If you made a new year’s resolution to get a better handle on your child’s relationship with social media — or even if you didn’t — you might be interested in a special Westport Together/Westport Public Schools meeting this month.
Max Stossel — the founder of Social Awakening, an organization that helps young people survive and thrive in today’s world — will talk about “Social Media & Your Kids.” The event is January 29 (7 p.m., Bedford Middle School).
Stossel has extensive social media experience. He ran social media for big brands, and worked for a social media company.
Over the past 10 years he has addressed more than a million students, parents and educators about social media’s impact on our lives, and has developed resources to manage that impact.
Click here to register.
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Just in time for the cold, the Gillespie Center has reopened its doors.
The homeless shelter for 15 men — along with 5-bed Hoskins Place, for women — recently concluded a 7-month renovation.
Homes with Hope’s safe, comfortable place has already welcomed residents who had been sleeping in the train station, in cars and trucks, and at other HwH facilities.
The Westport Rotary Club will provide tonight’s meal. There’s a ribbon-cutting and celebration for the newly designed kitchen too.
For a “tour” of the facility — including bedrooms, meeting rooms, the food pantry, kitchen and more, click below.
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From 3,000 miles away, Westporters have watched with despair as fires ravage Los Angeles.
Nearly everyone here knows someone in Southern California. Many residents wonder what they can do.
“06880” reader Anne Levine suggests a donation to AmeriCares. It’s the first choice for she and her husband Bob whenever a disaster strikes anywhere in the world, she says.
“It is a really well run organization, doing good things everywhere — andoften overlooked,” she adds.
Click here for the AmeriCares website.
Altadena, California (Photo/Philip Cheung for the New York Times)
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Westport Volunteer Emergency Medical Service’s 2 new ambulances will be delivered this summer.
Both are being customized in New Jersey to meet Westport’s needs, on roads and highways, and at schools, homes, businesses, beaches and parks.
Customization includes “every eflective stripe, emergency light, siren, horn and door.”
The previous Type II Chevrolet chassis will be changed to a medium-duty Freightliner chassis. It is stronger, and will last longer, WVEMS says.
The ambulances are purchased entirely through donations from local organizations and private citizens. WVEMS presidennt Jaime Bairaktaris says, “the tradition of grassroots philanthropy has sustained our town’s EMS since 1979, and we’re honored that it continues through today.
Donations to WVEMS — for ambulances, and all other expenses — are always welcome. Click here for more information.
Artist’s rendering of a new Westport ambulance.
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1st Class Detective Phil Restieri — a 32-year Westport police officer, with 26 years in the Emergency Medical Service — officially retired yesterday.
He started his career in Westport as a special officer in 1993, becoming a full time patrolman in 1996. He became a detective in 2021.
Congratulations, Detective Restieri, on your retirement. Thank you for your service!
Officer Phil Restieri (right), and his grandfather Nick, back in the day.
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Speaking of police: Westport officers made 1 custodial arrest between January 1 and 8.
A 21-year-old Bridgeport man was charged with illegal possession of personal ID information, identity theft, and conspiracy to commit both crimes, after an investigation that began with an armed hijacking in Bridgeport last September.
A week later the stolen vehicle was recovered after crashing into a Wilton police officer. Two occupants of the vehicle fled, but were later arrested.
Westport Police were notifed by Bridgeport police that checks belonging to WEstporters had been seized. The suspect was arrested, and held on $75,000 bond.
Westport Police also issued these citations:
- Traveling unreasonably fast: 14 citations
- Operating a motor vehicle under suspension: 3
- Speeding over 70 mph: 1
- Cellphone use, 2nd offense: 1
- Following too closely: 1
- Improper turn: 1
- Operating a motor vehicle without a license: 1
- Failure to renew registration: 1
- Failure to obey traffic control signals: 1
- Failure to comply with state traffic commission regulations: 1
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Although Unitarianism and Universalism both have origins as liberal Christian traditions, they embrace diverse teachings from different global religions and philosophies.
It’s fitting, then, that the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport sponsors a “Crossing Paths” program.
It offers youngsters in grades 5-8 a chance to learn about and experience different faiths, such as Judaism, Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Quakerism, Paganism, and Indigenous beliefs.
The program includes field trips to other houses of worship.
Meetings are Friday evenings or Saturdays, depending on where they are vising. The program begins January 26, and is free. Caregivers and parents are welcome to join in field trips.
For more information, email angi@uuwestport.org.
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Lynsey Addario has done it again.
The 1991 Staples High School graduate — and Pulitzer Prize-, MacArthur “genius grant”-winning New York Times photojournalist and writer — is featured in last Sunday’s Times Magazine.
“Living or Dead, We Want Our Sons Back” is her photo and text look at women in Syria, as they “pick up the pieces of a broken nation.” Click here to see, and read.
(Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)
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It’s hard enough writing a book, screenplay, or any other work.
Then you’ve got to get it published.
Westport Writers’ Workshop can help. Their 4th annual Pitch & Publish Conference takes place March 22 (Westport Library).
The event is aimed at writers seeking a literary agent, seeking education about the industry at large, or looking to meet and be inspired by authors, agents and editors.
The conference includes a Friday night (March 21, 7-9 p.m.) welcome party for all participants at WWW (25 Sylvan Road), plus Saturday’s panels, 1-on1 pitches, book signings, lunch and wrap party.
New sessions this year are “Crowd Source Your Comps on Zoom” and “Adapting Your Prose into a Screenplay.”
Individual tickets are $350 each (walk-ins accepted); tickets for the conference plus two, one-on-one pitches with literary agents are $600 each (early bird discount of $75 if registered by February 3), $675 each thereafter.
Click here for registration, and more information.
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Bob Weingarten notes, “the town redid the sidewalks on both Morningside Drive South and Hillandale Road.
“They also modernized the sidewalk by providing ramps at each intersection. I compliment the town for providing these ramps, which allow disabled people to better navigate the crossings. Thanks to the town planners.”
Morningside Drive South, at Hillandale Road. (Photo/Bob Weingarten)
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Fires in California. A deep freeze across much of the Midwest.
But here — as today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo of Grace Salmon Park shows — it’s just a regular, cold and beautiful winter day.
(Photo/Patricia McMahon)
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And finally … Happy 84th birthday to Joan Baez.
BTW: If you haven’t yet seen “A Complete Unknown” — the biopic about Bob Dylan’s early Greenwich Village years, including his tempestuous relationship with Baez — be sure not to miss it.
Like so many others, I went with low expectations. And like so many others, I was very impressed.
(Another day, another “06880” Roundup filled with news you can use. Another day too when we remind you: We rely on reader support. Click here to contribute to your hyper-local blog. Thanks!)
Congrats to Phil! AKA as the “The Colonel” lol. Great career. BTW he was promoted to detective way before 2021..
So just crunching the numbers, that’s 25 tickets per week, or 3.5 tickets per day. How much do we spend on police officers again? What’s that work out to for a per-ticket cost? $100? $500? And since the police aren’t doing much, what else is the Tooker/Moore administration doing to address traffic safety issues?
Heck, last week it was 8! I repeat 8…I know that I will catch flak for this but if every patrol officer wrote one mover per shift, that would equal about approx. 20 tickets a day give or take. I realize that there are occasionally exceptional circumstances where guys are tied up for long periods.But that would equate to 140 a week. Hell cut it in half and that would still be at least some progress. Fairfield PD has a FB page where they list all arrests weekly. Breaking down criminal and mv arrests, even by age. As I have said before if you have no enforcement you will have no compliance.
I have been told that the revenue from any speeding tickets goes to the State so not much incentive. But the officers hang out at the Exxon Station at night and you drive by in a beat up car with the muffler hanging off, they are on you like a flea on a dog. Speeding? Nah, one officer told me resident dumping in the commercial dumpsters is “a big priority and problem.” WTF?
Congratulations to Detective Phil Restieri on a great career of service to Westport. All the best for your future endeavors
Today I helped a friend clear out his recently deceased mom’s apartment. She had a huge bakers rack in her kitchen of canned goods, containers of soups and broth, tuna, bags of dried beans and rice, to name a few. He said- “what am I going to do with all of this food?” We put everything in small crates and filled up my trunk. I brought them to the Gillespie Center today- they were so gracious and thankful-delivery was easy as there’s a dumb waiter and we loaded it up! So happy to give it to those in need.
Phill you will be missed by the Town of Westport I am glad to no you you will do good things I hope you stay In Westprt I will see you. Soon