Category: Connecticut Travel

​This past November, two tiger twins were born at Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo. They are rare, endangered Siberian tigers whose species in the wild have just under 500 animals left.

A group of men and women from around Fairfield County have banded together to support the endangered species programs that the Beardsley Zoo is part of and they have organized an Endangered Species Gala that will take place on November 3 at the Patterson Club in Fairfield. The committee is co-chaired by Kathy MacGhee of Shelton and Cathy Fell of Fairfield.​

The guest speaker for this event will be world class explorer, Richard Weiss. He is also an Emmy award winning producer and author of the book, “Born to Explore: How to be a Backyard Adventurer.”

If you are interested in sponsoring this event, please contact Amanda Bolanos, associate development director, at 203-394-6574, or at abolanos@beardsleyzoo.org. There are several level of sponsorships that include the $25,000 presenting sponsorship, $10,000 to the Amur Tigers, $5,000 to the Golden Lion Tamarin and $2,500 for the Red Wolf.

It’s the perfect winter celebration: outdoor sports; a restaurant crawl and a pancake breakfast; concerts and art shows; kids’ activities, tours and open houses, ice carving and much more will be featured during Norfolk’s first WINter Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, February 24 and 25. What’s even better, most of the events are free.

Event Highlights
The Norfolk volunteer fire department will sell fried dough and coffee during the ambulance squad’s ice-carving event, and will man a fire pit at Infinity Bistro for hot cocoa and S’mores. The Botelle School parent/teacher organization will serve refreshments and host kids’ games at the newly revived town ice skating rink. Cocoa will be available at the North Brook rail trail during a snowshoeing event sponsored by the Rails to Trails committee.

Revelers won’t go hungry. Norfolk Net has organized a restaurant crawl late Saturday afternoon at the town’s four restaurants and the Manor House Inn. The Immaculate Conception Church will host a free pancake breakfast on Sunday. And of course, sit-down meals will be readily available at almost any time of day.

Interested in sports? There will be plenty—skating on the town rink, cross-country skiing on one of Norfolk’s many trails, snowshoeing on the North Brook Trail (the committee has snowshoes to lend if you can’t bring your own) and sledding for all ages on the hill behind the Congregational Church on the green (bring your own sled). If you’re not into the outdoors, you can watch Olympic curling on TV and live action at a local club tournament during the Norfolk Curling Club’s open houses.

Music and art will be strongly represented. The Ryan Montbleau Band will perform at Infinity Hall Saturday night. On Sunday, Steve Dedman will be in the Bistro live, and Green River will be featured Friday night for those who arrive in Norfolk early. For classical music lovers, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival is sponsoring a performance by the Magari Quintet in the library on Saturday afternoon and offers the audience the opportunity to ask questions and discuss the music. As for art, there are shows by painters Tom Hlas and Alicia Mordenti, and work by 19th-century photographer Marie Kendall will be on display at the Norfolk Historical Society’s museum.

The library will host Magnificent Microscopes on Saturday morning, and the Norfolk Land Trust’s talk by “bear whisperer” Ben Kilham will be in the afternoon. The hands-on microscope session is intended primarily for kids, but the bear talk is for everyone.

To see a full schedule of events and times, go to http://weekendinnorfolk.org/ or call 860-542-5829. For updates, follow Weekend in Norfolk on Facebook. And save the date: our annual Weekend in Norfolk is coming up August 3, 4 and 5…save the first weekend in August for three days of summer fun.

Meet Ed Vebell. He is 96, a nonagenarian, and he’s probably lived a more interesting life than you have. Like most of your older relatives Ed has stories to tell, but his span the globe, span time, and span famous events and his work will be presented at the Westport Historical Society through April 28, 2018.

It may sound cliché but it all started when Ed was shipped off to war. Ed nearly started out as an aircraft gunner, an occupation with a notoriously short lifespan, but when his superiors were alerted to his artistic ability he was quickly transferred to the US Army’s military newspaper, Stars and Stripes, as a field illustrator. As it turns out, illustrating battles was only the beginning of a decade’s long journey through odd, extraordinary and potentially lethal experiences.

Mr. Vebell spent years overseas in exotic places like Morocco and the cabarets of Paris. His decades as an illustrator, for publications like Sports Illustrated and Reader’s Digest,connected him with a cavalcade of characters including Grace Kelly and Matisse. Oh, and did we mention he also competed at the 1952  Olympics in fencing?

Like any traveler he collected some souvenirs along the way. A century gives you opportunities to acquire interesting life experiences and trinkets; only Ed’s trinkets aren’t the knick knacks you find in grandma’s attic but treasures like Buffalo Bill’s hat and a spear from the Maasai, an African lion hunter tribe.

Join us and become immersed in the life of arguably Westport’s most interesting man, and be sure to look for Ed’s recently published book “An Artist at War”. Signed copies will be available for sale at the exhibit opening and in our gift shop.

The Curious Case of Ed Vebell, runs through April 28 @ Westport Historical Society, 25 Avery Place across from Town Hall.  Donations Accepted, For more information call 203-222-1424 or vistiwestporthistory.org. 

The Institute of American Indian Studies in Washington has a perfectly unique way to top off Valentine’s Day week. On Saturday, February 17 from 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m., Ojibway artist, and musician Allan Madahbee will explain the cultural significance and the hauntingly beautiful sound of the Native American courting flute. In Native American culture, the flute is deeply rooted in the traditional Eastern Woodland Indian traditions as well as in the culture of indigenous peoples of the Americas.

Traditional Native American flutes are known by several names, one of the most common being the courting flute. As the name suggests, the courting flute was played during courting rituals by a young man serenading his intended bride. Courting was not a private affair, and this formal ritual normally took place in front of the entire tribe. It is said that once the young man and young woman were joined together, she would break the flute in half so he would never play it for anyone else. This is why some tribes do not allow, or at least discourage females from playing these sacred flutes.

Today, makers of Native American Flutes like Ojibway artist and musician Allan Madahbee craft their personal style and sound into their creations. Madahbee began to research the Chippewa flute culture and was influenced and mentored by Joseph Firecrow of the Cheyenne nation. “We became friends and he provided guidance and feedback and explained some of his methods of flute making. With his passing last year, we have all lost a great Native American flute maker and musician. I am proud to continue our flute making traditions.” The sound of the courting flute that is usually made of cedar has an uncommon scale for Western music and is entrancing.

Born on the shores of Lake Huron, Allan Madahbee is a registered Ojibway (Chippewa) Indian that has pursued the traditional arts and crafts of his ancestors. He has been making Native American flutes for about ten years. “I had always thought they were a product of the Southwest Indian tribes, but a book that I found that was written during the 1800s about Chippewa culture, had a passage about the Chippewa flutes, along with pictures. This made me realize that they were indeed a part of my Chippewa culture. Knowing that my ancestors constructed these flutes for hundreds of years has inspired me to continue this tradition. Also, the haunting sound from these mystical instruments is a large part of my inspiration.”

Along with constructing Woodland flutes, beaded moccasins, woodcarvings, Native American regalia, and rock sculptures, Madahbee always returns to his artistic roots in paintings. Mainly self-taught, Madahbee had high school art courses with fellow Ojibway artists Blake Debassige and James Simon – two well known Anishnawbe artists that are respected and have their paintings displayed around the globe.

Space is limited and reservations are suggested. To make sure you get a spot call the Institute for American Indian Studies at (860) 868-0518 or email general@iaismuseum.org to reserve your spot. The program is included in the price of admission: $10 adults; $8 seniors; $6 children; IAIS Members free.

“The Great Spirit is in all things, he is in the air we breathe. The Great Spirit is our Father, but the Earth is our Mother. She nourishes us, that which we put into the ground she returns to us…” – Big Thunder (Bedagi) Wabanaki Algonquin

Native American wisdom is something that resonates with many people. In years gone by, Native Americans passed down their history and sayings orally from generation to generation as a guidebook for a way of life that honored and respected all living things.

As Native American culture in Connecticut grew and evolved so did the art of storytelling and wise sayings. These were used as tools to pass down traditions, local customs, hunting and gardening skills, family and child-rearing traditions and courting rituals. In essence, these stories and sayings helped connect them to each other and to the land where they made their home.

An Important Legacy

Through their stories and sayings, Native Americans shared and preserved the memory and traditions of their ancestors. These became an integral part of the legacy passed on to future generations.

Today, remembering and sharing this wisdom is one way to keep the cultural traditions of Native Americans alive. It gives us a glimpse into this rich cultural heritage and into the past of our great nation.

Every Wednesday, the Institute for Native American Studies in Washington will share a saying on their FaceBook page with a “Wisdom Wednesday” posting to inspire you with the wisdom of those that have gone before us.

About The Institute for American Indian Studies

The Institute for American Indian Studies preserves and educates through discovery and creativity the diverse traditions, vitality, and knowledge of Native American cultures. Through archaeology, the IAIS is able to build new understandings of the world and history of Native Americans, the focus is on stewardship and preservation. This is achieved through workshops, special events, and education for students of all ages.

Located on 15 woodland acres the IAIS has an outdoor Three Sisters and Healing Plants Gardens as well as a replicated 16th c. Algonkian Village. Inside the museum, authentic artifacts are displayed in permanent, semi-permanent and temporary exhibits from prehistory to the present that allows visitors a walk through time.

The Institute for American Indian Studies is located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington Connecticut and can be reached online or by calling 860-868-0518.

The two rare Amur or Siberian tiger cubs were born in November at the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport have received worldwide attention. Unfortunately, the Tiger cubs, Reka and Zaya are too young to be viewed by the public, however, Blue Buffalo has sponsored a live streaming webcam in their nursery!

The webcam offers animal lovers a close-up view of these two stripped sweethearts at play from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Watching the live feed also gives the public a chance to see how hard the zoo staff is working to care for these little ladies that are genetically so important to sustaining their breed.

The Beardsley Zoo is an accredited zoo that does much more than just display animals. Accredited Zoos play an important role in conservation, saving animals and breeding them that are on the verge of extinction in the wild, like Amur Tigers.

In the wild, Amur Tigers are critically endangered due to poaching and the change in their habitat. Reka and Zaya will help keep the genetic pool diverse so these new arrivals are very important overall to this rare and beautiful species.

In late spring, the Beardsley Zoo will move the tiger cubs to a new tiger exhibit where the public can actually watch them frolic… but for now get ready to ohhhhhh and awwwww when watching the webcam!