Roundup: Sister City, Soundview Survey, Raptor Food …

A software glitch deleted all emails sent to me yesterday (Friday), between 1 and 5 p.m. If you emailed me then for any reason, please send it along: 06880blog@gmail.com. Thank you!

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Last Sunday’s LymanAID event was a thank-you to Westporters. This winter, hundreds of residents donated $252,000 to our sister city in Ukraine. The money paid for building materials, generators, communications equipment, police and trash vehicles, bulletproof vests, meals and more for the town.

In addition to food, music and kids’ activities, LymanAID also featured opportunities to continue support our sister city.

Attendees did just that. Over $43,000 was raised. That brings Westport’s contributions to Lyman to nearly $300,000.

The funds — and the equipment and material delivered by Ukraine Aid International — is greatly appreciated. 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker and Police Chief Foti Koskinas visited Lyman this spring, and were thanked continually by residents and officials for Westport’s help.

(Donations are still welcome — and crucial. Click here to help. Under “Designation,” click the dropdown menu and select “Westport — Lyman Sister City.”)

Lyman Mayor Aleksander Zhuravlov spoke by video to LymanAID attendees on Sunday — just hours after his town was attacked by Russian artillery. Seven civilians were killed.

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Are you in favor of closing Soundview Drive to vehicles one or more times during the summer, for strolling, music, food, face painting — a street party, in other words?

Or do you think that’s a terrible idea?

Either way: “06880” wants your opinions.

Two days remain for our survey. It’s quick, easy — and important.

ll Westporters are encouraged to take the (anonymous) survey. One question asks where you live. Residents of the beach area are especially encouraged to respond.

Please click here to respond, before 11:59 p.m. Saturday.

Soundview Avenue (without vehicles) is a place to see, and be seen. But right now it’s only on Fireworks Day. (Photo/Diane Yormark)

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Westport Police made 5 custodial arrests between July 5 and 12.

Shoplifting at Ulta Beauty led to charges of organized retail theft, larceny and conspiracy to commit larceny against one woman.

A man who damaged 6 vehicles at the Saugatuck train station — including broken windshield wipers and side mirrors — was charged with criminal mischief.

A traffic stop initiated after an officer observed a vehicle without a license plate resulted in charges of operating an unregistered motor vehicle, improper use of markers, violation of readable plates, operating a motor vehicle without minimum insurance, operating a motor vehicle without a license, and resisting arrest/interfering with an officer.

After officers disabled a stolen vehicle with drop sticks, one of four youths was found to have brass knuckles. He was arrested for illegal possession of a weapon.

An arrest was made for disorderly conduct, following an investigation of a domestic violence incident.

The following citations were also issued:

Traveling unreasonably fast: 4 citations

• Speeding: 3
• Distracted driving: 3
• Failure to obey traffic control signals: 3
• Failure to comply with state traffic commission regulations: 3
• Failure to register a commercial vehicle: 3
• Operating a motor vehicle under suspension: 1

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A few years ago, Earthplace lost its longtime supplier of donated raptor food.

Now every year, they need to raise $24,000 to feed Artemis, Chatty, Marble and their friends who found a home there.

Several generous donors recently pledged to match up to $10,000. So between now and July 31, tax-deductible gifts are doubled.

Reaching that goal would feed all their raptors, for a year. Click here to donate.

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Speaking of birds: The other day, Johanna Keyser Rossi was walking behind the police station.

She heard a bird. Looking up, she spotted a fake owl on the top of a pole, with a nest next to it. “It didn’t seem to scare off this black bird,” she says.

The fake owl is in the center of the photo. The real bird is at top. (Photo/Johanna Keyser Rossi)

“There must be a story behind this fake owl,” she adds. “Maybe it discourages the osprey from nesting?”

Got an answer (or an idea)? Click “Comments” below.

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Speaking of wildlife: Westport has plenty of deer. It’s far better to see them here — as a “Westport … Naturally” feature — than eating your bushes or leaping out into the road.

Here is a fawn that recently claimed Jerry Kuyper’s yard as its own:

(Photo/Jerry Kuyper)

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And finally … today is the birthday of Woody Guthrie. He was born in 1912, and died just 55 years later, from Huntington’s disease. But in between he redefined American music, both artistically and politically.

In 1954, he wrote “Old Man Trump.” It describes the racist housing practices of his landlord, Fred Trump — Donald’s father.

I suppose
Old Man Trump knows
Just how much
Racial Hate
He stirred up
In the bloodpot of human hearts
When he drawed
That color line
Here at his Beach Haven family project.

Guthrie never recorded the song. But, according to Wikipedia, in January 2016 Will Kaufman, a Guthrie scholar and professor of American literature and culture, found the handwritten lyrics at the Woody Guthrie Archives in Tulsa.

(This land is your land. And this blog is your blog. But it needs your support! Please click here to donate. Thank you!)