The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
CSCU president to keynote mentorship breakfast
MIDDLETOWN — April is moving right along in Middlesex County, and the chamber team is gearing up for another busy stretch.
On Tuesday, our Killingworth Division will meet at True Value at 8 a.m. This meeting, led by Chairwoman Ann Pellegrini, will feature local and chamber updates.
A busy Wednesday will kick off with a meeting of the chamber’s Human Resource Steering Council at 8 a.m., as well as a meeting of the Middlesex County Substance Abuse Action Council, also at 8 a.m. This committee is busy preparing for upcoming Narcan training April 26.
Also taking place on Wednesday will be two open house events from 8:30 to 10 a.m. and 4:30 to 6 p.m. Join chamber staff and ambassadors to learn about the various benefits, resources and opportunities available through membership.
On Thursday morning, our Board of Directors, led by Maureen Westbrook, will meet at the Elks Lodge in Middletown. This meeting will feature reports from chamber committee chairs and key staff on the many important ways in which we work to support the business community in Middlesex County.
Rounding out the week will be meetings of the Legislative Committee, Cruise Night on Main Street Planning Committee, and Affordable Housing Committee.
The main event for this week is our annual Business & Education Partnership and Hal Kaplan Middletown Mentor Program recognition breakfast, scheduled for Thursday at the Sheraton Hartford South Hotel in Rocky Hill. The keynote speaker will be Terrence Cheng, president of the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities, which oversees 12 community colleges, four state universities and Charter Oak State College, and serves more than 72,000 students.
The Business & Education Partnership Advisory Council serves as a link between member businesses and educational leaders from Middlesex County schools. Its mission is to facilitate and encourage the development of mutually supportive partnerships, and to prepare students for what is an increasingly global and competitive economy.
The Hal Kaplan Middletown Mentor Program, initiated in 1992, is a partnership between the chamber and Middletown Board of Education. This program provides students with mentors from a variety of professional fields in our community.
For more information on becoming a mentor, please contact Jennifer De Kine at jennifer@middlesexchamber.com.
I would like to thank Liberty Bank and its CEO David Glidden for their continued support of this event and many other programs in Middlesex County.
On Saturday evening, the Greater Middletown Military Museum will hold its annual dinner celebration at the Sons of Italy Hall in Middletown. This great group of individuals work hard throughout the year to preserve the stories, documents and artifacts of military services, and telling those stories to future generations. I would like to give a special shout out to President Ken McClellan and the entire team at the museum for doing such great work.
The 27th annual Middletown Sports Hall of Fame induction dinner will take place April 24 at The Elks Club of Middletown. I want to take a moment to congratulate all of the individuals and teams being inducted. Each of these fine individuals and teams deserve this high honor, and I look forward to celebrating their achievements at the induction dinner.
Moving on to next week, the Middlesex County Substance Abuse Action Council, along with the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Durham Middlefield Youth and Family Services and the Alliance for Prevention and Wellness, will host Narcan training April 26 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at the chamber or through Zoom.
It will cover overdose prevention strategies, signs and symptoms of an overdose, how to administer Naloxone, the Good Samaritan law, and support information and resources. I would like to thank Andrew Penna, overdose response coordinator; and social worker and prevention specialist Nicole Mason, both from the Alliance for Prevention & Wellness Program of BHcare, for presenting this important training.
Upon completion, Narcan will be dispensed to those in need.
On April 29, we will hold another vaccine booster clinic at the chamber on Main Street from 1 to 4 p.m. Moderna and Pfizer booster shots will be available. To make an appointment, please call 860-638-4965. I would like to thank Acting Public Health Director Kevin Elak and his entire team for making this clinic available once again.
I am afraid I must close this week’s column on a sad note after the recent passing of Harriet Levin. Harriet was many things — a loving wife to the late Jerome “Buzzy” Levin, an active member of the local community, a terrific friend to many, and most importantly an adoring mother and grandmother.
Harriet is the mother of Marc Levin, owner of Malloves Jewelers, who is a great friend of mine and a very active member of the chamber and Middletown communities. During her life, she dedicated her time to a number of worthy causes, including the Middlesex District Nurse organization, Congregation Adath Israel’s Sisterhood, and the Middlesex YMCA Women’s Board, where she served as president.
I loved seeing Harriet around the holidays, working with Buzzy at Malloves. Our thoughts and prayers are with Marc, Faith and her entire family. She will be forever missed and cherished.
For information and to register for events, please visit middlesexchamber.com.