Helping Hands Are Everywhere If You Know Where to Look

By Doug McDevitt Norfolk is a community, much like any other, where some neighbors are in great need but may not know where to go or whom to reach out to for help. The good news is that Norfolk has many avenues for people to discreetly receive help.  One such avenue is Norfolk NET, short […]

Conservation Commission Serves to Protect Norfolk’s Natural Resources

Town Boards, Commissions, & Committees by Ruth Melville Every town in Connecticut is empowered by the state to have a conservation commission, whose duties are to care “for the development, conservation, supervision and regulation of natural resources, including water resources.” To fulfill this mission, the Norfolk Conservation Commission (NCC) is active on several fronts, from […]

Growing Up Black in Norfolk

The Rev. Dr. Shelley Best Text by Kelly Kandra Hughes The Rev. Dr. Shelley Best has achieved a lot in her 59 years of life. She is currently the pastor of A.M.E. Zion Church in Plainville, Conn. She has raised over $10 million dollars for her uplifting and empowering ministries. She created The 224 Ecospace, […]

“A World Without Insects is a World Without People.” E.O. Wilson

Pollinators Imperiled by Susannah Wood The declining population of monarch butterflies, those champions of migration, has been well-documented over recent years, but has only become more dire. Between 1996 and 2020, 88 percent of the eastern population of monarchs has disappeared. In the western group the situation is even worse; only a few thousand remain. […]

Harmony Online

by Janet Gokay Mead During the pandemic, the Norfolk Library stepped up to the plate with a host of online programs: art shows, mindfulness classes, studio tours, book groups. In the dead of winter a group of six intrepid souls signed up for one of the library’s more unusual Zoom classes: Harmonica I. The results […]

Norfolk Kicks Off Summer

Mardi Gras: Move Over Text by Janet Gokay MeadPhotos by Sonja Zinke New Orleans may have its Mardi Gras parade. New York City can boast about its Macy’s Day—or its Gay Pride—parade. But, really, do any of them compare to the spectacle that the Norfolk Library inspired on Friday, June 12?  More than 30 pets […]

Coleridge-Taylor Had Norfolk Connections

by Andra Moss The glorious days of July usher in the return of the Norfolk Music Festival, albeit still in virtual format. This year, the program for July 23 will feature a special tie to the festival’s historic past, highlighting the work of composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. Although one of the best-known composers of his era, […]

From Norfolk to Broadway and Back to Norfolk

Ted Sperling’s career has come full circle by Michael Cobb Ted Sperling first became acquainted with Norfolk in 1981, while studying the viola at the Yale Summer School of Music. As a student, he had a front-row seat to the evolution of the Tokyo String Quartet, who were in residence that year, breaking in the […]

Greenwoods, 2058 Brings New Art and Artists to Norfolk

Summer residencies underway Text by Ruth MelvillePhoto by Andra Moss The Yale Summer School of Art may have been canceled for this summer, but a new artists residency program promises to keep Norfolk’s small but enthusiastic art scene active. Molly Zuckerman-Hartung and Fox Hysen moved to town about four years ago. Artists and teachers, they […]

Family Friendly Friday Night Fun

Summer Happenings by Kelly Kandra Hughes Now that pandemic restrictions are easing and the number of people vaccinated is increasing, Norfolk residents are excited to get more out and about this summer. When asked what they’re most looking forward to this summer in Norfolk, members of the Norfolk Connecticut Past & Present Facebook group enthusiastically […]