ATHOL – Volunteers for the Athol Community Wood Bank are at it again, splitting and stacking wood in the Department of Public Works’ back yard, tackling an innumerable amount of wood that was collected from around town prior to the recent nor’easter.
As the DPW continues to clean up fallen trees and limbs from the Oct. 17 storm, more help will be needed for cutting and piling the wood that will be collected, said Wood Bank volunteer coordinator Heidi Strickland, who expects a “huge” amount to be added to the already existing mountainous stack of logs and the generous supply of pre-cut sections that are set on the ground. Last week, she said, four University of Massachusetts students pitched in to help.
The Athol Community Wood bank has been converting dead and declining trees into firewood for residents in need since 2015, when Athol Tree Warden Travis Knechtel and Petersham Tree Warden Melissa LeVangie shared the idea of using the wood that had been cut down from town trees to provide firewood to those who cannot afford to buy it.
The deadline for this year’s wood bank applications was Oct. 8. Bridget Sullivan, Administrative Assistant for the Office of the Board of Selectmen and Town Manager, and a member of the Athol Community Wood Bank committee, said they received 16 applications for vouchers, each for approximately a half cord. She said last year they were fortunate to have enough wood so that everyone who applied received wood.
Strickland, an Athol resident, said they also keep a few half cords for the season for emergencies.
Returning volunteer Bill Sharp, who is retired and works part-time for the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), said they’ll accept all hardwoods for the wood bank.
On Friday, Strickland, Sharp, who lives near the Connecticut border in Massachusetts, and James Chastney of Athol were using two splitters, one town-owned and the other brought in by Sharp which is shared with the town of Petersham.
A short time later, two more helpers arrived, KC Pearson of Athol, and his friend John Shadis of Westminster, VT who brought his own ax.
DCR forester Sean Mahoney drove onto the site with another splitter supplied by the state to also be used Saturday for a splitting day in Petersham. Mahoney helps coordinate wood banks around the state, which also provides urban and forestry grants. A $2,000 state grant was given this year to the Athol Community Wood Bank and was used for new components for the splitter and a new chain saw. Mahoney said Knechtel had applied for the grant and that this is the first year grants were awarded. He said his office serves as “sort of a clearing house” providing assistance, information and help to set up wood banks. The state loans out two splitters to towns, many times because of tight town budgets, he said.
Strickland said volunteers are sought to help split and stack wood at the Unity Avenue location behind the DPW on Nov. 2, Nov. 15, and Dec. 6, from 9 a.m. to noon. Volunteers can just show up at the site at these times. No tools are required, but work gloves, and hearing and eye protection are suggested.
For more information about the wood bank, contact Bridget Sullivan at the Town Hall at 978-249-2368 or Travis Knechtel at 978-249-8684.