It took a small village of people to help a horse find its way back to its home last week. I meant to mention this, but all the silliness of Scott Baggett’s milestone birthday distracted me too much. I did hear about a lot of good Samaritans who helped a pretty white horse last Monday evening, however. The horse walked part of Mt Pleasant Road, Whippoorwill Hill Road, and Barnabas Road, drawing attention from Animal Control, local police officers, and members of the public, who all guided the animal back to where it escaped from. All of that was done without injury to the horse or anyone involved in its rescue. Well done everyone!

Belated congratulations to Elizabeth Young, who had her first play produced this month. If you read u of Restored to Reason, you’ll know he found the work “fascinating” and the script “engaging.” He also raved about the production as a whole. Unfortunately there were just two weekends of performances, but I hope readers recognize the playwright as former Newtown Bee Theater Reviewer Beth Young, who still lives in town. I was very happy when I put those pieces together. Matt also confirmed it was Beth, and that this was her first play to be produced. I agree with his assessment that it was “really wonderful.” Bravo Beth!

Happy Declaration of Independence Signing Weekend! I just made up that holiday name, but for those keeping track, Sunday will be the true 250th anniversary of most signatures being added to that important document. The process of this country declaring its independence from Britain began July 2, 1776 — earlier, of course, but for the sake of this conversation… — when Congress approved Richard Henry Lee’s resolution declaring the colonies “free and independent states.” The Continental Congress spent the next two days revising the words primarily drafted by Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration’s final wording was adopted on July 4, 1776, but the handwritten parchment displayed at the National Archives was prepared after Congress on July 19 ordered an official copy to be “fairly engrossed on parchment,” or written by hand onto parchment. Many historians believe Timothy Matlack did the work of copying the Declaration onto the single sheet of parchment.

That document was then presented for signing on August 2, 1776. John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, was the first to sign the parchment, followed by most of the other delegates. If you’d like to continue celebrating this year’s Semiquincentennial, Sunday of this weekend will be the time to mark the anniversary of those men signing their names and breaking law in the name of our young country. Their bravery and courage cannot be overstated. They were, as lecturer Art Gottlieb noted in a riveting lecture presented July 23 at Newtown Senior Center, “immediately guilty of treason and subject to hanging.” We'll have a full story about that lecture in next week's paper.

Kevin Corey was also at Art’s lecture last week. His dog Ricochet was not, but something tells me that may be because the little dog was home picking out his next outfit. Kevin shared this photo with me last Friday, saying simply, “Ricochet wants to brighten your day.” Thank you both! The plan worked.

Barbara Wilson is working on a new program for Newtown Historical Society, and she’s hoping a few more readers would be willing to participate in it. Barbara will present “Voices From the One-Room Schoolhouse: A Community Storytelling Event” in late September. The program will feature local residents who learned and played in some of Newtown’s historic one-room schoolhouses. Barbara currently has three residents ready to share their memories, and she would love to hear from others with stories to share. She’d also love to include the owners of some of the historic buildings. If you fit into either category, contact Barbara directly at bkwilsonhistory@yahoo.com.

The 2026 La Paz International Book Fair has been underway since Wednesday, hosting over 30 authors from 19 countries. Organizers say recent editions have surpassed 100,000 visitors during the Bolivian event’s 12-day run. Among the books being introduced this weekend will be Permeabilia: Las palabras de la imagen, a collection of fine photography by Newtown resident Joseph Kugielsky. Joseph’s book, with writing by José Sanjinés, a professor at Coastal University in South Carolina, and published by Bolivia-based Plural Editores, will be introduced Saturday night.

Sad news found its way to our office last week, when Dennis LaPak called to let us know his father had died. Frank LaPak was a longtime member of our layout/production staff, having joined us after a stint as layout editor at the New Canaan Advertiser. He joined our team in 1981, well before he and his family moved into town about a dozen years later. He retired at some point, and we even threw a big party for him at the former Fireside Inn (I know, I’m dating myself now!), but then he decided to continue working in the layout room once a week.

Meanwhile, Frank continued his friendship with many of us, including our late publisher, Scudder Smith. The two often caught up at The Pleasance, where for years Frank used a lot of the same care and talent he put toward his home gardens to keep the property at 1 Main Street looking beautiful. When he finally stepped away from those tasks, he continued to do everything he could to keep his home and the gardens there as meticulous as ever. This was between rooting for the Red Sox, doing a crossword puzzle or two, cracking a joke and a smile, and showing love to generations of family and friends. We have no doubt Frank and Scudder have resumed their friendship, caught up on the news of recent years, and are affectionately calling each other names once more.

We formally said Farewell to our dear friend this week. Calling hours were Wednesday in Danbury, and his funeral Mass was Thursday morning at St Rose. Tuesday will be a little bittersweet as we remember Frank on what would have been his 93rd birthday.

I will resume sharing my news next week. I hope you’ll remember when it’s time to come back and … read me again.