This month: The annual report on the state of our state parks is gloomy again. A photo essay on the riverfront celebration of the life of Yukitaka Osaki. An emergency rescue of our perennial beds, and we freshen up the gravestones of William and Helen Gillette.
The sorry state of our state parks...still!
Avid readers of our newsletter will remember the sobering letter that was released in June of last year about the sorry state of our state parks. Alas, we learned at this year's annual meeting of the Friends of Connecticut State Parks that the situation is no better and in fact is getting worse.

How can things get worse, you ask? In 2022, the state parks had even more visitors (an all-time high of 13 million), and the downward trajectory in staffing has reached a low that has not been seen since the 1940s.



The state staffing budget for DEEP allows for only 83 full time employees in the entire park system - an average of 1 full time employee for every 157,000 visitors and 3,000 acres.
This crisis did not happen overnight. In May of 2021, Governor Ned Lamont received an extensive report with recommendations for how to address this problem. However, clearly not enough has been done to avoid significant impact to our state parks.

These facts are doubly troubling in light of today's record budget surplus at the state level.
What can be done, you ask? The Connecticut Forest and Park Association and the Friends of Connecticut State Parks are taking the leadership role on this. They tell us that lobbying plans for next year are in the works. We plan to be vocal during the coming legislative season. We may be asking for your help! Watch this space.
We've had a busy October!
Osaki performance
A stunning afternoon on the riverfront
We participated in a touching ceremony at the grave of Yukitaka Osaki and watched a one-man play about his life during an absolutely glorious sunny day by the river.
We had lovely coffee and tasty cider doughnuts from our friends at the Hadlyme Country Market.

Rescuing our terrace plants
A small but mighty group of volunteers and park staff jumped into action to rescue plantings that were threatened by the terrace restoration project. Many thanks to Jamie Burgess, Laurel White (pictured at right), Marianne Westcott and Lynn Wilkinson for stepping up at short notice!
Terrace plant rescue
Gillette graves
Sprucing up the gravestones
Did you know that William and Helen Gillette are buried in Riverside Cemetery at Farmington?

Friends volunteer John Sherwood and board member Toni-Lynn Miles have been sprucing up the gravestones at the suggestion of John's wife Kim Forde.
Help decorate the grounds for the holidays
1 p.m. on November 19
We are gearing up for loads of outdoor fun this year! Music a-plenty, hot cider and hot cocoa to sip near the outdoor bonfire, fun stuff for the kids, and the grounds bedecked in holiday greenery.

We need some help getting the greenery in place. No skills required! We'll socialize a little bit with some snacks when we're done.

Mark your calendar for 1 p.m. November 19! Rain date 1 p.m. November 20.
Sherlock shout-out. Sherlock is thrilled to welcome our new and renewing 2022 members Ralph C., Paula M., Robert F., and Sharon F.!