Tag Archives: Nest Egg Foundation

Roundup: Levitt Music, Thomas Dolby Talk, Temple Comedy …

Posted on July 13, 2024 | 2 comments

This weekend, the Levitt Pavilion hosts 2 special shows.

Tonight (Saturday, July 13, 7 p.m.) features Marc Broussard and the 20th Anniversary of Carencro. It included the hit “Home,” now going viral again on Instagram.

Also on the bill: local favorites Otis & the Hurricanes. Their gumbo of blues andhttps://www.levittpavilion.com/2024/04/08/marc-broussard-carencro-20th-anniversary-tour/ soul complements Broussard’s “bayou soul,” a mix of funk, blues, R&B, rock and pop, all with distinct Southern roots. Click here for tickets, and more information.

Tomorrow (Sunday, July 14, 7 p.m.), the Levitt invites concert-goers to wear white, while celebrating the 19th Amendment and women’s right to vote.

The show features Grammy-winning folk singer/songwriter Aoife O’Donovan and folk quartet Hawktail. O’Donovan was last at the Levitt in 2022. Click here for tickets, and more information. 

For both shows’ lawn tickets: on Saturday, children 7 and under are free. On Sunday, those 10 and under are free. Ticket proceeds help support the 50-plus shows presented free of charge each season, for all.

PS: The Blind Rhino food truck will be on site both days.

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Speaking of music: Thomas Dolby comes to the Westport Library Tuesday (July 16). He’ll discuss his new book “Prevailing Wind” with another big name: Rock & Roll Hall of Famer and longtime Library supporter Chris Frantz.

The 4 p.m. start time accommodates Dolby’s performance later that evening in the Totally Tubular Festival at Bridgeport’s Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater.

Dolby — a musician, producer, composer, entrepreneur and teacher — played synthesizer for David Bowie, Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell and others during his eclectic career. His 1980s hits include “She Blinded Me With Science” and “Hyperactive!”

He also has been music director for TED Conferences. On the Johns Hopkins University Peabody Institute staff, he leads the Music for New Media program.

This is Dolby’s only signing event in the tri-state area. All attendees who purchase a copy of Prevailing Wind may get the book and one additional item signed by the author.

Frantz is a musician, producer, songwriter, and founding member of the Talking Heads and Tom Tom Club. A frequent guest of the Library and the host of the Library series “Chris Frantz Presents,” he also hosts a radio show on WPKN-FM.

Thomas Dolby

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There’s not a lot to laugh about in the Middle East.

But on July 30 (cocktails at 7 p.m., show at 7:45), Temple Israel hosts a comedy night. Five comics — Andrew Ginsburg, Nick Scopoletti, Cody Marino, Olga Namer and Beau McDowell — will all appear, in a fundraiser for Israel relief.

Tickets are $54 (VIP) and $36 (general admission). Click here to purchase, and for more information. (Hat tip: Les Dinkin)

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Yesterday’s Roundup included an item on Homes with Hope CEO Helen McAlinden’s meeting in Washington with Representative Jim Himes.

A photo showed our congressman with a statewide delegation of advocates for the homeless and hungry.

Alert “06880” reader Marlene Siff recognized artwork hanging on the wall.

It was hers.

The piece — “Fallen Heroes/Afghanistan” — has hung in Himes’ office since 2010.

“It is my memorial dedicated to all the soldiers we lost in the war in Afghanistan,” Siff tells “06880.”

“Fallen Heroes/Afghanistan” (Marlene Siff)

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Westport-based Nest Egg Foundation has partnered with the Carlos Rodón Foundation to launch the first-ever Willow Gala.

The September 30 event at the Delamar in Greenwich will bring together community leaders, philanthropists and supporters, to raise awareness and funds for families facing fertility challenges. The evening includes live music, dining, silent and live auctions, and special guests.

The Nest Egg Foundation was created in 2015. It is a collaborative effort of medical and financial professionals, attorneys, and others. The foundation plays a key role role in the application and evaluation process of The Willow Grant, which was developed by New York Yankees pitcher Rodón and his wife.

For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.

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We all know that turtles move at — well, a turtle’s pace.

The other day, Johanna Keyser Rossi spotted this one stranded above Deadman Brook, behind the police station.

Half an hour later he was still there.

Johanna figures he was “waiting for high tide, or to jump in.” Maybe he was just posing for “Westport … Naturally” — at his own speed.

(Photo/Johanna Keyser Rossi)

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And finally … on this date in 1985, the Live Aid benefit concert was held simultaneously at Wembley Stadium in London, and John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia. The goal was to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief.

On this day too, Live Aid-inspired concerts were held in the USSR, Canada, Japan, Yugoslavia, Austria, Australia, and West Germany. An estimated 1.9 billion people — nearly 40% of the earth’s population — watched the broadcast.

(It’s nowhere near as important as famine relief. But if you’re inclined to toss a few bucks our “06880” way, you can click here and follow the prompts. Thank you!)

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Roundup: Yarn Bombing; Coffee Roasting; Black Duck; More

Posted on July 3, 2020 | Comments Off on Roundup: Yarn Bombing; Coffee Roasting; Black Duck; More

Everyone loves the Yarn Bomber. Now you can learn her secrets.

No, not who she is. Even better: how she does it.

The Yarn Bomber is bringing her talents — decorating trees and street signs in beautiful, uplifting colors — to the masses. She’s created a virtual knitting course, and anyone can join.

For just $50 you get needles, starter yarn, 5 days of instruction (1 hour a day), knitting videos, online tutorials, and a live public socially distanced yarn bomb at a scheduled date. All supplies can be picked up will at Westport Yarns.

The Yarn Bomber can also accommodate custom group sessions for groups (minimum of 6 participants).

Email yarnbalmer@gmail.com for more information.

Yarn bombing at Compo Beach (Photo/Judy Auber Jahnel)

There are plenty of places to buy coffee in Saugtuck, from Dunkin’ to Donut Crazy.

There may soon be one more.

A sign next to Tutti’s — in the storefront occupied briefly by a kombucha bar — advertises ILSE Coffee. It’s the work of 2013 Staples High School graduate Lucas Smith, and Rebecca Grossman.

They started a Kickstarter campaign. Their goal is to open a “dream cafe and marketplace.” The roastery/market will include specialty coffee, pastries, sandwiches, small plates and to-go food, along with wine, beer, cocktails and retail items. They hope to host coffee cuppings, seminars and workshops too.

The goal is $10,000. The deadline is August 1.

As of yesterday though, the Kickstarter drive was $9,999 short.

Lucas Smith, in the Saugatuck space.

Speaking of Saugatuck — here’s the news you’ve all been waiting for:

The Black Duck is back open!

Just in time for summer, all’s right with the world.

(Photo/Lynn Untermeyer Miller)

Uncertain weather today forced a postponement of the Supper & Soul Drive-in/Tailgate Concert. The event — featuring the Tom Petty Project — is now set for Sunday (July 5, 6 p.m.).

Tickets for tonight’s show can be used on the new date. If you can’t make the new date, contact the sponsoring Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce (matthew@westportwestonchamber.com). There’s a wait list for the sold-out show.

During the show, anyone with comments or concerns should call 203-851-2771.

The Chamber and Westport Library will also hold a streaming concert next Sunday (July 11). Part of Supper & Soul, it features the ’80s hair band Mullett. Tickets are $10.80. Click here for details.

In these challenging times, support groups are more important than ever.

But physical distancing and other rules make it challenging for organizations to offer that support.

Positive Directions — the Westport-based prevention and counseling agency — can help. They offer free, weekly virtual support groups for people trying to achieve healthy lifestyles, after battling substance abuse addiction.

There are special sessions too for family members, and young adults. Click here for details.

Kami Evans — who as “Kami’s Kloud” provided tons of Westport information on social media platforms — will move back here with her family in August. She’s been in England since 2018.

Her newest project is working on a global social media campaign, incorporating local artists. Her first video stars Westport’s own Rosie Jon. Born without arms, she paints (beautifully) with her toes.

Rosie’s current project — #WeAreOne — is “so poignant right now,” Kami says.

Click below for Rosie’s video. Click here for links to all of Kami’s platforms.

Westporters Chris and Amy Overman were ready to start a family. Yet at 38, Amy struggled with infertility. For 6 years, the couple tried many treatments.

After 13 failed cycles — including IUI, IVF and stem treatments — Amy read a chapter in her infertility book that many people skip: egg donation.

It’s expensive. But the Overmans received an egg donation. They’re now the proud parents of a son, Ryder.

Two years later, Amy paid it forward. She gave $10,000 to the Norwalk-based Nest Egg Foundation — and called it the  Ryder Grant. Now, someone else can benefit from an egg donation.

The Foundation’s application window for the 2020 fertility grant program runs through July 31. Connecticut and New York residents are eligible.

For more information, including grant application eligibility criteria and how to become a donor, click here. 

And finally … a fitting tribute to the late John Prine.

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Nest Egg Foundation Helps Infertile Families Grow

Posted on August 17, 2017 | 5 comments

About 1/8 of all couples have infertility issues.

Only half of those have insurance coverage to try to become pregnant.

And of those who do, many face strict financial limits. Becoming pregnant can cost up to $20,000.

Dr. Mark Leondires

Dr. Mark Leondires knows those issues well. As medical director and partner in reproductive endocrinology at Reproductive Medicine Associates of Connecticut, he sees them every day.

Now he’s doing something about it.

With a group of local residents — some medical professionals, others in finance and law; 4 from Westport, 1 from Weston — he’s formed the Nest Egg Foundation.

It’s a brilliant name — and a wonderful concept.

Each year, the non-profit provides $10,000 grants for in vitro fertilization treatment to people who have been unable to start their families due to financial needs.

There’s no guarantee of success in the infertility field. But the Nest Egg Foundation’s success is clear. Last year, they gave 4 grants. Three of those women are already pregnant. The 4th is getting ready to try.

It’s a rigorous process — and that refers to the selection, as well as the treatment. Applicants are vetted by a retired OB/GYN, a psychologist and a CPA.

“This is not about giving money,” Leondires notes. “It’s about giving the opportunity to try to get pregnant. My heart breaks for these people. If people want to have a child, money should not be a barrier to try.”

“Everyone thinks everybody around here can afford everything. That’s not true. A lot of our neighbors can’t.”

He adds, “In some ways, I have the best job in the world. People always send me pictures of their babies. But in some ways, this is the most challenging, because of all the people who can’t.”

The Nest Egg Foundation began when Leondires realized that although RMACT provided financial assistance to clients, it had no clear process for deciding who to help.

Now the aid is more consistent, more clearly defined — and out of the hand of the physicians themselves.

Though it’s professionally run, the Nest Egg Foundation relies entirely on volunteers. Miggs Burroughs donated the logo; others — including many from Westport — offer free legal and PR help.

Many people find the organization through RMACT’s website. “If you’re dealing with infertility, you spend a lot of time on the internet looking for information,” Leondires says.

Others hear of it through social media, or word of mouth.

Of course, the Nest Egg Foundation needs its own nest egg. Money comes from donations, board members and fundraising events like last month’s “Birdies for Charity” golf tournament.

Many worthy causes ask for money. Leondires is proud to be one of them.

“Becoming pregnant can change people’s lives,” he says. “The chance to try gives us the chutzpah to keep asking.”

(For more information on the Nest Egg Foundation, click here. To donate, click here.)

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