At Nationals
The Hale YMCA Youth and Family Center’s swimmer, Mary Kate is the first ever swim team member to make it to Nationals. She took part in the YMCA Long Course National Championships in Greensboro, N.C. She is a member of the Hale YMCA’s Riptides team. Courtesy photo.

WOODSTOCK — In October 2022, The Woodstock Academy secured a grant of $200,000 to establish a drug and alcohol counseling office for students struggling with substance abuse. The grant, which was made possible by State Representative Pat Boyd, has had a tremendous impact on the community in just nine months.
“I am grateful to the leadership of The Woodstock Academy for putting this money to use in a way that directly impacts students in northeastern Connecticut. Substance abuse and addiction services are hard to find in our region and WA is working hard to remove barriers to availability,” said Boyd.
One of the key factors in contributing to the success of this program was partnering with Project Courage, an agency based in Old Saybrook, that specializes in substance use and mental health related issues. Since its inception in October, the partnership with Project Courage has shown tremendous progress in addressing substance abuse and addiction-related issues among Woodstock Academy students with a counselor on-campus two days per week.
From October to June, WA scheduled more than 290 counseling appointments, ensuring that students receive the support and guidance they needed. Looking ahead to the 2023-24 school year, The Academy plans to increase the counselor’s presence to three days per week on campus to provide more opportunities for students to check in.
Recognizing the importance of education and awareness, The Academy has been in contact with superintendents, offering professional development and parent information sessions at their institutions. These sessions aim to equip educators and parents with the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively identify and address substance abuse issues. Additional professional development offerings and community outreach opportunities are in the works.
“The partnership with Project Courage has been invaluable, and we are excited to expand their presence on campus next year. We are committed to increasing professional development training and community outreach, as we strive to increase awareness and address substance use within our community. Representative Boyd’s advocacy and dedication have made a profound difference in the lives of our students and the broader community,” said Karin Hughes, Dean of Student Affairs at The Academy.

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American
Legion
baseball
celebrates
N. GROSVENORDALE — The Tri-Town American Legion  Baseball Team recently celebrated the end of their season with a banquet.
The Tri-town Team is from Putnam, Woodstock, and N. Grosvenordale, and is sponsored by the American Legion Posts in those towns. Their first game of the season was on June 13 at Tourtellotte Memorial High School against the Moosup team.
Their season ended on July 15 with a game against Danielson. They played 18 games in six weeks – a very demanding schedule with most of the games being played on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.
The Tri-Town team competes in the 19U division, which consists of players between the ages of 14 and 19 years old. According to Michael Merrill, the Tri-Town Baseball Committee chariman, “The average age of their players is 15.8 years old. So they are a young team, and they were competing against teams in Eastern Connecticut’s Zone 6 that had a full roster of older, more experienced players.”
Michael Rocchetti, commander of Putnam’s Post 13, had words of praise for the team:
“Overall, they played much better than their 3-14 record would indicate, and they demonstrated an enormous amount of talent and potential.
"There aren’t that many people who can throw, catch, and hit a baseball like these young men. They have a lot to be proud of. Baseball is such a great sport, and the lessons they learn playing baseball such as commitment, dedication, teamwork, discipline, diligence, sportsmanship and fair play, and the importance of developing your skills, will serve them well in almost any other future endeavor.”
Rocchetti also recognized the volunteer efforts of the Baseball Committee, the coaches and staff including Michael Merrill, Jason Akana, Brandon Carita, and Matt Amendola. “They are doing good work for our community, They are making a big difference in the lives of these young men. We are very proud of them and their team.” Rocchetti also expressed gratitude that

caption:

Caption:

Front row from left: Aiden Brothers, Riley Sargent, Jacob Olson, William Ellsworth, Lucas Carita, Ceydian Campos, Benjamin Gustafson. Back: Assistant coach Brandon Carita, Issac Johnson, Robert Dion, Gabrial Girard, Nicholas Devlin, Brady Devlin, Robert Ellsworth, Jonathan Ferraro, Alexander Grauer, Head Coach Jason Akana

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