Geraldine S. Buchholz, Mystic, was inducted as a member of the University of New Haven (UNH) Order of the Golden Chargers at the 12th Annual Golden Charger Luncheon and Commencement Celebration on Saturday, June 6. This event took place during the Third Annual Alumni Weekend at UNH. Golden Chargers are UNH alumni who graduated 50 or more years ago or are over 70 years old.
Thirty-five alumni were inducted into the Order of the Golden Chargers during the luncheon, and honorary degrees were awarded to 48 UNH alumni who graduated 50 or more years ago with an associate’s degree from the former New Haven College.
In an emotional ceremony held on the anniversary of D-Day, which marks the first day of the Allied invasion of Normandy during World War II, dozens of veterans also were recognized and applauded for their military service. All of those honored were able to earn their associate’s degrees, but were unable for a variety of reasons to return to college to earn their bachelor’s.
(l-r) Joseph Waz, President, Comcast Foundation, Patricia, Denise, and David Domnarksi, Pawcatuck, Doug Guthrie, Senior Vice President, Comcast’s Western New England Region, and Michael Parker, Vice President, Comcast’s CT Region, attended the Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Ceremony. Denise received a Comcast Foundation scholarship.
Thirty-nine CT high school seniors are receiving a helping hand for college in the form of $1,000 scholarships from the Comcast Foundation. The Comcast Leaders and Achievers® Scholarship Program, is one of the Comcast Foundation’s signature community investment programs. It recognizes students who have demonstrated leadership skills, academic achievement and a commitment to community service. This year’s local scholarship winners include Denise Domnarksi, Pawcatuck, Julie Lalonde, East Lyme, Catherine Lewis, North Stonington, Alexis Peters, Mystic, Michele Saums, Ledyard, and Jessica Strout, Norwich.
Why This Old-Fashioned Virtue Can Lift You Out of the Recession and Propel You to the Top.
There’s never been a tougher time to be a part of the job market.
And while people are scrambling to show employers they have what it takes,
the secret to success may be simpler than you thought.
Hollywood actor Will Smith is known for his drive. “I will not be outworked,” he says.
by Jon Gordon
If you’re like most people, you probably spent the past year fretting. Maybe you spent so much time worrying about what could happen that you lost sight of the plans you had all along. It’s easy to get complacent, even in the good times. But when you’re paralyzed by fear that it could all be gone tomorrow, the temptation to lie low and not make waves can be almost overwhelming.
Now is the perfect time to get ahead. And the secret has little to do with an impressive degree or with knowing the right people. In fact, it’s not a secret at all but something society seems to almost forget about: hard work.
If you think you’re already working hard at your job, think again. You can’t expect to show up each day and just do your job and think that’s going to cut it. You have to make sure that you are never outworked.
Think about the successful people you know: celebrities, politicians, CEOs. What sets them apart? Their drive. Take Will Smith, for example: When asked to explain his success, he responded, “I’m not afraid to die on a treadmill. I will not be outworked. You may be more talented than me. You might be smarter than me. And you may be better looking than me. But if we get on a treadmill together, you are going to get off first or I’m going to die. It’s really that simple. I’m not going to be outworked.”
True, Will Smith is charismatic, funny, and a great actor, but so are plenty of other people in Hollywood. The secret to his success, according to him, is his work ethic. While working hard may seem like a simple enough idea (and it is!), most people just don’t do it.
Here are a few guidelines for reviving your work ethic into overdrive:
Jon Gordon is a speaker, consultant, and author of two international bestsellers. Jon’s new book, “Training Camp: What the Best Do Better Than Everyone Else,” was released in May of 2009.
Burn the midnight oil. Nobody expects you to work all the time, but that doesn’t mean you should bolt out of the office at 5:00 sharp. These days your willingness to go the extra mile – and the extra hour -won’t go unnoticed. With all the budget cuts and layoffs that happened in the past year, there is more work to be done than there are people to do it. That’s your cue to spend a few extra hours each week at the office, or at home in the evenings, striving to get it done.
Be willing to bear the load. If there are rumors of layoffs or pay cuts in your office, it can be tempting to do the bare minimum while you bide your time and wait for the ax to fall. But now is the time to step up and take on new projects and extra responsibilities. If you wait for someone else to step up to the task, then you are being outworked.
Polish up your marketable skills. Yes, money is tight these days and your time is probably even tighter. If there was ever a time to add to your skill set, it’s now. Make a list of specialized skills that are important to your line of work and that could give you an advantage, then research continuing education in your area and online for increasing your talents and certifications. It’s a great way to increase your worth to your employer and to constantly keep yourself current.
Be a penny-pincher and a pitcher-inner. In a down economy, every single penny counts. Just ask your boss – she’s probably spending her nights lying awake trying to figure out ways to cut corners around the office to keep the company running and you employed. Better still, don’t ask your boss; come up with cost-cutting ideas yourself. It will also show her that you understand how business works and that you are constantly thinking of new ways to improve the bottom line. And don’t hesitate to pitch in yourself-even if it means resorting to (gasp!) manual labor. Roll up your sleeves and start helping out with the little things around the office.
The truth is that there will always be someone smarter than you, or who has more experience or a longer, more impressive résumé. But no matter what other people have, take a cue from Will Smith: You can always, always ensure that you will work harder. It’s a proven virtue and one that our nation was founded on. Hard work won’t let you down. If you infuse your talent with hard work, passion, and a drive for excellence, you’ll find yourself at the top of the ladder when everyone else is scrambling to stay on a lower rung.
“…we need to continue doing all we can for literacy in our country,” says PJ Nickels.
by Roger Zotti
PJ Nickels, whose latest books are “Nuni of Nunivak Island. A New Friend,” “Vultures in the Cemetery,” and “Lewis the Lemur Adventures. The Belly of the Beast” (Pennie Rich Publishing), is an amazing woman – and let’s hope an autobiography is in the works. Why? I’ll let her tell you.
“I was a non-reader. I come from a family of non-readers and school was a nightmare for me, as it is for many children and that’s where we get the high dropout rate.”
PJ was in the sixth grade when it was discovered she couldn’t read. Then in the ninth grade she dropped out of school. But she wasn’t going to stay down for the count: At age 35 she earned a Bachelor’s Degree and at 45 a Master’s. Also, she holds a Doctorate of Ministry in Education. It’s no surprise therefore that for PJ, it’s crucial for “children to receive an education in reading because reading is the key to everything. It must be taught strongly in every piece of our curriculum.”
And what does PJ hope readers take from her most recent books? “Well, it is opening the literacy door for all children,” she said. “I also want adults who see these books and read them with children to understand that everything – I repeat, everything – can be a teachable moment.”
One thing that bothers PJ, she said, is “some people are trying to put us in a box. They are saying, ‘These are children’s picture books.’ But they emphatically are not.” These people are, PJ continued, “trying to throw the books into the children’s picture book target market – and that is not where they belong. The books are education books in disguise.” Then she added with a hearty laugh, “I’m trying to sneak up on the kids.”
When asked about the ages at which her books are aimed, PJ replied, “They can be read as early as a parent or grandparent is willing to sit down and read to a beginning reader. But the books can go as high as school. A high school teacher can use these materials to teach kids how to write.”
PJ was a teacher and principal and believes that “we need to continue doing all we can for literacy in our country.” When she was a principal, she said, “I noticed many children could not pass tests because they could not read, and then I found teachers had become frantic to figure out ways to teach across the curriculum. They would ask themselves, ‘How do I fit in history? How do I fit in this and that subject?’ One of the major goals with the materials I am writing is that science is embedded in them and so is history. Many subjects are embedded in the books.”
The books’ illustrators are Anita Saunders (“Lewis” and “Vultures”) and Juliann Kaiser (“Nuni”). Their imaginative use of colors is vivid, active, and engaging. For more information about PJ Nickels and Pennie Rich Publishing’s other books and authors, and their audio books, visit www.pennierich.com.
(l-r) Christine Turrentine and Martha Geehan, Stonington Historical Society, clean a model of the Hero at the Capt. Palmer House Museum. The model was made by Alan Burghardt and is on display at the museum, 40 Palmer Street.
Join members and friends of three local historical societies in an interactive program that explores why we end up collecting what we do – as individuals and as institutions – on Tuesday evening, July 21, 7:30 pm, at the Noank Historical Society’s Latham Chester Store, 108 Main Street, Noank. The program is part of a “Curator’s Camp” being held by the Stonington Historical Society, the Avery-Copp House Museum, and the Noank Historical Society, with the support of a grant by the CT Humanities Council.
Ron M. Potvin, Assistant Director and Curator, the John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Cultural Heritage, Brown University, will present a program about how we assign value to artifacts and why museums and individuals collect the things they do. Ron will lead the group in a discussion about what our collections mean to us and what they may mean to others. What we may want to collect in the future is another question to be explored.
Ron’s professional background includes preservation and interpretation of the National Historic Landmark Nightingale-Brown House (1792) in Providence. His past experience includes working with fine arts, manuscripts, exhibitions, and historic sites. He serves on the boards of directors of the New England Museum Association and the American Association of Museums Curator’s Committee, for which he is also Chair of the Program Committee. He is a member of the steering committee of the Coalition of Rhode Island Historic Sites. His research interests include historic house museums, especially interpretation and sustainability.
For more information, please contact the Noank Historical Society at 860.536.3021 or noank-hist@sbcglobal.net.
