Thursday, May 7, 2020
www.berlincitizen.com
Volume 22, Number 10
Schools closed for remainder of academic year Gov. Ned Lamont will order K-12 schools throughout Connecticut to stay closed for the remainder of the academic year because of the health threat posed by COVID-19. From left, Nathaniel, Gabriel, Kasia and John Roginski pose in their home wearing some of the masks they designed for local seniors. Photos courtesy of Kasia Roginska
Berlin family creates, donates masks to local senior citizens By Everett Bishop The Citizen
A local family has spent their time in isolation giving back by donating over 200 homemade masks to the elderly in the community. After seeing multiple seniors shopping in grocery stores without any sort of face covering, Berlin resident Kasia Roginska, owner of KARO Swimwear, knew she could put her design expertise to
good use and provide a much needed service during the coronavirus pandemic. “One day I went to Berlin Stop & Shop and saw some seniors shopping and it made me think about them being so prone getting infected. And many of them don’t have anyone to run their errands,” she said. “That stayed on my mind and next morning I woke up with a mission to make some masks out of any
cotton fabric I could find and try to donate to some seniors I run into at the store.” The ball quickly got rolling from there. Roginska started promoting her masks on social media and began donating the face coverings to the Berlin Senior Center, Hartford Hospital and the Prudence Crandall Center in New Britain. See Masks, A21
In making this decision, Lamont becomes the 40th governor in the nation to decide that it is not safe for schools to reopen. “I know how important it is for so many students and teachers to finish out the school year, and I was holding out hope – particularly for high school seniors – that we’d at least be able to complete the final few weeks, but given the current circumstances and to protect everyone’s safety, it has become clear that it’s just not possible,” Lamont said Tuesday morning. No decision has been made yet about whether summer school and camps will be allowed to convene.
This announcement – recommended by the panel the governor appointed to explore how best to reopen schools and businesses – is sure to complicate efforts to restart the economy since many employees rely on schools for childcare while they work. The Democratic governor first ordered schools closed seven weeks ago after most district leaders had already decided to close their doors. When it became apparent that it was not safe to reconvene schools, the governor in early April extended his school closure order through May 20. While 16 other states had already ordered schools closed for the academic year at the time Lamont extended the closure, he still received pushback from some in the legislature and business community for making an early decision to keep commerce and schools shuttered. See Schools, A9
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By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas The Connecticut Mirror