fresh air - Quaboag Current

PAGE 16 A Turley Publication • www.turley.com I Thursday, February 9, 2012
PARANORMAL I FROM PAGE 1
more than a dozen books on the topic and frequently
tours giving presentations to audiences both large and
small, to shed some light on paranormal experience.
A polished stage presence, Belanger certainly held
this audience captive with his interactive multi-media
presentation. From his request to “dim the lights and set
the mood,” residents of New Braintree and surrounding
towns were, in many cases quite literally, on the edge of
their seats with curiosity and excitement over the topic
of the evening.
Andrea Cutrumbes of Barre said that she was very
excited for the presentation. “I’m really big into this,”
she said “I feel that there is just a lot of odd stuff happening,
that there are all these strange atmospheric things
going on, and the world just has this huge energy.” She
is not alone in her quest to explain the unusual. A group
of teens from Ware attended the presentation, curious
about folklore of a specifi c area in their hometown, and
hoping to take advantage of the question and answer
period following the presentation to gain some insight
from Belanger.
Just as all people do not have the same beliefs on the
existence of paranormal, not all experts agree on what
causes paranormal experience, and Belanger shared his
educated musings with both research fi ndings and quick
wit. “People want to know if I believe that having a paranormal
experience comes from a so-called sixth sense,
and I don’t. I think that we have just our fi ve senses, and
those senses each have natural extensions. You can control
your senses some, and create hypersensitivity of a
sense,” he explained. Engaging the audience further, he
invited the participants of the evening to close their eyes
and focus on the sounds around them. After a brief time
lapse where nothing except the whirling of the hall’s fan
system could be heard, Belanger shouted “Boo!!’ demonstrating
to the crowd how quickly people can fi ne
tune a single sense. This experiment was met with both
screams and laughter alike, but drove his point home.
Belanger also discussed the possibility that paranormal
experience may be able to be explained some by science,
citing the research of Duncan McDougall (1902) and
his experiment on the weight of the soul and the logistics
of human vision versus camera vision.
Despite his life-long passion of all things paranormal
and odd, Belanger didn’t have his fi rst paranormal experience
himself until 2003. Since then, there have been
four more personal experiences that Belanger has had,
and hundreds of others that he has investigated. During
the Q&A following the presentation, one audience
member asked how many of the reports of ghost sightings
and paranormal experience he feels are valid, and
Belanger was quick to state that he is not in any position
to discount another’s perception of their own reality.
That said, the rate of paranormal experiences that
Belanger feels to have sustenance to them is as low as
fi ve to 10 percent. He stresses, however, that one should
always, “feel, not think,” when considering what may be
ABUSE I FROM PAGE 1
important to me to help victims of domestic violence,”
she said. “I’m a survivor myself. I know how hard it can
be. For me, personally, it’s been such a journey. I want
to show others that it’s possible to heal and move on.”
According to Sweeney, one of the main roles of
the WDVTF is to provide outreach to the community.
“We’re going to try to educate people about what
domestic violence is and how to prevent it,” she said.
“We’re going to be in the schools. We’re going to get the
word out.”
Sweeney will be continuing in her role as a community
liaison with the Warren Police Department and
the Ware Police Department, contacting residents who
might have been involved in domestic violence situations.
“The police print out reports of their calls that
might involve incidents of domestic violence,” explained
Sweeney. “I call the women involved to make sure they
are aware of the domestic violence services that are
available and see if they need any help.” She said she
tries to focus on the idea of healthy relationships versus
unhealthy relationships, as opposed to using the terms
“domestic violence” or “victim” when speaking with
people. “Nobody wants to be labeled as a victim of domestic
violence,” she said.
According to Sweeney, the program has been successful
because some of those she has contacted have reached
out for help. “I’d consider it a success if we were able to
provide the resources that are going to make the difference
for even just one person,” she said. “We’ve defi nitely
seen a response.” Sweeney has a wish for those that don’t
accept the help offered. “I just hope they remember that
there is help for them when they are ready,” she said.
In addition to the contacts Sweeney makes from the
police logs, she said she often receives referrals from
other community organizations, including therapists,
hospitals, even from places like the public library.
Sweeney is the facilitator for the Healing Alliance
Support Group, which meets every Thursday from 10
a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Free childcare is provided and the
meeting is open to residents of any town. “It’s a structured
setting and you come when you can,” said Sweeney.
“I teach about healthy relationships, unhealthy relation-
TURLEY PUBLICATIONS PHOTOS BY JENNIFER ROBERT
A group of local folks who have self-proclaimed themselves the “Jeff Belanger Fan Club” were present. Belanger was excited to see such a strong showing
of support for his work, and took some time after the presentation to meet and speak with them.
Don and Paul Hebert, of Ware, share Jeff Belanger’s passion for investigation
of paranormal experience.
a paranormal experience.
One visible presence in the audience was a group
sporting hats and sweatshirts representing their self-directed
Jeff Belanger fan club. Also among the attendees
at Belanger’s presentation were several members
of the local paranormal investigation group, the Ware
Ghosthunters. Paul and Don Herbert investigate paranormal
experiences all over Massachusetts. Massachu-
ships, and how to tell the difference. We talk about the
different types of abuse, such as physical abuse versus
mental abuse, and about how to heal.” Sweeney said an
integral part of the support group is the use of a “healing
notebook.” Each participant spends time writing about
her experience, her own personal journey. “The writing
process can really help people focus their thoughts
more clearly,” said Sweeney. “There is an opportunity
for women to share what they’ve written, if they choose,
but no one has to share anything if they don’t want to.”
“It feels great to have this opportunity to
help people. I’m looking forward to working
in Warren. I feel like this is what I was meant
to do.”
– JACKIE SWEENEY
Sweeney said participants are welcome to take whatever
approach they are comfortable with regarding the
support group. She recalled how one woman started
coming to the meetings, but did not participate at fi rst.
“She just sat in the back of the room and listened for
a few weeks,” said Sweeney. “Then she started sitting
at the table. Now she speaks with the group. It’s been
really great to see her moving through the process. The
important thing is to show up. We’ll take it from there.”
For more information on the support group, contact
the Carson Center at Valley Human Services at 413-
967-6241.
Sweeney is also the facilitator for the WDVTF meetings
on the fi rst Tuesday of every month from 6:30 p.m.
to 7:30 p.m. at the Warren Senior Center. “Volunteers
are always welcome,” said Sweeney. “You don’t have to
commit to come to every meeting, either. Any help we
get is appreciated.”
The funding for these programs is provided by Community
Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and
a STOP Grant.
For more information about the WDVTF or the
Healing Alliance Support Group, contact Sweeney at
413-875-5443 or at jsweeney@carsoncenter.org.
Barre resident Andrea Cutrumbes brought along her own copy of “Weird
Massahusetts,” penned by Belanger, to have autographed.
setts is known for several paranormal hot spots such as
Spidergates Cemetery in Leicester, the Quabbin land,
and several locations in the Berkshires that are rich with
Wampanoag history. Belanger’s presentation concluded
with audience question and answer, and time for book
signing and casual discussion. This evening was sponsored
by Friends of the New Braintree Library, and was
free of charge to attend.
Concert set for Feb. 12
at Brookfi eld Unitarian
BROOKFIELD - For the third year in a row,
Brookfi eld Unitarian Universalist Church will
have a concert Feb.12 at 3 p.m. for which there is
no admission charged. Local musicians come together
to offer something that absolutely everyone
can afford to attend. One of the motivating factors
in the origin of this concert was a chance for local
musicians many of whom have “gigs” which generally
preclude their doing music together, to come
together to play with and for one another. Musicians
familiar to Brookfi eldites include Lucy Colwell-Snyder
(Tantasqua High School) Eva Brown
(retired from Brookfi eld Elem, ). All of these busy
musicians donate their time. Each year we have had
a theme, and this year the theme is more restrictive
than in the past. This year we are celebrating family
relationships in a very specifi c way; we will have
pairs of composers who share a familial relationship
with one another. We have, for example, music by
husbands and wives (Clara and Robert Schumann,
Alma and Gustav Mahler), brother and sister (Felix
and Fanny Mendelssohn), fathers and sons, (J.
S. and Carl Philpp Emanuel Bach, Franz Joseph
and Richard Strauss), cousins (the Jean Baptiste
Loeillet’s) and maybe more. As it happens, we also
have some of these same family relationships represented
amongst the performers.
Although there will be no admission, donations
will be accepted to Partners in Health. A free copy
of Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
will go to the fi rst person who has yet to read about
the work of Paul Farmer in Haiti.
Please come and enjoy this concert, and bring
your friends and family. The Brookfi eld Unitarian
Universalist Church is the gray stone church on
Route 148 facing the Brookfi eld Common. For further
information call Lila Farrar.(508 867 8806