The last breath of 2024 has finally turned frosty, and we have snow, cool temperatures, and holidays on the way! Westport’s Annual Holiday Festival is coming right up next Saturday December 7th: for the full schedule revisit our Special Holiday Edition Newsletter HERE, and check our TOWN CALENDAR for up-to-date additions. During this giving season, please consider donating to any of the WWCA initiatives of your choice. Thank you!

Alongside the hubbub of the holidays, Westport is humming with news, from the Depot Theatre’s receiving of 2025 NYSCA Funding, to NCPR’s story of the Carroll Sister’s Portside journey, and the Adirondack Explorer’s coverage of 100 year storms, with a highlight on the drainage tribulations of Westport. Winter 2025 is shaping up to be one of the most engaging in recent memory, with movies and more at the Mill, books, camps, pop-ups and author’s talks at Snowfort Books, Excellent baked goods and pizza at Trigo, Dogwood Pizza nights every Friday, and a constant supply of CATS hikes and activities (love them? Donate HERE). Bring it on!

Community Events Quick List

Christopher Rice with Honorees Linda Rockefeller, Alan Beal and Michael Fergot. Photo by Catherine Seidenberg

WESTPORT LIBRARY

Recap: The Official 140th Anniversary Celebration of the Westport Library on November 23d was a beautifully planned event that was well attended and fully enjoyed by all! All presenters and honorees of the Alice Lee Award gave heartfelt, well-crafted and humorous speeches, the food and drink catered by Fork and Knife Catering was gorgeously presented and delicious, while community members old and new connected with one another and joined in the celebration of the Westport Library and its steadfast Clock Keepers. The clock has been keeping time continuously for 118 years, with someone winding it every 78 hours! To help keep this amazing community resource ticking, donate HERE. Thank you!

TUESDAYS 1-3PM: Yarn Crafts Group Gathering

THURSDAYS Dec. 5, 19, 4-6pm: Writer’s Group Meeting, (every other Thursday)

TUES Dec 17, 6pm: Yuletide Flow and Cookie Glow with Jen Williams: Yuletide Yoga with optional ugly sweaters and cookie exchange!

WADHAMS FREE LIBRARY

WEDS DEC 4, 7PM: Presentation: ‘Replaying the Tape: Album Release with Jane Boxall’. Yet another awesomely talented local musician sharing with the community!

WESTPORT FEDERATED CHURCH

Saturday Dec. 7: Holiday Festival Buffet Breakfast, 8am-10:30am.

Saturdays, 7pm: Contemporary Church Service

Sundays, 10am: Traditional Church Service

Mondays, 7:30pm: AA meets in Fellowship Hall

Want all the up to date news from the Federated Church? Subscribe to the weekly newsletter HERE.

TOWN MEETINGS

TUES DEC 10: Town Board Meeting, 7pm

TUES DEC 24: Town Board Meeting, 3pm

CHECK TOWN WEBSITE: Town Planning Board Meeting, 7pm. (If items to discuss)

All meetings subject to change. Have questions? Call 518-962-8360.

DEPOT THEATRE ACADEMY/THE GRANGE

SUN DEC 22, 2pm: ‘A Christmas Carol: A Radio Play’ by Philip Grecian. 2pm: Music and Refreshments. 3pm: performance. FREE admission. Donations gratefully accepted for the Backpack Program.

SNOWFORT BOOKS

SUN DEC 8, 11am-5pm: Holiday Shopping Pop-Up with Kristin Kimball

SUN DEC 15, 11am-5pm: Holiday Shopping Pop-Up with Maxwell Eaton 111 and Loree Griffin Burns

SUN Dec 22, 11am-5pm: Holiday Shopping Pop-Up with Nell Painter and Amy Godine

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Warm up all of your December evenings with movies, music and lectures at our other local venues: the Mill : Movies every Saturday in December! Open galleries, music, out -of -this -world small plates and cocktails: spend a magical evening in the City without making the trip! the Whallonsburg Grange ( Concerts, movies and more), Fine art exhibits, music jams and more at Whitcomb’s Arts, enjoy the best pizza on the planet with all of your friends every Friday at Dogwood Bakery, or attend a Piano by Nature Concert!

Want more information about activities here and in the surrounding areas? Check out these excellent sources: Westport Town Calendar, Elizabethtown Social Center Also: Jay Community News, Adirondack Almanack, Adirondack Arts & Entertainment, and for contemporary theater and music jams, UJAC in Upper Jay.

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Westport Business Profile: WOLLECRU

Kirsten Liebl and Sheep, photo courtesy of Wollecru

Kirsten Liebl and Taylor Lefleur are the artists/chefs/farmers who have created Wollecru, a farm located at 342 route 22 between Westport and Wadhams. When you drive by, you may notice a classic old farmhouse under renovation, a greenhouse, gardens, and the stars of the show: lots of sheep!

Both Kirsten and Taylor draw on many years of education and experience to bring forth the creative bounty from their homestead: gorgeous woven blankets destined to become family heirlooms, sheepskins, lamb for the table, lovingly grown perennials, herbs and vegetable starts for the garden, and wine! We are indeed fortunate to have such master artisans and stewards of nature in our midst!

To peruse their online shop, go HERE, and to read a more complete business story, and find out where to find their quality local products this holiday season, visit our WWCA Blog, and check out their Newsletter.

Town of Westport Posts Job Opening

Town of Westport is seeking applications for an opening in the Department of Public Works specializing in Water and Wastewater. No experience necessary, will train. Salary based on experience. Preference will be given to Westport residents. For an application please visit www.westportny.net or call the Town Hall at 518-962-4419. Applications must be received at the Town Hall by 2pm on December 10, 2024.

Employment Application

Westport’s Storm Drainage Woes Featured in the News!

Keven Severance, head of Westport’s Department of Public Works. Photo by Eric Teed for the Adirondack Explorer

It’s been a very rough few years in Westport and the region due to climate change and raging waters. Read the whole article in the Adirondack Explorer!

Nominate Your Community Volunteer Champion at This Year’s WWCA Gratitude Gathering in January!

Photo from the Westport Historical Society Archives, Westport Town Hall.

WWCA 2025 Gratitude Gathering & Community Potluck
“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy….you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in” –unknown.

This giving season, the Alliance invites you to honor a fellow Westport & Wadhams resident whose volunteering has gone above and beyond and whose efforts have benefited their neighbors and the community at large in 2024.

Nominate a Community Champion for recognition and join the second annual Gratitude Gathering at the Heritage House, 5:30-7pm on Thursday, January 16 or 30, 2025 (to be announced soon!) This year, we will take a moment to honor the Alliance’s outgoing president, Clay Reaser! There is a space to write a special note for him in the nomination survey, and we will all raise a glass in gratitude!

Come enjoy this friendly public reading recognizing our friends and neighbors for their important contributions. We will also snap a Westport Community Champions group portrait to commemorate these fine folks!

RSVP & nomination submission window is now - January 10. Open to the Westport-Wadhams community but with limited space. 

Questions, ideas? Contact jenbutson@gmail.com

Concert revelers in Ballard Park, Summer 2024. Photo by Catherine Seidenberg

It was a big year in Ballard Park! All activities thrived amidst the occasional torrential rains, drainage issues and beach washouts, which were quickly remediated by a dedicated group of volunteers and supporters. Thanks to Shelley McKinley and his band of stalworth volunteers, the Park now has a skating hut addition that includes a new bathroom for events, and a storage and office space!

Do you enjoy all the park has to offer? Music! Dancing! Picnic tables and Westport chairs with the best view around! Skating! Sledding! Easter Egg Hunts! the Memorial Garden! Top-notch summer lounging! Consider donating to keep your park beautiful and always full of happy faces, and keep up to date with the newsletter. Thank you!

2024 Performance of Shrek the Musical Jr. Photo by Betsy Bacot

The Depot Theatre in Westport, NY was awarded a $25,000 Support for Organizations grant from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA).

The funding will support infrastructure and staffing for both the Depot’s main stage and Academy outreach and education programs for the 2025 fiscal year.

“We’re grateful for NYSCA’s continued support of the Depot Theatre and our mission,” said Kim Rielly, the Depot Theatre’s Executive Director. “As the Adirondacks’ only professional Equity theatre, this vital funding will support the artists and infrastructure that are necessary for us to continue to drive significant cultural and economic impact in our community and the greater region.”

To read and learn more, visit depottheatre.org.

Read, or listen to this fantastic and fun piece “The North Country at Work: How a family restaurant brought these sisters home to Westport” by Ana Williams- Bergen at NCPR, about the journey of Alyssa and Kelsey Carroll and Portside Restaurant!

Essex Food Hub Feeds New York!

From the Essex Food Hub Newsletter: Today, we’re rallying our community to take action and help expand equitable food access.

In service to this goal, one partnership we’ve grown this year is with the Essex County Women, Infants and Children Program (WIC). Since April, we’ve distributed nearly $100,000 of local food to WIC families through both customized full-diet food boxes and bulk donations. The feedback has been tremendous, with resounding gratitude for high-quality local meats and dairy.

It’s been a joy to connect these families with nutrient-dense local foods, so we are excited to not only continue this into 2025, but to expand our partnership with a new project— and we need support to keep growing this work.

A gift of any amount and in any form will help us expand equitable food access in our community. We thank you for all of your support- it’s critical for us to do all that we do!

With gratitude,

Essex Food Hub Team

We are YOUR Alliance! Follow our Website, Facebook Page and Instagram. Follow all the happenings on the Calendar, and What’s Happening in Westport Facebook Page. Have a friend or neighbor who would like to know what’s going on in town? Don’t forget to forward this email!