Housy seniors put finishing touches on Capstone projects

Housatonic Valley Regional High School senior Lou Haemmerle is finalizing work on her Capstone.
Patrick L. Sullivan
Housatonic Valley Regional High School senior Lou Haemmerle is finalizing work on her Capstone.
FALLS VILLAGE — Seniors at Housatonic Valley Regional High School discussed their “Capstone” projects with The Lakeville Journal Friday, Feb. 14.
Lou Haemmerle of Salisbury will attend New York University in the fall. Interested in music production, Haemmerle’s Capstone project started off by releasing music to online platforms such as Spotify.
“But I did that early.”
So the scope of the project was widened to answer the question “How do I implement myself in the creative industries?”
Asked for more details, Haemmerle said she did a number of internships, which required some travel — to Los Angeles. The internships included set design, soundproofing music studios and videography. Haemmerle was aided in this by a grant from the 21st Century Fund for HVRHS.
Haemmerle said the result was “a lot more learning and information on the industry that I wouldn’t have learned otherwise.”
There was some pressure involved. “I had to be on site, and put on my big girl pants.”
HVRHS senior Jake Bosio is finalizing work on his Capstone.Patrick L. Sullivan
Jake Bosio of North Canaan, with the help of a grant from the Region One Athletic Fund, installed a golf simulator in the Hewatt-Mahoney Science and Technology Center.
He explained how this works. There is a 10 foot screen and a projector. The player boots a golf ball into the screen, and a “launch monitor” provides club and ball data.
Plus the device shows the golfer where the ball wound up on the virtual course.
Bosio said he is the captain of the HVRHS golf team and wants to be a golf pro, so his Capstone was truly a “passion project.” He added his handicap is 13.
He will attend the University of Hawaii.
Ellie Wolgemuth is a senior at HVRHS who has recently completed her Capstone project.Patrick L. Sullivan
Ellie Wolgemuth of Salisbury’s Capstone revolves around her four years as being the primary student intern working for the Kearcher-Monsell Gallery, located in the HVRHS library.
Ellie saw a need for the job’s requirements to be spelled out clearly, for whoever takes over.
Things like “how to hang a show, host an opening, make sure things run smoothly.”
Ellie wound up with a “60,000 word Google document” that can be accessed and modified by future interns.
Ellie was not sure what the next step was — possibly Princeton, maybe the Rhode Island School of Design and/or Brown University.
Diana Portillo is a senior at HVRHS who has recently completed her Capstone project.Patrick L. Sullivan
Diana Portillo of North Canaan, a volleyball and softball player, made friendship bracelets, some adorned with the mascots of other Berkshire League schools, some without, and gave them to players on opposing teams.
The idea was to promote sportsmanship among the league schools, and to foster a sense of community among student athletes.
The first bracelet was given to a Gilbert player.
Each bracelet came with a QR code that took the recipient to a Google form, where the recipients could enter their personal information.
It took a little while to catch on, but it worked.
“From 75 bracelets I got 75 responses.”
Daniela Brennan researched theology for her Capstone.Patrick L. Sullivan
Daniela Brennan of North Canaan was unsure where she would attend college, with Worcester Polytechnic Institute a strong possibility. She plans to study mechanical engineering.
Her Capstone project headed in a different direction.
A Roman Catholic, she was curious about other faiths, and acquired first-hand experiences with Judaism, Muslim and Hindu congregations.
She kept track of her observations and thoughts in a journal.
She said that “in monotheistic faiths, the core beliefs are similar.”
“The way they show it makes them seem different, and that’s where biases and misassumptions come from.”
Asked how she decided on this course of inquiry, she said “I get it from my dad, he loves philosophy and religion.”
“And learning about it helps me learn my own faith.”
Jassim Mohydin “reverse engineered last year’s robot.” Patrick L. Sullivan
Jassim Mohydin of Lakeville, who will attend Florida Institute of Technology to train as an airline pilot, turned his attention to computer aided design, or CAD, for his Capstone project.
Specifically, he used CAD in conjunction with his activities with the HVRHS Robotics team.
“I reverse-engineered last year’s robot,” he said. He identified deficiencies and came up with solutions.
Because robotics is a collaborative effort, his work will inform future Robotics team members.
“You have to think about the whole robot, not just your bit.”
All six students agreed that the Capstone projects required them to get out of their comfort zones and provided opportunities to do things that they might not have attempted otherwise.
NORTH CANAAN —Searchers were out on Lower Road in North Canaan Monday morning, Aug. 4, looking for an elderly man last seen Saturday morning, Aug. 2.
Two of the men looking for Rafael Perez, age 71, were his son, also named Rafael Perez, and grandson, Sebastian Arango.
The missing man is described as a Hispanic male, white hair, brown eyes, 5’8” inches tall, 150 pounds. He was wearing a black shirt, blue shorts and black shoes. He has scars on his forehead and both knees.
Arango said his grandfather was last seen around 11:30 a.m. Saturday heading east on Route 44 and then south on Deely Road toward a cornfield and the north bank of the Blackberry River.
Arango said that area was searched yesterday and they were expanding the search along Lower Road.
Perez Jr. said his father has Parkinson’s disease and dementia.
State police and a search team of about 40 people were out looking down near Deely Road on Monday, Aug. 4.
The search party Monday, Aug. 4, focused its efforts in the area around Deely Road and the Blackberry River in North Canaan.Patrick L. Sullivan
SALISBURY — The tragedy on New York’s Park Avenue Tuesday, July 29, has been felt deeply in the Northwest Corner.
One of the victims, Wesley Mittman LePatner, was shot and killed along with three others by a gunman who then took his own life. At 43, she was a senior executive at Blackstone, which is housed in the same building at the National Football League. Early reports surmise the shooter, who traveled from Las Vegas, was aiming at those connected to the NFL because of injuries he sustained playing the game in high school. Sources said LePatner, an innocent bystander, was struck down in the building’s lobby.
LePatner had strong ties to the area from an early age and she and her family had a weekend home on Spruce Lane. Accolades have poured in over social media about the woman who was extremely bright, passionate about many causes and active in a variety of organizations.
Those who worked at The Lakeville Journal remember the spirited teenager who served as the paper’s first summer intern in 1997. A self-motivator, she would enthusiastically seek out stories, ready to take on any challenge. Janet Manko, who was then the publisher, said, “Her work spoke for her talent and motivation. I did see her representing the enthusiasm of a young person, as only high school students can bring to the table. That was my first year at the Journal, so I did think, ‘Wow! This is great! The Journal has such talented and connected interns!’”
Le Patner set the standard and the program has gone on to host numerous interns, including the eight in this summer’s program.
She went to Yale University after studying at the Horace Mann School in New York City. On her first day at college, she met Evan LePatner, who later became her husband. Majoring in history, she graduated summa cum laude and was very active in many aspects of campus life. Her first position after college was in the real estate division of Goldman Sachs. Currently, she was a senior executive at Blackstone.
A statement from Blackstone read, “Words cannot express the devastation we feel. Wesley was a beloved member of the Blackstone family and will be sorely missed. She was brilliant, passionate, warm, generous, and deeply respected within our firm and beyond. She embodied the best of Blackstone. Our prayers are with her husband, children and family. We are also saddened by the loss of the other innocent victims as well, including brave security personnel and NYPD.”
She served on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Yale University Library Council and Advisory Board of Governors of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts. She was actively involved in the Jewish community, serving on the board of the Abraham Joshua Heschel School, a pluralistic Jewish school, the UJA-Federation of New York, a Jewish organization, and was a member of Hevreh of Southern Berkshire in Great Barrington, Mass.
Rabbi Jodie Gordon of Hevreh posted, “Wesley and her family have been a beloved part of our religious school community since 2020. She was wise-hearted, generous, and deeply committed to the Jewish people. Whenever she was here with us at Hevreh, her warmth and love for her family shone through, especially last spring when we celebrated together with the LePatner family at the Bat Mitzvah of their daughter Emerson.
Perhaps her deep commitment to Judaism was fostered by her grandparents, the late Barbara and Frank Roth. Barbara Roth, who passed away in 2020 at the age of 90, was a well-known real estate agent. She and her husband were noted for founding the Connecticut Northwest Corner Jewish Community Group which helped develop a sense of Jewish pride and community among their neighbors. She very often represented the Jewish population in ecumenical events in town.
The LePatners have had a home on Spruce Lane for seven years and are part of the Burton Road Association. President James Sok sent out a notice to members relaying the devastating news in which he said, “They were truly wonderful neighbors and cherished friends. Our connection to Wesley runs deep, as Debbie and I were close with her grandparents, Barbara and Frank Roth. Through their stories, we followed Wesley’s journey from her childhood in Lakeville, through her college years, and into her early career. We were overjoyed when she and Evan became our neighbors, bringing their warmth and kindness to our community.”
He continued, “Wesley was an exceptional person whose presence touched so many lives. Her loss is profoundly felt, and it’s difficult to comprehend how such a tragedy could befall someone so full of light and goodness. Debbie and I, along with many of you who knew her, are grappling with the immense sadness of her absence...Wesley’s memory will live on in the countless ways she made our community and the world a better place. She will be deeply missed by all who had the privilege of knowing her.”
In addition to her husband and daughter, LePatner is survived by her son Jonathan and parents, Ellyn and Lawrence Mittman.
The July 31 referendum in Kent, Warren and Washington banned wakesurfing on Lake Waramaug.
The sport of wakesurfing is now banned on lake Waramaug as the result of a decisive tri-town vote held on Thursday, July 31.
Voters in Kent, Warren and Washington, the three towns that border Lake Waramaug, approved the ordinance with 1452 residents ultimately voting in favor of banning the sport against 421 opposed to it.
Kent had the steepest margin in favor of the ordinance, which had to be voted through by all three towns to take effect. About 83% of Kent residents voted for the ban, totaling 468 yeses. Only 96 voted no.
In Washington, 649 voted in favor and 186 voted in opposition. Warren, the closest vote, saw 335 yes votes and 139 no.
The ordinance, which was drafted over the course of several years by the Lake Waramaug Authority, holds that any boats which operate in “surf mode,” meaning they draw water into the ballasts to create larger wakes, will be fined $250 per infraction. Wakesurfing differs from wakeboarding in that the boats move slowly, with ballast weight, to create a larger wave for participants to surf on behind the boat.
Wakesurfing is the only activity regulated by the ban.
The ordinance has been the subject of contentious public discourse for months, with sparring road signs lining streets in the three towns. Proponents of the ban have cited potential ecological damage and public safety as reasons to end the sport on the lake, while opponents have decried the action as an unnecessary and drastic infringement on resident’s right to recreate.
On vote night in Washington, resident Craig Wilbur stated he was voting no on the ban, describing it as “an overreach.”
“The lake seems like it’s the healthiest it’s ever been,” he added. His young daughter chimed in: “All boats make waves.”
Another voting resident, Lila Nelson, went the other way, stating that she felt the lake was too small to accommodate the activity. “There are a lot of big lakes around here where you can go wakesurfing,” she said, listing Candlewood Lake and Bantam Lakes as two larger alternatives.