Staples Gymnastics Heads Into FCIAC Championships On Saturday
Staples Gymnastics has had a strong season and will compete on Saturday in the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference Championships, one of the two major meets in gymnastics. The Wreckers will be seeded in the top three in this competition.
Photos By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
On Tuesday, Staples competed against the Norwalk and Wilton teams, photos from that competition are here. Staples coach Kelsey Martin also coaches the Norwalk High School team which has had their most successful gymnastics season in more than 15 years. They have won 5 matches and achieved much individual success.
Staples Gymnastics is led by Senior captain Victoria Fidalgo Schioppa (bars, beam and floor) and junior captain Sofia Alarcon Frias (all-around). Watch out for the talented all-arounders in Sophomores of Sarah Arango, Hannah Bitsky and Mia Cochran.
Here are the scores for Tuesday’s competition for the top Staples and Norwalk Performers:
Vault - Staples - Manar and Mia 8.3; Norwalk - Katie 8.1
Bars - Staples - Sarah 9.0; Norwalk - Sam 8.55
Beam - Staples - Sofia 8.8; Norwalk - Sam 8.0
Floor - Staples - Sofia and Manar 9.0; Norwalk - Kaite 8.4
All around - Staples - Sofia 34.65; Norwalk - Sam 32.55
Photos By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Even though Staples lost a talented trio of seniors last year, they added a ton of talent and depth this year with 7 freshmen. Unfortunately within the last two weeks, two of Staples top performers this year, Laura Guster and Emilia Fletcher sustained season ending injuries.
Staples is training hard to overcome from the key injuries. They are taking advantage of the depth of the team and are ready to perform at a high level in FCIAC's and States.
Photos By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Internationally Known Jazz Artist Sherry Winston And Her Band To Perform At The Westport Library Sunday
Sherry Winston and her band’s music is diverse and progressive, with compositions from Jazz Masters pianist Horace Silver, saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, pop icon Stevie Wonder, and Grammy Award and Platinum recording artist Beyonce. Sherry’s own “Symphonic Rock Suite #3” and “Mr. D’s Funky Sweet” will also be featured. There is something for all ages with Sherry's music being melodic and accessible. Her words and stories will offer inspiration for this year’s challenges and beyond.
This concert is made possible by the generosity of the Maurer Family Foundation.
Sherry Winston has performed in many of the major concert halls throughout the U.S., including Carnegie Hall, Constitution Hall, Lincoln Center and at the Kennedy Center. She is a musician, composer, and businesswoman who handles all of her own bookings, negotiating, and management of her band.
Sherry performed with Stevie Wonder in New York City to honor the legendary Hal Jackson on his 97th birthday. She also had the honor of performing for two sitting presidents: For President and Mrs. Clinton during their last holiday party at the White House and for former President George H.W. Bush at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York.
Sherry has been featured in The New York Times, Ebony, Black Enterprise, Essence, and More magazines. She has been a featured guest on the Today show and Emeril Live and has co-hosted and performed on eight shows for BET TV.
Sherry has released 6 CDs, with her first Do It For Love, going to #1 on BRE and the Black Excellence Charts. Love Madness and Life is Love & Love is You were Top 10 at Billboard Magazine.
Richard Cummings (keyboards) studied piano at the Juilliard School of Music and at the University of Detroit. He has performed with Harry Belafonte, conductor Zubin Mehta, internationally known Hugh Masekela, Wayne Shorter, renowned singer Dianne Reeves, playright/producer George C. Wolfe, the classic Three Mo' Tenors, writer/producer Melvin Van Peebles, writer Iyanla Vanzant, and singer Letta Mbulu.
Steve Clarke (bassist/composer) has performed with Marion Meadows, Estaban, Tom Browne, Victor Fields, The Five Satins, Ben E. King, The Drifters, Coasters, and Sam & Dave. He has released seven albums under his own name, with his latest featuring Mike Stern, and has performed on more than 55 albums with other artists. Clarke has toured Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania as well as throughout U.S. with various groups.
Joe Ham (drums) has performed with Dizzy Gillespie, Gloria Gaynor, Sam & Dave, The Platters, Little Anthony & the Imperials, the Marvellettes, and Tom Browne. In addition, Clarke has performed for TV shows The Cosby Show, A Different World, and Living Single. He won a Grammy for the Deniece Williams album This is my Song.
Doggie Dancin’ At Compo Beach
Liuba and Alex recently moved to CT from Russia with their dog Pon’ka. When seeing us photographing dogs on a beautiful Sunday at Compo Beach, Lubia offered to have Pon’ka demonstrate some of the dance moves that earned her 1st and 3rd place at the Dog Dance European Championships. There were many hundreds of hours of training and practice, but in the end the rewards were worth the efforts.
Liuba told WestportLocalPress, “Just a year ago, we lived in another country and had an amazing experience with our dog, Pon'ka! She's a mixed breed, who was adopted, and despite her humble beginnings, she became a winner at the Dog Dance European Championships. It's incredible how our furry companions can reshape our lives, fostering new connections and leaving lasting impressions. Now she is retired, we are together in the USA , but she still delights in performing tricks just for the sheer joy of it” She obviously enjoyed showing us her moves but quickly returned to more familiar canine activities as seen below with a very large stick.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
The chilly but very sunny day brought many dog owners and their four-legged friends to Compo beach to run, play, swim and socialize with each other.
All in all, it was a most enjoyable day for everyone.
Also enjoying the day and having fun at the beach was 7 year old Westporter, Harper who was giving her Mini Golden Doodle Bella a good run. Or, perhaps it was the other way around!
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Westport Library Hosts 2024 State Of The Town Event
On Sunday more than 150 residents were joined by current and former town officials in the Trefz Forum at the Westport Library for the town’s annual State of the Town event, hosted by the Westport Rotary and Westport Sunrise Rotary.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Former First Selectman Jim Marpe was also in attendance, shown here with Kenny Epstein, President of the Westport Rotary Club, and Liz Wong, President of the Westport Sunrise Rotary Club.
The first presentation began with Board Of Education Chair Lee Goldstein who spoke at length of the many accomplishments achieved by the Westport School System. Included were Staples being named the number two high school in the State of Connecticut and Goldstein presented a slide illustrating the many areas of excellence by Staples, including state championships won by Wreckers football, Boys Lacrosse and Girls Field Hockey. Excellence in many other areas was discussed, including music, academic achievement such as being the number one public high school in CT for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The many achievements of the town’s middle and elementary were also highlighted and Goldstein also gave an update on the ongoing Long Lots project which has been a hot topic of discussion for some time.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
RTM Moderator Jeff Weiser then introduced First Selectwoman Jen Tooker who spoke abut the special place that is Westport, and upon a vast array of issues and topics of importance to Westporters. Jen stressed her efforts of her administration “to ensure that Westport continues to be the best place to live, work, play and learn in the region – a place where everyone is welcome and feels like they belong.”
Tooker mentioned the efforts to aid Westport’s sister city, Lyman in partnership with Ukraine Aid International and of her trip with Police Chief Foti Koskinas to the Ukrainian city last year.
Slides which illustrated some of the important work of her administration including the formation and partnership with Startup Westport, working with Helen MacAlinden, President and CEO of Homes With Hope. Many issues of concern were touched upon including traffic, pedestrian safety, The Longshore Capital Improvement Plan and a great many other topics of concern to Westport residents.
Following the Selectwoman’s comments, she was joined on stage by Goldstein and together they addressed a series of questions submitted prior to the start of the event by members of the audience.
To view the entire presentation click on this link: Westport Library State Of The Town
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.