Y's Men News -- Sunday, March 29, 2026 | | |
Table of Contents
(Scroll Down to Find the Article Behind the Headline. Articles are
in the same order as the Table of Contents)
- Last Chance: Y's Men Sponsor VersoFest '26 Event Today
- Traveling to Easter Island Subject of Travel Group Meeting
- Expert to Brief Y's Men on Iran War This Thursday
- How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Life Easier
- Trips & Events Lists Outings
- Y's Men Memorial Day Float Committee Needs You
- Jim Marpe to Interview NBC's Craig Melvin April 8
- Y's Men Pickleball Enthusiasts Ready to Begin New Season
- Shoah Memorial to Be Discussed Sunday, April 12 at Y's Men
- Ping Pong Players Meet on Mondays at 2:30 pm
- Here's An Opportunity to Strengthen Bonds with Grandchildren
| | Last Chance: Y's Men Sponsor VersoFest '26 Event Today | | |
Renowned music entrepreneur Peter Shapiro will be in conversation with Dean Budnick, editor of Relix Magazine, today (Sunday, March 29) from noon to 1:30 pm in a VersoFest '26 event sponsored by the Y's Men.
Shapiro has owned and operated concert venues like Brooklyn Bowl and The Capitol Theatre and has produced a wide array of music festivals. Budnick is a rock author, writer and documentarian.
They will be discussing the legacy of The Grateful Dead and the development of the jam band scene over the decades. The conversation will be followed by a screening of the Grateful Dead movie "Dead Ahead," a concert video by The Grateful Dead recorded at Radio City Music Hall and released in 1981 containing acoustic as well as electric song performances.
Tickets are free but reservations are recommended. Click here to reserve and head right over to the Library. There will be coffee, bagels, and cream cheese as well as delicious pastries from Cobs Bread beginning at 10:00 am. Two VersoFest '26 panel discussions start at 10:30 am before the Shapiro/Budnick conversation begins at noon in the Trefz Forum.
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Traveling to Easter Island Subject of Travel Group Meeting
The Y’s Men Travel Discussion Group will meet from 9:00 to 10:30 am tomorrow (Monday, March 30) in rooms 203-204 at the Saugatuck Congregational Church. Y's Man Jean-Pierre Montillier will lead the meeting this week.
The meeting will begin with those who have recently travelled giving a brief review of their trip.
The meeting’s focus: Jean-Pierre’s Experience Travelling to Easter Island.
- Planning for the trip
- Video presentation of the trip itself
Spouses/partners/significant others are always welcome to join us too!
For information about the Y’s Men Travel Discussion Group, or to be added to the Group’s email distribution list, please contact Art Mann at mannart03@gmail.com
| Expert to Brief Y's Men on Iran War This Thursday |
Dr. Kenneth M. Pollack
Dr. Kenneth M. Pollack, a top policy analyst, will assess the Iran war and global oil risks for Y's Men at this Thursday's (April 2) regular morning meeting.
Dr. Pollack, Vice President for Policy at the Middle East Institute, will provide a briefing on the war with Iran, the wider fighting across the Middle East, and the threat to global oil shipping routes. Pollack, who recently argued in Foreign Affairs that regime change in Iran is a risky bet and that, for now, the odds still favor the regime, will explain what that means for U.S. strategy.
A former CIA analyst and National Security Council official, he is a leading authority on Middle East security and was interviewed on NBC’s "Meet the Press" shortly after the war began. He will focus on the rapid developments shaping U.S. options in the days ahead.
Y's Men Thursday morning meetings are in Hoskins Hall downstairs in the Saugatuck Congregational Church, 245 Post Road East in Westport. Coffee, donut, and bagel social hour begins at 9:00 am, business meeting at 10:00 am, speaker at 10:30 am. Come early and meet your fellow members. Guests are always welcome.
| How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Life Easier | |
Dr. Anca Micu
Photo by Ted Horowitz
Y’s Men packed Hoskins Hall last Thursday morning to hear Dr. Anca Micu explain how artificial intelligence can make everyday life easier. A former copywriter turned marketing professor and author of “AI Made Simple,” Micu now serves as senior associate dean and professor of marketing at Fairfield University’s Charles F. Dolan School of Business.
Her message: the most important AI skill is not coding, it’s communication. Good “prompt engineering,” she said, means giving AI clear context, a specific task, practical constraints, and a preferred format—whether you are analyzing an ad campaign, planning travel, checking facts, or helping a student choose Staples High School science classes. Vague prompts (“analyze this campaign”) produce vague answers; detailed prompts (“you are a marketing analyst…identify patterns…present in a professional but accessible tone”) turn AI into a useful partner.
Micu warned that AI responses are confident but not always correct, and urged the audience to protect privacy and use their own judgment. Never feed personal identifying information into AI tools, she said, and turn off settings that invite you to “help improve the model.” Used well, she argued, AI makes people think more—not less—by forcing them to ask better questions, check sources, and actively curate the machine’s work.
Click here to view the video of her presentation.
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Tuesday, March 31
Tour the Old Power Plant on Manresa Island, Norwalk
Spouses, significant others and friends are most welcome
https://conta.cc/4d6mHPg
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Monday, April 13
North Sails: Sail Manufacturing Facility in Bridgeport
“For Y’s Men Members Only” due to high demand. Unfortunately, no spouses nor guests.
https://conta.cc/41suxeY
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Wednesday, April 15
New York Transit Museum and Plymouth Church
Open to fully dues-paid-up Y’s Men members, spouses and friends
https://conta.cc/3Nxqvi8
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Wednesday, April 22
New York Botanical Garden Orchid Show
Spouses and significant others are most welcome
https://conta.cc/4sv4e3k
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Thursday, June 4
New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Guardians
Open to fully dues-paid-up Y’s Men members, spouses & friends
https://conta.cc/4sJGW9R
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Thursday, June 11
New York Mets vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Open to fully dues-paid-up Y’s Men members, spouses and friends
https://conta.cc/4kOYChS
| | Y's Men Memorial Day Float Committee Needs You | | For more than 20 years, the Y’s Men of Westport/Weston has built award-winning floats for the Westport Memorial Day Parade. We need your help. Come join the Y’s Men Float Committee. Be part of the cadre of volunteers with a wide variety of skills, including tech, actors to ride on the float, as well as carpenters to build and take down the float after the parade. We even need Y’s Men to pick up and drop off coffee. | | |
Our theme for this year's float is the Gettysburg Address.
If you are interested in joining a fun group of guys to help celebrate Memorial Day please contact Baxter Urist at burist@optonline.net
Lots of fun while paying tribute to our brave American soldiers.
2026 Float Committee Chairs
Roy McKay
John Brandt
Baxter Urist
| | Jim Marpe to Interview NBC's Craig Melvin April 8 | | |
Craig Melvin
An evening with Craig Melvin, co-sponsored by the Y's Men and The Westport Library, will be held Wednesday, April 8, at 7:00 pm at the Library. Melvin is Co-Anchor of NBC’s “Today” and Co-Host of “3rd Hour of Today.” He will be interviewed by good friend Y's Man Jim Marpe.
A Westport resident along with his wife, award-winning sportscaster Lindsay Czarniak, Melvin will share stories from his career at the NBC News desk and transition into his current role as a Co-Host of "Today."
He will offer a "behind-the-scenes" glimpse into his most memorable interviews and global events such as the Olympics, various Super Bowls, as well as his perspective on the future of news.
A Westport resident, Melvin will discuss his life here and experiences that shape his work. Join us on April 8 for an unforgettable night of storytelling, and an opportunity to spend an evening with one of the country’s most respected broadcasters.
Click here to obtain your free tickets.
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Y's Men Pickleball Enthusiasts Ready to Begin New Season
The courts are swept, the nets are up, the temperature is rising. It's time to begin the 2026 outdoor season!
The location is the same: Town Farms Courts on North Compo Road.
The time is the same: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:30 to 2:00 pm.
What's new this season is that they are going to continue their practice of playing for a third day as they did at the end of last season: Saturdays from 11:00 am to 12:30 pm.
Courts will be reserved beginning the week of April 6, with the first play date on Tuesday, April 7.
For those who may be new to the game or would like to improve their skills, Westport offers a series of clinics throughout the spring and summer months. Westport residents can sign up for the clinics at the Parks and Rec website. They can really make a difference in your game.
If there are any questions or suggestions, please contact any of the four Y's Men listed below.
In the meantime, get ready for another season of play and camaraderie. See you on Tuesday, April 7. And remember to stretch before you play.
Hayes Clark hayesclark53@gmail.com
Ed Diamond erdli@aol.com
Jay Dirnberger jaydirnberger@gmail.com
Matt McNerney matthewmcnerney0@gmail.com
| | Shoah Memorial to Be Discussed Sunday, April 12 at Library | | |
"She Wouldn't Take Off Her Boots," a sculpture that will be discussed at The Westport Library on Sunday, April 12.
The Shoah Memorial Fairfield Connecticut will be discussed and presented Sunday, April 12 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm at The Westport Library.
Y’s Man Paul F. Burger is Chairman and primary sponsor of the project, a nonprofit dedicated to Holocaust remembrance, education, and interfaith civic engagement. It revolves around a sculpture entitled "She Wouldn't Take Off Her Boots" that will be installed as a memorial at Fairfield University.
The sculpture will be the centerpiece of the Sunday program entitled "Fighting Antisemitism and Celebrating Community: An Introduction to the Shoah Memorial."
The memorial is being created as a permanent educational resource—honoring Holocaust victims and survivors while fostering dialogue about human dignity, moral courage, and the consequences of hatred for future generations.
For additional information on the program and to obtain free admission click here.
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Y’s Men Ping Pong Players Meet on Mondays at 2:30 pm
Y's Men Ping Pong players meet every Monday at the Westport Center for Senior Activities to play from 2:30 to 4:00 pm.
Extra paddles are available if needed. Typically, the group plays singles or doubles depending on the number of folks who come.
Players at any level are welcomed even if they have not played in 40 or 50 years..
For additional information contact Y's Man Jeffery Silberman at jefferymsilberman@gmail.com
| | Here's an Opportunity to Strengthen Bonds with Grandchildren | | |
Y's Men pilot program provides a platform to better know your grandchildren.
Sign up now for a new pilot program: Grand Play Day, coming to Y’s Men of Westport/Weston. It’s an afternoon where you and a grandchild (ages 5–12) play together, face‑to‑face and screen‑free. Using simple tools — question cards, paper‑and‑pencil table games, storytelling dice and cards, and easy, low‑impact activities — you’ll share laughs, swap stories, and likely discover something new about each other.
Why it matters: Grand Play Day is built on “Connections Thru Play,” created by Playocracy founder Lynn Campanella in partnership with the National Institute for Play, where Y’s Man Joe Miller serves as a volunteer executive.
Research highlighted by the Institute shows that play supports our health, our brains, our learning, our creativity, and our emotional resilience. It is as essential as sleep and nutrition. This Y’s Men pilot, planned for the week of April 24–30, 2026 to coincide with Global Intergenerational Week, will involve 15 to 20 Y’s Men families, be facilitated by Lynn and Joe, and include academic input from Eastern Connecticut State University’s Center for Early Childhood Education and Fordham University’s Center on Aging and Intergenerational Studies as a potential model for other community groups.
To participate with a grandchild ages 5–12, contact Joe Miller at josephamiller@yahoo.com.
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