First Selectman Gordon Joseloff receives the oath of office beginning his second term from state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. Photo by Steve Laitman

Inauguration ceremonies for Town elected officials, held at Town Hall on Monday evening, were marked by optimism and celebration, as Gordon Joseloff was sworn in to office for a second term as Westport's First Selectman by his childhood friend, state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

The man behind Al's Angels is Al DiGuido, a Westporter who was struck with the overwhelming desire to help sick kids with cancer more than 20 years ago after attending a fundraiser in New York where football legend Phil Simms appeared.

"To place yourself as an occupational force in a Muslim country is a fool's errand.
We owe much more to our troops than to deploy them to conflict, dressed up by career politicians who never wore so much as a Cub Scout uniform in defense of their country," said Merrick Alpert, candidate for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate.

Democrat Gordon Joseloff, newly re-elected last week to a second four-year term as Westport's first selectman, is glad to be able to serve Westport again.

Bob Zappi, who stepped down as the chairman of the Republican Town Committee to run for the Board of Finance in last week's election, lost his campaign by a mere 60 votes. He is back in the saddle as the chairman of the RTC and, in an interview with the Minuteman, called the campaigning process "a very positive experience" despite the fact that the Republicans were unable to wrest control of even one board or commission from the Democrats.

First Selectman Gordon Joseloff reacted enthusiastically this week to the designation of the Town of Westport as number one in its population category in the November issue of Connecticut Magazine.