Wellness for the 55+ crowd

NEW HAVEN – CareCard, the Hospital of Saint Raphael’s health and wellness program for those 55 and older, is launching two new fitness programs in Hamden: indoor walking and water aerobics.
Both programs will be offered at Hamden Hall’s Beckerman Sports Center starting in April, the hospital said in a statement.
The indoor walking program will be facilitated by a certified instructor who will provide instruction and guidance for walkers of varying degrees of mobility, including those rehabilitating from surgical procedures or injuries, the statement said.
CareCard is a free program that provides a variety of services and programs for the New Haven area’s 55-plus population. To learn more about CareCard and its fitness programs, call the Hospital of Saint Raphael Healthy Aging Line at (203) 789-3275.

Song of the sea

Hear it at the Peabody

NEW HAVEN - Science writer Todd McLeish will visit the Yale Peabody of Natural History to share insights on rare marine creatures plying waters of the New England coastline and relate stories of his adventures working with biologists to monitor and protect the species at 5:30 p.m. March 25.
The talk is free and open to the public, organizers said in a statement.
While researching his latest book "Basking with Humpbacks," McLeish "tagged basking sharks to learn where they give birth, helped harbor porpoises escape from fishing nets, snorkeled in search of wild bay scallops, and learned how the blood of horseshoe crabs is used in medical research," the statement said.

"Along the way he visited the islands where rare seabirds nest, tracked humpback whales on their long migration to the Gulf of Maine, and watched as stranded sea turtles were released back to the ocean."
McLeish, shown in photo, will sign copies of "Basking with Humpbacks," his second natural history book, which profiles 11 of the rarest and threatened species of wildlife living in the marine environment around New England. This program is part of the series "Nature’s Narrators: The 2009–2010 John H. Ostrom Program Series.”
McLeish has been writing about wildlife and environmental issues for more than 20 years, the statement said.

While earning degrees in communications at Ithaca College and Emerson College, he developed a passion for wildlife, natural history and environmental protection, it said. Rather than pursue a biology degree, he immersed himself in the natural world by volunteering to help biologists with their wildlife research and write about these experiences.

In more than 100 magazine and newspaper articles, he has written about sensitive timely issues, highlighted threatened species, and profiled biologists and wildlife artists, the statement said.

Editor's Note: this information was provided by the Peabody Museum.

Something bugging you?

This might be the way to find help

NEW HAVEN — The third Connecticut Bed Bug Forum by the Connecticut Coalition Against Bed Bugs and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. March 22 in the Michael J. Adanti Student Center, Southern Connecticut State University on Fitch Street.
The program will include current bed bug management practices, legal aspects of bed bug enforcement, research and development, history, biology, state and federal issues, and bed bug detection dogs, organizers said in a statement.
For more details visit www.ct.gov/caes.

Also, the Experiment Station Associates will hold their annual meeting at 7 p.m. March 18 in Jones Auditorium on the station's New Haven campus, 123 Huntington St.
The public is welcome to attend the meeting, where there will be two presentations: “The Return of the Bed Bugs” by Dr. Gale Ridge and “Use of Plants to Remove Toxic Chemicals from the Soil” by Dr. Jason White.

You and the sea

Communities are the intended beneficiaries of a grants that will help programs train 'climate ambassadors'

Sea Grant programs in the North Atlantic awarded ‘Climate Engagement’
mini-Grant to help communities adapt to climate change

GROTON - A total of $25,000 has been awarded to sea Grant programs from Maine to Virginia to work with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration offices to establish a regional network of “climate ambassadors” who will help local communities, according to a statement released by the University of Connecticut's Connecticut Sea Grant program.
The awards are part of eight “Climate Engagement” mini-grants from NOAA to various regions of the U.S., the statement said.
The grant will "provide training in climate outreach to staff of NOAA’s North Atlantic Regional Team and Sea Grant extension agents," it said.
Training provided by the grant will help coastal residents, businesses and decision-makers learn how their communities can best adapt to climate change, the statement said.
Sessions will cover the latest science and climate information and tools available from NOAA. Initial trainees will hold local training sessions for others in their home states, which can bring the latest information and technology back to community leaders, the statement said.
Peyton Robertson, NOAA North Atlantic Regional Team leader and Sylvain De Guise, director of the Connecticut Sea Grant College Program at UConn, will lead the effort in the Northeast region. De Guise is Sea Grant’s representative to the NOAA North Atlantic Regional Team.
The "Climate Engagement Mini-Grant Program is modeled after the NOAA Stakeholder Engagement Mini-Grant program, which distributed grants in 2009 to fund regional pilot projects engaging communities in issues of interest to both NOAA and local residents," the statement said.
The goal of the new program is to leverage NOAA and Sea Grant resources to help coastal communities adapt to climate change, it said.
“Since our Sea Grant researchers and extension agents serve the local coastal communities in which they live, Sea Grant is well-suited to connect NOAA science to the needs of local coastal communities,” Leon Cammen, director of the NOAA National Sea Grant College Program said in the statement. “Issues related to climate change are a Sea Grant priority.”
Juliana Barrett, an assistant educator for the UConn Department of Extension and Connecticut Sea Grant focusing on coastal habitats, and part of UConn’s Center for Land Use Education and Research team, works with CTSG, includes coordinating climate change efforts, the statement said. "Through new and existing program initiatives, CTSG is emphasizing climate change as a cross-cutting theme which informs its outreach, extension, education and communication activities as well as its targeted research funding program," it said.

Developing strategies for communicating the uncertainties of science to stakeholders is a long-term interest of MacNeill, NYSG’s representative to NOAA’s climate-related Sectoral Applications Research Program (SARP), brings recent expertise in communicating the complex factors that affect fisheries in Great Lakes ecosystems to this climate change project. He will work with educators in the Great Lakes and national Sea Grant networks to develop ways to help coastal communities better understand potential impacts of climate change, and help communities make informed choices on potential adaptation strategies to climate change.
Barrett and David B. MacNeill, a fisheries specialist with New York Sea Grant in Oswego, N.Y., will be among those undergoing initial training at the first workshop, April 12-14, at the University of Rhode Island’s Coastal Institute in Narragansett, the statement said.
Subsequently, they and others will participate in organizing a second round of training workshops, for citizens, business, and community leaders, to be held in 2010from Maine to Virginia, the statement said.

Sea Grant is a nationwide network of 32 university-based programs that work with coastal communities, the statement said. The National Sea Grant College Program engages this network of the nation’s top universities in conducting scientific research, education, training, and extension projects designed to foster science-based decisions about the use and conservation of our aquatic resources, the statement said.

For more:
Connecticut Sea Grant: http://www.seagrant.uconn.edu
New York Sea Grant: http://www.seagrant.sunysb.edu
Sea Grant Sustainable Community Development web site: http://sgsccdn.ning.com/
NOAA Research: http://www.oar.noaa.gov
NOAA National Sea Grant College Program: http://www.seagrant.noaa.gov

Editor's note: The information in this post was provided by Margaret Van Patten, communications director, Connecticut Sea Grant, at UConn in Groton. It is only lightly edited here and is the work of that program.

Contributions to LGBT life honored

NORTH HAVEN - State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal and state Comptroller Nancy Wyman joined the New Haven Pride Center at its recent 7th annual Dorothy Awards, center officials said in a statement.
The center was formerly called the New Haven Gay & Lesbian Community Center.
Sponsored
The event was sponsored by Day Pitney LLP, Yale University, Metroline Magazine, the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven, Yale-New Haven Hospital, United Illuminating Co., and Miya’s Sushi, the statement said. The event, which 220 attended, featured a "special presentation of official citations from the state of Connecticut by Wyman to the evening’s honorees in recognition of their service to the state of Connecticut," the statement said
The center’s Dorothy Awards honor members of the LGBT community who have made a significant contribution to local LGBT life. This year, honorees included: Dena Castricone, founder and president of CABO, the state’s LGBT chamber of commerce; Leif Mitchell, co-chair of GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) Connecticut and a member of GLSEN’s National Advisory Council and National Training Team; Michael Morand, associate vice president of Yale University for New Haven and State Affairs; and the Imperial Sovereign Court of All Connecticut, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that raises tens of thousands of dollars annually for other state organizations, the statement said.
Frank DeMayo, who "performed crowd-pleasing versions of popular songs that he ”made his own” for the evening," acted as host for the event, the statement said.

In and photo, l to r, are Honoree Dena Castricone [CABO], Wyman, Blumenthal, Honoree Mark Campbell [Imperial Sovereign Court], Honoree Michael Morand [Yale], Honoree Leif Mitchell [GLSEN])

Not so common fun

NEW HAVEN - Students in kindergarten through fifth grade are invited to explore farm life and the connection people have to the natural world in a seasonal after-school program that begins April 6 at Common Ground 358 Springside Ave.
Weekly activities in Kid’s Unplugged! include learning about eggs and chicks, playing games in the woods, exploring Wintergreen Brook, hiking to the summit of West Rock Park, learning to draw plants and animals on the farm, making recycled art, and a hands-on tour of the farm at Common Ground, organizers said.
Children may be registered for one, two, or three days per week. Enrollment is limited to 36 participants per day. Program fee: One day a week for 9 weeks - $150 (2days is $300, 3 days is $450. The program runs 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays through June 10. Financial aid available, please inquire.
Registrations accepted until each session is full.
Contact: 203-389-4333 ext 1213 or e-mail rholcombe@nhep.com

Hospice offers spring training

BRANFORD — Connecticut Hospice starts its spring volunteer training in March. The course will prepare volunteers in all aspects of hospice care.
To register, contact Patricia A. Corradino at 203-315-7510 or pnowak@hospice.com.

Events to focus on helping people with celiac disease

HAMDEN — The Greater New Haven Celiac Group will hold two events in March for people with celiac disease.
March 6: A pancake breakfast will be held 9:30-11:15 a.m. at Grace and St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 2927 Dixwell Ave. Gluten-free pancakes with gluten-free accompaniments will be served. Cost is $3 for adult members of the GNHCG, $2 for nonmembers and $1 for all children.
March 13: A “Glo Bowling” party will be held 3-5 p.m. at Johnson’s Duckpin Lanes, 2100 Dixwell Ave. The cost is free for children with celiac disease who are members of GNHCG and $12 for everyone else.
Reservations should be made by Monday.
To make a reservation, call GNHCG President Bill Jacobs at 203-272-9646 or e-mail wajacobs@cox.net.

Help for Columbus House

NEW HAVEN - Partners and employees of BlumShapiro have donated $2,500 to Columbus House.
The donation was possible becayse, for the second consecutive year, the firm decided to forego the company’s annual holiday party and donate to charities across the state, including Columbus House, according to a statement.
Columbus House Director of Development and Public Relations John B. Brooks, second from left, received a check for $2,500 from Dennis J. Regan, far left, partner of BlumShapiro, Michael Niedermeier, second from right, partner-in-charge of BlumShapiro’s Southern Connecticut office, and Tom DeVitto, far right, chief marketing officer of BlumShapiro.
Columbus House serves people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
“BlumShapiro’s donation reflects our personal commitment to the success of activities and organizations like Columbus House that make our state a better place to live,” said Niedermeier in the statement.

Photo courtesy of BlumShapiro

Yale doctor to talk colon cancer

NEW HAVEN - A free health talk on colon cancer will be prsented by the Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven and Yale Cancer Center at 6 p.m. March 10.
The talk, "Treatment options for Colon Cancer" will be held in the Yale-New Haven Hospital East Pavilion cafeteria.
Dr. Edward Chu, chief of medical oncology and deputy director, Yale Cancer Center, will be the speaker. To make a reservation, call (203) 688-2000. Ask for directions to park in the Air Rights Garage.