Vol. X, No. 15 Complimentary Friday, January 9, 2015 (860) 928-1818/e-mail: [email protected] THIS WEEK’S QUOTE The anthem “It is not enough to have a is personal for good mind. The main thing is to use it well.” Coderre ETERAN CONTINUES Rene Descartes V TRADITION BEFORE PHS HOME GAMES INSIDE BY CHARLIE LENTZ VILLAGER STAFF WRITER A8 — OPINION PUTNAM — Fifty years B1-9 — SPORTS later and Maurice “Moe” EGALS Coderre can’t forget those B11 — L young faces. Coderre B14 — REAL ESTATE enlisted in the U.S. Air Jason Bleau photo B10-13— OBITS Force after graduating Mayor Tony Falzarano and James O’S Morton, president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater from Putnam High School B15-17 — CLASSIFIEDS Hartford, sign the land transfer agreement securing the new home of the Northeastern in 1962 and spent the early Connecticut Regional YMCA in Putnam’s new Regional Technology Park. years of the Vietnam War stationed in Germany. While he was at Rhine- LOCAL Main Air Base he worked at the airport in Frankfurt Home sweet home for YMCA and routed thousands of American servicemen to PUTNAM SIGNS LAND TRANSFER AGREEMENT Vietnam. Coderre knew full well many of those FOR FACILITY soldiers would make the ultimate sacrifice. BY JASON BLEAU Mayor Tony Falzarano the document signifying “It was during the NEWS STAFF WRITER and others signed the their support and pride Vietnam War. My job was Charlie Lentz photo PUTNAM — It’s offi- document at a special cer- in seeing the new home to put people on planes. Maurice “Moe” Coderre has cial. Putnam’s Regional emony in Dec. 23 where finally be secured. I would go over to the sung the national anthem Community YMCA years of planning that Falzarano said the cer- commercial airport. I before every varsity basket- for Northeastern spanned four Putnam emony was certainly a worked behind the TWA ball game at Putnam High and United Airlines ticket Court marshal Connecticut has a home mayors and countless long time coming. School for the last 15 years. after an agreement was weeks, hours and months “All the pain that we counters. They were get- continues holiday signed to transfer land of work and anticipation suffered and now we see ting a lot of flights on com- Coderre reflects on those to the town to be uti- all came to fruition. The fruition,” he said. “Betty mercial airlines because somber days every time he tradition with lized as the new home ceremony was attended Hale [of the Newell D. they were sending so picks up the microphone children’s tree for the facility within by individuals from all Hale Foundation that many guys to Vietnam,” and sings the national Putnam’s new Regional walks of life in Putnam, helped spearhead the ini- Coderre said. “I used to anthem before basket- Page A3 Technology Park off of all with ties to the YMCA tiative as a donor] has feel bad because I would ball games at Putnam Kennedy Drive. project, and each one think some of those guys SPORTS had the chance to sign Please Read YMCA, page A12 aren’t coming home.” Please Read CODERRE, page A12 Council approves Woodstock house fire $77K for schools results in death SUPERINTENDENT CALLS MOVE TRAGEDY THE RESULT OF CONFUSION IS FIRST OF Woodstock Academy BY JASON BLEAU ing from the town of NEWS STAFF WRITER ITS KIND focused on three-peat Brooklyn for services KILLINGLY — provided to special edu- IN TOWN Page B1 Killingly school officials cation students, whether met with town officials it was a tuition they owed IN 20-PLUS prior to the holidays to to the town or whether it FINANCIAL FOCUS bring a quick solution was a reimbursement to YEARS to an unforeseen road the school district. The district looked at it as PAGE A9 block in getting funding BY JASON BLEAU provided to the town for a reimbursement when NEWS STAFF WRITER EVERYDAY ECOLOGIST the school district into we did our books origi- the proper account. nally.” WOODSTOCK — PAGE A10 According to As it turns out, audi- Woodstock fire officials Superintendent Kevin tors hired by the district responded to a blaze the Farr, the Board of revealed that the money likes of which the town Education approached is actually properly had not seen in many the Town Council in late labeled as a tuition pay- years on Saturday, December to discuss a ment and that the Town Dec. 21, as the incident supplemental appropria- Council had to appropri- resulted in the death of tion of $77,000 that was ate the money in order one of it’s occupants, approved by the Council for the district to utilize the first structure fire to allow the money to be it. Farr said that the related death in the added to the school dis- matter was not much of town since at least the 1980’s. Visit our website with trict’s accounts. a major concern, with “It was not new money nearly no public audi- Photo courtesy Bungay Fire Brigade The Bungay Fire your smart phone or tablet Brigade received a call to us,” said Farr. “It ence during the discus- A blaze burns down a home at 3 Little Bungay Hill Road on device! reporting the fire at Just scan the “QR code” was just to reconcile the sion and no opposition. Dec. 21. The fire resulted in the first loss of life in a struc- below with your device and books. Based on how we ture fire in Woodstock in more than years. Please Read FIRE, page A13 looked at income com- instantly be linked to our Please Read COUNCIL, page A12 website, www.villagernews- papers.com, where you can read the PDF versions of our newspapers! It’s as easy as that! Selectmen approve new extension to ash landfill BY JASON BLEAU ipality with hopes of increase the size of the “It’s a new ground existing capacity to 9 mil- NEWS STAFF WRITER gaining support from his landfill and effectively lease agreement with lion yards.” PUTNAM — In late fellow officials. bring more revenue to the Wheelabrator toward According to Pempek, 2014, Putnam Selectman Now it appears the town in the process. expanding the current the real selling point Scott Pempek proposed Board of Selectmen at Pempek presented the footprint of the landfill,” of this extension of the the extension of the least has agreed to back details of the proposal explained Pempek. “We landfill is revenue, as the ash landfill utilized by a new contract agreement to the selectmen in late have about 4 million money brought in from Wheelabrator to dispose proposed between the December where he said yards of capacity left in the town’s deal with of ash as an added reve- town and Wheelabrator the idea was welcomed the existing ash landfill. nue source for the munic- that would significantly with open arms. This would expand the Please Read EXPANSION, page A12 A2 • Friday, January 9, 2015 VILLAGER NEWSPAPERS Local caves and Christmas cookies Several individuals, including Bob is situated about one of the warm months ent since that provides uniform mea- Dragon, responded to my query in the fourth of mile north the sun being surement. Dec. 12 column in reference to Kerry west of Brooklyn (it almost excluded I’m sure over the years many of Brown’s painting of the Danielson Little derives its name from KILLINGLY from this subter- you have used Karo Syrup in your League Field for Bob “Banana’s” last the circumstance of ranean recess.” (p. holiday baking. A check of that web- name. He was Bob Blanchette. Thank an old mare and colt AT 300 440) site revealed that The Corn Products you everyone. having been caught I’ve been doing Refining Company of New York and Recently, James Simmons stopped among the ledges, and some Christmas Chicago was formed in 1902 and on May in at the Killingly Historical Center confined there until MARGARET baking and have 13 of that year Karo Light and Dark and wondered if any of us had heard of the colt had eaten off WEAVER been planning Corn Syrup was introduced. “Lion’s” Cave in Brooklyn and Devil’s the old mare’s mane) which of my many “It is believed that the chemist and Den in Sterling. He had been browsing and Tetnuck hill, cookies I’ll bake expert syrup formulator in honor of the web for information on local caves which is situated in this year (too bad his wife Caroline coined the name and had come across those references. the south part of the town. On the south- they have so many calories and defi- ‘Karo.’ Another popular theory traces Neither Marilyn nor I had heard of east side of this hill, there is quite nitely are not on the healthy foods the name Karo back to an earlier table them. However, using my smart phone, a celebrated cave, called Lyon’s Den; list). For years, my one sister has tried syrup trademark ‘Kairomel.’ Until the I was able to pull up the site he where it derives its name from this circum- unsuccessfully to replicate my maternal introduction of Karo corn syrups, the had found the information — newen- stance, viz. during the Revolutionary grandmother’s raisin cookies. The taste American housewife carried her syrup glandtowns.org and read the Brooklyn war, a man by the name of Lyon desert- is there but the texture is not. I know jug to the grocery store to be refilled article.