Peg Forbell had a surprise when she opened the September 16 issue of The Newtown Bee. The lovely queen of the Young People's Spring Fling, pictured in the "Way We Were" column, is her sister, the late Grayce Sherman, who graduated from Hawley School in 1939. Peg is pretty sure that Grayce's "king," Herbert, had the last name Beers, rather than the "Beer" as indicated on the faded photo we found. She also divulged that the family fondly called her older sister "Petey."firehouseride.com for details on supporting this Hook & Ladder fundraiser.Treyf: My Life as an Unorthodox Outlaw, was published by Penguin Random House this past Tuesday. It is a "memoir of time and place, immigration and assimilation, and what it means to leave behind the person you once were in favor of who and what you might become," according to the press release. Just in case you are not aware, Elissa is the award-winning author of Poor Man's Feast: A Love Story of Comfort, Desire, and the Art of Simple Cooking; the James Beard Award-winning blog, also called Poor Man's Feast; the Washington Post column "Feeding My Mother"; and a contributor to publications that include O: The Oprah Magazine, Saveur, and The New York Times. She has spoken at TEDx and is a 2016 finalist for the Frank McCourt Memoir Prize and a 2016 resident fellow at Vermont Studio Center - all that, and she lives right here in town. She'll be at Byrd's Books in Bethel next Wednesday, September 28, at 7 pm, for a book discussion. Registration at www.byrdsbooks.com.

Peg was not alone in recognizing those faces. Former resident Caryl Stratton recognized the young Herbert Beers, who she said is her uncle, George Herbert Beers - nicknamed "Hub. Everyone knew him. He was a mailman who started out on horseback, and then they had cars eventually." He was delivering mail before she was born in 1939. She also shared some family lore about the pretty queen of the evening. "I am not sure if they were engaged. If it's her, they intended to marry," Ms Stratton said. "He asked her to be his wife, but she backed out when he said he intended to stay [in Newtown] on the family farm. It could or could not be her." The things "The Way We Were" divulges!

Denise Rodriguez and her daughter, Alyssa, are ready for the political season. Last month, they visited the homestead of women's rights proponent Susan B. Anthony in Rochester, N.Y. Denise and Alyssa, shown here with a docent, visited for the 19th Amendment Celebration - and Alyssa shared her musical talents that day, as well.

You probably had a great time at the Newtown Arts Festival at Fairfield Hills this past weekend; but if you misplaced something along the way, the organizers have collected together what they have found. If you can identify what you lost, you can pick it up at the Parks & Rec office on the lower level of Town Hall South. (Of course, this does not include the items absentmindedly tossed into the trash container in lieu of the garbage you meant to throw. I'm not naming names, but you know who you dumpster divers are...)

While I was browsing around the Arts Festival, I came upon a kind of cool collaboration between two Newtown artists. Bitty Birdie Design's Barb Patrick has partnered her quilting expertise with Jim Chillington's local paintings, resulting in some pretty neat pillows. A special process allows Barb to print Jim's works directly onto the fabric for these two-artists-in-one creations.

Get ready for the gigantic annual tag sale sponsored by the Nunnawauk Meadows Residents Association this weekend. The tag sale takes place Saturday and Sunday, from 9 am to 3 pm, in the community room, at 3 Nunnawauk Road (off Mile Hill Road South, off Wasserman Way). Jewelry, plants, games, linens, china, and household items galore will be among the treasures you'll find there.

The roar of motorcycles will serenade Newtown once again this month (in case you missed the September 11 CT United Ride), as the Newtown Hook & Ladder Firehouse Ride gets underway at 3 pm, Saturday, September 24. The 50-mile-long ride takes off from the old Hook & Ladder fire station behind Edmond Town Hall, and ends at the new 12 Church Hill Road fire station with a BBQ, music, and more. Go to

Congratulations to Pamela Danneman of Newtown for her second place award at the Pomperaug Woods Ninth Annual Connecticut Senior Juried Art Show. Her work, "Paint Brushes," done in oil, will be among the many lovely pieces on exhibit at the 80 Heritage Road senior living complex in Southbury this Saturday and Sunday, September 24 and 25, from 11 am to 4 pm.

Look for the collection box to support the Newtown Animal Shelter, coming in October. A box will be set up in The Newtown Bee front office, 5 Church Hill Road, near the front entrance. If you can help, donations of items like large rubber Kong toys, Fromm dry dog food, chicken tender treats, dog beds, Milk Bone biscuits, large rope toys and squeaky toys, pig's ears, Air Kongs, large rope toys, and assorted sizes of choke chain collars are much appreciated. Don't forget that our animal shelter helps out kitties, too. Canned Friskie's cat food, kitty litter, and catnip toys are donations that will help the homeless felines. Gift certificates, and cleaning supplies, including paper towels, bleach, laundry detergent, towels, large black garbage bags, flat sheets, and ammonia are welcome donations, too. I hope to see the box overflowing next month. Stop by with donations during our regular office hours, Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.

Sandi Smith was busy last weekend, decorating her yard for fall. Passersby of her Sunset Hill Road property will appreciate her efforts.

If you're looking for some good reading material, Newtown resident Elissa Altman's newest book,

I'm not outlaw, unorthodox or otherwise. The only hold-ups I have planned are the ones that provide me with more news to bring to you next week. Be sure to... Read me again.