No. 9 | 3 Sections - Lane Memorial Library

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Page 18A | Atlantic News | March 2, 2007 | Vol 33, No 9 AtlanticNews.Com .
MORE LETTERS From 17A
Senior Center
an ideal dream
To the Editor:
At the Deliberative Session,
Eileen Latimer said that
the Seniors were responsible
for the budget being defeated
the last two years (this is
subject to debate). Because
the Seniors want their own
place, we sound like a selfish
lot who only think of
themselves.
Seniors volunteer many
hours of their time to the
community of Hampton.
The following is a partial
list of what our volunteers’
work consists of:
Volunteer at the Lane
Memorial Library; cook
and serve at the beach soup
kitchen; provide meals when
there is an illness in a family;
contribute a monetary
donation each month to the
Hampton Community Coalition;
provide transportation
to doctor’s appointments,
etc. for those who cannot
drive; drive for Meals on
Wheels; visit and volunteer
at the nursing homes (i.e.,
Hampton and Exeter); knit
hats, mittens, etc. for the less
fortunate; visit the homebound.
We are happy that we
are able to contribute to our
community of Hampton.
Having a modest Senior
Center (like Exeter) at the
old town hall is the ideal
dream, and we would like
the Hampton voters to reconsider
Article #32 and vote the
$100,000 to renovate the old
town hall so that we may
have a larger room for our
activities and socializing.
We thank the Hampton
library for the use of a room
and appreciate the kindness
of their personnel.
Remember Article #32,
Tuesday, March 13; we would
appreciate a “Yes” vote.
The Hampton
Seniors Club
Jeannine St. Germain
President
Esther Hopkins
Treasurer
Hampton
Fresh approach
To the Editor:
Larry Stuker will be an
asset on Hampton’s Budget
Committee and the Planning
Board.
I met Larry about a year
ago. His energy and interest
in being more proactive
in the community impressed
me. Now he is running for
the Budget Committee with
a desire to see Hampton continue
to receive the services
that keep our community
safe, clean, and citizen-centered.
Quality schools, keeping
our infrastructure up to date,
and quality safety services
that we all rely on, are high
on Larry’s list of priorities.
He is also concerned that we
must not tax our Seniors out
of their homes, and at the
same time help our growing
community get the services
it needs.
Larry will work to get the
most out of every dollar. He
believes that maintaining the
status quo and the three past
default budgets will hurt the
town in the future and not
provide for all Hampton citizens
needs.
On the Planning Board
Larry will ask the questions,
“Is this good for Hampton?
How can we improve things
for our citizens? What do we
want Hampton to look like
in the future?” Larry understands
the balance needed
between business and citizen
concerns, with an eye
for saving energy and our
environment. At the same
time, we must invest in the
areas that bring in revenue
and work to attract new
business.
Larry will bring a fresh
approach, a new eye, and
his expertise in finances and
numbers to Hampton. Please
join with me and vote for
Larry Stuker for the Budget
Committee and the Planning
Board.
Susan Kepner
Hampton
SB2 summary
from Sununu
To the Editor:
An open letter to my fellow
citizens.
I have been requested
by the participants at the
Hampton Falls Deliberative
Session to summarize and
distribute remarks I made
when some voters at the
Town Meeting asked me to
comment on SB2.
Hampton Falls, and any
other town which adopted
SB2, should rescind that
adoption. SB2 is a process
which may have had good
intentions, but in practice
has produced significant
negative unintended consequences.
SB2 is a failure even in
terms of its basic intention
to allow town budgets to
be subjected to the will of a
large number of voters by
being on the ballot at town
elections in March. This was
supposed to allow the budget
to be voted up or down
by more voters than usually
attend the town meeting.
In practice SB2 fails to
do this. The easiest way to
explain this failure is to look
at the Town Warrant for
Hampton Falls for February
2007 and the resultant ballot
for March 2007.
In March, Hampton Falls
voters will be asked to vote
on the Town Budget. The proposed
budget is $2,530,300. If
a majority of the voters vote
“yes,” that will be the size of
the basic operating budget.
If this budget fails to get a
majority, the operating budget
level will be the Default
Budget value of $2,493,790.
Thus, my fellow citizens
in Hampton Falls are actually
only voting on the difference
between those two
budgets, or about $36,510.
In fact, instead of giving
more voters a say on the
budget, it takes the voice
away from the town meeting
and gives no one a voice.
But there is even a more
serious negative consequence.
By taking any real
power away from the Town
Meeting, our citizens will
have less incentive to attend
and eventually, there will
be less interest and involvement
by our citizens in selfgovernance.
New Hampshire is a very
special place with a very
special quality of life. The
key ingredient that provides
that great quality of life is
the fact that we have, by far,
the greatest involvement of
our citizens in governance
of any state in the country.
We participate because our
participation can make a difference.
New Hampshire is
still a state which is governed
“by the people, for the
people”.
Unfortunately, SB2 has
put us on a slippery slope
to move us toward the indifference
of our sister states.
The voters of Hampton Falls
and in any other town which
adopted SB2 should rescind
that adoption as soon as possible.
John H. Sununu
Hampton Falls
Empty Bowls
fill food pantries
To the Editor:
We would like to take
this time to thank you for
your donations to the Empty
Bowls event. With your kindness
and generosity, we were
able to raise over $3500 in
the fight against hunger.
Your donation of a front
page article really made a
difference to our event and
we want to let you know of
our boundless appreciation.
Your respected business
helped raise money for those
who are in a dire need of
food in the Seacoast area,
and with the proceeds we
were able to donate to four
YET MORE LETTERS!
Continued on 31A•
Local Notes
Achieve ‘Somatic Intelligence’
through health series
RYE | Noreen Owens, M.Ed., a Certified Hanna Somatic
Educator, is offering a six-week series in Somatic Education,
beginning on Thursday, March 15 from 7-8:30 p.m. at Studio
7, located at 216 Lafayette Road in Rye, at the corner of
Breakfast Hill and Washington Road.
Each class will focus on a different muscle group and
movement pattern. Participants are asked to wear loosefitting
clothing to allow for easy movement.
As the series progresses, participants will discover a
gradual reduction of back, neck and joint pain, and a
5- to 10-minute daily Somatic grooming routine will be
encouraged to release the daily accumulation of stress.
The cost for the series is $150, with a sliding scale available
for those in need. To pre-register, call Noreen Owens at (603)
772-3307, or visit www.owen somatics.com for additional
information.
Library presents ‘Tune & Tales’
STRATHAM | Tunes & Tales, a Boston-area trio, will
present a lively evening of Celtic harp, fiddle and literature
at the Wiggin Memorial Library on Tuesday, March 6 at
6:30 pm.
The trio features writer Aine Greaney, and musicians Eilis
Crean and Regina Delaney. All ages are welcome to attend
this program.
The Wiggin Memorial Library is located at 10 Bunker
Hill Avenue in Stratham. For more information, call (603)
772-4346.
Garden club ready to bloom
RYE | Plans are currently underway for the Rye Driftwood
Garden Club’s participation in the seventh annual Rye Art
in Bloom exhibit, to be held at Webster at Rye on April 13-
14.
This unique community event is the result of the
collaboration between Webster at Rye, the Rye Recreation
Department, the Rye Art Study Group and the Rye
Driftwood Garden Club.
Also in the planning stage is the garden club’s annual
Plant and Bake Sale, scheduled for May 19-20. Connie
Scully, Paula Shay and Priscilla Brown will share the
chairmanship of this event.
For more information about the Rye Driftwood Garden
Club or any of these upcoming events, call Priscilla Jenness
at (603) 964-8728.
Toddler programs at Seabrook Library
SEABROOK | Megan Sprague, the Children’s Librarian at
Seabrook Library, has announced that the library will offer
a weekly pre-toddler/ toddler (12-36 months) story time
called “What’s Good About Today” beginning Monday,
March 5.
The story time will start at 10 a.m. and will run
approximately 25 minutes. Parents are more than welcome
to stay after to ask questions and socialize with each other.
“We hope you can join us for songs and stories,” comments
Sprague.
Starting Tuesday, March 6 there will be weekly After
school Library Club that will run from 4-5 p.m. on Tuesday
afternoons. Participants are invited to come for stories, a
snack, and a craft while their parents remain in the library.
Though registration for these programs is not required,
it is helpful so the staff can plan accordingly. For more
information or to register, contact the Seabrook Library at
(603) 474-1835.
Sign up for Story Times at Lane Library
HAMPTON | Sign-ups for Spring Story Times at Lane
Memorial Library will begin on Monday, March 5. Story
Times begin the week of March 20 and run for five weeks.
Story times for toddlers will be Tuesday or Wednesday
mornings at 9:30 a.m.; Wednesday mornings at 10:30 a.m.
for 3-year-olds; and Thursday mornings at 10:15 a.m. for
4-year-olds and up.
Space is limited; parents are asked to be sure to register
in advance if they are interested in attending. To sign up,
or for more information, visit the Children’s Room or call
(603) 926-4729.