Category Archives: Old Saybrook

See a “Ballet Spooktacular” at The Kate Today

Posted on by
Reply

Halloween_Spooktacular__Anna_with_veilTreat children of all ages to family-friendly Halloween fun with Eastern CT Ballet’s “Ballet Spooktacular,” at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, “The Kate,” in Old Saybrook. Special effects and bewitching costumes set the stage for spirited performances of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Dancing Bones, and Halloween Waltz.

Children are invited to wear their costumes to parade on stage, trick-or-treat throughout the decorated theater and pose for spellbinding photos with the dancers.

Performances will take place on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 18 and 19 at 11:30 am and 3:30 pm.

Tickets to the Ballet Spooktacular are $16 for adults and $10 for children (age 12 and under) and are available through The Kate box office at 860-510-0453.

Democrat Stone Endorsed by CT Education Association

Posted on by
1
Mary Stone (D)

Mary Stone (D)

Yesterday afternoon, the Connecticut Education Association (CEA) announced the slate of candidates it is endorsing for the upcoming Nov. 4 election.  The list includes Mary Stone of Old Lyme, who is the Democratic-

endorsed candidate for the 23rd District State Representative seat currently held by Marilyn Giuliano, who is retiring at the end of the current session.

Big Book Club Hosts Mystery, Suspense Author Event at ‘The Kate’ Tonight

Posted on by
Reply
John Searles

John Searles

The Big Book Club has announced a new event on Sept. 27, at The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center (“The Kate”), presented by The Day.  The line-up of mystery and suspense authors includes:

  • John Searles, Editor-at-Large for Cosmopolitan Magazine, Book Critic for the NBC Today Show, and author of Boy Still Missing, Strange But True, and Help For The Haunted; 
  • Tess Gerritsen, internationally bestselling author and creator of the Rizzoli & Isles series on TNT;
  • Alafair Burke, American crime novelist, professor of law, legal commentator, and author of two series of crime novels featuring NYPD Detective Ellie Hatcher and Prosecutor Samantha Kincaid;
  • Lisa Unger

    Lisa Unger

    Lisa Unger, whose novels including Beautiful Lies and In The Blood have sold more than 1.7 million copies and been translated into twenty-six languages;

  • and, Old Lyme’s own David Handler,author of the popular Hoagy & Lulu and Mitch & Desiree mysteries.

The event will be moderated by Hank Phillippi Ryan, investigative reporter for Boston’s NBC affliate who has won 32 EMMYs and dozens of other awards for her ground-breaking journalism.  Phillippi-Ryan is also the coveted Mary Higgins Clark award-winning author of crime fiction including The Other Woman and The Wrong Girl.

David Handler

David Handler

The event will benefit Reach Out and Read Connecticut, a non-profit organization that prepares America’s youngest children to succeed in school by partnering with doctors to prescribe books and encourage families to read together. By using the code READ at registration, $10 from each ticket sale will be donated to Reach Out and Read.

Tickets are $45 each and include a signature martini courtesy of 44 North Vodka and hors d’oeuvre stations by the Bee and Thistle Inn and The Cheese Shop of Centerbrook.  A cash bar will also be open.

Books will be available for sale by Bank Square Books of Mystic, CT.  Other sponsors include Bob’s Discount Furniture, The Copper Beech Inn, Middlesex Hospital, LymeLine.com and ValleyNewsNow.com.

The Big Book Club is a creation of LaFrancois Marketing Consultants and Essex Books.

Register at www.thebigbookclub.org

State House Candidates Stone, Carney Debate Tonight in Old Lyme, 7pm; Also, State Senate Candidates Linares, Bjornberg at 8pm

Posted on by
Reply
Challenger Emily Bjornberg (D)

Challenger Emily Bjornberg (D)

State Senator Art Linares

State Senator Art Linares (R)

Republic State Senators Art Linares and Democratic challenger Emily Bjornberg have agreed to at least three public debates for their election contest in the 12-town 33rd Senate district, though Bjornberg is calling for at least one more face-off to be held in one of the northern towns of the district.

In a separate campaign development, Colin Bennett of Westbrook has been endorsed the receive the Green Party line on the Nov. 4 ballot. Bennett has run for the seat several times as the Green Party nominee in past elections where former Democratic State Sen. Eileen Daily of Westbrook faced Republican challengers.

The Green Party has secured a ballot line in the district with past campaigns by Bennett, and particularly with the 2012 contest after Daily’s retirement where Melissa Schlag of Haddam won nearly ten percent of the vote as the Green Party candidate in the contest with Linares and Democratic nominee Jim Crawford of Westbrook. Schlag was elected last year as the Democratic first selectwoman of Haddam, and is supporting Bjornberg in this year’s election.

Bennett is not believed to be waging an active campaign for the Nov. 4 vote, but he has been included in at least one of the Linares-Bjornberg debates. Bennett has been invited to participate in a Sept. 23 debate at Valley Regional High School in Deep River that is sponsored by the Essex Library. The debate begins at 7 p.m. in the school auditorium, with written questions from the audience that will be screened by the debate moderator, Essex Librarian Richard Conroy.

Devin Carney (R)

Devin Carney (R)

Mary Stone (D)

Mary Stone (D)

The first campaign face off between the one-term Republican incumbent and Bjornberg, of Lyme, will be held Tuesday, Sept. 16, at the Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School in Old Lyme. The session, sponsored by the New London Day and the Eastern Chamber of Commerce, begins at 8 p.m.  The evening starts at 7 p.m. with a debate between the candidates for the 23rd House seat currently held by Marilyn Giuliano.  Democrat Mary Stone of Old Lyme will face off against Republican Devin Carney of Old Saybrook.  The 23rd seat covers Lyme, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook and the southern section (south of I 95) of Westbrook.

Old Lyme is part of the 20th Senate District, but Lyme, its northern neighbor, is in the 33rd District. The district also includes the towns of Chester, Clinton, Colchester, Deep River, East Haddam, East Hampton, Essex, Haddam, Portland, Westbrook, and parts of Old Saybrook.

The candidates will also appear at a debate sponsored by the Westbrook Council of Beaches in early October, and at a forum, not a debate, sponsored by the Chester-Deep River-Essex chapter of the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce on the morning of Oct. 3 at the Chester Meeting House.

Bjornberg this week urged Linares to agree to hold one additional public debate in one of the five northern towns of the district, Colchester, East Haddam, East Hampton, Haddam, or Portland. Bjornberg said she would keep her schedule open for a northern town debate

‘Dinner and ‘Mrs. Doubtfire” Event This Evening Benefits Childhood Cancer Research

Posted on by
Reply

ACT flyerAn organization with a mission to raise funds for pediatric research, Achieve Change Together (ACT), is hosting a “Dinner, a Movie, Popcorn and More” event on Saturday, Sept. 6, at Clark Memorial Field in Old Saybrook.  Grass opens at 6 p.m. and the movie, now announced as “Mrs. Doubtfire,” starts at 7:30 p.m.  The costs is $20 per car, which includes the movie and popcorn.  Guests are asked to bring their own lawn chairs and blankets.

Every dollar raised goes directly toward childhood cancer research via The Truth 365’s “Dream Team” of leading oncologists.  These talented doctors represent The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), Sloan Kettering, St. Jude’s and Seattle Children’s (visit www.thetruth365.org for details).

The following editorial was submitted by event organizer Kristen Michalski Alexander:

Not so long ago, I learned from a friend about Madison “Maddy” Garrett.

In 2012, Maddy had been diagnosed with Stage 4 High Risk Neuroblastoma.  One of the rarest childhood cancers.  It had spread into limbs, snaked through her spine, and had penetrated into bone marrow; the tumor was wrapped around organs and arteries, through her intestine and into her chest. The tumor in her three-year-old belly was so large that she looked nine months pregnant.

Maddy had a 30 percent chance at survival.

Inspired by her bravery, I researched what I could.  Though average cancer survival rates have grown for the last 40 years, many childhood cancers have survival rates much lower than the average.  The facts are unsettling:

  • Less than 4 percent of the National Cancer Institute’s budget is directed to childhood cancer research (Source: St. Baldrick’s Foundation)
  • Cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in children and adolescents in the United States. (Source: National Cancer Institute)
  • In the last 20 years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved only two pediatric cancer drugs that were initially studied in children. (Source: American Association for Cancer Research)

During her journey to recovery, Maddy’s 5-year-old friend had been diagnosed with aggressive brain cancer.

Another child suffering.  Another family struggling.  I couldn’t sit back anymore.  I had to help win this war!

And so I decided to raise awareness and funds for pediatric cancer through a special event, “Dinner, A Movie, Popcorn and More.”  The event will be held Saturday, Sept. 6, 2014.

I reached out to my high school classmate Lou Rolon, a guiding force for our community through Shoreline Neighbors, for advice.  Lou possesses an inspirational compassion, dedication, and strength. He offered to help however he could.

I then reached out to Arms Wide Open Childhood Cancer Foundation (http://www.awoccf.org/). AWOCCF helped produce The Truth 365, an Emmy Award-Winning documentary film and social media campaign that gives a voice to all children fighting cancer.

I asked their co-founder Dena Sherwood if we could work together.  When she graciously agreed, it meant we could host the event with their 501(c)(3) status.

For continuing updates, “Like” the ACT – Achieve Change Together Facebook page and remember to join us on Sept. 6.

For further information, call: 860-339-6310,  via e-mail: actquestions@gmail.com

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/ACT-Achieve-Change-Together/
Website coming soon

To donate: Please make a check payable to Arms Wide Open/The Truth 365 and mail it to P.O. Box 495, Ivoryton, CT 06442.  Or go online at http://www.awoccf.org/donate/ and select “Achieve Change Together Event – CT”.