From Rob Lagergren, President:
Let There be Light!
After years of submitting repair requests to the city, the three streetlights have finally been repaired across from the mailboxes. It is now much safer to pick up your mail and walk by the retention basin in the dark. Thanks go out to Karen Sangiovani for her relentless efforts in keeping the pressure on the Department of Public Utilities and Lori Tallis for communicating with our new ward counselor, Ken Warren.
LITTLE FREE LIBRARY HAS COME TO WALDEN VILLAGE!
Little Free Library is a nonprofit organization based in St. Paul, Minnesota. Their mission is to be a catalyst for building community, inspiring readers, and expanding book access for all through a global network of volunteer-led Little Free Libraries. Their vision is a Little Free Library in every community and a book for every reader. They believe all people are empowered when the opportunity to discover a personally relevant book to read is not limited by time, space or privilege.
Waste bans now in effect
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has expanded its waste disposal bans to promote recycling and reuse. As of November 1, 2022, the state agency no longer allows the disposal of the following materials in the trash:
- Mattresses and box springs.
- Textiles include clothing, footwear, bedding, towels, curtains, fabric, and similar products, except for textiles that are contaminated with mold, bodily fluids, insects, oil, or hazardous substances.
- Food and material from entities generating more than one-half ton of food material per week (it previously applied to entities generating more than one ton of food material per week).
Additional materials banned from disposal include glass and metal containers, leaves and yard waste, lead acid batteries, recyclable paper and cardboard, cathode ray tubes, clean gypsum wallboard, and ferrous and non-ferrous metals.
The City of Pittsfield has partnered with Tough Stuff Recycling for curbside matress pickups. A pickup appointment can be made on their website
at order.toughstuffrecyling.com. There is a $55 fee per unit. A unit consists of a mattress or a boxspring of any size. More information can be found on the City’s website.
Environmental Control Committee Request Form
Walden Village Newsletter – # 61
November, 2022 you know, the Walden Village Covenants require ECC approval of any building exterior or landscaping project before the project starts. The ECC has developed a form that will help streamline the request process by using a common format that reduces the number of back and forth emails and
phone calls. All requests are to be submitted on this form. Copies of the form and additional information are available from ECC members, Karen Sangiovani, Pam Soldato, Carole Terlik and Carol Gramm.
Environmental Control Committee – Karen Sangiovanni
The Environmental Control Committee had a busy fall with requests for new railings, porch paintings and new gutters. These approved requests have improved the uniformity and aesthetic look that we strive for and it keeps the value of our properties up. The Committee would like to thank residents for using the new Request Form for approval. You should continue to notify the Committee for all building and landscaping projects that you would like done and a Request Form will be emailed to you to fill out completely and return to the Committee. Help filling out the Form is ready available from any Committee member. This new Request Form has streamlined the process, avoiding lots of emailing back and forth and for a quicker response time. Thank you for all the holiday decorations. They are beautiful and they bring joy and warmth to the village, especially after this challenging year. The Environmental Committee wishes everyone Happy Holidays and a Healthy, Happy, Peaceful New year.
Social Committee – Cheryl Meunier
The Fall dinner at Zucchini’s was well attended (22 residents) and well received. The food was delicious and the fellowship was even better!
The Holiday party is December 9. The committee is hoping to plan some events during the winter months. Any suggestions are welcome! The committee would also welcome new members! Call Cheryl at 442-6118 to volunteer or with an idea or two.
Dorcas Abell: “No Time To Slow Down”
By Bruce Farren
If you think nine decades on earth cause you to slow down and fade away, then you have never met Dorcas Abell. Far from a frail elder, Dorcas may well qualify as a speed merchant aboard her scooter on our Village paths.
Perhaps Walden Village’s longest resident, Dorcas arrived here with husband, Steve, in 1989, just a year after phase 1 opened.
“To be honest, we moved here largely because of the tennis courts and the pool,” she noted. “I really enjoyed tennis and sorry to see that we may lose the
courts. That would be a shame.” Dorcas suggested maybe “pickleball would be a good replacement.”
Her early years were in Springfield and early education was at an in- residence academy in Northfield, Massachusetts where she graduated in 1941. Like many young women in that era, she attended secretarial school where she finished tied for tops in her class. That led to joining a then booming General
Electric. “I worked for a group of engineers; great guys, and enjoyed being out in the world,” she said. Thanks to her sister Ginny and her fiancé, she met a young draftsman, Steve Abell, and we got married July 29″, 1942.
Dorcas tired of the “8 to 5 routine” at GE and worked for several lawyers in Pittsfield before winding up with the Red Cross, one of the Berkshires’ most respected charities.
But there was a family side to her life as well. It was 1943 and World War
I was raging. Husband Steve enlisted in the Navy despite having a critical job deferral. “He shipped out leaving me pregnant and barefoot” Dorcas jokes. “But the folks at the Red Cross were helpful getting Steve home to visit when our son was born. That led to her raising three children; Peter, Paul and (no, not Mary) Patricia. “Peter lives in Italy, Paul lived with me in Walden for two years before passing, and Pat lives in Maine. She’s the one you see visiting me frequently.” Never one to just sit and do nothing, once the children were established in school, Dorcas sort of went back to ‘school’ herself. “I became a secretary for the Pittsfield Schools for 22 years until I retired at 65.
“I have to say, I’ve always been happy here. The people are great. I read a
lot and friends pick up books for me that I order online.” She proudly adds, “I gave up tv some time ago. Reading and bridge are my mainstays.”
(Editor’s Note: Not bad for a 98-year-old!)
Driveways and Sidewalks Repairs- Peter Trowill
Some residents have asked me about repairs to their driveways and sidewalks, without a full replacement. I have researched companies and have had one company visit the Village and give me information. A representative from Leading Concrete Solutions (Troy, NY) explained how slabs of concrete can be raised. A hole is drilled in the concrete and a poly foam is inserted and this raises the slab. One can watch a video on You Tube, using a lead such as “concrete jacking”.
There is a 5 year warranty on the work and the price depends on the size of slab to be raised. You can visit the web site: www.leadingconcretesolutions.com
Please contact me if you have any interest. 413-329-0721
New Residents:
Kathy and Lance Hopkins are recent additions to the Village, and reside at 2 Alcott Lane.Kathy is a Pittsfield girl, born and raised. She decided to broaden her horizons and took a job with the federal government in Washington DC.
Lance was born and raised in a military family and lived an itinerant lifestyle until his parents retired to Northern California. After high school, he spent four years in military service, then returned to California where he finished his education and also took a government job in Washington.
The two met at work, married, and spent the next 25 years working and living abroad, mostly in Latin America.
They retired in the Fall of 1995 and spent the next 27 years residing in a quiet Pittsfield neighborhood.
In retirement Kathy spent several years with Project H.E.R.O.A., a state and federally funded breast and cervical cancer initiative for non and under-insured women, and developed an interest in photography.
Lance returned to work for the government on contract and made several trips abroad, mostly to Latin America.
Hawaii.
Since retirement they have enjoyed personal travel to Ireland, Italy and
Their daughter, her husband and their two grandchildren reside in Southern
Connecticut.
Shirlee Bresnehan, 50 Walden:
I’ve lived in the Berkshires most of my life. After spending winters in Florida and the last 3 years on Cape Cod, I have decided to return home and will be a full time resident on Walden Lane.
I enjoy reading (am looking for a book club to join), knitting, quilting, golf and am working on training my dog, Bailey.
Looking forward to meeting my new neighbors.
Memorial Service
A memorial service for Jane Reusche, a former neighbor who lived in Walden Village for 28 years, was held on Saturday, December 3, 2022. The service was at the Amherst Women’s Club. Dorcas Abell, Diane Forsyth and Bill Frazier were able to attend and extended sympathy to the family on behalf of the Village family.
Bill Frazier, Editor