Darienite (https://darienite.com/category/living)
Features on Darienites and living in Darien
Do you love movies? Join us for a month long exploration of film! During this series you will learn the basics about film-making from page to screen and get hands on experience in video production. From writing a script to acting in the final product, work together to create a movie masterpiece! This online “For Teens, By Teens: Intro to Filmmaking” class is for 12- to 18-year-olds.
Darien Library presents an online event that will help you make some of life’s most important decisions: what you will leave to the ones you love. — an announcement from Darien Library
Mark P. Chioffi, managing member of Chioffi Law LLC, will share the importance of various estate planning documents — wills, revocable trusts, powers of attorney, and advance directives. Chioffi will also shed some light on federal and state gift and estate tax exemptions, annual exclusion gifts, benefits of using trusts versus outright distributions to beneficiaries, the importance of coordinating beneficiary designations for retirement accounts and life insurance, and what to consider when selecting fiduciaries such as executors, trustees, guardians, attorneys-in-fact, and healthcare representatives. ‘Begin With the End in Mind’ Series
This program is part of “Begin With the End in Mind,” a series at Darien Library. The end is not a topic many feel comfortable discussing and that is why we are often not prepared when the time comes.
Lindsay Smith, a Darien High School student and EMT with Darien Emergency Medical Services, has been awarded the Claes Nobel Future Female Leader Scholarship. Of nearly 600 applications, Lindsay was one of 10 students who were selected to each be awarded a $1,000 scholarship, which was by the National Society of High School Scholars (a nonprofit organization founded in 2002 and not related to the National Honor Society). — This article is based on an announcement from the National Society of High School Scholars. The scholarship was established to encourage and empower young women to assume future leadership roles in their higher education, careers, and communities and to become mentors for the young women following in their footsteps. Lindsay is a nationally registered EMT and volunteer in Darien’s Emergency Medical Services group, Darien EMS Post 53, the only high school student-run EMS program in the U.S.
She spends countless hours there each month, including multiple 24-hour first response shifts and 48-hour second response shifts.
Darien Scouts has taken its annual tag sale online this year, with a series of auctions running in April and May. New auctions are online now. All auctions feature a mix of furniture, art, décor, antiques, bikes, sporting equipment, toys, and more, with bidding starting as low as $1. — an announcement from Darien Scouts
Visit soon and visit often! Next auctions close Thursday, April 29 and Friday, April 30, and more will be added regularly until at least May 6.
The Rowayton Arts Center (RAC) will begin its Spring 2 Session starting in May with a full slate of adult and children art classes both online and in studio. — an announcement from Rowayton Arts Center
To review the entire schedule, visit this page on the RAC website. Five adult classes will be held in the RAC studio: “Mixed Media and Collage,” “Explorations in Watercolor,” “Introduction to Drawing,” “Painting Landscapes from Photos” as well as a new class, “Watercolor and Gouache.”
The rest will be held online via Zoom: oil painting, watercolor, figure drawing, portraiture, pastels and more. “Creative Explorations for 6- to 9-Year-Olds” will meet in the RAC studio on Wednesday afternoons beginning May 19 and “Mixed Media for 8- to 12-Year-Olds” will meet there on Thursdays afternoons beginning June 3. For more info about any of these classes, visit rowaytonarts.org/youth-classes-and-workshops.
When it comes to scammers, nothing is sacred — including the bond between grandparent and grandchild. Lately, grandparent scammers have gotten bolder: they might even come to your door to collect money, supposedly for your grandchild in distress. These kinds of scams still start with a call from someone pretending to be your grandchild. They might speak softly or make an excuse for why they sound different. They’ll say they’re in trouble, need bail, or need money for some reason.
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.
Learn the basics of how best to honor your loved one with an obituary in this hour-long class with Jamie Passaro, who runs dear person obits based in Eugene, Oregon. — an announcement from Darien Library
Writing an obituary is an important task. Obituaries are history, journalism, and poetry. They are often the last word. All participants will receive Jamie’s 25-page booklet “Writing an Obituary in Four Easy Steps.”
A free, online talk on using deer-resistant native plants to create thriving backyard habitats will be given by author Ruth Rogers Clausen at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, April 8. A question and answer session will follow virtual lecture, which costs $30. The talk has been organized by the Greenwich Botanical Center. — an announcement from the Greenwich Botanical Center
Deer browsing is an integral part of what deer do to eat during the winter. However, their presence can disrupt neighborhood gardens.
A 27-year-old man has been charged with attempted larceny after a 2019 incident in which an elderly woman was convinced to send $10,000 in cash to a vacant Darien house for sale, and a man showed up to demand the package. Back in 2019, Darien police described the incident one way in a regular news release, then an officer involved in the case gave Darienite.com a different description, which then Police Chief Raymond Osborne, largely confirmed, and Darienite.com’s article was updated. Here’s the description given in that article after it was updated, with additional information released today, Tuesday, by police — all accounts include accusations not proven in court:
Sometime on the morning of March 19, 2019, a package arrived on a doorstep of a vacant house for sale on Middlesex Road. The homeowner’s real estate agent had arrived at the house and found the package, addressed to a “Thomas McKnight.” The homeowner was contacted but didn’t know anyone by that name, although the package was correctly delivered to the address on the label.
In an online lecture Wednesday, Author Robert Ellsberg will reflect on his life and work as a “saint-watcher,” how this came to shape his own vocation and spiritual discipline, and what he hopes it might achieve. From St. Francis to Dorothy Day, Ellsberg’s many books on “saints, prophets, and witnesses” for our time — as well as his acclaimed daily “Blessed Among Us” column for Give Us This Day — have helped expand the conception of holiness and the meaning of saints. His lecture, titled “Walking With the Saints: My Writing Life,” starts at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 7. — an announcement from Fairfield University
Robert Ellsberg is the long-time editor-in-chief and publisher of Orbis Books.
Are you turning 65 or just confused about Medicare? Miss the “Medicare 101” webinar from Darien Library last week? Well, you’re in luck. Greenwich Library is offering an online talk on just the same subject early Tuesday evening. Medicare can be a confusing topic. This seminar presented by Lou Pelletier of American Senior Benefits will educate you on the options and programs available.
Personalized lawn signs for moms may be ordered through the Darien Arts Center website until April 25, and will be hand-delivered on Saturday, May 8 – just in time for Mother’s Day. — an announcement from Darien Arts Center
The Darien Arts Center is pleased to announce its spring fundraiser, “Sign of My Love,” which celebrates loved ones by gifting them with a customized lawn sign and message. The lawn signs (Delivery to Darien addresses only) are a perfect and unique way to show your love for Mother’s Day, or recognize a special person, while supporting the Darien Arts Center. Signs are $30 each and there are 3 designs from which to choose. Signs may also be picked up at the Darien Arts Center office (2 Renshaw Road, Darien) on Thursday, May 6th and Friday, May 7th, between 10AM-3PM.
On April 7, Sarah Coccaro will give An online talk titled “Sustainable Habitats Using Native Vegetation to Manage Wildlife” will be given by Sarah Coccaro, conservation resource manager for the Greenwich Conservation Commission. — an announcement from the Greenwich Botanical Center
Coccaro will share tips for enhancing wildlife habitats and supporting pollinators while using native vegetation to deter pests. She will emphasize the importance of dealing with unwanted wildlife while encouraging beneficial pollinators including bats, bees, butterflies, owls and more. “Nature always provides a solution even when dealing with unwanted wildlife,” Coccaro said. Her lecture, presented by the Greenwich Botanical Center, is in collaboration with the Greenwich Grown initiative.
Aquarion Water Company on Wednesday announced the start of the 2021 mandatory sprinkler irrigation schedule for customers in Darien and some other communities. The utility again is banning lawn watering on specified days to conserve water supplies by reducing overwatering of lawns and gardens. Aquarion has published a schedule providing for a maximum of two days of watering per week. Customers may continue using drip irrigation, soaker hoses and hand-held watering at any time. — an announcement from Aquarion Water Co.
Are you overwhelmed by the choices of Medicare? Let’s navigate this Medicare journey together! On Thursday, April 1, from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Darien Library is hosting an online presentation where you can explore and evaluate Original Medicare, Medicare Supplement Insurance, Prescription Drug Plans and Medicare Advantage Plans. — an announcement from Darien Library
This program will simplify the choices you need to make, help you make more well-informed decisions and explain what Medicare means for you! Register for this informative event
About the Presenter
Jim Farnham, MS, MBA, has thirty years’ experience in insurance and financial services.
