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NEWS&VIEWS by Jacqueline Bennett

Posts tagged “Jacqueline Bennett

Field of Flags at Old Sturbridge Village Honors America’s Military

Posted on July 3, 2013

Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb  Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts is honoring America’s military with a Field of Flags located near the entrance to the village. A gift of $25 will sponsor a flag to be added to the field and help provide free admission to OSV for an active military member and his or her immediate family. A flag can also be sponsored in memory of a loved one or a military veteran. Further information about sponsoring a flag is available at the OSV Vistor’s Center.  On the Fourth of July, OSV will once again hold what is described as a very popular fireworks event in the evening. Earlier in the day, a 1 p.m. program will feature a naturalization…

Birthday Cakes & Other Pleasant Surprises

Posted on July 2, 2013

Speaking of birthday cakes which I did in my previous post has gotten me thinking about life’s pleasant surprises. Recently, one of mine was a birthday cake homemade by my nephew’s wife Melane when we all went up to the New Hamsphire Maple Weekend in March. Yes – homemade and delicious! It took me completely by surprise. That has prompted a positive stream of consciousness for me as I pondered some other pleasant surprises in my life – a kiss in a silo, an off-key serenade from a boy in college, a handmade beaded necklace from my nieces, a congratulatory note from my sister, a note from my dad on my sixteenth birthday, a watermelon boat my sister-in-law made for a surprise party my family…

Destination: Willington Pizza House in Willington, Connecticut

Posted on June 30, 2013

Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb Willington Pizza House in Willington, Connecticut is the kind of extraordinary restaurant travelers hope to stumble upon. Having stacked up numerous awards and having been featured in the New York Times and on “Good Morning America” and “CBS This Morning”, the specialty pizzas here are legendary. On Route 32, about a mile and a half from the University of Connecticut Storrs campus, it is a favorite eating place for some of UCONN’s biggest sports stars as evidenced by an array of photos on the walls showing the well-known athletes and television sportscasters with restaurant owner Jeff Kelly. Located in a 250-year-old converted farmhouse, the long light gray building with red and white trimmed exterior has a quaint…

Despite Injury, Windsor CT Police K-9 Team Wins Trophy at USPCA Celebrating 50 Years for BostonPD K-9s

Posted on June 16, 2013

By Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb Despite an injury that threatened to keep them from competing, the K-9 team of officer Steve Vesco and his partner Iko of the Windsor, Connecticut Police Department, once again brought home a United States Police Canine Association trophy. The team finished fourth overall in criminal apprehension in the 2013 Region 4 contest. Vesco and Iko were the only team representing Connecticut in the trials which also celebrated the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Boston Police Department’s K-9 unit. “I was ecstatic. I almost dropped out. But I got him through the competition,” Vesco said during an interview June 6 at the Public Safety Complex in Windsor, CT. Iko sustained an injury to a nerve in a rear leg…

Impromtu Encounter With Silk City Chorus Leads to Beautiful Serenade

Posted on June 11, 2013

Write-Up & Photo by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com An impromtu encounter with the award-winning Silk City Chorus which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, resulted in a beautiful serenade sung just as one would expect – in perfect harmony….   “Let me call you sweetheart, I’m in love with you, Let me hear you whisper that you love me too, Keep the love light glowing in your eyes so true, Let me call you sweetheart, I’m in love with you.” One of New England’s premier groups of its genre, members of the Manchester, Connecticut-based, 80-man chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society gathered Sunday, June 9 for an annual barbeque at Nevers Park in South Windsor. “We’ll probably do some quarteting,” said member Dan Fontaine. The group was…

2013 Enfield CT Memorial Day Speaker Urges Help for Returning War Veterans

Posted on May 31, 2013

Article & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb “This current generation of warriors has stood shoulder to shoulder with past generations of warriors.” That message was delivered by 58th House District Representative David Alexander (D-Enfield), a captain in the Marine Corps reserves, to the crowd gathered May 26 on the town green in Enfield, Connecticut for the Memorial Day ceremony which followed a parade. Alexander, who completed four years of active duty in the Pacific and California, said he did not do anything extraordinary during that time. However, he said his fellow service members most certainly have, making sacrifices to serve the nation in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan just as other Americans had sacrificed since 1775, the time of the American Revolution. Alexander…

Tooting My Own Horn

Posted on May 24, 2013

Yes, I am going to unabashedly toot my own horn. I am quite pleased to have my work recognized again by the Connecticut Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. One of my feature photos won second place in its category in the 2012 Excellence in Journalism Competition. Announced last night, this marks the fifth time my work has been recognized by CTSPJ – previously with three awards for writing and another for photography. This most recent winning photo is of the woman who posed for famous American illustrator Norman Rockwell’s iconic “Rosie the Riveter.” Rockwell’s “Rosie” appeared on the cover of the May 29, 1943 edition of The Saturday Evening Post.  I took the photo, which ran in the local newspaper for which…

Destination: Lenny & Joe’s Fish Tale in Westbrook, Connecticut

Posted on May 16, 2013

Write -Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        …

“And If You’re Very Lucky, You Find Someone Willing To Stand With You”

Posted on May 12, 2013

Word Press Daily Prompt: I Want To Know What Love Is: We each have many types of relationships – parents, children, spouses, friends. And, they’re not always with people; you may love an animal, or a place. Is there a single idea or definition that runs through all varieties of  “love”? “And in the end the best you can hope for is to find a place to make a stand. And if you’re very lucky, you will find someone willing to stand with you.” Castle Finale Season Three Someone willing to stand with you…to me, that quotation distinguishes the single trait, the thread of continuity in all relationships, essential to love. Be those relationships with family, friends or in romance. It is those who…

Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Member Among WW II Veterans on Washington D.C. Day of Honor Trip

Posted on May 10, 2013

Story & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb Looking dapper in a black suit and dark blue shirt accented by a bolo tie, World War II veteran Earl Colebut was welcomed back at Bradley International Airport last Saturday night by about thirty fellow members of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation. Family and friends turned out to greet Colebut who was among 100 veterans, who took a Day of Honor trip on April 27 to visit the WW II Memorial and other monuments in Washington, D.C. The soft-spoken Colebut said he served in Germany during the war. As is typical of veterans of his era, rather than elaborating on his wartime experience, Colebut described himself as a man of peace not violence and spoke of the…