The rash of vehicle break-ins and thefts continues.
At 11:45 p.m. last night, Westport Police responded to Hillspoint Road near Compo Beach — the area of an attempted theft the day before — after a 911 call reported 2 people trying to enter vehicles.
The WPD, along with members of the Bridgeport Auto-Theft Task Force, set up a perimeter. Two suspect vehicles, both stolen from other towns, were seen leaving the area.
Westport Police attempted a traffic stop. Neither vehicle complied. Members of BATF, operating unmarked cars, followed one of the vehicles to I-95, where it was stopped in Stratford. Two juveniles, 14 and 17 from Danbury, were taken into custody.
The driver was charged with engaging police in pursuit, criminal attempt to assault a public safety officer, interfering with an officer and larceny of a motor vehicle.
Both were released to the custody of their parents, with a court date in Danbury Juvenile Court.
On Tuesday Detective John Lauria and Officer Melissa Bike dusted a vehicle for fingerprints, following an attempted theft. (Photo/Andrew Colabella)
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In other police news, there were 2 custodial arrests between April 24 and May 1.
Omar Aliyhry, a 29-year-old Bronx man — the manager of Savvy Smoker — was arrested for sale of 1 kilogram or more of cannabis, and conspiracy to sell 1kg or more.
In December 2023, Westport Police began an investigation into illegal cannabis sales at the Post Road East store, following complaints of illegal activity.
Through the use of undercover officers buying illegal cannabis products and search warrants, the WPD learned that Savvy Smoker was allegedly selling illegal items, in violation of their license.
Aliyhry was released on $15,000 bond. He has a court date of May 17, at Stamford Superior Court.
A 28-year-old Bronx man was arrested and charged with identity theft, following an investigation into a July complaint that a check for $36.91 deposited in a blue USPS mailbox had been stolen, altered for $6,000, and fraudulently deposited into an unknown account.
Westport Police also issued these citations:
Operating an unregistered motor vehicle: 7 citations
A multi-vehicle accident and fire on I-95 southbound just before 5:30 a.m. today caused gridlock throughout Westport.
And it won’t ease for a while. Officials estimated this morning that I-95 in that area could be closed for several days.
Westbound Post Road traffic, just before noon. The cross streets are Myrtle Avenue (left) and Imperial Avenue (right). (Drone photo/Charlie Scott)
The crash — involving 2 tractor-trailers and a passenger vehicle — ignited a blaze in a tanker truck with 8,500 gallons of gasoline, underneath Fairfield Avenue at Exit 15. None of the occupants were hurt, though a firefighter suffered a leg injury. (Click here for a video of the fire.)
The I-95 accident and fire earlier today. (Photo/Norwalk Fire Department)
Traffic was closed in both directions, and on surrounding streets. Fairfield Avenue connects Martin Luther King Boulevard and Connecticut Avenue.
Officials are checking for damage to the overpass.
The aftermath of this morning’s tanker fire. The truck cannot be moved until all contents are offloaded. (Photo courtesy of News12 Connecticut)
The result was horrendous traffic, throughout Westport.
The Post Road was backed up for miles at rush hour. Alternate routes paralleling I-95, as well as to the Merritt Parkway, were also jammed.
The Post Road, at Wilton Road and Riverside Avenue. (Photo/Craig Bergamo)
Large trucks — including semis — jammed the Post Road. Some headed west on Greens Farms Road, but had to turn right on Imperial Avenue because they could not cross the Cribari Bridge.
That created additional traffic, at the Imperial/Post Road East traffic light.
Officials urge drivers — particularly truckers — to use alternate routes, including I-84 and I-87, if possible. Signs throughout the state, and in New York and Rhode Island, urge motorists to avoid the area.
Another view of the accident and fire. (Facebook screenshot courtesy of Kalin Barber)
Once again, there’s been an increase is auto theft and break-in attempts.
At 10:38 p.m. Tuesday night, Representative Town Meeting member Andrew Colabella saw a black Toyota with 5 occupants — wearing masks — make their way down a neighbor’s driveway in the Hillspoint area.
They got into her unlocked vehicle, and opened her garage door. Her keys were not in the car; otherwise they might have used them to steal it, or enter the house.
The owner was home alone. Andrew called the Westport Police. Officer Melissa Bike was on scene within 2 minutes.
Andrew says, “Her professionalism, detailed questions, care, and unique comfort ability brought ease to a terrifying incident.”
Officer Kevin Smith patrolled the entire area, and looked to see if any other properties were entered.
Andrew was impressed too by Detective John Lauria’s “assertive persistence to dust, fingerprint, photograph, and methodically capture any evidence with care.”
The incident serves as another reminder to always remove keys and fobs from vehicles — and, if possible, park them in a locked garage.
Police add: “Keep exterior lights on, and utilize surveillance and/or alarm systems. Call the police immediately to report any suspicious activity. The department strongly advises against confronting any suspects if you observe them on your property. There have been a number of incidents throughout the state where these individuals have resorted to violence when confronted.”
Officer Melissa Bike and Detective John Lauria dust for fingerprints. (Photo/Andrew Colabella)
Badass Bagels is a badass — and very popular — purveyor.
And “How I Built This” with Guy Raz is a badass — and very popular podcast.
Today, the latest episode dropped. The first segment features Westporter Jennifer Balin, and her badass baking and branding. (She works just over the border, on Lois Street in Norwalk.)
As always, Guy does a great job getting to the heart of what people do, and how they do it.
And the experience gave Jennifer a chance to connect with Pete Maldonado, the Chomps grass-fed beef stick founder. (His brand is in Trader Joe’s.)
“The world of entrepreneurs is just amazing,” Jennifer says.
“I have made great relationships with people right here in town as well. Our customer base is flooded with entrepreneurs who want to help me grow. We are expanding, and we love slinging bagels!”
Yesterday’s “06880” lead story described a movement at Greens Farms Elementary School, urging parents not to allow smartphone until their children are out of middle school.
Coincidentally, the Washington Post ran a long story yesterday, about a middle school in Manchester, Connecticut that prohibits cell phone use during the school day. All phones are locked in individual pouches at arrival, then unlocked as students leave.
Interestingly, many youngsters find that not having access to phones during the school day is not all bad.
How did parents react? Click here to read. (Hat tips: Jack Backiel, Chris Grimm)
AEDs are back at town athletic fields, and other outdoor places.
The devices — Automated External Defibrillators, which are easy to use but crucial life-saving devices during cardiac emergencies — are taken in during cold weather.
But now they’re fully charged, and ready to be used.
We hope they never have to be. But just in case: Know where they are.
And be ready to use them
AED at Winslow Park, near the Westport Country Playhouse parking lot. (Hat tip and photo/Mark Mathias)
If you missed Tuesday’s great Startup Westport Innovator of the Year event — featuring ESPN CEO Jimmy Pitaro chatting with ESPN host (and fellow Westporter) Mike Greenberg: You’re in luck.
The Westport Library recorded the event. Click below to hear some great stories about career paths, innovation, the media and sports landscapes — and Westport.
Speaking of sports: Jenny Bradshaw is a world champion cheerleader!
The 2023 Staples High graduate — a 4-year Wrecker cheer member and senior captain, now a student at the University of Miami — cheers for the Lady Jags team.
Last week, her Top Gun All Stars won the Senior Medium L6 division title over 8 other teams at the Cheerleading World Championships in Orlando,
This is not Jenny’s first big Worlds award. As a member of the Xtreme Cheer All Stars gym in Danbury, her team Inferno captured a bronze medal in 2022.
Joseph Davis and Danielle Leblanc are traveling from their Maine home, on the Canadian border, to teach the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport about how the Anishinabe People were given a framework to guide their lives spiritually, physically, mentally and emotionally. They will also share a blessing with the Sacred Pipe.
The event is this Saturday (May 4, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) at the UU Meeting House.
Grandmother Nancy Andry — a UU Westport member — says, “These are incredible teachings by two revered elders. This is a rare opportunity.”
Longtime Westport firefighter Edmund Duffy Jr. died April 25, in Minneapolis. He was at 82.
He began his service as a volunteer firefighter in 1959, at 18. In 1964 he transitioned to a full-time firefighter, dedicating another 32 years to the profession. Even after retirement, he remained committed to helping others.
Ed proudly served in the Army Reserve from 1964 to 1969.
His family says, “Ed valued the simple joys in life, cherished his blue-collar origins, and treated everyone with respect and kindness, regardless of their background.”
When not working at the firehouse, Ed was a landscaper. He enjoyed baseball, softball, bowling, fishing, and collecting model trains.
Ed is survived by his daughter Elizabeth (Matthew), brothers Charlie (Rose) and Denis (Mary), sisters Anne-Carol and Donna, and many aunts, uncles, and cousins. He was predeceased by his wife Susan and daughter Deborah.
A visitation will be held on May 9 (4 to 7 p.m., Harding Funeral Home). A burial ceremony will follow on May 10 (11 a.m., Assumption Cemetery).
Most people call it “the Longshore exit road.” The official name is Herbert Baldwin Road (in honor of the first selectman who, in 1960, pushed for the purchase of a failing country club — destined to be an 180-home development — for $1.9 million).
Whatever you know it by: It’s a very pretty spot.
Especially in spring, as today’s “Westport … Naturally” image shows:
And finally … on this date in 1536, England’s Queen Anne Boleyn was arrested and imprisoned on charges of adultery, incest, treason and witchcraft.
(Police, education, sports, business news — “06880” covers it all. It’s all in today’s Roundup — as it is every day, 24/7/366. Please click here to help support our work. Thank you!)
An Instagram video describes the life of a youth sports parent: competition in Honduras (“it’s about a 49-hour drive, so plan accordingly”), then Cuba, and — if they win — qualification for a tournament in Croatia on Wednesday.
“Pretty low-key schedule,” the coach says.
Most youth sports parents, in any sport — in Westport, and around the country — can relate.
Not those whose kids are in the Westport Swim Club, though.
The 3-year-old organization takes a deliberately — and truly — low-key approach.
They provide instruction and “candy meet” opportunities for young swimmers. They make sure to keep things fun.
If a boy or girl needs to take a month off to act in the school play, their coaches say: Great!
WSC’s core values are simple: “Fun, Friends and Fundamentals.”
Fun at the Westport Swim Club.
The goals are to instill a love for swimming in their young members.
And, during their 7 months together, to prepare their 2nd through 8th graders for the next levels of competition.
Where, if they (and/or their parents) want, they can spend 12 months a year training and racing, up and down the East Coast. (And perhaps Honduras, Cuba and Croatia.)
Or simply make their high school team.
Though low-key, Westport Swimming Club is hardly a minnow. Its 7 coaches have impressive resumes. They’ve swum at the top levels themselves, including the Asian Games and Olympic qualifiers. They’ve coached at the NCAA Division I level. One — Mike Anderson — is currently head coach of the Staples High swim and dive team.
They know the importance of including games and contests — diving for pennies, for instance — to break up the repetitive nature of drills.
And unlike with many teams, the coaches actually get in the water with their athletes.
Some Westport Swim Team coaches and assistants (from left): Kuku Fleming, Pam Moss, Mike Anderson, Matt Fleming, Elaine Rankowitz, Leilani Fleming.
The WSC is the brainchild of Staples girls swimming coaches Mike Anderson, Elaine Rankowitz and Kuku Fleming. Pam Moss joined later.
Fleming (the Asian Games swimmer who went on to compete for Harvard University, then worked at Deutsche Bank’s hedge fund for 12 years) and Moss (a nationally ranked age group swimmer before managing a digital software firm, and co-founding BlackLight), met through the Masters swimming program.
Three years ago, coming out of COVID, they realized there were no programs for young swimmers who did not start very early.
“With us, even 13 years old is not too late,” Fleming says. “We’re a swim ramp.”
“We help them prepare them for other programs,” Moss adds. “We give them the confidence to try out.”
Coach Neil Markman and his daughter, Noelle Stine-Markman.
WSC runs from January through July, at the Staples pool. There are 4 practices a week — but daily practices are not mandatory. Coaches realize their swimmers have lives outside the pool too.
“Having fun does not mean being weak,” Fleming says. “We are highly allergic to bad technique.”
Every swimmer learns the butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle, flip and open turns, dives and backstroke starts, and relay transitions.
There are 2 intra-squad meets, and a couple of “candy meets” (dual competitions against country club teams). They’re opportunities for young swimmers to practice their technique, along with soft skills like paying attention to when their event will be called.
It’s a recipe for — well, not necessarily winning competitions, but developing skills and self-confidence.
Fleming describes a youngster who went from no eye contact to laughing, and doing demonstrations in front of peers.
Another, who graduated from WSC to a club team, won 3 medals at a regional meet.
A third began as a flailing freestyle. Five sessions later, she had a “beautiful” butterfly stroke. She went on to make the Staples squad, and recently competed in Florida with her club team.
Having fun, in and out of the water.
The founders credit to WSC’s philosophy, coaches and swimmers for its success.
But, they note, supportive parents also play a key role.
“They are very friendly, enthusiastic, and generous with their time,” Fleming says.
“They appreciate a program without a lot of pressure. But they know we make kids accountable for their own gear, being on time, and paying attention.”
WSC does not “compete with” programs like the Westport YMCA Water Rats, Weston Swimming, Fairfield Aquatics or Norwalk Zeus for swimmers. Fleming and Moss see their organization as a feeder for those clubs.
They are happy when their swimmers “graduate” to high school programs, and/or clubs.
The coaches cheer them on — at local pools, and (metaphorically) at their meets far and wide.
But they don’t go all over the state, or to Florida (or Honduras, Cuba and Croatia).
They’re busy preparing the next generation of swimmers to join them.
If, of course, they want to.
(For more information on Westport Swim Club, click here.)
(“06880” covers the Westport waterfront. But we can’t do it without our reader’s help. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Evan Barr is a lawyer, specializing in white collar criminal defense and litigation. He has lived in Westport with his wife and family (including 2 Staples High School graduates) for the past 17 years. He is also a longtime member of the Westport Democratic Town Committee. He writes:
The Representative Town Meeting will soon vote on a request by the Department of Public Works to use $630,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds for the redesign and redevelopment of Jesup Green and the Imperial Avenue parking lot.
From both a legal and public policy perspective, ARPA funds should not be used for this purpose.
In 2021, Westport applied for and received a $4.2 million pandemic grant for projects to be commenced before December 31, 2024.
In January 2022, the first selectwoman and her team made a presentation to the Board of Finance to discuss the grant. (Click here to see.)
The administration itemized 3 categories of eligible uses:
To respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency or its negative economic impacts
For the provision of government services, to the extent of the reduction in revenue of such recipient due to COVID-19
To make necessary investments in infrastructure, the economy and public health.
The administration then set about spending the money.
The administration listed an initial expenditure of $340,000 for “Downtown Parker Harding & Jesup Lots Design” as falling under the category of “Economic Vitality.”
In May 2022, the administration secured RTM approval for an appropriation of $400,000 from Westport’s ARPA funds for the planning, design and redevelopment of Parker Harding Plaza, Jesup Green and the Imperial lot.
That same year, the US Department of the Treasury issued updated guidance on the use of Coronavirus State & Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, which includes the ARPA money allotted to Westport. (Click here to see.)
Under these regulations, eligible infrastructure usage is limited to investments in water, sewers or broadband projects. The regulations also provide that qualifying expenditures for “public health and economic impact” could be used to respond to “the disease itself or the harmful consequences of the economic disruptions resulting from or exacerbated by the COVID-19 public health emergency.”
$1. 3 million in ARPA funds were used to rebuild the groin at Burying Hill Beach. (Photo/Peter Swift)
Most importantly, the regulations make clear that municipal expenditures for “general economic development” – meaning “activities that do not respond to negative economic impacts of the pandemic but rather seek to more generally enhance the jurisdiction’s business climate – would not be eligible” under this category.
But that is exactly what the first selectwoman is apparently trying to do here.
The proposed project before the RTM has nothing to do with the “economic impact” of COVID-19. Downtown has rebounded from the pandemic and remains vibrant. (Nor does it relate to any eligible infrastructure category).
To the contrary, the first selectwoman and the head of the Department of Public Works have consistently described the Jesup project as part of a long overdue solution to aesthetic and traffic-flow issues that have bedeviled Parker Harding Plaza since the 1980s. The administration has not, and cannot, plausibly characterize this project as related in any way to the pandemic and its repercussions.
Westport is an affluent suburb with a Triple-A bond rating that does not need to rely upon specially- designated federal pandemic relief money to boost our “economic vitality.”
But that doesn’t mean the ARPA grants have to go to waste. We can use the money, for example, to fund flood mitigation measures or to invest in upgrades to the Aspetuck Health District facilities where vaccines are administered.
Numerous state and local governments around the country have been called out for spending ARPA funds on questionable projects clearly unrelated to the pandemic. Let’s not add Westport to the list of towns and cities accused of misusing taxpayer money.
Martha Deegan nominates Marcy Sansolo as this week’s Unsung Hero. Martha writes:
Marcy started “What Up Westport” — a Facebook group serving thousands of Westport residents — the night before Thanksgiving in 2016, on a lark.
Marcy Sansolo
Within a few days, she lost interest. But her husband goaded her to post her daily thoughts, plus a song of the day (which might be relevant to her posts).
She has posted almost daily (and from 4 different countries) since then.
One of the things for which she has become marginally famous is “Social Media Experiments.”
The first was in June 2017. She asked the Facebook group if they thought she could collect 20 non-perishable items from them for a local food bank within 1 hour. They would meet her in the Westport Library parking lot.
That day, she collected over 1,000 items.
Since then she has collected hats, gloves and socks during the winter months; prom dresses; school supplies; Puerto Rico hurricane relief diapers (until shelves in Westport were completely depleted); numerous food drives; support for Parkland High School, and a yearly holiday gift drive, for which FB group members shop in stores or scour their drawers for gifts kids can give to their parents.
In the 7 years Marcy has run What Up Westport, she has organized 24 “Social Media Experiments.” That’s 3-4 a year, but she claims it’s not enough.
In addition, Marcy ran a “Music For Youth” band instrument drive for Bridgeport. That brought in well over 150 trumpets, trombones and more, for youngsters who could not afford them but loved to play.
Marcy Sansolo, with a small number of holiday toy drive donations.
She believes WUW brings out the best in people, by tapping into our best instincts.
Finally, Marcy is a great encourager to get us to shop locally, and support Westport’s many precious small businesses. She walks her dog while window shopping, and reports on many new shops.
PS: Marcy exists mainly on cotton candy grapes, and sumo oranges. When a new shipment of grapes hits Fresh Market, people send her texts.
The inside of her refrigerator is a marvel. I think she must have a tie-in with the Container Store. Such incredible organization!
(Marcy Sansolo is definitely an Unsung Hero. To join What Up Westport on Facebook, click here. To nominate an Unsung Hero, email 06880blog@gmail.com.)
(Unsung Hero is a weekly “06880” feature. To nominate a hero, email 06880blog@gmail.com. To support our work, please click here. Thank you!)
The Long Lots School Building Committee posted this update yesterday:
“On April 16, after a series of interviews over several weeks to assess qualifications (in particular, qualifications for the sustainability aspects of the project) and reviewing cost proposals, the Building Committee selected Newfield Construction to provide construction management services for the new Long Lots Elementary School, and Svigals & Partners to lead the architectural and engineering team, who will design the new school.
“These 2 firms, along with their consultants, will be recommended to the Board of Selectwomen for their approval.
“The next phase of this exciting project will occur over the next several months. It will be a 3-step process: schematic design, design development and, finally, Construction documents. This will lead to a set of documents that will be used to bid and then build the new school.
“The process will start with additional site testing (e.g., updating the survey, borings for geothermal testing, geotechnical and ground water information, etc.) and refining the site criteria with the design team, construction manager, town departments and the committee.
“Early on in the schematic design phase, a tentative schedule will be developed, allowing each of the town approval bodies and departments to know when information or decisions will be required. The schedule and cost estimates will be updated as we progress through this process.
“Each of these increasingly detailed steps in the design process will be shared with the public during the Building Committee’s meetings. Beyond our working public meetings, we expect to hold public informational meetings where the Building Committee and the architect will present progress drawings.
“We look forward to getting the consultants under contract, moving forward with the design process and keeping everyone updated on our progress.”
Plans for a new Long Lots Elementary School are moving forward. (Drone photo/Brandon Malin)
Sports fans and entrepreneurs — and sports fans who are entrepreneurs — filled the Westport Library’s Trefz Forum last night, as Startup Westport honored Jimmy Pitaro with its first-ever Innovator of the Year Award.
Startup Westport is our town’s public-private tech entrepreneur partnership. Pitaro is ESPN’s creative, visionary CEO — and a Westporter.
He was interviewed onstage by ESPN host Mike Greenberg — a former Westporter.
The 2 bantered easily, and told stories of their careers. But Pitaro also delivered insights into the sports and media business with depth, breadth and humor.
Both also gave great shout-outs to Westport, as communities to raise families and inspire them with its beauty, its active residents and its vibe.
The perfect ending came from a Bedford Middle School 6th grade student, who represents the future of sports broadcasting. It was an unexpected — but very innovative — finale, for the first of what will become an annual Startup Westport signature event.
Mike Greenberg (left) and Jimmy Pitaro. (Photo/Charlie Scott)
Real Estate Outlook — an annual Fairfield County event co-sponsored by FLB Law, the Greater Norwalk Chamber and the Westport-Weston Chamber of Commerce — takes place May 22, 2024, at M& T Bank in The SoNo Collection.
This year’s theme is “Housing Matters: Challenges, Solutions and Impacts on Commercial Real Estate.” Networking begins at 8:30 a.m. A panel discussion follows at 9.
Eric Bernheim, head of FLB’s real estate and land use practice, will moderate. Among the panelists: David Waldman of David Adam Realty, developer of Westport’s Bedford Square.
Bedford Square developer David Waldman will discuss housing as it relates to commercial real estate on May 22. (Drone photo/John Videler for Videler Photography)
The Greens Farms Academy Dragonoids Middle School robotics team has been in existence for only 3 months.
Yet they’ve already qualified for the Vex Robotics World Championships.
The team’s 7 students flew to Dallas recently, to compete in the 3-day competition. The 494 middle schools, from over 30 countries, qualified out of 20,000 teams.
After a very strong first-time showing, GFA won the sportsmanship award in their 80-team division.
Congratulations to the Dragonoids — Ben Kiev, Cooper Mleczko, Dylan Karpf, Liam Haverstick, Lucas Robinson, Mackenzie Bloom and Spencer Shiff — and coaches Nicholas Iacobelli and Berni Lally!
The Greens Farms Academy Dragonoids.
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Staples High School’s annual Pops Concert at the Levitt Pavilion is June 7.
Tickets are not yet available. But the Music Department is reaching out to local business owners for support, by purchasing ads in the program book.
Ad sales help cover concert expenses, and support the 400-plus students involved in Staples’ award-winning music program.
“Seeking Home” — an original cantata for 2 guitars, drums, Native American flute and full choir, with music and score by Rev. Dr. Ed Thompson — will be presented on Sunday (May 5, 10 a.m., the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport).
Thompson is the UU’s minister of music. His cantata honors the over 5,000 missing and murdered indigenous women, children and their families in North America, on National Awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Day.
Longtime Weston resident and volunteer Richard Amill died peacefully on April 19 in Norwalk, surrounded by his family. He was 91.
The New York City native graduated from Brown University in 1954. It was there that he met his wife Nancy Jayne. They married in 1955.
Rick spent his career in educational textbook publishing, with leadership positions at Time Inc., Silver-Burdett, Cowles Communications, Macmillan Publishers, Random House and McGraw-Hill. He launched Learning Supplements, a pioneer in K-12 digital learning.
Rick was an avid reader, from current events and history (especially anything about World War II) to novels by John Grisham.
He was a 25-plus year member, and past president, of the Kiwanis Club of Weston, where he established multiple lifelong friendships.
Rick passionately believed in children and the mission of helping others. He taught reading skills to students in Bridgeport, and mentored elementary, middle and high school students in Norwalk into his late 80s.
He volunteered at Norwalk Hospital’s Outpatient Surgical Center, emergency room and Whittingham Cancer Center into his 90s.
He also volunteered at the Connecticut Food Bank, Read Aloud Program, Norwalk Reads, Homes With Hope, Gillespie Center and Open Doors Shelter.
Rick was a lifelong New York Yankee fan. He attended hundreds of Yankee games, including spring training with his family. He passed his love of the sport and his enduring optimism to all who knew him. He was a devoted father, grandfather and friend.
Rick was predeceased by his wife of 46 years, who died in 2001. He is survived by his sons Andrew (Susan) and Alexander (Jesstyne), daughter Sally, and grandchildren Ryan, Garrett, Sean, Kennison and Callie.
His family thanks the many caregivers who provided support, including the Whittingham Cancer Center, Norwalk Hospital, Waveny Care Center, Maplewood at Strawberry Hill and Constellation Health Services.
Services will be private. The family requests that donations in Rick’s memory be directed to Open Doors Shelter of Norwalk (www.opendoorsct.org).
Rick Amill
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We’ve featured plenty of flowers in our “Westport … Naturally” series.
But none have been shown as beautifully close-up as today’s image, on Manitou Road.
Thanks to photographer JD Dworkow, for a spectacular spring shot.
Dr. Tracy Brenner is a clinical psychologist. She is concerned about smartphone and social media use — by elementary school students.
She and other Greens Farms Elementary School parents — where her son is a 4th grader — were motivated to act, after hearing social psychologist Jonathan Haidt discuss his research on the effects of phones on childhood and mental health.
Brenner says, “His data is so sound, his research is so compelling, and his solutions are so completely doable that even skeptics among us would be convinced.
“He negates any opposition’s arguments, and offers solutions to improve the mental health of children. As parents and psychologists, we are totally on board and highly motivated to make change.”
(Click here to for Haidt’s podcast called “Smartphone Rewired Childhood. Here’s How to Fix It.” Click here for an article with the same title. Click here for his book, “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness.”)
The letter to GFS 4th grade parents — co-signed by psychologists/parents Dr. Melissa Constantiner and Dr. Lauren Barnet, and over 20 other 4th grade parents — asks them to “unite as a grade, and pledge that we will wait until the end of 8th grade to give our kids smartphones, and until 16 years of age to allow social media.” (Click here to see the pledge.)
“GFS 5th grade parents made it happen,” the letter notes. “The other elementary schools are making a similar push to delay. Let’s be a part of the movement.”
Think about what can happen if the whole grade comes together!” Brenner says.
“Parents often end up giving in to their child’s request for a smartphone long before they feel they are ready, because they fear their child will be left out socially, the only one without one,” she adds.
“If we all band together and say ‘not yet,’ peer pressure is no longer an issue.
Children use smartphones at ever-younger ages.
“Furthermore, for parents who still want their child to have a communication device, both Haidt’s research and ‘Wait Until 8th’ suggest many alternatives to smartphones that don’t carry the same risks.
“Let’s prioritize children’s mental health, not be deterred by their disappointment, and support each other in weathering the storm of complaints.”
Haidt says, “any community that adopts those 4 norms, I can almost guarantee that the rates of mental illness will come down in 1-2 years.”
Besides no smartphones before high school and no social media before age 16, Haidt’s concepts include phone-free schools, and “more independence, free play and responsibility in the real world.”
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Unsure how to talk with your child about smartphones? Dr. Brenner offers these tips:
●If you have already indicated that a smartphone was coming sooner:
Try: “I know that we said we thought x grade would be the time we would give you a smartphone. We are learning more and more each day about how they are truly harmful to kids’ health and well-being. Our #1 job as parents is to keep you safe. Just like I wouldn’t let you ride in a car without a seatbelt, I wouldn’t be doing my job as a parent to hand over a device that I know to be harmful.”
Add empathy and validation: “I’m sure that you are disappointed (angry, etc.). I totally get that, and you are absolutely allowed to be mad at us.”
Plus a clear boundary: “But just like we wouldn’t change our decision-making if you were angry at us for not letting you eat ice cream for breakfast, we are not going to change our decision about this because you are upset.”
● If your child protests because their siblings got phones earlier than the end of 8th grade:
Try: “I know your older brother was given a phone at the end of 5th grade. The cool thing about research and science is we are always learning new things. We just didn’t know as much about the negative impact of smartphones on kids then as we do now. So while this may feel unfair, and trust me, I get it, if I had the information then that I have now, I would have made the same decision.” (Insert empathy and validation lines!)
Greens Farms Elementary School parents tackle a modern issue. (Photo/Seth Schachter)
● If your child asks, “well what’s so bad and dangerous anyway?”:
Do the research, and give the information! Click here for Jonathan Haidt’s stats:
Try something like: “Cell phone use has been linked to problems with sleep, attention, academic performance, less time spent with friends but also can change how you feel, it can make kids and teens feel more sad, lonely and worried.”
● When your child says, “you’re the worst parent ever, everyone else is getting one.”:
Try: “I understand that you feel like I’m the worst and you’re really mad at me. This is something you’ve wanted for a while and I’m saying ‘no.’ That doesn’t feel good. I get that you’re worried you’ll be the only one without a phone. It’s scary to feel left out.
“The good news is that GFS parents are all united in this and supporting each other, because we all agree our kids’ health and well-being comes first. So no, you’re not the only one without a phone. At least not in our community.
If they have camp friends, outside of school friends etc,) say, “Let’s think of other ways that don’t include a smartphone to keep you connected to your friends outside of school.”
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Brenner says, “His data is so sound, his research is so compelling, and his solutions are so completely doable that even skeptics among us would be convinced.
