EAST CANAAN – Eugene and Esther Freund started the family dairy farm more than seven decades ago, and when the time came to hand it down to the next generation, Eugene looked to his sons, Ben and Matthew.
Now, the time has come again for the next handoff and the brothers have found a 27-year old “cow man” from Pine Plains, N.Y. to take over their herd of 300 Holstein milkers.
Ethan Arsenault, in partnership with Lloyd and Amy Vaill of Lo Nan Farms in Pine Plains, has purchased the cows and leased the barn, and will continue the Freund dairy tradition.
Arsenault’s farm is called Canaan View Farm.
“I wouldn’t be able to do it without Lloyd and Amy,” Arsenault said Saturday, Nov. 5 as he stood outside the milk house, flanked by Ben and Matthew. The cows will remain on the Freund Farm, and Arsenault plans to continue to distribute through the Agri-Mark Cooperative that sells under the Cabot brand.
Freund’s Farm, which became the first dairy in the state to innovate with robotic milkers, will continue its two other major businesses: Freund’s Farm Market & Bakery and the Cow Pots product line.
The farm always has been a family affair. Matthew’s wife Theresa has grown what started as a roadside stand into a year-round market. Today, Freund’s Farm Market & Bakery is a go-to for many in the Northwest Corner with its greenhouse and commercial kitchen.
Cow Pots, biodegradable planting pots made from composted cow manure, is an innovation started by Matthew. Distribution of Cow Pots is nationwide.
Cow Pots were featured in a 2007 episode of the Discovery Channel’s “Dirty Jobs” program.
The Freunds said they wouldn’t be able to make this change without Arsenault.
“A dairy farm needs a cow man,” said Ben. “When he walks into the barn, he can sense immediately if there is a problem.”
Ben said that when the brothers began to think about finding a new owner for the herd, he called Lloyd Vaill of Lo Nan Farms. And Vaill had an immediate candidate.
Arsenault, who attended Delaware Valley University in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, has been interested in cows since the fifth grade. His work day begins early in the morning and ends as the evening sets in. It’s not unusual for him to be summoned to the barn at all hours.
Canaan View Farm has three employees, five milking robots and a robotic feed pusher nicknamed “Juno.”
“Farming is now on the cutting edge of science and technology,” he said. A screen on a computer in the milk office depicts a fever-line graph of each cow’s milk output, just one indication of the advanced techniques used in milk production on the farm.
But Arsenault — the ‘cow man’ that he is—was asked about what experiences on the job are among the most meaningful.
“When you’re bottle-feeding a newborn calf,” he said, “there’s nothing like it.”
The headquarters of Connecticut Public Broadcasting in Hartford.
Remember when commuting was fun because you could listen to the radio?
Earlier in my career I may have been the guy you heard, both on WHCN/Hartford and later on NBC.When I started in radio in 1967, AM Top 40 was king and FM was just getting started.
But in 1961 the FCC decreed that all radios should have both AM and FM bands…and that FM should broadcast in stereo. And no longer could station owners just simulcast their AM programs on their FM stations: FM programming had to be different.
Thus was born “Progressive Album Rock” on FM, usually programmed by long-haired LP fans.That was me, again.Within years radio listening went from predominantly AM to majority FM thanks to better audio quality and changing musical tastes.
So why save AM radio in the car when folks aren’t listening?And what will be left on FM to tune into?
Today the AM band is filled with syndicated political talk, foreign language shows and sports.Only a handful of stations have real news departments (think WTIC, WICC here in Connecticut).
Then came the all-electric car.Because of their wiring Teslas and such could not have AM radios due to interference.What to do?
Well, Congress is expected to pass a law requiring AM radios in all cars.The bill has hundreds of co-sponsors, including the entire Connecticut delegation.No wonder:pols love being interviewed on AM stations.
“But AM radio is effectively aging out, with less than a 20% market share.And many news/talk stations have transitioned to FM where there are far more listeners,” (think WINS in New York City) says former station consultant Steve Goldstein of Westport.
Goldstein left radio years ten years ago to become a podcasting consultant.He also teaches at NYU and says not one of his students listens to AM.Most don’t listen to FM, either, preferring streaming services like Pandora and Spotify or on-demand media like podcasts. “AM radio is going the way of the phone booth and fax machine,” he laments.
So why save AM radio in the car when folks aren’t listening?And what will be left on FM to tune into?
If your listening habits tend toward the NPR stations at the lower end of the FM band you’re in for disappointment.Congress has just voted to claw back (“rescind”) $1.1 billion from funds previously allocated to CPB, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting which funds both PBS television and NPR radio stations.
In the case of Connecticut Public Radio (WNPR) we’re talking about a 10+% budget cut.That will probably mean layoffs and less local programming for shows like “Colin McEnroe.”
At WSHU they say they’ll need to raise an additional $500,000 to make up for the loss.Elsewhere in the U.S. it’s estimated that as many as 80 NPR stations will just go dark.
Your mail is already crowded with funding appeals, not just from public broadcasters but from other non-profits also losing federal funding.With so many hands outstretched, how will donors prioritize their gifts?Feeding the hungry or keeping the airwaves alive?
So Congress giveth (renewed life to AM radio) and taketh away (cutting PBS and NPR). The media world (and listeners) will adapt.
Now, if only I could find my old eight-track tape player.
Of all the diseases that afflict us, dementia is one of the most terrifying because we see it coming and it is inexorable. It takes the mind but leaves the body. We have theories about what causes Alzheimer’s disease — tangles of a protein called beta-amyloid and over-expression of another protein called tau. These proteins in altered forms were thought to be a cause but removing them from most of the cells in the brain using monoclonal antibodies, did not improve symptoms by much. Perhaps the intervention was too late. Both proteins are probably involved but neither has been a fertile source of treatments, and most clinical trials have failed.
I worked in a Department of Pathology and Cell Biology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center where there are basic scientists and pathologists. A pathologist friend lamented the lack of progress for dementia and Parkinsonism as professionally embarrassing. Heart disease, inflammatory diseases, diabetes, cancer, and other conditions have fared better; there are new and effective treatments to extend life and restore independence, most stemming from basic research in cell biology.
There are many cures offered on the internet, but most are wishful thinking or fraud. One study bears watching: it suggested that vaccination for shingles, a painful rash caused by lingering chickenpox virus (Herpes zoster), reduces the number of cases of dementia in older people. Herpes zoster is a neurotropic virus, that selectively infects nerve cells, whose connections, or synapses in the parts of the brain dedicated to memory are the cellular basis of memory. Each nerve cell has 10,000 or more connections with other neurons.
The study in question hangs on a decision made by the UK’s National Health Service after the Shingrix vaccine became available in 2013. NHS decided to give the vaccine to people in Wales born after Sept. 1, 1933, but not to those born one week before. The two groups, in Wales, 80 years old in 2013, were otherwise identical.Each part of the study had thousands of patients.
The chickenpox vaccine reduced the number of people who became demented over the next 7 years by about 20%. The paper is from scientists at Stanford and several Swiss and German universities. It is tough statistical sledding to read but the data are serious. Twenty percent of patients is too few to be confident, but too many to ignore. See below for the reference.
There are many cures offered on the internet, but most are wishful thinking or fraud.
This experiment has been repeated by combining other data from England and Wales. This type of analysis, involving thousands of patient records, has become possible by keeping records in searchable databases. Other versions of the chickenpox vaccine experiment use a more effective vaccine that became available in 2023. Does the newer vaccine protect better than 20%?Does a vaccine applied when people are younger, or given repeatedly, slow the onset of dementia even better?
Think of a slow acting virus that destroys or inhibits neurons or the synapses involved in memory.It could be Herpes zoster lingering from childhood chickenpox or another virus. The vaccine could induce antibodies and T cells that would stop the progression of the slow virus and stave off dementia.A viral cause of dementia would be extraordinary. And actionable.
A second discovery that may be helpful is the effect of weight loss drugs like Wegovy on dementia. These drugs may also help a number of problems including drug addiction and alcohol abuse.
There are several ways to study the effect of these remarkable drugs. One takes advantage of the fact that loss of brain volume is amarker of Alzheimer’s disease. As the disease progresses damage spreads through the brain and it shrinks, which can be observed by magnetic resonance imaging.
One placebo-controlled trial analyzed 204 patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease at 24 clinics in the United Kingdom. Before the study began, all patients had magnetic resonance imaging of their brains to evaluate structure and volume. Half were given a daily injection of 1.8 milligrams of liraglutide/day, a drug used in weight loss and diabetes, while an equal number received a placebo.Those who received liraglutide lost less brain volume (about 50%) than untreated patients. Cognitive testing was done at 0, 24, and 52 weeks and researchers found that patients who received liraglutide hada slower decline in cognitive function — halfthat of untreated patients. They also said they felt better.
Like the Herpes zoster study the results are not conclusive but at this stage we are looking for a new approach, not miracles. Liraglutide and other GLP-1 analogues are licensed for obesity and diabetes, so its path to treatment for Alzheimer’sand other dementias could be relatively swift.
Two independent and larger phase 3 trials are underway, with results due at the end of 2025. If the results are correct, oneprediction would be that people who had been on weight loss drugs should not be entering memory care units. That analysis is difficult, and some of the databases are proprietary, but we will follow these experiments.
Richard Kessin, PhD is Emeritus Professor of Pathology and Cell Biology at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center.
Tell Congress not to touch Medicare
They said they would not touch Medicare, the medical insurance for older Americans, but every Republican in Congress voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB), and that means big cuts coming to Medicare starting next year.
Sequestration is a process in which the government imposes automatic withholding of appropriations to all government programs for the purpose of meeting budget goals.
This happens in conjunction with various acts meant to reduce the budget, such as the statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act, which requires automatic reductions in spending for programs like Medicare when the deficit increases significantly.
If Congress does not act, the One Big Beautiful Bill will potentially cause a $500 billon cut to Medicare starting in 2026 and continuing to 2034.
Payments to hospitals, physicians and healthcare providers will be reduced.
Medicare Advantage plan funding will be decreased.
The Medicare Savings Program, which helps 1.3 million people with Medicare costs, will be impacted.
Stand-alone drug plan payments will decrease as the OBBB removes
Medicare’s ability to negotiate and control costs for medications for many diseases.
It could get so much worse for our elderly population if cuts to Medicare are enacted. It will be tragic for the government to cut Medicare simply to give large tax breaks to the rich. This is not acceptable public policy.
Unless Congress acts now to stop the reduction of federal money for Medicare, these cuts imposed by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will negatively affect over 65 million Americans using Medicare by raising their medical costs starting next year.
It is urgent we tell Congress to restore funding for Medicare!
Lizbeth Piel
Sharon
Thornton family gratitude
We would like to personally thank everyone who came to our son, husband and dad, Scott Thornton’s viewing on July 24 at Hufcut Funeral Home. The outpouring of love, compassion and kindness from friends, family, colleagues, trustees, and the community was truly overwhelming. The amount of support we received was an amazing tribute to Scott and the countless people whose lives he touched during his lifetime. Thank you to all who attended and who sent messages and gifts of condolences.
With heartfelt gratitude,
Jeanne Thornton Schwager (mom), Becky Thornton (wife) Sawyer Haab and Paxton Thornton (daughters) and family
Sharon
With many thanks and profound fondness
On behalf of the North Canaan Events Committee and the Town of North Canaan, we would like to extend a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to every guest, vendor, participant, volunteer, business, and first responder, who made this summer a truly memorable and fun-filled season.
As we successfully navigated three months of special events, beginning with Literacy Night in June, the new Summer Nights of Canaan in July, and closing with Old Railroads Days in August, it was quite clear that our dedicated and passionate group of volunteers were ready and able to provide residents and guests with a variety of options; all focused intently on bringing families and friends together, having fun, and making new memories!
The Town of North Canaan and its storied history was on full display this summer, combined of course with many new offerings; which created a diverse and intriguing calendar of events that allowed eventgoers to fully enjoy themselves, while being in the midst of good company and an environment that was welcoming and jovial. Ranging from literacy and arts for the children, to our annual carnival and fireworks display, to the firefighter’s parade, to the decadent food options, to the spirited music, to the vendor market, to the annual 5-mile fun run, to the treasured historical items and train displays, to the famed history walks, there was surely a little something for everybody.
As we now move forward and continue to plan events for the fall season, we encourage all of you to please stay in touch via our various websites and social media pages; Town of North Canaan and North Canaan Events Committee. Hosting these events surely is a labor love, as they all require significant planning, funding, and staffing. We would love to see the ranks of our events committee grow even larger. If you are able, we kindly ask that please consider volunteering some of your time, so that we can continue to offer our beloved town and the Northwest Corner with even more memories in the months and years ahead.
Jennifer Crane, Chair
North Canaan Events Committee
Brian M. Ohler, First Selectman
Town of North Canaan
Thanks to Journal editor
Thank you John Coston.We could make this longer with the help of AI or one or your capable summer interns but we will leave it as thank you.
We speak for a community grateful for your leadership.
Mary and Philip
Oppenheimer
Lakeville
Gratitude for Lakeville Hose and SVAS ‘heroes’
A few years back my wife, the accomplished filmmaker Anne Makepeace, produced and directed a short film titled “Neighbors Helping Neighbors.”The film depicted the vastly important work of the Lakeville Hose Company and the Salisbury Voluntary Ambulance Squad.Given the value of what both entities do, Anne at first proposed a title that dubbed them heroes. But out of humility, the groups chose instead the more modest title.
Anne, though an Emmy Award winning documentary filmmaker, naturally created the film for a fraction of her usual fee. But as fate would have it, on the evening of Tuesday July 15, we both were paid beyond measure. Anne was away, attending a writing program at Skidmore.Long story short, as I was preparing for bed a suspicious odor prompted me to walk around inside our home.What I found led me to call 911.Fire trucks and an ambulance were in our driveway within five minutes.Turned out that an electrical fire had ignited inside a wall in our home.Deploying their expertise, the volunteers first shooed me from our home (thick smoke was gathering), then found and rescued our beloved puppy from inside.
Then the firefighters trooped into our home, armed with a chainsaw, a couple of axes, and a hose. Was damage inflicted on our home?Of course!That’s how skilled firefighters get rid of the danger.
Anne and I will be eternally grateful to the Hose Company, the SVAS, and the other fire companies that sent their trucks and teams.To us, they will always be heroes.
Anne Makepeace and Charles Church
Lakeville
