Weekly Update - August 4

August 4, 2023

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Dear Neighbor,

I want to share some highlights including state and local updates.

I always look forward to the opportunity to meet with residents face-to-face and really talk about your concerns and ideas – it’s what helps me to best represent our community. I’ll be hosting Virtual Office Hours. If you’d like to participate, sign up for a time slot here.

https://calendly.com/d/23p-3nc-7xk/rep-rojas-virtual-office-hours

In this email you'll find updates on district resources and news. Please click the links below to read the section that corresponds with the highlighted headline.

A NOTE: If you're having trouble clicking through the following links, open this email in a browser, use a computer or scroll through this email to the relevant section.

The topics covered are as follows

Legislative Updates
Today in CT History
CT Foodshare
Manchester Community Events
East Hartford Community Events

Legislative Updates

Majority Leader Roundtable Group

on Affordable Housing

CT Mirror Article

CT Paid Leave

Did you know residents in every town in the state have applied for CT Paid Leave? Approximately 66,000 workers in Connecticut – including 4,963 in New Haven – in Connecticut have received over $375 million in benefits when they were unable to work due to qualifying health or family reasons.

In 2019, the legislature passed and Governor Ned Lamont signed Public Act 19-25 into law, creating CT Paid Leave. Employee payroll contributions began in 2021. One year later, on January 1, 2022, benefit payments began for qualified applicants.

Families in Connecticut shouldn't have to worry about whether they can balance taking care of family needs or paying the bills. With this program, both can happen, as it offers partial income replacement benefits.

What qualifies for eligible leave?

Parental bonding - the birth of an employee's child or placement of an adopted or foster child with the employee
Serious health conditions - for the employee or a family member of the employee
Donors - to serve as an organ or bone marrow donor
Armed Forces - for family members in the armed forces undergoing treatment for an injury or illness incurred in the line of duty or being deployed to a foreign country
Family violence - for family violence victims to seek medical care or counseling, obtain services from a victim services organization, relocate because of family violence, or participate in civil or criminal proceedings related to the family

Learn More About CT Paid Leave

Connecticut is one of 13 states in the nation to pass paid family and medical leave legislation, along with California, Colorado, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington, as well as Washington D.C. States including New Hampshire and Vermont have enacted voluntary programs for employers who want to opt in.

Connecticut should be proud of its paid leave program. It is held up as a national model for other states to emulate.

Today In History

Delegates To a Congress of Future Revolutionaries

Americans are so familiar with the imagery and legends surrounding the Declaration of Independence that they often forget just how radical that event was. The very notion that representatives from all 13 American colonies would meet in secret in an extralegal “Continental Congress” to discuss coordinated resistance to British rule was an incredibly risky endeavor. Though the colonies had convened a “Stamp Act Congress” nearly a decade before to oppose a new form of imperial taxation, the idea of convening another Congress arose under dramatically different circumstances. It followed both the Boston Tea Party and the Crown’s imposition of a series of harshly punitive measures against the Bostonians that Britain called the Coercive Acts, which the colonists aptly renamed the Intolerable Acts. These imperial edicts, among other things, closed Boston harbor, shut down the colonial government, took over the justice system, and effectively imposed martial law on Massachusetts until the colonists had paid for the tea destroyed by the protesters.

Colonials throughout America were furious at Britain’s fiercely repressive measures against Massachusetts. Patriot leaders called for a special extralegal meeting of all the colonies to coordinate a unified response to this grave royal threat. To be sure, the notion of declaring independence from Great Britain was still the furthest thing from most people’s minds. (In fact, for most Americans, even as late as 1774, the idea of Independence was simply unthinkable. ) But the idea that the colonists had to join together to forge a Continental resistance to a mother country that had overstepped its bounds was – especially in the heated atmosphere of the moment – extremely radical.

On August 3, 1774, Connecticut formally selected the three men it would send to Philadelphia to attend this first Continental Congress: Roger Sherman, a lawyer from New Milford; Eliphalet Dyer, a lawyer from Windham; and Silas Deane, a merchant from Wethersfield. The initial meeting of that Congress occurred in Carpenters’ Hall in Philadelphia on September 5, with representatives from every colony except Georgia present. At the Congress, delegates mutually agreed to double down on the economic resistance now symbolized by Boston’s destroyed tea. Every colony agreed to boycott a wide range of imported British goods, and sent a formal list of grievances to Parliament demanding redress. Before they disbanded on October 26, the delegates also agreed to meet again the following year if tensions between the colonies and Great Britain remained unresolved.

Little did they know that in less than a year, their successors in the Second Continental Congress would be making preparations for war — and discussing American independence.

Summer Concert Series at Center Memorial Park

This year’s special Summer Concert Series of five performances will focus on people and groups with a deep Manchester history. It is our intention, not only to enrich and entertain, but also to spread enthusiasm for the Bicentennial and help concertgoers become aware of other Bicentennial-related events. Bring your lawn chairs and picnic dinner or take out from one of our fabulous Downtown restaurants.

Center Memorial Park near Mary Cheney Library, 586 Main St., 06040,

Rain location: Army Navy Club 1080 Main St., Downtown Manchester.

Thursday, August 10, 2023 | 06:00 PM - 08:00 PM

School Supplies

The Human Services Administration will be accepting VISA gift cards ($25 increments) and/or monetary donations ONLY for the 2023/2024 school year. We will be distributing a Gift Card to eligible families for the purchase of school supplies for children grades K-12 only!

Senior, Adult and Family Services will be conducting screenings. To qualify, families must reside in Manchester, receive State assistance and meet the program’s income guidelines.

If you, or anyone you know, including an organization, would like to donate, it would greatly help Manchester families! We will be accepting donations July 10th thru August 11th.

You can contact Lisa @ 860-647-3092, email lfusco@manchesterct.gov or Kim @ 860-647-3096, email to kims@manchesterct.gov

Your donation can make a world of difference to a child in need and would be greatly appreciated!!

Manchester Parks and Recreation

The Recreation Division is committed to increasing public awareness around swimming lessons and swim safety and ensuring access to programs and facilities for all Manchester residents. All lifeguards are American Red Cross Certified and have undergone extensive training to ensure the safety of all community members using our swimming facilities.

For more information click here

Manchester Public Schools - One Manchester

Manchester Matters

Join for two remaining dates August 10th and 24th

East Hartford Public Library is Looking for Local Artists For

2nd Annual East Hartford Public Library Art Show:

September 16, 2023

The East Hartford Public Library is looking for local artists to participate in an art show to be held at the Selden Brewer House on Saturday, September 16 from 1 - 3 PM.

Entry information:

This exhibit is open to all artists, in all mediums. Works must be signed by the artist, and suitably framed and wired for hanging. Wrapped canvases are acceptable. Works on paper must be under plexiglass. Sculptures may not weigh more than 50 pounds. Each artist may show a maximum of three pieces. Artists should plan to stay with their work for the duration of the show.

Click here to fill out an entry form, or pick one up in hard copy at the East Hartford Public Library reference desk. There is no fee for entry. Entry deadline is Friday, August 25 at 5 PM. Confirmation will be sent within 48 hours of receipt of your entry. No last-minute entries will be accepted. Participating artists will be announced by press release on Wednesday, September 6.

Event details:

The art show will be held outdoors in the Buena Crawford Brewer Memorial Garden, located behind the Selden Brewer House at the intersection of Main and Naubuc Avenues in East Hartford. Concurrent with the art show, members of the Historical Society of East Hartford will offer free tours of the Brewer House. Prizes for the art show will be awarded at 2:45 PM.

Awards:

The Best of Show award winner will receive a $500 Purchase Award, traditionally sponsored by the East Hartford Commission on Culture and Fine Arts. The Purchase Award winner will become part of the East Hartford Public Library art collection.

What makes a good purchase award? The library is looking for art that:

· Reflects the diversity of the community

· Has visual impact when exhibited in a large public space

· Grabs its space and attracts the eye

· Is more than merely decorative

· Engages the imagination

· Invites exploration or interaction of some kind

· Asks or answers questions, or both!

· Has potential as a learning tool

· Can be the impetus for, or part of, a future exhibition with a community focus

Additional awards will be announced at the art show.

Basketball Program for Girls

Free Meal Sites Open to Connecticut’s Children

CT Summer Meals, a USDA federally funded program administered by the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), provides no cost nutritious breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks to children 18-years of age and younger, no questions asked.

Following last year’s model, many sites have the added flexibilities to improve access to meals, including: allowing parents and guardians to pick up meals; offering multiple meals (breakfast and lunch, or meals for multiple days) during one pick-up; and allowing those meals to be consumed off-site. Many sites will operate through late August.

All children aged 18-and-under can receive free meals at over 400 sites throughout the State. End Hunger Connecticut! (EHC!)’s Meal Locator Map, which allows residents to find a site closest to them, is now live and operated in partnership with the CSDE.

Summer Meals Locator Map

For more information click here

East Hartford Commission on Aging Invites

Local Seniors to Complete a Survey

The East Hartford Commission on Aging has prepared a survey to better understand the needs of our senior population and we welcome your feedback. All East Hartford seniors ages 55 and older are encouraged to take the survey. The survey is anonymous and is available in English and Spanish. The survey can be accessed online at the links below:

Survey for East Hartford Seniors (English)
Encuesta de personas mayores de East Hartford Survey (Espanol)

Seniors can also pickup hard copies of the survey at the following locations:

Augie & Ray’s Restaurant at 314 Main Street
Cultural Center at 50 Chapman Place – 2 Survey box locations (The Front Lobby and the Assessor’s office)
Fire Stations
- Station 1 – 726 Main Street by the Town Hall (Park on the North end of the ramp - closest to the Town Clerk trailer. The survey box is the front watch room).
- Station 2 – 1692 Main Street by McAuliffe Park (Park in front of the kitchen door. The survey box is in the kitchen/watch room).
- Station 3 – 31 School Street - Public Safety Complex (survey box is inside the front lobby)
- Station 5 – 141 Brewer Street (Park on the front. The survey box is in the front foyer).
- Station 6 – 1050 Forbes by Brewer Street (Park on the North Driveway-Brewer Street side. The survey box is in the front foyer).

NOTE: If the fire personnel are on a call, the station will be locked and you will have to return later or use another drop off location. Also, NEVER park in front of the garage doors even for a moment, as an emergency call could come in and you would be blocking their path. See the details for where each survey box is within the various Fire Stations.

East Hartford Golf Club at 130 Long Hill Street
Hartford East senior housing complex – 886 Main Street East Hartford
Library - Raymond Library at 840 Main Street
Library - Wickham Memorial Library at 656 Burnside Avenue
Public Safety Complex at 31 School Street (survey box is inside the front lobby)
Riverside Health Care & Rehabilitation at 745 Main Street
Senior Center at 15 Milbrook Drive

Please answer all of the survey questions to provide us with important information that is crucial to interpreting your survey. YOUR RESPONSES ARE STRICTLY ANONYMOUS! Only statistical results will be reported, and anonymous write-in comments.

Community Newsletters

Pulse of East Hartford Newsletter

East Hartford Public School News

East Hartford Works

My office is always open if you or your family are in need of assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact me by email at Jason.Rojas@cga.ct.gov or by phone at 860-240-8541.

Sincerely,

Jason Rojas