• Work to Resume on Route 44 and New Firehouse

    Warmer temps ensure concrete quality By Avice Meehan Two significant Norfolk projects that were put on hold because of below-zero temperatures this winter are expected to resume by mid-March: Reconstruction of two retaining walls along Route 44 and the construction of a new firehouse for the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department. Engineers for the state Department […]

  • Richard Byrne Retires as Active Firefighter

    After 58 years, veteran status By Joseph Kelly He was a young Navy veteran, about to be married and ready to start a family in his hometown when, in February 1968, his older brother convinced him to join the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department (NVFD). For Richard Byrne it was the start of an association that […]

  • Rock ‘n Roll House Party Circus Will Benefit Local Food Banks

    Three Grammy nominees to perform at Infinity Hall By Colleen Gundlach On April 11, Infinity Hall will be the setting for Rock ‘n Roll House Party Circus, a concert that will benefit Stock the Shelves, an outreach of United Way of Northwestern Connecticut. The Rock ‘n Roll House Party Circus will feature three Grammy nominees […]

  • Rom-Com Curling Film Released With Olympics

    To get the ice just right, filmmakers tapped Norfolk expertise By Joseph Kelly The underdogs who battle the odds—the washed-up boxer, the outclassed football team, the aging baseball slugger with one last homerun in him—are all Hollywood standbys. Ronald Reagan may be remembered as much for “win one for the Gipper” as he is for […]

  • How Botelle (Carefully) Uses AI for Learning

    By Avice Meehan For more than three decades, children visited the fictional town of Frog Creek, Penn., home to two children named Jack and Annie. With the help of a magic tree house, the pair are whisked away to distant places where they have adventures, solve problems and, perhaps, learn a thing or two. Like […]

  • Choral Singing Meets Bluegrass

    LCCU welcomes all ages to sing new styles By Andra Moss The Litchfield County Choral Union (LCCU) is entering its 127th concert year with decidedly youthful energy. Under the direction of Music Director Dr. Gabriel Löfvall, the LCCU will convene a youth choral festival in Norfolk in late spring; offer a series of choral seminars […]

  • Winter Weekend In Norfolk

    It was a cold and blustery weekend, but that didn’t stop the hardy from coming out on Feb. 21 and 22 for Winter WIN, the weekend for enjoying all things Norfolk in the winter season. The photos below show a story of a town that came together to strut its stuff for the world to […]

  • From Freeze to Flow: Extreme Temps and the Maple Syrup Season

    Reaching that ideal mix of natural conditions By Jude Mead The extreme cold and heavy snowfall this season has raised some concern among maple syrup producers. Reports of loud, cracking noises in wooded areas have set the stage for a phenomenon called “frost cracking.” During these periods of intense cold, the water and sap inside […]

  • Sit Right Back and You’ll Hear a Tale

    With Jude Mead at the guitar and with great enthusiasm, members of the Isabella Eldridge Club defied a threatened winter storm and entered Battell Chapel on Feb. 10 for a memorable performance of an episode of “Gilligan’s Island,” a daft 1960s television comedy. Despite the best efforts of the Professor (played by Marinell Crippen, left) […]

  • Cook For Goodness Sake

    America The Melting Pot By Linda Garrettson In celebration of the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence, it seems appropriate to dedicate my food column this year to America, who we are, and what we eat. Get ready for some history lessons, and perhaps surprises that might enlighten you to what we call American […]

  • Be Careful, Very Careful

    An expert team from the Glass Source Stained Glass Studio spent nearly six hours in cold mid-January weather care-fully removing a cathedral stained glass window from Battell Chapel at the United Church of Christ before transporting it to their studio in Seymour for restoration. In this photo, Michael Skrtic balances one section of the window […]

  • The Week that Was

    First, frigid temperatures forced the relocation of Norfolk’s valiant Post Office staff to Winsted because of scheduled asbestos remediation, leaving box holders temporarily puzzled. Then, the big snow arrived on Jan. 25 and 26. Estimates vary widely: Russell Russ reported the official tally at the Great Mountain Forest weather station as 15.2 inches, but others […]

Articles

Tom Hodgkin and Tom Vorenberg

Saluting Norfolk’s Volunteers Text By Janet Gokay MeadPhoto By Jon Reideman The Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance may be on the small side, but its volunteers are remarkable for their dedication. Many of the ambulance’s 30 active volunteers sign up for a six-hour shift and, off-hours, use a system of two-way radios, pagers and emails to […]

The Buzz of Spring

Beekeeping in the Northwest Corner  By Avice Meehan The moment has come to embrace the dandelions in your lawn and all those early flowering plants and trees that attract some of the 378 species of wild bees that call Connecticut home—in addition to the beloved, nonnative honeybee that brings such golden sweetness into our lives. […]

“My Norfolk” Photo Contest Winner Announced 

Congratulations to Elizabeth Hilpman, winner of the Norfolk Photo Contest!  Her evocative photo of Tobey Pond was selected from over 220 submissions by judges—and distinguished local photographers—Savage Frieze, Katherine Griswold, Christopher Keyes, Christopher Little and Babs Perkins. The images were evaluated on how well they represented the theme of “My Norfolk” and the quality of […]

Seasonal Foraging

In Search of Spring Wild Edibles  By Tracy Hayhurst  While we eagerly await the first lettuces, spinach and arugula from the garden, Mother Nature has provided us with many nutrient-rich wild greens and herbs to sample now.  Stinging nettle, garlic mustard and dandelion, for example, are often maligned as weeds but can be used in […]

New Residence Awaits Arriving Summer Artists

Eldridge Barn renovation nearly complete Text By Andra Moss  Photo By Peter Chaffetz The Yale Norfolk School of Art is set to receive an impressive present for its 75th birthday in May. When the 26 students and seven faculty arrive in Norfolk on May 20, they will find a completely new residence building on the Ellen […]

Spring Snowstorm Surprise

By Russell Russ The first two weeks of March were fairly normal, with normal temperatures and even several days with snowfall. Due to this winter’s prevailing weather patterns, southern New England had not seen any big nor’easter-type storms. That all changed on March 13.  The storm began slowly with light snow showers during the day […]

Gas Spill Repercussions Month Five Months On

Disruptions, disputes and microbes By Joe Kelly Five months after a tanker truck crashed on Route 44, Norfolk continues to grapple with the impact of the 8,200-gallon spill that drenched the center of town. The disruption and dislocation that began in the early morning hours of Nov. 5, 2022, also continue for residents closest to […]

Lost Ruby Farm Has Found a Worthy Successor for Its Cheese-Making Business

Supporting Local Farms Text By Avice MeehanFeatured Image by Ashley Skatoff It’s a cold, rainy March afternoon just before Antonio Guindon’s 60th birthday and he’s having fun: Irish music coming from a speaker, a stove burning bright, and maple sap boiling in a small evaporator.  “Every spring, sap fever hits me, and the beauty of […]

Wayne Jenkins Recalls Almost 60 Years of Syrup Making

A Labor of Love Text By Jude MeadPhoto by Scott Whalen The maple syrup season is once again wrapping up for the year. For most producers, the season started off strong,  one of the earliest ever noted in the area according to ACSERnet, an international network of scientists studying the maple tree’s ecology. Maple syrup […]

Norfolk Library Opens New Teen Alcove in the Great Hall

Dedicated space for teens to study and hang out Text By Kelly Kandra Hughes  Photo Courtesy of the Norfolk Library  After two years of planning, design and construction, the Norfolk Library’s new place for teens has opened. Community discussions on teen mental health had suggested that teens didn’t have any place of their own in Norfolk. […]

Connecticut-Asia Cultural Center Reopens for 2023 Season

Text By Patricia PlattPhoto Courtesy of the CT-Asia Cultural Center Norfolk residents and visitors will want to add the Connecticut-Asia Cultural Center to their list of local places to visit this spring and summer. On April 1, the center, at 207A Westside Road, reopens for a new season. The museum will be open to the […]

Local Inn Reopens as Luxury Bed and Breakfast

Welcome to the Wildwood1880 By Andra Moss It was, virtually, love at first sight. From her kitchen table in Northern California last July, Sarah Dreyer followed intently as her realtor used a mobile phone camera to walk her room by room through the Mountain View Green Retreat in Norfolk. Dreyer definitely liked what she saw. […]