Don’t be too surprised to hear bells ringing and, quite possibly, the singing or instrumental performance of some Christmas carols this Saturday. The Newtown Salvation Army is planning its 2023 Christmas in July Bell Ringing Campaign for Saturday, July 22. Volunteers will be staged outside Bagel Delight, Bottle Stop, Dunkin’ Donuts, Newtown General Store, each entry-exit of Stop & Shop, and Yankee Wine & Spirits. Donations from this weekend’s efforts will go to the Town of Newtown Human Services Department, to support the Salvation Army’s traditional Back To School purchase of supplies that are put into backpacks, as well as programs for residents who need some assistance.

Saturday afternoon, at least two young residents will be participating in Lemonade Stand in July Challenge, a national effort to raise funds for St Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. Emma and Hannah Dietter will be set up at the corner of Crabapple and Mountain Laurel Lanes from 2:30 until 4 pm July 22. The girls will be selling lemonade for donations. Their efforts echo those of children and young adults across the country who are helping St Jude’s find cures and save children. All are invited to visit the Dietter sisters, and don’t worry if you don’t have cash with you. The Dietters will have a QR code that can be scanned, which will send donations directly to the research hospital. We wish the girls the best of luck!

If you’re out running errands next Saturday — or just looking for a good reason to enjoy two local businesses with one stop — Newtown Hardware will be hosting a Customer Appreciation Day. After you stop inside 61 Church Hill Road and get what you need from Mike Sorrentino and any of his staff members, stop by Full Bloom Catering’s setup outside the store for a breakfast sandwich with coffee, tea, or a bottle of water. After 11 am, Dennis Bloom and crew will switch things up and move from breakfast to lunch with hot dogs and hamburgers, as well as bags of chips and bottles of water

Between last week’s Way We Were photo — an undated image from our files of two girls selling lemonade somewhere in town — and Emma and Hannah’s plans this approaching weekend, Reporter Noelle Veillette and Managing Editor Shannon Hicks found themselves sharing lemonade stand stories last week. Noelle recalled doing at least one, with an adult neighbor helping because “I wasn’t good at math, so she took care of the money,” she shared. Shannon told Noelle about the one lemonade stand she did with her sister and their best friends many years ago. “They abandoned me when they saw a police car approaching! They actually thought we were going to get in trouble, so they ran away,” she recalled, still laughing at the memory. “I honestly don’t remember if the officer stopped or not, but I do remember standing there wondering where everyone went.”

Have you ever participated in and therefore have lemonade stand memories? If you have any amusing or other special memories, we’d love to hear from readers with their stories. Send notes to Shannon, at shannon@thebee.

Organizers in neighboring Southbury have been leading residents in celebrating the town’s 350th anniversary all year. We received late notice last week about an event that Newtown and other local town inhabitants will probably be very interested in: “350th Anniversary Talk on General Rochambeau.” Damien Cregeau will be at Southbury Public Library this Saturday (we know, already a busy day here in town) to speak about the French nobleman who played a critical role in this country’s Revolutionary War. As many readers already know, Rochambeau’s troops marched right through Southbury and Newtown. In June 1781 while marching across Connecticut en route to New York, Rochambeau’s Army made its tenth camp in Newtown. The encampment was one of the largest in the state, with all four French regiments camping here simultaneously. One large group camped in Sandy Hook, a second large encampment was on land that now includes Hawley School, and a smaller camp for advance forces was west of our current Main Street. (Despite local myth, soldiers at the third location did not engage in target practice aiming at the rooster weathervane atop the meeting house.) Additionally, Rochambeau and other officers stayed within The Caleb Baldwin Tavern, now a private home on Main Street. The following year, on the heels of the successful siege of Yorktown, the army marched to Providence, R.I., following the same route and using the same sites in Newtown to again camp (Camp 41).

Saturday afternoon at 2 pm at Southbury Public Library, Damien — a nationally recognized scholar on the Revolution — will present a history talk on Rochambeau covering conferences with General George Washington, primary source material that describes operations between the two men’s armies along the Hudson River that year, the Siege of Yorktown, and letters between the two men following the war. Space is limited, and registration is requested. Contact the library at 203-262-0626 or visit southburylibrary.org to register directly.

The July Friends of Newtown Seniors Monthly Social will be in a new location this month: Cover Two. Readers in their mid-50s and up are invited to the gathering, which offers the opportunity to socialize over food and drink. This month’s event is planned for Wednesday, July 26, starting at 5 pm. Checks are the responsibility of each guest, so you’ll be able to eat and/or drink whatever you’d like. Reservations are required, however, to help plan seating. Contact Janice Garten at 203-304-9196 to join the fun.

If you decide to join that event, it may also be a good time to learn more about FONS, its mission, and regular activities. FONS is still looking to expand its Board of Directors as well as its volunteer base. If you’d like to learn more before reaching out, visit friendsofnewtownseniors.org. If you’re ready to talk to someone, mention that during the Monthly Social if you attend or contact the board at 203-430-0633 or info@friendsofnewtownseniors.org.

Edmond Town Hall’s 2023 Drive-In schedule was revised late last week. It appears Thursday evening shows are now off, including this week’s planned screening of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Additionally, next weekend’s plans to screen Monsters Inc has been updated to instead feature Spider-Man: No Way Home, July 28-29; screenings of The Muppet Movie, August 4 and 6, have been replaced with planned screenings of Dirty Dancing (the original 1987 version with Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Gray, of course!), the Thursday and Sunday screenings of Back To The Future (August 10 and 13) have both been canceled, and the August 18 and 20 screenings of Up have been changed to one of the seminal, 80s-generation-defining films by the late John Hughes, The Breakfast Club. Can’t keep track of all that? Just take a look at our Community Calendar, in print and online, for all the updates, along with other local events planners and organizers have shared with us.

The print edition of our Community Calendar generally features ten days of listings (space permitting), while our online calendar includes everything that’s been sent to us, even if it’s months away. Managing Editor Shannon Hicks can answer any questions about the calendar, including what needs to be done to have listings included in it (in short: send her details!). Send her an email at shannon@thebee.com to get that conversation started. There is no charge to have listings added to our calendar. One of its few caveats, however: The print edition only features events that are taking place in town (again, space is tight in the print edition), while the online edition will include out-of-town events upon request.

Newtown High School student Marc Maurath is continuing this year’s Kleats For Kids collection with a few special collection points next month. Collection bins will be set up at Treadwell Park during Newtown Youth Football practices August 7-11. Gently-used cleats can be donated between 6:30 and 8 pm when the teams are practicing. If you aren’t familiar with NYF’s schedules, there are drop-off locations set up at NYA Sports & Fitness in Fairfield Hills, and at Around Town Real Estate on Church Hill Road. Marc set up this project last year with a goal of collecting and donating 1,000 pairs of gently used cleats to under-resourced youth sports teams and community programs. He’s at it again, this time hoping for another 300 pairs of cleats. For additional details or to arrange a large donation of cleats, contact Marc at NewtownKleatsForKids@gmail.com.

I can’t donate any cleats, but I’m always happy to share my favorite advice during these wicked hot days of summer: Don’t forget to come back next week to … read me again.