtered tap water. Their citizens’ petition asked voters to approve an expenditure of up to $3,500 for a hydration station in Reed Gym.

In the course of their research, the students learned that the water in the Lincoln School is in fact safe to drink and is used by the cafeteria every day. The school has always had ceramic water fountains, but they were mothballed in the 1900s over concerns about excessive lead and copper. A 1991 federal law required towns to test and eventually limit the amounts of those metals in municipal drinking water.

To help the students, Lincoln Water Department Superintendent Greg Woods researched the Lincoln history of issue and learned that the metals had come from lead solder and the copper pipes conveying water from the mains to individual homes and schools. The problem was most noticeable in cases where water sat in the pipes for extended periods of time, such as the days and weeks when school was not in session.

“Unlike Flint, Michigan, the town and schools do not have lead pipes transporting the drinking water to the tap,” Woods wrote in a letter to the student group in February.

In 1998, the Water Department installed a new corrosion control system at both of the town’s water supply sources to make the pH of the water non-corrosive and to provide a protective coating on the interior of a building’s plumbing to prevent leaching. The town subsequently achieved compliance with the new rules—so well, in fact, that the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection granted a waiver to reduce the frequency of required sampling to once every three years.

Nonetheless, “we note that the success of the corrosion control systems to protect Lincoln residents from elevated lead and copper has not been widely publicized,” Woods wrote.

The hydration station will also save money. The students found that the school now spends $2,625 per year on water and paper cups for each bubbler, “so we’d break even in about a year and three months,” Perry said during their Town Meeting presentation. Other schools with hydration stations have been successful in increasing student use of reusable water bottles, O’Malley added.

Asked why the group didn’t press for hydration stations to replace every bubbler in the school rather than just the one in Reed Gym, Perry replied, “As a group, we want to take a step rather than conquering the world. We want it as a step to look at as inspiration.”

Letter to the editor: Solomon for Bemis Trustee

letter

To the editor:

Stan Solomon, my friend and neighbor here at The Commons, is a candidate for Bemis Trustee. Stan has a long history of active public service during his many years as a Lexington resident. Please consider voting for Stan on March 28.

Sincerely,

Dave Levington
One Harvest Circle

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

Letter to the editor: Gargeya seeks L-S School Committee vote

letter

To the editor:

I am running for re-election to the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional School Committee. My wife and I have been in Sudbury for nearly 19 years. I am forever grateful for the excellent education my children received in Sudbury and LSRHS.

In 2013, I advocated for fiscal stability for L-S; we witnessed budget and personnel losses as student enrollment was increasing. Working with my respected School Committee colleagues and various boards in both towns and with your considerate support, we were able to partially restore some of the teaching positions. Working with our teachers and staff, we have begun to put L-S on a sustainable fiscal footing. This year, we hope to make modest additions in curricular offerings for the first time in a decade.

L-S needed to upgrade its aging technology infrastructure. With your support, we did that to enhance our students’ learning.

As promised, we started a new tradition of joint meetings between the school committees of Lincoln-Sudbury, the Sudbury Public Schools and the Lincoln Public Schools to consider topics of common interest and increase curricular coordination as our students go through K-8 and graduate from L-S.

We brought the solar canopy project to a successful completion, reducing energy costs and redirecting the savings to the classroom.

Next term, we need to sustain and advocate for a financially secure L-S. I support active and creative collaboration amongst the school districts. We will have significant capital projects, including the replacement of turf fields at L-S. We will keep seeking ways to save money for the district.

All of this is in service to an institution that prepares our children to be independent and critical thinkers, provides needed support for all students and cares for the fullest development of each child. We want L-S to always improve; any day a school becomes complacent is not a good day for education. LSRHS moves forward because of the hard work of the staff and faculty; with your vote, I will steadfastly support them in every way that I can.

I remain a firm believer in public education. The word “public” refers to who can attend the school (all children), who pays (all of us, not just the parents), and who governs (you, through your elected representatives, the members of the School Committee). I pledge to honor your trust.

Please vote for me on Monday, March 28 (polls in Lincoln are open from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.) Please contact me at radhagargeya@yahoo.com, or like or comment on my Facebook page. Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

Radha Gargeya
120 Powder Mill Road, Sudbury

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

New and improved Lincoln Squirrel on the way

news+squirrelDear readers,

This is a follow-up the March 15 announcement that the Lincoln Squirrel will be rolling out improvements and also charging $3.99 per month as of April 1. Thank you to everyone who sent thoughtful queries and comments. Here are answers to some frequently asked questions. As always, email me at lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com if you need more information about something.

Q: Why is the Squirrel going to become a paid-subscriber site?

A: One reason is that there are costs associated with running the Squirrel, such as paying for a higher grade of web hosting to avert future crashes (we took this step just today!), a web developer to do periodic “under-the-hood” repairs and upgrades, the MailChimp service that compiles each day’s posts and sends them out to subscribers, etc. The other reason is that I’m hoping that the extra income will allow me to devote more time to working on the Squirrel and eventually making it my primary focus.

Q. What’s going to change and when?

A: When you go to the Lincoln Squirrel website on April 1, you’ll see an updated design with the same news and links as before, but also a new “Subscription” link. For the first few days, the site will still be completely free, but you should click the subscription link to become a paid subscriber so you’ll keep getting the Squirrel links in your email once the site goes behind the paywall. I’ll let you know a day or two in advance, but I expect that will happen on or about April 6.

Q: I’m already a free email subscriber to the Squirrel. Will I keep getting the daily emails with links to Squirrel stories after April 1?

A: Everyone who is now an email subscriber will keep getting the daily emails. However, if you have not signed up as a paid subscriber after about April 6 and you click on one of the story links in your email, you’ll see just the first sentence or two of the story and two buttons saying “Login” and “Subscribe.” Those who access the Squirrel website directly from their browsers will see the same thing.

Q: If I don’t become a paid subscriber right away, can I read anything for free?

A: Similar to the New York Times and other news websites, you’ll be able to read few articles for free (in this case, five articles per month) before you have to subscribe. Everyone also has unlimited access to the calendar on the Squirrel website.

Q: How exactly do I subscribe?

A: On April 1 or any time after that, click on the “Subscribe” link at the bottom of any story (or at the top of the web page, click on “Subscriptions”) to create a Squirrel account with a password and authorize your automatic monthly payment of $3.99 (more on that below). The first time you read a Squirrel article, you’ll click on the a then log on with your password once. If you check the “Remember me” box, you won’t have to log on every time you want to read the Squirrel on that device unless there are changes—for example, if you get a new computer/smartphone/iPad, change web browsers, clear your computer’s cookies, etc.

Q: What if I don’t have a PayPal account?

A: When you click on the “Subscribe” link, you will be asked to either log in to an existing PayPal account or create one if you don’t have one already. This is as simple as entering your name, email address, and credit card or checking account information (if you’d rather have your monthly fee drawn directly from your bank account), and it has to be done only once.

Q: Is PayPal secure for storing my credit card information?

A: PayPal is well known for keeping data secure and encrypted. This Investopedia.com article advises that when given a choice, you should use PayPal rather than using just your credit card, and likewise not to link it to your bank account. This article talks about how PayPal encrypts data and points out that having your information on PayPal isn’t any less secure than using a personal check (which has your name, account number and routing number on it) or making a one-time purchase with a credit card online.

Also, it’s actually safer to link your PayPal account to your credit card rather than to your checking account, because if someone gets fraudulent access to your PayPal account and your bank information is there, they can drain your account and you only have PayPal’s fraud protections (which are very good anyway). If you use a credit card, you get fraud protections from both PayPal and your credit card company.

As with any website, the best way to protect yourself is to pick a password that’s hard to guess, and not to use the same password for multiple websites.

Q: Can I pay by check?

A: If you are strongly opposed to having automatic charges from your credit card or checking account via PayPal, you can pay by paper check for a full year’s subscription, which will cost $48.00. Please email lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com for details.

Q: Can other people in my household read the Squirrel?

A: The monthly fee technically applies to one subscriber email address, but as a practical matter, the subscriber could share his or her email address and Squirrel password with others in the same household so everyone in the family could read the Squirrel. I’m trusting people not to abuse it and share passwords with their neighbors and others.

Q: Can I still send occasional articles to friends and family who aren’t subscribers?

A: As mentioned above, everyone may read up to five articles per month for free, so you can send up to five links per month to non-subscribers and they will be able to read the articles.

Q: What happens if I lose my password?

A: The Lincoln Squirrel has no access to passwords, so you’ll have to log in and click “Forgot password” to have a temporary new password emailed to you (afterwards, you can change it to whatever you like).

Q: Can I read legal notices about upcoming public hearings, etc., in the Lincoln Squirrel?

A: Yes. The Squirrel has started publishing notices of upcoming land-use hearings (see examples here and here) and will continue to do so regularly.

Squirrel website is back on line

news+squirrelDear readers,

My apologies about the Lincoln Squirrel website outage this morning. This was due to a host server crash, but everything is back in working order now. The good news is that we have just upgraded the server a few days sooner than originally planned, so this shouldn’t happen again. And this higher level of service, among other things, will be funded by your subscriptions.

If you tried to click on Squirrel stories from your email this morning, here again are the links to yesterday’s posts:

Thanks for reading!

Alice Waugh
Editor, Lincoln Squirrel
lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com

Obituary: Marnie Smith Wengren

Marnie xxx

Marnie Smith Wengren

(Editor’s note: This obituary was submitted by Marnie Wengren’s daughter-in-law, Tucker Smith.)

Margaret “Marnie” Lanphier Smith Wengren, formerly of Lincoln, died peacefully at her home in Lexington on March 8, six weeks before her 100th birthday. Lincoln was her home from 1957 until 1989, when she moved to Brookhaven in Lexington.

Born in Springfield, Ill., on April 21, 1916, Marnie remained proud of her Midwestern roots to her last days. Springfield was the home of Abraham Lincoln and in his second inaugural address, he said: “With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on…” Marnie was proud to live by these words. When asked about the secret to her longevity, she eagerly responded, “curiosity and gratitude.”

As a member of the First Parish Church in Lincoln since 1957, she served on the Prudential Committee (now the Parish Committee), the Deacons and many other committees. For the past 27 years while living in Lexington, Marnie attended Sunday services despite rain, sleet or snow. Her prayers were legendary among the church community.

Marnie graduated from the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. in 1934 and from Vassar College in 1938. She married DeWitt Smith in 1938 and lived a nomadic life as the wife of a mining engineer while raising her four children.

In 1966, after her marriage ended and with an empty nest, she began a career in the Education Department of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.  She began as a volunteer, graduating to gallery instructor. Over 13 years she studied to teach on the Egyptian, Greek and Roman collections, as well as the American collection. She also spent two years working in the Asiatic collection, which introduced her to Hindu and Buddhist art, a field she was particularly fond of through her later years.

Among Marnie’s many passions, one in particular was her commitment to Lincoln’s deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, where she served as a trustee (1979-97), board president (1981-84) and overseer (1977-79 and 1997-2012). She also served as deCordova’s interim executive director from 1980-81 and was one of the museum’s longest-serving guides. She was inducted into the docent program in 1967 and remained active for over 30 years. In 1989, the museum dedicated the Marnie Wengren Education Room, and family and friends gathered at the deCordova to celebrate Marnie’s life at a reception following her memorial service at the First Parish on March 15.

In 1968, she married Richard “Dick” Wengren, who died in 1999. Marnie was not only a wise and thoughtful matriarch; she inspired many as role model and mentor. She will live on in the many lives she touched.

She is survived by her four Smith children, Henry DeWitt Smith II and his wife Kimie of New York, N.Y.; Susie Smith White and her husband Lindsay (Peter) of Cambridge, Mass.; Ellen Smith Harde and her husband Mike of Westford, Mass.; and R.L. Smith and his wife Tucker of Lincoln, as well as Dick Wengren’s three children, Martha Tattersall and her husband Robin of Tortola, British Virgin Islands; Ted Wengren and his wife Mary Eliza of South Freeport, Maine; Carla Ricci and her husband Russell of Providence, R.I., 14 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

Services were held at the First Parish in Lincoln on March 15. Memorial gifts can be made to the First Parish in Lincoln, Box 6218, Lincoln, MA 01773.

Gun safety, fossil fuel measures passed

rifle-pollution montageBy Alice Waugh

Citizens’ petitions on national gun safety and fossil fuel divestment both passed at Town Meeting on March 19.

Article 36 asked voters to endorse “A Petition to the U.S. Congress to Adopt a Uniform National Gun Safety Law” and for town officials to convey this sentiment to federal officials. “We want to tell elected officials that we’re tired of the lack of progress in curbing the epidemic of gun violence,” said Gary Davis of the Lincoln Democratic Town Committee, which sponsored the Town Meeting measure.

The United States has the highest rate of firearm deaths among industrialized nations, and more than two-thirds of guns used in crimes in New Jersey and New York were brought there from other states with more lenient gun laws, Davis said.

“Overall, the background check system does not work,” he said, adding that in many parts of the country there are no laws barring felons, suspected terrorists and the mentally ill from buying guns at pawn shops, swap meets or online.

“We should not be quick to cede power to the federal government. Once you let it go, it’s very difficult to get back,” resident Barbara Darling said in opposition to the measure. “I would urge careful consideration of assumptions put forth in this article. It’s very easy to go out on the Internet and find all kinds of data supporting both sides of the argument.”

Saying she had no problem with owning guns for self-defense, hunting and sport, Joanna Hopkins argued that 33,000 annual gun-related deaths in the U.S. “are both heart-breaking and unacceptable.

“If enough cities and towns stand up and make our voices heard, eventually Congress will enact a nationwide gun safety set of standards. This is a sensible step for a safer and more civilized society for us all,” she said.

Fossil fuel divestment

Article 37 sought support for a bill (H.2269) that would require divestment of state retirement funds from holdings in fossil fuel companies. Resident Al Schmertzler said the issue was one of “acute moral, financial and long-term survival.” The warrant article focused on statewide pension investments because Lincoln has limited control over how its local pension funds are invested, he added.

Resident Len Darling argued against the measure, saying that many pension liabilities are already underfunded. “We need either better investment performance or higher contributions” to the funds, he said. “This is not our money. It’s really state employees who are depending on it for their retirement. Why do we want to tell investment professionals how to manage this money? We should not be micromanaging other people’s money.”

Fossil fuels in general are not the evil portrayed by some, Darling added, noting that natural gas is cheaper and produces less carbon dioxide than other fossil fuels, and the industry “has raised standard of living for billions of people.”

Both articles passed with a handful of “nay” votes.