The Wrentham Times

The Giant Spring Yard Sale Has a New Date

Due to the inclement weather predicted for tomorrow, Wrentham Boy Scout Troop 131's Giant Spring Yard Sale is being postponed. The new date is May 19th.

The yard sale will still have a plethora of items for everyone. There will be toys for the kids and other items for adults. Proceeds from the sale will go to Troop 131 to help maintain camping equipment and fund Troop activities. The yard sale will take place at the Wrentham Center parking lot at the corner of South Street (Route 1A)and Route 140. It will begin at 9 am and end at 2 pm. There will be bikes, sports equipment, books, toys, clothing, household items, exercise equipment and more. 

Dog Deadline

Friday, March 30th is the last day to license your dog. Town Hall closes at noon. It is $12 for a neutered or spayed dog and $20 for a dog that is not altered.

Statement from Norfolk Police Department

Here's a statemenf from the Norfolk Police department regarding a story going around Wrentham and Norfolk about an attempted abudction of a child. The police do not believe, based on the information gathered, that this was an attempted abduction.

Norfolk Police Department Statement:

The two youths were playing in the driveway near the house, the house is about 100 feet from the road.  The pickup truck pulled over on the side of the road near the end of the driveway.  The 5 year old youth thought it might have been his father and after taking a few steps towards the vehicle, the 10 year old told him it wasn't his fathers truck and to get back here.  The youth did so.  There was no communication between the vehicle operator and the youths, and certainly there was no attempted abduction by the operator of the truck. Given the time of night and the traffic on 115 at that time, it is our opinion that the pickup attempted to reenter traffic and spun its tires when it left the side of the road.  The Norfolk Police do not believe that this was an attempted abduction based on the information gathered at the callers home and after interviewing both children.  Another resident had just left the driveway prior to that and had observed the pickup truck and stated that he did not see anything suspicious at that time.  We believe at this time it was a man who pulled over to make a cell phone call, send a text or email or enter an address into his GPS device.  We investigated this call as if it could have been what was reported to us, but did not find any evidence to support it. 

Young Artists’ Exhibit Open to Public March 29th

Budding artists will showcase their talent on Thursday, March 29th from 6:30-8pm at The Young Artist’s Studio in Wrentham. The exhibit represents select artwork created by students during an eight-week art session at the studio, and includes sketching, watercolor, acrylic, and mixed media pieces. This is an opportunity for the young artists, ages 6-14, to share their work with family, friends, and the community, while encouraging their art skills and self-confidence. The studio is located upstairs at 40 South Street (above the former Tootsie’s Ice Cream). Please join us for an evening of art, fun, and refreshments. All are welcome. For more information about the Exhibit, or to find out more about spring enrollment at The Young Artist’s Studio, call 617-320-4253 or find us on facebook as “The Young Artist’s Studio”.

Book Club Meets This Thursday Night

This Thursday, March 29th, the Wrentham Book Club will review Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout. Written as a series of short stories revolving around the book’s eponymous Olive, the book won a Pulitzer Prize in 2009. By its very structure, sliding in and out of different tales and various perspectives, the book illuminates what people understand about others and what they learn about themselves. The group will meet in the Fiske Library's Genealogy Room at 6:30 pm to discuss the book. The library is located at 110 Randall Road in Wrentham; Telephone: 508-384-5440. The Club's books are available at the Front Desk of the library. Admission is free and the Club is open to the general public.

4 Paws Animal Shelter First Annual Craft Fair

 The 4 Paws Animal Shelter is proud to sponsor its first annual Crafts Fair which will take place on Saturday, April 28  from 10 a.m. to  3 p.m. at the Original Congregational Church in Wrentham Center at the corner of Rt. 1A and 140.

A Bake Sale, Live Music, Kids Table with face painting and games will be featured along with Local Craftsmen ranging from  American Girl Doll Clothes, Jewelry, Soaps and Fragrances, Handmade Wooden Toys and products, Honey, Tea Cup Bird Feeders, Pottery,  Dog Treats, Sewing and  Knitted Sweaters, Princess Table, and more. 

Door Prizes will be awarded every hour with $1 admission. Kids are free.

Proceeds from the Fair will benefit the 4 Paws Animal Shelter Building Fund dedicated to the building of an animal shelter for  the Wrentham, Plainville area and surrounding towns. To lear more visit the group's website.

 

 

Fresh Air Fund Seeks Homes

DeBaggis and her family with Fresh Air child Mamadou.

The program is truly a two way street. The children that participate in the Fresh Air Fund have a chance to enjoy a small town living away from the heat of summer in New York City and the host families are changed by befriending a child and sharing their home. The non-profit agency, which has been around since 1877, is currently recruiting families to host children. “The requirements are basic,” says Andrea DeBaggis, volunteer coordinator for Wrentham. "You just have to be willing to open your home," DeBaggis says. "You need to have a bed for the child, but it doesn’t have to be his/her own room. We do background checks,  interviews, and check references. We check to make sure it's a safe home."

Last summer 10 families in the area hosted children who range in age from 6 to 12. "We're just looking for people to open their homes for just one week or two to a little girl or boy just to give them the chance to get out of the city for the summer."

She adds there is no financial commitment. "It's something you can do that doesn't put you out. For a child to run in the grass and be in a safe neighborhood, or seeing stars at night, that is the vacation."

DeBaggis, whose mother hosted Fresh Air Children when she was growing up, also hosts children now that she has a family and this experience shows her that not only do the children from New York benefit, but the host families do too. "We live in communities that aren't diverse and I feel it's important to expose my children to all different kinds of people," she says. "It's such an eye opener for my own children to learn that a lot of people don't have what they have. It instills in them a sense of volunteerism and community. And they made a fantastic new friend which they love."

Any Wrentham family interested in hosting a child can contact DeBaggis by phone at 508-409-1972 or fill out a form on the group's web site www.freshair.org. Norfolk families should contact Angela Ford at 774-571-5946 or visit the web site.

 

 

Business Owner Has Passion for His Work

It was a big step for Dan Ibbitson, owner of Sheldonville Bicycle Repair. He  walked away from a 25 year career right into the unknown of business ownership. But, it was a chance to spend his days living his passion and find enjoyment in his work. "Maintaining and repairing bicycles is something I enjoy so I made the big step to make it a full-time thing and see if I could make a go of it," he says.

The move wasn't a stretch for him. For decades he had been involved in cycling and that passion for riding turned into an interest in maintenance and repair. He started doing repairs on his bike and that expanded to friends' bikes. Through word of mouth in the cycling community, he started doing the work more and more. "More often than not it was a friend and I would do the repair free of charge," he says.  "I've probably been doing that for 10 years."

Before he was a business owner, he sold heavy earth moving equipment. But after a quarter century in that business he began to feel burned out. He and his wife sat down early last year to see if was possible to turn his passion into a real business. "I'm getting a little bit older and wanted to do something I enjoyed," he says.

Once they decided to take the plunge and start Sheldonville Bicycle Repairs, he went about doing everything necessary to run a business. "I went before the Town and got my business permit  and my business license. I got business insurance and then we started to advertise with lawn signs," he said. He put a big sign at the end of his driveway and went to work. "It's going better than expected," he says. "The signage and web site have really helped, along with a few other things we've done to spread the word that I have a shingle out there and I'm open for business."

Sheldonville Bicycle Repair is a maintenance and repair shop located in his home at 277 Hancock Street, Wrentham, MA, just a stone's throw from the Pan Mass Challenge Bicycle route. Ibbitson offers flat repair, works on brakes and deals with shifting problems. He also offers a tune up package and wheel repair. Sheldonville Bicycle Repair is equipped to handle issues related to bicycles, tricycles, tandems, cyclocross, mountain bikes, road bikes, and anything bike related. "I have experience with all that stuff," he says. "Over the years I've pretty much worked on any bicycle you can imagine."

He does have a few products cyclists need in a pinch as well as inventory for work on the bicycles. 'I do have the staples you need - inner tubes, cables, chains, bike seats that people might need on short notice."

Ibbitson is holding an open house at Sheldonville Bicycle Repairs on April 28th, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 277 Hancock St., Wrentham. 

Tips for getting your bike ready for summer.

Girl Scouts Turn 100

Last week the Girl Scouts of Wrentham and Plainville joined Girl Scouts all over the USA in celebrating the  100th Birthday of Girl Scouts in the USA. The local Girl Scouts, 21 troops from kindergarten Daisies through to High School Ambassadors, made sure they celebrated this big occasion in a big way.

The week started with two high school girls attending the Senior Leadership Conference at Salve Regina University in Newport, RI. This was the 25th annual conference. It was attended by 200 high school Girl Scouts from all over the Northeast. All workshops were run by experts in their fields. The local girls attended workshops such as "Sold?" which dealt with human trafficking in the USA, "Peace starts with Cultural Understanding", "Sorting it all out- the college dilemma", Engineering, "Healthy Body, Healthy Mind" and fun workshops like Zumba and  "All Aboard the Creative Express". Some of the other workshops offered dealt with social justice, archeology, stress relief through massage, dealing with depression, Interfaith Every-logue, crime solving, science and ethics, working through grief, financial planning, drama, and global awareness.

Girls celebrated Girl Scout Sunday, March 11th  at area churches before heading over to the WDC Auditorium for the Annual Thinking Day Fair. Thinking Day, actually February 22nd, is a day when Girl Scouts think about those in other countries. Twelve troops in grades K-12 each represented a country with games, crafts and artifacts from their chosen country. Two hundred Girl Scouts and their families visited the countries and got their passports stamped as they learned about the culture of other countries. There was also a display of Girl Scout uniforms and handbooks from the first century of Girl Scouting in the USA.  In the opening ceremony, Pelrine was presented with a big Girl Scout bouquet and a presentation from the Massachusetts House of Representatives by Daniel Winslow for her 25 years of Outstanding Leadership with the Wrentham/Plainville Girl Scouts.

On Monday,  March 12th, Girl Scouts wore their uniforms to school for Uniform Day. Each Girl Scout was presented with a pin by Girl Scout volunteers at lunchtime.

Girl Scouts Celebrate Girl Scout Week

Photo: Kaitlyn Williams, Cadette Troop 4348, Diane Pelrine, co-service unit manager, Samara White, Daisy Troop 4976, and Julia Handscom, Junior Troop 679.

The Wrentham/Plainville Girl Scouts presented a baby basket (pictured) to the first baby girl born at Sturdy Memorial Hospital. The girls had hoped to welcome a baby girl on Monday, March 12^th, the 100^th Anniversary of Girl Scouts. However, the first girl was born on Tuesday. Girls from the 21 troops, grades K-12, donated items to welcome the new baby.

The items ranged from layette items to teething rings to books like Paperback Princess and Do Princesses Wear Hiking Books?, showing girls as strong characters. 

 

 

 

Priest to Depart DPW

Irving Priest, Superintendent of Wrentham's Department of Public Works, is planning on slowing down and will retire from his position on June 30th. Priest, who previously worked in Uxbridge, doesn't have set plans yet but feels it's time to work less, spend more time sailing, and enjoy life. "I don't have plans," Priest says. "I just figure it is time to cut back, slow down and not work full-time and have a little more fun."

Recently, Priest faced a serious health problem and had to be treated for cancer. Now healthy, he says, the cancer wasn't specifically why he's slowing down, it was a combination of things and, more importantly, it was time to enjoy a new phase in his life. One way he will enjoy his time is working on his sailboat. "It's a Downeaster 38," he says. "It's an older boat, a project. I'll never finish working on it. It's in my yard but I plan to keep it in Rhode Island."

He says he will keep fond memories of his time in Wrentham. "We have good people to work with and we have good projects underway," Priest says. His least favorite time during his tenure was the winter of 2010-2011 with the seemingly never ending snow. This past winter will be one of his favorites for the total lack of snow. When pressed for a favorite memory he said, "To single one thing out is a little hard, a lot of good things happened while I was here."

The town is looking forms a Search Committee to replace Priest. Members of that committee will be named by the Board of Selectmen at its March 20th meeting. The hope is the committee will have residents with general knowledge of Public Works, Highway, Building Facilities/Maintenance, Solid Waste, and Water operations. Public or private sector financial and budgeting experience is very desirable. The goal is to have Priest's successor named prior to his departure to help with the transition.