In this issue of Middletown Life, we’re very pleased to spotlight the work of the Veterans Watchmaker Initiative, a local organization that teaches highly specialized watchmaking skills to veterans. Sam Cannan, a Swiss-trained watchmaker, is the founder of Veterans Watchmaker Initiative, a world-class watchmaking school in Odessa. All the programs are free to the veterans.

We’ll asl introduce you to “Delaware’s Mr. Blues,” Gene Fontana, a key force in the Diamond State Blues Society, the St. Georges Blues Festival and music at the St. Georges Country Store. For more than 20 years, Fontana has created blues festivals in locations across New Castle County.

We also report about the new—and big—library finally coming to the MOT area after years of efforts. When the new, 27,500-square-foot library at 244 E. Main St. in Middletown opens next March, it will offer much more than books. It will be a community resource center for the 21st century—it will have a multimedia production studio, a memory lab, a makerspace, meeting rooms and study rooms. These features represent the changing nature of libraries nationwide.

We profile Appoquinimink High School teacher Stephen Cook, who has spent the last quarter century educating young people about the agricultural industry, with a passion and dedication that continues to inspire students.

We also take a look at some of the capstone projects that showcase the wide and sophisticated interests of Appoquinimink School District seniors in their chosen pathways. We selected six of this year’s most interesting capstone projects. They include work on increasing the efficiency of solar panels, uniting STEM students across America, planning a fine-dining restaurant, making a no-spill measuring device, providing loans for individuals doing home improvement projects and using artificial intelligence to watch animals.

The Cedar Swamp Wildlife Area is the subject of the photo essay. Like many other preserves of its kind, the Cedar Swamp Wildlife Area has become a symbol of tranquility and hope for those who traverse it.

We hope you enjoy these stories and we’re already hard at work planning the next issue of Middletown Life that will arrive later in 2021. If you have any suggestions for that issue, please reach out to us.