Barbara (Hansl) Griggs

SALISBURY — Barbara (Hansl) Griggs, 94, died at Noble Horizons on May 5, 2011. She was born Feb. 21, 1917, in New York City to lawyer Raleigh Hansl and early feminist and journalist Eva vom Baur Hansl, who founded the first women’s page in a New York City newspaper. Barbara was educated at Rosemary Hall and Sarah Lawrence College, where she majored in music and theater. As a singing student, she met John van Benschoten Griggs, a Yale Glee Club tenor. They sang duets together at their wedding in 1939. “Van” was a language teacher primarily at Hotchkiss and Yale, but finally at the Thacher School in Ojai, Calif., which became their home and where they raised two children. The family summered on Mount Riga as earlier generations of Griggs had done since 1902. Barbara was widowed in 1954. She moved to New York City where she worked for the American Field Service, the Metropolitan Opera Guild and became the editorial assistant to Devin Garrity of Devin Adair Publishers. Barbara, a lifetime summer resident of Mount Riga, moved to Salisbury permanently in 2001 when she came to Noble Horizons. She was an outstanding bridge player and made a career of friendship. She is survived by her daughter, Leigh Curran of Los Angeles, Calif.; her son, Stephen van Benschoten Griggs of Randolph, N.J.; four grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. At a date to be determined, there will be a private graveside celebration on Mount Riga of a life lived with humor, courage, curiosity and a genuine interest in humankind. Her name was Barbara Griggs and she approved of (and edited) this message. Those who wish to honor her memory can make a donation to the Virginia Avenue Project at www.virginiaavenueproject.org and/or the Yale Alumni Service Corps at www.yaleservicetours.org. The Kenny Funeral Home in Sharon has charge of arrangements.

Latest News

The Hydrilla Menace: Twin Lakes group buoyed by DEEP’s assault on invasive hydrilla in 2025

A detail of a whorl of hydrilla pulled from the shallow waters at O’Hara’s Landing Marina in fall of 2024.

Photo by Debra A. Aleksinas

SALISBURY — The Twin Lakes Association is taking an earlier and more aggressive approach to fighting the spread of invasive hydrilla in East Twin Lake by dosing the whole northeast bay, from May through October, with low-level herbicide treatments instead of spot treatments.

The goal, said Russ Conklin, the TLA’s vice president of lake management, is to sustain herbicide concentration over the 2025 growing season.

Keep ReadingShow less
Frederick Wright Hosterman

KENT — Frederick Wright Hosterman passed away peacefully in his home in Kent on April 16, 2025. Born in 1929 in Auburn, Nebraska, he was the son of farmers. He attended a one-room schoolhouse just outside of Brownville, Nebraska, adjacent to his family’s farm. The little brick schoolhouse is still standing! After graduating from high school, Fred attended the University of Nebraska (Lincoln), eventually earning a master’s degree in agronomy. He took a job with Monsanto in Buffalo, New York, where the company was a pioneer in applying biotechnology to agricultural sciences. In Buffalo, Fred met his future wife, Dorothy. Fred and Dorothy moved to New York City for several years in the early 1960s, before settling down in Norwalk. In Norwalk, Fred and Dorothy had three children. The family later moved to Kent. In 1980, Fred and Dorothy divorced, and Fred bought a large tract of land on Carter Road in Kent. He built a house there, largely by himself, which he maintained until his death at age 95. After taking early retirement, he spent the following decades working on his property, adding various buildings, woodcrafting, landscaping, and spending time with his children and grandchildren.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nancy (Case) Brenner

CANAAN — Nancy (Case) Brenner, 81, of Canaan, passed away peacefully in her sleep at Charlotte Hungerford Hospital in Torrington, following a long illness on Good Friday, April 18, 2025.

Nancy was born on April 10, 1944, to the late Ray Sargeant Case Sr. and Beatrice Southey Case. She was the second youngest of five children, predeceased by her three brothers, Ray S. Case Jr., David E. Case and Douglas C. Case, and her sister Linda (Case) Olson. She grew up in New Hartford and Winsted, where she graduated from Northwestern Regional 7 High School.

Keep ReadingShow less