As operations manager for the Parks & Recreation Departament, he’s the go-to guy for beaches, Longshore, fields, youth and adult programs and much more.
He makes sure it all runs smoothly — no easy task.
The other day, he stopped by the Westport Library to talk about his multi-faceted role; how he got where he is, and what’s ahead for Parks & Rec.
Click below, for a behind-the-scenes peek at Westport’s recreational life.
The state of democracy and the media’s impact on it, globally and locally — plus AI, TikTok, fact checkers and more — were debated for nearly 2 hours yesterday.
A capacity crowd filled the Westport Library, to hear the Y’s Men of Westport and Weston-sponsored discussion.
Senator Richard Blumenthal; television journalists Alisyn Camerota and Dave Briggs of Westport, and John Berman (all now or formerly with CNN), along with “06880”‘s own Dan Woog answered questions from moderator John Brandt.
Staples High School Inklings advisors Mary Elizabeth Fulco and Joseph Del Gobbo, with editors Nina Bowens and Lily Hultgren, added student perspectives.
Click below to view the full event. It was fascinating.
Then again, I’m a biased media participant.
From left: Dave Briggs, Dan Woog, John Berman, Alisyn Camerota, Senator Richard Blumenthal. Inklings representatives Mary Elizabeth Fulco, Lily Hultgren and Nina Bowers stand in back. (Photo/Ted Horowitz)
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In just 4 years, Fashionably Westport has become one of our town’s most popular — and lively — fundraisers.
This year’s event is set for Friday, February 28 (7 p.m., Westport Library). Sponsored by the Westport Downtown Association, it’s a benefit for Homes with Hope.
The 5th annual Fashionably Westport show features the latest styles, from the town’s mot sophisticated and fashion-forward retailers.
The models are local friends and celebrities. The emcee and runway director are neighbors too: Dave Briggs and Carey Price, respectively.
Click here for tickets, and more information. To donate silent auctiono items, or become sponsors, email events@westportdowntown.com, or operations@westportdowntown.com.
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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).
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.
Tickets are on sale now (with early bird pricing through January 31). Click here to purchase, and for more information.
Speaking of music: The New York Times says, “Ringo Starr maintains his perpetual optimism in ‘Look Up,’ the title track of his new, Nashville-centered album.
“Written by T Bone Burnett and Daniel Tashian, the song posits, ‘There’s a light that shines in the darkest days,’ bolstered by richly twangy guitars and an unmistakable Ringo backbeat.”
What makes this “06880”-worthy is that Tashian is the son of Barry and Holly Tashian. The Staples High School Class of 1963 graduates have made their home in Nashville for many years, where they wrote and recorded.
Barry also played with Emmy Lou Harris and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Before that, he played guitar and sang lead vocals with the Remains.
The Boston-based band were called “how you told a stranger about rock ‘n’ roll” (by Jon Landau), along with — had they not broken up — a contender with the Rolling Stones for the title of “World’s Greatest Rock ‘n’ Roll Band.”
In 1966 — after appearing on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and “Hullabaloo” — they opened for the Beatles, on their final US tour.
Nearly 60 years later, Barry’s son and Ringo have kept the Remains/Beatles connection alive.
Marie Wilson of Gloversville, New York — a frequent visitor to Westport, where her daughter Diane Bosch lives — died January 5 after a brief illness in Saratoga Springs, New York. She was 93.
She majored in retailing at Lasell College. She was proud of her internship at Bergdorf Goodman in New York during college, and her lifetime membership in the PTA.
Marie was predeceased by her husband William E. Wilson after 60 years of marriage.
She is survived by her daughter Diane Wilson Bosch (Eric) of Westport; sons William (Joni) of Gloversville, and Paul (Sondra of Long Lake, New York; grandchildren Brett Wilson (Amanda); Greg Bosch and (Renee); Jenelle Wheeler (Ryan); Kate Boundy (Geoff); Nick Wilson; Emily Hunter (Ben); great- grandchildren Amelia and Theo Bosch; Ryder and Piper Wilson; Calvin and Beckett Wheeler; sister Barbara von Kreuter-Adams; many nieces and nephews, and even more friends.
A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to a local Parent Teacher Association.
Today commemorates the death of “the father of American music.” Foster died on this day in 1864. He was just 37 years old — perhaps by his own hand — but had already written more than 200 songs.
Among them:
(Hard times will come again no more — if you help support “06880.” Please click here, to contribute to your hyper-local blog. Thank you!)
Westporters are justifiably proud of the Staples High School sports program.
Teams win championships, and represent their community well. Strong coaching staffs teach skills and sportsmanship, and impact their student-athletes positively by teaching life lessons on and off the fields and courts.
But in recent months, several Staples High School athletic coaches have been told their contracts will not be renewed, after complaints from a very small number of parents. At least one resigned, also after parental pressure.
A much larger group of parents is concerned about the current Staples athletics environment. This weekend, they circulated a letter.
In just 2 days it was signed by over 225 parents, other community leaders, and former student-athletes.
Their goal is to fix a flawed system. They want to make currently opaque policies about the supervision and renewal decisions of coaches more transparent; ensure that a small group of parents do not have undue power over coaching decisions, and see that administrators and the Board of Education give coaches the tools to succeed, not terminate them without providing important feedback or support.
The letter signers offer solutions to fix the problem. They say:
But Superintendent of Schools Tom Scarice and our Board of Education have a unique opportunity to fix this problem here, in a way that sets a standard for towns across the state and beyond.
As people with a stake in getting this right — including former Staples student-athletes, and parents of Staples student-athletes past, present and future — we urge Mr. Scarice and the board to fix it, for the sake of our town, our dedicated coaches, and most importantly, our kids.
Dan Woog laid out the problem well: a broken system where high school coaches can be pressured to make coaching decisions, and even forced out of a job, by a small group of unhappy parents. A broken system where a long-tenured and highly successful coach beloved by most of his or her players can lose his or her job based on a single amorphous allegation of “lapse in judgment,” despite never having been trained or given constructive feedback on the issue at hand, and despite there being no clear policy in place that the coach was supposed to have followed.
The only common through-line we can see is that the coaches unfortunate enough to have been caught up in this are coaches who have been relentlessly targeted by a small group of unhappy parents.
We do not write this letter to shut parents up. Every one of us — every parent of any athlete in history, we’d bet — has been unhappy with their kids’ coaches at one time or another. Sometimes it is justified; sometimes not.
We respect the rights of individuals concerned about any child’s welfare to raise their concerns appropriately. But here’s the key: This town needs to put clear policies in place to ensure parental concerns are handled in a way that is consistent, transparent, timely, and fair, not just to the unhappy parents and kids, but to the rest of the kids on the team and to the coaches.
No one should accept a position, especially a coaching position, in Westport schools unless it is clear to them what is expected of them to excel, and what policies and best practices they are expected to follow, including how to deal with concerned (and potentially intrusive) parents.
Those policies are not in place in Westport today, and that has left all our coaches exposed to being suspended or “non-renewed” as a result of parental complaints for alleged conduct violations not covered in any policy. Coaches are being blindsided, having received no constructive or critical feedback on performance during the season or the previous seasons. Other employees are resigning or capitulating to parental pressure to keep their jobs.
No coach should want to work under these conditions.
Mr. Scarice and the Board of Education need to step up and reset. They should suspend all current actions against coaches until proper policies and procedures are adopted, so our coaches know what they’re aiming for — and can have confidence that they are being treated fairly when inevitable parent complaints arise.
We believe they should enact policies that:
Clearly state written expectations for coaches and employees, with specific examples, which every student, parent, coach and teacher should be able to read and clearly understand;
Provide a mechanism, and hold the administration accountable, for updating these expectations and policies as situations arise that are not clearly addressed, so all our coaches can benefit from lessons learned in particular sports;
Prioritize the safety and well-being of the students during the year/season;
Consider the risks and harm done to students where there is a suspension or investigation;
Set expectations for how the administration evaluates and provides constructive feedback to employees — it should be in writing, and it should be timely;
Enforce a consistent and transparent process for responding to (and, if necessary, escalating) student-athlete and parental criticisms or complaints about coaches; this policy should clearly address how to deal with parental complaints about coaching decisions such as starting lineups, playing time, and captaincies; and
Fully spell out the potential consequences for violating the policies.
These policy improvements, needed now, are long overdue.
Sports are a wonderful way to teach our kids critical life lessons, including how to handle disappointment.
Right now, the way we treat long-tenured and dedicated coaches is teaching our kids exactly the wrong lessons: that if a parent can reframe disappointment in coaching decisions as a coach having been “vindictive” (an argument any parent can always try to make), that’s the ticket to getting rid of a coach.
We should instead be teaching our kids how to deal with disappointment, while also modeling a system of constructive feedback and clear expectations that improves our sports programs, while treating everyone — including our coaches — fairly.
Mr. Scarice and the Board of Education owe it to our town, our student-athletes, and every employee to get this right, and set our town up as the best place in the state for coaches to work and student-athletes to compete.
The letter was signed by over 225 parents of current and former student-athletes; former student-athletes, and other community members.
Natalia and Claudio Alarcon-Frias
Rafael and Maria Alfaro
Suzanne and Josh Allen
Eva Amurri
Rahul and Meredith Anand
Eva and Kevin Audit
Nancy Austin and Al Gratix
Stephen Axthelm
Candace Banks
Diana and Pete Barnes
Jen and Ken Barnes
Chris Barnett
Caroline and Craig Barney
Christina Bassler
Peter Bassler
Michael Beebe
Sophie Blondeau
Sam Bowlby
Brandi and David Briggs
Adam Brodsky
Melissa and Grant Byczek
Mafe Cala and Ricardo Ceballos
Ali and Michael Cammeyer
Carolyn and Lee Caney
Aly and Bobby Christoph
Robin and Pierre Chung
Jeff Clachko
Luciano and Leila Cocito
Andrew Colabella
Darrin Cozzolino
Louisa and Peppe D’Amore
Barbara Jean Davis
Jonathan and Erica Davis
Lisa Dearbourne
Karen and Paul DeDomenico
Stephanie and Mac DeVito
Anna and Danny DeVito
Sam and Julie Diederich
Frank DiScala
Jennifer and Tim Dolnier
Joanna, Jack and Drew Douglas
Greg Downes
Cherie Duque
Julia and Anel Dzafic
Cindy and David Eigan
Robin Eisenberger
Jason Epstein
Julia and Collin Felleman
Bettina and David Fiore
Patrick Fontana
Daniela and Mike Forde
Mary Garone
Steve and Nicole Gerber
Joan and Ted Gillman
Stephanie and Steve Girling
Marty and Cathy Gitlin
Deb and Matt Goldfarb
Lynn Gonsor
Ram and Srividya Gorre
Shayna and Andy Green
Zack Gross
Trudie Gubitz
Margaret Armstrong, and Barry and Bruno Guiduli
Kim Gullens
Jacque and Chuck Haberstroh
Robin and Allon Hellman
Karen Hess
Lisa and Jay Hill
Jonathan, Amy and Jackson Hochhauser
Jeff and Amelia Holl
Sam and Lara Jacob
Wendy and Richard Jones
Meredith and David Kamo
Rinat and Victoria Khisyamov
Jean and Mark Kirkham
Matt and Kendall Kremer
Sandra and Greg Krenzer
Marcio and Patricia Krug
Jeffrey Lampert
Dean Landis
Allan and Caroline Landis
Andy and Nicole Laskin
Sal Liccione
Brett and Jennifer Lieberman
Jason Little
Donald Lowman
Alyson Luck
Patty Lynch
Maryanne and Dean Martire
Jennifer and Jimmy McGeehan
Danielle and John McGrath
Kevin McGrath
Patrick and Morgan Mermagen
Alex and Jeremy Metz
Bill Mitchell
Sandro and Eduarda Moreno
Sile Marrinan and Colin Morris
Rich Morse
Merri and Adrian Mueller
Katherine and Austin Murray
Janine and Tony Nashawaty
Steve O’Dell
Liz and Doug Pardon
Meena Pellerin
Rolando and Angelica Perez Elorza
Rick and Kim Perlen
John Petrsoric
Maria Petti
Swapna Podlich
Mackenzie and Thomas Pretty
Lori, Chris and Zach Pulichino
Gustavo and Daniela Reyna
Ana and CJ Rinaldi
Rima Fawaz and Leonel Rodriguez
Brant Root
Caio and Danielle Rossoni
Mark Rubino
Parma Ayodhimani and Bala Sathyanarayanan
Jordan Schur
Karen and Robert Scott
Neal and Michelle Seideman
Beth and Dan Selig
Stefanie and Stephen Shackelford
Ken Shapiro
Courtney and Matt Shiel
Nicole and Isaac Sine
Chandy Smith
Kathryn and Jim St. Andre
Meredith and Jon Stoler
Will and Susan Suarez
Cindi and Nick Sunjka
Joanna and Tom Triscari
Vanessa Valadares
Jeff and Sam Vannart
Ted and Stephanie Vergakis
Kecia and Greg Von der Ahe
Kathy and Colin Walker
Scott and Lisa Waller
Jeff Warshaw
Niccola and Gavin Whitaker
Jim and Lizzie Wolf
Andy and Jessica Wolff
Janet and Howard Zev
Rong and Kevin Zhu
[Full disclosure: I served as the Staples varsity soccer coach from 2003 to 2021. I was an assistant coach for over 20 years before that. — Dan Woog, executive editor, “06880”]
We eased into 2025 with one of our easiest Photo Challenges ever.
Nearly 3 dozen readers quickly spotted last week’s image as the sign hanging over the front door of the Saugatuck Rowing Club.
Apart from a couple of random guesses (Longshore, Fairfield County Hunt Club), nearly everyone knew the iconic Riverside Avenue spot. (Click here to see.)
Congratulations to Andrew Colabella, Joelle Berger, Barbara Mathias, Martin W. Gitlin, “TonyT@duck.com,” Janice Strizever, Vanessa Bradford, Robert Mitchell, Ed Simek, Linda Velez, Rachel Halperin, Micheal Simso, Will Gibson, Werner Liepolt, Seth Schachter, Harry Brady, Seth Braunstein, Michael Szeto, Sal Liccione, Tom Green, Michael Laux, Amy Schneider, Heidi McGee, John Lisée, Michelle Garvey, Mousumi Ghosh, Ivy Gosseen, Howard Potter and Colleen Williams.
Don’t rest on your laurels, though. This week’s is much tougher.
If you know where in Westport you’d see this, click “Comments” below.
(Photo/Bob Weingarten)
(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 Los Angeles fires have affected people far from California. A Westport woman who grew up there writes:
As third-generation Angelenos, my brother, sister and I were raised in Pacific Palisades during the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s.
The Palisades is such a special place that you never really want to leave — and if you do, you dream of returning one day.
Much like Westport, the Palisades is a close-knit coastal community. Stunning ocean views blend with a deep sense of connection and shared history among its residents.
Westport and the Palisades share many similarities: a comparable population size, a handful of public schools, one main high school, and a library cherished by the community.
The Palisades’ central park, recreation center and charming downtown shopping area form the heart of the neighborhood, just as Westport has its own vibrant hubs of activity.
On Tuesday morning, with little to no warning, an apocalyptic nightmare unfolded. In less than 24 hours, everything changed. Our hometown, the place where we grew up and built so many memories, was wiped off the map.
Miraculously our parents’ home, where we grew up and they’ve lived for over 50 years, was spared. It is unclear though whether they will be able to return.
My brother Doug and his family were not as fortunate. Their home, along with all their belongings, was destroyed.
What makes their situation even more challenging is their 17-year-old daughter Ciaran.
Ciaran and her family, before the fire.
When she was 2, she incurred a series of life-changing strokes from a deadly E. coli infection. Despite her positive attitude, she lost most of her motor skills (walking, talking, hand coordination). She requires full-time care and specialized medical equipment, as she is confined to a wheelchair.
When Doug returned to their property to see what remained, the only thing left in the ashes was Ciaran’s burned wheelchair frame. All her medical equipment –including a lift, bathing chair, and custom orthotics — was completely destroyed.
All that is left of Ciaran’s house.
When they were forced to evacuate, Doug, Shannon, Ciaran and Kellan (12) left with only the clothes on their backs. Ciaran, a senior at Palisades High School, was preparing to graduate this spring. But her school burned down, and her dedicated teachers and aides have scattered. The road ahead is overwhelming.
While life will never be the same, we are holding onto hope. With your support, we can help Doug, Shannon and their kids rebuild their lives and replace critical items — especially Ciaran’s medical equipment, which is essential for her care.
If you’d like to help, please consider donating through our GoFundMe page. Your contributions will make an enormous difference to my brother’s family, as they begin to navigate their new reality.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your compassion and generosity during this unimaginably difficult time.
Westport connections to the Los Angeles fires keep coming.
And this one comes with an important reminder.
Dr. Edward Paul writes: “My two kids are in the LA area. Lexi Paul (Staples Class of 2012) lives in Pasadena; Rachel Paul (SHS ’14) lives in West Hollywood.
“Both were evacuated pretty quickly. Thankfully, each lives in an apartment building in a ‘downtown’ area with limited trees and brush, so they have been spared thus far.
“One lesson I’ve learned from this is that while we try to teach our kids how to navigate life, we (I) haven’t done anything to prepare them for handling disasters.
“How to get public service information, how to sign up for local alerts, what valuables or documents to pack if you need to leave in a hurry, what photos to take of your residence before leaving for possible insurance claims.
“These are important life lessons I’ve now given to them — after the fact, but hopefully before any future needs arise.
“One may think these lessons are common sense. They are for a grown 60-year- old. But maybe not for a 20+ year old.”
Do you — or your children — know what to do when danger suddenly approaches? (Photo/Mike Pryor)
And — after a 7-month hiatus — volunteers are back serving meals.
Now they can cook too, in the new full-service kitchen.
The Westport Rotary Club had the honor of producing the first meal.
The joyful dinner was made even better, with the music of Antonia Nedder.
Families, individuals and organizations wishing to prepare and serve meals can click here for more information.
Serving the first meal at the newly renovated Gillespie Center. Homes with Hope CEO Helen McAlinden (rear) is joined by (from left) Rotarians Mark Wilhelm, Jim Birchfield and Jeff Wieser (former HwH CEO). Helping out (front) are Jeff’s grandchildren.
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Want to get married quickly? Need someone to take a deposition? Have any other official oath-taking (or giving) task in mind?
Westport’s justices of the peace can help.
The town recently added a few new names to its roster of about 60. Many are familiar, as town officials, civic volunteers or other long-time residents.
Click here for a full list. They’re ready to serve.
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At 3 a.m. today, Westport firefighters responded to a motor vehicle crash at the southbound exit of I-95 Exit 18.
The vehicle sustained heavy damage, with one person inside.
Crews used battery-operated rescue tools to remove the roof. The occupant was extricated from the vehicle in under 10 minutes. Patient care and transport to the hospital were provided by Westport Emergency Medical Service.
State and Westport Police were on the scene. The last Westport Fire Department unit left at 5:13 a.m.
And finally … on this date in 1967, Dr. James Bedford became the first person to be cryonically preserved, after dying of cancer. He hoped to be resuscitated in the future. That has not yet happened.
(Don’t be cold! “06880” relies on the support of readers like you. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. Thank y’all!)
It’s hard to grasp the extent of the Los Angeles fires. But try this.
“06880” reader Sara Jordan’s sister Katie lives in Altadena — one of the towns most devastated so far. Many residents had no insurance.
Altadena is a vibrant, diverse community with a population of about 42,000. Over 7,000 structures — homes, buildings, historic sites — were destroyed.
At least 2,000 children are without a school.
Altadena residents are hardworking, middle-class people who lived there for generations. Many inherited their homes from parents and grandparents. They stayed for hours, trying to houses with garden hoses.
Some of the scenes from Altadena, California.
Though Katie lost her home, she sprang into action to help those less fortunate. She sent Sara a spreadsheet of GoFundMe pages.
There are about 800 for Altadena alone. They’re raising money for everything: temporary housing, clothes, transportation, funeral services.
Many are for individual families. Some are for businesses, like restaurants and coffee shops. Others are for schools, museums and faith centers.
The list is heartbreaking, and unfathomable.
“Westporters are some of the most generous people I know,” Sara says.
Wouldn’t it be great if every “06880”reader clicked here, selected just one GoFundMe campaign from the list, and donated what they can?
How about if every civic organization and school in Westport did the same?
(The list is in order, from the least funded one to the most.)
Questions? Email Sara directly: sarajordankornfeld@me.com.
That’s not easy — at least, not when he’s looking at internet providers.
He went to the Optimum store next to Fresh Market to get information about his current plan.
Right now he has 2 cable boxes and 2 phone lines, plus DVR and a core package. With taxes, it’s over $300 a month.
The MSG channels, for Knicks and Rangers games, were just blocked, due to an inability of Optimum and MSG to agree on carriage fees, Dave adds.
“I’m not even sure what the core package gives me now,” he says. “It’s so messed up.”
The Optimum folks could not print anything out, or even provide many details about different plans. “It varies,” they said vaguely.
Instead, they gave Dave a phone number to call, to learn more and negotiate.
He went to Optimum’s Norwalk location, and got nowhere there either.
“These locations are set up to sell phones and exchange cable hardware,” he says. “They’re very non-friendly consumer environments. It’s so strange to run a business this way.”
Frontier was no better.
He ended up on the phone with a call center “in some netherworld. They can’t fully describe or explain their offerings either. And they can’t email me information, ‘due to company policy.'”
All Dave wants is to educate himself about options (and get documentation of what he’s offered, so there is no bait-and-switch).
Since Dave can’t get much (or any) info from the companies himself, he hopes “06880” readers can help.
What do you know abou the cost of Optimum and Frontier? The quality of service? What are their strengths, weaknesses and differences?
Click “Comments” below. As always, please use your full, real name.
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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Dan Woog laid out the problem well: a broken system where high school coaches can be pressured to make coaching decisions, and even forced out of a job, by a small group of unhappy parents. A broken system where a long-tenured and highly successful coach beloved by most of his or her players can lose his or her job based on a single amorphous allegation of “lapse in judgment,” despite never having been trained or given constructive feedback on the issue at hand, and despite there being no clear policy in place that the coach was supposed to have followed.
Right now, the way we treat long-tenured and dedicated coaches is teaching our kids exactly the wrong lessons: that if a parent can reframe disappointment in coaching decisions as a coach having been “vindictive” (an argument any parent can always try to make), that’s the ticket to getting rid of a coach.
