Schools/Sports

“What Fools These Mortals Be!”

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That’s what Puck proclaimed when William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream reached one of its delightfully confusing peaks in Suffield High School’s fall production on November 1, 2, and 3. The audience loved it all, and many spots had this reporter in stitches. Old Will, who wrote great comedy, would have thoroughly enjoyed this treatment of his work. The story tells how some elite citizens of ancient Athens, led by Duke Theseus, behave in the forest with the magical, mythical world of fairies led by King Oberon (Jack Burke). It’s all about love, with comic bits from a group of common folk who are planning to stage a play for the royal wedding.

Government/Town

Holiday Tree Gala Musical Performances

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The Holiday Tree Gala on display at the Suffield Senior Center from December 1 to December 15 features not only beautiful trees decorated by people in the community but also musical groups. The hours are from 1 to 4 p.m. every day. The trees will be available for sale, with pickup on December 15. Proceeds from the sale benefit the Suffield Garden Club Scholarship fund. Come enjoy the singing voices of the Suffield Middle School Elite Voices group as they herald in the Holiday Tree Gala on opening day, Saturday, December 1 at 2 p.m. They are a very active and dedicated group of members from grades 6-8 Chorus, under the direction of Laura Noonan.

Organizations

Young Gardeners Tend New Plots

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In a three-year program started in September, the Suffield Garden Club is creating attractive gardens in two little no-ceiling spaces, or atriums, within Spaulding School and a third out by the playground. The work is being supported by a memorial donation from the family of Garden Club member Priscilla Wabrek, who died in 2015. So far, plantings have been set for a “Sea Scape” garden in the spot across the corridor from the cafeteria kitchen. A much larger spot in process is down the hall next to the farther lunch room. It will have succulents, grasses, and cacti.

Organizations

SGC Receives Grant

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The Suffield Garden Club announced the receipt of a grant from the Fred and Astrid Hanzalek Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving. The good news was shared at the club’s November meeting held at the Suffield High School with students in the Agriscience Program. Our long-time member, Astrid Hanzalek, attended this event and was warmly thanked by all our members. The grant is for the special care of a few trees on Main Street, two of which are in front the King House. Included is treatment for the prevention of the Emerald Ash Borer.

Organizations

SGC Meeting

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The Suffield Garden Club will hold a monthly meeting on Monday, December 3, at 11:45 a.m. at the Second Baptist Church, Fellowship Hall. Coffee, tea, a light lunch and a short business meeting will be followed by a guest speaker at 1 p.m.

Our guest speaker, Susie Hanna of the Daisy Stone Studio in the Berkshires, studied floral design at the famous New York Botanical Gardens. Susie will demonstrate examples of holiday floral designs for the home, and her arrangements will be raffled at the end of the presentation. All are welcome to attend. There is a $10 guest fee.

Schools/Sports

Cancer Awareness

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The SHS Boys Varsity Soccer team seniors felt in the pink during breast cancer awareness month in October. From the left, in shocking pink jerseys are, top row: Blake Baskin, Michael Sattan, Evan Mankouski, Niko Ford, Will Motherway; bottom row: Brandon Bigos, Matthew Sweeney, Quinn Cardaropoli, Brendan Fitzgerald, Aiden Werenski.

Suffield Garden Club

Christmas History Facts

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Greetings, friendly reader! May your Christmas season be filled with joy and light! The first recorded display of a decorated Christmas tree has been traced to Riga, Latvia, in 1510, and the custom proliferated in Germany in the 1600-1700’s, as Protestant elites bedecked their homes and guildhalls with pines and firs garnished with nuts, dates and apples. Christmas trees grew in popularity in Germany throughout the early 1800s, and German immigrants to the United States brought the yuletide tradition with them to their new homeland. In his book, The Battle for Christmas, Stephen Nissenbaum writes that, in spite of claims that Hessian soldiers fighting for the British during the Revolutionary War erected the first Christmas trees in America, it was the Pennsylvania German community, likely after 1820, who first brought the custom to the United States.

Government/Town

Scare-It-Up Suffield

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“You’ve Got Friends,” the Friends of Suffield scarecrow exhibit in the Town’s Scare-It-Up Suffield event, held on October 20 at the Suffield Senior Center, won first prize in the “Spirit of Suffield” category.

Organizations

Winterfest and the Tunnel of Lights

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The Connecticut Trolley Museum presents Winterfest 2018 and the Tunnel of Lights beginning Friday, November 23. Winterfest will be open from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve. Santa will be onsite in a historic caboose for photos and to give a small gift to each child until he has to fly back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. Admission prices are $15 for adults, $14 for seniors (62+), $10 for children (ages 4-12), $3 for children (3 & under). On Friday and Sunday nights, ALL adults and seniors receive a $2 discount on admission.

Organizations

Local Project Provides Pet Shelters

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Local resident Susan Panaccasio created Project Pet Houses from an idea she had three years ago. The non-profit operation provides free houses for dogs (and feral cats, who otherwise live outside most of their lives). She realized it was crucial for pets to have shelter, especially during extreme weather. Shelter for these animals is especially crucial during the winter and summer months. During the winter, dogs and cats can suffer from hypothermia in just 40-degree temperatures, experiencing frostbite, seizures and even death.