Saranda Belica
By John Murray
Lugging a dream around in your head for 15 years is tiring. The only path to freedom is to hurl yourself towards the fire and either transform the dream into reality, or fail trying. A dream without effort will never materialize, so it was with a sense of relief that I unchained one of my dreams last Autumn, and set out to create a multi-cultural festival in Waterbury celebrating the extraordinary diversity of the people living and working in the city.
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Photographs By John Murray
Runners surge from the starting line in front of Waterbury City Hall Sunday morning during the Children's Community School 5K. (More photographs inside)
| Login or register to post comments | Tags: Caryn Stellmach, Children's Community School, Danny Bruyin, Greater Waterbury YMCA, Jim O'Rourke, Joel Becker, Karim Mabrouk, Kristen Jacoby, Lucas Meyer, Nancy Becker, Samuel Nadal, Saranda Belica, Theresa Ercoli
Photographs by Saranda Belica
General Eddi Zyko was honored inside Waterbury City Hall yesterday morning as the Kosovo Mayor for the Day. The General is pictured here with his wife Paulette, and the couple have four children, Erin, Eileen, Emily and Eddi Jr..
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"Cool Waters" was unveiled last night before hundreds of excited city residents in downtown Waterbury. Photograph by Chelsea Murray
Photographs By John Murray
The city unveiled a 900-square-foot mosaic, designed by artists Bruce and Joanne Hunter and assembled by hundreds of volunteers, during a block party celebration last night hosted by Mayor Neil O'Leary.
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Ron Pugliese grew up in the Bucks Hill neighborhood of Waterbury and was a talented athlete at Wilby High School. Four decades later, Pugliese has returned to Waterbury to become the executive director of Economic Development under Mayor Neil O’Leary.
Story and Photographs By John Murray
Ron Pugliese was born and raised in Waterbury and is a firm believer in public service. His father was the assistant city clerk in the 1950s, and all three of his sons have forged a life in the public sector arena.
“My wife is a teacher and our entire family believes in volunteering and giving back,” Pugliese said. “If an organization asks me for help, I never say no. That’s who I am.”
Back in November, in addition to being the President of the East Hartford Chamber of Commerce, Pugliese was a board member of the Connecticut State University System, a board member of the Palace Theater, and a recently elected selectman in the town of Southbury.
And it’s that generous spirit of public service - and a love of Waterbury - that Ron Pugliese an easy mark when Neil O’Leary recruited him to be the city’s new economic development director.
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Waterbury mayor, Neil O'Leary, right, watched as former mayor Mike Jarjura proceeded to the microphone to denounce O'Leary's plans to finance economic development out of the mayor's budget.
By John Murray
Former five-term mayor, Mike Jarjura made a surprise visit to the Board of Aldermen meeting tonight to speak out against transferring money to the mayor's office to fund two new economic development positions. Jarjura said the move would create a financial burden in tough economic times, and chided the aldermen that they would have opposed the concept had he proposed it last spring.
Spinach Pie and Politics
Malloy Touts Local Albanian Community, Endorses Neil O'Leary
The dance group "Besa" performed "Valle e Devollit" at the 6th Annual Albanian Festival at the Albanian- American Muslim Community Center, on Raymond Street, in the South End of Waterbury. Valle means dance, and Devolli is a village in Albania. Photographs by John Murray
| Login or register to post comments | Tags: Albanian- American Muslim Community, Governor Dannel Malloy, Mike Jarjura, Neil O'Leary, Saranda Belica