Town of Merrimac Launches New Website

MERRIMAC —The Town of Merrimac is pleased to announce the launch of its new website. The new website, https://townofmerrimac.com, now features a user-friendly design and modern features to ensure that residents can easily access resources and important information. New features of the site include:  
  • Community Calendar to stay up to date with town events
  • Social media integration with Merrimac’s Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn pages.
  • New staff directory that features new phone numbers to easily contact town leaders, department heads and committee members
  • Agendas and Minutes Library
  • Online Payments and Forms
  • Expansive Search Feature
The homepage features an expansive menu that allows users and visitors to access Town Government Offices, Online Bill Payments, Elections and Voting information, and community resources. Residents can now subscribe to the site to receive email alerts of news updates and events posted on the website. Users can also apply for open municipal positions within Merrimac directly on the site. “The Select Board was looking to actively pursue ways to increase service levels throughout the Town of Merrimac, and our new website offers a way to provide better communication to our residents,” said Select Board Chairperson Chris Manni. “We encourage residents to explore our new site, as they can now access vital information with unlimited accessibility and ease.” The new website was created and designed by John Guilfoil Public Relations.  

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Groveland Will Adopt Town Administrator Form of Government

GROVELAND – The Town of Groveland announces that it will adopt a town administrator form of government, bringing a new level of professionalism to local municipal operations.

On Monday, May 24, Town Meeting approved Article 5 by a vote of 79-21, a vote that authorizes the Board of Selectmen to appoint a town administrator. The administrator will be responsible for day-to-day town operations and financial matters, under the direction of the Board majority. Currently, operational duties are performed by the five selectmen; financial issues are managed by the Finance Director.

In a separate voice vote, Town Meeting also approved the dissolution of the current Finance Director system, allowing Selectmen to reorganize municipal operations around a financial team led by the Town Administrator.

The Finance Board and Government Study Committee supported the articles. The Board of Selectmen recommended “favorable action” in a 4-1 vote.

“Operating a town is growing in complexity. We’re a volunteer Board of Selectmen, and many issues can’t wait for us to meet every other week,” Board Vice Chair Kathleen Kastrinelis said. “We want to have a professional operation so that our fantastic employees will have support, and our residents will receive a high level of service.”

The Board of Selectmen next will review and post a job description for the administrator. The Board also will appoint a Town Administrator Search Committee, which will be charged with reviewing applications and recommending candidates to be interviewed by Selectmen. No Selectman may serve on the Search Committee.

The incoming Town Administrator will serve for a period of one year, and then may be appointed to recurring three-year terms.

Page School ‘Superheroes’ Team Up With West Newbury Departments to Support Food Pantry

WEST NEWBURY – School Superintendent Justin Bartholomew and Fire Chief Michael Dwyer are pleased to report that Page School students became true “superheroes” by helping to fill the shelves of West Newbury’s food pantry last week.

On Friday, May 28, Page School students took part in “Superheroes Day,” participating in a fun run dressed as their favorite superhero. The day was sponsored by the Page School PTO and organized by first-grade teachers Bridget Murray and Krista Niles.

The School partnered with the West Newbury Police and Fire Departments and the Council on Aging, and asked the students and their families to donate non-perishable items.

The donations filled a police cruiser and Engine 24.

“I am very proud of our Page School teachers for creating an opportunity to teach about giving and charity, and of our first-graders who participated and learned a life-long lesson,” Superintendent Bartholomew said.

“We know there are families in need in our community,” Chief Dwyer said. “By filling both the engine and cruiser, these young students have helped alleviate food insecurity in our community.”

If you can help the Food Pantry, please contact Council on Aging Director Theresa Woodbury at coa@wnewbury.org or 978-363-1104.

Town of Merrimac Shares Guidance Following Authorization of Pfizer Vaccine for Children & Teens 12 and Older

MERRIMAC — The Town of Merrimac wishes to share information and guidance following the authorization of the Pfizer vaccine for children and teens age 12 and older.

Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine was granted emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday and became immediately available to those ages 12-15 following a meeting of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Vaccine Advisory Committee on Wednesday. Those 16 and older have been authorized to receive the Pfizer vaccine since December 2020, and eligible in Massachusetts since April 19.

Pfizer is currently the only COVID-19 vaccine available to those younger than 18, and has been determined through clinical trials to be extraordinarily effective at preventing severe illness from COVID-19.

The Town of Merrimac wishes to share the following additional guidance:

  • A parent, guardian or otherwise legally authorized representative must give consent for a minor to be vaccinated, which may require written consent the child or teen can bring to their vaccination appointment. For more information or to download a consent form, click here.
  • Parents and guardians do not need to go with the minor to the vaccination appointment to give consent, if they have provided written consent.
  • Among the children and teens in Pfizer’s clinical trial who received the vaccine and not the placebo, the most common side effects following their vaccination were pain at the injection site, tiredness, headache, chills, muscle pain, fever and joint pain. Side effects normally lasted 1-3 days and were more common after the second dose. These side effects are the same as those experienced by adults.
  • Side effects are a normal physical response to a vaccine, and indicate the vaccine is doing its job and teaching your body how to fight off COVID-19.
  • The vaccine does not contain the coronavirus itself, either in an active or inactive form.
  • For more information about Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website here.
  • Use VaxFinder.mass.gov to search for appointments at pharmacies, health care providers, and other community locations
  • Preregister at VaccineSignUp.mass.gov to be notified when it’s your turn to schedule an appointment at a mass vaccination or regional collaborative location.
  • People without access to the internet or who are unable to preregister or schedule their appointment online can call toll free 2-1-1 or (877) 211-6277 for assistance.

More information about the town’s response to COVID-19 may be found online at MerrimacCOVID19.com.

 

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Lower Merrimack Valley Vaccine Clinic Reports Successful Nine-Community COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic, Alerts Residents to New State Guidelines Effectively Shutting it Down

Ann Brady-Lozier (far left), school nurse at the Dr. Frederick N. Sweetsir School in Merrimac, waits with other volunteers at one of the eight vaccination stations set up at Saturday's Lower Merrimack Valley Vaccine Clinic session in West Newbury. (Courtesy Photo)

Ann Brady-Lozier (far left), school nurse at the Dr. Frederick N. Sweetsir School in Merrimac, waits with other volunteers at one of the eight vaccination stations set up at Saturday’s Lower Merrimack Valley Vaccine Clinic session in West Newbury. (Courtesy Photo)

WEST NEWBURY — Amesbury Fire Chief Ken Berkenbush, on behalf of nine Merrimack Valley communities and their fire departments and public health officials, reports that extremely successful COVID-19 vaccination clinics have been held at the Dr. John C. Page School in West Newbury over the past two weekends. Officials in the nine communities are calling attention to the efficiency and local impact of this clinic, which has served first responders and the regions’ oldest citizens, and which is now in jeopardy of ending with a sudden shift in vaccine distribution policy in Massachusetts at the state level.

“Phase two is a critical time for the vaccine distribution effort. It is where our oldest and sickest residents — our most vulnerable and least mobile — are being served,” Chief Berkenbush said. “I join my colleagues in Amesbury, Georgetown, Groveland, Merrimac, Newbury, Newburyport, Rowley, Salisbury and West Newbury in calling for the state to reconsider its decision to cut off the vaccine supply to successful regional clinics such as ours.”

In total, the Lower Merrimack Valley Vaccine Clinic has been allocated 1,600 does to inoculate 800 residents. With second dose clinics scheduled for Feb. 18 and March 6, the clinic projects to actually use approximately 1650 doses and vaccinate 825 people, thanks to careful handling of the vials. The clinic has resulted in zero wasted doses and a 103% usage rate of the allocated doses. 

New state guidelines indicate that doses will only be made available to regional clinics that can operate five days per week, serving at least 750 doses per day.

“At the onset, we were told to prepare for 100 doses per community per week. We were prepared for more doses if they were available, but the new guidelines from the state represent a nearly fourfold increase in clinic capability,” Chief Berkenbush said. “The state is certainly aware that nearly all regional clinics will be unable to meet this threshold and are unable to guarantee both facilities and volunteers for 40 hours a week. This represents nothing short of a moving of the goalpost.”

Since the Cold War, municipalities have been asked to plan and prepare for emergency situations. Federal and state governments have for decades asked municipalities to be ready should emergencies arise, and as a result, local leaders are uniquely trained and qualified to handle a situation such as the distribution of vaccines. For example,  annually municipalities will often hold flu vaccination clinics. Emergency preparedness is also drilled and practiced regularly, among all levels of government. 

“There is no doubt there is a significant need for mass vaccine sites, especially for larger areas and areas that are more adversely impacted by the virus. However, these sites should operate simultaneously with regional clinics led by municipal Boards of Health and First Responders,” said Paul Sevigny, Director of Public Health for the Town of West Newbury. “During phase two especially, we should be asking our 80-year-old great-grandparents to travel the shortest distance to their vaccine site. Otherwise, we risk them never receiving a vaccine. Clinics like these are a literal lifeline.”

The Feb. 6 Lower Merrimack Valley Vaccine Clinic ran from 4-8 p.m. A steady stream of elderly residents and several remaining Phase 1 medical practitioners and first responders entered and and departed through different doors and filtered through the Page School’s gymnasium, where a volunteer corps of firefighters, paramedics, nurses and administrators were waiting.

The process was orderly, and residents were made to feel at ease, as they were greeted at the door by their local fire chiefs and other familiar faces. Residents, who made appointments ahead of time, were checked in before being sent toward one of eight vaccination stations. A pharmacist and pharmacy technician were on-site for the clinic to fill syringes on demand and ensure efficiency. Residents reported that their anxiety levels were significantly deceased by attending a local clinic with familiar faces greeting them at the door.

“This is an example of neighbors helping neighbors,” Chief Berkenbush said. “It would be a shame to see this effort wasted.”

Added West Newbury Fire Chief Michael Dwyer: “We have worked since last fall to execute and staff this clinic, but really we have been working for generations to be ready for this moment. We still stand ready, and the only barrier is the supply of vaccine.”

Added Merrimac Fire Chief Larry Fisher: “Our communities have rallied collectively in response to a need to deliver the vaccine. Our oldest population in many cases has challenges traveling to sites that are not local. We should continue to make all reasonable attempts to meet this population while encouraging others to use the larger mass vaccination sites.”

Residents who are eligible for a first dose vaccination can still visit mass.gov/covid-19-vaccine and residents can also search for a vaccination location near them by entering their zip code here.

However, seniors and those without internet access and others have struggled to make appointments through the state’s online system. The Councils on Aging in the nine communities, as always, stand ready to assist residents over the phone.

In addition to the fire chiefs, police chiefs, municipal managers, health agents, select boards, firefighters, police officers and EMS officials, the clinic organizers also wish to thank Erin Rich of West Newbury for serving as the volunteer coordinator for the entire clinic.

 

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Pentucket Regional School District Announces New School Committee Member

Superintendent Justin Bartholomew is pleased to announce Chris Markuns has been appointed as the newest School Committee member for the Pentucket Regional School District.

The School Committee consists of nine representatives, three from each of the sending towns in the district. Markuns is one of the three representatives for the Town of Merrimac and plans to help support the work the district is doing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The Pentucket School system has been a part of my family’s life for most of the 20-plus years we’ve lived here, and I’m happy to have a chance to give a little back,” Markuns said. “District leaders, families, teachers and staff have really done incredible things — basically reinventing school — to get through the past 10 months or so, and they deserve some support to keep that going and hopefully get back to the good work happening before last March.”

Markuns has worked in communications for Lawrence Public Schools since 2012. His twin daughters graduated from Pentucket High School in 2019 and his son is currently a junior at the high school. All three have attended Merrimac and Pentucket schools throughout their academic careers.

Markuns will serve in this role until at least the spring of 2021. His seat will be on the ballot for  the 2021 Town Meeting.

“We are thrilled to have Chris serve on our school committee and would like to extend a warm welcome as he settles into his role,” Superintendent Bartholomew said. “Our school committee plays a vital role for the communities they serve and represent, and have done an incredible job through the pandemic in finding a balance between protecting the health and safety of  our community and ensuring our students have the best possible educational experience.”

Town of West Newbury Urges Continued Vigilance as COVID-19 Risk Remains High and Holidays Approach

The Town of West Newbury Board of Health urges residents to remain vigilant against the spread of COVID-19 as the community remains at high risk for the disease, and to review the state’s health and safety guidance as they finalize plans and prepare for their holiday celebrations this year.

According to public health data released on Thursday, Dec. 17, the Town’s designation is now at “Red,” indicating a “high risk” of spread in the community. The average daily incidence rate for the Town of West Newbury is 49.5 per 100,000 residents, up from 42.47 last week.

There are currently 28 active cases of COVID-19 in the community. There have been a total of 78 cases in West Newbury since the start of the pandemic.

Residents are strongly encouraged to avoid high risk activities, especially indoor social or holiday gatherings, and all Massachusetts residents are under orders from the Governor to wear masks at all times while in public.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH), residents should take the following precautions this holiday season:

  • Limit in-person celebrations to household members only
  • Postpone or cancel travel this holiday season. If you do choose to travel, be aware of and comply with Massachusetts travel order requirements. Note: Hawaii is currently the only state where people can travel from to Massachusetts without being required to fill out the state’s travel form and quarantine and/or produce a negative COVID-19 test result.
  • Follow the current state gathering size limits and sector-specific workplace safety standards.

Those who still choose to travel or host a small gathering are urged to consider lower risk alternatives and review the precautions they can take to protect themselves and others from COVID-19.

DPH recommends several lower risk activities for celebrating the holidays this year, such as:

Lower-Risk Celebrations and Activities:

  • Limit in-person holiday gatherings to only people you live with.
  • Host a virtual holiday dinner with extended family or friends.
  • Prepare foods for family and neighbors and deliver them in a contactless way.
  • Virtually attend your traditional holiday activities, such as a visit with Santa.
  • Consider virtual caroling or reciting. Provide a link to your virtual caroling for the people you want to sing to.
  • View holiday lights from your car with those you live with.

Higher-Risk Celebrations and Activities:

  • Any time you gather with others outside of your household, you increase the risk of contracting or spreading illness. All residents are discouraged from gathering with those from outside their household. Gatherings in Massachusetts are subject to gathering size limits.
  • You are risking your health and the health of others if you host or participate in any in-person festivities if you or anyone in your household:
    • has been diagnosed with COVID-19 and has not completed the isolation period;
    • has symptoms of COVID-19;
    • is waiting for COVID-19 viral test results;
    • may have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 in the last 14 days; or
    • is at increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19, such as older adults or those with certain medical conditions.
  • If in-person caroling or reciting, stay more than 25 feet from the people you are reciting or singing for and wear a mask. Remain outdoors while caroling.
  • If you visit Santa Claus in person, wear a mask, stay six feet from Santa and others while in line, and make a reservation for your visit where available.
  • If viewing holiday lights outdoors, take a one-way walk with those you live with and maintain distance from others.

Other Recommendations and Guidance:

  • Always wear your mask and watch your distance. (Remove your mask only for eating and drinking.)
  • Do not share food, drink, or any utensils, including serving utensils.
  • Seat people with plenty of space (at least six feet) from one another while dining.
  • Consider seating people at smaller tables in multiple rooms instead of around a large family table.
  • Improve ventilation by opening windows and doors.
  • If setting up outdoor seating under a tent, ensure guests are still seated with physical distancing in mind. Enclosed four-wall tents will have less air circulation than open air tents and should be considered indoor spaces (also check fire codes for heating tents).
    • If outdoor temperature or weather forces you to put down the tent sidewalls, consider leaving one or more sides open or rolling up the bottom 12 inches of each sidewall to enhance ventilation while still providing a wind break.

More information about the state’s guidance for holiday celebrations can be found here.

Additional Information

Residents are reminded to always take the following precautions to prevent further spread of COVID-19 in the community:

  • Remember that an infected individual can spread COVID-19 before they have symptoms, which is why social distancing — maintaining a minimum of 6 feet from others — is critical.
  • Those who must go out are urged to:
    • Avoid gathering in groups
    • Maintain 6 feet from people outside your household
    • Do not shake hands or hug
    • Wash your hands often
  • Those who are at a high risk for COVID-19, including those over the age of 65 and with underlying health conditions, are advised to stay home and avoid non-essential tasks and errands
  • Wear a mask in indoor and outdoor spaces at all times.
  • Face coverings should:
    • Cover the nose and mouth
    • Fit snugly and comfortably against the side of the face
    • Be secured with either ties or ear loops
    • Permit breathing without difficulty
    • Be able to be washed and machine dried without damage. Face masks should be washed regularly depending on the amount of use.

For more information about COVID-19 prevention and symptoms, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website here and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health website here.