obit pg 6 8-29-24
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Mary Madeline (Cunha) Welch
PUTNAM — Mary Madeline (Cunha) Welch, 93, formerly of North St., Putnam, beloved wife of the late Robert T. Welch, died Aug. 19, 2024, at Westview Healthcare. Born on Oct. 12, 1930, in Phoenix City, Ala., she was the daughter of the late Ulysses “Frank” and Ferol (Smith) Cunha.
Madeline was a very active and accomplished woman––she was the vice president of the accounting department at Loos & Co., a Sunday school teacher at St. Mary’s, and a longtime volunteer at the Daily Bread food pantry in Putnam and PAWS Cat Shelter. Above all, she cherished the quality time she spent with her family and friends, whom she loved to host for holidays and delicious Sunday night dinners. Madeline enjoyed singing, playing the piano, sewing, baking, and her daily walks. She will be remembered for her joyful personality, infectious laugh (which often became a contagious laughing spell), and eagerness to put others first. Throughout her life, she was infinitely kind, loving, and grateful for all that God had provided.
Her family was the center of her world, and she was the center of theirs. She leaves her children, James Welch (Angelia), and Kathleen Rawson (Allan), all of Putnam; her grandchildren, Jeffrey Rawson (Jessica), K.J. Rawson (Stephanie), Kristina Welch, and Peter Welch (Carley); her great-grandchildren, Beau, Blake, Grace, Maya, Finley, Elliot, Ashton, Shawn, Mason, and Sadie; nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her brothers Dick, Frank, John, Kirby, and Philip Cunha, and her sisters Margaret Bibek, Frances Carroll, Agnes Howard, and Julia Mahon.
Visitation is from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Aug. 31 at the Gilman Funeral Home (104 Church St., Putnam), followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m. in St. Mary Church of the Visitation (218 Providence St., Putnam). Burial will follow in St. Mary Cemetery. Donations; PAWS Cat Shelter (74 School St., Putnam, CT 06260).
Donald ‘Brush’ Fuller
WEST END, N.C. — Donald “Brush” Fuller of West End, N.C., died, Aug. 10, 2024, peacefully at home.
He was born Aug. 17, 1943, in Toronto to Margaret and Thomas Lorne Fuller.
Don attended the University of Toronto, Osgood Hall, and practiced criminal and family law in the Toronto area.
He leaves his wife of 35 years, Nancy Austin; children, Andrew (Mandi) and Shannon Fuller; siblings Brian (Joanne) Fuller and Lorraine (Max) Pomfrey. He was predeceased by siblings, Doug (Dianne), Bob (Barb) and (Bruce) Mary.
Brush was a music lover, voracious reader, and accomplished hockey player and golfer. He was a lifelong Maple Leafs and Blue Jays fan and hated the Montreal Canadians!
A Celebration of Life will be held in Toronto in the spring.
Online condolences may be left at www.bolesfuneral home.com
Services entrusted to Boles Funeral Home of Seven Lakes.
hale pg 7 8-29-24
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captions, clockwise from top left:
Faith, Amelia and Mary Kate, CITs
The Hale Y team with helpers
Preparing to swim
Post-race smiles
CIT Faith with Hale team after she applied their ankle clips
PUTNAM — The weather was beautiful Aug. 11 as 16 athletes from Hale YMCA competed in the youth triathlon at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, R.I.
The triathlon was the culmination of a free, six-week, half-day triathlon training camp. Race 4 Chase began on July 1 and was held from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day at the Hale YMCA. (Participants did not need to be members of the YMCA, and those without a bicycle were provided with one – along with a helmet.)
The triathlon camp was named for Chase Michael Anthony Kowalski – who passed away in the Newtown tragedy. Chase enjoyed participating in triathlons. So, his family started a foundation in his name, which has resulted in hundreds of kids being introduced to the sport of triathlon, over the past eleven years.
At the Newport Race 4 Chase Triathlon, more than 150 athletes ages 6-12 from YMCAs across southeastern New England gathered for the race. Athletes from Hale YMCA awoke at 5 a.m. and their parents and caregivers ensured that they arrived in Newport at 7.
The triathlon began with opening ceremonies, and then the youngest athletes, age 6 & 7, hit the water for their swim. After their swim, they ran up the beach to the bike transition area where they were met by several Counselors-In-Training (CITs), and former Hale YMCA Race 4 Chase triathletes, Mary Kate, Faith, and Amelia who helped the athletes: dry off their feet; get their socks over still somewhat wet feet; get their shoes on; put on their shirt; and, of course, secure their helmet. The CITs job was much easier as the older athletes began finishing their swims and coming to the transition area. One of the CITs asked a 10-year-old, Maverick if he needed help drying his feet. In what seemed like one motion, he threw on his sneakers and secured his helmet. As he pedaled away, Maverick called back, “no time. I’ll dry them after the run.”
After the swim, the athletes completed a rather hilly 3k bike ride to Fort Adams. Once at the fort, the athletes then ran into the 200-year-old fort (which still has original cannons on display - very cool). Following their 1.5k run, all athletes enjoyed several slices of watermelon, provided by Hale YMCA Aquatics Director, Tarin McKinnon. As a side note, parents and caregivers reported that they had no trouble getting their kids to bed that night.
Submitted by Brian Reilly, Hale YMCA coach
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pomfret pg 7 8-29-24
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Pomfret School
honors list
POMFRET — Students named to the Pomfret School honors list include: Gabriela Brown of Woodstock Valley (2026, Amelia Duquette of N. Grovsvenordale (2026), Zane Ender of Eastford (2026), Beatrice Foronda of Putnam (2027), Rebecca Hague of Pomfret Center (2024), Remy Jacquet of Pomfret (2026), James Lake of Pomfret (2027), Cole LeBlanc of Pascoag (2025), James Rice of Pomfret Center (2025), Jessica Stolarek of Pomfret Center (2025), Adam Tillinghast of Danielson (2024), Delaney Williams of Brooklyn (2026).
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coreplus pb 8 8-29-24
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4 students complete CorePlus Credit
Union summer internship program
NORWICH — Four interns successfully completed the CorePlus Credit Union Summer Internship Program. The CPCU Summer Internship Program provides participants with valuable real world work experience in a financial institution. This year, CorePlus hosted Shelbie Desir and Iris Tang from Norwich Free Academy and Mercy Reynoso Germosen and Claudy Baron from New London High School.
Beginning on June 28th, CorePlus summer interns completed daily duties ranging from teller transactions to assisting in various consumer lending departments. They continuously developed skills including but not limited to customer service, cash handling, personal finance, sales, time management, organization, conflict resolution, basic lending, accounting, and quality control.
CorePlus has hosted students from two of the area’s largest high schools for 18 years. The program began in 2006 when the Director of Diversity at NFA and the CorePlus president at the time had a casual conversation about the lack of diversity in Norwich area financial institutions. They decided on the spot that an internship program could be the way to change that.
Since then, over 90 high school students have successfully completed the program. Four current CorePlus employees, including its CFO and one Branch Officer, are graduates of the internship program.
CorePlus staff strive to mimic their traditional new hire process as closely as possible for the program. Students are selected for the internship based upon their interview skills, complete a new hire orientation, and are reviewed using an abbreviated version of our performance appraisal. The interns are placed in branches and departments based on their interviews and areas of interest, and supervisors are encouraged to give them the same duties given to regular employees.
Mercy Reynoso Germosen said, “My summer internship at CorePlus Credit Union was a great experience full of laughter, knowledge, and a welcoming environment from the very beginning — during our training with Kristen — to the end at the Groton branch with Briana, Brenda, and Melissa. As a recent high school graduate, I would recommend going for this internship — especially if you’re going into the finance field; if given the chance to, I would definitely do this internship again.”
Claudy Baron expressed a similar sentiment, stating, “I’m truly grateful that I was able to have the opportunity to participate in this program. This internship has refined several of my skills, and I feel it has made me better prepared for my future. I was able to work on my customer service and communication skills, my knowledge on finance has been broadened, and I had a great experience with my team, the members, and even the work I did.”
All CorePlus Summer Internship applicants must be at least 16 years old, have strong customer service skills, possess the ability to work with various technical platforms, and work well on teams and independently. Successful participants may be eligible for full or part-time employment with CorePlus following completion of the program.
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