Story walk fun slated for families at Osbornedale State Park in Derby

DERBY - Families will enjoy a self-guided Story Walk featuring a Caldecott award-winning book, Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears by Verna Aardema, now through July 8, 2021 in Osbornedale State Park. 

The park is across from the Kellogg Environmental Center and Osborne Homestead Museum, 500 Hawthorne Ave. 

Families and individuals of all ages are invited to walk around Bull Pen Pond as they read the story and learn about mosquitoes.  

Story Walks, which inspire reading and outdoor physical activity, were created by Anne Ferguson from Montpelier, Vt. in collaboration with the Vermont Bicycle and Pedestrian Coalition and the Kellogg Hubbard Library.  

In this story walk, children walk from one posted story page to another along the trail, reading a West African tale in which a mosquito lies to a lizard. 

This lie causes a series of events to happen in the story, including the sun not rising which leaves all the animals in darkness.  

To find out if the sun will rise again and if the mosquito will tell the truth, families walk around the pond reading together and discover this myth of why mosquitoes buzz in people’s ears. 

Along with the posted story are digital links to videos and information about mosquito behavior, including benefits and challenges of sharing space with them. June 20-26 is National Mosquito Control Awareness Month and the perfect time to learn about mosquitos and ways to reduce getting bitten by them.

Kellogg Environmental Center is open from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; masks are required inside.  

The park trails are open from 8 a.m. to sunset daily and are free of charge. 

This site is operated by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, State Parks Division.  

For questions or directions to the center and/or the Story Walk contact donna.kingston@ct.gov or call 203-734-2513.  

This is a press release from the Kellogg Environmental Center.

                                                

Save the date: Patronize The Hub in Ansonia, support Mead School PTO

 The Hub is located at 313 Main St., Ansonia.

Ansonia Food Services posts summer schedule for breakfast, lunch distribution

Sharing from the City of Ansonia Facebook page:

"The Ansonia Food Services has announced the summer breakfast and lunch schedule distribution spots, beginning tomorrow 6/15/21 through 8/25/21."

Nolan Field 10:30-10:50 a.m.

Armory 10:55-11:15 a.m.

Beaver Brook Apts. 11:20-11:40 a.m.

St. Joseph Church 11:45 a.m-12:05 p.m.

Ansonia Middle School 12:10-12:30 p.m.

Quaker Farms Fire Company in Oxford slates annual carnival

OXFORD - Quaker Farms Volunteer Fire Company will hold its annual carnival from 6-11 p.m. June 30-July 3 on Oxford High School grounds, 61 Quaker Farms Road.

There will be fireworks Wednesday and Friday at 9:45 p.m. Ride-all-night wrist bands are $25.

Credit cards will be accepted at the food tent. 

Happy 244th Birthday today to Old Glory

Flag Day commemorates the adoption by resolution by the Second Continental Congress of the flag of the United States on June 14, 1777. 

Fun fact found on history.com:

"Bernard Cigrand, a small-town Wisconsin teacher, originated the idea for an annual flag day, to be celebrated across the country every June 14, in 1885. 

"That year, he led his school in the first formal observance of the holiday. Cigrand, who later changed careers and practiced dentistry in Illinois, continued to promote his concept and advocate respect for the flag throughout his life."

Recuperation journey: Around the Yard - Part 39

 

So nice to be greeted this morning by yellow day lilies starting to bloom. The orange ones started to open a day earlier. 

Kellogg Environmental Center in Derby to host presentation on Black Governors

The Freeman Homestead at Derby Neck.  Nancy Freeman, the wife of Roswell Freeman, a Black Governor, is pictured.

DERBY - Join the Kellogg Environmental Center, part of CT State Parks & Public Outreach, at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 20 for a virtual presentation by Anthony Martin, PhD from Central Connecticut State University, Department of Anthropology.  

In recognition of Juneteenth weekend, Martin will speak about Black Governors and the historical connections with Osbornedale State Park.

From the mid-18th to mid-19th century, African- American communities in New England developed their own political and cultural structure headed by elected officials known as Black Governors or Black Kings.  

Black Governors/Kings operated at the local level and performed several important social functions including heading events, resolving conflicts, and advocating for the African-American community. 

Since 2010, Central Connecticut State University professors and students, volunteers, and descendants of Black Governors/Kings have been excavating the homesite of one, and potentially two, Black Governors: Quosh Freeman and his son Roswell. 

The excavation in Osbornedale State Park aims to raise awareness of the Black Governors as part of the historic African-American presence in Derby.

Additionally, since the homesite was occupied for 110 years, the archaeological site provides an understanding of the daily life of three generations of the Freemans and their establishment and maintaining of home place across a racialized landscape. 

Online access details will be shared with registered participants. 

Please register for the free webinar through the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Calendar of Events   https://www.depdata.ct.gov/calendar or contact donna.kingston@ct.gov for registration assistance.

The Kellogg Environmental Center, a facility of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s State Parks & Public Outreach Division, is open 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. It is located at 500 Hawthorne Ave. 

For further information or directions email donna.kingston@ct.gov or call 203-734-2513. 

This is a press release from the Kellogg Environmental Center.