Happy Spring! That's right - you might not feel spring in the air or see it in the icicles hanging from eaves, but this past Tuesday, March 20, marked the spring equinox and the start of a new season. Not to worry; even if snow covers the ground, warmer days really are soon to come, and the daffodils and tulips that poked up sprouts during the February "heat wave" will soon be pushing through again and brightening our landscapes and spirits. Patience, grasshopper...sandyhookpromise.org or call 203-304-9780.redcrossblood.org to find out where a nearby blood drive is being held, and please consider donating if you are a good candidate. While no blood drive is currently scheduled in upcoming weeks for Newtown, there are drives in our neighboring towns. A short drive and a couple of hours of your time can make a big difference.eventbrite.com/e/food-fight-ii-spring-break-culinary-battle-with-host-chef-plum-tickets-43903680089 are $25 and include beer, wine, and food. "Not to mention," adds our local chef, "an awesome raffle that includes a seat at the judging table for one of the guests."eliza@thebee.com. Details are found in the "Just For Kids" column, in the education section of the paper.

Mark Bresson got a call from his neighbor Sunday evening that he had a visitor in his Parmalee Hill Road backyard. "I yelled at him, he jumped, but didn't really act too scared even when I smashed a snow shovel on the porch railing," says Mark. The bear, who was after the bird feeder in his yard and "almost destroyed it" then wandered down the hill toward a stream. So keep your eyes peeled - these big mammals are coming out hibernation, they're hungry, and with the snow still covering the ground and grubs, those bird feeders are looking mighty tempting.

This past week, Sandy Hook Promise (SHP) joined with Students Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE) as it hosted its 15th annual National Youth Violence Prevention Week, a campaign to help raise awareness and to educate students, teachers, education administrators, counselors, parents, and the general public on effective ways to prevent or reduce youth violence. Hopefully, all of the daily educational promotions - Know the Signs; Promote Respect and Tolerance; Be an Upstander; Resolve Conflicts Peacefully; and Unite in Action were ideas well received that will raise awareness every week of every year, everywhere. For more information, visit

We heard from Pete Barresi last week, who was able to tell us something about a recent "Way We Were" photo. "The photo of [Hook & Ladder truck] Ladder 114 on February 23 is from one of the first Health and Safety Fairs held at the Middle School annually," wrote Pete, a longtime member of Sandy Hook Fire & Rescue. "We used to climb the ladder there and you could see Long Island Sound." We thank Pete for this information, and remind readers that we are always interested in hearing about photos that run in that weekly column. We also love receiving copies of photo to use with The Way We Were. See this week's WWW column for details.

Congratulations to Carine Boustany. Carine, a Newtown resident, is a finalist for the Connecticut Technology Council's Women of Innovation awards. The awards will honor women exhibiting excellence in STEM fields at a banquet March 28 in Southington. As US Department Head of Cardiometabolic Diseases Research at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Carine built and led a team that established large-scale alliances with academic centers aimed at identifying new drug targets strongly associated with the human disease. This initiative led to enriching the cardiometabolic diseases portfolio with new drug targets derived from human data rather than the typical preclinical models.

One little leprechaun, 7-year-old Mia Sullivan, dresses up like a green Irish imp, enjoyed a green bagel at "Miss Eunice's" (aka Bagel Delight) this past weekend, to celebrate St Patrick's Day.

Recent late winter storms caused the cancellation of several American Red Cross blood drives across the nation and in our own state, while adding to the need for blood supplies. Visit

Feel like taking a short drive to support another cause? Newtown's Chef Plum tells us that "Food Fight 2" takes place this Saturday, from 8 to 11 pm, at Ergo Chef on Eagle Road in Danbury. "Two chefs were picked out of submitted videos to compete in an iron chef-style competition," Chef says, "in front of a crowd in makeshift kitchens in the Ergo Chef Knives warehouse." The event benefits local children through the Samaritan Health Center. Tickets at

Of course, if you're taking part in Earth Hour on Saturday, you might find yourself groping about the kitchen. From 8:30 to 9:30 pm, local times, millions worldwide are planning to turn out the lights, as a show of support for stopping climate change.

The March 2 Bee Birthday Album free cake winner, Norah Rebar, was surprised to find her winning ice cream cake festively adorned by her mom, Catty. The unicorn look was her mom's special addition to the cake. I could only love it more if it was decorated like me (black cat with beautiful whiskers)! Remember that if there is a youngster in the family celebrating a birthday, be sure to send in an original photo to The Bee Birthday Cake. Not only does the photo appear in the paper, one birthday cake kid each week wins a delicious cake from Ferris Acres Creamery. Send a photo, birth date, and age, along with a daytime phone number to

If this weekend's Spring Egg Hunt at Dickinson Park (10 am - don't be late!) does not fit into your schedule, the 7th Annual Bunny event hosted by Business & Shipping Center of Southbury takes place Saturday, March 31, from 11 am to 1 pm. The free event at 385 Main Street South, Union Square Plaza, is not only a photo op with this season's bunny, but a chance to support the Southbury Food Bank. Anyone making a food or monetary donation to the food bank gets a free 4x6 photo with the bunny. Special treats for kids are in store, parents have an opportunity to win a $50 gift card for photo printing.

I'll hop to it, of course, to make sure I find the newsiest news in town. Promise me that next week you will... Read me again.