The Walpole Clarion

I just delivered the June issue of THE WALPOLE CLARION to the Bellows Falls and Walpole post offices, and it is now also on-line. Moving into a slow summer, still with COVID having shut things down, and cancelled activities, but “things are looking up.”

You may click on this link for the on-line issue – 
https://thewalpoleclarion.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/clarion-june21-topress.pdf
Or, click on page one of the June issue below.

The July issue closes on Tuesday, June 22, so do plan ahead. Submissions continue to arrive prior to the deadline and that helps a great deal in our laying out each issue. And, I welcome submissions from North Walpole and Drewsville writers. Thank you.

Stay safe, and stay well, yours, RAY BOAS, Publisher

There will be a parade, Thursday 27 May honoring Chief Mike Paquette for his 20 years of dedicated service to Walpole Police Department and the Community.  His last day of Service is May 31, 2021.

The drive-by parade will start at 1:00PM from the Walpole Fire Station on Main Street.  It will continue up Main Street into Walpole Village and past the Walpole Town Library where Mike will be standing on the steps. If anyone would like to be in the parade, we are forming at the Walpole Fire Department at 12:30 PM. We would love to see Walpoleans out on the streets waving and showing recognition to him as well.

For more information regarding the parade, contact Janet Clough at the PD for details at 603-445-2058.

Thank you much, Janet Clough

Have you ever wondered what that strange bug crawling on the rock wall is called, or what the name of a plant is that you often see while hiking? What about that fluffy-looking moss on the side of that maple, or the energetic songbird singing away in the canopy? You can answer all these questions and more through a new, community-driven field guide of Walpole’s flora, fauna, and fungi. The project, called A Living Field Guide to Walpole, NH , collects observations of living organisms that people submit to the community-science database iNaturalist ( www.inaturalist.org ).

iNaturalist is an easy-to-use, free app that can help identify what you are seeing and hearing. When a photo or sound recording is shared to iNaturalist, expert naturalists help identify what was observed. As of April 2021, beginner and master naturalists alike have used iNaturalist to document over 600 wild species in Walpole. Among these, are one of New Hampshire’s only records of a Rusty Snaketail dragonfly and North America’s largest native moth, the Cecropia Moth, which has a colorful wingspan measuring seven inches.

The town-wide living field guide project arose out of a long-term natural inventory at Walpole’s Distant Hill Gardens and Nature Trail, where iNaturalist continues to deepen our understanding of nature. Most of Walpole’s public lands are poorly documented in iNaturalist, and places like the Hooper Forest, Academy Ravine, and Fanny Mason Forest eagerly await your exploration. Similarly, nature knows no bounds, and observations of wild plants and animals from your own yards are welcomed by the living field guide.

To learn more about this exciting project, get involved, or see a list of all 607 species and counting, visit the project website ( https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/a-living-field-guide-to-walpole-nh ). All are invited to attend an informational Zoom meeting about the project on Thursday, May 20 th at 5:30pm. Please register on the Eventbrite Event page at https://tinyurl.com/ukk7w3u9 . This meeting will be followed by a Walpole-wide bioblitz on May 23 rd , which will kick off a bi-weekly, summer-long bioblitz series. Let’s start exploring!

Accepting donations “sets a bad precedent,” Selectboard Chair Cheryl Mayberry stated. Board members, Steve Dalessio and Peggy Pschirrer agreed, explaining to accept a gift shows “the rich get their way.” Rejected May 6th was granite curbing to enhance both sides of the Town Common, a showplace enjoyed by residents and visitors alike for almost two centuries. The rejected proposed gift – nine hundred feet of curbing on Elm and Washington Streets – installed costs $18,000. The majority of the Village, called the quintessential New England Village by late author James Michener, is curbed in granite.

This decision is contrary to the intent of the Internal Revenue Code which encourages a “…contribution or gift to or for the use of a State, a possession of the United States, or any political subdivision of any of the foregoing but only if the contribution or gift is made for exclusively public purposes.” A community improvement, one that is out in front of everyone and every day, is not for a few, but certainly for the public benefit.

Recently many Walpole community improvements have been accomplished with donations from those who have had the ability and desire to be charitable. The Walpole Town Library was enlarged and renovated. In September 2016, private donations surpassed the goal of $80,000 to install a new playground at the Walpole Primary School. Contributions to purchase the Walker Road Property has protected 1,000 feet of Connecticut River frontage. The “Save Hooper” campaign raised private contributions to buy the easement on the Hooper property and save it from development. On the Town Common, the gazebo was a single private gift for the benefit of the community. “Dog poop” containers were contributed. The Veterans Memorial was gifted, and is visited by many residents and out of town guests. And trees to be enjoyed by all have been gifted to the Town for the Common, one going back a hundred years. Are we now entering an era where private generosity for community improvement in Walpole is being discouraged?

RAY BOAS

Yes, five months into the year, and your May issue of THE WALPOLE CLARION is now on-line. There is a slight delay at the printer, so this issue may not be at the post office until Friday, and hopefully in your hands on May 1.

But, you may click on this link now – https://thewalpoleclarion.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/clarion-may21-topress.pdf – to read the issue. Or, click on page one of the May issue below.

The June issue closes on Friday, May 21, so do plan ahead. All of my contributors for the May issue had their copy and ads to me by the day before, and that helps a great deal. Thank you.

Stay safe, and stay well, yours, RAY BOAS, Publisher

NO MORE FOOLING — You know your writing is good when you write about something for April Fool’s and people take you seriously. Last week the printer “stopped the presses” and called me saying I had foreign words in my files they thought were a mistake. They laughed when I said the Spanish, Latin, mixed with Greek was April Fools Day fun.

I have learned that other stories, specifically the seven-cents user light fee, were not well received. I have gotten calls with people laughing at the cleverness, but – the phone calls have been mixed, some were not happy with the fun.

My apologies to all — the CLARION is serious endeavor, and I believe I will no longer have any silly stories in future April issues. Thank you for your understanding, and again my apologies, yours, RAY

I have received a few nice Facebook comments. No “negatives” as yet, but in fairness I will share those also. Here they are:

— On March 31 — I laughed! You gave so many clues in the article that it was a joke. LOL. The picture with the article was the topper. LOL. You did fool me at first when I thought I had to look up the April 2015 edition for information. LOL.

— More March 31 — You got me with the Arch bridge tolls! Although it did sound bizarre and I did wonder if you really knew what you were talking about. When I told hubby about it he did not believe it for one minute! Hahahaha!

— Still more March 31 — My favorite was the hotel by the vet and then the Jumbotron on the Common!!! — thank you, RAY

— Please don’t stop. I’ve lived in Walpole for 3 Aprils and you’ve gotten me every time! But it’s fun!

— No apology necessary!

— and, this email just in from a dedicated and faithful reader:
Good evening Ray.I set up my account with DOT. The guy asked for 3 credit card numbers but I only have 2 so he made an exception for me so I gave him all the numbers. Don’t want to get in trouble with the government. Great article giving a heads up to all of us uninformed people.

and, a second note from this “true fan,” – Hi Ray, it took me about half way through your masterpiece before I got the message. How many places on earth can share a chuckle during these crazy times. Keep up the good work. … I hope your computer is blowing up from frantic Walpoleans.

March 31 — I have a true fan who just emailed again saying, “Good evening Ray. You have made my day, thank you. I am still laughing inside as I read, again, your masterpiece. This kind of stuff brings me out of my conservative shell and it feels good. You should think about becoming a fiction author. See you around town now that I need not to worry about the Government coming after me. Good evening…”

———–

Comment on the Hubbard Press Release — Is this an April fools joke also? — and my reply — No it is not – a serious reply to those concerned. Will have to address how I may handle in the future the April stories. This press release came in after the April issue was mailed.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Hubbard Farms. Oliver Hubbard graduated from the New Hampshire Agriculture College in 1921, and began his commercial poultry business in Walpole. From 1921 up to the acquisition by Merck in 1974, it was a family company. Benefitting from the sale were many non-profits around the State. In Walpole, the Walpole Foundation was formed. We have the work of the Foundation to thank for the preservation and restoration of the “downtown” village to its splendid 19th century appearance. As this year evolves, the CLARION hopes to profile this Walpole institution.

Yesterday the CLARION received a copy of a recent press release from Hubbard. It starts:

USA – Hubbard® has announced plans to expand and upgrade its Walpole, NH, US, Research and Development (R&D) operations. Representing an investment of $20 million, the project will mean an increase in capabilities and capacity, as well as improvement in performance, biosecurity and innovation, along with bird health and welfare. Work will commence immediately, with completion slated for mid-2022. When finished, the expansion will bring approximately 40 new jobs to Walpole and Cheshire County.

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO READ THE ENTIRE PRESS RELEASE

Follow the CLARION for more information as the expansion and upgrades begin.

And, when you see a member of the Hubbard Family, say “thank you.”
RAY BOAS, Publisher

The April 2021 CLARION is now at the post office (a day early) and I am posting on-line as well. You can access the on-line copy using the links below.

You may click on the link below
April 2021 CLARION
or on the image below, and please enjoy.

You will see on page 5 an article – “A Nightmare on Elm Street?” A March 18 Selectboard meeting prompted that article. That night the Road Agent stated his plan to widen Elm Street by eight feet along the Common (most likely on the west side of the roadway) thus removing trees, and damaging root systems of those not removed. At that meeting the Road Agent was asked to return with a plan on April 1. I asked to be involved with that plan, and as yet (March 29) have not been invited.

With this previously unknown plan, I alerted the public to this possible irrevocable desecration of Walpole’s Town Common and surroundings using CLARION and Facebook posts. There were over 1,000 reads of that message in just 36 hours, and as a result about 80 Zoom attendees at the March 25 Selectboard meeting, several attendees hosting several people in the room. Starting the meeting, the Selectboard chair stated no decision had been made. I then read a statement with required studies and recommendations into the minutes. I urge you to click below, and read what I stated.

RAY BOAS
Statement to Walpole, NH Selectboard
25 March 2021

This looming problem has not gone away, studies, and public input are needed before any work is begun. At the March 25 meeting all attendees (save one) indicated they were not in favor of any change to the Common and its surrounding appearance. That one individual, who works for the Road Agent, stated Walpole is no longer bucolic, and the widening and tree removal should go forward.

Please, please, voice your opinions now by email, phone call or visit to the Selectboard office, or a Selectboard member. And, plan to attend the April 1 meeting. The Zoom link will be posted on the Town website ( https://www.walpolenh.us/ ) around 2PM on April 1st – under Residents, then click Town News. I will also share it via CLARION and Facebook posts. Thank you, yours, RAY

PS – My next post (check back tomorrow) will have some good (actually fantastic) news for Walpole, received today, after the April issue was done. That news (and hopefully more on it) will also be in the May issue.

Deadline for the May CLARION is Friday, April 23

Thank you – RAY BOAS, Publisher

Representive Lucy Weber has provided this information to the CLARION:

the following dates were announced for the opening of vaccine registration for anyone who has not yet qualified:

Anyone aged 40-49 may register starting Monday, March 29.
Anyone aged 30-39 may register starting Wednesday, March 31.
Everyone aged 16+ may register starting Friday, April 2.

To Schedule your appointment go to:

https://www.vaccines.nh.gov — or call 211.

Onward!
Lucy
Rep. Lucy McVitty Weber

Cell: 603-499-0282
lwmcv@comcast.net

The following was posted moments ago on the Town of Walpole’s website. This is the meeting you are strongly urged to attend

In addition I have contacted Fact8TV for information on how to view their transmission of the proceedings, and a link for when the meeting is posted. I have yet to receive a response, but do check – https://www.fact8.com/

Thank you for all the support forwarded in the last twenty hours, yours, Ray Boas, Publisher