HARWICH ─ Field hockey has been a lifelong passion for Monomoy senior Marina Small, who proved a formidable player for the Sharks during her tenure at the high school. Now, after formally signing her letter of intent, Small is taking her talents to Westfield State, where she's looking forward to joining the Owls in some fierce competition. Small first picked up a hockey stick when she was in kindergarten, ap...

It was a struggle, but with support from dozens of Cape Cod Chronicle readers – and a remarkable last-minute donation from an anonymous contributor – the 2016 “Helping Neighbors” campaign to benefit the Family Pantry met its fundraising goal. With the tally still about $4,000 short, the secret donor pledged the funds necessary to bring the campaign to its $60,000 target. The contributor, identified only as a N...

CHATHAM — In what promises to be a memorable evening, the Chatham Orpheum Theater will hold a special screening of the new feature film “Patriots Day” on Jan. 13 as part of a fundraiser for the Arrendondo Family Foundation. The evening features a reception and post-show question and answer session with authors Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge. The two wrote the bestselling book “Boston Strong,” the inspiration f...

CHATHAM – The following council on aging events are scheduled during January. Most take place at the Stony Hill Road senior center and require registration or reservations. Transportation is available for most programs. For information or to register, call the COA at 508-945-5190. Monday, Jan. 9, CCRTA Travel Training Presentation, 10:30 a.m. Paula George from the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority will be do...

Tomorrow is Twelfth Night, the last day of the traditional Christmas season, but for many the holidays ended last Tuesday. Today we might feel relief that the tree has been untrimmed and the outside lights taken down. All that is left for us to do is address (or ignore) our New Year’s resolutions, decide which gifts to keep, return, exchange, or repurpose, and await the arrival of January’s credit card bills. ...

Questions Plans For Historic Home Editor: The house at 271 Stage Harbor Rd. was a second home of sorts for me. That's why I was upset though not surprised when I read that the new owners want to demolish it. It took a strong stomach to watch their attorney nonchalantly claim that the present house doesn't fit in with the needs of their family. There was also a ridiculous assertion that the house is unliv...

More than a few people are anxious about the coming year. After the nasty tenor of the presidential election and given the toxic political environment and the lack of anything much of a positive nature on the national level, we're keeping our gaze fixed on what's right in front of us – in the communities we call home – as a way to nurture inspiration and hope. In Chatham, we are encouraged by recent discussion...

Ninety years ago, Cape Cod became the first region in New England to establish a county health department. It had a variety of goals, including the installation of proper landfills for trash and the testing of all cows for tuberculosis. Ninety years later, the Barnstable County Department of Health and the Environment has new goals, but its public health mission is alive and well. The department began operatio...

ORLEANS — Selectmen Chairman Sims McGrath, whose term ends this May, is ready to move on if somebody else will step up. “I will not categorically say that I will not run, but I do feel that it's someone else's turn,” he said Tuesday. “So I hope someone, some qualified people, will take out papers, and I hope to get a vacation. But I'll do it again if I absolutely have to.” The board's vice chairman, David...

ORLEANS — In a world full of gadgets, it's refreshing to visit the candle maker on Main Street. “It's very traditional, non-high tech,” Agostino Di Bari said of his work. “It's rewarding.” The sales area at the front of Honey Candle Co. at 37 Main St. is replete with various sizes, shapes and colors of beeswax candles and tapers. Behind that is a compact work space that includes the tools of his trade as ...

A sold-out First Night was underway Saturday, with large crowds downtown celebrating the New Year's Eve holiday.  See a photo gallery of the day's activities here.

CHATHAM – Selectmen voted Tuesday to support town purchase of the Eldredge Garage property at 365 Main St. “It's a potential gem for the town, to accomplish multiple purposes,” said Selectman Dean Nicastro. Although primarily being considered to expand downtown parking, the 1.2 acres could also serve as open space and for historic preservation, he said. The $2.5 million purchase will be put before voters at...

CHATHAM – By early this week, some 80 percent of this year's 7,500 First Night Chatham buttons had been sold. While the New Year's Eve event regularly sells out, the buttons are disappearing faster and faster every year. Usually they're gone by the early afternoon Dec. 31; last year it was 10 a.m. A steady stream of button buyers stopped by First Night headquarters, tucked just off Main Street behind Bella o...

CHATHAM – It was a year of contrasts in Chatham. A number of long-standing projects came to fruition in 2016, including completion of a new fire station, the opening of the new Mitchell River drawbridge, and the construction of a new bridge over Muddy Creek. But it was also a year when progress on several key issues was frustratingly slow. The dispute over the western boundary of the Monomoy National Wildli...

CHATHAM – Currently the town has two historic districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places – the Old Village and the Marconi/RCA Wireless Receiving Station. Last week the historical commission set in motion plans to nominate up to four more districts to the National Register, putting a high priority on two of the areas, Stage Harbor Road and South Chatham. The commission endorsed a plan by the ...

CHATHAM — Acknowledging that it doesn't replace the state Open Meeting Law, a split board of selectmen last week adopted a policy encouraging the chairmen of town committees to allow public comment at their meetings whenever possible. Drafted by resident Norman Pacun and amended by selectmen, the statement acknowledges the Open Meeting Law and the need both for public participation in government and for orde...