Search for The Westfield News Search for The Westfield News Westfield350.com The WestfieldNews The Westfield Search“I“TF forIMEH TheISTORY IS Westfield THE WERE ONLYNews Serving Westfield, Southwick, and surroundingNews Hilltowns Westfield350.comWEATHER The WestfieldNews TAUGHTCRITIC WITHOUT IN THE TONIGHT Serving Westfield, Southwick, and surrounding Hilltowns FORM“TIME OFIS THEAMBITION STOR ONLYIES.” , TONIGHTWEATHERPartly Cloudy. IT WOULDCRITICJOHN NEVERWITHOUT STEINBECK BE TONIGHTLow of 55. www.thewestfieldnews.com FORGOTTEN Partly Cloudy. AMBITION.”.” LowPartly of Cloudy. 17. — RudyaJOHNR STEINBECKD KIPLING LowVOL. of 55. 86 NO. 151 www.thewestfieldnews.comTUESDAY, JUNE 27, 2017 75 cents VOL.VOL. 86 87 NO. NO. 151 15 THURSDAY,TUESDAY, JANUARY JUNE 27, 18, 2017 2018 7575 cents Cents DPW truck faces serious mechanical failure during snow cleanup By GREG FITZPATRICK truck into the air. The force of the impact tore brake lines, suspension, wheels, and all electri- Correspondent the rear wheels right out from underneath the cal components. SOUTHWICK – While trying to plow the truck. Martin did everything he could to keep DPW Director Randy Brown said that a streets during the snow fall early on Wednesday the truck under control and on the roadway until mechanic took a look at the truck after the inci- morning, a Southwick DPW operator faced a he could get it stopped. Fortunately, the truck dent occurred on Wednesday morning and there serious mechanical failure with a highway truck. did stay on the roadway and did not strike any- is no word yet on how long the truck could be According to the Southwick Police thing or anyone.” out of commission or how much it could cost. Department, the operator, Scott Martin, was The post added that while Martin was very “We need to do some more digging on it and plowing Vining Hill Road at around 2:30 a.m. shaken up by the incident, he didn’t face any some research,” said Brown. on Wednesday morning and they reported the injuries. As for the truck, which is a 2000 Brown added that the truck is a part of his A Southwick Highway Department incident as follows: Sterling dump truck, it was loaded with about FY19 proposed budget in which he wants to vehicle suffered a mechanical failure “The driveshaft dropped to the ground and seven tons of salt. The truck suffered serious replace that truck with a brand new vehicle that early Wednesday morning. (Photo cour- dug into the roadway launching the rear of the damage to drive train as well as the rear end, the DPW would purchase. tesy of Southwick Police Department) Southwick Westfield Fire Fire receives Department community receives grants from educational the state By GREG FITZPATRICK Westfield High School band plays under Director Patrick Kennedy Correspondent during the 2018 inauguration. (Photo by Lynn Boscher) grant funding SOUTHWICK – On January 12, the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services By DAN DESROCHERS announced that the state has awarded grants to Correspondent over 250 fire departments throughout the com- UMass to host annual WESTFIELD—The Westfield Fire Department was monwealth. one of over 200 departments that received state grant In the release, it explains both the S.A.F.E and money for educational programming for both youth and SENIOR S.A.F.E. grants that towns and cities seniors in the community. received. gathering of Top High The Westfield Fire Department received Student “The S.A.F.E. Program provides $1.2M Awareness of Fire Safety Education (SAFE) and Senior through the Executive Office of the Public SAFE grants from the state in order to provide fire and Safety and Security to local fire departments. School Band Students life safety education to youths and seniors. The Westfield The Senior SAFE program provides $600,000 Fire Department is one of 253 departments to receive the in grant funds from fees paid by tobacco compa- AMHERST – On Saturday, February 10, the University of SAFE grant, and one of 238 that received the Senior nies to the Fire Standard Compliant Cigarette Massachusetts Amherst Department of Music and Dance will present the SAFE grant. Program to ensure their products meet the fire 33rd Annual High School Honor Band, featuring over 250 outstanding The SAFE Program will be providing Westfield Fire safety requirements to be sold in Massachusetts. high school musicians from 34 schools from around the region (see with $5,407 in grant money, which the department will The programs are administered by the state complete list below). look to use to provide both in-class and on-hand learning Department of Fire Services.” Coordinated by UMass Wind Studies Director Matthew Westgate, this of fire and life safety. annual program provides New England’s finest wind and percussion “It’s a program I believe See Southwick Fire, Page 7 students with the opportunity to rehearse and perform wind band litera- in, and the data supports ture of the highest caliber with Westgate, UMass Marching Band that,” Deputy Chief Eric Director Timothy T. Anderson, Music Education Professor Sara K. Bishop, of the Westfield Fire Jones, and a special guest composer of national renown. Department, said. “It’s an This year’s guest composer is Joni Greene, an Austin-based composer effective program and we’re of music for wind band, choir, orchestra, chamber ensemble, and cham- lucky we have the educators ber opera. Greene’s music is regularly performed throughout the United dedicated to the program.” States and Canada and has received a number of international premieres. According to information Recent and notable awarded prizes include the 2nd and 3rd Frank Ticheli provided by the state’s competition, ASCAP/Lotte Lehman “Damien Top” Prize, and the ACC Department of Fire Services Band Directors Association Emerging Artist Grant. (DFS), since the grant’s The schedule for the day will include an “Educator Track” for high inception in the autumn of school and middle school band conductors, which includes sessions 1995, children’s deaths in taught by UMass faculty members, a lunch with music education stu- fires in the state have dents and faculty, a session with Joni Greene about repertoire and com- dropped by 72 percent. Westfield Fire Chief missioning, and a private UMass Wind Ensemble performance. According to Westfield Mary Regan The day-long event will culminate with a performance of works by Fire Chief Mary Regan, the Joni Greene and others by members of the Honor Band, their instructors, city’s department has been a Southwick Fire Chief Russ Anderson. (WNG and the UMass Wind Ensemble. The concert will take place at 7 p.m. in part of the program since it began and has seen its effec- File Photo) the Fine Arts Center Concert Hall, and is free and open to the public. tiveness. “For Westfield, the biggest impact are the fires that See H.S. Honor Band, Page 7 never started because of the education in the schools,” Regan said. Regan added that this cannot be measured, though there was an impact on student recognition regarding Senate/Attorney General candidates to attend Lincoln Day Brunch fires and knowledge on what to do. According to Bishop, the funds for the SAFE program WESTFIELD – Several choose delegates to the Republican in Westfield are typically geared toward students in Republican candidates for US Senate State convention being held at the grades kindergarten to fifth grade, with some focuses and Attorney General for Worcester DCU Center on April including fire hazards and tobacco products. The materi- Massachusetts have confirmed that 28th. The candidates that have con- als are also age-specific. they will attend the Westfield firmed are Beth Lindstrom, Geoff The students will typically be provided with a class- Republican Committee’s Lincoln Diehl, John Kingston, Allen Waters room portion of education, followed by a practical appli- Day Brunch, on Saturday, February and Heidi Wellman for US Senate, cation of what they learned. This may even include the 3rd from 10 am to noon, at the East and Attorney General candidates use of the “SAFE-funded fire safety house,” according Mountain Country Club. The MC Dan Shores and Jay McMahon.” to Bishop, which is set up like a small home where they will be Senator Don Humason and each candidate will have an The event is open to the public. Tickets are $27 per person, opportunity to address the gathering. and reserved at the door. See Grant Funding, Page 7 According to City Chairman Dan Allie, “The brunch is RSVP by January 29 by emailing [email protected], phone always a great event, and this year it will be an opportunity to 860-604-5264, or mail Westfield Republican Committee PO meet and hear from many candidates before the caucuses to Box 1301 Westfield, MA 01086 Chicopee man charged in teen’s death back in court SPRINGFIELD (AP) — The case of a Chicopee man charged with shooting and killing a 15-year-old boy he thought was trying to break into his house is heading back to court. The Republican newspaper reports that prosecutors and defense attorneys for 44-year-old Jeffrey Lovell are scheduled to appear Thursday in Hampden Superior Court in advance of Lovell's manslaughter trial slated to start next week. Authorities say Lovell shot through a door of his Chicopee home and killed 15-year-old Dylan Francisco in July 2016. Francisco and two other youths were knocking because they thought it was a friend's house. Lovell told police he told the group to leave, but they continued banging on the door until a window broke and he thought they Westfield Fire Deputy Chief and Fire Prevention were trying to break in. Officer Eric Bishop. PAGE 2 - THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 2018 WWW.THEWESTFIELDNEWS.COM THE WESTFIELD NEWS 1669 1770 1775 1775 1792 1783 1741 1780 1810 WESTFIELD SOUTHWICK HUNTINGTON GRANVILLE RUSSELL CHESTER BLANDFORD MONTGOMERY TOLLAND AROUND TOWN Submit your Around Town News to [email protected] SNOWMAN ON statE ST.