Newtown High School sports may be on hold once again, but some of Newtown High School’s athletes have plans for continuing their careers at the collegiate level — including five who, this past fall, signed National Letters of Intent to play Division I sports.

While many Newtown High School seniors competed for the final time this past fall season this is the start of a new beginning for some as they look to begin their journeys as collegiate student-athletes.

The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) Board of Control, on January 14, approved a winter sports plan such that practices may begin as early as January 19. Games may start no sooner than February 8, a week later than initially proposed.

Connecticut’s high school winter sports season for most teams seems destined to get going with practices beginning January 19 and games commencing as early as February 1.

As the world closely approaches almost a full year of dealing with the coronavirus, many aspects of everyday life have continued to be different and challenging. Takeout dinners, drive-through testing, and grocery deliveries have all come about as businesses do their best to accommodate for health guidelines and procedures.

When the gymnasium lights went off at halftime of the Newtown High School girls’ basketball team’s South-West Conference tournament quarterfinal game with visiting New Milford on February 21 — resulting from a fire to a transformer in town — the game had to be resumed the next day, at a different site, at NYA Sports & Fitness. It was, at the time, a strange occurrence in an otherwise pretty standard year in Newtown sports, one filled with championships and record-setting performances.

Three barns that are part of the RedGate Farm came together for a fun and friendly Holiday Decorating Contest that took place on Saturday, December 19.

Because of the impact of the coronavirus and social distancing practices, the Newtown Turkey Trot benefiting the C.H. Booth Library was a virtual event for the first time; participants ran their own courses and submitted results during the long Thanksgiving Weekend, so it was up to them if they wanted to earn their extra helping of stuffing and pumpkin pie with a run before Turkey dinner or burn it off this time around.

When one door closes, another opens. For student-athlete Maddie Patrick and Coach Mike Brienza, after their respective school doors closed, Newtown High School’s opened. They joined the Nighthawk volleyball team and played roles in the Hawks going undefeated and winning the South-West Conference North Division championship.