Lux was also the last name of a much-loved Long Lots science teacher.
Yesterday — nearly 2 decades after his death — Norbert Lux got a shout-out in the New York Times.
Melissa Kirsch — who writes the paper’s “Morning” newsletter every Saturday — wrote about tomorrow’s eclipse.
She said:
The first time I heard of an eclipse, I was in sixth grade. My science teacher, too aptly named Mr. Lux (“light,” in Latin), described the mechanics of the event, but what stayed with me, an anxious child, was not the idea of a world plunged into daytime darkness but the risk of permanent retinal damage posed by looking directly at the eclipse.
I couldn’t believe I was permitted proximity to this much peril, this much responsibility over my safety. One glance skyward and I could damage my eyesight forever. Why was I just learning about this now?
Norbert Lux
Staples High School Class of 1975 graduate Doug Davidoff spotted the Times piece, on SHS ’77 grad Dawn McCabe’s Facebook page.
“I’m glad Mr.Lux made it to the New York Times,” Doug writes. “He would have so enjoyed the eclipse on Monday.”
Doug adds: “As Mr. Lux taught, don’t look directly at the sun. It might cause permanent retinal damage and harm your eyesight forever!”
The weather report for tomorrow is “partly cloudy.” Unfortunately, there may not be all the “lux” we need to appreciate the show of nature Mr. Lux taught so well.
(For Melissa Kirsch’s entire story on the eclipse, click here.)
The Westport Weston Family YMCA offers many services, for many people.
But for nearly a year — ever since the previous café operator left — if you’re hungry after a workout or swim, you’re out of luck.
Ditto if you want to hang out over a meal or coffee with a friend, or while you wait for your kid. Every employee has to bring their lunch, too.
Fortunately, a new operator takes over soon. And not just anyone.
The Porch at Christie’s will open a Y outpost sometime in mid-March. Items will come from both the popular bakery/deli/community center on Cross Highway, and Sweet P Bakery. Both were founded by Bill and Andrea Pecoriello.
And — true to the Christie’s and Sweet P missions — the Y café will offer training and jobs to adults with disabilities.
“We are very excited for this partnership with the Y, and the expanded impact we’ll have on creating jobs in the community,” the Pecoriellos say.
In related news, The Porch and Sweet P Bakery are now a single non-profit, working together on job training and meaningful employment for adults with disabilities.
Every Sunday, Westporters join others nationwide in a “Run For Their Lives” march. They carry signs supporting the safe return of Israeli hostages still held by Hamas, after the October 7 terrorist attack.
Yesterday’s event included a walk on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge.
To be added to the WhatsApp group for notification of upcoming marches, click here.
“Run For Their Lives” marchers yesterday, on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge. (Photo/Tracy Porosoff)
Sal Liccione spotted this sign yesterday, on Elm Street at Church Lane:
(Photo/Sal Liccione)
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Calling all seniors!
Mozaic Senior Life — formerly Jewish Senior Services, whose board includes Westporters Ellen Berenyi, Nancy Magida, Ed Friedland, Alan Phillips and Ken Wirfel, and which serves many local residents — is hosting a free community-wide “SHARE” event.
The acronym stands for Senior Health And Resource Expo. A variety of senior care organizations will gather April 7 (10 a.m. to 1 p.m., 4200 Park Avenue, Bridgeport).
They’ll provide information, resources and insights into care available for elders throughout lower Fairfield County.
Westport Museum for History & Culture executive director Ramin Ganeshram is also a cookbook author.
On February 20 — 2 days before George Washington’s birthday — the New York Times’ Cooking blog published a recipe she adapted for hoecakes, a favorite of the first president
It included a background paragraph by Ganeshram, noting the background of the dish, and — with a nod to Washington’s dental issues and his wealth — the quality of cornmeal used. (Hat tip: Werner Liepolt)
Hoecakes (Photo/Matt Taylor-Gross for the New York Times)
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Westporters are used to deer.
We know when one leaps out in front of our car, 2 or 3 more will follow.
Our “Westport … Naturally” feature has included shots of 5 or 6 at a time, in one yard.
But Johanna Keyser Rossi counted more than 20 on Saturday, at Sherwood Island State Park.
I count 16 in this “Westport … Naturally” photo. Though they are very adept at blending in.
Every Sunday, the New York Times real estate section features 3 homes around the country. All sell for the same price, so readers can compare and contrast.
Tomorrow’s edition includes 3 homes for around $1.995 million. One is in Ocean Grove, New Jersey; another is in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The third is on Old Hill Road. Not only that — it was one of the 4 homes on our “Historic Homes of 06880” house tour last month.
The writeup of the 3-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath 1707 Colonial on a 0.8-acre lot says:
“While this Fairfield County home has been expanded since it was constructed in the early 18th century, the owners have taken care to preserve and even augment its character: An early 1990s addition, for example, was built using repurposed materials from a circa 1850 home.
“The property is close to the center of town, about a 5-minute drive from popular shopping and dining centers, and 10 minutes from the well-ranked public Staples High School. Driving to Hartford or Midtown Manhattan can take an hour and a half or more than two hours, depending on traffic.
Westport Police made 1 custodial arrest between December 20-27.
A woman was arrested for evading responsibility (hit and run), failure to drive in the proper lane and failure to comply with passing on right rules following a motor vehicle accident at Saugatuck Avenue and I-95.
Police also issued these citations:
Operating a motor vehicle without a license: 4 citations
Failure to obey traffic control signals: 4
Traveling unreasonably fast: 3
Improper use of markers: 2
Passing a standing school bus: 1
Beach of peace: 1
Disorderly conduct: 1
Criminal trespass: 1
Interfering with an officer: 1
Operating a motor vehicle with minimum insurance: 1
Failure to comply with state traffic commission regulations: 1
Peter Guy Tomasulo, a 1971 graduate of Staples High School, died peacefully among family on December 17, after a long battle with cancer. He was 70 years old, and lived in Stratford.
His family says, “Peter had a passion for sports, and a calling for leadership. He coached and played the majority of his life.”
After Staples, Peter continued playing soccer at Lyndon State College, where he captained the team. He met his wife, Kathleen Kenney, there. After their marriage they moved to Norwalk, then settled in Newtown.
Peter was predeceased by his wife. He is survived by his brother Edward, sister Kim Brown, son Brian, daughter Jillian Brookes (Stephen), and grandchildren Kate, Anderson, West and Elle.
A celebration of his life will be held later.
Peter Tomasulo
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Sure, Christmas Day is done.
But the 12 Days of Christmas continue.
And here, believe it or not — straight from the Saugatuck River — are 7 actual swans a-swimming.
Becky Keeler spotted, and captured, today’s very appropriate “Westport … Naturally” image.
And finally … today is the birthday of several noted musicians.
Felix Pappalardi (born 1939, died 1993):
Michael Nesmith (born 1942, died 2021):
Patti Smith (born 1946):
Jeff Lynne (born 1947):
It is also the birthday of Sean Hannity (born 1961):
(Gentle reminder: If you’re looking for a tax deduction before the end of 2023, please consider a donation to “06880.” Just click here. Thank you — and happy new year!)
It’s a journalistic tradition: At the end of each year, the New York Times publishes “The Year in Pictures.”
For a number of years, there’s been another tradition: The feature includes the work of Staples High School graduates Lynsey Addario (Class of 1991) and Tyler Hicks (’88). Both are Pulitzer Prize winners.
The tradition continues this year.
The very compelling Times section includes:
Dnipro, Ukraine, January 18. Lynsey Addario photographed Olha Afanasieva, 49, recovering in the hospital after sustaining serious injuries in a Russian strike on her apartment building. She and her husband were sitting at their kitchen table when the missile hit.
Lynsey said: “I was looking at her from the right-hand side and I was trying to photograph her eyes and the injuries, and it wasn’t coming together. Suddenly she turned and the other side of her face was a patchwork. It just spoke to me, and symbolized all of these lives and faces, and everything that has been torn in the country.”
Bakhmut, Ukraine, March 17. Tyler Hicks captured medics helping a Ukrainian soldier who was injured by shrapnel on the front line. The fight for the city, which Russia later captured, was one of the deadliest clashes in the war.
Bakhmut, Ukraine, May 19. Tyler Hicks’ shot showed the smoldering remains of Bakhmut, just days before Russia claimed victory there. It took the Kremlin almost a year and cost the lives of thousands of soldiers to capture the city.
Tyler said: “Despite having seen military photographs of the devastation of Bakhmut, to actually be in control of a drone and fly up to the edge of the city and see it, live, really solidified in my mind how much the city had been destroyed and how many lives had been lost in the process. It was personally quite shocking.”
Outside Makarivka, Ukraine, July 26. Tyler Hicks’ harrowing image shows the body of a Russian soldier in the Zaporizhzhia region, where Ukraine was waging a counteroffensive. In 2 months, Ukrainian troops had advanced less than 10 miles at any point along the region’s 100-mile front.
Tyler said: “I saw what I originally thought was just a uniform that had been discarded on the road, but on closer inspection I realized it was a body. There had been no effort made to move the body. He’d been run over so many times that he became impacted tot he point that the body had become part of the road.”
Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, September 14. In Lynsey Addario’s shot, aUkrainian soldier prepared to release a drone to fly over Russian-occupied territory in search of heavy weapons and air defense installations. In a counteroffensive often reliant on small advantages, a fleet of inexpensive drones provided one for the Ukrainians.
Lynsey explained: “When we approached the team of soldiers, they were hiding in the bushes. We heard Russian drones flying overhead, and it was terrifying. Most of the war at this point is fought by drone. There’s nothing you can do, just hope you are hidden well enough. The soldier released the drone and we ran back into the bushes.”
What Lynsey Addario and Tyler Hicks do is dangerous, remarkable, and very important. To see more work from their colleagues, click here.
I asked him how many Unsung Heroes he had nominated. Remember the old ’60s saying? “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.”
Turns out, he used an alias.
That makes him even more of a jerk. Coming on the heels of my discovery of a couple of other aliases — some plausible-sounding like “Will Leach,” others clearly fake — I feel like a jerk, too.
I trust “06880” readers. I do not require verification to post comments. I only ask that people use full, real names.
I spend a ton of time on all aspects of “06880.” Monitoring comments for civility and accuracy is one of them. Monitoring them for honesty should not be part of the deal.
I’ve asked before: Please be nice. Please don’t abuse the Comments section. If you have something to say, have the guts to say it publicly, under your real name.
That shouldn’t be too much to ask. Obviously though it is, because I just did.
“06880” welcomes your comments. Please have the courtesy — and guts — to use your real name.
The New York Times’ “Morning” newsletter just published their most memorable photos of the year.
The very first one was taken by 1991 Staples High School graduate — and Pulitzer Prize/MacArthur “genius grant” award winner — Lynsey Addario.
(Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)
The caption says:
“Millions of people fled Ukraine in the early weeks of Russia’s invasion, seeking refuge in other countries. Desperate families shoved their way onto a train leaving the capital, Kyiv, in early March.”
Click here for more of the Times’ top images. (Hat tip: Susan Leone)
Meanwhile, the Times’ other photo feature — the more extended “Year in Pictures” — includes more than half a dozen images from Addario and Tyler Hicks, her colleague who is also a Pulitzer winner and Staples grad (Class of 1988).
The first in the chronological list is from January 19. It’s a shot by Hicks of a Ukrainian soldier at a frontline position. “The world watched nervously as Western countries warned that Russia was preparing to attack Ukraine at any moment,” the caption says.
(Photo/Tyler Hicks for the New York Times)
There was also this harrowing photo of a dead Russian soldier near Kharkiv, as Ukrainian troops defender their land in the first days of the invasion.
(Photo/Tyler Hicks for The New York Times)
“The Year in Pictures” includes this explanatory quote from Hicks:
There was no way to know if you would run into Russian soldiers. I decided to get out of the car and walk to make sure we weren’t going to drive up to any surprises. There was snow on the ground and I wasn’t sure what I was going to find, but I eventually came upon several Russian soldiers who had been killed. I took the photos as quickly as I could because the area where I was working was exposed, and then I got back to cover.
There’s also this iconic shot by Addario, immediately after Russian mortar fire killed a family trying to flee Irpin, near Kyiv. The photo drew worldwide attention to the horrors of Russia’s invasion:
(Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)
Addario explains:
I was photographing along a civilian evacuation route and was in the actual attack. The shell landed between us. The woman and her two children and the church volunteer were killed. I was just lucky the blast went the other direction and not toward me.
Click here and scroll down, for many more photos by Hicks and Addario (and others). (Hat tip: Evan Stein)
Speaking of Ukraine: It’s now a few days after Christmas. But the good feelings from Westport’s holiday gift to our sister city of Lyman, Ukraine still linger.
Click below for a brief video — just posted to YouTube’s “Sister Cities Westport Lyman Marigny” channel:
The total amount raised now by our town (and friends and relatives of Westporters) is $209,300. We are closing in on our goal of $250,000.
Tax-deductible donations can be made to Lyman through Ukraine Aid International. 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).
Westport Police report no custodial arrests between December 21 and 28. With the cold weather, traffic was light too. These were the only citations issued:
Traveling unreasonably fast: 2
Following too closely: 2
Speeding: 1
Evading responsibility: 1
Traveling too fast for conditions: 1
Failure to drive in proper lane: 1
Operating a motor vehicle under suspension: 1
Failure to carry certificate of registration/insurance: 1
Failure to obey control signal: 1
Violation of any traffic commission regulation: 1.
The end of the year is the perfect time for Westport Town Farm to announce programs for the new year.
“Parent and Me” returns, from January through March. Classes include outdoor time for feeding animals, followed by age-appropriate crafts, games or stories inside the Farmhouse.
Families transitioning out of “Parent and Me” enjoy “Toddler Sprouts” (ages 3-5, Tuesdays at 1:30 p.m.).
A new program — “Tiny Farmers Playdate” — begins in January (Wednesdays, 9 a.m.). Taking place in the Farmhouse, it’s geared toward ages of 0 -18 months.
A new “Rugged Bear Wilderness Club” runs after school. Youngsters ages 11-14 will develop outdoors skills like fire-making, orienteering, using basic hand tools, simple first aid, pitching a tent and being challenged in nature. The club begins February 9.
Spots are also available in the “Fantastic Farmhands” elementary school program.
WTF also runs an MLK Jr. Vacation Day Camp on January 16.
Click here for more information, or email education.wakemantownfarm.org.
The Appalachian Mountain Club’s Westport Fairfield County Group will “Skate Through New Zealand.”
That’s the topic of their January 10 meeting (Saugatuck Congregational Church; appetizers, wine, dinner at 6:15 p.m.; presentation 7:30 p.m.; members $10, non-members $15).
Speaker Geoffrey Saunders has been skateboarding since he was 10. He lived in New Zealand for a year as an exchange student, and has returned 4 times. He skateboarded 400 miles through North Island, raising funds for Wildlife in Crisis, and will discuss his many adventures.
Reservations not required, but please RSVP: easasso7@icloud.com.
Kevin Conroy — the 1973 Staples High School graduate and former Staples Players star whose voice was the definitive Batman — died yesterday. He was 66 years old, and had battled cancer.
Conroy was Batman’s voice on the animated television series from 1992 to ’96. He continued with the character through 15 films, 400 TV episodes and 2 dozen video games.
“Kevin brought a light with him everywhere, whether in the recording booth giving it his all or feeding first-responders during 9/11 or making sure every fan who ever waited for him had a moment with their Batman,” said Paul Dini, producer of the animated show. ”A hero in every sense of the word.”
AP says:
Conroy) attended Juilliard and roomed with Robin Williams. After graduating, he toured with John Houseman’s acting group, the Acting Company. He performed in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the Public Theater and in “Eastern Standard” on Broadway. At the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California, he performed in “Hamlet.”
The 1980s production of “Eastern Standard,” in which Conroy played a TV producer secretly living with AIDS, had particular meaning to him. Conroy, who was gay, said at the time he was regularly attending funerals for friends who died of AIDS. He poured out his anguish nightly on stage.
In 1980, Conroy moved to Los Angeles, began acting in soap operas and booked appearances on TV series including “Cheers,” “Tour of Duty” and “Murphy Brown.” In 1991, when casting director Andrea Romano was scouting her lead actor for “Batman: The Animated Series,” she went through hundreds of auditions before Conroy came in. He was there on a friend’s recommendation — and cast immediately.
In 2016 — when the New York Times profiled Conroy — “06880” posted this story:
In the eight-decade history of Batman, no one played the Dark Knight more.
For over 20 years, the 1973 Staples High School graduate has lent his “deeply charming, yet virile voice” to 9 Batman TV series, 12 animated movies and 7 video games. No other actor has played Batman for so long, or been as closely identified with him.
Today, the New York Times finally took notice.
Kevin Conroy (Photo/Ben Esner for NY Times)
The Arts section features a full-length story on Conroy — who, it should be noted, is hardly a 1-trick Batman. The Juilliard alum also toured nationally with “Deathtrap,” appeared on the soap opera “Another World,” played Laertes in the New York Shakespeare Festival, acted on Broadway, and was a regular on “Ohara” and “Tour of Duty.”
But it’s as Batman he’s best known, and that’s the Times hook. Jeff Muskus writes:
He has logged the most screen time of anyone in the comic-book vigilante’s 77-year history — without ever showing his face onscreen for the role. Still, his voice, deep and resonant, has defined the character for fans who grew up with his shows, and again for those devouring his three Arkham video games.
“It’s so much fun as an actor to sink your teeth into,” Mr. Conroy, 60, said over lunch in New York’s theater district. “Calling it animation doesn’t do it justice. It’s more like mythology.”
The story notes that “school plays” — aka Staples Players — provided Conroy with a home, away from his dysfunctional family (he lived some of the time with friends).
Muskus concludes:
Unlike Batman, Mr. Conroy has managed to resolve much of his childhood trauma. First, he sought a modicum of financial stability….He saved during his stage and Los Angeles days, flipping houses on both coasts, and supported and made peace with his parents in their final years. “I was able to speak for my father at his funeral and sing for my mother at hers,” he said.
Mr. Conroy said he’s grateful for his long-running second act. “I’ve been really fortunate to have gotten Batman, because he’s a character that’s just evolved,” he said. “It’s just been a character where you can ride that wave for 24 years. Keeping him alive, keeping him from getting just dark and boring and broody, is the challenge.”
Click here to read the full New York Times story. Click here for the Times’ selection of Conroy’s standout Batman performances.
Lynsey Addario’s photo of a family killed on the street in Ukraine horrified the world.
“06880” has reported on the reaction, and the back story. Yesterday, Lynsey — a 1991 Staples High School graduate — described it herself, on the New York Times’ “The Daily” podcast. Click here to listen to her fascinating, important words. (Hat tips: Tommy Greenwald, Lee Feldman, Susan Woog Wagner)
Ukrainian soldiers do what they can, moments after a mortar attack on civilians on the streets of Irpin, near Kyiv. (Photo/Lynsey Addario for The New York Times)
Speaking of Ukraine: Irene Braziler is a native of that country. She’s spent the last 17 years in Westport; her sons Jake and Sam are in school here.
Last Thursday, Irene left for Romania. She met longtime Ukrainian friends at the border, where she’s helped them with cars and accommodations as they make their way to safety.
A video shared by Irene’s Westport friend Kelly Haazen shows the women — after being attacked, leaving their husbands behind, heading to an unknown destination with no idea how long they’d be there — beaming with joy at the sight of their old friend Irene.
Irene has started a GoFundMe drive to provide support to hospitals in Ukraine, civilians like her friends, and many others in desperate need. Every dollar donated will directly impact refugees and medical aid efforts, through DirectRelief.org.
The media personality hosts a streaming show for Turner Sports during the first 2 rounds of the hoops classic.
“Fast Break” features Briggs, Kentucky legend Tony Delk, Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner, and former Northwestern player/sports betting expert Tim Doyle. There’s action from every game, analysis, and player and social media reaction.
Sure, Ken Jennings and Amy Schneider won over $1 million on “Jeopardy!” But could they do what Aalok Bhattacharya, Oliver Clachko and Thomas Sargent have done?
The Staples students — a junior and 2 seniors, respectively — took first place in last month’s regional History Bowl competition on Long Island.
They don’t just have to answer obscure questions (or, in “Jeopardy!”-speak, provide questions to answers). The History Bowl — run by former “Jeopardy!” champ David Madden — is buzzer-based. But there are toss-up questions, a lightning round, and besides, these are just high school students.
But — unlike Sam Cooke — Aalok, Oliver and Thomas know a lot about history. And not just our own. They know Roman history, European history, the history of philosophy — you name it, they know it.
And they practice it after school, with faculty advisor (and chemistry teacher) Dominick Messina. They work on questions and answers — and on being first to buzz the buzzer.
Staples’ win vaults them into the national competition, April 23-24 in Washington. They hope to raise $675 to help with the registration fee and travel expenses. History-minded Westporters — or anyone else — who can help sponsor them should email aalok.bhattacharya1@gmail.com.
History Bowl champs (from left): Thomas Sargent, Aalok Bhattacharya, Oliver Clachko.
The last couple weeks of “Kids Are Talking” — the online show hosted by local therapist Dr. Don Cohen — have been interesting.
In a partnership with Turning Point CT, an organization for young people in recovery from mental health and substance use issues, Mental Health Stigma took a close look at breaking stigmas. A subsequent Mental Health in the Mirror episode addressed eating disorders.
College Application Stress was created in partnership with Fairfield CARES. The discussion included advice from high school seniors on how to handle the admissions process, and gave a heads up to juniors about what’s ahead.
Last week’s Athletes and Mental Health discussed the physical and mental stresses of performing during COVID and beyond.
Tomorrow’s show centers on the War in Ukraine, with teens who have family and friends in that troubled region. State Senator Will Haskell is the guest ono March 31.
“BIG” — the acronym stands for “Believe, Inspire, Grow” — debuts in Westport at the Saugatuck Rowing Club’s Boathouse Restaurant, at noon.
BIG is a global woman’s empowerment community offering inspiration, community, and tools to move personal and professional lives forward. Members build relationships in a dynamic, supportive entrepreneurial community.
Melissa Bernstein — co-founder of toy company Melissa & Doug, and the mental health multi-media platform LifeLines — is the featured speaker.
Another longtime, much-loved, and COVID-affected event is back — at a new but important location.
CLASP Homes’ “Taste of Westport” fundraiser is set for June 15, at the newly renovated Inn at Longshore. As always, it’s a great (and tasty) evening filled with food and drinks from your local restaurants, music, and a silent auction. Mark your calendars; details to follow.
Westport resident — and internationally acclaimed photographer — Larry Silver has the lens pointed directly at him this month.
Fairfield University Art Museum presents 13 Ways of Looking at Landscape: Larry Silver’s Connecticut Photographs. The solo exhibition includes more than 80 works, and is on view from March 25 through June 18.
The exhibition brings together over 40 years of Silver’s work, made of and in this state. It opens with a lecture by guest curator Leslie K. Brown on March 24. For more information, click here.
“Sitting at Water’s Edge, Sherwood Island State Park, Westpor, 2014/2022,” archival inkjet print. Courtesy of Larry Silver and Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York.
Here’s a “Westport … Naturally” scene you don’t see every day: a red fox, sunning itself in Greens Farms. Elena Nasereddin captured this image on Monday.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine took an even more horrific turn today.
Lynsey Addario — the 1991 Staples High School Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times photographer — reports with words and images that “a Russian force advancing on Kyiv fired mortar shells … at a battered bridge used by evacuees fleeing the fighting.”
The attack sent “panicked civilians running, kicking up a cloud of dust and leaving three members of a family dead on the pavement.”
Addario’s photo showed that haunting scene.
Ukrainian soldiers trying to save the father of a family of 4 — the only one at that moment who still had a pulse — moments after being hit by a mortar while trying to flee Irpin, near Kyiv, today. (Photo/Lynsey Addario for The New York Times)
Addario’s report continued:
Crowds of hundreds have clustered around the damaged bridge over the Irpin River since Saturday. Ukrainian forces had blown up the bridge earlier to slow the Russian advance. Only a dozen or so Ukrainian soldiers were in the immediate area of the bridge on Sunday, not fighting but helping carry civilians’ luggage and children.
To cross a hundred yards or so of exposed street on the side of the bridge closer to Kyiv, people seeking to flee to the capital formed small groups and made a run for it together. Soldiers ran out, picked up children or luggage, and ran for cover behind a cinder block wall.
The mortar shells fell first 100 or so yards from the bridge, then shifted in a series of thunderous blasts into a section of street where people were fleeing.
Click here for the full story. (Hat tip: Ernest Lorimer)
Ken, this is all so violent and surreal. At the moment it is hard to get thoughts together.
Kiev is in big danger. But heavy fighting is all over eastern part. A group of enemy armored vehicles is somewhere close to (where we are in) Berdyansk now. Moving in the direction of Mariupol to block it from 2 sides. I am personally disappointed about Western sanctions and their little impact on Putin. They can not even agree on cutting Russia from SWIFT.
Also yesterday, more of Staples High School Class of 1988 graduate Tyler Hicks were published by the New York Times.
This was the most harrowing. It shows a Russian soldier lying dead, next to a Russian vehicle in Kharkiv, Ukraine:
(Photo/Tyler Hicks for The New York Times)
Meanwhile, Staples 1991 graduate Lynsey Addario took this photo, showing destruction at an apartment building after Russian bombing in Kyiv, Ukraine:
(Photo/Lynsey Addario for The New York Times)
(Hat tips: Tommy Greenwald, John Nathan, John Hartwell and Beth Cody)
Installation of beams at the Cavalry Road Bridge replacement project, between Crooked Mile and Rebel Roads, will take place from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. this coming Wednesday through Friday (March 2-4).
The contractor will use local roads to access the site to deliver the oversized crane and bridge beams, resulting in additional detours and possible delays in the area, including Red Coat Road and Hermit Lane.
Cavalry Road bridge (Photo courtesy of Weston Today)
Fred Cantor doesn’t miss a Westport reference — or a chance to tie loose ends together. The longtime Westport report:
“Near the beginning of Thursday’s return of the flagship franchise, ‘Law & Order,’ a suspect told police his alibi: ‘I was at home in Westport.’”
“Where did that line come from? Possibly the show’s executive producer, Peter Jankowski, who is also president of Dick Wolf Entertainment, and who grew up in Westport. Dick co-wrote the show.
“In the same show Sam Waterston, seen in the recent documentary ‘Gatsby in Connecticut’ — he was filmed inside the South Compo cottage the Fitzgeralds spent the summer in back in 1920 — returned to his role as the Manhattan DA.”
Westport piano teacher Nadine Cherna has been selected for a Steinway Top Teacher Award. She was cited for “care and commitment.”
Steinway & Sons president Gavin English added, “The young people who develop their craft under your guiding hand will be the artists who fill our future with music.” (Hat tip: Roger Kaufman)
And finally … Sandy Nelson, who had improbable hit records as a drummer, died earlier this month in Las Vegas. He was 83, and had suffered a stroke in 2017. Click here for a full obituary.
As the news from Ukraine grows increasingly dire, the world relies on journalists and photographers to report what is happening.
Two of the best photojournalists are the New York Times’ Pulitzer Prize winners Lynsey Addario and Tyler Hicks. Both are — incredibly — Staples High School graduates, just 3 classes apart (1991 and ’88).
They’ve reported from the globe’s most dangerous spots: Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, and many more. This may be their most treacherous assignment yet.
Both are there because they want to be. But that does not make things any easier for their relatives here in Westport.
“It’s very tough,” admits Camille Addario, Lynsey’s mother. “To think that this fearless little girl has been all over the world, documenting tragedies.
“‘It’s what I do. Anything can happen anywhere,’ she always says. So I can only pray and support her, and hope that she gets home safely to her husband and 2 boys, and everyone who cares for her. The last thing she needs is guilt from her mother and sisters.”
Lauren, Lynsey, Lisa and Lesley Addario.
Lynsey FaceTimed Camille on Wednesday. She said the Times had put her up in a safe hotel.
However, Camille says, yesterday she moved to a more perilous spot.
“That’s Lynsey,” her mother says. “She’s right there.”
Camille does not watch much coverage of the conflict. Instead, she says, “I hope and pray that my mother is looking down, and has her hand on Lynsey’s shoulder. She’s always been her protector.”
Lynsey’s grandmother Louise Bonito died in November 2020 — at 107.
Louise “Nonnie” Bonito, surrounded by her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Camille is in the front row, second from left.
Camille calls herself “blessed” by the support of family and friends. She has received many calls and texts. She thanks everyone for thinking of her and Lynsey.
And, she says, “like everyone, we’re just waiting for this awful thing to end.”
Waiting for trains out of the city at the main station in Kramatorsk yesterday. (Photo/Lynsey Addario for The New York Times)
Not far from Camille’s home, artist Darcy Hicks worries too. Her brother is Tyler Hicks.
“My mother, being an artist, brought me and her brother up with imagery. What you see in front of you, and how it makes you feel — that’s just true.
“So I think he and I both found ways — very different ways. — to express ourselves through imagery.
Tyler Hicks
“People are surprised when I tell them that Tyler is really not at all political, partly because he’s my brother [Darcy is active in progressive politics] and partly because he’s always covering warfare, which is of course politics.
“But he truly goes in with no preconceptions about the story he’s going to tell. He can’t go in looking for some piece of evidence that proves his point, ignoring the stuff that challenges his ideals.
“He just looks through the lens and shows us what is really going on. Imagine if we could all communicate that way. Seeing the gray, instead of finding a corner and an enemy.
“I’m very proud of him. But I will wring his neck when he gets out of there. Today, the world feels very unsustainable.”
In 2015, Camille Addario was interviewed by Time magazine about being the mother of a “war photographer.” Click here to read.)
Families boarding evacuation trains in Kramatorsk yesterday evening, bound for Kyiv and Lviv, the largest city in western Ukraine. (Photo/Tyler Hicks for New York Times)
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