Commended Students Boxes to Boots president Kristen Gauvin, left, poses for a photo with the group’s founder Karen Cote. The Berlinbased non-profit sends care packages to troops serving overseas. Submitted photo
New name, same mission Boxes to Boots, a Berlin-based non-profit group, provides troops overseas a piece of home each holiday season. The organization is seeking donations from the public to ship out 700 care packages to troops deployed in Afghanistan, Kuwait and Iraq. “We know to some of our soldiers, this is the only connection to home that they
have,” said Boxes to Boots president Kristen Gauvin, who replaced Karen Cote over the summer. Under Cote’s leadership, the group’s moniker was Hero Boxes. Gauvin volunteers with her son Liam. The organization has about 50 volunteers. The 700 boxes on average cost $25 each, which means the goal for the organization is $17,500. See Boxes, A8
House of Heroes comes to town By Jessica Simms Special to the Record-Journal
Connecticut, an organization that provides no-cost home repairs to veterans in BERLIN — After seeing that need, Karen Sztaba took it a neighbor’s home was re- upon herself to apply for paired by House of Heroes the project that took place
on Sept. 26. Her late-husband, Mike Sztaba, a Vietnam Marine veteran, could no longer tend to the See House, A18
Berlin High School Principal Eileen Eustis announced that Makayla Gorski and Clemens Henning have been named Commended Students in the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program. A Letter of Commendation from the school and National Merit Scholarship Corporation, which conducts the program, will be presented to the scholastically-talented seniors.
Makayla Gorski.
About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2021 competition by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. “Those being named Commended Students have demonstrated outstanding potential for academic success,” a National Merit Scholarship Corporation spokesperson stated. “These students represent a valuable national resource; recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic develop-
Clemens Henning.
ment, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation. We hope that this recognition will help broaden their educational opportunities and encourage them as they continue their pursuit of academic success.” — Press Release R233461
BOXES TO BOOTS
By Sean Krofssik Record-Journal staff
Thursday, October 1, 2020
www.berlincitizen.com
Volume 22, Number 31