I hate to ask for funds. But the NPR/PBS model is the only way to continue to tell stories about the people, places and past of this town; to bring you news and photos, and to do all the back-end stuff no one ever sees but that takes all of my time, 24/7/365.
Someone congratulated me on 16 years of “06880” — then said, “Sorry I missed your contribution day. I’ll send a check next year.”
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But a Montessori school may be in Westport’s future.
Apple Montessori Schools has applied for a special permit, and site plan approval, to convert the Bank of America building — next to Starbucks, on Post Road East — into a 2-story private school.
As a first step the Architectural Review Board will review the proposed addition, facade renovations and outdoor play spaces and pool at its March 18 meeting (7:30 p.m., Town Hall Room 309).
The building has been vacant since Bank of America closed several Fairfield County branches, early in the pandemic.
This vacant bank building … (Photo courtesy of Google Earth)
Montessori is a non-trademarked method of education that emphasizes hands-on learning and the development of real-world skills, rather than formal instruction.
Montessori schools believe that children are capable of initiating learning, and that education should not be measured by grades or tests.
There are Montessori schools for children 14 months through 8th grade in Fairfield and Wilton. There is currently no Montessori school in Westport.
The building is in the Highway Service District, with a portion of the rear property zoned Residence A. Schools are permitted — subject to special permit approval — in the HSD and Residence A zone.
Interior renovations would convert the bank into a Montessori school providing “curriculum based early learning,” with infant/preschool programs through kindergarten.
… could become this.
The maximum capacity is 124 children: approximately 40 kindergartners, 60 preschoolers, 16 toddlers and 8 infants. The proposed hours are weekdays, 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Dropoff and pickup times would be staggered.
On average, 8 to 10 staff members would be at the school during peak times.
There would be a small addition where the drive-in area is now, along with “new paint and materials for added visual interest and an improved aesthetic.”
Montessori also proposed enclosed outdoor play and learning spaces, and a small saltwater pool used only for preschool swim lessons in the summer.
The ARB meeting is the first of several in the town approval process.
(“06880” is your hyper-local source for education news — and much, much more. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Last week’s Photo Challenge showed a Christmas wreath, still hanging (on) on the top of a building.
It was the Westport Weston Family YMCA, as Fred Cantor, Andrew Colabella, Ed Simek, David Meth, Sal Liccione, Will Gibson, Richard Hyman, Jonathan McClure, Linda Vita Velez, Rew Travis, Jalna Jaeger, Naree W Viner, Amy Schneider and Tanaz Mody all knew.
None of them — or anyone else, for that matter — knew why it was still there, 67 days after Christmas.
No matter. It was gone a couple of days later.
Coincidence? “06880”-related? Who knows.
Just call it another Christmas miracle.
It will be a miracle, meanwhile, if no one gets today’s Photo Challenge. It’s easy — we’ll drink to that!
If you know where you’d see this, click “Comments” below.
(Photo/Seth Schachter)
(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!)
Posted onMarch 9, 2025|Comments Off on Roundup: Sushi Jin, Westport10, Leo Cirino …
Last July, “06880” reported that Sushi Jin & Lounge would move into 44 Main Street in Westport, “between recently closed home retailer Oka and Mexicue restaurant.”
A sign on the door promised “the essence of contemporary Japanese cuisine … where tradition meets innovation in every dish.” It added, “Opening soon.”
Eight months later — and following the closure of its next door neighbor Mexicue — Sushi Jin looks ready.
Westport10 — our town’s networking and social group for Black men — does not have their own clubhouse (yet).
So they did the next best thing last week: They had lunch at The Clubhouse (Westport’s newest event-and-more space).
Twenty men gathered to chat, share stories about work and families, and plan for the future. For more information on the group, click here.
Part of the Westport10 group, at The Clubhouse (from left):Rene Hart, Roy Adams, Harold Bailey Jr., Ted Parker, Adam Moore, Jay Norris, Brynden Cooper, Vincent Spencer, Dr. Stephen G., C.D. Glin, Kevin Christie, Frank Wood, Craig Melvin, Eric Freeman.
Longtime Westporter and volunteer with an enormous variety of interests, from education and the Rotary to electric cars and stamp collecting Leo Cirino died peacefully on Monday, from natural causes. He was 91.
The New York City native attended Columbia College, graduating with degrees in liberal arts and electrical engineering. He was a varsity wrestler, and played clarinet in the marching band.
In the wake of the Korean War he joined the Army as a rocket engineer in what became the Army Ballistic Missile Agency at Redstone Arsenal, a precursor of NASA. He helped launch the first US satellite, Explorer 1. Leo lost most of his hearing in a loud succession of rocket launches. That did not stop him from being an avid communicator and receptive listener through the rest of his life.
After his service he moved to Westport and worked for Norden Systems in United Technologies for the next 33 years. That is also where he met his wife of 54 years, Jane.
Leo applied his engineering and project management skills in building airborne and seaborne radar systems. He retired when the Soviet Union fell.
He became increasingly active in the Westport community. As a commander and navigator for the Power Squadron, a regular member of the Westport Shellfish Commission and a Thimble Islander, he channeled his love of the sea.
After following the alternate route to certification, Leo shared his knowledge as a part time physics and biology teacher at Staples for several years, before heeding the state’s request to teach full time in Bridgeport and Norwalk.
He taught youngsters to reach for the stars during space camp summers, raised funds for charity and student education as a Rotarian and in the United Way, and tutored anyone who needed help.
An avid stamp collector and Ye Olde King’s Highway Stamp Club regular, he wrote a book about philatelic artists from Westport and exhibited their works. At the Westport Historical Society he led the Wheeler Barn restoration.
In his later years Leo founded the Westport Electric Car Club, and worked with towns to promote the dream of a sustainable future.
He is survived by his wife Jane, daughters Dana and Jennifer, son Guy, and grandchildren Jack, Max, Chloe, Emmett, Logan and Leo Elias.
Calling hours will be at Harding Funeral Home on Monday (March 10, 4 to 7 p.m.). An honor service will be conducted Tuesday (March 11, Christ & Holy Trinity Church, 10 a.m., followed by a reception at VFW Post 399 from 1:30 to and 4:30 p.m.
Just in time for the start of Daylight Savings Time — you did remember to turn your clocks forward, right?! — we have today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo.
More good news: Spring comes early this year. The first day is March 20 — just 11 days away.
And finally … on this day in 2012, 76-year-old Jerry Lee Lewis got married for the 7th time. His bride was his caregiver, 62-year-old Judith Brown. She was previously married to Lewis’ cousin Rusty.
Speaking of cousins: Lewis’ 3rd marriage — when he was 22 — was to 13-year-old Myra Gale Brown, his first cousin once removed. She was 14 the next year, when their first child was born.
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog — your place for news, information, events and more, We rely on reader support. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank you!)
Comments Off on Roundup: Sushi Jin, Westport10, Leo Cirino …
Remember the time Queen Elizabeth II visited Westport?
Neither do I.
But check out the internet:
Queen Elizabeth II visited Westport, Connecticut in 1954. Some people who were there remember the event, and the Remarkable Theater in Westport honored her with a showing of “The Queen.”
That’s a remarkable statement. And not just because the Remarkable Theater did not exist until 66 years later.
It’s remarkable because it did not happen.
And even more remarkable because artificial intelligence says it did.
Queen Elizabeth, circa 1954.
Local resident Gary Shure is on vacation this week. The other day he drove through Westport, New Zealand — the scenic South Island town that is one of about 2 dozen Westports scattered around the world.
He Googled the queen, and Westport CT. AI — which now appears at the top of many Google searches — quickly returned the utter nonsense that a year after her coronation, Queen Elizabeth II came to our town.
It’s much more likely that the new queen visited our New Zealand counterpart. They’re part of the British Commonwealth, after all.
The United States, meanwhile, fought a famous war to get away from the royal family.
Welcome to Westport, New Zealand, that is.
What Google — the non-AI version of it, anyway — does say is that the Remarkable Theater did show the movie “The Queen” in September 2022, shortly after the long-reigning monarch’s death.
Artificial intelligence is good for many things.
But it remains just that: artificial.
Meanwhile, remember the time King George came to Westport, and had tea with George Washington at Marvin Tavern?
That was a remarkable day in our town’s history, for “shure.”
Queen Elizabeth II, in Westport, Connecticut. (Photo courtesy of News12).
(“06880” is “where Westport meets the world” — with real, non-artificial news. If you appreciate human journalism, please click here to support us with a contribution. Thank you!)
Today’s International Women’s Day “Unite and Resist” rally drew over 200 people to the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge.
Organizers said, “we’re taking to the streets to fight back against the fascist takeover. Join us to defend our rights, our bodies, and our future. No permission needed — just show up, bring signs and friends!”
Plenty of women — and men — did. They filled both sides of the span.
Passing motorists honked in support. Some held their own signs.
A Staples High School graduate was among 9 people arrested, after more than 200 protestors took over Barnard College’s main library on Wednesday.
Gabrielle Wimer was part of the pro-Palestinian group. According to the New York Times, they demanded “the reversal of the expulsions of two Barnard students who were punished for interrupting a ‘History of Modern Israel’ class on Jan. 21 and distributing fliers, including one that showed a jackboot squashing a Jewish star.
“They also called for the reinstatement of a student expelled for participating in the takeover of Hamilton Hall on the Columbia campus last spring.”
The New York Post said that “the protesters smashed glass, barricaded the building from the inside and draped a large flag calling for ‘intifada.'”
Pro-Palestinian protestors at Barnard College. Many wore masks and keffiyehs. (Photo/Michael Nagle for New York Post)
It added, “the disruptors taken into custody included several from privileged backgrounds, including one whose family founded the popular Hampton Jitney bus service in the 1970s — and one rabble rouser who had been busted at two other protests and has called for the ‘overthrow’ of America.”
The Washington Free Beacon said, “Wimer is a medical student at Columbia’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. According to screenshots of her LinkedIn that has since been deleted, she is ‘passionate about global health and human rights’ and has ‘experience in research, program management, and community outreach in multicultural settings.’
“Wimer is the Class of 2025 president, the programming coordinator for Columbia’s Human Rights and Asylum Clinic, and an active member of Columbia’s chapters of White Coats for Black Lives and Students for a National Health Program, according to an online bio.”
Gabrielle Wimer’s LinkedIn profile. It has since been deleted.
A 2016 “06880” story focused on Wimer’s work with mealworms. The larval form of a beetle — once thought of as a pest — can be baked or fried, for human consumption as a healthful snack food. They help improve nutrition in areas that desperately need it.
She was part of a group that won $20,000 in seed funding, from 3 organizations, including the Clinton Global Initiative University Resolution Project, for work that could help solve pressing health issues.
“This is perfect for me,” she said. “It combines science, sustainable agriculture and public health.”
Part of her mealworm research took place at Wakeman Town Farm.
Gabby Wimer
The story noted that in Wimer was a 4-year varsity swimmer and water polo player at Staples, where she also played violin, and sang in the choir.
She spent 8 years swimming with the Y’s Water Rats, and helped out with Amnesty International.
She majored in history, philosophy, and social study of science and medicine, as well as human rights. at the University of Chicago, and did volunteer work in Rwanda.
Before medical school at Columbia, Gabrielle worked in global health and education in Guatemala and Jordan.
“I always wanted to do global health work. But I never knew about mealworms,” Gabby told “06880.”
Westporters reacted strongly to the news.
“God help us all if Columbia allows her to remain in medical school,” one woman wrote to “06880.”
A post on social media said: “This young individual did great things in the past … what happened to make her lose her moral compass?
Protests continued Thursday, at Columbia University.
Wimer and the others were released with desk appearance tickets.
The Westport Fire Department responded yesterday afternoon to a house fire on Tarone Drive. One resident was injured, and taken to Norwalk Hospital.
The WPD reminds everyone to ensure they have working smoke detectors in their homes.
Dayling Savings Time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday morning. Move your clocks forward one hour! Whenever you change your clocks, remember to change your batteries!
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More than half a century after graduating from Staples High School, I made my Players debut.
I was a guest speller last night in their production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.”
It was short-lived. I got knocked out on my first word: kumis. As I sure as heck did not know, the fermented milk drink from Central and East Asia is spelled not with a “c,” but with a “k.” (It’s also known as koumis or kumyz, neither of which I would have gotten either.)
Yours truly being given a loser’s prize by Mitch Mahoney (Yusef Abdallah), after failing in the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.
My fellow guest spellers — 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, Staples principal Stafford Thomas and Bedford Acting Group director Ryan Smith — lasted longer than I did.
Neither of them won, either. (Spoiler alert: No guest speller has ever won, in the history of the Broadway show. It’s rigged!)
“Older” spellers (from left) Stafford Thomas, Dan Woog, Jen Tooker and Ryan Smith, on stage with the Staples cast, who are much better spellers (and actors).
But boy, did we have fun. Thank you, Players directors David Roth and Kerry Long, for the invitation. And great job Players, making us all feel welcome!
The show continues today (Saturday, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.) and tomorrow (Sunday, March 9, 2 p.m.). Click here for tickets, and more information.
Leaf Coneybear (Cooper Gusick, center) entertains Staples principal Stafford Thomas and 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker. (All photos/Kerry Long)
Chef Brian Lewis — whose OKO and The Cottage are Westport favorites — was recently named a semifinalist for the James Beard Award (“Best Chef Northeast” category).
Now he’s introducing a new dining experience.
The OKO-KASE menu includes Popcorn Dashi Lions Mane, Hokkaido Uni, Osetra Caviar, Bread and Butter Lobster, Passion Fruit and Stracciatella
Black Truffle Chawanmushi.
That’s followed by a selection of nigiri sushi, hand rolls, and flavorful dishes like Chili-Lime King Crab Hand Roll, St. Canut Pork Belly with Walnut Miso and Fermented Apple Butter, and Yuzu White Chocolate Huckleberry Kiss.
The price is $200 per guest; $75 sake pairing per guest. Reservations (203-557-8404) require 48-hour notice, and a $50 deposit per guest.
Westport escaped major damage in yesterday’s high winds.
Residents of Hickory Drive were not as lucky, however. Power went out when a tree took down live wires.
(Photo/Ron Poserina)
Winds continue today, 20 to 30 mph, with occasional gusts over 40. The temperature will be in the mid 40s.
The week ahead looks good. Tuesday could see 60 degrees.
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Last year, Rach’s Hope Walk the Extra Mile raised more than $20,000. The funds helped the non-profit that supports families with critically ill children in the ICU with an additional 100 nights of hotel stays, so parents can rest and recharge while staying close to their kids.
Rach’s Hope — which honors Rachel Doran, the Staples High School graduate and rising Cornell University senior, who died after developin a rare reaction to common medications — is getting ready for their 6th annual Rach’s Hope PJ Gala.
(Rachel was a talented Staples Players costume designer, and founded a pajama company.)
The date is Saturday, March 29 (7 to 11 p.m., FTC, Fairfield). Click here for tickets.
Festivities include an open bar with Tito’s cocktails, beer, wine and prosecco; heavy appetizers and desserts by AMG Catering; live music kicked off by Westport’s own Michael Cantor and Frog Salon, plus Rach’s Hope’s signature band, Ellis Island — and live and silent auctions too.
The Staples High School freshman was the only 9th grader in the entire country to win the Sandra Day O’Connor Institute for American Democracy annual Civics Challenge His entry was Crafting Change: The Art of Lawmaking in Congress.
The Civics Challenge is a very competitive national contest open to students in grades 6 through 12. Participants demonstrate civics knowledge through essays, short videos or original songs.
Tucker — one of just 10 winners nationwide — earned a $500 prize.
And the admiration of everyone who mourns the loss of civics education in America today.
Speaking of education: Adam Shapiro recently spent 2 days at Greens Farms Academy.
The noted actor (“The Bear,” “Never Have I Ever,” “Waitress”)was the school’s 2025 Hartwell Visiting Artist.
Shapiro presented at student assemblies, delivered a keynote to parents on “Cultivating Creativity,” coached the Middle School cast of “Frozen Jr.,” and shared his stories and advice about building a career in the arts.
Click here to read more about Shapiro’s visit. Click below for a highlight reel:
Speaking of school: Congratulations too to Weston High School’s robotics team!
They won the engineering design Innovate Champion Award at the state robotics championship recently.
That earned them a spot at the VEX Robotics World Championships in Dallas in May. Good luck to the squad: Emily Arias, Angela Zhao, Joshua Miranda and Cooper Schleef.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong — an early opponent, with counterparts across the country, of some of President Trump’s first funding cuts — is the guest at the Democratic Women of Westport’s annual Souper Luncheon.
The event is March 28 (11:30 a.m.). The DWW invites the public to join the AG, and learn more about his work on behalf of state residents. To RSVP, email dww06880@gmail.com.
On April 22, the Democratic Women sponsor a forum with Yale Law School professor Paul Kahn, author of Democracy in Our America: Can We Still Govern Ourselves? He’ll be joined in conversation by the Representative Town Meeting’s current and former moderators, Jeff Wieser and Velma Heller.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong.
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Saugatuck Congregational Church host’s Connecticut’s first “Music for Food” concert (March 16, 3 p.m.), with classical pianist Emma Tahmizian.
The Bulgarian musician debuted internationally at age 11, at a concert series in Moscow. She has performed and recorded regularly, since winning the 1977 Robert Schumann Competition.
The event is free, but donations are accepted. All proceeds benefit Homes with Hope, to support area residents facing food insecurity.
Emma Tahmizian
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The Gallery @ Green’s Farms Church welcomes photographer Sally Harris, and her latest work: “The Colors and Culture of Oaxaca.”
The show runs from March 14 to May 14. An opening reception is March 14 (6 to 8 p.m.). For more information, click here.
Speaking of art: Brian Whelan’s work is always a highlight of our “06880” online gallery.
Now it’s on view at Trinity Church Wall Street, in New York.
“Holy City” is a series inspired by medieval artwork, contemporary expressionism, and Whelan’s Catholic roots. blending the temporal and the spiritual.
The 9-panel painting at the center of the exhibit depicts Christianity, Islam and Judaism existing in harmony, with houses of worship supporting and uplifting one another.
The exhibit is open through March 18. Click here for more information.
Speaking still of the arts: A large crowd learned a lot at Thursday’s Malloy Fund for the Arts’ presentation “Reimagined: Westport as an Arts Town, Past, Present and Future.”
Actor James Naughton moderated a panel, with Miggs Burroughs, Melissa Newman and Meloday James.
Ann Sheffer — a passionate arts advocate and philanthropist (and donor Susan Malloy’s niece), whose family’s contributions helped shape Westport’s cultural fabric — also spoke.
If you missed it: no worries. Just click below, to see the entire event.
The Westport Astronomical Society will be open from 1 a.m. to 3:40 a.m. (weather permitting) on March 14, to observe the total lunar eclipse.
In other WAS news, the next free online lecture features Sarah Elizabeth McCandless. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory navigation engineer discusses “Exploring an Icy World with Europa Clipper.”
Click here to help support “06880” via credit card or PayPal. Any amount is welcome, appreciated — and tax-deductible! Reader contributions keep this blog going. (Alternate methods: Please send a check to “06880”: PO Box 744, Westport, CT 06881. Or use Venmo: @blog06880. Or Zelle: dwoog@optonline.net. Thanks!)
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