Westport’s fundraising for our sister city of Lyman, Ukraine continues to pay dividends.
The latest video from Ukraine Aid International shows one of 7 apartment complexes that have been saved, thanks to generous donations from Westporters.
An older resident describes conditions there. They have electricity and water, for which he is grateful.
It’s easy for us here to focus on things that, in the grand scheme of life, are truly minor. Click below, for a reality check.
Aid for our friends in Ukraine is still needed. Click here; under “Designation,” select “Westport – Lyman sister city.” Thank you!
The last time we checked in with Julia Marino, the Olympic snowboarding silver medalist was featured on a new Miggs Burroughs lightbox greeting arrivals at the Westport train station.
She just competed in her final events of the winter, last week in Austria and yesterday in Switzerland.
The Westport native won the FIS Crystal Globe for slopestyle, making her the top rider in this discipline for the entire season.
On Saturday she took gold at the World Cup in Corvatsch. Her winning video is below.
Julia also earned an FIS silver medal as best “Park and Pipe” rider, just 7 points behind the leader. The award includes snowboard athletes from 3 disciplines; slopestyle, big air and half-pipe.
Click here for a story on her Swiss run, and an interview with Julia.
Her mother Elaine was there this weekend, to cheer her on:
Speaking of sports: A familiar scene returned to Compo Beach yesterday morning.
I have no idea how long this touch football game has been going on at Compo. But it’s been a long time.
The players may change. But this image is timeless.
(Photo/Sunil Hirani)
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Following on the heels — or wings — of the Fresh Market osprey, another raptor has returned to Longshore.
Alert “06880” reader Clarence Hayes reports: “They don’t start sitting on the nests until the females arrive and eggs are laid. There should be at least another 5 soon, to fill out the 3 permanent nests around the golf course.”
Osprey at Longshore (Photo/Clarence Hayes)
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This is not the first wild turkey to be featured on “Westport … Naturally.”
As the year ends, Westporters look back on a tough one. COVID is still hanging around. The stock market plummeted. Our nation is politically divided.
Compared to Ukraine though, we live on Easy Street.
Our new sister city of Lyman is entering its 10th month of hell. The Russians are gone after 5 months of occupation. But they left devastation behind.
Buildings lack roofs and walls. There is virtually no electricity or heat. Fire trucks and police cars were demolished. Debris is everywhere.
You can click here to read the latest devastating news, from yesterday’s New York Times. (This news just in: Earlier today, a Russian missile hit the police station. Only 2 patrol cars are left in the town.)
You can see some brutal images too — taken, coincidentally, by Westport native/Staples High School graduate/Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Tyler Hicks.
A Lyman firefighter battles a blaze with just a trickle of water, in bitter cold. (Photo/Tyler Hicks for the New York Times)
On this final day of 2022, please help Westport’s drive to help Lyman.
Our goal is $250,000. As of yesterday — less than 2 weeks after we began — we’ve raised $219,200. Wouldn’t it be great to reach our target today?
Tax-deductible donations can be made to Lyman through Ukraine Aid International — the non-profit co-founded by Westporter Brian Mayer. Pleaseclick here. Click the “I want to support” box; then select “Support for the City of Lyman.” Scroll down on that page for other tax-deductible donation options (mail, wire transfer and Venmo). You can also donate directly, via Stripe (click here).
When blandly named but popular Westport Chinese Takeout closed in October, it left a void in Saugatuck.
That’s where — decades earlier — the original Arrow Restaurant began. (The name comes from the angle of the road, where Franklin Street meets Saugatuck Avenue.) When it outgrow that location, the Arrow moved around the corner to Charles Street.
Work has begun on Lomito. The windows are still papered over. But there are new steps, and a spiffy logo. Two signs promise: “Opening soon.”
Connecticut Magazine is out with their annual “40 Under 40” list.
Among the 40 people under 40 years old who are “changing the game in Connecticut and beyond”: Westporters Drew Angus and Julia Marino.
The writeup on Angus — a 2007 Staples High School graduate — says:
Finding success as a musician is not easy, explains this Bridgeport-based and Westport-raised singer-songwriter. “In this business, behind all the accomplishments and successes are many more unsuccessful projects and ideas that just never quite worked out,” Angus says. “It takes a certain kind of drive and a sick love for things not working out to be successful in creative ventures like music.”
Fortunately for him and fans of music everywhere, Angus has that drive, as his easy-to-listen-to, melodic New Americana music propelled him to be a finalist on American Idol in 2016. He’s also shared the stage with Harry Styles and Nile Rogers on Saturday Night Live, as well as Pat Benatar, Ann Wilson of Heart, and Andrea Bocelli. He has also toured with Marc Broussard and last summer impressed his hometown music fans with a set at Sound on Sound festival in Bridgeport.
When asked what advice he has for aspiring songwriters, he urges artists to not over-revise their work. “Finish those songs and put them out,” he says. “There’s a point of diminishing returns when changing lyric, melody or mix on a song no longer makes it better but just different or actually worse. Sometimes version one is actually the magic take.”
Drew Angus
For Olympic silver medalist Marino, it reads:
Lots of notable folks can boast about throwing out the ceremonial first pitch for a Red Sox game at fabled Fenway Park, including slopestyle and Big Air snowboarder and Westport native Marino. But she also has bragging rights none of those others can touch. In 2016, Marino, then an 18-year-old World Cup newcomer, replaced an injured teammate to compete in the Polartec Big Air event held at Fenway Park … and won.
A hit at Fenway, she returned to throw out the ceremonial first pitch in 2017, and again for a Red Sox-Yankees game in August 2022. Eighteen was a good age for Marino, who that year also became the first woman to land a double in slopestyle competition, according to her U.S. Ski & Snowboard team bio, landing two in the same run, a cab double underflip and a double backflip. Marino is most famous, of course, for winning a silver medal in women’s slopestyle at the 2022 Beijing Olympics (slopestyle is snowboarding down a course filled with terrain-park features and obstacles like rails and jumps.)
Also a 2018 Olympian and a seven-time X Games medalist, Marino loves photography, making videos, and spending time outdoors with her family and dog.
Julia Marino, on the Olympic podium.
Click here for the full Connecticut Magazine “40 Under 40.”
Matt Murray noticed all these shoes lined up at Old Mill Beach.
(Photo/Matt Murray)
There was no one nearby. No one swimming.
Who owns them? Why are they there?
Maybe it’s part of SyFy’s annual “Twilight Zone” marathon. The annual event — an homage to the show and its creator, former Westporter Rod Serling — began at 5 a.m. today. It runs through 4 a.m. on Tuesday.
Click here for the full schedule. (In case you’re wondering: “A Stop at Willoughby” — the classic Westport-themed episode — airs Monday, at 5 p.m.)
Congratulations to Dr. Cindy Dunbar. The 1976 Staples High School graduate was recently inducted into the National Academy of Medicine.
A Harvard graduate who specializes in hematology, she’s had an amazing career. Click here for an in-depth interview. (She begins with her youth in Westport — and her interest in music and theater. It continues to this day.)
Click here for a more scientifically oriented piece. (Hat tip: Ed Stalling)
And finally … who needs Guy Lombardo (or Dan Fogelberg), when we’ve got Mariah Carey?!
(The year is not yet over! You’ve still got a few hours to support “06880” — and, because we’re a non-profit, take a tax write-off. Please click here. Thank you!)
The property was unkempt; there had been no life there for days.
But the website was accepting reservations. A phone recording announced “new hours.”
Readers commented. Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce director Matthew Mandell said he’d spoken to the new manager, who “looked forward to the Slice of Saugatuck and will be one of the sponsors of the event.”
Clark Thiemann added: “Tarry Lodge had a sign on the door they were closed for vacation this week and will be back at the beginning of August.”
It’s now mid-August. Either the restaurant’s vacation has been extended for quite a while — in the middle of outdoor dining season — or plans changed.
Or perhaps management was, you know, lying.
The website still uses Open Table for reservations — though today, none were “available.”
More telling is the paper that covers the windows.
Then again, maybe that’s just part of Tarry Lodge’s “vacation” plans.
There’s only one day each year when visitors to Sherwood Island State Park can stay past sunset.
It’s Shorefest — Friends of Sherwood Island’s annual fundraiser. This year’s event is set for September 9 (6 to 9 p.m., main pavilion).
Guests enjoy an evening of food, live jazz piano, silent auction — and of course, a spectacular sunset. Catered by Westfair Fish & Chips, dinner options include lobster, steak, salmon, or vegetarian. Burgers and hot dogs are available for kids. Appetizers, salad, beverages and dessert are included.
All proceeds support habitat restoration, education and advocacy. Click here for tickets and more information.
Longtime Coleytown Elementary School physical education teacher Pearl Marcus died peacefully at home in Westport last week. She was 99 years old.
Her family calls Pearl “a Gigi, Momma and Mom. What a wonderful and beautiful life she lived. She had a fantastic group of friends and a loving family. She was always there for all of us. She will always remain the anchor of our family.”
In addition to decades of teaching at CES, Pearl was involved in the Westport community. She enjoyed traveling, entertaining family and friends, theater and tennis.
She was predeceased by her husband of 64 years, Marc (Melvin) Marcus. She is survived by 2 daughters and their spouses, 5 grandchildren and two spouses, and 4 great-grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Quick Center for the Arts, 1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield, CT 06824, or Baltimore Squashwise, 2801 Sisson Street, Suite 100, Baltimore, MD 21211 (Pearl’s great-niece is executive director).
Nearly 200 people watched live and remotely last night, as 2 Westporters reported on their efforts to aid Ukraine.
Brian Mayer recently returned from his third extended visit to the war-torn nation, where he was joined by Ken Bernhard. Mayer co-founded UkraineAidInternational.org, a non-profit offering humanitarian relief and refugee rescue.
The pair discussed the importance of their work, and the challenges they face. They noted that tax-deductible contributions can be sent to Ukraine Aid International, 88 Partrick Road, Westport, CT 06880, or made via Venmo: @ukraineaidinternational. (Hat tip: Dave Matlow)
Brian Mayer (left) and Ken Bernhard, on the Westport Library stage. (Photo/Dave Matlow)
Meanwhile, some Westporters headed to Georgetown last night, for a special show featuring Jackopierce at Milestone restaurant. The show did not disappoint.
The sold-out crowd included members of Staples High School’s Class of 1987. That’s when Cary Pierce — half of the popular duo, and a Westport native — graduated.
Jackopierce is based in Dallas. A couple of fans from there were at the show too. They enjoyed seeing the singer/guitarists in an intimate setting.
Cary Pierce (right) and Jack O’Neill: Jackopierce, at Milestone. (Photo/Rick Benson)
Westport Parks & Recreation Department seasonal employees do it all.
Lifeguards keep everyone safe at our beaches and pools, handle first aid and medical concerns, and answer countless questions (over and over again).
Guest Services staffers collect daily fees, organize parking, keep the beaches and lots clean, and answer countless questions (over and over again).
Tennis clerks greet customers, schedule reservations, collect fees, and maintain the courts and surroundings.
Dock attendants assist boaters n docking, sell gasoline and ice, and oversee the marinas at Compo and Longshore.
Those are thankless jobs. So of course, most of us never say “thanks.”
On August 8, Parks & Rec operations manager Carmen Roda and waterfront foreman Michael Giunta will.
They (and guest services supervisor Donny Christopher, and tennis supervisors Jamie Boone and Matthew Schwartz) are treating those employees — well, the ones who won’t be working, anyway — to a “thank you” picnic.
It’s a welcome gesture. These (mostly) young men and women help make our summers rock.
Meanwhile, the next time you see a lifeguard, beach or dock attendant, or tennis employee, say “thank you” too.
Westport Parks & Rec staff help the summer run smoothly.
Over the past few years, the dingy pedestrian tunnel underneath the Westport railroad station tracks has been transformed into a much more welcoming space.
A partnership between the Westport Police Department — they’re in charge of railroad parking — and the Westport Arts Center, with gifts from Bill Scheffler and his wife Ann Sheffer, Robin Tauck, the late Gordon Joseloff and others, turned the sometimes-scary passageway into a stunning art gallery.
Westport native and noted artist Miggs Burroughs created 16 LED-lit lightboxes. Each continued a lenticular image that combined one from a 100-year-old postcard of Westport’s past, with a current shot of the same scene. Compo Beach, Longshore, the station itself — all are represented.
This spring, a new lightbox was added, on the station wall itself. You don’t have to descend into the tunnel to see another handsome lenticular, with scenes of the cannons and downtown. This one actually says “Welcome to Westport!”
Now there’s a new one, with a modern twist. It honors Olympic snowboarding silver medalist (and Westport native) Julia Marino.
It’s another great lenticular image by Miggs. Unveiled yesterday morning, it will be displayed for the next year.
One view of MIggs Burroughs’ lenticular image …
… and the other.
At the unveiling yesterday (from left): 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, Police Chief Foti Koskinas, Julia Marino, Deputy Chief Sam Arciola, Julia’s father John (hidden), Miggs Burroughs.
Twiddle fans are all a-flutter for this Friday and Saturday’s special Levitt Pavilion shows (click here for details, and tickets).
An added bonus (besides the Vermont-based jam band, plus Mihail and The Nth Power):
The White Light Foundation supports causes and organizations important to Twiddle and its fans. They receive $1 from every ticket sold, then donate it back into each community where the band plays.
Speaking of the Levitt Pavilion: Sunday’s Sweet Remains concert was a smash. A full house loved the sweet-sounding group, an annual Levitt Pavilion favorite.
But you didn’t have to haul a lawn chair to the grass to enjoy the show.
Dylan Germishuys has a different idea. He writes:
“I line up Sunday concerts with higher tides, then get some people on our boat to go up the Saugatuck River and listen from the best seats ‘in’ the house.
“There was a perfect incoming tide for the Sweet Remains. We took a slow trip, found our spot, and had a picnic during the concert. The sound was great.
“At lower tides you have fewer options as to where you anchor, and have to be a little more cautious coming up this far. If the river was dredged, that might create more space.
“At higher tides , the Cribari (Bridge Street) bridge is a challenge for bigger boats. We only had a foot or two clearance on the way out.
“There’s enough room for quite a few more boats to do the same. You have to test your Bridge Street clearance at high tide before venturing up at low though, and being stuck for a tide cycle!”
Halloween is a lot closer than Christmas: only 97 days away.
So hurry on down to HomeGoods, which has already stocked all your costume needs.
(Photo/Sandy Rothenberg)
That area of town is quickly cornering the Halloween market. Just moments after Sandy Rothenberg sent her (aaaaargh!) HomeGoods report, Jack Krayson noted that Spooky Town — across from Stop & Shop, by Bulkley Avenue North — is open for business too.
Connecticut’s Democratic and Republican parties have primaries on Tuesday, August 9.
Unaffiliated voters cannot vote in primary elections — unless they change their registration to either party. Unaffiliated voters have until noon on August 8 to change, and register with either party. Click here for the link, to make the change online.
In other August 9 primary news: The town needs poll workers.
Poll workers must be registered voters in Connecticut. They must take part in a training session, for which they are paid $25.
Pay for the August 9 election day: A full day is $200, with a $40 food allowance; a half=day shift is $100, with a $20 for food allowance.
Election Day work starts at 5:45 a.m. (polls open at 6 a.m. sharp) and concludes at 8:15 p.m. (polls close at 8 p.m. sharp).
For more information, email dgreenberg@westportct.gov.
Voting machines and poll workers, at the Westport Library.
From time to time, “auction” signs pop up around Westport. Recently, we’ve been overridden with these:
(Photo/Matt Murray)
Alert reader Matt Murray writes:
“I called this number. Just for laughs. I wanted to see where they were located. It had been disconnected. Gee, do you think you could have been a scam?”
I’m not a betting man, Matt. But I’d bet my Patek Philippe, Rolex or Lamborghini on it.
It’s always fun to return to your old elementary school.
Especially if it’s as an Olympic champion.
Fifteen years ago, Julia Marino was a Long Lots student. This morning — now an Olympic silver medalist — she was back.
Before the assembly, Julia and her mother Elaine posed with an “Einstein” costume the Olympian wore in 3rd grade.
Energy was high, as nearly 600 students, staff, central office administrators and PTA members gathered in the auditorium for the first school-wide meeting since COVID struck 2 years ago.
With the Olympic theme playing and Mark Carmody — her former phys. ed. teacher, still at the school — serving as host, Julia came on stage to thunderous applause.
Host Mark Carmody read student questions. Julia Marino answered them all, with honesty and humor.
Video clips showed Julia on her 2nd spectacular slopestyle snowboard run. Students also saw her great display of sportsmanship, piling on the New Zealand athlete who had just edged her out for the gold medal.
“Everyone wants to win. You go to the Olympics to get gold,” Julia told the crowd.
“But it’s so important to be there for your friends. Even if they do better than you, it’s great to support them.”
Superintendent of schools Thomas Scarice and Julia’s mother Elaine enjoyed the assembly.
Julia answered students’ questions too. They ranged from the names of former teachers, her birthday (September 11) and whether she’s married (no) to her favorite part of the Olympics (“hanging out with my friends from different countries”), what she’d do if she weren’t snowboarding (film and photography), her favorite subjects at Long Lots (PE and art), whether she’s still friends with Long Lots kids (yes!), her other sports (soccer, basketball, softball, skateboarding and more), her favorite video games (Nintendo Switch and Mario Kart), her biggest challenge (overcoming fear of hitting big jumps), and advice to new snowboarders (“get butt pads — you’ll fall a lot”).
After gifts of flowers and a Long Lots swag bag, principal Kim Ambrosio unfurled a sign honoring the Olympic champion. It will hang in the gym.
Principal Kim Ambrosio (far right) and the new sign.
The assembly ended with Julia joining in, as students sang the school song.
Once a Lion, always a Lion.
Julia Marino’s 5th grade writeup, in the Long Lots yearbook. How many elementary school students’ dreams come true?!
The town of Westport honored Julia Marino tonight.
Hundreds of residents of all ages — including a huge number of awestruck young kids, plus former soccer teammates and her parents’ postal carrier — thronged the Westport Library to get autographs from, pose for pictures with, and hear the snowboard slopestyle Olympic silver medalist.
An added bonus: a chance to lift that actual medal themselves.
1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker and State Representative Jonathan Steinberg read proclamations. ESPN Emmy-winner (and fellow Westporter) Jeremy Schaap led an intriguing Q-and-A session. It was announced that a lenticular image of Julia, by artist Miggs Burroughs, will hang at the train station, welcoming all to Westport.
And Library director Bill Harmer invited everyone back for a watch party — in 2026, when we all hope Julia will compete in the Milano Cortina Olympics.
1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker is often in the center of photos. Today she and her daughter happily flanked Julia Marino.
Scores of parents took photos of their children, and Julia Marino.
(From left): 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, State Representative Jonathan Steinberg, Julia Marino and friends enjoy a video of Julia’s Olympic accomplishments, on the Library’s high-tech, high-res screen.
Julia Marino, at the start of her silver medal run, on the Library’s big screen.
ESPN host Jeremy Schaap chats with fellow Westporter Julia Marino.
A small portion of the large crowd gives Julia Marino a standing ovation.
Julia’s actual Olympic medal. It’s heavy! (All photos/Dan Woog)
A bigger crowd will honor Olympic medalist Julia Marino tomorrow than was on hand when she actually won it.
Spectators were not allowed on the Chinese mountain where the Westport native snagged her snowboard slopestyle silver. Her parents, sister and friends watched from half a world away, on Vivid-Tek’s big screen.
They — and many more fans — will fill the Trefz Forum tomorrow, for the town’s celebration.
But if you haven’t already registered, don’t try getting in. All the (free) tickets were gone in a few hours.
You can still see it, though. The 7 p.m. event will be livestreamed. Click here for the link.
Hey — if watching Julia win an Olympic medal on a screen was good enough for her family, doing the same for her celebration should be okay for you.
Julia Marino, on the Olympic podium. Tomorrow she’ll stand on the Library stage.
Fashionably Westport — the Downtown Association’s great benefit for Project Return, the Homes with Hope program for homeless women — kicked off last night with a runway event at the Westport Library.
Fashionably Westport continues today (Friday, April 1) with activities and promotions at downtown and Playhouse Square retailers and salons
Participating merchants include Middlemarch, WEST, Noya Jewelry Design, FRED, Marine Layer, Splash of Pink, Southern Tide, Cotelac, Barbour, Stephen Kempson London, Express Edit, Winged Monkey, Fleet Feet, The Plumed Serpent, Bobbles & Lace, Brochu Walker, 7 For All Mankind, Splendid, Scout and Molly’s, Great Stuff, Pure Salon and Artistex.
Looking fashionable last night at the Library (from left): Homes with Hope CEO Helen McAlinden, RTM member Sal Liccione, frequent food drive volunteer Anna Rycenga, Police Chief Foti Koskinas, 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, Westport Downtown Association president Maxx Crowley.
Some of Westport’s most historic, unique — and breathtaking — homes are for sale.
And they’re all next to each other, on one of Westport’s most historic and unique sites: Compo Mill Cove.
#44 — a 1917 bungalow — is the gray house, most visible (and most painted and photographed) from Old Mill Beach. The oldest one on the Cove, with original framing and fireplace intact, it’s accessible via a footpath and teak boardwalk, just beyond 2 wooden bridges.
Incredibly, it never floods. Even Superstorm Sandy did no damage. The price was recently reduced to $3.295 million.
Fun at 44 Compo Mill Cove.
Also on the market: #42 (the cottage rebuilt in 2006 by Michael Greenberg), and #48 Compo Mill Cove. Like #44, they’re owned by Robin Tauck, and feature natural plantings. Together, they’re on hundreds of feet of private beachfront.
42 Compo Mill Cove, aka “The Pirate Shack.”
There’s an open house for all 3 Sunday (April 3, 1 to 3 p.m.). Park in the Old Mill lot, and walk over the bridges.
PS: Though not owned by Robin, #46 is far sale too. That means all of the Cove point is for sale.
Buy one of these spectacular homes.
Or all 4!
44 Compo Mill Cove is the gray house on the right side of this photo. Other homes nearby are also for sale.
Pause + Purpose — the new mindfulness studio, across from the Library on Jesup Road — calls its sessions “Pause for a Cause.”
From tomorrow through Monday (April 2-4), that cause is Ukraine. All proceeds from meditations hosted by the studio staff will go to World Central Kitchen, to help feed the Ukrainian people.
Some “Westport … Naturally” photos can sit for a while before I use them.
Not this one.
Soon, the branches will fill out. In a couple of weeks — fingers crossed — this image of Owenoke Park, looking toward Compo Beach, will seem very dated.
Sometimes you have to put down a book, and see a movie.
The Westport Book Shop understands. So the Jesup Road institution has paired with its Imperial Avenue neighbor — the Remarkable Theater — to celebrate the 94th annual Academy Awards.
They’re co-sponsors of a “Guess the Oscars Winners” contest.
Starting Sunday, you can fill out a ballot for who you think will win, in 9 categories. The top 3 entrants receive a ticket to any drive-in movie this year. Plus a $25 Westport Book Shop gift card — and Remarkable Theater and Book Shop swag.
Ballots will be available at the Westport Book Shop, and by visiting the Book Shop website or the Remarkable Theater website. The deadline is 5 p.m. March 27. Only one entry per person.
In 2016, a section of Smith Richardson Preserve was a thicket of weeds, and invasive shrubs and vines.
Connecticut Audubon envisioned an ecological overhaul that would transform it into a rich, coastal forest and shrub-land filled with birds, bees and butterflies.
Then they did it.
The story behind the project will be told at Aspetuck Land Trust’s next “Lunch & Learn” (March 22n, 12 to 1:15 p.m.. Zoom). CT Audubon steward and ALT member Charlie Stebbins reveals how that tangle turned into a mixture of meadows, shrubs, thickets, conifers and open woods. Click here to register.
April is Autism Acceptance Month. It’s a propitious time for Westport author Sivan Hong to release her 4th book in the best-selling “Super Fun Day” series. “Avery G. and the Scary End of School” is a social story that helps children express their feelings about the end of school.
It’s perfect for neurodiverse (autism, ADHD, dyslexia, etc.), and also neurotypical, youngsters who struggle with change, worry about new things and are working on being flexible.
Avery G. teaches them how to tackle change, including movement breaks and belly breaths.
The March 25 entry deadline for the Wheels2U limerick contest is approaching, even faster than a Westport Transit District bus that comes to your door.
The goal is to raise awareness of the $2 pick-up request service (5:45 to 10 a.m., 4 to 9:30 p.m.), to and from Westport’s 2 train stations. Seven winners earn gift certificates to Westport restaurants ($100 to $25).
Enter as often as you like. Email pgold@westportct.gov by March 25; put “Limerick Contest” in the subject line, and include your name, address, and email address.
Some great entries have already been sent in. However, some are actual poems, rather than limericks. A reminder: This is a limerick…
A brilliant lawyer named Lena
Said be smart and commute greener.
Give the bus a try.
It’s as easy as pie!
If not, you’ll get a subpoena!
For more information about Wheels2U, click here. For more information about the Westport Transit District’s services for the elderly and people with disabilities. click here.
Ken Bernhard — the longtime Westport attorney who taught law in Ukraine — has continued his friendships with people he met there.
Yesterday, he passed along this email from one of them:
“On February 24, I woke up to the loud noise of 2 rocket strikes on my hometown. A short whistling sound was followed 2 seconds later by a loud bang.
“It was terrifying. Of course, there was no trace of normal sleep after that. The whole following day was grim and stressful with people shocked in disbelief. Food started disappearing from grocery shelves and cash disappeared, with no credit cards accepted.
“Because of the imminent danger of night air attacks, we decided to leave our city to the village about 30 miles away and stay with friends. We haven’t been able to go home since. We are now displaced people living alien lives. There are shortages of food, fuel, medicine and most basic necessities. There is no re-supply capacity. We have to watch how much we eat.
“The kids don’t understand what has happened to us. Due to a major gas pipeline damage near Mariupol (shelling), there is no gas anywhere in the region for residential heating or cooking. We use wood in a wheel barrel to make coffee. Electricity is spotty. with frequent power grid outages.
“About 10 days ago I personally witnessed a column of about 75 Russian military vehicles pass through the village, indifferent and threatening at the same time. We hear explosions regularly and see rockets passing overhead. It is terrifying thinking one of them might land on us. We are worried to death about people we know in Mariupol, Kharkiv, Sumy and other big cities under bombardment. We hear about heavy battles going on.
“Apart from the devastation (evacuations, killing and suffering), there is social devastation as well. We do not work; kids don’t go to schools; kindergarteners, pensioners suffer; there is no postal service or cell connectionl millions of active citizens leavr the country for safety – this all effects the Ukrainian economy, social life, education, healthcare. The longer the conflict goes, the worse such impact will be. This is especially hard, since Ukraine, like the rest of the world, has been badly hit by COVID for the past two years.
“My hometown is occupied for now, with Russian propaganda machine slowly but steadily infiltrating local minds. For now, locals protest daily in peaceful but organized ways and resist Russian humanitarian convoys. But how long will they be able to resist with not much food or any other opportunities available?
“My wife and I discussed her option to escape with the kids from the region toward Europe, probably Poland, but there are too many risks for our children. They could bring with them only the things they could carry. I am waiting to be called up for duty.
“At this point, nothing can be predicted for sure. Things are out of control. With God’s will, things will come to a peaceful end. Glory to Ukraine!”
p.s. Thank you for reading this and your continuous support of us. Your words and prayers matter!”
A graphic photo by Staples High School 1988 graduate Tyler Hicks. (Photo/Tyler Hicks for The New York Times)
Here is the full obituary for Leonard Flom. The internationally known ophthalmologist, medical pioneer and inductee in the National Inventors Hall of Fame died Tuesday at Norwalk Hospital. He was 94.
The son of Polish immigrants Murray and Pauline Flom of Brooklyn, New York, Dr. Flom entered New York University at the age of 16. He received a medical degree from the NYU School of Medicine, where he studied ophthalmology and was certified as an ophthalmic surgeon.
He then became a first lieutenant in the US Army Medical Corps. He was stationed in Trieste, Italy during the Korean war conflict.
Following his service, Dr. Flom founded a private medical practice and surgical center in Fairfield. He served Fairfield County for nearly 50 years. With his colleague Dr. Aaron Safir, he conceptualized and patented an idea for an iris identification system, and co-founded IriScan. Today, this biometric is considered to be one of the most accurate in the field of biometric identification.
Dr. Flom taught and worked at a number of New York and Connecticut universities and hospitals, and remained a member of the faculty of the NYU School of Medicine after retiring from practice. He served on the Ethics Committee of the Connecticut Medical Examining Board, and was an active member of the Y’s Men and a frequent guest speaker at Camp Invention.. His passions included politics, photography, humor and faith.
Dr. Flom is survived by Marilyn, his wife of 74 years; children Cherie Quain, Jonathan Flom, Sara Goldstein and Rachel Chason; 12 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his oldest son, Murray.
Yesterday’s Roundup included an incorrect date for the Staples High School Guidance Department’s “Spark Your Future” virtual session on careers in business and computer science, with alums Georgia Fox, Megan Root and Jake McCambley.
The correct date is Tuesday, April 5 (6:30 to 7:30 p.m.). Click here to register. Everyone is welcome.
And finally … Timmy Thomas’s best-known hit was “a soulful, plaintive statement against the Vietnam War that he sang to his own accompaniment on the electric organ and drum machine,” the New York Times‘ said.
He was not a one-hit wonder, but that’s what led his obituary. He died last week in Miami. He was 77, and had battled cancer. Click here for the full obituary, and below for his memorable song.
After a couple of days’ rest at the Sturges Highway home where she grew up, the 24-year-old flew to Milan. She hung out with other celebrities at Fashion Week — and why not? Prada is one of her sponsors.
Last weekend, she was back in Westport. As Julia caught her breath, I caught up with her.
Her backyard held many memories. As a 3-year-old, she learned to ride a bike on the tennis court. Later, her dad John helped her build a skate ramp nearby. Always, she and her younger sister Cece played in a tree fort, and on rope swings.
(From left): Julia, Elaine and Cece Marino, at Maine’s Old Port in 2019.
She also skateboarded at the Compo Beach park, and played soccer, basketball and softball in town.
After Long Lots Elementary and Bedford Middle Schools, Julia transferred to St. Joseph High in Trumbull. They accommodated her already-hectic snowboarding travel schedule — and besides, they had a powerhouse soccer team.
Julia Marino’s 5th grade writeup, n the Long Lots yearbook. How many elementary school students’ dreams come true?!
The Staples girls program had not yet reached its current state championship heights. But as a junior, Julia — who began playing with the Westport Soccer Association, then continued with Yankee United, CFC and Beachside — helped the Cadets win a Class L state title.
Julia Marino’s U-9 Westport Soccer Association team. She’s in the front row, far right.
By senior year, Julia was taking her classes online. Snowboarding had become her primary sport.
It began years earlier, when Julia, Cece, John, her mother Elaine and uncle took their annual trip to Beaver Creek, Colorado. Her skis snapped on a mogul, so she spent the rest of the week snowboarding.
In 8th grade, Julia Marino’s Bedford Middle School Science Fair project was on “Testing the Best Type of Wax to Increase the Speed of a Snowboard.”
With encouragement from instructors — and a love for the freewheeling nature of the sport — she was soon competing. At 13, her parents signed her up for Vermont’s Stratton Mountain weekend program. She missed school every Friday — but she was hooked.
She spent the next winter at the Stratton Mountain School. The year after that, she and her father were in Colorado, where she competed and attended school.
By the time she was 16, Julia was on the national team. She traveled the world. She missed her family and home town. But there were mountains to conquer.
Which she did. Julia is a 7-time X Games medalist, and was on the US team for the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang.
This year’s Olympic Games were different — and not just because Julia became the first US athlete to medal there, in any sport. COVID meant that families were not allowed in China. Julia’s mom, dad, sister and friends watched from half a world away, on Vivid-Tek’s huge Post Road screen.
Julia Marino, on the Olympic podium.
“It was really weird. We were heavily bubbled in China. There were lots of restrictions. It would have been tough for parents,” Julia said.
But because Elaine and John had not been at most of her competitions, it was nothing new.
And though this was the Olympics — with exponentially more worldwide attention than any other event — Julia treated it as, well, just another event.
“I tried not to overthink things, or get too stressed out,” she said. Meanwhile, texts and emails from back home helped motivate her.
Despite the injury that forced her to withdraw from big air, and the controversy over the IOC’s banning of her board because of its Prada logo, she is “over the moon” with her slopestyle results.
That’s her favorite part of snowboarding, Julia said. It’s a creative event, always different and new. She loves linking all the rails together, soaring from one to the next. “I really get into a flow on the course,” she noted.
Of course, winning an Olympic medal is every athlete’s dream.
Then came her whirlwind trip to Milan. She had a great time meeting the rest of the Prada team, meeting other celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Charli D’Amelio, and strengthening connections between sports and fashion.
Julia Marino (right) and actress Emma Mackey, in the front row at Milan’s Fashion Week.
Soon it was back to Westport. But not for long.
Julia heads to Colorado on Friday, for a media event with Mountain Dew. Then comes Whistler, in British Columbia, for a vacation — snowboarding with friends.
Beyond that, Julia — an avid videographer — would like to make snowboarding films. “I’m close with a lot of girls from the Olympics. We talked a lot about that,” she said.
And why not? For Julia Marino — Westport’s Olympic medalist snowboarder — the sky’s the limit.
Click below for a video of Julia’s years in Westport, created by her mother Elaine.
The Staples boys basketball team is gunning for their first FCIAC championship since 1962. It won’t be easy — but tomorrow’s quarterfinal game should be a great one.
It’s against Fairfield Warde (Saturday, 5 p.m.) — at Fairfield Warde. It’s a rematch of a fantastic contest a couple of weeks ago, when the Wreckers edged the Mustangs by 1 point in a thriller before a packed house. Though Staples is the higher seed, Warde is the site of all 4 quarterfinals.
Staples finished 15-5 this year, tied for 3rd place. They play exciting basketball, and Warde will pack their home gym with fans.
If you can’t get to Fairfield Warde, click here for the livestream.
Staples boys basketball fans packed the Wreckers’ gym, earlier this year. (Photo courtesy of The Ruden Report)
Who knew? One of the unintended consequences of COVID is that head lice has pretty much vanished.
And who knew that that would have an unintended consequence: the closing of Hair Genies Lice Treatment, on the Post Road near Calise’s.
Just a month before the pandemic, Westport-based Sharkey’s was expanding its Hair Genies franchise with new locations in Houston and Frisco, Texas. Those were halted immediately. Now comes the closure of the Westport site.
The good news is that Sharkey’s Cuts for Kids — the parent business — is opening 46 new locations in 2022. Their original Westport spot is now the #1 location throughout the entire brand (104 current sites).
Sharkey’s newest brand — EveryHomeShouldHaveAChallah.com — is also in full expansion mode. They’re leasing additional space on the Post Road to meet our expansion plans for both brands.
Hair Genies — aka Lice Treatment Institute — on the Post Road is closed.
Westport’s 16th annual Martin Luther King Day program — a keynote address by Heather McGhee, whose book The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together spent 10 weeks on TheNew York Times bestseller list, and whose TED talk “Racism Has a Cost for Everyone” reached 1 million views in just 2 months — has been rescheduled for May 18. The original January date was postponed due to COVID.
To attend in person at the Westport Library, click here. For the livestream, click here. To purchase copies of The Sum of Us, click here.
The event is sponsored by the Westport Library, Westport Country Playhouse, TEAM Westport, Westport/Weston Interfaith Council, and Westport/Weston Interfaith Clergy.
It’s 2022. You know that practicing meditation just a few minutes every day can improve mental health and emotional wellbeing; increase focus, productivity, and creativity; promote kindness; reduce anxiety; manage addiction and pain; help heal grief, even regulate sleep patterns.
But if you’re uncertain how meditation can work for you: Relax!
The Westport Library and Pause + Purpose — the new mindfulness studio, across from the Library on Jesup Road — are partnering on a new monthly event series.
The event is called “Self-Checkout” (get it?!). The first event is next Wednesday (March 2, 6 to 7 p.m., Westport Library).
Emily Tuttle — founder of Pause + Purpose — will discuss why there’s a need for a positive communal space to explore meditation. That’s followed by a discussion on parenting during uncertain times, and guided group meditation
And finally … Mark Lanegan, part of the 1980s and ’90s Pacific Northwest grunge scene as a singer with Screaming Trees and Queens of the Stone Age, died Tuesday at his home in Ireland. He was 57. He had struggled with drug use in the past, and been hospitalized with COVID last year.
The New York Times said
Though his stints in Screaming Trees, Queens of the Stone Age and the Gutter Twins (a collaboration with Greg Dulli of the Afghan Whigs) never brought him the kind of fame achieved by other Seattle grunge bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden, Mr. Lanegan nevertheless drew attention for his deep, world-weary voice that could take a song to both soaring heights and melancholy lows….
His voice could be a haunting, mournful rasp, conveying mystery or, as he got older, weariness and vulnerability. Its evocative power made Mr. Lanegan a favorite of critics and especially of fellow musicians. Among his many varied collaborations were recordings with the British alt-rock star PJ Harvey and Tinariwen, a group of nomad African blues masters from the Malian desert.
And this:
In his memoir, he chronicled his journey from a “self-loathing redneck” to a rock star to a homeless heroin addict, and said (Kurt) Cobain’s widow, Courtney Love, had helped get him to rehab after Mr. Cobain’s death.
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