final_October 19 issue

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID DANBURY CT PERMIT NO. 254

OCTOBER 19, 2023

Eversource to present report and replanting plan after tree removal error

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REDDING, CONNECTICUT

Volume 2 / Issue 20

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The Planning Commission continues to review the matter of Eversource wrongly removing four black locust trees along Cross Highway on September 27, an error made as the utility began tree removals under their Resiliency Program to protect its power lines.

Discussion was held over the cause of the error and Eversource presented its proposed remediation efforts at the Commission’s October 10 meeting.

The meeting agenda included a Notice of Violation issued to the utility for the unauthorized removal of four black locust trees on September 27. The trees were not included in the utility’s revised application the Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve on July 11 for tree removals along Hill Road and Cross Highway.

The revised application had included 65 trees slated for removal, and then was the subject of an appeal process and discussed at an August 8 public hearing held

by Tree Warden Charles Hyatt.

Eleven trees were successfully appealed as part of that public hearing.

Since the September 27 error, tree cutting has been halted on Town property along Hill Road and Cross Highway.

“Our arborists discussed the issue of the miscommunication between the contractor and their tree crew that mistakenly removed the four locust trees on Town property along Cross Highway instead of trimming them as planned,” Jamie Ratliff Eversource Senior Media Relations Specialist told the Sentinel.

“We again apologized for the error and are working with our contractor on a replanting plan.

We will present that plan to the Commission with the goal of completing the replanting before the end of the year. We’re taking several steps to avoid any more miscommunication, including maintaining a presence and overseeing all work being done along Cross Highway.”

Since the October 10 meeting, Planning Chairman Dan Barrett said the group will provide feedback on the plan to Eversource and request alterations if needed at its next meeting which is October 24.

“While we remain angered by Eversource’s irreversible mistake, we were able to have a productive

of dead and changing leaves on a rainy morning, stone walls emerge, come into focus, and intersect. We pause at the corner, where the trail bends, and Gordon gestures to the woods over the walls: Aquarion land that Redding Land Trust and Connecticut Forest and Parks Association had thought would make a good link to the nearby Aspetuck Trail. Not happening anytime soon, though.

We follow Buzz’s Trail in the opposite direction.

I look to my feet and notice a single spore-stem of the clubmoss called ground pine, or princess pine, though it looks more like a baby spruce or fir than pine. Beside the trail, delicate ferns have turned mostly brown, concealing the still-green leaves of greenbrier vines.

A light-filled gap behind the trees indicates the Aspetuck River. As we draw closer, the colors of trees on the opposite bank remind me of the trees I saw across Bogus Brook Swamp in spring.

The opioid crisis has been front-and-center in the news for more than a decade. While the toll in human suffering continues to mount from these painkillers gone amuck, the war on drugs has since shifted to the courts.

Redding resident Irve Goldman is deep in the trenches of what may become one of the biggest opioid settlements to date, which was reached after Connecticut, seven other states, and the District of Columbia opposed and ultimately settled their opposition to the bankruptcy plan of Purdue Pharma. The bankruptcy plan sought to release members of the Sackler family, Purdue Pharma’s owners, from any liability they might have for the trillions of dollars of opioid claims that were asserted in Purdue Pharma’s bankruptcy.

The case now hinges on a Supreme Court ruling that will address the legality of these socalled third-party releases. The releases were a predominate feature of the bankruptcy plan filed by the Stamford-based drug maker.

Purdue Pharma filed for bankruptcy in 2019, and in August 2021, a federal bankruptcy judge approved its reorganization plan with third-party releases in favor of the Sacklers. In exchange for the releases, the Sackler family agreed to contribute $4.3 billion to creditors of Purdue Pharma, including states, over several years.

“Connecticut, seven other states and the District of Columbia got the bankruptcy court’s ruling reversed on appeal to an intermediate federal appeals court,” said Goldman, who has lived in Redding for 30 years and heads the bankruptcy, creditors’ rights, and financial restructuring practice at the Bridgeport-based law firm Pullman & Comley. “And while Purdue’s appeal of that reversal to an even higher appeals court was pending, Connecticut and the other opposition states reached a settlement with the Sacklers – which required them to contribute an additional $1.7 billion to the plan in exchange for the releases they wanted.” A substantial part of that additional funding would go directly to the opposition states.

“In a turn of events, the higher appeals court which heard Purdue’s appeal ended up ruling that the third-party releases were legal,” said Goldman. “That court effectively reinstituted Purdue’s bankruptcy plan with the settlement achieved by the opposition states.”

Goldman said. The plan called for Purdue to restructure itself under a new name and to devote its profits to fighting the opioid epidemic.

The additional $6 billion from the

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Photo by Donna DeMusis Dekle

Ducks swim against a backdrop of autumn foliage at Topstone Pond this month. If you have a photo you’d like to see featured here, with credit of course, e-mail editor@reddingsentinel.org

Notice of November 7 Election Enrollment Sessions The Office of the Registrar of Voters will be holding the last voter registration session on Tuesday, October 31 from 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. for the purpose of registration and/or enrollment of electors entitled to vote in the election. We will be holding this registration session in person at Town Hall in the Hearing Room at 100 Hill Road.

For people who qualify as to age, citizenship, or residence after the last session for the admission of elections prior to this election, we will be holding a limited registration session on Monday, No-

vember 6 from 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. We will be holding this registration session in person at Town Hall in the Hearing Room.

When registering to vote for the first time, you must have a valid photo ID that shows name and address. If your ID does not show your current address (i.e. you recently moved here from a different town or state) please also bring a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or government document that shows your name and address.

If you have any questions,

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please call our office at 203-9385012 or email registrar@townofreddingct.org To check your registration: https://portaldir.ct.gov/sots/lookup.aspx To register or change your registration: https://voterregistration. ct.gov/OLVR Dated at Redding, Connecticut, this 10th day of October, 2023. g Meghan Ely, Democratic Registrar of Voters Michele Meschi, Republican Registrar of Voters

Redding’s Big Outdoors The Mahony Gifts and Ground Pine Sanctuary l

Photo by Cole Tucker-Walton

Saturday morning, my week’s forecast-checking is finally answered with rain. Still, when I pull up to the Mahony Gifts kiosk at the end of Ledgeway Road, on the Easton border, a small crowd is standing in hats, jackets, and hoods, two dogs sniffing around at shoes. Eighteen people gather, and Redding Land Trust Co-president Gordon Loery tells us that neighbor Brian Mahony donated

Election 2023 Sports Movie Series Business Spotlight

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By Cole Tucker-Walton

the Preserve’s 38-ish acres over three decades, in 17 separate parcels. The last five acres came in a few years ago, and trustee Henry “Buzz” Merritt, who died May 12, 2020, was the shepherd of these gifts from the start.

Buzz’s wife, Jane Hamilton-Merritt, and son, Schuyler Merritt, say a few words about his love for the woods. Schuyler recalls hanging out the window of his dad’s single-engine Cessna, taking photos for an aerial survey of the region. Our group takes a photo together, and then we’re off on the newly named “Buzz’s Trail,” mostly single file; from the back, I watch a single, yellow umbrella bob down the line.

The trail underfoot is duller yellow with fallen birch leaves.

The birch trees’ old, plated bark turns black in the rain as we walk downhill among thick old oaks and tall but slender young maples.

Yards back from the trail, hemlocks darken the view.

From the visual confusion

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Big Outdoors Editorial Legal Notice Letters to the Editor

Redding attorney plays key role in opioid case

By Rob Sample

By Donna Christopher

Index

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Book Review Library Corner The Natural World Calendar of Events

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2 l Redding Sentinel l October 19, 2023

Editorial

Letters to the Editor

There are thirty-one people running for thirty-two positions in Town government in the upcoming election on November 7. Their roles will help shape policies in our schools, changes to our municipal budgets, long-term visions for land use, and many things in between.

While there are no contested seats in this municipal election, knowing the people to whom we as residents are giving power is still important.

Of those thirty-two positions, there are twenty-three with incumbents on the ballot (those who have held the position before) and nine with newcomers. We thought it would be valuable to shine a spotlight on the newcomers, to help voters get to know those who are stepping up to serve in a role for the first time.

In the next three issues of the Sentinel, you’ll get to read more about the nine candidates running for new roles and what they see as the main challenges and priorities ahead of them. They are running for positions on both the Redding and Region 9 Boards of Education, the Planning Commission, the Zoning Board of Appeals, and as Constable.

A healthy democracy – and most systems, for that matter – include some competition. Small town government also runs on people being willing to serve on boards and commissions. We hope to see future elections with more contested seats and a range of options given to the voters. If you are interested in throwing your hat in the ring and serving Redding for a future term, reach out to your party’s committee or the Redding Town Clerk to learn more. g

We welcome Letters to the Editor. Please be clear, civil, and concise. E-mail editor@reddingsentinel.org with submissions.

Sampling reveals metals, hydrocarbons at Wire Mill site l

By Rocco Valluzzo

An environmental investigation of the former Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill property in Georgetown revealed various levels of metals as well as extractable total petroleum hydrocarbons (ETPH).

Tighe & Bond, a Middletownbased engineering firm, provided the results of the study it conducted over the summer to the Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill Advisory Committee at its October 12 meeting. Groundwater sampling was conducted across the site while soil sampling was concentrated around the West Pond area as well as the center of the property.

According to Jim Olsen, a licensed environmental professional, the EPTH findings were clustered around old building foundations. These locations included south of the old warehouse area as well an old house foundation in the area where Old Mill Road crossed the railroad tracks.

EPTH were also found on the mill center site, where coal was converted into gas. Some were also found in that area where the land was between five and seven feet below grade. This would probably have to be excavated to prevent leachate from going into the Norwalk River.

Committee Chair Amy Atamian said this information will help determine the scope of the work for the cleanup that will be done under grants from the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), as well as what the costs will be for the remediation of soils. She noted there were exceedances of hydrocarbons in the groundwater. There were also findings of per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in one of the locations that was above criteria.

“It’s present everywhere, apparently,” said Atamian. “But there was only one sample location where it exceeded the criteria.”

Between $20,000 and $30,000 remains from the first Brownfield assessment grant the Town received in 2021. Tighe & Bond will use this to develop costs for the remediation of the property

and also the creation of a sampling plan.

The Town will soon apply for a cleanup grant which is now available. These grants are in three tiers: $500,000, $2 million, and $5 million.

“I think that the cleanup of this area will cost several hundred thousand dollars,” said Atamian.

“So if we want go after a middle tier grant like the $2 million grant, we may also be able to include the hazardous building material abatement for the two buildings where we have tenants.”

Atamian hopes to get those buildings ready for additional tenants and improve them for the existing tenants. Tighe & Bond will work out some cost information to help support the grant application.

Through the University of Connecticut’s Technical Assistance to Brownfields (TAB) internship program, students are helping with sections of the grant application. Atamian expects to have some earlier sections done by the end of this week.

The original summer scope of the work was to develop a reuse study and focus on municipal uses for this site. The program is also working on a three-dimensional SketchUp model.

“At the end of the spring they will have the plan more fleshed out,” said Atamian. “Their touch point with us has been a little bit limited. That’s why they extended the project through the fall and spring semesters.”

Since Redding plans to have the cleanup grant application submitted by November 13, it must have a public meeting 14 days before this date. A draft of the application must also be available, including the analysis of Brownfield cleanup alternatives (ABCA). g

Legal Notice At the regularly scheduled meeting of the Redding Zoning Commission held Wednesday October 11, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. in person in the Town Hall Hearing Room 100 Hill Road, Redding, the Commission reached the following decisions.

1. Application #23-11Z- 95 Lonetown Road (Assessor’s Map and Lot #14 - 7) – Owner John Giardino & Donna Forshaw – In accordance with Redding Zoning Regulations Section 5.12 request for a Special Use Permit for accessary residential apartment. APPROVED. g 2. Application #23-12Z -169 Blackrock Turnpike (Assessor’s Map and Lot #23 - 43) – Owner Sacred Heart and St. Patrick Parish: Agent Dan Conlon – In accordance with Redding Zoning Regulations Section 5.11 request for Limited Duration Special Use Permit to hold a Oktoberfest on October 14, 2023. APPROVED g Matt Lecher, Chairman, Redding Zoning Commission

To the Editor, I spoke last week with Redding Chief of Police Mark O’Donnell. Calls for violence from voices of hate and anti-semitism are circulating broadly through social media. This hate has no place in our society. Those who harbor hate will find no comfort here in Redding.

The Redding Police Department is attuned to current global events and there have been no credible threats to Redding or its neighboring communities.

We are closely monitoring open lines of communication with our partners in Federal Law Enforcement and National Security, to ensure that there is no specific and credible intelligence that would indicate a threat to our community, stemming from the situation in the Middle East.

Out of an abundance of caution, there will be an increased police presence in the community. We’re asking everyone to report any suspicious activity to our routine line @ (203) 938-3400 or dial 911 if necessary. If you see something say something.

My prayers continue to be with the people of Israel, and all innocent civilians in Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza who are and will be victims of the atrocities and crimes against humanity perpetrated by the terrorist organization Hamas, and who will suffer as a result. Hamas does not value human life, neither Israeli, Arab, nor Palestinian. Hamas has always and will continue to use their own people as shields from accountability for their crimes. My heart is heavy with pain for friends and extended family experiencing the pain of loss and who are now sending their youth to prepare for war in Gaza.

Above all please pray for peace. g Julia Pemberton Redding First Selectwoman To the Editor, Many thanks to the author of last Thursday’s (October 12, 2023) Editorial regarding speeding in Redding.

My takeaway from that story as well as the article in the same issue regarding road safety concerns, is the necessity of having a stricter speeding enforcement policy. How about replacing “discretion” with consistent enforcement. Don’t allow our residential streets to become speedways. Umpawaug should not be an alternative to Route 53, unless you adhere to the 25-mph speed limit.

Umpawaug is a designated scenic road in a residential area. One to be enjoyed at a leisurely pace. A road where everyone who travels it should not fear being passed, honked at, or tailgated – all of which have happened to me on numerous occasions. It’s a road where we and our kids and our pets should feel safe.

Quoting the author, “Because my neighborhood and my neighbors deserve better than this.” g Sandi Martin Umpawaug Road

Zoners approve accessory apartment, wait on another l

By Rocco Valluzzo

By unanimous vote, the Redding Zoning Commission approved a request for a Special Use Permit for an accessory residential apartment at 95 Lonetown Road following a public hearing on October 11.

Owned by John Giardino and Donna Forshaw, the proposed 944-square foot apartment would be detached from the 3,000 square foot main dwelling. This is in accordance with the zoning requirement that accessory apartments be less than 1,000 square feet in area or no more than 30% of the main dwelling, whichever is smaller.

There is currently an existing barn on the property which will be demolished to accommodate the accessory apartment. The new structure will also be farther

from the property line to meet the setback requirements.

An application for a septic system has been submitted to the Health Department and is awaiting approval.

Citing the need for more information, the commission voted to extend a public hearing on an application for an accessory apartment at 145 Old Redding Road.

Located above a three-car garage on the property, the apartment is estimated to be 930 square feet.

According to an agent for 145 Old Redding Road LLC, the unit will be occupied by the owner of the property when she visits, as she is currently renting the main dwelling to her son. One of the parking spaces would also be used by the apartment’s occupant.

The apartment is connected by exterior stairs to the main dwelling, which is estimated to be 2,300 square feet. If accurate, this would make the proposed apartment in excess of the maximum allowed by the zoning regulations.

Commission members had questions concerning the application. Diana Carlino requested clarity regarding the owner’s involvement with the property.

Amy Atamian cited the need for clarification on the square footage of the apartment relative to the size of the main dwelling.

The Commission will continue the hearing on October 25, which will be immediately followed by its next regular meeting. g

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October 19, 2023 l Redding Sentinel l 3

Election 2023 J. Scott O’Donnell Constable l

By Donna Christopher

J. Scott O’Donnell is a Democratic candidate for Constable, a two-year term. He is married to Peg O’Donnell, a Redding Selectman, and they have three children. He graduated with a business degree from Central Connecticut State University and is a certified financial planner, with a career in trust and estate administration. He is, currently,

Kate Perry Planning Commission l She is married to her husband, Jeff, and lives with her mother who recently moved in with the couple. Perry works as a writer and focuses on the community and her farm.

Kate Perry, 42, is a Democratic candidate running for a seat on the Planning Commission from Nov. 21, 2023 to Nov. 16, 2027.

How long have you lived in Redding?

Since 2015. I grew up in Ridgefield, lived in Seattle for 10 years, and then moved back to Connecticut.

Have you ever held a public office? What is your experience and why you would be good in

mostly retired.

How long have you lived in Redding?

Thirty years.

Have you ever held a public office? What is your experience and why you would be good in this role?

No. I love Redding and would like to be able to help out whenever

I can. I will serve and execute warrants, take the role as defined by state and local governments.

Should the need for a constable arise, I’d be happy to serve in any capacity.

Why are you running and what got you interested in this role?

It’s an opportunity to help in the town.

What do you see as the top priorities facing the Constable role in the next two years?

Most people say (to me about the role) quelling riots especially, but there are not many riots in Redding.

What do you hope to accomplish and why?

Keep Redding safe. g

By Donna Christopher this role?

While I haven’t yet held public office, I’ve been involved with several organizations in the community, including the Redding Neighbors & Newcomers, the Redding Land Trust, and the Town’s advisory Economic Development Committee. For the past five years, I’ve also been on the board of the non-profit Georgetown Village Restoration, Inc. (GVR), as well as GVR’s Georgetown Day committee.

Why are you running and what

got you interested in this role?

The Planning Commission has always been of great interest to me.

This town is an amazing place that stands out among the surrounding area for its quiet, rural beauty, and the Planning Commission is one of the entities that helps Redding stay Redding.

What do you see as the top priorities facing the Planning Commission in the next three years?

Gearing up for the required publication of the Town Plan

of Conservation Development; maintaining the beauty and personality of Redding while allowing for reasonable improvements; and working with the Town, the community, and the Wire Mill Advisory Committee on the future of Georgetown.

What do you hope to accomplish and why?

I want to collaborate with the great group of community members on the Planning Commission and work with the Town toward maintaining and improving our beautiful town. g

Leif Smith Town Constable (incumbent); Zoning Board of Appeals Alternate l has a daughter, 14, who attends Joel Barlow High School and the Regional Center for the Arts in Trumbull. Smith studied film and television production, theater, and music at Western Connecticut State University and is the Technical Director and teaches stagecraft at Canterbury School in New Milford. He also does residential repairs.

Leif Smith, 61, is a Green Party candidate running for reelection as a Town Constable and for Zoning Board of Appeals alternate for the first time. He

How long have you lived in Redding?

I’ve lived in Redding since 1998. I’ve lived in the area since I was a child.

Have you ever held a public office? What is your experience and why you would be good in this role?

I’ve been a Constable in town since 2006. In that time, I have served papers once.

I gained a lot of experience in siting buildings while working with Wisnowski Designs in the 1990s; dealing with zoning boards, environmental concerns, and client’s interests in coming to workable solutions.

Why are you running and what got you interested in this role?

I want to help ensure that Redding maintains its rural nature as it continues to grow in population.

What do you see as the top priorities facing the Zoning Board of Appeals in the next three years?

The biggest issue in Redding right now is the former Gilbert & Bennett property. It is crucial that any redevelopment of the property is done in a manner that provides housing relief at this time when we are suffering a severe residential dearth.

By Donna Christopher

What do you hope to accomplish and why?

As a Zoning Board of Appeals alternate, my role will be minimal.

I am interested in gaining experience in Town decisionmaking.

What else do you think voters should know about you?

I am the host of “Pickers’ Nite Out”, a weekly acoustic jam, at the Black Cat Grille in Georgetown.

It has been going on for 16 years, providing a platform for musicians of all abilities to congregate in a pressure-free environment and share a song or two. g

4 l Redding Sentinel l October 19, 2023

Sports Slow start hurts Barlow in loss Girls field hockey

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By Rocco Valluzzo

Photo by Rocco Valluzzo

Joel Barlow High’s Ruby Ludwig is pursued by Weston’s Kaitlyn Smith during a varsity field hockey game on Wednesday, October 11. Barlow lost 3-0.

A bit more energy on the part of the Joel Barlow High varsity field hockey team might have made an impact early in its game at Weston last week.

The Falcons were a bit sluggish at the start last Wednesday, October 11. The host Trojans, however, turned up the pressure early and got results as the Falcons got shut out 3-0.

“We came out a little slow in the first quarter,” said Barlow Head Coach Nora Curley, whose team also lost to the same opponent earlier in the season. “The goal is to come out fast and strong, and we didn’t do that today.”

Weston’s aggressive play helped earn it three corner penalties in the first three minutes of

the action. During this stretch, the Barlow defense was up to the challenge, either clearing the shots or coming up with the save courtesy of goalie Rachel Smith.

The Trojans remained persistent, however, and were rewarded for their efforts. With 10:51 left in the first quarter, Kat Day redirected a pass from Kayla Schiffer into the left side of the goal, and Weston was ahead to stay.

Although Barlow would display more energy later in the contest, there was still enough time for the Trojans to add a little insurance to their lead, which it did three minutes later. A scramble in front of the Falcons net allowed Weston’s Hannah Cross to tap a short shot past Smith, putting the hosts up

2-0 and the Falcons in a hole from which they could not escape.

“They got two quick calls, and we just weren’t able to bounce back,” noted Curley.

With a stronger start to the second half, the Falcons successfully turned away Weston threats in the third quarter, not allowing any penalty corners in the process.

They did manage one of their own, coming with 12:20 left in the half but came up empty.

The third quarter was also a stalemate, as both sides struggled to mount a threat. Weston may have had the better of play with two corners of its own, but they failed to capitalize.

Such was not the case for the final frame. The Trojans continue to earn corners, and with 5:22 left to play, Sarah Zwack added her team’s third and final tally.

Not letting up, Weston added two more corners in the last two minutes, just missing out on another goal with 1:06 left.

“They had way more corners than us, and they capitalized,” said Curley.

In this respect, the Trojans finished with an 11-1 advantage.

Smith made six saves in goal for Barlow.

“They are definitely well coached and they’re experienced – and you can tell that they’ve played together a long time,” said Curley about the Weston team.

“They were strong in the back.”

Now 3-6-2 overall, the Falcons finish the regular season on Monday, October 23 when they host Immaculate at 7:00 p.m. g

Pootatuck Archers Club competes in tournament with English sister club

By Dale Walter

Photos courtesy of Pootatuck Archery Club Pootatuck archers using compound bows.

Redding’s own Pootatuck Archers Club recently competed in an “across-the-pond” field archery tournament with a sister archery club in Surrey, England. The Redding archers and those from The Company of Sixty competed for best-score honors on their home range targets, sharing videos and pictures of the action on social media.

The Americans started competition at 8:00 a.m. while their Brit-

ish rivals began at the same time, which was 1:00 p.m. in their time zone. The Redding event included ten bulls-eye targets on the practice range, ten 3D animal targets on the target trails through the woods, and ten additional static targets. Facing an equivalent range of targets, the English archers tallied higher scores on most of the targets than their Redding rivals.

The Pootatuck archers enjoyed a traditional English ploughman’s lunch including curried “coronation chicken salad” sandwiches, cheese, crusty bread and savory chutney pickles. Dessert featured English chocolates donated by the Cannondale/Wilton store Penny Ha’Penny. The British archers meanwhile enjoyed American-style hot dogs, hamburgers, and popcorn.

A former Brit herself, Pootatucak Club Officer Alison Moncur organized the joint tourney with an English friend, whose club competes on 100 acres of woodland donated for use by then Prince Charles (now King Charles III).

The Company of Sixty members

primarily use traditional English recurve wooden longbows, while the American club members typically use compound bows.

Located on a 32-acre wooded site off Diamond Hill Road which is part of a long-term deed from the Town of Redding, the Pootatuck Archers Club is now celebrating its 61st anniversary. Club members can help newcomers select the proper compound or traditional stick bows (and arrows) best suited to the individual, including children. (Cross bows are not allowed since their arrows cause too much damage to the targets.)

The members also provide expert safety advice and guidance to newcomers.

The Club is looking forward to more fun events this year, such as a Halloween shoot in which members shoot apples off the head of Undead Fred and at moving-target ghosts swinging through the woods. g For more information, visit pootatuckarchers.com

Masuk handles early threat by Barlow Football

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By Rocco Valluzzo

Photo by Rocco Valluzzo

Joel Barlow High’s Luke Bishop is tackled by Masuk’s Jake Viglione (13) and Shane Walker (11) during a football game on Friday, October 13. Masuk won 49-14.

Some early success soon gave way to frustration for the Joel Barlow High varsity football team when it visited Masuk last week.

While the Falcons took advantage of an early turnover for a brief lead, their opponent was quick to respond, scoring five touchdowns before halftime en route to a 49-14 win on Friday, October 13, at Benedict Field.

“They’re a strong team,” said Barlow Head Coach T.J. Cavaliere, whose team suffered its second straight loss. “They’re big; they’re physical.”

It was Masuk, however, that struggled early in the night. Taking the kickoff to their own 40-yard line, the Panthers were hit with four illegal motion penalties on their first series before having to punt.

A bad snap went over the head of punter Connor Fulchino, who then tried to pass, only to have the ball wind up in the arms of Barlow’s Ben Noome to give the visitors first down on the Masuk nine. Scott Romano’s two-yard run and Keane Horne’s extra point kick were good for a 7-0 lead less than four minutes into the action.

The Panthers then made things difficult for Barlow, due in part to the play of back-up quarterback Aaron Champagne, whom the Falcons had not seen in films of previous games. He went on to complete 15 passes for 332 yards.

“He slings it around,” said Cavaliere. “He’s got a good arm.”

His older brother, Jason, was even harder to contain, rushing for 89 yards and six touchdowns. The first came on a nine-yard run to cap off a 59-yard drive, and with the extra point it was 7-7 with 7:07 left in the first quarter.

The elder Champagne then caught a screen pass from his brother and turned it into a 46-yard gain before he was stopped at the Barlow five by Romano. On the next play, he found the end zone, and Masuk was ahead to stay.

“We had trouble getting

pressure on the quarterback, so we were asking our secondary to do a lot of stuff and kind of cover for a long period of time,” said Cavaliere. “That’s not going to lead to much success.”

The Champagne brothers also put together a 37-yard completion to set-up a three-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. A Falcon punt that followed gave the Panthers the ball on their own 47, setting up a 26-yard pass from Aaron Champagne to Gavin Walker at the Falcon five. Two plays later, the former scored, and it was a 28-7 affair with 3:10 left in the half.

Such was enough time for the hosts to score once more, coming on an 11-yard run by Jason Champagne in the final minute.

Starting the second half, the Falcons took advantage of a couple of Masuk penalties to move into their opponent’s territory.

Quarterback Jack Gilbert’s 18yard pass to Sam Guidera set up a two-yard run by the former, and with Horne’s extra point, Barlow stopped Masuk’s scoring streak with 6:11 left in the third quarter with the score at 35-14.

While that was it for Barlow’s scoring, Jason Champagne went on to score two more touchdowns, the first coming on Masuk’s next series, capped off by a three-yard jaunt. The last came in the final minute from two yards out.

Gilbert led Barlow in rushing with 49 yards. Dylan Taylor finished with 38.

Barlow, now 3-2, hosts Notre Dame of Fairfield on Friday, October 20 at 7:00 p.m. g

October 19, 2023 l Redding Sentinel l 5

ER9’s new Director of Special Education takes on a new school year

By Pamela Brown

Katherine Matz is ER9’s first Director of Special Education.

When the school year began, Katherine Matz confidently stepped into the new role as Director of Special Education for the Easton, Redding, and Region 9 (ER9) School Districts. “I’m very excited and honored. I’ve always felt strongly that every single student should have their education taken just as seriously as any other student, regardless of their circumstances or challenges,” said Matz.

The position was created this year when ER9’s Central Office determined that having multiple, district-specific directors was not efficient. Previously, there was one director for Region 9 and one director overseeing Easton and Redding. “This created two separate special education departments operating completely independently from one another.

Unifying the department across the three districts provides an opportunity to streamline administrative processes and develop a cohesive continuum of special education services, resulting in better special education programming supported by effective budget development

and oversight,” said Matz, who watched the May 2023 Joint Boards of Education meeting when the position was proposed and voted on. “At the time, I thought [Superintendent] Dr. McKinnon’s model made sense, and as the daughter of a systems engineer I was excited to apply, and even more excited to be hired.”

Matz is responsible for Easton, Redding, and Region 9 schools, including all five schools which encompass all students, ages 3 through 22, who are entitled to the rights in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

She is up for the challenge and said she will bring experience, patience, empathy, and a determination to do what’s right by students. “Special education is an area of education that’s particularly complex, with significant legal requirements to meet and a resulting budgetary impact,” she said, adding that she looks forward to having a collaborative relationship with administrators, teachers, the superintendent, and parents to make the most progress.

“The best outcomes for students happen when everyone is working together toward the same goals, whether they are individualized to a student or big-picture across the school system.”

Ever since high school, Matz has been interested in psychology, sociology, and special education.

She earned a B.A. in psychology from the University of Connecticut and an M.A. in special education from Saint Joseph University in Hartford. “Over the course of my career, I’ve had the privilege of working with a broad range of individuals, from those with significant physical and medical needs to those with significant mental health needs. I also worked

in state-approved private special education programs which serve students with the most complex and challenging needs,” she said.

Supporting Dr. McKinnon’s strategic plan, Matz explained there is a draft action plan for four priority areas for special education: leadership and systems; communication and family engagement; learning environment and special programs; and operations. “Our next step is to invite focus groups to provide us with feedback as we move forward,” she explained. Matz is looking forward to developing strong partnerships with families and the community. “I’d also like to work on the continuum of services that are in place from preschool through high school and make sure we have support for students with disabilities at every point in their educational career.

I’m always looking to see that our students are getting the support that they need to leave our school system able to enter adulthood enjoying the greatest level of independence possible.”

Matz appreciates the opportunity to serve students in the Redding school district. “Everyone has been very welcoming. It’s clear that the Redding community values education. The expertise and skill of the special education staff, as well as their commitment to their students, comes through in each of my interactions with them,” she said, noting an added bonus of the job. “I enjoy the drive to Easton and Redding from my home in Newtown, where I share a house with a boisterous Airedale Terrier mix named Jorah. Outside of work you can find me out and about with friends and family at fairs, used bookstores, and enjoying the great outdoors.” g

Barlow debate teams sweep first statewide tournament

Varsity and novice teams both take first and second place

By Rob Sample

Photo courtesy of Joel Barlow High School debate team

Joel Barlow’s debate team took top honors in a recent tournament of the Connecticut Debate Association. Shown are (left to right) Griffin Speck, Cade Fravel, Owen Fellows, Siddharth Gupta, Coach Randall Smith, Maansi Tibrewal, Brady Decker, and Yu-Min Cho. Missing from photo: Arianna Pereira.

Joel Barlow High School has become a debate powerhouse – and the Barlow debate team continued its winning streak in its first tournament of the 2023-24 season.

The results were so favorable that two varsity teams of Barlow students debated each other for the final round of competition, thus taking the top two slots. The competition, which took place on Saturday, October 7 and drew 20 school teams, was itself hosted by Joel Barlow.

In the varsity round, a twoperson team consisting of Griffin Speck and Cade Fravel won over classmates Owen Fellows and Siddharth Gupta. Barlow teams also won in the novice competition, with Brady Decker and Yu-Min Cho earning top honors and Arianna Pereira and Maansi Tibrewal taking the runner-up slot.

“The question of the day was whether there should be a mandatory retirement age for politicians,” said Debate Coach Randall Smith, a social studies teacher at Barlow. Debaters presented multiple points of view, occasionally using drama.

After his opening remarks, Speck stopped speaking for 20

seconds, thus illustrating actual events on the floor of the Senate and House. Taking a different view, Fellows argued that the Australian system of compulsory voting would produce more representative leaders. Gupta pointed to the heavy youth support for Senator Bernie Sanders as proof that an elected official’s positions matter more than his or her age.

“The pinnacle of the event was that extremely rare exhibition round where the top two seeds out of four preliminary rounds were two pairs from the same school,” said Smith. To advance to that final competition, Fellows and Gupta had to defeat teams from Pomperaug, Newtown, New Canaan, and Staples, while Fravel and Speck beat pairs from Academy of Information Technology and Engineering, Bethel, Daniel Hand, and Stamford.

In mounting their arguments, students don’t choose sides but instead must debate a question from all points of view. “What’s more, the students can’t get any awards until they have effectively argued on both sides,” said Smith.

The October 7 tournament took place under the auspices of the Connecticut Debate Association (CDA), which includes about 50

public, parochial, and private high schools throughout Connecticut and in neighboring parts of New York. Barlow is also part of the Debating Association of New England Independent Schools (DANEIS), which consists mainly of private-school debate teams.

Smith is a Joel Barlow alum who was also on the debate team during the early 1990s. He said the past few years have brought about a strong post-Covid comeback for the Barlow debate team.

“At Barlow, debate significantly increased in popularity from about 2007 through 2020, when the Connecticut Debate Association typically hosted two or three tournaments concurrently across Connecticut,” said Smith, noting that 300 to 500 students throughout the state would take part in these events.

“The pandemic, along with two years of online competition, cut participation nearly in half but we’ve started to recover,” he continued. CDA officials have talked about having regional competitions again in November, with concurrent events in Bethel and Groton, Smith added.

The debate team represents a tall commitment – both for the students and for Smith. “We have biweekly practices that run about an hour-and-a-half, as well as two to three tournaments each month from September through April,” said Smith. “Tournaments run from early morning through 4:00 p.m. or 5:00 p.m. And since 2007, the Barlow team has also conducted practice during the summer.”

Lending a hand are Assistant Coaches Emma Downey, a 2022 Barlow graduate, and Officer Pete Trahan from the Redding Police Department. Smith also credited a strong coterie of parent volunteers, particularly alumni Tim Lewis (Barlow 2006), Evan Streams (2009), Brendan O’Connor (2014), Franklin Speck (2017), and Jason Brannan (2020). g

Eagle Scout’s project boosts memory care at local nursing home l

By Rob Sample

Kyle Kurtz (right) visits his grandmother, Dale Patten, at Bethel Health Care where she lives. Kurtz built 20 cognitive-activity boards for residents of the center.

Eagle scouts are known for coming up with innovative projects that address a community need. But for Kyle Kurtz, that need was personal.

Kurtz’s grandmother is a patient at Bethel Health Care. To assist patients there with tactile skills and memory abilities, Kurtz built 20 cognitive-activity boards for patients at the Center who have Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

For his hard work and ingenuity, Kurtz recently earned the Eagle Scout designation, the highest honor in the Boy Scouts.

Kurtz explained that each of the 20 activity boards is unique, but they fall into two categories.

One group of boards incorporates textured fabrics, buttons, clips, and other elements with a “feel” to them. The other group features gears, latches, hinges, and other hardware. This helps facilitate familiarity of these items to two different groups of patients: women and men.

“This was the suggestion of Dana Dinho, the head of recreation at the center,” said Kurtz, who is a member of Boy Scout Troop 71. “She wanted to make sure I would make these in ways that the patients needed, and here, we wanted the boards to have elements that would be familiar to the people who would use them.”

Kurtz delivered the boards in early September, so they’ve only been in use for a short time. “They love them,” he said. “I was also told that my grandmother lit up with a big smile when she was told I was the one who had made the activity boards.”

Once Kurtz decided on a basic design for the boards, he made a trip to several local craft stores, hobby shops, and hardware stores.

He purchased 20 artists’ canvas boards at Michaels.

They’re all made of wood covered with a fabric of a different color. Some have faint patterns, he said. Their size makes each board

easy for a patient to balance in his or her lap while seated.

“Also, for both the men’s and women’s categories I made five with cushioned backs, and five with flat backs,” added Kurtz. “A patient can work on a cushioned activity board while reclining in bed.”

There was no out-of-pocket cost for Kurtz in constructing the boards: funds for the project came from family, friends, and other Boy Scouts. Once his project was completed, he had about $200 in leftover funds, which he donated to Bethel Health Care.

Kurtz has been in scouting since he joined the Cub Scouts as a kindergarten student. He and his twin brother joined at that time, and both earned their Eagle Scout rank at the same time this past summer. (His twin brother, Spencer, recently completed his Eagle Scout project building benches and restoring rock bridges in Putnam Memorial State Park).

“Covid made it really difficult to stay active, but I wanted to keep involved so that I could eventually earn my Eagle Scout status,” he said.

Now a senior in high school, he is unsure where he will attend college next year. But Kurtz does intend to major in nursing.

“I do know that I want to be a nurse,” said Kurz. “Eventually, my goal is to become a nurseanesthetist.” g

Eagle Scout Kyle Kurtz built 20 cognitive-activity boards for the residents of Bethel Health Care.

6 l Redding Sentinel l October 19, 2023

Putnam Park to host Ghost Walk in time for Halloween l

By Pamela Brown

Photo by Jessie Wright

Get ready for thrills and chills at Putnam Memorial State Park’s Ghost Walk, an occasion that happens every other year. This year’s spooky, kid-friendly walk will take place on Saturday, October 21 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in a small area of the Park.

It will be a night of mysterious stories, enthralling but nottoo-spine-tingling scares, and delightful snacks. The event is free and open to the public; donations are welcome.

For about a decade, Friends & Neighbors (FANS) of Putnam Park, along with the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and the Fifth Connecticut Regiment, have hosted this holiday event. Former FANS president Scott Stetler said it has grown from being a truly scary event to more family-friendly. “All our events are geared toward some sort of actual historical activities that happened at or near the Park,” he said. “We try to have a little interest and action, so it keeps the attention of the people.”

It’s been a popular event at the Park. “The response has been positive. People look forward to it and we’ve had many returning attendees over the years,” said Ellery Leary, FANS President and Park Historian. Attendees visit various stations where reenactors in period dress share

captivating historical stories of their time spent at the park during the 1779-79 winter encampment.

At one station, soldiers will tell ghost stories around a campfire, another will feature a surgeon sharing frightening facts about Revolutionary War medicine on and off the battlefield, and the final one will feature spooky tales from the Park’s history. Softly lit lanterns add to the ambiance of the storytelling. “We are toning down some of the grimmer aspects to make it more kid-friendly while retaining much of what adults enjoy,” said Leary.

Although the property isn’t the site of a real burial ground, Leary explained that the late Dan Cruson, former Park Archaeologist, discovered an area during his excavations that the founders assumed was a burial ground. It was actually the site of Lt. Colonel Dearborn’s officer’s hut. “Upon examination, there was no evidence that anyone even died on the site of the encampment,” said Leary. As Cruson wrote in his book, Putnam’s Revolutionary War Winter Encampment in 2011: “It is known that twenty-seven men assigned to this camp died during the winter occupation. In most of these cases, the muster rolls list them as being ‘sick in Danbury’ just before their deaths, so it appears that anyone who

was sick unto death was removed to the military hospital that was functioning in Danbury during the encampment winter. If they died there, they were undoubtedly buried in the fields in back of the hospital buildings, as suggested

by Danbury’s historian, James Montgomery Bailey. It is unlikely that the dead would have been buried on the encampment grounds, where the growing number of grave markers would have had a deleterious effect on the morale of the soldiers.”

Leary noted there have been stories of people seeing and feeling the spirits of these soldiers who died during the harsh winter.

“At the heart of every ghost story there’s a kernel of truth about local history, or about the worries and fears of the community that tells and retells the story. Drawing people in to the ‘hauntedness’ of a place can encourage them to delve into history of their own initiative and gain a better understanding of how the past impacts the present,” said Leary.

After everyone has visited the final station, attendees will gather by a campfire at the lower Youth Camping Area to make their own s’mores and bannock bread, a scone-like treat. If the weather doesn’t cooperate, cider and donuts will be served in the Visitor Center.

“It’s all about encouraging people to engage with local history in an imaginative way,” said Leary, adding, “It’s a unique opportunity to experience the park after dark, a spooky atmosphere, and an enjoyable evening with snacks and scares.” g The event is held rain or shine. In the case of inclement weather, the event will move to the Visitor Center for a lantern-lit storytelling evening accompanied by seasonal refreshments.

For more information, visitputnampark.org. On-site parking is limited.

Redding attorney plays key role in opioid case / continued from page 1 Sacklers would go into that fund.

However, in August 2023, the federal agency responsible for overseeing bankruptcy cases got the Supreme Court to stay that ruling and hear the case. The feds objected to the third-party release provision in the plan shielding the Sacklers from liability. As a result, the case will now be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, where it is on the docket for December.

“Until then, Purdue’s plan with the settlement is stayed,” said Goldman., “After a number of mediation sessions, we were able to settle the case, resulting in billions of dollars in funding that would go to victims and all 50 states as well as a portion that would go just to the opposition states. But the outcome will hinge on the Supreme Court’s ruling.”

Big bucks and high stakes The amount of funding on the line has led in part to the highprofile nature of this case, but the human toll of the opioid epidemic has been even more staggering, accounting for more than 500,000 deaths over the past two decades.

Because of that, state attorneys general have become aggressive in seeking financial restitution from drug makers and distributors for the cost of coping with the opioid crisis.

For Goldman, this issue is deeply personal: his oldest son, Alex, died in 2014 from an overdose of Oxycontin. Alex grew up in Redding and graduated from Joel Barlow High School. Just before his death, he had graduated from the University of Colorado.

The Purdue settlement is just one in a series of settlements that would provide financial relief for the opioid crisis. Those cases have involved not just other drugmakers but also large distribution companies such as Cardinal and AmerisourceBergen, and even drugstore chains such as Walgreens and CVS. “If the Supreme Court rules

that third-party releases are authorized, everything is good and those amounts will not change,” Goldman continued. “However, if the Supreme Court decides that the Sacklers are not entitled to the releases, we will have to find a workaround to preserve the bankruptcy plan’s funding.”

In everyday parlance, the term “opioid” has come to mean what many of us used to refer to as narcotics. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) defines opioids to include the illegal drug heroin, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and pain relievers available legally by prescription, such as oxycodone (known in its trademarked timed-release form as OxyContin®), hydrocodone (Vicodin®), codeine, morphine, and numerous other medications.

Purdue Pharma filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy largely because of the mountain of lawsuits it faced over its role in the opioid epidemic. Purdue is on record admitting to the government in 2021 that it had intentionally marketed opioids to at least 100 providers that the company knew were engaged in drug diversion.

Diversion is defined by the Drug Enforcement Administration as “the unlawful channeling of regulated pharmaceuticals from legal sources to the illicit enterprises.”

Supporters and detractors For its part, the Federal government argues that the Sacklers’ immunity deal violates the intent of bankruptcy law. The Feds argue that such immunity provisions were intended to protect financially distressed people – not the wealthy. Meanwhile, a large group of opioid litigants has voiced its support for the Purdue bankruptcy settlement, despite its protections for the Sackler family.

Even in the stressful world of litigation, this case has been especially so given the high stakes

involved and the high profile it has had in the public eye. “I definitely added some gray hairs,” Goldman said. “It was the first case I ever worked on when I had to take a printer with me on vacation.”

This was during August of 2021, prior to the Federal judge’s ruling on Purdue’s bankruptcy settlement which had been opposed by Connecticut and the other opposition states. These were the days leading up to hearings in Federal court on the case, and Goldman had to be prepared. The timing coincided with a longplanned family vacation in Cape Cod, requiring Goldman to stay connected with developments.

“Our state’s Attorney General [William Tong] has really been a stalwart figure in pursuing this case – as well as other opioid settlements – in the interest of Connecticut’s people,” Goldman said. “The funds, of course, are only going to be realized if the Supreme Court approves the use of third-party releases in bankruptcy plans, unless we come up with an alternative solution.”

As a result of the opioid lawsuits settled thus far, Connecticut is expected to receive a total of $600 million in funds over the next 18 years. The state’s 169 municipalities will receive 15 percent of the total, with bigger cities such as Waterbury and Bridgeport receiving the most.

The balance will fund a variety of statewide initiatives including additional beds in treatment programs, educational efforts, overdose-response programs, and other measures. It will fill a pressing need. In 2021 CDC study, Connecticut posted 40 opioid deaths per 100,000 residents – fourth among all U.S. states.

Connecticut trails just Ohio, Maine, and Kentucky on this sobering statistic. g

Keeping seniors fit and healthy through exercise

By Pamela Brown

Active Aging Week has come and gone, but the mission of the International Council on Active Aging is important every day at Meadow Ridge – celebrating the positivity of aging and promoting the benefits of a healthy lifestyle by living actively. “We target all aspects of health and fitness by focusing on four core principles: moving the body (cardiovascular); strengthening the body (resistance); nourishing the body (healthy diet); and resting the body (relaxation). Exercise should be fun, enjoyable, and interactive,” said Jaime Silverman, Program Manager for Meadow Ridge’s onsite Fitness Center.

“Many, if not most, residents weren’t being challenged enough or experiencing any of the gains they should have been for all the time they had invested in themselves.

I would sneak in standing, jumping, and balancing moves, heavier weights, and multi-joint exercises, then more complicated compounded movements,” explained Silverman. “The amount of improvement I saw in a short amount of time was impressive.”

Since joining Meadow Ridge in 2022, Silverman has expanded the fitness program to include customized programming and a diverse range of stimulating activities, including Tai Chi, yoga, Pilates, Zumba, balance improvement, functional exercises, and stretching. “I can make sitting workouts just as challenging as standing ones. While we have dedicated seated classes for those with injuries, scooters, rollators, etc., that doesn’t stop me from encouraging them to stand, use the ballet bar, focus on weight shifts, and balance work,” she said.

Marjorie Wolff, 78, a former fitness expert understands the benefits of exercise. “It’s most important to keep Alzheimer’s at bay,” said Wolff. “Jaime’s classes are terrific. They help me a lot. She and Marianne (Petralia), the onsite Health Fitness Specialist, teach wonderful stand-up strength and fitness classes, and I feel stronger in quite a few areas. I definitely feel a change, and I can do squats better.” At the fitness center, Wolff weight trains, uses the elliptical, and does interval training. She also takes group classes. “The camaraderie is great to make you happier about exercising.”

Silverman and Petralia work one-on-one with the residents and collaborate with onsite physical and occupational therapists. “We create a routine that’s something they’ll enjoy and that keeps them

coming back to perform. We start off small so everything can feel like a success,” said Silverman.

Since the addition of Petralia in March 2023, the team can now offer an even wider spectrum of fitness and nutrition knowledge.

Their combined goal for residents is to provide independence and quality of life both mentally and physically by focusing on all aspects of health and fitness using the four core principles previously mentioned.

Residents also keep active on the walking trails, in the pool, on the putting green, and on the bocce, croquet, tennis, and pickleball courts. Silverman and Petralia also add in active rest and mindfulness classes to stimulate the body and mind. “We highlight various types of breathwork in many of our classes to bring a sense of calm, to manage stressful situations, or to help people fall asleep better.

There’s other fun stuff too like laughing, playing games, talking to friends and family, petting a dog, taking a walk, etc.,” said Silverman.

Meadow Ridge recently celebrated the reopening of its renovated state-of-the-art Fitness Center with Silverman contributing to its design and programming. “It was a whole new learning curve for existing members, which is great to help keep programs fresh and challenge their minds and bodies by learning and adapting to new things,” she said. “We’re always encouraging connecting the mind to the body during exercise because exercise is mostly mental.

By understanding the movement that’s being performed, how the body and muscles should feel during the exercise, and why the exercises are important helps people better understand the reasoning of remaining active, strong, and independent.”

Silverman, who has a BS in Exercise Science from SUNY Buffalo, spent most of her career in corporate fitness, but since the Covid19 pandemic, she has pursued a new avenue using her fitness knowledge and experience with the elderly. “It’s so important to get and remain physically active for all of one’s life,” said Silverman. “We celebrate everyone’s wins no matter how big or small and support every member’s goals and interests by making fitness fun and educational at the same time.”

As Wolff said, “You feel so good after a hard workout. You have to get yourself out there.” g

October 19, 2023 l Redding Sentinel l 7

Redding’s Big Outdoors: The Mahony Gifts and Ground Pine Sanctuary / continued from page 1

Movie Series Netflix ‘The Devil on Trial’ recounts 1981 Brookfield murder case

By Donna Christopher

A 1981 murder case in Brookfield with a bizarre defense strategy is retold in first-person accounts in the new Netflix documentary The Devil on Trial directed by Chris Holt.

The story, which is told through interviews of the people involved and through recordings of an alleged demonic possession, recounts the case of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, then 19, who alleged that he was possessed by a demon when he stabbed Alan Bono, his 40-year-old landlord, to death.

The victim was the manager of a kennel and was stabbed to death on February 16, 1981, after he and Johnson, 19, allegedly argued. A five-inch knife was found at the scene, and Johnson was charged with first-degree murder, as reported by The New York Times.

It was the first time “demonic possession” was used a defense in an American court. Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, of Monroe, spent time with Johnson and his family, according to The New York Times and other accounts.

They attended the trial in Danbury Superior Court where the judge ultimately did not allow the defense. Johnson was convicted of first-degree manslaughter, sentenced, and served five years of a 10-20 year sentence.

The Devil on Trial recounts the events leading up to Bono’s murder, the trial, and the aftermath, from interviews of those close to the case, including Johnson.

The case drew national attention.

Another movie, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It in 2021 is based on the case. Devil in Connecticut by Gerald Brittle is a book about the trial.

Narration in the Netflix film’s trailer says, “The tale really begins at the end of this driveway – where the Brookfield couple whose 11-year-old son began acting strangely.” David Glatzel is the boy referenced. His sister, Debbie Glatzel, was Johnson’s girlfriend, and the couple later married when he was in prison. She has since died. Johnson’s reported defense was that he became possessed after the demon left the boy.

The documentary’s director Chris Holt said he interviewed the people involved in the case over a two-day period in Connecticut.

Johnson and David Glatzel were among them, as well as journalist Mike Allen of the Amazing Tales from Off and On Connecticut‘s Beaten Path podcast who reported on the case and trial as the News Director for I-95 FM Radio in 1981.

When first approached to direct the film by Dorothy Street Productions, Holt said he initially wasn’t interested.

“I am an atheist and a skeptic, but what really interested me is the story that plays out in the film.

It’s not a ghost hunter type of film.

It’s fascinating. The Warrens are so very fascinating. Arne, David’s brother-in-law was good to talk to.

I questioned him about everything.

Everybody was tested, and I really examined their stories. He’s a very gentle man and was interesting to talk to but still did not make me believe in devils, demons, and possessions. But I think that’s his story, and he’s sticking to it.”

For the documentary, Holt contacted a couple of the priests involved in the case, noting one was at the Vatican. They made contact but none of the priests were allowed to talk about the case, he said. He recounted Mike Allen’s telling of the court case in the movie, saying, “They were all whisked away and were not allowed to speak to the press. They didn’t want to speak to us.”

Allen, speaking to the Sentinel before the film’s release said, “I’ll be interested to see how anything that anybody said coincides or aligns with anything I heard at the time. Is it different or is it the same now?”

Recalling the murder, Allen said, “We were actually holding a news department meeting the night of February 16, 1981. We heard a police siren go by, and we had our police scanners go off. We thought that would interfere with our meeting. Brookfield was kind of a sleepy town back then. It’s not like it is today at all. So, we just figured it was a car accident or something – we picked up on it later. Little did we know a mile down the street the first murder in Brookfield history occurred. A stabbing death,” he said.

In reporting on the story, Allen met with the Warrens in their home, Debbie Glatzel on numerous occasions, and spoke to waitresses in a restaurant where Johnson and Bono, among others, had lunch.

Allen recounted that on one of the days in Danbury Superior Court, “The judge did not allow the defense of ‘the devil made me do it’. The defense attorney Martin Minnella introduced it. I happened to be sitting in the row behind three priests and their two lawyers.

They were ready to testify if it came down to it, and Minnella got up to make his case to the judge (Robert J. Callahan). The judge said on a technicality he missed a deadline for submitting that but would allow him to enter a plea of insanity. He said, ‘No way, your honor. My client was not insane.

He was demonically possessed.’

Callahan did not allow it.”

“When it became clear that the priests were not going to be allowed to testify under this judge, they stood up almost in unison, all five of them, turned and went out the door, never to be seen or heard from again,” Allen continued.

Allen said he spoke to a priest and an exorcist from the diocese in his reporting.

The sensational case and trial “was very unusual, to put it mildly,” he said.

Holt said Allen is “a very fascinating man. He said in the documentary that demonic possession is incredibly difficult for a journalist. You can’t prove it and you can’t disprove it.” g

Photo by David Heald

Photo by Schuyler Merritt

A bench dedicated to Buzz Merritt along “Buzz’s Trail” in the Mahony Gifts.

The group of intrepid hikers who braved the rain to honor Buzz Merritt on Saturday, October 14.

The pinks and yellow-browns of autumn leaves, the pinks and yellow-greens of spring buds, both scenes wet and silvery-pale in the distance – perfect symmetry.

Here by the water, the path is green with lush sedges and dark Christmas ferns. We stop to look at two cedar benches hauled down the trail last week via makeshift palanquin, each placed in a spot where Buzz liked to stop and look out toward the Aspetuck.

Then the trail pulls away from the river and climbs uphill. There’s a greater variety of trees here, more patches of ash seedlings, but I get talking with fellow hikers and miss the details of the wood. We’re talking about Yellowstone, about the terrific scenery gouged out by glaciers, about moose and bison in Wyoming, cattle sleeping on the warm highways of Nevada… And soon we’re at a junction with the Sport Hill Accessway.

Most people keep right on Buzz’s Trail (maybe something to do with the long pour of water on our heads), while five of us and one big dog follow Gordon onto the Accessway. Over a few hills, under yellow maples and hickories, our talk turns to trail tending, the effort required to cut invasive barberry and pull up the roots. We laugh as we hop and stretch over a couple wet patches in the trail, then walk a few yards north on Sport Hill Road, to the parking lot of Ground Pine Sanctuary.

Here, we head clockwise on the Sanford Loop, through woods that have a more upland feel. Old grapevines hang down from the trees, wound round with fading Virginia creeper. The dog’s collar or leash jingles behind me.

The forest is young right here, its short maple trees letting in enough light for large clumps of goldenrod along the trail. I notice dogwood saplings, huckleberry shrubs, even a few summersweet bushes among the lady ferns and cinnamon ferns.

Crossing a little stream, rocks roll and knock beneath our feet.

The forest is quiet, birds all rained out. A tall winterberry bush overhead is bright with red fruits.

Many of the young hornbeams and black birches here still have green leaves.

Gordon laughs and says the painted white blazes on this trail are Stuart’s (lead trail tender), which you can tell because the edges are neater than other painter’s blazes. We pass a big boulder as flat as a table and a big pond green with scum. The forest changes, dark hemlocks looming high overhead, blueberry bushes standing tall around us.

We pass Grouse Run, a trail that cuts across the Preserve, and continue through another oak and maple forest carpeted with sedges.

A hiker in a fire company jacket talks about people getting lost in Huntington, twisting ankles near Saugatuck Falls. A buddy of his is climbing Katahdin today, highest point in Maine – at least, I think he says Katahdin. Gordon knows the area, wants to climb it too. In my head, I laugh about my own plans for the evening: I’ll be at the AMC in Times Square, seeing Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.

We walk through a stonewall and enter a dark grove of hemlocks. The ground is strewn with rocks and crossed by more stonewalls. As we pick our way carefully, a hiker behind me says, “Your

coat looks like it’s working!” It’s true: as rare as some celestial coincidence of comets, planets, and stars, I am wearing a true raincoat when it’s actually raining, and the air is cool enough that I’m not brining myself in sweat.

The trail curves downhill along a marsh bushy with saplings. The air smells like decomposing wood.

Again, I’m awed by the number of ash seedlings, pricked with that strange feeling of affection for a probably doomed plant. We don’t get to see them anymore – such symmetrical twigs and leaves!

The broad leaves of spreading sedge color the path blue-green, and then we’re climbing a very rocky slope darkened by a steady trickle of water down its center.

We curve around a backyard, up through a field sprouting first-year rosettes of garlic mustard, and I admit to the guys behind me that I’m starting to get a little itchy and hot after the ascent.

Sanford Loop delivers us to Sport Hill Road, south of the Accessway, so we again walk north several yards. The Accessway brings us back into the Mahony Gifts, and the rain picks up on Buzz’s Trail. We’re a little quieter in the last stretch; way up in the sky, a line of silent geese angles southwest. As suddenly as ever, the trail ends, dropping us behind our parked cars on Ledgeway Road. We shake hands, say nice to meet you, hope to see you around, thank you, goodbye. g Cole Tucker-Walton is a member of the Redding L and Trust Board of Trustees

Flu season begins / Vaccination clinic to be held November 7

By Jessie Wright

The start of flu season is already here. To ensure protection through the fall and winter months, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend all adults get the annual flu shot in September or October.

The Redding Health Department will be holding its second flu vaccination clinic of the season on Tuesday, November 7 from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. at the Redding Community Center at 37 Lone-

town Road. The Health Department has coordinated with Griffin Health to offer the clinic, which will be providing the regular flu shot. (For people 65 and older, the CDC recommends a high-dose flu vaccine, which is available at several local pharmacies).

Those attending the clinic must bring a photo I.D. and an insurance card – Griffin Health will accept all insurance and bill the insurance company – there is no copay.

For those wishing to receive the vaccine before the clinic, use the search tool at vaccines.gov to check online for nearby locations offering the shot based on your zip code. g For more information, visit townofreddingct.org/wp-content/ uploads/2023/09/Redding-FluShots-9.2023.pdf

8 l Redding Sentinel l October 19, 2023

Business Spotlight Bringing fresh shellfish from Maine to Fairfield County l

By Justin Reynolds

For the last 100 years, Community Shellfish has operated as a lobster co-op in Bremen, Maine, serving 40 lobster boats that collectively haul in about 500,000 pounds of lobster each year.

Roughly a decade ago, the co-op was privatized by Boe Marsh; today, the 13 acres of working waterfront includes a four-acre oyster farm and a processing building where employees shuck clams and lobster meat for commercial distribution.

In addition, the company also sells steamer clams, mussels, hard clams, and oysters from neighboring farms.

In 2020, Marsh reconnected with an old high school buddy, Bob Altman; the two went to school together in Greenwich before starting their careers on Wall Street and in film production. During the pandemic, the old friends saw an opportunity to bring fresh Maine seafood down to Fairfield County fishmongers, so they started a new business called Community Shellfish Connecticut, which is headquartered in Bethel.

“The waters of Maine are the most pristine in the country, and each bay or harvest area has its own merroir or flavor profile,” Marsh said. “We preserve that fresh sea flavor by getting our seafood to Connecticut on the same day that it’s harvested.”

Once a week, Marsh drives a refrigerated van down from his dock in Maine to Connecticut; the trip takes six hours.

When the duo was just starting out, “we’d lug 90-pound crates of live lobsters into about a dozen different fish markets from Greenwich to New Haven,” said Altman, who lives in Danbury. “I went out and made sales calls. As everyone was homebound during the pandemic, the demand for high-quality seafood shot up, and the little company escalated in sales.”

Working in conjunction with Coastal Enterprises — a non-profit community development financial

Photos courtesy of Community Shellfish CT

institution with a mission to build positive, sustainable businesses that impact Maine in a meaningful way — Community Shellfish Connecticut has been able to create a stronger pipeline that connects the coastal fishing communities of Maine with the shoppers and home cooks of Fairfield County.

“Bethel was the perfect location since it’s close to (Interstate) 84 and provides a convenient jumping-off point for lower Fairfield County,” Altman said about the company’s decision to open a warehouse in Bethel. “The warehouse has a large 8,000-gallon saltwater holding tank for lobsters and refrigerated rooms for storing scallops, oysters, clams, mussels, and fish.”

In addition to the warehouse, Community Shellfish Connecticut also has a retail shop located at 23 Francis Clarke Circle in Bethel, which is open to the public on Fridays (from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.) and Saturdays (from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.).

“We also have a commercial kitchen where we make soups, seafood dishes, and lobster bakes,” Altman said, adding that the duo has spread out to several farmers’ markets in the area, too. “You can see the weekly menu on our website, communityshellfishct. com.”

At the time of writing, some of the items for sale on the website

include lobster pot pie, lobster rolls, New England clam chowder, lobster bisque, salmon cakes, and Jonah crab and artichoke gratin.

With the support of the United States Department of Agriculture, the company also built a website called Merroir.me, which features 100 video recipes and 50 profiles of the fishermen and harvesters in Maine.

Many of the products Community Shellfish Connecticut sells are labeled with the captain’s name and the boat’s name, as well as the location of where an item was harvested.

“Since the fishermen are closest to their own products, the videos give the home cook a wonderful way to meet their sea farmer and learn about its origins firsthand,” Altman explained.

Hungry yet? Looking ahead, Marsh and Altman are exploring an expansion that would include a restaurant and a lobster shack. g For more information, visit communityshellfishct.com

Talking cents: the impact of higher rates l

By Randy Beeman

Since the trough of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), homeowners and consumers in general have taken advantage of record low borrowing costs to add to their home mortgages, home equity lines of credit, and credit card debt. According to the latest U.S. government statistics (2nd quarter 2023), total household debt has reached $17.06 trillion dollars, and mortgage debt grew to $12.35 trillion in the same quarter. In the last decade, total household debt has grown by nearly $6 trillion (a 53% increase) and mortgage debt by $4 trillion (a 48% increase).

But those increases pale in comparison to the change in credit card and auto loan debt. Since the 2nd quarter of 2013, credit card debt has ballooned 55% and outstanding auto loans have nearly doubled! Some of the increase is likely attributable to the low level of interest rates over most of that time period, and the impact of Covid-19 added fuel to the growing borrowing frenzy as consumers pushed forward spending on items like home renovations, pools, and new cars.

The level and direction of interest rates can be affected by many factors such as changes in economic growth, the amount of debt issuance coming to market, and inflation. But one very important factor determining the level and direction of rates is the actions of the Federal Reserve (FED). The FED impacts the level of interest rates on instruments like mortgages, lines of credit, and credit cards (and therefore the cost of borrowing) by raising (or lowering) their Federal Funds Target Rate.

Since March of 2022, the Federal Reserve has made a concerted effort to intentionally push borrowing costs materially higher in their determination to slow economic growth and bring inflation back to their longterm target of 2% annually. This pattern of rate increases has pushed the cost of borrowing for consumers (as well as businesses) significantly higher than they have become accustomed to over the past decade. For loans with a fixed rate of interest (like some home mortgages) that were undertaken

when rates were low, borrowers are now benefitting from those low payment levels. But there is a drawback to this benefit. It’s impossible for them to refinance those loans at today’s much higher rates without incurring sharply higher payments. (A factor impacting the level of inventory in the housing market – but that’s a topic for another article.)

More problematic for the broad economy and consumers in general are loans taken out with variable rates of interest. As borrowing costs have increased, the rate of interest on those loans has also increased, in some cases dramatically. Many of these loans make rate adjustments quarterly, but some are adjusted monthly or even daily! This can mean the payment amount on the loan may be double or more the level that the borrower experienced at the onset of the loan. Refinancing these loans is a possibility, but rates on new loans are most likely not significantly different than the adjusted rate on the current loan.

The best course of action for indebted consumers now is to try and quickly pay down – or even pay off – any adjustable-rate loans.

In a high-rate environment, it’s best not to have any variable rate debt outstanding if possible. But if you’re not in a financial position to pay off all the variable debt, at least focus on reducing the debt being carried at the highest rate. You should double check the interest rate on any credit cards. You may be routinely carrying balances each month without realizing you are paying double digit rates of interest. g

scheduled to be cut down; and to stop “conducting two programs simultaneously on Cross Highway”, referring to the utility’s routine tree trimming project and the Resiliency Program removals, as they are causing confusion.

“We trust after 18 months of working to preserve healthy trees on Cross Highway, there will not be a rush to plant until the issues are settled to everyone’s satisfaction,” said Rotchstein and Heiss.

The Board of Selectmen discussed the issue at their October 16 meeting as well. First Selectwoman Julia Pemberton had contacted the Town’s lawyer to discuss possible other recourses for compensating for the lost trees. She

confirmed at the October 16 meeting that Eversource had agreed to submit a replanting plan, and there hadn’t been further discussions since the Planning Commission meeting on October 10 about other recourses the Town may have. g

Randy Beeman is a Redding resident and has more than 25 years of experience managing financial assets for individuals, retirement plans, and businesses.

Randy currently serves as the Director of Wealth Management for Glass Jacobson Wealth Advisors. He co-hosted a popular live, call-in radio show (The Wise Investor Show) on WMAL 630 AM and 105.9 FM in Washington, D.C., for 15 years. He is the coauthor of Value Returns: Wise Investing for the Next Decade and Beyond

Eversource to present report and replanting plan after tree removal error / continued from page 1 conversation at our last meeting and have agreed on a plan moving forward. Eversource will provide Planning with a report on the incident, overall progress (what trees have/have not been removed/ pruned), how it will avoid future mishaps, and how it proposes to remediate the affected areas,” Barrett said.

At an October 16 presentation to the Redding Garden Club, Hyatt answered questions about the incident. He told members that he and Eversource arborist Sam Berg had sprayed a large X on each tree approved for removal on the trunk down to the ground, so the X would still be visible on the stump after removal. Berg had

also walked tree-by-tree with the owner of the contracting company to ensure there was no confusion, according to Hyatt.

“There was a communication error between the owner of the contracted tree company and his workers,” said Hyatt. “We don’t know how it could happen, but it happened. We were actually – myself and the arborist – were doing an inspection that day and happened to be walking down the road and talking to the tree crew.

I walked a little further and it… it was like a nightmare.”

“Eversource has agreed to plant 12 new native trees in that place,” continued Hyatt. He mentioned dogwoods and shadbush as pos-

sible species to be included in the new landscape plan. Hyatt also noted on October 16 that the trees that are to be replanted have to be substantial (he mentioned around twelve feet tall and three-and-ahalf calipers in diameter).

Representatives of the Redding Tree Conservancy (RTC) said they see several unsolved issues as Eversource puts together its report and next steps for the Planning Commission. Janice Rotchstein and Laurie Heiss of the RTC outlined in an e-mail to the Sentinel that they want Eversource to commit to only planting native species; to provide a thorough report that indicates if any other trees have been mistakenly removed or are

October 19, 2023 l Redding Sentinel l 9

Book Review

Library Corner

Enough l

By Erin Shea Dummeyer

By Cassidy Hutchinson

359 p.p. / Simon and Schuster / $30 Cassidy Hutchinson spoke truth to power publicly at a time of critical national crisis. Enough is her triumphant personal account of how unforeseen events nearly overwhelmed her iron integrity.

The grave dishonor of men she admired took her to a precipice of self-confrontation, where she faced the loss of her soul. In the end, 97-year-old Alexander Butterfield, her exemplar from the Nixon era and private inspiration during her ordeal, embraced Cassidy when they met. She is in tears. “I bury my face in his chest.

‘It’s okay,’ he comforts me. ‘It’s okay, you’re home now.’” These last poignant lines culminate an extraordinary personal passage from a cauldron of treachery to existential redemption.

Enough was written with Mark Salter, a well-known speech writer, whom she acknowledges as “a beacon of confidence [who ensured] my fingerprints are on every page.” The result of their collaboration is the story of a bright, idealistic young woman from an American workingclass family, just out of college, who becomes assistant to the White House Chief of Staff in a controversial administration.

Hutchinson is a loyal staff assistant whose loyalties and patriotism are abraded by what she sees happening around her. As witness to decision-making in the Oval Office, she finds her instincts at odds with executive behavior she gradually realizes is toxic. The poison reaches crisis on January 6, 2021.

Enough tells a very human story. The dominant theme is not politics, per se; rather, it is a moving tale of a talented newcomer experiencing appalling behavior she had not anticipated.

She is everybody’s daughter on a fast track of precocious opportunity. Her physical presence, strong instincts, and sharp eye for detail make her a standout.

Notwithstanding her talent, she is abused, gradually pushed into

compromising pos-itions by powerful men who don’t share her values. The reader feels her growing misgivings, fear, and isolation.

Abandonment is the undercurrent theme. She loses the attachments she works so poignantly hard to sustain – with her natural father, with her boss at the White House, Mark Meadows (who lobbies for her loyalty and then shuns her at a restaurant) – until she fears she is abandoning herself.

When subpoenaed to reveal her observations to the ensuing bi-partisan January 6 Committee, she comes to suspect that a lawyer helping her, paid for by the former administration, is corrupt. Her story moves into high gear as she fights alone to preserve her integrity. But with no resources to fund the high cost of better representation, she begins to despair. Unexpectedly, Representative Liz Cheney, Cochair of the committee, sympathetic to Hutchinson’s dilemma, finds her pro-bono representation. Soon, Hutchinson’s voice finds its truth to share and speaks it loudly and clearly to a country in sore need of candor.

Hutchison’s story is a cautionary tale of a young woman at a moral crossroads. She is smart and selfcontained. First in her family to attend college, her life is not without sadness and longing. She grows beyond the understanding of her natural father, who cannot overcome his limitations and emotionally forsakes her. But through the horror of alienation and abandonment, she has faced down loneliness, and her future is bright, when it might have been no future at all. Instead, her example shines with difficult choices that define integrity. g

are indebted to the fabulous volunteers that put them together.

Word of mouth - Tell a friend or neighbor how much you enjoy the Mark Twain Library and all we have to offer. Bring them to a program or volunteer to do a Book Fair shift with them.

Write a letter - Write to me and tell me about a fabulous interaction you’ve had with one of our staff members. Or write to the Library Board and tell them how much you appreciate our commitment to intellectual freedom. Or you can write to our First Selectperson and tell her how important the Library is to you and your Redding experience.

Nod to the pod

Endless Thread, “We Want Plates!”

l

This episode uncovers the story behind a viral Reddit post from 2019, which featured a photo of a man in the Pennsylvania woods. He’s standing in front of a giant pile – a small hill, really – of white plates, looking confused and impressed. Soon, too, was the internet. Redditors are famously good at solving this type of mystery, so Johnson and Sivertson are pleased to find that this one hasn’t been cracked yet. The original poster proves unresponsive, but after a call with a friendly Australian who believes he’s found the plates using satellite

Each week, a one-episode recommendation from a podcast you might love.

Endless Thread hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson explore the diverse and myriad online communities that make up the internet, mining for the best and the weirdest stories on offer. From uncovering the origins of our favorite memes, to revealing the long-guarded mystery of what makes glitter, Endless Thread entertains listeners with a collection of tales as unpredictable as the internet itself.

Erin Shea Dummeyer is Director, Mark Twain Library

imagery, our intrepid hosts set out on a road trip from Boston to discover just what this huge hill of crockery is all about.

Anyone who watched the original run of Unsolved Mysteries knows the powerful grip of a case gone cold. I begged my parents to watch each episode, and then struggled to fall asleep for days (or, when it came to one about poisoned cough medicine, years) afterward. I’m still attracted to unsolved puzzles, but these days I lean more toward the plates-inthe-woods variety. My sleep has improved. g

Artist submissions open for Mark Twain Library Art Show Calling all artists!

l

By Lisa Goldstein

places, as well as a Juror’s Award.

This year’s Juror of Selection and Awards is acclaimed landscape painter David Allen Dunlop of Wilton. Artists may submit paintings, works on paper, or sculptures (no digital, computergenerated art, or photography).

The deadline to submit entries is 11:59 p.m. on November 2. There is an entry fee of $25 that increases to $30 after October 25. For more details and instructions regarding submission, interested artists can visit the Artist Entry Portal at mtlartistentryportal.org g

Tom is the author of Human Error and Strangers’ Gate

By Margi Esten

leading up to Christmas in an Irish town in 1985. Referred to as a “tender tale of hope and quiet heroism”, our hero, Bill Furlong, is an ordinary middle-aged man slowly grasping the enormity of the local convent’s heartless treatment of unmarried mothers and their babies (all of which will eventually be exposed as the scandal of the Magdalene laundries). Another reviewer wrote so beautifully that this book is “not so much about the nature of evil as the circumstances that allow it.” This immensely talented author achieves this without ever sounding angry or preachy. It is also a touching Christmas tale reminiscent of O. Henry and Charles Dickens, so expect my revisiting this title in a couple of months!

Claire Keegan grew up on a farm in Ireland and at the age of 17 traveled to the United States to study – she then returned to Ireland in 1992 where her highly acclaimed first volume of short stories, Antarctica, was published in 1999. **Think ahead to 71 days when Christmas will indeed be upon us – this is a terrific stocking stuffer for all your good readers! g

Donate a book - Are you cleaning out a bookshelf, closet, or relative’s house? We take book donations during most of the year, and they can be donated in our convenient sheds around the back of the building. The books are then sold at our annual Book Fair, which raises funds for the Library. A true win-win for all involved.

Borrow a book - We use statistics to prove our worth to donors.

Every time you visit the Library, check out an item, or attend a program, you demonstrate our importance within the community. g

By Amy Maloof

Review by Tom Casey

Good books for good readers l

I love writing about perfect little gems when it comes to books.

And, if they are by Irish authors all the better! Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan is one of these flawless little novels.

Published in 2021 in the historical fiction genre, Small Things Like These won numerous awards including the Orwell Prize for Fiction and was shortlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize and the Booker Prize. At 116 pages, it is the shortest novel ever to be in contention for the Booker Prize.

It takes place during the weeks

As I write this column, this week is National Friends of Libraries Week. There are many ways to be a friend to the Mark Twain Library. Of course, we hope you support us financially, since we have to privately fundraise 40% of our operating budget each year. But there are other ways to be a good friend that won’t cost you a dime!

Volunteer - We rely on our annual fundraisers to keep the Library humming along. The Art Show, Frog Frolic, and Book Fair are produced by hundreds of volunteers who donate thousands of hours of their time to put on these special events. They are true community-wide endeavors, and we

Photo by Lisa Goldstein

The Mark Twain Library Art Show features works by local and regional artists each year.

The Mark Twain Library is now accepting submissions for its 51st Annual Mark Twain Library Art Show. The juried art show is a popular exhibition featuring works by local and regional artists and will be on view at the Mark Twain Library from December 2-10. The Art Show kicks off with `

a ticketed preview reception on Friday, December 1, after which the exhibition is open to the public during regular Library hours and may also be viewed in the virtual gallery on the Library’s website. A portion of all art sales will benefit the Mark Twain Library. Awards include first, second, and third

Scan the QR code here to access the Artist Entry Portal.

Please support our advertisers Bethel Power Equipment Blueberry Hill Galleries Chipman Mazzucco Emerson LLC Democratic Town Committee New Pond Farm Education Center Redding Garden Club Redding Ridge Engine Repair Roni Agress Santa Energy

10 l Redding Sentinel l October 19, 2023

The Natural World The spotted lanternfly has been spotted in Redding l

Photo by Justin Reynolds

A spotted lanternfly was seen in Redding on October 4.

In 2014, the spotted lanternfly (SLF) — an invasive insect hailing from China, India, and Vietnam — was first seen in North America after someone discovered the sap-feeding planthopper in Berks County, Pennsylvania, northwest of Philadelphia.

By October 2018, the SLF had made its way to Connecticut, with the state’s first confirmed sighting occurring in Farmington. Now, the insect has spread to at least 16 states.

Photo courtesy of Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

The tree of heaven, also an invasive species, is a favorite food source of the spotted lanternfly.

On Wednesday, October 4, the insect was spotted on this reporter’s back deck — perhaps marking the first official sighting of the insect in Redding.

According to Geordie Elkins, Executive Director of environmental conservation nonprofit Highstead, neither he nor Redding’s renowned lepidopterist Victor DeMasi have heard of any official reports of the spotted lanternfly before this in town.

“I am not aware of any

confirmed reports from Redding,” Elkins said. “I have heard rumors but not seen any confirmation.

It is not surprising if you have it, because it is on our doorstep.”

The state’s answer, unfortunately, was also a bit vague.

“Fairfield County, including Redding, is generally infested with SLF,” wrote Dr. Victoria Lynn Smith, state entomologist, in an e-mail to Elkins.

Once Elkins saw pictures of the insect, he said it was ”unmistakable.”

Though it’s not yet known how dangerous the insect may be, the SLF could pose a threat to the state’s agricultural crops — apples, grapes, and hops — as well as ornamental trees, according to the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station.

“There is still a gap in the research, so we are still learning about the true threat,” Elkins said.

“The most recent research from Penn State indicates that the threat to the most mature hardwood forest trees is not as severe as first feared.”

Willows, birches, red maples, and sumac are at the highest risk, Elkins explained.

“High populations of SLF can kill young trees and pose a greater threat to grape vines and apple trees,” he continued. “One silver lining is SLF’s favorite host plant

is tree of heaven, which is also an invasive species. There is some hope that they may help keep it in check.”

If you come across SLF or a group of them, Elkins says the most important thing to do is try to control infestations before they become too serious.

“Learn what to look for — not just the adult moths, but also the nymphs and egg masses,” he said.

“Egg masses can be scraped off and soaked in rubbing alcohol.

You can Google how to make an SLF trap to capture the nymphs (immature insects), and adults can be stepped on or swatted.”

Another way to combat the spread of SLF is by removing tree of heaven, which may reduce populations by taking away an attractive food source, Elkins said.

While spraying might be able to combat SLF, Elkins cautions against it.

“Particularly dense infestations could be sprayed, but even organic sprays are non-selective in what they kill and will also kill beneficial insects and pollinators, so spraying is not a great option,” Elkins explained.

According to Elkins, SLF spread the same way as the spongy moth, the lepidoptera formerly known as the gypsy moth: Egg casings can be found on just about any outdoor surface, so folks often

Autumn fun at New Pond Farm’s Harvest Festival

Photos by Jessie Wright

As the weather dried out on Sunday, October 15, hundreds of families flocked to New Pond Farm Education Center for the Harvest Festival Science and Nature Day. Sheep shearing, cow milking, raptor demonstrations, fall crafts, pumpkin decorating, antique tractors and engines, and delicious fall food were all set against the backdrop of rolling pastures and changing leaves.

By Justin Reynolds end up transporting them without realizing it.

That being the case, Elkins urges Redding folk to thoroughly inspect any outdoor item before moving it.

Since July 2021, there’s been “a quarantine in Connecticut to help prevent the spread of SLF,” Elkins said. “There are restrictions on moving plants, plant products, landscape and construction materials, outdoor household items, and construction, farm, and landscape machinery.”

The way Elkins sees it, it’s too early to know whether the SLF will be a serious long-term threat to Connecticut’s forests and woodlands.

“Some invasive pests can be catastrophic, like chestnut blight, and others can exist at lower levels and only become problematic in certain locations or seasons,” Elkins said. Either way, because they can form dense clusters and swarms, “the pest is undoubtedly a nuisance.”

While spotted lanternflies can’t survive in cold temperatures, their eggs can. So, even if there’s a temporary reprieve from the insect this winter, they will resume flying in the spring.

Should you see an SLF during your travels, the state encourages you to squash it and report the sighting at tinyurl.com/tewf4tvc g

October 19, 2023 l Redding Sentinel l 11

Calendar of Events

$ = fee applies R = registration required

This Week’s Featured Events Barn Sale 2 @ the Studio Saturday, October 21 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Come browse our Studio which is chock full of furniture, antiques and collectibles.

Parking and admission are free.

First Church of Christ, Congregational 25 Cross Highway, Redding firstchurchredding.org

Ghost Walk at Putnam Memorial State Park

Saturday, October 21 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

An evening of stories, scares, and snacks.

Putnam Memorial State Park 73 Putnam Park Road putnampark.org

Redding Grange 2nd Annual Agricultural Fair

Sunday, October 22 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Enter into competition categories and enjoy the best of small town agriculture.

Redding Grange 399 Newtown Turnpike reddinggrange.org

Meetings

Want to feature an upcoming event?

E-mail us at advertise@reddingsentinel.org for more information.

Thursday, October 19 Democratic Town Committee 7:30 p.m.

Town Hall / Hearing Room 100 Hill Road townofreddingct.org

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Monday, October 23 OPEB Trust Board 6:00 p.m.

Zoomtownofreddingct.org

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Arts Friday, October 20 – Sunday October 22 The Rocky Horror Picture Show 7:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. on Friday 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Saturday 7:00 p.m. on Sunday Prop bags available at the theater.

Edmond Town Hall 45 Main Street Newtown Edmondtownhall.org R

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Friday, October 20 – Saturday, November 4 Dracula by Town Players of Newtown 8:00 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 2 2:00 p.m. on Sunday October 22 and October 29 Town Players Little Theater 18 Orchard Hill Road Newtown newtownplayers.org $

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Tuesday, October 24 Norwalk Gamer Symphony Orchestra Free Play Night 6:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Frank C. Godfrey American Legion Post 12 60 Cross Street Norwalk norwalkgso.org g

Children I Teens Sunday, October 29 Activism in Poetry Workshop Grades 5-8 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Mark Twain Library 439 Redding Road marktwainlibrary.org R g

Fundraisers Saturday, October 21 Boys & Girls Club Bash 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Annual fundraiser for the Boys & Girls Club of Easton-Redding The Spinning Wheel 109 Black Rock Turnpike BGCBash.eventbrite.com $, R

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Saturday, October 21 Alpha Community Services YMCA Fundraiser with Redding Park and Recreation 7:00 p.m.

Attend an Islanders vs. Comets hockey game to support Alpha Community Services YMCA Pre-game fan funfest begins at 4:30 p.m.

Total Mortgage Arena 2 Allen Street Bridgeport Call Park and Rec (203) 938 –2551 $ g

Holiday Sunday, October 22 Halloween Petting Zoo and Dress Up Photo Shoot 2:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Petting zoo and photos sitting on George the Pony. Proceeds to benefit Animal Shelter and ECC Samuel Staples Elementary School 515 Morehouse Road, Easton

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Tuesday, October 24 Pumpkin Carving, Grades 3-5 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

New Pond Farm Education Center 101 Marchant Road newpondfarm.org $, R

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Thursday, October 26 Family Scarecrow Decorating 5:00 p.m.

Bring clothes, hat, gloves, etc.

Hosted by Redding Park and Recreation Redding Community Center 37 Lonetown Road townofreddingct.org/parks-andrecreation R

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Saturday, October 28 Bethel CT Pride’s Halloween Party 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Middle School ages 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. High School ages First Congregational Church of Bethel 46 Main Street Bethel RSVP suggested bethelctpride.com

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Saturday, October 28 Redding Neighbors & Newcomers Trunk or Treat 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Admission is a bag of candy.

Redding Community Center parking lot 37 Lonetown Road reddingneighborsandnewcomers. org R

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Monday, October 30 Tiny Tots Halloween Parade 10:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.

Ages birth – 5 Mark Twain Library 439 Redding Road marktwainlibrary.org R g

Health I Wellness Tuesday, October 24 Harvesting Strength: A New Pond Farm Yoga Series 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Bring a mat or blanket, water, and dress appropriately for the weather. No experience needed.

New Pond Farm Education Center 101 Marchant Road newpondfarm.org $, R

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Fridays, October 20 – November 10 Finding Peace in the Paddock with Melissa Jarzynski and The Riding in Redding Herd 9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Sooth body and mind with a series that combines horsemanship, grounding, stretching, somatic practices, and energy assessment.

Riding in Redding 301 Redding Road melissajeanpt.com/ peaceinthepaddock $, R g

Nature Saturday, October 21 Ghost Walk at Putnam Memorial State Park 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

An evening of stories, scares, and snacks Putnam Memorial State Park 73 Putnam Park Road putnampark.org

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Sunday, October 22 National Reptile Day – Animal Meet and Greet 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. or 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

New Pond Farm Education Center 101 Marchant Road newpondfarm.org $, R (free for members)

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Sunday, October 22 Redding Grange 2nd Annual Agricultural Fair 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Enter into 13 competition categories and enjoy an array of agricultural offerings.

Pre-registration for non-perishable competition items on October 20 from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. and October 21 from 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Redding Grange #15 399 Newtown Turnpike reddinggrange.org

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Friday, October 27 Evening Woodland Walk 4:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Recommended for children 10 and under with accompanying adult(s). Rain date October 28.

Walks leave every 30 minutes and are approximately an hour long.

New Pond Farm Education Center 101 Marchant Road newpondfarm.org $, R g

Religious Services Bethlehem Lutheran Church Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (in person) or 10:15 a.m. (Zoom) 44 Portland Avenue bethlehemlutheranct.org

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Calvary Independent Baptist Church Adult and Child Sunday School at 10:00 a.m. / Sundays at 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

Wednesday prayer meeting at 7:00 p.m.

Nursery provided for all services 711 Redding Road cibcredding.org

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Christ Church, Episcopal Sundays at 9:00 a.m.

184 Cross Highway christchurchredding.org

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First Church of Christ, Congregational Sundays at 10:00 a.m.

25 Cross Highway firstchurchredding.org

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Long Ridge United Methodist Sundays at 11:30 a.m.

201 Long Ridge Road Danbury longridgeumc.com

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Sacred Heart / St. Patrick Parish

Sacred Heart Church: Saturday Vigil Mass: 4:00 p.m.

Saturday Eucharistic Adoration: 6:00 p.m.

Monday, October 23 Sunday Mass: 9:00 a.m. & 10:30 a.m.

12:00 noon LATIN Weekday Mass: Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:30 a.m.

Wednesday 6:00 p.m. LATIN 30 Church Street St. Patrick Church: Saturday Vigil Mass: 5:30 p.m.

Sunday Mass: 8:30 a.m. & 10:30 a.m., 5:00 p.m.

Weekday Mass: Monday – Friday at 8:30 a.m.

Mondays and Thursdays Eucharistic Adoration: 7:00 p.m.

169 Black Rock Turnpike sacredheart-stpat.org

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Temple B’nai Chaim Fridays at 7:30 p.m.

82 Portland Avenue Georgetown templebnaichaim.org g

Special Programs Thursday, October 19 Witches of CT 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Mark Twain Library 439 Redding Road marktwainlibrary.org R

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Saturday, October 21 Redding Shred Day 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Transfer Station and Recycling Center 84 Hopewell Woods Road townofreddingct.org

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Sunday, October 22 The Delights of Harmony: The History and Sound of Shape-note Music 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Mark Twain Library 439 Redding Road marktwainlibrary.org R

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Tuesday, October 24 Lunch & Learn Film: Keys Bags Names Words 12:45 p.m. Lunch 1:00 p.m. Film screening Enjoy complimentary lunch and new documentary about dementia.

Redding Community Center 37 Lonetown Road Contact Michelle Stillman: (203) 938-9725 or mstillman@ townofreddingct.org R

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Tuesday October 24 Alfred Hitchcock - Master of Suspense 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Zoom Mark Twain Library marktwainlibrary.org R

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Thursday, October 26 Fine Wine or Sour Grapes?

Let’s Talk About Aging 1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Mark Twain Library 439 Redding Road marktwainlibrary.org R

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Thursday, October 26 Oktoberfest Beer Talk and Tasting with Em Sauter 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Mark Twain Library 439 Redding Road marktwainlibrary.org R g

Board of Finance 7:30 p.m.

Zoom townofreddingct.org

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Tuesday, October 24 ER9 Joint Boards of Education 7:00 p.m.

JBHS Library Learning Commons 100 Black Rock Turnpike er9.org

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Tuesday, October 24 Planning Commission 7:30 p.m.

Zoom townofreddingct.org

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Wednesday, October 25 Zoning Commission 7:30 p.m.

Town Hall / Hearing Room 100 Hill Road townofreddingct.org

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Wednesday, November 1 Brown Bag Lunch with First Selectwoman 12:00 p.m.

Redding Community Center 37 Lonetown Road townofreddingct.org

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Monday, November 6 Park and Recreation Commission 7:00 p.m.

Redding Community Center 37 Lonetown Road townofreddingct.org

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Monday, November 6 Republican Town Committee 7:30 p.m.

Town Hall / Hearing Room 100 Hill Road townofreddingct.org

––– Tuesday, November 7 Economic Development Committee 8:30 a.m.

Town Hall / Conference Room 100 Hill Road townofreddingct.org

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Tuesday, November 7 Redding Board of Education 7:00 p.m.

John Read Middle School 486 Redding Road er9.org

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Tuesday, November 7 Conservation Commissionn 7:30 p.m.

Old Town House 23 Cross Highway townofreddingct.org

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Wednesday, November 8 Commission on Aging 9:00 a.m.

Redding Community Center 37 Lonetown Road townofreddingct.org g

12 l Redding Sentinel l October 19, 2023