Government

Town: Demand Rising at New Canaan Food Pantry

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The New Canaan Food Pantry has seen rising use in the past two years and the need appears to be growing, officials say. The number of individual shoppers using the pantry increased by 22% from fiscal year 2023 to 2024 (from 863 to 1,056) and is already at 769 in fiscal year 2025 (which runs through June 30), according to Marcella Rand, director of the Department of Human Services. “Our food pantry participation has really increased,” Rand told members of the Board of Selectmen during a regular meeting held Tuesday at Town Hall and via videoconference. “This year I did year-to-date so you could see where we are and how we think that the use is really going to be increased.”

Here’s a table showing data on food pantry use:

The Food Pantry provides non-perishable items to qualified individuals and families living in New Canaan. It’s open every other Tuesday for two one-hour distribution sessions, where volunteers sort, stock and bag groceries.

Around Town

A History of Christmas Caroling at God’s Acre

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Caroling at God’s Acre for Christmas is one of New Canaan’s most cherished events of the year, a nostalgic, Rockwellian gathering that brings the community together unlike any other celebration. A sacred and treasured tradition, the Christmas Eve gathering distinguishes New Canaan from surrounding towns. Held on the plot of land above which the Congregational Church was built—the institution upon which the town was founded—the caroling sees scores of New Canaanites descend each year on what literally is hallowed ground, as it is believed many of New Canaan’s settlers are still buried at God’s Acre. But how did it start, and when? The first documented instance of caroling at God’s Acre occurred on Christmas Eve in 1916, according to historian Mary Louise King’s book Portrait of New Canaan, published by the New Canaan Historical Society.

Business

‘We Want Them To Feel Really Good’: LaSource Opens on Elm Street 

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[For this installment of our local holiday shopping series, we interviewed Jessica Johnson, who last month opened LaSource at 44 Elm St.]

Jessica Johnson opened her first LaSource store in Darien a little over one year ago. A successful commercial real estate agent who used to work as a professional ballet dancer, Johnson had the idea in creating the shop to “try and reinvent a lingerie store.”

“I grew up a Victoria’s Secret customer in my 20s and everybody knows how Victoria’s Secret sells to women and what that looks like,” Johnson said Thursday afternoon from the floor of her warm, inviting new location in downtown New Canaan. “It is very much about seduction, whereas we’ve kind of taken seduction out of the store and tried to just create a beautiful space for women to feel comfortable in and supported. And we offer everything from bra fitting to resort wear and swimwear. And for all ages, really.