Connecticut
They Rescued a Teardown and Raised the Roof
The Office “It’s a weird, giant one-bedroom house,” Al Ravitz says of the property he and his wife, Sue, a fiber artist, bought in 2018. The paintings on the floor are his, and the rug is Moroccan. The sofa is by Martin Visser, and the chandelier is by Achille Castiglioni.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
Most people could have torn it down,” Al Ravitz says of the 1929 country house he shares with his wife, Sue Ravitz. The property, which sits on three and a half acres in Wilton, Connecticut, had been owned for more than five decades by the president of a regional hosta society who was mostly preoccupied with the landscaping. “The house was in really bad shape inside,” Sue says.
The couple—he a painter and psychiatrist, she a self-taught fiber artist who has shown with the gallerist Patrick Parrish—own a studio apartment in Tudor City. They saw the derelict fixer-upper as a weekend home where they could host their grandchildren.
A year or two into their renovations, they cleared out the area above the garage, which had been divided into four small bedrooms. They made it one great room that Al uses as an office and studio. Their contractor created a wood structure to support the cathedral ceiling, which was finished with plaster by professional church restorers.
“They would bring little spray bottles of water and then smooth it with their hands. It was spectacular watching them,” Al recalls. “We have photos of the material underneath. It’s incredible.”
The Ravitzes, who spent 30 years in Chicago, where Al was on the faculty at the University of Chicago, met in the 1970s at a disco in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where Sue grew up. Al was already a hobbyist buyer of Maxfield Parrish prints, beat-up old oriental rugs, and velvet Victorian furniture, and collecting soon became a joint effort.
“We really didn’t know anything,” says Al. “The bigger, the louder, the better. That was our philosophy then.” Later, they came to appreciate conceptual art. “We’re interested in things that are reductive and in the way that objects interact with one another or evoke a sensation that can’t be characterized verbally.”
Sue’s own practice came late in life. “I was always doing handiwork, and when the kids left for college, I started obsessively knitting little squares, doing these color combinations,” she says. “And then I did blankets and rugs.”
Her pieces are scattered around the home, where their furniture adheres to a pared-down modernist aesthetic. “We just want to find stuff that nobody else has,” says Sue, who adds that Al has more than 400 alerts on auction sites. One of them recently turned up a chair by the Dutch company Droog for $1,500. “Not everything has to look the same,” Al says. “But it has to feel the same.”
The Library The stained glass is original. The light is by Castiglioni. The wall sculpture is by Jesse Hickman. The paintings on the top shelf are by Al, and the throws are by Sue. The large artwork above the Otto Zapf daybed is by Alain Biltereyst.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
The Living Room The artwork above the Theo Ruth sofa is by David Schell. The painting behind the Sarah Burns armchair is by John Dilg. The side table is by Erwine and Estelle Laverne. The chandelier is by Castiglioni. The piece above the stairs and the two rugs are by Sue.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
Photo: Annie Schlechter
The Kitchen The red cabinets are original. “The real estate agent said, ‘Everyone hates this kitchen. You’re going to change it, aren’t you?’ We thought it was so cool,” Al says. The dice chairs are unattributed and the artwork above the windows is by Celeste Fichter.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
The Bathroom The penny tile was added during the Ravitzes’ renovation. The artwork on the right is by Al and the pink piece is by Letitia Quesenberry.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
The Primary Bedroom The artworks are (from left) by Gwenn Thomas, Martí Cormand, Al, and John Dilg is over the bed. The bed is flanked by Dutch midcentury wall lights. The table next to the Chris Rucker chairs is by Roy McMakin.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
The Landscaping “When we bought it there was nothing but hostas,” Sue says. “We must have some very rare specimen hostas.” The pool was already in place.
Photo: Annie Schlechter
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NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — Business leaders and lawmakers from across Connecticut gathered Friday at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) for the “Shaping Connecticut’s Future” Summit.
The labor market is evolving with advances in AI, technology and rising costs, and keeping up with those changes can be a challenge for both businesses and employees.
“We’re really talking about the next generation of jobs,” Bryn Tindall with Rebellion Group said. “The goal today is to get together a lot of decision makers, people who can actually impact this. Get them in the same room and see if we can get on the same page.”
“When there is so much going on, it’s important that we come together, that we have conversations, that we strategize on how we can work together and enhance our partnerships with one another,” Sandra Bulmer, president of SCSU, said.
If you want to learn more about events like this, head to shapingctsfuture.com.
Connecticut
ARREST WARRANT: Georgia man accused of laundering nearly $63K from dead person’s account in Connecticut
CORNWALL, Conn. (WFSB) – A man from Georgia was arrested for laundering money from a dead person’s Fidelity account, Connecticut State Police said.
Troopers identified the suspect as 37-year-old Kevin Delandric Young of Atlanta.
According to an arrest warrant for Young, an attorney who represented the estate of the victim reported to state police that $62,800 was transferred out of a deceased person’s Fidelity account after the person died.
The report was made to state police in March 2025.
The warrant said the crime happened on Nov. 5, 2024 in Cornwall, CT.
Investigators said they were able to trace the money to a Middlesex Federal Savings/Novo account that they associated with Young and his business, Sophisticated Funk Entertainment LLC.
Bank records allegedly showed that a deposit was made to that account. They also showed two transfers that totaled $29,625 were made to another bank account associated with Young.
Young later admitted to state police his involvement in fraudulent activity.
Troopers said that he described the scheme as moving money through accounts, converting it to Bitcoin, and paying another person through the WhatsApp smartphone app.
Investigators characterized the scheme as an organized fraud operation.
They charged Young with first-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit first-degree larceny, and second-degree money laundering.
He faced a judge on May 1 in Torrington.
Copyright 2026 WFSB. All rights reserved.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — With Republican Erin Stewart suspending her campaign for Connecticut governor on the eve of the party convention, state Sen. Ryan Fazio is now the favorite to win the Republican endorsement.
Up until Thursday morning, Fazio was locked in a head-to-head match-up with Stewart, who had long been considered the favorite to win the Republican endorsement at Saturday’s convention.
With Stewart’s exit, the 36-year-old now stands as one of two remaining Republican candidates. Stewart has thrown her support behind Fazio, perhaps best known for his crusades against Connecticut’s high energy costs, a move that could help consolidate support among party delegates.
Fazio first spoke with News 8’s Chief Political Correspondent Mike Cerulli on Thursday.
“Listen, I expect to fight on this campaign all the way through,” Fazio said. “I don’t expect anything; I’m entitled to nothing. I need to earn everything as a candidate, and our campaign has that exact attitude. So, we’re gonna work extraordinarily hard every single day to win the support, to earn the support of every single Republican delegate, every single Republican primary voter, and every single voter irrespective of their background or their party affiliation in November. This is too important not to.”
The other remaining Republican candidate is 77-year-old Betsy McCaughey, the cable TV host and former New York lieutenant governor. Can she secure 15% of the delegates this Saturday and automatically trigger a primary?
“I’ve been calling Erin Stewart’s delegates all day, and in fact, I want to call Erin Stewart, expressing my concern and saying I wish her and her family well,” McCaughey told News 8’s Chief Political Anchor Dennis House. “This is a difficult time. And then I’ve called many of Erin Stewart’s delegates, and I’m sure I’ll reach all of them and meet with them tomorrow. And I’m asking, please join me in launching the Connecticut comeback.”
Stay with News 8 on air and online all day Saturday as we bring the vote count and let you know if we are heading for a primary showdown in August.
The Collapse of a Campaign
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