Judi Finneran, the President and owner of Team Women™, announced the addition of the first Connecticut chapter located in Hartford. Established in January 2005, Team Women™ is one of the fastest-growing networking organizations in the United States with 50 U.S.-based chapters and more than 600 active members.

Team Women™ provides women business professionals a forum with which to build business and increase sales via the cultivation of direct business referrals through face-to-face networking. Our primary objective is to build business in a fun and professional setting through the exchange of qualified business leads. Team Women is like having dozens of highly committed sales professionals working directly for you. Meetings are held every two weeks, which is optimal for strong business relationship building without levying too much pressure on busy schedules.

“Team Women is looking forward to forming their chapter in the Hartford area which was founded by Chapter President Joanna Smiley”, says Finneran. Local female professionals in any business or profession that can benefit from more leads or business referrals are encouraged to visit the chapter kick-off meeting, which will be held on May 20, 2008 at 7:00 PM in a private section of Firebox Restaurant. The award-winning dining establishment is located at 539 Broad Street, Hartford, CT. The restaurant provides free parking and more details on its Web site, www.fireboxrestaurant.com. Members of the press are welcome to attend the meeting.

For information about the Hartford chapter, or any other chapters, please contact Judi Finneran at (760) 639-2823 or send an email to Judi@teamwomen.com. You can visit our meeting calendar any time at www.teamwomen.com.

After a 22-year tenure at Aid to Artisans (ATA), a Hartford-based international nonprofit, 80-year-old pioneer Clare Brett Smith has retired from ATA. Clare was followed as President by David O’Connor in 2006 who has assumed executive leadership of ATA.

“It is a privilege to take over the organization from Clare who brought ATA strong growth and a great reputation with artisans and the development community,” said David O’Connor. “I would like to thank Clare for her contributions during our time working together, and I look forward to ATA’s continued success in providing quality services and assistance to artisans worldwide. We see great hope for the future.”

When Clare first became President of ATA in 1986, she operated on nothing but heart and a shoe string budget. She scooped up a group of friends in her culturally-savvy network and gathered on a second floor landing room of her home. She had one computer with two fonts and a $30,000 budget.

Under Clare’s leadership from 1998 to 2007, with an increased budget of several million dollars, ATA and its partners delivered critical product development, training and marketing services to 65,000 artisans in 41 countries and an additional 60,000 artisans received small grants. Seventy-two percent of these artisans were women. During this period, ATA’s sales efforts leveraged nearly $230 million in retail commerce, a testament to Clare’s ability to help reach artisans who were completely unfamiliar with export. Clare also helped secure ATA’s first major project in Honduras from 1984-1986, which eventually generated $15 million in U.S. sales. Prior to the project, no artisan businesses existed in the country.

“Clare’s personal magnetism and fearless curiosity drew people to ATA in a blend of charitable intention and market orientation that preceded the fair trade movement by over a decade,” said Keith Recker, former Board Member and former Executive Director of ATA. “I met Clare in 1988 and was struck by her skillful way of getting to know people and of networking among them into imaginative and effective solutions for artisans, and this was before networking was a common concept.”

Clare’s first artisan development work began in Haiti. On her honeymoon in the early 1960s, she and her husband, a former navy pilot, made an unexpected landing in the region and convinced Haitian police to allow them to stay. The experience led her to a fortuitous encounter with Haitian artisans who opened her eyes to the beauty and potential of handmade craft. She eventually journeyed back to Haiti in search of more crafts and then continued trekking across the globe with her Primitive Artisan business. The Haiti story has now come full circle as ATA is returning to work in the country.

Clare has traveled to dozens of countries in hopes of helping skilled artisans market their products—and she hasn’t just traveled. She’s experienced what life is like as an artisan. She’s sat in rice paddy fields in Sri Lanka. She’s worked next to potters in Mexico, bead makers in Ghana, weavers and felt-makers in Central Asia. Her eyes see not the despondency, but the skills, traditions and potential in these communities and their native people. She plans to travel for as long as she lives.

About Clare Brett Smith
Clare Brett Smith was born in Pennsylvania and raised in Connecticut and Vermont. She graduated from Smith College with a bachelor’s degree in history. Since 1951, she has lived in Farmington, CT in a historic house full of artisan crafts from her world travels. She is married with seven children, 10 grandchildren and three great grandchildren. She has also opened up her home to international house guests most of her life, many of whom have become her second family.

Clare was a member of the First Delegation of Artists and Craftsmen to the People’s Republic of China in 1977, and represented Haiti as the World Crafts Council meeting in Kyoto in 1978. Clare has received numerous awards, including a 2005 Decorative Accessories Industry Achievement Award. She has been asked to present her work at worldwide leadership conferences including the Leadership Conference on Conservancy & Development in the Yunnan Province, China in 1999 and the Maker and Meaning: Craft and Society international seminar in Madras, India. In 2002, she was the juror for UNESCO Crafts Prize for Latin American and Caribbean artisans at the International Craft & Design Fair in Mexico City. In 2006, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by Clark University. Clare is also a renowned photographer and teacher of photography. Her photos hang from museum walls and studio center exhibits across the country. Clare has been featured in dozens of media outlets including Time Magazine, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Town & Country Magazine, USA Today, CPTV, Forbes and The Hartford Courant.

About Aid to Artisans (ATA)
ATA was founded in 1976 by James Plaut, former secretary general for the World Craft Council, based on his deep concern for the “endangered artisan.” ATA has now spent 32 years mentoring artisans in more than 110 developing countries worldwide, and is the vital ingredient that links these artisans with the global marketplace. Through ATA’s programs, artisan craft products are showcased at international trade shows, esteemed designers travel abroad on training missions and buyers fly thousands of miles to source artisans’ work in remote regions across the globe. With a hand in the entire maker-to-market distribution process, ATA’s ultimate goal is to help the artisans connect with new markets and sustain their businesses long term. The money they earn enables them to provide for their families and communities, while preserving the beauty of their cultural traditions.

For more information, visit www.aidtoartisans.org. To request high resolution images or for media inquiries, contact Joanna Smiley, Communications Manager, at (860) 947-3418.

Registration is now on open for the newly formed Amity Youth Pop Warner Football and Cheerleading Teams.  The youth of Bethany, Orange and Woodbridge are invited to participate.  Amity Youth Pop Warner is part of the Southern Connecticut Pop Warner (SCPW) league and has an eight game regular season, which begins on Labor Day Weekend.   At the end of the season, SCPW has league championship playoffs, which results in a league champion at each level for each division. The eight remaining teams enter the national playoff bracket and travel to WALT DISNEY WORLD to play for a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.  
 
Registration for the upcoming 2008 Amity Youth Pop Warner Football Season closes on June 15, 2008.  The Registration Fee is $200.00 per football player and $115.00 per cheerleader.  Registration forms are downloadable from the AYF, LLC website http://www.amityyouthfootball.com.
 
For the 2008 season, AYF, LLC (Amity Youth Pop Warner Football) will compete in three divisions. Jr Pee Wee ages 8-9-10 year olds, 60-105 lbs; Jr Midgets ages 10-11-12 years old, 85-135 lbs; and Midgets ages 11-12-13-14 years old, 105-160lbs.  Weights apply only to football players.  A player’s age is determined on how old the player is on August 1, 2008.
 
The Towns we will be competing against include:  Derby, Tri valley (Prospect, Beacon Fall), Milford, Seymour, Shelton, Fairfield, Naugatuck, Hamden, Stratford, Trumbull and West Haven
 
 
If you have any question, concerns or need further info please feel free to contact us via email.
 
Greg Laugeni, greg@amityyouthfootball.com or (203) 387-0416
Rich Photos, rich@amityyouthfootball.com or (203) 393-9537
Debbie Consiglio, debbie@amityyouthfootball.com or (203) 393-1768 (cheerleading only)

Each year, the Milford Living Treasures program, sponsored by the Milford Junior Woman’s Club, Inc., honors a town resident for their extraordinary efforts in community service.

Claire Phelan has been selected as the 2008 recipient of this prestigious award. Claire will be honored at City Hall on May 30 from 7 – 9 PM at a ceremony conducted by Mayor Richetelli and the Junior Woman’s Club.

Claire’s commitment and dedication to Milford and its citizens is stellar. As one nomination read: “her unceasing energy for improving our city and assisting our citizens continues unabated for over forty years.” Another nomination added “Claire has a great affection for Milford. She contributes to the vitality of Milford through her tireless work for those in our community who suffer due to diminished capacity, addiction or other circumstances.”

Claire has lived in Milford all her life. She was born on February 5, 1927, graduated from Milford High School in 1944 and settled here with husband Robert, raising four children. Currently widowed, Claire has four children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. She worked for 32 years at the New Haven & Hartford Railroad before retirement.

Over the years, Claire’s contributions to Milford are many. She currently serves as Chairperson on the Board of Directors to Bridges, a community mental health support system; Vice Chair, Board of Directors to Beth-El Center; serves as a Constable of the City of Milford and is a Justice of the Peace, performing marriages throughout the year. Her work for those in need spans many agency and government positions including Agency on Aging in Southern Central Connecticut, Mental Health Planning Council, State Board of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Catchment Six Area Council and the Regional Mental Health Board.

This is not the first time Claire has been recognized for her many achievements and contributions. Claire is a 2007 recipient of the Secretary of State’s Public Service Award for her 20 years of service to municipal, state and federal elections. She was also honored in 2007 with the Certificate of Appreciation from the Connecticut State Legislature for her many years of volunteerism on behalf of those less fortunate. Claire received this award on her 80th birthday.

Past Living Treasure recipients include: Sara Turnbull, 1996; Abigail Gerhard, 1997; Sally Szoke, 1998; Eleanor Hutt, 1999; Margaret Casey, 2000; Alan Jepson, 2001;  Judge Bernard F. Joy, 2002; Michael Petrucelli, 2003; Sebastian Boscarino, 2004; Walter Farley, 2005; Thomas Cody, Sr, 2006; and Richard Platt, 2007.

The American Guild of Organists New Haven Chapter is looking for new members to join this supportive, educational and fun group! Please contact Susan Paisley at 298-9129 for details.

Also, the Subway Regional Symphony Orchestra needs players: Bassoon, trumpet, trombone, string bass and all strings. Rehearsals are at Gateway Community College in North Haven at 9:30AM on Saturdays.

The HAMDEN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AT SOUTHERN is a volunteer orchestra of more than 50 members affiliated with Southern Connecticut State University. Founded in 1962 by Ruth Brooks, it provides cultural enrichment to the Hamden and Southern communities through its series of concerts, its annual Young Musicians Concerto Competition, and by the orchestral experience it offers to area musicians and soloists. Membership is open to all qualified musicians, subject to openings in a particular section. Southern students and faculty can participate and students can earn college credit. For information, call (203) 248-3770 or write to:
HSOS c/o Jan Jekel
112 Wayland Street
North Haven, CT 06473

The Jewish Coalition for Literacy (JCL) is offering conversational Spanish instruction at the Jewish Community Center, 360 Amity Road in Woodbridge, Monday evenings from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM from February 4th through April 14th.  The first two Mondays will offer optional classes for those who are beginners in the language or those desirous of a refresher.  The ten-week session will be run February 18th through April 14th.  Jill Savitt, High School in the Community educator, will teach the basic class and Tomas Miranda, Associate Director of Casa Otonal, will instruct the advanced class.    All are welcome.  Tuition for the optional introductory and refresher classes are $36.00 for both weeks.  Tuition for the ten-week session is $136.00.  Registration is required by January 18th.  Contact Brenda Brenner @ 203 387-2424 x 308 or bbrenner@jewishnewhaven.org for information and to register.
 
JCL, an award-winning project of the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven, recruits, trains and places volunteer reading tutors in local public schools to read one to one with children, for an hour a week, to improve their reading skills & help them experience success in learning.  No experience required.  JCL:  Opening a world of opportunities for children.  Contact Brenda to volunteer.

The Study Circles Resource Center has selected Community Mediation, Inc., to take part in a national initiative aimed at helping communities create and sustain public engagement and community change on issues around racial equity.
 
Community Mediation, Inc. will be one of eight programs to work with the Study Circles Resource Center (soon to be Everyday Democracy) over the next two years as part of the Communities Creating Racial Equity initiative.
 
The eight programs will work in their communities to reduce persistent inequality among racial and ethnic groups that show up in areas like education, housing, health care, the justice system, immigration and jobs. The programs also will form a national learning network, and will meet together twice over the course of the initiative. The Study Circles Resource Center will provide technical assistance to the programs, and use what it learns from their work to generate new tools, advice and resources that will be available for other communities around the country working on racial equity.
 
The Study Circles Resource Center selected Community Mediation based on the strength of its proposal to work on racial equity, its commitment to long-term community change, its ability to bring many people from diverse backgrounds into conversations about racial and ethnic inequities and how racism is affecting the community, and its capacity for sustaining inclusive public conversation and problem solving so that these democratic processes become a routine part of how the community works.
 
“Community Mediation’s proposal to work with us showed its commitment to examining the roots of inequities, and to setting new standards for success that go beyond just getting along better,” says Martha L. McCoy, executive director of the Study Circles Resource Center. “We look forward to helping Community Mediation create opportunities for all kinds of people to talk and work together to close racial gaps and solve public problems.”
 
“Our program will address the issue of immigration, which is at the heart of the current debate over racial and ethnic equity in the New Haven area,” says Charles Pillsbury, executive director of Community Mediation, Inc.   “We are working in partnership with the City of New Haven, the United Way of Greater New Haven, Junta for Progressive Action, Inc., Unidad Latina en Acción (Latinos United in Action), St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church, Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services, the Greater New Haven Peace Council, the Connecticut Center for a New Economy, Gateway Community College and the Yale Law School,” Pillsbury added.

Programs included in the initiative are Stratford, Conn.; Syracuse, N.Y.; Montgomery County Public Schools, Md.; Lynchburg, Va.; Burlington, Vt.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Sacramento, Calif.; and New Haven, Conn.  With funding provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the C.S. Mott Foundation, the Study Circles Resource Center will provide each organization with in-depth technical assistance and stipends for travel to the learning exchanges. Each organization will have a chance to apply for a small grant to help them implement their community’s ideas to achieve racial equity. The first learning exchange will be April 22-24 at the new Everyday Democracy office in East Hartford, CT.
Community Mediation, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that promotes peaceful communities and just relationships by enabling individuals, families, organizations and communities to resolve their conflicts themselves through mediation, dialogue, training, facilitation and education.  Locally, we collaborate with a broad range of organizations and provide staff, trained volunteer mediators and facilitators, and other resources to resolve disputes.  Learn more at www.community-mediation.org

The Study Circles Resource Center is a national organization that helps local communities find ways for all kinds of people to think, talk and work together to solve problems. We work with neighborhoods, cities and towns, regions, and states, helping them pay particular attention to how racism and ethnic differences affect the problems they address.  Learn more at www.studycircles.org