Connecticut
How a CT town and its first responders are rallying to help a boy with ‘a million dollar smile’
There is nothing but love behind Gavin Anderson’s big smile.
And now, the East Windsor community is rallying around the 10-year-old and his family with an equal amount of love.
The family is Kate and Colin Anderson and their three children, including Gavin and his twin brother, Spencer, and their 12-year-old sister, Bailey.
Gavin has spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and is non-mobile and non-verbal and the Anderson home needs major — and very expensive — renovations to make the house more comfortable for him, his family said. East Windsor’s two firehouses, Police Department and the town’s EMS department learned of the need and have joined forces for “Gavin’s Home Makeover Pasta Dinner” benefit to be held at the Warehouse Point Fire Department on Sunday, April 28, at 89 Bridge St.
Among the renovations needed at the Anderson home are: ramps on the front and back of the home so Gavin can easily and safely enter/exit the house in addition to having more than one exit in case of an emergency; creating an ADA compliant bathroom and installing a lift/track system to move him from what will become his bedroom to the bathroom; creating a space in the kitchen for him to play and explore, as well as room to store Gavin’s equipment, including a gate trainer for walking and his wheelchair.
“We’ve had three or four different quotes that are all over $100,000 to do everything we need,” Kate Anderson said.
The Anderson’s broke ground in September on the renovations and they have been ongoing. Anderson said that, even with donations, the family will still likely owe between $80,000 and $85,000. She’s hoping all work will be done by the end of the summer.
Workers are customizing an island in the kitchen for Gavin to sit with his gate trainer or wheelchair to wash his hands at the sink or do arts and crafts.
“The current kitchen is being gutted and will become the bathroom,” Anderson said. “Doors are being widened and all the wood is coming out and being replaced with tile.
“The most expensive part is pulling down the ceiling to reinforce a lift to move Gavin from the bedroom to the bathroom, so we don’t have to carry him. The lift will be helpful as he gets bigger,” she said. “The lift is a game changer for us. We still have to do the front and back ramp, so he has multiple ways of getting into the house.”
Phase II of the improvements includes making the house “smart” to sync him up with Alexa or Google Home.
“He will be able to interact and control his own environment,” Anderson said. “He can turn off or on the TV or turn the lights on or off. Right now, he has to wait for one of us to do that.”
Anderson said Gavin loves to float around in the family pool and loves bubbles, music, playing with friends and family arts and crafts and going on walks with the family’s two dogs. Gavin also has a tricycle.
Kate Anderson said the support from the town has been amazing.
“They are being superheroes in different ways now,” Anderson said. “It’s been amazing to get our town and surrounding towns and businesses to rally around Gavin and this renovation – which is extremely expensive with time and materials.”
“This pasta dinner helps so much, and you won’t understand it unless you are in this situation,” Anderson said. “When you are purchasing a home, it doesn’t come with wheelchair accessibility. There wasn’t a home out there that met everything we needed for every person in the family. Having a fundraiser like this raises awareness.”
The mom said Gavin “is well loved by everyone who knows him.”
“He has a million dollar smile that lights up a room every time he enters,” Kate Anderson said. “He gets to be included in a lot of things. A lot of kids out there aren’t included for one reason or another. We are hoping to bring general awareness.”
Anderson said Gavin’s siblings are protective of their brother and keep him included in whatever they do.
“They make sure kids that aren’t as familiar with Gavin or someone with a wheelchair and bring them over to introduce him to other kids,” Anderson said. “They are trying to teach other kids and that he is another kid and will respond to you. They are very much supporters and cheerleaders for him as well.”
Kate Anderson said she wants everyone in the community to come out and meet Gavin.
“Part of it is awareness. The other part of it is when we go out there is a lot of staring. He’s not an anomaly. He’s a happy kid and loves to be around people. Just because he doesn’t talk. It doesn’t mean there isn’t someone in there that will respond. We want to make sure people will come,” Anderson said.
“When he sees the firefighters, he wants to jump out of his chair,” she added. “He smiles and makes noises and is very interactive when they all come see him. You never have to guess what he’s feeling because he’s so expressive.”
East Windsor’s Sofia’s Restaurant is donating pasta and sauce for the event. East Windsor’s Pickle Jar Deli is providing meatballs. These are two of the 27 sponsors for the event. There will also be raffle prizes.
Jill Caron, the administrative assistant at the Warehouse Point Fire District, said the organizing process started in January when first responders met with Gavin and his family.
“He’s the happiest little boy you will meet,” Caron said. “The support has been overwhelming both inside and outside of East Windsor.”
Warehouse Point firefighter Heather Mitchell said it’s exciting that all four first responder agencies in town are coming together for a cause.
“We are using our firehouse and pulling out the fire trucks and we are used to putting on large events,” Mitchell said. “So many businesses in town have stepped up and we are very lucky. We are lucky to be in East Windsor. Everyone is working together to make this a success for the Anderson family.”
Caron said the goal is to raise $15,000 and said there will be a touch-a-truck with ambulances, police and fire vehicles outside of the Warehouse Point station.
“So many people are already giving,” Caron said. “We got handed a $500 check from Broad Brook Fire Department. All four of the East Windsor first responder organizations provided $500 apiece as well. So many people are pulling up not only to buy tickets but to give donations. The past couple of weeks we’ve had so many people pop in.”
The Andersons will be at all three separate dinner seatings on Sunday. Each seating can hold 100-125 people and will include pasta, salad, meatballs, rolls and dessert. The first wave is from noon to 2:30 p.m., the second is 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. and the last wave is 5 to 7 p.m. Takeout is also available. Tickets are $20 each.
Walk-ins are welcome. About 200 seats of the 560 total available were sold as of Wednesday afternoon. No one will be turned away. To buy tickets in advance, visit https://www.whpfd.org/.
Even as a born-and-raised New Yorker, I have a relatively open mind when it comes to pizza. When I’m out on the road, I’ll eat at any pizzeria as long as I can see the oven from the counter and buy pizza by the slice. However, the idea of any place outside the Big Apple proclaiming itself “the Pizza Capital of the United States” is just sacrilege. Connecticut doubled down on its ludicrous claim last weekend by approving the rollout of a special “Pizza State” license plate. This is the worst affront to the craft since Chicagoans started shilling their crust-bowl casserole as pizza.
Connecticut Foodshare
Let’s actually take a look at this license plate. One peek, we all know the rules. “The Pizza State” plate features a similar blue-to-white gradient as on the standard Connecticut license plate. The aforementioned self-proclaimed moniker replaces the state’s official nickname, “The Constitution State,” beneath the plate number. To the right of the number is an image of a pizza slice ripped straight from Microsoft’s ClipArt library. It’s a flat image that looks nothing like what’s served in New Haven. Connecticut drivers will be able to pick up a “Pizza State” plate for $65.
This is a pizza war for good
The only undisputedly good aspect of the “Pizza State” license plate is that its introduction will help feed Connecticut’s hungry. According to CT Insider, the $28.6 billion budget bill approved by the Connecticut General Assembly last weekend, which authorized the plate, also directly appropriated funding to Connecticut Foodshare. The sitewide food bank will also receive $50 from each $65 license plate fee, as it continues to provide millions of free meals to food-insecure people.
Back to the pizza debate at the heart of the matter. Governor Ned Lamont declared Connecticut the country’s pizza capital back in 2024 as part of a marketing campaign to promote the state. That declaration could have grounds for war in a different century, but individual states apparently don’t fight wars against each other anymore. Connecticut had better go back to being a UConn Husky-obsessed suburb before New York makes Greenwich the next Toledo.
Connecticut
Suspect in preppy booze-fueled Connecticut party stabbing death asks court to drop charges: ‘Double jeopardy’
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The attorney for a Connecticut man who was recently acquitted of first-degree murder charges stemming from a booze-fueled brawl between prep school students is making another move to ensure his client’s freedom.
Last July, a jury found Raul Valle, now 19, not guilty of murder and intentional manslaughter in the May 14, 2022 stabbing death of James “Jimmy” McGrath. Valle was 16 at the time of the incident, and McGrath was 17.
The jury was deadlocked on lesser charges of reckless manslaughter in that trial, leading to a partial mistrial.
Valle attended St. Joseph High School in Trumbull, near Fairfield Prep, where McGrath was a junior and star lacrosse player. Prior to the stabbing that evening, both had been at a house party that involved underage drinking and a fight.
DEADLOCKED JURORS IN PREP SCHOOL LACROSSE PLAYER’S KILLING A ‘GREAT SIGN’ FOR DEFENSE: EXPERT
Split image of Jimmy McGrath showing him in a collared shirt and tie and in his Fairfield College Preparatory School lacrosse uniform. (The McGrath Family)
After heading to another location to continue partying, tempers flared again and about 25 people engaged in another brawl on the front lawn of the second home, whose owners were present at the time, witnesses told police. It was during that fight that the stabbing death occurred.
Valle admitted to the stabbing, but said it was committed in self-defense and in defense of a friend.
The day after Valle’s July 9, 2025, acquittal on the most serious charges, the state filed new reckless manslaughter and reckless assault charges.
Raul Valle speaks during his second day of testimony at his murder trial in state Superior Court in Milford, Conn., on July 1, 2025. (Ned Gerard/Connecticut Post)
TEXAS JURY RETURNS VERDICT IN 2022 STABBING DEATH OF HIGH SCHOOL CLASSMATE: REPORT
Now, Valle’s attorney, Darnell Crosland, has filed a motion claiming that the reckless manslaughter and reckless assault charges constitute double jeopardy, which is unconstitutional, according to The Connecticut Post.
Crosland’s motion says the only explanation for the initial jury’s decision to acquit on the first-degree murder charge was that his client acted in self-defense.
“No other theory explains the acquittals,” he wrote in the motion.
KAREN READ LOSES DOUBLE JEOPARDY APPEAL IN BOSTON COP SLAYING CASE, WILL RECEIVE NEW TRIAL
Defense attorney Kevin Smith delivers his closing arguments to the jury during Raul Valle’s murder trial in state Superior Court in Milford, Conn., on July 3, 2025. (Ned Gerard/Connecticut Post)
“The jury has spoken,” he continued. “The law is clear. The court must dismiss these charges with prejudice — immediately.”
The Connecticut Post reported that in an interview after Valle’s acquittal, the jury foreperson said self-defense was not discussed.
In their own filing, prosecutors disagreed with Crosland’s reasoning, according to the report.
ACCUSED AUSTIN METCALF KILLER WON’T FACE DEATH PENALTY OR LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE: DA
They described self-defense as a “justification defense,” not one that is central to the elements of the charges Valle still faces, and thus, cannot be used as an argument to have the current charges dismissed.
Kevin McGrath, father of slain prep school lacrosse player Jimmy McGrath, speaks to reporters outside the state Superior Court in Milford, Connecticut, following Raul Valle’s acquittal on July 9, 2025. He is accompanied by family attorney Michael Rosnick. (Fox News)
“The fact that the jury acquitted the defendant of murder, intentional manslaughter and intentional assaults, but could not reach a unanimous verdict as to the reckless charges, demonstrates only that the jury must have reached the conclusion that the defendant lacked the specific intent to either kill or to cause serious physical injury,” the filing reportedly said.
McGrath’s family was shocked by the results of the 2025 trial.
“I’m astonished at the results, but, you know, it’s due process,” a stoic Kevin McGrath said outside the state Superior Court in Milford, Connecticut, later describing his son as a “wonderful person.”
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“He’s entitled to it,” said McGrath. “And at the end of the day, the jury made their verdict. I’m not sure if, you know, they were in the same courtroom as we all were together, but that’s the verdict. And we’ll live with it.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Crosland for comment.
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