🌱Music Plays On In Essex + COVID-19 Hospitalization Update

Happy Thursday, Essex-Chester-Deep River! Here's everything worth knowing today in Essex-Chester-Deep River.

First, today's weather:

The grey days of winter are back. The forecast is calling for fog with rain and drizzle. High: 41 Low: 33.

Here are the top four stories in Essex-Chester-Deep River today:

1. There are 180 adult inpatient beds at Middlesex Hospital. Currently, fifty-two of those beds are being used for confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients. (Essex-Chester-Deep River Patch)
2. The Essex Winter Series musical program secured an $11,900 grant to keep the music playing. (Subscription: CT Insider)
3. Connecticut Humanities recently awarded grants to 69 nonprofit organizations throughout the state. Both the Essex Historical Society and the Deep River Historical Society were among the recipients. (Zip06.com)
4. Is spring on its way? Or is winter sticking around a little longer? Conflicting weather predictions from two prominent groundhogs. (OPB News)

Today's Essex-Chester-Deep River Daily is brought to you in part by Newrez, a leading nationwide mortgage lender. Make a smart move for your future and refinance with Newrez today. Call 844-979-1707 to connect with a Newrez loan officer. Newrez, LLC (NMLS #3013)

Today in Essex-Chester-Deep River:

• First Thursday Book Club - Essex Library Association (4:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• Town of Deep River: The Middlesex Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program is gearing up for another year of offering free tax return filing assistance to households with an income of $60,000 or less. (Facebook)
• Tri-Town Youth Services Bureau: This week's newsletter offers three videos explaining the negative impact that toxic stress has on the brain and its development. (Facebook)
• Essex Library: The Essex Savings Bank Community Investment Program voting starts today. (Facebook)
• Essex Library: I LOVE ESSEX photo collection. Please share your I LOVE ESSEX photos! Send them to staff.essexlib@gmail.com. Add the photographer's name and where the photo was taken. (Facebook)

Loving the Essex-Chester-Deep River Daily? Here are all the ways you can get more involved:

• Send a friend or neighbor this link so they can subscribe
• Get your local business listed in front of readers
• Send me a news tip or suggestion at karena.garrity@patch.com

That's it for today! See you tomorrow for your next update.

— Karena Garrity

About me: I am a native of Connecticut, who currently resides in the Tri-Town community of Chester, Deep River and Essex. I have been a community reporter for the better part of the past 20 years. I love my small town community and I am honored to be a part of Patch.com. You can reach me at; karena.garrity@patch.com.