Dog Licenses and School Sustainability
Note from Tinky: I’m sorry if some of you already received this information. I posted it a few days ago, but most people do not seem to have received it. So I’m re-sending!
License Deadline Looming
We are now deep into March so I want to remind those of you who have not yet licensed your dogs to get cracking; the deadline is April 1. After that, a late fee will be added to the cost of the license.
Vet visits can add up in price. People without a lot of resources still deserve to have pets! If you are concerned about the cost of your dog’s rabies vaccination, a couple of local options can help.
Tractor Supply Company in Greenfield is having clinics each Saturday in March from 4 to 5:30 p.m.. For more details, visit https://locations.petvet.vippetcare.com/ma/greenfield/72-newton-st/2657/. The cost of a rabies shot there is $39.
There will also be a rabies clinic on Saturday, March 22, from 10 a.m. to noon at Franklin County Technical School in Turners Falls. The cost there is $20 per pet (cash only).
In both cases, you will need to bring proof of a prior vaccination to the clinic. Good luck to you and your pooch!
Sustainability Study
I know I have written here a lot lately about the necessity of providing feedback for the School Sustainability Study. I’m sorry to sound like a broken record, but it’s truly important for all of us to become informed on this issue and have a chance to express our opinions. As you know, Hawley spends most of its tax dollars on two things: our roads and our schools. The study was initiated because our schools are becoming increasingly hard to fund for several reasons: enrollment is declining, student needs are growing, the buildings are getting older, and so forth. Despite heavy lobbying from our school committees and our legislators, the state hasn’t increased its funding for rural schools to keep up.
Our schools are important as places where our children learn (and we are lucky that the dedicated teachers at both Hawlemont and Mohawk Trail Regional School give them excellent educations) and as places where community thrives.
Please take the time to attend one of the upcoming sessions. These will include a meeting at Hawlemont Regional School on Wednesday, March 19, at 6:30 p.m. (in person with Zoom option); and at Mohawk Trail Regional School on Thursday, March 20, also at 6:30 p.m. (in person with Zoom option). For more information, including on meetings at Buckland-Shelburne Elementary School, Sanderson Academy, and Colrain Central School, see https://www.2districts8towns.org/.
That’s it for now. I know so far we haven’t been having a great maple season, at least according to Kevin Clark, whom I saw tapping trees over the weekend; he says in general it has been too cold to get the sap flowing. Let’s hope that trend reverses itself soon. If the increasing sunshine is any gauge, we should be heading toward spring.
See you soon….
Tinky Weisblat
Gal Friday
Town of Hawley