WESTFORD — Welcome to the Feb. 26 edition of Weekend Wrap-Up. Here, we highlight the most important news you may have missed this week in Westford.
Westford student wins regional braille challenge
A Westford student has won first place in a regional braille challenge.
The New England Braille Challenge, hosted by The Carroll Center for the Blind, tests braille skills of blind and visually impaired children. Students from New England are invited to compete in the annual event.
The challenge was hosted on Feb. 11 at The Carroll Center for the Blind in Newton.
Students are separated into five categories based on their age, including Apprentice, Freshman, Sophomore, Junior Varsity and Varsity levels.
Alan Quan, of Westford, cinched first place in the center’s varsity level.
The top 50 students with the highest scores will participate in the Braille Challenge Finals, which will be hosted later this year. Quan may qualify for the national-level challenge once final scores are tallied.
UPDATE: Westford Police seek information on attempted theft at Cornerstone Square shops
The Westford Police Department is seeking information on two suspects in an attempted theft at Cornerstone Square on Wednesday.
The suspects attempted to steal over $800 worth of merchandise from Marshalls and HomeGoods at approximately 6:45 p.m., according to the department.
The suspects have been identified by the Westford Police Department. The department is seeking charges against both suspects.
Town-owned vehicles to promote new crisis lifeline
New bumper stickers – to inform residents of the new 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline – will be placed on a number of town-owned vehicles.
988 has been designated as the new three-digit dialing code to connect callers with the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. The new code took was launches on July 16, 2022.
Since the launch of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, contact and answer rates have risen dramatically while the average speed to answer has dropped, according to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services data.
Comparing Dec. 2021 to Dec. 2022, calls answered rose by 48%, chats answers increased by 263% and texts answered increased by 1,445%. The average speed to answer across all contacts decreased dramatically from 172 seconds to 44 seconds.
The stickers will be placed on certain vehicles owned by the Westford Fire Department, Westford Police Department as well as other town vehicles.
