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UMass women's study founder Arlene Avakian retires after more than 3 decades

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Avakian was praised for broadening the discussion of women to race and class.

ARL2.JPGArlene Avakian, retiring director of the Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies program at the University of Massachusetts, talks with Betsy Hartmann, professor of development studies at Hampshire College, left, and Marlene Gerber Fried, interim president of Hampshire College, at her going away party at UMass.

AMHERST – Buttons of the iconic women’s fist symbol in red were pooled on table-tops in the Massachusetts Room of the Mullins Center as souvenirs at a farewell party for Arlene Avakian.

Avakian, who helped found the University of Massachusetts Women’s Studies Program and what is now the Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies, has always liked the symbol. The program soon will be getting a new logo that is more representative of what the program has become. It will also be getting a new director. Avakian, a professor and program director, is retiring after more than 35 years.

She was celebrated and praised for being ahead of her time.

At 72, Avakian said, “it’s time for a change. I want to read the paper in the morning and watch Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert at night,” she said, referring to the late night "Daily Show" and "Colbert Report" on Comedy Central. Avakian, who has edited “Through the Kitchen Window: Women Explore the Intimate Meanings of Food and Cooking” and authored “Lion Woman’s Legacy: An Armenian American Memoir” will continue with other things once she settles in to retirement and a new home. She is moving across the bridge to Northampton.

Since the program was founded in the 1970s, it changed from “having gender as the primary focus” to “putting gender in the context of race, class and sexuality,” she said. She is also proud the department went from being populated with all white women to now being mostly composed of people of color, she said.

“She inspired but also challenged,” her students, said Karen Lederer, chief undergraduate adviser. ““She was an advocate for the program and kept it strong.”

Avakian said she can retire now because it is strong. “I don’t have to worry about what’s going to happen.”

She challenged women to “think about our identity,” said Linda Hillenbrand, the department’s office manager.

And she was concerned about social justice issues of all kinds. “She’d be the there when students occupied a building,” Lederer said.

She was also at the forefront of talking about race.

John H. Bracey, Jr., a professor in the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of African Studies, said Avakian walked over to his office and asked him to come to speak to her class. “What she did was extremely unusual. She reached out to African American Studies” when most women’s programs focused on white women, he said.

He was teaching a class about Ida B. Wells and told Avakian, "I come from a black point of view." He said she told him "that’s what they ought to hear.

“She pushed and pushed ... to have more diversity,” Bracey said, “She’s a very important person. She’s got integrity, she believes in what she does.”

“She knows what she thinks,” said Lorna M. Peterson, former executive director of Five Colleges Inc. “And what she thinks is good. I think she’s been an amazing leader, teacher and scholar.”

Avakian said she knows the program’s logo is ready for a change just as she is. “I like it because of its history.” It has represented unions, black power and the women’s movement. But she said “We don’t have to beat everyone over the head,” and the new logo will be more abstract.


Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno, challengers Antonette Pepe, Jose Tosado agree: Now's a bad time for a mayoral raise

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A report calling for the mayor's salary to be set at $110,000 is expected to land on the City Council agenda soon, even though Sarno and his 2 challengers want nothing to do with it.

antonette pepe domenic sarno jose tosado.jpgLeft to right, Springfield School Committee member Antonette Pepe, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno and Springfield City Council President Jose Tosado, who are expected to face off in a mayoral preliminary in September, all agree that the salary for the city's mayor should not be raised at this time.

SPRINGFIELD – Three mayoral candidates had the same reaction this week to a $15,000 raise for the city’s top executive: Thanks, but no thanks.

A report calling for the mayor’s salary to be set at $110,000 is expected to land on the City Council agenda soon, even though incumbent Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and his two challengers want nothing to do with it.

“I hope it dies in committee,” Council President and mayoral candidate Jose F. Tosado said Tuesday, referring to the pay-hike proposal drafted by a committee he appointed last year.

The gap between the mayor’s $95,000-a-year pay and the city’s approximately $35,000-a-year average household income is just too glaring to justify any increase, Tosado said.

For his part, Sarno has already called for pay freezes for all municipal employees, from police, fire and public works departments to the mayor’s office.

“It’s not an appropriate time to be entertaining that proposal,” the two-term incumbent said about the mayoral pay increase.

The third contender for mayor, School Committee member Antonette E. Pepe, went further, saying the issue should not even be considered when lower-paid workers are expected to take furloughs and pay freezes.

But the matter is likely to surface in coming weeks because the mayor’s compensation committee spent four months studying the issue, and its chairman, councilor John A. Lysak, doesn’t want the work wasted.

At Monday’s council meeting, Lysak unveiled the committee’s findings, including setting the mayor’s salary at $110,000, with 2.5 percent cost-of-living increases.

The figure is $15,000 more than the position pays now, and $14,000 less than it would be if mayors got the annual increases enjoyed by other municipal workers, according to Lysak. The mayor’s current salary has not changed in 13 years.

Establishing a higher salary and regular cost-of-living adjustments would not only remove politics from the compensation issue, it would also make the post more attractive to private sector managers who find the current $95,000 salary unattractive, Lysak said.

“I’m a politician, but I’d like to see a non-politician run for the seat sometime,” Lysak said. “It would be nice.”

The study committee included councilors and community volunteers, according to Lysak, who said their recommendations need council approval to take effect; the new salary would be effective January 2012, coinciding with the start of the new four-year mayoral term.

The issue surfaced last year when the Springfield Chamber of Commerce called for raising the mayor’s pay level, citing significantly larger sums earned by mayors and managers in New England cities, including Hartford ($139,128), Lowell ($144,000) and Providence ($125,000).

Westfield pays its mayor $90,000 a year, while mayors in Chicopee, Holyoke, West Springfield and Agawam get annual salaries of $85,000. The salary in Northampton is $80,000.

John Finnie, of Holyoke, charged with transporting hazardous materials

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Hampden District Attorney Mark Mastroianni said a Haz-Mat team searched Finnie's car and home.

05-07 Holyoke meth 015.jpgHolyoke police and fire officials along with state police and HazMat crews investigate the contents of a milk jug found in a PT Cruiser at the corner of Cherry Street and Community field Road Saturday morning.

Updates a story posted Saturday at 9:12 a.m.


HOLYOKE – Police on Saturday charged John Finnie, 35, of Holyoke, with transporting hazardous materials after a resident reported a man had “suspiciously dumped” a liquid at Community Field.

The arrest came after more than a dozen plastic milk jugs were found in the city during the past seven days that investigators suspected may have contained by-products of illegally produced methamphetamine.

However, Hampden District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni said Finnie was not charged in connection with those jugs and the liquid he is suspected of dumping must undergo testing.
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“There were enough consistencies (with the previous discoveries) to raise our suspicions, but there were inconsistencies, too,” Mastroianni said.

Finnie, of 37 Cherry St., also was charged with disorderly conduct, although Holyoke police did not indicate what precipitated that charge.

There were no new developments in the case as of early Sunday morning, according to Holyoke Police Sgt. Larry Cournoyer.

He said police still had not determined the nature of the liquid Finnie allegedly dumped at Community Field.

"It's got to be looked at at the state lab," Cournoyer said.

During the investigation police closed traffic along Route 202 and blocked an off-ramp of Interstate 91 northbound leading to Holyoke. A state police official said earlier that Finnie had acted “evasive” when police stopped him for questioning and that a container also had been discovered in his car.

Mastroianni said investigators including a hazardous materials team searched Finnie’s Cherry Street home as well.

“We wanted to make sure everything was safe,” Mastroianni said.

The investigation is ongoing. Finnie is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Holyoke District Court.

In Massachusetts, summer school learning helps build skills

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State officials funneled a total of $250,000 through local United Ways across the state to expand summer school in seven cities, including Springfield and Holyoke.

033111 kemia arnold.jpgKemia Arnold, 8, a student at the DeBerry School in Springfield, participated in a state-funded summer school program that joined local schools with area businesses and non-profit organizations.

After spending five weeks in summer school, 8-year-old Kemia K. Arnold was reading much better, and she wrote a short story she is proud to show.

“Before the summer program she was having a little problem with reading,” says Marie E. Arnold, her grandmother. “It helped her a lot with her comprehension.”

Arnold, a student at William N. DeBerry School in Springfield, is among more than 1,800 children across the commonwealth who benefited from a state Department of Early Education and Care program that created new summer school programs by linking schools with community agencies.

State officials funneled a total of $250,000 through local United Ways across the state to expand summer school in seven cities, including Springfield and Holyoke.

As school officials start debating if it is worth funding summer school programs and parents start considering if it is worth forcing their children to spend time in a hot classroom during vacation, a study shows the programs can be valuable.

The recently released study showed 85 percent of the 1,822 children involved in the programs lost no abilities during the summer and 68 percent improved reading skills. The study did also find that 15 percent of the children showed a significant loss of skills, but officials attribute that number to poor attendance by some children.

In Western Massachusetts, the money allowed the Hasbro Summer Learning Initiative to start a new summer school program for 21 children at DeBerry, which Arnold attended, and add classes for 104 more children at the YMCA of Greater Springfield and the Martin Luther King Citizen School held at the John J. Duggan Middle School.

It also allowed the Holyoke Boys & Girls Club to add a new satellite program, also under the Hasbro Initiative, at the low-income Toepfort Apartments. That program provided services for 26 students.

The idea was to use existing programs and expand partnerships with schools and other agencies. It also funded formal research to see if any of the programs helped, according to the state’s early education commissioner Sherri R. Killins.

“It was not much money and I was quite proud with the results,” Killins said. “We took programs that were doing this kind of work and gave them more opportunities.”

2009 Sherri Killins.jpgSherri Killins

The main goal of the summer school was to prevent children from losing skills over the summer; some have to re-learn as much as three months of academics after vacation, Killins said.

Arnold doesn’t need figures to praise the program. As a parent aide and case manager for Northern Educational Service, she visits DeBerry school several times a week to work with clients. There, she learned about the summer school and asked that her granddaughter attend.

“You had to force her to read,” Arnold said. “She could read the words, but she didn’t understand.”

When Arnold would pick her up after summer classes, her granddaughter would show off the Mexican art, paiper mache masks and other art projects that she created. She hopes the program will be available again this year.

“I liked the field trips, the activities, the writing and the games,” Kemia said. She also has a favorite book, “The Magic School Bus,” thanks to the reading help.

In Springfield, the Hasbro Corp. started the summer initiative six years ago and has donated at least $100,000 a year. Other businesses and agencies, including Pioneer Valley United Way and the Irene E. & George A. Davis Foundation, are supporters as well, said Susan L. O’Connor, director of the Hasbro Summer Initiative.

The addition of the Department of Early Education into the program was welcome, especially since it gave educators across the state a chance to coordinate and share ideas. It also gave the program a chance to formally study if children were improving, O’Connor said.

“It has really changed the way we operate after-school and summer programs,” she said. “It has shifted how we use out-of-school time.”

Most of the classes were taught by adults trained as day-care providers who do not have formal teaching degrees. The grant allowed each site to hire certified teachers who worked as literacy coaches to help the instructors improve their teaching, said Kathleen A. Coleman, assistant vice president with Square One. Square One provided the summer school teachers to DeBerry school and other sites.

“We absolutely benefited,” Coleman said. “Many of our teachers are in college and do not have a degree. Tthey are a young staff and a great staff.”

033111 kemia arnold marie arnold.JPGKemia Arnold and her grandmother, Marie Arnold.

Square One used the curriculum from the Hasbro initiative to help students focus deeply on one subject, such as a type of science, engineering or theater. Since the main goal is to improve reading skills, it intertwines literacy throughout the lessons, she said.

Because it was designed to work with a child-care center, children attended summer school for a full day from about 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Along with academics, they were served breakfast and lunch, had physical education and learned nutrition, Coleman said.

There were field trips to places like the Boston Science Museum, which families might not have been able to afford without the program, Coleman said.

At the Holyoke Boys & Girls Club, the new program allowed staff to work side-by-side with reading teachers from Springfield and Holyoke schools, executive director Eileen D. Cavanaugh said.

“It did something different. It allowed us to train our staff in literacy strategies and best practices so we are more intentional with our programming,” she said.

Using the lessons they learned over the summer, staff created literacy centers which now offer activities such as read-alouds, writing groups, reading buddies where an older student pairs up with a younger child, she said.

While the public schools do offer summer school, Cavanaugh said, there are advantages to get community groups involved in the education of young students.

“If they only go to school, you do not have a well-rounded child,” she said. “We have a good relationship with the schools, and the kids who take advantage of the club are the kids who are graduating from high school and going to college.”

100110 eileen d cavanaugh.jpgEileen Cavanaugh

Another benefit arises as the club retains a long relationship with parents since many enroll their children when they are in elementary school and those students remain sometimes through high school and college where they work as staff, Cavanaugh said.

In Springfield, there is limited space in the summer school classes designed for third-graders and older students. This program gave access to children in kindergarten through second-grade, noted DeBerry principal Mary B. Worthy.

Using a reading test common in early grades, she found children increased a small amount in fluency as well as retaining the skills they gained. Even more important, students’ attitudes toward school seemed to change, she said.

“They certainly had more interest in school,” Worthy said. “They were motivated and engaged, and that means a lot. It is extremely important in terms of willingness to learn.”

Worthy said her only complaint was that she would have liked to offer the opportunity to at least 50 of her 265 children. It proved difficult to select just 21 since most could have benefited from the five-week program.

Springfield's 375th birthday planners are ready for the big bash

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The Spirit of Springfield, organizer of the birthday extravaganza, says it's prepared for the year-long celebration.

better judy matt.JPGJudith A. Matt, president of Spirit of Springfield, the organization responsible for coordinating Springfield's 375th birthday festivities.

When announcing highlights of Springfield's 375th Anniversary Celebration recently, Judith A. Matt, president of Spirit of Springfield -- organizers of the big birthday extravaganza -- was quoted as saying "we have one heck of a plan" for the year-long celebration.

What she didn't say was that it's going to take an army of volunteers to plan, stage, and provide logistics for 12 months' worth of events -- literally.

Like, help from the Massachusetts National Guard.

"We are pleased as an organization to support the city of Springfield in participation with the Spirit of Springfield to celebrate Springfield's 375th Anniversary, and we will be attending in force and supporting every facet of the celebration," said Major General Joseph Carter, adjutant general, of the Massachusetts National Guard.

"Our participation this year is especially significant to us since the Massachusetts National Guard is also celebrating its 375th anniversary," he added.

"For years, the Massachusetts Army National Guard has provided logistical support for the World's Largest Pancake Breakfast, but this year they will be participating in an even bigger way," Matt said.

She said the Guard will have a major presence in the 375th Parade on May 14, which will be held after the Pancake Breakfast. Their contingent will include the Air National Guard Band of the Northeast, along with various personnel and equipment. Also, Barnes Air Base will be represented with a fire truck, HUM-V and personnel.

Working alongside the National Guard will be a cavalry of high school students from Springfield who are part of the MassMutual Academic Achievers program -- created to provide incentives for students, who have maintained a B average or better for four consecutive marking periods, to continue their academic success.

"What we heard from these students is that they also wanted an opportunity to become more engaged in the community. So with the 375th Anniversary celebration in mind, it was a perfect opportunity to visit Judy (Matt) to offer her as volunteers a great group of students who are doing great things in school and who now want to give back to the community," said Pamela Mathison, community responsibility specialist at MassMutual, who oversees the Academic Achievers program.

Holly Smith-BoveHolly Smith-Bove, president of the Springfield Museums, said the organization is "honored to participate in the city's 375th birthday celebration."

"We are writing job descriptions for these student scholars who will serve in a variety of capacities, including as escorts for those participating in the parade and the many children who will be singing at the Pancake Breakfast on Birthday Day," Matt said.

In addition to the myriad of volunteers providing logistical support, many area organizations, businesses and nonprofits have stepped up to the plate to hold special 375th Anniversary events for the public to enjoy, Matt said.

One of those helping out with complementary programming will be the Springfield Museums, which have a full-day's schedule of events planned for Birthday Day on May 14, including a scavenger hunt for children to learn more about things invented in Springfield, to sessions on traditional songs and music from the Pioneer Valley, to the opportunity to meet a Civil War soldier.

"The Springfield Museums are honored to participate in the city's 375th Birthday Celebration. Ever since the museums were established more than 150 years ago we have collected artifacts and documents related to Springfield's history," said Holly Smith-Bove, president of the museums.

She noted as part of Founder's Day, the museums will be displaying a rare copy of "The Meritorious Price of Our Redemption," by Springfield's founder, William Pynchon. The book was so controversial in its day that copies were burned in Boston by the hangman.

"We also hope people will come to see the exhibits in our spectacular new Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History, which highlights the rich tradition of entrepreneurship and industrial innovation that brought the city into the present," said Smith-Bove.

Also, as part of Birthday Day on May 14, the Springfield Armory has planned a special Armory Day with activities ranging from re-enactors setting up camp to cannon firings and more - all as a tie-in to Springfield's 375th Anniversary.

quijano.JPGMichael Quijano-West, superintendent of the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, said the 375th birthday celebration "is a big deal for the city of Springfield."

"Quite frankly, I have worked all over the country and there aren't many cities that have been around long enough to celebrate their 375th anniversary. This is a big deal for the city of Springfield and the community as a whole, and it is important for us as a National Park Unit in Springfield to be involved," said Michael Quijano-West, superintendent, Springfield Armory National Historic Site.

"When Judy put the proposal on the table to me for our involvement, it was just what I have been waiting for. Since arriving in Springfield, I've wanted to synchronize more of our programming to what is going on locally. And this is good for the Armory and good for Springfield that we can help celebrate its history and along the way teach the younger generation to be proud to live in Springfield," he added.

Among the many others donating their time and expertise to help stage 375th Anniversary events are Springfield Technical Community College, whose employees are helping with the parade on Birthday Day; Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, which is providing shuttle busses; and The Big E, which is underwriting of the 375th fireworks display. For other collaborators, visit www.springfield375.org and click on the "About" tab.

If you would like to participate or support Springfield's 375th Anniversary Celebration, contact the Spirit of Springfield at (413) 733-3800 or staff@spiritofspringfield.org.


Springfield's MassMutual celebrates 160th anniversary

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The previous headquarters building still stands on the southwest corner of State and Main streets.

MassMutual established its first agents training school at the home office in 1939.

SPRINGFIELD – When MassMutual Financial Group started 160 years ago it had one employee in one rented room, handwritten records on what looks today like tissue paper and the average life expectancy of its insurance customers was 38 years.

Today, the average life expectancy is 78, soon to be 80 years of age, said John W. Chandler Jr., senior vice president and chief marketing officer for MassMutual.

The company, still headquartered in Springfield, is celebrating its 160th anniversary Sunday, May 15 with an interactive timeline on its website, www.massmutual.com, that will go live the next day, Monday the 16.

There will also be advertisements in The Republican and The Wall Street Journal and a fresh effort to archive MassMutual’s holdings at the Wood Museum of Springfield History.

Guy A. McLain, director of the Wood Museum of Springfield History, said MassMutual’s Archive is a bonanza, particularly of photographs. That includes a photo of Caleb Rice, the first president of MassMutual and the first Mayor of Springfield when it became a city in 1852.

A MassMutual newspaper ad from 1888, encouraging readers to "provide a future support for those who depend on your now strong arm."

“MassMutual executives played many early important roles in Springfield. The company is very entwined with the history of Springfield, McLain said. “They built the first steel-frame skyscraper in the city. A lot of people don’t know that MassMutual was headquartered downtown for many years.”

The previous headquarters building still stands on the southwest corner of State and Main streets, Chandler said. The company outgrew it in 1925 and built the current headquarters on State Street on the site of a huge brewery that had been shuttered by Prohibition.

Historic materials will go on display at company headquarters as well as at the museum, McLain said.

Chandler outlined the changes over the years.

When it began, MassMutual had an excess capital of about $5,000. Today, that figure is $10 billion. It had 341 policies in force. Today it has 99,000 policies in force, some have been active for more than 50 years.

MassMutual’s core business of whole-life insurance policies has changed very little over the years, Chandler said. The company is also still a mutual company, owned by its policy holders.

“Lots of companies were founded and lots of companies disappeared,” he said.

massmutual headquarters.JPGThe Springfield headquarters for MassMutual on State Street

MassMutual now has more than 10,000 total employees. There have been cutbacks. MassMutual laid off 75 information technology employees last week.

But Chandler said the company has to find a balance: taking care of employees versus cutting cost and getting a good return for policy holders.

Since 1999, MassMutual has donated $54 million in philanthropy focused on education and neighborhood betterment including $7 million last year.

McLain said MassMutual donated $300,000 to the museum in exchange for naming rights to the lobby.

Black bear sighted near housing complex in Springfield's Outerbelt neighborhood

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Authorities say it's unusual to see bears in Springfield, even in the city's suburban outer fringes.

black bear 426 003.jpgThis black bear was seen roaming through a residential property on Old Douglas Road in Warren earlier this month.

SPRINGFIELD -- It's not that unusual for black bears to find their way to downtown Northampton, where the air is redolent with the scent of cooked food wafting from restaurants and alleyway Dumpsters can offer free snacks.

But bears in Springfield?

The City of Homes can count ursus americanus among its nearly 155,000 residents, thanks to an early-Sunday sighting at the Allen Park Apartments in the Outerbelt section of the city.

The bear was spotted rummaging near a Dumpster outside 480 Allen Park Road around 4:25 a.m., according to Springfield police.

"If you see one, don't go near it," said Lt. John Slepchuk, adding that city police contacted Massachusetts Environmental Police as a precaution.

"We're waiting to hear back from them," Slepchuk said around 6 a.m. Sunday.

Most of the state's 3000-plus bears tend to roam forestland west of the Connecticut River, though sightings are becoming more common in parts of Worcester County with even a few popping up in suburban Boston.

A June 2009 encounter in the Cedarville section of Plymouth was perhaps the southeasternmost point in the state to log a bear sighting in recent years, though the big animals continue to show up in unlikely spots.

Closer to home, sightings have been reported in Wilbraham, Hampden and East Longmeadow in recent years. In May 2009, a mother and two cubs were seen roaming through yards along Autumn Ridge Road in East Longmeadow, an upscale subdivision near the Connecticut border. Wildlife experts suspected the bear family had been using a nearby power line corridor just south of Pease Road to travel through the otherwise suburban neighborhood.

noho bear.JPGThis May 2007 photo shows a black bear strolling through a Masonic Street parking lot in downtown Northampton.

Last July, a large black bear seen hanging around outside the Summit View Banquet and Meeting House in Holyoke was a big hit with a wedding party at the Northampton Street establishment.

While there have been a handful of sightings in the suburban-to-semi-rural towns along Springfield's eastern flank in recent years, these areas register nowhere near as many bear-human encounters as communities in western Hampden County and sections of Hampshire, Franklin and Berkshire counties.

Slepchuk said an Allen Park resident spotted the bear near a Dumpster, and the man even captured his encounter with the animal on video, which was made during the dark, predawn hours Sunday. That means it was difficult to gauge the sex or size of the bear.

"It's hard to tell," Slepchuk said.

This is the time of year when bears shrug off the torpor of winter and spring back to life as they begin searching for food, according to Marion E. Larson, a wildlife biologist with the Massachcusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife (MassWildlife).

While many of the dietary staples for this omnivore are still out of season, one of the easiest early-season foods for bears is birdseed, which is why MassWildlife officials routinely remind residents to remove birdfeeders from their property to avoid luring bears.

"People with feeders need to take (them) down because bears remember from year to year the exact location of where they've gotten food, including your backyard, and they are teaching their young. We don't need these lessons taught to their young," Larson said.

bear-holyoke.jpgHolyoke firefighters and Massachusetts Environmental Police officers prepare to capture a bear that climbed a tree in Veteran's Park in downtown Holyoke in this June 2010 photo.

For Western Massachusetts residents who live in communities where bears are common, MassWildlife recommends making some noise -- banging pots and pans is generally a good method -- when you take out the trash, for example.

Sunday's bear spotting in Springfield follows recent sightings in Ware and Warren.The heavily populated section of Springfield where the bear was seen is near Bicentennial Plaza, one of Springfield's largest shopping centers, and spitting distance from the corner of Allen and Cooley streets, a busy intersection loaded with gas stations, convenience stores, a bank, pizzeria and supermarket.

THE MAP BELOW shows the approximate area where a black bear was spotted early Sunday morning in Springfield:


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Granby, Conn., teenager in critical condition after being struck by car

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Connecticut authorities said they would not identify the teenager until his family had been contacted about the Saturday afternoon inicident

GRANBY, CONN. -- Police here said a 17-year-old boy was struck and critically injured by a car around 2:19 p.m. Saturday.

The boy, a town resident who wasn't identified by police, was rushed by ambulance to Hartford Hospital, where he remained in critical condition as of late Saturday afternoon, according to the Granby Department of Police Services.

The incident occurred on Route 10/202 -- also known as Salmon Brook Street -- by the entrance to Salmon Brook Park, police said.

"Identification of the pedestrian is being withheld pending notification of the family," Granby Police Chief David L. Watkins said in a release.

Police did not indicate if the operator of the vehicle, Michael Lambert of Appletree Lane, North Granby, is facing any charges. Lambert was not injured.

Police said a preliminary investigation determined that Lambert was northbound on Route 10/202 when the teenager entered the roadway from the east. The North Central Municipal Accident Reconstruction Team is assisting Granby police with the investigation.

Granby police are asking anyone who witnessed the incident to call (860) 844-5334, then ask to speak with Officer Jeremiah Dowd.

THE MAP BELOW shows the approximate location of a Saturday incident in which a pedestrian was struck by a motorist in Connecticut:



Health care costs a hefty price tag for Pentagon

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The current fees, unchanged in 11 years, are $230 a year for an individual and $460 for a family. That's far less than what civilian federal workers pay for health care, about $5,000 a year, and what most other people in the U.S. pay.

Robert Gates SJAFB.jpgView full sizeSecretary of Defense Robert Gates addresses airmen at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, in Goldsboro, N.C., Friday May 6, 2011. Gates awarded the Bronze Star to Senior Master Sergeant Arnel Abad and gave coins to members of the 4th Fighter Wing and the 916 Air Refueling Wing. (AP Photo/The News-Argus, Michael K. Dakota)

By DONNA CASSATA

WASHINGTON (AP) — A military built for fighting wars is looking more and more like a health care entitlement program.

Costs of the program that provides health coverage to some 10 million active duty personnel, retirees, reservists and their families have jumped from $19 billion in 2001 to $53 billion in the Pentagon's latest budget request.

Desperate to cut spending in Washington's time of fiscal austerity, President Barack Obama has proposed increasing the fees for working-age retirees in the decades-old health program, known as TRICARE. After years of resisting proposed increases for the military men and women who sacrificed for a nation, budget-conscious lawmakers suddenly are poised to make them pay a bit more for their health care, though not on the president's terms.

The current fees, unchanged in 11 years, are $230 a year for an individual and $460 for a family. That's far less than what civilian federal workers pay for health care, about $5,000 a year, and what most other people in the U.S. pay.

Obama is seeking a fee increase of $2.50 per month for an individual and $5 per month for families, which approaches the current price of a gallon of gasoline. Future increases starting in 2013 would be pegged to rising costs as measured by the national health care expenditure index produced by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which projects 6.2 percent growth.

"Health care is eating the department alive," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said bluntly — two years ago.

The explosive expense of health care rivals what the Pentagon shells out to buy fighter aircraft, submarines and high-tech weapons, and is about half of the $118 billion that the Obama administration wants in the next budget to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, backs Gates' proposal to raise fees for working-age retirees in the next budget, and he has the support of the committee's top Democrat, Rep. Adam Smith of Washington state.

But McKeon, R-Calif., rejects the plan to link increases in 2013 and beyond to the health care expenditure index. He wants to tie any future increases to military retirees' cost-of-living adjustment, which this year was zero.

McKeon planned to release his version of the defense bill Monday. The legislation says members of the military face "unique and extraordinary demands and make extra sacrifices over the course of a 20-30 year career in protecting freedom for all Americans. Decades of sacrifices is a significant prepaid premium for health care that is over and above what the member pays in money."

The full committee meets Wednesday to pull together an overall defense bill for the budget year beginning Oct. 1. The committee is expected to override members of its personnel subcommittee who last week unanimously approved a one-year prohibition on any increase in health care fees.

"I strongly believe military retirees have made significant down payments through their dedicated service to the nation," said the subcommittee chairman, Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C. "In view of that service, it is not right for the nation to ask them to pay more for the health care for which they are entitled as all citizens are being personally challenged financially by rising gas prices."

Congress repeatedly has resisted Pentagon efforts to increase copayments or fees, arguing that members of the military and their families sacrifice far more than the average American, with a career that includes long and dangerous deployments overseas that overshadow civilian work.

Even as Washington wrestles with a ballooning deficit estimated at $1.6 trillion and the demands of entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security, lawmakers are reluctant to raise health care costs for members of the military and retirees.

But this year, Gates singled out working-age retirees, such as those in their 40s who retired after some 20 plus years in the military, as individuals who could afford a small increase.

"Many of these beneficiaries are employed full time while receiving full pensions, often forgoing their employer's health plan to remain with TRICARE," Gates told Congress. "This should come as no surprise, given that the current TRICARE enrollment fee was set in 1995 ... and has not been raised since."

Gates and the administration are up against one of the most powerful constituency, the network of veterans groups and retired generals determined to stop any increase.

The Military Officers Association of America backs the one-year fee increase, but strongly opposes any increase in 2013 and beyond linked to the health care expenditure index.

"We agree with those modest increases," said Kathy Beasley, a retired Navy captain and deputy director of government relations for the officers' group. The increased fees linked to the index, however, "erodes the retirement benefit package."

Members of the House committee have more than 600 amendments to the overall bill that is expected to come close to the administration's request of $553 billion. The measure will include provisions on keeping open the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and reviving the extra engine for the next-generation F-35 jet fighter.

Rep. Duncan Hunter Jr., R-Calif., will try to delay repeal of the ban on gays in military until all four service chiefs certify that the change won't hurt readiness or undermine the military. The law, in effect since last December, only requires certification from the president, defense secretary and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Sectarian violence in Egypt leaves 12 dead, 230-plus injured, churches burned

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During Egypt's 18-day uprising that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak several months ago, there was a rare spirit of brotherhood between Muslims and Christians.

Sectarian Violence.jpgView full sizeFiremen fight a fire at a church surrounded by angry Muslims in the Imbaba neighborhood in Cairo late Saturday, May 7, 2011. Christians and Muslims fought in the streets of western Cairo in violence triggered by word of a mixed romance, Egypt's official news agency reported. (AP Photo)

By SARAH EL DEEB

CAIRO (AP) — Muslim mobs set two Cairo churches on fire overnight during sectarian clashes that left 12 dead and more than 200 injured. The deepening religious violence in military-ruled Egypt exacerbated an already chaotic and lawless transition to democracy.

Mobs of ultraconservative Muslims attacked the St. Menas church in the Cairo slum of Imbaba late Saturday following rumors that a Christian woman married to a Muslim man had been abducted. Local residents said a separate mob of youths armed with knives and machetes attacked the Virgin Mary Church several blocks away with firebombs.

"People were scared to come near them," said local resident Adel Mohammed, 29, who lives near the Virgin Mary Church. "They looked scary. They threw their firebombs at the church and set parts of it ablaze."

Islamic clerics denounced the violence, sounding alarm bells at the escalating tension during the transitional period.

"These events do not benefit either Muslim or Copts," Ahmed al-Tayyeb, the Sheik of al-Azhar, told the daily Al-Ahram.

Interfaith relationships are taboo in Egypt, where the Muslim majority and sizable Christian minority are both largely conservative. Such relationships are often the source of deadly clashes between the faiths.

During Egypt's 18-day uprising that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak several months ago, there was a rare spirit of brotherhood between Muslims and Christians. Each group protected the other during prayer sessions in Cairo's Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the revolution.

But in the months that followed the toppling of Mubarak on Feb. 11, there has been a sharp rise in sectarian tensions, fueled in part by newly active ultraconservative Muslim movement, known as the Salafis.

The once quiescent Salafis have become more assertive post-revolution in trying to spread their ultraconservative version of an Islamic way of life. In particular, they have focused their wrath on Egypt's Christians, who make up 10 percent of the country's 80 million people.

On Friday, a few hundred Salafis marched through Cairo celebrating al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and condemning the U.S. operation that killed him.

Critics say Egyptian military authorities have done too little to stem the religious violence. But authorities arrested 190 people, immediately, sending them to military prosecutions and threatening the maximum penalty against anyone attacking houses of worship. It was the military's toughest response yet to a series of violent clashes between the two religious groups.

Egypt's state news agency said of those killed, at least six Muslims and at least three Christians were among those killed. The body of one Christian was found inside the St. Menas church, the agency said. The Health Ministry said 12 had died and more than 230 were injured, at least 11 of them critically.

The clashes were set off Saturday around sundown when word spread around the low-income neighborhood of Imbaba that a Christian woman who married a Muslim was abducted and is being kept in the church against her will.

The report, which was never confirmed by local religious figures, sent a large mob of Muslims toward the St. Menas church. Christians created a human barricade around the church and clashes erupted. Gunfire sounded across the neighborhood, and witnesses said people on rooftops nearby were firing into the crowd.

Muslims alleged the Christians opened fire first. Then crowds of hundreds of Muslims from the neighborhood, in many parts instigated by the local ultraconservative Salafi sheiks, converged on the area. They lobbed firebombs at homes and shops and also at the St. Menas church, setting its facade on fire.

Residents say Christians were hiding inside. Muslims were chanting: "With our blood and soul, we defend you, Islam."

The army and police tried to break up the crowd by firing tear gas, but failed to clear the streets. Troops surrounded the church after the fire was put out.

Later the same night, witnesses said a separate Muslim mob, mostly youths armed with machetes and knives, moved to the Virgin Mary Church nearby and also set it on fire.

The mob then dispersed to side streets, and local residents, including the neighborhood's Muslims, tried to put out the fire. At one point, they attempted to get into the closed mosque opposite the church to get water. But the youthful mob armed with knives blocked Mohammed and others in his group.

"They told us keep the mosque out of it," said Mohammed, who lives near the church. "They were thugs. The way they talk, they have no religious or political views."

He said the firefighters and security arrived on the scene more than an hour later.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, angry residents stormed a six-story building near the St. Menas, saying Christians used it to shoot at Muslims.

"They were shooting from the roof, and they killed Muslims," said 18-year old Yehia Ramadan. "We won't stand by idle."

Flames were coming out of windows, and furniture was strewn along the sidewalks. The building appeared to be empty, but it was not clear when its residents fled.

The new tensions erupted after a year of Salafi protests against the alleged abduction by the Coptic Church of a priest's wife, Camilla Shehata. The Salafis claim she converted to Islam to escape an unhappy marriage — a phenomenon they maintain is common.

If a Christian woman marries a Muslim, she is expelled from the church. A Muslim woman is not allowed to marry a Christian man, according to state law. Because divorce is banned under the Coptic Church, with rare exceptions, some Christian women resort to conversion to Islam or another Christian denomination to get out of a marriage.

Salafis have used the case of Shehata as a rallying point for their supporters and they accuse the police of collaborating with the church to reconvert her.

Her case was even used by Iraq's branch of al-Qaida as a justification for an attack on a Baghdad church that killed 68 people and other threats by the group against Christians.

On Saturday just before the violence erupted in Imbaba, Shehata appeared with her husband and child on a Christian TV station broadcast from outside of Egypt and asserted that she was still a Christian and had never converted.

"Let the protesters leave the Church alone and turn their attention to Egypt's future," she said from an undisclosed location.

Copts complain of widespread discrimination that they say relegates them to second-class citizen status, including tight strictures on building or repairing churches that do not exist for Muslim places of worship.

In the deadliest violence since Mubarak's ouster, 13 were killed in pitched street battles in March after Muslims torched a church. That violence was also triggered by rumors of a love affair between a Muslim woman and a Christian man.

A New Year's Eve suicide bombing outside a Coptic church in the port city of Alexandria killed 21 people, setting off days of protests. Egypt made some arrests but never charged anyone with the attack.

Sameh Fawzi, a Coptic scholar, said the new trend of attacks on churches and heightened tension between ultraconservative Muslims and Copts are taking place in the context of a weakened state and increasingly assertive Salafis.

The military rulers' attempts to hold reconciliation sessions, instead of prosecuting those involved, only serves to reinforce the impression of the state's weakness, he said.

"What needs to happen and quickly is that the state implements the law," he said. "This is a crime of thuggery and it should be treated as such."

Religious leaders struggle to address Osama bin Laden's death from the pulpit

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There is at least some dissonance between the values they preach and the triumphant response on the streets of New York and Washington to the death of a human being — even one responsible for thousands of killings in those areas and around the world.

Osama bin Laden killed by U.S. in PakistanView full sizeA crowd outside the White House in Washington, cheers Sunday, May 1, 2011, upon hearing the news that terrorist leader Osama bin Laden is dead. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

By BROCK VERGAKIS

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — The killing of Osama bin Laden, a man who was America's face of evil for nearly a decade, left Christians, Jews and Muslims relieved, proud or even jubilant. For their religious leaders, it was sometimes hard to know just what to say about that.

There is at least some dissonance between the values they preach and the triumphant response on the streets of New York and Washington to the death of a human being — even one responsible for thousands of killings in those areas and around the world.

The Rev. Bill Kelly, priest at Saint Mary of the Assumption in Dedham, Mass., near Boston, said he was taken aback by the celebrations because he detected bloodlust. Christians should rejoice that justice was done, but not that another human being was destroyed, he said.

At the same time, Kelly said, the emotional reaction is understandable.

"This is 10 years of pent-up anger, hurt, frustration, especially here in the Boston area because the crimes were initiated here," he said, referring to the two planes that took off from Boston before crashing into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. "We all know people who lost people."

Kelly said the problem comes when the reaction to the terrorist leader's death is "tinged with hatred and revenge."

Some religious leaders weren't planning to say much about bin Laden's killing at services. The Rev. David Howard, on the other hand, shouted his approval — in a sense — from outside his Virginia Beach church's doors.

"OSAMA BIN LADEN, SATAN AND THE FINAL VICTORY OF JESUS," read the marquee outside Brook Baptist Church, publicizing the sermon Howard started writing hours after he heard that a team of Navy SEALs based in Virginia Beach killed the al-Qaida leader.

There is no equivocating in his message: Howard has no doubt that bin Laden was an instrument of Satan who was brought to justice with the aid of God, who answered the prayers of millions.

"We should pray for bad people, evil people, that when we pray to God he will change their lives. But if he won't change their lives, especially those who have a lot of power to hurt a lot of people, you pray for their end because they're causing so much pain," he said. "You pray somehow God will take them out. The Bible is very clear that God is in control and every person in power is because God put them there. He can put them there, he can keep them there or he can take them out. That's his prerogative."

The leader of one of the nation's largest mosques was equally direct during prayers Friday.

"There is no doubt that this man was a thug, he was a murderer," Imam Hassan al-Qazwini told worshippers at the Islamic Center of America in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn. "His hands were stained by the blood of thousands of innocent people — Muslims and non-Muslims alike."

Qazwini, who delivered his sermon in a large, circular hall filled to capacity, said the Quran is clear that someone who kills one innocent person "is doomed to hell forever." And the imam was particularly incensed that bin Laden "committed atrocities against innocent people ... while he was calling 'Allahu akbar,'" or "God is great."

"He's responsible for tarnishing the image of Islam in this country. He's responsible for tarnishing the image of Muslims," he said. "We're happy to see the man who caused so much pain for Muslims in this country is gone ... finally."

Before the sermon, he told The Associated Press that Muslims are discouraged from showing jubilation over death, but cheering the news of bin Laden's demise marks an occasion where "justice was served."

The Vatican said Christians could never rejoice about the death of any human being, though it acknowledged the reasons the U.S. pursued bin Laden for nearly a decade. Spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi said bin Laden was responsible for having caused the deaths of countless innocents and for having used religion to spread "division and hatred among people."

The Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader and Nobel Peace laureate, said Tuesday in Los Angeles that although bin Laden may have deserved compassion and even forgiveness as a human being, it is sometimes necessary to take counter-measures.

"Forgiveness doesn't mean forget what happened," he told students at the University of Southern California.

Among Amish and Mennonites, bin Laden's killing clashes with their ethic of valuing every person as a son or daughter of God, though they also believe God allows a government to do what is necessary to protect its people, said Paul Miller, the director of the Amish and Mennonite Heritage Center in Berlin, Ohio. Though some shun technology, they still follow the news closely, and Miller said he wouldn't be surprised of some members of those churches have also celebrated bin Laden's death.

"That seems to me to be contrary to what God calls us to do and for our nation, as an enlightened country. One would think (we) might have some higher goals and some higher ethics than just to be following a retribution of an eye for eye, tooth for tooth," Miller said.

Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said the Bible marks a distinction between individual Christians, who should pray for and forgive their enemies, and the state, which has a different responsibility. "God says they are to punish the evildoers," he said.

"I take no personal pleasure in Osama bin Laden's death, but the moral symmetry of the universe demands that a person who has perpetrated the terrible crimes against humanity that he's perpetrated deserves to be executed," Land said. "And I look upon what happened to him not as a killing, not as an assassination, but an execution for crimes he freely admitted to and bragged about."

Mark Nieting, senior pastor at Hope Lutheran Church in Virginia Beach, said that although bin Laden's death has come up in small group discussions, it's not something he felt compelled to spend a lot of time on at Sunday services. His congregation, in a city where war planes regularly fly overhead, is filled with active duty and retired military personnel.

"Because this is a military community, I think people understand the difference between murder as laid out in Scripture and the commandments and killing as it happens in war," he said. "Do I celebrate that the guy's dead? No. Do I feel safer? No. I don't celebrate his death. It's tragic that anyone dies in war, that anyone has to die in a conflict. But we live in a sinful world."

Holyoke Geriatric Authority battle has residents like Jeanne Forget stuck in the middle

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Officials are clashing over whether the Geriatric Authority's unpaid bills to the city total $2.84 million or $877,000.

forget.JPGJeanne Forget talks about the Holyoke Geriatric Authority during an interview about how families are being left in the middle as money and politic are fueling a dispute over the Geriatric Authority.

HOLYOKE – Money and politics are fueling an increasingly sharp dispute over the future of the Holyoke Geriatric Authority.

Some city councilors are so fed up with the authority’s unpaid bills to the city – there’s a dispute whether the total is $2.84 million or $877,000 – that they want to discuss more than just how to remove members of the authority’s board of directors.

Councilors are exploring whether to close the 80-bed facility at 45 Lower Westfield Road, a lengthy process that would require state approval. The authority also provides day-care services to another 80 senior citizens.

Meanwhile, residents and employees of the authority said they feel caught in the middle and worry about their future.

“I really can’t imagine the city of Holyoke closing it,” said resident Jeanne R. Forget, 69, a former French teacher.

Resident Mary Glavas, 93, said she hopes she can stay at a facility she praises for being so clean.

“I mean it. You can see them washing the floor all day long,” said Glavas, who used to be a school lunch worker.

Authority officials have told employees the facility isn’t closing, but some wonder what to believe.

“The effect is that it’s very worrisome to a lot of people. This is their job,” said Veronica M. Szpila, a licensed practical nurse.

Authority directors said some councilors essentially are scheming to put elderly residents on the street and are misrepresenting financial problems.

They said the facility’s unpaid bills to city agencies amount to $877,000, not the $2.84 million contended by Mayor Elaine A. Pluta, Treasurer Jon D. Lumbra and city councilors.

In a recent meeting at The Republican, authority board members and Executive Director Sheryl Y. Quinn said they disagreed with city officials about a 2007 land deal, a key part of the dispute.

The city bought 9.5 acres of authority property on Lower Westfield Road for $1.2 million. Contrary to city officials’ assertions, authority officials said there was never an understanding either that the $1.2 million be repaid to the city or that the authority had to buy back the 9.5 acres.

The property is vacant, as city officials said they never intended to develop it, having made the purchase to help the authority.

Authority officials were particularly upset by Ward 1 Councilor Donald R. Welch’s order to begin the process of shutting down the facility. Welch said it was an extraordinary step prompted by extraordinary frustration with the authority’s failure to discuss a plan to repay the bills.

“What are your plans to pay back the debt?” Welch asked.

The council Finance Committee will discuss the order May 18.

“It just baffles me,” said Russell J. McNiff, authority director of human resources.

The issue has divided at least one family.

“The city councilor who filed the order is my first cousin, and I am diametrically opposed,” said William F. Welch. “His aunt, my mother, was a resident here until she died March 6.”

The late Elizabeth C. “Betty” Welch, 89, attended the daycare program before becoming a resident, William Welch said. He called the program “a godsend.”

Closing the authority would require a series of city and state steps that could take months or longer, city attorney Adam Pudelko said.

The council and mayor would have to ask the state Legislature to repeal the 1971 act that established the authority. If approved, a receiver would be appointed to manage the authority while state agencies, including the attorney general’s office and Department of Public Health, review what would happen next, he said.

The authority is a quasi-official municipal agency. The council appoints three members of the board of directors, the mayor appoints three and those six then vote on a seventh member.

The authority cares for low- and middle-income elderly who might be ineligible for another nursing home, officials said.

“Who will care for these 160 individuals if not the Geriatric Authority?” officials said in a statement to The Republican.

Authority officials cite competition from other nursing homes, the recession and insufficient federal reimbursements for the financial problems.

Authority board member Steven J. Kravetz, who was elected by the other board members, said city councilors have been “intellectually dishonest” about funding issues.

“Frankly, I think the city needs to start prioritizing what they believe in,” Kravetz said.

Referring to a city plan to borrow $5.5 million for a $14.5 million renovation and addition to the Holyoke Public Library, Kravetz said, “Frankly, nobody visits libraries anymore.”

In response, Stephen H. “Terry” Plum, president of the library board, of directors, said library usage is high in a poor community such as Holyoke.

“We have 100,000 visitors a year and climbing,” Plum said.

The city is receiving a state grant, using library board endowment money and raising additional funds for the project.

Kravetz and other authority officials also deride the $168 million high performance computing center being built downtown as “an employer of five people” and being “given a hero’s welcome by the city while those same leaders seek to shut us down.”

The computing center will employ about 25 people. A lineup of federal, state and city officials and business owners envisions the high-tech research hub spurring an economic boost by drawing new businesses here.

The authority, in comparison, has a payroll of $4 million for its 177 employees, officials said.

Kravetz also criticized city councilors for giving approvals “without asking questions” of overtime funds for the Police and Fire departments.

Actually, councilors usually grill department heads about overtime spending. Such questioning made City Council Chambers one of the least favorite places of former Police Chief Anthony R. Scott, who retired April 30, by his own admission. Kravetz retracted the comment.

Kravetz also was critical of the City Council for approving a “$3.8 million ... dog park.” But the only such facility being built is a fenced-in area for people to bring dogs to be included in a $3.1 million renovation of Community Field off Cherry Street and beside Interstate 91 North.

That project will include drainage improvements, two play areas for children, a water spray park, a walking path for senior citizens and an ice skating rink, officials said.

At the March 29 meeting of the authority board of directors, Kravetz criticized city officials for getting the authority’s unpaid-bills total wrong.

“It’s a dangerous thing wen somebody starst throwing numbers around and there’s no back up to it,” Kravetz said.

Finance Committee Chairman Todd A. McGee said of Kravetz’ criticisms, “Once again, they’re going to attack any other project happening in the city because their project is more important.”

Authority officials agree their facility owes $517,000 to the Holyoke Gas & Electric Department and $334,000 in pension contributions to the Retirement Board dating back to 2008. The authority is current on pension payments made from employee payroll deductions, Lumbra said.

“Our plan is to pay it off. I can’t say how quickly,” Quinn said.

Another $26,000 and perhaps more relates to in-lieu-of-tax payments to the city from the authority, a payment also in dispute.

Regarding the property purchase, Ward 2 City Councilor Diosdado Lopez said the deal was intended to help the authority, “as a loan, with the understanding, down the road, we would get the money back.”

Council President Joseph M. McGiverin said the city bought the property with the understanding the authority would build a smaller, more efficient facility and then sell the existing site and repay the city. In the interim, the economy plunged into recession and the project was untenable, he said.

“But the city is supposed to get the $1.2 million back,” McGiverin said.

Authority officials said in the statement to The Republican that the idea of the authority buying back the land or otherwise refunding the $1.2 million is “a transaction that has never been discussed with the Geriatric Authority.”

But the purchase and sale agreement between the authority and the city suggests otherwise. The Nov. 16, 2006 agreement states in part: “In order to proceed with the planning of the new facility, it is imperative that the authority be able to reacquire the premises so it could locate its new facility on the new facility parcel and sell the developable property to provide financing.”

The deed granted the authority a right-of-first-refusal to buy the property if the city planned to sell it. That right expired in September.

Authority officials also disagree that the authority owes the city $734,100 dating back to 2007 in health and life insurance payments for retired authority employees.

“We have no intention of paying this bill,” said board chairman Joseph T. O’Neill, adding of Lumbra, “All of a sudden the treasurer on his own decided to bill us for that.”

In fact, Lumbra obtained advice from city solicitor Lisa A. Ball, who said state law requires that the authority reimburse the city for such costs.

Holyoke Geriatric Authority Documents Related to Purchase and Sale


Also upsetting to authority officials is Lopez’ request for a legal opinion on how the council can remove sitting members of the geriatric authority board.

“I think every councilor has a right to ask questions,” Lopez said.

Kravetz called Lopez’ step “incredibly insulting.”

Pluta said authority officials must devise a debt-payment plan, and soon, because the alternative is to put that burden on taxpayers, which would be “unacceptable.”

Quinn said the authority is trying to adapt. One plan is to establish a unit for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, she said. The board also is discussing leasing an authority area known as Building B.

The dispute is upsetting to the facility’s nurses, dieticians, housekeepers, laundry attendants and other employees, a union official said.

“They’re very frustrated and very unsure about their future,” said Richard Brown, of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1459.

China may have upper hand in economy talks with U.S. this week

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At the same time, America's biggest foreign creditor wants assurances that its $1.2 trillion in U.S. Treasury holdings are safe.

China-US Talks.jpgView full sizeFILE - In this March 31, 2011, file photo U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, left, shakes hands with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan prior to having lunch on the sidelines of the G-20 High Level Seminar on the international monetary system in Nanjing, China. (AP Photo/Nelson Ching, Pool)

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER

WASHINGTON (AP) — Five years and one financial crisis since the United States and China commenced regular high-level economic talks, fast-growing Beijing might have the upper hand this week in the latest round of discussions between the world's two biggest economies.

China faces threats of penalties against goods shipped to its largest foreign market unless it does more to end what U.S. manufacturers say are unfair trade practices, including currency manipulation, that have cost American jobs.

At the same time, America's biggest foreign creditor wants assurances that its $1.2 trillion in U.S. Treasury holdings are safe despite uncertainty in Washington over how much money the U.S. can borrow to pay its bills. If Congress fails to increase that borrowing limit before August, that probably would send interest rates soaring and reduce the value of those Chinese investments.

While analysts don't foresee major breakthroughs at the talks Monday and Tuesday, China's expanding economic might will give it greater leverage now.

"The focus has shifted to making methodical if slow progress," possibly reflecting a maturing relationship between the two nations, said Eswar Prasad, a China expert at Cornell University.

Leading the Obama administration's delegation at the Strategic and Economic Dialogue are Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and officials from 16 federal agencies are attending, too.

The Chinese team is headed by Vice Premier Wang Qishan, a top economic policymaker, and includes officials from 20 government agencies.

The talks began during the Bush administration in 2006. Under President Barack Obama, they've broadened to cover foreign policy as well.

The main U.S. economic goal hasn't changed: prodding China to move faster to let its currency rise in value against the dollar. That would make U.S. exports cheaper in China and Chinese products more expensive in the United States. It also would help narrow America's trade deficit with China, its largest with any country.

When the talks started, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, a former head of Goldman Sachs, lectured Chinese officials on how much better their economy would perform if they eased controls on their currency and financial markets.

But the Chinese emerged from the global financial crisis in better shape than other economic powers, largely because of their highly regulated markets. In doing so, and in growing far faster than the U.S., Beijing has gained economic influence.

"The global financial crisis changed the dynamic of the relationship substantially," said Nicholas Lardy, a China expert at the Peterson Institute of International Economics. "It increased China's confidence on economic issues."

While Geithner said last week that the U.S. would press China to accelerate efforts to revalue its currency, the yuan, he also sounded a conciliatory tone. He noted that the yuan has risen in value by 5 percent since last June, and even faster once inflation was taken into account.

Geithner said it was encouraging that Beijing was starting to endorse the U.S. view that a faster appreciation of the yuan would help China choke off inflation, which the country's escalating growth has stoked.

A softer approach on China's currency wouldn't seem to please American manufacturers. They contend that China's currency is undervalued by as much as 40 percent and they want Congress to approve economic penalties if Beijing doesn't move faster.

The U.S. trade deficit with China last year was a record $273 billion, one-fifth more than in 2009. The administration is considering filing new trade cases against Chinese practices that U.S. companies contend are unfair.

At the meetings, China is expected to raise concerns about the standoff between the administration and Congress on raising the government's $14.3 trillion borrowing limit. Geithner has told Congress that the U.S. could default on its debt if the limit isn't raised by Aug. 2.

"The Chinese are concerned about this issue because they hold a lot of U.S. debt," said Prasad. "The Chinese are astounded that the U.S. government would let the debate get to the stage where there is even a remote possibility of a default."

On other issues, U.S. officials say they want to see more progress on economic commitments made when Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Obama in January. Those include closer monitoring of Chinese government purchases of software, a move intended to boost Beijing's buying of legal U.S. software and reduce its use of pirated software. American companies say such theft is costing them billions in lost sales.

The Chinese also pledged to revamp a policy that limits the ability of U.S. companies to compete for Chinese government projects unless the products are designed in China. American businesses regard this as an effort to force them to turn over their technology to China or be locked out of its government market.

American businesses say they've seen little progress by China to honor the commitments made during Hu's visit.

On foreign policy, officials said Clinton will renew efforts to gain China's support in confronting nuclear threats from North Korea and Iran, and she will raise the issue of human rights. The Chinese have agreed to have some top military officers meet with their U.S. counterparts. That's a first for these talks and a development seen as an effort to ease tensions.

Chinese officials said Friday they were prepared to discuss human rights. China recently undertook the biggest security crackdown in years, apparently prompted by the communist leadership's fear of Middle East-inspired unrest migrating to China.

Though analysts foresee no significant breakthroughs in this week's talks, Prasad said that might reflect a maturing relationship between the two nations.

"The focus has shifted to making methodical if slow progress rather than ... arriving at dramatic breakthroughs," he said.

Associated Press writers Matthew Pennington in Washington and Joe McDonald in Beijing contributed to this report.

Obituaries today: Vernon Villeneuve operated Vernon's Radio and Sound, A.A. Television

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Obituaries from The Republican.

050811_vernon_villeneuve.pngVernon W. Villeneuve


Vernon W. Villeneuve, 93, of Springfield, died Wednesday. Villeneuve was born in Newport, Vt., attended Catholic schools there, and graduated from Springfield Trade High School. He was a local businessman and 40-year proprietor of A.A. Television in Springfield, formerly known as Vernon's Radio and Sound. He resided in Springfield for 70 years and was a longtime communicant and usher at St. Michael's Cathedral. He also resided in Cocoa Beach and Ocala, Fla., for 19 years. Villeneuve served in the U.S. Army 54th Armored Infantry Battalion during World War II. He was a member and past president of VFW Post 70 of Springfield, and a member of the Springfield Lodge of Elks #61, the Disabled American Veterans, and the Knights of Columbus Council 2212 of West Springfield.

Obituaries from The Republican:

Massachusetts lawmakers to hold hearing on tax bills

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The Joint Committee on Revenue has scheduled a hearing on dozens of bills aimed at changing the state's tax code.

BOSTON — Taxes are on the table again this week on Beacon Hill.

The Joint Committee on Revenue has scheduled a hearing Thursday on dozens of bills aimed at changing the state's tax code. Several are intended to give tax breaks, including lifting the sales tax on children's books, certain medical supplies and boats that are built or rebuilt in Massachusetts.

Another bill would use the tax code to encourage the use of electric cars.

Still other proposed laws would use taxes to discourage some activities, including establishing an excise tax on plastic carryout bags. And other bills would lower the state sales tax to 5 percent and establish a meals tax holiday.

Legislative leaders have vowed to not include any tax hikes in the state budget this year.


Palmer High School students create anti-bullying video

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This is the 2nd anti-bullying video done by Palmer High School students.

bully-anti.JPGPalmer - Staff photo by Michael S. Gordon - Palmer High School guidance counselor Frederick G. Dileone, right, and students who worked on anti-bullying video from left: Nicole C. Prosperi, Troy R. Remillard, Grant E. Farr, Joseph H. Roberts and Lily G. Ghrear.

PALMER – “If it’s mean, intervene.”

That’s the title and the key message of the latest anti-bullying video produced by a group from Palmer High School’s “Students as Technology Leaders” class with help from guidance counselor Frederick C. Dileone.

With more than 100 hits so far on YouTube, the students hope their message continues to spread, and that their video will encourage other teens to take a stand against bullying.

“The more people that see this, the better,” said sophomore Joseph H. Roberts.

Sophomore Grant E. Farr, freshmen Lily G. Ghrear and Troy R. Remillard, and junior Nicole Prosperi also worked on the three-month project, using a Flip video and still cameras to film life at Palmer High. Troy and Nicole were the actors in the 4-minute video, enduring staged “bullying” by their peers.

Acting was something new for Troy, but not Nicole, who is active in drama. The scenes depict what a bullying victim could experience – a garbage-filled locker, isolation in the cafeteria, hair pulling, a nasty text message, being thrown up against a wall.


The students said it was time consuming to piece together the footage, but Dileone said Joseph, who also was involved in last year’s video, “Bullying is a Worldwide Problem,” proved to be indispensable with his computer skills.

Word about the video is spreading in the Palmer High community, and Dileone hopes it will be shown to students in seventh- through ninth- grades. The younger grades typically have the most problems with bullying, he said, although the students agreed that they don’t think Palmer has as many issues with bullying as other school districts.

The district started the anti-bullying initiative before the death of Phoebe Prince in South Hadley. The freshman from Ireland hanged herself last year after intense bullying by a group of students, who were charged in connection with tormenting her. Their cases were resolved last week in court proceedings in Hampshire County.

Dileone said the Palmer High videos are part of superintendent Gerald A. Fournier’s commitment to anti-bullying efforts in the district. These efforts helped the district receive a grant for security cameras at the high school. They should be in place for next school year.

The first video highlighted the back stairwell, with ominous shots of it, where bullying was said to occur by the students. That will be one of the places the security cameras will be installed.

While the first video focused on the definitions of bullying, this video focused on the responsibility of the bystander, Dileone said. “We tried a different approach,” he said.

Lily said working on the project was a lot of fun, and that she learned a lot in the process. Dileone said they used statistics from the 2009 I-Safe Foundation about bullying, such as: 20 percent have been made fun of, 6 percent were threatened with violence, 4 percent had items stolen, 160,000 students miss school daily because of bullying, and 18 percent have had rumors spread about them.

The statistics are interspersed with scenes from Palmer High – Nicole cornered in the rest room, Troy being threatened with a volleyball.

The eighth-grade poster contest winners also were highlighted in the video. They included: Marilyn Mahan’s “No bulls, just peas!,” showing peas in a peace sign; Julia Waite’s “Why bully when you can be friends” showing a handshake; and Larissa Giard’s “Bullies are animals,” depicting a bull. They all received amazon.com gift certificates.

Viewers are told who they can turn to if they are being bullied – friends, teachers, staff, parents, guidance counselors, nurses.

And, it ends with the message: “How can you help someone today? Don’t be a bystander, intervene.”

Said Dileone, “It may not be seen by some students as a popular role to assume when responding to bullying, but Palmer High School is committed to changing that thought process.”


Western Massachusetts communities list meetings for the week

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Here is a list of major municipal meetings for the coming week in Western Massachusetts: Agawam Tues.-Agawam Cultural Council, 7 p.m., Agawam Public Library. School Committee, 7 p.m., Roberta G. Doering School. Wed.-Local Emergency Planning Committee, 9 a.m., 1002 Suffield St. Fri.-Agawam Municipal Golf Commission, 7:45 a.m., 128 Southwick St. Amherst Mon.-Select Board, 6:30 p.m., Amherst Regional Middle School....

springfield seal

Here is a list of major municipal meetings for the coming week in Western Massachusetts:

Agawam
Tues.-Agawam Cultural Council, 7 p.m., Agawam Public Library. School Committee, 7 p.m., Roberta G. Doering School.

Wed.-Local Emergency Planning Committee, 9 a.m., 1002 Suffield St.

Fri.-Agawam Municipal Golf Commission, 7:45 a.m., 128 Southwick St.

Amherst
Mon.-Select Board, 6:30 p.m., Amherst Regional Middle School.

Town Meeting, 7:30 p.m., middle school.

Tues.-Design Review Board, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall.

Agricultural Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Amherst Regional School Committee, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Jones Library Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., Jones Library.

Wed.-Select Board, 6:30 p.m., Amherst Regional Middle School.

Local Historic District Study Committee, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Town Meeting, 7:30 p.m., middle school.

Belchertown
Mon.-Annual Town Meeting, 7:30 p.m., Belchertown High School.

Chicopee
Mon.-Comprehensive High School Building Commission, 6 p.m., 617 Montgomery St.

Library Trustees, 6:15 p.m., 499 Front St.

Tues.-Ordinance Committee, 6:30 p.m., City Hall.

Historical Commission, 4 p.m., 91 Church St.

Council on Aging, 4:45 p.m., 7 Valley View Court.

Chicopee High School Renovation Committee, 6 p.m., 820 Front St.

Parks and Recreation Commission, 7:30 p.m., 687 Front St.

Wed.-Housing Authority, 6 p.m., 7 Valley View Court.

Easthampton
Mon.-City Council Appointment Subcommittee, 5 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

Conservation Commission, 6 p.m. Municipal Office Building.

High School Building Committee, 6;30 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

Housing Authority, 7 p.m., 112 Holyoke St.

Tues.-City Council Appointment Subcommittee, 5 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

Finance Subcommittee, 6:30 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

Planning Board, 6 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

School Committee, 7 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

Wed.-Finance Subcommittee, 6:30 p.m., 50 Payson Ave

Thu.-Arts Coordinating Committee, 5:30 p.m., Old Town Hall.

Manhan Rail Trail Committee, 7 p.m., 50 Payson Ave.

Granby
Mon.-Town Meeting, 7 p.m., Jr.-Sr. High School

Planning Board, 6:30 p.m., Jr.-Sr. High School

Selectboard, 6:30 p.m., Jr.-Sr. High School

Finance Committee, 6:30 p.m., Jr.-Sr. High School

Tues.-Planning Board, 7 p.m., Jr.-Sr. High School

Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Aldrich Hall

Charter Days, 7 p.m. Public Safety Building

Wed.-Master Plan, 6:30, Aldrich Hall

Greenfield
Tues.-Greenfield Public Library Board of Trustees, 5:30 p.m., Greenfield Public Library.

Community Relations Committee, 6 p.m., Greenfield High School Library.

Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Police Station Meeting Room.

Thu.-Zoning Board of Appeals, 7 p.m., 321 High St.

Hadley
Tues.-Council on Aging, 9:15 a.m., Senior Center.

Board of Health, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Hatfield
Mon.-Cable Advisory Committee, 6 p.m., Smith Academy.

Tues.-Annual Town Meeting, 7 p.m., Smith Academy.

Selectmen/Finance Committee, 6 p.m., Smith Academy Library.

Holyoke
Mon.-City Council Redevelopment Committee, 6 p.m., City Hall, City Council Chambers.

School Committee, special meeting, 6:30 p.m., City Hall, City Council Chambers.

Water Commission, 6:30 p.m., 20 Commercial St.

Tues.-School Building Advisory Committee, 3:30 p.m., Holyoke High School, 500 Beech St.

Planning Board, 6 p.m., City Hall Annex, fourth-floor conference room.

City Council Ordinance Committee, 6:30 p.m., City Hall, City Council Chambers.

Wed.-School Building Advisory Committee, 10 a.m., Holyoke High School, 500 Beech St.

Thu.-City Council Redevelopment Committee, 6 p.m., City Hall, City Council Chambers.

Joint Subcommittee of the City Council and School Committee, 6 p.m., Dean Technical High School, 1045 Main St., Fifield Community Room.

City Council Public Safety Committee, 6:30 p.m., City Hall, City Council Chambers.

Huntington
Wed.-Board of Selectmen, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Gateway Regional School Committee, 7:30 p.m., Gateway Regional High School.

Monson
Mon.-Annual Town Meeting, 7 p.m., Granite Valley Middle School.

Finance Committee, 6:45 p.m., Granite Valley Middle School.

Tues.-Housing Authority, 3 p.m., 31 State St., suite 50.

Wed.-School Committee, 7 p.m., Quarry Hill Community School.

Water and Sewer Commission, 6:30 p.m., 198 WD Main St.

Northampton
Mon.-Committee on Elections, Riles, Orders, Ordinances and Claims, 6 p.m., Council Chambers.

Committee on Appointments and Evaluations, 11:15 a.m., Council Chambers.

City Council/Board of Public Works Conference Committee, 4 p.m., 125 Locust St.

Tues.-Budget Hearing, 5 p.m., Council Chambers.

Wed.-Board of Public Works, 5:30 p.m., 125 Locust St.

Thu.-School Committee, 7:15 p.m., John F. Kennedy Middle School.

Palmer
Mon.-Three Rivers Fire District Prudential Committee, 7 p.m., Three Rivers fire station.

Tues.-Palmer Fire and Water District No. 1 annual meeting, 6:45 p.m., Palmer Public Library.

South Hadley
Mon.-Board of Assessors, 10 a.m., Town Hall.

Council on Aging, 4 p.m., 45 Dayton St.

Planning Board, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall 204.

Tues.-Sustainability-Energy, 4 p.m., Town Hall 204.

Wed.-School Committee, 6:30 p.m., high school library.

Thu.-Water Commissioners, 5 p.m., Fire Station 2.

Southwick
Mon.-Board of Selectmen, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Board of Assessors, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Board of Appeals, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Tues.-Planning Board, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Wed.-Emergency Management Agency, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Cemetery Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Springfield
Mon.-City Council General Government Committee, 2 and 3 p.m., Room 200, City Hall.

Tues.-School Committee’s Budget, Legislative and Building and Maintenance subcommittees, 1 p.m., School Department, 1550 Main St.

Wed.-School Committee’s Budget and Finance Subcommittee, 1 p.m., School Department, 1550 Main St.

City Council Finance Committee and Planning and Economic Development Committee, 3:15 p.m., Room 200, City Hall.

Fri.-School Committee, 6 p.m., budget hearing, Central High School, 1840 Roosevelt Ave.

Ware
Mon.-Annual Town Meeting, 7 p.m., Ware High School.

Tues.-Police Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Wed.-Council on Aging, 9:30 a.m., Senior Center.

Conservation Commission, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall.

Thu.-250th Anniversary Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall.

Warren
Mon.-Board of Selectmen, 4 p.m., Shepard Municipal Building.

Tues.-Annual Town Meeting, 7 p.m., Quaboag Regional Middle High School.

Board of Selectmen, 6 p.m., Shepard Municipal Building.

Assessors, 4 p.m., Shepard Municipal Building.

Finance Committee, 6 p.m., Quaboag Regional Middle High School.

Planning Board, 6:45 p.m., Quaboag Regional Middle High School.

Wed.-Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Shepard Municipal Building.

Planning Board, 6 p.m., Shepard Municipal Building.

Cultural Council, 6:30 p.m., Shepard Municipal Building.

Thu.-Warren Water District annual meeting, 7 p.m., Quaboag Regional Middle High School.


West Springfield
Tues.-Community Preservation Committee, 5:30 p.m., municipal building.

School Committee, 7 p.m., municipal building.

Westfield
Mon.-Council on Aging, 3 p.m., City Hall.

Police Commission, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Tues.-Board of Public Works, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Housing Authority, 7 p.m., Alice Burke Way.

Wed.-Board of Health, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Water Commission, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Board of Assessors, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Thu.-Airport Commission, 7 p.m., Barnes Municipal Airport Terminal, Apremont Way.

Longmeadow fire damages house on Field Road

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The fire was caused by a malfunctioning electrical system.

longmeadow fire truck

LONGMEADOW – A fire caused major damage to a house Sunday, leaving a family of three looking for another place to live.

The fire was reported at about 1:45 p.m. by a neighbor who saw smoke coming from 89 Field Road. When firefighters arrived there was heavy smoke streaming from the second floor, Fire Capt. Andrew W. Fraser said.

“The fire started on the first floor and spread to the second,” he said.

The damage was estimated at about $150,000 and the family will not be able to return until major repairs can be made, Fraser said.

The home is owned by Cheryl O’Connor, he said.

The blaze was caused by a malfunction in the electrical system, he said.

It took about 20 firefighters about three hours to completely extinguish the blaze. Firefighters from East Longmeadow and the North Thompsonville District in Enfield assisted Longmeadow firefighters, Fraser said.

Missing hikers in Leverett located by police

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The three hikers had been reported missing around dusk.

hiking trails

LEVERETT - State police are reporting three adults who got lost while hiking off Rattlesnake Gutter Road were located after 9 p.m. Sunday.

The three had been reported missing at dusk. Police dogs and a State Police helicopter was called to help locate the hikers, officers said.

No more information was available. The Leverett Fire Department lead the search operation, state police said.

President Obama: 'Getting our man' outweighed risks of raid on bin Laden compound

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Public opinion polls have shown a boost in Obama's support in the days since the raid, and his re-election campaign was eager to draw attention to the interview.

0da787334f0aa20aec0e6a706700e345.jpgActivists of a local social group Muthahida Shehri Mahaz hold up a banner depicting U.S. President Barack Obama, during a rally to condemn the killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, in Multan, Pakistan, Sunday, May 8, 2011. As U.S. investigators comb through a treasure trove of computer data and documents seized from Osama bin Laden's home, Pakistani officials face a more domestic task: What to do with three of the slain terrorist leader's wives and eight of his children.


WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama ordered the commando raid that killed terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after deciding the risks were outweighed by the possibility "of us finally getting our man" following a decade of frustration, he said in a Sunday broadcast interview.

The helicopter raid "was the longest 40 minutes of my life," Obama told CBS' "60 Minutes," with the possible exception of when his daughter Sasha became sick with meningitis as an infant.

Monitoring the commando raid operation in the White House Situation Room a week ago, Obama said he and top aides "had a sense of when gunfire and explosions took place" halfway around the world, and knew when one of the helicopters carrying Navy SEALs made an unplanned hard landing. "But we could not get information clearly about what was happening inside the compound," he said.

Public opinion polls have shown a boost in Obama's support in the days since the raid, and his re-election campaign was eager to draw attention to the interview.

Jim Messina, the president's campaign manager, emailed supporters encouraging them to watch the program. The note included a link to a listing of all of the network's local affiliates around the country — and another one requesting donations to Obama's re-election effort.

In the interview, Obama said that as nervous as he was about the raid, he didn't lose sleep over the possibility that bin Laden might be killed. Anyone who questions whether the terrorist mastermind didn't deserve his fate "needs to have their head examined," he said.

Obama said bin Laden had "some sort of support network" inside Pakistan to be able to live for years at a high-security compound in Abbottabad, a city that houses numerous military facilities. But he stopped short of accusing Pakistani officials of harboring the man who planned the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks that killed nearly 3,000.

"We don't know who or what that support network was. We don't know whether there might have been some people inside of government, people outside of government." He said the United States wanted to investigate further to learn the facts, "and more importantly, the Pakistani government has to investigate."

Some members of Congress have called for a cessation of U.S. aid to Pakistan, at least until it becomes clear what role, if any, the government played in bin Laden's ability to avoid detection for years. But Obama said that since the Sept. 11 attacks, "Pakistan has been a strong counter-terrorism partner with us" despite periodic disagreements.

The president was guarded in discussing any of the details of the raid, and offered no details that have not yet been made public.

Discussing his own role, he said the decision to order the raid was very difficult, in part because there was no certainty that bin Laden was at the compound, and also because of the risk to the SEALs.

"But ultimately, I had so much confidence in the capacity of our guys to carry out the mission that I felt that the risks were outweighed by the potential benefit of finally getting our man," he said.

Two influential lawmakers rebutted calls for a cut-off in American aid to Pakistan, an inconstant ally in the long struggle against terrorists.

Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said: "Everybody has to understand that even in the getting of Osama bin Laden, the Pakistanis were helpful. We have people on the ground in Pakistan because they allow us to have them.

"We actually worked with them on certain parts of the intelligence that helped to lead to him, and they have been extraordinarily cooperative and at some political cost to them in helping us to take out 16 of the top 20 al-Qaida leaders with a drone program that we have in the western part of the country," he said.

The senior Republican on the committee, Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, said: "Pakistan is a critical factor in the war against terror, our war, the world's war against it, simply because there are a lot of terrorists in Pakistan." He also noted that the nation possesses nuclear weapons, and said a cut-off in aid could weaken the United States' ability to make sure they do not fall into the hands of terrorists.

Kerry strongly defended the president's decision to order the raid, and the shooting death of bin Laden.

The administration has offered shifting accounts of the events that unfolded in the 40 minutes the Navy SEALs were inside bin Laden's compound, most recently saying the terrorist mastermind was unarmed but appeared to be reaching for a weapon when he was shot in the head and chest.

"I think those SEALs did exactly what they should have done. And we need to shut up and move on about, you know, the realities of what happened in that building," Kerry said.

National security adviser Tom Donilon said, "I've not seen evidence that would tell us that the political, the military, or the intelligence leadership had foreknowledge of — of bin Laden" being in the country. He said the U.S. has asked the Pakistani authorities for access to people whom the SEALs left behind in the compound, including three of bin Laden's wives. The U.S. also wants access to additional materials collected there, he said.

Officials have said the SEALs took voluminous computerized and paper records when they choppered out of bin Laden's compound. Donilon likened the amount of information retrieved to the size of a small college library.

Donilon also sidestepped when asked if waterboarding and other so-called enhanced interrogation of detainees had produced information that led to the successful raid against bin Laden's compound. "No single piece of intelligence led to this," he said.

The national security adviser appeared on ABC, NBC, CNN and Fox. Lugar was on CNN, and Kerry spoke

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