SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2008 ¥ A3
LOCAL News Briefs Stepping Stones golf tournament NORWALK Golf enthusiasts and supporters of Stepping Stones Museum for Children will return to the Stanwich Club in Greenwich on Thursday, Oct. 2 for the fifth annual Swing Into It! Golf Tournament raising funds for the museum’s Open Arms accessibility program. Proceeds from provide support for children and school groups who otherwise would not be able to visit the museum. Swing Into It! includes lunch and a putting contest followed by a round of golf. A cocktail and buffet awards reception, raffle and silent auction follow the tournament. Event sponsors include Traxys North America, UnitedHealthcare, AT&T, Bourgeon Capital Management LLC, Catalina Marketing Group, The Foster Family Fund, Littlejohn & Co. LLC , Old Greenwich Capital Partners, Pierson & Smith, Inc., Polo Ralph Lauren and Posternak, Baum & Co. Inc. and Mr. & Mrs. Jeffrey Waldron, Carnell Insurance and Chubb Insurance. For information about becoming a Swing Into It! sponsor or to reserve a foursome, contact Christie Gammill at (203) 966-4999.
Dan Walsh celebration dinner NORWALK A celebration dinner honoring U.S. Olympic bronze medal winning rower Dan Walsh of Norwalk will take place Wednesday, Sept. 24, at Continental Manor beginning at 6:30 p.m. Mayor Richard Moccia has proclaimed Sept. 24, 2008, as “Dan Walsh Day” in Norwalk. Walsh, a 1977 Brien McMahon High School graduate, is a member of the U.S. national rowing team and was on the men’s eight boat that finished third at the Summer Olympics in Beijing. Tickets to the event are $40 and can be obtained by contacting the mayor’s office through Mary Roman at 854-7703; Brien McMahon High School through Athletic Director Joe Maddafari, 852-9488, ext. 11246; B.J. Ryan’s Restaurant, at 866-RYAN (7926); or George Albano at The Hour Sports Department, (203) 354-1056. Proceeds will benefit the Norwalk River Rowing Association’s Matthew Zucker Scholarship Fund and its ReachOut-And-Row (ROAR) program. Walsh will also be attending the 10th annual Matthew Zucker Memorial Ergathon on Saturday, Sept. 20, from 8 a.m.to 3 p.m. at the NRRA boat house at 1 Moody’s Lane. Zucker was a high school friend and former rowing teammate of Walsh’s who lost his life to cancer a decade ago.
Mini-golf fundraiser NORWALK Elderhouse will host a minigolf invitational, 6 to 10 p.m. at Cove Marina Mini Golf, 44 Calf Pasture Beach Road. The rain date is Oct. 3. The event features 18 holes of miniature golf, a holein-one challenge, dinner under the tent, entertainment and raffle. Proceeds support ElderHouse services to aging adults. For information, call (203) 847-1998 or visit www.elderhouse.org.
Ebony fashion fair NORWALK An “Ebony Fashion Fair,” 6 p.m. Sept. 20 will take place at the Norwalk Concert Hall, 125 East Ave. Hosted by the Fairfield County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Reception at 6. Showtime at 7. $45; students, $25. Proceeds benefit the scholarship fund and programs of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. For ticket information, contact Charlene Kennerly at
[email protected] or Alicia Carpenter at 873-9104.
NEWS HOTLINE 354-1062
The path to home ownership Former Washington Village resident revels in the purchase of her first house
NORWALK By ROBERT KOCH Hour Staff Writer
The state Department of Transportation has canceled its plan to close the Stroffolino Bridge this weekend for the final phase of its rehabilitation of the structure. “It’s being postponed because of anticipated inclement weather this weekend — it’s a painting project,” said Judd B. Everhart, spokesman for the transportation department. The last-minute change in plans means that motorists will be able to cross the bridge, rather than detour along city streets and Interstate 95. Rainfall is forecast for Norwalk this weekend — a 30-percent chance each day — with sunshine returning Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. The bridge, which binds East and South Norwalk as part of state Route 136, was to have closed from late Friday evening to early Monday morning, to paint sections of the structure that can only be reached when the bridge is in the open position. The work will mark the final phases of a multi-year overhaul of the structure, which has entailed replacing the bridge deck, fixing pier bumpers, rehabilitating the bridge control room and painting. The state DOT has yet to set a new date for the painting work. The transportation department plans to close the Stroffolino Bridge the weekend of Oct. 3, 4 and 5 to allow work on the span locks.
NORWALK By JILL BODACH Hour Staff Writer
Nicole Williams will never forget the day she was taking her 5year-old son to school and a bullet flew by, inches from where she stood on her front porch. “My son asked me, ‘Mommy, what was that?’” Williams said. “It was hard for me to explain it to him. It was a scary thing.” Until then, Williams said she had been happy living in Washington Village. Williams doesn’t blame the Norwalk Housing Authority for what happened to her that morning, nor does she blame the majority of residents of the South Norwalk housing complex. “I was very involved in the tenant association there, and there were a lot of people working hard to make Washington Village a safer, better place to live, but there were still a few people who didn’t want to let that happen,” Williams. No stranger to being on her own, Williams had moved out of her family’s home when she was 17 and had a young daughter. The two of them lived in Bridgeport for two years prior to moving to Washington Village where they spent 12 years. What happened that morning one year ago was the catalyst for Williams to try to purchase her own home for herself and her family, which had now grown to include two daughters, a son and a grandchild. “I knew that I had to do something,” Williams, 34, said. Williams began working on improving her credit so she could qualify for a mortgage and a loan. “I went to a seminar and had my credit report pulled and they told me what was wrong with my credit and how to fix it,” Williams said. “I had always paid my bills on time so my credit wasn’t in bad shape, but I had a teenager at the time so I had an extremely high phone bill and student loans that I was still trying to pay off.” An accountant recommended by Williams’ employer, Chris Campbell of The Palace, helped Williams pay down her student loans.
Hour photo/MATTHEW VINCI
Nicole Williams, right, a former Washington Village resident, recently purchased a house on Grandview Avenue in Norwalk. From left, Felicia, 18, Makayla, 6, real estate agent Dagny Eason holding Nicole’s one-month-old grandson, Jaden, and Nicole’s son, Malik, 7.
Williams said she received a lot of support in her hunt to find a new home, from her family, her employer (The Palace), Norwalk Housing Authority’s self-sufficiency program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the city of Norwalk’s Redevelopment office. Williams applied for and received Smart Move and Work Force grants and in partnership with NHA, was provided the pre-assistance counseling class. She also received a $50,000 grant from the Redevelopment Agency, made
available through city funds, which helped her to provide a down payment on her new home. Williams looked at many homes before finally deciding on the Grandview Avenue one she currently lives in. “Looking at homes was quite an experience,” Williams said. “I think I must have looked at 50 to 60 homes before I finally found one that was big enough for my family. My realtor was very, very patient with me.”
See RESIDENT A4
New treatment keeps some from surgery NORWALK By JILL BODACH Hour Staff Writer
When the radiologist told Alison Buchanan that he had found lumps in both of her breasts she was immediately worried that she’d need surgery to remove them. “The radiologist sent me a surgeon who did a sonogram and told me that the lumps were benign but they would still have to be removed,” Buchanan said. The surgeon, Dr. Andrew Kenler, told Buchanan she was the perfect candidate for the Visica System’s cryoablation therapy. Cyroablation uses extreme cold to destroy tumors without requiring stitches or general anesthesia. The office-based procedure, which usually takes less than 30 minutes, involves placing a small needle into the center of the tumor using ultrasound guidance. The Visica 2 Treatment System, from Sanarus Medical, Inc., that Kenler uses was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of fibroadenomas. The system creates very cold temperatures at the needle tip, freezing the fibroadenoma, damaging the tumor cells and causing them to break down to prevent regrowth “Fibroadenomas are the most common form of breast tumor, affecting millions of women, most of whom are in their twenties and thirties,” said Dr. Andrew Kenler, a board certified surgeon. “It is rare for benign breast tumors to develop cancerous cells, and the majority of women diagnosed with fibroadenomas are told to watch and wait. However, due to uncomfortable physical symptoms and psychological anxiety, many women still opt to have their fibroadenoma treated.” Cryoablation has been used to
Bridge work postponed
treat tumors in other areas of the body in the past, Kenler said, but has only been used to treat tumors of the breast during the past five to six years. “Cryoablation has been used on liver, prostate and kidney tumors for twenty to thirty years, and then this machine was used to
“I have a daughter in this age group and I’d want this procedure to be available to her.” Dr. Andrew Kenler Surgeon
start trial on these tumors as well,” Kenler said. “It’s equally, if not safer, than incision. The rate of regrowth is the same as open incision. And, cosmetically, it’s better because there is no scar.” Buchanan, a Norwalk resident, said when Kenler explained the procedure to her it seemed like a no-brainer to have the cryoablation therapy. “Dr. Kenler explained it to me and told me that with the cryoablation I would have less malformation, less recovery time and less pain, so it seemed like the best solution,” Buchanan said. Buchanan said the procedure was even easier than she imagined it would be. “Literally, I think needle was only in for 11 to 13 minutes and it was literally pain free,” Buchanan. “Afterwards I wasn’t even sore. I expected days of laying on the couch with ice packs, but I had no problems whatsoev-
er,” Buchanan said. “I’m getting married in another week, so I was really thrilled not to have to go through whole surgery, really made me happy.” Kenler’s office in Trumbull is one of only eight reference centers in the country and the only one on the East Coast who has the Visica system. Kenler said he performs approximately 30 to 40 procedures a year. Kenler said cryoablation is now the “gold standard” and he expects that more and more doctors will perform cryoablation for fibroadenomas in the future. “One of the great holy grails is that in the fall the American College of Surgeons oncology group will start studying the effectiveness of this procedure on treating breast cancer,” Kenler said. “We know that freezing causes cells to die, so they are going to be studying its effectiveness on malignant tumors. It’s really the next great frontier.” The current issue most patients and doctors have with the cryoablation treatment is that many insurance companies don’t yet pay for it. “Insurance companies are just starting to pay for these procedures,” Kenler said. “I have a daughter in this age group and I’d want this procedure to be available to her. It saves them (the insurance companies) money in the future and it’s better for the patient. It’s outlandish that they aren’t paying for it.” Buchanan said her insurance covered the entire procedure, but that even if it hadn’t she would have wanted to have the cryoablation. “I would highly suggest it to anyone who has benign tumors that need to be removed,” Kenler said. “I’m 100 percent thrilled with how it turned out.”
Finance board OKs funds for new firehouse in Weston Upgraded athletic facilities, booster barn among other projects WESTON By STEVE KOBAK Hour Staff Writer
A new firehouse and upgraded Weston High School athletic facilities are one step closer to development, as the Board of Finance approved funding for both projects at its Thursday meeting. The finance board approved $513,000 for a booster barn — a facility where people could purchase snacks — and additional bleachers at the Weston High School athletic field. The board also approved a $900,000 donation for a new firehouse — an amount that covers half of the facility’s building expenses. The new firehouse will be an upgrade from the existing onestory Lyons Plain Road facility, which was built 61 years ago and has crumbling infrastructure, according to Weston Fire Department President Curtis Gunn. Whereas the current firehouse has two bays and was not constructed to accommodate the size of current fire vehicles, the new firehouse will have three bays and more room for modern fire department machines. The facility will also add a second floor and expand the area of the firehouse from 3,200 feet to 6,000 feet. “It will provide us with a new, state-of-the-art fire hall for emergency services,” said First Selectman Woody Bliss. The 12-by-20-foot Booster barn would be equipped with a kitchen and two handicapped bathrooms. The facility, which would be prefitted with pipes and electrical equipment, would cost about $70,000. The bleachers would seat
See WESTON A4
Just a thought . . . I can imagine living without food. I cannot imagine living without books.
Alice Foote MacDougall 1928