10/23/09 Comment On These Greenwich Stories At The Greenwich Topix Forum

Librarian White spawns a theater group - the Greenwich Experimental Theater
Carl White is the man to go to for local history at Greenwich Library. He's headed up Local History research for years -- but all the while acting and playwriting has been an active part of his imaginative life.
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Deadline in Hamilton Avenue School principal search pushed back - Greenwich Time
School officials have appointed a veteran administrator at Parkway School to serve as interim principal of Hamilton Avenue School, after a search committee was unable to settle on a candidate for the permanent post.

Barbara Riccio, assistant principal at Parkway, will take over for Nancy Carbone, retired Julian Curtiss School principal, who has agreed to lead the Chickahominy school until the end of 2009.

Schools chief Sidney Freund expects to appoint an interim assistant principal for Parkway by Jan. 1, the day Riccio starts as interim principal of Hamilton Avenue, according to the district.
At the start of next year, the district plans to re-open its search for a permanent principal, with the goal of announcing an appointee job before the start of the 2010-11 school year.....
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WESTERN MIDDLE SCHOOL AWARDED EXEMPLARY SCHOOL CLIMATE STATUS
Western Middle School (WMS) has been granted Exemplary School Climate status by CAS - the Connecticut Association of Schools. Western is now only one of twelve Connecticut middle schools holding this designation. The Board of Education recognized Western Middle School Principal, Dr. Stacey Gross, and WMS students at their meeting last night at Eastern Middle School.

According to the National Middle School Association’s This We Believe, Successful Schools for Young Adolescents, “A successful school for young adolescents is an inviting, supportive, and safe place, a joyful community that promotes in-depth learning and enhances students’ physical and emotional well-being.”

The administration and faculty at the school completed a rigorous self-assessment examining over forty areas of school practice such as safe and healthy environment, welcoming students and visitors, including stakeholders in planning and decision-making, and involving parents, students, and the community. A team from CAS then visited the school to verify and validate the assessment.

As a service to other districts interested in improving their school climates, Western Middle School will welcome visitors and inquires.

Connecticut Association of Schools (CAS) is an educational organization dedicated to “providing services to Connecticut's K-12 schools in areas ranging from academics to athletics.”
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Greenwich school board approves $27 million budget for high school auditorium project
Hoping to control higher-than-expected costs, the school board voted unanimously on Thursday to give building planners broader latitude to pare down some key features of the high school auditorium and music space project....

....While asking the project's building committee to come up with cost-saving reductions, the Board of Education also approved a proposed budget of $27.8 million, significantly higher than original budget estimates of $23.4 million.

The board should be supporting the Greenwich High School Music Instructional Space and Auditorium, or "MISA," project at a level "that's fiscally responsible, but that also isn't going to short-change this project," said school board member Leslie Moriarty.

There will still be a need for some budget-minded reductions, however. Preliminary estimates showed the overall project price would reach $28.4 million -- a more than 20 percent increase from the original estimate of $23.4 million projected in the original educational specifications....
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SOMETHING NEW TO DO IN GREENWICH ON HALLOWEEN!
Local parents and children-in-costume are invited to enjoy a little pre-trick or treat fun at Annie Watson Photography on Saturday, October 31st anytime from 10:00am to 4:00pm. Festivities will include a free Halloween Party and Costume Contest. Children can enter the contest by having their complimentary Halloween picture taken by portrait photographer Annie Watson.

In addition to the costume contest, Annie Watson will welcome Audrey Appleby, instructor and director of Greenwich's MagicDance Toddler, who will be dancing, singing, and telling stories with the children throughout the event.

Costume photo entries will be posted at Annie Watson Photography's Facebook Fan page where guests, family members, and Annie's fans will cast their vote for their favorite costume. Grand prize for the contest will be a complimentary photo session at Annie Watson Photography valued at $500 and second prize will be 2 free morning classes (each class two hours in duration, a total of four hours) at MagicDance Toddler.

Annie Watson Photography is a full service, fine art portrait studio that offers extremely personalized service. Annie Watson's gift as a photographer is apparent in every one of her shots, which are bold, timeless, and truthful. She works directly with her clients-- one on one, from the initial conversation to delivering finished custom prints.

MagicDance Toddler is an exclusive two-hour-a-day, one or two day-a-week creative arts program designed specifically for children 14 months to 2 and a half years of age, with a Parent or Caregiver. Classes are held at the Greenwich Garden Education Center in Cos Cob.

The innovative and unique program develops pre-reading, pre-writing, pre-mathematics, and imagination skills through activities including dance, creative movement, tumbling, music, instruments, singing, visual arts, story, and drama. The program also incorporates the use of three different languages, English, French, and Spanish.

Annie Watson Photography is located at 428 E. Putnam Avenue in Cos Cob. Guests who would like to attend the Halloween Party on October 31st are encouraged to email AWatsonPhoto@aol.com with the subject "Halloween Party". Parents will be required to sign a photo release to enter their children in the costume contest. For additional information, visit http://www.anniewatson.com/.
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Greenwich man charged with DWI after hitting pedestrian - Greenwich Time
A Greenwich man was arrested and charged with driving under the influence Wednesday after the car he was driving struck a woman running across West Putnam Avenue, police said.

A witness told police that James McEntee , 63, of 405 West Lyon Farm Drive, was exiting a service station in the area of 411 W. Putnam Ave. shortly before 4 p.m. A woman, who was talking on her cell phone, then ran into the path of McEntee's vehicle. The woman flipped onto the hood in almost a cartwheel, according to the witness, and was thrown to the sidewalk.

Police said when they arrived, the woman appeared to be lapsing into and out of consciousness.

The woman, Annabella Paul, 33, of 14 Artic St., had nonlife-threatening injuries, police said. She was taken to Stamford Hospital, where she was listed in fair condition Thursday, according to a hospital spokesman....
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Best and the rest of the past week
Thumbs up to success in Bridgeport. Derecktor Shipyards, a source of good news on Brideport Harbor despite going through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, is slated to see nearly $4 million in state and federal grants to help it build and repair larger ships...

.... pieces of art, should now be a showcase for man-made art. And thumbs down to Ranan Lurie, the artist and sometime Greenwich resident, for his flamingly egocentric embrace of the idea. Lurie, a world-renowned political cartoonist, is also the man ...
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Kessler ahead for 'Player of Year' - Greenwich Time
The YWCA's annual "Player of the Year" contest passed the three-quarters mark recently with Deb Kessler now pacing a field of 68 players who had participated in at least 10 games since the first of the year.

Pam Goergen was second with 57.4 for 13 appearances, followed by Sue Vock, 56.9 for 10 games, and Donna Malitizis, 56.8 for 31. Ronnie Bershad/Sachs and Barbara Thompson were tied for fifth at 56.7 for 28 and 27 outings, respectively.

Rounding out the top 10 in the contest, for which anyone who plays in at least 15 games during the year automatically becomes eligible, were: seventh, Nancy Fraser, 56.4 percent; tied for eighth, Sally Morgan and Marilyn Sugerman; and tied for 10th, Terry Lubman and Nancy Lucht, 56.1....
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Dumb Money Returns To Greenwich And Wall Street ......
John Meriwether Returns. No, I Didn't Make this Up
John Meriwether , the hedge fund manager and arbitrageur behind Long-Term Capital Management, is in the process of setting up a new hedge fund his third....

... named JM Advisors Management, will, like both of his previous hedge fund management companies, be based in Greenwich, Connecticut. People with knowledge of the situation say the fund is not likely to be ready to launch until next year. The fund is ...
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Fatal drunken driving suspect in court in Denver - Greenwich Time
A woman accused of driving drunk and causing a crash that killed two Old Greenwich librarians showed no signs of intoxication until hours later, when her blood-alcohol level was shown to be at more than twice the legal limit, police officers testified Thursday.

The officers testified that when they performed sobriety tests on Sandra Lee Jacobson more than three hours later, she had a blood-alcohol level of 0.18, had difficulty keeping her balance and at one point fell on a desk.

That testimony came during a hearing in which Jacobson's attorney sought to suppress evidence against his client, including statements and sobriety tests. The hearing is scheduled to continue Friday.

Jacobson faces vehicular homicide and other charges for the Jan. 28 deaths of 54-year-old Kathy Krasniewicz and 71-year-old Kate McClelland, both of Riverside and both librarians at Perrot Memorial Library in Old Greenwich. They were in a taxi headed to Denver International Airport when police say Jacobson's pickup sideswiped their vehicle, which went off the road and rolled over.....
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A Tale of Two Cultures: Elite vs. Street?
I do follow directions. There was nothing in the MIT Center of Transportation & Logistics help-wanted that indicated I could not send my application to multiple parties within the organization....

.... that I depicted in my novel to be published this winter. The title of that comedy of manners is "The Fat Guy From Greenwich." Here is a peek at the first few chapters Then there is the culture of the hustler or, as I like to think of it,the street. ...
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Town woman celebrates 105th birthday - Greenwich Time
After being wheeled into the balloon-filled auditorium at the Nathaniel Witherell nursing home to applause, Frances Hartell said she didn't expect that such a fuss would be made over her Friday afternoon.

After all, she was only turning 105.

"They always do (something for) everyone's birthdays," Hartell said modestly. "But I hate to see them spend so much money on me."

Hartell moved to Greenwich seven years ago to be near relatives, and celebrated her 100th birthday at The Mews assisted-living facility. She is believed to be the oldest person in town, though friends say she doesn't look, or act, her age....
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Why Wall Street Will Never, Ever Get Rid of Huge Bonuses
The government is finally cracking down on Wall Street's pay practices. Kenneth Feinberg, the pay czar, delivered word that wards of the statea 'Citi, Bank of America, and AIG, among thema 'must slash pay for top-earning executives....

... creative teams but because they like getting paid. Throughout December, tense dramas play out in office suites in Greenwich, Conn., and Manhattan as bonuses are negotiated. Traders and bankers plead their cases, threaten to leave, profess undying ...
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Greenwich victim's family heartened by legislation's progress - Greenwich Time
Four years after her brother disappeared on his honeymoon cruise, Bree Smith can take solace knowing her family's push for tighter cruise-line safety regulations is starting to gain traction.

Bree Smith's brother, Greenwich resident George Smith IV, was on a cruise ship with his fiancee in 2005 when he vanished somewhere between Greece and Turkey following a night of heavy drinking.

His body was never found -- although blood stains were located on an overhang below the couple's private balcony on the cruise ship. Smith's family has long suspected foul play in his disappearance.

Since Smith's apparent death, Bree Smith and her parents have lobbied Congress for regulations that would improve safety and security regulations on cruise ships.

Their effort moved a step forward Friday, when the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation ....
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Local elections: huge impact, little interest - Greenwich Time Editorial
With just over a week to go until Election Day, many Greenwichites are anxious to find out who our next first selectman will be.

With just over a week to go until Election Day, many (though apparently not all) Greenwichites are anxious to find out who our next first selectman will be.

But they might not know that another coveted crown is up for grabs come next Tuesday.
Or "¦ maybe it's not so coveted, and that's where the problem lies.

Every year, following the November elections, Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz awards the "Democracy Cup" to the municipality with the highest voter turnout. Actually, she awards three, to burgs in categories based on size.

As we head into the final stretch, the question that looms over the coming election isn't necessarily who will win Ms. Bysiewicz's award, but whether the victories will truly be something to celebrate or if the cup will amount to little more than a booby prize this year....

...Go back a year, however, and any reason to pat ourselves on the collective back quickly disappears. Without a White House run topping the ticket, voters didn't show much interest.

West Hartford, for example, won a Democracy Cup in 2007 with a measly 38.2 percent turnout.
Greenwich's turnout that year? It barely beat West Hartford. And we stress, barely.....
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