Pelham - Windham News | September 23, 2011 - 7 St. Patrick’s- continued from front page


he retired in 2010. After retiring from Dracut High School, Golec served as a substitute teacher at St. Louis school in Lowell. He attributes his Catholic background, administration capabilities, and similar personal philosophies to his predecessor as reasons why he was chosen to become the new principal. Since being hired on August 1, Golec, like any effective administrator and leader, has realized the importance of the people surrounding him; “I am really fortunate to be in this position of having a veteran staff.” May his arrival be the beginning of the next 50-year period of successful education at the close knit Catholic School in Pelham.


St. Pat’s Principal Hank Golec with Director of Development, Colleen Tully


staff, alumni, parents, and parishioners contributing recipes from their personal collections. From the beginning, St. Pat’s mission has been


to prepare children for the future in an academic and nurturing environment. According to Tully, the students are reminded daily that there is a balance between achieving academic excellence and being a good human being. Admittedly, Tully says that St. Pat’s has experienced a rebirth in the last 10 years. She noted that former principal Roger Dumont, who guided the school’s progress from 2003-2011, was instrumental in enhancing the atmosphere, both in the classroom and on the school grounds. Dumont believed that the school environment needed to be a happy environment. As such, he improved the esthetics on the grounds by having gardens planted and also spruced up the curriculum by increasing the student’s classroom exposure to advancing technologies. Tully also said that Dumont promoted a more progressive, hands-on approach to learning as


Jeanne Jerekinas hands out birthday cupcakes to students at lunchtime (third grade teacher and PTO secretary Gael Ouellette baked 200 cupcakes for the event).


was evidenced in the “nature’s classroom” part of the curriculum. During his tenure, Dumont also obtained accreditation for the school, which did not exist prior to his arrival as principal. As Colleen Tully indicated; “today, parents


want a safe nurturing environment.” That is one of the reasons why parents entrust the Pelham Catholic school with their children’s education as well as being part of their socialization process. Academically, Tully maintains that “parents want their children to have a strong academic foundation in preparation for college.” In the recent past, St. Pat’s has been in effect, an academic feeder system for elite higher education, with the majority of students who attend the school remaining enrolled there through graduation. Epitomizing the essence of the educational side of what St. Pat’s has to offer is the fact that in the past five years, every single eighth grader has been accepted to the high school at which they applied, among them; Bishop Guertin and Brooks Academy. This reputation explains


Pelham Old Home- continued from front page The afternoon kicked off with a karate demonstration by the Family


Martial Arts students. It’s hard to follow the beautiful dancers, but this


demonstration kept the music pounding and the toes tapping - and the audience clapping. But the fun wasn’t over as immediately following were the


O’Halloran Step Dancers, who have turned Irish Step Dancing into a high art form.


Irish step dance originated in Ireland from traditional


Irish dance, and is characterized by dancers who dance with hands by their sides and upper body stiff, making quick, intricate movements of the feet.


Irish step dancing popularized by the show Riverdance.


Again the music is energetic and the audience wondered how those feet moved so fast. As always, the Grand Parade kicked off at 2:30 p.m. This year’s


theme was “It’s Easy Being Green.” The Grand Marshal selected by the Pelham Old Home Day Committee for 2011 was Ron Hannon, Director of the Pelham Environmental Recycling Complex (PERC). Ron successfully implemented changes at the town transfer station resulting in increased recycling, reduced costs, and increased revenues for the town. The streets are lined with happy watchers. Everyone knows that this is the beginning of the end of a wonderful day, but the day isn’t over yet. Following the parade more music was on tap. The Windham


Community Band had a beautiful recital. This accomplished group of musicians is a hit wherever they perform. Those eagerly awaiting the posting of the Penny Sale Winners could watch for those results to be posted and still enjoy the music. At 4 p.m. the 22nd Annual “Best of Show” Pie Contest Results


posted. Once again competition was intense. The pies were beautiful and there were lots of entries. At the same time a new event kicked off. The Pelham’s Got Talent Contest was open to all ages.


Griffin Park- continued from front page


“You can’t just shove it around with a bulldozer,” he added. Engineer Peter Zohdi, who has


been working on the plans for the parking lot for an extended period of time, recommended that the stones be stockpiled in an area near the parking lot that is out of the way, until the money to reconstruct the wall can be raised. Zohdi also said that the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (DOT) informed him that the stone wall could be moved as much as two feet closer to the road to accommodate the new parking lot, if needed. Carol Pynn, a member of


Windham’s Historic District Commission, explained that the old stone walls located throughout New England were originally just “piles of stones put up by farmers as boundaries.” “They were not perfect rows of stones,” she said, adding that Range Road is one of Windham’s most historic sections and once included numerous farms. Selectman Kathleen DiFruscia agreed with Pynn, stating that the meandering stone walls “are a part of the aesthetics of the whole area.” “We’ve already lost so much of our local history,” Pynn said. As for what to do about several


trees growing adjacent to the parking lot, McMahon said that there are three trees that are either dying or rotting in the area closest to Squire Armor Road. “They present a clear and present danger,” McMahon said. McMahon said these trees should be replaced with shade trees, either maples or white oaks, and ones that are as tall as possible should be planted to replace those that need to be cut down. There are also two clumps of trees near the pile of stones that “need to go,” according to McMahon, as well as one tree that is growing half in the stone wall and another that is leaning. A tree McMahon described as “The Monster Willow” should not be cut down, as it is currently doing well, thanks to the ministrations provided


by former selectman Dennis Senibaldi. McMahon said that the money to remove any dying or diseased trees is included in the $200,000 budget approved by voters this past spring. “The trees that are growing up through the wall are destroying it,” McMahon said. Selectman DiFruscia said she didn’t understand how these trees could be removed and the stone wall still salvaged. After further discussion of the


issue, Selectman Phil LoChiatto finally said that he felt it was time to move forward and that all questions regarding the parking lot had been answered. Local resident Peter Griffin said he has been a volunteer in Windham for nearly 40 years and never seen anything debated for such a lengthy period of time. “Will this [parking lot] address the situation long-term?” Griffin asked McMahon. McMahon’s one word answer was a simple “yes”! Selectmen voted 3 to 0 to move


forward with constructing the new parking lot with the condition that an arborist’s opinion be obtained prior to the removal of any trees. Voting in favor were Vice-Chairman Bruce Breton and Selectmen Kathleen DiFruscia and Phil LoChiatto. Chairman Ross McLeod and Selectman Roger Hohenberger did not attend the September 12 board meeting. State Representative Mary


Griffin, who is a former resident of Tara Farm, the land that now comprises Griffin Park, expressed her appreciation to Peter Zohdi and Charles McMahon for all the time and effort they have devoted to making Griffin Park the lovely area that it has become. “Griffin Park is a treasure that all residents can enjoy,” she said, adding that her late husband, Andy, loved the Town of Windham and the people who call it home. “The park was his gift to the town,” Griffin said. “And it was his fervent wish that the beauty of the land always be preserved.”


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strong curriculum that the school offers, Tully feels that Catholicism is a major factor in why parents send their children to St. Pats. However, she points out that the staff addresses the students, on a daily basis, about the need to live a good life and to be kind and tolerant of others; a universal message versus simply a Catholic one. Despite the departure of Principal Dumont in


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