n the months following a July fire that caused an estimated $1 million in damage to his farm equipment, local farmer John Kemmerer is rebuilding and re-equipping, remaining grateful for community support. One of the first essential items to be purchased was a John Deere tractor.
STANFORD — News spread rapidly in the aftermath of a devastating barn fire last July that caused an estimated $1 million in damage to Stanfordville farmer John Kemmerer’s stored equipment and hay. Response was quick as his wide community of friends sprang into action to raise funds to assist with purchasing new equipment.
Progress in acquiring replacements for the farm equipment has been steady, evidenced during a conversation with Kemmerer on Saturday, Nov. 23.
The fire on the 100 acre hay farm had raged on Thursday, July 18, a hot blaze fueled by stored hay, ruining the equipment stored in the affected barns.
Three barns, the office, and all equipment had been lost in the fire, along with a huge percentage of the stored hay, Stanford Town Supervisor Wendy Burton said.
“Multiple area fire companies assisted in fighting the fire,” Burton said. “It smoldered for many days.”
Since the fire, Kemmerer said he has purchased numerous pieces of equipment, including a 2014 Ford F530 flatbed truck, a JCB hay telehandler and a Norden hay accumulator, and a John Deere 348 baler. He has also purchased a New Holland skid steer.
Coming in January will be a new Quonset-shaped metal structure measuring 40 x 80 x 20 to store hay, Kemmerer said, pleased to be anticipating its delivery. Other barns on the property offer sufficient winter storage space for the equipment, Kemmerer said.
Since the fire, equipment purchase costs have been partly covered by insurance and largely covered by the generosity of friends and community residents.
“The community outpouring was just amazing,” Kemmerer said. He particularly noted the efforts of Dani Nicholson, who he said was instrumental in helping with the fundraising effort by visiting local businesses and community members who gave generously.
“There were just so many local friends,” Kemmerer said.
An early thought of town supervisor Burton’s had been, “We can do a fundraiser and maybe even a barn raising.” She recalled that volunteers had built a structure in the town park; perhaps they could do a barn raising.
Immediately following the fire, residents Julia Descoteaux and Steve Bruman launched a GoFundMe effort and a Kemmerer family friend, Courtney Haire, launched a similar fundraiser. By combining their efforts, they were able to reach further out into the community. All proceeds went directly to the Kemmerers, Burton said.
“Money started coming in immediately and it’s continued for quite a long time,” Burton said, roughly estimating total proceeds of $100,000 as of late October.
A live auction at Bangall Works had raised $25,000, enabling Kemmerer to purchase a used John Deere tractor that is in daily use.
“They are a beautiful family; the community came together to help,” Burton said. “What you put out into the world comes back to you.”
In the wake of the violent hurricanes and flooding experienced in North Carolina in the fall, Kemmerer responded with a shipment of hay to help farmers facing extreme loss.
Burton said the Kemmerer family’s impulses have consistently been to help their community’s needs. Accordingly, John Kemmerer sent a load of horse-quality hay to North Carolina. Kemmerer recalled the shipment consisted of 18 to 20 round bales. He added that he plans to send more soon.
One round bale is equivalent to 15 to 18 regular square bales, Kemmerer said. Round bales are generally more economical for farmers than purchasing standard square ones, he added.
Kemmerer’s daughter, Emily Hay, has started a family foundation, Century Farms Foundation Inc., to provide aid to long-established small farms and farmers in need. A goal is to sustain small family farms facing daunting competition from agribusiness ventures.
The Millbrook Library on Franklin Avenue is accepting personal care items for a drive until the end of January.
MILLBROOK — Throughout the month of January, the Millbrook Library is collecting personal care items as part of a donation drive sponsored by the United Way in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Service Week.
Among items suggested for donation are hair care products including shampoo and hairbrushes, soap, alcohol-free mouthwash, dental care products, women’s products, deodorant and shaving needs.
On Sunday, Jan. 26, the Millerton Fire Company will be hosting a pancake breakfast at the fire house on Century Boulevard in the Village of Millerton.
MILLERTON — On Sunday, Jan. 26, the Millerton Fire Company will be hosting a pancake breakfast at the firehouse. Breakfast will be served starting at 7 a.m. Guests can indulge in eggs made to order, home fries, bacon and sausage, toast and — of course — pancakes. Breakfast is served until 11 a.m., and tickets cost $12 for adults and $8 for seniors. Children 12 and under will dine for free.
Pancakes will be available in blueberry and chocolate varieties.
The trailhead for the newly opened preserve.
SALISBURY — Another 47 acres of pristine Salisbury woodland are now open to the public, thanks to the completion of a hiking trail on the Hecht Preserve located on Route 112.
The Salisbury Association Land Trust acquired the land from John and Mary Belter and Helen Belter Hill in late 2023, aided by funding from the Connecticut Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Program, U.S. Fish & Wildlife’s Highlands Act, and a generous donation from the Anne and Rollin Bates Foundation.
A little over a year after purchase, the parcel is now available for public use via a 1.3 mile loop trail, which the Trust rates as moderately difficult. Parking for the trail is located at the entrance to Wack Forest along Route 112 about a half mile west of the intersection with Wells Hill Road.
The trail was originally meant to be opened by summer 2024, though the process was delayed as the parking is along a state highway, meaning the Trust had to apply for approval from the Department of Transportation, Trust Co-chair John Landon said.
As it abuts the town-owned Wack Forest, the opening of the Hecht Preserve has created a much larger publicly accessible protected area. The terrain comprises a wooded hillside and ridgeline, and is dissected by a clean, cold-water stream that provides valuable habitat for native fish and other aquatic species. The rest of the property is ecologically rich with a mixture of younger and older forest and several key habitat types.
“There’s definitely a lot of wildlife in that area,” Landon said, noting that he’s seen bears several times nearby.
The preserve was named to honor Lou and Elaine Hecht, longtime contributors to the Trust. Lou was co-chair of the Trust for 17 years and remains an emeritus trustee.
“Lou and Elaine have been huge supporters of the Land Trust for many years,” Landon said. “They’ve just contributed so much to the town and have educated people about the importance of the environment.”
Becton Dickinson’s North Canaan plant opened in 1961 with eight employees and a 25,000 square foot facility. Today the operation employs more than 540 people and encompasses 385,000 square feet.
NORTH CANAAN — New production lines installed in 2024 at Becton, Dickinson and Company’s Connecticut and Nebraska plants are now pumping out critical medical devices — including syringes, needles and IV catheters — to meet the burgeoning needs of the nation’s health care system.
One syringe production line is already fully operational at the vaccine manufacturer’s 385,000 square foot North Canaan plant, with additional lines expected to start up in the coming months, the leading global medical technology company announced on Jan. 15.
The new production lines will boost BD’s capacity for safety-engineered injection devices by more than 40% and conventional syringes by more than 50%, adding millions of units annually to support hospital procedures, vaccinations, medication preparation and drug delivery to patients, company officials said.
The Connecticut plant manufactures small-size syringes and syringe and needle combination products. Operations take place around the clock and are sold in every region worldwide.
“Domestic manufacturing is crucial for ensuring a resilient supply of essential healthcare devices,” said Eric Borin, president of Medication Delivery Solutions at BD.
“By expanding our production capacity, we are not only meeting the critical needs of patients and providers, but we also are reinforcing our commitment to the nation’s health care infrastructure,” Borin said.
To support this production, the vaccine manufacturer has hired more than 215 full-time employees at its facilities in Nebraska and Connecticut, with more than 145 of those jobs based in North Canaan, boosting that plant’s employee roster to more than 540.
The North Canaan plant, which opened in 1961 with eight employees and a 25,000 square foot facility, is Northwest Connecticut’s largest employer.
In 2024, the company invested more than $10 million to expand its manufacturing capacity at its Connecticut and Nebraska facilities in response to quality issues with plastic syringes imported from China that were uncovered in late 2023 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
In late November 2023, the FDA announced its probe into reports of leaks, breakages and other quality problems with China-made plastic syringes not cleared by the FDA, and in August 2024 recommended that healthcare providers “use syringes not manufactured in China, if possible.”
At that time, Fallon McLoughlin, director of public relations and corporate communications for the Franklin Lakes, New Jersey-based company, announced that production lines and production staff were being relocated to North Canaan from other BD plants as part of the expansion.
Becton, Dickinson and Company, which operates more than 30 manufacturing and distribution facilities around the country, announced plans last week to invest more than $30 million in 2025 to expand manufacturing capacity for IV lines at its plant in Utah. That facility, said officials, is the largest producer of IV catheter lines in the world.
The company’s Connecticut, Nebraska and Utah plants alone have collectively 200 years of experience in manufacturing critical medical devices, company officials said, and are the only remaining large-scale manufacturing sites in the country.
