The Westport Library is one of the most popular spots in town.
And the Library Café is one of the most popular spots inside that very versatile building.
So it was no surprise that nearly 2 dozen readers quickly guessed last week’s Photo Challenge.
Pam Docters’ image showed a once-well-used card catalog, now repurposed to hold utensils, condiments and sugar, for patrons sandwich eaters and coffee drinkers.
Click here to see the photo. And kids: If you have no idea what a “card catalog” is, ask your parents. (Or grandparents.)
Congratulations to Dick Lowenstein,, Susan Israel, Joyce Barnhart, Lynn Untermeyer Miller, Sal Liccione, Nina Marino, Molly Alger, Alison Wachstein, Seth Schachter, Andrew Colabella, Ed Simek, Beth Berkowitz, Rachel Sara Halperin, Karen Como, Scott Brodie, Jonathan McClure, Jack Backiel, Peter Gold, Janice Strizever, Susan Garment and Karen Kim.
For correctly guessing last week’s Photo Challenge, you all win a free library card!
This week’s challenge is below. If you know where in Westport you’d see this, click “Comments” underneath.
(Photo/Stephanie Mastocciolo)
(Every Sunday, “06880” hosts this Photo Challenge. We challenge you too to support your hyper-local blog. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
The Westport Country Playhouse show dramatically — and humorously — captures a culture clash, when 2 sets of well-intentioned neighbors fued in a backyard dispute over property lines.
The play runs through March 8.
(From left): Paula Leggett Chase, Lined Genao, Anthony Michael Martinez and Adam Heller head the cast of performers. (Hat tip and photo/Dave Matlow)
Tryouts are near for the very popular Westport Swim Club.
The WSC provides developmental training for youngsters in grades 2 through 8. They build foundational skills, while preparing them for competitive swimming in all 4 strokes.
Practices take place at the Staples High School pool, in a supportive, growth-oriented environment for swimmers of all levels.
30-year Westport resident Bob Goldstein died peacefully February 17, with his wife Candy and dachshund Bruno by his side. He was 84, and had battled pancreatic cancer.
He was a magna cum laude graduate of Texas Christian University. Years earlier, at 8 years old, Bob decided he would someday be a bank president. He got his first banking job at TCU, in a mailroom, and quickly advanced to management.
He spent his early years as a banker in various parts of Texas. His career then took him to the Northeast, as a CEO and chair of a series of banks.
Bob’s knowledge of risk management, regulatory requirements and asset quality helped him turn around troubled banks, grow community banks and create value for shareholders. He held leadership roles in 20 financial institutions in 11 states.
Bob also served in the Texas National Guard, and played druns in a rock/jazz/country band at Fort Worth clubs. He loved spending time with his family and dog.
Civic engagement was also important. He served as a director on community boards including the Norwalk Hospital Foundation, the Jewish Home for the Elderly, Honey Hill Care Center, Texas Christian University Association, Hermann Hospital Steering Committee and the Children’s Miracle Network.
He was a member of the New York Real Estate Board of Governors and served as a faculty member of the Graduate School of Business at Southern Methodist University.
His family says “he will always be remembered for his personal integrity, sense of justice, sparkling smile, great sense of humor and love of animals.”
In addition to his wife Candy (Koizim), Bob is survived by his children Sandra Tanner, Robbi Russey Goldstein (Kevin), Griffin Goldstein (Laurie) and Amy Goldstein (Jenn); grandchildren Wesley Holt, Sam Holt (Kelsey), Ben Holt, Daniel Tanner (Ellen), Keith Goldstein, Jake Goldstein, Lexy Campos Goldstein and Coty Campos Goldstein, and great-grandchildren Jane and Mabel Tanner.
The family is grateful to Regional Hospice for the exceptional care they provided. Special thanks go to his wonderful caregivers, especially Jessica Floissac and Adriano Lima.
Funeral services will take place on February 28 (11 a.m., Spear Miller Funeral Home, 39 South Benson Road, Fairfield). Interment will follow at Willowbrook Cemetery.
We haven’t had too much snow. But it’s come regularly. And for days, the temperatures have struggled to get above freezing.
That’s winter in our town, 2025. Howard Edelstein captured the view from Harbor Road, looking toward Longshore, for today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature.
And finally … Johnny Winter was born on this date in 1944. When he died in 2014, I wrote this story about his time in Westport.
(Another day, another Roundup, another reminder that “06880” relies on reader support. To make a tax-deductible contribution, please click here. Thank you!)
Bob and Doree Levy are avid Westport Weston Family YMCA members.
They spend much of their time in the pool. But 3 years ago, he saw a woman teaching someone how to box.
She was Brenda Waldron, the instructor for a class of people with Parkinson’s.
Brenda Waldron, at the Westport Y.
Bob had never hit anyone — or been hit — in nearly 8 decades of life.
But he told Brenda he’d love to help.
Ever since, Bob has taught boxing to individuals with the disease.
The volunteers and 30 people with Parkinson’s meet Mondays and Thursdays, at 12:30 p.m.
Bob is not an expert on the disease. But he has seen the positive impact the class has on everyone involved.
“Boxing provides numerous benefits,” he notes. “It enhances strength, improves balance, and aids in memory retention. The coordination required to remember the sequence of numbers corresponding to each punch is particularly beneficial.”
In addition, he says, “the group fosters a strong sense of camaraderie and unity, embracing the ‘all for one and one for all; spirit of The Three Musketeers. This bond has made this group one big family.”
The group has also made an impact on Bob’s life.
“I am an old man now,” he says. “Since my youth, I have always believed that helping others is the reward.
“It does not cost anything to open a door for someone, greet them with a smile, or spread positivity.”
And it cost Bob just a few dollars to give his boxing class a gift.
The other day, for the third year in a row, Bob handed “Knock Parkinsons Out” t- shirts to members of the class.
The boxing class.
“Thank you Parkinson’s group,” Bob says. “I truly have been blessed.”
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog — a daily source for stories about our town you won’t read anywhere else. We rely on reader support. If you enjoy our work, please click here to help. Thank you!)
When the Board of Selectwomen meet Wednesday (February 26, 9 a.m., Town Hall auditorium), they’ll discuss the usual types of items: road closures for events like the Memorial Day parade and road races, sewer connections, etc.
One item is different: approval of a maintenance agreement between the town and the state Department of Transportation “for permission to work within the highway right-of-way to install, maintain and replace automatic license plate readers.”
The town already has one set of license plate readers, at I-95 Exit 17. This agenda item is for another set, at I-95 Exit 18 at the Sherwood Island Connector.
The readers are a response to the rash of car thefts in the area. They give the Westport Police Department a head’s-up if a stolen car is entering town off the highway — or headed out of here, onto it.
The selectwomen’s approval is needed to ensure the state that local officials will maintain the devices.
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Early reviews are in for “Native Gardens” — and they’re raves.
Westport Country Playhouse’s current production — a hilarious yet thought-provoking show about a neighborly dispute that turns into a battle of cultures — gets high marks for its acting, message, and breathtaking set.
The show runs through March 8. Click here for tickets, and more information. Click below for the trailer:
Tomorrow’s Run4TheirLives walk honors the Bibas family. The 2 boys, ages 4 and 9 months, were killed by Hamas, after being kidnapped from their kibbutz. The fate of their mother is unknown.
As they’ve done for over a year, Westporters will gather at 11 a.m. in the Westport Country Playhouse parking lot on Sunday, then walk through town.
They will say the Mourner’s Kaddish, carry orange balloons in memory of the flame-haired brothers, and pray for their mother.
All Westporters of all ages are invited to join. Wear orange sweaters, coats, hats or reflector vests; bring orange balloons or Bibas signs.
In November, Startup Westport’s “Young Innovators” forum drew an SRO crowd to the Westport Library.
Entrepreneurs and investors from their 30s through 70s were awed by presentations from a quartet of Staples High School alumni — none older than 25 — who have crushed the tech world.
The star of the star-studded panel was Dylan Diamond. The 2017 grad is co-founder and CEO of Saturn. The Gen Z calendar app has raised $68 million, scaled to millions users, reached 18,000 schools, and hit #1 in the App Store — all after starting out as a high school project.
The event was moderated by Molly O’Shea. The oldest person on stage — she graduated from Staples in 2014 — is no slouch herself. A venture capital investor, Molly founded Sourcery, the VC deal and startup trend newsletter.
Now she’s posted a podcast with Dylan. It opens with a huge shout-out to the Startup Westport event (which she links to, and includes in every Sourcery social post).
Click below for Molly and Dylan’s very insightful — and entertaining — chat.
There are many ways to prepare students for college. Sometimes overlooked — but crucial — is to focus on mental health.
On Tuesday (February 25, 6:30 p.m., Westport Library), Dr. James Geisler will discuss mental health challenges on college campuses, and help parents support their children’s transition to higher education. For more information, click here.
Graduation is fun. But preparing for the next step is very important.
This year’s Westport Woman’s Club gala celebrates women who have made significant contributions to philanthropy and service to the community.
The April 5 event (6 p.m., Patterson Club, Fairfield) will be emceed by Scott Foley. His 30-year career in films and on TV include “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Scream 3,” and (currently) “Will Trent” and “La Dolce Villa.”
He lives in Westport with his wife, 3 children and many pets.
The evening includes a performance by the R&B, soul and dance band the Bernadettes, plus a silent and live auction.
Guests will enjoy a vibrant performance by The Bernadettes, an R&B/Soul and Dance band, creating a lively atmosphere as well as an opportunity to bid on wonderful silent and live auction items.
Click here for tickets, and more information. Sponsorships are available for $1,000 (to provide clothing for children in need), $5,000 (a need-based scholarship for a graduating senioro) and $10,000 (225 bags of food to struggling families).
Kings Highway Elementary School students spent Kindness Week spreading joy — within the building, and the entire district.
Every student helped design and create a “kindness rock” — a KHS tradition.
Fifty of them will be delivered to Westport’s 4 elementary schools, 2 middle schools and Staples High — along with a video message explaining their significance, and how each school might use them.
As a 2-year captain of Staples’ boys soccer team, Mike Dobbs earned renown on the field. Like any soccer player (except the goalkeeper), he did plenty of running.
After a start at Athletic Shoe Factory in Westport, he’s spent his professional career in the running shoe industry. And he’s still running — though on roads, not soccer pitches.
Mike will compete in the Boston Marathon in April. It’s a way to compete — and raise money for Dana Farber Cancer Research, in honor of his late mother Sharon (a well-known and dedicated Westport Soccer Association volunteer).
There’s always something going on at MoCA CT. Ahead:
Upcycle Sculpture Workshop (today, Saturday, 1 p.m.): Tour of WestPAC’s :On Fire” and the high school exhibition “Humans & Nature”; then create sculptures with artist Remy Sosa.
Darwin Shen (violin), Michelle Kim (piano): Putting on the Fritz (Sunday, February 23, 4 p.m.): Recital of rarely performed, newly discovered and reconstructed works by Fritz Kreisler.
Art Adventures! Drop-Ins for Kids(Saturdays, 12 to 1:30 p.m.): For children of all abilities: multi-media classes with space to explore new techniques and expression through art.
Community Conversation: Art, Infrastructure, and the Environment (February 27, 6 p.m.): Moderated by curator Ive Covaci; a diverse panel of speakers discuss the intersection of art, sustainability, and community resilience.
Upcoming Art Workshops: Hands-on classes include Ceramic Multi-Bowl Building with Leah Corbett (March 6) and Basket Weaving with Tina Puckett (March 8).
East Coast Contemporary Ballet: Galerie de Danse (March 6 and 7, 7:30 p.m.): Dance and live music in a gallery setting. .
RSO Quartet: Daylight & Dances (March 8, 7 p.m.): Sring players of the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra; works by Haydn, Price, Bartok and Puccini.
Sound Healing Meditations with SoulOSoaring (March 18, 6 p.m.): Healing practitioner Terry Eldh uses crystal alchemy singing bowls, crystal harp and koshi chimes.
Current Exhibition, through March 2: “On Fire”: Over 75 works in a variety of media; explores how artists from the 1930s to today have envisioned and responded to the interrelationships of energy, infrastructure, and the environment. The 4th annual exhibition by Westport Permanent Art Collections, inspired by 8 paintings created by Ralph Boyer in 1934 for the old Staples High School, as part of the Federal Public Works of Art Project. These paintings usually hang in the Westport central fire station.
And finally … on this date in 1872, the Prohibition Party held their first national convention, in Columbus, Ohio. It took nearly 50 years, but the 19th Amendment went into effect in 1920. Thirteen years later, it was repealed.
(“06880” relies on reader support. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. We’ll drink to that!)
As winter staggers to a close, our online art gallery features … not one seasonal submission.
Perhaps we’re all too weary of snow and slush. Even in the hands of the most talented artists, it’s a subject we’re ready to move on from.
Instead, we’ve got a boat, a beach, hand-holding, abstract art and more.
No matter what style or subject you choose — and whether you’re a first-timer or old-timer — we welcome your submissions. Watercolors, oils, charcoal, pen-and-ink, acrylics, digital, lithographs, collages, macramé, jewelry, sculpture, decoupage, needlepoint — we want whatever you’ve got.
This feature is open to all. Age, level of experience, subject matter — there are no restrictions. Everyone is invited to contribute.
Just email a jpeg to 06880blog@gmail.com. And please include the medium you’re working in — art lovers want to know.
Untitled (Patricia McMahon)
Untitled (Dorothy Robertshaw)
“Underwater Surprise” — acrylic and resin (Amy Schneider)
“This Night Visitor is not the Tooth Fairy!” (Mike Hibbard)
“White Birches at Sherwood Island” (Michael Tomashefsky)
Untitled (Duane Cohen)
“Compo Beach” — construction paper cut-out (Will Luedke)
“Ketch Pantouf on Fishers Island Sound” — acrylic painting (Peter Barlow)
“City” (Tom Doran)
Untitled (Martin Ripchick)
“Como Padre, Como Hijo — Nuestro Amigos!” (Steve Stein)
“Holding Hands” (Lawrence Weisman)
(Entrance is free to our online art gallery. But please consider a donation! Just click here — and thank you!)
Harrison Sydor is a junior at Staples High School.
As a member of the cross country and track teams, you may see him running on Westport roads.
He sure sees you.
He emailed “06880” about an issue that, he says, has “bugged me and my friends for the last few months.” Harrison writes:
Traffic laws state that pedestrians should always be on the left side of the road. That is something we as a team adhere to most of the time, except for rare occasions where the shoulder is bigger, or we are shortly turning onto a street on the right hand side.
Lately, I have noticed that cars much less frequently give us space on the roads.
When there is oncoming traffic, it is much easier to slow down and safely pass us, instead of rushing through and threading the needle between the car on one side and the group of runners on the other. We have had crashes in the past.
Harrison Sydor (right), at an indoor track meet. Even in winter, Staples runners take to the roads.
On major roads we are 2 wide. One runner will jut slightly into the road, but not by a significant amount.
It is equally as important for the driver as it is the runner to pay attention and be courteous.
Recently, we have worked to make ourselves less of a hazard on the road to drivers. We would appreciate it if Westport drivers could make the same effort to use our roads properly and efficiently.
(“06880” often covers local quality of life issues. And we always like to hear from our town’s young people. If you appreciate our blog’s work, please make a donation by clicking here. Thank you!)
October 1929 is noteworthy in American history, for the start of the Great Depression.
But John Gowell — a young resident of Westport — would remember it for another reason.
That’s the month he appeared in an advertisement in Farm & Fireside, a semi-monthly national magazine.
It’s not clear what the ad — photographed by Warren Boyer — was for. The caption says: “Who wants to come over and play football with John Gowell of Westport, Connecticut.”
Farm & Firewide — founded in 1877 — lasted another 10 years, after the Depression began.
I have no idea what happened to John Gowell.
But his ad is still around, 96 years later.
And it can be yours for just $24.99, on eBay. (Hat tip: Seth Schachter)
(Friday Flashback is one of “06880”‘s many regular features. If you enjoy this — or anything else on our website — please consider a tax-deductible contribution. Just click here. Thank you!)
The Board of Finance begins its review of 2 proposed 2025-26 budgets on March 5 (7:30 p.m., Town Hall auditorium; livestream on Cablevision Channel 79, and westportct.gov).
First Selectwoman Jen Tooker will present the town budget. Superintendent of schools Thomas Scarice and Board of Education chair Lee Goldstein offer the Westport Public Schools budget.
Click here to view Tooker’s proposed budget. Click here for Scarice and Goldstein’s proposed budget.
The band — including Staples High School grads Barry Tashian and Bill Briggs — were “how you told a stranger about rock ‘n’ roll,” raved young music critic Jon Landau.
They tore up Boston and New York, were signed by Epic Records, appeared on “Ed Sullivan” and “Hullabaloo” — and, in 1966, were an opening act on the Beatles’ last tour.
Then — on the brink, perhaps, of superstardom — the Remains broke up.
The Remains, back in the day.
Their story was told off-Broadway. Now they’re the stars of a PBS documentary.
“America’s Lost Band”captures the group on its return to Los Angeles, for the first time in 40 years. It shows the bond between 4 close friends, and the power of music that united them, decades after comingthisclose to the top.
The documentary was adapted from a feature-length film that played at film festivals 15 years ago. It was never released publicly, due to licensing costs and rights issues.
The film was produced by Fred Cantor. The 1971 Staples High School graduate — a longtime Remains fan and chronicler — previously produced “The High School That Rocked!,” about bands like the Doors, Yardbirds and Cream who played at Staples. It was the only documentary short at the 2018 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Film Series.
“Lost Band” was directed by Michael Stich, longtime director of “The Bold and the Beautiful.”
It will premiere on Connecticut’s PBS station, CPTV on April 7 (9:30 p.m.), and stream nationwide on CPTV’s platforms.
The checks have been cashed. The food has been distributed.
And Earth Animal thanks everyone who contributed to the Post Road store’s holiday Mitten Project.
The pet supply store raised an astonishing $75,737 to combat food insecurity in Connecticut.
The money came from sales at Earth Animal, participation in Shop & Give events hosted by the local business community, private donations, and contributions from customers.
Earth Animal Ventures, based in Southport, matched every dollar raised.
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Staples High School students struck gold (and silver, and bronze) at the Connecticut STEM Fair.
Under the mentorship of teacher Amy Parent, young researchers presented innovative work across multiple categories at the virtual event earlier this month.
William Boberski captured first place in the Health and Medical Science category (completed projects), for research on diet composition’s effects on lifespan and colorectal cancer progression, using the Drosophila midgut model.
In the same category (for research proposals), Alexis Krenzer placed first for her plan to study curcumin’s potential role in epidermal growth factor driven cancers using C. elegans.
Ezra Schwartz took third, for his proposal on improving glenoid labral tear diagnosis through deep learning applications.
Jonathan Dobin-Smith snagged first place in the Environmental category, for a proposal to mitigate CO2 emissions through bio-concrete development using Cupriavidus necator.
William Kwong tied for second, with research on using curcumin to protect against microplastic damage in C. elegans.
Kendra Chen presented compelling research on generating biofuels from Connecticut microalgae, using bicarbonate as a carbon source.
The STEM Fair drew more than 250 student researchers, and as many judges from science and technology professions.
CT Stem Foundation is an all-volunteer organization. They are always looking for volunteers, including fair judges. Click here for more information.
Seniors Aviva Ross and Amire Williams, juniors Benjamin Peterson and Emmett Zahler, sophomore Giselle Colon and freshman Noa Katz are Staples High School’s February Students of the Month.
Nominated by teachers, they “help make Staples a welcoming place for peers and teachers alike. They are the ‘glue’ of the school community: kind, cheerful, hard-working, trustworthy students who make Staples the special place it is.”
From left: Emmett Zahler, Aviva Ross, Amire Williams, Noa Katz,, Giselle Colon, Benjamin Peterson.
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Of the many fundraisers at Sherwood Island State Park, STAR’s Walk & Roll is one of Westport’s favorites.
The non-profit supports people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and their families. This year’s event — bringing together people of all ages and abilities (the “roll” refers to the many attendees in wheelchairs) — is May 4. Money raised helps STAR continue providing essential programs and services.
For this year’s 20th annual event, STAR invites artists, designers and other creative types design the logo. The winning entry will be featured on t-shirts and promotional materials.
Contestants must take a guided tour of STAR’s Norwalk headquarters to gain inspiration and insight into STAR’s mission. Email kguthrie@starct.org to schedule a visit, or more information. The deadline is March 7.
Today, Yurkiw and his fellow volunteers will ship another container. This one is filled with $250,000 worth of used medical equipment, from a nursing home in Wilton.
They’re also raising another $8,000, to cover the costs of whatever they can’t ship today.
To donate money, equipment, medical supplies, or volunteer your time, click here call Ridgefield Responds: 646-873-0050. To donate to Ukraine Aid International, click here.
Mark Yurkiw has not forgotten his Ukrainian roots.
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Caribbean mountain folk music, bluegrass, country and gospel come together March 1, at Voices Cafe.
And it’s all in one show.
Rick Reyes & Santos de Palo highlight the 8 p.m. concert, at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport. The band includes guitar, drums, sax, bass and cuarto.
Voices Cafe offers tables or individual seating. Coffee and sweets are vailable for purchase; guests can bring their own beverages and snacks. Cconcerts support social justice programs in the area.
Tickets are $25 each. Click here for more information.
And back story. She writes: “It’s morning. I lie in bed wrapped snug as a mummy in my quilt. I can see through the slit of space between the window and the shade that the leaves on the rhododendron bush outside are curled as tight as a Cuban cigar against the frigid polar air. Maybe I’ll stay in bed for a while. Maybe I’ll fall back asleep.
“But no. I spot 2 invading stink bugs, seeking indoor warmth — one clinging with all six legs to the TV screen, perhaps remembering the heat of last night’s news; the other snug as a bug on the the rug.
“Oh wee beasties, innocent intruders, I should feel sorry for you. You mean no harm. Like me, you only want to be warm.
“And you don’t even stink until I squish you.”
Stink bug, before squishing. (Photo/Mary-Lou Weisman)
And finally … on this date in 1878, the first telephone directory was issued. The city: New Haven, Connecticut.
(“You can keep the dime,” Jim Croce sings. Or, you can give it — and any other amount — to “06880,” to help support this hyper-local blog. Please click here. And thank you!)
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