Dear Reader,
Happy New Year! I mentioned just the other day to a customer at my bookshop, are you ready for 2026? Their response, “It doesn’t matter if I am ready, it’s here.” This is true of life, right? If we are lucky enough to wake up every day, breathe in the fresh air, and put one foot in front of the other, what a gift that is, too.
Our local Stratford Rotary Club, in a piece by Barbara, made their mark both in funding local organizations and volunteering in town in 2025. And there’s movement near and around the John Benjamin House Renovation on the old Shakespeare grounds. Check out my piece for an update there.
This week, you’ll hear from Kimberly, a junior at Bunnell High School, who shares her thoughts with us about the importance of mental health – for teenagers especially.
So, 2026 is here—how will you spend it? Maybe getting a new membership at the YMCA (if you sign up this week, the registration fee is waved)? Maybe a stop into our local bookshop? Or maybe you decide to get some extra experience in the kitchen and take a cooking class at Foodies Cookbook Shop? Or you decide to reach out to our mayor and join a committee?
Whatever you decide to do, it is your choice, and your voice, so use it for good this 2026! And remember that old adage: Nothing changes if nothing changes!
