Letter: Valley GOP will celebrate its revitalization

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letters_flatTo the editor,

The Valley GOP is celebrating its revitalization. Reinstituting an initiative by Valley GOP chairs, that was inaugurated almost 20 years ago, the Valley GOP chairs are once again providing an event for Valley Republicans.

For the last couple of years, we have had the following seven town committees join together: Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Derby, Naugatuck, Oxford, Seymour and Shelton, chaired by Patrick Henri, Ronald Holzman, Tony Szewczyk, Dorothy Hoff, David Stocker, Bill Paecht, and Anthony Simonetti, respectively.

The mission of the Valley GOP is to bring attention to Naugatuck Valley issues and concerns and to remind our government leaders of the need to address jobs, economic development, brownsfields clean-up and redevelopment, etc. With each of the Valley towns being relatively small and quiet, compared to the big cities, it was felt that by joining together, the Valley GOP would gain more attention, while highlighting our similarities rather than our differences.

While last year’s event featured candidates for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House, and provided them with a venue to get across their campaign messages, this year we are focusing on providing Valley Republicans with some motivation, inspiration and some good old-fashioned fun.

The buffet dinner event will be held in Derby at the La Sala Banquet Hall. Tickets, which are $30 per person, may be purchased through town committee chairmans.

Former state representatives Leonard Greene Sr. and Leonard Greene Jr., two men who have served the Valley well, representing different generations, but the same family, and the same Valley towns, will serve as emcees.

Our guest speaker, Kevin DelGobbo, former state representative from Naugatuck, and former Connecticut DPUC Chairman, was chosen not only because he is from the Naugatuck Valley and understands our concerns, but also because he continues to live a life of public and community service and encourages others to do so as well.

Kevin has shown a deep commitment to the values which epitomize what all of us from the Naugatuck Valley hold dear. He has held numerous elected and appointed positions during his career and has served with distinction on a vast array of volunteer boards for community organizations in our area.

Recognizing that much of the debate on the state and national level has been bitter and divisive in recent years, Kevin’s remarks will remind us instead what our special experience of living in the valley can teach us. Rather than focusing on what “the other guys” are doing wrong, Kevin will focus on what we can all continue to do, as Republicans, to strengthen our communities, our state and in doing so, our party.

To provide further inspiration and some “good old-fashioned fun,” we were able to arrange to have Chris DePino provide us with some musical motivation. A true Renaissance man, Chris, formerly the state party chairman and a state representative, and currently the CEO of DePino Associations LLC, continues share his musical talents.  Chris is an accomplished chromatic harmonica player, who travels throughout the country and in Eastern Europe with jazz trumpeter Laco Deczi’s band. In 2011, Chris played at the presidential palace in Prague for the president of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Klaus, during his sixth tour in that country.

We are truly looking forward to providing this motivational and fun event for our Naugatuck Valley Republicans and welcome any who are interested to contact their town committee chairman for more information and tickets.

Information is also available on the Valley GOP Facebook page.

Dorothy Hoff

Republican Town Committee Chairwoman

Naugatuck

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