Reclaiming the North End of Harbor Park, Sat. May 30, 8 a.m.

Learn about invasive plants while we remove them from a prime Middletown location. The Jonah Center calls for volunteers to help with this unique partnership opportunity that is closely related to our own mission.

Lunch and BBQ included. To make sure we have enough food, it is important that we know who is coming by Tuesday the 26th. Please reply to Lisa Santangelo at enws@comcast.net

Below are the background and details.

The Lions Club and crews from The Connection's AIC (Judicial Branch Community Service Work Crews) will be cleaning up the historic north end of Harbor Park. Japanese knot weed, Japanese sumac, bittersweet and other invasive plants have taken over the fencing and shoulder of the northern most 600 feet of the park. This screening from public view has attracted activities inconsistent with the stated "Waterfront Mission" which includes "A waterfront that serves as a focal point of community activities for people of all ages and interests throughout the year." and "Increased public awareness of the region's River-related culture and history." This area was once the landing for the ferry-boat that commerce between Middletown and Portland and the steamboat that took residents to Hartford and New York City.

Volunteers should wear long pants and shirts with long sleeves and gloves. Note that there is poison ivy in the area, so people who are highly allergic should not participate in this work day. Sun screen and sun glasses are recommended, as well as alcohol-containing hand gel to remove any plant oils we may contact.

Since we will be cutting, trimming and raking, volunteers are asked to bring clippers (short and long handled), small saws (hand, bow or sling) and rakes. (Make sure to mark your tools.) We will have coffee and donuts at 8:00, then do a sweep of the litter before the crews arrive with the heavy tools between 8:15 and 8:30. A box lunch will be served at 12:00. We will finish the day with a BBQ around 3:30 or 4.

Friday Night Hoops

Last night, about 200 kids, parents, community members and teachers came out to Donovan Park for the first North End Nights Basketball Tournament, hosted by Macdonough School and the North End Action Team. The games were serious but friendly, the hot dogs were cooked to perfection, thanks to the grilling skills of Deputy Police Chief, Pat McMahon and the expertise of Elsie Arnold and Laura Hall, and everyone had a great time. It was a perfect night. In fact, it was such a success, that we've decided to run these once a month throughout the summer. Mark your calendar for the third Friday in June. 6:00 pm.

Thanks to the Park and Rec department for supplying the hoops, the city for supplying the grill and Macdonough for the support. And, especially to all of the great kids and families who came out to enjoy one of the nicest evenings of the year so far. Here is a slideshow of pictures for you to enjoy.

GREEN FEST SUNDAY

There is a wonderful FREE event happening at Middlesex Community College this Sunday, May 17. The Middlesex County Libraries are presenting a GREENFEST from 1 pm to 4 pm as part of the "Greening Our Valley" initiative.The Festival is sponsored by the Connecticut Library Consortium and the Middlesex County Community Foundation. There will be preformances and vendors and a presentation by NEAT community gardner, Patrice Barret.

There will be all kinds of activities, giveaways, and discussions on green living, and the Artfarm Circus for a Fragile Planet goes on at 3 pm. Check out www.greeningourvalley.org for more info! Hope to see you there. All ages are welcome!

BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT AND BLOCK PARTY AT DONOVAN PARK: TONIGHT!

Tonight, Friday, May 15th, we will be hosting a very fun, very informal basketball tournament at the park. This isn't about impressing people with your skill, it's about having fun with your neighbors. So, bring a friend, a kid, a spouse.

Walk on down to the park. Play some b-ball. Eat a hot dog, we'll be cooking out. Bring a blanket and just lie out in the grass. This is a time for fun.

Over the last few years, NEAT has become involved in issues around Donovan Park (click here for directions). Something that has come up over and over again is that people just need to USE the park more. So here's your chance. If you want to sign up, though, email neat (neat@neatmiddletown.org) or call 346-4845.

We'll take any single person and put you on a team, or you could sign up as a team of three. Any age, size, gender-- anyone. C'mon North Enders (and everyone else!), we need to start enjoying this amazing space in the middle of our neighborhood!

Snap, Crackle, Pop!!

Snap, Crackle, Pop! is a percussive dance collaboration featuring students from the Green Street Arts Center after school program and Wesleyan University. Performance includes tap, step, breakdancing, Appalachian clog, and sword dancing. The show is Monday, May 11 at 7pm in Wesleyan's Crowell Concert Hall. Admission is free and there will be no tickets, so make sure to get there early to guarantee your seat! Contact Alex at 615-289-1057 or ahartley@wesleyan.edu with questions.

Lots of North End kids doing great things, come out and support them!

Basketball Tournament Postponed

Friday night's basketball tournament at Donovan Park will be postponed until next Friday, May 15th because of safety concerns.
Please come next week!
If you'd like to sign up to play, email NEAT at neat@neatmiddletown.org.
6:00-7:30 pm.

NEAT AND MACDONOUGH HOST BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT AND FAMILY NIGHT AT DONOVAN PARK

On Friday evening, May 15th, NEAT will be hosting a very fun, very informal basketball tournament at Donovan Park. This isn't about impressing people with your skill, it's about having fun with your neighbors. So, bring a friend, a kid, a spouse. Walk on down to the park. Play some b-ball. Eat a hot dog, we'll be cooking out. Bring a blanket and just lie out in the grass. This is a time for springtime fun.

Over the last few years, NEAT has become involved in sprucing up Donovan Park (the park next to Macdonough School). Something that has come up over and over again is that people just need to USE the park more. So here's your chance.

If you want to sign up, email NEAT (neat@neatmiddletown.org) or call 346-4845. We'll take any single person and put you on a team, or you could sign up as a team of three. Any age, size, gender-- anyone.

Or just come down and enjoy the evening.

C'mon North Enders (and everyone else!), we need to start enjoying this amazing space in the middle of our neighborhood!

Raising Healthy Kids

Raising Kids Isn't Easy is back, and with a new project. Did you miss our Community Meetings? Well here is your chance to add your option about Middletown!

We are talking to parents about
• Early Education
• Health Care
• Support for Family’s

Spotlight on Families will be on air on Comcast Access Channel

As a thank you for your generous support, you will be receiving dinner, childcare, and your choice of a gift card or a gas card.

Please contact Marilyn Dunkley 759-2945
Beverly Lawrence 759-2894
Dates: May 1st, 2009 - Friday
May 8th 2009 - Friday

Sponsored by, Middlesex Coalition for Children.

Green Street Mural Project

The Green Street Arts Center is launching the Green Street Community Mural Project, an eighteen month-long art program that will culminate in a large public mural, to be installed in the spring of 2009 on the corner of Main and Green Streets in the North End. The Green Street Community Mural Project is made possible by a $10,000 grant from Citizens Bank and the Citizens Bank Foundation, who are the project’s lead sponsors.

Led by mural artist Marela Zacarias, the project’s participants are a diverse group of Middletown children, their families, professional artists, Wesleyan students, and other community members. A core group of students in Green Street’s Afterschool Program will work with the artists on the project regularly.

The primary goal of the Green Street Community Mural Project will be obvious to every driver and pedestrian who passes Green Street. According to Zacarias, “This mural will brighten Main Street with the colorful art of our students. It will also help to raise awareness of the wonderful activities that the Green Arts Center offers for the Middletown community.”

Over the summer of 2008, themes were finalized and designs drawn up by current Green Street students. In the words of Ms. Zacarias, “The ideas for the murals come from a variety of sources: The group that I work with (in this case, ten 4th graders), the wall and its particular characteristics (location, size, windows, etc), and my own artistic interpretation. Sometimes I feel like a channeling device: All the information comes through me and it comes out as visual images on a wall.”

The advance work of the Mural Project crew wrapped up last fall and this winter is the execution. This entails priming, painting, and sealing plywood panels that are to be permanently screwed into the brick on the north side of the building at the intersection of Main and Green Streets.

An important objective of the project lies, not just in the finished product, but in the process. The Green Street Community Mural Project intends to provide hands-on artistic and civic education to young people who desperately need both—like the ones who first sparked an idea in the mind of Green Street Artistic Director Janis Astor del Valle in autumn of 2007.

According to Astor, the seed of the Mural Project was planted by a group of young vandals. The Middletown Press ran an article about the teens, who had been arrested in Middletown for graffiti in public spaces. Recalling TATS CRU, a group of Bronx-based professional muralists whose work in aerosol changed the perception of graffiti as art and who she’d met while working at a youth development organization in the Bronx, Astor felt inspired to approach the Middletown Youth Services Bureau’s David Blumenkrantz and Justin Carbonella. Thus the Community Mural Project was born, charged with the mission of channeling the youngsters’ creativity from blight into beauty.

The final unveiling will take place at the annual Green Street Arts Festival in June 2009.

About Marela Zacarias
Zacarias graduated from Kenyon College with a major in Social Movements through Art and Religion. She did her thesis on Mural Art as a Tool for Social Change, and has gone on to teach mural art in Washington, DC, Mexico City and she is now teaching in New Britain and Hartford, Conn. Since graduation in May of 2000, she has become a recognized artist, having painted more than a dozen murals in the United States and Mexico.

Visit http://marela.org/ for more information.

About the Green Street Arts Center
Wesleyan University’s Green Street Arts Center, which opened in January 2005, is a vibrant center for arts education, serving residents of the neighborhood and the region. It is a project of Wesleyan University in collaboration with the City of Middletown and the North End Action Team (NEAT). Programming in the former schoolhouse at 51 Green Street includes an afterschool arts education program and a wide range of affordable classes and workshops for children and adults in music, dance, visual arts, theater, sound recording, media arts and creative writing. Visit http://www.greenstreetartscenter.org/ for more information about Wesleyan’s Green Street Arts Center.

Clarification on Today's Middletown Press Article

Dear Friends,

An article published in today’s Middletown Press (DARE Program Slashed From Proposed Budget) wrongly took words that were not mine and attributed them to me.

In the article, it appears as though I was speaking about tonight’s city budget hearing. In fact, I was not interviewed for the story. The information attributed to me was actually taken from an email I received (and forwarded to NEAT’s members) from Dic Wheeler, of Artfarm.

I do believe that it is important that people come out and speak about the proposed budget, but NEAT’s positions is slightly different from Artfarm’s. I’d like to take a minute to explain our positions.

NEAT is most concerned about funding to the Summer Arts Programming and the City's Matching Grant Program.

As for summer arts, families that live in the North End would be most affected by any changes to the sliding scale that is offered for summer arts programming. Many North End kids take part in those programs, run through the city Arts Office (including the Summer Circus), and wouldn't be able to if not for the financial aid that is offered. For many parents, the summer program is the only affordable option, giving kids a chance to participate in summer programming, and parents a way to work. It must be maintained.

Additionally, NEAT receives funding through the Middletown Commission on the Arts and the Youth Services Bureau for our Arts in the Garden Series and our Youth Leadership Initiative. If the matching grants and after school challenge grants ratio is changed to 4:1, small organizations like NEAT (there are a lot of us in Middletown!) would be unable to participate, leaving some effective, well-deserving programs unfunded.

I do urge each of you to come out to support the much-deserving groups in Middletown that are working hard to ensure that every city child has access to quality arts programming. And, though it wasn't my idea, I encourage you to show your unity and wear red.

Thank You,
Izzi Greenberg
Executive Director
North End Action Team (NEAT)

North End Clean Up a Success

It was a great day in the North End on Saturday where 150 people volunteered to do some spring cleaning. There were volunteers from the NEAT/Wesleyan Mentoring Program, Earth Ministries out of First Church, the Middletown Garden Club, and a group of youth doing a "30 Hour Famine" from East Hampton and Haddam. There were also other individuals from Middletown who came in to lend a hand as individuals. Residents got a chance to work alongside Dan Drew, who is running for Mayor this year, and Councilman Santangelo, who is a North End resident. Even the kids had fun working alongside the principal from Macdonough School, Jon Romeo, who spent hours helping out at the Erin Street Garden.

Most importantly, though, were the many residents who organized the day, spread the word to their neighbors, and went door to door, helping to clean the sidewalks and yards of their neighbors. It was a great event that helped the community, but more importantly, helped to build community.

Here's a slideshow of some of the people that were out that day. I'm sorry I didn't make it to all corners of the neighborhood with my camera....there were some great scenes to be seen...

A big thanks to Sherwin Williams Paint in Cromwell for donating supplies, to Kim O'Rourke and the City of Middletown for picking up the extra trash and helping with logistics, to Dominoes, Sammy's Pizza, Alpha Pizza House, and Jerry's for donating Pizza for the Lunch, and to all of those who came out to help.

North End PRIDE Day This Saturday!

The North End Action Team (NEAT)has organized a neighborhood clean up day, tomorrow, Saturday, April 25th from 9-3. Residents and volunteers are invited to spruce up common spaces in Middletown’s North End neighborhood or to just walk outside and start sweeping. The North End will unite for a block-by-block neighborhood clean up effort, picking up trash, cleaning out flower boxes, preparing the Erin Street Community garden for spring planting and more.

Resident leaders of NEAT are organizing Pride Day as a way to get more people involved to make visible improvements along with their neighbors. Pride Day will provide a great opportunity for people to get involved for the first time or continue to show commitment to the neighborhood.

A major component of Pride Day is the cooperation of local groups, including the Jonah Center and Earth Ministries, along with NEAT. Volunteers from partner organizations will work side by side with residents, distributing tools and water and helping collect bags of garbage and recyclables.

To celebrate the day’s hard work, NEAT will hold a Unity Pride Pizza party in the Erin Street Community garden at 1:00 pm.

I hope you'll join us!

You can meet at the Erin Street Community Garden from 9-3 or in the parking lot of the Green Street Arts Center from 9-10.

Call NEAT for more info: 346-4845

NEAT HIKING CLUB

Mark your SUMMER 2009 calendars

Saturday, April 25th: 1/2 day Manchester: Orienteering class on blue trail & NEAT's Earth Day/ PRIDE Clean up Day in the afternoon

Sunday, May 17th: 3/4 day Huebline Tower

Saturday, June 6th: 1/2 day Chauncey Peak and Lamentation

Sunday, June 28th: 1/2 day Devil's Hopyard

Saturday, July 18th: 3/4 day Sleeping Giant

Sunday, August 9th: full day Bear Mountain

August 28th - August 30th: Overnight trip to Mt. Cardigan (more information will be distributed prior to the trip)

Saturday, September 19th: 1/2 day Castle Craig

Sunday, October 11th: TBD


All hikes will begin at 8:00 a.m. and meet in the parking lot of Green Street Arts center. Please call to register for each hike.
Be sure to bring a backpack and wear good hiking shoes for each hike. If you don't have those things, let us know and we may have extras.

LIBERTY BANK FOUNDATION DONATES $2,500 to North End Action Team

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MIDDLETOWN, CT— The Liberty Bank Foundation has awarded a $2,500 grant to the North End Action Team to support the Neighborhood Leadership Project.

"NEAT is so excited that in these hard economic times, Liberty Bank is continuing to support the small projects that make a difference. NEAT doesn't do glamorous work, but we're making important changes in the lives of the people in the North End. It's wonderful to have a community partner who recognizes that leadership development is worth supporting, even if it is not quick and easy. The type of change we are creating together is sustainable, and that is the difference."

Liberty Bank is pleased to support the continuing work of NEAT. Building strong

leadership is critical to a strong organization. A strong organization will lead to a stronger

community and enhance the quality of life for its citizens.

Since its inception in 1997, the Liberty Bank Foundation has provided over $5.1 million in grants to non-profit organizations within Liberty Bank’s market area. The foundation seeks to improve the quality of life for people of low or moderate income by investing in preventive programming for children and families, and in non-profit capacity building. In addition, the foundation is providing support to address basic human needs during these difficult economic times. Along with its grant making, the foundation strives to foster the convening and collaboration of non-profits, funders, business, and government to address community issues.

The North End Action Team is a grassroots neighborhood advocacy group Focused upon the revitalization of Middletown’s North End neighborhood. NEAT’s mission is to promote indigenous leadership, opportunity for children And families, public safety and code enforcement, improved affordable housing, homeownership and positive economic development.

Established in 1825, Liberty Bank is Connecticut’s oldest mutual bank, with more than $2.8 billion in assets and 35 banking offices throughout the central, eastern, and shoreline areas of the state. As a full-service financial institution, it offers consumer and commercial banking, home mortgages, insurance, and investment services. Rated outstanding by federal regulators on its community reinvestment efforts, Liberty maintains a longstanding commitment to superior personal service and unparalleled community involvement.

Local Teens Raise Funds for Green Street Arts Center

Confirmation Class’s Bake-sale a Success

Middletown, Conn., April 17, 2009 – On March 19, members of St. John Roman Catholic Church’s confirmation class presented Green Street Arts Center Artistic Director Janis Astor del Valle a $440 donation. The group of local high school freshman had raised that amount at a bake-sale held on February 13 and 14 at St. John Church, Middletown. Students, their parents, and parishioners volunteered many bake-sale items that yielded a significant donation for Green Street. Several of the students had volunteered or known volunteers at the Center, and agreed it was a worthwhile cause for their group service project.

Students in the class will be confirmed at 10am mass on Sunday, April 19, at St. John Church. Monsignor Bride will preside over the service.

“This group of young adults has grown spiritually over the past year preparing for Confirmation. They understand they are now a part of a larger community and that what they do matters. They’ve learned that giving can be as rewarding as receiving.”—Terri Zampini, St. John Confirmation Class Leader

About St. John Church
St. John Roman Catholic Church was founded in Middletown in 1843, and is located at 19 St. John Square in Middletown. Sunday masses begin at 8 and 10 am. For more information call (860) 347 5636 or visit http://stjohnchurchmiddletown.com

About the Green Street Arts Center
Wesleyan University’s Green Street Arts Center, which opened in January 2005, is a vibrant center for arts education, serving residents of the neighborhood and the region. It is a project of Wesleyan University in collaboration with the City of Middletown and the North End Action Team (NEAT). Programming in the former schoolhouse at 51 Green Street includes an afterschool arts education program and a wide range of affordable classes and workshops for children and adults in music, dance, visual arts, theater, sound recording, media arts and creative writing. Visit http://www.greenstreetartscenter.org/ for more information about Wesleyan’s Green Street Arts Center.

Housing Workshop April 20

YOU MAY BE ABLE TO IMPROVE YOUR HOUSING!

H.O.P.E, Inc., in partnership with the North End Action Team and Liberty Bank are hosting a housing forum to help anyone and everyone improve their housing situation.

If you:

Own a home and just want to reign in your spending,

Improve your credit or refinance your mortgage,

Rent and want to learn more about your rights,

Are thinking about buying a home and want more information about preparing your credit or becoming eligible for first-time buyer programs,

Own a home and are struggling to make ends meet,Are worried about foreclosure or eviction,

Just want to improve your credit score for your future,

Or, just want to learn more...

You are invited to Free Foreclosure-Prevention and Homeownership Counselling Workshop on April 20th at Cross St. Church at 440 West St. in Middletown.

Panel discussion/forum to connect residents with lenders, counselors, and other experts to begin to clarify the homeownership process and take steps to improve their current situation.

Tenants, residents and homeowners will all benefit from this forum. All are welcome. This event is FREE. This is a collaborative effort to address and inform our community of their options for:

Housing opportunities

How to save Your Home (Understanding Foreclosure process and your rights)

Renter's rights Tighten the Belt ( Budget & Credit issues) and more!

WHERE:
Cross Street Church, Middletown

WHEN:
Monday, April 20th from 5:30-8:30 pm (5:30-6:00: information tables, 6:00-7:30: panel discussion, 7:30-8:30: breakout sessions with individual speakers)
Childcare will be provided, please call NEAT for more information. 346-4845.

NEAT NEWS

NEAT NEWS, our newsletter has been printed. We have some wonderful volunteers that will be distributing the NEAT NEWS all over the neighborhood this weekend. There are interesting articles about the up coming events, how to report a "HOT SPOT" anonymously, and town news that effects the North End. If you live in the North End and have not received a newsletter by Tuesday, please call NEAT at 346-4845 and we will get you a copy.

Senator Dodd Visits the North End

Today, North End businesses met with Senator Dodd at the NEAT office on Main St. to talk about small business issues. The conversation was geared toward problems of perception, parking and transit/traffic. After talking, the group toured Main St. and visited Little Tibet. The senator will be returning to tour again and see the businesses firsthand.

BLOCK BY BLOCK COMMITTEE DISCUSSES PRIDE DAY

Members of the Block by Block committee met Wednesday, April 1 at the NEAT office to discuss details for the PRIDE DAY CLEAN UP. Members are taking a leadership role in organizing the PRIDE DAY CLEAN UP and will be passing out flyers around the North End to invite everyone to help out on PRIDE DAY, April 25.

Much help is needed both on April 25 and before. NEAT is looking for a few more “block captains”. Block captains will help by handing out flyers, encouraging neighbors to help clean up on April 25, and helping make sure volunteers get cleaning items on PRIDE DAY. Volunteers are also needed to help clean neighborhoods, gardens, and parks. No experience is necessary for either job, just the willingness to help out. Please call NEAT at 860-346-4845 for more details.

The Block by Block Committee was formed for members to take greater ownership of their neighborhoods. The committee discusses ways to make the area cleaner and safer. They meet the first Wednesday of every month at 5:30 at the NEAT office. Anyone who is interested in being a part of this group, please come to a meeting and see how you can help. Please call or email NEAT ahead to confirm the meeting will be held at this time and location. NEAT’s phone number is 860-346-4845 and the email is neat@neatmiddletown.org

Homeownership Classes in April

Time Homeowner and Credit Counseling with Rosa Carrero of Liberty Bank
WEDNESDAYS, April 1, 8, 15, 22
6:30 to 8pm | FREE
Rosa Carrero from Liberty Bank presents four info sessions designed to help people take the first steps toward buying a home. Topics include credit counseling (Session 1), finding the right home (Session 2), the lending process (Session 3) and understanding legalities (Session 4). Participants in all four will receive a certificate of completion that meets one eligibility requirement for The City Of Middletown grant and down payment assistance, CHFA and CHFA down payment assistance programs.

Computer Basics with Shawn Hill
WEDNESDAYS, May 6, 13, 20, 27
6:30 to 8pm | FREE
The North End Action Team and Green Street Arts Center will offer a short, free introduction to computer basics. In four classes over four weeks, you will learn how to create Microsoft Word documents (resumes, cover letters, email attachments) and explore the possibilities of creating household or small business budgets and lists using Microsoft Excel. By the time you have completed all four sessions, you will have the building blocks needed for adding a new skill set to a job application, or for organizing your household finances. People with all levels of computer experience, from absolute beginners and up, are welcome.
*Don't worry if you've missed any, you can make them up at any time.

For more information, or to register in advance, please call the North End Action Team at (860) 346-4845. NEAT will provide child care during Homeownership classes. Please be sure to mention whether your child or children will be attending when you register.

Get Ready for Pride Day

We are continuing to get ready for Pride Day 2009 which will be April 25th, 9 am to 3 pm. Get ready to spruce up the neighborhood. Flyers will be distributed soon. There will be a Block by Block Meeting at the NEAT office on Wednesday, April 1st from 5:30 to 7:00 if anyone is interested in getting involved. Call NEAT office for more information at 860-346-4845.

Rep. Serra and State Senator Doyle Visit Macdonough

Yesterday, State Senator Paul Doyle and Representative Joe Serra visited Macdonough to present a proclamation from the CT General Assembly to the students and teachers of the school for their remarkable achievement gains. Congratulations!

Oddfellows Recession Special

Oddfellows Playhouse is currently taking registrations for Spring "Complete Actor" classes and are offering a "register a friend" special.
How does it work?
1) Register your child in one of the Complete Actor Classes (ages 6-14)
2) Tell a friend about the cool class you signed up for.
4) When your friend calls Oddfellows to register, make sure they mention your name!
3) Receive $10 off your tuition (if you have paid the full tuition already, you will receive a $10 refund)
4) Take your friend out for Ice Cream

If you have questions OR to register, call the Playhouse at (860) 347-6143

North End Pride Day

On April 25th, Starting at 9AM, NEAT will be hosting the North End PRIDE Clean up day. This is a great day to make the neighborhood beautiful for the spring, to connect with friends and neighbor, and shake off the dust of winter. If you know anyone who can't do their own yard work, it is a great day to offer to help. It's a time to plant, and if you've planted, a time to rake. It will also be the ground breaking day for the Erin Street Community Garden, so come out and join the community coming into spring.

NEAT Community Gardener in Workshop

As spring approaches, The Jonah Center for Earth and Art invites the public to learn about Eco-Friendly Yard Care and Gardening on Tuesday, March 24, 7 – 8:30 p.m., at First Church of Christ, Congregational (UCC), 190 Court Street, in Middletown.

The evening’s speakers will offer short presentations on Growing An Organic and Healthy Lawn; Alternatives to Lawns; Starting A Vegetable Garden; and Using Edibles in Your Landscape. There will be a time for questions, and the speakers will be available after the program to answer individual questions.

Eco-friendly yard landscaping supplies and products will be on display and for sale by Agway; Home Depot; Natureworks; the Connecticut Chapter of the Northeast Organic Farmers Association (CT-NOFA), City of Middletown Recycling Office and Project Green Lawn, Connecticut River and Coastal Conservation District; and the Jonah Center.

The panelists include Susan Holland from Natureworks, Bill Duessing from CT-NOFA, Patrice Barrett, Community Garden Coordinator for the North End Action Team (NEAT); and Vivian Felten from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

For more information call the Jonah Center at (860) 346-6657 ext 13.

DANIEL SALAZAR at Green Street

Concert Rescheduled From Last December
Middletown, Conn, March 3, 2009– The virtuoso guitarist Daniel Salazar will venture to Wesleyan’s Green Street Arts Center for finale of the Latino Voices Series. In his continued effort to expand the guitar’s repertoire, and influenced by various musical forms, including traditional and popular Latin American music, Spanish flamenco and even American Rock, Daniel has developed a new musical style that features the classical guitar combined with an ensemble of guitars, bass, keyboards, Latin percussion and orchestral instruments. The result is an exciting, original contemporary sound which displays Salazar’s virtuosity.

Daniel Salazar will perform on Friday, March 13, 2009 at 8pm. The event begins with a potluck reception at 7:00. Tickets are $10 general admission, $8 for seniors, students, and Green Street Members. Green Street Arts Center is located at 51 Green Street, Middletown, CT. For more information, please visit: www.greenstreetartscenter.org or call (860) 685-7871.

“Truly brilliant…Salazar’s interpretation was beyond words.” – The Malta Independent

About Daniel Salazar
Daniel Salazar has appeared in many prestigious venues, including Liechtenstein Palace in Prague, the Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw, Wienawski Hall in Poznan, the Artist’s Palace in Vilnius, the Minsk Academy of Music, the Museum of Fine Arts in Malta, the Instituto de Bellas Artes in Morelia, Mexico and many others. Having had the distinction of being selected, from a nationwide search, as United States Artistic Ambassador, Daniel has toured Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, where his playing has been enjoyed by international audiences through performances on television and radio in ten countries.

For more information, visit http://www.danielsalazar.com/

MACDONOUGH CELEBRATES ITS SUCCESS/Dr. Seuss's Birthday!

Friday was Read Across America Day and at Macdonough School it was a great excuse to celebrate Dr. Seuss's Birthday!

I was a guest reader in Mrs. Waterman's(NEAT board member) third grade class and got to read Bartholomew and the Oobleck...definitely a treat.

After reading adult, kids and guest dignitaries went down to the gym for the school's monthly assembly to recognize students and faculty. This month was special, though, because representatives from ConnCAN, a statewide education group, were in attendance to present the school with a wonderful award. Macdonough School is one of number three school in the state in achievement gains and is considered a "Success Story" school. You can click here to watch a video about the school (which features three NEAT members!) or, click these links to read about this week's celebration at Macdonough School in the Middletown Press and the Hartford Courant.

Snow Ban in Effect and Sidewalk Reminder

The City of Middletown has a snow ban in effect from 6:00 pm, March 1st until further notice.
We've posted the snow ban info before, but please remember, if your car is preventing the snow plows from properly cleaning the street, it will be ticketed and could be towed.

Also, as a reminder, city ordinance requires you to shovel any sidewalk in front of your property no later than 24 hours after a snowfall. Please be considerate of your neighbors and shovel and/or salt your sidewalk.

If you are unable to shovel because of physical limitations, please call NEAT and we may be able to find help for you.

Or, if you are a renter and your property owner is not clearing the sidewalks, please let NEAT know so that we may inform the city Sidewalk Inspector.

Thank You.

French Women Don’t Sleep Alone: a Book Reading & Signing with Jamie Cat Callan

Relationship and Romance Expert Signs Copies of Her Forthcoming Book
Middletown, Conn, February 26, 2009—Author Jamie Cat Callan hosts a delicious evening at Wesleyan’s Green Street Arts Center in which she will take us on a personalized, guided tour through the corridors of French love. Callan’s French Women Don't Sleep Alone: Pleasurable Secrets to Finding Love is a feel-good book about relationships that will dramatically change women’s approach to men and dating. Discover the secrets to: why French women always feel sexy; the French art of flirtation; why French women walk everywhere and love to be seen; where French women meet men; what French women do when their man misbehaves.

Callan’s appearance takes place at the Green Street Arts Center on Thursday, March 5 from 7–9pm. Admission is $5 for the general public and $3 for Green Street members. Broad Street books will have books available for purchase. The Green Street Arts Center is located at 51 Green Street, Middletown, CT. To make reservations or get more information, please visit: www.greenstreetartscenter.org or call (860) 685-7871.

“Adorable!”—Erica Jong, New York Times bestselling author of Fear of Flying and Fear of Fifty on French Women Don’t Sleep Alone

Jamie Cat Callan grew up under the tutelage of her French grandmother who taught her the secrets to how French women find and keep love. Jamie has traveled to France many times and interviewed hundreds of French women—and more than a few men. Jamie is the creator of The Writers Toolbox and the author of Hooking Up or Holding Out. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times Modern Love column, Best American Erotica, The Missouri Review, and many other places. Jamie lives in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, with her husband.

For more information on Jamie Cat Callan, visit http://www.jamiecatcallan.com/

CPAC Support and Training for Educators and Parents

CT Parent Advocacy Coalition is hosting a
Support and Training for Educators and Parents

Next STEPS is a free training series that prepares parents and
educators of children with special needs to enable them to advocate
more effectively for appropriate educational services for their
children. This training will provide you with information on:

Special Education Laws
Planning an Appropriate Educational Program
The Parent’s Role in Educating Children with Disabilities

Space is limited and registration is required!
Please call CPAC at 1-800-445-2722 or E-mail cpac@cpacinc.org to sign up!

March 24th, 31st, April 7th and 21st
From 6 p.m. until 9 p.m.
At the Middletown YMCA
99 Union Street, Middletown, CT 06457

---------------------------------------------------------
Connecticut Parent Advocacy Center
338 Main Street, Niantic, CT 06357 • (800) 445-2722 • (860) 739-3089
www.cpacinc.org • E-mail: cpac@cpacinc.org
New Haven Satellite Office (203) 776-3211

Block By Block Committee Surveys

NEAT's Block By Block Committee is sponsoring a neighborhood wide survey to find out what is happening on your block and what concerns you. NEAT is nothing without the residents of the North End. You are the only ones who can make change happen and give NEAT the input we need to better focus our efforts. Please stop by the NEAT office at 668 Main St, call us at 346-4845, or email us at neatmiddletown@gmail.com to fill out our survey and let us know what you'd like to see happen in the North End.

Meet & Greet With NEAT- Focus on Schools

NEAT will host a community conversation at Wharfside Commons Wednesday Feb 26 from 6-7:30pm. We will focus on the elementary school experience for North End families and the upcoming City sponsored Feasibility Study, a study about school redistricting options in Middletown. This is just the beginning stages of a long term process so it is critical that the neighborhood be part of this study and that our input is heard. Please come tell us about your elementary school experience and what changing schools would might mean for you.
If you have any questions or comments about the study, please call the NEAT office at 346-4845 or email alicia.mcavay@neatmiddletown.org

North End Youth Dance performs at Wesleyan

Saturday February 21st

North End's own Thoro Energy will be performing in Wesleyan's annual Jubilee.
This show is put on by the Student group Ujamaa every year to promote cultural awareness and show off the diverse talents of the performers.

The show is in the Center for the Arts' Crowell performance space from 8-10pm

tickets show be purchased in advance and cost $6

Please come to the show and support our youth.

Holiday Mentoring Party!

In December, the NEAT mentoring program had a very successful and fun holiday party! We made cards and greenery decorations. Thank you to everyone who came!

Mentoring Going Great

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Free Foreclosure Prevention Workshop

Struggling Homeowners Invited to Free Foreclosure-Prevention Workshop in Hartford, Connecticut, on Feb. 14, 2009

WHAT:

Concerned borrowers can meet face-to-face with their lender or loan servicer, and housing counselors, to begin to clarify and take steps to improve their current situation. All are welcome. This event is FREE.

WHERE:
Connecticut Convention Center
100 Columbus Boulevard, Hartford, Connecticut

WHEN:
Saturday, February 14, 2009
10 AM to 4 PM

The event brings together distressed borrowers and mortgage loan servicers for one-on-one conversations about resolving difficult loan situations and avoiding foreclosure.

Borrowers should bring documentation for their income, expenses, debts, and mortgage to the workshop so they are fully prepared to talk with their lender or servicer and housing counselors.

For more information, borrowers are invited to call the event hotline, 1-800-882-1600. Borrowers who call this number can leave their name, questions about the event, and a callback number. Information is also available on a Federal Reserve Bank web site, www.theinformedhomebuyer.org. Directions to the Connecticut Convention Center are available on the 800 number and the web site.

Capitol Prep Open House

Saturday, Feb. 7th from 12-2 pm, The Capitol Prepatory Magnet School in Hartford will be hosting an open house at Oddfellows Playhouse (128 Washington St.). If you are a high school aged student or a parent, please stop by to learn more about this great school.

The Capital Preparatory Magnet High School is a year round college preparatory school with a social justice theme. Throughout its curriculum, Capital Preparatory engages students in exploring issues of equality, democracy, economic opportunity, intellectual freedoms, environmental protection and human rights.

Macdonough Success Story

The Macdonough Elementary School, which serves the North End of Middletown and is the last neighborhood school and only downtown public school,has been honored by ConnCan, a statewide education organization, as one of a handful of "Success Stories" in the state. This is quite an honor for the school and speaks to the tremendous gains that have been made in student achievement and community collaboration over the last few years.

ConnCan produced this great video about the school. It's really inspirational and quite amazing to hear the teachers and parents talk about the school's importance.

Pre-School Openings

Good news if you are a four year old!

The Middletown Public Schools currently has openings for children who are four years old in their preschool program.
The program meets the rigorous staffing and academic standards set forth by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Please contact Mary Monarca at 638-1428 for an application.

Saucy Stories: The Art of Desire

SAUCY STORIES: The Art of Desire with Jamie Cat Callan
SATURDAY, February 7, 1–4 pm
Tuition: $70 ($60 members)

Writing a sexy story is a lot like a strip tease. You have
to slowly undress the narrative, take your time, add all the details, use your
senses, let the narrative flow into a strong dramatic arc and push the plot to finish
with a strong climactic moment that reverberates in the reader’s mind and
heart. This one-day course is tailor-made for beginning as well as advanced
writers who want to explore a variety of techniques for writing erotic fiction.
Participants engage in a series of writing exercises that open up sensory and
emotional awareness to create prose that is borne from a deeper place within
them. Stories are discussed in a supportive, nurturing environment that serves
to encourage, as well as familiarize the writer with the elements of theme,
viewpoint, structure, voice and the fine art of titillation.

Sunday Salon Discussion Series: Community Arts in the Academy

The Green Street Arts Center of Wesleyan University invites
you to a lecture and discussion that addresses very pertinent issues regarding
community arts and liberal arts institutions. As part of the Green Street
Sunday Salon Discussion Series, Wesleyan's Vice President for Diversity and
Strategic Partnerships, Sonia Mañjon, will discuss the relationship between
higher education and art in the community in her lecture Community Arts in the Academy:
An Emerging Field in Liberal Arts Education. We hope you will join
us for this event and help us to spread the word to colleagues and friends who
may also be interested in this event.

Sunday Salon Discussion Series

Embrace your inquiring mind at this monthly meeting for
creative expression and curious individuals. In the 18th century, a
"salon" was a social gathering of people who discussed their ideas
and observations. Chemistry professor David Beveridge hosts Green Street's salon, which introduces the work of Wesleyan faculty. Salons usually include an
informal talk or demonstration and plenty of time for questions and
socializing. We provide the refreshments.


Community Arts in the Academy: An Emerging Field in Liberal Arts Education
Sunday, February 8, 2–4pm
$8 admission ($5 members, seniors, students)

An exploration of how liberal arts institutions are
integrating community engagement practices with art applications to produce
both curricular and co-curricular content. Dr. Mañjon developed the first BFA
program in Community Arts at California College of the Arts and has worked with
both art and liberal art institutions and national organizations including
Imagining America to research document and speak about the power of art in
engaging community collaborations and social justice practices. She most
recently edited a compilation of articles and essays about community art
practices entitled: Crafting a Vision for Art, Equity and Civic Engagement: Convening
the Community Arts Field in Higher Education.

For more information or to reserve your seats today, call
(860) 685-7871. Green Street Arts Center is located in the heart of
Middletown’s North End at 51 Green Street. Visit Green Street's
website at www.greenstreetartscenter.org for more to come this winter and spring!

FREE Workshops! FIRST-TIME HOMEOWNER AND CREDIT COUNSELING

With Rosa Carrero of Liberty Bank

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, and 25th, 6pm-8pm

Rosa Carrero from Liberty Bank present four info sessions designed to help people take the first steps toward buying a home. Topics include credit counseling (Session 1), finding the right home (Session 2), the lending process (Session 3) and understanding Legalities (Session 4). Participants in all four will receive A certificate of completion that meets one eligibility requirement for The City Of Middletown grant and down payment assistance, CHFA and CHFA Down payment assistance programs.


All workshops are FREE and open to everyone, though registration is required. All workshops are being co-presented by the North End Action Team and the Green Street Arts Center. All workshops will take place at the Green Street Arts Center. Childcare is available upon request. Please request childcare when registering for class.


For more information, or to register, call the NEAT office at 860-346-4845 or email at neat@neatmiddletown.org. Or, come on in!

FREE Workshops! BUILDING COMPUTER BASICS

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, and 25th from 6:30pm—8pm

The North End Action Team and Green Street teaching artist Shawn Hill present a short, free introduction to computer basics. Learn how to create writing samples in Microsoft Word and explore the possibilities of budgets and lists in Microsoft Excel. By the time you have completed all four sessions, you will have the building blocks needed for adding a new skill to your job application, or for organizing your household bills. Absolute beginners, and people with all levels of computer experience, are welcome.

All workshops are FREE and open to everyone, though registration is required. All workshops are being co-presented by the North End Action Team and the Green Street Arts Center. All workshops will take place at the Green Street Arts Center. Childcare is available upon request. Please request childcare when registering for class.

For more information, or to register, call the NEAT office at 860-346-4845 or email at neat@neatmiddletown.org. Or, come on in!

Get Your Taxes Done for Free

Free income tax assistance by IRS trained and certified volunteers is available at the local volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site for people with incomes under $42,000.

By Appointment Only!
To schedule an appointment
call 860-347-0337 on:
• Mondays & Tuesdays, 11:30 am — 7 pm
• Wednesdays & Thursdays, 9 am — 4:30 pm
Appointments will be made from February 5 — April 11
for Thursday evenings, 5—7:30 pm and for Saturday
afternoons, Noon—4:30 pm

The VITA site is located at the Literacy
Volunteers office on Court Street,
next to Russell Library in Middletown.

What you need to bring with you to your appointment:
• Valid picture ID
• Social Security cards or Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN) for you, your spouse and any dependents living with you born before Dec. 31, 2008
• Birth dates for you, your spouse and dependents
• Income documentation including W-2, W-2G, 1099-R, etc., from all employers
• Interest and dividend statements from banks or other financial institutions (Forms 1099)
• Total paid for child care. Bring day care provider’s address and tax identifying number (the provider’s Social Security Number or business Employer Identification Number)
• A copy of last year’s Federal and State income tax returns, if available
• Current year’s tax package, if you received one

Bring a blank check from your checking account for direct deposit of your refund.

If you have a savings account, bring a statement from your bank or your passbook with your bank
account name, number and the 9-digit American Bankers Association (ABA) routing number. Contact
your bank if you need assistance identifying the ABA number.

You could qualify for the
Earned Income Credit (EITC)
and Child Tax Credit as much as $4,824!

The quickest way to get your refund —usually within a week— is through DIRECT DEPOSIT to your bank account. Ask us if you need information about setting up an account. This needs to be done BEFORE your appointment with the VITA tax preparer.



Sponsored by the Middlesex VITA Coalition, a consortium of agencies including Middlesex United Way, Community Renewal Team, Middlesex Coalition for Children, Literacy Volunteers of Central Connecticut, Women & Families Center, Easter Seals Goodwill Industries, Russell Library, and the Connecticut Association of Human Services (CAHS).

Monumental Day at Macdonough

I was lucky enough to be with the kids at Macdonough Elementary School this afternoon to watch the innauguration of President Barak Obama. There were ample cheers and claps and I noticed (and not just from myself) a few tears. It was a really moving day. If you want to see some more pictures, click here.

Middlesex Community College Chosen as College Goal Sunday Site

Middlesex Community College (MxCC) has been chosen as one of the 12 sites for Connecticut’s second annual College Goal Sunday, being held on January 25, 2009. The college’s main campus in Middletown100 Training Hill Road) will be open from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. to assist prospective college students and their parents in completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Financial aid administrators offer this service at no charge. In addition to receiving assistance in filling out the FAFSA, participants will receive general information regarding state and federal financial aid programs.

The Connecticut College Goal Sunday program is an effort by hundreds of volunteers from across the state who will come together on Sunday afternoon, January 25, with the common goal of making sure the process of applying for college financial aid does not become an obstacle that would keep any person from pursuing an education beyond high school.

By attending a College Goal Sunday event, participants will receive free hands-on assistance in completing the FAFSA, and will leave the event with a completed financial aid application for the 2009-2010 school year and the satisfaction of knowing they have accomplished one of the major steps in getting ready to go to college.

Irene Martin, Director of Financial Aid at MXCC, advises, “Now is the time to start your financial aid application process. It can take as long as four to six weeks but if your financial aid hasn’t come in before the start of the semester, the college offers flexible installment plans to carry you until your aid comes through.”

For more information on College Goal Sunday at MxCC, contact Irene Martin at 860-343-5740 or imartin@mxcc.commnet.edu.

Schedule of Community Conversations

Middletown Community Conversations

On January 20, 2009, please join your neighbors at one of the following conversation locations so that we can speak and listen to each other as we ask questions and find answers.

Organization Location Time Open to:

American Association of Retired St. Pius Church, 1:30 members
Persons (AARP) 310 Westfield Street

American Association of Wesleyan Wasch Center, 7:00 members and students
University Women 51 Lawn Avenue

Dunkin Donuts South Main South Main Street 7pm the public

Eddy Shelter The Connection Offices 11:30 staff and clients
955 South Main St.

First Church & Jonah Center 190 Church Street 6 pm the public

Green Street 51 Green Street noon the public

Healing Racism Coalition Firehouse Steakhouse 11:30am the public
412 Main St.

Heritage Commons 38 Boston Rd noon & 8pm Residents, families, Seniors

Middlesex Community College Chapman Hall, 100 Training Hill noon & 6pm the public
Rd

Middlesex County Community Wadsworth Mansion 5pm speaker & discussion
Foundation (this is a fund raiser -admission is $20)

Middletown City Hall Dekoven Dr. Council Chamber noon & 6pm the public

Middletown Public Schools various various Students and staff

Public Restaurant 337 Main Street 7 – 10 pm Jazz & discussions.
Donations to benefit the food pantry

Russell Library – Hubbard Room 123 Broad Street noon & 6pm the public

Senior Affairs Senior Center, 150 Williams St. noon seniors

Village at South Farms 645 Saybrook Rd pm residents

Wesleyan Usdan Center Wyllys Avenue 10 am the public

North End's Community Conversation

Last night at the Green Street Art Center, North End residents and stakeholders gathered to discuss issues facing Middletown and our community in a community conversation.

As one of many conversations being held around town inspired by the upcoming inauguration of Barack Obama, we discussed the need for a community policing model, ways to build the North End's image, education in the North End and Middletown as a whole, job development and even a renewed sewing club.

On Inauguration day, January 20th, Community conversations will be held across Middletown. There will be two conversations held at Russel Library at 12pm and 6pm on inauguration day. This is a great opportunity to make the North End's voice heard. To check times and places for other community conversations go to: www.middletowncommunityconversations.blogspot.com

Community Conversation

Last Night at the Green Street Art Center, 20 North End residents and stakeholders gathered to discuss issues facing Middletown and our community in a community conversation. As one of many conversations being held around town inspired by the upcoming inauguration of Barack Obama, we discussed the need for a community policing model, ways to build the North End's image, education in the North End and Middletown as a whole, Job development and even a renewed sewing club. On Inauguration day, January 20th, Community conversations will be held across Middletown. To check times and places for other community conversations go to: www.

Solar Energy Information Session: Spin Your Meter Backwards!

The Sunlight Solar Energy Group is sponsoring a free solar energy session to find out more about affordable ways to make your home more energy efficient.

Learn about solar electricity and how to take control of your increasing energy costs. Better yet, find out about solar incentives available in Connecticut homeowners, including CT Solar Lease Program. So grad your neighbors and join us to take advantage of community pricing!

Food and beverages provided.

Date: Jan 17th
Time: 11am-1pm
Location: Middlesex Community College
Chapman Hill Rm. 808BCD
Middletown, CT 06457

For more information or to register call (203) 878-9123 or email diana.bercury@sunlightsolar.com

January Membership Meeting: Jan 14th 7pm

Just a reminder, NEAT's membership meeting will be held next Wednesday, Jan. 14th at 7 PM at the Green Street Arts Center. Please note the time change. Childcare will be provided and there will be pizza for the kids.

NEAT Schools Committee

NEAT's Schools Committee used it January monthly meeting to set our priorities for the upcoming year. We are currently focused on monitoring the 2009-2010 School Budget process and ensuring the upkeep of Donovan Park (the Macdonough School playground). Schools committee representatives attend regular Board of Education meetings each month. January's Board of Education meeting will address the budget and will be next Tues, Jan 13 at 7pm. Anyone who is interested in coming as a NEAT member, please call the NEAT office (346-4845).

The next NEAT Schools committee meeting will be Wednesday Feb 4th at 7pm at the NEAT office.

Happy New Year

NEAT would like to wish everyone a happy 2009. We apologize for only having a few posts over the last couple weeks. We are now back in full swing and getting prepared for a productive year.

Don't Forget the next NEAT Membership Meeting is Wed January 14th, 7pm at Green Street Arts Center.

North End Stories: Nehemiah Housing and Michael Taylor

Michael Taylor is the Executive Director of Nehemiah Housing Corporation. His agency works closely with NEAT members, revitalizing the North End through housing.

The North End Action Team and Nehemiah Housing Corporation share much more than office space. In October 1996, the directors of each agency stood side by side in the back yard of a adjacent property, mourning the death of a young man. Residents peered from porches looking on and soon locked themselves inside to protect their children. Building on the hope to end violence and believing in the right for each family to have safe and decent housing, a wide collaboration formed to transform a small neighborhood. NEAT became the voice of the residents, business owners and a variety of stakeholders.

When the residents met, their foremost concern was to transform dilapidated housing into decent homes. They believed that well managed homes would help to create a well managed neighborhood. That was the start of a long and fruitful partnership between NEAT and Nehemiah. Even though NEAT doesn’t build houses, it does help to create homes. For instance, NEAT organizes home-buyer training seminars for first time home buyers, some who may buy the North End homes Nehemiah is rehabilitating. Nehemiah is a community-based development corporation. Like NEAT, the agency exists to serve the community and over the years has worked to help NEAT grow so that the community would have a megaphone for its voice.

Nehemiah continues to be grateful for all the active members of NEAT who form the foundation of the North End. Without NEAT and the many community partnerships that it fosters, the North End would not have come as far as it has, and would not have as much hope for the
future.

North End Stories: Joanne Krekian & Sue Aranoff

Joanne Krekian and Sue Aranoff are North End residents and members of the Erin St. Garden. They found each other at the garden and grew a lasting friendship.

Joanne had lived in the North End for 10 years and Sue had just moved in. Neither of them knew her neighbors, but they struck up a conversation on NEAT’s annual Earth Day clean up. Since that chance meeting, Sue and Joanne have spent many days together
at the garden, planting, staking tomatoes, watering, and sharing meals made from their hard earned harvest. Both Joanne and Sue agree that the garden has changed their lives. Joanne no longer feels isolated in her apartment but now has many friends within walking distance that she met through NEAT.

Sue has also met several people from the neighborhood that have changed her life. The Erin Street community garden is a perfect example a simple idea. Neighbors coming together to create a better community. At any given time during the summer, one can see folks tilling the land, kids listening to African drumming, children making scarecrows, people walking their dogs or simply sitting on one of the benches enjoying the perennial garden. So often we go on with our day to day lives without even realizing the resources and support we may have next door. The Erin Street Community garden makes one realize.

“Living one block from someone you enjoy spending time with is about the greatest thing. Since meeting Sue and working in the garden, I have also met many other neighbors who I consider friends as well. The garden as a meeting place and the experience of sharing my vegetables with neighbors has made me feel more a part of my neighborhood than ever before (and I lived her 10 years )! Really, because I joined the garden, I never feel isolated I know, I can walk one block and be welcomed.”

White Out Night, 2008

Each day in the United States forty-eight people die as a result of alcohol related crashes.  The Middletown Substance Abuse Prevention Council will be holding its 3^rdAnnual White Out Night on Saturday, December 27th to encourage people to be mindful of the dangers of drinking and driving while celebrating on New Years Eve.  This is a youth led event during which participants will be walking down Main Street, wearing self-made white t-shirts with safe driving messages on them.  They will also be handing out flyers to shoppers and diners promoting a safe New Years holiday without drinking and driving. The students feel passionate that this is an extremely effective way to ensure that they convey how important it is that everyone use good judgement and remain safe this New Years.  Rushford's school-based youth leadership programs at Woodrow Wilson Middle School and Keigwin Middle School helped to make posters with safe driving messages for the event, while members of Middletown High School’s youth leadership group Dragons In Action decorated the t-shirts. 

In past years, similar presentations have been made during Middletown High School Boys Basketball games and during the school day at Middletown High School.    

Between 5:30 and 6:00 the group will meet in the board room on the basement level of the Chamber of Commerce at 393 Main St.  From approximately 6:10-7pm, the group will be walking Main St.

Come join these Middletown Youth in raising awareness of an important issue.

Participating members of the MSAPC represent the following organizations:

Middletown Youth Services Bureau, Middletown Board of Education, North End Action Team, Rushford Center, Woodrow Wilson Middle School’s Rams In Action, Jay Keiser Real Estate, Middletown High School's Dragons In Action, Assets Community Team, Emblem Club

 

 

 

North End Stories: Tierra Gaskins

Tierra Gaskins is an 18-year-old North End resident and a recipient of NEAT’s new College Scholarship program. She is the first “NEAT Kid” to go to college.
“NEAT has given me the opportunity to do things” Tierra moved to Ferry Street when she was 10 years old from Rochester, NY where she said there was nothing to do but hang out at the playground. Living across the street from the old NEAT office on Ferry Street had a big impact on Tierra and she did do a lot of things. She helped make the original community garden on Ferry Street, build the Dream House, participated in the DaVinci Club where she worked on two documentary videos about the North End, participated in the mentoring program, helped build the Amazing Rowing Machine, regularly attended the math homework group, and has hiked regularly with the NEAT hiking club including all 4 overnight trips.
“Through NEAT I have learned that anything is possible, climbing Mount Washington taught me that.” Tierra also says she has learned teamwork in the video and boat-building project. At the math group she learned to ask for help. Tierra looks back and appreciates how people pushed her to achieve in school and give back to her community. She is now working in an after-school program and is a positive role model for other kids.

Tierra says the bonds she has formed with people, kids and adults, has been the best part of NEAT. She says “I wouldn’t be where I am today” without the friendships and mentoring that she has experienced as a consequence of NEAT. Tierra is proud of the fact that she is the first person in her family to graduate from high school. She is currently attending Middlesex Community College and is looking to transfer to a four-year college to study computers. Tierra was one of three recipients of NEAT scholarships presented for the first time this year at the Annual Garden Party in August.

LETTER FROM THE FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE

Friends,

NEAT’s job is to help the North End find its voice.
And few things are a better expression of that voice than a vote.

Leading up to this election, NEAT’s youth leadership group the Teen Dreams Society worked hard to register voters and educate people about the issues, the candidates and the importance of their participation. And this year alone, voter registrations increased in the North End by 40%, drastically increasing the neighborhood’s voice and emphasizing the value of civic participation.

On Election Day, NEAT volunteers manned a table at Macdonough School, the North End’s only polling place, and talked to hundreds of people, many of them first time voters. NEAT showed them a sample ballot and made sure they understood the referendum questions, the different offices and how the new voting machines worked. We helped bring out numbers of voters, but we also helped them make an educated vote.

It’s just one of the ways that NEAT is active in the North End, connecting residents with the institutions around them and empowering them to take more active community roles. Your dollars help to fund many programs that reach all types of people all around the neighborhood.

This year NEAT has:

*Hiked up Mt. Monadnock with 18 North End kids.
*Established a relationship with Macdonough School and worked along-side parents and teachers to keep the school open
*Maintained a monthly hot spot list and worked with the city to create a new code-enforcement ordinance
*Hosted Community Conversations on issues such as: Miller/Bridge Street Safety, Homeownership Preparation, Youth Issues,Community/School Partnerships, Civic Participation Education; an average of 70 people attended each
*Advocated on behalf of Portland St./ Miller & Bridge St.
*Maintained a Community Policing and Code Enforcement partnership with the city and other North End Stakeholders
*Started a North End Quilting Club
*Hosted workshops (in partnership with GSAC) on Homeownership Preparation & Credit Counseling, Computer Basics & Financial Aid (FAFSA). This year, 35 people graduated and are more prepared to own a home.
*Worked with Harding Development & Nehemiah Housing Corp. on the Liberty Square Project and North End Housing Revitalization
*Encouraged economic development in the North End
*Hosted five Arts in the Garden workshops with GSAC at both the Arts Center and at NEAT’s Erin Street Community Garden
*Encouraged Leadership Development among NEAT members, sent one NEAT member to a training in Boston.
*Graduated! Tierra Gaskins, Rohanna Powell & Dylan Hansen graduated from High School. Tierra and Rohanna are in college now.
*Worked closely with Wharfside Commons to engage new residents
*Helped North End kids go to Camp Ingersoll, The Green Street Arts Center, Oddfellows Playhouse, YMCA Swim Lessons
*The Garden Committee established new plots and was the focus of this year’s summer Homeroom camp, which serves North End families
*Hosted North End Pride Clean-up Days
*Moved Office to a more accessible Main Street location
*Launched a Voter Registration and Voter Education Drive along with NEAT’s new youth group, the Teen Dreams Society
*Had a record number of participants at meeting & Events
*Improved NEAT’s outreach infrastructure to include a bigger email list, a North End blog and an improved website (check it out! www.neatmiddletown.org & www.northendnews.blogspot.com)
*Increased Fundraising
*Become a better resource for residents
*Increased partnerships with the City of Middletown and others

As you can see, NEAT is making a difference. During these difficult economic times, we need your support more than ever. Your donation will help us to keep our forward momentum. Please give generously.

Thank You,
Pam Wahl
Chair of Fundraising Committee

Click here to donate securely online

North End Stories: Cookie Quinones

Cookie Quinones is the past president of NEAT, has a son in NEAT’s Teen Dreams Society, and after renting in the neighborhood for 27 years, her family now owns its own North End home.

Before joining NEAT, Cookie Quinones wasn’t active in her community. Eventually, she started to come to NEAT community meetings, but even there, she didn’t talk.

“I never thought I could have a voice. I wasn’t that type. I used to talk a lot, but in a loud voice. People heard me, but they didn’t listen. NEAT helped me realize that effective leadership isn’t talking loud, that it’s speaking clearly and with strength. Even my youngest son didn’t talk much, but now he is confident in himself…Working with NEAT’s Teen Dreams Society, he found that his ideas are important.”
Cookie was elected vice president of NEAT. “It was one of the most exciting things that had ever happened to me. No one had ever asked me to speak, to have a voice.” Since then, Cookie has gone back to school to get her high school diploma, and has inspired her children to attend Middlesex Community College to do the same. “I feel proud that I could inspire my kids. It was cool to see my girls go back to school after I did.”

After moving away, her kids have all come back. “Now, my son and his family bought a home here. All my kids are in the North End. He bought a home, and we’re all digging in.”

As a NEAT member, Cookie has learned to make big changes within herself. As President, Cookie has made big changes in her neighborhood, and is encouraging others to do the same.

North End Stories

Over the next few weeks, we'll be highlighting people, families and institutions that are making a difference in the North End or are just making a great life for themselves. If you have a profile that you'd like to post, please email me at izzi.greenberg@neatmiddeletown.org.
Thanks,
Izzi