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TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN

During some of this week's beautiful weather I took a stroll through The

Pleasance and couldn't help noticing how good it looks since the new

landscaping was completed.

Young's Nursery of Wilton and Woodbury donated both the plants and the labor.

The staff of Young's planted a Kousa dogwood, Norway spruce, a bayberry,

winterberry, summersweet, and ornamental grasses. Topsoil was donated by Bruce

Sisko Nursery of Newtown.

The Pleasance has been a popular stopping off spot for lots of people this

spring. There have been picnics, family celebrations, games of bocce, and

other activities. Anyone who would like to use The Pleasance for an activity

should call The Bee , 426-3141, to be placed on the schedule.

Paul Alexander Jr is in Life magazine this month in an article that profiled

different types of dads for Father's Day. The son of Marilyn of Paul

Alexander, Sr, of Taunton Lake Drive and a 1977 graduate of Newtown High

School, Navy Lt Commander Alexander is raising his two children as a single

parent, and the photo showing the three of them in church singing is captioned

"Dad raising two kids alone." I understand Marilyn is hitting the stores in

town, leaving copies of the magazine strategically opened to the photo.

Actually Marilyn is home making up beds for Grandma Camp which starts on

Saturday. Her six oldest grandchildren, ages 7 through 12, will be flying in

from Florida and Virginia to spend two weeks in Newtown. Each year Marilyn

takes them to various sites of interest and this year will be no exception.

She is planning an excursion near Bradley Airport to New Gate Prison, the site

of an old copper mine that was used to house prisoners in the 1800s. The

prisoners spent their nights down in the mine shafts, Marilyn said. In the

morning they climbed out of the shafts on removable ladders and worked all day

making nails and shoes. At night, they went back into the shafts. Marilyn

figures a tour like this will make an impression that will keep the grandkids

from running afoul of the law.

Three local members of the law participated in the annual torch run for the

Special Olympics on June 11. Police Captain Michael Kehoe, Lieutenant David

Lydem and patrol officer Patricia Tesla ran in the event. As it passed through

Newtown, the torch made its way from Dodgingtown Market on Route 302 to the

police station. Torch event runners rested and had lunch at the station. They

then ran down Route 25 to the Monroe town line.

Hiram Lodge No. 18 of the Masons will sponsor a benefit hot dog and hamburger

supper Friday, June 25, from 5 to 8 pm, at the Sandy Hook Firehouse on

Riverside Road. The event is being held to raise money to help Sandy Hook

firefighters buy a thermal imaging camera for fire investigations and also to

benefit the operations of the Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps. Tickets will

be available at the door. Mason George Mattegat is organizing the event.

After dinner, plan to go to the Booth Library where the Chamber of Commerce

and the library are sponsoring a concert by the Easton Banjo Society from 7:30

to 9 pm. The concert is free, picnics are welcome. Bring blankets or chairs

for seating. If it rains, the concert will be moved to the pavilion at

Dickinson Park.

Public Works Director Fred Hurley is delighted with the two new above-ground

fuel storage tanks at the town garage on Turkey Hill Road. One 10,000-gallon

tank will dispense gasoline and the other will dispense diesel fuel. The tanks

replace existing underground tanks at the garage. Placement of the new tanks

to the east of the garage is intended to simplify garage operations.

Do you want the perfect shirt to wear during the summer at home, camp, or just

about anywhere? Members of Newtown's Senior Girl Scout Troop 611 are selling

official Girl Scout T-shirts in all sizes for $12. The scouts are trying to

raise money for a trip in August to the international Scout center in

Adelboden, Switzerland. Call troop leaders Cindy Pollock at 426-3462 or Patty

Gradowich at 264-4143 if you want to buy a shirt and support Troop 611 on

their maiden voyage to Switzerland.

We're going to miss one popular sports official who won't be present at local

games anymore. The Rev John J. Castaldo, who liked to referee four sports when

he wasn't serving as parochial vicar at St Rose Church, has been appointed

spiritual director at Trinity Catholic High School in Stamford. The

announcement was made by the bishop last Thursday, June 10, the day before

Father John was to start his new job.

Five-year-old Victoria Picerno suffered a severely broken wrist six weeks ago

after she fell off a slide at Hawley School. Remarkably, the kindergarten

student is already back playing baseball and soccer, and that has her father,

Russ Picerno, very proud.

There seemed to be an inordinate number of beach balls soaring through the air

at Monday night's graduation ceremony at Newtown High School. Invariably, a

ball would bounce behind the student section where a faculty member would

promptly deflate it, much to the disappointment of the large crowd. Moments

later, however, another ball would spring up, sparking muffled laughter from

the crowd.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal joined Brookfield First Selectman Bonnie Smith

and New Milford Mayor Art Peitler Tuesday night at Charter Communications for

a two-hour call-in show broadcast live on Channel 21. The show went well, but

of the nearly 20 callers who phoned in, only one was from Newtown.

Maybe that's because Newtown residents were too busy reading this column, so

be sure to...

Read me again.