When it comes to safe bike riding practices, kids may not always listen to their parents.
But if it means free ice cream … well, now you’re talking.
The Westport Police Department, Westport Youth Commission and Sunny Daes have partnered on an initiative to reward good biking habits.
Officers will keep an eye out for young bicyclists who follow essential rules, like:
Always wearing a helmet
Riding safely and smartly
Being responsible.
Young riders “caught” practicing safe habits will receive a special reward voucher. Each card can be redeemed at Sunny Daes for free kiddie cone or cup.
Now, if anyone can convince another local business to do the same for adults — in bikes and cars …
There is life after the Planning & Zoning Commission.
In 2021 Chip Stephens — a native Westporter, 1973 Staples High School graduate and longtime civic volunteer — surprised many here.
After 3 terms on the P&Z (including a stint as chair); service on the Superstorm Sandy Recovery Regulation Committee; preservation efforts for Bedford Elementary School (now Town Hall), Cockenoe Island and open space; a run for state representative, and coaching Staples wrestling, and PAL football, basketball and baseball, he headed north.
For 5 years, Chip was code enforcement officer, plumbing inspector, and Department of Environmental Protection and health official for Readfield and Wayne, Maine — 2 towns northwest of Augusta.
Now, he’s launched a new business. Kennebec Shore and Land Use Consulting helps property owners navigate shoreland zoning, permit applications, board presentations and regulations — “clearly and efficiently,” Chip says.
For decades in Westport, Chip was the man to call with land use questions and concerns.
Now central Maine residents can do the same. With — as always — a response that is professional, fast and (even) fun.
Chip Stephens. He seldom wore a tie in Westport. He’s probably never worn one in Maine.
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It doesn’t quite rise to the level of “Unsung Hero.”
But Jonathan Alloy sends along a social media post, from the mother of a young child. He’d lost his favorite blankie at the beach. She described it, and said, “If you find it PLEASE let me know. PLEASE PLEASE.”
Donna Stark did.
But, the mother said, there were other heroes too. “EVERYONE walking the beach was so kind and helpful. Someone else found it first and put it on a bench. So whoever that was is also our hero!”
There’s nothing like a leisurely Saturday stroll through our online art gallery.
And — depending on where you live — it may even be air-conditioned!
Remember: This is your feature. No matter your age; the style or subject you choose — and whether you’re a first-timer or old-timer — we want your submissions. Watercolors, oils, charcoal, pen-and-ink, acrylics, mixed media, digital, lithographs, collages, macramé, jewelry, sculpture, decoupage, needlepoint — we want whatever you’ve got.
Just email a JPG to 06880blog@gmail.com. And please include the medium you’re working in.
“06880 Moon Rising” (Michael Chait — Available for purchase; click here)
“Goatee” (Patricia McMahon — Available for sale; click here)
Untitled (Katie Costanza — 14-year-old One River Art student)
“Leaf on Chrome Door Knob” (John Maloney)
“Swallowtail Butterfly” (Laurie Sorensen)
Untitled (June Rose Whittaker)
“Three Dancing Starfish” (Eric Bosch)
“Mystic Area Sea March” — oil on canvas, 24 x 36 (Miceli — Available for sale; click here)
“Mohegan Bluffs, Block Island” (Dorrie Thomas)
“Summer Fête” — acrylic on canvas, 20 x 30 (Joanne Leaman — Available for purchase; click here)
“The Compo Cove Homes Seen From Fiona’s Disappearing Island” — watercolor and graphite (Steve Stein)
“Wild Flowers” — Impasto metallic paints, embellished with gold leaf on grass cloth with woven gold strands (Dorothy Robertshaw — Available for purchase; click here)
Mike Hibbard says, “Can’t that burglar read the sign, ‘Beware of Dog’? He is going to be limping for a long time!”
Untitled (Martin Ripchick)
“Nice Weather for Ducks” (Lawrence Weisman)
(Entrance is free to our online art gallery –as it has been for 6 years. But please consider an anniversary donation! Just click here — and thank you!)
Julie Loparo — a longtime Westport dog and wildlife advocate — writes:
There has been a great deal of concern about the ospreys this summer — and with good reason.
According to the staff of Wildlife in Crisis, our osprey friends have had a very difficult year. They have presented to Wildlife in Crisis in emaciated condition, because there is not enough for them to eat.
There needs to be better monitoring of fishing activity all around Westport. I’m not sure which local officials are responsible for monitoring (checking for fishing licenses, catching of under-sized fish) and the dangerous debris left behind, but it’s an issue the town needs to look at soon — and intensely, for the sake of our ospreys and other wildlife in the area.
The agencies that encourage this activity much be responsible for cleaning up the inevitable deadly mess left behind.
This adult osprey was found this summer near Greens Farms Academy, struggling on the ground entangled in fishing line and impaled with 12 fish hooks. He had been seen flying around for weeks with the line hanging off him.
Injured osprey
He was being tracked by Westport animal control officer and Wildlife in Crisis intake director Peter Reid (wearing both hats).
Thankfully Officer Reid finally captured him. He was brought to Wildlife in Crisis, where staff carefully removed all the fishing paraphernalia.
Fishing hooks, removed from osprey.
They allowed him to rest and heal first in their clinic, and then their flight cage to prepare for release.
Ospreys are tricky patients. Their long fragile wings must heal perfectly to enable flight. They are easily stressed in captivity, and rarely eat on their own so hand feeding is necessary.
Osprey, after Wildlife in Crisis treatment …
After a course of antibiotics to address infected wounds, he was ready for release. The Wildlife in Crisis handlers brought him back to the site of origin last week, and he flew beautifully back to his nest.
… and flying home.
Sadly, he must continue to contend with polluted sound water in Westport where he was found, as well as other fishing hazards.
As the Delamar Westport celebrates its first anniversary — popular, modern, and with the very lively Dandelion restaurant — it’s a good time to remember its predecessor.
Not the little-lamented Westport Inn.
But the New Englander “Motor Hotel.” (A fancy name for “motel.”)
When it opened in 1960, it filled an important local need.
“Luxury at Everyday Prices!” the brochure (below) touted.
“Leave the turmoil and confusion of the hectic daily life behind …for a refreshing change of pace,” the marketing material promised.
The New Englander offered so much: a pool, cabana club, sundecks, playground, shuffleboard, picnic area, putting green, cookout grills, station wagon service to beaches and theaters, sightseeing tours — even “free ice” and “24-hour telephone service.”
Plus it was near bowling, a driving range, miniature golf, ice skating, beauty and barber shops, masseurs and masseuses, and — perhaps this would seal the deal — “stockbrokers.”
(The brochure also showed a vague illustration of the view in front of the motel. It was nothing like the reality of the Post Road, and buildings across the street.)
The center pages of the brochure touted “outsize rooms and suites, (all) fully carpeted, soundproofed and equipped with individually controlled heat and air conditioning.”
Diming options included the Gaslite Lounge — for a “congenial, sophisticated rendezvous in turn-of-the-century style” — as well as a “strikingly handsome” restaurant.
A private banquet room offered a “bandstand, public address system, and expert beverage and food service.”
The back of the brochure burbled on.
The New Englander was “minutes from the rich cultural and recreational life of the area.” Attractions included the Westport Country Playhouse, White Barn theater, Shakespeare Festival at Stratford, the “art colony at Silvermine,” museums, art galleries, beaches, boating, golf and picnic areas.
It was “minutes” too from “the industrial heart of the state”: Norwalk, Bridgeport and New Haven.
As if all that was not enough: at the New Englander Motor Hotel, credit cards were “honored.”
The New Englander never delivered on most of those promises. For the next couple of decades, it was just an average, non-descript motel.
The rooms were meh. Air conditioning was not a huge selling point. Restaurants came and went in dizzying succession.
Eventually the motel became an “inn.” Any changes were minor, and cosmetic.
Today we’ve got a legit hotel. There is valet parking. Christian Siriano decorated some interior spaces. The restaurant and bar are hopping.
But it still offers free ice, and 24-hour telephone service.
(Friday Flashback is one of “06880”‘s many regular features. If you enjoy this — or anything else on our website — please consider a tax-deductible contribution. Just click here. Thank you!)
With many Westporters out of town in the final days before school resumes, most boards have canceled meetings.
Not the Planning & Zoning Commission.
And their August 17 meeting (6 p.m., Zoom) is nothing to sniff at.
They’ll consider a text amendment submitted by Representative Town Meeting member Andrew Colabella. He explains, “The text amendment would allow a form of recreation to be conducted on designated open space where active leisurely use already occurs, providing the option for a fenced dog area to be located within a park.
“It is important to understand that this is not an approval of a specific dog park or a final site plan. Rather, it is a change to the zoning regulations that would permit the use to be considered. Any specific proposal would still be subject to additional public review and approvals.
“The P&Z is not being asked to decide whether Winslow Park should have a dog run. It is being asked whether the zoning regulations should allow a fenced dog area as a permitted recreational use on designated open space where active recreational uses are already appropriate. The merits and details of any specific location remain separate questions.”
Colabella and student Emme Dorfman have designed a concept, and been given an OK for their pre-app.
“The concept will either be supported or rejected by the Parks & Recreation Commission, and is within respect to outside expert analysis by the Parks Master Plan to be located at Winslow, after carefully reviewing all viable parks and town properties throughout Westport,” Colabella adds.
Westport resident Mark Mathias says that, according to Planning & Zoning director Michelle Perillie, the P&Z can either keep the matter open or close it.
If they vote to approve — either that night or at a later meeting — the petitioners must submit an 8-24 Municipal Improvement Request, and Special Permit Site Plan, to the P&Z. The Parks & Recreation Department would also be involved.
Details including exact location, funding, design, and management of the space would still need to be proposed and approved.
Rendering of a possible “Dogport” at Winslow Park.
The 64th annual Westport PAL Chief Samuel Luciano Golf Tournament tees off August 31, at Longshore.
A major fundraiser, proceeds fund the organization’s scholarship program. To register, or join as a sponsor, click here.
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Speaking of the police and scholarships: Classic cars, custom vehicles, local vendors and community members come together this Sunday (August 9, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) — all in support of a great cause.
The 8th annual Charity Car show (148 East Avenue, Norwalk) benefits the Vincent Penna Scholarship Program for high school students. It honors the memory of the late deputy chief of the Westport Police Department.
Sunday’s event — hosted by the Italian American Police Society — includes a raffle with over $35,000 in prizes, donated by more than 100 sponsors. They include automotive parts and accessories, tools, gift certificates and specialty items.
Vincent Penna Jr.
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Speaking (still) of sports: TOPSoccer — the program for youngsters with physical or learning differences — returns for another season.
Blake Serotta — a rising sophomore player at Staples — leads the program, in conjunction with the Weston Soccer Club and Westport Soccer Association.
TOPSoccer is open to boys and girls in grades K-8. It runs Saturdays, 11;30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., from September 12 through November 7 at Morehouse Farm Park in Weston.
The program includes fun games, drills, and small-sided games. Each child is paired with a buddy, who stays with them on the field. High schoolers are welcome as volunteers and buddies.
Speaking yet again of sports: Congratulations to Northeast Elite Water Polo Club.
The Westport-based youth program won the 14U Boys Gold Division championship at the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics, the nation’s largest youth water polo tournament, in Dallas.
It was not easy. The team lost their first 3 tourney games, before rallying to win 5 straight. They finished with 74 goals in 8 matches, over 5 days.
Northeast Elite was founded in 2024 by Staples High School coach Danilo Sierra-Giraldo, and Kade Ramirez-Zimmerman. Winning players include Julian Urist, Alexander Vandenberg, Sagan Feder, Sascha Bowtell, Oliver Melnichok, Yash Mani Lorenzato, Calvin Jahansouz, Santos Infantino, Ben Scanlon, Cullen Shope, Aaron Bhuyan and Joshua Smith.
The curtain has fallen on the last show of the Westport Country Playhouse’s 2025-26 season.
But the stage is set for more entertainment.
“Cruel Summer” — a live band playing the music of Ariana Grande, Olivia Dean, Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and more — rocks the theater on Friday, August 28 (7 p.m.).
Taylor Swift will not be at the Westport Country Playhouse this month. But her music will be.
Westporter Peter Van Heerden took the helm of Pequot Library a little over 4 months ago.
But he’s already infused new energy into the 132-year-old institution, and forged community partnerships and collaborations.
One example: On September 10 (7 p.m.), Broadway legend and area resident James Naughton joins Mia Dillon, Jill Eikenberry and Michael Tucker for a reading of historic documents tied to the Declaration of Independence. A Q-and-A follows. Click here for details. and to register.
On September 25 (7 p.m.), Naughton and friends return for a Closing Exhibition Celebration featuring another reading, Q-and-A, and a live band performance. Tickets ($50 per person) support exhibition programming. Click here for details.
And on September 19, the Pequot’s benefit features the famed Paul Taylor Dance Company. Limited to 300 attendees, the event launches the library’s new Summer Stage plan to bring top-tier talent to the region. Tickets start at $100, and sponsorships are available. Click here for details.
Last winter, on a ski trip to Stowe, Sonam Sethi Tejpal’s family took a side trip to the nearby Ben & Jerry’s factory.
A random fact on an interactive quiz caught her eye: The company gets its chocolate fudge brownies — used in her favorite flavor — from Greyston Bakery in Yonkers. The New York firm provides jobs for people who were previously incarcerated.
There are no background checks, resume requirements or questions about convictions. Instead there is stable employment, for men and women who have great difficulty finding it.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about it,” Tejpal — who lived all over the world and ws a TV producer for the Discovery network, before settling in Westport 9 years ago with her children, now 10 and 7 — says.
She learned that the employment rate for people leaving incarceration is over 27% — nearly 5 times the national average.
It’s not for lack of will, Tejpal says. It’s a lack of open doors. Background checks, stigma and gaps in employment history shut people out before they even get a chance to prove themselves.
“I realized I wanted to do something like this. It became my north star.”
She’d already sponsored opportunities for girls in education, working with a teacher in her native India. She and her husband contributed to causes like the Red Cross and St. Jude’s.
“God has been very kind to us,” Tejpal says. “We always look for ways to give back.”
Now she wanted to do something closer to home.
Tejpal loves cooking. “Food is a love language,” she notes.
She enjoyed baking cakes and muffins for her children. After a friend made granola, she’d been inspired to make her own, and incorporate it into healthy snacks.
Sonam Sethi Tejpal’s granola.
Tejpal calls herself “a home baker.” But teaching previously incarcerated men and women how to bake — and working with them to sell it — seemed like something she could do.
It was not easy.
She found a shared commercial kitchen in Norwalk. She became a certified food handler by ServSafe, and can now certify others.
Tejpal contacted a staffing agency experienced with the post-prison population. She did not feel comfortable working with anyone who served time for murder with malicious intent, or a crime involving children or sex. But she would consider anyone else.
The agency offered a half dozen names. She interviewed 3.
Her first employee is a man in his late 40s, with a child and grandchild. A Fairfield County native, he “made bad choices,” she says. But he is “finding his way back to society.”
Tejpal’s Hope & Hearth Bakery has begun production. She’ll soon sell her products — chocolate pecan granola, chocolate chip muffins and cookies, chocolate granola and pretzel toffee bark — at the Wilton Farmers’ Market. (Westport’s vendors’ list is closed for this season.)
Chocolate granola bark.
She’s “a little bit nervous,” she admits. But she is also “excited and thrilled.”
“I’ve learned I can do hard things,” she says.
“I’ve been very fortunate. My life has been fairly easy so far. Now I’m starting from scratch. I did everything — the planning, the applications, all the rest — on my own. I’ve built this from the ground up.”
Tejpal believes “the measure of a person is not their worst moment, but their willingness to move forward.” To do that, she provides training, fair pay, and support.
Her daughter “is nervous for me,” Tejpal says. “I hope she and her friends see this as a good thing. I hope they understand that kindness is number one.
Tejpal’s goal is to “employ a lot of people, and bake lots of good food.” She offers “not temporary placement, not charity.” This is “real careers, real wages, and a real path forward.”
She mentions Homeboy Industries. The re-entry program for formerly incarcerated and gang-involved men and women provides job training, employment, legal services, mental health counseling, anger management and parenting classes, substance abuse support — even tattoo removal.
Hope & Hearth Bakery is just beginning. Right now, they just make and sell granola.
Tejpel hopes one day she can expand into areas like education and loans.
The 2 wines are prominently displayed at the front of Greens Farms Spirit Shop. With labels showing the Minute Man and Cribari Bridge — 2 of our town’s most recognizable landmarks — they could not be more local.
The grapes don’t come from a Westport vineyard. It’s not bottled here. Jim Boyrer, the store’s general manager, sources it from Italy.
But it’s Westport’s wine — and there’s a special town twist. Ten percent of the proceeds go to area non-profits, like Pink Aid and food pantries.
Boyrer calls the red and white “inexpensive, and fun.” Customers agree. He’s already reordered twice.
He’s considering a Westport Prosecco and rosé. Salute! (Hat tip: Howard Edelstein)
Jim Beyrer, with his Westport wines display. (Photo/Dan Woog)
One River Art + Design is highlighting the work of Michael Brennecke. His work is on exhibit through October 23.
The 1971 Staples High School graduate says: “A lifelong resident of Westport, I grew up here when you couldn’t throw a stone without hitting an artist’s studio.
“My uncle was a woodcarver and my cousin, a few years older than I, was a true prodigy and my personal hero.
“I began painting at 12, and was fascinated with seascapes. A little later I experimented with abstraction. I liked the way it was possible to elicit various and ambiguous impressions from a single composition.
“After high school I attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and received my BFA from Tufts University. My first 2 years there were strictly figurative, but I eventually returned to abstraction after being struck by a show of Antonio Tapies’ work. But It’s the work of Paul Klee and Jean Dubuffet that has most greatly influenced my ongoing exploration of color and texture.”
A reception will be held, at a date to be determined.
Today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature photo is well timed. Remember: The Westport Farmers’ Market is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Imperial Avenue parking lot. See you there!
And finally … in honor of Greens Farms Spirit Shop’s Westport wines (story above):
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A random fact on an interactive quiz caught her eye: The company 
