Photo: Abby Fox
Eldredge students race to play at recess on Tuesday.

BY ABBY FOX

“Who wants to run around and exercise right after they eat?” asked Rob Robberson, physical education teacher at Eldredge Elementary.
Who indeed?  And that’s why the school decided in October to have kids play at recess first, then eat, rather than the tradition of eating before recess.

Mrs. Dorothy May of Cedar Avenue, the town’s eldest resident, received the Boston Post Cane from Town Clerk Leigh Botello last Wednesday. Botello has revived the decades-old tradition of the post cane. The Boston Post cane was first presented to the town’s oldest resident in 1909

 BY ABBY FOX

It’s hard to believe today, when going to the mall is the way most people shop, that Main Street East Greenwich used to provide all your basic necessities, with stores like the menswear shop Ben Solomon, which had a good run here for more than 100 years.
The owner of that business for 30 of those years, 1954 to 1984, the year it closed, was Leonard Solomon, who will be on this year’s Wall of Honor at East Greenwich High School.

East Greenwich Public Schools

FY 2011 Budget Development Timeline

January 21, 2010                        School Committee Budget Workshop – Cole and High School

                                                7:00 p.m. EGHS Library

January 26, 2010                        School Committee Budget Workshop – Special Education

                                                7:00 p.m. EGHS                       

January 28, 2010                        School Committee Budget Workshop - Central Office

                                                7:00 p.m. EGHS

February 2, 2010                        School Committee Meeting - Discussion of Proposed Budget

February 23, 2010                        Public Hearing on the FY 2011 Budget

March 2, 2010                        School Committee Meeting -Discussion of Proposed Budget

March 9, 2010                        School Committee Meeting - Adoption of FY 2011 Budget

March 15, 2010                        School Budget forwarded to Town Manager

April 1, 2010                                    Town Manager transmits budget to Town Council

April 12, 2010                        Public Hearing on Budget (Tentative Date)

May 13, 2010                        Town Council adopts budget to recommend to Town Manager

June 8, 2010                                    Financial Town Meeting 6:30 p.m.

BY ABBY FOX

The Academy Players of East Greenwich are in their 55^th season, but fear their days as an organization are numbered.

“We want to make it work,” said President Scott Morency. “I don’t want to be known as the President that closed Academy.”

But because of a poor turnout for “Pippin,” their first show of the season, on top of the school district’s new policy of building fees, which on average are $55 an hour and have set the Academy back about $4,000 for renting out the high school auditorium for “Pippin,” the Players aren’t sure how to make ends meet.

BY ABBY FOX

Whether or not you think you have artistic ability, no problem: a group of local artists is forming a come-one, come-all East Greenwich Arts Center to teach all ages in all media, at the basement of 58 Main Street.

It’s an eclectic group, of different skills, but they all share the same premise that art is someone that everyone can learn to do and afford to do.

By ABBY FOX

Tuesday night, the school committee announced the hiring of an attorney to help resolve the issue of the new high school turf field: Chris Whitney. The field was done over the summer but because it has failed to drain properly to the school district’s satisfaction, the students weren’t able to play on it during the fall season.

Whitney was the attorney to help out the school committee during the well-remembered gym floor issue at the high school, the superintendent’s office said, after the meeting.

Tuesday was also the first of several scheduled school committee budget sessions. This week the topic was elementary schools and the next meeting is Jan. 21, to discuss the middle and high school budgets.

The district’s proposed budget at this stage of the process requests an increase of $723,317.

Resident’s fife now being played by Presidential Honor Guard

BY ABBY FOX

More than 40 years ago, Skip Healy was a boy practicing his fife on the porch of his Union Street home.

In 2009, the world-traveling fife player and maker is now also a government contractor. Last month, Healy was awarded the bid to make fifes for the Third U.S. Infantry Presidential Honor Guard, the Old Guard as it’s called, which guards the national monuments like the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery, and plays at all the major memorial events, such as Presidents’ funerals.

“To me, as a proud American, it’s pretty cool they’re going to be using my instrument,” he said. “This is the instrument that sounded our call to freedom, literally,” he said. “It sounded the rallying cry of the American Revolution.” The Third Infantry has been in existence since 1784, he said, which is pretty old, but not nearly as old as East Greenwich, the town he still calls home.

Photo: Abby Fox
Andy Hartman with parents Mary Ann Hartman and Bob Hartman, outside of Back to Basics. Hartman could be found at the family store last week during his vacation from the U.S. Army.

BY ABBY FOX

Andy Hartman, the 24-year-old son of Bob and Mary Ann Hartman, who own Back to Basics, will be deployed to Iraq this fall and he says he’s looking forward to it.
“I love my job,” he said.
For the past few months, the 1st lieutenant has been in charge of a reconnaissance platoon at Ford Hood, Texas, America’s largest military installation, as part of the Third Armored Cavalry Regiment. All total, he’s been in the Army for a year and eight months, after graduating from the University of Rhode Island in 2008.

If people want a front-row seat to the school districts budget plans for the next school year, their chance is the upcoming budget work sessions. The school committee went over the schedule at Tuesday’s meeting and all the schools’ proposed budgets will be available by Friday, said Director of Administration Mary Ann Crawford. The meetings are all scheduled at the high school library at 7 p.m.

Jan. 12: Elementary Schools

Jan. 21: Cole Junior High and the high school

Jan. 26: Special education

Jan. 28: Central Office

Unlike last year, this year, the school district’s five-member finance committee has been working behind the scenes with administrators preparing the budgets and the schools say they are better prepared. “We’re in a much better place to make intelligent decisions to come to a zero [percent increase] budget,” said Jack Sommer, a finance committee member. Though the process is further along than it was at this time last year, there is still work ahead, Crawford said, as schools have a handle on what their needs are, but to make cuts, policy changes have to be made, and those should come from the school committee in discussion with the schools and the superintendent.

So far, Superintendent Victor Mercurio has proposed reductions in staff development mentors, class advisors, as well as textbooks for non-public school students and out- of-district tuition costs.