REMINDER
Please Join Our
Masonic Open House
Corinthian Lodge #82
Free
& Accepted Masons
Saturday, October 20
9:00
– 3:00
5
Park Street, Pittsfield
Have you ever wanted to
know about Freemasonry or had a family member who was part of the
fraternity? Come and visit us to learn more – all are welcome!
Epsom Bible Church is
hosting “Trunk or Treat” on Halloween night from 5:30-7:00 PM. We
are located at 398 Black Hall Road in Epsom. We will have over 50
cars to visit for treats as well as hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy,
and hot chocolate. Come dressed up. Everyone is welcome!
MEET THE
CANDIDATES
The Epsom Library and the
Greater Pittsfield Chamber of Commerce are hosting a
Meet-the-Candidates Forum for the Epsom/Pittsfield State Legislative
candidates on Sunday, October 28, at 2:00 p.m. at the Epsom Library
on Rte. 4 Epsom.
Candidates for the NH
State Senate and the NH House of Representatives have been invited.
Epsom and Pittsfield residents are invited to come and meet the
local citizens who will be on the November ballots. There will
be the opportunity not only to learn more about each candidate but
also the chance to ask them questions.
There will be two
constitutional amendments on the ballot in November. The first is
about accountability. It restores the rights of citizens to sue
branches of government when they fail to follow the constitution or
the law. The second is about privacy. It modernizes our fourth
amendment rights against unreasonable searches of property to cover
snooping into personal information such as email, cell phone data,
and DNA. Former Epsom state representative Dan McGuire will be
on hand to explain these proposed amendments and answer questions.
Letter To The Editor
My name is Cory LaViska.
I’m a New Hampshire native, business owner, service-disabled
veteran, and father of two. I hold a bachelor’s degree and master’s
degree from the Florida Institute of Technology.
I value education a lot,
and I’m a proponent of full-day kindergarten. I’ve seen firsthand
how a curriculum-based program can educate young children and
prepare them for the challenging academic years ahead. My daughter
has been enrolled in a full-day, curriculum-based program for the
past year. This isn’t daycare or babysitting, it’s a learning
facility, and she loves it.
Her social skills have
improved vastly. She knows the alphabet, all the shapes, an array of
colors. She can count past twenty and do simple addition and
subtraction. She understands complex emotions such as frustrated and
annoyed and uses these words on her own. My daughter is only two.
Imagine how much a
full-day, curriculum-based program would benefit children when
they’re four and five, and the time we’re wasting by neglecting
those critical years.
When I moved to Epsom in
June, I wasn’t aware that it was one of only 17 towns in New
Hampshire that didn’t offer this crucial learning program. As a
father of two, had I known, I would have relocated to a different
town.
The education system has
changed. Whether we like it or not, so much more is expected from
children academically. By not implementing full-day kindergarten, we
are doing a disservice to our children’s education and our whole
community.
Let us not be the last
town in our state holding our children back. Let us level the
playing field and give our children the same academic advantage as
nearly every other town in New Hampshire.
Letter To The Editor
At last Monday’s Board of
Selectmen’s (BOS) meeting here in Epsom, the BOS under pressure from
afar, voted not to resume the P-28 Tax Inventory forms. As Zoning
Board Chairman, I favored the reinstituting of these forms which had
been used to uphold a Zoning Board decision appealed to Superior
Court, thereby justifying thousands of dollars in court costs.
Further, a near identical Zoning Board decision had been previously
reversed in Supreme Court, at the cost of many more thousands,
highlighting the importance of this issue to the town.
In recent weeks I have
listened to others who serve the community like the Zoning
Compliance Officer and Welfare Administrator. I learned that
P-28 forms significantly helped them perform their tasks as well.
Finally, a little research found that the Town of Henniker had
resumed using these forms recently and realized hundreds of
thousands of dollars in tax savings by avoiding a periodic town tax
assessment.
Alas, the argument that
somehow a stranger would use these forms to commit elderly fraud or
molest children prevailed. This even as the statistics show that 66%
of elderly fraud and 86% of child molestations are committed by
friends or family of the victim and no such “P-28 cases” were ever
provided as evidence at a BOS meeting.
Fear and superstition
ruled the day here in Epsom this week. Perhaps next year, those
opposed to these forms will actually attend a BOS meeting with
evidence allowing the BOS to make an informed decision.
Thank you,
Glenn Horner
Melvin Jones Award
The Melvin Jones award is presented to outstanding Lions
that make a significant contribution to their community by the
service projects that they enthusiastically participate in. The
Epsom-Chichester Lions have chosen this member as exemplifying this
standard.
Despite being a very busy
man, Tom Langlais decided to become a Lion in the Epsom-Chichester
Lions. After all, he and his wife Joanne have devoted their lives to
raise five children. Like many today, he didn’t think he had the
time to make much of a contribution.
Quite contrary, he has
made a lot of time for participating in the various projects of the
Epsom-Chichester Lions club.
He is most happy cooking
french fries at old home days (and he brings the family along to
help out)
His initial
responsibility was and is collecting all eye glasses donated and
delivered for recycling. We have lost count of how many that
is.
He is chief screener at
the elementary schools in the area when we do Kidsight. His special
personality seems to catch the kids attention, so he does some
amazing things with disabled and reluctant children.
He always helps out
packing boxes for the capital Area Christmas Food Program and spends
a day at the race track to be part of our fundraiser there.
This busy Lion also has a
great interest in local politics and is a member of the Knights of
Columbus and a reader at his church.
The Epsom-Chichester
Lions Club was honored to present Tom Langlais with a Melvin Jones
award in recognition of his participation as a Lion. He is a great
example of what a Lion should be.
You too can enjoy the
participation Lionism can bring to you. Those who volunteer are
known to be happier and healthier than non-volunteers. There are
various projects you may be interested in. No one has to do it all.
We work together in service to our community. If you are interested,
please call 736-9942. We are inviting you to become volunteers in
service-Lions!
Letter To The Editor
Editor,
That Americans are
divided is beyond dispute.
But over what?
Trump?
The Democrats?
The Republicans?
Not really?
Underlying most all
differences between Americans is a difference in philosophy.
Some Americans believe,
as did our founding fathers, that adherence to the principle of
Natural Law, i.e., the idea that every individual has a right to
their life, liberty and to own and control their own property, is
the key to happiness and prosperity.
In fact, to the extent
that Americans have adhered to the principle of Natural Law, the
general standard of living has soared beyond the wildest dreams of
our Founding Fathers.
Other Americans believe,
as did Karl Marx , that Socialism is the best way to raise the
general standard of living.
Like Marx, modern day
socialists/progressives, believe that such things as
governmental ownership and/or control over property, progressive
taxation, and government run schools, is the best way to raise the
general standard of living.
In addition to what Marx
advocated, modern day socialists/progressives now advocate for such
programs as single payer (governmental) health care, free college
education, debt forgiveness for past college expenses, and the like.
Modern day
socialist/progressives ignore the poverty incurred when
socialism was tried in Nazi Germany, Russia, and China.
They consciously turn a
blind eye to the millions upon millions of people murdered under
socialist governments in Nazi Germany, Russia, Red China, and
elsewhere.
Socialism, they claim,
would turn out differently under their guidance. (Sure it
would).
The differences between
Americans are profound because the philosophies they subscribe to
are mutually exclusive.
Consequently, there
cannot be any compromise.
To paraphrase Ludwig von
Mises, at some point you must choose between the philosophy
expressed in the Declaration of Independence and the Gettysburg
Address and that of the Communist Manifesto.
Jack Kelleher
Epsom
Epsom Library News
Don’t forget the Flu
Clinic being held by the Concord Regional VNA at the Epsom Library
today, Oct. 17 from 4:00 to 6:00. Cost is $30 unless you are
covered by insurance. Be sure to bring your insurance card with you.
At the movie matinee on
Wednesday, October 24, we are turning back the clock and showing
“Mama Mia” at 1:30. The music of ABBA will have you tapping
your feet as we remember the film in preparation of seeing “Mama Mia
Here We Go Again” the following week.
“Sea Monsters of the New
England Coast” is the topic for Mike Faiella, a retired history
teacher, on Monday, October 29 at 7:00 PM at the Epsom
Library. According to numerous accounts, an enormous creature has
been lurking off the coast of New England for centuries. Are these
stories believable? Is this mammoth sea monster fact or
fiction? Please join us as Mr. Faiella examines the legend and
reality of the great New England sea serpent.
Epsom Public Library Youth Events
American Girl Tea Party
“Sparkles & Stars” Saturday, November 3rd 1:30pm Girls and their
guest are invited for an afternoon of fun. Wear your favorite
“sparkly” outfit and bring your favorite doll. Seating is limited.
Please sign-up at the circulation desk or call 736-9920.
Refreshments will be finger sandwiches, tea breads, desserts, tea
and punch. A craft activity will be included. We will have a
drawing to win the newest American Girl doll, “Luciana.” Tickets are
$1.00 each or 6 for $5.00
Family Halloween Movie
“Hocus Pocus” Wednesday, October 24th at 4:30 pm. The movie is rated
PG. Snacks and drinks provided but donations of extra goodies are
appreciated! Special thanks to Melina LaValley for organizing this
event!
Letter
To my constituents in
Allenstown, Epsom, and Pittsfield,
This year, in addition to
all the people on the November 6 ballot, there are two proposed
constitutional amendments. I support both of them, but question 1
(government accountability) has been getting a bit of press lately,
so today I’ll discuss question 2 (privacy.)
This amendment simply
reads “An individual’s right to live free from governmental
intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential,
and inherent.” It is important because both the state and federal
constitutions respect our right to keep our persons, papers, houses,
and effects private, but need to be updated for the 21st century.
Our “effects” now include the texts and photos in our phones, our
emails (wherever they may be), the files we keep in “the cloud,” our
presence on Facebook, Instagram, or other social media, or even the
DNA we leave on a fork at the diner or a straw at McDonald’s. Most
people want to keep that sort of information as confidential as
their bank records, but some courts haven’t seen it that way.
The effect of Question 2
would be to require a search warrant before a government agent could
obtain or use this information, just as one is needed now before
your house could be searched. It would require the needs of any law
enforcement investigation to be balanced against your right to
privacy. This amendment would not restrict private activity: you’ll
still have to be careful on Facebook and watch for hackers and
scams.
Please vote “yes” on
question 2.
Representative Carol
McGuire
[email protected]
782-4918
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