News from Chester, Deep River, Essex and Old Saybrook
Have the kids been playing in the waves this summer?
Modern impressionist painter Lam has captured the moment in oils. Rich in color and energetic brush-stroke capture the moments that we want to remember.
Come see the art at the diane birdsall gallery, 10 Lyme Street Old Lyme.
Cocktail reception this Thursday and Friday August 12-13 , 5-8 pm.
The Con Brio Choral Society will hold auditions for new members on Tuesday, August 31 at 7 p.m. at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 56 Great Hammock Road, Old Saybrook. Prospective members need not make an appointment nor bring prepared music. Altos are especially needed but all voice parts are welcome. Con Brio, celebrating their 13th year, is an auditioned chorus of 50, both amateurs and professionals from the shoreline area. Under the direction of Dr. Stephen D. Bruce, the chorus performs spring and winter concerts. Their next concerts, featuring Puccini’s Messa di Gloria, will be at Christ the King Church, Old Lyme, on December 10 and 12. Their second annual “Mini Concert for Kids” will be presented there on December 11. For more information, call Marcia Ryan at 860-388-4110.
Republican and Democrat primary elections take place throughout the region today from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Republican voters will be selecting candidates for Govenor, Lieutenant Govenor, U.S. Senate, 2nd Congressional District and State Attorney General. Democratic voters will be choosing Govenor, Lieutenant Govenor, Secretary of State and State Comptroller
By Jen Mann
Why do kids get to have all the fun? Why can’t we have homework?
Well, my darlings, you can. My lovely friend TS and I have decided I will do a Summer Reading List.
There will only be six books to read. I will not review them so you can’t cheat.
Actually I may do two to inspire you.
I will otherwise be reading them with you. If you read the majority of them … you’re invited to the wine review that Shoreline Web News will host at the end of the summer (contact editor@shorelinewebnews.com).
Wouldn’t that be fun? You could have a drink with ME! Really, what better incentive could there be?
None at all.
Luckies. You will have the opportunity to speak with impunity to me about my choices. You hate them, you love them, I want to hear all! So buck up my friends, here’s the list.
In no particular order …
By Ann Nyberg
There are knitters everywhere. On Thursday evenings at Panera’s in North Haven, Conn. (see photo below left), you can find a whole table full of gals knitting and chatting away about their various projects, having dinner, solving the world’s problems and finding their zen all at the same time.
If you’re a knitter like I am, you find this kind of scenario just glorious. Creating something handmade that is all your own.
Knitters are notorious for doing things for others. Much of the time they are making something for others. That’s how we roll.
Just to show you my knitting is very much alive and well, here’s a vase cover I did … yes, I know, a vase cover?
These artists have to find their yarn somewhere and one place to do that is at Saybrook Yarn, in yes, Old Saybrook, Conn.
It’s right down the street from the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center. I serve on the theater’s board of trustees and don’t even get me started about how much I love that 250 seat venue … that’s for another post.
Anyway, at Saybrook Yarn you will find this to be a place that you will return to over and over. The owner and her employees are so friendly and so helpful. If you’ve dropped a stitch and it’s dropped down to who knows where, they’ll help you find it. The place is huge.
As I continue on with my Annie Mame blog, I will post about other yarn shops that I love in Connecticut … they have to be friendly or forget about it.
There are pattern books and needles and metallic threads in this shop. It’s just a great place to spend some time, hours really. It’s a soft ,cozy spot.
When you’ve had your fill of knitting for the day, don’t forget to spill out onto the streets of Old Saybrook, there’s a lot going on there, and again don’t forget to check out The Kate and its museum to the four- time Academy Award winning actress.
Katharine Hepburn was a knitter (see photo at right)—she called Old Saybrook her paradise.
Oh, by the way, my favorite site on the web for finding thousands of knitting patterns for free is Knitting Pattern Central … it’s all right there for you, truly, you’ll find every pattern known to man or woman. Just as many crochet patterns as well.
WTNH news anchor Ann Nyberg happens to believe the glass is half full and that there is magic in everything if you’re open to it. She believes in doing good for others, in enlightening people’s lives and in showing them the way. In Connecticut there are wondrous people and places to which she will introduce you in this column. This is a state rich in personality and in talent. She will share it all here with you. Think of her as kind of a one-woman, living, breathing, CT Chamber of Commerce! Read more from Ann on her blog at www.anniemame.com, where this article was first published.
Next Sunday, Aug. 15, Old Saybrook Historical Society celebrates Saybrook Colony’s 375th anniversary with two events.
The first part of “A Step Back In Time” is from 12 to 4 p.m. at Bushnell Farm, Boston Post Rd. in Old Saybrook, and features family fun with games, tours, demonstrations, hayrides, a plow pull, barn-raising, historical characters in period costume, story telling, fife and drum corps, weavers, spinners, and more.
There will be no parking on site during the afternoon hours. Shuttle buses will be available to and from the Old Saybrook High School for the convenience of attendees.
The second event takes place in the evening starting at 6 p.m. at the same location. Wine and beer will be offered and then at 7 p.m. a Summer Supper cooked onsite will be served buffet style under a tent. The menu comprises brisket, whole rostisserie turkey, corn bread, vegetables, and dessert. Music will be played throughout the event.
Tickets are $60 per person and reservations, which are essential, can be made at 860-388-2622, 860-395-1635 or www.saybrookhistory.org
The Old Saybrook Historical Society is grateful to the following sponsors for their support of this event: Herb and Sherry Clark, Reid Amusements, LLC, Essex Savings Bank, Guilford Savings Bank, Hadass and Matthew Rubin, The Sandra and Arnold Chase Foundation, Inc, Thompson and Peck, Shore Discount Liquors, Clinton and Deep River, and Lorensen Auto Group.
The popular SummerSings draw amateur singers from around the region to Old Saybrook on selected Mondays through the summer.
SummerSings, the annual series featuring major choral works, co-sponsored by Cappella Cantorum and the Con Brio Choral Society, offer singers of all ages and experience the opportunity to sing in an informal setting with noted choral conductors.
SummerSings are held Monday evenings from 7:30 to 9:30 pm. at St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, 56 Great Hammock Road, Old Saybrook. Registration for each concert is from 7 to 7:30pm. An $8 fee includes a borrowed score for the evening but singers are asked to bring their own copies if possible.
The SummerSings schedule is as follows:
August 9 Ed Bolkovac, New Haven Chorale, Haydn Paukenmesse
August 16 Noah Glynn, Shoreline Community Chorale, Rutter Requiem
For more information, visit www.conbrio.org or www.cappellacantorum.org or call
860-664-0668 or 203-458-0307.
The first annual Saybrook Point Bike Tour and Walk Benefiting LiveStrong and Valley-Shore YMCA will be held Saturday, Oct. 2, at historic Fort Saybrook Memorial Park in Old Saybrook. Registration begins at 9 a.m. Event goers have three options in which to participate:
◦a 50K bike tour beginning at the Park that passes through the scenic towns of Essex, Deep River and Chester along the Connecticut River, returning to Saybrook Point with spectacular views of Long Island Sound at the finish.
◦a 10K ‘loop’ around Saybrook Point taking in the same wonderful views.
◦a 5K walk that will begin at Fort Saybrook and cross South Cove to the picturesque Borough of Fenwick before returning to the park.
This family-oriented event will provide important cancer awareness information from health professionals as well as highlighting southeastern Connecticut’s first cancer survivors’ fitness program called Hope Is Power. Hope Is Power is a new program run by Valley-Shore YMCA that is designed to help cancer survivors regain their physical fitness and sense of well being.
A 12-week session is currently underway and a new session will begin in September. The program includes cardiovascular, strength and relaxation techniques to combat the effects of cancer treatment. The program is open to all adult cancer survivors, and is free of charge.
Proceeds from this event will benefit The Lance Armstrong Foundation and Valley-Shore YMCA, both 501 (C) (3) charitable organizations.
Click here for more information and to register for the event. Registration closing date is Sept. 25, at 2 p.m.
Rabbi Goldenberg to teach how to make holy days meaningful for families
Rabbi Rachel Goldenberg of Congregation Beth Shalom Rodfe Zedek in Chester will conduct a pre-High Holy Days workshop, “Making the High Holy Days Meaningful and Workable For You and Your Kids” on Sunday, August 29 at 7:00 p.m. The workshop, which will be held at a home in Madison, is designed to help parents prepare for Rosh Ha Shonah and Yom Kippur, the most sacred of Jewish religious holidays.
Rabbi Goldenberg said, “Whether a parent raising Jewish children was raised Jewish or not, it can be an overwhelming challenge to make the experience meaningful for all family members.” She will be offering tips on what to do at home and how to plan time at synagogue in order to get the most out of these important days. The holidays will be celebrated in September.
To RSVP and for directions, please contact Wendy in the CBSRZ office at bethshalom@snet.net or 860-526-8920.
Two lawyers from Clinton and Essex, each with experience as a local probate judge, face off Tuesday in a primary for the Democratic nomination for judge of probate in the new nine-town regional probate district that becomes effective in January.
Terrance Lomme of Essex won the party endorsement at the May nomninating convention, besting a field of six candidates that included Raymond Rigat of Clinton, the convention runner-up and challenger in the primary. After six ballots in which other candidates were eliminated, Lomme won the endorsement over Rigat on a 23-14 delegate vote. The new probate district includes the towns of Chester, Clinton, Deep River, Essex, Haddam, Killingworth, Lyme, Old Saybrook, and Westbrook.
Lomme, 62, has been a practicing lawyer for 30 years and is the most recent past president of the Middlesex County Bar Association. A Westport native, Lomme lived in Haddam and East Haddam before moving to Essex in 1993. He was the elected judge of probate in East Haddam from 1990-1993, leaving a year before the four-year term expired when he moved from East Haddam to Essex. Lomme is married to Bette Shea Lomme, a middle school teacher in East Haddam.
Rigat, 45, has lived in Clinton since childhood. Rigat has been a lawyer since 1990, including three years as a judge advocate lawyer in the U.S. Navy. He was elected judge of probate in Clinton in 1998 and has served three terms in the position, defeating Republican challengers in 2002 and 2006. Rigat and his wife, Karen, are the parents of children ages 14 and 10.
Both candidates pledge to serve as a full-time regional judge of probate if elected, transitioning out of private practice as the new court becomes operational. The most significant differences to emerge during a quiet campaign with no formal debate have centered on which candidate has the best experience and qualifications for the position.
Rigat said his three full terms as judge of probate in Clinton, the largest town in the district, has provided him with the broadest experience. “It makes you a more closer listener,” Rigat said, contending he has “considerably more experience than Terry Lomme.” Rigat also claims extensive experience with juvenile court cases.
But Lomme maintains his additional decade as a lawyer, along with the service as a judge in East Haddam, has given him broader experience in probate law. Lomme also contends he has a greater knowledge of the towns in the new district. “I have had cases at every court in the new district and I know all of the current judges and clerks,” he said.
Lomme has received endorsements from Democratic town committees in Chester, Deep River, Lyme, Killingworth and Old Saybrook. Rigat has the endorsement of the town committee in Clinton.
Rigat said Friday he has campaigned door-to-door at about 400 homes in Killingworth, Westbrook, and Old Saybrook, while also sending three mailings to all registered Democrats in the district. Lomme said he has campaigned at numerous local events in the nine towns over the past two months, and at municipal solid waste transfer stations in Essex, Killingworth, Old Saybrook, and Westbrook. Lomme has also sent mailings, and purchased campaign space on three large roadside billboards in Deep River, Haddam, and Westbrook.
According to the campaign finance report for the period ending July 27, Lomme has raised a total of $19,519, with expenditures of about $18,900. Lomme has largely financed his own campaign through personal donations and loans, though he recently received a $500 donation from Sharon Clark of Essex.
Rigat’s finance report for the period ending July 27 was not available Friday, though a report for the period ending on July 10 showed Rigat had contributed $6,732 in personal funds for his campaign.
The winner of Tuesday’s primary will face Republican nominee Anselmo Delia in the Nov. 2 election. Delia, a Clinton lawyer, was uncontested for the GOP nomination at the May 6 convention.
The new judge will take office in January for a four year term ending in 2014, with an annual salary of $110,000. The regional probate court will be located in Old Saybrook.
ESSEX— The board of selectmen Wednesday discussed parking in Ivoryton village and an updated town policy on the banners that are hung over West Avenue advertising local events.
The discussion of Ivoryton parking was prompted by a letter of compaint from a local woman who was recently issued a $92 ticket for briefly parking on the wrong side of Main Street as she returned books to the Ivoryton Library. The incident occurred on a Sunday, when the village was packed with the vehicles of visitors attending a popular show at the Ivoryton Playhouse.
The selectmen agreed the incident highlights a continuing need for additional public parking in the village, particularly when the playhouse is active. Most patrons of the playhouse park in a privalely owned lot across the street, at a charge of $5, but many also occupy other available spaces.
First Selectman Phil Miller recalled the town had applied for a state grant in 2007, seeking funding to purchase and improve the private lot. The grant application, which was opposed at the time by former Selectman Vince Pacileo, was not approved.
Miller noted that if the lot were sold by its local owner, and possibly put to other use by a new owner, the parking problems in the village would be significantly worse. “We’d be in trouble,” he said, adding “parking in Ivoryton village is still an ongoing liability that needs some sort of action in the future.”
Selectman Norman Needleman, who is active in the Ivoryton Playhouse Foundation, agreed that parking was an issue for all of the businesses in the village. Needleman said the playhouse may be ready to assist a town acquisition of the private lot while also opening up land it owns behind the lot for additional parking.
The draft banner policy would allow use of the banner spot over West Avenue for up to three weeks per banner. Banner requests would be accepted on a first come, first serve basis no more than six months in advance of a particular event. Local clubs and non-profit organizations would be allowed only one banner during a three month period.
The board also discussed the possibility of having a single designated contractor put up and take down the banners. The banner contract would be put out to bid on an annual basis. The board is expected to vote on an updated banner policy next month.
Essex, CT – On Saturday, August 7, the town green on Main Street in Essex Village will be a-rocking with great food and music, all for a good cause. The Essex Lions Club will host its 27th Annual Lobster Bake, the group’s major fundraiser with net proceeds donated to local charitable organizations.
Tickets are $28 per person and include a lobster or steak, potato, tossed salad, corn on the cob, ice cream, and soft drink. Shrimp, steamers, and clam chowder will also be offered a la carte for an additional charge and if you have a favorite beverage, you are welcome to bring your own. This year’s musical entertainment promises to add some extra sizzle with The Shiny Lapel Trio, a popular band known for putting the swing into every crowd, scheduled to perform.
Rain or shine, it all kicks off at 3:30 pm with dinner served at 5:00 pm until the close of the event at 7:00 pm. Traditionally, people arrive early to reserve a table and then go all out dressing them up for a chance to win the Best Dressed Table prize. Items donated by local merchants will also be raffled off. Tickets are available at Essex Detailing, That’s The Spirit Shoppe, Bogaert Construction, Bob’s Centerbrook Package, Essex Hardware or from any Essex Lion Club member.
The Essex Lions Club is a non-profit organization that has served the Town of Essex for over 50 years. During this past year, in keeping with the Lions Club’s support of vision-related organizations, contributions were made to the CT Lion’s Eye Research Center, Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, and the CT Low Vision Center. The Club also paid for eye exams and eyeglasses for Essex residents who could not afford them and made substantial donations to the Essex Library, the Ivoryton Library, the Essex Fire Department, the Essex Ambulance-Association, the Shoreline Soup Kitchen and the Tri-Town Youth Service Bureau. One special project this year has been to help the Ivoryton Playhouse with its new sound system. For more information on the Essex Lions Club, go to www.essexlionsclub.com.
By: Marc Sack, Northstar Wealth Partners
How will you pay for long term care? The sad fact is that most people don’t know the answer to that question. But a solution is available.
As baby boomers leave their careers behind, long term care insurance will become very important in their financial strategies. The reasons to get an LTC policy after age 50 are very compelling.
Your premium payments buy you access to a large pool of money which can be used to pay for long term care costs. By paying for LTC out of that pool of money, you can preserve your retirement savings and income.
The cost of assisted living or nursing home care alone could motivate you to pay the premiums. Genworth Financial conducts a respected annual Cost of Care Survey to gauge the price of long term care in the U.S. The 2010 report found that in 2010, the median annual cost of a private room in a nursing home is $75,190 or $206 per day – $14,965 more than it was in 2005.
A private one-bedroom unit in an assisted living facility has a median cost of $3,185 a month – which is 12% higher than it was in 2009.
The median payment to a non-Medicare certified, state-licensed home health aide is $19 in 2010, up 2.7% from 2009.[1]
Can you imagine spending an extra $30-80K out of your retirement savings in a year? What if you had to do it for more than one year?
AARP notes that approximately 60% of people over age 65 will require some kind of long term care during their lifetimes.[2]
Why procrastinate? The earlier you opt for LTC coverage, the cheaper the premiums. This is why many people purchase it before they retire. Those in poor health or over the age of 80 are frequently ineligible for coverage.
What it pays for. Some people think LTC coverage just pays for nursing home care. That’s inaccurate. It can pay for a wide variety of nursing, social, and rehabilitative services at home and away from home, for people with a chronic illness or disability or people who just need assistance bathing, eating or dressing.[3]
Choosing a DBA. That stands for Daily Benefit Amount – the maximum amount that your LTC plan will pay per day for care in a nursing home facility. You can choose a Daily Benefit Amount when you pay for your LTC coverage, and you can also choose the length of time that you may receive the full DBA on a daily basis. The DBA typically ranges from a few dozen dollars to hundreds of dollars. Some of these plans offer you “inflation protection” at enrollment, meaning that every few years, you will have the chance to buy additional coverage and get compounding – so your pool of money can grow.
The Medicare misconception. Too many people think Medicare will pick up the cost of long term care. Medicare is not long term care insurance. Medicare will only pay for the first 100 days of nursing home care, and only if 1) you are getting skilled care and 2) you go into the nursing home right after a hospital stay of at least 3 days. Medicare also covers limited home visits for skilled care, and some hospice services for the terminally ill. That’s all.[2]
Now, Medicaid can actually pay for long term care – if you are destitute. Are you willing to wait until you are broke for a way to fund long term care? Of course not. LTC insurance provides a way to do it.
Why not look into this? You may have heard that LTC insurance is expensive compared with some other forms of policies. But the annual premiums (about as much as you’d spend on a used car from the late 1990s) are nothing compared to real-world LTC costs.[4]
Ask your insurance advisor or financial advisor about some of the LTC choices you can explore – while many Americans have life, health and disability insurance, that’s not the same thing as long term care coverage.
2 – aarp.org/families/caregiving/caring_help/what_does_long_term_care_cost.html [11/11/08]
3 – pbs.org/nbr/site/features/special/article/long-term-care-insurance_SP/ [11/11/08]
4 – longtermcare.gov/LTC/Main_Site/Paying_LTC/Private_Programs/LTC_Insurance/index.aspx [6/25/09]
Marc Sack is a Representative with NorthStar Wealth Partners/LPL Financial and may be reached at www.NSTARWP.com, 860-665-7737 or msack@nstarwp.com.
