Right now, Westport is led by a Board of Selectwomen. Since 2021 — and for the first time in town history — the 3 members are all female.
From left: Jen Tooker, Candice Savin, Andrea Moore — our 1st, 3rd and 2nd selectwomen, respectively. (Photo/Dan Woog)
In November, we’ll have a new 1st selectman. All 3 candidates for the top spot are males.
But 2 of the men running — Don O’Day and Kevin Christie — are joined on the ticket by women (Andrea Moore and Amy Wistreich, respectively). David Rosenwaks is on the ballot without a running mate.
Which puts a blogger like me in a difficult position.
What’s the best way to describe the job they’re all running for?
It’s a bit 1950s-ish to call it the “Board of Selectmen,” when there are women in the race.
But “Board of Selectpersons” or “Board of Selectpeople” is a mouthful. Plus, it sounds like a mandate from the Grammar Police.
2025 candidates (from left): Democrats Kevin Christie and Amy Wistreich; Independent David Rosenwaks; Republicans Andrea Moore and Don O’Day.
For a few weeks now, I’ve equivocated.
I’ve called it the Board of Selectpersons (or Selectpeople). Someone suggested “Board of Selectmen/women.” I’ve tried various ways to avoid calling it anything, like “the town’s executive branch.” I haven’t been happy with any of those references.
Finally, I’ve come up with a solution. And it’s as simple as, um, 1-2-3.
From now on, I will call it the “Select Board.”
I know that’s not official. But how different is it from calling the Westport Weston Family YMCA just “the Y”?
Making the change official — and why not? — will take some doing, of course.
It might need a revision to the Town Charter, and perhaps approval by a couple of town bodies.
So it sounds like a job for the next Select Board.
The fun continued last night. The Tedeschi Trucks Band brought their 12-piece (including 2 drummers) rock/soul/blues/jazz/country powerhouse to town, for one of the most memorable galas in the riverside amphitheater’s 5-decade history.
The sold-out crowd called TTB back for an exciting encore. The Levitt rocked loud and long.
(Photo/Susan Garment)
(Photo/Susan Garment)
(Photo/DinkinESH Fotografix)
The show was preceded by a party, hosted jointly by the new Massi Co restaurant and its next door neighbor, Walrus Alley.
It too was packed.
(Photo/Dan Woog)
Internationally known photographer Larry Silver and his wife Gloria (not pictured) were among the guests. (Photo/DinkinESH Fotografix)
This weekend also marked the opening day of Challenger Baseball.
It was even more special than most. Beth Cody was honored for both her 70th birthday, and her 25 years of devotion and service to Westport Little League.
She’s served as league commissioner, executive secretary, and the force and founder of Westport Winners Challenger Baseball Division, for boys and girls age 5-18 with physical or intellectual challenges.
Longtime Westport Little League volunteers Jeff Mitchell and Jeff White presented Beth with awards.
Beth Cody’s award.
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Westport’s first selectman race is drawing plenty of attention among voters.
Our town’s teenagers are interested too.
Though most are not yet 18 — and thus ineligible to vote — they have a stake in what goes on here. They care about its present, and its future.
On October 14 (7 p.m., Toquet Hall), the Westport Youth Commission hosts a special student-focused conversation with the 3 hopefuls.
Don O’Day, David Rosenwaks and Kevin Christie will answer questions about leadership, experience and issues.
Moderators are Youth Commission co-president and Staples High School senior Jake Shufro, YC member and Greens Farms Academy junior Jack Thompson, and “06880” executive editor (and long-ago Youth Commission member) Dan Woog.
Teen audience members are invited to ask questions too.
Shufro and Thompson encourage students and parents to attend. “This is a non-partisan event, intended to educate the community and promote informed voting for all eligible voters,” they say.
Westport’s League of Women Voters is providing guidance to the organizers.
Historical markers are filled with fascinating information.
They’re also easy to overlook.
In Westport, some residents – old-timers and newcomers — love the markers on Jennings Trail.
Others have no idea they even exist.
Jennings Trail is named in honor of Bessie Jennings. Her family settled in this area around 1650.
A beloved educator and noted authority on Westport’s past, she originated and led tours of local historic sites, for decades of elementary school students.
Conceived in 1974 as part of Westport’s plans to celebrate the Bicentennial, the Trail was initiated by the Westport Historical Society in collaboration with the Westport Young Woman’s League.
23 markers were installed at historic locations throughout Westport. They are made of bronze, mounted on stone plinths, and contain brief narrative descriptions that describe the significance of each site. Jennings Trail is now under the stewardship of the Westport Historic District Commission.
Bessie’s cousin, 11th-generation Westporter Peter Jennings, has maintained the Trail for a quarter century. (At his own cost.)
The other day, Seth Schachter spotted this sign at the top of Burying Hill Beach:
(Photo/Seth Schachter)
Want to know more about Burying Hill — including how it got its name?
It happens once every 3 centuries: Trinity Episcopal Church turns 300 years old.
The Southport congregation — which includes many Westport worshipers — celebrates its tricentennial on September 20 (9 p.m.), with a “Son et Lumière” sound and light show.
All are welcome to the free gathering; no church affiliation is required.
Trinity has survived all 3 Biblical elements: fire, wind, and water.
It was burned to the ground during the Revolutionary War, struck by a tornado in 1862, and flooded during Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Each time, it rose again.
The “Son et Lumière” is a dramatic 40-minute account of Trinity’s 300-year history, using actors’ voices, sound and light effects. It will take place outside, in front of the church, as darkness falls.
But the Staples senior recently won the Green Building Award for Achievement in Sustainable Design and Construction.
Oliver founded HomeCycle CT. It connects residents and builders with nonprofits to deconstruct homes and donate usable materials — reducing landfill waste, supporting affordable material access, and creating community benefits like job training opportunities.
Oliver Vynerib and 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker (front), with family and officials at Town Hall.
Tricia Summers was on a friend’s deck tonight last night, overlooking the Saugatuck River while awaiting the Tedeschi Trucks concert at the Levitt Pavilion.
She spotted a paddleboarder with his dog, about to go under the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge.
Our “Westport … Naturally” feature often highlights the beauty — trees, flowers, water, birds and other living creatures — that surrounds us, nearly everywhere.
Usually. But not always.
Today’s image shows normally picturesque Deadman Brook, near the Library and Levitt Pavilion.
And finally … Cannonball Adderley was born on this date in 1928. The jazz saxophonist died in 1975, 4 weeks after suffering a stroke. He was 46 years old.
Stacy Waldman Bass’ father Michael was killed in a seaplane accident off Block Island, in 1995.
Michael Waldman
He was many things — a real estate investor, pilot, skier, sailor and rower — but this was the dawn of the internet age. He left “no digital footprint,” she says.
Fortunately, Stacy is a talented photographer. Many images of him — taken by her and others — survive.
His loss shattered Stacy’s world. A quarter century later, tragedy struck again. On New Year’s Day 2018, her mother Jessica was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Searching for anything positive, Stacy once again turned to her camera.
She planned to share photos — hers and others’, taken over her mother’s more than 70 years of life — with Jessica’s friends, on Facebook.
The plan was to post one photo a day, with a brief message. They would remind her mother of the wonderful life she had led, while creating a community of supporters to engage Jessica in an online conversation and buoy her spirits.
Stacy Waldman Bass, with her mother.
She died a year later. Grieving but seeking solace. Stacy created a book out of her photos and posts. “I Love You, Mom” was both a poignant tribute, and a fundraiser for the Lustgarten Foundation, for pancreatic cancer research.
Today, Stacy still mourns the loss of her parents. Now, she honors their memories in a new, creatively loving way.
“Lightkeeper: A Memoir Through the Lens of Love and Loss” is an evocative look at the stories that exist just outside the frame of a photo. The images she chooses serve as a starting point for powerful portals into memory, and intimate reflections into, say, what happened in the moments just before and after the shot was taken.
Or what a hand or a smile in a photograph really signifies, or perhaps suggests.
The title refers to Stacy’s role as the “lightkeeper” of her family’s legacy. The book preserves her parents’ stories for future generations.
She is well poised for the task. After Staples High School — where she captained the ski team, served as president of the Law Club, was advertising manager for Inklings, and worked with WWPT-FM — the 1984 graduated headed to Barnard College.
Stacy Waldman Bass (Photo/Pam Einarsen)
She discovered photography there. She spent a year after graduting selling prints, and working with a photography startup.
But she was not sure she could make a career in the field, so Stacy headed to law school.
That led to jobs with Savoy Pictures and Time Warner, before she returned to Westport to work with her brother, real estate developer David Waldman.
She’s been involved in the community ever since, most notably with the Westport Library. Stacy has been president of the board, and helped found “Booked for the Evening,” its signature fundraising event.
“Westport has always been home,” she says.
Her home town offered great support when her father died.
Michael Waldman
“I didn’t need to find ‘my people,'” Stacy explains. “In retrospect, being here made an excruciating situation something I could get through.”
She also discovered that photography helped her explore her pain. Taking, and examining, images enabled her to explore questions like, “What does a life altered and transformed look like?”
Three times a year — on his birthday, Father’s Day, and the date of his accident — she shared photos on Facebook, with remembrances of him.
It was cathartic. But she wanted to do more, to keep his light alive.
She realized she could — through a book — as she saw the effect her “I Love You Mom” project had on others. Jessica’s memorial service drew people who did not know Stacy — or even her mother.
But they felt connected to both women, through Stacy’s posts. And, they told her, those photos and comments had helped them deal with their own loved ones’ illnesses.
Jessica Waldman.
“Lightkeeper” began taking shape when she took a memoir-writing workshop with Dani Shapiro, and after the Westport Library’s StoryFest “pitchfest.” Stacy set aside certain times to write, uninterruputed.
“Memoir is a tricky category — especially when you’re writing about grief. It’s very emotional,” she notes.
She cried nearly every day during the writing process.
But the process was cathartic too. Along with EMDR trauma therapy, she was able to hold her loved ones close, while not letting their losses be debilitating.
“I try to share the beauty of life every day,” Stacy says. “Therapy, and this book, allow me to do it with more ease.”
A family portrait.
It has drawn important pre-publication attention.
Lynsey Addario — a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times photojournalist, author of her own bestselling book (and a 1991 Staples graduate) — calls it “a riveting exploration of memory through images … a poignant journey of love and excruciating loss…. A beautiful, inspiring read.”
Meanwhile, she says, “we all have boxes or drawers of old photos. Take them out. Talk about them.” She wishes she had asked more questions, earlier, about who was in some of her family’s photos, and the context of them.
As the publication date approaches, Stacy is for the next step: talking about it.
A “book launch talk,” with Dani Shapiro, is set for tomorrow (Tuesday, September 16, 6:30 p.m.) at the Westport Library. (Click here for details.)
Many friends — and friends of her parents — will be there. Stacy has been heartened by their encouragement.
Collage
A book tour follows, including 3 conversations with former Westporters: October 8 in New York with Nancy Lefkowitz, October 14 in Los Angeles with Dr. Cheryl Arutt, and October 16 in Corte Madera, California with Paloma Aelyon.
Right now, Stacy says, she is proud to have “honored my parents in a way they deserve. If they could read it, they’d feel incredible pride in the closeness of our family, and that I’ve worked hard to keep their light alive.”
(“06880” regularly features Westport authors, and their stories that touch our community. But we can’t do it without support from our own readers. Please click here to support our work. Thanks!)
So much for Sherwood Island State Park being a Westport “secret.”
A near-record 28 readers nearly instantly answered last week’s Photo Challenge. Joanna Keyser Rossi’s photo showed a remote-controlled model airplane, flying above the field that — who knew? — so many Westporters know and love. (Click here to see.)
Congratulatiosn to Ed Simek, Susan Iseman, Pat Saviano, Andrew Colabella, Jeff Wieser, Erik Østbye, Jerry Kuyper, Seth Schachter, John McKinney, Seth Braunstein, Sal Liccione, Jack Krayson, Robert Mitchell, Amy Schneider, Lynn Wilson, Jill Brody, Richard Hyman, Bruce Geller, Joyce Barnhart, Jalna Jaeger, Beth Berkowitz, Alicia Kronick, Lynn Untermeyer Miller, Paul Cahill, Clark Thiemann, Matt McGrath, Jon Sinish and Brooks Sumberg.
You’re flying high!
This week’s Photo Challenge promises to be a tad bit harder.
If you know where in Westport 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 onSeptember 14, 2025|Comments Off on Roundup: HarvestFest, Merritt Parkway, StartUp Westport …
Westport is awash in creative, fun fundraisers, for a wide array of wonderful, important local institutions.
But at the top of any list — for good times and great groups — is Wakeman Town Farm’s HarvestFest.
Last night’s annual shindig featured fantastic (and healthy) food, from local restaurants and caterers (and the farm itself), plus of course drinks. There was a country-style band (and dancing), along with auction items and a paddle raise.
But the coolest part of HarvestFest is that it brings so many different parts of the town together.
Including politicians.
Ywrt they’re not politicking. They serve drinks and bites.
And they do it not as political adversaries, but as neighbors and friends.
WTF?!
Taking time out from serving (standing, from left): Kevin Christie, Jimmy Izzo, David Rosenwaks, Bre Injeski, Don O’Day, Andrea Moore. Front: Sal Liccione. Christie, Rosenwaks and O’Day are running for 1st selctman. 2nd selctwoman Moore is up for re-election. Injeski is a Planning & Zoning Commission candidate. Izzo and Liccione seek another term on the RTM.
Democrat Abby Tolan and Republican Dorie Hordon share a moment. Both are Board of Education incumbents, running again.
Liz Milwe (3rd from left), and the Wormser family and friends. Liz is a longtime Wakeman Town Farm advocate and volunteer, including service as co-chair. (All photos/Dan Woog)
Merritt Parkway Exits 41 and 42 are now just memories. (At least, in Westport.)
But they can live on in more than our minds, thanks to Jillian Elder.
She’s designed tees, hoodies, mugs, totes and more — all part of a “Vintage Merritt Parkway Collection — Exits 41& 42.”
The look pays homage to the road’s classic 1930s charm.
She says, “They’re perfect for longtime locals, proud Westporters, and anyone who loves the unique character of Connecticut’s most iconic road. The perfect gift for Westport natives, commuters, and vintage design lovers.
And clean ones, whose drivers want to support the Staples boys soccer program too.
They’ll be washing cars today (Sunday), from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 1720 Post Road East (just before Stop & Shop, on the right). The suggested donation is $20.
Even the Westport Police entrust their cars to the Staples boys soccer team.
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HarvestFest ws not the only big event last night (story above).
Comedian Vic DiBitetto headlined, at the Westport Country Playhouse. There was a meet-and-greet with his many fans afterward.
(Photo/Susan Garment)
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Two types of innovators — a UFC and WWE mogul, and a bakery offering opportunities to people with disabilities — will share the stage, at StartUp Westport’s Innovator of the Year Awards.
The October 8 event (6 p.m., Westport Library) honors Mark Shapiro and Sweet P Bakery.
As president and COO of TKO Group Holdngs, and president and managing partner of WME Group, Shapiro has helped shape some of the most infuential names in sports and entertainment.
He’ll talk about bold calls that changed the trajectory of companies, industries — even culture itself — at the StarUp Westport event.
The highlight will be a conversation with CNBC’s Sara Eisen, called “Pivotal Moments: The Risks That Paid Off (and the Ones That Didn’t).”
Sweet P Bakery will share the spotlight, as recipient of StartUp Westport’s Community Impact Innovator Award.
Founders Andrea and Bill Pecoriello will be honored for “their dedication to social good, and sustainable business practices in the local community.” Sweet P’s mission includes job creation, teaching transferable skills, and building independence, confidence and a sense of belonging.
CLASP Homes — the non-profit that provides care, support and services to adults with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities — hosts a “wickedly fun concert” fundraiser on October 30 (6:30 p.m., FTC Stage One, Fairfield).
Band Central — CLASP’s favorite group — plays the best of the ’80s and ’90s. There’s a pre-party too, with light bites.
Staples High School’s Class of 1975 is getting ready for their 50th reunion. (Those who can believe they graduated half a century ago, that is.)
They’ll start Thursday, October 9; continue Friday evening at the Black Duck; enjoy a tour of the “new” Staples or a golf outing Saturday morning; celebrate at a dinner/dance that night at the Westport Woman’s Club, and end with brunch at a private home on Sunday, October 12.
They’ll also raise funds for Staples Tuition Grants — a very “classy” move.
Today’s stunning “Westport … Naturally” photo shows a bit of nature we don’t always get to see close-up. It may give you a new perspective on flowers … and bees.
And finally … you may have guessed this was coming:
(Another Sunday, another work day here at “06880” central. We never stop bringing you news, photos and more. If you enjoy this hyper-local blog, please click here to support our work. Thanks!)
Comments Off on Roundup: HarvestFest, Merritt Parkway, StartUp Westport …
Last Saturday was rainy. The Slice of Saugatuck was postponed.
Yesterday’s late-summer weather was perfect. The sun shone, the air was warm, and a couple of thousand folks ate, drank, danced and ate some more, up and down Riverside and Saugatuck Avenues, and around Railroad Place.
The annual Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce party has become an unofficial kickoff to fall. It’s also a fundraiser: A portion of the proceeds goes to Homes with Hope’s food pantry.
And what better way to celebrate it than by strolling (with or without strollers), enjoying a few dozen restaurants, shops and booths, in one of Westport’s oldest — and coolest — neighborhoods.
Our excellent “06880” photographer Quinn Fitts — a Staples High School junior — was at the Slice, to capture it all.
Like everyone else, she ate it up.
(All photos/Quinn Fitts)
(From Saugatuck to Greens Farms — and downtown to Coleytown — “06880” covers Westport, with news, stories and photos. If you enjoy our work, please click here to support this blog. Thank you!)
With local elections underway, and school back in session, Bike Westport is reaching out to candidates and voters.
This is, the non-profit says, “a unique moment to make a real impact for Westport residents.”
Bike Westport has met with the 3 candidates for 1st selectman — Kevin Christie, Don O’Day and David Rosenwaks. All have signed the organization’s “Pledge for a Walkable & Bikeable Westport.”
The pledge says:
WHEREAS, a walkable and bikeable Westport is essential to our community’s health, safety, economy, and quality of life, and makes our town an even more vibrant and desirable place to grow up, raise a family, work, or live as a senior, supporting residents of all ages and abilities.
I hereby pledge my support for a vision of Westport that:
CONNECTS NEIGHBORHOODS AND DESTINATIONS, including schools, parks, beaches, the Westport Library, the Farmers’ Market, Levitt Pavilion, Westport Weston Family YMCA, Westport Senior Center, Longshore Club Park, downtown, and the train station, making it safe and easy for people to walk or bike throughout our community;
ADVANCES SAFETY FOR ALL, by supporting safer street design, connected pedestrian and bicycle networks, and promoting a culture of safe biking;
HELPS REDUCE TRAFFIC CONGESTION, by offering safe, practical alternatives to car travel for everyday trips to schools, the train station, Compo Beach, and downtown;
EMPOWERS INDEPENDENCE, enabling children, seniors, and everyday walkers and bike riders to move around town freely, confidently, and safely;
PROMOTES PUBLIC HEALTH AND FITNESS, by encouraging active transportation and outdoor lifestyles for residents of all ages and abilities;
Bike Westport co-founder Markus Marty rides with his kids.
SUPPORTS A THRIVING LOCAL ECONOMY, by making it easier for people to visit local shops, restaurants, events, and markets without needing to drive or park;
STRENGTHENS COMMUNITY PRIDE AND CONNECTION, by creating public spaces and roads that bring people together and celebrate Westport as a vibrant, welcoming, forward-looking town;
FOSTERS A CULTURE OF WALKING AND BIKING, through community events, education, and partnerships that encourage residents to embrace active transportation as part of daily life.
Bike Westport wants to make Westport more walkable too. (Photo/Tom Cook)
Bike Westport says that as residents assess candidates this fall, the pledge offers “a clear, community-driven framework for what Westport needs: safer, connected walking and biking routes that benefit families, seniors and the environment.”
They call this “a non-partisan issue that speaks to street safety, congestion, public health and civic pride — right when candidate platforms are being shaped.”
Bike Westport’s Jenna Petok and Markus Marty were at Saturday’s Slice of Saugatuck, with their kids. They spoke with hundreds of people, strolling throughout the neighborhood.
Bike Westport hopes that candidates for all local offices — including the Representative Town Meeting — will sign the pledge too.
One of those RTM candidates is Jenna Petok — Bike Westport’s director of strategy and community engagement.
She said that her involvement with that organization — along with her work on the Downtown Plan Implementation Committee, and her neighborhood engagement background — inspired her to run.
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