All day Sunday, the Compo Beach exit road was closed to traffic. Kids enjoyed games, face painting, a balloon artist and more. Adults ambled, greeting old friends and making new ones.
Bands played. Old Mill Deli provided pizza and gelato. The vibe was Venice (California).
It’s back! This year’s 2nd annual Soundview Summer Stroll is July 27. There’s an extra hour: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Like last year, it’s a gift to the town from “06880” and the Compo Beach Improvement Association.
If you saw a bunch of teenage boys picking up trash, weeding or doing other work this weekend, they were SLOBs.
As in: Staples Service League of Boys.
Every April, the high schoolers fan out around town, for their Earth Day Service Weekend.
That’s in addition to all the other work they do, all year long, for non-profits and other organizations.
The group below worked with the Westport Downtown Association, to help clean up Parker Harding Plaza.
(Photo/Lee Shufro)
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Also yesterday: VFW Post 399 commemorated its 105th anniversary, celebrating over a century of support to veterans and community.
Established on April 27, 1920, by 11 World War I veterans, the Joseph J. Clinton Veterans of Foreign War post has served Westport’s veteran community ever since.
Private Clinton was a Westporter who gave his life in France on November 7, 1918, just 4 days before the armistice.
“For 105 years, our Post has been more than a gathering place — it’s been a family,” says quartermaster, Phil Delgado.
“We honor Private Clinton’s sacrifice by serving today’s veterans, strengthening community ties, and preserving the memory of those who paved the way for our freedoms.”
VFW Post 399 hosts many events, from Memorial Day ceremonies to monthly community blood drives, plus Jazz at the Post every Thursday. It also partners with nonprofits to advance veterans’ causes.
Celebrating 105 years (from left): Al Strazza, Frank Veno, Phil Delgado, Dennis Rohrmoser.
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Jonathan Grayer has spent his career in education.
As CEO of Kaplan, the 1982 Staples High School and ’86 Harvard University graduate turned the test prep company into the 2nd largest online education provider in the world.
He retired in 2008, then started Imagine Learning. He now serves as CEO. Its digital curriculums make enormous differences in some of the largest and neediest public school districts in America.
Grayer is a philanthropist too. His main passions are cancer research and post-secondary schooling. His Kaplan Educational Foundation — “Rhodes Scholars for Community Colleges” — sends students from 2-year schools to Ivy League and other top universities.
But Grayer has not forgotten his Westport roots. And he knows that in this affluent community, plenty of families cannot afford the enormous (and skyrocketing) cost of college.
In 2022 he jump-started a Staples Tuition Grants award, from the Class of 1982. It’s become a shining example of how SHS alums can give back to their school and community, long after they graduated.
To learn more about Staples Tuition Grants — and/or contribute — click here.
To watch an interview of Grayer, at the ASU+GSV summit — where over 10,000 educators, workforce leaders and innovators discussed the future education (and how to ensure access to it) — click below.
Tickets are selling fast for a variety of upcoming Westport Country Playhouse events. They include:
“The Wizard of Oz” (June 21, 1 and 4 p.m.; all tickets $30). From the same company that brought “Pinkalicious The Musical” to the WCP stage.
“Karma Kabaret”(June 21, 8 p.m.; all tickets $20): A creative celebration of life — described as “Robin Williams meets Streisand meets TED Talks meets Einstein meets Buddha meets Broadway meets creator M. Zavidow.
Rosanne Cash with John Leventhal (July 16, 8 p.m.; tickets $125, $115, $98).
Click here for more information, tickets, and details of many other upcoming events.
1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker and ROAN Ventures’ Rodrigo Real are part of the annual “Real Estate Outlook” panel. The event is May 20 (8:30 a.m., SoNo Collection M&T Bank, Norwalk).
The theme is “Breaking New Ground: The Projects That Will Impact Fairfield County.” The moderator is Eric Bernheim. He heads up the real estate and land use practice at Westport’s FLB Law, which co-sponsors the event. Click here to register, and for more information.
The real estate outlook for Fairfield County includes The Hamlet at Saugatuck project.
Westport author Meg Serino’s debut novel “Annapurna” will be published May 6.
In it, a woman returns to the base camp of the famous Nepalese mountain to confront events leading to her best friend’s tragic death there 20 years earlier. She explores the nature of their friendship, the meaning of love, and the unexpected consequences of what is spoken — and what is not. Click here for more information.
Meg Serino
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“Cheese Fries & Chili Dips” — Weston native Chris Fuller’s one-man “hilarious and heartfelt story of a pro golfer’s bipolar journey to wellness” — is set for 2 performances at Greenfield Hill Congregational Church (May 16 and 17).
And finally … in honor of an upcoming show at the Westport Country Playhouse (story above):
(It doesn’t take courage, or a brain or heart, to support “06880,” your hyper-local blog. All you have to do is click here. Like Dorothy, you know how important home is.)
The final day for Finalmente Trattoria — the small but much-loved Italian restaurant across from Design Within Reach on Post Road East, next to Jeera Thai — was last May.
Owners cited the lingering effects of the pandemic, rising costs and staffing shortages as the reasons, after 19 memorable years.
But that was not the finale.
Earlier this month, Finalmente reopened.
The owner is new. The decor is fresh. The menu is revamped.
The new, brighter dining room.
Diners — those who remember the previous restaurant, and those who never ate there — are packing the place.
When I called Giuseppe Cinque at 8:15 one morning last week, I asked how he was.
“Tired!” he said. Every table had been filled the night before. Delighted diners lingered.
Giuseppe and his small staff kept them happy. But he could use at least one more waiter.
Running a restaurant is hard work. It’s even harder when — as at Finalment — so much is made from scratch.
Cinque is as Italian as his name and his menu.
He worked in food and beverage services at hotels around his native country. After many successful years, a meeting with an American wine importer led him to the US.
He still remembers the date he landed: October 28, 1999.
Five years later, Cinque opened his first restaurant: La Strada, in Monroe. Its success led to others, in Norwalk, Bridgeport, Newtown and New Haven.
When he learned of Finalmente’s open space in Westport, the opportunity was too good to pass up.
The kitchen, name and reputation were already there. It was in a town that appreciates excellent food, near other restaurants that attract crowds. He sold Strada Trattoria in Milford, and got to work remodeling and refashioning Finalmente.
“Everyone has been great,” Cinque says. “Zoning, building, the health department, the fire marshal — they’ve all been easy to work with.”
Cinque upgraded the kitchen. He lightened the interior. He hired 2 very experienced chefs. He reworked the menu, taking advantage of daily trips to nearby markets. (He’ll add the Westport Farmers’ Market next month, when it opens around the corner on Imperial Avenue.)
Four of Finalmente’s popular dishes.
“If you do a good job, people appreciate it,” Cinque says. “If you don’t, people don’t forget.”
Early reviews are excellent. But popularity comes at a price. With so few tables — and reasonable prices, and diners so comfortable they like to stay — he hopes to expand outdoors.
Still, he notes, “I don’t want to run too fast. I want to stay in Westport forever.”
(Click here for Finalmente’s website. Their phone number is 203-226-8500.)
(“06880” regularly covers Westport’s dining scene — and much more. If you appreciate our work, please click here to support our work. We appreciate the tip!)
The Finalmente menu. Click on or hover over to enlarge.
Nearly 250 years ago — in the last week of April, 1777 — local patriots fought the British, in the Battle of Compo Hill.
The Minute Man Race is not nearly as old — only 46 years. But in that half century, it’s become a cherished Westport tradition.
Sponsored by the Westport Young Woman’s League, and held at Compo Beach a few yards from the Minute Man statue, and the small graveyard where local militia men are buried, the rite of spring draws hundreds of runners, of all ages.
They compete in 10K and 5K runs, special kids’ events, and a myTeamTriumph race for those with disabilities.
“06880” photographer Ryan Allen was there this morning. Here’s what the Staples High School sophomore captured:
No sporting event is complete without the national anthem.
There was an interesting mix of answers to last week’s Photo Challenge.
A good number of our readers thought the colorful Prosecco cart in Ed Simek’s image was outside Mrs. London’s. (Click here to see.)
It could have been.
But the correct answer — as Patricia McMahon, David Meth, Lynn Untermeyer Miller, Andrew Colabella, Jeannie Pearl, Rachel Sara Halperin, Sal Liccione, Amy Schneider and Tom Talmadge knew — was Basso.
They definitely know their Prosecco carts!
Today’s Photo Challenge shows a nice place for a picnic. If you were going to bring some Prosecco here, where would it be? Click “Comments” below.
(Photo/Seth Schachter)
(Every Sunday, “06880” hosts this Photo Challenge. We challenge you too to support your hyper-local blog. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
What do Westport police officers do on their time off?
They help the waiters and bussers at Rizzuto’s.
No, they’re not earning extra cash. At least, not for themselves.
For 4 hours Friday night, Westport’s finest welcomed diners, took orders and served meals. The “Tip-A-Cop” event was a fundraiser for Special Olympics Connecticut.
Customers were encouraged to leave extra tips — and boy, did they. The WPD raised a whopping $11,000.
“Rizzuto’s was an amazing host, and their guests were very generous,” says Lieutenant Eric Woods.
With passion, insights, humor and love, scholars present and past honored A Better Chance of Westport last night.
The highlight of the annual Dream Event fundraising gala for the program that provides educational and enrichment opportunities to students of color from less advantaged communities was — as always — speeches by soon-to-be graduates, and a returning alum.
Seniors Michael Loya and Brian Lu traced their journeys from freshmen in an entirely new environment (Westport seemed like “a forest”), to their proud achievements in the classroom, and beyond.
They offered profuse thanks to the many volunteer host families, drivers, tutors, executive directors and board members who helped them on their journey.
Brian Lu and Michael Loya.
In the COVID year of 2020, Yoel Hooper-Antunez never gave his senior speech. He made up for it this year, with an inspiring tale of his 4 years at ABC’s Glendarcy House, his career at Grinnell College, and his work now for a gaming company in Las Vegas.
Yoel too acknowledged the cultural change he navigated, coming here. Growing up next to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, the first thing he noticed about Westport was the quiet.
It was a joyful, heartfelt night. Westport does much for our ABC scholars.
A reader writes, “While I was walking with a friend at Sherwood Island State Park Friday around noon, her credit card, debit card, $50 in cash and a blank check were stolen from her purse. It was camouflaged (she thought), but sitting in the console of her car. She thinks she locked her car, but isn’t positive since no windows were broken.
“A few minutes after we finished our walk, she started getting fraud alerts from her credit card company. The thieves had already been to Staples in Fairfield, trying to charge over $1,000 in merchandise.”
Sherwood Island has always seemed like a safe, secure refuge. Of course, no place always is. Always lock your car, everywhere — and double-check to make sure!
A beautiful spot for a walk. But lock your car doors!
Sandy Cooper — the always helpful, all-knowing and much loved owner of Cooper’s Auto Parts had major heart surgery a year ago.
It has not slowed him down at all. He opens his door (across from Stop & Shop) at 7 a.m. every day. All day long, he solves problems, soothes customers, and saves them money.
This Tuesday (April 29), Sandy turns 77. John Karrel — one of his many fans and friends — urges every customer to stop by, with a birthday card.
John notes that the best ones will have “the sort of ironic sentiment one finds on the many signs in his shop.”
Mother’s Day is 2 weeks from today! (You knew that, right?)
And Wreathing for Community believes that moms should be celebrated in a big way.
The group collects donations from community members and businesses. then creates beautiful wreaths, centerpieces and other home decor items.
Some are donated to non-profit organizations for their fundraising efforts. Others are given as gifts to grouops, volunteers and community members.
Faith Sargent says: “If you’d like to honor your mom this Mother’s Day, please email WhimsicalRedheadCrafts@gmail.com. Tell us what makes her so special.
“One wonderful mom will be chosen to receive the whimsical butterfly wreath (below).”
A great annual Staples High School baseball tradition is welcoming Little League players. This year’s Little League Day takes place Friday (May 2, 4:15 p.m.).
Youngsters will be invited onto the field for the lineup, and to run the bases on prior to the first pitch.
They’ll then cheer on the Wreckers against Wilton, and enjoy free pizza from the Colony truck.
Four Little Leaguers at Staples in 2019. Three are now varsity baseball players; the other calls Wrecker games on WWPT-FM. From left: current Staples varsity players Will Allott, Mark Kelly and Connor Brill, and WWPT-FM announcer Charlie Curran.
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Sure, you can honk at traffic.
Or you can fly above it — and do your honking there. Just like in today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo, courtesy of Carol Anne Ances.
And finally … on this date in 1791, Samuel F.B. Morse was born.
He was not the only one to invent the primary language of telegraphy. But he’s the one whose name is on it.
(Besides the tip in the item at top, here’s another one: If you click here, your tax-deductible contribution helps support “06880.” We rely on our readers, so thank you!)
Graduation is a time of joy and celebration. After 13 years of school, seniors don gowns and put on headgear they wouldn’t be caught dead in otherwise, to celebrate their achievements with family members who helped get them there.
If, that is, they’re lucky enough to score a ticket.
The Staples High School graduating class of 2025 is about 425 strong. (Very strong, even if a couple of them are scrambling to get to the finish line.)
Each graduate gets 4 tickets to the June ceremony at Paul Lane Field (the outdoor stadium). With parents, siblings, grandparents, uncles and aunts, that seldom covers everyone.
A concerned “06880” reader writes:
My nephew is one of the many seniors to graduate this year.
My family and I are exceptionally proud of his accomplishments and achievements, and so excited for his transition to college, and eventually “real life.”
Throughout his four years at Staples he has studied diligently, held a part-time job, completed an internship, and was accepted at nearly all the universities he applied to. In addition, he won a Student of the Month Award.
I was very disappointed to learn over spring break that only 4 tickets will be granted per family — including parents. This seems unreasonably restrictive to me.
Graduation, 2024.
When my siblings and I graduated from Staples, the ceremony was in the fieldhouse, rain or shine. More relatives were accommodated.
I wrote to “06880” expressing my frustration about this decision on behalf of my family, who will not all be able to participate in this milestone event in a young adult’s life .
Dan Woog reached out to principal Stafford Thomas, and received this reply:
Actually there were more seats in the fieldhouse than there are in the stadium. A family used to get 5-6 tickets, but with a graduating class of ~425 students and about 1,850 available bleacher seats/spaces if shoehorned in, even giving 5 tickets would clearly not work. Hence the 4 tickets.
It is true that more people have attended the recent outside graduations than they did in the fieldhouse due to the crowds on the hill and the standing room crowd around the perimeter of the stadium.
Unfortunately, the bleachers were built to hold the expected capacity of a much smaller school population at Staples (about 30/40 years ago). If they were built today, based on our current population trends, we’d easily be able to accommodate at least 6-7 tickets per family.
Bleachers are full, at Staples’ 2023 graduation.
The ceremony does not have to be held outside. If more people can fit in the fieldhouse, why not host it there? What if it rains? You’d have to move it there anyway.
I understand that Staples can’t accommodate every family member. But they could at least offer an additional 2 tickets. I respectfully ask that you reconsider this decision. Perhaps you could allow more people with tickets to stand along the perimeter.
In the fieldhouse, parents jostled for photos as graduates marched in.
This may be the first time anyone asked for graduation to be moved back into the fieldhouse. The ceremony was moved there (from outdoors) after it was built in the early 1980s. Each year there were complaints about how hot and uncomfortable the fieldhouse was; how hard it was to hear and see, and how brutal the competition was to get good seats.
Graduation moved back outdoors in 2021 (following the COVID-related “drive-by” ceremony the previous year). Attendees liked being outside; being able to see and hear — and not having to battle for seats.
There are ways to watch without tickets. As Principal Thomas noted, some people without tickets stand on the hill by Bedford Middle School. It’s not a great view, but it’s before the ticket checkpoint.
The only way to stand closer, around the perimeter, is with a ticket.
The event is livestreamed, for all those without tickets. Viewers follow the processional and speeches, and watch each senior receive a diploma.
For over 140 years, Staples has held graduation ceremonies. Each one has had challenges. If you’ve got a memory of your Staples graduation — or a relative’s — click Comments below. And if you faced a ticket challenge, add that story too.
Yesterday’s Roundup item on upcoming town meetings about the Hamlet at Saugatuck project confused some readers. Here’s some clarity:
This Monday’s Planning & Zoning Commission meeting (April 28, 6 p.m., Town Hall auditorium) begins with a discussion on developer ROAN Ventures’ amended presentation. Public comment will follow.
Also ahead: the Conservation Commission on Wednesday (April 30, 7 p.m., Town Hall auditorium) and Flood & Erosion Control Board (May 6, 7 p.m., Zoom).
To view documents, drawings and other material related to The Hamlet, click here, then scroll down.
Artist’s rendering of the Hamlet project, looking toward the Saugatuck River.
The #SpeakYourMind ice bucket challenge reached new heights on Thursday.
After I got soaked — thanks, Dave Briggs, for nominating me to help raise funds and awareness for youth mental health issues! — I dared Jen Tooker and Andrea Moore to do the same.
The 1st and 2nd Selectwomen quickly responded. Like me, they had a blast getting wet — and passing along the challenge.
They named the staff at Positive Directions. It’s an inspired choice. The Westport organization provides counseling and support to people and families struggling with mental health and substance abuse disorders.
So how did our town leaders do? Click here, or click on the link below.
Speaking of the weather: It postponed today’s scheduled Westport Clean-up Day until next Saturday (May 3).
Sustainable Westport is one group taking part. They’ll meet at the Longshore pavilion, and clean up the waterfront from 2 to 4 p.m. Trash bags will be provided. Click here to sign up.
Of course, residents are free to pick up trash and other debris today, too.
It’s time for another “Westport … Naturally” tulip shot.
Sure, we’ve shown them before. But they don’t last forever. And a photo like Mark Yurkiw’s — showing his Cross Highway bounty — is too good to pass up.
(It’s another busy weekend in Westport. If you’ve got a free minute — and that’s all it takes — please click here to support the hyper-local blog that helps make this, and every other weekend, great. Thanks!)
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