Now in His 90s, John Thew Keeps Making Art

A Long and Fulfilling Life by Kelly Kandra Hughes John Garret Thew may have retired from making his renowned copper weathervanes in 2017, but that doesn’t mean interest in them has waned. When eight of his weathervanes were exhibited at the Norfolk Library during January, the circulation desk received so many sales inquiries the first […]

Norfolk Foundation Purchases Royal Arcanum Building

No major changes planned for this town landmark Text By Ruth MelvillePhoto Courtesy of the Norfolk Historical Society On Nov. 1, the Norfolk Foundation (NF) announced its purchase of the Royal Arcanum building on Station Place. The William and Mary Greve Foundation of New York, under its president, Tony Kiser, gave the foundation the money […]

The Capt. George Palmer House, c. 1755

This Old Norfolk House by Michael Cummings Kelly Approaching Norfolk from the west, just past the Blackberry River Inn (1763), the discerning motorist perceives on a gentle rise to the left an apparition sheathed in white. Spectral in appearance, the 1755 Capt. George Palmer House preens demurely, laying claim in its regal simplicity to being […]

Recap of November 2021 Elections

By Andra MossPhoto by Kelly Kandra Hughes The results of Norfolk’s 2021 municipal elections were officially released by Town Clerk Linda Perkins on Thursday, Nov. 4. Although local turnout for the election was not high, with 469 votes cast out of an electorate of 1,162, Norfolk’s voting rate of 44 percent still topped many Connecticut […]

Driving to Beat the Winter Freeze

Progress continues to be made on the City Meadow project. Demolition for the plaza has wrapped up and the crew is moving ahead with installation of the micro piles for the new deck structure. The deck work will continue into and through the winter with the balance of the plaza work completed by spring’s end. […]

Take a Friend Home for the Holidays

Some familiar Norfolk faces—more than two dozen of them—have turned up downtown for the holidays in the form of photographic portraits by Bruce Frisch. Mostly taken over the years on assignment for Norfolk Now, the group captures some classic moments and people. Robin Yuran and Rich Dann celebrate the library’s fifth star with champagne; David […]

Honoring Norfolk’s Veterans

On Friday, Nov.12, Botelle students and staff paid tribute to veterans at the annual Veterans Day assembly. K-2 students (above) sang three songs; the school band and chorus were also featured. The 5th and 6th graders led the assembly, highlighting the history of Veterans Day, the Armed Forces and Norfolk’s Veterans Memorial. Because local veterans couldn’t […]

Family Fall Festival

Photo by Jude Mead Face and pumpkin painting, hay rides (courtesy of John Auclair), spooky stories and apple cider—the annual after-school fall festival at the Norfolk Library on Friday, Oct. 22, had everything you could ask for on a autumn afternoon in New England.

Eileen Fielding of the Sharon Audubon Society: A Lifetime of Watching Birds

It’s Only Natural Text By Jude MeadPhoto by Michael Moschen If anyone knows about birds, it is Eileen Fielding. She started volunteering at an Audubon sanctuary in Massachusetts when she was 13. Today, with a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Connecticut, she’s the center director for the Sharon Audubon Center.  […]

The Library’s Kelly Kandra Hughes is Keeping Norfolk Engaged

Community in Action Text by Janet Gokay MeaPhoto by Heath Hughes Mention Kelly Kandra Hughes, the Norfolk Library’s community engagement coordinator, to most of the library’s patrons and the first response usually is, “Oh, she’s done so much for this town!” And indeed, both she and her husband, Heath, who works as the office manager […]