I wish you and your loved ones a Merry Christmas and a holiday season filled with joy, kindness, warmth, and hope. As we reflect on the year behind us, I would like to thank the community for making Waterbury a special place to live! Below, I will share how my friends and I are bringing some holiday spirit to those in need.
The water crisis in Waterbury is over, and that means our local businesses and public schools are back at full strength. But what are the next steps to make sure this doesn't happen again? Keep scrolling to get the answer.
The state is taking action due to unprecedented federal cuts. I'll let you know how a new proposal supports our most vulnerable with food, health care, and housing.
These are the sections in today's email:
- Emergency Water Repairs Planned
- Proposal To Help Amid Federal Cuts
- Feeding Our Seniors During the Holidays
| Emergency Water Repairs Planned |
|
|
Now that clean water service is restored across Waterbury, our focus shifts to preventing an outage like this from ever happening again. Crews are already identifying aging valves at key intersections they need to replace to strengthen the system and reduce the risk of future failures.
For six difficult days, many residents saw their daily routines flipped upside down – showering at the YMCA, collecting bottled water at distribution sites, keeping their children home from school, and making other adjustments just to get through the day.
Despite these challenges, it was heartwarming to see our community come together in a time of need. I was proud to help distribute water to overwhelmed residents. Through it all, our city showed remarkable unity, resilience, and compassion.
| Proposal To Help Amid Federal Cuts |
|
|
Governor Ned Lamont has a plan in motion to use a $500 million emergency response fund to support residents facing harmful federal cutbacks from the Trump administration. The nearly $170 million proposal calls for committing:
- Tens of millions to offset cuts to Affordable Care Act subsidies
- $24.5 million to support community food banks and pantries
- Nearly $7 million to combat homelessness
- $4.7 million for 2-1-1 to increase call volume and Community Action Agencies to support SNAP recipients
CLICK HERE to see the entire proposal, which still needs approval from legislative leaders.
By stabilizing health care, housing, and nutrition programs, Connecticut is shielding vulnerable residents from federal uncertainty while maintaining fiscal discipline. $332 million will remain in reserve for future needs.
| Feeding Our Seniors During the Holidays |
|
|
It was truly rewarding to help deliver 100 lunches to local seniors during the holiday season. I was proud to partner with Dresser Law, the Hispanic Coalition of Greater Waterbury, Alderman Rafael Feliciano-Roman, and many others to hand out tasty meals at La Casa Bienvenida Senior Center on East Liberty Street.
Most importantly, it was a meaningful reminder to our seniors that they are valued, cared for, and never forgotten. I would like to thank everyone who collaborated to ensure this meal was made possible, considering that it took place during a six-day water outage.
