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Is Diane von Furstenberg really putting a private cemetery on her property?
To Die For
Is Diane von Furstenberg really putting a private cemetery on her property?
It’s true fashion icon Diane von Furstenberg has chosen to spend eternity in Litchfield County. This spring the New Milford zoning commission and the state Department of Health approved Von Furstenberg’s application for a permit to install a family cemetery and meditation garden on land at “Cloudwalk,” her farm located in Merryall, a rural section of New Milford. Von Furstenberg purchased 100-acre farm, which includes apple orchards, gardens, and stream and waterfall, and five 18th-century buildings as a country retreat more than 35 years ago, partly from the fortune she acquired from the success of her signature wrap dress.
In a 1993 New York Times article, she revealed her desire to be buried there. “Come”, she said, “I’ll show you where I’m going to be buried.” But it wasn’t until this spring von Furstenberg, 64, who is a board member of the local Housatonic Valley Association, set the wheels in motion for installing the family cemetery, which includes a half-acre garden and cemetery allowing for 20 plots surrounded by cherry trees and encircled by a stonewall. Von Furstenberg has established a trust to maintain the family plot in perpetuity. Von Furstenberg may be one of the only celebrities in Litchfield County to install a private cemetery. But other notables are buried here, including National Review founder William F. Buckley Jr, in Sharon, Pulitzer prize-winning author Frank McCourt and playwright Arthur Miller in Roxbury, and the ashes of composer and conductor Skitch Henderson are buried at his home, Hunt Hill Farm, in New Milford. - Wendy Carlson
A Fresh Brew?
What is the story of the new coffee shop in Salisbury?
Tucked away behind the Salisbury Pharmacy and also reachable by a small promenade just to the side of the pharmacy, resides one of Litchfield County’s hidden gems. Seating only 8 to10 people at its four tables, (plus outdoor seating) this is the must visit for all java hounds. The Roast Coffee House serves coffee, pastries, and bagels—with a schmear or smoked salmon or however your heart desires.
Seven days a week owner Joseph Jaklitsch is stationed behind his Faema coffee machine. Made in Italy and popular in the Fifties and early Sixties, the machine has been updated and computerized. Working with only fair market trade/equal exchange coffee from Barrington Coffee Roasting Co., and milk from local dairies, he proudly prepares each cup of Joe with love. A native of Austria with the coffeehouse tradition in his blood, he fell in love with the aroma of freshly ground coffee as a child. While he often wished to open a full-fledged konditorei, we are delighted to have his version here. A graduate of the CIA’s pastry program, the scones, Danish, bear claws, and muffins are all his creations. Give him a smile and maybe he’ll put a special heart or other pattern into your velvety cappuccino’s milky crown. And, hey, don’t leave without trying one of his thin, crispy, gingerbread man-shaped ginger cookies which he has labeled Ginger Dudes. At one dollar each or in little sacks of five, they are a treat for you and a great favorite with kids. - Maxime DeWitt
