Editor:

While driving through Harwich and Chatham on Memorial Day, it was uplifting to see all the American flags on display. It was, however, a bit discouraging to see a number that were not at half staff (including the one at the Chatham Post Office on Main Street). Perhaps next year you could publish a reminder about the proper protocol for displaying the American flag. There are even apps which will alert you to flag status such as half staff and Flag Day.

Lou Meyer
Harwich

Editor:

On behalf of the Creative Arts Center and Jack’s daughters, I would like to extend our sincere thanks to Elizabeth Van Wye for the recent article highlighting the Jack Garver Retrospective. Liz’s article captured the show's spirit and helped bring well-deserved attention to this influential and beloved watercolorist.

We’re grateful to the community for the overwhelming response to the exhibit. Seeing so many people come through the gallery to experience and celebrate Jack’s legacy has been remarkable, many of whom have shared countless stories about Jack.

Due to the strong public interest, we’re pleased to announce that selections from the retrospective will be extended in our Heberton gallery throughout the summer.

Thank you again to all who have supported this special exhibition. 

Amy Middleton, executive director
Creative Arts Center

Editor:

Gregory Winston has mistakenly accused me of perpetuating misinformation about Pine Oaks Village IV.

He was clearly replying to a letter that had been printed in error on May 15 but which was replaced with an accurate version on May 22, with this Editor's note: This letter is being reprinted to correct information in the version that ran in last week's edition. 

Paula Myles
North Harwich

Editor:

Each day, 600 people globally die because of gun violence. Of those 600, 327 are shot in the United States and 23 are minors. Even though the number of mass shootings only make up 1 percent of the gun violence in our country, there have already been 117 mass shootings this year, with over 100 dead. Recently, the United States has become notorious for the amount of school shootings that have occurred. From the 1997-1998 to the 2021-2022 American school years, there were 1,453 school shootings. Also, school shootings have become more dangerous and deadlier every year. In 2022, the Uvalde School Shooting killed 22 and injured 18. Ultimately, the U.S. has 57 times more shootings than other developed countries combined. It is without a doubt that these high values are an effect of the rise of gun ownership.

Clearly, there is a lack of effective liability insurance and background checks for gun owners in the United States. The ratio of guns per United States citizens is 121 to 100. Only 22 states require a more thorough background check than the federal process, but only 18 of those background checks check for all types of gun sales. Even though Massachusetts requires one, there needs to be a better way to make sure someone can own a gun. Considering if the gun owner lives with children is arguably one of the most important factors. Many perpetrators of school shootings obtain their guns from their own house. For example, the perpetrator of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting lived in a house with many guns, owned by his mother, and used them for his attack. It is obvious that gun owners need to be taught how to properly store their guns so that they won’t get into the hands of children, or people unauthorized to use them. Also, the liability insurance is lacking. Only two places in the U.S. have mandatory gun insurance: the state of New Jersey and San Jose, Calif.

As eighth graders at the Cape Cod Lighthouse Charter School, our class decided to tackle the topic of gun laws for our Massachusetts State Mandated Student Driven Civic Action Project. We have noticed that the current Massachusetts Bill H.1836 would require liability insurance for gun owners. Our class wants to see more regulation in who can have guns and make sure that people who own firearms are responsible for any accidents that happen with them. Currently, the bill is sitting in a Joint Committee on the Judiciary.

We really want this bill to be passed, and we encourage Massachusetts residents to show their support by signing our petition to get this bill signed by Governor Maura Healey. Please sign our Change.Org petition, titled “Pushing for Gun Safety by Advocating for MA Bill H​.​1836 to be Passed,” made by my classmate Lydia Grugan. You can sign by going to the following link: chng.it/RG5fshwzKF.

Share with your friends and family so we can make our state a safer place, and perhaps influence other states to do the same thing!

S.J. Rubenstein
Eighth Grader at Cape Cod Lighthouse Charter School
Harwich

Editor:

Chatham offers almost every family friendly outdoor amenity you can think of. However, we have no fenced in dog park for the approximately 44.5 percent of households with dogs.

Harwich has an-unfenced dog park where dogs run off leash. Brewster has a fenced-in dog park, but that is at least 20 minutes away and much longer in busy summer traffic. Mashpee and Provincetown have secure dog parks, but those locations are even farther away.

The benefits of a fenced-in dog park are enormous, for both dogs and humans. Dogs can safely play off-leash with other dogs and humans, developing social skills and tons of exercise. Owners benefit from the entertainment of watching their dogs have fun and by meeting new people and making new friends. Year-round residents and their pups will particularly benefit during the quiet offseason.

At a minimum, a dog park requires space, fencing, gating, parking, a water source and most importantly a published set of firm dog park rules.

Volunteer Park already allows dogs. It has parking and a water source. Is it feasible to establish a dog park there?

I hope that I am not barking up the wrong tree! If you agree that a fenced-in dog park would be a great addition to our town, please contact timeforchatham,madogpark@gmail.com.

Joanne Goodman
Chatham

Editor: 

What a wonderful article about the importance of Ben Franklin to Chatham (“Everything Must Go,” May 29). In the 20 years or so we owned a summer home in Chatham, Ben Franklin was our "go to" store for everything from wiffle bats to fire starters. When we were in Chatham last, in 2023, we replaced the Red Sox stickers for our cars. What a loss the closing of Ben Franklin will be. How sad! The article brought tears to both my wife and me. The children have the right idea. 

Martin and Gail Berliner 
Greenwood Village, Colo.

Editor:

The USCG plan to reduce vital buoy markers and other aids to navigation from our heavily used waters is a grave mistake. If followed through, this misplaced “money saving action” will ultimately cause accidents at sea and along our shores that should not have happened. The possibility of grave risk for mariners is being forwarded for several mistaken reasons.

First: The use of the Global Positioning System is cited as one reason we don’t need so many buoys at sea. Coming from the Coast Guard, this is virtual heresy. A maxim of Coast Guard navigational instruction has always been to use as many means as possible to determine position and safe navigation. Never rely on a single source. Yet, this is what reliance on GPS and loss of visual aids like buoys will result in. 

In modern GPS, as good and accurate as it usually is, a message will appear in the mariner’s screen when the device is turned on. It says: Do Not Use Information Presented On This Screen As A Sole Source Of Navigational Information. Always use visual and other means for safe navigation. Loss of channel and offshore buoys runs counter to this. 

Second: How valuable is a human life? Does someone or some committee sitting in a Washington, D.C. headquarters room get to decide what that value is? Our maritime buoyage system has proved time and again it saves disaster at sea from occurring. 

Modern navigation has been improved by the addition of the Global Positioning System. However, it does not and never will be a replacement for what the prudent mariner needs for safe transiting at sea: multiple means to determine position while under way. I have witnessed multiple vessels high and dry at Monomoy Point because the master was staring into their plotter screens in fog, not watching what was ahead. GPS does not always provide accurate positioning. Our buoys and other aids to navigation need to remain in place. 

U.S. Coast Guard, do not jeopardize the lives you are entrusted to protect. Leave our navigational aids and improve, not remove them.

Captain William Amaru
Orleans
The writer is a longtime commercial fisherman and a Chronicle columnist.

Editor:

The oxygen we metaphorically and literally rely on for a thriving community is at risk. The proposed project at Sundae School is massive and out of scale, replacing spaces that currently enable connection to nature and community. The loss of an iconic local ice cream shop — an institution intertwined with the community narrative — is more than just the disappearance of a beloved gathering place. It represents a shift toward an unsustainable urbanization that cuts off oxygen for both the environment and the social fabric of our neighborhood.

Our already-delicate ecosystem, one that supports water and sewage disposal for homes and businesses, is limited. The construction of 28 condominium units with underground parking for electric vehicles, including charging stations, and gasoline vehicles places an unreasonable strain on our safety personnel and resources. A system failure under this structure could contaminate our water and beaches and endanger our first responders. This land on Cape Cod is fragile by nature, and its capacity to support human activity without irreparable harm has limits. The additional pressure of accommodating oversized development with water and disposal threatens to push us past the boundaries of sustainability.

The overlay bylaw, meant to create additional housing opportunities, has been misinterpreted to justify a project that stands starkly opposed to its intent. The proposed structure undermines the ethos of preserving the neighborhood's historic scale and aesthetic-values that we all have carefully preserved, by the evidence of many restorations surrounding this property. By prioritizing oversized buildings over thoughtful, community-focused planning, we betray the principles embedded in being a good partner.

Our community's unique identity is rooted in its smallness, its history, and its harmony with nature. Preserving the scale of our neighborhoods, the richness of our traditions and the vibrancy of our shared spaces is not just an environmental imperative, it's a communal one. Just as we protect beaches, open space, bike trails, and ponds, we must safeguard the way our community breathes, figuratively and literally, by opposing projects that strip away its character and our oxygen for survival.

This is our moment to act. Together, we can challenge the projects that threaten our health, our safety and our shared experience. Preserving our neighborhood's essence requires vigilance, advocacy and a commitment to sustainable practices. Let us keep the oxygen flowing — not only for ourselves but for those who will come after us, seeking the same charm, vibrancy and connection to a unique place that we hold dear.

Share your concerns at the next planning board meeting on June 10 at 6 p.m. at Harwich Town Hall.

Robert Piantedosi
Harwich