News in Brief: Cops Watching the Partying; Winners from the Past Week

Giving of Himself: Trumbull Police Officer Michael Gonzalez has won the the Spirit of the Red Cross Award for donating part of his liver to the teenaged daughter of a colleague.

Gonzalez gave more than half of his liver to the daughter of Officer Jay Leos. Gonzalez had to take several months off and lost 25 pounds. Kyleigh Leos suffers from Biliary Atresia and needed a liver transplant.

World Guard Wins in Dayton, Ohio: After competing at the World Guard International Championships held at Dayton University Arena in Dayton this past weekend, the Trumbull High School World Guard (THSWG) is now ranked fifth in the world. 

Under the direction of Raymond Rhodes, the 24-member squad competed April 7-9. This year’s show entitled “Hope” was performed to the music of Michael Giacchiono, with the theme of hope for a cure. It started with THS student Jessica Plude playing an original piano piece. The colors of hope are displayed through the flags that mimic the pink for breast cancer and other illnesses.

The THSWG had to compete in preliminaries and semifinals before moving forward to finals. The THSWG went into World Guard ranked seventh. They tied for fifth place before going into the finals.

The Winter Guard is similar to Color Guard, which performs with the THS Golden Eagle Marching Band in the fall program. Both Winter and Color Guard are traditionally the visual representation of the music. They use flags, sabers, rifles, swing flags and occasionally other pieces of equipment, as well as a mix of ballet, jazz, modern, and contemporary modern dance during their performances. 

The Winter Guard competes as a separate unit in indoor arenas and gymnasiums during their competitive season that culminates in April with local championships held at Trumbull High School and Winter Guard International (WGI) World Championships in Dayton.

Easy Does It: , part of TPAUD,  will be holding party patrols as prom and graduation bash season begins to prevent underage drinking and wild house parties.

Tips can be texted anonymously to 274637, and must include the message TRPD and the location of the underage drinking. TPAUD, Trumbull Partnership Against Underage Drinking, is comprised of educators and police and other town officials.

Police officers are being trained in controlled party dispersal tactics and businesses selling alcohol are also being trained.

Prodigy: McKenna Mase, 13, a seventh-grader at Christian Heritage School, won First Prize in the Schubert Club of Fairfield County Liszt/Schumann Junior Division. She played "Aufschwung," from "Fantasiestucke Op. 12, No.2 by Robert Schumann. She is pictured with her teacher, Dr. Tomoko Uchino, at the Annual Awards Concert at the First Congregational Church of Greenwich where all the winners performed.

Amanda Watson, 17, also a student of Dr. Uchino, won 2nd Prize in the Senior French Division.

Herbst to Speak: Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, Trumbull First Selectman Timothy Herbst and Fairfield First Selectman candidate David Becker will address the next "Our CT GYP" event April 20 at , 6540 Main St., Trumbull from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.. A light dinner will be served and a cash bar will be available. The cost of the event is $30 and all are welcome. Please RSVP to Chris Meek at Chris.Meek@OurCTGOP.org.

Founded by Stamford resident Chris Meek in 2008, Our CT GYP, is a statewide organization that brings Republicans together to advance a spirited debate and discussion on important issues and foster active engagement in the political process.

Herbst was elected first selectman in 2009, becoming the youngest elected First Selectman in town history. Herbst served a decade on the Planning and Zoning Commission, rising to chairman, before his election to the top job at age 29. He is running for re-election.

Tidying Up Trumbull Again: Trumbull Community Women, along with Trumbull’s new Bipartisan Coalition, will be sponsoring a second “Tidy-Up Trumbull” Day Saturday, April 23, from 9:30 a.m. to noon. The focus of the effort will be on Trumbull’s Great Oak Park and is being done in conjunction with Earth Day 2011.

“We are happy to work in conjunction with Trumbull Community Women on this effort to assist the clean-up of our town,” said Tom Kelly, a member of the Trumbull Board of Education and leader of the Bipartisan Coalition.

Questions regarding this event can be directed to Tom Kelly via email at tommyk8@aol.com.

Kennedy Center to Give Awards: will hold its 60th annual awards dinner April 28 at the Holiday Inn on Main Street in Downtown Bridgeport. 

Speaker Jason Crigler and his sister Marjorie of New York City will keynote the event at the awards dinner and annual meeting. Crigler, a guitarist and "fixture in the downtown New York City music scene," will talk about overcoming the physical and emotional trauma of recovering from a stroke that left him immobile and barely responsive.

The dinner will kick off with five breakout sessions from 3-7 p.m., which are optional and open to the public.

The topics will be the following: following topics: “Siblings of Siblings with Special Needs: Unique Concerns/Unique Benefits” presented by Sibling Leadership Network Vice-Chair, John Kramer, Ph. D; “Alzheimer’s & Down Syndrome” presented by Dr. Gerard Kerins, Section Chief Geriatrics, Hospital of St. Raphael, New Haven; “The Importance of Advocacy: You Can’t Afford to Sit Back,” presented by Walter Glomb of the Parent Empowerment Task Force; a panel discussion about “Planned Giving: Decisions That Make a Difference,” and “Question and Answer Session with Kennedy Center Vice Presidents.”The social hour will begin at 6 p.m., followed by the dinner, the annual meeting and awards at 7 p.m. 

Tickets will be $20 per person for the breakout sessions only, $50 for the breakout sessions and dinner, or $40 per person for the dinner only. Admission benefits the clients of The Kennedy Center. Advance reservations are needed by April 22.  No tickets will be sold at the door. For ticket information, call 203-365-8522, ext. 213 or reservations can be made online at www.thekennedycenterinc.org.

Summer Workers Needed:  The Kennedy Center is hiring for the summer.  This major non-profit will employee 15 job coaches from June through August to work with adults with intellectual disabilities in the community. Applicants must have a high school diploma and their own vehicle for the 30-hour a week position; some college education is a plus.

The position pays $12 an hour. Please send a resume with a cover letter to hr@kennedyctr.org or fax to 203-371-1479.

Honors Seven at Educational Partnerships Awards Event: Cooperative Educational Services (C.E.S.) honored seven area individuals with the Success Through Educational Partnerships (STEP) award at a breakfast ceremony on April 8 at the Regional Center for the Arts, 23 Oakview Drive.

The STEP Awards were created by the leadership team at C.E.S. to honor individuals and organizations that go above and beyond to support the agency in its mission to identify and provide quality educational opportunities for educators, students, families and communities.

Among the recipients of the award were Dr. Laurie R. Noe, Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education and Coordinator of the Early Childhood Education Program at Housatonic Community College, and Shane Beardsley, Director of Community Relations for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Dr. Laurie R. Noe has provided early childhood consultants to guide, train, and prepare C.E.S. School Readiness Preschool teachers to serve as mentors for aspiring early childhood education teachers. The mentor training has been vital to the success of C.E.S. School Readiness staff and the quality of the program.

Shane Beardsley has worked collaboratively with C.E.S. Special Education for the past five years to host an Annual Autism Awareness hockey game at the Arena at Harbor Yard. The event, which supports C.E.S. Special Education programs and raises awareness of Autism Spectrum Disorders, has helped to provide curriculum enrichment, therapeutic and assistive technology devices, and more, for C.E.S. students.

Other recipients included Deborah Adams, Michelle Levy, Gerri Rowell and Andrea Brinnel, Early Childhood Education Consultants at the State Dept. of Education, who have provided continuous development and support of statewide professional development in early childhood education. Dr. Peter Madonia, Chair of the Educational Leadership Dept. at Southern Connecticut State University also received a STEP award. 

The 2011 STEP Awards Breakfast was C.E.S.’s second annual event to honor individuals and organizations that collaborate with the educational community to contribute to the success of education in Fairfield County.