The Japanese barberry, the burning bush and the bittersweet are the scourge of Brookfield's Williams Park.

Get our free mobile app

According to the Patch, those are a few of the invasive plants that are threatening the long-term future of "native plants" and "wildlife." Brookfield has no plans of taking this lying down. The town has a bush-tastic plan, but they need your help.

The Brookfield Conservation Commission is asking volunteers to gather at the park on Sunday to help pull the plants out by the root. The volunteer gathering is this Sunday (6/12/22) from 9 AM - Noon. Anyone willing to help should bring some light gardening tools like pruning shears.

The Ethan and Lou Show Radio Show wanted to help get the word out. Thursday morning we dedicated two segments of our radio show to the topic.

When I heard this big-bush news, I couldn't help but take action, and I started at the top asking for more information from First Selectman Tara Carr who had this to say to the Ethan and Lou Show on Thursday (6/9/22):

"Conservation is incredibly important especially after having traveled the globe & seeing first hand the devastation to so many parts of the earth, both land & sea. Sometimes it’s hard to see right here in our neck of the woods because it is beautiful here but it is our collective duty to protect Mother Earth's gifts. Our local conservation commission is important to ensure we balance developmental initiatives with proper custodianship of our natural environment."

Sure, we started playing around with words and applying double-meanings for bushes and weeds, but our hearts were in the right place. The Ethan and Lou Show believes in conservation issues as well. We hope that the attention we drew to the issue, will result in locals heading down to Williams Park to lend a hand.

We've asked Tara Carr to put us in touch with the Conservation Commission in Brookfield, in an effort to provide long-term help and maybe book an interview to find out more. She has graciously agreed to attempt to make that connection, so we will see.......

Sometimes, upstanding members of society run away from the Ethan and Lou Show like we're a sloppy, destructive foreign bush. I can understand if they're not interested in partnering with us and I do not take it personally.

  • #SYB
  • #shaveyeb---
  • #shaveyebrookfield
  • #shaveyebittersweet

UPDATE:

Ashley Schutte-Bell from the Brookfield Conservation Committee contacted the Ethan and Lou Show Friday (6/10/22) and we put her on the air to help us better understand the issues at the park.

Some of Thursday's segment below.

We shared this segment in a multitude of shareable forms. "Shave ye bush" is the Ethan and Lou saying that was born at a Danbury Hat Tricks Hockey game. My friend Ron and I were taunting the opposing team, and I was not OK just yelling things like "you suck." The players can, and do ignore those things because they hear them all the time. I thought, what could I do to actually get a reaction out of them? That's when it happened "shave ye bush." The "ye" makes it classier than yelling "your."


Don isn't the only one, we've also had comedian Lisa Lampanelli shouting it (can't find the clip) and even some Danbury-area politicians. The #SYB movement has really resonated with people, in all realms of American society.

Remember, when live gives you lemons, shave ye bush. 

A Curious Excursion in an Underground Brookfield Tunnel

Recently, I was having a discussion with a friend of mine, I told this person I'd accessed some caves and tunnels in my hometown of Brewster, NY which is just over the NY/CT State Line. He knows how much I love local history, and saw how excited I was about this journey. He told me there was an area of Brookfield, CT that I needed to see, one that most residents have never seen. He told me about a tunnel, one that was not far away from where we were sitting. I made note of the conversation and bookmarked the destination for a future trip. 

Insanely Difficult Mini Golf Hole in Brookfield Destroys All Who Dare to Face It

JJ Stacks in Brookfield bills itself as the perfect summer food and entertainment family destination. The restaurant located at 537 Federal Road in Brookfield has a bit of everything from burgers, dogs and fries to adult beverages. They also have a slogan that goes "JJ Stacks, where family fun is a hole in one." 

Virtual Tour of New Fairfield Summer Camp for Sale on Candlewood Lake

Camp Candlewood was a Girl Scout camp for many years in New Fairfield, CT. The camp sits on the shores of Candlewood Lake, the largest lake in the Nutmeg State. The Girl Scouts of Connecticut decided to sell the property along with Camp Katoya in Milford and use money from the sale to improve other Girl Scout facilities. 

More From WRKI and WINE