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THE WAY WE WERE

MAY 24, 1974

Five days after Newtown's 1974-75 town budget was passed, additional expenses

for the school system which the taxpayers will be asked to approve were acted

on by the Board of Finance. Meeting Monday night, the Board approved two

requests for special appropriations from the Board of Education. The first, a

special appropriation of $198,400, to purchase 15 temporary classrooms for the

next school year, enabling the 5th grades to leave the overcrowded middle

school, was approved unanimously by the five present BofF members. The state

is expected to reimburse $98,600 of the cost. By a four to one vote, with

Chairman William Holcombe casting the negative ballot, the Board approved a

special appropriation of $125,000 for architectural and engineering fees to

design a school for the Boyle site, which is still being contested in the

courts. A town meeting will be called on both appropriations.

The Board of Selectmen and residents of Pootatuck Park took steps this week to

reach long and short-term solutions to problems which residents of that

private development in Sandy Hook are having. Seven neighbors of a section of

the Park attended the Selectmen's meeting on Tuesday night, May 21, to find

out what could be done to enforce regulations and get rid of such problems as

illegal discharge of firearms; garbage being strewn about the area; junk cars

and abandoned vehicles blocking roads; and improvement of roads. As a result

of the meeting, a clean-up day will take place in Pootatuck Park on Saturday

morning, June 1. Two trucks from the Highway Department will go over all roads

in the Park, and residents are urged to leave their trash piled by the sides

of roads so pick-ups can be made. The trash pickup will certainly benefit the

area, but those who attended the BofS session on Tuesday also wondered exactly

what could be done by the Town to stop violations which endanger the people.

Mrs William Mendola, of Tomahawk trail, asked whether laws could be enforced

to stop firing of guns, vandalism, and careless dumping of garbage. One of the

incidents which brought the residents to a point of action was a shot fired

through the front window of the home of Mr and Mrs Stephen Marton on Friday,

May 10, while their eight-year-old son was in the house.

In order to "clear the air" of charges raised by parents of Little Leaguers

concerning the management of the Newtown Little League and the Girls' Ponytail

Softball League, League president Charles Rideg has scheduled a meeting for

Thursday, May 30, at 6:30 pm at Newtown High School. According to Mr Rideg,

parents have been questioning policies for selecting which boys will play in

games, the use of registration fees and the use of funds collected recently in

a ball-signing campaign. Mr Rideg maintains that all charges of improprieties

on the part of the League's executive board are "unfounded," adding that the

board "does its best" for the 40 teams and 600 boys and girls who will play in

Newtown's baseball leagues this year.

The Planning & Zoning Commission has cleared the way for an international

greeting card firm to locate its American distribution plant in Newtown. The

firm, Gordon Fraser Gallery Ltd, plans to construct a plant of approximately

30,000 square feet on an eight-acre parcel of land located between Peck's Lane

and Route 25.

A Newtown resident gave members of the Democratic Women's Club a preview of

the alternatives which will face planners of a new health curriculum Newtown

schools as well as all other Connecticut schools will be required to prepare

by September 1975. Hans Boyce, a teacher in the Brookfield school system,

spoke on "Humanizing Education." He described his methods of forming a written

health curriculum around the needs of individual children for an understanding

of human sexuality.

Seventy-six members and their guests teed off last Sunday, May 19, in the

first Member-Guest tourney of the Newtown Country Club season. It was a best

ball handicap affair for the 38 twosomes playing; and with a great assist from

the weather, it was just a perfect day for golf. Ten teams came in under 60

net, but when the results were tabulated, Don Skalandunas and his guest, Paul

Whelan, were all alone at 68-56. There was a tie for first place in the low

gross between Sven Tilly and Jim Miller and the team of Bill Cerveniski and Al

Butash. Both teams had 66 best ball gross.

At their monthly membership meeting on Wednesday, May 15, the Newtown Jaycees

elected a new slate of officers for the year beginning June 1. They are Bill

Wiggins, president; Lee Davenson, external vice-president; John King, internal

vice-president; John Glaze, treasurer; John Dedell, secretary. The new

directors are Bob Brand, Ron Leddy, Cliff Lish, John Lotty, John Pallas, John

Quinlan, Bill Smith and Tom Storace.

Charter Revision Commission members, while seemingly circling the issue of

establishing a fiscal officer, apparently see more progress toward and merit

in compromise on a form of government than they like to admit, since all moves

to cut off deliberations are turned back. At the May 22 meeting they were

urged by William Meyer, a member of the former Charter Commission, to narrow

their considerations to simply providing the Board of Selectmen with the

services of a fiscal officer.

MAY 27, 1949

At the end of a two hour session last Friday night's special town meeting had

taken action appropriating funds and authorizing an attendant to more properly

manage the town dump. The meeting had also voted to increase the salary of the

first selectman to $4500 per year, effective October 1, 1949.

At a meeting held last Wednesday, May 18, in the teachers' room of Hawley

school, the Newtown Scholarship Association elected the following officers for

the coming year: president, George W. Trull; vice president, Mrs Felix E.

Baridon; secretary and treasurer, Mrs Alice Carroll; chairman of the

nominating committee, John Holian. The governors for terms extending from one

to three years were: Mrs E. Paul Kovacs, John Holian, Paul A. Cullens, Carl A.

LeGrow, Mrs Felix Baridon, Katherine Kirby, George W. Trull and Mrs Alice

Carroll. The Association is currently conducting a drive for new members in

order to carry on and extend its objective, namely, the payment of an annual

award or awards to one or more graduates of Hawley High school, a student who

combines need of assistance with promise of achievement in higher education

work.

Newtown's Memorial Day exercises will begin at 9 am at Edmond Town Hall,

whence the parade to the Soldiers and Sailors Monument at the head of Main

street will be led by members of the Charles Howard Peck Post, 308, VFW,

commander William Slocum, accompanied by the Raymond L. Pease Post 163,

American Legion, and the Auxiliaries of both organizations. Exercises will

take place at the monument. All veterans in town of both sexes and service men

and women are invited to take part in the parade and other exercises.

Townspeople are urged to witness the ceremonies.

At a Court of honor last Friday evening, May 20th, three Senior Scouts of

Troop 70, Newtown, received top recognition for their work in Scouting by

being awarded Eagle Scout badges. Formal presentation was made during a 20th

anniversary celebration of the Troop held in the Scout cabin, Church Hill

road, and was attended by Scout leaders in the area, representatives from

Pomeraug Council and interested townspeople. Walter Trumbull, Currituck road,

former sports editor of the New York Sun, made the presentations. Dominic

Digilio was in charge of the Court of Honor. Dwight Johnson is the son of Mr

and Mrs Hoyt Johnson, Miles Hill road; Richard MacTaggart, son of Mr and Mrs

August MacTaggart, Hattertown road; and Robert Richmond, the son of Mr and Mrs

Robert Richmond, Hawleyville. All three boys are 15-year-olds and are students

at Hawley High school.

Volunteer workers are needed to complete the work, recently undertaken by the

Newtown Branch of the American Red Cross, of making surgical dressings for the

Fairfield State Hospital. Mrs William Hunter, chairman of the committee in

charge, has announced that coffee will be served at noon, but that volunteers

should bring their own lunches.

Next Thursday evening, June 2nd, the Newtown Parent-Teacher Association, in

conjunction with the Monroe PTA, is presenting a comedy in the Edmond Town

Hall theater, the well known "He Couldn't Marry Five." Curtain is scheduled

for 8:30 o'clock. The Monroe group performing in Robert S. Clair's play is

doing it for the fourth time, having already played to large audiences in

Monroe, Trumbull and Fairfield. Molly Taylor, known throughout the area for

her ability, is directing the cast which is composed of Anne Hancox, Muriel

Meikle, Lorraine Tufane, Helen Ridgard, Helen Boyce, Barbara Luckner, Joan

McGrath, Gilbert Ridgard, Barton Ketchum, Jr, and Dorothea Lieberman. Members

of the local PTA who are in charge of the event are Mrs John Thorpe, chairman,

and Mrs Vincent P. Gaffney; Elinor Underhill, props; Mrs Henry Taylor, ushers;

and Mrs Alexander McQuillan, posters.

MAY 23, 1924

The P.T. Association is conducting a drive to secure money to buy a new piano

for the Hawley school. The piano now in use is worn out. However, that the new

piano may be taken care of, the old one will be placed in the gymnasium for

the use of the students and the new one put in the auditorium to be used only

on the occasion of entertainment or school functions. The Association wishes

to acknowledge and thank the donors of the following contributions and hopes

that next week there will be a longer list. No contribution is too small to be

accepted and appreciated: Mrs Susan M. Cole, $25; Dr C.H. Peck, $10; Thomas

Carlson, $5; Arthur J. Smith, $5; Mrs Grace Glover, $5; Miss Kate Reynolds,

$1; Miss Mary Lamport, $1; Mrs O.S. Stoddard, $1; David C. Peck, $1; Frank A.

Blackman, $5.

The Sunrise Hotel on Botsford Hill, which is under the capable management of

Paul Tversky, will open for the season on Decoration Day. Mr Tversky has had

the hotel renovated throughout. Mr Tversky numbers among his guests the family

of the late David Kesler, one of the best known actors in his day in New York

City.

James McGorey and Thomas Jennings have bought new Chevrolet touring cars of

the local agents, Lillis and Hurd.