Greenwich Memorial Vigil One of Several Services Being Offered

Newtown may be about 45 miles from Greenwich and the pain and sorrow continues as the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings are laid to rest, there is pain and sorrow here in Greenwich.

To help the community grieve together, the Interfaith Council of Greenwich, along with the Greenwich Board of Education and First Selectman Peter Tesei have organized a community vigil to be held at 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 18, in the Greenwich High School auditorium. The school is at 10 Hillside Rd.

Tesei said the vigil will include prayers from several members of the Greenwich clergy, musicial selections and comments from school officials.

Family Centers will be offering a discussion for parents, caregivers and educators to allow adults an opportunity to talk about the events, the impact on their children, ask for advice on how to talk to their children about trauma and receive feedback from professionals, at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 18, at Family Center's 40 Arch St. location in Greenwich.

The Child Guidance Center will hold a community forum Thursday, Dec. 20, in the Greenwich Library Meeting Room, 101 W. Putnam Ave., from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Dr. Jessica Welt, CGC’s Greenwich Community Office Director and Dr. Larry Rosenberg, CGC’s Clinical Director, will provide information and answer questions to help parents deal with their own anxiety and concerns, as well as the reactions of their children, to the Newtown school shooting. To RSVP, call the Child Guidance Center at 203-324-6127.

The Greenwich Library has compiled a list of suggested books and readings—for all age groups—to help provide advice in dealing with children's reactions and questions, and for adults who need some consolation and solace. The list came be found here.

The Perrot Memorial Library in Old Greenwich also has compiled a reading resource list which can be found here.

The Greenwich PTA Council is working on plans with the Greenwich public school administration to participate in the 'Snowflakes for Sandy Hook' and 'Coins for Sandy Hook' programs being organized by the Connecticut PTSA.

The U.S. Postal Service has set up a post office box for the public to send its condolences to Newtown. You can send letters and cards to P.O. Box 3700, Newtown, CT 06470.

If your group is organizing community efforts to help local residents cope with the Sandy Hook School shootings or planning relief efforts to support the residents of Newtown, please let us know in the comments section.