Neighbor To Neighbor Welcomes New Residents To Newtown

Kim Connolly, the new community representative for Neighbor to Neighbor, the new resident welcoming service, laughs when friends call her a “yenta” – a matchmaker. “I enjoy matching up someone with a need with another person who can help them. It’s a win-win for both people, and I feel good about helping someone,” she explains.

Mrs Connolly’s job with Neighbor to Neighbor is to welcome new residents of Newtown with a packet of community information and also information about local businesses that are giving gift certificates and discounts on goods and services to newcomers. Neighbor to Neighbor has been providing this service for 30 years. Many area businesses have been involved for years, and Mrs Connolly would like to promote even more local merchants and service providers.

“I feel strongly about supporting our local businesses and maintaining our sense of community,” she said.”

Mrs Connolly serves on the board of directors of the Family Counseling Center, and is a past president of the Newtown Bridle Land Association. She has two sons. Sean is in second grade at Hawley School, where Mrs Connolly volunteers in the library, and Trevor attends Trinity Day School. Her husband, Brian, a financial planner, serves as the Borough Zoning Commission and the United Methodist Church’s stewardship committee. He also coaches Sean’s Babe Ruth baseball team.

“We have been involved in a lot of different facets of Newtown activities, and as our boys get older, I’m sure we’ll try many new things. That is why being the community representative for Neighbor to Neighbor is so much fun; I get to share all the wonderful things I’ve learned about Newtown with others,” Mrs Connolly said.

Mrs Connolly explains that she has talked to many women, especially those with small children or babies, who have moved to new towns and felt very isolated. Perhaps they lived on a busy street, or out in the country or in a neighborhood where all the mothers worked. Mrs Connolly feels part of her mission is to get new families connected to community activities where they will meet new friends with similar interests. She also wants to make sure that local businesses reach these potential customers through her word of mouth recommendations.

“I’d like to keep business in Newtown, rather than the national chain stores outside of town,” she said.  “Our small businesses provide wonderful, personalized service.”

A 1978 graduate of Newtown High School – her family lived in Newtown only during her junior and senior years – Kim Connolly earned a degree in communications at Virginia Tech. When her husband’s job brought him to Connecticut in 1984, they bought a house on Elizabeth Street in Newtown. For three and a half years, she worked as a realtor for Raveis. “Brian was a builder at the time, so it was a logical fit,” she said. “Then I worked for a friend from Westport who had a radio show, RE Report, and was putting out an audio cassette series for realtors.”

But when the Waterbury branch of the Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) Healthcare decided to start a meal delivery service for seniors, she applied for the job as its program director and got it. “We started with six clients in 1990 and there are now more than 400, so it was a big success,” Mrs Connolly said. “Three years later I turned the program, Catered with Care, over to the dietitian from St Mary’s Hospital, who supplied the meals – and took a position in the VNA’s public relations office. “

After her second son was born in 1996, she stopped working and soon filled her free time with many volunteer projects. But recently she saw an ad in The Bee that peaked her interest.

“It was for the Neighbor to Neighbor position, something that matched all the things I enjoy doing,” she said. “This is my town and I love it. This job lets me share it with you.”

Mrs Connolly will be calling on new residents to set up an appointment to bring them a folder filled with information about the places and services in town – such as the Booth Library, Newcomers, the Family Counseling Center, Park & Rec, Newtown Youth Services, The Bee’s Guide to Newtown – plus gift certificates and discounts from local businesses.

Neighbor to Neighbor had become inactive in the Newtown area in recent years but all that changed when Massachusetts businessman Bob Magovern bought back the Fairfield County franchise. Kim Connolly now is busy adding new businesses to the roster. Among the first to sign on have been Newtown Savings Bank, Newtown Car Care, and Avance Esthetiques.

“[Avance Esthetiques] owner Judy Volpe was one of the original Catered with Care volunteers in Southbury,” Mrs Connolly recalled. “I know these businesses – I patronize them – and the word of mouth referrals that Neighbor to Neighbor can give are priceless. I’m doing something I enjoy and I get paid for it, too. It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Kim Connolly invites any community organization or business wishing to reach out to new residents to contact her at 426-0522.