While it was not the graduation ceremony anyone envisioned, or wanted, WHRHS held a drive-up commencement ceremony, handing out 223 diplomas over three and one half hours Friday, July 31.

One by one, members of the senior class and family members who could fit in a single vehicle drove up to the school’s front entrance. They picked up their diploma from a low table and approached the spirit rock where they posed for individual photos with Principal Dr. Christopher Jones, Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Szymaniak and School Committee Chairman Bob Hayes. Family members were then asked to join their seniors for group photos. After a brief delay, a school official played a loop of “Pomp and Circumstance” for the event.

Some students tossed their caps in the air for photos after receiving their diplomas; others just accepted their diploma and departed.

“I can’t even imagine what your life has been like,” one mom told Jone’s Administrative Assistant Siobhan Horton as she organized diplomas. “I have so much gratitude.”

“People that came to the drive-up graduation were very, very grateful the School District did that for the graduating seniors,” Hayes said. “It was very well received. People seemed to be very happy to make the best out of a situation that was very difficult.”

In an effort to provide some semblance or normalcy, the Whitman-Hanson Express is printing our usual graduation section this week [see insert], including the text of speeches student speakers planned to deliver, the Class Gift and Ode, Teacher and Staff Member of the Year honors and lists of scholarship recipients.

Horton does much of the work organizing commencement ceremonies each year. She said seniors who have joined the military and already reported for basic training came in earlier this summer to receive their diplomas, as did an exchange student from Brazil.

The School District has not yet planned how diplomas will be awarded to Community Evening School.

“I do not like the idea of a virtual graduation either, but it was the event I could promise as the next best solution given the time frame,” Jones said in his statement. “In short, it provided an option in the event I could not come up with something else. One last thing. Something I have said from the beginning of this current pandemic. Offer grace, time, and patience because we never know the whole story.”

Reaction was not positive when the announcement was made Friday afternoon, to change the event from a socially distant ceremony only hours after a rehearsal. The social media clap back motivated Jones to respond.

“I typically do not respond to personal insults on social media because they are born from emotion, but this is an exception,” Jones stated in an open letter to parents. “This decision was not arbitrary. It was recommended by the Board of Health in both towns. We just cannot responsibly put 1,600 people in an area together given the information we both have and don’t have.”

Not everyone believed it, judging by social media feedback and requests from some seniors for their class dues back.

But several parents were supportive, either on social media or in person Friday afternoon.

“Just came home from our Drive Thru Graduation for our son! How lovely,” effused Julie Bailey of Hanson on Twitter. “So organized and all the faculty were great!! Thank you for everything!! Great job for our grads.”

A School Committee meeting slated for Thursday, July 30 as a placeholder in the event either town meeting rejected the school budget and/or assessment compromise was also cancelled. The School Committee’s next meeting is expected to review reopening plans for the 2020-21 school year.

It’s wonderful that the people overwhelmingly supported the school budget, so that’s a good thing,” Hayes said. “The school reopening, obviously, changes as we move forward. DESE (the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) and the governor’s office, everyone’s involved, so each opening seems to be changing a little bit on the regulations. Obviously, this is a first time for everybody. There’s never been this type of a pandemic before.”

HANSON — You scream, I scream…

Heidi’s Hollow is open for the season.

There is plenty to scream about including new owners and the same great ice cream.

Taking the reins this week, new owners Candace Reich, a longtime Pembroke resident and her partner Maren Rojas, are ready for a sweet summer. The couple has officially purchased the shop and longtime owners Tony and Lynda Quigley (lovingly known as Ma and Pa) are signing off after three decades of scooping. They are retiring to Myrtle Beach, S,C., where Tony sees a lot of golf in his future.

With the summer came changing temperatures and coronavirus creating new “normal” for everyone, Reich and Rojas have kept everything the same including the delicious and ever-popular Richardson’s Ice Cream. They are also welcoming a few new flavors that will soon be on the menu.

Heidi’s Hollow is offering party packs to serve four and eight to have an at- home ice cream party.

Social distancing is uncomplicated with plenty of outdoor seating in bright blue chairs and benches along the shadow area of the fence. Several picnic tables with umbrellas allow for open-air eating and plenty of breathing space.

Heidi’s Hollow started out in the Myette’s Country Store on Liberty Street within five years they outgrew the space.

Their home was built in 1820, and it made sense to add on the ice cream shop remaining in its current location ever since.

Chatting with the residents and locals- many who have become friends- is the element they will miss the most, said Tony Quigley. He was quick to say they would be returning for visits.

“You always remember your first ice cream shop that you loved,” he said with a laugh.

For Tony it was Charlie’s at Field Corner in Dorchester. Little did he know for Reich it was Heidi’s Hollow of Hanson.

Reich, who comes from a family of entrepreneurs, sat with The Express this week and recalled as a high school freshman that he drew up a business plan for successfully owning a bakery and ice cream shop. She kept that childhood plan, and the dreams, always reserving the thought that if opportunity arose she would pursue it.

Tony who always had frozen food in his life as a grocery stocker during Vietnam and before as a kid hustling popsicles —he made a dime on the beach walking the sea shore with a bag of dry ice and frozen treats. During a rafting trip he had a dream that he bought an ice cream shop and told his wife the next morning when he awoke. Lynda was a longtime nurse and also needed a change. She set out to secure a small business loan, according to Tony and the rest is history. They didn’t know the first thing about running an ice cream shop but they taught one another and three decades have proven the pair had sugar in their DNA.

“It’s sort of sad,” said Tony who reminisced about their shared memorable times but ice cream makes everything happy, he said.

Seeing families expand by generations and revisit year after year for a cold treat and chitchat … are just a few things the Quigley’s said they will miss as they retire and cherish the most.

Tony spoke highly of a former employee that began her first job with Heidi’s as a teen and grew up like a daughter with the Quigley’s. She has become a success in her career, has a family and is still in their lives.

Reich said when her family set out for ice cream as kids they would devour Heidi’s ice cream and imagine how pleasant and adventurous it would be to own Heidi’s. Little did she know her vision would evolve and three decades later would be reality.

The charm of the established shop and their countless childhood memories at the delicious ice cream shop were also deciding factors on buying the shop.

The couple who are both still working full time (Rojas a longtime established professional collegiate soccer coach is now a consultant for Sport for development and Reich is in sales) they are like a well oiled machine.  Maren calls herself the ‘executor’ keeping the books and running the business side behind the scenes they agree that Candace is the ‘visionary’.

They emphasized their appreciation for the generous time the Quigley’s  have given to make a smooth transition in the changing of hands.

The extensive local family of Reich is also at the shop and pack a cone like it’s nobody’s business. They have all been supportive and have also grown up on Heidi’s sundaes, said Reich. Green Hanson has streamlined the use of paper cups versus Styrofoam cups in July- one slight change that patrons may notice.

They accept debit and credit payments now and offer window pickup as they abide by CDC’s COVID guidelines on social distancing.

WHITMAN —  A group of community gardeners have hopes for bumper crops of vegetables, herbs and flowers this summer.

Passersby may have noticed the raised garden beds on the old Essex Street softball field in Whitman with dozens of tomato plants, peppers and even multi-colored flowers in the outfield —the new Whitman Community Garden.

On Tuesday, July 7, there were gardeners at the patch tending to their various plots all raised and wooden boxed each space is approximately 4X8, and 6X12-feet, but are personalized the vegetables and herbs to their taste.

DPW Superintendent Bruce Martin has been overseeing the garden plot availability and DPW workers have helped several people construct the raised beds. They had 30 plots in total at the start of the season in early April.

“The DPW takes the applications and maintains the area making sure the water works for the public hose,” Martin said. “We assist in helping build the boxes if needed but most have put their own together.”

The boxes have been especially convenient for those who have little space but would like their own garden or are perhaps modestly finding their green thumbs.

Owners have their own garden to water, weed and within the rules of the community garden adhere to growing their crops, he said.

There is a Facebook page (for those who request to join) where garden tips, photos and other gardening socialization is posted.

Diallo Ferguson of Whitman is a first time gardener.

“It has always been an interest and when I heard about the plot gardens it struck a chord. I knew I wanted to do it and it was a great opportunity. So far so good,” he said on his generation of produce.

He called the experience fun as he learned how to garden, proudly exclaiming that he had successfully harvested kale, zucchini, mint and cilantro. He is also seeing tomatoes on the vine that are still in stages of green but he is hopeful they are on a strong track. 

Ferguson said people are helpful in offering to help with weeding and general tips.

Girl Scout Troop 66187 parent Tarcia Davis said the girls ages 12 to14 decided they would also maintain a plot as a project. She assisted with creating the Facebook page and the girls painted the welcome sign at the front gate.

The gardening projects has been a great learning experience as the Girl Scouts’ mission is teaching skills (with guidance and pointers) as the girls  become more independent.   The four girls who are maintaining the plot have some assistance from parents but the idea is to help them become skilled through the process, said Davis.

Having started the vegetables from seeds and not plants they learned quickly that they had placed the seeds too far in the soil and had to start again. Their hope is to pass the plot on to the next younger troops so they can experience the process and benefits as well.

Davis is also developing a farm stand by August to encourage sharing and swapping produce in an organized fashion.

Lee Anne Burton of Whitman a beekeeper has up kept half a dozen hives in the outfield that are assisting with the pollination and benefits for the gardens development.

The group of growers is learning from one another as they also recently released a large quantity of ladybugs as part of a natural insecticide.   

Burton updated her fellow gardeners and The Express on the bees’ status.

“Last Thursday I checked on Queen Nova and her attendants, the hive is growing, full of new babies, lots of comb-building going on. I added a third brood box to the hive and will remove the feeder next week.

She also applauded Martin for weed whacking to keep the area neat.

She is planning the next boxes numbers 5-6 to be the honey boxes, called Honey Supers.

“Hopefully we will be able to harvest some from this hive in the late summer early fall. It looks strong, about 30,000 bees or so, and is growing nicely! Burton posted.

In April there were a dozen plots many have been filled but there are additional spaces for inquiries contact the Whitman DPW.

MARSHFIELD — As the Class of 2020 turned their mortarboard tassels from one side to the other, confetti poppers shot colorful paper bits in the air, families cheered and car horns honked — South Shore Tech community celebrated graduation.

Family cars, vans and pickup trucks were lined up in front of staging at the Marshfield Fairgrounds on Saturday, June 17, a change in venue required by the challenges of dealing with coronavirus.

That challenge was also brought to mind by Student Body President and Valedictorian Emily Ingraham of Whitman, who began her remarks by asking for a moment of silence to honor those lost to COVID-19 and to honor those on the front lines fighting the virus.

Ingram spoke of looking forward to the highlights of senior year.

“Then the world fell apart, and I truly thought this day would never come,” she said.

Craig Davis’ history class, in which students learned to disagree on issues with those who disagree.

“We made each other think and listened to each other’s opinions, which made us want to gain more knowledge on so many different topics,” she said “No two humans process or experience life in the same way, and we each have our own unique stories, passions, and opinions, and in freshman year, we learned how to express ourselves and grew from letting others express themselves through their stories, passions and opinions.”

But a bigger lesson was in the offing.

“We are graduating in the middle of a global pandemic, and with that we lost out on the best part of high school — the end of our senior year,” Ingram said. “And while we won’t be going to a senior prom, we have the tools and lessons on how to be successful from here.”

Hard work showed the Class of 2020 what it takes to persevere, she said.

School administrators also had to persevere to arrange for the day’s ceremony.

“You won’t know the number of hours, and phone calls, and meetings he had to do to put this event together, but a lot of this is directly due to him,” Principal Mark Aubrey said in introducing Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey for his remarks.

“If you enjoy this event, you’re welcome,” Hickey joked after a chorus of car horns. “Any complaints, see Mr. Aubrey.”

Hickey thanked officials at the fairgrounds and Marshfield town government for the assistance they provided in planning the event.

“We wanted to give you an event you would remember after such an eventful end to your senior year,” Hickey said. “It is wonderful today to be together in the same time and place after spending so much time apart.”

He noted that this year more than any other in recent memory, parents have been our partners in educating their children, right up to the very end of high school. Prior to the pandemic, Hickey said most in the school community would have thought that the most significant ‘adjustment story’ to mark this school year was when the football team was down 30-0 at halftime, and came back to win 42-36 in double overtime.

Hickey also described how the Drama Club, after the spring performance of “Clue” was canceled due to the COVID-19 shutdown, worked with advisers to perform the play on Facebook live.

“These qualities, developed at home and strengthened in your school community should grow as you enter adulthood,” he said. “Keep developing the habits of mind that the world needs: Be supportive, resilient, flexible, and focused. … I want to thank all of you for being resilient, sticking together, and supporting one another. Class of 2020, you are a graduating community for the ages.”

Senior Class President Ryan Mahoney spoke of knowing she wanted to attend SST since she was in the sixth-grade, when she looked forward to learning cosmetology. She graduated, however, as a CNA heading for nursing school.

“I’m sure many can relate when I say that we definitely didn’t have our lives as figured out as we thought we did back in eighth grade,” Mahoney said. “This place and these teachers have opened our minds and allowed us to dig a little deeper into ourselves to find who we are and who we are supposed to become. And for those of you who aren’t there yet, and who are still figuring out what your next chapter will look like, I hope that being a Viking has brought you that much closer to your greatness.”

HANSON — The Black Lives Matter movement, having moved from cities to the suburbs and rural communities in recent weeks, arrived in Hanson in time to coincide with Juneteenth last week.

About 100 residents, wearing protective masks and distanced six feet apart, gathered on the Hanson Town Hall Green Friday, June 19 to protest racism and call for change.

“We have faced name-calling … been told [after a cheering competition] to go back to where I came from,” said longtime resident Cheryl Nolan. “This is my home, and I will fight for it to continue to be my home and I’d like to thank all of you who are here today — it saddens me that there are not more — for coming out and standing up for what’s right. Racism is wrong.”

While no specific event in town spurred the rally, DiMascio and Dias said recent national events such as the killing of George Floyd and resulting protests across the country inspired the event — which coincidentally fell on Juneteenth after an organizational delay.

Juneteenth is a traditional African-American commemoration of June 19, 1865 when the last slaves in Galveston, Texas were told of their emancipation after the Civil War ended.

“[We] got together to talk about having something in Hanson and thought it would be a great idea to bring something like this to Hanson,” Marianne DiMascio said of a conversation with Recreation Committee member Juvelyn Hartwig and Health Board Chairman Arlene Dias.

“But I grew up here, I went to high school here and, when that happened with [Floyd], it triggered memories of things that I hadn’t thought about in years that happened,” Dias said. “I believe there are subtle things that happened — people aren’t blatantly racist, but it’s still here and people need to be aware of the fact that it’s not OK. But it’s one of those things, in a small town, you don’t talk about it.”

Hartweg, who was not able to attend, wrote of similar experiences her children have had in a speech on the importance of allyship, read by Becca LeValle, also of Hanson.

“I’m so grateful that many of you are willing to stand for me, maybe with me or by me,” Hartweg, a woman of color who has biracial children, wrote. “But we also recognize that not everyone’s experience has been the same, or even pleasant, at times.”

Hartweg asked the crowd to think about unconscious biases or behaviors, that can often be second-nature. She wrote about a black contractor doing business in her neighborhood who was greeted with suspicion, as well as a time when her son was given the nickname “chimp” while in the second grade. At the time, she was advised to move on and not rock the boat, when she approached school  officials.

“I’m asking you today to not move on — and to rock that damned boat,” Hartwig wrote. “Today, I ask you to be an ally.”

As Dias put it before the program, “At some point we need to to bring it out and say, ‘OK, air it to the sunshine.”

Elected officials attending included Selectmen Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett, Kenny Mitchell, Wes Blauss and Jim Hickey, as well as state Rep. Josh Cutler, D-Pembroke. Selectman Matt Dyer was unable to attend.

The program began with chants of, “No Justice, No Peace,” “Silence is Violence,” and “Black Lives Matter,” after which, Nicholas Donohue read an acknowledgement that the gathering stood on land was stolen from indigenous people through genocide and forced removal. It ended with a recitation of the names of some of the black Americans to die as a result of police violence in recent years, and a moment of silence — a process taking eight minutes and 45 seconds, the time George Floyd struggled to breathe under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer.

“We’re here today to unite against racism and for equality and justice,” DiMascio then told the crowd, noting that the Black Lives Matter movement is beginning to correct past mistakes. “It can redefine who we are as a people and it can move our communities forward.”

But the main focus was on elevating the voices of people of color in the community, while stressing that the gathering was not meant to be anti-police.

“But we want to live in a community where everyone is safe, is fully accepted, and we want to push back against any structures, policies or biases to keep that from happening,” DiMascio said of police violence seen across the country. “Our silence is unacceptable, but our collective power is unstoppable.”

Erin Slayton, a 2014 W-H graduate, now a high school English teacher, noted that she is a biracial woman of African-American and Irish heritage.

“I like to believe there are lessons in all things,” she said. “My experiences with individual racism have taken the shape of ugly words — ‘You’re not black enough,’ or ‘You talk like you’re white’ — have shape-shifted into unprompted hair-touching, racial profiling. I am both black and white, never one or another. That is intersectionality.”

Ayala Royster’s Tennessee-born grandfather was born the in 1914, himself the grandson of slaves, and raised as a share-cropper on the same plantation where his ancestors were property. The family had been unable to leave the plantation due to a lack of assets.

Her grandfather migrated to Chicago in the 1920s, where he met her grandmother. They later moved to Hobson City, Ala., the second-oldest all-black community in the United States, a community founded as a by-product of racism in an effort to keep black residents separate from the city of Oxford. Black residents of Hobson City founded their own K-12 school.

“They developed businesses and became a safe place for all black people to visit during the Jim Crow Era, while passing through the state of Alabama,” said Royster, a Hanover resident. “There is where we would learn about black success. There we were able to see that our story and contributions to America did not begin and end with slavery.”

She said celebrating Juneteenth reminds her of that slavery, despite the inventions, medical advancements, business success and military service and heroism of black Americans.

“I’m celebrating all the strange fruit that has been strung from the trees,” she said through tears. “When I celebrate Juneteenth, I’m celebrating the creation of Hobson City, the place of my birth. … I’m celebrating all of my grandfather’s dreams that he had for me.”

Hanson Police Chief Michael Miksch was among those addressing the rally attendees.

“The Hanson Police will work with you,” Miksch said, adding when he was originally asked to speak, he did not think he had anything to add, but changed his mind after speaking with Hartwig and Dias. “We want to hear you. If we’re doing something you don’t like, or you think is wrong, please tell us. If we don’t discuss it, all we’re going to have is conflict and we’re never going to solve anything.”

Like Whitman Police Chief Timothy Hanlon noted after Floyd’s death, that police in Massachusetts are not trained in the techniques that were used in Minneapolis.

“I have yet to meet a police officer that agrees, in any way, with what happened in Minneapolis,” Miksch said. “The only way I can look at that is a lack of humanity.”

Participants marched around the town hall before holding their placards in a visibility opportunity on the sidewalk along Liberty Street.

DiMascio also announced a new community Facebook page — Hanson United Against Racism — and a Twitter page, @HansonUnited.

As with similar area rallies, there was voter information provided at he event.

Whitman Middle School eighth-grader Alvin Depina Gomes passed by waving faculty members during the Friday, June 12 events, with his family and two giant balloons in the wind. See more photos, pages 8 and 9.

Photos by Tracy Seelye, right and Stephanie Spyropoulos, below

WHITMAN — Out of hate and brutality has come a glimmer of hope.

Whitman resident Morgan Kerins and Shannon Murphy of Hanson organized a Resisting Racism peaceful protest at vigil Sunday afternoon.

An estimated 300 people from Whitman and surrounding communities gathered at Memorial Field to hear speakers: former Brockton pastor Dave Capozzi and Khadia and Ben, both African-American residents — speak against systemic racism and, in the case of two, their own personal experiences.

“Peace does not exist when there is injustice,” Capozzi said. “Even though we are all standing together, we are not at peace.”

Dorchester native Khadia spoke of her experience growing up in Whitman after her family moved here when she was in the third grade.

“Coming here, I was optimistic about everything,” she said, urging residents to make Whitman a community where everyone feels they belong. “The thing that got me down the most … I’m sure a lot of you have seen it, [is] the Confederate flags in our schools and all around our town. … Every time I see that, I just feel like I don’t belong here, like I’m not wanted here and that’s not right.”

“I stand with you!” a woman in the crowd shouted. “We’re with you!” and “You belong here!” others yelled out.

Through tears, Khadia described daily comments she heard in school because of her race and said that administrators took no action.

“A lot of people will see this as kids just being jerks, kids just being bullies,” she said. “But those kids grow into adults with real money and real power … into the cops that stop us because we look suspicious because of our color. … into the government officials that won’t pass bills against discrimination or police brutality.”

Ben, a resident of Hanson, also recalled the sense of isolation he felt as the only person of color in his class.

“It made it really hard to know who really was my friend,” he said about classmates who would use racial slurs and say they were “just kidding.”

“We can’t stay silent,” he said about speaking up against racism. “Even when it’s uncomfortable saying it to people you are friends with, saying it to family members. … If we want real change, we can’t let this die out.”

While the organizers, and most of the crowd was white, like 97-percent of Whitman’s population, Murphy called the event an opportunity for people to educate themselves as they support African-Americans.

“Just because we’re predominantly white doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have a voice to speak and talk about this,” Murphy said, adding she was eager to work with more than a dozen teenagers in town who wanted to take action.

First they put up anti-racism posters around town, but when they were removed, they planned the protest.

“I was frustrated,” Kerins said, noting she expected some discussion of the poster disappearance, but there was no mention of it. “This is part of the reason it’s so important to do it in a place like this. I don’t think we’ve seen anything like this before, which is why we’ve gotten so many mixed responses.”

Murphy said the removal of the posters moved her to action.

“This is not about one man, it is about resisting racism on all levels,” she later told the crowd. “It is about equality and ending racially motivated police violence. It is about standing in solidarity and fighting injustices. It is about humanity.”

People attending had many reasons for showing up.

“I’m here because I’m done being silent,” said a young Whitman woman who gave her name as Lex. “I’m done being part of a complicit system, where I am allowed to go out and I’m OK being with a cop.”

She contrasted that to how African-Americans worry for their lives in the same situations.

“I’m tired of being in a system like that,” she said.

“I just wanted to show up to make sure we have enough support in this town,” said Whitman resident Marshal Ottina, who was volunteering at a voter registration table. “Black lives matter to me and my family and we wanted to show that support today.”

After the speakers, participants circled the field and walked to Whitman Park where they marched, chanting against racism through half the park before returning to Memorial Field for a vigil.

“It’s a difficult time and it’s uncomfortable for people,” said WHRHS counselor Dom Amado of Hanson. “I think the biggest [outcome has been] the unity, the togetherness. People working together for a common goal.”

He said people have to come together and use their power for good.

“If it was someone near and dear to you, obviously, it would matter — it would hit close to home — so I think that’s the kind of mentality that we have to take,” Amado said. “It’s a human race issue.”

Brockton resident Chantelle Boateng, 17, was leading marchers in chants from the sidewalk along Park Avenue.

“It’s bringing people together,” she said. “I think it’s going to change. They’re helping and I really appreciate them, too.”

“I think this moment is different from any other moment,” said Richarson Fong, who moved to Whitman from Weymouth three years ago. “If you look at the crowd, at the ethnicities, it’s mixed up — it’s America.”

Fong said that, while “we love the police officers” because they secure their communities, it is important to recognize there are some bad apples.

Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ activist Dominique, of Easton concluded the speakers’ program before the vigil.

“I am sick and tired of going out everyday and being scared when I pass a police car,” she said before reading a list of some of the names of people killed by police in recent years.

Participants remained kneeling and silent for eight minutes and 45 seconds — the length of time Minneapolis, Minn., police officer Derek Chauvin allegedly kept his knee on the neck of George Floyd.

“This is pretty impressive for Whitman,” Selectman Justin Evans said of the event as residents filled Memorial Field. “It’s a matter of just looking at ourselves. It’s a lot of reflection, a lot of listening.”

Evans said he plans on reviewing state and local use of force policies to determine if they perhaps need updating.

“It’s sobering to hear some of these things,” Town Administrator Frank Lynam said. “To hear people still experiencing that today is really heartbreaking. It’s crazy. It’s absolutely crazy.”