$1,000 given to Arc
Thanks to a grant in the amount of $1,000 received from Jewett City Savings Bank Foundation, Inc., The Arc Quinebaug Valley will be able to start the process of purchasing and installing GPS Systems into the agency’s fleet of vehicles.
“We are extremely grateful to have received these grant funds from Jewett City Saving Bank. Due to the fact that our agency continuously faces state budget cuts on a year by year basis, it is imperative that we seek alternate routes in securing outside funds. Additional funding for supports, supplies and specific projects is sought out by our fundraising efforts and submitting grant applications.” said Susan M. Desrosiers, executive director of The Arc Quinebaug Valley.
GPS fleet tracking services consist of a hardware and software bundle that will help The Arc track their vehicles, record the driving habits of employees, issues status reports on the fleet and will alert the agency when incidents or events occur. The main function of these services is to gather data to better improve the efficiency, safety and overall functionality of the vehicle fleet. This technology will also allow The Arc to track idling time, which is vital information for improving fuel efficiency.
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Gift Collection
The Putnam Rotary Club’s annual Holiday Giving drive collected 85 gifts for the Putnam Family Resource Center and TEEG. Left to right: Shannon Haney, parent educator of the family center; Paul Pikora Holiday Giving Committee member; Rachael Johnston, committee chair; Chelsea French, community development coordinator at TEEG; and Rande Chmura, committee member. Linda Lemmon photo.
The holidays are a magical time … or, at least, they used to be? Lately, however, the holidays have felt like more of a burden of ‘Have To” rather than “Get To”. “I have to bake and wrap and shop and cook and ship and send and save and spend…”
Nobody, anymore, says they “get to” go to the mall or “get to” decorate! Let’s face it, long to-do lists are never associated with a spirit of joyfulness, and to-do lists are never longer than during the holiday season. Even holiday parties feel more like obligations rather than celebrations. This year, however, I am determined to change this feeling and find a moment, or two, of the holiday magic I once felt as a child.
I will remember, when I put up my tree, how excited I was as a kid to find that perfect tree with the perfect arrangement of branches: enough room on the bottom for lots of presents and just right on the top to hold the angel and the most delicate ornaments that only my parents were allowed to hang.
I will remember, when I bake, how glorious the house smelled when my mother was baking her gingerbread for our beloved gingerbread house creation—always the same construction method but, somehow, always the “best one yet!”
I will remember, when I place my candles in the window, how absolutely magical it was to see lights wrapped around windows, or wreaths, or bushes or trees and how, at the age of 9, I was insistent that the lights I saw streaming across the sky, one Christmas Eve, were certainly Santa’s sleigh on its way somewhere. I will remember, when I am ordering my gifts from Amazon, how serious I was to write my Christmas list to Mr. Claus, wondering if I had, indeed, been ‘good enough’ to receive my most coveted request.
I will remember, when I am picking my number for the secret Santa ritual at the office Christmas party, how my dear late aunt used to knit mismatched mittens or slippers as gifts to randomly remembered family members and how truly special those holiday gatherings were.
This holiday season I will try to remember to see brighter and breathe deeper. I will turn up the volume on the radio and belt out a holiday tune in the car or hum one quietly, yet deliberately, at work. I will put out my Christmas dishes even though I am not home for dinner often enough to use them. I will search high and low in Walmart for the elusive Book of Life Savers. I will buy the big bag of mixed whole nuts even though my father is the only one who eats one or two. I will wear red and decorate with fresh greens.
But, most importantly, this year, I will remember that the point of the holidays, and why we HAVE TO do so many things, is because we GET TO pass along the magic of the season to our children, our grandchildren and to anyone else we happen to meet. Truth be told, there is no better feeling than being able to give a heartfelt and deeply deserved present to someone we love, or, better yet, to someone we don’t even know!
BELIEVE! BELIEVE!
Kathy Naumann, possessor of NATURALLY curly hair and the understanding that you can’t control everything!
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Wed. Dec. 19
Art Exhibit
POMFRET CENTER --- The Connecticut Audubon Center at Pomfret Center will present House & Garden; Field & Farm – art by Roxanne Steed through December at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Free. 860-928-4948.
Art Exhibit
THOMPSON --- The Friends of the Thompson Public Library will present, as part of its Art @ the Library series “Beauty in Bloom” by Jonathan Fritz through Dec. 28.
Nature Store
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will hold its annual Holiday Nature Store through Dec. 21 at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. 860-928-4948.
Art Exhibit
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present its winter art show and sale through Jan. 13 at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. 860-928-4948.
Fri. Dec. 21
Solstice Celebration
POMFRET --- The Wyndham Land Trust will present a solstice event from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Lyon Preserve (Wright’s Crossing Road north of intersection with Rt. 101. Light refreshments. All welcome.
Solstice Hike
HAMPTON --- The Winter Solstice Hike with TLGV Chief Ranger Bill Reid will be held from 10 a.m. to noon at the Goodwin Forest and Conservation Center on Potter Road. Hikers will end up at the large pavilion near the parking lot for hot chocolate and snacks. Participants can bring a bag lunch too if they want and we’ll celebrate the first day of winter. Inclement weather cancels. Registration required: 860-774-3300.
Mon. Dec. 24
Exercise Group
WOODSTOCK --- The Woodstock Senior Exercise Group will meet from 9 to 10 a.m. every Monday and Wednesday in the Woodstock Town Hall large meeting room on the lower. Minimum fee. Local seniors welcome. Please check the town website www.woodstockCT.gov for current schedule or call 860-928-6595.
Tues. Dec. 25
Merry Christmas!
Thurs. Dec. 27
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present a Bird Walk at 1 p.m. starting from the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. $5 for members; $10 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Trivia Fund-raiser
PUTNAM --- The Putnam Lions Club will hold a Trivial Challenge at 7 p.m. at the Crossings Restaurant. The event will benefit Light Up Putnam.
Fri. Dec. 28
Blood Drive
N. GROSVENORDALE --- The American Red Cross will be holding a blood drive from 11:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. at the Thompson Community Center on Riverside Dr. 1-800-RED CROSS.
Sat. Dec. 29
Wee Walk
THOMPSON --- The Wyndham Land Trust will present “Wee Wander: Ramble the Robbins Preserve to the Five Mile River” from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Robbins Preserve off Fred Davis Road. Bring your camera. Snacks and fresh air included.
Tues. Jan. 1, 2019
Happy New Year!
Ornament Illumination
PUTNAM --- The Town of Putnam and Putnam Business Association are illuminating the New Big Ornament at 4:30 p.m. at Rotary Park on Kennedy Drive. It will remain illuminated through the weekend of the Fire and Ice Festival on Feb. 9. All welcome. Bring a lawn chair.
Sat. Jan. 5
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “Owl Walk” at 7 p.m. starting from the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Cancelled if bad weather. $5 for CAS members; $10 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Thur. Jan. 17
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “Monthly Bird Walk” at 1 p.m. starting from the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. $5 for CAS members; $10 for nonmembers. 860-928-4948.
Sat. Jan. 19
Benefit Concert
THOMPSON --- The Veterans Coffee House Benefit Concert will be held with cocktails starting at 6 p.m. at the Raceway Restaurant & Golf Club. The Real Wives of Windham County is hosting the event to raise money and awareness for the Veterans Coffee House in Danielson. The Gilman & Valade Funeral Homes & Crematory are the corporate gold sponsors. Cash bar and free light refreshments. $20 at: WINY, The Gilman Funeral Home, the Veterans Coffee House.
Sun. Jan. 20
Nature Program
POMFRET --- The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “Trail Wood Reflections – Reception and Reading” from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Free. 860-928-4948.
Mon. Jan. 21
Nature Film
POMFRET --- In partnership with the Pomfret Green Team, the Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret Center will present “A Plastic Ocean” at 6:30 p.m. at the Grassland Bird Conservation Center on Day Road. Free. 860-928-4948.
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