Not too late (yet) to be part of school sign

NORTH CANAAN — Buy your brick now, or risk missing out on being part of the planned message board sign at North Canaan Elementary School. The PTO has extended its sale of bricks, which will make up the sign base, until June 16.

The sign will be similar to the one at the Canaan Fire Company, and will display school and community events and accomplishments.

Each brick will be inscribed at the direction of the buyer. It might be a family name, an honorarium or memorial, or just a simple message.

A brick is $50 and can be engraved with up to two lines of 14 characters.

The PTO began selling bricks last summer and has raised about $4,700 between that and other fundraising events. The community and businesses have been very supportive. The Canaan Foundation gave a $500 grant.

The goal now is to have the sign up in time to welcome back students for the new school year. The work will go forward with other types of donations, such as donated labor. To date, that includes masonry work in exchange for a brick by pre-kindergarten parent Sean Crowell, electrical work by Ron Carpenter, a donation of sand and cement by Tom Hester (uncle of kindergarten teacher Melissa Bachetti) and supervision of the project by Phil Ghi of Ghi Sign.

The PTO is currently selling raffle tickets for a trip for four to Disney World. The package includes hotel, airfare and park passes, a $2,500 value. Tickets are $10 each.

Upcoming fundraisers include another McTeacher Night at McDonald’s on May 8 and a clothing drive on June 7.

To purchase a brick, raffle ticket or for more information on any of these events, contact Nikki Blass at 860-824-0088 or at nblass01@yahoo.com

Brick order forms are available at the school, or simply write the inscription on a piece of paper. Remember, one or two lines, up to 14 characters per line. Punctuation counts as a character. Mail a check made out to “NCES PTO†to North Canaan Elementary School, Attn: Bricks, PO Box 758, North Canaan, CT 06018.

Latest News

Housatonic softball beats Webutuck 16-3

Haley Leonard and Khyra McClennon looked on as HVRHS pulled ahead of Webutuck, May 2.

Riley Klein

FALLS VILLAGE — The battle for the border between Housatonic Valley Regional High School and Webutuck High School Thursday, May 2, was won by HVRHS with a score of 16-3.

The New Yorkers played their Connecticut counterparts close early on and commanded the lead in the second inning. Errors plagued the Webutuck Warriors as the game went on, while the HVRHS Mountaineers stayed disciplined and finished strong.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mountaineers fall 3-0 to Wamogo

Anthony Foley caught Chase Ciccarelli in a rundown when HVRHS played Wamogo Wednesday, May 1.

Riley Klein

LITCHFIELD — Housatonic Valley Regional High School varsity baseball dropped a 3-0 decision to Wamogo Regional High School Wednesday, May 1.

The Warriors kept errors to a minimum and held the Mountaineers scoreless through seven innings. HVRHS freshman pitcher Chris Race started the game strong with no hits through the first three innings, but hiccups in the fourth gave Wamogo a lead that could not be caught.

Keep ReadingShow less
The artist called ransome

‘Migration Collage' by ransome

Alexander Wilburn

If you claim a single sobriquet as your artistic moniker, you’re already in a club with some big names, from Zendaya to Beyoncé to the mysterious Banksy. At Geary, the contemporary art gallery in Millerton founded by New Yorkers Jack Geary and Dolly Bross Geary, a new installation and painting exhibition titled “The Bitter and the Sweet” showcases the work of the artist known only as ransome — all lowercase, like the nom de plume of the late Black American social critic bell hooks.

Currently based in Rhinebeck, N.Y., ransome’s work looks farther South and farther back — to The Great Migration, when Jim Crow laws, racial segregation, and the public violence of lynching paved the way for over six million Black Americans to seek haven in northern cities, particularly New York urban areas, like Brooklyn and Baltimore. The Great Migration took place from the turn of the 20th century up through the 1970s, and ransome’s own life is a reflection of the final wave — born in North Carolina, he found a new home in his youth in New Jersey.

Keep ReadingShow less
Four Brothers ready for summer season

Hospitality, ease of living and just plain fun are rolled into one for those who are intrigued by the leisure-time Caravana experience at the family-owned Four Brothers Drive-in in Amenia. John Stefanopoulos, pictured above, highlights fun possibilities offered by Hotel Caravana.

Leila Hawken

The month-long process of unwrapping and preparing the various features at the Four Brothers Drive-In is nearing completion, and the imaginative recreational destination will be ready to open for the season on Friday, May 10.

The drive-in theater is already open, as is the Snack Shack, and the rest of the recreational features are activating one by one, soon to be offering maximum fun for the whole family.

Keep ReadingShow less