Culture

For many decades the property on Pleasant Street next to DePaolo Middle School, which was owned by the Faryniarz family, had a stable.

Situated in the former Clark Brothers Bolt Factory building at 409 Canal Street, Kinsmen Brewery has one of the larger customer spaces in the state, with a large banquet hall, a cavernous taproom, and two outdoor seating areas.

The cafeteria at Strong Elementary School echoed with these lyrics Tuesday afternoon as the entire student body, some 300 in number, performed a rousing rendition of Sprout’s ‘Kindness Is a Muscle’ before an audience of proud community leaders and teachers.

Not every statistic tells a story, but some do. Below we have compiled a few numbers that have come across our desk recently from various sources which offer glimpses of life in town.

On March 22, 1945, Technical Sergeant Donald A. Dorman and eight fellow crew members listened as the engine of their B-17G ‘Flying Fortress’ bomber slowly cranked to life.

An essential part of the Cocktail Competition the Southington United Way held last Tuesday were the recipes - like the one that prescribed how much basil, ginger, orange, lime, and agave to mix with vodka in an Electric Bloom, the cocktail that won Spelunker’s bar the first-place overall award.

There are only two places in Connecticut where you can watch a Hollywood release on a summer evening from a vehicle full of family and friends. One is the Mansfield Drive-In in Mansfield. The other is Southington’s own drive-in movie theater on 995 Meriden-Waterbury Turnpike.

The transformation of the retail space at 48 North Main Street is largely complete. The former dress shop is now home to a store run by the Southington School System’s STELLAR program, which serves young adults with disabilities.

This Saturday morning, a team of dedicated volunteers from Southington Rotary Club and other community service groups will gather at Derynoski Elementary school to pack meals for the hungry.

When we arrived at the Summit Rehabilitation Center in Plantsville to lead a round of Grown-Up Show & Tell on behalf of the Outsider, we were concerned at first that turnout might be low. But after a meeting with our host, the Summit’s recreation director Barbara Blau, it turned out we had nothing to worry about. The room on the second floor was packed, about thirty residents having gathered in a circle, waiting to share their stories.

People visit Holy Trinity Polish National Church on Summer Street for many reasons: some are seeking fellowship, some are looking to connect with the sacred, some are dealing with matters of life and death.

John McDonald, the founder of CT Photo Pro and a sponsor of the Southington Outsider, took advantage of the nice spring weather last Sunday, April 26, to shoot some drone footage of Southington.

“Hey, look at that!” shouted Jeff Barton, founder of Southington’s new Youth Fishing League. He pointed to a young child, half as tall as his pole, who was reeling in an orange-bellied sunfish from the waters of Sloper Pond. “Someone knows how to fish over there,” he said.

Christina Volpe, Director of Southington’s Barnes Museum, is enthusiastic about sharing her love and knowledge of local history with the community. The author, curator and educator has picked a good point in history to carry out her work.

Last Saturday, Southington High School’s robotics team, the CyberKnights, had just returned home from a dramatic tournament victory in Vermont, where they and two other teams in their alliance eeked out a close win in overtime against a rival trio of teams.

Southington High School has announced that the following students have earned first and second honors:

A crowd of over one hundred family members, friends, and supporters exploded into cheers as the Blue Knights Winter Guard returned home from Dayton, Ohio, where the team surprised everyone – even, to a certain extent, themselves – by taking home the gold medal in a nationwide competition.

From 1919 to 1974, The Southington News was the town’s main newspaper. For most of its run, it published a mix of articles on local news and sports along with editorials and ads, just like its successor, The Southington Observer.

There aren’t that many people who know as much about the business of sports broadcasting as Southington resident Mike Soltys. Having joined ESPN in 1980, just a year after the network’s birth, he served for several decades as its Vice President for Communications and witnessed first hand as a scrappy Bristol-based start-up turned into a global sports media empire.

Anyone driving by the Southington green Wednesday morning might have noticed something new on its lawn – a swarm of large white dragonflies.

Back in 2015, Chris Iverson was an Eagle Scout looking for a service project. Told to contact the Barnes Museum, he went on a tour of the grounds with the curator at the time, Marie Secondo.

In 1938, the American Legion held its first nationwide oratorical contest to provide high school students an opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the U.S Constitution while earning scholarships for college.

On Tuesday, March 31, The Orchard Valley Garden Club is pleased to have Pam Bosward of West Woods Flower Farm in Hamden, CT presenting, “Growing Beautiful Dahlias.” West Woods Flower Farm grows pesticide free, locally-grown flowers from mid-June through mid-October.

Eleven members of the STEPS Youth Council made their on-screen debut recently in a short video highlighting the risks of sports betting.

The highlight for most community service organizations are the regular meetings and social outings where members forge ties of friendship. Like many local service groups, the Southington Lions club was hit hard by the COVID pandemic, which made it necessary to limit face-to-face contact.

Last summer Justin Dawley and his wife Jessica opened up Vue Brewing Company in a 1,500 square-foot space on Triano Drive, which runs off Hart Street not far from the Southington Police Station.

Starting a successful small business is notoriously hard. One path to success is to identify an underserved market segment and then figure out an effective way to reach your customers.

Raising a child can be one of life’s great joys – but also one of its greatest challenges. And while there are many resources out there new parents can take advantage of, navigating them can often be time-consuming and frustrating.

One in a million - as Jennifer Coan-Mahmood, Assistant Director at Mount Southington Ski Area, pointed out to the enthusiastic crowd, that’s literally how rare an Olympic athlete is.

Just a few months from now, Sloper Pond will be full of area children swimming, boating, fishing, and making friendships and memories to last a lifetime.

Many brewery owners get their start by experimenting with brewing at home. Josh Norris, the head brewer of Witchdoctor Brewing in Factory Square, is no exception.

Research shows that differences in generations are caused not only by life experiences (wars, famine, etc.) but also changes in technology.

The schools? Closed. Town Hall? Closed. The Library, YMCA, Calendar House, Community Services? All closed. 15 to 20 inches of snow – the totals vary depending on who you ask – will do that.

“Young people today are different.” Yes, it seems every older generation always says that.

There is no path to Southington’s Great Unconformity. Instead, visitors must tread carefully over boulders and through stands of oak and mountain laurel until they come to the edge of a steep ravine.

“What did you think of Barb’s?” a member of Sober Southington asked the group. “I liked it, it reminded me of the kind of pizza I grew up with," came the reply.

The executive director of Southington’s Bread For Life, Missy Cipriano, is a trained beekeeper...

The Southington Outsider recently put out an invitation for authors from the Southington community to tell us about books they have written or are working on.

The Southington Outsider recently put out an invitation for authors from the Southington community to tell us about books they have written or are working on.

Once a year, the Southington-Cheshire YMCA bestows five awards on individuals or groups who have done exceptional work to improve our community.

In the middle of the afternoon on Friday, downtown Southington suddenly lost power.

The passion that Bradley Barnes, last owner of the Barnes homestead, had for historical artifacts explains why the Barnes Museum is so full of treasures today.

The Knights traveled to New Britain for a statewide band competition and to East Rutherford, New Jersey, for a national competition.

When it formed in 1965, the Southington Historical Society's mission was not just to preserve stories about the town’s past, but to find a place where a growing collection of unique historical objects from its early days could be displayed

Alicia Diaz and Brandi Nik Kilbourne-Price SHERRIE SHOVER PHOTOS Downtown Southington continues to grow, and a new addition strives to help residents do the same. Infinite Growth Club, located at 35 Center Street, is a boutique fitness and wellness studio that blends physical training, yoga, mental well-being, and community connection. Founded by Brandi Nik Kilbourne-Price, a longtime personal trainer and coach, and Alicia Diaz, a yoga instructor and licensed social worke

In this day and age, it’s more important than ever to find opportunities for real connection. Such the view of Sauvignon Blanc, a Southington-born drag queen.

The first clue Southington residents had that something strange was coming to town may have been the unusual black jeep parked in the lot behind Factory Square last year.

The cold air stiffened performers' fingers and complicated sound equipment Saturday, as nineteen Connecticut high school marching bands took the field at Southington High School for the Music of the Knight! competition.

For the seventeenth year in a row, Bread For Life held its soup-and-bread dinner this past Wednesday.

This past Saturday downtown Southington was filled with people in various degrees of motion. Some inched patiently along while waiting for apple fritters