Brief thoughts on some of the events making news from around Franklin County and the North Quabbin area:
Travel off the beaten path in the region and you’ll probably come upon little cemeteries tucked here and there. Sometimes the plots may be associated with a particular family or hold the remains from a certain era. They spark interest in who might be buried there or why. Chances are, though, passersby don’t think about what it takes to maintain the grounds or keep an eye out for vandalism or other problems. That’s what cemetery associations were formed for. But sometimes those very associations find themselves in jeopardy, such as what’s happening with the Riverside Cemetery Association in Gill. Faced with a lack of money and a dwindling supply of volunteers, the association is disbanding and hoping the town will take over the 4.4-acre property. This idea is likely to come up at Monday’s town meeting. We would like to think that the town will step up to take over managing and maintaining this part of community history.
Another public hearing is planned to talk about the state’s plan to establish a home for timber rattlers on Mount Zion, an island in the Quabbin Reservoir. The idea of creating a place for these endangered snakes has been proposed by the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife and has proven controversial because of perceptions about the danger the snakes may pose to the public. This time, it’s a state lawmaker who is holding the hearing in Athol Town Hall. We continue to hope that facts rather than fear will inform the final answer here.
As witnessed this weekend at the University of Massachusetts, we’re headed into the college graduation season. We’ll tip our hat to all the graduates of the Class of 2016, recognizing the hard work and effort that went into earning a diploma. Whatever the next step may be, work, more school or perhaps a bit of traveling, we wish them well. And coming soon: high school graduations.
Ralph C. Mahar School administrators Scott Hemlin and Eric Dion were recently named co-principals on a permanent basis following splitting the job on an interim basis. They obviously showed that keeping them on as co-principals rather than hiring an individual to replace Ishmael Tabales not only works but works well. As the old saying goes, “two heads are better than one.”
We don’t think Buckland residents will regret the recent town meeting votes to acquire and seek a grant so that Vets Field, also known as Cricket Field, will remain in the town’s hands. Now owned by the VFW, the park has long been a place where baseball has been played.