The Resident March 21 ~ April 4, 2018

Immigrant Bakery Owner Becomes U.S. Citizen

story and photo
by Lisa M. Luck

Lighthouse Bakery, East Main Street, Mystic, sits back from the street. It’s housed in a barn-shaped two-story building with a loose-gravel parking lot, and a blinking neon open sign. Metal chairs, marble counter tops and a TV set to news inhabits the restaurant. Cream puffs, cookies, and baklava adorn the display cases. The bakery belongs to Massoud Kalkhoran, an immigrant from Iran, now a U.S. citizen since October 25, 2017. He makes everything from scratch.

Massoud Kalkhoran states, “Honesty is the only thing that helps you….”

In Iran, he owned an import business and he was an electrician but when an “immigrant moves to another country, you’re not able to do what you were doing,” he said. “It’s not you to choose what you’ll work at because the rules are different.” He never thought about being a baker but it supports his family.
Massoud came here from Iran with his wife, Mercedes and his six week old son, Kameal in 1998. The “U.S. has more opportunities” he states. He came to the U.S. because, “I had no other choice. My wife’s family was here and after the Revolution in Iran (from 1978-1979) the culture was different and my wife was unhappy.” He started the process in Istanbul, Turkey to move to the United States a full year beforehand which involved filling out numerous forms, paying fees, and answering questions about why he wanted to come to the U.S. Back in 1998, he received his Green Card at JF Kennedy airport.
Another reason Massoud came to the U.S. was for the education for his children, Kameal, now 19 and Kamal, 16. The U.S. culture touts education, he notes. “Starting a new life as an adult is tough. There’s a better future with education. There’s a chance to get educated in Iran but not necessarily a chance to use it.” Kameal, who took a year off to help his father at the bakery, will attend college next year to pursue being a lawyer. Kamel, a junior at Fitch High School, loves to read books and study will attend right after graduation.
The process for citizenship, he describes, required applying by filling out forms. Then Immigration interviewed him by asking questions about U.S. History, the Constitution, Amendments and the U.S. Government. They also asked, “Have you ever used guns? Have you been in Mexico or Canada? They know what countries you’ve been to. Once when my passport expired, they asked me what countries I had been to and they knew where I’ve been” by the ones he omitted. “Honesty is the only thing that helps you, not just for citizenship, or a green card but everywhere.” In three weeks, he received a letter about the swearing-in ceremony.
Massoud well remembers that day of his swearing-in ceremony; there were fifty-five people of “all different colors, nationalities, African, Asian, Hispanic, and I was the only Iranian.” Massoud talked to the judge after the ceremony and said, “I was the luckiest one.” Massoud became a citizen so that he wouldn’t be separated from his sons.
He still misses Iran though. “There’s so many things that you’d have to write a book about it,” he jokes. He talks to his mom everyday as well as his brothers. He misses the culture and the food especially the food. “Nobody cooks like my mother,” he says as he reminisces about her gourmet dishes such as sabzi, a vegetable dish, and bademjan, an eggplant and tomato stew. He then mentions how good the caviar tastes from the Caspian Sea.
Massoud wishes “good luck to all the immigrant people out there.” He knows how hard the process is not just for citizenship but learning the language too. When he first arrived, he heard others speaking English so fast and said, “God, I’m not gonna survive.” But survive he did. “I started with nothing and ended up here.” And he has flourished.

Groton Town Officials Seeks Input on Naming New Community Center

The former Fitch Middle School in Groton will be home to the town’s new, soon-to-be-named, community center.

by Eva Bunnell

The care of human life and happiness…is the first, and only object of good government,” so said Thomas Jefferson. As a town that boasts a beautiful Senior Center, the “Central Bark” Dog Park, an award-winning public library, a public golf course, and a myriad of outstanding park and recreational program offerings, town officials in Groton clearly takes this credo to heart.
As the town continues its efforts to create relevant, state-of the-art programs, the Groton Town Council, the Parks and Recreation and Public Works staff are currently amid retro-fitting the former Fitch Middle School to become the new community center. However, there’s one thing missing; the new center needs a name.
After conducting a needs assessment in 2009 that helped create the “Groton Parks and Recreation Master Plan,” town officials found that “residents ranked a community center as a top park and recreation facility need.”
The town has operated its Parks and Recreation programs at the former Williams Seely School for the last 15 years. The move to Fitch, allows the town to make “the Seely property available for development,” while at the same time, “saves the town money on operating expenditures.”
According to Mark Berry, Director, Groton Parks and Recreation, “our staff is very excited to move our programs to the new location at the former Fitch Middle School, the physical center of town, right next door to Groton Town Hall.” He shared that, “the new space and location will allow Groton Parks and Recreation to better serve the community through more programming opportunities and the increased proximity to facilities and town services.”
Mark and town staff are hoping the opening of the new center will take place by mid- to- late summer with most programming to begin in February of 2019.
All work completed will, of course, follow ADA requirements, thus ensuring that the center will be accessible and enjoyed by individuals at all levels of ability.
At this point in time, a survey of residents that asked their ideas for the center’s name has been closed. However, it’s not too late to have a say! Groton residents will soon be asked to rank the three-to-four top choice names that came out of the survey for final consideration by Town Council members. For further information please go to: www.GrotonRec.com/CommunityCenterName Be a part of this “new beginning!”

The Resident Good News February 21 ~ March 6

Stonington Men Start 2018 With a Bang by Breaking Fireworks Guinness World Record

Pyrotechnicians and Stonington residents Jeff Schneider (l) and Ed Adams (r), pose with the World’s Largest Aerial Firework Shell before its Guinness World Record-breaking detonation off Al Marjan Island, UAE, on New Year’s Eve 2017.

by Anna Trusky

Local residents Ed Adams owns Adams Garden of Eden garden center and Jeff Schneider is VP of Marketing and Sales for ASA Environmental Products, both located in Stonington. But little do many know that the mild-mannered duo have pretty flashy side careers as pyrotechnicians for the internationally famous Grucci Fireworks family! Recently they broke their third Guinness Record for World’s Largest Aerial Firework Shell by helping to build and launch a one-ton-plus firecracker on New Year’s Eve off Al Marjan Island, UAE.
More than 100,000 spectators came to see the fantastic display which, at 2,397 pounds, more than doubled the previous record of 1,024 pounds. The shell contained 390 comet stars that burst into the colors of the UAE flag—red, white, and green. It took Phil Grucci, CEO and Creative Director of Fireworks by Grucci, more than 600 hours to design the show and it required another 70,000 man-hours to build the fireworks, with a team of programmers, producers, pyrotechnicians, and documentarians all working on the project.


“I’ve been working for the Gruccis for almost 40 years and helped originate the annual fireworks over the Thames River for the Fourth of July,” Jeff explains. “Ed and I are given the shows on paper and we take it from the schematics and make it happen on the ground. We build everything on site, get the shells and equipment set up, and load the shells according to the schematics so the fireworks get in the air safely, on time, and coordinated to the music.”
Watching the shell go up on New Year’s Eve was quite an experience, Ed and Jeff said. “When the shell went up, it roared! It was phenomenal,” Jeff recalled. “None of us had ever seen anything so large being fired! The shell was so big our safety zone was one mile but we actually fired it from beyond the safety zone so everything was fine.”
“It was amazing and a fantastic experience,” said Ed. “To see it up in the sky, there is nothing I can compare it to. It was just so magnificent—not just to see it but to feel it in your body! It was fun to be part of the whole thing. I’ve been doing this for more than 20 years and every experience is different!”
After the record was confirmed, Phil Grucci said, “Our brief was to deliver a ‘beyond a journey’ design and to fabricate and display this amazing marvel in fireworks. The inspiration of the design was the unique natural resources of Ras Al Khaimah and the natural beauty and expansive space of the Al Marjan Island with a sense of celebration to welcome in the New Year 2018. We pushed the boundary to clinch the Guinness World Records title for the Largest Aerial Fireworks Shell that contributes to the civic pride of Al Marjan Island, Ras Al Khaimah and the UAE.”
Ed and Jeff have gone all over the world helping to delight millions of appreciative viewers with dazzling fireworks displays and they look forward to bringing the Grucci magic back to Southeastern Connecticut this July!
To see a video of the incredible New Year’s Eve display, go to: www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/commercial/2018/1/2018-welcomed-with-a-bang-as-firework-shell-record-is-shattered-in-dazzling-displ-509210.

Alex Breen Runs A Club By Empowering Members

Alex looks over the glass case where veteran club members share and display memorabilia of their time in service, in the club’s meeting space.

 

story & photo
by Eva Bunnell

Walking into the Essex Veterans Memorial Hall (EVMH) at 3 Westbrook Road, Essex, you are immediately struck by the open, airy, and welcoming club environment. That’s intentional. Alex Breen, EVMH club President for the last four plus years, seems to have an instinct for understanding what brings good people together to do good things and have fun in the doing of it.
The handsome and well-cared-for interior of the club belies its age. It’s been in the former schoolhouse since it was first established right after World War II in 1946.
The walls are punctuated with military insignias and photos of those who have proudly served. These photos take visual precedent over a room that includes those more typical club appointments such as a bar, tables, and a pool table. It is clear, given the priority they take in the club’s rooms, the individuals in these photos, and the sacrifices they made for our country, are never forgotten.
Look over the club’s monthly newsletter and you see listed events, such as “Thirsty Thursdays” “Karaoke,” “Football Sunday” and fundraising raffles. Camaraderie, a true sense of belonging, supporting our veterans and community, being a part of something greater than ourselves, and plain old fun; In a nutshell, that’s what being a part of the Essex Veterans Memorial Hall successfully strives to provide to the members of its club. “We are a family organization,” explains Alex. Becoming that, was “one of our biggest wins,” he says with a broad smile.
While club membership is primarily for military veterans, it is also open to those who have someone in their family who has served, or is presently serving, in our Armed Forces. Of the club’s 178 members, 80% are military veterans. Still, Alex shares that anyone can come into the club and enjoy a drink at the bar or one of its scheduled events.
The club at EVMH is the only stand-alone veteran’s organization on the East Coast. Because the club operates according to its own established by-laws, Alex feels this allows the “freedom to serve and support veterans and the surrounding communities in a real-time manner.” Without getting caught up in the delays that seeking the permission of the traditional Veterans organizations may require, “We can turn requests for support around quickly.”
Utilizing a “whatever is needed” mentality, Alex explains the club’s charitable efforts are focused primarily on “keeping it local.”
“We are fortunate to have a close relationship with Essex government officials,” explains Alex. The club also works closely with social service agencies to identify those in need of assistance.
Support can take the form of the purchase of a wheelchair for a veteran, or educational grants to high school seniors. Other forms of support include providing meeting space-at no charge- to community organizations such as the Lions Club, the Rotary and other non-profits. EVMH has also proudly chartered and hosted Essex Boy Scout Troop 12 for more than 50 years.
Together with the Town of Essex, the club helps to organize and execute the Essex Memorial Day parade in May of each year.
As EVMH President, Alex clearly enjoys working with people and seems to have an instinct for how to keep members engaged in keeping the club relevant. His two Masters degrees, one in Organizational Behavior Management and the other in Unit Resource Management, only strengthen his foundation for believing in the empowerment of people. He explains, “Empowering club committee members to bring our mission to life is how I operate. No decision is made alone. If someone comes to me or the full board of directors with an idea, whether it be for fundraising, or an idea for a new club activity, I step out of the way, and simply provide support and encouragement. That’s how we get things done.”
Clearly, it’s working. The EVMH is busy enough to be open seven days a week. Monday through Friday the club opens at 2pm. Saturdays and Sundays have 11am openings. Breen hopes the club “maintains that success.” One has little doubt the club will ever have to close its doors. You will want to join and be a part of this great organization after one visit.
For anyone who wants to learn more about the Essex Veterans Memorial Hall, check out their page on Facebook (Essex Veterans Memorial Hall, Inc.) where information on how to apply for membership, the club activities schedule, and updates on donations are posted.

The Resident February 2, 2018

The Resident 2017 Year in Review

Groton City’s First ‘Stuff a Cruiser’ Drive is a Success

story & photo
by Karen Koerner

Merry and bright smiles filled the parking lot of the Groton City’s Municipal Building Dec. 2 as officers of the City of Groton Police Department joined forces with the United States Marine Corps and members of St. John’s Church of Groton to collect food, warm winter coats, and Toys for Tots. Residents began rolling through the donation area at 9 am when the drive began, and a police cruiser designated for toys was nearly full only an hour later.

Enjoying the spirit of giving at the Groton City’s Stuff a Cruiser charity drive Dec. 2 are Sydney Monroe, Rev. Joseph Coleman, Kevin Dunning, Groton Police Cadet; Aaliyah Staten, Cadet; Robert McDade, Cadet; Police Chief Michael Spellman; Juliette Parker, GPD; Officer Trish Lieteau; GPD, Luanna Pina; Larry Musella GPD; Sgt. Mike Masucci, GPD; Jason Hauptman, GPD; Bobby Harris, GPD; Erick Jenkins, GPD and Sgt. Timothy Dallas, USMC.

“We collected nearly 1,000 individual toys and filled two-plus cruisers at the event,” stated, Chief of Police, Groton, following the drive. “We also partnered with Pastor Joseph Coleman and St. John’s Church of Groton on a coat drive. We collected nearly 100 used coats, scarves, gloves and mittens.” Residents also donated non-perishable food, filling a pickup truck full for the United Way Gemma Moran Food Pantry.
Groton City Mayor Keith Hedrick dropped by and was happy with early progress. “This is tremendous,” he said. “It’s all about community. It’s got to be.”
A steady stream of Groton City residents were happy to give. “My husband said, ‘don’t bring them back home,’” laughed Johanna Maynard, as she dropped off bags of afghans, winter scarves, toys and food donations. “Take the bag, too,” she said of a tote that held her donations.
Pastor Joseph and some of his parishioners arrived to help, loaded with donations themselves. “This is a neighborhood thing. This is an important event,” he said. As donors arrived, Chief Michael pointed out the relationships that were making the drive a success.

(l-r) Semper Fi! USMC Sgt. Timothy Dallas stands firm with former Marines, Terry Rathbun and Lt. Erick Jenkins, GPD, at the Groton City’s Stuff the Cruiser drive that collected gifts for the Marines Toys for Tots program, as well as food and clothing donations.

“We’re big on community policing here, and we try to stay involved,” Michael said. The USMC Toys for Tots drive was represented by Marine Sgt. Timothy Dallas. The Marine said collected toys will be distributed to area non-profits that help families with children who have a hard time creating a happy Christmas.
Rounding out the volunteers were Groton City Police Cadets, volunteering under the supervision of Officer Trish Lieteau, Cadet Advisor. Volunteers and donors were full of the Holiday Spirit. Chief Michael was pleased with the first year’s effort. “Our agency wishes all very Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year 2018,” he said.

Warm and Joyous Homecoming and One Happy Birthday For The Crew Of The USS Toledo

story & photos
by Eva Bunnel

On Pier 17 of the Naval Submarine Base New London, more than 200 family members and friends wore smiles as bright as the late November afternoon sun that warmed the day to unseasonably warm temperatures as they welcomed to homeport, the 132 crew members of the USS Toledo.
On November 29th, the USS Toledo and its crew of 15 Officers and 117 enlisted Sailors, came home after a six-month, “European Command Area of Responsibility where they executed the Chief of the Naval Operation’s Maritime Strategy in support of the national security interests and Maritime Security Operations. During deployment the Toledo made port calls in Faslane, Scotland and Rota, Spain.”

Shelby Law, Kaitlyn Long, and Bridget Nelson, stand alongside Pier 17 happily awaiting the return of the men they love.

A trio of friends Shelby Law, Kaitlyn Long, and Bridget Nelson stood together by the pier holding their handmade signs that would help welcome their sailors home. They shared their excited anticipation for the moment they would be reunited with their significant others. They were happy that, for a time, “we get to keep our guys” with them at home.
The traditional “First Kiss,” was shared by Electronic Technician 2nd Class, Jarrod Pope, his wife, Ashlie and their eight and three- year- old daughters, Abigail, and Emilia. “First Hug” honors were shared by Fire Control Technician 1st Class, James Kaler and his wife Dianna, with their nine-month old son, Jonathan.

Avery Estrada, daughter of USS Toledo Chief Radio Officer Alan Estrada, waves to the submarine as it is assisted into port. Avery was also celebrating her eighth birthday.

As happy reunions were taking place on the pier, perhaps the most excited individual was Avery Estrada, who happened to be celebrating that day both the return of her father, Chief Radio Officer Alan Estrada, and her eighth birthday.
Avery stood resolutely on the pier, ahead of the crowd, waving to the submarine as it was assisted to its dock by two tugboats. As she ran to her father, it was hard to not be moved to tears hearing her happy shouts when she caught first sight of her Dad.

The traditional “First Kiss” is shared by Electronics Technician 2nd Class Jarrod Pope and his wife, Ashlie.

“First Hug” is shared by Fire Control Technician 1st Class James Kaler and his wife, Dianna. Snuggled between them is their nine-month old son, Jonathan.

Cmdr. Orville Cave, has been in command of the USS Toledo, a Los Angeles Class submarine for the last seventeen months. The USS Toledo is a “nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine.” “Fast-attack submarines are multi-mission platforms enabling five of the six Navy maritime strategy core capabilities-sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security, and deterrence.”
Clearly proud of the USS Toledo’s crew, Cmdr. Cave shared that the members of his crew were “outstanding” in the six months they were out to sea, and that “they train hard for years to be ready for deployment.” During their deployment, Cave said, “morale was always great.” However, in the days leading up to coming home, he said with a smile, “the energy level was, as one can expect, a bit higher than normal.”
The USS Toledo is “the 81st Los Angeles-class submarine and the second U.S. Navy ship to be named for the city of Toledo.”