Month: October 2020

2020-10-28@11:54pm–#Derby CT– A High Street resident called EMS because he believes he was bitten by a coyote.

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2020-10-28@1:20pm–#Fairfield CT– A landscaping truck and a fire hydrant on Congress Street. They hydrant is wedged under the truck.

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#Fairfield CT–If you need help with your heating bill, Fairfield SocialServices can help families with the process. Fairfield Social Services is now making appointments toassist Fairfield residents with applications for the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program. Energy assistance pays for a household’s primary heating source such as oil, natural gas, electricity, propane, kerosene, coal, wood, and wood pellets on behalf of eligible households. The amount of heat assistance may not be sufficient to cover a household’s entire winter heating cost. Homeowners and renters may apply. Due to risks associated with Covid-19, there will be no in-person appointments. Please call the Social Services office to set up your telephone appointment: 203-256-3170.

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HARTFORD, CT – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that he has approved the allocation of $1 million from the state’s Coronavirus Relief Fund, which utilizes federal CARES Act funding, to provide supplemental aid to foster parents for the extraordinary costs associated with caring for more than 3,600 children in state care during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our foster parents do a fantastic job with children in state care,” Governor Lamont said. “During the pandemic, many foster parents faced additional responsibilities of caring for children, many of whom are receiving school services remotely and have been unable to access other supports. That clearly warranted an additional reimbursement in recognition of efforts that go beyond the rigorous demands we make of foster parents on a regular basis.”

Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF) Commissioner Vannessa Dorantes said that foster and adoptive parents form the backbone of the child welfare system in Connecticut.

“We ask so much of our foster families as they love, nurture and care for our children during such a critical time in their lives,” Commissioner Dorantes said. “This support also extends to the connections foster parents make with the families of the children placed into their homes – leading towards quicker and successful reunification. During the last calendar year, over 782 children were successfully reunified with their parents. But during the pandemic, foster parents did even more – increased virtual visits with the children’s families, supporting remote learning, which could include children placed from multiple districts with varying schedules and bringing children into their home without knowing their health status. Foster families are heroes just like other essential workers we cannot do without.”

These efforts are also extended to therapeutic foster care providers who often have children with complex behavioral needs placed into their families.

Commissioner Dorantes made the announcement about the supplemental aid this morning while speaking at the annual conference of the Connecticut Alliance of Foster and Adoptive Families, which this year is celebrating its 25^th anniversary. The nonprofit organization provides support, training, and advocacy for foster, adoptive, and kinship caregivers; and works in partnership with child welfare professionals and community partners, leading to stronger and more stable placements of children.

Last month, DCF received $1.1 million in Adoption Incentive federal grant dollars for success in finalizing 663 adoptions for children from foster care. This funding is being used for infrastructure, technology, consultants, training, and other efforts leading to the recruitment of new foster and adoptive families, as well as addressing the barriers to permanency for children.

Anyone in Connecticut who is interested in becoming a foster or adoptive parent should contact 1-888-KIDHERO for information.

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HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that he is allocating $15 million from the state’s Coronavirus Relief Fund, which utilizes federal CARES Act money, to fund innovative workforce programs that will provide job training to more than 1,000 displaced workers in the state and connect them to high-growth, in-demand jobs.

“This pandemic has drastically impacted the lives and livelihood of so many people in our state, and these workforce development programs are being expanded so that we can provide displaced workers with the skills needed to match them with in-demand jobs,” Governor Lamont said. “Our administration is committed to offering meaningful and lasting support to the workers of Connecticut so that our state and our economy emerge from this crisis stronger than ever.”

The Governor’s Workforce Council, with the support of the recently formed Workforce Development Unit in the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD), will utilize the funding on 19 programs that offer participants access to supportive services, including childcare and transportation, as well as a general training subsidy and job placement services that connect participants with full-time employment. In selecting programs for investment, the Governor’s Workforce Council prioritized programs aligned to current in-demand jobs with strong career pathways across several industries, most notably healthcare, information technology, and manufacturing. In total, approximately 1,100 participants will receive training and employment opportunities from this initiative.

“COVID-19 has accelerated many of the changes that have been reshaping our economy,” Garrett Moran, Chairman of the Governor’s Workforce Council, said. “The money from the Coronavirus Relief Fund was an instrumental first step in not only getting residents back to work, but getting them back to work in careers that are pandemic-proof for the future.”

Kelli Vallieres, executive director of DECD’s Workforce Development Unit, said, “This statewide program is a great example of how Connecticut can leverage its strong workforce partners, such as our Regional Workforce Development Boards, community colleges, and local training providers, among others, to create industry-aligned programs aimed at getting Connecticut residents back to work.”

The funding will be shared among the following programs:

·       Workforce Alliance, serving South Central Connecticut, is receiving $1.4 million to partner with DCI and Gateway Community College to train 156 participants for jobs across IT, warehousing and healthcare such as help desk technicians, cyber security specialists and business analysts; certified power fork lift operators; and certified nursing assistants with special training to work in long-term care facilities and with the elderly.

·       Capital Workforce Partners, serving North Central Connecticut, is receiving $3.8 million to partner with Yale New Haven Health, Aetna/ CVS, Year Up, DCI, and local community colleges to train 418 participants for jobs across healthcare, IT, manufacturing, transportation and logistics, financial services, and construction. Such jobs include, CNAs, pharmacy technicians, licensed trades workers, insurance sales agents, accounting and auditing clerks, truck drivers, web developers, user support specialists, and mechatronic and industrial automation technicians.

·       The Eastern Workforce Investment Board is receiving $686,024 to partner with workforce stakeholders such as employers and community colleges to offer skills training to about 86 participants in healthcare, manufacturing and transportation in jobs such as pharmacy technicians, CNAs, commercial drivers, and a variety of skills-based manufacturing trades.

·       The WorkPlace, serving Southwestern Connecticut, is receiving $250,115 to partner with local employers and community colleges to train 50 people as community health workers.

·       The Northwest Regional Workforce Investment Board is receiving $289,191 to partner with a local utility services company to train 19 participants for construction jobs including laborers, drivers, operators, plumbers, gas fitters, and foremen and $1,689,624 to provide supportive services to all WDB program participants across the state.

·       In addition to Connecticut’s Workforce Development Boards, several strategic state partners received funding for additional training programs:

o   The Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology (CCAT) is receiving $915,000 to train 60 residents for advanced manufacturing jobs in Quality, Inspection, and Industry 4.0 technologies.

o   Connecticut State Colleges and Universities is receiving $762,663 for community colleges programs to prepare 100 students for jobs such as medical assistants, emergency medical technicians, phlebotomy technicians and central sterile processing technicians.

o   The Connecticut Office of Early Childhood is receiving $5.3 million to partner with All Our Kin to train and license 165 family childcare programs and provide the overall childcare supply for individuals in workforce training programs.

o   An additional $1.4 million has been allocated to the five Regional Workforce Development Boards to provide supportive services to over 600 workforce training participants.

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#Fairfield CT- Fire at Sturges Ridge assisted living facility on Mill Plain Road. Fire systems did their job and there was no need for any evacuations according to Fairfield Assistant Fire Chief Roger Caisse. The fire was in the eating area, their “Bistro”. Fire doors closed and kept the fire confined to just that area. Fairfield firefighters’ quick response also helped!

2020-10-27@ 11:41am–#Bridgeport CT– A Central High School teacher called police for a student who lives on Alice Street that was distance learning . The student sent her pictures of his window where bullet went through. No one was injured. The student’s father also called police who are investigating. The only shot-spotter activation in town was on Wilmont Avenue around 3:30pm today.

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2020-10-27@3:45pm–#Bridgeport CT– Police were called to the 100 block of Deforest Street for a man shooting turkeys with a pellet gun.

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2020-10-27@6:49pm–#Bridgeport CT– Another crash reported at Park Avenue and North Avenue, one car on it’s side according to radio reports.

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