Category: News

B-17 “Aluminum Overcast” in Oxford Fly the Fortress At Waterbury-Oxford Airport! August 12-14

As part of its nationwide “Salute to Veterans” tour, EAA’s B-17 Flying Fortress “Aluminum Overcast” will be appearing at the Waterbury-Oxford Airport in Oxford, CT on Friday, August 12 through Sunday, August 14, bringing a living link of aviation’s and World War II’s past for residents of the surrounding area to enjoy.

The “Aluminum Overcast” presents an opportunity for the public to experience, firsthand, the allure of this historic warbird that helped turn the tide of World War II. EAA, a non-profit membership organization based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, embodies the spirit of aviation through the world’s most engaged community of aviation enthusiasts. The Oxford stop of the tour is hosted by your local EAA chapter 1443.

Public flights and ground tours are available Friday, August 12 through Sunday, August 14

B-17 Flights are available at 10:15 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:45 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 1:15 p.m. Friday through Sunday.

B-17 Ground tours are available from 2-5 p.m. Friday through Sunday.

Ground Tour rates:
· $5 per person

· $15 per family (adults/children up to 17 – immediate family members)

· Free – Children under 8 (when accompanied by paying adult)

· Free – All Active Military or Veterans (and spouses)

Flight rates (pre-booking available at http://www.b17.org or call 1-800-359-6217.
· $425 EAA members ($399 before June 30)

· $465 non-members ($430 before June 30)

JanetLeave a comment

Kent Sidewalk Festival Ready For July 28-31 In Litchfield Hills CT

The Kent Sidewalk Festival is scheduled for Thursday, July 28 through Sunday, July 31 and is sponsored by the Kent Chamber of Commerce.

I have enjoyed the sidewalk festival for many years and I am looking forward to visiting Kent this weekend for this festive event… If you like to treasure hunt for fabulous gifts amid a charming small town teaming with music and great food, this event is for you!

Every merchant and store up and down Main Street, in the Village Barns and on the Kent Green will be offering special discounted items, many in tents outside their stores. You will find great deals on women’s clothing at Terston, Country Clothes, Foreign Cargo and Wanda Elle, antique jewelry, glassware and collectibles at the North Main Street Market Place, David Armstrong prints and books at House of Books, shoes at Sundog Shoe and Leather, antiques galore at both Main Street and Rolling River Antiques, designer samples of wallpaper, pillows and more at LaVoie Color & Design, a designer tag sale at Kent Kitchen Works and a blowout on Reidel Glassware at Kent Wine & Spirit.

St. Andrews Church and the Kent Center School Scholarship Fund will have tag sales to benefit the work they do while the Library’s book sale will offer 10% off any purchases over $10. The volunteer fire department will celebrate their 100th anniversary with memorabilia and sale items near the library. As you go from shop to shop, be sure to enter the drawing for a Summer Shopping Spree at participating businesses. The drawing will be held Sunday at 2 PM on the Golden Falcon Field with a grand prize worth over $500 and 2 others worth $250 each.

Not to be left out, the restaurants in town will offer discounts and special food items. The Villager is open for breakfast and lunch, the Fife’n Drum will feature pulled pork sliders under their tent and popcorn at the Gift Shop, Millstone Café will serve Mexican churros, Smoked will have discounted prices while Webster Bank is bringing in their ice cream truck and Backcountry Outfitters will have Cheeseburgers in Paradise on Friday night.

Children will enjoy a Sidewalk Art Contest Saturday morning, face painting each day thanks to Kent Children’s Center. Fire truck rides from the new firehouse, several family exercise opportunities, a Petting Zoo at Three Monkeys and Me and Dancing on Main Street with the Earl Mosley Institute of the Arts are all part of family fun in Kent.

Music is another big part of the Sidewalk Festival with actors from Tri-Arts in Sharon performing excerpts from their current production, Hairspray. At Kent Coffee and Chocolate you can stop and listen to an Elvis impersonator that will sing your favorite hits. There will also be concerts on the porch at Richard Lindsey Bookseller on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. This year the Concerts will benefit the Fisher House of Connecticut. This house, next to the VA Hospital in West Haven, affords military and veteran’s family’s a place to stay near their loved one during recovery. The line up for the Concerts includes Andy and Jeannette Hicks, students from the Litchfield Jazz Camp, John Couch, Homegrown Band, the Joint Chiefs, Joe Bouchard and Bruce Wheeler.

Many merchants will also offer demonstrations and activities to inform and entertain. Fitness Matters Studio will offer free Juice Plus+ tastings as well as a polarity therapist, a resistance/stretching trainer and an energy healer Reiki Master (for a fee). Black Sheep Yarns has fiber related artisans doing demonstrations and selling materials, and Rolling River Antiques will offer chair caning demonstrations. You can get a Henna Tattoo at Terston for a $10 donation to the Kent Food Bank or try various fitness methods at Curves and Mountain Falls Fitness and afterward sample wine at Kent Wine & Spirit.

New this year and sure to be a big hit is Kent Cruise Night Saturday. This is a chance to show off your car, truck or hot rod. The event will also feature great food and music.

Not all events take place all hours each day, but there will be fun for all four days! Parking is available on the street and on the Kent Green property. For the most up to date information contact the Kent Chamber of Commerce at 860-927-1463 and check the website http://www.kentct.com. The mission of the Kent Chamber of Commerce is to bring local businesses together to develop and promote balanced economic growth that enhances the quality of life in our community.

JanetLeave a comment

Fairfield County CT The Historical Society of Easton holds Antique Car Show August 7

The bucolic village of Easton located in Connecticut’s Fairfield County is well known for it’s beauty. Scenically stunning, almost half of the town’s land is owned by the Aquarion Water Company, a major supplier of water for Fairfield County. A drive along the Hemlock Reservoir and Aspetuck Reservoir is pleasant anytime of year.

As you explore Easton, you will see the Bradley-Hubbell House built in 1816. This excellent example of Colonial architecture with a center-chimney plan and Federal-style ornaments is on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1912, Bradley descendants sold the property to the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company, which flooded much of the farmland for a reservoir and leased the house to one of its employees. In 1998, the house was donated to the Easton Historical Society, which is restoring it.

On August 7 from 1 pm to 4 pm the Historical Society of Easton will hold its 3rd Annual Antique Car Show on the grounds of the historic Bradley-Hubbell property. A grand exhibition of Model T-Fords and vintage cars will be displayed by Easton residents and Connecticut’s Crankin Yanks, a Model T Ford antique car association. Visitors are invited to view the antique cars and take a tour through the Bradley-Hubbell Museum and the 1860 historic barn.

The Bradley-Hubbell property is a landmark treasure which serves to educate adults, children and Easton’s 3rd grade students about the region’s rich agricultural history. The 1860 barn was a tool for the farmer who worked the land. Its existence tells a story of farming, family and community. A rare manuscript was found that was written by John Dimon Bradley, a descendant who lived on the property as a boy in the early 1800’s who describes in detail his family’s farming activities. Tours will include docent led demonstrations of the extensive collection of historic 18th and 19th century farm and kitchen tools used by farming families in the region.

Suggested Donation: $5 per person, children free; to benefit the Barn Restoration Fund. For more information contact HSEastoncCT@gmail.com. The Bradley-Hubbell Museum is located on Westport Rd. in Easton CT.

JanetLeave a comment

Annual Green Corn Festival in Litchfield Hills Connecticut

The Institute for American Indian Studies Museum and Research Center in Washington CT is hosting it’s Annual Green Corn Festival on Saturday, August 6 from 11:00 am – 3:00 pm on the grounds of the Museum located on 38 Curtis Road. The event will be held rain or shine. Adults: $10; children: $6.

Traditionally corn has been an integral part of the annual cycle of life for Native American People and this Festival celebrates the first corn of the season. Fun filled activities for the whole family including drumming, dancing, face painting, kids’ crafts, and more make this event memorable.

Highlights of the event include exciting Native American ceremonies including traditional Eastern Woodland song & dance with the Wampanoag Dancers & Singer, guitar music of Ojibwa musician & artist, Allan Madahbee and singing and drumming with the Sint-Sink Singers. A favorite of young and old alike are the Native American folktales told by storyteller, Janis Us of Mohawk-Shinnecock descent. Kids will enjoy Native American inspired crafts and facepainting.

Two not to be missed features of the Festival are the crafts for sale by local Native American artisans and a taste of traditional cooking including Pow-wow style food for sale in the outdoor Algonkian Village hosted by Dale Carson, of Abenaki descent.

About the Institute for American Indian Studies Museum and Research Center

The focus of the Institute has always been stewardship and preservation. In 1991, the name was changed to the Institute for American Indian Studies. With the name change there was a shift in focus to include education in conjunction with research.

The ethnographic collection of the Institute for American Indian Studies contains over 6,000 cultural items. While focusing on the Eastern Woodlands Peoples, the collection represents indigenous communities throughout the western hemisphere. Items vary in raw material composition – textiles, wood, stone, clay, glass, shell and semi-precious jewels – function and style from moccasins, rugs, baskets and leggings to containers, weaponry, personal accessories, recreational objects and fine art.

The Research & Collections Building is artifact-friendly with a climate controlled vault and spacious laboratory. It is home to an abundance of collections, both ethnographic and archaeological. It also houses both an education and research library, containing over 2,000 books and journals and is open only by appointment (860-868-0518 ext.109).

For museum hours and other special events visit: http://www.birdstone.org.

JanetLeave a comment

All Ferraris All Day Saturday, July 30 at Lime Rock Park in Litchfield Hills CT

For the first time in five years, the Ferrari Challenge race series is returning to Lime Rock Park in Litchfield Hills. The date is Saturday, July 30. The Ferrari Challenge is a six-event/12-race North American racing championship contested by amateur drivers who own either a Ferrari Challenge F458 Italia or Ferrari Challenge F430.

The races at Lime Rock Park are rounds nine and 10 of the 2011 championship. The last time Ferrari Challenge races were held at Lime Rock was 2006.

According to Ferrari North America, the Ferrari Challenge is the longest-running championship of its type: a single-marque sports car racing series. It is designed to allow Ferrari owners to compete with fellow owners on the world’s most noted race tracks. The first year of the series was 1993, in Europe; the North American sister series began in 1994.

This year, the series opened at Sears Point in California, followed by Laguna Seca (Calif.), the Canadian F1 Grand Prix (Montreal) and IndyCar Toronto. Lime Rock is next, with the finale at Homestead Miami Speedway in September.

At 184 points, Enzo Potolicchio of Venezuela leads the standings in the “458” division. Two Americans – Cooper MacNeil of Hinsdale, Ill., and San Francisco’s Harry Cheung – are just 6 points behind. In the “430” category, Chris Ruud of Wisconsin and Ryan Ockey of Calgary, Canada are tied for the lead with 134 points.

The Ferrari Challenge series is sanctioned by Grand-Am, the NASCAR-owned road racing organizer noted for its Daytona Prototype & GT championship (the series at Lime Rock this past Memorial Day weekend).

Joining the Ferrari Challenge at Lime Rock Park is the popular Shell Ferrari Historics Series; two non-championship races featuring vintage racing Ferraris.

Ferrari Challenge at Lime Rock Park is a one-day spectator event and includes the track’s usual amenities, including food concessions, Big Y Kids Club, free parking, kids karting and bounce house, 12 and under free admission and free paddock access. For adults, a full bar is available at “The Pines” café in the Infield. Tickets are $30 in advance and $45 at the gate. Tickets may be purchased online at http://www.limerock.com or calling 860.435.5000.

JanetLeave a comment

Public Gets First Peek at Piglets and Pygmy Marmoset at Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport CT

The New England Farmyard just got a little noisier and the Rainforest Building a bit wilder as Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo celebrates the birth of nine new piglets and welcomes an additional Pygmy Marmoset. The playful piglets join their Guinea Hog parents Hamton J. Pig, the lone male pig, and Olivia. The new Pygmy Marmoset came to Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo last month from Zoo Montana.

“Good things can come in small packages,” commented Zoo director Gregg Dancho. “Our new piglets are all happily eating, sleeping, and playing in their new surroundings; and the new Pygmy Marmoset is adjusting well to her new home.”

The public is invited to visit the newborn piglets in the New England Farmyard. Hamton hails from the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk, Virginia originally, while Olivia came from Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, Kansas.

The new female Pygmy Marmoset, named Eko, is 2 years old and has been in the Animal Care Center since her arrival from Montana to give her time to get acclimated to her new surroundings. She joins a male Pygmy Marmoset, Weechie, who is 5 years old and has been at the Zoo for some time. Eko was brought to Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo in order to mate, in keeping with the Zoo’s goals of animal conservation and species survival promotion. They were introduced a little over a week ago at the Zoo’s Animal Care Center before returning to the exhibit. If breeding is successful, gestation is usually four and a half months; with between one to four offspring expected. It is not uncommon for Pygmy Marmosets to give birth to twins.

Pygmy Marmosets are one of the world’s smallest primates. They weigh less than a naval orange and could fit in the palm of a hand. Unfortunately, these sociable monkeys are often victims of illegal pet trade, in part due to their outgoing demeanor and “cute” appearance. Their status is continually threatened due to habitat destruction, with shrinking rainforests worldwide. Half of these species call rainforests home, but have been forced into progressively smaller and less suitable habitats. Places like Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo, which focus on protecting such vital wildlife, are committed to studying animals like Pygmy Marmosets more closely and providing them with improved opportunities to breed and reside.

Guinea Hogs are quick learners with a substantial memory, using their sense of taste to identify objects. While the newborn piglets range in weight from one to two pounds, adult Guinea Hogs typically weigh 150-300 pounds and grow to a height of 21-24 inches. They are hearty grazers who forge for shrubs, weeds, bird eggs, snakes, mice, grasshoppers, roots, tubers, and even manure. They are gentle animals found in sounders (herds) and tend to call farms home, however, they may be found in deserts and mountainous areas, as well.

About Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo

Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo is closer than you think and features 300 animals representing primarily North and South American species. Visitors won’t want to miss our new Bald Eagle exhibit, Andean condors, Amur (Siberian) tigers, ocelots, red & maned wolves, Andean (spectacled) bear, llamas, vampire bats, and golden lion tamarins. Other highlights include our South American rainforest with free-flight aviary, the prairie dog exhibit with “pop-up” viewing areas, the New England Farmyard with goats, cows, pigs, sheep, and other barnyard critters, plus the hoofstock trail featuring bison, pronghorn, deer, and more. Visitors can grab a bite at the Peacock Café, eat in the Picnic Grove and enjoy a ride on our colorful carousel. For more information, visit http://www.beardsleyzoo.org

JanetLeave a comment