Morning Weather Report
Today
Partly sunny, with a high near 69. South wind 6 to 11 mph.
Tonight
A slight chance of drizzle or light rain. Cloudy, with a low around 60. South wind 3 to 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Tomorrow
A slight chance of drizzle before 11am, then a slight chance of showers between 11am and 2pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Cloudy, with a high near 75. South wind 8 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%.
Tomorrow Night
A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 8pm. Cloudy, with a low around 62. South wind 7 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Jeanne Marie Alling Sweeny, 103, Died; Westport Library, Curio Cottage Volunteer
Jeanne Marie Alling Sweeny, known to most as Johnny, passed away on Mother's Day, May 8, 2022, at the age of 103.
Mrs. Sweeny was born February 1, 1919, to Leon and Jeanne Alling in New York, NY, and grew up in Plainfield, NJ. Always serious in whatever she did, she graduated at the top of her class at age 16 from the Miss Hartridge's School and then from the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School. She was employed by Arthur Andersen in New York until her engagement to Lieutenant Colonel Hugh B. "Jim" Sweeny, Jr. Married on June 3, 1942, she became a military wife, relocating, enduring the long absence of her husband and managing as mother of a newborn.
A devoted wife and mother, Mrs. Sweeny volunteered her time and energy to many causes. She taught Sunday School at Fanwood (NJ) Presbyterian Church and was a Cub Scout Den Mother for both her sons.
Mrs. Sweeny actively supported her husband in his position as National Program Director and National Conference Director for Junior Achievement(JA). Her relationships with many JA young people have endured until this day. In 2017, she was elected Board Member Emeritus of the Achievement Foundation in New York.
In the mid-1960's, she revived her career, working as the executive assistant to the founder of the Koos furniture chain where she broadened her finance and investment skills. She actively invested and managed her own accounts until she was well past 100 years young. She and her husband had an ongoing competition with their respective portfolios. Mrs. Sweeny's returns, more often than not, were better.
After moving to Westport, CT in the mid-1970's, she continued her community involvement, volunteering with many organizations including the Westport Women's Club's Curio Cottage for many years. Mrs. Sweeny channeled her love for books by volunteering with both the Westport and Easton libraries. She also enjoyed a lively (and very competitive) bridge game well into her 90's.
Mrs. Sweeny was predeceased by her husband of 74 years, Hugh B. "Jim" Sweeny, Jr., son David Alling Sweeny, and sister Patricia Alling Peterson. She is survived by her eldest son, Hugh B. Sweeny, III (Amy O'Donnell Sweeny) of Jersey City, NJ; daughter-in-law Andrea(Mooney)Sweeny of Venice, FL, step-grandson Jeffery Delauter (Claire) of Brooklyn, NY, nieces Laura Peterson Starrantino and Barbara Rice, nephews Carl Peterson (Andrea), John Peterson and Andrew Peterson(Debbie), and cousin Marian Bradley of Southport, CT, many great nieces and nephews, and special friends Carol and Paul Wolff of Trumbull, CT .
Friends are invited to a memorial service on Sunday, June 5, 2022, 2:00 p.m., at First Church of Christ, Congregational, 25 Cross Highway, Redding Center, CT 06875. A reception will follow in the church hall. Interment will be private at another date. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Mrs. Sweeny's memory to:
First Church of Christ, Congregational, P. O. Box 1055, Redding Center, CT 06875.
Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, 103 Vision Way, Bloomfield, CT 06002
Bridgeport Rescue Mission, P.O. Box 9057, Bridgeport, CT 06601
Westport Police Officer Extinguishes Long Lots School Fire; Students Dismissed Early
Westport Fire Department Press Release:A police officer who was assigned to Long Lots Elementary School was alerted to an odor of smoke in the schools auditorium. Upon seeing smoke, the officer activated the fire alarm to evacuate the school and requested the fire department respond.
The fire department responded with 4 engines, 1 ladder truck, the Safety Officer, and the Shift Commander. The first arriving unit found the school evacuated and a small fire burning in the wall of the auditorium. The police officer who found the location of the fire used a fire extinguisher to initially put out the fire. The fire department gained further access to the inside of the wall and extinguished the remaining fire.
The small fire was contained to a wall in the auditorium. An investigation into the cause of the fire was conducted by the Westport Fire Marshal’s Office. It was determined the fire was caused by an electrical short.
The school was re-occupied by student’s shortly before 1pm. Out of an abundance of caution students were dismissed at 1:15pm for the remainder of the school day.
Wednesday Night Sailing Regattas Return for 2022 Season
Sailing yachts head back to port late this evening after another Wednesday night sailing regatta off of Compo Beach. With boats from Cedar Point and other surrounding yacht clubs, the large class of sailing vessels compete each Wednesday evening until sunset - manned by crews comprised of local community members and their family and friends. WestportLocal.com photo
Hand in Hand; Love at Day’s End
With hands grasped, two community members enjoy the crisp wind of the shore tonight as sun set over Westport. WestportLocal.com photo
Sunset Waves
The crashing waves gave Compo a familiar sound as the orange hues of sunset signaled the end to the day along the shoreline. WestportLocal.com photo
Westport COVID-19 Cases Up; State Positivity Rate 12.05%, Hospitalizations Up
The State Department of Public Health reported 36 more cases in Westport over the past two days. The State’s daily test positivity rate was down to 12.05% while hospitalizations were up 383 patients, with 383 patients currently hospitalized for COVID-19 throughout the State.
Westport total positive or probable cases: 4,948 cases.
Westport total COVID-19 Deaths: 36 deaths
State Daily Test Positivity: 12.05% [down from 12.30%]
State Hospitalizations: 383 patients [+35]
Morning Weather Report
Today
Mostly sunny, with a high near 69. Northeast wind 5 to 9 mph becoming south in the afternoon.
Tonight
Partly cloudy, with a low around 51. South wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Tomorrow
Partly sunny, with a high near 71. Light southeast wind becoming south 6 to 11 mph in the morning.
Tomorrow Night
A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly after 3am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. South wind 6 to 8 mph.
“The CUkes” Ukulele Jam Session brings Summer Sounds to Riverwalk
Members of the local ukulele group “The CUkes” played their four strings this evening along the Westport Library riverwalk, with light sounds of music and song carrying over the river and into the ears of nearby listeners. WestportLocal.com photo
Westport Superintendent: “ I can only feel that pain along with you.”
Westport Superintendent Thomas Scarice: Good evening,
I am so sorry to send this message this evening. I just wish I had something magical to say that would console and comfort the heartache so many in our community feel in the aftermath of the massacre of young children in a Texas elementary school today. But, I do not. There is nothing I can say to ease that heartache. I can only feel that pain along with you. I have struggled since about 6pm this evening trying to conjure up words of comfort. But for now, along with you, I just hurt.
However, I want to assure each member of our community that when the bell rings in the morning, we will be ready to receive our students, your children, with the care and responsibility that professional educators embody. Our team will be ready. Many of us will give an extra long hug to our own children this evening, even the teenagers, and again in the morning before we leave. But we will be ready.
This evening, our Director of Psychological Services, Dr. Valerie Babich, has mobilized, along with her team and the entire district administrative team, to provide guidance for each of our three levels, elementary, middle and high school. I want to assure parents of young children that discussion of this topic will not be initiated at the elementary level. However, we are working at this moment to organize and provide guidance and resources so our faculty are ready in the morning.
Principals are working right now to plan how to disseminate information to teachers so that they are prepared to handle this in their classrooms. In the era of social media and young children with access to smartphones, we cannot be assured of protecting them from exposure to this horror. As a result, we are doing our best to equip our teachers to acknowledge their feelings, reassure them of their safety by reviewing all of the measures in place to keep our schools safe, while not talking about the unspeakable tragedy in our elementary schools.
Many children from all levels will question why this happened. There is no good answer to that question and we will not try to answer it. But again, we will acknowledge feelings and reassure students of their safety at school by emphasizing the many measures we take to ensure safety.
Dr. Babich and her team will work this evening with the administration at our middle and high schools to plan an appropriate response and provide guidance to faculty and staff. In addition, by the end of the day tomorrow we will send out resources to families that guide parents through discussions on this topic with their children.
Finally, I have been in touch with our Chief of Police, Foti Koskinas. I have requested a police presence at all of our schools tomorrow, to which he immediately honored. Our schools are not at risk, yet this collaboration and support with our local police department is reassuring for many in our community. We will continue to partner with our police department to maintain the highest of safety standards in our drills and protocols.
We will do our best tomorrow. We will be professionals and rise up to support our students. We all hurt right now, but when the bell rings in the morning, we will be ready.
Respectfully,
Thomas Scarice
Superintendent of Schools