Category Archives: News

Old Lyme BOS Declared July 24 as ‘Austin Hack & Liam Corrigan Day’ in Honor of Our Hometown Olympic Heroes

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Austin Hack

Liam Corrigan

OLD LYME — The Old Lyme Board of Selectmen declared  Saturday, July 24, as ‘Austin Hack & Liam Corrigan Day.’

Both Hack and Corrigan, who graduated from Lyme-Old Lyme High School in 2010 and 2015 respectively, are competing in the 2020 Olympic Games, which opened this morning in Tokyo.

Both are members of the US Men’s Eight team, which rows its first heat at 11 p.m. this evening, EST, which is 12 noon in Japan. This is a recent time change from the originally announced schedule — the 7:30 p.m. included in the proclamation below has now been superseded

The proclamation reads as follows:

GO AUSTIN AND LIAM!

GO TEAM USA!

 

They’ve Started … the Olympics, that is! Old Lyme’s Hack, Corrigan Begin Their Quest for Gold TONIGHT!

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Team USA marches proudly into the Olympic stadium in Tokyo earlier today. Old Lyme natives Austin Hack and Liam Corrigan are among them.

LYME/OLD LYME — The Opening Ceremony of the 2020 Olympic Games (not a typo, that’s what they are still being called!) has just ended and the Games themselves are now officially underway. Two athletes from Old Lyme were there at the Opening Ceremony and are now making final preparations to compete in the Games.

Barbara and Greg Hack stand alongside the Old Lyme Rowing Association’s boat named after their son, Austin, who competed in the 2016 Olympics in Rio and is now competing in the 2020 Olympics (being held in 2021) in Tokyo, Japan.

Austin Hack and Liam Corrigan, who graduated respectively in 2010 and 2015 from Lyme-Old Lyme High School (LOLHS), will both be rowing in the US Men’s Eight. Austin’s parents, Barbara and Greg, still live in Old Lyme and Brian Corrigan and Joan Rivington, Liam’s parents, moved last year from Old Lyme to Lyme.

Joan Rivington, Liam Corrigan’s mother, stands at right in this photo of OLRA crew members. Corrigan is the stroke in the US Men’s Eight competing in the Tokyo Olympics. From left to right are Sophie Marsh, Barbara Hallwood and Trish Lynch. Photo by Doug Turney.

In late-breaking news, Barbara Hack contacted us this morning to let us know there has been a change in the rowing schedule. The Men’s Eight was slated to start their quest for gold tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. EST but that has now been changed to today on EST.

Austin Hack

Liam Corrigan

Barbara said by email, “The schedule has been changed due to weather and the men’s 8+ will now be rowing TONIGHT in the heats.” She added that the new start time tonight is,  ““High noon” (as Austin put it) in Tokyo,” which is 11 p.m. EST, since Japan is 13 hours ahead of EST.

Asked last night how she was feeling on the eve of the Olympics, Barbara responded, “I’m feeling so many things right now!  Pride, of course, that Austin was chosen again to represent the US in the Olympics, [Austin was the stroke for the Men’s Eight in the 2016 Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro] and a little bit of nervousness knowing that their first race is right around the corner.”

She continued, “But mostly I’m excited!  It’s such a fantastic group of guys with a unique chemistry together.  They’ve put in the hard work under world-class coaches Mike Teti and Tim McLaren, and they have a lot of confidence in their speed.”

Concluding, “They are so ready to show the world what they can do, and I have every faith that they can accomplish their goal of a podium finish in the final!” Barbara ended with the wish we all share, “Go USA!!”

 

Old Lyme Children’s Learning Center Reopens, Appoints New Director; Some Spots Still Open for Fall

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The newly-appointed Director of the Old Lyme Children’s Learning Center is Dana Gatchek.

OLD LYME — After all the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Old Lyme Children’s Learning Center (OLCLC) Board of Directors is proud to announce that the Center at 57 Lyme Street has reopened permanently and also appointed Dana Gatchek as its new Director.  

Gatchek resides in East Lyme with her husband Bryon and children Tanner, Sydney and Owen. She has both a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s in Curriculum Instruction and Design from UCONN.  She has been a teacher in East Lyme Public Schools as well as a director at a local childcare facility. 

A delighted OLCLC Board President Kristen St. Germain comments, “We are so excited to have Dana’s experience on board to continue to move our Center forward.” She adds, “Joining Dana, we welcome an entirely new staff at the Center, all trained in first aid and CPR, as well as other state mandates required to maintain our licensing.” 

St. Germain says, “We are so grateful to our patrons, who were patient while we closed during the pandemic, as we used the time to reinvent our programming to better reflect the childcare needs of our families in Southeastern Connecticut.”

The OLCLC continues to provide a family-like atmosphere, with small and intimate programs ready to serve families in the local area. The programs offered include Infants (six weeks to a year), Transition (one year to two years), and Toddlers (age two and up.)

Noting, “If you are in need of extended care beyond Region 18’s hours of operation,” St. Germain points out, “We also have the ability to walk their partial-day programmers over to the Center School.”

Currently, the OLCLC programs are almost at capacity with a few full-time spots in each program still available, but there are spots still open in the Region 18-sponsored School Age Program (Pre-K through Grade 5) at Center School.

For more information about programming, to schedule a tour of the facility, or to request a registration packet, email the Director at office.olclc@gmail.com

July 20 COVID-19 Update: New Confirmed Case in Each Town Takes Cumulative Totals to 112 in Lyme, 343 in Old Lyme

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Photo by CDC on Unsplash

LYME/OLD LYME —The Daily Data Report for Connecticut issued Monday, July 19, by the Connecticut Department of Public Health  (CT-DPH) for data as at 8:30 p.m. Sunday, July 18, shows that both Lyme and Old Lyme have reported one new confirmed COVID-19 case each.

This takes Old Lyme’s cumulative total of confirmed cases to 343, and Lyme’s to 112.

These numbers have just been updated in today’s report issued this afternoon (Tuesday, July 20) for data as at 8:30 p.m. Monday, July 19, and reflect the same numbers.

The Hartford Courant published the following article at 3:52 p.m. this (Tuesday) afternoon: Connecticut’s COVID-19 positivity rate spikes again, reaching highest level in more than two months, which opens, The state reported 218 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday out of 8,055 tests, for a positivity rate of 2.7% — highest on any day since May 11.

There is no change in the number of fatalities reported in either Lyme (0) or Old Lyme (3).

The first two fatalities from Old Lyme, which were reported in 2020, were a 61-year-old female and an 82-year-old male. Details of the third, which was reported in 2021, have not been made available.

Death Announced of Long-time Lyme Land Trust Member Milt Walters, ‘Valued Colleague, Tireless Fundraiser’

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Milt Walters. Photo courtesy of the Lyme Land Trust.

LYME — The death of Milt Walters has been announced in an email sent to all Lyme Land Trust members by its Board Chair John Pritchard and Executive Director Kristina White.

Describing Mr. Walters as, “our valued colleague,” the email states, “Milt had a long and extremely effective tenure on the Land Trust Board.  He was one of those rarest of all charitable board members — he loved fund raising.”

It continues, “Many of you have first hand knowledge that, unlike most of us, he enjoyed asking people to support the causes in which he believed so deeply. As the long-time Chair of our Philanthropy Committee, the funds Milt raised went toward the acquisition of properties (most recently our Thach and Brockway/Hawthorne Preserves), to the Land Trust’s general operating needs and to grow our endowment.”

Adding, “Milt was particularly focused on securing the long term financial health of the Land Trust, recognizing that our property stewardship obligations run in perpetuity.  He both created and championed our endowment fund,” the email notes, “And he was tireless in promoting participation in our Heritage Society, whose members have notified us of their planned giving intentions.”

Finally, Pritchard and White announce, “To honor Milt’s long, effective and consequential service, and particularly his very successful efforts to grow our endowment fund, the Land Trust Board recently voted to name it the “Milton J. Walters Endowment Fund.”  This recognition will be reflected in our upcoming Annual Report and in the Land Trust’s next Newsletter.”

The email concludes, “We will all miss Milt’s energy, devotion, wisdom and friendship.”

Details regarding services for Mr. Walters have not yet been announced.