The final results from the May 9 No-Touch Can and Bottle Drive sponsored by Maple Craft Foods, Superior Remodelers, Associated Refuse, and Newtown Human Services are in: nearly $4,900 was raised from redemption of the bottles and cans donated — plus four truckloads of food. It all went to benefit the FAITH Food Pantry. Thank you, Newtown, for supporting this effort! By the way, revenue from the purchase of 40 Maple Craft Foods’ (maplecraftfoods.com) breakfast kits helped out our local food pantry, too.

Milford resident Juanita Castillo, a nurse, mom, and now a cancer survivor, tells me that she relied quite a bit on Nostrano Italian Eatery in Newtown for takeout while undergoing treatment at the Yale Smilow Cancer Center. The restaurant staff had been so good to her that she brought them a cake to thank them, and got a surprise from them in return — a free meal to celebrate her final radiation treatment. Congratulations, Juanita, on completing your treatment, and best wishes for continued health!

C.H. Booth Children’s Librarian Alana Bennison tells me that after several weeks of reading online and on devices, she’s sure many children are anxious to read physical books. The children’s staff is at the library ready to help with those requests, as we wait patiently for a safe reopening of our library. If you don’t have specific titles in mind, give the staff topics, specific genres, or reading levels and they will put together a grab bag of titles and arrange a time when you can pick them up. She also notes that the summer reading program will take place online this year, with no in-person reporting. Registration and reporting begins on June 16, e-mail help@chboothlibrary.org for information. “Summer Reading To-Go” packs will be available at outdoor tables on the front lawn of the library. Each summer reading packet will contain reading lists, a chain and lots of beads — so kids can reward themselves for reading.

Cailey Jacozzi (left) and Olivia Franson set up a “contactless” lemonade stand on Sunday, June 7, to support Griffin Hospital. All donations will help support the hospitals efforts in the response to COVID-19. Thank you to these two young women!

K9 Officer Axel of the Bridgeport Police Department underwent emergency surgery last week for injuries suffered when he fell three stories from a parking garage, according to a post on our own Newtown Police Department Facebook page. Any pet owner knows how expensive veterinarian services are, especially surgery, so if it is in your heart to help out BPD K9 Officer Axel, visit gofundme.com, search K9 Axel. It was expected that costs could tally up to $25,000.

Reverie Brewing not only has lifted up local businesses these past several weeks through the sales of a special brew, but the Church Hill Road brewery has also reopened for outdoor seating, 3 to 8 pm, Monday to Thursday, noon to 8 pm on Friday and Saturday, and noon to 6 pm on Sunday. There are social distancing protocols in place, so you may want to visit their Facebook page for those details. Let me just say, plan to not sit shoulder to shoulder and be sure to have your mask on whenever you are not at your table imbibing.

Meanwhile, up at Fairfield Hills, customers enjoyed the brews of Newtown’s newest craft brewery, NewSylum, at picnic tables set outside, at its Saturday, June 6, soft opening. (See related story in the Business section of this week’s paper.) Congratulations to this new business!

If you love cars and want to take a drive, Paradice Classic Cruisers, a member of the Connecticut Council of Car Clubs, is coming back to Litchfield Crossings, New Milford, on Tuesday, June 23, 5 pm til dark. The Cruise Night Extravaganza will be located between the parking lots of Panera Bread and Webster Bank, at the intersection of Route 7 and Dodd Road. Attendees are requested to wear masks and gloves and observe social distancing. More information is at paradiceclassiccruisers.org.

The Newtown Bridge Club’s Longest Day event to support the Alzheimer’s Association will be a virtual event this year. On Saturday, June 20, and Sunday, June 21, the proceeds from the virtual games on BBO (Bridge Base Online) will go to the Alzheimer’s Association. You’ll find more information at newtownbridge.org. In addition, Newtown Bridge Club member Cornelia Guest is running The Longest Day benefit Scrabble Tournament on Wednesday, June 17, on the Internet Scrabble Club online platform (isc.ro). There will be events for all ages and skill levels. Experienced tournament players can play a ten-game tournament at 10 am and/or a five-game tournament at 6:45 pm. Players are also welcome to play casual online games to benefit Alzheimer’s. Complete details are at drive.google.com/file/d/1X-WYtJ3ZPMJp2MM9FT314nROy15qetex/view, or contact corneliasguest@gmail.com.

And I hear from my friends at Beardsely Zoo that “singer-songwriter Javier Colon will perform in an online, Facebook Live concert to benefit [the zoo and Hall Neighborhood House], nonprofit organizations, on June 18. The Bridgeport native was introduced to millions of TV viewers as the winner of the inaugural season of NBC’s The Voice. Still a Connecticut resident, Colon was asked to help raise money for the two organizations, both affected financially by the COVID-19 pandemic.” The “Kick Off to Summer” two-hour performance will begin at 8 pm, with a link available for purchase for $50 per household. A combination concert ticket and after concert VIP Backstage Pass via Zoom is available for a limited number of viewers for $150. Tickets can be purchased online at flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/ODU5NzM=#!.

I am sad to say I have to erase from my calendar the September 26 and 27 dates I had set aside to attend the Newtown Arts Commission’s Annual Arts Festival. Word is out that COVID-19 uncertainties have made it impossible for this event to take place. It is a smart decision, with thousands of attendees, dozens of vendors, and hundreds of volunteers at the two-day fair, and no way to know at this time how safe it will be for a huge gathering come fall. Better safe than sorry, as Mama Kitty always told me.

I will safely be gathering news all week, though, and only sorry if you do not make time next week to... Read me again.