Derby Neck Library to host portrait drawing class Sunday

Sunday Crafternoon 

DERBY - Join Sarah for a fun and educational portrait drawing class from 2:30-4 p.m. Sunday at Derby Neck Library.

Please note: this is an intermediate class,  recommended for people who are already familiar with basic drawing techniques. 

Registration is required in advance. Call 203-734-1492 to sign up.

The Library is at 307 Hawthorne Ave. 

Shared from the Library's Facebook page.

From the 'Turnback Tuesday' archives: Washington's portrait

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" features Derby Public Library’s copy of the half-painted portrait of George Washington. 

Gilbert Stuart was commissioned by Martha Washington in 1796 to paint both her and her husband. In the course of painting, George Washington passed away and Stuart never started to paint Martha. 

This likeness of George was used on the dollar bill for more than a century. Copies of this painting have been found hanging in schools across America.

[First posted on this date in 2018.]

Thanks goes to the Derby Public Library staff for sharing interesting history each week.

Sharing 'Turnback Tuesday' memory about George Washington from Feb. 13, 2018

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" features the [Derby Public] Library’s copy of the half-painted portrait of George Washington.

Gilbert Stuart was commissioned by Martha Washington in 1796 to paint both her and her husband.

In the course of painting, George Washington passed away and Stuart never started to paint Martha. This likeness of George was used on the dollar bill for more than a century.

Copies of this painting have been found hanging in schools across America.

Thanks as always goes to the Derby Public Library staff for sharing interesting history posts each week!

 

'Turnback Tuesday' highlights Derby family's devotion to city

Turnback Tuesday remembers two of its own. Derby Public Library recently hosted an unveiling of a new portrait donated to the Library. 

The Crowley/Chromik family commissioned a painting of Mary Chromik Crowley and Martin R. Chromik. Mary and Martin were sister and brother who devoted their lives to the community of Derby. Both went to St. Mary School and graduated from Derby High School in 1937.

Mary worked for the Law Firm of Yudkin & Yudkin for over 50 years, ran for Mayor of Derby twice, and was the first woman in Derby to serve as the Town Chairman, President of the Republican Town Committee and Registrar of Voters. The list goes on.

Martin was the last Principal at the old Derby High School on Minerva Street, a member of the Derby-Shelton Rotary and of the Student Exchange Program. He was also on the Executive Board of the Housatonic Boy Scout Council, a veteran of World War II and so much more.

The portrait and bios are on display in DPL's Adult Reference Room on the main floor. Come and visit the library to see this and many other portraits in our collection. 

Thanks to the Derby Public Library staff for sharing interesting local history each week.

Family donates portrait of community leaders to Derby Public Library

Members of the Crowley/Chromik family pose at unveiling./ Contributed photo

DERBY - Derby Public Library recently hosted an unveiling of a new portrait donated to the library. The Crowley/Chromik family commissioned a painting of Mary Chromik Crowley and Martin R. Chromik.

Mary and Martin were sister and brother who devoted their lives to the community of Derby. Both went to St. Mary School and graduated from Derby High School in 1937.

Mary worked for the law firm of Yudkin and Yudkin for over 50 years, ran for Mayor of Derby twice, and was the first woman in Derby to serve as the Town Chairman. She also served as President of the Republican Town Committee and Registrar of Voters. The list goes on.

Martin was the last principal at the old Derby High School on Minerva Street. He was a member of the Derby-Shelton Rotary Club and the Student Exchange Program. He served on the executive board of the Housatonic Council BSA , was a veteran of World War II, and so much more.

The portrait and bios will be displayed in a prominent place in the Derby Public Library.

This is shared from the Library's Facebook page.

'Turnback Tuesday' from the archives: Father of our Country

This post came up today in my Facebook memories from Feb. 13, 2018. I always enjoy reading about George Washington. 

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" features the [Derby Public] Library’s copy of the half-painted portrait of George Washington. 
Gilbert Stuart was commissioned by Martha Washington in 1796 to paint both her and her husband. 
In the course of painting, George Washington passed away and Stuart never started to paint Martha. This likeness of George was used on the dollar bill for more than a century. 

Copies of this painting have been found hanging in schools across America. #turnbacktuesday

'Turnback Tuesday' features portrait of George Washington

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" features the Derby Public Library’s copy of the half-painted portrait of George Washington. 

Gilbert Stuart was commissioned by Martha Washington in 1796 to paint both her and her husband. 
In the course of painting, George Washington passed away and Stuart never started to paint Martha. This likeness of George was used on the dollar bill for more than a century. 
Copies of this painting have been found hanging in schools across America. #turnbacktuesday


A big thank you goes to the Derby Public Library for sharing interesting history each week!

Dedication of portrait at Derby courthouse brings back fond memories

The Hon. Joseph P. Flynn unveils his portrait Tuesday during a ceremony at Derby Superior Court. At left is the artist, Ansonia resident Nicole Salva. Flynn's wife, Marilyn, is at his side. 

DERBY - I started feeling nostalgic Tuesday afternoon as I sat in Courtroom B at Derby Superior Court waiting for the start of a ceremony celebrating the Honorable Joseph P. Flynn, a lifelong Ansonia resident. He is a retired Chief Judge of the state Appellate Court.

I guess I'm dating myself here but the event brought back memories of my many years working in the newsroom of the former Evening Sentinel newspaper in Ansonia. 
For those unfamiliar, the Sentinel was the go-to paper for Valley residents who wanted to know what was happening in their community. We published six days a week. On the seventh day we rested!

The Sentinel was closed on Christmas Eve, 1992. More than 70 employees got pink slips that day. I'm sure they would have preferred coal in their stockings. I was fortunate that I wasn't there that day. I had resigned seven months earlier.

Seeing so many Valley lawyers gather Tuesday in one room to honor Flynn, "a Valley guy," as colleagues described him, sent me back to a different time and place. Was life simpler then? It sure feels like it now.

I became acquainted with many members of the Valley Bar Association through my job, not because I had "issues" that would have required legal representation.

I won't name the lawyers who greeted me yesterday, but you know who you are! And it was truly a pleasure to see you, even if memories of the '80s made me feel a bit old. 

It was in that decade that Flynn was instrumental in getting the courthouse for the Ansonia/Milford Judicial District built on Elizabeth Street.  
I can remember when court was held in Ansonia City Hall in what is now the aldermanic chambers. And I also remember people who had a date with the judge lining the staircase leading to the second floor courtroom waiting their turn. 

Greg Stamos speaks
at Tuesday's ceremony.

Fast forward to Tuesday and Flynn, 75, was surrounded by his family and Valley colleagues who packed Courtroom B for the hour-long ceremony presided over by The Hon. Frank A. Iannotti.
Ansonia lawyer Gregory J. Stamos spoke of Flynn's lifelong commitment to the Valley community in both his professional and personal life. 
Flynn is a son of the late editor of The Evening Sentinel, Charles Flynn, who died in 1969.  
The Valley United Way's annual Charles H. Flynn Humanitarian Award has been presented since 1971 to recognize dedicated service to the community. Stamos said it is "the most prestigious award given in the Valley."

Flynn offered a special thank you to his fellow Valley Bar Association members. He joked that his father "detested lawyers as a group."

And as for the portrait that will hang in the courthouse? Flynn said with a smile that artist Nicole Salva of Ansonia "did an amazing job with what she had to work with."

There were several guest speakers at the ceremony. Please click here to read all about it in a story by my friend, New Haven Register correspondent extraordinaire Jean Falbo-Sosnovich. 

Flynn chats with the press after the ceremony. 

The heartfelt recognition from friends and colleagues of Flynn's dedication to the Valley and the state was much-deserved. I wish him all the best in his retirement.