The Glenholme School spent much of early November recovering from Storm Albert - a late-October storm that dumped an unprecedented amount of snow on the Northeast. Power outages reached historic proportions over night, and local schools, restaurants, and grocery stores were forced to close their doors. Downed wires and fallen trees dangled perilously over roadways, making travel unsafe. According to the CL&P outage map issued the morning after the storm, the town of Washington was completely in the dark - along with 830,000 other Connecticut customers.

Equipped to act as a crisis resource center for the town of Washington, Glenholme immediately resumed near-normal operations with generators powering buildings across campus.Staff members, most of whom had no power at home, made the sometimes treacherous trek to campus to be with the students, while the maintenance staff tended to the campus around the clock to ensure the safety and comfort of the Glenholme community. For several hours each day, the school also offered showers to area residents affected by the storm.

Creativity abounded during the long 5 ½-day wait for restored power. Students braved the outage conditions with incredible understanding and flexibility, while staff conjured up engaging outdoor activities and creative indoor games and crafts to pass the time. After the power had been restored and all had returned to normal, students and staff were recognized for their hard work, resourcefulness, and enthusiasm during the outage. For lunch on Tuesday, November 8, the Big Green Truck – a Glenholme community favorite – cooked up delicious wood-fired pizza for everyone on campus. On Thursday afternoon, students and staff gathered in The Center for the Arts for the “Storm Trooper Awards,” where students, cottages, and a few stand-out staff members were acknowledged for their flexibility, ingenuity, and great senses of humor.

Each member of the Glenholme community handled this difficult situation with remarkable character and grace. In the end, Storm Albert proved to be no match for the incredible students and staff at The Glenholme School!