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Legion
baseball calls
for players
By Ron P. Coderre
As the local high school baseball season winds to an end players interested in continuing in summer baseball will have that opportunity as the TriTown American Legion Baseball team is preparing to greet prospective candidates.  The team is jointly sponsored by American Legion Post #13 in Putnam, #67 in Thompson and #111 in Woodstock and is operated by an Executive Committee composed of U.S. military veterans.
The TriTown program, which supports teams on the Senior and Junior level, has been preparing for the upcoming season with meeting throughout the winter months.  Joe Lindley, chief operating officer of the team, announced that Paul Faucher is returning as the coach of the Senior team.  He’ll be assisted by Andrew Faucher, Charlie Darras and John Donovan.
Last season due to a small turnout of candidates the Junior program was suspended for one season.  Executive Committee members are hoping to reinstate the program this season.  Players from Putnam, Thompson, Woodstock and Eastford are eligible for the team, regardless of what high school they played for in the spring.
“We’ve seen great improvement in the play of our team and in our program overall.  This year we’re encouraging interested candidates to tryout out for the program.  American Legion baseball is the finest summer baseball program of its type in the country and a great opportunity for young men to enjoy the game,” said Lindley.
Tryouts for the two teams are at 5 p.m., May 30 and 31 at the Tourtellotte Memorial High School Field in Thompson.  The team is part of Zone VI of the Connecticut American Legion.  The official start of the season June 8 for the Senior unit and June 15 for the Junior squad.  The official schedule for the five-week program is due to be released shortly.
Connecticut American Legion Adjutant Everett Shepard is once again returning as the TriTown team treasurer and general manager, and will be assisted by Barry Shead and Mike Santerre.  Assisting with the operations of the team are Dan Durand, Mike Carignan and John Foucault.  American Legion veterans Stan Lesniewski and Barney Seney serve as representatives for Posts #67 and #13 respectively. Cheryl Anne Carignan is serving as “team mother” for the 2013 season.
Following tryouts the team will convene with the Executive Committee for its annual player/parent/coach meeting at 7 p.m. June 6 at Post #67 in Thompson.  The postseason awards banquet is July 26.  Among the plans for the Senior team this season is a game at Eastern Connecticut State University and also at Dodd Stadium in Norwich.
 

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'Giving night'
PUTNAM — The Putnam Lions celebrated its Annual Night of Giving at the Putnam Elks Lodge recently. The club donated more than $11,000 to local service groups, charities, non-profits, treatment facilities and community groups. More than 30 local organizations received a contribution from the Putnam Lions Club, including the Putnam Family Resource Center, Interfaith Human Services of Putnam, The Day Kimball Healthcare ER, The Arc of Quinebaug Valley, Camp Rising Sun, the Putnam Public Library and the Connecticut Lions Eye Research Foundation, Boy Scout Troop 25. Putnam Lions Club President Stephen Faucher said, “The Night of Giving presents the opportunity for us to meet the folks who are the driving force of community support. We, as Lions, take great pride in our efforts to support the community. As Lions, we serve.”

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Lions'
award and dog park
PUTNAM — Putnam Parks and Recreation Director Willie Bousquet was invited to the May 16 meeting of the Putnam Lions Club for two reasons - and both of those reasons brought a smile to his face.
Last year, Bousquet was chosen by the Putnam Lions to receive the L. Gerald Lapointe Community Service Award - an award set aside for non-members who stand out because of their dedication to their community.
May 16 Putnam Lions Club President Steve Faucher presented Bousquet with his 2012 L. Gerald Lapointe Community Service Award plaque.
Upon receiving the award, Bousquet thanked the Lions for choosing him as a recipient and said that he appreciated being chosen. “A lot of people work very hard to get these awards,” he said.
Other recipients of the Putnam Lions L. Gerald Lapointe Community Service Award include Gary Osbrey and Linda J. Colangelo. The 2013 recipient has not yet been chosen.
In addition to being presented with his award, Bousquet was also presented with a $5,000 check - a contribution from the Putnam Lions Club in support of the Putnam Dog Park.
The Lions support many local endeavors and organizations. Faucher said that the Lions believe that the Putnam Dog Park is a worthy cause.
Bousquet said that it was an honor and a pleasure to receive the contribution from the Lions and thanked the many people involved in the challenging process of bringing the dog park to fruition. Bousquet said that the Lions have shown strong support of the Putnam Dog Park and offered that the funds might be used to assist with resurfacing or with bringing water to the site.

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By Ron P. Coderre
This week’s RPC sporty shoutout goes to Charlie Franklin, who’s celebrating 50 years as a member of the Putnam Lodge of Elks.  Franklin, who organizes the Wednesday Night Pitch League for the members, is a former Putnam High School athlete.  He’s very proud that he graduated in the Class of 1958.
In the latter part of the decade of the ‘80s Tourtellotte Memorial High School produced two cross-country teams, the likes of which they never seen since.  The 1987 and 1988 X-country teams posted an incredible record of 48-1-2, with the ’87 runners going 26-1-0 and ’88 logging a 22-2 record.
The Tiger runners were coached by Connecticut State Police Officer Norman “Barney” Seney, the same “Barney” Seney, who today is a member of the Putnam Board of Selectman.  Under the guidance of coach Seney, Tourtellotte runners were the envy of schools up and down eastern Connecticut.
The 1987 contingent captured the Quinebaug Valley Conference Championship and brought home second-place finishes in the Windham and Plainfield Invitational meets.  They claimed the 13th overall spot in the Connecticut State Open meet.  The 1988 unit finished in first place at Windham and second at Plainfield.  The team placed 11th at the Sate Open, moving up two spots from the previous season.
Sam Sharkey, who was Seney’s No. 1 runner and an All State selection, finished as the top harrier in the 1988 Class “S” State meet and fifth in the State Open.  Sharkey along with Lance Groh, Norman Seney III, and Art Erskine all were named to the 1988 QVC All Star Team.  Other members of the 1988 team included Scott LaPointe, Bob Pasqualetti, Kevin Gontowski, Joshua Larivee, Peter Giavara, Scott Bennett, Peter Steglitz and Brian Meadnis.
Members of the 1987 team were Randy Barry, Sharkey, Erskine, LaPointe, Eugene Young, Groh, SeneyIII, Gontowski and Jamie Wallace.  
Coach Seney and members of both squads will be inducted into the Tourtellotte Memorial High School Athletic hall of Fame in a ceremony at 2 p.m. June 22 at the Thompson Public School auditorium.