The Lukacs family (left to right), Michael, Julianna, Char and Evan have lived in Westport off and on for 9 years with time living abroad. Mom, Char, is a trained optician and board member at two local nonprofits: A Better Chance and the Westport Museum.  

“I am not currently working outside our home but with everyone home all day there is plenty to be done around the house! It’s been a great time to try and get our teenagers to pitch in and help…making and serving dinner, laundry, cleaning bathrooms, using the vacuum…all good lessons for soon-to-be adults. My husband, Michael is an international tax lawyer and has been spending long days in his home office on phone and video conferences, trying his best to make time to join us on walks at the beach. 

My day consists of overseeing study at home programs for our teenagers, spring cleaning – closets, garage and basement, virtual board meetings for 2 local non-profits, long walks with our dog (sometimes multiple), running at Sherwood Island, daily phone check-ins and Zoom video calls to “see” friends and family, and lots of cooking. I have been making a pot of soup almost every day. Somehow, homemade soup makes everything a bit better!  

We originally followed news of the novel coronavirus when the breakout began in Wuhan, China. It seemed like any other news report from halfway around the word — something that was newsworthy but wouldn’t impact us directly. I remember my husband telling me about the size of the lock down in Wuhan and how it was comparable to a lockdown the size of the NYC metro area. We both were trying to imagine if that happened here…but we couldn’t even. That was not even two months ago. It’s truly amazing how quickly everything has changed.  

The repetitiveness of life now compared to just a month ago has been the biggest change. We’re trying to find a balance for teens when it comes to social media, Netflix, gaming (all ways they are staying connected to friends, which definitely has it benefits), and also making sure they put the electronics away, are present with the family, and reflect on the current developments. 

We are healthy and trying our best to make the best of this challenging situation. We look forward to the day when we can hug friends, visit our favorite restaurants, attend a workout class or participate in team sports, reunite and embrace extended family, celebrate our daughter’s high school graduation and, mostly, to know that the worst of this pandemic is behind us.  

We are calling and checking in with family and those in the community that may need assistance picking up groceries and supplies. We have volunteered to support the Gillespie center and setting virtual meetings and happy hours with friends and family on Zoom to “see” and support each other. Together we will get through!” 

Our hope is that this experience changes humanity for the better–that within us there is something stronger and we emerge from this experience collectively better than ever before. Our fear is that this pandemic lasts longer, creates lasting damage to the economy and takes more lives than we can imagine right now.

Together for 30 years, Chris Buckley, and his husband Mark Ciano moved to Westport in 2013 from Forest Hills, Queens when their children were toddlers and the couple felt the family needed more room. They became familiar with this area after marrying at Fairfield’s Penfield Beach in 2010 and Connecticut was among the few states with legalized gay marriage. The Ciano-Buckleys were photographed on March 27– their twin’s 9^th birthday. 

“I normally work from home as does my husband. I work with a technology company that manufactures wireless connectivity solutions. People who know what a MiFi is or perhaps have heard of 5G may have heard of my company. We have seen tremendous demand for our products with the work-from-home initiatives now.  

We’re managing school lessons with the kids –but please don’t judge our educator skills. Much respect to the teachers! Most of our food is brought in online with an occasional trip to Stop and Shop. We’re happy to help anyone that needs us to pick up something from our supermarket trips.  

We’re getting out to the yard to exercise and allowing the kids a little more screen time than usual. When they’re off the screens they are doing art projects, playing basketball, running laps around the house and now competing on their new foosball table. 

I’m impressed with how the town managers are communicating to the community. I think we are all adjusting and fortunate that there are tools like Facebook, FaceTime and Houseparty to keep all of us socially engaged.  

Dan Nissim is a software engineer who  works remotely and his wife Laura is a Board Certified Legal Nurse Consultant who works at a law firm in Westchester County but is now working from home as well.  The couple says there hasn’t been a lot of change professionally for either of them but their daily lives have changed in a number of ways: “We have concerns about going out and meeting people and, of course, there is the inability to do the things that we normally do, day-to-day like going to the supermarket, or hair salon and getting dental/medical care.“ 

Dan: Because I work from home full time I depend on going out to the gym and even shopping to get some interaction with people, so not being able to go out and interact is very frustrating. The biggest change is not being able to see our family face to face. That’s the most difficult. On the entertaining side I can finally get a little revenge on my children and not do exactly as they would have me do! 

Laura: I am on social media, trying to speak logically, and sometimes clinically, to folks who are afraid. A friend who had lung surgery has needed support as she is very fearful. Others just really need to laugh. I am in frequent contact with my siblings and my 89 year old mother.  

Some people are alarmists, using social networking to escalate conversations that need clarity and calm. Some friends I know are struggling with the social isolation and fears for the future, which then is impacting their health. I know there are many who are unable to work, to earn a living that they count on while others, like restaurant people, continue to struggle day-to-day, hoping that their place of business can remain open and come out the other side of this to continue on. 

We  continue to believe that the people will try to do the right things in this crisis. We are trying as a couple, along with our family, to keep our spirits up–enjoy the sunshiny days and the flowers that are blooming, regardless of the world’s current insanity. Dan would love to help in some concrete way but isn’t finding much that a software engineer can do to help. We want to support the efforts of others and are here if there are people in need that we can help. The state of Connecticut just called on health care people to help relieve some of the active healthcare workforce. It is something I’m thinking hard about. 

Jen Tooker has lived in Westport with her husband Mo since 2008. The couple has three kids: A college freshman, a high school junior and a sixth grader. After a 22-year career in the marketing and underwriting side of the reinsurance business she is now Westport’s Second Selectperson. Jen has been working around the clock as part of the town’s leadership response team to the Corona Virus Crisis. 

“As Westport’s Second Selectwoman, I’m working 24/7 alongside First Selectman, Jim Marpe, to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. We are working in different locations from each other and from our amazing department heads so we can all stay healthy to lead and support our residents and local businesses through this unprecedented time. The information is moving at record pace. Our responses must be equally rapid. I’ve had some high-pressure jobs in my almost 25-year career in finance, but this experience has redefined pressure. We work every day to ensure the health and safety of our residents and the economic viability of our businesses. It’s a pleasure and an honor, but can be a little tiring! 

When I’m not working, I’m helping my three kids find a schedule with school and life and trying to keep them out of my husband’s home office where he is also working 12 hours a day. We have a very disappointed college freshman who is back home for the school year, an anxious high school junior who can’t figure out how this will affect her future and a restless sixth grader who misses her friends but loves having the attention of her older siblings. I have to admit, I love having the kids home. We have family dinners, family movie night, family game night, family walks and, best of all, family house cleaning day – including toilets!  

I now do everything via email, phone, Zoom, GoToMeeting or FaceTime. While those platforms are all important, especially right now, I got into public service because I love people. I am energized by speaking with, learning from, interacting with and problem-solving for our residents. It’s just not as fun doing this job via technology. I miss seeing everyone in person! And I simply can’t wait to see everyone again soon – when the time is right.  

For the last 11 years, Donisha and Alie Diagne have made Westport their home and where they’ve raised three children, Bilal 9 and Leyla 7, and Gary (2018 Staples graduate). Donisha describes the Diagnes as,  “a resilient, small, close-knit family,” for which she credits her heritage and history as well as that of Alie. Born and raised in Connecticut, Donisha’s family migrated here from the South during the Great Migration and Alie emigrated to America from Senegal. 

“There is a level of resilience that comes from our backgrounds and a level of understanding of how much energy we put forth and how we interact with others. For my family, coming up from the South in the industrial boom times and being able to build themselves up has been helpful to us in our ability to think. Not just in the present, but about the future and how we navigate from this environment with its scary levels of uncertainty. It’s about how do we continue to look toward the future, understanding where we are, and knowing ultimately, we are going to be ok. 

Most people in town know our oldest son, Gary who is 20, from the YMCA. Alie and I have had opportunities to support A Better Chance of Westport in different capacities. When you see us, we are often with our younger children Bilal and Leyla at their school or sports events. Although we have lived here for more than 10 years, we are still discovering the town. 

Juggling between work and homeschooling is the biggest change to our professional and daily lives now. Finding ourselves working from home full time – with a full house – definitely requires an adjustment. Previously, we worked from home one to two days a week based on our family needs. We find ourselves being more intentional about our daily calendars, syncing meetings, and working together to ensure one of us is available for Bilal and Leyla when the other is in meetings. We are also trying to find our new normal by sticking to a new schedule and switching to “family time” at the end of the work day. 

As a financial regulator, the content of Alie’s work has not changed as it relates to COVID- 19. However, he has joined the videoconference revolution! He uses video chat check – ins to stay connected with his team. I am a business psychologist working in HR with a focus on employee engagement, development and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Although my role remains the same, the content of my role pivoted slightly to include a focus on helping employees to increase their effectiveness while working virtually and providing leaders with the tools to manage remotely. 

Our greatest hope is that we will continue to work together to reduce the impact [of Corona Virus] to our town and extended communities. We also pray that a useable vaccine is discovered quickly that reduces the impact to everyone’s lives to the greatest extent possible. 

We are connecting with our friends and family frequently and making ourselves available to offer support and an ear to listen. For our community, we have reached out to our neighbors to offer grocery shopping and support, as needed. Sometimes it’s just calling to say hello.”

Journalist Alisyn Camerota is the anchor of New Day: CNN’s morning news show. She has lived in Westport for seven and a half years with her husband, three children (ages 13, 15 and 15), and Savi, their beloved longtime nanny/house manager, who helps control the chaos. 

While the family is following stay at home orders, as a journalist, Alisyn is considered an essential employee and gets a special dispensation from the city to go into Manhattan to do her job. 

“COVID-19 has certainly impacted my work. Our New York City office looks like a ghost town as we all are forced to keep our distance from each other. My producers, writers, bookers, camera crews, and makeup artists are no longer in the building.  My co-anchor and I are normally share an anchor desk, but now we’re both alone in individual studios. It’s strange. I continue to work and report on the situation, hoping that my reporting is helpful and my daily morning presence is comforting to viewers.  

When reporting on this story, it would be impossible for me to pretend that it isn’t hitting close to home. I don’t feel the need to try to insert artificial distance. My town has been hard hit. I’m talking to neighbors everyday who are anxious and confused. I think the proximity to the story gives me more understanding and makes me a better reporter.  It reminds me of reporting from Ground Zero after 9/11. There was no way not to feel close to the story and I accepted that it was ok to feel personally frightened and devastated but still able to get facts and information out. 

My hope is that once these challenging days are behind us, we can preserve a bit of the family time we’ve experienced. I’ve enjoyed the Monopoly marathons and Scrabble nights. I hope this moment helps us scale down our hyper-scheduled lives and appreciate some good old-fashioned reading and Yahtzee-playing.” 

We decided this would be a good time to finally say, ‘Yes,’ to the kids’ desire to get a dog. Knowing the kids would be home from school indefinitely, it seems like they’d have a lot of time on their hands to walk her, train her, and get to know her. She’s been a godsend. It’s fun sharing this stressful time with a super enthusiastic little being. 

Diane Lowman is a yoga instructor who has lived in Westport for 23 years. Last July, Diane was named Westport’s Poet Laureate and shares observations of daily life through the haiku she posts on Instagram. Unlike a lot of people, she’s self-quarantined completely alone—“no pets, no people, no nothing”   

 This time in isolation and dealing with crisis reminds us that we are more similar than different. It reminds me of 9/11 and how differences dropped and we felt united. I’m seeing this every day. I hope that feeling  lasts–including having us all pitch in to help so many of us who aren’t fortunate. My biggest fear is what will happen to folks who are less able, financial, mentally, emotionally, physically, socially. How will we work to get them through this? I know that the economy will come back but I worry about those who will slip through the cracks until it does. 

Writing poetry now is different for me. Over time my haiku has evolved as a journal for me. It’s triggered by what I see which may or may not have to do with how I’m feeling. But now it’s very introspective, in terms of isolation and the larger situation. I have store of photographs that I’ve taken for years even when I was living in abroad and some resonate so well with the feelings of today—like gargoyles from church carvings–that didn’t have a sentiment before but now really work.   

There are silver linings in all this – the slowing down. The kindnesses. Things seem very broken right now but this is finite and while the world will be different it will mend.  

Nathalie Laitmon has lived in Westport for 15 years. The writer and mom of three contracted COVID-19 at “The Party”.  One of the earliest sufferers of a mild to moderate version the illness which she describes as “still being like the worst flu feelings one has ever had at once”, Nathalie came forward on social media to share real information about her experience to try to allay community fears.  She has already donated her blood plasma for researchers at Mt. Sinai Hospital working on treatments and vaccines for COVID-19.  

“Westport has an air that is big enough that you don’t have to come forward to say anything private, but small enough for me to feel incredible responsibility to the town. I never once thought about keeping information to myself especially since the real-time misinformation without context or hindsight is creating a cognitive dissonance with the reality we are used to experiencing.  I feel like I’m on a virtual frontline in terms of sharing information and trying to be an advocate. I’ve had a lot of very private conversations with people I will probably never speak to again just to give reassurance. 

Even though I’m an extremely private person, I felt incredible responsibility to constantly check in with people who were at that party. I felt we had a collective illness and if someone pulled through that raised the spirits of everybody and made it seem it more likely that everybody would pull through. 

That being said, people who were quarantined didn’t want to come forward with false hope until they cycled through all their symptoms. The backlash we saw in these Facebook groups talking about the party was a little scary, and off-putting. There is an undercurrent of fear and panic but it’s up to us to reassure one another.  

It’s feels like we’re in an old-fashioned era for which you are not prepared except for watching Little House On The Prairie reruns. I feel like this is all something we’ve read in history books about tuberculosis and scarlet fever when the fear was unprecedented. 

Doctors told me to assume it’s been through my house completely now. There were many, many days where we had to wait for tests and we were still learning about social distancing. During that time everyone in my home had symptoms. We were ahead of the curve of what everyone will be going through in the next few months.  I’m most concerned about the idea that there are asymptomatic carriers out there. I wonder if people are really listening to their bodies. [For example] now it’s being reported that losing smell and taste is a sign. I had been talking about [my experience with that] for weeks with doctors and no one had an idea of what I was talking about. 

We could all take a lesson from the kids right now, I think we are all surprised with how amazing our kids are through all of this. They are programed to care, which is something I, as a parent couldn’t not have done on my own–the educational system of Westport creates a genuine desire to be good students and good citizens.”