RIDGEFIELD, Conn. -- Finding a new home for a rescue dog or cat is no easy task. Housing, feeding and caring for pets before they're adopted by new owners is both time and labor intensive. But for Allyson Dotson, she wouldn't have it any other way."After the death of my first dog, Spirit, in 2007 at the age of 17, I was missing his companionship," said Dotson, director of ...

FAIRFIELD COUNTY, Conn. -- When shopping for pet food, treats and toys, it's Adam Jacobson's mission to ensure that families provide nothing but the best for their four legged friends.That's because Jacobson is the executive vice president of Pet Pantry Warehouse, a local, family owned retail pet supply company serving the needs of pets and their owners across Westchester and Fairfield ...

For four New Canaan residents, finding the perfect meditation group in Fairfield County was anything but relaxing. Unable to find a local, secular mindfulness program that fit their needs, Will Heins, Erika Long and Michelle and Nick Seaver decided to do the next best thing: start their own.What eventually became know as the Community Mindfulness Project -- or CMP -- began in May ...

NEW CANAAN, Conn. -- When opening a checking or savings account with a community financial institution, the option to bank local doesn't have to mean stepping back in time. In fact, at Bankwell, the community bank that serves Fairfield and New Haven counties, cutting-edge applications such as retina scanners and budgeting tools are allowing them to provide friendly, neighborhood service ...

NEW CANAAN, Conn. -- For Bankwell customers across Fairfield county, a trip to the bank just got cuter. Bankwell has teamed up with community partners, including area dog and cat shelters, to help rescue pets find new homes in Fairfield and New Haven counties, thanks to the Bankwell Pet Adoption Project.In several Bankwell branches, lobbies often feature revolving photo and art exhibits ...

NEW CANAAN, Conn. -- For Joyce Sixsmith, licensed alcohol and drug counselor from Westport who works in New Canaan, the fact that her substance abuse prevention club was integrated into New Canaan High School’s curriculars five years ago, was thrilling. Known as The Ram Council Foundation, her organization is now a stand alone non-profit and has grown from 35 student members to 100. “I ...

When Stamford Public Schools partnered with Future 5, a nonprofit youth development organization based in Stamford, to run service-learning activities for students in their Alternative Routes to Success (ARTS) program, high school students like Marcelo Pena learned that “finding a purpose” is an important step in finding business and career success. Now Marcelo, a 2012 high school ...

Clif McFeely has figured out how to get high school students excited about the future. “There are a lot of good kids out there that just need a little advice and guidance," said the founder of Future 5 in Stamford. “There’s an endless need for what we all in the mentoring world do."With those "good kids" in mind, the New Canaan resident launched Future 5 in the spring of 2009 as an ...