Florence A. LaRose
PUTNAM — Florence (Petrin) LaRose, 96, of Ballou St. died Oct. 2, 2020, at the Matulaitis Nursing Home. In 1946 Florence married her true love Arthur “Joe” LaRose, who died in 1996. Born in 1924 in Putnam, she was the daughter of the late Pierre and Maria (Petrin) Petrin.
Florence worked as a payroll clerk for Belding Corticelli for 13 years and later worked at Acme Cotton, Knox Glass, and Foxwoods Resort Casino.
children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. It was her tradition that on her children’s, grandchildren’s and great-grandchildren’s birthdays she would take the time to pick out just the right card for each of them. This tradition was loved by Florence, but it was treasured by her family. Even in her 90s she was active, always looking forward to going to the hair salon or a casino.
She leaves her son, Leo D. LaRose (Susan); daughter; Carol A. Artiaco (Edward); three grandchildren; Angela Baron (Christopher), Bryan Artiaco (Jennifer), Michael Artiaco; five great-grandchildren, Halle Baron, Camryn Baron, Jianna Artiaco, Mia Artiaco, and Luca Artiaco.. She is predeceased by her son, Allan N. LaRose, brother Norman Petrin and sister; Claire Gothreau.
A Mass of Christian will be held at 11 a.m. Oct. 7 in St. Mary Church, Putnam, with burial in St. Mary Cemetery. Please respect social distancing and wear a facial covering at all times. Gilman Funeral Home and Crematory, 104 Church St., Putnam.
Sylvia M. Sirrine
POMFRET — Sylvia M. Sirrine 67, of Pomfret died unexpectedly Sept. 22, 2020, at home. She was born Nov. 9, 1952, in Providence, daughter of William and Lillian (Blanchette) Farrell.
She worked in Housekeeping for the Pomfret School for 10 years. Sylvia loved the ocean, spending time with her sons and her friends. She enjoyed cooking for her family and gardening.
She leaves her sons Mikael Koivisto (Annie) Annie of Pomfret and Matthew Koivisto; a grandson Kyle and grand-dog Levi; her companion Richard “Butch” Lapointe of Danielson; brother Robert Blanchette (Josie) of Danielson. She was predeceased by a brother Billy. Services are private. Smith & Walker Funeral Home, 148 Grove St., Putnam.
Michael R. Wetherell
PUTNAM — Michael R. Wetherell of Putnam died Sept. 24, 2020, at Day Kimball Hospital. Michael was born Nov. 21, 1960, in Putnam to the late Richard and June (Soule) Wetherell. He enjoyed spending time outside restoring antiques and gardening. He was an avid fisherman and had a passion for cooking. You could always depend on him to be your cook at a cookout. The joys of his life were his family and his three cats.
He leaves his mother, June Wetherell of Putnam; sister, Deborah Smith (Lee) of Putnam; sons, Christopher Wetherell, Joshua Wetherell (Rebecca) of Dayville; daughter, Kristen Wetherell of Dayville; two grandchildren, Lucas and Kenneth; nieces, Jennifer, Penny and Melissa; great-nephew, Chandon and great-niece, Aubrey; aunts, uncles and cousins. Funeral Services will be private with a Celebration of Life to follow at a later date.
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Prep Basketball
From Woodstock
to … Woodstock
Whenever Virginia native Dominic Strothers would mention that he was going to attend prep school in Woodstock, everybody immediately assumed he meant Massanutten Military Academy.
The school has a prep basketball team of its own in Woodstock, Va.
“Everybody thought I was going there,” said the 6-foot, 10-inch projected Class of 2022 graduate.
What Strothers meant was that he was headed to Woodstock Academy in Connecticut.
Strothers hails from Woodstock, Va. and went to Woodstock High School before he made a decision to go prep and head north.
Outside of the 475-plus miles between the two, there is little difference between the two Woodstocks.
Woodstock, CT. is actually a little larger, population-wise, with 7,964 residents compared to Woodstock, Va. which boasts 5,212.
“It’s kind of rural, like it is here,” Strothers said. “I’m pretty used to it already.”
He said that common denominator had little to do with his decision to don a Centaur uniform.
“I like it a lot here,” Strothers said. “We’re bonding well as a team. The first day I moved in, I didn’t know anyone. By the second day, we all came together.”
Woodstock Academy prep basketball coach Jacque Rivera said Strothers “has a world of opportunity” in front of him.
“I didn’t know what I was walking into, but I see the level of competition here and we’re all going to compete against one another and make each other the best we can be,” Strothers said.
The youngster not only stands 6-10, but also sports a 7-1 wingspan and is only 16-years-old with two years of high school remaining.
“He is nowhere near a finished product. He has a high floor and a high ceiling,” Rivera said with a laugh. “He can step out and shoot it; he can put the ball on the floor and can get out in front of the play and dunk it. He has a plethora of potential. He has a chance to be very good.”
Rivera said he doesn’t like to compare players but he feels that if Strothers stays for two years and his maturation process follows those of others, such as UMass sophomore Tre Mitchell, he could be “unbelievable” when he decides to head to the collegiate level.
“It makes it really fun,” Rivera said of having the, sometimes, rare occasion of having a player for two years in prep basketball. “It’s fun both ways (1 or 2-year players) if you enjoy young people and watching them develop. You can space out the goals for a 2-year player and move at a slower pace. It’s a bit more rapid for the guys you have for seven or eight months. Slow and steady usually wins but, truthfully, hard work and persistence wins.”
Where does Strothers fit in? He feels like he is a small forward.
“He probably had a dream about that,” Rivera said with a smile. “The reality is; we expect everyone to be able to dribble, pass and shoot. I expected the same from (6-10 center) Chad (Venning) as I did from (guard) Noel Scott a year ago. If he can step out, shoot the ball and make it – shoot it. If you don’t work at it, don’t shoot it. I expect him to be able to rebound and I expect (guard) Julien Soumaoro (5-10) to rebound.”
Seeing as how he is a 2022 product, Strothers said he is not looking at any specific colleges as of yet with the possible exception of one.
Strother’s dream is to one day return to Woodstock…Virginia that is. Just two hours down the road is the city of Blacksburg.
“I would like to go to Virginia Tech,” Strothers said. “It’s near my hometown.”
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
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The Arc ECT
gets donations
— Clarity Output Solutions (COS), formerly Premier Printing Solutions, donated 200 face shields to The Arc Eastern Connecticut, for use in the agency’s 22 supported residences for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
— The Dime Bank Foundation awarded The Arc Eastern Connecticut a $1,387 grant to assist people with limited mobility at its day program in Norwich.
— The Pfizer, Inc. and Connecticut Labs Community Grants program awarded $1,995 for the purchase of an interactive white board for staff training, Board development, and continued strategic planning.
— The Electric Boat Employees’ Community Services Association awarded $1,995 to The Arc Eastern Connecticut for a “SmartBoard” white board for use at both its Norwich and Danielson locations. This interactive training tool will allow Board Members, managers and new employees to participate fully in strategic planning exercises, intensive pre-employment training, and information sharing as the agency continues to address the challenges presented by the pandemic.
— The Chelsea Groton Foundation has awarded a $785 grant to offset costs of maintaining its garden area and aquaponics program during the closures mandated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rules & Tips
Policy for photos: We follow the COVID-19 rules. Unrelated people must be wearing face masks or be at least 6 feet apart.
Space tip: Since space is at a premium, you'll find extended versions of some stories and the calendar on the Putnam Town Crier online at: www.putnamtowncrier.com.
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