Montville Town Councilor Billy Caron presented a plaque to the Montville Seniors during Older Americans Month in appreciation of the Montville Seniors and all of their contributions to our country, our community, and our lives. (l-r) Janet Eccleston, president, Montville Senior Citizen Club, Billy Caron, Montville Town Council, Kathleen Doherty-Peck, director, Senior & Social Services, during Older Americans Month celebration.
(l-r) The New London Lions Club recently installed an all female executive board at The Gridlock Grille on May 28th during the club’s 87th Annual Award Banquet. Lion Zenobia Penn, first vice president, was sworn in by East Hampton Village Lion Mary Krogh, past district governor. Mary also swore in Lion Alicia R. Gonzalez, president-elect, Lion Anne E. Stockton, second vice president, Lion Shirley J. Gillis, secretary, and Lion Jessica R. Capen, treasurer. Alicia was elected the first female president in the New London Lions’ history.
Well, the saying is “when times get tough the tough get tougher.” There’s a lot of truth in that. When I was first approached to write an article for the Resident regarding Grader Jeweler’s response to the current economic climate I jumped at the opportunity. Why? Because with all of the doom and gloom that the major press is portraying, it’s time to take an inventory of all of the positives that we have here in Southeastern CT.
I for one can’t tell you the number of times that people have told me that they weren’t personally all that affected by the economy. They tell me almost apologetically because they feel guilty that they’re not matching up to what the news is broadcasting. The fact is that at least 9 out of 10 of us are gainfully employed in this nation; most of us didn’t fall prey to the sub-prime debacle, and weren’t holding our funds with Mr. Madoff. So the question is “where does that leave us?”
There’s no doubt that things are tougher. It definitely leaves us concerned for those in situations worse off than ours. It leaves us concerned about all of the changes that are happening so quickly around us. We’re still trying to figure out what made our 401k’s turn into a 201k! That, my friends, is understandable because very few people really like change. Let’s, however, take a moment to balance things out. We need to remind ourselves of the things in our lives that are constant: our friends, our families, our beautiful communities along the shoreline, etc.
I think this is a period where people are doing a great deal of reevaluating in their lives. They’re evaluating what’s important and what’s not. That’s not a bad thing. Just think, those that were running the rat race may actually take some time for themselves and learn to slow down and perhaps even stop to smell the roses!
I can’t help but look at the positive side of things. I’ve grown up in the family jewelry store. My life’s work has been to help people mark celebrations and pleasant milestones in their lives. No manner of negative press is going to keep people from loving each other and surprising each other with a little bauble from time to time. Remember that notion of reevaluation? Well, I believe it puts more emphasis on those special moments in our lives. I think people are going to take more time to make note of those celebrations with something that’s lasting. As a jeweler that emphasizes quality, that makes my heart glad.
Best Wishes, Mark Grader
Grader Jewelers, Inc,
Waterford, Groton, Norwich
Even for the usually busy executive director of The Last Green Valley (TLGV) environmental group, June 13th was an unusually hectic day. Charlene Perkins-Cutler spent that Saturday afternoon at the UConn Avery Point campus, hosting a three-hour social event. It was attended by many participants of the successful series of boat rides along local rivers, Source to Sea.
A few hours later, Charlene was in Norwich at the Slater Museum, welcoming members to The Last Green Valley’s annual board of directors meeting. “It’s days like this that make my job so rewarding,” she said. “I get to meet so many people through their involvement in our organization.”
Charlene introduced the officers for the coming year: Ken Mahler, chairman, Lisbon, Bill Jobaggy, vice chairman, Coventry, Melissa Phillips, secretary, Killingly, and Peg Babbitt, treasurer, Thompson.
Ken said his primary focus during the coming year would be to prepare TLGV for the eventual loss of about $700,000 in annual federal funding which is scheduled to end in 2015. “We will have to forge new alliances, try to increase our membership and contributions,” Ken said, adding that Congress was penny wise and pound foolish in opting to discontinue its longtime funding of this agency designed to protect and promote one of the remaining green areas between Boston and New York City, the only large area that when viewed from satellite is unlit within this populated corridor. “Congress forgets it’s often less expensive to have a non-profit do some of these things,” Ken said.
“These things” include innovative approaches to publicizing the wealth of nature found in Eastern CT by staging the Source to Sea experiment this spring, wherein people paddled in kayaks and canoes from the headwaters of local rivers originating in South-Central Massachusetts and followed their course all the way to Long Island Sound.
“We wanted to draw attention to the fresh water that feeds through the area, emphasizing the Quinebaug and Shetucket rivers as they flow into the Thames River [in Norwich] and eventually flow into the sea,” said Paul Mills, outgoing board chairman, Sturbridge, MA.
Charlene said hundreds of people took part in 90 separate events that happeneded over the past few weeks, with the paddlers collectively covering the 164 miles of waterways encompassed by TLGV which stretches from Charlton, MA, south to Norwich. “We never expected this to draw such interest from people wanting to take part,” Charlene said. “They were coming out of the woodwork, so much so, unfortunately during some of the events we had to turn people away” because of safety considerations, she said.
Carol and Gary Weed, Lyme, were among the participants. “We enjoyed it very much, doing things we’d never done before,” said Gary, a retired postal worker.
“It was a great experience, a lot of fun with a great bunch of people,” said Tom Brennan, Killingly.
George and Robert Wollschlager, Boy Scout Troop #76, Mystic, were inducted as Eagle Scouts. Both of these young men are scholar athletes and are valuable assets to the community. Robert, vice president of his senior class, St. Bernard High School, built a new ticket booth for his high school as part of his Eagle Scout project. George, a graduate of St. Bernard’s, collected and filled back packs with toiletries and non perishable items and donated them to St. Vincent De Paul Homeless Shelter, Norwich.
“This is the pinnacle of what you can achieve as a Boy Scout. These boys acted more as guides to the other scout masters. They have dedicated their time to assist us with many projects and I am very proud of them,” said Tom Downie, Scout Master, Troupe #76.
On June 14th, at St. Patrick’s Church Parish Hall, Mystic, over 100 friends, family, and community leaders attended a party to commemorate the brothers and their achievements. Also in attendance were State Representative Dianna Urban, First District Selectman Ed Haberek, Town of Stonington, Father Romanowksi, Lt. Law Lamar Agar III, Father Joseph Tito, and Ken Barbour, Mohegan District Commissioner. George and Robert were presented with several plaques from the state, including a special certificate signed by former US President George W. Bush. At the end of the night, Selectman Haberek and State Representative Urban declared June 14th as the offical George and Robert Wollschlager Day, in the Town of Stonington.
“These boys are great leaders, and have gone above and beyond in recruiting and helping the younger kids,” said Mike Buechel, assistant Scout Master, Troupe #76. George and Robert agree that the Boy Scouts of America helps to teach respect, leadership, and survival in life.
