Three couples — Jamie and Phil Rubin. Michelle Ahoubim and Greg Krieger, and
Richelle and Greg Kalnit — have organized a GoFundMe drive for a wonderful nanny and caregiver.
They write: “Our beloved Zenia Gordon, who has been a pillar of strength and love in our community for decades, is facing a profound health crisis.
“This past week, Zenia suffered a severe heart attack that required the insertion of 4 stents. However, the situation quickly escalated as doctors discovered multiple tears in her coronary artery, necessitating urgent airlifting to Hartford on July 19. Her condition is critical, and she is now preparing for what will likely be a complex and lengthy journey, which may include open heart surgery.
“Zenia’s impact on our lives, and the lives of many in our community, is immeasurable. Zenia has been a caregiver for our children. You may know her from Temple Israel, The Learning Community, Gan Izzy, various sports events. She was a pillar of stability during COVID, and has been a trusted caregiver for sick family members during difficult times. Zenia has been there for all of us. Her warmth, kindness and unwavering dedication have touched the lives of so many.”
The GoFundMe page seeks donations for medical and related expenses.
“Zenia is more than just a caregiver; she is family to many of us,” the 3 families write.
“Let’s rally together and show her the same love and support she has given to our community for years. Your contribution, no matter the size, will make a meaningful difference in Zenia’s journey toward recovery.”
Click here for the GoFundMe page.
Zenia Gordon and her husband Kollen.
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While the Gillespie Center is renovated, Homes with Hope has relocated its food pantry to Sasco Creek Village.
The Post Road East site works well. It’s bright and airy, easily accessible, and very welcoming.
It’s also diagonally across the street from Stop & Shop. The supermarket often hosts Westport Sunrise Rotary food drives.
The latest was yesterday. Shoppers gave generously yesterday, to support Homes with Hope’s pantry.
Volunteers collected non-perishable food and personal hygiene items. Donors also gave $690.10 in cash.
Sunrise Rotary — in coordination with the Westport Police Department and other volunteers — plan another drive this fall.
Sunrise Rotarians (from left) Katie Augustyn, Joe Renzulli, Charlie Haberstroh and Liz Wong, outside Stop & Shop yesterday.
Meanwhile, at the other entrance, Westport Police members joined Chief Foti Koskinas (2nd from left), Homes with Hope CEO Helen McAlinden (2nd from right), and other volunteers.
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Clarendon Fine Art — the very cool Main Street gallery — hosts a fun and informative event this Thursday (July 25, 4 to 6 p.m.).
Three speakers — Karen Frome of Rise Project, Jen Berniker of Designport, and Clarendon’s Eve Gianni — will talk about art as “an integral component to interior design.”
The subject matter is intriguing. There will be drinks and snacks. And of course, you’ll get to see the latest art hanging on the gallery walls.
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Upcoming events at MoCA CT:
Fairfield County Dance Festival (July 25, 6:30 p.m.).
MoCA Some Noise: Open Mic Night (Friday, July 26; 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.). Acoustic music, poetry, and slam poetry. Everyone is invited to participate.
The Artisan Marketplace Summer Series (Sunday, July 28; noon to 4 p.m.). A great place to support the talent and creativity of local artisans
Artisan Workshop Series and art classes:
- Ceramic Multi-Bowls, with Leah Corbett (August 2, 9)
- Faces in Clay, with Bianca Barroca (August 2, 9)Thursdays (5:45 to 7:15 p.m.):
- Sunset Plein Air (BYOB)
- Summer Toddler Tuesdays
- Summer Toddler Thursdays
- Summer Art Workshops for Kids (Ages 8-12; Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays)
- Candle Making with Oh D’Luxe Candle Company (September 25, October 16; 6 to 8 p.m.).
Charles Ives Music Festival Presents: “INFINITE,” performed by the CIMF artists & guest musicians (August 6, 7 to 9 p.m.).
Family Day Featuring Oran Etkin: Timbalooloo (August 18; noon to 2 p.m.); jazz performance (and an ice cream truck).
Click here for more information.
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Dogs are not allowed on Compo Beach, from now through October 1.
But these 2 canines seem to be figuring out a way to get around the ban — while, meanwhile, posing for today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature.
(Photo/Theresa Anovick)
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And finally … On this date in 1861, the First Battle of Bull Run — the first major battle of the Civil War — began. It was a victory for the Confederate army.
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The mention of the First Battle of Bull Run reminded me of the research I did on my great-great grandfather who I discovered was injured in that battle.
Many years ago, we visited several Civil War battlefields. On one visit, we had a very helpful guide who kindled my interest to research my great-great grandfather’s military service.
I eventually discovered that he had been injured during the early stages of the Battle of Bull Run. Below is the text of an email I sent to a cousin who is a history teacher so she could share the details of my research (that began at the Pequot Library) with her class:
“… the battlefield guide asked if we had any particular interest in units that had fought. We indicated no particular interest, but I mentioned that I believed my great-great grandfather who was from Maine had been in the Civil War.
That question triggered my interest. When we got back to the visitors center, I purchased a short book on how to research your Civil War ancestors, and the hunt was on. I read that short book in its entirety that night in the hotel before I went to bed.
I then sent an inquiry letter to the archives in Maine as soon as I got home. The response came back within days with details of his enlistment and unit. With the name of the unit, I was able to go to the Pequot Library (in neighboring Southport) and find the unit’s history and published reports from the Adjutant General of the State of Maine that listed the names and duty status of each individual for each year of the war. I found his unit and his name and learned that he was not fit for duty after the First Battle of Bull Run and then discharged.
I then sent to the National Archives to get his records. There are four separate sets of files—personnel, medical, disability pension, and court martial. I asked for them all. They got back to to me that there were no court martial records but that there were the three others and the per page cost amounted to about $35.00, so I sent them a check and soon after photocopies of mostly legible records arrived. I was fascinated.
I will summarize my findings below to assist you in setting the stage for introducing the documents to your class:
Alvin Grant joined the Second Maine Infantry Regiment in Bangor, Maine twelve days after the firing on Fort Sumpter. That regiment was part of the immediate response to President Lincoln’s initial request for 80,000 troops to defend the Capitol. The regiment went from Bangor, Maine to Willets Point, New York (now the site of deactivated Fort Totten on the Queens side of the East River in New York City) where it was mustered into Federal service. From there, the regiment went by train to Baltimore where the troops disembarked because of Rebel rail sabotage, and they marched to Washington, DC with fixed bayonets.
The first night in Washington, the regiment bivouacked on the front lawn of the White House. The next day, the regiment passed in review at the White House for President Lincoln. From there, the troops moved to Meridian Hill (now an urban park) in Washington, DC. The Second Maine was the first unit from Maine to respond to Lincoln’s call for troops as well as the first unit from Maine to experience combat. There was a First Maine Infantry Regiment, but its deployment was delayed due to a widespread flu epidemic. The Second Maine’s unit’s motto became “Second to None.” (A book published about the regiment that I tried to buy but could only get to borrow from the Westport Library on inter-library loan is titled, Second to None, a History of the Second Maine Infantry Regiment.)
Alvin Grant was unusually tall for his time at six feet, two inches. Perhaps because of that and being in good shape as would be a farmer from Maine, he was designated as a “pioneer.” From what I can gather, pioneer troops in the civil war were a cross between a reconnaissance patrol and a combat engineer detachment. In any event, he and another soldier named Brown, along with other pioneer troops, were sent ahead on the morning of what was to be the First Battle of Bull Run (or the First Battle of Manassas from the Rebel viewpoint) to clear Centerville Road of trees that the Rebel troops had felled as obstacles to prevent the passage of Union ammunition and supply wagons along the road.
As the first hand reports in his medical and pension files state, he and Brown were moving a log when a Rebel sniper shot at them. When the shot rang out, neither Brown nor Grant was hit but Brown dropped his end of the log and Grant was pinned beneath the log. Grant was freed from under the log but, due to his back injuries, he was put cross-saddle on a horse and rushed to the Grand Hotel in Georgetown which had been designated as the evacuation hospital for the first major battle of the Civil War. He must have been one of the first patients to arrive there—with a back injury. While I am sure he received good attention upon his arrival, the tide of battle that day did not go well for Union troops, and I am sure a back injury received far less and less attention as soldiers with bullet holes and much worse from the actual battle arrived later in the day.
He was eventually returned to his unit, and the regiment spent rest of the year and the next Winter camped in the Alexandria, Virginia countryside. I found a picture of the entire regiment taken on Christmas Day in a book of Civil War photos. He was eventually given a medical discharge the following February.
Several years after the war, he applied for a disability pension due to his back injury and how it interfered with his ability to do farming or factory work for prolonged periods. The file reads like a comedy of errors on the part of the government. The initial application required the submission of actual documents, and it seems the government lost or misplaced some of the originals. (This gave me a greater appreciation of photocopies and pdf copies we now have of everything.)
Then there are certifications to his service from commanding officers, etc., and then there is a lengthy discussion and evaluation of his medical condition, and finally a determination of his qualification for a pension that gets misplaced. Finally, all the documents are located, the pension is approved, but by that time, he had died (at 42). He never received a pension, but his two minor daughters received survivor benefits for a few years until they were eighteen. Our great-grandfather was their trustee as he was by then an adult.”
Great service 🇺🇸🇺🇸