Faces of New Canaan

Faces of New Canaan: Scott Cranston

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After catching wind of a new collaboration between the New Canaan High School Band and Jazz Ensemble and Summer Theatre of New Canaan—it’ll culminate in a 7:30 p.m., May 6 concert at the high school called “Musicals, Masters and Marches,” more on that below—NewCanaanite.com set out to meet NCHS Band Director Scott Cranston. We found the Trumbull resident pleasant and engaging, and discovered some very interesting things about his heritage in the field he has chosen for a career—for example, the fact that Cranston’s own grandfather was the first civilian to serve as U.S. Marine Band conductor. That man, Cranston’s grandfather—and I’m sorry now I didn’t ask for his name—directed the high school band in Westchester where Cranston’s own parents met. During our talk—transcribed in full below—we reviewed all of this rich personal history and also discussed the 2014 New York Yankees and their retiring captain, the great Derek Jeter. Since we talked, the Yankees picked up another win over the now last-place Boston Red Sox (ahem).

Faces of New Canaan

Faces of New Canaan: Micaela Porta

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More than one New Canaanite urged us to talk to Micaela Porta, co-founder of Pesticide-Free New Canaan, for a possible article here on our local news site. The nonprofit organization’s website is itself a wonderfully concise resource for environment- and wellness-minded residents (as is this new, informative newsletter from the New Canaan Conservation Commission, a group of which Porta is a member). In researching Pesticide-Free New Canaan I came across this Q&A, which does a very nice job of reviewing the nonprofit organization’s history and mission, with useful and succinctly stated tips and checklists for residents who want to pursue organic garden and lawn care (asking, for example, “What are the top three things I can do to protect my loved ones and myself from harmful chemicals in their gardens and lawns?” and “Do you have any recommendations for budget-friendly, safer, pesticide-free strategies?”)

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Just as we met Thursday morning and sat down at that window table in Dunkin Donuts on Elm Street, New Canaan’s Beth Jones popped over to say a quick hello, and when I told her I was meeting Miki (as Porta is known) for an installment of “Resident Expert” on NewCanaanite.com, the immediate response was: “Thank goodness we have such an expert resident. She’s a treasure.”

During our conversation—transcribed in full below—I got a strong sense of what Jones meant. (Ultimately, I’m putting this in “Faces of New Canaan” instead of “Resident Expert,” but it could’ve been either one.)

We did discuss Pesticide-Free New Canaan, which Porta founded with town resident Heather Lauver: its history, status, place in New Canaan, science, support, partners.

Faces of New Canaan

Faces of New Canaan: Jeff Zaino

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There could be no better candidate for the “Faces of New Canaan” series than Jeff Zaino—or, as I’d thought of him for 30-plus years (before two weeks ago, when I asked him to participate in this feature), ‘That Library Guy.’ Here, we spotlight individuals who—though they may not be familiar to us because they’re famous or hold especially prominent positions in town—make up the fabric of New Canaan. These are people we associate with our town—the people, who, say, if you go away for a while, upon returning to New Canaan, you spot them again and know you’re home. I remember Zaino from when I was a kid and our mom took us to the library several days a week—I found out during our chat (transcribed in full below) that I was about eight years old when Zaino came here. I asked Zaino about his background and hobbies, experiences at the library and ways that New Canaan’s taste in things like reading materials has changed, or not, through the years.

Faces of New Canaan

Faces of New Canaan: Gigi Fernandez and First Impressions

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Gigi Fernandez understands athletic competition better than most: In her Hall of Fame tennis career, the Puerto Rico native won 17 Grand Slam doubles titles (fourth-most in the open era) and climbed into the top-20 as a singles player, competing in one Wimbledon semifinal and two U.S. Open quarterfinals. Fernandez, together with partner and former LPGA golfer Jane Geddes—who both work in Stamford, as Chelsea Piers director of tennis and senior vice president of talent relations and development at WWE, respectively—just closed on a New Canaan home not far from the Stamford line. In an interview with NewCanaanite.com, Fernandez said the couple’s twins—who turn five next month—would enter the kindergarten at West School in the fall. Asked whether New Canaan kids may some day avail themselves of her youth coaching abilities—as they are now with former NFL quarterback Terry Hanratty and NBA standout Pat Garrity—Fernandez laughed and said: “Oh, I don’t know.  My son just went through the baseball tryouts for the town league, so he’ll be playing baseball. I opted not to coach.

Faces of New Canaan

George Baker: John Adams in New Canaan [VIDEO]

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[Editor’s Note: Town resident and re-enactor George Baker will appear as John Adams at New Canaan Library at 6:30 p.m. on March 25 to present “My Wife, Abigail Adams, the First Modern American Woman.” The videos interspersed throughout this article—shot Friday, March 14—offer a glimpse of Baker’s special talent, as he channels Adams in question-and-answer format, placing the second president in 18th (and early 19th) Century New Canaan and discussing our town, library, commuting and the upcoming show.]

 

Though he was just two or three years old that day, New Canaan resident George Baker still recalls his very first encounter with a performing artist. The memory is this: Baker and his father were walking through an open, outdoor area in New York City—something similar to Hyde Park in London—when the pair came upon a man surrounded by a crowd, singing. via YouTube

“Everyone was listening and he was so good,” Baker recalled Friday afternoon from a table at Connecticut Muffin on Main Street, his favorite cup of coffee in town steaming in front of him (regular roast with plenty of milk). “People were singing along and I said, ‘Wow, that’s what I want to do.’ ”

It was a prophetic moment for the young boy, whose wish would materialize in ways that, in retrospect, surprise and delight Baker himself. A lawyer out of Columbia University who practices employment law and litigation (with wide experience in condominium law), Baker has developed a highly tailor-able, professional one-man show re-enacting John Adams. In just over five years, it’s taken him from stages at Mystic Seaport to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in Abilene, Kan.