A Look Back: June 30

50 Years Ago

■What may well be the oldest elm tree in Northampton has been singled out for a series of experimental shots to cure its current attack of Dutch elm disease. The disease has already claimed a few upper branches of the 175-year-old tree, located at 148 King St. and owned by Alfred Whitaker.

■Rabbi Asher Bar-Zev of the Congregation B’Nai Israel has been granted a one-year sabbatical leave. The spiritual leader of the local Jewish congregation will spend his leave, starting in September, in Israel. He will be accompanied by his wife and children.

25 Years Ago

■Education Commissioner Frank W. Haydu III has abruptly announced his resignation, effective in September, blaming acting Gov. Paul Cellucci for turning teacher certification into a political issue. “Our teachers — because of the governor — are being tarred and feathered with being incompetent and illiterate,” Haydu said Monday. “It’s so inaccurate and unfair.”

■Trustees of the Forbes Library hope to convince the city to increase their appropriation. They say the library is the victim of an accounting error. But Finance Director John Musante denies any error was made in calculating the library budget for the fiscal year that starts Wednesday.

10 Years Ago

■Belchertown butcher Mary Poehnelt continued to chop her way toward the top in Thursday night’s 19th episode of “Hell’s Kitchen — Five Chefs Compete Part 2.” Poehnelt, a butcher at Whole Foods Market in Hadley, is among the top five competitors in the 11th season of the Fox television show.

■Two months after a state highway truck spilled bright yellow paint along more than two miles of Route 202, local officials say they are still waiting for the mess to get cleaned up. The spill occurred May 1 when approximately 100 gallons of paint were spilled along Route 202 between South Hadley and Holyoke, according to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.

]]>