OLD SAYBROOK—The lineup has been announced for the SummerSings series of casual sing-alongs that bring together acclaimed conductors, professional soloists and anyone who enjoys singing.
SummerSings is co-sponsored by Cappella Cantorum and the Con Brio Choral Society. They bill the six-event series as an opportunity to enjoy choral works without the pressure of preparing for a formal performance.
The series of six 2025 SummerSings events will be held on Mondays in Old Saybrook at the First Church of Christ, 366 Main St., from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Registration begins at 7 p.m.
June 23: Giacomo Puccini’s Messa Di Gloria with Conductor Steve Bruce, Con Brio Choral Society
June 30: Franz Schubert’s Mass in G with Conductor Irina Georieva, Cappella Cantorum
July 7: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Requiem with Conductor Joe D’Eugenio, Greater Middletown Chorale
July 14: Elaine Hagenberg’s “Illuminare” with Conductor Edward Bolkovac, New Haven Chorale
July 21: Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Mass in C with Conductor Chris Shepard, Con Brio Choral Society and CONCORA
July 28: Benjamin Britten’s “A Ceremony of Carols” with Conductor Kristine Pekar, Old Lyme High School
A $20 fee covers the cost of the event, including a musical score for attendees to borrow. The fee for students is $5.
For more than 100 years, Visiting Nurses of the Lower Valley has been a trusted presence along the Connecticut shoreline, providing compassionate, high-quality healthcare to individuals in the comfort of their own homes. As a not-for-profit, community-based agency, our mission has always been to put people before profit—and we remain deeply committed to that mission today.
Our dedicated team of skilled nurses, physical, occupational, and speech therapists, home health aides, and social workers work tirelessly to help patients heal safely and comfortably at home. Whether you’re recovering from surgery, managing a chronic illness, or need support transitioning from hospital to home, we’re here when you need us most.
But now, we need you.
Why Community Support Matters
As a small, independently operated agency, we are facing unprecedented challenges:
Declining reimbursements from insurance companies
Rising competition from large, corporate healthcare systems
Referral limitations by hospitals and skilled nursing facilities that often direct patients only to their partnered agencies
These trends threaten the existence of independent providers like Visiting Nurses of the Lower Valley—providers who have long stood as pillars in their communities.
Despite these pressures, we refuse to compromise on what matters most: personalized, timely, and compassionate care.
What Sets Us Apart
No delays in services—we’re small, responsive, and focused on your needs
Personalized attention—you’re never a number
Local and not-for-profit—choosing us supports a community-based agency that reinvests in your neighborhood
Trusted for generations—our roots in the Lower Valley run deep
You Have the Right to Choose
Did you know that you have the legal right to choose your home healthcare provider? Under Connecticut General Statute 19a-504d, patients can request the agency they prefer. When you’re at the hospital or rehab facility and planning your return home, ask for Visiting Nurses of the Lower Valley by name—and continue with the team you already trust.
How You Can Help
Choose us and support local when you or a loved one needs homecare
Spread the word to family, friends, and neighbors
Advocate for patient choice in healthcare
Donate to support our not-for-profit mission and help us continue serving your community
To learn more about our services or how to support our work, visit www.visitingnurses.org or call 860-767-0186.
We are honored to walk beside you on your care journey—and with your support, we’ll continue to do so for the next century and beyond.
Sincerely,
Sarah Foley on behalf of The Visiting Nurses of the Lower Valley, Old Lyme
Editor’s Note: About 15% of Visiting Nurses of the Lower Valley’s clientele comes from Old Lyme. The group also serves Centerbrook, Chester, Clinton, Deep River, East Haddam, East Lyme, Essex, Haddam, Ivoryton, Killingworth, Madison, Moodus, Old Saybrook, Waterford, and Westbrook.
OLD SAYBROOK, CT – The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center (the Kate) has announced that global icon Jane Fonda will receive the 10th annual Spirit of Katharine Hepburn Award at the Kate’s Gala presented by The RiverLane on Sunday, Sept.14.
The award is presented each year to an individual, who embodies the spirit, independence, and character of the legendary actress.
The Gala is the non-profit arts organization’s largest fundraiser with proceeds supporting performing arts events, the official Katharine Hepburn Museum, and arts education programs that serve more than 3,000 students each year.
The event celebrates two women – Katharine Hepburn and Jane Fonda – who guided their careers to their own standards and worked on behalf of human rights, the environment and other important social justice causes.
The two co-starred in the critically acclaimed and beloved film On Golden Pond along with Henry Fonda.
Jane Fonda is a two-time Academy Award-winning actor (Best Actress in 1971 for Klute and in 1978 for Coming Home), producer, author, activist, and fitness guru. Her career has spanned over 50 years, accumulating a body of film work that includes more than 50 films and significant contributions to political causes such as women’s rights, Native Americans’ rights, and environmental protection.
She is a seven-time Golden Globe® winner and was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2021. She accepted The Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival.
In April of 2024, Fonda accepted the TIME Magazine Earth Award. She also received the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award in February 2025.
2023 was a banner year for Fonda, with four films released. Most recently, she lent her voice to ‘Grandmama’ in DreamWorks’ animated film Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken. Before that, Fonda reunited with Diane Keaton, Mary Steenburgen, and Candice Bergen for Focus Features’ Book Club 2.
She also starred in the highly anticipated 80 For Brady opposite Lily Tomlin, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno, released by Paramount Pictures.
There was also Moving On by Paul Weitz for Roadside Attractions, in which Fonda starred opposite her longtime friend and colleague, Lily Tomlin. Other notable credits include Grace & Frankie, Netflix’s longest-running original series. For her work on the series, she received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2017. She also released Jane Fonda in Five Acts, a documentary for HBO chronicling her life and activism.
Fonda continues to lead the charge on the climate emergency via Fire Drill Fridays, the national movement to protest government inaction on climate change, which she started in October 2019 in partnership with Greenpeace USA. In 2022, she launched the Jane Fonda Climate PAC, focused on defeating political allies of the fossil fuel industry.
Her latest book, “What Can I Do? My Path From Climate Despair to Action,” details her personal journey with the movement and provides solutions for communities to combat the climate crisis. Notably, Fonda celebrated her 85th birthday by raising $1 million for her nonprofit, the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential (GCAPP).
Past recipients of the award include Dick Cavett, Glenn Close, Ann Nyberg, Christine Baranski, Cher, Sam Waterston, Martina Navratilova, Candice Bergen, and Laura Linney.
Tickets on sale soon at www.thekate.org. For information on the Gala and sponsorship opportunities, call 860-510-0473.
Editor’s Note: i) This article is based on a press release issued June 5 by Intersect Public Solutions.
ii) The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center (the Kate) is a not-for-profit performing arts organization located in the historic theatre/town hall on Main Street in Old Saybrook. Originally opened in 1911, and reopened as the Kate in 2009, the building is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Kate includes a state-of-the-art 285-seat theatre and presents work in several genres including music, theater, opera, dance, comedy, film, and a variety of children’s programing. The theater lobby boasts the official Katharine Hepburn Museum, celebrating Old Saybrook’s most celebrated resident, with exhibits featuring personal affects and memorabilia, costumes, letters and home movies.
MIDDLETOWN–River Valley Transit is partnering with the state’s largest taxi company to offer $5 rides for older adults and people with disabilities in towns including Lyme and Old Lyme.
The transit company in a press release recently announced the launch of Encompass, a new program designed to make it easier to travel within select towns in the Middlesex County area on any day, for any reason.
The $5 cost covers up to eight miles. Trips beyond eight miles are charged at a rate of $2.90 per mile.
The program is a partnership between the transit company and M7.
The low-cost rides are currently available in Lyme and Old Lyme along with Old Saybrook, and Westbrook. The transit company said the program will soon expand to Durham, East Hampton, Middlefield, Chester, Deep River, Essex, East Haddam, Haddam, and Killingworth.
“We wanted to do everything we could to help our seniors and our passengers with disabilities get where they need to go—to the doctor, the pharmacy, the grocery store, or just to see family,” said Bill Scalzi, owner of M7.
River Valley Transit Executive Director Joseph Comerford described the partnership as an innovative transportation solution.
“We are always looking at ways to improve mobility in our region,” he said.
Applications are accepted at Encompass.M7Ride.com by clicking the “Get Started in Middlesex” button.
Passengers must be 60 years of age or over or provide proof of a disability to apply. Trip payments are made online through a personal Encompass account created by the passenger. Passengers can load funds into the account via credit card payments or direct bank transfers.
There is no limit to the number of trips a passenger can take. The passenger is given the exact trip cost at the time of booking and the fare is automatically deducted at the end of each ride.
All M7 drivers are fully trained and vetted, and all vehicles are fully licensed, inspected and insured, according to River Valley Transit.
Andrew Surprise will begin as executive director of the Greater Old Saybrook Chamber of Commerce on June 2. Photo courtesy of the chamber.
OLD SAYBROOK–The Greater Old Saybrook Chamber of Commerce has announced a new executive director.
Chamber Board of Directors President Kara Pachniuk in a Thursday letter to members said Andrew Surprise, who previously served as executive director of the Windsor Chamber of Commerce, will take over for Executive Director Judy Sullivan.
Pachniuk credited Sullivan with two decades of exceptional leadership.
“Judy’s dedication, vision, and tireless commitment have left a lasting legacy on our organization and the community we serve,” Pachniuk said. “We are immensely grateful for her service and the strong foundation she has built.”
The Lyme-Old Lyme Chamber of Commerce merged with the Old Saybrook chamber in 2023.
Sullivan on Friday said Surprise will start work June 2. She will remain through June 30 to ease the transition.
Pachniuk said Surprise brings experience in chamber management, economic development, and community engagement.
She described Surprise as a strong leader who launched impactful workforce development initiatives and forged strong partnerships with major regional employers at the Windsor chamber. He previously revitalized the Quaboag Hills Chamber of Commerce in Massachusetts, she said.
The search committee including the chamber president as well as Alex Foulkes, Brett Elliott, Sharon Lewis, Dave Carswell, Judy Sullivan, Lindsey Goergen, and Sally Ann Lee helped “identify the right leader to take the Chamber into its next chapter,” according to Pachniuk.
“We are confident that Andrew will build upon the Chamber’s legacy, advocate for our members, and lead with the same dedication and passion that Judy has demonstrated over the past two decades,” she said.
