Category: All Posts (Page 14 of 19)

Ed is a native of nearby Wilton who has an avid interest in local history and has developed a lecture, and in-depth tour of the scenes of battle of the 1777 Danbury Raid. Ed first became interested in the Danbury Raid as a child when he learned his neighbor’s house was partially burned by the British during the raid. He and his wife are fascinated by history and have visited many battlefields both here and abroad.

It was the spring of 1777, and the Royal Governor of the Province of New York, Major General William Tryon, was not a happy man. In 1775-76, the British had been mauled, and forced to flee Boston. Their commander, General Thomas Gage, had been sent home in disgrace. In the summer and fall of 1776, British forces under Admiral Sir Richard Howe and General William Howe defeated General George Washington in the Battle of Brooklyn but  had somehow failed to “close the deal,” allowing Washington to escape and humiliate the Hessians in Trenton. This “rabble uprising” was clearly getting out of hand.

Tryon, who had previously put down significant colonial unrest as governor of North Carolina, found his New York supply line to be in peril. Fodder was not to be found, and Hessian reinforcements had arrived poorly armed and without tents. Housing was scarce in New York City as a result of the mysterious great fire that followed the Battle of Brooklyn. But Tryon was a man of action. The rebels had supplies and lots of tents in Danbury, Connecticut, a colony with known loyalist sympathy. He would lead a raid and seize what he needed, but he was determined not repeat the mistakes of The Lexington/Concord Raid. He demanded detailed military planning, 1,500 experienced troops, diversionary actions against Peekskill, and, most important, to be guided by the 300 man Royal and Honorary Prince of Wales Loyal American Volunteers, which had been largely raised in Fairfield County. His force would be led by locals, who knew the roads and the political sympathies of their neighbors.

On April 25, 1777, Tryon’s forces landed between Fairfield and Norwalk (in what is now Westport) at Compo Beach, and marched to Danbury where they chased off a small garrison of Continental Army troops. But Tryon found that “inland citizens” were not quite as loyal to the Crown as he had assumed (he had made this same mistake in North Carolina). And, by chance, Brigadier General Benedict Arnold of the Continental Army, was nearby, in route to complain to Congress about his perceived poor treatment. On hearing of the British landing, Arnold gathered volunteers and “rode to the guns.” Major General David Wooster, commander of the Militia in the area, was also in New Haven, and he joined with Brigadier General Gold Selleck Silliman’s local militia, and, with a combined force of roughly 700 men, the Patriots responded vigorously. In the face of this action Tryon abandoned his plan to seize the supplies, and instead burnt them before marching to Ridgefield.

A company led by Wooster attacked Tryon’s rear guard twice as he moved toward Ridgefield on April 27. In the second encounter, Wooster was mortally wounded and died five days later. The main encounter then took place at Ridgefield, where several hundred militia, under Arnold’s command, confronted the British. They were driven back in a running battle down the town’s main street, but not before inflicting casualties on the British and delaying their progress.

Additional militia forces arrived, and the next day they continued to harass the British on their return to Compo. Arnold’s troops regrouped to make a stand on Old Hill in today’s Westport, but they were outsmarted by the Loyal American Volunteers who helped the British flank their position. The British made a mad dash for their ships as Arnold’s troops pursued them before being scattered by British artillery fire and bayonet charge on Compo Hill.

The British had walked in, but had to fight their way out to Compo Beach where they had left their ships. They had burned rebel supplies and outwitted the Rebels by escaping destruction, but because of this action, American forces gained international esteem. Benedict Arnold, while tactically out-maneuvered, would receive his promotion to Major General and go on to the important victory at Saratoga. Without the “Danbury Raid” that critical battle might have ended quite differently.

The expedition was a tactical success for the British forces, but their actions galvanized Patriot support in Connecticut. While the British again made raids on Connecticut’s coastal communities, including a second raiding expedition by Tryon in 1779, and a 1781 raid led by Arnold after his defection to the British side, they made no more raids that penetrated into the countryside.

George Bodenheimer, Executive Chairman of ESPN, is a veteran of over 30 years with the company. George cites mission, culture, and brand as the firm’s drivers for success.

ESPN started in late 1978 in Bristol, Connecticut. Initially the plan was to utilize the satellite network to cover Connecticut, but it quickly expanded to nationwide coverage. Getty Oil provided seed money in 1979.

The ESPN mission is “to serve sports fans” in an entertaining fashion and to get “it” right. Realizing fans’ unfamiliarity with Australian football, the company offered to send them copies of the rules. Over 45,000 requests were received, giving ESPN an early inkling of its audience potential. Company culture emerged as an underdog, hardworking, constructive vision, a “born in a muddy lot” view. The culture also featured “family first”, with promotion from within, mentor roles, assistance for families with problems, and accommodation for family activity schedules. Opportunity was also emphasized, with George citing his starting at the very bottom, and having the chance to get on the right career track, moving from production to sales and marketing.

Today, this culture involves 7000 employees. The firm’s staff takes sports seriously but not themselves, recognizing that fans like to laugh. As an additional example, there are those funny Sports Center ads.

David Genovese of Baywater Properties and Penny Glassmeyer of PG Properties Ltd. Partnership will talk about the commercial real estate projects that have created the “New Darien”.

Penny Glassmeyer established herself as a builder well before PG Properties first became an entity in 1987. Penny supervised her very first project in 1979, the renovation of a five family converted Victorian house which she still owns. Three of the current tenants have made 22 Berkeley Street in Norwalk their permanent home for 25, 18 and 11 years.

Her success at Berkeley Street led Penny to her next project In 1982. With government financing, Penny purchased and restored an eight-family low income house. She followed this with the acquisition of two neighboring properties over the next five years – a four family and a five family structure. Penny renovated each building, one at a time. When the last renovation was completed she purchased the house across the street which, because it did not have “classic bones”, she tore down and replaced with a six-unit condominium building.

The quality of her finished projects and the extensive attention to detail that she exhibited in her work projected Penny Glassmeyer into the high-end residential market. Penny formed PG Properties in 1987 and she built her first single-family home, a five bedroom with an elevator. Each year after that, Penny proceeded to purchase a tear-down property and then would build a new home which reflected the look and style of the original structure but with all the modern conveniences. She has built thirteen homes in Darien and one in New Canaan.

The year 2000 signaled change and Penny transitioned smoothly into commercial work for the first time. It was a natural move for her because it meant, among other things, that she would be able to give something back to the community that she was so intimately a part of. She began by restoring several downtown Darien retail/office buildings and then in 2003 Penny developed the much lauded Grove Street Plaza which is home to 10 luxury apartments, two retail stores, a restaurant and a public plaza with a fountain which operates year round. This project was a catalyst in spurring more much needed development in downtown Darien. In June 2010 Penny was recognized and celebrated by her community when she was selected as one of five women to receive the “Woman of Distinction Award”, an honor established by the Darien/Norwalk CT YWCA for women who have made significant contributions to the Darien and Norwalk communities.

Penny has a Business/Math B.S. degree from the University of California at Berkeley and has lived in Darien since 1968. She has also built eight single family homes in Sun Valley, Idaho where in 1997 she was presented with the city’s Beautification Award.

R. David Genovese founded Baywater Properties in 2001, following a 12-year career in real estate investment banking in New York and London. Prior to founding Baywater, David served as Deputy Head of Real Estate Investment Banking for Credit Suisse First Boston. Previously, David served as a Managing Director in Bankers Trust Company’s Real Estate Investment Banking Group. Through the course of his career in investment banking, David was responsible for a variety of transactions valued in excess of $15.0 billion, including mergers and acquisitions, equity offerings, bond offerings, securitized financings, bank loans, and principal investments. David is an honors graduate of Colby College and The London School of Economics and Political Science. David also received an MBA from The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania. David is currently a member of the Human Services Council of Norwalk, and a Senior Advisor to the Maritime Aquarium of Norwalk. David has served as a member of the Board of Overseers of Colby College, and as a board member of the Darien Technology Foundation, the Darien YMCA, Wee Burn Country Club, the Darien Historical Society, Darien Revitalization, Inc. and the Real Estate Finance Association of Connecticut. In 2007, David was named as one of the “40 under 40” business leaders in Fairfield County, Connecticut. A 1985 graduate of Darien High School, David lives in Darien with his wife, Julie, and their four children.

Arranged by Alex Garnett

Stuart Gibson, who previously spoke to the DMA about his work for UNESCO salvaging cultural treasures in war-torn Iraq and restoring destroyed museums will give us an update. In addition, he will include commentary on the current political situation.

Stuart will be speaking about the magnificent archaeological sites of Karakalpakstan region of Uzbekistan – sites dating from 3rd century BC to 4th century AD – and the ecological issues pertaining to their restoration.

Uzbekistan is home to the famous Silk Road cities of Khiva, Samarkand, and Bukhara.  He will also discuss the Aral Sea which is also located in Karakalpakstan. The Aral Sea was one of the largest inland salt water lakes in the world until the 1980s when the Soviets diverted the water from the two rivers feeding the sea to the surrounding areas to irrigate the cotton fields. Today the Aral Sea is 10 percent of its original size and in ecological crisis.

In addition, he will include commentary on the current political situation.

Arranged by Martin Skala

Ken Coe of Darien volunteers extensively with the Nature Conservancy in Africa. He will speak on the topic of the ivory trade and its implications to native peoples, as well as to the wild animals.

David in Afghanistan

David Fitzpatrick is beginning his 13th year as a Senior Executive Producer for CNN. He currently serves as an investigative producer, whose work appears principally on CNN’s flagship broadcast, the Anderson Cooper show, airing nightly at 8 p.m. He’s spent much of that time working with CNN Correspondent Drew Griffin exposing fraudulent charities. He joined CNN days after the 9-11 attack in September 2001 and for years worked as an anchor producer for CNN’s Aaron Brown, who anchored what was at the time CNN’s mainstay prime time newscast, “NewsNight With Aaron Brown.”

Prior to joining CNN, he spent 25 years at CBS News in a variety of positions, including working for three years as a producer for 60 Minutes in the mid-1990s. He traveled the world for CBS News, including being based for three years in London. Among the significant stories he covered were the hostage crisis in Iran, the rise of Polish Solidarity, the Falklands War, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the revolt and uprising at Tien An Men Square and countless other world events.

At CNN, he’s been involved in most of the major stories covered by the network, including most recently the explosions at the Boston Marathon and the capture and arrest of the two men deemed responsible. This year alone, he’s traveled to Egypt, South Africa and the Dominican Republic to produce stories for the Anderson Cooper broadcast.

David has lived in Darien since 1985 and is married to Adria Bates.

David will speak about “How To Watch TV News”. Just imagine… You’re sitting in your living room or den and watching television news. Either the nightly newscasts on the Big Three over-the-air networks or drawn to a cable news network. And your blood begins to boil a little bit. “How can they say that,? ” you’ll ask the person next to you. Or, perhaps: “This is all liberal clap-trap (substitute a favorite expression) and I’m not going to watch these guys any more.”

There is both and art a science to watching television news, especially on cable. In the prime time evening hours, the most popular channel, Fox News, rarely DOES any news. They TALK about it of course and it’s a brilliant business model. If you watch CNN, you might complain about a “liberal bias” but is there? For sure there is on MSNBC. But you do you actually know there’s a bias on CNN?

David will take you through the signals, both direct and subtle.

Arranged by Alex Garnett

CEO Bill Piper will be speaking about Waveny Care Network’s non-profit continuum of healthcare services as well as Waveny’s strategic plan and vision for the future.

Waveny Care Center offers comprehensive healthcare services to older adults and others affected by illness or injury. Waveny encourages and assists individuals to live with dignity and as independently as circumstances permit. It has earned its enviable reputation for excellence thanks to its patient-oriented philosophy and superior staff.

Conceived and planned out of concern for the quality of life for its neighbors, the Care Center was built entirely with contributions from the New Canaan community. It is incorporated as a not-for-profit charitable organization and is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors.

Admission to the Care Center’s facilities or programs is by physician referral and the approval of the Admissions Committee. Admission is open to anyone 16 years of age or older. While New Canaan residents are accorded first consideration, applicants from any geographic location are encouraged to apply and are admitted in the order of applications received.

Christopher Perry, Tri-State Director of Ronald McDonald Children Charities, will talk about the vision and mission of the organization and the impact it has had.

Mission
The mission of Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) is to create, find and support programs that directly improve the health and well being of children. Guiding us in our mission are our core values:

• Focusing on the critical needs of children.
• Celebrating the diversity of the programs we offer and the staff, volunteers and donors who make them possible.
• Staying true to our heritage of 38 years of responsible stewardship.
• Operating with accountability and transparency.

Vision
We believe that when you change a child’s life, you change a family’s, which can change a community, and ultimately the world.

We strive to be part of that change and part of the solution in improving the lives of children and their families by providing programs that strengthen families during their most difficult or challenging times.

We extend our reach and impact by leveraging our 39 years of experience and strong relationships with local communities and people in the field to continually establish Chapters across the globe.

We continually work to improve and expand our core programs, while also developing new services to address the unique needs of the communities we serve.

We don’t do it alone. We rely on our Chapters to identify needs and carry out our mission on the ground. We rely on our strong relationships with the medical community to provide access to health care. We rely on strategic alliances with organizations that have the knowledge and infrastructure to extend our reach. We rely on you – our donors, volunteers, staff and friends.

Website: http://www.rmhc.com/who-we-are/mission-and-vision/
DMA Contact: Tom Lom

Robert J. Begiebing is the author of thirty articles and stories, a play, and six books, including an historical New England trilogy of novels spanning 1648-1850. His final novel in the trilogy, Rebecca Wentworth’s Distraction (UPNE, 2003), won the Langum Prize for historical fiction in 2003. The first novel in the trilogy, The Strange Death of Mistress Coffin (Algonquin, 1991, 1996), was chosen as a Main Selection for the Mystery and Literary Guild Book Clubs, has been optioned for a film, and is now available from the University Press of New England in a new 20th anniversary e-book and hard copy edition.

His novels, including a third book in the trilogy The Adventures of Allegra Fullerton (UPNE 1999, 2001), have been widely and favorably reviewed in The New York Times, The Times of London, The Los Angeles Times, Publisher’s Weekly, Yankee Magazine, and Library Journal among many other national and regional periodicals. He is also the author of two critical books on twentieth-century fiction, and an historical anthology of nature writing in English since the 18th century.

His fiction writing has been supported by grants from the Lila-Wallace Foundation and the New Hampshire Council for the Arts. In 2007, Governor John Lynch appointed Begiebing to the Council for the Arts. In 2009 he served as one of the inaugural faculty members at the Norman Mailer Writers’ Colony. He has been a finalist judge for the Langum Prize in historical fiction twice (2009-2010), and a member of the board of trustees for the New Hampshire Writers’ Project. He currently serves on the board of the Norman Mailer Society and on the editorial board of The Mailer Review.

He is Founding Director of the Low-Residency MFA in Fiction and Nonfiction at Southern New Hampsire University, where he has won three awards for excellence in teaching and is currently Professor of English, Emeritus.

Begiebing’s biographical novel about the great British landscape painter J.M.W. Turner. The Turner Erotica, explores the mysterious relationship between Turner’s secret life and work, and his public life and work, a mystery that Begiebing believes has yet to be fully explored or adequately explained.

Upon his death in 1851 at the age of seventy-six, Turner left a massive legacy of paintings and sketch studies to the National Gallery in London. Critic John Ruskin and Gallery Keeper Ralph Wornum, charged with sorting and cataloging that legacy, were shocked to discover a considerable body of erotica and other materials suggesting a secret life about which they and Turner’s colleagues had little knowledge. Documentary evidence suggests that to protect Turner’s reputation, Ruskin and Wornum burned most of the erotic materials.

Begiebing’s talk and slide show will consider Turner’s life and work, as a context for readers to better understand the novel, and to better appreciate Turner’s influence on American writers and artists in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Arranged by Alex Garnett

Francis Thomas “Fay” Vincent, Jr. (born May 29, 1938) is a former entertainment lawyer and sports executive who served as the eighth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from September 13, 1989 to September 7, 1992.

After graduating from law school, Vincent was a partner in the law firm of Caplin & Drysdale. He also served as Associate Director of the Division of Corporation Finance of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Vincent was the chairman of Columbia Pictures and the vice chairman of Coca-Cola beginning in March 1982. In April 1986, he was promoted to the position of Executive Vice President of the Coca-Cola Company, which placed him in charge over all of the company’s entertainment activities.

Arranged by Jeff Freeman

David Walker, former Comptroller General in Washington D.C. will talk about the state of the Nation’s and Connecticut’s finances. According to Walker, the Government is too big as it is 24% of the economy, moving toward 37%.

Only 37% of spending is controlled by Congress, and 63% is fixed. There has been no budget for three years, so that there cannot be an allocation of resources. We must somehow control the spending, and 97% of those polled agree. The demographics show that the number of Social Security recipients is moving toward the same number of payees.

Program: 1) grow the economy, 2) reduce the amount of debt as a % of the economy, 3) The social effort made manageable, 4) Plan has to be politically feasible; opposition party must help.

The biggest holder of our debt is not China, but the Federal Reserve. We need extraordinary leadership from the President. He must go to the American public to pass legislation with bipartisan support.

We need redistricting to change the makeup of Congress reflect reality. Term limits would help, and House terms should be four years with half the House elected every two years.

The Songsters’ performance will mark the end of the 2012/2013 year for the DMA. They are a bunch of stout hearted senior men who enjoy performing a selection of Barbershop Harmony, Broadway, and Spiritual songs.

Concert starts at 11 am.