Collinsville Family Looks to Make Letters Relevant in the Digital World

Website offers a place to preserve old memories and create new ones.

For many letters are becoming a thing of the past. Most correspondence from the younger generation comes in a barrage of short digital messages and the memories of the elderly often sit in a shoebox, slowly succumbing to time and the elements. But Drew Bartkiewicz of Collinsville, with the help of his family, has launched an ambitious project designed to preserve those old memories, help create new ones, bridge that generational communication gap and make letters meaningful again. Welcome to http://lett.rs, an effort to bring letters into the digital age. “We just need letters to catch up to the Internet,” Bartkiewicz said. The site does that in many ways. Registered users, who only need an e-mail and password, can scan or photograph those…

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Drew Bartkiewicz

9:18 am on Friday, May 11, 2012

Thanks, John. Preserve, Share, Write...better. That is the aspiration of meaningful communications inspired by 2,000 years of letters. - Drew Bartkiewicz   more ›

Valley Sports Center Celebrates One-Year Anniversary

Weekend activities include many free programs.

Submitted release  Valley Sports Center, will celebrate its one-year anniversary this weekend. Opened April 1, 2011, the 28,000 square foot facility located at 310 Albany Turnpike, has become the place for a wide variety of sports programs for athletes of all ages including basketball, baseball, volleyball and more. “Looking back over the past year, I am grateful to see the number of families regularly coming here, staying active and having fun. I truly appreciate the way the community has embraced us,” says Mark Lange, Valley Sports Center owner, and long-time Canton resident. VSC has become a mecca for basketball programs offered year-round for adults and youth, including substantial leagues in fall and winter offered for student players…

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St. Pierre Box and Lumber Company Closing After 59 Years

Business has been on Lovely Street since 1963 and started in Unionville 10 years earlier.

It will be the end of an era on Lovely Street in Canton this weekend as St. Pierre Box and Lumber Company Inc. closes its doors after 59 years in business. The business specialized in industrial packaging, specifically wooden crates and boxes for shipment. It also sold landscaping materials and some lumber. The company has been a fixture on Lovely Street in Canton since 1963 and 10 years earlier was started in Unionville by Joseph St. Pierre. His son Jack, majority owner of the business, has worked there for more than 40 years. He said the doors are expected to close by April 1.  Eventually the land at 66 Lovely St. will go on the market, Jack St. Pierre said. He estimated that it consists of roughly 25 acres, about 19 of which are …

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Gun Store Owner Plans to Open in Mid April

Shop to offer new and used rifles, handguns, accessories and some fishing bait and gear.

By mid April, long-time hunter and avid sportsman Perry Polderman plans to open American Shooters, LLC on Route 44. Polderman will offer new and used rifles, handguns, ammunition, some accessories as well as live bait and a few fishing supplies at the 155 Albany Turnpike location. “I’m just a sportsman,” Polderman said. “I like guns and using them and I’ve also collected quite a few.” Polderman said he has been hunting for about 40 years and some of that personal collection will be for sale. He said the pre-owned models, trades and the handgun offerings will set him apart from large gun retailers in the area. He also plans to offer fair prices on new guns as well. “I plan to be very competitive with my pricing,” Polderman sad. “I want to …

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The Flea Circus Coming to Town

New Collinsville business to open Friday.

While some collect old items for their beauty, sentiment or value, the owners of a new business in Collinsville see affordability, practicality and reuse as some of the biggest reasons to seek out yesteryear’s treasures. This Friday, siblings April Arrasate Duke, Chuck Arrasate and Samantha Arrasate Boland plan to open The Flea Circus at 101 Main St. in Collinsville.  “We’ve had a [long-time] interest in this kind of thing,” Duke said. The three have collected many items in their travels and much of their interest can be traced to their late mother, Rachel Veleas, who died in 2011.  “It’s basically a mix of all our findings and our mom’s, who had a great eye for antiques,” Duke said. The store will allow the three to honor Veleas, spend …

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Package Store Owner Looks To Use Portion of Petals and Paws Building

In part due to issues with building, zoning commission delays final decision.

The Canton Zoning Commission heard a proposal by Mark Gerrity Wednesday to move his Wine and Liquor Warehouse to a portion of the Petals and Paws building at 465 Albany Turnpike (Route 44) at the corner of Cherry Brook Road. Gerrity told the commission he simply wants to move the business from its current space at 345 Albany Turnpike and that Petals and Paws is interested in downsizing its space. “We’re just moving to a different location,” he said. Gerrity said the new location on the east side of the property would allow him to  expand from roughly 400 square feet to about 1,200 square feet. The business requires several approvals before it could move to the new location, including sale of alcohol and a special exception for a sign. …

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Karen J. Moulton

8:52 am on Monday, May 14, 2012

Noticed Petals and Paws has a smaller location in Avon Village. Are they downsizing?   more ›

Curious About What Barre Is?

C2 Pilates held a trial class on Thursday for the public to test the ballet, Pilates and yoga fusion.

C2 Barre Studio has one more trial class until it officially starts on March 20. Barre is a ballet-influenced excercise fused with Pilates and yoga. It gets its name from the ballet barre utilized for the classes. Women from Avon, Canton, Barkhamsted, and one who originates from Australia, attended the Thursday night session at the C2 Pilates studio in the Healthtrax building. C2 Pilates is starting a barre program in its Avon, Boston and Dedham studios. The last free trial session is on Saint Patrick's Day at 10 a.m. For more information about C2’s new barre classes and to sign up, contact Catherine Fair at Catherine@c2pilates.com or 1-800-401-8349. For more information about C2 Pilates visit www.c2pilates.com. The Healthtrax facility is …

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Mailbag

How to Avoid Lights Out for Your Business

By Sean O’Leary

Are you an owner or facilities manager of a commercial or institutional facility? If yes, read on because if you haven’t yet upgraded your lighting system from the conventional T12 lamps and ballasts time is running out. Fluorescent T12 lamps have been used since 1938. However, these are now considered outdated technology in light of the more energy efficient and cost-effective T8 and T5 systems.  To this point, the U.S. Department of Energy mandated that as of July 1, 2010 magnetic ballasts commonly used to operate T12 lamps will no longer be manufactured in or imported to the United States. In addition, the mandate requires that T12 lamps will be phased out starting July, 2012. Which fluorescent T12 systems will be impacted? The most …

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ABC Pizza Reopens Under New Ownership

Former employee purchases business.

After its new owner closed for about five days to clean the kitchen, install new carpets, change lighting and make other improvements, ABC Pizza in Collinsville reopened Thursday.  There's been a buzz around the village for the past several weeks that a former employee, Wagner Hurtado, had purchased the business. For years Hurtado worked at the restaurant, although he hadn't for the last year or so.  Hurtado said he is the fourth owner of the establishment. He said it was about 20 years ago when he first started working there for the original owners. He also worked in the Winsted location, which at the time had the same owners.  A native of Ecuador, Hurtado has extensive restaurant experience.  Hurtado said he plans to keep pizza and …

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