Granby Drummer (https://granbydrummer.com/page/216/)
Jamie Savva, special events coordinator, has joined the team at Granby Parks and Recreation to help plan, coordinate and execute special events for the town as well as private events and weddings at Holcomb Farm.
More than three decades ago, long before the term organic entered the popular lexicon, The Garlic Farm opened in West Granby. Over the years it transformed from a small weekend farm stand to a full-time operation offering dozens of vegetables as well as a community share program.
Brought together by a shared love for Granby, the Women’s Breakfast Group will celebrate 20 years in 2024. Every month from September to June the women gather to enjoy a breakfast cooked by volunteers, to share conversation and to enjoy a program of music or presentations. The program, which costs $5 to attend, welcomes women of all age groups.
The local chapter of UNICO is celebrating its 20th anniversary. The largest Italian-American service organization in the United States, UNICO is an acronym for Unity, Neighborliness, Integrity, Charity, Opportunity.
As reported in the April issue, Granby is repairing street lights in the historic district. Town electrician Mike Antonucci gets a helping hand from Granby Public Works employees Keven Slyne, and Hunter Stone.
Please visit granby-ct.gov/senior-services or check your Center Life Newsletter for a complete listing of the health services, support groups, clubs, and ongoing activities.
Registration is required for many of the library’s programs. To register, follow the links on the library’s website or call the library. To learn more about upcoming programs, sign up for the library’s monthly eNewsletter on the website or by telephone.
Granby resident Mary Munson recently released her debut children’s book, Love Will Turn You Around, published by Gnome Road Publishing, and illustrated by Australian native Kate Talbot. The book, which hit bookstores on April 4, is a heart-warming story that focuses on social-emotional mental health, early childhood reading and math skills, finding joy and showing love to others.
Farming News, Fresh Access and Granby Social Services, Invasives battle continues, and Volunteer Opportunities
It was an exciting April for the Granby Public Schools. Our students and staff continue to make our community proud in all areas of our school district.
On Saturday, Nov. 13, the First Congregational Church of Granby will host a food safety training class and certification exam. The ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification is recognized nationally and meets food service licensing requirements for the State of Connecticut.
The next Granby Men’s Breakfast e-meeting is Friday, Oct. 8. We are fortunate to have our friend Jerry Ledger discussing the Farmington Valley Greenway. Our speaker begins promptly at 9:30 a.m.
In 1900, Emma Reed Huggins of West Granby wrote her sister a letter describing the Granby Fair. “We are all well and for a wonder I went to the Granby fair yesterday.”
Helen Newman has been breaking barriers to help increase opportunities for athletes with disabilities at competitive events. The North Granby native and University of Hartford student will be honored for those efforts at the Eversource Hartford Marathon.
The 50th running of the Granby Road Race went off without a hitch in perfect weather on Sept. 18. The race, founded by David Hildreth, David Bale and Dennis Lobo in May 1971, is one of Connecticut’s oldest race events.
All current Granby Land Trust members are invited to the 2021 GLT Annual Meeting on Sunday, Oct. 17, at 2 p.m. on the GLT’s Katan-Ensor Preserve in West Granby. Refreshments will be served, and after the meeting we will conduct a guided hike of the GLT’s Old Messenger Road Preserves.
Celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Granby Artists Association at its annual Open Studio Tour Oct. 16 and 17, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Meet the artists and see a wide range of artwork including glasswork, woodworking, painting, pottery, jewelry and more.
On Sept. 1 and 2, the West Branch of the Salmon Brook had a wild time in West Granby, washing aside the 15-year-old footbridge that provides access to the popular Holcomb Farm west side trails. During the high waters of Tropical Storm Ida, the bridge’s underpinning in the east bank caved into the brook, with the span ending up on the west bank.
The focus of the Social Services Department is to coordinate existing federal, state, regional and local services, to increase community awareness of these services and to develop new programs to meet the needs of Granby residents. For more information about any of the following programs, contact Director Sandy Yost at 860-844-5351.
Happy Fall Granby! The Youth Service Bureau is pleased to announce some of its Fall programming. If any of these programs are of interest, please call 860-844-5355 for registration information.
Wings Over Granby Land Trust’s Dismal Brook Wildlife Preserve: Tuesday, Oct. 5, 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Holcomb Farm North Barn Pavilion. Despite its name, this new Granby Land Trust preserve is anything but dismal for lovers of winged wildlife.
In the June edition of the Granby Drummer, I wrote about Eva Dewey, the curator and archivist for the Salmon Brook Historical Society from 1959 to 1986, who saved much of Granby’s history. In her final nine years she had an invaluable assistant in the archives—Carol Laun, who would go on to transform the Salmon Brook Historical Society into what it is today.
Again this fall, South Congregational Church is hosting a Pumpkin Patch in October, and looks forward to welcoming visitors from the Farmington Valley and beyond. The Pumpkin Patch will be set up on the front lawn of the church, in full view of Rte. 10/202, and will be open from Oct. 3 until Oct. 31, unless we sell out of pumpkins first.
In the May 2021 Drummer, we spoke of the continuing drought conditions in our region and encouraged believers to embrace the practices of our indigenous peoples and do a rain dance. Well, that was then, and this is now.
The Friends of Holcomb Farm board president Bob Bystrowski opened the annual meeting on August 21 with the proclamation that the Farm has kept us all focused and stable as we head into the third calendar year of the pandemic.
Autumn Dinner: Wednesday, Oct. 20 at 5 p.m. Entertainment by East Chicago Joe. Sponsored by Home Helpers of the Farmington Valley. Join us for chicken potpie, mashed potatoes, vegetable and apple crisp for dessert.
Eric Lukingbeal and Sally King recently purchased 11 acres of land at 172 Day Street and generously donated the parcel to the Granby Land Trust for the purpose of permanent preservation and protection. Eric and Sally are longtime GLT members and Eric serves on the GLT’s board of directors as well as the board of directors of the Friends of Holcomb Farm.
A very special guest visitor attended Granby’s Open Farm Day, held on Sept. 18, courtesy of Pam Traun’s Angel Horse Rescue. Rusty, a sweet little 11-year-old mini, happily accepted the pets of children and adults alike, who were astounded to learn the little guy’s story.
October’s Beauty calls us outdoors and surrounds us with the magnificent colors of her leaves. The air feels warm in the sun but cool in the shade—we wear a light jacket or sweatshirt.
Over the past 30 years, the world’s pollinators—birds, bats, bees, butterflies, beetles and small mammals—have been declining at a disturbing rate. Considering that our food crops rely on pollination, human’s existence is tied to that of the pollinators, making their decline as important to us as it is to them.