Roundup: Youth Sports For Parents, Staples Hoops, Power Outages …

As pressure mounts on young athletes to be more competitive than ever, Sebastian Little says: Enough!

The leadership coach — who works with clients in MLB, the NBA and NHL, and is in his 3rd year as Yale University football’s performance coach — will speak on a Westport Public Schools and Westport Together panel called “For the Love of the Game: How Parents Can Promote Successful Athletes on and Off the Field.”

The session — for parents and coaches — will offer insights and strategies into “balancing competition with compassion and growth with enjoyment.”

The event is on Tuesday, March 5 (7 p.m., Bedford Middle School auditorium). Click here to register.

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Speaking of sports: The Staples boys basketball team is in the FCIAC (league) final for the 2nd time in 2 years tonight.

The #4-seed Wreckers — fresh off Tuesday’s huge upset over #1 Ridgefield — are playing for the championship for the 2nd straight year. Tip-off is 7 p.m. at Wilton High, against Trumbull.

Staples fell to Danbury in last year’s title match (and then went on a great run, to the state Division II final).

But it’s been a while since the Westporters last won the FCIAC crown. 61 years, in fact. Their first — and only — league championship came in 1963.

Charlie Scott — Staples’ talented senior video producer/WWPT-FM announcer — has created another superb pump-up video. Click below to see:

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Last night’s winds knocked out power in a few areas of Westport and Weston.

Trees and wires were down at 15 Partrick Road, 119 Hillandale Road and 30 Prospect Road.

Outages affected the Greens Farms and Wilton Road neighborhoods.

At 8:30 a.m., 78 Westport customers (0.61%) were without power. There were 105 outages (2.66%) in Weston. The total number statewide was 3,399 (0.26%).

Wires down at South Morningside Drive and Hillandale Road. At 8:30 a.m., crews were on the scene. (Photo/Bob Weingarten)

 

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Dara Horn forcefully addressed the recent rise of antisemitism last night, at Chabad of Westport.

Dara Horn — author of “People Love Dead Jews” — headlined the event, part of Chabad’s Critical Conversations series. Nearly 200 people attended.

“People ask: Are Jews a race, a religion, or a nationality? she said.

“Jews existed before these structures existed. What is clear is Jewish civilization is indigenous to the land of Israel. It’s not a political statement. It’s fact.

“People want to erase Jewish culture, but instead that is exactly what needs to be explained and taught to ensure its survival.”

Dara Horn, at Chabad of Westport. (Photo and hat tip/Matthew Mandell)

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Her fans know here as Jean Louisa Kelly. Her Westport neighbors and friends call her Jean Pitaro.

Whatever name she goes by, Jean is featured at the Westport Country Playhouse’s first Mic in Hand of 2024. She takes the stage April 4 (7 p.m.).

Jean’s stage and screen credits include the original Broadway cast of “Into the Woods,: and the movies “Mr. Holland’s Opus,”  “Uncle Buck” and “Top Gun: Maverick.”

Her uplifting show will be a journey through her life in and out of show business, with songs from “Gypsy,” “The Fantasticks,” “Next to Normal” and “Company.”

All tickets are $40. Click here to purchase, and learn more. Proceeds benefit education programming at the Playhouse.

Also new at the Playhouse: the first Barnstormer event.

It’s “Ann Talman: Elizabeth Taylor and the Shadow of Her Smile” (April 21, 7 p.m.).

Broadway veteran Talman portrayed Taylor’s daughter on Broadway in “The Little Foxes,” beginning a lifelong friendship.

This show is an evening of story and song about Ann and Elizabeth’s bond.

All tickets are $20. Click here to purchase, and learn more.

Jean Louisa Kelly Pitaro

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The Y’s Women’s newest group sure gets around.

Called “Jewels of Westport,” they visit the hidden — or at least lesser-known — gems of our town.

On Tuesday they toured Westport Public Art Collections’ Town Hall display.

Overall, WestPAC’s collection includes over 2,000 artistic treasures. Many are in schools, where they are enjoyed by students and staff, yet often unseen by the public.

But how many of us walk by all the art on the Town Hall walls, without giving it a second glance?

The Y’s Women Town Hall tour was led by WestPAC co-president Anne Boberski. It was “eye-opening,” for sure.

Anne Boberski leads the Y’s Women Westport Permanent Art Collections tour in Town Hall.

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Westport Police made 6 custodial arrests between February 21 and 28.

One — reported earlier — was for larceny, in connection with the theft of 5 Israel flag yard signs in December.

One was for larceny, illegal use of a credit card, identity theft, criminal impersonation and forgery, following a February 7 complaint that a mailed check was stolen, altered from $830 to $18,300 and deposited.

A woman was arrested for criminal attempt at larceny, identity theft and forgery, after a complaint in April 2022 that a check had been stolen from a US Postal Service box on Myrtle Avenue, altered from $250 to $4,300, and attempted to be cashed.

Another woman was arrested for criminal attempt at larceny, larceny and identity theft, following a complaint in January that a check had been stolen, altered and cashed.

A man was arrested after he and a juvenile shoplifted $492 worth of groceries from Stop & Shop. They were found with the bags at the HomeGoods bus stop. The man was charged with larceny, criminal impersonation and failure to appear. The juvenile was issued a summons and released.

One woman was arrested for failure to appear.

Police also issued these citations:

• Operating a motor vehicle under suspension: 5 citations
• Operating an unregistered motor vehicle: 3
• Failure to obey traffic control signals: 3
• Traveling unreasonably fast: 2
• Operating a motor vehicle without minimum insurance: 2
• Speeding: 1
• Driving while texting: 1
• Improper turn: 1
• Failure to drive in the proper lane: 1
• Failure to grant right of way: 1
• Failure to obey stop sign: 1
• Failure to renew registration: 1
• Failure to return plates: 1
• Improper use of markers: 1

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Kicking + Screening is a film festival dedicated solely to soccer. (Now do you get the clever name?)

It returns next month for its 15th year in New York. But it’s very much a Westport production.

Current Westport resident Rachel Markus co-founded Kicking + Screening in 2009, with former professional player Greg Lalas.

Always an avid fan (and a ruthless striker), Rachel studied film at New York University. She has worked in the film industry for over 2 decades.

The other local connection: This year’s festival will be held at Football Cafe, the Lower East Side “soccer cultural center” founded by Kyle Martino.

He’s the 1999 Staples graduate — and former Gatorade National High School Player of the Year, MLS Rookie of the Year, US men’s national team player and NBC Sports Premier League broadcaster. Kyle is now a soccer analyst with Warner Brothers Discovery Sports.

The 2024 festival lineup — 11 features and shorts, plus panels, special guests and more from March 14 to 16 — includes Eric Cantona’s Manchester United biography, “The United Way.” Click here for more information, and tickets.

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Norwalk Hospital — once independent, now part of Nuvance Health — may soon become part of a larger group.

Nuvance — owner of 4 Connecticut hospitals, and 3 in New York — plans to merge with Northwell Health. They are New York State’s largest healthcare provider and private employer, with more than 81,000 employees.

Together, the companies will own 28 hospitals, and more than 1,000 other care sites.

Click here for the full story, from CT Mirror.

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In 2019, Ruth Sherman was an “06880” Unsung Hero of the Week.

At 79 years old, she had just returned from a 100-mile spiritual trek in Spain.

We hailed her for her civic work — teaching exercise and fitness at the Westport Weston Family Y, Senior Center and Arthritis Foundation family aquatics program.

We noted that every day for 50 years — in all kinds of weather — Ruth walked from Hillspoint Road to the top of Compo Hill.

She’s now in her mid-80s. And she’s still walking.

Tammy Barry spotted her yesterday. The weather was meh, but there was Ruth, getting in her (many) steps.

Tammy writes: “Ruth walks in rainy, snowy, and sunny weather. What a beautiful woman, on the inside and out!

“She is an inspiration and role model for us all. She told me she wakes up every day and never has a complaint— it’s not allowed. Keep on moving and grooving. Ruth!”

Tammy sent a great photo too.

So — apropos of nothing, and everything — here’s another “06880” to the indefatigable, wonderful Ruth Sherman!

Ruth Sherman (of course!) (Photo/Tammy Barry)

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Today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo is a rare (for this feature) night image.

On Tuesday, Matt Murray shot the Snow Moon over the Sherwood Mill Pond.

It’s called that because, according to some Native American cultures, the February full moon often coincided with heavy snowfall.

Of course, that was before climate change.

(Photo/Matt Murray)

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And finally … do you know how hard it is to find a leap year song?!

I’ve spent my February 29 searching the internet. This will have to do.

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