October 30, 2020

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October 30, 2020

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When Clocks Change Nov. 1, Traffic Accidents May Increase

By Anne White This coming Saturday is all kinds of interesting. It is, of course, Halloween.

It is also the weekend before election day 2020 and a blue moon (the second full moon of the month). It is also when you will likely change your clocks in anticipation of the end of daylight savings time.

On Saturday night, before you fall asleep, set your clocks back by one hour.

You will get one extra hour of sleep and still wake up on time.

T h at ex t ra hou r i s s omet h i ng we may all need but it can also be dangerous.

According to Chris Winter, M.D. - the author of The Sleep Solution our bodies function on an internal schedule, from hormone release to body temperature to cognition - and sleep is linked to them all."

According the the CT State DOT, the return to Eastern Standard Time can make people feel mentally fuzzy and can affect cognitive performance.

Combined with evening commutes that will suddenly switch from daylight

1. L ook out for p e de st r ian s everywhere, at all times. Safety is a shared responsibility.

2 . Us e e x t r a c a u t i o n w h e n driving in hard-to-see conditions, such as nighttime or bad weather.

3. Slow down and be prepared to stop when turning or otherwise entering a crosswalk.

4. Yield to pedestrians in crosswalks and stop well back from the crosswalk to give other vehicles an opportunity to see the crossing pedestrians so they can stop too.

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driving, to dark, nighttime driving, conditions can become dangerous. With the sun now going down as or before most motorists begin their afternoon commutes home, the change is literally – night and day.

The most obvious increase in danger is a result of poorer visibility – motorists w ill rush home, now in dark ness, when on ly a few days pr ior, they were still commuting during daylight hours. Pedestrians, who were easily visible before, in all likelihood, will be significantly less visible to motorists as a result of the time shift.

“Our top priority is safety and we all have a role to play,” said Joseph Giulietti, Commissioner of the CT DOT. “I urge everyone, whether you’re a pedestrian or a motorist, to look out for one another, to remain alert, drive cautiously, avoid distractions, and follow the rules of the road.”

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration ( N H T SA), t we nt y- s i x p e r c e nt o f pedestrian fatalities already typically occur from 6 to 8:59 p.m. See below for traffic safety tips from the CT DOT.

5. Never pass vehicles stopped at a c r o s swa lk . Th e re m a y be people crossing that you cannot see.

6. Never drive under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

7. F o l l o w t h e s p e e d l i m i t , especially around people on the street.

8. Follow slower speed limits in school zones and in neighborhoods where children are present.

9. B e e x t r a c a u t i o u s w h e n backing up—pedestrians can move into your path.

Greenwich Avenue, Elm Street Intersection Project

By Richard Kaufman Last week, the Greenwich Board of Selectmen got its first look at a project that would increase public safety and enhance the intersection at Greenwich Ave. and Elm St. Jason Kaufman, from the Department of Public Works Engineering Division, walked the board through the proposal, which needs Municipal Improvement status from the Selectmen before it can continue to the Planning & Zoning Commission. No vote was taken, but it's possible a vote could come during the next meeting on Nov. 12.

"We're making great timing for this project and proposal, being that this is the United States' first ever national pedestrian safety month. Our top goal is to improve pedestrian safety," Kaufman said, adding that the project also aims to build a sense of place, increase landscape and greenspace, and improve accessibility for the general public and specifically for people with disabilities.

Par t of the project, which has a preliminary estimated cost of $300,000, includes the installation of "bulb outs" -sometimes referred to as "bump outs" -which would extend the curbline to the edge of the existing parking areas on east/west Elm St., and the angled parking areas on Greenwich Ave. "The purpose of bulb outs are to increase the visual connection between pedestrian and driver, and also they reduce the crossing distance and crossing time for pedestrians," Kaufman said. "We're looking at a 41% reduction in the crossing distance and time across Greenwich Ave., and a minor decrease as well for east/west Elm St." The project also includes the building of a raised intersection. " E s s e n t i a l l y, t h a t ' s w h e r e t h e intersection is raised up to the elevation of the adjacent sidewalks. Essentially, the whole intersection becomes a large speed hump," Kaufman added. "The good thing about that is that it helps to alert drivers that they're entering a heavily trafficked pedestrian zone. It reduces vehicle speeds entering the intersection, and it improves visibility between pedestrians and drivers in the intersection."

Pedestrians who are approaching the

Below the Waterline

EVENTS Editor@GreenwichSentinel. com SPORTS Paul@GreenwichSentinel.com ADVERTISING Peter@GreenwichSentinel. com; call 203-485-0226; or online at GreenwichSentinel. com/Advertise STORY IDEAS Publisher@ GreenwichSentinel.com COLUMNISTS Columnists and community impact. Jenny at CommunityImpact@ GreenwichSentinel.com JIM KNOX info@beardsleyzoo.org TOP 5 THINGS TO DO IN GREENWICH: www.greenwichsentinel. com/community-event/ LETTERS Editor@GreenwichSentinel. com CORRESPONDENCE PO Box 279 Greenwich, CT 06836

By Jill S. Woolworth, LMFT We can see fancy windows and decks on large cruise ships, but we know that the massive engine rooms below the waterline are what make the ships move. Similarly, the engine room of emotion is what makes people move, not our cognition. Couples often do not argue about the things they think they are arguing about. It’s not about taking out the trash or picking up the kids or sex. It’s about the emotions underneath the waterline—typically, feeling unappreciated, unsafe, or criticized.

Identifying our true emotion is a gift that we give to ourselves and our partners. We know that we have found this true emotion when our voices lower. We naturally reach toward our partner’s quieter, more vulnerable feelings, instead of pulling away in anger.

Revealing the true emotion for just a few minutes, or even a few seconds, is often long enough to resolve the tension between us.

“What’s going on under the waterline?” became shorthand for Mark and Alia. It signaled their willingness to dive deeper, to explore the hurt or sad feelings “underneath” their argument. At first it was risky. Now it is a habit that shortens their disagreements and increases their intimacy.

Greenwich resident, Jill Woolworth is author of the book, The Waterwheel, which is available locally at Diane's Books (203-869-1515) or info@dianesbooks.com) or at Amazon.

GreenwichFirst.com NMLS # 510513

"This is only going to increase and enhance public safety, as well as provide a really nice intersection there and a different, more aesthetically pleasing look to the Avenue," said First Selectman Fred Camillo. intersection at the elevation of the sidewalk would travel at a consistent elevation across.

Kaufman said there would be no "ramping down and ramping back up."

"That's an added safety and accessibility benefit for the general population, and specifically for persons with disabilities," Kaufman noted. A traff ic study from September 2018 showed 311 pedestrians using the intersection during the peak p.m. hour from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. On a Saturday from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., as many as 800 pedestrians used the intersection.

All sidewalks within the project limits would be replaced, and the area paved. The center of the intersection will be retrofitted with a decorative crosswalk material, similar to what is seen on Sound Beach Ave. and in front of the Senior Center on Greenwich Ave.

Additionally, the project addresses greenspace around the intersection.

Currently, within the work area, there's about 340 square feet of greenspace. DPW is looking to increase that by 1,860 square feet -- or roughly 550%. DPW is coordinating with the Parks & Recreation Department to assist in the landscaping plan, which has been done before in other various downtown locations in recent years.

Two permanent bicycle racks would be installed at the northern corners on Elm St., and town benches would be added with spaces for wheelchairs.

With regards to parking, Kaufman said four spaces will be lost on Greenwich Ave. south of the intersection.

"What we found is, it's not ideal to have

Greenwich Ave. continued on page 7

Board of Selectmen Hearing on Future of Greenwich Avenue

By Richard Kaufman Illustrated by Wajih Chaudhry

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The proposed project would add "bump outs" to extend the curbs, allowing for easier and quicker crossings for pedestrians. New green space is also being proposed.

Orig inally intended to be a preventative measure to help businesses survive the COVID-19 pandemic, the partial closure and changes on Greenwich Avenue to make it more pedestrian friendly has in turn made the .65 mile stretch perhaps more vibrant than it's ever been.

O n Tu e s d a y, t h e B o a r d o f Selectmen, along with other town and public safety officials, held a special meeting and public hearing to discuss Greenwich Avenue, parking, outdoor dining, and what the future could look like in the downtown area.

Joining the Board of Selectmen ( F i r st S ele c t ma n F r e d Ca m i l lo, Selectpersons Lauren Rabin, Jill Oberlander) for Tuesday's public hearing was Director of Planning and Zoning, Katie DeLuca; Greenwich Police Chief, James Heavey; Greenwich Fire Chief, Joseph McHugh; and GFD Fire Marshal, Chris Pratico.

Camillo noted that people he’s inter v iewed for boards and commissions have been impressed with the new look and feel of the downtown area.

"It's very vibrant downtown, and it's something we've all pledged to make permanent, whether it's April to December, or whatever else the merchants and restaurant owners like,” he said.

Initially, the bottom two blocks of the Avenue were closed to traffic, and bump-outs (extended curbs) were installed at intersections, and parking “nodes” were put into place. After complaints from several retailers in the lower portion of the Avenue about lack of business, traffic and parking, the plan was modified in June and the

closure encompassed just the lower block.

Several residents and business owners spoke during the 90 minute hearing, and the majority said they liked what's being done on the Avenue.

However, a few want some adjustments made.

"As always, we're ready to adjust policies," Camillo said. "We'll certainly do ou r best to ma ke it work for everybody. We don't want it to work just for 75% of people, we want it to work for everybody."

The panel spoke briefly before the public weighed in.

Heavey said a police presence on the Avenue will be looked at in the future, and some traffic studies have been done to see what options are available. Over the summer, officers were patrolling the Avenue on foot and bicycle.

Heavey and McHugh both said they were concerned about emergency vehicles navigating the bump-outs safely if they were to remain. Last week, the BOS received a presentation on a project that would enhance the intersection at Elm Street and Greenwich Avenue with bump-outs and a raised intersection, to enhance p e de st r ia n s a fet y a nd de c r e a se crossing times. The Department of Public Works said the project would be used as a "proof of concept" for other intersections in the downtown area.

Camillo said the bump-outs are designed with emergency vehicles in mind.

"Our whole goal is to make Greenwich a lot more attractive. We do want to have a more aesthetically pleasing avenue with the bump-outs.

It's also going to enhance public safety and sightlines. We want to make it as

EXPERT LENDERS COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL

permanent a part of Greenwich Avenue as possible. I've been here my whole life, and I've never seen it as vibrant," Camillo added.

McHugh also said he was concerned about the narrowing of lanes due to snow accumulation.

Pratico raised the concern about possibly dining in winter months inside tents. The fire department has had a lot of restaurateurs inquire about using portable heaters, but there are safety concerns and many regulations that need to be followed.

"I don't see how the extension [of outdoor dining] is going to work," he said.

Gov. Ned Lamont's Executive Orders on outdoor dining are set to expire on Nov. 9, but they're expected to be extended several more months.

Without the Governor’s EO’s, outdoor dining falls under the jurisdiction of the Planning and Zoning Commission.

If there is no extension, another public hearing could take place at P&Z's next meeting on Nov. 5.

Meredith Bach, who works for Rand Insurance and is the president of the Chamber of Commerce in New Canaan, said people are not going to want to eat outside when it’s cold. She said New Canaan is encouraging restaurants to invest in air quality systems so indoor dining can be successful. She also said Darien and New Canaan have done a good job of rallying their communities to support restaurants with takeout orders.

Mary Hull from Greenwich Green & Clean suggested opening up one lane of traffic from the top of the Avenue to the bottom. She noted that seniors, and handicapped people are not able

Greenwich Ave. continued on page 5

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Page 3 | Greenwich Sentinel

Local

Tree Conservancy Celebrates Treasured Trees

By Anne W. Semmes The w inning trees are!! A Copper Beech, a Horse Chestnut, a Red Tip Photinia, a Katsura, a Sugar Maple, and a Colorado Spruce! They now wear nameplates as chosen by the Greenwich Tree Conservancy (GTC) in its second year of celebrating the winning entries of Treasured Trees on private properties across town.

But this pandemic year there was no festive Treasured Tree gat her i ng at t he S a m Br idge Nurser y - instead the GTC principals, including founding chairman Peter Malkin, invited the winning tree owners to share their tree stories virtually. Presiding was GTC President Cheryl Dunson who kicked off with a tree lover’s quote, “Someone is sitting in the shade today, because somebody planted a tree long ago,” with her adding, “Because there were others who also nurtured that tree along the way.”

The six winning tree nurturers were introduced after the Town’s Tree Warden Dr. Gregory Kramer sha r e d h is ow n t r e e stor ie s.

Kramer found his own treasured tree growing up in Manhattan, “a 350-year-old Tulip tree that to this day resides at its current location and is thought to be the oldest living organism in the metropolitan

area.” Kramer arrived at his post in Greenwich already with tree connections through Pinetum founder, Colonel Montgomery, “having worked at his property down in Coral Gables [Fla.] and done my research there. I really got a sense of who he was and what he was inspiring to do, and what trees would he be interested in.”

How those six winning trees were chosen was explained by the two tree judges, Sam Bridge, “multiple generation owner of Sam Bridge Nursery and Greenhouses, and John Conti, renown horticulturist and landscaper…both champions of conservation and the environment,” so introduced by Sue Baker, GTC Advisory Board Cochair. “ We u s e t h e s e v a r i o u s categories,” told Conti, “Size, age, what we call pedigree… the uniqueness of the specific tree, its ornamental value…is the tree well suited for where it is.” Lastly, its history, “and that category has the most points.” Sam Bridge confirmed, “What it really came down to was the story of why that tree is treasured by the person presenting it, and that was the cool part of the whole thing, why you love that tree.”

The great Copper Beech on Field Point Road is familiar to many

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“It’s just majestic. We've installed some spotlights underneath it…and on a dark night it's almost as if you have your own heaven above this with the leaves like little stars.” Rob Marks a passing motorist on their way to Town Hall across the street. For the last 75 of its surely 100 years or more, it has graced the front lawn of the First Lutheran Church and provided shade for Sunday Schoolers shared the Church’s Amy Young. It is also embraced by next door office workers who “feel they’re in a tree house,” she reported. The Rev. Evan Scamman spoke of his appreciation of Frank [Rusty] Parker of Parker Associates LLC (located in that next-door building), “for helping out greatly in the care and maintenance of the tree.”

More praise for the Copper Beech came from neighbor, Peter Malkin. “It’s a wonderful thing every day when we go out, we see that beautiful Copper Beech.” He noted that Rusty Parker is a GTC board member.

The Horse Chestnut is located in Rock Ridge -its owner Kirsten

Galef was unable to be present. Her note praised her “special tree” for its “white blossom in the spring, and in the fall the chestnuts provide a feast for our squirrels.” Conti weighed in with, “You can see that tree is like a sculpture, like a fountain frozen in time. It’s just a beautiful tree.”

Riverside residents Wendy and Jim Enalow had entered their winning tree as a Parrotia tree but after some research it was identified as a Red Tip Photinia.

“We thank you for honoring our tree and telling us what it is called,” said Wendy Enalow. “We just love this tree because it’s an evergreen and keeps its leaves all year.”

Judge Conti added, “This tree just knocked us out when we saw it.

It’s more of a southern growing tree. You must have an interesting climate there.”

On Glenv ille Road resides another less known and winning tree, a Katsura. owned by Mary

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1. Copper Beech submitted by First Lutheran Church.

2. Horse Chestnut submitted by Kirsten Galef.

3. Red Tip Photinia submitted by Wendy and Jim Enalow.

4. Not pictured: Katsura submitted by Mary Shaw & Rob Marks. 5. Sugar Maple submitted by Greenwich Land Trust.

6. Colorado Spruce submitted by Joan Stewart Pratt.

Bob Capazzo Photos

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S h a w a n d R o b M a r k s . “ We inherited the tree when we bought the house in 1989,” said Marks, “It’s just majestic. We've installed some spotlights underneath it…and on a dark night it's almost as if you have your own heaven above this with the leaves like little stars.”

“At this time of year, it turns a rich yellow,” said Mary Shaw. “And when the sun comes through it's just a glorious yellow, and then the leaves fall to the ground and make a carpet of yellow.”

“Is this the tree,” asked Malkin of the Tree Warden, “that you are replacing the Copper Beeches we’re losing on Greenwich Common?”

“That’s correct,” said Kramer. “It gives you a similar form and grows in a somewhat similar fashion.” He added, “When I was talking before about pedigree, really nothing ranks higher than Katsura. It’s got great ornamental value in every season.”

A Sugar Maple familiar to many that towers before the offices of the Greenwich Land Trust (GLT) on Round Hill Road was number five of the six winners. Speaking for it was GLT Conservation Outreach Manager, Dan Brubaker. “One of the neat things about it is it gets used every day – it provides shade all summer for our Youth Corps when they're having lunches. With

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COVID this summer we've had a lot of meetings out there underneath the tree.”

What age might that accommodating Maple Brubaker be he was asked. At least 150 years old was his answer. Conti agreed, “It’s in its second half of life. Sugar Maples that are 50 years old or so would have a very oval rounded shape. This one has maxed out. It's just spread out to full height - you really don't see sugar maples bigger than this.”

Perhaps the most heartfelt te st i mony of t re e t re asu r i ng came with the sixth tree winning Colorado Spruce. Owner Joan Stewart Pratt lives on Mallard Drive in the Milbrook area, where her tall Spruce is said to be seeable from the Post Road across from the Greenwich High School football field. “It used to be our Christmas tree in our living room about 30 years ago,” said Pratt, wearing her Santa hat, “And my late mother and I planted it together.” She cited the significance a spruce tree had in her family - with her mother’s Greek heritage. “The spruce tree according to Greek mythology represents constant eternal life, and was referred to as the tree of birth, and that the scented needles mean resilience and strength. So, during these challenging and uncertain

Page 5 | Greenwich Sentinel

Town Government

Updates from the First Selectman

By Richard Kaufman

will also be suggestions on how to enjoy Halloween in a safe manner.

"We're still in the middle of a pandemic," Camillo said, reminding the public to follow the three W's: wash your hands, watch your distance, and wear a mask.

Earlier this week, Gov. Ned Lamont said that the COVID-19 positivity rate in Connecticut was 4.1%, the highest figure since June.

L a rge H a l lowe en pa r t ie s s h o u l d b e a vo i d e d a s we l l .

State guidelines for gatherings is 25 people for indoor private gatherings and 150 people for outdoor private gatherings. The St ate a lso ha s i mplemente d potential f ines for individuals who do not follow these public health guidelines. These include a $100 f ine for a person who does not wear a mask or cloth face covering; a $500 fine for any person or business who organizes or hosts a gathering violating

Ever y week, the Greenwich Sentinel will bring you alternating updates from the BET leadership and the First Selectman.

Town Urging Residents To Be Safe This Halloween First Selectman Fred Camillo said that Greenwich and other neighboring towns, like Stamford and Darien, are teaming up to r em i nd r e sidents to rema i n safe this Halloween during the ongoing pandemic.

"I spoke with the mayor of Stamford. We're just advising strong ly that people, if they decide to go out, absolutely wear masks," Camillo said. "If people decide to give candy out, that they absolutely wear masks. If you don't want to give candy out, turn your lights out."

Camillo said an email will be going out to residents reminding them to be respectful of darkened homes. He added t hat t here

gathering size restrictions, and a $250 fine for anyone attending a gathering violating the stated size restrictions.

Reimagining Greenwich

Fred Camillo First Selectman

"Let’s continue the tradition and timehonored participation in the political process by advocating for issues and candidates, but do so with respect for all sides of an issue and candidacies," he said.

Camillo said that his Reimagine Greenwich Committee is "going full speed ahead." The greenscape effort for the Post Road, especially in Cos Cob, is on track, as the town will plant bulbs on Nov. 4 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the large traffic island across from the Cos Cobber restaurant.

Ca m i l lo sa id volu nte ers a re needed, and masks are required.

Disposable masks, gloves, water and snacks will be provided.

Beautifying Greenwich has been a top priority for Camillo’s administration. Earlier this week, a Zoom public hearing was held to discuss how to enhance and modify the pedestrian-friendly Greenwich Avenue. "[The Reimagine Committee] is about beautif ication, public safet y, and just reimag ining

and taking a great asset that we already have, and making it something even better. It's really being received quite well," Camillo said.

Civility & Discourse Camillo spoke with Greenwich resident and Congressman Jim Himes (D, 4th District) recently about making an announcement to the public ahead of the Nov. 3 election.

"About 15 years ago or so when we were both chairman of our respective political parties here in town, we put out joint statements about civility and political signs," Camillo said.

"We're thinking about putting out a joint statement to remind people that we're all friends and neighbors before, during and after these elections, and we need to remember that even in the heat of the battle."

Earlier this week, Camillo released a statement following the reports of signs showing

support to political candidates and law enforcement were stolen and vandalized.

In that statement, Camillo said he does not condone the removal of any sign.

"Let’s continue the tradition and time-honored participation in the political process by advocating for issues and candidates, but do so w ith respect for all sides of an issue and candidacies," he said.

Earlier this week, the Greenwich Police Department a n nou nced t hat t hey ’re i nve s t i g a t i n g t h e t h e f t a n d vandalism of signs.

If you see a sign that you believe has been improperly placed or removed, please report it to the Greenwich Police Department by calling the nonemergency number: 203-6228004.

Stay Up tp date. Check back here each week for alternating updates from the BET leadership and First Selectman Fred Camillo.

Our Local News, In Brief GFD Promotional Ceremony On Monday, October 26, at central station, four members of the Greenwich Fire Department were promoted in a ceremony. “Deputy Chief Brian Koczak is being promoted to Assistant Chief of the Greenwich Fire Department. Assistant Chief is the number 2 position in the Department. Chief Koczak has been a Greenwich Firefighter for over 23 years serving as a firefighter, Lieutenant and Deputy Chief. Lieutenant Erik Maziarz is being promoted to Deputy Chief. As a Deputy Chief he will be a shift commander in charge of Group 1. Lieutenant Maziarz has been a Greenwich Firefighter for over 17 years. Firefighter Greg Sinapi is being promoted to Lieutenant. As a Lieutenant Greg will be assigned to Engine 3 on Group 4. Greg has been a Greenwich Firefighter for over 15 years. Lastly, Lieutenant Mike Wilson will be officially sworn in to his position. Mike was promoted in April, but due to the pandemic there has not been a ceremony. Mike is assigned to Engine 5 on Group 2. He has been a Greenwich Firefighter for over 20 years.” (Greenwich Fire Department Facebook).

Upgrades to Crosswalk on Milbank

took the proper precautions with regards to COVID and committed to bringing the law forward again after the it seemed to be a success. proposed legislation was delayed due to the pandemic.

CONNY Girls Lacrosse Win National Title

Expanded Travel List

CONNY, a girls high school lacrosse team that is composed of students from CT and Westchester As of October 27, 2020, California, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania have been added to the tri-state travel County, has won the Under Armour All-American advisory created by Connecticut, New Jersey, and New Lacrosse National Championship hosted at the Princess Anne Athletic Complex in Virginia Beach, York. While Rhode Island and New Jersey meet metrics VA. They played four games over a 7 hour stretch this to be included on the list, they are now exempt from the past Saturday, which would normally be two days but list following the governor's latest executive order (EO was changed due to not being able to stay in the state No. 9I), which makes an exception for the neighboring states of New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island. for more than 24 hours due to COVID restrictions.

There were six members of the team from Greenwich: Here are the states that are NOT on the list: Rebecca Arpano, Ellie Johnson, and Ellie Burdick from Connecticut Oregon Greenwich Academy, Laura O’Connor and Maggie Hawaii Rhode Island Sullivan from Sacred Heart, and Sophia Nietzell from Maine U.S. Virgin Islands Greenwich High School.

Vermont New Hampshire New Jersey Washington, D.C. Breast Cancer Alliance New York Washington October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and GPD Release on Political Signs this month Greenwich’s Breast Cancer Alliance was unable to hold their usual fundraising fashion show Greenwich Police has released a statement at the Hyatt Regency Hotel due to the pandemic. The regarding theft of political campaign signs as well Breast Cancer Alliance held their fundraising virtually as correcting some misinformation. They wanted to and was able to raise over $900,000 to fund grants inform that the police department has not and will not that are used to fund training in cutting edge surgical remove political signs, that residents can report any techniques, research into new treatments, and to signs stolen off their private property and thieves can make sure underserved communities have access to be charged with Larceny in the 6th degree. detection services such as mammograms.

At the Board of Selectmen meeting, Greenwich Police Deputy Chief Mark Marino proposed upgrades to the crosswalk on Milbank Avenue near the Agnes Morely senior apartments. These upgrades would include a rapid f lash beacon on both sides of the crosswalk to increase the visibility to drivers of pedestrians. Another upgrade would be enhanced Updated Guidelines for Halloween lighting in the area near the crosswalk to also increase Jennifer’s Law Highlights from the guidance from the state the visibility. Two elderly residents have been killed in Greenwich Historical Society, on Strickland Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Centers for the last two years after being struck in the crosswalk.

The Selectmen voted unanimously to accept the Road, held a press conference for Domestic Violence Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From the CDC: Awareness Day that focussed on “Jennifer’s Law” and recommendation of improving the crosswalk.

Do not use a costume mask as a substitute Connecticut custody reform legislation that will keep for a cloth mask unless it is made of two or domestic violence victims and children safe in Family Clean Up Event more layers of breathable fabric that covers Court. Jennifer Farber Dulos, who disappeared and your mouth and nose and doesn’t leave gaps On this past Saturday, October 24, Greenwich was suspected of being murdered in connection with around your face.

Green and Clean sponsored a Clean Up event at domestic violence, has been the driving force behind Do not wear a costume mask over a cloth Pomerance Park and Montgomery Pinetum Park. They the reform legislation. State Senator Alex Kasser has mask as it makes it harder to breathe. Instead,

BOS

From Page 1 to be dropped off, walk down to a restaurant or store, and then back up.

"If it's humanly possible to get one lane of traffic all the way from the top of the avenue down to the bottom with the use of barriers, I think that would help both the stores and the restaurants," she said.

Camillo said that option will be considered, but the safety of diners on or near the street will have to be addressed, and parking

"nodes" would have to be taken into account.

Planning & Zoning Commissioner, Peter Levy, said other towns have come up with innovative ways to create access for people. He suggested the use of mountable curbs to allow for better separation between vehicles and pedestrians, and warming mats for outdoor diners.

Jim Michel, Deputy Commissioner of Greenwich DPW, said the curbs could present some safety concerns, and would need to be looked at more carefully.

Margo O'Brien, daughter of Diane Garrett who owns Diane's Books on Grigg Street just off the

Avenue, said the original closure of Grigg Street led to a 40% drop in revenue. The modifications to reopen Grigg in June helped, but another closure in the area would be "untenable" since Diane's Books makes about 30% of its revenue in November and December.

"If the Avenue is closed and people cannot park and get to our store, we will cease to exist," O'Brien said, noting that she believes the bump-outs are a good idea. "I think my mother's store is unique, and it's what makes Greenwich special. My mother is 81, and she wants to do this until she's 90. She's fighting tooth and nail and making it work."

JSJ WINDOW TREATMENTS Serving Greenwich since 1989

John Stewart, who lives on the closed portion of Greenwich Avenue, said access to his building has been difficult, especially since he owns an online business and has to carry items up and down from his apartment frequently. He can’t pull his car up to his building.

"I'm a fan of making it work, but there's been no remedy as far as our ability to access our building or move the barrier," he said.

Resident Marianne Hillmer suggested proposing a downtown residential parking permit, and opening up parking at Town Hall.

Camillo said he'd speak with Parking Services this week.

M ichael Papa, ow ner of

consider using a Halloween-themed cloth mask.

The CDC also recommends participating in lower risk activities. Click here for a list of lower, moderate, and high risk Halloween activities.

From the DPH: T he DPH h a s a l s o pr ov ide d ide a s for alternative activities. If you plan to participate in trick-or-treating, guidance includes: One-way trick-or-treating where goodie bags or a large bowl of candy are placed outside of your home for families to grab and go while continuing to social distance.

If you are preparing goodie bags, wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds before and after preparing the bags.

For people who choose to hand out candy: Before you answer the door, make sure your face covering is in place over your nose and mouth, and wash or sanitize your hands before answering door.

Remain six feet from the Trick-or-Treater.

Place the candy inside the child’s bag for them instead of having them take it from the bowl themselves.

Homes providing candy may set up hand sa n it i zer st at ions outside or pa rents/ guardians can pack a travel bottle of their own.

Parents/guardians should limit the number of homes their children visit.

It is not recommended to trick-or-treat with people outside of your household.

Remain six feet away from people outside your household at all times.

All trick-or-treating participants should wear a mask or face covering while outside at all times.

Michaelangelo at 410 Greenwich Ave., has been in business for 41 years, and said last year was his best. But the closure of the Avenue has negatively impacted him.

"No customers have been able to access us, our seniors are not able to move to us, customers are not coming," he said, adding that several stores near him have already closed and left town.

"We're not asking you to open the street, we're not asking you to take away from the restaurants. But we'd like the bump-outs so our customers can access the street, and we ask for 15 minute parking spots... We need your help."

Camillo said that all comments

and suggestions will be taken into consideration as the town tries to figure out how to proceed with the downtown area in the future. Selectperson Oberlander said public outreach is going to be critical.

"I think it's critically important we have a full and open dialogue at this point in time. We have several months now to evaluate how effective this change has been, not just in aesthetics but in people's experience and operation. In order to do that, we need a full and open dialogue, the good and the bad.

This affects residents throughout town and the look of the town as a whole," she said.

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Page 6 | Greenwich Sentinel

Oral History Project Blog

Greenwich Country Day School Teacher Arthur E. Grant Many of us can recall with fondness or nostalgia a special teacher who may have made a lasting impression on us i n ou r for m at ive ye a r s w it h words of encouragement, with an abiding belief in our ability, or with an appreciation of our cha rac ter. S omet i me s, t he se acknowledgments stay with us into adulthood and demonstrably shape the persons we become.

Such was the legacy for many students of Arthur E. Grant, a teacher at Greenwich Country Day School from 1932 to 1966. This blog is adapted from an Oral History Project interview of him conducted in 1976. His story is a unique one of a young teacher at a f ledgling school begun in 1926 and of the children with whom he interacted or instructed over the next 34 years.

Grant hailed from Maine, where he was a principal of a grammar school in South Windham. One day, during a checkers game with a new acquaintance, he was asked if he’d like to apply for a teaching job in Connecticut. That encounter led to his first position in Connecticut in 1922 as a teacher and athletic coach at King School in Stamford.

After 10 years at King School, Grant was offered the position of Athletic Director at Greenwich Country Day School by its first headmaster, Mr. John Lynn Miner, who was interested in building the athletic program at the school.

Grant accepted and said, “It was that coming fall, I believe, that I had all the boys dressed in football uniforms. Little and big alike. They all attended the games in a body.

That was really the beginning of football at the school.”

At that time, Greenw ich Country Day School, with 140 students, had far less property and many fewer buildings than now.

A small carriage house served as the gym, and a hayloft above the former stable was converted into two apartments. Mr. and Mrs. Grant were offered a hayloft apartment which they happily transformed into their liv ing quarters. “I remember there was a big boar’s head that hung down from the ceiling in the middle of the room. Well, it was just a hayloft,” he said with fondness. They lovingly renamed it “The Ritz.”

Du r i ng World Wa r I I, t he shortage and rationing of gasoline made it diff icult for parents to transport their children back and forth to school and the Grants agreed to take them in. “We were overrun with children. You know, gasoline was hard to get, and the

A Teacher for All Occasions: Arthur E. Grant, Greenwich Country Day School. Greenwich Library Oral History Project

Headmaster John R. Webster, morning assembly, 1949. Greenwich Library Oral History Project

Students and Faculty, 1926. Greenwich Library Oral History Project

parents wanted their children in school…There was a period in the wintertime when there would be eight or nine children staying with us overnight during the week. They even slept on cots in the dining room.”

D u r i ng t he su m mers, t he Grants returned to Maine, wher e G ra nt worke d for t he Department of Agriculture. “I had the supervision of the inspection work on blueberries. It took me to a great many canneries all around the state.” Before long, some of the school boys joined them in Maine during the summer months. The Grants had a separate building for

them in which to sleep. This was not an organized camp experience but rather an opportunity for the children to just “live a normal life which they did. I used to take them on hikes and hunting trips and fishing trips. They loved that.”

Occasionally, there was a visit to a rural area where families lived in homes with dirt floors, a very different life from that experienced in Greenwich. “They’ll tell you today that that trip did a lot of good, just seeing how others live.”

Grant witnessed the transformation of the school from 140 to over 700 students. “When I first went there, I could call every

“I taught everything for years with the exception of Latin, French, and music.” Arthur E. Grant child by name who was in the school; but, after it got so large, I couldn’t do that. You only knew those you came in contact with. I always felt that was the one thing I didn’t like, not knowing the children well enough.” As he reminisced, he called to mind with affection many memorable students: Nat and his two brothers Adrian and Joseph, and Dan, Egon, Lee, Donny, Boris, Margaret, Wood, Carl, Nancy and Anne, Charlie and Allen, and so on.

Grant taught middle schoolage children in the days when a teacher taught one group of students for the whole day. “Well,

I taught everything for years with the exception of Latin, French, and music.” He thought of it as a twenty-four-hour job. “Yes, it was in those days, and I think most of the teachers took it that way. And we never heard of the word ‘strike.’

Never.”

Grant would probably gaze in wonderment at the educational terms with which we have now become fluent like “asynchronous instruction,” “hybrid models,” “Zoom classes,” to name a few.

Like so many teachers, his legacy conf irms the personal impact teachers have on us and on our

children’s everyday growth and development. Arthur Grant would simply state that, in teaching, “You have to think things up. If you’re a teacher, why you have a repertoire of ideas. You think of these things.”

The interview with Arthur E. Grant was conducted in 1976 by Cecie Munkenbeck. Its transcript may be read at Greenwich Library and is available for purchase at the Oral History Project office. The Oral History Project is sponsored by the Friends of the Greenwich Library.

Visit the OHP website at glohistory. org, Mary A. Jacobson, OHP blog editor.

Storing Your Patio Furniture For The Season

By Mike Astorino The temps are getting chillier and the days of dinners and hangouts in the backyards are coming to a close for the season, which means many of us are beginning to store away our outdoor furniture. As you begin to put away your patio furniture, we’ve got some tips

for properly packing everything away. Taking the extra steps to clean, repair & store your patio pieces will extend their lifespan.

Plus, everything will be ready to use right away when spring rolls back around and you are itch i ng to get back out side .

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YOUR PATIO: G i ve Eve r y t h i n g a G o o d Scrub. Clean your patio furniture and cushions really well w ith a multipurpose cleaner before storing. Even if there are no visible stains, a good scrub is necessary if you want to extend the life of your patio pieces year af ter year.

Make sure everything is dried completely before packing away

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Page 7 | Greenwich Sentinel

Columns

By Jennifer Dayton Breaking ground this month, B r u c e M u s e u m ’s e x p a n s i o n reminds us that the arts and sciences continue to advance despite upheavals in every era.

The arts and sciences also hold a record of past challenges, placing our knowledge and experiences in

context, and extending connections to people outside our social circles.

Circles appear to be narrowing at present, both in interaction, information and geography, so how will we answer in future when called to a common purpose?

Where are the arts among our aspirations? Dreaming of adventure travel to islands, peaks and reefs deferred during the pandemic tops many a wish list. At this time last year, traveling in Mexico to see thousands of years of architectural achievements, I gained a vantage point into sustainability. Mexico City, now fourth largest, was the site of the sixth largest city in the world in antiquity. A data point can neither explain the many rises and falls of societies nor current

Revival How will we answer in future when called to a common purpose? population shifts, but the arts answer.

Where are the sciences among our aspirations? I never imagined a time when yard signs would have to affirm a personal belief in science. Greenwich children w i l l i n her it conseq uences of climate change worsened by a partisan divide over policy choices.

Greenwich is fortunate that Bruce Museum’s renovation contains space for scientific discussion and exploration.

At the moment we look to a better future - an economic transition that creates jobs. Jobs

r e su lt f rom problem-solv i ng and the dominant problem is to create alternative energy with renewable inputs and without toxic waste management. The majority of new energy jobs are overseas. Pathways are currently narrowed for students to learn or work immersively abroad, due to the pandemic. Underfunding of scientific research by government and many state universities is endemic. Even in Connecticut, we face a partisan divide over cuts to the state university. UConn has fallen in national rankings and that matters to many Greenwich

families, who want their children to have an affordable, as well as excellent, future-ready credential.

UConn’s multiplier ef fect f ills the state coffers, by generating $278 million in annual revenue, benefitting Greenwich taxpayers.

Forging a common purpose for our economic transition will be the most difficult work of the next decade. We have a younger generation committed to economic stability. Living through depression, pa ndem ic a nd so cia l u n re st, Generation Z is ready for change.

Unlike past generations, Generation Z looks not to conformity, but

rather competition. Will we find common purpose with them or will we pin our hopes on restoration rather than revival?

Greenwich excitedly awaits completion of a new Bruce Museum, creating a shared space that elevates the arts and sciences in our community. Seeing the discoveries and creativity of others is the foundation of problemsolving. Although we live deeply now in virtual space to follow most pursuits, we can begin over the next decade to widen horizons for our young adults, opening pathways to revival.

Je n n i fe r D a y to n w o rk s to increase civic engagement at the local, regional and statewide levels.

Faith At Home: Creating Ritual & Routine in Uncertainty

By Bobbi Eggers

Parents of school age children have one of the hardest jobs now.

Their job description has increased exponentially, without a raise or a new title. Suddenly, it seems like we are doing the job of 3 or more. One of those jobs is being the primary teacher of our kid’s faith development.

A while back, we created a popular parenting group at Christ Church Greenwich, Family Matters, a support group intending to help parents get comfortable with talking about spirituality in the home, not just dropping their children off to Sunday School for someone else to do it. But now parents are that someone else in Sunday School.

How do we do this if you don’t see yourself as “religious”? Should we even bother?

During this time, so many parents need suppor t, so the leadership at Christ Church is continuing with Family Matters,

pivoting to podcasts in this new reality. If you are interested in figuring out how to keep spirituality in your family’s life during an isolated time, I urge you to listen to this podcast. I’d like to share some nuggets of our first podcast on the front porch of the Tomes Higgins House in September.

Leading the first podcast is the Reverend Abby VanderBrug, Director of Children and Family m i n i s t r i e s , a m o m o f you n g children, and the delightful, and energetic host of our porch talks.

Joining us is the Reverend Dr. Cheryl McFadden, Senior Associate Rector, a nd L au ren Joh nson, Director of Youth Ministries. I am humbly seated at this outdoor podcast table as the founder of Family Matters and a mom or stepmom to eight children throughout my a du l t l i f e . E x p e r i e n c i n g different children’s personalities and their friends evolve gives a unique perspective. Our podcast participants are friendly and chatty but most importantly, enormously helpful. These are women who have high level religious education, deep faith, and experience.

Our podcast conversation is rooted in the importance of talking about faith at home. It can seem awkward if you aren’t used to it, but it doesn’t have to be. Books may help. Abby recommends the

book, “Faith at Home,” by Wendy Claire Barrie who says, “Home and parents are the key mechanisms by which religious faith and practice are transmitted intergenerationally.

Recent studies indicate that the single most important factor in youth becoming committed and engaged in the religious faith as young adults, is that the family talks about religion in the home.”

Abby grew up learning Christian education in a church. “That is where we learned our faith. But it is profound for me to realize that I learned much of my faith from my grandmother, my mother and other women in my life.”

Cheryl recommends the book, “The Spiritual Child” by Lisa Miller. “The primary people who teach children about faith is the immediate family surrounding the children.” Lauren agrees. “Keep it simple. Just talk to God as a friend, as if He is right next to you. He’s in your heart. It’s important for teens and children to hear. There’s no specific way you need to pray. God just wants to hear from us.”

What about the questions kids are bound to ask. Some parents get intimidated. Don’t be afraid of your kid’s questions about God or Mary and Joseph having a baby and who that Daddy is. Kids are full of questions. It’s ok not to know all the answers, in all aspects of life. It can

help them with resiliency, to work through things one step at a time.

You can say, “I don’t know. Let’s find out together.” The idea of who God is so big for everyone. Abby once heard someone say, “I want to have wonder and faith and openmindedness like a child.” Kids can be more accepting of love and grace and God than parents are, as long as the answers are age appropriate.

Showing your children that someone is looking out for them, to trust in God, is a game changer.

Faith will get you through. Say a prayer and ask for help, even if it’s a school test. Just help them to know that they are not alone. I believe it’s a gift we need to give to our children. Cheryl suggested, “Have your child write that prayer before the meal.” It allows them to emotionally participate, not just hear a standard prayer of thanks, especially as Thanksgiving is coming up.

Cheryl also recommends a book, “The Common Prayer f o r C h i l d r e n a n d Fa m i l i e s ,” full of illustrations and prayers inspired by the traditional Book of Common prayer.

Lauren works with dozens of teens, often struggling with their questions about faith. “Role modeling has a great effect on your children. They need warmth and support at home. Teens require a

Travel

warm and steady presence. They want to take off the face mask when they get home after a day of high stress at school and toss the book bag.” They need to decompress. Go for a walk, get outside. “Routine matters,” Lauren says. “It helps set them up for a successful school year. Try to be silent and listen to your children. Don’t talk. Let them bring forth what is on their hearts and minds.”

Moving forward, Abby has made an important suggestion, “Listen for God in this moment. We are a family together in this time.

What do you want to change?”

Cheryl suggested, “Create routine.

Every Sunday night at 6:00 we Zoom, between me in Greenwich, one daughter in NYC and one in Kansas, and my husband in North Carolina. I love it. It’s a special connection. We never did that before the pandemic. We are going to continue this routine. Figure out what routines work best for your families that you can continue.”

Routine matters in my home.

Early on in this changed world, I told my adult children that we are no longer the hierarchy of a family.

I thought it would cause too much friction for everyone, especially because they are too old to still be living at home, but here we are.

Think of us now as a commune.

Everyone shares tasks, grocery

bills and some household expenses.

Everyone cooks, cleans their own space, we all share. It’s a lateral structure so everyone is in charge of making decisions. It has worked incredibly well. No one lecturing, no one treating them as children and me, not getting stuck in the kitchen cooking alone every night. We often go to Tod’s Point and walk together and have meaningful conversations we would never have had. Abby said, “More families are sharing together than ever before. Life is much more intergenerational.”

Communicate what is in your heart and that is the most organic way to show them spirituality. It doesn’t have to be quoting scripture, if that’s not what you are all about.

It is sharing deep faith and love and trust in some things unknown, which builds security, and that is a pretty important thing for us to teach right now.

Here’s one more fun way to talk about God with your kids: bring them in their Halloween costumes for a Drive-Thru Blessing of the Halloween Costumes on Sunday, October 25, 12- 2:00 pm i n t he Tome s H ig g i ns House Circular Driveway.

Listen to Family Matters Podcast on the Christ Church website, go to https://christchurchgreenwich.org/ sermons/faith-at-home-creating-ritualroutine-in-uncertainty/

Take a Hike: Sleeping Giant State Park

By Julia Lucey A s Novem b er approaches there are just a few short weeks left to enjoy the beautiful colors that come with a New England fall, and there are few better ways to do so than taking a trip to one of Connecticut's state parks for a scenic hike. A classic and convenient hiking spot to visit this autumn is Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden, a CT state park since 1924.

The park is about 55 miles from central Greenwich straight up I-95 and then via 91 once you reach New Haven. Alternatively,

taking the Merritt adds just a few minutes to the trip but it looks absolutely gorgeous during the fall months with the surrounding trees showing off their bright foliage. Upon arrival, the park has a parking area right at the foot of the mountain, although be aware that it fills up quickly on weekends a nd close s once at c apac it y!

Parking is free on both weekdays and weekends of in-state vehicles.

Sleeping Giant features two miles of mountaintop and gets its name for its resemblance of a resting human when viewed at certain positions. The hiking trail extends about a mile and a

Greenwich Ave From Page 1

vehicles backing up directly into a crosswalk, which you see quite frequently on the Ave. right now," Kaufman said. He noted that there is still plenty of parking -94 spaces to be exact -- between Elm St. and the next intersection at Arch St. Four decorative light poles in the area, which are owned by Eversource, would be moved closer to the new intersection to improve visibility for pedestrians and drivers. Also, the project would relocate catch basins and manholes on the north side of the intersection, and add two catch basins to improve drainage.

All access to buildings and businesses within the area would be maintained.

"As long as our approval process goes as we hope, we're looking to start this work in the early spring next

Outdoor excursions are a great way to enjoy the changing leaves and dropping temperatures to stay in the autumn spirit. half long, upward towards the mountain’s peak. The mountain itself, Mt. Carmel, reaches a peak of 738 feet, and atop the trail is a stone observation tower that looks out toward the surrounding hills and mountains in the New Haven area.

The Park’s trails are clearly marked, lead directly to the top, and are very family friendly and

year. Each corner will be worked on individually, not all four corners at once," Kaufman said, noting that about 2-3 weeks would be needed per corner, with a total of 8-12 weeks estimated for the project.

If the Selectmen grant Municipal Improvement status, the project goes to Planning & Zoning. After that, DPW would go to the BET, since there are conditions placed on the funding.

"We're trying to make sure we get this lined up so we can move it straight into construction as soon as the weather allows us to do, so we're not making as much of an impact on pedestrians that may be walking the Ave. over the summer time frame when we do see the higher volumes of pedestrians," said DPW Deputy Commissioner, Jim Michel.

"I love it. I think everyone in town is going to love it," said First Selectman Fred Camillo. "This is only going to increase and enhance public safety, as well as provide a really nice intersection there and a different, more

appropriate for inexperienced hikers. While the trail is in general large enough to allow visitors to maintain social distancing, most if not all hikers have masks with them to put on when space does not allow adequate room between groups. The hike yields a breathtaking vista once you reach the top, especially this time of year as the surrounding area

is consumed by vivid orange and yellow trees.

Sleeping Giant has an interesting history that extends far back to Connecticut’s indigenous people. According to the Sleeping G i a nt P a rk A s s o c i at i o n , t h e Native Americans that inhabited this area referred to the Giant as Hobbomock , an ev il spirit who was put under a spell by a

aesthetically pleasing look to the Ave. I think it's a win/ win all around."

Alan Gunzburg, chair of the First Selectman's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities, was pleased with what his group saw.

"We think the crossing times are going to be better.

We thought the open spot for the wheelchair next to the bench was heartwarming, and extremely nice to hear. I think this is going to be a real good addition," he said. "This goes a long way in creating a safer crossing experience, a safer driving experience for everybody."

Selectperson Jill Oberlander had questions on the timing of the project, and how it would fit into the rest of the plan for Greenwich Ave. Earlier this week on Tuesday morning, the Board of Selectmen held a special meeting and public hearing on the future of outdoor dining, parking and the closure of the bottom of the Avenue.

"I wonder why we're considering this in a piecemeal

good spirit, Keitan, causing him to sleep forever. Sleeping Giant wouldn’t become a state park until much later, after quarrying of the mountain began to alter the Giant’s shape, the Sleeping Giant Park Association formed to preserve its true form and beauty.

Outdoor excursions are a great way to enjoy the changing leaves and dropping temperatures to stay in the autumn spirit. Connecticut has so many parks perfect for this purpose, and Sleeping Giant is one for anyone looking to get outside, to get moving, and to explore the area!

fashion as opposed to the overall project?" she said. "I'm 100% supportive in addressing the safety issues and the accessibility issues. I just think we need to be thoughtful about the whole Greenwich Ave. and how it looks, and how it all interacts together."

Camillo said the intersection at Elm St. is being done first because "we want to crawl before we can walk."

"We want to show people how this would look, and these things take time. To do it at each intersection at the same time would probably bring everything to a grinding halt," Camillo added. "This would be the first one and we thought we'd do one at a time. Once people see what this looks like, I think they'll be very excited to have the other ones done."

Michel agreed, and said this particular project is "a little bit of an offshoot to the overall project" for Greenwich Ave. He added that it would serve as a “proof of concept” for the overall Avenue project.

State of Connecticut

Measuring Success for Business Incentive Programs

By Marc E. Fitch The Department of Economic and Community Development offers loans, g ra nts a nd busi ne ss t a x cre d its to qualifying businesses under a variety of program intended to boost economic activity and jobs in the state.

But according to the most recent audit of the department’s 2018 and 2019 annual report, measuring the effectiveness and cost of those business incentives is an inexact science, complicated by interdepartment data that sometimes isn’t available or complete.

According to the auditors, the DECD understated and overstated costs, interest payments, job creation and investments for incentives awarded through the Small Business Express program, Manufacturing Assistance Act and the Film, Television and Digital Media tax credits.

The auditors found DECD’s annual report understated the principle and interest payments received for loans administered through the MAA and SBE by $6.4 million and $3 million respectively, meaning the department took in more money than reported.

They also found the report understated direct net revenue to the state generated by the incentive programs by nearly $12 million.

However, the number of jobs created or retained – and the amount paid per job – was often overstated.

Jobs created or retained through the Minority Business Initiative were inflated by 23 percent, or 101 jobs, and job numbers for the MAA were overstated by 1 percent, or 652 jobs.

DECD said the mistake in the Minority Business Initiative was due to accidently double-counting but agreed with the

critique of the jobs created or retained by the MAA. The auditors also found that jobs created or retained through Connecticut Innovations – a quasi-public agency that leverages state funds to invest in technology companies – are not verified by the agency.

The DECD said that Connecticut Innovations conducts its own internal audit of jobs created or retained through the program and that they have no reason to question their numbers. However, DECD also indicated it is seeking a legislative exemption from having to report incentive numbers for agencies outside the DECD. The DECD noted that many of the reported problems in the audit were corrected in their 2019 report.

Although, the DECD has been charged with administering these loans, grants and tax credits for decades, their annual report

was not subject to review by auditors until 2017, when State Comptroller Kevin Lembo led a push backed by ideologically diverse policy and lobbying groups to require the department’s annual reports to be audited.

The first audit in 2018 was a bit of a bombshell, finding the reports overstated the number of jobs created or retained a long w it h t he econom ic i mpact of the programs.

Previous reports found the department failed to do its due diligence on vetting companies, doubled down on loans to companies that did not meet job creation requirements or awarded second loans to companies that were not mak ing their payments.

An audit of the DECD during years under the Gov. Dannel Malloy administration released this year found the department also awarded millions in excessive loans and loan forgiveness

to companies who did not meet the job growth requirements.

Since DECD Commissioner David Lehman has taken over under Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration, the department has pulled back on offering grants and restructured their loan process to ensure requirements are met before the company receives the full incentive package.

Economic incentives were a lynchpin of Malloy’s administration in an effort to draw companies to Connecticut and increase job creation between 2010 and 2018.

Between 2011 and 2017, Connecticut invested nearly $1.8 billion in various economic development initiatives through the DECD but the state’s economy actually shrank by 1.6 percent and job growth was the slowest in the nation.

Editorial Page

Page 8 | Greenwich Sentinel

PUBLISHER Beth@GreenwichSentinel.com Elizabeth Barhydt EDITORS & COPY EDITORS Editor@GreenwichSentinel.com Peter Barhydt, Daniel FitzPatrick, Stapley Russell, Anne W. Semmes

Please, Be Civil People are angry. We have never seen it quite like this before. Over the past few years, civil discourse in Greenwich has grown worse. Emails, phone calls and letters have been increasingly negative over the past few weeks. In last week’s Editorial, we mentioned a Wall Street Journal poll that found nine out of ten Americans say incivility is a problem and two-thirds say it’s a major problem. That is 90 percent of the country, and we are feeling it here in our community.

Often the incivility is coupled with untruths. When people are mean and overly aggressive and uncivil, they lose sight of the truth. They may not mean to do so, but in their haste to make their point they do, and that is unfortunate.

Words matter. How we use words matters. Ruth Bader Ginsburg said: “You can disagree without being disagreeable.”

We agree!

a Wall Street Journal poll that found nine out of ten Americans say incivility is a problem and twothirds say it’s a major problem. and music.” Arthur E. Grant

It is the political season and we receive more letters at this time of year than any other. The Greenwich Sentinel makes an effort to fact check letters but we make mistakes too. If you see a letter that appears to contain inaccurate information, please let us know at Editor@GreenwichSentinel.com. The Greenwich Sentinel will publish all letters that are factual which are received in support of any local candidate either in print or online. If you do not see a letter in The Greenwich Sentinel or at www.GreenwichSentinel.com, then it is likely because the letter was outside our guidelines or not sent to this publication. Letters and OpEds are Not Necessarily the Opinion of The Greenwich Sentinel.

LETTER

Thank You Fred DeCaro

To the Editor: Many people in other parts of CT like to think of Greenwich as a place of expensive homes and those old “champagne tastes and caviar dreams”. But I I want to tell you that our Registrar of Voters Fred DeCaro III puts his counterparts in other towns to shame in terms of thinking out of the box to save taxpayers money, both before and during COVID. L a s t D e c e m b e r, F r e d t r ave l e d to Bethlehem and then to Vernon CT to pick LETTER

used hand-me-downs from Windham, CT, to make certain that even with the extra people who vote in a Presidential election, Greenwich voters can vote safely and take their time in a sanitized and socially distant voting booth. For the cost of gas money, Fred increased the number of booths for Greenwich voters by 25% Thank you Fred DeCaro III. Once again you have my vote for Registrar of Voters.

Sam Romeo

A Grateful GPD Spouse for Fiorello

To the Editor: I am so grateful to Kimberly Fiorello for taking the time to read the police bill and to contact our police officers for help to understand its impact. To me, it shows she has the common sense to reach out and ask questions. She also has the integrity to want honest, good legislation, not bad legislation w rapped in a good-sounding name. I’m so glad she continues to speak out against this bill and how much harm it does to our community.

I am the wife of a Greenwich police officer.

LETTER

up voting privacy booths which were being retired by other towns. These other towns were purchasing more compact models where voters stood closer together.

Incredibly, four months later, those $4000 worth of privacy booths Fred got for free turned out to be just what the epidemiologist ordered, as we now have extra booths to better distance voters in our polling places.

And just this August, Fred was back on the road picking up another $3000 in gently

Every day my husband goes to work I say a small prayer. Even though this is Greenwich, please don’t think there is no crime or no danger here. There is. Does anyone have any idea what it is like to work in a profession that has been so maligned and abused in the press, social media, and otherwise? Every profession has bad actors, but has any profession become so totally disrespected like police officers?

Thank you to every home in Greenwich that put up a “Thank you, GPD” sign. That act of support was so wonderful to see.

I understand that Kimberly has come

under attack for her stances. Her votes on our town’s RTM are consistent with being a real fiscal conservative who cares about the value of our dollar.

Her actions also tell me that she really cares about people. There is no hidden agenda with her. She is who she says she is — I appreciate that so much.

I am thrilled to back Kimberly who backs our police. I hope everyone in District 149 will vote for Kimberly Fiorello.

Alana Pollak

Fiorello Has Respect of Both Parties

To the Editor, I met Kimberly Fiorello last year through my work with CT. Women United and the Arch Street Teen Center Board. Kimberly is smart and focused, a wonderful mother to four, and “able to to leap tall buildings in a single bound!” Yes, in my book she is a little like superman (or woman). Despite obstacles, she knows how to get things done. She cares deeply for this community and for our country and her story is quite compelling. I have so much for respect for the way she stands up

for what she believes in and she is not afraid to work hard.

She has been very vocal about her support for our local police force. I am thankful, because I agree with her. Kimberly’s hard work on the RTM inspired others to get involved. She was an early supporter of the No TOLLS movement and likewise has been one of the first to speak out against state planning and zoning over our own local control.

She has gained the respect of members of both the Republican and Democratic party

and recently was endorsed by Joseph Duffy, a Democrat and advisor to Governor Lamont.

She fully supported schools reopening, unlike some of our elected officials in Hartford and took a hard stance with Eversource after their ineffective leadership this past summer that left many of us without power for over a week.

K i m berly has my f u l l suppor t a nd I know she will represent our community and Stamford proudly when she is elected in November.

Icy Frantz

LETTER

We understand life is busy. Life is stressful. What is happening today in our country and in our state is creating a sense of uncertainty that affects us here in town. We cannot recall a campaign season so filled with vitriol and anger. It is unsettling.

It is because of this stress and uncertainty that we should all make an effort to be a little nicer.

Being nice takes practice. Will Rogers said: “Most men are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” Being nice is the same. For some, it’s an effort.

They may feel that in the middle of a busy stressful day, saying hello to someone they do not know will not make a difference, but they are wrong. We challenge you to say “hello” to someone you pass on the street as you run your errands. Watch their faces. See if you can see a smile, even with a mask on, and then notice how that makes you feel. Being nice makes you feel good. Literally.

According to Psychology Today, being kind and doing nice things for others boosts serotonin.

Serotonin is the neurotransmitter that gives us the feeling of satisfaction and well-being. Most antidepressant medications work by increasing the amount of serotonin available to the brain. What this means is that being kind and doing nice things for others changes your brain in a way that makes you feel better. Best part? No side effects.

We do not expect that suddenly, next week, everyone in town will be blissfully happy. That sounds like a creepy episode from the 1960’s series, The Twilight Zone. But, we do hope that people will turn up the “nice” dial a couple of notches. Is there really a need for four cars to honk their horns simultaneously because someone is struggling to turn against the traffic? That just adds to an already stressful situation.

Hold the door for the person behind you and say “thank you” when they do the same for you. These are little things we can do.

Life is stressful and uncertain. Many are concerned about what is happening nationally, internationally, and locally. Anger, fear and resentment abound in all directions.

"Almost everyone feels compelled to justif y resentment by explaining how unfairly they’ve been treated," according to a recent Psychology Today article.

"Some feel that resentment helps them 'right a wrong,' although they’re far more likely to commit another wrong when trying to right one while resentful. The wrong they’re trying to right was most likely done to them by someone who was resentful. Resentment breeds resentment."

The vicious circle can be broken by standing for the values that are important to you, rather than against someone else's.

In a quote attributed to Mother Teresa, she said, "I will never attend an anti-war rally; if you have a peace rally, invite me."

Let us, as a community, try to be a little nicer to one another. Let’s aim to work for good things, to support our charities, our neighbors, and each other. After all, the science says that it will make us all feel better.

Fazio Seeks Greater Good Regardless of Credit

To the Editor: During this election season in particular, wouldn’t it be nice to have a candidate that is a student of democracy? A candidate that sticks to issues that most of us can agree are the basic foundational obligations of a good and just government, namely public safety, quality education and the right to freely govern one’s own community? A candidate that understands that throwing money at a problem rarely is effective?

A candidate that believes that there are many areas that the government should allow the

private sector to handle because bureaucratic red tape is costly and capitalism works? A candidate that appreciates the best and most effective way to handle inequality is to ensure that every student is given a quality education and equal access to the very best that a community has to offer? A candidate that is free from self-proclamations and instead seeks the greater good no matter to whom the ultimate credit is given? A candidate that is free from the drama that so often encircles political campaigns and instead listens to voices of the community?

Fortunately, in these unsettled times, such a candidate does in fact exist. A candidate we can support to help guide the State of Connecticut out of its fiscal morass. A candidate that will bring an unparalleled work ethic and sense of compassion to Hartford. Please join me in supporting Ryan Fazio to be our next State Senator. He will not only make us proud; he will work tirelessly to make Greenwich and Connecticut the best place to live, work and raise a family.

Stephen Walko

Setting the Record Straight: The Kathleen Stowe We Know Will Be an Outstanding State Representative It is quite disturbing that two of our colleagues on the BOE have chosen to engage in a political attack on one of our own members, distorting facts to make their case. In some respect it is unsurprising given the toxic political climate at present. However, we cannot idly sit by and allow this, so are compelled to set the record straight in the interest of ensuring that voters are not misled by these efforts and that the community has a better sense as to how the BOE functions.

Before we address the distortions in the Sherr/Kowalski Op Ed in last week’s Sentinel, we think full disclosure is warranted – Ms. Kowalski’s husband is treasurer for Ms. Stowe’s opponent’s campaign.

The aut hors se ek to u nder m i ne t he administration and fellow Board members with dubious allegations and claims. Their piece includes implicitly veiled attacks on the Superintendent, and their choice to drag her (a Town employee) into the political arena to suit their purposes is a dereliction of their duties and is shameful.

Their effort, at a time when the BOE should be laser-focused on our schools during the pandemic, likely will minimize collaboration and distract from the work the BOE should be engaged in – excellence in the Greenwich Public Schools. We sincerely hope that this does not usher in a new period of battles and dysfunction on the BOE. To that end, we are writing simply to set the record straight.

Addressing the specific allegations by Mr. Sherr and Ms. Kowalski: The authors claim that Ms. Stowe made “mistakes” in Dr. Jones’ employment contract, saying it is somehow “one-sided.” In point of fact, the causes for termination in her contract are identical to the contract for her predecessor Dr. Gildea, which was negotiated and signed by Mr. Sherr himself as the then Board chair.

They complain that Ms. Stowe failed to call for a budget committee meeting during the spring budget issues with the BET, and “punted the issue.” Mr. Sherr is a longstanding member of the Budget Committee and we are unaware of his seeking any such committee meeting. In

fact, when one was held on May 19, a mere three weeks after the BET budget vote and with proper notice to the public, Mr. Sherr failed to attend.

As neither of the authors attended that May meeting, we have no idea how they can credibly allege anything regarding Ms. Stowe’s “guidance” during that meeting or any positions she may have taken on any individual cuts. Had they been present, they would have heard Ms. Stowe advocate to ensure that funding of educational elements for students take precedence over “preserving back-off ice administrators”; a position she consistently held during numerous discussions and meetings throughout the spring.

We are perplexed about the authors’ referring to the BOE finances this year as a “mess”. In fact, through our COO’s efforts and COVID related savings, we were able to avoid staff cuts, purchase needed supplies for the current year AND return substantial unused funds to the Town for last year, even with COVID and a flat budget for this year. Hardly a mess.

They assert that the Superintendent “promptly inflamed the community and made enemies of the majority leadership of the BET”, but the Superintendent consistently addressed the looming budget cuts in a professional, numbersbased manner. The community reaction during the April budget process was generated by the BET’s decisions, to which the public responded.

Is it unfathomable to our colleagues that the countless parents in town were troubled by the process and chose to speak out on their own?

Thanks to Zoom meetings, the community is more engaged than ever -- something we should be celebrating, not denigrating.

T her e ha s b e en no RT M r e s olut ion “condemning the majority leadership of the BET”.

Additionally, they allege that “Board leadersh ip and the Super intendent had ‘colluded’ in the drafting of the attack and overtly politicizing our ‘bi-partisan’ schools.” First, there was no attack on the BET by BOE members or the administration. Second, members of the BOE told the RTM that we would not take a position on their Sense of the Meeting Resolution which was NOT an attack on anyone; rather, it sought to

encourage the BET to reinstate funds to the BOE budget. Not anything resembling collusion.

The authors state that Ms. Stowe “stood by and said nothing” or provided no leadership during discussions about issues related to COVID (arts, sports, online teaching). Anyone who goes back and watches past BOE meetings will see that she has consistently asked questions and made comments, as have all Board members.

The authors lament that at present all of the BOE standing committees are presided over by the BOE chair and vice chair to allegedly control the Board’s work. However, with four new BOE members elected, only three returning members had the experience and time to chair committees this year. Mr. Sherr currently chairs the Strategic Plan Committee.

While it is true that the Policy Governance Com m it te e (“ P G C ” ) i s r e s p on si b le for recommending policies to the full Board, PGC does not unilaterally adopt those. All committees are advisory to the Board, so all policy changes are taken up and voted on by the full Board at a public meeting, after two opportunities to review and revise any new policy and take public comment. The authors allege that “[Ms. Stowe’s] Policy Committee” passed a pandemic policy but this is untrue in two respects: 1) the full BOE, which included Mr. Sherr, voted to adopt it; and 2) when that policy was adopted by the BOE, Ms. Stowe was only a member of PGC, not the chair as stated by the authors.

In short, Mr. Sherr and Ms. Kowalski are entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to distort facts for political purposes.

The Kathleen Stowe we know juggles her many roles and excels at doing so. Her diligence and work effort is difficult to match, as are her financial skills. She has been an exemplary leader on the Board of Education and we urge the public to ignore these politically motivated efforts to demean her.

Peter Bernstein, Chair; Christina Downey; Karen Hirsh, Secretary; Meghan Olsson.

The signers are each a member of the Greenwich Board of Education.

Pro-Business; Pro-Fazio

To the Editor: I am an ow ner of a business in our communit y and let me assure you that Connecticut does not make it easy to do business here. Our state has been ranked among the least business friendly states in the nation. The regulations and taxes are crippling.

In November, I will support Ryan Fazio for

State Senate representing the 36th District, my home.

His vision supports businesses like mine, and he is making it a priority to not only attract new business but help make the businesses already here thrive.

Ry a n’s op p o n e nt do e s n o t s up p o r t business. In fact, her voting record earned her

an “F” from the largest business association in the state, CBIA (Connecticut Business and Industry Association).

I am pro-business and I am pro-Fazio.

Please join me in supporting Ryan Fazio for State Senate.

Caren Vizzo St. Phillip

Making the Case for Stowe

to run for State Representative in the 149th district because I believe my professional skills, my record of community service and my balanced approach as a problem solver are particularly well suited to represent Greenwich and Stamford constituents in Hartford. I have met so many people on the campaign trail, whether it be masked and socially distanced or on zoom calls. I have

By Kathleen Stowe participated in debates and written It has been a long stressful year op eds. I am posting and sharing and a strange campaign season, on social media platforms. My nationally and locally. I decided family, including my three school-

aged children and my father, a U.S. Veteran, and my friends have pitched in to make phone calls and canvas neighborhoods with me on foot and via bicycle. Many residents have already voted via absentee ballot. I thank all of my supporters and all those who have taken the time to thoughtfully consider my candidacy on the merits.

Here’s my message to those who haven’t yet voted, or made up their minds. I am a fiscally c on s e r v at ive c a nd id ate w ho believes in gun safety, a woman’s

When we speak to each other, regardless of party affiliation, we say the same things and agree – we need a thriving economy, we want jobs, and we demand a stop to the excessive spending and taxation. But these things can only happen if we vote for the right person – a bold voice who can break through the obstructing status quo.

By Kimberly Fiorello I’ve met you at your front do or, on you r s t r e e t , on t he My fellow Nutmeggers, we are masters of our own destiny. phone, on my porch at Monday

Coffees, at meet & greets, and on line. I’ve listened to you r stories and you’ve learned about my platform. You’ve watched me in debates, even when I was the only candidate who showed up. You’ve read my op-eds on the police bill, our energy woes, and zoning.

You’ve been a part of this c a mpa ig n as it evolve d f rom someone who introduced her A merican Stor y to you, to t h e c a n d i d at e w h o r e c e i ve d

r ig ht to r epr o duc t ive choic e and racial justice. I believe the Greenwich Board of Education, on which I serve as Vice Chair, along with the Greenwich Public School district administration and families have trailblazed and climbed a mountain this year in responding to the pandemic last spring and reopening schools this fall. My work on the Board of Education is illustrative of how I tackle issues and craft solutions. I take all the information that is available at the time and make the best decisions I know how to make. I listen,

collaborate, and decide. I don’t get rattled by the naysayers, the noshows and the critics. And then I move on to the next issue. That’s what I plan on doing in Hartford.

Eve r y p ol it ic a l c a mp a ig n is partisan. But this year feels particularly more intense, perhaps because so much is on the line. We have to emerge from COVID, revitalize our economy, support education, address our i n f r a s t r u c t u r e , a n d a dd r e s s environmental issues in the face of undeniable climate change. The first step to addressing problems

is to admit that those problems exist. Next, you need to hear from experts and constituents to understand the issues and the range of solutions. There is rarely a binary yes/no answer to our problems. The democratic process is messy. My pledge is to work with all stakeholders to understand concerns and address them in a fiscally responsible manner.

I ask for your vote.

Ka t h l e e n i s t h e D e m o c r a t candidate running for State Representative, District 149.

Closing Arguments landmark endorsements from police associations, as well as from realtors and small business owners across the state. I am your relentless advocate who will champion vitally important policy issues, ensuring local control, pr ivate prop er t y, a nd pu bl ic safety are never sacrificed at the district’s expense.

We k now each other now; we are indeed neighbors; and we share in the desire to flourish in our beautiful state.

I can carry the responsibility of the votes that I w ill be presented with. This is what a principled person does. I am the actual fiscal conservative in this race, not one who claims to be.

I have been viciously criticized and attacked for being disciplined about appreciating and respecting the value of your dollar. Still, I have stayed the course with my positive, forthright, and missiondriven campaign to give you a view into what kind of legislator I

Bocchino for Kelly

would be.

It has been an honor to learn from you all these past months.

I marvel at your humanity and tenacity as parents, teachers, first responders, business owners, taxpayers, and engaged citizens.

It is with great humility that I ask for your support and vote this Nov 3rd.

Kimberly is the Republican and Independent Party Candidate for State Representative, District 149.

Sate legislator’s are elected to represent the best interests of the residents and business owners in their respective districts while also working for the betterment of the entire town and municipality in which they live. This compliments t hei r ma i n focus wh ich is to draft, write and pass laws that the constituents they represent support. Conversely, they also are elected to fight against laws that their constituents do not support as many times these are potential pieces of legislation or policy that are found to be a threat to

their safety and or prosperity. So understanding this the question for the 150th district is, for the past 2 years what has Steve Meskers done? What Legislation has he personally written and passed?

Answer - none. What has he done for his constituents? Answer - very little. Where in the world is Steve Meskers?

In Old Greenwich we have a state run train station project that is still not completed? Staircases are still closed to pedestrian traffic from Sound Beach Ave and lights flicker in the middle of the night like a Christmas light show. in Byram, the Frontage Rd project which is a state road still sits untouched. A strong representative would have addressed both of these issues and pushed our town departments to implement traffic calming in both of these walking communities.

Many have not heard from this representative during the current Covid crisis or in his tenure

in Hartford. No direction from this man as other reps in other districts communicated updates on a daily basis. We had very little communications from him during the Eversource digging in Bruce Park and what about the utility price gouging? Regardless of party affiliation the representative of the 150th district should be communicating on a regular basis to ALL his constituents both by email and in the press.

One CT resident 67 years who happens to also be a public school teacher of 43 years did however hear from Mr. Meskers in a late night email tirade in which this stately representative said among other nasty things to this resident that “It is my deepest wish after reading all your rants that we meet at the gates with St. Peter and our lives are properly adjudicated. If I was you I would wear shorts and sandals it is gonna be pretty hot where you are inevitably headed.”

A l l because th is CT resident questioned the entire legislature and the direction to which the state was headed under Democratic majority rule. He isn’t even in Mr. Meskers district but was blatantly bullied as the representative shared his email with the entire legislative body. Is this really the type of person that we want to represent Greenwich’s 150th district and our best interests in Hartford.

Yet, none of these issues and examples of reckless behavior compares to Mr. Meskers decision to vote in favor of the incredibly f lawed a nd da ngerous Police Accountability bill, HB6004. The Town of Greenwich Police Chief and Police Commissioner along with hundreds of residents reached out to Mr. Meskers urging him to vote against the bill. While there are sections of the bill that may be worth looking into, one specific piece of this bill regarding qualified i m mu n it y put s t he me n a nd

women of the GPD in harms way and changes this bill into anti police legislation.

The bill makes officers c i v i l l y l i a b l e for c omp l a i nt s related to undefined actions, to be determined by the courts on a case by case basis. Connecticut courts will be left to decide what is or is not an infringement of someone’s constitutional right, and officers’ personal assets and reputations will be put on the line time and time again as the courts shape policy.

This bill will encourage frivolous lawsuits against police off icers and it will cause police officers to hesitate and second guess split second decisions that could have saved lives or protected their own.

Now our bravest men and women who vow to protect and serve who already leave their homes not knowing if they will return to their families will now have the additional burden of not knowing if they will be sued that day for

wearing the uniform and doing the job that frankly no one else will do.

I f ind Mr. Meskers lack of concern for our Police Off icers safety and his disregard for the voices of not only his constituents but that of the Police Chief and Commissioner of the Greenwich Police Department to be insulting and dishonorable.

When heading to the Polls on November 3rd or filling in your absentee ballot, there truly is only one choice for the 150th district to return the seat to the people of Greenwich and that vote is for “Coach” Joe Kelly. Joe Kelly is a person of action who does not sit idly by. Coach Kelly is someone who fights for others, a leader in his business and community. Joe Kelly has a proven track record of success.

Coach Kelly gets the job done!

Joi n me a nd ma ny ot hers as we vote Joe Kelly for State Representative of the 150th district of the town of Greenwich.

To the Editor: It is my g reat pleasu re to recommend Kathleen Stowe to the people of Greenwich and Stamford.

I have known Kathleen for nearly twenty years and know Connecticut will benefit from her skills, her experience and her energy.

My par tners and I hired Kathleen from Citigroup for our private equity firm. As a former investment banker myself, I knew I could expect her to be smart, hard

working and very detail oriented but at a small firm like ours we also needed someone with great interpersonal skills and a proven ability to get things done. Kathleen brought all of those attributes as well as an eye for strateg y and a natural ease working with management teams of all types.

We worked together intensely for many years, buying, growing and selling businesses around the world.

Through that time, I came to really appreciate Kathleen's particular abilities. She has an excellent f inancial mind - she is very facile with budgets and financial models with both a strong eye for detail and an ability to see the big picture. She is so good, in fact, that she stepped in for a period as the Chief Financial Officer of one of our portfolio companies.

Kathleen demonstrated an ability to guide and direct diverse teams.

She had to work w ith a w ide variety of management teams, lenders, i nve stors a nd ot her constituents and was able to align them all around a strategy.

Finally, Kathleen's tremendous energy and tireless work ethic stand out. Investment banking and private equity are challenging, often grueling, jobs and Kathleen excelled. She could spend all night reviewing a financial model and still be fresh to present it in a Board

meeting the next morning.

A nyo n e w h o h a s wo r k e d in similar fields will appreciate the rigor and challenge of what K at h l e e n h a s a c c omp l i sh e d .

Starting a career as a technology banker in the late '90s was an intense bootcamp. Her career in private equity confirmed the depth and breadth of her abilities.

Having been a long time Greenwich resident I appreciate her bringing those skills and energy to the Board

of Education. After managing companies, hiring executive teams, negotiating with multiple parties and driving financial execution I knew she would be an able guide for our school system. Greenwich is lucky to have a woman with Kathleen’s caliber. I know she will represent her constituents with skill and with energy and I know Connecticut will be a better place if she is in Hartford.

Nick Somers

By Mike Bocchino

To the Editor: Throughout this turbulent political season, I f ind myself hearkening back to some of those seemingly simple Kindergarten rules -- listen when others are speaking; respect others; play nicely w ith others; and treat others as you would like others to treat you – and longing for a candidate who embodies these elementary principles while still fiercely advocating on behalf of all of their constituents. I believe

Somers Praises Stowe

Kathleen Stowe Steps Up

Kathleen Stowe, the Democratic candidate for Connecticut House of Representatives 149th District, is that candidate.

K a t h l e e n ’s p r o f e s s i o n a l background in the investment banking and private equity sectors is ex t remely i mpre ssive a nd demonstrates her keen ability to navigate the complexities of our District’s f inances. Her active involvement in, and dedication to, our community at all levels is exceptional, from serving as class

parent at Round Hill Nursery School and Parkway School to Board member of the Northeast Greenwich Association to coaching Greenwich Parks & Recreation softball to becoming Vice Chair of the Greenwich Board of Education and chairing numerous committees thereunder, including the BOE Budget Committee and BOE Policy and Governance Committee.

But what I believe rea lly distinguishes Kathleen from the other candidates is her proven

track record of listening to all points of view and working with others regardless of their political party or leanings to get the work done on behalf of you and me.

There is no clearer example of her bipartisan and collegial spirit than her work on the Greenwich Board of Education, particularly during this year’s rancorous school budget debate and challenging “return-toschool” planning amidst the global pandemic. In every case, Kathleen rolled-up her sleeves, crossed

political party aisles to work with her Republican colleagues, like Peter Bernstein and Joe Kelly, listened carefully to the concerns of parents, school off icials and staff, and worked tirelessly to get the best outcomes possible for all of us under extremely diff icult circumstances. Kathleen’s can-do attitude and commitment to hard work, bipartisan collegiality and fair play on behalf of all of those she serves has been a ray of hope for me in today’s hyper-partisan,

hamstrung political arena.

But what I find most admirable about Kathleen is that at a time when it would be understandable for her to take a step back and focus her attention solely on her husband, three children and extended family, Kathleen selflessly stepped up to work for all us to protect our kids, families, schools, town and greater community.

I encourage you to join me and vote for Kathleen Stowe.

Lisa Small

Lifelong Democrat for Fiorello, Against Taxes

To the Editor: I’m a lifelong Democrat, a single mother of a grown son, and a small business owner, a.k.a., I am my own boss, and I urge you to vote for Kimberly Fiorello.

Every time I turn around in this state, I am getting taxed for something new. Case in point, there were 17 new taxes and fee increases passed by the state legislature in 2019, despite the constant protests from

business owners and all taxpayers. Nobody cared if we could afford any of these new taxes and increased fees.

In the new year, as of Jan 1, 2020, I had to start charging my Connecticut customers a new 6.35% service tax for my services as an interior designer.

This is on top of the income tax I already pay to Hartford. The state government already gets a slice of my earnings. I don’t appreciate the philosophy that the

state is entitled to take a slice from my customers who save, plan and watch every dollar when they decide to improve their homes.

For anyone else in other service industries, new taxes on your services will be next -- except for the attorneys in Hartford, who managed to stop a new tax on lawsuit settlements. Funny how Hartford decided to impose a new tax on the woman-dominated field of

interior design, but thought better of taxing the maledominated field of law, architecture, and accounting.

Still, don’t hold your breath, gentlemen.

I’ve known Kimberly Fiorello and her beautiful family for nearly 10 years. I cannot recommend her enough. She will represent us well, especially us strong, independent women.

Judy Dickerman

“Greenwich didn’t just happen!”

To the Editor: Kimberly Fiorello, our candidate for State Representative in the 149th District, chose to move to our town because she embraces the values that created the town that didn’t just happen. In reality, it has been shaped by almost 100 years of

To the Editor: Kimberly Fiorello throughout this campaign has shown us time and time again that she does her research and due diligence to understand the critical issues that impact her district. I see in her a representative who will go to Hartford and know what she is voting for

Republican governance.

Kim brings grit and tenacity to the table. Fiscally sound financial controls are needed. We need a strong, f irm, intelligent voice in Hartford. She is fiscally responsible and will carefully craft and support the bills and programs that

will reduce our taxes and fees imposed currently on businesses in our state.

Burdensome regulations should also be reduced. This practical approach will hopefully bring new business to our beleaguered state as well as assisting already existing businesses to grow.

Kim’s very strong work ethic and devotion will secure our state’s future and will help to provide educational and economic opportunities for all our citizens.

She is a champion for all and she will help to build the brightest future for all of District#149, the town of Greenwich and the

Fiorello Does the Work

or against and not blindly cast away our voices.

When the police bill came up, Kimberly spoke with subject matter ex p er t s , p ol ic e of f ic er s , a nd d id a r ide -a lon g . She e a r ne d a h i s tor ic endorsements, the first ever, from Silver Shield. When everyone in Connecticut

received outrageously high energy bills this summer, K imberly researched, investigated and questioned experts in the field and wrote an oped to inform her district. Again, she did the same with the state-mandates-on-local-zoning issue.

K i m b e r l y ’s o p - e d s a r e c l e a r, thoughtful and purposeful, so that anyone

who reads them becomes informed on very important issues. This is the type of critical transparency she will bring to the position and we desperately need.

The kind of candidate that Kimberly has shown herself to be is the kind of representative that we all want and need in Hartford -- someone who is

state of Connecticut. Please be sure to vote on November 3rd and to support Kimberly Fiorello’s candidacy.

PS – Be sure to read Kim’s very recent op-ed on possible pending zoning changes.

Sentinel/Greenwich Time.

Irene Dietrich

clearly committed to understanding the details of legislation and the real ins and outs of their impact in our lives here in Connecticut.

In comparing the two candidates, Kimberly is clearly the one who is ready to hit the ground running in Hartford.

Helena McCarthy

Page 10 | Greenwich Sentinel

Editorial Pages Continued, Letters

Emotional Lessons Learned Door to Door with Fiorello To the Editor: I have been a staunch Democrat for most of my life. I have always done my civic duty to vote. But for the first time in my life, I felt compelled to do more and I volunteered for a political campaign, in order to back a candidate who can help turn Connecticut around.

I put my full support behind Kimberly Fiorello. If you care about the people of

Connecticut, our economy and making our state more affordable again, I ask you to vote for Kimberly Fiorello.

I have never knocked on doors for a candidate before. But, I did go door-todoor with Kimberly. We spoke to countless neighbors, voters, and members of our community. And I can tell you, the visits were very heartfelt. People in our district are overwhelmed.

We spoke to a dad whose children were distance-learning from home and he pleaded to us that he cannot handle any more tax increases. We met an emptynesting couple in Stamford, who after they renovated their home had their taxes doubled and now their home is too expensive to stay in much longer. We met a mother who was home with her children while her husband was at their small

business. She said, it was too bad her husband wasn’t there to talk to us because he would have a lot of tell us about how tough times are for small businesses.

I am supporting Kimberly Fiorello because she is a real fiscal conservative who w ill stand f irm against all the Democrats in this state legislature who year after year increase our taxes, make our way of living more difficult, and ignore

our voices when we tell them we can’t take their wasteful spending anymore. I urge everyone in District 149 to vote for Kimberly Fiorello. We are lucky to have someone of Kimberly’s caliber, heart and integrity to represent us.

Ramya Hopley

Thank You to Our Police Department Dear Editor, their dedication to keeping our Town safe. We the dangers they may face at any given time I would like to take this opportunity to sometimes take them for granted - always and the sacrifices both the officers and their thank our Greenwich Police Department for being there with out a thought and knowing families make everyday.

God bless them.

Mary FitzRoy

Stowe Dedicated to her Community To the Editor: I voted for Kathleen Stowe because I know what type of person she is and how hard she will work for us. She was a great partner when we were together on the Board of Education, particularly on the policy committee. We didn’t always agree, but we always had productive, pleasant discussions about what we each thought was best and found ways to come together and move forward. She

considered different perspectives and dug deep into issues. She was happy to share her expertise when appropriate and always listened carefully to others.

Kathleen is a steadfast Board member and I don’t think she ever missed a BoE meeting.

When the Board lost three senior members a year ago and a third was working remotely, she stepped up to fill the void, taking on the chairman position for

the policy and finance committees as well as Vice-Chair for the BoE. And while she did not anticipate having to step into these roles, she did so with enthusiasm and boundless energy.

She k nows our tow n from many different perspectives, whether as a mother of children in our public schools, a softball coach, or a public servant in a variety of roles. She always thinks about what is best for all stakeholders, including

the taxpayers. Using her financial and business acumen, she dives into the numbers to f ind ways to help reduce the budget and keep our taxes as low as possible.

She led our Superintendent search and did a great job helping us hire an excellent candidate.

Critically, she added a retention bonus to the contract to ensure this one would last longer than others in recent history.

Equally as important was the manner in which she carried out the search. Despite her title as leader of the search team, she made sure every Board member felt like an equal in the decision, as she does in all her leadership roles.

If you want a representative that cares, works hard, and makes well thought out decisions, Kathleen Stowe should get your vote.

Gaetane Francis

Fiorello Best Candidate to Follow Floren To the Editor: We have k now n K im berly Fiorello for several years, and several of us have worked with her as members of the Representative Town Meeting. We have been very impressed with Kimberly’s skills and commitment to serving the community and are pleased she is on the ballot for the 149th District to succeed Livvy Floren as the representative for parts of Greenwich and Stamford.

Kimberly’s education at West Point and Harvard speaks for itself.

In short, she is exactly the kind of person who will represent her constituents in Hartford with the fresh thinking and drive needed to solve our state's many problems.

Kimberly's top priority is to reenergize Connecticut's languishing economy which experienced the 5th-worst economic growth among

all 50 states during the past 5 years.

She understands that a strong and growing economy is necessary for our citizens to achieve their hopes and dreams, and she is committed to supporting business-friendly policies that will bring businesses and job growth back to our state after a decade of losing businesses and jobs to other states. Attracting new businesses and jobs will allow us to fund our schools in the way we desire in addition to funding other important initiatives such as quality health care, an improved transportation system, and many other important priorities to us all.

K imberly’s candidacy was recently endorsed by both the Stamford and Greenwich Police unions. She was also endorsed by CT Realtors and by the National Fe d e r a t i o n o f I n d e p e n d e n t Businesses ("NFIB"). CT Realtors

represents 17,000 Connecticut realtors and NFIB is the leading small business association for both Connecticut and the nation. These important endorsements show the breadth of support Kimberly enjoys.

Kimberly’s opponent in this election is Kathleen Stowe who is currently Vice Chair of the Greenwich Board of Education (BOE) and Chair of the BOE’s Budget Committee. Although we respect Ms. Stowe for the time and energy she has devoted to serving Greenwich as a member of the BOE, several aspects of her tenure on the BOE cause us to question whether she is the best candidate to succeed Livvy Floren as the representative for District 149.

First, last year's BOE budget ended up yielding a "surprise" su r plu s of approx i mately $ 6

million, mostly due to reduced bus transportation, utilities, supplies and maintenance that occurred when the schools closed after the COVID outbreak.

Given Ms. Stowe’s financial, business, and BOE experience, we would have thought she would have anticipated that the closure of the schools and cessation of bussing would result in significant operational savings for the BOE and been able to roughly estimate those expected savings. Her apparent inability to do so makes us question her ability to handle budget matters in Hartford.

Second, in her recent debate with Ms. Fiorello, Ms. Stowe stated her style was to work with anyone no matter their political ideology and that more than ever we needed a representative in Harford who would balance the needs of our

citizens with the financial realities we now face. Yet after the COVID outbreak earlier this year, when the elected officials of Greenwich decided to cap the Town’s spending and taxes at last year’s amounts to help alleviate the economic hardship suffered by Greenwich residents as a result of the virus, Ms. Stowe chose not to support this effort and instead apparently supported ef forts to obtain additional funding for the BOE. This does not constitute “balancing the needs of our citizens with the financial realities we now face.”

Ms. Stowe also stated that Greenwich’s BOE is subject to unfunded mandates and that the State should cover more of the cost of those mandates. Yet Ms. Stowe is running as a member of the same political party that imposed most of those unfunded

mandates on Greenwich. Do we really believe Ms. Stowe is the candidate most likely to be able to either secure more funding from the State or reduce the unfunded mandates imposed on Greenwich under these circumstances? We believe the answer is “no”, and that Ms. Fiorello will be better able to represent Greenwich’s interests on this issue in Hartford.

In closing, we endorse Kimberly Fiorello for election as the representative the 149th District and respectfully suggest the citizens of District 149 cast their votes for her.

Natalie Adee Nancy E. Cooper Wynn McDaniel Henry A. Orphys Frank Salomone Jane Sprung

"At a time when politics can be bitter, overly emotional, and extreme, there is a beauty to being moderate and measured" To the Editor: In these difficult uncertain times, it is understandable to feel overwhelmed and succumb to a state of near paralysis, accompanied by fear and/or anger. But we must continue to love truth, embrace science, and turn towards light. One conscious decision I have made is to approach and live life with gratitude given the recognition that despite the host of serious challenges in front of us, we are

also filled with blessings.

As this pandemic has forced us to be more local, and to be more attuned to what is right in front of us, I am thankful for leadership; for individuals (from both parties) who serve the community. As one example, the Board of Education members – headed by Chair Peter Bernstein and Vice Chair Kathleen Stowe – gave up their summer to make it possible for school to be fully open when some Districts in the

greater area did not and do not provide that option. As a mother of two curious and active boys, I am indebted to be relieved of seeing my children every minute of every day.

Kathleen Stowe is now running to represent the 149th District in the State House of Representatives. I have known Kathleen for nine years, and she is a strong candidate worthy of your vote and support.

K at h le e n p o s s e s s e s a pra c t ic a l

intelligence infused with perspective and nuance. I have seen her approach controversial Board of Education issues with an open mind, learning the details of complex problems, and hearing what the various perspectives are before weighing in. Kathleen is principled, but not ideological, as she is driven by a genuine desire to create better outcomes for the community. One of her skills is to accurately assess the crux of a large

problem, and to solve it while working positively with colleagues regardless of political affiliation. At a time when politics can be bitter, overly emotional, and extreme, there is a beauty to being moderate and measured.

With the election in front of us, I invite you to learn more about her candidacy and her campaign, and to consider voting for Kathleen Stowe.

Carolyn Baek

Fred DeCaro a Model to Follow

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To the Editor: In some crises it’s leadership at the front that’s most important. In other cases, it’s the pre-planning and execution which makes the difference. When COVID hit and disrupted our election system, our Registrar of Voters Fred DeCaro was way ahead of the game because of all the work previously done on bringing his department online. Fred and his department had a Zoom account for more

than a year before COVID hit. They moved to work from home immediately, and Fred’s “25 Things You Can Do Online From the Registrars of Voters Webpage” was presented as a model for other departments.

As soon as allowed, Fred began crisscrossing CT pick ing up and stockpiling sanitizer, gloves and different styles of masks to ensure poll worker safety. He negotiated better, wider, and less expensive plexiiglass

shields. And it shows, because in a survey of those who voted in person in August, 95% of survey respondents said they felt “very safe” or "extremely safe - as safe as possible”.

T h a n k you to F r e d D e Ca r o I I I ou r Registrar of Voters since 2009. You and your staff continue to bring improvements to the voting process, and you have my vote once again.

John Lucarelli

Fazio Brings Renewed Optimism To the Editor: As a lifelong resident of Greenwich, I have always been impressed by how strong our community is and how it has set itself apart from the rest of the state. Never has this resilience been tested more amply than right now.

We h ave a n opp or t u n it y to ele c t a candidate that will bring a renewed sense of optimism to the state capitol and who will go to bat for us, protecting the hard-earned resources we invest in this community, and our independence and self-reliance in

tackling unique obstacles. Ryan Fazio, our candidate for the State Senate, was raised here in town and has rooted his success in the opportunities Greenwich afforded him.

While a lot of young people have faced a need to move out of state in order to stretch their incomes and pursue broader career opportunities, Ryan has chosen to stay in Connecticut to help rebuild our economy a nd re-esta bl ish t he t y pe of econom ic environment that young people can feel invested in.

As a father and grandfather it’s important

to me that the future for CT is bright and strong for the next generation. Ryan will be a strong leader to assure this goal is attained.

Ryan’s keen interest in and understanding of economic and fiscal issues, his personal understanding of what makes a community like Greenwich strong, and his message of hope are the reasons I will support him this November.

I ask others to join me in supporting Ryan Fazio for State Senate on Nov. 3rd.

John Budkins

Page 11 | Greenwich Sentinel

Editorial Pages Continued

My Plan to Cut Taxes and Create Jobs in CT

By Ryan Fazio Given the caliber of our people, most would expect Connecticut to be the economic envy of the US. But, as everyone knows, our state economy has been among the worst in the country for many years. In fact, Connecticut was one of just two states that never recovered from the last recession before this year’s began. Home values, incomes, and jobs have stagnated or decreased, while they rose steadily across the country.

The blame lies not with our people, but with our state government, which Democrats have controlled completely for 12 years. Connecticut has the second-

Feature Column

highest tax burden in the country after raising taxes by billions four of the last six legislative terms—including in 2019. This weight penalizes work, job creation, and investment.

That bu rden is a lso due to get worse, because we also face the highest unfunded liability for debt and state employee benefits.

On top of it all, Connecticut has the fourth-highest regulatory burden of any state, raising the cost of living and destroying jobs.

The good news is that with wholesale change to state policy, we can create hope for the future. That’s why I’m running for state Senate. I want to confront these barriers directly and encourage work, job creation, and investment in our community at long last.

My plan for change is threefold: 1.) Cut income taxes and simplify the tax code.

2.) Reduce excessive spending. 3.) Reform and rationalize regulations.

First, cut income taxes across the board. Reduce them around 2.5 percent of income for households making up to $100,000. For households making

between $100,000 and $200,000, cut it by around 2 percent of their incomes. For higher-income households, cut it around 1 percent. Low-income families should have their income tax burden eliminated.

Pay for most of the cut by simplifying the tax code by removing tax credits, deductions, and exemptions often enacted by politicians to benefit their preferred types of economic activity. The Office of Fiscal Analysis says the state could raise $5.3 billion if it repealed all “tax expenditures.” The state legislature will need to pick a less than half of all those exemptions to finance my cut. Three other ways to help pay for it include taxing legal, regulated marijuana, sports betting, and higher economic growth due to the reform.

By contrast, my opponent voted to raise taxes by over $650 on the average family in our district. Our district cannot afford more of the same.

Second, reduce excessive spending by reforming state employee benefits and cutting wasteful projects. Connecticut’s debt and unfunded pension liability must be confronted and reformed directly by

the state legislature in order to make our obligations sustainable. The problem cannot be outsourced to bureaucrats or arbitrators, ignored, imposed even more on taxpayers. The legislature can make the state’s obligations more sustainable by making marginal changes to state employee COLAs, overtime spiking, pension and insurance contributions, among others. This will stop massive haircuts for worker pensions in the future and mass layoffs.

The state must go on a “debt diet,” which Gov. Lamont promised in his last campaign, but my opponent voted to break with a bonding purge earlier this year. By reducing debt issuance and prioritizing more important spending, the state can save hundreds of millions per year. And the state should also divest loss-making assets, like Donkin’ Donuts Ballpark and the XL Center, and delegate delivery of some social services to our great non-profits who can do the job cheaper and better than the state.

Third, Connecticut must slash red tape that is killing jobs and increasing cost of living. As a matter of course, the state

should score all proposed regulations on a cost-benefit basis—as we do the price tag of fiscal bills—for how much they will cost consumers and workers. And straight away, the state should reduce or eliminated onerous health care, electricity, and labor regulations that are hurting the middle class. The state should eliminate Certificate of Need Laws, increase scope of practice for physicians’ assistants and pharmacists, and expand telemedicine.

It should bring more affordable clean energy into the grid to reduce electricity prices. And it should reduce occupational licensing requirements where there is not a clear public safety need—like how hairdressers require more training than police officers.

Delivering good government and reducing the state’s burden on families is the most important issue in Connecticut.

If we deliver change to Hartford, our district and state will again stand a chance at creating economic opportunity for all families.

Ryan Fazio is running to represent Greenwich, Stamford, and New Canaan in the state Senate.

Children and Education

A Commitment to Extraordinary Growth

By Adam Rohdie A G CDS sophomore completes a movie short entitled Weird To Be Normal.

In it, her main character nav igates frustrations during a day at school in 2020. Her frustrations are based on COVID protocols and how they impact her day—wearing a mask, being physically distant in class, walking down the hall, etc., and constantly having to sanitize desks and wash hands. The movie ends when she and a friend go to lunch, where they sit down outside, take off their masks, eat, and laugh—it feels weird to be normal.

As I watched her terrific movie, I was again struck by the truly extraordinary nature of this year. Whether it is the pa ndem ic , issue s of rac ia l ju st ice , environmental catastrophe, or a divisive election season, it has been a lot to

Feature Column

By Connie Blunden This article is part of a series exploring the principles of nonviolence as understood and explained by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The principles provide wisdom and g uidance for creating a more equitable and peaceful world.

H ave yo u e ve r h e l p e d t o build a house? It’s an incredible experience to build a physical structure while also building a community. For years I took high school students to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Partnership for Housing. We volunteered

Feature Column

By David Cohen Th is yea r, Ha lloween a nd Thanksgiving are going to be d i f fe r e nt . W h e t he r you r ge t together or celebrate alone, the pandemic w ill certainly have an impact. Never fear – you can make sure that your child enjoys, and that they get the heart of the holidays. Start by deciding what makes the holiday special. Then, move on to the plan. Importantly, communicate with your child.

Why are Ha lloween and Thanksgiving so much fun for

process intellectually and emotionally—as individuals and particularly, as parents.

The challenges that our children are facing are unprecedented, and I know many of us worry about the impact the current environment will have on our children and what the future holds for them. Yet, despite all of this, I truly believe there is a silver lining for this generation of students.

Biog rapher a nd h istor ia n Dav id McCullough argues that there is no time like the turbulent present to cultivate leaders. “These are the times in which genius would wish to live. It is not in the still calm of life that great characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in contending with difficulties.

Great necessities call out great virtues.”

While the end of these troubling times may not be in sight, this will end. Our children will be stronger for what they have had to endure and to overcome. The children of this generation have been forced to become resilient, adaptable, and action oriented. They are impatient with complacency and are willing to get messy, which is often what learning requires. They truly embrace the mess.

Extraordinary times, challenges, and sacrifices lead to extraordinary growth, and while this is a year unlike any in memory, the commitment to growth is what this generation will hopefully

They see the impact of a pandemic, not only in their own lives, but in the lives of those less fortunate or less able and they rise up to problem-solve be remembered for. They have been gifted the opportunity to explore solving real-world problems in the context of current events.

Students have had the opportunity to delve into the earth and environmental sciences while forest f ires are raging in the west. They examine the impact of the electoral college w ith recent elections providing illustrative examples of the principles at work and a pending presidential election top of mind. Our youth are exploring ways to work together to ensure a more just and inclusive society against the backdrop of current events.

They see the impact of a pandemic, not only in their own lives, but in the lives of those less fortunate or less able and they rise up to problem-solve—creating electronic communication tutorials for our more senior citizens so they can stay in touch with their loved ones or taking an infectious disease course to learn more about why and how a pandemic

happens and what can be done to prevent it from happening again. In each of these instances and many more like them, our students are working toward creating a stronger, safer, and more prosperous society.

A g re at e duc at ion du r i ng t he se difficult days ensures that students learn that hardship makes them stronger, more thoughtful, more empathetic—and that they can make a difference. Every day we ask the tigers of GCDS to: • Rise above discomfort • Build understanding rather than closing out opposing opinions • Cultivate resilience t h r ou g h p e r s on a l a n d interpersonal resolve • Innovate—the questions and the answers are out there

• Care deeply • And—of course—embrace the mess The enduring product of this growth is hope. Hope that our children will ask the questions that need asking, work to right the wrongs they encounter, make the honorable choice rather than the easy one, and take every opportunity to be kind and just.

Soon it w ill not feel weird to be normal. When that time comes, I believe you will see a generation of students ready to make the world they are about to inherit a much better one than the one we are handing to them. That is indeed a silver lining.

Adam C. Rohdie is the Head of School at Greenwich Country Day School.

Frameworks Are Essential across the country: Connecticut, New Mexico, Colorado, Louisiana a nd S out h Da kot a. A lt houg h the building materials varied, appropriately, by region (in New Mex ico a nd Colorado home s were built using adobe brick) the shared value in every community was that sa fe a nd a f forda ble housing should be accessible to everyone.

“What are we going to be doing?” I could never answer that question, in advance. Sometimes we would arrive in the earliest stages of construction, sometimes the homes were nearly completed.

We had to be ready to perform whatever tasks were necessary and most needed.

On one trip we were asked to help install the f looring joists of a house. In basic terms we were laying the horizontal wooden supports on which the f loors would rest. We began with only the cement footings and wooden posts to which the joists would be attached. On another trip we learned how to frame the walls

The vision we have for our communities and world is also a framework. of a house . W it h t he help of experienced carpenters we were taught how to find the crown of each beam and how to measure each stud correctly to avoid any issues installing the dry wall later on. We also learned that some beams are called “load bearing” a nd f u nc tion by d ist r i buti ng t h e we i g h t o f t h e m a t e r i a l s throughout the structure. Load bear ing beams of fer active support and structural stability to the framework. Remove the load bearing beams and the structural integrity, the framework of the house, is in jeopardy.

Frameworks are essential.

The f ramework for a home establishes the guiding structure for f uture work , and is an anchor to the foundation of a

building. This way, the vision can be transformed to a plan that achieves a goal.

The vision we have for our communities and world is also a f r a m e w o r k . Fo r e x a m p l e , in schools across the country teachers begin the year by having students create classroom norms based on shared values. This helps students ag ree on how the group will function together throughout the year. Institutions h ave sh a r e d v a lue s t h at ge t expressed as shared agreements too, in the form of handbooks and manuals. If our behavior reflects our shared values then the vision becomes real.

The Civil Rights Movement was founded on a framework of nonviolence. Dr. King and many

other leaders of the movement asked all activists to accept the second principle of nonviolence: The Beloved Community is the framework for the future. The word “beloved” means dearly loved: the Beloved Community is a society in which the sacred humanity of each person is honored and respected.

The Beloved Com mun it y is constructive because it is predicated on a foundation that builds relationships that will help us come together in reconciliation of past injustice. A reconciled worl d w i l l b e c h a r a c te r i z e d by unit y, justice and the f ull actualization of each person’s hu ma n p otent ia l. W hen t h i s happens, at every level of society, then we have achieved this goal.

At the end of every trip with my students I noticed how much we had accomplished during the week. We noticed where we began and where we ended, and we knew another group of students or volunteers would come and pick up the same hammers and paint brushes and continue from the point of our completion. It was rewarding to know that the house would be built based on the efforts of many. We, too, can pick up the tools that Dr. King, Ella Baker, John Lewis, C.T. Vivian and so many others left for us and use them to continue to build the world that embodies our shared values and shared humanity.

Connie Blunden is the Director of the Center for Public Purpose and an upper school history teacher at Greenwich Academy. Her curricular and programmatic work focuses on social justice, participator y citizenship and leadership. She also serves on the Board of the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth and Reconciliation.

The Heart of the Holidays young children? Is it the history?

I’m guessing that it’s not. In both cases, there are some pretty tough themes, if we’re being honest.

Think about your own memories of celebrating as a child. You will likely come up with phrases like candy, family, costumes, turkey, visiting, trick or treating, being thankful, etc. You can make your own list and prioritize those that are most important to your family.

I would encourage you to include your child in this discussion.

Then, it is time for creativity!

As educators, we of ten think of the learning goal, then work backwards to create the experience. If I want my child to feel thankful for all that is good in their life, I need to think of a way to highlight all of those great things. If I want my child to laugh and be creative, I need to provide a canvas for those opportunities.

Here are a few holiday-specific

You can make sure that your child enjoys, and that they get the heart of the holidays examples. Certainly, your goals and strategies may vary widely.

How can my child experience trick or treating while minimizing exposure? This is going to depend on each family’s comfort level with seeing other households. If the comfort level is zero, there are still ways to proceed. Each room in your home can become a trick or treat destination. Chocolate in the living room; chewy candies in the kitchen, etc. Have a bowl in each space, monitored by a costumed stuffed animal. Be sure to make of video of your child visiting each room. Replaying this experience with be outstanding!

This can also work by using a variety of locations in your yard.

If your comfort level includes a few neighbors, it’s time for open dialogue with these people. Will we knock on doors? How do we determine who is participating?

What is everyone’s comfort level with close proximity? To maintain a good distance, consider a length of new tubing (cardboard, PVC, g ut ter). A s long as t he g iver is higher than the receiver, it becomes a great candy dispenser!

How can my child learn to be thankful and appreciative of life and family? This may be a natural part of getting together

on Thanksgiving. This does not need to be a big virtual dinner.

How about a 15-minute Zoom at 10am, where everyone wishes people a happy holiday and shares their beautiful card? What a way to start the day! Just be sure to get the cards in the mail during the first week of November.

These are just a couple of ideas to get the creativity flowing.

Whatever you decide, keep your child in the conversation. Instead of focusing on what we cannot do this year, due to the pandemic, share your favorite memories.

Share the way that you felt when you dressed up in costume or saw lots of friends. Let them know that these holidays are going to be special!

for large family dinners. If this is not possible this year, consider starting the process weeks before.

Make a list of all of the family members or friends who would have been at Thanksgiving dinner.

You can be pretty inclusive, since seating will not be a problem.

For each of the intended guests, make a customized card using const r uc t ion pap er, ma rkers or anything else that you have handy. These cards could include simple messages that say, “I’m t h a n k f u l fo r yo u b e c au s e …”

David Cohen , Director of letting your child fill in that blank.

Schools at Temple Sholom Selma Further, consider making it an invitation for a virtual gathering Maisel Nursery School

Obituaries

Page 12 |Greenwich Sentinel

Robyn Hallock

Robyn was born in Greenwich, CT, to John K. and Ethel ‘Lew’ Taylor Greer, joining her two brothers, W. Kirk and Joh n T. Ea rly on , t he fa m i ly move d f r om B e t h lehe m , PA , to Cos Cob, CT, where Robyn spent her childhood and most of her adult life. Robyn grew up in a large extended family that included her grandparents, W i l l i a m & E t h e l Ta y l o r, o f Greenwich, and Lew’s sister, Ann (Scudder) Boyd’s family, also of Greenwich. Along with John K.’s sister, Sheila (Bill) Duker’s family, of Rye, NY, Robyn was sur rounded by cousins, w ith whom she spent many happy holidays and family gatherings at home, and at the family’s summer cottage in East Dennis on Cape Cod, where Robyn spent her most cherished summers.

When her father’s job with IBM required a move to Tokyo, Japan in 1970, the family went along. Robyn spent her three middle school years at the American School in Japan (ASIJ), sha r i ng her mot her ’s love of Japanese culture, while making life long friends and learning a fair amount of the language b efore ret u r n i ng home. The family’s last trip back to the states to ok t hem t h roug h A sia, t he Middle East, Africa, and Europe, no doubt laying the groundwork for her future endeavors.

After graduating from Greenwich High School in 1976, Robyn attended Skidmore College i n S a r a t o g a , N Y, w h e r e s h e earned her degree in Psychology and Education in 1980. She joined numerous civic organizations and committees to serve her interest in helping others.

She began as a teacher, but Robyn’s career path soon led her to the Travel Industry, which she served with distinction for over 30 years. She started working on the agency side, with Greenwich Travel and Wagon-lits, before taking a position on the client side as Corporate Travel Manager for Pepsico in Purchase, NY, where she oversaw executive travel for over 20 years. She was frequently cited for her exemplary work, receiving numerous accolades and industry awards, along with the admiration and respect of her colleagues, regionally and nat iona l ly. A mong her ma ny achievements, Robyn was elected as President of the Corporate Travel Council, and President of the Connecticut/Westchester Business Travel A ssociation, earning the Corporate Business Travel Service Award along the way.

Roby n’s personal life was devoted to raising her daughter, Sarah, and to the well being of family and friends alike, including the care of her parents in their elder years. Her love of nature and animals knew no bounds,

and she shared it with family cats in her youth, and with the love of her life, her 14 year old Lhasa Poo, Annie. In keeping with family tradition, there were pa r t ies ga lore, where Roby n loved sharing music and laughter with a wide circle of family and friends. She continued to travel extensively with her husband, Dav id, and loved attending concerts and sporting events.

She was an active member of the Stamford community in which they lived the last 7 years, and was admired and loved by all.

Robyn battled, and overcame, various medical issues in her last 6 years, including breast cancer, until succumbing peacefully to liver cancer after a valiant fight, with family around her.

She is survived by her spouse and partner of 26 years, David; her daughter, Sarah; her brothers, K i rk ( Bet h) a nd Joh n (Sa ra), and her niece and five nephews; her Boyd cousi ns, Joh n, Jef f, Garry, and Ann, and her Duker cousins, Dawn, Robert, Bill, and Rick, along with a host of second cousins.

Robyn will be sorely missed by all whose lives she touched.

Mary Vartuli

Our beautiful mother, Mary Antonietta Vartuli passed away peacefully with the love of her family surrounding her on Oct. 20, 2020. She was 91 years old.

Mary was born in Stamford, CT to Giuseppe and Julia Vartuli on Oct. 3, 1929. As an only child she was blessed with wonderful close cousins and lifelong friends.

Mary began her career as a n exe c ut ive se c ret a r y at Pitney Bowes. She later went on to work side by side w ith her husband, Michael Vartuli, guiding a successful residential and commercial construction business for many years.

Mary and Mike raised three children in Greenwich, CT and upon retirement put down roots in Hobe Sound, Florida. Mary was a longtime member of the Lost Lake Women's Club and Italian Club where she forged many valuable friendships through the years. She was a devout Catholic and so proud o f h e r It a l i a n h e r i t a g e . H e r cooking was legendary, especially her homemade pizza and her Sunday pasta and meatba lls.

Beside being an amazing wife, mother and friend, she enjoyed needlepointing and was an avid reader.

She was predeceased by her husband, Michael Vartuli of 48 years. She is survived by her th ree children A n ne Cadwell (Jim) of Old Greenwich, CT, Julie Gibian ( Jim) of Old Greenwich, CT and Anthony Vartuli (Diane) of Centennial, CO. Her greatest joys in life were her 6 grandchildren, Nina and Will Gibian, Michael, Giovanna and Julia Vartuli, and Hayden Cadwell.

Masses will be said in her

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To speak to a licensed, trusted and knowledgeable funeral director, call us at (203) 869-5968 or (914) 698-5968 or visit www.coxandgraziano.com.

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grandchildren, Logan, Mikey, Frankie, Patrick, JT, and Ellie.

S h e i s a l s o s u r v i ve d by h e r sister, Louise N. Graves, and her husband John, and her sister, Christine N. O'Keefe, and many cherished nieces and nephews.

She was pre decease d by her sisters, Meredith Cox and Gloria Gelbach.

The family gathered privately Marian Taylor to honor Ba r i's l i fe at L eo P. Gallagher & Son Funeral Home in Greenwich. A proper Christian worship service will take place in Greenwich at a safer time in the near future.

In lieu of f lowers the family req uests that you consider donations in Bari's memory to the Kurzrok Foundation, 31 Brookside Drive, Greenw ich, CT 06830; or to Canine Companions for Independence, 286 Middle Island Marian N. Taylor, known as Road, Medford, NY 11763.

"Bari," of New Canaan, CT, passed away on Oct. 17, 2020 surrounded Joan Strong by her loving family. A beloved mother, grandmother, wife, sister, aunt, and friend, she brought joy and light to all those who had the good fortune to have known her.

A former long-time resident of Greenwich, CT, she was one of five daughters of Fitz-Randolph Snowden Neely and Gloria Gateson Neely, of Merion, Pa. Bari graduated from Lower Merion Joan W. Strong, age 81, of High School, Marjorie Webster Greenwich, CT died of cardiac College, and the State University arrest on Oct. 13, 2020. Joan is of New York at Purchase with a survived by her sons John Strong BA in Art and Interior Design. III and Christopher Strong, her Upon graduation Bari began a sisters Wendy Taylor and Ginger career in architecture and interior Holzapfel, and her grandchildren desig n and was employed for Bla ke, t he t w i ns Joh n ny a nd many years with Graves Marks Jenna, Sheila and Grace. She was Architects and Katherine Cowdin preceded in death by her parents Interiors of Greenwich. She was George and Virginia Wightman. co-founder of Taylor-McGraw She was also preceded in death Interiors, Ltd. She served for b y h e r g r a n d m o t h e r H a z e l m a ny ye a r s on t he B o a r d of Hotch k iss Wig ht ma n, one of Directors and as Vice President the greatest professional tennis of the Kurzrok Foundation and players of all time, winning two on the Board of the Northeast Olympic gold medals, a stunning Region of Canine Companions for 45 major titles and was appointed Independence. as an honorary Commander of Bari was multi-talented and the Order of the British Empire. creatively gifted. She loved art, Joan was a graduate of Derby fashion, and architecture and Academy and Beaver Country was known for her great sense Day School and just recently of style. She played many roles attended a 63 year reunion, via in addition to her design career Zoom of course. Joan worked well – wife, mother, grandmother, into her 70's and was a board h o m e m a k e r, g o u r m e t c h e f , member of her condo complex. g racious hostess, rea l estate Joan was a social, active woman a g e n t , t r u s t e d a d v i s o r, a n d who deeply loved her many dogs matriarch. Bari was a lover of life and cats. She enjoyed astrology, and brought exuberance to all was an avid jazz enthusiast and that she did. She loved to read, was always keeping up with her travel, entertain, play golf and friends and family via Facebook tennis, and ski. She spent many (which she always referred to summers boating and enjoying as "Facepage"). Her family and Long Island Sound and Quogue. friends will always remember her But above all else, Bari will be as the kindest caring person they remembered for her warm and know. She will be deeply missed. giving nature, her compassion, and her playful sense of humor; Regis Valentine for her true joy, positivity, and the f un she broug ht to ever y occasion. She was a natural giver – outgoing, attractive inside and out, affectionate, and generous.

She adored her ch i ld ren a nd g ra ndch ild ren a nd em braced people from all walks of life and set a true example of inclusivity.

Her most cherished moments were spending time w ith her friends and family.

She is sur vived by her devoted husband, Francis M. ("Pete") Taylor, of New Canaan; Regis Valentine, 86 of Old her former husband, Frank J. G r e enw ich , CT p a s s e d aw ay Gilbride, of Greenwich; three peacefully in Stamford Hospital, children, Jason Gilbride, Marnie with his loving niece and nephew McLaughlin, and Randy Gilbride; by his side, on Wednesday, Oct. 7, two daughters-in-law, Tara and 2020. He was born on Oct. 8, 1933 Amy; son-in-law, Stephen; her in Dover, Ohio to Donald William step-children, John and his wife, Va l e nt i n e a n d E d n a S t e i n e r Michelle, and Pamela; and six Valentine, both deceased. He had five brothers, Donald, Jerry, Gene, Dean and Kenneth all of whom predeceased him.

R e g i s a n d h i s w i fe M a r y moved to Old Greenwich in 1971.

Mary passed away in 2018. They were married for more than 50 years.

Regis was a 1951 graduate of Alliance High School (Ohio) and a 1955 graduate of Mount Union College (Ohio). He earned an LLB degree at University of Michigan Law School, May 1958, and was a member of the Ohio bar. He later attended New York University School of Law where he earned an LLM (taxation) degree in 1962.

After graduating from Law school he was drafted into the army and served in Korea. After his discharge he moved to New York City and worked as a tax lawyer for Bristol Meyers Squibb, from which he retired in 1991.

Sur v ivors include many nieces and nephews and grandnieces and grandnephews.

Funeral arrangements were private. Burial was at St. Joseph's Cemetery, Fremont, Ohio, where h e w a s i nt e r r e d n e x t to h i s 134 Hamilton Avenue Greenwich, CT 06830 beloved wife, Mary.

name at both Church of St. Cecilia in Stamford and St. Christopher Church in Hobe Sound.

A celebration of her life will be held at a later date tbd.

Memorial donations may be made in Mary's name to St. Jude, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105. or at www.stjude.org

(203) 869-5968

Howard Jordan

Howa rd L . Jorda n, son of Elizabeth and Howard Jordan, passed away peacefully Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020 at Masonicare Health Center. He is survived by his brother Peter Jordan.

Howard lived nearly his entire life in Greenwich. He graduated Greenwich High School in 1970 during the turbulent Vietnam War years but was for tunate to receive a high draft number allowing him to go on to college.

In his youth, he studied botany and experimented with hybrid roses. He later worked at Innis Arden Golf Course to help with the redesign of the course.

He lived in Orange County, CA for several years but home was always Greenw ich. He loved to visit Tod's Point and he got to know many of the local mercha nts i n Old Greenw ich by running errands for friends a n d n e i g h b o r s . H i s f avo r i t e companions were cats and while he had many, there were two very special Burmese cats that helped him through life's challenges.

He struggled with some health issues but assisted others until he needed assistance himself.

He always enjoyed the company of friends. He often gave sweets, g if ts and nick names to those closest to him and later to those who provided him assistance.

The family would like to thank the compassion and caring of the nurses and staff at Masonicare.

Margaret McPartland

Margaret Mary McPartland (Margie) died peacefully at her home on Sept. 25, 2020 at the age of 6 4 . Her husba nd Joh n Czarnecki, and her sons Matthew Czarnecki and Brian Czarnecki were with her when she died.

Margie was born in New York City on Aug. 29, 1956. She grew up in Parkchester in the Bronx, graduated from The College of New Rochelle, and lived most of her adult life in Greenwich, CT. Margie was predeceased by her parents Margaret Mansfield McPa r t la nd a nd Joh n Joseph McPartland. She is survived by John, her loving husband of 43 years, her sons Matthew and Brian, her grandchildren Luke and Ror y and her daughtersin-law Amanda (Matthew) and Amelia (Brian), her sisters Judy, Mary Jane, Annie, and Rosemary, her cousi ns as wel l as ma ny nieces and nephews.

Margie showered family and friends with unfailing generosity, humor, and support in countless ways throughout her life. Margie was a model in so many ways – she loved without condition, gave to others without calling attention to her gifts or demanding reciprocity, took the high road no matter how difficult, and strove always to focus on the good in people. Those who k new her understood that Margie was very modest. She knew she was loved, but c a n not have k now n how much good she added to the world in her short time here. We hope she now knows. The outpouring of love and support she received from friends and the community upon hearing of her sickness was a testament to this.

Her special way with babies and children is hard to describe, and will be irreplaceable – but her indelible inf luence is plainly visible in her sons, her grandchildren, her nieces, n e p h e w s , g r e a t- n i e c e s a n d n e p h e w s w h o h a ve b e e n s o blessed to have had Margie as a f u nda ment a l a nd c on st a nt presence in their lives. Her gifts will live on in the generations that follow her.

Prior to hav ing children Margie worked at ChesebroughPonds and she left the corporate world to focus on raising her children. As a mother, she was an active volunteer at Parkway School and Central Middle S cho ol . O ne of he r p a s sion s was education and supporting t he development of ch i ld r en through the mentoring of their pa rents. She lectu red on the

significance of reading to children and choosing thoughtfully the books shared with them. She led book groups for parents and children. Additionally, Margie was a Parenting Consultant for 25 years. She cherished the time spent with the many women who were united in their pursuit of goodness, wisdom, and personal growth. She considered herself blessed to share this work with them.

S h e s u p p o r t e d h e r s o n s' pursuit of academic and athletic excellence. She reveled in cheering them on at their varied sporting events and was famous for making her cinnamon bread pea nut but ter sa ndw iches to boost team energy.

Throughout her life, Margie was a die-hard Bruce Springsteen f a n , at te n d i n g 5 0 + c o n c e r t s b e t we e n 19 7 8 a nd 2 018 . She indoctrinated her nieces into the Bruce-love-club with "Sherry Darling" which has been played at every family party since 1981. She loved the Yankees, the Rangers, attending the US Open, reading to children, playing Sorry, Pit, Rummikub with little ones dear to her a nd watch i ng cook i ng shows.

Margie so appreciated the excellent care that she received f rom the doctors and staf f at the Bendheim Cancer Center in Greenwich. Margie wished to especially acknowledge Maria Vanderhorn, her nurse at the C a n c e r C e nte r. M a r i a e a s e d Margie's many treatments with her outstanding care, her warmth and sense of humor. Without family members able to be present due to Covid-19, Maria was a source of great help not only to Margie but also to her family who were calmed knowing Margie was in such good hands.

Margie loved reading. It was a significant and treasured part of her parenting and her being a loving aunt and grandmother.

She researched and read about choosing books for children and shared her knowledge of instilling a love of literature within a child.

She spent hours reading to Matthew and Brian, her greatn ieces a nd nephews a nd her cherished grandsons. Margie's time snuggled up with a child reading a special book, or voicing a book over Facetime brought her such joy.

John, Matthew and Brian are establishing a non-prof it that will direct funds, on an annual basis, towards organizations and programs that support her vision and passion for children's literacy a n d m o r a l d e v e l o p m e n t . To contribute, please view the link here: gofundme.com/f/margiemcpartland-childrens-literacy

John Purdy, Jr.

Joh n "Ju n ior" Rei nsbu rg Purdy, Jr. was born in Greenwich, CT on July 5, 1941 and passed away at the age of 79 on Oct. 12, 2020 in Punta Gorda, Fla. He was the son of the late Rose (Pucci) and John Purdy of Greenwich.

He was an Air Force Veteran and served in the United Kingdom.

John leaves behind 3 children and 5 grandchildren; daughter A n net te Sweet ( N Y ) a nd her children Lindsay and Steven, daughter Tammy-Sue Jackson (VA) and her children Elijah and Jordan and his son Shaun Purdy (CT) and his child Jason.

John is survived by 7 sisters; Rosemarie Lewis, Barbara Gzeckowicz, Margaret Goodhart, Ruth Gordon, Frances Sarna, Effie Ribuffo, and Patricia Purdy.

In addition, 5 brothers; Chester, Joseph, Floyd, Dennis and Gregory Purdy. Predeceased by a brother Louis and a sister Mary Hawe. John is from a large family, i nclud i n g s c or e s of c ou si n s , nieces, nephews and more.

John graduated from Greenwich High School and ran his own livery business. John lived in Greenwich and Stamford, CT before moving to the beaches of Florida to enjoy the warm weather and to earn the nickname "Dancing John". Burial will be private and a celebration of life will be at a later date.

Page 13 | Greenwich Sentinel

Worship

Passing By at 200 MPH

By Daniel Haugh

RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL CONTRACTOR

“Beinvenue a bord du TGV”.

Hearing these words from the speakers overhead in the Gare De Lyon, I positioned myself in my seat as the excitement grew for the ride ahead.. Having been used to the Metro North trains, I was about to embark on my first French train traveling at 322 kpm!

(200 mph) en route to the south of France. I noticed how incredibly fast and smooth the ride was, as I gazed upon the unstirred glass of wine in my hand. A trip that would take at least 8-10 hours by car but little over three by rail. What I also noticed was how little I noticed.

Tr a v e l i n g s o f a s t h a s i t s advantages to be sure, but what is lost are often the surrounding sights and sounds. Yes, I was anxious to arrive in Marseilles, but I was also eager to see the beautiful countryside and take it all in. A few months later, I traveled to Normandy by car and not by train.

That decision changed everything about the experience, and as a result myself as well. The slower pace allowed time to roll down the windows to breath in the crisp air, smell the orchards and pastures, and stop at leaser to meet local residents along the way.

Sometimes in order to fully e x p e r ie n c e l i fe a nd it s m a ny blessings, we need to slow down

and take the longer road. Gandhi once said “There is more to life than merely increasing its speed.” I am now beginning to understand what people of faith have understood for centuries. The concept of sabbath as practiced by the Jewish and Christian communities has a long and storied history that dates back to the origins of creation itself. After the Creator God worked to establish the heavens, the earth and all of its inhabitants, we read that God rested. In this pause, God was able to take time to survey all of the work completed and assess that it was good. This established the mandate for humankind to make time to stop from work, rest and enjoy the goodness of all of God’s gracious gifts. When Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath”, I believe he understood the connectivity between the sacredness of rest and reflection and the sanctity of all life.

However, in today’s modern world, this realization has been hard to embrace and embody.

We seem to be hardwired like a high-speed train to travel faster and faster in order to reach our destination sooner. What often happens is that when we finally do reach our destination…that financial goal, career status, job title, stage of life etc… we look back w ith little sense of satisfaction in the journey. We lose the amazement

along the way. No wonder so many feel disconnected and anxious, always feeling as if we are chasing something elusive. I appreciate the Jewish fable of Rabbi Levi. One day, Rabbi Levi saw a man running in the street and asked him, “Why do you run?” The man replied, “I am running after my good fortune!”

Rabbi Levi tells him, “Silly man, your good fortune has been trying to chase you, but you are running too fast.”

I believe we are running too fast because many of us have this intense internal feeling of being f lawed, defective, unworthy or def icient in some vital way as a human being. So we mask it becoming a human “doing”. We work harder and harder. We run faster and faster. We try to escape the feelings of inadequacy not just from others but also from ourselves. We try to outrun that voice within that tells us we can never measure up, have enough or be enough.

The Sabbath was, and is intended to help us remember.

When we slow down, we remember who we rea lly a re….beloved daughters and sons, created in the image of God with intrinsic value.

For those willing to embrace silver linings, the pandemic has provided a chance to slow down, catch a breath and rediscover the gift of small meaningful moments.

Ten Words

By Marek Zabriskie R e c e n t l y, i n o u r M e n ’s Ministry, we have been reading William Diehl’s book The Monday Connection, which explores how to connect our Sunday faith with our Monday challenges. The gap between Sunday and Monday can seem vast.

One participant told our group, “Early on, I had a boss describe the business world as a place where you compete ‘right up to the line’ – as defined by the law. His exact metaphor was "think of yourself as a wide receiver dragging his feet to stay in bounds."

There seems to be a lot of playing right to the edge of things nowadays in college admissions, business, politics, church scandals, environmental regulation, tax filing, marriage, medicine, and the law.

There’s an awful lot of focus on doing what we want and winning at all costs and not enough focus on principled living and doing what’s best for others. This strikes me as contrary to everything that Jesus taught and modeled for us.

Recall how God gave Moses the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets. The first tablet contained

the first four commandments that expressed our duty to God – “You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself any graven image. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it Holy.”

The second tablet contained the six commandments that express our duty to each other – “Honor your father and mother. You shall not kill.

You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

You shall not covet.”

By the time of Jesus, the Israelites ascribed to 613 commandments that God gave to Moses. They believed that they gained their salvation by keeping the commandments found in the first five books of the Old Testament called the “Torah” or “the Law.” St. Paul, however, said that t he s e c om m a nd me nt s do not save us. Rather, they convict us of sin and show us where we are transgressing. They are like spiritual guardrails meant to prevent us from harming ourselves and hurting others.

In his famous words found in Ephesians 2:8, Paul writes, “It is by grace you are saved through faith, and it is not your own doing. It is a gift of God, not of works.”

Yo u a n d I d o n o t h a v e t o follow the Ten Commandments to gain our salvation. Our salvation comes through our baptism, but we are called to keep the Ten Commandments in order to have a right relationship with God and with

each other.

A Gallup Poll showed that 85% of Americans believe that the Ten Commandments apply to them, but less than 30% of Americans can name even five of them. In order to keep them, we must know them.

You may recall that the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Cour t, Roy Moore, waged and lost a stubborn fight to keep a Ten Commandments monument in his courthouse.

He drove around with a twoand-a-half ton rock engraved with the Ten Commandments on the back of his pickup truck. It took a 57foot crane to hoist the rock onto his truck.

W hen we t h i n k of t he Ten Commandments, we are apt to think of something heav y that weighs us down with obligations like the enormous rock in the judge’s pickup truck. We think of the commandments as shackles placed on us by a finger-pointing God, who shouts, “thou shalt not.”

B u t G o d g a v e t h e Te n Commandments to the Israelites as a gift after rescuing them from slavery.

They were God’s way of saying, “These principles are necessary for leading a good, fulfilling life. They are not weights, but wings. They will help you catch the wind of my Spirit and allow you to soar.”

Fo r m o s t o f t h e h i s to r y o f A n g l i c a n i s m , t h e Te n Com ma nd ments were read i n church at least once every Sunday.

The Ten Commandments were prominently displayed in every church.

I h ave d i s c ove r e d t h at by practicing the sabbath, even in small moments helps me become mor e m i nd f u l a nd pr e s ent to the world around me and God’s goodness within everything. That early morning walk, cooking a favorite meal, reading a good book, taking in a beautiful piece of art, listening to music, or taking time to watch the sunset….these and other activities that bring delight and refreshment can become for you a sabbath moment. Discovering these moments and learning to seek them more intentionally, has opened my eyes to a landscape saturated with God’s presence. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel said it so well when he wrote, “Our goal should be to live life in radical amazement. ....get up in the morning and look at the world in a way that takes nothing for granted. Everything is phenomena l; ever y t h i ng is incredible; never treat life casually.

To be spiritual is to be amazed.”

Friends, let us not let life pass us by traveling at two hundred miles per hour. May we pause for a moment or two each day to remember who we are and who are meant to be. As we engage with amazement the world around us, may we look all around and say “It is good.”

Rev. Daniel Hau gh i s the Associate Pastor at Round Hill Community Church

To d ay, p h ra s e s l i ke G o d’s “Commandments” sound harsh, hierarchical, and hopelessly oldfashioned. Our society does not easily embrace any rules that bind us.

Yet, nowhere in the Bible are the ten precepts that God gave Moses called “Commandments.” They are called Decalogue, which is merely Greek for Ten Words.

The ten teachings are guideposts that frame our lives. God gave them to the Israelites so that they would not fall back into slavery. It was as if God was saying, “I love you so much that I want to show you the way to abundant life.”

The teachings describe how the world works. They are like the Law of Gravity. If we defy it, we will pay a price. Our job is to trust in God’s principles for successful living and to instill them in our children and grandchildren.

Our Men’s Ministry has recently been gathering by firesides and fire pits at the church Rectory and at a member’s home. A parishioner who is a retired CEO and business legend said, “I really didn’t see any difference between who I was on Sunday morning and who I was on Monday morning. I was the same person.”

That’s our goal in life. Do you abide by Jesus’ ten teachings? Are the Ten Commandments grafted on your heart?

The Rev. Marek P. Zabriskie is Rector of Christ Church Greenwich.

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Worship Calendar Assemblies of God Harvest Time Church 1338 King St., 203-531-7778 www.htchurch.com In-Person Worship Services: Sundays: 8:30, 10 & 11:30am (tickets will be made available each week via Eventbrite). Virtual events: Sunday Worship available at htchurch.com & social media outlets. Walking with The King: Mon, 8pm.

Find Freedom: Tue, 8:30am, via Zoom. Children’s Ministries: Wed, 7-8:30pm (htcgreenwich. eventbrite.com). Evening Prayer Meeting: Fri, 7-8:30pm. ‘GriefShare’ online weekly meeting (credentials to participate will be supplied upon registration). Discovery Track – November Session: begins Nov. 4, every Sun through Dec. 2, 7-8:30pm. The Glory Of Christ (Bible Study): through Nov. 18, 7-8:30pm, register, bit.ly/HTCglorySep20. Life Groups: daily through Nov. 21 (pastoranitta@htchurch.com). 2020 Children’s Christmas Choir: through Nov. 29, Sun, 1111:30am, register.

Baptist First Baptist Church 10 Northfield St.; 203-869-7988 www.firstbaptistgreenwich.com Sunday Servings: 11:30am, Facebook Live or for Devotion: 11-11:25am (Dial in 701-802-5355, Access code 360922).

Greenwich Baptist Church 10 Indian Rock Ln; 203-869-2807 www.greenwichbaptist.org Online Worship - Sunday, 11am, streamed through Facebook and website (greenwichbaptist.org/livestream). Sunday Morning Prayer: Sun, 8:30-9:15am, via Google Meet.

Public Mass: Mon-Fri, 12:05pm (no reservations are needed - limited to 50 people). Sat: Vigil, 4pm; Spanish (call 203-912-0246 for reservations), 7:30pm. Sun: 9, 10:30am & 12:15pm, (must make reservation in advance by calling the Parish Office, Thu or Fri, 9am-3pm and speak to the receptionist). Confessions: Sat, 2:45-3:45pm, on the patio. Virtual Mass: Sun, 12:15pm, with Fr. La Pastina on Facebook. Visit EWTN.com for daily Mass at 8am with encore at 12pm. Sunday Family Rosary: Sun, 7:30pm (No registration is necessary), live-streamed on YouTube (also listen by phone).

St. Michael the Archangel 469 North St.; 203-869-5421 www.stmichaelgreenwich.com Sunday Mass: 7:30, 9:30 & 11:30am (All masses are Live Streamed on Zoom. Log onto the website at stmichaelgreenwich.com to access the Zoom Link or the LIVE Stream Masses and the Mass Reservation System). “In praise of women: celebrating great female composers” Music of Hildegarde, Lili Boulanger, Cécile Chaminade, John Tower, and Caroline Shaw’s 2014 Pulitzer Prize winning “Partita for 8 voices”: Nov. 4, 7:30pm, register for the zoom link at: stmichaelmusicgreenwich@gmail.com. ‘The Power Care, Comfort & Connection for Our Emotional Health’ with Speaker Jen Marr: Nov. 5, 10:30am, via Zoom and by phone.

St. Timothy Chapel 1034 North St.; 203-869-5421

In-person Mass: Mon-Fri: 7am (in Chapel); Sat: Vigil, 4pm (also live streamed); Sun: 7:30, 9:30 & 11:30am (in Sanctuary). (Only by registration call or text: 203-559-9256 or email: sacredheartgrn@optonline.net). Sacrament of Reconciliation (Church) by appt.; Sacrament of Baptism: Sun, 12:30pm (call the parish office in advance). The 2021 Mass Book is open for Mass, Altar Flowers and Altar Bread & Wine requests. Thanksgiving Food Drive: parishioners are asked to contribute $20 gift card of either ShopRite or Stop & Shop or Cash Donations (put it in an envelope and drop it off in the Sunday collection baskets or drop it off at the rectory or mail it to 38 Gold St).

St. Catherine of Siena and St. Agnes St. Agnes: 247 Stanwich Rd; St. Catherine: 4 Riverside Ave; 203-637-3661 www.stc-sta.org Daily Masses: Livestreamed only: 7am; In-person at St. Agnes Church: 5:15pm. Weekend Masses: Sat: 5pm Vigil, St. Catherine’s Church (Livestreamed and In-person). Sunday: 8:30am, In-person at St. Agnes; 10:30am, In-person & livestreamed at St. Catherine; 11am, In-person Language Masses at St. Agnes (French: 2nd Sun of the month, Spanish: 4th Sun); 5pm, In-person & livestreamed at St. Catherine. (Registration to attend Mass in person is required, at: signupgenius.com/go/805094eafae2aa4f58-mass). If you or someone you know is homebound or going to be in the hospital and would like Confession, Holy Communion or Anointing of the Sick, please call the Rectory. Ongoing: Food & Essentials Drive for Neighbor to Neighbor (there will be a car or SUV with an open trunk in the parking lot across from St. Catherine’s church on Tuesdays, 9-11am for drop-off donations. Donations can also be dropped at the Sign-in table at Sat, Sun or Daily Mass at St. Agnes).

St. Mary Church 178 Greenwich Ave.; 203-869-9393 www.stmarygreenwich.org

Congregational The First Congregational Church 108 Sound Beach Ave; 203-637-1791 www.fccog.org Worship: Outdoor Service: Sun 8-9am, Memory Garden (sign-up online or call the church office); Virtual Worship: through live-streaming on YouTube and Facebook, and broadcast on WGCH (1490 AM or 105.5 FM). Connect during the week: Wednesday: Wisdom on Wednesdays (sent by Rev. Patrick Collins); Thursday: Faith Formation at Home for All and Faith Formation for Children (sent by Rosemary Lamie).

North Greenwich Congregational 606 Riversville Rd.; 203-869-7763 www.northgreenwichchurch.org Online Worship Service: Sun 10:30am, via Zoom (email Rev. Halac at Pastor@northgreenwichchurch.org or call the church).

St. Paul Church 84 Sherwood Ave.; 203-531-8741 www.stpaulgreenwich.org Public Mass Celebration: Mon-Thu: 9am; Sat: 4pm (Vigil); Sun: 7:30, 9:30 & 11:30am (Reservation is required only for Sunday Mass by visiting the homepage or by calling 203-531-8741, ext. 4).

Holy Days: Vigil: 5:30pm, 9am & 12:15pm. Online daily Mass at EWTN.com, 8am with encore at 12pm. Daily Mass also available on Bishop Robert Barron’s website at wordonfire.org/daily-mass.

Confessions by appointment only – call 203-5318741, ext. 2.

St. Roch Church 10 St. Roch Ave.; 203-869-4176 www.strochchurch.com Mass: (Reservations and/or for viewing via live streaming): Mon-Fri: 7:30pm; Sat: 5pm; Sun: 7:30am (Concelebrated for Previously Scheduled 9:30am Mass Intentions), 10:30am, 12pm (Spanish). Mass Intentions: consult the bulletin for time.

Christian Science First Church of Christ, Scientist 11 Park Place; 203-869-2503 www.christiansciencect.org/greenwich Sunday and Wednesday services via live tele-conference: 203-680-9095, code is 520520*.

Community First Church of Round Hill 464 Round Hill Rd.; 203-629-3876 www.firstchurchofroundhill.com (If you need to reach Rev. Leo W. Curry, pastor, or any other personnel, call 203-629-3876 and leave a message or email fcroundhill@outlook.com).

Round Hill Community Church 395 Round Hill Rd.; 203-869-1091 www.roundhillcommunitychurch.org Worship: Sun, 10-10:30am, Sanctuary, registration is required (signupgenius.com/go/70a084aafa72aa0fb6-inperson) and online. Bible Talk: weekdays, 6-6:20pm, Instagram Live. Thrive: biweekly high school gathering, Wed, 6pm. Foundations: biweekly middle school gathering, Fri, 6pm. Face Masks for BGCG: for more informa-

parking lot. ​Inspirica Harvest of Hope: Thanksgiving basket food and donation collection for Inspirica, contact Paul Lindemeyer - plindemeyer@gmail.com or Deacon Liz - liz.skaleski@stpaulsriverside.org. Yoga On The Meadow: Oct. 30, 10am.

St. Saviour’s Episcopal Church 350 Sound Beach Ave; 203-637-2262 www.saintsaviours.org In-person Outdoor Service: Sun, 11am. Online Worship Services available on Youtube.

Jewish Chabad Lubavitch of Greenwich 75 Mason St.; 203-629-9059 www.chabadgreenwich.org Services available via Zoom. PJ Library Zoom Storytime: Mon-Thurs, 3pm & Fri, 2pm. Resilience Series: ‘Pursuing the infinite: The Hidden Worlds of Physics and Judaism’: Nov. 9, 8pm, on Zoom.

Congregation Shir Ami 1273 E. Putnam Ave, PO Box 312, Riverside; 203-900-7976; Shirami.info@gmail.com www.congregationshirami.org

via Zoom. Reading the Shape of Scripture: Wed, 3pm, via Zoom. Spring Bible Study: Thu, 3pm, via Zoom. Tea & Talk: Fri 3pm, via Zoom.

Bethel African Methodist Episcopal 42 Lake Ave.; 203-661-3099 Worship via teleconference: Sun, 11am and until further notice (Dial-in number: 425-436-6380, Access code:​​ 612220).

Nondenominational Revive Church 90 Harding Rd., Old Greenwich (Old Greenwich Civic Center) www.myrevive.org Worship Service: Sun, 10am, 575 Hope St. Stamford (Humbled Coffee. Bring your own lawn chair and arrive at 10am or earlier). Online Sermons available on Facebook (facebook.com/ myrevivechurchgreenwich) and on Youtube. All groups are online. Direct any prayer needs to the prayer chain at 203-536-2686 or revivecfm@ gmail.com.

Stanwich Church 202 Taconic Rd.; 203-661-4420 www.stanwichchurch.org

Second Congregational Church 139 E Putnam Ave.; 203-869-9311 www.2cc.org

All services, programs and celebrations are available online via Zoom.

Services available online, details at 2cc.org. Contemporary Worship: Sat, 5pm. Traditional Sunday Service: 10:30am.

Events marked by an * require registration at: stanwichchurch.org/event

Greenwich Reform Synagogue 92 Orchard St.; 203-629-0018 www.grs.org

Prayer Hour, Each Wed, 6:30am (Dial 515-6065410, access code 119748 #). *Outdoor Sunday Service - Sundays, 10am, In-Person/Online. Following Christ in an Election Year Study – each Wed, 7pm, through Nov. 11, Facebook Live-facebook.com/stanwichchurch. *‘God of the City’ Stamford Outreach Concert: Oct. 30, 5pm, at Winfield Street Coffee (96 Broad St, Stamford). *’Keeping the Grace in Race’: Nov. 5, 7pm, online. *‘Trust, Truth, and Trauma: Is Forgiveness Politically Possible?’: Nov. 30, 7pm, In- Person/ Streaming.

Episcopal

Daily Mass: Mon-Sat: 7:30 & 9:30am. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament: Wed, 10am-4pm; Livestreamed, 10-11am. Confessions: Wed, 10-11am & 3-4pm.

Catholic Sacred Heart Church 95 Henry St.; 203-531-8730 www.sacredheartgreenwich.org

tion on this project, contact jjacullo@optonline. net. THRIVE - High School Youth Group Gathering: Nov. 4, 6pm. FOUNDATIONS - Middle School Youth Group Gathering: Nov. 6, 6pm.

Anglican Church of the Advent 606 Riversville Rd.; 203-861-2432 www.churchoftheadvent.org Service: Sun, 9am, Holy Eucharist. Sunday School during academic year.

Christ Church Greenwich 254 E. Putnam Ave.; 203-869-6600 www.christchurchgreenwich.org Worship: Outdoors: Sun, 8am, Tomes-HigginsFront Lawn (in the event of heavy rain, services will be moved to the Chapel), registration is required (akryzak@christchurchgreenwich. org); Virtual: Sun, 10am, livestream. Sunday Forum via Zoom, 11:15am. Weekdays: Mon-Fri, 8am, on Zoom. Eucharist & Healing Prayer: Tue, 10am, in-person. Choral Evensong: Sun, 5pm & Thu, 6:30pm, in-person & livestream. Morning Prayer live-sessions: 7 & 9am at dailyoffice.org.

Prayer of the Cloud Meditation via Zoom: Mon, 7-8pm. Organ Recitals: Fri, 5:30pm, Facebook Live. Pacific House Meal-a-Month: Pacific House seeks volunteers to cook dinner to feed 40 men. Torah Study with Rabbi Mitch Hurvitz & Rev. Marek Zabriskie: Sun, through Nov. 15, 6:30pm, via Zoom. Youth Halloween Party: Oct. 30, 6-8pm, ljohnson@christchurchgreenwich.org. Forum: ‘Profiting from the Prophets’: Nov. 1, 11am, on Zoom. Peace & Prayer Vigil: Nov. 2, 7pm, In-person & livestream. Women’s Book Study – ‘Fire & Wine’: Nov. 5, 6:30pm, The Tomes-Higgins House, avanderbrug@christchurchgreenwich.org.

Online programs streamed virtually on Zoom. us: Tot Shabbat with Rabbi Gerson and Cantor Dunkerley, Fri, 5pm. Shabbat services with Rabbi Gerson and Cantor Dunkerley, Fri, 7pm. Religious School: Sun, 9:30am. Hebrew School: Wed, 4:30pm. In Person Outdoor Shabbat Service: Nov. 6, 6-7pm.

Temple Sholom 300 E. Putnam Ave.; 203-869-7191 www.templesholom.com Services – live-streamed via Zoom and Facebook: Fri 6:30pm; Sat 10am; Sun 8:15am. Rashi with the Rabbi: Tue, 12-1pm, via Zoom. Limited in-person Friday night Shabbat service, registration is required, lori.baden@templesholom. com. Torah Study: Nov. 1, 6:30pm, on Zoom.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church 200 Riverside Ave.; 203-637-2447 www.stpaulsriverside.org Worship: Sun, 8am, indoor, register. Discovery Hour - Conversations on Racial Reconciliation: Sun, 9:30am, outside the library. Faith At Home - crafted devotional materials for families and individuals available at dofaithathome.org. The 10:15am service and Sunday School will be outside throughout October (no registration is required. The later service will be uploaded to YouTube). Ongoing: Neighbor-to-Neighbor Food Drive: Every Thu, 10-11:30am, in the

Sunday Service held online via Zoom. Workshop: ‘Astrology and the Year 2021’ with Rev. Patricia Mellman: Nov. 1, 1-3:30pm, $20, register, AlbertsonPCC@gmail.com.

Lutheran

Trinity Church 1 River Rd.; 203-618-0808 www.trinitychurch.life

First Lutheran Church 38 Field Point Rd.; 203-869-0032 www.firstpaul.com Indoor Service: Sun, 10:30am. Bible Study: Sun, 11:45am.

St. Paul Lutheran Church 286 Delavan Ave.; 203-531-8466 www.firstpaul.com Indoor Service: Sun, 9am. Bible Study: Sun, 10:15am. Wednesday After-School program: Snacks & Crafts, 3-4pm; Bible Stories & Catechesis, 4-5pm; Community Dinner, 5:30pm (all are welcome); Bible Study on Romans (adults), 6:30pm.

Methodist

St. Barnabas Episcopal Church 954 Lake Ave.; 203-661-5526 www.stbarnabasgreenwich.org Sunday Worship: Outdoor Holy Eucharist, 8-9am; Live & Virtual Holy Eucharist, 10-11am (signupgenius.com/go/4090e4aadac2ea3ff2-sunday1). Virtual Coffee Hour: Sun, 10:45am.

The Albertson Memorial Church 293 Sound Beach Ave; 203-637-4615 www.albertsonchurch.org

Diamond Hill United Methodist 521 E. Putnam Ave.; 203-869-2395 www.diamondhillumc.com Online Worship followed by a time of Fellowship, 10-11am, via Zoom (us02web.zoom. us/j/635272316?); via phone: Dial-in: +1-929-4362866 US (NY), Meeting ID: 262 529 082. ‘What Happened to the Disciples?’, Wed, 7:30pm, via Zoom (or Dial-in: +1 929 436 2866 US. Meeting ID: 940 2222 0303, Password: 516742).

First United Methodist Church 59 E. Putnam Ave.; 203-629-9584 www.fumcgreenwich.com Virtual Sunday Worship, 9:30am, via Zoom (203 629 9584). Virtual Daily Gathering: Mon-Fri, 3pm, Zoom. Talking with Your Hands: Mon, 3pm.

Reading this World as a Christian: Tue, 3pm.

Back to Rock – music with Mr. Bruce: Tue, 3pm,

In-Person Services: Sun, 10:45am, Hyatt Regency Greenwich, 1800 E Putnam Ave. Online Services: Sun, 9:45am, youtube.com/c/TrinityChurchLife/live. House Churches: Sun, 9:45am, Fairfield County, CT & Westchester County, NY. Alpha (online): Tue, 7:30-8:45pm. TK Family Walk: Nov. 7, 10am-12pm, Cove Island Park, Stamford.

Presbyterian First Presbyterian Church 1 W. Putnam Ave.; 203-869-8686 www.fpcg.org Sanctuary Worship: Sun, 9am, register. Online Worship: Sun, 10-11am at fpcg.org/live. Sunday School online, 10:15-11am. Prayer Meeting: Thu, 8-8:45pm, Zoom online or by phone. Middle School Ministry (5th-7th grade): Fri, 4:15-5:15pm.

‘Mosaic’: K-1st grade: Tue, 2nd-3rd grade: Wed, 4th grade: Thu, 4:15-5:15pm, through Nov. 12.

Grace Church of Greenwich 8 Sound Shore Dr., Suite 280 203-861-7555 www.gracechurchgreenwich.com Worship: Sun, 10am, Woman’s Club of Greenwich, 89 Maple Ave. (Outside. Please bring a mask and a chair or a blanket). All are welcome.

Living Hope Community Church 38 West End Ave; 203-637-3669 www.LivingHopeCT.org In-Person Worship: Sun, 10am, Sanctuary (tickets available at EventBrite by Friday 10am). Worship Service online: Sun, 10-11:15am (YouTube or Facebook). Coffee & Fellowship: Sun, 11:30am-

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REAL ESTATE DASHBOARD Deborah Ference-Gray

REAL ESTATE DASHBOARD MASTHEAD DASHBOARD EDITOR

Mark Pruner | Mark@GreenwichStreets.com | mark@bhhsne.com

DASHBOARD CONTRIBUTORS

One Pickwick Plaza Greenwich, CT 06830

Robert Pulitano | RobertPulitano@bhhsne.com Cesar Rabillino | CesarRabellino@bhhsne.com Pam Toner | PamToner@bhhsne.com

Office: 203.618.3155 Mobile: 917.584.4903

For Market Updates and Listings Visit deborahferencegray.com

deborah.ferencegray@sothebyshomes.com

NEW SALES

Data Compiled by Cesar Rabellino (203) 249-9866

NEW LISTINGS

Address

Data Compiled by Cesar Rabellino (203) 249-9866 Address

List Price

Price/SqFt

SqFt

AC

BR

50 Lafayette Place #2E 102 Valley Road 25 51 Forest Avenue 31 52 Nicholas Avenue 52 Caroline Place 11 River Road 110 15 Lafayette Court 2C 26 Sinawoy Road 66 Stirrup Lane 66 5 Relay Court 104 Ritch Avenue 12 10A Relay Place 307 Cognewaugh Road 51 Forest Avenue 92 47 lafayette Place 1i 37 Riverside Lane 39 Crawford Terrace 6 Sunshine Avenue 14 Homestead Road 35 Morgan Avenue 35 Mianus View Terr 292 Davis Avenue C 11 Buena Vista Drive 39 Hettiefred Road 7 Chestnut Street

$492,000 $575,000 $595,000 $699,000 $715,000 $745,000 $769,000 $795,000 $825,000 $859,000 $895,000 $899,000 $899,000 $900,000 $949,000 $995,000 $1,250,000 $1,295,000 $1,295,000 $1,295,000 $1,400,000 $1,415,000 $1,425,000 $1,695,000 $1,698,000

$394 $575

1,250 1,000

0

3 2 1 3 4 2 2 4 3 4 2 4 3 2 3 4 4 3 5 3 5 3 5 3 4

168 Bedford Road 45 Lake Drive 20 Chieftans Road 9 Chieftans Road 183 Connecticut Ave 10 Hillside Drive 25 Sheffield Way 12 Stanwich Road 7 Topping Road 10 Lighthouse Lane 6 Ford Lane 42 Stag Lane 23 Khakum Wood Rd 36 Walsh Lane

$1,849,000 $2,195,000 $2,595,000 $2,995,000 $3,250,000 $4,595,000 $4,595,000 $4,995,000 $8,195,000 $8,499,000 $8,900,000 $9,285,000 $11,500,000 $13,950,000

$513 $594

1,160 1,176

$403 $675

0 0

0.13

1,773 0.17 1,104 0 1,489 0 1,494 0.2

$516 $532 $413 $405 $520 $439 $389 $561 $735 $740 $531 $551 $449 $639

0.19 0.32 2,352 0.17 2,882 0.2 2,026 0.18

$410 $590 $440

3,473 0.35 2,873 1.3 3,856 0.26

1,997 2,122 1,720 2,049 2,310 1,603 1,292 1,344 2,353

$602 $647

$482 $726 $520 $460 $1,188 $567 $663 $668 $795 $2,023 $1,516 $1,001 $880 $1,391

0 0.09 0 0.24 4.08 0

2,327 0.33 2,188 0

3,833 3,024 4,995 6,512 2,736 8,100 6,927 7,483 10,314 4,201 5,871 9,279 13,063 10,030

8 0.4 1.08 1.17 0.11 2.17 2.02 1.6 4.6 0.63 0.42 6.29 8.69 1.93

5 4 4 4 3 6 6 6 6 7 6 6 7 7

FB

Area

2 South Parkway 2 Cos Cob 2 Old Greenwich 1 Glenville 2 Glenville 2 Cos Cob 2 South Parkway 1 Cos Cob 2 Riverside 2 Cos Cob 2 South of Post Road 2 Cos Cob 3 Cos Cob 2 Old Greenwich 2 South Parkway 2 Riverside 3 North Mianus 3 Riverside 3 Glenville 2 Pemberwick 2 Cos Cob 3 South of Post Road 4 Glenville 3 Glenville 4 Cos Cob

3 North Parkway 2 Riverside 5 North Parkway 5 North Parkway 2 South of Post Road 5 South Parkway 6 South Parkway 7 South Parkway 8 North Parkway 3 Old Greenwich 6 Old Greenwich 7 North Parkway 9 South Parkway 7 South of Post Road

A new level of commitment, and honesty in Real Estate.

GLORIA FALCON 203.559.1604 GloriaFalcon@bhhsne.com

CESAR RABELLINO 203.249.9866 CesarRabellino@bhhsne.com

Greenwich 136 East Putnam Avenue | bhhsNEproperties.com ©2020 An independently operated member of BHH Affiliates. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Original List

175 Putnam Park 175 $340,000 351 Pemberwick Road 818 $385,000 130 Putnam Park 130 $395,000 40 Elm Street 6B $599,000 456 Valley Road $789,000 146 Old Mill Road $875,000 22 Lyon Farm Drive 22 $865,000 37 Greenwich Hills Drive $849,000 35 Edgewood Avenue $899,000 50 Church Street 7 $1,075,000 149 Elm Street $1,395,000 45 Hickory Drive $1,362,000 25 Wesskum Wood Road $1,675,000 31 Horseshoe Road $1,625,000 155 Field Point Road 3S $1,399,000 9 Ferris Drive $1,495,000 54 Round Hill Road $2,499,000 1 Shady Lane $1,895,000 141 Old Church Road $1,950,000 82 Elm Street A $2,150,000 2 Holly Way $2,249,000 11 Hettiefred Road $2,375,000 60 Hillcrest Park Road $3,995,000 8 Saint Claire Avenue $2,995,000 32 Willow Road $3,750,000 425 Taconic Road $3,895,000 14 Hycliff Road $3,999,000 27 Cobb Island Drive $4,795,000 5 Crossway $4,295,000 34 Richmond Hill Road $4,995,000 422 Maple Avenue $4,750,000 44 Jones Park Drive $4,800,000 136 Parsonage Road $5,695,000 8 Boulder Brook Road $6,495,000 313 Stanwich Road $7,495,000

List Price

Sold Price DOM BR FB Acres

$325,000 $385,000 $395,000 $549,000 $629,000 $795,000 $825,000 $849,000 $859,999 $1,075,000 $1,395,000 $1,362,000 $1,625,000 $1,575,000 $1,399,000 $1,495,000 $1,899,000 $1,895,000 $1,950,000 $2,150,000 $2,249,000 $2,249,000 $2,899,000 $2,995,000 $3,750,000 $3,895,000 $3,999,000 $4,475,000 $4,295,000 $4,995,000 $4,295,000 $4,800,000 $5,495,000 $6,495,000 $7,495,000

$308,500 251 $385,000 $390,000 72 $510,000 314 $623,000 517 $750,000 178 $780,000 285 $835,000 60 $840,000 247 $1,050,000 179 $1,325,000 20 $1,340,000 64 $1,490,000 339 $1,515,000 193 $1,525,000 10 $1,560,000 8 $1,700,000 489 $1,878,000 57 $1,950,000 103 $1,975,000 49 $2,000,000 185 $2,100,000 65 $2,775,000 208 $3,068,000 13 $3,750,000 $3,795,000 499 $3,825,000 291 $3,999,000 92 $4,250,000 338 $4,500,000 58 $4,640,000 388 $4,800,000 $5,235,000 1,228 $5,900,000 393 $7,300,000 23

1 1 1 1 3 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 5 4 4 3 4 5 3 7 5 5 5 6 7 6 5 4 7 6 5 6 7 6

1 1 1 1 1 2 3 3 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 7 5 4 5 4 9 6 4 3 6 6 4 6 7 6

0 12.06 0.27 0.5 0 0 0.22 0 0.12 0.36 0.38 1.09 0 0.18 2.52 0.47 1.25 0 1 1 2.7 0.27 0.99 6.09 6.46 1.12 0.31 4.01 1.33 1.1 2.69 1.75 3.17

SqFt

646 1,010 1,173 1,596 2,110 1,936 1,429 1,805 2,155 3,860 2,505 3,898 2,365 2,102 4,410 4,215 3,572 2,796 8,414 3,958 3,973 4,830 6,168 13,199 9,291 5,902 3,683 9,304 9,305 5,521 10,845 8,179 10,212

FEATURED OPEN HOUSES Data Compiled by Rob Pulitano [203] 561-8092

Address

Area

186 Putnam Park #186

Greenwich Greenwich Cos Cob Riverside Cos Cob Cos Cob Greenwich Old Greenwich Greenwich Riverside Greenwich Riverside Greenwich Greenwich Old Greenwich Greenwich

11 Rex Street 11 River Road #108 44 Stirrup Lane #44 12 Relay Place 261 Cognewaugh Road 142 Old Mill Road 20 Shore Road 505 E Putnam Avenue 53 Long Meadow Road 88 Birch Lane 3 Juniper Lane 514 Round Hill Road 22 Frost Road 4 Ford Lane 106 Husted Lane

Price

Day/Time

$490,000 Sun 1-3 PM $689,999 Sun 1-3:30 PM $725,000 Sun 1-3 PM $839,000 Sun 1:30-3:30 PM $899,000 Sun 1-3 PM $1,125,000 Sun 1-3 PM $1,295,000 Sun 1-3 PM $1,775,000 Sun 1-3 PM $2,300,000 Sun 1-3 PM $2,375,000 Sun 1-3 PM $2,450,000 sun 2-4 PM $2,995,000 sun 2-4 PM $3,975,000 Sun 1-3 PM $4,495,000 Sun 1-3 PM $4,695,000 Sun 1-4 PM $5,275,000 sun 2-4 PM

Broker

William Raveis William Raveis William Raveis Coldwell Banker Berkshire Hathaway Houlihan Lawrence Nest Seekers Berkshire Hathaway Nest Seekers Houlihan Lawrence Compass Houlihan Lawrence Coldwell Banker Houlihan Lawrence Berkshire Hathaway Houlihan Lawrence

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October Market Update

By Mark Pruner We h ave a h o t m a r k e t i n G r e e nw i c h , b ut e ve r y we e k , my clients and many other homeowners are on the receiving end of buying strategies that are doomed to failure. So right after we take a look at October market MTD, I’ll review some strategies that aren’t likely to work.

October Update Our market in October is going where no man, woman, downsizer or young family has gone before.

With a couple days to go, we have already sold 84 houses this compares to our 10-year average of 41 houses. October 2020 sales will be more than double our average sales for this month.

Last week we had 58 transaction; sales and contracts.

This keeps up a 4 month trend of averaging around 60 transactions a week or a dozen transactions every workday. This pace is particularly a m a z i n g g i ve n t h a t we o n l y have 463 houses on the market.

Provided we continue to get listings, November should also be much better than average as the market is showing few signs of slowing down.

A s to O c tob er, cross you r fingers, as we need 16 more sales to get to triple digit sales for the third month in a row. With October almost done we have 663 sales YTD. You have to go back to 2015 to find a year that had more sales for the whole year. We blew through 600 sales last month and will exceed 700 sales next month. I can be pretty sure of that because we have 179 sales waiting to close. Add 179 contracts to 663 sales and you get 842 transactions. What looked like a pipedream in February, breaking 800 sales for the year, is now likely.

Could we possibly break 900 sales in the year? In a normal year no way as sales drop heavily as cold weather sets in and people travel for the holidays. We’ve had a mild fall and this year for Thanksgiving Libby and her mother will be the three people at our Thanksgiving table rather than 20 – 30 folks. Add in increasing Covid cases pushing

people to look for more space and a sellers taken advantage of our market with late year listings and …. well I won’t jinx it.

How Not to Buy a House in Greenwich As mentioned we have 842 sales and contracts so far this week, but every week buyers, some experienced, most not crash and burn in their efforts to buy a house, so lets look at how these folks fail to get the house they want.

Low Balling the Opening Bid - Some people are sure that if they make enough lowball bids that eventually somebody will be desperate enough to actually accept their bed. The problem with lowball bidding is that in Greenwich, the seller, the majority of the time, won't even respond to the bid. This leaves the buyer with two bad choices; he can bid against himself and raise his bid or walk away from a house that had he opened with a more reasonable bid he had a good chance of buying.

The average list price to sales pr ice rat io a nd Gre enw ich is around 93% and has stayed fairly constant. Making a bid that is only 75% of list price is a waste of time.

The one exception is high-end and particularly, the ultra-high end. In those rarefied airs the 93% ratio of sales price to original list price gets much lower.

Fo c u si ng on For e closu re s – Fo r e c l o s u r e s a r e a n o t h e r popular way not to buy a house in Greenwich. Some people have to have the best bargain (read lowest

price possible) and see a foreclosure as being the answer. The problem in Greenwich is that there are very few foreclosures that are actually foreclosed. Connecticut is one of the most homeowner-friendly states when it comes to foreclosing on a property. The process often takes two years or more. In those two plus years you are likely to multiple foreclosure auction notices appear in the newspaper. In Greenwich, like most of the rest of Greenwich, they are usually canceled and most of the properties never actually go to foreclosure.

This year it was even tougher for the foreclosure seeker as the courts were closed for months and foreclosure proceedings were stayed due to Covid.

Even if an auction actually happens, the buyer needs to realize that he or she is bidding against professionals who know all the ins and outs. Now if you are looking to meet an interesting group of people you will find them at a foreclosures.

If you are really looking to buy an investment property via foreclosure, you're going to have a lot more success where foreclosures happen more often, in the larger cities of Connecticut.

L ower-P r iced, Bra nd New Houses - Another unsuccessful strategy is to focus only on brandnew houses. Of our 663 singlefamily home sales this year only 12 were built this year. Of those 12 new spec houses, only one was under $2 million. It's very unlikely you're going to find a new house for

under $2M in Greenwich. If you do want new for less than $2M, then consider buying a teardown and building.

Taking a Vacation - Another surprising way that buyers end up not buying a house in Greenwich is by taking a vacation in the middle of negotiation. This is happening less this year, but people still want to get away.

You would think if someone was going to be spending a lot of money on a house and they're in serious negotiations that that's not the ideal time to go camping. Almost every year however I get involved in a situation where we end up waiting for a client to get to somewhere in the wilderness where they can get a cell signal. I’ve emailed documents to cruise ships, remote tropical islands and countries you have to google to find where they are.

Being out of town isn't the deal killer that it was even five years ago but if you're in a competitive bidding situation being unavailable during an entire afternoon visiting your recluse uncle or golfing at a club that doesn’t allow cell phones or expecting uninterrupted sleep in a time zone 12 hours ahead of Greenwich means there's a good chance that you'll lose the deal.

No Money Down - There is a book out there about how to buy real estate with no money down and even to get the bank or the homeowner to pay for the improvements. You don't see buyer trying this very often in Greenwich and I have never seen it work. The

one time you can do this is if you are veteran who qualifies for the VA’s 100% mortgage.

In Your Face Negotiating – We get buyers from all over the world and all types of businesses. Some are used to a rough-and-tumble style, usually fails in Greenwich.

Unless the seller is also part of that world the odds are that the seller will just take a pass on negotiating.

(I did once see two NYC building contractors screaming at each other on a conference call even to the point of threatening to have each other’s building permits for NYC projects cancelled. They ultimately decided not to do the deal but did go out to dinner together with their wives, all of whom were friends.)

Insulting the Seller - Nine out of 10 times insulting the seller is the kiss of death. I have seen sellers take substantially less just so they can keep that "jerk" from getting the house. And, it doesn't have to be a direct insult, showing up late at meetings, not doing what you say you are going to do, inappropriate jokes, or even mispronouncing the owner’s name can hurt or kill a deal.

In Zillow We Trust - Another way that a buyer can kill a deal before it's even sta r ted is by trusting some of the estimates that the big real estate websites such as Zillow generate. Greenwich has very few tract houses and a variety of housing styles, topography, ages, and floorplans. In addition, our square footage may or may not include the basement or attic

space so the “size” of the house can vary a great deal even if the houses have the same f loorplan. Trying to estimate price in Greenwich via a computer model leads to some really bad price estimates.

The problem is t hat some buyers believe these estimates and let them control their house hunting and bidding. Some buyers won’t go see a house where the Zestimate says the house is “over-priced” even though it is in their price range.

Sometimes they don’t even tell their agent that’s why they rejected a house. Zestimates can also screw up bidding, as buyers refuse to bid over the Zestimate. It’s no way to buy a house.

How to Buy a House in Greenwich - In reality all of these things come down to doing your own research, being prepared, fo c u si ng on a r e a s w it h go o d prospects, and acting respectfully to the seller. Alternatively, you can have a good agent who will tell you what is likely to work and will definitely not work. Also, there are times to break these rules.

Sometimes sellers just won’t budge and stepping back from negotiations can get them to step forward. Just make sure you have cell service where you are going when you decide to break the rules.

Mark Pruner is a Realtor with Berkshire Hathaway. He can be reached at 203-969-7900 or mark@ bhhsne.com. He loves to help buyers and sellers avoid tactical mistakes.

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Page 17 |Greenwich Sentinel

Halloween

The Haunted History of Halloween

By Emma W. Barhydt The holiday of Halloween is as fun as it is fascinating, but why is it that on October 31, we get dressed up and ask our neighbors for candy?

The Halloween we know today originated as the Celtic ritual of Samhain, when people would light bonf ires and wear costumes to ward off and hide from ghosts. The Celts celebrated their new year on November 1, marking the definitive end of summer and the beginning of the harsh winter. The Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the veil between worlds was at its thinnest and celebrated Samhain, when they believed that spirits returned to the living.

In addition to damaging crops, causing trouble, and occasionally taking people back to the world of the dead, Celts thought that the presence of ghosts made it easier for their priests and priestesses to make vital predictions about the coming year. To celebrate, they would burn large bonfires and sacrifice crops and animals to their gods and goddesses as well as wear costumes in order to hide from the ghosts.

Once Rome had conquered most of the land belonging to the Celts, two Roman festivals ended up being combined with the ritual of Samhain. Feralia was a Roman festival held in late October to commemorate the passing of the dead, and the festival of Pomona the goddess of fruit trees. Pomona’s

symbol is the apple which could explain why we bob for apples on Halloween.

People also would perform Samhain antics in exchange for food or drinks, thought to be the precursor to trick-or-treating.

T h e n i n t h e 8 t h c e nt u r y, November 1 was designated All

these costumes were focused on Christian icons such as angels and devils. All Souls’ Day was also called All- hallowmas, from Middle English Alholowmesse meaning All Saints’ Day. The traditional Celtic celebrations held the night before then became called All-Hallow’s Eve.

Moon Madness

By Emma W. Barhydt This Halloween has a little extra magic to it, and not just for the reasons you think. This month’s full moon is called the Hunter’s Blue Micro-moon. But what exactly does that mean?

As we know, a full moon is when the moon is at its peak, lighting up the night sky in all of its celestial beauty. Interestingly though, 2020 is the f irst year that we have seen a full moon on October 31 in the New York area since 1944. From now forward, a full moon on Halloween will return to happening once every 19 years.

This year’s Halloween full moon will rise at 10:49 a.m., guaranteeing visibility across all time zones.

For the full moon to be full on October 31, by necessity it must also be a blue moon since the full moon cycle only lasts for 29.5 days. The meaning of a blue moon that we’ll

Souls’ Day and was introduced to previously pagan and Celtic lands in order to supplant the Celtic traditions and replace them with church-sanctioned practices. All Souls’ Day incorporated many of the traditions found in Samhain, including the burning of bonfires and dressing up in costumes, though

(Courtesy: NASA) be talking about is pretty straight forward - it is when a full moon occurs twice in one month, then the second full moon of the month is dubbed a “blue moon.” While not actually blue in color, a blue moon is still a fun sight. A blue moon occurs once every two and a half to three years. The term Blue Moon

has been around for well over 400 years, but its calendrical meaning has only become widespread in the last 25.

What is a Hunter’s Moon? The names for most of the full moons in a year typically relate to Native American legends; however, with two moons that is not the case. The

Harvest Moon and the Hunter’s Moon are both dependent on the Autumnal Equinox. The Harvest Moon is the full moon that is closest to the Autumnal Equinox, and the Hunter’s Moon is the full moon following the Harvest Moon. The earliest use of the term “Hunters Moon” is from 1710. The Native

In the spirit of All Souls’ Day, poor people would go to the houses of the wealthy and receive pastries called soul cakes in exchange for promising to pray about the wealthy person’s dead relatives. This practice was known as “souling.”

In the early days of America, Halloween in New England was very limited because of the strict protestant belief systems. Halloween was a much more common occurrence in Maryland and the Southern Colonies. As the beliefs of different European colonizers and Native Americans began to intermingle, a uniquely American Halloween celebration began to take shape. The first kind of celebrations to emerge were “play parties,” public events to celebrate the end of the harvest. Neighbors would share stories of the dead, tell each other’s fortunes, dance and sing.

By the middle 19th century, annual autumn celebrations were common, though Halloween wasn’t celebrated everywhere yet. In the second half of the 19th century, Irish immigrants f locked to America to escape the potato famine, and -- along with the spiritualism movement -- helped to popularize the celebration of Halloween. These poor immigrants revived the oldworld tradition of souling, although pranking became the activity of choice by the end of the 1800’s.

In the early 1900’s, there was a movement to make Halloween a more community- oriented event

and away from witchcraft, pranks, and mischief. At the beginning of the 20th century, Halloween parties became a popular way to celebrate for both kids and adults alike. The parties were focused on games and food, and festive costumes. Parents were encouraged to take anything “g rotesque” out of Halloween celebrations, and thus Halloween lost a lot of its superstitions and mysticism.

B y t he 19 2 0 ’s a nd 19 3 0 ’s , Halloween had become a full blown community celebration.

There were parades and townwide parties. But despite the efforts of schools and adults, there were still a lot of adolescent vandalism incidents around Halloween. In order to curb that, Halloween started to become more focused on kids and young adults. Along the same vein, in order to keep kids from getting up to mischief, the tradition of trick-or-treating was also re- established in a big way.

The thought was that adults could stop any tricks from being played by supplying the neighborhood kids with treats. By the 1950’s Halloween had become a mostly “for kids” event, with parties being held in schools or at homes in order to accommodate more children.

Today, Americans spend an estimated $2.6 billion on candy on Halloween, according to the National Retail Federation, and the day, itself, has become the nation’s secondlargest commercial holiday.

American names for the October full moon are the Travel Moon and the Dying Grass moon, signifying that w inter is imminent. The Hunters Moon gets its name from the need to prepare for winter by hunting and storing enough food to survive, and as with the Harvest Moon, at the beginning of the month the Hunter’s Moon rises right at Sunset, making it easier to continue hunting into the night time as there is more light.

A Mini-moon? Because the path that the moon orbits the Earth on isn’t perfectly circular, there are times when the moon is closer (super-moons) and farther away (micro-moons) to Earth than the moon’s typical distance. This full moon will be a Micro-moon because the moon is at its farthest apogee, or farthest point from Earth.

W hat does t h is mea n for Halloween? Scientifically, it means that this Halloween will be full of

light, a perfect Halloween for trickor-treating, and fun. But if you’re superstitious, be sure to be extra careful on Halloween. While there’s not a whole lot of scientific basis for being superstitious regarding the moon, Eng lish ety molog y shows a long-standing shibboleth of fear towards the moon through words like lunacy and lunatic, although that dread isn’t shared by all cultures. In places like Rome, Gr e e ce , a nd I nd ia, t he mo on Goddess is shown primarily as the sister of the sun God. The Irish believed that it was good luck to view a full moon over your right shoulder, but bad luck to see it over your left.

The Moon can sometimes get a bad rap, but the truth is that there’s nothing to be worried about this Halloween aside from getting too sick to move from a candy overdose.

Enjoy your Halloween night and be sure to look up at the sky!

Astrology for Week of Nov. 1, 2020

203-869-2299 for FREE Delivery

SCORPIO 24 Oct-22 Nov If you can’t focus on what you need to do, do something else. It’s pointless to push yourself if your heart isn’t in it. Don’t worry that others may be offended if you alter tack without telling them. You’re a Scorpio – you’re expected to do your own thing.

TAURUS 21 April-21 May Are you the kind of Taurus who learns from your mistakes, or the kind who repeats them? If the former you’ll deal with this week’s challenges with ease. If the latter, you will face problems, just because you haven’t taken recent lessons to heart.

SAGITTARIUS 23 Nov-21 Dec What you want to do and what you’re are allowed to do this week are two different things and the sooner you accept that the happier you will be. You can bluff your way only so far: at some stage you’ll have to deliver or admit you’re in way over your head.

GEMINI 22 May-21 June Watch what you say as the planets warn that if you upset someone now you’ll regret it later when you want what only they can provide. Say what you must in a way that doesn’t offend their sensibilities. A little tact will pay for itself many times.

CAPRICORN 22 Dec-20 Jan Employers and others in influence won’t be impressed if you say one thing and do another. In fact, with Mercury squaring up to your restrictive ruler Saturn your reputation will suffer if you deviate from the accepted norm.

This is a week to play by the book.

CANCER 22 June-23 July It won’t be easy to get what you want this week. Partners and colleagues will be unreceptive to your demands. Maybe you’re coming across too imperious, too lordly. A change of attitude might be an idea. Treat everyone you meet as your equal.

AQUARIUS 21 Jan-19 Feb It will be easy to blame others for what goes wrong this week but if you look at your own role in the situation you’ll realise you’re equally at fault. Fortunately, it’s not such a big mistake, so forgive yourself and others, and move on. You have much to do.

LEO 24 July-23 Aug With Mercury twice at odds with Saturn this is not the week to think about changing jobs. You may be frustrated in your present role but the planets indicate things will improve, and sooner than you think. So stick with it and don’t do anything rash – yet.

PISCES 20 Feb-20 March You may think you’ve got away with something but don’t be fooled as this week’s cosmic setup will bring it into the open. That could be embarrassing if you’ve announced you have nothing to hide. Be proud of what you did, even if others don’t approve.

VIRGO 24 Aug-23 Sept You won’t be short of advice this week but it’s the little voice in your head that alone knows the answers. Don’t despair if you’re being held back in a creative activity because the longer you have to wait the more satisfying the breakthrough will be.

ARIES 21 March-20 April This is a critical time for your career and with Mercury at odds with ambitious Saturn you must be extra careful what you say, specially to those in positions of power. It is vital that you be yourself: don’t even dream of being something you’re not.

LIBRA 24 Sept-23 Oct Because people have different personalities they see things differently. The “facts” may seem clear to you but to someone else they may look very different. Once you realise that you’ll be less likely to get dragged into disputes that neither side can win.

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w/ Carline Martin

w/P. Janis

50 years Greenwich resident, 6 years Greenwich Sentinel Real Estate columnist.

One of my favorite things to do is to help people decide whether to stay, renovate, sell or buy. If I can help you in these difficult times, please feel free to call or email me.

Mark Pruner | 203-969-7900 | mark@bhhsne.com