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Kids' health worries parents
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Kids' health worries parents
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Monday, March 31, 2008
03/31/08 - What's Happening Around Town
Eartha Kitt
Eartha Kitt performs for music festival
Via The Greenwich Post
Legendary star of stage and screen Eartha Kitt will entertain guests April 12 at the Greenwich Country Club in a private performance to benefit the 2008 Greenwich Music Festival season.
Ms. Kitt is one of only a handful of performers to be nominated for a Tony (three times), the Grammy (twice) and Emmy Award (twice). She made an indelible mark on pop culture as the infamous Catwoman in the television series Batman and immediately became synonymous with the role. Since then, her trademark growl has been imitated worldwide. Now her distinctive voice has captivated an entirely new generation of fans of Disney movie productions and earned her two Annie Awards. Ms. Kitt regularly enthralls New York nightclub audiences during her extended stays at the Café Carlyle and these intimate performances have been captured in her newest recording, Eartha Kitt, Live at The Carlyle.
The evening will include cocktails and hors d’oeuvres followed by dinner and cabaret with Ms. Kitt. Tickets start at $100 for the cabaret performance only and $300 for dinner and the cabaret. All proceeds benefit GMF Artist Residencies for rising classical musicians who will perform in June, and the festival’s Student Outreach program. This program brings professional musicians into local schools for performances and workshops and allows talented local students to perform in one public concert alongside festival musicians each year.
The Benefit Committee includes: Bobbi and Steven Eggers (chairman); Joanne and Neil Bouknight: Patricia and John Chadwick; Polly and Harry Geller; Janice and Charles Gardner; Marcia and Don Hamilton; Mieke and Jim Knight; Michael Kovner and Jean Doyen de Montaillou; Susan and Rob Morris; Deborah and Charles Royce; Karen Royce, and Debbi and Mike Trager.
A limited number of tickets for the benefit are available to the public. For more information about the event, or to purchase tickets, visit Greenwichmusicfestival.org or call 637-0854.
More From The Greenwich Post
Integrative medicine center offers herb gardening series
Recognizing the important role of herbs in holistic health care, Greenwich Hospital’s Center for Integrative Medicine will offer “How Green Grows My Garden,” a four-part gardening series designed to help budding herb gardeners open new avenues of cooking, nurturing, relaxation and health-starting right in their own back yards.
Greenwich surgeon to discuss chronic knee pain, prevention
Ah, the aching joint. Those who have trouble with their knees know problems worsen with age. That's why orthopaedic surgeon Dr. James Cunningham of Orthopaedic and Neurosurgery Specialists and Greenwich Hospital will present, "The Aging Knee: Treatment and Prevention of Conditions of the Knee," for the Greenwich Hospital Chronic Pain Management Forum on Tuesday, April 1, from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
More Postings From The Greenwich Post
Today
Arts center forum
The board of directors of the proposed Greenwich Center for the Arts sponsors an informational forum on their plans for the arts center, 7, Monday, March 31, Town Hall Meeting Room; 661-2880;
Greenwichcenterforthearts.org.
Tuesday, April 1
‘From Harbor to Haven’
Bush-Holley Historic Site holds an opening reception for its exhibit titled ‘From Harbor to Haven: Connecticut Scenes” of work by Greenwich residents Reba and Dave Williams, 7 to 8:30, Tuesday, April 1, William Hegarty Gallery at Bush-Holley Historic Site; free; exhibit runs through August 17; 869-6899.
03/31/08 - Lifstyles Of The Rich And The Baa... Baa... Baa... Boring
"Been There Done That"The fantasy Manhattan wedding of
France’s ex–First Lady.
On March 23, the chic, frosty Cécilia Sarkozy married Richard Attias, who reportedly has been her boyfriend for ages now, at, of all places, the Rainbow Room. She’d left Attias to help her husband, Nicolas Sarkozy, win the French presidency, but that rapprochement didn’t last long. Her New York wedding was a happily cheesy three-day affair, beginning with a party at Attias’s house in Greenwich, Connecticut, followed by a group outing to Mamma Mia! and then to the Top of the Rock. Meanwhile, Nicolas and Carla Bruni hid out in Marrakech, then upstaged Cécilia with their convivial state visit to England.
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03/31/08 - "What irks me about the formaldehyde is it could be a good five years before my kids get diagnosed,"
Why Doesn't School Board Member Leslie Moriarty Want The Hamilton Avenue School Parents To Independently Test The Contaminated Modular Classrooms?Quote:
"We believe the protocol that has been used for the environmental testing is really high quality and we welcome any specialist you would like to bring to sit down with the specialist (who has) been in the building and has done the test to review the protocol and the methods involved and I think you would be satisfied," Board of Education member Leslie Moriarty told parents at a meeting Thursday.
HEADLINE:Kids' health worries parents (Click Here For The Full Story)
Gina DeMartis' son had constant headaches and occasional nose bleeds. Mina Bibeault's daughter complained of frequent headaches and burning eyes, while her son often had a runny nose. Donna Ortoli's son also suffered from similar health ailments.
These three Hamilton Avenue School parents are among those worried that their children's health symptoms are linked to conditions at the modular school building. Officials shut down the school last month after officials found a significant mold infestation in the roof eaves and crawl space.
"My child has a cold now, is it related?" DeMartis asked. "Maybe the mold spores are on the books they got from the classroom? You don't know what to believe anymore."
With Hamilton Avenue School students dispersed to different schools across the town, parents are calling on the Board of Education to allow their own experts into the moldy modular buildings to perform their own tests and investigation....
"If the Board of Ed has nothing to hide, they should allow us in," Mina Bibeault said. "Board of Ed, if you feel 120-percent confident in your results, you should roll out the red carpet."
...Another indoor air quality specialist also not connected to the Hamilton Avenue School testing said there are no hard and fast rules.
"It's very hard to comment because there's no one size fits all answer," said Paula Schenck, assistant director of the Farmington-based Center for Indoor Environments and Health at the University of Connecticut. "You have to look at the individual situation."
She said while mold is easily cleaned from some furniture, particularly metal, it is more difficult to rid from paper and other organic materials. Schenck said that while some small amount of mold can be naturally occuring indoors, it should be kept to an absolutely minimum.
"It's complicated because what you don't want is mold growing on materials inside," Schenck said. "Mold is a very normal part of our ecology but you don't want it growing inside. It's not a healthy environment inside."
In addition to mold, parents also fear the presence of formaldehyde in the modulars. Schwartz said the chemical is present in ultra-low concentrations, but parents also dispute that finding and want their own tests. Formaldehyde causes cancer in lab animals and may cause cancer in humans, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
"What irks me about the formaldehyde is it could be a good five years before my kids get diagnosed," Bibeault said.
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03/30/08 - School Parents Are Excited That The Delayed School Satisfaction Survey Is Comming Out Next Week
Hey Betty, What Would We Do Without U?
Will Betty And Her Failed School Administrators Make The Grade?
Some Hamilton Avenue School and Glenville School parents are worried that School Superintendent Betty "You Can Trust Me" Sternberg will once again delay the Harris Survey.
A lot of Hamilton Avenue School parents are unhappy that Betty Sternberg and the Board Of Education did not keep their promise to allow independent testing of the contaminated modular classroom buildings.
Please See:
Will Betty And Her Failed School Administrators Make The Grade?
Some Hamilton Avenue School and Glenville School parents are worried that School Superintendent Betty "You Can Trust Me" Sternberg will once again delay the Harris Survey.
A lot of Hamilton Avenue School parents are unhappy that Betty Sternberg and the Board Of Education did not keep their promise to allow independent testing of the contaminated modular classroom buildings.
Please See:
03/07/08 - Delayed - The Harris Survey, a bi-annual satisfaction survey of parents, teachers and students, which was to be sent out this month.
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This Just IN.....
For those administrators that truly excel at incompetence, currently known as “Chronically Underperforming,” the new title would be “Priority One” administrators.
You can just imagine the delight in the hallways of Greenwich School Buildings. “I am a high paid ‘Greenwich Priority One" administrator !’ I wish I could spell that.”
High paid "Priority One" School bureaucrats, like Betty Sternberg, hate standardized testing. They hate academic standards even more. But most of all, they loathe accurate reporting of their results.
And don't even get me started about what has happened at the high school.
If School Board Of Education Chairman Nancy Weissler continues to refuse to punish school administration failures, then the children of Greenwich will be the ones to pay the price for Nancy Weissler and her boards failure to act.
It Is Time To Stop This Madness......
Let Hamilton Avenue School Parents Independently Test The Modular School Buildings.
AND
The time has come start firing Betty Sternberg and her failed school administrators.
This Just IN.....
Who you calling ’failure’?
For Greenwich’s worst public schools administrators, failure is not an option.
Literally.
Believe it or not, the Greenwich Board Of Education is considering a request to drop the label “underperforming” for failing school administrators . Instead the Greenwich BOE would declare these failing school administrators “Greenwich Priority” administrators.For those administrators that truly excel at incompetence, currently known as “Chronically Underperforming,” the new title would be “Priority One” administrators.
You can just imagine the delight in the hallways of Greenwich School Buildings. “I am a high paid ‘Greenwich Priority One" administrator !’ I wish I could spell that.”
High paid "Priority One" School bureaucrats, like Betty Sternberg, hate standardized testing. They hate academic standards even more. But most of all, they loathe accurate reporting of their results.
“When high paid administrators are labeled as underachieving, I don’t see what it serves other than just to call them out,” said School Board Of Education Chairman Nancy Weissler. “When the single family home owner hears ‘underperforming,’ school superintendent the average taxpayer thinks the students might be underperforming too.”
Gee, Nancy, I can’t imagine why.
If we could just keep Betty "You Can Trust Me" Sternberg around for at least ten more years, then we can have an entire generation of students being graduated who can’t read their own arrest reports or calculate their own bail, and then the single family home owners and taxpayers just might get the crazy idea that this is some sort of failure.
"It’s just not fair!", Nancy and Betty were heard to scream in a Board Of Education conference room.
And don't even get me started about what has happened at the high school.
Everyday people in what failed school administrators call the “dreaded private sector” can only shake our heads.
If only our job performance were judged by standards this low. If only we could get our boss to reclassify “losing the company’s top three most valuable clients” as “an opportunity to look forward in a positive manner.”
Alas, no. We’re stuck in the real world, where results matter far more than labels.
The world where, theoretically, our public school students will one day be expected to get jobs and pay their own bills. If not, they may end up on the unemployment line.
Or as it’s known at Greenwich Board Of Education, the "Opportunity To Look Forward In A Positive Manner" Line.
Maybe School Board Of Education Chairman Nancy Weissler Should Keep Our Incompetent School Superintendent And Her Failed, er, "Priority One" administrators around a little longer.
The word around town is that these high paid "Priority One" school administrators are refusing accept failure. Their strategy is for kids who can’t do basic math, will be refered to as “non-traditionally enumerated.
There are now rumors that Greenwich "Priority One" administrators are developing new alternative testing strategies - commonly known as “cheating”.
Next the "Priority One" school administrators will want to create a new and improved grading system.
Advanced (“smart”); Proficient (“competent”); Needs Improvement (“good enough for government work”) and Warning (“Fries with that?”).
Like a fish a school system rots from the head down.If School Board Of Education Chairman Nancy Weissler continues to refuse to punish school administration failures, then the children of Greenwich will be the ones to pay the price for Nancy Weissler and her boards failure to act.
It Is Time To Stop This Madness......
Let Hamilton Avenue School Parents Independently Test The Modular School Buildings.
AND
The time has come start firing Betty Sternberg and her failed school administrators.
03/31/08 - Greenwich News Wire
Featured Greenwich Blog Post:
International Potluck Party
By claudette
...Some dishes on the menu were, curry goat, curry chicken, kugel, rum punch, rice and peas, black eye peas and short ribs Trinidadian roti, and many desserts that represent how sweet it is to live in the United States of America the country we now ALL call home.
The guests at the party were a wonderful reminder of how positive diversity is. There were guests from the Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, St.Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Venezuela, Ireland, Italy, England, Canada, Greece, Holland, Puerto Rico, India and some other countries that I can not think of (too much rum punch). Most of the guests now call Greenwich home, which shows that Greenwich is more diverse than what some people think. This is another great reason why Gary and I chose to call Greenwich home....
MORE FROM GREENWICH DIVA
- Is Rev. Jeremiah Wright a traitor?
- “A More Perfect Union”
- Friday Night Special
- Children know the truth….
- Boys and Girls Club of Stamford
- Fashion from the Heart
- The Race Diet
- Financial Journalist Stacey Tisdale is Latest Addition to Operation HOPE’s Northeastern Board
- Democratic debate last night
Greenwich Time Local News Links
Gina DeMartis' son had constant headaches and occasional nose bleeds. Mina Bibeault's daughter complained of frequent headaches and burning eyes, while her son often had a runny nose. Full Story Railroad to study its announcements STAMFORD -- Metro-North Railroad is about to launch a study of how to overhaul its public address system. Full Story By Meredith Blake Staff Writer Joe Ricciardi, 75, remembered sneaking into the Hamilton Avenue School gymnasium after hours, in the dark, with only flashlights, to play a quick pick-up game of basketball. Full Story Parking Fund fading The town's Parking Fund, which was once the envy of politicians struggling to find money for projects other than the construction of public garages or land acquisition, has been virtually wiped out. Full Story By Meredith Blake Staff Writer Several families and boat enthusiasts braved the chilly weather over the weekend to test drive the more than 75 boats at the Greenwich Water Club, In-Water Boat Show. Full Story New operating In response to a large increase in surgeries performed, Greenwich Hospital will open three new operating rooms. Full Story Greenwich Republicans and Democrats are already maneuvering behind the scenes to see how they can work the state's new system of funding of campaigns with taxpayer dollars to their advantage. Full Story | |
Speaking Of Funding Campaigns
See Also:
03/29/08 - Reader Contributed Content: An Open Letter To The Community - 63 cents
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Sunday, March 30, 2008
03/30/08 - Weekend Roundup - The Raw Greenwich News Feed - Friday, Saturday & Sunday
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Boeing's stake purchase in venture may not solve delay woes for 787
... performer in terms of managing to put those sections together at a fast pace," said Peter Arment, an analyst with Greenwich, Connecticut-based American Technology Research. "This is part of the program that Boeing thought their suppliers would be ...
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Brookfield Lax Fest highlights sport's rise
Mike Gallop remembers the days when Connecticut lacrosse started and ended with three schools: Greenwich, Darien and New Canaan.
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Recollections about lawyers, guns and money make for anecdotal book
... son or daughter gets arrested,' Sherman relates. He covers his own metamorphosis from the 'slums' of Greenwich, Conn., and a 'solid C' academic career to life as a 'C list celebrity.' But mostly the reader gets an ...
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Meet the super-rich, the dysfunctional class threatening American values.
... that are sealed off socially from the rest of the world - the Hamptons on Long Island; Manhattan's Fifth Avenue; Greenwich, Conn. Because they rarely interact with people of middle-class means (save the odd doctor, lawyer, or interior designer), ...
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Boeing continues damage control on two fronts
... performer in terms of managing to put those sections together at a fast pace," said Peter Arment, an analyst with Greenwich, Conn.-based American Technology Research. "This is part of the program that Boeing thought their suppliers would be able to ...
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Boeing buys half of South Carolina 787 assembly plant
... performer in terms of managing to put those sections together at a fast pace," said Peter Arment, an analyst with Greenwich, Conn.-based American Technology Research. "This is part of the program that Boeing thought their suppliers would be able to ...
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Boeing buys plant to stem 787 delays
... performer in terms of managing to put those sections together at a fast pace," said Peter Arment, an analyst with Greenwich, Conn.-based American Technology Research. "This is part of the program that Boeing thought their suppliers would be able to ...
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Jeff Wilpon won't rest until Amazin' mission is complete
It's five o'clock in the morning in Greenwich, Conn., the land of high net worth and billion-dollar hedge funds, and inside one of these tony, new-money homes, a creature of habit is already stirring - and ...
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Lampert revs up AutoNation stake
... is not saying. Requests for interviews and comment were declined by both AutoNation (NYSE: AN) and his hedge fund, Greenwich, Conn.-based ESL Investments . This article is for Paid Print Subscribers ONLY. If you are already a South Florida Business ...
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Is VON Creator PulverMedia Dot Gone?
... also seized control of the bank accounts. As a result many folks saw their checks bounced. TICC Capital Group, a Greenwich, CT-based investment group that trades publicly on the NASDAQ stock exchange had invested $11 million in Pulver Media in June ...
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Boeing buys Vought venture to stem 787 delays
... performer in terms of managing to put those sections together at a fast pace," said Peter Arment, an analyst with Greenwich, Conn.-based American Technology Research. "This is part of the program that Boeing thought their suppliers would be able to ...
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Boeing Will Buy Vought's Share in 787 Venture, Seeking to Ensure Supplies
... in terms of managing to put those sections together at a fast pace,'' said Peter Arment , an analyst with Greenwich, Connecticut-based American Technology Research. ``This is part of the program that Boeing thought their suppliers would be able to ...
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William the Green Garbage Truck
... realized his own need for environmental awareness after being fined for cutting down trees on his property in Greenwich, Conn. "I was shocked to realize that the generations before me did not teach about these important environmental issues," says ...
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Market dips with retail, financial shares
... weekend," especially in financials, said Tim Smalls, head of U.S. stock trading at brokerage firm Execution LLC in Greenwich, Connecticut. The Dow Jones industrial average dipped 9.04 points, or 0.08 percent, to 12,293.01. The Standard & ...
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Betty Munger, Who Helped Found Library, Dies At Age 91
... married Robert S. Munger, a family physician, who died in 1988. She was a 1933 graduate of Edgewood High School, Greenwich, Conn. She earned a bachelors degree in Pre-Med from Bennington College in Bennington, Vt., in 1937. The 1937 class was the ...
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AmBase Reports Full Year Results
GREENWICH, Conn., March 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AmBase Corporation announced today a net loss of $3,936,000 or $0.09 per share for the full year ended December 31, 2007.
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Dallas plant makes water bottles more eco-friendly
... around for a long time," he said. "In the last year it's gotten extremely hot." Nestle Waters North America, the Greenwich, Conn.-based subsidiary of Swiss food giant Nestle SA, makes 98 percent of its plastic bottles, said Catherine Herter, a ...
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Mystery Bestsellers for March 28, 2008
... years is dead. On that same day, a suspicious hit-and-run accident leaves a young man dead in Karen's hometown of Greenwich, Connecticut. Ty Hauck, a detective, becomes emotionally caught up in the case and finds a clue that shockingly connects the ...
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Man charged in developer's death knew crime details, police say
One of two men charged this week in the 2006 slaying of a wealthy Greenwich developer was arrested after telling investigators secret details of the crime, a police official said Thursday.
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Boeing Will Buy Vought's Share in 787 Venture, Seeking to Ensure Supplies
... partner for Boeing in terms of meeting schedules for the 787 program,'' said Peter Arment, an analyst with Greenwich, Connecticut-based American Technology Research. ``They've been sort of a bottleneck on the production ramp-up and a poor performer ...
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Lampert revs up AutoNation stake
... is not saying. Requests for interviews and comment were declined by both AutoNation (NYSE: AN) and his hedge fund, Greenwich, Conn.-based ESL Investments . Lampert likely has the resources to do whatever he wants. He is listed by Forbes as the ...
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Where fashion leads pet accessories are sure to follow. The Puppy...
... in Hollywood Mother's Day weekend. Contact: Elaine Doran The Puppy Hugger(TM) & Hugger Designs LLC 121 North St Greenwich, CT 06830 ph: 203-661-4858 / fax: 203-661-4858 info@thepuppyhugger.com http://www.puppyhugger.com Online version of this news ...
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... STAFF WORCESTER - Police say Leonard Trujillo, who has been charged along with his cousin in the 2006 slaying of a Greenwich, Conn., real estate developer, was implicated because of his inside information about the crime. Civilian traffic flaggers ...
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City man held in slaying By Scott J. Croteau TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF scroteau@telegram.com WORCESTER- Police say Leonard Trujillo, who has been charged along with his cousin in the 2006 slaying of a Greenwich, ...
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... in Atlanta so he could drive the final 25 miles home last night, the same distance he used to drive from Shea to Greenwich, Conn. "I'll be home, hopefully, by 8 o'clock-ish to tuck the kids in," Glavine said. "That's the reason why I'm still ...
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Dallas water bottling plant takes earth-friendly steps, but many still back tap
... around for a long time," he said. "In the last year it's gotten extremely hot." Nestle Waters North America, the Greenwich, Conn.-based subsidiary of Swiss food giant Nestle SA, makes 98 percent of its plastic bottles, said Catherine Herter, a ...
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Police: Man Knew Key Details Of Killing
One of two men charged this week in the 2006 slaying of a wealthy Greenwich developer was arrested after telling investigators secret details of the crime, a police official said Thursday.
03/29/08 - Dear Greenwich Time Editor, Are there any Belle Haveners who do not favor the tear-down?
Historical Society Director Debra Mecky said it has not received any communications from neighbors and residents of Belle Haven. Therefore, the society is reluctant to take a significant role.
03/29/08 - A Story We Are Currently Working On
Forclosures now reach into affluent Greenwich
In recent months, foreclosures have touched some of the most affluent communities in New York and Connecticut, including the Town Of Greenwich.
Recently, there have been Foreclosure proceedings on Alden Road, Bible Street, Church Street West, Lafayette Place, Locust Street, Pemberwick Road Riverside Avenue, Ronald Lane, Woodland Drive and many other streets in Greenwich.
What are our Federal, State politicians going to do to help Greenwich Single Family Home Owners from losing their piece of the American Dream?
What local, state and federal resources are available to help the single family home owners of Greenwich?
Please send comments to
GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com
03/29/08 - The Worcester Police Department Really Had Nothing To Do With These Arrests
What about all the help from...
New York Police Department, the Connecticut and Massachusetts Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the federal Department of Homeland Security, military police from Fort Jackson, S.C., and police departments from as far away as Philadelphia, Pa. and Miramar, Fla. As well as, dozens of other law enforcement agencies.
This case is far from a slam dunk, there are going to be many twists and turns and Greenwich Police Chief Ridberg had better start giving credit where credit is due, or he just might screw up this continuing investigation.
QUOTE:
"In the end it's not about our reputation but about justice," Ridberg said. "But it's always easy to take pot shots at a failure especially by the New York papers."
HEADLINE:
Arrests in slaying boost police morale
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
STORY:
The arrests of two men in the 2006 slaying of Andrew Kissel has given police the type of infusion of energy and confidence that comes with a difficult job done well, Chief David Ridberg said.
One dividend of the arrests of Kissel's personal assistant and his relative for the real estate developer's death is halting repeated black eyes from pundits and writers who've derided Greenwich police over Kissel and other cases....
...Ridberg was referring to the 1975 bludgeoning of Martha Moxley in Belle Haven, which remained unsolved until the arrest of Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel in 2000 and his conviction two years later, and the still-unsolved 1984 murder of 12-year-old Pemberwick boy Matthew Margolies.Both cases received national, and in the case of Skakel, international, media coverage...
...The warrants in the case remain sealed...
...Mark Fuhrman, the former Los Angeles police detective whose 1998 book slammed Greenwich investigators for failing to investigate Moxley's murder in Belle ...
...Lindy Urso, the attorney for Carlos Trujillo, said that some of what he views as pressure tactics by police may have steered them away from the real killer.
From the outset, Urso said, police have pushed Carlos Trujillo's South American-born relatives to give them information, using the threat of deportation and other legal problems as leverage...
...Ridberg said two books last year that questioned the department's competence and desire to solve the Kissel murder typified what he considers the unfair impression among media that Greenwich police are not adept investigators.
Brewster, N.Y., true crime authors Kevin McMurray and Joe McGinniss both published Kissel books last year that implied Greenwich detectives would bungle the case, Ridberg said.
"The Andrew Kissel case is currently in the hands of the Greenwich Police Department, a fact that doesn't bode well for a timely resolution for this murder mystery," McMurray wrote.
In his book, "Andrew and Robert Kissel: A Family Cursed" McMurray cited the still unsolved Margolies killing as an indication that police would not crack the Kissel murder.
In the book McMurray urged police to abandon their focus on Carlos Trujillo and investigate other possible killers, especially the possibility the killer was associated with an olive oil importing business Kissel was a partner in based in Sicily.
McMurray remains unconvinced with the premise that Trujillo is involved, he said.
"Unless they have some earth shattering evidence that leaves no doubt he is the one," McMurray said this week. "Until I see that evidence I think he's innocent."...
...Last year in his book "Never Enough," McGinniss wrote that the department was spinning its wheels in the case, which he speculated investigators considered a low priority.
"While Greenwich police were quick to pounce on anyone found water skiing after sunset, the town was a great place to get away with murder," McGinniss wrote...
PLEASE READ:03/29/08 - "It's ridiculous to think this type of guy would have the backbone to kill himself for his children or that he would do so in such a ......
03/27/08 - "I think what really put it over the edge was some of the knowledge that Leonard had of this case," Worcester Capt. Edward McGinn said
``He had intimate knowledge of the facts of the case which hadn't been released to the public,'' McGinn said. ``He knew things about the crime and the crime scene that a non-participant would not know.''
03/25/08 - Greenwich Police Chief David Ridberg Gets Caught Mis-leading To The Press In The Andrew Kissel Murder
See Also...
Police: Man charged in developer's slaying knew details of crime
Suspects' Family Linked To Slain Man's Finances
Please send comments to
GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com
03/30/08 - Greenwich Newswire - Latest Greenwich News
Greenwich News Reports:
Sleeping With The Stars
Hartford Courant
In 2003, Schwartz paid $10.4 million for a 17-room, 11000-square-foot mansion on 7 acres in Greenwich, and he also owns a condo in Edwards, Colo. ...
Minnesota team dines out in Stamford
Stamford Advocate - Stamford,CT
Greenwich resident and Thirteen/WNET President Emeritus William Baker will be honored for his contributions to public television and the New York ...
Please send comments to
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03/30/08 - "Jeff is the kind of guy that once he wins the World Series, he'll only be happy for a very short time,"
Jeff Wilpon won't rest until Amazin' mission is complete
It's five o'clock in the morning in Greenwich, Conn., the land of high net worth and billion-dollar hedge funds, and inside one of these tony, new-money homes, a creature of habit is already stirring — and beginning to sweat.
Jeff Wilpon, 46, one of the most vilified New York City sports figures in recent years but who has more and more become the face of Mets' ownership, is pedaling furiously on his stationary bike, something he does for an hour every day.
It's said by those who know Wilpon best that from this point on he won't come to anything resembling a complete stop until, incredibly, around 10 at night, moving steadily throughout his day like some Pac-Man gobbling up everything in his path, seemingly checking off one item after the next — in exact order, no less — from a carefully-prepared, if not overly ambitious list ...
"I'm not in this," he once said without a twitch of doubt, when the world was against him at the beginning, "not to achieve my goal."
Poster boy of nepotism
From the time he entered our consciousness, circa 2001, Jeff Wilpon, who "politely" declined to be interviewed for this story, appeared to us as nothing but a poster boy of nepotism, thrust by his dad into the Mets' organization despite not having on his resume a sliver of hardball management experience. Combine that with his arrival coinciding with the team's sudden descent into oblivion, eventually straight to the bottom of the National League East, and it made for a situation that was no-win from the get-go, where he might as well as had a "Kick Me!" sign taped on his back.
In fact, it took little time for one local columnist to playfully dub him Paris Wilpon, conjuring an unseemly image of a spoiled, empty-headed dolt running around out of control on nothing but unearned money, whose only claim to fame was being an heir to a family fortune.
It didn't help that whatever suspicions people had about Jeff's substance were made that much worse by the fear and loathing of his out-of-the-gate, rough-edged style. To those within the inner sanctum of Metland, he was seen early on, according to sources and published accounts, as something of a pugnacious punk, someone who'd only remove the silver spoon born in his mouth to rap people over the head with it: snooty, abrasive, impatient, short-tempered, unreasonable and a bully over the powerless, who would go so far as to fire an usher for committing the egregious sin of smoking a cigarette on the job.
One revealing story goes back to 2003, Jeff's first full season as COO. The Mets had just finished playing a series against the Expos in Puerto Rico, and they were returning on the team charter. First, however, they needed to go through security on the tarmac, forced to stand on this long, snaking line. It was taking an eternity, too. Jeff, who had stayed behind while his father flew out a day earlier on a private plane, suddenly showed up, taking his place in the back. But after waiting for just a half-minute, he released this snort of an exasperated sigh, lifted up his luggage with a snap, and simply bolted to the front, passing a string of stunned expressions — and forever-altered perceptions.
"It was like, 'I'm more important than everybody else,'" said one eyewitness.
It's these kinds of ugly first impressions that linger to this day, remaining uncomfortably under the surface...
..."I think it was Jeff's lack of experience that made him do some things that rubbed people the wrong way," said one high-level former employee who asked for anonymity. "Overall, I think his intentions were good. He was just trying to get the team going in the right direction. But at times, he didn't come across that way. I think because he's such a highly competitive guy that sometimes it was like he wanted to prove to people that he deserved to be there in that job."
A little Yankee in him
"George Steinbrenner on training wheels," is what the whispers have always said about Jeff, appearing far more like George's boy than Fred's.
"Jeff is regimented, extremely demanding and a perfectionist," Browne said. "He wants to win on the field, he wants to win in business, and he's committed to always being better — that is, at everything, even his golf game. Like last summer, while he was on vacation, he e-mailed me that he hit a 68, which was the first time he had ever broken 70. But what I remember most about that e-mail is that after briefly praising himself for that 68, he wrote — mind you, in the same sentence — about how upset he was for the two shots he blew that would've given him a 66. I mean, he couldn't be happy with himself for more than a split second."....
..."He's changed," Horwitz claimed. "He's mellowed."
"I'll say this," said one employee, "when the Mets were going through their collapse in those last couple of weeks, Jeff not only didn't show any strain but still took the time to come up to me, pat me on the back, tell me I was doing a good job and even asked about my family."
This is not to say, of course, that Jeff Wilpon has magically transformed, but maybe, just maybe, he's evolved a few degrees from those initial Met years, when he was someone so shockingly devoid of social skills that people around him couldn't believe he was related to the regal man who brought him into being.
A distinct difference
When you look at the father and son, you quickly see the striking physical resemblance smack in the middle of their faces: that long, thin, upturned nose. But that's where any kind of similarity seems to begin and end. While Fred's lips curl easily into an engaging smile, Jeff's don't, only occasionally managing something akin to a forced grin. While Fred's eyes twinkle, Jeff's barely blink, looking all business, caught in deep thought while possibly pondering the next thing on his agenda. And while Fred exudes a polished elegance and fatherly warmth, as well as being someone famously judicious with his words, Jeff appears raw, impulsive and a bit on the chilly side.
"Jeff doesn't dwell on the emotions (of the job)," said Howard. Like with e-mails — "He prefers getting shorter ones," he said, "and he doesn't like to get the gratuitous, 'OK, thanks,' type of responses. He prefers just, 'Got it. Done.' And that's the end of the chain."...
...By 10, Jeff was already carrying around homemade business cards identifying himself as Sterling Equities' "Director of Construction." It was around 15 years later, in 1986, that his dad made him the company's executive vice president — but not before Fred made his son pay his dues with another builder and three years after, as a catcher, Jeff had an eye-blink of a fling at professional baseball, drafted by the Expos (which, rumor has it, was done as a favor to Fred) and spending a brief time with Class-A Jamestown of the New York-Penn League (though his name reportedly doesn't appear in the team's statistics for that season).He's the boss
What Jeff did last September, especially, was nothing like his dad but straight out of the George Steinbrenner playbook.
Not only did he lower the boom at the worst of times — telling SI.com in the midst of his team balancing perilously on the tipping point: "I'm disappointed with the way the team is performing overall, and that's everyone, top to bottom. I'm disappointed in Omar (Minaya, the general manager), Willie (Randolph), the players ... that's everyone. We shouldn't be in this position," — but once the season ended, reminiscent of Steinbrenner's apology to New York City after the Yankees tanked in the 1981 World Series to the Dodgers, Jeff fired off a letter via e-mail to all Mets season-ticket holders, expressing bitter disappointment over what had happened, conceding they, the fans, indeed deserved much better and promising to fix whatever was wrong.
That attempt at a fix came just days before spring training — in the form of, arguably, the best pitcher in the game, Johan Santana — and Jeff did it exactly the way the Boss in his heyday used to: by first trading away a slew of prospects, then closing the deal with a man-to-man chat and flipping open that fat checkbook of his....
Jeff Wilpon bio
Age: 46
Resides: Greenwich, Conn.
Job: Senior executive vice president and chief operating officer, Mets
Responsibilities: Manages team's business and baseball operations.
Other experience
• Senior executive vice president and chief operating officer, Brooklyn Cyclones
• Executive vice president, Sterling Equities
• Board of directors, New York Hall of Science; NYC & Co.; Greenwich Country Day School; Association for a Better New York
About the series
Our two-part series looks at
the men who are emerging from their fathers' shadows as the key players in the management of New York's pro baseball teams.
Today: Mets' Jeff Wilpon
Tomorrow: Yankees' Hank Steinbrenner
These stories will be archived at recordonline.com/sports.