Monthly Archives: January 2018

Op-Ed: High Hopes Suggests MLK Day is Appropriate Day to Think About Giving Back to Your Favorite Non-Profit, Hosts Volunteer Orientation 4-7 Today

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With the arrival of Martin Luther King Day today, it is worth looking back on the question Martin Luther King Jr. asked of an audience in Montgomery, Ala., in 1957, when he said, “What is life’s most persistent and urgent question?”

Consider that question right now and what your answer would be?

  • How can we achieve world peace?
  • Is global warming real?
  • Which college shall I choose?
  • Is life really a race to nowhere?
  • What is the number 42?

For Martin Luther King, the answer to this question was quite simple: ““What are you doing for others?”

So, in acknowledgement of Martin Luther King Day, High Hopes challenges you to answer that question with a pledge of a specific number of volunteer hours to a local non-profit.

A pledge is a promise, a promise to yourself, to the non-profit and to the many thousands of people who depend on Connecticut’s non-profits every day for human and social services, for therapy and comfort, for clothes and food, sanctuary and safety. By writing down your pledge, it becomes more real, more urgent, more of a commitment, and more achievable than a New Year’s resolution or an unspoken intention at some time in the future.

Choose an organization that speaks to your soul.

We would love you to volunteer at High Hopes, and whatever your future career interest, we can promise a rewarding experience. But wherever you decide to pledge your time, make sure that the organization’s mission speaks to your soul.

At High Hopes, we say “Volunteers give something of themselves and receive back another person’s hopes and dreams.” But while looking for a suitable quote for this piece, we came across this definition taken from the International Volunteer HQ – Volunteer Abroad Pinterest Board. (n:) Volunesia – the moment when you forget you’re volunteering to help change lives because it’s changing yours.

Experiencing Volunesia is something we hear again and again from our volunteers.

Our therapeutic equine assisted activities operate year-round, six days a week from morning until evening. Our staff and volunteers work together, forming a vital team that is essential to our ongoing success. Individual reasons for volunteering may differ, but giving of oneself and forming special connections with people and horses creates a common bond for everyone involved in our program.

We could not operate without our volunteers and our needs are many. Our volunteers are all ages, genders, creeds, and ethnicities. Volunteering is giving freely, conscientiously and predictably of your time, but that does not mean to say that you will not benefit just as much, if not more than you give.

High Hopes is a center of excellence for Equine Assisted Activities and Therapies, as well as recognized for its high standard of non-profit management. Trainee Instructors travel from around the world to receive a High Hopes’ Education (we currently have trainees from Bosnia and Australia!) We extend that training to our volunteers through enrichment activities and subsidized training events.

For high school students, we offer an excellent way of demonstrating on-going volunteer commitment. Just one hour volunteering each week is considered of value by college admissions officers. For our participants, it will give them the confidence of a familiar volunteer face each week.

If you are involved in sports and can only volunteer during the summer – that’s no problem. Summer is one of our busiest times when we run five individual weeks of all-abilities, community-focused summer camp, as well as disability-specific programs.

For college students, we know that the experience gained at High Hopes is second to none for those wanting to enter the fields of Early Childhood Education, Human Growth & Development, Nursing, Medicine and Professions Allied to Medicine.

For many of those who have served in the armed forces or are retired, maintaining a connection or continuing to give back is a vital part of staying physically and mentally active.

For homemakers, seasonal visitors and homeschoolers, High Hopes’ flexible programs enable you to commit to a volunteering schedule that suits you, enables you to get out of the house, and build a new and supportive social network.

Ready to learn more?  Then you can make a volunteer pledge to High Hopes at this link or join us for one of our General Orientation and Side-walker Training Sessions on any of these dates:

Monday, Jan. 15: 4 to 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 3: 1 to 4 p.m.
Saturday, March 10: 1 to 4 p.m.
Saturday, April 14: 1 to 4 p.m.
Saturday, May 5: 1 to 4 p.m.

Or join us for a Volunteer Open House on Saturday, March 17, between 10 a.m. and noon. Take a tour of High Hopes, meet our team, talk to an existing volunteer, watch a lesson or discuss a volunteer schedule to suit you.

Repair Work on Lyme St. Burst Water Pipe Continues, Hoped to be Completed Over Weekend to Allow All Affected Buildings to Open Tuesday

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Work continues to try and repair the burst pipe, which has caused Old Lyme Memorial Town Hall, Center School, Lymes’ Youth Service Bureau,  the Lyme Street Firehouse, and the Old Lyme Historical Society to be closed for the past two days, since none of the buildings had a water supply due to the pipe failure.

It is hoped that the repair will be effected in time for all those institutions to open at the normal time on Tuesday, Jan. 16, after the holiday on Monday.

We will post any updates on the situation as they become available during the weekend.

 

Today’s Goodwin Trail Hike in Hartman Park with Lyme Land Trust is CANCELLED

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Turtle Rock on Bald Nubble by Wendolyn Hill

1/14 Update: Due to icy trail conditions, this hike has been cancelled.

Start the New Year off with a moderately easy 2.6 mile walk in the woods. Everyone is welcome. Don’t forget your walking stick. Meet at the trailhead to the Goodwin Trail at Hartman Park Gungy Road.

Hikers will car-pool to the Holmes Road Parking lot in East Lyme and then hike the portion of the Goodwin Trail from the Holmes Road Parking Lot in Nehantic State Forest through Hartman Park back to Gungy Road, led by Wendolyn Hill, Lyme Land Trust board member and Town of Lyme Open Space Coordinator.

Hikers will visit the old CCC camp foundations, pass ancient colonial ruins and pause to appreciate the view from the beloved Bald Nubble on the red trail at Hartman Park. A snack will be provided. Bring water or something to drink.

The Richard H. Goodwin Trail, overseen by the Eightmile River Wild & Scenic Coordinating Committee, is a an extended trail system crossing four towns: East Haddam, Salem, Lyme and East Lyme. In the future, the goal is to connect to other existing trail systems in surrounding towns.

Dr. Richard H. Goodwin (1911-2007) was president of the Nature Conservancy from 1956 to 1958 and again from 1964 to 1966. The Nature Conservancy, a nonprofit organization, was started in 1951, and Dr. Goodwin was one of its founders. Since then, it has protected 15 million acres of land in the United States and 102 million acres in 29 other countries.

Inclement weather cancels.

Reservations appreciated at openspace@townlyme.org.

Directions from Rte. 156 in Lyme: Take Rte. 156 to Beaver Brook Road. Travel about 2.7 miles on Beaver Brook Road. Turn left onto Gungy Road. Travel about 1.5 miles. Park along the road.

Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center Offers Teacher/Naturalist-led Hikes Saturdays in January

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This Saturday, Jan. 13, learn about the birds that overwinter here in Southeastern Connecticut while on a hike in Old Lyme led by CT Audubon. Photo by Amelia Graham.

Join one of the Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center’s teacher-naturalists every Saturday in January at 9 a.m. for fresh morning air and a naturalist lesson as the group hikes in a different location each week.

These hikes are free to Connecticut Audubon members; $5 non-members.

 

Wonderful Wetlands at Watch Rock
Saturday, January 20, 9 a.m.

This walk will focus on natural cleaners of nature, we will discuss carbon sinks, decomposers, and natural filters like shellfish, moss, mushrooms, estuaries and more. Led by Morgan Allen.

Salt Marsh Ecosystems at Rocky Neck
Saturday, January 27, 9 a.m.

Connecticut has its fair share of salt marshes. They are both beautiful and crucial to many animals. Learn about why these habitats are important to a wide range of species. Led by Joe Attwater.

To register for any of the walks or for more information, visit this link.

Talking Transportation: Will the Real ID Act Disrupt Travel?

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Something like 1.73 million Americans board airplanes ever day.  And each of them must go through a very necessary screening by the TSA, the Transportation Security Agency.  But beginning in late January 2018, a lot of passengers will be denied boarding because they don’t have the right kind of ID.

You can thank (or blame) the Real ID Act passed by Congress in 2005 after 9/11 to make sure people really are who they claim to be.  As any teen can tell you, it’s too easy to obtain a fake ID.  And if teens can do it, terrorists can also.

Because most people rely on their state driver’s license as ID, it’s been up to the states to gain compliance with the Federal rules.  A lot of those states are not in compliance, but Connecticut has passed the test, sort of.

If you’ve recently renewed your Connecticut license, you know you were given an option:  get a “regular” license or a “verified” ID.  To get a verified license you needed to bring extra proof to the DMV:  a US passport, birth certificate, original Social Security card, etc.

Look at your CT license and you’ll easily see the difference.  If yours has a gold star in the upper right corner, you’re verified.  No gold star, NOT verified … meaning that as of 2020 your license will NOT be enough ID to get you on an airplane.  That license clearly says “Not for Federal Identification.”  But for now, any CT driver’s license will get you past TSA.

Sure, you can always use your US Passport as ID.  It’s the gold standard and requires all kinds of identity proof to be issued.  But if you don’t have a passport and don’t have a gold star on your CT driver’s license, starting in 2020 you’ll have to start thinking about taking Amtrak or driving.

Only about 40 percent of all Americans have a passport.  Compare that to countries like Canada (60 percent) or the UK (70 percent).  Considering the fact that millions of Americans have never even been out of the country, why would they need one?  (PS: Isn’t it amazing how those same people always say the USA is #1 having no point of comparison?)

Leaving aside the paranoids who think that having a passport is an invasion of privacy because they are now embedded with RFID chips containing who-knows-what kind of information about you, we should all have a passport.  And getting one is pretty easy.

There are more than 8,000 Passport Offices in the US, most of them US Post Offices or libraries, which will process applications certain days each month.  But the main Passport Office for our state is in Stamford.  You can also file your application by mail, but only for renewals.  First time applicants must appear in person with all their documentation.

Mind you, US Passports are not cheap: $110 for first time applicants, plus $25 application fee.  Renewals are also $110 and “expedited” passports are an extra $60.

Turn-around time on your application can be anywhere from two to six weeks.  There are also private services that claim to be able to get you a new passport in one day, but they’ll cost you.

So the bad news is:  if you don’t have a passport already, may need one eventually.  The good news is, December is a great time to apply as it’s the Passport Office’s “slow season”, compared to the summer travel rush.  Happy traveling!

Posted with permission of Hearst CT Media

Editor’s Note: This is the opinion of Jim Cameron.

About the author: Former NBC News director and anchor, now a professional communications consultant, Jim Cameron, pictured left, leads workshops on media training, speech and presentations skills and preps clients for analyst briefings and legislative testimony. Jim served for 19 years on the CT Metro-North Rail Commuter Council, is an elected member of the Darien Representative Town Meeting (RTM) and is Program Director of Darien TV79, his town’s government TV station.