newsandviewsjb

NEWS&VIEWS by Jacqueline Bennett

Posts from the “NEWS” Category

Jersey Boys Rocks in Hartford, CT

Posted on October 28, 2011

Jersey Boys Rocks in Hartford, CT Article and photo by Jacqueline Bennett It is easy to understand why Jersey Boys won the 2006 Tony Award for best musical. A documentary style musical about the 1960s rock n’ roll group Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, the show has been rocking the house in its return engagement at The Bushnell in downtown Hartford, Connecticut. Last Saturday’s matinee performance was no exception. From the moment the players stepped on stage until they took their final bow the audience was fully engaged with the story and music, offering prolonged applause after several songs to clearly appreciative cast members who remained in character, yet acknowledged the response with a touch of a hand to their hearts. From “Sherry” to…

Categories: NEWS

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UConn Homecoming Victory Amidst Uncertainty

Posted on October 21, 2011

Article and photo by Jacqueline Bennett   The 2011 University of Connecticut homecoming football game win was a welcome victory amidst continued uncertainty about the future of the Big East Conference. UConn came up with a 16-10 W, in the October 15 game against South Florida at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. Two days later presidents and chancellors from the Big East universities voted unanimously to double the exit fee to $10 million for football schools to leave the conference. It is a vote which came on the heels of a turmoil creating announcement that Pittsburgh and Syracuse will drop out of the Big East to join the Atlantic Coast Conference – ACC. Speculation is that revenue and dominance were motivating factors in the…

Categories: NEWS

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Trees of Honor for Connecticut’s Iraq, Afghanistan Fallen Heroes

Posted on October 14, 2011

Trees of Honor for Connecticut’s Iraq, Afghanistan Fallen Heroes by: Jacqueline Bennett “May they never be forgotten.” Plans are underway for a Connecticut Trees of Honor Memorial, Inc. to pay homage to Connecticut’s military men and women who died in service to the nation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Initiated by a small group of citizens, currently looking for a 3 acre site in central Connecticut, the living memorial is envisioned as a “beautifully designed space” of serenity and reflection, to include a shade tree planted for each Connecticut military member who died serving in Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraq Freedom and Operation New Dawn. A personalized plaque will be erected next to each tree and there will be walkways, flower gardens, benches, flagpoles, statues…

Categories: NEWS

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Destination : The Putney Inn & (Update – now closed)

Posted on October 7, 2011

Update 10/8/2014 – I came across disappointing news today while checking The Putney Inn Website – the inn is closed. The message on their site reads: “I want to thank the hundreds of thousands of patrons who have graced my door over my four decades as innkeeper -ess.” According to on-line reports in the Rutland Herald, the Battleboro Reformer and Vermont Today, a deal with a Connecticut real estate developer to buy the 11.25 acre historic site, to make renovations and reopen this past spring fell through. The property, including adjacent motel rooms, was said to have been listed at $895,000. Last month innkeeper Randi Ziter faced a foreclosure auction. It was some fifteen years ago that I spotted The Putney Inn just off I-91…

Categories: New England, NEWS, Restaurants, Tourism

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Connecticut Day at the 2011 Big E

Posted on September 30, 2011

Connecticut Day at the 2011 Big E Article and photo by Jacqueline Bennett Connecticut Day, held September 21 at the Big E, drew the state’s top officials Gov. Dannel Malloy and Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman. In the early afternoon Wyman was on hand at the Connecticut building for a ‘meet and greet’ with exhibitors including entrepreneur Kathie Pelliccio, the “Seed Queen” of Branford, who has started Super Seedz, an all natural gourmet pumpkin seed treat promoted as a healthy snack. Wyman even tasted a handful of seeds which come in a variety of flavors. Among other exhibits inside the building were the popular Connecticut authors booth, a winery sample,  an interesting LEGO demonstration, food concessions and as always a strong presence by the Connecticut State…

Categories: NEWS

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Red, White & Blue Toby Keith

Posted on September 23, 2011

Red, White & Blue Toby Keith by:Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Perhaps the only thing Toby Keith has more of than talent is patriotism. Both were apparent when the country singer brought his Locked & Loaded Tour presented by Ford F-Series to the Comcast Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut, Friday, September 16.   Four servicemen got the thrill of a lifetime as Keith called them on stage to join him in performing what has become his signature tune, “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue.” One Marine and three Army soldiers, all in uniform, made their way down the aisles to jump on stage. Later, Keith stood back as they accepted high fives and handshakes from fans reaching up from below. Meanwhile, the visual was enlarged…

Categories: NEWS, Toby Keith Live

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Windsor “Walk of Light” Compelling 9/11 Tribute

Posted on September 16, 2011

Article & Photos by: Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb    Windsor, Connecticut provided a compelling tenth anniversary commemoration, recreating its award-winning tribute to the victims of 9/11, “Walk of Light.” Drawing viewers from near and far, and replicated elsewhere, for the third time since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States, nearly 3,000 luminaries inscribed with the victim’s names, decorated and personalized by local students and civic groups lined Windsor’s historic town green. In resounding voice Rev. Robert L. Littlejohn, Jr., pastor from the Pilgrim Way Baptist Church, shared moving words with the crowd gathered on the green, “America the beautiful …. We ARE a great nation……in spite of our pain and loss we must NEVER quit …. we must NEVER give in……

Categories: 9/11 Anniversary Tributes, American history, National Register Historic Places, NEWS, town greens

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