Obituaries

Peter William Clifford

Updated: July 13, 2026 1:27 pm

Peter Clifford, age 80, died peacefully at home on Saturday, July 4, 2026.

Captain Nicholas Francis Gosselin

Updated: July 13, 2026 1:31 pm

Nicholas Francis Gosselin, 29, of Sandy Hook, earned his last license — his angel wings — on July 2, 2026.

Jane McLane

Published: July 07, 2026 4:52 pm

Jane (Morse) McLane, 92, of Mystic, beloved wife of 35 years to the late Halford P. McLane, passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 21, 2026. She was born on September 17, 1933, in Quincy, Mass., one o...

Rudolph Albert Edwards

Updated: July 01, 2026 10:26 am

Rudolph Albert Edwards, 90, fondly known as "Rudy" to his family and friends, passed away peacefully on June 24, 2026, after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.

Elizabeth R. Mounts

Published: June 26, 2026 11:59 am

Longtime Newtown resident Elizabeth “Betty” Reed Mounts lost her courageous battle with cancer on June 22, 2026.

Farewell To A Friend: Liberty Baggett

Published: June 26, 2026 7:30 am

Liberty Baggett finished her final day of work on June 22, 2026.

David C. Shaw

Published: June 24, 2026 4:06 pm

David C. Shaw, devoted husband, father, grandfather, attorney, and tireless advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, passed away on June 17, 2026, in Newtown, surrounded by the love of his family.

Lisa Greto

Published: June 23, 2026 1:37 pm

Lisa Greto passed away peacefully and in the presence of her devoted husband Giovanni on the 14th of June after a brief illness.

Audrey S. Flynn

Published: June 22, 2026 12:12 pm

Audrey S. Flynn, 83, entered the Lord’s Kingdom on June 14, 2026.

Teresa Adelaide (Kotch) Trithart (November 23, 1960-May 17, 2026)

Published: June 17, 2026 8:37 am

Teresa Adelaide (Kotch) Trithart, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend, passed away peacefully on May 17, 2026, in Brooksville, Florida, at the age of 65, surrounded by love and with her devoted husband by her side.

Snapshot: Erin Porter

Tea @ 3 August Presentation Canceled

Donald Schoch

Paul Kabusk Jr

REACH Western CT Returns To Newtown

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/

First Selectman Addresses Storm Response

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!

Time to Change the Guard

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.

Elections Have Consequences XXVI

Who would think that we would start losing count? Maybe not so much a typo as a copy-and-paste error, easy to understand after this much repetition.

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