The NCAA Basketball Tournament is one of the most popular sporting events of the year. This year, IN Greenwich is giving residents the opportunity to enjoy the games, win prizes and help people in war-torn Ukraine.
The group has brought back their annual IN Greenwich Madness basketball contest. The first round of the tournament has already passed, but a second bracket has been added for the Sweet 16 round.
It’s free to enter your range in choosing the winners, but a $20 donation is suggested for a GoFundMe campaign set up to raise $25,000 to buy food, medicine and emergency supplies for the Ukrainians.
The campaign can be found by visiting https://bit.ly/3whQBur. It was created by three residents of Greenwich: Inna Lazar, Olga Litvinenko and Sasha Glavatskaya.
“We’ve always wanted to combine this competition with a fundraising effort, and raising money that will directly help Ukrainians is the perfect fit,” said IN Greenwich co-founder Jessica Reid.
“The only thing that can add more excitement than fundraising and having a winning slice is having your school/alma mater in the tournament,” said Reid, who supports the University of Connecticut.
The deadline to register for the Sweet 16 round is Monday, March 21 at 8 a.m. Sponsorship opportunities are always available for larger donations.
For more information, visit https://inggreenwichct.com.
IN Greenwich was created by Reid and Craig Jones, Business Partners of Greenwich Point Marketing. They started IN Greenwich to “organise and promote the events that take place in Greenwich”.
Cos Cob
With the arrival of spring, the town of Greenwich offers residents the opportunity to get outside and enjoy nature after a long winter.
At 9:30 a.m. on March 26, the Department of Environmental Affairs is hosting a Spring Pool Walk at the city’s Bible Street Community Gardens. Declaring the hour of “spring awakening in the swamps”, the city invites everyone to participate.
Participants will meet in the grounds of 129 Bible St. They advise participants to wear weather-appropriate boots and clothing.
Professional soil and wetland scientist Christie Coon and town resident Matthew Popp will lead the walk and help participants “get closer to some of the creatures that call vernal pools their home.”
Be prepared to listen for mating calls and look for salamanders, frogs and egg masses
Parking will be available in the Community Gardens lot or also across the street in the Montgomery-Pinetum property lot.
Greenwich Center
The news is filled daily with horrific stories of death and destruction following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Christ Church Greenwich is holding a special candlelight vigil at 5pm on Sunday.
The prayer vigil is open to all and the whole community is invited. Church leaders said it would be a “calming, meditative and hopeful” event to help provide spiritual guidance in times of war.
The vigil will be held at the church at 254 E. Putnam Ave. Residents can also watch online in a livestream at www.christchurchgreenwich.org.
Additionally, the church is looking for volunteers to participate in an “emergency packathon” at the church at 10 a.m. on March 26. Participants will help assemble more than 36,000 nutritional meal packets for Ukrainian refugees who have fled to Poland.
Volunteers of all ages are welcome to help assemble the nutritious food package. Packaged meals will be shipped to Gdansk, Poland in coordination with the Ukrainian Cultural Center of New Jersey.
“People are watching, listening and reading about the atrocities of Russian troops invading Ukraine,” said Reverend Marek Zabriskie, rector of Christ Church Greenwich. “We are witnessing the bombardment of civilians as they attempt to leave their country. People are trapped in their towns and villages and our hearts are deeply saddened. I urge everyone to pray daily for the innocent people who are at risk. We can also intervene in a concrete way by bringing supplies to refugees. These are important gestures so that together we can help in any way possible.
The emergency packathon will cost $12,600 and the church is seeking community support to cover expenses.
Cos Cob
The Greenwich Historical Society is celebrating Women’s History Month with Shining a Light, a three-part virtual lecture series.
The series, now in its second year, “delivers gripping stories from distinguished individuals on subjects that have shaped the history of Greenwich and New England,” the historical society said.
It is “dedicated to elevating and amplifying underrepresented voices in history” and “addresses situations and events behind many themes that shape the nation’s narrative, including race, oppression, identity and equality”.
During the first lecture on March 24, Dennis Culliton will speak on the “Testimonial Stones Project: Restoring History, Honoring Humanity”. Founder and executive director of The Witness Stones Project, he will explore both the economic and legal framework that supported slavery in the region.
He will be accompanied from 6 to 7:15 p.m. by Heather Lodge, manager of youth and family programs for the historical society. They will discuss the history of slavery at the Bush Holley House and “illuminate the agency, resistance, and contributions of the slaves who lived there.”
At the upcoming conference on April 7, Maisa Tisdale will discuss “Bridgeport’s Little Liberia: The Importance of African American Historic Preservation.” Tisdale is President and CEO of the Mary and Eliza Freeman Center for History and Community.
At the 6-7:15 p.m. event, Tisdale will speak about efforts to restore Little Liberia, a thriving maritime community of people of color in Bridgeport.
In the final lecture on April 21, Meadow Dibble, Visiting Scholar at Brown University, will discuss “The Diseased Ship: A Cautionary Tale of New England’s Twin Plagues.”
Dibble will tell of New England’s involvement in the slave trade and the story of a year-long 1819 sea voyage from Boston through West Africa to the West Indies that few survived.
“We are proud to shine a light on the activists and humanitarians who are actively involved in ensuring that these stories and events are recognized as part of our local history,” said Stephanie Barnett, Head of Public Programs at the Greenwich. Historical Society.
For more information and to register, visit www.greenwichhistory.org.
kborsuk@greenwichtime.com