School principal to leave post

Berlin Public Schools Superintendent Brian Benigni sent a letter to Berlin High School parents on Tuesday announcing that BHS principal Eileen Eustis has accepted the position of Director of Secondary Education with West Hartford Public Schools and will leave her current post at the end of June.

BHS assistant principal Katie Amenta will assume the role of principal, effective July 1. Amenta was hired as a full-time English teacher at Berlin High School in July of 2008. She was selected as a district teacher of the year and became assistant principal in July 2020.

At the Board of Education meeting on Monday, a Berlin High School diploma was presented to local World War II veteran John Sampl, who entered the service prior to graduating from BHS. The Berlin American Legion plans to celebrate Sampl’s 100th birthday in October with a luncheon.

State Rep. Donna Veach voted in favor of the state’s $51.1 billion biennium budget. Veach and her Republican colleagues championed the $800 million in tax relief over the biennium last spring.

"While the budget wasn't perfect, it did in fact have many initiatives, namely the extensive tax cuts, brought forth by my colleagues, that were included," Veach said in a press release. “A more balanced budget comes from working on both sides of the aisle to compromise for the betterment of all of Connecticut's residents, and this budget, while not perfect, does just that."

CT Gold Star Mothers president Helen Keiser-Pedersen awarded local veterans advocates Peter Galgano Jr. and Charles Colaresi with a Quilt of Valor this past Saturday during a ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park in Berlin.

The park is home to the Connecticut Gold Star Families Memorial Monument, which honors the families of servicemen and women who sacrificed their lives while serving in the military.