By Andy Brophy

Residents can see Westport through the eyes of other people next month.

The Westport America250 Committee is asking people within the town on Sept. 6, both residents and visitors, to photograph what catches their eyes and interest.

“Westport is a town that shows up and participates in things so we’re hoping we get a lot of pictures from a lot of people,”  said James Delorey, secretary of the League of Women Voters of Westport, a co-sponsor of the event.

Miggs Burroughs, a Westport America250 Committee member, said he hopes hundreds of photos are submitted and that all appropriate photos would be on a website.

Delorey said it’ll be interesting to see what residents and visitors decide to photograph and share, and Burroughs said everyone can submit up to three images. “They have three chances to capture something special,” he said.

Irell Pettway, 49, a resident in the town since October, said he already knows what he plans to photograph – a pine tree in Winslow Park that he believes is the tallest in Westport. “I have a tree in Westport that’s a good friend … It gives me comfort, peace and shade,” he said.

Pettway said he named the tree “Deejay” and took one of its pinecones so he could have a similar tree on property he owns in Alabama. Pinecones have seeds that can be extracted, chilled and planted individually.

Joan Gillman, president of the League of Women Voters of Westport, said she plans to participate in “A Day in the Life of Westport” but hasn’t decided what to photograph.

But Gillman said Halo, her Australian Labradoodle, likely would be in the photo and that the setting would be either Winslow Park, which she said has beautiful trees and vistas, or the beach.

Delorey said Westport is rich in culture and natural beauty and deciding what to photograph was “daunting in a way.”

“The possibilities are endless,” Burroughs said.

Tom Kiely, the town’s operations director, who’s spearheading Westport’s efforts to celebrate America’s 250th birthday, said he didn’t think of participating in “A Day in the Life of Westport” because he didn’t live in Westport and Sept. 6 is a Sunday. But he said he may bring his family to a Westport beach that day.

All photos have to be taken on Sept. 6, between midnight and 11:59 p.m., and photographers can upload their black-and-white or color photos to dayinthelife2026.artcall.org in JPEG, TIFF or PDF formats. The website will only accept photos on Sept. 6, and people who participate can include brief captions that identify the photo’s location and why it was chosen.

Burroughs said committee members didn’t want to choose July 4 for “A Day in the Life of Westport” because they thought many people would submit photos of fireworks. He said the Sept. 6 date, the Sunday before Labor Day, is not weather dependent.

About three dozen photos submitted to “A Day in the Life of Westport” will be curated for an exhibit, said Burroughs, a founder of the Artists Collective of Westport, which is also a co-sponsor of the event. Delorey said photos may also appear in a book, revenue from which would benefit the League of Women Voters of Westport.

The idea for “A Day in the Life of Westport” originated from Life magazine, which had famous photographers capture moments in time in America in 1976 as part of the country’s 200th birthday, Burroughs said.

Future events to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday include burying a time capsule in Westport in November, Kiely said. The contents and location for the time capsule are to be determined, though Town Hall Green and Veterans Green are possibilities, he said.

The town, though, is having trouble finding a time capsule buried at Saugatuck Congregational Church in 1976 to celebrate America’s 200th birthday and may resort to ground-penetrating radar to locate it, Kiely confirmed.

While America became a country in 1776, Westport is a little younger. Westport was incorporated from Fairfield, Norwalk and Weston in May 1835 and ranks 134th oldest out of Connecticut’s 169 municipalities, according to a state government website.

Andy Brophy

Andy Brophy is an experienced Fairfield County journalist. Andy was a staff writer at The Connecticut Post for 10 years. He also wrote for the Norwalk Hour, Fairfield Minuteman, Fairfield Patch and weekly newspapers in Westport, Fairfield and Norwalk. When not reporting, Andy enjoys playing chess and listening to pianist Art Tatum. ^_.