Maria Horn

Today, May 6, was the last day of the 2020 regular session for the CT General Assembly. I put that date in my calendar sometime in February, when session opened, as the final in a series of markers in the process of moving bills through the system of becoming law.

Having heard from a number of constituents who work (or used to work) in either New York or Massachusetts and were experiencing challenges applying for unemployment or other work-related resources, I reached out to New York Assemblywoman Didi Barrett, who represents NY’s 106th District, including Millerton, Amenia, Hudson, and Poughkeepsie.

Happy May Day! That would seem to have multiple meanings today, but, among them, the 1st of May represents the celebration of International Workers’ Day at a time when we are thinking a lot about “essential workers": in hospitals, nursing homes, residential homes for the disabled, home healthcare, grocery stores, day care centers, food production and delivery, to name a few.

My son and I joined yesterday’s Hearts on Tour Car Parade organized by the Tri-State Chamber of Commerce, visiting Geer Village in North Canaan, Noble Horizons in Salisbury, Salisbury Visiting Nurse Association, Sharon Health Care Center, and Sharon Hospital.  

Did you know that tomorrow is National Superhero Day? That’s a new one for me, but masks are definitely in fashion: it’s a perfect time to honor the superheroes in our community, and to activate the superhero in each of us.

This is my State Capitol update for the week of April 20. If you prefer to watch rather than read, click here to listen about the issues contained in this newsletter.

It’s the 50^th anniversary of Earth Day today, and the natural world is re-asserting itself.  The skies are clearer than they have been in decades in some parts of the world, and wild animals taking over the roadways as traffic has disappeared.

Many of us in the Northwest corner woke up to a winter landscape this weekend. We’re used to April being a whimsical month, with sunshine and spring flowers one moment, and snow the next, but this one took my family back in time to winter break – which seemed worlds away. We even started getting out the Christmas cookie recipes, looking for any break in the routines that are starting to wear a little thin. Laughter is good medicine.