Monday, December 11, 2023

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Getting Ready for the Parade

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Members of the Y’s Men of Westport/Weston put last minute touches today on the group’s float for Monday’s Memorial Day parade at Kowalsky Brothers on Post Road East. The group wanted to keep the theme of the float under wraps until the parade. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Larry Untermeyer for WestportNow.com

L. Dale Burmeister, 64

L. Dale Burmeister, 64, of Fairfield and formerly of Westport, the devoted husband of Toni Burmeister, passed away suddenly on Tuesday, May 20, 2008.

Born in Saginaw, Mich., he was a resident of Westport for almost 30 years before moving to Fairfield Beach four years ago.

Trained as a social worker, he spent most of his career as an advertising executive before finding his true calling as a grandfather in 2004.

A lover of life, Dale was known among his friends for his generous hospitality, his love of food – fine and otherwise-, his curiosity about people and interest in their well-being, and his undeterred kindness.

In recent years he also worked as a substitute teacher and a staff member of the Continuing Education program with the Westport public school system.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his loving children: Christine Burmeister Guivernau and her husband Sebastian of Portland, Ore.; Joseph L. Burmeister and his wife Lesley Steinman of Seattle, Wash.; and Jesse Burmeister, also of Seattle; his best friend of 44 years, John Davis of New York City; his mother Mary Burmeister of Midland, Mich.; his brother and sister-in-law Kenneth and Carol Burmeister of Midland; his niece Heidi Lyons and her husband Dan of Okemo, Mich.; nephew Jeremy Paul Burmeister of Denver, Colo., and three adoring grandchildren, Rafael, Luca and Alessandra Guivernau.

Friends are invited to attend a Memorial Service on Tuesday, May 27 at 4 p.m. at Christ and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Westport. Interment is private, there are no calling hours.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his name to the American Heart Association, 1 Union Street, Suite 301, Robbinsville, NJ 08691 and Operation Smile, 6435 Tidewater Drive, Norfolk, VA 23509.

Staples Edges Westhill 3-1 to Gain FCIAC Baseball Title

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Westport’s Staples High School gained its first baseball Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference (FCIAC) title since 1985 today with a 3-1 win over Stamford Westhill at the Ballpark at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport. Team members surged on to the field after the final out with sophomore David Speer (7) center of attention for his dominant pitching performance. He allowed one unearned run on four hits and three walks (one intentional) while striking out eight to improve to 8-0 for the season. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Pam Moss for WestportNow.com

Westport Pet Store Continues to Stir Controversy

By Dave Matlow

The protesters were outside Puppies of Westport on Post Road West again today, as they have been on many previous Saturdays—much to the consternation of the owners who say their animals do not come from puppy mills.WestportNow.com Image
Protesters were out again today in front of Puppies of Westport on Post Road West whose owner denies his animals come from puppy mills. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dorrie Harris for WestportNow.com

“We do not buy from puppy mills,” said Monty Kaufman, who with his wife Lauren, have operated the store at 420 Post Road West since July 2006.

He said the dogs in his store are acquired from independent breeders, all of whom are USDA-licensed in the mid-West where he said more than 90 percent of the breeding facilities are located.

Protester Dorrie Harris of Westport said “the bottom line for these protests is to raise awareness about where these pet store puppies are coming from—they are not sourced from some bucolic farm or raised by loving hand.”

Watch the Birdie: Y Hosts Badminton Promotion Event

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The Westport Weston Family Y this week hosted a badminton promotion event that featured Charmaine Reid, 34, of Calgary, Canada, (yellow shirt) the No. 1 singles and doubles-ranked badminton player in North America. She was joined by Nicole Grether, 33, who represented Germany in the 2004 Summer Olympics. They played against three local residents—Jason Ormeyer of Easton, and Rob Steinmetz and Martin Majtenyi, both of Westport. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Kiwanis Hosts Memorial Day Pancake Breakfast

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A Westport tradition of more than 25 years resumes this Memorial Day at the new venue of Christ and Holy Trinity Church. The church is at 75 Church Lane, just steps away from the Memorial Day parade route. The Westport Kiwanis Club said it is again proud to offer the breakfast event to the community. It will be available from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and the group says it “promises to be an old-time Westport happening.” (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo

Westporter’s Firm Cited for New Haven School Project

Westport resident Gerald M. Kagan and his firm Kagan Architecture of New Haven were awarded the 2008 Merit Award by the Connecticut Building Congress for its design and construction team effort on the Benjamin Jepson K-8 Magnet School in New Haven.WestportNow.com Image
Gerald M. Kagan: $31 million project came in on time. Contributed photo

Kagan Architecture along with the project team members consisting of Fusco Corporation, Gilbane Building Co., Torrenti Engineering, Westcott & Mapes, Inc., vanZelm Heywood &  Shadford Inc., and Stantec successfully collaborated more than five years on the school project, which was completed in August 2007.

The 91,000-square foot inspirational flexible design consists of two stories of classrooms, media center/ library, administration spaces and cafetorium, along with a separate wing and playground area designed for the pre-K program.

Kagan and Rosemary Benivegna, project architect, successfully completed the project on time and within budget at a cost of $31 million, an announcement said.