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Community Corner

80th Anniversary Reunion of Civilian Conservation Corps

      On   Wednesday August 21, 2013,  Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) celebrated  the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) by hosting a reunion of Civilian Conservation Corps alumni, family, & friends at Chatfield Hollow State Park in Killingworth. This was the site of Camp Roosevelt, the first CCC camp in CT. It was established on May 23, 1933. Over 60 alumni, family and friends attended.

        DEEP Deputy Commissioner Susan Whalen, Killingworth First Selectwoman Catherine Iino, and Connecticut Forest and Park Director Eric Hammerling welcomed the guest to the park. They told the history of the park and important contributions of the CCC. The CT DEEP provided a delicious luncheon of brick oven pizza baked under the white pine trees that were planted by the CCC.
   
        After the luncheon CCC author Marty Podskoch read the history of Camp Roosevelt from a 1935 Camp Roosevelt  newspaper. Podskoch then introduced four CCC alumni who came to the reunion. Mike Caruso (89) of Killingworth told of his work in Camp Hadley in Madison, Bill McKinney (92) of Marlborough worked at Camp White in Winsted, Bill Jahoda (95) of Lebanon was at Camp Cross in West Cornwall, and Hugo DeSarro (94) of East Hampton was sent West to Meeker, CO. They all told about their family struggles during the Great Depression and their work and experiences in the CCC. Then children of departed CCC alumni shared stories about their father's CCC work.

There will be one more CCC reunion at the CT CCC Museum in Stafford Springs on Sunday, September 29, 2013 at 1 pm. All CCC alumni, family and friends are invited to attend. Refreshments will be served. The museum is located on Rt. 190 just east of Somers. For additional information call Marty Podskoch at 860-267-2442 or podskoch@comcast.net


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