putnam pg 1 7-6-23
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
captions, page 5:
Honors
Top photo: Putnam Rotarian Woody Durst, second from right, won a Paul Harris Fellowship award. From left: Nominator Rotarian Doug Porter; Paul Pikora, chair of the Paul Harris Committee; Durst; and Rotarian and MC Joe Adiletta. Below: Jeff Bousquet also was awarded a Paul Harris. He stands next to Rotarian Gary Osbrey who nominated him. Linda Lemmon photos.
Putnam Rotary Officers and Board
From left: Past President Missy Meyers, Directors Kristen Willis and Woody Durst; Secretary Martha Paquette; Treasurer Fred Chmura; Vice President Kathy Kirk and President Amanda Kelly.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — What is this “no” you speak of?
For the Putnam Rotary Club — for the last 100 years — the answer has always been “yes.” Yes to seemingly impossible projects. Yes to always doing more for communities … and worldwide.
Right from the beginning, when the Putnam Rotary Club was founded in 1923 by John Reardon, the Putnam club has been driven, according to Joe Adiletta. At the club’s recent awards ceremony and induction of officers, Adiletta gave a brief synopsis of the club’s 100 years of service. From local projects, to helping out nationally to lending a hand worldwide, the answer was always yes.
In this 100th year it was always “yes” and projects tumbled into the “done” column.
The club received a citation in honor of its 100th anniversary from Governor Ned Lamont.
And even the Paul Harris Fellowship Awards, Rotary’s highest, echoed the resounding “yes”. Jeff Bousquet, of Bousquet’s Appliances, was always there, always saying yes, according to Rotarian Gary Osbrey who nominated him for the award. He embraces and gives back to the community, “all without fanfare,” Osbrey said.
“Woody” Durst also received a Paul Harris award. Rotarian Doug Porter, who nominated Durst, said although Durst is a relatively new member he’s always there, serving. He’s heavily involved in Rotary projects and always says “yes.”
New president Amanda Kelly spoke about her goals for the coming year, in line with Rotary International’s theme this year, “Creating Hope in the World”. She gave each club member a stone engraved with the word “hope.” Important for her year, she said, is diversity and inclusion.
The club’s new officers were inducted and include: Amanda Kelly, president; Elizabeth Williams, president-elect; Kathy Kirk, vice president; Fred Chmura, treasurer; Martha Paquette, secretary; Missy Meyers, past president. Sergeants-at-arms include: Jonathan Sturdevant, Jonathan Tremblay and Barry Shead. Directors include the officers and: Durst, Kristen Willis, Jennifer Ricci and Pam Brown.
.
playscape pg 1 7-6-23
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
caption:
More Smiles
Elisabeth Fortin got to keep the bow after she was chosen to cut the ribbon on Putnam's Playscape at the Municipal Complex. Linda Lemmon photos.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — It took a while but the playscape behind the library at the Municipal Complex, finally became “official” with a ribbon-cutting welcome to town last week.
Karen Osbrey, chair of the Municipal Complex building committee, said the playscape was always on the committee’s wish list. When late projects and punch-list projects were done, there was enough money to move the playscape project from the wish list to the done list. “If there was extra money, we’d put in a playscape."
Town Administrator Elaine Sistare said the playscape cost about $180,000. It was ordered last June and it took six months to come in. Assembly had to wait for the spring. “We had to wait for the construction season,” Sistare said. She added that they had also talked about additional landscaping but it wasn’t needed.
Mayor Barney Seney, credited “three strong ladies,” Library Director Priscilla Colwell, Osbrey and Sistare with making it possible.
Osbrey thanked the building committee. “They had a vision for the town and made it happen,” she said, adding that it went beyond the committee, with all the townspeople support. “It really does take a village.”
Colwell said they whole project started in 2012. She credited the townspeople “I’m so glad you voted for this. This is so good for our future.”
Each child had their name in a basket to be the one to cut the “Putnam Blue” ribbon. Osbrey drew the name. Elisabeth Fortin, 8, of Sterling, was the lucky winner.
.
all pg 1 7-6-23
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
All Smiles
Jaiona Lewis, 10, and Tahira Moore, 4, of Danielson were all smiles at the Putnam fireworks extravaganza. More photos on page 4. Expanded photo array Wed. night on FB: Putnam Town Crier & Northeast Ledger. Linda Lemmon photo.
because pg 2 7-6-23
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
The definition of nag(v) is to irritate by constant urging. My mother always nagged me about cleaning up my room or doing my homework and followed up her nagging by using phrases like “disappointed in you” and “you can do better”. My father nagged me about practicing for sports and curfews and, typically, followed up his nagging by waking me up at 7a.m., on a weekend, during the summer, for some sort of wind sprint-filled workout.
Although the word nag carries a somewhat negative connotation in a relationship, I would offer that my parents’ method of nagging (words combined with follow-up actions) made me the person that I am today. As a mother, I honed my skills as a nagger. I loved my daughter, but I also sprinkled that love with LOTS of reminders to “Brush your teeth.”; “Do your homework.”; “Clean your room.”; “Turn it DOWN!”; and “Wear sunscreen.” However, rather than relying on follow-up actions, I utilized follow-up questions to enhance my nagging messages such as “Do you want to get cavities?”; “Will you be happy with average grades if you knew you could do better?”; “Do you want new clothing?”; “Did you want to make yourself deaf?”; and “Do you enjoy getting a sunburn?”.
My daughter turned out great and is now a mother of two little ones herself. And as much as I know that my love and support contributed to her fine character, so too, did the nagging, because I can’t help but smirk when I hear her reminding her own son to “Brush his teeth” or “Clean up his toys”. But if parental nagging is quite effective in contributing to well-groomed, tidy and self-motivated adult children, why then is it NOT as effective when dealing with a spouse?
Nagging a spouse who is ALREADY an adult and, for that matter, someone we CHOSE to be with, simply stated, feels like, for lack of a better word…NAGGING! But, because I still feel as though my frequent and incessant reminding will still help cultivate a healthy (well-groomed, tidy and self-motivated) spouse, I still nag. I have tried altering my nagging technique to include follow-up affirmations of love. Nagging phrases of “Take your vitamin.”; “Wear a shirt that isn’t stained”; and “Put on sunscreen.”, are usually followed up by “It’s only because I love you so much.”; “It’s because you are so handsome.”; and “Because I don’t want you to feel itchy and peel.” However, what I have discovered is that it is a combination of knowing when to nag and when not to nag, that is now the most effective. If I don’t tell (yell to) my husband to use sunscreen and then he gets a sunburn and feels itchy, I simply scratch his back for him. And when he sees that I then need to vacuum or dust-bust the floor after his flakey and peeling skin falls everywhere, he feels badly… But lately, I have decided to just be more direct in my approach and have taken to simply, dust-busting his back! Experience! Experience!
Kathy Naumann, possessor of NATURALLY curly hair and the understanding that you can’t control everything!
.