Newtown resident Ross MacDonald will be the guest lecturer at WestConn next week, when the university continues its 2019 Spring Semester Master of Fine Arts lecture series. Ross is scheduled to be in Room 144 of the university’s Visual and Performing Arts Center, on WCSU’s westside campus, 43 Lake Avenue Extension in Danbury, on Tuesday, March 5. His program will begin at 11:30 am and will continue the series that hosts artists whose critically acclaimed works span a wide spectrum. Ross’s illustrations have appeared in scores of publications. The lectures are free, but registration is requested and can be done through wcsuvpac.eventbrite.com. Additional information can also be obtained by calling the WCSU Department of Art at 203-837-8403.

Who wouldn’t want to win $50 or $100? The Newtown Bee “Bee Abroad” contest is offering you that opportunity. Take a copy of The Bee with you when you travel, take a photo of you with the paper at a recognizable landmark or sign, and share it with readers via editor@thebee.com, subject line Bee Abroad. In January 2020, we will award the traveler who has traveled the furthest from Newtown with $100; as well as $50 for the travelers who found themselves (and the paper) at the furthers point north and the furthest point south. I’m looking forward to finding out where in the world folks are going.

Speaking of prizes, congratulations to advertising and editorial staff of The Newtown Bee. Both departments left the February 15-16 New England Newspaper & Press Association conference in Boston last weekend with awards. Check out the story elsewhere in this issue of the paper for the happy details.

The fields of Newtown are full of coyotes — I know, I hear them yip-yip-yipping frequently. One of the many town coyotes took a casual stroll across Ram Pasture last Saturday morning, and Peggy Jepsen shared a photo of one trotting purposefully across the snowy grounds.

Clay Dates Potters Karen Pinto, Ros Liljengren, and Roberta Ahuja will be at the SCAN Winter Show & Sale reception Wednesday, February 27, from 3 to 4:30 pm, at the Newtown Municipal Center, 3 Primrose Street. Meet the potters whose display is the inaugural exhibit for the new Newtown Cultural Arts Commission showcase there — and see some beautiful works by local SCAN artists, too.

Do you know someone or are you someone who would love to be profiled in The Newtown Bee? The Snapshot, page 2 each week or online at newtownbee.com, introduces residents to readers through that popular Q&A column. Contact alissa@thebee.com to nominate yourself or others to be interviewed.

Looks like the Department of Transportation was on the ball; the blinking light on Route 34 at Bennett’s Bridge has been replaced. That light was in shambles on the ground after an earlier snow storm this month.

Tickets are still available for the rescheduled Third Annual Night of Comedy, a fundraiser presented by and to benefit Newtown Education Foundation. This show was one of the events rescheduled from January 19 due to weather concerns. Tickets purchased for the original date will be honored Friday, March 1; new tickets will also grant access to a performance by Alexandra McHale. Tickets are $45 for general admission, or $75 for VIP tickets, which offer premier seating and an onsite dinner catered by Sal e Pepe Contemporary Italian Bistro. For additional information or to purchase tickets, visit newtowneducationfoundation.org.

Congratulations to Denise Buzy-Pucheu, owner of The Persnickety Bride, on the first anniversary of the bridal shop/stationery store. Denise tells me she will be throwing a little reception for “our couples and their families” to celebrate, on March 3, at Nouveau Monde Wine Bar. The Persnickety Bride has been around for many years, working with bridal industry websites, but the 224 South Main Street is its first brick and mortar shop. Best of luck for many, many more anniversaries of this customer pleasing business!

Who’s your environmental hero or heroine? Aquarion Water Company is seeking nominations for Connecticut’s Environmental Champion Awards. Awards go to outstanding volunteers for projects that have “improved and protected Connecticut’s air, water, soils, or plant and wildlife habitats.” A new award this year, as well, is for “excellence in Connecticut-focused environmental communication.” Categories are for adults, students, small and large businesses, nonprofits, and communications. A special event at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo on June 1 will honor winners. To nominate, by May 1, visit aquarionwater.com or go to facebook.com/aquarionwater. Adult, business, nonprofit, and communications winners will receive a $2,500 grant to the environmental nonprofit of choice; the student winner will receive a $1,000 award.

FAITH Food Pantry has a longish wish list this week. Volunteers at the 46 Church Hill Road pantry are hoping residents can help them with donations of any of the following items: coffee, cookies, corned beef hash, juice boxes and/or bottles, ketchup, mayonnaise, pancake syrup, pasta sauce, salad dressing, tea bags, and tomato paste. Volunteers are there Tuesday mornings between 9:30 and 11:30 am and Thursdays between 6 and 7:30 pm to accept donations; there are no bins outside the building for donations, so please don’t leave anything outside. Village Perk Café in Sandy Hook has a basket for items that can be accessed any time the 3 Glen Road coffee shop is open, and the office of The Newtown Bee, 5 Church Hill Road, also has a drop box, accessible Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. For large donations, give FAITH Food Pantry President Lee Paulsen a call at 203-426-5604; she’ll work to arrange a time that works for you and the pantry.

Gordon Williams dropped by recently, and the former Main Street resident was already talking about this year’s Newtown Historical Society Homes & Gardens Tour. This year’s event will return in June. Although Gordon has a good list of volunteers from previous years, he still needs additional docents for two-hour shifts in those nice houses. He is also seeking homeowners who would be willing to open their homes and/or gardens for this year’s tour. Anyone interested is encouraged to contact Gordon at gmwllw@charter.net or 203-405-6392.

Time’s awastin’! Subscribe to The Newtown Bee now — prices creep up as of March 1, though you’ll still find it a bargain at less than $1 per issue. If you’ve dilly-dallied on subscribing, go — right now — to [naviga:u]https://classadz.vdata.com/NewtownCTCirc/SelectOption.aspx[/naviga:u]. After the first of March, rates for The Bee will be $38 for a six-month subscription, $47 for one year, $82 for two years, and $180 for a five year subscription.

Love your Antiques & The Arts Weekly? Here’s your chance to subscribe now before those rates jump on March 1. A six-month subscription then will be $65; one year, $92; two years, $165; and $400 for a five-year subscription. Visit [naviga:u]https://www.antiquesandthearts.com/[/naviga:u] for the best rate, right now.

Time may be awastin’, but I will not waste your time. Be sure next week to... Read me again.