BOURNE The three selectmen candidates in next months town election are scheduled to appear tomorrow morning in a candidate forum at Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School on Sandwich Road.
WASHINGTON - Sales of existing homes fell in March as a severe slump in housing showed no signs of abating. The median price of a home fell compared with the price a year ago.
County pension board accepted the retirement application of former Truro fire chief E. Thomas Prada after a court decision not to issue a charge against him on a sexual assault allegation.
NORTH EASTHAM Sometimes he's jogging, sometimes walking in the Campground Road, Higgins Road area, but warm weather or cold, his attire never varies: He's naked.
EASTHAM - Officer Kate Mungovan thought she had a simple traffic stop early Sunday, but ended up chasing a wanted man on foot and having to draw her weapon to arrest him.
Today on CapeCast: We color our thumbs green with nifty Earth and Arbor Day projects, plus more naked man news, The Fonz goes Pop and doping disc golfers get busted.
Provincetowns elected leaders will interview four finalists for the police chief job today and tomorrow: Two candidates today at 4 in a public meeting in town hall and the second two tomorrow at 5 in the afternoon.
NEW YORK - A time-lapse video of a man trapped in an elevator for 41 hours has become something of an Internet sensation after surveillance camera footage emerged after nearly a decade.
NEW YORK - Cabbies here complain their take-home pay is thinner than it used to be and trucking companies across the country are making drivers slow down to conserve fuel.
EUGENE, Ore - A pet store owner is calling a police sergeant a hero for saving her from the coils of a 12-foot Burmese python doing its best to turn her into a meal.
The semiannual flushing of Orleans water mains will begin today. The weekday flushing between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. will take about three weeks to complete.
Because of an editing error, an item on Page E-3 of Sunday's Times had an incorrect description of an event today at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster.
Because of a production error, a portion of the Pop Goes the Culture column was omitted on Page C-1 of yesterday's Times. David Sheff is the author of "Beautiful Boy" and his son Nic wrote "Tweak.
A Cape Cod-based Coast Guard HU-25 Falcon Jet crew returned to the Cape Saturday night after participating in a harrowing rescue at sea while on assignment in Puerto Rico, officials said.
Henry Winkler, best know for his role as The Fonz in the sitcom "Happy Days," will be the celebrity guest conductor for the 23rd annual TD Banknorth Pops by the Sea concert in August.
MARSTONS MILLS - Undercover detectives staked out the parking lot and golf course and arrested 11 people on charges including possession of marijuana and underage drinking.
Voters at town meeting May 6 are being asked to approve overrides for the schools and capital improvements, declare Dennis a farm-friendly town and pass a new town budget of $27.6 million.
Bird Island, a three-acre circle of sand and rock at the mouth of Sippican Harbor, is shrinking with every storm that rakes the coastline. And disappearing with the tiny island is precious nesting area for endangered roseate terns.
Consider Paul Watts' home a bastion of old-fashioned democratic values. His household, like the town of Tisbury itself, split right down the middle in last week's ballot issue.
The former University of Massachusetts player from Springfield's Cathedral High School takes over for Travis Ford, who left abruptly last week for Oklahoma State.
File photo by David Molnar / The RepublicanFormer UMass head basketball coach John Calipari, right, who is currently the Memphis Tigers' head coach, and former UMass basketball player and current Tigers' asstistant coach Derek Kellogg, watch a game at Springfield College earlier this year.
The Republican file photo/Mark M. MurrayDerek Kellogg as a UMass player at the Mullins Center in Amherst in 1994.
By RON CHIMELIS
rchimelis@repub.com
AMHERST, MA - Derek Kellogg is coming home, ready to take the biggest step of his career within a few miles from where he grew up.
The former Cathedral High School star from Springfield will be introduced Wednesday night as the new University of Massachusetts men's basketball coach. The press conference, at 6 p.m., comes one week - almost to the hour - since Travis Ford abruptly left UMass for Oklahoma State.
Kellogg, 34, has served as an assistant at Memphis for eight years. The Tigers' head coach is John Calipari, who coached Kellogg at UMass from 1991 to 1995.
Calipari has been touting his assistant as a rising star in coaching, a man ready to run his own program.
Prior to his tenure at Memphis, Kellogg was an assistant at Youngstown State and George Mason. He did not return a call for comment Tuesday.
UMass athletic director John McCutcheon declined to confirm or deny Kellogg's selection, but multiple sources have said he's the choice.
"All I can say officially is that the search process went very well, and we're excited about our choice," McCutcheon said. "I think everyone will be quite pleased."
A point guard and two-year captain at UMass, Kellogg was part of four straight Minutemen teams that won the Atlantic 10 regular season and tournament titles, and played in the NCAA tournament.
Highly respected throughout his playing and coaching career, he has spent much of his career in the shadows of others, but that is about to change.
As a high school player, Kellogg was one of the best of the modern era in Western Massachusetts, but his career coincided with that of Travis Best of Central, a three-time Lahovich Award winner as most valuable high school player in Western Massachusetts.
At UMass, Kellogg was a starter on a team where others, including Lou Roe and Marcus Camby, were the stars.
At Memphis, he has learned under the guidance of Calipari and, to some degree, from former teammate Tony Barbee, who preceded him into head coaching. After UMass interviewed Barbee but hired Ford in 2005, Barbee took over at Texas-El Paso the following year.
Last week, Barbee took his name out of the UMass search, clearing the way for Kellogg.
Kellogg's hiring figures to ease some of the resentment among alumni and fans following Ford's departure. The former coach left six days after turning down the Providence job, and pledging commitment to the Minutemen.
In Kellogg, UMass is hiring not only one of the most popular figures ever to play at the school, but a respected recruiter as well.
He is also considered adept at scouting opponents, and is accustomed to winning.
In his senior season, UMass reached the 1995 Elite Eight. With Memphis, he was part of a staff that went to the 2008 NCAA championship game, where the Tigers lost to Kansas in overtime.
His hiring, though, is a bold move by UMass in some ways. When the search began, McCutcheon expressed preference for a candidate with previous head coaching experience, a factor that worked in Ford's favor in 2005.
McCutcheon did not, however, rule out taking a coach without such experience.
In 2007, the Rivals.com Web site ranked Kellogg seventh among all the nation's assistant coaches in the "ready to move up" category.
Some UMass alumni have also noted the program's most glamorous coach of all time was Calipari, who came without prior head coaching experience in 1988.
Whatever the experience factor, McCutcheon said the program needed a coach who would continue the high-scoring, up-tempo offense introduced by Ford.
As a UMass player, Kellogg ran a calculated half-court offense that kept mistakes to a minimum and was Calipari's preference at the time.
As an assistant at Memphis, Kellogg helped guide an athletic, talented team that ran the floor, but in a manner fundamentally different from Ford's in some ways.
The Tigers focused on more isolation against defenders, and less on spot-up shooting. UMass averaged 25.8 three-point attempts per game last season to Memphis' 21.6.
But Memphis averaged 79.9 points per game, nearly as much as UMass' 81.5. The Tigers' style is considered new and innovative.
This portrait of the Rev. George Moxon, Springfield's first pastor, is one of the artifacts from the Old First Church scheduled to be auctioned.
By MARLA A. GOLDBERG
mgoldberg@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD - Things are seldom what they seem. Skim milk masquerades as cream.
Those lyrics from Gilbert & Sullivan might apply to today's realization by Springfield Museums Association historians, who went to view artifacts from the Old First Church which are slated for auction on Friday.
A portrait of the Springfield church's first pastor, Rev. George Moxon, hired from England in 1637, was found not be a valuable original, or even an antique.
Instead, the painting is vintage 1987, when Ronald Reagan was in the White House and the Bangles' "Walk Like An Egyptian," was a radio hit.
Museums trustee Frances M. Gagnon, chairwoman of the history collections committee, said a pamphlet accompanying the portrait identifies it as an "anniversary piece" given to the church in 1987 by Moxon's descendants. It was to celebrate the 350th anniversary of Moxon assuming the Springfield pulpit, she said.
A date for the Moxon portrait was among two developments today in a simmering controversy over the congregation's decision to auction artifacts which the museums believe are critical to the history of Springfield and the nation. The items include another portrait, of anti-slavery activist Rev. Samuel Osgood, which was deemed an original, inscribed silver communion vessels and a Federal period communion table.
City Council to discuss artifacts
The Springfield City Council, prompted by a request from Councilor James J. Ferrera III, will hold a Committee of the Whole meeting Thursday at 4:45 p.m. at City Hall, to discuss the Old First Church artifacts.
Douglas and Doris A. Bilodeau, who own Douglas Auctioneers, said the age of the Moxon portrait was never a secret, and the information booklet is on display with it. "Anybody who asks about it, would be given that information," Doris A. Bilodeau said. The age would be stated during the auction along with other details. As far as its dollar value, her husband said, "We'll know Friday night."
Gagnon termed the portrait "lovely," and said it is "an exact copy of the original portrait," which remains with family in England. It is "our only image of Rev. Moxon," she said, with "very, very limited dollar value outside Massachusetts."
Springfield paid $900,000
Last month, the city paid $800,000 to the disbanded congregation for the church and parish house in Court Square, plus another $100,000 for an antique rooster weathervane on the roof, an organ, and a clock from the Pynchon family which settled Springfield.
The church cited declining membership for the closure.
The congregation was the region's oldest, founded a year after Springfield was settled in 1636.
"We made a good faith effort as a city to bail the church out," Ferrera said, adding that the congregation should have donated the remaining artifacts to the city or museums for preservation. Ferrara said he is considering asking fellow councilors at the meeting to sign a letter to the church leaders asking that the items be given to the museums.
The congregation's moderator, Susan R. Saunders, could not be immediately reached for comment but said yesterday that it took a majority vote on how to disperse the artifacts and endowment. Deacon Elliott C. Stratton said the money will go to programs to help the poor, including fuel assistance, and to aid struggling churches.
Original Osgood portrait
The portrait of Osgood, who became Old First Church pastor in 1809 and was active in the Underground Railroad, was examined with ultra-violet lights and determined to be original, said Joseph Carvalho III, the museums' president and chief executive officer. Douglas Auctioneers literature pegs the painting signed "W.S. Elwell" at about 1840, although Carvalho said he doesn't know its exact age. Carvalho said it "needs a lot of conservation work."
Carvalho said the Springfield Museums Association will be at Friday's auction, but whether it will have funds to bid "remains to be seen."
A silver communion grouping includes a donation from Edward Pynchon, son of William Pynchon, who founded Springfield and the church.
U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry told a congressional panel today that federal action is needed to bring Internet service to parts of Western Massachusetts.
By JO-ANN MORIARTY
jo-ann.moriarty@newhouse.com
WASHINGTON - Citing areas like Western Massachusetts, U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry told a congressional panel today that federal action is needed to bring broadband service to regions without access to the Internet, in order to even the odds of competing in a global market.
Kerry, a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, told the committee that in Massachusetts only 46 percent of the public has broadband.
"Amazingly, that's the fourth best rate in the country," he said.
The areas that have no service or are underserved are largely in Western Massachusetts, said Kerry.
He criticized President Bush for not completing the administration's goal of hooking up the nation to the Internet by 2007.
"Where is the plan?" said Kerry. "Where is the sense of urgency? Entire swaths of this country, including most of the western part of Massachusetts, have little or no access to broadband service. Eight years into the 21st century, more than half of Americans have either no Internet access at all or are still using dial-up.
"We need a national broadband strategy to encourage economic competitiveness in a global marketplace. By making high-speed Internet more readily available, businesses in Western Massachusetts will be better equipped to compete and grow, and more entrepreneurs will set up shop there."
Olver, Neal concerned, too
U.S. Reps. John W. Olver, D-Amherst, and Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, have paid close attention to the issue, successfully earmarking millions of dollars each year to wire Interstate 91 in order to bring broadband services to such cities as Springfield, Holyoke, and Northampton.
Olver, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, noted that 32 towns in Western Massachusetts have no broadband access. They include Blandford, Tolland, Sandisfield, Becket, Middlefield, Montgomery, Goshen, Worthington, New Salem, Warwick, and Leverett.
Another 63 towns in Western Massachusetts are underserved, meaning that broadband is available only in limited areas. These include Southampton, West Springfield, Hadley, Deerfield, Montague, Russell and Greenfield, and Hadley.
$25 million bond
Kerry told the Senate committee that Gov. Deval L. Patrick is proposing a $25 million bond to subsidize the development of broadband infrastructure. The measure is pending in the state Legislature.
Congressional staffers say that economics drives the issue, and that such companies as AT&T, Sprint, Comcast, and Verizon decide where to build their infrastructure.
"The Internet provides unparalleled access to information, economic opportunity, and civic participation," Olver said. "While many take the Internet for granted, over 30 of the towns I represent do not have any access to broadband whatsoever. ... We must take advantage of every opportunity to lay down a broadband infrastructure to ensure that the residents of these towns do not get left behind."
Neal agreed, noting that many towns around the area's universities and colleges lack broadband access.
Last year, water from Three Rivers, which is one of the five villages of Palmer, won the award.
Photo by Mieke Zuiderweg / The RepublicanDennis M. Bates, left, a brewer at Opa-Opa Steakhouse and Brewery in Southampton, and Peter E. Kantos, one of the owners of the business, appear with a few pints of their beer, which is made with Southampton's award-winning water.
By STAN FREEMAN
sfreeman@repub.com
Lift a glass to Southampton. A glass of tap water, that is.
In a national taste test of drinking water in Washington, D.C., today, Southampton's entry, which represented Massachusetts, beat out all comers, earning the title of America's best-tasting water.
Bouquet, clarity, taste - tests usually reserved for fine wines were applied to the entries from 39 states by a team of judges during the ninth annual Great American Water Taste Test, held on Earth Day during the yearly meeting of the National Rural Water Association.
"I can't believe that we won it against so many entries, that a little town in Western Massachusetts could beat out the whole country, but we did," said Joseph F. Slattery, Southampton's water superintendent who personally drew the water sample used in the competition off one of the town's wellheads near College Highway on Saturday.
In fact, the victory marked the second year in a row that a small community in Western Massachusetts took the honor. Water from Three Rivers, which is one of the five villages of Palmer, won in 2007.
At the Opa Opa Steakhouse and Brewery on College Highway, they actually brew their beer using town water, which the business' owner, Peter E. Kantos, judges to be among the best he's ever tasted.
"Personally, I've traveled extensively and I believe it's the best in the world. When we began, we investigated where we could get our water, and it was a coincidence we landed in a town that had such good water. We got lucky," he said.
Water came from Barnes Aquifer
Southampton's entry came out of the Barnes Aquifer, a vast underground bedrock valley, filled with glacial till, that runs beneath Southampton, Holyoke, Westfield and Easthampton.
"It's natural water. It meets such a high standard with the state that we don't even have to treat it," Slattery said.
The gallon sample, once drawn, was taken by train to Washington on Saturday by David A. Kaczenski, head of the Massachusetts Rural Water Association. Southampton's water had already been proclaimed the state champion in a previous competition, with water from Three Rivers placing second.
Ohio took second place
Kept on ice in a Styrofoam cooler, the water sample was entered in an initial competition on Monday, so that the field could be narrowed to five state winners that included - in addition to Massachusetts - Ohio (which ultimately took second place), Rhode Island, Indiana and Iowa.
The competition today was a blind taste test in which wine glasses of the five samples were assessed by three judges, who gave them numerical scores for taste, smell and clarity. The ratings were never released by the judges, just the final rankings.
"The judges said the top three were just so close in quality. They said they were separated by just decimal points," said Michael R. Harris, a spokesman for the National Rural Water Association.
Eyes rolled at Springfield's FutureWorks Career Center when a state unemployment report was announced today
By JIM KINNEY
Business writer
SPRINGFIELD - The unemployment rate in the city and its immediate area decreased in March to 5.5 percent.
That was down from 5.7 percent in February, according to statistics released today by the state Office of Labor and Workforce Development.
But that 5.5-percent mark was slightly higher than the 5.4 percent recorded in March 2007, also according to state statistics.
The number of workers in the labor force grew last month by about 1,000 people to 343,000. That number is lower than the March 2007 figure of 345,000.
At the FutureWorks Career Center in Springfield, job-seekers rolled their eyes at the notion that unemployment is not going up - and going up rapidly.
"I see a lot of people at job fairs," said Donna M. Lovell, of Sixteen Acres. "I've been out of work since February, and I still haven't found a job."
Unemployment benefits exhausted
Rexene A. Picard, the executive director of FutureWorks, said the unemployment rate may look artificially low because some job-seekers have exhausted their unemployment benefits and are not counted anymore. The average unemployment benefit lasts for 30 weeks.
"We are seeing that," Picard said. "And we are seeing people who are underemployed. People with two or three part-time jobs, but they aren't getting that living wage they are looking for."
She said that FutureWorks is still feeling the effects of local job cuts. Picard cited Hasbro Games' decision in January to cut 200 jobs in East Longmeadow, Springfield Wire Inc.'s axing of 180 jobs last June, and Rock-Tenn Corp.'s cut of 110 jobs in Chicopee in January.
Exceeding last year's record
FutureWorks saw more than 11,800 customers in the nine months from March to July 2007. That was almost as many as the 12,000 new customers the office saw in the 12 months from July 2006 to June 2007, the time period that FutureWorks uses as its fiscal year, said Picard.
"With three months left to go, we know we are going to exceed last year's record," she said.
Lovell said she was laid off from her job of managing people who sold windows at kiosks in area shopping malls. Now she is looking for a job in customer service.
"But no one is looking for something in generic customer service," she said. "They are looking for this particular computer program, or experience in a particular field."
She is taking computer courses through FutureWorks.
Bruce A. Williams, of Wilbraham, was also at the FutureWorks offices in the Springfield Technical Community College Technology Park today.
"The sad irony is I used to work in this building when it was Digital Equipment Corp.," he said.
Williams worked for Digital Equipment in 1976-93, then at a series of other computer and information technology jobs, and was recently laid off from a computer consultant firm when his project ended.
"Now, it's firing up the old network," he said. "I'm calling managers I've worked with over the years, and I'm seeing what is out there. In the meantime, unemployment is kicking in and we are on short rations for a couple of weeks."
Williams, 52, is not worried, though. He said his oldest son recently completed a seven-month tour of duty as a Navy medical corpsman with a Marine Corps unit in Iraq.
That puts things in perspective, he said.
"This job thing isn't scary," added Williams. "This is just a bump in the road."
Business writer Jim Kinney can be reached at jkinney@repub.com
Edgar L. Selvaka, shown in this photo from last year, pleaded guilty today to 11 counts of possession of child pornography.
By FRED CONTRADA
fcontrada@repub.com
NORTHAMPTON - Former preschool teacher Edgar L. Selavka pleaded guilty today to 11 counts of possession of child pornography in Hampshire Superior Court.
Selavka, 50, worked with young children at the People's Institute and the Center for Early Childhood Education at Smith College in Northampton. He was also the director of Christian education at Edwards Church. His criminal problems began after he reported his backpack missing from his office of the Main Street church.
According to Northwestern Assistant District Attorney Jane E. Mulqueen, a security guard at Thornes Marketplace found the backpack in a men's room there later that day, with its contents strewn about. In addition to Selavka's wallet, there were numerous photographs of naked children, some depicting them in sexual acts with adults. Police also found two compact disks with additional images of children as young as 4 years old, Mulqueen told Judge Judd J. Carhart.
Selavka told Carhart that he is taking medications for a sexual disorder and depression, but said they did not affect his decision to plead guilty. Although Mulqueen is seeking a sentence of one year in jail followed by seven years of probation, defense lawyer Michael O. Jennings asked Carhart to delay sentencing until June. Jennings will likely ask for a lesser sentence then.
Carhart allowed Selavka to remain at liberty pending the sentencing. He had previously posted the $5,000 bail set for him. As conditions of his release, Selavka must have no contact with minors except for supervised visits with his 7-year-old biological daughter. Selavka and his wife also had a 3-year-old foster daughter, but she was removed from their Easthampton home by the state Department of Social Services.
Because the house was so heavily damaged, fire crews were expected to stay on the scene all night to check for hot spots.
Photo by Mieke Zuiderweg / The RepublicanFirefighters put out hotspots on the roof of 3-5 Wright Ave., Northampton, after they were called to the scene at approximatley 1:30 p.m. today. Witnesses stated the fire started on the porch at the back of the home.
This is an updated version of a story posted originally at 2:28 this afternoon.
By NANCY H. GONTER
ngonter@repub.com
NORTHAMPTON - Investigators are looking for the cause of a fire that filled downtown with smoke this afternoon, resulted in power outages and took the lives of two cats.
It took firefighters approximately an hour to bring under control the fire at 3-5 Wright Ave., at the corner of Conz Street across from Northampton Liquor and Wine. No one was injured, but about a dozen firefighters were treated at the scene for heat exhaustion, Fire Chief Brian P. Duggan said.
Only the second floor of the two-family home was occupied and the man who was at home escaped out the front of the building while the back was engulfed in flames shortly after 1:30 p.m., fire officials and neighbors said. The barefoot man, who was not immediately identified, was only able to bring out his laptop computer.
Next door neighbor Stephen A. O'Connell said he had come out of his basement and slid under his jacked-up car for about a minute when he heard a popping sound.
"It sounded like the popping of a plastic bag. I looked up and all of a sudden the back porch was fully engulfed in flames. I ran in and dialed 911," said O'Connell, of 9 Wright Ave.
When he got back outside, the resident of the burning building was outside and O'Connell tried to use his garden hose to put out the fire, but when firefighters arrived they ordered him to leave. He saw the man who lived in the house and he told him he had no idea how the fire started and only left the building when smoke came in the apartment, O'Connell said.
In the confusion, O'Connell's 2-year-old Italian greyhound named Toby escaped his house and there was a frantic 20-minute search before he was located at a nearby medical building.
Northampton firefighters had the assistance of six other area departments in fighting the fire which was difficult to reach because of a slate roof and electrical wires directly in front of the house, Duggan said.
Power cut to 1,800 homes
Crews from National Grid cut power to 1,800 customers, including parts of Pleasant Street and Hockanum Road, from 2:19 p.m. By 3 p.m., only 200 customers were without power and most were expected to have power by late afternoon, said Deborah M. Drew, a National Grid spokesperson.
The house, which is owned by Bernyce B. Grant, of Northampton, was for sale for $289,900, according to the Multiple Listing Service. Records at the assessor's office indicate the property is assessed at $273,800.
The fire appeared to have started in the two-story porches at the rear of the house, said Lyn M. Sarver, of Holyoke, who was driving by and spotted the blaze.
"I saw the flames on the porch and pulled over to call the Fire Department. By the time I got out of my car, the fire had already gone through the house and attic," Sarver said.
Florence resident Cheryl A. Vaid was working at a medical laboratory on Conz Street drawing blood and her patient said, 'My God, there's a fire.'"
"I looked and saw some smoke and it looked like burning leaves. Then all of a sudden there were red flames. It looked very serious," Vaid said.
House will be torn down
The building had partially collapsed and will have to be torn down once investigators from the Fire and Police department as well as the state fire marshal's office are done, Duggan said.
Because the building was so heavily damaged, it is not safe even to lean a ladder against it, so the Fire Department aerial ladder truck was expected to remain on scene through the night in case the fire rekindles, Duggan said.
Firefighters from Easthampton, Hatfield, Amherst, Hadley, Williamsburg and Westhampton assisted.
The union wants gender and race information but UMass said it's not appropriate to provide it.
By DIANE LEDERMAN
dlederman@repub.com
AMHERST - The Labor Center and Everywoman's Center's at the University of Massachusetts is celebrating Equal Pay Day Wednesday with an appearance by former lieutenant governor Evelyn F. Murphy.
Just before her noon talk and using that as a backdrop, the Professional Staff Union at UMass plans to hold a press conference to charge that the university is ignoring its affirmative action obligations under their collective bargaining agreement. The union is complaining that the university will not provide it with information on the gender and race of its members.
That failure, the union claims "raises serious concerns regarding the university's commitment to equal opportunity, aggressive affirmative action and a diverse work force, in short, pay equity, according to a prepared statement from the Professional Staff Union. "For the past nine months we have asked the university repeatedly for this information."
"We want to bargain about this," said Dale A. Melcher, a union delegate from Northampton.
She said the union, which represents 16,000 members at the Amherst and Boston campuses, has told them the university can remove names but still identify the sex of the employee.
Not having the information "gets in the way of us representing our members," she said. "We suspect that there are inequities."
Providing information against the law
But "UMass Amherst, in consultation with the UMass president's office, has concluded that it is not appropriate under Massachusetts General Law to provide the gender and race/ethnicity information as requested by the union," said UMass spokesman Edward F. Blaguszewski.
Murphy, who is currently president of the WAGE Project Inc., will speak in the Cape Cod Lounge in the Student Union. She is the author of "Getting Even: Why Women Don't Get Paid Like Men and What to Do About It!"
Ceclia Counts, a legislative representative from the AFL-CIO will talk about the status of federal pay equity legislation as well.
The event is open to the public. Equal Pay Day was created in 1996 by the National Committee on Pay Equity to call attention to the gap between men and women's wages.
WESTFIELD - Police detectives and officials at Westfield Bank are investigating a new telephone scam aimed at gathering bank customers' personal information including account numbers.
Sgt. Raymond P. Manos, a detective with the Westfield Police Department, said police have received five complaints from people who said they were asked to provide banking information over the phone.
Also, Westfield Bank president James C. Hagan announced that residents, both customers and non-customers, have been contacted by telephone during the past few days seeking account information.
"Westfield Bank never contacts customers asking for personal information. This is a scam activity," Hagan said.
People contacted by telephone should not provide information and should report the incident to police, officials said.
The University of Massachusetts chose a popular former player from Springfield to take over its basketball team less than a week after Travis Ford abandoned it.
The Republican file photo/Mark M. MurrayDerek Kellogg as a UMass player at the Mullins Center in Amherst in 1994.
Kellogg is a 1991 graduate of Springfield Cathedral High. He played for UMass from 1991 to 1995, and was a team captain in each of his last two seasons.
Kellogg has been an assistant coach under his former UMass coach John Calipari at Memphis.
Despite the fact that this would be Kellogg's first head coaching job, UMass officials have apparently hired him over several candidates with head coaching experience, including Ohio University's Tim O'Shea.
UMass alumni have been strongly in favor of Kellogg to replace Travis Ford, who left abruptly last week for Oklahoma State.
UMass athletic director John McCutheon has said prior head coaching experience is not a requirement, though it would be preferable.
McCutcheon previously said he wants a coach who will run the same up-tempo offense Ford brought to the program.
"We want to continue what we've been doing there," McCutcheon said last week. "It's exciting for the fans, and for the players."
Ford's 62-35 record in three UMass seasons included back-to-back National Invitation Tournament appearances in 2007 and 2008. Earlier this month, the Minutemen reached the NIT final for the first time in school history, losing 92-85 to Ohio State.
That capped a 25-11 season that ranks fifth all-time in single-season victories for a UMass team.
Both World Series trophies will be coming back to Western Massachusetts next month.
Photo by Mark M. Murray / The RepublicanRyan Latham, left and Dan Goldrick, both employees of the Boston Red Sox, remove the covers from the two World Series trophies that were put on display at Springfield City Hall this morning.
By ANGELA CARBONE
acarbone@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD - They came to worship at the shrine of the two trophies.
More than 1,000 Red Sox fans - young, old and in between - turned out today to view the 2004 and 2007 World Series trophies and to pose for keepsake photos on the steps of City Hall.
Red Sox nation was there, but for the Pearsons family, this morning's outing was Red Sox generations.
Terry D. and Joan C. Pearsons of West Springfield admitted that their own love for the Boston Red Sox pales next to that of their daughter-in-law. Rachel Pearsons was also in line early with her husband, Aaron J., and their son, Isaac J., 11 months.
"He was born in the year of the second trophy, 2007," Rachel Pearsons said. "May 9. People were coming in to look at the baby, and I was saying, 'Yeah, but the Sox won last night, too.'"
Terry Pearsons, whose love for the Bosox dates from the days of Carl Yastrzemski, glanced at Rachel. "My son married well. Now I know my grandson will be a Red Sox fan," he said.
Antonio Kentish and his son, Adam M. Kentish, 10, stood at the head of the line, which already numbered several score by the time the trophies appeared. Antonio Kentish said the pair, who live in Springfield, arrived at 9 a.m. - an hour ahead of schedule - to get a good spot in line, but they didn't think they'd be first.
Adam Kentish said seeing the Red Sox trophies in person was a real thrill. "Some people never get to see one trophy. It's a privilege," he said.
Wendi A. Johnson of Springfield took her nephew, Matthew E. Chagnon, 7, of Ware, to see the trophies because he's such a big fan. Matthew watches all the games he can and even watches the morning replay of games that extend past his bedtime, he said.
Crowd cheers trophies' arrival
When the trophies, clad in turquoise covers, emerged from City Hall, the crowd cheered. More applause erupted when the covers revealed the two shining emblems of the most successful Red Sox teams in baseball history.
Mayor Domenic J. Sarno welcomed everyone and urged them to root for a third trophy in 2008.
The wind picked up slightly. The Red Sox Lottery logo screen that provides the photo backdrop began tipping toward the trophies, but two Springfield police officers made a grab worthy of Kevin Youkilis.
"Nice save!" yelled a man in the crowd.
Len. J. Bozek and his son, Michael J. Bozek, 14, waited patiently for their turn. "I told my son he's pretty lucky. Most people never got to see the Red Sox win the (World) Series. Michael's seen it twice, and he's only 14," Len Bozek said.
Sarah L. LaBonte and Jeffrey J. Jaros, both of Holyoke, came to Springfield just to see the trophies. Being a Red Sox follower is special, Jaros said. "It's an enduring spirit. The fans get really wrapped up in it," he said. "If the Red Sox win, it's not so bad going into work on Monday."
"If the Yankees win, that's a different story," LaBonte said.
The World Series trophies' visit was part of the tour made possible by a partnership of the Boston Red Sox and the Massachusetts State Lottery. The tour included stops on the grounds of the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield on April 2 and the Amherst Town Hall on April 5. Lottery spokesman Dan Rosenfeld said the May schedule is not final, but there are no more Western Massachusetts stops now on tap.
Photo by Mieke Zuiderweg / The RepublicanSmoke billows out of the windows at 3-5 Wright Ave., Northampton, this afternoon after a fire broke out on a back porch and spread to the front of the house, according to witnesses.
An updated version of this story has now been posted on MassLive.
By NANCY H. GONTER
ngonter@repub.com
NORTHAMPTON - Smoke filled downtown Northampton this afternoon as a blaze broke out in a house at 3-5 Wright Ave.
Witnesses said the fire appeared to have started on a porch in the rear of the building and quickly spread through the attic to the front of the house.
Passersby could see flames shooting out the third floor windows of the house.
The fire was called in about 1:45 p.m. By 2:15 p.m. firefighters appeared to be getting the fire under control.
Eyewitnesses said one person escaped from the house before firefighters arrived.
The house, which has a 'for sale' sign in front of it, is located near the intersection of Wright Avenue and Conz Street.
Firefighters from six communities as well as Northampton responsed to the fire. The other communities are Easthampton, Amherst, Hadley, Hatfield, Westhampton and Williamsburg.
More details on MassLive shortly and in The Republican tomorrow.
Four out of five people charged in the slaying of a convenience store owner have pleaded guilty.
Linda I. Cruz of Springfield, shown here in her 2005 booking photo, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of a convenience store owner this morning.
By MARLA A. GOLDBERG
mgoldberg@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD - Linda I. Cruz, 32, a Springfield woman who prosecutors said drove the getaway car after the 2005 murder of Summit Package Store owner Kanchan Patel, pleaded guilty this morning to manslaughter and was sentenced to three years' probation.
Patel, 48, was fatally shot on Sept. 12, 2005 at the 195 Pine St. store. Five people were charged with his murder, and all except one admitted to roles in the crime in recent weeks.
In Hampden Superior Court before Judge Daniel A. Ford, Cruz pleaded guilty to manslaughter, armed assault with intent to murder, and assault with a dangerous weapon, namely a gun, said her lawyer, Donald W. Frank. Frank said the plea was made under an agreement with the Hampden County district attorney's office, although Assistant District Attorney Karen J. Bell could not immediately be reached for comment.
Police have said three armed, masked men entered Summit Package Store at about 8:40 p.m. and demanded money from Patel, who owned the store with his brother, Henry Patel. A customer escaped and called 911 from a cell phone, and then heard at least one gunshot and saw the men leave, court records state. Police found Kanchan Patel with a gunshot wound to the torso, and he died at 9:18 p.m. at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield.
Frank said Cruz, who has been on personal recognizance for over a year, was sentenced to time served plus three years' probation. Frank said she had no prior record, and went to the store only intending to rob it. A statement of facts accepted by prosecution and defense, Frank said, shows that Cruz "played a very limited role."
Last month, Charlie Montijo, 23, of Springfield pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and acknowledged firing the shots that killed Patel. Montijo was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 15 years. Yeyson Rivera, 19, of Springfield, admitted to manslaughter and got 7½ to 10 years, while Tomas Cintron, 24, of Springfield, also pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to three years.
Another defendant, Alexander F. Benitez-Mortales, 34, of Springfield, who prosecutors said planned the robbery, is held without bail and awaits a pre-trial hearing on April 29.
Kanchan Patel, an immigrant from India, left a wife and two sons.
NEW SALEM - A 60-year-old Wilbraham man was taken to Athol Memorial Hospital this morning for what state police described as non-life-threatening injuries after his Jeep Cherokee ran him over at the boat launch at the Quabbin Reservoir.
State police said Raymond E. Ostrander Jr. of Boston Road, Wilbraham had already launched his boat when he stepped out of the Jeep, thinking it was in park, then was struck by his vehicle. The Jeep and the boat trailer ended up in the water, police said.
The suspicious fire is being probed by the Springfield Arson and Bomb Squad
By GEORGE GRAHAM
ggraham@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD - A fire, set on the third floor of a vacant house on Montrose Street, caused some $40,000 in damage this morning, Springfield Fire Department spokesman Dennis G. Leger said.
The Springfield Arson and Bomb Squad is probing the blaze at 26 Montrose St. It was reported shortly before 1 a.m., Leger said.
Leger said the department does not know who the owner of the single-family home is.
The discovery of the canoe yesterday morning on the banks of the river in Chicopee touched-off a police search.
By GEORGE GRAHAM
ggraham@repub.com
CHICOPEE - The owner of a canoe found abandoned near the Willamansett Bridge yesterday morning told Chicopee Police last night that he is safe and sound.
Discovery of the canoe, empty except for a life jacket and paddle, prompted fears that one or more paddlers may have come to harm and police mounted a search of that stretch of the Connecticut River.
A state police helicopter searched the riverbanks from above and environmental police launched a boat.
The canoeist, a man from South Hadley, told Chicopee police that he capsized while paddling in the area Sunday, pulled his canoe ashore and left it there without notifying anyone, Det. Frank M. Kagan said.
Workers from Pioneer Valley Concrete on North Chicopee Street discovered the green Coleman canoe around 10:15 a.m.
Photo by Dave Roback / The RepublicanAt Ochoa for Hair in South Hadley. Here, Briana L'Esperance of Granby High tries out an unsweep.
One of the biggest decisions a girl can make before prom is -- how to do her hair for the night. Here is just one hairstyle that may work for some hair types. Briana C. L'Esperance of Granby High School recently spent some time at Ochoa in South Hadley, trying out this upsweep.
To say this "signing" has caused a stir? That would be an understatement, friends. After all, NESN has brought in a former Miss San Diego who had a devoted fanboy fan base in California, the site of her last job... Right up until she was fired for undisclosed reasons. Oops, forgot to mention that.
FresnoBeehiveI'm not so sure how our fan base will handle this.
In any event, Watney's presence on the Web is widespread. Already, this video has been linked here, here and here, and there will no doubt be more blogs added to that list tomorrow.
Oh, there's also that panting fanboy aspect I mentioned, which can be found in far-reaching corners of the Internet thanks in part to photos like the one on my right. Here's a sample from a California admirer:
What the heck happened to Heidi Watney??? I just heard on the radio that she is no longer the sports caster for KMPH Fox 26??? For those of you who don't know who she is...GOOGLE her!!! She is freaking GORGEOUS and knows EVERYTHING about sports. She's the perfect 10. Anyway...if anyone knows info about this, let us know. I bummed...
Which, of course, corresponds to the panting fanboy aspect already expressed in some of the comments in this Sons of Sam Horn post. An example:
Mmm...tasty.
She's a good fit.
At this point, your basic Sox Monster reader probably falls in one of two camps. You either A) want me to get back to posting videos of people falling down stadium stairs or B) are desperately seeking additional photos, videos, etc., of this mystery woman.
If you fall in the latter category, yes, I have done my due diligence: It seems Watney herself has posted a number of videos on the Internet.
Oh my god. The Boston media/fans are going to have a field day with Heidi Watney. Not knowing anything about sports may work in an apathetic city towards sports (Bulldogs) with no pro teams, but in Boston? Her lack of sports knowledge is going to get her fired from that job with the Red Sox by July. Red Sox fans don't care what she looks like, they want someone who actually knows what they are talking about. This is actually the best thing that could have ever happened to the "I am too good for Fresno" Watney. After the thrashing she will get from the fans and media with this job in Boston, she will have to find another line of work.
BustedCoverage.comWe haven't exactly brought out the best in each other.
Since I'm probably the last Red Sox blogger who posts on an obsessive schedule not to mention it, I'll make it clear: Yes, I saw the video of the Sox fan and the Yankees fan going at it last week in Yankee Stadium. Kind of hard to miss it cruising around the Internet last night, actually.
Nevertheless, I'd like to take this opportunity to go in the other direction. For once in our lives, let's rise above this, friends. We Red Sox fans have been treated to two World Series wins since 2004, and it's about time we start acting like it.
To start, I'd like to propose that the "Yankees Suck" mantra be abolished... forever.
Back in the late 1990s and early '00s, it might have served a purpose (blowing off steam was almost all we ever had in October, after all), but it just sounds ridiculous now.
A growing group of Red Sox fans has formed a group on Facebook seeking the term's end. Count me on board with that effort, if only because it strikes me as utterly unoriginal and mindless at this point.
Like yo' mama said: Heckling is "great" right up until someone loses an eye. No more eyes lost, ok?
Say, for a minute, that you have just made a great one-handed catch while sitting high in the seats at Fenway Park during a convincing 8-3 Red Sox win.
The TV crews caught it. The fans are cheering your efforts. You're basking in the sunlight, triumphantly holding the ball up for all to see while savoring the chance to brag later to your buddies, who weren't fortunate enough to be in the stands with you. Because obviously, you're the man, man!
Except one thing, that is. Yep: disaster strikes. You. Drop. The. Ball.
Witness:
And see, that's what too much celebrating will get a brother. One minute, you're cruising for the end zone, ready to do some ridiculous fat-man dance. The next, you're Leon Lett, wondering where the heck Don Beebe came from.
HT: Shawn Talks Too Much, a new blog that appears to be inspired by the klutz above. Yes, that's right: We're looking at a one-entry blog.
I've always thought very highly of Atlanta Hawks point guard Mike Bibby. Dating back to his days as an Arizona Wildcat, he's actually been among my Top 5 favorite guards to watch. That allegiance wavered a bit the last few years --- naturally --- but he's still a really good guy, apparently.
"It's good that they know I'm here," he said before practice Tuesday on the same floor where he missed all those shots. "Fair weather fans if you ask me."
From a guy that has already missed 8-of-10 shots and was torched by the point guard he helped create, getting the Boston fans even more fired up is probably going to turn out to be a bad idea.
With any luck, the Causeway Faithful will be out in full force Wednesday night to prove Bibby even more wrong than he already is.
Checking the map, looks like Luzerne County and McKean County have reported SOME RESULTS. McKean went 10 voters for Clinton to 19 voters for Obama. Luzerne County - a conservative county where I went to college for two years - had more stark results - 213 Clinton to 71 Obama.
Former UMass head basketball coach John Calipari, right, who is currently the Memphis Tigers' head coach, and former UMass basketball player and current Tigers' asstistant coach Derek Kellogg, watch a game at Springfield College earlier this year.
Derek Kellogg as a UMass player at the Mullins Center in Amherst in 1994.
This portrait of the Rev. George Moxon, Springfield's first pastor, is one of the artifacts from the Old First Church scheduled to be auctioned.
U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry told a congressional panel today that federal action is needed to bring Internet service to parts of Western Massachusetts.
Dennis M. Bates, left, a brewer at Opa-Opa Steakhouse and Brewery in Southampton, and Peter E. Kantos, one of the owners of the business, appear with a few pints of their beer, which is made with Southampton's award-winning water. 
Edgar L. Selvaka, shown in this photo from last year, pleaded guilty today to 11 counts of possession of child pornography.
Firefighters put out hotspots on the roof of 3-5 Wright Ave., Northampton, after they were called to the scene at approximatley 1:30 p.m. today. Witnesses stated the fire started on the porch at the back of the home. 
Ryan Latham, left and Dan Goldrick, both employees of the Boston Red Sox, remove the covers from the two World Series trophies that were put on display at Springfield City Hall this morning.
Smoke billows out of the windows at 3-5 Wright Ave., Northampton, this afternoon after a fire broke out on a back porch and spread to the front of the house, according to witnesses. 
Linda I. Cruz of Springfield, shown here in her 2005 booking photo, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of a convenience store owner this morning.
At Ochoa for Hair in South Hadley. Here, Briana L'Esperance of Granby High tries out an unsweep.
I'm not so sure how our fan base will handle this.
We haven't exactly brought out the best in each other.
Pennsylvania primary results reveal that Hillary Clinton has defeated Barack Obama in the state's presidential primary.
