Jun192013

Medicaid Expasion Best Hope for Addiction Treatment

By admin | June 19, 2013 | Posted in Around Nutfield, Around Town, Letters to the Editor | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Today, I visited a young woman at the Valley Street Jail. She, like 98% of all women incarcerated in NH, and 85% of men, is there for a drug and or alcohol related crime! She is 39 years old, a mother of 4, college educated, and was living with her family in a nice home in Londonderry until her disease consumed her.  Homeless, living in a tent in Derry, with her oldest son, and hungry, she walked into a recovery meeting in Derry last August. The Woman’s meeting was celebrating their 30th anniversary. More than 70 woman packed the room .They were teachers, homemakers, nurses, bus drivers, counselors, store clerks, clergy and doctors, old and young. They were Catholic, Jewish and Protestants. They were laughing and celebrating the hundreds upon hundreds of years of recovery in that very room. Helping those who still suffer is a basic tenant of most recovery programs. This was no exception. Several women brought her food, and welcomed her. She listened to the stories of despair, devastated families, criminal activities, and heard the wreckage of the past turned into stories of courage and hope. She desperately wanted what they had. She waits, in the Valley Street Jail. She has struggled with some slips along the way. Relapse is the very definition of addiction. The beginning of recovery is rarely perfect abstinence. But each time her slips have been shorter and further apart. Her problem with substance abuse started with alcohol at 14 years old. She told me today that her last slip was when her father died earlier this year, of alcoholism. His untimely death had brought back painful memories of her own childhood, and intolerable pain and shame as a mother incapable of parenting her own children. She turned herself in to jail (for theft, she committed to support her addiction) to be “safe,” to buy herself some time clean and sober. She hopes, finally, to find a bed in rehab. She desperately wants treatment. She waits in jail.

This past Friday another young woman, originally living in Salem, with a similar story, celebrated her 3rd year of recovery at that same Friday meeting. Her first problem with substance abuse was also alcohol which she abused before she even learned how to drive. Desperate, pregnant and waiting for a treatment  program to take her in NH, her addiction led to her homelessness and criminal activity in MA.  Fortunately, MA provided treatment after her incarceration at Framinghanm state prison. She works full time, goes to college part time, has custody of her two children and just completed training to teach others in recovery to be recovery coaches. She became a coach herself after her first year in recovery!

Alcohol is big business in New Hampshire!  State liquor stores are in evry town and on state highways. Advertisements proclaim cheap and available alcohol. Projected sales of alcohol are expected to top $1.18 billion, with gross profits of $367 million going to subsidize our state budget this year. Currently only 4 to 6% of people needing treatment get it!

We have some of the highest rates of alcohol abuse and misuse in the country and only one state, Texas, has less treatment available.

Medicaid expansion is an incredible opportunity to provide treatment for the last disease we refuse to acknowledge, the leprosy of out time!

I  call upon every resident of our community to call the legislature’s committee of conference, who will  work toward a compromise on the Senate’s failure to pass Medicaid Expansion. Senate:  Chuck Morse (R-Salem), Bob Odell (R-Lempster), Jeanie Forrester (R-Meredith) and Lou D’Allesandro (D-Manchester). House: Mary Jane Wallner (D-Concord), Cindy Rosenwald (D-Nashua), Susan Almy (D-Lebanon), Dan Eaton (D-Stoddard) and Neal Kurk (R-Weare).

Call because we have a moral imperative.

Call because it is just plain economic sense, turning down $7.5 billion in federal dollars, and the economic cost of excessive alcohol consumption in NH at $1.15 billion dollars per year!

Call because a mother from Londonderry waits in the Valley Street Jail.

Madeline Demeule
29 Boyd Road
Londonderry

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By admin | Posted in Around Nutfield, Around Town, Letters to the Editor | Tagged , , | Comments (0)
Jun182013

Best Not Broken to Perform in Londonderry

By admin | June 18, 2013 | Posted in Around Town | Comments (0)

Londonderry Concerts on the Common features Best Not Broken on Wednesday, June 19, 2013. For a complete schedule and more details visit Concerts on the Common online.

Best Not Broken took shape in 2007 and has quickly evolved from a New England club favorite to an original band with burgeoning regional popularity. The pop/alternative rock quintet draws influence from genres as diverse as the experiences that shape its songs. Blending rhythmic underpinnings reminiscent of Britpop, post-punk, and reggae, the band weaves melodic themes that evoke memories of 80’s synth-pop with indie-rock guitar layers that alternately rise and chime. At times delicate and at times driving, Best Not Broken’s songs abound with vibrant lyrical landscapes rooted in singer-song-writer sensibility, resulting in a sound that is at once familiar yet satisfyingly contemporary… and definitively its own.

Making a name for itself as one of the premier up-and-coming pop/alternative rock groups in the Northeast, Best Not Broken has performed with national acts like Billboard-topping recording artists Jason Derulo (Whatcha Say, In My Head, Ridin’ Solo), Matt Nathanson (Come On Get Higher, Car Wash), and members of the band formerly known as Boston (More Than A Feeling, Peace of Mind, Amanda).

When all is said and done, Best Not Broken’s heart beats in its songs—songs that are alive with emotion, unifying listeners with stories of our human condition—a condition that is, after all, best not broken. It is this very human condition upon which Best Not Broken has built its movement: a movement that is rooted in sharing the emotions that shape who we are: the love, the pain, the laughter, the triumph and the truth. A movement that reaches beyond music and seeks to create a better place among us. A movement that started long ago, but still has only just begun.

Concerts on the Common are provided by the Londonderry Arts Council whose mission is to enrich Londonderry’s quality of life by promoting cultural arts in the community – and made possible by the generous support of Premier Sponsors including Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, Londonderry Freezer Warehouse, Londonderry Administrative Employees Association (L.A.E.A.), Ford of Londonderry, Solomon Law Office, Calvin Dental Associates and Granite Ridge Energy, LLC. Also, contributions from our Gold Sponsors Mark Oswald (Re/MAX Realtor), Market Basket, Londonderry Professional Firefighters (Local 3160), Corporate Cost Control, Lindt Chocolate of Londonderry, Shady Hill Greenhouses & Nursery, and Spectrum Gymnastics Academy. For a complete list of our sponsors, visit our website.

In the event of bad weather, the location of the Concerts on the Common will be moved to the Matthew Thornton gym. For more information contact: Stephen Lee, Londonderry Arts Council, 603-818-3232, email swl1881.londonderry(at)gmail.com.

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By admin | Posted in Around Town | Comments (0)
Jun182013

Where’s “Cutty”

By Jim Loiselle | June 18, 2013 | Posted in Around Town | Comment (1)

Well, we all heard rumors.  We all read the reports of PSNH spending “millions and millions” on tree cutting.  We all have seen the orange Asplundh trucks driving up and down 102 teasing us with their bucket trucks with built in wood chippers and chain saws.

PSNH contract with Asplundh to trim trees.

Well we can report it’s true, really.  We saw Cutty


Spotted on Chase Road last week……..Sparhawk Road this week…….and yesterday and today on Faclon Road…………we saw “Cutty”.

 

 

 

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By Jim Loiselle | Posted in Around Town | Comment (1)
Jun182013

Pertussis Outbreak Hits Londonderry Middle School

By Jacklynn Weeks | June 18, 2013 | Posted in Around Town, Health, Schools | Tagged , , , , | Comment (1)

Londonderry School District Superintendent Nathan Greenberg announced today, June 18, 2013, that a staff member at the middle school has contracted pertussis. This newest case brings the total to three at the school, which the Department of Health and Human Services considers an outbreak. According to School Board policy JHCB, any student attending the middle school who has not been immunized for pertussis shall not be allowed to attend school during the outbreak.

Below is the letter sent to parents from Greenberg. To read the full JHCB policy regarding immunizations, click Read More at the end of the story.

Dear Parent or Guardian:

This letter is to inform you that a staff members at Londonderry Middle School has been diagnosed with pertussis (whooping cough). The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services qualifies three cases of pertussis as an outbreak in a particular school therefore it is now considered an outbreak of pertussis at Londonderry Middle School. Per School Board policy JHCB;  a student who is exempt from immunization shall not attend school during an outbreak of a communicable disease for which immunization is required under RSA 141.

It is possible that other cases of pertussis may occur over the next few weeks since pertussis is highly contagious. Pertussis is spread by direct contact with discharges from the nose and throat (sharing eating utensils and drink containers) of an infected person or by breathing in droplets in the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

Pertussis symptoms usually begin 10-14 days after exposure. It begins like a cold, with runny nose, low-grade fever, and a cough that becomes worse over 1-2 weeks. After 1-2 weeks, the severe coughing spells begin. Symptoms usually include a long series of coughs, followed by a whooping sound. This sound may not be present in infants, adolescents or adults. The cough is often followed by gagging, vomiting,  and/or difficulty catching breath and is often worse at night. Cough preparations usually do not ease the cough. This stage of the disease lasts 1 to 6 weeks or longer.

Pertussis is contagious until 3 weeks after the severe coughing begins. Treatment early in the disease reduces the infectiousness of the ill person and may decrease the severity of symptoms. Treatment with antibiotics is also recommended for household members and close contacts.

Please consider the following recommendations from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Communicable Disease Control (BCDC):

  1. If your child has any of the above symptoms or a cough lasting more than 1 to 2 weeks, contact your child’s doctor to have your child evaluated for pertussis.
  2. Children or staff with confirmed or suspected pertussis should be excluded from school until they have completed 5 days of the antibiotic treatment for pertussis. If antibiotic treatment is not taken, exclusion is in effect until 21 days after the start of the severe cough.
  3. Infants under 1 year, especially those under 6 months, are most likely to develop severe illness and complications if they develop pertussis. When possible, young infants should be kept away from people with a cough. Babies with any coughing illness or choking episodes should be promptly evaluated by their doctor.
  4. Usual classroom contact of school aged children is not considered close contact unless additional activities, such as participation on the same sports team, have occurred.

If anyone in your household is diagnosed with pertussis or you suspect pertussis, please notify your school nurse or the NH Bureau of Communicable Disease Control. Likewise, if you have any questions, please call the Bureau at 1-800-852-3345 ext. 4496 or (603) 271-4496.

Information is also available at the school district website: www.londonderry.org. Please be assured that the Londonderry School District is taking every available precaution to ensure that all students and staff members are not at risk. Please feel free to call Kim Carpinone, Director of Pupil Services, at 432-6920 ext. 1113 with any questions.

Sincerely,

Nathan Greenberg

Click Read More for the full immunization policy.

Read More »

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By Jacklynn Weeks | Posted in Around Town, Health, Schools | Tagged , , , , | Comment (1)
Jun182013

Refusing Revenue and Ignoring Job Creation

By admin | June 18, 2013 | Posted in Around Town, Letters to the Editor | Comments (10)

In the next days, the NH house and senate will come to an agreement on the funding schematic that will determine the well-being of our state and its people for years to come.

There is a long road to agreement, but if the senate majority is successful, the potential for losses in NH employment and small business revenue will become a stark reality.

There is a window of opportunity to reach out to senators – ours and everyone else’s – to apply pressure to bring some balance to the state budget process. The senate must be made to understand that there will be a price to pay for neglecting health care, infrastructure and the need for jobs in NH.

Last Minute Demand: Most immediately, there is concern over the recent NH senate demand that the Governor find $50 million in personnel cuts. Governor Maggie Hassan’s office has said we will lose between 400 – 700 state jobs if no adjustments are made to the Senate budget proposal.

Asking an additional 700 NH families to absorb the impact of a wage-earner being put out of work, and the consequent effect on small businesses and communities is significant. It should prompt hard questions to be directed to the NH senators responsible for this reckless decision.

Senator Charles Morse, a Salem Republican, said that the cuts were necessary to balance the budget. This is a rationale that makes perfect sense, unless you understand how much money the NH senate was willing to leave on the table.

Instead of providing dependable revenue sources for our future, the NH senate has taken $16.1 million from the state’s renewable energy fund to balance the 2014 budget. Senators also dealt with a predicted $40.6 million surplus in 2013 and – rather than dedicate it to the state’s budget stabilization fund – used those monies to balance the 2014 budget.

While stop-gap measures may solve today’s problem, these moves to shift moneys from one account to another do nothing to stabilize the future funding of our state.

NH house budget offered secure and reliable revenue sources for our continuing fiscal needs.

Tobacco Tax: The NH House of Representatives supported an increase of 20-cents per pack on cigarettes, which would have added $20.1 million a year to our state’s revenue stream.

The senate was concerned that our pricing would not be competitive, despite the fact that even with the proposed increase, our state would continue to have the lowest per pack tax in our region.

New Hampshire has the dubious distinction of having the highest rate of teen smoking in New England, and it has been proven that the best way to reduce this unhealthy trend is to raise the cost per pack.

The NH senate decided that selling cigarettes is more important than providing a stable revenue source for the state’s needs for the long term, and helping to reduce teen smoking in the short term.

Gasoline Tax: The House of Representative passed a 12-cent gasoline tax which would have provided over $600 million over the next decade – a solid and proven policy option that the senate refused.

This modest increase could complete the rebuilding of Route I-93, increase state aid to municipal roads and bridges, and fund the state’s ten-year transportation plan. Londonderry itself would have benefitted by $1.66 million in additional grant funding over the next ten years. Again, a stable source of revenue for NH was lost.

This isn’t even a tax that NH residents would have to bear alone; this is a revenue option that would have had millions of tourists help to cover the cost of the roads and bridges they enjoy.

In past years, the legislatures divested in the taxpayer-funded $1.3 billion paved infrastructure and construction costs are climbing. A small repair job is much less costly than a full tear-down and replacement. The $20 million repair on Memorial Bridge was avoided for years until it became a $90 million bridge replacement.

These are the stark realities facing NH today. And, unless the senate can be convinced to change its position on funding roads and bridges, these realities continue to create problems for our drivers and our businesses.

Business Climate and Job Creation: The deterioration of New Hampshire’s roads and bridges has earned us notable mention in a major study on business-readiness. In its study ranking states on aspects of positive business climate, CNBC placed NH 46th among states for infrastructure. This is a key criterion for businesses looking to relocate, and we are failing this basic test of managerial competence.

Another business enhancement that the NH senate turned its back on is Innovation NH, a program that brings the research capacity of our university assets together with entrepreneurial innovators, in order to create new businesses and to help NH incubate key jobs of the future. This program is the essence of New England positivism, pragmatism and Yankee problem-solving. And, as of right now, the senate has killed the program.

Fast Company tallied the private entrepreneurial activity in the USA, and listed our state as fifteenth overall, which is a respectable place. Think how far we could go if we provided the intellectual and institutional infrastructure to encourage more such activity.

Words alone will not serve to create a healthy business climate in NH. We must take positive action.

Medicaid Expansion: The legislature has the opportunity to accept $2.5 billion federal tax dollars to extend health insurance to many uninsured NH residents, some of whom are working and paying taxes. We could extend health coverage to 58,000 residents, create 5,100 jobs, and help our hospitals overcome $400 million in the cost of charity care and debt.

The state’s contribution for receiving these billions would be about $18.5million a year and the Lewin Group identified ways to cut this to zero over the next two years.

We could have our health care costs underwritten by the federal tax dollars we send to Washington. If we do not use these federal funds, the monies will be sent to other states prepared to take advantage of this valuable opportunity. We would then become a donor state, underwriting the advancement of decent health care to residents in other states, while denying it to our own citizens.

Rather than move forward with Medicaid Expansion, the senate has decided to have a study commission. Let’s review the studies currently available. The Lewin Group has provided deep research into the impact of Medicaid Expansion in NH and presented its findings to decision-makers at all levels. Studies by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation indicate that 2,300 NH veterans and spouses would qualify under the income requirements. We have the information. We have the studies in hand. It is time to take action to care for our NH citizens.

We need a budget document that shows that jobs are important, people are important, and provesthat we are capable stewards of our state’s $1.3 billion paved infrastructure.

Please become part of the solution and urge your senator to provide for the basic obligations of state government that we have the right to expect. We can do better than this.

With your help, we will do better than this.

Lisa I. Whittemore
Londonderry State Representative
163rd NH General Court
Lisa.whittemore(at)leg.state.nh.us

(1) http://www.concordmonitor.com/news/localstate/6632392-95/nh-senate-panel-okays-107-billion-version-of-next-two-year-state-budget
(2): http://www.unionleader.com/article/20130410/NEWS06/130419976
(3): http://www.cnbc.com/id/47818860
(4): http://www.maggiehassan.com/issues/jobsplan
(5) http://www.fastcompany.com/3007772/united-states-innovation-ranking-states-and-district-innovation
(6) http://www.lewin.com/publications/Publication/201301150457
(7) http://www.rwjf.org/en/topics/search-topics/M/medicaid.html

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By admin | Posted in Around Town, Letters to the Editor | Comments (10)
Jun182013

Oremus

By Joe Paradis | June 18, 2013 | Posted in Columns | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

It was in the course of a typical Wednesday morning, as my mother waved us off to school, that I heard her words drift down from the second floor window. “Now I want you to go to the altar boy meeting after school, Joe.” This was news to me. I stopped dead in my tracks.

“Uhh…okay, Mom,” was all I could muster. My younger brother began to laugh and taunted me the rest of the way down the street. “Altar boy! Altar boy! You’re gonna be an altar boy!” He was truly the devil. I would have decked him, except that the mile walk to school was a lonely one if you had no one to talk to. But I was silent the whole time, thinking about the implications of this life-altering voyage. So I guess I could have clocked him…

All through the day’s classes, I brooded on this altar boy thing. From what I knew of the school’s altar boys, these guys were a pretty closed lot. They knew Latin – probably used it as a secret language to talk about the rest of us. They had their own cassocks, which they carried around all day in school, having risen early to serve at six o’clock Mass. They always had spare change for candy – tip money from serving at weddings. A real top shelf group. I just didn’t think I was gonna fit in.

But I went to the meeting in the school cafeteria, with about 20 other boys that afternoon. The ranks of altar servers were an exclusive “men’s club” in those days – no girls allowed. Even without girls, the size of the attendance surprised me. This was just about thirty percent of the 5th grade class at Immaculate Conception School. I looked the crowd over. Being a bit of a nerd, I was pleased to see Roger there, with his glasses firmly tucked into that little holster he always carried on his belts. And Neil, with his shirt untucked, just one tail in the front. Goofy Richard was there, his cowlick practically touching the ceiling. So was Gene, the tallest kid in 5th grade; also the dumbest. I was starting to feel more comfortable. It was like Geography class, without those pesky girls.

Father Mullen came bustling in suddenly, with a gruff hello. We all went silent. A short guy of fifty years, with pure white hair and a ruddy Irish complexion, Father Mullen wasn’t one to mess with. His face in your face for some violation of church or school rules was an experience akin to a drill sergeant at boot camp. You weren’t gonna win any confrontation. The Holy Ghost was, after all, watching you from over Father Mullen’s shoulder.

We launched right into the program. Father Mullen told us the rules. We’d serve two Masses every week. One weekend Mass and one daily Mass. As rookies, we would only be serving communion on Sundays. No ringing of the bells for us yet – the first and second acolyte jobs were for the veterans, sixth grade and up.

Father Mullen noted that we might, unfortunately, miss class once in awhile to serve our daily Mass. He apologized; it couldn’t be helped. We all exchanged looks at that good news – sanctioned hooky. The nuns must go nuts. We’d also be able serve an occasional wedding for which the blessed couple always gave the altar boys five or ten bucks each. My eyes widened – that was big money! We were, of course, expected to give some of that to the poor.

Father spoke briefly of the annual Altar Boy Outing at Paragon Park on Nantasket Beach each summer. Free rides all day and a free lunch – two hot dogs and a tonic (that’s soda to those not born in New England). I was really starting to warm up to this altar boy thing. As a ten year-old kid, I saw material benefits here that seemed to rival the saving of my soul.

Father Mullen reminded us of our duty to God and the sacrifices we would have to make to become Altar Servers of Christ. We didn’t see much of a downside with what we’d heard so far. “Count us in, Jesus!” blurted out Gene. We all froze. The Lord’s name in vain! It appeared that, without some serious intervention, Gene would be going to hell. His face beat red, Father Mullen immediately ran up to him for the reprimand. Unfortunately, his face only came to Gene’s chest, so he confined his reprimand to a long, bug-eyed stare up into the face of this 6 ft, 3 in. tall youngster. It still worked. He was a pro.

Once the throbbing vein subsided on Father Mullen’s temple, we dug right in to memorizing the Latin. Prayers in those days were a secret between God and the priest – and any altar boy who was fortunate enough to actually understand the Latin prayers we all recited from memory. The rest of the congregation were just observers, from what I could see. Except the nuns, who knew everything anyhow. We practiced our Latin prayers for hours, and I remember running around the house that night saying “Oremus” to everyone. My mother was very proud, even though she hadn’t a clue what it meant.

I passed muster and became a pretty decent altar boy over the next four years. Made a small fortune on weddings. My brother even received “the calling” from my mother two years later and joined our ranks. He became a funeral specialist – didn’t seem to mind missing school to help others in their time of grief. Plus, he hated school.

When Father Mullen moved on, Father King became our mentor. He introduced the Roman collar into our wardrobe, so we all felt like priests. We especially loved to serve at his Sunday Noon Mass in the fall – which he celebrated at warp speed so as not to miss the kick off of the Patriots game. Timing is everything.

Church-wise, things moved rapidly during my altar boy days. Latin truly became a dead language, and with prayers now read in English everyone suddenly knew what they were praying. The altar was turned around, so now the congregation could see the priest as he celebrated Mass – many priests began shaving more closely around that time. The altar railing was also taken down, so escaping toddlers could now venture freely across previously forbidden ground.

And I witnessed all this because my mother yelled at me from the second story window on a brisk spring morning long ago. Ah, the power of moms…

Visit Londonderry Hometown Online News every Tuesday Morning for another one of Joe’s great columns! Select “Share this story” and tell a friend Joe is back!

Joe’s Two Cents – It’s Great To Be Alive is Joe Paradis’ first published book and gathers 40 of his most popular stories, enhancing them with humorous photography. The book is a compilation of forty of Joe’s best short stories.

Injecting humor into topics from everyday life, Joe answers those earth-shattering questions we all have about the beach, the bathroom, the junk drawer. From guys’ tools to girl talk. High school seniors to the senior years.

This classic collection has been updated to include pictures and a short introduction for each story. Until now, only God knew what possessed Joe to write about these things. Now you can too!

Joe Paradis is one of Londonderry’s most popular columnists and authors. Visit his web site at www.joes2cents.com today and order his latest autographed book, “It’s Great to Be Alive!”

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By Joe Paradis | Posted in Columns | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)