
TLA President Grant Bogle, left, and Bill Littauer, president of the Lake Wononscopomuc Association, addressed stakeholders during an Oct. 10 forum at the Salisbury Town Grove.
Debra A. Aleksinas
TLA President Grant Bogle, left, and Bill Littauer, president of the Lake Wononscopomuc Association, addressed stakeholders during an Oct. 10 forum at the Salisbury Town Grove.
“In three years, we will have spent over a million dollars to manage this, but if we don’t, we lose this lake.”
—Grant Bogle, Twin Lakes Association president
SALISBURY — As if on cue, the setting sun at Lake Wononscopomuc signaled the end of the day and hope for a new tomorrow, a fitting backdrop to the group of lake representatives that had gathered on Oct. 10 at the Town Grove to pool resources, share information and discuss management plans in the ongoing threat from invasive hydrilla.
During the nearly two-hour forum, Bill Littauer, president of the Lake Wononscopomuc Association, and Grant Bogle, president of the Twin Lakes Association (TLA), addressed an audience of about 50 stakeholders, including property owners, representatives of nearby Mt. Riga, Inc., and town officials.
“Hydrilla, I’m told, was named after Hydra, the nine-headed monster of Greek mythology,” known to regenerate two heads for every one that was cut off, said Littauer. “So that is very germane to this discussion.”
Littauer explained that the hydrilla verticillata which found its way into Florida through the aquarium industry in the 1950’s is not the same strain that has devastated coves and tributaries throughout the Connecticut River since 2016.
“It has morphed and created a much more virulent strain known as the Connecticut River variant, because that’s where all of the problems stem from. You just can’t kill the stuff,” noted Littauer. He said sea planes and fishing boats likely contributed to its inland spread.
A more aggressive approach in 2025
In June of 2023, East Twin Lake became the first lake outside of the Connecticut River to identify the presence of hydrilla, and the TLA immediately assembled a coalition of scientific and environmental advisers to address the threat.
As a precaution, Lake Wononscopomuc, also known as Lakeville Lake, immediately closed its launch to outside boaters, and Mt. Riga, Inc. also played it safe by closing its Ostrander beach and campsites this past season until preventative measures were in place.
Despite two summers of herbicide spot treatment mainly around the marina at East Twin, hydrilla has migrated to deeper waters, prompting the TLA to take a more aggressive approach in the spring of 2025 by treating the lake’s entire littoral zone with multiple doses of the herbicide SonarOne.
So far, Littauer said, hydrilla has not been found in Lakeville Lake, and keeping it out is the primary goal, which is why its boat launch will remain closed indefinitely.
“Unfortunately for us on Wononscopomuc, the only alternative should hydrilla find its way into the lake, is herbicides, and we have had such opposition on this lake” to chemical treatment, even for milfoil, he explained. “I shudder to think that is the only solution.”
Bogle explained that at Twin Lakes, in addition to a more aggressive approach to controlling the invasive weed on East Twin, “our goal is to stop hydrilla from getting into West Twin. We’re chasing the plant at this point in time, but we’re not down and out by a long shot. We’ve made real progress this year.”
But the chase comes at a cost. In 2021, lake management costs were about $50,000 for the Twin Lakes. “We are spending roughly $300,000 this year and project spending $350,000 next year,” the TLA president told those assembled.
“In three years, we will have spent over a million dollars to manage this, but if we don’t we lose this lake.”
The TLA has launched a year-end appeal to raise $250,000 for hydrilla control next year and to eventually eliminate the noxious weed.
Chemical treatment carries hefty price tag
According to the TLA, projected lake management costs next year will exceed $350,000, a seven-fold increase from just four years ago and a figure that will remain elevated for years. More than nine in every 10 dollars raised gets spent directly on lake management.
The town of Salisbury has traditionally picked up two-thirds of the lake management costs but lacks the resources to sustain that share at current spending levels, according to TLA officials.
In response to an audience question about why management of hydrilla is so expensive, Bogle noted that while herbicides are relatively low-cost, it takes a crew of trained and licensed professionals to apply the treatments to the tune of about $2,500 per application.
Discussion also centered around the need for all lakes to have an emergency plan should hydrilla take root, since approvals for treatment from the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEEP) could take several months and hydrilla can double in biomass every day during the height of the summer growing season and can quickly outcompete native plant species.
“In the event it was found, we’d go very forcefully to DEEP to ask their permission to use the herbicides,” Rand explained.
Bogle credited DEEP for becoming “a partner with us, and that was not true two years ago. What happened to Twin Lakes is unfortunately going to happen elsewhere and they’re trying to learn, too.”
Preparing for worst-case scenario
Discussion centered around the importance of lake groups creating a management plan in preparation for a worst-case scenario.
“There are things that can be done to get ready. Active monitoring and having a plan I think will be helpful,” Bogle noted.
Other strategies Twin Lakes will be putting into place next season is to increase hours for the boat monitors at the marina, and possibly adding a boat-washing station.
In closing the meeting, Bogle praised the camaraderie among the lakes’ stakeholders, all of which face unique challenges.
“I think it’s been a positive benefit. We are all in our own little bubbles and I think it has been helpful to have this type of discussion. Each lake is different, and each lake community is different.”
Geer Village Senior Community in North Canaan announced its partnership with the Mass.-based Integritus Healthcare on Aug. 7. Geer will remain the operator of the facility’s programs and services but joins the umbrella of 19 entities at Integritus Healthcare.
“This is the best possible scenario for the future of Geer.” —Shaun Powell, CEO/CFO Geer Village Senior Community
NORTH CANAAN — For the first time in its more than 95-year history, the nonprofit Geer Village Senior Community will soon operate under a new management contract, although it will remain an independent organization.
A joint announcement of a “strategic partnership” between Geer Village and Integritus Healthcare, a 501 (c) 3 charitable organization and post-acute healthcare industry leader based out of Pittsfield, Mass., was made on Aug. 7.
According to Bill Jones, president and CEO of Integritus Healthcare, his organization will become the management company for the Geer Village campus of services and Geer will remain the owner/operator of the programs and services, with Integritus Healthcare providing oversight.
“This is the best possible scenario for the future of Geer,” said Shaun Powell, Geer CEO/CFO.
No layoffs are expected because of the partnership, and it will not impact Geer’s lease with the YMCA’s Canaan Family Branch located there, according to company officials.
In making the announcement, Powell said he anticipates a “bright future through strong collaboration and sharing of expertise as Geer Village aims to strengthen its market position and remain the cornerstone for high-quality care options and employment for consumers and the communities it has been serving for almost 100 years.”
In a joint statement, Powell and Jones noted that the “overarching goal of the partnership is to ensure and protect Geer’s longstanding legacy and commitment to high-quality care in northwestern Connecticut.”
Over the next several months, they noted, Integritus will work alongside the Geer leadership team to “support the goal of a seamless transition for residents, families and staff.”
Both nonprofits’ Board of Directors have unanimously approved a management agreement whereby Integritus Healthcare will become the management company for the Geer Village campus of services, according to a joint announcement to residents, families, friends and community members by Powell and Geer board chair Lance Leifert.
The Covid-19 pandemic, said Geer officials, changed the senior living industry “in ways no one could ever have imagined. As a result, Geer Village and Integritus Healthcare have been talking for a few years to determine how best to navigate these changes ad position the organizations for long-term strategic growth and stability.”
Integritus will be naming Powell, who has held dual roles as Geer’s CEO and CFO for several years, as permanent CFO of Integritus Healthcare.
“Shaun will move into this new role over the course of the next several months, while remaining active as the Geer CEO to ensure a smooth transition… and continue to be intimately involved in the financial operation of Geer,” according to the release.
“The Geer management team will remain essential to the success of the organization and work with the Integritus leaders to ensure a successful integration.”
Geer Village will remain the operator of the programs and services but joins the umbrella of 19 entities at Integritus Healthcare.
The nonprofit Geer Village Senior Community provides care and support to seniors and their families through all stages of aging. It has been serving the Northwest Corner for more than 95 years, first as a hospital then changing to a skilled nursing facility.
In the early 2000s, Geer added low-income senior housing and an assisted living facility to the campus.
Integritus Healthcare, formerly Berkshire Healthcare Systems, is a leading non-profit provider of post-acute care, long-term healthcare and senior housing in Massachusetts.
While the majority of Integritus’ 19 locations are in Berkshire County, it operates as far away as Cape Cod.
“The industry is not getting any easier,” said Powell. “This will ensure the long-term future of Geer. It is going to help us weather the tougher times that exist.”
AMENIA — Dutchess County Sheriff’s Deputies broke up a political dispute between two Amenia residents at Fountain Square in downtown Amenia on Tuesday, July 15.
Kimberly Travis of Amenia was conducting her daily “No Kings” anti-Trump administration protest at Fountain Square at 1:15 p.m. when Jamie Deines, of Amenia and candidate for Town Board in the Nov. 4 election, approached her.
Travis told responding deputies on the scene and The News she felt threatened by Deines. “She was very intimidating,” Travis said. “And I have not felt fear in the whole time I’ve been doing this.”
A man who asked to be identified only by his first name, Tom, stopped by the square on his lunch break to chat with Travis just before Deines’s arrival. He said he too was alarmed by Deines’s demeanor and called 911 shortly after the interaction began.
In an effort to de-escalate, Travis said, she turned away and started walking down the sidewalk along Route 343 away from Fountain Square. Deines followed close behind, Travis said, who then called 911 too.
The Millerton News received a letter to the editor from Travis on Monday, July 28, detailing the interaction and condemning Deines for her conduct. She sat down in The News’s office in Millerton for an interview on Wednesday, July 30; just over two weeks after the interaction.
Deines paints a different picture of the interaction. “I just countered some of her arguments about Trump,” Deines said. “And she apparently didn’t like that so she called the cops.”
Deines wouldn’t go into specifics about the conversation, but she denied being threatening or physically intimidating to Travis during the interaction. Deines said during a brief interview in the Freshtown parking lot in Amenia that responding deputies told her she wasn’t doing anything wrong.
“We were standing there, talking,” Deines said. “I was just walking and saying my piece and talking to her and asking her questions, that’s all. It’s loud. Cars are going by, so it’s loud.”
Police arrived and took statements from Deines and Travis, recorded in a redacted police report obtained by the Millerton News on July 25. According to the report, deputies told both parties they had a right to be in the square and participate in peaceful protest.
Deputies left the scene and Deines left shortly after. Travis packed up her signs and left as well, as she usually does at that time in the afternoon. There were no fines, charges or other enforcement action taken as a result of the dispute.
The Millerton News obtained a police report from the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office with redacted names. A Freedom of Information Law appeal for the unredacted report was filed with the Dutchess County Attorney on Thursday, July 31, and is still pending.
LIME ROCK — Lisa Mae Keller of Lime Rock, Connecticut, passed away peacefully at her home on July 26, 2025, following a yearlong battle with cancer. Lisa remained at home between lengthy stays at Smilow Cancer Hospital – Yale New Haven. Throughout Lisa’s ordeal, the family home was a constant hub of love and support, with friends and relatives regularly dropping by. Their presence lifted Lisa’s spirits and helped her stay positive during even the toughest moments. The family remains deeply grateful to the community for their unwavering kindness and encouragement.
Born on June 2, 1958, in Bridgeport to Mae and Robert Schmidle, Lisa graduated from Newtown High School in 1976. Lisa first attended Ithica College to pursue a degree in fine arts concentrating on opera. Drawn to a more robust and challenging curriculum, Lisa transferred to Whittier College, Whittier, California earning a Bachelor of Science degree. It was in 1988 that Lisa met and married Robert (Rob) Keller in Newtown, Connecticut. Together, they embarked on a remarkable journey. The couple started small businesses, developed land in Litchfield County and welcomed in quick succession their sons Baxter and Clayton. The growing family discovered the long-abandoned historic Lime Rock Casino in 1993, while attending a race at Lime Rock Park. The couple found it difficult to commute for work while raising a family and restoring a vintage home. Lisa persuaded her husband that chimney sweeping was a noble profession, leading them to purchase the established business, Sultans of Soot Chimney Sweeps. She later leveraged her role into ownership of the largest U.S. importer of vintage Italian reproduction gun parts. Even as her entrepreneurial ventures expanded, Lisa continued managing the pick, pack, and ship operation for Kirst Konverter, though she sold the remainder of the business prior to her illness. Lisa will be remembered for her business acumen, community service, and being a trained vocalist with the Crescendo Coral Group of Lime Rock. Lisa tended the extensive gardens around the home and curated an art collection that adorns the walls within. Baking cookies was a passion. Countless cookie packages were sent world wide to each son and their military friends while deployed. It is still undetermined in the Keller house whether the Army or Marines leave less crumbs. At Christmas, the Lakeville Post Office staff would post over 80 packages of cookies to lucky recipients, while receiving a tray for their effort. Unable to bake cookies in her last year, Lisa selflessly compiled and self-published “ Pot Luck at The Casino”, a 160 page book of all of her favorite recipes, sent to everyone on her cookie list. It was a true labor of love.
A love of pearls and turquoise inspired Lisa to design and commission heirloom quality jewelry to be passed down thru the generations. Visitors were often gifted Tahitian pearl jewelry and knowledge gleaned from years of research. Travel plans for further pearl and gem study were cancelled when Lisa received her cancer diagnosis.
One of her most enduring passions—and a decades-long devotion—was embracing the role of American mother to the young German football players on scholarship at Salisbury School. Unable to return home during holidays and school breaks, the boys found a second family with the Kellers. Lisa did what any mother would do: baked endless batches of her legendary cookies, cooked countless home-made meals, and often counseled the young men through the trials and tribulations of young love. Years later, and with families of their own, they still make it a point to ‘swing by’ and visit ‘Momma Lisa’ whenever they’re back in the States.
Lisa is predeceased by her parents and is survived by husband, Rob, and two sons, Baxter (Elizabeth) and Clayton (Brette), two grandchildren, Isabel and Ezra, two brothers Robert, Jr. (Pam) Schmidle, Paul (Wendy) Schmidle, and multiple nieces and nephews. Grandson Ezra was born and met Mama Lisa just days before she passed.
A graveside ceremony will be held on Aug. 9 at 11 a.m. at the Lime Rock cemetery, with a reception at the Lime Rock Episcopal Church. A celebration of life will be held at the family home, The Historic Lime Rock Casino, on Oct.11, 2025 at 4 p.m.
All are welcome to both events. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to SalvageUSA.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving the special operations active duty and veterans community.
LITCHFIELD — John Richard (Jr.) Krupinski, of Winsted, Connecticut passed away on Sunday, July 27, 2025, at Hartford Hospital.
Born on Jan. 13, 1948, in Torrington, Connecticut he was the son of John Joseph Krupinski and Eleanor (Kavesky) Krupinski. John grew up in Litchfield, Connecticut and graduated from Litchfield High School in 1967. While still in high school, John was a member of the Litchfield Volunteer Fire Department.
John joined the Air Force in 1968 and was honorably discharged in 1972 as a Sargent. John went on to work for the State of Alaska with the Department of Fish and Game as well as being an Alaska State Trooper. Upon returning to Connecticut John worked for the State of Connecticut as a Deputy Warden for the Forestry Department.
John loved the outdoors, was an avid fly fisherman and from a young age enjoyed tying his own flies. John was known as the best fly tier in Northwest Connecticut. John also competed in Archery, receiving numerous trophies.
John is survived by his daughter, Cheryl L. Bentley, sister, Karen J. Krupinski, and brother, Thomas J. Krupinski. John was preceded in death by his parents, John and Eleanor Krupinski, his wife, Margery Hull Krupinski, and their beloved pets.
Calling hours will be held at Thurston Rowe Funeral Home, 283 Torrington Road, in Litchfield, on Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. A funeral service with Military Honors will be held at Hillside Cemetery, 76 Walnut Street, in Torrington, on Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025 at 12:30 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Farmington River Anglers Association, Housatonic Fly Fisherman’s Association or Trout Unlimited, Northwest Connecticut Chapter.
To send the family online condolences kindly visit www.thurstonrowefuneralhome.com