In Sight

Toni Kokoros cuts John O’Leary’s hair in her “Belltown Barbers” shop in Stamford, Conn. on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009.

Kathleen O’Rourke/The Advocate

Advocate reporter Wynne Parry and I were assigned The Dart this week.  Wynne’s throw, which took four times to actually stick in the map, landed on Barrett Park near Toni’s shop.  As we entered the barber shop I immediately felt like I had stepped back in time.   From the barber shop pole to the 74-year-old chairs, this place was a slice of what life used to be.  And who better to be sitting next to the window than John O’Leary, a man only a year older than the chair itself.   Anyone that has ever stepped foot on the athletic fields, or basketball court, of Trinity Catholic High School knows the O’Leary name.  John is grandfather to 12 kids, 6 of which have graced the record books of all things Trinity.   Wynne and I set out in search of a “day in the life” for The Dart and what we found was a piece of Stamford history.  Check out the story on Monday, Sept. 28.

ABOVE: Mark Seward, a Stamford High School varsity football player listens to head coach Kevin Jones (not pictured) as the team prepares to take on Ridgefield High School in an FCIAC football game at Stamford High School in Stamford, Conn. on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009

9/18/2009

It’s officially football season in Stamford, with the SHS Black Knights taking on Ridgefield in the FCIAC opener at Boyle Stadium.

I’ve been seriously neglecting inSight – our staff photoblog – for some time now. So much so that Advocate staffer Kathleen O’Rourke has been making rumblings about taking it over as her own.

But like fall FCIAC gridiron action, I’m back, baby!

–CP

BELOW: Stamford quarterback Jalen Holmes passes.

Kathleen O’Rourke/The Advocate

Members of the Stamford High School Class of 1947 and their families gather for an 80th birthday celebration at Cove Island Park.  Most members of the class will turn 80 this year so the group decided to plan a celebration.  Ten cakes, each with one candle, were scattered throughout the picnic pavilion as everyone sang Happy Birthday.  Being a “bit” younger and a Stamford transplant,  I found it interesting to listen to their stories of “Stamford the way it used to be” and watch as people who have known each other since first grade reunite.  “It’s funny, all of a sudden I recognize a personality” said graduate Siri Lindstrom Lynn.

Photo by Coastal Biking Adventures

Today I received an email about two photojournlalists who have combined their love of photography and cycling to start Coastal Biking Adventures.  It’s another example of photographers turning to other careers as we see major changes in the newspaper business.  So to every working photojournallist out there, what is your Plan B?

ABOVE: Residents and family members pick through their belongings that were salvaged from a fire early Wednesday morning that gutted a two family house at 17 Grand St. in Norwalk.  BELOW: Everyone experienced a rare,  lighthearted moment as a woman pulled a Dominican flag and her rosary beads from the charred remains.

Kathleen O’Rourke/The Advocate

Spot news, as we call it in the newspaper industry, is always a sensitive thing to cover.  It’s not easy to arrive on a stranger’s front lawn and begin taking photographs as they pick through their lifelong belongings.   Nestled in the dusty, dirty heap between the baseball card collection, motorcycle helmet and boxes of clothing was a framed photograph of a smiling couple on their wedding day.  A reminder that everyone made it out safely, certainly something to be thankful for.

A group of sixth grade boys take a tour of their new school on the first day at Rogers International School.

Kathleen O’Rourke/The Advocate

We’ve followed the story on this new school from Day One.  The prolonged and heated debate about closing the old Rogers,  breaking ground on Blachley Road, construction crews working, the “green” concept and teachers moving in.  But today the story really began with the first official day of school.  Our story, written by Kate King, will focus on two students in the new sixth grade, one a Rogers veteran and the other an out of district student from Norwalk.  Look for it online and in Wednesday’s Advocate.