Tag Archives: Laura Blair

The first casualty of the Post Road East construction project was a dozen or so trees at Linxweiler House, between McDonald’s and Fresh Market.

The second casualty is a dozen or so businesses on the other side of the street.

Crews have completely blocked the median’s left-hand cut-through, just before the Roseville Road light. There is also no left-hand turn onto Hillspoint Road.

Work is shut down for Easter weekend. So customers headed west who want to patronize Calise’s Market, International Wines, the Double L Farm Stand or other stores have to head to Mitchells or beyond, to turn around.

A plumbing business there missed a delivery yesterday. The driver refused to turn around, forcing the owner to travel to Bridgeport to pick it up.

There is no word on how long the closures will last.

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The Westport Museum for History & Culture and Westport Country Playhouse are collaborating on a new micro-exhibit.

“Music of the American Experience: Black Excellence and the Sounds of the Jazz Age” is on view in the Playhouse lobby, from April 11th to 29th.

Tying in with the Playhouse’s current production, “Ain’t Misbehavin’: The Fats Waller Musical,” the exhibit explores music featured in the show, and the historical events that led to the Harlem Renaissance.

It’s free, and open 2 hours before show time.

Last fall, the Museum’s exhibit “Departures/Arrivals” accompanied the WCP production “From the Mississippi Delta,” about the Great Migration.

“Ain’t Misbehavin’”’s score of jazz, blues and swing music of the 1920s and ’30s provides insight into a vibrant time in American history and music.

For more information on the show, including tickets, click here.

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It’s about time.

Miggs Burroughs is the Westport Book Shop’s guest exhibitor of the month.

The Staples High School graduate has designed hundreds of logos, ads, brochures and websites for commercial and non-profit clients throughout Fairfield County — often pro bono.

He created Westport’s town flag, a US postage stamp, an Easter egg for the Reagan White House, and 4 Time magazine covers. He’s also a co-founder of the Artists Collective of Westport. His honors and awards are too many to list here (so click here to see).

Westport Book Shop will exhibit Miggs’ “Signs of Compassion.” The work is a composite of 30 individual lenticular images, each showing a member of the Westport community using American Sign Language to sign a word or phrase from an Emily Dickinson poem about compassion. It can be seen during business hours (Sundays and Mondays, noon to 5 p.m.; Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).

A larger version will be exhibited in the lobby of the United Nations building soon.

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From time to time, we see a variety of markings on local roads.

These days, the Evergreen Parkway/Tamarac Road intersection is particularly colorful.

It’s part of the sewer project in the area. And every color means something different.

Alert — and engineer-minded — “06880” reader Mark Mathias notes: “Blue is for water lines. Yellow is for gas lines. Pink is a survey marker. White is the proposed dig area.”

At this spot, all of that will happen soon.

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Speaking of local roads …

Bill Dedman offers a warning for “good Samaritans who clean up the advertising signs spamming the town streets and state highways.

“At least one repeat offender has started coating the backs of illegal signs in a noxious sticky gray non-drying paint, to try to deter removal.”

This sign was nailed to a utility pole on Main Street — a state highway (Routes 57 and 136) at Compo Rd North and Clinton Ave.

Bill adds tersely: “Didn’t work.”

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Speaking of Staples High School’s biggest sports super-fans.

She’s also one of STAR Lighting the Way‘s biggest boosters.

On Sunday, May 7 — as she’s done since it began — Laura will be part of the 18th annual STAR Walk at Sherwood Island State Park.

It’s a fundraiser for the non-profit, which serves more than 700 area families. They support 11 group homes and 16 apartments so that people with intellectual and developmental differences can live independently. They provide training and job placement for 236 adults, plus intervention services for infants and children.

Last year, Laura raised over $16,000. “Team Laura” was second, out of 30 teams.

You can purchase “stars” ($1 minimum each). Click here, or send a check made out to STAR Inc. to Laura Blair, 58 Woodside Avenue, Westport, CT 06880.

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Here’s another important walk:

Ray Flanigan was a soccer star at Staples High School. After graduating in 1969, and then from Hartwick College, he coached and played on Westport teams. He moved to Bethel, and many Westporters made the trip to the photo shop he owned for decades.

His wife Juleen was a special education teacher, revered throughout the state. A severe concussion, suffered when a large truck smashed into her in 2014, resulted in permanent impairment.

In 2018 she was diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer’s. Through fitness, nutrition, proper sleep, music, her faith and assistance from her family and friends, she delayed the disease’s progress.

In November — having difficulty recognizing family members, and needing full time care — she moved into a facility. The cost is $8,200 a month.

A walk on May 13 (11 a.m., Bethel High School track) will raise needed funds. But anyone, anywhere can donate to Juleen’s care. Click here for details.

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Yesterday, “06880” profiled architect and solar energy advocate John Rountree.

Next Thursday (April 13, 5 p.m.., Zoom), he’ll present his insights on the benefits of solar energy in public buildings, to the Public Site & Building Commission.

Rountree is no stranger to the subject. He has already designed the solar panels for Westport’s fire headquarters and train station.

Click here for the meeting link.

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Westport’s sister city of Lyman, Ukraine continues to need our aid.

And Westporters of all ages  help.

Yesterday, Staples High School sophomores Sam Rossoni and Alex Kuster spent several hours sorting through and documenting supplies, donated by the town for police organizations in the embattled city.

It takes a village — and ours stands ready to help.

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On Tuesday, Staples High School’s Club Green formally thanked Westport’s Representative Town Meeting for passing an ordinance limiting the use of leaf blowers.

But, senior Tanvi Gorre says, “the RTM set more than a green standard throughout this process. As a student involved in the process, the RTM gave me the liberty to share my voice and aid change in our town.

“Although our young voices are still deemed null in a sea of experience, I never experienced this feeling with the RTM. They were willing to see the power in someone who hasn’t seen the world for what it is, but instead for what it can be.

“They were willing to respect me enough to challenge me. For that, I am truly grateful.”

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Staples freshmen Adam Turner and Matthew Lupinacci helped lead Maritime Rowing Club’s Under-16 coxed quad to victory at the San Diego Crew Classic last weekend.

The premier regatta includes over 100 races, and draws more than 4,000 athletes. This year marked the 50th anniversary of the Crew Classic, but only the 4th year that youth sculling events were included.

Other Maritime rowers from Westport included Mina Leon (part of the 4th place women’s under 17 4x), and Daniel Kleeger (part of the 6th place men’s youth B 4x B).

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Caron Keenan — former chair of Staples’ foreign language department — died peacefully on Wednesday. He was 84, and lived in Fairfield.

The Norwalk native originally intended to enter the priesthood. After graduating magna cum laude from Fairfield University and earning an M.A. in French at Assumption College, he taught middle school in Stamford before joining Staples as a French and Latin teacher in 1967.

He was also an assistant headmaster for library and media, before retiring in 1995.

Caron — a passionate ham radio operator (WA1OMJ) — helped run Staples’ radio station WWPT. He was an early adopter of Apple computers, promoting computer labs in Westport schools and repairing Apple II(e)s and the first Macintoshes.

He had a lifelong relationship with France. On a sabbatical, he lived in Rennes with his young family. He organized school exchanges, there and made many close friends.

He wrote a book about American high schools for French audiences, “Life in a High School.”

In retirement he enjoyed researching his ancestors in the US, Quebec and Ireland.

Caron is survived by his wife of 59 years, Lynn; children Christine Fodor (Gabor) of Fairfield, Keenan (Ashlee) of St. Augustine, Florida and Kevin (Sarah Azaransky) of New York City, and grandchildren Calli, Michael and Daniel Fodor, Ryan Keenan, and Finn Keenan and Anna Lucy Azaransky. Other family includes the Sjodins, Kanes, Caskins and Eckloffs.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Wednesday, April 12 (10:30 a.m., The Chapel at St. Pius X, 834 Brookside Drive, Fairfield. Burial will follow at St. John’s Cemetery, Norwalk.

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Staples High School Class of 2002 Jared Frank visited his hometown recently. In the heart of downtown, near Gorham Island, he spotted this sleeping swan.

It’s today’s “Westport … Naturally” image, and a peaceful way to begin the Easter (egg) weekend.

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And finally … speaking of “Ain’t Misbehavin'” (story above): Here’s Fats Waller’s original stride piano performance of the song. He co-wrote it for the musical “Connie’s Hot Chocolates” (called “Hot Chocolates” when it moved from Connie’s Inn in Harlem to the Hudson Theater on Broadway).

He re-recorded “Ain’t Misbehavin’” as a vocal in 1943.

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