Tag Archives: Josh Koskoff

Roundup: Josh Koskoff & Alex Jones, Fashionably Westport, Sunflower Bean …

Posted on January 20, 2023 | 4 comments

For an hour and a half yesterday, Josh Koskoff kept a packed Westport Library crowd rapt.

The Staples High School graduate — and lead attorney in the recent groundbreaking Alex Jones defamation lawsuit — took the Trefz Forum audience through the entire case.

Josh Koskoff, at the Westport Library. (Photo/Ted Horowitz)

The Y’s Men of Westport and Weston — sponsors of the very informative talk — recorded the event. Click below to learn all about “The Case Against Alex Jones.”

Fashionably Westport is back!

The raised runway event– sponsored by the Westport Downtown Association, and held in the Westport Library’s Trefz forum — has 2 key elements.

It showcases downtown Westport’s fashion and beauty merchants, while benefitting Homes with Hope.

Professional stylist Amy Guzzi returns as runway director. The date is Saturday, March 4.

But Fashionably Westport is also a 2-day event, with in-store activities and promotions.

VIP tickets include light bites, a DJ and gifts. Click here for all tickets.

And hey: Do you want to model? Click here for details.

For more information, including sponsorship opportunities, click here or email Jill Dunn: events@westportdowntown.com.

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Speaking of the Library:

First they announced that the Smithereens and Marshall Crenshaw would headline the Friday night (March 31) show at VersoFest 2023.

Now comes news of the opening act, on Thursday, March 30: Sunflower Bean.

The Brooklyn-based band kicks off the 4-day festival at the state-of-the-art Verso Studios’ Trefz Forum. Hysterica does the DJ honors.

Sunflower Bean singer-songwriter Julia Cumming returns to her home base of Fairfield County, hot off the band’s headlining presence at South by Southwest 2023.

The band’s “Headful of Sugar” was named #41 on Rolling Stone’s “100 Best Albums of 2022.”

Sunflower Bean formed in 2013. The next year, Jon Pareles of The New York Times described their sound as “… what might have happened if psychedelia had emerged after punk and the Police rather than before.”

The band has toured extensively with artists like Beck, Cage the Elephant, Interpol, Courtney Barnett, The Pixies, The Kills, DIIV, Courtney Barnett and Wolf Alice.

Tickets for the show are $25; click here.

Sunflower Bean

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A new mixed-use development — with 136 apartments, more than 6,800 square feet of retail space, and a pool, dog run  and walking trails — has been okayed for the Westport border.

“Nancy on Norwalk” reports today that the Norwalk Planning & Zoning Commission unanimously approved plans for the proposal on Renzulli Road. It currently runs from Kings Highway South in Westport — between Rivard Crescent and Strathmore Lane — to Westport Avenue (Route 1) in Norwalk. Kings Highway South marks the Westport/Norwalk border.

Renzulli Road begins on the Westport/Norwalk border.

Renzulli Road would now become a cul-de-sac, with no outlet onto Westport Avenue.

The principal engineer for the project promises a “significant amount of landscaping” including trees around parking areas and the back property as a buffer with neighbors, and plantings throughout. The site will also include feature an improved storm water management system.

The site now houses a dry cleaner, and a vacant building that was once a liquor store.

The next step: approval from the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Westport Avenue is a state road. (Click here for the full story. Hat tip: Sal Liccione)

A rendering from Bruce Beinfield Architecture of the proposed Renzulli Road apartment and retail complex.

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Staples High School is justly proud of its Players theater troupe and Orphenians, the elite a cappella singing group. Both have been around since the 1950s.

But Soundings — the award-winning literary magazine — is a decade older.

Founded in 1947, it’s now an annual print and digital magazine showcasing student submissions ranging from prose, poetry and short stories to 2D, 3D and digital art.

But a few years ago, Board of Education funding was cut. Soundings now relies on a GoFundMe appeal. The goal is just $1,000 — but ever dollar helps. Click here for more information, and to contribute.

(Need more incentive? Click here to browse the archives.)

Meanwhile, Soundings seeks submissions from students. This year’s theme: “The world is your playground.”

Short stories, essays, visual media and more (and questions) can be sent to Soundings@students.westportps.org. To be eligible for a cash prize, include a $5 submission fee (not mandatory).

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Speaking of literature: Staples High School graduate Bruce Lawder reads his poetry at Westport Book Shop (February 2, 6 p.m.).

After graduating from Dartmouth College, and earning a Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of Zürich, where he also taught, Lawder now lives in Europe.

Space is limited. RSVP:  bookshop@westportbooksaleventures.org; 203-341-5141.

Bruce Lawder

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Speaking of reading: The Westport Library is sponsoring a winter program for kids.

It’s a way to decorate the Children’s Library with colorful mittens. Here are instructions for young readers (or their parents)

  • Log into READsquared and create an account. Then start logging your reading.
  • Keep track of reading progress in the READsquared program.
  • For every 50 minutes read, you can decorate a mitten for display in the Library.
  • When you’ve read 250 minutes, you’re halfway to the end. You’ll get a coupon for a free shake at Shake Shack.
  • When you’ve read 500 minutes: congrats! Go to the Library to choose a free book to keep.
  • Winter Reading ends March 4 — or when you’ve read 500 minutes.

Click here for details.

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Applications are now being accepted for an affordable 2-bedroom rental at 52 Church Lane.

The 822-square-foot unit must be rented to families whose annual income is equal to or less than 80% of the state median income (family of 1, $63,056; of 2, $72,064; of 3 $81,072; of 4, $90,080). The rental rate is $1,622 a month, plus utilities.

Email info@davidadamrealty.com, or wrote BW Church East, c/o David Adam Realty, PO Box 5040 Westport, CT 06881 to request an application.

52 Church Lane

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MoCA Westport’s “Cocktails and Conservation” series continues next Thursday (January 26, 6 p.m.).

This extra-special event includes a collaboration between several Westport-based female influencers, in the areas of art, fashion and design.

“The Intersection of Art, Fashion, and Lifestyle” conversation will be led by Sade Strehlke, editor of POPSUGAR of Westport.

Panelists include style maven and WEST owner Kitt Shapiro; noted photographer Jane Beiles; content creator and founder of Designport Jen Berniker, and social “artrepreneur” and founder of Invest in Her Art Diana Mashia.

Guests who arrive early can explore the Paul Camacho and annual high school exhibitions, and buy a drink or cocktail from the new bar service, The Cup Bearer.

Advance registration requested; click here.

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Pamela Kesselman spotted today’s “Westport … Naturally” scene at Compo Beach.

“You must always keep your guard up,” she warns.

(Photo/Pamela Kesselman)

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And finally … if you’ve never heard of Sunflower Bean, the band that kicks off this year’s Verso Fest on March 30 (story above), click below.

You won’t be alone. It’s already got over 3.7 million views.

(After you’ve finished listening to Sunflower Bean — and buying tickets to VersoFest 2023 — there’s one thing left. Please click here to support “06880,” Without us, you’d never know about stuff like this. Thank you!)

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Posted in Arts, Library, Local business, Politics, Real estate

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Roundup: RTM’s Saugatuck Vote, Josh Koskoff & Alex Jones …

Posted on January 18, 2023 | 17 comments

By an overwhelming majority last night, the Representative Town Meeting affirmed the Planning & Zoning Commission’s recent decisions to allow text and map amendments in Saugatuck.

There were 33 RTM members in favor, 1 against (Sal Liccione) and 1 abstention (Matthew Mandell). The vote — following similar margins in the RTM’s Transit and Planning & Zoning Committees — means that planning can proceed for the Hamlet at Saugatuck.

That project could bring new retail, restaurants, residences, and a hotel and marina to the area near the train station.

The RTM vote was required, based on a petition from voters. Twenty-four members had to vote to overturn the P&Z decision — but only 1 did.

Next up: A site plan for the Hamlet project, and approval from the P&Z.

Artists’ rendering of an interior courtyard of The Hamlet at Saugatuck.

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What’s the newest hot place in town for teenagers?

The Westport Library.

It’s been filled all week long, with Staples High School students studying for midterms.

The Trefz Forum — and the rest of the building — has been a place where friends can work together, but where others can find space to be alone. It’s serious, but also social — perfect for teens’ needs.

The other night, library officials surprised the students with 25 pizzas.

They were gone quicker than you could say “good luck with exams!”

Where do Westport teenagers head at night? The Westport Library. (Photo/Lynn Untermeyer Miller)

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Speaking of the Westport Library: The Trefz Forum will be packed tomorrow morning too (Thursday, January 19, 10 a.m.).

Local attorney (and Staples High graduate) Josh Koskoff will discuss his latest victory: the largest verdict in history in a defamation suit. Koskoff led the case against Alex Jones, who used his Infowars website and daily radio show to present counter-factual information about issues including the Sandy Hook school shooting.

Koskoff’s talk will also be livestreamed. Click here for the link.

The event is co-sponsored by the Y’s Men of Westport and Weston.

Josh Koskoff

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Speaking still of the Library:

It was packed in November, for the Board of Education’s first “Community Conversation.”

Plenty of topics were discussed — but others, like challenges to books in the high school library, and diversity, equity and inclusion planning — did not have time for exploration.

A second open discussion — picking up where last fall’s left off — is set for next Tuesday (January 24, 7 to 8:30 p.m., Westport Library). All residents are invited, for a “back-and-forth exchange) with Board of Education members, and school administrators.

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Spiga is a popular New Canaan restaurant, specializing in handmade pasta, brick oven pizza and other Italian fare.

Soon, they’ll add a Westport location. They’re replacing Tarry Lodge on Charles Street. The target date for opening is late March.

It’s one more Italian business in a line that began with Esposito’s gas station, and continued through Abbondanza. (Hat tip: Maria Funicello)

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Speaking of Saugatuck: Mackenzie Winner Berman has a question that’s on the minds of many other Westporters. She writes:

“On Saugatuck Avenue, roughly across the street from the old Westport Chinese/ new Lomito restaurant, is a home with a small storefront on street level.

“The home is being renovated. I assumed the storefront would go, but recently it has been improved with new windows, among other things.

“Does anyone know the plans for that space? It has always interested me. Every time I drive by, I try to imagine what sort of activity used to take to place there.”

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Sacred Heart University’s beautiful new Martire Family Arena is drawing raves. And fans.

Those spectators are helping the Pioneers’ men’s ice hockey program raise funds for great causes.

The January 21 game (7 p.m., vs. Holy Cross) will benefit the Chad Jacobs Hockey Foundation — run by Westporter Karen Jacobs — and the CT Hockey Foundation. The Jacobs fund was a major supporter of education for Charlie and Will Capalbo, grandsons of Westport writer Ina Chadwick. Charlie fought a long, courageous battle against several cancers.

A February 4 game (7 p.m., vs. American International) for CapalboStrong will benefit Dana Farber Cancer Institute, specifically pediatric research. That date is the anniversary of Charlie’s life-saving bone marrow transplant from his brother Will, in 2019.

Click here for tickets, and more information.

Charlie Capalbo (Photo/Dave Gunn)

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The bad news: There was plenty of trash at the I-95 Exit 18 commuter parking lot on the Sherwood Island Connector.

The good news: A crew of dedicated Westporters picked it up last weekend.

The bad news: There will always be more garbage in need of collection.

To find out what’s next for our civic-minded citizens — and help — email Andrew Colabella: acolabellartm4@gmail.com.

Town employees haul away the trash collected at the commuter parking lot. (Photo/Andrew Colabella)

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“Surface Alchemy” — a new exhibition featuring Donald Martiny and Stuart Disston — opens this Saturday (January 21; reception from 5 to 7 p.m.) at Amy Simon Fine Art (123 Post Road East).

The exhibit runs through February 25.

“The Picnic” — Acrylics, encaustic and photo transfer on canvas mounted on panel (Stuart Disston)

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You can teach an old dog new tricks. Or — in the case of Bobo — a new dog can enjoy old tricks.

Either way, here’s today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo, from (naturally) Compo Beach:

(Photo/Sunil Hirani)

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And finally … today is the birthday of David Ruffin.

One of the lead singers of the Temptations from 1964-68, and later a solo star, was born on this date in 1941. He died in 1991, from an accidental overdose of crack cocaine.

(“06880” ain’t too proud to beg. Please support your hyper-local blog! Just click here — and thank you!)

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Posted in Arts, Education, Library, Local business, Local politics, Restaurants, Saugatuck, Sports, Staples HS

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Roundup: Alex Jones, Henry Kissinger, Kennedy’s Barber …

Posted on October 13, 2022 | 10 comments

In the wake of yesterday’s jury determination that Infowars fabulist/Sandy Hook denier Alex Jones must pay nearly $1 billion to families of victims of that school massacre, “06880” reader Kristan Hamlin lauds the work of Westport attorney Josh Koskoff and his law firm, Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder.

She writes: “Congratulations to the lead counsel in the case, Christopher Mattei, a fine human being and an excellent lawyer — the best of our profession — and to the entire Koskoff law firm.

“As Robbie Parker (a parent of a slaughtered 6-year-old) so eloquently said, you gave back to these re-victimized victims their voices. I am so proud of all of them, and to the Connecticut jury and the Connecticut judge in this case.”

Josh Koskoff

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October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

To make a real difference, Westport’s Department of Human Services and Domestic Violence Task Force are collecting used cell phones and iPads, to benefit the Domestic Violence Crisis Center of Norwalk and Stamford. Clients can use them to ensure their safety, and avoid tracking by their abuser.

The DVCC provides free, confidential services to victims of domestic violence and their children in Westport and surrounding towns.

Donation bins are located at Westport Town Hall and the Senior Center, and available weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Questions? Call 203-341-1050 or email humansrv@westportct.gov. For  information about the Domestic Violence Crisis Center, click here.

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The list of Westport barbers has been shaved by one.

Kennedy’s All-American Barber emailed members yesterday: “Effective immediately, all memberships have been frozen. Due to company wide and market changes we are ceasing operations as it was and starting something new and special.

“We helped rejuvenate a dying industry of men’s grooming 13 years ago. Hundreds of shops opened as a direct result of our brining [sic] high end men’s grooming shops back to its former glory. We lead an industry wide movement to bring back high end men’s grooming.

“We are entering a new economic and business climate and healing from the two years of drastic sales decline due to covid. Men that go to the office instantly became a thing of the past. That was our typical client. So we are adapting once more. We are going mobile. Brining [sic] the barbershop to you. In a high end mobile showpiece packed with all the equipment and luxury you are used to, and many of the same staff you have grown to love.” (Hat tip: MaryLou Roels)

Kennedy’s in Playhouse Square.

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Staples High School Class of 2015 graduate Rachel Doran was just 21 years old when she died. But her memory lives on strongly. And her relatives and friends use it to help other families facing critical illnesses, by providing lodging, food and transportation aid.

Rach’s Hope — the non-profit founded in her name — holds its 2nd annual Family Fun Walk this Sunday at Compo Beach (3 p.m.).

Need extra incentive? Rachel’s grandfather Michael Isenberg has pledged to walk 1,000 miles yearly for Rach’s Hope. All you need to do is walk 1 mile!

Participants will receive special prizes, hear live music, and enjoy gourmet pizza and drinks from Pizza Pie Wagon and Greens Farms Spirit Shop.

To purchase tickets, donate or learn more about Rach’s Hope, click here. You can follow Rach’s Hope on Facebook and Instagram: @rachs.hope.

Rachel Doran

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Margot Liotta debuts tomorrow!

The Staples High School Class of 2019 graduate — now a student at Berklee College of Music — has been working on her EP for over a year. She started it in Westport, during the pandemic.

The producer is Staples classmate Zach Rogers. Her manager — fellow SHS ’19 alum Kevin Ludy — helped make the album cover. It includes a familiar Compo Beach cannon scene:

Click here for the pre-save link. Click here for Margot’s TikTok; click here for her Instagram.

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Most Westport Rotary Club speakers talk about current issues.

Tuesday’s guest – Westport resident Robert Augustyn —  went back in time. The owner of Robert Augustyn Rare Maps & Prints discussed historical maps, including one from 1478 that represents a recovery of knowledge from the Roman Empire.

He also highlighted a 1507 map by Johannes Ruysch that was the one of the first to portray America; an 1878 bird’s-eye view of Westport, and a local business directory poster from 1854 that features the Metropolitan Oyster House restaurant and a “mechanical” dentist who made house calls. 

Robert Augustyn describes a Westport map at Tuesday’s Rotary Club meeting. (Photo and hat tip/Dave Matlow)

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This Sunday’s “Andrew Wilk Presents…” features a special performance by American String Quartet violinist Peter Winograd, and celebrated pianist Rohan De Silva. Wilk himself — the noted executive producer of “Live at Lincoln Center” — will lead a Q-and-A with the artists.

The event is October 16 (2 p.m., Westport Library).

From left: Rohan De Silva, Andrew Wilk, Peter Winograd.

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If you’re a psychic you know this already, but: “celebrity psychic medium” Karyn Reece will be in Westport for a “VIP event” November 12 (7:30 p.m., Amy Simon Fine Arts).

The event features (as you also already know) light bites, wine, and “audience-style readings and messages with Karyn.”

Karyn Reece

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Henry Kissinger is still alive.

At 99 years old, he’s just published a new book: Leadership: Six Studies in World Strategy

On Friday, October 21 (1 p.m.), Staples High School 1972 graduate/lawyer/writer Talmage Boston interviews the former Secretary of State for his “Cross Examining History” podcast. Click here for he Zoom link.

Henry Kissinger

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Purple is the color of epilepsy awareness.

On October 30, the Epilepsy Foundation of Connecticut hosts their annual Purple Pumpkin 5K at Sherwood Island State Park (8:45 p.m.).

While parents and teenagers run, youngsters can paint a pumpkin purple. All attendees are invited to wear something purple too.

Light refreshments are available after the race. The $35 registration fee includes a t-shirt. To register, click here.

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The Fresh Market ospreys get most of Westport’s love. The Sherwood Mill Pond and Burying Hill ones get the rest.

But what about the Nash’s Pond osprey? Tricia Freeman offers this raptor, for today’s “Westport … Naturally” feature:

(Photo/Tricia Freeman)

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And finally … Anita Kerr died Monday in Switzerland. She was 94.

The session singer and arranger had a long career in both country and pop music. Click here for a full obituary.

Among her accomplishments: singing backup on Roy Orbison’s memorable song:

(The Roundup is a daily “06880” feature. Please click here to support your hyper-local blog.)

 

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Roundup: Anita Hill, Serena & Lily, Landscape Design …

Posted on February 21, 2022 | 3 comments

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Today’s “balloon test” — designed to show what a 124-foot cell tower proposed for 92 Greens Farms Road — has been canceled. No further information is available.

Today’s event at 92 Greens Farms Road is off. (Photo courtesy of Google Maps)

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Lynn Grossman has a full-time job, as senior vice president, wealth management for Raymond James Financial in Westport.

But she spends nearly all the rest of her time giving back to those less fortunate.

A Westporter since 1985, she runs a non-profit in Queens. She also serves on Fairfield County’s Community Foundation professional advisor council.

The umbrella organization supports many good projects. Lynn is especially excited about the Fund for Women and Girls. Over the past 20 years, they’ve given out $8 million, impacting tens of thousands of females.

She is really excited about April 22 (12 noon, Greenwich Hyatt and virtual). This year’s guest speaker is Anita Hill.

The Brandeis University professor of law, public policy and women’s studies is the recipient of a 2019 PEN Courage Award. Her new book is Believing: Our Thirty-Year Journey to End Gender Violence. In her  autobiography Speaking Truth to Power, Hill shared her story of testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee about sexual harassment during her career.

Click here for tickets and more information.

Anita Hill

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A $73 million settlement last week for families of 9 Sandy Hook victims shook 2 worlds last week: the legal one, and the gun manufacturing industry.

It also brought national attention to Josh Koskoff, the Westport attorney who led the long effort.

Yesterday, the New York Times ran a long feature, headlined “How They Did It: Sandy Hook Families Gain Long-Awaited Legal Wins.” The piece explores Koskoff’s strategy, and its implications for similar lawsuits going forward. Click here for the full story.

Josh Koskoff, in his office. (Photo/Monica Jorge for the New York Times)

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A broken sprinkler caused water damage at Serena & Lily. The Elm Street lifestyle store is closed today. They hope to open later this week. (Hat tip: Sal Liccione)

Serena & Lily

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Mark March 13. Turn your clocks ahead — and at noon (EDT) enjoy an Aspetuck land Trust Sunday “Brunch and Learn” lecture with landscape designer/author/photographer Rick Darke.

He’ll discuss the vital roles native plants play in beautiful, ecologically sound, and broadly functional residential landscape design.

It’s free for members, $18 for non-members. Click here for details, and to register.

Rick Darke

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It’s mid late February. Time for some “Westport … Naturally” color!

(Photo/Judith Katz)

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And finally … happy 64th birthday to singer/songwriter, multi-Grammy-winning — and Brown University graduate — Mary Chapin Carpenter.

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Posted in Downtown, Environment, History, Local business, Politics

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Koskoff Helps Settle Landmark Sandy Hook Suit

Posted on February 15, 2022 | 10 comments

Nine families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacred have reached an agreement with the maker of the assault weapon.

The $73 million settlement seems to be the largest of its kind ever between a gun manufacturer and relatives of a mass shooting, the New York Times says.

The paper adds: “It also represents a significant setback to the firearm industry because the lawsuit, by employing a novel strategy, pierced the vast shield enshrined in federal law protecting gun companies from litigation.”

Josh Koskoff

The lead lawyer for the victims’ families — 5 children and 4 adults — is Josh Koskoff. The 1984 Staples High School graduate — and still a Westport resident — practices with Bridgeport-based Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder.

The Times explains:

The families contended that Remington, the gun maker, violated state consumer law by promoting the weapon in a way that appealed to so-called couch commandoes and troubled young men like the gunman who stormed into the elementary school on Dec. 14, 2012, killing 20 first graders and six adults in a spray of gunfire.

Koskoff said: “These 9 families have shared a single goal from the very beginning: to do whatever they could to help prevent the next Sandy Hook. It is hard to imagine an outcome that better accomplishes that goal.”

(Click here for the full New York Times article. In 2014, Koskoff appeared on “The Rachel Maddow Show” to discuss the lawsuit he’d just filed. Click here for that story.) 

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Posted in History, Media, Politics

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Roundup: Josh Koskoff, Free Coffee, WTF Tree, Millie Rae’s …

Posted on November 16, 2021 | 5 comments

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Yesterday, a Connecticut Superior Court judge Barbara Bellis ruled in favor of 8 families of children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. They sued conspiracy theorist Alex Jones — who called the massacre a government-led hoax to confiscate firearms, and called the families “actors” — for defamation.

It was a victory for the families — one of whom has had to move 10 times since the shooting, due to harassment from Jones’ followers — and for Josh Koskoff. The Westport-based attorney represented the Sandy Hook families.

After the ruling, he was interviewed by several major media outlets. Click here, then scroll down for the transcript of his appearance on MSNBC’s “All In With Chris Hayes.”

Josh Koskoff

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Steam Coffee Tea is new. The Westport Transit District’s Wheels2U service has been around awhile, but they recently added a few upgrades.

This Thursday and Friday (November 18 and 19), they team up to offer riders a freebie. Anyone using Wheels2U those mornings can show proof of their completed ride between 6 and 10 a.m., for a free coffee.

Wheels2U is the WTD’s on-demand group ride door-to -train platform shuttle service. Steam is the recently opened coffee shop on Railroad Place.

Westporters can use the Wheels2U Westport app to request a pickup  between 5:45 and 9:45 a.m., and 4 and 8 p.m., to be taken to or from the Saugatuck or Greens Farms train platform and their front door. Pickups should be requested 20 minutes before normally leaving to drive to the station.  The fare is $2, paid via the Wheels2U app.  A Metro North Uniticket rail/bus pass can also be used.

For more information about Wheels2U, including how to download the Wheels2U app and book a ride, click here. For more information about the Transit District’s services for the elderly and people with disabilities, click here.

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Everyone has their own idea of when the holiday season “really” starts.

If yours is the lighting of the Wakeman Town Farm tree, then get ready for Friday, December 3.

Musicians from Staples High, and Long Lots and Greens Farms Elementary School, will play Christmas and Hanukkah favorites at 4:30 p.m. The tree lighting is at 4:45 p.m.

Then comes marshmallows by the bonfire, treats from The Porch and Sweet P Bakery, and hot chocolate from The Granola Bar and Starbucks.

It’s festive and fun. It’s family friendly. And of course, it’s free.

Wakeman Town Farm tree lighting, in 2019. Last year’s event was canceled, due to COVID.

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Millie Rae’s is a favorite Westport shopping destination.

Here’s one more reason to love the Post Road East clothing store. Today (Tuesday, November 16), they’re donating 20% of all proceeds to A Better Chance of Westport. That’s the wonderful Westport program — and North Avenue home — that provides educational opportunities at Staples High School for students from underserved communities.

The event goes on all day. From 4 to 6 p.m., you can enjoy champagne and treats will you shop.

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The Greenwich Community Sailing program will not run at Tod’s Point next summer. The vendor — who also owns Longshore Sailing School — did not renew the lease. Construction in the area is forcing relocation.

Longshore Sailing School will operate as usual this summer. Greenwich Community Sailing gift cards will be eligible for use there. A program discount will be extended to Greenwich residents too. (Click here for the full story. Hat tip: Peter Gold)

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Westporter Denise Zack is a certified life coach, meditation instructor, yoga teacher and — as founder of Ripple Affect Life Coaching — a wellness-based consultant and educator for individuals and businesses.

Now she’s an author, too.

Zack just published “Ripple Affect: Change Your Mind, Change Your Life.” It offers 8 steps toward “reclaiming your happiness and living a balanced life.” Ripple effects begin within us, she says, and reach out to touch many others. (The books title is spelled with an “a” because an “affect” means touching one’s feelings, or moving emotionally.)

For more information, click here.

Denise Zack

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It’s November. Naturally, there’s frost in the morning.

Today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo shows yesterday’s scene (in Weston, but still…). Button up!

(Photo/Regi Kendig)

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And finally … Graeme Edge, drummer and co-founder of the Moody Blues, died of complications from cancer on Thursday in Florida. He was 80 years old.

I was not a fan of the spoken word poems he wrote, which helped define the progressive rock era. But I know they were popular.

I’m more of a fan of their earlier and later works. Here are 3 of their biggest hits, from 3 different eras. (Click here for a full obituary.)

 

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Posted in Environment, Local business, Longshore, Media, Saugatuck, Transportation

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Remembering Michael Koskoff

Posted on April 28, 2019 | 9 comments

The New York Times summed up the full life of a remarkable man in its lead paragraph:

Michael Koskoff, a renowned and dogged Connecticut litigator who defended Black Panthers, won record malpractice awards, mounted racial job-discrimination battles and sued gunmakers whose weapons were used in the Sandy Hook school massacre, died on Wednesday in a Manhattan hospital. He was 77.

The story details many more achievements of the longtime Westporter, who succumbed to pancreatic cancer.

He collaborated with his son Jacob on the screenplay for “Marshall,” the 2017 film about a major civil rights case — in Bridgeport – litigated by future Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall. (Click here for the complete “06880” story.)

Michael Koskoff’s son Josh was a partner in their law firm. This photo was taken as they worked on an important gun rights case just a month before Michael died.

With his other son, Westport resident Josh — a senior partner in the law firm Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder — he won an important gun rights case last month. The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that manufacturers of guns used in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre can be held liable, in a suit brought by victims’ families.

Another celebrated case — involving hiring quotas in Bridgeport for black and Hispanic police officers — led to similar suits elsewhere. The result was more minorities being hired by police and fire departments across the country.

Michael Koskoff also “pioneered the use of vivid courtroom videos delivered in a documentary format,” the Times said.

He is survived by Rosalind Jacobs, his wife of 56 years; sons Josh and Jacob; daughters Sarah (an actress and screenwriter) and Juliet (a lawyer in New York); 2 sisters, and 8 grandsons.

Roz and Michael Koskoff

Michael Koskoff was a very devoted father and grandfather. In a torrent of tributes, some of the most eloquent were posted on social media by those closest to him.

The day after his father died, Jacob wrote:

Over the past 24 hours many have said they are sorry for our loss, and I haven’t been able to pinpoint why that hasn’t sounded right. But the answer is obvious: from the very beginning, it was just so incredibly unfair how fortunate we were to have had him as a father.

A month earlier, on his father’s birthday, Jacob had said:

Soon after he got his diagnosis, my dad and I were walking in downtown Westport waiting for our takeout. It was dark and cold, and he was slow, and I was holding a box of cupcakes — students were raising money for something that I’m pretty sure was never explained to us. For the first time I asked him how he was feeling, in the greater sense. He took one breath and said, “I’m just glad this happened after the movie came out. If it had been before, I’d be seriously pissed.”

He has 8 grandsons, and each one is his favorite.

Eyes on the Prize. Wild Strawberries. Shakespeare at The Public Theater. He took me to see Annie when I was 8. Henry IV parts 1 and 2 a few years later. He is the most unpretentious, socially conscious, opera-loving wine connoisseur you’ll ever meet.

Michael and Jake Koskoff, collaborating on “Marshall.”

We went to dozens of Mets games together. He coached my Little League teams with his friend Terry Smith. They would sometimes pick the batting lineup out of a hat. He knew little about how the game was played and had no business coaching a team of 13-15-year-olds. He’d hit fielding practice and say “third base,” then weakly ground the ball to first. He had devoted himself to the sport, had humbled himself, only to be closer to me. Wasn’t it supposed to be the other way around?

Joan Baez taught him how to play the guitar in Harvard Square.

He once lent a car he wasn’t using to an acquaintance. Not even a friend, just someone he knew who needed a car. He never saw the car again. Not only did my dad not report it to the police, but for years he paid the guy’s parking tickets.

What’s the opposite of self-pity? Right, gratitude. That’s his religion: live with grace and kindness, persistence, generosity, and always, whenever possible, with gratitude.

Michael Koskoff and Barack Obama share smiles.

Michael’s daughter Juliet Koskoff Diamond added:

He died as he lived, with grace and gratitude for all the gifts he has been giving. In the end he was surrounded by his family, listening, to Mozart and quoting Shakespeare. He was able to say goodbye and was at peace.

And Josh’s wife, Darcy Hicks, wrote:

My father-in-law, Mike Koskoff, spent 77 years blasting this earth with love and justice. Knowing him made your life easier. He made it easy to become a part of his amazing family. He made it easier to laugh when you thought you weren’t in the mood. He made it easier to see the path to justice when no one thought there was one.

And mostly, he made it easy to love everyone- because through his eyes, empathy spilled and cleaned the view, so everyone who knew him could see how to live better. There’s only one thing he made impossible: doing that deifying thing we do about someone when they die. He just didn’t leave us any room to embellish him.

(Click here for the full New York Times obituary.)

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Posted in People, Politics

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Staples Students Fight Gun Violence

Posted on January 25, 2018 | 7 comments

The other day, 2 students were killed — and 18 injured — in a Kentucky school shooting.

It barely registered as news.

We’ve grown so inured to the drumbeat of gun violence — 89 people are shot to death each day in America, including far too many young people — that it’s become almost a non-issue.

But “almost” means there’s still hope.

At Staples High School, students in Cathy Schager’s Contemporary World social studies class have formed a community action group.

It’s called Disarm Gun Violence: Educating the Public About Common Sense Gun Laws.

Ms. Schager’s class created a poster, and hung it near the Staples cafeteria. Each dot represents one child killed by a gun last year. This is a small section of the poster.

This Monday (January 29, 7 p.m., Staples library) they’re hosting an event. There are 2 goals: raising awareness, and encouraging a community conversation.

A short documentary will be followed by a panel. Speakers include Westport police chief Foti Koskinas, and Josh Koskoff, a Westport resident and attorney representing 10 Sandy Hook victims’ families, in a suit against Bushmaster Firearms.

The evening includes a raffle. Proceeds will go to Sandy Hook Promise and CT Against Gun Violence.

Because — far too often — this issue hits very close to home.

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Posted in Children, Education, Organizations, People, Staples HS, Teenagers

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Please Excuse Eli And Lulu …

Posted on April 19, 2017 | 5 comments

This is the time of year when 12th graders suffer serious cases of senioritis.

But Eli Debenham and Lulu Stracher are 2 of Staples’ most politically aware — and active — students.

So this morning — instead of school — they headed to Norwalk Community College.

Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal discussed gun violence. The forum was moderated by Westport attorney Josh Koskoff.

It was an important, informative event. But afterward, Eli and Lulu had a typical high school worry: They needed a note for missing class.

No problem!

They just asked Senator Murphy to write one.

He happily obliged.

Lulu Stracher, Eli Debenham, and the man who excused them from class this morning.

The note read:

Please excuse my friends for their absence. I required their attendance in my forum on violence — under penalty of arrest! — Chris Murphy

You may like Connecticut’s junior senator or not. But you gotta admit: That’s great constituent service!

Lulu and Eli’s note.

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Posted in Education, People, Politics, Staples HS, Teenagers

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Other Roots: A Very Different Tree Story

Posted on October 9, 2013 | 1 comment

Yesterday, “06880” reported on the questionable status of a jinormous sycamore arcing across Long Lots Road.

Today’s post is about another tree. This one is going nowhere. Harding Lane residents make sure of that.

The story begins with Orvis Yingling. He, his wife and their 3 kids moved to Westport in the early 1960s, and took full advantage of the town. They were avid sailors. Orvis joined the board of the Nature Center (now Earthplace), and was a longtime Y member.

He and his wife climbed Mt. Everest before it was trendy. Back at sea level, Orvis walked up and down Harding Lane even after suffering a series of strokes.

When he died at 90, everyone on his road — honoring his fondness for nature — bought a tree in his memory.

Harding Lane tree

Orvis’ wife thought ahead. Knowing she’d be moving — and unsure what would happen to her home — she asked Josh Koskoff and his wife Darcy Hicks if it could be planted on their lawn. (They live on the corner of Hillspoint Road, so everyone on the cul-de-sac enjoys it.)

A couple of weeks ago, Orvis’ daughter brought over a plaque. It reads:

In memory of Orvis Yingling, Jr.
1919-2009
Gardener, Gentleman, Friend
Given by his neighbors

It makes his memorial a bit more official.

Though his tree will live on long after the lettering fades.

Sad footnote: Orvis’s wife was right. Her property is in the midst of being completely razed — trees and all.

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Posted in Environment, Organizations, People, Places

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