“Unsung Hero” appears weekly on “06880.” It’s posted every Wednesday, at noon.
But today’s story deserves the featured 5 a.m. slot. Jen Dumonceau nominates “the community of Westport” for the honor. Read on, and you’ll see why.
For 14 years, we — myself, my husband Stéphane, and our children Fiona and Emil — lived in Pacific Palisades, California.
In January 2025 we, along with many others, lost our home to the devastating wildfires. In the days that followed, we learned our daughter’s high school had suffered more than 50% loss of its buildings and was unusable. The fate of our son’s middle school was still unknown.
The housing situation was overwhelming. With 30,000 people suddenly needing homes, even temporary options were scarce.
The remnants of the Dumonceaus’ home in Pacific Palisades.
We made a very quick decision to move to Westport, a community where my sister and brother-in-law had raised their 2 children. For more than 20 years we had visited Westport and grown familiar with the town, the beach, the schools, and the community. We hoped it would be as welcoming to us as it had been to my sister’s family.
This meant leaving our friends, our lives, and everything we had known for years, moving across the country during our daughter’s second semester of junior year and our son’s second semester of 7th grade.
It was an incredibly difficult decision, but it became clear it was our only choice. We needed to be surrounded by family — a warm hug and a place we knew and hoped would welcome us.
We arrived 2 weeks after the fires. Very quickly, the community went into action.
Our daughter, who originally planned to remain on Zoom with her high school back in Los Angeles, ultimately made the decision to attend Staples High School.
We had initially expected she would wait until the fall to transition. But Bill Plunkett, director of school counseling, with extraordinary care and insight, helped us see what it would look like for her to start immediately — not as a disruption, but as an opportunity to rebuild stability and connection sooner.
Because of his guidance, what we assumed would be a long transition became an immediate and transformative decision. He was the reason she joined Staples when she did.
Fiona was warmly welcomed into the school community. Mr. Plunkett connected her with Gray, who introduced her to a group of friends — Gabi, Carly, Jade, Sarah, Mila, Sheyenne, Sarah and Claire — who embraced her fully. The warmth, openness, and friendship she received were extraordinary.
She is graduating just a few weeks from now, and already feels sadness at leaving these friendships and Staples behind. Over the past 18 months she has had an incredible experience — completing her AP coursework without disruption, building a rigorous senior-year schedule, and earning admission to her dream school, the University of Michigan.
Thanks to the Staples community — its teachers and students — she did not miss a beat socially or academically. She celebrated birthdays, attended prom and homecoming, and built friendships that feel as though they have existed since early childhood.
The Dumonceau family, enjoying their first autumn in New England.
Our son, entering middle school during this transition, was also warmly welcomed. Within weeks he was invited to social events, birthday parties, and activities that helped him adjust. His academic progress remained strong, and he was placed into rigorous coursework aligned with his previous school in Los Angeles.
While he deeply missed our life in California, Bedford Middle School, along with Megan Gallant, assistant principal, and Jessica Rabine, school counselor, ensured his success by checking in regularly, supporting his needs, and providing a safe and encouraging environment during a very difficult time.
Jane Pimentel, who runs the Longshore Sailing School, generously offered him a week of summer camp so he would have something joyful and familiar to look forward to in a new town — another example of the quiet generosity that defined our experience.
For my husband and me, the community showed up in remarkable ways as we rebuilt our lives. After one post on Westport’s Gift Economy page, we received an overwhelming outpouring of support — furniture, household goods, services, and help of every kind.
We found a home to rent, and in a meaningful coincidence, the homeowners had grown up in Pacific Palisades and Santa Monica. They welcomed us with extraordinary kindness, and helped us begin rebuilding our life in Westport.
Over the next several months, we gathered everything needed to start over — from furniture and kitchen supplies to clothing, bikes and essentials for our dog, who had come with us. Arriving with only 5 suitcases made it clear just how much is required to rebuild a life from nothing.
Creating a home that felt safe, warm and stable for 2 teenagers and a dog who had lost everything was overwhelming at times. But the Westport community continued to show up again and again.
Neighbors, families, schools, even strangers extended kindness without hesitation. What could have been an isolating and devastating experience instead became one defined by compassion, generosity, and belonging.
As we head into the next chapter of our lives, with our daughter headed to college and our son headed to Staples, my husband and I are ready to immerse ourselves more deeply in the community through book clubs, local events, and the everyday connections that make Westport so special.
Reflecting on the past 18 months, we could not be more grateful to this town. Westport did not simply welcome us — it carried us through one of the hardest moments of our lives. For embodying empathy, humanity and quiet heroism through collective support, the community of Westport is truly an Unsung Hero.
(“06880” is proud to honor Unsung Heroes — and tell many other tales of town too. Please click here to support your hyper-local blog.)
