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Farm in Athol to provide home, respite, purpose to vets in need

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Jake Alexander is not a veteran. But without them, he said, he and others wouldn't be living the American dream. Watch video

ATHOL -- Jake Alexander is not a veteran. But without them, he said, he and others wouldn't be living the American dream.

The Abington native recently bought a 28-acre farm on a hill in Athol as a home for veterans and a place for them to heal and learn about farming.

He and farm manager Chip Pinder see Vets & Veggies as a care farm -- modeled after a concept known throughout Europe. Those farms use agricultural resources as a way to provide social or educational services to people in need.

Alexander and Pinder anticipate housing up to eight male veterans. Vets & Veggies is licensed as a boarding house and recently secured nonprofit status.

Pinder, 32, is a recent graduate of the University of Massachusetts Stockbridge School of Agriculture and a veteran of two tours of duty in Afghanistan. His dream had been to start a farm for veterans. He learned about Alexander's mission through a business planning manager. They met a few months ago.

A union laborer in the building trade, Alexander got involved in housing for veterans several years ago when he bought property in New Bedford for that purpose. He still owns the property and is working with a transitional housing program to find people to live there.

"I'm a Christian," he said. "I wanted to benefit more people than myself."

Alexander, who's 29, grew up with horses and working in his family's garden center in the eastern Massachusetts town of Hanson. He graduated from the University of New Hampshire, where he studied horticulture and landscape design, so the farming concept was not alien.

Watching housing websites, he found the Athol farm, which was once home to the Cass family, which owned several farms and N.D. Cass Co., a toy manufacturer. Alexander closed on the property last month. The house has nine bedrooms and a 19-stall horse barn.

Alexander launched a fundraising campaign on GoFundMe to raise money for purchases and for veterans who might need help with rent. So far he's raised more than $4,000 toward a $40,000 goal.

He sees the farm becoming self-sustaining. Five pigs, the first farm animal purchase, eventually will be slaughtered and the meat sold. The farm will also sell produce and farm shares.

Bob Farrar was getting help in a post-traumatic stress disorder clinic in Northampton when he heard about the farm. A former Worcester police officer, he is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm and also served a tour of duty in Somalia. He said he has been struggling with alcohol.

He needed a place to live and said he is a "jack of most trades." Alexander thought he'd be the perfect person to manage the house when he's out working. Farrar said he can do all kinds of work and builds furniture. He also worked on his uncle's dairy farm when he was a kid.

"I did fall in love with the place when I saw it," he said of Vets & Veggies.

Alexander said residents will also carry out repairs on the home as a way to learn about that kind of work. Those who live there will work in whatever ways they are able, Alexander said.

"Everyone pulls their weight," he said. "They'll have chores."

Pinder was working with horses and veterans in Palmer and said "it was like day and night," seeing how the veterans responded to the animals. "They were really tense, really on edge" when they came, he said. "Then just relaxing."

He envisions doing that kind of work here. The farm's first horse, a fjord draft horse, was expected this week.

Alexander said Vets & Veggies will work with the organization Heroes Horses and Hounds and provide therapeutic horses and two service dogs for veterans to work with. He also plans to have yoga space in the second floor of the barn.

For more information about donating to or living on the farm, visit the Vets & Veggies Facebook page.


Greenfield Savings Bank plans additional branches in Amherst, Northampton

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The bank is expecting to add an additional four to six employees over the next year to work at the new branches.

GREENFIELD -- Greenfield Savings Bank will open downtown branch offices in Amherst and Northampton by midsummer to augment branches already in those communities, the bank announced this week.

The downtown Amherst location will be at 108 North Pleasant St. and the downtown Northampton office will be at 207 Main St.

"The new branches will enhance convenience for our customers in both of these communities," John Howland, president of Greenfield Savings Bank, said in a news release. "This is especially true for our downtown Amherst- and Northampton-based commercial customers. Last year our commercial loan originations increased more than 20 percent and the additional locations will help service the rising demand."

The new facilities will offer all of the bank's services, except safe deposit boxes, which are available at the Northampton office on King Street. The existing Amherst office is at 6 University Drive.

The bank is expecting to add an additional four to six employees over the next year to work at the new branches.

Greenfield Savings Bank has 135 employees and was founded in 1869.

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Granby High student spends vacation fixing school desks

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There aren't many teenagers who would spend their vacations at school, but one Granby High student did just that when he saw an opportunity to merge his hobby with community service.

GRANBY -- There aren't many teenagers who would spend their vacations at school, but one Granby High student did just that when he saw an opportunity to merge his hobby with community service.

Christian Perez, 14, along with his father, James Guzman, spent a portion of February vacation repairing 10 broken desks.

"When we noticed the school budget was an issue, we put the offer out there because we saw a lot of broken items and broken desks sitting around that were not usable," said Guzman. "We thought it would be really good practice for Christian to have those here and do some extra welding that doesn't really cost us anything."

The ninth-grader learned how to weld back in 2013 to earn a Boy Scouts merit badge. According to Guzman, who teaches the welding merit badge course, Christian took a liking to the skill, developing a hobby around it.

For the last four years Christian has honed his welding craft through various smaller projects and working his way up to larger pieces like woodstoves made out of car rims. Last summer Christian began selling some of the products he made at craft shows for some extra money.

Christian Perez Granby desk fixer 1.jpgChristian Perez works on one of his student desk repairs.
 

Working at the school during vacation, Christian started with a couple of railings and stool repairs before taking on larger projects.

"It's positive, and it's something that I can do to help," he said.

When he is not welding, Christian enjoys sports and is a member of Granby High School's wrestling team. He continues to participate in Boy Scouts and is two ranks away from Eagle Scout.

Following the winter break, Guzman said they received word that the school had five more desks in need of repair. He said they will work on them later in the year.

Christian's projects can all be seen on his Facebook page, titled Garage Mayhem, which he uses to advertise his work and pick up more ideas.

Woman dead after driving her car into Thames River

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A friend of a woman found in car lying 20 feet under the surface of the Thames Rover in Groton, Conn., said she received a text from her friend threatening to drive her car into the river

GROTON, Conn.— Members of an area dive and rescue team removed the body of a woman from her car after she apparently drove it into the Thames River in Groton Connecticut Friday, the New London Day reported.

Groton police said in a printed release that they received a report of a car in the water shortly before 2 p.m. Friday and found the car approximately 20 yards from shore and 20 feet below the surface.

Divers from the Old Mystic Fire Department Dive and Rescue Team located the vehicle upside down and the woman's body inside. They recovered the woman, and she was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

A woman standing on the riverbank as rescuers worked told The Day that she was a friend of the deceased woman, and she has received a text from her friend earlier in the day threatening to drive her car into the river.

Police said they had no information that indicated foul play in the woman's death.

1 man stabbed in Springfield argument, second man arrested

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One man drove himself to the hospital after he was stabbed in the lower back during an argument with a friend. Police were able to find the assailant and he was arrested.

SPRINGFIELD— A Springfield man is under treatment for a stab wound to the back after he walked into the emergency room at an area hospital seeking help.

Springfield Police Capt. Brian Keenan said the victim, who was bleeding heavily, was able to drive himself to a hospital where he was admitted.

An officer stationed at the hospital emergency room notified headquarters about the incident and a cruiser was sent to the scene at 170 Chestnut Street. Officers were able to take the alleged assailant into custody.

The victim told police he was with a friend at the Chestnut Street apartment and two began to argue. As the dispute escalated the suspect grabbed a knife and stabbed the victim in the lower back, he told police.

The suspect is being held over the weekend for arraignment in Springfield District Court Monday. He faces a charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon with bodily injury, Keenan said.

Home prices up in Pioneer Valley, sales down a bit

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Across Massachusetts, the median price was up 7.4 percent in January.

SPRINGFIELD -- The median sales price of a single-family home in the Pioneer Valley rose 5.9 percent in January, according to statistics released by the Realtor Association of Pioneer Valley.

The median price was $195,000 in January and $184,200 in January 2016.

Statewide, the median price was up 7.4 percent in January.

Sales were down 0.6 percent across all three counties -- Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin -- from 341 homes sold in January 2016 to 339 homes sold in January 2017.

January tends to be a slow month in real estate, said Richard R. Sawicki Jr., owner of Sawicki Real Estate in Amherst and president of the Realtor Association of Pioneer Valley. But he is encouraged by the strong prices. Sales volume, he said,  is victim once again to the low number of homes for sale.

"It has been hard for our first-time buyers," Sawicki said. "But many people think of spring as the best time to put a home on the market. We expect to see some movement."

The Realtor Association culls the statistics from the multiple listing service. It counts only arms-length transactions in which the two parties are not working together. They are also closed sales, deals probably reached weeks earlier.

The numbers by county:

  • Hampden County: Sales were down 11.4 percent from 246 in January 2016 to 218 in January 2017. Median price was up 0.6 percent from $169,000 in January 2016 to $170,000 in January 2017.
  • Hampshire County: Sales were up 41.3 percent from 63 homes sold in January 2016 to 89 in January 2017. The median price was down 1.9 percent from $246,670 in January 2016 to $242,000 in January 2017.
  • Franklin County: Sales were up 2.9 percent from 35 homes sold in January 2016 to 36 sold in January 2017. The median sales price was up 8.2 percent from $174,000 in January 2016 to $188,250 in January 2017.

Other statistics:

  • What's for sale: Inventory fell across all three counties by 32.6 percent. There were 2,166 single-family listings at the end of January 2016 and 1,459 single family listings at the end of January 2017.
  • Pending sales: Listings under agreement to sell were up 7.6 percent from 370 in January 2016 to 398 in January 2017.

Nationally, existing-home sales are forecast to be around 5.57 million this year, an increase of 2.2 percent from 2016  when there were 5.45 million, according to the National Association of Realtors. The national median existing-home price this year is expected to increase around 4 percent. In 2016, existing sales increased 3.8 percent and prices rose 5.1 percent.

Lawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors chief economist, said interest in buying a home is the highest it has been since the Great Recession, but prices might be rising too fast.

"January's accelerated price appreciation is concerning because it's over double the pace of income growth, and mortgage rates are up considerably from six months ago," said Yun. "Especially in the most expensive markets, prospective buyers will feel this squeeze to their budget and will likely have to come up with additional savings or compromise on home size or location."

Cafe for people with memory challenges offered in Chicopee

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The cafe will be held from 10 to 11 a.m. the second Thursday of every month at the RiverMills Senior Center on West Main Street.

CHICOPEE - The Memory Cafe designed to help people with memory challenges will debut on March 9 at the RiverMills Senior Center.

The Arbors is hosting the Memory Cafe the second Thursday of every month from 10 to 11 a.m. at the RiverMills Center on 5 West Main St. It welcomes people with memory challenges and their caregivers to come socialize, relax and have fun. Refreshments and coffee are provided.

 People can register to attend with Julie Dudley at the Arbors by calling 593-0088.

Man denies raping pregnant Springfield woman

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"I didn't tell the cops about the rape because I still love him. But I can't go on this way anymore," the woman told police.

SPRINGFIELD -- In 2015, admitted heroin addict Jesse Bluto described the cycle of rehab and relapse as "repeating the same thing, over and over and over."

Speaking at Hampshire County Sheriff Robert Garvey's 11th annual Re-entry Breakfast, Bluto assured the audience that he had overcome the decade-long dependency that harmed him and his loved ones.

"I think a light went on in my head or maybe I matured mentally," he said.

If so, the light was off again last week when a relapsed Bluto appeared in Springfield District Court, charged with assaulting and raping a pregnant woman and threatening to kill her and her baby.

Bluto, 30, of Ludlow, pleaded not guilty to assault and battery on a pregnant woman, threatening to commit a crime and two counts of rape following his arrest on Feb. 20.

The alleged victim was Bluto's former girlfriend, who began pressuring him to move out of her Springfield apartment once he started using heroin again, according to the arrest report.

The girlfriend told police the assault took place on Feb. 1 after he called her at 3 a.m. for a ride home from the Mardi Gras Gentlemen's Club in Springfield. When he woke up in the afternoon, he took the woman's money and went out to buy drugs, the report said.

When he returned, he began pressuring her to have sex. When she refused, he raped her on the couch and raped her again in her bed, the report said.

By the next morning, she was covered with bruises and sore everywhere, the report said. "She stated that she was 27 months pregnant, which Bluto knew," though she was unsure if he was the father, the report said.

"When she told him to look what he had done to her, he told her to shut the (obscenity) up or he would beat ... her until she died or the baby died," the woman told police.

She called police several days later after realizing Bluto had stolen $900 in cash and her ATM card. While first speaking to investigators, she did not mention the sexual assaults, the report said.

"I didn't tell the cops about the rape because I still love him. But I can't go on this way anymore," she wrote in a later statement.

Photos of her injuries were taken by Springfield police and a sexual assault examination was performed at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, the report said.

Defense lawyer Nicholas Horgan challenged the victim's account, saying she was "making up stories about rape."

Her cellphone messages to Bluto following alleged assault covered a range of topics, from her mental health and her preferred flavor of ice cream to "whether he wanted to go bowling," Horgan said. There was no mention of sexual assault in the message, although she did tell Bluto that she loved him, the lawyer said.

The woman has "heroin issues and money issues" of her own, Horgan added.

Judge Michele Rooke set bail at $500, and ordered Bluto to stay away from the victim, remain drug- and alcohol-free, submit to random testing, and report to his probation officer once a week.

He is due back in court on March 21.


Winter basketball culminates in championships in Holyoke Safe Neighborhood league (Photos)

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Students competed in championship games of the Holyoke Safe Neighborhood Winter Basketball League on Friday, March 3, 2017 at the Holyoke Boys and Girls Club at 70 Nick Cosmos Way.

HOLYOKE -- The Holyoke Safe Neighborhood Winter Basketball Championships played out Friday with boys and girls in grades 5 to 12 competing at the Holyoke Boys and Girls Club at 70 Nick Cosmos Way.

The games comprise a "character development league" with staff from the Hampden County Sheriff's Department and other organizations working with some of the most high risk youth in Holyoke, said Ed Caisse, program supervisor with the sheriff's department.

The league has 220 players, including eight girls, he said.

Hampden District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni sponsors the winter and summer leagues.

The basketball leagues provide outlets for young people, places for them to spend time on Friday nights instead of on the streets and relationships with adult coaches that can grow into mentorships, Gulluni said.

About 60 volunteers from the agencies that are partners in the Holyoke Safe Neighborhood Initiative work on the basketball league. The Boston-based Mass Mentoring Partnership provided training to help them identify youth that have experienced trauma and the ways to work with them, Caisse said.

More than 100 government agencies, businesses, nonprofits, churches and others work with the Holyoke Safe Neighborhood Initiative.

'I'm not bothering anyone,' ATV rider with chain saw tells West Springfield police

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Police have responded 45 times to the Stepanchuk home since 2000 for motor vehicle complaints involving the Bear Hole watershed and other matters, the report said.

WEST SPRINGFIELD -- Aleksandr Stepanchuk got a bit of a scare one night in December.

He was piloting his all-terrain vehicle through the Bear Hole Reservoir after dark when a police officer stepped out from behind a tree and ordered him to stop.

He stopped.

"I immediately recognized the subject as one of the Stepanchuk brothers. The department is very familiar with the family, especially Aleksandr," West Springfield Police Detective Brian Duffy wrote later in his report.

The encounter led to a criminal charge against Stepanchuk for sawing down a tree to clear a path for his vehicle. It also highlighted the long-running battle between police, environmental officials and ATV drivers over environmental damage in West Springfield and across Massachusetts.

Stepanchuk, 30, pleaded not guilty in Springfield District Court on Feb. 16 to one count of cutting or destroying tress on public land without a permit. He was released on personal recognizance, and ordered to return for a pretrial conference next month.

The trouble began seven weeks earlier when Duffy and another officer responded to a report that an ATV driver had just sawed down a tree in the Bear Hole watershed. Under state law, motor vehicles are banned from the area, along with fishing, hunting, trail building and plant removal.

Entering the reservoir near Bridle Path Road, Duffy followed fresh tire tracks in the snow to where a tree had been cut down and dragged off the path. "There was fresh sawdust on the ground. ... I could still smell the scent of freshly cut wood that accompanies a recently used chainsaw," he wrote.

Nearby, other trees had been cut, apparently to allow vehicles to pass without tipping over on a hillside. While photographing the damage with his cellphone, Duffy heard an ATV coming back down the path toward him.

"I stood behind the tree and waited until the ATV was nearly upon me. I then stood out on the path with my flashlight. My badge was prominently displayed," he wrote.

When the vehicle stopped, the officer saw that Stepanchuk was not riding alone. A young boy, later identified as his nephew, was sitting in the passenger seat, holding a chain saw covered with sawdust.

Stepanchuk explained he and his nephew were "clearing the trees to navigate the quad runner more easily," Duffy said.

It wasn't his first encounter with police at Bear Hole. At least five earlier criminal complaints were filed against Stepanchuk, whose family lives on Great Plains Road, about one-third of a mile from the watershed, the report said.

Since 2000, West Springfield police responded at least 45 times to the home for motor vehicle-related complaints. Family members were suspects in numerous other cases involving ATV drivers who fled into the woods before police arrived, the report said.

"I brought up all the prior encounters regarding not only his improper use of motor vehicles in the watershed, but also cutting trees in the woods in question," Duffy wrote.

"All Mr. Stepanchuk would say is, 'I'm not bothering anyone,'" he added.

Duffy ordered the ATV towed and seized the chain saw as evidence. He returned the next morning and took 31 photos along the path that Stepanchuk allegedly rides through the area.

Stepanchuk, whose current address is listed in Agawam, is due back in court for a pretrial hearing on March 30.

Boston man seriously injured in Dorchester crash

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Massachusetts State Police are investigating an early Saturday morning crash on Morrissey Boulevard that seriously injured a 27-year-old Boston man.

DORCHESTER -- Massachusetts State Police are investigating an early Saturday morning crash on Morrissey Boulevard that seriously injured a 27-year-old Boston man.

The man, who police did not identify, reportedly sustained life-threatening injuries after the Chevy Camaro he was a passenger in exited the roadway and struck a tree in the median turnaround in front of the Boston Globe building, according to state police. 

The driver, a 25-year-old Dorchester woman, sustained minor injuries in the crash, which police said occurred around 12:20 a.m. when she suddenly turned her northbound traveling vehicle left.

The driver, who also was not identified, appeared to have been wearing her seatbelt at the time of crash. The male passenger is believed to not have been wearing his, state police reported.

Boston EMS transported both victims to Boston Medical Center. 

A preliminary investigation of the crash found no evidence of drugs or alcohol in the car, or evidence that the driver had been using her phone immediately prior to the incident, police said. No potential contributing factors, however, have been definitively ruled out.

The investigation remains ongoing by Troop H of the Massachusetts State Police with assistance from the State Police Crime Scene Services Section, the State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, and the State Police Detective Unit for Suffolk County.

5 people unaccounted for after 3-alarm Warwick fire

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Five people are unaccounted for following an early Saturday morning house fire on Richmond Road, state fire officials have reported.

WARWICK, MASS. --Five people are unaccounted for following an early Saturday morning house fire on Richmond Road, state fire officials have reported. 

Emergency crews responded to reports of a structure fire at a single-family home located at 405 Richmond Rd. around 12:45 a.m., according to Department of Fire Services spokeswoman Jennifer Mieth.

Although two individuals were able to escape the three-alarm blaze, five remained unaccounted for as of late Saturday morning, Mieth reported.

The Warwick Fire and Police Departments are conducting a joint investigation into the origin and cause of the fire along with State Police assigned to the Office of the State Fire Marshal and to the Office of the Northwestern District Attorney, as well as the Code Compliance Office in the Department of Fire Services.

Officials asked that people stay away from the scene of the fire.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more information becomes available.

Irish Cultural Center of Western New England offering the public a sneak peak of new Trinity Pub this weekend

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Trinity Pub, the cultural center's bar, will be open Saturday and Sunday, March 4 and 5, to the general public.

WEST SPRINGFIELD -- Looking for something to do on this cold, blustery March afternoon? How does warming up with a pint or two by an open-hearth fire in an authentic-looking Irish pub in West Springfield sound?

If that suits your fancy, the Irish Cultural Center of Western New England's new bar will be open to the public this weekend, offering Irish-Americans and lovers of Guinness a chance to stop in for a "pint of plain" and a sneak peak at the center's Morgan Road facility in West Springfield.

The Trinity Pub and Irish House Restaurant is a comfortable place for families and friends to gather, with plenty of elbow room at the bar, a genuine snug that'll remind you of a Dublin pub, elegant lighting and woodwork, and much more.

The bar is open to all from 2 p.m. to midnight today, Saturday, March 4, and again from 1 to 10 p.m. Sunday, March 5. The pub is tentatively slated to make its debut on Friday, March 10, according to the ICC's Facebook page, and will remain open to the public for a three-month period.

"It's to reassociate the community with the facility," ICC president Sean Cahillane said of the renovated venue, which was formerly home to an Elks Lodge.

After the three-month period, the nonprofit ICC will rely on tax-deductible contributions from "patrons," who will receive various benefits and levels of access to the facility for one calendar year based on their level of financial support. More information is available online at www.IrishCenterwne.org.

"Stop by and check it out!" West Springfield Mayor Will Reichelt said in a Facebook post Friday.

Consul-General of Ireland Fionnuala Quinlan dropped by for a tour of the ICC facility last week, and she liked what she saw.

"I wanted to see it in advance and recognize the great work they've done," said Quinlan, a native of County Cork and the Republic of Ireland's official representative to the New England states of Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.

The ICC will eventually include a small history museum and library, Gaelic athletic fields for football and other sports, and a banquet center for special events.

"We're looking at this as a monument for the Irish of western New England for the next 100 years," Cahillane said.

Women's Fund event to feature former Lt. Gov. Evelyn Murphy

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Murphy will be the keynote speaker for the Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts' annual graduation celebration and recipient of the its "She Changes the World" award.

HOLYOKE - Former Lieutenant Governor Evelyn Murphy, known in recent years for her efforts to end the gender wage gap for women in the workforce, will be the keynote speaker for the Women's Fund of Western Massachusetts' annual graduation celebration May 22 at the Log Cabin.

emurphy.jpgEvelyn Murphy 

Murphy, who is also being honored with the fund's "She Changes the World" award, is president of The WAGE Project Inc. The nonprofit is an outgrowth of her 2005 book with E.J. Graff, "Getting Even: Why Women Don't Get Paid Like Men and What To Do About It So We Will."

Murphy has used WAGE, which stands for "Women Are Getting Even," to offer workshops for women on how to determine their job worth and to negotiate the best salary.

According to the Pew Research Center, women in 2015 earned 84 percent of what men earned, meaning they had to work 40 days beyond that year's end to earn what men did in 2015. The calculations were based on hourly earnings of both full- and part-time workers.

In her civic life, Murphy has a history of involvement with issues of health, homelessness and public policy as they relate to women, though she has said (pdf) wage discrimination "drags down the earnings of wives, daughters and families" and therefore effects everyone.

Murphy, who is co-chair of the Boston Women's Workforce Council, was in attendance at the White House when then President Obama signed his first bill on Jan. 28, 2009 -- the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which expanded the right to sue over pay discrimination.

When she was elected lieutenant governor in 1986 after an earlier unsuccessful try, Murphy became the first woman in the commonwealth's history to hold a statewide office. Her political and appointed government career touched on issues current today -- women's reproductive rights, oil drilling in sensitive ecosystems, and party divisions in the face of an uneven economy.

Murphy, who participated for several years in the Boston Marathon, served as the state's Secretary of Environmental Affairs, from 1975 to 1978, and Secretary of Economic Affairs, from 1983 to 1985, during the administrations of Gov. Michael Dukakis.

She holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics as well as a doctorate in economics from Duke University, with a master's degree in economics from Columbia University. She said she was interested early in her career in applying her knowledge of economics in the area of public policy.

After failing in her effort to become the Democratic nominee for governor in 1990 during the party's convention held at what as then the Springfield Convention Center, Murphy went on to serve as a corporate director for several financial institutions and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts. She later became an executive vice president at Blue Cross Blue Shield and founded the company's HealthCare Policy Institute.

The event, "Women Lead Change: A Celebration of the LIPPI Class of 2017," begins with a 5 p.m. graduation ceremony for the current class of the fund's Leadership Institute for Political and Public Impact that is free to the public, and includes the dinner and celebration, the ticketed portion, from 6 to 8 p.m.

Individual tickets are $65, and can be purchased online. They may also be purchased by calling Julie Holt at (413) 529-0087, ext. 13, or email jholt@womensfund.net.

Past recipients of the fund's "She Changes the World" award include Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Karyn Polito.

No incidents so far during Blarney Blowout in Amherst; town says everyone is 'safe'

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Law enforcement from throughout the region are on hand at apartment complexes in North Amherst and "officers are interacting proactively with students and town residents."

AMHERST - Officials on Saturday said the community is "safe" amid the Blarney Blowout, a day of revelry for college students, and downtown businesses are open.

Law enforcement from throughout the region are on hand at apartment complexes in North Amherst and "officers are interacting proactively with students and town residents," town officials said in a statement.

As of this writing, police and UMass Amherst officials said there were no incidents to report. Traffic is flowing smoothly and buses are running normally.

At the Townhouse Apartments, private security officers were enforcing parking restrictions that do not allow guests for the next several days. Similar restrictions on visitors are in place at other nearby apartment complexes, as well.

There are also guest limits at the UMass dorms until Sunday at 11 p.m.

Last year, more than 200 police officers from 15 communities were on duty for the Blarney Blowout. This year, Massachusetts State Police along with officers from Northampton, West Springfield, Chicopee, Ludlow, and others are among the law enforcement response.

UMass is again holding a free concert at the Mullins Center, for which more than 3,100 tickets were distributed, to offer an alternative to partying. Doors for the show opened at 11 a.m. The lineup includes Mike Posner, Jeremiah, and Flo Rida, with student act Nliten.

Police and UMass officials are expected to provide another update on the response to Blarney Blowout on Saturday evening. Stay with The Republican/MassLive for more information as the day continues.


Freezer motor sparks fire at Sabor A Quisqueya Restaurant

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An overheated freezer motor is to blame for a Saturday afternoon fire at a St. James Avenue restaurant, city fire officials reported.

SPRINGFIELD -- An overheated freezer motor is reportedly to blame for a Saturday afternoon fire at a St. James Avenue restaurant, city fire officials have announced.

The Springfield Fire Department responded to reports of a small fire in the exterior enclosure at the rear of Sabor A Quisqueya Restaurant just before noon. 

Firefighters extinguished the blaze, which appeared to be sparked by an overheated freezer motor, said Dennis Leger, the aide to Fire Commissioner Joseph Conant. 

The fire caused less than $5,000 in damage to the 326 St James Ave. business.

US Army Pfc. Brian Patrick Odiorne laid to rest in Ware

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Family, friends and state officials turned out Saturday to pay their respects to U.S. Army Pfc. Brian Patrick Odiorne, a 21-year-old Ware native who died in Al Anbar Province, Iraq on Feb. 20.

WARE - Family, friends and state officials turned out Saturday to pay their respects to U.S. Army Pfc. Brian Patrick Odiorne, a 21-year-old Ware native who died in Al Anbar Province, Iraq on Feb. 20.

Odiorne, who military officials say died from a non-combat related incident while supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, was laid to rest at St. William Cemetery in Ware.

The burial followed a funeral service at All Saints Parish, which Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski, of the Springfield Diocese, officiated.

Rozanski praised Odiorne's military service, saying "he was willing to put his own life on the line so that others could live in freedom and dignity."

"We gather here praying for Brian, that the dreams he had as he journeyed with us may someday become a reality for all of our world, whether we are in Ware, Massachusetts or in a desert of Iraq," he said.

The bishop, during the homily, added that "no matter how many years we are given to journey through this life, in faith we believe that we are all created by God and destined ultimately to live with God forever."

Members of the state's congressional delegation, including U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Worcester, and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, attended the funeral, as did Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito.

"It's about the family today," Baker said following the mass.

Family, friends mourn death in Iraq of Army Pfc. Brian Odiorne of Ware

Thomas Desourdy, a 22-year-old Ware resident who attended the funeral said he had been friends with Odiorne since he was five-years-old.

"He was a good, dear friend of mine," Desourdy said. "He always talked about sharks when we were in middle school and high school, I guess that was his favorite animal."

Alexis MacRae, another friend of Odiorne, added that "he had a very strong impact on everyone."

"He was very brave to serve our country," she said.

Palmer Town Councilor Rob Lavoie, who also attended the service, said although he did not know the soldier he wanted to "thank him for his service to the country on behalf of the town of Palmer."

Rozanski concluded the funeral mass by thanking all those who serve in the armed forces.

"You put your lives on the line for all of us," he said. "We are grateful to God for all that you do."

1 adult, 4 children killed in Warwick fire

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One adult and four children were killed in an early morning house fire on Richmond Road, state fire officials announced Saturday.

WARWICK, MASS. -- One adult and four children were killed in an early morning house fire on Richmond Road, state fire officials announced Saturday.

State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey, Warwick Fire Chief Ronald Gates and Warwick Police Chief David Shoemaker announced the deaths at an afternoon news conference. 

The victims' identities will not be released until the medical examiner has completed formal identification and the next of kin have been notified, officials said.

Emergency crews responded to reports of a structure fire at a single-family home located at 405 Richmond Rd. around 12:45 a.m., according to Department of Fire Services spokeswoman Jennifer Mieth.

Although two individuals were able to escape the three-alarm blaze and were transported to a local hospital, the five victims had remained unaccounted for as of late Saturday morning.

5 people unaccounted for after 3-alarm Warwick fire

The Warwick Fire and Police Departments are conducting a joint investigation into the origin and cause of the fire along with State Police assigned to the Office of the State Fire Marshal and to the Office of the Northwestern District Attorney, as well as the Code Compliance Office in the Department of Fire Services.

Officials, however, stated that the fire appears to have been "accidental in nature."

Springfield Museums celebrates Dr. Seuss' 113th birthday with family activities, events

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The Springfield Museums commemorated the 113th birthday of city native Theodor Seuss Geisel, known as Dr. Seuss, with a series of family-friendly events and activities Saturday.

SPRINGFIELD -- The Springfield Museums commemorated the 113th birthday of city native Theodor Seuss Geisel, known as Dr. Seuss, with a series of family-friendly events and activities Saturday. 

Hundreds of children and families turned out for the annual birthday celebration, which featured magic shows, a pajama dance party and the opportunity to meet artists behind the museums' "Cats in Hats" exhibition.

Jenny Powers, the Springfield Museums' family engagement coordinator, said it's important to celebrate Seuss' birthday and legacy of helping children learn to read. 

"Dr. Seuss is Springfield's favorite native son. He's helped kids all over the world learn to read, his books are in 20 different languages," she said in an interview. "If we can get kids excited about reading, it's definitely worth our time."

Andrew Sabourin, one of more than two dozen artists featured in the "Cats in Hats" exhibition, said in addition to Seuss' impact on children's literature, he inspired a new generation of illustrators. 

"He was very imaginative," he said in an interview. "Children's books in that time period could be a little bit more rigid, like the 'Dick and Jane' books. He broke out of that mold and created something a lot more whimsical and fantastical."

More than 1,200 people had visited the Dr. Seuss birthday celebration as of noon, said Power. She, however, noted that attendance could hit up to 2,000 visitors by the end of the day. 

Among those joining in the celebration was Maureen Trikas, of Springfield, who said she brought her granddaughters Londyn, and Halo, to the event because "they're big fans of Dr. Seuss."

"It was great, a very nice day -- it could be a little warmer," she said, adding that it was her first time attending the Dr. Seuss birthday party.

Seuss was born in Springfield on March, 2, 1904.

The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum is scheduled to open at the Springfield Museums' Quadrangle in early June.

Dakota Access pipeline protest at Bank of America in Amherst calls on customers to move their money to smaller banks

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At 9 a.m., three "guerrilla theater activists" linked arms inside 55-gallon drums, covered themselves in fake oil and decried the bank's funding of the Dakota Access pipeline.

AMHERST - A small group of protesters linked their arms through 55-gallon drums and sat in the frigid cold outside the downtown Bank of America branch for more than an hour-and-a-half on Saturday morning, calling on customers to move their money to smaller institutions.

At 9 a.m., three protesters describing themselves as "guerrilla theater activists" covered themselves in prop oil and sat under a sign decrying the bank's funding of the Dakota Access pipeline, a controversial North Dakota energy project. A handful of others taped off the area and distributed literature.

The bank entrance remained unobstructed.

The protesters are targeting financial institutions funding the $3.7 billion, 1,200-mile-long pipeline that snakes through four states. Supporters tout hundreds of millions of dollars in expected tax revenue on oil sales, and the benefits from thousands of construction jobs.

Marc Osten, of Pelham, said he was answering the call of Native Americans who are trying to stop the pipeline from going through the Standing Rock Sioux reservation, located in North Dakota and South Dakota.

Dakota Access pipeline protesters block Bank of America entrance in downtown Amherst.

Posted by MassLive.com on Saturday, March 4, 2017

"We have choices what to do with our money, and one of our choices is to put our money into local credit unions and other banks," said Osten, imploring people to stop doing business with Bank of America, TD Bank, Wells Fargo, Chase and Citigroup. "These banks only operate on one thing: Greed. So taking your money out sends a message."

Osten was joined by Ardie Lester, of New Salem, and Steve Botkin, of Amherst. Before the protest, they delivered a letter to the bank manager, "emphasizing that their action was not a personal attack against any bank employee, but rather demanding change from the institution as a whole," according to a statement sent to the media.

An Amherst Fire Department official spoke briefly with two other demonstrators, telling them that the protest could needlessly tie up public safety resources. Asked later about that official's concerns, Lester said, "I don't feel like I have much of a choice."

"The pipelines are endangering the drinking water of millions of people," said Lester.

"Bank of America directly funds companies ... that are knowingly destroying the planet," said Dineen O'Rourke, of Amherst, who passed out information about how to transfer money from a major bank to a local credit union. "We're not just telling people what's wrong with that, we're giving them the alternative."

Protesters said they were prepared to be arrested if necessary, but it didn't come to that. They packed up at around 10:30 a.m.

 
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