Darienites

Eagle Scout Project Creates ‘Insect Hotel’ at DCA Bird Sanctuary

Know a Darien Girl Whose Acts of Kindness Should Be Celebrated? Tell the Kirby Girl Store

Former Darien Selectman Charles Burwell’s Role in the D-Day Invasion

YWCA of Darien/Norwalk Announces Six Local ‘Women of Distinction’ for 2019

Meghan Halloran of Darien Named Regional College Association’s Women’s Ice Hockey Player of the Year

Darien High School Senior John Lochtefeld Wins DAR Good Citizen Award

Rachel Dewy of Darien Named Director of Youth Services Organization in Stamford

Jim Cameron Appointed to Merritt Parkway Conservancy Governing Board

Attorney George Reilly, Former Darien Elected Official, Joins Rucci Law Group

Community Fund of Darien’s Emily Larkin Arocha Named One of Fairfield County’s ’40 Under 40′

Darien Student Wins 1st Place in Oils Category, Another Darienite Gets 3rd Place for Photo in Rowayton Art Exhibit

Darienite Allison Molkenthin To Be an Honoree at 2018 Fulbright Awards Dinner

Meet the Six ‘Women of Distinction’ To Be Honored Thursday by YWCA of Darien-Norwalk

Darien VFW Commander Lenny Hunter Out of Hospital, Fundraising Continues

Former Whitewater Special Prosecutor Robert Fiske Jr. Speaks Wednesday at St Luke’s

Summer Picnic Series | End of Summer Family-Friendly Celebration at Grace Farms

Events Calendar

Darien Community Association

By DARIENITE.COM | September 13, 2019

Business

By DARIENITE.COM | June 7, 2019

Beyond Darien

By David Gurliacci | June 5, 2019

Community Organizations

By DARIENITE.COM | March 19, 2019

Darienites

By DARIENITE.COM | March 8, 2019

Community Organizations

By DARIENITE.COM | December 2, 2018

Community Organizations

By DARIENITE.COM | November 5, 2018

Darienites

By David Gurliacci | October 14, 2018

Business

By DARIENITE.COM | September 1, 2018

Community Organizations

By David Gurliacci | June 18, 2018

Art Exhibits

By David Gurliacci | June 18, 2018

Beyond Darien

By David Gurliacci | May 14, 2018

Darienites

By David Gurliacci | May 9, 2018

Darienites

By David Gurliacci | November 14, 2017

Darienites

By David Gurliacci | October 26, 2017

Name: Summer Picnic Series | End of Summer Family-Friendly Celebration at Grace Farms
Start: 2022-08-19T17:30:00-04:00
End: 2022-08-19T19:30:00-04:00
Location: Grace Farms

A Darien Troop 53 Scout, Maximus Racanelli, completed his Eagle Scout service project in August at the Darien Community Association Bird Sanctuary. Racanelli led his team to construct two insect hotels which provide a home for various insects such as bees, beetles, fireflies, ladybugs, dragonflies, and butterflies. — an announcement from the Darien Community Association

These various bugs help to pollinate the flowers, plants, and trees in the sanctuary. Insect hotels are natural structures that are helpful to the environment because not only do they provide homes for insects, but they provide food for species higher up the food chain including birds and small rodents, creating a stable base in the ecosystem. Each insect hotel was assembled using seven wooden pallets to create the frame and filling in each layer with various materials such as bamboo filled with hollow plant stems, straw, pieces of terra cotta pots, and seed pods for different insect species to live in.

Kirby Girl, a Darien based teen gift boutique, is starting a campaign called, “Kirby Girl of the Week,” celebrating girls of the Darien community for their acts of kindness. — an announcement from Kirby Girl. Darienite.com covers Darien businesses with significant new offerings, significant personnel changes or other big changes in their organizations. Businesses can email announcements to Dave@Darienite.com. People in the local community can now nominate candidates each week.

Charles Burwell, a former Darien resident, teacher and selectman who passed away on Feb. 26, 2016 was a 26-year-old naval intelligence officer on June 4, 1944. His assignment: briefing Generals Dwight Eisenhower and Bernard L. Montgomery on exactly which day the weather would be calm enough for D-Day while the moon was still bright. Editor’s note: On the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion of Normandy in World War II, Darienite.com is putting the link to this article, originally published on March 1, 2016 back on the Home page and in the June 6 newsletter. In addition to being on the Darien Board of Selectmen, Burwell was a social studies teacher at Darien High School until his retirement in 1978.

The YWCA Darien/Norwalk is pleased to announce the honorees for the 2019 Women of Distinction Awards. The honorees who will be recognized at an inspiring luncheon on Thursday, May 9 at Woodway Country Club in Darien. — an announcement from the YWCA Darien/Norwalk

Our inspiring nominees are: Tracy Fox, Debra Hertz, Heather Raker, Shiva Sarram and Katherine Price Snedaker, while Morgan Riley will be honored as our Young Woman of Distinction, recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of a woman under 21 years of age. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the YWCA Darien/Norwalk Women of Distinction Awards. The award is bestowed in recognition of the outstanding achievements of a select group of women.

Meghan Halloran of Darien, a sophomore at Williams College, has been named the New England Small College Athletic Conference Women’s Ice Hockey Player of the Year for 2018-19. She is a graduate of New Canaan Country School, which made this announcement congratulating Halloran on her success:

New Canaan Country School is pleased to congratulate alumna and Williams College sophomore, Meghan Halloran, who was named the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Women’s Ice Hockey Player of the Year for the 2018-19 season —only the third sophomore to receive the distinction in the history of the award. It was also announced that Halloran has been named to the 2019 NESCAC Winter All-Academic Team, having earned above a 3.50 cumulative grade point average. Halloran helped the Ephs claim the 2019 NESCAC Championship (notably scoring the game-winning goal in Sunday’s final) and earn a record-tying 20 wins for the season, the most since 2001. Also an All-NESCAC Women’s Ice Hockey First Team selection, she leads the league in points (36), goals (18), and assists (18).

John Lochtefeld, son of Nancy and Tom Lochtefeld, is the recipient of the 2018-2019 Daughters of the American Revolution Good Citizen Award. An annual presentation of Darien’s Good Wife’s River DAR Chapter, this award is given to a Darien High School senior who best exemplifies the qualities of patriotism, citizenship, dependability and service to community. — an announcement from the Good Wife’s River DAR Chapter

John was selected to receive this award by the faculty and senior class at Darien High School. He will receive his award, pin and certificate from DAR Good Citizen Chairman, Kim Kiner, and Regent, Katherine Love, during the group’s holiday celebration hosted by Winifred and Tom Lom. A leader among his peers at Darien High School, John is a member of the Community Council where he serves as Vice President of the student body and is also a member of the Best Buddies Program which fosters relationships between students with intellectual and developmental disabilities and the student body.

Facebook thumbnail Rachel Dewy executive director of Future 5

Longtime Darien resident Rachel Dewey is the new executive director at Future 5, a Stamford-based organization that helps connect highly motivated low-income high school students to their full potential. — an announcement from Future 5

Rachel was most recently executive director at Horizons at Norwalk Community College, a summer academic and enrichment program for low-income students in Norwalk. In addition to her development and financial responsibilities at Horizons, Rachel also managed the staff of 30, developed and implemented expanded programming and transitioned the program to an independent 501(c)(3) organization. A graduate of Georgetown University, Rachel received her MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. She is a former board member and Board of Governors member of Horizons at New Canaan Country School and current board member and events chair of the Georgetown University Fairfield County Alumni Association.

The Merritt Parkway Conservancy has named Jim Cameron of Darien as one of two new members of its governing board. The organization has also appointed a new executive director. Cameron, a Darien resident and longtime commuter advocate, authors a weekly column on transportation issues for Darienite and Hearst CT Media newspapers and websites. — an announcement from the Merritt Parkway Conservancy

“I’m grateful to First Selectman Jayme Stevenson for my nomination to the Merritt Parkway Conservancy’s Board,” Cameron said in an announcement on Saturday. “Though my passion to date has been for rail commuters I’m anxious to contribute what I can to the MPC’s efforts to preserve this amazing parkway from encroaching development. “Connecticut was so prescient in this road’s design and we must do what we can to keep it as the beautiful roadway that it is,” he said.

George A. Reilly, an attorney who has been active in town government and in local organizations for decades, has joined Rucci Law Group in Darien. ____________

— This article is based on an announcement from Rucci Law Group. ____________

Reilly, who has more than 30 years of legal experience in Fairfield County, will serve as a general practitioner, working in family law, real estate, estate planning and administration, and corporate development. He has been a long-time volunteer in local government, spending two years (1999-2001) on the Darien Board of Selectmen, 11 years as a member of Darien’s Board of Education, chairing the Police Headquarters Building Committee and serving on the Darien Charter Revision Commission. “We are delighted to welcome George to the practice,” said Joe Rucci, founding member of the firm.

Emily Larkin Arocha, who has led the Community Fund of Darien’s Thriving Youth Initiative, has been picked as one of Fairfield County Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” promising people in the county. Since October 2015, Arocha, who uses her maiden name professionally, has led the Thriving Youth Initiative with a mission of promoting healthy youth development by improving thriving indicators and reducing risk factors such as substance abuse and poor mental health. Her greatest accomplishment, according to an announcement from the Community Fund, has been her leadership of the innovative public health social media campaign, titled “06820,” to reduce teenage binge drinking in Darien. Susan Cator, president of the Darien Chamber of Commerce, nominated Larkin, who uses her maiden name professionally. “The Darien Chamber of Commerce nominated Emily for the 40 Under 40 award due to her contributions to the Darien community, especially the teens of our town,” Cator said.

“Dual Nature,” a painting by Lucy Armstrong, a student in Darien, has won first place in the oil painting category of the “Focus Under Forty” exhibit and arts competition at Rowayton Arts Center. Amit Cherbuchaw also of Darien won 3rd Place the Color Photography, “Joy.” Lucy will be one of the featured artists in the upcoming, Artists Talk on Wednesday night at RAC.

The show is for artists from the ages of 16 to 39, and it runs through this Sunday, June 24 (from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. that day). Armstrong will be part of the panel discussion on Wednesday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. where the young artists will talk about their art and what inspires it.

Allison Gushée Molkenthin, a YWCA Darien/Norwalk 2018 Woman of Distinction, will be honored on May 22 in New York City at One To World’s 2018 Fulbright Awards Dinner. A longtime Darien resident who has contributed to many important causes locally, Ms. Molkenthin was a Fulbright scholar to Morocco and earned her MBA from INSEAD in France. __________

— an announcement from One To World

__________

She has been a managing director at Bentley Associates L.P. since 1999, working on international transactions, and was previously president and COO of UI USA, the U.S. merchant banking arm of Crédit Agricôle. She began her career at Bankers Trust, working in New York, London, Milan and Paris. “We are proud to be honoring Allison as a business leader who has furthered the Fulbright vision by fostering respect and cooperation across borders throughout her career,” said Jen E. Clarke, Executive Director of One To World.

These six Darien and Norwalk women will be celebrated Thursday by YWCA Darien/Norwalk and a crowd of well-wishers at the 2018 Women of Distinction Awards and Luncheon at Woodway Country Club. This year’s distinguished honorees at the annual event are Carrie Bernier, Tina Duryea, Scarlett Lewis, Allison Molkenthin and Wendy Ward, along with Emma Dahlquist, named this year’s Young Woman of Distinction, an award recognizing outstanding accomplishments of a woman under 21. The Women of Distinction Award is bestowed in recognition of the outstanding achievements of a select group of women. Local residents and business owners nominate women who live or work in Darien and Norwalk whose significant and unique contributions have made a difference in our community. The YWCA website is no longer accepting registrations for the lunch.

Lenny Hunter, Darien’s VFW Commander and a longtime Post Office employee, is out of the hospital and continuing to recuperate, local veterans said on Veterans Day. Hunter suffered serious injuries when a car hit him as he worked as a school crossing guard in Bridgeport on Sept. 13. Both of his legs were broken and his skull received fractures. “He’s laid up right now, and he’s been laid up, and he will be laid up for quite a while,” Dave Polett told the crowd at the Darien Veterans Day ceremony on Saturday.

It’s been 23 years since a White House staffer’s mysterious death, charges of corruption and rumors about the president led to a special prosecutor’s appointment. That was Whitewater in 1994, and that special prosecutor was Darien resident Robert Fiske Jr.

But Fiske’s illustrious legal career dealt with much more: Three Mile Island, the Americas Cup, drug lords and yes, even doing legal battle with Donald Trump. _____

— an announcement from St. Luke’s Parish

_____

It’s all detailed in his 2014 book, Prosecutor, Defender, Counselor: The Memoirs of Robert B Fiske Jr.
Fiske is also a former member of the Darien Police Commission. Now Fiske will tell his own story — and answer questions — at 7 p.m., Wednesday Nov.

Fri 19

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August 19 @ 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm