Celebrating Success In Newtown 2008

By Nancy K. Crevier

A number of organizations and businesses in town celebrated milestones in 2008. It has been ten years of good service to residents of Newtown for Linda Manna of the Cider Mill on Route 302, where folk art and antiques are the specialties.

Director of Senior Services in Newtown Marilyn Place celebrated her 20th year in that position in 2008. She has found that being director means a lot more than the piles of paperwork that come with the position. It means networking with other agencies, helping individuals assess their needs, knowing what resources are available, and knowing what is going on in the personal lives of those who frequent the Senior Center. Nor does a dose of good humor hurt, she has learned in two decades of service.

Julie Cook celebrated 25 years of teaching piano and music to Newtown children and adults in 2008. Julie’s Piano Studio is located in Sandy Hook Center.

When Dr Brian Silverlieb hung out his shingle at 119 Mt Pleasant Road for Mt Pleasant Hospital for Animals 30 years ago, he fulfilled a lifetime dream of having his own veterinary practice. From one assistant and himself and a fairly silent phone, the practice has thrived to the point that keeping up means caring for more than 30 clients a day that rely on the expertise and high standards offered by Dr Silverlieb and his associate, Dr Rock Vale, and multiple phones ringing off the hook around the clock.

For 35 years travelers from far and near have found their way to the Blue Colony Diner, where general manager George Marnelakis and his father, Eddie Marnelakis, know customers by face and name. It is this familiarity, and the consistency of menu and atmosphere, that has kept customers pouring in the doors of the 6,000-square-foot diner since his father opened it March 19, 1973, said George Marnelakis.

In March, 80 members of the Newtown Woman’s Club, General Federation of Women’s Clubs (GFWC) celebrated the organization’s 40th Anniversary. The GFWC is the largest and oldest nondenominational international service organization. The Newtown Woman’s Club holds several fundraisers every year to support local and state charities.

And in November, the Newtown Lions celebrated its 60th anniversary of  service to Newtown and the world. In 2008, the Lions raised more than $65,000 for charity (see separate story).

Congratulations to these and all of the others who have thrived in Newtown over the decades.