Tag Archives: Suzanne Tanner

Roundup: Pete Wolgast, Scholarships, Kowalsky Property …

Posted on May 21, 2022 | 6 comments

Westport’s 2 Rotary Clubs honored Pete Wolgast yesterday morning. with a prestigious District Governor’s Citation. The ceremony was held at the Sunrise Rotary meeting at Greens Farms Church. In addition to top Rotary officials, attendees included 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, her predecessor Jim Marpe, RTM moderator Jeff Wieser and Westport Weston Family YMCA CEO Anjali McCormick.

Wolgast’s service to Sunrise Rotary (he’s a former president) — and the entire town — is legendary. The University of Michigan and Harvard MBA graduate:

  • Was elected to the Representative Town Meeting, and chaired its Finance and Parks & Recreation Committees
  • Was executive assistant to 1st selectman Doug Wood; been a member of the Westport Republican Town Committee (2 terms as chair)
  • Twice chaired the Y’s board of trustees (2007-11 and 2013-20); chaired its Endowment Committee (2000-06); Volunteer of the Year honoree 2020
  • As president of the Westport Historical Society, chaired the committee that supervised the writing of the town’s definitive history
  • Been part of Westport’s Charter Revision Committee
  • Chaired Christ & Holy Trinity Church’s board, and volunteered on its Finance Committee
  • Joined the Y’s Men of Westport/Weston in 1987, and been its president
  • Served as a Boy Scout troop leader and board chair
  • Coached youth baseball and basketball for nearly 20 years, in Westport and London.

Wolgast and his wife Janet have been married for over 65 years. They have 4 children, 7 grandchildren and a great-grandson.

Congratulations, Pete, for this well-deserved honor. And thank you for all you have done, for all of us.

Pete Wolgast, at yesterday’s ceremony. (Photo/Ted Horowitz)

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Staples Tuition Grants’ annual awards evening is one of the feel-good highlights of the year.

The 2022 event — set for Tuesday, May 31 (6 p.m., Staples auditorium) — will be particularly special. The $400,000 in scholarships will be the most ever — a whopping 14% higher than last year.

The average award will be $3,700. That too is a record — about $1,000 more than STG’s 10-year average.

The average help is 19% of net need. They can’t fill the aggregate net need of $2.4 million, but STG provides more assistance the even the federal government ($370,000 in Pell grants).

Help is provided to 8.4% of the graduating class of 2022. About 10% of the class needs help paying for college. The cost of tuition, room and board has reached $85,000 at some schools. Meanwhile, the funding gap widens — up 50% from 2 years ago.

Grants will help 108 students attend 76 colleges.

Nearly 700 Westporters and friends donated to STG’s general fund, named or endowed awards. Click here for more information, and to help Staples Tuition Grants.

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Speaking of scholarships: Westport PAL awarded its scholarships on Monday night.

Awardees included Charlie Howard, Jaden Mueller (Chief Luciano Athletic); Alex Harrington, Kyle Harrington (Chief Luciano Good Citizenship); Brian Fullenbaum (PJ Romano Scholarship); Colin Konstanty (Greg LaValla Scholarship); Nick Augeri (Buck Iannacone Scholarship); Jack Oakley (Bernstein Family); Matthew Spada (Deputy Chief John Anastasia Scholarship).

Westport PAL scholarship awardees and officials.

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If you missed the Staples Spring Choral Concert earlier this month — what a shame. It was a wonderful show. All the music was selected by students. They performed difficult pieces, in a wide range of genres and styles, at their usual spectacularly high level.

Thanks to the wonders of modern technology (and of videographer Jim Honeycutt), you can watch the whole concert now. Just click here — and enjoy.

Screenshot from the Staples High School Spring Choral Concert.

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An application to subdivide the 12-acre Kowalsky property on Morningside Drive South, bordered by Clapboard Hill Road and Turkey Hill Road South, has been withdrawn. It will be resubmitted at a future date.

The Planning & Zoning Commission meeting scheduled for Monday to discuss it — and the Westport PAL clubhouse at PJ Romano Field — has been canceled. (Hat tips; Dick Lowenstein, Art Schoeller)

109 Morningside Drive South

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When Suzanne Tanner lived in Los Angeles, she met a Holocaust survivor named Rachel Goldman Miller.

After writing a multimedia musical documenting Miller’s life, Tanner is dedicating this Memorial Day weekend to her.

“Resonant music, lyrics and modern art can help us understand that history is only as strong as memory, a poignant reminder for today’s mounting war atrocities,” Tanner says.

Miller narrates her life story from a background movie that peppers the show with impactful visuals and testimony, while Tanner plays her role live — from her childhood in pre-war Paris to her elder years as a valuable Shoah participant and loving mother of a son who died of AIDS.

“Beyond Me: A Song Cycle in the Key of Survival” will be performed next  Saturday (May 28, JCC, Sherman, CT). Tickets are $25 and $20, available at the door, but reservations recommended. Click here for details.

Suzanne Tanner

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The Westport Weston Family YMCA Livestrong program –a  free, 12-week program of physical, educational and social activities for adults living with, through and beyond cancer — filled up fast. There were 25 applications, for 8 spots.

The good news: The Wilton Y is starting the same program the first week in June. Five spots are open; Wilton residency is not required. Email magenuario@riverbrookymca.org for more information. (Hat tip: Amy Weiss)

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The Westport Book Shop‘s almost-summer celebration is set for Saturday, June 4 (11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Jesup Green). There’s a DJ, safety tips from Stewie the Duck, crafts and snacks.

The almost-summer celebration takes place across from the Westport Book Shop.

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No one is a fan of Canada geese — especially at Compo Beach.

But you gotta admit, these goslings in today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo look kinda cute.

(Photo/Pam Washburn)

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And finally … this weekend’s Westport Woman’s Club art show includes a treat not often associated with art shows or woman’s clubs: live music by Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Mark Naftalin.

He’s best known as a Paul Butterfield Blues Band keyboardist. But the Westport resident played on many other famous recordings — including this one, sent to “06880” by Dave Lowrie.

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Posted in Arts, Education, Local politics, Real estate, Sports, Staples HS, YMCA

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Roundup: Jersey Mike’s, Osprey, Kiwanis …

Posted on March 22, 2022 | 6 comments

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Jersey Mike’s — the “fast-casual sub sandwich” shop in Compo Acres Center — has closed permanently.

That’s what a sign on the door says. The location — which opened in September 2015 — is already gone from the website of the 2,171-store chain.

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Meanwhile — not far away — an osprey has returned to its Fresh Market perch.

Alert “06880” reader Wendy Crowther reported last evening: “He was primping the nest as I passed by just now. I drive by Fresh Market to and from work or doing errands nearly every day. I always look in that direction.

“This is my first sighting since he left for parts south last fall. I was in my car so I don’t have a photo.”

So this one from last year will have to do:

(Photo/Carolyn Doan)

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Like many Westporters, Stephan Taranko has followed the news from Ukraine closely.

He has a special interest: His family is from there.

Earlier this month, he ordered 50 flags, to hand out at the Stand With Ukraine rally on Jesup Green.

They did not arrive in time. When he finally got them, he did the next best thing: He put them on his mailbox, with a sign inviting people to take one.

Steve lives on a private road, off Sturges Highway. Yet all 50 were taken quickly.

Westporters around town are also decorating their homes and yards with Ukrainian flags. Several line Prospect Road, in a show of support for that courageous nation.

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The Kiwanis Club is one of Westport’s less publicized civic groups. But they’ve been around for decades, aiding everything from Safe Rides and local playgrounds to gear for the EMS bicycle unit.

Very quietly, they continue to enrich our town.

The other day, they donated $5,000 to Save the Children’s relief efforts in Ukraine. Now Kiwanis is gearing up for their grant program for high school seniors. Funding comes from their annual family-friendly Mini-Triathlon at Compo Beach.

The Kiwanis College Grant application is open to income-qualified Staples High School who have demonstrated academic excellence and service to the community. Click here for an application. The deadline is April 15.

The Triathlon is open to all ability levels. It includes a point-to-point swim at Compo Beach, followed by short bike and run courses in the Compo neighborhood.

The event is great for first-timers, and families wishing to race together. To register for the September 11 event or donate to the college grant program, click here.

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What do Rosa Parks, Helen Keller, Eleanor Roosevelt, Katharine Hepburn, Golda Meir, Jackie Kennedy, Peggy Guggenheim and Mother Teresa have in common?

All will be celebrated this Saturday by Westporter Suzanne Tanner, in her inspiring millinery musical “Voices of Herstory.”

The event (March 26, 3 p.m., St. Andrew’s Church, Kent) coincides with Women’s History Month. And it’s for a great cause: Proceeds benefit Ukrainian refugees, honoring the memory of Tanner’s daughter Tess.

PS: Wear a hat!

Suzanne Tanner

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We all know how “Romeo and Juliet” ends, right? (Spoiler alert if you don’t: badly.)

On April 8 and 9 (7:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively; Sacred Heart Community Theatre, Fairfield) you’ve got a chance to change Shakespeare’s 425-year-old classic. Internationally renowned pianist — and Westport neighbor —  Frederic Chiu is a Prokofiev expert. Among his most noted works: the piano suite from the composer’s “Romeo and Juliet” ballet.

Almost 30 years ago, Chiu discovered the original score. Written entirely for the piano, it contained a revised ending. The lovers do not die.

Twenty-five years later, he commissioned choreographer Sandra Shih Parks to collaborate on “Romeo & Juliet: The Choice.” The audience votes on which ending — Prokofiev’s original happy one, or the traditional dismal version — will be performed.

It debuted at Drexel University in 2018, with Chiu playing the entire ballet on piano, while dancers performed — and the enthralled audience waited for the outcome.

Now, WSHU brings it to Fairfield. Click here for tickets and more information.

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Staples High School’s Zero Waste Committee is wasting zero time making an impact.

In addition to next month’s pop-up thrift shop, countering the wasteful “fast fashion” shopping trend, co-chairs Kayla Iannetta and Jenn Cirino are partnering with Sustainable Westport and ZenWTR for a Compo Beach cleanup on April 30.

This is the first time all the Zero Waste Committees from different Westport schools join together for one effort.

ZenWTR is the first beverage in the world to be certified plastic negative (meaning they remove more plastic from the environment than they produce, by investing in sustainable programs). ZenWTR is sold in the Staples High School cafeteria.

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A new store — Bobbles & Lace — has opened their first Connecticut location in Bedford Square.

Lindsay Rose Rando launched the store 14 years ago in Marblehead, Massachusetts. B&L offers “modern fashion forward designs at affordable prices.” There are other outlets in Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine.

Rando says she “loves the sense of community” in Westport, and calls her Church Lane location “bright and beautiful.”

Bobbles & Lace is opoen Monday through Saturday (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.), Sunday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Bobbles & Lace, Bedford Square. (Photo courtesy of Inklings News)

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Yesterday’s Roundup noted that Michael Bolton was representing Connecticut, in last night’s premiere of NBC’s “American Song Contest.” The show is a US version of the long-running Eurovision competition.

We missed the trailer — which features our neighbor touting his home state’s charms. It includes a few shots from his Westport home.

Alert reader Ann Marie Holm sent it along:

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A few seats remain for this year’s Westport Library “Booked for the Evening” gala. The June 1 honoree is television producer/screenwriter/ author Shonda Rhimes — twice named one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World.”

Click here for tickets, and more information.

Shonda Rhimes

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Earlier this month, “06880” reported on Coleytown Middle School students headed to the state Mathcounts competition.

A followup: Vikram Sarkar finished first in Connecticut. He leads the 4-person Connecticut team that will compete in the national event, in Washington. Ayush Rudra finished 9th overall.

Vikram Sarkar

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While driving on Roseville Road the other day, Bob Weingarten spotted this unusual sight on a tree.

He has no idea what it means. But he figures at least one “06880” reader might know.

If you’ve got a clue, click “Comments” below.

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The first day of spring was Sunday.

Right on time, here’s a very vernal photo for our “Westport … Naturally” series:

(Photo/JD Dworkow)

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And finally … in honor of Frederic Chiu’s choose-your-own “Romeo and Juliet” ending (story above):

 

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Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Environment, Library, Staples HS

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Roundup: Ukraine, Budget, Businesses …

Posted on March 5, 2022 | Comments Off on Roundup: Ukraine, Budget, Businesses …

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A technical glitch has caused some “06880” readers to fall off the subscriber list. If you’ve been receiving our emails regularly — no problem.

But you may have friends or relatives who are not getting them. So they’re not reading this. You can help.

If you know someone who says “I’m not getting my ‘06880!’,” please have them email 06880blog@gmail.com. I’ll send the info they need to get back on the list!

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Today’s rally in support of Ukraine (Saturday, 11 a.m.) will have a special backdrop. Yesterday, the site — the downtown Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge — was decorated with blue and yellow fabric. As the world now knows, those are the colors of the nation now under siege.

Westport artist Mark Yurkiw — whose parents emigrated to the US in 1949 from Ukraine — conceived, designed and created it. He installed it yesterday, with help from Miggs Burroughs and Sal Liccione. Help with funding came from Stephan Taranko, another Westporter with Ukrainian heritage.

Ukrainian colors, on the Ruth Steinkraus Cohen Bridge. (Photo/Lynn Untermeyer Miller)

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Julia Peterbarg’s aunt and grandmother are currently in Kharkiv, Ukraine. The rest of her family escaped to the western part of the country.

She offers these ways for “06880” readers — friends, neighbors and strangers — to help

And more ways to help…

Years ago, Bobbi Essagof attended summer camp. Yesterday, the longtime Westporter received an email from the current owner. He passed along information from a camp family with ties to Ukraine. It offered several ways for Americans to help:

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Yesterday’s “06880” story on Westport’s FY 2023 town budget said that the first 2 Board of Finance meetings about it would be held March 8 and 9.

Yesterday, those meetings were canceled. BOF chair Sheri Gordon says the delay to discuss the operating budget is caused because the Board of Education has not yet presented its working capital plan.

A Finance Board discussion will be held as scheduled with the BOE on March 10 (and beyond as needed) to allow the town and Board of Ed to come up with a realistic capital budget. Once that is done, discussions will proceed on the town’s operating and capital budgets.

Click here to see the FY ’22 budget.

Decisions on how tax dollars will be spent begin soon,

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88 houses closed in Westport over the past 3 months (December through February).

That’s a 40% decrease from the same time a year ago. But it’s still the 2nd-most closings for the period since 2005.

Houses spent 78 days on the market — and buyers on average paid 101.4% of the list price. The average closing price during that 3-month period was $1,952,335, up 9.1% from the previous year.

There were 91 active listings at the end of February. (Hat tip: Roe Colletti, Brown Harris Stevens)

This house at 50 Compo Mill Cove is on the market for $13.5 million.

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Fleet Feet has officially moved. They’re celebrating at their new location, in the Fresh Market plaza, a couple of doors down from the supermarket.

They’ve got Karhu and Kane Footwear there today (Saturday), and TAP tomorrow. Run on down!

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Good news for fans of The Cottage — particularly those in Greenwich, Stamford and Westchester.

Chef Brian Lewis’ 2nd location opens at 49 Greenwich Avenue (Greenwich) on March 22.

The seasonal menu features classic dishes from The Cottage Westport, including Wagyu beef brisket steam buns, duck fried rice and The Cottage Burger, along with new small plates for sharing, house made pasta, signature items, vegetable-centric dishes and gluten-free options.  also heart into every dish and drink that is served to a guest.”

Westport architect Rick Hoag collaborated with Lewis on a modern interpretation of the intimate Westport location. For more information, click here.

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It’s taken a year. But yesterday at the Cavalry Road bridge, one of the new deck pieces was dropped into place.

Mixing a metaphor, is there light at the end of the tunnel?

(Photo/Walter Greene)

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Tonight, Westporter Suzanne Tanner promotes world peace and harmony, with a benefit performance of 1970s love songs, Broadway ballads and selections from her original solo musicals. It’s set for 7 p.m. at the JCC in Sherman.

Proceeds will benefit environmental initiatives, and aid to Ukraine.

Suzanne Tanner

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As the Ukrainian refugee crisis worsens, a long-planned International Women’s Day event seems especially timely.

This Tuesday (March 8, 7 p.m., Westport Library, in-person and Zoom), the United Nations Association Southwest Chapter hosts “The Refugee Experience.” Aid workers will discuss how the process works in Connecticut — specifically, how it affects women. Click here for details.

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Westport Book Shop‘s featured artist of the month is a familiar face: 1971 Staples High School graduate and lifelong resident Michael Brennecke.

An abstract painter, he attended The School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and earned a BFA at Tufts University. Click here for his website.

Michael Brennecke with his paintings, at the Westport Book Shoop.

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JD Dworkow calls today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo “false spring on Ferry Lane East.”

(Photo/JD Dworkow)

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And finally … in honor of today’s rally for Ukraine in downtown Westport (and hopes of better days ahead):

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Posted in Arts, Downtown, Entertainment, Local business, Local politics, Politics, Real estate, Restaurants

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Where Tess’ Love Begins

Posted on August 2, 2016 | 6 comments

How do you define forever?

That’s a question Suzanne Tanner faces every day.

Tess Tanner (Photo/Suzanne Tanner)

Tess Tanner (Photo/Suzanne Tanner)

She’s the mother of Tess Tanner, a 12-year-old Coleytown Middle School musician, actor, environmentalist and fun-loving girl who died 5 summers ago in a motor vehicle accident, while attending summer camp in Maine.

For Suzanne, “forever” means never letting go of her daughter’s poetry, passions and determination to make a difference.

It also means honoring Tess with a musical theater production that Suzanne herself has written.

“Where the Love Begins” is a musical memoir — “a mother’s love story,” she says — titled after Tess’ 1st poem, written when she was 5.

Suzanne performs a world premiere reading of the musical on Wednesday, August 17 — the 5th anniversary of her daughter’s death — at Saugatuck Congregational Church (7:30 p.m.).

The free event includes a special dance tribute by Staples High School junior Katherine Flug.

where the love beginsThere’s special poignancy to the show. Many of Tess’ classmates leave soon, entering college and pursuing passions of their own.

Suzanne — an award-winning musician while at Harvard — calls her multimedia composition “a musical monument” for her daughter, and “a thank-you gift to the universe for the profound privilege of parenthood.”

The show has received Broadway interest. It will workshop next year, fulfilling Suzanne’s mission to immortalize her daughter’s essence, and continue Tess’ emphasis on family, friendship and faith in forever love.

(For more information, click here or email PoeTessProductions@gmail.com)

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Posted in Arts, Children, People, Teenagers

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Tess Meisel’s “Love Begins”

Posted on March 20, 2015 | 7 comments

The death of Tess Meisel — a 12-year-old Coleytown Middle School musician, actor, environmentalist and fun-loving girl — in a 2011 Maine motor vehicle accident rocked all who knew her. Her friends vowed never to forget her.

Fellow Coleytown Company actor Vig Namasivayam — now a Staples junior — grew close to Tess’ mother, Suzanne Tanner. She’s a composer of musical biographies. During a 2013 visit, they got the idea of making a musical celebrating Tess’ life.

Suzanne wrote the music and lyrics. She asked Vig to direct it.

He was hesitant at first. But it grew into an amazing story, with a great cast. Vig now calls it “my pride and joy.”

where the love begins“Where the Love Begins” is a mother’s tender memoir of the child-rearing years, from birth on. Suzanne will be onstage, at the piano, reflecting on a turbulent but profoundly poignant period in her life, by being a narrator of sorts.

She hopes the show will inspire others  to cherish time with their loved ones, and offer perspective on what is truly important in life: family, friendship and faith in the beyond.

The show will be performed in the Staples auditorium on August 21, 22 and 23. All proceeds go to the Tess Meisel Scholarship Fund — helping students who share Tess’ passions for the environment, musical theater and poetry — and other related charities.

But to give away money, Vig and his friends first have to raise funds — for costumes, sets, lights and auditorium rental and a special program, filled with Tess’ poetry.

The 1st benefit for the show is Saturday, April 11 at Toquet Hall. Cast members will perform songs from “Where the Love Begins.” Members of Wreckers in Tune and the band C4S will also play.

Tess Meisel

Tess Meisel

A number of Staples students are acting and doing tech work. Samantha Galvao, who was in the car crash with Tess, is technical director. Others are doing lighting, stage managing and choreography. Suzanne — Tess’ mom — will help instruct the actors and musicians.

She and Vig are honoring Tess’ commitment to environmentalism by using recycled items and making ecologically responsible choices.

It’s pretty clear that the love that began for Tess continues long after her death.

[For tickets to the Toquet Hall benefit via Facebook, click here. There is also a “GoFundMe” site for donations — click here to help.]

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Posted in Arts, Children, People, Staples HS

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Tess’ Bench

Posted on February 12, 2015 | 2 comments

The other day, I posted a few of Lynn U. Miller’s photos of the library Riverwalk, at dusk. 

I was struck by their beauty. Many “06880” readers were too. But for Suzanne Tanner, one picture was especially poignant. She wrote:

I want to thank Lynn for capturing such a profound and welcoming photo of my daughter’s memorial bench on the grounds of the Westport Public Library.

The bench was inspired by and appropriated with a memorial fund started in my daughter’s name to establish points of figural beauty in and around one of Tess’s favorite places in town — our riverfront library.

Library bench sunset - Lynn U Miller

I want to remind others how important it is to pause and reflect on all of the love that is given to us in life, be it the warmth of a child’s hand in ours or the generosity of a singular smile resonating in the crevices of time’s travel. It always pleases me to see another appreciate the beauty in the structure of the bench and the delightful setting for all to share.

A portion of Tess’s fund has been allocated to the Levitt Pavilion to continue the effort. I am currently searching for outdoor sculptures, favoring any with the essence of poetry, discovery, mythology and hummingbirds to create a Riverwalk Sculpture Garden in Tess’s honor.

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, please contact either myself (suzannetanner@aol.com) or the Levitt (levitt@westportct.gov). I welcome the energy and opportunity to share in the journey of remembering a most delightful spirit with an inspiring path along the riverwalk.

 

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Posted in Arts, Children, Downtown, Library, People

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