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Congratulations to the Staples High School boys and girls tennis teams! Both are state champions!
The boys of coach Kris Hrisovulos defeated Westhill 7-0 yesterday, clinching their 5th straight — yes, 5th (!) — state “LL” (extra large schools) championship. They finished the season 22-1, shutting out all 4 state tournament opponents. Their only loss was to Darien, in the FCIAC final.
Singles winners yesterday were Tighe Brunetti, Robbie Daus, Brandon Felcher and Lucas Haymes. Doubles victors were Bradley Sheppard/Luke Brodsky, Alex Miller/Jack Motyl, and Matthew Chiang/Josh Suggs.
The 2021 state champion boys tennis team.
The girls of coach Paco Fabian beat Amity 4-3, for their 3rd straight title. Jenna Kornbluth’s 6-4, 6-1 victory at #4 singles clinched the match, after everyone else had finished.
Other victors for Staples: Karenna Birns (singles) and Elle Tesoriero/Audrey Kercher, and Carine Geijerstam/Maya Farber (doubles).
The 2021 state champion girls tennis team (Photo courtesy of The Ruden Report)=======================================================
Work continued on Railroad Place this morning.
During repaving, all the restaurant structures were removed. That’s done, and now all 3 restaurants — Harvest, Tarantino’s and Romanacci will be open this weekend.
In related news, Romanacci has taken over the former Commuter Coffee location It’s now a full restaurant, with bar.
Outdoors or in, Railroad Place is the place to be. And with reduced train travel, there’s plenty of parking nearby!
(Photo/Matthew Mandell)
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Your kid may not be a career farmer. But Wakeman Town Farm’s 2-week summer service program for 6th through 9th graders is a great outdoor, hands-on opportunity to learn about the land. And become more self-reliant and independent in the process.
Participants plant, water and harvest vegetables to be donated to local food pantries. Representatives from those agencies visit WTF, and discuss food insecurity in the area.
Teens and chefs also cook a nutritious meal for the Gillespie Center, using the Farm’s organic produce. They also run their own farm stand.
Students get to know the rabbits, ducks, chicken, sheep, goats and alpacas. They learn about animal care, feeding and halter training.
The program also explores environmental topics like composting, pollinator gardens and the Zero Waste initiative.
There are 4 sessions, each 2 weeks long. For more information, click here. To register, click here.
Who can resist a summer program like this?
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Mark Mathias spotted this at Stop & Shop yesterday:
(Photo/Mark Mathias)
Actually, the photo shows something that is not there.
Look closely. The supermarket has removed all those one-way directional arrows, which no one has followed for at least the past 10 months (if they ever did).
Stop & Shop is not the only place getting back to the pre-pandemic normal. Trader Joe’s shoppers no longer have to queue up, and be directed to a cashier; we’re now free to find our own, just as we did before March 2020.
And the Westport Weston Family YMCA has removed the absurd red tape on the stairs, demarcating the up and down sides. The staircase is way too narrow to have any effect.
What have you seen? Click “Comments” below.
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Tomorrow’s “Songs for a Summer Evening: Music that Made Movies Magical” YouTube video benefits the Norwalk Sister City Project, a non-profit doing incredible community development work in a poor Nicaragua barrio.
But there’s a heavy Westport presence n the video. Broadway icon Kelli O’Hara, Staples Players stars Jamie Mann and Bridget Looby, and Emily Rabon Hall and her dad Bill Hall all join together to share the magic of music from the movies. Tom Kretsch is president of NSCP, and has worked with Bill Hall to create the video.
Click here for the link to the 7:30 video (and to donate), or click the link below:
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The Westport Library’s Summer Reading Challenge is underway.
The 5th annual program — designed for adults — includes 25 categories of books. After reading one, submit it on a special web page. Then track your progress on the leaderboard.
Chalk up those categories. NOTE: Each book can be used for only one category. Click here for details.
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Rae Suba’s family owns the Post Road storefront near Tiffany. She runs the Child’s Play occupational therapy center on the 2nd floor. Currently, the ground floor is vacant.
But now — just in time for tomorrow’s Pride rally, and at one of the most visible spots in town — she’s decorated it with rainbows.
She says, “It is my humble honor as a forever LGBTQIA+ ally to create this window display, in an effort to rise to the Westport Pride words: ‘Elevate. Educate. Empower.’
“These children, teens and adults deserve visibility, respect, hope, inspiration and kindness. Happy Pride Month Everyone! 🌈🌈LOVE WINS🌈🌈Compassion and empathy will save humanity. Namaste. 🙏🏼
“My clinic will always be a safe space for children, teens and young adults who are LGBTQIA+. Thank you to my family for letting me use the building display window.”
46 Main Street
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Around the corner on Jesup Green from Tiffany and Rae Suba’s rainbow storefront, Westport Book Shop has become one of Westport’s hottest destinations — and not just for used books.
Every month, a different artist is featured at the Drew Friedman Community Arts wall in the back. For June, the artist is Holly Hawthorn.
Her porcelain sculptures reflect her love of the ocean and beaches, and incorporate seashells gathered over many years of walks on beaches from Maine to Greece.
Holly is a sculptor, printmaker ceramic artist and former teacher. She studied art in the US, Italy and Greece.
The exhibit is open during the Book Shop’s business hours: Tuesdays through Fridays 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sundays noon to 5 p.m.
Holly Hawthorn, with her Westport Book Shop art.
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Speaking of art: George Billis Gallery hosts an opening reception on Friday, June 18 (146 Main Street, 4 to 7 p.m.).
New artists include Westport-based Jarvis Wilcox. The gallery says: “His lush still life paintings are poetic with much emotional connections stimulating the viewer. Wilcox brings delight and insight as he discovers seeing and then making his works of art.”
Also in the exhibit: watercolorists Derek Buckner Paul Pitsker, still life artist Julian Cardinal and ceramicist Alice Federico.
“Cherries with Silver Cup” (Jarvis WIlcox)
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Bill Taibe is branching out.
The owner of 3 very popular Westport restaurants — Don Memo, Kawa Ni and The Whelk — is opening a cafe in the new Norwalk Art Space (455 West Avenue). The breakfast and lunch menu includes flour water salt and Idylwild breads, Riverbank Farm kimchee, and barbecue smoked turkey.
Bill Taibe and staff at the Norwalk Art Space.
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Suzuki Music Schools is back to in-person learning. To celebrate, they’re hosting a free concert in the Colonial Green parking lot (246 Post Road East).
The program next Tuesday (June 8) includes great music — and food vendors.
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And finally … the Suzuki concert (above) sounds great. Hopefully, the young musicians will sound almost as good as this.
Loved the Joshua Bell concert. Thanks, Dan. Mary Condon
One of the highlights of my life was being in a front row seat to see him at Saugatuck Congregational Church a few years ago.