The Office of The Chief State’s Medical Examiner has confirmed that first grade teacher, Victoria Soto, a native of Stratford and 2003 graduate of Stratford High School, was among the victims of Friday’s school massacre in Newtown Friday, Dec. 14.

Soto’s cousin, Jim Wiltsie, told Connecticut News 12 this morning that one of the hardest parts was waiting to hear whether the teacher was dead or alive.

“At that point, it was the hardest thing for the whole family, just a waiting game to receive word on what happened to Vicki’s class,” Wiltsie said.

According to a source, the Hartford Courant reported that Soto was the teacher in room 10 which was adjacent to the room where the shootings began. The source said that she hid as many as 16 students in the room, some perhaps in a bathroom, in the moments before gunman, Adam Lanza, entered the room.

None of Soto’s students are reported to have lost their lives and Soto is being hailed for what many are saying were acts of heroism in her final moments.

An outpouring of support for Soto’s family has been ongoing throughout the overnight and today as posts on social media sites such as Facebook

One such post read, “I have never been more proud to be from Stratford or to be a teacher. God bless Victoria, her family and friends, and all of those who were involved today in anyway. Victoria is a true hero.”

A candlelight vigil for the victims of the shooting has been scheduled for 7 p.m. this evening at Stratford High School.

The following students were named to the first quarter honor roll at Stratford High School:

First Honors

Grade 12 — Natalie Accardi, Jessye Amoroso, Xavier Barbick, Emily Barksdale, Monica Bright, Kathryn Buonantony, Virginia Burgos, Shannon Carter, Alicia Centopanti, Abigail Cerone, Zoey Colon, Brianna Danas, Nicholas DeAngelis, Rebecca Debiase, Joseph Defrancesco, Indumathi Dhakshinamurthy, Joseph Dinan, Haley Dunning, Emily Eckel;

Also, Kelly Erazmus, James Frownfelter, Amanda Gallo, Jazmin Gonzalez, Daniel Hong, Tori Kelly, Dihcole Lieu, Gina Mariano, Santiago Mateo, Kelsey McBride, Joy Onyerikwu, Brodey Ott, Amanda Perry, Jamie Russo, Myra Sampson, Andre Sastrum, Zachary Schaefer, Jesse Shannon, Zachary Shannon, Aimee Sportini, Kazuya Tsutsumi, John Vallerie, Sarah Yatsinko.

Grade 11 — Keishera Aldonza, Harrison Brooks, Quincy Cayton, Andrew Cerone, Jillian Chambers, Meera Chanda, Margaret DeCapua, Matthew DiCostanzo, Jenna Fasanella, Carlos Flores, Christian Foito, Kristopher Guzman, Jonathan Homburg, Reid Jefferson, Bryan Lidman, Eric Mezzo, Milo Mitchell, Timothy Paproski;

Also, Sarita Peterson, Joanne Pierre-Louis, Anabelle Plaza, Kathryn Posser, John Rohaly, Robert Rohaly, Rachel Santo, Kaitlyn Schuessler, Nora Scott, Anekka Scott-Gray, Miguel Seclen, Chayla Sherrod, Rebecca Simon, Allyson Starkey, William Tait, Michael Vavala, Nicholas Wills.

Grade 10 — Jenna Amoroso, Stephanos Baggeas, Samuel Breiner, Brianna Bursey, Julianne Carey, Christopher Carroll, Piotr Chaber, Phinehas Cleary, Brett Cody, Marissa Dacruz, Tyler Devellis, Jerry Dinan, Nathanael Domschine, Christelle Exile, Derek Falcon;

Also, Lance Jamison, Schekina Jean, Stephen Jepsen, Coralie Joseph, Katherine Krasniewicz, Michael Lapia, Alex Masi, Michael McClean, Tasiana Mesidor, Peter Mongillo, Athanasios Panolis, Alexis Rader, Taylor Reed, Kareem Robinson, Haley Schaefer, Matthew Schaefer, Anna Velasquez, Kylee Vitka-Lainey.

Grade 9 — Marlene Abouaassi, Ryan Anderson, Julia  Barksdale, Elmar Barrios, Laura Battey, Grace Belport, Kristina Bennett, Jackson Bonazzo, Helen Branyan, Timothy Breiner, Jonathan Brooks, Michelle Buzzanca, Gabrielle Camarero, Matthew Canapetti, Kyle  Carmona, Brooke Carter, Remy Cooper, John Cox;

Also, Joseph Cox, Shannon Dugan, Elissa Dykes, Danielle Evan, Kyle Fasanella, Guirlaine Francois, Jayla Frederick, Stephanie Gabriel, Mackenzee George, Nathan  Glick, Gillian Goddard, Mackenzie Gold, David Goldstein, Katherine Goodrich, Christopher Hamilton, Matthew Herrera, Ashley Jean-Pierre, Hailey Jorge;

Also, Shaina Joseph, Jason Kelly, Sarah Kotsay, Helen Langston, Madison Lazaro, Megan Leonard, Willie Llera, Katerina Lollias, Shelby Mackowski, Mark Mastrone, Joseph McClean, Justin Monah, Darla Moss-Clarke, Gabrielle Olexovitch, Sylwia Pajorek, Brett Patrick, Danielle Peterson, Michael Petillo, Aileen Pingol, Sabrina Ramirez;

Also, Alexander Ramos, Eric Redgate, Jeffrey Riccio, William Rooney, Zohra Sarpas, Tamara Schriffert, Tyler Schuessler, Rachel Scott, Allana Scudder, Chynna Sherrod, Christopher Smith, Zachary Smith, Rebeca Spear, Richard Starkey, Danil Thorstensson, Jakub Tomaszewski, Fatima Tuziahrah, Carlos Umana, Kacie Velasquez, Akin Warburton Baker, Nadiya Zayat.

Second Honors

Grade 12 — Kaila Adams, Dorcas Agyeman, Brittany Ardito, Josmaydi Artiles, Connor Bodington, Bernard Brantley, Summer Bravo, Crystal Brown, Veronica Bun, Elise Caluori, Courtney Clark, Alyssa Cretella-Duprey, Rikita David, Anthony Donfrancesco, Taylor Dunn, Sarah Emigh, Amanda Fawver, Tamarah Figueroa, Jehla Green;

Also, Valeria Guerrero, Jessica Harding, Katelyn Harrington, Jessica Hartwell, David Herrera, William Hudson, Salome Inda, Adam Jack, Achija Jean, Malika Johnson, Danielle LaPierre, Isabelle Louis, Justin Mamone, Anna Martin, Anthony Moncovich, Kaylee Morales, Ivonne Moran, Raphaela Moreno, Andrew Murray;

Also, Kingsley Napaul, Nicole Navas, Crystal Ortiz, Joseph Pacific, Jacqueline Paez, Ryan Patrick, Eric Phu, Mathieu Plaisir, Christopher Reyes, Claritza Rivera, Jennifer Rodriguez, Margaret Rohrs, Brenna Royal, Kelley Ryan, Robert Sebas, Christopher Simon, Connor Skelly, Jacquelyn Temelsiz, Mary Tourigny,  Melissa Valdez, Karin Wengenroth, Amaris Woodson, Emmanuel Young.

Grade 11 — Olaoluwa Atoyebi, Joseph Baptiste, Cristian Barba, Samantha Beck, Maggie Bodington, Isaiah Booker, Andrew Bouchotte, Scott Bracken, Maxwell Breiner, Rushawn Brown, Alicia Buynovsky, Danielle Calzone, Jacob Cayton, Kelly Ceccarelli, Matthew Chonko, Jacob Cuevas, Nicolas DiIulio, Jose Espinoza, Brian Evan, Anna Fednard, Samantha Feliciano;

Also, Julia  Genetti, Gloria Grave Avila, Sarah Henriques, Maria Heredia, Martha Herrera, Jephthe Jean, Nicholas Kovalik, Katherine Lee, Eleanor Lefever, Cassandra Lo, Yasmine Mahmud, Margaux Mahoney, Joseph Marsan, Jacob Martinez, Meghan McDonnell, Jessi  McNeill, Angelica Molina, Madison Norton, Abbie Perez, Nyle Peterson;

Also, Carolyn Petkevich, Siah Reeves, Edward Rivera, Katherine Rodriguez, Gabrielle Rooney, Brandon Russo, Denise Sanchez, Hector Sanchez, Alexander Sarmiento, Emmanuel Silva, E’Zhana Smith, Loren Smith, Jacob Sosik, Emma  Sullivan, Alexandra Trahan, Anna Trahan, Ana-Michelle Valente, Andre  Vilarinho, Kevin Vrabel, Jacqueline Walsh, Emily Weller, Amanda Wright, Roman Yacik.

Grade 10 — Dylan Adams, Anthony Alvarez, Tahirah Anderson, Jairo Barrera, Bertha Barrios, Samantha Belport, Giselle Bonilla, Shaquanna Borodack, Kevin Bott, Destanii Brantley, Tyra Breedy, Austin Burgess, Hunter Campbell, Kelleigh Cantiello, Cassandra Class, Livingston Cortez, Bianca Cubillos, Cierra Donald, Nelson Duque, Nicholas Fasnakis;

Also, Thomas Ferrara, Ashley Glaudin, Giovanni Gonzalez, Lauren Goodrich, Tarquinn Granado, Jahliah Green, Jackson Kiernan-Morris, Cody Levasseur, Emily Lopez, Bailey McIlhoney, Tera-je McLennon, Bethy Napaul, Lauren Padua, Audrey Pancak, Kristin  Pantelis, Tiara Pomontty, Juliana Ricco, Victoria Sajaw, Emily Sanchez, Christian Sarmiento, Zachary Scott, Jillian Stringfellow, Evan Tate, Lauren Wright, Robert Yearwood.

Grade 9 — Destiny Acevedo, Maggie Adams, Christian Bradley, Jack  Branco, David Buonantony, Umer Butt, Frederick Clark, Joshua Colon, Donielle Daniels, Daniel  DeCilio, Zachary Dillon, John Duffy, Jomaris Echevarria, Alejandra Estrada, Lenyn Feijoo;

Also, Jakarie Fulton, Benjamin Green, Lauren Holt, Sarah Idarraga, John Lagerfeldt, Patrick Lepesko, Manfred Lima, Maya Marrero, Hamit Nasufi, Nathaniel Nunez, Ariana Porter, Brianna Rotonto, Noah Shaw, Kenny Sorrentino, Alyssa Vavala, Caitlin Whaley, Nyrique Williams, Mark Wright.

The following students were named to the second quarter honor roll at Stratford High School:

First honors

Grade 12 — Jessye Amoroso, Brittany Ardito, Monica Bright, Virginia Burgos, Shannon Carter, Alicia Centopanti, Abigail Cerone, Zoey Colon, Nicholas DeAngelis, Indumathi Dhakshinamurthy, Joseph Dinan, Haley Dunning, Emily Eckel, Sarah Emigh, Kelly Erazmus, Amanda Fawver;

Also, James Frownfelter, Jazmin Gonzalez, Daniel Hong, William Hudson, Salome Inda, Adam Jack, Tori Kelly, Dihcole Lieu, Isabelle Louis, Gina Mariano, Anna Martin, Santiago Mateo, Kelsey McBride, Kaylee Morales, Joy Onyerikwu, Brodey Ott, Jacqueline Paez;

Also, Claritza Rivera, Jennifer Rodriguez, Brenna Royal, Jamie Russo, Myra Sampson, Robert Sebas, Jesse Shannon, Zachary Shannon, Christopher Simon, Connor Skelly, Aimee Sportini, Mary Tourigny, Kazuya Tsutsumi, Karin Wengenroth, Sarah Yatsinko.

Grade 11 — Keishera Aldonza, Olaoluwa Atoyebi, Harrison Brooks, Alicia Buynovsky, Quincy Cayton, Kelly Ceccarelli, Andrew Cerone, Jillian Chambers, Meera Chanda, Jacob Cuevas, Margaret DeCapua, Brian Evan, Jenna Fasanella, Camylla Ferreira, Carlos Flores, Christian Foito, Gloria Grave Avila, Kristopher Guzman;

Also, Sarah Henriques, Martha Herrera, Jonathan Homburg, Jephthe Jean, Reid Jefferson, Nicholas Kovalik, Katherine Lee, Eleanor Lefever, Bryan Lidman, Margaux Mahoney, Alexander Martin, Jacob Martinez, Eric Mezzo, Milo Mitchell, Madison Norton, Timothy Paproski, Nyle Peterson, Sarita Peterson, Carolyn Petkevich;

Also, Joanne Pierre-Louis, Anabelle Plaza, Kathryn Posser, John Rohaly, Rachel Santo, Alexander Sarmiento, Nora Scott, Anekka Scott-Gray, Miguel Seclen, Chayla Sherrod, Rebecca Simon, Allyson Starkey, William Tait, Anna Trahan, Michael Vavala, Jacqueline Walsh, Nicholas Wills.

Grade 10 — Jenna Amoroso, Jairo Barrera, Samuel Breiner, Brianna Bursey, Kelleigh Cantiello, Julianne Carey, Piotr Chaber, Phinehas Cleary, Brett Cody, Marissa Dacruz, Tyler Devellis, Jerry Dinan, Nathanael Domschine, Christelle Exile, Derek Falcon, Lauren Goodrich;

Also, Schekina Jean, Stephen Jepsen, Coralie Joseph, Katherine Krasniewicz, Michael Lapia, Alex Masi, Michael McClean, Tasiana Mesidor, Lauren Padua, Alexis Rader, Emily Sanchez, Haley Schaefer, Matthew Schaefer, Anna Velasquez, Kylee Vitka-Lainey.

Grade 9 — Marlene Abouaassi, Julia Barksdale, Elmar Barrios, Laura Battey, Grace Belport, Jackson Bonazzo, Helen Branyan, Timothy Breiner, Jonathan Brooks, Michelle Buzzanca, Gabrielle Camarero, Kyle Carmona, Ricard Castaneda, Remy Cooper, John Cox, Joseph Cox, Elissa Dykes, Danielle Evan, Kyle Fasanella, Guirlaine Francois;

Also, Jayla Frederick, Mackenzee George, Nathan Glick, Gillian Goddard, Katherine Goodrich, Autumn Graham, Matthew Herrera, Ashley Jean-Pierre, Shaina Joseph, Jason Kelly, Helen Langston, Madison Lazaro, Megan Leonard, Willie Llera, Olivia Mastroluca, Mark Mastrone, Joseph McClean, Gabrielle Olexovitch;

Also, Danielle Peterson, Michael Petillo, Teresa Petreycik, Aileen Pingol, Eric Redgate, Jeffrey Riccio, William Rooney, Zohra Sarpas, Tamara Schriffert, Rachel Scott, Allana Scudder, Chynna Sherrod, Zachary Smith, Richard Starkey, Daniel Thorstensson, Jakub Tomaszewski, Carlos Umana.

Second honors

Grade 12 — Natalie Accardi, Kaila Adams, Jennifer Allain, Xavier Barbick, Emily Barksdale, Connor Bodington, Summer Bravo, Crystal Brown, Veronica Bun, Elise Caluori, Courtney Clark, Alyssa Cretella-Duprey, Rikita David, Isaac DeAssis, Rebecca Debiase, Joseph Defrancesco, Justin Domschine, Amanda Gallo;

Also, Jehla Green, Micaela Guanill, Jessica Hartwell, Christina Heffern, Jeffrey Incerto, Achija Jean, Malika Johnson, Danielle LaPierre, Jasmine Lumasag, McCarthy MacDaniel, Samantha Medina, Ivonne Moran, Mackenzie Mortimer, Andrew Murray, Nicole Navas, Crystal Ortiz, Leslie Pacheco, Joseph Pacific, Ryan Patrick;

Also, Amanda Perry, Eric Phu, Mathieu Plaisir, Margaret Rohrs, Zachary Schaefer, Michael Tecci, Brandon Techeira, Jacquelyn Temelsiz, Rosa Torres, Melissa Valdez, John Vallerie, Joshua Van Fleet, Peter Volturno, DeAndre Walker, Alec Ward, Amaris Woodson.

Grade 11 — Shahrukh Ali, Megan Aviles, Shania Bancroft, Cristian Barba, Isaiah Booker, Andrew Bouchotte, Scott Bracken, Maxwell Breiner, Rushawn Brown, Kathryn Buonantony, Danielle Calzone, Benjamin Canevari, Jacob Cayton, Liliette Diavua, Nicolas DiIulio, Caroline Dillon, Linsey Gold, Christopher Gonzalez;

Also, Maria Heredia, Alexandria Kutzer, Rebecca Kuzmich, Mcbryan Lesperance, Cassandra Lo, Yasmine Mahmud, Jessi McNeill, Brendan Miller, Joselin Morales, Abbie Perez, Alaijah Perry-Francis, Siah Reeves, Andrew Rios;

Also, Katherine Rodriguez, Robert Rohaly, Richard Rohrs, Gabrielle Rooney, Brandon Russo, Jonathan Sabathie, Kaitlyn Schuessler, Frank Sessa, E’Zhana Smith, Emma Sullivan, Alexandra Trahan, Andre Vilarinho, Kevin Vrabel, Amanda Wright, Roman Yacik.

Grade 10 — Dylan Adams, Anthony Alvarez, Richella Aurelien, Stephanos Baggeas, Bertha Barrios, Shaquanna Borodack, Tyra Breedy, Austin Burgess, Hunter Campbell, Christopher Carroll, Livingston Cortez, Bianca Cubillos, Cierra Donald, Nelson Duque, Thomas Ferrara, Tarquinn Granado, Kaitlin Hines, Lance Jamison;

Also, Peter Mongillo, Rosalina Morales, Bethy Napaul, Audrey Pancak, Athanasios Panolis, Kristin Pantelis, Kassie Poruban, Taylor Reed, Kareem Robinson, Victoria Sajaw, Crismen Sanchez, Christian Sarmiento, Lynn Schneider, Evan Tate, Brittany Torres, Alexis Williams, Emily Winter, Lauren Wright.

Grade 9 — Kristina Bennett, Daniel Brennan, David Buonantony, Matthew Canapetti, Frederick Clark, Donielle Daniels, Zachary Dillon, John Duffy, Shannon Dugan, Jomaris Echevarria, Lenyn Feijoo, Chantal Fraser, Jakarie Fulton, Stephanie Gabriel, Mackenzie Gold;

Also, David Goldstein, Jasmine Gonzalez, Christopher Hamilton, Sarah Idarraga, Hailey Jorge, Jaebets Kayembe, Sarah Kotsay, John Lagerfeldt, Shelby Mackowski, Justin Monah, Hamit Nasufi, Nathaniel Nunez, Sylwia Pajorek;

Also, Brett Patrick, Sabrina Ramirez, Alexander Ramos, Brianna Rotonto, Noah Shaw, Christopher Smith, Rebeca Spear, Genesis Torres, Kacie Velasquez, Akin Warburton Baker, Caitlin Whaley, Jordan Wilson, Sarah Wright.

Mayor of the Day Tom Malloy offers Irish blessing while the other Mayor, John Harkins, left, and State Senator Kevin Kelly join the festivities at Town Hall March 15. Greg Reilly photo.

Stratford officials celebrated St. Patrick’s Day a wee bit early, Friday morning, March 15, with a raisin’ o the Irish flag, Stratford High School Band playing, installation of a special Mayor of the Day, and selection of a winner in the Best Irish Soda Bread contest. 

With top-ranking police and fire officers at attention, State Senator Kevin Kelly presided.  Mayor John Harkins named Town Council former Chairman Tom Malloy “Mayor for the Day.” Malloy offered an Irish blessing and invited all guests and dignitaries into the council chambers for coffee and soda bread.

Kelly and Malloy both selected Jamie Johnson’s soda bread as their favorite.  A tie-breaking vote was not needed.

Bunnell High School student Sherice Mayne and Stratford High School students Alisha Excellent, Alicia Buynovsky and Ali Shahrukh.

Local students from the Stratford Medical Careers Magnet Program participated in job shadowing at St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport.

This program gives students who are interested in pursuing a medical career a look inside the many departments and aspects of a full service hospital and medical center that visitors do not normally have the opportunity to see. Students from both Bunnell High and Stratford High participated and explored several departments including oncology, cardiology, emergency and the Family Birthing Center at St. Vincent’s.

The majority of Stratford residents who came out Tuesday night to speak publicly to the Town Council about Mayor John A. Harkins’s proposed 2013-14 budget were supportive of maintaining spending for a particular program, such as the library and Baldwin Senior Center, and increasing spending for education.

Only a few speakers at the forum questioned spending in an area such as employee pensions, or directly requested that the budget be reduced.

[For separate story on Public Forum from Wed. April 17, please see "Four speak at forum" in news section.]

Recent years’ public forums on proposed budgets have been known for their rancor, but meeting veterans described this one as “tame.”

There were about 40 people attending the meeting, which was held at Stratford High School, and 18 went to the podium to speak.

Seven spoke to the council about the general importance of quality education in Stratford, and five of those directly urged that the schools be “fully funded” with the increase requested by the Board of Education.

The Board of Education has requested an increase of 3.18%, or $2.9 million, over last year’s $93.9-million budget.

The mayor’s budget proposal calls for a smaller increase for schools — $1.5 million, which would be a 1.6% increase.

Overall, the mayor’s proposed budget for the town and education is $192,596,240, which is $1,734,599 (0.009%) more than the current year plan of $190,861,641.

Kelly Spellman, Board of Education member Andrea Veilleux, Mike Andracik, and other Stratford school parents spoke passionately about quality education.

Another school parent turned to the audience and asked those present to stand if they favored the Board of Education’s budget request. An estimated 80% of attendees stood up.

Kathleen Faggella spoke of the Baldwin Center as “a treasure in our midst” with its wide array of services particularly for seniors. She asked the council to add a full-time secretary to handle the 300 daily calls and 150 visitors and to allow other staff members to do their jobs.

Richard Elias was one of the library supporters who spoke, and he said he has noticed a wide variety of people using the library, and the library helps to establish a sense of community in town.

“We have a jewel here, and I don’t want to see it go downhill,” Elias said.

Robert Hargus asked the council to cut the budget and offered suggestions. He said the position of director of senior services could be merged with the director of community development. He said at least one position in the mayor’s office and in the [chief administrative officer’s] office could be eliminated.

“Both are overstaffed,” said Hargus.

He said only one assistant principal is needed at the high schools, and there could be one department head by subject to cover both high schools, rather than one department head by subject in each of the two schools.

There was one exception to the calm tone of the forum when resident George Mulligan went over the five-minute limit and would not conclude after being repeatedly asked to by committee Chairman Ken Poisson. Mulligan had to be shouted away from the podium by Poisson and another councilman.

Mulligan was challenging the councilmen about “covert” taxes such as sewer fees, what he sees as high costs of compensation and pension benefits for town workers, and whether the timer for speakers was used properly. He went on to say that he suspects his tire was slashed in the past and he was possibly poisoned over the years in retribution for speaking out against local officials.

Harkins was in the audience for much of the meeting, and he told The Star, “This budget maintains services. How can you cut the budget without cutting services?”

Harkins said his administration is talking with interim Schools Superintendent Margaret Lasek and expects that she will be able to find some savings in special education.

Lasek told The Star that “the BOE budget has outlined significant ‘cost avoidance’ measures for the 2013-14 school year in special education.” She said that results of an audit of the special education program “will probably not be available until after the 2014 budget is set by the council.” Further, Lasek said, “the audit may or may not yield any positive results related to additional savings when complete.”

The system for budget approvals in Stratford has the Board of Education submit its request to the mayor, who then presents a combined school and town budget to the Town Council for approval as an ordinance. The council’s Ordinance Committee then conducts public forums before voting on the budget.

The following students were named to the third quarter honor roll at Stratford High School:

First honors

Grade 12 — Jessye Amoroso, Summer Bravo, Alicia Centopanti, Abigail Cerone, Ryan Cueto, Nicholas DeAngelis, Indumathi Dhakshinamurthy, Joseph Dinan, Taylor Dunn, Haley Dunning, Emily Eckel, Kelly Erazmus, James Frownfelter, Amanda Gallo, Jehla Green, Jessica Hartwell, Elaine Hegedus, Daniel Hong, Adam Jack, Achija Jean, Tori Kelly, Danielle LaPierre, Dihcole Lieu, Isabelle Louis, McCarthy MacDaniel, Gina Mariano, Santiago Mateo, Kelsey McBride, Brittany Monte, Kaylee Morales, Onyekachukwu Onyerikwu, Brodey Ott, Jacqueline Paez, Mathieu Plaisir, Margaret Rohrs, Myra Sampson, Zachary Schaefer, Robert Sebas, Jesse Shannon, Christopher Simon, Connor Skelly, Michael Tecci, Jacquelyn Temelsiz, Karin Wengenroth, Briana Workman, Sarah Yatsinko.

Grade 11 — Keishera Aldonza, Cristian Barba, Isaiah Booker, Harrison Brooks, Kelly Ceccarelli, Andrew Cerone, Jillian Chambers, Jacob Cuevas, Margaret DeCapua, Nicolas DiIulio, Jenna Fasanella, Ann Fednard, Camylla Ferreira, Carlos Flores, Christian Foito, Gloria Grave Avila, Kristopher Guzman, Martha Herrera, Jonathan Homburg, Jephthe Jean, Reid Jefferson, Nicholas Kovalik, Katherine Lee, Bryan Lidman, Yasmine Mahmud, Margaux Mahoney, Alexander Martin, Jacob Martinez, Eric Mezzo, Milo Mitchell, Madison Norton, Timothy Paproski, Abbie Perez, Sarita Peterson, Anabelle Plaza, Kathryn Posser, Andrew Rios, John Rohaly, Emma Rooney, Rachel Santo, Alexander Sarmiento, Nora Scott, Anekka Scott-Gray, Miguel Seclen, Chayla Sherrod, Rebecca Simon, Allyson Starkey, William Tait, Elizabeth Tallberg, Anna Trahan, Michael Vavala, Andre Vilarinho, Jacqueline Walsh, Amanda Wright.

Grade 10 — Anthony Alvarez, Jenna Amoroso, Samuel Breiner, Brianna Bursey, Piotr Chaber, Phinehas Cleary, Marissa Dacruz, Tyler Devellis, Jerry Dinan, Nathanael Domschine, Christelle Exile, Lauren Goodrich, Schekina Jean, Stephen Jepsen, Coralie Joseph, Katherine Krasniewicz, Michael Lapia, Alex Masi, Michael McClean, Tasiana Mesidor, Alexis Rader, Christian Sarmiento, Haley Schaefer, Matthew Schaefer, Anna Velasquez.

Grade 9 — Kylee Vitka-Lainey, Marlene Abouaassi, Julia Barksdale, Elmar Barrios, Laura Battey, Grace Belport, Kristina Bennett, Jackson Bonazzo, Helen Branyan, Timothy Breiner, Jonathan Brooks, David Buonantony, Michelle Buzzanca, Gabrielle Camarero, Remy Cooper, Joseph Cox, Zachary Dillon, Shannon Dugan, Elissa Dykes, Danielle Evan, Kyle Fasanella, Guirlaine Francois, Jayla Frederick, Mackenzee George, Nathan Glick, Gillian Goddard, Katherine Goodrich, Matthew Herrera, Ashley Jean-Pierre, Shaina Joseph, Jason Kelly, Helen Langston, Madison Lazaro, Megan Leonard, Willie Llera, Kornelia Lysik, Shelby Mackowski, Olivia Mastroluca, Mark Mastrone, Joseph McClean, Gabrielle Olexovitch, Danielle Peterson, Michael Petillo, Aileen Pingol, Jeffrey Riccio, William Rooney, Brianna Rotonto, Zohra Sarpas, Tamara Schriffert, Rachel Scott, Allana Scudder, Christopher Smith, Zachary Smith, Rebeca Spear, Richard Starkey, Daniel Thorstensson, Jakub Tomaszewski, Carlos Umana, Akin Warburton Baker.

Second honors

Grade 12 — Kaila Adams, Dorcas Agyeman, Brittany Ardito, Josmaydi Artiles, James Auger, Emily Barksdale, Monica Bright, Veronica Bun, Elise Caluori, Shannon Carter, Courtney Clark, Zoey Colon, Alyssa Cretella-Duprey, Brianna Danas, Rikita David, Isaac DeAssis, Rebecca Debiase, Joseph Defrancesco, Aser Docteur, Anthony Donfrancesco, Sarah Emigh, Amanda Fawver, Jazmin Gonzalez, Valeria Guerrero, Sarah Horelik, Salome Inda, Robert Koripsky, Anna Martin, Samantha Medina, Peterlee Mesidor, Ivonne Moran, Nicole Navas, Victor Oquendo, Crystal Ortiz, Leslie Pacheco, Joseph Pacific, Ryan Patrick, Amanda Perry, Noah Provo, Jennifer Rodriguez, Brenna Royal, Jamie Russo, Flaure Sainville, Zachary Shannon, Arron Smith, Aimee Sportini, Mary Tourigny, Kazuya Tsutsumi, Melissa Valdez, John Vallerie, Joshua Van Fleet, Peter Volturno, Alec Ward, Amaris Woodson.

Grade 11 — Olaoluwa Atoyebi, Samantha Beck, Anthony Bobko, Stephanie Boston, Andrew Bouchotte, Scott Bracken, Maxwell Breiner, Rushawn Brown, Alicia Buynovsky, Danielle Calzone, Michael Cannata, Jacob Cayton, Quincy Cayton, Meera Chanda, Liliette Diavua, Matthew DiCostanzo, Brian Evan, Tyler Ferrara , Julia Genetti, Brendan Gloss, Christopher Gonzalez, Sarah Henriques, Taylor King-Craigwell, Rebecca Kuzmich, Eleanor Lefever, Mcbryan Lesperance, Cassandra Lo, Jessi McNeill, Adrienne Meneo, Brendan Miller, Angelica Molina, Nyle Peterson, Joanne Pierre-Louis, Edward Rivera, Katherine Rodriguez, Robert Rohaly, Richard Rohrs, Brandon Russo, Kaitlyn Schuessler, Frank Sessa, Emma Sullivan, Steven Tobey, Alexandra Trahan, Ana-Michelle Valente, Kevin Vrabel, Nicholas Wills, Roman Yacik.

Grade 10 — Gabriela Aguieiras, Richella Aurelien, Jairo Barrera, Samantha Belport, Giselle Bonilla, Shaquanna Borodack, Tyra Breedy, Austin Burgess, Hunter Campbell, Kelleigh Cantiello, Julianne Carey, Christopher Carroll, Cassandra Class, Brett Cody, Mariah Cortes, Livingston Cortez, Karen De La Roca, Cierra Donald, Nelson Duque, Derek Falcon, Thomas Ferrara, Tarquinn Granado, Kaitlin Hines, Lance Jamison, Jackson Kiernan-Morris, Albert Matos, Bethy Napaul, Lauren Padua, Audrey Pancak, Athanasios Panolis, Kassie Poruban, Laura Quijano Jimenez, Taylor Reed, Juliana Ricco, Kareem Robinson, Emily Sanchez, Lynn Schneider, Ayanna Staton, Deron Teart, Matthew Tecci, Alexis Williams, Emily Winter.

Grade 9 — Christian Bradley, Matthew Canapetti, Kyle Carmona, Ian Carrano, Brooke Carter, Frederick Clark, John Cox, Daniel DeCilio, John Duffy, Jomaris Echevarria, Lenyn Feijoo, Chantal Fraser, Jakarie Fulton, Stephanie Gabriel, Mackenzie Gold, David Goldstein, Jasmine Gonzalez, Autumn Graham, Tyquaevius Hairston, Lauren Holt, Sarah Idarraga, Hailey Jorge, Sarah Kotsay, Rahaf Mansour, Frank Mercurio, Justin Monah, Darla Moss-Clarke, Hamit Nasufi, Nathaniel Nunez, Sylwia Pajorek, Bretty Patrick, Teresa Petreycik, Sabrina Ramirez, Alexander Ramos, Eric Redgate, Noah Shaw, Kenny Sorrentino, Kacie Velasquez, Caitlin Whaley, Jordan Wilson, Sarah Wright.

Bunnell High School students Terrence Ndabian, Jason Kramer, Jonathan Lemeau with Square One actor Peggy Nelson.

Following the tremendous success of Square One Theatre’s mainstage production of Irena’s Vow two seasons ago, teachers arranged for it be presented to students in both Bunnell and Stratford high schools this spring to enhance the teaching unit about World War II and the holocaust.

A truly life-affirming story about one of wartime’s most courageous and unsung heroines, the play tells the true story of Irena Gut Opdyke, a strong-willed young woman who would be confronted with the choice of protecting twelve Jewish refugees who secretly fell under her care. This is the extraordinary true story of one woman’s choice and the twelve lives that would live or die by her decision.

The students showed a great deal of pride when Director Tom Holehan informed them that relatives of Irena’s (the late George Opdyke and his wife Daphne) lived in Stratford. In fact Daphne attended one of the mainstage performances and talked with the audience about “Aunt Irena” in a post-performance discussion.

Holehan adapted the production to fit the length of the student class periods at each school.

This is the 11th year Square One Theater has taken stage productions into the Stratford Schools. For each production, Square One provides study guides for the teachers to use in the classrooms and invites the students and faculty to participate in post-performance discussions with the actors and the director.

These educational programs are subsidized by People’s United Bank.

In 2005, Square One Theatre received “The Friend of Education” Award from the Stratford Board of Education for its work with the schools.

Longbrook Park where Victoria Soto’s Playground will replace on older one there now. The installation by town service personnel will be June 14.  Greg Reilly photos.

This is about much more than another wonderful memorial for a deceased local hero, Vicky Soto.

This is about the playground at Longbrook Park, which will have new equipment installed June 14 and be renamed Victoria Soto’s Playground, being part of a succession of kind acts — acts that began in New York and New Jersey after the 9-11 attacks and spread to Louisiana and Mississippi in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and now are continuing around Connecticut and beyond as people respond to the Dec. 14 Newtown killings.

This is about “paying it forward,” in the words of Amy Wiltsie, the wife of Soto’s cousin Jim Wiltsie, both of Stratford. After you have been helped, you move the kindness forward by helping another person. Then that recipient of the kindness is moved to help another person.

This progressive charity started with the Firemen’s Mutual Benevolent Association (FMBA) in New Jersey, whose members worked to rescue victims at the World Trade Center, receiving an expression of appreciation from a young girl in Mississippi.

The firefighters returned the kind favor to the girl and to the Gulf states after the loss of more than 1,800 lives in Katrina. Specifically, the firefighters traveled to the Gulf and installed new playgrounds for the children — the first three playgrounds in Mississippi with no boundaries to the disabled.

With that project began Pennies for Playgrounds as a means of raising funds — not for what was already installed but for the installation of playgrounds in the future. Any money raised would “pay it forward” and move the kindness onward to benefit others.

Victims of Superstorm Sandy were the next beneficiaries of the paying it forward concept. The firemen’s association in New Jersey installed playgrounds in towns ravaged by the storm. With that effort, the FMBA expanded Pennies for Playgrounds into the Sandy Ground Project Where Angels Play.

Stratford is a link in the charity chain

The extension of kindness came to Stratford through a connection between a New Jersey firefighter and a Connecticut firefighter who, through no small chance, had a connection to Newtown.

The Sandy Ground Project is now working with family members of each of the Dec. 14 victims, including the Sotos, and is building a memorial playground for each victim in a place chosen by the family.

The Sotos selected Longbrook Park, adjacent to Stratford High School’s Penders Field, because, according to Amy Wiltsie, “Stratford High School was the biggest thing for Vicky. She spent a lot of time here in the park.” They have also chosen Soto’s favorite color, pink, for the playground equipment.

“You can’t have anything better than a playground where there is kids’ laughter,” Wiltsie said. “Playgrounds are about innocence and fun. This is the most family-friendly place to congregate and have fun.”

Victoria Soto’s Playground will be the fifth in the string of 26 playgrounds stemming from the tragedy. Donations made for the first playground paid for the second playground. Monies surrounding the second paid for the third. Paying it forward in action.

So it was the playground recently installed in Old Saybrook as part of the Sandy Ground Project that will pay for the Soto playground here. Donations for the Soto playground are being collected to keep the project moving forward, so that Stratford’s fund raising will create a sixth playground.

Steve Lupinacci, a retired Stratford firefighter who is associated with the project and who is assisting the Sotos with the local effort, said, “Twenty-six could become 2,600 or 26,000” as the goodness continues.

Gaining local support

The Stratford community’s support of the Sandy Ground Project Where Angels Play will become real in many different ways, and one of those ways is that Stratford Public Schools has allowed a jug for pennies and other donations in each school until June 13.

“I love the penny fund-raiser,” Wiltsie said. “Vicky had a thing for pennies. She always spotted pennies and collected pennies.”

Cousins of Victoria Soto, Raegan, Ryann, Amy and Jack Wiltsie, all of Stratford, in Longbrook Park where a new playground will be installed in honor of the slain local hero.

Wiltsie’s daughter, 10-year-old Ryann, a fourth grader at Wilcoxson School, said, “The pennies make me think things are getting better, and more people will feel safe. We’re trying to make happy things out of bad things that happened.”

Her mother chimed in, “It’s about healing. This is part of the healing process.”

Wiltsie and Lupinnaci agreed that Soto would be in favor of the playground project, because “it’s about the children.”

The installation of the new playground at Longbrook is “about the community of Stratford,” Lupinnaci said. “Stratford has always been a supportive community.”

Residents are invited to attend the playground installation at 8:30 a.m. on June 14. On hand will be Stratford public works, police, EMS, fire, State Police, school officials and representatives from the mayor’s office, all of whom have been very supportive of the project, according to Lupinnaci.

Supporters are also encouraged to go to TheSandyGroundProject.org and make a donation or buy a T-shirt, wristband or sweatshirt.

Further, organizers are encouraging businesses to create any sorts of fund-raisers, all in Stratford’s effort to keep the good paying forward.

Stratford Sister Cities Chorus soloists Laura Bashar and Stratford High School student Tamara Danilowicz rehearse with accompanist Michael Camporiale for their concert Sunday, June 9, at 4 p.m. The chorus will present Matinee Melodies, a program of favorite music from the movies at the Stratford Scottish Rite Theater.

Concert goers will have an opportunity to hear many of their favorite musical numbers from the silver screen when the Stratford Sister Cities Chorus presents Matinee Melodies in the Stratford Scottish Rite Theater, 2422 Main Street, on Sunday, June 9, at 4 p.m.

The program made up of music from the movies, will include selections from Amadeus, The Sandpiper, To Sir with Love, Brian’s Song, as well as Hair and other Broadway classics that successfully crossed over to film.

The Stratford High School Select Choir will join the chorus for the climax of the concert showcasing the music from the 2012 blockbuster, Les Miserables. The academy award-nominated song, Suddenly, written expressly for the movie, will be sung by soloist Jack Vallerie from the SHS Select Choir. Tamara Danilowicz, also from SHS, will be another featured soloist in the powerful medley.

Other soloists on the program include Laura Bashar, Jeffrey Leinen, Rebecca Barko, and pianist Michael Camporiale whom many will remember from his weekend performances at Ralph and Rich’s restaurant in Bridgeport. Camporiale is also the accompanist for both the Sister Sisters Chorus and the Stratford High Select Choir.

The chorus is lead by Jeffrey Leinen, drama and choral director at Stratford High School. Currently in its 22nd year, the Sister Cities Chorus is made up of area singers who are the traveling, vocal ambassadors for Stratford, Connecticut. To date, the chorus has performed in “sister” Stratfords of Ontario and Prince Edward Island, Canada; Stratford-upon-Avon, England; and Stratford, New Zealand. Delegates from the chorus have also traveled to Australia where another sister Stratford is located.

The Stratford Sister Cities Chorus, sponsored by the Stratford Recreation Department, is a multi-generational ensemble accepting high school students who wish to share in the mission of international friendship through music.

Tickets for the concert are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Reservations can be made at: stratfordchorus@optonline.net or by calling 203-381-6909, ext. 1234.

SHS grads look at their diplomas, while one triumphantly turns to the crowd.

Two hundred seventy-nine young adults commenced on a new phase of life after receiving their diplomas at their Bunnell High School graduation on Thursday evening, June 27.

Two hundred forty-six young individuals graduated from Stratford High School at the very same hour, prepared to move on.

Matthew J. Kealey Jr. gets individual attention at his Stratford High School graduation.

Each one of these individuals who toiled, struggled, matured and flourished during four years of high school earned their moment. It was their name read over the loudspeaker, one at a time. It was their handshake, their photograph, their internal sigh of relief, and their unique ebullient smile as they walked back to their seat.

It was also, then, a total of 525 individuals who received the teaching, guidance, coaching, and other instruction from individual educators of Stratford Public Schools and successfully fulfilled the requirements of their degree.

One of the outstanding aspects of high school graduations is due attention to the individual.

Except for the inherent differences with a collection of unique individuals at Bunnell’s and SHS’s graduations, the two ceremonies were remarkably similar, by design.

That is appropriate, particularly for this class, because the students say they feel bound together in a community that has endured Storms Sandy and Nemo and a national tragedy on Dec. 14.

A Bunnell graduate just after receiving her diploma.

They occurred at the same hour, so they were under the same weather. The graduating students sat with their backs to the large part of the crowd of family and friends. Both ceremonies even experienced faulty public address systems, which generated complaints at both venues of not being able to hear the speakers clearly.

Bunnell High School’s choir sang We Are The World during commencement ceremonies.

At Bunnell there were 58 students, 21% of the class, who graduated with either high or highest honors.

At Stratford High, it was a remarkably similar 57 students, 23% of the class, who earned high or highest praise.

There are a few differences, too, naturally, including the fact that only one school gets the honor of having the mayor in attendance — this year he was at Bunnell — and one school has the honor of having the superintendent present — our interim leader was at SHS.

Bunnell grad Patrick Prince Jr. with his brother Shaun, father Patrick and mother Dawn.

Since much of the ceremonies involves listening to students and educators address the crowd about what matters most at a time like this, what follows here are excerpts from the speeches.

Do good. 

“If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives: Be kind anyway! If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you: Be honest anyway! What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight: Build anyway! The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow: Do good anyway!”

Samantha Carroll, Bunnell valedictorian, quoting Mother Teresa

Open to others.

But we must keep in mind that education does not mean focusing solely on one topic but rather opening up your mind and forming opinions. This education does not come just from book work but from talking to others about what interests them and in return sharing your own passions. It is by being open to other’s opinions and forming our own that we can effectively use our education to change the world.

Emily Eckel, SHS salutatorian

Take charge.

Resolve to take charge. Live life fully. Get involved. Change the things you cannot accept. And never stop working for what you want to achieve. It’s true that this is not the most convenient way to live life. Personal responsibility can be exhausting and frustrating….

Refuse to be a victim of circumstance or the actions of others. The road of responsibility is one of successes and failures, joy and heartache, highs and lows. But in the end, you’ll own the result and know that you haven’t wasted time sitting idle and letting others determine what happens to you.

John Harkins, mayor of Stratford

The following students were named to the fourth quarter honor roll at Stratford High School:

First honors

Grade 12 — Dorcas Agyeman, Jessye Amoroso, Monica Bright, Veronica Bun, Alicia Centopanti, Abigail Cerone, Zoey Colon, Nicholas DeAngelis, Rebecca Debiase, Joseph Defrancesco, Indumathi Dhakshinamurthy, Aser Docteur, Haley Dunning, Emily Eckel, Kelly Erazmus;

Also, Amanda Gallo, Tyrell Griffin, Jessica Hartwell, Kyle Hill, Daniel Hong, Malika Johnson, Tori Kelly, Robert Koripsky, Danielle LaPierre, Dihcole Lieu, Jasmine Lumasag, Dana Malave, Gina Mariano, Anna Martin, Santiago Mateo, Courtney Mocarski, Brittany Monte, Kaylee Morales, Mackenzie Mortimer, Nicole Navas;

Also, Joy Onyerikwu, Brodey Ott, Jacqueline Paez, Ryan Patrick, Mathieu Plaisir, Demetrius Porter, Josephine Ragland, Jennifer Rodriguez, Margaret Rohrs, Jamie Russo, Zachary Schaefer, Robert Sebas, Zachary Shannon, Christopher Simon, Aimee Sportini, Jacquelyn Temelsiz, Mary Tourigny, Melissa Valdez, Karin Wengenroth, Sarah Yatsinko.

Grade 11 — Keishera Aldonza, Harrison Brooks, Alicia Buynovsky, Quincy Cayton, Kelly Ceccarelli, Andrew Cerone, Jillian Chambers, Jacob Cuevas, Leila Davis, Margaret DeCapua, Jenna Fasanella, Ann Fednard , Camylla Ferreira , Carlos Flores, Brendan Gloss, Kristopher Guzman, Martha Herrera, Jonathan Homburg;

Also, Reid Jefferson, Nicholas Kovalik, Eleanor Lefever, Mcbryan Lesperance, Bryan Lidman, Yasmine Mahmud, Alexander Martin, Eric Mezzo, Milo Mitchell, Madison Norton, Timothy Paproski, Joanne Pierre-Louis, John Rohaly, Robert Rohaly, Rachel Santo;

Also, Alexander Sarmiento, Kaitlyn Schuessler, Anekka Scott-Gray, Miguel Seclen, Frank Sessa, Chayla Sherrod, Emma Sullivan, William Tait, Elizabeth Tallberg, Anna Trahan, Michael Vavala, Andre Vilarinho, Jacqueline Walsh.

Grade 10 — Gabriela Aguieiras, Jenna Amoroso, Jairo Barrera, Bertha Barrios, Samuel Breiner, Julianne Carey, Piotr Chaber, Phinehas Cleary, Mariah Cortes, Livingston Cortez, Marissa Dacruz, Tyler Devellis, Jerry Dinan, Nathanael Domschine, Joseph Dragone;

Also, Christelle Exile, Thomas Ferrara, Ashley Glaudin, Lauren Goodrich, Lance Jamison, Schekina Jean, Stephen Jepsen, Coralie Joseph, Alex Masi, Michael McClean, Tasiana Mesidor, Lauren Padua;

Also, Athanasios Panolis, Melissa Papp, Alexis Rader, Kareem Robinson, Emily Sanchez, Christian Sarmiento, Haley Schaefer, Matthew Schaefer, Ayanna Staton, Anna Velasquez, Kylee Vitka-Lainey.

Grade 9 — Marlene Abouaassi, Julia Barksdale, Elmar Barrios, Laura Battey, Grace Belport, Kristina Bennett, Jackson Bonazzo, Helen Branyan, Timothy Breiner, Daniel Brennan, David Buonantony, Michelle Buzzanca, Gabrielle Camarero, Kyle Carmona, Remy Cooper, John Cox, Joseph Cox;

Also, John Duffy, Shannon Dugan, Elissa Dykes, Jomaris Echevarria, Danielle Evan, Kyle Fasanella, Lenyn Feijoo, Guirlaine Francois, Jayla Frederick, Stephanie Gabriel, Nathan Glick, Gillian Goddard, Katherine Goodrich, Ashley Jean-Pierre, Shaina Joseph, Jason Kelly, Helen Langston;

Also, Megan Leonard, Patrick Lepesko, Willie Llera, Olivia Mastroluca, Mark Mastrone, Joseph McClean, Hamit Nasufi, Gabrielle Olexovitch, Danielle Peterson, Michael Petillo, Aileen Pingol, Sabrina Ramirez, Jeffrey Riccio;

Also, William Rooney, Zohra Sarpas, Tamara Schriffert, Allana Scudder, Christopher Smith, Zachary Smith, Rebeca Spear, Richard Starkey, Daniel Thorstensson, Jakub Tomaszewski, Carlos Umana, Sarah Wright.

Second honors

Grade 12 — Kaila Adams, Josmaydi Artiles, James Auger, Emily Barksdale, Monika Bernardez, Summer Bravo, Kathryn Buonantony, Shannon Carter, Priya Chanda, Christopher Choi, Courtney Clark, Alyssa Cretella-Duprey, Ryan Cueto, Rikita David, Joseph Dinan, Anthony Donfrancesco, Taylor Dunn;

Also, Sarah Emigh, James Frownfelter, Jazmin Gonzalez, Jehla Green, Valeria Guerrero, Salome Inda, Adam Jack, Achija Jean, Isabelle Louis, Giovani Luis, Justin Mamone, Kelsey McBride, Peterlee Mesidor, Kayla Morales, Ivonne Moran, Raphaela Moreno;

Also, Joseph Pacific, Amanda Perry, Claritza Rivera, Brenna Royal, Flaure Sainville, Myra Sampson, Jesse Shannon, Connor Skelly, Kelsey Spada, Amony Stancil, Michael Tecci, Rosa Torres, John Vallerie, Joshua Van Fleet, Peter Volturno, DeAndre Walker, Alec Ward, Amaris Woodson.

Grade 11 — Olaoluwa Atoyebi, Joseph Baptiste, Cristian Barba, Samantha Beck, Anthony Bobko, Maggie Bodington, Isaiah Booker, Stephanie Boston, Andrew Bouchotte, Maxwell Breiner, Rushawn Brown, Danielle Calzone, Jacob Cayton, Meera Chanda;

Also, Timothy Cox, Timothy Das, Liliette Diavua, Matthew DiCostanzo, Brian Evan, Kyra Ezekiel, Tyler Ferrara, Christian Foito, Julia Genetti, Christopher Gonzalez, Gloria Grave Avila, Sarah Henriques, Jephthe Jean, Taylor King-Craigwell, Rebecca Kuzmich, Ivette Lebron;

Also, Daniel Leon, Cassandra Lo, Victor Lopez-Hernandez, Shayla Mack, Margaux Mahoney, Joseph Marsan, Jacob Martinez, Jessi McNeill, Brendan Miller, Angelica Molina, Haley Moore, Joselin Morales, Abbie Perez, Sarita Peterson, Carolyn Petkevich, Anabelle Plaza, Kathryn Posser, Siah Reeves, Andrew Rios;

Also, Sylvia Rios, Edward Rivera, Katherine Rodriguez, Richard Rohrs, Emma Rooney, Gabrielle Rooney, Brandon Russo, Jonathan Sabathie, Nora Scott, N, Rebecca Simon, E’Zhana Smith, Allyson Starkey, Steven Tobey, Alexandra Trahan, Juliana Troche, Ana-Michelle Valente, Kevin Vrabel, Jada Watley, Amanda Wright, Roman Yacik.

Grade 10 — Anthony Alvarez, Alexis Antao, Richella Aurelien, Stephanos Baggeas, Samantha Belport, Shaquanna Borodack, Tyra Breedy, Austin Bult, Austin Burgess, Brianna Bursey, Crisstal Cabrera, Hunter Campbell, Kelleigh Cantiello;

Also, Christopher Carroll, Cassandra Class, Brett Cody, Axel Cuevas, Dariell Diaz, Cierra Donald, Nelson Duque, Jack Erazmus, Derek Falcon, Tarquinn Granado, Kaitlin Hines, Katherine Krasniewicz, Michael Lapia, Albert Matos;

Also, Kevin Mendoza, Bethy Napaul, Mimoza Nasufi, Audrey Pancak, Kristin Pantelis, Kassie Poruban, Laura Quijano Jimenez, Taylor Reed, Natalia Roman, Victoria Sajaw, Lynn Schneider, Jillian Stringfellow, Alexis Williams, Emily Winter, Lauren Wright.

Grade 9 — Jonathan Brooks, Umer Butt, Matthew Canapetti, Ian Carrano, Ricard Castaneda, Frederick Clark, Terence Davis, Daniel DeCilio, Zachary Dillon, Victoria Flowers, Chantal Fraser, Jakarie Fulton, Mackenzee George, Mackenzie Gold;

Also, David Goldstein, Jasmine Gonzalez, Autumn Graham, Tyquaevius Hairston, Christopher Hamilton, Matthew Herrera, Kayla Hughes, Hailey Jorge, Sarah Kotsay, Madison Lazaro, Kornelia Lysik, Justin Monah, Torry Naeem;

Also, Emily Pappas, Brett Patrick, Teresa Petreycik, Eric Redgate, Brianna Rotonto, Alona Scott, Rachel Scott, Noah Shaw, Chynna Sherrod, Fatima Tuziahrah, Akin Warburton Baker, Caitlin Whaley, Jordan Wilson.

The following students were named to the fourth quarter honor roll at Stratford High School:

First honors

Grade 12 — Dorcas Agyeman, Jessye Amoroso, Monica Bright, Veronica Bun, Alicia Centopanti, Abigail Cerone, Zoey Colon, Nicholas DeAngelis, Rebecca Debiase, Joseph Defrancesco, Indumathi Dhakshinamurthy, Aser Docteur, Haley Dunning, Emily Eckel, Kelly Erazmus;

Also, Amanda Gallo, Tyrell Griffin, Jessica Hartwell, Kyle Hill, Daniel Hong, Malika Johnson, Tori Kelly, Robert Koripsky, Danielle LaPierre, Dihcole Lieu, Jasmine Lumasag, Dana Malave, Gina Mariano, Anna Martin, Santiago Mateo, Courtney Mocarski, Brittany Monte, Kaylee Morales, Mackenzie Mortimer, Nicole Navas;

Also, Joy Onyerikwu, Brodey Ott, Jacqueline Paez, Ryan Patrick, Mathieu Plaisir, Demetrius Porter, Josephine Ragland, Jennifer Rodriguez, Margaret Rohrs, Jamie Russo, Zachary Schaefer, Robert Sebas, Zachary Shannon, Christopher Simon, Aimee Sportini, Jacquelyn Temelsiz, Mary Tourigny, Melissa Valdez, Karin Wengenroth, Sarah Yatsinko.

Grade 11 — Keishera Aldonza, Harrison Brooks, Alicia Buynovsky, Quincy Cayton, Kelly Ceccarelli, Andrew Cerone, Jillian Chambers, Jacob Cuevas, Leila Davis, Margaret DeCapua, Jenna Fasanella, Ann Fednard , Camylla Ferreira , Carlos Flores, Brendan Gloss, Kristopher Guzman, Martha Herrera, Jonathan Homburg;

Also, Reid Jefferson, Nicholas Kovalik, Eleanor Lefever, Mcbryan Lesperance, Bryan Lidman, Yasmine Mahmud, Alexander Martin, Eric Mezzo, Milo Mitchell, Madison Norton, Timothy Paproski, Joanne Pierre-Louis, John Rohaly, Robert Rohaly, Rachel Santo;

Also, Alexander Sarmiento, Kaitlyn Schuessler, Anekka Scott-Gray, Miguel Seclen, Frank Sessa, Chayla Sherrod, Emma Sullivan, William Tait, Elizabeth Tallberg, Anna Trahan, Michael Vavala, Andre Vilarinho, Jacqueline Walsh.

Grade 10 — Gabriela Aguieiras, Jenna Amoroso, Jairo Barrera, Bertha Barrios, Samuel Breiner, Julianne Carey, Piotr Chaber, Phinehas Cleary, Mariah Cortes, Livingston Cortez, Marissa Dacruz, Tyler Devellis, Jerry Dinan, Nathanael Domschine, Joseph Dragone;

Also, Christelle Exile, Thomas Ferrara, Ashley Glaudin, Lauren Goodrich, Lance Jamison, Schekina Jean, Stephen Jepsen, Coralie Joseph, Alex Masi, Michael McClean, Tasiana Mesidor, Lauren Padua;

Also, Athanasios Panolis, Melissa Papp, Alexis Rader, Kareem Robinson, Emily Sanchez, Christian Sarmiento, Haley Schaefer, Matthew Schaefer, Ayanna Staton, Anna Velasquez, Kylee Vitka-Lainey.

Grade 9 — Marlene Abouaassi, Julia Barksdale, Elmar Barrios, Laura Battey, Grace Belport, Kristina Bennett, Jackson Bonazzo, Helen Branyan, Timothy Breiner, Daniel Brennan, David Buonantony, Michelle Buzzanca, Gabrielle Camarero, Kyle Carmona, Remy Cooper, John Cox, Joseph Cox;

Also, John Duffy, Shannon Dugan, Elissa Dykes, Jomaris Echevarria, Danielle Evan, Kyle Fasanella, Lenyn Feijoo, Guirlaine Francois, Jayla Frederick, Stephanie Gabriel, Nathan Glick, Gillian Goddard, Katherine Goodrich, Ashley Jean-Pierre, Shaina Joseph, Jason Kelly, Helen Langston;

Also, Megan Leonard, Patrick Lepesko, Willie Llera, Olivia Mastroluca, Mark Mastrone, Joseph McClean, Hamit Nasufi, Gabrielle Olexovitch, Danielle Peterson, Michael Petillo, Aileen Pingol, Sabrina Ramirez, Jeffrey Riccio;

Also, William Rooney, Zohra Sarpas, Tamara Schriffert, Allana Scudder, Christopher Smith, Zachary Smith, Rebeca Spear, Richard Starkey, Daniel Thorstensson, Jakub Tomaszewski, Carlos Umana, Sarah Wright.

Second honors

Grade 12 — Kaila Adams, Josmaydi Artiles, James Auger, Emily Barksdale, Monika Bernardez, Summer Bravo, Kathryn Buonantony, Shannon Carter, Priya Chanda, Christopher Choi, Courtney Clark, Alyssa Cretella-Duprey, Ryan Cueto, Rikita David, Joseph Dinan, Anthony Donfrancesco, Taylor Dunn;

Also, Sarah Emigh, James Frownfelter, Jazmin Gonzalez, Jehla Green, Valeria Guerrero, Salome Inda, Adam Jack, Achija Jean, Isabelle Louis, Giovani Luis, Justin Mamone, Kelsey McBride, Peterlee Mesidor, Kayla Morales, Ivonne Moran, Raphaela Moreno;

Also, Joseph Pacific, Amanda Perry, Claritza Rivera, Brenna Royal, Flaure Sainville, Myra Sampson, Jesse Shannon, Connor Skelly, Kelsey Spada, Amony Stancil, Michael Tecci, Rosa Torres, John Vallerie, Joshua Van Fleet, Peter Volturno, DeAndre Walker, Alec Ward, Amaris Woodson.

Grade 11 — Olaoluwa Atoyebi, Joseph Baptiste, Cristian Barba, Samantha Beck, Anthony Bobko, Maggie Bodington, Isaiah Booker, Stephanie Boston, Andrew Bouchotte, Maxwell Breiner, Rushawn Brown, Danielle Calzone, Jacob Cayton, Meera Chanda;

Also, Timothy Cox, Timothy Das, Liliette Diavua, Matthew DiCostanzo, Brian Evan, Kyra Ezekiel, Tyler Ferrara, Christian Foito, Julia Genetti, Christopher Gonzalez, Gloria Grave Avila, Sarah Henriques, Jephthe Jean, Taylor King-Craigwell, Rebecca Kuzmich, Ivette Lebron;

Also, Daniel Leon, Cassandra Lo, Victor Lopez-Hernandez, Shayla Mack, Margaux Mahoney, Joseph Marsan, Jacob Martinez, Jessi McNeill, Brendan Miller, Angelica Molina, Haley Moore, Joselin Morales, Abbie Perez, Sarita Peterson, Carolyn Petkevich, Anabelle Plaza, Kathryn Posser, Siah Reeves, Andrew Rios;

Also, Sylvia Rios, Edward Rivera, Katherine Rodriguez, Richard Rohrs, Emma Rooney, Gabrielle Rooney, Brandon Russo, Jonathan Sabathie, Nora Scott, N, Rebecca Simon, E’Zhana Smith, Allyson Starkey, Steven Tobey, Alexandra Trahan, Juliana Troche, Ana-Michelle Valente, Kevin Vrabel, Jada Watley, Amanda Wright, Roman Yacik.

Grade 10 — Anthony Alvarez, Alexis Antao, Richella Aurelien, Stephanos Baggeas, Samantha Belport, Shaquanna Borodack, Tyra Breedy, Austin Bult, Austin Burgess, Brianna Bursey, Crisstal Cabrera, Hunter Campbell, Kelleigh Cantiello;

Also, Christopher Carroll, Cassandra Class, Brett Cody, Axel Cuevas, Dariell Diaz, Cierra Donald, Nelson Duque, Jack Erazmus, Derek Falcon, Tarquinn Granado, Kaitlin Hines, Katherine Krasniewicz, Michael Lapia, Albert Matos;

Also, Kevin Mendoza, Bethy Napaul, Mimoza Nasufi, Audrey Pancak, Kristin Pantelis, Kassie Poruban, Laura Quijano Jimenez, Taylor Reed, Natalia Roman, Victoria Sajaw, Lynn Schneider, Jillian Stringfellow, Alexis Williams, Emily Winter, Lauren Wright.

Grade 9 — Jonathan Brooks, Umer Butt, Matthew Canapetti, Ian Carrano, Ricard Castaneda, Frederick Clark, Terence Davis, Daniel DeCilio, Zachary Dillon, Victoria Flowers, Chantal Fraser, Jakarie Fulton, Mackenzee George, Mackenzie Gold;

Also, David Goldstein, Jasmine Gonzalez, Autumn Graham, Tyquaevius Hairston, Christopher Hamilton, Matthew Herrera, Kayla Hughes, Hailey Jorge, Sarah Kotsay, Madison Lazaro, Kornelia Lysik, Justin Monah, Torry Naeem;

Also, Emily Pappas, Brett Patrick, Teresa Petreycik, Eric Redgate, Brianna Rotonto, Alona Scott, Rachel Scott, Noah Shaw, Chynna Sherrod, Fatima Tuziahrah, Akin Warburton Baker, Caitlin Whaley, Jordan Wilson.

Stratford High School class of 1953 will celebrate their 60th reunion Friday through Sunday, Sept. 6-8.

There will be a welcome gathering Friday, Sept. 6, at 7 p.m.; dinner on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 5 p.m. and breakfast Sunday, Sept. 8, at 9:30 a.m.

For information or a formal invitation, email mlpcgp@aol.com or call M. Perry at 203-378-6400.

Mayor of the Day Tom Malloy offers Irish blessing while the other Mayor, John Harkins, left, and State Senator Kevin Kelly join the festivities at Town Hall March 15. Greg Reilly photo.

Stratford officials celebrated St. Patrick’s Day a wee bit early, Friday morning, March 15, with a raisin’ o the Irish flag, Stratford High School Band playing, installation of a special Mayor of the Day, and selection of a winner in the Best Irish Soda Bread contest. 

With top-ranking police and fire officers at attention, State Senator Kevin Kelly presided.  Mayor John Harkins named Town Council former Chairman Tom Malloy “Mayor for the Day.” Malloy offered an Irish blessing and invited all guests and dignitaries into the council chambers for coffee and soda bread.

Kelly and Malloy both selected Jamie Johnson’s soda bread as their favorite.  A tie-breaking vote was not needed.

The League of Women Voters announced that it is sponsoring three debates for Stratford candidates leading up to the general municipal election on Nov. 5.

The league is co-sponsoring with Stratford Chamber of Commerce and Stratford Rotary a roundtable for all candidates in all races and a mayoral candidates’ debate on Oct. 17 at Stratford High School. The roundtable will begin at 6 p.m. and the mayoral debate at 7 p.m.

On Oct. 23 there will be a debate for mayoral candidates at Oronoque Village that is designated for Oronoque residents only.

The LWV’s third debate will be for Board of Education candidates. It is co-sponsored by PTA Council, and it will be held Oct. 30, 6 p.m., at Wooster Middle School.

Tickets for the 23rd annual Stratford vs. Bunnell Senior Girl’s Flag Football Game are now on sale at Stratford High School and Bunnell High School in the athletic offices and main offices.
Tickets may also be purchased in advance at Hilltop Food Market.
This year’s contest is scheduled for Monday evening, Nov. 18, at Bunnell High School’s turf field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Tickets are $5 if purchased in advance. All tickets are $8 at the gate the day of the game. No passes will be accepted for this game. Proceeds from the game will benefit both schools’ Athletic Associations.
For additional information, contact Stratford High School Athletic Director Bob Baird at 385-4240 or Bunnell High School Athletic Director Dave Johnson at 385-4260.

To the Editor:

2009, Misters Harkins, Miron, Costello and I participated in 11 Debates, or Meet-and-Greets, for mayor of Stratford. They were:

*PYE Protect your Environment at Saint Joseph’s National Catholic Church

*OSNA (Old Stratford Neighborhood Association) at Christ Church

*Stratford Police / Fire Union hall

*Tide Harbor Condominiums

*Stratford High School, League of Women’s Voters

*Bunnell High School, League of Women’s Voters

*Oronoque Village: League of Women’s Voters.

*News12 Cable TV

*California Street Condominiums

*Connecticut Post individual interviews

*Buchanan, WICC Radio

*Stratford Police / Fire Union hall, individual interviews, limited to Union members.

October 2, 2013, I willed my way out of Saint Vincent Hospital, with bandaged foot, stitched needle in my arm for hospital injections, blood work and other issues. I made Protect Your Environment debate’s initial comments. I left for injection every 12 hours. I came back to speak last.

October 11, 2013, mayor candidates Harkins, Paul, Bruno, and Mulligan were interviewed by News12’s Tom Appleby for Oct. 19-20, 2013 broadcast, and web: connecticut.news12.com/features. My exposé issues for improving Stratford dominated. Updating website: www.geo-mulligan.org.

October 17, 2013, will be at Stratford HS: League Women Voters and Stratford Chamber. (No Bunnell)

October 23, 2013, will be League Women Voters and Oronoque Village for only Oronoque.

Are Stratford’s pick-pocket political parties, lawyers, and government fearing truths and counting on voters’ ignorance and apathy about constitutional rights and privileges and limiting public debates?

I’ll publicly debate anyone, anytime!

I’d be honored to be worthy of your vote for Stratford mayor!

George E. Mulligan

Mulligan is candidate for mayor with no party affiliation

The first Stratford High School senior student vs. faculty flag football game will be played Thursday, Nov. 14, at 6:30 p.m. at Penders Field.
Proceeds from the contest will go to the school’s General Fund, while the Stratford High School Athletic Association will be conducting its annual Thanksgiving food drive in conjunction with the game.
Food items will be donated to the Sterling House Community Center food pantry. All participants are required to bring a non-perishable food item in order to participate.
Tickets for the game are $3 for students and senior citizens and $5 for adults.
Spectators who bring a non-perishable food item will receive a $1 discount on the ticket price.
Tickets may be purchased in the Stratford High School Athletic Association office and the main office.
While members of the SHS football team are prohibited from participating, the senior captains will serve as coaches for the student team. The SHS football staff will be the referees.
Leading the faculty team into action will be Principal Joseph Corso and assistants Michael Hults and Anthony DeAngelo.

To the Editor:

In response to Stratford Republican Party’s mailing literature delivered to Stratford’s residents: The Cann family has filed no lawsuit against the Town of Stratford.

It is inappropriate for Louis A. DeCilio, as chairman of the Stratford Republican Party (RTC) and treasurer for Stratford’s GOP PAC, to misconstrue our child advocacy complaint for political gain.

I trust that the members of Stratford’s RTC and all Stratford residents will denounce Lou’s effort.

During December 2010, I filed a complaint with the State of Connecticut’s Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) because of sexual, verbal and physical victimization and a hostile environment that had occurred at Stratford High School. The basis of this complaint was to protect the rights of my minor daughter and to seek administrative improvements that would prevent future occurrences. This matter has been settled. The Stratford Board of Education will review with Connecticut Association of Boards of Education (CABE) what administrative improvements should be made in Stratford. This will occur because of the actions that I took on behalf of my daughter and all other children whose educational opportunities are negatively impacted by civil right violations.

Immacula Cann

Cann is a Democratic candidate for Planning Commission District 3.