It's no secret, most of us would like to stay in our own home as we age. Yet, sometimes our loved ones just need a little extra help to remain comfortable at home. That's where Always Best Care can help....we are dedicated to exceeding expectations....always
They say that your golden years are the best years of your life. For most older Americans, that's how it should be - a time to relax, reflect, and live life in a familiar place. After all, senior citizens in the U.S. have worked tirelessly to build a better economy, serve their communities, and raise families.
However, as seniors grow older, completing daily tasks like showering and enjoying activities such as visiting the historic West Cornwall Covered Bridge gets harder without someone by their side. Unfortunately, many older Americans aren't able to rely on their adult children for help. The reality in today's world is that family members do not have the skills or time to dedicate to caring for their parents. That's where Always Best Care Senior Services comes in.
Our in-home care services are for people who prefer to stay at home as they grow older but need ongoing care that family or friends cannot provide. More and more older adults prefer to live far away from long-term, institutionalized facilities and closer to the place where they feel most comfortable - their home. Home care in Cornwall Bridge, CT is a safe, effective way to give your loved ones the care they need when they need it the most.
Home Care Services
Service AreasSince 1996, Always Best Care has provided non-medical in-home care for seniors to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle as they get older. We are proud to have helped more than 25,000 seniors maintain higher levels of dignity and respect. We focus on providing seniors with the highest level of in-home care available so that they may live happily and independently.
Unlike some senior care companies, we genuinely want to be included in our clients' lives. We believe that personalized care is always the better option over a "one size fits all" approach. To make sure our senior clients receive the best care possible, we pair them with compassionate caregivers who understand their unique needs. That way, they may provide care accordingly without compromising their wellbeing.
The Always Best Care difference lies in life's little moments - where compassionate care and trustworthy experience come together to help seniors live a fruitful, healthy life. Whether you are an aging adult that can't quite keep up with life's daily tasks or the child of a senior who needs regular in-home services, Always Best Care is here to help.
“Bessie has been an exceptional Health Care Provider. She takes such pride in her work”
“We used Always Best Care for my mother. They provided basically anything we needed a”
“Thank you again to you, Susan and the rest of the care-givers and staff of”
“Dear Rick, Over the past three plus years, my father Joseph Ceuch has lived at”
“Heather, I just wanted to thank Always Best Care in helping to provide care for”
“My mother was bedbound for months and had serious health related issues including kidney failure.”
“I am a past client of this provider My journey with Always Best Care began”
“Our sister, Barbara has early-onset dementia , and was in sudden need of a personal”
“I am a retired registered nurse, and for several years, I have been the primary”
“I had a very good experience ! I really appreciate the service that your company,”
“My journey with Always Best Care began with a visit from the owner and office”
“Dave and staff, thank you or consistently caring and comforting my Mom. Your quality of”
“I have a very good providers from this Company”
“Bessie has been an exceptional Health Care Provider. She takes such pride in her work and truly cares about the people she is in contact with. She is dedicated, diligent, and is devoted to her job assignment. She not only takes care of my Mom, but she goes above and beyond her call of duty. Bessie has a unique ability to connect with every person she meets. No day goes by that my Mom is not pampered. Bessie make sure she's always comfortable. She makes exceptional meals for her 3 times a day, cleans her clothes, gives her showers, washes her hair and makes her look amazing every single day. Bessie is so beneficial to our family we can't imagine our family without her. I myself and my family members could never do what she does for our Mom. She has been with my mom and our family for almost 1 year and we don't know what we would do without her, she truly is a gift from God. She not only takes care of my Mom daily, nightly and weekly, she also takes care of her personal life and whatever life throws at her. She is a devoted caretaker and should be recognized with the utmost respect. Her dedication to improving the health and well-being of my Mom is commendable. You can't find anyone as special as she. Her life commitment has touched our lives through her delivery of exceptional care in a compassionate, respectful, and safe manner on a daily basis. She has become a member of our family and she has shown us the meaning of adaptability. Her strong faith in God, Forgiveness, and Believing in each other makes her the great person that she is. On behalf of our family, we would like to thank you for the extraordinary care and services your company has provided to us. Thank you for all you do”
“We used Always Best Care for my mother. They provided basically anything we needed a few hours a week, they were very thorough in asking about my mother's condition, and what were the needs that were required. It's more like bathing, medication, and companionship. We used them for about a week.”
“Thank you again to you, Susan and the rest of the care-givers and staff of Always Best Care for the outstanding service you have provided for our parents. ABC provided professional, first-class support that allowed our parents to remain in their home while relieving of us of concern for their care and is something we will never forget. You can be sure we will happily refer any family member or friend that is seeking care at home to Always Best Care.”
“Dear Rick, Over the past three plus years, my father Joseph Ceuch has lived at home assisted by the caregivers from your company Always Best Care of Greater Bristol. This letter is a personal thank you from my father and the entire Ceuch family on how your caregivers treated and attended to my father during this time. The caregivers became part of our extended family who shared in countless family events resulting in beautiful lasting memories. Caregivers Frances Boateng, Jeremy Turner, and Yanice Hernandez were awesome in their care of my father. I want to especially acknowledge Francis as a person who went above and beyond his responsibility and became part of the Ceuch inner circle. It was not uncommon for Francis on his off days to stop by during a family picnic to say hello...he is truly loved by my father. Again, I want to thank you for the loving care your caregivers provided my father. I would highly recommend your company to anyone interested in having a caregiver attend to a loved one. Thanks again”
“Heather, I just wanted to thank Always Best Care in helping to provide care for my step father, Daryl. It's unbelievable how the progression of his illness happened so quickly, however, Always Best Care was always ready to provide the level of care he needed as it increased. Most importantly, I'd like to thank his aide, Sue Malasics. She was wonderful to Daryl and took great care of his needs. I knew I did not have to worry with Sue there with him. She was always cooking wonderful homemade meals and desserts and I was happy to see how happy she made Daryl. I think she is a wonderful asset to Always Best Care. Should I know of anyone needing help in the future, I would recommend Always Best Care and Sue Malasics.”
“My mother was bedbound for months and had serious health related issues including kidney failure. My mother was also very demanding about her care and who she would allow into her home. After several attempts with various in-home care agencies my mother really responded well to Always Best Care Senior Services of Greater Bristol and we cant thank them enough for the high level of compassionate care they were able to provide during my moms final months.”
“I am a past client of this provider My journey with Always Best Care began with a visit from the owner and office manager. Soon after, I was introduced to the caregiver who would provide care for me. All 3 persons seemed very knowledgeable, experienced anf caring. I was certainly provided with quality service and much respect and compassion.”
“Our sister, Barbara has early-onset dementia , and was in sudden need of a personal care assistant until placement in a quality skilled nursing facility became available. We reached out to home health care agencies in her local area but, by this point, had already worked with several agencies for med reminders for Barbara (and 24/7 care for our Mom in another area of CT) and were a bit skeptical that that we’d find one that could provide consistent quality of care.When I spoke with Rick Downey of Always Best Care Senior Services in Bristol, he conveyed both confidence in his knowledge of health care and empathy in understanding the frustrations that families experience when seeking quality care for their loved ones. We were next contacted by their care coordinator,Heather Kozikowski, who came to our sister’s home to conduct an assessment and further explain the services offered by Always Best Care.A further testament to the exceptional quality of Always Best Care is the service and care we’ve received after Barbara is no longer a client; our thanks to Always Best Care for the excellent care of our sister, and the peace-of-mind it afforded our family knowing that she was in such kind and competent hands!”
“I am a retired registered nurse, and for several years, I have been the primary caregiver for my husbamd/ My husband suffers from dementia and is aphasic. On a Saturday morning in October of 2015, a sudden change in my health required an emergent hospitilization, which late resulted in an extensive rehabilitation stay. Upon my hospitalization, my son reached out to Always Best Care Senior Services of greater Bristol. The Always Best Care team assessed my husband, his needs, and had his care staffed within hours of my son's call. The care provided to my husband has been exceptional. The caregivers as well as the office staff have been attentive to our needs and have met all of our expectations. I would highly recommend Always Best Care to you and anyone who is in need of care for their loved one.”
“I had a very good experience ! I really appreciate the service that your company, Always Best Care, offered our family and especially the caring, loving attitude that Amber and Natalie displayed to Carol at all times. They were outstanding and you should be proud to place them in any situation with the full expectation they will represent your firm in a most professional manner. Thanks again for all your help.”
“My journey with Always Best Care began with a visit from the owner and office manager. Soon after, I was introduced to the caregiver who would provide care for me. All 3 persons seemed very knowledgeable, experienced anf caring. I was certainly provided with quality service and much respect and compassion.”
“Dave and staff, thank you or consistently caring and comforting my Mom. Your quality of care will be recommended to others. You went above and beyond what was expected.”
“I have a very good providers from this Company”
Home is where the heart is. While that saying can sound a tad cliche, it is especially true for many seniors living in America. When given a choice, older adults most often prefer to grow older at home. An AARP study found that three out of four adults over the age of 50 want to stay in their homes and communities as they age.
When you begin to think about why, it makes sense. Home offers a sense of security, comfort, and familiarity.
The truth is, as we age, we begin to rely on others for help. When a family is too busy or lives too far away to fulfill this role, in-home senior care is often the best solution. Home care services allow seniors to enjoy personal independence while also receiving trustworthy assistance from a trained caregiver.
At Always Best Care, we offer a comprehensive range of home care services to help seniors stay healthy while they get the help they need to remain independent. As your senior loved one gets older, giving them the gift of senior care is one of the best ways to show your love, even if you live far away.
To give our senior clients the best care possible, we offer a full spectrum of in-home care services:
If your senior loved one has specific care needs, our personal care services are a great choice to consider. Personal care includes the standard caregiving duties associated with companion care and includes help with tasks such as dressing and grooming. Personal care can also help individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes.
Common personal care services include assistance with:
Sometimes, seniors need helpful reminders to maintain a high quality of life at home. If you or your senior has trouble with everyday tasks like cooking, our home helper services will be very beneficial.
Common home helper care services include assistance with:
Using this kind of care is a fantastic way to make life easier for you or your senior loved one. At Always Best Care, our talented caregivers often fill the role of a companion for seniors. That way, older adults can enjoy their favorite local activities, such as visiting Housatonic Meadows State Park - Picnic Area with friends while also receiving the care they need daily or weekly.
Common companionship services include:
According to AARP, more than 53 million adults living in the U.S. provide care to someone over 50 years old. Unfortunately, these caregivers experience stress, exhaustion, and even depression. Our respite care services help family caregivers address urgent obligations, spend time with their children, and enjoy nearby activities. Perhaps more importantly, respite care gives family members time to recharge and regroup. Taking personal time to de-stress reduces the risk of caregiver burnout. So, if you've always wanted to eat at the local RSVP or visit Cornwall Historical Society, don't feel bad. Doing so is great for both you and your loved one.
At the end of the day, our goal is to become a valuable part of your senior's daily routine. That way, we may help give them the highest quality of life possible. We know that staying at home is important for your loved one, and we are here to help make sure that is possible.
If you have been on the fence about non-medical home care, there has never been a better time than now to give your senior the care, assistance, and companionship they deserve.
Always Best Care in-home services are for older adults who prefer to stay at home but need ongoing care that friends and family cannot provide. In-home care is a safe, effective way for seniors to age gracefully in a familiar place and live independent, non-institutionalized lives. The benefits of non-medical home care are numerous. Here are just a few reasons to consider senior care services from Always Best Care:
According to AARP, 9 out of 10 seniors prefer to age in place within the comfort of their own home. With in-home care, seniors have a way to stay at home, receive the care they need, and maintain a sense of independence, improving overall wellness.
If you or a member of your family have assumed the role of caregiver for your senior loved one, you know how stressful the job can be. Between caregiver burnout and constant worry, being a family caregiver is hard. In-home care relieves your burden and gives you peace of mind knowing that your older family member is in expert hands.
Unlike nursing homes, where the staff and residents rotate frequently, seniors can foster new friendships and build bonds with their caregiver. Seniors who socialize on a regular basis are often happier, which fosters positivity and leads to increased wellbeing.
No two seniors need the same kind of in-home care assistance. That is why each of our Care Plans is tailored to meet our client's individual needs. We offer plans that cover everything from light housekeeping to more involved duties like transportation to doctor's appointments. Our Care Coordinators will work closely with you to develop a personalized plan to ensure your senior's needs are exceeded.
Always Best Care offers a full array of care options for patients at all levels of health. With our trusted elderly care services, your loved one will receive the level of care necessary for them to enjoy the highest possible quality of life.
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While it's true that some seniors have complicated medical needs that prevent them from staying at home, aging in place is often the best arrangement for seniors and their families. With a trusted caregiver, seniors have the opportunity to live with a sense of dignity and do so as they see fit - something that is unavailable to many older people today.
In-home care makes it possible for millions of seniors to age in place every year. Rather than moving to a strange nursing home, seniors have the chance to stay at home where they feel the happiest and most comfortable.
How much does a senior's home truly mean to them?
A study published by the American Society on Aging found that more than half of seniors say their home's emotional value means more than how much their home is worth in monetary value. It stands to reason, then, that a senior's home is where they want to grow old.
With the help of elderly care in Cornwall Bridge, CT, seniors don't have to age in a sterilized care facility. Instead, they can age gracefully in the place they want to be most: their home. In contrast, seniors who move to a long-term care facility must adapt to new environments, new people, and new systems that the facility implements. At this stage in life, this kind of drastic change can be more harmful than helpful.
Institutional care facilities like nursing homes often put large groups of people together to live in one location. On any given day, dozens of staff members and caregivers run in and out of these facilities. Being around so many new people in a relatively small living environment can be dangerous for a seniors' health and wellbeing. When you consider that thousands of seniors passed away in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, opting for in-home care is often a safer, healthier choice for seniors.
Aging in place has been shown to improve seniors' quality of life, which helps boost physical health and also helps insulate them from viral and bacterial risks found in elderly living facilities.
For many seniors, the ability to live independently with assistance from a caregiver is a priceless option. With in-home care, seniors experience a higher level of independence and freedom - much more so than in other settings like a nursing home. When a senior has the chance to age in place, they get to live life on their own terms, inside the house that they helped make into a home. More independence means more control over their personal lives, too, which leads to increased levels of fulfillment, happiness, and personal gratification. Over time, these positive feelings can manifest into a healthier, longer life.
More independence, a healthier life, and increased comfort are only a few benefits of aging in place. You have to take into consideration the role of cost and convenience. Simply put, it's usually easier and more affordable to help seniors age in place than it is to move them into an institutional care facility. According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, seniors who age in the comfort of their homes can save thousands of dollars per month.
In-home care services from Always Best Care, for instance, are often less expensive than long-term solutions, which can cost upwards of six figures per year. To make matters worse, many residential care facilities are reluctant to accept long-term care insurance and other types of payment assistance.
With Always Best Care's home care services, seniors and their families have a greater level of control over their care plans. In-home care gives seniors the chance to form a bond with a trusted caregiver and also receive unmatched care that is catered to their needs. In long-term care facilities, seniors and their loved ones have much less control over their care plan and have less of a say in who provides their care.
In-home care is a valuable resource that empowers seniors to age in place on their own terms. However, a big concern for many families and their loved ones is how much in-home care costs. If you're worried that in-home care is too expensive, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that it is one of the most affordable senior care arrangements available.
Typically, hiring an Always Best Care in-home caregiver for a few hours a week is more affordable than sending your loved one to a long-term care facility. This is true even for seniors with more complex care needs.
At Always Best Care, we will work closely with you and your family to develop a Care Plan that not only meets your care needs, but your budget requirements, too. Once we discover the level of care that you or your senior need, we develop an in-home care plan that you can afford.
In addition to our flexible care options, families should also consider the following resources to help offset potential home care costs:
When you or your senior loved one needs assistance managing daily tasks at home, finding a qualified caregiver can be challenging. It takes a special kind of person to provide reliable care for your senior loved one. However, a caregiver's role involves more than meal preparation and medication reminders. Many seniors rely on their caregivers for companionship, too.
Our companion care services give seniors the chance to socialize in a safe environment and engage in activities at home. These important efforts boost morale and provide much-needed relief from repetitive daily routines. A one-on-one, engaging conversation can sharpen seniors' minds and give them something in which to be excited.
At Always Best Care, we only hire care providers that we would trust to care for our own loved ones. Our senior caregivers in Cornwall Bridge, CT understand how important it is to listen and communicate with their seniors. A seemingly small interaction, like a short hug goodbye, can make a major difference in a senior's day. Instead of battling against feelings of isolation, seniors begin to look forward to seeing their caregiver each week.
Understanding the nuances of senior care is just one of the reasons why our care providers are so great at their job.
Unlike some senior care companies, our caregivers must undergo extensive training before they work for Always Best Care. In addition, our caregivers receive ongoing training throughout the year. This training ensures that their standard of care matches up to the high standards we've come to expect. During this training, they will brush up on their communication skills, safety awareness, and symptom spotting. That way, your loved one receives the highest level of non-medical home care from day one.
While it's true that many seniors prefer to age at home, sometimes in-home care isn't the best fit. For those seniors and their families, choosing an assisted living facility makes more sense. Unfortunately, finding the optimal care facility is easier said than done in today's day and age. That's when Always Best Care's assisted living referral services begin to make a lot of sense.
Assisted living is a form of housing intended for seniors who require varying degrees of medical and personal attention. Accommodations may include single rooms, apartments, or shared living arrangements. Assisted living communities are typically designed to resemble a home-like environment and are physically constructed to encourage the independence of residents.
At assisted living communities, seniors receive help with daily activities such as bathing, dressing, and eating. They may also benefit from coordination of services with outside healthcare providers, and monitoring of resident activities to ensure their health, safety, and well-being. Caregivers who work at assisted living communities can also provide medication administration and personal care services for older adults.
Other services offered within assisted living communities can include some or all of the following:
At Always Best Care, our representatives can match your senior's emotional, physical, and financial needs with viable assisted living communities nearby. Results are based on comparative data, so you can select the best choice for you or your loved one.
Always Best Care works closely with local senior living communities to gain valuable knowledge that we then use to help seniors and their loved ones make informed decisions. This information can include basic care and rent, resident availability, and services provided. Because Always Best Care is compensated by these communities, we provide senior living referral services at no extra cost to you.
Some of the most popular assisted living communities to consider in our area include the following:
For many seniors, moving into a senior living community revolves around how and when they want to make a transition to more involved care. Some seniors are more proactive about transitioning to independent living. Others choose to remain home until their care needs or other requirements are satisfied. Remember - our staff is here to help. Contact our office today to learn more about assisted living communities and how we can find a facility that exceeds your expectations.
The first step in getting quality in-home care starts with a personal consultation with an experienced Always Best Care Care Coordinator. This initial consultation is crucial for our team to learn more about you or your elderly loved one to discover the level of care required. Topics of this consultation typically include:
A discussion of your needs and how our trained caregivers can offer assistance in the most effective way
A draft of your care plan, which includes highly detailed notes and a framework for the care that you or your senior will receive
Discuss payment options and help coordinate billing with your insurance provider
Our caregivers are trained to spot changes that clients exhibit, like mental and physical decline. As your trusted senior care company, we will constantly assess and update your Care Plan to meet any new emotional, intellectual, physical, and emotional needs.
If you have never considered in-home care before, we understand that you and your family may have concerns about your Care Plan and its Care Coordinator. To help give you peace of mind, know that every team member and caregiver must undergo comprehensive training before being assigned to a Care Plan.
At the end of the day, we only hire the best of the best at Always Best Care. Whether you need home care in Cornwall Bridge, CT 24-hours a day or only need a respite for a couple of hours, we are here to serve you.
When you're ready, we encourage you to contact your local Always Best Care representative to set up a Care Consultation. Our Care Coordinators would be happy to meet with you in person to get to know you better, discuss your needs, and help put together a personalized Care Plan specific to your needs.
In contrast to the $2,200 caviar at Le Bilboquet in Sag Harbor, the Cornwall Country Market in Cornwall, Conn., offers a chicken Cordon Bleu sandwich for $8.99. If you wanted to take things up several notches, you would need to drive 24 minutes to the White Hart Inn in Salisbury, but even there you would have a hard time competing with the profligacy of Long Island’s East End: The most expensive item on the menu is a strip steak for $42 that comes with frie...
In contrast to the $2,200 caviar at Le Bilboquet in Sag Harbor, the Cornwall Country Market in Cornwall, Conn., offers a chicken Cordon Bleu sandwich for $8.99. If you wanted to take things up several notches, you would need to drive 24 minutes to the White Hart Inn in Salisbury, but even there you would have a hard time competing with the profligacy of Long Island’s East End: The most expensive item on the menu is a strip steak for $42 that comes with fries.
Litchfield County in northwestern Connecticut has always been long on wealth and status but short on the vulgarities of the Hamptons, and within its frame, Cornwall has remained singularly averse to ostentation. Like Sag Harbor, Cornwall evolved as a community in the mid-18th century and drew artists and writers and academics in the 20th — the poet Mark Van Doren, the humorist James Thurber, the sculptor Tim Prentice — but unlike so many previously bohemian places now colonized by affluent New Yorkers, Cornwall has largely safeguarded itself from the excesses and entitlements of the financial class.
So when city people rooted themselves in their second homes or took up occupancy in new ones for the course of the pandemic, some with the intention to stay forever, the story took an unpredictable turn.
The surge in fact was welcome. Although plenty of people were moving in, enough so that the town had to considerably supplement its sanitation budget, this was a place where the population was aging and had been in decline for more than a decade. Classrooms that had previously had too few students now had many more.
Many public services in the town are delivered on a volunteer basis, and as Gordon Ridgway, Cornwall’s first selectman and functionally the town’s mayor for 30 years, explained it, “There were now people stepping up to do everything.’' A Google executive, for example, created a platform for a local food pantry to deliver services.
The acrimonies and resentments that can characterize relationships in towns like Cornwall often stem from the obliviousness of weekenders to the struggles of working people who find themselves increasingly marginalized by rising housing costs. In Ulster County, in New York, home to Woodstock, for example, the county executive, Pat Ryan, recently implemented a universal basic income program to deal with mounting poverty. “People shouldn’t expect to move to these rural areas and find a big nature preserve. People are as stressed out here as they are in other places,’’ said Mr. Ridgway, who has seen firsthand the benefits of collaboration between part-time and full time people in town. “We need a variety of people.’’
The most visible change has been an explosion of interest in local politics and civic issues. Suddenly town meetings that might have previously attracted very few people are drawing dozens. New Yorkers are around and noticing things, and they are not afraid to speak up. Something they noticed early on was a slapdash repair to one of Cornwall’s architecturally significant bridges, which replaced the original concrete with an unappealing metal guardrail.
The controversy that stirred quickly became known around town as “bridgegate.” Speaking for the aggrieved, one displaced New Yorker wrote a long letter to local officials, after culling through documents and hours of video footage of meetings that led to the construction decision. She wanted to know why it was “one” man who set the “winning agenda for our bridges.’’ She wrote that “any simple Google search on ‘historic bridge design’ or ‘historic bridge repair’ yields a wealth of research into design standards and public decision-making processes” and that “we did not have to rely on the latest and greatest and cheapest solution.”
This might have seemed like imperious big footing had it come from an investment banker suddenly paying attention from Central Park West, but the author of the letter was not so dismissible. An architect named Tobie Cornejo who oversees affordable housing initiatives in Brooklyn and East Harlem, she had been coming to Cornwall for more than two decades before settling in with her husband and children at the home of her in-laws for a long stretch of the pandemic. Spending so much more time in town, she wanted to be more involved. “I wondered where in the heck had I been as a citizen for the past 20 years,” she said.
“As much as I want a beautiful little bridge at the end of my road, what I really want is a historic district, a site plan and a process that would allow for information to be put forth so better decisions could be made.”
Although some in town have grumbled about the intrusions, plenty of others seem to welcome the advocacy. As Joanne Wojtusiak, who has lived in Cornwall for 34 years, put it to me, “Our town meetings are enlivened by different points of perspective and what’s bad about that? What’s bad is that they’re driving house prices up,’’ she said, admitting that this was simply a sign of the times. “The genie is out of the bottle. Small towns like Cornwall will never return to the control of a tiny group of white men.”
Another drama that has marked the Covid-19 period in Cornwall, although its origins predate the pandemic, involves the loosening of regulations around home businesses, a measure taken to draw more young working families to the area. Generally speaking, it was not fussy New Yorkers who opposed the ruling, worried that an auto body shop might pop up in view of the pool house, but rather older longtime residents who were concerned about noise and disruption to “local character.” But even within that demographic, there seemed to be a sense of awakening to the spirit of debate.
As one longtime resident wrote in a letter to a local paper, he felt compelled to break with his habit of reticence. “I think the risk posed by the noise and dust of working women and men earning a living is far less than the destruction wrought by the hushed tones of the fashionable playing paddle tennis throughout our land,’’ he said.
In the name of furthering equity, for which the state of Connecticut is not famous, legislators ruled not long ago that individual towns would need to increase their stock of affordable housing. Serving on the steering committee for the plan is now another New Yorker who has been coming to Cornwall for 50 years: Ingrid Gould Ellen, a professor of urban planning and policy at New York University. She previously worked at the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development under the recent mayoral candidate Shaun Donovan, who also has a house in Cornwall. Should a battle erupt, it would seem that the soldiers are in place.
If there is truth in the notion that art allows us the unique opportunity to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time, we can certainly do so at the Cornwall Bridge Gallery in Cornwall Bridge, an innovative new gallery in Litchfield County. But it is more than just an art space in the Northwest Corner, according to proprietor David Meharg and director of exhibits Jessica Jane Perkel.This fresh approach works...
If there is truth in the notion that art allows us the unique opportunity to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time, we can certainly do so at the Cornwall Bridge Gallery in Cornwall Bridge, an innovative new gallery in Litchfield County. But it is more than just an art space in the Northwest Corner, according to proprietor David Meharg and director of exhibits Jessica Jane Perkel.
This fresh approach works, as is evident in the gallery’s inaugural exhibition, “CARAVAN,” a showing of paintings, photography and installations, all selected for the exhibition by nine contemporary artists with ties to the area—Connecticut natives Jennifer Ebner, Ted Gahl and Kezia Hearn, as well as David Allee, Emily Bolevice, Lucy Mink, Ms. Perkel, Darragh Rooney and Cary Smith.
The show will remain open through Feb. 17.
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“I knew this space and I knew it had a lot of potential,” said Mr. Meharg in discussing his first foray into owning and running an art gallery. “I am taking a different approach to the gallery business in that I am most interested in supporting the artists in every way possible. I think a great benefit to the gallery and the community is to have great art on display, and I think we’ve accomplished that with our first show.”
“If you really want to understand future trends in art, you don’t walk into an artist’s studio and pick what you think works,” exhibiting artist Cary Smith noted. “You look carefully at what they are doing, what they are interested in now, because their work will show you the direction of the future.”
Mr. Meharg agrees. In fact, he said he sees the gallery as a space for a range of gatherings celebrating the vitality of local culture, offering a casual mix of visual art, live music and local food. “I think the long-term viability of a gallery is dependent upon artists wanting to be here,” he said. “So far, everyone who has come in is not only happy to see that the gallery is open again, but loves the space.”
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Mr. Meharg bought the 2.5-acre property with the gallery and home from gallerist Kelly Worth, who ran The Insider Outsider Artists Gallery there for several years. Having been abandoned for the past several years, the space needed quite a bit of work, but Mr. Meharg, knew the space well in its previous incarnation and knew the potential it held. He spent a year renovating the gallery with a vision of an indoor exhibition space and an outdoor gallery and sculpture garden.
“To come in here after coming in day in and day out and looking at blank walls, to this—it’s really amazing,” Mr. Meharg said with a smile.
Ms. Perkel, an artist in her own right who has a background in architecture and sculpture, came on board this summer, and together, the pair planned the gallery’s first exhibition. The goal, she said, was to mount exciting, high-caliber work they feel offers new perspectives on contemporary culture.
“At first, I thought about installing some of my own work, but after talking to some friends, things just snowballed,” Ms. Perkel said about “CARAVAN.” “I invited artists I knew, and they talked to people they knew and, before we knew it, we had nine artists, all of them with local ties and high-caliber work.
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“All of the work ad dresses the landscape in one way or another,” Ms. Perkel explained of the work on display. “It is a different way of expressing the landscape, but it’s not alien to the area, either. There is an element of the landscape and human interaction evident in all of the work.”
A perfect example is the work of Ted Gahl, a young painter represented by DODGEgallery in New York, who recently moved back to Connecticut from New York.
“Growing up in this area, I have waited a long time for a space to take a more contemporary approach, and it has finally happened,” said Mr. Gahl. “This is a platform and idea that needs to be nurtured, and I hope that this is just one of many amazing shows and events to come.
Many of the artists in CARAVAN live or work in the area, full or part time, with representation in nearby cities. Washington artist Kezia Hearn, for example, maintains a studio in the Old Switch Factory in Bantam. David Allee, a former urban planner who Ms. Perkel said grew up summering in Lakeville, has had several solo exhibitions, including Morgan Lehman Gallery in Lakeville and New York. Cary Smith of Farmington, she said, has been exhibiting his paintings in the United States and Europe since the mid-1980s, while Jennifer Ebner, a Connecticut native with a studio in Bantam, has exhibited her work in galleries throughout New York and Connecticut.
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“The idea is to bring everyone together,” Ms. Perkel said. “We want to create a space where artists who may be represented by another gallery can come to show their work before going on to major galleries in the city, perhaps. …We also want the gallery to be a place for the community to come and see work that is exciting and vital, a place where they can come and learn something.”
Looking toward the future, Mr. Meharg said he hopes the space will be “artist directed,” in that he hopes to welcome guest-curators, including local artists and art professionals, to mount high-caliber exhibitions. He also hopes to offer opportunities for live music, lectures and artist talks. In fact, the gallery has already planned an artist talk and brunch for Sunday, Dec. 30, at 11 a.m. Registration is required.
They also hope to introduce a scholastic art program through which students from local schools cannot just visit the gallery, but learn about the art work and what it’s like to be a professional artist.
“We had a group to students come last week from the Forman School, and they were just enthralled,” Ms. Perkel recalled. “They were really great, and by the end, they were pointing out things in the work that I hadn’t even noticed.”
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“That,” Mr. Meharg agreed, “was the best thing to have happened since the gallery opened. They loved it.”
In addition to the indoor exhibition space, Mr. Meharg hopes to transform the barn on the property into a framing studio that will offer children’s and adult programming. And when the weather grows warmer, he plans to create an outdoor sculpture garden “where sculpture can be properly viewed, and allow the landscape to evolve around the work,” he said.
“I believe the only way to have a successful gallery is to attract good art, quality art,” Mr. Meharg said. “We want Cornwall Bridge Gallery to be a place for artists to show their work, a place that is comfortable for artists, and we think we have accomplished that. This group of artists [exhibiting in ‘CARAVAN’] have spoken pretty loudly about this space.”
If the opening is any indication, Cornwall Bridge Gallery is going to be around for quite some time.
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“We had about 200 people for the opening [Nov. 17], and afterward had dinner for 50 here in the gallery, and there was such an exciting vibe,” Mr. Meharg recalled. “After being vacant, I feel as if I’ve resurrected and reestablished this space, and people seem genuinely happy to see the gallery open again.”
The Cornwall Bridge Gallery is located at 131 Kent Road South, Cornwall Bridge. It is open Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., or by appointment. For more information, call 860 -672-0096, e-mail art@cornwallbridgegallery.com, or visit cornwallbridgegallery.com.
The first thing visitors to the small hamlet of West Cornwall notice is its red covered bridge.The timber structure commands attention, set against an idyllic backdrop of woods that line the banks of a gurgling Housatonic River.Its wood creaks with each car crossing, reminiscent of a time when horse-drawn carriages, rather than SUVs, crossed its planks.The bridge is one of three remaining covered bridges in Connecticut, a state where hundreds once existed. Another is southeast of the West Cornwall Bridge; ...
The first thing visitors to the small hamlet of West Cornwall notice is its red covered bridge.
The timber structure commands attention, set against an idyllic backdrop of woods that line the banks of a gurgling Housatonic River.
Its wood creaks with each car crossing, reminiscent of a time when horse-drawn carriages, rather than SUVs, crossed its planks.
The bridge is one of three remaining covered bridges in Connecticut, a state where hundreds once existed. Another is southeast of the West Cornwall Bridge; the third is in central Connecticut.
Covered bridges were once indispensable to American communities, numbering in the thousands. They connected towns and villages, enabling people to better communicate and exchange goods and services.
Today, the 800 or fewer around the country are no longer vital connectors. Instead, they’ve become hollow relics visited by travelers looking for a respite from the world’s web of steel and concrete.
But a closer look at any one of the covered bridges across the country, with the most in Pennsylvania, tells a story of each area.
West Cornwall Bridge, in the northwest corner of Connecticut, was built in 1864 to connect two sleepy, rural communities — Sharon and Cornwall. Prior to the bridge, a ferry was used to cross the Housatonic River to Sharon, according to the Cornwall Historical Society’s Web site.
The one-lane bridge sits over the river along Route 128, where visitors come to wander the village for Shaker furniture or local pottery.
It uses a revolutionary lattice truss design that allowed builders to make longer, stronger spans. Ithiel Town, a Connecticut architect and bridge engineer, patented the design, which has been used widely across the nation.
The design was also used for Bull’s Bridge in Kent, about 14 miles southeast of West Cornwall on Route 7. The bridge is the only other covered bridge in Connecticut that carries car traffic. It was built as a result of the burgeoning iron industry in northwestern Connecticut during the 18th and 19th centuries. The iron ore in Connecticut was used to build railroad car wheels and helped fuel the American Revolutionary War.
Local historians say the bridge was constructed by Jacob Bull, the owner of an iron furnace and sawmill, and his son, Isaac, in 1760, so wagons could get across the Housatonic River to haul pig iron from his foundry to Poughkeepsie, N.Y. His sawmill and furnace provided the timber and hardware to build the bridge, which became part of a major highway from Hartford to Newburgh, N.Y., used by the likes of George Washington, according to the town of Kent’s Web site.
The bridge was one of several built across the gorge over the years as flooding and ice took their toll. The present bridge was built in 1842 and has become a tourist stop along scenic Route 7 as well as a starting point for hikers traversing a leg of the 52-mile Appalachian Trail through Connecticut.
Looking across to East Hampton in central Connecticut is Comstock Bridge, which is situated in a public park over the Salmon River, just north of Route 16. It’s the only pedestrian bridge of the three and once connected the main road between East Hampton and Colchester when it was built in 1873, according to the town of East Hampton’s Web site.
Today, the area serves as a fishing hole and picnic area. The bridge was renovated in the 1930s, when wooden gates and siding were added, and again in the 1970s, when steel plates were integrated to reinforce parts of the bridge. Inside, engineers used a Howe truss, a design widely used in railroad construction and for highway bridges.
Several factors including fire, flood and wind led to the demise of covered bridges by the beginning of World War I, said David Wright, president of the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges.
Wright said covered bridges also became obsolete with newer technology and designs.
“As populations increased and traffic increased, some of the bridges that were built for light loads became structurally inadequate,” Wright said.
West Cornwall Bridge: www.cornwallhistoricalsociety.org/history.htm
Bull’s Bridge: www.kentct.com/destination/historic_page.htm-#bridge
Comstock Bridge: www.easthamptonct.org/comstock_bridge.htm
WEST CORNWALL >> Lamps, paintings and hats are displayed in an exhibition at the Cornwall Bridge Pottery Store in West Cornwall this weekend and Monday. Store owner and potter Todd Piker presents his 15th annual homemade lamp sale as well as an exhibit in the shop’s upstairs gallery: “Fifth Avenue: Works by a Father and Daughter in NYCity.” The show features paintings by artist and former Cornwall resident John Thompson and millinery by Thompson’s daughter Ryan Wilde. The sale and exhibition run also Sunday and ...
WEST CORNWALL >> Lamps, paintings and hats are displayed in an exhibition at the Cornwall Bridge Pottery Store in West Cornwall this weekend and Monday. Store owner and potter Todd Piker presents his 15th annual homemade lamp sale as well as an exhibit in the shop’s upstairs gallery: “Fifth Avenue: Works by a Father and Daughter in NYCity.” The show features paintings by artist and former Cornwall resident John Thompson and millinery by Thompson’s daughter Ryan Wilde. The sale and exhibition run also Sunday and Monday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“We are celebrating the beginning of summer,” Piker, 62, remarked. “The town has embraced me and allowed me to ply my trade. This is about giving back to the community.”
During a sunny day approaching 63 degrees, visitors perused discounted homemade lamps on the slate-blue shop’s side porch area, situated a few yards from the historic Cornwall Covered Bridge in the town’s small but active shopping district. Business was brisk: by midday the store had had about 100 ceramics customers; 100 more were expected throughout the afternoon on Saturday, according to sales manager Joanne Thompson Pease of Torrington.
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Piker has sold lamps to Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Shaker Workshops, and Keurig Green Mountain. Thompson Pease said the annual lamp sale has enabled the public to experience the store for the first time. “I have worked here three years,” she remarked. “And it helps people see the fine work that Todd does.”
In addition to the varied homemade lamps, customers shopped Piker’s dishes, vases, and assorted containers inside the store. Each creation’s origins and originality of technique was remarked upon.
Piker showed customers vases that had a “shino glaze,” a Japanese glazing technique that causes a decorative antiquing effect on the pottery. Also, Piker pointed out a dark-brown-to-lighter-brown-gradient design on a small bowl that was the result of wood-firing, or fashioning raw clay with wood ash. Another pot utilized a technique whereby the glaze is made to “crawl” along the hand-tossed pot’s surface, causing a melting texture. “It is often a mistake, but this is intentional and a decorative feature,” Piker pointed out.
Other pots were labeled “Oribe Ware,” named after a Japanese region and a tea master, and included a green copper glaze and painted design in its creation. Piker pointed out other pots across the store’s showroom utilized the same coppering technique but resulted instead in a deep maroon design. Piker added, “It is an atmospheric glaze. The amount of oxygen in the atmosphere brings out something different each time in the glaze.”
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Each of Piker’s creation is fired in a kiln that was influenced by 10th-century Chinese design, he said. Piker’s workshop is located on Route 7 South nearby. Piker’s workshop was featured in the June 2006 issue of Architectural Digest
Frank Gordon-Quiroga, a ceramicist from Hartford, shopped at the store on Saturday afternoon, picking up a few large homemade plant pots. “It’s a tradition coming here,” Gordon-Quiroga said. “These are good quality items.”
Husband and wife Brian and Caroline Nurenberg of Cornwall have been regular customers of Piker’s. Brian Nurenberg pointed out that the two had their wedding registry at the shop. Moreover, at the couple’s nuptials, guests were given Piker’s hand-tossed honey pots and sticks. “Throughout the years, we’ve bought a little bit of everything,” Brian Nurenberg said. “We just keep coming back for more.”
In addition to the annual lamp sale, Piker said, “After such a long winter we wanted another event in our upstairs gallery that was pretty exciting.”
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That event is generating some local buzz and will have an official wine-and-cheese reception at the store on Sunday. The shop’s upstairs gallery is showing the paintings and print of artist John Thompson of Syracuse, New York, amid the colorful, fashion-forward women’s hats creations of Thompson’s daughter Ryan Wilde of Brooklyn, New York. The exhibit is inspired by New York’s famous street, Fifth Avenue.
A New York millinery director at JJ Hat Center on Fifth Avenue, Wilde, 34, has designed hats worn by celebrities spanning from Donald Trump to Lady Gaga to Spike Lee. Wilde also consults for New York City’s Metropolitan Opera House.
Piker said, “Her hats range from the conventional bowler to a woman’s hat made entirely of bird feathers. It looks like a hawk.” Piker showed off Wilde’s avant-garde, white-feathered creation situated in the center of the gallery.
Wilde’s father Thompson, 75, contributed oil and watercolor paintings as well as giclee prints for the show that are inspired by scenes of Central Park, including the Conservatory Garden and the Harlem Meer. “This is Thompson’s first exhibit and features work he has taken several years to complete,” Piker said. Thompson’s vivid, grand paintings and prints showed Central Park during all four seasons.
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Piker remarked, “All John’s paintings are done in realistic style. Some border of photo-realism. The whole show is quite varied. John has a generous vision that is exciting. I am proud to have him as part of the show.”
Thompson, a longtime friend of Piker, lived in Cornwall and raised three children, including Wilde, in the region during the 1980s. Thompson is an art professor at Syracuse University and a former magazine illustrator. In 1997, Thompson and Piker collaborated on art for a young adult book about the Dead Sea Scrolls. The book was written by Ilene Cooper and published by Morrow Junior Books. Piker had researched and produced reproductions of the pots that stored the scrolls for centuries; Thompson used them in still-life’s that adorn the book’s cover and pages.
Piker himself moved to Cornwall in 1974 as a 22-year-old former tennis champion. Piker and his father built a bustling pottery business in the town before his father passed away in the mid-1990s. His father had handled the sales part of the business; now Piker handles all aspects of the business.
During his time in Cornwall, Piker married Ivelisse, 60, a day care supervisor at The Hotchkiss School, a private school in Lakeville. The couple had two daughters, Davinca Lewis, 34, now an attorney in Boston, and Elyse Piker, 31, a school administrator in New York City. While his family grew, Piker has seen his ceramics creations find homes internationally with individual customers and corporations.
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“I think people appreciate the American craftsman,” remarked Piker, returning to the topic of the shop’s lamp sale. “The lamp symbolizes the end of winter and the beginning of summer.”
As Prof. Harold Hill sang in Meredith Wilson’s 1957 hit musical, “The Music Man” “Oh, we’ve surely got trouble right here in River City.”Or had trouble, anyway. That seems to have been the fate of the much-loved Cornwall General Store, located at 25 Kent Road in Cornwall Bridge for more than 80 years. With the fifth owners in the store’s history about to reopen it—it is hoped just a week or so before Labor Day this year—all eyes are on them.Rumors and conflicting reports hav...
As Prof. Harold Hill sang in Meredith Wilson’s 1957 hit musical, “The Music Man” “Oh, we’ve surely got trouble right here in River City.”
Or had trouble, anyway. That seems to have been the fate of the much-loved Cornwall General Store, located at 25 Kent Road in Cornwall Bridge for more than 80 years. With the fifth owners in the store’s history about to reopen it—it is hoped just a week or so before Labor Day this year—all eyes are on them.
Rumors and conflicting reports have been swirling throughout this country village about this business, the details of its being bought, sold, leased and financed what happened when the Baird family left the store in 2011; why was the store shuttered so abruptly this past June with the former proprietors gone; and who are the new owners and what is their vision for the general store?
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Who really are the good guys and who are the bad guys? Are there good guys and bad guys? Some believe K.C. Baird to be the villain, saying he said “yes” to a generous cash sale and seemingly forced the last proprietors out of their home and store on short notice. The last proprietors, Dana and Louise Beecher, who had hoped to purchase the store, feel that they were innocent victims, their dream usurped by a big cash offer from the new owners.
Surprisingly, interviews by the paper with all of these players yielded subtle, but conflicting, details on various points.
To understand what this store means to the community, one must note that this is the first summer in more than eight decades that the 3,600-square-foot store has been closed. This means that the place patrons ran into for a sandwich to go, or to purchase a loaf of bread brought up from the Bronx, or a quart of milk, a box of cookies, or a slice of New England Cheddar cut from a giant wheel resting on a butcher block is gone. It means that the place people went to for their local newspaper or Sunday Times is gone. It means that the place early morning contractors, workers and others went for their coffee and sweet buns and muffins doesn’t exist.
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The place you went for a box of Band-Aids, a pack of gum or a potato is gone. The place where you ran into neighbors and shared local stories, or where you noted local news on flyers pinned to bulletin boards is gone.
Hikers on the Appalachian Trail who used to stop to get supplies, food and drink to fuel themselves cannot, and campers who camp just a mile or so from the store cannot pick up what they need there.
So what happened? From 1972 until 2011 the Baird family owned the store (then known as Baird’s General Store) and, after their parents passed away, it was run by brothers K.C. and Tom Baird. They leased the property in May 2011 to the Beechers who renamed it The Cornwall General Store.
After closing briefly for renovations, it reopened. The Beechers goal was to make it a real general store with “a little bit of everything,” according to Mr. Beecher. “From shoelaces to motor oil, that’s what the community needs here,” he said.
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They promised to have more than a deli, adding a hot bar and seating areas, an interactive web site and computerizing all stock items. There would even be evenings of music.
They garnered much good will from the community, which, of course, wanted them to succeed. Many even contributed financially to help them through a few rough patches.
They have reported that they wanted to buy the building and were in negotiations with the Baird family. But according to sources, after failing to pay their rent for many months, K.C. Baird looked for other buyers.
Enter Otto and Nina Kaletsch of Sharon. Eager to have their son, daughter-in-law and their children close to them, they bought the business from the Bairds. The younger couple, James and Idella Shepard—Mr. Shepard is Mrs. Kaletsch’s son from an earlier marriage—will now run it under the name The Cornwall Country Market, leasing it from the Kaletsches.
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Investing their own savings in it as well, the Shepards see this as a real investment opportunity for the whole family and not as a mere gift. The new owners will live in the apartment above the store as well. Mr. Shepard has a degree from Boston University in hospitality administration and his wife was catering manager for the last four years at Harvard Business School.
The Beechers (Dana has had almost 30 years of experience in commercial real estate) shared that while they were planning to buy the building a group of advisors suggested that they stop making their monthly payments to the bank as it might speed up a foreclosure, securing a better price on the building. When they were told it had been sold through a cash sale, they shared the appraisal they had done (and paid for) of the building with the new owners. This, they say, enabled the new buyers to renegotiate the price they were to pay for the building.
But, because there was no mortgage, they were closed down and asked to vacate within four weeks, missing their strongest retail season.
Several residents of Cornwall stated that they believe the Beechers’ business failed because they were undercapitalized from the beginning. They said shelves were never filled, they were ill-prepared for emergencies (such as the black-out) and even when help was given with real dollars to speed them along and even to fund a generator that would help them in case of another emergency, one was never purchased.
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Meanwhile, as the opening of the new Cornwall Country Market approaches, much needed work is being done on the site. The space has been completely gutted, well problems have been dealt with and corrected, a generator has been installed, and there will even be an ADA-approved ramp and two ADA bathrooms.
Rumors that the business will become a very upscale, gourmet market were quickly dispelled when we spoke with the new owners. They say the look, feel and food will be “comfortable country.” The front façade is being redone to give a colonial feel to the space and there will be public seating areas by the windows and on the porch. They plan to offer necessities and as many local products as possible, as well as crafts, produce (farm fresh and local), local meats, SoCo ice creams, newspapers and down-home food such as salads that Mrs. Shepard will make, and two soups a day. Their goal is to try to satisfy the tastes of both local residents and weekenders.
Today K.C. Baird works for Price Chopper as a department manager. Dana Beecher, a real estate relocation expert, is working for the City of New York while he and Mrs. Beecher look for another business opportunity in the Northwest Corner. Louise Beecher describes herself as “being between novels.” The Shepherds busily prepare for the opening of their new endeavor and both say,” we are working 16 hour days, but at least now it is for ourselves.”
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