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FALLS VILLAGE — In 2024, Housatonic Valley Regional High School athletes succeeded in every season.
Girls basketball set the tone early. The junior varsity squad won a mid-season tournament against regional teams. HVRHS took down Dover High School, Northwestern High School and Indian Mountain School to claim victory.
The girls varsity basketball team carried the team’s success into the postseason with an upset victory over Nonnewaug High School in the quarterfinal round of the Berkshire League Tournament. HVRHS’s Kylie Leonard locked down Nonnewaug’s star Ireland Starziski from start to finish to help secure the win.
Kylie Leonard battled Ireland Starziski from start to finish in the Berkshire League quarterfinal Feb. 16. Riley Klein
HVRHS played St. Paul Catholic High School in the WCLC championship lacrosse game May 21. Riley Klein
In the spring, girls varsity lacrosse continued with a championship appearance in the Western Connecticut Lacrosse Conference tournament. The Mountaineers lost a nailbiter 13-12 to St. Paul Catholic High School. Marissa Zinke, Lola Clayton, Lou Haemmerle and Sophie Nason were each selected to the All-Berkshire League team.
Anne Moran slid safely into third base in softball. Riley Klein
Kyle McCarron (leader) competed in the State Open track meet 1600-meter run June 3.Riley Klein
Track and field athletes took strides later in the spring at the Class S state meet. Kyle McCarron placed 3rd in the 1600-meter run and 4th in the 3200-meter run. Ava Segalla and Anthony Labbadia each placed in the high jump in 2nd and 5th respectively.
When summer rolled around, HVRHS swung in the off-season with a championship victory in the regional Babe Ruth League summer baseball tournament. The team, composed of Mountaineers aged 13 to 16, defeated Barkhamsted 6-5 at Veterans’ Field Aug. 1.
“I don’t care if we’re up by 10 or down by 10, they’ve got the same look on their face. That’s what distinguishes a champion from an ordinary player,” said Coach John Conklin after the win.
When school was back in session, the success kept coming.
The boys soccer bench took in the game against Torrington Sept. 18 beneath a vibrant sunset.Riley Klein
Both boys and girls varsity soccer teams qualified for Class S postseason tournaments. The girls earned the best regular season record in the Berkshire League at 13-2-1. For the boys, Manny Matsudaira was selected All-Berkshire League and for the girls, Ava Segalla, Mia Dodge and Lola Clayton earned the league honors.
In cross country, HVRHS was well represented in the Class S meet in Manchester Saturday, Oct. 26. The Mountaineers had seven boys and six girls attend. HVRHS seniors Kyle McCarron and Gabi Titone both earned all-state status and qualified for the State Open Meet.
Jesse Bonhotel split the Terryville defense. Riley Klein
HVRHS volleyball qualified for the Class S state tournament this fall and sophomore Sydney Howe earned All-Berkshire League team recognition.
As winter sports get underway, hopes are high for varsity basketball. For the boys team, the full starting line up from last year is returning along with several newcomers. The girls will look to continue previous success despite the loss of senior captains Anne Moran and Haley Leonard.
A new sport was added for the winter season in 2025: indoor track. HVRHS’s running talent will stay active through the cold with several invitational meets during the season.
Tyler Roberts recovered an onside kick late in the GNH game against Torrington Sept. 28. Riley Klein
Trump’s new environmental team
“Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night.”
Bette Davis
“All about Eve”
Will the environmental policies and actions of the upcoming Trump administration be a continuation of the Biden agenda? No, definitely not. Trump has made no secret of his intentions. One of his first moves would be to rescind the more than 100 environmental Executive Orders installed by President Biden (many reinstating ones originally put in place by President Obama). Next he might remove the United States from the United Nations 2015 Paris Agreement, a legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted by 196 countries at the UN Climate Change Conference covering climate change mitigation, adaptation and finance.
More than two dozen agencies and other federal organizations have some role in environmental affairs. Among the major entities are the Environmental Protection Agency, the Interior Department, the Commerce Department, the Transportation Department, the Agriculture Department, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services. Here are a few of Trump’s candidates to run these agencies.
Lee Zeldin, a former congressman from eastern Long Island is an “election denier” who refused to certify Biden’s election in 2020. He campaigned against the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, the largest environmental bill ever (but since most of its funds are being spent in Republican districts, he will no longer try to block it). The League of Conservation Voters gave him a score of 13% for his voting record covering his 8 years in Congress, a terrible record for one about to lead the nation’s leading environmental agency.
Trump’s pick for Secretary of the Interior, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, a billionaire businessman is unlikely to follow the path of his predecessor Deb Haaland, known for expanding the country’s National Parks and Monuments, Burgum plans to play a key role in greatly increasing coal, oil, and gas production in public lands.
Proposed for Secretary of Transportation is former (2011-19) GOP congressman from Wisconsin, Sean Duffy. Recently he has been a host on Fox News “The Bottom Line”. He has no particular experience for the job but is a devoted Trump supporter.
Trump has chosen Chris Wright, the head of a fracking company, to be the next Energy Secretary. A vigorous enthusiast for fossil fuels, he minimized the contribution of cleaner energy. An MIT grad, he may alter his views somewhat in the future in response to scientific knowledge.
Howard Lutnick, proposed Secretary of Commerce, might become involved future plans for its subsidiary agency NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The current Republican guidebook, Project 2025, has called for it and its ancillary organization, the National Weather Service, to be dismantled. Calling NOAA “a primary component of the climate change alarm industry”, Project 2025 calls for NOAA to be downsized and the NWS to be sold to commercial interests.
Proposed Secretary of Education, Connecticut’s Linda McMahon was the chief of the Small Business Administration during the first Trump administration. Brooke Rollins, the proposed Secretary of Agriculture is a Texas attorney, active in state Republican politics, she has no prior federal government experience.
Health and Human Services proposed Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy has little to recommend him but his famous family name; he has no medical training or experience running a large organization. His attacks on various aspects of the medical profession, especially vaccines, have made him many enemies.
However, should he be confirmed, he might possibly help foster something positive; his enthusiasm for better nutrition and improved school lunches, and his condemnation of industrial agriculture would be welcomed by environmentalists as would his hostility to pesticides and other poisons so prevalent around us. Although he won’t get far inveighing against corn syrup and ethanol. The main key to success here would be keeping Trump happy.
Unless they have a major falling out, Elon Musk, Trump’s benefactor and, some say “co-president” will likely reverse Trump’s hostility to electric vehicles, a major environmental accomplishment. And who knows what else?
Trump’s appointments, especially Cabinet Secretaries, tend to have little experience directly relevant to their proposed new positions. Also, nearly all are very wealthy; several are billionaires. And (without any evidence), many are referring to Musk as “the world’s richest man”.
Trump’s victory is a massive blow to environmental progress. But even though slowing, much less halting, climate change, may be stymied for a few years there are countless other significant accomplishments that may be possible. We need to remain positive and hopeful. As Monty Python put it, “Always look on the bright side of life . . . ”
Architect and landscape designer Mac Gordon lives in Lakeville.
Letters to the Editor - 1/2/25
Jimmy Carter — the best president in my lifetime
I get mad when people say, ‘oh Jimmy Carter, a terrible president but a commendable post-president.’ Carter was the most underrated president in my 70-year lifetime. His image was irreparably damaged by the failed attempt of the U.S. military to rescue American hostages held by the Iranian government, bad luck that was not his fault.
President Carter’ presidency deserves high marks because of numerous accomplishments during his single term. Through sheer perseverance against poor odds, he single-handedly used moral suasion, unrelenting persistence, and the position of the presidency to coerce Egypt and Israel to make peace in what are known as the Camp David Accords. He signed the Panama Canal Treaty, which was unpopular with the American people, but rather necessary to prevent continued conflict with Panama, which could have disrupted this vital shipping channel. A lot of people don’t know that it was President Carter who established full diplomatic relations with China. And when Middle Eastern countries increased the price of oil fourteen-fold, leading to rampant inflation, he appointed Paul Volker as Fed chairman, who made the necessary and unpopular decision to increase interest rates to the upper teens to cool down the economy, and ultimately inflation. However, President Reagan, who succeeded Carter, wrongly got the credit for that.
The Inaugural ParadeCourtesy The Jimmy Carter Library
I got to know President Carter about 20 years ago when I helped The Carter Center on one of the President’s health initiatives to eradicate various diseases in Africa. I have a health care background. At that time, he told me to call him Jimmy, which I never did out of respect. I remember sitting with him in his private office in Atlanta, and I was gobsmacked that he knew so much about me, some things that few people other than my family knew. A couple of years later, I had a private dinner with him during which I asked him if he had any regrets about his decisions that led to his defeat by Reagan, preventing him from having a second term. The subject immediately turned to the American hostages held by Iran. He said he could have bombed Tehran and received the strong backing of the American people and Congress for taking such a muscular effort, however he believed that it likely would have led to the loss of the American embassy hostages as well as perhaps ten thousand Iranian civilian lives. He said this was not something he could have done in good faith, even if it meant assuring his reelection.
This decision exemplified the core of who President Carter was. He was inherently a good, decent, and compassionate human being whose strong character, morality, and humility are the anthesis of the vast majority of Washington politicians today. He was willing to make difficult decisions and do the right thing at personal political sacrifice. He was also one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. I could talk to him about anything over the years, and I always felt smarter and more informed afterwards.
It is with great sadness that the passing of President Carter has inevitably arrived. He was a great American patriot in every sense. Good-bye, Jimmy. I will miss you.
Lloyd Baroody
Lakeville
Thanking Salisbury P&Z
I am Kitty Kiefer, a Selectman in Salisbury. I want to publicly, even regionally thank our Planning and Zoning Commission, and Land Use Office in Salisbury for fair, open, honest work—and hours and hours of open meetings over the proposed changes to a property currently for listed sale in town. The town’s website has all documents and recordings of these meetings. I encourage all interested individuals to go to the website for all the information contained therein.
And, may your holidays be filled with civil discourse, joy and good health.
Kitty Kiefer
Salisbury
Selectman