Fifty years ago, University of Bridgeport student Mike Zito wandered into the WPKN studio. Soon, he had his own radio show.
In the half century since, Zito has done plenty. He managed a coffee house, hosting Dave Van Ronk, Tom Paxton, Bela Fleck and many others.
He created a science show for kids: “Zeeto the Bubbleman.” He opened for Shari Lewis, and performed at the Baltimore Museum of Arts Dr. Seuss exhibit.
Performing the show at schools sparked a 27-year teaching career. The bulk of that was spent creating and growing the Media Department at Staples High School, with his longtime friend Jim Honeycutt.
Mike Zito, at WWPT-FM
As advisor to student radio station WWPT-FM, Zito won national awards like Best High School Radio Station in the Country). He was twice named the nation’s outstanding faculty advisor (the second time sharing it with Honeycutt).
Zito and Honeycutt retired together, in 2016. Zito moved to Austin, then to Lewes, Delaware.
During those 5 decades, radio — that most basic of all mass media — evolved significantly. Zito is still on the WPKN air, two Thursdays each month (though, as an example of where radio is today, he does his show remotely, from his new home).
But now he’s got a new project.
Earlier this month, he launched “Zeeto on the Radio.” It’s an internet station, and he hopes it will take community radio to a new level.
Zito does all the programming himself. Genres include blues, British Isles, Canada, Texas, folk, classic rock and women artists.
The music is eclectic — and sometimes rare. A jam with Clarence Clemmons and Jerry Garcia drew raves from music aficionados who never knew they played together.
Starting with just a Facebook post, and word of mouth, listeners have found Zeeto on the Radio. They come from all over the US, and 37 countries (including, for reasons he can’t yet fathom, Norway and Lithuania).
Someone in Ireland emailed: “Brilliant! I listen every day.”
The website (click here) is no-frills. There’s a schedule, a list of the song being played plus the previous 4, a bit about Zito, “listen with Alexa” instructions, and a “Donate” button.
Zito pays for music rights, equipment, and acquisition. Still, he says, he’ll do this even if he doesn’t make a dime.
His internet radio show has provided tremendous enjoyment. He’s meeting people from all over the world.
And it’s given him a sense of purpose, since the death of his wife Joni from cancer 7 months ago.
“This is far from viral,” Zito says. “But I’m having a blast.”
Zito would love to hear from new listeners — and former students. Email zeetoradio@hotmail.com.
(“06880” relies on support from readers. Please click here to help. Thank you!)
Tuesday night’s Staples High School boys basketball game was filled with drama.
The Wreckers won a 68-67 overtime nail-biter over New Canaan.
But that wasn’t the half of it.
Halftime included a chance for a young player named Trey got a chance to hit a 3-point shot. The prize: a free session at the new Academy basketball camp.
News 12 Connecticut is working on a story about the 1989 Joan Wertkin cold case murder.
They want to speak with anyone who knew Joan, the family, or has information on the case. Even a small piece of information might help produce a clearer understanding of the events leading up to the killing.
In preparation for their June trip to Hawaii, Staples’ Orphenians are hosting an “Aloha Cabaret.” The January 22 event (6:30 p.m., Westport Library) features Tony Award winner (and Westporter) Kelli O’Hara; the Orphenians (of course),, and as emcee, the incomparable David Pogue.
There are also Hawaiian-themed light bites, and an exciting silent auction. Fundraising will ensure that all 42 members can make the trip.
Orphenians — the elite singing group — have traveled across the US, and internationally, since shortly after their founding in 1958. This will be the third trip for conductor Luke Rosenberg.
Georgia Wrighth traveled with Orphenians to Australia in July 2018.
“It was one of the best experiences, with some of my best friends,” she recalls. “Some others I didn’t know too well. But we became so close on that trip.
“We were making music, and meeting people from all over the world who shared our passion. We sang for 8 hours a day, and learned so much working with a master composer.”
Georgia went on to earn a BFA in musical theater from the Boston Conservatory.
Three years earlier, Jack Baylis joined Orphenians on a trip to San Francisco. They worked with the famed Chanticleer choral group,
“It was one of my first exposures to high-level professionals,” Jack recalls. “They were so intense, but they showed us attainable goals.”
Jack appreciates the opportunities Orphenians had — and have now, again — to experience such a trip.
“Whether you pursue the arts as a career or not, this is a chance to impact your life,” Jack says. “In hindsight, I realize how important that is.”
Jack will perform with Kelli O’Hara at the Aloha Cabaret.
Tickets are $150 per person for general admission and $225 per person for VIP. For tickets and more information, click here.
Last night, MoCA Westport’s opening reception introduced their winter exhibition. “Paul Camacho: Rhythm and Unity” features selected works primarily drawn from the Westport Public Art Collections. The exhibition is on view through February 26.
Simultaneously, the annual high school exhibition — Who Are You When You Are Dreaming — includes nearly 200 student works from across the region.
Docented gallery tours are available on Thursdays at 1 p.m. An associated Cocktails and Conversation series will be held on Thursday evenings, including a talk about Camacho, a curator talk, and a panel featuring local designers and entrepreneurs on fashion, art and design.
Yesterday’s “06880” Roundup gave an incorrect date for the next trash clean-up, at the Sherwood Island Connector I-95 Exit 18 commuter parking lot.
It’s this Sunday — not Saturday — at 11 a.m.
Bring trash bags and work gloves. There’s plenty to do!
Westporters picked up tons of trash last weekend at the Greens Farms train station. This Sunday at 11 a.m.: the commuter parking lot on the Sherwood Island connector.
The Westport Transit District and Steam again team up to offer free coffee to people who take Wheels2U to the Saugatuck train station. The offer is good this Friday (January 13) and next Tuesday, (January 17).
Just ride Wheels2U to the station between 6 and 10:30 a.m., and show proof of the ride at the Steam counter.
For more information on Wheels2U — the home-to-the-station ride service — click here.
David Pogue got a note from his neighborhood association treasurer. It said:
As many of you know, the cost of electricity spiked at the beginning of this year. If you look at your utility bill, it will be divided into two sections: (1) supplier costs and (2) delivery costs.
Supplier costs are the cost to generate the electricity, which has been ~12 cents per kWh. Starting in January, this rate doubled for Eversource —to 24 cents per kWh. Since supply is about half your bill, and this has doubled, your bill went up about 50% in total starting January 1.
You have the option in CT to choose a third-party supplier, which often come at hefty discounts to Eversource.
David adds: “He pointed out that customers can compare rates at EnergizeCT.com. At the moment, Town Square Energy’s rates are about 38% less expensive. I switched today!”
A return of another sort: Kyle Martino, to the airwaves.
The Staples High School Class of 1999 graduate — and former Staples soccer star, who was named Gatorade High School Player of the Year — has just been named to the TNT and HBO Max broadcast team for US men’s and women’s national team matches.
Martino spent 8 years as a Premier League analyst with NBC Sports. He is also a soccer entrepreneur. He founded the Goalpher system for turning basketball courts into small soccer fields, and also developed the OverUnder Initiative, to bring soccer to under-resourced communities.
Martino was MLS Rookie of the Year with the Columbus Crew in 2002. He also played with the Los Angeles Galaxy, and has 8 caps with the US men’s national team.
His announcing partner on TNT and HBO Max is former women’s national team star Julie Foudy.
There were 3 custodial arrests last week, by Westport Police.
One person was arrested for shoplifting, conspiracy to commit a crime, and failure to appear.
Another person was arrested for shoplifting.
The shoplifting incidents occurred at Whole Foods (over $300 worth of items), Walgreens (over $1250) and Stop & Shop (over $1350).
A third person was arrested for reckless driving, failure to carry a license, and failure to drive in the proper lane. That happened when a jogger said he was struck by a vehicle turning left from Greens Farms Road onto Hillspoint Road. The driver allegedly left the scene. A witness then told police that the suspected offender was inside Cumberland Farms, making statements about “hitting a jogger.”
The following citations were issued:
Traveling unreasonably fast: 9
Failure to obey control signal: 2
Following too closely: 1
Operating an unregistered motor vehicle: 1
Operating a motor vehicle under suspension: 1
Driving with out of state plates: 1
Violation of traffic commission regulation: 1
Breach of peace: 1
Assault 3rd degree, risk of injury to a minor: 1
When you move to Connecticut, you must register your car here.
It’s mid-winter. Time to get a jump on spring – and attract pollinators to your garden this summer.
University of Connecticut advanced master gardener Alice Ely leads a Wakeman Town Farm “Winter Sowing Demonstration” on January 23 (7 p.m.).
Attendees will learn how to make mini-greenhouses (in bottles) to start seedlings. Left outside until spring, they’ll turn into milkweed plants that attract hummingbirds, bees and butterflies.
Click here for more information, and registration.
Posted onJanuary 10, 2023|Comments Off on “06880” Podcast: Tom Scarice
One of the “06880” podcast’s favorite guests is Tom Scarice.
Westport’s superintendent of schools is honest, direct, articulate and informative. He speaks in complete paragraphs, uses relatable analogies, understands this town — and clearly loves his job.
Midway through his third year at the helm, he dropped by the Westport Library’s Verso Studios recently.
We spoke about our schools’ climate and culture; COVID, and its after-effects; his goals, and how to measure them; the growing school population, and its impacts; redistricting, and the overwhelming pressures students feel today.
Click below for the latest “06880” podcast. You’ll learn a lot!
As the New Year begins with bang here, we think of our friends in Westport’s sister city of Lyman.
They greet 2023 in homes without heat — in some cases, even roofs and walls.
They lack electricity and running water. Their police and fire departments have no vehicles.
Thanks to the generosity of hundreds of “06880” readers, they’ve gotten some help. They had homemade meals on Christmas, and all 491 children left in Lyman got gifts.
They need much more. We set an audacious goal of $250,000. In just 13 days, we’ve raised $227,700.
How’s this for our New Year’s resolution: We’ll raise that final $22,300 today.
If every Westport resident gave $1, that would get us over the top. That’s right: With just $1 from every Westporter, we’d reach and pass our target for Lyman.
Come on, Westport! Take 2 minutes from watching football, getting ready for a party or beach walk, or whatever else makes life here so good.
There’s no better way to ring in 2023 than with $1 for our sister city.
Tax-deductible donations can be made to Lyman through Ukraine Aid International. Pleaseclick here. Click the “I want to support” box; then select “Support for the City of Lyman.” Scroll down on that page for other tax-deductible donation options (mail, wire transfer and Venmo). You can also donate directly, via Stripe (click here).
PS: Our partners on the ground, Ukraine Aid International — co-founded by Westporters Brian and Marshall Mayer — are purchasing building supplies right now for Lyman. They will be shipped soon to the town.
Barbara Walters — the pioneering newscaster and interviewer who died Friday at 93 — inspired countless aspiring journalists. Many were girls.
Alisyn Camerota was one. The author, “CNN Newsroom” anchor and Westport resident described Walters’ early influence, in an opinion pieces posted on CNN+ yesterday.
“Whenever people ask me about the moment I decided to become a broadcast journalist, I explain that it happened in utero,” Camerota begins.
How did that happen? Click here to read the full piece.
Howard Simon, a longtime resident of Weston, died Friday after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 90 years old.
Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Howard studied business administration at the University of Minnesota, and was a member of Phi Epsilon fraternity.
He joined his family’s manufacturing business, Simon and Mogilner, in Birmingham, Alabama where he directed sales and marketing before becoming CEO. Howard then worked as an early pioneer in financing for cellular communications and independent TV stations, before representing Major League Baseball players as an agent.
Howard was an avid tennis player and sports fan, and loved his monthly poker game. He followed politics and current events with keen interest. He was a mentor and advisor who was always happy to provide advice and business guidance. Above all, his family says, “he was known for his affable personality, engaging everyone he met with Midwestern charm.”
He is survived by his wife Amy Simon; daughters Katherine McCarty (Matthew) and Lisa Simon Bailey (Jeff); sons Matthew, David (Andrea) and James, and grandchildren Ross and Evan Simon, Marshall Bailey, and Reed and Kira McCarty. Howard was predeceased by his brothers Jerrold and Ronald, and his son Bruce.
Funeral services will be held Wednesday (January 4, 11 a.m., Abraham Green & Son, Fairfield). Memorial contributions may be made to the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
Howard’s family is grateful to the staff at Jewish Senior Services of Bridgeport, who cared for him with great compassion and kindness.
… and wrote: “For all the money we pay to Eversource, you would think they would not include a 5-6-foot extra pole about 2/3 up an existing one pole.”
I’ve learned not to fire first and ask questions later. So I forwarded this to my utility “source” — er, expert.
He replied:
Poles in Westport are 95+% owned and installed by Eversource as the custodian utility. Across Connecticut the ratio is 50/50. Eversource has half and Frontier half, as owners and custodians.
There is no joint agreement on attaching or shifting wires and equipment on and off of poles. The company that owns them installs, maintains and removes the attachments’to each overhead wood pole.
Now comes the tricky/frustrating part. When a pole is damaged or replaced, the custodian does the pole setting/replacement, but each “owner” of the attachments (wires, transformers, streetlights, etc.) does the work to shift their equipment onto the new pole,
In this photo, the top primary voltage electric wire (sitting on the gray transformer) belongs to Eversource, so they set them onto the new pole. The bottom of the transformer has secondary (120 volt) wires running to the left and right from the transformer — owned and installed by Eversource as well.
The next wire down just below is a telecom (Optimum’s?) wire with a roundish spreader (left side of pole), but attached to the new pole. Now come the last 2 wires going down the photo, both telecom wires, likely owned by Frontier … and still attached to that 3-foot long piece of the old pole, dangling in the air!
From my experience it’s likely to remain like that for months, because it’s low (very low!) priority for the company that owns those telecom wires.
So advise your reader that it’s not Eversource’s problem!
Then he added a PS:
Look at every pole you pass by just in this town alone. Count how many “double” poles there are — not just a piece of a pole dangling 15 feet up, but the entire old pole, from the ground up to the top telecom wires.
I’d guess something around 1 in 20 or 30 poles will have one of these hideous double poles. And some lean out from the new straight (and usually sturdier pole), looking a bit precarious.
Take a look. You’ll be amazed!
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Westporters don’t always get along.
Nor do other animals.
Perhaps — as the new year begins — we should take a page from today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo.
I asked him how many Unsung Heroes he had nominated. Remember the old ’60s saying? “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.”
Turns out, he used an alias.
That makes him even more of a jerk. Coming on the heels of my discovery of a couple of other aliases — some plausible-sounding like “Will Leach,” others clearly fake — I feel like a jerk, too.
I trust “06880” readers. I do not require verification to post comments. I only ask that people use full, real names.
I spend a ton of time on all aspects of “06880.” Monitoring comments for civility and accuracy is one of them. Monitoring them for honesty should not be part of the deal.
I’ve asked before: Please be nice. Please don’t abuse the Comments section. If you have something to say, have the guts to say it publicly, under your real name.
That shouldn’t be too much to ask. Obviously though it is, because I just did.
“06880” welcomes your comments. Please have the courtesy — and guts — to use your real name.
The New York Times’ “Morning” newsletter just published their most memorable photos of the year.
The very first one was taken by 1991 Staples High School graduate — and Pulitzer Prize/MacArthur “genius grant” award winner — Lynsey Addario.
(Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)
The caption says:
“Millions of people fled Ukraine in the early weeks of Russia’s invasion, seeking refuge in other countries. Desperate families shoved their way onto a train leaving the capital, Kyiv, in early March.”
Click here for more of the Times’ top images. (Hat tip: Susan Leone)
Meanwhile, the Times’ other photo feature — the more extended “Year in Pictures” — includes more than half a dozen images from Addario and Tyler Hicks, her colleague who is also a Pulitzer winner and Staples grad (Class of 1988).
The first in the chronological list is from January 19. It’s a shot by Hicks of a Ukrainian soldier at a frontline position. “The world watched nervously as Western countries warned that Russia was preparing to attack Ukraine at any moment,” the caption says.
(Photo/Tyler Hicks for the New York Times)
There was also this harrowing photo of a dead Russian soldier near Kharkiv, as Ukrainian troops defender their land in the first days of the invasion.
(Photo/Tyler Hicks for The New York Times)
“The Year in Pictures” includes this explanatory quote from Hicks:
There was no way to know if you would run into Russian soldiers. I decided to get out of the car and walk to make sure we weren’t going to drive up to any surprises. There was snow on the ground and I wasn’t sure what I was going to find, but I eventually came upon several Russian soldiers who had been killed. I took the photos as quickly as I could because the area where I was working was exposed, and then I got back to cover.
There’s also this iconic shot by Addario, immediately after Russian mortar fire killed a family trying to flee Irpin, near Kyiv. The photo drew worldwide attention to the horrors of Russia’s invasion:
(Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)
Addario explains:
I was photographing along a civilian evacuation route and was in the actual attack. The shell landed between us. The woman and her two children and the church volunteer were killed. I was just lucky the blast went the other direction and not toward me.
Click here and scroll down, for many more photos by Hicks and Addario (and others). (Hat tip: Evan Stein)
Speaking of Ukraine: It’s now a few days after Christmas. But the good feelings from Westport’s holiday gift to our sister city of Lyman, Ukraine still linger.
Click below for a brief video — just posted to YouTube’s “Sister Cities Westport Lyman Marigny” channel:
The total amount raised now by our town (and friends and relatives of Westporters) is $209,300. We are closing in on our goal of $250,000.
Tax-deductible donations can be made to Lyman through Ukraine Aid International. Pleaseclick here. Click the “I want to support” box; then select “Support for the City of Lyman.” Scroll down on that page for other tax-deductible donation options (mail, wire transfer and Venmo). You can also donate directly, via Stripe (click here).
Westport Police report no custodial arrests between December 21 and 28. With the cold weather, traffic was light too. These were the only citations issued:
Traveling unreasonably fast: 2
Following too closely: 2
Speeding: 1
Evading responsibility: 1
Traveling too fast for conditions: 1
Failure to drive in proper lane: 1
Operating a motor vehicle under suspension: 1
Failure to carry certificate of registration/insurance: 1
Failure to obey control signal: 1
Violation of any traffic commission regulation: 1.
The end of the year is the perfect time for Westport Town Farm to announce programs for the new year.
“Parent and Me” returns, from January through March. Classes include outdoor time for feeding animals, followed by age-appropriate crafts, games or stories inside the Farmhouse.
Families transitioning out of “Parent and Me” enjoy “Toddler Sprouts” (ages 3-5, Tuesdays at 1:30 p.m.).
A new program — “Tiny Farmers Playdate” — begins in January (Wednesdays, 9 a.m.). Taking place in the Farmhouse, it’s geared toward ages of 0 -18 months.
A new “Rugged Bear Wilderness Club” runs after school. Youngsters ages 11-14 will develop outdoors skills like fire-making, orienteering, using basic hand tools, simple first aid, pitching a tent and being challenged in nature. The club begins February 9.
Spots are also available in the “Fantastic Farmhands” elementary school program.
WTF also runs an MLK Jr. Vacation Day Camp on January 16.
Click here for more information, or email education.wakemantownfarm.org.
The Appalachian Mountain Club’s Westport Fairfield County Group will “Skate Through New Zealand.”
That’s the topic of their January 10 meeting (Saugatuck Congregational Church; appetizers, wine, dinner at 6:15 p.m.; presentation 7:30 p.m.; members $10, non-members $15).
Speaker Geoffrey Saunders has been skateboarding since he was 10. He lived in New Zealand for a year as an exchange student, and has returned 4 times. He skateboarded 400 miles through North Island, raising funds for Wildlife in Crisis, and will discuss his many adventures.
Reservations not required, but please RSVP: easasso7@icloud.com.
Westport’s sister city relationship with Lyman, Ukraine began with a question.
After “06880” posted a story about our other sister city, Marigny, France, and their desire to work with us to rebuild a town ravaged by Russian occupation — just as Westport had done in Normandy after World War II — a small group of residents began meeting on Zoom.
We wanted to help a town where we could make a concrete, immediate difference — one that had been overlooked by other aid organizations.
We were fortunate that a fellow Westporter has direct knowledge of Ukraine. Last spring, Brain Mayer left his New York tech job to collect and deliver supplies to that war-torn nation. He and is brother Marshall co-founded Ukraine Aid International.
Our group — Tom Kretsch, Polly Newman, Steve Taranko, Mark Yurkiw, and Clyde, Katya and Kathleen Wauchope — asked Brian for ideas.
He suggested Lyman (pronounced Lee-MON). An important railway juncture in the Donbas region, Lyman was occupied by Russian troops from May 24 through October 1. When the forces fled, they left behind unfathomable destruction.
Map courtesy of Washington Post
But no one was helping.
A week before Christmas — after a haunting Zoom call with our group, Brian and Marshall, 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, Brian’s on-the-ground partners Liz Olegov and Richard von Groeling, Lyman Mayor Alexander Victoravich Zuravlov, and a high-ranking security officer — we announced our goal: $250,000 in contributions.
The money will buy essential supplies like plywood and other housing material, generators, medication, Starlinks and tractors.
A truck to remove 8 months’ of debris and trash is on the way. On Christmas Day, Brian delivered 400 fresh meals to elderly and infirm Lyman residents, and 491 gifts — one for every child still there.
Now, the world is finally starting to notice Lyman.
Monday’s New York Times included a photo by Pulitzer Prize-winner Tyler Hicks — coincidentally, a Westport native and 1988 Staples High School graduate — showing Ukrainian soldiers leaving Lyman for the front lines.
(Photo by Tyler Hicks for the New York Times)
And yesterday, Lyman was featured prominently in the Washington Post.
The piece — headlined “‘Nothing Left to Destroy’: Russia is Fighting For Land Already in Ruins” — was filed from Lyman.
The piece described the desperation and despair of villagers, from their lives in squalid basement shelters to their sorrow for lost vegetable gardens.
Lubov Gazhla, 62, wears a headlamp as she sits on the bed in the tiny room she is living in underground in Lyman. (Photo/Heidi Levine for the Washington Post)
A particularly poignant paragraph described this scene:
One shell directly struck the kindly 70-year-old amateur beekeeper across the street, nicknamed Mikhalych, as he went to feed the stray dogs in the neighborhood. His body lay in the street, giving off a stench that his neighbors could do nothing about for five days because of the bombardment.
Another section read:
Zoya Konstantinovna, 67, cried into a cloth as she described how missile fire tore into her former home, before showing reporters the sealed sack of water that she uses daily as her shower even now, more than three months after Ukrainian forces retook the city.
Zoya Konstantinovna, 67, sits by a wood-burning stove with a neighbor in the basement of their Lyman apartment building. (Photo/Heidi Levine for the Washington Post)
Roughly two dozen of the hundreds of people who once lived in her apartment complex now spend most of their days in the below-ground bunker, with the shelling still too present a danger to sleep elsewhere.
This week, the mainstream media discovered Lyman.
Reporters may move on soon, as often happens, to another story in another devastated area of the country, or world.
But Westport will continue to remember — and help — Lyman.
After all: It’s our sister city.
(Click here for the full Washington Post story. Hat tips: John Hartwell and Bill Kutik)
Tamara Klimashenko, 61, and her husband Anatoly Klimashenko, 62, visit their damaged home in Lyman. (Photo/Heidi Levine for the Washington Post)
Westport has raised just over $200,000 of our $250,000 goal. Tax-deductible donations can be made to Lyman through Ukraine Aid International. Pleaseclick here. Click the “I want to support” box; then select “Support for the City of Lyman.” Scroll down on that page for other tax-deductible donation options (mail, wire transfer and Venmo). You can also donate directly, via Stripe (click here).
They come. Our trash goes. They come again, a few days later. Occasionally we write a check, to keep them coming.
Lyman — our new sister city in Ukraine — has not seen a trash truck in months.
Soon — with the help of Westport — they will.
When the Russians fled this fall, after several months of occupation, they stole all of the town’s trash trucks.
Debris from their missile attacks is piled everywhere. So is the garbage that accumulates as citizens live their daily lives.
Without trucks, there is no way to remove any of it.
For the past several days, Westport has been raising funds for Lyman (pronounced Lee-MON). We just passed $200,000, heading toward our $250,000 goal.
The other day, Brian Mayer — the Westporter who co-founded Ukraine Aid International — learned of a truck in Gdansk, Poland. It will cost about 5,000 euros to transport it to Lyman. Volunteers are already lined up to move it.
When it arrives in Lyman, residents will be ecstatic. Volunteers there are ready to start removing many tons of trash — and avoid an environmental catastrophe.
Brian is working too with construction wholesalers in Ukraine. They’re getting ready to move material from Kharkiv to Lyman, where more volunteers are eager to begin shoring up apartment buildings that are close to collapse.
Westport’s support for our sister city has been immediate. But the need is ongoing.
To help, click here for a credit card “Donate” button. Click “I want to support”; then select “Support for the City of Lyman.” You can also scroll down on that page for other donation options (mail, wire transfer and Venmo.) Or you can donate directly, via Stripe (click here).
One more cosmic connection between Westport and our sister city:
Yesterday’s New York Times included more harrowing photos from Ukraine, by 1988 Staples High School graduate/Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Tylerl Hicks.
Among them: an image showing Ukrainian troops crammed into an armored vehicle, plowing through mud in dusty skies on their way to the front lines.
It can, however, be repurposed to serve food to people in need.
For the second straight week, Sustainable Westport is partnering with Food Rescue CT and the Westport Farmers’ Market to collect black plastic takeout containers.
Washed, clean, black plastic takeout food containers (with lids!) can be brought to tomorrow’s Farmers’ Market at Gilbertie’s Herbs & Garden Center (7 Sylvan Lane; Thursday, December 29, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.).
The containers will be used by Fridgeport Outdoor Food Pantry to repackage large trays of donated prepared foods into smaller portions for distribution to Bridgeporters facing food insecurity.
Westport resident Ria Nova (right) donated black plastic containers to Sustainable Westport co-director Johanna Martell at last week’s Westport Farmers’ Market.
Strong enough to topple this tree, on the border between Winslow Park and the Westport Country Playhouse parking lot.
(Photo/Mark Mathias)
Just be thankful it didn’t fall in the other direction.
And that we didn’t get whacked like Buffalo did.
On the other hand, there’s this: Perhaps the trunk can be delivered to Long Lots Preserve.
As noted in yesterday’s Roundup, decomposing tree trunks promote the growth of bug populations. They in turn supply local and migrating bird populations with an important source of food, especially in the spring when they feed their young.
For more details on the Preserve and its need for dead tree trunks, email longlotspreserve@gmail.com.
Westporter Paul Podolsky has published a new thriller: “Master, Minion.”
Fellow Westporter Mike Hayes — former commander of Seal Team Two and author of “Never Enough” — calls it “a gripping portrayal of the people and machinery behind financial warfare. Paul is a true storyteller who knows Russia and China firsthand. He takes the readers on a thrilling journey only an insider can provide.”
The book draws in part on his expertise in Russia. He recently wrote about that, for the Wall Street Journal.
Click here for more information on Podolsky’s new book.
Less than 24 hours remain, to reach our goal of $250,000!
That would help rebuild every home and apartment in Lyman — our Ukrainian sister city — that can be salvaged. It would give them each a generator. It would provide a water filtration system for the town. (Click here for the first story about Westport and Lyman, with important details.)
It would get them through a dark, dangerous winter. Those brave, embattled men, women and children need to know that they are not alone.
They already know that Westport has their back. They are very, very grateful for what we’ve done.
Westporter Brian Mayer (right) and his on-the-ground support team of Richard von Groeling and Liz Olegov flank Lyman Mayor Oleksandr Zhuravlyov. Brian, Richard and Liz wear protective equipment, because they’ve just been outside. The Ukrainian and Lyman flags will soon be joined by one from Westport.
Now, on Christmas Day, let’s give them everything they need.
$250,000 sounds like a lot. But it breaks down to just $10 for every resident of Westport.
Can you spare that? If not, no worries. Someone who can, will cover you. Right?
Just click here for the credit card “Donate” button. Click the “I want to support” box; then select “Support for the City of Lyman.” You can also scroll down on that page for other donation options (mail, wire transfer and Venmo.) Or you can donate directly, via Stripe (click here).
Meanwhile, our online auction for an oil painting of Marigny — our other sister city in France, which joins us in helping Lyman — ends at 11:59 p.m. We began the bidding at $1,000. It is now up to $1,500. Email 06880blog@gmail.com, or click “Comments” to bid; you don’t need to fill out your real (but please include your email).
This Marigny scene is being auctioned to the highest bidder.
Westporters have been supremely generous so far. We are nearing our audacious — but crucial — $250,000 goal. Every dollar helps our sister city of Lyman. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Eversource earned props for putting crews on the road early during Friday’s wind and rain storm. The number of outages in Westport was halved throughout the day, from 700 or so to about 350.
Their performance since then has been less praise-worthy.
An “06880” reader wrote last night, just before midnight:
“I am spending the holidays with my 92-year-old homebound mom on Bayberry Ridge Road. Power has been out for the whole street since 4 a.m. Friday. Despite 40-plus hours elapsing, Eversource still has no projection for repair, citing ‘To Be Determined’ as the date when one inquires.
“They no longer even list Westport on the updated outage report, because over 99% of homes have power. This is cold comfort to residents on this street, who cannot get any information out of this vastly overpaid and underperforming public utility. With zero communication since the beginning, we worry that they’ve forgotten about us entirely.”
The reader responded at 1:04 a.m. that his power was back on. He doesn’t know if it was the result of his phone call, Tweet, or because they were about to do it anyway.
I’m keeping his complaint up though, because it’s not isolated. I’ve heard from other readers in the north end of Westport, who also had issues with Eversource.
Most seemed to understand the severity of the problem. What bothered them was Eversource’s lack of communication about when power was expected to return.
“We just want to be able to plan,” one reader said.
Compare the situation in Lyman (top story above) with the behavior of one Very Entitled Driver downtown yesterday.
He ignored several “One Way/Do Not Enter” signs. He headed past all the cars, on 2 sides of the street, facing toward him.
Drivers stopped. One rolled down his window, and explained the driver was going the wrong way.
He couldn’t be bothered. Perhaps backing up was too difficult or time-consuming. Maybe doing so would be admitting wrongdoing, or a blow to his masculinity.
So he got out of his car. He had angry words with one of the right-way drivers.
Then he got back in his vehicle, swerved around a couple of cars, and kept driving.
All the way to the Post Road.
Very Entitled Driver — after already being told he is going the wrong way on Main Street.
Also downtown: Our own Barnes & Noble was featured in the opening seconds of Yahoo News’ recent feature on the chain’s resurgence.
Young readers in particular have driven the opening of new (and newly designed) stores.
CEO James Daunt was interviewed by Dave Briggs. The Yahoo journalist knows what he’s talking about — he lives here in Westport, just a couple of miles from one of those slimmed-down, brighter, more open and less “library-looking” Barnes & Noble’s than the previous one.
The Burying Hill High Tide Club has earned an “06880” mention — and props — for weekly swims at that Greens Farms beach, all the way through fall.
Now another group is earning even more awe (and raised eyebrows).
Nico Eisenberger reports: “This year we spawned a crazy cousin of the High Tide Club. Inspired by some of the hardy originals, and carried forward with an unreasonable and illogical vigor, is Club Plunge.
“We’ve done it every week since early November. It’s amazing and wonderful — and makes you think that maybe the extremophiles one sees on YouTube are really on to something.”
The group includes 8 regulars.
“We try to stay in for at least 3 minutes,” Nico says. “The screaming subsides after 1 minute, then picks up again after 2.”
And finally … Christmas music ends tonight. Whether that’s good or bad depends on your threshold for jinglyness.
But before we say goodbye (till next year) to Mariah Carey, Josh Groban, Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Bobby Helms, Bing Crosby and Gene Autry, let’s tip our Santa hat to Johnny Marks.
He lived for many years on Green Acre Lane, off South Compo. He died in 1985 from complications of diabetes. His son still lives here.
Who was Johnny Marks?
Just the guy who wrote “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”
And “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” “Run, Rudolph, Run.” “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas.” And many others.
Not bad for a Jewish kid from Mount Vernon, New York.
The longtime Westporter was delivering Uber Eats last winter, to supplement her income. She was assaulted picking up an order, and suffered a head injury. Residents donated $33,000 to help defray medical and rehabilitation bills.
This month, Katherine wanted to pay it forward.
In 2020, she had written a book. “Help Santa!!!” is a clever, light-hearted and rhythmic story about kindness, in which children get a chance to help St. Nick with a chimney problem.
Each book includes a “Magic Key” that — when young readers hold it in their hands and think “magical thoughts,” then hang on their door on Christmas Eve — can help them “help Santa.” She offered them at $12.99 each (far below the price on Amazon, and her website) — with every sale a donation to Bridgeport elementary schools.
“06880” readers responded at warp speed. This week, Miller and Trammi Nguyen — a Westporter who coordinates volunteers in Bridgeport — delivered scores of books to the Bryant and Luis Muñoz Marín Schools.
Miller visited pre-K, and 2nd and 4th grade students. “They were over the moon with happiness and joy,” she reports. They adored her necklace — the same “magic key” that every child received with the book.
Excited students with Katherine Miller — and their “magic keys.”
The book was read to the pre-K and 2nd grade students.
Younger kids were read to …
The 4th graders took turns reading out loud, with great enthusiasm.
… while older youngsters read “Help Santa!” themselves.
For all, the chance to get a new book was special. Nearly always, schools in need receive donations that are “pre-owned.”
A second grade boy told his teacher it was the best day of his life.
“There is so much love in this world,” Miller says. “I honestly feel so blessed. My heart is so full, being given such an amazing flow of kindness from our community.
“This experience has completely changed my life. It made me realize my bad experience was not a tragedy. It was a window to see a whole new beautiful world.”
Thanks to Katherine Miller, and all those in Westport and beyond who helped open that window — with “magical” books — for all those Bridgeport boys and girls.
(A special hat tip too to Danielle Dobin. She created the original GoFundMe for Katherine, then helped make the book drive a reality.)
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In 2020, she had written a book. “Help Santa!!!” is a clever, light-hearted and rhythmic story about kindness, in which children get a chance to help St. Nick with a chimney problem.
