Kellogg Environmental Center in Derby to feature photo exhibit in December

Blue and Gold Macaw

DERBY -  Visit Kellogg Environmental Center  throughout December to view photographer Peggy Boissoneau’s exhibit, “Inspire. Explore. Discover.” 

Boissoneau has traveled the globe for pleasure and business during her corporate IT and finance career and she continues to capture unique experiences through her photography. 

The Center will host a virtual reception Dec. 19 from 10:30-11:30 a.m. via Zoom. 

Join online as Boissoneau discusses her travels around the world and how she captured the planet’s nature and cultures through her photography. 

Registration is required. 

To receive the Zoom link visit the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection calendar of events webpage at https://coeearegistration.wufoo.com/forms/zhc37vv11qz4ca/ or contact Sue Quincy, 203-734-2513.

Boissoneau's photography has exhibited at several locations including the Connecticut Town and Country Club, New Britain Art League, Woodstock Academy, and New Milford Silo at Hunt Hill Farm. She is currently showing at the juried traveling exhibit at Southport Pequot Library.   

Please note Kellogg Environmental Center is following New Normal Health & Safety Guidelines for CT State Parks which provides important guidance for participants and visitors. 

It is available for review at https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/COVID-19/Health_Safety_Flyer_NN_Final.pdf.

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

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

This is a press release from the Kellogg Environmental Center.

                                                      

Rochelle to host virtual forum on domestic violence

State Rep. Kara Rochelle, D-Ansonia, Derby, will host a virtual forum on domestic violence at 3 p.m. Nov. 30.

The webinar will be held via Zoom, the web-based video conferencing platform. 

Rochelle will be joined by Lt. Patrick Lynch, Patrol Division Commander & Public Information Officer of the Ansonia Police Department; Meghan Scanlon, President & CEO of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence; Cindy Carlson, Program Manager at the Umbrella Center for Domestic Violence, BHCare; and Geralyn O'Neil-Wild, TEAM, Inc. Board of Directors Board Officer.

 

Participants will learn more about the warning signs of domestic violence, the power and control dynamics involved, and community resources available to those experiencing domestic violence. 

This will include legal rights, transition services, and counseling options, among other topics. Panelists will also provide an overview of the new 2021 law that expanded Connecticut's definition of domestic violence to include coercive control, among other things. 

Participants will be able to register for the webinar at https://bit.ly/3nIPsHQ.

 

"Domestic violence can affect anyone regardless of their background, and the warning signs aren't always obvious. The pattern of behavior may start subtly and become more aggressive over time. This forum is designed to help those experiencing or possibly witnessing domestic violence to recognize the warning signs and know where they can access assistance in our community. Our goal is to also empower people who may be experiencing domestic violence and friends who may wish to learn how they can connect a loved one who is experiencing domestic violence to support," said Rochelle.

 

The forum comes two weeks after an Ansonia mother of three was allegedly killed by her husband during a domestic dispute. This is the third woman in two years from Ansonia or Derby to be killed by a current or former intimate partner. According to the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, this is also marks the ninth known intimate partner homicide in Connecticut this year.

 

Domestic violence is a pattern of coercive behavior where one partner attempts to control and dominate the other through verbal, psychological, physical, sexual, financial, or technological abuse.

 

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, domestic violence has become more prevalent as residents experience isolation and grapple with unemployment and diminished access to necessities. 

During the 2020 fiscal year from November 2019 to June 2020, the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence reported in June 2020, shelter capacity was at 151 percent, spending $78,803 on hotels to temporarily house victim-survivors. In that same month, outgoing calls to ensure existing clients could access services necessary to be safe increased 97 percent from June 2019.

 

Attendees will be able to ask the panelists questions before and during the event using the Zoom chat function. 

Individuals who have questions they would like to ask the panel privately and confidentially can email them to Rochelle  at Kara.Rochelle@cga.ct.gov.

This is a press release from Rochelle's office. 

Winter concert on tap at Abundant Life Fellowship Ministries in Ansonia

 

Ansonia to continue Christmas tree lighting tradition at Veterans Park

 

Recuperation journey: Looking at the sky

My 'through the window' view of Tuesday's sunset.

Holiday decor at Osborne Homestead Museum in Derby celebrates 19th Amendment

Frances Osborne Kellogg

DERBY - Commemorate the 101st Anniversary of the 19th Amendment of the United States Constitution this holiday season!  

Visit the Osborne Homestead Museum and learn about the courageous women and men of the women’s suffrage movement. 

The holiday tours will run from Friday, Nov. 26 through Dec.18.  

Both self-guided tours and a limited number of docent-led tours will be offered Thursdays through Sundays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. 

On Fridays, Dec. 3, 10, and 17, the museum will present “Twilight Tours” to display the amber glow of the decorations from 4-7 p.m.   

 

For more than 30 years, volunteers have created the gorgeous holiday decorations at the museum.  Garden clubs and local organizations have decorated 12 rooms honoring the women and men of Connecticut, the United States, and abroad who fought for women’s suffrage.  

These talented and committed volunteers are Derby Garden Society, Friends of Derby Neck Library, Naugatuck Garden Club, Olde Ripton Garden Club of Shelton, Garden Club of Orange, Valley Arts Council, Women Redefining Retirement Milford, Garden Club of Woodbridge, and Ye Olde Kellogg Garden Club.  

 

This year’s theme, “Holiday Tribute to the Suffragists,” is a belated celebration of the centennial anniversary of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote.  

Frances Osborne Kellogg was a suffragist and auditor of the Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association.  She is among many of the activists who will be recognized in the women’s suffrage movement.  

Visit the Osborne Homestead Museum and learn how women won the right to vote.

Because your health and safety are our priority, the museum will offer limited docent-led tours at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m and self-guided tours from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 4-7 p.m. during the Twilight Tours.  

Pre-registration is required for all tours.  

Register in advance by calling 203-734-2513, emailing donna.kingston@ct.gov, or visiting the online registration page at https://outlook.office365.com/owa/calendar/OsborneHomesteadMuseum@ct.gov/bookings/. 

Admission is FREE; donations are gratefully accepted. 

The Osborne Homestead Museum, a facility of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s State Parks & Public Outreach Division, is located at 500 Hawthorne Ave.

 

The New Normal Health & Safety Guidelines for CT State Parks provides important guidance for participants and visitors (https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/COVID-19/Health_Safety_Flyer_NN_Final.pdf). For further information or directions, please email donna.kingston@ct.gov or phone the Kellogg Environmental Center at (203)734-2513.

This is a release from the Osborne Homestead Museum.

'Turnback Tuesday' features 'comfort bags' provided to sailors in WWI

Turnback Tuesday remembers those who served in WWI.

This stereoscopic card shows the young men of the Navy. These sailors were expected to keep their uniforms in good repair.

Each sailor might have in their “Comfort Bags” provided with the help of the Red Cross such things as white cotton thread, khaki cotton thread, grey darning cotton, sewing needles, spare buttons both black and white, thimble, scissors, soap, safety pins, common pins, small comb, toothbrush, mirror, handkerchief, pencil, writing pad, envelopes, postcards, pocket knife, and shoe laces.

The Navy League supervised the making of other articles such as sweaters, mufflers and wristlets. Leagues were all over the United States giving material to women who would knit for the soldiers at sea.

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