Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, announced that a “Sobriety Checkpoint” will be implemented by the Massachusetts State Police on a Public Way in Bristol County. The purpose is to further educate the motoring public and strengthen the public’s awareness to the need of detecting and removing those motorists who operate under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs from our roadways. It will be operated during varied hours, the selection of vehicles will not be arbitrary, safety will be assured, and any inconveniences to motorists will be minimized with advance notice to reduce fear and anxiety.

Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, announced that a “Sobriety Checkpoint” will be implemented by the Massachusetts State Police on a Public Way in Middlesex County. The purpose is to further educate the motoring public and strengthen the public’s awareness to the need of detecting and removing those motorists who operate under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs from our roadways. It will be operated during varied hours, the selection of vehicles will not be arbitrary, safety will be assured, and any inconveniences to motorists will be minimized with advance notice to reduce fear and anxiety.

Fairhaven’s lovely Riverside Cemetery is the setting of an Office of Tourism walking tour on Sunday, May 17 at 2:00 p.m. It begins inside the cemetery’s entrance at 274 Main Street. Fairhaven tourism director Christopher Richard will act as guide.

The cemetery was created in 1850, on land donated by Warren Delano II, grandfather of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It is considered to be one of the most beautiful rural-style burial grounds in the region.

The walking tour route traces the quiet winding paths past the final resting places of some of the town’s most famous residents, including the Delano family tomb designed by Richard Morris Hunt, the H.H. Rogers mausoleum designed by Charles Brigham, and the grave sites of Captain William H. Whitfield, artist William Bradford, William F. Nye, John I. Bryant, and others. At each site, the guide discusses some of the history connected with the people buried there.

Nature lovers will see a wide variety of trees such as beech, black tupelo, birch, holly, cherry, dogwood, weeping willow, ash, sugar maple and more. Those interested in tombstone art will find fine examples of monuments and early slate markers bearing carvings of angels, willow trees, urns and other traditional symbols.

Copies of an 8-page Riverside Cemetery booklet created by the Office of Tourism will be available for free to all walkers.

The tour is free of charge and lasts about 90 minutes. There is no need for advance reservations. Walkers are urged to wear comfortable shoes and to be prepared for some hills and uneven ground. The tour will be cancelled in the event of rain. For more information, call 508-979-4085 or email Fairhaventours@aol.com.

The Whaling City Players are putting on their 2nd annual production, the musical Oliver!

When: May 1st, 2nd, 8th and 9th at 7:00pm.

Where: First Church of the Nazarene, 764 Hathaway Rd. New Bedford at the Whaling City Players Theater.

All shows are $12 for general admission and $8 for senior citizens. You can call the box office at whaling city players at 508-992-7944 or you can buy tickets online at www.whalingcityplayers.org.

10% of our proceeds will be going to the VIDA mission or global poverty and also direct relief for Haiti.

The story revolves around rock ‘n’ roll superstar Conrad Birdie (loosely based on Elvis Presley), who, to the dismay of his adoring fans, is about to be drafted into the Army. Featuring a book by Michael Stewart, music by Charles Strouse, and lyrics by Lee Adams, comic complications ensue when, as part of one last publicity stunt cooked up by his agent, he promises to give a good-bye kiss to one lucky girl from Sweet Apple, Ohio, on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” The upbeat score features “How Lovely To Be a Woman,” “The Telephone Hour,” “Put On A Happy Face,” “A Lot of Livin’ To Do” and “One Last Kiss.”

The show is directed by Melissa Murphy-Leite, musically directed by Martha Gannon, assisted by Amanda Tarantelli and Christine Payette. Set construction by Maurice Ouellette. Bye Bye Birdie is appropriate for families & children.

Show Dates:
· May 1 & 2 at 7pm and May 3rd at 2:00 pm matinee; Ticket prices are $7 for children, students and seniors, and $10 for adults.

Where:
· Bishop Stang High School, John C. O’Brien Gymnasium, 500 Slocum Road, North Dartmouth

Bishop Stang High School is a community rooted in, and dedicated to spreading the message of Jesus Christ as handed down through the teachings of the Catholic Church and the charism of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. A diocesan, co-educational, college preparatory school serving a diverse student population, we are called to holistically educate our students to be spiritually, academically, and socially prepared to meet the demands of higher learning and of life. Providing a disciplined yet nurturing atmosphere that combines academic excellence with Christian values, we educate our students to be people of integrity and global awareness who value a commitment to service. To find out more, visit www.bishopstang.org, “like” us on Facebook, and follow us @bishopstanghs.

Members of the Massachusetts State Police Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section (VFAS) and Brockton and Fall River Police yesterday evening located and arrested ANILDO L. CORREIA, 24, who was wanted for the stabbing homicide of a Brockton teenager during a brawl at a city park.

Troopers assigned to the VFAS South Team and local officers located CORREIA hiding inside an apartment at a Fall River address at approximately 5:30 p.m. Sunday. VFAS troopers and local officers, working with State Police detectives attached to the Plymouth District Attorney’s Office, had collected intelligence that suggested that CORREIA was at that address.

CORREIA was taken into custody and transported to the Brockton Police Department, where he was booked on a warrant charging him with the April 22 homicide of Ywron Martins during a fight at the park where Martins had gone to play basketball.

CORREIA is expected to be arraigned in Brockton District Court today.

A few years back we showcased the very popular Daffodil Field at Parsons Reserve in Dartmouth. Owned and managed by the Dartmouth National Resource Trust, locals flock in droves to the “off-the-beaten-path” destination to be oohed and aahed but nature’s artistry. Typically blooming in the second week of April, they can be enjoyed through early May, so there is a shot window of opportunity.

The vivid yellow colors and densely packed groupings of the flower have inspired poets, artists, and common folk for millenia. Colloquially called Daffodils, the narcissus is a Spring perennial native to southwest Europe and North Africa. In fact, they have even been prized by the Romans and ancient Egyptians medicinally and botanically as well as ornamentally.

By the 17th century, Daffodil mania swept Europe and by the 19th century the plant had been turned into a commercial crop by the Dutch and English, who are responsible for importing the Daffodil to North America. Now the plant can be found in parks, fields, homes and gardens all across the nation.

If you would like to experience for yourself, the flower that has inspired millions over the years, there are a few things one needs to know. There is a voluntary donation of $2 for non-members to help care for the field. Members get in for free. If you would like to become a member, you can find more info here.

Visitation has skyrocketed and the sheer amount of people who visit are adding substantial wear and tear. Some people have lain in the field, crushing the flowers for a photo opportunity. Some have even given park rangers a hard time for interrupting these photo opportunities. Many have trampled and picked the flowers. The rules for visiting the field and the donation are very important to the survival of the field.

Here are the rules for visiting the Daffodil Field per the DNRT’s website:

• Stay on the defined trail at all times!
• Do not step on the daffodils – if they are crushed, they will die.
• Do not pick the daffodils.
• No commercial photography, no accessories (such as freestanding lights), and no props (such as chairs and balloons) are allowed.
• Dogs must be on leash throughout the entire Reserve and all dog waste must be removed.

Dartmouth Natural Resource Trust
404 Elm Street
Dartmouth, MA 02748
Phone: 508-991-2289
E-mail: info@dnrt.orgWebsite: http://dnrt.org/parsons-reserve/
Facebook: facebook.com/DNRTmain
Map:dnrt.org/pdfs/Dartmouth_Parsons-R7.pdf

For those “in the know,” it’s just after the iconic Davoll’s General Store. You can park at Russells Mills Landing, cross the street and stroll up the hill to the field. If you are unfamiliar with the specific area, just head down route 6 towards the mall and turn onto Old Westport Road at the Faunce Corner/Route 6 intersection. This road becomes Chase Road, which you will drive just short of 4 miles until you reach a stop sign. That’s Russell Mills Road. Turn right, drive 3/4 of a mile until you see Davoll’s General Store on your left. Continue straight for a few hundred more feet until you see the dirt parking lot that is Russells Mills Landing. You’re there!

WHAT: United Way of Greater New Bedford will host its Annual Youth Day of Caring. The event matches area high school students with nonprofits that need assistance with various projects. This is a unique opportunity for students to take part in valuable community service while providing local non-profits with much needed support. This year 160 youth from high schools will volunteer at 15 organizations in Greater New Bedford. They will complete projects varying from painting to landscaping to organizing to working with children.

The event is generously sponsored by BankFive, Partridge, Snow & Hahn, Tremblay’s Bus Co., Stop & Shop and Dunkin’ Donuts.

WHEN:
FRIDAY, MAY 1st, 2015
8:15 AM – Kickoff at NB Public Library steps
9:30 AM-1:30 PM – Students working at project sites

WHO:
New Beford High School
City on a Hill
Fairhaven High School
Global Learning Charter Public School

WHERE:
Various project sites (LIST BELOW) Best photo sites are asterisk-ed – these sites have large groups of students.

Better Community Living, Inc. – 5 Ventura Drive, Dartmouth – will be offsite after orientation
Harbour House Family Center – 713 Shawmut Ave, New Bedford
New Bedford Whaling Museum* – 18 Johnny Cake Hill, New Bedford
Schwartz Center for Children – 1 Posa Place, Dartmouth
Sharing the Harvest Community Farm* – 276 Gulf Hill Road, Dartmouth
The Family Pantry-Damien’s Place – 3065 Cranberry Highway, Wareham
The Nemasket Group – 56 Bridge St, Fairhaven
West End Day Nursery – 170 Cedar St, New Bedford – will be offsite after orientation
YWCA Southeastern Massachusetts – 89 Merrimac St. New Bedford
The Salvation Army – 619 Purchase St. New Bedford
Whitfield-Manjiro Friendship Society – 11 Cherry St. Fairhaven
Our Sisters’ School – 145 Brownell Ave. New Bedford
Mass Audubon Society* – 786 East Horseneck Road Dartmouth
Buttonwood Park Zoo* – 425 Hawthorn St New Bedford
Immigrants Assistance Center – 58 Crapo St New Bedford

Your Theatre, Inc. director, Stephen R. Kay will hold open auditions for actors to fill eight roles in Dracula, adapted by John L. Balderston and Hamilton Deane. The highly successful thriller is based on the novel of the same name by Bram Stoker.

Auditions will be held Tuesday and Wednesday, May 26 and 27, 2015 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the wheelchair accessible Your Theatre, Inc. Playhouse located at 136 Rivet St. (corner of County St.), New Bedford, at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church complex. Parking and entrance located at rear of church on County St.

Known for successfully directing a variety of top stage plays at venues throughout southern New England, Stephen R. Kay’s auditions will consist of a cold reading from the script. Acting experience is not necessary, but role seekers should have a desire to share the experience of and commitment to live theatre and the enjoyment of collaborating with other talented individuals.

Mr. Kay is seeking actors to play the following characters:

• Count Dracula: age 50s, a tall, mysterious, polished, and distinguished man.
• Prof. Abraham Van Helsing: age 45 to 60-plus, medium height, clean-shaven, alert and resolute man of action who speaks incisively and always to the point.
• Dr. John Seward: age 45 to 60-plus, an intelligent medical specialist who lives in a world of text books and patients, not a man of action or force of character.
• Lucy Seward: age 20s to 30s, beautiful, pale, graceful.
• John Harker: age 25 to 35, handsome, English public school type, direct, incisive, excitable.
• Renfield: age 20s to 30s, a mental patient who has come under the power of the vampire and who swings back and forth between reality and insanity.
• Martin Butterworth: a man of indeterminate age who is the sanatorium attendant.
• Miss Lucy’s maid: an attractive woman of indeterminate age.

Listed ages of characters are not set in stone, but actors seeking the roles of Dr. Seward, Lucy, Harker, Renfield, and the maid should be capable of handling English dialect. Actors seeking the roles of Dracula and Van Helsing should be capable of handling a dialect depicting Continental European ethnicity. The character of the attendant Martin Butterworth requires an ability to handle a working-class British cockney dialect.

The play follows Lucy Seward, daughter of the physician in charge of a sanatorium near London, who is mysteriously anemic. Doctor Van Helsing, a family friend, suspects a vampire that roams the earth by night sucking the blood of victims to sustain its earthly life. With the help of Lucy’s father and her fiancé, Harker, they search for the fiend among the sanatorium patients. They widen their search to include the new occupants of the estate next door, not wanting to leave any stone unturned in their quest to rid the world of the supernatural terror.

The show will go into rehearsal beginning shortly after Labor Day with performances scheduled for Thursdays through Saturdays November 12 to 14 and 19 to 21, 2015 at 8 p.m. with matinee performances Sundays, November15 and 22 at 2:30 p.m. Actors must be available for all performances.

For further information about the audition, call Your Theatre, Inc. at 508-993-0772, or send an email to info@yourtheatre.orgThe theatre’s web site is www.yourtheatre.org

UPDATED 5:34 p.m. April 24, 2015: The State Police are releasing the names of the victims of  last night’s double fatal crash in Swansea.

Preliminary reports indicate that one occupant, 20-year-old NICHOLAS J. HOPPER of Taunton, exited the vehicle with the help of passing motorists. The driver of the vehicle, 22-year-old KATRINA L. GOMES of Taunton, and passenger 19-year-old JOSEPH M. VODDEN of Taunton, were trapped in the car and determined to be deceased at the scene. HOPPER was transported to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence with serious injuries.

Preliminary investigation by Troop D and the Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section suggests that at approximately 11:09 p.m. yesterday a 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt was being driven west on Route 195 in Swansea when, for reasons still under investigation, it spun off the southern edge of the road into the grass median. After leaving the road surface the vehicle struck a tree and caught on fire. Preliminary reports indicated that one occupant, a young man, exited the vehicle with the help of passing motorists who stopped. The other two occupants, a young adult man and a young adult woman, were trapped in the car and determined to be deceased at the scene. The surviving victim was transported to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence with serious injuries.