Norfolk & Wrentham April 2024

April 2024 Find us on Facebook | Norfolk & Wrentham Town News Page 3
Norfolk Resident Turns 100 This Month
Life-long Norfolk resident Evelyn “Deby” Preston will turn 100 on April 12!
Deby grew up in the large white house across from the Norfolk Grange Hall, along with her six
brothers and sisters, and now lives right next door at Norfolk’s Hillcrest Village. She raised a son and
two daughters in Norfolk, and for 21 years while her kids were growing up, she worked at King Philip
High School and King Philip Middle School as a cook and a baker in the school cafeterias.
One of Deby’s secrets to living life to the fullest has been to keep active. She has loved being a grandmother,
a great-grandmother, and a great-great grandmother to many. She enjoyed gardening for many
years and was always busy with other hobbies as well. Deby especially enjoyed traveling with her husband,
Harold, on many adventures near and far. She has been crocheting and knitting since she was a young
woman, and still knits hats and blankets for several charitable organizations – which is keeping her very
busy still.
One of her favorite activities each week is to go to the Norfolk Senior Center on Mondays and play
Bingo. The best Bingo days are the days she wins of course! If you ask Deby if she has any regrets,
she will tell you her only regret is “not seeing Alaska.” She is one special lady. If you see Deby, please
remember to wish her a very Happy Birthday.
Guest Column
Grass Roots Democracy in Action
By G. Gregory Tooker
Some may accuse your writer
of overly focusing on local politics
in recent months but if ever
a subject deserved such attention,
it is now.
Wrentham and other Massachusetts
towns will hold their
local elections soon and the candidates
are busily immersed in
their campaigns. Previously, this
column decried the pitiful voter
turnout in local elections. At first,
this trend was attributed to electorate
apathy but after digging
into the subject your writer concluded
it was due to lack of voter
knowledge and information.
Wrentham is fortunate to
have been gifted with a local
community activist in the person
of Julie Garland. During the last
few years, Julie and her collaborators
have been busily crafting
an internet-based candidate information
vehicle as well as promoting
events designed to get
critical information to potential
voters. In a previous column,
your writer described how the
Wrentham Voters’ Guide works,
providing at keyboard touch
statements by the candidates as
well as their qualifications and
photographs. Now every potential
voter may access this important
information, no matter
what their mobility limitations
might be.
Supplementing the Guide,
events in which candidates actively
participate are being held.
For the first time, on March
12, King Philip Regional High
School hosted Wrentham Engagement,
a candidates’ forum
during which every candidate
seeking local office had the opportunity
to be heard and seen
on Cable 8 TV or in person.
Your writer attended this event
and was very impressed. When
the event concluded, all candidates
gathered on the KPRHS
stage for a group photograph,
arms locked in a crescent of bipartisan
harmony, each respecting
the sometimes-divergent
views of their opponents.
At a time when certain office
seekers are cavalierly courting
camaraderie with those in favor
of autocracy over democracy,
what is happening in Wrentham
is sorely needed in every
community in America. We
are facing serious challenges in
Wrentham requiring significant
capital outlay, focusing on housing,
education and infrastructure
improvement. Workable
solutions require mature deliberation,
steeped in pragmatism,
not partisan bickering.
In Wrentham, we have taken
a giant step forward toward
achieving that goal.
Opinions expressed in the Guest
Column do not necessarily reflect those
of the publisher.
Deby Preston, playing Bingo at the Norfolk Senior Center, will
celebrate her 100th birthday on April 12. Contributed photo.
Call Jen Schofield at 508-570-6544
to run in our Newspaper!