On the exact (to the day) 100th anniversary of their founding, the Westport Rotary Club celebrated with a gala dinner last night, at the Inn at Longshore.
Rotarians from near and far, town officials and friends honored the club’s long and storied history, from the early days (largely, but not always, strait-laced), to the easing of membership rules and the admission of women, to the current strong and generous nature of the club.
(Everyone received a book by Ron Henkoff chronicling Westport Rotary’s first 100 years, too. Click here for details.)
Videos and slides showed the enormous, multi-million dollar impact Westport Rotary has had on Westport, and the world.
As the next 100 years begin, the Westport Rotary Club prepares for its centennial gift: lead sponsor of the renovation of the Compo Beach playground.
Congratulations to all who made last night (and the reason for the celebration) possible. Special shout-outs go to longtime Rotary organizer and advocate Rick Benson, and last night’s MC, former president Jeff Wieser. Well done, all!
Twenty Westport Rotary Club presidents — representing exactly 1/5 of the club’s 100-year history — gathered for a photo at last night’s celebration. The oldest living former president (1968), George Damman, sent video greetings from Florida.
MC (and former president) Jeff Wieser models 100-year glasses. (Photos/John Videler for Videler Photography)
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The Long Lots School Building Committee posted this update yesterday:
The deadline for submission of Request for Proposals/Quotes qualification statements from interested construction managers and architects was February 22.
The committee met on March 5 to discuss the submissions. They agreed on which respondents would be invited to submit proposals and be interviewed by the LLSBC.
Each of the selected firms will be contacted this week. The interview process is expected to be completed over the next 2 weeks. The goal is to select a construction manager and architect by the end of the month.
The design phase can then begin.
The Long Lots School Building Committee is moving forward to select a construction manager and architect for the project.
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On Wednesday, Ukraine Aid International — the non-profit founded by Westporters Brian and Marshall Mayer, which organizes and delivers aid to residents and first responders — hosted a roundtable for officials and volunteers in Fairfield County towns that have sister city relationships with that war-torn nation.
Westport — whose sister city, Lyman, was UAI’s first such project — was well represented. Police Chief Foti Koskinas described his trip there last year, and emphasized the importance of his ongoing relationships with his counterparts in the Donetsk region.
Just hours earlier, he said, he had been texting with the Lyman police chief. The Ukrainian chief — who says often that Westport’s support inspires everyone in his town — proudly wears with a Westport Police Department patch.
Lyman police chief, with the Westport Police logo.
But the star of the event, held at the Ukrainian-American Club in Southport, was 4-month-old Archie Wauchope.
The son of Staples High School graduate Clyde Wauchope and his wife Katya, UAI’s director of development, he wore a bib that said — in Cyrillic letters — “Slava Ukraini! Slava Archie!”
In other words: “Glory to Ukraine! Glory to Archie!”
Archie Wauchope, his bib and his parents.
To learn more about Ukraine Aid International, and donate to Westport’s sister city Lyman, click here.
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As the Norwalk Transit District — which oversees the Westport Transit District — “re-envisions” bus service here, they invite Westport residents to a meeting March 12 (7 p.m., Town Hall auditorium).
The charrette-session format will include remarks from Transit District officials, then a chance for attendees to give feedback on improvements they’d like to see.
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“Supper & Soul” returns April 20.
The unique Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce Saturday night entertainment — dinner at one of 12 downtown restaurants, then a dance party with 8-piece funk and soul band West End Blend at the Westport Library — followed by post-concert happy hour pricing for drinks at any of the 12 participating restaurants (Arezzo, Basso, Capuli, Casa Me, Don Memo, Emmy Squared, Goji, Il Pastaficio, Mexicue, Nômade, Spotted Horse and Walrus Alley.
Tickets ($87) include the concert, dinner, tax and tip (drinks are not included). Tickets for the concert only are $35. Click here to buy, and for more information.
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Aargh!
There was another confusing date in yesterday’s item about beach emblem sales. Here is the re-corrected info. “06880” apologizes for the confusion:
Beach parking emblems go on sale online, and in the Westport Parks & Recreation Department office, at 9 a.m. next Monday (March 11) for Westport and Weston residents. The number of sales to Westport and Weston residents is not limited, and they are not required until May 1.
Sales of emblems to people not living in Westport or Weston begin online, and in the Parks & Rec office, at 9 a.m. next Wednesday (March 13). A limit of 450 will be sold.
If you have purchased emblems or registered for Parks & Rec programs in prior seasons, you already have an online account established. Click here to log into your account. Then choose memberships; in the search box, type “Resident.” This brings all Westport resident vehicle packages to the top page. Weston residents should type “Weston” in search box.
After verification (Parks & Rec may request a copy of your current registration, or updated proof of residency), online purchases will be mailed to you. It may take 14-21 days.
Office hours are weekdays, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Questions? Email recreation@westportct.gov.
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It was a madhouse — but fun — Wednesday evening, in the Staples fieldhouse.
Over 70 Westport Little League boys and girls practiced skills and did drills with the big Wrecker players.
Coach Jack McFarland and the Diamond Club oversaw the event. It was a grand slam!
This is the closest they got to “posing” for a photo at the Staples baseball event. (Hat tip and photo/Stacie Curran)
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When I say “boxing,” odds are you do not think “Westport Country Playhouse.” Or “The Westport Woman’s Club.”
But the 3 very different worlds meet on April 6. Rich Dean Boxing will present “Gloves For Good,” a night of boxing to support the WWC.
It’s a first-ever USA Boxing-sanctioned event, with boxers from Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
The evening includes 10-plus bouts of boxing, live music, a silent auction, and a VIP dinner and drink service courtesy of Gabriele’s Steakhouse.
Click here for tickets, and more information. (Hat tip: Ross Levin)
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Longtime Westport resident Phyllis Markoff died Tuesday. From 1982-88, she served proudly as president of Temple Israel.
She is survived by her children John (Laurie), Cathy (Jim Bessent), Janet and Nancy (Jeffrey Burt); grandchildren Alisa (Andy), Bill (Anita), Briana, Lily, Jack (Hanna Wallace), Kane (Lana Holley) and Blaze, and great-grandchildren Aaron, Alec, Sophia, Lydia, Isabella and Axel. She was predeceased by her husband Del.
The family will hold a private memorial service next month.
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Today is International Women’s Day. In its honor, Westport-based non-profit Nest Egg Foundation is sponsoring a free online chat about women’s health and reproductive care (including in vitro fertilization).
The event begins at 3 p.m. today (March 8). Click here for the Zoom link.
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We see deer all the time. (And our “Westport … Naturally” feature includes lots of them.)
It’s far rarer to see an albino deer — even a partial albino, like the one Molly Alger spotted on Whitney Street.
(Photo/Molly Alger)
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And finally … in honor of the inaugural boxing exhibition taking place next month at the Westport Country Playhouse (story above):
(“06880” is your one-stop spot for news about beach stickers, buses, boxing, and much much more. Please click here to support this hyper-local blog. Thank you!)
This is in reference to the posting by LLSBC. The state mandated process was to request pricing from selected firms not just conduct interviews. Selecting only two firms to propose on over 8-million-dollar fee for construction management and only 3 for designers for similar fee doesn’t appear to be very quality and price conscious approach. Unless you have already selected your firms prior to issuing the RFQs and are simply going through the motions, then it all makes sense. Spoiler alert. No need to wait 2 weeks. The selected firms will be Svigals for design and Newfield Construction for Construction Management. Same teams that were targeted for selection since day 1.
regarding our sister city Lyman. Has our contacts in Lyman been asked about the stall of USA fundings to Ukraine ?
It is wonderful to see that the Rotary Club is supporting the renovation of the Compo Beach playground. Forty-or-so years ago, when the playground was originally proposed, there was an enormous kerfluffel in Westport. Children learned a song – “We need a playground,” but those against it had several arguments — busloads of kids from (gasp) Bridgeport would be brought in to use it; the wood would be treated with arsenic, which would poison the children; and worst of all, it would spoil the view!
Even though my kids were grown, I volunteered to work on the project for the week. I never had so much fun. I met so many new and interesting people. And it cemented my love of Westport, where I had moved a couple of years earlier. I’m so glad to see it has survived and grown.
Another argument against it: Teenagers would hang out there, drinking and having sex.
Almost from the moment it opened, it became a town jewel. And everyone who was originally posed soon showed it off to visitors, and took their kids (or grandkids) there.