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Dear Neighbor,
I want to share some highlights including state and local updates.
In this email you'll find updates on district resources and news. Please click the links below to read the section that corresponds with the highlighted headline.
A NOTE: If you're having trouble clicking through the following links, open this email in a browser, use a computer or scroll through this email to the relevant section.
The topics covered are as follows:
On Legislative Business
On Community Resources
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Benjamin Spock: Raising the World’s Children
Boston police clear a path through demonstrators as Dr. Benjamin Spock, right, leaves Federal Court after arraignment on charges of counseling young men to avoid the draft in Boston on Jan. 29, 1968. Demonstrators were from groups supporting and opposing the stand of the famed baby doctor against the Vietnam War - © AP Photo
By Andy Piascik
When Dr. Benjamin Spock authored The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care in 1946, he became the world’s most famous pediatrician. His book made an immediate impact and, despite heavy criticism from some, remains among the most influential works written on the subject to date.
Benjamin Spock Born in New Haven
Benjamin Spock was born on May 2, 1903, in New Haven, Connecticut. His father was a corporate attorney who worked at various times for the New Haven Railroad and the Chase Brass Company in Waterbury. Like his father, Spock attended school at the Phillips Academy and Yale University. In addition to being an outstanding student at Yale, Spock excelled on the rowing team. He and his Yale teammates represented the United States at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris and won the gold medal in the eight-man rowing event.
Spock graduated first in his class from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1929 and began practicing pediatric medicine that year in Manhattan. While in medical school, he wed Jane Cheney of Manchester, Connecticut, and the couple remained married until 1976. Jane even assisted in the research and writing of Spock’s 1946 breakthrough book.
Dr. Spock holding baby, April 19, 1977. © John Gillooly – Suffolk University, Moakley Archive & Institute
The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care
Central to Spock’s theories about child-rearing was the idea that parents needed to be more nurturing. In the era that he wrote, he directed his message almost exclusively at mothers and he encouraged women to be more responsive to the needs of their children. In contrast to the established approaches, he urged mothers to feed their babies when they became hungry, rather than adhering to a rigid meal schedule, and to pick them up, hold them, kiss them, and otherwise display affection when they cried. Spock also encouraged parents to place more trust in themselves and rely less on the established wisdom of experts (doctors included).
The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care became a best-seller shortly after publication and more copies of it sold in its first 50 years than any book except the Bible. Spock’s second wife, Mary Morgan, whom he wed in 1976, introduced him to yoga, massage, a macrobiotic diet, and meditation. Stating that Morgan “gave me back my youth,” Spock incorporated some of these life changes into later editions of his work by, for example, recommending a vegan diet for children over the age of two.
Vietnam War Era Protests
Back during the Great Depression, Spock became interested in radical political and economic ideas. He admired Socialist Norman Thomas and regularly attended his lectures. Prefiguring his later activism and concern about war and international affairs, Spock opposed the rise of fascism in Europe beginning with General Francisco Franco’s revolt in 1936 against the new democratic government in Spain.
Though Spock maintained an affinity for socialism, he remained largely apolitical until the early 1960s when he became an active member and officer of the National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy. He was an early opponent of the Vietnam War and a featured speaker at anti-war demonstrations beginning in 1967. In 1968, he and four other activists faced arrest and trial on federal charges of violating the Selective Service laws for conspiring to actively encourage young men to resist the draft. Authorities helped convict Spock and three of the other defendants and sentenced them to two years imprisonment, but the court set aside the convictions after appeal.
Though Spock retired from medicine in 1968, he continued writing and lecturing for years thereafter. He and his second wife co-authored a memoir of his life that hit bookstore shelves when Spock was 86, and his last book on pediatrics launched when he was 91. Spock died three years later, on March 15, 1998, at the age of 94. The power of his words lived on, however, and in the seven decades since its release, publishers translated The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care (the work for which Spock remains best known) into 49 languages, resulting in the sale of more than 50 million copies.
Bridgeport native Andy Piascik is an award-winning author who has written for many publications and websites over the last four decades. He is also the author of two books.
Learn More
Books
Bloom, Lynn Z. Doctor Spock: Biography of a Conservative Radical. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1972.
Maier, Thomas. Dr. Spock: An American Life. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace, 1998.
Spock, Benjamin, and Mary Morgan. Spock on Spock: A Memoir of Growing up with the Century. New York, NY: Pantheon Books, 1989.
Mitford, Jessica. The Trial of Dr. Spock, the Rev. William Sloane Coffin, Jr., Michael Ferber, Mitchell Goodman, and Marcus Raskin. New York, NY: Knopf, 1969.
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Monday, April 03
9:00 AM
Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee Public Hearing (2E-ZOOM)
Location: Room LOB 2E and Zoom
Broadcasting on YouTube Live FIN
View Agenda
View Testimony and Speaker Order
Tuesday, April 04
10:00 AM
Executive and Legislative Nominations Committee Public Hearing followed by a Committee Meeting (1A-ZOOM)
Location: Room LOB 1A and Zoom
Broadcasting on YouTube Live EXN
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Follow Legislation in Progress
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The link below is a dynamic list of legislation I have introduced or cosponsored this session. Please keep checking back as I add to the list and, using the bill tracking function, you can sign up and receive alerts on the progress of legislative items.
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East Hartford Greater Together
Community Fund Advisory Committee
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East Hartford Greater Together Community Fund Advisory Committee is now accepting applications for committee members. The purpose of the Greater Together Community Fund is to support the East Hartford community in taking ownership around town needs that will be most beneficial or have the greatest impact on residents. The Community Fund also strives to encourage broad and inclusive civic engagement. To be eligible, you must be a resident of East Hartford, at least 14 years of age and not a current elected official of East Hartford. Previous experience in community organizations or in grant-making is not needed.
The deadline for applications is April 28, 2023. After the application period is closed, the committee will schedule interviews for potential members.
Individuals who are interested in applying can visit the link below to find more information or to fill out the Google Form.
hfpg.org/easthartfordcf
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Manchester Budget Process
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The Town will hold a special meeting to adopt the budget on Tuesday, April 11 at 7PM in-person at the Lincoln Center Hearing Room. The meeting can also be watched live on Silk City TV, Facebook Live, or Cox Channel 16. For more information, click here.
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Manchester
Please arrive early to be in line for 9am as the truck leaves promptly at 9:30am. Open to the public; Bring a sturdy grocery bag! This program is made possible by Foodshare and Winn Residential - Resident Service Program. For more information call 860-646-1280.
Squire Village, 48 Spencer Street, 06040 (1st parking lot off Imperial Drive #78)
- Tuesday, April 11, 2023 | 09:00 AM - 09:30 AM
- Tuesday, April 25, 2023 | 09:00 AM - 09:30 AM
- Tuesday, May 09, 2023 | 09:00 AM - 09:30 AM
- Tuesday, May 23, 2023 | 09:00 AM - 09:30 AM
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East Hartford
The Connecticut Foodshare truck will be in the parking lot to distribute the food. Please bring your own bags and be prepared to possibly wait in line.
Mayberry Village –St. Isaac Jogues Church Parking Lot (41 Home Terrace East Hartford)
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East Hartford Announces 2023 Renters Rebate Program
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East Hartford, CT - East Hartford Social Services will begin accepting applications for the 2023 Renters Rebate Program starting April 1st and through October 1, 2023. The program is offered through the State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management to provide elderly and disabled renters with a refund check, based on the amount of rent and utilities they paid in 2022.
Who is eligible?
East Hartford residents who are 65 years of age or older, or who are at least 18 years old and disabled by 12/31/22.
What is the income level?
The 2022 qualifying income (including all Social Security benefits) must not exceed an income of $40,300 for a single individual or $49,100 for a married couple. If you receive state cash assistance, it has to be LESS than $690 total for the year 2022.
You need a copy of your Social Security card.
What income information for all 12 months of the year 2022 is needed?
If you are age 65 and over, you might need:
- your Social Security income for 2022 (form 1099) & the SSI form if applicable;
- a copy of income tax return with all schedules, if filed;
- a copy of the 1099 forms for pensions, dividends, interest, stocks & bonds, etc.
- a W-2 form from employment
- copy of veterans disability or Railroad Retirement
If you are disabled and under 65 years old, you might need:
- the BPQY or Benefit Verification Form from Social Security showing the date when the disability began & proof of the Social Security Income, if applicable
- other forms listed above, if applicable
Which paid bills for 2022 are needed?
- Rent receipts for all 12 months of the year 2022 or ledger from your landlord.
- Utility bills you paid in 2022 (heat, gas, electric, only). Telephone, cable, medical bills or UniteCT rent CANNOT BE INCLUDED.
When Can I Apply?
On April 1st, 2023 through October 1, 2023.
How to apply?
- If you filed last year, please look for an application in the mail, sign the application, add all required documents and send them back by mail.
- You can also print the application from HERE, sign and send via fax to 860-291-7304 with all documents. You can also drop the application and copy of the documents in the drop box in front of the Community Cultural Center- 50 Chapman Place, EH, CT 06108.
- If you live in one of the housing complexes of the town, social workers will be at your housing building at a determined and announced date and time. You should bring your paperwork and complete the application there.
- You can also set up an in-person appointment by calling 860-291-7248, during business hours of 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. You must bring all your documents.
If you have any questions, please call 860-291-7248.
The applicant may designate another person to file the Renter’s Rebate application on their behalf. The rebate checks will be mailed out by the Office of Policy and Management at the end of the application period - October 2023. Persons renting an apartment or room or living in cooperative housing, or a mobile home may be eligible for this program. Renters' rebates can be up to $900 for married couples and $700 for single person. The renters' rebate amount is based on a graduated income scale and the amount of rent and utility payments (excluding telephone) made in the calendar year prior to the year in which the renter applies.
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Reminder: Free Learning Opportunity for East Hartford Residents
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East Hartford Works and Goodwin University will host a 5-week Professional Skills Academy focused on manufacturing beginning Tuesday, April 18. Classes will run Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evening from 4PM-9PM at Goodwin University. Participants will earn continuing education credentials from Goodwin in: Enhanced Shop Math, Introduction to Blue Print Reading, Enhanced Metrology and OSHA 10.
This is a free program for East Hartford residents. Participants must have a High School Diploma or GED. Supports will be made available for childcare and transportation. Registration is open now and space is limited so reserve your spot by calling Yadira Jeter at (860) 290-4345.
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COVID-19 Updates & Upcoming Vaccine Clinics
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Griffin Hospital has partnered with the Town of East Hartford to offer COVID-19 vaccine clinics on the following date at Raymond Library (840 Main Street):
Moderna, Pfizer, and J&J vaccines will be available to all eligible Connecticut residents 6 months and older. No insurance, ID, or appointment required. Additionally, Griffin will offer free health screenings including A1C (diabetes) and blood pressure checks at each clinic.
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The East Hartford Health Department offers regular vaccination services at the Community Cultural Center. Both the Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 bivalent boosters, as well as Flu, will be offered for all ages 12+. Appointments are required and will be offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10AM-2PM. To schedule an appointment, call (860) 291-7324 (option 1).
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For any questions regarding pediatric COVID-19 vaccines, booster dose eligibility, or to schedule an appointment at an upcoming clinic, contact the East Hartford Health Department at (860) 291-7324. If transportation is needed to get to and from a clinic site, please contact the Health Department for assistance.
The White House relaunched the program making free at-home, rapid COVID-19 tests available to every U.S. household. Just as before, you can order tests through COVIDTests.gov and enter your shipping information. Every U.S. household is eligible to order 4 free at-home COVID-19 tests.
The Administration will also make tests available to individuals who are blind or have low vision through this program. People who have difficulty accessing the internet or need additional support placing an order can call +1 (800) 232-0233 (TTY 1-888-720-7489) to get help in English, Spanish, and more than 150 other languages – 8AM-8PM E.T., Monday to Friday and 8AM-5PM E.T. on weekends.
For more information on receiving the COVID-19 vaccine or to locate an appointment near you, click here or locate a DPH Mobile COVID-19 vaccination clinic by clicking here. Those without access to the internet can call the Connecticut’s Vaccine Appointment Assist Line, available seven days a week from 8 AM to 8 PM, at (877) 918-2224.
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Manchester Art Association's (MAA) newest exhibit is opening Friday, March 24, 2023 at the Manchester Town Hall located at 41 Center Street. This exciting exhibit is entitled “The Poetry Project” as it features artwork in a variety of mediums inspired by the poets of "Wit and Wisdom", a Manchester poetry club. The exhibit can be seen at Manchester Town Hall during normal business hours or online at https://www.manchesterart.org/poetry and will end on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. For information on visiting Manchester Town Hall, please see their website: https://www.manchesterct.gov/Home
Summer Camp Online Registration Begins...April 3rd at 9AM!
Summer Day Camp registration is held online beginning at 9:00 AM on April 3rd. In order to register online you must have an active account in our system. If you are unsure if you have an active account, please give us a call at (860) 647-3084 to find out!
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The Teen Center is Back!
Manchester YSB is opening the center on Wednesdays from 12:30 PM to 6:00 PM and Thursdays 2:30-6pm. Learn more here!
Attend 10 or more times to be eligible for prizes! Pizza is served after group discussion. Read more here:
TEENCENTER-incentive.pdf
- Thursday, April 06, 2023 | 02:30 PM - 06:00 PM
- Thursday, April 13, 2023 | 02:30 PM - 06:00 PM
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Registration is open now for OAKC Together We Tee! This program is offered to local Black and Brown youth of all genders ages 9-12 and their parent/guardian to introduce kids to the game of golf. The Manchester Country club will be providing all participants with lessons by golf professionals, fee waivers, and equipment.
The program will run on the following dates: Wednesdays, July 12, July 19, July 26, August 2, August 9, and August 16 with golf instruction from 5PM-6:30PM, followed by a family style dinner from 6:30PM-7:30PM. The program is limited to 10 participants, so register today by clicking here.
If you have questions or would like additional information, call Senior Recreation Specialist Calvin Harris at (860) 647-3088 or Recreation Supervisor Taylor McBride at (860) 647-6039.
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The East Hartford Parks and Recreation is now accepting registrations for our fun-filled April Break Camp for students in grades 1-6.
Camp will be held Monday, April 10th through Friday, April 14th from 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.
Participants may register for the whole week or just for a day or two; the fee is just $20 per day for East Hartford residents.
Daily camp activities include crafts, a variety of indoor/outdoor games, and time to play and socialize with friends.
Camp is held at the Goodwin Elementary School Gymnasium, 1235 Forbes St.
Pre-registration is required and space is limited.
Participants should dress seasonally appropriately for outside play. Please pack snacks, lunch and a water bottle. You can register at www.ehparks.org.
For more information, please call the Parks and Recreation Department at 860-291-7160.
The Capitol Region Council of Governments (CRCOG) has initiated a study to identify the preferred alignment of the East Coast Greenway through the last remaining 12-mile gap in the Capitol Region in Simsbury, Bloomfield, Hartford, and East Hartford. The East Coast Greenway is an off-road walking and biking route stretching 3,000 miles from Maine to Florida. In Connecticut, the East Coast Greenway consists of a 200-mile route between the Rhode Island state line at Sterling, Connecticut and the New York state line at Greenwich. In Connecticut, the completed portions of the East Coast Greenway utilize a series of trails including the Air Line Trail, the Hop River Trail, and the Farmington Canal Trail.
Check out our first NEWSLETTER for more information!
Public Workshop
https://crcog.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/East-Hartford-Flyer-4-11-23-Workshop.pdf
Map
https://www.greenway.org/states/connecticut
East Hartford Senior Center invites individuals 55 and older to a Petting Zoo & Smoothies event on May 6th at the Senior Center (15 Milbrook Drive).
In addition to a petting zoo, attendees will be served smoothies or coffee and a pastry. The café will open at 9:00 am. The Petting Zoo will begin at 10:00 am.
Come alone or bring your grandchildren and great grandchildren to enjoy our petting zoo. We will have pigs, sheep, goats, ducks and rabbits.
Registration for this event will begin on Monday March 27th. You must register in person at the Senior Center. Cost is $3.00 and admission for children under 10 is FREE. One adult guest and three children per senior center member. Seating is limited.
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April Vacation Programs at East Hartford Public Library
Looking for something fun to do over April vacation? Check out our complete lineup of April vacation programs. We’ve got something for everyone, from toddlers to teens! For the full schedule and more information click here.
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Do you have a business card? How about a website? Are you looking for help? At Drop-in Digital Navigation hours, the East Hartford Public Library will work with small business owners to develop the technology skills you need to make your business technology work as hard as you do. Business owners at every stage of development are encouraged to attend. Drop-in hours will be offered on Fridays from 10:30AM-12:30PM (March 3, 10, 24, & 31; April 14 & 27; and May 5, 12, &26). For more information, click here.
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Calling the young people in our community – it's not too early to be thinking about summer employment or learning opportunities! Gain valuable work experience and get paid this summer by signing up for the Summer Youth Employment and Learning Program (SYELP).
SYELP connects youth between the ages of 14 and 24 with career exploration opportunities and paid work experience each summer. Applications are open now! Sign up by clicking here.
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My office is always open if you or your family are in need of assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact me by email at Jason.Rojas@cga.ct.gov or by phone at 860-240-8541.
Sincerely,
Jason Rojas
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