DMA Members
The final golf event of the year!
Location: Woodway Country Club
Date: Thursday – October 15
Time: 9 AM Shotgun Start
Cost:
$192 paid at the Club
Includes: 18 holes of golf; golf cart and luncheon.
Signups: first come – first playing (we have a limited number of player times reserved).
Contact if interested
Bob McGroarty
The hale and hearty hikers will stroll the East and West Beach trails in Sherwood Island State Park this Thursday morning, October 8. The trails are level and approximately 3 miles long. Pets on leash are permitted in the park, as are friends and spouses of DMA members. For those wishing to carpool, we will meet at the back parking area of the DCA at 9:30 a.m. For those driving directly, we will meet at the Nature Center parking area in the east parking lot at the park, and will start and end our hike from the Nature Center.
After the hike, for those wishing to partake, we will enjoy lunch at Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana in Westport.
Our next meeting is Thursday, October 15 at 2PM in the Lillian Gade Room, 2nd Floor in the DCA. Note that we are back to our regularly scheduled time for this meeting. The Zoom link appears at the bottom of this email. We are electrified to have Harry Bergen moderate our discussion on the power shortfall facing this country and the possible solutions. Here is a summary along with pre-reading suggestions:
Electron Denial? The Future of Power
Electricity demand is predicted to grow significantly over the next 5 to 10 years and the general consensus is that the growth is largely due to an increase in data centers. In contrast with Data Centers that have been in use for decades, Data Centers are now hosting AI services which are extremely hungry in terms of computing power and electric power. At this session we will discuss the numerous issues surrounding this increase in Electric Power Demand including:
Suggested reading :
https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/report/electricity.php?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Click below for details.
Thursday, October 22, at 8:36 a.m. at Darien Metro-North Station or 8:39 a.m. at Noroton Heights Metro-North Station
On Thursday, October 22nd, the Wanderers will travel to Greenpoint, Brooklyn and wander on its main commercial streets, through two of its largest parks and past two significant houses of worship. We will take the Metro North train to Grand Central that leaves the Darien train station at 8:36 a.m. and the Noroton Heights train at 8:39 a.m. As usual, we will gather at the Information Booth on the main floor of Grand Central and proceed together by Subway to Greenpoint.
The Wanderers will wander in Greenpoint on commercial streets populated by many small Polish- American businesses. This wandering will take the Wanderers through McGolrick Park and to its historically significant Monitor Monument, through McCarren Park and past the largest public swimming pool in NYC, to Popirluszko Square with its unusual history and on tree-lined residential streets bordering the parks. The wanderers also plan to visit the beautiful St. Stanislaus Kostka Church and wander past the impressive Transfiguration of our Lord Russian Orthodox Cathedral.
In keeping with the Polish-American focus of this wandering, the Wanderers will have lunch at Pierozek Restaurant, 592 Manhattan Ave., Brooklyn (718-576-3866), a restaurant that claims to be the home of the most authentic handmade Polish Pierogi in New York. After lunch, the Wanderers will wander to the NYC Ferry’s Greenpoint Landing and enjoy the wonderful views available on the ferry ride across the East River to the NYC Ferry’s East 34th Street Landing in Manhattan. The Wanderers will wander from the East 34th Street Landing to Grand Central and return home via Metro-North.
Contact: Chet Cobb, Harry Bergen or Bill Tamme
The room is not available due to a DCA event.
Don’t miss out on this year’s sailing season’s final chance to enjoy a lovely sunset cruise on the Long Island Sound!
The DMA will be setting sail on SoundWaters, an 80 ft 3 masted schooner, for a delightful 2-hour sunset cruise from 5-7 pm on September 29 (rain date: October 1). We’ll have liquid refreshments and light dinner fare on board.
We’ll be gathering at 4:30 pm at the Cohen SoundWaters Harbor Center at Boccuzzi Park in Stamford.
Tickets are $75 per person.
Robert Dawe M.D.
The first Current Affairs meeting of the 2026-2027 DMA year will happen on Thursday, September 17 at 3pm (NOTE TIME CHANGE!) in the Lillian Gade Room at the DCA and on Zoom.
“From the bestselling, prize-winning author of SAY NOTHING, a powerfully compelling account of a family devastated by the apparent suicide of their nineteen year-old son, only to discover he had created a separate identity which drew him into the dangerous international criminal underworld underlying London’s glittering surface. In the early morning of November 29th, 2019, surveillance cameras at the headquarters of MI6, Britain’s spy agency, captured a video of a young man pacing back and forth on a balcony of Riverwalk, a luxury building on the opposite bank of the Thames River. At 2:24 a.m., he jumped. In a quiet London neighborhood several miles away, Rachelle Brettler was worried. She hadn’t heard from her son Zac, who told her he had gone to stay with a friend for the night, but wasn’t answering his phone. Five days later, a police car pulled up in front of the house, and she knew she was about to hear the news every parent dreads: Her son was dead. In their unbearable grief, Rachelle and her husband Matthew tried to understand what had happened to Zac. He had his troubles, but in no way seemed suicidal. But his death was just the beginning of the shocks: The man who owned the apartment in Riverwalk, a wealthy businessman named Akbar Shamji, told them he knew Zac by a different identity: Zac Ismailov, the child of a wealthy Russian oligarch, whose widowed mother was living in Dubai and freezing him out of his inheritance. Then they learned that the apartment was occupied by a notorious gangster known as “Indian Dave” in London criminal circles. Indian Dave had been implicated in a gangland slaying and fled the country, but for opaque reasons came back to England and was never prosecuted. From the physical evidence and recovered text messages between Shamji and Sharma, it appeared something very different than a suicide had taken place in Riverwalk that night. But to the immense frustration of the Brettlers, Scotland Yard seemed to have no interest in investigating. In a bravura piece of reporting and writing, Patrick Radden Keefe delves into a story that peels back multiple layers of mystery, and exposes the seedy truths beneath the glamourous London of posh mansions and private night clubs, a world sustained and abetted by fundamental corruption. Zac Brettler was not the only person in the tale spinning lies. London Falling is a mesmerizing investigation of an inexplicable death, fueled by multiple turns and revelations, but at its heart it is a deeply empathetic portrait of a family trying to understand not just why their son died, but who he was”– Provided by publisher.
On Thursday, September 10, the Hale and Hardy hikers will travel to Southford Falls State Park for a two-mile hike. The park features impressive waterfalls and a beautifully restored covered bridge. The loop trail is marked in red with moderate climbing of some 400 feet up to a fire tower with a 360-degree view of the park’s treetops. There are some rocky portions of the trail where firm soles on your shoes are recommended, and a hiking pole may be useful, but not essential.
For those wishing to carpool, we’ll meet at the back of the DCA parking area at 9:30 am on September 10. Ample parking is available for those not carpooling. Set your maps for the parking area at 175 Quaker Farms Rd, Southbury, CT. Non-DMA members and pets on a leash are welcome to join us.
After our hike, those who are able can join the group for lunch at Dock 34 on the way home in Seymour, CT. It boasts a scenic location and outside tables on the banks of the Housatonic River.
Thursday, May 21, at 8:36 a.m. at Darien Metro-North Station or 8:39 a.m. at Noroton Heights Metro-North Station
On Thursday, May 21, the Wanderers will travel to Brooklyn and wander across the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn to lower Manhattan. We will take the Metro North train to Grand Central that leaves the Darien train station at 8:36 a.m. and the Noroton Heights train at 8:39 a.m. As usual, we will gather at the Information Booth on the main floor of Grand Central and proceed together by Subway to Brooklyn.
The Wanderers will wander on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade enjoying the picturesque views of lower Manhattan and New York Harbor and proceed through historic Brooklyn Heights and over the architecturally impressive Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. The Wandering will continue past City Hall to the South Street Seaport.
We plan to have lunch at a restaurant in or near the South Street Seaport and conclude with a Wandering around the South Street Seaport and to the Wall Street or Fulton Street Subway Station before returning to Grand Central and home via the Subway and Metro-North.
Contact: Chet Cobb or Harry Bergen
Summary:
“On May 21, thirteen fearless Wanderers traveled to Brooklyn and braved windy and rainy conditions while wandering across the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn to lower Manhattan.
Notwithstanding the challenging weather, the Wanderers first enjoyed the picturesque views of lower Manhattan and New York Harbor as they wandered on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade beginning at the monument commemorating the site of George Washington’s headquarters. The Wanderers also wandered on the well-maintained streets of Brooklyn Heights admiring the well-preserved architecture and beautiful landscaping and paused at the historically significant Plymouth Church, sometimes referred to as “the Grand Central Depot” of the Underground Railroad, and viewed the statue of its founding pastor, Henry Ward Beecher.
The highlight of the day was of course the wandering over the architecturally impressive Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. When first opened in 1883, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world spanning roughly 1.1 miles. The Wandering then took the wanderers past City Hall and down Fulton Street to the South Street Seaport. There the happy Wanderers dried off and enjoyed a tasty seafood lunch at The Fulton by Jean-Georges with its impressive views of the Brooklyn Bridge and the East River before taking the Subway and Metro-North home.”
Happy Wanderers
Thursday, September 24th, at 9:15 a.m. at the U.S. Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, CT
PLEASE READ THIS EMAIL IN ITS ENTIRETY IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING IN THIS WANDERING TO THE U.S. NAVAL SUBMARINE BASE
On Thursday, September 24th, the Wanderers will drive to the U.S. Naval Submarine Base New London (SUBASE) in Groton, CT, known as the “Home of the Submarine Force,” and enjoy a visit to the Submarine Force Museum and Historic Ship Nautilus, a Windshield Bus Tour including a brief wandering on the Upper Base and lunch on the SUBASE. As a retired Captain in the U.S. Navy Reserve, DMA member Paul Hendrickson was able to open the door to this exciting opportunity.
This visit to the SUBASE will begin at 9:15 a.m. with a self-guided tour and wandering through the Museum and onto the Nautilus. At 10:15 a.m., a Public Affairs representative of the SUBASE will welcome us in the Museum Theater and provide an overview of the U.S. Navy, the Submarine Force and the SUBASE. Following this presentation, a highlight of this wandering will be a bus tour of the Upper Base that will offer views of the Submarine School, galley, barracks, medical facilities, other key support structures and the Lower Base. A Public Affairs representative of the SUBASE will be with us on this bus tour and wandering and will provide historical insights. The tour will conclude with a brief wandering on the Upper Base followed at noon by a pizza buffet lunch at REUNIONS PUB on the SUBASE. Lunch is expected to include assorted pizza, salad, cookies and soft drinks/water and social engagement with SUBSCOL Sailors. Following lunch at 1:00 p.m. a bus will transport Wanderers to the parking lot adjacent to the Museum where Wanderers will have parked their cars upon arriving at the SUBASE and will drive home.
Sign-ups for this tour and wandering will begin in person at the DMA meeting on Wednesday, September 2. If interested in participating in this tour and wandering, please sign up in person at the September 2 meeting and provide when you sign-up the information and payment required below. Sign-ups by email for this tour and wandering will not be accepted until after 1:00 p.m. on September 2, at which time an email signing up for this tour and wandering with the information required below should be sent to Harry Bergen at bercom100@gmail.com.
The size of our group has been limited by the SUBASE to 36 participants so, if interested, please sign up in person at the meeting on September 2. Sign-ups will be accepted on a first-come basis. Due to the anticipated popularity of this tour and wandering and the group size limitation, we unfortunately are unable to include the spouses of DMA members. A waiting list will be established if this tour and wandering is over-subscribed.
All visitors to the SUBASE must be U.S citizens with a real ID or U.S. passport and must be ambulatory. When signing up for this tour and wandering, you will be required to provide your full name, social security number, date of birth, place of birth, real driver’s license number including state of issuance or U.S. passport number as such information is required to be submitted to the SUBASE on Thursday, September 3.
The cost to each Wanderer to participate in this tour and wandering including lunch is $40 and is non-refundable. Please pay such amount in cash when signing up. The deadline for receipt of payment is Wednesday, September 17.
For those who want to car-pool, we will rendezvous at the DCA parking lot at 7:15 a.m. and then organize into groups for the drive to the SUBASE. Those interested in car- pooling from Darien should plan to park their cars in the rear of the parking lot at the DCA. We will depart from the DCA parking lot by 7:30 a.m. and arrive at the SUBASE at 9:15 a.m. as the self-guided tour and wandering will start at 9:15 a.m. in the Museum. We will park our cars just outside the entrance to the SUBASE in the parking lot that is adjacent to the Museum. We will gather inside the entrance to the Museum to begin our tour and wandering.
Contact: Chet Cobb, Harry Bergen, or Paul Hendrickson
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