Westport’s Jazz Rabbi Goes To Redding
Greg Wall, known to many in town as the Jazz Rabbi, took his band “on the road” so to speak to perform an afternoon of Jazz classics at Redding’s Mark Twain Library under the watchful gaze of Twain himself, whose portrait holds a prominent place in the event space at the library.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
Rabbi Wall (playing sax) is a founding board member of the Jazz Society of Fairfield County (JazzFC) where he serves as president and artistic director. Greg performs regularly at Westport’s Joseph J. Clinton VFW Post 399 on many Thursday evenings.
This was the first of the library’s Listen Up! sessions, a fun way to learn to appreciate Jazz music. The Mark Twain Library will hold two sessions with Greg Wall on two Thursday afternoons: April 16th and May 21st, from 1:00 to 2:00 PM. The MTL is less than 25 minutes from downtown Westport via scenic Route 53 which runs along the Saugatuck reservoir.
To learn more visit: Mark Twain Library.org
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
Rabbi Wall performs on both tenor and soprano saxophone and has recorded with Hasidic New Wave, Greg Wall’s Later Prophets and Zion80. Greg Wall’s Unity Orchestra has made many session appearances for record dates and film scores. Greg has curated a weekly Westport-based Jazz series since 2015, performing with a rotating lineup of internationally acclaimed NYC based and touring Jazz artists.
Joining Greg on saxophone for this gig were Matt DeChamplain on piano, who is proficient on in a wide variety of styles including stride piano, swing, bebop, and post-bop. He has collaborated with numerous notable musicians which include Dave Brubeck of “Take Five” fame among many others. Brubeck was a long-time Wilton resident who passed in 2012. Others include Jimmy Cobb, Steve Davis, Javon Jackson, Shawnn Monteiro, Nat Reeves, and Avery Sharpe.
Playing bass was Matt Dwonszyk, who holds a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of Hartford and a Master of Music degree at SUNY Purchase College in New York. He has taught jazz bass at Manchester Community College and Central Connecticut State College. Matt has performed at legendary jazz venues like Smalls, Smoke, Minton’s, Zinc Bar, Birdland. He has released several albums, including his most recent, “Live at the Side Door”.
On drums was Joe Corsello who studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston before playing in the US Army band. Joe became a house drummer for Michael’s Pub in New York, backing such jazz artists as Red Norvo, Joe Venuti and Dave McKenna and was a member of the jazz/rock band New York Mary, which recorded two successful records. He has toured with the B52′s, Patti Smith and Stevie Wonder among others.
Jazz trumpeter Kerry MacKillop spent several years touring extensively worldwide as featured soloist with The Artie Shaw Orchestra and The Woody Herman Band. He has had the honor of performing with such luminaries as Dizzy Gillespie and Tony Bennett, to name just a few. In addition to fronting his own groups, he was also a member of the house band for “Seinfeld” and “The Nanny”.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
More than fifty people filled the MTL event space, including three young people who got a taste of this classic American music genre. Rabbi Wall and the band were very impressed with the frequent rounds of applause from the enthusiastic audience members .
About the Jazz Society Of Fairfield County:
JazzFC was formed by Wall and a few others to enrich the cultural life of Fairfield County by promoting the performance and appreciation of Jazz and its heritage. They offer free or low-cost concerts by accomplished artists, outreach to under-served audiences, and educational and performance opportunities for student, amateur and emerging professional musicians. JazzFC provides outreach to seniors, benefit performances for Veterans, and student musician clinics led by world-class professional musicians, followed by live performance opportunities by the students with their clinicians. In 2022 they launched a scholarship award for deserving students pursuing a higher education in music. The Micky Golomb Scholarship Fund was formed to honor the memory of Myron “Micky” Golomb, a well-regarded area saxophonist, educator and habitué of the Jazz Society’s Thursday evening performance presentations.
The scholarship is offered to students expressing financial need, dedicated to pursuing a career in jazz performance and/or jazz education. It is open to instrumentalists, vocalists, and composers and offers up to $10,000, which may be awarded to a single recipient or split among a few finalists, in the form of tuition paid directly to the educational institution.
To learn more abut JazzFC and see their upcoming concert schedule at Westport VFW visit: JazzFC.org
JazzFC is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization. Donations are always welcome.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
Tremendous Come From Behind Victory In Overtime For Wreckers Girls Basketball!
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
The Wreckers girls took the floor at Danbury High on Thursday night with the game started off normally enough. Staples (9-2, FCIAC) was making several of their shots and keeping the Hatter’s (8-4, FCIAC) offense in check with a determined defense. Everything changed however in the second quarter. Danbury held the Wreckers to only two points while they added 8 points to the scoreboard.
Danbury’s offense stayed focused in the third adding four additional points to lead 34-28 when the buzzer sounded. Danbury maintained their lead in the fourth quarter, up by two midway through the period, but Staples managed to tie the game 39-39.
Staples just could not take control and at 1:44 remaining in the game Danbury managed to jump to a 5 point lead. It was looking like the Hatters last home game of the regular season was going to conclude with a win, which their senior girls were looking forward to, especially over Staples which was having a great season. Danbury cheerleaders were on hand to rally their team and it looked grim for the Wreckers with Danbury up by 6 points with 32 seconds remaining.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
But Freya Harvey who had been scoreless for 30 minutes was not to be denied. Somehow, against all odds the Senior guard managed to hit not one, but TWO thrilling three point buckets in the space of 20 seconds to tie the game at 46 all, sending it into overtime.
The Wreckers defense held the Hatters to a single point in the four minute overtime period, and with Harvey’s 3rd trey of the night helped seal the deal.
Head Coach Tommy Sparks strategizes with the team during a time-out, trying to get the girls back in the zone and regain control of the game.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
The bench was over the moon after resigning themselves to a tough loss, then instead experiencing the miraculous overtime win.
Jubilant Wreckers girls rush to the floor to join the rest of their team after the amazing come-from-behind win over the Danbury Girls Hatters in overtime.
Leading the Wreckers offense was #10 Junior guard, Captain Chloe Smith with 17 points, followed by #30 Senior Captain, guard Emma Asiel who scored 13 points. Freya Harvey added two points to her three from beyond the arc to total 11 points and she led the team with 8 assists.
Addie Talbott, sophomore guard scored 6 with #12 Captain Marly Belzer, a Senior at center adding 4 more. Smith and Talbott combined for 21 rebounds, and Talbott was a terror on defense with 6 steals.
The Wreckers hope to continue the streak against a strong opponent when they face FCIAC second place (10-2) St. Joes of Trumbull on Tuesday at home at 7:00 PM.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com
Parents, who had anticipated a less than happy ending in the latter stages of the game, reacted with pleasant surprise when Freya Harvey tied the game leading to the overtime.
A Well Prepared First Selectman Kevin Christie Provides Superb State Of The Town Presentation
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
After only 76 days as Westport’s new First Selectman, Kevin Christie showed superb preparation and excellent, in-depth knowledge of all things Westport in his first State Of The Town event. Christie opened by thanking event sponsors Westport Rotary and Westport Sunrise Rotary, next Selectwoman Amy Wistreich and Selectman Don O’Day and then the host, The Westport Library. Christie began his presentation by saying, “When I thought about how to approach my first State of the Town, I kept coming back to one simple idea: Westport thrives because of its people...the community. And local government exists to support that community.”
Opening the program (l. to r.), Peter Helt President of Westport Rotary and Mark Soboslai, President of Westport Sunrise Rotary speak about their organizations and their sponsorship of the State Of The Town. At right is RTM moderator Jeff Weiser who emceed the event.
Next, Christie gave the audience some insight into the effectiveness in the activities of various branches of town government, remarking “Every day, across this entire community, our town staff are delivering services at a scale that’s easy to take for granted until you see it all at once. When I talk about the scale of town government, I mean what residents’ tax dollars actually support, every day.”
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Christie’s slide presentation began with an beautiful aerial view of the outstanding renovation of the Compo Beach Playground provided by WestportLocalPress: Comp Beach Playground Opening Day. Next, Christie highlighted the activities of our first responders who work tirelessly to keep us safe, telling the audience, “In 2025, the Police Department handled over 27,000 calls, including more than 5,500 traffic stops. Our Fire Department responded to over 4,000 incidents, with an average response time under four minutes.”
Mr. Christie also spoke about community services saying, “the departments that support residents day to day, across age, ability, and circumstance. Parks and Recreation supported 10,895 program registrations, about 1.2 million beach visits, and 40,000 rounds of golf adding, “Through Human Services and the Senior Center, the Town provides over 24,000 congregate and home-delivered meals annually and has administered $2.9 million in housing and community grants over the last two years”, adding, “And of course, speaking of community services, here we are inside our state’s only 5-star library.”
Above, clock wise: Audience members included Westport Police Chief David Farrell, RTM member Andrew Collabella (blue hoodie), former RTM member Harris Faulk (hat), newly elected RTM member Victoria Wylie (white) and two other audience members.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Christie also credited “teams that shape how Westport grows, evolves, and protects what makes this town special: Planning and Zoning, Conservation, and the Historic District Commission. In 2025, the Planning and Zoning office issued over 430 administrative zoning permits, processed 42 applications to the Planning and Zoning Commission, and 75 applications to the Zoning Board of Appeals.”
Mr. Christie closed his remarks by saying, “Finally, I want to recognize teams in administration that keep our town and staff running every day. Many of you know we recently completed a state-mandated property revaluation, the first since COVID, and after the notices were mailed, our Assessor’s Office met with over 1,000 property owners through informal hearings. Our Tax Collector delivered over a 99% collection rate. Our Town Clerk’s office recorded 464 property transfers and assists residents every day, both in person and online. Our Information Technology team provides the foundational and improving digital infrastructure that facilitates the town’s work and allows residents to engage with the town online.”
He added, “I also want to thank our teams in finance, personnel, the Town Attorney’s Office, and of course the Selectman’s Office, for the vital support they provide to ensure our town functions smoothly. That scale is possible because of how people work together.”
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Opening for Mr. Christie was Board of Education member Abby Tolan who was filling in for Board Chair Lee Goldstein who was out of town at a previously schedule conference. Ms. Tolan had a full plate of both achievements of the Westport Education system and it’s outstanding student body and important administrative issues addressed in recent years. Tolan commented, “First and foremost, our district remains dedicated to providing a safe and welcoming environment that both supports and challenges all students.”
Ms. Tolan spoke at length about budgetary issues, including capital improvement plans including substantial Staples Auditorium renovation and other projects including a new Staples girls locker room, WiFi access at Staples athletic fields and a new concession stand with bathrooms.
She made note of technology issues including “AI usage, with objectives being focused on; using AI with integrity and purpose; preparing students to think, adapt and lead with AI; inspired teaching that is human led, AI empowered. Shaping a thoughtful, adaptive and empowered community.”
Tolan lauded a number of students who had achieved tremendous academic successes and the outstanding athletics department. She provided a long list of students from multiple schools who have achieved success in a wide variety of academic endeavors and contests in a Science Olympiad including global environmental issues and four gold medals for Bedford Middle School students. Staples award winning chool newspaper, Inklings and the Staples media department were also praised by Tolan. Issues such as Long Lots school and Coleytown school were addressed as well.
Athletic achievements stood out as well, with Staples basketball team winning the first FCIAC Championship since 1963 (WestportLocal, Staples FCIAC championship) and Wreckers State Title in Lacrosse (Staples LAX Defeats Darien For State Championship) and Boys Soccer’s 13th state title as well as a victory by the new Staples Fencing team.
Following the presentations by Christie and Tolan was an audience Q and A session, with more questions than the time allotted would allow. Issues such as traffic congestion, a problem in search of a solution for many years including state DOT involvement on projects such as the Merritt exit 21 (formerly exit 42) daily traffic jam. The Hamet situation and ongoing legislation was discussed along with the controversial Hiawatha Lane project and the hot button issue of the Community Garden relocation. An important issue, sustainability was also queried by audience members as was the gigantic piles of snow, Mt. Woog or Mt. Christie as they were laughingly termed, which drew some attention before their removal following the recent blizzard.
Above, Westport Rotary volunteers gathered questions from the audience, which also included (at right) Cynthia and Carl Muller, Gloria Gourveia (sunglasses) and former RTM member Sal Liccione (black cap).
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
The full video of the 90 minute State Of The Town can be viewed on the Westport Library website: 2026 Westport State Of The Town
24 Cyclists Ride From Norwalk To Westport In Memorial To Alex Pretti
Photos courtesy of Lori Hillsberg, story by J.C. Martin
The ride to honor Alex Pretti, killed by ICE on January 24, 2026 began in the freezing cold at Calf Pasture beach in Norwalk and riders crossed the Ruth Steinkraus Memorial Bridge in Westport as they wound their way to Compo Beach. Twenty four hearty souls from Norwalk, Fairfield, Greenwich, even from as far as Kent joined others on the 6.5 mile ride.
After pausing at Compo Beach, they returned to Calf Pasture, again crossing the Steinkraus bridge. Ride organizer Burton Avery described the sub-freezing, 27º weather with light wind and full sun as “perfect” for a bike ride. If you say so, Burton!
A large group turned out to see the riders off, including Norwalk former Mayor Harry Rilling (blue coat) and wife Lucia (white coat).
Pretti was an avid bike rider, well known in the Minneapolis biking community. More than 100 rides in honor of Pretti took place across the country yesterday. The website Pinkbike also has a post on the nationwide rides and Pretti, who was an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center and was only 37 years old when his life was cut short by ICE agents.
Ride details wer reported yesterday in WestportLocalPress: Alex Pretti Memorial Ride.