Thank you!
Your support is sustaining the future of local news in our communities.

Sharon Hospital Interns

Health care careers are promising both in terms of the projected demand for new jobs from growth as well as the need to replace people who leave the system. The expected growth among the health care worker population is expected to be much higher  than the average for all occupations in the remainder of this decade.

Compensation levels for those in the health care field provide another positive outlook. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for health care practitioners and technical occupations (RNs, physicians, surgeons and dental hygienists) in May of 2021 was $75,040 — higher than the median annual wage for all occupations ($45,760) and higher still than healthcare support occupations, such as home health and personal care aides and occupational therapy assistants ($29,880).

In all, overall employment in the health care field is expected to grow 13% through 2031.

The supply for this new cadre of health care workers undoubtedly will come in some measure from today’s high school students who are showing an interest in the field.  Earlier this month, five Housatonic Valley Regional High School students, two who are members of the 2023 graduating class and three rising seniors, participated in a paid summer intern program at Sharon Hospital. The students, featured in a story (See story, page A1.) by one of our own summer interns, Emma Spindler, hersellf a rising senior at Kent School, have expressed interest in range of fields, including surgery, physical therapy, radiology and nursing.

The hospital invited the students to participate in a week-long internship to gain early-on insights into the health care field through seminars and interactive opportunities.

Matthew Austin, public relations director at the hospital, said “There are so many more pieces to the puzzle than just doctors and nurses,” including case managers, dietitians, radiologists, and many others. The students were introduced to different specialties every day, and learned from hospital staff across several departments, including cardiology, radiology, infection control, and pharmacy.

The Northwest Regional Workforce Investment Board, which provides resources for job seekers and employers to promote a more highly-skilled workforce, provided the interns with pay and education, relieving Sharon Hospital of any costs. Austin told the Journal’s Spindler that he hopes “through this exposure...[the students] will consider health care down the line” and “return to Sharon Hospital” when they do so. In fact, the hospital already has one of the students returning as an employee in its dietary department.

 

Healthcare scholarships

 

In another positive outlook for future health care demands, the Visiting Nurse & Hospice of Litchfield County, which provides primary services including skilled home health care, hospice and home and community assistance programs across the county, will host a reception this coming Tuesday, Aug. 1, for ten local students  who are planning to pursue a career in health care.

Each student will be the recipient of a $10,000 per year scholarship. The Salisbury Visiting Nurse Association (SVNA) Endowment Fund offers a scholarship to those who wish to pursue a career in healthcare. The SVNA board of directors says it is committed to leaving a legacy by supporting individuals who will become healthcare professionals and serve the community. We should all be impressed by these high school apprentices and also salute Sharon Hospital, HVRHS, the Northwest Regional Workforce Investment Board, the Visiting Nurse & Hospice of Litchfield County and the SVNA board of directors for supporting the next generation of health care workers.

Latest News

Legal Notices - July 9, 2026

Legal Notices - July 9, 2026

Legal Notice

Notice of Formation of Kaits Kleaning LLC. Art. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 05-22-2026. Office Lo-cation: Dutchess county. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 24 Attlebury Hill Road, Standfordville NY 12581.

Keep ReadingShow less
Tenmile Distillery is making history the old-fashioned way

Cheers! The Revolutionary Whisky Series at Ten Mile Distillery, each named for a significant battle of the American Revolution, celebrates America at 250.

D.H. Callahan

In December 2024, the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau officially established the Standard of Identity for American Single Malt Whisky. It was the first new classification in more than half a century, creating new possibilities for American distillers. One of the distilleries taking advantage of this new landscape is Wassaic’s Tenmile Distillery. It is well positioned to make history because Tenmile has always honored traditional whiskey-making practices.

Single malts are often associated with Scotch whisky. Perhaps that’s why, years before the new standard was adopted, Tenmile hired Shane Fraser, a Scottish master distiller with 30 years of experience at some of Scotland’s most prestigious distilleries. Fraser began designing the distillery from the ground up. Alongside owner and general manager Joel LeVangia, he emphasized time-honored traditions, favoring hands-on craftsmanship over the increasingly automated methods used by larger producers. When it comes to making the best whisky possible, Tenmile believes in learning from the past. That philosophy extends beyond the distilling process.

Keep ReadingShow less

The magic of Belinda Sinclair

The magic of Belinda Sinclair

Belinda Sinclair

Dean Chamberlain
Sinclair’s show explores the ways women have been practicing forms of magic for centuries, and there is plenty of history to tell.

Belinda Sinclair is the kind of magician who impresses people who don’t like magic. Her tricks are mind-boggling. Her stories are captivating. And if she picks you to write your name on a card, get ready to be wowed. Repeat attendees of her shows, of which there are many, take almost as much delight in watching new jaws drop as they do in seeing an illusion reach its astonishing conclusion.

Since the summer of 2025, Sinclair has been baffling local audiences at the Hughes Memorial Library in West Cornwall, but her magical run comes to a close at the end of August.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

“Nixon in China” comes to Tanglewood

“Nixon in China” comes to Tanglewood

Renée Fleming, Andris Nelsons and Thomas Hampson.

Hilary Scott

On Friday, July 17 at 8 p.m. in the Koussevitzky Music Shed at Tanglewood, two of the greatest American voices of their generation, soprano Renée Fleming and baritone Thomas Hampson, join Music Director Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra in a performance of excerpts from John Adams’ groundbreaking opera “Nixon in China.” The piece, performed earlier this year in Boston and at Carnegie Hall in New York City, is a highlight of a program that also includes “Meditations on Grace” (2024) by BSO Composer Chair Carlos Simon, and the melodic and technically demanding Violin Concerto by Samuel Barber.

Fleming is internationally celebrated for her vocal and dramatic artistry, as well as for her advocacy for the powerful impact of the creative arts in health. Hampson has long been recognized as one of the most innovative musicians of our time and has received countless international honors for his singular artistry and cultural leadership. Both performed in “Nixon in China” earlier this year at the Paris Opera under the baton of Kent Nagano.

Keep ReadingShow less
Local playwright revisits Revolutionary moment in “Rebel Town”

The cast and crew of “Rebeltown: The Musical.”

Jack Sheedy

John Alan Segalla was working in Boston a few years ago, giving historic tours at the site of the Boston Tea Party. Now, as America celebrates 250 years as a nation, the Canaan native is about to debut a new version of his original musical, “Rebel Town,” inspired largely by the Boston Tea Party, the protest that helped launch the American Revolution.

“It wasn’t until I got to Boston and learned the Tea Party story that I fell in love with this moment in history, and I saw the story as wildly compelling and very important, and really a story that was very misunderstood, mistaught in schools,” Segalla said at a recent rehearsal in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, ahead of the show’s July 10 opening.

Keep ReadingShow less
An invitation to paint a community mural in Torrington

Community mural design by Macayla Muzzulin will be painted by volunteers on July 11 in Franklin Plaza in Torrington.

Provided

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 11, Five Points Arts in Torrington will host a community mural project celebrating the nation’s 250th anniversary. Volunteers of every age and artistic ability are invited to help paint a 20-by-6-foot mural designed by artist Macayla Muzzulin. The mural will be completed in one day, transformed from a numbered outline into a permanent public artwork along the river in downtown Torrington.

“We firmly believe art is for everyone,” said Five Points founder and executive director, Judith McElhone. “It’s so great to be able to do this with such talent, and with Launchpad artists, volunteers and staff there to help.”

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.