Monthly Archives: August 2019

Old Lyme’s Suzanne Thompson Discusses Shared Solar on her WLIS/WMRD Radio Show, Listen Anytime

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Suzanne Thompson’s guest this week on her CT Outdoors radio show is David Desiderato, Connecticut Fund for the Environment’s Shared Solar Coordinator.

OLD LYME — What is Shared Solar and did you know that it is coming to Connecticut? It’s a way for people who don’t have the right roof or location for solar panels to reduce their electricity costs by participating in a shared solar project.
Find out how you and your community can participate in this new program on CT Outdoors with Suzanne Thompson of Old Lyme.  Thompson’s guest this week is David Desiderato, Connecticut Fund for the Environment’s Shared Solar Coordinator.
Listen Saturday, Aug. 17, 1-1:30 p.m. or Sunday, Aug. 18, 7-7:30 a.m., on WLIS 1420 AM/Old Saybrook and WMRD 1150 AM/Middletown, streaming at http://www.wliswmrd.net.  Or play back on your PC or Mac anytime from http://www.wliswmrd.net, click the On Demand icon, look for pop-up screen from radiosecurenetsystems.net, and scroll to CT-Outdoors-81319—Shared-Solar-Toolkit. 
You also can learn more on CFE’s website, http://www.ctenvironment.org, and download your Shared-Solar-Toolkit at Shared Solar Toolkit – CFE/Save the Sound

‘Fresh Expressions’ on View at Lyme Art Association through Sept. 30

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‘Kayak rack’ by Neil Ruenzel is the featured work of the ‘Fresh Expressions’ exhibition, which opens Friday at the Lyme Art Association.

OLD LYME — The juried member show titled, Fresh Expressions: Late Summer Painting and Sculpture celebrates portraits, landscapes, still life paintings and sculpture and is on view through Sept. 30.

Gallery hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am-5 pm, and by appointment. Admission is free but a $5 donation is suggested.

Lyme Art Association is located at 90 Lyme Street, Old Lyme.

For further information, call (860)434-7802 or visit lymeartassociation.org

Death Announced of Joan K. Kelley of Lyme; Memorial Service to be Held in Old Lyme, Sept. 7

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JOAN K. KELLEY 
1942-2019

Joan Kelley and Sophie.

Joan K. Kelley, 77, of Lyme, Connecticut passed away peacefully on July 23rd, 2019 at her home on Beaver Brook Road after an extended struggle with cancer.  She was surrounded by close friends and caregivers, and importantly, by her two beloved golden retriever companions, Mollie and Zoie, as was her wish. 

Joan was the Office Manager for the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme for the past 12 years, a position she truly loved and performed with extraordinary skill, grace, compassion and unfailing good humor  In that capacity, she was the first person that many people encountered when they walked through the church doors, or when they called on the phone. She was the very definition of the values of hospitality and grace to which the church is dedicated. But for so many who had the privilege of knowing her, she was much more than a colleague, or a welcoming presence in the office.  She was a dear friend.  Above all, Joan loved gathering with friends, being with friends, cooking for friends, and spending time with those she cared about deeply. 

And when the time came, they surrounded her bedside, and helped her to know that she wasn’t alone, that she was loved, and that she was an important part of their lives.  Joan taught all who knew her something of what it is to be a friend. 

Joan was an accomplished artist, and had a passion for gardening, knitting and quilting.  She was also a great lover of poetry, especially the poems of Mary Oliver.   A few months ago, she shared with her friends Mary Oliver’s “When Death Comes.”  Despite the title, it’s a hopeful poem, as Joan always was.  The poem will be read at her memorial service at the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme on Saturday, September 7th, 2019 at 2 p.m. 

Joan is survived by her brother Peter Winkler and his wife Lee Rogers of Gilbert, Arizona.  Also by her daughter Kathryn Johnston and her husband Blake, by her son David Minns and his wife Carrie, and by five grandchildren, Liam, Katie, Hanna, Jack and Will, all of Portland, Oregon. 

Contributions in lieu of flowers may be made in her name to The First Congregational Church of Old Lyme, 2 Ferry Road, Old Lyme, CT 06371, in care of The Minister’s Discretionary Fund. To share a memory of Joan or send a condolence to her family please visit www.rwwfh.com . Arrangements by the Robinson, Wright & Weymer Funeral Home in Centerbrook.

Death of Milton Allen Announced; Memorial Service to be Held in Old Lyme, Aug. 24

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Milton Nicholas Allen  1927- 2019

Milton Nicholas Allen, born in New York City on April 15, 1927, died in Essex, Connecticut on May 29, 2019. He and his wife, to whom he was married for 35 years, had moved to Essex in 2016. They had previously lived in Old Lyme, Connecticut from 1988.

Milton attended Princeton University at the age of 17 where he was elected President of the Class of ‘48. He took a wartime leave of absence from Princeton the next year when he became old enough to attend the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1949 with Distinction. Upon graduation he was selected to represent the United States Navy and became a Rhodes Scholar Finalist. Milton then served in active duty for the Navy as a Lieutenant and Submarine Commander until 1954 when he retired to pursue a career in business.

His civilian life began as Assistant to the President of Connecticut General Life Insurance Company in Hartford, prior to the same role for The Sherwin-Williams Company in Cleveland. He was also a Partner at Robert Heller & Associates (Management Consultants). In 1969 he started his own computer service, software and consulting business, which he led as CEO and Chairman until its sale in 1990. Manufacturing Decision Support Systems (MDSS Inc.) was the first online management information systems and services company. It served manufacturing, distribution, insurance and transportation companies across the US.

Milton was a Director of Progressive Corporation for over 20 years, as well as a Director of Day- Glo Color Corp., DeSantis Coatings Inc., Premier Electric Company, Lighting International Corp., AGA Burdox Gas Inc., Daro Industries, Actron Corp., Mueller Electric Company, and the Women’s Federal Savings Bank.

Contributing to the communities in which he lived was very important to him. In addition to his quiet philanthropy and mentoring of leaders, in Cleveland he was a Director of Laurel School, The Cleveland Playhouse, The Cleveland Institute of Music, the Center for Venture Development and Case Western Reserve University School of Management. He was also Chairman of the Goodrich-Gannett Neighborhood Center, Chairman of the Cleveland Council for Independent Schools and Chairman of the Switzer Foundation.

After moving back east, Milton was a Director and then Chairman of The Ivoryton Playhouse in Connecticut, The Putney School and Yellow Barn music school in Vermont, and Chairman of Hubbard Brook Environmental Research. He also served as a Director of the Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library in Old Lyme.

In addition to his business, and various commercial and not for profit roles, for which he was known for his integrity, insight and calm leadership, Milton was committed to his family, his friends and his lifetime love of music and the water.

Milton is predeceased by his wife, Liesa Bing Allen, his older brother, Homer Nicholas Allen and his twin brother, Winston Nicholas Allen. He is survived by his younger brother Gordon Nicholas Allen of Madison, Florida, his three children from a previous marriage, Peter Milton Allen of Palo Alto, California, Thomas Hughes Allen of New York City and Jane Scarlett Allen of Sydney, Australia, as well as five grandchildren, Alexandra Elizabeth Scarlett Allen, Jonathan Thomas Allen, Olivia Sophie Allen, George Dexter Allen and Eloise Scarlett Allen-Bowton.

A Memorial Service to honor his life will be held August 24, 2019 at 2pm at The First Congregational Church of Old Lyme, 2 Ferry Road, Old Lyme, CT. All are welcome.

Sound View Sewer Vote in Old Lyme Passes by Over 300 Votes, Pappalardo Says Schism Created: Sound View vs the Town

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OLD LYME — The Sound View Sewer Project in Old Lyme passed comfortably by 883 votes to 565, after all votes were double-counted in Tuesday’s referendum. The proposal therefore secured a margin of 318 votes with 61 percent voting in favor of bonding $9.44 million to fund the proposed sewer project and 39 percent voting against.  A total of 1448 residents and/or property owners voted representing less than 30 percent of registered voters.

After the result had been announced, Old Lyme First Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder commented, “I think the people spoke and it is time to move on to next steps. We made sure that everyone had a chance to vote with a full day of a referendum, absentee ballots available and several public info sessions.”

Sound View Commission Chairman Frank Pappalardo. File photo.

Asked for his reaction to the result, Frank Pappalardo, who is chair of Old Lyme’s Sound View Commission and a director of the Sound View Beach Association, Inc., told LymeLine.com in an email, “Today’s referendum vote in favor of a $9.5 mil bond for sewers is disappointing. I believe that many in Old Lyme were not aware complexities regarding the sewer issue facing Old Lyme and specifically the Sound View area.”

He added, “The cost recovery method of placing the entire burden on a small group of property owners is unprecedented. And to further the concerns are the unrealistic individual property owner costs in excess of $15,000 and reaching over $100,000 for some.”

Pappalardo concluded, “We’ve work so hard to unify the town and beach community and have made great strides. Now with this vote we have created a schism: Sound View vs the Town. And set in motion a number of legal challenges.  There must be a way to find common ground and make this work for all in Old Lyme.”

For a fuller account of the implications of the referendum, read Mary Biekert’s article titled, “Old Lyme voters approve $9.44 million Sound View sewer project,” published this evening on theday.com.