Organizations

Get the Buzz on Native Bees

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The Friends of the Farm at Hilltop, the Suffield Land Conservancy and the Green Team at Second Baptist Church are partnering to offer a workshop to learn about these wonderful, hard-working and very beneficial animals. It will be held on Sunday, March 3, at 3 p.m. in the Second Baptist Church on Main Street. After learning about the bees and how we can help them survive in today’s world, we will craft bee hotels to provide essential shelter for them and their young. Many of North America’s more than 4,000 species of native bees are declining, including bumble bees, mainly due to habitat destruction and pesticide use. While our native bees do not produce large amounts of honey like the non-native honey bee, they are more efficient pollinators and are essential to the production of at least 80% of our food crops.

Parks and Rec

Sign Up Now for Suffield Parks and Recreation Winter Programs

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Suffield Parks and Recreation releases its 2019 winter programming with registration which is beginning now at www.suffieldrec.com. The lineup includes a focus on family fitness and wellness with activities like Cheerleading Fun and Adult CrossFit joining perennial favorite, Men’s Recreational Basketball. 

“We are particularly excited to kick off recurring Family Friday Nights with a Frozen Sing-a-Long on Friday, January 11,” noted Parks and Recreation Director Peter Leclerc. “These events promise fun for the whole family.” The sing-a-long is open to the public and free of charge, with donations accepted to benefit Suffield Community Aid. In addition to fitness, enrichment, cooking, arts and crafts, Suffield Parks and Recreation continues to meet the needs of all Suffield residents by offering inclusive special needs programming like the Bowling Buddies and Outing Group. 

The group fosters friendships, socialization, community involvement and independence. 

“I am very proud of the staff and the work they do to fill this important need in our community,” stated First Selectman Melissa M. Mack. The department welcomes volunteer help.

Organizations

Sugar Witch

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The powers of magic, mystery and murder collide deep in the Florida Everglades … get ready for The Suffield Players production of The Sugar Witch by Nathan Sanders!

Letter to the Editor

A Town Treasure: Suffield Academy

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Dear Editor,

As a proud resident of Suffield (since 1970), I am writing to detail the positive impact that Suffield Academy has had on my children and other children who went through the Suffield Public school system. I coached travel basketball for boys and girls, grades 5–8. Gym space in Suffield was always limited. Not only did Suffield Academy allow us to practice in their gym, but the Academy staff and students were always welcoming. The teams I coached were able to practice in a better facility for longer periods of time and extra days during the week.

History

A Moment in Time: Old Photos Invited from Our Readers

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A quiet scene in West Suffield Center is shown in this old postcard, postmarked 1906. On North Grand Street a one-horse carriage approaches the intersection passing a two-horse wagon, where two men walk toward the Terrett House hotel. At the porch next door, three men idly watch. The luggage on the porch suggests they are waiting here in the shade for a train at the depot just east of the corner.

Government/Town

Free Service Creates Personal Calendar Feeds

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The Town of Suffield announces the launch of a community events platform in partnership with Burbio.com. Burbio offers a free website iOS and Android app that organizes town happenings in one place. Residents select calendars to follow, create and sync a personalized feed to their Google or Apple calendar, and receive notifications of schedule changes. Streaming through Burbio is free for residents and nonprofits. The Burbio link can be found on the Town of Suffield website (www.suffieldct.gov/community/calendar).

Library

Crowds Come to Honor Vern

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Vern Taylor laughs at First Selectman Melissa Mack’s tales on the special day held for him at the temporary Kent Memorial Library. Before his stroke, he had been a loyal and very helpful library volunteer for several decades. His wife, Dorian Taylor, left rear, laughs along with him. (She retired from the library recently; his daughter, Wendy, is children’s librarian.) As many as 50 friends at a time crowded the limited space to honor Vern. Many wore funny T-shirts in his honor; his read, “Follow in my footsteps and you’ll eventually reach the library.”

Schools/Sports

SHS Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Week

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Once again, at Suffield High School the World Languages department has continued their fall tradition of celebrating the heritage of Spanish speakers in the United States and throughout the world. On Morning Update, the daily news show featured anchors who shared information about the selected Spanish-language music of the day, along with conversation and cultural perspectives in Spanish. Karissa Stanio, Kristen McCarthy, and Michael Grigoriou hosted the show or worked on preparing and writing scripts and visuals for the show. To help get the message out to our school, Shreedula Balakrishnan and Lindsey Kasperski from the World Language Honor Society, with assistance from the Art Club members, coordinated the cultural display focused on this year’s theme: “One Endless Voice to Enhance our Traditions.” Another member of the Society, Kyle Englander, organized a donation drive for the Brazos de Amor – a non-profit organization helping fight poverty in Latin America. The core event of Hispanic Heritage Week this year was a presentation and discussion given by Karissa Stanio and Paige Anderson, both juniors at Suffield High School.