Sterling House Food Pantry

Food Pantry Hours
Mondays, Tuesdays, & Thursdays 1:00 – 300 pm
Evening appointments are available upon request.

Please call us to ask about making an appointment: (203) 378-2606

On your first visit to our Food Pantry, please bring the following:
– Identification
– Reusable bags to carry food/supplies
– You will asked to complete paperwork, as per our partnership with CT Food Bank

Emergency food assistance is provided to individuals and families. A variety of food, toiletries, diapers, and pet food is available. Clients can visit pantry once per month unless circumstances warrant this to be more often.

Holy Name of Jesus Church: Drive-Thru Food Pantry

Where:  1950 Barnum Avenue, Stratford CT

When:  Tuesday, December 8th , 3:00 – 4:00 PM

To encourage social distancing and help limit the spread of COVID-19, the Stratford Health Department, CT Food Bank, and Holy Name of Jesus Church have partnered to offer a drive-thru
food pantry. We ask for all those attending the drive-thru pantry to adhere to the following directions:

• Stay in your car at all times
• Pop your trunk (if possible)
• A pre-selected bag of food will be placed in your car
• One bag per car

Stratford Resident will Discuss her Debut Novel,” Catchlight

By The Stratford Library

The Stratford Library will host author Brooke Adams Law for a special “Meet-the-Author” program on Tuesday, December 8 from 6-7:30 pm. The Stratford resident will discuss her debut novel, Catchlight.  The program, available on the Library’s Zoom platform, is free and open to the public.

Author Brooke Adams Law in Catchlight asks the question: Who would you be without your memory?  When Katherine Keene is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, her four grown children must grapple with how to care for her – and how to remake their relationships with each other. And then there’s the secret that threatens their family’s very identity. Will the Keenes find healing and reconciliation – or implode from within?  Brooke Adams Law’s debut novel was the winner of the 2019 Fairfield University Book Prize.  Kirkus Reviews called Catchlight “an impressive debut” and the book was featured on Good Morning America’s 12 must-read books for October and on WTNH Good Morning Connecticut.  Law is a writer, writing teacher and retreat leader. A mother of two young children, she leads online workshops for writers from around the world.

For further information, call the Library at 203.385.4162 and to register for the program visit: https://stratfordlibrary.libcal.com/event/7217945.

New After School Fitness Program to Rolled out December 1.

by Sally Head
Head Space Fitness

Stratford Teens, both Middle and High Schoolers, will now have a chance to put on their sneakers and learn kickboxing, strength-training, circuit training skills as well as yoga
and meditation practices.

Sally Head, of Head Space Fitness of Stratford, will lead these classes virtually every Tuesday at 4 p.m. via Zoom through the Town’s Board of Education after school
program. Sally Head is a Certified Group Fitness Instructor, Personal Trainer and Wellness Coach, and 200 RYT Yoga Teacher.

“Like any good exercise program”, states Ms. Head, “they only work if the students who enroll participate in it regularly. If they come to class every week, they see results and get the most benefit from being consistent and it builds connection with the students and the community.”

Ms. Head is super excited to work with the local youth. As an online kids’ coach, she loves to keep the kids engaged throughout the year especially if they play a team sport which had to be halted due to Covid. “A lot of these kids really miss the drills and skills from practices, so I try to give them a good opportunity to practice their skills, even if it is right from their own living room.

For more information please call the main office of the child’s school or contact Sally Head at www.headspace.fit.

The program, which is funded by two 21st  Century Community Learning Centers grants from the Connecticut State Department of Education- one for the middle schools, one
for the high schools. According to Dr. Kevin Klemme, Stratford Board of Education’s Grant Administrator, “the focus is on providing at-risk students and their families with academic support and enhancement activities to strengthen engagement with school.”

“Because of COVID and hybrid/distance learning, many students need additional support, so this year the program is being offered to any middle school or high school students,” Mr. Klemme added. The program especially welcomes students who enroll and participate regularly, as they get the most benefit from a consistent connection.

The various programs meet most afternoons on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays (online this year) from October through May. The exceptions are holidays or early closing days.

Each session offers both academic assistance from certified teachers and enrichment activities, which also provide an opportunity to connect socially online with other students.

Enhancement activities include clubs, games, art projects, and field trips (virtual this year)—and now, fitness.  The specific activities each year are based on the interests of participating students. Many of the enhancement activities, especially the field trips, are arranged in collaboration with the Town of Stratford Community Services, which is a partner in both grants.

by Tom Holehan
Public Relations and Programming
Stratford Library

Stratford Library Concludes Old West Series
The Stratford Library concludes its special 4-part series about the American Old West of “Sunday Afternoon Talks”, its monthly series of informative and entertaining talks hosted by Charles Lautier and featuring prominent local guest speakers. The Old West series, which features guest speaker Hamish Lutris, will offer its final session on Zoom November 22 at 2 pm.

“Sodbusters and Colleges: The Winning of the West” is the finale of Lutris’ stunning series.  In 1860, most of the western plains were uninhabited by Americans; the 1890 census revealed that the frontier, where US law did not hold sway, had disappeared. Civilization had come to the entire West in only 40 years.

How? This talk will focus on the immigration, technologies, and political actions that made possible the taming of the vast land that we call the West.

Guest speaker Hamish Lutris is an Associate Professor of History, Political Science, and Geography at Capital Community College in Hartford, Connecticut. He has worked in some of America’s premier natural and historical sites, leading hiking and historical programs. He has also lectured extensively in the United States, Europe, and Canada, presenting programs on wide-ranging historical topics, including Native American history, the Civil War, Scientific History, Social and Cultural History, World War I, World War II and the American West.

The series, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 2-3:30 pm on the Zoom format. For further information call the Library at: 203.385-4162 or register for the talk online at:  https://stratfordlibrary.libcal.com/event/7073202.

Note: LIBRARY TO CLOSE FOR THANKSGIVING
The Library will close on Wednesday, November 25 at 5 pm and all day on Thursday, November 26 in observation of the Thanksgiving holiday.  The library will reopen on Friday, November 27 at 10 am.

New England History and Female “Convicts” shipped from England to Tasmania

“Sunday Afternoon Talks” New England at 400

“New England at 400: From Plymouth Rock to the Present Day” with Professor Eric D. Lehman on November 15, will be held from 2-3:30 pm on Zoom. University of Bridgeport professor Eric D. Lehman will discuss his latest book, New England at 400: From Plymouth Rock to the Present Day, telling stories about the four centuries of lives, loves, failures, and successes of our fellow New Englanders.

Eric D. Lehman is the author or editor of seventeen books of history, travel, and fiction, including Yankee’s New England, Insiders’ Guide to Connecticut, The Quotable New Englander, and Becoming Tom Thumb, which won the Victorian Society of America Award and was chosen by the ALA as one of the best university press books of the year. His novella Shadows of Paris was a finalist for the Connecticut Book Award, won a silver medal in romance from the Foreword Review, and was judged the novella of the year by the Next Generation Independent Book Awards.

The event is free and open to the public. For further information call the Stratford Library at: 203-385-4162.

Christina Kline’s “The Exiles” to be Discussed on Nov. 18

The Stratford Library “Books Over Coffee” program continues with an online Zoom discussion of Christina Baker Kline’s historical drama, The Exiles, on Wednesday, November 18. The program, hosted by Linda LiDestri, will be held from 12 – 1 pm. The book talk is free and open to the public.

The Exiles is Christina Baker Kline’s historical fiction novel that takes place in the early 1840s and focusses on the transport of female “convicts” from England to Tasmania. The transport of prisoners to North America and Australia is generally known, but not about the female population to Tasmania. Christina Baker Kline his established herself as a novelist who plumbs noteworthy but little-known facets of the past, and The Exiles marks her third foray into the genre. While her Orphan Train and A Piece of the World were grounded in American history, The Exiles makes a bold geographic and cultural leap.

Limited reading copies of The Exiles are available for loan at the library’s Circulation Desk. All “Books Over Coffee” titles are available at the Library or on Kindle eReader for loan. Patrons can also download the eBook or audiobook through the OverDrive app at the Library. “Books Over Coffee” will conclude its 2020 season on December 16 with Dear Edward by Jane Napolitano.

For furthur information call the Library at: 203-385-4162 or register online at: http://stratfordlibrary.libcal.com/event/7073380.