caption:
Raku Comes to Life
Dot Burnworth of Sawmill Pottery rinses the ash off a raku pot. They demonstrated the entire raku process at the Pop Up Putnam event June 26. More photos on page 6. Linda Lemmon photo.
captions, page 6, clockwise from top left:
Lola Sinclair, 2 months old, is sporting a beautiful watermelon bow at Pop Up Putnam June 26. She was listening to the musical entertainment onstage, Wayne Sinclair.
It takes a community --- to create art.
Jon Conway creates Robby the Raccoon art installation on the corner of the alley downtown. Robby is part of the Character Around Every Corner art series.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — It’s almost as if the town’s Pop Up Putnam event is growing a life of its own.
Putnam Business Association coordinator Sheila Frost said the artisan/art/food/music extravaganza “seems to be evolving” into a big community event. She said it’s exciting to see how the event changes and grows each month. “Each month the vendors change, the logistics change. It’s constantly evolving,” she said.
The June 26 Pop Up Putnam event sported 40 vendors that ranged from tie dye to jewelry, to dog biscuits, to hanging gardens, to tea vendors, to leather work, to aprons to knitted goods to food and everything in between. The arts are always a strong component, too. Wayne Sinclair entertained June 26 and organizers are working on music for the next two events. In addition, there’s live art, community art and an art installation.
Frost said the vendors reported really good sales and with the exception of a tiny sprinkle, it was a beautiful day for the event.
The Character Around Every Corner series for Putnam’s 2021 season manifested in Robby the Raccoon, one of six new art installation popping up in Putnam along with Pop-Up-Putnam. Robby is painted at the corner of the alley next to the former Cargill Trust Bank downtown. He’s a reference to Putnam history — in 1941 a bank robbery was dramatically foiled. Robbers, that included town officials, planned to tunnel across the alley to rob the bank but a tipster alerted police. Apparently, there are still bullet holes in the Art Deco building.
Artist Jon Conway said Robby started as a late night doodle. He said five more Character Around Every Corner art installations are on the way — and they won’t necessarily be paintings.
Sawmill Pottery did demonstrations on the creation of raku-style pottery. It involved glazing the pottery, firing it in propane-powered kiln and after 45 minutes at 1,800 degrees, the pieces are pulled out and quickly put into metal trash cans with wood shavings at the bottom. Those cans are covered and wet clothes are put over the top to contain the smoke. After 10 minutes, the pieces are transformed into iridescent beauty.
For the July 24 event Frost sees another 40 vendors easy, spread throughout Putnam Rotary Park and downtown Putnam again. Quest Martial Arts is already signed up for the Aug. 21 Pop Up Putnam. She said plans call for the event to close at 3 p.m. instead of 4 p.m. in July and in August. The July 3 p.m. early finish is because of the heat and in August stopping at 3 p.m. will give the town enough time to get the park ready for the concert and fireworks.
Meanwhile, Frost said it’s getting so successful she’s looking for volunteers to help at the next ones. (
Pop Up Putnam is sponsored by the town of Putnam, the Putnam Business Association, Discover Putnam and is powered by the Putnam Area Foundation.
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7 towns
to promote
regional asset,
Air Line Trail
The Town of Thompson recently took the lead in a regional partnership of seven towns to promote the Air Line State Park Trail. Encompassing roughly 80 miles of trails in two states, crossing 12 Connecticut towns from the northern-most point in Thompson to its southern terminus in Portland, the Trail also continues into Massachusetts under the name “Southern New England Trunkline Trail.”
The seven partner towns received match funding from the Eastern Region Tourism District to produce a series of attractive, durable, fold-down map-brochures (z-cards), promoting the many recreation opportunities within the participating communities along the trail. All of the design work has been completed, and each of the partner towns has received their supply.
Each of the towns the Air Line Trail crosses has a distinct character, from very rural communities with strong agritourism attractions to those with busier downtowns featuring breweries, antiques shops and restaurants. The towns that came together to create the new tourism maps are Thompson, Putnam, Pomfret, Hampton, Windham, Columbia and Portland. Agriculture and conservation advocacy non-profit CT Resource Conservation & Development Area also acted in partnership, as the leaders of the overarching program to develop and promote the entire Air Line Trail.
Look for copies of the maps at local Town offices and other select locations throughout the region. For each partner, a version of the z-card was created to promote the unique tourist attractions, restaurants and outdoor recreation activities within that town, from Fort Hill Farms in Thompson; to the Goodwin Forest in Hampton; to Brownstone Quarries National Historic Site in Portland. QR codes will also take visitors to linked pages featuring local restaurants, breweries, museums, events calendars and more.
Jim Bellano, director of Economic Development for participating town Windham, said: “What makes this Z-card project so exciting is that the Air Line Trail is, in the truest sense, a regional asset. The map allows us to showcase the length and breadth of the trail while still providing the opportunity to highlight the individual assets of each town.”
For more information, or to request copies of the z-maps:
Thompson: Tyra Penn, Director of Planning & Development:
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2 hurt in roll-over
accident
PUTNAM — The driver and passenger of a rolled over pick-up truck came away with non-life threatening injuries June 15 — thanks to their seatbelts.
Around 6 p.m. Putnam Police, Fire and EMS responded to a serious multi-vehicle crash near the Riverview Marketplace on Kennedy Drive.
Police Chief Christopher D. Ferace said a Nissan Sentra traveling north on Kennedy Drive crossed the double yellow center lines into the oncoming southbound lane and hit a pickup truck traveling southbound. The pick-up truck was forced sideways, vaulted and rolled over. The Nissan then hit a second pick-up truck.
The driver and passenger of the rolled-over pick-up were taken to Day Kimball Hospital and treated for non-life threatening injuries.
Ferace said, “This crash is a classic example where seat belt usage saved lives.”
The driver of the Nissan Sentra, Christian R. Watson, 24, of 24 Vandale St., Putnam was cited for: failure to drive right, failure to carry registration and failure to carry insurance ID card.
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The following charges were listed in the Putnam Police Department logs. The people charged are innocent until proven guilty in court. The Town Crier will publish dispositions of cases at the request of the accused. The dispositions must be accompanied by the proper documentation. The Putnam Police Department confidential Tip Line is 860-963-0000.
June 15
Wilfredo Rivera Jr., 33, Marshall Street, Putnam; second-degree breach of peace, interfering with police.
June 18
Honesty Lynch, 23, Worcester Street, Southbridge; OUI, failure to drive right, possession of controlled substance.
Adam Hazzard, 54, Kingsbury Street, Worcester; evading responsibility, operating without a license.
June 19
Josh Choiniere, 39, Putnam Pike, Dayville; disorderly conduct.
James Clark, 40, Harrison Street, Putnam; criminal violation of protective order.
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