The Lincoln Squirrel – News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

Crusading for a tree’s comeback

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the Lincoln Agricultural Committee newsletter and is republished here with permission.

By Heather Anderson

On a wintry, sun-dappled day in Flint Field, a man wearing a trapper’s hat with ear flaps braves the cold to check on a young chestnut orchard. He has just left the warmth of a senior citizen luncheon at Lincoln’s Parish House where—with all the fervor of a southern tent revivalist—he preaches salvation every Friday.

He’s not a Bible thumper, mind you. Nor is he bent on saving our collective soul. Instead, Mark Meehl — known about town as the Chestnut Man — is on a passionate (some might say evangelical) mission to save the beloved American chestnut tree from the brink of extinction.

“The native tree is largely absent from our forest, and we want it back. So, we’re working on it,” says Meehl, a 73-year-old retiree from North Reading. He adds, “Why wouldn’t you want something back that belongs here? It was man’s fault for its demise.”

By tinkering with Mother Nature, Meehl and a cohort of self-described “chestnutters” are part of a national movement to develop a blight-resistant American chestnut tree. Led by The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF), it’s a decades-old pursuit. Meehl has been a TACF member since 2014. The goal? Restore the tree to its native forests from Maine to Alabama.

So far, the results have been underwhelming. But a new, genetically engineered, blight-resistant American chestnut tree called Darling 54 could save the day. Developed in an academic lab, Darling 54 is on the cusp of federal regulatory approval. In fact, 2026 could be a pivotal year for the American chestnut tree. “Because of modern genetic engineering, the future looks bright,” says Meehl.

This is a story about hope. And, quite possibly, rebirth.

Short history lesson

Once called the “redwoods of the east” for their height (up to 150 feet) and girth, the once mighty American chestnut tree was wiped out by an airborne fungal disease called blight, likely imported on trade ships from Asia in the late 1800s. The blight raged through America’s forests, killing about 4 billion trees by 1950, according to TACF.

Wildlife that depended on chestnuts as their winter food source starved. And an economy that relied on lumber — for cradles, coffins and everything in between — tanked. Historians consider it one of the worst ecological disasters in American history.

As for those chestnuts roasting on an open fire at Christmastime? A different species likely imported from Italy or China, Meehl explains. And those shiny, brown orbs used as ammunition in childhood chestnut fights? An invasive, non-edible (as in toxic) species called horse chestnuts.

Oh My Darling 54

Researchers at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry developed Darling 54, claiming it could better resist chestnut blight. The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a preliminary positive review last June, finding that the tree is “unlikely to pose a plant pest risk,” according to SUNY’s website.

But Darling 54 still awaits federal approval from the Food and Drug Administration (as chestnuts are a food) and the Environmental Protection Agency. All three prongs of government must declare it safe to humans and to the environment before pollen from these transgenic trees can be introduced to Lincoln’s orchard.

Mark Meehl checks on the American chestnut orchard at Flint Field. Meehl is the orchard manager in Lincoln as well as in several other towns statewide.

On a two-acre patch of town-owned conservation land in Flint Field, the young orchard was planted specifically in anticipation of breeding its trees with genetically engineered, blight-resistant pollen, Meehl explains. Started in 2021, the Flint Field Germplasm Conservation Orchard — GCO for short — is basically playing host to a national science project about transgenics.

Speckled with bluebird boxes, this fast-growing orchard is home to 400 wild American chestnut trees from diverse regional climates: 110 exclusively from Massachusetts; 230 from throughout New England, New Jersey and Maryland; and 60 from southern states such as South Carolina and Georgia. All trees are numbered, monitored, and catalogued in a TACF database managed by Meehl.

The reason for diversity? To see which region’s trees adapt best to the local environment in the face of climate change. The idea is to produce the hardiest trees, Meehl explains, and to capture their DNA.

If all goes well, he anticipates a high-volume, nut-producing orchard and, quite possibly, a controlled pollination with Darling 54 this summer.

But government deregulation isn’t the only hurdle. Those opposed to GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms) are readying for a fight.

“Anti-GMO people are poised and ready to attack deregulation of Darling 54 even though no harm to the environment or to food safety has been shown,” says Meehl, adding that the food fight between GMO and anti-GMO people has been going on for decades. “The same blight-tolerant gene is found in strawberries and bananas, available (for human consumption) every day.”

Louise Bergeron, a scientist and past chair of Lincoln’s Agricultural Commission, also highly anticipates transgenic deregulation. She belongs to a niche group of chestnut enthusiasts who host orchards on private land.

Unlike many GMOs, the blight-tolerant gene in Darling 54 is not a pesticide, explains Bergeron, who recently moved from Lincoln to Petersham where she plays host to a 110-tree germplasm orchard. The blight-tolerant gene “is naturally present in native plants and grains such as wheat.”

Ideologically, The American Chestnut Foundation is not against GMO technology, either. But the nonprofit foundation has reservations about Darling 54’s effectiveness and recently pulled its support. By contrast, Meehl—project manager for the chestnut foundation’s Massachusetts/Rhode Island chapter—is keeping the faith.

Who is Mark Meehl?

“I call him ‘Chestnut Man’ and everyone knows who I’m talking about,” says Lincoln’s Carol DiGianni, oftentimes his tablemate at Fridays’ senior center luncheon. “I planted two of his trees in hopes they’d marry” but they’ve yet to pollinate. “They’re growing surprisingly fast.”

(Botany 101: A plant’s mission in life is to produce a seed. Because chestnut trees do not self-pollinate, they need at least one nearby tree to exchange pollen and produce fertile nuts.)

Meehl, who holds a degree in zoology, is strictly a volunteer. He travels across the state—sometimes by motorcycle—spreading his enthusiasm. He lectures, educates, and gives away American chestnuts and saplings at churches, schools, libraries, and senior centers.

Thanks to Meehl, students at Birches School, a nature-based K-8 private school on Bedford Road, are likewise crusading for an American chestnut tree comeback. He enlisted them, along with Auxiliary Program Director Ken Clarkson, to help care for the trees in Flint Field.

“It’s a good educational tool for us,” says Clarkson in a phone call, adding that old town maps show chestnut fields existed right where the school stands now. “Every March, we check in with Mark to coordinate seed planting. We propagate them right here.”

By taking a hands-on role, says Clarkson, “it helps give kids hope in bringing back this ‘mighty giant’ that was one of the most important trees in the ecosystem.”

When he’s not proselytizing, Meehl maintains chestnut orchards in other “host” towns including Weston, Littleton and Westborough; as well as a second orchard in Lincoln. It sits on the former Umbrello family farmstead, located just beyond the railroad tracks that cross Route 117.

Started 23 years ago by violin teacher John Emery, it’s a much older breeding experiment and involves 100 hybrid trees. The hybrids are a cross between American and blight-resistant Chinese chestnut trees. It’s part of TACF’s Backcross Breeding Program intended to create “a variety as American as possible” while retaining the Asian blight-resistant trait, explains Meehl.

Some early-generation survivors of backcross breeding still stand in the Route 117 orchard and produce nuts. But several “ghost trees”—trees that have died and their trunks turned white—haunt the orchard. Meehl, who inherited the orchard, has replaced several dead trees with more hybrids.

But the effort seems more like holding vigil.

The Backcross Breeding Program is all but defunct. “It’s a shame,” says Meehl. “A lot of work, all for naught. …I think the transgenic approach is much better at moving the mission forward.”

But first, the trees in Flint Field must survive New England weather and wildlife.

Standing amongst the scrappy trees, Meehl points to deer damage caused by bucks rubbing antlers against the trunks. On another trunk, he notices a wart-like wound—called a canker—caused by blight.

But a prickly burr that once contained three coveted chestnuts clings to its branches. And the dying tree has sent up new root shoots from the soil.

In other words, the tree has done its job.

“Trees are smart enough to know they’re in trouble,” says Meehl, who believes trees talk to one another through their root systems. “This tree is putting up a good fight.”

Looking out over the orchard, Meehl smiles wide like a proud dad. Overall, he is pleased with what he sees. The trees “are coming along just fine,” he says. “They’re really healthy.”

He’s envisioning a fireworks display of chestnut flowers this summer. Late bloomers, American chestnut trees reach full bloom by July 4, but typically not before they’re five years old. This orchard is approaching its sixth year. About 15 trees blossomed last season. Meehl expects four times as many trees to flower this summer.

Meehl ducks into a car for warmth after a tour of the orchard. He offers up a brown, prickly burr. A souvenir. Asked why he has devoted his retirement to crusading for a tree’s comeback, Chestnut Man is quick to answer.

“Most people want to leave the world a little better, to do something good for Mother Nature,” he replies, adding, “It’s just a wonderful tree. It won’t grow back on its own without man’s help.”

“My Turn” is a forum for readers to offer their letters to the editor or views on any subject of interest to other Lincolnians. Submissions must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Items will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Submissions containing personal attacks, errors of fact, or other inappropriate material will not be published.

Correction

The March 31 article headlined “Cuetos wins Trustees of Bemis seat as write-in candidate” incorrectly stated that there were no contested races in the March 30 town election. In fact, two candidates were vying for one seat on the Parks and Recreation Commission. Newcomer Hilary Dionne beat out David Onigman for a seat on the Parks and Recreation Commission by a vote of 365–246. Onigman had been serving as an appointed member to fill a vacancy.

Legal notice: Historic District Commission (20 Lewis, 46 Bedford)

LEGAL NOTICE — HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION

The Historic District Commission will hold a virtual online public hearing at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, to consider the following applications. Anyone wishing to be heard on these matters should be present at the designated time and place.

  • Charlene Jackson/DeAnna Bisson, 20 Lewis St., M/P 162-38-0, for re-roofing of the structure known as The Pickle Factory. 
  • John and Bettina Dee, 46 Bedford Rd., M/P 134-6-0, for removal of a greenhouse and constructing a four-season living area.

Anyone wishing to be heard on these matters should be present at the designated time and place.

Note that legal notices often must be posted twice by law. For previous legal notices and details on how to submit a legal notice to the Lincoln Squirrel, click here.

Putting the pieces together for almost a century

Stewart Coffin at home with some of his 3-D puzzles.

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the Spring 2026 issue of the Lincoln Review.

Stewart Coffin is a maker. In his 95 years, he’s become world-famous for the three-dimensional puzzles he designs and builds. In his varied career, he’s also been an electrical engineer, a boat builder, a writer, and even a nursery owner.

Coffin’s creations are legendary in the puzzle world. He’s designed hundreds of interlocking 3-D puzzles including striking polyhedral sculptures, ingenious tray-packing challenges, and pioneering examples of interlocking cube puzzles, according to puzzlehub.org. He’s written several books on the topic as well, including Geometric Puzzle Design and AP-ART: A Compendium of Geometric Puzzles (the start of the title is a nod to “the art that comes apart”). He still makes a few puzzles and sometimes sells them to individuals and at events such as the Lincoln Art & Farmer’s Market in December 2025 (and he’ll be back there on April 3).

Puzzle craft led to another item on Coffin’s resume: public speaker. He’s appeared at numerous puzzle conventions and was on an American Association for the Advancement of Science panel of puzzle experts. “His polyhedral puzzles, they’re beautiful three-dimensional sculptures, basically. To create the structure from these bits and pieces of three-dimensional sticks is creating an object of art. You’re not designing it, but you’re creating this art by putting it together,” Jerry Slocum, founder of the International Puzzle Party, told the Andover Eagle-Tribune in 2007.

Coffin came to puzzle-making after starting out building computers for the defense industry at MIT Lincoln Laboratory in the 1950s but grew disenchanted with that line of work. After he left the corporate world, he began to make a living with hands (and pen) as a woodworker, designer and maker of canoes and paddles, and writer.

He was also a somewhat reluctant businessman in his first Lincoln sojourn, which began in 1964 when he and his wife were looking for a house that could accommodate their young family as well as a workshop. A property on Old Sudbury Road came on the market that included several acres of land and a greenhouse used in the previous owner’s nursery business. They bought the property — but it turned out that the business was in bankruptcy, and some customers who had paid for plants that were never delivered came calling. 

“I was trained as an electrical engineer and here I was a nursery man, and I knew nothing about it,” he said. “People said, ‘you can’t let it die; we’ll help you,’ so they helped me and it worked out beautifully.” It also turned out that if they made $500 a year selling plants they could classify their property as a farm, which resulted in a helpful reduction in their property taxes.

Coffin eventually won patents for two of his puzzle designs, including one called Hectix, and he caught the attention of 3M. But the design was so complex that factory workers were unable to assemble them, so the parts were shipped to his Lincoln residence where he, his daughters and neighborhood children all put them together, reportedly making 20,000 puzzles in two weeks. 

Lincoln was a good fit for someone who grew up hiking and camping in the Pioneer Valley and always enjoyed the outdoors. He made many friends in town who were fellow members of the Appalachian Mountain Club and was also part of the farming community — he and his wife raised poultry and grew produce that they sold at a stand outside their house, which was close to Boyce Farm, the Van Leer farm, and Ellen Raja’s sheep farm, which is still in operation. “It was fun and it made everybody happy, so I wrote a book about it,” he said

Tipcart Tales is a sequel to a volume about his early life called Tall Trees and Wild Bees: Memories of Childhood That Never Really Ended. He’s also written poetry, fiction, essays, natural history (Good Earth’s Bounty, illustrated with photographs taken by his father, R.L. Coffin, and Black Spruce Journals, about canoe tripping in the Canadian wilderness) — and most recently, Reflections (2025), which he describes as “looking pensively back and critically ahead.” That title and his other books that are out of print are available as free PDFs on his website (stewartcoffin.com).

After his wife died in 1991, Coffin moved around in eastern Massachusetts. His son in law and daughter, Chris Brown and Margie Coffin Brown (a landscape architect for the National Park Service who’s based at Minute Man National Historical Park), bought the house from him after he donated several acres of the property to the town.

Speaking of history, Coffin has another story: his grandfather lied about his age to join the army and fight in the Civil War. Coffin’s father was the youngest of seven children and had Stewart at age 40. “Add it all together and I may be the last person alive whose grandfather was in the Civil War. I would not be a bit surprised,” he said.

As of September 2025, he’s living in a newly renovated part of the house that gained an addition since he first lived there in the 1960s. In 2003, the state took the Pillar House, an 1845 Green Revival building in Newton, by eminent domain and offered it for $1 to anyone who would move it. Coffin’s daughter and son-in-law plunked down the dollar, moved it to Lincoln piece by piece, and attached it to the Old Sudbury Road house.

The greenhouse, which he used as a utility building and chicken coop back in the day, is now his workshop, but it’s unheated, so in the winter he can only use it on sunny afternoons, “and even then it’s tough because the glue that I use does not set when it’s cold,” he said. Fortunately, he has some indoor space to work in with a picture window where he can watch the voracious birds (he has to fill the feeders twice a day, he said). He’s still writing, and his latest book on woodworking is about to be published.

“In recent years, puzzlecraft has just been one of my many pastimes, which have included control of invasive plants and collecting food donations for the needy. But much of my effort now goes into trying to improve my website, stewartcoffin.com, especially the final chapter, Reflections,” Coffin said. “It is my feeble attempt at trying to help solve some of the many puzzles now facing our country and the world.” 

Cuetos wins Trustees of Bemis seat as write-in candidate

(Editor’s note: This article previously stated that there were no contested races, but it has been corrected to not that there include the previously overlooked contest for the Parks and Recreation Commission race.)

In a town election where there was only one contested race, David Cuetos — who did not appear anywhere on the actual ballot — managed to garner votes for three different positions and was in fact elected as a Bemis trustee.

No one filed to run for the Trustees of Bemis opening in the March 30 election, but Cuetos won as a write-in candidate with three votes. Eight other residents  — Chris Bursaw, Montana Bray, Christopher Burns, Donald Collins, Ephraim Flint, Patrick Lawler, Sue Parker, and Dilla Tingley — won two votes apiece, and many other residents received single votes, according to Town Clerk Valerie Fox.

“This was a complete surprise to me. I learned about it this afternoon when I received an email from the town clerk,” Cuetos told the Lincoln Squirrel on Tuesday evening. “Apparently I was written in by some voters to many different offices across the ballot.”

Asked if he planned to serve in the Bemis role, he said, “I don’t know yet what I’d do. My goal is to join the Finance Committee and by our bylaws, that post requires exclusivity. I have expressed my continued interest in that position to the chair of FinCom and the new town moderator. If the moderator doesn’t appoint me, I think I’d honor the support of those voters who deposited their confidence in me.”

If Cuetos declines the Bemis position, a candidate will be appointed by the current Bemis trustees and the Select Board. That person will hold the seat until the next election, when two seats will be up for election (one person for the remaining two years of this seat and another for the normally expiring three-year term).

FinCom has two three-year terms currently expiring. New members must be appointed by the moderator within 30 days of Town Meeting. “I don’t know whether Merrill Berkery or Rich Rosenbaum have expressed interest in another term, but in my view incumbency alone should not guarantee reappointment,” Cuetos said.

In the only contested race, newcomer Hilary Dionne beat out David Onigman for a seat on the Parks and Recreation Commission by a vote of 365–246. Onigman had been serving as an appointed member to fill a vacancy.

Andrew Payne, the sole candidate on the ballot for Town Moderator, garnered 612 votes, but Cuetos also got 51 write-in votes (40 in Precinct 1 and 11 in Precinct 2). Three other residents (Susan Mygatt, Richard Ohlsten, and Peter Sugar) each got a single write-in vote.

Margaret Olson regained the seat on the Planning Board that she lost in last year’s election. She will succeed Craig Nicholson, who did not run for reelection. Four voters wrote in Cuetos for that race as well, and Sarah Postlethwait got five votes.

Offices & CandidatesPrec. 1Prec. 2Total
SELECT BOARD
Kimberly A. Bodnar429216645
Write-in/blank712596
Total500241741
BOARD OF ASSESSORS
Ellen Bassett Meadors426219645
Write-in/blank752296
Total500241741
BOARD OF HEALTH
Frederick Lawton Mansfield423216639
Write-in/blank7725102
Total500241741
CEMETERY COMMISSIONER
Manley B. Boyce432212644
Write-in/blank682997
Total500241741
COMMISSIONER OF TRUST FUNDS
Derek Paul Fitzgerald413208621
Write-in/blank8733120
Total500241741
LS REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT COMMITTEE (2 seats)
Ravi Simon365178543
Jason David Mclure382200582
Write-in/blank253104357
Total10004821482
MODERATOR
Andrew Clinton Payne407205612
Write-in/blank9336129
Total500241741
PARKS AND RECREATION COMMITTEE
Hilary Dionne242123365
David Henry Onigman16878246
Write-in/blank9040130
Total500241741
PLANNING BOARD (2 seats)
Lynn E. Delisi380186566
Setha Margaret Olson363182545
Write-In/Blank13215
Blank244112356
Total10004821482
SCHOOL COMMITTEE (2 seats for 3 years)
Matina Madrick385189574
Thomas Nickerson363174537
Write-in/blank253119372
Total10004821482
SCHOOL COMMITTEE (1 year)
Jessica Burke Callow408203611
Blank9238130
Total500241741
TRUSTEES OF BEMIS FUND
Write-in7833111
Blank422208630
Total500241741
WATER COMMISSIONER
Matthew Michael Bio420208628
Write-in/blank8033113
Total500241741

Farm folk tap into the sweetness of spring

From the March 22, 2026 Codman Community Farms member newsletter, republished with permission.

For the past many weeks, it’s been maple sugaring season in New England. While Codman Farm doesn’t run a commercial sugaring operation, we do participate in this seasonal celebration with an incredible group of dedicated volunteers leading the effort. The maple sugaring season comes on quickly and usually ends just as swiftly — so our volunteers need to be at the ready to tap the trees and begin the labor intensive process of hauling all the maple sap back to the farm for boiling down to syrup.

Our guest contributor this week is Stephen Hoenig, longtime Lincoln resident, former Codman Farm board member, and yes, Sap Head in Chief. Steve has been leading our sapping effort for many, many years and we are eternally grateful for his hard work, passion for sugaring, and his absolutely infectious positivity and good cheer. Here is his tale:

Exactly one month ago this afternoon (as of a few days go), I gathered our loyal “Sap Heads.” Together, we marched to our maple tree haven at Baker Bridge Road with spiles, buckets, lids, drills, and hammers in hand—to tap our sacred trees. Our mission: collect sap from the Sugar Maple trees and begin the transformation into maple syrup.

We knew that the rhythm of frigid nights and warm days changes the inner workings of a tree’s plumbing. A simple 2-inch hole drilled into a tree can yield 1–3 gallons of sap per day. So, on February 18th, about 20 of us — mostly children, along with a few adults — got to work. One strong 13-year-old Lincolnite powered a drill with a 5/16-inch bit into a tree while a classmate set the spile and tapped it firmly into place. Her younger siblings hung the bucket, another added the lid, and then they moved on together repeating the process across 39 more trees. The sap began to drip immediately. Many children (and adults) eagerly caught drops of the faintly sweet liquid in their mouths, as if it were falling from the heavens.

Our work had begun.

Each day, our team returned to the grove to gather sap and haul it to larger barrels. Even as two major snowstorms dropped 3–4 feet of snow, we pressed on — snowshoeing, skiing, and trudging through drifts, rarely missing a day. The cold, the early darkness, and the wind did not slow us down. Three dedicated women transported up to 100 gallons of sap at a time in the red Codman Farm pickup truck, hauling heavy barrels with laughter and determination — never a complaint, always a smile.

In total, we boiled 410 gallons of sap. Volunteers had previously chopped and stacked hardwood along the walls of the sugar shack, ready to fuel the fire. Another team kept the fire going and fed sap into the evaporator, concentrating it as clouds of steam filled the air. A Solo Stove helped keep us warm — along with a little wine, whiskey, and barbecued Codman sausage!

Because education is at the heart of Codman Farm, we welcomed about 40 students — young and old — during the final weekend. They visited the grove and the sugar shack and enjoyed pancakes topped with Codman maple syrup and homegrown bacon. We then capped it all off with pizza in the pavilion.

The boiling is now complete. Our hard-earned sap has been transformed into gallons of Codman “Liquid Gold,” carefully filtered and poured into 2-, 8-, and 24-ounce bottles. Soon, they will be available in our store or shared with the many hands who made this possible. Some will even find their way into creations from the Codman kitchen.

Wherever these bottles go, they carry the spirit of our community with them.

Thank you to our Sap Heads, who drilled, hung, collected, hauled, boiled, and smiled their way through the past month. Our syrup is the finest of the fine — and may your pancakes never be without it.

 

News acorns

Car breaks-ins in Lincoln

Lincoln police are investigating several car breaks in the Lincoln Road/Route 117 corridor that occurred some time between 3:00am and 5:00am on March 30. Several unlocked cars were opened and items removed. Please remove all valuable items and lock your vehicles. Also, if you have surveillance systems that were activated in the early morning hours, please review the footage. If anything appears out of the ordinary, please call the Lincoln Police Department (781-259-8111).

Arts and Farmers Market this weekend

The Lincoln Arts and Farmers Market Spring Market will take place on Saturday, April 4 from 10:00am–2:00pm at the Pierce House with vendors selling flowers, jewelry, ceramics, puzzles, and more. The vendor highlight is Lincoln’s Stewart Coffin, considered to be one of the best designers of polyhedral interlocking puzzles in the world, or “AP-ART, the sculptural art that comes apart,” as he calls it (see his Wikipedia page and read this Lincoln Squirrel profile of him). Other vendors at the market:

Hydrant flushing to begin

The Lincoln Water Department will begin its annual hydrant flushing program starting on Monday, April 6 with flushing each day daily from noon to 2:00am in various locations around town. This routine maintenance is necessary to improve water quality, remove sediment and tuberculation from water mains, and verify proper operation of hydrants and water main valves.

What to expect:

  • Temporary discoloration (this is normal and not harmful)
  • Slight drop in water pressure

What to do:

  • If you notice discolored water, run the cold water from a faucet until it clears before using it for drinking, cooking, or laundry.
  • Avoid washing light colors while flushing is taking place in your area. Check the Lincoln Water Department’s Facebook page for daily updates on flushing locations.

Questions or concerns? Call the Water Department at 781-259-2669.

Parent Prom on April 11

The Lincoln PTO is hosting their second annual Parent Prom on Saturday, April 11 from 8:00–11:00pm in Bemis Hall. At this adults-only event (open to all adults, not just LPS parents/caregivers), dress up and dance to your favorite ’90s music with your friends. Feel free to go old school prom attire, super fancy, or a laid-back cocktail attire. $75 per person, which includes one drink ticket. Purchase tickets here. Ticket sales generate funds that teachers may spend on bringing in programming that supplements the existing in-class curriculum.

Volunteers needed for Affordable Housing Trust

The Select Board is seeking a volunteer to serve on the Affordable Housing Trust until April 2027. The purpose of the trust is creation and preservation of affordable housing for the benefit of low- and moderate-income households, and to use the trust fund accordingly. For example, the trust contributed $1 million to the Oriole Landing project to secure a higher percentage of income-restricted units. The group seeks Lincoln residents who have demonstrated interest or engagement in issues concerning housing, affordable housing, property development, local policy, land use, or related topics. They generally meet in the morning on a quarterly basis as part of the Housing Coalition.

Letters of interest should be addressed to the Select Board and sent to Peggy Elder, administrative assistant in the Select Board’s Office (elderp@lincolnma.gov) along with a completed volunteer application by 5:00pm on Monday, April 20. The board will interview candidates at its April 27meeting. For more information, email Select Board member Jennifer Glass at jglassselect@lincolnma.gov or call the Select Board’s Office at 781-259-2601.

Earth Day at deCordova

Celebrate Earth Day at deCordova with a hands-on maker space inspired by the natural world on Wednesday, April 22 from 10:00am–noon. Explore themes of sustainability, renewal, and our connection to the environment as you experiment with creative and unexpected materials. More information and tickets.

Gentile to hold virtual office hours

State Rep. Carmine Gentile (D-Sudbury) will hold virtual office hours on Wednesday, April 22 from 11:00am–1:00pm. Sign up for a 20-minute time slot by emailing Gentile’s legislative aide, Jack Brox McCarthy, at jackbrox.mccarthy@mahouse.gov. Constituents must provide their full name, address, phone number, email, and topic(s) of discussion.

Legal notice: ZBA (61 Oxbow)

LEGAL NOTICE — ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS

The Zoning Board of the Appeals of the Town of Lincoln will hold a virtual online public hearing Thursday, April 2, 2026, at 7:00 P.M. to hear and to act on the following petitions under the Zoning Bylaws:

New:

  • Floriain Allroggen/Amanda Millis, 61 Oxbow Rd., M/P 174-11-0 for a variance to build a garage with studio above.

Note that legal notices often must be posted twice by law. For previous legal notices and details on how to submit a legal notice to the Lincoln Squirrel, click here.

Legal notice: Order of Notice (BSL/BN Commons Licensee Inc.)

Editor’s note: This is one of three repeated legal notices required by law. BSL/BN is the prior holder of the on-premises liquor license at The Commons in Lincoln. The dissolution will have no impact on the current liquor license holder at The Commons, nor any impact on The Commons.

ORDER OF NOTICE

WHEREAS a civil action has been commenced by BSL/BN Commons Licensee Inc. (“BSL/BN”), seeking a petition for dissolution, pursuant to G.L. c. 180, §11. Any person who has a claim against BSL/BN may present themselves to the Middlesex Superior Court, 200 Tradecenter Dr. Woburn, MA on April 21, 2026 in Courtroom 720 at 2:00 p.m. and address the Court.

We COMMAND YOU if you intend to make any defense, that on April 21or within such further time as the law allows you, to cause your written pleading to be filed in the office of the Clerk of Court named above, in said Commonwealth, and further that you defend against said action according to law if you intend any defense, and that you do and receive what the Court shall order and adjudge herein. If you do not, said action may be adjudged and orders entered in your absence.

It is ORDERED that notice of this action be given by publishing, once a week for three successive weeks, the last publication to be at least 20 days before said return date, in the Lincoln Squirrel.

For previous legal notices and details on how to submit a legal notice to the Lincoln Squirrel, click here.