From the Desk of Martha Shoemaker, First Selectwoman

This has been an exciting week in Old Lyme. I feel like we should have a town crier on the front lawn announcing all the positive news!

Congratulations are in order for our Harbor Master, Matt Lynch, who was recognized with the Woody Pollack Memorial Life Saving Award at the BoatUS conference and in BoatUS Magazine. Matt responded to a distress call on the Connecticut River this past June. We also want to congratulate Police Officer Stephen Hackett on his graduation from D.A.R.E. training this morning. We look forward to having Officer Hackett work with our Region 18 students implementing this curriculum. 

I had the honor of speaking to the Mile Creek Elementary School third graders this week. On Wednesday morning I met with students in the cafeteria to discuss town government as part of their social studies curriculum. Using the town organization chart, I explained how our elected officials work with our appointed volunteers on the various Boards, Commissions and Committees. The students had excellent questions and were very interested in how they can help our community as young residents. A special thanks to Erin Kennedy and Karen Butler for inviting me. I loved being back in school - I was an elementary school teacher for 35 years.

The Board of Selectmen had the honor of welcoming the Alkhalawi Family at their meeting on February 5th. They are new to town and being sponsored by the Refugee Resettlement Committee. Mahmoud and Fadia have three children Mohamoud, Ibrahim and Achmed. We welcome them to Old Lyme and look forward to helping them whenever we can.

Yesterday, Anita Mancini, Finance Director, and I were at the Council of Small Towns Conference (COST). We had the opportunity to learn about new grant opportunities for small towns and the legislative issues that COST will be prioritizing during the short session. This allowed me to connect with some of our current vendors.

RiverCOG published their Household Hazardous Waste and Paper Shredding schedule for 2024. We have made a few paper copies for the public and they can be found on the table outside the meeting hall. This will be helpful in planning your spring-cleaning schedules. CWPM, our contracted trash and recycling hauler, has updated the trash and recycling pick-up routes. 

Please take note that our Police Department is looking to hire for their beach Ranger program.

I hope you are all looking forward to the weekend ahead. If you want to start your Sunday off with a great breakfast, the LIONS Club will be serving up pancakes at the high school from 8-11:30am. Superbowl Sunday always means wings and appetizers at the Shoemaker household.  I hope you all enjoy the game!

All my best, 
Martha