Winner pg 4 1-20-22
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Winner
Putnam Middle School sixth-grader TJ Espinosa, 11, won the Elks State Hoop Shoot championship Jan. 15 and will represent Connecticut and Putnam Lodge #574 at the New England Championships in March. Espinosa won the state title, in which each contestant takes 25 free throws, in a triple-overtime shootout. He made 22-of-25, then five, four, and five (out of five) in the overtime periods. He won the local championship Dec. 11 with 23 makes, and the district championship for the first time the next day by making 24-of-25. New Englands will be held March 12. One winner will move on to the national championships in April.
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Centaur pg 1 1-27-22
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Centaur
indoor track
teams sparkle
in Bethel
The Woodstock Academy boys’ and girls’ indoor track teams had a field day at Bethel High School. Jan. 22 the facility hosted high school teams in a day designed for pentathlon, distance and pole vault competitors.
“It was great to get the kids the chance to run some new events,” said indoor track coach Josh Welch. “We set three school records by getting kids out to run events we don’t traditionally run indoors.”
Junior Bella Sorrentino will now appear in the Woodstock records as she finished with 2,107 points in the pentathlon competition, good enough for fourth overall. Teammate Jillian Edwards was right behind her in fifth place with 2.058 points.
Sorrentino also qualified for State competition in the long jump in the process as she cleared 15-feet, 1 ¾ inches.
Junior Sydney Lord finished second in the 5K and established a school record with a 22-minute, 1.14-seconds time.
And senior Seamus Lippy also put his name on the books in the 5000-meter where he finished second in 18:41.31.
Senior Linsey Arends took first in the mile (5:41.30) for the girls and junior Vince Bastura did the same for the boys, qualifying for State competition with his time of 4:48.72. Junior Julia Coyle was first in the 3000-meter in 12:17.55.
Second-place finishes were had by Leah Castle (5:58.26) in the mile; Ian Hoffman (9-feet) and Magdalena Myslenski (6-6) in the boys and girls pole vault; Lauren Brule in the 3000-meter (12:52.80) and Christian Menounos in the 3000-meter (10:34.05).
Woodstock also got a third-place finish from Joel Koleszar in the 3000-meter (11:13.03).
“The kids were excited for the opportunity,” Welch said. “Having them compete in multi-meets like this pentathlon helps elevate the role of versatile athletes on the team which helps build our team culture.”
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
Taking Part
Woodstock Academy indoor track athletes who participated at the Bethel invitational this weekend included, bottom from left: Christian Menounos, Magdalena Myslenski, Julia Coyle, Lauren Brule, Seamus Lippy; and top from left: Leah Castle, Linsey Arends, Sydney Lord, Vince Bastura, Ian Hoffman and Joel Koleszar. Photo by Josh Welch.
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a peek pg 1 1-27-22
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caption:
Aspinock Historical Society President Bill Pearsall journeyed back 25 years into Putnam's past when the society's Time Chest was opened Jan. 22, 2022. More photos on page 4. Linda Lemmon photos.
Key was missing;
bolt cutters did the trick
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — A TV guide that could double as a door stop. Evidence that Putnam has always been a hub. And much more.
The Aspinock Historical Society’s president Bill Pearsall, with all the fanfare that a bolt cutter can provide, opened the society’s 1997 time chest Jan. 22, 2022.
Pearsall said when he became active in the Aspinock Historical Society in 2005 he saw the chest by the door. Where did it come from? Boy Scouts? A school? He learned that it was the time chest. The bolt cutters came in handy because, he thinks, the key for the lock must have been hanging in the closet of the old society building and that building was demolished. Nothing a bolt cutter can’t fix.
In 1977 the society decided to celebrate its 25th anniversary by creating a time chest. The homemade wooden chest was built by the late Richard Flagg. The society gathered “clean” items from the year 1977. Items were collected most of the year and the chest was sealed on November 30, 1997. It was not to be opened until after January 1, 2022, the year of the society’s 50th anniversary.
Packed amongst the Styrofoam discs, were folders and items including photographs, theater and fair and festival brochures, newspapers (including the Putnam Town Crier in its black and white days), calendar from Viens, business cards, menus, a scoop from Deary Brothers and much more. On top of the offerings was a straw hat that the president then, Ruth Flagg, created and hung on the Aspinock Historical Society’s door for the entire year in 1977.
Nelson “Buzz” King, former principal of Putnam High School, was there for the opening. PHS materials were part of the chest’s trove. He said in 1977 he got a thank you note from Ruth Flagg and at the end Flagg told him “I just know you’ll be there” when the chest is opened. And so he was.
Pearsall said the society will make a display of the chest’s contents in the society’s new home inside the Putnam Municipal Complex.
Items Sought for 2047
AND the time chest will live on. According to Kathy Zamagni, the society is looking for items for the 2022 version of the time chest to be opened in 25 years. Mail or drop off items that show what Putnam is/was like in 2022 to the Aspinock Historical Society, 200 School St., Putnam, CT 06260. It will be opened in 2047. Pearsall joked he’d be 99 so “I won’t be around.”
The late Ruth Flagg wrote a letter to the future with her plain and simple words in “Greetings to the Citizens of 2022:” Speaking from the heart she had advice for school administrators, religious communities, government, and parenting. She saved for last her words “To the Historians: Never forget that you are the guardians of the gates of life. Through your hands will pass the generations, past, present and future. The accomplishments and deeds of others and their world as they knew it; the buildings they built, the work places they knew and established and their dreams are yours to record. A dream even if it never develops can become another’s dream. It is worth remembering. All the unpleasant things must be remembered also. Society must learn from them. Make history a road map and mark each landmark upon it.”
She ended with “As you review each and every item in this 1997 time chest, please do so with contemplation and study. It is all we have to give you — our way of life in 1997. It is my deepest hope that you, the citizens of Putnam in the year 2022, will record the history of your year and prepare it for another generation. Link your hand with mine so that we may share the ages together. God Speed in Your Endeavors. Ruth Flagg.”
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fire pg 1 1-27-22
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Fire & Ice
Fest coming
Feb. 12
PUTNAM — The 11th annual Fire & Ice Festival will be here Feb. 12. The Putnam Business Association, in partnership with The Town of Putnam, will once again host the largest single ice block competition in all of New England.
The blockbuster event, scheduled from noon to 9 p.m. on Feb. 12,, boasts more than five dozen ice carvings, ice photo opportunities, a 30-foot inflatable igloo, character meet and greets, roaming stilt and LED Light Walkers, glowing fire torches, fire dancing performances, a cake decorating contest, and the newest addition to Main St. — MoheganSunCasino.com’s game show “Temperature Rising.”
From noon to 5 p.m., watch professional, amateur and group carvers create their masterpieces, with an awards ceremony at the Congregational Church of Putnam at 6 p.m. Ice carvings will decorate the streets of downtown Putnam. Patrons can watch as 300-pound ice blocks are transformed into a variety of shapes and figures. The 300-lb ice blocks are sponsored by local businesses and carved by dedicated artists. Professional demonstrations are being sponsored by Quiet Corner Inn, Putnam Ford, Ketel One Vodka and The Broken Crust. In addition, an event-inspired photo opportunities will be sponsored by Northeast Flooring and Kitchens, Jewett City Savings Bank, Woodstock Building Associates and Foster Corporation, and for adult patrons a MoheganSunCasino.com-sponsored Ice Bar serving drink specials by The Courthouse Bar and Grille and Ice Luges will be located throughout the festival grounds.
The “Temperature Rising” game show, hosted by MoheganSunCasino.com, will see players answer HOT or COLD questions, with a chance to win cash prizes up to $2,500. Players are chosen at random from a pool of spectators who have downloaded, registered and deposited at least $10 to play games on the MoheganSunCasino.com Online Gaming App. Must be 21 or older to participate.
Back by popular demand will be a 30-foot inflatable igloo sponsored by Enchanted Jewelry. Character meet and greets will be available from 1 to 4 p.m. inside the igloo, as well as face painting and kid-inspired crafts and creations. Also returning are the Lover’s Lane, an arts and crafts alley presented by Putnam Public Schools, the REMAX hot air balloon, a stilt-walking princess and LED light-walker roving around which are sponsored by Byrnes Agency Insurance.
The Congregational Church of Putnam will feature fire pits and lunch offerings and free hot chocolate. Inside the church will be a special cake contest, with creations inspired by the theme “Love is Brewing”. Professional and novice baker’s culinary masterpieces will be on display all day. Entrants will be scored by specialty judges based on originality, best use of main ingredient and artistic creation. There will also be a people’s choice award.
As the sun goes down at the Fire & Ice Festival, fire torches will set downtown Putnam aglow. The ice sculpture masterpieces will be lit up. Adding to the spectacle, visitors will be wowed by fire dancing performances from duo Boston Circus Guild, courtesy of sponsors Gerardi Insurance, NorthStar Home Loans, Rawson Materials and Fluid Coating Technologies. Performances will take place at 6 and 7:30 p.m. with non-stop thrills choreographed to music culminating in a duo finale!
For more info or more on how to participate, either as a carver, a volunteer, a cake contest participant, or as a visitor to this unique festival, visit www.discoverputnam.com.
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