Celebrated Boston Globe sports columnist and nationally renowned author Dan Shaughnessy will give the commencement address at Nichols College on Saturday, May 5th.

Shaughnessy, who also serves as an associate sports editor for the Globe, will speak to the 430 Nichols seniors scheduled to graduate. He also will receive an honorary degree from the college. “Given that Sport Management is our largest major and that Dan Shaughnessy is so well respected in the field of sports, we’re fortunate to have him speak to our community,” commented Nichols President Susan West Engelkemeyer, who will be leading her first commencement exercises at the school.

In his 23 years as a Globe columnist, Shaughnessy has covered events and issues in sports from around the world, and he has been voted one of America's top ten sports columnists by the Associated Press Sports Editors nine times. He has been named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year ten times. Shaughnessy has written eleven books, including The Curse of the Bambino and Senior Year. He is currently working on a book with former Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona. Shaughnessy has personal ties to Nichols through his brother, William J. Shaughnessy, who graduated from the college in 1969 and played varsity baseball and basketball. Shaughnessy also makes regular radio and television appearances on The SportsHub, 98.5 FM; WHDH SportsXtra; Comcast; and NESN. He is a columnist for Sports Illustrated.com.

Dan Shaughnessy was born in Groton, Massachusetts, graduated from Holy Cross, and worked at the Baltimore Evening Sun and the Washington Star from 1977-81. He joined the Boston Globe in 1981 and has been a sports columnist since 1989. He is on the New England regional board of UNICEF. He is married to Dr. Marilou Shaughnessy and lives in Newton, Massachusetts. Nichols commencement speakers in recent years have included United States Senator Scott Brown in 2010 and Keith Anderson ’81, chairman and chief investment officer at Anderson Global Macro, in 2011. This year’s ceremonies will begin at 10:30 am. 

The Dudley Republican Town Committee (DRTC) elected Jamie C. Bowlin to be its next chairman at its organizational meeting on Thursday evening, April 5. Mr. Bowlin, previously the vice-chairman, takes over from Douglas M. Bushman, who had been the group's chairman since it was reconstituted in 2009.

In his acceptance remarks, Mr. Bowlin talked about the impact the DRTC has had in Dudley politics. He described how in the 2008 elections the Republican candidate for state representative, Kevin Kuros,

had a deficit of 500 votes, and two years later in 2010, he won the town by 500 votes. The committee's efforts were instrumental in that 1000 vote shift, he said.

Mr. Bowlin also reiterated some of the goals of the group: to promote the election of Republican candidates, to promote the principles of the Republican Party, and to engage the citizens and government of the town of Dudley in order to improve its overall quality of life and economy.

In stepping down, Mr. Bushman said, “I've had an enjoyable time for the last two years. We started off with just six people in the room, but have kept growing. We're now the most powerful town committee south of Worcester, not just in numbers, but in dedication and enthusiasm too.” The group has 24 members as of the March 6 primary election.

Robert C. Kubiak was elected to be the committee's next vice-chairman. He had been the treasurer.  Jason M. Johnson was chosen as the next treasurer, and Scott E. Zajkowski will be the next secretary, replacing Michael N. Mayotte.

.

Saturday, April 28
from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

DUDLEY - The Dudley Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will give the public another opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs.  Bring your medications for disposal to The Dudley Police located inside the Dudley Municipal complex at 71 West Main Street Dudley, Ma.  This is the second time an event such as this has been held in Dudley.  The last took place on October 29, 2011.  A large quantity of prescription medications were taken in at that time.  The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

During one event last year, Americans turned in 376,593 pounds—188 tons—of prescription drugs at nearly 5,400 sites operated by the DEA and more than 3,000 state and local law enforcement partners.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue.  Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.  Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.

Four days after the first Take-Back event in September 2010, Congress passed the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them.  The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances.  DEA has begun drafting regulations to implement the Act, a process that can take as long as 24 months.  Until new regulations are in place, local law enforcement agencies like the Dudley Police Department and the DEA will plan to hold prescription drug take-back events every few months.

Bozella spent 26 years in prison
for a crime he didn't commit 

By Steev Riccardo

Dudley - Nichols College students and guests heard a speaker last Wednesday at the Daniels Auditorium who was unlike any other they had probably ever heard before.

Dewey Bozella spent 26 years, half his life, in prison, after being convicted in 1983 for the murder of an elderly woman, having been framed for a crime he did not commit. It wasn’t until 2009 that the conviction was finally overturned, and Bozella was freed from prison.

Upon his release he began training for a professional boxing match at the unlikely age of 52, and with the help of professional boxer Bernard Hopkins, his dream came true.

On October 15, 2011, he boxed Larry Hopkins on the undercard of a Hopkins fight at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, a bout in which he won a unanimous decision. Bozella even received a phone call from President Barack Obama before the bout, wishing him luck.

The boxing match resulted in ESPN awarding him the prestigious Arthur Ashe Courage Award and his life being chronicled at the annual ESPY Awards in Los Angeles last year.

Bozella grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and had an extremely difficult childhood. When he was nine he and his brothers and sisters witnessed his father killing his mother. The last time he saw his mother, she was being put in an ambulance.

He said during his speech that his “life took a complete turn after that.”  He was moved around from foster and group homes for the next several years. He ended up running away from these homes over and over again.

In the tenth grade he started hanging out with the wrong crowd trying “to be accepted” and ending up “doing drugs and drinking,” and eventually dropped out of high school. He got in a fight and beat another kid up who ended up taking revenge on one of his brothers, stabbing him to death. It was clear that things were not going his way.

In 1977, when he was 18 years old, a 92-year-old woman was murdered in Poughkeepsie, New York, and acquaintances of Bozella’s told the police that he had committed the crime. At first he was not arrested due to lack of evidence, but six years later, in 1983, he was charged with the crime and sentenced to 20 years-to-life in prison.

On at least three different occasions, he could have admitted that he did the crime and been freed by the parole board but refused to do so and wasn’t released until 2009 when new evidence was found.  He had sought out the help of the Innocence Project, who convinced the law firm of Wilmer & Hale to take on his case. They were able to prove that Bozella was innocent when they uncovered additional evidence. 

Bozella has chosen to take his story to the people and gives lectures to groups such as the one which heard him speak on Wednesday night.  His hour-long speech was basically his entire story, how he turned to boxing and taking classes to the point where he had earned a masters degree from New York Theological Seminary while in prison.

He spoke of fear, commitment, persistence, forgiveness, determination, his struggle, and conflict, and ultimately the hope and faith that allowed him to stay alive in prison and find his freedom.

It was no surprise that he received a standing ovation when he was done; that is the least he has earned.

Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

By Dean Kochanowski
Dudley Fire Chief

Now that open burning is in full swing, there a few things that local citizens need to be aware of, especially this season, due to the lack of snow and unusually warm temperatures. Open Burning runs from January 15^th to May 1^st every year, and every year we see an increase in permits issued. It has become a popular way of getting rid of unwanted brush and natural debris. It is easy and cleanup is minimal and by the time you are done just a little pile of ash remains.

There are some things that all citizens need to keep in mind when burning. Open burning can only be conducted on land proximate to the place of generation. In other words, your neighbor across the street cannot drag his brush into your yard and burn off your permit. Burning must take place 75 feet from any dwelling. Burning can only be conducted between the hours of 10 a.m. And 4 p.m. It must be conducted only during periods of good atmospheric ventilation.

Rainy days are not good days to burn because the smoke remains low and becomes a nuisance to neighbors and could negatively affect persons with breathing disorders.

All persons wishing to burn must obtain a permit from the local fire department before attempting to burn. Persons wishing to burn must call in to the fire department prior to 10 a.m. to see if burning is allowed that day and to notify the department that they will be burning that day. Heads of fire departments (Fire Chief) have the statutory authority to grant open burning permits under Mass. General Law. The Mass. Department of Environmental Protection is the regulating authority and the Fire Chief is the enforcement authority. Failure to abide by these rules can result in fines.

Dry and warm weather has plagued the area this season. Persons are urged to take extra precautions this year. Keep your burn piles extremely small and manageable. Always keep a hose close by to wet down the surrounding area. Never leave a fire unattended, and if you feel your fire has grown out of control, immediately call the fire department. Do not try to put an out-of- control fire out by yourself. You risk injury and property damage. Remember to always call the fire department prior to burning. With the unusually dry weather there are going to be a lot of days coming up that burning will not be allowed. Stay safe and if you follow the law you should have a hassle free and successful brush burning season. Should you have any comments or questions, please feel free to contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Dudley Police Chief Steven Wojnar and retired dispatcher
Ms. Leona Lafountain.

Ms. Leona Lafountain (seated) and four of her children.

Dudley Police: On Friday, March 23, 2012, The Dudley Police Department Dispatch Center, at the Dudley Municipal Complex, 71 West Main Street, was officially dedicated to long time public safety dispatcher, Ms. Leona Lafountain.  Leona retired in July of 2010 after serving for over 43 years with the department.  She began her duties with the Dudley Police Department on March 1, 1967.  Family, friends, co-workers, and local officials, were on hand to honor “Lee.”  Chief Wojnar credited Leona for her dedication and service to the Town.  He also complimented all public safety dispatchers who have, currently, or will serve in the future.  The position often goes unnoticed; however, the service these men and women provide is a vital part of everyday emergency operations.  It is truly fitting for this center to be named for a dedicated employee who gave well over half of her life serving the people of Dudley.  Having this center named for such a devoted public safety dispatcher draws attention to all the men and women who provide this service to the community each and every day.

As a reminder to everyone, National Emergency Telecommunicators week is April 8^th – 14^th.  It is a great opportunity to say thank you to those men and women who serve in your community.

DUDLEY – Incumbent Steven P. Sullivan and John J. Marsi Jr. will be the two candidates for the two available selectmen positions on the ballot at the May 7 town election. Mr. Marsi ran for the position of selectman in December as well, but was defeated at that time by Peter Fox.

Incumbent selectman Nancy A. Runkle, the current town planner, is not running for re-election.

Also submitting nomination papers by the March 19 deadline were Richard A. Carmignani for treasurer, Jo-Ann Szymczak for assessor, Joseph M. Pietrzak for the Dudley-Charlton Regional School Committee, Jennifer Cournoyer for the Board of Health, Jonathan R. Androlewicz for water commissioner and Benjamin A.Craver for library trustee. All are the incumbents.

Not running for reelection are sewer commissioner Constance Nedoroscik, planning board member Christopher Reich, library trustee Brian C. Dorval Jr, and housing authority member Peter Teguis.

Running unopposed for the open library trustee seat is Jerold J. Jeffrey; running for the housing authority seat is Thomas J. Kaczynski.

There are no candidates for the sewer commissioner and planning board seats.

.

Location:  Auburn & Worcester Fire Training Facilities

More photos follow.

Particulars:   Recently, members of the Dudley Fire Department underwent an extensive training program which taught firefighters a number of survival skills.  The class, Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) training, took three days to complete.  RIT teams are essential at any building fire these days, as a RIT team is put to work when a firefighter who is battling a fire gets in trouble.  The course curriculum dealt with how firefighters get trapped as well as how they can help themselves survive that harrowing situation.  And if they were unable to escape their situation, teams were trained on how to locate the firefighter in trouble and facilitate his rescue.

The program, which was offered by members of the Auburn and Oxford fire departments, covered a variety of subjects in the classroom before the Dudley students were allowed to take their newfound knowledge into the drill yard to apply their lessons.  Dudley firefighters were taught about the perils of getting separated from your co-workers inside a fire building and how easy it is to get disoriented, lost, and or trapped.  Firefighters then learned some very useful self-survival techniques if they ever found themselves trapped in an untenable area.

After completing that portion of training, the Dudley jakes were taught how to locate and drag out a brother firefighter that was in trouble.  This task can be Herculean at times, as a firefighter is usually wearing about 75 pounds of equipment when he enters a fire.  Add water weight to the protective ensemble he wears and you can conservatively add another 25 pounds to the mix.  It becomes physically demanding and quite difficult to haul a 200 pound firefighter to safety when he actually weighs in at about 300 pounds!  It takes a very knowledgeable crew and loads of stamina to get the job done.  Dudley firefighters took the class very seriously, and worked very hard to perform each drill in a quick and efficient manner.

Firefighters spent two eight hour days in the Auburn and Worcester Fire Training Facilities honing their practical skills.  The first day was difficult, but on the second day an added degree of difficulty was added; each of the drills were performed under a “live fire” condition.  Fires are built in the training building to add heat, smoke, and a definite sense of urgency and realism to the scenarios.  Dudley firefighters rose to the challenge and proved they had learned their lessons well.  And when things went wrong, operations were critiqued and discussed with all members involved.  All in all, it was a great learning experience, and firefighters received some very valuable “hands on” training.

Photos:

Layoffs, cuts, higher sports fees, pre-school fees proposed to address $4.3M budget gap

Janet Stoica 
Patriot Correspondent

Last Wednesday’s Dudley-Charlton Regional School Committee meeting (March 14) began with Superintendent Sean Gilrein report that the French River Education Center’s offering of Chinese Mandarin courses would count for students’ high school credits.  He also noted that the Shepherd Hill cheerleaders had won the Division I State Championship last weekend.

John Polumbo and Stan Kulas, auditors for FY 2012, were next on the agenda. Mr. Polumbo spoke about the School District’s financial statements, federal grants, and overall observations. He likened the school budget to running a business and also indicated that the schools are just getting by with existing reserves and that the school committee must be judicious in its expenditures.

Mr. Polumbo touched on health insurance costs, stating that the district was basically self-insured with stop-loss provisions, having had several very large health insurance claims.

Mr. Kulas then advised the committee that the district had received $2.8 million in federal grants, but that several were in process of being eliminated.

The audit team then pointed to observations on audit procedures, noting that strides had been made in checking account reconciliation regarding payroll, the disaster-recovery plan now has a written report, authorization expenditures were in fine shape, and great progress was being made in regards to older outstanding checks.

Discussion was then held regarding a fee increases for athletics and the school lunch program based upon the current economics and anticipated loss of Federal and State funding for FY 2013. Mr. Gilrein recommended a $50 increase per sport fee with a new total of $150 cap per individual and a family cap of $500.

The pre-school fee recommendation was proposed to be $800 for two half-days, a $200 increase. It was brought up that with Commerce Insurance’s pre-school program closing later this year, there may be an opportunity to increase the Dudley pre-school enrollment.

It was also noted that the district’s school lunch program lost $37,000 last year on $1.2million in sales due to increased food costs. Mr. Trifone, finance director, anticipated a $50,000 loss this year. To close the projected deficit Mr. Trifone requested that the committee vote to increase the cost of student lunches from $2.05 to $2.25 and adult lunches from $3.75 to $4.00 effective with the 2012-13 school year. The Committee voted unanimously for the lunch fee increase.

Fiscal Year 2013 budget numbers were then reviewed and discussed with the initial financial projection signifying a $4.3million budget gap between recommendations and the anticipated revenue estimates. On March 6, the School Committee had reduced the budget by $1.4million narrowing the gap to $2.9million. To reduce the budget gap, Mr. Gilrein’s recommendations were as follows:

1. Reserves, fees, and savings

-Increase reserves from $814,000 to $1.1million               $286,000

-Increase school choice commitment                                     500,000

-Cafeteria Revolving Account (fringes)                                     25,000

-Raise Fees – Athletic/Pre-School                                               40,000

-Reduce Fuel Line Item                                                                  45,000

-Reduce Electricity Line Item                                                        25,000

-Reduce Professional Development                                                25,000

-Grade 5 Teacher at Charlton Middle School

(unanticipated retirement savings.)                                          32,000

2. Eliminate the following positions through attrition

-Team Chair, Mason Rd. School

-0.5 Pre-School, Mason Rd. School

-Custodian, Shepherd Hill

-Grade 6 Teacher, Dudley Middle School

-Secretary, Shepherd Hill

-Instructional Asst, Charlton Elem. School

-Grade 8 Teacher, Charlton Middle School                                     $366,000

3. Initiate the following reductions in force

-2 Kindergarten Teachers, Mason Rd. School

-2 Grade 1 Teachers, Charlton Elem. School

-1 Grade 4 Teacher, Dudley Elem School

-1 Teacher, Shepherd Hill

-1 Team Chair, Charlton Elem. School

-2 Instructional Assts., Mason Rd. School

-4 Elementary Librarian Asssistant                                                  $384,000

All Committee members voted in favor of the budget reductions, with Chairman Elaine Rabbitt opposed.

Liz Canney, student representative on the Committee, provided great news regarding the Shepherd Hill Student Council. For the second time in three years, they were awarded the “Gold Council of Excellence Award,” which is based on their past year’s work. They earned 46 out of a possible 50 points in their achievement and had been selected for the Top 10 Project Award as the result of their work assisting the residents of Brimfield after the devastating tornado strike. Additionally, three students won the Commonwealth Award: Michaela Carofaniello, Christopher Gardner, and Roberto Martinez.

Finance Director William Trifone requested authorization to act on the district’s behalf in committing the district to a long-term natural gas contract for Mason Road School. As prices for natural gas have decreased, it was determined that exploring the open market for long-term savings with a broker’s assistance would be favorable. The committee unanimously approved  the authorization.

Members in attendance at the meeting: Michael McConville; Elaine Rabbitt; Raymond Chalk; Geraldine Nowicki, Chair; Pauline Aucoin, Vice Chair; Catherine Kabala; Joseph Pietrzak; and Liz Canney, Student Rep. Also in attendance, Sandra Sullivan, Recording Secretary; William Trifone, Finance Director; and Sean Gilrein, Superintendent.

UPDATE: March 19, 11 a.m.

The Dudley Police Department is releasing the name of the driver in the previously reported accident on Dresser Hill Road, text below.  He is Mr. Terry J. Penkala, age 28, of 34 Chase Avenue in Dudley.  He is currently receiving treatment at UMass Medical Center in Worcester and he is in stable condition at this time.  The accident remains under investigation by Dudley and Massachusetts State Police.

On Friday, March 16th at approximately 3:10 am, Dudley Police as well as Dudley Fire and Emergency Services personnel were dispatched to a single car motor vehicle accident on Dresser Hill Road (Route 31).  The accident occurred approximately ½ mile south of the Charlton town line.  Upon arrival, officers discovered a 2001 Ford Taurus off the northbound side of the road.  The vehicle appeared to have been traveling in a southerly direction and left the roadway at a curve.  It struck a tree and later caught on fire.  A passerby assisted the driver out of the vehicle.  The male operator, whose name is withheld at this point due to family notification, suffered serious injuries.  He was treated by the responding officers and Dudley Emergency Services personnel.  He was later transported to UMass Hospital in Worcester.  Life Flight helicopter services were requested, however, they were unable to fly due to weather conditions.  The driver is in surgery this morning.  The cause of the accident is under investigation at this point by Dudley Sergeant Paul Ceppetelli and Officer Arthur Ferreira, as well as members of the Massachusetts State Police and District Attorney Joseph Early’s Office.