The World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia estimates approximately half a billion animals have been killed and the fires could change the country forever, according to NBC News.

Officials expect the fires to continue for months.

The Putnam Rotary Club took up a collection to support Rotary Internationals efforts to help the people of Australia and the affected animals.

Lindsey Worster, left, of Tourtellotte Memorial High School, and Julia Schad of The Woodstock Academy, pose with Putnam Rotary Club President Richard Naumann after they described their experience at the International Youth Peace Initiative of Rotary International, District 6270 June 22-28. The seminars covered aspects of social media --- the good and the bad and its potential for sparking good works. The Putnam Rotary Club sent three local students to the seminar held in Wisconsin. Robert Gatkze (pictured below) shared his experiences with our Rotary Club.

In addition, Access makes a difference in the community by providing programs for customers that are referred through DCF and the CT Judicial System. These include our programs to foster positive at-risk youth development and our supportive housing programs. Like all our services, referral programs help those in need achieve stability and success.

 QVCC’s Business & Industry Services department, which facilitates training programs in a variety of topics for local businesses.

 

http://portal.clubrunner.ca/6068/Documents/en-ca/7dca00ff-a43e-436e-867e-f3aad1d9206b/1/

 

Chief of Police, Town of Putnam 

Christopher Ferace, 51, began his career in law enforcement in 1991 as a patrol officer in Plainfield. He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice administration from Roger Williams College and a graduate certificate in criminal justice education from University of Virginia.

Officials touted Ferace’s educational background, noting the newly appointed chief holds numerous professional certifications which include attending the Police Executive Research Forum’s Senior Management Institute for Police.

He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy.

“I still believe that policing is a noble profession, or I wouldn’t have taken this job or signed on to this commitment,” Ferace said during the ceremony. “There is no other period in modern history where policing is so scrutinized, and never so dangerous.”

Ferace said selfless service when another is in crisis continues to motivate him. He said his expectations for the department are simple.

“I expect nothing more than what the public expects,” he said to a standing ovation. “Do this job with integrity, accountability, compassion, courage, pride and professionalism. If we follow these values combined with the community policing philosophy, we as an agency will continue to be successful. I take great pride in wearing the Putnam Police patch on my sleeve.”

XIII ECUADOR ROTARY PROJECT FAIR!!

In February 2004, our district hosted our first project fair in Quito. Since then, 12 fairs have been organized in beautiful cities across Ecuador: Guayaquil, Cuenca, and Manta. Every fair highlights District 4400’s club service projects for international visitors to build friendships, partnerships, and facilitate connections to bring projects to life.

Over the years, we’ve welcomed Rotarians from the United States, Canada and Europe to the fairs. We’ve built lifelong friendships and a huge number of projects have been successfully carried out with the support of our international visitors. As a result, our district has been able to implement larger scale projects with support from our international friends and global grants.

When a fair is organized, we not only plan the related events but also offer our guests attractive social activities and opportunities to tour our very diverse country, including the Galapagos Islands, the Sierra highlands, the Amazonian jungle, rainforests, and the coast.

Many fair attendees return year after year to revisit old friends, build new partnerships, and visit the projects they have sponsored and their impact on the local community. Sometimes, international visitors are not able to commit to supporting one project during the fair. But as visitors go back to their home clubs and districts, present about the initiatives they learned about and saw first-hand during their time in Ecuador, they inspire their fellow clubs to reach out and build partnerships with our exhibitors in need of support. Throughout the year, we are pleased to receive requests from districts and clubs asking for backgrounds on projects still seeking support. That is when many of these projects that were not sponsored have a second chance and are successfully carried out with wonderful international partners.

This was the case of a new born intensive care unit at a hospital in Quevedo. We had visited this project with the Rotary Club of Quevedo and it was presented at the fair, but the club did not find an international partner.  Some months later we received an email from the Rotary Club of Alpharetta in the United States asking for a projects still seeking support.  They eventually partnered on the hospital project, and it is already completed and benefiting the community. This is the magic of Rotary!

You are never too old to learn!

LiR at QVCC provides the means to meet the wide range of interests for mature adults who want to pursue new topics or to revisit interests from the past. Our classes and short courses are designed to stimulate the mind and provide a quality social environment in an informal and relaxed atmosphere.

LiR  is an independent, self-governing membership organization under the auspices of Quinebaug Valley Community College. Formed in 1995 with 120 original charter members, membership has grown steadily and now stands at over 400 individuals. Courses and programs are held in the fall, winter, and spring.

Membership and Fees
Membership is open to all. Yearly membership fees cover the period from September 1 through August 31.

Membership is a prerequisite for enrolling in an LiR course or taking part in any other group activities. A nominal fee is charged for multi-session courses and field trips. Each semester there may also be free courses, seminars, and socials.

PETER JOHNSON, FACILITATOR TRAINING CHAIR, 

Presented by: Mr. Romeo Blackmar 

To unite the citizens of Putnam in a partnership to create and foster a safe, drug free environment for the entire community.

For the past several years, the Putnam PRIDE has worked to make our town a safe, friendly, drug-free community. The PRIDE draws its membership from all sectors of society, including healthcare professionals, employees of the school system, town officials, concerned parents, and prevention professionals. It is the intent of the PRIDE to minimize the effects of drugs and alcohol on all community members young and old, and to raise awareness within the community that substance abuse can affect anyone. In order to achieve these objectives, the PRIDE has targeted a number of substances and related issues, including underage drinking, proper prescription drug disposal, and paraphernalia sales at convenience stores. Past accomplishments include awareness campaigns, data collection, and assessment of community substance-abuse needs.  

Welcome to the Wyndham Land Trust.

Our own Steve Adams and Andy Rzeznikiewicz will give us all you ever wanted to know about :

The Wyndham Land Trust

is working hard to protect land in the Quiet Corner of Northeast Connecticut. The land trust was incorporated in April 1975, and the first parcel was protected in 1977. Today we have acquired over 50 parcels in ten towns totaling 2271 acres. In addition almost 700 acres are protected through conservation easements or restrictions held by the land trust.

Birds sing and breed in the grassland meadows, swamps, and woods that we protect. Amphibians breed in our vernal pools, and wildflowers and native plants flourish on protected trust land. Land has been acquired through generous donations from people that wanted to leave a legacy of open space for future generations. Land has also been acquired through hours and hours of hard work from volunteers that believe in the mission of the land trust and believe in protecting this corner of the planet we call home. We invite you to join the land trust and share our goal of protecting land in Wyndham County. Our work is urgent.

This web site provides information about joining the land trust and about donating land and money. The web site also gives an inventory of the land trust preserves. If a preserve has good access, we provide information about trails and a detailed map of the property. We invite you and your family to visit our preserves and discover the joy of exploring the variety of habitat in all four seasons.

We welcome any questions or comments you have about the work of the land trust. You can reach us at info@wyndhamlandtrust.org. 

After a seven-month national search, the Board of Directors of Day Kimball Healthcare (DKH) have announced that Anne Diamond, J.D., C.N.M.T., has been selected as the next President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the integrated hospital and healthcare system, which is the major provider of healthcare and largest employer in Northeast Connecticut. Diamond, who is currently the CEO of UConn Health’s John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington, CT, will assume her new role at DKH at the end of August. Her selection was made by a subcommittee of the DKH Board of Directors that included physicians, administrators and other members, with input from senior management, department directors, medical staff leadership and medical staff.

Diamond brings to DKH more than 30 years of healthcare experience across a multitude of roles. In her most recent role as CEO of John Dempsey Hospital for the past four years, Diamond has focused on improving the hospital’s quality of care, operations and financial performance, with positive results.

The hospital realized a positive net margin for the past two years and is on track for another positive year. During Diamond’s tenure as CEO the hospital has also been recognized by the American Hospital Association as an organization improving quality at a faster rate than other hospitals nationally and by the CT Hospital Association’s John D. Thompson Award for Excellence in hospital administration for the use of data in improving quality and clinical processes. Anne has also led UConn’s John Dempsey Hospital to three “A” scores for patient safety from Leapfrog and raised Consumer Reports scores to among the top in the state and nation.

“My time at John Dempsey Hospital has been immensely rewarding. I’m proud of all that has been accomplished by the team here over the last four years as CEO and I’m confident that that great work will continue,” Diamond said. “I’m ready now for a new challenge and to help foster that same kind of momentum and innovation at another hospital and healthcare system.”

Diamond continued, “I’m so impressed with the achievements in quality of care at Day Kimball Healthcare and the organization’s ability to weather an extremely difficult time for healthcare in our state and nation over the last several years. Day Kimball’s Board of Directors, administration and staff have consistently risen to those challenges in service to their patients and community; that’s the kind of organization I want to be a part of strengthening, and I look forward to helping to lead efforts toward further growth and success in the future.”

With Diamond’s arrival at DKH in late August, current Interim President and CEO Joseph Adiletta will step down and resume his prior role as Chairman of the Board. 

“It was my privilege and pleasure to serve as Interim CEO of Day Kimball Healthcare while the search for a permanent new CEO was underway. I’m proud to have been involved with Day Kimball through participation on the Board of Directors for many years, but being so closely involved on a day-to-day basis has provided me an even deeper understanding and appreciation of the hard work, dedication and commitment that is shown by the people that make up this organization,” Adiletta said. 

“I look forward to continuing to support their efforts as Chairman of the Board,” Adiletta continued. “I’m also looking forward to working with Anne, who I think brings the perfect combination of skills, values and perspective about what healthcare should be to Day Kimball and the communities we serve. I have no doubt that she will be successful in working with our team to build upon the accomplishments Day Kimball has attained in recent years and to fuel future success.”

Prior to her role as CEO at John Dempsey Hospital, Diamond served as the hospital’s Chief Operating Officer and Associate Vice President of Operations. Before that, she spent five years at Salem Health in Oregon, serving as Senior Director, Cardiovascular, Cancer and Imaging Services and then Vice President, Service Lines and Operations. Diamond began her career as a Nuclear Medicine Technologist, working her way up through the ranks of management and hospital administration over the last three decades.

Diamond is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, the American Health Lawyers Association and the American Society of Healthcare Engineers. She sits on the Connecticut Hospital Association’s (CHA’s) Board of Trustees and serves as chair of CHA’s Statewide Asthma Initiative. She is a board member of the Leo and Anne Albert Institute of Bladder Cancer and the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Luncheon and its Heart Ball. Diamond is also an industry executive advisor for various organizations in healthcare security and patient experience. 

Diamond holds an executive juris doctor degree with a concentration in Health Law from Concord School of Law and a bachelor’s degree in Nuclear Medicine Technology from Cedar Crest College. She retains her certification as a nuclear medicine technologist and is certified as a LEAN process master. She is also an accomplished presenter at healthcare forums and conferences across the country and a contributor to a number of healthcare journals and publications. She is married with a 17 year old son and resides in West Hartford, CT.

More About Anne Diamond

Prior to assuming her role as President and CEO of Day Kimball Healthcare, Anne Diamond served as CEO of UConn Health's John Dempsey Hospital since April, 2010, where she focused her work on improving hospital operations through quality and financial improvements, shared governance, staff engagement and process improvement. The hospital realized a positive net margin for the past two years and is on track for another positive year. During her time as Chief Executive, the hospital was recognized nationally by the American Hospital Association as an organization improving quality at a faster rate than other hospitals nationally and by the CT Hospital Association recognizing hospital administration for the effective use of data in improving quality and clinical processes.

Before UConn, Anne spent five years at Salem Health, a 500 bed health system including a critical care hospital, where she served as Vice President for Service Lines and Operations. At Salem Health, she was deeply involved with quality improvement initiatives, driving core measure outcomes to the top 5% nationally while improving patient satisfaction scores. Anne partnered with Nursing to prepare the organization for Magnet, which they received in 2005. Anne also strategically established ambulatory outreach centers, numerous physician, hospital and service line joint ventures including provider based and taxable subsidiary transactions. In addition, she successfully planned, led and executed the move into a 400K sq. ft. new patient care tower.

Prior to joining Salem Health, Anne worked for 10 years at the Electric Power Research Institute, an international not-­-for-­-profit organization based in Palo Alto, Calif. Here, she served in multiple roles including Executive Director for the Healthcare Research Division, and Corporate Director of Planning, Strategy, Public Relations and Marketing. Anne successfully developed funding proposals to maintain and grow a $400 million research portfolio through, grant funding, public private partnerships and academic collaborations.

Earlier in her career, Anne worked at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., a 705-­-bed teaching hospital, as Director of Safety, Radiation Safety Officer and Assistant Administrative Director, Radiology and at University Hospitals of Cleveland as a nuclear medicine technologist and research technologist in Position Emission Tomography and monoclonal antibody research.

She earned her undergraduate degree in Nuclear Medicine Technology from Cedar Crest College in Allentown, Pa., graduate studies toward an MS/PhD in Safety Engineering and is a graduate of Concord School of Law, with a Health Law concentration, where she was awarded the Executive Juris Doctor Award for Academic Excellence given to the graduate with the highest grade point average during their course of studies.

Anne is married with a 17 year old son and resides in West Hartford, CT and is active in community work including Past Chair of CT Go Red for Women Luncheon, part of the American Heart Association, a Board Member of the Leo and Anne Albert Institute of Bladder Cancer, Committee Member for American Red Cross Gala, member of Connecticut Hospital Association Board of Directors Subcommittees on Population Health, and Chair of the statewide Asthma Initiative, Board of Trustee for CT Hospital Association. Diamond is also an industry executive advisor for various organizations in healthcare security and patient experience.

TEEG’s mission is to strengthen the local community by Empowering individuals to live independently; Strengthening families to live respectfully; Engaging the community to work collaboratively; and Connecting resources to promote a better future for all.

The story of how the TEEG building was built is not unlike many from childhood… rich with lessons. Our young faith community members learned lessons in public service. Leaders who moved the project forward learned lessons in patience. Ellis Tech students learned vocational skills in electrical construction, commercial plumbing, patio design and concrete installation. Legislators and local officials learned lessons in community resourcefulness.

The greatest lesson learned is how important it is to give people an opportunity to be a part of something. In this ever more structured world of contracts, policies and risk management, it has become difficult for people to contribute to and participate in public projects. The TEEG building process bucked this trend and invited the community to be part of something meaningful. Everyone who answered the call to donate their time, talents and treasures were repaid not with money but rather a sense of ownership and community pride.

TEEG began in 1987 as a collaborative effort between local churches, government and caring community members and was founded as the Thompson Ecumenical Empowerment Group.  As we have grown and incorporated additional communities and services, the agency has become known by community (and now statewide!) by its nickname, TEEG!