There were no fireworks or personal attacks at today’s selectman’s debate.
David Rosenwaks, Kevin Christie and Don O’Day — the 3 candidates for first selectman — and Amy Wistreich and Andrea Moore, running mates of the latter two — agreed on the need for proactive planning and collaboration.
All cited their experience, in a variety of endeavors.
And all agreed on the need for a parking deck at the Baldwin lot.
The Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce event at the Westport Library drew a crowd of about 150. with more watching on livestream. They listened to calm, reasoned answers to questions from Chamber director Matthew Mandell.
From left: Kevin Christie, Amy Wistreich, David Rosenwaks, Andrea Moore, Don O’Day, moderator Matthew Mandell.
Differences were in emphasis, not policy. O’Day and Moore — running on the Republican ticket — cited their managerial experience, both professionally and on 2 school building committees and as current 2nd selectwoman, respectively.
Democrats Christie and Wistreich noted their work sitting on 2 elected boards — Education and the Planning & Zoning Commission, respectively.
Rosenwaks cited his Independent Party endorsement, being beholden to neither party.
There was some daylight between them regarding Westport’s relationship with the state Department of Transportation’s involvement in the Post Road project, the Cribari Bridge and a new maintenance facility on the Sherwood Island Connector.
Christie noted the Democrats’ relationships with the governing party in Hartford. O’Day and Rosenwaks countered with their abilities to work across the aisle.
Both Rosenwaks and Wistreich said that on “Day 1,” their administrations would hold meetings with stakeholders in DOT projects.
David Rosenwaks
All agreed that the $400 million-plus capital plan is not set in stone. O’Day was the only candidate to set priorities — Coleytown Elementary School and the Longshore clubhouse and Inn — while Wistreich floated the idea of a townwide facilities manager, to also oversee Board of Ed assets.
There was agreement on the need for some kind of development in Saugatuck — though not at the scale proposed by ROAN Ventures for the ill-fated Hamlet project — and the importance of meetings with the developer (who has options on the property),
Wistreich called it “a generational project that will transform this town forever. And Westport is not for sale.”
Moore agreed with her rival for second selectwoman. “This is such an emotional project. If we don’t talk, and get the grown-ups in the room together, we will continue to get nothing done.”
Kevin Christie and Amy Wistreich.
Rosenwaks cited Darien as an example of a public/private partnership that works for development, while O’Day said he preferred private development in Saugatuck.
In the area of state mandates for affordable housing, all agreed on the need for solutions. They praised State Representative Jonathan Steinberg for voting against HB 5002, which would have taken local control away from zoning near transportation hubs. They also hailed Westport’s Affordable Housing Fund (though, as Moore noted, its current $1.5 million will not go far).
Christie said, “We want more control — and credit for what we’re doing.”
The only applause in the 90-minute session came during a discussion of downtown parking, when Wistreich said, “It’s time to stop taking about Parker Harding, and do something.”
Andrea Moore and Don O’Day.
All the candidates had previously voiced support for a parking deck, and urged action by the Downtown Plan Implementation Committee. Christie advocated for businesses to be represented on that body. Moore noted that some had been on it yet not participated, but that Massimo Tullio, owner of Massi Co, has just been added.
The final questions were about the Community Gardens, and climate change.
O’Day said that Parks & Recreation director Erik Barbieri is working on a garden site, and that as first selectman he would support the director.
Christie said, “Amy and I would have brought everyone together, at the beginning. That would have saved a lot of time.”
As for sea rise, flood mitigation and other environmental concerns, O’Day noted, “You can’t manage what you can’t measure.” Data, he said, would lead to “action, and an embrace of science.”
Part of the debate crowd at the Westport Library. (All photos/Dan Woog)
Early voting began yesterday. That’s a recent innovation — in Connecticut, anyway.
But there’s something even newer, in this election.
For the first time, local candidates have access to a “Voter CheckList” website. In past elections, it’s been limited to state parties.
The website allows party officials and candidates to see — in real time — the names of everyone who has already voted, either early or by returning an absentee ballot.
Just as crucially, they can see who has not yet voted.
Here are yesterday’s statistics, as of 6 p.m.
Total votes so far: 237. That includes 175 in-person voters on Day 1, and 62 absentee ballots. That’s 1.25% of all eligible voters.
Voters so far include 145 Democrats, 32 Republicans and 59 unaffiliated. That total is 1 short of the 237 total — presumably because 1 voter is a member of another party.
Those who voted yesterday represent 1.82% of the 7,955 eligible Democratic voters, 0.96% of the 3,341 eligible Republican voters, and 0.78% of the 7,583 eligible unaffiliated voters.
Turnout is crucial. In past local elections, Westport’s turnout has been less than 50%.
If you don’t vote, you should not be allowed to complain.
If campaigns use the Voter CheckList tool, they can target their supporters from now through Election Day.
Which means that Westport’s yard waste site needs extended Saturday hours.
They begin this week (October 25), from 7 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Regular hours return December 1.
Westport residents with valid proof of residency may dump up to six 30-gallon bags, or similar-sized containers full of leaves, without a fee at the facility (180 Bayberry Lane). Plastic bags are not allowed.
Any van, pickup, or tag-along trailer exceeding the 6-bag limit will be charged $40 per load. Any vehicle or trailer larger than a conventional pickup with a 4-foot-by-8-foot bed will be charged $90 per ton. Any vehicles with a 9-foot body or vehicles modified to significantly enlarge their factory design size will be charged $90 per ton.
Dump tickets may be purchased at Town Hall weekdays, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Yard waste at 180 Bayberry Lane.
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The Staples High School girls basketball program has a long and storied history.
Now you can read about some of the stars.
In preparation for a banner to be hung this winter, honoring all 1,000 point Wrecker scorers — boys and girls — Ben Talbott did a deep dive into the girls’ history. (The boys was much more accessible.)
Now it’s online. Click here to read about notable alumni, including Arianna Greig, Lisa Brummel, Carolyn Center, Stefanie Goettsche, Karen DeFelice, Jessica Gelman, Karem Esteva, Beth Uydess, Courtney Sutherland, Ann Claire Roesch and Jackie O’Connell.
Lisa Brummel was the first girls basketball 1,000-point scorer in Staples history. A 4-sport athlete at Yale from 1977-81, and 3rd team All-American, she is a co-owner of the WNBA Seattle Storm.
The next Veterans Benefits Luncheon is this Thursday (October 23, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.), VFW Post 399).
It’s open to all veterans as part of an ongoing effort to check in on all veterans’ welfare, and connect them with the benefits and support they earned.
Representatives will answer questions, and provide information on services and assistance available to veterans.
RSVPs are encouraged (but not required). Email vfw399ct@gmail.com, and include the number of attendees, or call (203) 227-6796.
PS: If you’re not a veteran, but know one: Please pass the word!
Speaking of the VFW: Drummer Tim Horner highlights this week’s Jazz at the Post (Thursday, VFW Post 399; shows at 7:30 and 8:45 p.m.; dinner at 7).
Known for his work with both small ensembles and large jazz orchestras on several continents, Horner has appeared at the VFW with Ted Rosenthal, David Hazeltine, Joe Magnarelli, Kenny Wessel, and others.
This week he’s joined by guitarist Allan Bezama, pianist Jim Ridl, bassist Noriko Ueda and saxophonist Greg “The Jazz Rabbi” Wall. Click here for tickets, and more information.
Longtime Westport resident Aldean Alice Duffy died Saturday peacefully at home Saturday, surrounded by family, after a long struggle with illness. She was 87.
“Deanie” graduated from Fairfield’s Roger Ludlowe High School in 1956. She married Thomas Duffy in 1958. They lived their 67 years of married life in Greens Farms.
She worked for the Southern Connecticut Telephone Company and in retail before pursuing a career with the Save The Children Foundation, where she spent decades assisting during catastrophes, and managing sponsorships and donations for children around the world.
Deanie enjoyed bowling, reading, playing cards, yard work, gardening, the beach, and time with her family at their cabin in Pea Brook, New York.
Deanie is survived by her husband; children Thomas (Tammy) of Hamilton, Colorado, Kimberly Atterbury of Marysville, Washington, Patrick (Kathrine) of Westport, and Kevin of Colorado Springs; grandchildren Melissa Soucy, Chad Duffy, Brittney Atterbury, Lindsey Atterbury, Austin Duffy, Hunter Duffy, Sadie Duffy and William Duffy-Young, and great-grandchildren Autumn and Mason Soucy.
Aldean was preceded in death by her brothers Vincent and Raymond Maliszewski, and son-in-law, Bruce Atterbury.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held this Friday (October 24, 11 a.m., St. Luke Church). Interment will occur at a later date. In lieu of flowers, family suggests donations to the American Cancer Society or Save the Children.
Aldean “Deanie” Duffy
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Today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo is another John Maloney beauty.
This one was taken at Terra Nova Circle, near the Norwalk line.
And finally … the item above about tonight’s Westport Astronomical Society lecture — including Carl Sagan’s “we are made of star stuff” quote — made us think of:
(We are stardust. We are golden. And we are a hyper-local blog, dependent on readers for support. So we are asking you to click here to contribute. We are of course grateful for your help.)
And to show that “arts” is more than just drawing, painting, music and theater.
Next Sunday (October 26, 2 p.m., Westport Library), 3 photographers with ties to Westport will be featured at the Westport Arts Advisory Committee’s 10th annual TEA Talk.
The event — TEA stands for Thinkers, Educators, Artists — is called “Seeing is Deceiving: A Search for Visual Perspective.” The conversation will explore ways in which photographers translate their visual perceptions into images, making them wholly their own.
Panelists include:
Spencer Platt: a Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, and 1988 Staples High School graduate
Rachel Hall: Westport police detective and drone photographer)
Butch Quick: Award-winning Norwalk street photographer).
Spencer Platt’s Pulitzer Prize-winning photo: September 11, 2001. (Photo/copyright Spencer Platt, with permission )
Photographer-graphic artist Miggs Burroughs will introduce the afternoon, with an overview. He’ll ask: Is there such thing as a universal truth in a photograph? Or is it determined by the eye looking through the viewfinder?
Well-known photographer Art Nager will moderate the panel. Westport poet laureate Donna Disch will offer a poem honoring the topic. A reception will follow the event.
Visitors can also enjoy the current show in the Library’s Sheffer Gallery, on display through December 16.
“Every Picture Tells a Story: Photographs from the Westport Public Library Art Collections” highlights 36 images, hung in schools and municipal buildings around town.
Hard to believe, but voting for town officials begins tomorrow (Monday, October 20).
All early voting takes place in the Town Hall auditorium. Regular polling places are open on Election Day only.
Here’s the schedule:
DATE VOTING HOURS
Monday, October 20 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday, October 21 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, October 22 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Thursday, October 23 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Friday, October 24 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 25 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 26 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Monday, October 27 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday, October 28 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Wednesday, October 29 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Thursday, October 30 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Friday, October 31 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, November 1 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 2 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
SAME DAY REGISTRATION: If you are new to Westport, or have not registered before.
To register, you must show identification that includes your name and Westport address (for example, a driver’s license, current utility bill, check or Social Security card).
You can register online at voterregistration.ct.gov, at the DMV, at the Registrars Office (Town Hall Room 107) or, mail your registration card by October 17.
If you miss this registration deadline, Westport offers registration every day at Town Hall in the auditorium during the early voting period (above). Registrants will be able to cast their ballot at that time.
Registration also available on Election Day (November 4) at the Town Hall auditorium from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters can register and vote during that time. Be prepared to show proof of identity and residency.
The Public Works Department recently installed a radiation detection system at the transfer station. This is in response to the town being repeatedly fined at the waste-to-energy plant in Bridgeport for “hot” loads of municipal solid waste.
A load is “hot” when it contains medical waste with high radiation levels. When this type of waste is mixed in with regular MSW, the plant charges us for finding, isolating and handling the radioactive material. Each incident can cost the towm (taxpayers) over $2,000.
In response, town officials have implemented a new process:
RESIDENTS
If a resident’s vehicle triggers the radiation detection system, an alarm will sound. The vehicle that sets off the system will be asked to leave the transfer station with their waste.
The resident has these options:
Isolate the medical waste and dispose of it at a medical waste facility licensed to take such material, or seek assistance from the health care provider that prescribed the medication. This is the preferred method, especially if the resident expects to be generating more of this type of waste.
After 14 days, the waste can be returned to the transfer station to be re-tested by the system. If the radiation level has decreased to a level not detectable by the system, the driver may dispose of the waste at the transfer station. If the radiation level has not decreased enough, the driver will again be required to leave until it meets acceptable levels.
HAULERS (RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL)
If a hauler’s vehicle triggers the radiation detection system, an alarm will sound. The vehicle that sets off the system will be instructed not to dump at the transfer station. The station operator will try to identify the general location of the radioactive waste within the closed vehicle, utilizing a handheld detector. The driver will be asked to leave the transfer station and will not be allowed to dump.
The driver has these options:
Isolate the medical waste at the hauler’s facility, and dispose of it at a medical waste facility licensed to take such material. It is strongly suggested that the hauler try to identify which customer is generating the waste so that they too can be notified they need to stop doing this, and dispose of the medical waste appropriately.
See second option above, under “Residents.”
Questions? Call Joe Izzo, solid waste superintendent: 203-341-5085.
New rules at the transfer station.
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There’s always something going on at the Westport Library.
Yesterday was a workshop- and panel-filled StoryFest day.
Among them: “Coming of Age: Writing Youth, Identity, and the Search for Belonging.”
Participants (see photo below) included Charlie Jane Anders, Derrick Barnes, Lorien Lawrence, Hailey Piper, Dan Poblocki and Charmaie Gordon.
Around the corner, Westport resident and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Mark Naftalin checked out the new exhibit:
(Photos/DinkinESH Fotografix)
“Art of the Album: Modern Blues” showcases a selection of LPs featuring his performances on keyboard, including with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. From Mother Earth’s “Living With the Animals” to Brewer & Shipley’s “Tarkio,” the albums capture a time when vinyl was both a canvas and a keepsake.
I wasn’t going to post any more photos of yesterday’s “No Kings” rally.
But this one has it all: protesters on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge.
A passing car.
And a Westport Police officer, who was one of several doing a great job keeping rally-goers safe, and traffic moving.
(Photo/Loretta Hallock)
And this one, also from the bridge. It’s artistic — not political:
(Photo/Rowene Weems)
Meanwhile, Pam Docters and Toni Mickiewicz were not at Staples during the famous Vietnam protests of the late 1960s. They’re in the SHS Class of 1978.
But yesterday — at the No Kings rally — they looked back on the most historic Westport protest of that era. Click here or below to view their very intriguing Instagram video:
But we can still point out that Representative Town Meeting hopeful Harris Falk may have the best campaign slogan of anyone running for any office in Westport this year.
(If “06880” helps you find when and where to vote, saves you from being turned away at the transfer station, or does anything else for your life, please click here for a tax-deductible donation. Thanks!)
Back to Bike Westport: Don’t forget their Bridge to Bridge Walk tomorrow (Sunday, 9 a.m.). Residents and all candidates are invited to meet at the Westport Library. Everyone will walk over the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge, turn left on Riverside Avenue, and head to the other (Cribari) Bridge, in Saugatuck.
There are still a few opportunities between now and November 4 to talk hear candidates for various offices. The schedule is below. NOTE: Registration is required for several events.
Select Board Candidates Debate: October 21, 12 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce.
A Seat at the Selectman’s Table: October 21, 6 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by Westport Library Common Ground Initiative. Registration required; click here.
A Conversation with Board of Education Candidates: October 22, 7 p.m., Toquet Hall. Co-sponsored by League of Women Voters Westport and “06880.” Register: lwvwestportct@yahoo.com.
A Conversation with Planning & Zoning Commission Candidates: October 23; 7 p.m. Senior Center. Co-sponsored by League of Women Voters Westport and “06880.” Register: lwvwestportct@yahoo.com.
Candidates Debates: Board of Education, Zoning Board of Appeals, Board of Assessment Appeals, Board of Finance: October 27, 6:30 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by the League of Women Voters Westport.
Candidates Debate: 1st Selectman and Planning & Zoning Commission: October 28, 6:30 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by the League of Women Voters Westport.
The next Public Works and Westport Police Traffic and Pedestrian Safety update session is Thursday (October 23, 7 p.m., Town Hall Room 201/201A).
It includes news about the Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Task Force’s progress, and input from on traffic safety concerns in area neighborhoods.
The Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Task Force.
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Speaking of making the town better: The next clean-up — organized by Andrew Colabella, and hosted by Michele Harding and her group — takes place tomorrow (Sunday, 1 p.m.).
Everyone is invited. Meet at 55-57 Greens Farms Road (the office building next to Assumption Cemetery). Bring bags and trash pickers. Gloves are mandatory.
And thank you to all!
A previous trash pick-up, near the Greens Farms office building.
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It’s a delicate dance, combining comedy with homelessness.
But for 18 years, Homes with Hope has done it well. Last night, they did it again — perfectly.
The 18th annual “Stand Up for Homes with Hope” — a gala fundraiser, highlighted by a comedian — raised over $250,000, at Fairfield University’s sold-out Quick Center.
Raucous laughter, thanks to Tom Papa’s on-target show, was balanced with the sobering mission of the non-profit: to address homelessness and hunger, in Westport and surrounding towns.
Tom Papa, on stage.
Before Papa took the (hilarious) stage, HwH CEO and president Helen McAlinden made 2 announcements.
The organization’s mentoring program will now be named in honor of Carol Randel, the longtime and well-loved board member.
And John Walsh — chair emeritus — was recognized for his 30 years of service. He received a commendation from 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker. Governor Ned Lamont declared yesterday “John Walsh Day” in Connecticut.
A special screening of the documentary “Bonnie Blue: James Cotton’s Life in the Blues” was followed by a concert featuring songs from the film.
Legendary bluesman James Montgomery produced the film. His famed James Montgomery Blues Band performed the post-film concert.
They were joined by Saturday Night Live “Beehive Queen” Christine Ohlman, saxophonist Crispin Cioe (a Westport resident who has played with the Rolling Stones and J Geils Band), and other guests.
Speaking of music legends: Longtime Westporter Harvey Brooks checks in from Jerusalem, where he and his wife Bonnie Behar Brooks now live.
The legendary bassist — who played with some of the most iconic musicians of the 1960s and ’70s (Jimi Hendrix, the Doors, Miles Davis and, perhaps most memorably, Bob Dylan on songs like “Like a Rolling Stone” — is still going strong.
He’s just published a new book: “Lessons: Bass Lines, Sessions, and On the Road Stories.”
In addition to teaching how to play the electric bass, Brooks offers transcriptions (charts) of some of his most outstanding recordings. They’re woven with personal accounts of life as a professional musician.
Now, she’s published a book. She describes “Don’t Tell My Mom That I Love Her” as: “Think Judy Blume’s Margaret meets early Carrie Bradshaw: same inquisitive insight, different shoes. A funny, tender story about mothers, daughters, and the complicated love that connects them as they navigate the messy magical dance of growing up — together.”
The lighthearted story took 10 years to write. Thom Fiffer and Julia Bobkoff of Westport-based Christmas Lake Creative helped Barnett finalize it.
First Folk Sunday has waited a long time to pay tribute to Peter, Paul & Mary.
November 2 (12:30 p.m., Saugatuck Rowing Club) is the perfect time, organizers say. It comes 2 days before Election Day. The timing “reminds everyone that democracy is pro-active and participatory, just like the music gifted to us by Peter, Paul & Mary.”
Suzanne Sheridan and Matt Livigni take on the multiple PP&M identities, in this special show.
Audience members are encouraged to sing along with well-known songs like “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “If I Had a Hammer,” “Puff the Magic Dragon” and more.
In addition to the $20 ticket, Saugatuck Rowing Club offers a First Folk Sunday brunch menu. Doors open at noon; music begins at 12:30. Click here for tickes, and more information. For more information call 203-984-7562.
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The final United Methodist Church Jazz Vespers of the year takes place on Sunday (October 19, 4 p.m.; free will offering).
Pianist Jen Allen joins bassist Matt Dwonszyk and drummer Jonathan Barber, for an uplifting service of music and word. Fellowship will follow the service.
Music director John Hoddinott — a young, talented classical and jazz guitarist—continues to bring dynamic music to the church and community. As the photo below shows: All are welcome.
There’s always something going on at the Senior Center.
And always something to see.
Right now, it’s Peter Gold’s woodturning exhibit.
The co-chair of the Westport Transit District (and Representative Town Meeting member) is also an accomplished artisan.
He began only 7 years ago. Peter works primarily with found wood, mostly from Westport, gathered when people take down trees or they come down in storms.
He cuts the logs on a bandsaw to create turning blanks — blocks of wood prepared for shaping on a lathe. Once dried — which can take several years — he turns the blanks into compelling objects.
“Sometimes my vision prevails,” Peter says. “Sometimes the wood wins. Each piece is a unique creation.”
Peter Gold’s Senior Center exhibit. (Photo/Dick Lowenstein)
Club203 had a “spook-tacular” time Thursday evening, at Earthplace.
Members of Westport’s social organization for adults with disabilities enjoyed “tree trunks full” of candy (courtesy of the New York Yankeees), pumpkin decorating with MoCA CT, and dancing to thrillers with Marca.
Earthplace volunteers were the “magic potion,” ensuring the event’s success.
Smiles (and costumes) tell the Club203 story. (Photo/Stacie Curran)
And finally … Ace Frehley — the original lead guitarist of Kiss — died Thursday in Morristown, New Jersey. of complications from a recent fall. He was 74.
(You can rock and roll all night. You can party every day. But every once in a while, you really should support “06880.” Please click here to show us some love. Thank you all!)
Comments Off on Roundup: RTM District Map, Meet The Candidates, Traffic & Trash …
The Greens Farms Elementary School art teacher — a well-known artist himself — believed that every Westport student should experience art every day.
Burt Chernow
He began collecting works. Through his network of local, then national and international artists — and soon, their contacts — he built an impressive collection.
Today the Westport Public Art Collections include over 2,000 paintings, photographs, sculptures and more. They are displayed in every school, municipal buildings like Town Hall, the Senior Center and Fire Department headquarters, and in outdoor parks.
Anne Boberski co-chairs WestPAC, with Jennifer Fridland. Like everyone else in the organization, she is a volunteer.
Boberski — who has curated exhibits at large museums — got involved with WestPAC in 2019, soon after moving here.
The collection is “integral to Westport’s identity,” she says. But there is so much WestPAC art all around, we sometimes take it for granted.
“Giants of the Blues,” for example — Westport artist Eric von Schmidt’s remarkable 7-piece work of American blues, jazz and folk musicians from the 1920s through ’60s, which hangs in the Staples High School auditorium lobby, and on surrounding walls — is scarcely noticed by the students and staff members who pass by every day.
“Blues Piano Players” — one of 7 works by Eric von Schmidt that make up “Giants of the Blues” — moves from Staples to MoCA CT in February.
The enormous works — which von Schmidt donated to WestPAC, rather than the Smithsonian — deserve a broader audience.
From February 26 through April 26, they’ll be shown as part of MoCA’s “Art, Jazz and the Blues” exhibit.
That illustrates one of WestPAC’s dilemmas. Though Chernow’s original vision was to bring art to students, school hallways, classrooms and offices are not always accessible to the public. As security has tightened in recent years, it’s harder than ever for non-school personnel to enjoy so much remarkable art.
Stevan Dohanos’ work — with Staples students as models, later used as a Saturday Evening Post cover — has been on display in various sites. In 2016, it hung at Staples High School.
So — in addition to town buildings — the organization has partnered with MoCA CT, the Westport Library and the Parks & Recreation Department.
Tonight (Wednesday), for example, the Library hosts a reception (6 p.m.) and talk by guest curator Arthur Nager (7 p.m.) for its new exhibit, “Every Picture Tells a Story: Photographs From the Westport Public Art Collections.” It’s on view through December 16.
Inside the schools too, WestPAC is trying to make their collections stand out more. They’re installing “dedicated gallery spaces,” with temporary rails, to highlight their works.
They’re also collaborating with art, social studies and English teachers, to incorporate each school’s collection into curriculums.
Meanwhile, WestPAC continues to do its work. Members are adding to the collections, preserving and conserving older ones, and looking for new spots — like the latest, Grace K. Salmon and Canal Parks — to share Westport’s remarkable arts legacy with everyone.
Emily Teall’s “Tulips” has been installed at Grace Salmon Park. (Photo/Kelly Pollard)
(To celebrate WestPAC’s 60th anniversary, they’re seeking donations to help care for, frame, conserve and otherwise aid the collection. Click here, or send to WestPAC, Box 92, Westport, CT 06881. For more information on WestPAC, click here.)
Bernard Chaet’s oil painting “Sunset Through the Trees” was an early gift to WestPAC. In 2023, Friends of WestPAC and the Westport Arts Advisory had it professionally cleaned and conserved.
(“06880” reports regularly on Westport’s arts and education scenes. If you enjoy stories like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
The 8th annual Westport Library StoryFest — one of the largest literary festivals in the Northeast — kicked off Monday (Indigenous Peoples’ Day) with celebrated writer Julien Brave NoiseCat.
He’s one of many high-caliber StoryFest authors, who bring insights and experience to panel discussions, workshops and more. many have won the literary world’s highest awards, including Caldecott and Newbery honors, Oscar nominations and more.
Many of the writers also visit schools in Westport, Norwalk, Bridgeport and surrounding areas for readings and author talks.
Robin Moyer Chung
Today, new “06880” culture correspondent Robin Moyer Chung looks at 2 award-winning books, and the authors’ inspiration behind them.
Chung is a writer, librettist, podcaster (“Why the Hell Did I Write This”), and former editor of Westport Lifestyle Magazine
She’ll cover shows, festivals, exhibits and more, providing anecdotes, back stories and personal perspectives.
Christina Baker Kline, “Orphan Train” (Panel: “Nevertheless, She Persisted: Writing Strong Women”; Saturday, October 18, 3-4 p.m.).
Kline is a New England Prize for Fiction recipient and New York Times best-selling author of 10 novels.
“Orphan Train” follows Vivian, a 91-year-old woman, and a troubled teenager who convinces her to tell the story of how Vivian, a young orphan living in New York, was forced onto a train and deposited in the fields of the Midwest. The story is based on historical fact.
Ten years ago, while snowed-in at her mother-in-law’s house in Fargo, North Dakota, Kline noticed her son reading an unfamiliar book: “Centuries of Stories.”
It included a story about Kline’s grandfather-in-law’s involvement in a train that took orphans and abandoned children — considered criminals and transients — from New York City to farms in the Midwest. There they were forced into working for poor farmers and punished into becoming good Christians.
Between 1854 and 1929, 200,000 children rode the train and disembarked into agrarian wastelands.
Fun fact about the author: Christine says, “I often work and write in coffee shops, observing the baristas and eavesdropping on interesting conversations.” So remember to talk loud and interesting when you’re grabbing your latte. Maybe one day your chit-chat will inspire a writer.
Derrick Barnes, “The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze”: Panel: “Coming of Age: Writing Youth, Identity, and the Search for Belonging”; Saturday, October 18, 1-2 p.m.).
Barnes’ books have won the Coretta Scott King Award, Newbery honors, and more. His newest novel is long-listed for the National Book Award.
Barnes will visit Brookside Elementary in Norwalk and Wooster Middle School in Stratford.
In “The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze,” Henson is a Black 13-year-old football powerhouse in a small town of mostly white residents, and an ugly, racist past. The townsfolk excitedly follow his progress, and are thrilled to have their token African American All-Star-to-be.
Then Henson is assaulted by police for running with a toy gun. As he demands justice, the town quickly divides in their support for him, while still demanding he continue playing ball for their entertainment.
As a teenager in a Black neighborhood in Kansas City, Barnes grew up among many “Black boys” who became professional athletes. They were friends, relatives, and neighbors.
As they were drafted into the NFL, Barnes noticed how “Midwestern white people didn’t see those Black athletes as somebody that could be a neighbor or a cousin or a friend. So they talked about them like they were commodities.”
They ridiculed Black athletes for not being “team players” when they wouldn’t sign their contracts or couldn’t come to a practice. But they never laid blame on the owners. who were mostly upper class white men and their families.
Barnes was commissioned to write the bedtime story ‘Percy and the Lioness” for the enormously popular Thomas and Friends syndicate. He was also the first Black copywriter for Hallmark.
Early in her 40-year career in manufacturing, marketing and management with global companies, Deirdre Evens set priorities: her work, her family, herself.
She realized she had little time to give to her friends and community.
Deirdre Evens, in the 1982 Staples yearbook.
In the Boston area and then Singapore, she kept up as best she could with friends from Westport, where she’d lived from third grade through Staples High graduation in 1982.
She looked forward to retirement, when she would have more time for friends, and civic involvement.
Her husband, Brad Kullberg, knew she wanted that community to be — again — Westport. He grew up in Rhode Island, but was familiar with Westport from visits with Deirdre to her family here.
They found a great house on Morningside Drive, half a mile from her childhood home. The couple moved in a year ago.
Can you go home again? Deirdre says, emphatically: Yes!
And can her husband find a home in a new community like this? Also, yes.
From the Y’s Men to the Patterson Club, they’re having an “incredible” time, Deirdre says.
Her perspective has changed, of course. She’s a retired adult with grown children — not a high school student with her whole life ahead.
Deirdre Evens, at Greens Farms Elementary School.
Clearly, she notes, Westport today is not the town of 1982. She misses the Remarkable Book Shop, Klein’s, Ships, Bill’s Smoke Shop. Traffic is “ridiculous.” Sirens sound frequently.
But so much more (including the restaurants) are so much better.
Between rediscovering old joys and stumbling on new ones, life in Westport has exceeded her expectations.
And Deirdre marvels at how quickly she and Brad were able to adapt.
Within weeks they met a broad group of people with common interests, at a similar stage of life. Old friends who still live in the area introduced them to new ones.
All were eager to share what they love about their community.
Brad and Deirdre don’t spend all their time in Westport. New York draws them in at least once a week, for museums and shows. Her parents had taken her to the city often while growing up. But the New York of 2025 dazzles them.
So does the Westport of 2025. Kayak rentals on the Saugatuck River, the Library, Levitt Pavilion, Farmers’ Market — and other gems in Fairfield, Rowayton and the rest of the area — keep the couple constantly active.
Deirdre Evens and her husband, Brad Kullberg, in Vietnam.
Deirdre speaks as a retiree. But many of her neighbors are young families. They tell her how much they enjoy raising their children here. They share her enthusiasm about the array of activities, and welcoming vibe.
Before their move, Deirdre wondered if their kids — she has 2 in New York, and one returning to the States from Israel; he has 3 in the Boston area — would want to visit in the suburbs.
“They love coming here!” she reports. In fact, Brad’s daughter recently got married in their Westport yard.
Deirdre is still figuring out how to get more involved, in organizations like Wakeman Town Farm.
She does not want to run for office, but hopes to find a way to have an impact on how the town is run.
Deirdre Evens, today.
Her advice to older people considering a move here: “Don’t stress out about the ease of joining — or rejoining — the community.
“There are so many ways to engage: the Westport Woman’s Club, Y’s Men, book groups, boating, mahjong, golf, gardening. It’s easy, and the people are so welcoming.
“Explore online before you come. If you have connections, make an effort to re-connect.
“And ask questions. Our realtor was great!”
Meredith Cohen found Deirdre and Brad a home.
In a town that Deirdre definitely could go home again to.
(“06880” often reports on Westport life — for and about people of all ages. If you enjoy stories like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Unsure who to vote for? Clueless about the candidates?
Two events this week can help.
On Tuesday (October 14, 7 p.m., Toquet Hall) the 3 candidates for 1st selectman will answer questions (from moderators and the audience) on stage. The League of Women Voters Westport and Westport Youth Commission are sponsors. This is a special event for students, but adults are invited.
On Wednesday (October 15, 2 p.m., Senior Center) the LWV sponsors “A Conversation with Board of Finance Candidates.”
This Thursday (October 16, 6:30 p.m., Greens Farms Academy), Westport Journal is sponsoring a 1st Selectman candidates debate. Registration is required; click here.
Coming soon:
Select Board Candidates Debate: October 21, 12 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce.
A Seat at the Selectman’s Table: October 21, 6 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by Westport Library Common Ground Initiative. Registration required; click here.
A Conversation with Board of Education Candidates: October 22, 7 p.m., Toquet Hall. Co-sponsored by League of Women Voters Westport and “06880.”
A Conversation with Planning & Zoning Commission Candidates: October 23; 7 p.m. Senior Center. Co-sponsored by League of Women Voters Westport and “06880.”
Candidates Debates: Board of Education, Zoning Board of Appeals, Board of Assessment Appeals, Board of Finance: October 27, 6:30 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by the League of Women Voters Westport.
Candidates Debate: 1st Selectman and Planning & Zoning Commission: October 28, 6:30 p.m., Westport Library. Sponsored by the League of Women Voters Westport.
“Someone banged on my door around midday today, a man I did not recognize. I ignored the pounding. He left after a while, but he left a brochure. I’m guessing it was for a campaign.
“I can’t reach it to read it, because I can’t find my grabber. Maybe tomorrow morning I’ll figure out what it’s about.
“This is a very bad time to go around pounding on people’s doors. We’re all a little nervous about strangers. If he is running for an office, he doesn’t understand the right way to do it.
“I had another candidate stick signs on my property, without permission.
“I also think this barrage of signs is distracting to drivers. Should we vote for the first person in the line of signs, the last person or somebody in the middle? Do they really want to look like lawn maintenance or a tag sale?
“The blight committee is so fastidious about the image of Westport. How can they stomach these hideous signs everywhere on our roadsides?
“If people want to know how to vote, it’s much more informative to consider the statements of the individuals and the information put out by the League of Women Voters, don’t you think?”
(NOTE: Campaign signs are free speech, and permitted on town property. However, they cannot be put on private property without the owner’s permission.)
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Hundreds of human beings gathered yesterday at the Westport Library, to discuss their future — at least, as it relates to artificial intelligence.
The in-depth exploration of AI — and its implications across law, business, healthcare, education and technology — was sponsored by Verso University, the Library’s lifelong learning and education initiative.
It spanned 3 sessions. Yale Law School professor Scott Shapiro led off with a discussion of AI’s role in legal reasoning, government ethics, and cybersecurity, alongside Kevin Nguyen, features editor at The Verge.
The second session examined the ways in which AI is shaping Connecticut’s innovation landscape, higher education, healthcare, workforce and legislation.
The final session concluded with reflections from Kate Crawford, one of AI’s leading scholars of artificial intelligence and its material impacts. (Hat tip: Les Dinkin)
Kevin Nguyen and Kate Crawford. (Photo/Dinkin ESH Fotografix)
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Westporters will participate in Saturday’s “No Kings Day” national event.
The October 18 protest against President Trump begins at 11 a.m., at Jesup Green. Participants will march to Veterans Green, for speakers and music. The route follows one taken by Westport’s suffragists, in 1913.
One of the organizers, Darcy Hicks, says: “In Westport, No Kings Day is an opportunity to signal to our local leaders who we are and what we hold dear.
Most of us spend much of our time caring for family, whether that is our children, spouses, or parents. This is about them.
“We are marching for the preservation of the water and air they breathe, for truth in their classrooms, for their healthcare, and for their social security. Most of all, we are marching for the rehabilitation of love, and the right for all of our neighbors, regardless of their faith, gender identity, race, or economic standing, to live with dignity.”
A “No Kings” sign, from Westport’s June protest. (Photo/Pippa Bell Ader)
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I’m not sure what “Fish on the Pumpkin” is.
But it’s one of the seasonal specials you’ll find at Basso’s Halloween party.
It’s October 31. Music starts at 7:30 p.m. Manny Montañez and his orchestra will play — with Chef Renato joining in on percussion. Dancing is encourage.
TAP Strength is all about helping people feel more confident and capable in their bodies. A new program supports an important group: neurodivergent teens and young adults.
The next event in their “Effortless Effort” speaker series is this Tuesday (October 14, 6 to 7 p.m., 180 Post Road East). at its Post Road East studio. It’s a conversation between TAP founder Dr. EJ Zebro and Chelsea Elkind and Lauren Rosenblum, founders of Westport-based NeuroMind. They’ve helped TAP design a program that is inclusive, supportive, and grounded in real-world needs.
Renaissance and Baroque dances, folk songs and vocal masterworks from England, France and Italy fill Christ & Holy Trinity Church’s Branson Hall this Saturday (October 18, 5 p.m.
Soprano Sherezade Panthaki joins Parthenia Viol Consort (praised by The New Yorker as “one of the brightest lights in New York’s early-music scene”).
This was not taken at Christ & Holy Trinity Church’s Branson Hall. But that’s where Saturday’s concert will be.
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Duke University’s women’s crew team had a successful High Point Autumn Rowing Festival — thanks in large part to Mia Khamish of Westport.
Competing against international competition from Edinburgh and Oxford in North Carolina, the Blue Devils snagged 2 first-place finishes.
In the afternoon 8 race, the senior coxswain’s decision-making at a crucial moment made a key difference.
Coach Adrian Spracklen called it “very mature, very smart … a tremendous call that you expect from a senior — someone that’s done it before.” To see the race, click here.
The Staples High graduate rowed for the Connecticut Boat Club.
Mia Khamish
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Yeah, yeah, we’ve posted a couple of close-up “Westport … Naturally” photos recently of bees doing their thing with flowers.
And finally … today is the birthday of James “Sugar Boy” Crawford.
The New Orleans R&B musician wrote “Jock-a-Mo” in 1954.
A Mardi Gras standard, it became a hit a decade later for the Dixie Cups, as “Iko Iko.” It was recorded by many other artists too, including Dr. John, Belle Stars, the Grateful Dead, Cyndi Lauper, and (as “Geto Boys”) by Glass Candy.
But Crawford’ s career ended in 1963. A severe beating at the hands of state troopers incapacitated him for 2 years. In 1969, he decided to sing only in churches. He died in 2012, at 77. He is now in the Louisiana Music Hall Of Fame.
(No matter who you vote for, there’s one decision we can all agree on: When you click here to support “06880,” everyone wins! No recount necessary … thank you!)
StoryFest — The Westport Library’s annual literary festival — kicks off its 8th year on Monday.
That’s also Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
There is a Westport tie-in.
Actually, several.
At 7 p.m. Monday (October 13), Julian Brave NoiseCat launches his new memoir, “We Survived the Night.” He’ll join Ramin Ganeshram, executive director of the Westport Museum for History & Culture, for a keynote conversation.
The book’s official release is the next day.
Julian Brave NoiseCat
StoryFest — the largest literary festival in Connecticut — draws scores of authors and hundreds of readers, writers and fans each year. With an interdisciplinary career, NoiseCat’s work aligns with the mission: a celebration of storytelling in all forms, across all types of media.
His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Washington Post and The New Yorker. In 2021 he was named to Time Magazine’s “100 Next List of Emerging Leaders.”
NoiseCat’s film “Sugarcane” was nominated for an Academy Award. It follows an investigation into abuse and missing children at the Indian residential school NoiseCat’s family was sent to in British Columbia.
The writer/filmmaker will be introduced Monday by Valerie Seiling Jacobs. It promises to be more than a cursory recitation of his bio.
Valerie Seiling Jacobs
In 2012, Jacobs — a longtime Westporter and corporate lawyer for over 2 decades, who had pivoted to a second career teaching writing at Columbia University — met NoiseCat in her small “University Writing” class.
It was a demanding, intensive course. The first-year student immediately stood out.
“He was so focused on improving his writing,” she recalls.
The topics he chose — social justice, climate change, Native Americans — were important to him. But he wove them into larger stories, Jacobs says.
That’s what his current writing does too, she says. “It’s personal and investigative, while serving a larger purpose.”
For the next 3 years, Jacobs read his work in the Columbia newspaper. A few years later, she saw an article on Native American rights in The Guardian.
“It was fascinating. Then I noticed his byline,” she says. She reconnected with her former student.
His writing showed up often in her news feeds. She saw “Sugarcane” in New York. She was proud — but not surprised — when it won awards, including Sundance Film Festival and Critics’ Choice.
They corresponded occasionally. When she learned he’d be at StoryFest, she told him she lived in Westport. They arranged for Jacobs to introduce him.
NoiseCat’s new book has received plenty of advance praise. Rebecca Solnit called it “a beautiful, wrenching, important masterpiece, both a memoir and something that reaches far beyond the personal.”
Oprah Daily named it one of the best books of this fall.
More than a dozen years after Julian Brave NoiseCat took Valerie Seiling Jacobs’ intensive writing course, she is not at all surprised.
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Ten years ago, while snowed-in at her mother-in-law’s house in Fargo, North Dakota, Kline noticed her son reading an unfamiliar book: “Centuries of Stories.”
In “The Incredibly Human Henson Blayze,” Henson is a Black 13-year-old football powerhouse in a small town of mostly white residents, and an ugly, racist past. The townsfolk excitedly follow his progress, and are thrilled to have their token African American All-Star-to-be.
NoiseCat’s new book has received plenty of advance praise. Rebecca Solnit called it “a beautiful, wrenching, important masterpiece, both a memoir and something that reaches far beyond the personal.”