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

February activities at the Council on Aging

bemisHere is the list of February activities sponsored by the Council on Aging.

Do less, accomplish more, feel better!
February 3 at 10 a.m.
We’re all overwhelmed with information about what we should be doing that’s good for us. Simplify to be more productive with a six-week group led by Pam Mizrahi. The group will explore how to determine what you can do to do less while accomplishing more to make you happier and healthier physically, mentally, and spiritually. This free group will meet on Tuesday mornings at 10 a.m. beginning on Feb. 3 at Bemis Hall. You will benefit from this group whether you were in the fall group or not. [Read more…] about February activities at the Council on Aging

Letter to the editor: gas leak on Bedford Road

letter

To the editor:

There is a gas pipeline leak under Bedford Road near First Parish. The smell of gas is a regular part of walking to church. The congregation has noticed this and talked about this for years. Each time it is discussed we remember the last time we called the gas company and nothing happened. Could this leak be coming from the large gas main the writer referred to in a recent letter?

Sincerely,

Lewis Lloyd
8 Moccasin Hill

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, 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 Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

“Top of the Town” postponed

Top of the Town postponed

Due to the snowstorm predicted for tomorrow, the Friends of the Lincoln Council on Aging’s Top of the Town Winter Gala has been rescheduled for Sunday, Jan. 25 from 5-8 p.m. at the deCordova Museum.

News acorns – 1/23/15

acornHear about Lincoln’s aluminum house, and the town during World War II

Did you know that Lincoln is home to one of the rare Alcoa aluminum houses that were built in 1957 to showcase aluminum building materials? On Thursday, Jan. 29 from 7-9 p.m. in the Lincoln Public Library, Katherine Mierzwa of Friends of Modern Architecture/Lincoln will give a fast-paced, illustrated photo tour of this significant house, the history of aluminum in 20th-century architecture, and an update on how this house has recently been renovated.

What was life like on the World War II home front? How fast did Lincoln mobilize? How did it respond to all the major war challenges such as rationing, training for evacuation, and sustaining morale? Come to a session sponsored by the Lincoln Historical Society on Sunday, Feb. 1 at 2 p.m. in Bemis Hall for an afternoon of reminiscences about “Lincoln During World War II.” Hear reminiscences of wartime Lincoln elementary school students, share your own personal recollections whether or not you grew up in Lincoln, and capture the spirit of the times. “Victory Cake” and other popular foods from the period will be served. All ages welcome.

Both events are part of the Lincoln Winter Carnival.

New book club kicks off

The Lincoln Library is pleased to offer a new book group called the “Who Picked This Book?” club. The first meeting is Monday, Feb. 2 from 7-8:30 p.m. at the library, when we will talk about One Day by David Nicholls. The club will meet on the first Monday of each month at 7 p.m. to read fairly current fiction (maybe even nonfiction) that’s entertaining and well written. Copies in various formats will be available two weeks prior to each meeting. Refreshments will be served. Bring a list of possible books that you’ve always wanted to read to the first meeting maybe we can all pick the next one together. For more information, please contact Lisa Rothenberg at lrothenberg@minlib.net.

“Voices from the Back Stairs: Domestic Servants in 19th- and 20th-century New England”

Although domestic servants made everyday life in grand houses possible, their identities and roles within the household have long been ignored. On Sunday, Feb. 8 from 2-4 p.m., Dr. Jennifer Pustz of Historic New England will shed light on the role of servants and their relationship to their employers. This illustrated lecture will focus on three Historic New England properties, including Lincoln’s own Codman Estate.

Winter Carnival kicks off next Thursday

Winter Carnival 2015 PosterThe Lincoln Winter Carnival, an annual event sponsored by the Parks and Recreation Committee, starts on January 29 and features a pancake breakfast, a snow sculpture contest, poetry, bingo, and lots of other events for both adults and kids.

The carnival is designed to foster a sense of community throughout the town of Lincoln, and all events are sponsored by Lincoln-based organizations. Please check individual event details for age limits, admission fees, pre-registration information, etc.

Weeklong events

[Read more…] about Winter Carnival kicks off next Thursday

News acorns – 1/20/15

acornRoute 128 to be topic of HATS forum

The Hanscom Area Towns Committee (HATS) will have a roundtable meeting about concerns relating to Route 128 on Thursday, Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m. in the Lincoln Town Office Building.

Among those invited are Alyssa Sandoval, Bedford’s economic development coordinator; Stephanie Cronin, executive director of the Middlesex 3 Transportation Management Association; a Middlesex 3 Shuttle Service representative; Melisa Tintocalis, Lexington’s economic development director; area legislators including Waltham Mayor Jeannette McCarthy and State Reps. Tom Stanley and Ken Gordon; commuter program leaders from Hanscom Air Force Base; and representatives from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the 128 Business Council.

Although HATS (which is chaired by Lincoln Selectman Peter Braun) focuses primarily on the Hanscom Air Force Base and MassPort-operated Hanscom Air Field, it also focuses sometimes on other regional concerns such as 128 traffic and development that impacts the area. HATS. Recent articles on the subject can be found here, here and here.

Founder of “Frontline” to speak at Bemis

David Fanning, creator of the acclaimed PBS series Frontline, will speak at Bemis Hall on Sunday, Feb. 8 at 4 p.m. His talk, entitled “The Making of Frontline,” will offer a behind-the-scenes look at the series—how it came to be, the battles fought, the controversies stirred, high points and low, and prospects for the future in a rapidly changing media landscape.

Fanning launched Frontline at host station WGBH in 1983 and has been its executive producer and guiding hand ever since. Under his care, Frontline has become the most enduring and honored investigative documentary series on American television, and Fanning himself was recently honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

The event is part of the Bemis Free Lecture Series. For more information, email bemislectures@gmail.com.

Multi-sport court proposed for school campus

The proposed sports court wold go in the blue area next to the tot playground behind the Codman Pool parking lot.

The proposed sports court would go in the blue area next to the tot playground behind the Codman Pool parking lot (click to enlarge).

By Alice Waugh

Lincoln will have a new outdoor court with lighting for basketball, tennis, street hockey and other sports by late summer if officials and voters give a funding thumbs-up.

The proposal by the Parks and Recreation Committee (PRC) calls for a $146,000 multi-sport moveable court to be installed next to the playground at the rear of the Codman Pool parking lot. The court surface, which would be made of perforated plastic and surrounded by netting, could be taken up and relocated if staging space is required during a school building project.

Although Lincoln has recreational facilities for children and town tennis courts, “what we really have is a big gap in the sixth-to-eighth-grade, high school and college-age folks,” said PRC chair Jonathan Dwyer in a January 8 presentation to the School Committee, which oversees use of school property.

The court could serve as an outdoor drop-in sports facility for teenagers and others in the afternoon, early evening and weekends all year round, since it could also work as an ice-skating rink, Dwyer said. “This brings them back to the [Lincoln School] campus and connects them more to the town as they [remember] hanging out at the playground, at the pool and on the fields,” he said.

The location also has the advantage of easy access and parking next to the existing lot and its streetlights, “so we’re not creating a new lit area located in the middle of nowhere—we’re just augmenting what’s already there,” said Dan Pereira, director of the Parks and Recreation Department.

The court would also expand the town’s after-school tennis program, which usually can’t start until after April school vacation because the clay courts need more time to recover from the winter snow and ice.

The PRC estimates that the facility would cost $146,000, including lighting and a water line extension. A traditional court with a poured concrete base would cost about $20,000 less, but it would not have the advantage of being movable and water-permeable, Pereira noted. The Community Preservation Committee has determined that the project qualifies for Community Preservation Act funding and is considering the proposal for recommendation as part of its funding request at Town Meeting in March, Dwyer said in his written proposal to the School Committee.

If funding is approved at Town Meeting, installation could begin in early August and would take about a week, making it ready for use by August 30.

“This sounds like a fun thing to bring forward and could be a real benefit to students,” said Jennifer Glass, chair of the School Committee, which voted unanimously to support the PRC’s request.

Lincoln’s Sajer honored for oncology care at Emerson

Dr. Susan Sajer, an oncologist at Mass General Cancer Center at Emerson Hospital – Bethke, is honored for her twenty years of service to patients during the Emerson Hospital physician recognition dinner held recently at the Nashawtuc Country Club. Pictured L to R: Dr. James Street, President of the Medical Staff at Emerson Hospital, Dr. Sajer, and Christine Schuster, president and CEO of Emerson Hospital.

Dr. Susan Sajer (center), an oncologist at Mass General Cancer Center at Emerson Hospital–Bethke, is honored for her 20 years of service to patients during the Emerson Hospital physician recognition dinner held recently at the Nashawtuc Country Club. With her are (left) Dr. James Street, president of the medical staff at Emerson Hospital, and Christine Schuster, president and CEO of Emerson Hospital.

Lincoln resident Susan Sajer, M.D., was honored for her 20 years of service to patients at Emerson Hospital at its annual Physician Recognition Dinner. An oncologist at Mass General Cancer Center at Emerson Hospital–Bethke, Sajer has cared for thousands of patients facing a cancer diagnosis.

In addition to her work with patients, Sajer is the principal investigator for cancer clinical trials at the cancer center.

“Twenty years ago was the start of the human genome project, which was followed by the cancer genome project that is still ongoing. The outgrowth of work from these projects has enormously changed what I can do for patients and their families. I am now able to treat patients with early-stage disease with exceptional cure rates,” Sajer said. “I tailor care by understanding who the person is, their support systems and their preferences for medical care. I have the privilege of being part of new advances in cancer care and look forward to bringing these treatments to patients in the community.”

Sajer is featured in this video of Emerson physicians discussing the biggest changes in health care during their tenure (her portion starts at the 1:08 time mark).

“Susan is an amazing physician whose dedication to her patients and to the field of oncology is unparalleled,” said Christine Schuster, president and CEO of Emerson Hospital. “We are very proud to have her on our team treating patients who live in the community.”

Sajer received her medical degree from Jefferson Medical College and completed a residency at the Medical College of Virginia and a fellowship in hematology/oncology at New England Medical Center. She is board-certified in hematology, internal medicine and medical oncology.

Letter to the editor: Fredriksen running again

letter

To the editor:

I am writing to announce my candidacy for reelection to a second term on the Board of Selectmen. It has been an interesting three years and an exciting time to be on the board.

The primary role of the Selectmen is to carry out the will of the town. We do not set policy, but rather assist the town in making informed decisions, as well as assuring that these decisions are carried out. I find all of this to be challenging and, when we get it right, very rewarding. This is not to say that the board does not make decisions throughout the year; of course we do. But these decisions are often in the details: committee appointments, public safety, and how to best present choices to the town.

During these three years, I have been involved in the development of the new town web site, I serve on the Community Center Study Committee, and I am liaison to the land use boards as well as the Council on Aging, School Building Advisory Committee, and others This has given me a great deal of perspective about the many faces of Lincoln.

Major challenges facing Lincoln in the short term include potential changes to the school campus. Will we begin to renovate or rebuild our K-8 school soon? Will we design and build a new community center? Is a campus master plan a good first step? Some of these questions will be put to you at our March Town Meeting. Whatever direction Town Meeting takes us in, I hope to continue to be part of that process as your Selectman.

We are all in this together; it is everyone’s responsibility to be informed and participate in the process, with your voice and with your vote. With your support, I will continue to listen, and to use my best judgement in making decisions placed before the board and representing the residents of Lincoln.

Sincerely,

Renel Fredriksen
Trapelo Rd.

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to news@lincolnsquirrrel.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic, 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.