Scholarships available for college students
Financial assistance is available to second- and third-year college students from trust funds left to the town by Sarah Watson. Applications and instructions are available at the Select Board’s office or via the town website on the town administrator’s page. Applications must be submitted by July 15.
Get your
Fourth of July T-shirt
The Harvard Fourth of July Committee will be selling T-shirts at the Transfer Station Saturday, May 18, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Adult shirts are $20, kids shirts $15. Supplies are limited, shop early!
Volunteer opportunities
Each June the Select Board makes various appointments to town boards and committees. The significance of volunteers to our community is immeasurable! Please view this list of boards and committees with volunteer opportunities. If there is an area you have expertise in or are interested in becoming involved with, please contact Executive Assistant Julie Doucet at jdoucet@harvard.ma.us for more information or to complete a volunteer form.
- Agricultural Advisory Committee
- Bare Hill Pond Watershed Management Committee
- Broadband Committee
- Cemetery Commission
- Community Cable Access Committee
- Community Preservation Committee
- Conservation Commission
- Council on Aging
- Cultural Council
- Elderly and Disabled Taxation Aid Committee
- Elm Commission
- Energy Advisory Committee
- Fourth of July Committee
- Finance Committee
- Historical Commission
- Municipal Affordable Housing Trust
- Parks and Recreation Commission
- Permanent Building Committee
- Personnel Board
- Planning Board
- Registrar of Voters
- Sewer and Water Commissions
- Zoning Board of Appeals
Bromfield Reality Fair returns and seeks community volunteers
On Thursday, May 30, the Bromfield School together with the Ayer-Shirley-Devens-Harvard Rotary Club will host the second annual Reality Fair for 10th- and 12th-grade students. The idea behind a Reality Fair is to expose teenagers to the financial challenges they will face when they start living as independent adults. Students will choose a possible career and will be given an estimated monthly salary; then they will navigate through the process of how they might live on that salary, making decisions about food, clothing, housing, transportation, student loans, and leisure activities. The goal is to learn how to live within one’s means. Elements of chance are added to the experience—some positive (e.g. a family inheritance) and some negative (e.g. unexpected car repairs or health issues).
For the Reality Fair to run smoothly, volunteers from the community are asked to donate a morning of time. If you’ve dealt at all with everyday issues of housing, food, clothing, transportation, insurance, utilities, etc., you’re qualified! To volunteer, contact Ben Myers at ben.myers43@gmail.com or 978-844-8312, or Karen Strickland at karens@ayermoving.com or 978-852-0173.
Monty Tech greenhouse open for the season
Monty Tech’s on-site greenhouse is open through Monday, June 3. Hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day school is in session. The inventory includes a wide variety of hanging plants, geraniums, marigolds, annuals, coleus, angel wing begonias, succulents, herbs, and vegetables. Garden benches, bird baths, and a large selection of garden statues are also available. Specific varieties of plants can be found on the greenhouse website at www.montytech.net. Monty Tech is located at 1050 Westminster St., Rte. 2A, at the Fitchburg-Westminster line.
Last hurrah for Central Mass Skate Festival
The 10th annual Central Mass Skate Festival will be held Friday, Aug. 2, through Sunday, Aug. 4. Competitors from across the country will participate in mini-ramp, slide jam, and downhill events. See skatecentralma.com for a short video of last year’s festival, and go to skatecentralma.com/schedule for this year’s full schedule. Spectators are welcome all three days. There will be shuttle buses to transport riders and spectators between town center and the race site all day on Sunday. Organizer Mike Girard has announced that this will be the festival’s last year, so don’t miss it!
Registration open for Have a Jessie Day 5K
Register at haveajessieday.com for the 10th annual Have a Jessie Day 5K, which will take place Saturday, June 8, at the Bromfield School. The event was founded by Bromfield’s Class of 2012 in memory of their classmate Jessica Peterson. Proceeds benefit the Jessica Peterson Scholarship Fund.
Discount tick testing
Thanks to a grant from the Friends of Nashoba Nursing and Hospice, the Nashoba Associated Boards of Health (NABH) is partnering with the UMass Lab for Medical Zoology (LMZ) to provide a reduced fee for the testing of ticks. The partnership will provide a $25 reduction in the testing fee, lowering the cost for one of the test packages found at www.tickreport.com. The partnership is able to provide discounted testing for the first 150 ticks to be submitted by citizens of the 16 NABH towns this season.
To take advantage of this program, go to www.tickreport.com and follow the directions. The discount will be applied at the time of payment. Any questions, contact the Board of Health (978-456-4100 or boh@harvard.ma.us) or NABH at 978-772-3335.
