In the late 19th century women were second class citizens. It was not until an act by the CT General Assembly in 1877 that married women were given control over their own property. The earnings of the wife were her own and she had the power to make contracts and dispose of her real and personal estate. In 1893 women could vote for school officers. In 1897 married women could be the executrix of a will and guardians of minors. In Norwich In 1902 two women were registered to vote in the 2nd congressional district – Jennie P. Swan and Grace Willey. There were nineteen women in the 6th congressional district and only 6 of the 19 did not have a male counterpart registered to vote at the same address. It was not until 1909 that women were permitted to vote on library or school issues.
In Willimantic in 1895 the members of a local equal rights club organized a campaign to unseat a powerful member of the school board and to consolidate school districts. Women turned out to vote in such large numbers that the men put up a ladder to the second-floor voting hall and scrambled in ahead of the women using the staircase. The voting turnout by the women though increased from approximately 200 to 975 voters, an increase of almost 500 percent and the women were victorious.
Tuesday, November 5th is Election Day. This year it is to elect local offices Mayor, City Council, City Treasurer, School Board and to voice a yea or a nay for a bond issue. It is a privilege to have the opportunity to vote and everyone should use that opportunity to vote. It is your chance to be heard without making a speech.
In the late 19th century women were second class citizens. It was not until an act by the CT General Assembly in 1877 that married women were given control over their own property. The earnings of the wife were her own and she had the power to make contracts and dispose of her real and personal estate. In 1893 women could vote for school officers. In 1897 married women could be the executrix of a will and guardians of minors. In Norwich In 1902 two women were registered to vote in the 2nd congressional district – Jennie P. Swan and Grace Willey. There were nineteen women in the 6th congressional district and only 6 of the 19 did not have a male counterpart registered to vote at the same address. It was not until 1909 that women were permitted to vote on library or school issues.
In Willimantic in 1895 the members of a local equal rights club organized a campaign to unseat a powerful member of the school board and to consolidate school districts. Women turned out to vote in such large numbers that the men put up a ladder to the second floor voting hall and scrambled in ahead of the women using the staircase. The voting turnout by the women though increased from approximately 200 to 975 voters, an increase of almost 500 percent and the women were victorious.
Tuesday, November 5th is Election Day. This year it is to elect local offices Mayor, City Council, City Treasurer, School Board and to voice a yea or a nay for a bond issue. It is a privilege to have the opportunity to vote and everyone should use that opportunity to vote. It is your chance to be heard without making a speech.
With all the chatter about the hanging of the Freedom Bell in the David Ruggles Arch in front of the Norwich City Hall I made a quick check on the bells of America to see if there was any connection to Norwich, CT.
Lo and behold there was! It seems that Benjamin Hanks was an apprentice of Norwich clockmaker Thomas Harland in 1772 until he established his own clock business. Hanks is considered by historians to be the father of the church bell and the bronze cannon business in the United States.
In 1780 Hanks was contracted to make the tower clock for the Old Dutch Church in New York City and he cast his first bell at the same time. In 1783 Hanks was awarded an intellectual rights patent for this self-winding clock that continued to operate until the mechanical parts wore out due to friction.
Hanks also fashioned the first two bronze cannons made in the United States in 1797 for the First Company of Connecticut Artillery.
By the way – If a self-winding clock sounds amazing for the 1700’s you should see the doll made by Swiss watchmaker Pierre Jaquet-Droz he had nothing to do with Norwich. The programmable doll is able to write a short series of words using a real quill and pot of ink.
When I walked in a store yesterday I was assaulted with holiday music and suggestions to buy gifts and decorations by the big stores. When I thought about it for a minute I recalled this Facebook posting in October 2013 by Thayer’s Marine, Inc. It is just one of the reasons why I am always encouraging people to shop and buy locally.
I like to encourage people to think out of the box for items they want or need or as gifts. We, as a community want the personal care and service that local businesses give to us. I hear people say that they like to go to places and leave their money in places where they are considered to be individuals so why not spend your money locally. Spread good words about local businesses. The Thayer’s posting certainly speaks why more eloquently than I can.
“I know that people generally use Facebook and social media as a tool to spread the negative word, I have fallen victim to it in the past, but sometimes the good word must be spread…
A customer came to me just under two weeks ago and he had been rear ended on I-91 and his boat had some damage, mainly the gear case for his outboard motor was destroyed. The insurance company of the lady who rear ended him dragged their feet on all aspects of the claim, which we do expect, but he was leaving for vacation tomorrow, the 10th of September and wanted to take his boat. Yesterday, at 1pm we finally received the approval. We would have ordered the gear case ahead of time, but if the insurance only approved a rebuild, we would have been stuck with a gear case that we seldom see a need for, and when you are talking about thousands of dollars in parts, its tough to have that sitting on the shelf. I called Evinrude at 1pm yesterday, and they stepped up, to help me OVERNIGHT (that is correct, OVERNIGHT, an oversized, overweight package). This had absolutely nothing to do with them, and this speaks to just how great of a company they are for me to work with. I wanted to ensure that they receive proper thanks!”
1920 Norwich was a place of activity. There were always a variety of places to go and things to do. There were shops, restaurants, tea houses and a bar or two. OK maybe there were three of four bars, but there were also theaters, music halls, dance halls and the new movie houses where a person played the organ or a piano for sound effects while frames of actors in exaggerated movements played silently on a large screen or curtain with words describing the action or script appearing every few frames.
This was all new technology. Profitable too. The stages did not need to be deep. No props were needed and no actors needed to be paid. More seats could be installed and devoted to paying patrons.
The movie theaters in Norwich would be filled on Friday and Saturday nights. The movies were an affordable form of entertainment for the poor and the wealthy.
On Friday, October 25th at 7:30 PM Christ Church School of the Arts is bringing back a silent movie horror film treasure that may well have played in Norwich when it was first released in 1920. Everyone is invited to dress up in costumes and watch the movie while Robert Humphreville plays the organ.
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is one of the first modern German Expressionist horror film classics. It is filled with warped sets, lots of shadows and really heavy makeup.
It is also one of the first serious films with a “twist” ending. You never are really sure of what is going on, and you are soon caught up in trying to figure out who is committing the murders. Its the story of a traveling magician Dr Caligari and Cesare. Their arrival in a town coincides with some savage killings. Hint: Secretly Caligari was an asylum director who hypnotized Cesare to re-enact murders. But the final reel contains something which leaves the audience shattered. You can see it on You-tube but its honestly not the same.
This is a perfect date movie for ages 12 and up and very affordable for a donation of $5.00 per person. Don’t miss it! For more information call 860.425.0663 Christ Church School of the Arts, 78 Washington Street, Norwich, CT.
Election Day is nearing and I wish I had this thought earlier. I would like to see an exhibit of the election paraphernalia from years past. I would like to see how those running for local attention in the 1800’s and the 1900’s ran for election. Yes I want to see the campaign stuff of the winners but I want to see the stuff of the losers too.
I want to see how the promises have changed over the years. Have the promises changed over the years?
I want to see more than newspaper advertisements and brochures. Many of us throughout the city limits and beyond have pencils, rulers, yard sticks, pins and other bits and pieces from old campaigns at the back of drawers. They each had a slogan. It would be fun to bring them out and share them with others.
What do you think town committees? What treasures do you have stored away?
It may be too late to pull this exhibit off this year but not to worry there will be another local election soon enough and it is not too early to begin planning the exhibit for then.
I wonder if we are seeing the last gasps of the old fashioned job fairs. I remember attending job fairs in the past in huge rooms with dozens of employers in booths and at tables each having a variety of job openings. Potential employers tried to get the attention of attendees with giveaways, balloons and candy. There were so many potential employers it was easy to run out of resumes before you were through the first aisle. Some potential employers were able to make appointments for interviews on the spot. I learned about the responsibilities of many jobs I honestly did not know existed at job fairs. .
Not so any more. I recently attended a job fair that while very well run was nothing more than a mill to process people for a count of numbers. The number of businesses represented and the number of people through the doors looking for work. .
The types of potential employers in attendance have changed. There was not one business there looking for a manufacturing machine operator or a clerical worker. There was one business there looking for experienced construction workers for the Stamford area. There were a number of potential employers for sales people who work on commission selling vacuum cleaners, insurance and financial products to their friends and family. There was a local hospital accepting applications for nurses. Part-time job coaches for the disabled were being recruited by a couple of different agencies. There were a limited number of positions available at a seasonal inbound call center on the shoreline and a place looking for independent truck drivers.
There was a line of people using their very best manners waiting to get in to see their potential new employer from the moment the doors opened until they closed at the end of the day. Eyes and smiles were bright their conversations hopeful of who they were to see and meet.
It was the silence I noticed as I was leaving. No chatter between friends. No phone conversations. No pictures being taken. It was eerily quiet. As businesses in Connecticut become smaller will we stop seeing job fairs all together and what will take their place?
The American Planning Association has named Norwich as one of the top ten cities in the country. That’s nice. But what does it mean? 40 years ago some well-meaning citizens placed an inventory of the downtown buildings on record. More recently we, the voters approved a bond. Now we are being rewarded with a nice title. But what does it mean?
By itself this new award means little. But if it were combined to be displayed with some reminders of some past awards there is a chance that it could be – useful.
I would like to see the marketers of Norwich make a list of the prestigious titles and awards Norwich has been awarded in the past 30 years. Then I would like them to choose the top 15 and create a display or a billboard that reminds visitors and residents of these honors. A visual reminder of the good things about Norwich.
I would like to see a series of well written articles about how these various awards are individual pieces that lend support to one another creating a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.
We as residents need reminders because we have lost focus of the good bits. Speaking for myself I am inundated with all that is wrong with Norwich, all that makes me sad, and unhappy and angry. I have not seen one article, one advertisement, one commercial that demonstrates the positives of our community.
That we, the residents, be reminded of what is right with Norwich. Reminded of what we have to be proud of. The successful marketing of Norwich is not what we do on the outside but the successful marketing of Norwich will begin on the inside. The successful marketing of Norwich must begin with us.
Happy Hanukkah! The festival of Lights officially begins at dusk on November 27, 2013. Tonight when the first candle is lit there will be fried food in my house. I will be eating traditional latkes tonight. Tomorrow I will eat turkey by candle light to celebrate Thanksgivikkuh and save a couple of calories. A latke is a potato pancake with a poor man’s pedigree, a history, a tradition and a soul. But potato latkes weren’t originally a part of Hanukkah cuisine.
The holiday dates back to 168 BC, when the Syrian-Greek King Antiochus captured Israel, and destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. On the outskirts of Jerusalem, guerrilla warriors called Maccabees continued the fight.
Once the battle was over, the Maccabees rid the temple of idols and lit the golden menorah with a little purified olive oil they found, just enough to burn for one day. A miracle happened and the oil lasted for eight days – the exact time it took to press fresh oil. To commemorate the Miracle of the Oil Jews all over the world eat foods fried in oil on Hanukkah.
Over the centuries, those who wanted to observe the tradition developed recipes using ingredients available in the countries they lived. In the Middle East and the Mediterranean fresh-pressed olive oil is used to fry foods, because Hanukkah falls at the end of the olive-pressing season. Italian and Moroccan’s serve chicken fried in olive oil, and Greek, North African and Turkish people make different kinds of olive oil-fried puffs of dough for dessert. A doughnut by any name.
For villagers living in Ireland, Germany, Russia or Poland, pickings were slim in winter, and potatoes were cheap and available from the root cellar. Grating and making potatoes into little patties to be fried, fed hungry children with just a few potatoes and very little fuel. Without olives to press schmaltz, fat rendered from a chicken, duck or geese was used for frying like today’s French fries.
There is no single correct latke. Purists like their latkes to be all potatoes, with a pinch of onion, while others fry patties of grated carrots or other vegetables such as Jerusalem artichokes, beets, turnips, zucchini or squash. You see it is not the potato that takes center stage on Hanukkah but light.
Interestingly enough, though, when I researched the word “latke,” I learned that the word latke comes from Yiddish, a language spoken by East Europeans and that some sources claim it derives from the Old Russian oladka, a diminutive of olad’ya, from Greek eladia, the plural of eladion, which means “a little oily thing” and comes from elaia, which means “olive.”
On Monday November 18th 2013 Joseph Mulvey announced the U.S. Post Office was seriously looking to relocate the Norwich central post office from 340 Main Street to 292 Salem Turnpike.
The need for a move is certainly understandable. The current historic building while lovely and majestic to look at is not handicapped accessible, has a great deal of unused square footage and little accessible parking. The new building was built as a distribution center and so is not pretty to look at or historic but most of all it is on the very edge of town and difficult to get to.
To get there drive yourself past the Norwich Wal-Mart, past the Dime Bank and it is on your left. Certainly, there is another storefront located within the city of Norwich that is more convenient and has parking. The old Friendlies on Salem Turnpike for example would be a fine Post Office. The round building at the top of Chelsea Harbor Drive has a for rent sign. At least people could have access to it. There are lots of other places across Norwich that would be wonderful locations for a central post office but the biggest thing is that it must be accessible to the people and not just the ones with personal cars.
Letters to the Editor and to Facebook don’t count. To have your voice heard send a letter by snail mail to Joseph J. Mulvey, U.S. Postal Service, 2 Congress Street, Room 8, Milford, MA 01757-9998 before December 3, 2013. YOU must send a letter to have your voice be heard. YOU must take the responsibility onto yourself. YOU can do this. Don’t just wait around for someone else to speak for you.
When I start thinking about Thanksgiving I wonder about a Rebecca Huntington document stored in the Leffingwell House Museum document safe. On one side at the top is written Norwich and on the other November. It is very large and has more than one mystery attached to it. Mystery One – Who were Rebecca and Sally Huntington? Their signatures are written on the back. Mother and daughter or two sisters? What happened to them? Mystery Two – Was this meant to someday be a wall hanging or needlework? Mystery Three- The same quote is above and below “Thanksgiving” as a place holder for another quote or a truth to be emphasized – “A true friend is the greatest contentment in the world.” Mystery Four – 1797 is written on the back of the document but is it possible that was added at a later date? Mystery Five – There is a script on the back but not the date, not the place, not the author. The script on the back reads – “This day there was a terrible storm of rain and the highest wind ever was known which carried away the market house at the landing and blue down a great number of barns some stone and of great proportion of the fruit trees, fences etc, the meeting house at Plainfield was blown down the meeting house at Poquetuc and the meeting house at Montville received material injury. Mr. Christopher Stone great barn blew down in which were fourteen horses Three of them were killed about twenty cattle were under the barn but none of them were killed but much bruised.”
I discovered where the quotes of Modesty and Virtue were from Joseph Addison, Spectator No. 231 and 243. I welcome help on the others. All spelling and punctuation is unchanged.
MODESTY – “Modesty is not only an ornament, but also a guard, to virtue. It is a kind of quick and delicate feeling in the soul, which makes her shrink and withdraw herself from everything that has danger in it. It is such an exquisite sensibility, as warns her to shun the first appearance of everything which is hurtful.” Joseph Addison, Spectator No. 231
VIRTUE – “As virtue in general is of an amiable and lovely nature, there are some particular kinds of it which are more so than others, and these are such as dispose us to do good to mankind. Temperance and abstinence, faith and devotion, are in themselves perhaps as laudable as any other virtues; but those which make a man popular and beloved are justice, charity, munificence, and, in short, all the good qualities that render us beneficial to each other. The two great ornaments of virtue, which show her in the most beneficial vein, and make her altogether lovely, are cheerfulness and good nature. Love learning. Joseph Addison, Spectator No. 243
TRUTH – Truth is the bond of union; and the basis of human happiness without this virtue there is no reliance upon language, no confidence in friendship and no security in promises or oaths. Love your company
WISDOM 1 – There is nothing which gives one so pleasing a prospect of human nature, as the contemplation of wisdom and beauty the latter is peculiar to that sex which is called fair and when both meet in the person the character is lovely and desirable Remember thy creator in thy youth Remember thy creator in thy youth
SENSE – Good sense and good nature are never separated, though the ignorant world has thought otherwise, good nature, by rebirth I mean beneficence and candor, is the product of right reason, which, of necessity, will give allowance
WISDOM 2 – Wisdom is glorious and never fadeth away ; yet she is easily seen of them that love her and found of such as seek her. For she goeth about seeking such as are worthy of her (undecipherable) herself favorable unto them in the way, and meeteth them in every thought.
SECRECY – Secrecy is the soul of designs, upon it commonly defends their success, and the more important an undertaking is, the more care ought to be taken not to discover it. Take care, my son, when you form any resolution, however inconsiderable it be, that nobody perceive it. Without the precaution, you have reason to fear, it may happen to you as it frequently does to mine, the whole effect of which terminates in smoke, if they take but the test air. The miser abstains from things necessary, to furnish superfluities to others, and will not think themselves obliged to him for the favor.
This morning snowflakes danced past my window so I guess it is time for the annual retelling of my favorite winter old wives tale. I once learned this tale and instantly had to test it that year and subsequent years and it keeps on being true with some minor adjustments.
Premise: The date of the month of the first snowfall in which the paw prints of a cat can be seen predicts the number of snowstorms for that winter season.
I pray every year that the date of the first snow fall will be within the first fifteen days of the month. I live by Backus Hospital so those are the snowfalls I track. You have to be responsible for keeping track of the storms where you live or work. I have done this at home, at work, and in a 5th grade classroom. Its just fun and my logic is that every snowfall brings us one step closer to the last storm of the season.
Only snowfalls count as storms but you can track other precipitation as well for accuracy. For my chart I use the following as column titles: Predicted Snow Storm Number, Date of storm, amount of storm, type of other precipitation.
Do this alone, with family, or with friends. It is just for fun. See if it works! Now remember no snow until early December – very early December.
I tried taking the on-line HarvardX: SPU27x Science & Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science class.
I cook. I read recipe books for fun. I watch the cooking shows. I took lab sciences in high school. OK so that was 40 years ago but I should still be able to do this. Wrong. Oh so wrong.
The text is Harold McGee’s On Food and Cooking. It is a kitchen classic, the bible food lovers and professional chefs worldwide turn to for an understanding of where foods come from, what exactly they’re made of, and how cooking transforms them into something new and delicious and it’s just been fully revised and updated. I missed that part. The revised and updated.
Now it is all about the culinary movement known as “molecular gastronomy” or fancy edible (sometimes) science experiments. Each week we are to answer questions from the on-line lecturers, questions that require that you apply the mathematical ideas of the week, and the option of either answering a question based on the scientific/mathematical ideas of the week—or going to your kitchen and to do the experiment and find out the answer yourself.
So far I have learned I do not like my eggplant with pomegranate and buttermilk nor do I like pomegranate seeds as an edible decoration. I have also learned I care more about taste and texture than how much the bottom pancake in the stack compresses.
This time I admit I have truly bitten off more than I can chew.
Congratulations and well done to Elanah Sherman for assembling and coordinating the “Arrested Development: Norwich Brownfields” exhibit at Otis Library through Dec. 30.
It is a well thought out presentation that leads the viewer from the observable problems of rundown, polluted properties through the physical and financial processes of where they are today. There is focus on Red McKeon Park in Occum. Bringing the observer from what was there years ago, what happened, and then the plans for what the planners hoped for followed by the reality of finances, the clean-up, and the process to what is there today, clean-ups that remain, and a plan for the future while the property is being used by the community today.
No efforts were made to hide the long incomplete list of over 130 properties located throughout the city that need environmental cleanup assistance. There is no effort to disguise where in the process of diagnosis or actual cleanup the various properties are. That by itself is a tremendous step forward toward the public understanding that appearances can be deceiving and that there is work being done to clean up and develop the properties and to make them better and to get them back onto the tax rolls. Most importantly it is an importantly step toward educating the public, and that includes me, on how long it takes and the financial mechanics involved to clear and clean these Brownfield Blights.
For the opening, Sherman brought together the people that worked on the Occum Park to explain their various roles and how long it took and why it took so long. It was one of the best discussions, with Marjorie Blizzard and Bill Warzecha I have attended and I was saddened that a private recording done by a student for private use is the only one available. Yes I am saying that the discussion was that good. It really should have been recorded and broadcast so that more people could see it and share in the information.
The photographs by Therese Carlos, a student at Three Rivers Community College are very nice too.
If you have the opportunity, please go to the second floor of the Otis Library and see this exhibit. It is really important for tax payers and residents to see the progress being done even if the places look a wreck and it doesn’t look like anything is being done. Elanah, Thank you and well done!
I read in the Norwich Bulletin about a youth group (not in Norwich) creating gingerbread houses to be delivered to senior living, nursing and rehabilitation facilities. Maybe some different Norwich organizations and groups could take on a similar project for next year. Maybe the theme for next year’s holiday decorating could be something like Gingerbread Dreams?
Store windows and fronts could be decorated to turn the Norwich area to a giant gingerbread and candy land. Pinwheels, lollypops, snowmen and sleighs and sleds. Gingerbread and cocoa. A completely united front of gingerbread fantasy. Can’t you just see a game of Candyland with jewelry on certain squares? Maybe a Candyland Competition? Gingerbread cutouts could point the way of the holiday parade or just be used to advertise the date. Wouldn’t a Gingerbread Man with the date be a great souvenir and fundraiser?
In the holiday parade could be the march of the gingerbread men not to mention the participants of the 2nd Annual SantaCon could have a costume practice. Is gingerbread only for Christmas? What if a gingerbread theme was used for Valentine’s Day?
What if Norwich opened its summer tourism season with a come home to Norwich theme? Gingerbread men could be used for advertising as well as reminding people Norwich was once a Christmas City.
I am observing wonderful, imaginative, action filled and future looking programs in cities and towns close by and far-away while Norwich resists any change to what it did in the early 1900’s. Norwich does nothing new, different or just plain silly. I am concerned that the only new activities I see in town are pub crawls. I worry what example we are showing to our children. We tell our teenagers not to drink and drive yet that is what we, the adults do, as we sponsor pub crawls and wine tastings without benefit of alternative transportation. Thank you for reading my thoughts in this column. Not one thought in this column is original. Everyone is invited to use anything they see here. Work individually and work together. It is only by joining forces that we can create a bigger, better Norwich.
Biking is on the fast track of American Tourism. Some cities have designed bike paths into their infrastructure to make cruising on two wheels safer and easier for children, teenagers, working adults and tourists. The infrastructure includes freshly-paved and painted bike paths/lanes, and well-marked traffic signals.
The following cities are the best for two-wheeled adventuring and commuting (listed in no particular order): Portland, OR, Minneapolis, MN, San Francisco, CA, Seattle, WA, Tucson, AZ, Sacramento, CA, Washington, D.C., Denver, CO, Mesa, AZ, Madison, WI, Austin, TX, Chicago, IL, Eugene, OR, Philadelphia, PA, Boston, MA (finally a northeast city!)
Environments where people want to and choose to bike have three main parts: PLACE—people need room on the road or a designated bike path. CONSIDERATE MOTORISTS—riders are most comfortable around motorists who give room and watch for bicyclists. REASON—people need a purpose for riding, whether for recreation, physical activity, or utility.
Celebrate bicycling with a group ride. May is Bike Month and offers the perfect opportunity for people to try riding. Conduct classes in the day, evenings and weekends Sponsor classes on bicycle commuting or bicycle handling skills. If there’s an annual community event, look for a way to add a bicycle ride to the list of activities or encourage people to ride bicycles to the event.
Norwich, CT you can do this. Think community, Greenville, Taftville, Occum, Laurel Hill, Yantic, East Great Plains or Norwichtown to act as a city. Happy cycling!
Have you gone shopping for locally manufactured items lately? Were you a little disheartened to find them difficult to find? Were you disappointed to find locally manufactured items limited to jewelry, art and other decorative items?
Connecticut was once a center of creativity, manufacturing, and the arts. I did a small search of the records of the United States Patent Office. There were thousands of patents originating from Norwich and then there were few. Times and circumstances change. The paperwork and lengths of time to obtain a patent change. But where there was once curiosity, drive to discovery, and vision is now blanket acceptance of whatever is handed to us.
As a community, as a city, as a state we need to be visually reminded of how we created what we envisioned. It is time for Norwich to be a leader. I am not an artist and need a skilled person to do layout and design. I know however I would like to see a series of nine posters highlighting nine or more different things patented in Norwich. Items that would make people curious and proud about the manufacturing history of Norwich.
Posters that would communicate the pride of community and the ‘can-do’ attitude to our students and entrepreneurs that need some encouragement. Not posters that just show what was done before but posters that encourage what can be done starting today, for tomorrow.
I would like to see these posters framed on the walls of city hall, in the hallways of our schools, and wherever people gather. It is time for the residents of Norwich to take back the City of Norwich, to make suggestions and to once more be loud and proud about the community we live in.
I saw a Facebook entry asking this question for Canadian residents of The Province (Vancouver, B.C.) Does your community really embrace the Christmas spirit?
Tell us why your municipality would make the list of Santa’s favorite places (don’t forget to tell us where you live).
Then I thought A city as large as Norwich, CT could so easily do a project like this with its smaller communities of Yantic, Chelsea, Occum, Taftville, Greenville, East Great Plains, Cherry Hill, Laurel Hill, Wawecus and Norwichtown.
Imagine if the residents could write in to the Norwich Bulletin why they are proud of their community, their section of Norwich. Not just at Christmas time but the rest of the year. Take it a step further and perhaps have the hosts of WICH/WCTY spend a small portion of their daily talk shows (OK one day a week in December) taking calls from residents proud of their community, neighborhood or street. What if, the host of a cable talk show invited some of these proud residents a little time for what is good about Norwich and yes how it could be improved. What if a creative advisor to the marketing class at one of the high schools or tech schools or community colleges gave the students this project as an option for community service? Would it be possible for an edited version be made available on the City of Norwich website? Or on the NCDC website? Do you think a creative real estate business could use a positive piece on Norwich on their website to help sell properties in an area? Do you think a business person would find it easier to bring a business into a community that has residents that feel good about themselves?
The professional marketers and politicians of Norwich are having some issues how to best present the city to the world, so is it time for the residents, and the taxpayers of Norwich to show them how it’s done? Send what makes you proud of your neighborhood to the Norwich Bulletin or call into the radio talk shows and tell people why you stay here. Why you choose to raise your family here. Why you pay your taxes here. Why you vote here. Why you live here. Let’s work together to make 2014 the year of Norwich residents!