Newtown residents kept busy throughout 2025 the only way they know how: by embracing community. From historic annual events to a heartwarming public service award ceremony, Newtowners supported each another time and time again.

A Blooming New Year

Newtown Conservation Commission kicked off 2025 with a New Year’s Walk and Seed Bomb Launching on January 4.

Around two dozen bundled up in hats, gloves, and coats and launched seed bombs made out of clay, dirt, and native seeds into the High Meadow at Fairfield Hills. Attendees launched these seed bombs with slingshots made by Conservation Commissioner John Robinson.

The launching was another step in the Conservation Commission’s High Meadow Restoration Plan, which aims to increase the diversity of native wildlife and provide a pleasant view for any and all visitors.

Children and adults alike smiled as they watched seed bombs soar through the air and land on the ground. For every seed bomb fired off into the meadow, someone else was there to cheer them on and clap when they successfully made their shot.

Residents rallied around the Second Company Governor’s Horse Guard (2GHG) as they faced potential privatization in winter earlier this year.

Proposed House Bill 6440, which died in chamber in late March, would have enabled the Governor’s Guards — two Horse Guard units and two Foot Guard units — to transition from organized militia to a private military force.

While the bill would let the groups carry on their historical traditions, several 2GHG members said they would not receive enough funding through fundraisers to survive being privatized. The proposed legislation, if passed, would have given them until June 30 to prepare for defunding by the Connecticut Military Department.

Outcry from Newtown residents, alongside others, led the proposed bill to die in chamber on March 26. The 2GHG continued its regularly scheduled appearances throughout the year, including education outreach programs and the Labor Day Parade.

Former Newtown Bee Reporter Lisa Peterson held an event at Newtown Senior Center on March 26 to discuss the last day of Regina Brown, a Newtown resident and flight attendant for American Airlines who mysteriously disappeared on the evening of March 26, 1987. Brown was a light-skinned black woman and was married to Willis Brown Jr, an American Airlines pilot.

It was the first of two planned presentations by the writer on the 37th anniversary of Brown’s disappearance; Peterson also spoke that evening at C.H. Booth Library, where she was hosted by Newtown Allies For Change.

Peterson, who has dedicated her time to trying to find Brown and solve her murder, detailed the investigation, inconsistencies regarding the case, and her hope that police will somehow be able to finalize their investigation and close the case.

Culture, Community

Edmond Town Hall had a strong start to its speaker series, “Newtown Talks: Conversations on Culture, Society and Change,” early this year.

Moderated by Newtown residents Suzy DeYoung and Lee Shull, the series features thought-provoking discussions with some of most influential voices, exploring pivotal topics that shape the world.

The speaker series first featured actor Anthony Edwards and author Stephen Mills on January 16, when they discussed the difficult but important subject matter of preventing child sexual abuse (CSA) and breaking the stigma around male survivors and victims, from their own experiences.

Edwards and Mills encouraged people to raise awareness about CSA prevention, believing that the more people talk and remove the shame around it, the safer people will feel to share it.

The series continued on March 27 with author Tara Westover, who discussed her journey from growing up in a strict household that opposed public education to pursuing college education despite the wishes of her parents.

She documented this journey in her 2018 memoir Educated, which also explores the transformative power of education and the family loyalty she sacrificed to achieve it.

The series’ May 8 panel featured clinical social worker and nonprofit founder Steve Gross, who talked about the importance of rich, playful experiences and the lasting ways they can elevate a person’s life.

Gross, who carried that mentality in founding the nonprofit organization The Playmaker Project, had audience members dance, high five, and play games as a way to kick-start their journey to embracing fun.

Newtown joined locations across the country on April 18 in commemorating Paul Revere’s historic ride in Massachusetts, where the Boston silversmith and others warned fellow patriots of the British Army’s approach toward Lexington and Concord.

Two Lights For Tomorrow was a nationwide initiative to launch the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. The symbolism of a light shining out in the darkness, national organizers said, “matters today as much as it did during the Midnight Ride.”

Community centers, municipal buildings, and other locations were encouraged to participate by placing two lights in windows or in front of buildings during the early evening and into the night of April 18.

Newtown responded, with at least four historic locations on Main Street and a pair of private residences placing two lanterns in windows or on doorsteps.

The World Heritage Cultural Center (WHCC) celebrated cultures and cuisine from all around the world at its inaugural International Food and Music Festival on May 10.

Held at the Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue main station, the festival featured over 20 performances representing countries such as India, Argentina, Moldova, Korea, Spain, Ecuador, and more. Different artists and dancers delighted the audience throughout the day, with each performer coming one after the other for a nonstop showcase of culture.

The festival united local businesses and organizations, who sold goods while representing their own cultures. It also had plenty of Jamaican, Brazilian, and Indian food for hungry attendees to try.

From Summer To Fall

Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue (SHVFR) company held its annual two-day LobsterFest event on June 6-7. Despite the first day’s hot and humid weather and the second day’s overcast skies and heavy rain, a strong dinner line and large crowds were seen both evenings at the SHVFR main station.

A few thousand people enjoyed dinner, live music, and plenty of socializing at the festival. People could dig into entrées such as lobster, steak, hamburgers, and hot dogs, with dinner tickets including sides of corn on the cob, potato salad, Manhattan-style clam chowder, a dinner roll, and a soda or water. Organizers told The Newtown Bee over 1,500 lobsters and 600 steaks were served over the two nights.

John Voket returned to the event, performing acoustic sets during the early hours of each night’s dinner hours. Local bands also performed full shows, with Nashville Drive headlining on Friday and then Rum Runners on Saturday.

Crowds of book dealers and eager shoppers excitedly lined up outside of Reed Intermediate School for the first day of Friends of C.H. Booth Library’s 49th Annual Book Sale on July 11. Before the school even opened its doors for the sale, the line wrapped around the outside of the building and down the parking lot.

Running July 11-15, the sale had book dealers and local shoppers comb through the tens of thousands of items on the sales floor that took up about 20,000 square feet of the school.

A wide variety of books were available for purchase, spanning genres and age groups so that everyone could walk out with a book. The first sale of the book sale resulted in a $35 profit; to date, the book sale has now brought in millions of dollars in supplemental funds for C.H. Booth Library.

Newtown Visiting Nurses Association (VNA) and Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corp (NVAC) teamed up to bring community CPR classes to Newtown. The first class on Saturday, July 19, was completely full; all 18 spots were taken within a few days of the formal announcement.

Liz Cain, a longtime member of NVAC, along with Tom Hanlon, another longtime member of NVAC, led the class. The session lasted about an hour, just long enough for community members to have a basic understanding of hands-only, adult basic CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and how to properly use an AED, or automated external defibrillator, device.

After watching an instructional DVD from American Heart Association, which covered the basics of CPR, the class got to practice on their own CPR mannequins, or Minni Annes, as American Heart Association calls them.

Students were, at first, shocked at how hard they had to push to activate the Minni Annes’ clicker. Cain went around to demonstrate on a few of the Minni Annes, and the clicking commenced shortly afterwards. Once students realized how much pressure it took to actually perform CPR, the room became an orchestra of Minni Anne clicks.

Dozens of community members gathered in Edmond Town Hall’s Alexandria Room to celebrate Lee Paulsen for receiving the Mary Hawley Public Service Award on September 5.

Named after Newtown benefactress Mary Hawley, who was single-handedly responsible for many iconic local landmarks such as Edmond Town Hall and C.H. Booth Library, the award honors volunteerism by recognizing an individual for their commitment to Newtown and its community.

Paulsen has volunteered with FAITH Food Pantry since its founding in June 1983, back when it was located in the basement of the former St John’s Episcopal Church. Now, housed at St Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church, FAITH provides nonperishable food to support Newtown residents in need.

Paulsen has served as a pillar of support for countless individuals and families in need, though she is quick to point out the fully-volunteer organization is a group effort. Such was the case for the award ceremony in early September, where Paulsen gave her sincere gratitude to her family, friends, and community.

Alison Miller, who briefly lived in Newtown and loves spending time around the Fairfield Hills area, spread love by driving her bright pink truck with the words “Nothin’ But Love” on its sides.

Miller spent nearly four years exploring the country with her beloved husband, Chuck Dearing, to escape “the rat race,” but their journey was tragically cut short when he died of cancer in 2013. Even though Miller wanted to withdraw into herself, she knew that would be the worst thing for her to do.

She followed one of the many of Dearing’s words of wisdom, “Don’t mourn for me in black; that’s not your color. Wear pink.” Miller bought the trailer she always wanted, painted it in a specially made shade of pink, and drove over the country with her daughter, Rachael-Grace Sands, after Dearing’s death.

As Miller blogged about her journey, she decorated her truck and trailer with the names of people’s loved ones. She carries on their memory, along with that of her beloved husband, as she drives.

Miller, after years of exploring the road, felt she did all the traveling she needed to with her trailer, affectionately called Pink Magic. She eventually gave her trailer to Sands, who has used it for her new business, Thistle & Grace Florals, which made its debut at Newtown Arts Festival in September.

Pink Magic, under its new name, Thistle, has followed through in Thistle & Grace Florals’ message: Love Blooms Forward.

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.