This Saturday at Storrs Farmers Market

Don’t forget, you can still get local, fresh foods at the Winter Storrs Farmers Market, which is open from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday (March 26) at the Mansfield Public Library, in the Buchanan Auditorium (on the right side of the library).

You can also keep track of what’s going on at the market on Facebook and on Twitter.

Some of what you will find at the market:

• from Bailey’s Maple Syrup, maple vinegar, fresh local honey;

• from Baldwin Brook Farm – raw milk, organic pasture-raised pork including nitrate-free, smoked, thick cut bacon and hams, organic Angus beef;

• from Culinary Expressions – fresh baked pies and breads;

• from Dondero Orchards – apples and veggies;

• from Dragon’s Blood Elixir – hot sauces made with CT-grown produce;

• from Farm to Hearth – rustic, hearty breads baked in wood-fire oven, roasted CT-grown mushroom foccacia, Celtic Harvest (country bread with organic brown rice, organic corn grits, organic rolled oats);

• from Four Mile River Farm – steaks, kabobs, hardwood-smoked hotdogs, Kellidogs, nitrate-free corned beef, pork bratwurst, beef chili;

• from Quiet Corner Coffee Roasters – Brazil Cerrado, Sumatra Mandheling, and Sumatra Water Wash Decaf;

• from Shundahai Farm – salad greens, spinach, butternut squash, turnips;

• from Spring Acres Farm – skeins of wool yarn;

• from Tobacco Road Farm – salad greens, parsnips, leeks, turnips, rutabaga, burdock root.

Posted March 26, 2011

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UConn tuition to increase by 2.5 percent

The University of Connecticut Board of Trustees Wednesday (March 23) approved a 2.5-percent hike in tuition and fees for the 2011-2012 school year.

The trustees’ decision – opposed only by student trustee Corey Schmitt – approved the recommendations from UConn Chief Financial Officer Richard Gray.

The new rate will mean tuition for in-state students of $8,256, an increase of 2.38 percent or $192.

Add room, board and all other fees, and in-state students will pay a total of $21,486. This represents a combined increase of 2.47 percent, or $518, over the current year.

Out- of- state students will pay, tuitions and fees combined, $38,382, which is an increase of 2.54 percent or $950.

The increases are smaller than what was approved last year – a 5.96-percent raise for in-state students and 5.77-percent hike for out-of-state students.

Gray’s recommendation come amid a $ 45.7- million budget shortfall projected for next year. This includes a drop in UConn funding of $35.3 million according to Gov. Dannel Malloy’s current state budget proposal.

Trustees’ Finance Committee Chair Peter Drotch said Gray has already accounted for 90 percent of that shortfall as he works through the budget. Drotch said he confident those changes will not have an impact on academics.

Gray said after Wednesday’s meeting he has also been in discussions with incoming UConn President Susan Herbst about budget plans.

He said Herbst has agreed to protect academic and research expenditures and has generally supported his actions.

Trustees also said they are intent on having a balanced budget when they vote on a spending plan for the 2011-12 fiscal year.

But student trustee Corey Schmitt said he’s worried trustees might need to impose a second tuition increase for the second half of next year, something Drotch said could happen.

Schmitt and Graduate Student Senate President Rich Colon also said they’re worried the 2.5-percent increase would mean significant cuts to academic and student services.

Colon said UConn’s “degrees are actually worth more” because of its high rankings and told trustees a recent graduate senate resolution supported an increase of more than 7 percent.

Schmitt, meanwhile, motioned for a 5-per­cent increase, which he said was the average increase over the last few years and that this was the largest deficit UConn has faced.

Schmitt’s motion did not receive a second and failed.

Both students raised concerns specifically about increasing class size, which UConn Provost Peter Nichols agreed is above UConn’s desired level.

Nichols said UConn has approximately 17.5 students per faculty member, even though the goal is 15.

But he also said the “slight slippage” has been “done in a reasonable way,” with an emphasis on keeping classes with labs and other needs small enough to manage.

Undergraduate Student Government President Thomas Haggerty said he also initially had concerns about potential cuts, but has changed his stance and supports the trustees’ decision. He said,”I do believe we can sustain ourselves,” but added he is “fearful for the future.”

Trustees Chair Lawrence McHugh said the board needs to balance the drop in state aid with the economic needs of potential students.

Trustee Michael Martinez said Malloy’s budget and the board’s decision, “accomplishes the principal of shared sacrifice.”

Malloy, through his representative Timothy Bannon, said he appreciates trustees’ efforts “taking the lead” during “tough financial times.” Bannon also said Malloy supports the board’s work to limit increases in tuition and fees.

Posted March 24, 2011

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Spring is almost here and so is the 30th Annual Home Show

The Annual Home Show sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern CT. Photo courtesy of Jenks Productions

If you’re thinking home repairs and other property improvement projects this spring, there will be a wealth of resources to peruse at the 30th annual Home Show, sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern CT this weekend.

Visitors can talk with builders, remodelers, landscapers, contractors and tree experts.

You also can shop for pools and spas, water conditioners, cookware, home gadgetry, windows and doors, gutters and siding, wireless services, flooring and wall coverings, heating and cooling systems, stone products, security systems, kitchens and baths and appliances.

And you can learn more about health products/services such as East-West Chiropractic as well as community services (i.e. Autism Speaks Community Leadership Council, Foster Care & Adoption, Habitat for Humanity) and see innovative products such as the Bios water-powered vehicle.

The show runs from Friday through Sunday, March 18-20 and is held at the Connecticut College’s Dayton Arena and Athletic Center, on Route 32 in New London.

Show hours are from 5 to 9 pm on Friday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Tickets, available at the door, are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and children under age 12 are admitted at no charge.

Parking is free and there will be shuttle service from the campus South Lot.

The company organizing the show, Jenks Productions, is partnering with the United Way by offering $1 off adult admission if you bring one or more non-perishable food items to donate to the United Way’s Community Food Drive. There’s a limit of one discount per person (not valid with any other coupon or special offer).

Click here for directions.

Click here for a video about the Home Show.

And for a list of vendors, click here.

Posted March 17, 2011

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A story of surviving genocide to building a life in America

Daniel Ndamwizeye, also known as Daniel Trust, speaks to history students at Windham High School on March 4, 2011. Ndamwizeye is a survivor of the Rwandan genocide of 1994. Photo by Roxanne Pandolfi

When Daniel Ndamwizeye was of kindergarten age, he saw more death than most see in a lifetime.

When you are born in a war-torn African country home to, perhaps, the most heinous act of genocide in recent history, death cannot be escaped.

Ndamwizeye, who will celebrate his 22nd birthday on March 9, is a survivor of the Rwandan genocide of 1994 during which more than 800,000 people died.

During a special presentation at Windham High School Friday, Ndamwizeye (also known as Daniel Trust – his last name means ” I trust him”) told a silently stunned group of high school history students about how surviving these horrors shaped his life in the years that followed.

Ndamwizeye began by describing life in Rwanda when he was only 5. “Myself, my sister and my mother hid in a church for days. We felt that we would be well protected there.” They weren’t. Two of his sisters were stoned to death as they fled the church.

The genocide was prompted by ethnic tensions between the minority Tutsi people, who have had controlling power over the region for centuries, and the majority Hutu people, who came into power during the rebellion against the Tutsi monarchy from 1959-62.

Ndamwizeye’s mother was Tutsi, his father was Hutu. His father was ordered to kill his mother, but refused.

His mother would later be beaten to death, and his father would die in a fire.

Ndamwizeye later went to live in Zambia, a nation in south Africa, from 2001-05.

It was during this time that he learned English.

Ndamwizeye came to Bridgeport in 2005 at the age of 15, ten years after his parents were killed, to live with one of his sisters. He is the youngest of eight children.

At Bassick High School in Bridgeport, he was an honored athlete in cross-country and volleyball, he was vice president of his senior class, and hewas voted both best dressed and most likely to succeed.

For WHS teachers, the talk took a tragic period in world history out of the textbook to make it personal for their students.

“We are currently studying global genocide in our social studies class, so I thought it would be beneficial for us to have a motivational speaker who had actually experienced it to come in and talk with the students,” said Gabrielle Lataille, the student teacher who coordinated the event.

“I was worried that our school wouldn’t have the funding to hire Daniel, but he was very nice throughout the process and was willing to come in and speak with the students for free.”

At the end of the talk, Ndamwizeye encouraged students and faculty to ask questions.

“I was very proud with how engaged the students were and I’m happy that they are taking an interest in these types of issues,” said Lataille.

One student asked how Ndamwizeye is able to cope with losing loved ones.

“I cannot do anything to change the past. I have to move on,” he said.

And so he did.

This courageous young man believes he must have survived the frenzy of killing because there is something he is meant to accomplish in this life. And he wants to repay the kindness and generosity of strangers who took him in as an orphan and helped him better his life.

Currently, Ndamwizeye is a junior at Southern Connecticut State University where he is studying business. His education is partly supported by scholarships including the Stewardship Foundation (http://www.stewardshipforkids.org/ ) which assists orphans and young adults from foster care.

He is the founder of Daniel Trust LLC, an online store that sells T-shirts with words of inspiration and his personal logo printed on them; 10 percent of the proceeds are donated to charity.

He is also the founder and chair of The D-Trust Foundation Inc., a nonprofit organization with a mission to “foster links with charitable and educational organizations that aid orphaned children and provide resources to assist these children in their educational and career goals, as well as in their day-to-day lives.”

For more information, visit Ndamwizeye’s Web site at www.danieltrust.com. You can also visit him on his Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/#!/danieltrust

Posted March 4, 2011 as edited by, and with additional reporting by HTNP.com Editor Brenda Sullivan mansfieldeditor@htnp.com

Related link:

Scholastic, “New foundation for Haitian orphans,” http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3755442

He is represented by Great Black Speakers http://www.greatblackspeakers.com/

Gov. Malloy takes budget on the road in series of town meetings

Over the next couple of months, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will hold a series of 17 town hall-style meetings across the state, during which he will discuss the state’s pressing economic and budgetary issues face-to-face with state residents, and listen to their own thoughts and suggestions.

The meetings begin Feb. 21 in Bridgeport with the last one scheduled for April 6 in Danbury. (See list of dates and locations, below.)

“It really is my preference to be out there, talking with people in the flesh, hearing their thoughts and communicating in a civil manner that will bring out the best and most productive changes benefiting the State of Connecticut,” Gov. Malloy said in a press release Tuesday [Feb. 15]

“It’s important that we have a chance to talk about some of the changes I’m proposing to help create new jobs and get our state’s fiscal house in order, and I want to hear what people think,” he said.

Gov. Malloy is scheduled to deliver his proposed budget to a joint session of the Connecticut General Assembly on Wednesday, Feb. 16.

Town meetings are scheduled for:

BRIDGEPORT, Monday, Feb. 21, 7-8 PM, City Hall Annex Auditorium, 999 Broad St.

TORRINGTON, Thursday, Feb. 24, 7-8 PM, City Hall Auditorium, 140 Main St.

NEW LONDON, Wednesday, March 2, 7-8 PM, Jennings Elementary School, 50 Mercer St.

WATERBURY, Tuesday, March 8, 7-8 PM, Veteran’s Memorial Hall, 235 Grand St.

NORWICH, Wednesday, March 9, 7-8 PM, City Hall, 3rd Floor, 100 Broadway

BRISTOL, Monday, March 14, 7-8 PM, City Council Chambers, 111 North Main St.

MERIDEN, Tuesday, March 15, time and location to be announced

MIDDLETOWN, Wednesday, March 16, 7-8 PM, Common Council Room, 245 DeKoven Drive

HARTFORD, Monday, March 21, time and location to be announced

STAMFORD, Tuesday, March 22, 7-8 PM, Government Center – 4th Floor Cafeteria, 888 Washington Blvd

NEW HAVEN, Wednesday, March 23, 7-8 PM, Aldermanic Chambers, 165 Church St.

GREENWICH, Monday, March 28, 7-8 PM, Town Hall Meeting Room, 299 Greenwich Ave.

MANCHESTER, Tuesday, March 29, 7-8 PM, Lincoln Center Hearing Room, 494 Main St.

WINDHAM, March 30, 7-8 PM, Town Hall Auditorium, 979 Main St.

NORWALK, Monday, April 4, Time & Location TBD

NEW BRITAIN, Tuesday, April 5, Time & Location TBD

DANBURY, Wednesday, April 6, Time & Location TBD

Posted Feb. 16, 2011

Gov Malloy intends to reduce state agencies from 81 to 57

CT Gov. Dannel Malloy (at podium) announces his choice of commissioner - Daniel C. Esty (left) - for a newly created Department of Energy and Environmental Protection - the result of "fusing" the former Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Public Utilities Control. Courtesy photo

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced (Feb. 10) his intention to reduce the number of Connecticut’s budgeted state agencies by 30 percent – from 81 to 57.

“I’m asking the people of Connecticut to do more with less, and we in state government need to, as well,” he said Thursday.

Gov. Malloy said he reduced the governor’s office staff by 15 percent, “and I’m proposing to reduce the number of budgeted state agencies by 30 percent,” he said.

The idea is to combine agencies with overlapping goals, Gov. Malloy said.

“When putting together my budget, I had to ask – what sense does it make to split the Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security and the Department of Public Safety? Or why are the Offices of Workforce Competitiveness and the Commission on Culture and Tourism stand-alone agencies, apart from the Department of Economic and Community Development? And why are all of the government accountability functions – the Elections Enforcement Commission, the Freedom of Information Commission, the Judicial Review Council, the Contracting Standards Board, and the Office of State Ethics separate entities when so many of their issue areas and jurisdiction overlap? It just didn’t make sense.”

Earlier this week, Gov. Malloy announced the “fusing” of the Department of Public Utilities Control and the Department of Environmental Protection into what is now called the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), which he says will create “a more effective coordination of state energy and environmental policies.”

According to a statement from the governor’s office, there also will be two new bureaus. “Organizationally, the state’s energy policy will become centralized in the agency through the creation of two new bureaus: the Bureau of Energy Policy and Efficiency, responsible for the development and analysis of state energy policy, and the Bureau of Utilities Control, formed by transferring the Department of Public Utility Control.”

How this will affect funding for “fused” departments has not yet been explained.

“This is a large shake-up, and I know there will be a number of questions. In the coming weeks and months, I’m going to be talking to people all across the state about my plan for a more streamlined and efficient Connecticut state government. But make no mistake – I am serious about these proposals, and I am ready to work with the committees of cognizance in the legislature to make this happen,” Gov. Malloy said.

Gov. Malloy also announced Feb. 10 his choice of commissioner of this new hybrid DEEP agency, Yale professor Daniel C. Esty.

About Esty, he said, “His experience advising private companies and the President of the United States, coupled with his knowledge of environmental law and policy is second-to-none, and I know this new department will be on the cutting edge of environmental and energy policy with Dan at the helm.”

A former senior official at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Esty is the Hillhouse Professor of Environmental Law and Policy at Yale University. He is also the Director of the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy and the Center for Business and the Environment at Yale.

According to a press release issued by the governor’s office, “Esty’s recent prize-winning book with Andrew Winston, Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage, argues that sustainability has become a critical element of corporate strategy.”

Esty holds a B.A. from Harvard, an M.A. from Oxford, and a law degree from Yale.

Posted Feb. 11, 2011

For a spreadsheet that outlines which agencies the governor intends to combine, as well as rename or create, click here and then look for the link at the end of the press release.

Protect yourself from price gouging from contractors hired to clear your roof

When it comes to cleaning off accumulated snow, some roofs will require more work than others, but homeowners should be cautious and get a written estimate of costs from the contractor. Courtesy photo.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has issued a warning that homeowners take some precautions when hiring a contractor to clear their roofs of snow and ice.

The warning comes on the heels of several reports of roofs collapsing, mainly on commercial buildings, but also including some homes and barns.

Gov. Malloy suggests residents

• contact the Department of Consumer Protection for information about contractors and

• get a written estimate for services.

There have been reports of some contractors asking for upwards of $2,000 for their services, which suggests they are taking advantage of homeowners’ fears and the high demand for these services.

“We are getting reports of possible price gouging by contractors offering roof snow removal. The best advice is, if possible, to get a price from more than one contractor, and always have the contractor put the price in writing,” Gov. Malloy said.

Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell, Jr. echoed the governor’s advice.

“This isn’t a perfect situation – rooftops need to be cleared quickly – so a traditional contract between the homeowner and the contractor may not be possible. Even so, get out a sheet of paper and write out what the contractor has told you verbally he is going to do – ‘remove all snow and ice from rooftop for one hundred dollars’ for instance – and have the contractor sign the piece of paper,” Farrell urged.

“You don’t want the price to start fluctuating once the contractor is on the roof,” Farrell said.

Depending upon the nature of the roof, the homeowner should also specify in writing whether it is only the roof that is to be cleared, or whether ice needs to be removed from gutters as well.

Gov. Malloy said, “As we get more mixed precipitation and melting, those gutters have to be functioning or water could flow into homes and cause damage, so while workers are on the roof, this should be done as well.”

Price-gouging investigation

Farrell also cautioned Connecticut contractors that reports of price gouging will be investigated and pursued. “The sky is not the limit on the price that can be charged for roof snow removal,” he said.

“There has to be a reasonable basis between the size of the roof, the time involved in removing the snow, and a comparable ascertainable hourly rate – such as that for home improvement work – that would normally be charged for similar work under normal circumstances. Every situation will be different, but the test of whether price gouging occurred will be whether the contractor can justify the price using an objective standard.”

Gov. Malloy added that insurance coverage is another essential part of hiring a contractor.

“There have been instances of contractors falling off of roofs while doing snow removal – make sure your contractor is insured to do that work, before the work starts and someone gets hurt,” he said.

Another note of caution – anyone removing snow from a roof, whether homeowner or contractor, should be extremely careful of any kind of above-ground wiring and keep all tools away from power lines.

You can reach the Department of Consumer Protection hotline with this toll-free number weekdays during business hours: 1-800-842-2649.

Posted Feb. 7, 2011

UPDATE: POSTPONED – Storrs church hosts fundraiser for man hit by drunk driver

UPDATE: POSTPONED  Due to the winter weather, the Hope Lutheran Church, 62 Dog Lane, Storrs, has postponed its coffeehouse fund-raiser to help accident victim Chris Couillard and his family with their living expenses. It will be re­scheduled at a later date.

Area resident Chris Couillard of Willimantic was struck by a drunk driver Nov. 5, 2010 and the local com­munity is looking to help with a fundraiser Friday night, Feb. 4.

The father of three was put in a medically induced coma for 14 days, was in intensive care for another 17 days and is now in a rehabilitation setting.

The Hope Lutheran Church in Storrs, located at 62 Dog Lane, is hosting an evening of music at a coffeehouse fundraiser to help Couillard and his three young daughters.

The coffeehouse fundraiser starts at 7 p.m.

The event is a good-will offer­ing fundraiser where all funds raised will be matched by the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.

Pastor Joe Nollet said, “the efforts of our church’s ‘My Brother’s Keeper’ program are to try to connect people who want to help others with those people near us that are in need.”

The event will feature an eclectic mix of singers and musicians donating their music for a good cause.

According to event organizers, those who can’t come out for the evening can still help by sending a donation. Checks and be sent to the Hope Lutheran Church, 62 Dog Lane, Storrs 06268 indicating the funds are for the Couillard family.

“We are hoping for a fun night and that people will be gener­ous and maybe we can pay a few months of rent for this young fam­ily in a tough spot,” organizers said.

Posted 02-2-2011

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