Milton officials on the lookout for flu

from Wicked Local

School officials will be monitoring students and staff closely for symptoms after a high school student was confirmed to have swine flu.

The state Department of Public Health notified town health officials Monday of the diagnosis, one of 26 new swine flu cases reported statewide.(read the full story here.)

MHS Afterschool Ensemble Concert

You have one last chance to hear Milton high School musicians perform.

The afterschool ensembles will be performing Tues night and it is sure to be a great event. The afterschool ensembles include a range of musical groups: Afterschool Singers, the String Quartet, etc.

These performances are always fun, always good and the musicians are always grateful for the support of the community.

Go hear them! You’ll love it!

WHERE: Milton High School Auditorium / Gile Rd / Milton, MA

WHEN:  05/19/09 @ 7:00 pm

MHS Bulletin for 05.18.09

  • Math MCAS Testing will take place for all Sophomores on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Students will report directly to their assigned room at 7:50 where attendance will be taken.

ROOM 301    Abrams, Skyler through Chen, Veronica
ROOM 306    Chinmen, Miranda through Dorilus, Sam
ROOM 308    Drew, Emma through Hale, Brendan
ROOM 309    Hammel- Callahan, Tom through Joyce Brianna
ROOM 310    Kassel, Victor  through Manell, Grayson
ROOM 311    Manker, Lorenz through Noonan, Nicholas
ROOM 312    O’Brien, Julia through Rosenberg, Jay
ROOM 313    Ruffo, Alexandria through Vernon, Keisha
ROOM 315    Villada, Michelle through Zimmer, Christopher
ROOM 315    (12 juniors) Brown, Madeline –  St. Surin, Vanessa
Library: 25 Students who will test in the Library have been notified

Abby Park restaurant opening postponed

Abby Park is scheduled to open August 3rd. See our update to this post HERE.

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There might be a restaurant opening more anticipated than Abby Park; but not for the folks of Milton.

At a Board of Selectmen’s meeting several weeks ago, the opening was scheduled for June 18th. That date is going to slip slightly. If you have been in East Milton Square you might have noticed that the opening posted in the windows is July (no firm date).

But signs of progress are clear. The logo is on the windows and Vance Walsh, the owner,  while confessing to a little stress, is pumped and excited to open the doors.

You can visit the restaurant’s web site here.

Forum: “Cops Count Policing Matters”

The Milton Police Department is holding a forum: “Cops Count, Policing Matters: A Factual Perspective on Policing in Milton”

Originally intended only for Town Meeting members, the department has now invited the public to attend. The purpose of the forum is to educate people on the operational demands of the department.

Note there are a number of sessions being held commencing on May 20th @ 7:0pm at the Milton Police Operations Center. Space is limited. If you would like to attend a session please confirm my emailing the department at policetour@mpdmilton.org.

The sessions are held by precinct as follows:

Wednesday May 20th, Precincts: One and Two
Tuesday May 26th, Precincts: Three and Four
Wednesday May 27th Precincts: Five and Six
Thursday May 28th Precincts: Seven and Eight
Monday June 1st Precincts: Nine, Ten and Eleven

You can find the Police Deparment announcement here.

2009 Music Scholarships Announced

The Milton High School Music Department capped off another great year last night with their annual dinner celebration and award presentation.

Every year a select group of seniors receive scholarships and awards for musical achievement.Awards are given for each of the primary ensembles String Ensemble, Concert Band, Jazz, and Chorus.

The Friends and Advocates for Music Education (FAME) presented the following scholarships:

FAME Scholarship for Strings – Elizabeth Sorgi
FAME Scholarship for Band – Garrett Pavlicek
FAME Scholarship for Jazz – Mark Bennett
FAME Scholarship for Chorus –  Jon Adler

The Music Department awarded the following:

National Orchestra Award:  Tim Marchetta-Wood
John Philip Sousa Award for Band:  Matt Kelly
Louis Armstrong Award for Jazz: Gabe Stillman
National Choral Award:  Kiri Cormack

The evening is sponsored by FAME, a booster group that does a tremendous job with organizing events, fund raising and providing support for music throughout all the schools. And they award these fantastic scholarships! You can learn more about FAME at their web site. Visit them here.

Congratulations to the scholarship and award recipients!

Unable to come to terms with Linehan, Selectmen appoint Grant new fire chief

The Board of Selectmen and Brian Linehan, their first selection to be the Milton Fire Chief when Malcolm Larson retires in June, could not come to agreement on financial terms. At last night’s Selectmen’s meeting the unanimously voted John Grant a 22 year veteran of the department to be the next chief.

While they expressed disappointment, the Selectmen feel they have a strong choice in Grant. The three finalists selected by the committee appointed to vet the candidates were all veterans of the department and came highly recommended by the committee.

Music, Music and More Music

May is always a great month for music in Milton.

This past Wednesday the Milton High School music ensembles gave their annual spring concert. It was by all accounts a wonderful night of music that included West African folk songs, Sousa marches and a Bach Sinfonia.

The school ensembles that performed were the MHS Mixed Chorus conducted by Dr. Noreen Diamond Burdett, the MHS Concert Band conducted by Gary Good and Rebecca Damiani, the MHS Girls Chorus also conducted by Burdett and the MHS String Ensemble conducted by Patricia Ostrem. Last but hardly least was the MHS Symphonic Orchestra. The Symphonic Orchestra is a recent development (this may be its third year). It is a combination of players from the string ensemble and concert band. The music department rotates the conducters. This year it was Ms. Ostrem wielding the baton in a performance of “The Moldau” by Bedrich Smetana as arranged by Richard Meyer.

The killer piece of the night, however, had to be the concert band’s rendition of “Godzilla Eats Las Vegas!” composed be Eric Whitacre. Honest, that is the title of the piece and it was great!

There is still an opportunity to hear our school musicians. There are two upcoming Pierce Middle School concerts; one on May 21 and another on May 28 both at 7:00.

Lastly, there will also be performances this week end by the 2009 Milton Young Musicians Festival gold medalists.

The Milton Young Musicians Festival is an annual event organized by local resident Emma Jean Moulton. It provides local student musicians the opportunity to participate in an adjudicated audition and take a master class in their particular instrument from a local professional musician. Students who receive a gold medal for their audition are invited to give a public performance. There will be two performances. They are this Sunday, May 19th. Half the musicians (14 altogether) will perform 2:00, and the remaining 13 musicians will perform at 4:00. The concerts are at the First Parish Church on Canton Ave. Congratulations to the winners and thank you Ms. Moulton!

Click on a picture below to enlarge. Photos courtesy of Steve Nelson.

MHS Bulletin for 05.15.09

  • Attention former soccer, rugby, or other ‘futbol’ athletes: Think about joining the football team as a kicker or punter. See Coach Bowes in room 224.
  • Asian Culture Club members attending Anime Boston MUST attend a meeting after school today in Mr. Young’s room to pick up permission slips.
  • All Night Party: Sunday, May 31 (graduation day) from 10:30 pm to 5:00 am. Tickets are on sale for $50 each at all the lunches. Every senior is invited – great food, music, fun activities, yearbook signing, comic/hypnotist show.
  • Current Sophomores and Juniors interested in applying to be a Student Leader should get an application in room 114, and submit it before May 22nd.
  • Film Club will have its last meeting after school today. All members must attend.
  • Community Service: 1. Pierce Middle School is looking for volunteers on Monday, May 18th to help set up an English Resource Library located behind the gym (directional signs will be posted). You may volunteer at any time between 2:30 and 8:30 pm. Please contact Mrs. Deluca at k.deluca@comcast.net. 2. Milton Hospital needs 20 volunteers on May 30th from 8 am to 4 pm. Please contact Ms. Samora at robinsamora@aol.com. Please sign up early as they need to plan ahead. 3. Pierce PTO needs students to volunteer on May 21st from 7 to 9 pm. Please contact Mrs. Russo at rkrwgg@mac.com.
  • Advanced Placement Exams: Students taking exams are reminded that they must bring a #2 pencil and a ballpoint pen, and that cell phones are NOT allowed in the testing room. Students to the testing location by 7:45. Students who arrive late to the Library will NOT be allowed to sit for the exam. NO EXCEPTIONS. Students taking AP Exams are expected to attend school the full day, and will only be excused from classes missed which take place during their exam.

Milton PTOs to host FY10 Budget Forum

There will be a joint meeting of all Milton PTOs to convene a Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Forum at Pierce Middle School Auditorium on Thursday, May 21st starting at 7 PM. The purpose of this Budget Forum will be to educate the community about the town’s FY10 fiscal outlook, and the override ballot question scheduled for June 8, 2009. Many officials from the School Committee, Board of Selectmen, and Warrent Committee will be there.

WHERE: Pierce Middle School Auditorium
WHEN: 5/21/09 @ 7:00pm

State leaders host community forums around the Commonwealth in May

from Massachusetts State House

A decline in state revenue is forcing us all to confront difficult decisions around what kind of government we want and how best to pay for it; at the same time, stories of waste and abuse threaten the public’s confidence that tax dollars are spent smartly.

Between now and the end of May, the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and senior officials from the administration will host forums with local residents and local officials in thirty-six cities and towns on the choices facing the Commonwealth in the current economic climate. These conversations will provide residents a chance to ask questions, offer suggestions and engage with their government and their neighbors on these issues.

Forum dates, times and locations can be found here.
Here is a video of the Braintree Community forum held on 5/11.