Ridgefield's Talk of Our Town

Ridgefielders Biking for Cancer Research in Pan-Massachusetts Challenge

by Terri Woods Garlick
Twelve Ridgefield cyclists (who have individually raised a between $500 and $4200) will be riding throughout Massachusetts on August 7-8 in the  31th Annual Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC), raising money for cancer research and treatment through its Jimmy Fund for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
More than 5,000 cyclists are expected to participate in this fully supported bike-a-thon that offers ten unique routes (each with varied mileage and designed to cater to different abilities) through 46 towns.  Since 1980, this pioneer event in the athletic fundraising industry has raised over $270 million, and for the past 3 years, 100 percent of every-rider dollar raised has gone directly to …

Flower Power on Main

White and lavender Spray Roses, Pincushion Protea, full size Gerbera and Solidago and Lilly Tulips are brightening up the sidewalks of Main Street thanks to Mary Jones. “Flower shops are beautiful things and I think it adds a whole lot to the town to have one on Main Street,” says Jones, owner of Rodier Flowers. In a span of nearly 60 years, Jones is only the third owner of Rodier Flowers.

Jones purchased Rodier Flowers at 447 Main Street just under a year ago, where she shared a “downstairs” location with GiGi Taylor. She has recently moved the shop to a store front at 384 Main Street (next …

It’s a Lemon Square Kind of Day!

THE BEST LEMON SQUARES recipe from John Barricelli’s new cookbook “The SoNo Baking Company Cookbook: The Best Sweet and Savory Recipes for Every Occasion” (Clarkson Potter, 2010.)
Crust

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup toasted wheat germ

1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

3/4 teaspoon coarse salt

1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Filling

1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup lemon juice (from about 5 lemons), plus 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

(or substitute with vanilla extract)

3 large eggs at room temperature

1 egg yolk, at room temperature

3 to 4 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar, for dusting.

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-Coat a …

House Tour: Beauty Combined with Historic Grandeur

Jim and Anmarie Galowski and their three children lived overseas for six years, in various hubs throughout the world. They decorated each home they lived in with a taste for the culture of the place they inhabited; embracing the ethnicity and traditions wholeheartedly. “I always wanted my kids to feel as if each place was home, no matter where we were living,” says Anmarie.

When the time had arrived for the family to settle permanently in the states, the Galowski’s searched for their dream home; an antique, somewhere in southern Connecticut, suitable for a family of five and the abundance of magnificent …

Creature Comforts in a Ridgefield Yard

by Geoffrey Morris
Over the giant protective walls surrounding the Binn Animal Rescue & Sanctuary, lie 20 acres of rolling wooded countryside, an acre-sized pond, a gushing stream, and an old farmhouse lovingly renovated to today’s lush standards. It’s nature at its best. Then cross the narrow stream, enter those wooded acres, and emerge into a land hardly imaginable to those driving just a few hundred feet away on Branchville Road.

Speckled among the trees are 13 paddocks of varying sizes that wrap around large wooden sheds placed in the center of a fenced-in area. In each of these paddocks live animals of varying breeds—more than 150 and counting—rescued by the couple who run …

The Right Lighting Makes All the Difference

by Olga Adler ~ Olga Adler Interiors www.olgaadler.blogspot.com
Light fixtures can make or break a room. Choices are endless so make sure to take time and choose one that reflects your style and the feel you want to convey for a room.

Once we decided to add some interest with millwork for this formal living room ceiling, my client fell in love with the idea of a square light fixture with crystals:

For this master bath the turquoise and metallic damask wallpaper set the stage and so all other elements had to follow. We found this stunning chandelier with silver and gold leaf canopy and turquoise beads to complete this spa-like master bathroom:…

The Big House

by Geoffrey Morris
Living Large on Watch Hill’s Oceanfront
LAST SUMMER I took an afternoon ride on the 74-foot, 1937 cocktail cruiser Aphrodite. During lunch I talked with the boat’s owner, Charles Royce, a hugely successful money manager. Royce told me about his hotel project, rebuilding a 150-year-old inn on the coast of Rhode Island. The scale of the project was mesmerizing, and because of my interest, he invited me to Ocean House, the replica of the old luxury resort by that name in Watch Hill.Ocean House

My wife and I visited the not-yet-opened resort in the fall and had dinner with Grant Simmons, Royce’s business partner. Simmons told …

What Famous “American” is Buried in Ridgebury Cemetery?

by Terri Woods Garlick

There comes a time in every child’s life, when they realize that maybe their father isn’t the smartest man in the world.  But just the other day, after a conversation with my father, I was reminded that maybe mine still is.  My octogenerian father is what you might call a history buff – always reading biographies and historical accounts, quoting famous statesmen, finding significance in minutia – so, it wasn’t unusual when a recent conversation turned to:  American history, specifically World War II.  What did surprise me was an interesting fact he knew about the Ridgebury Cemetery, in northern Ridgefield:  Cornelius Ryan, author and journalist, is the only famous interment there.

A number of famous authors live …

Come to the Aldrich and Play in the Dirt

Johanna Vail of Kent, NY gets into the dirt at The Aldrich’s sustainable garden, designed by artist, Fritz Haeg.

by Priscilla Matthews

Families are invited to swing by The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum any Tuesday or Thursday morning this summer to dig, play, draw, and explore in Fritz Haeg’s sustainable garden.  Bring your children, pack your lunch, spread out a blanket, and come Play in the Dirt.  An educator will facilitate sustainability related outdoor explorations and projects for all.

Fritz Haeg’s exhibition, Something for Everyone, encompasses a series of projects integrated into the existing landscape and architecture of the Museum.  Each project facilitates some sort of activity for humans, animals …

CORN, COCONUT, CRAB

by Charlotte Alston Legg

There are those sure arbiters that define summer. Once the edge is off the allergy, it is the sound of lawn mowers a few yards away and the drifting smell of the newly cut grass.  Bain de Soleil (Orange Gelee), raspberries and blueberries (2 punnets for $3.99), the cross-generational chorus, sung in unison: “Wasting away again in Margaritaville”.

Last week I was “shopping” at Monica Brown’s Cellar XV and got a taste gratis of summer in a cup, served up by Marc Cicchiello, the talented chef at Ridgefield Academy. Even after a week, I can’t get the moment off my mind – so share …