Joseph McGowan, 88, departed this life on July 11. He was the beloved husband of Norma McGowan. They were married for 47 years.
Joseph was born in Derby in the spring of 1932 to the late Thomas and An...
Father, Fisherman, and HMO Pioneer
Dean R. Walter, 65, a devoted father, avid fisherman and outdoorsman, and a pioneer of the first health maintenance organizations (HMO) in America, drowned Sund...
John “Jack” Joseph Leitner, of Newtown, passed away on Tuesday, July 14, at the age of 87. He was born on September 1, 1932, in Teaneck, N.J. He was the oldest son of John and Margaret Leitner.
He is ...
Cathy Marie Drapeau, of Newtown, died on July 14 after a lengthy battle with scleroderma. She was born on November 9, 1969, in Nashua, N.H.
Cathy was a graduate of Bethel High School and New Hampshire...
July 14, 2019
It has been a year since you left us and not a day goes by that we don’t think of you and when we do, we smile, we laugh, and we cry.
Missing you always!
Love,
Robert and Alicia
Stephen A. White, 57 passed away Monday, July 13, after suffering a severe stroke and battling many cases of pneumonia for more than a year.
Steve was a loving father to his three children, Brian, 27,...
August 16, 1934 - June 30, 2020
Joseph Rocco Grimardi, of Bradenton, Fla., died on June 30 in his home with his family, after a long and courageous battle with cancer. He was the son of the late John ...
Sharon Christina Rich (formerly Negrelli), 70, of Winter Street, Farmington, N.H., passed away suddenly on Monday, July 6, at Portsmouth Regional Hospital.
She was born on July 1, 1950, in Norwalk, th...
Sigrid Nauen Hewitt died on May 3 at age 93. Daughter of the late Carl Ernest Nauen and Gertrude Wefers Nauen. Born in Krefeld, Germany, Sigrid Hewitt was a graduate of the Foxhollow School and Welles...
Albert Imre Klucsik, of Newtown, went to be with the Lord on Sunday, July 5. He was 75 years old. Albert was the son of Sandor Klucsik and Anna Horvath of Budapest, Hungary. Albert emigrated from Hung...
Dear Alyssa, Kelela, and Brandon,
We send our sincere sympathy to you and your family. We will also keep you in our prayers asking our Lord to grant you comfort and peace.
With love,
Vince and Sandy Venitelli
Bruce, your advice that voters should “read, listen, and engage” would be much more persuasive if you practiced it yourself.
You campaigned on openness and responsiveness. You declared that “evasive answers or silence are unacceptable in government” and promised to answer constituent inquiries within two days. Yet you never answered my straightforward public question about Main Street demonstrations, traffic disruption, pedestrian safety, and the effects on local businesses.
After taking office, meaningful public engagement has largely been replaced by “Brews with Bruce” at the Senior Center—requiring reservations and, for some residents, a day pass. That is not accessible, townwide engagement. Previous first selectmen held open coffee hours and walk-and-talk sessions that any resident could attend.
Then came the failed storm communications, your apology, and another promise to communicate better—followed shortly afterward by more silence while multiple police agencies conducted a significant search near Saw Mill Road.
You now tell voters to examine what candidates say and “how they say it.” I would suggest going one step further: compare what politicians promise while seeking office with what they actually do after winning.
Your record presents a stark contrast. You told voters exactly what they wanted to hear to get the job, then failed to live by those promises. Whether that is dishonesty or simply indifference, it is the same familiar, two-faced politics you once claimed you would replace.
Nothing says “I care about Newtown homeowners” quite like lining Main Street with plywood campaign billboards—apparently built just inches below the size at which officials say they can take action. At this rate, we’ll need property-tax relief just to offset the loss in curb appeal.
