The beach will be jammed. Folks deck themselves out in red-white-and-blue. There are cookouts, picnics, and flags galore.
“06880” wants to show the world what a Westport July 4th 2nd celebration looks like. Please send photos — of your kids, your decorations, your dog — to 06880blog@gmail.com. The deadline is 10 p.m. tomorrow.
* NOTE: Please stay away from actual photos of fireworks. They pretty much all look the same.
The annual event — organized by the Westport Police Athletic League and Parks & Recreation Department, and sponsored once again by longtime Westport residents/Staples High School graduates Melissa and Doug Bernstein — is Tuesday, July 2.
Tickets to the fireworks — shot from a barge in Long Island Sound, and the culmination of a day of picnics, parties and fun all along Compo Beach — are available in the front lobbies of both the Westport Police Department on Jesup Road, and the Parks & Rec Office in Longshore Club Park, near the first tee.
Tickets ($50 per car) allow entrance into the Compo parking lots. They are on sale 24/7 at the police station now, and during business hours at Parks & Rec (starting June 1). All sales are cash or check; no credit cards.
Proceeds from the fireworks help fund PAL operating expenses. The organization serves thousands of youngsters each year, through sports programs and scholarships. PAL also runs the ice skating rink at Longshore.
Doug Bernstein (5th from left) hands Police Chief Foti Koskinas the ceremonial first fireworks ticket yesterday. Also on hand (from left): Parks & Rec operations director Carmen Roda, 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker, PAL president Craig Bergamo, Melissa Bernstein, Parks & Rec interim director Rick Giunta and Lieut. Matthew Gouveia. (Photo/Dan Woog)
This afternoon (Friday), Westport Police officers will carry the Flame of Hope through town, in support of Special Olympics of Connecticut.
Norwalk Police will hand off the Flame at the Westport/Norwalk town line on Route 1 (Post Road West) at approximately 12:00 p.m.
Westport officers will carry the torch along the Post Road, and pass it off to Fairfield police at the Fairfield border.
Police will escort the torch through town. Residents are encouraged to watch and support this great cause.
The Special Olympics torch run last year: Post Road at the Sherwood Island Connector. (Photo/Dan Woog)
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Dunville’s — the 40-plus-year-old hangout in the heart of Saugatuck — celebrated its grand re-opening last night.
The restaurant/bar is now called Little Pub @ Dunville’s. Doug Grabe — the owner of the local chain — is keeping the name and vibe of the well-loved local institution. It’s open 7 days a week, for lunch and dinner.
Cutting the ceremonial ribbon (actually a caution tape) last night, from row from left: RTM member Sal Liccione, Planning & Zoning chair Paul Lebowitz, selectwomen Jen Tooke and Candice Savin, State Senator Ceci Maher, RTM member Matthew Mandell, owner Doug Grabe. Rear: RTM member Andrew Colabella, State Representative Jonathan Steinberg, RTM member Andrew Bloom.
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As graduation nears, every night brings a different celebration.
All are special. But the High Honors dinner at Staples last night was particularly meaningful.
Twenty students — the top 4% of the Class of 2024 — were honored for their achievements.
Each invited one teacher or counselor. Each educator spoke for a few minutes about “their” student.
Bonds between the teachers and teenagers were strong and deep. A wide variety of disciplines was represented: English, social studies, science, math and music.
There were stories of STEM students who found loves for literature and government; of conversations about life before and after school that transcended classrooms; of challenges made and surpassed.
Each student thanked their teachers — and their parents — for getting them where they are today.
There are many reasons to be fearful about the future of our world. Last night offered 21 reasons to be very, very optimistic.
The High Honors students were Kathryn Asiel, Emerson Briggs, Coco Crombie, Gabriela de Brito, Eitan Eiger, Dylan Fiore, Peter Loranger, Defne Merih, Neva Mermagen, Connor Ng, Ellen Ou, Mabel Propper, Jeremy Rosenkranz, Jameson Russell, Kaitlyn Seo, Elizabeth Turner, Darren Weng, Gabriel Weng, valedictorian Leigh Foran and salutatorian Andrew Berkowitz.
The teachers and staff members they honored were Rasha Tarek, Will Jones, Deborah Slocum, Noreen McGoldrick, Robert Shamberg, Alexandra McHale, Michael Mezzo, Maxim Kolb, Heather Wirkus, Ann Neary, Jon Shepro, Dominick Messina, Heather Colletti-Houde, Joe Barahona and Brian Tippy.
Staples High School’s 2024 High Honors graduates-to-be.
Sorelle Gallery’s new exhibition, “Summer Crush,” showcases original paintings by artists who draw inspiration from water and the coast in a wide variety of styles, from abstract to hyper-realistic.
The exhibition opens on June 15, 2024, with a reception from 2-4 p.m.
An artists’ talk and Q-and-A at 2:30 features Julia Contacessi, Kelly Rossetti, Nealy Hauschildt and Tony Iadicicco. Light refreshments with a summer rosé will be served.
The show runs through July 6. For more information, click here.
“Summer Crush” at Sorelle Gallery.
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Carl Addison Swanson has seen plenty of violations of this rule.
He reminds “06880” readers: If you raise your hand to traffic at a crosswalk, you have the right of the way.
Drivers: Stop for pedestrians who raise their hands at crosswalks.
But pedestrians: Look both ways, to make sure those drivers have stopped!
Stop for pedestrians!
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Have you seen today’s “Westport … Naturally” deer?
Richard Fogel has. And, he says of this one — seen here at the corner of East Main Street and Whitney Road Extension — it is “a family pet. Crazy. You can walk up and touch it.”
And finally … today is the final day of National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month.
(“06880” is your place for hyper-local news, 24/7/365. Every day, we rely on reader support. To make a tax-deductible contribution, please click here. Thank you!)
It was hot. The barge headed first to Fairfield, instead of Westport. The lifeguards made an announcement about a lost husband.
But traffic flowed very well. There was room for everyone. And Westport’s 62nd annual fireworks display was — once again — the best party ever.
And it’s still only July 3rd!
RTM member Andrew Colabella gets in the holiday spirit.
Doc Davidson lives directly across from Compo Beach. The inside of his fence is painted to look like Ebbets Field. Baseball and a cookout — it doesn’t get more American than that.
The lifeguards always post a Quote of the Day. Today’s was especially meaningful.
Chief of Police Foti Koskinas, at the Westport PAL booth.
Louie Carey loves the fireworks THIS much!
The Marching Cobras dance and drum corps entertained the huge crowds.
The Compo crowds — as seen from the Sound. (Photo/John Kantor)
Sandra and Baxter Urist. Check out his Declaration of Independence shirt.
The fireworks barge, as seen from the water. (Photo/John Kantor)
Hey — the garbage doesn’t pick itself up!
There were hundreds of parties at Compo Beach. This was hosted by Bart Shuldman (3rd from right) and his wife Susan (4th from right).
Sparklers on sale at nightfall offered a striking scene. (All photos by Dan Woog, unless otherwise noted)
The Independence Day fireworks are Westport’s biggest community celebration of the year.
It’s when Soundview Drive — our town’s handsome, quirky beachfront exit road — turns into a party promenade.
This year — as we prepare for another year of cookouts, hanging out, and bombs bursting in air — we should also pause for a moment (on Soundview) to remember Toni Cunningham.
The grande dame of Compo died on Thursday. She was 101.
Toni Cunnnigham, at her 80th birthday celebration.
In that century of life, she saw astonishing changes at the beach just outside her front window. She herself contributed to many of them.
Toni first came to Westport as a teenager. During the 1930s her parents — who lived in Scarsdale – rented #75 (now #17) Soundview Drive. She crewed on Star sailboats, often swimming out to join friends to help in races.
Gail Cunningham Coen — one of Toni’s 3 daughters — says that Toni also swam to Cockenoe Island and back.
When her parents moved here full time, she’d walk to Cockenoe in winter over thick ice.
Toni and Frank Cunningham, in front of 17 Soundview Drive.
Every year in late June, Toni’s father Frank Bosco drove to a special “fireworks contact.” He shot them off from a card table on the beach in front of his house. Neighborhood kids loved it.
Frank was a longtime treasurer of the Compo Beach Improvement Association — which really did spiff up the area.
The group organized field days, and swim races to and from the floats anchored offshore. Toni was an avid participant.
She also loved riding on the seaplanes that landed on shore.
In those days, “air conditioning” meant opening windows. Toni’s daily piano playing was enjoyed by everyone who strolled by. She knew all the popular songs, and was often asked to sing and play for parties.
As she grew older, Toni succeeded her father as treasurer of the CBIA. She also became secretary. Her talent for shorthand guaranteed highly accurate meeting notes.
Compo was a family affair. Toni’s mother, Margaret Bosco, created the first “beach rules.” They ensure safe, responsible behavior — and strong litter prevention practices. (Interestingly, Toni’s daughter Gail later became CEO of Keep America Beautiful.)
In 1938, a strong hurricane hit the area. Toni refused to leave, and rode out the storm.
In fact, during her 85 years on Soundview only one hurricane forced her to leave. That was in the 1950s, when waves chewed up the road and deposited huge chunks of the seawall in front yards.
As she earned fame for riding out storms, reporters regularly called her for blow-by-blow news.
Toni and Frank Cunningham, playing a 4-hand duet.
July 4th was not the only holiday Toni enjoyed. She also loved New Year’s eve. In the early 1960s she built a party room on the 3rd floor of her house at 27 Soundview, where she and Frank raised their family.
It featured a Steinway baby grand. But the party wasn’t in full swing until Toni sat down to play. Governor John Davis Lodge and his wife Francesca were frequent guests.
Today a small sign on the flower bed at the start of Soundview Drive — near where the boardwalk begins — honors Toni Cunningham for her dedication to the CBIA, and her beautification efforts at Compo.
The sign on Soundview Drive.
It’s a simple gesture, but an important one. In many ways, that stretch of Compo Beach is Toni Cunningham.
Think about that as you enjoy the fireworks — the first 4th of July Toni Cunningham has not been alive for in over a century.
(Contributions in Toni’s memory can be made to the Compo Beach Improvement Association Traffic Calming and Beautification Fund, 40 Compo Beach Road, Westport, CT 06880.)
Posted onJuly 4, 2009|Comments Off on A Smash Birthday Bash
What do fife and drum members do before marching at the Compo fireworks? Have intense discussions, apparently.
It’s Westport’s best party of the year — by far.
Thousands of men, women and children — especially children — descend on Compo like Patton’s army: well-organized, disciplined, fully in control.
They trudge off several hours later like Lee’s troops after Appomattox — carrying what they can, leaving the rest behind.
In between is a festival, a happening, an all-American event — with, of course, a Westport touch. Flags and bunting fly from multimillion-dollar homes. Sushi and champagne share picnic tables with hot dogs and soda.
Beachgoers enjoy the post-cloudburst sun and sky.
For more than a month, Westport had been trapped in an endless “Annie” loop. The sun would always come out tomorrow. Yesterday, the sun really did come out — mostly. It was a fine day — until 6:15, when a drenching rain blew in from nowhere. The sun never stopped shining — it was an almost cartoonish cloudburst — but thousands of folks covered their sushi and hot dogs, then ran for shelter.
It was all over in 5 minutes, followed by the obligatory rainbow. Five minutes later, everyone was dry.
The Balloon Man -- Steven Marcinuk -- wows young fireworks-goers.
Back in the day, the fireworks were simply that: 20 minutes of noise and color. Over the years it’s morphed into a show. There’s entertainment galore — including, this year, a group of teenagers singing show tunes. They performed by the cannons, which is where long ago the fireworks were fired from. That must have been before someone realized fireworks can be lethal, and moved them onto a barge.
The barge now bobs scenically offshore, surrounded by 5 or 6 squintillion boats. It’s a lovely scene, joined this year by a lighted sign saying “Lydian.” They’re the official fireworks sponsor, perhaps the least demanding sponsor in corporate history. All they ask is 1 little sign. All of Westport should say “thanks” to Lydian Asset Management. I suppose it wouldn’t hurt if we handed all our investments to them either.
I’m not sure whether Lydian, Westport PAL or town officials were in charge of providing the spectacular near-full moon backdrop for the fireworks. Some of the pyrotechnics seemed to actually frame the moon, or explode from within it. Whoever took care of that — it was a great touch.
Andrew Lott and Riley Andrews fly patriotic colors on their Sportster.
Then it was over, and the great migration began. Thanks to that nearly full moon, it was clear to see the beach was a pig sty. Polite people hauled their trash to the overflowing barrels. The rest left blankets, umbrellas, tables, chairs and mountains of food right where they were.
But an amazing thing happens each year. Parks and Rec immediately deploys an army of workers. Patton-like, they get the job done. And if you go down to Compo this morning, it will look like nothing at all happened last night. The sand will be swept; the cans emptied.
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