Dental Insurance
Met Life has discovered a problem with your social security numbers. Everyone who signed up is in their system but they mixed up some of the SSNs which is also your account number. There is no need for concern, Kim is aware of it and Met Life is working on the problem.

Who’s In, Who’s Out
Kathleen & Bret will be in Philadelphia July 29
Kathleen vac day Aug 1
Kathy vac July 24-Aug 3

Birthdays
Karen July 30
Cara August 8
Lise August 17
Dan C. Aug 19
Kim August 22
Gwen August 31

Connecticut Defenders Games

I hope everyone who attended yesterday's picnic had a fun time despite the weather. The game was eventually postponed and the stadium decided to offer 2 tickets to a future game for every 1 ticket you had for yesterdays game because everyone waited around for so long and they were unable to get the field ready.

So if you weren't able to attend Sunday's "game" and would like to go to a game of your choice, please see Kerry M for leftover tickets.

If you have tickets that you probably won't get a chance to use, please turn them in to Kerry M to distribute to people who'd like to attend another game.

The next homestands are August 4 through 10 and 19 through 24. You can visit their website at www.ctdefenders.com.

Reminder
Be sure to wear your favorite team’s jersey, shirt, or cap for tomorrow's luncheon to kick off Sunday’s activities.

Kick-off Baseball Weekend Pot Luck Lunch

at Noon in the Café, Friday, July 25th
Reminder to sign up for the in-office Potluck Baseball Luncheon on Friday if you can. Be sure to wear your favorite team’s jersey, shirt or cap too. This pot luck will take place in the office as a kick-off to Sunday’s activities. All food for Sunday will be provided by the stadium.

Come to the café at noon on Friday for lunch and to pick up your gift from the company. If you need to take your lunch back to your desk that’s okay but be sure to grab your gift—you may win a prize in addition to your gift.

Who’s In, Who’s Out
Kathleen & Bret will be in Philadelphia July 29
Kathleen vac day Aug 1

Birthdays
Karen July 30
Cara August 8
Lise August 17
Dan C. Aug 19
Kim August 22
Gwen August 31

Friday, July 25th
To kick-off our company ballgame/picnic weekend at Dodd Stadium on Sunday, July 27th, we thought it would be nice to have everyone on Friday wear their favorite baseball team jersey, shirt or cap. In addition, we’ll be having a luncheon in the café at noon where prizes will be given out randomly—but you have to attend to be eligible for a prize. There is a potluck sign-up sheet at the mailboxes if you wish to bring in your favorite dish or treat. The company is providing sandwiches from Grampy’s.

Snacks
Since our snack machine is being removed, Amy and Kerry purchased some items from BJs. Snacks will be located outside Bret's office for now. Each item is 50 cents. If you have any favorites, let Amy or Kerry know and they'll add it to their next shopping list. Enjoy.

Staff Changes
Please join us in welcoming Kathy Gaito, who recently assumed the duties of Marketing Director for the Magazine Group. Kathy has worked with The Hershey Company, St. Anthony Publishing, Inc., Zeitgeist Publishing, and Thompson Publishing, Inc. She will lead parish outreach and all marketing initiatives for our magazines. Please feel free to stop by and say hello to Kathy!

Catholic Digest is very sad to be losing Kerry Weber to graduate school (she'll be attending Columbia in the fall), but we're also very happy to welcome Kathryn Oates to our company and team. Kate just graduated from Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama where, she says: "I learned Jesuit ideals, to never underestimate the power of compassion, and that alligator really does taste like chicken. Now that I'm back in New England I'm enjoying hiking, costume making, Japanese martial arts, and cooking cultural cuisine. I'm very excited about being given the privilege of joining the team at Catholic Digest and am looking forward to working with everyone.
"Hajimemashita! (Japanese: It's nice to meet you!)"
Please stop by and welcome Kate to Bayard!

After careful consideration of the needs of the organization the accounting department is in the process of making some changes in personnel and positions of personnel to streamline the operations and improve the communication with our parent company. Unfortunately when this happens we sometimes have to make changes that affect employees that we all thoroughly enjoy working with and in this case I am sadden to say the Cidalia’s last day with Bayard will be Friday August 8th. We will be restructuring the accounting operation and both Amy and Kim will be taking on new responsibilities based on their accounting skills and Excel skills. An additional experienced staff accountant will be added to do payroll and account reconciliations. We wish the very best success to all in their respective future endeavors.

Who’s In, Who’s Out
Hubert will be arriving in NL by train at 10 am today and leaving Thursday at 4 pm

Birthdays
Anna H. July 19
Karen July 30
Cara August 8
Lise August 17
Dan C. Aug 19
Kim August 22
Helen Johnson Aug 24
Gwen August 31

Dental Insurance
Here is some information for those participating in our dental plan.
Dental Web site
www.metlife.com/dental
Group # TM05726696

Employee Change
Today, Danielle Drolet resigned from her position with Bayard, Inc. Her last day will be Monday, July 28. Danielle has accepted a position as Web News Editor for At License Global magazine published by Advanstar Communications. She will be moving to New York City and promises not to ever, ever become a Yankee fan!

Please join me in expressing our gratitude for work well done and our best wishes for happiness and success in the years ahead.

An Invitation from Julie
Hello, everyone. This week is the opening of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice by Flock Theatre, in which I'm playing Portia. Here's the info if you're interested in seeing the show:
WHAT: Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, performed by Flock Theatre
WHERE: The Connecticut College Arboretum, New London, CT (see directions here, and scroll down to bottom of the linked page for Arbo directions: http://flocktheatre.org/directions.htm)
WHEN: Thursdays through Sundays, July 17-20, 24-27, 31, August 1-3, all shows at 7 pm. Shows are weather permitting (light sprinkles etc we'll do; if it's pouring at showtime, the show will not go on). Show running time is about 2 hours.
TICKETS: Just show up. It's free (donations gratefully accepted!).
GENERAL INFO:
• Sit up close for better viewing!
• I highly suggest you bring bug spray, lawn chairs or blankets, hand gel (there are portable bathrooms for intermission), an umbrella or rain jacket, and a flashlight for leaving the arbo afterwards. Feel free to bring food and drink if you like as well.
• There's street parking outside the arbo
• Costume and setting-wise, we're going modern
• For more info, visit flocktheatre.org, call the Flock office (860-443-3119), or ask meIf you do end up being able to come, let me know in advance so I know to look for you after the show!

Baseball Anyone?
John Baker (Stephanie Baker's son) hitting his first major league home run. John plays for the Florida Marlins. Click on the video link below from Friday.
http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?mid=200807103110994

Who’s In, Who’s Out
Hubert will be arriving in NL by train at 10 am Wednesday and leaving Thursday at 4 pm

Birthdays
Marcie July 9
Sarah July 12
Anna H. July 19
Karen July 30

Meeting
There will be a brief information sharing meeting on Friday (July 11) at 10:00 am. The agenda will be to discuss the changes/increased benefits to our insurance plans – Dental, Life, and Long Term Disability. All are asked to attend even if you aren’t presently enrolled in the company insurance. We won’t have time at this meeting to discuss anything from the suggestion box but will meet again sometime in the near future.

Engagements
Our new coworker Rachel Smith got engaged this past weekend. No date has been set yet. Please take a moment to congratulate her on her happy news.
Also, our former coworker, Melanie Slater, also got engaged. She stopped in last week for a brief visit and to share the good news. She has tentative plans to wed in June 2011. Congratulations to both ladies. We’re so happy for you!

Who’s In, Who’s Out
Paul vac July 7-11
Bret out for funeral July 8-10
Kathleen vac July 10-11
Hubert will be in much if not all of next week

Birthdays
Marcie July 9
Sarah July 12
Anna H. July 19
Karen July 30

History of the Fourth
JULY 4TH OVER THE YEARS
Today, Americans from coast to coast spend July 4th celebrating our nation's independence and the freedoms we enjoy as a result. Over the years, many important events have occurred on this day. The following are some of the most historic.
1778 – From his headquarters in Brunswick, New Jersey, General George Washington directs his army to put "green boughs" in their hats, issues them a double allowance of rum and orders a Fourth of July artillery salute.
1781 – The first official state celebration occurs in Massachusetts.
1787 – John Quincy Adams celebrates the Fourth in Boston, where he hears an oration delivered at the Old Brick Meeting House.
1788 – Fourth celebrations first become political as factions fight over the adoption of the Federal Constitution.
1791 – The only Fourth of July address ever made by George Washington takes place at Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
1798 – George Washington attends the celebration in Alexandria, Virginia, and dines with a large group of citizens and military officers of Fairfax County. In Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the keel of the 20-gun sloop of the war vessel Portsmouth is laid.
1800 – In New York City, the first local advertisements for fireworks appear. At the Mount Vernon Garden there, a display of "a model of General Washington's Mount Vernon home, 20 feet long by 24 feet high, illuminated by several hundred lamps" is presented. In Hanover, New Hampshire, Dartmouth College student Daniel Webster gives his first Fourth of July oration in the town's meeting house.
1801 – The first public Fourth of July reception at the White House occurs.
1804 – The first Fourth of July celebration west of the Mississippi happens at Independence Creek, Idaho, and is celebrated by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.
1805 – Boston has its first fireworks display.
1819 – An early and rare example of an Independence Day oration is presented (to a group of women) by a woman ("Mrs. Mead") on July 3 at Mossy Spring in Kentucky.
1821 – President James Monroe is ill, and the Executive Mansion is closed to the public. John Quincy Adams reads an original copy of the Declaration of Independence at a ceremony at the Capitol.
1825 – President John Q. Adams marches to the Capitol from the White House in a parade that includes a stage mounted on wheels, representing 24 states.
1826 – The 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence is celebrated (referred to as the "Jubilee of Freedom" event). Two signers of the document, Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, both die on this July 4.
1827 – The State of New York emancipates its slaves.
1828 – Charles Carroll, the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence, participates in a Baltimore, Maryland celebration and assists in the laying of the "first stone" of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
1831 – Former President James Monroe dies on July 4.
1832 – New York has a subdued Fourth of July celebration due to a cholera epidemic.
1835 – In Boston, George Robert Twelves Hewes, a shoemaker, is honored at a celebration as the last survivor of the Boston Tea Party. The National Intelligencer prints the text of "Washington's Farewell Address."
1848 – In Washington, D.C., the laying of the cornerstone of the Washington Monument takes place with the President James Madison, First Lady Dolly Madison and other VIPs in attendance.
1851 – In Washington, D.C., President Millard Fillmore assists in the laying of the "cornerstone of the new Capitol edifice," while Senator Daniel Webster gives his last Fourth of July oration there.
1852 – In Rochester, New York, on July 5, abolitionist Frederick Douglass presents his famous speech, "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?"
1861 – President Abraham Lincoln sends an address to both houses of Congress regarding the suspension of Federal government functions by secessionists in the South.
1866 – General George G. Meade watches 10,000 war veterans parade in Philadelphia. General William T. Sherman gives an address in Salem, Illinois.
1868 – President Andrew Johnson issues his Third Amnesty Proclamation in Washington, D.C. directed to those who participated in the Civil War.
1873 – Mark Twain gives a Fourth of July address in London.
1876 – Centennial celebrations are held throughout the United States and abroad.
1879 – Frederick Douglass addresses the citizens of Frederick, Maryland.
1880 – General James A. Garfield is guest speaker at the dedication of the Soldiers' Monument in Painesville, Ohio. In Boston, a statue of Revolutionary War patriot Samuel Adams is unveiled. In San Francisco, the first daytime fireworks ever exhibited in the country takes place at Woodward's Gardens.
1881 – In Washington, D.C., the Chief of Police issues an order banning all fireworks due to the shooting of President Garfield; at the same time, prayer meetings for the President's recovery are held in lieu of Fourth celebrations throughout the country.
1884 – The formal presentation of the Statue of Liberty takes place in the Gauthier workshop in Paris.
1889 – President William Henry Harrison gives a speech in Woodstock, Connecticut; he is the third President to be in Woodstock on July 4.
1899 – Governor Theodore Roosevelt gives a speech at his home town, Oyster Bay, New York, as other speakers predict he will be the next President. In Plymouth, England, all British warships are decorated with flags and a 21-gun salute is fired. Mark Twain addresses the American Society at a dinner in London.
1902 – Two hundred thousand people hear President Theodore Roosevelt give a speech in Schenley Park in Pittsburgh.
1910 – A bronze statue of George Washington is unveiled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
1912 – The new national flag with 48 stars is "formally and officially endowed."
1915 – Orator and former Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan gives a speech on "Universal Peace" in Philadelphia.
1916 – In Washington, D.C., President Woodrow Wilson gives a speech at the dedication of the new American Federation of Labor building.
1919 – One of the peaks in the Black Hills near Deadwood, South Dakota is renamed Mt. Theodore Roosevelt in honor of the former President. Panama celebrates its first official Fourth of July.
1921 – A large anti-prohibition parade takes place in New York, and British music and jazz are forbidden as 50 bands march in an American Association for the Recognition of the Irish Republic parade.
1923 – President Warren G. Harding addresses citizens of Portland, Oregon, and is initiated into the Cayuse Tribe at the Oregon Trail Celebration.
1926 – The 150th Anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence takes place throughout the nation.
1930 – Gutzon Borgium's 60-foot face of George Washington is carved on Mount Rushmore in Keystone, South Dakota.
1940 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt officially turns over to the federal government the library bearing his name.
1942 – Fireworks in most cities are canceled due to war blackouts.
1946 – Americans observe the first peacetime Fourth of July in five years, as occupation troops celebrate with parades and artillery salutes in Germany and Japan.
1947 – In Washington, D.C., the Fourth ceremony at the Monument Grounds is televised for the first time.
1959 – President Dwight D. Eisenhower gives a speech and lays the third cornerstone in the 166-year history of the U.S. Capitol. The 49-star American flag waves for the first time as Alaska achieves statehood.
1960 – The 50-star American flag waves for the first time as Hawaii is granted statehood.
1961 – In Philadelphia, the flag that flies continuously over the grave of Betsy Ross (this country's first American flag-maker) is stolen.
1964 – A recorded reading of the Declaration of Independence by slain President John F. Kennedy is broadcast over radio airwaves. In Prescott, Arizona, Senator Barry Goldwater rides a horse in the annual Frontier Days Rodeo parade.
1966 – The Freedom of Information Act is signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson.
1968 – Anti-war demonstrations mar speeches given by Vice President Hubert Humphrey in Philadelphia and Governor George Wallace in Minneapolis.
1974 – A reenactment of the Frederick Douglass speech "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" takes place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
1976 –The nation's Bicentennial is celebrated across America. At 2:00 pm Eastern Time, the time the Declaration of Independence was originally approved, churches and citizens throughout the nation ring bells to mark the occasion. "Operation Sail" takes place in New York City harbor, where millions watch hundreds of ships, representing 22 nations, parade. In Boston, the USS Constitution fires her cannons for the first time in 95 years. Over the course of the day, the largest number of American flags (10,471) ever flown at one time, fly over the U.S. Capitol. President Gerald Ford gives a speech at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
1980 – Throughout the country, the Fourth is observed amid somber recognition of the 53 American citizens held hostage in Iran; residents in Cleveland plant 53 trees in the hostages' memory.
1981 – President Reagan, recovering from an assassin's bullet, leaves George Washington Hospital in Washington, D.C. for the first time to view the fireworks at the Mall.
1982 – President Reagan gives a welcome speech for astronauts Thomas K. Mattingly and Henry W. Hartsfield as they land the space shuttle Columbia at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
1992 – The seven astronauts on the shuttle Columbia unfurl the Stars and Stripes and chant "Happy Birthday, America" from space. The Navy unveils a new aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington, with Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney giving a speech.
1993 – Johnny Cash recites his patriotic poem "Rugged Old Flag" in Washington, D.C. while citizens there hold flags in honor of prisoners of war and servicemen missing in action from the Vietnam War.
1996 – Fourth of July greetings are sent by astronauts on the shuttle Columbia in space.
1999 – In Philadelphia, 112 people, all born on the Fourth of July since 1900, gather in front of Independence Hall for a "Photo of the Century."
2000 – "Operation Sail 2000," the largest assemblage of ships ever at one event, takes place in New York City. It includes some 150 tall sailing ships from more than 20 nations and an 11-mile line of more than two dozen naval ships from around the world.
2001 – Public readings of the Declaration of Independence take place throughout the country, including the National Archives in Washington, D.C., the Art Museum in Philadelphia and the Old State House in Boston. >From the International Space Station, astronauts proclaim "We give thanks to our ancestors ... to all Americans, Happy Independence Day."
2002 – The most intense security precautions in the history of the Fourth of July take place across the country in light of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center Towers in September 11, 2001; Americans celebrate anyway, voicing their jubilation about freedoms enjoyed in this country.
Source: James R. Heintze. Librarian, American University, Washington, D.C.
Thanks, Lise, for submitting this interesting piece.

Refrigerators
With the 4-day holiday coming up, it might be a good idea to clean out all 3 fridges. Please check them sometime today or tomorrow for items that may have been forgotten and need to be tossed.

Who’s In, Who’s Out
Julie in Paris July 4-11
Paul vac July 7-11
Kathleen vac July 9-11

Independence Day
Just a reminder that the New London office is closed July 3 and 4 in observance of the holiday.

Birthdays
Marcie July 9
Sarah July 12
Anna H. July 19
Karen July 30