Burrillville News

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

RI Turkey Restoration Project History

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

The RI wild turkey restoration project began on  February 8th,1980 in the town of Exeter with a single release of 29 wild turkeys trapped and transferred from Vermont. Population growth was assisted by the migration of birds released in 1983 and 1984 by Connecticut Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP), near the state line. Population growth and expansion in these parts of RI was slow to respond in spite of the availability of suitable habitat.
Utilizing harvest data, brood reports, cooperator sightings, call count surveys, track and sign surveys it was apparent that certain areas of the state held few or any turkeys and that the release of new flocks was warranted. Three sights were chosen for releases, Black Hut Management Area in Burrillville and two large privately owned parcels; one in West Greenwich and the other in Little Compton.
Rhode Island DFW contacted the New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) and requested their assistance in providing wild turkeys for the planned release. NYDEC agreed to assist and trapping operations were initiated during the winter of 1994. On two occasions, Rhode Island biologists were able to participate in the trapping providing an opportunity for training in capture techniques. The NWTF provided transport boxes for the captured birds.
During the winter of 1994, a total of 48 wild turkeys, 24 males and 24 females, were trapped and transferred from NY to RI. Collectively, 20 birds, 11 males and 9 females, were released at the Black Hut site on 7 January and 13 January 1994. The West Greenwich site collectively received 13 birds, 4 males and 9 females, released on 3 February and 16 March 1994. The final 15 birds, 9 male and 6 female, were released at the Little Compton site on 13 January 1994.
The birds released at the Black Hut and Little Compton sites were protected by regulation that closed these areas to turkey hunting. The West Greenwich site consisted of a block of several hundred acres on which the owners agreed to post their land with wild turkey restoration signs. The restoration signs, provided by the RI DFW and the RI State Chapter of the NWTF, allow no hunting for wild turkey for the next few years.
In 1995, the RI DFW began its first ever in-state trap and transfer program. The trap and transfer of wild turkeys resulted in the establishment of two new release sites in the towns of Foster and Scituate. With 32 birds donated from the Pennsylvania Game Commission and 13 trapped in Glocester, RI, 45 wild turkeys were released during the winter of 1995. The Foster site received 22 Pennsylvania birds, 4 males and 18 females, released between 12 February and 3 March 1995. The Scituate release site received 23 birds, 4 males and 19 females, released between 24 February and 3 March 1995.

During the winter of 1996, the Pennsylvania Game Commission again donated wild turkeys to assist RI in their wild turkey restoration efforts. These 15 birds, 7 males and 8 females, were released in the town of Tiverton on 3 February 1996. As with other release sites, the Tiverton area was closed to turkey hunting for the next few years to allow the turkey population to take hold and flourish.  This area has since been opened to turkey hunting.
The RI DFW and the RI State Chapter of the NWTF would like to thank the states of Vermont, New York, and Pennsylvania for their tremendous support for RI's wild turkey restoration project. Their generous donations of wild turkeys has put RI's wild turkey restoration project on the road to being a huge success. Thank you very much! Source: Rhode Island Turkey Federation. 
 

 

 
 

First Bird !

PASCOAG PUBLIC LIBRARY

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

PASCOAG PUBLIC LIBRARY

57 Church St.

presents

Collecting Rocks, Minerals, and Fossils

Monday, December 7 at 6pm

RI Mineral Hunters President

Steve Emma

will give a power point presentation on

different fossils and

bring hands-on examples.

This is a family program for

adults and children.

Please RSVP by calling 568-6226.

Broncos Football to the Division IV Super Bowl Again !

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Burrillville Broncos defeat North Providence Cougars 26-12 and move on to the Division-IV Super Bowl! Awesome game today !

Super Bowl bound versus Smithfield at Cranston stadium December 5

Josh Donaldson wins AL MVP award after fantastic first season with Blue Jays

Posted by Wayne G. Barber  Photos property of Wayne G. Barber

  I was very lucky to sit with my family members and Larry Luchino at a Red Sox/ Blue Jays baseball game this year and could almost touch the players. Josh Donaldson's dad secured two game balls for our Little Leaguers and I knew the photos would be good ones and contain a Big Papi and a American League MVP.

Josh Donaldson's first year with the Toronto Blue Jays will go down in history. After hitting 41 homers, driving in 123 runs and leading the Jays to the AL East title, Donaldson was named the AL MVP on Thursday.
   Baseball Writers Association of America, besting the reigning AL MVP Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, who got seven first-place votes. Lorenzo Cain of the Kansas City Royals finished third. There was some debate whether Trout could repeat, but in the end, voters preferred Donaldson in rather convincing fashion. Perhaps surprisingly so.
Donaldson received 23 of 30 first-place votes from the

Big PAPI #498

Larry Luchino

New Website for Burrillville

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

The Town of Burrillville is pleased to announce the launch of our newly designed website.  The new website has an updated, mobile-friendly design and is easy to navigate.
There are many new features. Here are just a few:

• You can now subscribe to receive notices from specific departments or receive agendas and minutes from specific boards. Click on the e-Subscribe button on the left-hand side of our home page to make your choices.
• All of our calendars are in one place. You can filter the calendar by event type (holiday, public meeting, etc.) and/or by department/board (Town Council, Conservation Commission, etc.). You can find the calendar right on the front page, just click the tab marked Calendar.
• Looking for a form (voter registration, job application) on our website? Click on the Forms and Documents link to find a list.

In the next couple of weeks we will be ironing out the some of the wrinkles that come with such a big project.  If you see anything we missed, let us know.
The Town of Burrillville is dedicated to providing the highest level of service, and our new website is a platform to keep our residents and visitors informed. We will be updating this site regularly and we want to hear from you about suggestions for improvement.

PARCC tests' scores shockingly low in R.I.

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

By Linda Borg & Paul Edward Parker
Journal Staff Writer  

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Only about one in three students met state standards in English and only one in four did so in math, according to the results of a new standardized test that has generated considerable parental opposition nationwide.

Parents who are used to seeing their children’s test scores improve every year may be stunned by these results. In 2013-2014, the last year that the old test, New England Common Assessment Program, was administered, nearly 72 percent of Rhode Island students were proficient in reading and 61 percent were proficient in math.

The new test, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), was administered to all Rhode Island students for the first time in 2015. Seventy-five thousand students in grades 3 through 10 took the tests, 80 percent of them took it on a computer.

State educators, however, cautioned the public against reading too much into these scores because the PARCC is more challenging than the previous test. Moreover, this was the first time that many students took the assessment on a computer (the PARCC was given to a smaller number of students in 2014). And education leaders said scores typically fall whenever a new test is rolled out.

Still, some of the results are troubling: in Providence, less than 10 percent of students met or exceeded state expectations in math. Only 5.2 percent did so in Central Falls, a district that has been working closely with Rhode Island College and neighboring charter schools to boost student achievement.

State education Commissioner Ken Wagner said “These results show, once again, that we have work today.”

“It should come as no surprise that the Central Falls community faces unique challenges as we strive to improve our schools,” said Central Falls Supt. Victor Capellan. “I know that the people of this community care deeply about the quality of education in our schools. The PARCC results show us that we have a long road to travel….”

“Just as no student can be measured by the result of one test, we can’t measure the performance of a school or school district by one test alone,” said Interim Providence Supt. Chris N. Maher. “The results today provide one piece of valuable data that can help us work together toward school improvement."

A couple of districts, Scituate and Burrillville, had exceptionally low rates of student participation in the PARCC, possibly because of strong parental opposition to the test.

In Scituate, considered a high-performing district, only 25 percent of its high school students took the math test and not one of them met the standard. In Burrillville, only 60 percent of students took the tests in math and English.

Last spring, Scituate Supt. Lawrence Filippelli said he was worried that low participation rates would affect his school rankings.

“It’s a nightmare,” he said in March. “Essentially my commended schools are no longer going to be commended.”

According to federal law, 95 percent of a school’s students must take the test or else they can drop a rung in their ranking. Because this is the first year of PARCC testing, no school will drop into “warning” status or lower. However, a commended school could lose its standing if it doesn’t hit the 95 percent participation mark.

In English language arts, only four districts, Barrington, East Greenwich, the Compass Charter School and the Kingston Hill Charter School, had 70 percent or more their students meet expectations in English.

Of the 287 schools that participated in the test, only 13 had at least 70 percent of its students meet or exceed the standards in English

In math, only six districts had 50 percent or more students meet or exceed the standards: East Greenwich, Barrington, Jamestown, South Kingstown, Exeter-West Greenwich and one charter school, Blackstone Valley Prep, a network of schools in northern Rhode Island.

Also in math, only four schools had 70 percent or more students meet or exceed the standards: Nayatt Elementary School in Barrington and three elementary schools in South Kingstown.

Meanwhile, the achievement gaps between poor students and middle-income students, white students and students of color, remain alarmingly wide: Less than 20 percent of black and Latino students have met or exceeded the standard in English compared to nearly 45 percent of white students.

In math, less than 11 percent of black and Latino students have met or exceeded the standard compared to nearly 33 percent of white students.

More than twice as many middle and upper income students reached the standard in English than students from low-income families. In math, three times as many middle and upper income students outperformed disadvantaged students.  have concerns about the use of the PARCC assessments and the validity of the results and for this reason I am grateful that Commissioner Wagner has opened the conversation about the use of assessments as a graduation requirement,” said Tracy Ramos, director of Parents Across Rhode Island.

Many charter schools who performed well in the past struggled with this test, which is shared with 8 other states and Washington, D.C. Only Blackstone Valley Prep scored within the top 25 percent in English and the top six schools in math.

 

Grants Promote R.I.’s Local Food Movement

Posted by Wayne G. Barber
The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) recently awarded farm viability grants to six local groups working to support local farmers. The grants, totaling $244,109, are made possible by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and will support efforts to increase specialty crop production and grow the marketplace for these crops in Rhode Island. The USDA defines specialty crops as fruits and vegetables, dried fruit, tree nuts and nursery crops, including floriculture and turf grass.
Here is the list of grant recipients:
University of Rhode Island, Nutrition and Food Sciences Department ($20,131). Rhode Island-based Produce Safety Alliance will provide training for farmers in safe produce planting, harvesting and handling practices to better assist them in meeting FDA regulatory compliance mandates and/or buyer requirements.
Alex Caserta and the R.I. Public Broadcast System ($48,745). PBS will air seven episodes of the “Harvesting Rhode Island” series to promote Rhode Island specialty crop growers and educate consumers on the benefits of buying locally produced crops. This series brings viewers on location to see the farms, meet the farmers, and hear them talk about food cultivation and what it takes to grow these crops. The pilot, which aired last spring, was funded through a $35,000 farm viability grant in 2013.
Rhode Island Agricultural Council ($14,291). The council will develop and implement a promotional campaign to enhance the visibility and viability of specialty crops throughout Rhode Island and New England. Campaign activities will include development of a website, promotional materials and a traveling display highlighting local specialty crops. Presentations will also be given at agricultural events throughout New England and in classrooms across Rhode Island.
Farm Fresh Rhode Island ($49,621). Farm Fresh will engage in a systematic approach to increasing the demand for locally grown specialty crops in school cafeterias. Activities will include joining school district wellness committees, developing and implementing educational programs for classrooms and after-school programs, and facilitating communications among purchasers, producers and processor/distributors.
Northeast Organic Farming Association of Rhode Island ($20,000). The association will provide training and technical support to farmers to enhance the competitiveness of eligible specialty crops. Specifically, efforts will focus on training farmers to produce high-value organic crops to meet local market demand through a series of advanced grower-training seminars; technical support from local farm advisors and on-farm workshops where organic techniques will be demonstrated will be provided.
Rhode Island Beekeepers Association ($27,400). The association will provide registered Rhode Island beekeepers with a genetically superior queen for the re-queening of an existing hive. The project supports the group’s ongoing efforts to develop its own breeding program and will assist local beekeepers in invigorating and growing their colonies and increasing disease and mite resistance. It will also support the viability of the honeybee population, increasing the yield and quality of Rhode Island fruit and vegetable crops.
In addition to funding these grants, USDA awarded $63,921 to DEM to strengthen the “Get Fresh, Buy Local” campaign. The money will be used to support specialty crop sales and improve promotional materials and activities, including produce demonstrations by local chefs at farmers markets. To date, DEM has awarded more than $2 million in farm viability grants to support the competitiveness of locally grown specialty crops.
  Rhode Island is experiencing significant growth in its agricultural and local food sector, according to DEM. The state’s food system supports 60,000 jobs and more than 7,000 businesses. Rhode Island is home to more than 1,200 farms, which are largely family operations, that occupy a total of 68,000 acres.Source: By ecoRI News staff

No. Smithfield again considers change to town manager

By SANDY SEOANE Valley Breeze Staff Writer

 

NORTH SMITHFIELD – An idea that’s twice failed to win the support of voters and was briefly discussed then rejected last July, is back again.

A proposal to change from an elected town administrator to an appointed town manager is once again being considered by the Town Council and a public hearing on the issue has been scheduled for Monday, Dec. 7.

The plan would require a voter-authorized change to the town charter.

Supporters say that the language is different this time, and was crafted specifically to eliminate any possibility of cronyism or political appointments. And they’re hoping that process could be moved along quickly, so that a special election could be held prior to the larger municipal elections in 2016.

Two public hearings are required before the General Assembly can grant the town authority to put the issue on a ballot.

“It seems like there is some timing urgency,” said former Town Council President John Flaherty, who attended the meeting where the change was discussed last week. “Before you know it, we’re already in April. You probably shouldn’t wait until November because then it’s going to kick over to another cycle.”

The idea last appeared on the ballot in 2010, when 66 percent of voters confirmed their preference for elected leadership.

Twenty-one towns in Rhode Island currently have a town manager, while only 13 have elected leaders at the helm. And supporters believe that previous attempts to change government in North Smithfield failed because they lacked strong criteria for how the individual would be appointed, a weakness that will be changed this time around.

Michael Clifford, the recently resigned Budget Committee chairman who will begin his appointed role on the school board this month, said (Budget Committee member) “Mike Rapko and I took the language that was proposed last time we had a charter review commission and we refined it to put more specific guidelines, criteria and a process for selection. We addressed everything in there that people had criticized with the prior language.”
Councilors are considering holding a special election for the question in April, a roughly $10,000 expense that Flaherty pointed out was budgeted in this year’s financial plan. The town originally planned to place the question on the ballot at the same time as the special election to replace the late Councilor Ernie Alter last July, but held off after numerous residents expressed concern that not enough voters would be available.

Residents expressed similar concerns when the topic was discussed last Monday.

“The last time we talked about this it was going to be put on the ballot for July 4, which would be a time when nobody could vote and this is so important,” said Carol Drainville. “I would like to see it at a time when the majority of people are able to vote. I am concerned about this.”

Dan Halloran, a former town councilor and vocal opponent of the idea, told The Breeze this week that he is opposed to the idea of an April election.

“They want to make it easier for this to pass. It was soundly defeated (during a regular election) in 2010,” Halloran said. “I think they want to lower the bar.”

Clifford said he supports the idea for primarily financial reasons.

“The list speaks for itself. The more financially strong communities are the ones with town managers with experience and expertise for the job,” Clifford said.

Other towns that still elect their leaders are Central Falls, Cranston, Cumberland, Johnston, North Providence, Newport, Pawtucket, Providence, Warwick, Woonsocket, Bristol and Lincoln.

The problem, as Clifford sees it, is that the job comes with a roughly two-year learning curve, and by the time a new town leader is up to speed, he or she is facing another election cycle.

“I think that’s how all these problems are allowed to happen. You have to have someone with the skill set to step in on day 1 and make a difference, not learn in office in two years,” Clifford said.

Plus, he said, elected leadership is more effective in a large city, where there’s a larger pool of potential candidates.

“In a small town there are less people willing to give up a career for a two-year stint,” he said.

The new language includes a more extensive screening process than past proposals, and a longer list of criteria for eligible candidacy. All applicants would be screened by the town’s personnel board, and only the names of the ones that meet criteria would be forwarded to a nine member screening committee.

The screening committee would include one member from each of seven boards laid out in the Town Charter, plus two members of the personnel board. Final recommendations would go before the council.

“If we had a council that was interested in giving it to there friend, there’s no way they could,” said Clifford. “It’s really delineated well.”

Town Administrator Paulette Hamilton would not qualify according to Clifford because of the criteria that the candidate hold a bachelor’s degree.

“As far as I know, there’s no one in the wings that meets the criteria,” he said

Councilor Kimberly Alves said she would want to make sure an election was held at a time convenient for voters.

“You want a vast majority to come out. You don’t want 100 voters passing this,” Alves said. “You want a full election.”

Clifford said he’s concerned the issue could get delayed. “If you wait until the November election then we’re stuck with this form of government for another two years.”

The topic is also expected to be on the agenda for the council’s meeting on Monday, Nov. 16, where the language changes will be discussed.

Pascoag Public Library

PASCOAG PUBLIC LIBRARY

 

57 Church St.

invites you to

“Make a Gingerbread House”

Saturday, November 21 at 11am

Registration is a MUST to ensure enough

supplies for everyone.

Please register by calling 568-6226

by Thursday, November 19.

This program is FREE and

is a family program

for adults and children.

Boy Scouts Collect 200,000 Pounds of Food for RI Food Bank

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Thousands of Boy Scouts have canvassed local communities to collect food for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank and other are pantries over the last few weeks. The result is 200,000 pounds of food were donated from the community.

Food donations increased by more than 60,000 pounds from last year's scouting drive. Since the Council's first drive in 1988, Scouts have collected more than 8 million pounds of food for Rhode Island, Southern Massachusetts and Connecticut.
“Each year, we are impressed by the hard work and dedication our Scouts’ put forth for this drive. Their continued involvement is a true testament to the lessons and values Scouting teaches our youth," said John Mosby, the Narragansett Council's Scout Executive/CEO.
In Rhode Island, the USDA reports that almost 14.4 percent of households are lacking food and about 4.6 percent are at risk of going hungry.
“Donations from this year’s drive will help the more than 60,000 Rhode Islanders we serve each month through our network of member agencies. We’re incredibly grateful to the Scouts, their families and Troop leaders, and to those who donate to their neighbors in need. Without everyone’s help, Scouting for Food would not be possible," said Andrew Schiff, CEO of the Rhode Island Community Food Bank.
Looking to donate? Visit one of the scout shops listed below.

West Bay Scout Shop
1276 Bald Hill Road, Unit 160
Warwick, RI 02886

East Bay Scout Shop
79 Swansea Mall Drive
Swansea, MA 02777

Scouting for Food
Scouting for pod is the largest food drive in New England and is an effort supported by the Narragansett Council of Boy Scouts of America, the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, the Rhode Island Army National Guard and local fire stations.

Rhode Island Community Food Bank
The Rhode Island Community Food Bank was founded in 1982 and is focused on providing food to people in need and promoting long-term solutions to the problem of hunger.
Source:GoLocal Prov.Staff Report

Aging: The Last Doughboy

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

We don’t think much about WW I these days, but it was a brutal, bloody event that ended up taking an estimated 17 million lives.

 When I was a young boy 6 or 7 our neighbor Mr. Charles Young asked if I was going to the Armistice Day Parade and I said, Why not !

 We now call this Holiday Veterans Day and it will celebrated on November 9th, 2015

In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"
The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m.



President Eisenhower signing HR7786, changing Armistice Day to Veterans Day. From left: Alvin J. King, Wayne Richards, Arthur J. Connell, John T. Nation, Edward Rees, Richard L. Trombla, Howard W. Watts 

An Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U. S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting in its place the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation (Public Law 380) on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

 With the migration of the thousands of War Refuges going on in the other half of our globe and some nations putting up instant fences and Germany allowing up to 600,000 to legally enter to replace a ageing work force made me aware of my lack of knowledge of the WWI with the super powers. I attend most book sales and at the East Greenwich, R.I. Library I snared two classics on the subject. The Land of Deepening Shadow,1917,  Germany at War by D.Thomas Curtin and My Four Years in Germany by American Ambassador, James W. Gerard,1917.  I love old books.
 The similarities of those world events and todays are quite frightening with Russia firmly entrenched in Syria and ISIS and our lack of a strong foreign policy in the world.
  Follow world news and stay current of what is developing in the world.

 I would like to enlighten any one that reads this to think about Mr. Frank Woodruff Buckles the last Veteran from WWI on Veterans Day 2015.

Frank Woodruff Buckles (born Wood Buckles, February 1, 1901 – February 27, 2011) was a United States Army soldier and the last surviving American veteran of World War I. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1917 and served with a detachment from Fort Riley, driving ambulances and motorcycles near the front lines in Europe.


During World War II, he was captured by Japanese forces while working in the shipping business, and spent three years in the Philippines as a civilian prisoner. After the war, Buckles married in San Francisco and moved to Gap View Farm near Charles Town, West Virginia. A widower at age 98, he worked on his farm until the age of 105.

Buckles in 1917, at the age of 16.

In his last years, he was Honorary Chairman of the World War I Memorial Foundation. As chairman, he advocated the establishment of a World War I memorial similar to other war memorials in Washington, D.C.. Toward this end, Buckles campaigned for the District of Columbia War Memorial to be renamed the National World War I Memorial. He testified before Congress in support of this cause, and met with President George W. Bush at the White House.
Buckles was awarded the World War I Victory Medal at the conclusion of that conflict, and the Army of Occupation of Germany Medal retroactively following the medal's creation in 1941, as well as the French Legion of Honor in 1999. His funeral was on March 15, 2011, at Arlington National Cemetery, with President Barack Obama paying his respects prior to the ceremony with full military honors.

Early life and education

Buckles was born to James Clark Buckles, a farmer, and Theresa J. Buckles (née Keown) in Bethany, Missouri, on February 1, 1901. He had two older brothers, Ashman and Roy, and two older sisters, Grace and Gladys. Several family members lived long lives; he remembered speaking with his grandmother who was born in 1817, and his father lived to be 94. His ancestry included soldiers of the Revolutionary and Civil Wars.

In 1903, Frank—then known as Wood—and his brother Ashman contracted scarlet fever. Frank survived, but Ashman died from the disease at the age of four. Between 1911 and 1916, Buckles attended school in Walker, Missouri. Later, he and his family moved to Oakwood, Oklahoma, where he continued his schooling and worked at a bank. He was an amateur wireless operator, and an avid reader of newspapers.

World War I and interwar years

Five months after the American entry into World War I, Buckles sought to enlist in the armed forces. He was turned down by the Marine Corps for being too small, and by the Navy, which claimed that he had flat feet. He fared better with the Army, which accepted that he was an adult even though he looked no older than his 16 years. A sergeant advised that a middle initial would be helpful, so he adopted his uncle's name, "Frank Woodruff Buckles". Another sergeant suggested that the quickest way to the front lines would be to seek a position driving ambulances.
Buckles enlisted on August 14, 1917, and went through basic training at Fort Riley in Kansas. Later that year, he embarked for Europe aboard the RMS Carpathia, which was being used as a troop ship. During the war, Buckles drove ambulances and motorcycles for the Army's 1st Fort Riley Casual Detachment, first in England and then France. He later recalled his service as a doughboy:

"There was never a shortage of blown-up bodies that needed to be rushed to the nearest medical care. The British and French troops were in bad shape – even guys about my age looked old and tired. After three years of living and dying inside a dirt trench, you know the Brits and French were happy to see us "doughboys." Every last one of us Yanks believed we’d wrap this thing up in a month or two and head back home before harvest. In other words, we were the typical, cocky Americans no one wants around, until they need help winning a war."

A belt buckle similar to the one given to Buckles by a German prisoner in 1918

Buckles saw the war's impact on malnourished children in France, and more than 80 years later he could remember helping to feed them.^[After the Armistice in 1918, Buckles escorted prisoners of war back to Germany. One German prisoner gave him a belt buckle inscribed "Gott mit uns" (English: God with us), which he kept for the rest of his life. Buckles was promoted to corporal on September 22, 1919. Following an honorable discharge in November 1919, he returned to the United States aboard the USS Pocahontas.

During and after World War II[

Buckles' future home, Gap View Farm, in the 1930s

As of 1940, Buckles had been employed by the White Star, American President, and W.R. Grace shipping companies, and in that year shipping business took him to Manila in the Philippines. After the outbreak of the Pacific War and the invasion of the Philippines, he reportedly remained in Manila to help resupply U.S. troops. He was captured in January 1942 by Japanese forces, and spent the next three years and two months as a civilian internee in the Santo Tomas and Los Baños prison camps.^[
As a prisoner, he battled starvation, receiving only a small meal of mush served in a tin cup—a utensil he kept for the rest of his life.With a weight below 100 pounds (45 kg), Buckles developed beriberi, and led fellow captives in calisthenics to counter the effects of imprisonment. Their captors showed little mercy, but Buckles was allowed to grow a small garden, which he often used to help feed children who were imprisoned there.^[All of the captives were freed following a raid by Allied forces on February 23, 1945. Before the war he had become fluent in German, Spanish, Portuguese, and French, and by its end had learned some Japanese.

Buckles at age 107 with President  George W. Bush

Commemoration and funeral

Lying in honor at Arlington National Cemetery, guarded by a 3rd Infantry Regiment soldier

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden pay respects to Buckles' family

Buckles' Arlington grave marker

Buckles did not meet the criteria for burial at Arlington National Cemetery as he had never been in combat, but friends and family secured special permission from the federal government in 2008. That was accomplished with the help of Ross Perot, who had met him at a history seminar in 2001, and who intervened in 2008 with the White House regarding a final resting place.
Upon Buckles' death on February 27, 2011, President Barack Obama ordered that the American flag be flown at half-staff on all government buildings, including the White House and U.S. embassies, on the day in March when Buckles would be buried at Arlington.Leading up to the March 15 funeral, the governors of 16 states likewise called for lowering their states' flags to half-staff.
  The next time I am in Washington I will put this on my Bucket List to say a prayer and "Thank Buckles" for his service and snap a photo. Source Wikepedia and our book collection.

Broncos Soccer Title Run Stops In Cumberland

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Woonsocket continued its surprising run through the Division III boys soccer state tournament as the seventh-seeded Novans moved one win from their first state title with a 2-1 victory over third-seed Burrillville on Wednesday night at Tucker Field in Cumberland.

The Novans, who also eliminated second-seed Cranston East earlier in the tournament, will face top-seed Davies on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rhode Island College. Woonsocket High head  coach Andrew Rao and able assistant Al Prestly made it a point to arrive at Cranston Stadium a bit early before their Villa Novans faced Cranston East in a R.I. Division III Tournament quarterfinal on Monday afternoon.

Photo by Ernest Brown @ Call

“I didn't know what to expect on the carpet,” Rao stated of the stadium's field turf. “The dimensions seemed awfully small, much smaller than Barry Field. Our field is, like, 110-by-65 (yards), and this was more like 100-by-50.

“Again, I didn't know what to expect,” he added. “It's more like playing indoor soccer.”
On this day, Woonsocket could have been considered a stellar indoor/outdoor “futbol” team. Rao's kids adjusted to the more diminutive dimensions and ousted the second-seeded Thunderbolts, 4-1, before a crowd of maybe 80.

Senior Omar Castro-Dreher played the role of offensive hero, posting a hat trick, while classmate and captain PaOusman Jobe managed a pair of assists. As far as Rao was concerned, though, his defense dominated the contest.

“I can't say enough about those guys,” he offered, singling out Jobe, seniors Assan Touray and Ronaldo Ledezma Marquez and junior Daniel Garzon-Orejuela. “They did a great job of neutralizing their big scorers. I don't know their names, but our kids were phenomenal at clearing the ball and creating turnovers.”

Those creative threats included senior captains Jimmy Vang, Kevin Pantoja and Tiago Pacheco, all of whom had a most difficult time trying to penetrate the penalty box, despite outstanding ball-handling and passing skills. The evidence was more than obvious, as the seventh-ranked, upset-minded 'Novans held Cranston East to only one shot on goal in the first half and seven total.

With the triumph, WHS (10-4-2 overall) earned a semifinal berth opposite third-seeded Burrillville, which mustered a 2-0 victory over No. 6 Exeter/West Greenwich during another Monday quarterfinal. That tilt is slated for 8 p.m., Wednesday at Tucker Field in Cumberland.

“It came of no surprise that Omar scored three,” Rao admitted. “He and (senior) Garrett Lambert each led the team with 12 goals during the regular season.” Source: Jon Baker @Call and Pro-Jo Staff report.

For Burrillville's Varsity soccer starter David Frickel the opportunity to play in Wednesday night's Semifinal game isn't one he takes for granted.
"It's going to be something I will remember forever,” said Frickel.
That's because his parents moved out of the state a few weeks ago deciding to let him live with a teammate so that he could go for his dream of attempting to win a State Championship.
"It means a lot considering this will be the last time I get to play with my friends. It's nice to be able to be here one last time,” said Frickel.
Teammates tell ABC 6 News that having Frickel around added some extra motivation.
"I've based our games kind of on him because when I did find out he was moving and we found out it was as long as he stayed we all kind of said oh yeah we are going to the championship. We're going to do whatever and he's going to stay with us as long as he can,” said Darren Jenks.
Frickel's coach, Brian LaFauci, says the sophomore has left a lasting impact with this group of guys.
"To have him stick around and be part of this for the whole way through it means a lot to me, it means a lot to him. It is great for the whole team,” LaFauci.
The team lost to Woonsocket Wednesday night, but players say they're incredibly proud to have made it that far. Source: Samantha Fenlon ABC 6 News Facebook Public Share


Final Score:  Woonsocket Villa Novans 2    Burrillville Broncos 1

The Novans took a 1-0 lead at halftime on an Omar Castro goal. Castro had 12 during the season and a hat trick on Monday. Woonsocket quickly made it 2-0 in the second half when Andi Hoxha scored five minutes in. Burrillville got its goal from Jared Cabral with four minutes remaining in the game.
 Losing is life, and I'd much rather our Broncos learned it under the High School soccer lights than under a lot of the other environments in which to get that lesson. I don't need every player to be an All-Star or have the same success as last years Bronco record 4 State Championships in different sports to show our Bronco pride. The team is well coached and the division is competitive and life will go on. Thank You, for your performance during the 2015 soccer season and the memories will
 now be entered into the Bronco High School legacy.

Ohio voters soundly reject marijuana legalization initiative

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Ohio voters soundly rejected a marijuana initiative Tuesday that would have legalized recreational and medicinal use of the drug, and would have limited commercial growing to a small group of investors who drafted and promoted the measure.
The initiative was failing 65% to 35%, with nearly 90% of precincts reporting.

“Issue 3 has been soundly defeated!” Ohioans Against Marijuana Monopolies crowed on Twitter.  “No marijuana monopolies in this state!”
Four other states and the District of Columbia have already legalized the recreational sale of marijuana, which is still a federal crime. Ohio would have been the first state in the Midwest to do so.
 But along with opposition from anti-drug groups and state elected officials, Ohio’s unorthodox initiative drew discomfort from some legalization supporters.

“This year's initiative failed because a greed-driven monopoly plan is wrong for the state of Ohio,” one competing pro-legalization group, Legalize Ohio 2016, said in a statement. “Some activists were let down tonight because they put their faith in a bad plan, but their efforts have brought us a step closer to legalizing marijuana in 2016.”
Opponents alleged that Issue 3 would have effectively set up a monopoly by limiting commercial marijuana growth to 10 preselected plots of land owned by the entrepreneurs behind the measure.
A group of 24 investors backing the measure included former NBA star Oscar Robertson, former boy-band celebrity Nick Lachey, and descendants of President William Howard Taft.
The “Responsible Ohio” legalization campaign was driven by political consultant Ian James, who acknowledged he would profit from the measure.
“The honest and most easy response is: I am going to profit from this,” James told the Center for Public Integrity in June. “If people are upset about me making money, I don’t know what to say other than that that’s part of the American process. To win and make this kind of change for social justice, it does cost a lot of money.”Source: Matt Pearce Contact Reporter

Woonsocket to get $1.5 million from feds for affordable housing, homeless services

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

PROVIDENCE -- U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, and U.S. Rep. David Cicilline announced Wednesday that $2,210,654 in grant money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will be given to support affordable housing and provide emergency shelters and services for homeless individuals in East Providence and Woonsocket.

Reed is the ranking member of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee, which funds these HUD programs.

Woonsocket and East Providence have been awarded $1,159,611 and $662,221 respectively from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant program, which aims to grow affordable housing and assist local businesses in urban communities. The CDBG program gives local governments flexibility to use the funds for a wide array of community development purposes.

Woonsocket will receive $286,410 from HUD’s HOME Investment Partnerships program, which funds housing initiatives, often in partnership with non-profit housing organizations. The money may be used for direct rental assistance to low-income residents, building new affordable housing, or rehabilitating affordable housing for rent.

Woonsocket will also receive $102,412 from the HUD Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) program. ESG provides funds for homeless shelter operations and for services for those who are homeless or are at risk of becoming homeless.

The federal government considers a household that devotes more than 30 percent of its income on housing costs to be "cost burdened," meaning it risks sacrificing spending on other essentials like food, clothing, medical care, or transportation.

According to a 2015 analysis of U.S. Census data by the non-profit housing coalition HousingWorks RI, half of all Rhode Island renter households, and a third of Rhode Island households with a mortgage, were cost burdened in 2013.

The same HousingWorks RI study found that in 2014, a household earning the state’s median renter household income of $30,437 could not affordably rent the average priced 2-bedroom apartment in any Rhode Island city or town.
 Source: Christine Dunn
Journal Staff Writer

Portland, Maine rejects minimum wage increase

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

Voters in Portland say “no” to raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

It was small business owners that have really been vocal saying a $15 minimum wage is too much, too fast.

And voters clearly agreed, voting against it.

You'll remember the ordinance called for businesses with over 500 employees to implement a $15 an hour min. wage by 2017. Businesses with less than 500 employees would have had till 2019. Supporters are at Bayside Bowl tonight and say even though these aren't the results they wanted, their mission isn't over.

"Quite disappointing, unexpected, a setback,” Spokesperson Mako Bates said. “We will have another opportunity next year there will be a state wide initiative that will bring entire state to 12 hour min wage but not strictly enough for Portland.”

Even though this didn't pass, don't forget earlier this year the city council did pass  a referendum to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. That increase begins Jan. 1st, and officials say when it goes into effect, Portland will have the seventh highest minimum wage in the nation.
Portland rejects minimum wage increase

Northern Lights Dazzle United States: When And Where To Look

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

If you didn't get a chance to see last night, the aurora borealis should be visible in Rhode Island a few more days.
The Northern Lights may be visible in Rhode Island Wednesday night due to a solar storm.
A rare G3 magnetic storm was anticipated Monday night, according to Fox News. That means Aurora borealis, or Northern Lights, will be visible from an expanded area. They should be visible periodically throughout the night, perhaps peaking between midnight and 3 a.m., according to accuweather
  Mostly clear skies throughout the region will increase the chances of catching a glimpse of the phenomenon.
What are the northern lights?
It’s a little complicated, but here’s the basic gist.
The sun releases charged particles that collide with the Earth’s upper atmosphere. Those charged particles are drawn to the Earth’s north and south magnetic poles.
As a result, molecules in the Earth’s atmosphere become charged, then revert to normal energy levels. When that happens, they emit energy in the form of light, creating the beautiful displays in the sky.
The same thing happens in those neon signs outside your favorite bar.

 The first time this scribe witnessed this event was in 1958 and 7 years old with hormones that were rocketing around his head liked charged particles, with this type of imagination you can't control your mouth or feet, were they monsters or were they angels from Mapleville, Rhode Island. The movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still" was on WBZ Boston's afternoon movie Dialing for Dollars and when the sky lit up like this color of green I really believed the world was going to end.

One Square Mile: Burrillville Listening Party

Posted by Wayne G. Barber
One Square Mile: Burrillville - Forum & Listening Party

Join Rhode Island Public Radio for a listening party for our series One Square Mile: Burrillville at the Jesse M. Smith Memorial Library in Harrisville!  Hear highlights from the series, meet the local reporters who produced the stories, and share your stories with us!

• Where: Jesse M. Smith Memorial Library (Community Room), 100 Tinkham Ln, Harrisville, RI.
• When: Tuesday, November 3, 2015 from 6:00 - 7:30pm.

Light refreshments will be served.  The event is free and open to the public. RSVP optional, but it would sure help us out!  news@ripr.org / 401-351-2244.

October 05, 2015, North Smithfield Town Council Meeting