Working The Weekend

I was working Saturday, but not blogging. Sometimes all my time is spent getting information and writing a story and I run out of time for posting. That was one of those days.
I was too busy trying to find out what happened at Stephanie's Sports Bar in Forestville early Saturday morning.
I'm not the police reporter; I was just working that Saturday. My story about it appeared in the Sunday edition of The Herald Press and online at http://www.bristolpress.com/.
According to the police, there was a big fight at the bar, which is on Central Street next to Nuchies, and three men were apparently stabbed during the fracas. There may have been a gun brandished and shots fired, but no report of anyone shot, the cops said. One of the guys who was stabbed had surgery at Bristol Hospital. That's the last I know of anything. I don't know what happened to him or the other two as the cops didn't even release a name.
Some of my focus in writing about the incident was on Forestville Center, and the impact such a crime would have on that typically quiet little spot.
I never could reach the bar's owner, Steve Coan, whose home phone is unlisted. No one answered at the bar, either.
Dave Pasqualicchio, who owns Nuchies with his brother Mike, had plenty to say. He was furious at the mess he says is consisently left by Stephanie's and its customers. He was worried about the reputation of the village in light of the incident and also, understandably, the impact on his own business next door.
To be clear, Nuchies serves alcohol but is not a bar. It's a banquet facility and caterer and isn't even available for drop in customers as far as I know.
Anyone who knows Dave knows he runs a tight ship there and spends a good deal of time every day picking up litter all over Forestville. His own place is spotless, so off he goes with a bag and picks up trash that thoughtless people cast out of cars and drop along the roadways and in the parks, in and around the center of Forestville and beyond. He's been doing this for years without a lot of recognition, mostly because it just bugs him to see litter and he cares about the community.
He said the police didn't even call him to let him know that there had been a serious incident next door to his building, or that they'd put police tape around it and blocked off his parking lots. When he got to work Saturday morning, they wouldn't even let him enter his building at first. (Nothing happened in his building but apparently the search for evidence had a pretty big radius.)
I lived happily for many years not far from Nuchies and the Manross branch of the Bristol Public Library. That part of Bristol, Forestville, is a nice neighborhood with good businesses and decent people living there. I still like to visit there. It's clean, safe and usually quiet. Dave and the good people at the Forestville Village Association are working hard to keep it that way.

New Boy in Her Life Thrills Chamber Exec

Cindy Scoville, vice president of sales and marketing at the Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce, has good reason to beat a path to Boston these days.

There's a cute new love in her life, grandson Andrew Emerson Scoville, who lives in Beantown.

Fresh from a visit to to see him early this week, Cindy's "too new" at the grandmothering gig to tell me whether she loves it, she told me.

I know she does, though. She's headed back to Boston this weekend, and who could blame her?

Crocodile Club, One Of The Missing Pieces

I wrote two stories about the Crocodile Club for today's edition of The Bristol Press, but I guess there wasn't room for everyone's comments, so in case you're the kind of reader who wants the whole enchilada, here goes:


First-timers joined old “crocodilians” at the Crocodile Club dinner at Lake Compounce Tuesday, rubbing elbows with many of the state’s candidates and reconnecting with old friends.

“It think it’s a grand event,” said Jill Fitzgerald of Bristol, who is the Republican candidate for the state House in the 77th district and attending the dinner for the first time. “I really like it.”

Many of the people there, both candidates and non-candidates, said they enjoyed the friendly, social aspect of the dinner that left serious politics at the door.

“It’s bringing back a lot of memories,” said Bristol City Councilor Ken Cockayne, who said he used to come to the park to watch his late grandfather, Patsy Cistulli, help longtime organizer Stretch Norton with the cooking.

“So far, it’s great,” said Republican Ann Brickley, who is hoping to unseat Congressman John Larson in November and was attending her first dinner.

“This is an excellent crowd,” said state Rep. Betty Boukus, a Plainville Democrat. She said she’s happy that the carousel museum has taken over the dinner and will benefit from it.

Wallace Barnes of Bristol, whose attendance at the Crocodile Club goes back to the 1950s, said he came back early this week from an out of town trip and came to the dinner because he “didn’t want to miss it.”

Thomas Morrow, executive director of the Bristol Community Organization who has attended many Crocodile Club dinners in the past, brought his friend James Gatling of Southington.

“It’s got a rich history,” said Morrow, who said he’s glad that the Crocodile Club dinner now benefits a non-profit agency.

Gatling, who runs a similar agency in Waterbury called New Opportunities, said he didn’t know quite what to expect but was wowed by the number of people there and the fact that politicians from both parties came together in one place.

“I’m really impressed,” Gatling said.

George Sobestanovich of Bristol, who wore a Crocodile Club shirt and hat he bought at the last dinner in 2002, said it was a good afternoon.

"I'm glad they resurrected it," Sobestanovich said. "I hate to see these old traditions fade away."

John Lodovico of Bristol also said he’s glad the club is back, adding that the ballroom at Lake Compounce provided a “very comfortable setting” for the event.

State Sen. Tom Colapietro, a Bristol Democrat, said he saw a lot of friends he hadn’t seen in years. He said he was happy to support the dinner, which was a benefit for the New England Carousel Museum.

“This is non-political,” said Colapietro.

“It’s entertaining,” said Tunxis Community College President Cathryn Addy, who attended the dinner for several years before it ended with the last one in 2002. “I’m happy to see it back.”

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who had a reputation of arriving late and leaving early at the dinner each year, vowed to stay “for the duration” this time, and did.

“It’s a great tradition,” Blumenthal said. “I’m just delighted to be here again.”

Crocodile Club President and host Ray Dunaway pronounced the dinner a success.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever been at an event when Dick Blumenthal stayed till the end,” Dunaway said.

The Crocodile Club was videotaped for later broadcast on CTN.

Press Wants Your Business News

The Bristol Press is looking for briefs on business people to run on Monday in the business section. If you have any promotional items, appointments, awards or photos in jpg form, please email them to business@centralctcommunications.com.

Foley Visits Quality Coils

Tom Foley, the Republian candidate for governor, paid a visit to a Bristol manufacturer yesterday.
Foley, along with his wife Leslie Foley, state Rep. Bill Hamzy, City Councilor Ken Cockayne and state senate candidate Jason Welch, toured Quality Coils Tuesday morning.
I like these kinds of stops by candidates because I get to meet the people who run the factory and hear what things are like for them. I also get to spend a little time with the candidate and his entourage, which is helpful.
At Quality Coils, I spoke with Mike Thiem, the plant manager and company vice president who's been around since the 1970s, and Keith Gibson, one of the three brothers who took over the company, which was founded by their dad, Archibald Gibson.
Mostly I learned from them that the biggest challenge facing the company is the uncertainty of its customers. The customers aren't ordering far in advance, so when they do want to make a purchase, they want the stuff right away. That means that if they want the business, they need trained people on staff, ready to make the products, which are all custom made. But without knowing what orders might be coming in the future, it's hard to plan. They've rehired and now have a larger payroll than when the recession started, but there's still a lot of uncertainty.
I also learned that Hamzy spent a summer working at Quality Coils a number of years ago.
I wrote about the visit for The Bristol Press. The story's online now at http://www.bristolpress.com/.

Crocodile Club 2010

It was a great time and a huge success for the New England Carousel Museum.
I'll have more to say, I promise, but it was also a long, hot day and I'll post about it Wednesday. I wrote stories for The Bristol Press, and they should be in Wednesday's paper or online at http://www.bristolpress.com/, but I'll have other bits to share here as well.

Extra B.S. Exclusive: Original Crocodile Club Lyrics By Wallace Barnes

One of my favorite Bristol people is Wallace Barnes. I know him pretty well, but he still surprises me with his stories and recently, he shared one about the Crocodile Club that I can share with the readers of Extra B.S.

In 1954, at the tender age of 26, Wally ran against Tom Dodd (Chris Dodd's dad) for Congress in the First District. Our man from the Mum City "lost big time," as he put it, but had a lot of fun in the process.

In fact, he said, he was "infected by a lifetime case of 'politicicis.'"

A highlight of the race, he told me, was attending the Crocodile Club and performing a song at the event on the ukelele. He wrote the lyrics, set to the tune of "Five Foot Two."

It was, he told me, "one of the limited number of tunes I could play."

Now for your Extra B.S. exclusive,which I saved for right before the Crocodile Club.

Here are the lyrics, published with permission from the ukelele-playing Wally Barnes himself:

"Out in Bristol, by a clear cool lake

Every year there's a big sheep bake

They named it after a crocodile.

 

Gad Norton's plan was not too deep

He approached the boys who liked roast sheep

And they all ate like crocodiles!

 

Now, whether this tale is false or true

Is very hard to say.
But the Good Lord wasn't too dismayed
'cause the sun always shines on Crocodile Day.

 

So, eat the sheep, enjoy the fun
And doze away while the speeches run
Today we all are crocodiles."