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WEATHER TONIGHT Partly Cloudy, Cool. Low of 60.
The Westfield News Serving Westfield, Southwick, and the surrounding Hilltowns
“The most persistent threat to freedom, to the rights of
Americans, is fear.” — George Meany
www.thewestfieldnews.com SATURDAY, AUGUST 16, 2014
VOL. 83 NO.191
75 cents
Record preservation request tabled
Westfield Fire Department Capt. Rebecca Boutin, right, the training and safety coordinator for the Western Massachusetts Technical Rescue Team, receives a hands-on training demonstration of a new Sensit Gold 2 Combustible Gas Indicator (CGI) from Paul Lamb, left, a certified trainer from the Sensit Company. The state-of-the-art detection system is designed to warn rescuers of toxic and explosive gases. Columbia Gas donated three meters each valued at $1,500. (Photo by Frederick Gore)
Rescue team gets training boost By Peter Francis Staff Writer EASTHAMPTON – Christmas came early for Western Mass. Technical Rescue (WMTR) Friday, as the unit, which is comprised of over 80 firefighters spread throughout Massachusetts’ four western counties, received a donation of three Sensit Gold Combustible Gas Indicators (CGI) from Columbia Gas of Massachusetts. At Columbia’s Easthampton facility Friday morning, several WMTR leaders were on hand to receive the devices and go through a two-hour training seminar. The devices are used to evaluate the atmosphere of a confined space and to monitor the presence of explosive or toxic gases. “We’ll become trainers today, and then we’ll bring it back to our teams,” said Rebecca Boutin, a captain with the Westfield Fire Department who has been with WMTR for 15 years. “These meters are more modern and equipped with more technology. We aren’t able to enter a confined space without these meters.” “We do lots of stuff that people can’t do, because we have the equipment and training,” said Bill Selkirk, director of Boutin’s WMTR team and assistant fire chief in South Hadley. “We’ve been on at least five incidents now. What we do is definitely technical – high angle rescue, confined space, collapsed buildings.” Selkirk said that any confined space rescue requires one of these CGI devices. “The meters are not new to us in the fire services. The officers, we use them all the time,” he said, adding that the team was relegated to borrowing meters from area fire departments prior to this donation. See Training, Page 3
Three handheld Sensit Gold 2 Combustible Gas Indicators (CGI) were donated to the Western Massachusetts Technical Rescue Team from Columbia Gas of Massachusetts on Friday morning. The meters detect the presence of explosive or toxic gases and are valued at $1,500 each. (Photo by Frederick Gore)
By Dan Moriarty Staff Writer WESTFIELD – The Community Preservation Commission endorsed the plan for preserving city records dating back to Westfield’s founding in 1669, but balked at approving $120,000 to initiate the document restoration and preservation process Thursday night. City Clerk Karen Fanion made the request for Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding to begin the project supported by Mayor Daniel M. Knapik and the Historical Commission. “These records date back to 1669, the founding of Westfield,” Fanion said. “They include birth, marriage, death and land transaction records. These are permanent records. We can Karen Fanion never get rid of them. City Clerk “We need to have these records so they can be used in the future,” Fanion said. “Some of the books which need to be restored have mold and mildew. These (documents) are very interesting, very valuable to the city. “There is a lot of water damage, some have insects in them, they need to be cleaned up and preserved,” Fanion said. “A record of the Old Burying Grounds was stuck between two books. It’s so fragile that we don’t want to touch it until it’s restored.” Fanion said that part of the project is digitizing the documents for a back-up electronic record. “But some of these documents are so bad that they can’t be digitized until they’ve been restored,” Fanion said. History Committee Chairwoman Kitt Milligan urged the CPC to act Thursday night to approve the funding and initiates restoration of the deteriorated documents. “The city has the responsibility to preserve these documents,” Milligan said. “There is often a need to have the original document for verification.” Fanion said the researchers can find digital records, but often need to confirm that the original document still exists. “We have to certify that the document is on our possession, sign that it’s a true copy and testament,” Fanion said. “The mayor is very supportive of this project which will be very expensive and will take a very long time. Each (record) book takes up to 16 weeks before we get it back.” The CPC members all voiced support for preservation of the historic documents but were also concerned that the city develop a maintenance plan to protect the restored documents. The documents have been stored for decades in a vault built as an addition to the east side of City Hall. There See Preservation, Page 5
Westfield State University announces new trustee WESTFIELD – Westfield State University President Elizabeth H. Preston announced Friday that Dr. Robert Martin has been named as the newest member of the Westfield State University Board of Trustees. Dr. Martin was appointed to the board by Governor Deval Patrick and sworn in on August 8th. “I am extremely grateful that Bob has agreed to rejoin the Westfield State community. His extensive experience with public higher education and his familiarity with Westfield State and the city will further strengthen our board in important ways,” said Preston. Martin most recently served as Interim President of Framingham
State University where he was responsible for overseeing a $100 million operating budget and providing strategic planning and overall direction for academic programs, enrollment, and student life, development, and governmental and community relations. Prior to his appointment as interim president, he served as Framingham State’s Vice President for Academic Affairs and as a visiting lecturer. He joined Framingham after 16 years at Westfield State where he served in a variety of positions including Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. Martin is a member of the
American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the American Conference of Academic Deans, and the College Board. This is not his first time serving as a trustee for an organization. He has been a member of the Board of Trustees for the Danforth Art Museum since 2006 and currently serves as president of the board. Martin’s community service efforts include current membership on the board of directors for the Chief’s Memorial Scholarship Fund, and former roles as corporator at the Westfield Athenaeum, a member of the Downtown Revitalization Committee of the Community Development
Corporation in Westfield, and a member of the Hospital Ethics Committee at Noble Hospital. He recently presented “Student Success: Moving the Needle on Graduation Rates” at the Plenary Session of the New England Regional Assembly of the College Board. He earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Wesleyan University and his master’s and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Rochester. Comprised of 11 members, the board of trustees is appointed by the governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each member is appointed for a five-year term, with
the possibility of one additional term of five years. Information about the selection and responsibilities of board members can be found on the DHE website. Current trustees include Terrell M. Hill, ’92, principal, High School, Inc.; Steven Marcus, ’88, president/ CEO of New England Geriatrics; Hon. Luis Perez, former First Justice, Worcester Juvenile Court; Kevin R. Queenin, ’70, Specialty Bolt & Screw Inc.; Hon. Elizabeth D. Scheibel, former Northwestern District Attorney (chair); James C. Hagan, ’84, president, Westfield Bank; and student trustee Joshua Frank ‘15. There are currently three vacancies on the board of trustees.