Past Issues of the Putnam Town Crier
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HARTFORD — State Representative-Elect Rick Hayes (R-Putnam, Killingly, Thompson) was given his committee assignments by the House Republican leader. For his first term in office, which begins Jan. 9, he will serve on the joint Children, Environment and Public Safety & Security committees.
“The people of the 51st District have given me an opportunity to represent their interests in Hartford, and I am eager to begin working on their behalf,” said Rep.-Elect Hayes. “The committees are the first step for any bill proposal, and I am certain the 2019 session will have much for us to consider. I think my experience in law enforcement will help me add value in these discussions, I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to confront our state’s most urgent matters, namely our deteriorating economy, the alarming number of opioid-related fatalities, education and school safety, and our outdated transportation infrastructure. It’s a tall order to fill, but I am not one to shy away from a challenge. I thank Rep. Klarides for these appointments and my constituents for placing their trust in me.”
“Committee work is the engine of our legislative process—it’s when citizens can have their say on issues important to them, and it’s when legislators like Rick Hayes make the most difference for the people they serve as bill concepts take shape and are eventually debated,” House Republican Leader Themis Klarides said. “I’m confident that Rick will contribute greatly to conversation here in Hartford during the upcoming legislative session.”
Prior to exploring elected office, Rep.-Elect Hayes devoted his career to the Town of Putnam for 33 years as a member of the Police Department, most recently as its chief. Currently, Hayes serves the Town of Thompson as its fire marshal and holds a position on the Putnam Board of Selectmen. He is a past president of the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association, and has served on many boards of directors throughout the community.
The General Assembly will convene in early January for a five-month session ending at midnight on June 5. In odd-numbered years, legislators vote on a biennial state budget, which they must pass before they adjourn.
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Building Donations
Putnam Rotary Club President John Miller presents Roberta Rocchetti, Interact Club advisor, with a $500 donation to add to the Interact Club's annual Salvation Army Kettle Campaign. Linda Lemmon photo.
The Putnam Rotary Club's Interact members and others manned several Salvation Army red kettles and raised more than $9,000 this year, according to Interact Club adviser Roberta Rocchetti.
Rocchetti said the counting is not finished but total donations and collections were up to $9,162.
She said that there were 95 volunteers comprised of members from the local community, the Putnam Rotary Club, the Rotaract Club, Boy Scout Troop 25, Boy Scout Troop 21 and students from The Woodstock Academy, Putnam High School, Killingly High School, Thompson Middle School and Putnam Middle School.
She added that all the money raised goes to the Salvation Army's local distributions to Daily Bread, TEEG and local people in need.
She said that the Putnam Rotary Club's Interact Club has been coordinating students from local schools, organizations and the local community since 1997 and at the beginning of this campaign had already raised more than $200,000 for northeastern Connecticut.
Volunteers rang the bells at the Putnam Stop & Shop, Putnam Walmart, Putnam Price Chopper and Putnam Supermarket during the weekends between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
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Wed. Dec. 26
Art Exhibit
POMFRET CENTER --- The Connecticut Audubon Center at Pomfret Center will present House & Garden; Field & Farm – art by Roxanne Steed through December at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Free. 860-928-4948.
Art Exhibit
THOMPSON --- The Friends of the Thompson Public Library will present, as part of its Art @ the Library series “Beauty in Bloom” by Jonathan Fritz through Dec. 28.
Art Exhibit
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present its winter art show and sale through Jan. 13 at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. 860-928-4948.
Thurs. Dec. 27
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present a Bird Walk at 1 p.m. starting from the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. $5 for members; $10 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Trivia Fund-raiser
PUTNAM --- The Putnam Lions Club will hold a Trivial Challenge at 7 p.m. at the Crossings Restaurant. The event will benefit Light Up Putnam.
Fri. Dec. 28
Blood Drive
N. GROSVENORDALE --- The American Red Cross will be holding a blood drive from 11:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. at the Thompson Community Center on Riverside Dr. 1-800-RED CROSS.
Sat. Dec. 29
Wee Walk
THOMPSON --- The Wyndham Land Trust will present “Wee Wander: Ramble the Robbins Preserve to the Five Mile River” from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Robbins Preserve off Fred Davis Road. Bring your camera. Snacks and fresh air included. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Mon. Dec. 31
Exercise Group
WOODSTOCK --- The Woodstock Senior Exercise Group will meet from 9 to 10 a.m. every Monday and Wednesday in the Woodstock Town Hall large meeting room on the lower. Minimum fee. Local seniors welcome. Please check the town website www.woodstockCT.gov for current schedule or call 860-928-6595.
Tues. Jan. 1, 2019
Happy New Year!
Ornament Illumination
PUTNAM --- The Town of Putnam and Putnam Business Association are illuminating the New Big Ornament at 4:30 p.m. at Rotary Park on Kennedy Drive. It will remain illuminated through the weekend of the Fire and Ice Festival on Feb. 9. All welcome. Bring a lawn chair.
Sat. Jan. 5
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “Owl Walk” at 7 p.m. starting from the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Cancelled if bad weather. $5 for CAS members; $10 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Thur. Jan. 17
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “Monthly Bird Walk” at 1 p.m. starting from the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. $5 for CAS members; $10 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Sat. Jan. 19
Benefit Concert
THOMPSON --- The Veterans Coffee House Benefit Concert will be held with cocktails starting at 6 p.m. at the Raceway Restaurant & Golf Club. The Real Wives of Windham County is hosting the event to raise money and awareness for the Veterans Coffee House in Danielson. The Gilman & Valade Funeral Homes & Crematory are the corporate gold sponsors. Cash bar and free light refreshments. $20 at: WINY, The Gilman Funeral Home, the Veterans Coffee House.
TLGV Program
DANIELSON --- The Last Green Valley’s Member Program Series, “Bald Eagles in The Last Green Valley” will be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon at TLGV offices on Main Street. Snow date is 1 to 3:30 p.m. Jan. 28. Geared to adults. Two-part program. Chief Ranger Bill Reid. Ranger Bill will provide updated information on local eagles as well as information and results from the Jan. 12 Midwinter Eagle Survey, a Connecticut program for which The Last Green Valley helps coordinate volunteers. Following the presentation, participants are invited to drive to the Quinebaug Valley Trout Hatchery with Ranger Bill in hopes of seeing bald eagles. Free to TLGV members; $10 for non-members.
Sun. Jan. 20
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “Trail Wood Reflections – Reception and Reading” from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Free. 860-928-4948.
Mon. Jan. 21
Nature Film
POMFRET --- In partnership with the Pomfret Green Team, the Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “A Plastic Ocean” at 6:30 p.m. at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Free. Snow date, Jan. 22. 860-928-4948.
Sat. Jan. 26
TLGV Adventure
WOODSTOCK --- The Last Green Valley’s Acorn Adventure: Eagle Eyes will be held from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Roseland Park. Children and their families are invited to join The Last Green Valley’s Chief Ranger Bill Reid and Ranger to experience bald eagles. Bring binoculars or a spotting scope if you have them. Acorn Adventures are free, thanks to the sponsorship of Putnam Savings Bank.
Sun. Jan. 27
Nature Program
HAMPTON --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present the new “Trail Wood Non-Fiction Book Club” at Trail Wood on Kenyon Road, from 2 to 5 p.m. Free for CAS members; $5 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Sat. Feb. 2
February Freeze
POMFRET --- The PCS February Freeze 5k Run/Walk will start at 1 p.m. at the Pomfret School – Parsons Lodge. Snow date Feb. 3. $30 per person. Register at www.pomfretcommunityschool.org/februaryfreeze. Proceeds to go Pomfret Community School 8th grade class trip to Washington D.C.
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POMFRET — Dr. Temple Grandin will appear as the 2019 Schwartz Visiting Fellow at 7 p.m. Jan. 18 at the Hard Auditorium at Pomfret School.
Grandin is a world-renowned autism spokesperson, and a widely cited proponent for the humane treatment of livestock.
Today she is a professor of animal sciences at Colorado State University.
“We are very excited to have someone of her stature and talent visit Pomfret,” said Library Director David Ring, who is coordinating the visit. “It is a wonderful opportunity for students and faculty alike.”
This event is free and open to the public, but an RSVP is required.
To reserve a seat, visit www.pomfret.org.
During her stay, she is expected to make the case for why the world needs people with autism.
“Half of the programmers in Silicon Valley are on the autism spectrum,” she said. “There is value in seeing things differently.”
Considered an autistic savant, Grandin is known for her amazing ability to describe how her mind works. She says words are her second language and that she thinks “totally in pictures,” using her vast visual memory to translate information into a slideshow of mental images that can be manipulated and correlated at will.
“My brain is visually indexed,” she says. “Everything in my mind works like a search engine set to the image function.”
Grandin is also famous for her work with animals, specifically the humane treatment of livestock at slaughter.
While still in college, she began studying the behavior of cattle — how they react to people, movements, objects, and light — and credits her own autism with helping her see things from the animal’s point of view.
Born to a wealthy Boston family, Grandin did not speak until she was three-and-a-half years old.
“I had all the full blown autism symptoms,” she said.
“No speech, screaming, just everything, fully autistic.”
She was saved by her mother, who actively sought out and paid for private schools with sympathetic staff that were willing to work with her daughter’s special needs, which included early speech therapy.
Grandin earned her bachelor’s degree in human psychology from Franklin Pierce College in 1970, a master’s degree in animal science from Arizona State University in 1975, and a doctoral degree in animal science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1989.
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Donations
bankHometown donated $25,000 from 2018 Neighbors Helping Neighbors Campaign to numerous organizations throughout its coverage area. Courtesy photo.
Matthew S. Sosik, president and CEO of bankHometown, announced that its 2018 Neighbors Helping Neighbors Campaign donations totaled $25,000. This is the 15th year that bankHometown has invited local residents and businesses to help support local food pantries as a way for the bank and its customers to reduce food insecurity in their communities.
Customers of the bank and community members were invited to be a “Hometown Hero” for a $1 donation or a “Hometown Superhero” for a $5 donation. In addition to the in-branch fund drive, bankHometown also invited business customers to support the campaign. bankHometown matched all of the donations dollar for dollar and split the funds among food pantries that serve the areas surrounding each of its 13 offices in central Massachusetts and northeastern Connecticut.
“Over the past 15 years, this campaign has evolved into a successful and collaborative effort from customers, community members and our employees, to support local food pantries that need help with inventory during the holidays. We are proud to be an example of Neighbors Helping Neighbors,” said Sosik.
Neighbors Helping Neighbors donations benefit, in Connecticut: Daily Bread in Putnam, Friends of Assisi in Killingly and Thompson Ecumenical Empowerment Group (TEEG) in Thompson. In Massachusetts donations benefitted: Auburn Youth and Family Services, Inc. Food Pantry (Auburn), CARE Food Pantry (Clinton), Food Share (Southbridge, Charlton and Sturbridge), Ginny’s Helping Hand, Inc. (Leominster), Oxford Ecumenical Food Shelf (Oxford), Salvation Army (Athol), St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry (Webster).
To date, more than $167,500 has been distributed through this program.
Local businesses contributing to the 2017 Neighbors Helping Neighbors campaign include: All Phase Dental Lab Service Inc.
Arland Tool & Mfg.
B D & D Enterprises, LLC
Bay Tact Corporation
Breezy Corner, LLC
Central Mass Builders, Inc.
DJD Realty, LLC
EPV Plastics Corporation
Floor Source Inc.
Griffin & Company, PC
Harrisville Golf Course
Holland Mail & Graphics, LLC
Jezierski Plumbing & Heating, Inc.
JSK Financial Services, Inc.
KAD Hotels, LLC
Kitchen Options, Inc.
Knapik Builders, Inc.
Kristin Shanley Interior Design
Laframboise Sand & Stone, Inc.
MASS TEN Enterprises, LLC
Metalogic Industries, LLC
Napa Auto Parts/Vandi Auto
Supply
Nichols Enterprises, Inc.
Nordic Shield Plastics Corporation
Paradis-Givner Funeral Home, Inc.
Paul Rents Inc.
Precision Auto Rebuilders, Inc.
Premier Listings Inc.,
d/b/a Century21 Lake Realty
Pro Automotive, LLC
Quaddick Camping Area, Inc.
Ricks Painting Service
Robert A. Dediego, Jr.,
d/b/a Walnut Hill Carpentry
S & N Excavators
Sam S. Pappas, CPA
Sixty-Five West, LLC
Standard Source Inc.
Tyler Latour, d/b/a Island Storage
West Dudley Hydro LLC
Why US Enterprises, Inc.
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