Art Exhibits

Abstraction exhibit art drop off RAC 2021

‘Abstraction’ Exhibit Opens Sunday With Reception at Rowayton Arts Center

By DARIENITE.COM | April 13, 2021

A new show by exhibiting members at the Rowayton Arts Center, “Abstraction,” will be on view April 18 through May 15. The opening reception is free and open to the public from 4 to 6 p.m., Sunday, April 18. — an announcement from Rowayton Arts Center
The Hu Lindsay Memorial Award was established in 2016 for the top winner (Best in Show or 1st Place) in the Mixed Media Category for RAC’s annual Abstraction exhibition. This cash prize of $250 honors the life of Hu Lindsay, an active exhibiting member for many years and RAC President from 2007 to 2013. A reminder: The gallery will be closed this week to prepare for the opening on April 18.

Domestic Violence Arrests 2021

Police: Man, 47, Already Accused of Strangulation, Charged Again, in Earlier Incident

By David Gurliacci | April 13, 2021

A 47-year-old man grabbed someone by the neck with both hands last November, resulting in his second arrest on a felony strangulation charge, Darien police said. Police gave this account of what happened in the November incident, including accusations not proven in court:

When Patrick Gately, was in an argument somewhere in Darien at some time on Nov. 14, 2020, he stood up from where he was sitting and grabbed the victim by the neck with both hands. More than a couple of people present were able to corroborate that account. Pictures were taken of the victim’s neck, showing marks, then given to investigators.

Healthy Living

Online Documentary for Teens, Parents on Combining Prescriptions, Alcohol: Online Wednesday

By DARIENITE.COM | April 12, 2021

“If They Had Known,” a 35-minute documentary about an accidental death that shouldn’t have happened, will be presented online, for free,, by New Canaan Cares and Silver Hill Hospital. The documentary, recommended for teens age 13 and up and their parents, will be available online starting at 7 p.m., Wednesday, April 14. A discussion will follow with Dr. Frank Bartolomeo, Silver Hill Hospital director of adolescent services. Partying in high school and college is nothing new, but how kids party these days has changed. To attend this virtual program, you can register here.

Blooms for Campers

To Help Kids in Financially Struggling Families, OPUS Launches ‘Blooms for Campers’

By DARIENITE.COM | April 12, 2021

OPUS for Person-to-Person’s Balloon Day is now Blooms for Campers; the same fundraiser (raising funds to send low-income kids to summer camp) with an earth-friendly spin. — an announcement from OPUS for Person-to-Person

The Balloon Day event has gone green: This year, eco-friendly wildflower seed packets and burlap ribbons have replaced the non-biodegradable red balloons that littered the Sound and were harmful to sea animals. Blooms for Campers celebrates nurturing our neighbors, as well as the earth. The Blooms for Campers fundraiser will run from Monday, April 12 through Saturday, May 1. On May 1, OPUS volunteers and their children will tie red burlap ribbons on donors’ mailboxes and storefronts throughout town.

Darien Obituaries 2021

Alison Warner Waterman, 101, Grew Up in Tokeneke, Prolific Gardener

By DARIENITE.COM | April 11, 2021

Alison Warner Waterman died April 4, 2021 at Westminster Canterbury of the Blue Ridge in Charlottesville, Virginia. She was 101. Born in Hartsdale, New York, to Frances O. Warner and Ralph Finley Warner on May 9, 1918, she grew up in Tokeneke, attended St. Margaret’s School in Tappahannock, Va. and graduated from Marot Junior College in Thompson, Conn.

Coronavirus 2021

School District Announces Yet More COVID-19 Cases, Quarantines; Health Dept Issues COVID-19 Update

By DARIENITE.COM | April 10, 2021

Five more individuals in Darien Public Schools have COVID-19, the school district announced Friday night, resulting in a total of 15 quarantines at Darien High School. Also, Darien Health Department released its COVID-19 update showing 28 new positive cases in town from April 2 to 8, but no new hospitalizations or deaths (the complete 10-slide report is at the bottom of this article). The one person at Tokeneke School who tested positive for COVID-19 was last in the building on April 1, and that resulted in no quarantines. Four of the five new COVID-19 cases at the high school, resulting in 10 other quarantines of people deemed to be in close-enough contact with them. Two of the people who tested positive for the coronavirus were last in the school on April 2, and the two others were last there on Tuesday, April 6.

Parents & Kids

The Dinosaur Place, an Attraction for Dino-Loving Kids, Opens for the Season in Montville

By DARIENITE.COM | April 10, 2021

If your kids love dinosaurs and you’re looking for something different in a daytrip, a place with 50 life-sized models of dinosaurs and a variety of amusements at the eastern end of the state could be just what makes that day the best one of spring break. Nature’s Art Village, which includes The Dinosaur Place, its 60-acre “Outdoor Adventure Park,” is now open for the 2021 season. It takes a while to get there from here — an hour and 14 minutes along I-95, according to Google Maps, but your kids may be so tuckered out that they’ll be sleeping on the return trip. Here’s how the business describes The Dinosaur Place in its announcement about the season opening:
Home to over 50 life-sized dinosaurs on pristine nature trails, The Dinosaur Place is filled with fun adventures including a dinosaur-themed maze, two caves with animatronic dinosaurs, Monty’s Playground, featuring T-Rex Tower, and TWO brand-new exhibits which will be making their debut throughout the spring and summer in the newest section of the park, Lapilli Landing. These attractions include Peewee Putters, a 6-hole miniature golf experience for children of every age, and Pedal Pushers, an equestrian-themed pedal kart track for ages 6 and up weaving its way around the new addition.

Theater

Theatre Fairfield’s Latest Musical Leans Into the Differences Between Livestream and On Stage Productions

By DARIENITE.COM | April 10, 2021

During the pandemic, theater performances have joined nearly everything else in going livestream online, and Fairfield University’s performance of the musical “[title of show]” takes advantage of the difference rather than just showing you a taped stage performance. So expect it to be different. (The name of the musical is no typo in the headline, by the way — it’s “[title of show].”)
About the Play
“[title of show]” is a musical play about writing a musical play — and it is largely a true story. Two guys answered an ad for a theatre festival looking for new work. With only three weeks to write the piece, they engaged two women friends to help out.

Gardening

Spring Market 2021 Rowayton Gardeners wide image

Rowayton Gardeners’ Spring Market Coming on May 15

By DARIENITE.COM | April 10, 2021

Over 400 hardy perennials donated from local gardens, pollinator-friendly plants, herbs, greenhouse-grown veggies and a limited number of fabulous annuals will be available to buy in mid-May at Rowayton Gardeners club’s Annual Spring Sale. — an announcement from Rowayton Gardeners club

The sale takes place for three hours only, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, May 15 (rain or shine) at the Potting Shed behind the Rowayton Community Center at 33 Highland Ave., Rowayton,
The club’s master gardeners will be on hand to help answer all your garden-related questions. “Secondhand Rose boutique” will be loaded with lightly used garden-related items and home accessories and our “Café” will feature a variety of delicious home-baked goods. Come support the Garden Club’s mission of spreading the word about conservation, planting and maintaining most of Rowayton’s public gardens, introducing children to the joy of growing living things and raising community awareness about the environment. Join us and treat yourself to something beautiful for your garden and home.

Art Exhibits

Open Call to Artists: Submit Work for Upcoming ‘In the City’ Exhibit at Rowayton Arts Center

By DARIENITE.COM | April 10, 2021

Online submissions are now being accepted in an open call to Artists for “In the City,” at Rowayton Arts Center (RAC) from May 23, 2021 to June 20. — an announcement from Rowayton Arts Center

This new all media show is open to all artists interested in exhibiting their artwork with a nod to the theme of urban life. Visit the RAC website rowaytonarts.org for the prospectus and other information for submitting entries online. These words from the RAC website give an indication of what the exhibit is about:

The deadline for submissions is April 23, 2021 and accepted artists will be notified by April 30, 2021. The chair for the show is Bruce Horan and the co-chair is Joel Flora.

Government & Politics

Map Sewer Inspections April to June 2021

Sewer Inspection Project Now Started, Runs Through Mid-June

By DARIENITE.COM | April 9, 2021

The Darien Department of Public Works has hired a consultant to perform planned inspections of the sewage collection system in the central and east-central areas of town, starting Friday, April 9 and running through mid-June, the department announced late Friday afternoon. — an announcement from the Darien DPW
Expect to see work along these roads, as well as their side streets (also, see the map accompanying this announcement):

Leroy Ave.;
Southern Mansfield Ave.;
Southern Brookside Rd;
Post Rd;
Ledge Road;
Old Kings Hwy South;
Old Kings Hwy North; and,
Side streets and connectors in these areas. The work will continue for eight weeks through mid-June 2021. Town government personnel will accompany the consultants at all times while this work is performed. Most work is scheduled for the daytime hours. Some work on the Post Road will occur at night, and Darien police will be made aware of any nighttime activity.
You may see or hear activity in these areas. There is no action required on your part. No one will need access to your home as part of this work.

Transportation

Metro-North New Haven Line MTA Metropolitan Transit Authority An M8 car on the tracks

Schedule Change Monday for the New Haven Line: Metro-North Adds Early A.M. Train to Grand Central

By DARIENITE.COM | April 9, 2021

Effective Monday, April 12, 2021, Metro-North is making schedule adjustments to the weekday schedule on the New Haven Line. We are adding an early morning inbound train from New Haven, and we are adding a stop at Greenwich to two New Haven express trains. Additional service is added to New Rochelle, Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Harrison and Stamford stations. — an announcement from Metro-North

For full details and additional schedule adjustments to the Hudson and Harlem Lines please go to this Web page. Please note: New York and Connecticut State laws require that face masks be worn on all Metro-North trains, stations and at Grand Central Terminal, regardless of vaccination status, and regardless of social distancing. For More Information …

Obituaries

Nancy Melson, 90, Darien Native, Bookkeeper, Mother of Five

By DARIENITE.COM | April 9, 2021

Nancy Quackenbush Melson, beloved wife, mother of five children, passed away March 24, 2021, in San Diego. Born Adriana Suydam Quackenbush on Dec. 2, 1930 in Darien, she attended Darien schools, the Wood Business School in New York City and was a bookkeeper and worked in real estate. She was married to Richard J. Bounty and they lived in Darien and Redding with their five children. Several years after Richard’s death, she married Bob Melson.

COVID-19 2021

Coronavirus illustration CDC wide for facebook

Thursday Night Announcement: Another 63 in Schools Quarantined, Including Eight With COVID-19

By DARIENITE.COM | April 9, 2021

A total of 63 people in the Darien school district — students, staff or both — were quarantined after eight of them tested positive for COVID-19, district officials announced late Thursday night. The people quarantined include 34 (with five people testing positive) from Darien High School; one from Middlesex Middle School (who tested positive); and 21 from Tokeneke School (which had two people testing positive). The announcement from Schools Superintendent Alan Addley and district Nursing Director Alicia Casucci was received by Darienite.com at 9:15 p.m.

The people testing positive at Darien High School were last in the building April 1, 6, 7 and (in two cases) Thursday, April 8; the one at Middlesex on April 1; the two at Tokeneke on March 31 and Thursday, April 8. Before the Thursday night announcement, the school district said on its website that as of 10 a.m., Thursday, there were 216 school district community members in quarantine, including 26 testing positive for COVID-19. Twelve hours later, at 10 p.m., the “dashboard” page on the website was updated to state that there are now 34 people associated with the district that have tested positive and 248 in quarantine (see image, below).

Alan Addley 2021

School Data Dashboard updated April 8, 2021

Schools Superintendent: After Spring Break, Darien Schools Will Be on Remote Learning for a Week

By DARIENITE.COM | April 8, 2021

Be careful on spring break, but just in case, schools will be on remote learning, Schools Superintendent Alan Addley said in a message Thursday afternoon to parents and staff. A survey of the district’s staff showed that so many would be traveling over the spring break (Monday through Friday, April 12 to 16), that they would have to quarantine themselves when they get back — so the district can’t find enough replacements to hold classes inside school buildings. So remote learning will take place from April 19 to 23 (Monday through Friday), the week after spring break. (Friday, April 23, is a professional learning day for teachers at the high school.)

First Selectman Jayme Stevenson also issued a COVID-19 update on Thursday in which she said there have been 66 new cases in the last two weeks and Darien’s test positivity rate is about a percentage point above the state’s. Addley pointed out that even though the governor has removed mandates for quarantining after out-of-state travel, health officials at the local, state and federal level recommend it, and the school district wants it.

Events Calendar

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