Salisbury welcomes Simmons as Clerk

Salisbury welcomes Simmons as Clerk

Kristine Simmons

Patrick L. Sullivan

SALISBURY — It’s official. Kristine Simmons is the town clerk in Salisbury.

She took over in December following the retirement of Patty Williams, who served as town clerk for 21 years.

A Lakeville Journal reporter stopped by Town Hall before the holidays.

Simmons and the new assistant town clerk, Jada Wilson, were running a little late returning from lunch because of an accident on Route 44.

They were accompanied by Levi Simmons, who had a half day at school, and Tito Wilson, a German Shepherd puppy with photogenically floppy ears.

Simmons is a native of North Canaan and her brother is North Canaan Selectman Craig Whiting.

She graduated from Housatonic Valley Regional High School in 1997, where she was prominent in the Housatonic FFA chapter.

“I loved the FFA program,” she said. “It got me through high school.”

Simmons subsequently studied to be a surgical veterinary technician at the State University of New York at Cobleskill and at Northwestern Connecticut Community College, and spent 24 years in that field.

Simmons said she loved the work but as her children got older, she felt she needed a regular work schedule.

So she came on board as assistant town clerk in Salisbury in 2021 when Rachel Lamb retired, and has now taken over for Williams, who retired last month.

Jada Wilson is the new assistant town clerk in Salisbury. And Tito is the assistant to the assistant town clerk.Patrick L. Sullivan

Wilson graduated from HVRHS in 2018 and was also an FFA stalwart. She studied Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Connecticut.

She started training to be the assistant town clerk in September of this year.

Asked for the most interesting or challenging aspects to the job thus far (and not counting the recent election), Simmons thought for a moment and settled on requests for information on properties when the caller doesn’t have a lot of information to start with.

She said a recent inquiry was trying to track down a property once owned by a relative but the only real clue — the name of the road the property was on — had been changed.

With only that to go on, Simmons and Wilson puzzled it out.

“We might not get it right away but we do get back to them,” said Simmons.

Latest News

A scenic 32-mile loop through Litchfield County

Whenever I need to get a quick but scenic bicycle ride but don’t have time to organize a group ride that involves driving to a meeting point, I just turn right out of my driveway. That begins a 32-mile loop through some of the prettiest scenery in northern Litchfield County.

I ride south on Undermountain Road (Route 41 South) into Salisbury and turn right on Main Street (Route 44 West). If I’m meeting friends, we gather at the parking area on the west side of Salisbury Town Hall where parking is never a problem.

Keep ReadingShow less
Biking Ancramdale to Copake

This is a lovely ride that loops from Ancramdale north to Copake and back. At just over 23 miles and about 1,300 feet of elevation gain, it’s a perfect route for intermediate recreational riders and takes about two hours to complete. It’s entirely on quiet roads with little traffic, winding through rolling hills, open countryside, picturesque farms and several lakes.

Along the way, you’ll pass a couple of farmstands that are worth a quick visit. There is only one hill that might be described as steep, but it is quite short — probably less than a quarter-mile.

Keep ReadingShow less
Taking on Tanglewood

Aerial view of The Shed at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass.

Provided

Now is the perfect time to plan ahead for symphonic music this summer at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts. Here are a few highlights from the classical programming.

Saturday, July 5: Shed Opening Night at 8 p.m. Andris Nelsons conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra as Daniil Trifonov plays piano in an All-Rachmaninoff program. The Piano Concerto No. 3 was completed in 1909 and was written specifically to be debuted in the composer’s American tour, at another time of unrest and upheaval in Russia. Trifonev is well-equipped to take on what is considered among the most technically difficult piano pieces. This program also includes Symphonic Dances, a work encapsulating many ideas and much nostalgia.

Keep ReadingShow less
James H. Fox

SHARON — James H. Fox, resident of Sharon, passed away on May 30, 2025, at Vassar Brothers Hospital.

Born in New York, New York, to Herbert Fox and Margaret Moser, James grew up in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. He spent his summers in Gaylordsville, Connecticut, where he developed a deep connection to the community.

Keep ReadingShow less