
Alysia Mazzella Self portrait
Alysia Mazzella creates beeswax candles that are not just sources of light but symbols of harmony and remembrance, steeped in regenerative practices and deeply rooted in the ancient wisdom of the sun’s cycles.
“It’s really about the sun,” Mazzella explained. “I look back to Ancient Egypt a lot. They were sun worship people, and they had a great relationship with the honeybee, which is very well documented,” she continues. “They believed that the honeybee was born from the tears of the sun god, which I think is just the most amazing poetry.”
Mazzella infuses the work she creates with this poetry by bringing a reverence for tradition, warmth, a life force, and a sense of mystery to the entire process.
“Electricity is so new,” she said. “As people, we’ve been in a relationship with fire for longer than anything. I think that’s why a deep remembrance happens when people light a candle.” Compared to the disruptive blue light of modern devices, Mazzella explains that beeswax burns on the same spectrum as the sun. She says, “Because of its golden inherent color and vibrancy, it’s actually luminous, unlike a blue light. So, it has a different effect.”
Mazzella’s journey in beekeeping shifted as her consciousness about the history of the practice grew. She started out buying her beeswax online and when she switched to buying locally from beekeepers in New York State, she quickly noticed a homogeneity in who was providing the product. She shared, “As a person of color, I just noticed that everyone was an older, straight, white man. Like every single one, which makes sense because beekeeping arrived in America through colonizers.”
Until recently, it was commonly believed that the honeybee (genus Apis) did not exist on this continent until 1622 when the colonists brought it over on ships from Europe. In 2009, a single fossil was found in west-central Nevada of a female worker of the extinct honeybee Apis nearactica and dates back 14 million years.
“So humans have always been beekeeping on every continent, but it wasn’t called beekeeping,” Mazzella explained. “It was called hunting because they were wild. The mentality of colonizing is that you keep things, you contain things, and then those things are turned into an economy.”
Mazzella decided that to be in a relationship with the honeybees, she needed to learn to be a beekeeper herself and educate other BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color). The land she owns in Onadilla, N.Y., called “Backland,” is now entering its third year as an educational apiary whose mission is to establish a new generation of BIPOC beekeepers in New York State. Said Mazzella, “I wanted to be in a relationship with them because I’m taking so much from them. I didn’t feel the relationship was going the other way—what was I offering them? What was I giving them? So I started to study, and I studied for a very long time, which I recommend for anyone who wants to be a beekeeper.” Because of this deepening understanding, Mazzella approaches the bees with healthy reverence. “I was scared at first. It’s intimidating. They’re loud. They’ll headbutt you. But now I can go into the hive totally unprotected, and I feel confident doing it.” Mazzella explained that the bees are more aggressive when they’re missing a queen or if they have more honey to protect, but since the hives she keeps are for educational purposes, she doesn’t harvest the honey. Instead, she mostly leaves it for the bees, a regenerative approach that has kept her production small-scale. “You get about 1 pound of beeswax to 8 pounds of honey,” she explained, “and in one season, if you’re harvesting ethically (which is half for you, half for the bees), you might get 60 pounds of honey.” She estimates that she’d need to keep over 300 hives to harvest the amount of wax she needs for her production. “I am not sure I’ll ever provide my own beeswax,” she continued. “I’d like to scale up and turn [Blackland] into an educational, live/work situation where local people can be employed. I want to grow the education scale.” This conscious consumption and environmental responsibility are at the forefront of her work.
One can tell the care that goes into her creations. Each candle, whether inspired by Japanese tea ceremonies or Mexican prayer rituals, represents a measure of time and can be used for mindfulness. She contrasts her beeswax candles, the longest-burning and cleanest type, with soy candles, critiquing the unsustainable agricultural practices associated with soy cultivation. “Soy is an amazing, beautiful plant, but it’s how it’s grown. The thing is, it’s so nutritious that it sucks everything from the soil. So when you grow it as a mono-crop for like acres and acres, it essentially depletes the soil, which takes away the cover crops, causes soil degradation, and releases CO2. The most major source of CO2 that has happened in the shortest amount of time has been from farming.” In contrast, said Mazzella, beeswax is seasonal and limited, clean burning, and long-lasting. “I think people can really tell the difference.”
“I think it goes back to the sun again,” said Mazzella, “because it’s all about timekeeping, really. Lighting a candle to set a moment.”
Alysia Mazzella’s commitment to sustainability, education, and inclusivity is creating a path for future generations to follow in an ancient, yet ever-relevant craft. She adds this about her relationship with the honeybee:
“I get stung pretty bad in the Spring because at the beginning of the season, I am sloppy and I forget and make mistakes. But when that happens, I think about it as medicine. I just feel like if you put yourself in the ecosystem, you’re going to get the medicine.”
LAKEVILLE — ARADEV LLC, the developer behind the proposed redesign of Wake Robin Inn, returned before Salisbury’s Planning and Zoning Commission at its May 5 regular meeting with a 644-page plan that it says scales back the project.
ARADEV withdrew its previous application last December after a six-round public hearing in which neighbors along Wells Hill Road and Sharon Road rallied against the proposal as detrimental to the neighborhood.
Landscape Architect Mark Arigoni, representing the applicants, said the new proposal’s page count is due to it being “very comprehensive and complete,” built in response to feedback from P&Z at a January pre-application meeting.
Much of P&Z’s criticism of the initial proposal revolved around its size and intensity, which commissioners said was incongruent with the neighborhood.
Arigoni briefly summarized the major changes of the new application, saying the number of cottages had been decreased from 12 to four, though each will now span about 2,000-square-feet as opposed to the maximum of 1,100 square feet of the earlier proposed array.
An “event barn,” which was one of the more contentious aspects of the initial application, has been relocated to be a part of the expanded main inn building, as opposed to its previous position as a detached structure.
Arigoni highlighted that a noise study — the lack of which was one of P&Z major criticisms of the first proposal — had been conducted in February and March, analyzing the levels of slamming car doors, traffic, waste collection vehicles and other ambient noise components of an active hotel site. He also explained that a new architectural firm had been contracted: “I think you will all see the changes to the plan, in terms of context and character.”
P&Z Chair Michael Klemens stressed that no action would be taken at the May 5 meeting. ARADEV will appear before the Commission again at its May 19 meeting, where P&Z will discuss the application’s completeness and potentially schedule a public hearing, which “will come a lot later,” Klemens said.
The application comes in the midst of ongoing litigation against the Commission relating to ARADEV’s first application. Angela and William Cruger, Wells Hill Road neighbors of the Inn who formally intervened in the 2024 hearing, filed a restraining order against the Commission in February alleging that it engaged in unlawful “spot zoning” that favored the Wake Robin expansion when it altered a regulation in May 2024 to allow for hotels via special permit in the Rural-Residential 1 zone.
Klemens announced that P&Z is opposing the restraining order. If it is approved by the judge, though, the May 2024 regulations would be declared invalid and the Commission would not be able to review applications pertaining to them, which includes ARADEV’s proposal.
FALLS VILLAGE — Housatonic Valley Regional High School girls lacrosse kept rolling Tuesday, May 6, with a decisive 18-6 win over Lakeview High School.
Eight different players scored for Housatonic in the Northwest Corner rivalry matchup. Sophomore Georgie Clayton led the team with five goals.
The Mountaineers' record advanced to 5-1 with a cumulative 41-point goal differential halfway through the season. The lone loss came at Watertown High School on April 10.
Georgie Clayton draws four Lakeview defenders. She scored five goals in the game May 6.Photo by Riley Klein
"We will be playing [Watertown] in the championship on the 28th of May," declared Coach Laura Bushey at the midway point of the 2025 season. Last year, HVRHS lost to St. Paul Catholic High School by one point in the Western Connecticut Lacrosse Conference championship.
The game against Lakeview May 7 went on despite ominous cloud cover at starting time. Rain earlier in the day made for a wet field, but the clouds parted by the second quarter for a sunny afternoon of lacrosse.
HVRHS wasted no time setting the tone. Georgie Clayton repeatedly sliced and diced her way through midfield to create offensive opportunities for the Mountaineers, who took a 7-1 lead in the first quarter.
Tessa Dekker elevates for one of her three goals against Lakeview May 6.Photo by Riley Klein
The lead grew to 11-3 by halftime. Seniors Lola Clayton and Tessa Dekker created a one-two punch on attack with Dekker setting up plays from behind the net as Clayton cut to the crease. The pair combined for five goals in the game.
Once the lead extended to double digits in the second half, the clock ran continuously. Lakeview found scoring chances but HVRHS sophomore goalie Sophia DeDominicis-Fitzpatrck saved more shots (7) than she let by.
The game ended 18-6 in favor of HVRHS.
Lola Clayton bounces a shot past the Lakeview defense.Photo by Riley Klein
The following players scored for the Mountaineers: Georgie Clayton (5), Tessa Dekker (3), Lola Clayton (2), Islay Sheil (2), Katie Crane (2), Annabelle Carden (2), Mollie Ford (1) and Chloe Hill (1).
Lakeview's goals were scored by Layla Jones (2), Isabelle Deforge (2), Juliana Bailey (1) and Caroline Donnelly (1).Goalie Sophia DeDominicis-Fitzpatrick secures the ball.Photo by Riley Klein
Participating students and teachers gathered for the traditional photo at the 2025 Troutbeck Symposium on Thursday, May 1.
Students and educators from throughout the region converged at Troutbeck in Amenia for a three-day conference to present historical research projects undertaken collaboratively by students with a common focus on original research into their chosen topics. Area independent schools and public schools participated in the conference that extended from Wednesday, April 30 to Friday, May 2.
The symposium continues the Troutbeck legacy as a decades-old gathering place for pioneers in social justice and reform. Today it is a destination luxury country inn, but Troutbeck remains conscious of its significant place in history.
A showing of student artworks within the theme of linking the past with the present opened the symposium on Wednesday evening. Each work of art had to draw on historical research to foster an informed dialogue between the artist and the contemporary audience.
The second day was devoted to student research presentations, showcasing teams from the region’s leading public and private schools with strong programs aimed at cultivating engaged young historians. Primary source materials and live interviews with descendants were included in the process.
Topics were divided into blocks with guest commentators providing reactive response as each block of student presentations concluded. Serving as commentators were Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries, Ohio State University, and Dr. Christine Proenza-Coles, University of Virginia.
Resistance in the face of oppression and stories of resilience that spanned generations formed an important theme as students presented the stories of area settlers and residents who suffered but endured.
As a sampling, The Taconic School teamed up with The Salisbury School to unearth untold stories of Boston Corners. The Hotchkiss School looked into the activities of the Ku Klux Klan in Connecticut. The Cornwall Consolidated School students stepped up with their untold stories of early Cornwall women.
Other presentations explored criminal justice — witchcraft trials — dealing with society’s “undesirable” elements, individuals in history who took action, people and movements that formed resistance, and various forms of discrimination.
Praising the work of the students, Dr. Jeffries identified a theme of resistance and survival.
“The war ended but the resistance did not,” Jeffries said. “We don’t take indigenous people seriously,” he added. “White supremacy happened in our own back yards.”
“We saw the evolution of research,” said a Cornwall Consolidated School representative. That project moved into civic engagement by the students that moved beyond the classroom.
“This is not the past; this is part of the present,” said Dr. Proenza-Coles.
A panel discussion among educators whose students had participated in the 2025 Troutbeck Symposium was held on Friday, May 2, to offer reflections on the symposium, its value and future development. Panelists from left to right were Jessica Jenkins, Litchfield Historical Society;Wunneanatsu Lamb-Cason, Brown University; Morgan Bengal, Old New-Gate Prison; Frank Mitchell, Connecticut Humanities; and student representatives Dominik Valcin of Salisbury School, and Shanaya Duprey of Housatonic Valley Regional High School. Leila Hawken
The third day invited area history educators to assemble and share ideas for redesigning elements of history education, a day of reflection.
The panel included Jessica Jenkins, Litchfield Historical Society; Wunneanatsu Lamb-Cason, Brown University; Morgan Bengal, Old New-Gate Prison; Frank Mitchell, Connecticut Humanities; and student representatives Dominik Valcin of Salisbury School, and Shanaya Duprey of Housatonic Valley Regional High School.
Valcin reflected on his work as a shared project within The Salisbury School, one where the inquiry would seek to find “the deeper story behind a base story.”
Duprey also spoke of process and the educational value of engaging with historical inquiry.
Each representing a profession that brings them into contact with historical inquiry, the panelists recounted tedious history classes of past decades. Jenkins described her own career as “public history.”Lamb-Canon’s experience began with choosing history electives in college. Bengal spoke of community engagement and the power of involvement with history.
“History is not the opposite of scientific inquiry,” said Bengal.
Significant discussion centered on the possibility of offering the Troutbeck Symposium model to a wider audience of school systems throughout the U.S.
“A community approach to education,” was a characterization offered by Troutbeck owner Charlie Champalimaud, commenting during a brief interview at the end of the symposium on Friday, May 2. She encouraged a push toward increasing even more the number of participating schools, their educational communities and symposium sponsors.
Terence S. Miller, owner of Roaring Oaks Florist in the new self-serve area of the shop.
Just in time for Mother’s Day, Roaring Oaks Florist in Lakeville has launched a new self-serve flower station next to its Main Street shop, offering high-quality, grab-and-go bouquets from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week — including Sundays when the main store is closed.
Owner Terence S. Miller, who bought the shop 24 years ago at just 20 years old, calls the new feature “a modern twist on an old-school honor system,” with some high-tech updates.
“We’re still using our same high-end flowers, just with less markup and no labor,” said Miller. “That way people can access our quality anytime, even if we’re closed.”
Tucked beside the shop’s main entrance at 349A Main Street next to The Boathouse, the self-serve area is partitioned and monitored by security cameras. A simple touchscreen checkout system lets customers pay with a credit card — no cash accepted — and includes photo prompts to make selection easy. Vases, ribbons, flower food, and care instructions are all stocked and labeled.
“We’ve tried to think of everything people might need,” said Miller. “It’s all about making great flowers more accessible without losing what makes Roaring Oaks special.”
Miller said the idea came from years of watching customers try to squeeze in a visit before or after hours. “We’re open 8 hours a day, but we’re here for almost 10, and it still isn’t enough. People are always showing up after we close,” he said. “This way we can be ‘open’ more hours without adding staff.”
Though he considered making the space available 24/7, Miller ultimately decided against it. “We didn’t want to encourage late-night tampering,” he said, noting the shop’s proximity to local bars and restaurants.
Miller’s journey into flowers was unexpected. As soon as he could get his farming papers at 12 years old, he started working at Silamar Farm in Millerton. Alongside its produce, Silamar’s was one of the first farm stands in the area to sell fresh cut flowers.Miller began growing and bundling cut flowers for city-bound customers. “By 16 I needed a year-round job, so I applied to every florist around. I just had a knack for it,” he said. After a stint in Rhinebeck, he returned and bought Roaring Oaks from its previous owner.
In the decades since, he’s built a reputation for quality and creativity. The shop’s flowers are sourced from around the world, particularly Canada and South America, though Miller is committed to supporting local growers wherever possible, especially for summer offerings and weddings.
“We’re hoping to feature some smaller farms in the self-serve section this summer,” said Miller. “DIY weddings have taken off, and people don’t always realize the benefits of buying local. Cold chain is everything. The flowers we source come straight from the airport to the wholesaler and right up here. That’s how we keep them fresh.”
Roaring Oaks also offers consultations and bulk flower discounts for events and weddings, a service Miller hopes more customers will discover through the new self-serve setup.
After 50 years in business, and nearly a decade at its current Lakeville location, Roaring Oaks continues to evolve. “This September marks my 25th year,” said Miller. “I’m always looking for ways to make people happy. Flowers should be simple, joyful, and accessible. That’s what this is all about.”
For more information or to plan your Mother’s Day bouquet, visit Roaring Oaks Florist at 349A Main Street, Lakeville.