LAKEVILLE — In 1926, the town of Salisbury built a ski jump.The 65-meter wooden structure erected on Satre Hill quickly distinguished itself from the surrounding evergreens, reaching high above the ancient pines and hemlocks to dominate the Salisbury skyline. For the next 85 years — and counting — Salisbury has hosted regional ski jumping competitions and championships, becoming a popular destination among the competitors. It’s that small-town feel and the community pride that separates the Satre Hill jump from its counterparts elsewhere in the U.S.But even though townsfolk and the Salisbury Winter Sports Association (SWSA) greet each ski jumping festival as though it were an audition for the Winter Olympics, the sport’s most elite competitions were always held elsewhere. Finally, in 2009 the town’s commitment to the sport was recognized when SWSA President Ken Barker was told Salisbury could host the 2011 Junior Olympics. But there was one condition: The old wooden jump would have to be replaced with a new steel structure. Barker agreed. The cost: $800,000. The timeframe: less than two years.Completing the fundraising and getting the new facility built were just the first victories in the 2011 U.S. Junior Olympic Championships in Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined. The Junior Olympics is the premier event for skiers age 17 and younger. Last week’s competition drew athletes from Wisconsin, Minnesotta, Utah, Colorado. Success at the Junior Olympics is essential for skiers with international and Olympic aspirations.The Nordic combined event consisted of ski jumping and a Gundersen style cross-country race, with both individual and team contests. The cross-country race took place at Mohawk Mountain Ski Area in Cornwall.In ski jumping, each participant takes two jumps, scored on distance and style. The jumper who amasses the most points in the first jump starts first in the cross-country race — this is the Gundersen format. A two-second delay is accorded to each racer for every one point they finish behind the winner in ski jumping. The first person across the finish line is the overall winner.Not everyone who jumped competed in the cross-country race.After two days of practice jumping and training, the competition started Thursday morning from the new tower at Satre Hill with two rounds of individual jumps. Unlike the annual SWSA Jumpfest, which features only contestants from the east coast, the Junior Olympics attracts members from the Central, Intermountain and Rocky Mountain divisions as well.The Central Division made the strongest showing, especially in the boys J-2 class, sweeping the individual jumps. While the Central Division dominated Thursday’s ski jumping competition, it was the Rocky Mountain Division that sent the highest number of contestants to the podium after the cross-country race Thursday afternoon.After a full day of rain, Friday’s nighttime elimination jump was canceled. The volunteers on the grounds crew worked through th enight to get the track on the jump tower and the landing hill in good condition. Their efforts paid dividends as the jump was in great shape Saturday morning for Nordic combined and jumping competitions.In Nordic combined, the pairs for the Nordic combined sprint jumped together to determine the starting positions for the race later in the day at Mohawk Mountain. A large crowd was on hand to watch the teams sprint along the groomed trail. As in the international Winter Olympics, the teams fought with every ounce of their strength and many collapsed on the ground (or into the arms of proud parents) as they crossed the finish line. Salisbury and SWSA also worked flat out for two years, preparing for the 2011 Junior Olympic Ski Championships. Asked if they lived up to his expectations, SWSA’s Barker declared emphatically, “Oh yeah. It was a great weekend.”He was also quick to acknowledge the role that Mohawk Mountain played in the tournament’s success.“They did an enormous amount of work here at Mohawk and we owe them a huge thank you,” he said. The Junior Olympics will return to Salisbury in five years, after the competition completes it rotation through the four other regions. For full coverage of the events, visit The Lakeville Journal website at tcextra.com. For complete weekend results, visit 2011juniorolympics.com.
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One systemic consequence of slavery is the loss and obscuring of the histories of those who were enslaved. Records were often not kept about where Africans had been stolen from or who they were related to. Families were torn apart, leaving nothing but the faintest traces of the past. The delineation point, where genealogists can no longer trace histories back, is refered to this as the “document wall.”
Today, 250 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence and more than 160 years since the Emancipation Proclamation, there is a growing effort to restore some of the history stripped from enslaved people and their descendants. Among the leaders of these efforts is Mills, president of the Alex Breanne Corporation, a nonprofit organization that works to identify previously anonymous Black Americans from history and connect them with their living relatives.
The work began with Mills’ sister, who started digging into their family’s past in the 1990’s and introduced him to this emerging world of genealogy. Through that process, the Mills family discovered their great-great-grandfather, Ned Mills, who had been enslaved in Texas. His last name came from his final enslaver and remains the family surname. Through their research, they found that the document wall directly affected their ancestor, who learned of his liberation on June 19, 1865, now commemorated as Juneteenth.
“For the first time,” Mills writes on his website, “American slavery wasn’t something that had happened to anonymous people in a history book. It had happened to my family.”
The discovery gave Mills a familial pride he had been missing for years. That pride fueled his desire to help others find their own history. In 2023, Mills received his certificate in genealogical research from Boston University. He has used his expertise to help descendants of enslaved people uncover histories they never dreamed of learning.
To do this, he uses a process called “reverse genealogy,” identifying a person from the past and working forward to discover their descendants. Along the way, Mills has found some remarkable people who fought for freedom on American soil, some of whom were never freed.
Pay Bill for Robin Starr’s service in the Continental Army.Courtesy the Alex Breanne Corporation
At the Cornwall Historical Society event, Mills will present the stories of four Connecticut families: Job Lathrop of Norwich, the son of Pirmus Armes, about whom Mills has published a book; Prince Mortimer of Middletown, also the subject of a book by Mills;, the three sons of London Wallace of Simsbury; and Robert “Robin” Starr of Danbury, who later lived in Cornwall and Sharon.
A few years ago, Cornwall Consolidated School social studies teacher Will Vincent reached out to Mills for research guidance on a local history project his students were undertaking. Together, they learned about Naomi Freeman of Cornwall. After purchasing an acre of land on Great Hollow Road in 1828, Naomi Freeman became the first Black female landowner in Cornwall.
The students petitioned the town to rename a road after the historic Cornwall resident In April 2025, Great Hollow Road was officially renamed Naomi Freeman Historic Road. U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes joined Mills and the Cornwall Consildated School students for a presentation of their research.
Since then, Mills has guided the students in their quest to learn more about Starr’s story. Starr was a Revolutionary War soldier who joined the Continental Army to earn enough money to buy his own freedom, receiving the Badge of Merit in the process. The stories of his descendents’ services are equally worthy of their own books.
In recognition of Mills and the students’ work, First Selectman Gordon Ridgway proclaimed Feb. 8 as Robin Starr Day.
Preregistration is required for the event at the Cornwall Historical Society. To learn more about Mills’ work, visit
alexbreanne.org.
John Mills speaking at Quinnipiac University.Courtesy the Alex Breanne Corporation
Stephanie Saetta runs Charlie Chicken Bones, a sanctuary in Salisbury.
Dogs have been at the center of Saetta’s life since childhood. She remembers going to the library to research different breeds and trying to convince her parents the family needed a dog. She had her heart set on an Irish Wolfhound, but she was more than happy when her mom brought home a West Highland terrier.
After college, she adopted Charlie as a puppy from a rescue on Long Island. He was a hound-shepherd-Rottweiler mix who suffered from intense seizures. Some veterinarians recommended euthanasia, but Saetta wasn’t ready to give up on him.
When Charlie would have an episode, she would sit with him, nose to nose, talking him through it. She learned to look for the moment he began to come around — when he could smell her again and his tail started to wag.
“You only get one or two of these soul connection dogs, so I do this in his honor,” Saetta said. “I like to think that all the dogs that come through are going to have that person that they connect with just the same.”
Through a network of women working to rescue animals in Texas, she learned about the desperate situations facing many dogs.
With limited space, some public pounds euthanize even healthy animals to make room. Limited access to veterinary care leaves sick dogs or unvaccinated puppies especially vulnerable.
Saetta saw that reality firsthand with a puppy named Gus, a Labrador mix she fostered who has since been adopted. Gus and his sisters had been dumped beside a road, where they were living under an abandoned car. People would leave food for them, but no one would take them to the pound.
“Even the people who rescue animals down there were like, ‘sadly, the best place for them to be is on the side of the road,’” she said. “That’s safer. Someone might actually help them that way.”
Saetta knows that there are far more dogs than any one person can save, but she also knows that helping one dog means one fewer on the street.
Stephanie Saetta,with her rescue dog George and Blue (left), a shepherd mix awaiting his forever home.Madi Long
Charlie Chicken Bone Sanctuary operates entirely through foster homes, a model that Saetta believes is best for the dogs and the humans hoping to adopt them.
Rather than moving directly from a difficult environment into a permanent home, the dogs have a chance to settle into a quieter setting. They can learn what it’s like to live with a family, sleep somewhere comfortable and receive affection without fighting for attention. Fostering also allows the rescue to really get to know each dog.
“As fosters, we’re honest,” said Saetta. We’ll tell you everything that’s been bad, everything that’s been good. What their temperament is and how they’ve responded to all the things they’ve experienced.”
A successful adoption is not just about finding a dog a home; it’s about finding the right home where the dog and family can thrive together.
Saetta is looking for more people willing to open their homes to foster dogs. She understands that the thought of growing attached and eventually saying goodbye can feel daunting. But she sees that goodbye a little differently.
Fostering means being part of a dog’s journey, even if only for a short time. It gives dogs a safe place to rest, the chance to trust again and the love they have gone without for much of their lives. And when the time comes for them to leave, it is not really a loss. It is the reward of knowing they are moving on to a forever home.
Blue, Saetta’s current foster, is hoping to find his perfect home.
Blue, a 7 year-old Shepard mix, is waiting for his forever home. Madi Long
Now around 7 years old, Blue spent most of his life wandering the streets of Texas. People sometimes left food out for him, but his mangy, dirty coat kept them from stopping to pet him. Today, he has a chance to experience something different.
Blue is still waiting for his forever home. Saetta believes he would do best as the only dog in a household or alongside another senior dog. He will need someone willing to continue working with him on his training and understand that a dog with his history needs patience.
But what he gives in return is a whole lot of love.
“He’s so enthusiastic, he’s so excited for life, he’s so friendly, and he’s got such a good heart, and he loves to cuddle,” Saetta said. “He’s a good, good, good dog.”
For more information on adopting Blue or how to foster, visit ccbsanctuary.org.
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