Home Care In Sherman, CT

SHERMAN — Voters widely rejected a $47 million plan to renovate the outdated Sherman School, leaving the town with few options to save the pre-K-8 building.

The town must now consider alternatives that include building a new school, eliminating its middle school program or closing its only public school, the Board of Education chairman said. Sherman would be the only town in the Connecticut without a school, state education department officials have said.

“Ultimately, the viability of repairing the school, the way that it is now, is no longer an option,” said Matt Vogt, Sherman’s Board of Education chairman, after the vote. “Any alternative would be over $50 million and will not be recommended to the town.”

At Saturday's referendum, residents voted 914-509 against repairing the school. The town, which has about 3,500 residents, would have sought a state grant to cover $11 million of the cost.

The $47 million plan would have reduced the K-8 school’s size by replacing a wing that’s no longer used and addressed various deficiencies in a 86-year-old building that is in such poor shape that local officials weighed whether to close it as enrollment declines.

“To keep what we have as a pre-K-8 in that school, this 'no' vote will not allow that to happen anymore," Vogt said. "So the options that we have left will be try to renovate to a pre-K-5 school, try to build a new pre-K-5 school or build a new pre-K-8 school.”

On Tuesday at 6.p.m., The Sherman School Building Committee will discuss the remaining options for the future of the school. The meeting will take place in person in the school’s library media center and live on Zoom. To access the link, visit shermanschool.com and search for the meeting agenda.

“The options that will be discussed will likely be eliminating a middle school from the town and building a small pre-k-5 school… This may or may not be less expensive than the proposed renovation, building a new school for pre-K-8… which will have a higher price tag than this project and be smaller, or closing the Sherman School entirely,” Vogt said.

If the school were to close entirely, pre-K-8 students would be sent to neighboring school districts, just like Sherman's high-school age students. That idea faced backlash from parents when it was discussed last year.

The school has 250 students this year, compared to 440 students in 2009, officials have said.

Why did the referendum fail?

Vogt said he thinks the referendum failed because there’s a “misconception” among many residents that there’s a cheaper way to fix the school, which, “unfortunately, is sadly not true,” he said.

Vogt continued: “Depending on the weather we have this year, we may see some school closures due to heating issues, and there is still no water available for children to drink. We, as a town, will spend tens of thousands of dollars to keep the doors open while we figure out the next steps.”

On a social media post Saturday, Vogt said, the school “is quickly becoming a place that is not safe for children to attend. There is some time for now but as of next year, we will not meet the state air quality standards which will be in place.”

Vogt told Hearst Connecticut Media the building committee, for which he is a member, will determine the next plan to present at its next meeting on Tuesday.

“Whatever that plan is, the school will not be the one all of you know,” he said. “It’s time for everyone to start paying attention.”

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Arts & Entertainment

Mark your calendars for upcoming events at the Sherman Playhouse.

News Release

SHERMAN, CONN. - Saturday January 27th will see the introduction of the newest offering from the Sherman Players – THE COLD LEMONADE READING SERIES, hosted by MORGANA KATE WATSON!

For playwrights and screenwriters, cold reads are an essential stage in the development of new works. For actors they can also be the theatrical equivalent of a gym workout! However, the opportunities for cold reading sessions are rarely afforded to writers outside of cities such New York and Los Angeles so the Sherman Players are thrilled to be able to bring the brand-new COLD LEMONADE READING SERIES to our community.

Writers and actors are invited to come along to our inaugural session on Saturday January 27th at the Sherman Playhouse, where the works of up to 5 local writers, selected in advance by host Morgana, will have 10-minute extracts read by a team of actors. There’ll then be an opportunity for discussion of the pieces with the authors. Spots are still available for writers to submit their pieces to Morgana for consideration.

Actors – if you want to flex your thespian muscles just turn up at 7pm on the night. Morgana will have scripts and will cast the lineup for each reading from who is present. Simple as that! And while casting can’t be guaranteed for this session (roles aren’t unlimited, after all), don’t worry there will be more sessions for you to strut your stuff. In the meantime, sit back, relax, and enjoy a great night of theater!

The readings will commence at 8 pm.

If you’d just like to come along to enjoy the readings and support your local writers and actors, the Players would love to see you there.There’s no fixed amount for attending, though you’re encouraged to make a small donation at the door to help cover costs.To register your interest and find out more about this and future sessions just email Morgana at [email protected].

Steve Stott, President of the Sherman Players says, “We think this is a great opportunity to support our local writers and actors – and who knows, maybe we’ll be playing our part in discovering the next big Broadway hit or Oscar winning screenplay!”

Then on Sunday 28th and Monday 29th January The Sherman Players will be holding auditions for their Spring Production HABEAS CORPUS

Written by Alan BennettDirected by Dan FriedmanProduced by Jessica Durdock Moreno

Auditions:Sunday January 28th 2024 - 3.00 - 5.00 pmMonday January 29th 2024 - 6 - 8.30pm

At The Sherman Playhouse, 5 Route 39 N, Sherman CT, 06784 (located between the firehouse and Mallory Town Hall)

Appointments are not necessary. Come to the Green Room at the rear of the Playhouse to sign in.Sides for cold reading will be provided at the audition.

Performance Dates:Friday, April 5th - Saturday, April 27th

Available Roles:We are looking for 5 women and 6 men.Ages specified are guidelines.The Sherman Players do not discriminate – Actors of all races, ethnicities and gender identifications are encouraged to audition.

Arthur Wicksteed (50s), a lecherous General PractitionerMuriel Wicksteed (40s-50s), his assertive wifeDennis Wicksteed (20s) their son, a wimpish hypochondriac frustrated by his lack of a girlfriendConstance Wicksteed (40s-50s) the doctor's sister, a scrawny spinsterMrs Swabb (any age) a cleaning ladyCanon Throbbing (any age) a celibate anxious to abandon his vowsLady Rumpers (40s and up) a returning aristocratic expatriate who cares only for her daughter's welfareFelicity Rumpers (20s) her daughter who elicits lust from those who meet herMr Shanks (any age) a sales representativeSir Percy Shorter (50s and up) a leading light in the medical profession, once Muriel's paramour and Wicksteed's nemesisMr Purdue (any age) a sick man

Synopsis:The antics at the Wicksteed home are a satirical merry-go-round. Family, friends, and the sexual satisfaction of the "corpus" (body) are the ruling passions in this farcical comedy of ill-manners. Through a dance of mistaken identities and carnal encounters, one motto holds fast: "He whose lust lasts, lasts longest."

First performed in 1973 starring Alec Guinness, Alan Bennett’s hilarious play takes the traditional British farce of prior years to the extreme. – It’s all the trousers-down, door-slamming, mistaken identity, not-so-subtle innuendo you might expect, presented with a knowing nod and a wink from master satirist, Bennett.

For further information please contact the director, Dan Friedman at [email protected]

Lakeside beaches in Brookfield, New Fairfield and Sherman are closed as a precaution due to heavy rainfall and bacteria levels caused by this past weekend's storms.

Widespread flooding has been reported across Connecticut as a result of strong storms and heavy rainfall. Up to 9 inches of rain fell on parts of northwestern Connecticut, resulting in evacuations and damages to roads.

Four of the 17 lakes and ponds the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection tests for bacteria are closed. This includes Cockaonset State Forest in Chester, Wadsworth Fall State Park in Middletown, Wharton Brook State Park in Wallingford and Indian Well State Park in Shelton. Indian Well State Park is closed due to flooding, according to the DEEP website.

Linda Lull, director of New Fairfield Parks & Recreation, said the town beach will be closed for the next couple of days due to bacteria levels in the water. She said the town is being advised by its health department, who will inform the town as to when the beaches can be opened.

“We’re hoping by the weekend things will be resolved,” Lull said.

Brookfield Parks & Recreation reported swimming at Brookfield Town Beach is prohibited, per the town health department’s protocol.

“Due to the 3" of rainfall in the last 24 hours, the waterfront will be closed until further notice,” Brookfield Parks & Recreation stated Monday on its Facebook page. “The swimming area is currently closed due to results received from routine water quality test results. A repeat test has been performed and the length of closure will be determined once new results are available.”

The park also closed on Fourth of July due to rainfall. Parks and Recreation Director Laura Murphy said at the time that the town's policy is to close the park for 24 hours if there is over 1 inch of rain due to the risk of bacteria levels for e.coli.

Sherman First Selectman Don Lowe said the town beach was closed Monday and Tuesday but not because of high bacteria levels.

"We closed them yesterday and today for silt from run-off from Saw Mill Brook in the high water and excessive rain," Lowe said on Tuesday. "I don’t know tomorrow’s status yet."

New Milford Parks & Recreation reported that the beach at Lynn Deming Park was closed Monday due to the rainfall but is now open to patrons. Danbury Parks & Recreation Director Nick Kaplanis said “everything has been good” at Candlewood Town Park with the exception of a delay in opening due to the rainfall.

“We haven’t had any problems with the water levels and/or bacteria count,” Kaplanis said.

This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Schools

Emily Benson is a resident of New Milford. She works for New Milford Ambulance and as EMS Captain for the Sherman Volunteer Fire Departmen

When she was a student at Oliver Wolcott Technical High School in Torrington, Benson pursued an automotive technician track since her father was a mechanic and it was an occupation that was familiar to her. Deep down, however, she knew it wasn’t how she wanted to spend her life. Benson said, “I have always liked taking care of people and instinctively wanted to be a nurse, so I applied to WCSU’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.” Unfortunately, she was not accepted on her first attempt, which prompted her mother to bring home a flier with information about local classes to become either a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) or Emergency Medical Technician (EMT).

Benson took the EMT training route, and also enrolled as a pre-Nursing student at Northwestern Connecticut Community College, which she attended part time while building her career as an EMT. Today, she works full time for New Milford Ambulance and as EMS Captain for the Sherman Volunteer Fire Department as a licensed EMT.

Find out what's happening in Naugatuckwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Looking ahead to her graduation this spring, Benson said, “Younger me would be very proud of current me. It’s surreal, and I feel like I’ve been in school so long that it’s hard to believe I’m almost done.”

After graduation, Benson hopes to work in an ICU as a critical care nurse. Beyond that, her 10-year plan includes returning to college to pursue an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) degree in acute critical care, and she’s already investigating WCSU’s program.

For other high school students who may not receive acceptance to their desired major on their first application attempt, Benson says, “If you know what you want to do, just pursue it. Nursing school is hard, but if you apply yourself and put in the time and effort, it’s definitely doable. The professors at WCSU are great and really help you out if you’re struggling. Ten years ago, when I didn’t get in, I had a supportive family and now I’m here, getting ready to graduate.”

Western Connecticut State University offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, RN to B.S., a Master of Science in Nursing, a Doctor of Nursing Practice and an Ed.D. in Nursing Education. Next spring, once State Board of Nursing approval is received, it will also offer an Accelerated Bachelor’s in Nursing (AbiN), that will prepare second career students who already have a bachelor’s degree in another field, to be able to complete the remaining nursing classes within 13 months, thanks to a CT Health Horizons grant.

WCSU recently was named the Top Nursing Program in Connecticut – Student Choice Award by nurse.org.

The Sherman Players will open their 2023 season with ON GOLDEN POND, written by Ernest Thompson and directed by Jane Farnol. The play will open on Friday, April 21 and run four weekends through May 13th at the Sherman Playhouse.

This is the love story of Ethel and Norman Thayer, who are returning to their summer home on Golden Pond for the forty-eighth year. He is a retired professor, nearing eighty, with heart palpitations and a failing memory-but still as tart-tongued, observant and eager for life as ever. Ethel, ten years younger, and the perfect foil for Norman, delights in all the small things that have enriched and continue to enrich their long life together. They are visited by their divorced, middle-aged daughter and her dentist fiancé, who then go off to Europe, leaving his teenage son behind for the summer. The boy quickly becomes the "grandchild" the elderly couple have longed for, and as Norman revels in taking his ward fishing and thrusting good books at him, he also learns some lessons about modern teenage awareness-and slang-in return. In the end, as the summer wanes, so does their brief idyll, and in the final, deeply moving moments of the play, Norman and Ethel are brought even closer together by the incidence of a mild heart attack. Time, they know, is now against them, but the years have been good and, perhaps, another summer on Golden Pond still awaits.

ON GOLDEN POND premiered on Broadway in 1979 featuring Tom Aldredge and Frances Sternhagen. It was adapted in 1981 as an Oscar winning movie starring Katherine Hepburn, Henry Fonda and Jane Fonda. A revival came to Broadway in 2005 with James Earl Jones and Leslie Uggams.

Sherman Players president Steve Stott said "On Golden Pond is the perfect 2023 Season opener for the Sherman Players. Jane Farnol returns to the Playhouse with this funny, poignant and ever-popular play to lead us out of our Connecticut Winter and into a gloriously warm Maine Summer." Director Jane Farnol says she's "delighted to be back at Sherman helming this lovely play with a wonderful cast and superb Playhouse production team."

The cast of ON GOLDEN POND features Tim Breslin (Litchfield), Dandy Barrett (Danbury), Rufus De Rham (Kent), Jack Hoyt (Brookfield), Stacy-Lee Frome, Jimmy Collins and Lynn Nissenbaum (all New Milford).

ON GOLDEN POND runs April 21, 22, 28, 29, May 5, 6, 12 and 13 at 8:00 p.m. on Fridays & Saturdays. There will be two 2:00 p.m. Sunday matinees on April 30 and May 7. Tickets are $24 for adults and $12 for students. On Thursday, April 20, all patrons are invited to attend a "Half-Price Preview Night" at 8:00 p.m., where tickets at the door are only $12. Students may see any performance for $12 if they carry a valid student ID.

Reservations can be made online at Click Here or by calling the box office at (860) 354-3622.

The Sherman Playhouse is a non-Equity theatre company located at 5 Route 39 North (next to the firehouse) in Sherman, CT.