To the Editor:

I wanted to share this story with everyone in our community because without the help of two Sandy Hook residents and two Newtown Lions, the duck race [May 26] would have been a disaster.

Newtown Lion Doug Body was going by Glen Road and thought he saw a tree down across the Pootatuck River. Doug is a member of the River Crew on the Duck Race Committee, so he was concerned that the tree would make it impossible for the ducks to get to the finish line for the duck race. As it turned out, he was absolutely right.

Doug contacted me just one week before the duck race. We went there on Monday, May 23, and discovered that the tree was much larger than expected. This was a real problem because the little rubber ducks would never make it to the finish line, which was 800 feet further down the river. Gary Fillion (known as MacGyver for his mechanical resourcefulness) also showed up to examine the problem. While Doug was in the [Pootatuck River], Bruce Bomely (whose home is on the east side of the Pootatuck) came out and offered us some help. We told Bruce that we'd come back the next day with chain saws and try to clear the river.

We came out of the river, and while we were discussing the solution, Kevin Mohler, who lives on Dayton Street (the east side of the river), came over and generously offered his help too. Unfortunately, it rained the next day, and we rescheduled for Thursday (just two days before the race).

When Doug, Gary, Kevin, and I got to the tree on Thursday, we saw that Bruce had already cleared many of the branches and debris from the area. Bruce explained later that he had an appointment and could not help that day, so he did as much as he could the previous day. Kevin jumped in the river (without any waders), and he and Gary began cutting the tree up. Doug and I cleared the debris as the men cut the branches and pieces of the tree. After a couple of hours, we were satisfied that the ducks would be able to get by and make it to the finish line.

The beautiful ending to the story is that on the day of the race (May 26) Kevin Mohler won 5th prize ($300 gift card to the Apple Store) and Doug Body's son (Brandon) won 9th prize ($100 gift certificate to Carminuccio's Pizza). It was heartwarming to see how two men, whom we never met before, demonstrated that Newtown community spirit, pitched in, and made a real difference. The fact that Kevin Mohler and Doug Body's son won prizes shows that sometimes good things do happen to good people.

Bob Schmidt

11 Serenity Lane, Sandy Hook June 5, 2018