Tag Archives: Save the Children

Kerstin Rao Helps Save The Children

Posted on September 3, 2022 | 4 comments

When she retired in 2021 after 34 years as a teacher — including 2 decades with Bedford Middle School’s Workshop program for gifted students — Kerstin Rao did not slow down.

Nearly 40 years after leaving art behind for a career in education, she created a small business. Vivid Cottage is an online shop for art, stationery, home goods and gifts.

Kerstin Rao, with her prints at the Westport Book Shop.

She also blogs, hoping to inspire other woman-owned businesses. Whenever she can, she shares uplifting stories.

Like this one, about the power of giving back, and giving thanks.

Though her expenses still exceed her income, Kerstin never misses a chance to help children in need.

When she drew a sunflower bouquet the same day Russia invaded Ukraine — and then learned that sunflowers are a symbol of that embattled nation’s identity — she knew she could do something for Ukrainian children and families.

She designed sunflower-themed individual and boxed cards, and tea towels.

Kerstin Rao’s sunflower card.

At the end of June she sent 10% of the profits — and a hand-written card explaining the “sunflower” concept — to Save the Children, the international organization long headquartered on Wilton Road, now in Fairfield.

Whatever goes around, comes around.

A few days later Kerstin received her own note.

Save the Children CEO Janti Soeripto thanked Kerstin warmly for her contribution. She added:

 I wish you all the best in your young venture. Your inviting website is very creative and I have no doubt that through it and the many places your work has exposure around the region, your enterprise will grow like the lovely flowers portrayed in your products.

Kerstin — who calls herself a “little” CEO — was thrilled to hear from her big” counterpart.

But the big CEO was thrilled to be the recipient of such a thoughtful donation.

It takes a village to save the children, for sure.

(To sign up for Kerstin Rao’s art newsletter, click here.)

(“06880” is your hyper-local blog. Please click here to support us.)

4 Comments

Posted in Arts, Education, Local business, Politics

Tagged , , ,

Roundup: Saugatuck Slice, Beachside Bridge, Dr. Scott Gottlieb …

Posted on September 19, 2021 | 3 comments

====================================================

There’s a lot going on next Saturday.

But leave time for the Slice of Saugatuck. The 9th annual event runs September 25, from 2 to 5 p.m.

Over 50 restaurants and stores will participate. Over 2,000 people will stroll the streets, snack on samples, enjoy music and kids activities, and learn more about the joys of Westport’s original town center.

This year’s footprint expands to include Riverside Realty (with a band in the parking lot), and the VFW and Westport Paddle Club across the street.

The Maker Faire area will once again be in Luciano Park.

There’s live music at 7 locations: Outside Chance, Silver Steel, Otis & the Hurricanes, The Howling Barncats, Elana Zarabi, Accidental Breakdown and School of Rock. Plus roving theatrical performances, and taekwando demonstrations.

New this year: boat rides, courtesy of Carefree Boat.

Two beer gardens (with wine — hey, this is Westport) are located on Bridge Square and Railroad Place. Many of restaurants will also offer specialty drinks indoors. Many will also hold special Saugatuck Happy Hours, with more food and drink after 5 p.m.

The price is again $15 per adult (with a two-for-$25 option). Kids under 13 remains $5; age 5 and under are free. Cash only!

The sponsoring Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce has donated over $30,000 to the Gillespie Center’s food pantry, with proceeds from prior events.

For more information and a Slice of Saugatuck map, click here.

From Bridge Square to Railroad Place — and everywhere else — Slice of Saugatuck is packed. (Photo/Terry Cosgrave)

=======================================================

With little fanfare, the Beachside Avenue bridge over I-95 has reopened. It took several months, but the new span should last for decades.

Speaking of decades: The Kings Highway project — which is such an itty-bitty thing, no one even knows it’s a bridge — continues its glacial pace.

Renovation began during the Coolidge administration. (Hat tip: Tom Lowrie)

The new Beachside Avenue bridge. (Photo/John Karrel)

=====================================================

Dr. Scott Gottlieb’s new book will not be released until tomorrow. But — based on pre-orders — Uncontrolled Spread: Why COVID-19 Crushed Us and How We Can Defeat the Next Pandemic — is already a best-seller.

The book by the former FDA commissioner (and our Westport neighbor) describes how the coronavirus raced through our nation. Gottlieb had a front row seat: he was in regular contact with President Trump, key players in Congress, and the drug industry.

Meanwhile, new dangers lurk around every corner. Gottlieb addresses our preparations for the next virus. Are we ready?

Click here for more information, and to order his book.

=======================================================

Save the Children is no longer headquartered in Westport. But it maintains strong ties here.

On September 30 (6:30 p.m., Westport Library), they’re sponsoring an evening with Christina Baker Kline. The best-selling author will join STC’s CEO Janti Soeripto and chief strategy officer Mark Shriver to discuss what the organization is doing for vulnerable children, here and abroad.

The evening includes wine and hors d’oeuvres. To purchase tickets, click here. Questions? Email mleffel@savethechildren.org.

 

=====================================================

Our “Westport … Naturally” photos are usually serene. But I can’t recall a more peaceful, soothing image than this.

(Photo/Lawrence Weisman)

=======================================================

And finally … Brook Benton was born 90 years ago today. He died in 1988 of pneumonia, just 56 years old.

Versatile in rock, R&B, pop and gospel, he had 49 singles on Billboard’s Hot 100. This is one of my all-time favorites, from any artist.

 

3 Comments

Posted in Categories, Saugatuck

Tagged , , , ,

Young Adult Author Picks The Right Time To Write

Posted on June 21, 2020 | 4 comments

Caroline Barney began writing The Trebors 4 years ago.

An adventure novel for middle school youngsters, it’s about a race of creatures that established a civilization in an enormous, mysterious tree that was shaken by a powerful storm. As the characters grapple with something larger than themselves, they — and Barney’s readers — learn about the power of community.

Caroline Barney

When she began, the Westport mother 2 had no idea it would be published in the midst of a pandemic that is teaching those some lessons to children everywhere.

In her previous career, Barney was an advertising professional. When her second daughter was born, she moved into the non-profit and freelance world. But, she says, “I’d been a writer in my heart forever.”

Four years ago, walking in woods with her dog, she saw a tree door. Imagining an entire world outside, she came up with her story.

But she could never have imagined the story that is unfolding now.

Barney says, “we are at the precipice of a changed world. I really believe in the next generation. I think we can all be united. If we frame what is happening today in the right way, we have the power to help kids see there’s hope for a better world.”

The author certainly walks the talk. She’s donating 50% of the proceeds from The Trebors to Save the Children. The organization — now based in Fairfield, but for many years headquartered on Wilton Road — has been part of her life for decades. Her mother worked there.

In college, Barney interned there. While studying abroad, she visited a field office in Cameroon. Recently, she worked for the non-profit as a freelance writer.

The book was published on June 1. Coincidentally, that’s the day Save the Children launched “Read a Story, Change Their Story.” The 100-day campaign aims to curb summer learning loss, while providing support and resources for kids in rural America.

There’s no better story for them to read than The Trebors — a story about changes, in our ever-changing world.

(To order The Trebors, click here.)

4 Comments

Posted in Children, Organizations, People

Tagged , ,

Famous Westport Building Bites The Dust

Posted on October 12, 2018 | 34 comments

First it was world headquarters for the Famous Artists School. Joined later by Famous Writers and Famous Photographers Schools, it made Westport known all over the globe — on matchbox covers and magazine ads — as the place to send your artwork, writing and photos to become, well, famous.

Not.

Later it served as world headquarters for Save the Children.

Today, alert “06880” reader (and locally famous photographer) Chip Stephens was across the Saugatuck River, when the 60-year-old Wilton Road building was demolished.

The long view …

The site is being developed by David Waldman into a retail, restaurant and residential complex.

… and a closeup. (Photos/Chip Stephens)

34 Comments

Posted in Downtown, Looking back, People, Real estate

Tagged , , , , ,

Friday Flashback #83

Posted on March 16, 2018 | 11 comments

As work proceeds on David Waldman’s latest project — converting the former Save the Children headquarters on Wilton Road into a retail/residential complex — it’s a good time to revisit Stevan Dohanos’ 1965 painting of the site.

Back then, it was home to Famous Artists School. Dohanos was one of those (very) famous artists who helped stay-at-home artists around the world discover their inner illustrator.

This painting — courtesy of Dohanos’ son Anthony — is a bit stylized. The house on Gorham Island is moved south, and Bedford Elementary School (now Town Hall) slides very close to Main Street.

But it provides a very realistic view of the days when Westport was the center of the illustration world. Even without Famous Artists, we were a town filled with — and honored by — famous artists.

11 Comments

Posted in Arts, Downtown, Education, Local business, People, Real estate

Tagged , , , ,

Robin Tauck Reports On Syrian Refugees

Posted on May 30, 2016 | 4 comments

The Tauck family is known for many things. Their eponymous company — now in its 4th generation — pioneered high-end group travel, heli-skiing and small-boat river cruises. In Westport — where many family members live — they’ve been quite generous, from renovating National Hall to helping preserve Long Island Sound. A foundation is deeply involved in aiding Bridgeport.

Robin Tauck is a travel industry leader. Her interests range from eco-tourism to helping nations and regions use travel as an economic engine.

She’s nearing the end of a 50-day odyssey in Italy and Greece. With her proximity to Turkey, Syria and the Middle East, she got a first-hand look at the mass migration of refugees seeking asylum in Europe.

Two of the many children in a Lesbos Island refugee camp.

Two of the many children in a Lesbos Island refugee camp.

On Lesbos Island, Robin — an outgoing woman who loves to learn — talked to as many people as she could: refugees, Save the Children workers, and the Lesbos mayor who, she says, “deserves a peace prize.”

Greece has already moved almost a million people from that tiny island just 6 miles off Turkey, through Athens, and on into Europe. Only 4,000 refugees remain.

Little cafes did their best to feed and warm the new arrivals. The island is lovely, Robin says, “but the people are even more beautiful. You cannot imagine how much they did.”

At the height of the smuggling operation, nearly 10,000 people a day arrived in crammed Zodiacs. (By contrast, Ellis Island — set up as an immigration center — handled 11,000 a day at its peak.) Save the Children — which moved its headquarters recently from Westport to Fairfield — now has 10 small offices in the area.

A hand-made sign thanks the many volunteers.

A hand-made sign thanks the many volunteers.

Hundreds of unaccompanied minor children were separated from parents. The kids are traumatized — and not allowed to leave the island yet.

Save the Children is focusing on them. Robin’s new friend Vasili Sofiadellis is teaching computer and coding skills. Youngsters learn English and Greek too.

“It’s not bad. But it’s not pretty,” Robin says.

A pregnant mother survived the trip to Greece. Robin Tauck holds her 7-month-old -- who weighs only as much as a normal 2-month-old.

A pregnant mother survived the trip to Greece. Robin Tauck holds her 7-month-old — who weighs only as much as a normal 2-month-old.

The island is in the midst of cleanup. Broken boats, and enormous piles of hundreds and thousands of life jackets — “each one a life story,” she notes — are being moved from the beaches.

Robin Tauck (right) surveys some of the hundreds of thousands of abandoned life jackets.

Robin Tauck (right) surveys some of the hundreds of thousands of abandoned life jackets.

Robin also reports that Westporter Barbara Innamorati brought toys from Westport to Italy. They were delivered to a refugee camp on Lesbos, housing 880 people from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Robin explains that Lesbos is ready to move from the “R” word (refugees) to the “T” word (tourism). Hotels are vacant; charter aircraft have stopped arriving. Holland America docked one cruise line during the crisis.

Robin told the mayor the Tauck story — including how her family emigrated to the US through Ellis Island. He said, “maybe one day some of our 800,000 refugees that made it to Europe will start a new family and new story, like yours did.”

“God bless the Greeks,” Robin says. Lesbos, and the entire country — one of the world’s top 10 tourist destinations, with dozens of World Heritage Sites, beautiful island and warm hospitality — is “waiting for us to return.”

(Yesterday’s New York Times Travel section also covered the tourist scene on Lesbos, and the rest of Greece. Click here to read that story.)

4 Comments

Posted in Economy, Local business, Organizations, People, Politics

Tagged , , , , , ,

David Waldman’s Save The Children Project Takes Shape

Posted on December 16, 2015 | 14 comments

A crane towers over Main Street. The old Tudor YMCA is being gutted. Concrete is poured near Church Lane and Elm Street.

But even as Westporters await the completion of Bedford Square — David Waldman’s project that will redefine downtown — he’s moving forward on his next project.

Waldman is a partner in the development group that owns the former Save the Children site across the river. Right now, a 60,000-square foot building blocks views from Wilton Road. A few yards away, the brutal Post Road/Riverside Avenue intersection makes that west bank neighborhood a don’t-go-there-unless-you-have-to afterthought to downtown shoppers.

Waldman wants to change all that. He hopes to build an office building and 18 high-end condos on the 2.6-acre site.

He’ll extend the boardwalk from National Hall and Bartaco all the way to the end of his property. He’ll help the town and other interested parties build a pedestrian bridge, linking his development with Parker Harding Plaza or Gorham Island.

Plans for the new west bank project show ... (Click on or hover to enlarge)

Plans for the new west bank project show the new office building and residential condos, extended boardwalk, pedestrian bridge, dedicated left-turn lane and more. (Click on or hover to enlarge)

Most importantly, he’ll move the charming, old (and very much in-the-way) needle shop house from 1 Wilton Road, to his new project. That will allow construction of a left-turn lane onto the Post Road, easing congestion at one of the worst intersections in the state.

Plans have not been presented formally. But discussions are beginning with important town bodies, like the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Waldman is very familiar with the property, and the land around it. Compass Commons — across the street from Save the Children — was developed by his father in 1982.

Though Waldman knows the Save the Children site is in a flood zone — and is well aware of the traffic woes — he’s excited by its potential. It’s one of the last remaining developable sites downtown. The native Westporter thrives on challenges like these.

The former Save the Children's Wilton Road headquarters. The 60,000-square foot building now stands empty.

The former Save the Children’s Wilton Road headquarters. The 60,000-square foot building now stands empty.

He and his partners worked for over a year on the concept. It includes residential units, because they’re called for in the downtown plan. Waldman knows there are many empty nesters in Westport looking to downsize, but stay here. Nationwide, older homeowners are relocating closer to downtown areas.

“I tried to hit all the buttons: what the town wants, how to incorporate visual access to the river, and get parking off the river,” Waldman says.

He notes that Save the Children at one point had 250 employees, but only 180 parking spaces. His plan will help add parking for restaurants like Bartaco and Vespa. Eight spots will be available for public access to the water.

His new buildings will be FEMA compliant. (Save the Children is not.)

Waldman is particularly excited by the opportunity to redesign the brutal Post Road/Wilton Road/Riverside Avenue intersection.

He has an option on the house that right now huddles underneath the Wright Street building. He hopes to give that land to the town.

Right now, this cute building at 1 Wilton Road inhibits traffic turning in 2 directions, or going straight.

Right now, this cute building at 1 Wilton Road inhibits traffic turning in 2 directions, or going straight.

The development’s architect — Roger Ferris + Partners — is coincidentally headquartered at 11 Wilton Road. They’d accommodate the redesign, ceding room for the new lane (and a nice pocket park.)

It won’t be easy — or cheap. Waldman estimates the cost of moving the house at $2.5 million. But he relocated Kemper Gunn from Bedford Square across Elm Street. He understands the value of both preservation and change.

He’d need a text amendment to increase the allowable height of his residential building to 48 feet. That would allow underground parking. According to Waldman, it would still be lower than the top of National Hall.

An artist's rendering of the proposed new office building (center) and condos (right) on the former Save the Children property, as seen from Parker Harding Plaza. The Post Road bridge and National Hall are on left.

An artist’s rendering of the proposed new office building (right-center) and condos (right) on the former Save the Children property, as seen from Parker Harding Plaza. The Post Road bridge and National Hall are on left; Bartaco is in the middle.

In the early 1990s, the Tauck family breathed new life into that old building. A century earlier, National Hall was one of Westport’s central meeting places. After Fairfield Furniture’s long run, it stood abandoned and in danger of collapse. Today it’s beautiful, and functional.

The old Vigilant Firehouse is now home to Neat. Bartaco recently infused more new energy into that area.

David Waldman stands poised to do the same. With Save the Children gone, it’s time to Save the West Bank of the Saugatuck.

14 Comments

Posted in Downtown, Local business, Organizations, People, Real estate, Restaurants

Tagged , , , , , ,

Remembering Esta Burroughs

Posted on December 11, 2015 | 23 comments

Esta Burroughs — pillar of the famed Remarkable Book Shop, and mother of noted Westport artist/graphic designer Miggs Burroughs — died earlier today. She was 102.

On March 15, 2013 — her 100th birthday — I posted this story on “06880.” It’s a great way to remember a truly “remarkable” woman.

Esta Freedman’s mother left Poland for Ellis Island at 17.  Esta’s father worked in the gold mines of South Africa as a teenager.  He stowed away on a US-bound ship, but gambled away his nest egg before it docked.

Esta was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1913. She and her 4 siblings shared a room. At 17, she left home for New York.

Esta Freedman at 17.

Esta Freedman at 17.

A chance meeting in the subway led to a meeting with Bernie Burroughs, an illustrator.  They hit it off.  Soon they eloped.  They lived in Greenwich Village, then Neptune, N.J.  In 1946 their son Miggs was born.

Bernie’s artist friends were moving to Connecticut.   The Burroughses followed:  to Stamford in 1948, then Westport in 1950 when their 2nd son Tracy was born.

Bernie and Esta quickly joined the local artists and writers’ circle, making friends with the likes of Howard Munce, Tracy Sugarman, Max Shulman, Evan Hunter, John G. Fuller and their families.

Bernie played poker; Esta, bridge.  They entertained often, and went to parties.  At some, couples put car keys in a bowl, and drove home with the owner of whichever set they pulled out.  Esta says she and Bernie always left before that happened.

She wrote articles for local newsletters.  Then she met Sidney and Esther Kramer.   They were opening a bookstore, called Remarkable — the name included “Kramer” spelled backwards — and asked her to join them.

The Remarkable Book Shop. (Photo by Dave Matlow)

The Remarkable Book Shop. (Photo by Dave Matlow)

Esta stayed in the iconic pink building on Main Street — working in the warren of rooms, loving the tall stacks of books, sloping floors and comfy chairs — until the day it closed.

She also partnered with Pat Fay — running tag sales as “Those 2 Girls” — but her Remarkable work really defined Esta Burroughs for generations of Westporters.

She waited on Paul Newman, Liz Taylor, Bette Davis, Keir Dullea, Christopher Plummer and Patty Hearst.  She also massaged the egos of many local authors, who visited constantly to check on sales of their books.

An avid reader, Esta enjoyed meeting writers.  The opportunity to read any title was a great perk — and a huge advantage for customers.  They asked countless questions about books.  She answered them all.

After Remarkable closed, Esta worked at the Save the Children Gift Shop.  Until recently she volunteered at the Westport Historical Society.

Today, Esta Burroughs turns 100.  The Remarkable Book Shop is long gone.  So are Paul Newman, Bette Davis — and key parties.

But Esta remembers them all, quite clearly.  Those memories are all part of her 6 decades in Westport — and her much-loved, seldom-acknowledged contributions to our town.

(Burial will be private. A memorial service will be announced soon, to be held at the Westport Historical Society. Contributions in her name may be made to an Alzheimer’s organization.)

Happy Birthday, Esta Burroughs!

Esta Burroughs (Photo by Miggs Burroughs)

23 Comments

Posted in Local business, Looking back, Organizations, People

Tagged , , ,

From Westport To Anatevka And Syria, With Love

Posted on November 22, 2015 | 8 comments

For the past 2 weekends, Staples Players’ production of “Fiddler on the Roof” awed and inspired packed audiences.

The show’s run ended last night. But its magic lives on.

The plight of early 20th century Russian Jews resonated with the teenage cast and crew. They made connections with world events today. At each performance, Players collected money for Save the Children’s Syrian Children’s Relief Fund.

At the end of last night’s final show, Players president Vig Namasivayam announced that audiences had donated $4,750 to the cause.

Staples Players:  Take a bow!

The symbolic check, presented to Save the Children after last night's performance.

A symbolic check, presented to Save the Children after last night’s performance.

(To add your own donation, click here.)

8 Comments

Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Organizations, Staples HS

Tagged , , ,

Westporter Safe In Nepal

Posted on April 27, 2015 | 2 comments

Leo Dreyfuss — a 2008 graduate of Staples — was in Nepal Saturday, when the devastating earthquake hit.

The University of Wisconsin graduate is spending a few months traveling, prior to entering Wisconsin’s med school in the fall.

Leo had finished a trek , and was back in Katmandu when the quake hit. His part of the city suffered less damage than others. With communications in Nepal spotty, much of what he knows has come from IM conversations with his parents, David and Lauren, here in Westport.

Leo Dreyfuss, a few hours before the earthquake.

Leo Dreyfuss, a few hours before the earthquake.

Since the quake, Leo spends his nights in a tent city set up by the US Embassy, on an athletic field they control. Like most other people in the large city, he prefers to be out in the open, away from buildings that could tumble down in the many aftershocks that continue.

Leo has MREs to eat, a cot and blanket. He also has gone back and forth to his hotel.

Leo plans to head out tomorrow (Tuesday) — probably to Bangkok. However, he will never be able to truly leave Nepal behind.

(Save the Children has set up a special link for donations. Click here to help.)

Leo Dreyfuss took a long walk around Katmandu today. He found this grim scene in historic Durbar Square. In the background is the Old Royal Palace with the ruins of Taleju Temple in the foreground

Leo Dreyfuss took a long walk around Katmandu today. He found this grim scene in historic Durbar Square. In the background is the Old Royal Palace. Ruins of Taleju Temple lie in the foreground

 

2 Comments

Posted in Organizations, People

Tagged , ,