Westonite Drew Klotz Takes Home the $500 Pen Sculpture Award from Fine Arts Festival
Sculpture artist Drew Klotz holds his blue ribbon after being awarded the Pen Sculpture Award by the Downtown Merchant’s Association. Klotz has participated in 5 of the 48 years of the Westport Fine Arts Festival, and has kinetic sculptures visible throughout both Westport and the region.
Longshore Pool: Opening Memorial Day for the 2021 Season
The Town of Westport Parks & Recreation Department has announced that the Longshore Pool will be opening this coming Monday on Memorial Day. The Town tradition of heading to the pool will begin again after it’s 2020 hiatus due to COVID-19 precautions, another step towards the revival of Westport during Summer 2021.
The pool will be open on weekdays for open swim from 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM, and weekends from 11:00 AM - 8:00 PM.
From Westport Parks & RecreationThe Longshore Pool will open for the 2021 season from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day in accordance with the schedule below.Please note that as COVID-19 is still a concern, if it is determined that the pool area is overcrowded, the Town reserves the right to temporarily halt admittance until space is available. Additionally, if overcrowding becomes an ongoing issue, the Town reserves the right to implement alternative operating procedures to allow appropriate usage of the facility.
The Longshore Pool Complex and Longshore Pavilion offers handicap accessible locker rooms with showers, family bathrooms, and a full service concession stand with outdoor seating and picnic tables. There is an adjacent playground and tennis courts with lights.
The Longshore Pool complex consists of two swimming pools and a wading pool
The Training Pool is 20 yds. in length, is a uniform depth of 3’7” and used for lap swim and swim lessons
The Lap Pool is 25 yds. in length with depth from 3-ft. to 9-ft. and is used for open swim
The Wading Pool has a depth 1-ft. to 2-1/2 ft. and is restricted during open swim to children under six years of age
Westporter Scores $10K Lottery Win this Week
According to the Connecticut Lottery, a Westporter scored a $10,400 lottery win this week. Purchased at the Super 7 Food Market in Norwalk, Michael Benson won the prize with Keno on Monday, the Connecticut Lottery announced this week.
New Neighbors: The Porch at Christie’s Opens Today
Andrea and Bill Pecoriello welcomed the first customers to The Porch at Christie’s early this morning as the new community-based restaurant opened their doors. Westport’s northern neighborhoods will regain their beloved country store after this morning’s opening of The Porch at Christie’s at 161 Cross Highway.
The 101 year old building has served for decades as meeting house and gastronomic locale for many far-out Westporters and herds of nearby middle and high school students. Owner Andrea and Bill Pecoriello of Westport founded The Porch not only on the basis of good food, but to provide a community space for both their customers and their beloved employees.
In 2020, the Pecoriellos founded the non-profit Sweet P Bakery in Norwalk as a way to provide job training and employment for adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Through their work with Sweet P, they found that they needed a storefront to continue that training at the front of a house - resulting in their creation of The Porch; “We can't think of a more perfect spot in town to support Sweet P Bakery's mission” they described when speaking about the opportunity to have Sweet P Bakery graduates work at the front of the house. Graduating members of Sweet P’s 4 week internship program are able to bake alongside the Porch’s three pastry chefs to create the baked goods sold at the store while building skills and celebrating their accomplishments.
Guests are greeted by the historic building’s stone front porch as they step through the door into a bright and newly renovated dining room and food counter. Opening at 6:30 AM, The Porch offers a variety of coffees, teas, smoothies, and breakfasts while offering a comprehensive lunch and supper menu, too. A separate ice cream hut will serve the frozen dessert later into the evenings, allowing families to watch the traffic go by while preventing ice cream drips from hitting the grass.
Operating on-and-off in the most recent years, the previous tenant - Chef’s Table - closed less than a year after they opened in April 2019. The property was last sold in 2008 for 1.65 million dollars.
Being the northernmost restaurant in Westport, the space has always been beloved by those who want to avoid the noise of Post Road and the traffic of downtown. “Christie’s” has been a pillar in the community for nearly 100 years, serving snacks, cold drinks, ice cream, and locally sourced foods to generations of Westporters. Owners Andrea and Bill are excited to welcome the next generation to The Porch.
Three Staples Students Chosen to Represent USA at Hwa Chong Institution International Summit
Press Release, Westport Public SchoolsNatalie Bandura, Erin Durkin and Allison Schwartz will represent Staples High School at the Virtual HCI-APYLS 2021 event.
As one of the premier schools in Singapore, Hwa Chong Institution is eager to share its success with other high performing schools and to learn from others. For that reason, HCI has organized the Hwa Chong Asia-Pacific Young Leaders Summit which takes place virtually this year in July. HCI invites only the top student leaders from some of the best schools around the world to the Summit. In previous years, student participants came from Australia, China, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Oman, Philippines, South Africa, South Korea, United Kingdom, US and Singapore.
For the past eight years, Westport has been invited to send three juniors who are both high performing students AND interested in world affairs with a special interest in Asia. The criteria used by HCI are: a) you must be between 16 and 17 years of age; b) you must possess good oral and written proficiency; c) you must have substantial leadership experience and potential; d) you must be academically able and among the top performers in the school; e) you must possess enthusiasm and strong interest in forging ties with fellow students from around the world. The 80 student delegation invited to HCI is selective.
Congratulations to the delegates who will join students from Scarsdale High School (New York) and Dominion High School (Virginia) as representatives from the United States.
Staples Softball Beats Darien, Celebrates Seniors, in Last Regular Game of Season
The Staples High School Varsity Softball Team (L-R, Back): Assistant Coach Dana Seymour, Jill Backus, Gabby Lantier, Caroline Coffey, Ally Schwartz, Tash Taubenhiem, Jen Westphal, Coach Bob Olah; (L-R, Front) Kate McDonald, Grace Alfero, Oliva Bernard, Ava Vincini and Miranda RodriguezUnder the bright lights of the Greens Farm School field, the Staples Varsity Softball Team beat Darien 5-4, bringing their season to an exciting 14-3 record.
Photos and story by Colleen Coffey for The Westport Local Press. Last night’s game was the last regular game of their season, with families, friends, and community members in attendance to cheer on the team while celebrating the outgoing seniors. The warm Spring evening welcomed the small crowds to the school’s ball field, with some attending the game on Facetime.
Members of the Staples Wreckers Softball team high five seniors Jill Backus.The graduating teammates were able to finish their high school softball career on a high note after losing last year’s season. Class of 2021 members include Jill Backus, Olivia Bernard, and Miranda Rodriguez
A close score marks a hard-fought win for the Wreckers. Backus and Junior Ava Vincini scored big by hitting two triples during the game, while Junior Pitcher Tasha Taubenhiem threw nine strikeouts against the Blue Wave.
The team will begin their FCIAC matches (Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference) tomorrow at 4:00 PM at the Wakeman Field on Cross Highway.
Celebrating the Class of 2021
Wednesday Sailing Regattas Begin for the Season
Hound Dog of Ridgefield, Connecticut glides towards the C marker in this evening’s sailing regatta, about one half mile off of the coast of Compo Beach. One of Westport’s most unique and competitive traditions returned tonight as dozens of sailboats motored out of the harbor into the Sound for the Wednesday night sailing regatta. .
Each Wednesday night the boats from local yacht clubs, such as Cedar Point Yacht Club and Saugatuck Harbor Yacht Club, gather off of Compo Beach for a friendly regatta - racing each other until sunset with crews of their friends and family. The boats are privately owned, with the committee boat being operated by Cedar Point Yacht Club.
Tonight’s races started off with calm winds and flat seas, however towards sunset - the winds picked up and created a moderate chop, leading to an exciting end to the first race of the season.
The clubs welcome members of the community to join their crews or participate in the Wednesday night regattas. Those interested should reach out to the Cedar Point Yacht Club, or the Saugatuck Harbor Yacht Club.
Going with the Flow
Saugatuck Rowing Club junior rowers went with the flow this evening as they awaited direction from their instructor boat while practicing on the Saugatuck River.
Staples High School Announces May Students of the Month
Press ReleasePrincipal Thomas has announced Staples High School's recipient’s for May Student of the Month:
Yersultan Zhakupov Gr. 12
Jasper Cahn- Gr. 11
Wyatt Resnick- Gr. 12
Amelia Galin- Gr. 11
Spencer Yim – Gr. 10
William Fitch- Gr. 10
The Students of the Month award program recognizes students who help make Staples High School a welcoming place for their peers and teachers alike. They are the “glue” of the Staples community: the type of kind, cheerful, hard-working, trustworthy students that keep the high school together, making it the special place that it is.
Students of the month are nominated by their teachers, who are asked to think of those students who come to school regularly, are friendly to the staff and to fellow students, and make positive contributions in class as well as the Staples community. In short, these students are all-around good citizens of our school. Students of the Month are not necessarily star athletes, high honor students, or lead performers, and even if they are, this award recognizes the positive attitude they bring to school every day in making Staples High School a genial place in which to learn and teach.
Celebrating EMS Week: Meet Volunteer EMT Stewart Reifler
The United States celebrates Emergency Medical Service Week. In honor of the women and men who serve Westport as EMRs, EMTs, or Paramedics on Westport’s ambulances - each day we’ll meet a Westporter who saves lives in their community.
Stewart Reifler began serving Westport as an EMT in 2019. Within a year, a pandemic took over the world and the way EMS operated was changed forever. Despite this, Stewart continued to serve his community as an EMT - going through the training procedures of donning and doffing (putting on and taking off) PPE equipment such as gowns, gloves, masks, eye protection, and shields in the event of a COVID-19 probable patient. Although a very different first year than he probably imagined, Stewart rarely misses a shift and continues to serve his community.
When he isn’t on the ambulance, Stewart’s works as a lawyer. He also served on the Board of Governor’s for the Minuteman Yacht Club as Treasurer, as he enjoys spending time on the Long Island Sound.
To learn more about becoming an EMT, or becoming trained in CPR or Stop the Bleed courses, or to make a donation, visit the non-profit organization’s website: westportems.org