Girl's Softball
The Wave are now 7-0, a wonderful start to the season. They have batted in 41 runs over this stretch of games while allowing only 4. After clobbering Wilton on April 21 by a score of 11-0, Darien was able to win some close ones, beating Stamford 3-2 on Wednesday, April 23 and getting by St. Joe's 1-0 on Friday. Next up is an away game against Staples on Monday.
In baseball, Darien is currently 5-3 and fifth place in the East. Norwalk is 8-0 and tops in the West.
Boy's Lacrosse
Darien boys lacrosse are 5-3 after a nice four-game winning streak had them at 4-1. Darien lost to non-league Chaminade (NY) 10-16, bounced back to beat Wilton 11-7, but just lost to non-league Brunswick 7-11 on Saturday, April 26.
In Saturday's game, Darien had kept it close, with a half-time score of 4-5, but Brunswick sealed-the-deal with 5 unanswered goals, 4 coming in the 3rd period and one at the start of the fourth.
Next up for the Wave is Westhill on Tuesday, April 29.
Girls Lacrosse
Darien is 8-1 and top of the West Division. The team's only loss came against St. Anthony's (NY) 8-13 on April 15. Quickly bouncing back, Darien pummeled Greenwich 20-0 and is on a 5-game winning streak. This season the team has scored 126 goals while allowing 50.
USA Lacrosse ranks the Wave No. 4 in the nation while their only loss, St. Anthony (NY) is ranked No. 1. The New Canaan Rams drop to 21st place from a previous No. 4.
Spring Girls' Golf
Darien is currently 4-2 this season, recently beating Ridgefield 182-204 at Wee Burn CC. Darien's low-score was a 40 on the par-35 course. New Canaan looks like the team to beat, currently at 4-0, as they fired a team low 165 on the tough Richter Park GC in Danbury. Chloe Cui of the Rams had a 37 on the par-35 course.
On April 16, the 7th CT Distance Festival was held at Xavier HS. The mile-event saw a tightly-packed finish among the men seeded runners. The winner, from Ridgefield HS, ran a 4:22.04. The quickest Darien runner was Andrew Sharron, who ran a 4:33.07 time but found himself in 17th place! Of the seeded runners, 67 ran under a 5:00 mile.
Spring tennis is underway. For the Darien girls, they are currently 4-2. Greenwich is dominate in the West at 6-0 and Ridgefield leads Darien and others in the East at 5-0.
For the boys, Darien is tied for first in the East at 5-1 with Ridgefield. Darien has an impresive record of winning 33 of their matches while losing only 9, with two shut-outs. Their only loss came against Staples, 3-4.
Darien in the Upset!
The Blue Wave played the spoiler on Saturday, ending the Rams unbeaten season with a 4-1 upset for the CIAC Division I crown at Quinnipiac's M&T Arena. For New Canaan, the loss was yet another in a long string of disappoinments in state finals. Their only championship came 53 years ago in 1972 and the Rams have come up short in 10 straight trips to the finals.
For Darien, four different skaters scored goals on Saturday coupled with an outstanding job by Wave goalie Schafer Repsher who recorded 25 saves. Darien took the lead late in the first, scoring a short-handed goal with only 35 seconds left on the clock. The second period saw no one score with New Canaan firing off 16 shots to the Wave's 13. In the third period, Rephsher shut down a flurry of shots before Darien tacked on 2 to go up 3-0 with only 6 minutes remaining.
New Canaan managed a score with less the 5 minutes left and Darien scored an empty-netter to cap the win at 4-1.
This was the Wave's first championship since winning back-to-back finals in 2015 and 2016, and have a total a four titles in ten final appearances. Darien (18-5-1) is responsible for giving New Canaan their only loss and tie this season as they finish up at 23-1-1.
Ah! Coffee
Waking up tomorrow morning, 150 million Americans will drink over 400 million cups of coffee. On average, both male and females over 18 will consume about 3.2 cups. Most of this Joe (65%) is enjoyed during breakfast hours while 30% is consumed between meals. Fully 50% of the adult population drinks coffee.
An average home-brewed 8-ounce cup of coffee contains between 120 to 180mg of caffeine. Specialty-coffee shop servings typically contain 160mg of caffeine per 8 ounces but since these coffees are often served in 12 to 20 ounce cups, figure between 240 to 415 mg, depending on the size. Brewed decaffeinated coffee contains between 5-15 mg of caffeine per 8 ounces.
The health benefits are remarkable as accumulating evidence from recent studies suggest coffee consumption has been associated with prevention or delay of such degenerative disease as type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, Parkinsons, Alzheimer's disease, and some cancers. These potential benefits have been attributed in part to the antioxidants present in coffee. Coffee also assists in moderate weight reduction, increased insulin sensitivity and reduced inflammation. Black coffee can act as a substitute for high-caloric, nutrient-poor soft drinks, sports drinks, alcoholic beverages, and various high calorie fruit juices. Coffee contains over 1000 different biochemical molecules, many formed during the roasting process. Coffee is a rich source of polyphenols which are linked to numerous health benefits and has been shown to improve adipocytes while lowering fetuin-A levels, a blood protein which inhibits liver function. Available data also suggests there's a significant inverse association between coffee consumption and depression. Current studies show that coffee intake of up to 6 cups/day does not affect the heart's QT interval or pose a risk for serious arrhythmias, so Enjoy!
55th Anniversary
Good Grades for Darien Schools
Darien Public Schools has recently received top grades from a school-ranking outfit named Niche. Niche assembles data compiled from reviews, other public information and data from the Dept of Education. The company ranked the Darien district as the fourth-best in the state (and behind New Canaan, at No. 1).
Darien's 4,700 kids in all grades have a student-teacher ratio of only 11 to 1. Rankings in specific categories give Darien an A+ in most, including Food served. Two areas which need improvement are Administration at B+ and the area of Diversity with a C-.
Some folks remembering Jordy Perry Kay (right) at her Memorial at the Weed Beach Hut.
Left - Josie and Lauren with Jordy's son Andrew
Eddy, Eric Joosten, Lauren Fair and Tom Tyler
Kathy Micha Frate, Paul Hendrickson, Jeff Frate
Friday, August 15
Richie Havens
Sweetwater
Tim Hardin
Ravi Shankar
Melanie
Arlo Guthrie
Joan Baez
Saturday, August 16
Quill
Country Joe McDonald
Keef Hartley Band
Santana
Incredible Strig Band
Canned Heat
Grateful Dead
Leslie West and Mountain
Creedence Clearwater
Janis Joplin and the Kozmic Blues Band
Sly & the Family Stone
The Who
Jefferson Airplane
Sunday-Monday August 17,18
Joe Cocker and the Grease Band
Country Joe & the Fish
Ten Years After
Johnny Winter
Blood Sweat and Tears
Crosby, Stills and Nash
Paul Butterfield Blues Band
Sha Na Na
Jimi Hendrix
Paul Hepp 1950-2024
Classmate Paul Frederick Hepp passed away on Saturday, June 22, 2024.
See full obiturary in the Memorials Sections.
Classmate Susan Danvers and Hubby Bob in Olympia, Washington.
Love to Hear From You!
Please, leave your remarks in the 'Comment' Section
Classmate Gary Swartz (far right) and wife Sally send greetings from Oman. The couple have their daughter's family staying there for the US State Department. The UN considers Oman the most improved country in terms of development in the last 40 years and is the oldest independent Arab state.
Do A 55th Reunion?
Lots of classmates are talking about holding a 55th reunion of the DHS Class of 1969. Probably something on the lighter-side, a casual Friday get-together and then a restaurant dinner Saturday night.
If this sounds good, you can contact classmate Jeff Myers, someone brave enough to put his name out-there.
Jeff can be reached at myerspercussion@gmail.com . Could be fun!
On 7 acres within the heart of Darien, Baywater Properties is re-imagining downtown Darien — at The Corbin District — resetting the landscape of shopping, dining, lifestyle and entertainment. Baywater began this exciting transformation in 2019 with extreme attention to detail and a sharp focus on creating one of the most enjoyable and walkable downtown environments in the region
We know things are rough right now. So who better than some cheerleaders to keep up our spirits to finish the fight!
Front row left to right:
Anahid Kavookjian, Josie Mullen, Joni Dobson
Back row left to right:
Sue Geiger, Sharon Denunzio, Cinny Cobb, Sue Perschino, Peggy McNeil, Sue Venarde
Sandy Young, Carol Ann Augustus
Pete White | Dave Terry |
Claudia Smith Davenport | Kathy DelleFontane Goossen |
Dennis Gavin | Pete Johnson |
Rick Poccia | Janet Martin Fisher |
Mark Beckwith | Anita Conway |
Bruce Frail | Paul Dominis |
Patty Mazza Sturges | Sue Dickman Klein |
Sally Armus | Christy Rodgers |
Mardi Porter | Ed Tyler |
Bill Guptill | Mark Blackman |
Georgiana Smith Bloom | Kate Mason Gredinger |
Pete Franklin | Gary Gibbs |
Tom Lane | Billy Harper |
Anahid Kavoojian Vrana | Dave Lynch |
Lauren Fair | Jimmy Valente |
Tim Potts | Casey Nickerson |
Suzanne Nikola Baldino | John van den Heuvel |
Jim Morrison | Chris Bischof |
Josie Mullen | Paul Buckley |
Johnny Maul | Skip Kennedy |
Bev Bonfoey | Barb Thorne |
Marni Kent Hansell | Bob Mercer |
Bob Ierardi | Eric Joosten |
Dennis Sullivan | Tom Milek |
Gary Swartz | Dave Miller |
Steve Verses | Jay Baker |
Cliff Powell | Ann Back Price |
Steve and Patti Craig | Anne Marie McGarry |
Vandy Van Wagener | Bill Schade |
George Farrington | Todd and Martha Robbins |
Rick Weber | Jane Seyferth |
Sue Venarde Mahoney | Mark Tinker |
Joan Dobson Glazebrook | Paul Hendrickson |
Sandy McGill | Ted Vanech |
Jim Tully | Stu Traver |
Dick Costello | Mike Lopriore |
Charlie Smith | Chris Eng Leventhal |
Jane Genster | John Wuerthner |
Carol Ann Augustus Summers | Anne Irvine |
Ken Broska | Paul Hepp |
Dave Jefferson | Sue Geiger |
Allison Poccia | Joanne Schoepf Reisser |
Benny Bruno | Kyle Hepp |
Kathy Strachan | Pam Burkhardt Mele |
Peter Scholtz |
Great shot of classmates Kenny Peliksza, Mike 'Lope' Lopriore, Dick Costello, and Ben Bruno in Jacksonville. Nobody mentioned any golf scores but all were sad to see former Jax resident Paul Hepp leave for Texas.
Choir
Steve and Patti Craig squishing apples from their apple trees. One year they report harvesting over 20 bushels of apples. (Note: 1 bushel = 48 pounds). The Craigbo Cider Co. made 16 gallons of unadulterated apple cider, while also donating apples to a local farmer and food pantry.
Terry Cummings, Tim Maul, Cliff Powell
Shot of trip out west during summer of '69 when we hitchhiked to California. Mark Tinker's dad bought us the car to roam around California and back to CT. Thought I lost this. Great memories from that trip. Those were the days! -George Wehmann