By: Bailey Boivin
On May 20th, restaurants opened for the first time since quarantine started. Restaurants are only allowed to do outdoor service, nothing inside will be happening until June 20th . When that date hits, restaurants will fully open it still doesn’t go back to normal, as they are restricting person count inside to half capacity of what the restaurant can usually fit. For now however, there can be a max of 5 people at a table, if there is a party of 5 or more they will be required to sit separately. Some restaurants are doing reservations, so they know where to put the customers when they are part of a party that includes more than five people. For staff at the restaurants, they are required to wear a mask at all times, even inside, as they are handling food that goes out to customers. They are also required to wear gloves at all times, and should be changing them numerous times to make sure they stay clean. Cooks in the kitchen aren’t required to wear masks and gloves, but it is highly recommended. Busboys need to wear a mask and gloves as well, changing them many times. All of this will take a little bit to get used to, and by the looks of it, it won’t be changing anytime soon.
0 Comments
By: Bailey Boivin The CT National Guard is teaming up to make sure people have places to recover from the Coronavirus. Since the CT Convention Center isn’t being used at the moment, they are planning on utilizing the space as a precautionary measure in case worst comes to worst, and the space is needed. Captain Pytlik, a public affairs officer with the CT National Guard, said, “We hope we're not going to need the space, the goal is to have it ready to go if it is needed." This effort will take a few days before operations turn to Hartford Healthcare and Pytlik said, "This is for patients that still have some symptoms and still require some medical care, things like IVs, things like oxygen. This isn't for patients that are highly acute or they require ventilators.”
All of the 200 troops continue to make improvements before the space is absolutely a necessity, because with the way things are going, this may be a useful space. Captain Pytlik also said, "It feels great to know that these guys are doing something and they're making a difference.” He also said that he hopes that it can be very effective in times of need, and he is willing to do anything else for, not only Connecticut, but the world to go back to normal By: Ryan Barnosky Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the U.S. celebrated to remember, honor, and mourn the military personnel that have died while serving in the U.S. military. It’s observed on the last Monday of May which means in 2020 the holiday will be celebrated on Monday, May 25th. It originated after the Civil War and was originally known as Decoration Day. Memorial Day officially became a federal holiday in 1971. Each year on Memorial Day, a national moment of remembrance takes place at 3:00 p.m. local time. This is a day that students don’t attend school and various businesses change their hours or even close. Many people visit cemeteries, or memorials, or have family gatherings. The town of Watertown holds an annual Memorial Day parade. Many residents line the streets waiting for the crowds of people to walk down Main Street. This year however, the parade will begin at the Watertown Plaza parking lot, at 10:00 a.m. on Monday may 25th. Everyone walking will travel to the Oakville Green this year. Currently the annual parade has not been canceled due to COVID-19, but keep a lookout for any changes happening in the next month. By: Ryan Barnosky For the past nine years, Watertown has hosted a town wide road race, known as the Shamrock Shuffle, which takes place the Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day. This year the race is on Saturday, March 14th, at 10 a.m., beginning and ending at Polk School. Registration begins at 8 a.m. You can start signing up by going to Watertown’s Parks & Recreation website, and going to their menu and clicking on the Recreation Department arrow, followed by Special Events. There you can find links to registration forms and sign up today for $30. Students, or anyone, can even volunteer to help out during the race. There’s a running trail that is 3.5 miles long (a little above a 5k) and there’s also a walking trail that is 2.5 miles long. The event started as an idea between former WHS Cross Country Coach Joe Romano and one of his past athletes, Kim Tessier. Tessier recommended they do a race involving charity, “and it’s blown into one of the major events in our town,” says Romano. He is also currently the CoChair of the race and is a co-owner of Ordinary Joe’s, a local sports bar in town, which is the race “headquarters”; Tessier is the race director. Every year they donate their profit to different charities/causes and they give out scholarships. “The handicap playground [Jumpin’ Jack] is one of our major causes,” says Romano, “and a scholarship that goes to a highschool scholar athlete. And this year we’re doing bags for the homeless which helps the homeless with hygiene.” Sign up soon and don’t forget to buy a t-shirt or wear green! By: Ryan Barnosky
“Jumping Jack Playground is an unfinished, all inclusive playground for kids of all abilities, to come together and play,” said Mr. and Mrs. Caouette, parents of “Jack.” Jack Caouette is a local 12 year old boy, who lives in Watertown, Connecticut. He has special needs, so this project is especially meaningful to him. He loves being surrounded by music, people, family, and loves to help others. The playground is planned to be built in Veteran’s Memorial Park, once all the money is raised. Mrs. Caouette expresses how important it is to include people and reach out to everyone, even when they’re different than you. To help raise more money for the playground, the Caouette’s plan is to have various fundraisers. One that has already happened was the Jumping Jack’s Bowl. Jack had the opportunity to score a touchdown with his football team against Plainville, and people were free to donate if they wanted. The whole moment was caught on camera by film creator and WHS senior, Nate Maull. Nate posted the video to his YouTube channel, Nate Maull Media. Neither, the Caouette family or Nate knew the impact and emotion the video would have. It reached local viewers, and was shown on both WFSB and ESPN. “When it was on ESPN that was unbelievable. It’s just great to know that it’s going for a good cause, and all the people who saw it could donate, because that’s the whole purpose of this,” said Nate. The Caouette’s believe the video really helped, “capture the emotion of the day, and everything about Jack’s personality.” One thing the family asks is that everyone helps spread awareness by, “sharing this story with two people, and they’ll share it with two more people and so on,” said Mr. Caouette. You can also help by donating to the GoFundMe page, https://www.gofundme.com/f/jumpingjackplayground. |
Archives
June 2020
Categories |