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

Thursday is the last chance for resident input on school building proposal

(Below is an unedited version of an email sent out to Lincoln School parents by the Lincoln PTO.)

Been hearing bits and pieces of what’s happening with a potential Lincoln School building project since the November 3rd Town Meeting, but haven’t been following very closely since the big meeting? Parents were noticeably absent at the first of two charettes to give the Lincoln School Committee guidance about a future school building project for our town. Please plan to participate in the final input session on Thursday, January 31 from 7-10 p.m. in the Brooks gym, and spread the word to fellow parents so they know the importance of parental voices in the process.

First, a bit of catching up and contexting since November…

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Financial help is available for fuel bills and more

billsDo you need help paying your winter fuel bill? Call the Lincoln Council on Aging, which can help you apply for funds from the Massachusetts Fuel Assistance Program.

The program provides a cash benefit, payable to an authorized fuel provider, for both home owners and renters with eligible incomes. How much you receive depends on your household income, how many people you have in your household, and your heating costs.

Regardless of age, residents must apply for Fuel Assistance Program aid through the Council on Aging (COA), whose staff will help with filling out forms. To apply, call Pam Alberts at 781-259-8811 to set up an appointment. The Southern Middlesex Opportunity Council will review the application to determine whether you are eligible.

Even if you’re not sure whether you qualify for the Fuel Assistance Program, “give us a call anyway, because even if you’re not eligible, there are other programs that we may be able to hook you up with,” said Carolyn Bottum, director of the COA. These other state programs offer heating system repairs, discount utility rates, and Citizens Energy heat assistance, and weatherization services.

Lincoln assistance also available

For other types of unforeseen financial emergencies, the Lincoln Emergency Assistance Fund and the Small Necessities Project can help.  The Lincoln Emergency Assistance Fund, which is funded entirely by donations, provides assistance of up to $500 per lifetime for Lincoln residents in situations when that amount will allow someone to stay in our community.

The Small Necessities Project can provide immediate help if a resident has no food in the house, needs emergency medication, needs a night or two of lodging due to a fire or flood, or has a similar problem. This Project is funded by the Ogden Codman Trust and donations.

For more information or to ask for assistance from any of these programs,call Pam Alberts at the COA at 781-259-8811.

Lincoln Winter Carnival schedule is here!

WinterCarnivalPoster2013The 2013 Lincoln Winter Carnival kicks off Friday, February 1 with community bingo and a concert by the U.S. Air Force band of LIberty Jazz Ensemble. Other events that weekend include:

  • Girl Scout breakfast
  • Groundhog Day at Drumlin Farm
  • Snowshoe tours at deCordova
  • Vermont PuppeTree performs “Caps for Sale”
  • Community skating
  • Lincoln Family Association Energy Blaster
  • Acoustic coffee house
  • Loveland Special Needs Horseback Riding Program open house
  • Concert by the Boston Classical Trio

Click here for the full schedule.

Help guide the future of housing in Lincoln

houseThe Lincoln Housing Commission invites residents to participate in a survey about the town’s new five-year Housing Plan—and it’s also looking for new commission member.

The Housing Commission wants to understand what residents think Lincoln’s housing priorities should be and what kinds of housing needs should be addressed in the new plan. Results from this survey will help make the plan appropriate for Lincoln and realistic for implementation over the next five years.

For purposes of the survey, “affordable housing” means a home that moderate-income people can own or rent at a monthly housing cost that’s approximately 30 percent of their gross monthly income. In Lincoln’s area, a family of four with an annual income of $65,000 per year qualifies as moderate income.

The housing survey is now available online and in hard copy at the Council on Aging, the Lincoln Public Library, and other locations around town. The online survey is also linked to the Town of Lincoln home page.

The commission is seeking a new member for a three-year term to help make a significant contribution to the future of affordable housing in Lincoln. The group meets twice a month on the first and third Fridays at 8 a.m. Please call Pamela Gallup at 781-259-0393 to learn more.

Want to coach kids for the Science Share?

scienceWould you like to help kids learn about science? The Lincoln School is looking for adult volunteer mentors to coach teams of students for the seventh annual Science Share on April 8, 2013.

What is a Science Share? It’s an opportunity for students to explore a topic in the science and technology field outside their classroom instruction and publicly share the knowledge gained in the form of an exhibit or demonstration.

Mentors who have a keen interest in science (not necessarily a science background) choose a topic they’d like to coach students in. You’ll lead a small team of 3-5 students and organize meeting after school, evenings and/or weekends in a location of your choice to help them investigate their topic and create an exhibit for the Science Share on April 8. We need as many mentors as possible to allow all interested children an opportunity to participate.

For more information, download the Science Share coach form, or email Lincoln K-4 Principal Steve McKenna at smckenna@lincnet.org or Judy Pistorio at judy.pistorio@verizon.net.

Groundhog Day festivities with Ms. G, Mish Michaels

Drumlin Farm's resident groundhog, Ms. G.

Drumlin Farm’s resident groundhog, Ms. G.

Will we have six more weeks of winter or an early spring? Join us as Ms. G, Drumlin Farm’s resident groundhog, gives her forecast for the rest of the winter at Drumlin Farm’s Groundhog Day celebration on Saturday, February 2 from 10 a.m. to 4  p.m. Activities include:

  • Get the up-to-the-minute woodchuck weather forecast from Ms. G at 10:00 as we kick off our celebration.
  • Warm up with a story and snacks by the fire. Make some winter crafts to take home.
  • Meet some more of our resident wildlife and learn about what’s going on in the nature of Massachusetts through the winter months.

In addition to all the fun, come meet one of New England’s favorite meteorologists, Mish Michaels, from 10:00 a.m. to noon, along with several area weather forecasters who will be on site to ring in the day.

Mish and students from Wellesley will soon be submitting a bill to the Massachusetts State Legislature to make Ms. G the official “Groundhog of the Commonwealth.” To encourage these students as they prepare to speak at a public hearing in support of this bill, sign the Ms. G petition and come join us to celebrate all things groundhog on February 2!

School project survey announced

By Alice Waugh

How do you really feel about the school building project? The Lincoln School District is surveying town voters to find out what they like and don’t like about the plan that was voted on in November—and what would garner more support for the project.

Registered voters may complete the survey online or fill out a paper version that will be mailed to all Lincoln households, though each voter is asked to fill out only one version. The completion deadline is February 1. Results will be used by the School Committee and School Building Committee (SBC) as they discuss the future of the project. It’s still unclear to what extent the approved plan can be changed while still qualifying for $21 million in state funding, but the town has until February 28 to tell the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) how it plans to proceed.

The survey asks voters what they think are the top three problems and/or benefits of the project. The problems offered on the survey are:

  • Not clear that the existing building has significant structural, systems, and/or educational needs
  • The site design (parking, roads, fields) of proposed project was worse than the existing site
  • The layout of proposed building was worse than the existing building
  • The proposed project tore down the Smith Gym and classrooms built in 1994
  • Not sure the project provided value for Lincoln’s portion of the cost ($29 million)
  • The project would have raised Lincoln’s taxes too much
  • Lincoln needs other non-school community facilities

The survey also asks residents if they agree, disagree, or aren’t sure about these statements:

  • The Lincoln School building has significant systems and repair needs
  • Having a kitchen and cafeteria would benefit the entire Lincoln community
  • If asked again, I would vote for the MSBA-approved project as presented at Town Meeting
  • I would vote for the MSBA-approved project if changes were made to the site design (e.g., parking was less visible; more of center field is preserved; more trees saved)
  • I would vote to spend $29 million on a project that keeps the current (“L-shaped”) layout of the building
  • I would vote to spend MORE than $29 million IF the project keeps the current (“L-shaped”) layout of the building
  • It is acceptable to have students in temporary trailers during construction
  • The school should do minimal repairs as needed and avoid code compliance triggers as long as possible
  • The building should be handicap accessible and brought up to present-day fire & safety codes
  • The Lincoln portion of the MSBA-approved project ($29 million) increased taxes too much

Future meetings

The SBC also announced a change in location for one of the upcoming meetings about the school project. The January 22 meeting to plan the two community charrettes will be held in the Hartwell multipurpose room rather than Reed Gym at 7:30 p.m. Residents are invited to attend one of the two identical charrettes:

    • Sunday, January 27:  1-4 p.m., Hartwell multipurpose room
    • Thursday, January 31:  7-10 p.m., Reed Gym

On Wednesday, February 6, the SBC will meet at 7:30 p.m. in Reed Gym to plan its response to the MSBA, which told town officials in a December 14 letter that the project could retain the promised $21 million in state funding only if the school district “determines as a result of its community outreach that the same project as proposed and approved by the MSBA is the preferred direction.”

Little blue bug keeps pace with its Lincoln owners over the decades

Larry and Nancy Zuelke with their Volkswagen Beetle at last summer's antique car show in Lincoln. (Photo: Alice Waugh)

Larry and Nancy Zuelke with their Volkswagen Beetle at last summer’s antique car show at the Codman Estate in Lincoln. (Photo: Alice Waugh)

By Brett Wittenberg

In 1957, Chicago newlyweds Lawrence and Nancy Zuelke headed to Boston so Larry could pursue a master’s degree in landscape architecture at Harvard. The couple packed up their brand-new baby-blue Volkswagen Beetle with all their possessions, including a chair lashed to the roof. The Beetle, a wedding present for themselves, cost around $1,500, about the same price as a motorcycle—“pretty affordable,” said Nancy.

In the year just ended, Larry and Nancy celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary—and their Beetle’s 55th birthday. Two hundred thousand miles, more than three dozen services, and one massive restoration later, neither the Beetle nor the marriage seem any the worse for wear.

When they bought it in 1957, the car had been available in the U.S. for around a decade, but the Zuelkes’ model had a host of modern improvements: tubeless tires, a new radio, side-view mirrors as standard equipment, and turn signals that turned off automatically. Truly, there had never been a better time to be VW Beetle owner.

After giving 22 years of service, the Beetle was very much in need of an overhaul. Lawrence decided against the typical route of bringing the car to a mechanic, perhaps because he knew what he might be told. Instead, he brought the car to the automotive workshop at Minuteman High School in Lexington, which at that time allowed locals to bring in their cars and use Minuteman’s tools and equipment to perform their own repairs.

Over the next three years, Larry lovingly refurbished that sentimental wedding car. The baby-blue Beetle—now a true classic—was restored in time to present it to Nancy on their silver anniversary in 1982. “It was so good to see it like new again,” Nancy recalled.

Although originally from the Midwest, Larry and Nancy are now Lincolnites through and through. The pair made Lincoln their home in 1961 and raised three children here. Larry put his master’s degree to good use by becoming a landscape architect. Nancy served as Lincoln town clerk for 23 years, helping to ensure that her adopted hometown ran as smoothly as it could.

Those hoping to catch a glimpse of the Zuelkes’ Beetle will have to wait until next year’s antique auto show at the Codman Estate, where they appeared in summer 2012. Lawrence brings the beetle to Lincoln’s classic car show so others can reminisce about a simpler time, or at least enjoy the classic styling of a car whose features are basic by current standards, but which is more striking and beautiful today than it was in 1957.

Brett Wittenberg is a resident of Lexington, Mass.

How do you make a blog?

Blogs are a great way to share your news, thoughts, ideas, writings, photos, artwork, and more—and blogging is easier than you might think. The Lincoln Council on Aging invites you this Friday to come hear Alice Waugh, editor/reporter/publisher of the Lincoln Squirrel, explain how you can easily start your own blog for free—whether it’s just a page of text or featuring pictures, videos and links. Even if you’re not sure whether blogging is for you, come on down and see what it’s all about!

When: Friday, January 16 at 10:00 a.m.

Where: Bemis Hall

Residents ask for more financial, community use considerations in school project

By Alice Waugh

Heeding the School Building Committee’s call for more public input on what the school building project should look like, dozens attended a January 9 SBC workshop and asked for a building that considered the needs of the broader community and was closely connected to its surrounding natural environment.

The workshop’s goal was to reexamine the guiding principles and evaluation criteria that were used in developing the school project. Residents broke into groups and contributed ideas that were then written on poster paper hung on the walls of Reed Gym.

The SBC will decide on a final consolidated set of criteria at its January 22 meeting.

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