Tag Archives: Smith Richardson Preserve

Roundup: Shonda Rhimes, Moving Up, Pollinator Pathway …

Posted on June 21, 2022 | 5 comments

Shonda Rhimes — the producer/screenwriter/author/global media company CEO/Television Academy Hall of Fame inductee — entertained, inspired and wowed a sold-out crowd at last night’s Westport Library “Booked for the Evening” fundraiser. Actors Tony Goldwyn and Scott Foley were there too.

The leader in both her industry and for women of color, Rhimes is known for telling great stories (check out Netflix!). On stage before an appreciative audience, in a conversation with Vanity Fair editor Rhadika Jones, she spent her evening in Westport doing exactly that.

Shonda Rhimes, at the Westport Library. (Photo/Jerri Graham Photography)

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This is “Moving Up” week.

Ceremonies are held at Westport’s 2 middle and 5 elementary schools.

Dylan Chatterjee captured this scene yesterday, outside Bedford, where his sister Mia was celebrated. It seems symbolic: 8th graders moving toward the light of Staples High School, both literally and figuratively.

(Photo/Dylan Chatterjee)

Congratulations to all 5th and 8th graders — I mean, rising 6th graders and freshman — all over town!

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Happy Pollinator Week!

To celebrate, Pollinator Pathways organizers in Westport and surrounding towns are showcasing properties — both public and private — where habitat-friendly landscaping is done. They’ll also provide information on how homeowners can create Pollinator Pathway yards of their own.

It’s this Saturday (June 25) at 4 separate Westport sites, all 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Earthplace (3 gardens), Prospect Road (privately owned), Smith-Richardson Wildlife Preserve (2 meadows) and Wakeman Town Farm (a 100-foot pollinator border).

Weston’s Onion Farm tour is also Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Guides and gardeners will be on hand, to answer questions.

Click here, then scroll down to plan your tour. You’ll also see Pollinator Pathway tours throughout Fairfield, New Haven and Westchester Counties.

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The Westport Public Schools and Westport Weston Family YMCA have teamed up to coordinate child care — before and after school – for youngsters in grades K-5, during the coming school year.

The program includes arts and crafts, STEM activities, themed projects, outdoor and physical activities, homework help and snacks.

Transportation will be provided to and from the elementary schools, and YMCA.

The before-school program runs from 7 to 9 a.m. for Coleytown, Greens Farms, Kings Highway and Long Lots Schools, 7 to 8:30 a.m. for Saugatuck.

The after-school program runs from dismissal until 6 p.m. Students who sign up for any youth programs taking place during after-school care hours — karate, swim lessons, soccer shots, basketball, gymnastics, fencing or dance — will be accompanied to their program by a staff member. There is a separate fee for those programs.

3-, 4 and 5-day signups are available. Click here for more information, and to register.

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Sure, it was 2 days ago. But we can’t resist a good photo. Here’s a bird’s-eye view of the Levitt Pavilion during Sunday’s Michael Franti & Spearhead show:

(Photo/JC Martin)

Encore: Here’s a video of Michael, complete with a shout-out to Westport:

Looking ahead, the Levitt celebrates the final days of Pride Months with 2 performances.

Isle of Klezbos is this Thursday (June 23, 7:30 p.m.). New York magazine says their repertoire ranges from “rambunctious to entrancing: Neo-traditional folk dance, mystical melodies, Yiddish swing & retro tango, late Soviet-era Jewish drinking song, re-grooved standards, and genre-defying originals.”

It’s about time Levitt had some Yiddish swing and late Soviet-era Jewish drinking songs! Click here for (free!) ticket information.

Next week, it’s “Queer + Quiet”: an evening with Treya Lam (Tuesday, June 28, 7 p.m.). They’ll “lift up the underrepresented, quiet, marginalized voices in the BIPOC trans, non-binary, queer community.” Click here for (also free!) ticket information.

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Speaking of Pride: Fairfield County Story Lab opens this Sunday’s Write-In to all LGBTQ and LGBTQ-friendly writers and creatives — for free.

At 2 p.m. June 26, there’s an hour of socializing. Work on projects follows from 3 to 4:30; then there’s a wrap-up chat.

The Story Lab is a shared workspace, on the 4th floor of Saugatuck’s 21 Charles Street office building. Click here to reserve a spot.

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The June 27 (7 p.m.) Westport Library showing of the award-winning documentary “Four Winters” is noteworthy.

The film tells the story of the 25,000 Jewish partisans who battled the Nazis and their collaborators from the forests of Eastern Europe. The men and women — many in their teens — blew up trains, burned electric stations and attacked enemy headquarters.

But there’s also an important local connection: “Four Winters”‘ writer/producer/director Julia Mintz is a Weston High School graduate.

For more information, click here.

NOTE: “Four Winters” supporters have designed a program for screenings and talkbacks at colleges that don’t have Jewish Studies departments, or funding for Holocaust programming. Click here to donate.

Weston native Julia Mintz, with an interviewee for “Four Winters.”

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Lou Weinberg is the passionate, creative and very hands-on director of the Westport Community Gardens. He knows flowers, trees, grasses and bushes — and birds, bees, rabbits and all other wildlife there.

He’s also a gifted photographer.

Here’s his description of today’s stunning “Westport … Naturally” photo: “This gray catbird is eating a berry from a serviceberry tree. This native tree produces flowers and an abundance of fruit for a multitude of birds this time of year. If you like birds, plant serviceberry trees!”

(Photo/Lou Weinberg)

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And finally … because this is the first day of summer:

(Do you like our daily “Roundup”? Help keep it coming. Click here to make a tax-deductible contribution to “06880” — and thank you.)

5 Comments

Posted in Arts, Children, Education, Entertainment, Environment, History, Library, YMCA

Tagged Fairfield County Story Lab, Levitt Pavilion, Pollinator Pathway, Prospect Gardens, Shonda Rhimes, Smith Richardson Preserve

Roundup: Badass Bagels, Train Trees, Badass Book …

Posted on May 1, 2022 | 3 comments

Popup Bagels made the New York Times. That means they’ll be harder to snag than ever.

But they’re not the only local bagel-maker that’s gone Big Time. Sugar & Olives is badass too.

Their Badass Bagels line — that’s the name — just signed a deal with Goldbelly. The website showcases the best eats in the country, and ships overnight. The page isn’t live yet, but it will soon show a variety of offerings.

They’ll also sell 3,000 bagels at the Smorgasburg every Sunday in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, starting in early June. It’s one of the best — and most selective — food markets in the country.

But you don’t have to schlep all the way out there. Plenty of happy clients — corporate and personal — right here rave about the 100% sourdough recipe. (Okay, technically Sugar & Olives is a few feet over the border, in Norwalk. So sue me.)

They also sell at the Westport Farmers’ Market and Double L Market. Outside of Westport, they’re at the Kitchen Table in Pound Ridge, a few other farmers’ Markets, the Granola Bar in Greenwich and the Old Yew in the West Village.

The bagel business has taken over much of Sugar & Olives. There’s no more in-person dining. But Jennifer Balin and her wonderful crew do offer seasonal prepared items, which can be picked up by customers along with their bagels. Click here for details.

Some Badass Bagels.

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Like many Westporter, Joey Kaempfer was appalled at the clear-cutting that took place recently at the Westport train station. It was a safety project, Eversource and Metro-North say.

“We need to raise money to replace them,” Kaempfer — a Staples High School Class of 1966 graduate, who is building a home nearby — says.

He’s ready to donate $5,000 for seed money. But, he says, “some serious group has to raise the balance — probably $95,000.” They have to get permission to plant the new trees too, of course.

Is it doable? Are any groups or individuals interested? Click “Comments” below.

Recent tree removal (and overhead wires) at the Westport train station. (Photo/Matthew Mandell)

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Plenty of great books (and vinyl, CDs, DVDs, etc.) are still available at the Westport Library Book Sale.

Plus one that is absolutely, positively a hell of a book.

(Photo/Frank Bruce)

Today (Sunday, May 1, noon to 5 p.m.), all items are half price. Tomorrow (Monday, May 2, 9 a.m. to noon), you can fill a bag for $5, or purchase individual items for half-price.

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Wakeman Town Farm’s “Old-Time Pancake Breakfast” fundraiser is not until Saturday, June 18 (9 a.m. to noon). But folks are already signing up for a time slot.

The menu includes flapjacks and sausages with all the fixin’s, plus coffee and OJ. It’s outdoors, so the kids can wander over to say hi to the alpacas, sheep and goats.

The price is $13 for adult, $5 per child 2 and up. Money raised will help renovate the aging red barn, providing space for classes and programs. Click here to register.

Wakeman Town Farm barn. (Photo/Amy Schneider)

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Want to know more about the little-known but amazing gem known as the Smith Richardson Wildlife Preserve?

Aspetuck Land Trust’s partner, Connecticut Audubon’s land steward Charlie Stebbins, will host a “Walk and Talk” this Thursday (May 5, 10 a.m.), at the site off Sasco Creek Road on the Southport border.

He’ll describe the remarkable transformation, from an overgrown weed nest to a paradise for nesting birds (and bees). All are welcome — and like the preserve, it’s free.

Charlie Stebbins

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This swan in a swirling pool is perfect for a spring Sunday — and for our “Westport … Naturally” feature.

(Photo/Becky Keeler)

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And finally … today is the 1st of May — aka “May Day.” It’s a traditional holiday in many European cultures, with dancing, singing and cake.

“Mayday” — one word — is an international signal of distress. It has nothing to do with the month, though. It’s an Anglicized version of “m’aidez” — French for “help me!”

There’s another way to summon aid: “SOS!” It stands for “Save Our Souls.” It became popular when Morse code was new: 3 dots, 3 dashes, 3 dots.

Which, in a roundabout fashion, leads us to today’s song:

3 Comments

Posted in Environment, Library, Local business, Transportation

Tagged Aspetuck Land Trust, Badass Bagels, Smith Richardson Preserve, Sugar & Olives, Wakeman Town Farm, Westport Library Book Sale, Westport train station

Pic Of The Day #1182

Posted on July 12, 2020 | Comments Off

Nico Eisenberger spotted this tree at the newly rejuvenated, native species-reclaimed Smith-Richardson Audubon Preserve (in the area between Greens Farms Academy and Sasco Creek Road). He says, “Before the invasive vines were cleared last year and the COVID situation this year, very few people would have seen it. But now the preserve is full of people every day. (Photo/Nico Eisenberger)

Comments Off on Pic Of The Day #1182

Posted in Environment, Pic of the Day

Tagged Smith Richardson Preserve

Jory Teltser Is For The Birds

Posted on April 30, 2018 | 5 comments

Jory Teltser is one of Westport’s most passionate birdwatchers.

He’s seen over 250 species in this town alone. He’s taken nearly 100,000 photos. He raises money to help keep the Smith Richardson Preserve, a critical habitat for migrating birds.

And he’s still only a Staples High School junior.

Jory is not just a birder. He plays French horn in the orchestra and band, and this summer will tour Australia with Staples’ elite Orphenians singing group.

But birding — spending hours outdoors, figuring out calls, finding new species, learning everything there is to know about these fantastically varied vertebrates — is what gets him up in the morning.

Often very, very early.

Jory Teltser

Jory’s interest was piqued more than 8 years ago. Tina Green — a photographer and patient of Jory’s internist father — took them both to Sherwood Island. Ten feet away was a saw-whet owl.

“It was the size of a fist, all brown with giant eyes, sitting on a cedar tree staring right at me,” Jory recalls. He was intrigued.

But he did not get serious about the hobby until 4 years ago. Tina took him birdwatching after school, and nearly every weekend. “I saw her more than my parents,” Jory laughs.

Ornithology hooked him for many reasons. The biggest: “It gets me out in nature. I experience things most people never see. It can be relaxing and meditative. It calms you down.”

For a while, Jory admits, he was a stressed-out “serious lister.” He raced all around New England, trying to see as many different species as he could. In middle school and freshman year, he skipped school every couple of months to see a new bird.

A red-breasted merganser (Photo copyright Jory Teltser)

He does that far less often now. The most recent time was early March. The attraction: a varied thrush, in Simsbury. “It was an adult male, with very vibrant colors,” he explains.

But he focuses mainly on Fairfield County. There’s more than enough here to keep him excited.

Jory learns about new species and sightings in several ways. A statewide email listserv has about 1,000 participants. He’s one of 5 high school students (one other is from Staples).

There’s Cornell Ornithology Lab’s eBird database — with customized alerts about species he hasn’t yet seen — and several Facebook groups.

When Jory goes birding, he takes along a serious camera.

Jory is largely self-taught. He’s never read a field guide. But he can identify close to 2,000 species visually, and 1,000 by sound.

Being a musician helps, he notes. “I visualize and internalize notes, pitches, timbres, songs and calls.”

One of Jory’s favorite birding spots is Smith Richardson Preserve. “It’s small, but it might be the premier location in the state,” he says.

On May 12 he’ll raise funds for that site on Westport’s eastern border by taking part in the World Series of Birding. For the 3rd straight year he and 3 teammates (one is from Staples) will travel to Cape May County, New Jersey. Starting at midnight, they’ll spend the next 24 hours tallying as many species as possible, by sight or sound. Sponsors pledge money based on the total.

Last year Jory’s group — the Darth Waders — identified 162 species. That placed them 2nd out of more than 100 teams — beating out even traditional champion Cornell.

Common loon. Cockenoe Island is in the background. (Photo copyright Jory Teltser)

Jory also loves Sherwood Island. “We’re so lucky to have a state park in Westport,” he says. Over the past 60 years, more than 300 species have been seen there. That makes it one of the top 100 birding locations in the entire country — despite not being on an open ocean flight path.

Trout Brook Preserve in Weston is another favorite place. Jory calls it “a runway for birds.”

His favorite bird is the red-breasted nuthatch. It’s small and woodpecker-like, with a blue beak and white eyeline. Its migratory pattern, call, behavior and plumage all intrigue Jory.

Not many teenagers are so taken with anything. He may mention to a friend that he got up at “a godforsaken hour” that morning, but doesn’t often talk about it. When he brings friends along, they generally like the hiking and outdoor aspect. But many don’t have his patience, or ability to weather both the physical and mental stress of birding.

Jory has found plenty of friends in the Connecticut Young Birders Club. He’s in the front row, far left.

Jory is undeterred. He loves what he does. And he looks forward to continuing his work with the Aspetuck Land Trust (he’s on their land management subcommittee).

He may not pursue ornithology as a career. He’s considering science, particularly molecular biology.

But he’ll continue to look for — and listen to — the next species. There are 10,000 in the world.

(To donate to Jory’s World Series of Birding Smith Richardson project, click here. To see some of Jory’s many photos, click here.]

5 Comments

Posted in Environment, People, Places, Staples HS, Teenagers

Tagged Aspetuck Land Trust, Connecticut Young Birders Club, Cornell Ornithology Lab, Jory Teltser, ornithology, Smith Richardson Preserve, Trout Brook Preserve, World Series of Birding

Scott Smith Discovers Westport’s Hidden Gems

Posted on February 14, 2018 | 11 comments

Scott Smith is an alert “06880” reader, a longtime Westporter and an ardent outdoorsman. He writes:

If you ask Westporters to comment on our community’s natural charms, chances are most would cite the dazzling string of beaches and coastal places: Compo Beach, Sherwood Mill Pond, Gray’s Creek and Burying Hill. If pressed, they might claims Sherwood Island too.

Others would tout the Saugatuck River, from the fly fishing shallows along Ford Road to the impoundment of Lees Pond, and the tidal stretch through town leading to the mouth at Longshore and Cedar Point. Cockenoe Island gets a shout-out, too, especially from those with the nautical means to visit it.

Fishing off Ford Road (Photo/Richard Wiese)

But plenty of other places across Westport beguile with bucolic beauty. Many of these underappreciated open spaces are in the midst of a welcome renaissance, sparked by renovation efforts from those who love and tend them.

I’m talking about the town parks, preserves, land trusts and wildlife sanctuaries that constitute our remaining inland open spaces. Over the past year or two, I’ve visited quite a few. I always come away thinking how fortunate we are to be able to trod upon them.

“06880” has covered these developments over time, noting singular efforts and improvements. But if you step back and tally them all up, it’s quite an impressive list, covering virtually every part of town.

Over in Old Hill there’s the Lillian Wadsworth Arboretum. I toured it a couple of seasons ago with its caretakers, including Lou Mall and tree warden Bruce Lindsay. They’re spearheading its transformation from an untended patch of blow-downs and invasive vines to a fetching enhancement to the adjacent Earthplace facility.

Dead creepers line a Wadswworth Arboretum trail.

Coleytown has the Newman Poses Preserve, which affords a wonderful walk through meadows along the Saugatuck stream and through upland woods. Having the memory of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward and their family as you traipse along is a nice bonus. Their neighbors — and the Aspetuck Land Trust — get credit for giving us that open space.

Right near downtown there’s the blossoming of long-neglected Baron’s South, another town-led reclamation project with even brighter prospects in store as a nature-driven arts campus.

A path in Baron’s South. (Photo/Judy James)

And just down Compo, off Greenacre Road, is the hidden gem of the Haskins Preserve, my longtime favorite place for a weekend stroll.

Haskins Preserve’s dogwoods and daffodils — a lovely combination.

I have “06680” to thank for cluing me in to my newest place to take a hike: the Smith Richardson Preserve in Greens Farms. I’ve long known about the 2 parcels north of I-95. The Christmas tree farm off Sasco Creek Road is where I chop down a tree every year. I consider it in part my annual donation to the Connecticut Audubon Society, which manages the farm and the open space across the road.

But I had no idea of the separate property just across 95, a 36-acre parcel stretching from Sasco Creek all the way to the playing fields behind Greens Farms Academy off Beachside Avenue.

I walked it the other day, taking advantage of frozen ground to course through fields that are in the midst of being cleared of smothering vines and other invasive species.

It’s an impressive project, even if the space is hard by the highway and Metro-North rails. Hemmed in by neighboring houses big and small, and what looks to be a refuse depot managed by the railroad or state, the area has the look of a pocket-size Central Park in the making, with Olmstedian trails that wind through woods, and alongside meadows and ponds. I can’t wait to see how the property develops, with its ambitious new plantings and clearings, and whether the caretaking crews can keep the tick-haven invasives at bay.

Smith Richardson Preserve (Photo/Scott Smith)

These public/private corners of our community are all discovered places, at least for me. When I visit them, either with my dog or solo, I’m often the only one around. I like the solitude, and question why I’d even want to spread the word about them. Parking is often a pinch, and I’m not even sure about the proper access to the new Smith Richardson preserve behind GFA’s sprawling athletic fields.

But these largely hidden local natural spaces deserve recognition, and our support for the groups that manage them — the town, Aspetuck Land Trust, and the Connecticut Audubon Society — whether by check or volunteer hand.

Separately and together, they all make Westport a wonderful place to live and to explore.

11 Comments

Posted in Environment, Organizations, Places

Tagged Aspetuck Land Trust, Baron's South, Connecticut Audubon Society, Haskins Preserve, Lillian Wadsworth Arboretum, Newman Poses Preserve, Scott Smith, Smith Richardson Preserve

Preserving Nature, With Help From Friends

Posted on January 3, 2018 | 21 comments

The H. Smith Richardson Wildlife Preserve is a Greens Farms gem.

Straddling the Southport border, it’s actually 3 parcels: a 24-acre Christmas tree farm at the top of Sasco Creek; a 14-acre field habitat across the way, and a 36-acre evergreen plantation by Hedley Farms Road, behind Greens Farms Academy.

It’s a gem because it’s open, and teeming with nature. But for a “preserve,” it wasn’t always well preserved.

Several years ago when Charles Stebbins joined the Connecticut Audubon Society board, the organization surveyed all 19 sanctuaries they managed. The one most in need of restoration: Smith Richardson.

Smith Richardson Preserve, before restoration.

For 3 years, volunteer days in November have drawn dozens of neighbors, friends and board members, plus Staples High School League of Boys and Builders Beyond Borders teenagers. Slowly but methodically they cut vines, cleared brush and cleaned the 14-acre habitat.

With the help of Oliver Nurseries, they planted 100 trees and shrubs — oaks, cedars, pawpaw, black gum, dogwoods, blueberries and holly. They seeded 4 acres with native pollinator flowers and grasses, and built a stone bench.

Regular users — hikers, dog walkers, cross country skiers — helped fund the project.

A few of the many volunteers.

Early last year, the Long Island Sound Futures Fund — which combines money from the US Environmental Protection Agency, and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation — awarded $145,780 to the Smith Richardson preserve.

The goal is to restore a coastal forest habitat. Stebbins calls the Greens Farms property one of the few remaining forests along Connecticut’s 100 miles of coastline.

A year from now, the area will be cleared of deadwood and invasive plants. Fields and meadows will be restored — exploding in bloom — and 1,200 trees planted. Professionals are doing much of the work.