Two of my favorite people are getting together next week – Chris Evert and Carla Miklos.
I grew up watching Chris Evert during the height of her tennis career and rarely missed a match and an article about her game or her personal life. I got to know Carla Miklos, the executive director of Operation Hope of Fairfield, during my time as editor of the Fairfield Citizen and later, after I left the paper, as a volunteer for her organization. I have watched Carla lead Operation Hope so that the clients are served with dignity and get the help they so desperately need.
On Monday, Oct. 1, at 3:30 p.m. at Operation Hope’s office, 636 Old Post Road, Chris Evert will present Carla with a $5,000 donation in recognition of her contributions to the organization. The award is coming from the Hood Simply Smart Milk “Make a Difference, Taste a Difference.” Hood is the company that produces milk products.
The Simply Smart “Make a Difference, Taste a Difference” program recognizes local women making a difference in their communities. Carla is one of three women chosen for the award. Winners were chosen based on the number of votes received on the Simply Smart Milk Facebook page.
In a press release from Hood, Evert said, “It’s a true honor to recognize Carla as part of the Hood Simply Smart ‘Make a Difference, Taste a Difference’ program with a $5,000 donation to Operation Hope. It is important for everyone to not only make a difference in their community but also for their families in their everyday choices. The women being recognized by Hood for their efforts are true examples of how their dedication and hard work are leaving a lasting imprint on their communities.”
Operation Hope addresses basic needs for food and shelter, as well as offering long-term solutions to hunger and homelessness, including affordable housing, life skills training and personalized clinical support.
Carla added in the same release, “We are thrilled to be recognized by Hood Simply Smart Milk and excited about meeting Chris Evert. It is our vision that every person in our community has a place to call home, supportive relationships and hope for the future. Operation Hope is committed every day to helping our neighbors in need and I am proud to be a part of this vital organization.”
The public is invited to attend the ceremony. While there is no admission fee, food donations for Operation Hope’s pantry will be accepted. After the ceremony, cookies and Hood milk will be served.
For more information about Operation Hope, call 203-292-5588 or visit www.operationhopect.org.

The annual Fairfield Kiwanis Club Juried Arts & Crafts Fair promises to be bigger than in previous years.
The fair, one of the best outdoor events in town, takes place on Saturday, Sept. 22, and Sunday, Sept. 23, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on the Fairfield Town Green, which is at the corner of Old Post and Beach roads.
The fair will feature arts and crafts; a farmers’ market; baked goods and mums sale; grilled food; kids’ activities; and music by 3 in the Pocket.
The fair benefits the programs of the club. The Fairfield club was chartered in 1961 and has focused on youth. Kiwanis’ service projects include pediatric trauma, safety, child care, early development, infant health, nutrition, and parenting skills, according to its website. Other projects work to stop substance abuse, help the elderly, promote literacy, and support youth sports and recreation.
Admission is free and the fair will go on rain or shine.
For information, call 203-256-8481 or visit www.fairfieldkiwanis.org.

The Music Parents Association is conducting its annual Used Instrument Consignment Sale on Saturday, Sept. 15, from 8:30 a.m. to noon in the small gymnasium at Fairfield Warde High School on Knapps Highway.
The schools’ music faculty will be available during the sale to assist with appropriate instrument selection. Cash or check accepted only; no credit cards. All sales are final.
Additionally, anyone wishing to consign instruments should bring them to the small gym at Fairfield Warde on Friday, Sept. 14, from 4 to 7 p.m. Consignees set their own price and will receive 70 percent of that sale. The remaining proceeds will benefit the music programs in the Fairfield Public Schools. Instrument donations are also welcome. Consignees do not need not to be present as the association will handle transactions.
For information, contact Mary Ann Fichera at MPAsale@aol.com or 203-332-0119.

It’s hard to believe that 11 years have passed since that horrific day in 2001, when our world changed.
Thousands of innocent people – police and fire personnel and civilians – were killed in New York City, Virginia and Pennsylvania when terrorists attacked our country.
As it has done every year since, the Fairfield Fire Department will host a Remembrance Ceremony for the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, at Fire Headquarters, 140 Reef Road. The ceremony will take place at the memorial to the first responders who died during the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York that was fashioned using steel from the debris recovered from the site.
Polce and fire officials and local and state elected officials will participate.
For information, call 203-254-4713.

The town is seeking the public’s input on the design and content of its website, www.fairfieldct.org.
The website is being redesigned to make it more user-friendly. It’s about time.
While the town’s website is better than some others, it definitely could use a refresh. And here are two examples of other communities’ websites that are more attractive and more user-friendly than ours: Westport and Bridgeport.
According to a release sent out by the first selectman’s office, the town would like to know what residents like best about the website, what features we use the most, what features we would like to see added, and what feature needs the most improvement. And any other suggestions we have.
I, for one, would like to be able navigate the site easily. And I think certain features should be more prominently displayed, like voting information and the town clerk’s office, two functions of town government that are heavily used and needed.
The town also is seeking photographs to be used on web pages or as part of an online picture gallery. If residents would like to submit any favorite photographs, e-mail them in a jpeg format and provide name, phone number and a brief description of the photo.
E-mail all feedback and/or photos to firstselectmanffld@town.fairfield.ct.us or call the first selectman’s office at 203-256-3030 by Friday, Sept. 7.

My Grandma Rose was our family’s greatest laborer.
Not only did she raise nine children, care for my grandfather (who held various jobs over his life) and tend to the house on the Old Post Road in Southport, but she was engaged in several different ventures.
She arrived in this country from Italy in 1899 at the age of 13. She married my grandfather, who was 10 years her senior, shortly after he arrived from Italy. (It was an arranged marriage, according to family lore.) As many others in the early part of the 20th century, my grandparents had it hard. So Grandma toiled all the time. Over her working life, she operated a fruit and vegetable truck throughout Fairfield, Southport and Westport; ran a grocery store, which was attached to their home; and did laundry for wealthier residents.
While she worked hard, she made sure she took some time for herself. As the story goes, once a week Grandma would put on her finest clothing (complete with fancy hat, which was the required attire at the time) and take the bus to Bridgeport, where she met some of her “lady friends” for lunch, usually at the “5 and 10 store,” and for conversation, not arriving back in Southport until after suppertime. Back home, my mother and her sisters had to make sure my grandfather still got his dinner on time. While this excursion of Grandma’s was a regular thing, Grandpa always asked his daughters where she was on that day. He accepted the news because apparently Grandma ruled that roost on the Old Post Road and he was not about to make a fuss.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, “The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883. In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a “workingmen’s holiday” on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.
“Through the years the nation gave increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. From them developed the movement to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on February 21, 1887. During the year four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.”
Not only is Labor Day a time to rest and relax, but over the years it has become a day to be with family and friends at backyard barbecues or watch a parade in honor of America’s workers. It also has taken on the significance begin the end of the summer season.
No matter how you spend the day, enjoy it.

It’s that time of year again. School’s opening.
As motorists begin to share the road again with schoolchildren and school buses, it’s a good idea to go over a few rules so everyone stays safe.
The AAA Motor Club notes that the afternoon hours are “particularly dangerous for walking children – over the last decade, nearly one-third of child pedestrian fatalities occurred between 3 and 7 p.m.”
In addition to the obvious one about stopping you see a school bus stop and put on its flashing lights and engages the stop sign, AAA offers six ways to keep kids safe this school year:
1. Slow down. Speed limits in school zones are reduced for a reason. A pedestrian struck by a vehicle traveling at 25 mph is nearly two-thirds less likely to be killed compared to a pedestrian struck by a vehicle traveling just 10 mph faster.
2. Eliminate distractions. Children often cross the road unexpectedly and may emerge suddenly between two parked cars. Research shows that taking your eyes off the road for just two seconds doubles your chances of crashing.
3. Reverse responsibly. Every vehicle has blind spots. Check for children on the sidewalk, driveway and around your vehicle before slowly backing up. Teach your children to never play in, under or around vehicles—even those that are parked.
4. Talk to your teen. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens in the United States, and more than one in four fatal crashes involving teen drivers occur during the after-school hours of 3 to 7 p.m.
5. Come to a complete stop. Research shows that more than one-third of drivers roll through stop signs in school zones or neighborhoods. Always come to a complete stop, checking carefully for children on sidewalks and in crosswalks before proceeding.
6. Watch for bicycles. Children on bikes are often inexperienced, unsteady and unpredictable. Slow down and allow at least three feet of passing distance between your vehicle and the bicycle. If your child rides a bicycle to school, require that they wear a properly-fitted bicycle helmet on every ride.

As Pat Pickens wrote in his article, the Fairfield American Little League team truly received a hero’s welcome on Thursday afternoon.
The New England champions were treated to all the pomp and circumstance they deserved upon returning from the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. The boys – 12 and 13 years old – handled the attention, wins and losses with poise, dignity and grace. They certainly make our community proud.
Their games in Williamsport were thrilling and fun to watch. Even my 86-year-old mother got caught up in the action over the weekend.
Team manager Bill Meury probably said it best about his players, many of whom have been together for three years and won titles and hearts along the way, when he told those assembled at Sherman Green, “They respected the game, their opponents and, most importantly, each other.”
Welcome home, and congratulations on all your accomplishments.