Stoughton Chamber Meeting
Hosted By
Panera Bread

Our April meeting was held at Panera Bread in RK Plaza, Stoughton. The meeting was well attended, including some guests of the chamber, which I found out a bit later why they were in attendence.
Above, Mike Demerjian, General Manager of the Panera Stoughton, was introduced along with Bob Scoppeto (not pictured), who is the District Manager.

Click here for story written by Karlayne Powell

Just as I was about to introduce our guest speaker I was interrupted by Rick Kaplan, VP of our Board of Directors. Rick introduced State Representative Lou Kafka who asked me to stand beside him as he talked to our chamber members.

Lou presented me with a Proclamation from the State House, which stated that I am a very good person and thanked me for my dedication to the Town of Stoughton (their words, not mine). The document was signed by State Reps Lou Kafka and William Galvin (who, unfortunately could not attend due to a family emergency) and also signed by House Speaker Salvitore Dimasi. What an honor and I must say that this is a very impressive document, which I am in the process of having framed.

Then, Karen Hall, Director of the Youth Commission came up with another Proclamation from the Town of Stoughton, which was signed by all of the Selectmen. She, too, had some very kind words for me, mentioning my involvement as a Board Member of the Stoughton Youth Commission and how the Stoughton Chamber of Commerce has been so helpful and generous to the youth in our town.

Last, but certainly far from least, my good friend Caitlin Thomas, Director of O.A.S.I.S. (Organized Against Substances In Stoughton). Turns out that she was the instigator of this award ceremony for me, much to my surprise. She had kept these plans so secretive that even my wife, Joanne, was not told. Rick Kaplan was also involved, which I sincerely thank him and he said to me that they knew he could be trusted because he forgets everything anyway. I would have to differ with him because he never forgets to be thoughtful, generous and caring for others, which is why he has received accolades in the past (so many that he is running out of room on his office wall).

Finally, with me out of the way, I could introduce one of our guest speakers, Stoughton Police Lieutenant Robert Devine (Fire Chief David Jardin was supposed to be our second speaker but, due to the ceremony, offered to postpone) provided us with a great presentation about Internet Safety. He covered several issues including what to watch for when it comes to sexual predators and how to protect your kids from these deviants.

Lieutenant Devine also discussed another important issue, Identity Theft. How some of these peer-to-peer networks like Napster, Limewire, Kazaa, etc can open a doorway for those who would like to steal information or your identity. He also explained how important it is to not destroy evidence if you see something wrong like pornography showing up on your computer or e-mails that link to improper sites. The first thing to do is call the police because they are trained to deal with these matters.

Before ending this evening's meeting, I introduced our newest member, Alan Gibson, owner of The Olde Irish Butcher Shoppe in Stoughton. Alan's business provides Irish breakfast products wholesale to various restaurants and through food brokers. He and I met at the New England Restaurant & Lodging Show where I couldn't get enough of his Irish Bangers, which are small but very tasty sausage links. I think you'll be seeing more of Alan and his products at some upcoming meetings.

All in all, it was a nice meeting with nice people and I hope to see you all at our May Meeting.