Pioneers hold tryouts

PAGE 9

By Michael Harrisonmharrison@turley.com

LUDLOW — Like his peers around the region, Ludlow Su-perintendent of Schools Todd Gazda watched the number of COVID-19 cases rising and knew a difficult decision was all but inevitable. The day before Thanksgiving, citing numbers trending in the wrong direction, he notified parents and staff that the first day back to school fol-lowing the holiday would have to be conducted remotely.

The return to full remote from the hybrid model will like-ly remain the policy for the rest of the year.

“It was driven by the number prior to Thanksgiving,” Gazda said Monday.

“We’re constantly assessing

LOCAL NEWS ❙ LOCAL STORIES ❙ LOCAL ADVERTISERS

The

REGISTEROpinion: 6In The Classroom: 8Sports: 9Obituaries: 10Notices: 13,15Classifieds: 14INDEX

A TURLEY PUBLICATION ❙ www.turley.com December 2, 2020 ❙ Vol. 78, No. 29 www.register.turley.com

Community cares

SEE PAGE 3

IN THE CLASSROOM

Reliving “Best Day”

SEE PAGE 8

IN SPORTS

Final action for Lions volleyball

NEWSLINE

By Jonah Snowdenjsnowden@turley.com

LUDLOW – Despite the hardships endured from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lud-low Community Center/Ran-dall Boys and Girls Club con-tinues to serve community in more ways than one. On Nov. 13, the club, held a Fall Feast

Fundraiser that also happened to fall on World Kindness Day.

With World Kindness Day in mind, staff members at the club, with the assistance of local restaurants and other businesses all came togeth-er to prepare 116 dinners for

Graphic courtesy of Ally Jarmanning and Daigo Fujiwara / WBUR

A map showing COVID-19 data across the Commonwealth last week shows a 6.50 positivity rate for Ludlow – even higher than the rate cited in Ludlow Supt. of Schools Todd Gazda’s email announcing the return to remote classes. The lower number was reported by state health officials the week before.

Boys and Girls Club event in spirit of World Kindness Day

LONGMEADOW — Sen-ator Eric P. Lesser was joined recently by Congressman Jim McGovern for a Lunchtime Livestream on food security, economic development, trans-portation, and his upcoming legislative goals for 2021.

McGovern represents the cities of Worcester, Northamp-ton and parts of both Central

Massachusetts and the Pioneer Valley, and has served in Con-gress since 1996. As Chair of the House Committee on Rules, he will continue in that role for the next Congress.

An archive of the lives-tream can be found on Twitter and Facebook.

Ludlow schools brace for expected next COVID waveClothes, food drive Dec.5

SEE PAGE 2

Start of Monte’s March highlighted to combat regional hunger

Courtesy Photo

The Ludlow Community Center/Randall Boys and Girls Club hosted its Fall Feast Fundraiser on Nov. 13.

Rotary coat drive collects nearly 1,000 pounds of donations

LUDLOW — Members of the Ludlow Rotary Club hosted a Pop the Trunk Coat Drive to benefit the Springfield Rescue Mission on Nov. 21 that col-lected 975 pounds of new and gently used clothes that have bee donated to the Springfield Rescue Mission.

“We not only had great weather but a fantastic turn-out!” said club President Kevin A. Vestal.

“Fifteen minutes before the event was to begin, we had al-ready unloaded several cars and nearly filled two large moving boxes,” Vestal said.

“To selflessly give our sup-port to those in need, especial-ly during this time of the year, coupled with the pandemic, there are likely to be more people in need this winter, so it was great timing to hold this event.”

Courtesy photos

Rotarians (from left), Lisa Wegiel, Club President Kevin A. Vestal, Emma Jean Peabody and James Gennette after the recent successful coat drive.

Nearly 1,000 pounds of coats and other winter gear was collected in the recent Ludlow Rotary Club Pop the Trunk Coat Drive to benefit the Springfield Rescue Mission.Please see LESSER, Page 8

Please see BOYS/GIRLS CLUB, Page 5

Please see SCHOOLS, Page 7

◗ Page 2 ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ The Register

LUDLOW

222 Upper Moss Hill Rd.Russell, MA 01071

413-862-3815

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WINTER SALEPlease CALL in your order

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NOTICEERRORS: Each advertiser is requested to check their ad-vertisement the first time it appears. This paper will not be responsible for more than one corrected insertion, nor will be liable for any error in an advertisement to a greater extent than the cost of the space occupied by the item in the advertisement.

First Church collecting food, winter clothes for those in needLUDLOW — First Church in Ludlow

is continuing to help others in need and is collecting non-perishable food and winter wear for chidden 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5.

The food and clothes drive will be held rain or shine and donations will be collect-ed from donors’ cars as they line up in a drive-through line. All donations will go to the Community Survival Center in Indi-an Orchard that served the area, including Ludlow residents in need.

The Survival Center is always in need of protein items such as peanut butter, canned tuna, hearty soups, canned beef stew, corned beef hash and canned chick-en. Other items to round out a healthy diet include pasta and sauce, hot or cold cereal, canned fruits, canned vegetables and boxed potatoes. Cash donations in the form of a check made out to the Commu-nity Survival Center will also be accepted.

The center also provides meals for children. Did you know that a donation of a $50 one time will buy breakfast and lunch for four hungry children for one month?

In addition to the food collection, the church will be collecting new children’s hats, mittens and scarves. Each year during Advent, First Church has had a mitten tree and collected these new items which are distributed to children in need. Unfortunately this year, with the ongoing pandemic, the mitten tree has not been an option, so the church is putting out a call for donations.

All items received Dec. 5 will make it to a needy child in time for the colder weather ahead.

The church especially wants to thank its neighbors, who along with church

members, has made food collections so successful. First Church set a goal of 600 pounds of fresh potatoes and carrots for delivery to the Survival Center earlier this month and exceeded that by several hun-dred pounds.

“Everyone’s generosity during these difficult times is truly heartwarming,” the church said in a statement.

First Church is located at 859 Center Street in Ludlow.

The mission of the Community Sur-vival Center, 240 Main Street in Indian Orchard, “is to provide survival items of food, clothing and household goods to members of our community in times of need,” according to its website. Here’s a

look at the center’s various programs:• The Emergency Food Program of-

fers a six-day supply of necessary grocery items, including meats, to individuals liv-ing in the service area. Families may re-ceive emergency food six times during the fiscal year (July 1-June 30). While services may be utilized once a week for six weeks, it is recommended that vis-its be spread out to ensure help will be available when needed. This program offers 20 nutritious breakfasts, lunches, healthy snacks, milk (when available), and juice (when available), in the form of bagged groceries. It is available to any family participating in our Emergency Food program. Families commit to pick-ing up the food once a month until the child is old enough to attend school full time. It includes 12 20-22-pound bags of food (one each month of the year) to any and all low-income senior households

in Hampden County. Seniors must bring current, postmarked mail and verification of household income on their first visit of any fiscal year.

• Fill A Bag Program offered by The Community Survival Center is open to anyone having a tough time making ends meet-and with today’s prices and needs clothes, bedding and a variety of house-hold items. Purchase a paper bag for $6 and fill the bag with your selections. The Center offers an organized store-like en-vironment with pleasant volunteers and staff to assist you. There is a large assort-ment of clothing for everyone. A separate section offers a selection of comforters, sheets, and blankets, as well as sets of dishes, pots and pans, and a number of other necessities and decorative household items. Please note: you will need to pres-ent a picture ID if purchasing household goods.

• The Thrift Shop enjoys great popular-ity with bargain conscious shoppers. Most items are priced at $4 per piece. Blouses and shirts are priced at $3 per piece. Ca-pris, pants, and shorts are $4 per piece. Sneakers are $4 per pair. Last year, more than 9,500 shoppers found exactly what they were looking for here. The Thrift Shop offers a wide range of brand names for men, women, and teens, including American Eagle, Aeropostale, Cold Water Creek, and more. Also in the Thrift Shop there are shoes, handbags, belts, scarves, hats, jewelry, and decorative items for your home. There is clothing appropriate for work, school, special occasions, and casual wear. Thrift Shop staff enjoy inter-acting with customers to make the shop-ping experience fun.

For more information about the Sur-vival Center, call 413-543-3930, go to communitysurvivalcenter.org or visit their Facebook page. First Church can be reached at 413-583-3339, at ludlowfirst.com or by visiting their Facebook page.

Courtesy photos

Real Living Realty in Wilbraham recently donated nearly 900 pounds of food to help stock the Survival Center’s pantry shelves.

Now Accepting Applications for the following “In-Demand” Career Training Programs

in Hampden County:

Hybrid Online CNC Milling Certification TrainingClasses start in December 2020

Limited Training Slots Available

Sheet Metal Fabrication Training (on-campus at Local 63) Classes start in January 2021

Limited Training Slots Available

Classes are filling quickly!For more information please visit www.masshirehcwb.com and locate the program you are interested in under the “What’s New” section.

For more information please contact: Joanne LyonsJlyons@masshirehcwb.com

The Register ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ Page 3 ◗

 By Jonah Snowdenjsnowden@turley.com

LUDLOW – Before becoming officially established in 2012, the Ludlow Compassion, Awareness, Respect, Education and Safety Coa-lition started off as a response to the tragic suicide of Phoebe Prince and evolved into an anti-bullying initia-tive for the local school system, par-ticularly Baird Middle School.

Over the years, the C.A.R.E.S Coalition has continued to evolve and now covers an array of issues, including the opioid addiction cri-sis, Internet safety, sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse and more. Laura Rooney, president of the coalition, said through this commu-nity-run organization, by discussing these types of topics “that are hav-ing a negative impact” on residents, there’s a greater chance to make pos-itive change.

“Not talking about these issues isn’t going to solve any problems,” said Rooney. “That’s probably what C.A.R.E.S. is most known for – talking about things that are hard-er to talk about in communities and starting those conversations.”

Along with holding public dis-cussions, the coalition will also in-vite speakers, such as former NBA Player Chris Herren and Dr. Robert Roose from Mercy Medical Center, to lead the talk.

“After a while, we realized that having speakers was great, but hav-ing something that captured atten-tion, was even more powerful,” said Diana Roy, secretary of the Ludlow C.A.R.E.S. Coalition. She also said with the idea of capturing their au-dience’s attention came a new ini-tiative to invite performers to their public forums, such as the group The Yellow Dress, which staged a play to raise awareness about relationship violence.

Ludlow C.A.R.E.S. has also con-nected with the community through events such Red Ribbon Week, which addresses substance abuse, and the annual Walk to Remember, which was held in conjunction with the Michael J. Dias Foundation.

Another event, “Tweens, Teens and Quarantines,” provided tips on how to work with children. Mental Health Counselor, presenter and con-sultant John Mattleman assisted with the discussion.

“The coalition’s a group that’s constantly evolving, but our mission is really education and awareness,” said Roy.

Regarding what the two mem-bers enjoy about Ludlow C.A.R.E.S., Roy said she has appreciated the fact that the needs of the communi-ty are addressed whenever they arise and referred to Tweens Teens and Quarantines as a way to use outside resources. The goal is to find a way to help individuals or organizations

who turn to C.A.R.E.S.“Anytime somebody contacts us,

we find a way to meet that need,” said Roy. “Whoever comes and needs our services is somebody we welcome.”

From her perspective, Rooney said she enjoys the fact that the co-alition is community-based and volunteer-led and is amazed at the amount of time the members put into the community.

“There’s nothing else that pulls them in, other than really being con-cerned about people,” said Rooney. “There’s opportunities to learn when your’re part of the coalition, you can do things that you wouldn’t have an opportunity to do elsewhere.”

Anyone interested in contacting the coalition, subscribing to its dis-tribution list, or sending a donation, can email ludlowcares@gmail.com. Also, anyone who is interested in learning more about the coalition, can visit ludlowcarescoalition.org.

Ludlow C.A.R.E.S. finds creative ways to confront local issues

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Members of the Ludlow C.A.R.E.S. Coalition, which as its mission statement says, provides education, support and awareness in support of the health and well being of the Ludlow Community. 

Want to serve in local office? Filing now underwayLUDLOW – Nomination pa-

pers for town-wide offices in the March 22, 2021, town elections are now available in the Ludlow Town Clerk’s office at Ludlow Town Hall, 488 Chapin Street.

If you are interested in taking out nomination papers, please con-tact the Town Clerk’s office at 413-583-5600 Ext. 1230 to make an appointment since the Town Hall is currently closed to the public.

These are the positions voters

will decide in March:2 openings for Board of Select-

men (three-year terms)1 opening for Board of Asses-

sors (three-year term)1 opening for Board of Health

(three-year term)1 opening for Library Trustee

(three-year term)1 opening for Ludlow Housing

Authority (five-year term)1 opening for Board of Public

Works (three-year term)

1 opening for Recreation Com-mission (three-year term)

1 opening for School Committee (three-year term)

1 opening for Planning Board (five-year term)

1 opening for Treasurer (three-year term)

There are openings in all pre-cincts for members of Representa-tive Town Meeting.

The last day to submit nomina-tion papers is 5 p.m. Jan. 29, 2021.

◗ Page 4 ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ The Register

Community rallies for food pantry driveEAST LONGMEADOW –   JGS

Lifecare, a healthcare system in  Long-meadow, held a food drive to benefit the Parish Cupboard in West Springfield.

All employees who donated were entered into a raffle to win two sepa-rate BIG Y gift cards and all commu-nity members  who donated were en-tered into a raffle to win a basket from Maureen’s Sweet Shoppe. Heather from

East Longmeadow won the gift basket raffle.

“As appreciative  as the Parish Cup-board food pantry was to receive our donations, we were as appreciative to those who gave,” said Mary-Anne Schelb, director of business develop-ment for the healthcare campus.

“We wanted to say ‘thank you’ while keeping it local.”

About JGS LifecareJGS Lifecare is a leading health

care system serving seniors and their families. JGS Lifecare services include nursing home care (The Leavitt Family Jewish Home), rehabilitation services (Sosin Center for Rehabilitation), assist-ed living (Ruth’s House assisted Living Residence), adult day health care (Wer-nick Adult Day Health Care), home health, hospice and palliative care (Spectrum Home Health and Hospice Care) and independent living (Genesis Lifecare). For more information, call JGS LIfecare at 413-567-6211 or visit JGSLifecare.org.

Wills, family trusts, and life estate deeds

Life insurance trusts andspecial needs trusts

Planning for retirement benefits

Administration and probate of estates

Health care proxies andpowers of attorney

Guardianships and conservatorships

Providing estate planning and probate administration, including:

358 Sewall Street, Ludlow, MA 01056 413-583-5196

Proceeds To Benefit the Palmer Public Library

The Library LoftSchoolhouse Commons Historical Center • 1085 Park Street, Palmer

Book donations will be accepted at the Palmer PublicLibrary or the Library Loft during open hours.

Please, no magazines or Reader's Digest Condensed Books.We accept books only in good, clean condition.

For more information call 283-3330 ext. 100

We are celebrating our 20th year at the Schoolhouse Commons.

Thanks to our wonderful “friends,” volunteers and patrons.Hours:

Tues. 10am - 4pm • Wed. 10am - 4pmThurs. 10am - 4pm • Fri. 10am-4pm

Hope to see you there

Courtesy photo

Heather from East Longmeadow stands in front of Maureen’s Sweet Shoppe, also East Longmeadow, proudly holding her magnificent basket that Maureen Basile, owner, prepared for JGS Lifecare, as a Quarantine Survival Basket. 

Public Way permits now day-to-dayLUDLOWCENTER

Classes, activities, meals andmore at the senior center

Grab and Go MenuWednesday, Dec 2: Chicken CaccatoriThursday, Dec 3:

Shepard’s PieTuesday, Dec. 8:

Lazy Turkey Pot PieWednesday, Dec. 9:

Taco SaladThursday, Dec. 10

Breaded Pork Chops

Reminder: Pick up 11:30am-12:30pm. Reservations 24 hours in advance, 60+ and drive up to pick up. $2 a meal. More info: 583-3564.

Below is information on our Zoom classes, Channel 192 sched-ule and Grab and Go menu for the upcoming week. Please always re-member we are here!!! Program-ming is slowing down the month of December as we prepare to move to the new building. Our phone num-ber will remain the same but our address will be 228 State Street. Please bear with us during this tran-sition.

Zoom schedule. Please call Maria at 583-3564 for

log in information or to sign up.Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 4:30 p.m.:

Zoom Chair yogaMonday, Dec. 7 at 1 p.m,: “Know

your Shopping Rights” presented by the Office of Computer Affairs, Rob-in Putnam. Information on warran-ties, return policies, defective mer-chandise and more

Tuesday, Dec. 8 at 2 p.m,: ZOOM Bingo!

Wednesday Dec. 9 at 1 p.m,: Wheel of Fortune

Wednesday Dec. 9 at 4:30 p.m,: ZOOM Chair yoga

We have extended the deadline to sign up for “Sand for Seniors”: Sign up by Friday, Dec. 4, for a bucket of sand for the winter. Call the Center

at 583-3564. Thank you to Peoples Bank who is partnering with us on this project!

Channel 192 line up:Monday – 9 a.m.: Move and

Grove; 3 p.m.: YogaTuesday – 9 a.m.: Chair Yoga; 3

p.m.: Today’s Hot Topic!Wednesday – 9 a.m.: Tai Chi; 3

p.m.: ZumbaThursday – 9 a.m.: Today’s Hot

Topic!; 3 p.m.: Chair YogaFriday – 9 a.m.: Boomer Boot

Camp 3 p.m. – Cooking ClassSaturday – 9 a.m.: Chair Yoga

LUDLOW - Utility companies and contractors should be advised that the Ludlow Dept. of Public Works has ceased the issuance of Construction Within the Public Way Permits as of Nov. 15.  Per-mits for work in the public way will be issued on a day to day basis until plants

close and weather permitting and for emergencies, as approved by the DPW.

Emergency permits issued under these circumstances will be monitored and inspected as work is underway and may include special provisions relative to the work.

Ludlow Center keeps seniors active, involved as pandemic worsensBy Jacob Knowlton

LUDLOW —The Ludlow Senior cen-ter is finding new ways to help take care of the senior community as the pandemic continues to get worse.

It is not just battling Covid however. The senior community also has to face the issues of mental health due to the isola-tion.

Maria Ardolino is the activities direc-tor at the Ludlow Senior Center and she has had to deal with the struggle of find-ing new ways to interact with seniors. Ardolino said the center has done Grab and Go lunches three times a week which the seniors have enjoyed. These lunches sometimes have a theme such as Pajama Day, Christmas in August, or even a Shark Week. They also have had drive-through events in which they gave out food and drinks. This is a good way to stay in con-tact and keep tabs on the seniors because

of the issues some of them have keeping in touch online.

“It’s been hard to get seniors on the computer,” Ardolino said. The center also found a way to interact safely by work-ing with the local cable access provider to broadcast classes like yoga, trivia games and other programming for fun and en-richment. The center held outdoor activi-ties in which seniors were social distanced and wore masks, but these classes had to end when the cold weather season began.

One of the exercise instructors who helped run one of these outdoor activities is Victoria Dubois, who also works at the YMCA in Wilbraham. Dubois said before the pandemic, she would have a full class around 25 seniors for Boomer Bootcamp that shrunk to six when she started doing live Zoom sessions. Participation picked back up to around 14 when the center started the outdoor exercise sessions.

“I encourage them to go get out and

get moving everyday,” Dubois said.Whether it’s with the senior center or

not, Dubois said it’s important for seniors to stay active in these times of isolation. She said a lot of them come to the meet-ings for the social aspect as well, which Dubois said is very important for good mental health. Isolation can cause depres-sion and other issues, she said.

“Ludlow is the most active senior cen-ter,” she said. “There’s always something going on.”

The Director of the Ludlow Senior Center, Jodi Zepke, voiced her concern about seniors and the issues of mental health due to the isolation.

“Social isolation and lack of human contact has been worse than COVID,” Zepke said.

She also said these seniors aren’t able to see friends and family, which takes a major toll on their health. Zepke also said when the seniors were finally able to do

those outdoor activities and were able to see one another, she was brought to tears seeing how happy it made them.

“It amazes me, the strength of the se-nior community has been incredible,” Zep-ke said.

Zepke also said she hopes to bring in a whole new wave of the senior community because of the new building they are mov-ing into early next year. With a new state of the art building, the center will be able to have more activities with seniors new to the programs, as well as those who are al-ready participating.

WANT TO KNOW MORE?To learn more about the Ludlow Senior

Center, call 413-583-3564 or go to ludlow.ma.us.

Jacob Knowlton is a student at Umass who wrote this article for a school proj-ect.  He can be reached at jknowlton@umass.edu.

Have Something to Share?Send your stories and photos to mharrison@turley.com

The Register ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ Page 5 ◗

CLUES ACROSS 1. Opposite of west 5. __ Caesar, comedian 8. Helps little firms11. A way to censor13. Expresses atomic and

molecular weights14. Chalcedony15. Type of sword16. A corporation’s first

offer to sell stock to the public

17. Attired18. A sequence of winding

turns20. Pal21. Expresses pleasure22. Amendable25. Clear30. A way to cut off31. Indigenous Thai person32. Pale brownish yellow

color33. Aquatic plants genus38. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

41. Merchants43. Fix a chair45. Throws into

disorganization48. Famed German

composer49. Keyboard key50. Oral polio vaccine

developer55. Partner to pain56. Where golfers start57. Jenny __: weight loss

program59. Sailing dinghy60. Suffix that forms

adjectives61. Speeds at which music

is played62. Body part63. Fall back64. Ancient Greek sophist

CLUES DOWN 1. One point south of due

east

2. Wings 3. One point south of

southeast 4. The shirts on our backs 5. One who works on the

seas 6. Select jury 7. Small intestines parts 8. Plant of the heath family 9. Extrasolar planet10. Creates more of12. Before14. Forms over a cut19. Runs down23. Exercise regimen

__-bo24. Unkeyed25. Principle underlying the

universe26. Corpuscle count (abbr.)27. Residue28. Company that rings

receipts29. Rugged mountain

range

34. Commercials35. NY footballer36. They __37. Soviet Socialist

Republic39. Poked holes in the

ground40. Pitchers41. Your42. Diana __, singer44. Important document for

inventors45. Bangladesh capital46. Fluid that flows in the

veins of Greek gods47. Famed daguerreotype

photographer48. Where military

personnel work51. Play a role52. La __ Tar Pits,

Hollywood53. Unstressed-stressed54. Type of palm tree58. Judo garments

We don’t only

work here,

we live here

too!

Residents invited to help plan Indian Orchard ’21 ‘Blooms’ campaignINDIAN ORCHARD — Over the

next five weeks, while many people will be preoccupied with holiday preparations, the Indian Orchard Citizens Council is looking forward to spring 2021, recov-ering from the 2020 pandemic, and once again hanging flower baskets throughout Indian Orchard.

That begins with a Zoom meeting at 6 p.m. Dec. 8 and the public is invited to participate, said Zaida Govan, president of the Indian Orchard Citizens Council.’

“With the 2020 coronavirus pandemic hopefully in our rearview mirror by May of next year, we want to see the Neigh-borhood Beautification Campaign come back with renewed vigor and confidence in 2021,” said Paul Caron, chairman of the Indian Orchard Business Connections Committee.

“While appreciative of the fact that the Citizens Council did not allow the coronavirus pandemic to claim our an-nual Neighborhood Beautification Cam-paign as one of its victims in 2020, many people have commented that they were disappointed in the fewer number of bas-kets that were hung in Indian Orchard in 2020,” said Mari Tarpinian of Rick’s Auto Body and a member of the Indian Or-chard Blooms Campaign.

“The Indian Orchard Blooms Cam-paign guarantees that any small business that sponsors a flower basket in our cam-paign will have that flower basket hung in front of their business. Due to the pan-demic, many of the flower baskets that we removed from Main Street in 2020 did not have a local small business spon-sor, but was instead funded through gen-

erous contributions we had received from our elected officials, and other private do-nors. In 2020, we simply did not have the funds to continue hanging those ‘unspon-sored’ baskets on Main Street.”

As a result of the pandemic and the three-month shutdown of businesses, the 2020 Blooms Campaign lost half of its small business financial sponsors who were struggling to survive.

“But the Indian Orchard Blooms Plan-ning Committee is about to begin plan-ning for our 2021 campaign, and our first priority will be to restore, and re-populate Indian Orchard with flower baskets next Spring,” Caron said. “Part of that effort will be dedicated to finding more Main Street small business sponsors.”

Govan said she wants to expand the number of sponsors for the coming year.

“It will be my goal to see if we can convince our previous basket sponsors to recommit their financial sponsorships in 2021,” she said. “One of the other things that I believe we should do this year, is to redouble our efforts to encourage more small businesses within those sparsely covered areas of Indian Orchard to spon-sor baskets in next year’s campaign.”

Caron added that “The council in-vites any businesses, or Indian Orchard residents, that are interested in helping us plan our 2021 campaign, to join us at 6 p.m. Dec. 8 on our on Zoom meeting and help us come back bigger, better, and stronger in 2021.”

To join the IOCC’s Blooms Planning Meeting at 6 p.m. Dec. 8, go to https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89880989546. Meet-ing ID: 898 8098 9546.

Gifts, cards for senior citizens neededWant to help spread some holiday

cheer to local senior citizens this year? Home Sweet Home Senior Living has a plan and they could use your help.

Because of the COVID-19 pandem-ic, this holiday season is difficult for everyone to navigate, but especially for older adults who are unable to see their families as they normally would. Katie Krupka, senior living advisor at Home Sweet Home, is collecting small gifts and cards through Dec. 13 to distribute to local seniors who could use a little extra holiday joy this year.

Some gift suggestions: grocery

store or other gift cards, books, puz-zles, scarfs, gloves, a  blanket, socks, slippers, snacks, anything handmade, soaps, hand towels, jewelry, arts and crafts, picture frames – anything you think will be appreciated.

If you are donating a warped gift, there should be an indication if it is in-tended to be gender-specific.

Krupka can arrange a socially dis-tanced drop-off or pick-up arrange-ments for all donated gifts.

For more information, email her at katie@homesweethomesla.com or call 413-446-8722.

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the drive-thru fundraiser, including 24 for families nominated to receive a free meal.

Boys and Girls Club Development Associate Christina Jardine said typi-cally, the club hosts an in-person wine tasting event this time of year. Like in so many other ways, this year is different.

“We thought ‘how we can support small businesses?’ since restaurants typ-ically help us with our fundraiser,” said Jardine. “Instead of asking restaurants to donate meals, they gave them to us at a discounted rate so we could give them some business, make it affordable for families and also have it be a fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Club.”

Jardine also said they asked members of the community to select the 24 fami-lies that would receive a free meal.

“We actually had sponsors who said they wanted to make sure their donation would support families in need,” accord-ing to Jardine, who also said the club was excited to “come up with an innova-tive way to not only support the club but support the community.”

Between the Feast and financial do-nations from corporate sponsors, the organization has been able to raise over $32,000 to support its programs, Jardine reported.

“I feel like that’s what the Boys and Girls Club is all about, adapting to the

needs of a changing community,” said Jardine.

Similar sentiments were shared by Mechilia Salazar, president and CEO of the Boys and Girls Club.

“I would say I truly loved everything the event stood for and encompassed; The entire community coming together, spreading kindness on World Kindness Day and that the support to the Club also helped local businesses and families,” Salazar said.

“It did not feel like just another fund-raiser, it felt more like a family gather-ing, especially being able to greet each person individually as they picked up their meals, laughing and dancing with our amazing volunteers from the busi-ness community.”

Villa Rose Restaurant and Lounge, Mill’s Tavern and Grille and Main Street Tavern are responsible for preparing the 116 meals, which included chicken fran-caise (Villa Rose), baked haddock (Main Street Tavern) and febras (Mill’s Tav-ern). Also, Tree House Coffee Company, Chmura’s Bakery and New England Pro-motional Marketing provided extra treats for every meal.

Since reopening, the club has contin-ued to provide programs for its younger members.

To learn more about the Boys and Girls Club and how to donate, visit lud-lowbgc.org.

BOYS/GIRLS CLUB from Page 1

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Cars lined up to receive their meals prepared by Villa Rose Restaurant and Lounge, Mill’s Tavern and Grille, and Main Street Tavern.

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ANSWERS ON PAGE 16

◗ Page 6 ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ The Register

OPINION

Abusing ‘march-in’ rights would jeopardize

COVID-19 researchBy David Winwood

Thirty-one state attorneys general recent-ly urged the Trump administration to disre-gard the intellectual property protections on Remdesivir (brand name Veklury) – the first FDA-approved treatment for COVID-19 – and then license its patents to multiple drug manu-facturers.

These attorneys general claim that this action would make the drug more affordable and accessible, and further claim that the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act gives the federal government the power to take such action.

But they’re wrong -- the Bayh-Dole Act doesn’t apply in this case. Even if it did, arbi-trarily seizing an inventor’s intellectual prop-erty would set a terrible precedent –- one that would threaten the health and prosperity of nearly every American for decades to come.

The Bayh-Dole Act is the backbone of America’s research ecosystem. The law en-ables academic and non-profit institutions to retain the patents on their own research dis-coveries, even if that research was funded in part by federal grants. These universities and non-profits can subsequently license those patents to private companies, which have the skill and capital to turn good ideas into viable products.

Unsurprisingly, America’s economy is stronger because of the law. Bayh-Dole-re-lated discoveries support up to 6 million jobs and $865 billion in GDP.

Bayh-Dole also enables urgently need-ed medical innovation. Moderna’s leading COVID-19 vaccine candidate, for example, was partly built on research licensed from some of the nation’s leading academic insti-tutions. The law has also helped facilitate the discovery of more than 200 other medications, including Allegra, FluMist, nicotine patches, and dozens of cancer therapies.

The basic ideas behind these products had their origins in university laboratories. But to become market-ready inventions, each re-quired hundreds of millions of further invest-ment and years of development work, virtual-ly all provided by the private sector.

The state AGs claim that the “march-in” rights embedded in the Bayh-Dole Act allow the federal government to relicense patents that resulted from federal funding. That’s true -- but the law only permits this in extreme cas-es, such as when a company has licensed a university invention but refuses to produce it, while also preventing other firms from devel-oping it.

That’s not what’s happening with Remde-sivir -- which wasn’t invented in a university laboratory supported by federal grants. So, the Bayh-Dole Act doesn’t apply, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Ser-vices.

Even if Remdesivir was a “Bayh-Dole” drug, the manufacturer, Gilead Sciences, has done nothing to withhold its production. Gil-ead already donated its entire existing supply of 1.5 million doses to the U.S. government and licensed the drug to other manufacturers for worldwide production. And it’s producing millions more doses and providing them at prices that are deemed reasonable by indepen-dent watchdogs.

Using emergency march-in rights as a de facto price control would send a chilling mes-sage to companies in every industry: Don’t bother investing billions of R&D dollars to turn federally funded inventions into real-life, market-ready products, since the government will just steal the fruit of your labor.

Bayh-Dole helps us live healthier, more prosperous lives. We should nurture this inno-vation, not squash it by inappropriate use of march-in rights.

David Winwood has worked for almost 25 years in university technology transfer and economic development roles at several re-search-intensive public universities. He pre-viously served as President of the AUTM.

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GUEST OPINION

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

The

REGISTER

Democracy is a fragile thing. It needs at least four strong institutions to survive. (1) It needs a free press in order to have an informed electorate. Trump has done his best to destroy public faith in newspapers which are diligently verified before pub-lication. He talks about the “failing New York Times” the fake news and calls the press “the enemy of the people.”

(2) Democracy also needs secure dem-ocratic elections. Appallingly, Trump ally Lindsay Graham asked Georgia to throw out many Biden votes and give the state to Trump. Recently Trump has invited Michi-gan election officials to the white house to pressure them to ignore the voters and give their electoral college votes to Trump. He had Louis DeJoy, postmaster general, slow down the mail so late arriving Biden votes could be trashed. That didn’t work. We did have a secure election but Trump is still trying to undermine people’s faith in our elections.

(3) Democracy needs an independent judiciary. Attorney General Barr has been anything but. He is more like Trump’s person attorney. He reduced Michael Fly-nn’s jail time, did not stand up for voting

rights and sided with white supremacists when they were clearly out of line causing violence in peaceful protests. He made his own interpretation of the Mueller report so many Americans believe Trump was exon-erated.

(4) Democracy needs defense against far-right fascist types like Hitler. Germany was a democracy and Hitler was democrat-ically elected in 1930. Within four years it was a dictatorship and Hitler was chancel-lor for life. If we had another four years of Trump our institutions would not hold and we would also fall to dictatorship.

Trump is still doing damage. Surpris-ingly about 70 million Americans still be-lieve him when he has been such a prolific liar. Thousands have died from the virus because of his lies, (It’s nothing, it’s fake news, it’s a hoax by the democrats, it will go away by magic, etc.) and still they are loyal. It’s reminiscent of the Nazis loyalty to Hitler.

We have dodged a bullet with the elec-tion of Biden. Let’s hope it can hold.

Malita BrownWilbraham

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Let’s hope democracy can hold

The key to successful Christmas arrangements is varietyIt’s so much fun to arrange

flowers! I absolutely love uti-lizing different colors and textures side by side to create a gorgeous arrangement. The same holds true when making wreaths or mixed planters for the holidays. Even though you are using hues of essential-ly the same color, green, the excitement is in the texture. From airy white pine to rigid spruce, wispy arborvitae to dense juniper, pointy-leaved holly to minute boxwood, they look great together when thoughtfully arranged. Finish your creation with the addition of pinecones, winterberries and even sumac or budded Pieris as accents, and you will be following in the footsteps of pro designers.

Acquiring lots of greens is easy. Many of the plants I mentioned make their homes in our landscapes or the nearby woods. While it’s not recommended to go overboard, I reg-ularly prune this time of year purposely to use the clippings in my decorating. The key to a good cut is not to leave stubs; always snip next to a side branch and space your pruning around the plant, not all in the same spot. And it goes without saying to do your best to ask permission when snipping on

someone else’s property.Here is a refresher course

from previous columns on how to make some of our favorite Christmastime arrangements:

Making a wreath is easy. Start with a wire coat hanger opened up into a circle. Attach some pli-able wire to it. Then, wrap little bunches of greens to the base one after another. Be careful to lay them alongside, not on top of each other. You can make a wreath of just one type of green

at a time, or make mixed “bouquets” for your bunches. When you reach the end of the wreath, hide the last bunch under the first and secure the wire. You can easily make a loop for hanging, or use the hook that came with the coat hanger.

If this sounds too difficult, why not make a simple swag? Choose a sturdy green for the base and position it stem pointing up with the pretty side facing you. Grab anoth-er type of green a bit smaller than the first and put it on top. Do this again and again with varying greens until you have a nice upside-down “fan.” To complete your swag, wrap wire around the stems four or five

GUEST COLUMN

Roberta McQuaidColumnist

i n t h e

GARDEN

Please see GARDEN, Page 7

mharrison@turley. com

The Register ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ Page 7 ◗

#BETTERYOURJOURNEY

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give the giftyou’d love to get

the data and we fully understand the likelihood we’re going to see another surge in cases, com-pounded by the Christmas, Ha-nukah, and New Year holidays.”

Guidance from the CDC says there’s a greater chance of coronavirus spread by those who ignore health officials’ warning against travel and large gatherings during the pandemic.

“According to the metrics we have established, a level of 5% or higher Percent Positive Testing rate for Hampden Coun-ty for a 14-day continuous peri-od will move the district to the fully Remote Learning model,” Gazda wrote in an email to the Ludlow schools community last week.

“Last Wednesday, Nov. 12, the level of percent positive test-ing in Hampden County was at 5.5%. Today it hit 6.22%, thus reaching the 14-day mark above 5% and pushing us to full re-mote learning. So far this school year we have had a total of 31 members of our school com-munity (26 students and 5 staff) who have tested positive for COVID-19. Due to both school and/or community exposure,

we have had 173 more students who have been identified as close contacts and had to quar-antine. Furthermore, we have had 200 students kept home by parents or sent home by school nurses who then had to quar-antine or provide negative test results before returning and 19 students who had to quarantine because of the Governor’s trav-el restriction. Thus, in total we have had 418 students who have had their education disrupted because of COVID-19. Further-more, we have had 147 staff who have had to miss work time related to COVID-19 testing, symptoms, or exposure.”

Even with the hybris mod-el, the pandemic has caused too many students and staff to miss school days, Gazda wrote.

“The increased level of cas-es is causing a large number of students and staff to be out be-cause of the need to quarantine due to close contact with those infected individuals,” Gazda ex-plained in the email.

“The increase in cases is ex-ceeding our capacity to provide adequate staffing in our schools. Furthermore, the regional rise in cases is straining our contract tracing efforts and increasing

the time that it takes testing cen-ters to return test results.”

NOT ALONEThe week before that, Mon-

son school officials announced a return to full remote learning at least until Dec. 7 – though that date was called tentative – and last week Palmer schools decided to halt in-person class-es starting Nov. 30. A return to hybrid in Palmer is to be deter-mined.

In Ludlow, “There is no set time that we will remain in re-mote learning,” Gazda said in the email.

“We will be constantly as-sessing the health data. At a minimum, we need to be be-low a 5% positive testing rate for Hampden County for two state reporting periods (data is release weekly). There will be other factors we need to consid-er (such as adequate staffing and risk classification for Ludlow), but that is the baseline which must be crossed.”

On Monday, he said in-per-son classes likely won’t resume this month.

“Realistically, not until after Christmas break,” Gazda said.

“A lot of that will be driv-en by how the community re-

sponds,” he added. “If more people wear their masks, so-cial distance, wash their hands, and limit contact, the better the chances for [stopping the spread locally].”

BETTER PREPAREDAlthough disappointed by

having to make the decision to go fully remote for now, Gazda said it’s not comparable to last March, when a distance learn-ing plan had to be hastily imple-mented.

“We’ve been in this for nine months now,” he said.

“Elements have gotten more robust. Online learning is much better than it was in spring. We immediately planned to get teachers professional develop-ment over the summer to give them the tools they need to adapt to the structure of a re-mote environment. A lot of it really has been teachers work-ing together to figure out what works.”

Teachers have the option of holding remote classes from inside their school building or from home – or wherever they are quarantining in place.

The fact of the pandemic dragging on through the end of the year and into 2021 may

take a toll on morale, but Gazda said staff, students and parents at least have each other to turn to for support and the district is doing all it can to keep everyone prepared and in the loop.

“This is a difficult time for everyone involved – teachers and administrators as well. We all have to adjust to a situation we’ve not experienced before. I think good communication makes everyone feel like they are being supported. We have all the information in front of them so parents and staff can make the decisions that are best for the support of students,” he said.

“I think there’s a sense that we’re all in this together.”

In closing the email sent out last week, Gazda wrote, “As I stated in my communica-tion last week, I am truly sor-ry it has come to this. I realize that this has been, and contin-ues to be, an incredibly diffi-cult time for students and fam-ilies. I recognize the impact not being in the building for learning has on our kids. How-ever, as has been true since the beginning of this pandemic, the health and safety of our students, staff and community must come first.”

inches down from the top, leaving a loop on the back for a hanger. You can cover the wire with a bow, and insert some berries or wired on pinecones should you wish.

Homemade cemetery boxes are also simple to make, even for a novice floral arranger. If you don’t have plastic window boxes

or wooden “logs” in your garage, spare plastic pots are fine substi-tutes. The key to crafting these is to remember that they are viewed from the front, so start with your tallest, most rigid boughs in the back and work your way forward. My mother always uses plain old garden soil to fill the contain-er and hold the greens in place. Some florists use ‘sahara’ floral foam- it is a great anchor and is

less messy but because it is so light in weight, add some stones to plastic containers to keep them in place.

Mixed winter planters are made the same way. Try to keep the “one and a half” rule from Floral Arranging 101 in mind when determining how tall your planter should be. For proportions to be right, the height of your ar-rangement should be one and a

half times the height of the con-tainer. For example, if your plant-er is a foot tall, your grouping of greens can be 18 inches high. If this planter is viewed all the way around, start in the middle of the container and work out in one direction, then turn it around and do the same on the other side. Use rigid greens such as spruce to get your height. Wispy greens like white pine look great spill-

ing over the edge, gaining width. Because they are dense, juniper and boxwood make great fillers. Holly and Pieris are fancy and perfect for accent. If berries are scarce, you can dress up a planter with red twigs, bows, gilded pods and the like.

Have fun scouring the coun-tryside for a variety of greens this holiday season and even more fun crafting your arrangements!

SCHOOLS from Page 1

GARDEN from Page 8

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IN THE CLASSROOM

Students relive fun memories in Best Day Ever!’

LUDLOW — Everyone experi-ences those special days in our life that sprinkles our heart with joy and makes us smile a bit bright-er. Days we cherish and fond-ly remember. Days we warmly reminisce about with family and friends.

Veterans Park School fourth grade teacher Angela Knox devel-oped a narrative writing assignment for her students that focused on authoring a story about one such special day in their life – “My Best Day Ever!”

“Many students struggle when determining what they should write about,” Knox said.

“I find students become more engaged writers when they’re asked to write about something that has a special meaning or connection to them. We discussed what a narra-tive story is and specific techniques they could utilize to make their sto-ries engaging and interesting to the reader. Students then rummaged through their memories to find that one event- their best day ever- they would use as their theme.”

Annabelle Davis eagerly wrote

about the day she spent last sum-mer with her family at Storyland in New Hampshire.

“I still remember all about that day,” recalled Davis. “My cous-in Caitlin was with us and we’re inseparable when we’re together. There were so many rides and we had so much fun!”

Excerpt: “Click! As I opened the car door, I spotted the entrance gates to Storyland. Next, the gift shop caught my eye. I couldn’t take my eyes off of the eerie animatron-ic humpty dumpty.”

When asked what new writing skills he had learned during this as-signment Landon Olszak respond-ed, “Mrs. Knox explained run-on sentences to us and how they can be confusing to readers. I tried my best not to use those in my story and I think I did pretty good.”

Olszak wrote about his vaca-tion on Cape Cod last summer with his family.

Excerpt: “I’ll always remember the beach. I can still smell the salty air. A big smile spreads across my face when I think of the fun. I RE-ALLY REALLY hope we go there

again because it was so fun!”“I learned how to put all of my

thoughts and ideas into one piece of paper,” said Charlotte Maciolek regarding the assignment.

“I also learned how to use words to better describe things hap-pening to make my story more in-teresting to read.”

Maciolek wrote about her ex-perience at Wildwood Beach, New Jersey during a hurricane.

Excerpt: “It was the day of the hurricane . I was feeling excited and scared and nervous because I was in my first hurricane and scared because it was very windy. As I ambled to the window, I spot-ted pool chairs flying and the beau-tiful ocean going crazy.”

Knox was extremely proud of how her students authored their narratives with details, enthusiasm and creativity.

“These kids inspire me every-day,” said Knox, wearing her bright teacher smile.

“I’m looking forward to seeing their work as we continue to build on their writing skills throughout the year.”

Landon Olszak said he learned about crafting a narrative and how to avoid run-on sentences while completing his assignment.

Channeling her thoughts and finding descriptive words was part of what Charlotte Maciolek was looking to accomplish in her “My Best Day Ever!” story.

Courtesy photos

For her project, Annabelle Davis wrote about her family’s visit to Storyland in New Hampshire.

Lesser and McGovern discussed the importance of food security and its role in ensuring the collective health of the nation, especially during the pandemic.

“There’s not a single city or town in Massachusetts that’s hunger-free,” McGovern said.

“There is not a single city or town in the United States of America that’s hunger-free. Before this pandemic,

there were 40 million people in our country who didn’t know where their next meal was going to come from. Now, with the pandemic, that number has skyrocketed.”

McGovern also emphasized the need for infrastructure investments like high-speed rail for economic growth, drawing on his experience with the development of the Worces-ter rail line as an example.

“It was an important stimulus for good, smart, economic development,”

he explained. “It’s good for the environment, gets people off the road, and is a safer mode of transportation.” He also applaud-ed Senator Less-er for his efforts backing the East-West rail study.

“There’s so much benefit to it, and I think it could help spur smart develop-ment in some of the communities that need it most.”

When asked about his legis-lative priorities for the upcoming term, McGov-ern listed several issues he con-

sidered to be a priority, including an infrastructure bill, combating cli-mate change, and convening a White House conference on nutrition and hunger. However, COVID-19 relief was first and foremost to him noting that, “77% of the American people want another bill.”

McGovern also stated that, “We need to save lives, and we need to pass a stimulus package, and I hope we can do that before January to help struggling families, to help save our restaurants, to help small businesses and to be able to keep our economy alive so that when this is over with, we will thrive.”

Lesser also joined McGovern for the kick-off of Monte’s March this morning, where McGovern, along with 93.9’s Monte Belmonte, be-gan walking a route consisting of 43 miles between Springfield and Greenfield to raise funds for food insecurity and create awareness of funds to combat it.

More information about Monte’s March, including information on do-nations, go to foodbankwma.org.www.kitchen-encounters.com

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U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern (right) joined Mass. Sen. Eric Lesser for a livestream discussion on food security and other regional issues.

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Final action for Lions volleyball

By Gregory A. Scibelligscibelli@turley.com

REGION – First it was out-door “indoor” track, now could wrestling be moving outdoors?

Rather than cancel the high school wrestling season, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association has voted to move wrestling to the spring season.

A “bubble” was placed be-tween the winter and spring sea-sons to account for sports that were either shut down, or in the case of football and cheerlead-ing, sports that were deemed high-risk to play during the on-going coronavirus pandemic.

While there is optimism some restrictions will lift as the vaccine rolls out in the next few months, the MIAA is oper-ating as through the pandemic conditions exist until they are otherwise guided by the state Department of Energy and Envi-ronmental Affairs. The EEA has been issuing the guidance high schools have been operating with. The guidance has includ-ed modified rules and protocols utilized to help keep students healthy while also remaining on the athletic fields.

The EEA has advised against wrestling during the winter sea-son due to the sport having “sus-

Wrestling to be played in spring season

Though the try-outs had to be more staggered with plenty of social distance, the Western Mass. Pioneers organization held tryouts prior to the Thanksgiv-ing holiday for its many academy youth teams. Tryouts were held for numerous age groups for both boys and girls at Lusitano Field. The Pioneers are hopeful to have a normal regular season starting in the spring.

Jada Hewes sets up a play right against the net.

Photos by David Henry www.sweetdogphotos.com

Sydnie Germain gets the hit over the net.

Kiley Szlosek nails the set.

Hannah Nilson tries to get some elevation on the ball.

LUDLOW – Ludlow played its final game on Nov. 9 before the remaining sea-son games for all sports was cut short due to COVID-19 spikes in the region.

Brianna Purdy scores the spike.

Pioneers look for roster hopefulsHoophall event cancelled, to return in 2022

SPRINGFIELD — The Na-ismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today the cancellation of the 2021 Spalding Hoophall Classic presented by Eastbay. The annual basketball showcase entering its 20th year at Springfield College, the birth-place of basketball, is typically played during MLK Weekend.

“We’re obviously extremely disappointed to cancel Hoophall Classic, a premiere event in the high school basketball calen-dar,” said Greg Procino, Vice President of Basketball Opera-tions for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. “The event has seen tremendous tal-ent and success over the past two decades, with a number of sellout crowds, but ultimately the

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Please see HOOPHALL, Page 11

◗ Page 10 ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ The Register

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DEATH NOTICES

Thelma C. Alves (Rollet), 90

Died: Nov. 26, 2020Visiting Hours: 7-8

p.m. Dec. 3 at Ludlow Funeral

Home

Agostinho Dias, 71Died: Nov. 25, 2020Services are Private

Lee M. Guarda, 81Died: Nov. 23, 2020

Funeral Mass: 10 a.m. Dec. 4 at St. Elizabeth Parish

Charles Machado, 95

Died: Nov. 19. 2020

Lois A. Nelson (Williams), 94

Died: Nov. 23, 2020Services are Private

Milton E. Provost, 77

Died: Nov. 21, 2020

Janice R. Wells (Phoenix), 77

Died: Nov. 24, 2020Funeral Mass: 10 a.m. Dec. 2 at St. Elizabeth Parish

LUDLOW — Thel-ma C. (Rollet) Alves, 90, passed away at home surrounded by her loving children on Nov. 26, 2020.

Born, raised and ed-ucated in Three Rivers, Thelma was the daugh-ter of the late Louis and Evelyn (Monat) Rollet. She married Joseph Alves in 1949 and moved to Ludlow, where she was a faithful communicant of Our Lady of Fatima Church.

Thelma worked for many years at East Street Elementa-ry School, the Ludlow Highway Department and the Ludlow Vet-erans Services from which she retired in 1998. She was also an Avon representative for over 45 years.

A dedicated wife and mom who always took loving care of her children, Thelma demon-strated strength and courage to her children and those who knew her. She fiercely battled pancre-atic cancer over the last year and was determined to never give up that fight. She loved life and her only concerns were for the health and happiness of others.

Thelma loved to read, work in her garden, craft, knit, sew and crochet. She freely shared her talents with many throughout her life. She loved the holidays and any occasion to be with family and friends. She adored children and always wanted them to feel safe and warm. Every year she

would knit hats, blan-kets and scarves to donate anonymously to various charitable organizations. Thelma was genuinely kind and loving. Those who met her quickly felt her love and many be-came life long friends.

Thelma was the beloved wife of the late Joseph Alves, who predeceased her in 1998; a lov-ing and devoted mother to John, Donald, Debra, James, Lisa, and spouses Lorraine, Betty, Arnold Block, Linda and Jeff Corbin. Cherished Mémé to grandchil-dren DJ, Steve, Katie, Jake, Kris-tina, and Alicia, and great grand-children Nicole and PJ. A dear sister to Richard and predeceased by brothers Francis and Donald and sister Marie. She also leaves many cousins, nieces, nephews, neighbors, loving extended fami-ly members and dear friends who cherish her memory.

A visiting hour will be held 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2, at Ludlow Funeral Home. Fami-ly and friends are then asked to gather at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 3, at Our Lady of Fatima Church for a Liturgy of Christian Burial. Burial will be held pri-vately by the family.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Thelma’s mem-ory to pancan.org and Shriners Hospitals for Children.

For additional information, please visit ludlowfuneralhome.

LUDLOW — Agostinho Dias, 71, of Ludlow, passed away peacefully on Nov. 25, 2020.

Born in Morgade, Portugal, he was the son of the late Agostin-ho and Maria (Teixeira) Dias. He immigrated to the United States settling in Lud-low where he was a member of Our Lady of Fatima Church and the Gremio Lusitano Club.

Augie worked for 34 years for Smith and Wesson, from which he was retired, and in his spare time he enjoyed golfing and spending time with his friends.

Augie leaves his children Mi-chelle Dias Bradway and hus-band Edward, Christopher Dias

and wife Christa, and Steven Dias; his grand-children Nathan, Mia, Madison, and Paulo; his siblings Theresa Stellato and husband Charlie, Maria Ribeiro and husband Arman-do, Ana Goncalves and husband Antonio, and

Domingos Dias and wife Ade-laide; as well as many nieces, nephews, extended family mem-bers, and friends.

He was predeceased by his sister Isabel Rodrigues and broth-er Jose Dias.

Funeral services for Augie will be held privately by his fam-ily. For additional information, please visit ludlowfuneralhome.com.

LUDLOW — Charles Machado, 95  of Ludlow, passed away at Baystate Med-ical Center on Nov. 19, 2020.

He was born at home on the farm in Ludlow to Idia (Santos) and John  Machado  on April 16, 1925.

Charlie was a member of the Greatest Generation serv-ing in the Navy as an Electri-cian’s Mate  First Class  on a LST in the Pacific during WW II. He was employed by Frank Nowak,  Bruschi  Brothers Con-struction and Joseph Freedman Co. as a heavy equipment opera-tor and at Western New England College as a night janitor where he got an education on the antics of the younger generation which amazed and amused him.

Having seen more of the world than he really wanted to in the Navy, Pop was happiest staying close to home, putter-ing in his shack where there was nothing he couldn’t build, fix or jerry-rig to get it to work; work-ing in his garden  and  exhibit-ing his vegetables at local fairs and the Big E where  placing higher than  his son-in-law was more important than taking first place;  and helping to take care of not only his children’s 4-H sheep but also the many critters he often brought home.

After he retired,  he became an avid bingo player and was the guy who always had some-

thing for sale on his front yard – geese, vegetables, wind-mills and wishing wells. He enjoyed the family’s yearly trip to Lake George with his children and grandchildren and couldn’t believe the

beauty of Yellowstone National Park during a trip there with his wife, son and daughter-in-law.

Charles leaves his wife of 66 years Jane (Brown) Machado; his brother Mike Machado; his children Sue Phelon and her hus-band Bill of Westfield, Gail War-ren,  Jim Machado and his wife Pam all of Ludlow; his grand-children  Scott  Phelon  and  his wife Courtney and Kelly Lucas and her husband Chris of West-field, James Warren of  Bonds-ville, and Ashley Warren and her fiancé Tommy LeBlanc of Lud-low and his great grandchildren Theodore, Will, Charlie, Rhylen, Patrick, Matthew and Daniel with a new baby, Thomas, due in December.

Charlie was predeceased by his grandson Tim  Phelon, his parents and his siblings — Mary Nowak, Peter Machado, Jack Machado and  Nora Con-don of Ludlow and Zelda Na-deau and Diolinda Fernandes of Springfield and his favorite dog, Bailey.

Due to  Covid-19, there will be no calling hours or funeral, and burial will be at the conve-nience of the family. 

Thelma C. (Rollet) Alves, 90

Agostinho Dias, 71

Charles Machado, 95

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The Ludlow Register

OBITUARIES

Lee M. Guarda, 81LUDLOW — Lee

M. Guarda, 81, of Lud-low, passed away peace-fully on Monday, Nov. 23, 2020.

Born in Pittsfield on Aug. 16, 1939, he was the son of the late Massimiliano and Lena (Angello) Guarda. Lee grew up in Pittsfield and worked as a newspaper pressman for Dow Jones. He was a communi-cant of St. Elizabeth Parish, for-merly St. Mary’s Parish, in Lud-low where he faithfully served the Lord as a CCD teacher and Eucharistic Minister.

Lee is survived by his daugh-ter Stephanie Guarda of Wilbra-ham and his sister Victoria Pre-merlani and her husband Richard of Pittsfield, as well as his nieces

and nephews.Family and friends

are invited to gather for Lee’s funeral Mass at 10 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 4, at St. Eliza-beth Parish, 181 Hub-bard Street, Ludlow. Burial will be private, at the convenience of

the family. There are no calling hours. Masks, social distancing, and all gathering restrictions will be strictly adhered to.

Donations in Lee’s memory can be made to the Alzheimer’s Assoc. of Mass., 309 Waverly Oaks Road, Waltham, MA 02452 or alz.org. Kapinos-Mazur Funer-al Home is in charge of arrange-ments. For more information please go to  kapinosmazurfh.com.

NOTICEERRORS: Each advertiser is requested to check their ad-vertisement the first time it appears. This paper will not be responsible for more than one corrected insertion, nor will be liable for any error in an advertisement to a greater extent than the cost of the space occupied by the item in the advertisement.

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The Register ❙ December 2, 2020 ❙ Page 11 ◗

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OBITUARIES

LUDLOW — Lois A. (Williams) Nel-son, 94, formerly of Ludlow, passed away on Monday, Nov., 23, 2020.

Daughter of the late Ralph and Louise Wil-liams, she was born in Somerville on July 29, 1926. She worked as a medical secretary prior to her marriage to Robert J. Nelson in 1951. Lois dedicated her life to car-ing for her family. She was an eternal optimist with a wonder-ful sense of humor and will be greatly missed.

Lois is survived by her children Robert Nelson and his wife Margaret of Reading; Jon Nelson and his wife Lin-da of Smithtown, N.Y.; Erik Nelson of Chicopee; Robin McCoy and her husband John of Magnolia, Delaware; and

Donna Fern and her husband Gary of Simsbury, Conn. She also leaves her 10 beloved grand-children and four dear great-grandchil-dren. Sadly, she was predeceased by her husband of 64 years

Robert J. Nelson in 2015.Private funeral services will

be held at the Massachusetts Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery in Agawam. There are no calling hours.

Donations in Lois’ memo-ry may be made to The Mental Health Association Inc. (MHA Inc.) at mhainc.org or 995 Worthington Street, Springfield, MA 01109. Kapinos-Mazur Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. For more infor-mation please go to kapinosma-zurfh.com.

Lois A. Nelson, 94

Milton E. Provost, 77, of Cumberland, passed away peaceful-ly Saturday, Nov. 21, 2020, following a bat-tle with Alzheimer’s.

He was the beloved husband of Maggie (Tourville) Provost. They were married for 56 years and were residents of Cumberland for 48 years.

Born in Springfield, he was the son of the late Milton and Lenore (Barry) Provost. Milton worked for the telephone com-pany for 28 years, retiring as a project manager in 1990. He later became director of EDS in Waltham. He enjoyed garden-ing and the love of the English language and enjoyed reading, crossword puzzles and playing cards and most of all spending time with family, granddaugh-ters and friends.

He was quite a handyman and a member of the Kiwanis

Club and Rotary Club of East Greenwich. Besides his wife, he is survived by his chil-dren, Michele Lam-orte of New Milford, Conn., Todd Provost of Cumberland, and Brian Provost and his wife, Gayle also of

Cumberland. His beloved grand-daughters Isabela and Alexandra Lamorte. He also leaves his sis-ter Lenore Stone of Maineville, Ohio. He was the brother of the late Joan Kendra, and also leaves several nieces and nephews.

Contributions in Milt’s mem-ory to the Alzheimer’s Associ-ation, RI Chapter 245 Water-man Street #306 Providence, RI 02906 would be appreciated.

Visitation was held Nov. 28 in the O’Neill Funeral Home in Cumberland. Burial in Island Pond Cemetery in Ludlow was private.

Milton E. Provost, 77

LUDLOW — Jan-ice R. (Phoenix) Wells, 77, of Ludlow, passed away on Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020.

Born in Ludlow on Jan. 20, 1943, she was the daughter of the late Raymond and Viola (Richards) Phoe-nix. Janice was a 1961 grad-uate of Ludlow High School. She worked for many years as a manager for Bank of Boston, lat-er Sovereign Bank.

Janice loved New England sports, especially the Patriots and Red Sox. She and her hus-band Dave loved spending their winters at their home in Ruskin, Fla. Janice’s friendly, caring per-sonality will be missed by the many friends she leaves behind.

Janice is survived by her loving husband of 59 years, Da-vid Wells of Ludlow; her sons Dean Wells of Ludlow and Bri-

an Wells and his wife Kathleen of Killing-worth, Conn.; her brother Raymond Phoenix of Ludlow; and grandson Ian Wells.

Family and friends are invited to gather for Janice’s funeral

Mass on Wednesday, Dec.2, at 10 a.m. in St. Elizabeth Parish on Hubbard Street in Ludlow. Burial will follow in Island Pond Cemetery. Masks, social distanc-ing and all state gathering re-strictions will be strictly adhered to.

Donations in Janice’s mem-ory may be made to the Dakin Humane Society, P.O. Box 6307, Springfield, MA 01101-6307 or dakinhumane.org. Kapinos-Ma-zur Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. For more infor-mation please go to kapinosma-zurfh.com.

Janice R. Wells, 77

tained close contact” between competitors.

With football already set to be played during the “bub-ble” season, the decision was made to try and have wres-tling during the spring sea-son.

With school gymnasiums being utilized for boys vol-leyball during the spring as well as the temperatures ris-ing, the idea of hosting wres-tling meets outdoors has been broached. It is unclear how that would look and what con-ditions spring athletes will compete under, but it would

definitely be a first to hold wrestling meets outdoors. Meets typically take place in the center of a gymnasium on hard mats.

While it will more than likely be played during the bubble season, indoor track is also being talked about to be played outdoors due to the im-proving weather between Feb-ruary and April.

It is otherwise unclear how a change in seasons will af-fect already shrinking wres-tling programs in the region. Many teams are having more and more trouble fielding full teams of at least 14 wrestlers, of which each one can fit into

every weight class. With wres-tling being competed in the spring, some schools could lose competitors to their reg-ular spring sports, including lacrosse, baseball, tennis, and track. There also could be a lack of tournaments for indi-vidual wrestlers to compete in depending on how the region reacts to the sports movement to the spring.

There will be no winter tournaments for basketball and hockey. It is unknown whether spring sports will have tourna-ments played.

Wrestlers are allowed to have practices during the win-ter season.

safety of our fans, student ath-letes and staff is of the utmost importance. We thank Spring-field and our marketing partners for their support over the years and look forward to returning to

Blake Arena when it’s safe to do so.”

The Basketball Hall of Fame plans to relaunch the elite high school event in 2022. For the latest updates as they become available, follow @hoophallclas-sic on Instagram and Twitter.

The HoopHall event has fea-tured many games featuring area high school teams, including South Hadley, Holyoke, Min-nechaug, Chicopee, Chicopee Comprehensive, South Hadley, Agawam, and Granby during its history.

WRESTLING from Page 9

HOOPHALL from Page 9

Coping with loss during the holidaysHoliday tips for grieving families, some of whom have lost loved ones to COVID-19

SPRINGFIELD – The hol-idays are supposed to be “the most wonderful time of the year” as one song sings their prais-es. But, for some it may be “the most difficult time of the year” after the loss of a loved one.

“Thanksgiving and the hol-iday period afterwards can be especially difficult for those who are preparing to spend these joy-ous occasions this year for the first time without a spouse, child or other beloved family member or friend by their side,” said Dr. Stuart Anfang, vice chair of Psy-chiatry at Baystate Health.

“These feelings of grief are only exacerbated this year by COVID-19, which has taken the lives of so many, plus the gener-al stress of dealing with the pan-demic,” he added.

The Baystate psychiatrist noted it’s only natural to experi-ence a range of emotions such as sadness, loneliness, and a feeling of helplessness and hopelessness as you navigate the hustle and bustle of the holidays alone.

But, you don’t have to suffer alone.

“Recognize that you are not alone, and that mixed or sad feelings during the holidays are not uncommon. Do not suffer in silence and watch for the tenden-cy to isolate or withdraw from others. Denying or bottling up your feelings – or self-medicat-ing with alcohol or drugs – are worrisome signs,” said Dr. An-fang.

Anticipation of the holidays can cause more stress than the holidays themselves.

Dr. Anfang noted that plan-

ning for the approaching holi-days is the first step in develop-ing your coping strategy, and there is no wrong or right way to deal with the holidays.

Begin by making decisions that are comfortable for you and your family. Use your aware-ness that things are different to help you plan what makes sense. Holiday preparations, traditions, and family time may all feel less than normal. It is also important to remember that your emotions and energy level are strongly connected.

Good self-care routines are important as you prepare and deal with the holiday season. Get plenty of rest and pay attention to healthy eating. Use alcohol in moderation. Plan self-care ac-tivities that will feed your mind, body and spirit.

As you prepare for the holi-days, include activities that are important to you and your fam-ily. Share the load and accept offers of help. If some activities are too difficult or draining, set limits or decide to drop them.

“Remember, it’s okay and not a sign of weakness to ask for help, whether it’s help preparing some holiday treats, decorat-ing the home, shopping, or just a shoulder to lean on,” said Dr. Anfang.

It is always important to re-member that you have options. You can change routines. Mod-ify past traditions or join your family in creating new traditions. If you wish,