WEBUTUCK — The Webutuck Central School District’s 2011-12 budget, adopted by the district’s Board of Education April 18 for voter approval in May, represents just one of a number of small budget-to-budget increases passed by the board in recent years.During the past three years, Webutuck’s budget increased by 3.2 percent in 2009-10, decreased by 3.41 percent in 2010-11 and is proposed to increase 2.26 percent in 2011-12, if the budget passes.In fact, at roughly $20.23 million, Webutuck’s overall budget proposed for 2011-12 would be about $770,000 less than it was in 2009-10. But because of cuts to state aid and increases in costs, the tax levy has increased less than 7 percent in those years, board member Joe Matteo pointed out at the April 18 meeting, when the budget was adopted by the board by a vote of 4-0 (Trustees John Perotti, Joe Herald and Joanne Boyd were absent).Webutuck’s board and administration were considering making a number of cuts to programming and staff in efforts to bring the total budget down, but in a last-ditch attempt, the board reached out to the district’s two unions, representing the teaching and non-teaching staff, for salary concessions. In an agreement reached with the Webutuck Teacher’s Association on April 11, in exchange for a one-year contract step freeze, the board would not eliminate any programming or teaching positions that would affect WTA members, excluding positions being eliminated following retirement.An agreement has not yet been reached with the Civil Service Employee’s Association (CSEA), board President Dale Culver said at the meeting.“One agreement is in the works,” he said, adding that the board was “grateful that everyone was open to discussion and open to meet with the board.“I’d also like to thank everyone for understanding how difficult the fiscal realities have become for us,” he said.The board is looking to negotiate a similar salary concession from the CSEA; however, Culver explained that the adopted budget is the maximum the district would be authorized to spend next year. Therefore, any concessions that may or may not be reached with the union would not require the budget figure to change.Currently, the board is planning to eliminate two positions due to retirement and between three and three-and-a-half additional positions. The board would not specify whether those positions were held by CSEA members or if they would be reinstated if an arrangement was made with the CSEA, similar to the WTA’s concessions.During public comments, the board was questioned on whether salary concessions were being asked across the board, including administration. Culver said that recent administrative hires (Ken Sauer as 7-through-12 principal and Steven Schoonmaker as superintendent) knew their salaries would be frozen, at least in the short term, upon accepting their jobs, and that there were no pay increases for office staff.“We started talking about freezes two years ago,” Matteo said. “And we knew that we had to start with administration. We couldn’t have a valid discussion otherwise.”The budget passed for voter approval totals $20,227,770. Of that figure, $8,103,584 is anticipated revenue and the remaining $12,124,186 would have to be raised through taxes. The average tax levy is expected to increase by 1.98 percent.In addition to the budget, which is the first and primary proposal that district taxpayers will be asked to vote on, four other propositions will be on the voter ballot come May 17. Two separate proposals will ask for permission to borrow money to buy two school buses, but a third proposal would give the board authority to use funds previously designated for a new bus garage (which is no longer needed) to be used to purchase the buses. Culver said that if voters allow those funds to be reallocated, there would be no need to borrow for the buses and there would be no further taxpayer impact.Finally, the board is looking for permission to donate the currently unused Millerton Elementary School, in a similar fashion to how the Amenia Elementary School building was donated several years ago to Amenia for use as its Town Hall. Unlike the Amenia building, Webutuck does not yet have one particular municipality or organization in mind to take over building; the village of Millerton, town of North East, the North East Community Center and American Legion Post 178 have all been mentioned during discussions.Several Board of Education seats will also be up for re-election, including Vice President Joe Herald, Joe Matteo and Casey Swift. The deadline for petitions to run for those seats on the ballot has already passed; Herald, Matteo and Swift will not be running on the ballot again. Two residents have turned in petitions: Robert Trotta and Judy Moran. Moran has served on the board before; Trotta has run for a seat before but has not been elected. The third seat will be filled by the person with the highest number of write-in votes.
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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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