His Sharkey’s Cuts for Kids hair salon — with nearly 100 locations, and dozens more franchises in the works — will soon be the largest of its kind in the world.
Scott Sharkey, in his Westport salon.
The Westport location — right here in his home town — is #1, by both revenue and number of haircuts.
A second business — Hair Genie lice treatment centers — fared less well during the pandemic. “No one got lice when no was touching anyone else,” Sharkey notes.
But as America reopens, it too is coming back,
Now Sharkey has embarked on a third venture: challah.
The braided bread that’s integral to Jewish Shabbat — and is beloved by non-Jews too — may seem a world away from haircuts and lice. But, says Sharkey, the idea germinated for nearly a decade.
He’s long been perplexed that despite Birthright’s inspiring program — the non-profit offers free trips to Israel for Jewish young adults between 18 and 32 — there is no follow-up. “Everyone just goes back to their daily lives,” he says.
Sharkey wanted a way to keep Birthright participants connected to their religious roots.
Meanwhile, last summer — while renting a house in Southampton — he longed for a bit of “home” every Friday night. But there was no way to deliver challah from Westport.
Spurred by friends, and urged on by Westport rabbis, he spent August investigating a challah delivery service.
“It’s easier launching a kids’ franchise than a challah business,” he says. But in March, Every Home Should Have a Challah shipped its first bread.
The idea is for anyone who wants challah to have it on a Friday night. The tie-in with Birthright: Sharkey’s goal is for every traveler to have a challah delivery once a month, until they get married.
Bread is baked in New York on Monday. It’s trucked straight from the oven to Westport. There — at the UPS store opposite Stop & Shop — Sharkey and his crew packs it for overnight or 2nd-day delivery. It’s in customers’ hands on Thursday. And in their mouths on Friday.
Most challah is the traditional egg variety. Occasionally, there are surprise challahs.
Each package also includes black-and-white cookies or rugelach, chocolate gelt, candles, and a “dose of inspiration.”
The shipping box, and its goodies.
Subscriptions can be ordered for 18, 36 or 54 weeks; the delivery address can be changed any time. A one-week trial is also available.
Grandparents are among the most grateful customers. Every Home Should Have a Challah sends packages everywhere in the US — including places like dorm rooms and nursing homes.
Synagogues are customers too. Some send challah to all their congregants.
Sharkey donates a portion of each challah subscription to a charity of the customer’s choice. A dropdown menu offers a dozen or so options, like ADL, Doctors Without Boders, Feeding America, Red Cross, Save the Children, St. Jude’s Hospital, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Fund and UJA Federation.
“It’s just bread,” Sharkey says. “But the magic of challah is incredible.”
The festivities began even before the game. Tina Cervasio, Channel 5 sportscaster, tweeted this photo of a delighted Gwen, ready to play ball. (Hat tip: Fred Cantor)
After a 5-hour delay Sunday night — caused by 111-degree heat in Eugene, Oregon — Henry Wynne battled for a spot on the US Olympic track and field team.
The Staples High School Class of 2013 graduate had to finish 3rd in the 1500-meter finals.
Running outside for much of the race, he surged to a 3:37.70 finish. But that was good only for 5th.
Since 2016, Wynne — one of the greatest runners in Connecticut history — has s suffered a knee injury, pneumonia, and surgery on his small intestine. He’s persevered through it all — and COVID — yet came up just short Sunday night.
Henry Wynne, in an indoor race for Staples High. (Photo courtesy of MSG Varsity)
Tomorrow (Wednesday, June 30, 7 p.m., Westport Library), Silver Hill Hospital’s president and medical director Dr. Andrew Gerber and other experts will present a workshop to help parents learn how to talk with and support children as they try to understand tragedies.
The program is a joint effort of Westport’s Department of Human Services, the Westport Public Schools, Westport Together, and the Westport Prevention Coalition, in partnership with the Library. Click here to register to attend in person. Click here for the livestream link.
Connecticut’s Superior Court holds remote hearings o 2 proposed settlements, between Westport’s Planning & Zoning Commission and developers. These could be the final steps on the road toward construction.
The 157-unit Hiawatha Lane settlement will be discussed on July 19 (10:30 a.m.). The 68-unit Lincoln Street settlement is set for the same day, at 2:30 p.m.
Anyone interested in listening to or participating in the hearing should email abby.bowker@jud.ct.gov, or call 860-548-2851 for instructions.
You know there’s a story behind Westport’s decades-long embrace of a homeless shelter — in the midst of downtown, a few yards away from Tiffany.
In fact, there are many stories. And no one tells them better than Helen McAlinden.
Her first year as president and CEO of Homes with Hope — Westport’s umbrella supportive housing agency — was filled with challenges. COVID — which hit just 2 months after she began — forced residents out of their shelters, and into hotels. It affected everything from volunteers cooking and serving meals, to fundraising.
But — like Homes with Hopes’ clients — Helen weathered the many storms. The other day, she discussed her work, Westport’s response, and many issues around homelessness and food insecurity.
The most recent episode of “06880: The Podcast” is eye-opening. And no one tells that story better — or in an better Irish brogue — than Helen McAlinden. Click here to watch.
As the child of 2 professors who encouraged voracious reading and dinner debates, Kerstin Warner Rao said that “education was inescapable.”
She pretended to be a teacher for her sister. Yet as an art major at Vassar College, Kerstin’s goal was to become a New York City artist.
She learned quickly that materials are expensive, and most artists make little money. In 1987, when a friend invited her to teach at Brooklyn’s St. Ann’s School for the gifted, she gave it a shot.
On Day 1, Kerstin fell in love with her 3rd graders. They were vulnerable. They had senses of humor. And when she saw a light bulb switch on in their heads — when they grasped a new concept, in an “aha!” moment — it felt addictive.
Kerstin Warner Rao
Kerstin taught for 3 years in Brooklyn. She married, and moved with her husband to her home state of Minnesota. She taught for 4 more years there. When her child was 18 months old, the family returned to her husband’s native Connecticut.
They chose Westport for 2 reasons. It had a reputation as an artist’s colony. And Kerstin’s Brooklyn mentor, Dee Appleman, ran A Child’s Place preschool on Hillspoint Road.
Kerstin interviewed for 2 jobs. Teaching gifted children in Greenwich was her dream. But with a young child, she did not want to commute. So in 1999 Kerstin she became a Greens Farms Elementary 4th grade teacher.
The school was reopening, after years as the site of the Westport Arts Center. Music instructor Suzanne Sherman Propp sang a theme song she’d written for the new school. “Tears ran down my face. That song made us a community,” Kerstin says.
She was inspired too by master teacher Karen Ernst Da Silva, who gave each new Westport teacher a sketch journal. Two decades later, Kerstin has filled 20.
That first year at Greens Farms was tough. There was no cafeteria, playground, gym or library. But the staff grew close. Kerstin still meets regularly with her 4th grade colleagues: Mary Ellen Barry, Christine Theiss and Erin Shepard.
The next year, Kerstin interviewed for a spot as the gifted teacher at Bedford Middle School. She’s always had an affinity for gifted students with learning challenges — dyslexia, ADHD, whatever — and her sample lesson with the most challenging 7th grader won her the spot.
For the next 20 years, Kerstin was an integral part of “Workshop,” as Westport’s gifted students program is called.
The program dates back to 1974. Founder Annette Fournier was an educational pioneer, Kerstin says. Workshop takes students — those identified as requiring services beyond the scope of the regular curriculum — for half a day, once a week. They are given free rein to think, create, grow, test boundaries and take risks, with like-minded peers — all without the pressure of grades.
“They can write plays, and not worry that they’ll be teased for weird puns,” Kerstin explains. “They work on puzzles, improv, role-playing. They do anything that keeps their minds alert and challenging. At the same time, they foster strong, deep friendships.
“They don’t have to worry, ‘What does the teacher want?’ ‘What’s the angle of this test?’ It’s ‘what am I curious about?'”
In 2018 Coleytown Middle School was closed; students relocated to Bedford, Kerstin Warner Rao and CMS Workshop teacher Martel Rynderman shared a corner of the cafeteria behind the elevator shaft. They made it a fun space by channeling Hogwarts.
Kerstin knows that a gifted program can be criticized as elitist. The response, she says, should be not to cut the program, but figure out how to expand it for more students.
She is grateful to the Westport Public Schools for their long commitment to Workshop. Still, it has suffered budget cuts. Once, there was a full-time gifted teacher and full-time paraprofessional at all 5 elementary schools, and both middle schools. Right now, Bedford is the only school that still has a full-time workshop instructor. The others are part-time, with other duties.
Kerstin — who is still in touch with many former students — say that they are the ones who kept her going for more than 20 years. “This is more than a job. It’s a calling. I got to know every child as an individual — their hopes, their dreams, their worries. And every day we laughed. Really, really heartily.”
Every year, Kerstin Warner Rao hosted veterans in her classroom for Veterans Day. They were invited by the 8th grade social studies teachers. When Westport’s amazing Ted Diamond visited 5 years ago, she drew his sketch, and wrote some of his important ideas.
Last summer was difficult, though. In the midst of the pandemic, Kerstin had difficulty sleeping, reading and concentrating. Her anxiety level was high.
Working with a therapist, she realized she was unable to teach this fall. The school district was “unbelievably supportive and kind,” Kerstin says, helping with her medical leave as she took care of herself.
Now — as she retires from the Westport school system after 22 years — Kerstin is clear about the importance of speaking openly about mental health. She challenges this “very competitive town to bring its ‘A’ game about mental wellness. Be compassionate, vulnerable, real with each other. Have the courage to support one another, and model and share our journeys.”
Bedford principal Adam Rosen invited Kerstin to speak to the staff. “I was upfront, that I was in no condition to come back this year,” she says. At the Board of Education reception for all retirees, he gave a heartfelt speech honoring her. (Click below for his speech, and her response.)
“Many of my students have struggled with mental health issues,” Kerstin notes. “I always told them that was just one moment in time for them.” Still, it was not easy for her to stand in front of colleagues and reveal her own vulnerabilities.
“Mental health still has a stigma,” she says. “It can hit anyone, out of the blue. But if your culture supports you, that’s amazingly important.”
So now — nearly 40 years after leaving art behind for a career in education — Kerstin returns to her roots.
She created a new greeting card business: Vivid Cottage. Her drawings are based on bouquets from the Westport Farmers Market.
Kerstin’s cards are on sale at Aarti Khosla’s Le Rouge Chocolatier. She’ll expand to other Connecticut stores this summer.
A few of Kerstin Warner Rao’s greeting cards.
Her second new business, Curate Your Mate, is a dating coaching service. In her 40s, Kerstin got divorced. While working full-time as a single mom, she developed a dating approach that led to her happy second marriage.
“I’m not a matchmaker,” she stresses. “I’m a 1-on-1 coach who helps you figure out your goals, and how to achieve them.”
That’s not so different from what Kerstin Rao did for the past 21 years, for her Workshop students. She met them where they are, heard their dreams, and walked proudly with them on their journey to fulfillment.
Which is exactly the description of every “gifted” teacher.
Binky Griptite filled the Levitt Pavilion last night. It was just like old times (except for the pods outlined on the grass).
The WFUV “Boogie Down” host — who has played with Janet Jackson and Amy Winehouse, and backed Sharon Jones with the Dap-Kings — brought his funk and soul to the lawn.
It’s the start of a near-normal summer. On the Levitt bill this week:
Tuesday, June 29: The Suzanne Sheridan Band
Wednesday, June 30: Joanne Leeds/Children’s Series launch
Friday, July 2: The Drew Angus Band.
Click here for details, and to order (free) tickets.
After standing vacant for more than a decade, one of the most valuable retail properties in town reopens soon.
The old Talbots — and, before that, Remarkable Book Shop — at the corner of Main Street and Parker Harding Plaza is well positioned. Since GG & Joe opened behind it last year, there’s been an increase in foot traffic. The opening of Cold Fusion across the street will add more.
Local To Market should be another destination for food lovers.
After working with small start-up and emerging Connecticut-based food and beverage companies who needed a retail store to help bring their products to market, Chris Marcocci conceived of Local To Market.
It will carry local food and beverage products and fresh produce, plus an assortment of locally manufactured non-food and craft artisan items.
Formerly Talbots, and Remarkable Book Shop. Soon: Local To Market.
Local To Market’s mission is to create a community of consumers and producers, all giving back part of the proceeds to Connecticut charities.
“Getting your food as close to the source as possible is eating well,” Marcocci says.
“This is all about being a community, supporting local small businesses and businesses providing locally produced products to neighbors, friends, family and consumers who know the importance of local.”
Local To Market is in the buildout and permitting process. They hope for a July opening.
The building — dating to the 18th century — was once a private home, with a wharf on the Saugatuck River.
“We’ll take over your house for a couple of weeks,” they told Brett Adams. “It will be crazy.”
They offered a contract. It specified exactly what they’d rent — the porch on his handsome Washington Avenue home, that sort of thing — and what they were responsible for. It spelled out the COVID restrictions, and other contingencies.
Brett signed. A couple of weeks later, the production crew arrived: all 50 to 75 of them.
“We probably didn’t fully understand that,” Brett says. “Or what it would mean for the entire street.”
Welcome to life, when your quiet Westport home becomes a bustling Hollywood movie set. Along with 5 others, next door and across the street.
A few of the many trucks, at the load-in on Washington Avenue.
The Adams’ house will be seen on screen a year and a half from now. December 2022 is the anticipated release of “The Noel Diary,” the Netflix film starring Justin Hartley (“This is Us”) and Bonnie Bedelia (“Die Hard,” “Parenthood”).
Yes, Christmastime. “The Noel Diary” is (duh) a holiday film.
And yes, it was filmed in Westport, on the hottest days in June. That’s the way the movie industry rolls.
Like anyone else in the business, Adams and his family learned to roll with the punches.
The saga began in March. Working at home, Adams saw people taking photos of his house.
Working with representatives from the state’s Office of Film, TV and Digital Media, they were scouting for 2 porches. They’d come to the right place: Adams’ — and the facades of other nearby houses, on the end of the usually quiet road just off Main Street — are historic and gorgeous. There’s not a McMansion in sight.
Filming began in other Fairfield County towns. The first sign of Westport’s star turn came when several enormous trucks massed in the Playhouse parking lot. That was the staging area.
Adams’ first sign that the crew was ready to take over — and do it their own, practiced way — was when they installed a massive generator on the side of the house. Then came tents in the back.
And huge cranes, for lighting. Plus cutting down a tree, for a better shot of another house across the way.
The Adams’ house. No, there is not usually a blue postal box in front.
The original contract included rental of the porch, a bit of the first floor interior, and basement (as a break room for the crew). Quickly, the producers asked to rent the driveway and garage too. Those riders were added.
Adams, his wife and son Will were both fascinated and blasé about the production. They watched in wonder as actors sweated through take after take in 90-degree heat (someone’s specific job was helping them take off their heavy coats).
Bedelia asked Brett if she could come inside between takes. Sure, he said. Will — a Staples High School junior — came downstairs during a study break, greeted the Emmy-nominated actress with a casual “hi!”, then went about his business.
Just like in the movies: The star gets her own chair.
The shaded porch became a favorite hangout for hair and makeup crews. Brett would take breaks from his own work, and ask them about their work. “I have my job, and they have theirs,” he says. “I learned a lot about what they do.”
One surprising lesson: how long it takes to shoot one scene. Each involves multiple angles, and many takes.
Once, a boy rode a bike up and down the street, over and over again. Another time, a dog chased a car — over and over and over again.
Brett was also astonished at the number of people involved, in every aspect, from the production manager to the guy watering the street.
The final night, the crew created a snowfall. Brett was impressed. “They really can create magic,” he says.
Winter in June. The snowman is a nice touch.
Nearly everyone who tromped onto Brett’s porch, and into his basement, had kind words for how nice and accommodating everyone in Westport had been. Apparently, that’s not always the case.
He returns the compliments. Negotiations were not stressful, he says. “They’re very practiced at this. They know antagonism will never get them anywhere.”
When a recycling bin went missing. someone hustled over to Westport Hardware and bought a new one.
The actors were great too, Brett says. Hartley took photos with everyone. Director Charles Shyer (“Father of the Bride,” “Private Benjamin,” “Alfie”) — “classic Hollywood, 79 years old in sneakers and a t-shirt” — was often available for interesting conversations.
“He never yelled ‘action,'” Brett observes. “There was someone else around to do that.”
“I don’t know where a Netflix film fits in with the whole art scene. But for a couple of weeks, even though it could be a nuisance, it was pretty cool.”
Besides, there was this: While work colleagues apologized for dog or toddler interruptions, Brett had another excuse.
“Sorry, guys,” he’d say. “They’re filming a movie at my house.”
Some scenes were filmed at night. These days, Washington Avenue is back to normal. (Photos/Brett Adams)
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“It’s easier launching a kids’ franchise than a challah business,” he says. But in March, Every Home Should Have a Challah shipped its first bread.
