NORTH CANAAN — Members of the board of directors of the Douglas Library came before the boards of selectmen and finance seeking funding, as well as long-awaited clarification of the library’s status.Back in the 1920s or 1930s, what was once a prominent residence on Main Street was given to the town to use as a library, or to be sold to finance a library on another site. It somehow became a quasi-town endeavor, with the town in more recent years underwriting a portion of its operating expenses. The rest of the funding (what now amounts to about 40 percent of its operating costs) is raised by the directors and a friends of the library group.Over the last 15 years, the directors, Library Director Norma DeMay and Librarian Pam Farzan have brought the library into the new century with computers, circuit programs that ensure an ever-changing selection of movies and recorded books and an online source for books that is available 24-7. To do it all, they had to negotiate discounts and do regular fundraising for the first time in the library’s history.Recently, with a tough economy, the library has been a vital resource for people who cannot afford a computer and Internet access for job searches.DeMay and several board members attended a March 19 presentation of the selectmen’s budget to the Board of Finance. The library is asking for $83,000 for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The selectmen are proposing $75,740 — an increase of $2,300 or what would amount to about a 3 percent salary increase, which is what town employees are getting.A particularly pressing issue here is the determination of who is responsible for the library. Directors Bunny McGuire, Stephanie Shearer and Lance Beizer and DeMay asked for an update on the town attorney’s opinion on the legal status of the library. It was given to the town, they said, and operates as a free service for residents, yet it is not fully funded by the town.Last year, they had to cover an $8,000 shortfall from a small endowment, which they said should not go toward operating expenses.The Douglas operates with the lowest budget among libraries in the state, and at the lowest per capita rate. The affordability comes from limited hours. It is open 27.5 hours over four days each week. Most of the budget goes to salaries, so a larger budget would go primarily to expanding the library’s schedule.First Selectman Douglas Humes said it is his understanding that the matter of whether or not the library is a town entity had been resolved and that it is a town entity. All that is needed is to set it up properly, because it had not been done so originally.“Once it goes to a town meeting, it will become an official public library and the town will take over all aspects and expenses,” Humes said.Library representatives expressed their dismay over not having been kept in the loop, even during a recent revision of the by-laws with town attorney Judith Dixon. They were advised by Humes and town Treasurer Emily Minacci that they could still have a board of directors and fundraise, but that all monies would go through the treasurer’s office. There was discussion about what the role of the directors would become and how much discretion it would have over spending the money raised or donated, or in the endowment that they have worked to establish.Humes agreed to set up a meeting with library representatives and Dixon. That was to take place March 26 (after The Lakeville Journal went to press). The goal is to have the matter resolved before the next meeting of the Board of Finance, where it will be an agenda item. The finance board will use that April 9 meeting (7:30 p.m. at Town Hall) to discuss budget proposals presented last week by the selectmen and North Canaan Elementary School.Town budgetThe selectmen are proposing an increase of $83,223, or 3.3 percent. The finance board discussed the fact that town employees do not pay a portion of health insurance premiums. There are only nine or 10 employees (town officials offered differing information) who take insurance coverage, but employee life and health benefits would likely cost the town more than $255,000 in the coming fiscal year. Finance members indicated they wanted to talk further about that as they consider budget proposals. Education budgetThe school is seeking a 5.7 percent increase, or more than $230,000. With premium hikes and changes to coverage by employees, they are looking at a 41 percent increase, or more than an additional $160,000 for health insurance. The biggest budgeting factor for North Canaan is the Region One School District assessment. Region One Business Manager Sam Herrick gave a detailed account of yet another increase in the percentage North Canaan pays for Housatonic Valley Regional High School and regional education expenses, based on the number of students from North Canaan at the high school.The current budget proposal on the table has a $709,805 increase. North Canaan will be assessed for $320,484 of that, or 45 percent. For the Housatonic Valley Regional High School portion of the regional budget (which include Central Office and Pupil Services) North Canaan currently pays 30.99 percent. In the coming budget year, it will pay 32.38 percent, and 34.5 percent in the following. Those are real numbers. Projections show a potential downward trend. Elementary schools are surveyed for information that includes the number of students who may go to schools other than Housatonic. But the numbers are still high at 31.9 and 29.2 percent in successive years.“We realize this comes on the heels of multiple years of similar large increases,” Herrick said, “and we are fully aware of the impact the regional budget has on North Canaan.”Herrick said the Region One school board has already pared the budget down and will continue to work on a planned 4.92 percent increase.
Latest News
One systemic consequence of slavery is the loss and obscuring of the histories of those who were enslaved. Records were often not kept about where Africans had been stolen from or who they were related to. Families were torn apart, leaving nothing but the faintest traces of the past. The delineation point, where genealogists can no longer trace histories back, is refered to this as the “document wall.”
Today, 250 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence and more than 160 years since the Emancipation Proclamation, there is a growing effort to restore some of the history stripped from enslaved people and their descendants. Among the leaders of these efforts is Mills, president of the Alex Breanne Corporation, a nonprofit organization that works to identify previously anonymous Black Americans from history and connect them with their living relatives.
The work began with Mills’ sister, who started digging into their family’s past in the 1990’s and introduced him to this emerging world of genealogy. Through that process, the Mills family discovered their great-great-grandfather, Ned Mills, who had been enslaved in Texas. His last name came from his final enslaver and remains the family surname. Through their research, they found that the document wall directly affected their ancestor, who learned of his liberation on June 19, 1865, now commemorated as Juneteenth.
“For the first time,” Mills writes on his website, “American slavery wasn’t something that had happened to anonymous people in a history book. It had happened to my family.”
The discovery gave Mills a familial pride he had been missing for years. That pride fueled his desire to help others find their own history. In 2023, Mills received his certificate in genealogical research from Boston University. He has used his expertise to help descendants of enslaved people uncover histories they never dreamed of learning.
To do this, he uses a process called “reverse genealogy,” identifying a person from the past and working forward to discover their descendants. Along the way, Mills has found some remarkable people who fought for freedom on American soil, some of whom were never freed.
Pay Bill for Robin Starr’s service in the Continental Army.Courtesy the Alex Breanne Corporation
At the Cornwall Historical Society event, Mills will present the stories of four Connecticut families: Job Lathrop of Norwich, the son of Pirmus Armes, about whom Mills has published a book; Prince Mortimer of Middletown, also the subject of a book by Mills;, the three sons of London Wallace of Simsbury; and Robert “Robin” Starr of Danbury, who later lived in Cornwall and Sharon.
A few years ago, Cornwall Consolidated School social studies teacher Will Vincent reached out to Mills for research guidance on a local history project his students were undertaking. Together, they learned about Naomi Freeman of Cornwall. After purchasing an acre of land on Great Hollow Road in 1828, Naomi Freeman became the first Black female landowner in Cornwall.
The students petitioned the town to rename a road after the historic Cornwall resident In April 2025, Great Hollow Road was officially renamed Naomi Freeman Historic Road. U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes joined Mills and the Cornwall Consildated School students for a presentation of their research.
Since then, Mills has guided the students in their quest to learn more about Starr’s story. Starr was a Revolutionary War soldier who joined the Continental Army to earn enough money to buy his own freedom, receiving the Badge of Merit in the process. The stories of his descendents’ services are equally worthy of their own books.
In recognition of Mills and the students’ work, First Selectman Gordon Ridgway proclaimed Feb. 8 as Robin Starr Day.
Preregistration is required for the event at the Cornwall Historical Society. To learn more about Mills’ work, visit
alexbreanne.org.
John Mills speaking at Quinnipiac University.Courtesy the Alex Breanne Corporation
Stephanie Saetta runs Charlie Chicken Bones, a sanctuary in Salisbury.
Dogs have been at the center of Saetta’s life since childhood. She remembers going to the library to research different breeds and trying to convince her parents the family needed a dog. She had her heart set on an Irish Wolfhound, but she was more than happy when her mom brought home a West Highland terrier.
After college, she adopted Charlie as a puppy from a rescue on Long Island. He was a hound-shepherd-Rottweiler mix who suffered from intense seizures. Some veterinarians recommended euthanasia, but Saetta wasn’t ready to give up on him.
When Charlie would have an episode, she would sit with him, nose to nose, talking him through it. She learned to look for the moment he began to come around — when he could smell her again and his tail started to wag.
“You only get one or two of these soul connection dogs, so I do this in his honor,” Saetta said. “I like to think that all the dogs that come through are going to have that person that they connect with just the same.”
Through a network of women working to rescue animals in Texas, she learned about the desperate situations facing many dogs.
With limited space, some public pounds euthanize even healthy animals to make room. Limited access to veterinary care leaves sick dogs or unvaccinated puppies especially vulnerable.
Saetta saw that reality firsthand with a puppy named Gus, a Labrador mix she fostered who has since been adopted. Gus and his sisters had been dumped beside a road, where they were living under an abandoned car. People would leave food for them, but no one would take them to the pound.
“Even the people who rescue animals down there were like, ‘sadly, the best place for them to be is on the side of the road,’” she said. “That’s safer. Someone might actually help them that way.”
Saetta knows that there are far more dogs than any one person can save, but she also knows that helping one dog means one fewer on the street.
Stephanie Saetta,with her rescue dog George and Blue (left), a shepherd mix awaiting his forever home.Madi Long
Charlie Chicken Bone Sanctuary operates entirely through foster homes, a model that Saetta believes is best for the dogs and the humans hoping to adopt them.
Rather than moving directly from a difficult environment into a permanent home, the dogs have a chance to settle into a quieter setting. They can learn what it’s like to live with a family, sleep somewhere comfortable and receive affection without fighting for attention. Fostering also allows the rescue to really get to know each dog.
“As fosters, we’re honest,” said Saetta. We’ll tell you everything that’s been bad, everything that’s been good. What their temperament is and how they’ve responded to all the things they’ve experienced.”
A successful adoption is not just about finding a dog a home; it’s about finding the right home where the dog and family can thrive together.
Saetta is looking for more people willing to open their homes to foster dogs. She understands that the thought of growing attached and eventually saying goodbye can feel daunting. But she sees that goodbye a little differently.
Fostering means being part of a dog’s journey, even if only for a short time. It gives dogs a safe place to rest, the chance to trust again and the love they have gone without for much of their lives. And when the time comes for them to leave, it is not really a loss. It is the reward of knowing they are moving on to a forever home.
Blue, Saetta’s current foster, is hoping to find his perfect home.
Blue, a 7 year-old Shepard mix, is waiting for his forever home. Madi Long
Now around 7 years old, Blue spent most of his life wandering the streets of Texas. People sometimes left food out for him, but his mangy, dirty coat kept them from stopping to pet him. Today, he has a chance to experience something different.
Blue is still waiting for his forever home. Saetta believes he would do best as the only dog in a household or alongside another senior dog. He will need someone willing to continue working with him on his training and understand that a dog with his history needs patience.
But what he gives in return is a whole lot of love.
“He’s so enthusiastic, he’s so excited for life, he’s so friendly, and he’s got such a good heart, and he loves to cuddle,” Saetta said. “He’s a good, good, good dog.”
For more information on adopting Blue or how to foster, visit ccbsanctuary.org.
Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
