LAKEVILLE — Sophie Schechter, an English major and rising junior at Kenyon College in Ohio, will intern at The Lakeville Journal this summer.Schechter spent her younger years in New York City, and moved to Salisbury when she was 12. She is interested in politics and her favorite magazine is The New Yorker. “My dream job is to write for The New Yorker for The Talk of the Town,” she said.Schechter hasn’t yet made any concrete plans for her future but she likes writing and is looking for ways to turn it into a career. She hopes to learn about the publishing industry through her internship here at The Journal.“This is a great opportunity to see if this is where I want to go,” she said. “I want a real understanding of what it is to write about all the different topics that are covered in a weekly newspaper, not just writing about what I’m interested in.”In addition to her major in English, Schechter is minoring in art.“I love sketching, mostly people and nature. Although I’m not a big still-life person,” she said, smiling. Schechter is also a tennis player. She has played her entire life and plays on the team at Kenyon.On top of everything else, Schechter is a traveler. Her favorite places she has visited are Italy (especially Venice) and Antarctica. Her trip to Antarctica was with The Hotchkiss School, where she attended high school. With glaciers, jellyfish sightings, swimming in near-freezing water and lectures on birds, the ocean, rocks and marine life, the adventure left a lasting impression on Schechter.“That [trip] was pretty spectacular. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” she said.
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Kent residents to revisit proposed food truck ban
Alec Linden
Sep 01, 2026
KENT – On Sept. 14, Kent residents will once again have the chance to weigh in on a controversial proposed ordinance that would ban food trucks across town.
The legislation was tabled during a July 29 meeting after residents said they were confused by certain provisions in the draft language. Several other proposed ordinances were approved at the meeting.
As written, the ordinance would ban commercial food truck operations anywhere in town, except when trucks are temporarily hired for short-term private or town events.
Residents took issue with how public and private events would be treated differently. Under the proposed ordinance, food trucks operating at private events would not be permitted to sell food to individual customers, while trucks brought in by the town would.
“Why is it good for here, but not good for there?” resident Mike Gawel asked during the July meeting.
Residents will have another opportunity to voice their thoughts and concerns at the Sept. 14 meeting. The idea of a food truck ban has bounced between town agencies for years, but no enforceable legislation has been adopted. Most support for such a law has come from restaurant owners, who have argued that food trucks create unfair competition because they are not subject to the property taxes and other overhead costs faced by brick-and-mortar businesses.
The current proposal follows local crepe maker Grégoire Pye’s effort to secure a semi-permanent location for his food truck business earlier this year. At the time, he said the town had been inhospitable to his business, leading him to consider leaving Kent entirely.
The public meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall, with an option to attend online via Zoom. It will also include a discussion of a proposal to move the town’s Veterans Memorial from its current location outside Swift House to a new site next to Town Hall.
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North Canaan’s BD syringe advances to ‘Coolest Thing Made’ quarterfinals
Debra A. Aleksinas
Sep 01, 2026
NORTH CANAAN — The BD plastic disposable syringe has advanced to the quarterfinals of the Connecticut Business & Industry Association’s 2026 Coolest Thing Made in Connecticut competition, narrowing the field from 16 products to eight.
BD’s North Canaan-made syringe defeated Tilt-N-Deploy, manufactured by Poly-Tech America of Cheshire, in the opening round. It now faces the Calzone Go Live Workstation, manufactured by Calzone Case Co. of Bridgeport.
The bracket-style contest highlights products manufactured in Connecticut. Sixteen products face off in public voting rounds, with the winner of each matchup advancing until one is named the state’s “Coolest Thing Made.”
Quarterfinal voting is underway at cbia.com/coolest-thing. Voters may cast one vote per day during each round. The winner will be announced Oct. 1 at CBIA’s Made in Connecticut 2026 Manufacturing Summit at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford.
The BD syringe is the first product from a manufacturer in Connecticut’s Northwest Corner to earn a place in the three-year-old competition, according to CBIA officials.
BD’s 385,000-square-foot North Canaan facility is the Northwest Corner’s largest employer, with about 500 full-time workers and nearly 50 contingent associates. The plant has manufactured syringes for more than six decades and produces approximately 2.5 billion annually, supporting patient care in more than 70 countries.
“I truly believe this is the coolest thing made not only in Connecticut, but in the world,” said Zane VanWagoner, BD Canaan’s senior operations manager.
Other quarterfinalists include toothpaste, a brass Santa Claus button, a satellite propellant isolation valve, a three-wheeled roadster, a robotic-assisted surgery system and kielbasa.
Electric Boat’s Virginia-class submarine won the inaugural competition in 2024. Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense of Simsbury won last year for its Frangible Joint.
For North Canaan, BD’s advancement keeps alive the Northwest Corner’s bid for its first championship in a competition celebrating Connecticut manufacturing and the people behind the products.
“BD patients, every second somewhere in the world, are being serviced by this,” said Ahmad Warraich, BD Canaan plant manager, referring to the syringe.
“Our people know that this is the reason we are here. Our people know that the world depends on us.”
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Salisbury Volvo mechanic marks 42 years
John Coston
Sep 01, 2026
Steve Ohlinger, next to a body-modified 1980 Volvo 240. He has serviced Volvos and other makes at The Auto Shop in Salisbury for more than four decades.
John Coston
SALISBURY — Steve Ohlinger celebrated 42 years last week as a mechanic with a special touch for Volvos, building a wide following among Swedish-car aficionados in the Northwest Corner and beyond.
The Auto Shop sits on a quarter-acre lot behind LaBonne’s on Railroad Street, marked by a row of vintage Volvos parked nose-in along the property.
Ohlinger took over the shop in 1984, the same year a fire destroyed Salisbury Town Hall. He kept the name used by the previous owners.
Ohlinger had moved to town from Yorktown Heights, New York. His wife knew Salisbury a little, and he was familiar with the racetrack at Lime Rock Park, so he responded to an ad in Autoweek.
Little by little, his customer base grew as his wife made connections through the library and church and he joined the church bell choir. It was his first attempt at running a business.
“My father thought I had a lot of nerve,” he said.
“My reputation grew, and business slowly took off, and I’m still in the bell choir,” he said.
For years, Ohlinger used the business to support his interest in auto racing. He competed at Lime Rock Park, winning two events in his class.
Ohlinger is also known for speaking his mind. Beside the row of cars outside the shop, a large sign reads “No War,” accompanied by other political messages.
“I was told back in the beginning, when Reagan was president, ‘Don’t put up political signs.’ But I did anyway,” Ohlinger said.
Although Volvos are his specialty, Ohlinger services a variety of makes. Karen Kellogg, a customer for 15 years, pulled into the shop recently in her Honda Element.
“Steve’s always good with the answers,” Kellogg said, noting that he had cared for her previous car, a Volvo 240 station wagon, for years.
Ohlinger said most older Volvos can still be repaired and that the 240 models remain fully capable of cross-country travel.
“I got a part from Sweden the other day. I just called up, and they said they had the part,” he said.
“A lot of people are thrilled we’re still here,” Ohlinger said.
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Hayes criticizes Trump, outlines priorities at Sharon gathering
Ruth Epstein
Sep 01, 2026
State Rep. Maria Horn, U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes and 30th Senatorial candidate Aaron Zimmer attend a Democratic event in Sharon Thursday.
Ruth Epstein
SHARON — U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes discussed education, health care, immigration, voting rights and other national issues Thursday during a gathering with supporters at a constituent’s home in Sharon.
“We are facing a future different from one we have ever had before,” said Hayes, a Democrat who has represented Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District since 2019. “We have to be bold and unapologetic to reverse some of the cruelty of this administration.”
Hayes is seeking a fifth term in November against Republican challenger Chris Shea.
Hayes called many of her House colleagues “cowards,” saying they privately express dissatisfaction with the Trump administration, “but it means nothing if they give him a pass and don’t hold him to some accountability.”
Hayes accused President Donald Trump of being the most corrupt president in history and described him as “narcissistic.”
A former Waterbury public school teacher, Hayes spoke about her commitment to education and student welfare. She serves on House committees overseeing education and agriculture.
“My committee on education is jumping. Everything is being attacked and eroded on every level,” she said.
Hayes then announced publicly for the first time that she plans to seek the chairmanship of the education committee.
“This moment calls for different leadership, a different response,” she said. “People are happy I’m a teacher. Education saved my life. I’m up for the challenge and ready to do the job. My resolve is strong and my commitment is firm.”
Hayes said she has advocated for nutrition programs through an education subcommittee, adding that “hungry kids don’t learn.”
She also discussed environmental protection, saying she helped preserve 40 miles of the Housatonic and Farmington rivers, and identified health care as another priority.
Addressing other national issues, Hayes said Americans should be concerned about voting rights and immigration.
“We have normalized how this country operates. It’s about rewriting history.”
Hayes said two things can be true at the same time when discussing U.S. support for Israel. She said Israel can be supported without giving Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a blank check.
She also expressed gratitude for the support she has received since first being elected, including large and small campaign donations.
“The day after I was elected, I became everyone’s congresswoman.”
State Rep. Maria Horn, a Democrat representing the 64th District, also attended the gathering and praised Hayes’ work on behalf of her constituents. Horn, who is seeking a fifth term, and Hayes discussed their work with area farmers and concerns about the effect of the Trump administration’s immigration policies on farmworkers.
Aaron Zimmer of Brookfield, a Democratic candidate for the 30th Senate District seat held by Republican Stephen Harding, also attended.
During a question-and-answer period, one attendee asked Hayes how Trump could have been elected twice.
Hayes responded by listing several accomplishments of the Biden administration and discussing what she viewed as the resentment underlying some political divisions.
“Many believe if you’re helping someone else, you’re taking something away from me. This goes beyond policy differences; this is just mean.”
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Sharon Boards still at odds over education funding
Alec Linden
Sep 01, 2026
Sharon Center School
File photo
SHARON — Nearly two months after Sharon voters settled a contentious school budget debate, the town’s Board of Finance and Board of Education are working to improve communication. While the boards are approaching common ground, including on the state minimum budget requirement—a central sticking point in the budget discussions this past spring and summer—differences remain as to how tight to keep the bottom line.
Voters at a town hall meeting in May initially rejected the education budget before approving a revised plan in late June.
At the center of the debate was the minimum budget requirement, or MBR. The state law generally prevents municipalities from budgeting less for education than they did in the previous fiscal year.
Board of Finance members have said for several budget cycles that an accounting error years ago caused the school appropriation to be set unnecessarily high. They contend that the inflated baseline contributed to unspent balances at the end of subsequent school years and could make future reductions difficult under the MBR.
With that concern in mind, the Board of Finance has resisted increases in education spending in recent years.
At an Aug. 10 Board of Education meeting, Terry Vance, chairman of the board’s budget subcommittee, argued that the MBR should not dominate budget discussions. Vance said the town has sufficient financial resources, and noted that other towns in the Region One school district have raised their school budgets at times without placing the same emphasis on the requirement.
The Board of Finance, however, offered a different assessment at its Aug. 18 meeting.
Member Carol Flaton said rising costs have narrowed the amount of money left unspent in recent years, meaning the MBR may play a smaller role in future budget discussions. She and other members nevertheless rejected the argument that Sharon’s relative wealth means it can readily increase spending.
Flaton said Sharon’s wealth also limits the state assistance it receives. For fiscal year 2027, the town received just under $30,000 through the state’s Education Cost Sharing program, which distributes aid based on factors including enrollment, property wealth, and household income.
Sharon received the smallest allocation of any Connecticut municipality, with several other Region One towns receiving similarly limited amounts, according to data from the School and State Finance Project, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that advocates for public education in Connecticut.
Finance board member Michele Pastre said the town’s overall wealth also masks substantial differences among households. Budget decisions, she said, must account for residents with lower incomes who may struggle to absorb higher property taxes.
Pastre said that some argue that residents can afford to pay more. “No, we can’t,” she said. “There are a lot of people who can’t.”
In late August, BOE Chair Philip O’Reilly said that it is his board’s duty both to the school and taxpayers to strike a balance. “We’re not guided by a dollar percent,” he said, “we’re guided by the needs of the children, and we are also aware that we have fiscal responsibility.”
He said that even as the MBR may not play as much of a role in upcoming budget discussions, other challenges remain, such as a long-term capital needs analysis report that will be reviewed in September. A new study about the Region One school district is also likely to contribute to future talks as well, O’Reilly said.
The bottom line, he said, is that the two boards need to work with one another to avoid what happened in June. “We understand that the budget process has to start right away,” he said.
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Kent to host free Repair Café Sept. 26
Alec Linden
Sep 01, 2026
Alec Linden
KENT – Residents can bring broken but beloved household items to the Kent Community House for free repairs Saturday, Sept. 26, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority will hold the Repair Cafe event in collaboration with the Kent Sustainability Team, Kent Conservation Commission and Kent Memorial Library. It will be the first repair café held in Kent and the third organized by HRRA.
The event will be free of charge and open to all residents of the HRRA’s membership region, which includes Bethel, Bridgewater, Brookfield, Danbury, Kent, New Fairfield, New Milford, Newtown, Redding, Ridgefield, Roxbury, Sherman, Weston and Wilton.
The event is intended to reduce waste in the community while saving residents money and potentially a treasured belonging. Items residents are encouraged to bring include bicycles, electronic appliances, Apple products, jewelry, small furniture, small gas engines and textiles.
Volunteers will attempt to fix the items, but repairs are not guaranteed. Residents are limited to one item at a time, but may rejoin the queue with additional items.
“The town is particularly grateful to Kent residents Judith Tolkow and Lee Woodbury for suggesting this activity and helping make it a reality,” said Selectman and Kent Sustainability Team Chair Lynn Worthington.
Interested residents can visit the HRRA’s Repair Café webpage for more information and to register for an appointment.
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