Shannon Hicks

Sandy Hook

daughter, sister, aunt, wife, friend, master photographer, newspaper editor, Jeep driver, cancer survivor and proud volunteer firefighter

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Articles

Interfaith Council’s Seder Enjoyed By 40+ Guests

5 days ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

One week before Jews around the world began their annual festival to celebrate the exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, nearly 40 people gathered in The Great Room of Newtown Congregational Church for a Seder presented by Newtown Interfaith Council (NIC). Guests of all ages, ranging from a table of young adults to tables of adults and senior citizens, listened and joined local leaders of faith while they explained and then observed the steps of a Seder during the April 6 event.
Bethel Man Arrested After Driving Wrong Way On I-84, Crashing Into Tractor-Trailer In Newtown

1 week ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

A Bethel man was arrested on three charges early Saturday morning after he crashed his vehicle into another vehicle while traveling in the wrong direction on I-84 in Newtown. It was the latest wrong way crash in Connecticut, where similar crashes have been growing exponentially in recent years. Connecticut State Police responded to I-84 West between Exits 10 and 11 around 2 am April 12 after being alerted to a crash in that area.
Brightening The World, Two Minutes At A Time: The Heart Speak Project

1 month ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

John Bobowski and his partners are on a mission to share life-changing stories. “We’ve figured out that people’s lives have magic in them,” he said recently. “Everyone has a story that’s full of magic, some wonder, some incredible event that took place in their life that’s either changed them, or inspired them, and from that we can conclude that the world is full of abundance. “There’s an abundance of joy,” he continued.
Loss Of Federal Funding For Umbrella Nonprofit Means Local Refugee Resettlement Efforts Also Slowed

1 month ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

The trickle-down effect of some of President Trump’s first actions after returning to office two months ago has reached Newtown. Soon after his swearing in on January 20, Trump halted the resettlement of refugees from overseas indefinitely as part of his broad immigration crackdown. A letter issued by the US State Department that week suspended funding to groups that assist refugees with housing, job placement, and other needs as part of a broad pause on aid, according to Reuters.
FONS Receives CT Humanities Grant Toward ‘Timeless Newtown’ Programming

1 month ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

Friends Of Newtown Seniors (FONS) has received a grant from the state’s affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to put toward expenses for a pivotal One Town One Read program tied in to the recently launched “Timeless Newtown” series. “Timeless Newtown: Embracing Every Generation” is a series organizers hope will break through stereotypes and destructive thinking toward aging and the elderly. There are three areas of focus for the year-long series.
Newtown Resident Named A CT Arts Awards Arts Hero

1 month ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

A very familiar name will be among those called on April 2 when CT Arts Awards celebrates its Connecticut Arts Heroes Class of 2024. Newtown Cultural Arts Commission Chair (NCAC) and Newtown Choral Society President Laura Lerman has been announced as one of nine people who are “doing inspiring things in, for or through the arts in Connecticut,” according to CT Arts Awards.
PGA Establishes Dan Baker PGA Jr League Endowment

1 month ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

The late Dan Baker will serve as an inspiring reminder of what it means to dedicate oneself to a passion. For Baker, that passion was golf and it is in his memory the PGA has established a junior league in his name in West Palm Beach, Florida. A Newtown native, Baker died in a car crash December 13 in Florida. He was 58 years old. He worked for The PGA of America from 2007 until April 2024.
The ABCs Of Newtown: Q Is For Queen Street

1 month ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

“The ABCs of Newtown” is a series tying each letter of the alphabet to something in Newtown. This week we continue with a look at a road near the center of town named for a woman who is often overlooked by historians yet celebrated for changing the English monarchy. Queen Street is a (generally) north-south run that runs parallel to a section of South Main Street.
Tough Talk Over Lunch: What Is Social Isolation And Why Does It Need To Be Addressed?

2 months ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

The approximately 30 attendees of a presentation at Newtown Senior Center learned recently that social isolation of older residents of most communities is a big concern. According to data shared during “Where’s Waldo: There Are No Strangers, Just Friends You Haven’t Met Yet,” 25% of those age 65 and older are considered socially isolated. Further, 37% of those ages 50-80 experience loneliness and 34% feel socially isolated.
Wall Fire Temporarily Closes South Main Street Eatery

2 months ago | newtownbee.com | Shannon Hicks

All five of Newtown’s fire companies were dispatched to a local restaurant last Friday night after a ventless gas fireplace malfunctioned, caused a fire, and filled the space with heavy smoke. Damage could have been much worse if firefighters had not located and doused the fire as quickly as they did.