Come join us and make a difference at the First Congregational
Church of Pittsfield from 10am - 2pm. We will finish the cooling
scarves and begin sewing simple totes for the Domestic Violence
Shelter in Concord. Activities for all skill levels. Light
refreshments will be served. (For those who have the talent to knit
or crochet, patterns will be available for Soldier hats and soap
holders).
REMINDER
PMHS
Athletic Hall Of Fame
The nomination deadline has been extended to August
1st. If you are interested in submitting a nomination, please go to
the school website or contact Jay Darrah, PMHS Athletic Director, at
[email protected].
Calling all Community Groups and Non-profits!
$$$$$$
Is your group looking for a fundraising idea?
Does your group have a few people and a few hours on the 1st
Wednesday of the month?
The Suncook Valley Rotary Club, formally known as the Pittsfield
Rotary Club has a dinner meeting at the Pittsfield Community Center
the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month.
We currently have the 1st Wednesday dinner available from September
to May of next year!
Our dinners are prepared by a community group or non-profit with a
guaranteed set payment by the club.
If you are interested and would like more
information, please contact Donna Keeley at
[email protected].
Suncook Valley Soccer Club registration is open until
August 1st. Forms can be printed from
facebook.com/suncookvalleysoccer or mypittsfield.com. Forms are also
available at Bell Brothers. Email
[email protected] with
questions.
New Beginnings Church of the Nazarene, 33 Staniels Road,
Loudon will host a summer kids’ event called Thailand Trek.
Thailand Trek is a cross-cultural experience where the children will
discover how much God loves the world. Kids will participate in
memorable Bible-learning activities, sing catchy songs, play
teamwork-building games, dig into yummy Thai–inspired treats,
experience cool Bible adventures, collect Bible Memory Makers, and
explore what daily life is like for kids in Thailand. Thailand
Trekis like taking a trip to Thailand!
Kids at Thailand Trek VBS will join an international mission effort
to share God’s Word by providing kid-friendly Thai-language New
Testaments for children in Thailand. This event is for children ages
3(potty trained) to 12 and will be held July 27-July 30, 6 – 8
P.M. To register call the church office, (603)224-1311 or download
the registration form at the church website, LNBnazarene.org and
mail to VBS Director, 33 Staniels Rd., Loudon, NH 03307.
On July 3 2015 the Friday Night Kayaking club paddled Pleasant Lake
with 9 kayaks attending. The group paddles a different lake, pond,
river every friday at 6 PM. Everyone is welcome. Just show up at the
launch site.Visit the group’s web site: huffnpuff.info. See you this
Friday!
Letter To The Editor
WHY?
Can someone tell me why there is no curfew on the time for personal
fireworks in residential areas? Public displays in parks have a
limited time in which to entertain people, but private displays in
local neighborhoods seem to have the privilege of extending that
time into late hours, and sometimes the wee hours of the morning -
disturbing the elderly, babies, pets and yes, folks who aren’t into
that scene.
Local citizens are well aware that loud vehicles seem to have the
same privilege day and night. Are there not ordinances to limit
noise and speed pollution? More and more the rights of the general
public are ignored to favor those who choose to abide by their own
sense of freedom and rights.
I live on Concord Hill where there is a speed limit of 30 and posted
“No thru trucks,” yet the road is used consistently and constantly
for speeding and loud traffic as well as for every size truck
manufactured. These vehicles are both a nuisance and a hindrance to
safety. Most certainly, this is a problem in other residential and
downtown areas of our town as well.
Submitted by
Beverly Drolet
New Hampshire Good Roads To Host
A Spectacular Day Of Fun At NH Motor Speedway
We’ve got the show on the road! If you have ever wondered what it
would be like to touch, climb on or demo the equipment you pass by
everyday hard at work on our highways and bridges—this is your
chance!
The New Hampshire Good Roads Association, a statewide nonprofit
association representing individuals and businesses involved in the
states transportation industry will host its 68th annual heavy
Equipment Show on July 31, 2015 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM at the New
Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire.
Bring your family & friends for a relaxing and fun-filled day. Your
opportunity to see the latest in innovative new products as well as
upgrades in heavy equipment including loaders, dozers, excavators,
trailers, trucks, accessories, surveying equipment, electronics and
much, much more. We’ll have equipment for forestry, landscaping and
ground care. Visit the ‘giant sand pile’ and watch the antique
equipment at work! There will be raffles throughout the day,
equipment contests, demonstrations and a scavenger hunt for the
kids!
The Equipment Show is open to the public and tickets are $7.00 per
person, kids under 18 are free! Admission includes free lunch of
chowder, hotdogs and soft drinks from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. From 3:00
to 5:00 PM we’ll be having a downeast clambake and barbeque provided
by Foster’s Downeast Clambake in York, Maine. Tickets are separate
and must be purchased in advance—$50 Clambake & $35 Barbeque.
All events will be held rain or shine. For additional information on
this event, please contact Brenda Clemons, New Hampshire Good Roads
Association at 603.224.1823 or visit our website at
nhgoodroads.org.
VA Funds New Studies Using Million Veteran Program Data
Database Links Genetic, Clinical, Lifestyle and Military
Exposure Information
Submitted Via Merrill Vaughan
WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is announcing
four new studies that will use genetic and other data from VA’s
Million Veteran Program (MVP) to answer key questions on heart
disease, kidney disease, and substance use—high-priority conditions
affecting Veterans.
MVP, which has enrolled more than 390,000 Veterans so far, has
already become the nation’s largest database linking genetic,
clinical, lifestyle and military exposure information. Part of a
beta test for data access, the newly funded studies are among the
first to use MVP data to delve into pressing questions on Veterans’
health. MVP-based studies on PTSD, schizophrenia and bipolar
disorder are already underway.
“MVP is making important discoveries that will impact healthcare for
Veterans and all Americans,” said VA Secretary Bob McDonald. “We’re
grateful to our Veteran partners, whose altruism has made this
possible.”
The new research, which will specifically include the understudied
African American and Hispanic Veteran populations, ties into the
broader national Precision Medicine Initiative announced by
President Obama earlier this year.
“There’s already been an impressive amount of data collected through
MVP, and we’re continuing to engage more Veterans in the program and
building its research infrastructure through studies like these,”
said Dr. Timothy O’ Leary, VA’s chief research and development
officer.
The new studies, involving consortiums of VA researchers and
university colleagues, will explore specific questions related to
chronic illnesses common among Veterans. They will also help
establish new methods for securely linking MVP data with other
sources of health information, including non-VA sources such as the
Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS).
The new studies include the following:
Cardiovascular risk factors—Drs. Farooq Amin and Peter Wilson at the
Atlanta VA Medical Center, and Dr. Kelly Cho at the Boston VA Health
Care System, will lead an effort probing the genes that influence
how obesity and lipid levels affect heart risk. Using MVP data,
their team will also look at whether these genetic factors differ
among African Americans and Hispanics. “These populations are
extremely important in VA,” said Amin.
Multi-substance use—Drs. Daniel Federman and Amy Justice at the VA
Connecticut Healthcare System, and Dr. Henry Kranzler at the
Philadelphia VA Medical Center, will examine the genetic risk
factors for chronic use of alcohol, tobacco, and opioids—and the
dangerous use of all three together. “MVP offers an unprecedented
opportunity to advance this field,” said Federman.
Pharmacogenomics of kidney disease—Dr. Adriana Hung at the VA
Tennessee Valley Healthcare System will focus on how genes affect
the risk and progression of kidney disease. One goal is to examine
how patients with diabetes—who often develop kidney problems—respond
differently to the drug metformin, the standard first-line treatment
for diabetes, based on their genetic profile. The project will also
look at the genetics of hypertension, a major risk factor for kidney
disease. “Kidney disease is a major cause of morbidity and
mortality in Veterans and we’re hoping to gain insights that will
drive personalized medicine for this population,” said Hung.
Metabolic conditions—Dr. Philip Tsao at the VA Palo Alto Health Care
System and Dr. Kyong-Mi Chang at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center,
leading a team of researchers from five VA regions and two
universities, will explore the role of genetics in obesity,
diabetes, and abnormal lipid levels (namely, cholesterol and
triglycerides), as drivers of heart disease. “This project will help
us more thoroughly understand the underlying causes of
cardiometabolic disease and develop new therapies that are safe,
effective, and personalized,” said Tsao. “This is also a great
opportunity to partner with our colleagues at Stanford and the
University of Pennsylvania,” added Chang.
For more information about MVP and VA research in
general, visit
www.research.va.gov
Pittsfield Players Looking For Sign Help
Jim Hart scales the scaffolding but still can’t reach the Scenic
Theatre sign. Can you help?
We tried, but our scaffolding just wasn’t high enough. The
Pittsfield Players need to repaint the Scenic Theatre sign, and we
need to replace the rusted pole and rigging that holds the sign up
over the outside lobby. We’re looking for someone with a lift that
can be used to get the sign down and to put it back up after we
repaint it. Renting this item would cost us over $500, so we’re
putting out the call to the community to see if anyone with a boom
lift can help us out. If you can help, please contact Maye Hart at
736-9563.
Drake Field Summer Recreation Program
It is not too late to sign up for the Drake Field Summer Rec.
Program. Stop by Drake Field and see Mrs. Sawyer for registration
forms and start having fun today! The program is open Monday through
Thursday until August 6th and is FREE to Pittsfield students in
grades 1-8.
The summer program consist of sports activities, arts and crafts,
children’s games, board games, field trips, water games, story time
and many other fun and educational activities. Thanks to the
Sanderson Trust Fund, the Foss Family Foundation, Grappone
Automotive and Irwin Motors the following field trips are now
happening – the Children’s Museum of NH, Ellacoya State Park,
Wentworth State Park,Wallis Sands, Town Pool, Liquid Water Planet,
Conway Railroad, North Conway Weather Discovery, White Lake State
Park, Fort Constitution, U.S. Coast Guard Station, Great Island
Common, Air National Guard Station, Krazy Kids, roller skating and
York Wild Animal Kingdom. Many of the field trips are free and some
have an admittance fee. We are also planning some historical and
educational walking field trips through the town as well as visits
from the fire department and hopefully the police department as
well.
Don’t just sit at home – come join us for some fun in the sun!!
For more information please contact Mrs. Louise Sawyer at 267-6733.
New VA Leaders Shulkin And Council Take Oath Of Office
Shulkin to Head Veterans Health Care; Council to Head Information
Technology
Submitted Via Merrill Vaughan
Dr. David J. Shulkin and LaVerne Horton Council today took the oath
of office where they will serve respectively as Under Secretary for
Health and Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology and
Chief Information Officer for the Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA). Both were nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the
Senate on June 23.
“Dr. Shulkin and Ms. Council bring stellar experience and
exceptionally strong leadership to their posts,” said Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald. “Both will play critical roles
in making VA a stronger organization for America’s Veterans, and I
am looking forward to working with them.”
Dr. Shulkin comes to VA immediately from the position of President
at Morristown Medical Center, Goryeb Children’s Hospital and
Atlantic Rehabilitation Institute, part of Atlantic Health System.
Prior to joining Morristown Medical Center and Atlantic Health, Dr.
Shulkin served as President and CEO of Beth Israel Medical Center in
New York, where he led a financial turnaround and rebuild of the
$1.3 billion organization.
Dr. Shulkin also has served in numerous physician leadership roles
at the University of Pennsylvania Health System, the Hospital of the
University of Pennsylvania, Temple University Hospital and the
Medical College of Pennsylvania Hospital. He is a board-certified
internist, a fellow of the American College of Physicians, Professor
of Medicine at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine and a Senior Fellow at
the Health Research and Education Trust of the American Hospital
Association. He earned his medical degree from the Medical College
of Pennsylvania and completed his internship at Yale University
School of Medicine.
As Under Secretary for Health, Dr. Shulkin will direct a health care
system with an annual discretionary budget of approximately $60
billion, overseeing the delivery of care to more than 9 million
enrolled Veterans. VA, the nation’s largest health care system,
employs more than 350,000 total employees including over 305,000
health care professionals and support staff at more than 1,200 sites
of care, including hospitals, community based outpatient clinics,
nursing homes, domiciliaries and 300 Vet Centers.
Ms. Council most recently held the positions of CEO at Council
Advisory Services, LLC and Chair of the National Board of Trustees
for the March of Dimes. In December 2011, she retired from Johnson &
Johnson after serving as Corporate Vice President and Chief
Information Officer for Johnson & Johnson’s global IT group. In this
capacity, she was responsible for managing IT and related systems
for the $61.6 billion Johnson & Johnson worldwide enterprise. She
was a member of the Corporate Global Operating Committee and her
organization included more than 250 operating companies with more
than 4,000 information technology employees and 7,000 contractors.
Before joining Johnson & Johnson, Ms. Council was Global Vice
President for IT, Global Business Solutions, and Development
Services for Dell, Inc. She also was previously a partner with Ernst
and Young and led the company’s Global Supply Chain Strategy
practice.
Ms. Council earned a Master’s of Business Administration in
Operations Management from Illinois State University with a Bachelor
of Science in Business from Western Illinois University. In 2010,
Ms. Council was presented with a Doctorate of Business
Administration, Honoris Causa from Drexel University.
As VA’s Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology and CIO,
Ms. Council is the single leadership authority for IT and is the
principal advisor to the Secretary on all matters relating to the
management of VA’s Office of Information and Technology. She will
oversee VA’s $4 billion IT portfolio and more than 8,000 IT
employees.
TOPS News
Submitted By Terrie Azotea
At TOPS this past couple of weeks our KOPSbest loser was Irene and
our TOPS best loser was our new member, Linda. Kudos to you and also
to those who were runners up.
I hope that everyone had a great Fourth of July. We had open mic
night and talked about different food choices that we could make
when going to a cookout or on vacation. We also looked up the amount
of calories that are in one hot dog and in a burger, so some of our
choices were to try a turkey burger or those yummy turkey hot dogs.
You could bring a salad that you can have. This is a great time of
the year to get out and go to your local farmer or your own garden
for the fresh veggies coming in. All in all it’s always about
choices and what we do with them.
We talked about the up coming KOPS Honor Society and we are still
running a contest. We would like to give an open invitation to
anyone who would like to come sit in on our meeting.We are a
non-profit, support weight loss group and work together to help one
another.We meet on Tuesday nights at the Berakah on Fairview Rd. in
Pittsfield at 6:30 for our meeting. Any questions please call Janis
White at 603-491-5532 or Claire Coll at 603-435-7572. I hope
everyone has a great week and see you all lighter next week!
Town Administrator (Interim) - Pittsfield
Submitted By Sandy “More Light Than Heat” Wingate
Thought I’d introduce myself. I’m Earle “Sandy” Wingate, the new
Town Administrator. I’ve been hired on an interim basis, which means
that in a few months the selectmen and I will look at each other and
decide if the marriage is going to last. You’ve probably read Mike
Williams’ exit letter, so you know something about me. I’ve lived in
town 10 years. I like living here.
When I told my friends and acquaintances of my new job, NOT ONE
congratulated me. The response of every single one of them was a
variation on the theme “sorry to hear that.” The first
“congratulation” I received was from a salesman, looking for
business from the town.
I’m a student of history. I’m also a master of clichés. Those who
don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Town
Administrators were authorized by town meeting in 1979. Over the
past 15 years, this Town has had 5 Administrators. If my math’s
right, that’s an average of three years apiece. Two lasted 14
months.
So why take the job? Well, I love a challenge, and this job matches
many of my personal and professional skills. I’ve been a
professional sailor, firefighter, truck driver, bartender, manager,
police commissioner, selectman, gardener, beekeeper, and chicken
plucker. I’ve been a lawyer for 28 years, in real estate, banking,
land use planning, divorce, prosecution, defense, and as
administrative hearings officer and litigator. In other words, I’ve
worked in a “people” business all my life. But let me quickly say I
am not young enough to know it all.
The Town Administrator gets direction from the Board and reports
directly to the Board. But there are many pressures brought by
forces apart from the Board which relate to the TA’s working
conditions. And it was these forceful pressures which caused Mr.
Williams to leave. It certainly wasn’t any lack of skill on his
part; on the contrary, the work he left me to finish was handled
masterfully.
As I said, I like living here. This is a neat place to live (and
work!). Our Town, I know from firsthand experience, has many
positive and talented people. I know public life is rough and
tumble. I expect turbulence. But let’s all work together.
Letter To The Editor
Education funding stalled by vetoed budget
To the Editor,
As Chair of the Senate Education Committee, and a member of Senate
Finance, I kept a close eye on how the budget we passed affected New
Hampshire schools. The budget would have been great news for
education at all levels, and it’s a shame that Governor Hassan chose
to veto it.
At the local level, this budget increased state support for public
schools by phasing out the cap on Adequacy Grants that limited how
much some districts received under the Education Funding formula. By
raising the cap to 140% of the prior year’s level in 2017, and
eliminating it entirely in 2018, this budget would have brought
actual spending on local schools in line with the formula we adopted
several years ago.
Local charter school would have also benefitted. State aid to
district schools increase with inflation, but charter school grants
have not been indexed. This budget added an annual adjustment for
the Consumer Price Index to make sure state aid kept up with
inflation.
We also included a $1,000 per student increase in 2017, bringing
Charter School grants closer to the amount we send to district
schools.
In higher education, we also increased state funding. We worked
with the Community College System to provide enough for it to freeze
tuition for the next two years. We increased state spending on the
University System by $12 million in this budget, an 8% increase.
Unfortunately, the Governor’s veto put all of this on hold. I
remain confident that education will remain a priority as we
continue to work on New Hampshire’s budget.
Senator John Reagan (R-Deerfield)
Representing District 17 which is comprised of towns including:
Allenstown, Chichester, Deerfield, Epsom, Loudon, Northwood,
Nottingham, Pembroke, Pittsfield, Raymond, and Strafford.
|