Town native lauded for hurricane relief work
Scene… Fairfield-based global humanitarian organization Save the Children honored Greenwich native and entertainment executive Scott “Scooter” Braun, founder of SB Projects, with its Humanitarian Award at its sixth annual Illumination Gala at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on Nov. 14. ABC’s “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir was also honored at the gala, which was hosted by actress Jennifer Garner. Braun organized “Hand-inHand,” a telethon that raised over $6 million to support survivors of the devastating hurricanes of 2017. Funds raised from the telethon helped Save the Children to serve over 412,000 children and adults in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. Rapper Bun B, who served as co-executive producer of “Hand-in-Hand,” presented Braun with the award.
Out there… Award-winning Nashville recording artists and local country and western band Gunsmoke will hold a Music for Hope concert dubbed “A Country Christmas” at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, at the Piedmont Club on Hecker Avenue in Darien. Also performing at the benefit will be classic rock and soul band The Law. Proceeds will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. Admission is $15. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. For reservations or donations, call 203-655-7884.
Scene… Over 275 people attended Smile Greenwich, which benefited Operation Smile and was co-chaired by Lisa Lori of The Perfect Provenance. More than $250,000 was raised at the event, which celebrated the hundreds of thousands life-changing cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries provided globally since 1982. The crowdpleasing evening — held on Nov. 9 at the Belle Haven Club in Greenwich. — featured a performance by Grammy Award-winning singer Sheena Easton and dancing to the tunes of DJ Nick Dean. For more info, go to www.operationsmile.org/ smilegreenwich.
Out there… The 10th annual Holiday Stroll Weekend will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2, throughout Greenwich, Byram, Cos Cob and Riverside. The two-day holiday shopping and dining experience will feature a live nativity scene, horsedrawn carriage rides, professional ice-sculpting demos, music and entertainment, children’s activities, a food truck village and photos with Santa. Also, more than 140 Greenwich merchants and restaurants will be offering special promotions, refreshments and in-store attractions. Another festive spot in town is the 10th Annual Greenwich Reindeer Festival & Santa’s Village taking place at Sam Bridge Nursery and Greenhouses on North Street in Greenwich through Dec. 24, featuring live reindeer, photos with Santa, and reindeer feedings as well as train and carousel rides. For info on both events, visit www. greenwichreindeerfestival.com.
Scene… The former home of famous aviator Ruth Rowland Nichols, also known as “The Flying Debutante,” is on the market for $4.8 million. Nichols, who grew up in the home at 289 Grace Church St. in Rye, N.Y., set the record for female pilots in speed, altitude and distance and is the subject of a new book by Keith O’Brien called “Fly Girls: How Five Daring Women Defied All Odds and Made Aviation History.” She was the first licensed female seaplane pilot in the U.S., and in 1928 she and her flight instructor became the first to fly nonstop from New York to Miami. Nichols was one of the founding members, along with famed aviator Amelia Earhart, of the NinetyNines, an organization of licensed women pilots. With Earhart, she was a competitor in the “Powder Puff Derby,” the first official women-only air race in the U.S. In 1930, she bested Charles Lindbergh’s record time for a cross-country flight, completing the trip in 13 hours, 21 minutes.
Out there… Musician Becki Fleischer from Pound Ridge, N.Y., and her band, The Shaves, will perform at Caren’s Cos Cobber at 31 E. Putnam Ave. in Cos Cob on Friday. Fleischer is the wife of former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer. For more info, call 203-992-1333. And that’s all for now. Later...
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