On the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, remembering the victims and heroic emergency response teams.
Tagged: 9/11, Heroes All, Jacqueline Bennett
Write-Up & Photo by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com The University of Connecticut, my alma mater, has once again been ranked among the top public universities in the nation. In its annual rankings for 2014, U.S. News & World Report has placed UConn at number nineteen, returning to its position among the top twenty colleges nationwide and highlighting something that those of us who attended already knew – UConn is one of the best universities in the country. U.S. News & World Report cites UConn as a leading research university for programs such as Bioscience Connecticut. The university was also praised for offering one hundred majors and a special mention was made of The Neag School of Education’s kinesiology doctoral program. It was two years ago…
By Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com At last, it’s here! A cool nip in the morning air is a welcome sign of the coming of autumn in New England. Foliage on a few tree tops has begun the annual transformation from green to various hues of gold and russet. Soon enough the beauty of autumn will surround us along the roadsides, in parks and on town greens. As a turtlenecks, corduroys and football games girl this is the time of year I anticipate. Starting tomorrow warmer temperatures will return for a few days but by Saturday the forecast is 69 degrees and sunny! The New England Patriots have a NFL season opener win under their belts from yesterday’s match up against the Bills. It may not…
Tagged: foliage, Jacqueline Bennett, New England Patriots, Tom Brady
Don’t miss out on one of Connecticut’s oldest and most popular fairs – always Labor Day Weekend – the 153rd Woodstock Fair will be held August 30, 31, September 1 & 2 on the Woodstock Fairgrounds, 281 Route 169 in South Woodstock. At the gate general admission is $12.00, senior citizens age 65+ $8.00 and children age 10 and under are free. Advance tickets are available through August 29 at the Woodstock Fair Office – individual admission $10.00, senior $8.00, 4-Pack $36.00 and midway ride tickets 11 for $22.00. According to the fair brochure (see below), look for Main Stage entertainment daily including performances throughout the afternoons by various groups. The local Southern Rock band Cold Train will perform Friday at 4:30 & 6:30…
Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb More than a dozen fancifully decorated vessels took part in the Boat Parade Sunday, August 25, that capped Lake Hayward Days in the Colchester/East Haddam area of Connecticut. In addition to accenting the beauty of the lake, the Boat Parade was clearly an opportunity for participants to express their personal creativity. Decorations ranged from patriotic themes to Hawaiian wanderlust, to commentary on the construction that has been underway at the Dog Beach pavilion rebuilt after it was damaged by fire several months ago, and, well – um – what might be called bathroom humor – with old fashioned “outhouses” on board. Promptly at 1:00 p.m. the Boat Parade began with small clusters of spectators having turned…
Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb In its 64th year, the popularity of the Manchester, Connecticut 8th Utilities District Fire Department Peach Festival continued Friday night, August 23, as festival-goers turned out to enjoy their annual peach shortcake treat in a new location. Traditionally held across from the old firehouse on the corner of Main and Hilliard streets, this year the event was moved up the hill to the new firehouse which serves as the district’s headquarters. It can be risky business to tamper with tradition and a successful tradition at that, but the move was said to be prompted by a desire to encourage the community to view the headquarters as the volunteer firefighter district prepares to celebrate its 125th anniversary in…
Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb Well before doors opened at 9:30 a.m. yesterday morning, long lines of visitors waited outside to take advantage of $5 Friday at Old Sturbridge Village living history museum in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. Sunny skies and comfortable temperatures cooperated to drawn in the large crowd. Once inside, visitors were able to immerse themselves in what life was like in a New England village circa the 1830s, from farming sheep and cattle to horse-drawn rides, oxen at work, an old schoolhouse, Meeting Houses, a “Hartford to Worcester” stagecoach ride, a shoemaker at work, water-powered carding and grist mills and much more. Meeting Houses were a focal point of New England villages. In addition to the Center Meeting House with an…
Commentary & Photo by Jacqueline Bennett Red Sox pitcher Ryan Dempster’s nailing New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez with a pitch last Sunday while he was at bat was a disappointing display of poor sportsmanship as far as this Red Sox fan is concerned. It’s no secret that many Major League Baseball players are disgruntled over A-Rod continuing to play as he appeals a 211 game suspension for alleged use of performing enhancing drugs (PED). Nonetheless, trite as the ole’ saying may be, two wrongs do not make a right. The PED mess which goes beyond A-Rod is already a cloud hanging over MLB. Dempster’s poor judgement is one more black eye on the sport which, arguably, more so than other any is representative of…
Each summer near the end of August things get peachy in Manchester, Connecticut. The 64th Annual Peach Festival held by the volunteer portion of the city’s firefighters, the Manchester 8th Utilities District Fire Department, is on tap for Friday August 23, from 6-8 p.m. Summer isn’t summer in the “City of Village Charm” until the peach festival banner goes up in front of the old firehouse on lower Main Street. In the past the festival was set-up in a parking lot across from the old firehouse, but this year the location has been moved to the parking area behind the new firehouse a few hundred feet up the road on 138 Main Street. What hasn’t changed is the menu. Each year…
Interested in stepping back in time? Old Sturbridge Village (OSV) is offering visitors a chance to do so on August 23, at a reduced ticket rate called “$5 Friday.” This will be the third and last $5 Friday for the 2013 summer. The opportunity is being made possible by the Southbridge Credit Union, according to the OSV website. Admission is usually $24 for adults, $22 for seniors, $8 for ages 3-17 and free for age 2 and under – although this season OSV is also offering free admission for ages 17 and under throughout the month of August. A living history museum, at OSV visitors can experience what life was like in America centuries ago by visiting the blacksmith, potter, and farm animals such…
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