50 Years Ago
- John Gare, the newly elected president of the Downtown Business Association, says that he intends to stress that Northampton merchants “can do a lot to help themselves,” without assistance from the city. However, Gare said in an interview yesterday that he thinks the city also has a responsibility to take some actions to improve the downtown.
- An evening of dinner and dancing is planned for Wednesday to mark the retirement of Edward J. O’Dea as chief probation officer for Hampshire County Superior Court. O’Dea was appointed to a part-time position as chief probation officer in 1948. At the same time, he was editor of the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
25 Years Ago
- Smith Academy senior Kelly Dostal, who helped lead her field hockey team to a Division 2 state championship this fall, on Monday notched an even higher achievement by making the U.S. National Field Hockey Team. She is the team’s only high school member.
- Michael A. Cosgriff, one of four finalists for the post of Northampton schools superintendent, discussed his educational philosophy by cellphone Monday, as he cooled down from his lunchtime daily run. “It’s about how to prepare kids to be successful, which means going on to the next level, whether that be work, a trade school, or college,” he said, sounding barely winded after a four-mile run.
10 Years Ago
- The University of Massachusetts and Amherst College both announced campus-wide bans Friday on hoverboards due to safety concerns. They fear that the increasingly popular motorized devise could spark fires if left charging in down rooms.
- Thomas Witten of Amherst has been selected for the highly competitive iCons (Integrated Concentration in Science) program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The UMass iCons program builds on students’ courses of study by providing them with the skills needed to enter the modern workforce.