ttimes8 30

Volume 20, Number 20 Serving Durham, Middlefield and Rockfall www.TownTimes.com Friday, August 30, 2013

LATE SUMMER AT THE LAKE

Lake Beseck was a great place to enjoy the picture perfect weather the region experienced last weekend. For more photos see page 9. | Photo by Lee Roski.

Statewide, test results for the Connecticut Mastery Test and Connecticut Academic Performance Test showed trends of improving 10th grade scores, but declining el-ementary and middle school scores.

The CMT is administered to students in grades 3-8,

and the CAPT is given to sophomores in high school. The tests are designed to best estimate if a student meets or exceeds grade level expectations.

Jennifer Alexander, CEO for the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, re-leased a statement saying this year’s results reveal some positive trends, but also some negative ones.

“We need to do better for our kids to ensure that they are prepared for college and careers,” Alexander said.

Some districts found that realigning their curriculum with the upcoming Common Core State Standards may have impacted CMT scores, but not in a way that exhibits any major red flags.

Preparation for new standards yields slight decline in test scoresBy Julie Sopchak Special to Town Times

See Test / 8

Summertime and the liv-ing is easy. Or so the song says. It’s even easier if you can prop up your feet under a lovely tree or pavilion, or on a veranda or porch. This sum-mer’s hot spells had most ev-eryone running for some sort of shade.

Though Naples Farm, situ-ated on 147 acres in Durham, boasts its fair share of huge trees offering ample shade, Phyllis Naples Valenti and her husband, Peter Valenti, take to their veranda and pa-vilion this time of year. At 40 feet long and 10 feet wide, the veranda is used for both work and relaxation. It’s where the young men in their em-ploy bring vegetables they’ve harvested, which are then washed and put in baskets before being taken to farm-ers’ markets.

“But mostly we like to sit out there and watch the birds,” Phyllis said, “espe-

cially in the early morning when they come to feed. We’ve got several feeders, and we get every variety of bird. When Peter added onto the house in 1996, we won-dered if we should build this veranda. We’re both outdoor people, and I told him, ‘When we’re old I can always wheel you out onto it.’ The big ma-ple tree at the end of it helps keep it cool.”

But not as cool as their 20 foot by 40 foot pavilion, home to —well —just about

everything. Equipped with a refrigerator, a grill, and an old gas stove, it’s where Sunday dinner is held every week. It’s where tomatoes are canned. It’s where grad-uation parties and weddings and baptisms and picnics are held. Vegetables that need to be dried are stored there. There’s a hammock next to it, just begging someone to curl up in it with a good book. In the winter it stores the farm

Shady refuge beats summer heatBy Diana CarrSpecial to Town Times

Peter Valenti, of Durham, relaxes on his veranda. | (Photo by

Diana Carr.)

See Refuge / Page 19

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A2 Friday, August 30, 2013 Town Times | towntimes.com

A community-based effort to sustain the environment

I grew up in the 60’s, but soured on the “progressive movement” because progres-sives seemed to think they had all the answers, and I re-sented having a “guilt trip” put on me, especially when it came to the environment.

However, being a nature lover since childhood, I am genuinely concerned about what is happening in our en-vironment and worry about the environmental changes I’ve seen in the past 20 or 30 years. Most of these changes relate to our search for “en-ergy” to do everything from warming and cooling our houses, to making bags for our groceries. But it’s easy to get overwhelmed; what can the individual do?

Recently, I discovered that Coginchaug Area Transition, or “CAT,” which formed about 1 ½ years ago, trying to address these concerns at the community level. It serves Durham and Middlefield.

The Transition movement was started by Rob Hopkins, a teacher of permaculture in Ireland. CAT was the 127th Transition Town in the United States; more have joined since then, here and worldwide.

The goal of Transition, ac-cording to Sue VanDerzee and other Transition advo-cates, is to build “commu-nity resilience” in the face of peaking (and ultimately, diminishing) oil supplies, and climate change. In the words of CAT member Jen Huddleston, “we are looking to foster a more sustainable lifestyle, with less reliance on fossil fuels.

Individuals suggest things to help create a more sus-tainable community — it’s

as simple as that. Transition, says Huddleston, “embraces what people are already do-ing; it’s not top-down.”

The message is: what you do counts and you are not alone. In Hopkin’s handbook “The Transition Companion”, it states that “What we are convinced of is this: If we wait for the gov-ernment, it’ll be too little too late. If we act as individuals, it’ll be too little. But, if we act as communities, it might just be enough, just in time.”

Lorrie Martin suggests re-fuse plastic bags whenever possible (plastic takes more than 500 years to degrade), and, if you do get them, re-use them. The “resilient” ap-proach: use cloth bags.

Nancy Winship-Poole suggests: Shop locally a lo-cally-owned independent business returns more dol-lars to the community than a national chain store. In turn, this helps protect lo-cal character and prosperity. It also helps to keep dollars in the local economy. Local stores make for vibrant, com-pact, walkable town centers which, in turn, reduce build-ing “sprawl,” automobile use, habitat loss, and air and wa-ter pollution.

Suggested by Deb Brown-Norko: Compost vegetable matter from your kitchen and yard. You don’t need a fancy barrel or contraption. Just find a spot that’s hidden from view and make a pile, layering scraps with lawn and garden clippings. Turn it over once in a while. In no time, you’ll be digging rich soil from the bottom of your pile. Earthworms will move in for free.

Suggested by various CAT members: Give up using chemicals on your lawn.

I have undergone an “epiphany” on this. My prop-erty has a small lawn, “in-stalled” in 2008. Initially, it

was perfectly green, with no pesky weeds, moles or grubs. But over time nature has done its thing to our lawn which now has holes and moles and crabgrass because I stopped dumping bags of store-bought chemicals on it. But I love my lawn as it and realize what I was putting on our lawn was hurting birds and insects. I now care more about them then a perfect lawn. The nasty stuff never did much good anyways. I may enlarge my gardens to take up more lawn.

Suggested by VanDerzee and other CAT members: Bring your unwanted stuff to the “put and take” section of the transfer station. Sure, if you are in Middletown, you can go to Goodwill, but why not take advantage of this lo-cal “resource”?

CAT has several upcom-ing events including the Bountiful Harvest Potluck Picnic, Friday, Sept. 13 at Peckham Park, Middlefield, from 5 to 8 p.m.; a Composting Pilot Project at the Durham Fair as well as presenta-tions about Transition at the Discovery Tent. Speakers on the Transition move-ment are available contact Sue VanDerzee at [email protected].

Five ideas for sustainable living • Refuse plastic bags and use

cloth shopping bags.

• Shop locally at a locally-owned independent business.

• Give up using chemicals on your lawn.

• Compost vegetable matter from your kitchen and yard.

• Bring your unwanted stuff to the “put and take” section of the transfer station.

By Judy MoeckelSpecial to Town Times

Garden spotlight

Reach every home and business every week: advertise with us!

Call Joy Boone at 203-317-2323

With Labor Day 2013 travel volume expected to increase over last year, Connecticut State Police are reminding motorists to expect heavy traffic, ex-ercise caution, and allow extra time to reach their destination.

It is estimated that the number of people traveling by automobile for the holi-day period will increase in New England compared to last year.

Co n n e c t i c u t S t a t e Troopers will be concen-trating on enforcement of drunken driving, speeding, safety belt, and distracted driving laws during the en-tire Labor Day Weekend. Troopers will utilize both traditional and non-tra-ditional patrol vehicles while searching for reck-less and intoxicated driv-ers. Troopers will man sobriety checkpoints and targeted patrols to inter-cept drunk drivers.

Colone l Danny R . Stebbins said, “Our troop-ers will do their part to en-hance the safety of all on the roads and highways of Connecticut.”

While the summer driv-ing season may be coming to a close, enforcement ef-forts will continue into the fall as more than half-a-million children return to school across Connecticut.

With many children typ-ically walking or riding the bus to school, state police remind all drivers to be especially vigilant watch-ing for pedestrians during, before, and after school hours.

The afternoon hours are particularly dangerous for walking children. Over the last decade, nation-ally, nearly one-third of child pedestrian fatalities occurred between 3 and 7 p.m.

Troopers strongly urge all motorists to slow down in school zones. It is also important – and the law – for all motorists to stop for school buses displaying flashing red lights.

The fine in Connecticut for passing a standing school bus is $465.

The state police ask that citizens be its eyes and ears all across the state over the Labor Day holiday. If you see a suspected drunk driver, call 911, as that is a true emergency.

--www.ct.gov

Police prepare for Labor Day, back-to-schoolPress Release

2012 Stats281 accidents (59 with injury, 1 fatal)

59 DUI arrests

251 seatbelt tickets

2,151 speeding tickets

3,929 hazardous movement violations

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Town Times | towntimes.com Friday, August 30, 2013 A3

Send your news and photos to:[email protected]

Durham Fair tickets are available online at www:dur-hamfair.com, through Sept. 16. A discount is available when purchasing online.

Group sales also are avail-

able for corporations and or-ganizations of 25 or more.

For more information, con-tact Carol Schilling at [email protected] for ordering details.

Durham Fair tickets available online

Even as schools opened Aug. 29 for students and business as usual, the Board of Education continued its search for a new superin-tendent. The board is seek-ing to replace Sue Viccaro, who left at the end of last school year for a position in Newburyport, Mass.

Although the BOE is required to function as a search committee, Chair Kerrie Flannagan said in the spring that the board would seek as much input from “stakeholders” as possible.

In order to do that, the BOE has urged residents of Durham and Middlefield to complete an on-line survey, accessible from the district’s website at www.rsd13ct.org, and to participate in focus groups being held for mem-bers of the public during the first week of September.

The goal of the survey is to form a “leadership profile.” According to the survey in-troduction, “The leadership profile will guide the com-mittee in the recruitment and selection of the new school superintendent.”

The brief survey asks about matters such as relevant ex-

perience and skills for a su-perintendent candidate and contains space for write in answers. The survey will re-main active until Sept. 6.

Focus groups were held during August for district employees. Other groups, such as school parents groups and Durham and Middlefield residents, are scheduled to meet from Sept. 3 to Sept. 5. Input from the focus groups will be gathered as notes and collected anonymously. The focus group schedule is also available on the district’s website.

According to the time-line, the BOE intends to con-duct first interviews at the end of September and have a new superintendent by January. Dr. Ernest Perlini has been working as interim superintendent.

A different search commit-tee will work on the search for Coginchaug Regional High School’s new principal to re-place Andre Hauser, who left during the last school year for a position in Waterford. Donald Gates is serving as the interim CRHS principal until a replacement is found.

One administrative posi-tion was filled over the sum-mer. Patrick Gustafson was hired as the new assistant principal at CRHS. Gustafson, a graduate of Curry College and Central Connecticut State University, has taught at the high school level in West Hartford and been an assistant principal in West Hartford and Farmington.

The BOE will hold its reg-ularly scheduled meeting at 7:30 p.m., Sept. 11, at Korn Elementary School.

BOE seeks community input on superintendent search

By Mark DionneTown Times

Goal is to find replacement by January 2014

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sters ensures that ev-eryone will find some-thing to love. So, sure - we’ll miss summer … But autumn in Connecti-cut is a season to be savored, because we all know what comes next!

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BusinessCottle ready to coddle customers at Fire at the Ridge

Don’t worry, there isn’t a real fire at Power Ridge.

Fire at the Ridge is the name of Powder Ridge’s new restaurant, which will have Kevin Cottle at the helm as executive chef.

The restaurant will open its doors in December and will be located above the Powder

Ridge lodge.Cottle said he wants the

restaurant to be a classy ex-perience, but not over-the-top as far as prices go. The menu, he said, is secret for now, but dishes will include produce from local farms as well as local wines and beers – draught beers, he said, will be Connecticut-only. Cottle is also known for his adoration of seafood.

“Our goal is to keep every-thing a very New England kind of inspired menu,” Cottle said. “And we want to do that by involving as much Connecticut products as we can.”

A Cape Cod native, Cottle said he has been in Connecticut for seven years and has become fa-miliar with what’s offered in the area in terms of gath-

ering ingredients. Cottle’s resume also includes restau-rants in Philadelphia, Boston, Colorado, and Connecticut. He is also known for appear-ing on the sixth season of Hell’s Kitchen, finishing as runner-up.

“It helped me kind of grow a little bit as an individual with standards,” he said of his experience on the show.

Cottle will also oversee food in the cafeteria area which will feature regular staples like chicken fingers and French fries.

Powder Ridge, located in Middlefield, is owned by Brownstone Exploration and Discover Park, slated to open in December.

By Julie Sopchak Special to Town Times

Chef Kevin Cottle

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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Audubon Connecticut are working to-gether to create a new ini-tiative aimed at helping to conserve local wetlands.

The two entit ies are scheduled to sign an agree-ment that establishes the Connecticut In-Lieu Fee Program.

The event will take place Wednesday at the state Capitol in Hartford.

The goal of the public/pri-vate partnership is to provide

a new source of funding to help pay for the restoration, enhancement and preser-vation of aquatic habitats across the state. Funding would come from certain fees paid to the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

With the creation of the Connecticut In-Lieu Fee Program, Audubon Connecticut will be able to work with local, state and national partners to select and fund large-scale mitiga-tion projects, including land acquisition.

Conn. program to fund wetlands preservation

The transfer station on Cherry Hill Road will be closed for the Labor Day holiday, Sept. 2. It will open again Tuesday, with normal hours of operation.

Transfer station hours

T h e C o n n e c t i c u t Farm Bureau will of-fer three seminars which aim to explain PA490, or Connecticut Public Act 490, which, according to a CFB statement, was cre-ated “to help reduce (the burden of property taxes) by allowing many types of lands to be taxed at a rate reflecting current property use, rather than highest property value.”

Under PA 490, property owners might get relief from taxation on proper-

ties which are protected farmlands, forest land and open space, which used to be taxed at the highest property value rate.

Seminars will be offered on three dates in three sep-arate locations. Sept. 12, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Lebanon Fire Safety Complex, 23 Goshen Hill Road, Lebanon; Sept. 17, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Memorial Hall, Main Street, in Bethlehem; and Sept. 24, from 6 to 8 p.m. at CT Farm Bureau Association, 775 Bloomfield Avenue, Windsor.

For more information go to www.cfba.org or call at (860) 768-1100.

Connecticut Farm Bureau seminarsPress release

Follow us on Twitter: @TheTownTimes

Like us on Facebook: TownTimesNews

Would like to welcome our new providers:

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Ten steps to stop and prevent bullyingWhether you are a parent,

an educator, or a concerned friend of the family, there are 10 steps you can take to stop and prevent bully-ing, courtesy of the National Education Association.

Pay attention. There are many warning signs that may point to a bullying prob-lem, such as unexplained injuries, lost or destroyed personal items, changes in eating habits, and avoid-ance of school or other so-cial situations. However, every student may not ex-hibit warning signs, or may go to great lengths to hide it. This is where paying atten-tion is most valuable. Engage students on a daily basis and ask open-ended questions that encourage conversation.

Don’t ignore it. Never assume that a situation is

harmless teasing. Different students have different levels of coping; what may be con-sidered teasing to one may be humiliating and devas-tating to another. Whenever a student feels threatened in any way, take it seriously, and assure the student that you are there for them and will help.

When you see some-thing – do something. Intervene as soon as you even think there may be a problem between students. Don’t brush it off as “kids are just being kids. They’ll get over it.” Some never do, and it affects them for a lifetime. All questionable behavior should be addressed imme-diately to keep a situation from escalating. Summon other adults if you deem the situation may get out of

hand. Be sure to always re-fer to your school’s anti-bul-lying policy.

Remain calm. When you intervene, refuse to argue with either student. Model the respectful behavior you expect from the students. First make sure everyone is safe and that no one needs immediate medical atten-tion. Reassure the students involved, as well as the by-standers. Explain to them what needs to happen next – bystanders go on to their expected destination while the students involved should be taken separately to a safe place.

Deal with students in-dividually. Don’t attempt to sort out the facts while everyone is present, don’t allow the students involved to talk with one another, and don’t ask bystanders to tell what they saw in front of others. Instead, talk with the individuals involved – including bystanders – on a one-on-one basis. This way, everyone will be able to tell their side of the story with-out worrying about what

others may think or say.Don’t make the students

involved apologize and/or shake hands on the spot. Label the behavior as bul-lying. Explain that you take this type of behavior very se-riously and that you plan to get to the bottom of it before you determine what should be done next and any result-ing consequences based on your school’s anti-bullying policy. This empowers the bullied child – and the by-standers – to feel that some-one will finally listen to their concerns and be fair about outcomes.

Hold bystanders ac-countable. Bystanders pro-vide bullies an audience, and often actually encourage bullying. Explain that this type of behavior is wrong, will not be tolerated, and that they also have a right and a responsibility to stop bullying. Identify yourself as a caring adult that they can always approach if they are being bullied and/or see or suspect bullying.

Listen and don’t pre-judge. It is very possible that

the person you suspect to be the bully may actually be a bullied student retaliating or a “bully’s” cry for help. It may also be the result of an undiagnosed medical, emo-tional or psychological is-sue. Rather than make any assumptions, listen to each child with an open mind.

Get appropriate pro-fessional help. Be careful not to give any advice be-yond your level of exper-tise. Rather than make any assumptions, if you deem there are any underlying and/or unsolved issues, re-fer the student to a nurse, counselor, school psycholo-gist, social worker, or other appropriate professional.

Become trained to han-dle bullying situations. If you work with students in any capacity, it is import-ant to learn the proper ways to address bullying. Visit www.nea.org/bullyfree for information and resources. You can also take the pledge to stop bullying, as well as learn how to create a Bully Free program in your school and/or community.

Would you like to write for Town Times?

We welcome submissions on a wide variety of topics of inter-est in Durham, Middlefield and

Rockfall. Columns and first-person ac-counts for the opinion page are always in demand.

We also have a limited number of paid assignments available for those interested in freelance work.

To learn more or to submit a story email [email protected].

Write for Town Times

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Town Times garden col-umnist Judy Moeckel re-cently visited Pat Newton and her son Murray Newton. They grow all sorts of peren-nials in containers in their yard in Durham. This en-ables Pat Newton to garden while seated on her walker. The containers, which have gravel and drainage holes in the bottom, can be moved around as needed to access sun and shade. Pat Newton says she especially enjoys sitting outside, watching the birds, including humming-birds, and insects, especially butterflies.

T he ya rd conta i ns old-fashioned plants such as hyssop and Eiler’s rudbeckia, a type of black-eyed Susan.

Murray Newton pointed out an unusual green pepper they grow and sell at farmer’s markets. Pat Newton demon-strated a solar powered giz-mos that emits vibrations to repel ground-dwelling critters.

“I was amazed at their knowledge of plants, insects and birds,” Moeckel said. She met Pat Newton in 2009 when both women were in the hospital with knee sur-gery. “We discovered our common love of nature, and I got to know her sons Murray and Roger. Her late husband (also Roger) was Durham’s historian for many years.”

Container garden makes life easierBy Judy MoeckelSpecial to Town Time

Pat Newton surveys her garden on a recent afternoon. | (Photo by Judy

Moeckel.)

Seminar A free hypnosis seminar is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 3. Mary Ellen Moneymaker will discuss hypnosis and how many condi-tions can be helped by hypnosis. The seminar is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at 6 Way Road, Middlefield.

Reservations are requested by calling (860) 349-7039 or email [email protected].

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Opinion

P.O. Box 265, Middlefield, CT 06455www.towntimes.com

News (860) 349-8000 [email protected] (203) 317-2313 [email protected] (203) 639-0210Marketplace (877) 238-1953 (toll-free)

Town Times is published every Friday by the Record-Journal Publishing Co. and delivered to all homes and businesses in Durham, Middlefield and Rockfall.

Executive Vice President and Assistant Publisher – Liz WhiteSenior Vice President of Operations

and Major Accounts – Michael F. KillianSenior Vice President and Editor – Ralph TomaselliNews Editor – Olivia L. LawrenceAssistant News Editor – Nick CarrollReporter – Mark DionneAdvertising Director – Kimberley E. Boath Advertising Sales – Joy Boone

Commentary

Well, it’s over ... not me show-ing off my new flow-ered bathing suit but the sum-mer youth employment program the town was involved in. The Workforce Alliance pro-gram is back on the shelf for another year. Now I must crawl back on my knees begging the good graces of Joe and Fran who made it all happen — 48 youngsters who, through the efforts of many, found summer jobs throughout the town and Durham.

My thanks to all the em-ployers who saw a value in the youth who perhaps needed a bit of employment TLC.

What is also over, at least for now, is the “Housing Rehab” program that was in place for several years. The program, during the past few years saw the rehabil-itation of nearly 40 homes in Middlefield and Rockfall. You may recall that this program provided funds for qualifying building and site improvements to folks with qualifying income. At this point, we are waiting for interest to resume for another round.

Speaking of interest ... this week a black bear was seen eating bird feed be-hind the Twombly home on West Street. Perhaps the bear thinks he’s a bird. Imagine a bear with an identity problem. My ad-

vice is to stay cool on the bear issue. It’s why we live here. And now from bear to the BEAST.

The town meeting on Tuesday ratified the town’s acceptance of a $106K grant to buy a monster brush chipper —The BEAST — for use at the Transfer Station.

Durham and Middlefield applied for the ICE grant and were awarded same.

Things are on track for draining Lake Beseck in the fall for the preparation of the proposed improve-ments to the dam.

The town consultants are in place to begin gathering data in preparation for mak-ing improvements.

With all that’s going on, quiet little Middlefield is looking a bit hectic lately. And speaking of what’s go-ing on, according to our Road Foreman there has been a run on companies that do chip sealing. As usual, the initial focus will be on installing bituminous wedges/patching/shim-ming various areas around town. The usual chip seal-ing will take place following the preparation.

On the issue of paving, last winter’s gigantic snow storm was the root cause of many bituminous curbs be-ing broken up and pushed away. We will do what we can to replace as many lin-eal feet of bituminous curb as we have time and money for.

And speaking about storms, for the last few storm events, Brian Dumas wa s o u r E m e rge n c y Management Director. His true colors came through last winter when he or-ganized our Emergency Management activities in the fire house where he personally handled dozens

of phone calls from not so happy folks who had lost electricity.

Brian has resigned his EMD duties and is making a move that will enhance his career. The adminis-tration wishes to formally thank Brian for his service to the town.

And finally, the summer is working its way along while we look at a new school year. We continue to search for a new super-intendent. Many of us have participated in a selection “think tank” process. If you want to chime in with your superintendent thoughts you can go on line and fill out a form.

The overly hot sum-mer threw a fast ball at the town with the goings on at the Wadsworth Falls Park. For some reason word got out that this location was a sleeper (as parks go). Since the park is owned and op-erated by the state all we could do is call, call, call and put out more and more “NO PARKING” signs and issued tickets. We con-tacted park officials as well as our State Senator and State Rep. They all heard our cry.

Within a week, the DEEP came up with an array of changes that immediately resulted in returning the park to its former peaceful self. So, now, the election season is around the corner. It has been the Town Times tradition to shut me off for obvious reasons at the end of summer so with this transmission, I’m signing off until after the November election.

I hope our readers will make the best of the re-maining summer ... and don’t forget the Durham Fair is around the corner.

Selectman’s summer recap and fall preview By Jon A. BrayshawSpecial to Town Times

From the desk ofFirst

SelectmanJon Brayshaw

Commentary

On Aug. 17, the pink, late-summer skies over Middlebury were aglow with a “Midsummer Night’s Dream” of a concert featur-ing the CT Lyric Opera and the CT Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, in conjunction with the two year old CT Summer Opera Foundation. These organizations all col-laborated to bring celebrated Metropolitan Opera tenor star Carl Tanner to our state for an enchanting evening of arias and songs that, in es-sence, served as an unofficial opening to both companies’ upcoming seasons. The gala concert and gourmet pastry reception afterwards was held at the prestigious Westover School in Middlebury, and became even more glamor-ous by the presence of retired

soprano Lynn Strow-Piccolo, a Waterbury resident who reveled in a major interna-tional career of her own in the 1980s, and spread valu-able “trade secrets” to all concerned in the midst of the after-hours party.

Tanner is a big, burly man with an even bigger, larger-than-life “teddy bear” per-sona who recently made a smash Met debut in Puccini’s “Girl of the Golden West”, and has been singing dra-matic tenor roles in most of the world’s top opera houses since. Many in the audi-ence compared his voice to Pavarotti’s, but for those of us who know better, like this reviewer and Strow-Picccolo, one could hear Mario Del Monaco all over the squi-llo and timbre of his instru-ment. With the exception

Summer opera a gala event By Larry KellumSpecial to Town Times

See Opera / Page 19



BESECK WAS THE PLACE TO BE

At Lake Beseck, late in summer season on a perfect day, found people enjoying the lake both on and off the water. Some floated, some cruised, others took a speedier ride. A few relaxed on shore. | Photos by

Lee Roski

President Barack Obama is pitch-ing an overhaul of federal student aid that would link dollars to the Education Department’s ratings of colleges and universities. His pro-posal would give students at bet-ter-rated schools cheaper loans or bigger grants.

If Obama wins congressional approval — an uncertain proposi-tion, to be sure — it would provide for the most sweeping changes to

the federal financial aid program in decades. Obama would cut off funding from schools that aren’t controlling costs, delivering qual-ity education or opening their doors wide enough for students from low- and moderate-income families.

A look at t he pres ident ’s proposal:

Q: What does Obama want to do?

A: He wants to collect data on each school and use that to rate colleges. Schools would qualify for dollars based on the results they

achieve: the percentage of stu-dents who graduate, for example. The White House says the over-haul would reward outcomes, not head counts.

Q: How specifically will the administration judge which schools are best?

A: That isn’t clear, which is why colleges are nervous. Obama in-troduced the plan Thursday, Aug. 22, and said schools would be re-warded if they help students from low-income families, keep costs low and have large numbers of stu-dents who earn a degree. Obama

said the Education Department would track graduation rates , transfer rates, graduates’ incomes and the number of students who earn advanced degrees.

Q: How would a community college compete with an Ivy League institution?

A: They wouldn’t have to com-pete. Schools would be judged against similar schools, so they would be competing on a level playing f ield. The ratings also would take into account schools

What does Obama want to do with college costs?By Julie Pace and Philip ElliottAssociated Press

See Obama / Page 10


Obama

that enroll students from poorer families and schools that show improvement. But even within the same college, there remains a wide array of majors, and it isn’t clear how the ratings would account for differ-ences between highly se-lective programs and more general studies.

Q: When would this start?

A: Obama wants to pub-lish college rating before the 2015 academic year. He wants those ratings to start determining eligibility by 2018 so that the problems and quirks in the new pro-gram can be resolved.

Q: Why would colleges embrace this?

A: If Obama gets his way, he would be putting $1 bil-lion on the table as part of a college version of the ad-ministration’s Race to the Top competition for high schools. Those funds are designed to be an incentive for states to maintain their higher education budgets.

Colleges also can earn a bo-nus if they enroll a larger number of low- and moder-ate-income students.

Q: What if the college or university still doesn’t want to go along?

A: Students at schools that don’t comply could see their federal student aid cut or denied. The federal government provides $150 billion each year in student aid, and without that many students could not afford college. If a college lost all access to student aid, there is no way many could keep their doors open.

Q: So w il l students have fewer options?

A: The White House says no. Students still would be free to pick their schools, but schools that have the best results would get the first tax dollars. Students going to better schools would receive larger grants and cheaper loans.

Q: Can Obama do this on his own?

A: No. He can ask the col-leges for the data and the

education secretary can publish ratings based on those figures. But any sub-stantial changes to the stu-dent loan program would re q u i re c on g re s s ion a l approval.

Q: Will Congress go along?

A: Maybe. College costs

are a concern for lawmak-ers from both parties, and the typical partisan di-vide is less obvious here than with other subjects. For instance, a biparti-san agreement emerged this summer to overhaul student loan rates , and Obama signed into law changes that make borrow-ing cheaper for students in the next few years. But ini-tial reaction to Obama’s new plan from Capitol Hill was not enthusiastic, and some Republicans criti-cized the proposal as too

government-centered.Q: What is the timeline

for Congress to do this?A: As quickly — or as

slowly — as lawmakers want. The major law that governs K-12 education, No Child Left Behind, expired in 2007. The Republican-led House has once again passed its version of a re-write of this law, while t h e S e n ate Ed u c at i o n Committee has f inished its work and awaits a vote in the full chamber. The

From Page 9

See Obama / Page 11

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DANCE WORKSHOP

Dancers from the Middlesex Dance Center in Middlefield recently traveled to Nashua, N. H. to attend the North East Workshop for Dancers. The group participated in 13 hours of dance technique and choreography classes over two days. Instructors included internationally renowned Debbi Dee (tap), Jo Rowan (ballet), and Dena Rizzo (hip hop) as well as LA’s Darryl Retter. Pictured: Director Toni-Lynn Miles, Isabella Lenoce, Meghan Crocetto, Laura Colonna de Lega, Monika Malek, Catherine Fay, Kayleigh Crocetto, Fiona Fay, and Penny Wickwire. | Submitted by Toni-Lynn Miles.

Like us on Facebook: TownTimesNewsFollow us on Twitter: @TheTownTimes

Obama

Senate committee this fall plans to start its rewrite of the Higher Education Act, and the panel’s Democratic chairman, Sen. Tom Harkin

of Iowa, has scheduled the first hearings for September. But he’s also waiting for a Government Accountability Office report on federal stu-dent loans that isn’t due back until December.

From Page 10

NEW HAVEN (AP) — Dead trees are posing a po-tential hazard to people visiting many Connecticut parks, but state workers say understaffing is causing de-lays in fixing the problems.

S eve ra l Ne w Have n Register reporters visited parks around the state in late July and early August and found numerous dead trees near trails, the newspaper reported. Several employees of the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection told the news-paper that more staffing is needed to remove dead and ailing trees.

Park tree health became a concern in the state in May after a 45-year-old Colchester woman was killed and her 18-year-old daughter was se-riously injured when a rot-ting oak tree fell on them at the Salmon River State Forest in Colchester.

Register reporters found dead trees along trails at Salmon River State Forest, Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden, Chatfield Hollow State Park in Killingworth, Wadsworth Falls State Park in Middletown, Burr Pond State Park in Torrington,

West Rock Ridge State Park in Hamden and New Haven, Indian Well State Park in Shelton and Osbornedale State Park in Derby.

Staff at Sleeping Giant State Park are on the lookout for hazardous trees and branches, especially around picnic ar-eas, said Jill Scheibenpflug, a park maintainer at Sleeping Giant.

“We try to do the best we can to remove any hazardous trees near the trails,” she said. “If it isn’t done, we just hav-en’t gotten to it.”

She added, “You can have a tree that looks fine, and the next day it falls down.”

On Aug. 4 in Queens, N.Y., a pregnant woman sitting on a park bench died when a tree fell on her. On July 21, a fall-ing tree killed a 21-year-old woman at Yosemite National Park in California.

The Depar tmen t o f Energy and Environmental Protection does its best to maintain trail areas in parks and remove dead trees, said agency spokesman Dwayne Gardner, who said park vis-itors who see tree problems should report them to the state.

Report: dead state park trees pose hazards

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Georgia O’Keeffe, the famed American artist of flowers and desert land-scapes, painted, drew and sculpted into her 96th year, and George Burns acted and made people laugh for three-quarters of a century. If you’re thinking about taking up painting or audi-tioning for a play, you could have decades ahead to give artistic expression to who you are now and to what you’ve experienced in the past.

Art hobbies, whether sketching or water col-oring, sculpting or tak-ing photographs, can be for individual enjoyment, gift-giving or even extra in-come. Woodworking and carving whittle away the time while promoting nim-ble hands, relaxation and arm strength, as well as eye focus and mind activity. Portrait painting can add hours of time with friends and family while they pose and you aim at capturing their likeness. And learn-ing to play an instrument could showcase a hidden

talent or inspire a lot of laughing -- with you, not at you, of course. Combining any art form with the great outdoors is another option, and toting an easel, camera equipment or carving tools to capture a favorite land-scape can make artistic hobbies more physical, too.

Performing arts are an-other option for ageless art-ists, and theater has been a popular choice at amateur and professional levels. From colleges, commu-nity centers and retirement homes to traveling troupes for the homebound, there are hundreds of senior the-ater groups in the United States, not to mention worldwide.

Performances with a script in hand help seniors participate without having to memorize, and “edudra-mas” entertain as the actors educate peers on health and lifestyle issues through drama. Comedy, dance and singing are other perfor-mance options.

--health.howstuffworks.com

Seniors, embrace your creative side

School Briefs

Parent NightCoginchaug High School

has scheduled Senior College Parent Night for Thursday, Sept. 12, at 7 p.m. in the au-ditorium. Senior students and parents are welcome to the event, which includes infor-mation for those planning to attend a four-year, two-year, vocational or proprietary

school.For more information, call

(860) 349-7221.Dean’s listG a l l a t i n S c h o o l o f

Individualized Study, New York - Katharine Francis of Durham.

U n i v e r s i t y o f Massachusetts Lowell - Marielle Handley of Durham.

Women of the Woods has scheduled a hike for Saturday, Aug. 31, at Wadsworth Mansion and Wadsworth Falls State Park.

The two to three mile hike is scheduled for 10

a.m. Bring water, lunch and wear sturdy shoes.

For more information and to pre-register, call (860) 395-7771, email [email protected] rg o r v i s i t w w w.WomenoftheWoods.org.

Hike scheduled

The Durham Recreation Department has scheduled body sculpting classes for Tuesdays, Sept. 3 through Oct. 29 or Thursday, Sept. 5 through Oct. 31, at the Durham Activity center,

350 Main St. The program focuses

on all levels of individual training in a small group setting. A fee is charged.

For more information, call (860) 343-6724.

Body sculpting sessions

Follow us on Twitter: @CheshireCitizen

Like us on Facebook: TheCheshireCitizen

Got news?Send it to us at

The Cheshire Citizen11 Crown Street

Meriden, CT 06450or email to

[email protected]

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NOT SO BONNY BONE SPURSProjections that develop along the

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The components of the foot, ankle,and leg are designed to work together,sharing the tremendous pressures of day-to-day living. When they don’t workproperly, though, it can cause pain andother troubles for the rest of the body,and it’s time to get help. Our specializedcare and treatment can make animportant contribution to an individual’stotal health and well-being. AtAFFILIATED FOOT CARE CENTER,LLC, we offer comprehensive foot careby appointment. For treatment for a fullrange of foot problems, please call us foran appointment. Good foot health canenhance your daily existence andimprove your quality of life. Office hoursin Middlefield are Mon. 9-5, Wed. 3-7,and Fri. 9-5; Tues. & Thurs. 9-5 inWallingford. For our patients’convenience we offer on-site X-rays, anddiagnostic and therapeutic ultrasounds.

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CRAMPING TRIPIf you have experienced the sud-den pain of foot and toe cramps, you know that the pain is usu-ally short-lived. Unfortunately, however, cramps can become a regular occurrence. Cramps may be the result of having your feet in the same position for an extended period of time. Other underlying causes can include dehydration or some type of dietary deficiency. When expe-riencing foot or toe cramps, try removing your shoes and socks and attempt to “walk off” the cramps. Applying a heating pad and massaging the affected ar-eas may relieve the pain. If the issue is dietary, add foods that are rich in calcium, magnesium, and potassium. If the cramping is persistent, see your podiatrist for appropriate professional care. Our feet continuously feel the maximum amount of our weight as we walk and stand. This is why foot cramps are more common than other muscle spasms in the body. Long periods of exercise or physical labor, particularly in hot weather, may lead to muscle cramps. Some medications and certain medical conditions also may cause muscle cramps. At AFFILIATED FOOT CARE CEN-TER, LLC, we can advise and help you to make sure your feet stand up to years of wear and tear. Comprehensive, compas-sionate footcare is available at our office. For an appointment, please call us today.

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Sports

Scholastic sports participation on the rise

Participation in high school sports increased for the 24th consecutive year in 2012-13 and passed the 7.7 million mark for the first time, according to the an-nual High School Athletics Participation Survey con-ducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations.

Based on f igures from the 51 NFHS-member state high school associations, which includes the District of Columbia, sports partici-pation for the 2012-13 school year reached an all-time high of 7,713,577 participants – an increase of 21,057 from the previous year.

An additional 15,190 girls participated in high school sports last year, moving the girls all-time record to 3,222,723 and marking the 24th consecutive year for an increase in the number of fe-male participants.

After its f irst decrease in 20 years last year, boys participation started on the upswing again with an addi-

tional 5,867 participants. The boys total of 4,490,854 is sec-ond all-time to the 4,494,406 in 2010-11.

“While we recognize that many schools are experienc-ing challenges with funding high school sports programs, we are encouraged that schools are responding to the challenges and that more and more students are involved in high school sports,” said Bob Gardner, NFHS execu-tive director. “Playing sports within the school setting continues to be the desire of more than 55 percent of stu-dents enrolled in our nation’s high schools.”

Eight of the top 10 girls sports registered increases in participation in 2012-13, led by competitive spirit squads (8,201), outdoor track and field (4,172), and swimming and diving (3,536). Lacrosse, cross country, volleyball, soccer and tennis also had additional female partici-pants, while basketball and fast-pitch softball had minor declines.

Five of the top 10 boys sports showed increases in participation, led by outdoor

track and field (5,044), swim-ming and diving (4,354), and basketball (3,387). Cross country and baseball also registered gains among top 10 sports.

Eleven-player football re-mains the top sport for boys with 1,086,627 participants in 2012-13, although the num-ber of players has decreased slightly each of the past four years, including a drop of 9,366 from 2011-12 to 2012-13.

In terms of combined par-ticipation, track and field, and swimming and diving registered the best overall gains. Track and field had an increase of more than 9,100 participants when combin-ing girls and boys, while swimming and diving was up almost 8,000 participants.

Girls sports outside the top 10 that recorded increases in participants and could be emerging sports for females are bowling (25,450 partici-pants in 2012-13), ice hockey (9,447), wrestling (8,727) and flag football (7,019).

A sizeable increase in “adapted sports” participa-tion also contributed to the rise in 2012-13 figures. With

seven states offering these programs for students with disabilities in 14 sports, the number of participants rose almost 3,000 to 8,747 (girls and boys combined).

The top 10 states by partic-ipants remained in the same order as last year, with Texas and California topping the list with 798,333 and 777,545, respectively.

The remainder of the top 10 was New York (389,475), I l l inois (339,944), Ohio (327,919), Pennsylvania (315,492), Michigan (304,438), New Jersey (270,423), Florida (243,397) and Minnesota (230,421). Although only one

of the top 10 states regis-tered an increase in partici-pation (New Jersey), overall, 30 states reported higher fig-ures from the previous year.

The participation sur-vey has been compiled since 1971 by the NFHS through numbers it receives from its member associa-tions. The complete 2012-13 High School Athletics Participation Survey is at-tached in PDF format and is available on the NFHS Web site at www.nfhs.org.

--NFHS

Press Release

Town Times Calendar

Friday, Aug. 30

Durham Food Truck Invasion: 4:30 - 7:30 p.m. United Churches of Durham has invited the public to its parking lot, 228 Main St., for food available throughout the day. Rain or shine. Funds raised will go directly to United Churches of Durham to help repair the historic steeple and building.

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To our patients of Middlesex Primary Care - Durham(formerly Coginchaug Family Practice).

ATTENTIONWe will be offering flu vaccines on the following dates. Please call

the office to schedule an appointment 860-349-1058.We will not be accepting walk-in appointments.

Tuesday, September 3rd 7:00am-5:00pmThursday, September 5th 7:00am-5:00pmTuesday, September 10th 7:300am-5:00pmTuesday, September 17th 7:300am-5:00pm

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With another Little League season just recently wrapped up, it would be easy for the organization to take a couple weeks of vacation and reflect on the year.

But Little League has big-

ger fish to fry.The institution recently

announced its plans to intro-duce an education program for players dealing with per-formance enhancing drugs, which it hopes to have in place for the 2014 season.

“You definitely have to in-form [kids] of what’s going on in the world and how it can hurt them,” said Berlin Little League President Bill Petit.

While not believed to be an issue in youth base-

A sign of the times

By Nate BrownSpecial to Town Times

Little League to educate players on the dangers of performance enhancing drugs

See Sign / Page 15

Connecticut falls in U.S. title game

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - When California starter Nick Mora had to leave the game with one out to go, he wasn’t too happy.

“I wanted that complete game. I was kind of disap-pointed,” Mora said.

He was all smiles moments later when reliever Giancarlo Cortez recorded the final out, completing Chula Vista’s 12-1 victory over Westport, Conn., in the U.S. title game of the Little League World Series on Saturday, Aug. 24.

Mora gave California the spark it needed with ace right-hander Grant Holman not eligible to pitch until Sunday. Mora struck out 10 and walked only one before reaching his pitch limit.

“When I was pitching, I knew most of their weak-nesses and I was able to hit those spots,” said Mora, who also drove in four runs with a homer and single. “When I was hitting, I wasn’t trying to hit a home run. I was just trying to hit a line drive up the middle. That’s when the home runs come.”

California took a 6-1 lead in the first two innings against the New England champions, scoring three times in the first with the help of some sloppy Connecticut play, and adding three more on Mora’s long three-run homer in the second.

The West champions added six runs in the sixth on a passed ball, a wild pitch, an error, Mora’s RBI single, and a two-run double by Michael Gaines.

It had been a memorable World Series for both teams.

The 6 -foot-4 Holman pitched the first extra-in-ning no-hitter in the Little League World Series since 1979, striking out 13 in seven innings in a 3-0 first-round victory over Grosse Pointe, Mich.

Holman also won the Aug. 21 game against Connecticut with a three-run homer in the ninth inning, and he hit a grand slam in the fourth inning that ended a mercy rule-shortened 15-3 victory over Newark, Del.

For Connecticut, Chad

Knight lined a run-scoring single to deep left field in the seventh inning to give the New England champi-ons a wild 14-13 win over Sammamish, Wash. , on Friday, Aug. 23. He also hit a solo homer to tie it at 13 in the fifth.

Westport was torched for 10 runs in the fourth inning by Sammamish, then rallied with seven runs in the fifth to tie it. They did it with power, also getting home runs from Alex Reiner, Max Popken, Tatin Llamas and Ricky Offenberg.

Perhaps worn out from all that excitement and with not much time to recover, Connecticut fell behind early against California and couldn’t muster another val-iant rally.

“I want these guys to im-mediately celebrate their success and forget about this game,” Connecticut manager Tim Rogers said. “We lost to a fantastic team. We have to remember we are one of the last two teams in the USA.”

Chula Vista scored three times in the first inning when Connecticut committed three errors. Micah Pietila-Wiggs led off with a single, his eighth hit of the World Series, and Jake Espinoza reached second on an error after grounding into a force play.

Mora then reached on an error by third baseman Harry Azadian, and Holman singled to left, getting to third when the ball went through the legs of outfielder Charlie Roof. When Cortez followed with an RBI single, California had a 3-0 lead.

“We came out a little flat,” Rogers said. “I don’t think we’ve ever made five errors in a game. That’s a great hit-ting team. They look for a fastball and keep fouling off the curveballs.”

Matt Stone’s RBI single

By John KekisAssociated Press

Little League World Series

Little League

See Title / Page 15

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ball presently, local leagues agree that something should be put in place to help inform young players of the dangers of PEDs.

“Any kind of drug aware-ness program that benefits children is certainly some-thing that I think is defi-nitely a positive move,” said Plainville Little League President Scott Stroh. “I would totally be for some-thing that would educate children.”

The Little League news comes at a time of great up-roar in the sport of baseball. Twelve Major League players were recently suspended for 50 games for their connec-tion to Biogenesis, a Miami-based anti-aging clinic that supplied players with per-formance enhancing drugs. A thirteenth player –Alex Rodriquez of the New York Yankees –is appealing his 211-game penalty.

Petit, who has overseen Berlin Little League for 27 years, is concerned the extra media exposure may confuse youngsters.

“They’ve got to keep [PEDs] out of the media; keep it away from the kids

and have the parents inform them,” said Petit. “If they still read about it, they’re gonna say, ‘Well, if he did it then I can do it. He’s my hero.’”

From stealing bases to stealing signs, and corked bats to steroids, the sanctity of the game has been com-promised more and more over the years.

Meanwhile, to gain an edge on opponents, players have put their health on the line.

Some worry that mental-ity will seep into amateur baseball.

“Any kind of drug aware-ness program is beneficial to help educate children now to let them know that, ‘okay, these drugs might help you in the short term, but in the long term, they’re going to hurt you. They’re going to hurt your health, they’re going to hurt your whole life,’” said Stroh. “Absolutely I’m in fa-vor of giving kids awareness.”

While there hasn’t been an official Little League release on the step-by-step process the organization will take to educate players, local of-ficials are eager to hear the plan.

“It’s got to be a top pri-

ority,” said Petit. “It’s a top priority thing now, with ste-roids and stuff like that, be-cause if players start doing it while they’re in high school and college, then they’re hooked.”

Little League has been working with the Taylor Hooton Foundation to help implement the program. The foundation was named after Taylor E. Hooton, a 17-year-old high school athlete from Plano, Texas, who took his own life in 2003 after using anabolic steroids.

Since that time, the foun-dation has worked to raise awareness of the dangers of performance enhancing drugs in young adults and athletes across the nation.

From Page 14

Title

in the first put Connecticut on the board, but California came right back again.

P iet i la-Wiggs singled again, this time through the pitcher’s legs, Espinoza beat out a high bouncer to the mound, and Mora crushed a 3-0 pitch from Connecticut starter Knight onto the hill well beyond the fence in right-center for a 6-1 lead.

Knight settled down af-

ter that, striking out the side in the third and retiring the side in order in the fourth. He went to the dugout hav-ing thrown 74 pitches, just 11 from the maximum allowed under Little League rules, but his teammates couldn’t produce one last rally as Mora held the New England champions at bay.

“We went to work right af-ter the game on Wednesday t h at (K n ig ht) pitched (against us),” California

manager Rick Tibbett said. “We wanted to make him work, foul some pitches off and get his pitch count up. They played a heck of game (Friday). We knew what they were capable of. We didn’t want the same situation to happen to us. We had to keep plugging away and getting runs.”

Note: California would fall to Tokyo, Japan, 6-4, Sunday in the World Series finals.

From Page 14

The IRS has launched a new Affordable Care Act Tax Provisions website at IRS.gov/aca to educate in-dividuals and businesses on how the health care law may affect them.

The new home page has three sections, which explain the tax benefits and responsibilities for individuals and families, employers and other or-ganizations, with links and information for each group.

The site provides infor-mation about tax provi-sions that are in effect now and those that will go into effect in 2014 and beyond.

Topics include premium tax credits for individuals, new benefits and responsi-bilities for employers, and tax provisions for insurers,

tax-exempt organizations and certain other business types.

Visitors to the new site will find information about the law and its provisions, legal guidance, the latest news, frequently asked questions and links to ad-ditional resources.

Several other federal agencies have a role in implementing the health care law, including the Department of Health and Human Services, which has primary responsibility.

To help locate additional online resources from the Department of Health and Human Services , the Department of Labor and the Small Business Administration, the IRS has issued a new Web-based flyer — Healthcare Law Online Resources (www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p5093.pdf).

IRS launches website to explain Obamacare IRS Press Release

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For plenty of middle-aged men across the country, it’s the most wonderful time of the year (cue the poor-ly-timed holiday music.)

Football at all levels is just around the corner. And with the return of football comes the chance for everyone to become a champion … of their respective fantasy foot-ball league.

I’ve reveled in fantasy football over the past several years. Yet I don’t claim to be an expert, by any means.

What I can offer you, though, is some advice on what not-to-do when draft-ing your fantasy football team.

And after a weekend com-prised of two drafts -- one with a lump sum of money attached to it -- I feel as though I’ve grown from a

young grasshopper to a wise sense in terms of how to avoid a poor draft.

That, and I’m talking up my teams as best I can, try-ing to reassure myself that I didn’t make any mistakes.

So without further ado, here is some rational advice from a seasoned vet on what to avoid in your drafting war room:

1) Being greenGoing green is one of the

better things you can do for the environment. Being green going into your draft could prove disastrous.

Making sure you’ve read up on the league rules and regulations is a must, espe-cially if you and your friends score in an unorthodox fashion. Also, make sure you know which pros are in-jured, or simply not playing.

No one wants to be that guy who drafts Rob Gronkowski, who won’t be back until mid-September at

the earliest (this guy!).Even worse is the guy who

drafts Aaron Hernandez and pencils him in as their backup tight end (not this guy!).

2) The player who’s past his prime

Sometimes it’s tough to pass on the Randy Moss’s of a generation, but if you’re still planning on drafting Chad Johnson, you might as well call it a year right now. Johnson, while still listed as an available player on Yahoo.com, has yet to land on a roster and probably won’t, ever again.

While an extreme case, avoiding players similar to those in Johnson’s situation (i.e. Willis McGahee, Plaxico Burress, Tim Tebow) is a must.

3) Playing favoritesIt’s hard not to play fa-

vorites when someone from your favorite team is on the board. But if you draft five

offensive players from the Buffalo Bills, you’re not mak-ing the playoffs this year, or any year.

It’s alright to choose one, maybe two players from your favorite team, but don’t bog yourself down by draft-ing the whole team. If the of-fense has a bad week, no one will score you any points.

Likewise, try to avoid do-ing the same with any team, even if they do happen to be an offensive powerhouse.

While drafting Aaron Rodgers and James Jones may seem logical due to the big-point possibilities, it could blow up in your face if Rodgers has an off week and throws three interceptions.

4) OverdraftingThere are several forms

of overdrafting to discuss. The first is when you should draft your defense and kicker. Before this year, I had always been one to try to fill up my entire starting roster

before filling in my bench positions. It only seemed natural to get a good defen-sive/special teams unit and kicker before the top teams and players were gone. However, drafting a kicker in the 10th round (of a 14-round draft) just because you want to round out your starters is not a good idea. Trust me, I would know.

Instead, wait for some-one else to break the seal on defensive/special teams units and kickers. You may not get the top option at those positions, but it gives you a chance to strengthen your bench for when you’ll need to replace someone on their bye week, or an injured player.

The second form of over-drafting is in regards to those crucial first couple of rounds when all the top tal-ent is flying off the board. If

Fantasy football players, avoid these pitfallsBy Nate BrownSpecial to Town Times

Commentary

See Pitfalls / Page 18

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CLASSIC MOVIE, CLASSIC BOAT

Former Durham resident, Fred Wintsch, spent two years building a replica of the African Queen. The 23 foot boat has a wood burner, enabling the steam engine to push the craft to 5 knots. The boat is moored on Highland Lake in Maine. | Submitted by

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Durham LibraryH o u r s : M o n d ay t o

Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more infor-mation: (860) 349-9544 or www.durhamlibrary.org.

F a r m e r s ’ M a r k e t Storytime on the Durham Green (all ages) is sched-uled for Thursdays, through Sept. 6 at 4:30 p.m.

Visit www.durhamlibrary.org to search the catalog, re-view your account, register for a program or renew your materials online. For infor-mation or to register for a program by phone, call (860) 349-9544.

Levi E. Coe Library414 Main St., Middlefield,

(860) 349-3857 or www.leviecoe.com.

H o u r s : M o n d a y s -Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The library is closed Saturdays for the summer.

August programsAnnual meetingLevi E. Coe’s 2013 annual

meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 11, at 6:30 p.m. Connecticut author Susan Santangelo is sched-uled to speak. Call the library at (860) 349-3857 to register.

Museum passesLevi E. Coe Library now

has a pass to the New Britain Museum of American Art. Other passes include Beardsley Zoo, Connecticut’s Old State House, Connecticut’s State Parks and Forests, The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, Mystic Aquarium

and Wadsworth Atheneum.

Russell LibraryRussell Library, located at

123 Broad St. in Middletown, is open from 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Fridays, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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For School District 13, which covers Durham and Middlefield, interim Superintendent Ernest Perlini said CMT scores were a “mixed bag” with seventh and eighth grade classes showing good growth, but slight drop-offs with grades 3-6.

“Overall I’d say our scores are a little bit better than what was predicted and shown at the state level,” Perlini said.

In Plainville, Superin-tendent Jeffrey Kitching said he was pleased with stu-dents’ performances over-all considering the district has been preparing for the new Common Core State Standards.

“We’ve been gearing up for the last year and a half now for the Common Core and the changes and assessment that are coming,” Kitching said. “So we certainly did not spend as much time and con-cern over the CMTs this year as we have because, really,

we’ve been working on re-aligning our own assessments to get ready for the Common Core.”

Cheshire Superintendent Greg Florio said there were some slight drops for CMT scores, but the changes come from different groups of students.

“If you look at year over year for the same grade, there were some drops,” Florio conceded. “But if you look at cohorts of students as they went from one grade level to the next grade level, there’s less change.”

Kitching said a whole new math program implemented last year isn’t really aligned to the CMT, but rather to the Common Core. Though he said middle school math scores were up across the boards for the district.

“Our efforts have really been around that, not as spe-cifically on the content of the CMTs as they have in the past,” Kitching said.

Florio also said CMT math could have been affected by preparing for the new alignment.

“We have been focusing on implementing the math standards,” he said. “So that’s where we probably saw a lit-tle bit more of a drop.”

Southington Superintendent Joseph V. Erardi Jr. is pleased Southington didn’t follow the trends mapped out by ConnCAN and exhibited strong scores in both CMT and CAPT. He did say he thinks the declines shown can be attributed to the tran-sition to the Common Core.

“The message I’ll share with all that convocation is that the benefit to our meth-odology of work is we don’t teach to the test, we attempt to offer great instruction in all classrooms,” Erardi said. “And when you do that, you’re not predicated on what test you’re taking as you’re preparing children for all op-portunities, I think that’s the reason why we did so well.”

For the CAPT, Kitching and Florio both said their districts did well, showing slight gains. Florio said the best improve-ments were in science and math.

“Science and math both went up to the highest level I think we’ve had ever in terms of students at goal,” Florio said. “And the other scores pretty much were flat, stayed the same.”

“We continue to see a positive progression at our high school CAPT scores so we were thrilled with that,” Kitching said.

Perlini said there were “nice improvements” for CAPT scores this year. Math showed an 11.8 percentage point increase, 13.2 in sci-ence, 11.2 in reading, and 3.9 in writing.

“When we compare it to last year’s tenth graders, we show some solid improve-ment,” Perlini said.

jsopchak @thesouthingtoncitizen.com

(203) 317-2337 @SCitizen_News

From Page 1

Pitfalls

you still need a running back and are afraid you won’t get a good one, it doesn’t mean you need to draft a mediocre one with your second round pick. I’m sure that mediocre back will still be available in round three, or four, or five, or maybe six. Instead, go after another position that you haven’t filled yet, such as wide receiver or quarter-back. Those players will be just as crucial to your team’s success, maybe even more so than your first pick.

Once again, just because Tom Brady and Drew Brees are off the board, it doesn’t mean you need to go into panic mode and draft Philip Rivers sixth overall because you’re worried you won’t get a decent QB in the later rounds.

Speaking of Rivers …5) Never Draft Philip

RiversPart of this advice is fact,

and part of this advice is pure pent up anger that hasn’t yet dissipated. But all of it will save you from a dreadful second half of the season (December and January; i.e. the most crucial part of the year) that has you consulting a Magic 8-ball, a shrink, and a Ouija board to see who is going to have the better Week 15 performance: Rivers or Mark Sanchez.

And yes, this situation ac-tually happened.

Stick to these draft day tips, and your team shouldn’t have anything to worry about, well, at least until the regular season starts. Then you’re on your own. I don’t give free agency advice. I’m

From Page 16not paid for that.

Speaking of payment, should you happen to win your league, I’ll take a 25 percent advisory compensa-tion in check form.

But cold hard cash works, too.

Middlefield Park and Recreation has sched-uled the first annual Lake Beseck Cardboard Boat Race for Saturday, Sept. 7, from 1 to 4 p.m. Boats must be made of cardboard and duct tape only.

The event features

prizes for most creative, most spectacular sinking and best team spirit, as well as music, food and a movie after dark.

Pre-registration is re-q u i re d by e m a i l i n g [email protected].

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The pavilion is a gathering place for the Valentis’ family and friends. | (Photo by Diana Carr.)

There’s nothing like the shade of a big, old tree such as this specimen in Durham. | (Photo by Diana Carr.)

Refuge

equipment. “It has many good features,”

Phyllis said, “like no phone and television, so we have a lot of privacy. We used to cook all our meals there, stay-ing until 10 or 11 at night. If

people came we’d have coffee with them. We don’t do that as much anymore. Now that we’re retired we have more to do, and Peter likes watching the news during dinner. But we still have lunch out there sometimes.” Although there

is shade all around, it’s the pavilion, with its three ceiling fans, that offers more respite from the climbing tempera-tures. Although not from this summer’s heat waves. “We stayed in the air condition-ing,” Peter said. “It was terri-

ble. I never saw hot spells like that before.”

“The pavilion means every-thing to us,” Phyllis said. “It’s a gathering place for family and friends.” Christmas songs aside, some would say sum-mer is the most wonderful

time of the year. “I love sum-mer,” Peter said, “because I don’t have to wear a fur coat, and because it’s gardening and farm market time.”

“You get so attached to the vendors and the customers at the market,” Phyllis said. “It’s nice to see everybody.”

From Page 1

Opera

of the overture to Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” ( a specialty of maestro Sylveen’s), the en-tire concert consisted of all popular verismo selections —i.e. Puccini and the realism operas, including “Carmen”. Tanner did not disappoint, and was graciously accom-panied by the CLO’s resident diva Jurate Svedaite, who sang familiar chestnuts from her repertory of Puccini’s Lauretta, Tosca and Mimi. As always, the CT Virtuosi breathed with its singers, and Sylveen kept the concert at the absolutely ideal length of an hour and a half. Perhaps the highlight of the evening was Tanner’s two arias from “Tosca”, and Svedaite’s “Vissi d’arte” from the same work.

Next season, the CLO and its resident orchestra, the CT Virtuosi, will launch their 11th season in November with a novelty (for them) — their first foray into Wagner with the “Flying Dutchman”, the production appearing at Middletown High School, Waterbury’s Palace Theater and New London’s Garde.

Also on the docket next spring, same venues, is even more Puccini — the be-loved “Madame Butterfly”, a company first. Svedaite will demonstrate her versa-tility by appearing as both Senta and Butterfly — roles like night and day in vocal requisites.

For more information or tickets, please visit thevirtu-osi.org or the ctlyricopera.org. To learn more about the CT Summer Opera Foundation and its educational outreach programs, please visit ctsum-meropera.org.

From Page 8

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Seniors

BocceBocce games are sched-

uled for every Tuesday at 6 p.m. on the back lawn of the Middlefield Community Center through mid-Septem-ber. All seniors are welcome. Drop in games. Bring a lawn chair.

For more information, call (860) 349-7121.

Renter’s rebateRenter’s Rebate Assistance

is available. 2012 Income lim-its are: single - $33,501; mar-ried - $40,900. Participants must be 65 years of age by Dec. 31, 2012 to qualify. Program runs through Oct. 1.

For more information and to schedule an appointment,

call Amanda at (860) 349-3153.

Get in shapeThe Senior Center has

scheduled exercise classes for seniors every Monday and Friday, at 7:45 a.m. Yoga classes are scheduled for Wednesdays, at 7:45 a.m. The classes are on a drop-in basis and free to Middlefield se-niors, age 60 and older. Bring a water bottle and mat. For more information, call (860) 349-7121.

Knitting and crocheting

Knitters and crocheters meet every Thursday, at 9:30 a.m., at the Middlefield Senior Center for coffee and knitting.

Bring your unfinished project or start a new one. The group also makes Afghans for the Middlesex Cancer Center and the MidState Cancer Center. Yarn and needles are available.

Blood pressure screenings

Free Blood Pressure Screenings are held every first and third Wednesday of each month, at noon, at the Middlefield Senior Center. No appointment is necessary.

Durham senior lunches

Senior lunches are of-fered every Monday and Wednesday at the Durham

Activity Center, 350 Main St. The Elderly Nutrition pro-gram is designed to provide nutritional meals, at a low cost to persons ages 60 and over and their spouses. To cover the cost of the meal, a suggested donation is wel-come. To make lunch reserva-tions, call Amanda Pedersen, senior cafe manager, at (860) 349-3153. Bingo is offered ev-ery Wednesday, at 1 p.m., fol-lowing the luncheon.

Dial-A-RideDial-A-Ride provides curb-

to-curb transportation for the elderly and disabled. This service can be used for med-ical appointments, shopping, banking and other places, and

is available five days a week. Call (860) 347-3313 for a reser-vation. There is a fee.

Senior exerciseSenior exercise is of-

fered Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at the Durham Activity Center. Two classes are offered: 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. There is no cost for Durham residents 60 and over.

St. Luke’s EldercareSt. Luke’s supports suc-

cessful aging and indepen-dent living serving veterans and elders. Free services pro-vided are friendly visiting, out-of-area medical trans-portation, transportation for elderly veterans to VA hos-pitals, grocery shopping ser-vices, minor home repair, information/resource refer-ral, individual case manage-ment, education/advocacy, The Gatekeeper Program, Access4Care and St. Luke’s Apartments on Broad Street in Middletown. For specific information on their services, call (860) 347-5661. St. Luke’s is located at 760 Saybrook Road in Middletown.

The Middlefield Senior Center is located in the Middlef ie ld Community Center at 405 Main Street. Monthly lunch menus can be picked up at the senior center or Town Hall. Meals are served in the Senior Café Monday, Wednesday and Friday. For questions or to sign up for any programs contact Antoinette Astle at (860) 349-7121.

Senior Briefs

Got news?

We’d love to print it along with your photos.

Send to:The Town Times

P.O. Box 265 Middlefield, CT [email protected]


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CATALES, Inc. , a 501(3)(c) non-profit, no-kill cat rescue, located in Middletown, seeks a mature and reliable volunteer to coordinate adoption events at local organizations and aid in adoptions at the main foster home.

The Adoption Event Coordinator will be re-sponsible for aiding in the placement of adopt-able cats by marketing them through national adoption days and monthly events. The ideal volunteer will be friendly, organized, and feel comfortable in-teracting with people. Experience with cats is a must.

Adoption events run once a month from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays or 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sundays. Adoptions at the foster home entail meeting po-tential adoptive families during adoption hours on Saturday and/or Sunday afternoons.

For more information, visit www.catales.org, complete a volunteer application or call (860) 344-9043. Catales will reply within 24 hours.

Catales volunteers

Those who like to sing and lift your spirits, be part of a family and contribute to the community may be in-terested in joining the Vocal Chords.

The Middlesex Hospital Vocal Chords is scheduled to resume rehearsals on Tuesday, Sept. 10, in prepa-

ration for the annual holi-day concert in December. Rehearsals are held every Tuesday, at 6:45 p.m., at the Msgr. Fox Parish Hall of St. Francis Church, 10 Elm St., Middletown. No auditions are necessary but proper choral singing capabilities are required. New mem-

bers will be accepted until Sept. 24.

The community oriented choral group has entertained audiences for 23 years with lively concerts showcas-ing a variety of musical in-terests. You do not need to be a hospital employee to join. Requirements are

that you love to sing and are willing to make a commit-ment to the mission of re-lieving stress, lifting spirits and healing souls with mu-sic. All men and women are welcome.

For more information, visit www.vocalchords20.org/ or call (860) 342-3120.

Vocal Chords accepting members

The Town Times welcomes submissions regarding upcoming events happening in the community. These brief items run free of charge. Due to space constraints we cannot guarantee a submission will be pub-lished on a specific date and content may be ed-ited. Send submissions to [email protected] or contact Marsha at (203) 317-2256.

If you have specific requirements for a sub-mission you must place a paid advertisement. To discuss this, contact Town Times sales rep-resentative Joy Boone at (203) 317-2313.

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Notre Dame Church, 280 Main St., has scheduled its monthly flea markets and tag sale for Saturday, Sept. 7 and Oct. 5, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The event will be in the church hall, rectory garage, parking lot and the side lawn of the church, rain or shine. The event features household goods, pots, pans, dishes, craft supplies,

sewing supplies, furniture, clothing, shoes, antiques, toys, collectibles, books, Christmas decoration and more.

A jewelry table will be set up inside. Breakfast and lunch will be available for purchase. Vendor space is available for rent.

For more information, call Bob Smith at (860) 349-0356.

Notre Dame Church tag sale1. Your body is composed

of about 60 percent wa-ter. The functions of these bodily fluids include diges-tion, absorption, circulation, creation of saliva, transpor-tation of nutrients, and main-tenance of body temperature.

2. For years, dieters have been drinking lots of water as a weight loss strategy. While water doesn’t have any magi-

cal effect on weight loss, sub-stituting it for higher calorie beverages can certainly help.

Food with high water con-tent tends to look larger, its higher volume requires more chewing, and it is absorbed more slowly by the body, which helps you feel full. Water-rich foods include fruits, vegetables, broth-based soups, oatmeal, and

beans.3. Cells that don’t maintain

their balance of fluids and electrolytes shrivel, which can result in muscle fatigue.

Drinking enough f luids is important when exercis-ing. Follow the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines for f luid intake before and during physical activity. These guidelines recommend that people drink about 17 ounces of fluid about two hours before exer-cise. During exercise, they recommend that people start drinking f luids early, and drink them at regular inter-vals to replace fluids lost by sweating.

4. Your skin contains plenty of water, and func-tions as a protective barrier to prevent excess fluid loss. But don’t expect over-hydra-tion to erase wrinkles or fine lines.

You can also help “lock” moisture into your skin by using moisturizer, which creates a physical barrier to keep moisture in.

5. Body f luids transport waste products in and out of cells. The main toxin in the body is blood urea nitrogen, a water-soluble waste that is able to pass through the kid-neys to be excreted in the urine. When you’re getting enough fluids, urine flows freely, is light in color and free of odor. When your body is not getting enough fluids, urine concentration, color, and odor increases because the kidneys trap extra fluid for bodily functions.

6. Adequate hydration keeps things flowing along your gastrointestinal tract and prevents constipation. When you don’t get enough fluid, the colon pulls water from stools to maintain hy-dration -- and the result is constipation.

--webmd.com

Water does a body good


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FaithNotre Dame Church

F a i t h F o r m a t i o n registration

Children not yet regis-tered for the 2013-2014 Faith Formation must register as soon as possible.

Registration forms will not be accepted on the first day of class.

Those registering chil-dren for First Grade or are new to our parishes must present a Baptism Certificate at the time of registration, if your child was not baptized at either St. Colman or Notre Dame Church.

St. Colman Faith Formation are scheduled for:

Sunday, Sept. 8, for grades 1, 2, 3 (8:30-9:30 a.m., parish hall)

S u n d a y, S e p t . 8 , Confirmation Year 1 and 2 (10:30-11:30 a.m., parish hall)

Monday, Sept. 9, Grades 4 to 7 (6 to 7 pm, Memorial School).

N o t r e D a m e Fa i t h Formation classes are sched-uled for:

S u n d a y, S e p t . 8 , Confirmation Year 2 (9 to 11 a.m., rectory)

S u n d a y, S e p t . 1 5 , Confirmation Year 1 (9-11 a.m., rectory)

Thursday, Sept. 12, Grades 1 & 2 (5:15 to 6:15 p.m., church hall and rectory)

Thursday, Sept. 12, Grades 3-7 (5:30 to 6:30 p.m., Strong School)

Teachers and assistants are needed for the follow-ing positions: Notre Dame Church, classes at Strong School-third, sixth grade teachers, assistants and hall monitors and St. Colman, classes at Memorial school-fifth grade assistant and Site Coordinator.

Holiday fairChurch of the Holy Trinity,

381 Main St., has scheduled its annual holiday fair for Saturday, Dec. 7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Made possible by the in-stallation of a new elevator, the fair will be held on two floors.

Vendor space is available for rent.

For more information, call the church at (860) 347-2591.

Xavier honoreesXavier High School has announced several inductees to

its 50th annual Hall of Honors Gala award. Individuals are chosen for the Saint Francis Xavier Award for their out-standing support of the Xavier community.

Among the six winners are Dora Braun, of Durham, and Reginald Simmons, of Rockfall. The awards will be conveyed at the Xavier High School 50th Anniversary Celebration on Sept. 14. -- Press Release Reginald Simmons Dora Braun

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Children’s mental health bill signed into legislation

On Aug.16, state Sen. Danté Bartolomeo (D-Meriden) joined Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in signing Senate Bill 972, “An Act Concerning the Mental, Emotional and Behavioral Health of Youths,” an initia-tive of Bartolomeo’s from the 2013 legislative session.

The bill officially became law June 24 and serves as a complement to the gun vio-lence prevention and child safety law which was passed this year by the legislature in reaction to the December 2012 school shootings in Newtown.

“While we may not be able to ensure that a Sandy Hook-type tragedy never happens again, this legislation is a crit-

ical step in creating a consor-tium of care across agencies. It concentrates on early iden-tification and intervention of our children’s mental health needs,” Bartolomeo said. “Having a system that treats mental health with a level of importance equal to that of general health is a personal goal of mine.”

Before signing the bill, Malloy said it was not often that a freshman legislator like Bartolomeo has this kind of impact on public policy. “These initiatives will im-prove our education and med-ical systems and quickly get assistance to the young peo-ple in our state who are strug-gling and need treatment. I commend Sen. Bartolomeo and the General Assembly for their unwavering support

on this issue, these initiatives will strengthen families and our communities.”

Bartolomeo’s child mental health bill passed the legisla-ture in early June on a unani-mous and bipartisan basis. It seeks to reduce mental, emo-tional and behavioral health issues in children through enhanced prevention, early identification and interven-tion, better communication and consistency between home visitation programs, and new initiatives such as the creation of a Children’s Mental Health Task Force to study the effects of nutrition, genetics and psychotropic drugs on children.

The new law (Public Act 13-178) has eight sections, and can be read at www.cga.ct.gov by searching bill 972.

Press Release

Voices wanted

Chorale Connecticut’s plans for the 2013 fall and winter seasons with an open rehearsal Monday, Sept. 9, at 7 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 159 E. Main St., Meriden. Rehearsals are scheduled for Mondays from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church. The Chorale will be preparing for its 2013 holiday concert “Joyfully Triumphant” scheduled to be performed on Dec. 7 and 8.

For more information, visit www.choralect.com or call (860) 621-1653.

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