Two More Stars Unveiled For Library Gala Auction

By SHANNON HICKS

Published: Jul 27, 2007 12:00 am

Two More Stars

Unveiled For Library

Gala Auction

By Shannon Hicks

A black-tie gala is being planned to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the C.H. Booth Library. The event, called âDiamonds in the Sky,â will be held at Rock Ridge Country Club on Saturday, September 29. The event will include passed hors dâoeuvres, Tuscan table and dessert, cash bar, and a live auction of 14 hand-painted stars.

Reverend Robert Weiss, pastor of St Rose of Lima Church, will serve as the eveningâs auctioneer. There will also be a raffle that evening of a freeform contemporary-style diamond pendant designed by Quality Gem of Bethel.

Gala tickets are $100 each and while many have been being mailed out, a limited number are also available for purchase at C.H. Booth Library. Proceeds from the gala will be used to purchase a digital audio-visual projector to augment lectures, discussions, movies, and PowerPoint presentations in the libraryâs Olga Knoepke Memorial Meeting Room.

Fourteen artists have accepted the challenge of painting stars that measure about 26 inches at their widest point (each point is 13 inches to the center), including Stephanie Adam and Paula Brinkman, whose stars are being featured this week (previous issues of The Bee have already offered sneak previews at the stars decorated by Bruce Degen and David Merrill).

Mrs Adam has been painting and exhibiting her work for a few decades, but the libraryâs project is a far cry from her typical work. The Newtown artist (and art teacher at Middle Gate School) has become known for paintings that are always square. She likes bold colors and often includes tracings of antique tools and other representational and abstract images on her canvases.

Her Booth Library star, which she calls âNightstar,â has a deep blue background, a strong red border, and 75 white stars of varying sizes.

Paula Brinkman Hughesâs star, called âLotsa Gatos,â has alternating light blue and chocolate brown backgrounds and features, as its name implies, a lot of cats.

Ms Brinkman Hughes, who grew up in Newtown and uses her birth name professionally, is an artist whose illustrations can be found around the world on everything from greeting cards, T-shirts and gift bags to portable clocks, photo albums, diaries, and even wine labels. About ten years ago Ms Brinkman Hughes created the wine label for McLaughlin Vineyardâs Blush wine, a wine that is sold in stores and directly from the Sandy Hook vineyard.

She has done artwork for AT&T, Ata-Boy magnets, Colorbok paper products, Cosmopolitan and Ladies Home Journal magazines, Paramount and Renaissance greeting cards, and even Nick at Nite. One of her recent projects was a collaboration with Newtown native and grade school friend Karen Behan Pierce. Ms Brinkman Hughes provided the illustrations for Yoga Bear â Yoga for Youngsters, which was written by Ms Behan Pierce.

In addition to the aforementioned artists, stars are being decorated by Betty Christensen, Claudia Coopersmith, Steven Kellogg, Ross MacDonald, Daryl Maurath, Dick McEvoy, Ruth Newquist, Stacey Olszewski, Linda Pickwick, and Michelle Rosenthal.

All of the stars are due to Mrs Geckle before the end of August, and the public will have the opportunity to see all of the stars before they are auctioned off. An artistsâ reception is planned at the library on the afternoon of Saturday, September 1.

The artists are expected to attend the reception, and silent bids will be accepted at that time for the auction. The order of the lots for the auction will also be determined that afternoon. Mrs Geckle says the artists will draw numbers to determine their starsâ lot number.

Details about the gala are available from Mary Thomas (426-9696), and additional stars will continue to be featured in these pages in the weeks leading up to the big event.

Four-Item Raffle

In the months leading up to the gala, committee members will also be selling tickets for a four-prize raffle. These $10 tickets are on sale now at the library. There are just 1,000 of these tickets being sold, and the prizes are an iPod, a laptop computer, three hours of spa pampering, and diamond earrings.

The drawing for the winning raffle tickets will be on Friday, September 28, at the library.

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My darling, You were the best GRANDmother a child could ask for. You created so many great memories & traditions that I have passed down to your Great grandchildren. You brought joy into every room you stepped into. Your laughter, singing, whistling and the signature Rockettes high kicks, is something I will always hold in my heart. There was something about walking into your home and being greeted by your beautiful face. *kiss on each check* followed by HELLOOOOOO Darling! The classical music playing softly in the background and your love and comfort made your home, a safe space. Somewhere, where love knew no boundaries. It was so much more than a home. I aim for the same in my home, and play the classic music 24/7, but it will never be the same. I pray I can be 1/4 of GRAND, you put in GRANDmother. You were so resilient. You found the positive in every situation. I look up to you so much. I remember begging Mom and Dad for years to change my name to “Carmen”. They didn’t officially change my name, but eventually started calling me “Carmenita” as I am a little you. THE HONOR. You were there for me, no matter the day or hour. You were always the one who would talk me through whatever hard situation I was going through. When my baby passed away, I refused to talk to anyone for 3 weeks. Except for you. You said to me “Better days are coming, babes. There’s always a rainbow after the storm”. Of course, you were right, because you are GRAND. I picture you in heaven dancing and laughing with him. Uncle Jay playing the money game with him. To know you are with your children again & with mine does bring me some joy. Twas the night before Christmas & New Year’s Eve, will never be the same. Another tradition you created. A memory that will last forever. Not just with me, but for generations to come. It may not be the same, but we won’t let it die. It will live on, in your name. To be your first GRANDchild was a blessing. I could write an entire book about you & all the amazing things about you. Even though we were robbed of time together & it makes me angry, I know I will see you again. This isn’t a goodbye, but a “see you later”. Just like we ended every phone call. Ciao, darling. I love you. MWAH MWAH! Love your GRANDchild, Kimberly aka Carmenita

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Unfortunately, I think this is likely to get worse, not better... Based on both public comments and private conversations, I’m increasingly concerned that our newly elected First Selectman intends not just to install these cameras, but to expand their use for full-blown enforcement and fines. Try getting a straight answer out of him about the long-term plan and you quickly realize how vague the responses become. Tyler is absolutely right to raise the privacy issue. These systems don’t just “catch speeders” — they quietly build a database of where we drive, when we drive, and who is in our vehicles. Once that infrastructure is in place, it becomes very easy to justify expanding its scope: more cameras, more locations, more uses, and eventually more automated enforcement. If Newtown is going down this road, residents deserve clear, written answers to some basic questions before anything is expanded: What limits will be placed on how and where cameras are used? Will footage and plate data be used only for speed enforcement, or for other investigations too? How long will data be stored, and who can access it? What safeguards will prevent vendors and individuals from abusing this information? Without firm, enforceable rules in place, “just a few cameras to slow traffic” can turn into something very different over time. I support safe roads — but not at the cost of unchecked surveillance and vague promises from our leaders. You try getting straight answers out of our First Selectman, myself and others have not been able to...

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To add context that did not occur at the meeting would not be an accurate representation of the meeting and would, in fact, be editorializing to shape public opinion. The editorial staff here do not consider ourselves to be final arbiters of what the truth is (and if we did, it would make us partisan and biased), and we would need to provide a source for any dissenting information (sourcing all information in an article is literally Journalism 101). There were no such sources present at the meeting in question, and so it would not be appropriate to include such information in an article about the meeting. Dissenting voices appear in meeting stories when there were active participants with dissenting opinions, such as during public participation or the words of a council member who disagreed. It should be noted that the Interfaith Council, like many local boards and commissions, conduct meetings that are open to the public. This was not an article on the actions of the Greater Danbury Area Unites for Immigrants, or on immigrants, or on ICE's actions in the community, where including other voices or perspectives would be appropriate. We appreciate your opinion, but we stand by our meeting coverage and consider this discussion closed.

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Two More Stars Unveiled For Library Gala Auction

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