The Y’s Women, based in Westport, Connecticut, is an organization of active and involved working and retired women. Membership provides opportunities for personal growth through diverse learning and recreational experiences, travel and volunteer options and a social network.
Local Happenings
A brand new satellite group, initially being called Local Happenings, will provide an opportunity for members to meet each other for a variety of local activities. Did you ever read about a local event and wish there were others to share the activity with you? If so, consider joining this group and participating together in activities of this type.
This will be an informal group that will supplement – not replace – other satellite groups such as Book Clubs, the Movie Group, Solos, and Carpool & Go, which identify a scheduled activity each month. The group already had its first adventure at the Westport Museum of Contemporary Art (MoCA) on February 23 – a private tour of the exhibition “Paul Camacho: El Ritmo y La Unidad.” Camacho was active in Westport’s art life in the 1960s and 1970s.
You can join this group by sending your email address to Barbara Alfinito at barbsgetaway@aol.com. Information on future activities will be emailed to you. And feel free to send suggestions concerning local activities and events that might be of interest. We also are looking for someone to share the work involved in coordinating this group. Please email Barbara if you are interested.
Satellite Groups
NOTE: Please remember that all Y’s Women who participate in meetings held at the Westport Center for Senior Activities must be registered with the Center and check in before each meeting.
Book Group 2 will meet at the Westport Center for Senior Activities on Thursday, April 4 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm. We will be discussing Horse by Geraldine Brooks, and Beverly Silverman will lead the discussion. Please contact Nancy Bloom at 259-0071 or nancyerb@aol.com with any questions.
Book Group 3 will meet on Friday, April 12 at 10:30 am at the Westport Center for Senior Activities to discuss The Searcher by Tana French. Doris Levinson will lead the discussion. If you have any questions, contact Doris at drjlevinson@gmail.com.
The Movie Club will meet on Wednesday, April 17 at the Westport Center for Senior Activities. We meet informally at 2:15 pm to give members a chance to socialize, and our discussion begins at 2:30. Our assigned room sometimes changes, so you may want to ask the front desk about our location. We ask all attendees to have been vaccinated and to wear a mask. We are limited to 25 attendees, so please confirm your attendance with Margaret Mitchell by April 14.
We plan to discuss the movies A Place in the Sun and Chinatown. A Place in the Sun is scheduled for broadcast at 9:00 pm on Saturday, April 13 on the WNET network of PBS as part of Reel 13 Classics, and a video is listed in the catalogs of the Westport and Fairfield Libraries. Chinatown is available on Netflix until March 31, and a video is listed in the catalog of the Fairfield Library.
A Place in the Sun is a 1951 American drama based on the 1925 novel An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser. It was directed by George Stevens from a screenplay by Harry Brown and Michael Wilson, and stars Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor, and Shelley Winters. It tells the story of a working-class young man who is entangled with two women: one who works in his wealthy uncle’s factory and the other a beautiful socialite. The movie was inspired by the real-life murder of Grace Brown by Chester Gillette in 1906 – resulting in Gillette’s conviction and execution by electric chair in 1908.
Chinatown is a 1974 American neo-noir mystery directed by Roman Polanski from a screenplay written by Robert Towne. The film stars Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway. It was inspired by the California water wars, a series of disputes over southern California water at the beginning of the 20th century, by which Los Angeles interests secured water rights in the Owens Valley.
If you wish to be added to the email list for future events, please contact Margaret Mitchell at 255-9094 or margaret06824@yahoo.com.
NewsTalk: Interested in national and world affairs? Join other Y’s Women for lively discussions at NewsTalk. We will meet on Thursday, April 25 from 10 to 11:30 am at the Westport Library in the McCall Room (room 215). For more information, contact Doris Skutch at 247-3656.
Solos will be going to The Sinclair restaurant, 1229 Post Road in Fairfield (in the Brick Walk), for lunch at 12:00 noon on Friday, April 12. We will be able to order off the menu. For reservations, contact Terry Queirolo at 847-4121 or tmq44@icloud.com by Tuesday, April 9.
The Lunch & Trivia group will meet at noon on Thursday, April 18 at the VFW Hall. The cost is $25 (cash only). Please make every effort to be there if you indicate that you will attend – the Y’s Women have to guarantee a certain number in advance, and we lose money when those who signed up do not make it to the lunch. Contact Annette Kirban at 505-1187 or lakirban@optonline.net if you plan to join us.
The Mah Jong Group meets every Thursday at 1:00 pm at the Westport Center for Senior Activities. Advanced players only. For information, contact Barbara Alfinito at barbsgetaway@aol.com or 205-533-1884.
The Wisest Investment Group continues to meet monthly on the fourth Thursday of the month. We welcome members at our meetings at the Westport Center for Senior Activities. Please contact President Angela Vicenzi at vicenziae@yahoo.com if you’d like to sit in at a meeting and consider joining the group.
The Memoir Writing Group will meet on Tuesday, April 16 at 2:00 pm. For more information, please text Cary Peterson at 918-6481 or email her at carypeterson3@gmail.com.
Discussion Group for The New Yorker: This group meets remotely on Zoom on the second Tuesday of each month from 10:00 to 11:30 am. Each group member selects one article for discussion. If you’re interested, please contact Ellen Cahill at 856-6561 or ellenjcahill@hotmail.com.
Tai Ji and Meditation Classes: Instructor Ruby Shih is an experienced long-time Tai Ji / Qi Gong and Meditation teacher and a founder of a Tai Ji School in Manhattan (Nanlaoshu.org). She offers two classes:
- Tai Ji (in person): Meets weekly on Wednesdays from 9:30 -10:30 am at the Saugatuck Congregational Church, 245 Post Road East, Westport, room 109. The class focuses on breath and slow movement for relaxation, grounding, and balance to enhance our physical and mental well-being. A fee of $10 per session is used to offset rental and insurance costs.
- Meditation & Self-Care Massage (on Zoom): Meets weekly on Wednesdays at 7:30 - 8:30 pm on Zoom. It starts with a guided meditation suitable for beginners as well as advanced participants. At the end of each session, self-care massage is taught to enhance relaxation, circulation, and wellness. The fee for this class is $5 per session.
If you’re interested in either class, please contact Ruby at 917-816-6661 or Rubypalace88@gmail.com.
SAVE THE DATE
Spring Picnic and Annual Meeting
Monday, May 20, 11:30 am
Jackie Durrell Pavilion, Fairfield
More information to come in the May newsletter.
CARPOOL & GO!
On Friday, April 19, Carpool & Go will visit the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury for an 11:00 am guided tour of two excellent spring shows: Sea Change/See Change and Re-Work It. Sea Change features the work of five award-winning visual artists who explore the world’s oceans with a focus on the Arctic. Using a variety of media – including paintings, photos, videos, drawings, and sculptures – the artists celebrate the beauty of our oceans and concerns about their degradation. Re-Work It examines the types of labor that women have to manage – from caring for one’s family to earning money in the labor force. A reprisal of a small 2022 show, this exhibition incorporates a wider range of voices and perspectives and includes artwork from approximately 30 contemporary female artists.
We’ll meet behind Wells Fargo Bank in the Trader Joe’s parking lot at 10:00 am for a 10:15 departure. The guided tour will cost $17 per person. Please contact Jill Meyer at 226-4310 or jill@awayfortheday.net to reserve your place. Mail a check for $17 payable to Jill to 40 Owenoke Park, Westport, CT 06880. The gas reimbursement for your driver will be $6 in cash. Please indicate whether you can drive, as drivers are always needed and appreciated.
DIRECTIONS: Mattatuck Museum is at 144 West Main Street, Waterbury. Take the Merritt Parkway to exit 51 North onto Route 8 North. Take Route 8 to exit 33 onto I-84 East. Take exit 22 off I-84. At the end of the ramp, turn left onto South Main Street, which becomes North Main. Turn left onto West Main. After you cross Park Place, the museum will be on the right. Turn right into the entrance and drive along the side of the museum to the parking lot at the rear of the building.
Following our tour at the Mattatuck, we’ll enjoy lunch at San Marino, 111-23 Thomaston Avenue, Waterbury, 755-1148.
In Memoriam
Y’s Women lost two long-time members last month, both of whom had been quite active in our organization’s early years until moving to Florida after being widowed. Phyllis Markoff died on March 5 at the age of 94, and Sybil Steinberg died on March 17 at the age of 90.
Mercy Learning Center Needs Help
Mercy Learning Center Grateful for Donations
With the holidays and the cold winter weather, the needs of the students and families of Mercy Learning Center are greater than ever. Please donate non-perishable food and warm weather clothing any time at the Leasing Office of 597 Westport Avenue. The office staff will be happy to help carry your grocery bags from the car. The building is immediately to the right of Pepperidge Farm Corporate Headquarters; just drive to the end of the road and the Leasing Office is on your right.