===PAGE 1===
Lunenburg  Trust  Fund  Commission  
Bilotta  Meeting  Room/PACC  
Lunenburg  Town  Hall  
November  13,  2025  
 The  meeting  was  called  to  order  at  5:01  pm  by  Chairman  Bowen.  Present  were  Mr  Howard  and  
Chairman
 
Bowen.
  Members  recited  the  Pledge  of  Allegiance.  Chairman  Bowen  proceeded  to  read  the  posted  
Agenda.
  Public  comment:  Chairman  Bowen  opened  up  the  meeting  to  public  comments.  No  members  of  the  public  were  
present
 
nor
 
were
 
there
 
any
 
participants
 
on
 
Zoom.
  
Neither
 
Mr
 
Howard
 
nor
 
Chairman
 
Bowen
 
had
 
any
 
opening
 
comments.
  There  were  no  Treasurer  or  Finance  Director  reports.   New  Business:  Chairman  Bowen  stated  that  he  made  comments  at  the  recorded  and  televised  School  
Committee
 
meeting
 
regarding
 
scholarships.
  
Chairman
 
Bowen
 
met
 
with
 
Anthony
 
Sculimbrene
 
from
 
the
 
School
 
Committee
 
and
 
did
 
receive
 
some
 
communication
 
from
 
the
 
Treasurer
 
and
 
Town
 
Manager.
  
The
 
Trust
 
Fund
 
Commission
 
reviewed
 
the
 
latest
 
quarterly
 
statement
 
from
 
Bartholomew
 
and
 
Company,
 
the
 
results
 
seemed
 
to
 
be
 
below
 
expectations
 
and
 
may
 
need
 
some
 
clarification
 
from
 
either
 
the
 
Treasurer
 
or
 
Bartholomew
 
and
 
Company.
  Chairman  Bowen  discussed  Municipal  Scholarships.   According  to  some  preliminary  findings  
there
 
are
  
15
 
scholarships
 
according
 
to
 
the
 
Town
 
Treasurer,
 
but
 
there
 
are
 
51
 
scholarships
 
according
 
to
 
the
 
Lunenburg
 
High
 
School
 
guidance
 
dept.
  Town  Manager  and  Town  Treasurer  would  like  to  meet  in  December  with  the  Trust  Fund  
Commission
 
regarding
 
proposed
 
cy
 
pres
 
filings
 
and
 
parameters
 
of
 
such.
  Chairman  Bowen  read  an  email  from  the  Town  Mgr  on  accepting  gifts.   Chairman  Bowen  
discussed
 
the
 
following
 
text
 
from
 
his
 
research
 
into
 
the
 
treatment
 
for
 
Scholarships:
 
Municipal  Management  of  Scholarship  Gifts  and  Trusts  in  Massachusetts  Dear  [Recipient's  Name],  
 
This
 
letter
 
provides
 
a
 
comprehensive
 
overview
 
of
 
how
 
municipalities
 
in
 
Massachusetts
 
may
 
===PAGE 2===
accept,  manage,  and  invest  scholarship  funds,  with  reference  to  applicable  statutes  under  
the
 
Massachusetts
 
General
 
Laws
 
(M.G.L.).
 
1.  Scholarship  Gifts  Under  M.G.L.  Chapter  44,  Section  53A,  municipalities  may  accept  gifts  or  grants  of  money  or  
property
 
from
 
individuals,
 
corporations,
 
or
 
other
 
entities.
 
These
 
gifts
 
must
 
be
 
formally
 
accepted
 
by
 
the
 
appropriate
 
municipal
 
authority,
 
such
 
as
 
the
 
Board
 
of
 
Selectmen
 
or
 
City
 
Council,
 
and
 
may
 
be
 
expended
 
without
 
further
 
appropriation,
 
provided
 
they
 
are
 
used
 
for
 
the
 
purpose
 
specified
 
by
 
the
 
donor.
 
 
For
 
educational
 
purposes,
 
M.G.L.
 
Chapter
 
71,
 
Section
 
37A
 
allows
 
school
 
committees
 
to
 
accept
 
gifts
 
and
 
grants
 
for
 
scholarships.
 
These
 
funds
 
are
 
deposited
 
with
 
the
 
municipal
 
treasurer,
 
held
 
in
 
a
 
separate
 
account,
 
and
 
may
 
be
 
spent
 
by
 
the
 
school
 
committee
 
without
 
further
 
appropriation.
 
2.  Scholarship  Funds  via  Tax  Check-Off  M.G.L.  Chapter  60,  Section  3C  permits  municipalities  to  establish  scholarship  funds  
supported
 
by
 
voluntary
 
taxpayer
 
donations
 
through
 
a
 
check-off
 
option
 
on
 
tax
 
bills.
 
These
 
donations
 
are
 
deposited
 
into
 
a
 
special
 
account
 
and
 
managed
 
by
 
a
 
scholarship
 
committee,
 
which
 
includes
 
the
 
school
 
superintendent
 
and
 
appointed
 
residents.
 
The
 
committee
 
selects
 
recipients
 
based
 
on
 
financial
 
need,
 
academic
 
performance,
 
and
 
other
 
criteria.
 
3.  Scholarship  Trusts  and  Oversight  Scholarships  established  as  trusts  fall  under  the  governance  of  the  Massachusetts  Uniform  
Trust
 
Code,
 
codified
 
in
 
M.G.L.
 
Chapter
 
203E.
 
This
 
code
 
outlines
 
the
 
creation,
 
administration,
 
and
 
enforcement
 
of
 
trusts,
 
including
 
requirements
 
for
 
a
 
lawful
 
purpose,
 
identifiable
 
beneficiaries,
 
and
 
fiduciary
 
duties
 
of
 
trustees.
 
 
Importantly,
 
any
 
scholarship
 
established
 
as
 
a
 
trust
 
is
 
subject
 
to
 
the
 
management
 
and
 
appropriation
 
authority
 
of
 
the
 
Board
 
of
 
Commissioners
 
of
 
Trust
 
Funds,
 
as
 
provided
 
in
 
M.G.L.
 
Chapter
 
41,
 
Sections
 
45
 
and
 
47.
 
This
 
board
 
is
 
responsible
 
for
 
managing
 
all
 
trust
 
funds
 
given
 
or
 
bequeathed
 
for
 
the
 
benefit
 
of
 
the
 
town
 
or
 
its
 
residents,
 
unless
 
the
 
donor
 
specifies
 
otherwise.
 
The
 
board
 
must
 
invest
 
the
 
funds
 
prudently,
 
maintain
 
detailed
 
records,
 
and
 
report
 
annually
 
on
 
fund
 
activity.
 
4.  Investment  Practices  Trustees  must  comply  with  the  Massachusetts  Prudent  Investor  Act,  M.G.L.  Chapter  203C,  
which
 
requires
 
that
 
trust
 
assets
 
be
 
invested
 
with
 
reasonable
 
care,
 
skill,
 
and
 
caution.
 
Trustees
 
must
 
consider
 
factors
 
such
 
as
 
general
 
economic
 
conditions,
 
inflation,
 
tax
 
consequences,
 
liquidity
 
needs,
 
and
 
diversification.
 
 
Additionally,
 
M.G.L.
 
Chapter
 
203D
 
governs
 
the
 
allocation
 
of
 
principal
 
and
 
income
 
in
 
trust
 
administration.
 
Trustees
 
may
 
adjust
 
between
 
principal
 
and
 
income
 
to
 
ensure
 
fair
 
===PAGE 3===
distribution  and  compliance  with  the  trust’s  terms,  especially  when  income-based  
distributions
 
are
 
required
 
for
 
scholarship
 
recipients.
 
Conclusion  In  summary,  Massachusetts  law  provides  municipalities  with  multiple  mechanisms  to  
support
 
educational
 
advancement
 
through
 
scholarships.
 
Gifts
 
may
 
be
 
accepted
 
and
 
spent
 
directly
 
by
 
municipal
 
or
 
school
 
officials,
 
while
 
scholarship
 
trusts
 
must
 
be
 
managed
 
by
 
the
 
Board
 
of
 
Commissioners
 
of
 
Trust
 
Funds.
 
Trust
 
assets
 
must
 
be
 
invested
 
and
 
administered
 
in
 
accordance
 
with
 
fiduciary
 
standards
 
and
 
statutory
 
requirements.
 
 
Please
 
feel
 
free
 
to
 
reach
 
out
 
if
 
you
 
require
 
assistance
 
in
 
drafting
 
scholarship
 
agreements,
 
establishing
 
committees,
 
or
 
reviewing
 
fund
 
management
 
practices.
 
 
Sincerely,
 
[Your
 
Name]
 
[Your
 
Title/Role]
 
[Your
 
Contact
 
Information]
 
 
Both  members  discussed  the  vacancy  on  the  Trust  Fund  Commission,  Mr  Howard  expressed  
concern
 
that
 
the
 
progress
 
made
 
to
 
date
 
could
 
stall
 
and
 
those
 
in
 
need
 
may
 
be
 
impacted
 
if
 
there
 
were
 
a
 
request
 
brought
 
forward
 
to
 
the
 
Trust
 
Fund
 
Commission
 
where
 
both
 
members
 
did
 
not
 
share
 
the
 
same
 
position
 
-
 
we
 
would
 
not
 
be
 
able
 
to
 
act,
 
so
 
a
 
3rd
 
person
 
is
 
necessary
 
to
 
ensure
 
uninterrupted
 
progress,
 
Chairman  Bowen  briefly  discussed  the  Intern  situation,  as  of  the  meeting  this  topic  is   somewhat  
on
 
hold
 
There  were  no  closing   comments  from  members  of  the  Trust  Fund  Commission,  there  were  no  
comments
 
from
 
the
 
public
 
and
 
no
 
comments
 
from
 
Zoom..
 
Due  to  the  Thanksgiving  Holiday,  the  Trust  Fund  Commissions  tentatively  agreed  to  hold  the  
next
 
scheduled
 
meeting
 
on
 
Monday
 
the
 
24th
 
of
 
November
 
at
 
5pm.
 
A  motion  to  adjourn  was  raised  by  Chairman  Bowen.   The  motion  was  seconded  by  Mr  Howard.  
Motion
 
passed
 
unanimously
 
with
 
both
 
members
 
voting
 
‘aye’.
  
Meeting
 
adjourned
 
at
 
6:32pm