For the first time in memory, the seasonal changing of the Main Street flag was postponed and delayed this season. Readers may recall the changing of the summer flag to the winter flag was originally scheduled for Saturday, October 26. A few scheduling conflicts caused that date to not work, so the changeover was pushed out one week, to Saturday, November 2.

Last weekend, the changeover was delayed a little. The event was planned for 8 am, approximately 20 members of Newtown Lions Club were on Main Street, ready to help Newtown Hook & Ladder, Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue and Botsford Fire Rescue, when a fire call interrupted those plans. The firefighters were already at Hook & Ladder’s firehouse when all companies were dispatched to a call in Sandy Hook. Instead of taking a left when they got to the end of Hook & Ladder’s driveway to head toward Main Street, the trucks instead turned right, toward Sandy Hook’s district.

Fortunately, it was a much smaller incident than originally thought. The firefighters planning to be at the flagpole for 8 am Saturday were able to circle back toward the center of town rather quickly. Keeper of the Flag Chris Gardner initially looked a little worried. “Well this is a first,” he said of the delay. Once he heard how quickly things were returning to schedule, however, he was able to smile, shrug, and wait with the others for the fire trucks to arrive. Which they did, within 15 minutes. Not bad at all.

The Lions have long worked with Newtown Hook & Ladder on that twice-annual flag detail. Hook & Ladder generally provides the ladder truck and manpower to raise and lower the flags, but their truck was unavailable last weekend, which is where Sandy Hook and its truck were called in for the assist. Botsford Fire Rescue Chief Andrew White went out on the ladder last weekend, however, to lower the flag in memory of BFR First Assistant Chief Pete Blomberg, who died less than a week earlier. Governor Ned Lamont issued a directive on Friday for flags to be lowered on Monday, the day of Pete’s funeral, but local firefighters opted to honor Pete for as long as possible.

Newtown Lions Club member Kevin Corey had a very nice memorial for a fellow Lion last Saturday morning. Steve Bennett was very often among those who participated in the flag detail, according to Kevin. Steve died October 7, following a long illness. Last weekend’s changing of the flag was the first in many years without Steve’s physical presence, but Kevin made sure he wasn’t forgotten. Kevin had taken the time to fill two large poster boards with photos of Steve taken over the years. One of my favorites was a photo of Steve holding one of the smaller flags in his arms, looking right at the camera and beaming. You could feel the pride of the retired US Air Force Captain in being part of that special detail. The collages were a beautiful presentation, and I saw many people smiling as they looked through the images of their late friend.

A reminder that flags are not lowered on Veterans Day. November 11 is a day to honor our nation’s veterans. It is not a day of mourning, but a day of celebration and honor. Therefore, flags are not lowered for the holiday.

Speaking of which, someone hung a flag from a pole on our property during the November 4-5 overnight. We tend to follow the rules of Eversource, however, which say nothing should be hung on a utility pole, so we took the flag down. If you’d like it back, it’s at 191 South Main Street.

Belated milestone-Election Day Birthday to Anthony Genna! I understand Anthony returned from college earlier this week, when he not only spent at least an overnight with his family, he also made sure he was among the first in line to vote the morning he turned 18. Yes, Anthony made a point of being home so that his first opportunity to vote would count on Election Day. He couldn’t stick around much longer, however. He was on the road soon after casting his ballot, heading back to school for a 10:30 am class that morning.

Nope, that isn’t a typo in this week’s Birthday Cake. The O’Brien family of Newtown celebrates two birthdays on November 3, and the celebrants aren’t twins. Siblings Harper and Paxton O’Brien were both born that day, just a few years apart.

We used to have someone in our Production Department who was a Birthday Twin. Kristen Angell and her baby brother Todd were born on the same date, in different years. When she was younger, Kristen’s parents used to tell her Todd was her birthday present.

A Drive-Up Food Drive for The Little Pantry at Trinity Episcopal Church has been announced for next weekend. Readers who would like to help the town’s newest pantry, which serves as a supplement to FAITH Food Pantry, are invited to drive through the church parking lot on Sunday, November 17, between 11 am and 2 pm. The easiest access will be by way of the 12 Church Hill Road driveway, the one shared with Newtown Hook & Ladder.

Organizers tell me the most needed items are jars and cans of pasta sauce, canned beans and vegetables, canned fruit, canned chicken or other protein, ready to eat meals, coffee, and toiletries. Grocery store gift cards are welcome, and will be used to supplement the pantry. The church’s youth group will be on hand to collect items and keep the line moving quickly. Opened in October 2023, The Little Pantry is operated by Trinity Church volunteers who collect and place non-perishable items in the standalone structure installed in the southern median of the church parking lot. Readers are welcome to leave donations at the pantry at any time. The items are available to anyone in need in the community.

Later this month, Newtown’s firefighters will again help fill the shelves of FAITH Food Pantry when they conduct the 2024 Fill The Fire Truck Food Drive. Members of Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue, Hawleyville Volunteer Fire Company and Newtown Hook & Ladder will again be in front of Big Y World Class Market on Queen Street, and members of Botsford Fire Rescue and Dodgingtown Volunteer Fire Company will be at Sand Hill Plaza, 228 South Main Street, on Saturday, November 23. This year’s event will run from 9 am to 1 pm — concluding one hour earlier than previous years — but everything else remains the same: donations of turkeys, food, toiletries, pet food, cash and gift cards will all be accepted, and delivered immediately to the food pantry right after the collection. SHVFR EMS Captain Karin Halstead continues to organize the annual event, always scheduled for the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

As noted this week, the town library will be among the entities closed Monday in observance of Veterans Day. Not only will the building at 25 Main Street be closed, C.H. Booth Library’s parking lot and driveway will also be unavailable all day. The library staff will be taking advantage of the holiday to work on some improvements to the facility. For everyone’s safety and to allow the work to proceed efficiently, the parking lot and driveway will be unavailable. This includes the return box near the rear entrance of the building. No returns will be accepted on November 11. Regular services and driveway access are scheduled to resume on Tuesday, November 12.

It’ll be a tight turnaround, but if you haven’t already done so, Newtown Police Department and the Town of Newtown are still hoping to hear from as many residents as possible for their Safe Streets For All-Newtown Traffic Safety Survey. Reporter Sam Cross spoke with Police Chief David Kullgren about this topic last week, so you can find plenty of information about the survey in last week’s print edition and online under our News tab. The survey takes most people less than five minutes to complete, responses are anonymous, and answers will help the Town of Newtown prioritize responses to make our hometown safer for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists. Here’s the wrinkle: deadline is November 8. The survey can be found at surveymonkey.com/r/Newtown_SS4A.

I appreciate you and your time. I hope you’ll do that survey to make it safer for everyone, including pets, to live in Newtown. I would also appreciate it if you’ll remember to come back next week, when you can … read me again.