Category Archives: Children

Roundup: Little Rock 9, Indie Movies, Lice …

Posted on May 6, 2022 | 1 comment

Three years after Brown vs. Board of Education, public schools in Little Rock, Arkansas, were still segregated.

But on September 25, 1957, US Army soldiers escorted 9 black teenagers into Central High School. 14-year-old Carlotta Walls LaNier was the youngest

On May 24, 2022 (7 p.m.), Carlotta — now in her 70s, and the last survivor of that courageous group of 9 — will join her friend, Westporter Steve Parrish, “In Conversation” at the Westport Library.

Carlotta will describe what it was like to be escorted by armed soldiers through an angry mob, and what happened to her and her family in the months and years after. She’ll reflect on her journey — and ours, as a country and a society.

Click here to register.

Carlotta Walks LaNier

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Staples High School’s Independent Learning Experience allows to move beyond the classroom setting, tackling projects or courses not otherwise offered there. Through an Independent Learning Experience, students spend a semester or full

Several students have produced films (giving new meaning to the phrase “indie movies”). They’ll be screened on Tuesday (May 10, 6:30 p.m., Staples auditorium). Each is about 10 minutes long.

Themes and filmmakers include:

  • An ex-criminal turned interdimensional defense officer investigates a lead on a former partner (Jacob Friedman)
  • Co-dependency and instability challenge 2 teens as they deal with daily life (Leah Chapman and Tate Mullineaux)
  • A high school girl struggles with mental illness (Elen Macaluso)
  • A couple preys on victims in a twisted game of betrayal, manipulation and psychosis (Ben Seideman).

A question-and-answer session and small reception follow. The public is invited.

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I don’t have any young kids. Nor do I have much hair. So I would not know about what I’m told are lice outbreaks at some Westport schools (and pre-schools).

But Liz Solovay is on the case.

The Westport resident owns Lice Treatment Center. She’s been helping local families with in-home and treatment center services for over 15 years.

As if you don’t need more reasons to call Liz: This is Small Business Week. So while you’re taking care of some “small business” of your own, you’re also helping one.

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Lynsey Addario has taken some haunting, harrowing photos of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

But one that the 1991 Staples High School graduate (and Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist) published in yesterday’s New York Times may be among her most sorrowful.

Nothing illustrates the depravity of the Russian invasion — and its toll on innocent people — more than this simple shot.

Aleksandr, a resident of Kramatorsk, sat in a room of his destroyed apartment after it was hit by a Russian airstrike yesterday. (Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)

Thank you to Lynsey, fellow Staples grad and Times photographer Tyler Hicks, and all others in the war zone, for showing the world what is going on half a world away.

To learn more about the history, geography and culture of Ukraine, listen to Professor Walter Zaryckyj at the Westport Library on Monday (May 9, 7 p.m., in-person and Zoom). He’ll speak on “Understanding Ukraine: Past, Present and Future.” Click here to register.

“06880” is a proud co-sponsor of this important educational event.

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The 2022 rugby high school nationals will be televised.

That’s of interest to “06880” readers, because Staples High School will be in them.

The Wreckers — ranked #5 in the nation — head to Elkart, Indiana soon. They compete for a US title from Thursday to Saturday, May 19-21 (times TBD).

Can’t make it to “The RV Capital of the World”? Go to Little Barn instead. Matches will be shown there, on a big screen.

In March, a crowd gathered at Little Barn for the rugby team’s kickoff tournament in Virginia.

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The Joggers Club is moving — from Compo Beach to the Greens Farms train station.

They invite everyone to stop by, every Saturday at 8 a.m. The first run is free. They offer a variety of distances and paces. All are fun.

Plus coffee, treats and music after each run.
·        When: Every Saturday @ 8:00am
·        Where: Green’s Farms Train Station

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The Westport Weston Family YMCA will offer 15 needs-based lifeguard certification scholarships this summer.

Applicants must be 15 to 23 years old, with strong swimming skills. There are 2-day courses May 7-8 and 14-15, and June 4-5 and 11-12. Click here for the application, and more information.

Questions. Contact Julia Marshella by email (jmarshella@westporty.org) or phone (203-226-8984).

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The other day, our “Westport … Naturally” feature showcased a handsome swan, sitting on her eggs.

She must have been foraging for food yesterday. Here was the scene:

(Photo/Elaine Marino)

And we’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: Don’t get too close! Give her and her cygnets-to-be plenty of space.

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And finally … on this date in 1940, John Steinbeck won the Pulitzer Prize for The Grapes of Wrath. It was a novel — but it cut very, very close to the truth.

 

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Posted in Children, Entertainment, History, Library, Local business, Restaurants, Staples HS, YMCA

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Roundup: Gloria, Aqua Fit & Veterans, Touch-a-Truck …

Posted on May 2, 2022 | 17 comments

Gloria has long been a part of Westport.

It was Alan Sterling’s working oyster boat for years. In the winter, he moored it in Gray’s Creek.

It stayed there after he died, in 2014. Michael Calise and others tended to it well.

Now — nearly a decade later — it is on its last legs.

Gloria, in Gray’s Creek. (Photo/Bruce McFadden)

Click here for an “06880” archive of Gloria stories.

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The men and women of the Westport Weston Family YMCA’s Aqua Fit classes are an energetic bunch.

They’re also community minded. All month long, they’re joining with Westport veterans’ groups, to raise awareness and help.

Yesterday, after class, a coffee hour and informational table in the Y lobby was staffed by members of VFW Joseph Clinton Post 399, and the VFW Auxiliary. They explained all the good things they do, for veterans and Westport.

Next Saturday (May 7, 10 a.m.), the Staples high School girls golf team — coached by beloved Aqua Fit instructor Patty Kondub — will tidy up and pay respect at veterans’ graves in Assumption Cemetery on Greens Farms Road. Everyone is welcome to help.

On Saturday, May 21 (4:30 to 5:30 p.m.), the public is invited to join a “drop-in” Aqua Fit class. Get healthy, see why members are so loyal — and the $20 fee for the drop-in class will benefit the VFW Auxiliary.

All month long, the Aqua Fit program is sponsoring a donation box, with “Wish List,” in the Y lobby. Both collections support Homes for the Brave, the nonprofit that helps homeless veterans.

For more information, email Patty Kondub (nortonpk@icloud.com) or Joan Evon (joanevon@optonline.net).

Westport Weston Family YMCA CEO Anjali McCormick (directly under the “Y” signs) joins members of the Westport VFW, VFW Auxiliary and Aqua Fit to promote the month of awareness of veterans’ issues.

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Beginning yesterday, stickers are required for parking at all Westport beaches.

The lifeguard chairs are not yet in position, but will soon be. Meanwhile, 2 varieties are being stored — along with what look like new chairs — at the Soundview lot.

(Photo/Robin Myers)

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The Westport Weston Cooperative Nursery School hosts a great, on-brand event this Saturday (May 7, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Imperial Avenue parking lot). It’s presented by Longshore Sailing School.

The 15th annual event includes vehicles of all shapes and sizes (for kids of all ages to climb on, and take photos of): fire trucks, police cars, ambulances, cranes, dump trucks, buses, big rigs, boats and more.

Plus food trucks, live entertainment, merchandise for sale, raffle tickets, “roaming railroad trackless train rides,” face painting, balloon animals, sensory play and more.

It can get loud. Guests with sensitivity to noise can enjoy a quiet hour from 9 to 10 a.m., with no sirens or horns.

Admission is $35 per family. Click here to purchase. All proceeds benefit the Westport Weston Cooperative Nursery School.

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Saturday night’s benefit concert in Trumbull for cancer research began with a “stick tap” honoring Charlie Capalbo. The former Fairfield Ludlowe High School goalie died last month, after battling 4 cancers. He was one month shy of 24 years old. Charlie’s grandparents are Westporters Richard Epstein and Ina Chadwick, and his mother is Staples High grad Jennifer Wilde Capalbo.

Click below to see the very moving ceremony.

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Skunk cabbage makes its first appearance in “Westport … Naturally” today.

Claudia Sherwood Servidio spotted this field at Earthplace.

(Photo/Claudia Sherwood Servidio)

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And finally … on this day in 1952, a De Havilland Comet made the first jet flight with paying passengers. The route was London to Johannesburg.

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Posted in Beach, Children, Downtown, YMCA

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Pediatrician Adds Adult Practice — And More

Posted on May 2, 2022 | 1 comment

Thousands of Westport families know “Dr. Nikki.” As a co-founder of Village Pediatrics she puts kids and parents at ease. Her quick informational videos made her an international TikTok and Instagram star.

Now she has a new venture. As “Dr. Gorman” — a more adult title — she’s opened the Westport Medical and Wellness Center. Two things separate it from most practices in the area: the “direct primary care” model, andhere integration of yoga, massage, acupuncture, meditation and other holistic types of care.

Dr. Gorman has always loved children. She was an 8-year-old babysitter in her native Palos Verdes, California; a Big Sister at the University of Pennsylvania, and after Duke med school and a residency at Stanford Children’s Hospital, she helped found a practice on New York’s West Side. She moved to Westport with her then-husband, a cardiologist, and spent several years with Dr. Jerry Lieberman in Weston.

Dr. Nikki Gorman

Fourteen years ago, she and Dr. Jenn Gruen founded Village Pediatrics. All along — in New York, Weston, and in Village’s offices on Kings Highway North and Riverside Avenue — Dr. Gorman enjoyed the business side of medicine. She’s helped eliminate paper, modernize offices and move into telemedicine.

Her dream was to own a medical building. At the same time, Dr. Gorman saw a need for adults in the area to access a new kind of care. Some did not have their own primary physician; some did not want to pay for the “concierge care” that doctors in the area have moved toward.

A realtor told her about a building on Whitney Street Extension, behind the CVS parking lot. A husband-and-wife naturopath team were selling it; they rented other rooms to therapists.

It was exactly what Dr. Gorman wanted. She could run the new practice, and offer rooms to a variety of wellness practitioners.

She could also offer direct primary care — a rarity in the area.

Her website describes it as “a membership-based care model in which patients pay primary car providers a flat, simple, periodic fee directly for unlimited access to primary and preventative services.”

There are no insurance deductibles or premiums. (Insurance is needed, however, for services like imaging and labs, medications, specialist care and hospitals. The practice does not participate in Medicare.)

Without the pressure from insurance companies to see high volumes of patients, practitioners can spend time on healthcare — and prevention. “We really get to know our patients,” she says.

Membership is $200 a month, or $2,000 for 12 months. All wellness services are charged separately.

The difference between direct primary care and concierge medicine, the website says, is that concierge practices may bill insurance while also charging a monthly or annual fee. Those patients are still responsible for co-payments and additional insurance costs.

In direct primary care, patients pay a set fee for all-inclusive services during sick and preventative exams. Medications, labs and in-office procedures are “substantially discounted.”

Dr. Gorman adds, “Direct primary care can be a wonderful option for businesses who want to give their employees an insurance option but can’t afford commercial carriers. Many employers end up not offering insurance at all. This is a way to make sure employees at least get their primary care needs met.”

Westport Medical and Wellness Center is approaching local businesses now, with the option.

As Dr. Gorman interviewed wellness practitioners — yoga instructors, a massage therapist, acupuncturist, meditation facilitator, holistic health coach, even a sexuality coach — she realized that all could work together, to provide complete health care. Anxiety, back pain, high blood pressure — many medical issues can be treated holistically, by a team of people.

She’s having a good time designing her new space — inside and out. She plans a chicken coop for the back yard, and a garden for outdoor yoga.

Dr. Gorman’s new office on Whitney Street Extension, behind the CVS parking lot.

Dr. Gorman will continue to be Dr. Nikki. She sees young patients three days a week. She won’t actually treat adults; in her new role, she’s overseeing the business side of the practice.

“This is fun,” she says. “I love the entrepreneurial side. And I love helping people.”

As Dr. Gorman adds adults to her focus, she notes how it all leads back to her longtime love of children.

“If parents are healthier and less stressed out, that helps kids too,” she says.

In other words: It takes a village to raise healthy youngsters.

And adults.

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Posted in Children, Local business

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Roundup: Tree Giveaway, Minute Man Race, Stars On Tour …

Posted on April 28, 2022 | Comments Off on Roundup: Tree Giveaway, Minute Man Race, Stars On Tour …

To celebrate Arbor Day tomorrow (Friday, April 29), the Tree Board will give away native saplings (3 to 4 p.m., the front driveway of Town Hall).

The first-come, first-served event is courtesy of the Bartlett Tree Company.

In 2014, a tree was planted in front of Town Hall. Saplings will be given away there tomorrow.

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One of Westport’s biggest and most popular COVID-canceled events returns this Saturday (April 30). The 43rd Young Woman’s League Minute Man Race is back at Compo Beach — right around the corner from the Minute Man himself.

100% of the net profits are distributed to local non-profits — the same groups that have kept area residents healthy, active and sane during the 2 years the 10K run, 5K run and 5K walk were scrubbed. (Last year’s event was virtual.)

There’s a Kids Fun Run too, with a 100-yard dash, and mile and half-mile runs. The Kids Zone features kid-friendly activities.

Click here to register, and for more information.

The start of a Minute Man race is always exciting.

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The newest additions to the Levitt Pavilion’s “Stars on Tour” series are Hiss Golden Messenger and Aoife O’Donovan. They perform on August 12.

Grammy award-winning songwriter/musician O’Donovan has released 3 solo albums, is co-founder of the bands I’m With Her and Crooked Still, was the featured vocalist on “The Goat Rodeo Sessions” with Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile, and spent a decade contributing to the radio variety shows “Live From Here” and “A Prairie Home Companion.”

Hiss Golden Messenger is a North Carolina-based folk music group led by M.C. Taylor. His music sounds familiar, yet is impossible to categorize. Elements from the American songbook — steady, churning acoustic guitar and mandolin, gospel emotion, steel guitar tracings, bobbing and weaving organ and electric piano —provide the bedrock for Taylor’s existential ruminations about parenthood, joy, hope, and loneliness..

Members can buy tickets now. General sales begin at noon tomorrow (April 29). Click here to purchase.

Aiofe O’Donovan and M.C. Taylor.

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The environment is a global issue. Climate change does not observe national borders.

For the past year, Alan Schanzer has served as a board member and marketing chair for global organization Society of the Protection of Nature in Israel.

It’s apolitical, working with all countries interested in using innovation to solve climate and environmental issues.

Part of SPNI’s mission is protecting the 500 million fascinating birds that migrate from Europe to Asia and Africa and back, twice a year. Their midpoint landing area is Israel. Without open landing space to drink, rest and refuel, the intercontinental bird population would collapse.

On May 16 (6 to 8 p.m., Westport Library), Alan and his wife Julie Zelman host visitors from Israel, who will talk about SPNI. Anyone concerned about climate change, the environment, birding — or Israel — is welcome. Click here to register.

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CampWCP — a 4-week theater camp for 6th through 8th graders — returns to Westport Country Playhouse this summer.

it’s an intensive theater experience for kids who love theater, are curious about it, or want their voices to be heard. No theater experience is necessary.

Guided by a professional playwright, youngsters will create stories together and perform their original work at the Playhouse.

Campers will also learn acting techniques, and participate in workshops with Playhouse staff and guests. Past workshops have covered movement and language, character building, and theatrical poster design.

Scholarships are available. To register, click here. For more information, email education@westportplayhouse.org,

CampWCP, last summer.

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The Human Services Department will accept applications for theConnecticut Renters’ Rebate Program starting Monday (May 2).

The program provides income-based reimbursement for people 65 and older, and/or those with disabilities who are collecting Social Security or Social Security Disability income.

The rebate is based on a graduated income scale, combined with the amount of rent and utility payments (excluding telephone) made in 2021. The maximum income to qualify is $38,100 (single person) and $46,400 (married couple).

Applicants must meet a 1-year state residency requirement. People renting an apartment, room, mobile home or living in cooperative housing may be eligible for the program.

Westport residents should call Human Services Department (203-341-1067) or email Kwitt@westportct.gov.

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Jerry Kuyper calls today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo “Hope Springs …”

You be the judge.

(Photo/Jerry Kuyper)

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And finally … in honor of Aiofe O’Donovan and MC Taylor (Hiss Golden Messenger)’s Levitt Pavilion appearances this summer (above), here ya go:

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Unsung Hero #236

Posted on April 27, 2022 | 26 comments

Baseball season is in full swing (ho ho). Which means there’s no better time to honor Beth Cody as our Unsung Hero than now.

Beth Cody

After nearly 22 years, Beth is Westport Little League’s 2nd-longest tenured volunteer. She is currently executive secretary, and as registrar handles all baseball and softball registration.

But her real value comes as co-founder and commissioner of the Challenger program.

She and her son Jack started Challenger — a program for children with mental and physical challenges — 9 years ago.

Together, they built it (and the Westport Winners team) from scratch. Beth administers it entirely herself — including outreach to sponsors, so it is entirely free.

Challenger commissioner Beth Cody (front, blue shirt) join Challenger players, buddies, Staples High School players and Little League alum/Duke University star Chad Knight (center rear, white shirt) at the diamond.

Westport Little League president Jeffrey Brill calls Challenger “the gold standard of our Little League.” Though Beth has no child in the program, she  singlehandedly coordinates it all: securing fields; ordering equipment, uniforms and trophies; scheduling and re-scheduling games; recruiting players ages 5-18; organizing coaches; finding and pairing over 200 “buddies” a year, and running creative events like Field Day, Halloween parties and pizza parties.

Beth attends every game and activity, home and away. Her enthusiasm is infectious, and helps create the warm, intimate feeling that is a Westport Challenger hallmark.

Among Beth Cody’s many activities: taking photos at Challenger games.

Buddies form lifelong friendships with players. Brill sees this first-hand with his son, a buddy volunteer with a lasting relationship with a player that transcends the diamond. Both have been enriched beyond measure.

Beth’s admirers are legion. A mother says, “After 17 years in Westport sports, she is the most dedicated team manager I have ever known. Beth shows patience and kindness toward every player, buddy, and the parents. She may be the most disappointed participant when we have to cancel due to weather!”

Parent Stacie Curran says the program provides “a true sense of belonging to a team. Challenger Baseball is a place of comfort and no judgment. Parents share common struggles, support, patience and understanding.

“We laugh, we cry, we rely on each other – and we owe our thanks for this club to the amazing ‘Commish’ Cody.”

Beth Cody with Westport Winner stalwart Dylan Curran.

Parent Beth Fahimi adds: “Beth is always at the helm. She is very calm and diligent, making sure each player has what they need. She provides a safe, first- class environment. She creates strategic lineups, knowing some children can wait their turn, or not. She watches, adjusts, and makes the team successful both playing and having fun.”

Congratulations, Beth Cody. You are our hands-down, heartfelt, Unsung Hero this week. And every other week too!

EXTRA INNINGS: Beth’s 31-year-old son Nicholas and 26-year-old son Jack played baseball in Westport from pre-school to high school. She has loved the sport since her first Yankee games as a 5-year-old, cheering for Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle. Before moving to Westport 30 years ago, she lived in Manhattan and was vice president/associate media director at an advertising agency. She and her husband Paul have been married for 33 years.

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Hunnyball!

Posted on April 22, 2022 | 1 comment

Move over, spikeball.

Hunnyball may be the next big outdoor 2-v-2 game.

And if it is, Westport youngsters will have been in on the ground floor.

The backboard-and-ball sport was invented by a Fairfield family. The Hallidays — dad Jim, mom Kathleen and 20somethings Nick, Kevin and Zack — have always tried to come up with new ideas. Usually they’re too tech-based, or grand, to work. Jim and his sons all have fulltime jobs; these would just be side gigs.

The Halliday family.

But while Nick — a former soccer player at Bentley University — was commuting to an internship, he listed to Guy Raz’s “How I Built This” podcast. He started thinking about all the backyard games he and his brothers invented when they were kids.

The Hallidays sketched out Nick’s idea on paper. They bought some plywood at Home Depot. They had a prototype, and started playing.

It was during COVID. Everyone had time; all the sons’ soccer, lacrosse and baseball-playing friends were home. They spent weeks refining the game, and defining its rules.

The pandemic was a tough time to launch a new sport, Jim admits. But the game benefitted from it.

Being in business with his sons has been a joy, Jim says. He sees “a whole different side” of them.

Each brings a different skill set to the business. One works for an investment firm; another is a web developer. The third is in marketing.

One of the first hunnyball customers was Westport’s Parks & Recreation Department. They bought 2 sets, for camps this summer.

Camps — day and sleepaway — may be a great market. Jem Sollinger — the owner of Maine’s Camp Laurel, whose winter office is in Westport — advised Jim to go to the American Camp Association conference in Atlantic City.

Hunnyball set.

Hunnyball was received well there for 2 reasons, Jim says. Many camps are family owned; those owners liked the Hallidays’ family story.

And, he notes, camps are always looking for something new to excite campers. Hunnyball fills that bill.

That’s not idle talk, or marketing puffery. Jim says that on a recent college spring break trip that usually ends with a spikeball tournament, almost half of the group opted for hunnyball.

School phys. ed. teachers like it too. Spikeball can be difficult for young kids, who have small hands. Catching and throwing — the basis of hunnyball — is easier.

You may not have heard of hunnyball yet. But for all the right reasons — including Westport Parks & Rec’s introduction of it this coming summer — your youngsters (or their college friends) may soon be playing it.

If so, remember where you heard it first.

OVERTIME: Why is it called “hunnyball”?

Pickleball was named after the inventors’ family dog. Hunny is the Hallidays’ dog. So naturally …

And because Hunny is a rescue, they’re donating a portion of each set to animal rescue organizations.

(To learn more, click here for hunnyball.com, or email jim@hunnyball.com.)

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Unsung Hero #235

Posted on April 20, 2022 | 5 comments

With a few days off from Little League practice, 10-year-old Beckett O’Malley wanted to work on his hitting.

So last Saturday, his dad Ian looked for a batting cage. He found The Clubhouse in Fairfield.

The door was open. But owner Mike Porzio said, “I’m sorry. We’re closed for the Easter holiday. I’m just here teaching a couple of students.” Ian thought they were high school or college age.

Mike saw the disappointment on Beckett’s face. He quickly changed his mind, and said they could use an area next to where he was teaching — for free.

That was a super-kind gesture, Ian says.

Beckett O’Malley and Mike Porzio.

But there was more.

Mike stopped what he was doing, and began teaching Beckett the mechanics of hitting, in a way the boy easily understood.

Mike is the real deal. The Norwalk native pitched for 3 MLB seasons with the Colorado Rockies and Chicago White Sox.

Within minutes, Ian says, his son’s swing was “night and day.” Mike went back to teaching the 2 older athletes.

But there was still more.

With only a net separating the areas, Mike kept an eye on Beckett. He continued offering tips, and words of encouragement.

“Mike was a total game changer,” Ian says.

Literally and figuratively.

Congratulations to Mike Porzio, our “06880” Unsung Hero of the Week. If you know of a worthy candidate, email 06880blog@gmail.com,

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Unsung Hero #234

Posted on April 13, 2022 | 5 comments

Like many Westporters, Grace Waldman has been moved by the hardships faced by Ukrainian refugees.

So she’s made and sold matzah bark, to raise money for them.

She works with a grassroots organization called Keter Ukrainian Aid. Started by a friend of Grace’s mother Emily, it’s a free pantry in Jerusalem where refugees from Ukraine can “shop” for daily necessities for their family.

So far, Grace has raised over $2,500. She and her mom are busy filling orders, so they’re no longer taking new ones.

It’s been a great project, but a bit overwhelming.

Because — I forgot to mention — that Grace is only 4 years old.

She’s our youngest Unsung Hero ever.

And also one of the most impressive.

Grace Waldman, making matzoh bark.

 

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Long Lots Welcomes A Hero Home

Posted on April 4, 2022 | 6 comments

It’s always fun to return to your old elementary school.

Especially if it’s as an Olympic champion.

Fifteen years ago, Julia Marino was a Long Lots student. This morning — now an Olympic silver medalist — she was back.

Before the assembly, Julia and her mother Elaine posed with an “Einstein” costume the Olympian wore in 3rd grade.

Energy was high, as nearly 600 students, staff, central office administrators and PTA members gathered in the auditorium for the first school-wide meeting since COVID struck 2 years ago.

With the Olympic theme playing and Mark Carmody — her former phys. ed. teacher, still at the school — serving as host, Julia came on stage to thunderous applause.

Host Mark Carmody read student questions. Julia Marino answered them all, with honesty and humor.

Video clips showed Julia on her 2nd spectacular slopestyle snowboard run. Students also saw her great display of sportsmanship, piling on the New Zealand athlete who had just edged her out for the gold medal.

“Everyone wants to win. You go to the Olympics to get gold,” Julia told the crowd.

“But it’s so important to be there for your friends. Even if they do better than you, it’s great to support them.”

Superintendent of schools Thomas Scarice and Julia’s mother Elaine enjoyed the assembly.

Julia answered students’ questions too. They ranged from the names of former teachers, her birthday (September 11) and whether she’s married (no) to her favorite part of the Olympics (“hanging out with my friends from different countries”), what she’d do if she weren’t snowboarding (film and photography), her favorite subjects at Long Lots (PE and art), whether she’s still friends with Long Lots kids (yes!), her other sports (soccer, basketball, softball, skateboarding and more), her favorite video games (Nintendo Switch and Mario Kart), her biggest challenge (overcoming fear of hitting big jumps), and advice to new snowboarders (“get butt pads — you’ll fall a lot”).

After gifts of flowers and a Long Lots swag bag, principal Kim Ambrosio unfurled a sign honoring the Olympic champion. It will hang in the gym.

Principal Kim Ambrosio (far right) and the new sign.

The assembly ended with Julia joining in, as students sang the school song.

Once a Lion, always a Lion.

Julia Marino’s 5th grade writeup, in the Long Lots yearbook. How many elementary school students’ dreams come true?!

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Roundup: Salad Winners, Staples Fencers, SpongeBob …

Posted on April 4, 2022 | 3 comments

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Over 1,000 salad-eaters cast votes in the Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce’s month-long Great Westport Salad Contest.

And the winners are …

  • Best Caesar Salad: Romanacci
  • Best Chef Salad: Joe’s Pizza
  • Best Cobb Salad: La Plage
  • Best Deli Salad: A&S Fine Foods
  • Best Greens Salad: The Porch
  • Best Make Your Own Salad: Parker Mansion
  • Best Mediterranean Salad: Manna Toast  
  • Best Unique Salad: Capuli.
  •  Honorable Mention (coming within 5 votes of the winner): Calise’s

Winners received plaques to hang. Each winner will also offer a free  salad to eight lucky voters who won the lottery in the category they voted for.

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Ruth Steinkraus Cohen was a remarkable woman.

A Juilliard-trained pianist and teacher; a singer, editor, radio host and activist; secretary to Eleanor Roosevelt at the World Federation of the United Nations Association; founder of the International Hospitality Committee of Fairfield County, and Westport’s jUNe Day celebration; publisher of the worldwide “United Nations Calendar for Peace”; music chair of the Friends of Music for almost 40 years; co-founder and/or noard member of the New York Chamber Soloists, Performers of Connecticut, the Opera Company of Boston, Opera New England, Young Audiences of Connecticut, and Westport’s Art Advisory Committee — it’s no wonder our town’s downtown bridge is named for her.

The Steinkraus name is in the news again — at least, the real estate news.

A trust owned by the Steinkraus family (including Ruth’s late brother Bill, a 1968 Olympic equestrian gold medalist) has listed their amazing “Grand Great Island” property — off the Darien coast — for sale.

Located on a 60-acre island, it includes a stable, riding rings and grand house (called a “villa”), plus a whiskey and wine cellar with contents dating back to Prohibition.

Called “the largest private island ever to be offered for sale on the East Coast,” it can be yours for just $100 million. Click here for details. (Hat tip: Wendy Crowther)

Great Island, now up for sale by the Steinkraus estate.

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Congratulations to the Staples High School fencing team — the state champion fencing team, that is.

What? You didn’t know Staples had a fencing team?!

That’s okay. This is their first year. Eight fencers, coached by Jim Roberts, competed against 9 schools in the state tournament last month, at North Haven High. The Wreckers edged Fairfield 5-4 for the title.

Congratulations to junior Gleb Syomichev, sophomores Max Piterbarg and PJ Loranger. Fencing club co-founder Anna Pan, a senior, helped out.

(From left): Gleb Syomichev, PJ Loranger, Anna Pan and Max Piterbarg,

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There’s lots of recycling in “The SpongeBob Musical.” When the curtain rises this weekend on Coleytown Company’s spring show, the middle schoolers will have incorporated it into their sets.

Working with art teacher Linda Kangro, students took Jordan Janota’s designs and built them all out of garbage and recycling donated by the community.

Kangro let the youngsters into the recycling and trash, and told them to use their imaginations. The result will be something to see. No word, though, on whether they’ll recycle the set to use in the next show.

(“The SpongeBob Musical” will be produced Friday, April 8 (7 p.m.); Saturday, April 9 (7 p.m.) and Sunday, April 10 (1 p.m.). Click here for tickets.

Eli Abrams (as Perch Perkins) with recycled “coral” on the proscenium.

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Play ball!

This year marks the 40th season for the Boss Boys’ Sunday morning softball game. They play at the field behind Town Hall, with stretching and batting practice from 9 to 9:30, and a game afterward.

They’re looking for new players. The cost is $30 for the season; it covers bats, balls, scoring books and “maybe a holiday barbecue.”

Interested? Email bryan.alix@gmail for details.

When this photo was taken in 1992, the Boss Boys’ softball game had already been going for 10 years. It’s lasted 30 more since.

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Former Westporter Jack Grogins — known for his quick wit and passion for tennis, jazz music and rare books — died last week. He was 91.

The Norwalk native and University of Connecticut graduate (undergraduate and law school) enlisted in the Navy in 1956. He went on to practice in the field of insurance defense at the Hartford Insurance Company in 1958.

Jack started his own law practice in 1961. He also served for many years as a part-time prosecutor for the Bridgeport Circuit Court.

As a young man, Jack taught tennis and competed in tournaments around Connecticut. He continued into his 60s, ranking among the top tennis players in the Connecticut Senior Olympics.

He realized his life-long dream with his appointment as a Superior Court judge in 1994. He remained in that position until 2001, when he became a judge trial Referee. Jack remained a highly respected jurist until his retirement in 2018.

Jack was predeceased by his wife Marilyn. He is survived by his daughter, Judge Auden Grogins (Ian), sister-in-law Arlene Glotzer, niece Helen Glotzer, and cousin Molly Passero and her 4 children.

Funeral services will be held tomorrow (Tuesday, April 5, 10 a.m., Abraham L. Green & Son Funeral Home, Fairfield). The family will receive visitors prior to the service, at 9 a.m. Shiva will be observed tomorrow from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the family residence.

Jack Grogins

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We can never get enough osprey photos. Today’s “Westport … Naturally” image was taken yesterday. Carolyn Doan writes: “The Fresh Market osprey is bringing nesting material, while she sits in the sun. It’s all part of the mating phase.”

(Photo/Carolyn Doan)

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And finally … on this date in 1964, the Beatles occupied the first 5 — five! — spots on Billboard’s Hot 100. They’re below, from #1 to #5.

But that’s not all. They Fab 4 had another 7 songs on the charts that week: “I Saw Her Standing There” (#31), “From Me to You” (#41), “Do You Want to Know a Secret” (#46), “All My Loving” (#58), “You Can’t Do That” (#65), “Roll Over Beethoven” #(68) and “Thank You Girl” (#79).

Yeah, Beatlemania was a thing.

PS: I don’t care how old — or young — you are. These songs put a smile on everyone’s face.

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