Nostalgia reigns at Sharon reunion

Jack Comporesi is hugged by former student Janette Ireland of Kent during the Sharon Center School reunion Saturday.
Ruth Epstein
Jack Comporesi is hugged by former student Janette Ireland of Kent during the Sharon Center School reunion Saturday.
SHARON — Memories filled the air of the Sharon Center School cafeteria Saturday, March 1, as alumni from the 1970s to 2000s gathered at the invitation from beloved teachers Irv Robbins and Jack Comporesi.
Shrieks of recognition from those who hadn’t seen each other in decades were constant. So was the laughter as reminiscences were shared. The two teachers looked on with delight, watching as the more than 100 came together.
Looking back on their years with great fondness, the pair decided to host the reunion in hopes of reconnecting with the students they so enjoyed. Robbins taught social studies and math, while also coaching and Comporesi, affectionately known as “Compo,” was the physical education teacher and coach.
“It’s a blast to be in a place with friends,” said Robbins, who was at the school from 1969 to 1998.
“This is just great,” said Comporesi, decked out in his signature shorts which he wore throughout his tenure. “It’s bringing back a lot of memories. I’m surprised at the turnout. I guess that shows how much they thought about their time here.” He taught at the school from 1968 to 2002, noting a highlight was his being able to introduce cross-country skiing into the program. It was the only school in the state at that time that offered the sport and he praised the Board of Education for providing the funds.
As they arrived, the guests first headed over to the teachers for hugs and handshakes. Adam King of Westborough, Massachusetts, came bearing his eighth-grade yearbook, poring over the photos with some of his classmates. “As fast as I wanted to leave this town, I’ve kept it in my heart.” He and several others made reference to Comporesi’s shorts, noting he always wore them, even in sub-zero-degree weather. “His gym classes were the bright spot in my day.”
Among those attending Saturday’s Sharon Center School reunion are, from left, Meng Kry, Maggie Laverty, Julie Prindle, Barbie Ellis and Andrea Kennedy.Ruth Epstein
King remembered that Robbins had them read Garrison Keillor’s “Prairie Home Companion” and that he invited students to his home for sledding.
King, and others, recalled the wooden hand Comporesi kept in his office as a deterrent to poor behavior. Jesse Loucks of Salisbury also had vivid memories of that spoon that had one smashed finger. When he thought about it, he went over to question Comporesi to ask if that finger was a result of his using it to punish someone. He came back with the answer. “He said that broken finger was just for effect,” reported Loucks.
For Nam Kry of New York City, Sharon Center School played a pivotal role in his life. He and his family were from Cambodia and were sponsored to come to town by the Sharon Congregational Church. Knowing no English, he said sports was the way he broke through the language barrier and he credited the two teachers for providing those experiences. He and his siblings were the only Asian students at the school at that time, but they were embraced by the school and community.
Kry went off to Salisbury School, Yale for an undergraduate degree and Harvard for a master’s. He works in the area of technology. “My American dream started here,” he said. Robbins noted he was one of the brightest students he ever taught.
As she embraced Comporesi, Janette Ireland of Kent said, “He was tough. He didn’t let us get away with anything.” Ed Duntz of Sharon said his main remembrance about Robbins was telling the students they all needed to know about football, because the boys would play it and the girls would date players. Douglas Cahill, current chairman of the Sharon Center School Board of Education, said his greatest pleasure is giving out the Comporesi Sports Award for sportsmanship at each graduation and Brian Wilcox beamed to relate that his daughter Morgan received that award.
Several women from the classes of 1986 and 1987 attended, pleased to see the teachers and each other. Andrea Kennedy said the two “set expectations because they loved the kids that went here” and Maggie Laverty said they inspired her to become a teacher.
Jamie Hall Casey of Sharon said when her father died, Comporesi was the first to arrive for his calling hours. Linda Amerighi of Sharon remembers students having to take part in the Presidential Fitness program under Comporesi’s supervision, which gave students needed exercise. “I still have my badges and certificates,” she said, proudly.
Jonathan Costa, who is director of EdAdvance, said his father, Tony Costa, a former principal at the school, hired Comporesi. “Jack inspired me in sports and Irv inspired me in education,” said Costa.
Ellie Lowell of Sharon came to show her appreciation to them both, but said Robbins made her seventh- and eighth-grade years enjoyable after having a difficult sixth-grade experience. “You don’t forget teachers like that,” she said.
Wanda Moeller of Sharon was the school secretary from 1977 to 2006. “They were a lot of fun,” she said of the pair. “They cared deeply about their students.”
“I knew I’d enjoy it and I did,” said Robbins, looking around the room toward the end of the event. “It’s a dream come true. I loved the kids, most of whom I haven’t seen since they graduated. To see them as adults is a joy.”
The case of Jacquier vs. Camardi is expected to continue at Torrington Superior Court the week of Sept. 15.
NORTH CANAAN — A pair of Democratic Town Committee (DTC) candidates are seeking legal recourse to ensure they are included on the ballot this November despite errors on the party endorsement slate.
Plaintiffs Jean Jacquier and Carol Overby brought the case against defendant Marilisa Camardi to Torrington Superior Court, which held an evidentiary hearing Friday, Sept. 12. Testimony from both sides aimed to explain the situation to Judge Ann E. Lynch.
At the July 22 DTC caucus, Jacquier was endorsed as the party’s candidate for town clerk and Overby was endorsed to run for Board of Finance.
The next day, DTC chair and caucus secretary Chris Jacques filed the full endorsement slate and State Election Enforcement Commission (SEEC) documents to Assistant Town Clerk Marilisa Camardi. But the slate was missing information: Jacquier and Overby were not assigned to a specific office or term.
"I am a rookie at this," Jacques said on the witness stand. "I suppose I just didn't look at it closely enough."
Jacquier testified that she was not wearing her glasses while filling out her information on the official endorsement slate and “made a clerical mistake.”
Overby was not called as a witness.
Camardi testified to noticing on July 24 that the form was missing information and, after cross referencing the accompanying SEEC documents, filled in the blanks herself. It was established during the hearing that making clerical corrections on forms is within proper protocol for a town clerk.
On Aug. 7, however, First Selectman Brian Ohler alerted the Secretary of the State’s (SOTS) office that the original document was incomplete. (Ohler was not present at the Sept. 12 hearing.)
SOTS Election Officer Heather Augeri reviewed the slate as it was originally submitted. Per the filing, she responded that the endorsements were not properly certified and therefore void. Augeri advised Camardi remove both nominees from the ballot.
Jacquier testified that since the Aug. 7 correspondence she has had several phone calls with Augeri, who she described as a friend. Jacquier said Augeri relayed the same message to her: “She said it’s not valid.”
Camardi is the acting town clerk in North Canaan, though she is technically Jacquier’s part-time assistant. Jacquier is the current, four-term elected town clerk but has not reported to work since February following a dispute between her and the first selectman. “I did not resign. I did not quit. I just left,” Jacquier testified. “I couldn’t stand the turmoil.”
Plaintiff attorney John Kennelly said the SOTS office has no statutory authority to rule on issues relating to municipal party endorsements. Kennelly claimed that as the acting town clerk, Camardi is the sole individual responsible for finalizing and certifying the town election ballot.
Kennelly asserted that if Camardi was informed through the SEEC documents of which offices Jacquier and Overby were endorsed for, then Augeri’s advice should be ignored and the two candidates should be eligible to run in November.
Camardi said she was waiting to finalize the ballot until the court makes its decision.
After nearly three hours of testimony, Judge Lynch referenced a similar case, Airey vs. Feliciano (2024), in which Connecticut Supreme Court ruled to reject an improperly signed petition sheet. Lynch requested briefs from each attorney by Monday, Sept. 15, and planned to continue the hearing that week.
Aradev LLC’s plans to redevelop Wake Robin Inn include four 2,000-square-foot cabins, an event space, a sit-down restaurant and fast-casual counter, a spa, library, lounge, gym and seasonal pool. If approved, guest room numbers would increase from 38 to 57.
LAKEVILLE — The public hearing for the redevelopment of Wake Robin Inn is over. Salisbury Planning and Zoning Commission now has two months to make a decision.
The hearing closed on Tuesday, Sept. 9, after its seventh session.
Michael Klemens, chair of P&Z, had warned at the opening of the proceedings that “this might be a long night” due to a last-minute influx of material from experts hired by Wells Hill Road residents William and Angela Cruger to oppose the project, but this turned out not to be the case.
These 11th hour submissions set a sour tone to the start of the meeting, with commissioner Robert Riva stating that it was “not very professional to pull this stunt on this Commission.” Riva said he had diligently reviewed the already substantial documentation provided by both the applicant and the opposing experts, and was surprised to find a “dump” of additional information submitted just hours before the meeting’s start time at 6 p.m.
Tensions were quickly eased, however, when William Cruger offered his concise summation of his platform’s opposition to the expansion, which is the second iteration of the project after an earlier version was withdrawn late last year.
“It’s important for you all to hear from me that there was never any disrespect intended to the Commission, the commissioners, and to the process,” Cruger said. He defended the last-minute submissions as an effort on the part of the experts to be thorough in their analysis: “Our intention… has been and remains to do our best to get whatever we think will be helpful in your deliberations into the record.”
The Crugers formally entered the hearing process as intervenors for the first application from Aradev LLC, the applicant, in the fall of 2024, meaning they and their hired consultants had full party status in the hearing proceedings. During this cycle, however, they chose not to petition for intervenor status, yet during this round of hearings their role has been similar. Klemens described them as having “almost intervenor status — not quite.”
William Cruger summarized the consultant’s findings for Aradev’s revised application, noting they found it to be “virtually identical in scale to the previous proposal.”
“Our position is that the proposed expansion would absolutely negatively impact the usefulness, enjoyment and value of the surrounding properties,” he said.
Aradev’s attorney Joshua Mackey countered by saying that the special permit conditions would elevate the currently non-conforming hotel in the zone, describing it as a “community asset that is improved, regulated, and safeguarded for generations to come.” He characterized Aradev as “the next steward of this storied property.”
After Mackey and Aradev co-founder Steven Cohen concluded their remarks, Klemens closed the hearing with no public comment, which he had stated would be the case at last week’s hearing session on Thursday, Sept. 4. Klemens said that P&Z will begin deliberating the proposal in early October after the commissioners have had the chance to review the information in the record.
A total of 45 letters, including the Crugers’ experts’ testimony, were submitted since the Sept. 4 meeting alone, alongside hundreds of pages of application materials and additional testimony.
As the Commission deliberates and reviews, all of this information is available for public viewing on the “Meeting Documents” subpage under P&Z’s section on the town website, www.salisburyct.us.
The Commission must issue a decision on the application by Nov. 13, the end of the statutorily defined deliberation window.
COPAKE — Judith Marie “Judy” Drury, 76, a four-year resident of Copake, New York, formerly of Millerton, New York, died peacefully on Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, at Vassar Bros. Medical Center in Poughkeepsie, New York, surrounded by her loving family and her Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Judy worked as a therapy aide for Taconic DDSO in Wassaic, New York, prior to her retirement on Feb. 1, 2004. She then went on to work in the Housekeeping Department at Vassar Bros. Medical Center for several years.
Born Jan. 2, 1949, in Richford, Vermont, she was the daughter of the late Leo J. and Marie A. (Bean) Martel. She attended Roeliff Jansen Central School in Columbia County, New York, in her early years. Judy was an avid sports fan and she was particularly fond of the New England Patriots football team and the New York Rangers hockey team. She enjoyed spending time with her family and traveling to Florida, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Pennsylvania for many years. She was a longtime parishioner of Faith Bible Chapel of Shekomeko on Silver Mountain in Millerton as well.
Judy is survived by two brothers; John Martel and his wife, Jane of Falls Village, Connecticut, and Frank Martel of Ancram, New York; her sister, Susanna “Sue” Martel of Copake, New York; and three generation of nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews and great-great nieces and nephews. In addition to her parents, Judy was predeceased by her brother, Leo W. Martel, Sr. of Poughkeepsie, New York, and her sister, Helen J. Slater of Hillsdale, New York; her sister-in-law, Karen Martel of Ancram and a special nephew, Jacob Stickle of Copake.
A visiting hour will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Faith Bible Chapel, 222 Silver Mountain Road, Millerton, New York 12546. A funeral service will be held at 3 p.m. Pastor William Mayhew will officiate. Burial will follow at Irondale Cemetery in Millerton, New York. A celebration of Judy’s life will be announced at a later date. Arrangements have been entrusted to the Scott D. Conklin Funeral Home, 37 Park Avenue, Millerton, New York 12546.
Memorial contributions may be made to Faith Bible Chapel, 222 Silver Mountain Road, Millerton, New York 12546 or American Cancer Society, 45 Reade Place, Poughkeepsie, New York 12601. To send an online condolence to the family, flowers to the service or to plant a tree in Judy’s memory, please visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com
AMESVILLE — Jeremy Dakin, 78, passed away Aug. 31, 2025, at Vassar Brothers Medical Center after a long battle with COPD and other ailments.
Jeremy was a dear friend to many, and a fixture of the Amesville community. There will be a service in his memory at Trinity Lime Rock Episcopal Church on Sept. 27 at 11 a.m.
Below is the obituary Jeremy himself wrote:
Born July 20, 1947, Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
A resident of Salisbury, Connecticut for over 75 years, he graduated from UVM in 1970, at which time he enlisted in the U.S. Army as a German translator (“It just seemed like a better idea than learning Vietnamese”), and served two years in West Berlin.
Returning to Vermont in 1973 he began a 16-year gig as a ski shop manager and a professional ski patroller, which led to a 30-year stint as an EMT.
A direct descendant of Rebecca Nurse (who was hanged as a witch in Salem in 1692), he is survived by a nephew, Robin Dakin, of Englewood, Ohio, his wife Amy, and a flock of grandnieces, all of whom seem to have inherited the family love of camping and canoeing.
The love of his life, Wren Smith, passed away in 2007 after a 10-year battle with breast cancer. By the time he was seventy, Jeremy’s physical activities were curtailed by COPD, due to a lifetime of smoking.
Rather than spend money on flowers, please consider a donation to the American Cancer Society and/or the American Lung Association. But, for Pete’s sake, don’t smoke.