Call Center Company in Waterbury, CT

WATERBURY — Waterbury may be known as the Brass City for its historical connection to manufacturing with the metal, but the city also has a preponderance of companies that make screws and fasteners.

At least a half dozen companies make screws and fasteners in Waterbury. Those businesses are drawing a great deal of attention because of the impact of tariffs that are the key weapon in President Donald Trump's trade war with countries around the world.

And like many other small manufacturers, some screw makers are beginning to see increased costs from the implementation of tariffs on metals imported from nations across the world roil their businesses. The United States imports between $5 billion and $6 billion worth of screws and fasteners each year, according to Fastener World, a trade publication.

Their increased costs, from tariffs on the steel, aluminum and other metals used to make their products, have been passed on to customers. What was once a 10 cent screw has now increased to 17 cents, according to the Wall Street Journal, an increase that when multiplied by products that are fastened by dozens, hundreds or even thousands of screws, can be substantial.

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Gene Simpson, president of Illinois-based fastener maker Semblex, told the Journal that U.S. fastener makers simply don't have the necessary production capacity to replace or reduce the amount of imported screws that domestic manufacturers currently use.

“It’s a select group of suppliers," Simpson said.

But not everyone in the screw making business is suffering from the uncertainty associated with Trump's tariffs. Neil Tremaglio Jr., the owner of Waterbury Swiss Automatics, said his company hasn't seen a fall off in orders from customers, although he acknowledged it may still be too soon to judge the long-term impacts on the three quarter of a century old company his father and uncle founded in 1949.

Diversification of the types of industries that Waterbury Swiss serves have a role in that, according to Tremaglio. The company's customers include medical equipment, electronics and lock making sectors.

"It may be different for other businesses," Tremaglio said. "But our business hasn't been hurt at all; if one market is down, the others are up. The ebbs and flows balance each other out."

Waterbury Swiss Automatics has a 12,000-square-foot factory in an industrial park near Austin Road on the east side of Waterbury. The company employs 20 people.

The metal fastening business is split into two predominant groups: Custom-made precision fastening products for a specific project or customer and generic fasteners, which are designed for the broader market. Jeff Astle, Waterbury Swiss' general manager, said that the company's specialty is precision screws, some of which have a diameter 40 times smaller than a human hair.

Waterbury Swiss' business is also structured in such a way that it is protected from the perfect storm that Trump's tariffs have become to many businesses around Connecticut and the country at large. Tremaglio said all of the company's customers are either headquartered here in the United States or are located in territories like Puerto Rico. And the companies that supply the metals that Waterbury Swiss turns into screws and fasteners are also domestically-based.

"The volume of metals we use doesn't warrant going directly to the mills for our supply," Astle said. "So we buy from (domestic) distributors. We don't buy direct."

He said one advantage to the company being based in an area where there are so many screw and fastener manufacturers "is the availability of qualified workers" in the employment candidate pool.

Tremaglio said the company's hiring efforts benefit from Waterbury being home to W.F. Kaynor Technical High School as well as the Manufacturers Alliance Serice Corp., an educational foundation focused on the education and training of workers for Connecticut's manufacturing community.

"It gives kids here a head start on what can be a very good career that can allow them to live comfortably," he said. "And we have a couple of people here that started as apprentices while attending Kaynor. And once we get them here, we have an experienced workforce that can help train them."

While Waterbury Swiss isn't being hurt by Trump's tariffs at the moment, other small manufacturers across Connecticut whose products are made with metals are justifiably nervous, according Jamison Scott, president of Air Handling Systems, a Woodbridge-based manufacturer that makes dust and fume handling components.

Scott, who also teaches supply chain management courses at Quinnipiac University, said manufacturers he has talked with are concerned about the uncertainty that comes with the current environment surrounding tariffs.

"There is certainly a lot of concern about this because of what is unknown," Scott said. "Everybody is trying to figure out how they are going to parcel out the increased costs when they come. And it's not hitting us all at the same time."

With his own business, Scott said he has not seen the price of steel increase at all. He said that is due in part to his getting his steel from domestic companies.

"I source domestically because you can never be completely certain of the imported steel," Scott said. "But when prices from foreign manufacturers go up, the domestic companies tend to increase their prices, too."

April 28, 2025

Arjelis Heredia of Waterbury has been teaching for far longer than the 19 years she’s been an educator, if you count the years she used to pretend to be a teacher when she was a kid.

“If you speak to any family member, they'll let you know, since [kindergarten], I was the teacher,” Heredia said. “That's all I used to play, line up all my dolls and join my cousins and teach and be the principal and the cook and all the school rules.”

That lifelong passion for education has earned her the LifeChanger of the Year award. National Life Group chose her out of 750 nominations from across the country. The financial services company rewards K-12 educators who make a difference in the lives of students through its LifeChanger of the Year program.

Heredia is “being recognized for her success in educating and inspiring at-risk and economically disadvantaged students to achieve greatness in school and at life,” according to Kevin Gould, an award spokesperson.

Ultimately, for Heredia, the key to that success is keeping open communication with students, even after they’ve gone to high school and beyond.

“I like to set the standard of if anything, you can come to me,” Heredia said. “If you're hungry, we'll figure it out. If you need stuff, then let me know and I'll do my best. … I like to try my best to let them know that I'm really here.”

Real-life lessons passed down from Abuela

Heredia is a seventh and eighth grade teacher at Children’s Community School in Waterbury, a non-profit that serves children pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. She has been teaching there for 14 years, starting at the preschool level.

As an educator, Heredia said she likes to ensure her students are prepared for the future by teaching them life skills that she didn’t learn growing up.

“When I left high school, it's like, ‘What? I don't know any of this. What's a job application? What's a resume?’” Heredia said. “I like for [my students] to have those things that I know now that I needed, that I wasn't necessarily taught at school.”

Those life skills include learning how to budget and maintain financial stability. Heredia said she has her students open bank accounts before they graduate. She also teaches them social skills, like how to interview for a job and how to keep eye contact.

Community service and social justice are also priorities for Heredia.

“I feel that this generation is very self absorbed and entitled,” Heredia said, referring to Gen Z. “It's fine to have more than others, but if you're just all about yourself, you're going to be a pretty sucky adult.”

Heredia said she and her students go to local soup kitchens to serve sandwiches and food baskets they make themselves. They also read to the elderly in nursing homes, write to children’s hospitals and make birthday boxes for families in need.

Children’s Community School primarily serves children from families who live at or below the federal poverty level. More than 160 students attend the school; nearly 100 of them qualify for free or reduced lunch, according to principal Katherin Sniffin.

Heredia credits her grandmother for shaping her.

“I grew up with my grandma and Abuela was very social. Everyone knew her because she would feed people out of her kitchen window, and if anyone needed, they knew that they could knock on her door,” Heredia said. “I grew up witnessing that, and it made me who I am now.”

Creating lasting impact

Heredia likes to keep in touch with her students after they’ve gone off to high school. She appreciates it when they reach out.

“One student that left three years ago, she calls me every day and before she gets herself into trouble, she's like, ‘Ms. Arjelis, I need you to talk me off the ledge so I don't do anything stupid,’” Heredia said. “I'm happy to be there for them because sometimes they don't have a trusted adult.”

Receiving the LifeChanger of the Year award came as a surprise for Heredia. The school hosted a ceremony for her on April 3 to share the news. After thinking it was an April Fools’ joke, Heredia said she realized it was proof of how her efforts make an impact.

“I always doubt myself,” she said. “It just gave me the validation to keep going [knowing] I am changing someone out there.”

Heredia and the school received a $10,000 prize as part of the award. Heredia said she would like to see the funds go toward revamping the science lab with new equipment.

In May, Heredia will be going to the Bahamas to deliver an acceptance speech at a LifeChanger of the Year celebration.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

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Protect Connecticut Public

WATERBURY — The State Bond Commission is poised to approve $5.3 million to support two ongoing redevelopment projects in Waterbury that figure prominently in the city's revitalization plans.

The agenda for the upcoming meeting Friday includes $4 million that the Community Investment Fund Board approved March 12 for funding the third phase on an ongoing project to transform the streetscape along West Main Street. In all, the CIF board approved $77 million for development projects across the state.

The bond commission is also slated to reallocate $1.3 million remaining from previously approved funding for the expansion of electric andwater capacity at Captain Neville Industrial Park to instead support the continued cleanup of the former Anamet brass manufacturing complex abutting the Naugatuck River on South Main Street.

Gov. Ned Lamont chairs the bond commission and his administration selects which allocations to fund, so an item's inclusion on the panel's agenda is generally tantamount to approval.

State legislators representing the city and Mayor Paul K. Pernerewski Jr. said the $4 million state grant for West Main Street project represents a crucial step toward revitalizing the downtown district, enhancing infrastructure, spurring business growth and attracting private investment in Waterbury.

“This funding will revitalize the downtown corridor with improvements to sidewalks, lighting, and roadways, creating a safer and more accessible environment for everyone,” said state Rep. Ron Napoli, D-Waterbury, the House chairman of the General Obligation Bonding Subcommittee of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee and a CIF board member.

The state funding will enable construction crews to upgrade approximately 4,440 linear feet on the street and underground, including water, sanitary, sewer, and storm drainage.

The city will also be using some of a $23.1 million federal RAISE grant to support this work. The Federal Highway Administration approved the city's grant in 2022. The Waterbury Development Corp. and the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments assisted the city in applying for the RAISE grant, including $9.8 million requested for the West Main Street project.

The remainder of the federal funding is supporting the continued development of the Waterbury section of the Naugatuck River Greenway and the installation of three electric vehicle charging stations at the Waterbury train station.

The state and federal funds are being spent to redevelop West Main Street between Riverside Street and the Waterbury Green in the heart of downtown.

In addition to improving the city's appearance, Pernerewski said the West Main Street project will also make Waterbury more accessible, safer, and ready to support future growth.

West Main Street is a short but much-used corridor that connects downtown Waterbury with parts of the city that are on the west side of the Naugatuck River, but its condition and design present challenges for motorists, pedestrians, cyclists and transit users, according to planning documents.

The biggest component of the project is reducing the number of travel lanes on West Main Street to one through lane of traffic in each direction and making the road a uniform width. Other design features include a bus stop pull-off, a bicycle shared lane from Riverside Street to the railroad bridge, a green strip on the south side of West Main Street between Thomaston Avenue and the railroad bridge.

Brownfield cleanup at former Anamet site ongoing

The last round of state bond funding for the Anamet redevelopment project was approved in 2021, when the bond commission approved an additional $2 million allocation to the Waterbury Development Corp. for completing the demolition of remaining buildings on the former industrial property and further investigating the extent of contamination on the brownfield site.

The WDC is the designated economic and community development agency for the city of Waterbury.

The WDC had received a $2.1 million bond allocation in 2022 to increase the supply of needed electricity and water to Captain Neville Industrial Park, but only spent $800,000 because bids for the project contract were significantly lower than anticipated, said James Nardozzi, the WDC executive director.

"The job has been successfully completed," he said.

The bond commission is expected to approve a request to reallocate the remaining $1.3 million to WDC to support the continued environmental cleanup of the Anamet property, which dates back to 2017.

Nardozzi said the extent of the remediation and the final cost will depend on the ultimate use for the site, and the redevelopment project's timetable, too.

"If it is going to be another industrial use that would cost a lot less than if was going to be a residential use or a school," he said. "It is all dependent on the final use."

How much longer the redevelopment project takes to complete is also contingent on the level and timing of funding, Nardozzi said.

April 9, 2025

Reporter

We all know them. Mean girls. Their nasty comments and malicious gossip make high school a nightmare to plenty of gals outside their radioactive orbit. Leave it to Tina Fey to make us laugh about them.

Her 2004 film, "Mean Girls," described by The New York Times as "tart and often charming," became a Broadway musical in 2024 (and is now a film again, but no matter). The show will be presented at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven on May 8-11.

Here's the setup: Growing up on an African savanna did not prepare Cady Heron for the vicious ways of her strange new home — suburban Illinois. Soon, this naïve newbie falls prey to a trio of lionized frenemies led by the charming but ruthless Regina George. But when Cady devises a plan to end Regina’s reign, she learns the hard way that you can’t cross a Queen Bee without getting stung.

Tina, Amy and an 'SNL' trivia question

Fey and her fellow "Saturday Night Live" alum gal pal, Amy Poehler, will be bringing their "Restless Leg Tour" to Mohegan Sun on May 16 at 7 p.m.

That brings us to our first trivia question: Fey was the first female head writer on "Saturday Night Live." Who was SNL's first female host?

Irish Famine book, exhibit at Fairfield University

Earlier this month, Basic Books released "Rot: A History of the Irish Famine" by Padraic X Scanlan. The book is an account of the Irish Famine, a humanitarian disaster studied at Ireland's Great Hunger Institute in Hamden.

Quinnipiac University used to be the home of Ireland's Great Hunger Museum until the university's board of trustees closed it in 2020. The museum is expected to move to Fairfield next year, although the new home is proving more costly than first expected, according to CT Insider.

If you are still interested in seeing some of the striking art that was on view at the collection's last home, you can do so now through Aug. 16 at Fairfield University's Walsh Gallery. "An Gorta Mor: Selections from Ireland's Great Hunger Museum" includes 38 paintings by late 19th- and early 20th‐century artists like James Brenan, Daniel Macdonald, James Arthur O'Connor and Jack B. Yeats, as well as sculptures, paintings and works on paper by contemporary artists. The gallery also will host "Performance: Songs of Ireland and Irish Americans" with the Catfeather Duo on May 8 at 6 p.m.

The book "Rot" is a searing account of how the British government continued to import and hoard grain and other Irish products exported from a country dying of starvation. When the potato crop continued to fail, particularly in "Black '47," Scanlan writes, it was called in Ireland "The End of the World." Scanlan details the way the government dismissed, humiliated and then blamed the "sinful" Irish for their starvation.

The museum is at 1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield. The new iteration of the Irish Great Hunger Museum at Fairfield is expected to open in 2026-27 at 636 Old Post Road.

First woman to get a patent was from Connecticut

The practice of women starting cottage businesses out of their homes, particularly bakeries, has expanded significantly since Connecticut began offering such cottage licenses in 2018. But women running side gigs out of their homes — whether cooking, weaving or typing — goes back centuries.

In fact, the first woman to receive a patent in the United States, Mary Dixon Kies, did so by taking advantage of the 1790 Patent Act. The South Killingly woman received a patent in 1809 for a new way to braid straw with silk and other threads to create women’s bonnets.

It was an invention made out of necessity. President Thomas Jefferson put an embargo on imported British and French goods during the Napoleonic Wars in response to Britain's restrictions on trade. Without imported fashion, American women were forced to innovate. The braided straw hat was one of those innovations and soon became a must-have fashion item. Even Dolley Madison, the first lady of the fourth U.S. president, praised them.

Kies, who was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, received one of only 20 patents issued to a woman before 1840.

Today, more than 12% of all patent applications include a woman inventor, according to Lemelson-MIT.

Trivia answer

The first woman to host "Saturday Night Live" was Candice Bergen in 1975. She starred in both the fourth and eighth episodes that year, and hosted a total of five times, her last appearance in 1990.

Contact Tracey O'Shaughnessy at tracey.osh@hearstmediact.com.

NAUGATUCK — The shelves are stocked at local food banks but managers are worried that might not last after federal cuts to Connecticut Foodshare and with more people seeking help.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture in March cut $2.7 million in federal funds for two programs under Connecticut Foodshare — $1 million from Local Food Purchase Assistance and $1.7 million from the Emergency Food Assistance Program.

Connecticut Foodshare partners with 650 food banks, food pantries, mobile food trucks and soup kitchens across the state including the Ecumenical Food Bank in Naugatuck and St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Waterbury, said Connecticut Foodshare spokeswoman Ayah Galal.

St. Vincent DePaul Mission Director of Operations Edwin Rodriguez said the shelter hasn’t felt the impact because of the federal cuts but they don’t know what to expect.

“How it’s going impact us at this point, it’s a wait-and-see situation,” Rodriguez said. St. Vincent DePaul receives food from Connecticut Foodshare for both its food pantry and soup kitchen.

Rodrriguez said if there is a reduction of food from Connecticut Foodshare "what we will do at St. Vincent DePaul, is we’ll ask our generous donors to have private food drives for us, which we do on a regular basis.”

Rodriguez said there’s been a significant increase in people using the food pantry over last year with the majority of those served being families.

“It’s probably 15% to 20% more people coming to the food pantry compared to last year,” Rodriguez said. “For the month of March, we served a total of 901 individuals that equates 4,505 bags of food. So we’re serving 358 families throughout the whole month. For the month of February, it was 832."

Connecticut Foodshare said in late March that 34 trailer loads of food for the Emergency Food Assistance Program were canceled.

Ecumenical Food Bank Vice President Gerhard Roland said they have already seen less food at its shelter through the Local Food Purchase Assistance, which was a COVID-era food program.

“It impacts us on what we get for free that we can give out for the clients," Roland said. "It doesn’t impact us for what we still purchase and give to the clients. So we’re going to be spending more money from our budget and not getting that much from the government.”

Naugatuck Ecumenical Food Bank President Marty-Lee Fenton said the Naugatuck food bank gets about 2,500 to 3,000 pounds weekly from Connecticut Foodshare including produce and meat.

“We just give what we get as the best we can and hope everybody understands,” Fenton said.

The Naugatuck food bank feeds about 800 people every month on average with the majority of recipients being families, Fenton said. The borough food bank has seen a steady if not higher amount of people it has served since last year as there was six new families in the last full week of April.

"Whatever we give out, people are very thankful for either a lot or very little," she said. “People were out here waiting hours today in the heat. Last week, waiting out here hours in the cold,” Fenton said. “So we’re kind of like the weather, changes day to day.”

The latest data from Feeding America, a national network of food banks, shows Connecticut has a food insecurity rate state average of 12.9% for 2022 which equates to roughly 470,000 people.

Naugatuck has a food insecurity rate of 11.7% or about 3,690 people while Waterbury has a rate of 20.3% or about 23,270 people for 2022, the Feeding America data showed.