The Newtown Marching Band & Color Guard performed its show “Life Sentence” on Saturday, November 2, and came in second place with a score of 91.875 in Group IV Open, taking the Best Individual Music Caption at a Danbury Jamboree Of Bands.
The Newtown Education Foundation (NEF) has awarded a grant to cover some purchases to support Newtown Middle School art students. The donation was officially presented on October 19.
The Newtown Marching Band & Color Guard hit a high note in its season on Saturday, October 26, when the group earned the title of USBands Connecticut Class IV Open State Champions after competing in the USBands New England State Championships at Naugatuck High School.
St Rose Preschool will begin offering a new monthly program in November.
Playdates at the Preschool will take place the first Monday of each month, beginning November 4.
Open to 2-4-year-olds and thei...
This year’s Newtown Middle School Eighth Grade Scarecrow Contest creations ranged from spooky to sweet, and people walked among them on both Saturday and Sunday, October 19 and 20, to view and then vote for their favorite. The top three winning scarecrows were announced by the school on October 21.
Newtown Continuing Education has limited openings available in the following classes and activities in its summer program for students currently in kindergarten to eighth grade.
Middle Gate Elementary School and Newtown Middle School (NMS) were recognized for exemplary veterans’ programming during a Celebration of Excellence at the Newtown Board of Education’s (BOE) meeting on Tuesday, October 15.
In honor of its 50th anniversary, Children’s Adventure Center is set to hold an evening event at Barnwood Grill, 5 Queen Street, on Thursday, November 7, from 6 to 9 pm.
It's a bit ironic.
On July 31, 2025, Bruce Walczak wrote that "evasive answers or silence are unacceptable in government." He also promised to respond to constituent inquiries and to "close the loop," even when there wasn't an immediate answer.
Two weeks of silence in response to a legitimate question seems difficult to reconcile with that pledge.
The standard wasn't set by his critics—it was set by Bruce himself. Just another politician ... say whatever is necessary to get the job.
Original letter: https://www.newtownbee.com/07312025/a-commitment-to-responsiveness/
CT primaries are closed to voters not registered with the party's designation. Dems can't vote in Rep. primaries and, vice versa. Unaffiliated and Independent voters cannot vote in them. Keep primaries closed!
Bruce, welcome to the conversation.
Your recent statement after the storm — admitting that you should have communicated “faster, more completely, and more personally” — was fine as far as it went. But this is not just about one storm. It is about a pattern. You ran on openness, responsiveness, and transparency, even saying that “evasive answers or silence are unacceptable in government.”
The problem is that Newtown residents have been dealing with exactly that silence from you since you were elected.
Newtown’s Emergency Management page says the town, together with the Office of the First Selectman, provides “critical public information and warning” during emergencies. The town also rolled out CodeRED cellphone registration on March 24, 2022 so residents could receive emergency information directly.
So where were you when police were searching for missing 23-year-old Kateri Doty in January? Where were you during the brush fires near the Newtown town line in April? Where were you on April 22, when state police and Newtown police were searching for two people who fled an I-84 crash and a canine search moved into the Church Hill Road area?
Residents should not be hearing about a missing person, wildfire conditions, or police tracking dogs moving through backyards from Facebook, neighbors, or kids in town. They should be hearing from their town government.
This is not really about whether you personally press the CodeRED button. Or how many task forces you have created. It is about leadership. You are the First Selectman. You are responsible for making sure the town communicates clearly, quickly, and visibly when public safety is involved.
So yes, it is nice that you have finally acknowledged the problem. But the public did not need this storm to figure it out. We have been saying it for a long time.
Bruce, you were missing when the town needed to hear from you. The question now is whether this storm finally woke you up, or whether this is just another late apology followed by more silence.
The topic may be the same but the narratives every other week differ and I appreciate the installments. Rebuttals on factual content rather than focusing on form would improve the discourse.
