Upcoming Holiday Events in Winchendon!
December 20: Pioneer Valley Brass Quintet at UUCW
December 31: Denim and Diamonds New Year's Eve Party at Winchendon American Legion
For details, scroll down to the Community Connector Calendar!
This Week's Winchendon News
BOS and Citizens Share Reactions to Town Meeting Fire Station Vote
David Connor addresses the BOS
Photo copyright Town of Winchendon
Rick Lucier addresses the BOS
Photo copyright Town of Winchendon
At the Board of Selectmen's meeting on Monday, December 8, Board members and citizens had several opportunities to comment on the Special Town Meeting held a week earlier on December 1.
During the public comment period, citizen David Connor came forward to share his thoughts on the fire station vote. "I had 28 years on the Fire Department and the ambulance here in Winchendon. I've been retired from the Fire Department for many years, but still care dearly about it," he began. "We saw that split vote of 50/50 and I thought about it, and I actually mentioned it to the Town Manager the other day, that I'd like to come and talk about, where can we go from here? The majority of the town, I think, agree we need to do something to repair the building we have today and give them the space that we believe they need, but also do it in a way that we think the town can afford. There's a lot of talk about future expenses with the schools, other building concerns and other needs at the police station and others.
"What I'm proposing is, when we were getting ready to build the high school back in the early 90s, I was on the original school building committee. We hired the architect and started to move forward, then the committee disbanded, and another committee took over. I really think we need to put a committee together in this town of townspeople, taxpayers, but also some department heads. I don't want to make it too big, but I think if we can get concerned people that care about it, and also maybe a few that are naysayers, and put together a committee to look at the plan we have today, what changes can be made to it now, because it's designed and ready to go out to bid.
"We've spent a lot of money so far, but there's no way the town is going to move forward with the cost of this building. So how do we get the repairs needed on the existing building to give them the space they need? What do we need to do to make it more palatable for the town and affordable? There's got to be concessions made, because we know the town won't vote that price in. But also looking at what what could be done for future growth."
Mr. Connor referred to comments made at Special Town Meeting about the issues with the current police station, which is more than 100 years old and was formerly a courthouse that was remodeled into the police station. It has problems with energy efficiency, humidity inside the building, and many other maintenance concerns. "I'm not saying that we need to look at [a whole new] public safety building, but what is the option? What could be the option 10, 15, 20 years down the road, maybe put them together, but also maybe give the Fire Department what they need today, but design a building that can grow." He concluded, "We can't let this building stay the way it is, we also need to protect firefighters and give them a building that can be we can be proud of, but also be cost effective."
Board of Selectmen Chair Andrew Beauvais asked Town Manager Bill McKinney how such a building committee would be formed. Mr. McKinney confirmed that it would fall under the jurisdiction of the Board of Selectmen, and they would need to draw up a definition, number and qualifications of members, and so on, as they did for the Economic Development Task Force.
Citizen Renee Eldridge came forward next to add some comments to the fire station discussion. "In regards to the Fire Department...it sounds like there's a lot [of money] that hasn't been collected in the ambulance services," she said. "I'd like to share that somebody receiving [reimbursement], it depends on your insurance that you have, and individuals can be receiving from their insurance company personally, the monies for the ambulance, and then they're supposed to forward that to the town. So there may be a lot of people that are not aware that they're actually getting these monies.
"I say that because I am one of those people, I have a new insurance company, and they handle things differently. It does indicate on the information that you get, as far as what your benefits are, it'll come out in detail what's being paid by the insurance and what you owe. And if people aren't taking the time to open those and look, there's payments in there. So I just wanted to clarify that you might want to look at some kind of campaign within the town to start to look at those things." She suggested that perhaps Fire Chief Tom Smith could have an administrative assistant, or share one, to help look into the ambulance accounts receivable.
Citizen Rick Lucier came forward to suggest possible solutions to the fire station dilemma. "My comment has to do with my pushing of the tax title money that's owed to the town, and making sure we go after it vigorously. I'm pretty sure if this money is brought in, it goes to the General Fund. Once it hits that General Fund, there should be a punch list that [Fire Chief Tom Smith] has for some things that he could be doing now to help that fire station. There's a crack in it, well, they should be able to get some type of cement caulking and put it in there until they can get things moving forward. We could be doing some basic maintenance that we've heard is just overlooked.
"There's other things. There could be covers put on windows that are inexpensive, you know, things that aren't really a lot of money, but some of the firemen, I'm sure they're pretty adept at some of the construction trades and stuff that can do this as part of their downtime. I don't know what they really do with their downtime, but they, along with [the Department of Public Works], could be doing some maintenance on that building to help it move along, for say, the next six months until we can start looking at how we're going to address it.
"The interest rates are going to come down, and that's going to be to our benefit. And along with that, the construction industry isn't that stellar right now, so it should make it more aggressive for us to get some things in, and it should be able to be done in some phases. We did the Senior Center in phases, and it went quite well because the public accepted it that way, a lot easier than a big lump sum."
He added, "I'm sure whoever did the architectural design and stuff like that would probably like to keep his name out there and be good to Winchendon and maybe do some more work on that without an exorbitant fee to redo it, because he has the basic outline. It's a matter of moving some internal lines to make things up. Maybe a room doesn't get filled with something. It's just a room. We could use it as storage until it can then be converted into a sleeping quarter or something like that. There's a lot of things that can be done. It just needs time and people's input."
During the Board Members' Closing Comments period at the end of the meeting, Board members shared some views on the Special Town Meeting.
Board member Audrey LaBrie said, "I left the Town Meeting very upset. I won't say I was ashamed of the town, or of being a citizen, but I was very, very upset. And I don't know how we as a town can look in the eyes of our firefighters and expect them to answer the call. They made a 911 call to Winchendon, and we did not respond. We were not there for them. So if the conversation [during public comment] hadn't happened, I was going to speak up now and say, we still need to do something about this. We cannot let it die. Ricky Ruschioni stood up and talked about his job related disabilities. There are health issues that our firefighters are facing. There's horrors coming down the road that we don't even know about. So I am 100 percent behind continuing the discussion and seeing what we can do to help our fire service personnel have a safe place to work."
Mr. Beauvais said, "Along the same theme, first of all, I want to thank everybody who did attend last week's meeting, although it was not the outcome 50 percent of us wanted. The other 50 percent did get the outcome they were seeking. I appreciate the fact that folks showed up and they voted their conscience. Now that we have done that, we know where we stand, we know what we need to work on. And I think setting a clear path forward, such as what was recommended this evening by Mr. Connor, I think that is a path forward, and I hope that residents can get behind that and see that we truly are trying to come up with a reasonable request, because there are several folks that have mentioned that this is something that needs to be done, even those that voted against it simply because of a cost and the budgetary constraints.
"So that's absolutely understood, and I want it to be made clear that the reason why that meeting was set was simply to allow folks to have their voices heard, not to pull the wool over anyone's eyes. Although some may still disagree, that's their right, but I still appreciate every single one of those folks for showing up.
"The one thing I will say when it comes to being ashamed, I was ashamed at the the way some folks behaved during that meeting. The heckling of your neighbors is never called for. It's a place to be respectful of each other. We all are in it together."
Winchendon Commission on Disabilities Launching with Resident Survey
Renee Eldridge addresses the BOS
Photo copyright Town of Winchendon
At the Board of Selectmen's meeting on Monday, December 8, Renee Eldridge came forward on behalf of the Winchendon Commission of Disabilities Committee, saying, "I just wanted to come up, give a preliminary hello and say that we're excited to have our five members so that we can officially get started." The five members, Ms. Eldridge said, are herself, Pam Smith, Nicole Fleming, Katrina Fleming and Miranda Jennings. The Commission is looking forward to formally appearing before the Board to present their plans, goals, and actions.
"We're really excited to share with the community the ideas that we have, and share how the community has provided a lot of ADA compliant buildings and things like our YMCA playground that is totally fenced in," she said. "The children that are able to enjoy that might be on the spectrum and such, and so those kind of things we're listing out on a flyer. We're looking to do a survey and distribute this flyer and get and get that back."
She went on, "Our goal is to collect community feedback and be able to share that out with you. So we're excited about the committee. We're looking to grow our membership as well." She asked the Board for support in distributing their flyer and information to organizations, placing it on the town website, town Facebook page and WinchendonTV B-reel, and so on. The committee has also completed its Bylaws and sent them to the Board, she said.
The Commission meets on the first Thursday of each month at 4:30 p.m. at The HUB/Winchendon CAC, 5 Summer Drive. The survey may be filled out online at https://forms.gle/vySfVpABwXKxNPSg6.
If you're interested in joining the Commission, or would like more information, visit one of their meetings, or email winchendoncod@gmail.com.
The Commission was first proposed to the Board of Selectmen at their meeting on April 8, 2024 (see "BOS Hears Details About Proposed Town Commission on Disability" in the April 11-18, 2024 edition" of the online Winchendon Courier (scroll down)). It was approved by voters at the May 20, 2024 Annual Town Meeting with 91 percent in favor, 9 percent opposed, and no debate.
Firsts and Lasts at MMHS Music Department Winter Concert
MHS Concert Band
Photo by Inanna Arthen
Middle School Choir on risers, High School Choir in back
Photo by Inanna Arthen
On Wednesday, December 17, a small audience enjoyed the first MMHS Winter Concert under the leadership of music teacher Mia Stenberg, currently the only music teacher serving all seven grades at Murdock Middle High School. Beginning Band members, many of whom only began studying their instruments a couple of months ago, played in their first public performance. Meanwhile, senior Holly Harris, who plays flute and clarinet, joined the Concert Band for her last Winter Concert at Murdock.
Ms. Stenberg had students in each group come to the lectern for the short introduction of each piece played, giving them a chance to speak to the audience as well as sing or play.
The Beginning Band played brief excerpts from "Hot Cross Buns," Beethoven's "Ode to Joy," the Largo movement from Dvorak's "New World Symphony (a melody also well-known as the hymn "Going Home"), "Queen Mashup" (tunes by the rock band Queen), "When the Saints Go Marching In" and "Jingle Bells."
The Middle School Choir then took the stage to perform "Al Shlosha d'Varim" and the bouncy, "Shake the Papaya Down."
The High School Choir lined up behind the Middle School Choir for two combined numbers, "Can't Help Falling in Love" by Elvis Presley and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Following this, the High School Choir alone sang "Shenandoah," "Defying Gravity" from Wicked, "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch," from How the Grinch Stole Christmas (a green spotlight illuminated the singers for this one) and the Guns n' Roses number, "Sweet Child o' Mine."
The MHS Concert Band concluded the evening with Tchaikovsky's "Themes from March Slav," Pete Seeger's "We Shall Overcome," Brahm's very familiar "Hungarian Dance No. 5" and the popular Jule Styne holiday song, "Let It Snow."
Between groups, the concert band members accomplished a rapid and efficient changeover of chairs, risers and stands, with each group having a different arrangement.
Following the concert, audience members and families joined the performers for a reception in the Murdock High School music room next to the auditorium.
The MMHS Music Department will be presenting the musical Mamma Mia! in February. Auditions were held in November before the Thanksgiving break. Mamma Mia! is a "jukebox musical" with a story built around a selection of songs by the 1970s singing group ABBA. Three older women friends reunite for the wedding of one of their daughters, who is looking forward to her father walking her down the aisle. The problem? No one is quite sure who her father actually is! Come see how they sort it all out, to the bouncing hit tunes of ABBA.
Beginning Band
Anthony Ahola, '28
Morgan Nelson, '28
Phonethip Phouminh, '28
Meadow Allen, '31
Chace Dugan, '32
Aderra Ehnstrom, '30
Omario Figueroa, '30
Cod Man (Cody) Fischett, '31
Ylliana JeanPierre, '32
Louis LaChance, '31
Addy Rahaim, '32
Middle School Choir
Kendra Bayer, '32
Alyssa Chermak, '32
Vee Gilbert, '30
Sarah Mason, '30
Elizabeth Olson, '32
Emily Parent, '32
Addy Rahaim, '32
Margie Rathier, '30
Julia Spellman, '32
High School Choir
Brooke Arsenault, '28
Abigail Blake, '28
Shyann Doe, '27
Cayden Dunn, '27
Luisette Figueroa
Max Houle, '27
Doris Huggins, '27
Ashley Jean-Francois, '26
Jovani Morales, '27
Walter Moriarity, '27
Romina Rosso, '28
Misha Javien, '27
Bianca Touseul, '29
Bruanna Touseul, '27
Concert Band
Abigail Blake, '28
AJ Chavez, '27
Kiera Gerrard, '27
Holly Harris, '26
Brie Mason, '28
Shawn Newcomb, '28
Pioneer Valley Brass Quintet Makes Merry at UUCW on Dec 20!
The First Universalist Parish of North Dana
Photo courtesy J.R. Greene
Pioneer Valley Brass Quintet ready to bring you cheer!
Photo courtesy John Tandy
The Pioneer Valley Brass Quintet (PVB) appears in concert this Saturday, December 20 at 2:00 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Winchendon. This fine ensemble consisting of two trumpets, French horn, trombone and tuba, is sponsored by the First Universalist Parish of North Dana ("The Parish") as part of their Mason-Hale Vespers.
The Parish's creation of the Mason-Hale Vespers is a tale of loss, legacy and giving. Built in 1899, the Parish was a thriving church in the community of North Dana, MA. In the early 1930's four towns, including North Dana, were marked for demolition and flooding to form the Quabbin Reservoir to supply water to growing metropolitan Boston.
Accordingly, in 1933 the Parish building was sold to the Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission. Proceeds of that sale, along with bequests from parishioners Catherine Mason and Mary Hale, were invested in Unitarian Universalist securities. The building, along with most other structures in the town, was razed in 1937 and the site now rests underwater. But the Parish lives on: income from this investment is now used to furnish high-quality musical programs to churches in Central Massachusetts. Thus was born the Mason-Hale Vespers, which serve as a memorial to the town of North Dana and the Parish through the ministry of music.
The members of the PVB all sport extensive performance resumes throughout the region. Four of the five PVB members also play with Winchendon Winds--a professional wind ensemble well known in our town. Their family-friendly program for December 20 will be a light-hearted array of holiday music, with commentary provided by the ensemble. Admission is free, thanks to the Parish and their Mason-Hale Vespers program. Following the program, audience members may meet the performers and enjoy complimentary sweets and beverages.
The Unitarian Universalist Church of Winchendon is located in downtown Winchendon at 126 Central Street. Ample free parking is available in the church's front circle drive and surrounding streets. The church is ADA accessible and all are welcome.
GALA Plans New Classes and Artists' Groups for January
New Community: Social Art Circle
Drop-in Artmaking Group & Community Connection Space
Explore a variety of art in a supportive social environment--a group with different skill levels who wish to learn, explore, laugh, share, connect, and be inspired in a safe, low key, non-intimidating space. Bring your portable works in progress or try and pick from the shared community art supplies we have on hand. Spend a few hours to be a part of our social art gathering with artists, friends and seniors! Share your project and make new friends. This is a self-led group, but There will be classroom monitors who will assist you.
You may bring your own artwork or craft project and supplies that you are working on. We do have a community art supply area where you may choose something you would like to try. We supply paints, paper, brushes and other supplies. Enjoy a day and space to spend some time to work on your project, or simply invite your friends to a morning or evening of conversation and creativity.
Non-Makers are also welcome.
No Fee to Join! Open to ages 15 and above.
Beginning in January, 2026!
Morning: 1st Tuesday of every month, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.
(You may bring your own lunch or purchase the lunch in the cafeteria)
Evening: 3rd Thursday of every month, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
At the Old Murdock Senior Center, 52 Murdock Ave, Winchendon (In Partnership with the Winchendon Council on Aging).
REGISTRATION REQUIRED: Register at https://form.jotform.com/253415023143949
Note: We are looking for volunteer classroom monitors. Monitors can take part in group. If you are interested, email debgiordano59@comcast.net
Rubber Stamping Class
Carve your own custom stamp with a design you can print over and over again on paper or fabric.
Come with your own idea for an image (image size about 2.5" x 2.5"), or use one of the designs provided. You will learn to carve the rubber block using linocut tools. Then you will learn how to print your stamp a couple different ways. We will have paper, cards, sticker paper (for your laptops or notebooks, etc.) and bookmarks for you to stamp on. You can bring your own fabric to stamp on (tote bags, patches or t-shirt, etc.). You'll take everything you make home, and the best part is--you can keep stamping!
Instructor: Tracie Pouliet. $10 Class
Thursday, January 29, 2026
Two classes will be offered: in the afternoon from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., and in the evening from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Held at the Old Murdock Senior Center, 52 Murdock Ave, Winchendon.
Everyone is invited to attend. Sign up Now! https://form.jotform.com/253487644237971
Art Critique Sessions with GALA
Saturday, January 10 and February 7, 2026, 10:00 a.m.- 12:30 p.m. Are you looking for encouragement and support from other artists? Bring up to 2 pieces of your artwork (finished or unfinished) to share with your circle of artist friends. The first 15 minutes will be social time, then we will go into sharing our artwork. You may bring snacks to share with the group. Free to all GALA members. New artists, first 2 classes are free. Janet Dupuis will help guide us during our time together. Email Janet to let her know that you will be joining us at Jandu516@gmail.com. In the 1st floor Gallery of the Old Murdock Senior Center, 52 Murdock Ave, Winchendon.
To learn more about GALA, see www.galagardner.org
