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Devens

Officials tour Devens public safety building

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DEVENS — On Tuesday, MassDevelopment hosted federal, state, and military leaders for a walk-through of the future Devens public safety building, a $20.8 million state-of-the-art facility that will bring all local public safety operations under one roof.

Celebrating the ground breaking in October, the project is expected to be complete by the summer of 2025 and will create one facility to house the Nashoba Valley Regional Dispatch District, the Devens Fire Department, and the State Police, which is contracted to provide police services to Devens.

State and U.S. Legislators, MassDevelopment officials and Devens Reserve Forces Training Area officials attended the walk-through on Tuesday.

“It was a pleasure to show our federal, state, and military leaders the progress already underway at the site of the new Devens public safety building,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Dan Rivera. “This facility looks to the future of Devens by bringing all of our first responders under one roof and delivering improved public safety services for our residents, employers, workforce, and visitors.”

MassDevelopment will be converting a partially-vacant, agency-owned building at 270 Barnum Road into a state-of-the-art public safety center for the Devens area, which the quasi-public agency was charged with developing into a mixed-use community in a way that stimulated the local and state economy.

“Devens is the premier driver of economic growth and vitality in North Central,” said state Sen. John Cronin. “The new Public Safety Building will ensure that Devens has the resources it needs to grow responsibly and continue to create opportunity for the region.”

The building previously housed a day care facility and private elementary school and has been partially vacant since 2019. Nashoba Valley Regional Dispatch District, which serves Devens and five other communities, currently occupies a small portion of the existing building.

Once complete, the new 30,745-square-foot full-service public safety building includes features such as a new apparatus bay to house fire and ambulance vehicles, modern living spaces for firefighters and an exterior tower to provide more opportunity for regular training exercises.

“The new Devens Public Safety Building represents an incredible investment in the safety of Devens and communities across the Nashoba Valley,” said U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan. “I’m proud of the $4.6 million federal Defense Community Infrastructure Pilot Program investment that helped make this MassDevelopment project possible.”

The new building will also feature solar panels and electric charging stations to help reduce the environmental footprint.

The current fire station at 182 Jackson Road was built in 1965, and an addition was built by the U.S. Army in 1987 to accommodate larger fire apparatus. Yet, the building is too small to meet the needs of the current fire department, with several pieces of firefighting apparatus and equipment stored outdoors or at other locations in the community due to space constraints within the building.

Other participants included state Rep. Dan Sena, a representative from Trahan’s office, Devens Reserve Forces Training Area official Keith Jackson, and staff from MassDevelopment’s Devens Operations and Real Estate divisions.

MassDevelopment is converting a partially vacant agency-owned building at 270 Barnum Road into a state-of-the-art facility that will house the Devens Fire Department, the Massachusetts State Police, who provide police services in Devens under a contract with the agency, and the Nashoba Valley Regional Dispatch District under one roof.

MassDevelopment, the state’s development finance agency and land bank, works with businesses, nonprofits, banks, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the state. During fiscal 2023, MassDevelopment financed or managed 545 projects.

(Courtesy MassDevelopment)

Great Exchange helps nonprofits save on the back end

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DEVENS — When Dona Neely saw how much perfectly good office supplies were being wasted while working with a manufacturing facility, a light bulb turned on in her head. She thought if the supplies could be funneled to organizations that really needed them, like schools and nonprofits, then she might just be on to something.

“While working with area manufacturing facilities to help them strengthen the sustainability of their operation, I saw a significant amount of reusable items going into the trash on a daily basis because they could not be used internally. I wanted to preserve the value of these materials, prevent excess waste, and divert the materials to new use opportunities,” Neely said.

Now, 17 years later, The Great Exchange provides discounts of 80% on most goods for a variety of community, public, and nonprofit groups, with help from corporate partners.

Specifically, Neely said that the nonprofit finds surplus operational supplies, classroom and creative supplies, small fixtures, and furniture from business donations and diverts them to nonprofits, schools, churches, municipalities, libraries, community groups, and small businesses at highly discounted costs.

Dona Neely started the program that became The Great Exchange in 2007, with twenty businesses and nonprofits trading sixteen materials at a swap meet, including “clean packing materials and manufacturing by-products that had creative use potential, such as caps and plastic parts,” she said.

Since then, their inventory has “significantly expanded from filling a cubicle to taking up close to 7,000 square feet, with over 850 different types of items.”

The diverse items available for purchase now include office supplies, kitchen items, packing and shipping materials, classroom resources, creative materials, giftware, office furniture and fixtures, and more. All items are new or like new and are discounted 40-80% off retail value.

Their open hours have expanded, from being open one day a quarter to once a month to three days a week with a fourth day recently added. They’ve also grown from providing items to only Devens-based organizations to serving hundreds of entities from Massachusetts and surrounding states.

“It has been an exciting journey of continuous growth!” she said. “I have been so fortunate to be in a position where I could continuously expand our offerings and provide more value.”

Inventory is not available to the general public or to private individuals.

Sales are business-to-business only because the priority of The Great Exchange is to help businesses, organizations, and other similar entities “save money on their operating supplies so they can invest more of the funds in the important programs, services, and jobs that they provide to their communities,” Neely said. She added that the investment creates stronger communities, promotes sustainable business practices, and considers “economic, environmental and social needs to ensure long-term viability.”

In addition to serving nonprofits, The Great Exchange is a nonprofit itself.  While they do operate from the revenue received by selling their inventory, they also receive grants and donations that are necessary to their operation from other nonprofits including the Devens Enterprise Commission and MassDevelopment, and additional sponsorships.

Most of the organization’s operating expenses are the salaries of three employees, the maintenance of a cargo van, insurance, and other routine expenses.

The Great Exchange is also a program that sprung from another nonprofit, the Devens Eco-Efficiency Center, which Neely had been instrumental in forming. She said the initial program she helped launch was the first voluntary corporate stewardship program in the country.

Devens has been transitioning for decades, according to Neely, “to an internationally-recognized, eco-industrial park” that is committed to “giving equal priority to economic, social and environmental needs.”

She said businesses in Devens have always been “encouraged to take steps to minimize their environmental impacts.”

“[The Devens Enterprise Commission] is responsible for ensuring the commitment to sustainable development practices… [and] has always been very supportive of our programs that help to conserve resources and prevent waste,” she said.

“Our natural resources are finite and now more than ever it is critical that we all take more care to minimize our impacts on the environment for the benefit of future generations. We need to consume less, reduce waste and fully appreciate the value of resources by keeping them in circulation,” said Neely, who is the executive director of The Great Exchange in addition to the founder.

Neely said people would be surprised by the breadth of items available at the facility, like a unique collection of manufacturing by-products, consisting of all kinds of plastic, foam, fabric and wood parts of various shapes and sizes, that are fun to use in creative activities and STEM exercises.

“We strive to provide the best possible savings” to clients, Neely said.

Most items are discounted at up to 80% the manufacturer’s recommended price, with several factors taken into consideration including condition, appeal, and quantity available. Unique items not found in stores and some supplies are sold by weight.

Although donors are welcome to bring items directly to the Great Exchange, they can pick up spare inventory as far as two hours away. Donations of surplus items can provide tax benefits for companies giving items for The Great Exchange to add to their inventory.

“Material and financial support from businesses are crucial to our continued success,” Neely said.

The Great Exchange is extremely grateful for volunteers to help gather, process, clean, and display the inventory on any weekday during opening hours. New helpers are always welcomed and are encouraged to visit the facility to gain a better understanding of its operation and can express interest by calling or emailing Neely.

Neely loves her purpose in life at The Great Exchange and couldn’t imagine doing something else.

“Every day I get to do something that helps to make the world a better place — this is extremely gratifying, rewarding, and motivating. I know my team members feel the same way. I am so pleased and proud that the program continues to grow, so we can provide value to more customers, donors, sponsors, and the planet,” she said.

The Great Exchange is located at 33 Andrews Parkway in Devens.  It is open on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and the first Saturday of each month from 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

For pictures of inventory and more information on purchasing, donating, or volunteering go to tgedevens.com and follow them on Facebook, @TheGreatExchangeDevens. Contact Dona Neely at donaneely@tgedevens.com or (508) 878-1728.

New and gently used furniture awaits reuse by new ownership in The Great Exchange's facility. (COURTESY THE GREAT EXCHANGE)
New and gently used furniture awaits reuse by new ownership in The Great Exchange’s facility. (COURTESY THE GREAT EXCHANGE)
Fitchburg Recreation Department employees recently purchased items from the Devens nonprofit to help the city department save with the highly-discounted goods. (COURTESY THE GREAT EXCHANGE)
Fitchburg Recreation Department employees recently purchased items from the Devens nonprofit to help the city department save with the highly-discounted goods. (COURTESY THE GREAT EXCHANGE)

Massachusetts federal prison employee accused of accepting payments from inmate

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A federal prison employee in Massachusetts is accused of accepting more than $90,000 in benefit payments and a $50,000 property loan from an ultra-high net worth inmate.

William Tidwell, 49, of Keene, N.H., a correctional counselor for the Bureau of Prisons assigned to Federal Medical Center Devens, has been charged with accepting payments from an inmate under his care, in violation of his duties as a public official.

Tidwell has also been charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office with lying to a bank about a loan he received from the inmate’s business associate, and forging the associate’s signature to support this false claim.

He has been employed by the Bureau of Prisons since 2000, and working at FMC Devens since 2008. Then in 2014, Tidwell began working as a correctional counselor at FMC Devens, so he was responsible for monitoring inmate work assignments, assigning inmate housing assignments, arranging inmate legal calls and coordinating prison visits for inmates.

One of the inmates for whom Tidwell served as a correctional counselor was Individual 1 — an ultra-high net worth individual who had been convicted on federal charges in another jurisdiction. The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges that in 2018, Individual 1 directed a close friend and business associate (Individual 2) to wire $25,000 to Tidwell’s close family member.

Then a year later, Individual 1 directed thousands of dollars to Tidwell as part of a property management agreement — which used Individual 2 as the conduit through which payments were made to Tidwell.

In total, between 2019 and 2020, Tidwell allegedly received more than $65,000 in benefits as part of this property management agreement with Individuals 1 and 2.

Separately, Tidwell in 2020 allegedly tried to buy a home. In connection with seeking financing for the home purchase, Tidwell allegedly received a $50,000 loan from Individual 2.

Tidwell is also accused of making false statements to the bank in connection with his loan application, falsely telling the bank that the $50,000 was a gift from his employer. When the bank asked for written proof of this purported gift, Tidwell allegedly forged documents to support his earlier claim, including by unlawfully using Individual 2’s name and address, and forging Individual 2’s signature.

“Corrections officers are placed in a position of public trust,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy. “The vast majority of corrections officers carry out their duties with integrity and professionalism. They know that accepting payments from an inmate — as is alleged against Mr. Tidwell here — is a serious violation of that trust and a betrayal of the BOP’s mission to care for federal inmates in a safe and impartial manner.

“This office is committed to holding public officials accountable when they exploit their power or official position to enrich themselves and compromise the public interest,” Levy added.

Tidwell was charged in federal court in Boston with receipt of payments by a public official in violation of his official duties, making false statements to a bank, and identity theft. Tidwell will appear in federal court at a later date.

Fitchburg East Rotary Club flower boxes blooming

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FITCHBURG – Students from Fitchburg High School and Shriver Job Corps in Devens recently volunteered to help paint and freshen up Fitchburg East Rotary Flower Project boxes, an ongoing effort the Rotary club uses to raise money for scholarships, area schools, and nonprofit organizations in the region.

Fitchburg East Rotary Club Vice President Bob Campbell and club member Bill Walsh joined Tim Yost from Shriver Job Corps and the students to help with endeavor.

“All of the flower boxes were prepped and planted with all new colorful petunia flowers,” Campbell said, adding that the flower boxes are maintained and watered by club members on a rotating basis. “It makes the city look beautiful on the Upper Common and on North Street at Fitchburg State University.”

Students from Fitchburg High School and Shriver Job Corps out of Devens recently volunteered to help paint and freshen up the Fitchburg East Rotary Flower Project boxes that decorate the city. (COURTESY BOB CAMPBELL)
Students from Fitchburg High School and Shriver Job Corps out of Devens recently volunteered to help paint and freshen up the Fitchburg East Rotary Flower Project boxes that decorate the city. (COURTESY BOB CAMPBELL)

Local businesses, organizations, people, and families can sponsor a box for $125, which comes complete with a plaque recognizing the sponsorship that they can help design. To sponsor a flower box contact Bill Walsh at 978-660-7364.

The flower boxes, which decorate downtown and other areas of the city, are one of two major fundraisers Fitchburg East does annually, the other one being a Super Bowl brunch. Campbell said he enjoys being part of the club’s ongoing community outreach, including the flower boxes.

“I wanted to give back to the community,” he said about his involvement with the project.

He went on to say that they do the flower boxes “every year to help raise money for scholarships and for nonprofits in the area” and that carpentry students from Shriver and Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School help build flower boxes as needed.

“We always seek volunteers for help with the painting and the Rotary members do the plantings, watering, and weeding,” Campbell said.

Campbell has been a rotary member for 25 years and invites anyone interested in learning more about it to contact him at cam.fam@verizon.net. Club members meet every other Tuesday at Slattery’s Restaurant at 106 Lunenburg St. to outline projects “and discuss how we’re going to spend the money and to what organization we should help, and that includes the high school scholarships.”

“It’s rewarding for us as members and it’s a humanitarian organization,” Campbell said of Rotary International, the umbrella the club falls under. “We have great Rotary members.”

United Way of North Central MA distributes over $230,000 in grants

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FITCHBURG — United Way of North Central Massachusetts (UWNCM) recently distributed $230,380 in grants to 13 community focused agencies to support summer programs for local students.

According to a news release the grants will fund a variety of activities for students in grades Pre-K through 12, from career exploration in media arts to learning about dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures to designing sets for a theater.

Grant funds were made available through a $4.5 million grant awarded by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to a regional effort of United Ways located in Central, North Central and South-Central Massachusetts. The grant is being dispersed over two years with the goal of helping after-school and out-of-school programs rebound and strengthen quality of services from impacts of COVID-19.

UWNCM serves the communities of Ashburnham, Ashby, Athol, Ayer, Devens, Fitchburg, Gardner, Groton, Harvard, Hubbardston, Leominster, Littleton, Pepperell, Lunenburg, Petersham, Phillipston, Royalston, Shirley, Templeton, Townsend, Westminster, and Winchendon.

So far, UWNCM has distributed more than $1 million in grants through five rounds of funding for the programs, beginning in spring 2022. Recipients include nonprofit organizations, public school systems and towns and municipalities. The latest round of distributions will support activities across the North Central Massachusetts region, from Athol in the west to Shirley in the east.

Innovation Learning Center (ILC), based in Westborough, received a grant to run a program for children living at the Fitchburg Housing Community who have incarcerated family members to engage in an arts-based project that promotes healing and fosters connections, with artwork to be exhibited to the community later this summer.

“The grant allows us to support the social, emotional and academic success of students by integrating the varied mediums of the arts and language development with the principles of art-therapy and trauma-informed care,” ILC Director Kathleen Magrane said. “This support allows us to affect positive change, growth and progress for students experiencing post-pandemic trauma and disconnection associated with the loss of or absence of family members due to court involvement, incarceration and/or pandemic-related death.”

Worcester-based YWCA Central Massachusetts received a grant to assist their Girls CHOICE mentoring program for at-risk youth in Leominster.

“One of the most significant benefits of Girls CHOICE is the opportunity for participants to visit colleges, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” Deb Hall, CEO of the YWCA Central Massachusetts, said. “For many girls, it provides them with opportunities they may not have had access to. The exposure to higher education inspires many of them to pursue a college degree, empowering them to strive toward a brighter future. The YWCA is grateful to UWNCM for supporting this life-changing program.”

Judy Tomlinson, Director of Community Impact at UWNCM, added, “We are thrilled to support such a wide variety of summer programs that provide opportunities for local students to grow and explore. UWNCM looks forward to continuing to work with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and local United Ways to further our impact.”

Good dog! Comfort animals bring joy

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DEVENS – When more than a dozen dogs get together – even well-bred, well-behaved young Labradors like those spotlighted at a special outdoor event at the Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School recently – you might expect some playful gamboling on the grassy common. Perhaps barking among the canine cohort or  “here boy” or “sit girl” call-outs from the humans they came with.

None of that happened.

Instead, the scene on that sunny spring day was festive but serene.

In part, that’s because these dogs are trained, tuned in to their owners. And they are good-natured to begin with, according to Peggy Brogan, of Boonefield Labradors, in Rindge, New Hampshire, the family-owned breeding facility where all of the dogs originally came from. “They are bred for temperament,” she said.

Brogan, who co-owns and operates the business with her husband, Dave Brogan, says that all Boonefield Labradors are bred to have mild dispositions, inherently possessing behavioral traits that make them ideal comfort and therapy dogs when their training is complete.

After a demonstration that showcased the skills of several comfort dogs in training, some of the many dogs visiting Parker that day were sitting or standing on the grass outside the school’s main entrance with their owners or walking around the grounds.

Others were taking a cooling break indoors. Some of the dogs had participated in the earlier event, others had not. But this was free time for everyone, with nary a “woof” from any of them.

These handsome, healthy, grown-up Labradors, all alumni of Boonefield Labradors, now live with their owners in communities all over New England.

Imposing in size, with thick, glossy black or brown coats, to an observer the dogs appeared alert but relaxed, interested in but not excited by the goings-on as people sauntered past or stopped to say hello.

The dogs accepted attention with aplomb, behaving like guests you’d be glad to welcome back, schmoozing with students and school staff, licking a familiar hand or savoring an authorized treat.

The dogs were leashed and harnessed, but you got the sense they wouldn’t have strayed far from the humans they came with anyway. Their owners, that is – people they’ve bonded with who regard them as family, people these animals live and work with as comfort dogs or certified therapy dogs.

People like Lunenburg Police Officer Brad McNamara, resource officer for Lunenburg Public Schools.

“He’s the comfort dog… he works with kids, helps with anxiety, behavior issues,” McNamara said. “Whatever social or academic stress students may be facing, spending time with this seven-year-old labrador can put a smile on their faces,” he said.

At home, he’s the family pet. “He’s a people dog… he sleeps in my bed,” McNamara said. In the schools or wherever his owner takes him, the dog does his duty, mostly just by being there.

McNamara takes the dog to work with him in the schools every day, he said. Over the summer, he schedules visits elsewhere in town. The library. The Senior Center. They get around. “He’s been to the Capitol twice,” McNamara said.

Meghan Kelly’s two-year-old dog, Bear, also comes to work with her every day at the Middlesex County D.A.’s office. Asked what he does there, Kelly said he helps out with “crime visits.” For example, prosecutors may ask for Bear to come along when they are working on “tough cases,” she said, particularly those involving juvenile offenders.

Vince Capasso, of Wells, Maine, is clearly best buddies with his dog, who turns three years old in July. They’ve been together since he was a puppy, Capasso said, just 8 or 9 weeks old. “I always wanted a therapy dog,” he said, and that’s what this Labrador has become, as well as a life-long friend.

Capasso’s affinity for therapy dogs developed when his wife was undergoing chemotherapy. “It was always a good day when the dogs would visit,” he said.

Now retired, Capasso takes his dog to visit folks in health care facilities, nursing homes, hospitals. The pair are part of the University of New Hampshire Hospital’s “Paws Relax” program, he said, where they visit weekly. The dog is also an “ambassador” at the Portland, Maine, airport.

Titles aside, Capasso sees his dog as a pet. “He’s just a therapy dog who lives with the family,” he said.

Parker School Counselor Sheila Kelly forged the school’s first link with Boonefield, including “puppy days” that may take place more than once during the school year, offering opportunities for the students to interact with the Labradors at what is arguably the cutest, most cuddly stage of development.

Spurred by an incident at a college in the anxious aftermath of the statewide Covid-19 shutdown, she foresaw a need for proactive, post-pandemic strategies to help smooth the transition back to normal life. Comfort animals came to mind, Kelly said. She reached out to Peggy Brogan. Could they help?

Brogan had no qualms about the proposed collaboration. “Yes,” she said. “It’s a win/win.”

Boonefield Labrador dogs start to socialize at about eight weeks, Kelly said. “The kids help with that.”

And visits with the labs might help relieve stress as students and staff returned to school after the long pandemic shutdown. “It’s a community connection,” she said.

“Peggy and Dave have incredible dogs… they’re so sweet,” Kelly said.

Parker Head of School Brian Harrigan said he’s all for the arrangement, which until today consisted of puppy visits in the school library. “This is the largest-scale event so far,” he said. “I think it’s great.”

He’s no stranger to the comfort dog idea, either, having previously worked at schools that had them. Harrigan praised the “therapeutic effects of having an animal around,” whether it’s a drop-in visit to a classroom or having a dog on campus all day, in the library, for example, where students can stop by for a visit. “Most important is the opportunity (for students) to decompress” in a safe, well-supervised environment. “Someone is in charge of the dogs at all times,” he said.