OLD LYME — Musical Masterworks, an acclaimed, not-for-profit organization with a 30-year-history of performing chamber music in Old Lyme, is looking for a part-time General Director.
The person appointed will be enthusiastic to build on the extraordinary success of the organization over previous years as he/she works with the president, board and artistic director to position it for the future.
Read the full job description, qualifications required and how to apply at this link.
Walter Sanders
OLD LYME — Walter E. Sanders was born in New London, CT in September 1940. He passed away in Middletown, CT on January 21, 2020 at age 79 from complications of Parkinson’s disease. He died peacefully, surrounded by family.
After graduating from New London High School in 1958, Walter joined the Army National Reserves and served until he was honorably discharged in 1965. He married Jacquelyn Gould on August 21, 1965. They moved to Old Lyme is 1977, where they spent most of their lives together.
Walter’s first job was working in a lab at Pfizer, an experience that created a lasting impression on him. Walter held a real estate broker license from 1969 to the present, encompassing a fifty-year career. During his active years, he built more than 50 houses, a hotel, and several shopping centers. Walter was very proud of his three children, each of whom he encouraged to get a “marketable skill.” He was fascinated with nutrition and vitamins, and ran Flanders Health Foods for many years. He loved to give his favorite snack, butter, to his many grand-dogs.
Walter is survived by his wife Jackie, his son Eric Sanders of Black Rock, his son Mike Sanders and his wife Janice of Old Lyme, and his daughter Sharon Koch and her husband Eric of Essex. He was predeceased by his parents, Charles and Phyllis Snosky, and brothers Charles and William Sanders. He is also survived by a sister, Phyllis Martin of Mystic, and many nieces and nephews.
Memorial donations in Walter’s name would be gratefully appreciated to the CT Humane Society, the Visiting Nurses of Southeastern Connecticut, or the Hospice unit of Middlesex Hospital. The family would like to thank the many wonderful aides, nurses, therapists, and doctors who helped with his care. A celebration of life will be held in Walter’s honor.
State Rep. Devin Carney. File photo.
HARTFORD / LYME / OLD LYME — (Press Release from Rep. Carney’s office) State Representative Devin Carney (R-23rd) is seeking nominations from constituents for 23rd District Heroes. He hopes to recognize local individuals, groups, or businesses, those going above and beyond to help others in Lyme, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, and Westbrook, for their service during this difficult time.
“There are so many people, groups and businesses doing so much for our towns and our state right now, including many who have put their own health and safety at risk. I’d like to recognize them for their good deeds and make others aware of their service. These 23rd District Heroes have enabled all of us to get through this pandemic and quicken the eventual recovery. There is a wide variety of people who could be included, so anyone who has made a positive difference should be considered,” Rep. Carney said.
The nominee can range from a neighbor fabricating cloth masks to donate, a friend willing to deliver groceries to those unable to travel, a nurse or doctor working in a local hospital, a business preparing food for a local soup kitchen, a local public safety organization, a grocery store worker, or anyone else whose unselfish acts of kindness and sacrifice are bettering someone else’s situation.
“In the 23rd District, there is a wonderful sense of community and volunteerism. We see it all around us every day and it has been amplified over the past month and a half,” Rep. Carney said.
Rep. Carney looks forward to featuring each of the 23rd District Heroes on his Facebook page as well as in his e-newsletter. He will also send an official legislative proclamation to each of the nominees once the Legislative Office Building re-opens.
“In this time of such uncertainty, I thought that by having members of our community and state recognize people, groups, and businesses, we would shed light on acts that might have gone otherwise unnoticed and provide some positive news,” Rep. Carney said.
Residents of Lyme, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook and Westbrook are asked to submit their nominations by email to Devin.Carney@cga.ct.gov. Each nomination should include a brief description of the nominee and how his, her, or their service strengthens their community. The person’s, group’s, or business’ contact information and a photo should also be included, if possible.
Lyme Board of Finance Chairman Dan Hagan.
LYME — Lyme Board of Finance Chairman Dan Hagan hosted a swift, virtual Public Hearing on the proposed 2020-21 Lyme Town Budget Tuesday evening with not a single member of the public and just one member of the press attending the Zoom meeting.
Hagan summarized the numbers noting the proposed budget called for total expenses of $10,688,087, which represents a reduction of $326,155 (3%) over the previous year’s budget of $11,014,242. He noted that revenues of $10,607,533. were anticipated leaving a general fund balance at the end of June 2021 of $2,192,000, which he said was, “well over the two months of operating budget that the town expects to have on hand.”
Reviewing the income section in detail, Hagan noted that revenues were increasing from $10,428,173 to $10,607,533 with 90 percent of the town’s income coming from general property taxes. He explained that these showed “a sizable increase” primarily due to the value of Eversource’s property in town increasing by some $6 million after major upgrades, giving the town an additional $140,000 in revenue.
On the expense side, Hagan highlighted the “major portion [of expenditure] at 65 percent of the total as being the $6,442,000 to Region 18 Schools, which represents a decrease from the current year’s figure of $6,579,421. Noting that this decrease is accounted for by two factors, Hagan explained firstly, “the schools decreased their budget overall for next year by almost 1 percent” primarily due to refinancing their debt service. Secondly, he pointed out that Lyme pays a share of the total Region 18 budget based on the percentage of the student population for which it accounts in terms of residents. The 2019-20 percentage was 19.3 whereas the 2020-21 number has reduced to 18.5 percent. He described the combination of these favorable factors as “a big plus for us.”
Hagan mentioned two expense amounts in the budget for bridge work on the Birch Mill Rd. Bridge ($25,000) and Macintosh Rd. Bridge ($250,100), saying the former was ongoing but the latter would likely be moved into next year due to the impact of the coronavirus.
Commenting that the budget also called for moving various monies into savings funds, he described that as a “fantastic” achievement. He then concluded by thanking all involved for “doing a great job,” and creating a budget, which would not only enable the town to hold the mill rate steady for another year, but also, “reflects the values of what we hold near and dear in Lyme.”
After reporting that, despite an email address being open for 21 days to receive questions from the public, not a single one had been received. Hagan asked for a motion to forward the budget for final approval at their May 12 meeting. No town meeting is required this year to approve the budget per the Governor’s Executive Order 7-B.
The vote was unanimous and the meeting adjourned at 6:44 p.m., precisely 14 minutes after it had started.
Olwen Logan, Publisher and Editor of LymeLine.com
LYME / OLD LYME — We have been covering community news in Lyme and Old Lyme since December 3, 2003, which means we are just coming up to our 20th birthday!
During that time, our income has come exclusively from advertising and we thank sincerely all our advertisers over that time, but especially those who have placed their business with us on an ongoing basis for many years.
These include Suisman Shapiro Attorneys at Law, Musical Masterworks, Lyme Art Association, and the Florence Griswold Museum.
Meanwhile, in line with our mission statement “to be an integral part of the fabric of the community that we serve,” we have never instituted a paywall on our site (unlike, for example, The Day) with the result that readers can access all parts of our site at no charge and there is no limit to the number of articles that anyone can read.
Also in keeping with our mission, we donate significant amounts of advertising to numerous local non-profits every year.
Now let’s look at the national picture for a minute — more than 2,500 newspapers have closed since 2005, including the former Main Street News and Pictorial Gazette, both of which used to serve us right here in Lyme and Old Lyme with well-researched community news. But remember you used to pay for them …
In 15 years, one-fourth of newspapers nationwide were forced to close, according to a 2020 study by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At least 1,800 communities that had a local news outlet in 2004 were without one at the beginning of 2020, the UNC team found.
Although we do not charge to read LymeLine.com and still do not intend to introduce a paywall, it costs money to produce the news. First and foremost, reporters have to be paid. Quite simply, the more we invest in reporters, the better in every way the news is that we publish.
We also have charges for software development, graphic design, marketing, web-hosting and a myriad of other operational and administrative expenses, which arise when you run a small business.
Please consider a donation of any size to support the continued production of local, independent, online news here at LymeLine. We are members of the national Local, Independent, Online News (LION) Publishers organization and were honored to be named the runner-up in LION Publisher’s national award for Solopreneurs in 2020.
You can make your donation a monthly contribution if you wish, in the same way that you perhaps subscribe to a newspaper.
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