Good morning everyone, It’s fifty eight degrees in the Manchester Area.

White Smoke!  White Smoke!  Manchester has a new Superintendent of Schools!  Those were the cheers that went up throughout the city on Saturday as the school board voted thirteen to nothing to elect Dr. Debra Livingston Superintendent of Schools.  Ward 2’s Debra Langton and Ward 11’s Jason Cooper were absent for the vote, though Langton had been present up until the time of the vote.  Livingston is currently the Superintendent of the Fall Mountain Regional School District, which includes the towns of Acworth, Alstead, Charlestown, Langdon and Walpole.  If you’re wondering where that is, it’s up near Claremont.  Before her six year stint as Superintendent in Fall Mountain, Livingston was the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the Socorro Independent School District in El Paso, Texas.  At the time, the district had thirty seven thousand children.  In an interview with Girard at Large, Livingston said she applied for the post because of the challenge it presented.  Servant leadership, she said, would be her approach to the district.  Livingston has until Friday to review the contract offered by the school board, which is a two year deal that starts her at one hundred sixty thousand dollars per year.  Livingston starts on July first.

As we reported on our Girard at Large facebook page on Friday, the Hooksett School Board actually, though accidentally, elected someone to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Mike Dubisz.  His name is Phil Denbow and he got the nod on a technicality.  At the Hooksett board’s last meeting, Denbow got the girl vote, but not all the boys voted against.  Board Elf John Lyscars abstained on the vote.  At the time, Denbow was deemed to not have a majority, but upon further legal review, he was found to have received a majority of those present and voting.  So the abstaining elf, who coaches soccer with Denbow, betrayed the boy vote and gave the girls the win.  I was really hoping to get another couple of months out of this one…Oh well…

The news continues after this.

New Hampshire Attorney General Joseph Foster and Manchester Police Chief David Mara announced yesterday that an investigation is ongoing into another murder in Manchester.  At approximately 3 a.m. Sunday, officers from the Manchester Police Department responded to a 9 1 1 caller’s apartment and discovered a deceased adult male inside.  The deceased, who was not a resident of that apartment, appeared to have suffered at least one gunshot wound.  Investigators have determined that the victim was shot by one of the three residents of the apartment.  Law enforcement officials have withheld the victim’s identity pending notification of his next of kin.  The Manchester Police Department is actively investigating the incident.  If anyone has any information about this incident they are asked to call the M P D at 6 6 8 8 7 1 1 and ask for or call Manchester Crimeline at 6 2 4 40 40.

The Merrimack Farmers’ Market will open for the season on Wednesday, June 19th and continue through Wednesday, September 18th. The market will run every Wednesday afternoon from 3:00 – 6:00 in the Tractor Supply parking lot at The Commons, 515 Daniel Webster Highway in Merrimack.  Local produce, eggs, meats, cheese, breads, preserves and a variety of other agricultural products will be available.  Click here for all the details.

Mark your calendars for July 6th!  Why?  Well The Coalition of New Hampshire Taxpayers will hold its 15th annual Taxpayer Reunion Picnic in the town of Hillsborough on Saturday July 6 from 11:00 to 2:00 at the Hillsborough American Legion Post number fifty nine.  Tickets for the all you can eat picnic, which is the group’s only fundraiser, are just fifteen bucks.  Kids 12 and under eat free.  I, Your Humble Host, will be the Master of Ceremonies for the affair!  The outing’s theme this year is VOTE FRAUD.  Details of the event and the organization are available at C N H T dot org.  I hope you’ll come along.  I’ve been to this picnic before and it’s a great time.  For complete details or to register your tickets, click here.

That’s news from our own backyard, Girard at Large Hour ___ is just 30 seconds away!