Memorial Day (One Week From Today) Street Closings For Parade

From the Middletown Police Department 

On Monday May 30, 2011 between the hours of 10:00am – 12:30pm, the following roads will be closed for the Memorial Day Parade.

• Main Street will be closed between Spring Street and Union Street.
• Pleasant Street will be closed between Main Street and South Main Street.
• Washington Street (Route 66) will be closed between High Street and Dekoven Drive.
• Spring Street will be closed from the Arrigoni Bridge to Pearl Street.

** Access to Route 9 and the Arrigoni Bride will remain open.

Java Goddesses Brew Up Changes on Court Street

Amid friends and supporters and long-time customers, Klekolo World Coffee owner Hollie Rose announced that she has sold Klekolo to long-time employee and friend Yvette Elliott. Hollie made the announcement with what seemed like an intentional and playful timing which created some momentary mystery. "I sold Klekolo!" Hollie exclaimed. Pause... Pause... Pause... for what seemed like an eternity but was probably just a few seconds, while a collective intake of breath seemed palpable in the small crowd. "To Yvette ! " came the finish, to a chorus of cheers and enthusiastic applause. The change in ownership takes effect in a week. The coffee shop, which is known for being open 365 days a year, will be closed on Memorial Day and will reopen on Tuesday May 31st under the ownership of Yvette. The occasion was commemorated with a soulful didgeridoo solo, which provided a nice moment of reflection. In the near term there likely won't be any dramatic changes, and the delicious quality coffee will continue to flow in Klekolo as it has for the last 17 years.

Photo at top - former owner Hollie Rose and new owner Yvette Elliott carry out the business communication model for the new millenium. Via their mobile devices, Hollie updates her Facebook status with "I sold Klekolo" while Yvette updates her Facebook status with "I bought Klekolo"

AROUND THE GARDEN

Gardens have two types of invaders beyond the 2- or 4-legged ones. Last week, I wrote about plants, introduced and accidental, which, having few enemies, replace more desirable plants.

This week, the Emerald Ash Borer is on my mind – not because it’s in my garden, but because a trap for it is. You may have seen these Barney-hued devices popping up here and there, hanging twenty or more feet up in an ash tree.

Resembling alien invaders themselves, the traps serve an important purpose. The Emerald Ash Borer, or EAB, has been in the U.S. at least since 2002, when it was discovered in Michigan. Like many dangerous insects, it probably arrived from China in wooden pallets.

So far, the EAB has wreaked havoc in Michigan, and has been found in 15 states, as well as Canada. The most recent find was in upstate New York, twenty-five miles from the Connecticut border.

Ash trees were planted, often as a monoculture, as street trees in the Midwest after the demise of the American elm. Monoculture planting was a major cause of the loss of elm trees to Dutch elm disease. Now a similar fate has befallen the ash, and the insect has spread into the forests. At least seven million ash trees were killed in Michigan.

In our area, ash trees have been in decline for years – in fact, a cluster of ash problems is referred to as Ash Decline. Ashes also suffer from Ash Yellows, a Mycoplasmalike organism, or MLO, which clogs up their phloem.

Adding the EAB to the mix will mean that at least one tree in twenty in our state is under attack. In some neighborhoods, many street trees will die.

A small greenish beetle, the EAB, in its adult stage, merely nibbles on leaves. But after feeding, it must procreate, and it does so by penetrating the bark of the tree, laying its eggs in the cambium, where all water and nutrients travel. After hatching, the larvae graze through the cambium, clogging up the works as they go. Eventually, the larvae bore out through the bark, leaving small, D-shaped holes as they go. The insects are so small, (as are the exit holes), that a tree can be in serious distress before the insect is found.

Chemicals are available as a preventive for this insect, but clearly, not applicable for forest trees. A key step in preventing the spread of the EAB is to avoid moving firewood across state lines. Equally important, but apparently not obvious, is to not ship ash trees across state lines – Maryland became infested because of a dim-witted nurseryman in Kentucky.

Sightings of the EAB must be reported immediately to the CT Agricultural Experiment Station, 203-974-8440. My trap will be inspected later this year by a team of researchers from the UConn Extension. I will report any findings here.

A Special Visitor

This afternoon, I was cleaning out the skimmer filter net in my backyard pond, and I found two baby turtles hanging out inside. I was able to grab one for a photo op, and after a few minutes in my hand, he (or she) got brave enough to walk around. A friend of mine just told me it's an Eastern Woodlands Slider. He's welcome in my pond for now (until he's big enough to start eating my koi) and I'm just delighted I had a chance to see this tiny little visitor!

From 1931: Middletown Votes Today on School Consolidation

The following article is from 80 years ago today, published in the Hartford Courant on May 22, 1931.
Westfield Schools were established independently of the Central School District of Middletown. Residents paid a separate schools tax to support the Westfield School, which was on East Street, where the Westfield Fire Station is currently located. Families wishing to send their children to the Middletown High School would pay for that privilege.
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Supported by all the members of the two school boards except Joseph M. Lucey of the Town School Committee, the proposition to consolidate the two school districts is to be decided at the polls Friday. Eight thousand eight hundred persons are eligible to vote on the question, but it is expected that the vote will be light.

The polls are to be open from 2 until 8 p.m. and the result should be known about 9:30 or 10 p.m. Voting will be by printed ballot, one for those in favor of consolidation, the second for those opposed and the referendum will be in charge of regular corps of election officials.

Most interest in the voting lies in the question of whether the Town School District will be affected by Committeeman Lucey's frank opposition into the project. Mayor Bielefield, Chairman Bertrand E. Spencer and all other members of the committee have come out in favor of the change and every member of the Board of Education, which handles the affairs of the ancient City School District, are also in favor of the change.

Voting Places
The following polling places have been arranged by the two school districts: Westfield in the conference house; Bow Lane, Maromas and Millbrook Road district in Schilke's Store, East Main Street; Durant district in the Durant School; Newfield section in the Newfield School; First Voting District of the City School District, north side of town hall; Second Voting District of City School District, south side of the town hall.

A majority vote in either district in opposition will defeat the project, while a majority vote in both districts for consolidation will make the measure effective at once and will result in the immediate calling of a joint meeting of the two school boards, who will serve until the next city election, when the new board of 13 members is to be elected.

Meet Your Greens - ReStore and RiverQuest

Meet Your Greens visits...

Middlesex Habitat for Humanity's ReStore

Tuesday, May 24

5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Join us to welcome and tour Habitat for Humanity's new ReStore in Cromwell.

ReStore specializes in the selling of new and recycled building materials, furniture, appliances, and other home furnishings at bargain prices! Stocked entirely with materials supplied by businesses, contractors, and members of the community, the ReStore makes these needed items available at prices far below retail. The Restore recycles useable materials that would otherwise go into landfills. It's a great way to "Go Green," receive a tax write-off, and help support our community through the building of Habitat for Humanity homes.

This is a B.Y.O.B. and snacks party. Cups, etc., will be available, but please consider bringing your own non-disposables to use.

Located at The Crossroads at Cromwell Shopping Plaza
34 Shunpike Road
Cromwell, CT 06416

For directions click here

Save-the-Date in June!

Meet Your Greens

CT River cruise on the good ship RiverQuest.

Plan to come and welcome in summer on June 21 while enjoying great views and green company-- thanks to Mark and Mindy Yuknat for hosting and pointing out all the sights along our way. Numbers have to be limited so mark your calendars. Details to come.

Meet Your Greens meets generally every third Tuesday of the month. Venues and times change-- join our e-list for updates and invites by contacting Claire Rusowicz, crusowicz@rockfallfoundation.org; or Jennifer Weymouth, jaweymouth@yahoo.com. You can also join us on Facebook ("Meet Your Greens").

Schedule updates are also provided on The Rockfall Foundation website, www.rockfallfoundation.org

Questions? Please e-mail or call Claire Rusowicz (860)347-0340

Click It or Ticket Middletown

From the Middletown Police
The Middletown Police Department as well as hundreds of other law enforcement agencies across the country will be participating in the 2011 Click It or Ticket mobilization, which runs from May 23-June 5,
2011.

Seat belts save lives. Enforcement and education together will generate public awareness to raise the seat belt usage rate in our community.

Regular seat belt use is the single most effective way to protect people, and reduce fatalities in motor vehicle crashes.

During the Click It or Ticket mobilization, Middletown Police Officers will focus on Motor vehicle enforcement with the emphasis on enforcing seat belt laws.

Animal Sunday: First Church UCC Middletown

It's All about Life, Love, & Faith
at First Church, 10 a.m.

First Church of Christ,
Congregational
190 Court Street
Middletown, CT

Come visit this Sunday, with or without your cat, dog, or other pet companion—appropriately leashed or caged, of course—to worship, sing, and enjoy each other's company.

Sermon-stories of Pets in Our Lives and pet treats featured. Childcare provided--ask the greeter. Lots of free street parking nearby. First Church is an Open and Affirming congregation.

For those unable to attend, a half-hour program featuring portions of our service are shown Friday nights on cable channel 15 (local-community news) at 7:30 p.m.

We The People

Observed around noon on the corner of Main Street and College Street, a group of CVH employees protesting what they say are racist practices in their workplace.

Literature that I obtained from the protesters reads as follows:

" Peoples Manifesto

Undoing Racism at Connecticut Valley Hospital (CVH)

We the People of Color are the victims of an unrelenting and systemic level of institutionalized racism and classism that permeates us at CVH.

We the People are tired of discrimination practices at CVH.

We the People are informing all that this issue of racial and class bias within CVH has most recently been aggravated by the reassignment of an African-American man in Nursing Support to another location.

We the People are committed to assuring that the racial class imbalance at CVH senior administration END TODAY, and that CVH Senior Management and Decision Makers finally mirror those in the work force it serve.

We the People are tired of workplace bullying by management.

We the People can no longer accept being victims of disparate treatment.

We the People in supervisory roles get minimum management support than our caucasians co-workers.

We the People have a lack of confidence and trust in management. This is based on evidence of disciplinary matters and yearly performance appraisals.

We the People are looking for equality and fairness when applying for positions and promotions.

We the People will no longer accept being singled out because of the color of our skin. "

SIXTEEN MIDDLETOWN RESIDENTS RECEIVE MXCC SCHOLARSHIPS

Sixteen Middletown residents have received scholarships from the Middlesex Community College Foundation, Inc. Heather Eng received the Dr. Jeff & Sonya Madoff Scholarship in honor of Thomas Melbert; Halima El idrissi and Susan Van Ness both received the Gandhi Scholarship; Jaelyn Kateches (pictured here) was awarded the Hartford Courant Scholarship; Robert Harrison received the James Shapiro Scholarship; Rosemond Agyei received the Jesse J. Salafia Nursing Award; Izabela Wiktor-Yachaina won the Liberty Bank Foundation Scholarships; Bennett Nocera, the Maxine L. Thumim Scholarship; Krzsyztof Pawlikowski received the MxCC Foundation Scholarship; Leeanne Deleon received the Nihla & Bob Lapidus Foundation Scholarship; Tanya Cretella and Enzo Futia were awarded The Paul L. Jones Foundation Scholarships; Steven Kovach received the Philip Wheaton Annual Scholarship; Sam Chichester (pictured here) received the Rotary Club of Middletown Scholarship; Ryan Czesak and Audrey LaRosa both earned the Rowland and Ruth Beaulieu Business Administration Scholarship. Twenty-eight different awards valued at more than $40,000 were given to 77 students total during the annual scholarship reception event.

“We are pleased to offer very important support to these deserving students,” said Roger Brewer, chairman of the Foundation Scholarship Committee. “I am moved by their qualifications, their personal stories and their hopes for the future. I am also grateful for the generosity of donors who make these scholarships possible.”

“It is such a pleasure to see the tremendous dedication and hard work of our students rewarded with financial support from our community,” Dr. Jonathan M. Daube, president of MxCC, said. “The MxCC Foundation’s Scholarship Reception is one of the highlights of the academic year for our students, faculty, and donors.”

Founded in 1966 as a branch campus of Manchester Community College, Middlesex Community College (www.mxcc.commnet.edu) is an independent member of the Connecticut Community College System. The school offers more than 50 degree or certificate programs on its three locations: the main, 38-acre campus in Middletown, the downtown Meriden Center, and the shoreline in Old Saybrook. The college promotes understanding, learning, ethics, and self-discipline by encouraging critical thinking. Current enrollment exceeds 2,950 full and part-time students, and 1,600 continuing education students.

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ARTFARM's new circus to perform in Guilford and NYC

Since its premiere at Central Connecticut State University's Global Environmental Sustainability Symposium on April 7, ARTFARM's all-new Circus for a Fragile Planet SUBMERGED! has been making a splash throughout the northeast. Ten shows have taken the five member company to schools all over Connecticut and New Jersey, during which time over 2000 students and teachers have been dazzled by the combination of stunning circus artistry and compelling science.
Now you have a couple of opportunities to experience this unique 60 minute circus yourself!
On SUNDAY, May 22 at 3 pm, Circus for a Fragile Planet SUBMERGED! will be performing at the Guilford Community Center, 32 Church St, Guilford, CT. This performance is sponsored by the Shoreline Outdoor Education Center, and tickets are $12 for adults and $7 for kids (less for SOEC members).
For more info about this performance, please go to www.shorelineoutdooreducationcenter.org.

On SATURDAY, JUNE 11 at Noon, SUBMERGED! will open the New York Festival of Young Artists presented by DownTownArt and the Lower East Side Girls' Club. This free outdoor performance will take place on East 4th Street, between Second Avenue and Bowery. For more info, go to www.downtownart.org

Created by and featuring ARTFARM's Executive Director Dic Wheeler as Professor Offli Varminhere, SUBMERGED! takes environmental circus to new levels of skill and advocacy, deftly combining breathtaking circus arts with accurate and compelling action points about the state of the Earth's hydrosphere. Adults and young people alike will love this fast-paced show, and no one will come away thinking about water in quite the same way again. Featuring ARTFARM circus company members Megan Berritta, Maegan Fuller, Allison McDermott and Joel Melendez as the "Fossil Fools", Circus for a Fragile Planet SUBMERGED! is the result of nearly a year of training, research and experimentation -- we think you will impressed and inspired by this unique combination of circus art and environmental education. Set and props are designed by Jason Leinwand; costumes by Heidi Kirchofer. Circus for a Fragile Planet SUBMERGED! is co-directed by ARTFARM Artistic Director Marcella Trowbridge. Photos here are by Heidi Kirchofer from the April 7 premiere.

Shenker Writing Contest Winners Announced

The Literary Tea for the entrants of the Edna Ray and Benjamin Shenker Creative Writing Contest was held on Wednesday, May 18 at Russell Library, 123 Broad Street, Middletown.  During the past several months, judges read and evaluated the work of 264 Middletown students who submitted stories and poems using the theme of “My Neighborhood;” they described what the world is like outside their home, or what they wished it was like.

First and second graders talked about the importance of new friends on their street from many different countries and how they all played together.  Some third graders described the world outside their home as an imaginary nature wonderland.  The many entries from fourth graders included taking a shuttle from the moon to earth in the morning, in order to get to school.  Like many of the younger children, they spoke of the need to improve their neighborhood and work for a better world.  Fifth graders wrote about neighborhood problems, the need for a park and the terrible scourge of drugs.  The sixth, seventh and eighth graders also shared their real lives and imagined thoughts, their hopes for a better community, and that which is good already.  These Middletown children have the determination and skills to build the very best neighborhood, city, nation, and world.  

Contestants with their families and friends gathered in the Hubbard Room as Library Director Arthur Meyers announced the winners and officiated at the awards ceremony.  Hillary Sanders, a 2008 graduate from Middletown High School and an English major at Saint Joseph College in West Hartford, spoke on "For the Fun of Writing."

Congratulations to all these creative young people.

Shenker Writing Contest Winners 2011

1st Grade

First Place                   Inchara Gaddi              Spencer

Second Place               Terrence Jackson        Macdonough

Third Place                  Eva Kottou                 Lawrence

Honorable Mention    Lauren Rucker             Macdonough

2nd Grade

First Place                   Alyssa Lecky              Bielefield

Second Place               Sophia Otis                 Moody

Third Place                  Malinka Albini            Roadside Academy

3rd Grade

First Place                   Rafaela Kottou            Lawrence

Second Place               Rachel Kornak            Roadside Academy

Third Place                  Sofia Pflaumer Moody

Honorable Mention    Lia Rosenbloom          Farm Hill School

4th Grade

First Place                   Angie Alban                Macdonough

First Place                   Irene Soteriou              Lawrence

Second Place               Sarah Canfield             Moody

Second Place               Caroline Kilian            Roadside Academy

Third Place                  Isabella Diakomanolis Moody

Third Place                  Mia Kriksciun             Macdonough

5th Grade

First Place                   Shaun Beckwith          Macdonough

Second Place               McKenna Johnson      Moody

Third Place                  Jessica Hart                 Farm Hill

Third Place                  Aparajita Kashyap     Annie Fisher

Honorable Mention    Melissa Costas           Moody

Honorable Mention    Sam Jarzabek              Moody

6th, 7th, and 8th Grade

First Place                   Victoria Dombrowik   Keigwin

Second Place               Victoria Kooh             Roadside Academy

Third Place                  Arianna Biales             Woodrow Wilson