News

Newest New Canaan Police Officer Sworn In; Tam Receives ‘Officer of the Year Award’; 8 Officers, 3 Civilians Honored

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The New Canaan Police Department on Tuesday recognized eight officers and three civilians for outstanding service to the community during a ceremony that also saw the agency’s newest member sworn in by the town clerk. In addressing Nicole Vartuli, a Stamford native and Westhill High School graduate who is poised for training at the Connecticut Police Academy this year with an expectation that she will undergo field training with NCPD through the early part of 2018, Chief Leon Krolikowski said that “badge you were just issued represents public trust.”

“The public willingly puts this work in your hands and trusts that you will take care of them in the proper manner,” Krolikowski said moments after Vartuli had been sworn in by Town Clerk Claudia Weber. “They do not want this responsibility for themselves. My charge to you today is to do just that: Get it right. We have all heard about the stories of officers who have gotten it wrong.

News

High Praise for Two NCHS Workers Who Saved Choking Student’s Life

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Two workers at New Canaan High School—both former employees of state agencies—are earning high praise from district officials after saving a choking student’s life last month. The public schools “are filled with dozens of wonderful stories taking place throughout the district on a daily basis,” NCHS Principal Bill Egan said. “The lifesaving rescue by Tom Brown and Patrick Mainolfi certainly rises to the top of this list. New Canaan High School, in particular, recognizes and appreciates their valiant efforts.” At about 3:30 p.m. on April 20 (a Thursday), Mainolfi—a campus monitor at the high school who had worked for 21 years in the state Department of Corrections—spotted a teen running down a set of stairs near the locker room in the athletics area of NCHS.

Animal 411

Elusive Goose at Field Club Is Dangerously Tangled in Fishing Wire

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Officials at the New Canaan Field Club are trying to secure a female goose in that small front pond there long enough to undo a fishing line now caught around its leg, causing the bird to limp and threatening serious physical damage. The club’s secretary, Karen Stewart, said she spotted the familiar goose limping badly Monday and immediately took steps to figure out how to help. She and club Manager Tom Brown contacted the New Canaan Police Department Animal Control unit. Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt said geese are visual and if they don’t recognize someone (like her) then they stay away. So, she left a net behind with Brown to try and catch the bird.