Greenwich High School s Camryn Ferrara let s everyone know who s No. 1 following the Cardinals 27-0 season-ending win over Staples Thursday.
(Keelin Daly/Greenwich Time photo)
Sure it was Greenwich vs. Staples, only this time there were no TV cameras, there was no league title on the line and - gasp - there were even no state playoff spots at stake.
Instead, it was simply the final football game of the season for these proud, perennial powers, neither of them willing to have it all end without one last fight.
And while both teams walked out of Cardinal Stadium with their heads held high, it was Greenwich which once again left with their arms raised in the air.
Greenwich, which routed the Wreckers in the most lopsided FCIAC Championship of all time last year, notched its second straight shutout against their rivals from Westport with a 27-0 victory before an estimated crowd of 2,500 Thursday morning.
The Cards, who saw their two-year reign as FCIAC and CIAC Class LL champions come to an end this year, treated the regular-season finale like a postseason showcase.
It was their day to shine, and celebrate.
"When I woke up this morning I knew we were going to win," Greenwich senior co-captain Jeff DeVico said. "I kept telling these guys it was our last chance to play together, so let's make the most of it. That's what we did." ......
Library holds lecture on Mozart symphony
The Toscanini Lecture Series continues with Mortimer Frank discussing Mozart Symphony in G-minor, K. 550 at 7 p.m. Dec. 4 at the Greenwich Library meeting room, 101 West Putnam Ave.
A video of a telecast Toscanini performance of the entire score will be featured. The lecture is free.
For more information, call David Waring at 622-7917.
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Volunteers invited to join Audubon count
Audubon Greenwich, 613 Riversville Road, is organizing its annual Christmas Bird Count on Dec. 14.
Participants in the free event can join a field counting team or, if they live within a 15-mile radius of the Audubon, can conduct a backyard bird count.
To join a team or get a home-based reporting form, call Brian O'Toole at 869-5272, ext. 221.
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Center for HOPE offers luminary kits
Luminary kits for the Center for HOPE's annual "Hope Lights Lives" fundraiser are now on sale.
The kits are $25 and benefit the Center for HOPE and The Den for Grieving Kids - Family Centers programs offering bereavement and critical illness support. Each kit contains 12 tea light candles, 12 white paper bags and 12 plastic candle holders.
Kits can be purchased online at www.familycenters.org and at the following retail locations: McArdle's Florist, 48 Arch St., Greenwich; The Gardener's Center and Florist, 1396 Post Road, Darien; Nielsen's Florist and Garden Shop, 1405 Post Road, Darien; Michael Joseph's Catering, 188 Heights Road, Darien; Aux Delices Foods, 25 Old King's Highway North, Darien; Goldenberry, 110 Post Road, Darien; Palmer's Market, 246 Heights Road, Darien; Elm Street Books, 35 Elm St., New Canaan; M Milestones, 120 Main St., New Canaan; Walter Stewart's Market, 229 Elm St., New Canaan; Rowayton Market; Weston Hardware Housewares; Weston's Peter's Market and the Village Market in Wilton.
Neighborhoods in Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, Stamford, Norwalk, Wilton and Weston will light the luminaries to celebrate the holiday season and provide support and hope to people living with an illness or grieving the loss of a loved one at 5 p.m. Dec. 14. Rain date is Dec. 21.
For more information, visit www.familycenters.org or call Gloria Veeder at 869-4848.
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JFS hosts singles event for over-50s
Jewish Family Services' support and social network, Not Alone, will host "A Taste of Chanukah" from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 17 at the Delamar Greenwich Harbor, 500 Steamboat Road.
The event is aimed at mature Jewish singles over 50 years old, but is open to all.
Hanukkah foods and a wine bar will be offered. The cost is $10 per person.
For more information or to RSVP, call Ruth Schaeffer at (914) 262-6297 or e-mail Carole Goldstone at
askcag@aol.com.
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Youth hockey invites registrations
Greenwich Youth Hockey programs at the Dorothy Hamill Rink are accepting mail-in and walk-in registrations. Programs are available for the following age groups: instructional clinic 6-10; novice youth league 7-10; senior youth league 11-14; and junior hockey league 15-16.
Youth programs run through March 7.
Registration forms and program information are available at the Dorothy Hamill Rink, on the Town of Greenwich Web site,
http://www.greenwichct.org/ (Click on "Check out Parks and Recreation," and click on "Ice Skating Rink") or by calling the rink at 531-8560.
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Girls Inc. offers scholars program
Girls Inc. of Southwestern Connecticut is accepting applications for The Girls Inc. National Scholars Program.
Multiple scholarships ($2,500 and $15,000) are awarded each year and may be applied to tuition and expenses at any accredited two- or four-year college or university. The private scholarship is open to young women who are in the 11th or 12th grade and who are members of a Girls Inc. affiliate.
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Book club continues for Jewish women
Jewish Family Services of Greenwich's book club for Jewish women, "Book Beat: A Woman's Night Out," continues on Thursday evenings at JFS, 1 Holly Hill Lane.
The remaining dates are Dec. 18, Jan. 29, March 12, April 23 and May 21. Light dessert will be served at 7 p.m. and the book discussion begins at 7:30 p.m. Each session costs $18.
For more information, call the JFS office at 622-1881. MasterCard and Visa are accepted.
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YWCA seeks nominations for racial justice scholarships
The YWCA of Greenwich is seeking nominations for its sixth annual Racial Justice Scholarship.
Two $500 scholarships will be given to two high school seniors who live in town and attend a Greenwich school, and who have demonstrated a special effort to encourage people to respect differences, to promote equality and to eliminate all forms of bigotry, bias and racism in their school or community.
Candidates may be nominated by a member of the faculty of any Greenwich high school or by the general public. Nominations are due by Dec. 15.
The award will be presented at 6 p.m. Jan. 15 at the YWCA.
To request an application, call Peter DiLeo at 869-6501, ext.104, or go to www.ywcagreenwich.org. Click "Programs," "YWelcomes" and "Racial Justice Scholarships."4) 262-6297 or e-mail Carole Goldstone at
askcag@aol.com.
Whitby School will have to wait at least another two and a half weeks to move ahead with its proposed expansion - welcome news to neighbors who say the school has repeatedly ignored their requests to deal with light, noise and air pollution caused by expansion in 2000.
Following advice from the Planning and Zoning Commission, the school will use the time to consult with those neighbors, as well as Fire Chief/Marshal Joe Benoit regarding fire safety issues.
"Little by little, buildings have been added," Thomas Kupper told the commission at its meeting Tuesday. Kupper has lived behind the school on Merry Lane since it was built more than 40 years ago.
"The scope of this project is way out of scale for this neighborhood," he said.
This summer, the Planning and Zoning Commission approved a preliminary site plan for 10,000 square feet in additions to Whitby's 25-acre campus at 969 Lake Ave., including four new middle school classrooms and a larger gymnasium. The proposed expansion is similar to one undertaken by the school in 2000.
Preliminary approval for the proposed expansion was contingent upon the school's cooperation with neighbors who claimed it had let a perimeter fence fall into disrepair and that lights often stayed on well past 10 p.m., the agreed time they would be turned off......
Abilis hostsTheo Brown found it hard to pick out his favorite food served at this year's Thanksgiving dinner at Abilis, a nonprofit organization that provides services and support to people with developmental disabilities in Fairfield County.
"I liked the stuffing, the mashed potatoes, the turkey," said Brown, as he watched staff members roll out a tray filled with desserts including pumpkin pie Thursday afternoon.
"The food is even better than last year," said Brown, who has been using the services at Abilis for several years and sits on the board to provide input.
"Everyone here is like family," said Brown, 22.
Lolli Ross, the Executive Director of Abilis said this is the fifth year the organization has put the dinner together. The event was for people with developmental disabilities who use Abilis's services that do not have families to go home to on the holiday, Ross said.
"We are very family oriented and this is just a part of the Abilis family tradition" said Ross.
Nearly 40 people attended the dinner, including a mix of people who use Abilis' services, staff members and some family members who volunteered their afternoon to prepare and serve the food.
Dany Acosta, who lives in the Bronx, N.Y. but works at Abilis, said he volunteered to work just because he enjoyed the tradition so much. "I love it and I wanted to spend the day with family. Everyone here is like family to me," .......
People hit the gym before the buffet
The minute the doors opened yesterday morning at the Greenwich Water Club, a group of motivated people filed inside ready to begin their workout in the run up to one of the biggest meals of the year.
"As soon as I opened up at 7 a.m. people just kept coming in," said Pete Orocco, who was manning the front desk at the health club located at 49 River Road.
At 9:30 a.m., a morning yoga class was just letting out and people were recovering from what appeared to be an intense workout session.
"What is a better way to start your day than to have a great workout," said Debra Senecal, of Old Greenwich. "And it means you can eat more," she said.
Carla Catanzaro, the General Manager of the club said the morning yoga class was packed with 25 people and the rest of the gym was filled with dozens more who were working strenuously to combat the pound packed feast coming up later in the day.
"I think there are more people working out today than usual," said Catanzaro. "It's a holiday for wonderful foods and they are here to work it off."
Catanzaro said the club is often busier on holidays like Thanksgiving, particularly in the morning hours.
"We closed last Christmas at 2 p.m. and people asked us if we could stay open later," said Catanzaro.......
Airport changes complaint policyThe phenomenon of a cluttered inbox is soaring to new heights at Westchester County Airport, where one persistent citizen sent the noise abatement office a record 1,400 e-mail complaints in one month alone, according to officials there......
.....As a result, the airport's advisory board recently voted to change the procedure for handling such complaints, limiting the number per household that will be investigated to 50 per month. Additional complaints will only be logged.
With a staff of five full-time employees and a normal caseload of 300 to 400 complaints per month, officials in the noise abatement office said they simply don't have the resources to keep up with the barrage of messages.
Officials would not identify the chief complainant because of a privacy policy, other than to say the person lives in Valhalla, N.Y., which is located along the airport's westerly departure route and is near a helicopter route.
In June 1997, two homeowners in Greenwich, which borders the airport to the east, logged an estimated 1,500 of the 1,902 total complaints for that month between them, prompting the airport to take similar action, according to the noise abatement office. ......
....Erica Purnell, co-chairwoman of the Selectmen's Advisory Committee on Aircraft Noise in Greenwich, said the situation has gotten out of hand and takes away from investigating complaints from other citizens such as herself.
"They're abusing the system," said Purnell, who lives on Bedford Road in northwest Greenwich near the airport and files complaints with the noise abatement office from time to time.
The airport's noise abatement office typically receives complaints through a telephone hot line, though some citizens choose to do so by e-mail.
Each complaint is logged into a computer database, which then tries to match the noise event with a specific flight using archived radar readings. The process, Inserra said, can take anywhere from a minute to a half-hour, depending on the volume of air traffic over a fixed point at a certain time. ....
Police blotter
Jose Marrero, Jr., 28, of 75 Josephine Evaristo Ave., was arrested Wednesday night on an outstanding arrest warrant, police said. He was charged with second-degree failure to appear.
Police were dispatched to Marrero's residence to investigate a past domestic violence incident when the warrant was discovered, police said.
Marrero was additionally charged with disorderly conduct and violation of a protective order, according to the police report.
He was released on a $500 bond and is schedule to appear in state Superior Court in Stamford today.
After terror threat, patrols added at trainsStaff reports A possible terrorist threat to the New York City subway and train systems mean an increased police presence at Connecticut rail lines and stations throughout the holiday weekend, Gov.
101 killed as gunmen rampage in India cityAPMUMBAI, India - A trickle of bodies and hostages emerged from a luxury hotel Thursday as Indian commandoes tried to free people trapped by suspected Muslim militants who attacked at least 10 targets in India's financial capital of Mumbai, killing 101 people.
Design destinationThe Historical Society of the Town of Greenwich is putting the finishing touches on its annual Antiquarius celebration.
To the editor:
There they go again! The Board of Education is spending taxpayers' dollars soliciting nationwide, via the Internet, a new superintendent of schools ("Goals set in search for schools chief," Greenwich Time news story, Nov. 24).
In these perilous financial times, why is this town board about to embark on hiring a search firm? Don't we have experienced, Grade A educators right here in our school system who can fill the requirements of the job?
Historically, town officials and boards/commissions, have swooned over engaging high-priced outside consulting firms. We were financially unhinged, a ripe target for the pickins'.
Let's push back, get unstuck from repeating past dismal results and first review who has sound credentials for this position within Greenwich's school system before we go hoity-toity, seeking help outside our borders.
This isn't complicated. However, judging past performance, a few board members have been outfoxed by their choices for this position.
Superintendents, newly minted, get paid top dollar plus a menu of benefits. They come with trendy ideas and depart within a relatively short time. The easy money paid to egghead consultants is then gone! This elongated, costly process is nutty, zany! We've lost our way.
This current search method represents a fatiguing reminder of what's wrong with independent government bodies, that draw down the taxpayer's purse and sugarcoat the results.
Anyone have a better idea to regain the public trust?
William J Kalna
Riverside
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