Letter to the Editor: Thanks, Everyone – Gerry

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To the editor:

My house caught on fire Oct  21, at 7 a.m. According to the fire marshall, the fire was caused by an old fan that ignited while running in the basement as I was trying to dry out my rug that was wet due to a burst water heater the day before.

I thought I could put it out, as I ran back downstairs the second time with a bucket of water the fire was blazing and had consumed my couch, the wall and was burning on the ceiling. I decided to just get out! I was very lucky!

I ran upstairs, called 911 and then ran out the door with only the clothes on my back.

Since then, I have been overwhelmed by kindness and generosity by the Belmont community. Everyone from past and present employees, all the town sport leagues and great customers have offered to help.

My house has been gutted and everything has been thrown out as the soot from the fire gets into everything. After living in a hotel for 10 days, I’ve moved into a mobile home on my front lawn for the next five months while repairs are being done. The donations have gone to purchase new clothes, towels, blankets, dishes, sheets, pillows, shoes, food and much more.

I wanted to thank everyone who kept me in their prayers, stopped by to give me a hug, dropped off blankets, made me dinner and asked if they could do anything for me and for the generous donations. What a great community!

Please take the time to check your smoke detectors to make sure they’re working properly,

Thanks so much,

Gerry Dickhaut

Champions Sporting Goods

Belmont Center

Tom Caputo Named to Fill Vacancy on Belmont School Committee

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Photo: Newly-appointed School Committee member Thomas Caputo (right) is congratulated by Belmont School District Asst. Superintendent Janice Darias. Belmont Superintendent John Phelan is in the center of the photo. 

Technology expert Thomas Caputo was appointed to the Belmont School Committee this morning, Monday, Nov. 17 to fill the vacancy created when Kevin Cunningham resigned from the six-member board last month.

“This is a great honor and I’m proud to have been selected,” said Caputo, who has been for the past two years the Chief Product Officer at FIKSU, a technology start up providing mobile marketing technology to app developers, game publishers and advertisers.

Caputo will serve on the committee until the Belmont Town Election in April 2015 when he can seek to fill the remaining two-years of Cunningham’s term.

The Richmond Road resident – who has lived in Belmont with his wife, Sarah and their eight-year-old, third grade twin daughters for the past seven years – was selected by a joint committee of the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee from eight candidates who had applied for the position.

What guided the majority of the Selectmen and School Committee to Caputo was his experience in finance and technology.

“I think the entrepreneurial and tech specialization along with the venture capital … [is the type of] analytical study of these important issues, particularly around enrollment, [is] critical for the school committee,” said Selectmen Chair Andy Rojas.

“It is the nexus of the technology and business solutions that really spoke to me,” said Laurie Slap, school committee chair.

A dual major (graduating with a BA in computer science and biophysical chemistry) while matriculating at Dartmouth, Caputo also has a MBA from Stanford.

After working in finance in Boston and London, Caputo became a group product manager at Microsoft’s main office in Redmond, Wash. for four years. He come back east to work in venture capital, product management for a software startup in New York before joining the senior execution team at Boston-based FIKSU.

“There is an incredible wave of really interesting start ups as well as established companies that are bringing new education technologies to the market that are … helping school districts across the country to find more efficient and effective ways to educate students,” Caputo told the Belmontonian.

“I do believe that, much the way we’ve seen technology disruptions shaping a lot of industries … Belmont needs to be on the forefront of finding ways to pick the best technology programs, bring them into the school system, train the teachers and administrators to use them effectively and executing all that for the benefit of the students,” said Caputo, who looks the part of the tech pro; wearing a smart blazer over a tie-less pattern shirt, skinny jeans and nifty shoes to the joint meeting.

But Caputo told the Belmontonian that bringing technology to the classroom is not simply “supplying everyone an iPad.”

“It’s great to have the infrastructure but that alone will not solve the issues we’re facing. It’s really about … the iPad and its integration into the curriculum, the selection of the right application and tools and the manner in which it’s all used,” he said.

Caputo pointed to his background in start ups as a plus when the committee faces the challenges of finding adequate funding to maintain the district’s first-rate education reputation.

“What start ups are able to do is find efficient, creative solutions to addressing otherwise challenging problems. I will bring a little bit of that culture to the school committee; to find ways to collaborate, to identify solutions and to look at things in, maybe, a little different way,” he said.

“It won’t be easy. It will require contributions from many different groups and constituents from across the town to make that effective. I hope I can contribute in that way,” Caputo said.

 

This Week: Special Town Meeting, Singarama Wednesday, Music for Food Tuesday

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• The Special Town Meeting will take place on Monday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. at the Chenery Middle School auditorium. Only one major article on the agenda for the 290 members to discuss and vote: the $2.8 million Belmont Center Reconstruction project, to be paid for out of free cash. There is a single amendment; to pay for the project with a 15-year bond paid from general funds.

• Music & Movement with Rubi, a movement and music program recommended for ages 3 to 5 (but 2 year olds are welcome) will be held in the Flett Room on Monday, Nov. 17.  There will be two sessions: 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

• Viola and Cello Music for Food: On Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library, Rosalind Ventris, violist, Zenan Yu, pianist, and Alan Toda-Ambaras, cellist, will perform music for solo viola and cello by Frank Bridge, Rebecca Clarke, Bach, and Hindemith. The performance is sponsored by the Friends of the Belmont Public Library in partnership with Music for Food, a musician-led initiative for local hunger relief. Admission is free. At the concert, donations will be collected by Music for Food for the Belmont Food Pantry.

• Singers from each of Belmont’s public schools – third graders to high school seniors – will get together Wednesday, Nov. 19, at 7 p.m. in the Belmont High School auditorium for the annual choral panorama known as Singarama. The program will be filled with secular and seasonal songs, classical and modern music, all of which are beautifully arranged for the audience’s enjoyment!

• The Belmont Book Discussion group will discuss Traveling with Pomegranates: A Mother and Daughter Journey to the Sacred Places of Greece, Turkey, and France by Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor on Wednesday, Nov. 19 from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Flett Room. Everyone is welcome to attend.  Copies of the book can be requested through the library catalog or call the library’s Reference staff at 617-993-2870.

• The Wellington PTO is holding its 4th annual Wellington Shopping Night Fundraiser in Belmont Center on Thursday, Nov. 20 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Make a purchase at these participating establishments – bessie blue, Marmalade, Revolve, Bells& Whistle, Thirty Petals boutique and El Centro – mention the Wellington School and 15 percent of your purchase price will be donated to the Wellington PTO.

• The Underwood Pool Building Committee will hold a public meeting on Thursday, Nov. 20, at 7 p.m., in the Assembly Room at the Belmont Public Library, where the members of the construction team will be introduced and answer questions.

• The Underwood Pool Building Committee and the Belmont Board of Selectmen invite the public to the official groundbreaking ceremony for the new Underwood Pool complex on Friday, Nov. 21 at 8:15 a.m. at the construction site.

Sports: Belmont Football’s Streak Reaches 3 with 21-2 Win Over Boston Latin

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It’s official; Belmont High School Football is in the midst of a winning streak.

In the penultimate game of the 2014 season, senior running back Max Jones scored three touchdowns while the defense created four turnovers as the Marauders have run off three-consecutive victories by defeating visiting Boston Latin, 21-2, on Friday night, Nov. 14.

“I’m really proud at the defense who had the shut out [the two-point safety late in the fourth quarter was scored against the offense] because they stepped up as the offense was having a hard time moving forward,” said Belmont Head Coach Yann Kumin.

Kumin pointed to a play late in the fourth quarter as an example of the team’s ethos in the past three games. After a Wolfpack receiver caught a quick pass and ran by the sophomore defensive back Ben Jones towards an apparent touchdown. But Jones ran down the receiver and wrestled the ball from him at Belmont’s five-yard line, making the recovery.

“[Jones] could have given up on the play but he caught [the receiver] and stripped him. That’s what we talk about when we say ‘Next play, big play’,” said Kumin.

The game was hardly an easy go for the Marauders as Boston Latin’s defensive front line caused problems for Belmont’s running backs Jones and junior Mekhai Johnson.

In response, Kumin looked to the passing arm of sophomore quarterback Cal Christofori who went 12 for 25, going to juniors Justin Wagner and Robby Aiello and long-threat senior Jaehmar Paul who caught passes of 40 and 26 yards.

Belmont got on the board with three minutes left in the first quarter with Jones rushing 10 yards up the middle of the field in the end zone. The score occurred after junior defensive lineman Justin Arroyan caused and recovering a fumble.

Jones second TD was a 40 yard romp off the right side in the third quarter and a 60 yard sprint in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. Jones, who scored three touchdowns in last week’s game against Salem, ran for 185 yards.

The Marauders are now off for nearly two weeks before the annual Thanksgiving Day game vs. Watertown.

“We’ll have time to rest up guys who are dinged up and target some areas that need to addressed before we meet a very good Watertown team,” said Kumin.

Sports: Fall Season Ends with a Bang on the Gridiron, Park and Pool

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It’s only appropriate with the return of frost to town that the fall athletic season is wrapping up. For Belmont, it does so with a bang as Belmont teams and individuals will be seeking glory on this final weekend.

• Belmont High School Football will be in search of something they have not accomplished in years; a winning streak. A victory over visiting Belmont Latin – the game gets underway tonight, Friday, Nov. 14 at 6 p.m. at Harris Field – will give three wins in a row and give the Marauders a 3-7 record going into the traditional Thanksgiving Day game against Watertown High.

• Junior Leah Brams will be competing in her third consecutive Division 1 All-State Cross Country meet, held this year in historic Franklin Park in Boston on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 1 p.m. With temperatures not expected to break freezing, Brams will have, at least, a physiological advantage over the other runners: while they retreat indoors for the winter track season, Brams takes to the trails as one of the region’s most accomplished youth Nordic skiers.

• Just by past times posted this season, it is likely to be a big night for Belmont High School’s Girls’ Swimming and Diving Team Sunday, Nov. 16, at 7:30 p.m. at Harvard University’s Blodgett Pool as the Marauders seek to take the Div. 2 State Championship title. Belmont’s junior star Jessie Blake-West will be seeking to gain National High School All-American status in her favorite event, the 100-yard butterfly, and is the favorite to win state titles in the 200 individual medley and as a member of the 200 medley relay. With a great quartet of breaststroke swimmers, junior diver Thea Kelsey and young members who are getting faster with each meet, Head Coach Ev Crosscup could be heading for a dip into the pool at the end of the meet.

 

This Weekend: Saturday’s Ski Exchange, Printmakers’ Show Friday Night

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• The Belmont Gallery of Art is holding a special Friday Night showing today, Friday, Nov. 14 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. of it’s current exhibit, “Continental Drift: Printmakers Converge,” an exhibit of work by members of the Boston Printmakers and the Icelandic Printmakers Association. The gallery will also be open this Sunday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The Gallery is located on the third floor of the Homer Building in the Town Hall Complex, 19 Moore St., right off Leonard Street in Belmont Center behind the Belmont Savings Bank building.

• The Belmont High School Ski Team’s Annual Ski Sale and Swap held in the High School cafeteria on Saturday Nov. 15 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Proceeds benefit the BHS Ski team. Anyone selling equipment should arrive no later than 9:45 a.m. For information: 617-823-4233; scott@navfund.com

• Arlington’s Menotomy Musical Theater is staging The Wizard of Oz on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m as well as Sunday, Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. in the Belmont Town Hall auditorium, 455 Concord Ave. Tickets are $15 in advance online or $20 at the door.

Sports: Belmont Boys’ Soccer Playoff Run Ends With Loss to Concord-Carlisle

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The Belmont High School Boys’ Soccer walked off the pitch at Chelmsford High School Thursday night, Nov. 13, knowing they weren’t cheated out of a chance for victory against Concord-Carlisle Regional High School.

“They were by far the best and most complete team we played all season. They were one of the few teams that put us back on our heels,” said Brian Bisceglia, Belmont’s first-year head coach after the 1-0 loss to the number-one seed in the Division 2 North Sectional semifinals.

“You gave it your all, and you should be proud of that effort,” Bisceglia told the team after the game.

But that didn’t make the defeat any less hard to take for the team, especially for the dozen seniors who played their final game in the Belmont kit.

“No regrets,” said senior Luke Gallagher, one of four co-captains (along with Peter Berens, Norman Kilavatitu and Ben Lazenby) who led the team to an impressive 15-4-2 season.

“Tonight I saw how far we’ve come this year and how much each and every player has developed, I’m proud of these guys,” said Gallagher.

“Every single day, at practice and in games, we put everything on the field. [Concord-Carlisle] won, but we didn’t lose it,” said Kilavatitu.

“The unfortunate part of a competition is that one team has to go home unhappy. But I’d rather play and risk that than to be afraid to experience losing,” Bisceglia told the team.

The Patriots – undefeated through the regular season with a 19-0-1 record – came into the game having rolled over Arlington (3-0) and Northeast Metro (8-0) looking as strong as their recent results would suggest. Strong, quick and disciplined, Concord-Carlisle’s midfielders made it difficult for Belmont to generate a sustained attack.

And the Marauder defense – headed by standout senior center back Amar Fernald and backstopped by Middlesex League All-Star goalkeeper Berens – was under sustained pressure in the first half as the Patriots used their height advantage to flick-on headers into dangerous positions on set pieces such as free and corner kicks.

Belmont’s best chance in the first half came when the Marauders had a free kick 25 meters from the Concord-Carlisle goal. The resulting attempt sailed by Patriot goalkeeper Bryce Talbot-Dion well over the bar.

On the other end of the field, Berens twice raced off his line to stop streaking Patriots who slipped containment.

Just as it appeared the game would enter the half scoreless, Concord-Carlisle went ahead with a minute remaining in the first 40 minutes. A steal at midfield found the ball 30 meters out where senior co-captain Garrett Leahy put a pass at the feet of forward Andrew Verrilli coming down the left who slotted a well-paced shot by Berens into the right side of the net.

Belmont was fortunate to stay down by one as a shot from Verrilli whacked the crossbar on a one-time blast four minutes into the second half.

Bisceglia made a series of tactical changes to free up his midfield but Lazenby, Kilavatitu and Danny Rizzo found it hard sledding to push up field with possession, especially as the big Patriot midfielders played with greater defensive purpose.

“I think some formation changes and coaching decisions could have been better, to put our players in better spots,” said Bisceglia.

Belmont got close with less than three minutes remaining in the game. A Patriot miscue allowed Gallagher to possess the ball deep on the right side. He swung the ball into the center of the pitch; the ball was toed by Lazenby requiring a Concord-Carlisle defender to clear from the goal mouth. The resulting Belmont corner was cleared.

Two minutes later, the final whistle blew and with it, the end of a great post and regular season.

“It was a pleasure coaching them,” said Bisceglia, who nearly did not that the head coaching job due to personal events happening this year.

“I didn’t want to do it if I couldn’t fully commit to this team. And the seniors were why I made the choice,” said Bisceglia, having coached them four years ago as freshmen on an undefeated junior varsity team.

“I knew how special they were, not just as players but as people. They are just good guys,” he said.

“In fact, even if we had won a state championship, I probably would still feel the same sense of sadness seeing them leave,” said Bisceglia.

While Belmont will have a strong core of players returning next season including Trevor Kelly, Tokio Kobayashi, Daron Hamparian, Edward Stafford and Marvyn Dorchin, the team will miss the leadership and skills of its senior core: Berens, Gallagher, Kilavatitu, Lazenby, Rizzo, Fernald, Gavin Denison, Alex Berets, Charles Frigo, Andrew Eurdolian, Luke Perotta, Sami Belkadi, Matt Lawson and Nick Andrikidis.

 

Eight Residents In the Running to Fill Vacant School Committee Position

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A past candidate and seven other residents were named by the Belmont School Committee on Friday, Nov. 14 as the applicants seeking to fill the seat left vacant after Kevin Cunningham announced his resignation from the committee last month.

The eight candidates are:

  • Susan Burgess-Cox
  • Tom Caputo
  • Tara Donner
  • Maura Fennelly
  • Jamie Kang (who ran for the committee in 2013)
  • Kimberly O’Mahony
  • Ike Papadopoulos
  • Erica Zidel

The collection of applicants will be presented to and interviewed by a joint meeting of Belmont Board of Selectmen and School Committee on Monday, Nov. 17 at 8 a.m. in the Selectmen’s Room in Belmont Town Hall.

After the candidates are interviewed by the panel, the joint committee will vote for the appointee they feel will best fill the seat during the very busy five months until the April Town Election.

Under state law, the appointee’s term lasts only until the Town Election when they will have the opportunity to seek election to serve the remaining two years of Cunningham’s tenure.

While there will not be time for questions from the audience, suggestions or comments can be sent to School Committee Chair Laurie Slap at lslap@belmont.k12.ma.us

“Each candidate brings strengths and accomplishments and we are all pleased that this vacancy has elicited such interest. We are looking forward to the interviews on Monday and are excited to welcome another colleague at the table to help us as we continue the very important work of providing the best educational experience for all of our students,” said Slap.

Snow, Yes Snow, in the Forecast for Friday’s Commute in Belmont

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Ugh.

The National Weather Service office in Taunton issued a hazardous weather outlook at 4:27 p.m. this afternoon, Thursday, Nov. 13 for eastern Massachusetts including Belmont forecasting a “moderate probability of an inch or two of snow” beginning after midnight, Friday, Nov. 14.

The resulting snow “may cause slippery travel during the Friday morning commute,” read the outlook.

The only good news: the temperature will stay above freezing overnight and into Friday until 10 p.m. Friday night.

Town Meeting Amendment Challenges Belmont Center Project Financing Plan

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Special Town Meeting just got a whole lot more interesting.

Rather than the option of simply accepting or rejecting the financing plan for the $2.8 million Belmont Center Reconstruction Project, the 290 Town Meeting Members now have an alternative to the town-created “free cash” proposal.

Read the project’s highlights here

James Williams of Glenn Road and Precinct 1 submitted an amendment to the Belmont Center warrant article that will be brought before the Special Town Meeting on Monday, Nov. 17 to bond the entire $2.8 million project using a traditional sale of a bond to be paid out of the general fund.

Under the plan submitted in the article, the town proposes to finance the project in two steps; an initial downpayment from the town’s free cash account – sometimes referred to as the town’s “savings account” – of $1.3 million and then issuing a $1.5 million, 15-year bond which will be paid for over the term of the debt from free cash.

Read about the unique way the town will pay for project here.

“Free cash” is typically actual town receipts in excess of revenue estimates and unspent amounts in departmental budget line-items at the end of the fiscal year, plus the unexpended free cash from the previous year.

Last week, the state’s Department of Revenue certified Belmont’s free cash amount at $7,465,000, an increase of $1.3 million from the previous fiscal year.

For Williams and others who both support and are opposed to the project, using the town’s “savings” to finance a capital project that will benefit the residents over many years is not the proper use of the funds.

“Belmont is arguably in serious financial difficulty due in large part to actions taken or not taken by previous and current administrations,” said Williams in an email to the Belmontonian.
Pointing to areas of financial concern such as the millions owed in health care obligations to retired town employees and the lack of financing standard town amenities such as sidewalks and road, “[basically], we are living beyond our means and we are making commitments we can’t keep,” said Williams.
For Williams and others, using “free” cash would be just another example of fiscal irresponsibility by town officials.
“[T]he only responsible thing to do is to issue debt for the entire amount so the so-called “free cash” can be used for existing obligations and the center can be funded by new money,” said Williams.
“Since the Center is not a ‘must have’ project, it should be voted up or down on this point,” said Williams, who will “stand against” the project unless it was fully funded.

At a warrant briefing earlier this month which reviewed the articles on the Special Town Meeting, town officials said the current plan “strike a balance” in using town’s savings so it can bond a smaller portion of the project.

Belmont Town Administrator David Kale said if the entire project is bonded, the town would pay $320,000 in the first year, as opposed to the $168,000 in the first year under the current proposal.