Members refining plans for fund raising and design of a new facility

By Lloyd Garrison

There are no easy answers to two key questions in the wake of the vandalism and fire that destroyed the Norfolk Curling Club in December.

The first question is how and when the club will be restored. The second is the outcome of the state’s case against Kyle Majewski and Mathew Carey, the two 19-year olds facing multiple charges of arson, burglary, larceny and criminal trespass.

Carey and Majewski were in Superior Court in Litchfield on Feb. 7 for what was supposed to be a pre-trial hearing. The two, who last appeared in prison-yellow jump suits when they entered not guilty pleas, entered court handcuffed but wearing slacks and long sleeve sport shirts.

They stood by in silence as their lawyers asked the judge for a postponement to March 13. The postponement was granted in less than two minutes and the defendants were immediately led from the courtroom for the return trip to the Juvenile Detention Center in New Haven.

 “I still haven’t received some physical evidence from the State Police,” said prosecuting attorney David Shepack afterwards. “Both sides need more time for gathering and assessing the evidence. In a case this big and with so many charges, it could be a year before we are ready for trial.”

According to Curling Club President Mary Fanette, a year could also pass before all the pieces fall into place for the construction of a new facility. “The remains have been taken away and soon the metal will be carted off,” she says. “We are saving the stones from the chimney. The concrete slab that formed the rink’s foundation is the only thing that will be left.”

Even as the site is being cleared, the club has begun soil tests and members are weighing both the size and expense of a new rink. Pete Anderson, a retired architect who has volunteered his services, estimates that a new structure could cost $1.2 to $1.5 million. After insurance kicks in, this could leave the club with having to raise over $500,000. Anderson is working on sketches of what a new club might look like. 

The need for funds has spawned an unusual number of fund-raising ventures. Contributions have trickled in from a Norfolk Curling Club booth at the National Curling Championships in Aston, Pa. Individual curling clubs in the U.S. and Canada are staging raffles in which 50 per cent of the proceeds go to Norfolk.

Norfolk’s Wood Creek Bar & Grill hosted a benefit in January featuring the Celtic singing group O’Keefe. Schuyler Thomson is overseeing Curling Club members who are building a wooden canoe that will be auctioned later this spring.

The Club will hold its annual May golf tournament at the Norfolk Country Club, which has offered to hold a second fund raiser in the summer.  Fanette is also meeting with Infinity President Dan Hincks to discuss use of the hall for a possible fund raising event.

As of late February, the Club has received over  $40,000 in donations. Gifts for the club’s restoration can be made on line at norfolkcurlingclub.org.