Author: Editor

September 17, 2015

Mystic Contractor Recognized as a Top 500 Remodeler in the Country

MYSTIC, CT – Each year Qualified Remodeler Magazine reviews thousands of applications for their Top 500 Remodeler Award. The magazine has specific criteria and documentation that must be reviewed and approved by a Certified Public Accountant before the companies may be considered for the award. For the third consecutive year, Advanced Improvements has been named one of the Top 500 Remodelers in the country and, more specifically, #3 in Connecticut.

Advanced Improvements is a Full Service General Contractor with their main office located in Historic Downtown Mystic and a workshop located in Groton, CT. The company, owned by David Preka, has been in business for over a decade and employs approximately 30 full time workers. Advanced is fully licensed and insured in Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and Massachusetts. It is evident by their track record and numerous other recognitions and certifications that Advanced produces quality work with satisfied customers on each of their projects. One of the company’s classic and very appropriate phrases is “Building Excellence.”

Preka recently said, “On behalf of my entire company I am so pleased to once again be receiving this amazing award for the third year in a row. Without my dedicated team of experts and amazing clients, I would not be where I am today. It is hard to believe that I came to this country with little to nothing and now I am responsible for building this amazing company that I am so proud of.”

David Preka is originally from Albania and currently lives here in Southeastern Connecticut with his wife, Jody, and his son, Cody. Preka continues to impact our community not simply with job creation but also with his efforts to give back to area non-profits and organizations. Advanced, under Preka’s direction, has worked at no-cost for organizations like the Boys and Girls Club of Southeastern Connecticut, Riverfront Children’s Center and the Summer in the City initiative in Groton City, Connecticut.

In addition to this award, Advanced has also received Remodeler of the Year by the Builder’s Association of Eastern Connecticut in 2013 and was also given a Proclamation of Excellence from the Town of Groton by the former Mayor and, more recently, Lt. Governor Candidate for Connecticut, Heather Bond Somers.

Preka also stated, “I look forward to the future of my community and business. What my friends and colleagues have accomplished to-date tells me that with hard work and dedication anything is possible even in these tough economic times.”

To learn more about Advanced Improvements, visit www.AdvancedImprovementsLLC.com or call their main office at (860) 536-7663.

August 5, 2015

Mystic Seaport to Host Antique Marine Engine Exposition

MYSTIC, CT (August 5, 2015) — Mystic Seaport will hold its annual Antique Marine Engine Exposition Saturday and Sunday, August 15-16.

A collection of more than 300 antique marine engines will be on display, including inboards, outboards, steam, gasoline, diesel, electric, and naphtha engines. The event is one of the largest gatherings of marine engines in the country.

Workshops and activities will be held throughout the event which is set in the Museum’s Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard. Visitors are invited to see the displayed engines Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Engines will be intermittently fired through the day and a selection of operating miniature engines and model boats will also operate. There will be an open house for visitors to view the Museum’s engine collection in the Collections Research Center both days.

The featured engine for this year’s Exposition is a 1915 Waterman Porto manufactured by the Waterman Marine Motor Company of Detroit, MI. The single-cylinder engine was nicknamed “Porto” for its lightweight frame and portability, both new features of the early 20^th-century maritime technology. The manufacturer claimed that a Waterman Porto “makes a motorboat out of any boat in five minutes.”

About Mystic Seaport
Mystic Seaport is the nation’s leading maritime museum. Founded in 1929, the Museum is home to four National Historic Landmark vessels, including the Charles W. Morgan, America’s oldest commercial ship and the last wooden whaleship in the world. The Museum’s collection of more than two million artifacts includes more than 500 historic vessels and one of the largest collections of maritime photography in the country. The state-of-the-art Collections Research Center at Mystic Seaport provides scholars and researchers from around the world access to the Museum’s renowned archives. Mystic Seaport is located one mile south of Exit 90 off I-95 in Mystic, CT. Admission is $25 for adults and $16 for children ages 6-17. Museum members and children 5 and under are admitted free. For more information, please visit www.mysticseaport.org and follow Mystic Seaport on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

July 24, 2015

The Day: Groton Town councilor resigns in protest over hiring of police chief

GROTON, CT — Town Councilor Genevieve Cerf on Thursday resigned in protest over the hiring of Louis J. Fusaro Jr., a major with the Connecticut State Police, as police chief for the Town of Groton.

Town Manager Mark Oefinger announced earlier Thursday that the 21-year veteran of the state police would start as Groton’s new chief on July 27.

Cerf called the decision a “serious error of judgment.”

Fusaro is one of four state troopers accused in a federal civil rights lawsuit filed July 16, 2014, that claims the troopers provoked a suicidal Poquonnock Bridge firefighter to kill himself in 2012 by repeatedly firing nonlethal ammunition at him.

Town of Groton Police Select New Chief

GROTON, CT — Louis J. Fusaro, Jr. of the Connecticut State Police has been named the new Chief of Police for the Town of Groton, Connecticut. Fusaro is a 21-year veteran of the Connecticut State Police and lifelong resident of Southeastern Connecticut. Working his way up through the ranks, he was promoted to Major in September 2013.

Fusaro has an extensive background and has held various leadership positions within the Connecticut State Police including Commanding Officer of Troop K – Colchester and later, Troop E – Montville; Commanding Officer of the Eastern District Major Crime Squad; Commanding Officer of the Emergency Service Unit; and Deputy Commander of the Eastern District. He has served most recently as the Director, Office of Counterterrorism, Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, where he is assigned as the Fusion Center Director with overall command and administrative responsibility for the Connecticut Intelligence Center, Critical Infrastructure Unit, and State Police members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force. He has also held several leadership positions on the state and national level including 2nd Vice President of the Police Association of Connecticut and he is a member of the Executive Board of the National Fusion Center Association.

Chief Fusaro has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with a concentration in Law and Criminal Justice from The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina. He also holds a Master of Science Degree in Criminal Justice Administration from Western New England University. He is a graduate of the FBI, National Academy, Quantico, Virginia, and a graduate of Naval Postgraduate School, Center for Homeland Defense and Security’s Executive Leaders Program.

He will assume his leadership role on Monday, July 27, 2015 and a Swearing-in Ceremony will be held on a date yet to be selected. Please direct any media inquiries to the Town of Groton Town Manager’s Office at 860-441-6630.

Press Release provided by Town of Groton Clerk’s Office.

July 10, 2015

Mystic Seaport to Host 40th Annual Antique & Classic Boat Rendezvous

MYSTIC, CT (July 10, 2015) —Mystic Seaport will hold its 40th annual Antique & Classic Boat Rendezvous at Mystic Seaport Saturday and Sunday, July 25-26.

The event showcases high-quality antique vessels, including cruisers, sailboats, and runabouts. Approximately 50 classic vessels will create a colorful gathering along the Museum’s waterfront all daySaturday and Sunday morning. Visitors are invited to see the displayed vessels Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. An award competition will recognize excellence in restoration, authenticity, and workmanship.

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Rendezvous, the Mystic Seaport Centennial Society will be introduced. Gramp, an inductee into the first class of these 100-year-old vessels, will be featured this year. Designed by noted naval architect William Hand and built in 1915 by L. West and George Bonnell of Port Chester, NY, Gramp is an excellent example of the fast and seaworthy “Hand v-bottom” launches and runabouts that were plentiful in the decade before World War I.

The Museum will celebrate the anniversary on Saturday night, July 25, with “Docktails & Dancing” from 7 to 10 p.m. Guests will enjoy drinks, desserts, and dancing to live music by Rock and Soul Revue next to the water at Lighthouse Point. Tickets are $24 per person for members and $30 for non-members. A cash bar will be available. Tickets may be purchased by calling 860.572.5365.

The Rendezvous concludes Sunday at 12:30 p.m. with the traditional parade of the classic vessels down the Mystic River. Each boat will be announced on the shore at Mystic River Park as it passes through the iconic Mystic River Bascule Bridge. The boats then make their way down river to Fishers Island Sound in what has become a highlight of the Mystic summer season.

Mystic Seaport would like to give special thanks to Grundy Insurance and Dodson Boatyard of Stonington, CT, for their generous sponsorship of this event and their donation of time and expertise.

For more information, please visit http://www.mysticseaport.org/event/antique-and-classic-boat-rendezvous-2/.

About Mystic Seaport
Mystic Seaport is the nation’s leading maritime museum. Founded in 1929, the Museum is home to four National Historic Landmark vessels, including the Charles W. Morgan, America’s oldest commercial ship and the last wooden whaleship in the world. The Museum’s collection of more than two million artifacts includes more than 500 historic vessels and one of the largest collections of maritime photography in the country. The state-of-the-art Collections Research Center at Mystic Seaport provides scholars and researchers from around the world access to the Museum’s renowned archives. Mystic Seaport is located one mile south of Exit 90 off I-95 in Mystic, CT. Admission is $25 for adults and $16 for children ages 6-17. Museum members and children 5 and under are admitted free. For more information, please visit www.mysticseaport.org and follow Mystic Seaport on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.