Whitman Board of Selectmen Weighs End of Veterans Day Parade, Appoints Planning Board Member

WHITMAN -- September 9, 2025, Whitman Board of Selectmen moves to restructure Veterans Day observance and makes four committee appointments. Veterans Service Officer Declan Wear told the board Tuesday that Abington's VSO has declined to continue the tri-town Veterans Day parade, and proposed replacing it with a formal color guard ceremony and catered luncheon on Saturday, November 8; the board directed Wear to confirm Rockland's position before the next meeting in two weeks. The board, sitting jointly with the Planning Board, unanimously appointed Jeffrey Sergis to fill a Planning Board vacancy through May 2026. Town Administrator Sean Reyes reported that the Board of Assessors released $225,000 in one-time funds, while a proposed restructuring of the town's $20-to-$21 million Plymouth County retirement liability was set aside after Treasurer Tom O'Brien indicated required special legislation is unlikely to pass. Reyes flagged two recurring-revenue options still under active consideration: correcting trash indirect cost accounting for roughly $150,000 annually and improving ambulance billing collection rates. The board also accepted the retirement of 11-year crossing guard Mary "Izzy" Kochi and swore in Officers Adrian Caffrey and Derek McAftney to the Whitman Police Department.