Among today’s closures: Town Hall.
1st Selectman Kevin Christie says: “Safety is our top priority. We are asking residents to stay home if they are able, avoid unnecessary travel, and keep roads clear so our public safety and public works teams can do their jobs. Please avoid parking on streets if possible, and take a moment to check in on any neighbors who may need assistance.”
Public safety operations, including Police, Fire, and Public Works, will continue under established storm and emergency response protocols.
Residents should sign up for emergency alerts by texting 06880 to 888777, to receive Westport notifications via Nixle.
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Also closed: the Westport Library.
All programs planned for today will be rescheduled.
The Westport Weston Family YMCA plans a noon opening today.
The view from the YMCA is beautiful on days like today. But you won’t be able to see it until noon. (Photo/Dan Woog)
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Speaking of snow: There must be some back stories to these photos, both taken by Harris Falk:
But whatever they are, he didn’t say.
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As Westport’s sister city of Lyman remains under siege, and Russia’s war against Ukraine drags on into a 4th year, Ukraine Aid International continues to help.
The non-profit — created by Westporters Brian and Marshall Mayer, and credited with delivering tons of food, vehicles, supplies, communications equipment, clothing and more, to the most war-torn regions of the nation, while developing partnerships between towns in Ukraine and the US — is hosting a March 5 fundraiser at the Westport Country Playhouse.
The entertainment at “Keys for Resilience” is spot-on: 2 superb Ukrainian artists whose work speaks to resilience, identity and hope.
Pianist, composer and educator Ruslan Ramazanov was forced to rebuild his life and career in the US, following Russia’s invasion in 2022.
Since arriving here, his music has taken on an added layer of meaning, reflecting his personal journey of adaptation and rediscovery through art. He works at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee.
He’s joined by Ukrainian-American soprano Teryn Kuzma. A versatile performer passionate about both contemporary works and rarely heard Eastern European opera and art song, she plays
In addition to her acclaimed vocal career, she is an accomplished performer on the bandura, Ukraine’s 55-string harp-zither instrument.
“Keys for Resilience” weaves classical and traditional music with stories from Connecticut’s sister cities in Ukraine.
All proceeds will support sister cities in Ukraine — including Westport’s own, Lyman — and the sister-state relationship between Connecticut and Donetsk. Click here for tickets, and more information.
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Staples High School’s musicians, actors and athletes get plenty of props.
Today, we applaud the equally accomplished “We the People” team.
For 12 years, students in Suzanne Kammerman’s Advanced Placement Politics & Government class have participated in the state event. Often, they qualify there for national competition.
On Saturday, they did again.
The all-junior team placed 2nd in the state competition, at Hartford’s historic Old State House. That earns them a trip to the national event, this spring in Washington.
“We the People” has both a classroom and extracurricular component. Students prepare and present oral arguments on specific sections of the Constitution in simulated congressional hearings. Then comes an intense questi9n-and-answer session, with a panel of judges.
It is not for the faint of heart. The students grapple with difficult constitutional questions. The judges demand clear, compelling answers.
Several seniors — veterans of last year’s best-ever 8th place national finish — helped coach the squad: Lila Boroujerdi, Olivia Cohn, Gunnar Eklund, Jay Hari, Miles Kahn, Souleye Kebe and Jake Shufro.
Congrats to all. Now go rock DC!
PS: It was a full day for the competitors. Many raced back to Westport from Hartford, to get ready for the County Assembly formal dance that night.
Staples’ “We the People” team in Hartford on Saturday. They were in the same room where the Connecticut House of Representatives convened in the 18th and 19th centuries.
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The Sweet Remains — Westporter Greg Naughton’s band, perennial Levitt Pavilion favorites (and international stars, with over 65 million Spotify streams) — wowed a large Westport Country Playhouse crowd Saturday night.
There was a hometown feel too, as Greg’s wife Kelli O’Hara, daughter Charlotte and father Jim Naughton joined the folk-pop, 3-part harmony group onstage.
Click here for more about the band, and their music.
The Sweet Remains’ Rich Price. (Photo/Jerry Kuyper)
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“06880” is where Westport meets the world.
And Westport meets the World Cup.
Rebecca Lowe will have a memorable year. The former Westport resident will be one of Fox Sports’ primary hosts for the soccer spectacle that comes to the US, Canada and Mexico this spring.
She’ll be on loan from NBC Sports, where next month she’ll host daytime coverage of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
Oh, yeah: She’ll also cover the Kentucky Derby.
When Lowe began hosting NBC Sports’ Premier League soccer coverage — from its studios in Stamford — she and her husband, former English player and coach Paul Buckle, lived on Main Street.
At NBC she works with Robbie Mustoe, who also lives in Westport. A former NBC colleague, Kyle Martino, lives here too.
Click here for a full story from Sports Business Journal, on Lowe’s route from “imposter syndrome” to the highest level of broadcasting.
Rebecca Lowe (Photo/NBC Sports)
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World Cup story #2: The other day, Joe Pierce — a long-time area resident, former Staples High School assistant soccer coach, and producer of a film about legendary English star Sir Stanley Matthews — was at Dandelion, the new Delamar Westport restaurant. He writes:
“My friend Hicham, the corporate restaurant director for the Delamar group, was eager to show me around. It’s a stunning space: refined, intentional, full of life.
“But as can happen when 2 football obsessives meet, the talk of interior design lasted exactly 30 seconds.
“We settled onto bar stools, and the conversation shifted to our shared obsession: The Beautiful Game.
“Hicham is a devoted Arsenal supporter. But when he speaks of his beloved Morocco, you feel a different kind of energy.
“He’s a witness to a national metamorphosis. Morocco didn’t become the darlings of the last World Cup by luck; it was a masterclass in strategic infrastructure. They’ve funneled millions into the Mohammed VI Academy, scouting the global diaspora and building a “Golden Generation” that won the U-20 World Cup in October.
“As a Scottish expat living in Connecticut, I couldn’t help but see the parallels to the grit and discipline of the 1970s squads I grew up with. But on June 19, when our nations meet at in Foxboro, Massachusetts, Hicham and I will be on opposite sides of the park.
“He’ll be in the red and green of a rising power. I’ll be in the blue of a Tartan Army. seeking redemption for 1998.
“That is what football is all about. It turns a casual drink in Westport into a geopolitical debate. It takes the “home soil” we walk on every day, and connects it to the “away soul” we never truly left behind.
“If you find yourself at the Dandelion on a Saturday night, stop by and have a chat with Hicham about football. Feel the passion like I did.”
Joe Pierce
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With all the whiteness today, a bit of color really stands out.
Jamie Walsh captured this scene, for today’s very appropriate “Westport … Naturally” feature.
(Photo/Jamie Walsh)
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And finally … on this date in 1863, Massachusetts Governor John Albion Andrews received permission from Secretary of War Edwin Stanton to raise a militia of men of African descent.
Recruitment for the 54th Massachusetts Infantry was helped by Frederick Douglass, whose 2 sons were among the first to enlist.
The writer of this song about the unit is unknown. Richie Havens delivered a stirring version.
(Tired of shoveling? Take a break! Let your fingers do the work: Just click here, and support “06880” — your equally hard-working hyper-local blog — with a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
There is even one more Westport connection to NBC Sports’ terrific coverage of the Premier League: former Staples soccer star and FCIAC champion Michael Carey, who is a longtime producer (and I think he has worked on NBC’s Olympic coverage as well).
Re Joe Pierce’s soccer doc on Sir Stanley: it is well worth seeing (especially for soccer fans who are not that familiar with his story).
Sir Stanley Matthews had a local connection, his son, a three times Wimbledon Boys champion, managed and later owned the Four Seasons Racquet Club. I believe he lived in Weston, may still do