By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

Canton’s 4th of July events will take place at the Irish Cultural Centre on Route 138.

Starting at 5 p.m. next Thursday, there will be free children’s activities, including inflatables and face painting. Canton folk rock group The Wolff Sisters and Classic Trax will perform a concert at 6:30.

As the sky darkens, the fireworks display will begin. The display will be put on by Atlas PyroVision, which won the Gold Jupiter Award for a display during the 2012 International Fireworks Competition in Montreal.

As a security precaution, coolers are prohibited and bags will be subject to inspection. Food and drink will be available for purchase throughout the event.

Packing chairs and blankets is strongly encouraged.

That morning, the 46th annual July 4 Road Race will happen. Check in will be at 8:30 a.m. with the race beginning at 9:30. Advance registration is recommended.

The start and finish will be at Canton Town Club at 300 Baily St. The races include a two-mile Fun Run for children ages 2 to 12 and a five-mile Road Race for ages 13 and up. Registration is $5 for the Fun Run and $10 for the Road Race.

Awards will be given in male and female categories and multiple age groups.

For more information about these events, visit www.cantonrec.com.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

With low enromment ahead of Friday's registration deadline, Canton’s town-run preschool, The Gridley School, is facing the possibility of shutting down.

At the June 19 selectmen's meeting, Canton Recreation Director Janet Maguire said 12 children were enrolled. The numbers hasn't increased since then, Maguire said.

“We’re looking to meet a minimum number for enrollment,” Maguire said earlier this week.

That minimum is 17 students for each of two sessions – the morning and the afternoon, according to Maguire.

Following the meeting, the deposit for the pre-school increased to $400 from $40 because selectmen thought this would show more commitment from parents who want to be involved.

The monthly tuition for the coming year is $400 for morning sessions and $500 for afternoon sessions, according to the Canton Recreation Department website. That marks a sharp increase from the previous tuition of $230, according to former Gridley teacher Nicole Brooks.

The fee is refundable if the school closes due to lack of enrollment, according to the department website.

Of the 12 parents who had paid the $40 deposit so far, Maguire declined to say whether those parents had paid the $400 amount.

The program was placed in jeopardy this spring when all four of the pre-school teachers resigned. Maguire characterized the departures as coincidental.

Brooks, who had been a Gridley teacher for 2 1/2 years, said she was leaving because the town did not offer benefits and she found a job that did. Brooks will work at St. John the Evangelist School in Canton in the fall.

She said interest in the Gridley School program remains high, despite the scarcity of families who have paid the deposit.

“A lot of the families that heard about the Gridley School closing are hesitant to pay the registration fee and lose their registration fee,” Brooks said. “A lot of people signed up for the program for September 2013, but they didn’t pay their fee.”

Brooks agreed with Maguire’s assessment that the teachers leaving was coincidental, stating that each had a different reason.

Selectmen at the meeting last week – particularly John Connolly – expressed disappointment with the teachers for failing to give notice in a timely manner.

“Not to have the courtesy to tell people, that’s not right,” Connolly said.

Brooks said all the teachers had given their notice in May, which was enough time for the town to find replacements.

At least two teachers will have to be hired, according to Maguire. Brooks said that candidates for the positions had made themselves known to the Gridley teachers and that they would gladly share the names.

Maguire told selectmen last week that she did not think the preschool should continue as a Recreation Department program, and should be transferred to the School Department.

“The Recreation Department is in the business of recreation, and the Gridley School does not fall into that category,” Maguire said this week.

The Gridley School has been in place for more than 20 years, according to Maguire. She commended the teachers and said the program was highly regarded in town.

Parents who attended the selectmen meeting agreed.

Jennifer Sykes said she had hoped her daughter, who had just finished her first year at Gridley, would be attending the school for two more years.

“The experience she has had there has been unbelievable,” Sykes said. “As a mom, I could not be more proud of her, and that school has offered that to her.”

The Playground and Recreation Commission voted to keep the program going, but only if the town would step in to support any deficit the program creates. That amount could be as much as $20,000, according to Maguire.

Selectmen voted to wait until the registration deadline of Friday, June 28 to see whether enrollment numbers improved, then make a decision at their next meeting, on July 9.

Selectman Avril Elkort said that if the Gridley School is closed, Canton Community Kindergarten has committed to accepting the Gridley students.

For more information on the Gridley School, visit www.cantonrec.com.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

Massachusetts elected Malden Democrat Edward Markey by a large margin in Tuesday’s special election for US Senate, but Canton supported his opponent, Republican businessman Gabriel Gomez.

Of 4,750 ballots cast, Gomez received 2,500 or about 53 percent of the vote, with Markey getting 2,223 votes, or about 47 percent.

Voter turnout was about 33 percent, according to Canton’s Town Clerk.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

The following information was taken from the Canton police log. Suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

Monday, June 17
Summons: At 9:03 a.m., police stopped a vehicle at the intersection of Washington Street and Randolph Street. Police issued a summons to Stenio S. Ferreira, 28, of Stoughton on a charge of unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Summons: At 10:34 a.m., police issued a summons to Milton G. Braxton, 59, of Canton on a charge of larceny over $250. The charge came on the dispute over ownership of a car.

Summons: At 3:16 p.m., police stopped a vehicle at the intersection of Washington Street and Historical Way and issued a summons to Emilio L. Hernandez, 25, of Bridgewater on charges of unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and improper turn. Hernandez allegedly turned left at a no left hand turn intersection.

Arrest: At 6 p.m., police arrested a 16-year-old juvenile of Canton and charged the person with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. The arrest took place on Turnpike Street.

Tuesday, June 18
Arrest: At 8:45 a.m., police stopped a vehicle at the intersection of Historical Way and Washington Street. Police arrested Philip M. Doherty, 46, of Avon and charged him with operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license, subsequent offense.

Wednesday, June 19
Summons: At 2:12 p.m., police received a report of a theft on Sherman Street. Police issued a summons to Pablo Josue Rodas, 29, of Mansfield on the charge of larceny over $250. Rodas allegedly stole $8,000 worth of jewelry.

Thursday, June 20
Theft: At 4:23 p.m., police received a report of theft on Messinger Street. The resident ordered a Rolex watch on eBay and paid about $5,000. The watch was allegedly never sent.

Arrest: At 11:58 p.m., police arrested Norman N. Mitchell, 50, of Dorchester and charged him with domestic assault and battery.

Friday, June 21
Theft: At 9:34 a.m., police received a report of theft at Amber Road Café on Washington Street. An iPad was taken on Sunday, June 16.

Break-in: At 6:28 p.m., police received a report of a break-in on York Street. There were no signs of force entry and a Rolex watch, wedding bands, and cash totaling more than $8,000 were taken.

Sunday, June 23
Summons: At 9:43 p.m., police stopped a vehicle on Turnpike Street. Police issued a summons to Xavier Pena-Diaz, 21, of Randolph and charged him with operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license and no inspection sticker.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

The dog days of summer are beginning in Canton with the “Pooch-A-Palooza” festival on Saturday and Sunday.

Held at Prowse Farm at 5 Blue Hill River Road, the celebration will feature live music, a beer garden, food trucks, games for children, and all things dog.

The dog pavilion will feature agility performances, demonstrations, and contests; there will be a dog park for relaxing, and a vendor market place for products for dog owners.

Musicians include The Motel Kings, The Groove Junkies, Joshua Tree, the Josh Logan Trio, Johnny Hoy and the Bluefish, and family musicians Steve Songs and Vanessa Trien.

A portion of the proceeds from the festival will benefit Canine Companions for Independence, a non-profit organization that works to enhance the lives of people with disabilities other than blindness by providing highly trained assistance dogs and ongoing support.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $8 for children, and $12 for seniors in advance at pooch-a-palooza.com, and $18 for adults, $10 for children, and $14 for seniors at the gate. Dogs are free, but must be leashed. The festival goes from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

For more information, visit www.pooch-a-palooza.com.

Girl Scouts of Eastern Mass. announced Thursday that 51 Girl Scouts have earned the Girl Scout Gold Award-- the highest recognition a member of the organization can achieve.

The award recognizes a service project within a girl's community that creates change and becomes ongoing while also portraying a girl's organizational, leadership, and networking skills. To earn the award, girls must complete the Silver Award and a minimum of 80 hours of service, according to a press release.

The awards were given in a ceremony on June 19 at the Marlborough Holiday Inn.

Here is a list of the girls and an explanation of their projects:

Emily Allard, Stoneham
Allard's project, Lindenwood Cemetery Visitors Project, helped visitors easily locate the cemetery plots of their friends and family. She replaced the street signs and poles and created a detailed map of the cemetery near the entrance. Smaller paper maps are also available for visitors to take with them.

Claire Bagnani, Chestnut Hill
Bagnani’s project, Elder Youth Connection, helps senior citizens who are living alone or lacking support systems. Children of Brookline regularly spent time with the elderly and provided assistance by grocery shopping and running errands. The partnership between elder housing communities and the youth of Brookline formed a strong bond among the two communities. The program, titled SHOP, will continue this relationship between the senior citizens and high school students.

Andrea Bourke, Kingston (she moved to Maryland but remained in her Kingston GS troop through Skype and other technology)
The Chesapeake Bay is one of the unhealthiest waterways in the world, due to human habitation, development, deforestation, overfishing and nutrient pollution. Bourke's project, Save the Bay, aimed to promote awareness for this regional issue and brought about change by educating others on how they can affect the problem. She worked with a school that bordered the bay to create a rain garden designed to catch rainwater off the roof of the building closest to the bay. The garden was 800 square feet and contained native plants. Bourke also created posters and brochures to educate others on how to keep the bay clean. The EcoClub at the school will maintain the garden.

Meckila Britt, Ashland
Britt's project, One Skein of Yarn, helped bridge the gap between generations through knitting and crocheting. She managed a group of individuals, ages 10 to 101, who spent time together learning to knit and crochet. The group made hats, scarves, and mittens for the homeless. In December, they assembled their projects into gift baskets that were delivered to a local family shelter. They also provided a basket of home-baked goodies for the shelter staff. The group continues to meet and make additional items for other shelters.

Emily Buckley, Canton
Buckley's high school requires that each student complete 20 hours of community service. The only source of these opportunities is through the Career Center website, which was not maintained properly and needed to be updated with more current and diverse opportunities. Buckley's project, Career Center Website Rehabilitation, provides easy access to information on local nonprofit organizations, as well as organizations outside the community, offering students more diverse service opportunities to choose from. Members of the school's chapter of the National Honor Society will update the website annually.

Rachel Cabitt, Rowley
Cabitt's project, Painting History, combined art and history to educate the community about the town's history. She painted a mural in the town hall and held workshops in the library to share the historical aspects depicted in the mural. She then had participants express what they learned artistically.

Kathryn Chiffer, Topsfield
Chiffer's project, Project Lunchbox: Let's Eat!, educates elementary school students and their families about the link between healthy eating and positive school performance. She taught multi-generational nutrition and cooking classes, which included reading labels and understanding marketing strategies used by manufacturers. She maintains a blog to educate the wider community about the importance of healthy eating and writes a weekly column in her school's newsletter. Chiffer also convinced the school cafeteria to add one of her healthy recipes to the menu. Her school will continue to support her endeavors by applying for a grant to fund an expansion of her program.\

Arianne Chipman, Hingham
Chipman's project, Green Thumbs Gardening, teaches local elementary school students the value of growing local produce and supporting local farms. She helped them plant a garden that was maintained over summer break by students and their families. An autumn harvest was shared by the school community, allowing for cost savings on the school's produce. The school will be continuing this program.

Jennifer Crawford, North Reading
Crawford's project, Interfaith Leadership Summit, addresses religious intolerance. Through the summit and a video documentary, she educated local youth groups about different faiths and encouraged them to teach others what they learned. High school students from the area participated in workshops on diversity, acceptance, tolerance, religious pluralism and identities. Crawford's church youth group plans on making this an annual event.

Danielle Davies, Boxford
For over 15 years, the Boxford Town Library has been in poor condition, with limited storage and very little usable space for programs and activities. Davies' project, Boxford Library Rescue, gave the library a much needed update and reorganized the library's storage space. Davies worked with volunteers to clean out the library barn, providing the library with more storage and better access to materials stored there. In addition, they reorganized and repainted the current space, giving the library a fresh look and more space for community programs and events. The Friends of the Library have agreed to maintain the storage space.

Jessica Desmond, Chelmsford
Women and children are often victims of violence and do not know how to protect themselves. Desmond's project, A Fighting Chance, collaborated with self-defense instructors and local police officers to provide workshops on basic self-defense, while also educating participants on laws related to domestic violence and rape. She created a video to be used by her dojo, which has decided to run a six-week course on self-defense for women and girls.

Emily Doucette, Maynard
Doucette's project, Organizing for the Future of the Choral Program, organized her school's choral collection based on music type, artist, and title. Doucette created a log documenting resources and a new storage system that holds more music, and updated file cabinets with new paint. She also created a Guide to Being a Chorus Librarian to ensure that her new organized system would be maintained. She utilized Facebook and a blog to recruit volunteers.

Elizabeth Driver, Topsfield
Driver's project, Read, Reinforce, Reach Out, provided supplemental materials for classrooms with autistic students. She assembled binders containing literacy materials and activities that reinforce concepts taught in classroom books. Driver created two displays, one aimed at adults and the other toward children, at the local library to educate the public about autism. She also visited some elementary classrooms to emphasize the importance of understanding autism and inclusion.

Jazmin Eltoury, Quincy
Eltoury's project, Creating a Safe Environment for Youth in Town, provides the children in her community safe opportunities to participate in outdoor activities on a regular basis. She started a teen group that met regularly at the local sportsman club. She also created an instructional video to teach the fundamentals of archery and help parents get their children involved in archery and outdoor activities in a safe environment.

Claire Faddis, Boxford
Faddis' project, Water Conservation Education and Promotion, promotes water conservation through education. Faddis worked with second graders in her community, educating them about wasting water and the important role water plays in their daily lives through classroom activities. Students now conserve water by turning off the water when brushing their teeth and checking for leaking faucets. She also taught adults in the community about using rain barrels to capture water, which can be used to water gardens and lawns. She wrote numerous articles on rain barrel usage for the local paper and created a website which will continue the education process.

Caitlin Fitzmaurice, Scituate
Fitzmaurice's project, A Child's Sanctuary: Go Green for Marine Life, brings community awareness to marine biodiversity and teaches the community to protect this special habitat. She ran two events for families that held a number of interactive, fun and educational activities about marine life and the harmful effects humans can cause. She worked closely with NOAA/Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and trained their volunteers, who will continue to provide Fitzmaurice's workshops to the community.

Colleen Fitzpatrick, North Reading
Fitzpatrick's project, Parish Park Rededication and Cleanup, constructed a memorial garden in North Reading's Parish Park to honor the town's veterans. She, along with volunteers, created a beautiful, reflective space where townspeople can remember and appreciate the veterans. Upon completion, Fitzpatrick organized an event to honor the veterans and to dedicate the space to them.

Kiersten Flodman, Rowley
Flodman's project, Babies on the Go, gave access to developmental toys for families with new babies. She worked with community groups to gather supplies, make blankets, and assemble bags containing rattles, books, blankets and laminated cards explaining the importance of developmental play. Local physical and occupational therapists and service providers distributed the bags to their patients.

Alicia Healey, Canton
Healey's project, Mission Pet Safe, is an educational campaign for pet owners. The campaign addressed pet safety, including accidental poisoning, car accidents, proper restraint practices, pet first-aid kits and heat-related deaths from dogs left in cars. Healy, with the help of volunteers, created bookmarks, a traveling display, first-aid kits, brochures and puzzles for preschoolers. She gave presentations at the library and the middle school and high school. She also wrote an article for the newspaper, shared the information on global websites, and created a website and blog.

Emma Holland, Hingham
Holland's project, Sounds of the Past, involved working with fellow student musicians to compile and bring back historical 19th-century American music to the town's historical society. She researched, transcribed and learned the music with help from her fellow musicians. The group recorded the music, which is now available for use by the historical society and can be found on YouTube. They also held a live performance of the music for the local elementary school. To view her project blog, visit www.gssoundsofthepast.tumblr.com.

Caroline Hultin, Sudbury
Hultin's project, Up and Out for Gold 2012, addresses homelessness. She worked with Heading Home, a nonprofit that provides emergency, transitional, and permanent housing to low-income homeless and formerly homeless families. Hultin, with the help of volunteers, furnished and cleaned an apartment for a homeless family. She also recruited younger Girl Scout troops to collaborate with Heading Home to set up additional homes.

Anna Krah, Medfield
Krah’s project, Coexisting Cultures, expanded cultural education in her community. She created a Chinese Club at Medfield High School and introduced the plight of people in Nicaragua to children in the third grade. As a result of their experiences, high school students expressed greater interest in a Chinese exchange program and the third graders gained a better understanding of the global impact of community service.

Danielle Lapierre, Chelmsford
After being used by the community for years, the Lady of Fatima statue at St. Mary's Church has become overgrown and inaccessible. Lapierre's project, Create St. Mary Parish Marian Grotto, involved designing and building a beautiful grotto with the help of many volunteers. The newly transformed space is now a place where the community can meditate, reflect or pray. A dedicated group of parishioners will maintain the area and already plan to add a waterfall feature.

Katherine LaScaleia, Sudbury
LaScaleia’s project, Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions by Reducing Idling in the Community of Sudbury, educates both youth and adults about the environmental, economic and health hazards of idling. She ran a bike rally to inspire children to ride their bikes while also teaching them about the dangers of idling. She used various methods to bring awareness, such as writing a series of articles for the newspaper on the hazards of idling and created a website where people can take a pledge to reduce their idling.

Whitney Ligonde, Dedham
Ligonde's project, Educational Inequality, organized high school students to tutor younger students one-on-one through the middle school's homework club. Working with school staff, she changed the policy that only National Honor Society students were allowed to tutor middle school students. She worked with the math department to train the tutors and develop a curriculum. Her high school will continue her work by making this an official club.

Christina Liotti, Danvers
Liotti's project, Seniors on the Move, aims to inspire senior citizens to become more active. With the new Danvers Rail Trail in mind, she created a club called Walk with the Seniors. Students from her school walked with seniors as a group, giving them a sense of security and the option of assistance if needed. Her high school has made this an official community service option for students.

Anne LoVerso, Southborough
LoVerso’s project, Childhood Health and Fitness through Circus Arts, addresses childhood obesity and the lack of childhood health and fitness. She worked with a local circus school to develop a static trapeze curriculum with step-by-step instructions for tricks, spotting, warm-up exercises and conditioning. She, along with a team of volunteers, held a workshop for 4th and 5th graders to share circus activities and provided information on healthy eating at a large community event. Her curriculum will be used by gym teachers in elementary schools. The National Honor Society has also agreed to hold a fitness booth at their opening day event.

Alison McDermott, Hingham
McDermott's project, Teens Teach Technology, helps senior citizens feel more comfortable with using technology. She and her peer volunteers provided workshops on Skype, Twitter and Facebook. The senior citizens are now able to connect with family overseas, reconnect with old classmates and share photos with loved ones. McDermott created a binder and PowerPoint presentation for future workshop leaders.

Samantha McGoldrick, North Reading
McGoldrick's project, Raised Beds for North Reading Food Pantry, involved creating and maintaining four raised garden beds behind the food pantry building. These gardens help supply the North Reading Food Pantry with fresh fruits and vegetables to serve families. The local garden club has agreed to care for the gardens and will donate plants to keep the project going.

Molly McGowan, Waltham
McGowan’s project, The Imagination Station, addresses the lack of imaginative play present in many children’s hospitals. For a hospital play room, she created a cabinet that is filled with imaginative play toys and that can be accessed 24/7 by children and their families. She worked closely with a Child Life Specialist to determine appropriate activities for hospitalized children of all ages. McGowan created a committee of volunteers who will maintain the imagination station.

Jessica Merritt, Pembroke
Merritt's project, Water Safety, brought community awareness to drowning and how it can be prevented. She created informative and interactive activity stations that included open water education and CPR demonstrations. In addition, she created a binder with all the information needed to continue this awareness program, which the town landing chairman has agreed to do.

Melissa Moody, Newton
Moody’s project, Wetlands: The Final Frontier, brought community awareness to the local wetlands. She worked with DCR officials and local volunteers to install informational posts throughout the Charles River Wetlands. Each post has a QR code that visitors can scan with their smart phones. The code directs them to a website (www.qbqtrail.org) with information about that particular part of the wetlands.

Katelin Oberlander, West Yarmouth
Oberlander's project, Mini Clinic for Field Hockey, gives younger girls a better understanding of field hockey before they enter high school. She held field hockey clinics where girls practiced the sport, learned to work as a team, enjoyed exercise and learned about proper nutrition to keep their bodies fueled.

Leda Olia, Newton
Olia’s project, Will Run for Fun, introduced elementary school children to long-distance running to promote enthusiasm for the sport at a younger age. She created an afterschool long-distance running program and employed high school volunteers. She also produced a handbook, which will be used by future volunteers to continue the program.

Ann Pastorello, Tewksbury
Pastorello's project, Operation Blanket, helps educate the community about animal shelters and animal adoption. She worked with local children and members of the senior center to create blankets and treats for cats at the MSPCA shelter. Pastorello created a PowerPoint presentation and flyer that she shared at various workshops. She also made a YouTube video demonstrating how to make the blankets.

Hannah Peternell, Westford
Peternell's project, New Student Protocol, creates a welcome program for new students at Westford Academy. She designed an infrastructure of support, such as welcome phone calls to new students, invitations to a new student orientation banquet and appointing peer counselors to show new students around, to help ease their transition into a new school. The program will be continued by the school's guidance staff and peer counselor group.

Samantha Rizzo, Canton
A can is recycled in 6 weeks, but takes hundreds of years to decompose in a landfill. Rizzo raised public awareness about the need to recycle through her project, Recycling Receptacles. She gave a presentation to her local Board of Selectmen to show why the town needed public recycling receptacles and explained the costs between different types of receptacles. She made a public service announcement on recycling, which will air annually on Canton Community Television. Rizzo also created recycling stickers to encourage the public to use the new receptacles.

Kristina Ryan, Burlington
Ryan's project, Heartbeat Awareness Program, addressed teen pregnancy and provided support systems for teen moms. Ryan partnered with Heartbeat Pregnancy Health Center, a nonprofit organization that provides free resources to pregnant teens such as free ultrasounds, prenatal and infant care, counseling, and items needed for the baby. Ryan gave community presentations to teens and their families about the health center and the resources available. She also collected supplies for the teens and newborns that the organization will distribute.

Meredith Scheiring, Hingham
Feeling inspired to help teens who are newly diagnosed with diabetes, Scheiring's project, Diabetes Domain, created a website for those with diabetes. On the site, people can share inspirational and personal stories, advice, regrets, words of encouragement and information on developing technology for diabetic care. The College Diabetes Network will maintain the website: diabetesdomain.wix.com/dd.

Kristen Shevlin, North Reading
Shevlin's project, Backyard Gardens, addresses the issue of limited access to healthy foods. She worked with members of the community to build raised-bed gardens. Some fruits and vegetables are for community consumption while others are donations to the local food pantry. She also provided healthy recipes for the food pantry to hand out to patrons. A younger Girl Scout troop will continue her project.

Charlotte Skolnick, Pembroke
Skolnick's project, Self-Guided Historical Tours of Pembroke, provides the community with an interactive experience of the town's rich and interesting sites. She worked closely with the Pembroke library staff to develop accurate descriptions of the historical sites. With a team of volunteers, she created two walking routes and three driving routes through town. Skolnick held a kickoff event to introduce the walking tours to her community.

Gabriella Smith, Andover
Smith's project, Rediscovering Haggetts Pond Through Modern Technology, promotes the trails surrounding Andover's Haggetts Pond. She used modern technology to make the trail's information more accessible and appealing. Using GPS and cartography software, Smith created a detailed map of the area. She worked with volunteers to develop an informational website about Haggetts Pond as well as a kiosk displaying a QR code that brings smart phone users to the website.

Eliza Lily Snow, Hingham
Snow's project, Middle School Circle Club, is a club for middle-school children, with and without disabilities, to interact and socialize in a safe, judgment-free environment. The bi-monthly club focuses on the importance of inclusion and acceptance. The Circle Club helped to strengthen friendships and inspired members to participate in the high school's Best Buddies program. Students from the Best Buddies program will continue the Circle Club at the middle school.

Amelia Steeger, Medfield
Steeger’s project, Cranes for Change, created environmental educational clubs at the local afterschool program for children in grades 2–6. She also set up a monthly group at her church to explore topics like chemicals in body care products, recycling and repurposing materials, and growing organic foods. She worked in conjunction with Medfield Green to sponsor a Forever Green Family Night Out. Each participant created a paper crane to symbolize their pledge to help the environment. This event will be continued by Girl Scouts working on their Sow What? Journey.

Jennifer Sullivan, Wakefield
Sullivan's project, Replacing Missing House Numbers, addresses the issue of house numbers not being visible to emergency personnel. With the help of volunteers, she checked approximately 5,000 houses in Wakefield and notified owners that their house numbers were missing or not easily visible from the street. Sullivan worked with the local fire chief to send letters informing residents of the safety issue. A local hardware store offered a discount on the purchase of new house numbers if residents showed the letter. The local fire department will continue her crusade.

Samantha Traficante, Kingston
Traficante's project, Kiosk and Signage Maintenance at Open Spaces, brought public awareness to Kingston's conservation properties. The properties were run down and vandalized, and Traficante worked with a team of volunteers to clean up the properties and repair information kiosks. She also created map boxes to hold site maps at each location.

Katerina Tsoutsouras, Rowley
Tsoutsouras' project, Loving Literature: Helping Children Develop a Love of Books and Reading, addresses illiteracy by finding ways to motivate children to read more. She scheduled weekly book club sessions at the Ipswich Library and United Methodist Church for children ages 5 to 8. Volunteers offered reading sessions for different skill levels and time for crafts to further engage the children. When parents were surveyed, they expressed that the children were more interested in reading at home in their free time after attending the sessions.

Emily Van Laarhoven, Southborough
Families with children who have special needs have trouble finding qualified babysitters. In order to have child care they have to hire a specialist at $25-30 an hour, or rely on older siblings. This is often detrimental to the family dynamic and creates additional strain both financially and mentally on parents. Van Laarhoven’s project, Training Course for Babysitting Kids with Special Needs, trained volunteers to recognize and understand specific special needs diagnoses, creating a pool of knowledgeable and skilled babysitters at a reasonable rate.

Stephanie Wasiuk, Maynard
Wasiuk’s project, Music for the Future, organized the high school band’s music into an easy-to-use system, making resources easily available to students. She restored over 200 boxes of organized material, made note of missing pieces, and documented the contents. She also created a how-to manual for the system and a shelving unit to track music being returned and ensure its proper storage.

Laura White, Reading
White's project, Spreading Shakespeare, helped people appreciate Shakespeare by exposing them to his work. With the assistance of volunteers dressed in costumes from the 1500s, she held workshops for teens at the library's Teen Summer Reading program and worked with younger children at Camp Rice Moody. She also helped middle school students put on a performance of Twelfth Night. A recording of the performance and how-to videos can be found on YouTube.

Anna Willms, Wellesley
Willms' project, Preparing Children for an Eye Examination, addresses children's fear and anxiety concerning eye exams. She created a video and booklet to educate children on what an eye exam entails. The video and booklet have been given to Mass Eye and Ear and Children's Hospital to help alleviate their young patients' fears.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

The town-run Gridley School preschool may not be operating next year because of a large number of staff resignations and low enrollment in the program, Canton officials have learned.

Recreation director Janet Maguire told selectmen Tuesday that the program could run at a $20,000 deficit this year if more participants do not sign up.

Four teachers had resigned, meaning that new ones would have to be hired, and there have only been 12 students enrolled. The program has a capacity of 46.

Maguire recommended the program be under the purview of the School Department rather than the Recreation Department. She added that her committee would support continuing the program if they knew that selectmen would support it financially.

After hearing from parents that the school was the best affordable option for some, selectmen decided to see whether there were more people who would sign up by June 28. Parents can enroll by calling 781 821 5030.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

The following information was taken from the Canton police log. Suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

Tuesday, June 11
Summons: At 11:24 a.m., police went to Waterfall Drive for a report of threats. Police issued a summons to Michael Morrison, 51, of Oak Bluffs on the charge of threat to commit a crime.

Break-in: At 12:36 p.m., police received a report of a break-in on Turtle Brook Road. A suspect broke in by prying open a rear door and took an air-conditioner condenser valued at $2,500 and copper pipes from a water heater worth $500.

Theft: At 2:03 p.m., police received a report of theft from Clarke School East for the Deaf on Whitman Road. An envelope containing $409 was missing.

Summons: At 8:56 p.m., police responded to a report of a disturbance on Sherman Avenue. Police issued a summons to Michael Bourne, 33, of Canton and charged him with disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace.

Summons: At 9:40 p.m., police stopped a vehicle at the intersection of Turnpike Street and Arboretum Way. Police issued a summons to Sean Braxton, 19, of West Bridgewater on the charge of operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license.

Thursday, June 13
Summons: At 11:14 a.m., police received a report of a domestic disturbance at Blue Hill Village on Randolph Street. Police issued a summons to Damien Washington, 34, of Boston on charges of domestic assault and battery and assault with a dangerous weapon.

Summons: At 5:23 p.m., police issued a summons to Stephen Ross, 62, of Stoughton on the charge of leaving the scene of property damage. The summons was issued on Burke Drive. Ross’s moving truck allegedly ripped some wires from a utility pole.

Friday, June 14
Summons: At 2:22 p.m., police received a report of a disturbance at Prestige Car Wash on Turnpike Street. Jean Thevenin, 47, of Brockton had washed his car and was washing his mats when an employee of the car wash came near him while emptying the garbage. Some of the garbage water splashed on the mats, and Thevenin allegedly became enraged. The employee got a manager, Edwin Damon, 39, of Brockton. Thevenin allegedly assaulted the two employees, and Damon allegedly broke Thevenin’s side mirror. Police issued a summons to Thevenin on charges of assault and assault and battery, and a summons to Damon on the charge of malicious damage to a motor vehicle.

Saturday, June 15
Summons: At 1:46 p.m., police stopped a vehicle on Walpole Street. Police issued a summons to Greg M. Lujan, 45, of North Easton on charges of speeding in violation of a special regulation, driving an uninsured motor vehicle, driving an unregistered motor vehicle, and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Summons: At 8:03 p.m., police issued a summons to Walter L. Kelly, 33, of Mansfield on the charge of use of a motor vehicle without authority. Police issued the summons on Sherman Street.

Sunday, June 16
Summons: At 10:42 a.m., police received a report of a hit-and-run accident on Pequit Street. Police issued a summons to Kellie Mitchell, 44, of Canton on the charge of leaving the scene of property damage. Mitchell told police she couldn’t stop because of a medical emergency.

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

Fed up with flights over Milton, some residents are making a plan to persuade the Federal Aviation Administration to reverse a decision to establish a departure corridor above the town.

The Milton Citizens Committee on Aviation Impacts met Thursday evening in the basement of the Town Hall, along with representatives from other communities affected by the recent change.

Sheryl Fleitman, a cochair of the committee, went through a presentation about the new flight path, which brings departures from the 33-L runway at Logan Airport above Milton.

The route is a one-mile-wide condensed flight path, which went into effect this month.

“Basically, it’s just a highway in the sky,” Fleitman said.

Two such paths already exist over Milton, according to the committee’s research – flights from runways 4 and 27. In the past two years, Milton experienced a 21 percent increase in airplane arrivals on Runway 4 alone, according to the committee’s presentation.

One of the committee’s objectives is to disperse the flights so that more towns share the burden of noise and environmental effects.

They plan to make use of the FAA’s 30- to 60-day comment period. The flight path will have a six-month trial period from June to December before it becomes permanent.

The presentation addressed grievances including increased air traffic, noise at night, environmental concerns, and a lack of monitoring for the noise.

Frank Parker, who previously was involved in a route redirection that affected Hull and Hingham, said a more effective argument was related to safety rather than noise.

“There are around 9,689 students in schools [in Milton],” he said. “The number of planes flying over such a crowded area only adds to the risk of… the possibility of a disaster taking place.”

Committee member Cindy Christiansen said she thought Curry College students were not counted in the Milton population to determine the number of people who would be affected by the route change.

Committee members asked the 30 or so people who attended the meeting to get more involved with the committee.

Philip Johenning, another committee member, said the committee also needed to make political connections.

“There are enough political people in this town… we need your help in getting political clout behind this committee,” Johenning said. “I believe the reason why Hull and Hingham were successful was leaders and state representatives and congressmen and school committees got behind them.”

The full presentation

By Dave Eisenstadter, Town Correspondent

The following information was taken from the Canton police log. Suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

Monday, June 3
Fraud: At 4:38 p.m., police received a report of identity fraud from a Plymouth Street resident. Her monthly Social Security check was stolen and directed to a bank in Utah.

Tuesday, June 4
Arrest: At 5:49 a.m., police received a report of a noise complaint on Sherman Avenue. Police arrested Michael Bourne, 33, of Canton and charged him with disturbing the peace.

Summons: At 3:16 p.m., police responded to an accident at the intersection of Washington Street and Dunbar Street. Police issued a summons to Jasilene Daluz, 35, of Norwood and charged her with unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Wednesday, June 5
Summons: At 2:03 p.m., police stopped a vehicle at Bolivar Tire on Bolivar Street. Police issued a summons to Jason Allen, 24, of Canton on a charge of operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license.

Summons: At 3:04 p.m., police issued a summons to Mark J. Slattery, 30, of Boston on the charge of threat to commit a crime. The summons was issued on Glendale Way.

Summons: At 4:30 p.m., police stopped a vehicle at the intersection of Dedham and Morton streets. Police issued summons to Oswardo Becerra, 34, of Stoughton and Rossana Becerra, 56, of Stoughton on charges of unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and blocking an intersection. The two were stopped after making illegal left turns and blocking an intersection so no traffic could pass.

Theft: At 4:36 p.m., police received a report of theft from Pequiside Farm on Pleasant Street. The car was unlocked and a wallet containing $10 was taken.

Thursday, June 6
Summons: At 11:33 a.m., police issued a summons to Gerald Avery Jacobs, 37, of Mattapoisett on the charge of larceny by check over $250. The summons was issued on Turnpike Street. Jacobs allegedly wrote a check for $1,716.09 that bounced.

Friday, June 7
Theft: At 7:35 a.m., police received a report of theft on Washington Street. Four times were stolen from a vehicle.

Saturday, June 8
Break-in: At 8:58 p.m., police received a report of a vehicle break-in at the Ninety-Nine Restaurant on Turnpike Street. A wallet was stolen out of the vehicle containing two credit cards and a license. The owner claimed to have locked the car, but there was no damage to the vehicle, indicating it was likely unlocked.

Sunday, June 9
Theft: At 8:31 p.m., police received a report of theft from Pequiside Farm on Pleasant Street. A wallet containing three credit cards, $300 in cash, and two scratch tickets was taken.