ArtsWestCT opens new downtown office suite

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 20, 2023 — (Pictured): Mayor Nancy R. Rossi, center right, cuts the ribbon with ArtsWestCT President Elinor Slomba, center left, and Umbrella Impact founder and President Nasiyra Clayton to celebrate the grand opening of the arts organization’s downtown office suite at 377 Main St. on Tuesday.

Shown with them are, from left, ArtsWestCT supporter Steven R. Mullins; Councilwoman Bridgette J. Hoskie, D-1; Councilman Gary Donovan, D-at large; Director of Membership and Marketing Simon McDonald of the Milford Regional Chamber of Commerce; Councilman Mitchell L. Gallignano, D-4; and West Haven Economic Development Commission member Frederick Brown.

Slomba said ArtsWestCT opens its doors to the city as its board of directors and advisers, joined by new partner Umbrella Impact LLC, begin the process of fostering the organization’s mission to “center creative expression and performance by and for the West Haven community.”

Umbrella Impact, a 501(c)(3) youth development organization, is focused on lifting children out of poverty through dynamic opportunities and education, according to its website.

ArtsWest aims to create an arts haven where members of West Haven’s “diverse community come together to share their talents, stories, art and cultural heritage,” Slomba said.

The organization’s new headquarters is located in Suite 105, across from the Green and two buildings west of City Hall.

ArtsWest and Umbrella Impact will use the two-office suite, based in the building’s lower level, to support programs, meetings and workshops to “spark much-needed economic and community development,” Slomba said.

The office space will serve as a “hub for Umbrella Impact’s character building and financial literacy project,” she said.

Read the full ArtsWestCT News Release.

(Geiger/West Haven Chamber)

Poster display at City Hall chronicles Vietnam War

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 19, 2023 — The city and its Vietnam veterans group are presenting a 19-month poster display on the Vietnam War at City Hall, starting this month.

Fifty years ago, President Richard Nixon held a White House reception for U.S. prisoners of war from Vietnam. On May 24, Nixon’s namesake library in Yorba Linda, California, observed the homecoming’s golden anniversary — 50 years to the day of the then-president hosting the largest dinner in White House history in honor of the released POWs.

In 1973, 591 of the POWs were released by the North Vietnamese. A half-century later, nearly 200 of them dined in the Richard Nixon Presidential Library’s White House East Room replica and re-created the celebrated dinner, down to the menu items and centerpieces.

To mark the anniversary locally, the city and West Haven Vietnam Veterans Inc. are sponsoring the educational poster series, “A Learning Experience,” to recognize the unwavering courage and selfless sacrifice of the approximately 766 American service members held captive during the Vietnam War, said Dave Ricci, the veterans group’s president.

The series, already underway, will also chronicle nearly every aspect of the war, said Kevin Sullivan, a member of West Haven Vietnam Veterans.

Sullivan said the first poster display, “Native Americans in the Vietnam War,” pays tribute to the war’s most decorated Native American soldier, the late Billy Bob Walkabout, a native Cherokee who lived in West Haven and Montville before his death in 2007 at age 57.

Walkabout was a citizen of the Anishanoi, or Blue Holly Clan, of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

He served in Company F, 58th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam and received several U.S. military decorations for valor in combat, including the Distinguished Service Cross — the Army’s second-highest military decoration after the armed forces’ Medal of Honor — along with the Silver Star Medal, the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart.

Many of the decorations were awarded during Walkabout’s “exceptionally valorous actions” on Nov. 20, 1968, during a long-range reconnaissance patrol southwest of Hue.

Walkabout was honorably discharged as a second lieutenant. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

“This two-part poster series will explore some of the accomplishments, the stereotypes, the bravery and the pain that shaped the Native American experience during and after the Vietnam War,” said Vietnam Veterans member Howie Thomas, a member of the Schaghticoke Indian Tribe of Kent in the hills of northwestern Connecticut.

“The complete poster series will be presented as a learning experience,” Ricci said. “Posters will be placed and rotated monthly by members of our veterans group.”

The posters will cover much of the wood-paneled walls on City Hall’s first-floor entryway, Ricci said, adding that members of the public will see the displays upon entering the building’s west wing.

In October, the displays will continue with “The POW Experience in the Vietnam War,” a four-poster set commemorating the hundreds of POWS who came home from Vietnam in 1973.

It will follow with “The United States Road to War in Vietnam: 1945-1965” in November and “The U.S. Navy in the Vietnam War” and “The Coast Guard in the Vietnam War” in December.

The 2024 poster displays will kick off in January with “Indigenous Peoples in the Vietnam War,” followed by “Native Americans in the Vietnam War” in February.

The rest of the 2024 displays are:

—    March, “African Americans in the Vietnam War.”

—    April, “Making the Modern World.”

—    May, “Air Base Defense in the Vietnam War.”

—    May, “U.S. Army Airmobility in the Vietnam War.”

—    June, “Riverine Operations in the Vietnam War.”

—    June, “Combat Medicine in the Vietnam War.”

—    July, “Military Nurses in the Vietnam War.”

—    July, “Medical Advancements in the Vietnam War.”

—    August, “U.S. Servicewomen in the Vietnam War.”

—    August, “Service Organizations in the Vietnam War.”

—    September, “Intelligence in the Vietnam War.”

—    October, “Counterinsurgency in the Vietnam War.”

—    November, “U.S. Sensor Technology in the Vietnam War.”

—    December, “United States Allies in the Vietnam War.”

In January 2025, the displays will continue with “Casualties by Other Means in the Vietnam War,” followed by “The POW Experience in the Vietnam War” in February 2025 and “Reclaiming What Was Lost in the Vietnam War” in March 2025.

The poster series will culminate with the 50th anniversary of National Vietnam War Veterans Day on March 29, 2025, Ricci said.

‘Fall Foliage Concert Series’ set for 7 p.m. Sept. 30

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 15, 2023 — The city’s “Fall Foliage Concert Series” is set for 7 p.m. Sept. 30 with Arena Rock Tribute, celebrating the music, performance and spectacle of the ’70s and ’80s.

The new concert series, held in Old Grove Park on Palace Street, will continue with Avenue Groove on Oct. 5 and American Honey on Oct. 13.

The two-hour concerts are free and sponsored by the city and the Department of Parks and Recreation.

Avenue Groove is a six-piece “R&B, funk and dance band with attitude.” American Honey specializes in modern country hits and ’90s pop rock favorites.

The Arena Rock show was scheduled for the Savin Rock Festival in July but was postponed by rain. The Avenue Groove show was slated for Sept. 8 but was postponed by rain.

Rossi holding final town hall meeting at 6 p.m. Oct. 4

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 15, 2023 — Mayor Nancy R. Rossi is inviting residents to participate in a town hall meeting in person at City Hall or virtually on Facebook Live at 6 p.m. Oct. 4.

The community event is aimed at fostering communication and transparency between City Hall and West Haven residents.

Residents can attend the town hall in the Harriet C. North Community Room of City Hall, 355 Main St., or they can participate in the meeting via Facebook Live on the UNH Mayor’s Advisory Commission’s page.

The town hall is sponsored by the mayor’s office and the University of New Haven Mayor’s Advisory Commission, a collaborative, student-driven task force founded in 2015 to strengthen town-gown relations.

The UNH commission is led by Brian Cao, a sophomore studying national security, and adviser Chris Haynes, an associate professor of political science and national security.

All members of the community are encouraged to participate in the town hall and ask questions. The moderators are Haynes and commission member Deepak Dinesh.

Participants can send questions before the meeting by email to ddine1@unh.newhaven.edu or chaynes@newhaven.edu. They can also submit questions during the meeting in the “Comment” section on Facebook Live.

Participants must keep all dialogue courteous and respectful.

For more information, call the mayor’s office at 203-937-3510, or email ddine1@unh.newhaven.edu or chaynes@newhaven.edu.

Deputy Fire Chief Zayas honored as Hispanic of Year

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 15, 2023 — West Shore Fire Department Deputy Chief Rafael Zayas received the city’s Hispanic American of the Year award at the fifth annual Hispanic Heritage Celebration on Friday.

Mayor Nancy R. Rossi and the West Haven Hispanic Heritage Committee honored Zayas, the son of Puerto Rican-born parents, during a midday ceremony on the steps of City Hall.

The committee bestows the award annually on a Hispanic resident who epitomizes service in West Haven’s thriving Hispanic community.

Amid a partly cloudy, windy day, Zayas, who will mark his inaugural year of service with the West Shore Fire District on Oct. 1, celebrated his Puerto Rican roots with dozens of friends and loved ones at the 20-minute event.

Along with descendants of folks from Puerto Rico and Latin America, he was also joined by an array of West Haven and New Haven fire officials, West Haven employees and residents, and city and state leaders, including Milford Democratic Sen. James Maroney, the Senate’s deputy majority leader whose district includes West Haven, who presented Zayas with a General Assembly citation on behalf of the city’s delegation.

Zayas was flanked by a line of firefighters, officers and chiefs from the West Shore, West Haven and Allingtown fire departments, as well as the New Haven Fire Department, as he humbly accepted the Hispanic American of the Year award by thanking the crowd, the Rossi administration and his fellow firefighters.

Read the full story and see the photo spread at Hispanic American of the Year 2023.

Farmers market open Thursdays and Saturdays

WEST HAVEN, Sept. 12, 2023 — The Tony Inzero Farmers Market has opened its 2023 season next to the Oak Street Beach parking lot off Captain Thomas Boulevard.

The market, nestled on the right side of the beach lot, includes state farmers selling homegrown fruits and vegetables and crafters selling wares from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursdays and Saturdays through Oct. 14.

It features artisan breads by Hoffman Unlimited LLC, sauces and jams by Chile King LLC, and salts, oils and vinegars by Dash N’ Drizzle.

The farmers market is partnering with ArtsWestCT this season to showcase a variety of entertainment, such as live performances and unique demonstrations, at the Saturday markets.

The market also includes more than 20 different vendors, crafters, organizations and food trucks during the season.

The Thursday markets feature What the Truck?! BBQ, in addition to ice cream at both markets.

Parking is available in the Oak Street municipal lot and on Palace Street. Oak Street is on the senior shuttle route and the CTtransit route. In addition, a van will run from the West Haven Senior Center, 201 Noble St., to Oak Street at 10:30 a.m. Thursdays.

The Department of Elderly Services is distributing reusable farmers market cards to eligible city residents. Residents 60 and older who meet income requirements are eligible for $24 vouchers in the form of electronic cards. For information on the Seniors Farmers Market Nutrition Program, call the department at 203-937-3507.

The farmers market is sponsored by the city and has operated since 2000. It was dedicated in 2010 in memory of Anthony F. “Tony” Inzero, a leader in the downtown business community who co-owned Flower Affair on Campbell Avenue for many years and was a founding member and longtime president of the West Haven Business Association.

To participate in the farmers market or for information, contact Killian Gruber, the market’s manager, at kgruber@westhaven-ct.gov or 203-937-3510.

For the latest news on the market, go to West Haven Farmers Market.