Visitors last Friday morning to The Bee’s office were greeted by a pair of women wearing some awesome hats. Sandy Tannone and Bridget Seaman participated in the first Bee (Easter) Bonnet Contest, which required only that an employee wear a hat for a Parade of Hats. Sandy was sporting a straw sun hat to which she had affixed a large green feathers mask, with an Easter-themed scarf tied around the brim. Bridget, also a creative one, was sporting a hat made of last week’s Newtown Bee. After 10 o’clock rolled around and the parade was held — strangely enough it was six other women who participated (the only male who was comfortable enough with his masculinity to participate was Deeke, our chocolate lab) — it was Sandy Tannone and her wonderfully plumaged hat, er, bonnet that won everyone’s hearts. Sandy won a chocolate Easter bunny, and bragging rights for one year.

Frosty the Snowman has been at the wheel of the hay tractor in the Castle Hill Farm field off of Route 302 all winter, but I see that he has handed over the springtime job of “driving” the “tractor” to the Easter Bunny. E.B. looks pretty “hoppy” about it, too.

Luckily for the rabbit, it takes no keys to get that tractor started. Not so for former Sandy Hook Diner waitress Shawn Smith, who is in great need of her Toyota car keys to start her vehicle. She stopped in to The Bee for a quick visit this week, and lamented the loss of the keys, on a ring with a number of store cards and a silver spoon, that slipped off the hood of her fiancé’s truck near Parmalee Hill Road recently. As hard as Shawn and Kevin looked, they could not come up with the key ring. So, if it happens that you came upon some keys in the vicinity of Parmalee Hill Road, please give Shawn a call at 203-270-1092.

Paul Arneth, a longtime Lions Club member, is well aware that the Lions’ Lose the Litter Day is coming up on April 24. But due to a scheduling conflict, and the need for his granddaughter Molly and her good friend, Emily Brisson, to do community service for their confirmation process, Paul decided to take the girls out on a litter walk last Saturday along Toddy Hill Road. “We started at Longview Drive and worked down to Route 34,” Paul tells me. “As we filled up the trash bags, we left the filled bags at the side of the road to be picked up when we got to my car.” A surprise awaited them when they returned to pick up the bags. A card was attached to one bag reading, “To the people who are picking up garbage along Toddy Hill. Have a blessed Easter, From a Meadow Woods Lane family.” Along with the note was a ten-dollar gift card to Dunkin’ Donuts.

“There were two messages in this story for the girls and me,” says Paul. “First: Folks appreciate and value the work of volunteers. Second: We filled nine large trash bags in about one mile. Why do we trash our town?”  Good question, Paul. And let me throw in a super big Good Egg to Paul, Molly, and Emily – as well as for all of the other Newtowners who take it upon themselves each spring to rid our town roads of trash.

Girl Scout Junior Troop 51135 is working on its Bronze Award, and is collecting items for The Elizabeth House, a Women’s Center of Greater Danbury shelter for women and children. Last year the agency served more than 19,500 clients, including 1,740 from Newtown. A collection box has been set up inside The Bee’s offices at 5 Church Hill Road to collect donations of pens, pencils, old cellphones, gift cards, books, nonperishable foods, cleaning supplies, batteries, socks, and towels. Boxes are also at Booth Library and Newtown Police Department, and will be there for a few weeks. If you have any questions, call Tricia at 203-395-2950.

While most members of The Flagpole Photographers have been preparing for this weekend’s annual exhibition at Booth Library, some club members recently had a successful showing of their photographs in Milford. Dr Robert Berthier’s photo “Abstract” was cited by the Connecticut Association of Photographers as Best in Landscape at Milford Fine Arts Council’s “Photo Expo.” He also won second place for “Frozen Cottonwoods” in the Landscape/Seascape category, while in the Creative division, Ercole Gaudioso placed second for “Barn in Snow,” and Don Brooks received a second place honor in Portraiture for “Robert.” Meanwhile, the club will be well represented in the 34th Annual Greater Lynn (Mass.) International Color Exhibition 2010 this weekend. A collection of 52 digital files was sent to this exhibit by Flagpole members and 13 were chosen to be included in the show. Don Brooks will receive a medal for his entry, “Iris.” In addition, the club won first place for its black and white entries during the fall, winter and spring digital competitions of New England Camera Club Council, composed of 80 clubs across New England area.

Don’t be concerned if you can’t find Liz Alpert Fay late next week. The local artist will attend the opening festivities for “Fiberart International 2010,” the 20th juried exhibition of the best in contemporary fiber art, in Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, as well as at The Society for Contemporary Craft, also in Pittsburgh. Running April 16 to August 22 and produced by the Fiberarts Guild of Pittsburgh, Inc, the triennial exhibition features 87 works, 24 of which are by artists living outside the United States, including one by Liz, called “Food For Thought.” Opening night includes a gala reception where awards totaling more than $5,000 will be announced. Whether Liz, well known for her hooked works of art, comes home with an award or not, she’s already a winner in our books.

I don’t hook works of art, but I hope I’ve hooked you enough that next week you’ll…. Read me again.