HAMPDEN — The Hampden Planning Board conducted a public hearing on Glendale Road Development’s novel solar project. The Feb. 28 hearing was the first of several meetings before the proj...
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WILBRAHAM — Residents recently received a crash course on why their local taxes rise or fall, what goes into the arithmetic that determines the tax rates themselves and what often used terms ...
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WILBRAHAM — The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources’ Green Communities Division awarded the Town of Wilbraham a $54,358 Green Communities grant to help fund a variety of energy...
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WILBRAHAM – In what Town Administrator Nick Breault said he envisions as the first of at least two and possibly three discussions with members, the Select Board received an overview of the FY...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM — On Feb. 15, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee hosted a community forum to allow the public to share their thoughts on the two remaining reconfiguration optio...
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WILBRAHAM — During its Feb. 1 meeting, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee agreed to eliminate two potential school reconfiguration options ahead of a formal vote on March 7.

HAMPDEN — Brian Domina was selected by the Hampden Board of Selectmen to replace outgoing Town Administrator Bob Markel.

Domina is currently the Town Administrator in Whately, a town o...
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HAMPDEN — In the wake of Hampden’s Cemetery Commissioners resigning en masse at the end of 2023, the Board of Selectmen appointed residents Joan Shea and Duane Mosier to the Cemetery Co...
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The music of Carla Patullo’s 2023 album, “So She Howls,” is haunting yet hopeful. Autobiographical in nature, the mostly instrumental tracks follow the Springfield native through ...
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HAMPDEN — Three candidates interviewed with the Hampden Board of Selectmen on Jan. 18, seeking to fill the position of town administrator being vacated by Bob Markel.

The first candida...
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HAMPDEN — Parents in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District community are “disappointed” in the district’s lack of communication after a bus caught fire in Hampden w...
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WILBRAHAM — In less than 48 hours, a campaign through the Greg Hill Foundation raised more than $13,500 to benefit Wilbraham Police Officer Cameron Prosperi, who was shot and injured recently...
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HAMPDEN — Executive search firm Community Paradigm Associates founder and Managing Principal Bernard Lynch met with the Hampden Board of Selectmen at its Jan. 8 meeting to review the progress...
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HAMPDEN — The Board of Selectmen met at its Jan. 2 meeting to consider how to use two pools of funding, one of which it came into unexpectedly.

Hampden was previously awarded a grant f...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham resident Kelly Pramberger has an intimate understanding of the emotional and practical parts of adoption. As an adoptive mother herself, Pramberger wanted to experience ...
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HAMPDEN — If people find themselves having difficulties paying to heat their home this winter, the Hampden Senior Center’s Emergency Fuel Fund is there to help.

Hampden Senior Ce...
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WILBRAHAM — Deputy Fire Chief Peter Nothe has submitted notice for his resignation, effective Aug. 9, 2024, to the Select Board. In Massachusetts, firefighters must retire by age 65, unless s...
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WILBRAHAM — As part of the district’s equity plan that focuses on bullying and discrimination in schools, Superintendent John Provost shared district data that showed clear patterns whe...
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HAMPDEN — Water Commissioner John Plaster and Tighe & Bond Project Manager Jennifer Gilbert came before the Board of Selectmen on Dec. 18 to request additional funding for engineering wor...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham Select Board discussed several new policies at its Dec. 11 meeting, including a potentially controversial one that had already been approved.

Select Board mem...
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HAMPDEN — About a dozen residents attended an in-person community forum on Dec. 12 to discuss ways in which the municipal government could better operate.

The town had voted to authori...
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HAMPDEN — Hampden’s tax rate will be going down in fiscal year 2024, but an increase in home values will leave most residents paying more than last year.

On Dec. 4, Principal Ass...
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WILBRAHAM — The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee debated the district’s finances and the move to expand the grades at the high school during its Dec. 7 meeting.

Assist...
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WILBRAHAM — As people are living longer and the large baby boomer population ages, more people are finding themselves living with dementia or taking care of someone who does. In Wilbraham, wh...
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WILBRAHAM — The placement of pickleball courts at Memorial School was approved with a Select Board vote on Nov. 27, confirming a vote by the board earlier in the month.

On Nov. 6, the ...
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HAMPDEN — The Hampden Board of Selectmen spoke with Massachusetts Director of Rural Affairs Anne Gobi about some of Hampden’s needs. Like 181 of the towns in Massachusetts, Hampden is c...
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WILBRAHAM — The future of pickleball courts at Memorial School was on a roller coaster ride over the course of the two Select Board meetings. After first receiving the board’s approval,...
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WILBRAHAM — The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee discussed capital projects for which the district may seek funding during its Nov. 16 meeting.

Assistant Superintendent for ...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham DPW recently received a $193,000 Lead Service Line Planning Grant from the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust as part of a $47 million round of funding to address water...
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WILBRAHAM — A new restaurant has opened on Boston Road and owner Christopher Arillotta wants it to become the favorite spot for locals to have dinner and drinks.

The Local Table-n-Tap&...
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WILBRAHAM — The Monson and Wilbraham select boards met at the latter’s Oct. 30 meeting to discuss a joint venture in which the towns will share the services of a veterans service direct...
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WILBRAHAM — A painting depicts a young girl, split down the middle. On one side she is smiling on a bright sunny day. On the other, she is crying with storm clouds gathering behind her. This ...
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HAMPDEN — Hampden conducted its fall Town Meeting on Oct. 30. Of the 20 articles on the warrant, the most contentious was the question of whether to approve a notice of intent to borrow $8.5 ...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham conducted a Town Meeting on Oct. 23 to consider five warrant articles. Each called for the use of the free cash account, which had a balance of $2.8 million.

Town...
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HAMPDEN — The town of Hampden will conduct a Town meeting on Oct. 30, at 7 p.m. at Thornton W. Burgess School. There are a total of 20 articles on the warrant.

With the completion of t...
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Massachusetts Inspector General Jeffrey Shapiro recently penned a letter to the Massachusetts School Building Authority Executive Director Mary Pichetti and Treasurer/Receiver General Deborah Goldb...
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HAMPDEN — At a joint meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board on Oct. 11, resident Dave Demers was unanimously selected to fill a Planning Board seat left vacant by the recent...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham will conduct a Special Town Meeting on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. in the Minnechaug Regional High School Auditorium, 621 Main St. Voters will be asked to consider five articles, ...
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WILBRAHAM — The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee received a report from Superintendent John Provost and Assistant Superintendent for Finance, Operation and Human Resources Aaron Os...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham Welcome Project hopes friends and neighbors will join them for a fundraiser to help the organization turn new neighbors into friends.

The Harvest Fundraiser a...
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HAMPDEN — The Hampden Board of Selectmen discussed the continued use of the Town House and future home of the town offices during its Sept. 25 meeting.

“The [Town House] is &hell...
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WILBRAHAM — Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District Superintendent John Provost told the School Committee that Mile Tree School had been piloting the Raptor visitor management system, a se...
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WILBRAHAM — Key decisions on bylaw system improvements and town electricity contracts marked the agenda of Wilbraham’s Sept. 18 Select Board meeting. The board also appointed a full-tim...
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HAMPDEN — At the Sept. 11 Select Board meeting, Jerry Olivetti from Rise Engineering proposed enhancing the local EV infrastructure by foregoing the slower Level 2 chargers to the more effici...
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WILBRAHAM — The owners and operators of the Red Bridge Hydro, a hydroelectric power plant at 5 Red Bridge Rd., came before the Select Board on Sept. 11 to discuss the fire and partial collaps...
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WILBRAHAM — The Senior Center at 240R Springfield St. is no longer a steel frame on a concrete slab, surrounded by dirt. Over the summer, P&P Construction has transformed it into a buildi...
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WILBRAHAM — Mall Barbers has relocated from the Eastfield Mall to 2440 Boston Rd., Wilbraham. Owner Maria Gomes, her husband Hector Gomes and co-worker Alicia Paquette were welcomed to the ne...
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WILBRAHAM — Minnechaug Regional High School is undergoing the accreditation process from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. Schools must be reevaluated for accreditation eve...
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HAMPDEN — Roughly 40 Hampden residents attended an information session on the town’s plan to build a municipal fiber optic broadband system. Hampden Board of Selectmen member Craig Rive...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham Community Chorus is seeking people to participate in its annual concerts, a tradition going back nearly 50 years.

The chorus began in 1976 to celebrate the co...
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WILBRAHAM — In a small, unassuming storefront in Wilbraham, Varna Naik helps clients engage in powerful learning. Naik is the owner and founder of InfinityEd, a tutoring service at 2141 Bosto...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham Select Board heard a report from CHA Consulting and BerryDunn, two firms that have been conducting a study on the potential use of Memorial School as a recreation ce...
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HAMPDEN — When Pastor Kwan Kim joined the Federated Community Church recently to serve as its spiritual leader, he immediately reached out to his congregation and beyond. He went to the churc...
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WILBRAHAM — The School Committee again took up the issue of the athletic Booster Club on Aug. 17.

Superintendent John Provost said that he and School Committee Chair Michal Boudreau ha...
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HAMPDEN — Representatives from National Grid met with Town Manager Bob Markel to discuss infrastructure improvements. He took the opportunity to discuss installing electric vehicle charging s...
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WILBRAHAM — Games and contests? Food and crafts? Entertainment for the whole family? The Bushels of Fun Fest will offer all that on Sunday, Aug. 27, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Fern Valley Farm...
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WILBRAHAM — Legislation is being considered on Beacon Hill that would ban state universities from considering an applicant’s relation to an alum in its admission decision, a practice kn...
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HAMPDEN — The Hampden Board of Selectmen hosted a joint meeting with the Wilbraham Select Board on July 31 to discuss several pieces of shared business.

Emergency Dispatch Director Ant...
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WILBRAHAM — Representatives from the Minnechaug Regional High School athletics Booster Club were asked tough questions at the July 20 Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee meeting.

WILBRAHAM — Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District Superintendent John Provost met with 12 people at Rice Fruit Farm in Wilbraham on July 17 in the first of six one-hour community co...
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WILBRAHAM — Jessica Petit, is a Wilbraham resident and licensed mental health clinician who specializes in perinatal mental health — mental health related to pregnancy and the period af...
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WILBRAHAM — Participating in sports in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District will cost families a little more in the 2023-24 school year. The School Committee voted to approve an inc...
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WILBRAHAM — On June 26, Total Image Salon had its grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony for its new location on 40 Dumaine St. “It’s unreal,” said owner Renee Rodolakis. &ld...
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WILBRAHAM — The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee met on June 15 to discuss topics regarding sports in the district.

Superintendent John Provost proposed an athletic fee incr...
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HAMPDEN — On the afternoon of June 25, three dozen town officials, dignitaries and residents of Hampden stood in front of a tombstone in Old Hampden Cemetery to honor Robert Sessions for his ...
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WILBRAHAM — The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee was presented with the findings of the equity audit performed by Mass Insight, a consulting firm, at it’s June 15 meeting....
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WILBRAHAM — With a 4-0 vote, the Wilbraham Planning Board approved a draft decision to allow a one-year extension for the solar project at 285 Three Rivers Rd. Testimony on the timeframe exte...
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WILBRAHAM — Manuel Amusements submitted a request to organize a carnival in front of the Scantic Valley YMCA at Post Office Park, but the Select Board had questions.

Manager Stacie Pri...
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WILBRAHAM — A recount of the Select Board vote that took place during the May 20 annual town election was requested by Carmela Blair, who lost to Michael Squindo by just 29 votes.

Town...
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WILBRAHAM — Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District managed to maintain a two-tier bus schedule while also negotiating with Lower Pioneer Valley Educational Collaborative, the company that...
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WILBRAHAM — A public hearing was conducted by the Wilbraham Planning Board on May 24 to discuss changes requested to the special permit for the yet-to-be-built solar field at 285 Three Rivers...
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WILBRAHAM — In the early 2010s, Bobby Olsen ran road races for fun. The problem, he said, was that many races had expensive registration fees. So, he decided to do something about it and help...
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WILBRAHAM — While most of the contested races in Wilbraham’s May 20 Town Election resulted in decisive victories, Michael Squindo won a seat on the Select Board with 874, just 29 more v...
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HAMPDEN — Voters came out on May 15 to elect Richard Rediker for a seat on the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee. Rediker received 173 votes, while his opponent Meredith Anne Sample...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham voters gathered for the spring Town Meeting on May 15. Of the 51 articles on the warrant, only one was voted down. Voters were narrowly divided on whether to change the ...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham voters gathered for the spring Town Meeting on May 15. Of the 51 articles on the warrant, only one was voted down. Voters were narrowly divided on whether to change the ...
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HAMPDEN — Hampden residents gathered on May 8 at Thornton W. Burgess School for the spring Town Meeting. Of the 26 articles, all but two passed. Some articles received more discussion than ot...
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WILBRAHAM — The former Green Acres Fruit Farm at 868 Main St., has been purchased by brothers Anthony and Dominic Maloni, owners of nearby Rice Fruit Farm.

The Malonis bought the 65-a...
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HAMPDEN — Consultants for the state Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness program met with Town Manager Bob Markel and a handful of residents on April 25 to discuss priority projects to shore ...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham will conduct its spring Town Meeting on May 15, at 7 p.m. at the Minnechaug Regional High School auditorium. There are 51 articles. While the majority are housekeeping i...
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Committee members Maura Ryan, who represents Hampden, and Wilbraham’s Patrick Kiernan both decided not to seek another three-year term. Meanwhile, School Committee member Sherill Caruana is r...
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HAMPDEN — On April 24, Jeff McElravy of Tecton Architects presented the Hampden Board of Selectman with three options for a new a fire station.

Using a 2020 study by Mitchell Associate...
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WILBRAHAM — On May 20, voters will decide who will fill the Board of Selectmen seat being vacated by outgoing Chair Carolyn Brennan — Carmela Blair or Michael Squindo. Two people are se...
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HAMPDEN — Hampden will conduct its spring Town Meeting on May 8, at 7 p.m. at Thornton W. Burgess School. There are 27 articles on the warrant. While most are routine matters, there are sever...
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WILBRAHAM — Amid tensions, the financial leadership from Wilbraham and Hampden met with the School Committee for the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District to hammer out the details on ho...
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HAMPDEN — On April 16, Christina’s House, an educational/transitional home for women and children who are homeless or at risk of homelessness celebrated the grand opening of their newes...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham Finance Committee and the Hampden Advisory Board met on April 19 with members of the boards of selectmen from both towns to discuss how to close the $850,000 gap in ...
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WILBRAHAM — Volunteers gathered at Fern Valley Farms on April 4 to help owner Dan Fernandes plant 1,000 saplings in just six hours. Despite the frenetic pace of planting, it will be up to eig...
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WILBRAHAM — Small business owners and community members in Wilbraham are rallying around one of their own after Pan’e Dolcetti owner Felice Aiello’s doctors recently discovered a ...
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WILBRAHAM — The fourth annual Run for Rick’s Place will take place on Saturday, April 29 at 9 a.m. at Minnechaug Regional High School. This 5K run and 1.5-mile walk is the first spring ...
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More than $570,000 in grant funding aimed at making school safer will go to 14 school departments and districts throughout the state as part of the Student, Teachers and Officers Preventing (STOP) ...
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WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham residents gathered in the Police Station Community Room on April 4 to discuss the future of Memorial School, the Parks and Recreation Department and how those two entiti...
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WILBRAHAM — Budget issues were again the focus of the Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School District meeting on April 6. Despite approving a budget in mid-March, financial issues remain due...
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HAMPDEN — The Hampden Planning Board conducted a public hearing regarding an addition to the zoning bylaws. The new bylaw section would allow for “accessory apartments” to be buil...
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WILBRAHAM — On Earth Day, many communities hit their streets, parks and wooded areas to clean trash and other waste that has been discarded there. Wilbraham has not had such a coordinated cle...
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WILBRAHAM — The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen approved an increase in sewer rates after a public hearing on the matter March 27.

DPW Director Tonya Capparello proposed a 50-cent i...
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HAMPDEN — Fire station costs for the town were top of the agenda for the Board of Selectmen on March 20. A detailed overlook followed the release of an option summary from Tecton Architects w...
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EAST LONGMEADOW — Sometimes, one person can make a difference. East Longmeadow resident Erin Chrusciel heard a call to action in 2021 and partnered with the town’s Recreation and Health...
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WILBRAHAM — As part of an Eagle Scout project, Boy Scout Luke Whalen-Sylver of Wilbraham Troop 359 created two blessing boxes outside of Wilbraham United Church and Christ the King-Epiphany C...
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WILBRAHAM — After two years of consideration and an hour of deliberation, the Wilbraham Planning Board approved a bylaw amendment regarding trucks parked in residential zones to appear on the...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM — The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District’s (HWRSD) fiscal year 2024 (FY24) budget was approved at the School Committee’s March 16 meeting. In a tight eco...
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WILBRAHAM — State Sen. Jake Oliveira officially introduced himself to the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen at its March 6 meeting. Oliveira was elected to the recently formed Hampden, Hampshire a...
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WILBRAHAM — After a decade of research and studies, Wilbraham is taking concrete steps toward installing a town-owned fiber optic network. Now, the Wilbraham Broadband Committee wants residen...
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HAMPDEN — A second fire station needs assessment was completed with the community on March 2. Jeffrey McElravy, a principal architect for Tecton Architects who specializes in the design of em...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM — At a Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) budget roundtable on March 2, leadership from both towns listened as Assistant Superintendent for Finance Operation...
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HAMPDEN — A Superior Court justice has found in favor of the Hampden Planning Board in a court case that was brought after a self-storage facility at 16 Somers Rd. was denied a special permit...
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WILBRAHAM — Aaron Osborne, the assistant superintendent for finance, operations and human resources, and Dr. John Provost, school superintendent, discussed the challenges facing the Hampden-W...
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WILBRAHAM — Sometimes, people need a hug. “In those moments when a human hug is not available,” Kimberley Lee said, “they can have a teddy hug.”

Lee, chief of ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Superintendent John Provost presented the findings of his Entry Plan at the Feb. 16 School Committee meeting.

Pro...
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WILBRAHAM — “And here we are!” announced Board of Selectmen Chair Carolyn Brennan at the groundbreaking for the new Wilbraham Senior Center, behind the Town Hall at 240 Springfiel...
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WILBRAHAM — The third of what has been three weekly presentations outlining budget proposals for the town went before the Board of Selectmen at the Feb. 13 meeting.

Town Administrator...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) is $3 million shy of the funding it needs to operate in fiscal year 2024 (FY24), which begins July 1.

&ldquo...
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WILBRAHAM – Board of Selectmen Chair Carolyn Brennan remarked at the Jan. 23 board meeting that, by now, most people are aware that a lighting issue at Minnechaug Regional High School (MRHS) ...
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WILBRAHAM – After a long hiatus, the Wilbraham Hiking Club (WHC) is back with some new changes. The club has joined forces with the Wilbraham Parks and Recreation Department, with Parks and R...
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HAMPDEN – The town of Hampden is engaged in a community needs assessment about the future of the town’s fire station. Tecton Architects, an architectural and design firm, has already wo...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee gathered with state lawmakers and leadership from both towns on Jan. 19 to discuss the budget issues facing the school dist...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Assistant Superintendent for Finance, Operations and Human Resources Aaron Osborne updated the School Committee on sever...
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HAMPDEN – State Sen. Jake Oliveira met with the Hampden Board of Selectmen on Jan. 9 in his first meeting with the municipal leaders since taking office in early January.

“I&rsq...
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LONGMEADOW – The Betty Ann Lowe Room at the Richard Salter Storrs Library often hosts art exhibits, but this January, the art is the work of Longmeadow High School (LHS) art students.

HAMPDEN-WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) has a busy year ahead, with an equity audit, budget issues and navigating the district’s Master Plan. Superint...
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WILBRAHAM – Town officials are looking to move in on cases of blighted buildings and address issues of properties that may become sources of concern within the community.

Addressing th...
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WILBRAHAM – On Jan. 12, the Minnechaug Regional High School varsity hockey team, the Falcons, will participate in an outdoor game against Boston College (BC) High School at Fenway Park.

HAMPDEN – Town Administrator Bob Markel is looking at the future of Hampden, in 2023 and beyond. “There’s a lot going on in this little town,” Markel told Reminder Publi...
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WILBRAHAM – Town Administrator Nick Breault told Reminder Publishing about the changes and developments coming to Wilbraham in 2023. “There’s a lot of good projects that ...
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WILBRAHAM – Two members of the Wilbraham Finance Committee have taken to social media with concerns about the cost and transparency of the senior center project, which is in the initial stage...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Minnechaug Regional High School (MRHS) was ranked by U.S. News & World Report as 162 out of 340 ranked Massachusetts high schools. Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Di...
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HAMPDEN – For the second time, the Hampden Planning Board denied a special permit for a self-storage business at 2 Somers Rd.

The first vote on the matter was taken on Dec. 1, 2021. A...
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WILBRAHAM – The Board of Selectmen addressed issues concerning local businesses during the Dec. 12 meeting.

A hearing on the application for a six-day-a-week entertainment license was...
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WILBRAHAM – Farms and farmers markets offer fresh fruits and vegetables to local communities, but for people on the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), farm-fresh food is ofte...
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HAMPDEN – The town of Hampden may partner with Massachusetts Audubon Society (Mass Audubon) to monitor a land parcel off Chapin Road as the conservation organization purchases the property to...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – A new form and procedure for accepting school transfers was reviewed by the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional (HWRSD) School Committee on Dec. 1, after receiving approval from th...
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HAMPDEN – The Board of Selectmen voted on four tax rate options available to the town of Hampden.

At a hearing during the Nov. 21 regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen, the Board o...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Town Administrator Bob Markel reviewed projects the town is pursuing or that are in various stages of completion. He explained to the Board of Selectmen that the projects we...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) has identified nearly $11 million in capital needs for fiscal year 2024 (FY24), said Assistant Superintendent for Financ...
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HAMPDEN – In a small house on a quiet road in Hampden, Debra Brown has made a business out of baking, where she says, “The secret ingredient is always love.”

Brown works f...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN- The Songbirds Children’s Choir is gearing up to host their first holiday concert since the coronavirus pandemic. Weekly rehearsals for the group have officially started at ...
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HAMPDEN – Animal Control Officer Shelley Sears came before the Hampden Board of Selectmen about a dog issue for the second time in two weeks.

At the Nov. 14 meeting, Sears told the boa...
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HAMPDEN – Three months after a hearing regarding a dog that had escaped its fenced-in yard, the owners were once again in front of the Hampden Board of Selectmen on Nov. 7.

Animal Con...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Senior Center is kicking off the holiday season with a unique fundraiser to benefit the Hampden Senior Center Building Fund on Nov. 10.

The event will feature fo...
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WILBRAHAM – Bethlehem Church Lead Pastor Darrin Ray and ultra-runner Bill Wells are teaming to spread the Gospel throughout Massachusetts from Nov. 14 to 19.

They are calling this mis...
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WILBRAHAM – Faced with three problematic options on how to avoid a stall in the senior center building project, the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to approve a $385,000 compro...
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HAMPDEN – About 80 people came to vote at Hampden’s Oct. 24 Special Town Meeting. All 11 articles on the warrant were passed.

Advisory Board Co-Chair Carol Fitzgerald began the ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – In keeping with goals identified in the Strategic Plan, Director of Curriculum and Instruction Lisa Curtin introduced a structure for the support and implementation of ver...
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WILBRAHAM – Preliminary construction on the Center Village project, the future home for Scantic River Brewery and Pafumi’s Pizzeria on Main Street is moving along at an exceptional if n...
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HAMPDEN – The town of Hampden will conduct a Special Town Meeting at Thornton W. Burgess School on Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. There are 11 articles on the warrant, most of which are financial matters....
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HAMPDEN – At an Oct. 17 joint meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the Advisory Board to discuss the Special Town Meeting warrant, Board of Selectmen member Donald Davenport voiced displeasu...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham has been awarded a $251,460 grant from the state to help fund the expansion of the McDonald Nature Preserve.

Located in the center of Wilbraham, the preserve inc...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden resident Kristin Trask completed the Jimmy Fund Walk on Oct. 2 in support of her 9-month-old son Warren. Warren has a condition called infantile myofibromatosis and has been...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee approved a request from Wilbraham Middle School Principal John Derosia to conduct a field trip for the eighth-grade student...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Women’s Club will be hosting their annual Fashion Show Luncheon on Oct. 27 in the Saint Cecilia Parish Center on 42 Main St. Fashions will be presented by Rose...
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HAMPDEN – The final roster for the Senior Center Building Committee was set at the Oct. 3 Hampden Board of Selectmen (BOS) meeting.

Carol Keeney and John Matthews had both expressed i...
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HAMPDEN – Something spooky is coming to Memorial Park in Hampden. The Parks and Recreation Commission has organized the inaugural Hampden Family Spooktacular on Oct. 22, from 3 to 8 p.m., wit...
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WILBRAHAM – This fall, the Wilbraham Art League kicked off their new season with a variety of interactive workshops and exhibitions.

Member Beverlee Corriveau said, “We hadn&rsq...
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WILBRAHAM – Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Tonya Capparello discussed traffic safety issues with the Board of Selectmen at its Sept. 26 meeting.

The intersection between No...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden’s emergency services have received more than $1.3 million total in grant funding.

Hampden Fire Department (HFD) Chief Edward Poulin announced to the Board of S...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – With a round of applause at the Sept. 15 Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee meeting, the body approved the strategic plan, the document th...
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HAMPDEN – Tea is versatile. It can be relaxing as a hot drink to sip on a winter’s day or refreshing when poured over ice in the summer. The aromatic flowers and herbs allow teas to be ...
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HAMPDEN/LONGMEADOW – A Hampden landmark is changing hands, but the new owner of Village Food Mart assures residents can expect the same small-town feel with an enhanced customer experience....
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WILBRAHAM – When former Wilbraham Fire Department Chief David Bourcier looks around town, he sees the ghosts of buildings that no longer stand and the storied families that once called Wilbra...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee examined its goals for the year, chief among them was communication.

During the Sept. 1 mee...
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WILBRAHAM – Sensory SpOT has moved to their new location on 2 Crane Park Dr. in Wilbraham.

Sensory SpOT helps children reach their goals and provides them with tools and resources to b...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Reading during the summer is an assignment that many classroom teachers require as an important part of maintaining and enhancing crucial language and comprehension skills...
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WILBRAHAM – Professional seamstress Emily Engel is the new owner of Sew Special Wilbraham, located at 2442 Boston Rd., offering no frills tailoring and alterations, custom plush pieces, resto...
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HAMPDEN – Ever wonder what that old silver teapot is worth? The Hampden Historical Society is giving people the chance to find out.

An antiques appraisal will be hosted by the Histori...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Residents weighed in at the Aug. 8 Board of Selectmen meeting on the parking situation for the Farmers Market hosted at the Wilbraham United Church.

Dan Sullivan, ...
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HAMPDEN – Meraki, pronounced, mer-ah-ki, is a Greek word that means, “to do something with one’s passion, effort, and heart; no matter how difficult or challenging it may be,&rdqu...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The breakdown of the fire alarm system at Stony Hill School in the last week of the school year has left an unexpected capital expense for the Hampden Wilbraham Regional S...
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HAMPDEN – Disagreements over dogs were a topic of discussion at two hearings before the Hampden Board of Selectmen on July 25.

Animal Control Officer Shelley Sears told the board that...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The summer program at Thornton W. Burgess School (TWB) wants your dirty vehicles.

Anthony Zaremba, Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Transition Pr...
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WILBRAHAM – The future Wilbraham Senior Center may require additional funds, said a representative from P3, the design firm working on the project.

At the July 25 Board of Selectmen me...
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WILBRAHAM – The process of adopting municipal broadband in Wilbraham has turned a corner and the Broadband Committee will soon be asking for young people to help design a logo.

&ldquo...
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WILBRAHAM – Tanya Campbell, a certified public accountant with the accounting firm Melanson, delivered the town’s fiscal year 2021 (FY21) audit report to the Board of Selectmen on July ...
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WILBRAHAM – The small shop at 2785 Boston Rd. in Wilbraham is filled with shelving racks on which customers’ devices sit. There isn’t much space to move around in the small rooms,...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District Superintendent John Provost opened the School Committee meeting on his first day in the position. He thanked everyone who had we...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Dr. John Provost is putting the final touches on the 2021-2022 school year as superintendent in Northampton Public Schools and has taken the time to visit a few schools at...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Parks and Recreation Board Chair Carrie Gray Joseph came before the Board of Selectmen to propose the creation of a paid recreation director p...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – After six years at the helm of the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD), Superintendent Albert Ganem will retire on June 30.

Of his tenure in HWRSD, ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Several votes were conducted at the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee meeting on June 16, including accepting elementary programs of curr...
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WILBRAHAM – After two years, a traditional sign of summer in Wilbraham, the Peach Blossom Festival, will return to the campus of Wilbraham-Monson Academy on June 18, from 12 p.m. to 7:30 p.m....
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HAMPDEN – The Board of Selectmen discussed major plans with several department heads and committees during its June 13 meeting. Among the plans are a government study, creation of a master pl...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Welcome Project presented the season’s first Farmers Market on June 1. Despite rain showers earilier in the day, children played...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – After just over an hour of discussion, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD)’s School Committee voted unanimously on June 2 to enter negotiations wi...
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WILBRAHAM – The tenth annual Run for Rice’s 5k will take place on June 4 at Christ the King Lutheran Church. Day-of registration will run from 7:30 a.m. to 8:45 a.m and the event will o...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee interviewed the three finalists for superintendent of schools.

The interviews, conducted ov...
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WILBRAHAM – June 1 was scheduled as the first day of the Main Street Farmers Market at the Wilbraham United Church on 500 Main St. The farmers market will take place every Wednesday at the ch...
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WILBRAHAM — Jay Taylor wants you to go take a hike. Taylor is one of several volunteers who give up their summer days, nights and weekends to clear a path for hikers.

There are nearly ...
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WILBRAHAM – A total of 2,106 voters, 18.87 percent of eligible residents, cast their ballots in the Annual Town Election on May 16 and chose to stay the course with many candidates re-elected...
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HAMPDEN – Patrick Coyne defeated John Matthews in a bid for a seat on the Hampden Planning Board in the May 16 town election. The final tally showed Matthews received 111 votes, while 365 res...
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WILBRAHAM – In a meeting that lasted just over four hours, roughly 200 Wilbraham residents voted on 45 warrant articles, approving most – but not all. One article – saved for seco...
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HAMPDEN – With a vote of 44-31, Hampden voters at the Annual Town Meeting on May 9 chose to authorize the Board of Selectmen to investigate purchasing the property at 2 Somers Rd. and 16 Some...
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HAMPDEN – Despite a December 2021 decision by the Hampden Planning Board denying a petition for a self-storage facility at 2 Somers Rd., controversy continues to surround the issue, focusing ...
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WILBRAHAM – The 3 Guys Catering Scholarship Fund dinner will take place on June 20 at 5 p.m. at the Country Club of Wilbraham on 859 Stony Hill Rd. Hosted by 3 Guys at the Grille, they will b...
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HAMPDEN – Of all the elected offices in Hampden, none has faced more controversy in the past year than the Planning Board, due to failed petitions for self-storage facilities. Voters will cho...
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WILBRAHAM – There are several contested elected positions that will be decided in the Wilbraham Town Election on May 21. Reminder Publishing asked the candidates a series of three questions. ...
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WILBRAHAM – The Friends of Wilbraham Seniors was given approval by the Board of Selectmen to sell naming rights for various rooms, trees, benches and other fixtures at the new, as-yet-unbuilt...
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WILBRAHAM – The town of Wilbraham will be conducting its Annual Town Meeting (ATM) on May 16 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium of Minnechaug Regional High School. The warrant consists of 45 article...
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HAMPDEN – The town of Hampden will be conducting its Annual Town Meeting (ATM) on May 9 at 7 p.m. at Thornton W. Burgess School, 85 Wilbraham Rd. The warrant consists of 22 articles, includin...
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WILBRAHAM – Would you be willing to give the shirt off your back to help the library? Wilbraham Friends of the Library are hoping you can donate old shirts, pants as well as other clothes and...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Despite just getting underway, the superintendent search in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) has School Committee members at odds.

School Com...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen began its April 11 meeting with a dangerous dog hearing during which resident Steve Haskins said his neighbor, Anne Thomas, allowed her dogs to run lo...
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WILBRAHAM – Jonathan Murray, director of 120 Old Boston Road Recycling, a Western Recycling/USA Waste company, explained to the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen on April 4 that his company is see...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Students in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) that are struggling with mental health issues now have a new resource at their disposal.

HWRSD h...
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WILBRAHAM – At 9 a.m. on April 23, Wilbraham resident Bill Wells will step off from Wilbraham United Church and start running, and he will not stop until 9 a.m. the next morning. Wells is cha...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Finance Committee joined the Board of Selectmen at the latter’s meeting on March 28. The two bodies discussed several budgetary ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) voted to pass the fiscal year 2023 (FY23) budget, but not without changes to the planned expansion of school choice....
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HAMPDEN – Student, pre-teen, entrepreneur – all these words describe 12-year-old Kairi Os, a Hampden resident with dreams of being her own boss.

Os began exploring the idea of s...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen approved a compensation rate for the position records access officer at its March 21 meeting. This step was needed before Town Clerk Eva Wiseman could...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM –Several changes were made to the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) budget after Wilbraham expressed discomfort with the proposed as...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen approved a bulky waste program through the Transfer Station.

Department of Public Works Director Tanya Basch explained the town has partne...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The principals, associate principals and assistant principals of all six Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWSD)schools presented the School Committee with a uni...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Fire Chief Ed Poulin informed the Board of Selectmen that the fire station’s generator has reached the end of its life. Repairs costing $1,500 were completed on the ge...
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WILBRAHAM – On March 6, Minnechaug Regional High School hosted a Unified Bocce Tournament for the Special Olympics. This tournament was co-sponsored by the Special Olympics of Massachusetts w...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) hosted its second budget roundtable of the year on March 3 and was joined by the Hampden Advisory Board, the Wilbrah...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen interviewed two candidates for police captain at the Feb. 28 meeting. Although the decision was close, Sgt. Jeffrey Rudinski was chosen to move up...
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HAMPDEN – Despite decisions handed down by the Hampden Planning Board in early December 2021 against two separate self-storage facilities in town, the controversial topic has not gone away. I...
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HAMPDEN-WILBRAHAM – Masks are coming off in schools, but not fast enough for some residents in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD).

At a Feb. 17 meeting, the School...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee met to discuss the first step in the superintendent search process – whether to look inward f...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Police Chief Scott Trombly presented the requested Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) budget for the Police Department at the Feb. 14 Board of Selectmen meeting.

The budget req...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham Police Capt. Edward Lennon was approved by the Board of Selectmen to succeed Chief Robert Zollo when he retires on June 25.

The board’s Feb. 7 vote finaliz...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Director of Curriculum Lisa Curtin presented the test results from the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MC...
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HAMPDEN/WLBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) transitional program hosts three charity events per year. The students, who range in a...
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HAMPDEN – Three departments – the Council on Aging (COA), the Fire Department and the Highway Department – submitted their requested budgets for fiscal year 2023, (FY23) to the Ha...
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HAMPDEN – Keebler, a 7-month-old Belgian Malinois, clutched the arm of a dog-training bite-suit in his jaws, pulling and tugging on the fabric. “Out,” commanded TJ Dwyer. Despite ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Director of Curriculum Lisa Curtain presented the results of the spring 2021 Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test for grades three through five to the...
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WILBRAHAM – Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Tanya Basch informed the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen that the repair of the Cottage Avenue bridge will cost significantly more than expe...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) hosted a roundtable on Jan. 13 to discuss funding issues. They were joined by members of the Wilbraham Finance Commi...
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WILBRAHAM – Finn McCool, health director for Eastern Hampden Shared Health Services (EHSHS), told the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen there were 400 known active cases of COVID-19 in Wilbraham a...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Nurse Leader Kiara Fryer reported the COVID-19 update to the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee at their meeting on Jan. 6.

With h...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM –Moving into 2022, local senior centers are welcoming back patrons after a year and a half in which services were offered virtually and face to face contact was difficult, a...
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HAMPDEN- The Hampden Senior Center is looking for donations for their emergency fuel fund.

At a recent Board of Selectmen meeting, Senior Center Director Rebecca Moriarty shared the balance...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN – Communities turn to libraries as more than just a place to read. They serve as information centers, chances to socialize and sources to explore culture. The libraries in H...
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WILBRAHAM – Aurora Pierangelo Frias described herself as a life-long resident of Wilbraham who had moved away, but recently returned to raise her family. When s...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM –Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Director of Finance and Operations Aaron Osborne shared the 10-year capital plan with the School Committee at its Dec. 16...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen met with Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Superintendent Dr. Albert Ganem on Dec. 20 to discuss a traffic issue at Green Meadows Sch...
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WILBRAHAM - The Wilbraham United Church hosted their annual Holly Fair on Dec. 11 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The day-long event was host to over 60 unique vendors and...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The holidays are the busiest time of year for gift shops. After the pandemic drove many to shop online, two local business owners say customers are beginning to come back....
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HAMPDEN – A week after a self-storage facility at 2 Somers Rd. failed to garner the four votes necessary to obtain a special permit from the Hampden Planning Board, a separate facility at 16 ...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen (BOS) met jointly with the Advisory Board, the town department heads and representatives from the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee (HWRSD) ...
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WILBRAHAM – A new skin care spa in Wilbraham aims to address skincare needs in a holistic manner that is more than skin-deep.

Inner Glow Skin Studio is a two-floor studio with a thera...
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WILBRAHAM – “We’re kind of old school here,” said Jeff Wingate, who owns Pop’s Biscotti and Chocolates with his wife Maria Ferraro Wingate, so when the couple had the ...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen suggested several changes to the contract with the police union, with Police Chief Scott Trombly serving as an intermed...
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HAMPDEN – After months of arguments and documentation, the proposed self-storage facilities at 2 Somers Rd. and 16 Somers Rd. failed to pass the Hampden Plannin...
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WILBRAHAM - On Nov. 20, the Annual Holiday Bazaar took place in WIlbraham at Evangel Assembly Church on Stony Hill Road, with countless people attending to eithe...
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WILBRAHAM – Deana Gore found truth in the saying “necessity is the mother of invention.” The owner of Wilbraham Candle, an online retailer that also sells at craft fairs and farme...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen was scheduled to take a vote of the town’s tax classification, but Principal Assessor Christopher Keefe expla...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Police Department (WPD) has been awarded $60,326 in grant funding to outfit the department with body-worn cameras, but there’s still a long way to go before th...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Dr. Amy Kasper, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD)’s physician, spoke to the School Committee about the vaccines that were recently approved for ...
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HAMPDEN – Over the course of many years, one local writer wrote 35 holiday columns for the Berkshire Eagle newspaper – usually around St. Patrick’s Day and Christmas. One day he d...
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WILBRAHAM – Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Superintendent Albert Ganem came before the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen on Nov. 15 to clear up concerns regarding the Strategic...
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HAMPDEN – The opposition to a proposed self-storage facility at 2 Somers Rd. in Hampden changed tactics at the Nov. 10 Planning Board meeting. While the citizens’ organization Save Hamp...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN - The Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) conducted the second of two strategic plan open listening sessions on Nov. 8. The session at Minnechaug Regional High Scho...
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WILBRAHAM - The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen considered two outstanding liquor license matters at its meeting on Nov. 1.

Attorney Larry Levine, addressed the board representing Pinky Krishn...
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HAMPDEN - The servers and staff at Gio’s Pizzeria are taking the holidays’ reputation as the giving season to heart by donating their tips to charity.

“Our front people an...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Planning Board began their Oct. 27 meeting by naming John Matthews, who had been serving as the interim chair, to the permanent position. The board went on to continue i...
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WILBRAHAM - The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen agreed to send a letter of support for crumbling foundations legislation after hearing from someone personally touched by the issue.

Michelle Log...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) moved one small step closer to a strategic plan on Oct. 21 when they reviewed the issues and opportunities identifie...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – For two weeks this fall, area residents have a chance to donate food staples to Lorraine’s Soup Kitchen & Pantry and help some young adults learn life skills alo...
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HAMPDEN – The battle over two proposed self-storage facilities in town continued to rage during the Hampden Planning Board meetings on Oct. 12 and 14.

Questions around the legality of ...
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HAMPDEN – In a meeting that lasted just over an hour, residents who came out to vote at Hampden’s Special Town Meeting on Oct. 18 approved all 15 articles on the warrant with limited di...
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WILBRAHAM – More than 600 residents turned out to the Special Town Meeting to approve funding a new senior center. Despite some debate and a small but vocal opposition to the location, voters...
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WILBRAHAM – The Town of Wilbraham will conduct a Special Town Meeting on Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. in the Minnechaug Regional High School auditorium. There are six arti...
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HAMPDEN – The Town of Hampden will conduct a Special Town Meeting on Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. at Thornton W. Burgess School. The town’s free cash is money not used at the end of the previous f...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM - After three and a half years and more than $300,000 in combined legal fees, the lawsuit between the Town of Hampden and the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) ha...
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HAMPDEN - A new shop in the Hampden Mini Mall encourages customers to stop and smell the roses.

Kinderhook Flower and Gift owner Brittney Procon's vision for her business is rooted in offeri...
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HAMPDEN – The public hearing on a proposed self-storage facility ended in more questions than answers after two legal uncertainties arose.

...
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WILBRAHAM – On a sunny day in mid-September, a dozen women took to Wilbraham’s Memorial Field, throwing hard foam softballs, and, mostly, catching them. The participants aren’t pa...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) received updates on COVID-19 precatuions, the strategic plan and curriculum during its Sept. 23 meeting.

...
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HAMPDEN – After three hours reviewing the legal requirements and technical plans, and fielding questions from the public, the Hampden Planning Board is still fa...
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HAMPDEN – After three weeks, six candidates and two rescheduled hearings, the Hampden Board of Selectmen (BOS) and Planning Board voted at a joint meeting to appoint Heather Beattie and Chris...
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HAMPDEN – People were still filing into the cafeteria at Thornton W. Burgess Middle School for the Hampden Planning Board meeting when Interim Chair John Matthe...
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WILBRAHAM – The owner of the US Tae Kwon Do Center, Kyung Won Kim, was called before the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen after at least one event was hosted at the studio without proper permitti...
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HAMPDEN – Paulina Wysocka is originally from a small northeast town in Poland. She moved to Hampden with her family when she was 13. On Aug. 14, Wysocka was crowned 2022 Polish Miss Massachus...
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HAMPDEN – Animal Control Officer Shelley Sears was on hand at the Sept. 7 Board of Selectmen meeting for a dog hearing.

The dog owner, Tracy Thomas, has had four incidents over the cou...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM –The Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) voted on Sept. 2 to instruct the superintendent to pursue an equity audit. It was the second vote on the equity audit...
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HAMPDEN –   The Hampden Board of Selectmen announced plans to tour the East Longmeadow, Monson and Wilbraham Fire stations with Fire Chief Ed Poulin t...
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HAMPDEN - The eight Girl Scouts of Troop 40160 made a presentation to the Hampden Board of Selectmen on the ecological and economic benefits of hand dryers as opposed to paper towels. Olivia Marque...
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HAMPDEN – Two members of the Hampden Planning Board tendered their resignations after opposition to a proposed self-storage unit led to the men being “accused of being on the take,&rdqu...
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WILBRAHAM – People visiting the Main Street area of Wilbraham will be welcomed to the historical section of town by three new signs.

“We felt that it would be really significant...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) voted to require masks in school, at least through the end of September. The Aug. 12 vote came after testimony from ...
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WILBRAHAM – Mason Crochetiere, a boy scout and student in the online Freedom Project Academy school, recently completed his Eagle Scout project and learned about being a leader at the same ti...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen discussed whether to re-impose a mask mandate in town buildings. Town Administrator Nick Breault said that the Centers for Disease Control and Pre...
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HAMPDEN – Roughly a dozen residents attended the Hampden Board of Selectmen meeting on Aug. 2 to speak against a proposed self-storage facility.

The proposed facility would be located ...
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HAMPDEN – Courtney’s Pawfessional Grooming at 522 Main St. offers grooming for all breeds of dogs and cats, including bathing, brushing, nail trimming, ear cleaning and haircuts.  ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – After three hours in which nearly 30 members of the community addressed the Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) regarding the use of an equity audit, one th...
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WILBRAHAM – State Rep. Angelo Puppolo sent a letter to Gov. Charlie Baker on July 21 to request a state of emergency be put in place for Hampden county due to extreme weather.

“D...
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WILBRAHAM – The first airplane flight by brothers Wilbur and Orville Wright in 1903 has long captured the American imagination. With a little imagination of his own, Hampden native Colby Herc...
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WILBRAHAM – Cookie Creatives by Jennifer at 2133 Boston Rd. is a bakery that specializes in custom designed sugar cookie favors, elegant confections and miniature desserts.

Owner/Pastr...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen awarded the highway garage expansion contract to Marois Construction after receiving the lowest bid from the company, which previously handled the pol...
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WILBRAHAM – The Village Store Cafe, located in the heart of Wilbraham at 462 Main St., is the latest incarnation of the Village Store – the oldest running business in town, operating si...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Board of Selectmen, in its capacity as the Board of Health, voted unanimously to approve expansion plans for the recycling facility at 120 Old Boston Rd., despite ou...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Barbend, a health and fitness outlet that offers a website, newsletter and podcast on the subject, recently released a ranking of Best Cities for Fit Lifestyles. In Massac...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden’s summer camp has been moved to Green Meadows School after repeated vandalism to bathrooms at the Memorial Park spray park.

“Someone’s getting in th...
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HAMPDEN – On May 28, the Hampden Historical Society posted on their Facebook page that due to COVID-19 restrictions they were unable to open their museum on Memorial Day this year.

Pr...
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WILBRAHAM – Two young men who died saving others from drowning in 2018 were honored by the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen ahead of the third anniversary of their ...
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WILBRAHAM – Over the weekend of June 19 and 20, best friends and high school students Tatum Nelson and Olivia Long hosted a Father’s Day cookie fundraiser, baking Swig cookies for Fathe...
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WILBRAHAM – Concerned residents asked questions of the company that plans to increase the capacity of the recycling company at 120 Old Boston Road. The questions came as part of a formal hear...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen welcomed new volunteers for various committees and positions within the town at its meeting on June 14.

Christine Rivest was appointed to the ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – During the public comment period at the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee meeting on June 10, a resident addressed the committee to express “grave concern&...
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HAMPDEN – A 4-year-old German Shepherd named Nietzsche was the topic of a dangerous dog hearing at the Hampden Board of Selectmen meeting on June 7.

...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden town department heads gathered on the stairs of the Town House to celebrate its reopening to the public on June 1. The Town House, Library and Senior Center have been largel...
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WILBRAHAM – Burnt Blue Line is a new local home-based company out of Wilbraham that began in April of 2020.

“We do custom engraved products from wood, glass, acrylic and stone,&...
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HAMPDEN – At the most recent Hampden Board of Selectmen meeting, officials reviewed a proposed inter-municipal agreement (IMA) to share health services with the towns of Monson, Wilbraham and...
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WILBRAHAM – Salon6 owner Rachel Newton is a Springfield resident who spent part of her childhood in Wilbraham. So, when she decided to open her own hair salon, she included the town in her se...
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WILBRAHAM/EAST LONGMEADOW – What a difference a year makes. Unlike the virtual ceremonies that marked the end of high school for many seniors last year, graduates of the Class of 2021 will la...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Superintendent Albert Ganem began the May 20 meeting by recognizing the recent election wins of School Committee members...
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HAMPDEN –  Dispatch Director Anthony Gentile updated the Hampden Board of Selectmen on the status of transitioning emergency dispatch to the Town of Wilbraham. On May 18, emergency calls...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Board of Selectmen member Mary Ellen Glover was unseated by Craig Rivest in a decisive 535 to 379 win. Despite the fact that the Board of Selectmen was the only contested ra...
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WILBRAHAM – Rice Fruit Farm is getting ready for the summer season by allowing for indoor and outdoor events, expansion and their enlarging homemade ice cream production.

Rice Fruit F...
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WILBRAHAM – Farmers markets are a staple of summer in New England and offer fresh produce from area farmers. In Wilbraham, what was a small market of fewer than a half dozen farmers is set to...
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WILBRAHAM – With three contested races drawing interest, a total of 1,475 of Wilbraham’s 11,000 voters cast ballots in the town election on May 15.

The seat on the Board of Selec...
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HAMPDEN – Most teens who find odd jobs to earn spending money don’t go on to manage a crew of employees and serve hundreds of clients, but that is exactly what Kate DeMarey of DeMarey L...
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WILBRAHAM – Kimberly Breil has made a career out of offering quality photo and art framing.

With many professional framers retiring and shops closing, Briel had to wait for the right ...
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HAMPDEN – The cafeteria at Thornton W. Burgess Middle School May 10 was standing room only as roughly 150 residents turned out to vote on 23 issues before the Annual Town Meeting. Nearly all ...
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WILBRAHAM – Author Pauline Weger was in Wilbraham on April 30 to sign copies of her book, “Bravely” outside of the Scented Garden Gift Shoppe, 2341 Boston Rd. Weger explained that...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham’s candidates for the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee answered voter questions at a virtual forum hosted by the Wilbraham Public Library and moderated b...
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WILBRAHAM – Over 80 people attended a virtual candidates forum hosted by the Wilbraham Public Library and moderated by Library Director Karen Demers. The two-hour forum consisted of candidate...
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HAMPDEN – Noise complaints were the primary topic of discussion at the April 26 Hampden Select Board meeting.

Behavioral Health Network (BHN) Senior Vice President Susan West followed ...
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WILBRAHAM – The town of Wilbraham will host its Annual Town Meeting on May 10 in the Minnechaug Regional High School Auditorium at 7 p.m. The warrant has 41 articles for residents to consider...
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HAMPDEN – Interim Town Administrator Bob Markel told the Hampden Select Board that he had added an article to the warrant to fund unexpected electrical upgrades to the fire department. Fire D...
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HAMPDEN – As town election season approaches, two residents are vying for a seat on the Hampden Select Board. Craig Rivest is seeking to unseat incumbent Mary Ellen Glover for a position on t...
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WILBRAHAM – Three educators in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) were selected as winners of the Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Awards – Joshua Griffith, a S...
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WILBRAHAM – Driving around Wilbraham, the yard signs make it apparent – it is election season.

There are two candidates for e...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board voted to adopt the pay scale and two-year timeline of cost increases recommended by the recent Collins Institute study. The payscale consists of ‘grad...
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HAMPDEN – Law enforcement officials from around the area, including Sherriff Nick Cocchi and members of the East Longmeadow and Wilbraham Police Departments, turned out to congratulate Hampde...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – This election season, Wilbraham voters will fill two seats on the Hampden Wilbraham Regional School Committee. While committee member Michelle Emirzian has decided not to ...
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HAMPDEN – The void left by the closing of It's All About Me (IAAM) in Hampden will be filled by Jillian Knapp’s shop Rosewood at the corner of Somers Road and East Longmeadow Road. With...
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WILBRAHAM – Joe Calabrese of the Wilbraham Open Space and Recreation Committee presented the Select Board with the town’s updated Open Space Plan. He explained at the board’s Marc...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Senior Center is hosting a shoe drive fundraiser to raise funds for their building expansion from April 1 through May 31. Residents can help by donating gently worn, use...
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HAMPDEN – The Village Food Mart, at 43 Somers Rd., has been a staple of life in Hampden for nearly 75 years, albeit under different names. For the past 34 years, owner Gary Mayotte said, he h...
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HAMPDEN – On March 22, Mary Aicardi of the Collins Institute, a consulting firm, presented the Select Board with a report on the classification and compensation study it recently completed fo...
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HAMPDEN – State Sen. Eric Lesser updated the Hampden Select Board at its meeting on March 15 about the budget, the Hampden County Regional Retirement Board (HCRB) scandal and the move towards...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM– On March 11, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) hosted its annual budget roundtable with state Sen. Eric Lesser, state Reps. Angelo Puppolo and Brian As...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Superintendent Albert Ganem told the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) on March 4 that elementary schools would likely be unable to continue hybrid learni...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen voted at its March 8 meeting to name Det. Scott Trombly the new police chief.

Selectman John Flynn said that the board had had three “goo...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board viewed a presentation on the town’s proposed Municipal Vulnerability Plan (MVP) at its March 1 meeting. Marry Monahan and Steve Tyler from the consult...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen conducted interviews for the vacant police chief position at its Feb. 22 meeting. Three candidates, all from within the Hampden Police Department (HPD...
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HAMPDEN – At the Hampden Select Board meeting on Feb. 16, Principal Assessor Kelly McCormick and Chair of the Board of Assessors Norman Charest requested that the Select Board add an article ...
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WILBRAHAM – Excel Therapy & Conditioning, located at 2826 Boston Rd., was created a decade ago by owner and operator Dr. Sara Hulseberg. Though they’ve been in business for years, a...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN – Many towns have seen a boom of solar array installations over the past decade and Wilbraham and Hampden have been no different. However, that trend may be slowing down, at...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Reporting on the financial situation within the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) at its meeting Feb. 4, Director of Finance and Operations Aaron Osborne ...
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HAMPDEN – A 9-year-old girl in Hampden is using a community project to help kids her own age and younger. Shannon Wietecha is collecting stuffed animals and small toys to donate, so that firs...
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HAMPDEN – Dispatch regionalization was again on the agenda at the Hampden Select Board’s Feb. 8 meeting.

A letter was signed by the Select Board to be sent to the Massachusetts S...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Boards of Selectmen of Hampden and Wilbraham met remotely on Feb. 1 to sign an inter-municipal agreement regionalizing the dispatch service for the two towns.

M...
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WILBRAHAM – At Interskate 91 South on Boston Road in Wilbraham, there’s no music playing overhead, no lights flashing on the surface of the floor – and worse – no paying cus...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – At a Jan. 21 meeting, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District brought in Jay Barry, Mac Reid and Steve Hemman from the Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools...
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WILBRAHAM – Public Health Nurse Jill Consolino reported to the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen at its Jan. 25 meeting that while the numbers of COVID-19 cases are slowly trending downward, there...
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HAMPDEN – State Sen. Eric Lesser attended the Jan. 19 Hampden Select Board meeting to recognize outgoing Police Chief Jeff Farnsworth for his time as the head of Hamden’s police departm...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Police Chief Jeffrey Farnsworth is leaving his position with the town to pursue a role in state government as the senior policy advisor to secretary of public safety. The po...
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WILBRAHAM – State Rep. Angelo Puppolo presented Hayley Procon and her mother, Kristin Procon, the new owners of Common Grounds Cafe in Wilbraham, with a formal recognition from the Massachuse...
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WILBRAHAM – Jerry and Barbara Urlage posed with their family on Dec. 12, 2020 to celebrate the couple’s 80th birthdays. He was born Dec. 12, 1940, and his wife on Jan. 7, 1941. The two ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Superintendent Al Ganem and Nurse Coordinator Teri Brand informed the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee that the district would be continuing remote instruction ...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden locals looking for a haircut or a shave now have a new option. Daniel Craig Schneider began accepting appointments at Daniel Craig’s Barbershop.

A master barber...
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HAMPDEN – After nearly a year of discussion and controversy, the Hampden Select Board voted on Jan. 4 to partner with the Town of Wilbraham to provide emergency dispatch services.

Sele...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham has been nothing if not flexible during 2020. Faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, people managed to open new businesses, distinguish themselves in their field and voice co...
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HAMPDEN – The past year has been an eventful one for the Town of Hampden, and not without its controversies. From emergency dispatch regionalization and ambulance service to new business vent...
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WILBRAHAM – On Dec. 12, the Wilbraham Police Department collected toys to donate to children in need this holiday season. The Stuff-a-Cruiser event ran from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Wilbraham ...
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WILBRAHAM – After just a few months in business, Sue Burke, owner of Susie B’s Sweets-n-Treats, is catering to area sweet tooths with her cookie creations.

“Right now it&rs...
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WILBRAHAM – Common Grounds, a coffee shop at 2341 Boston Rd., in Wilbraham has changed management, but the new owner said the things that won’t change – the atmosphere, menu and p...
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WILBRAHAM – One thing most people aren’t doing during the pandemic is sitting in large crowds to watch theater productions. For small local theater companies, the inability to sell out ...
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HAMPDEN – On Dec. 8, the Hampden Board of Selectmen hosted a regional emergency dispatch public forum to hear from residents on the issue.

Chair Donald Davenport began the forum with a...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) is continuing its plan to transition elementary school grades to a synchronous learning format, by introducing the m...
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WILBRAHAM – Every year, Evangel Assembly of God, 348 Stony Hill Rd. in Wilbraham, puts on a Christmas musical to celebrate the season. Due to the pandemic, the performance will be a little di...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Public Library is offering a different take on Christmas this year. On Dec. 9 at 6 p.m., Irish Historian Sean Murphy will host a virtual presentation, “The His...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Select Board voted on Nov. 30 to approve the purchase of a list of supplies and services for the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD).

The items...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN – At the beginning of November, Shelley Mutti and Keri Lee, two women living in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD), began noticing posts in different are...
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HAMPDEN – For over a decade, the Bethlehem Church’s group for retirees, known as torchbearers, has partnered with the Christian organization Samaritan’s Purse to fill shoeboxes wi...
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WILBRAHAM – An experienced doctor who was part of a busy medical office in Monson recently opened a different type of medical practice on Boston Road.    

This doctor&rs...
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HAMPDEN – For the past several months, the Hampden Board of Selectmen has been negotiating a regional emergency dispatch agreement with the town of Wilbraham. Chair Donald Davenport has expre...
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WILBRAHAM – Ret. Maj. Kevin Davis and Brian Bowler of Wilbraham took it upon themselves to design a marathon course and complete it after the annual Marine Marathon was canceled due to the pa...
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WILBRAHAM – Despite not being able to play live shows for the past eight months, a Wilbraham-based garage band with a 90s feel, Wicked Good Dunk, is moving forward with their musical career b...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board voted at its Nov. 16 meeting to set a single tax rate for the 2021 fiscal year (FY).

Principal Assessor Kelly McCormick laid out the tax classificati...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen voted on Nov. 9 to approve the use of $30,000 of federal coronavirus relief funding to purchase supplies and services for the Hampden-Wilbraham Region...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Superintendent Al Ganem took time out of his superintendent’s report at the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Nov. 5 meeting to congratulate the tea...
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HAMPDEN – The Bethlehem Church, 123 Allen St., hosted a Pumpkin Party on Oct. 31. Families viewed carved pumpkins, trunk or treated, enjoyed storytime, live music and giveaways, while kids pa...
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WILBRAHAM – Fall is the season when high school juniors and seniors turn their attention toward their college plans and the maze of applications, essays, deadlines and interviews that go with...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham Public Health Nurse Jill Consolino reported a sharp increase in the number of COVID-19 cases to the Board of Selectmen at its meeting on Nov. 2. The town had 26 positive...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden conducted its Special Town Meeting on Oct. 26 at Thornton W. Burgess Middle School. The meeting was originally scheduled for Oct. 5, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pa...
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WILBRAHAM – Public Health Nurse Jill Consolino gave an update on the status of COVID-19 cases in town to the Wilbraham Select Board at its Oct. 19 meeting. The two-week average of cases is at...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Changes are underway in the way that remote students are taught at the elementary level in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD). At the school committee&...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board received an update and walk-through of the new municipal transparency tool from Cleargov at its Oct. 13 meeting. Anna Balcora demonstrated how the interacti...
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HAMPDEN – In a last minute change of plans, Hampden Town Moderator Richard Green released a letter to residents on Oct. 5, advising them that the Special Town Meeting scheduled for that eveni...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – On Oct. 1, just two weeks into the hybrid learning model in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District, the school committee was apprised of elementary school schedule...
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WILBRAHAM – The Town of Wilbraham is moving forward in normalizing operations with a “soft opening” of the town hall on Oct. 5. At the Sept. 28 select board meeting, Town Administ...
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WILBRAHAM – Remote learning has become a part of life for many area students and their families, but it creates challenges when parents and caregivers must work during the school-day and supe...
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WILBRAHAM/WESTFIELD – Karsten Nyarady, a Westfield resident and current senior at Wilbraham Monson Academy (WMA), participated in the Under Armour All-American lacrosse games in Indiana back ...
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HAMPDEN – The Board of Selectmen was approached by resident Rick Green regarding the establishment of a committee to assess structural integrity of and repairs to the town buildings. Green, w...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Six days after the opening of schools in the Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School District, Superintendent Albert Ganem told the School Committee he wanted to celebrate...
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HAMPDEN – The Town of Hampden will be conducting its Special Town Meeting on Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. at Thornton W. Burgess School.

There are 11 articles on the warrant. Articles 2, 8, 10 an...
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HAMPDEN – For 37 years, Dr. Brian MacLeod has served as senior pastor of Bethlehem Church, counseling people, working with youth and engaging with the town. In October, he will retire and say...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Police Department (WPD) recently posted an advisory on their Facebook page regarding a string of breaking and enterings in town. In the eight weeks prior to the advi...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Sample schedules were explored at the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District meeting on Sept. 3 to give parents a more concrete understanding of what a day of remote l...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN – One of the benefits to living in Hampden and Wilbraham is the hidden pockets of nature that lie within the towns. The four properties managed by the Minnechaug Land Trust ...
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WILBRAHAM – It may look different this year, but despite social distancing, thousands of people will hit the pavement on Oct. 4 to raise money for cancer in the annual Boston Marathon Jimmy F...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Development of a comprehensive social-emotional program has been underway in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD), but now, with the help of a $93,500 gr...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham Monson Academy’s (WMA) Head of School Brian Easler wants families to know that the school experience may be different this year, but they have made it as safe as p...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School Committee reviewed several new policies at its Aug. 20 meeting, including one that governs face coverings in schools.

Th...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen met on Aug. 10, with discussions heavily surrounding the Town’s Action Ambulance contract: the assignment of a designee, the review of July data...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Two days after a four–hour marathon meeting on Aug. 10, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee unanimously voted to adopt a hybrid model for the 2020-2021 s...
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WILBRAHAM/HAMPDEN – Roughly 150 people turned out along Main Street at Crane Park in Wilbraham on Aug. 6 for a “Back the Blue” rally supporting law enforcement before moving on to...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Fire Department has received $128,571.43 for three power stretchers and stretcherπ–ambulance load systems as part of $59 million in grants to through the Fe...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board discussed changes to the Fire Station at its Aug. 3 meeting. While a study of the building was originally undertaken as an examination of a fire station exp...
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HAMPDEN – At the July 27 Hampden Select Board meeting, Michal Boudreau was named to the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee by the board and the town’s other school committee me...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The school committee for the Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) found themselves in a problematic position on July 14 when electing officers during the fir...
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HAMPDEN – “So far, so good,” Rock Thibeault, Action Ambulance’s vice president of operations for the Pioneer Valley, reported with a chuckle. In the first 11 hours of July 1...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – At the beginning of the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District meeting on June 30, School Committee Chair Patrick Kiernan announced that member Heather Zanetti had res...
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HAMPDEN – The first order of business at the Hampden Board of Selectmen meeting on June 29 was to reconfigure the board after the recent town election.

Select Board Member John Flynn n...
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HAMPDEN - The Hampden town election looked a little different on June 22 than it has in years past, with plexiglass dividers, booths being cleaned between users and a regimented, streamlined proces...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District Superintendent Albert Ganem reported at the June 18 meeting that both Hampden and Wilbraham had passed their respective town bud...
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WILBRAHAM – About 150 people, mostly residents of Wilbraham, turned out on the lawn of the Wilbraham United Church on June 17. They were there to listen to their neighbors tell stories from t...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham conducted its Annual Town Meeting on June 15. While the meeting was in the auditorium at Minnechaug Regional High School, as usual, precautions had been put in place in ...
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WILBRAHAM – The Town of Wilbraham will conduct its Annual Town Meeting on June 15 at 7 p.m. in the Minnechaug Regional High School auditorium and cafeteria.

There are 47 articles on wh...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Superintendent Al Ganem told the school committee that the district’s schools vary in the levels of student engage...
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WILBRAHAM – Natalie Scott, Shelby Pace, Lilly Hakala, Savannah Russell and Samantha Devine pose atop the vehicles that carried them alongside their fellow Minnechaug Regional High School seni...
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WILBRAHAM – Steve Lawson of the Minnechaug Land Trust has a solution to the traffic woes of homeowners on Highmoor Drive.

On June 1, Lawson requested permission from the Wilbraham Sele...
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WILBRAHAM – It is amazing what someone can find in their own backyard. Wilbraham resident Mary Stacy, a retired reading teacher, found that out first hand when she was inspired to write her f...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM–  Tensions flared between Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) Director of Operations, Finance and Human Resources Howard Barber and members of the Hampde...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District met on May 15 with the sole purpose of discussing a paraprofessional furlough. After much discussion, the committee voted un...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham native and graduate of Minnechaug Regional High School, Jen Stephenson, has always had a passion for teaching music. Recently, that passion and drive led her to a presti...
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WILBRAHAM – The way in which an order by Gov. Charlie Baker requiring people who cannot socially distance themselves from others to wear a mask in public will be enforced was discussed by the...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District met on April 30 to discuss moving forward with new academic material in the age of distance learning.

Superintendent ...
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WILBRAHAM – Fire Chief Michael Andrews reported to the Select Board at its April 27 meeting that the National Guard is conducting tests at long-term care facilities in town. Fifty of the town...
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HAMPDEN – At the Hampden Select Board meeting on April 27, Interim Town Administrator Bob Markel ran down a list of projects on which the town has been making progress. Select Board Chair Don...
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HAMPDEN – At the Hampden Select Board’s April 21 meeting a motion to join the Chicopee-based regional dispatch agency WESTCOMMM  was voted down after vigorous debate.

The bo...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden Wilbraham Regional School Committee Chair Patrick Kiernan began the April 26 meeting by stating that he was “bothered” by the committee’s last me...
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WILBRAHAM – Firefighters are on the front lines of the fight against the novel coronavirus and the illness it causes, COVID-19.

“We’re immersed in it now,” said Capt....
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HAMPDEN – Hampden Board of Selectmen Chair Donald Davenport began the April 13 meeting, conducted via Zoom in consideration of the COVID-19 outbreak, with a history of the debate on regionali...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Select Board and the finance committee convened a joint meeting on April 6 to hear budget requests from town department heads.

Nick Manolakis, chair of the ca...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District school committee meeting on April 2 began with a public comment period that rehashed the recently-approved fiscal year 2021 ...
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WILBRAHAM – Craig Poisson, athletic director of Springfield College, is passionate that Division III schools are just as likely to attract star athletes as Division I and II schools.

&...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM– The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee approved the fiscal year 2021 (FY21) budget on March 26, with a vote of 6-1 to fund the district, however, the schools will ...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Many families rely on schools to offer breakfast and lunch during the school year. During the state-wide mandated closure of schools prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the...
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HAMPDEN – With the current economic climate, in which many people are facing financial hardship and eateries have been ordered to close their dining rooms due to the COVID-19 pandemic, now ma...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board called an emergency meeting on March 18 to declare a state of emergency. Interim Town Administrator Bob Markel recommended the action to allow the town to t...
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WILBRAHAM – The town of Wilbraham has declared a state of emergency at the urging of Fire Chief Michael Andrews, who leads the town’s emergency management team.

Beginning March ...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden convened a meeting of its emergency management team on March 13 to decide on a course of action in response to the ongoing COVID–19 pandemic.

The town’s e...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board put to bed the issue of waste hauling at its meeting on March 2.

The board voted to sign a contract with McNamara Waste Services to haul away both tr...
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WILBRAHAM – About 60 residents gathered in the auditorium of Minnechaug Regional High School on March 9 for the Wilbraham Special Town Meeting. There were only two articles on the warrant, bu...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham & Monson Academy (WMA) is reducing one hurdle to private education by lowering its tuition.

Beginning with the 2020-2021 academic year, tuition for Upper Scho...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) were joined by select board and advisory board members from Hampden and Wilbraham, as well as state lawmakers ...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board voted Feb. 24 to sign a contract with the material recycling facility (MRF) in Springfield to process recyclable material from the transfer station.

...
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WILBRAHAM – Beginning on March 21, Bill Wells will spend 24 hours running 100 miles, and he’ll be doing it for the kids.

Wells, who works at Wilbraham Monson Academy, has partner...
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WILBRAHAM – Leaders of several area towns came together to discuss shared issues at a municipal regionalization meeting on Feb. 19 in the Wilbraham Police Station’s community meeting ro...
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WILBRAHAM – Intricate designs and delicate handwriting are pleasing to the eye, but even more pleasing when they can be eaten.

Wilbraham resident Francesca Dias began her custom cookie...
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HAMPDEN – Officials from Hadley spoke with their counterparts in Hampden at the Feb. 18 select board meeting. Hadley Town Administrator David Nixon and Selectwoman Molly Keegan had been invit...
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HAMPDEN – In recent years, Hampden has had its share of controversy surrounding large-scale ground-mounted solar arrays, otherwise known as solar farms. Thanks to a strengthened bylaw passed ...
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HAMPDEN – The heads of several town departments discussed their budget proposals with the Hampden Board of Selectmen and the Hampden Advisory Board on Feb. 10.

Becky Moriarty, director...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – “Budgetarily, we’re not looking very good.” That was the news Bill Bontempi delivered to his fellow Hampden Wilbraham Regional School Committee members a...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Parents and their middle school–aged kids sat eating and talking together at the long cafeteria lunch tables at Wilbraham Middle School (WMS). The dinner had been se...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham Town Administrator Nick Brault and Assistant Town Administrator for Budget and Finance Thomas Sullivan presented the proposed town budget for the Fiscal Year 2021 at the...
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HAMPDEN – At the Hampden Select Board meeting on Jan. 27, Lori McCool of the board of health gave an update on a situation in which wastewater from the septic system at the mini-mall on the c...
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HAMPDEN – State Sen. Eric Lesser, with support from state Rep. Brian Ashe, secured a $15k earmark to fund Hampden’s Senior Center Feasibility Study.

Lesser called senior centers ...
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HAMPDEN – More than 100 residents turned out for a community forum on Jan. 21 to discuss options for handling two major problems facing the town – waste and recycling costs and ambulanc...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM  – At the Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) meeting on Jan. 9,  Director of Finance, Operations and Human Resources Howard Barber informed the sch...
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HAMPDEN – Jed Berliner, chair of the Hampden Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA), appeared before the select board at its Jan. 13 meeting to express “strong concerns” regarding the way ...
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WILBRAHAM – Jeff Christensen of Entry Point Networks addressed the Wilbraham Select Board at its meeting on Jan. 6. Christensen, who has been working with the town’s broadband committee...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham native Nate Chivers currently lives in Manchester, England, where he studies music composition at the Royal Northern College of Music.        &n...
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HAMPDEN – A quiet side street in Hampden has been drawing in carfuls of families every holiday season since the early 1980s.

Nearly every house on Greenleaf Drive is decorated with Chr...
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WILBRAHAM – Students who participate in the Above the Influence Club at the Minnechaug Regional High School are finding ways to give back to the community all year-round. In addition to spend...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Select Board had their work cut out for them when they conducted interviews for two fire captain positions during a public meeting on Dec. 11.

“Once aga...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board considered how to address the need for a backup for the position of town accountant at their Dec. 16 meeting.

“Rather than having a part-time p...
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WILBRAHAM – National Grid and Verizon presented a joint request at a public hearing at the Wilbraham Select Board’s Dec. 9 meeting. Representative Diane Cloud presented the request for ...
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WILBRAHAM – A program run by the Town of Wilbraham is helping seniors stay busy while lowering their property taxes.

The Senior Tax Work-Off Abatement Program is a state program under ...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Light Shop has sat unoccupied at 2511 Boston Rd., for about 20 years, but new owners are planning to shine a light on the property.

Jill Poehlman has been in ...
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WILBRAHAM – Ed Miga and Tanya Basch from the Wilbraham Department of Public Works (DPW) met with the select board  at the Dec. 2 meeting to inform them of a possible dramatic increase in...
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WILBRAHAM – For nearly 30 years, the annual Holly Fair hosted at Wilbraham United Church has been delighting thousands of visitors with a one-of-a-kind shopping experience.

The Holly f...
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WILBRAHAM – About 40 seniors gathered at the Wilbraham Senior Center on Nov. 19 to listen to experts speak about cybersecurity. The forum, sponsored by state Rep. Angelo Puppolo, chair of the...
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HAMPDEN – Town Administrator Robert Markel began the Nov. 25 Hampden Select Board meeting by telling the board that the $25,000 Community Compact Grant they had been awarded to design a sidew...
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HAMPDEN – Bethlehem Church is back with their third annual holiday event, “A Bethlehem Christmas,” on Dec. 7 and 8. This year, the church has made a few changes to their celebrati...
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WILBRAHAM – At the Nov. 18 Wilbraham Select Board meeting, Josh Gagnon was interviewed for the position of a police officer in the town. The Holyoke native has a degree from American Internat...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Public Library is partnering up with the First Annual Dingle Literary Festival in Dingle, Ireland through a transatlantic book club discussion with author Felicity Hayes...
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WILBRAHAM – Colin Tracy has been directing and producing theater in the area for a few years as the creative director at Evangel Assembly of God in Wilbraham, a church that produces three sho...
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WILBRAHAM – A father and daughter – Jared and Natalie Duff from Wilbraham – recently showed off their singing chops when they won the first annual Valley Voice contest at the Ja&r...
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WILBRAHAM – “I’m not a particularly smart man,” Geoff Whittier said in an interview with Reminder Publishing, “but I know you don’t change what works.” Tha...
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HAMPDEN – The Theatre Guild of Hampden is bringing vaudeville to town, that is, if the characters can stop arguing long enough.

The guild is performing, “The Sunshine Boys,&rdquo...
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WILBRAHAM – The Board of Assessors met with the Wilbraham Select Board on Nov. 4 to present three options for the Fiscal Year 2020 property tax rate.

Principal Assessor Manny Silva lai...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Hampden and Wilbraham residents attending the Oct. 24 Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee meeting were welcomed by dozens of teachers...
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WILBRAHAM – Members of Minnechaug High School class of 1967 gathered on Oct. 16 in the school’s Information Research Common (IRC) to unveil and present their gift of a stained glass win...
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HAMPDEN – Twenty years is a milestone for any organization and the Hampden Senior Center is throwing a party. The Hampden Senior Center 20th Anniversary Gala will be hosted at The Starting Ga...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden conducted its Special Town Meeting on Oct. 28 at the Thornton W. Burgess Middle School. The warrant contained 19 articles.

Carol Fitzgerald, co-chair of the Advisory ...
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HAMPDEN – At the Oct. 21 Advisory Committee Public Hearing, residents had a chance to ask questions about the 19 articles on the warrant for Hampden’s Special Town Meeting on Oct. 28. T...
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WILBRAHAM – Don your finest for a night of socializing and fundraising on Oct. 26 for the Wilbraham Hampden Academic Trust’s (W.H.A.T.) Second Annual Fall Gala.

The trust provide...
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WILBRAHAM – Sandy Polom was never a “mall-type” person. Instead, she preferred shopping for gifts that had a special touch. That’s why she was a frequent patron of The Scent...
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HAMPDEN – Even before buying the Mountain View Restaurant in Hampden, it had been something of a family business for Lyndsay Pelloso. A resident of Wilbraham, Pelloso had worked at Mountain V...
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WILBRAHAM – Former Minnechaug Regional High School students are coming together to raise money in memory of a fellow classmate who lost his life in the tragic World War II plane crash at the ...
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WILBRAHAM – The picnic that was hosted at Spec Pond Pavillion in Wilbraham on Oct. 5 was much like any other – families gathered around picnic tables, enjoying food with the sounds of c...
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WILBRAHAM – If you stopped into Cumberland Farms at 105 Post Office Park on Oct. 2, you may have had a chance to chat with Wilbraham’s finest.

Police Officer Michael Cygan was on...
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HAMPDEN – With days and nights growing colder, sweater and coat weather is upon us. As you pull out last year’s winter coats and sweatshirts in preparation – if you happen to noti...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – “If you did a grocery list, did everybody total it?” Kim Festa asked her students.

Festa is a transitional teacher/specialist at the Hampden-Wilbraham R...
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HAMPDEN – Mary Ellen Glover is the newest member of the Hampden Select Board. With 542 votes, more than twice that of any other candidate, Glover will serve out the remaining 20 months of for...
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WILBRAHAM – Greg Lockhart, better known by some in Wilbraham as Mr. Peach, received a commendation for his years of volunteering and community service from the select board at their Sept. 22 ...
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WILBRAHAM – The new Delaney’s Market, 2030 Boston Rd. in Wilbraham, opened its doors on Sept. 17 with a ribbon cutting and food and wine tasting. Owner Peter Rosskothen addresses the cr...
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WILBRAHAM – Michael Margolis of Margolis Orthodontics in Wilbraham is on a mission to bring music to middle schoolers.

On Sept. 29, Margolis Orthodontics will sponsor Margolis Miles fo...
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WILBRAHAM – Michael Andrews signed the contract to become Wilbraham’s new Fire Chief at the Sept. 17 Select Board meeting. Acting Fire Chief Peter Nothe was reappointed to his previous ...
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HAMPDEN – Robert Markel, of Longmeadow, has taken the reins as interim town manager for Hampden in the wake of the controversy surrounding the former administrator’s abrupt exit. Markel...
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WILBRAHAM – Allison Thomas and Nicole Scott watched as their respective three-year-olds, Riley Mae and Caleb, came rolling down the inflatable slide together and spilled out onto the grass. T...
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HAMPDEN – “Good job, Chief,” Hampden Select Board Chair John Flynn congratulated Police Chief Jeff Farnsworth on the work he had done to secure an emergency radio system for the t...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Sept. 5 Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District School Committee meeting began with an open comment period in which Hampden parent Mike Salemi asked the committee a...
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Fire Department can breathe easier now that they have received $155,057 to purchase firefighter breathing apparatuses as part of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant...
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HAMPDEN – On Sept. 3, former Springfield Mayor Robert Markel signed a contract with the town of Hampden to become the interim town administrator, effective immediately. The contract is for si...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The first thing you notice is the bounce. Grass just doesn’t bounce like turf.

Falcon Field at Minnechaug Regional High School underwent a transformation this...
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WILBRAHAM – Rick’s Place in Wilbraham is looking for locals to volunteer to be facilitators in supporting children who are suffering with grief. Rick’s Place is a non–profit...
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HAMPDEN – There is a four-way race to fill the Hampden Select Board seat left vacant by Norm Charest’s resignation in May.

Nancy Zebert, Austin McKeon, Mary Ellen Glover and Fred...
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HAMPDEN – Tree Warden Dana Pixley provided a bleak view of the trees in Hampden when he came before the Select Board on Aug. 19. Select Board Chair John Flynn said Pixley had spoken him previ...
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WILBRAHAM – When looking around the Brooks Room at the Wilbraham Public Library this August, patrons may feel the need to confront injustice. Everywhere you look in the room, there are poster...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham Select Board Chair Susan Bunnell and Town Administrator Nick Breault met with the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) School Committee during the ...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham has a new fire chief.

The Select Board voted to appoint Michael Andrews to the position at their Aug. 12 meeting. Andrews won out over two other applicants, Capt....
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WILBRAHAM – Every year, seniors get together at the Spec Pond Pavillion to enjoy a picnic put on by the Wilbraham-Hampden Rotary Club. After the Rotary Club declined to sponsor the picnic thi...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden kids will have a chance to get out on the field at Memorial Park and play ball during the third annual Wiffle Ball Tournament on Aug. 24.

The goal is to “get th...
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WILBRAHAM – Andrew Johnston, was on top of Mt. Stratton in Vt. when he reached out to Reminder Publishing to answer questions about the 2,180-mile fundraising hike he and his father, Ken, wer...
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WILBRAHAM – The Firefly Creative, a Wilbraham-based performance and theater company, is having open auditions for “Illuminate,” an original show produced by the Firefly Creative, ...
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HAMPDEN?– The Fire Chief Selection Committee came together for the first time in front of the Select Board at the July 29 meeting.

Select Board Chair John Flynn told the assembled comm...
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WILBRAHAM –  In a recent release, State Rep. Angelo Puppolo praised the recently-passed state budget of $43.1 billion for Fiscal Year 2020 The budget went to Gov. Charlie Baker’s d...
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HAMPDEN –  The Select Board attempted to mediate between the Casa Bella restaurant and their neighbors Mitch and Mary Drozdowski.

Selectman Donald Davenport informed the couple th...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM –  Superintendent Albert Ganem began the July 18 Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District’s (HWRSD) School Committee meeting with a moment of silence for Ben El...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM –  The Hampden–Wilbraham School District (HWRSD) is stalled in its negotiations with the teacher’s union, Hampden-Wilbraham Educators Association (HWEA), ov...
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HAMPDEN –  The question of a replacement Town Administrator was discussed at the June 10 Hampden Select Board meeting. It was the third meeting outgoing Town Administrator Mary McNally h...
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WILBRAHAM –  The Wilbraham Select Board met briefly on July 9 to discuss labor negotiations in an executive session and attend to routine matters. Selectman Robert Boilard was absent fro...
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HAMPDEN –  Hampden residents have been spotting coyotes in residential neighborhoods in town.

Brian Hembdt caught a coyote on video harassing his chickens on July 7. While most o...
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HAMPDEN – The first half of the Select Board meeting on July 1 focused on an ongoing dispute between the Casa Bella restaurant and their neighbors, Mary Drozdowski and Mitch Drozdowski.

WILBRAHAM – On June 21, John Van Buren, who lived in Wilbraham from 1980 until 2010, traveled to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio to be inducted into the Minor League Football Ha...
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WILBRAHAM – “There is probably no greater thing for a screenwriter to be able to say than ‘my movie is having a premiere in Los Angeles,’” Wilbraham resident Layla O&r...
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WILBRAHAM – State Rep. Angelo Puppolo gathered seniors together for “Pizza with Puppolo” at the Wilbraham Senior Center on June 18.

Puppolo, who is the Chairman of the Hous...
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WILBRAHAM – The Select Board approved an increase in the sticker fee for the Disposal and Recycling Center as presented at the June 17 meeting by Tonya Bash of the Department of Public Works....
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WILBRAHAM – The Wilbraham Peach Blossom Festival took place on June 15. Participants set a world record of 312 people for the largest human depiction of a fruit, in this case, a peach.

HAMPDEN – After 10 years of service to the town of Hampden, Robert Howarth stepped down this May as the Town Moderator.

Howarth’s main role as Moderator was to officiate at the ...
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WILBRAHAM – A Minnechaug Regional High School student got a taste of politics this spring with a chance to work on Beacon Hill for a day. Kaitlyn Acciardo worked as an intern in the office of...
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HAMPDEN – The June 10 Hampden Select Board meeting began with an unexpected announcement. Selectman Flynn told those assembled that longtime Selectman Norman Charest had resigned from his sea...
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WILBRAHAM – Pete Nothe, Wilbraham’s deputy fire chief was named to the position of acting fire chief by the Select Board at their meeting on June 3. Nothe has been with the fire departm...
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WILBRAHAM – It’s not often that people get a chance to have their work displayed alongside that of their heroes. Artist and Wilbraham native Christina Mastrangelo did just that when two...
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WILBRAHAM – In Wilbraham, June means it’s time for delicious food, carnival games, crafts, and community. It’s time to “Practice What You Peach” at the third annual Wi...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen conducted their weekly meeting on May 20, while the town elections were ongoing.

The Stormwater Committee’s Gary Weiner briefed the Board...
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WILBRAHAM – Two very different plays are coming to Wilbraham at the Evangel Assembly of God at 348 Stony Hill Rd. The first is “The Miracle Worker,” a play about how Hellen Keller...
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WILBRAHAM – Incumbent Sean F. Kennedy handily defeated his challenger, D. John McCarthy, for a seat on the Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School Committee. The May 18 Town Elections saw Ken...
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HAMPDEN – Donald Davenport unseated incumbent Vinnie Villamaino after waging a fierce campaign against the four-term Hampden Selectman.

“I’m honored and humbled by the resp...
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HAMPDEN – Residents poured into the auditorium space at Bethlehem Church located at 123 Allen St. on May 13 to vote on 24 warrant articles. While some were routine approvals regarding the upc...
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WILBRAHAM – About 100 Wilbraham residents gathered in the auditorium at Minnechaug Regional High School on the evening of May 13 for the annual Town Meeting. While there were 47 articles in a...
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WILBRAHAM – Sean F. Kennedy is running for re-election to the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District’s School Committee against Wilbraham resident and photographer, D. John McCarthy...
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HAMPDEN – Donald Davenport is running for the Hampden Select Board seat held by incumbent Vinnie Villamaino.

“I decided to run because the town is at a crossroads,” said Da...
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WILBRAHAM – The Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School Committee met to discuss Minnechaug’s ranking among other school districts and hammer out a rate of acceptance for of out-of-dist...
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WILBRAHAM– Black stools sit in a line in front of the fire engine red counter. There are guitars mounted on the wall, highway signs hung as decor, and chrome touches are everywhere. Wilbraham...
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WILBRAHAM – In a quiet room at the Wilbraham Public Library, 7-year-old Stirling Marosits sat on the floor reading aloud. His audience of one was relaxed and seated in front of him. When Maro...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham residents will vote on whether to adopt a new town by-law that would prohibit “door-to-door solicitors or peddlers.” The by-law is included as Article 46 on ...
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WILBRAHAM – Wilbraham’s annual Town Meeting is scheduled for May 13 at 7 p.m., at Minnechaug Regional High School. There are a total of 47 articles for residents to consider and vote on...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden will conduct it’s Annual Town Meeting of May 13 at 7 p.m., at the Bethlehem Church, 123 Allen St. Residents will have 25 Articles on which to discuss and vote.

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HAMPDEN – On April 22, the Hampden Advisory Board conducted a public hearing to present a draft of the warrant articles for the May 13 Town Meeting. Nearly 50 residents of the town attended t...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Select Board met with the Advisory Board on April 16 to review proposed warrant articles for the town meeting on May 13.

While most warrant articles were reviewed...
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WILBRAHAM – Rick’s Place, a non–profit organization located in Wilbraham which offers grief support to grieving children and their families, is hosting their second annual Run for...
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WILBRAHAM – On April 8, the Wilbraham Board of Selectmen approved a transfer of $60,000 from the Reserve Fund to the Fire Department’s budget, at the request of Fire Chief David Bourcie...
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WILBRAHAM – “Verbalize,” Sgt. Mark Paradis of the Wilbraham Police Department reminded the woman as she grappled with a man who was trying to attack her.

“Stay back!&...
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WILBRAHAM – “Uno”, by Bill Wells, a Wilbraham resident, is a book about abusive relationships from the outside, looking in. In the book, a retired man, who has recently lost his w...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden residents are considering whether to pursue the establishment of a development district along the Allen Street and Wilbraham Road section of town for the purpose of implemen...
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WILBRAHAM – The School Committee for the Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) voted on March 21 to approve the proposed budget of $48,444,374 for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20). The bu...
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HAMPDEN – The Hampden Board of Selectmen met on March 18 to decide on plans for a new business and upgrades to the town’s fire equipment and senior center.

A permit was issued to...
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WILBRAHAM – When people representing nations from around the globe gather to discuss the political challenges and issues that plague the world, they are usually experienced diplomats and fore...
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WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District met on March 7 to discuss the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2020. The overall budget is projected to be $48 million, an increase o...
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WILBRAHAM – On their next trip to Big Y, Wilbraham shoppers will have an opportunity to support the town library through Big Y’s Community Bag program.

“This program is des...
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WILBRAHAM – Interskate 91 wants to amend conditions on their license implemented after an almost decade–old incident that caused a public–safety hazard. On Feb.14, 2010, a teen ev...
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HAMPDEN – State Sen. Eric Lesser used a mallet to pound a spout into a tree that John Lebeaux, Department of Agricultural Resources commissioner, had just tapped with a hand drill.

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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden Senior Center is collaborating with the Wilbraham-Monson Academy to offer seniors help with their laptops, phones, and tablets.

“The feedback from...
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WILBRAHAM – Blue Elephant, an authentic Thai cuisine restaurant, located at 2000 Boston Rd. is scheduled to open their doors during the first week of March. The owners, Daniel O’Connell...
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WILBRAHAM/LONGMEADOW – With most cities and towns in America facing the prospect of an aging population, the issue of providing services for these residents is looming large nationwide. Local...
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WILBRAHAM – On Feb. 11, Wilbraham’s Board of Selectmen made two appointments to the Agricultural Commission.

Wilbraham has an Agricultural Commission with five members including ...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden hosted a Board of Selectmen meeting on Feb. 4. With the New Year, a common topic at the meeting was discussing budget changes looking ahead to 2020. Chief Farnsworth and Ser...
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HAMPDEN — The Scantic River Artisans hosted their first show of the year, “Art Blizzard” on Jan. 26. The Scantic River Artisans was founded 20 years ago, originally comprising of ...
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WILBRAHAM – On Jan. 28 a Select Board meeting was held at the Wilbraham Town Hall. During the Open Session, different permits and licenses were discussed for local businesses. The first busin...
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HAMPDEN – On Dec. 12 the Restorative Wellness Center located at 2 Allen St. in Hampden, opened their doors. Since then the response from the community has been very positive with many new, sa...
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HAMPDEN – On Jan. 26 The Scantic River Artisans will host their first art show of the year. To fit the season, the name of the show is “Art Blizzard.” The show will take place at ...
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HAMPDEN – The Board of Selectmen was asked to consider options for improving the Fire Department’s services at its Jan. 15 meeting.

Fire Chief Mike Gorski came before the board s...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Board of Selectmen did not provide an update on the status of litigation against the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District, but a message from one of their Wilbra...
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WILBRAHAM – Fieldcrest Brewing Company is one step closer to opening.

At its Jan. 7 meeting, the Board of Selectmen approved the pouring permit for the proposed brewery on Boston Road ...
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WILBRAHAM – While Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley just recently visited the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD), Superintendent A...
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HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – In 2018 the towns of Hampden and Wilbraham have experienced mail delivery issues, concerns and much discussion regarding the Hampden–Wilbraham Regional School Distri...
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HAMPDEN – Each New Year brings with it New Years resolutions for those looking to make a change in their life. Every year the top five documented New Years resolutions are all health related ...
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WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee conducted a workshop meeting to further discuss the outcomes of the most recent Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS...
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WILBRAHAM – Cumberland Farms has been a household name among families in New England, New York and Florida; the chain has expanded predominantly since the 1980s. With its extensive store menu...
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HAMPDEN – Hampden residents can expect to see a dip in their tax rate for fiscal year 2019 (FY19).

At its Dec. 3 meeting, the Board of Selectmen voted to adopt a single rate for all pr...
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WILBRAHAM – In recent years, Cannabidiol (CBD) dispensaries have become more prominent all over the United States. Over 100 locations have opened nationwide. On Nov. 21, Your CBD Store Wilbra...
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WILBRAHAM – In early November the Wilbraham Senior Center Feasibility Building Committee met to discuss three potential sites for a new senior center. On Nov. 28 the Committee reconvened and ...
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WILBRAHAM – The arrival of the winter season brings cravings of a hot cup of coffee on these cold mornings. Common Grounds Cafe in Wilbraham located at 2341 Boston Rd. can fulfill any coffee ...
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WILBRAHAM – As of the Board of Selectmen’s Nov. 26 meeting, there had been no applicants for an at-large community member seat available on the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Distric...
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WILBRAHAM – Each year, Evangel Assembly of God in Wilbraham puts on a Christmas show to help spread the true meaning behind the holiday. This year Director Colin Tracy has composed an alterna...
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HAMPDEN – In the wake of September’s Hurricane Florence, a group of 10 members of Bethlehem Church spent four days in New Bern, North Carolina clearing out homes that were flooded.

HAMPDEN – With Christmas around the corner, Bethlehem Church is starting to spread the holiday spirit with the return of their live nativity Christmas celebration, “A Bethlehem Christma...
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WILBRAHAM – Holding a copy of his 621-page novel “Run for Rwanda” – his first published literary work – Bill Wells admitted this was never the plan.

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WILBRAHAM/EAST LONGMEADOW — Wilbraham and East Longmeadow’s third and fourth graders faced off at the PeeWee Super Bowl on Nov. 10 at South Hadley High School. Wilbraham won 14–6 ...
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HAMPDEN – Resident Jim Smith expressed disappointment in the Board of Selectmen’s handling of the open meeting law violation complaint he filed against them in late October.

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WILBRAHAM – On Nov. 8, Rick’s Place held the ribbon cutting for their new building located at 85 Post Office Park in Wilbraham. Rick’s Place has been providing support and grief c...
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WILBRAHAM – The Board of Selectmen decided at its Nov. 5 meeting to maintain a single tax rate.