Don Lowe First Selectman Column 04/13/2026
There are many important dates in the coming weeks. This Saturday, April 18, at 10am in Charter Hall we are holding the Annual Budget Meeting wherein the Town and Sherman school budgets are presented. This is an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the budgets before you vote at the referendum, which is held on Saturday, May 2, in person, at Charter Hall from 10am to 8pm.
Also on May 2, from 11am to 4 pm there is the Community Expo on the Town Green. This event gets more robust with each passing year. There are information booths from various Sherman organizations, games for kids, treats and ice cream, and live music. Then on May 16 at 11am on the Town Green in front of the Daily Market there is the celebration for the Hometown Heroes posters. This event will be a lovely community gathering with food (hotdogs and burgers) provided. On Sunday, May 24, at 1pm is our Memorial Day Parade which culminates in an excellent ceremony down at Veterans Fields.
Please note that there is a Celebration of Life for Sherman Church pastor, Michael Smith, on this Saturday, April 18. It starts at 2pm and hundreds of people from all over the United States are expected. If you live on Church Road, please drive carefully by the Sherman Church and maybe be a little extra patient. This is a well-planned event, but the possibility of a large gathering is imminent and there may be a lot of cars to park. Other CERT team members and I (Citizens Emergency response Team) will be there to help with traffic flow and organization.
Our Sherman Volunteer Fire Department just never stops working to improve. I am continually impressed by their efforts to be ready when we need them. On May 8 and 9, down by the lake, the SVFD will conduct a joint training session for Water Scent K-9’s. This is to train rescuers in the craft of using scent dogs to rescue and recover victims of water mishaps. Kudos to SVFD member, Dr. Ken Hoffman, for his leadership on this.
On the subject of Candlewood Lake, the CLA (Candlewood Lake Authority) is searching for a Director of Ecology. The job advertisement is listed on the CLA website and if water biology/science is your specialty, you might be a good fit for this critical position.
This morning many of us attended the funeral for Sherman resident, Ed Hayes, a former Selectman, leader (and Commander) among the Veterans Association, and a member of countless committees. After the funeral at Holy Trintiy, there was a celebration of his amazing life at Charter Hall.
Ed was a prolific citizen of Sherman and seemed to be involved in nearly everything. I counted him as a close personal friend, although it was obvious today at the gatherings that I was one of many close friends. Ed’s wife, Marie, spoke bravely and beautifully at the service and she punctuated Ed’s proclivity “For saying, YES” whenever the opportunity to help came along. Yes, that was Ed. We miss him dearly, but we have our very positive memories of Ed Hayes making things better in everything he said YES to.
