Nonnewaug High School's Chief News Source

NHS Chief Advocate

Upcoming Events
  • December 7Drama Presentation of "Radium Girls"
  • December 8Drama Presentation of "Radium Girls"
  • December 19Baseball State Championship Ring Ceremony
  • December 22Half-Day: Holiday Break
  • December 25No School: Holiday Break
  • December 26No School: Holiday Break
  • December 27No School: Holiday Break
  • December 28No School: Holiday Break
  • December 29No School: Holiday Break
  • January 1No School: Holiday Break
Nonnewaug High School's Chief News Source

NHS Chief Advocate

Nonnewaug High School's Chief News Source

NHS Chief Advocate

Nonnewaug High Schools senior circle in 2015 before renovations began and changed the look of the school.
Reminiscing on the Senior Circle
Jillian Brown '24, Reporter • December 4, 2023
Nonnewaug boys soccer starters stand in a huddle before their game. This 2023 team, although down 13 seniors from last season, proved to be more successful than people had thought possible.
Nonnewaug Boys Soccer Rallied for Surprisingly Successful Fall
Brian Mohl '24, Reporter • December 1, 2023
Connor Bedard donning the Chicago Blackhawks home jersey on the ice for the first time. The picture was taken the day before his first-ever home game Oct. 21 where the Blackhawks would lose to the Vegas Golden Nights by a score of 5-3. (Blackhawks/Instagram)
18-Year-Old Connor Bedard the NHL's New Golden Boy
Sean Classey '24, Reporter • December 1, 2023
The Woodbury FFA Holiday Plant sale includes a variety of holiday-themed items for sale, including yule logs, wreaths, poinsettias, and more.
Behind the Scenes of FFA Holiday Plant Sale Prep
Culinary instructor John Dominello, left, and culinary student Case Hackett help to deliver one of the 140 meals to community senior citizens Nov. 30.
Senior Citizen Meal Continues to Bring Campus and Communities Together
Brianna Johnson '25 and Grace Nelson '25December 1, 2023
Students in Culinary Arts enjoy tending to the indoor classroom vertical gardens. Opportunities like these can be extended to even more students should a potential eight-period day be introduced.
Electives Courses Weight Impact of Potential Schedule Change
Dayton Griffin '24, Reporter • December 1, 2023
NHS News: November 2023
NHS News: November 2023
NHS NewsDecember 1, 2023
As the talk of schedule change flows throughout the school, opinions vary. For some, the current schedule is time consuming as it is. Will 8 periods be too much for students to handle?
Could an Eight-Period Day Take the Role of Friend or Foe?
Lana Manganello '25, Reporter • December 1, 2023
The Nonnewaug girls basketball team poses after a win against Gilbert last season.
NHS Girls Basketball Sees Underclassmen as Assets
Arabella Rosa '25, Reporter • December 1, 2023
An image of the six nominees for “Game of the Year” at the 2023 Game Awards. Each year, six games are chosen for this nomination, with the first Game Awards premiering in 2013.
Celebrating an Industry: The 10th Annual Game Awards
Tyler Timko '24, Reporter • November 30, 2023

Nonnewaug Drama Club to Bring Local History to Life with Radium Girls

With+at+least+10+members%2C+the+cast+of+Radium+Girls+bonds+over+their+shared+love+for+the+performing+arts+and+a+desire+to+bring+a+local+story+to+life.
Rubie Lombardi
With at least 10 members, the cast of Radium Girls bonds over their shared love for the performing arts and a desire to bring a local story to life.

WOODBURY — This December, the Nonnewaug Drama Club will tell the two-act story of the Radium Girls, a play that takes place in Waterbury, making it a local story the drama students are excited to tell.

“It’s really cool, learning the history and incorporating it into [the theater department],” says senior Rubie Lombardi, the lead actress for Radium Girls. “I think it gives us a great opportunity to learn the history of [Connecticut].”

“I’m proud that we picked this show. I knew before we even read the script that this affected Connecticut,” says senior performer Campbell Bologna. “Not everyone in the cast knew this happened just 24 minutes from here.”

Talan Wilkas and Almi Morales practice their lines for the play. They read their script with concentration and dedication. The play will debut on campus Dec. 7-8. (Campbell Bologna)

During the First World War, there was a demand for watches painted with radium-lined paint. The paint would make the numbers glow in the dark for army soldiers. The Waterbury Watch Company hired women because of their nimble fingers. 

In order to save time, the women would lick the brushes to make bristles a fine point and be able to paint small numbers. 

Not only were the workers ingesting the paint, the toxins from this process got onto their skin, under their nails, and dripped onto their clothes.

Acute radiation syndrome, or ARS, includes symptoms such as loss of appetite, fatigue, fever, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and possibly seizures, according to the CDC. Because the women were ingesting so much, they also experienced softened teeth, deteriorating jawbones, and spontaneous bone fractures.

The first of more than 30 women to die in the Waterbury factory was Frances Splettstocher, who died at 20 in 1925. The deaths kept coming, with the Waterbury Watch Company doing little to stop them. Only in 1941 did the company address people’s concerns by raising the women’s wages.

The oldest Radium Girl, Mae Keane, was able to live to 107 despite being subjected to the radiation. She was spared from ingesting large amounts of radium paint due to being fired when she was 18. But the job still left her without her teeth by age 30. 

She died March 1, 2014.

The student actresses and actors feel pride being able to tell the story of the Waterbury Radium Girls. Meeting Tuesdays and Thursdays for the months leading up to the play, which is set for Dec. 7-8, the dedicated cast runs lines over and over.

“The only emotion I’ve been feeling about this show is pure excitement,” says Kiya Flynn, the sophomore stage manager. “For me, the history coming with this show is a huge plus. It’s not only educational, but a fun way to learn.”

Tickets to the Dec. 7 and Dec. 8 performances are available.

View Comments (2)
About the Contributor
Mallory Sciaraffa is a senior at Nonnewaug. She is in the agriculture program, and this is her first year in journalism. When she graduates she hopes to go into a forestry field or entomology. Mallory spends her free time reading comics and watching movies. She is treasurer of the Seymour Leos Club, where she loves to help her town with her friends.
More to Discover

Comments (2)

All NHS Chief Advocate Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • E

    Ed DZITKONov 14, 2023 at 6:52 am

    Are tickets on sale yet?

    Reply
    • K

      Kyle BrennanNov 14, 2023 at 7:16 am

      They are. We’ve placed links at the bottom of this story.

      Reply