The best source for local news from Marbletown, Rochester & Rosendale
Published the 1st and 3rd Friday of each month | Vol. 26, Issue 23
December 3, 2021 | 75 cents
Skate Time referendum canceled The contract for sale and referendum are both canceled Anne Pyburn Craig BSP Reporter Sometimes it’s pretty easy to read the signs. They popped up everywhere in the Town of Rochester, reading “Vote No on December 7” – and when both Republi-
cans and Democrats came out against the potential purchase of the former Skate Time 209, Rochester’s Town Board opted to cancel the planned referendum vote rather than spend up to $4,000 on what was clearly a foregone conclusion. The possible acquisition of the 30,000 square foot building with 6 acres of land for $2.06 million was first considered last May, when supervisor Michael Baden got a call from property owner Stephen Apkon offering the town first dibs on the property
for use as office space and a community center. The Town Board voted unanimously to schedule a referendum and put the question to the public, but as election season heated up, it became clear which way the wind was blowing. When Baden received an email from Apkon’s Accordion Ventures LLC last week offering to allow the town to withdraw from the contract, which the town would have had to sign before the referendum due to a timeline conflict between town
law and state election law, he immediately brought it to his board, which met and unanimously agreed that withdrawing the proposal and cancelling the vote was the right thing to do. “The contract clearly stated that the agreement to purchase was dependent on the outcome of the permissive referendum,” Baden says. “It was brought into the election campaign, and the Rochester Re-
See Skate Time, page 3
'Tis the season
Holiday section Pages 17-25
A Wreath Making Workshop this week at the Harold Lipton Community Center. It was taught by assistant recreation director Bethany Dennin. Photo by Manuela Michailescu
Interactive 'Christmas Carol' in Rosendale Page 29
Marijuana dispensaries coming to a town near you Amber Kelly BSP Reporter
Last Bite becomes a family affair Page 13
The Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA), aka “the cannabis law,” passed into law March 31, 2021, legalizing adult recreational use of cannabis, or marijuana. This “Marihuana” law, which NYS oddly spells with an “h,” allows towns to benefit financially from dispensaries and consumption lounges. Municipalities can zone for dispensaries and set hours, but the state will make sure towns are not too restrictive. New York’s new Office of Cannabis Management (OCM ) will gather input from communities and stakeholders throughout the state for the development of regulations. OCM will be the agency to issue licenses once regulations are ap-
proved. OCM is governed by the Cannabis Control Board, a state cannabinoid (aka CBD) hemp regulatory agency. The question is, do we want to allow retail? The answer for all communities in New York is due by Dec. 31. If the answer is yes, the town cannot revisit consumption later. If the town opts out, the town can revisit the decision at a later date. At the Nov. 18 Town of Marbletown marijuana public forum held at the Community Center on Main Street, a participating community member said that five people cannot make the decision for everyone. A town board member said, yes, they can, and do it all the time (make decisions, albeit with public input). Thus far, no towns in Ulster County have opted out. The Town of Ulster was going to opt out, but so many people showed up
to protest, they decided to allow it. Towns will get 4% of the 25% that NYS gets from taxation on sales; if opting out, of course, those towns get 0%. There is no restriction on how the county can spend the related income. The size of a store and the times it is allowed to be open must be reasonable. For example, hours of operation cannot be regulated down to only one hour per day. Marbletown soon will get an idea of the level of interest because potential applicants must apply to the state 30 days prior. Application forms have not yet been created, so they will pile up before processing begins. Similar to when someone applies for a liquor license, the town can weigh in on approvals. If three licenses are approved, the town can say that’s enough.
See Marijuana, page 5
Page , December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
Cutting edge education, local nostalgia and the joys of the waterfront Where did you grow up? What was it like to grow up there? How did you spend your time as a kid? I grew up bordering Minnewaska State Park in Accord. I lived in what once was one of the huckleberry pickers’ houses on Stonykill Road. We spent a lot of time on what we referred to as “the ledges,” hiking and playing in the millstone quarries. It was a pretty neat and unique place to grow up. We had Project 32 right down the street, so summers were spent swimming there often. My brother and I were close with the neighborhood kids, many of whom are still friends of ours. As a teen, a lot of my time was also spent at the strand in Kingston, boating on the Hudson as part of the Sea Scouts and Rondout Rowing Club. Tell me about your profession. How did you end up in it? I started off in graphic design but that morphed Visit the folks into a career in communications. I next door decided about five years ago what I really wanted to do was more in line with user experience and human factors design. I went back for my master’s in emerging technologies and learning design, and I now design learning experiences, from mixed-reality simulations to in-classroom training. I work for a global engineering and environmental firm. My unit focuses on public-private partnerships in Africa, South America and Asia. In addition, I also moonlight helping my spouse run his inspection firm, Mountain Valley Inspections. What do you love about the job? I love delivering innovative and affective solutions to challenging topics. What our students are learning is critical to some of our world’s biggest problems, from social and economic crises to environmental impacts in agriculture and infrastructure. If the learning experiences are engaging, then the knowledge sticks and can be applied to some of the largest and most critical projects in the world. That’s a big responsibility but I like being part of that process. What's the most challenging part? Delivering digital learning experiences to remote places in the world. Most of the students are using cell phones to access live sessions and complete assignments.
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The service is often spotty, and regional issues can interfere with ability for students to participate. Being adaptable on the fly is a must. Have you always been an artist? Do you have a first memory of seeing things in an artistic way? As far back as I can remember, I've been drawing. My earliest memory of drawing was drawing the sun with a blue dot in the middle of it. You might be able to guess that the blue dot was from staring at the sun. Although I’ve stopped burning out my retinas, I think I still see all the small details and put that in my art. Many responses I get about my work are comments on the small details that I include. Many people are surprised to discover them in the piece. What medium do you work with? What do you appreciate about the medium? What do you find most challenging? I’m a mixed media artist. I like to use archival ink pens to draw many of the ink drawings that I do on Bristol paper. I also like to paint digitally and will scan my ink drawings and paint in software like Autodesk. I have a background in both visual and digital arts so I often use the digital tools like I would traditional paint, etc. It takes a lot of practice and patience to paint by hand on a computer, but it’s a bit easier on my carpel tunnel condition stemming
What inspired you to start creating a nostalgic series for the area? I think the recent and rapid changes in our area have invoked a sense of nostalgia in many of the longtime residents of the area, myself included. We see those stories in the groups online. The Rondout Valley area is a unique area, filled with a deep history and the stories that come with that. The uniqueness comes from those families that lived here for generations. That's the personality of the area. We all have memories of those people and those places even if they're not there anymore. I wanted to pay tribute to some of those places and people, like Romeo Muller in High Falls (writer of the animated “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer”). What nostalgic images have you created so far? I have created the Christmas tree lighting in High Falls in front of the Canal House. That painting included Romeo Muller’s red Cadillac convertible parked out front. Romeo played Santa for the neighborhood kids and participated in the lighting of the tree. He was notorious for the red Cadillac convertible he drove around town. Both the Canal House restaurant and Romeo are not with us anymore, but I could bring a bit of that back to life. I have also created Sammy’s Place diner. The diner was on the corner of Route 209 and Lucas in Accord. Owned by my daughter’s great-grandparents, Samuel and Isabel Marano. Isabel was an immigrant from Spain, and Samuel (Sammy) was a WWII veteran. They came up here in the ’60s to run the diner until it burnt down late ’70s/ early ’80s. Many still remember the diner since it was one of the only places in town to get a meal. Everything was cooked from scratch by Isabel, who’d get up early to make all the food for the day. In the winter, many of the locals would ride their snowmobiles right up to the diner. As an Italian and Spaniard couple, Sammy and Isabel were famous for their loud back-and-forth banter! My third piece is of the William Anderson Inc. farm supply store in Accord. This was one of the first buildings on Main Street in Accord and paved the way for many of the other businesses on Main Street back in the day. I have also drawn several barns, farm stands, houses and businesses around the area. Any more in the hopper? Yes! I'm doing some research for other businesses and sites in the area that I’d like to capture. Some future drawings queued up are the General Store in Accord and the original Egg’s Nest in High Falls. Of course, there are a few places that mean a lot to me personally that will probably show up in some future pieces. How do you spend a perfect day off in the area? There’s a lot of great things to do around the area – my favorite spot still being the Rondout waterfront. I love spending time on the river. Plus you can’t beat the scenery on the Hudson. I'd like to get my sculling certificate this coming season so I can spend more time rowing this summer. – Compiled by Chelsea Miller, BSP reporter
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page
Skate time from page 1 publican Committee was clearly opposed. Then the Democrats sent out an email opposing it, so cancelling the vote was the clear choice.” Baden emphasizes that his sole intention was to put the question before the voters, not to push the purchase through; town facilities are in need of upgrades, and the deal represented one possible path forward. “If we build new facilities, they’re not going to be 30,000 square feet, but that’s OK,” he says. “We just thought it was a question worth asking.” The intensity of the conversation came as something of a surprise to Apkon, who had closed the facility for renovations shortly before the Covid pandemic shortcircuited the business plan. Apkon posted on Nextdoor, making the owners’ position clear in a statement beginning, “Dear Town of Rochester Neighbors.” The Nextdoor post continues, “We have been proud members of this community for more than 12 years and have been saddened recently – not by the decision to forgo the purchase of the facility – as we always wanted this to be a town decision and have always been completely open to whatever was decided collectively – but by the level of vitriol and misinformation in our civil discourse … We originally purchased Skate Time 209 with a desire to create a community project that crossed divides and unites everyone. We still very much believe in the importance of the space for community gatherings, yet with the impact of Covid and significant changes in our lives, we didn’t have the capacity to bring it to fruition. Because we knew we were in a position of needing to sell it, we wanted to first offer it to the town as a community center and town hall in case there was interest. The board looked at it, we met with each Board member individually, and they unanimously agreed to support the initiative and to put it forth to the people, our community. We concurred that while they could have purchased it without this process – it was important to them AND to us that it be done with a referendum. “It is challenging for all of us that we live in a very divided world with some perspectives that seem to only want to polarize. We look at the importance of not creating division but having good communication and cooperation where we can look objectively at what is best, have clear and sometimes difficult conversations, but to hold the respect for each other and the ability to navigate to the best outcome. “We have seen how the proposed referendum has become a divide in the community and that is the opposite of what we ever wanted. We appreciate and value everyone’s views and perspectives, and share your love of this community. We look forward to working together to make it even better in the years ahead.” Rochester Republican chairman Timothy Bunch emailed a comment detailing his committee’s evaluation of the events leading to the referendum’s proposal and cancellation: “The Town of Rochester Republican Committee along with our Republican candidates that we ran this past election, which included a (registered Democrat) supervisor, (NOP) justice, (NOP) councilman, and (Republican) councilwoman, ran on the platform of “no” to the purchase of Skate Time. In contrast, The Democrat platform was for the purchase. “The Republican Committee started this awareness campaign to reach across the aisle to form a bipartisan alliance with citizens of Rochester regardless of their affiliation in order to defeat the purchase of Skate Time. This was done because it is not a good purchase for the Town of Rochester, regardless of what you are registered to vote as. The Conservative Committee was the first one to come alongside us
Skate Time 209 building at the corner of Route 209 and Mettacahonts Road
early on, this past summer. The Democrat Committee was silent on the issue until two days ago by extreme pressures placed upon them by Democrat party members in the community reaching out, the committee finally came out against the purchase of Skate Time. “We are very happy that so many Democrats helped us persuade their committee and the entire Democrat town board to act in the best interest of the community. There are some legal concerns that are being looked at currently to make sure that the town is protected. It is too early to release the findings.” Rochester’s Democratic Committee says that the cancellation is fine with them. “We believe the purchase of Skate Time was premature and was not the right solution to address our town's longstanding need for expanded and modernized municipal office, court, and community spaces,” the committee responded by email. “We are saddened by the anger leveled at our Town Board members, who were working in good faith to respond to an offer. The referendum vote, a unique opportunity to make a community decision, was turned into a political weapon to sow division in our town through disinformation and false accusations. “If we are going to solve our infrastructure needs and many other challenges, Rochester residents must work together in a spirit of trust, cooperation, and good faith. We encourage the Town Board to consider setting up a diverse advisory committee to complete a comprehensive building needs assessment and to explore multiple possibilities for addressing this ongoing critical unmet challenge. We are hopeful that the owners will quickly find a new buyer. We thank them for putting the town first and appreciate their good intentions to build an ever-stronger community in the Town of Rochester.” In their initial renovation plan, Accordion Ventures LLC intended to rechristen the business “Neighborhood 209” and add a variety of community functions and events to the rink, which now awaits a fresh future. To Baden, it’s all OK. “So instead of spending $3,000 to $4,000 on a vote that would have been a foregone conclusion, we spent $600 on getting ballots printed up, and now we have a clear idea of what our citizens want anyway,” he says. “Fine with me. Anyone who’s watching will tell you, ‘Baden’s pretty cheap with the tax dollars.’”
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Page , December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
Negotiations continue for Lucas Turnpike home and conservation subdivisions Concerns over septic and wetlands dominate planning discussions Ann Belmont BSP Reporter At the Rochester Planning Board meeting on Nov. 8, the board took a lot of time with an application introduced in October by DeJager Realty. DeJager is intending to develop 93.4 acres on Lucas Turnpike into a 14-lot subdivision, creating a new private road connecting Lucas with Peninsula Lane. The new homes will have a legal right to exit at both ends. DeJager has applied for a “conservation subdivision,” a tradeoff with the town in which the landowner agrees to keep a percentage of the parcel undeveloped in perpetuity, in return for smaller lot sizes than the remaining land is zoned for. There were many details to be ironed out. Some board members objected to a couple of lots they thought were too close to the Rondout Creek. Their location, on a hill above the creek, raised two objections. “The first concern is conservation,” said Sam Zarofsky. “The second is septic." “If you’re on the river, will you see these homes?” asked AnnMarie Maloney. Her concern was trying to conserve an existing unspoiled “viewshed” for the public. Maren Lindstrom said, “The septic is
fine for now, but 10 years down the road, I have … environmental concerns” about effluent leaching into the Rondout. “It all flows down,” she said, meaning downhill into the creek. Zarofsky said that 14 septic systems near the Rondout constituted "a home site density concern.” “There’s a lot of septics on a little bit of area there,” added Mark Grasso. Board chairman Rick Jones recommended moving lots 3 and 4. “Take those two and put them someone else.” If those home sites were relocated, the board agreed, septic contamination would be less of an issue. The purpose of a conservation subdivision is to preserve open land in the town. Most of the proposed conservation area is a wetland where construction probably wouldn't be possible in any case, prompting Zarofsky's comment that “this is a huge tax write-off” from which the Town of Rochester would not gain. Not everyone on the board expressed agreement. Engineer Nadine Carney of Peak Engineering, representing DeJager, said that the homeowners would all have a stake in keeping the conservation area for recreation. Presently, that area would include 42 acres out of the 93.4 total. According to a later email from Jones, “That may grow by an acre or two as discussions continue. The majority of [the conservation area] will be contiguous, with a very small portion standing on its own.” Carney had pinned up a “concept sketch” of her proposal. Zarofsky redrew
some of the lot lines and conservation area boundaries on the sketch as the board would like to see them. Carney asked if the board was agreed upon accepting the sketch as a rough draft after those changes. They took a vote and the answer was yes. “I’ll have to go back to the applicant. He may not want to do the conservation subdivision, based on this,” Carney said then. This application may be in process for some time. Francesco Malatesta, Marco Gentilucci and Alessio Pigazzi propose splitting their 65-acre property at 85 Baker Road into three 19-acre lots. One of the proposed lots has a large wetland, prompting chairman Jones to float the idea of a conservation subdivision. Heather Gabriel, the engineer from Medenbach & Eggers, said that her clients would be happy to agree to forego further subdivision of the land instead. They don’t want the deed restrictions involved in a conservation subdivision, she said. “They may want to use some of this area for agriculture. They may want to put up a hunting stand …,” Gabriel said. Lindstrom responded, “They’re going to find that they can’t do it. They’re deluding themselves,” because, she said, the land is so swampy. “It’s only been used as a dairy farm because it’s too wet.” She then talked about the Planning Board’s responsibility to protect the aquifer from septic and pesticide runoff. “That swamp goes into the Mombaccus. The Mombaccus goes into the Rondout. The Rondout goes into the Hudson …”
Eventually, Gabriel and the board appeared to agree on a voluntary 100-foot buffer around the wetlands on the survey map, the buffer to be outlined on that map. Construction would stay outside that 100-foot mark to protect the wetland from contamination. The deed would also include a restriction against further subdivision of the property. Gabriel will presumably return the application to the board with those amendments. A public hearing was held for Frank Kortright's application to carve 8 acres from a 73-acre lot zoned as a sand mine on Rochester Center Road. He had to get a special use permit to waive the zoning, as his intention is to create a building lot out of the smaller parcel. There was no opposition from neighbors, and the hearing was closed quickly. Kortright was assured that he would get a favorable decision from the board by next month. Another ongoing application was set for a public hearing on Dec. 13. The board was satisfied with all the modifications made by the applicants, Regina Solcberg and David Demarest. They will be subdividing 10 acres at 232 Dug Road, Accord, into a 5.6 and a 4.3 acre parcel. Because of technicalities in NYS law, they won’t be able to get an official decision from the Planning Board till January. Apparently inspired by a recent application from someone who lived on a body of water, Zarofsky wondered if it would be legal to build a house in New York state that was only accessible by boat. “It’d be cool if you could!” No one was sure.
BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page
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Marijuana from page 1 When the corporations apply to NYS to open a dispensary they are required to include the location. The owner must be a corporation and must list principals. It takes upward of $100,000 to start up, and interested parties will need to apply to the town board. This new law has the same restrictions as tobacco as far as location. No shop may be located within 500 feet of a school nor
within 200 feet of a religious institution. Some communities constrain it to a corridor. Similar to how liquor stores sell but do not serve, there is no partaking allowed at dispensaries. It is also illegal to use cannabis in a moving vehicle. At this point the police have no way to test for THC levels so enforcement is tricky. Schools will regulate as they would with any other substance like alcohol and tobacco.
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One neighbor asked if there would be neon lights at a dispensary. Someone else asked if the smell of cannabis would waft onto street. Another person worried about how a cannabis dispensary would affect the neighborhood. It was noted that local zoning laws on lighting apply, and there are filtration systems that effectively prevent smells. A comment was made that maybe the town should approve dispensing and consumption centers and wait before approving personal cultivation (of up to five mature plants). One participant noted that Marbletown
has an active tourism service industry and this would be an added amenity. It would also create jobs. It could be good for the town. There is space for it and there are zoning laws. If Marbletown doesn’t have a dispensary, “people will just drive to the next town.” The decision must be made in the next weeks. The next public hearing on the “cannabis law” and how it could affect Marbletown is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 7, in Room M-1 at the Town Hall; 1925 Lucas Turnpike, Cottekill.
Page , December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
Briefs
Remarkable field hockey, BOCES renovation plans, and outstanding musical talent Amber Kelly BSP Reporter
Be a mensch and spend the fourth night of Hanukkah at the Kerhonkson Synagogue.
Hanukkah at the Kerhonkson Synagogue, live and on Zoom Join the community on the fourth night of Hanukkah for the candle lighting, Havdalah, songs, stories and some learning, 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Kerhonkson Synagogue, 26 Minnewaska Trail Kerhonkson. Those attending in person must be vaxed and masked. Candle lighting service is also available via Zoom with Meeting ID: 899 5169 2936 and Passcode: 234478. For more information, visit kerhonksonsynagogue.org or call 845-626-7260.
Accord Fire District annual election to be held Dec. 14 Anna Henebery, Board of Fire Commissioners secretary, has given notice of the annual election of the Accord Fire District, which will take place 6-9 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 14, at the Accord Fire House located at 22 Main St., Accord, and at Station #2 at 922 Samsonville Road, Kerhonkson, for the purpose of electing one fire commissioner, for a five-year term, commencing Jan.1, 2022, and ending Dec. 31, 2026. Only residents registered to vote with the Ulster County Board of Elections on or before Nov. 15, 2021 shall be eligible to vote.
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The entire girls varsity field hockey team came to the school board meeting on Nov. 23 to be introduced. “I want to thank all the girls for coming tonight,” said Jeff Panek, athletic director. “I want to congratulate you because it was an active season. For anyone not understanding field hockey like me, but being a sports fan, going to the Kingston state tournament game was the most impressive game I’ve ever seen. I mean, you guys battled and went into overtime, and went into a second overtime – they went into a shootout, they went into another shootout, then they went into a sudden death shootout. It was just awesome to watch. I think that was the game that led you guys to think that ‘maybe we can do this!’ Then you just were resilient the rest of the way. You blew out Red Hook, you beat Lakeland, then that game there at the States, anybody could have won. We had our chances but unfortunately, they squeezed one by us. It was a great run, and there are only four teams that get that far. Other than myself, I’ve never seen another coach work as hard as coach Nanette Simione does. I mean that from the bottom of my heart. She does everything the way it is supposed to be done, from little kids all the way up.” Paten congratulated the entire team for their efforts. Dr. Charles V. Khoury from Ulster BOCES said, “First of all, our school is your school, and your students are our students, they just learn in our facility.” To give a historic perspective on the facilities, in 1980 BOCES first leased the old Port Ewen shirt factory building with the option to buy for $2.5 million. The second thing they did was invest an additional $2.9 million to renovate the Career & Technical Education building and construct a two-story wing for special and alternative education of 51,725 square feet for $7.85 million. At the same time they bought the New Paltz site for administration, conference room and professional development, adding 10,540 square feet and 3,000 square feet storage garage for $15.23 million. Most school districts chose to pay for the percentage of their students in the program with 15-year bonds. At the time, our students were being educated in a vacated Grand Union Supermarket on Route 9W. $15,232,000 in 1989 adjusted for inflation is worth $33,604,618 today. The current total renovation cost is projected at $39 million, and Rondout Valley’s share would be $3.6 million. Because it is renovation only, it does not require a countywide vote, rather an affirmative vote from the eight component school districts of Ulster BOCES. Rondout Valley has roughly 9.3% of the 22,000 students in Ulster County. The CTE is 54% of the project, the Centers for Innovative Teaching & Learning, Port Ewen, is 27% of project, and New Paltz is 19% of the project. This is infrastructure work and includes HVAC, ceiling
Class B Section IX Champion Rondout Valley girls field hockey team after 6-0 victory against Red Hook, Oct. 27, 2021
lighting, fire alarm system, envelope repairs of masonry, windows, doors, special reconfiguration, finishes and interior work, bathroom repairs and upgrade, and some roofing. BOCES has no income on its own, so part of the electric bill, etc., goes to each school. The renovations will lower costs going forward because of energy savings. This will also lower repair and maintenance fees. BOCES just approved renovating classrooms on Oct. 5, 2021. The timeline is: Between Oct. 6 and Dec. 1, presentations will be given to component district BOE meetings. Districts will have until Dec. 16 to approve. Detailed plans will be drawn up during 2022. During January-June 2023 will be NYSED plan review and approval. Bids will be accepted November 2023 through April 2024. They will only be able to do construction when the students are not present. Construction is planned from July 1 to June 30 of the next year and will take four years. The board budget committee will review the BOCES presentation, and the vote will be at the next board meeting. Band director Randy Loder said, “Six of our students performed in the All-State Festival this weekend. Each of these students was ranked as one of the top musicians in all of Ulster, Sullivan, Orange and Rockland counties. This is an outstanding
achievement for each of our students and for our school to have such a large percentage of our program represented when we are competing with schools four times as large as Rondout.” Student board member Emily Bordalone said, “The biggest thing with the trip that Dr. Morgan and I took to Marbletown Elementary to talk to them about their experiences is they wanted no limit on the books that they can borrow from the library, and would like some free study periods for independent learning to cater to their interests, and possibly having like a student council kind of thing, or a grade president. They greatly appreciated the increase in wheelchair accessibility and wondered if the nature trails could also be wheelchair accessible. There is some concern about communication, for example, more advanced notice for different things like trips. They really love their teachers and the opportunities that they give to them, especially connecting them with other students especially after the pandemic, just making them friendships in and outside of classes. In the playground they want monkey bars and a see-saw for the older kids.” Tanner Poremba, the other student representative on the school board, will visit the middle school soon with Dr. Morgan, who is Rondout’s superintendent of schools.
BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page
No further ZBA documents submitted for Warren Amber Kelly BSP Reporter Marbletown Zoning Board members Zach Bowman, Egidio Tinti, Andrew Nilsen, Tom Smiley and secretary Michelle Solcberg met on Nov. 17. Margarete Dalhgren was first on agenda with setback request for a rectangular shed. The plan is to use it for tool storage with easy access to cars in the driveway. There are woods all around and no
neighbors. Dalhgren worked with Brad’s Barns to find the best spot that would be even with the driveway and level. There is only one spot that works for the 12 by 22 feet prebuilt shed. Public hearing on the application is set for Dec. 15. Chris Silva was next on the agenda with his variance request for a planned carport, which would be 600 feet from the closest house. That neighbor wrote a letter of support for the application. Although the carport is 33% over the
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required variance, it is so steep behind the house that this is the only place to put it. If the setback is enforced there is not enough room to turn the car around. The proposed location would place it further out of the site line from the road. Requiring the applicant to put it behind the house would require extensive excavation. The proposed structure has all sides open and a gravel base. Less than half a mile up the road a more significant variance for a carport was granted recently.
The public hearing was closed, and the motion to accept the variance passed. A continuation of the public hearing for Michael Warren to appeal a code officer notice of violation given at Duchess Farm was for document submission only. Although there were no further documents, in order to allow time for response, the public hearing will remain open until Dec. 8.
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Briefs Let’s light up Marbletown! Luminary kits can be picked up on the back porch of the Marbletown Community Center, 3564 Main St., Stone Ridge. Each kit includes 10 paper bags, 10 tea lights
and sand for weight. Each household can light up their driveway or sidewalk with one kit at no charge and also purchase additional kits for $5 each to light up the Town of Marbletown, starting at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18th. Following the illumination, the Town of Marbletown and the Stone Ridge Fire Company will present the Light Up Marbletown Parade at 6 p.m. that evening. For more information, call 845-6877500, ext. 170, or email youthandrec@ marbletown.net. On right, Light Up Marbletown Parade route
Bevival – a death literacy platform – finds community and home in Rosendale Chelsea Miller BSP Reporter End of life is a period of time that most people, if they’re being honest, would rather not think about. Despite the inevitable nature of the act of dying, humans often continue doggedly living as if the end will never arrive. The end, as well as all the possibilities both the knowledge and inevitability of that event provide, is something that newly minted Rosendale resident Caren Martineau has spent a lot of time thinking about. She is the founder of Bevival, a death literacy platform aimed at the living. Bevival aims to galvanize a global movement to help people prepare for the end of life long before it is on the horizon. As part of Bevival’s Celebrating Aging Series, the Rosendale Theatre will be welcoming Verna Gillis and David Gonzalez for an evening entitled “Tell it like it is” on Sunday, Dec. 12. Martineau has spent her career being a vanguard of the culture. Trained at art schools, she began her career in graphic design. Along the trajectory of her career, whether it was in music, fashion or entertainment, Martineau found herself at what she refers to as the “cutting edge of culture.” When she accepted the position of the director of brand development for the Museum of Sex near Madison Square Park in New York, Martineau said that she was fairly sure she’d reached the peak of her career. “We as a nation had gotten over ourselves with the crisis of sexual identity,” explains Martineau. The job also represented a very tangible symbol of success – a cultural institution, a museum, where Martineau had the opportunity to influence how future generations would approach the subject of sex and sexual identity differently. However, although she was thrilled to be working on the project, she brushed with her first taste of ageism, and another cultural edge was calling to her. “I was approaching my 60s at this point, the oldest person in the room. While I was there, I looked around and thought this is not the place I really want to be. I was looking at the next cultural revolution. We’d passed through many of cultural revolutions as baby boomers, and what I discovered is that the baby boomers are the largest population of humans to grow old together. Through medical tech-
nology and science we are living longer and dying slower. “Every time we (the baby boomers) have entered a decade or a life cycle we’ve changed it – we changed it for our comfort zone. But we as a culture have never looked at end of life in a different way. We really needed to shift our attitudes about mortality because it is inevitable. Despite Silicon Valley’s goal to find the miracle of eternity, it wasn’t going to happen and as a generation we are capable shifting the culture of death and dying.” Bevival was born. According the website, Bevival (a combination of the words “being” and “revival”) is “a mindset and a movement dedicated to death literacy. Motivating and inspiring others to do death differently is the heart and soul of our mission.” Stepping fully into her wheelhouse, Martineau says that she was used to culture change initiatives – something she’d done for many corporations and products and services. Driven by the fear of the baby boomers as a population walking into end of life and continuing the emotional burden from generation to generation, Martineau began to explore what about the subject could be softened and new approaches to the conversation. “When I started five years ago I decided early on that we were going take our time, and I was going to study how to discover gateways, paved paths, starting with finding content and wisdom from all types of categories and share the wisdom.” She continues, “when I entered into this project I did not have the credentials … I still don’t have the medical credentials to be an authority. I looked at it and did not envision it to be a technology interaction (I couldn’t see it being an app!), and I didn’t want to deal with the end-of-life tactics – the internment, the after-death grieving – because I am not qualified. But what I am qualified to do is identify the emotion that causes the resistance and build a pathway so people can become familiar and emotionally prepare ourselves and the people around us. You can’t eradicate the grief, the sense of loss. You can normalize that conversation long before the end or some disease enters or a tragedy hits and people are thrown into a chaotic state, which is accompanied with regret because of unfinished business.” Bevival, in addition to being an online platform that holds articles, podcasts and
videos, also holds workshops and hosts events, such as the Celebrating Aging Series. Explains Martineau, “Up until I was in Rosendale, this series Celebrating Aging was partnered with Montclair Films. The whole idea of the series itself was created to serve the community as an ‘edutainment’ series. Here in Rosendale, because there’s a stage, we can do a performance event. The message is about aging, it is about turning up the dial on life, especially when you are in that place and you can see the horizon, in some sense, it’s not Martineau infinite. I’m encouraging people to see that reinvention is possible. The liveliness of one’s spirit – that is something you can tap into and you can you use it as a resource, especially as life outside may seem to be diminishing.” The series is by and large stories about other people’s lives (and, in the case of films, mostly fictional). Martineau says that the medium of performance allows more access to what the story is because it provides the audience the opportunity to experience the story at arm’s length. “What’s the message? How did they live their life and how did they influence others?” asks Martineau. “The moral of the story is to understand long before the end, long, long before the end, that you have innovation and creativity in your spirit and to offer windows as to how different people are expressing it. You’re given permission and even encouraged to also go there.” So how did Martineau and Bevival end up in our very own backyard? Martineau and her husband were living in Montclair, New Jersey, just before the pandemic. Her husband had been battling multiple myeloma and contracted Covid-19, and when he was released from the hospital (after being pulled out of a coma), her daughter urged her to move in the second home (and Airbnb) that they owned in Rosendale. “It was viral Armageddon,” says Martineau. The couple moved into the house, and that first winter Martineau says she had a litany of fears. “I was terrified going into last winter because I live up a hill and I didn’t know what snow fall was going to look like and I didn’t know my resources,” says Martin-
eau. However, the reality of living upstate alleviated her fears. “ It was such a beautiful experience. Going through the seasons here – by January 2021 I was in such calm peace that people would ask, ‘Are you coming back to Montclair?’ and I didn’t want to.” As the grip of Covid started to lessen, Martineau began to get out into the community, which only further deepened her attachment to the area. “As I started to be able to meet others, I found this to be such a beautiful, culturally rich environment. It seems with each new person I meet I become more grateful for landing here. This wouldn’t have been a deliberate choice, but now that I’m here it feels right and correct, it really nourishes me.” When pressed as to her take away from starting to lean into the twilight of her life, Martineau says, “Here’s the thing: Being trained as an artist, for those of us that are used to having a creative exploration, you have a blank page, and empty canvas, you are used to starting from nothing. Or there are disparate pieces of ideas on the table, and the process of going from nothing to something – I call that process going into the float. The float is the ability to surrender and feel safe that you don’t know where you are but you trust the experience that you will find it. And once you find it, you can polish it – but you’re willing to take that journey of unknown having the confidence that you find the place, the destination. When I got into this subject, what happened to me personally is that my life changed. It changed in the sense that I really started to appreciate life in a much different way. It was as if someone changed the dials – the color scales and everything got very bright and brilliant. Old advice like ‘don’t sweat the small things’ fell into place very quickly.” For more information on Bevival visit: https://www.bevival.com For tickets to “Tell it like it is” on Dec. 12 at the Rosendale Theatre, visit https://www. rosendaletheatre.org/events/tell-it-like-it-is/
BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page
A Rosendale legacy; cliff, rock and water Amber Kelly BSP Reporter Bill Brooks loves the people of Rosendale, and is always willing to lend a hand. Twenty years ago, Brooks met Eri Yamaguchi and worked on quite a few projects with her. One such project was the selective harvesting of trees on a swath of property adjacent to Williams Lake. The property is all cliffs, rocks, bogs and is contiguous with the east side of the rail trail north past the site of the old Williams Lake hotel. Trees grow on 90% of it. Yamaguchi always wanted to build a retreat center there for Japanese visitors, but the dream was bigger than her pocketbook. When Yamaguchi recently passed away, she gifted the 30-acre property to Brooks, knowing that he would do something good with it. Brooks is in the middle of another project right now that he said should have been done last September, replacing a modular home on his property. There is a shortage of workers, so everyone who is working is really busy, and the result is it takes longer to get things done. Plus,
File photo of Bill Brooks giving out ribbons at the Pickle Festival
things cost twice as much as they did two years ago. Brooks just won’t have time to hardly think about this new project until the spring of 2022. Brooks said, “I have thought of making
it into an open space, where people can go and picnic. There could be platforms built that people could put a tent on. As I’m working, I can roll things through my head. I can dream. It is in the young stages,
but I am having a person come in who consults for that kind of thing. “I like the project of figuring out what to do with it,” Brooks said. “When I realize it is not fun anymore, then I’ll have to get serious about doing something. Maybe someone will come along and say ‘this would be a good spot for – whatever,’ and I’ll say, ‘I never thought of that.’ “The property was held in shelter; it is not a rectangular piece, square piece, or long piece, it zigs and zags and a lot of the property has been cut over the years,” Brooks said. “There is a shed on the property. There are many possibilities. Today they are building places where years ago they wouldn’t even have considered it. “This is like the leftovers, and it is on my shoulders. It is part of Rosendale. I’ve always been part of Rosendale, so it is going to be something that is a plus for Rosendale, not a minus. I gotta look out for our little town, and I do have a tendency to get tangled up in a lot of stuff. I might mull this over for another five years. But it is there, I can go and sit on a rock and contemplate it.”
High Falls Conservancy to decorate High Falls bridge for the holidays As they have for the past five years, the High Falls Conservancy is planning to decorate the Kathy Cairo Davis Bridge for the holiday season. On Saturday, Dec. 4, volunteers will be decorating the railings on both sides of the bridge with 300 feet of pine boughs, 144 feet of red ribbon, six wreaths with red bows, pine cones and ornaments – all to welcome in
the holiday season in High Falls. Last year the Conservancy added a string of solar-powered lights to the display and plans to include them again this year. The Conservancy welcomes anyone who would like to come help install the decorations. They will begin decorating at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 4.
Cozy thoughts and best wishes for a wonderful holiday season!
Gardiner | Kingston | Red Hook
Kimlinenergy.com Please consider helping our furry friends this season by supporting our local animal shelters and organizations. Visit kimlincommunityofcaring.com for a list covering the Hudson Valley.
Page 10
Your friends and community
Robert embraces his parents, Sevan Melikyan and Maria Guralnik (left), during their recent visit with him in Arizona, where he attends graduate school. Richard and Gillian Murphy, former owners of the Egg’s Nest in High Falls who have moved to Arizona, joined in the reunion.
December 3, 2021
Robert Melikyan during a recent volcanology field trip in northern Arizona. “This site is Meteor Crater, North America’s best-preserved impact crater, which has a rich history of study: helping to unlock the secrets of meteor activity at Earth, shock formations, etc.,” explained Melikyan. “This spot even had astronaut Buzz Aldrin practicing for his upcoming trip to the moon in the late 1960s.”
High Falls Grad student Robert Melikyan shoots for the stars at University of Arizona Robert Melikyan of High Falls, a 2016 graduate of Rondout Valley High School, where he was known to reach for the stars in his performances on stage and with song, has literally reached new heights – into space. As written in the article entitled “Near-earth asteroids could supply future meteor showers,” published in Discover Magazine, Nov. 11, 2021, “Robert Melikyan, [now] a graduate student at the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, along with a team of researchers have modeled the evolution of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu’s dust cloud in a study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets earlier this year.” To explain, “Early in 2019, NASA’s OSIRIS-Rex spacecraft (short for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer) captured images from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu.” “The chance that these particles will brush up against Earth’s atmosphere is quite high [in the] next century when Bennu’s orbit is predicted to be closer to Earth,” said Melikyan. His team modeled Bennu’s orbit to a high degree of accuracy for the years between 1788 and 2135. The simulation shows that the first particle will brush against Earth’s atmosphere in the year 2101. Around 2130 and onward, the model shows a significant increase in meteor showers, with the largest predicted to happen on Sept. 24, 2182. Melikyan added, “The best vantage point for the “2182 Melikyan Storm” (mark it in your calendar now!) will be from the southern region of South Africa, where a person might be able to see up to 140 meteors over a one-hour period.” Melikyan, who moved from Fort Worth, Texas, to High Falls in early 2009, went to Rondout Valley Middle School. He had been a member of the Texas Boys Choir, and it wasn’t long before he started playing percussion in the school band, and by the time he was in high school, he was performing in three to four plays each year. He was also a member of Vanaver Caravan Dance Institute in Rosendale. “By the time I was graduating high school I had met and danced with Pete Seager, been a featured singer at the Lincoln Center band shell during a folk festival, traveled across the Northeastern states to performances, conferences and festivals, all the while picking up skills in leadership, community organization/management, and Appalachian clogging (which I will still bust out if the mood is right!),” boasts Melikyan. So how did he make the move from the arts to science?
“The best way I have come to understand my transition is a fascination in robots, anime about space, and a son’s bullheaded need to prove himself successful outside the realm of his parents’ domain,” said Melikyan. “I’ve been watching my mom manage the best classical pianists in the world since before I could talk. My dad has an overabundance of talents and ideas that have taken him from marketing to reggae bands to fine arts and beyond. If I entered the arts, I’d never need to look any further than the spread of their arms.” When it came time to go to university, Melikyan ended up touring Ithaca College, and their conservatory had everything he ever wanted, so he picked their physics program and hoped to reap the benefits of his musical neighbors. Ithaca turned out to be one of the best decisions he had made, as he joined the male a cappella group, Ithacappella. Entering his third year at school, he shifted his focus to physics. “I joined a leadership role in the physics student club and even went on to be the New York state representative for physics students with the Society of Physics Students.” When it came time to do his research project, Melikyan reached out to faculty chair Dr. Beth Ellen Clark. “She happened to be one of the leading scientists for NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return mission.” Melikyan asked Clark if she had any interest in bringing him with her to Tucson to work on the space mission. “Unbelievably she took me on. I met scientists Carl Hergenrother (astronomer who suggested asteroid Bennu as the mission target), Steve Chesley (NASA JPL scientist who helped to assure us all that Bennu posed no risk of imminent impact), Mike Nolan (science team chief), and Dante Lauretta (mission principal investigator), who green-lit my investigation into the particles ejecting and escaping from the surface of Bennu, all whom you will find as co-authors on the study.” Melikyan described in detail, and with much excitement, his research on Bennu. “Bennu is the name of an asteroid. This space rock is approximately spherical and has a ~510m diameter (about the height of the Empire State Building). It became the subject of NASA’s OSIRISREx mission because of its frequent close passes by Earth and its spectral (light) signature that suggests organic compounds/minerals on its surface (not life, as ‘organics’ is a term generally used when oxygen and nitrogen are sensed). The goal of the space craft was to land on the asteroid with a pogo-stick like apparatus, which would si-
multaneously correct material from the asteroid and sent it back to Earth in a pristine, sealed, environment. “The most amazing thing that we found, however, was that this asteroid was spewing off rocks! Like rice jumping on a hibachi grill!” Melikyan said. “Every week or two a large event would occur where hundreds of small coinsized pebbles would pop off the surface. About 30% of those rocks would sail away from Bennu never to return. The goal with my research was to determine the fate of these particles and understand how many of them would wind up hitting the Earth as a meteor/shooting start. To do this I got to work with a great deal of computing power made available to me by the University of Arizona. It was an awesome feeling to be able to send commands to such powerful computers from across the country!” And how did it feel having his work written up in Discover magazine? “I was so excited. I’ve always thought that my work had a very sharp edge for public science/engagement. I mean, everyone likes shooting stars, right? It was a great honor to have my work shared on such a widely read platform such as Discover. One side of my arts background that has stayed with me into science is my love to perform. Presentations and interviews that have followed with my publication have been an amazing joy and certainly helped solidify my footing in this path toward science.” So what’s next for Melikyan? He is pursuing his doctorate in Arizona. “My degree is in planetary science, which is a field that culminates physics, astronomy, geology, biology and all sorts of other snippets of science into a common goal of exploring and understanding our solar system,” he said. And what would be his greatest achievement? “Working with the NASA mission showed me how much I value working with a big team dedicated toward an amazing goal. If I can find a road that leads me to more of that … that’s the one you’ll find me on. Of course, if that road turns out to be a rocket, I’d love to have my chance to help start humanity’s future on the Moon and Mars!” To reach out to Melikyan, email melikyan@email. arizona.edu. ~ Compiled by Chelsea Miller and Donna Cohn Viertel
BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021 , Page 11
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Page 12, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
Memoriam Shimon Schwarzschild
ACCORD—Shimon Schwarzschild died peacefully on Nov. 10, 2021, at 95 years of age, of natural causes, at his home in Accord with his wife, Naomi Schechter, at his side. He was born on Dec. 19, 1925, in Wertheim-on-the-Main, Germany. In 1936, at 10 years old, he and his family fled Nazi Germany and were welcomed by a sponsor in Jersey City, New Jersey. In his last years he was able, with the filmmaker Mark Coelho, then of Accord, to make a film called “Transcending Terror” about Schwarzschild his family’s history, from his childhood to his eventual reconciliation with his home town and country when the mayor of Wertheim invited all of the surviving refugees to revisit the city at the town’s expense. That film now plays on continuous loop in his hometown museum in Germany vividly educating thousands of visitors on the history of the German Jews through one man’s story. Shimon enlisted in the U.S. Navy upon high school graduation, in spite of getting intensely seasick, an affliction he overcame. He served on a destroyer in the Pacific in WW II as a radar technician and was called up on his last day of reserve service to serve in Korea. After the war, he went to the Newark College of Engineering and graduated in 1950 with a degree in electronic engineering. He resigned his commission when Lyndon Johnson ordered the invasion of the Dominican Republic. He later became active in Veterans for Peace. Shimon worked for 25 years in an engineering consultancy before making a major life change to live his values. He became the director of West Coast Hostels, establishing many new hostels up and down the West Coast, and of the Whale Center. He co-founded the Native Yew Conservation Council to protect yew trees being decimated by the need for taxol used in cancer treatment when it was discovered that the substance could be extracted from the needles without killing the trees. He was instrumental in protecting dolphins in Australia. He used his organizing skills in many civic matters of San Francisco, particularly in nature protection and conservation. He led the successful international initiative to ban the hunting of songbirds in Assissi, Italy. He established Action of Nature, an organization that recognizes and rewards the environmental initiatives of children and teenagers worldwide, thereby encouraging the future leaders in nature protection. Shimon was an open-hearted and warm man who made friends wherever he went. He was that rare combination of a dynamic leader who was also gentle and compassionate and who wore his wisdom lightly. He is survived by his loving wife, Naomi, of Accord and New York City, his daughters Daria of Oakland, California, and Nomi (Claudia) of Sutter Creek, California, as well as his step-children and step-grandchildren, along with the countless others who cherished him and considered him family. His story can be found at www. transcendingterror.org.
Catherine (Cathy) M. Pero
STONE RIDGE—Catherine (Cathy) M. Pero, 74, a longtime resident of Stone Ridge, passed away on Nov. 16, 2021, at Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie. Cathy was born Aug. 25, 1947, in Queens. She was the daughter of the late Dorothy Pillion, the late John J. Wedlock, and sister of the late James Wedlock. Cathy grew up and attended Richmond Hill High School, graduating in 1965. After graduation, she worked for New York Telephone Company in Jamaica. During the summers, she would work for her Pero grandfather and father as a secretary for their family owned and operated trucking business, Wedlock Trucking. In 1969, she married her high school steady, Daniel A. Carubia, and they had a daughter, Kerri L. Carubia (Vitek). They divorced, leading Cathy to move north of the city, closer to her mother and stepfather, William J. Bickel. Finally landing in Stone Ridge, Cathy married her second husband, Edwin Waterfall. They were together until his passing. On Oct. 27, 1990, Cathy married her forever love, John (Jack) E. Pero, still residing in Stone Ridge. Cathy had a magnificent presence and was always the excitement in the room. She had various jobs, one was working at the Student Prince Restaurant, in Stone Ridge, as a waitress, known for her famous line, “You better eat your vegetables!” She also worked at JC Penny’s, in Kingston, as a customer service representative. But her all-time favorite was being a self-employed housekeeper, starting her own business, Cathy’s Cleaning, and an animal care taker. She had been taking care of houses and
pets up until her illness. She loved traveling, animals, her friends and family, and being happy! Cathy is survived by her most loving husband, Jack, her vivacious daughter, Kerri Vitek, and son-in-law, Laszlo Vitek, and her two grandchildren, Lili Vitek and Odin Vitek. A remembrance in tribute to Cathy was held Nov. 21 at George J. Moylan Funeral Home, 2053 NY-32, Rosendale, with a blessing. The Rev. Arlene Dawber officiated. Memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, stjude.org, an organization near and dear to Cathy’s heart.
Thomas Christopher Lynch
HIGH FALLS—Thomas Christopher Lynch passed away peacefully at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina, on Oct. 30, 2021, at the age of 68 due to complications arising from his cancer treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Tom was born on Sept. 11, 1953, in Westchester County, grew up in High Falls, and most recently resided in Summerville, South Carolina, with his family. He was the son of Frank A. and Dorothy F. (Daley) Lynch of High Falls, both of whom predeceased him. Lynch Thomas graduated from Rondout Valley High School in 1971 and attended Eisenhower College. He began his career in the wine trade starting as a waiter at the DePuy Canal House in High Falls while still in high school. After relocating to Manhattan in 1976, Tom began his ascent in the industry joining the team at Windows on the World atop the Twin Towers in New York City, reconnecting with Kevin Zraly, with whom he had worked at the Canal House, and meeting fellow waiter Michael Skurnik. Following several stints with wine importers Tom decided to move to France to further his study of the language and the wine business from his base in Paris. Upon returning to the States, he took a sales position with Remy Martin and later became a sales ambassador for KRUG champagnes. In 1991, Tom reconnected with Michael Skurnik to join the newly formed Michael Skurnik Wines team as the first sales person. There he found a home and spent the next 30 years at Skurnik making many valuable contributions to the growth of the firm. In addition to his wife of 30 years, June (Walsh) Lynch, Tom is survived by his son, Jack of Summerville, and Claire of Ithaca. Tom is also survived by brothers Michael (Susan) of Troy, Gary (Andrea) of Peachtree City, Georgia, Jonathan of Poughkeepsie, and a niece and several nephews. A private service will be held at a future date.
Anthony W. Tati
STONE RIDGE—Anthony W. Tati died Nov. 19, 2021, at Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla after a long struggle with kidney disease. He was 38. He was born in Kingston on Feb. 6, 1983, a son of Donna Zentner-Rea of Stone Ridge and Anthony J. Tati of Florida. Anthony was a good-hearted person who loved his family dearly. He enjoyed the outdoors, computer games and all his acquaintances at the ARC in Kingston. He was especially fond of his dog Buddy. In addition to his mother and father, surviTati vors includes his stepfather, Marco Rea, of Stone Ridge; three brothers, Mario Tati of Kingston, Robert Zentner of Accord and Andrew Rea of Stone Ridge; two stepsisters, Samantha and Angela Tati, both of Kingston; as well as several aunts, uncles and cousins. Services and cremation were held privately. George J. Moylan Funeral Home Inc., Rosendale, assisted the family with arrangements. Memorial donations are suggested to the National Kidney Foundation www.kidney.org/donation. To leave a personal condolence for his family, visit www.GJMoylanFuneralHome.com.
Emanuele ‘Manny’ Incorvaia
ROSENDALE—Emanuele “Manny” Incorvaia passed away on Nov. 24, 2021, in Hyde Park. He was 90. He was born in Gela, Sicily, Italy, on Feb. 5, 1931, a son of the late Carmelo and Carmela Salerno Incorvaia. Manny came to the United States when he was 30 years old and became a successful business man. He owned and operated three area restaurants, Corvaia I in New Paltz, The Hillside
Restaurant in Accord and Corvaia II in Kingston. Manny retired from the restaurant business in 1988 and then owned Wall Street Antiques in Kingston until retiring in 1997. Manny was also fluent in five languages. He is survived by his wife of 48 years, Charlene Wilklow Incorvaia, and two sons, Emanuele Friend “Manny” Incorvaia of Rosendale and Danny Incorvaia and his wife, Janice, of Clark, New Jersey. He is also survived by grandchildren, Sarina Incorvaia and Carmela Incorvaia and her husband, Ebraam Makar, and three great-grandchildren. Manny was predeceased by a son, Salvatore Incorvaia, in 2017, a grandson, Salvatore Incorvaia, in 2018 and his four brothers Incorvaia and three sisters in Italy. Visitation for family and friends was Nov. 28 at the George J. Moylan Funeral Home in Rosendale. A procession formed at the funeral home and proceeded to St. Peter's Church in Rosendale for A Mass of Christian Burial, at which the Rev. Edmund Burke officiated. Entombment followed at the Wiltwyck Cemetery Mausoleum in Kingston. To leave a personal condolence for his family, visit www.GJMoylanFuneralHome.com
Roy S. Hornbeck
HIGH FALLS—Roy S. Hornbeck passed away on Nov. 27, 2021, at Health Alliance Hospital, Broadway Campus, in Kingston. He was 70. He was born in Kingston, Sept. 9, 1951, a son of the late Robert and Florence Ransom Hornbeck. Roy was a longtime resident of High Falls and a 1971 graduate of Rondout Valley High School. He worked for many years at Mohonk Mountain House and ended his working career at Herzog’s in Kingston. Roy enjoyed bus trips and traveling to New York City to see Broadway shows. He is Hornbeck survived by his brother, Carl Hornbeck (Laurie) of Tillson, and his sister, Martha Lischinsky (Richard) of High Falls. He is also survived by his nephews, Scott, Timothy and Michael Hornbeck; his nieces, Jennifer and Stephanie Hasbrouck; great-nieces, Alida, Meghan and Nikole; great-nephews, Austin and Kevin; and by Joseph Reda, husband of his late niece Annamarie, who tragically died May 18, 2021. At Roy’s request, funeral services will be held privately. The Rev. Aaron Schulte will officiate. Interment will be at the Grahamsville Rural Cemetery at the convenience of the family. George J. Moylan Funeral Home Inc., Rosendale, is assisting the family with arrangements. To leave a personal condolence to his family please visit www.GJMoylanFuneralHome.com.
Theresia Sprenger
TILLSON—Theresia Sprenger passed away peacefully in the early morning hour Nov. 24, 2021, with her faithful dog Heidi by her side. She was 93. She was born in Nagyteveli, Hungary, on Oct. 26, 1928, to Mathias and Theresia (Reiser) Prostovitz. At the end of World War II, her family fled Hungary to West Germany to escape communism. In the early 1950s, she was sponsored and immigrated to America, was married on Aug. 11, 1953, and became a United States citizen on Jan. 16, 1967. She moved with her family from Yonkers to Tillson Sprenger in October 1967, where she lived for over 50 years. She loved to cook her many specialties from Hungary and Germany, loved her home, and was active in the local Schuhplattler group. She is predeceased by her parents, her husband, Ben Sprenger, and her sisters, Christina Babits and Anna Unger. She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Werner and Mary Sprenger of Kerhonkson; her grandchildren, Dacia Sprenger and her husband, Marcus Vale, of Florida, Colette Sprenger of California and Derek Sprenger of Kingston; great-grandchildren Illeana, Lauren Clayton and Myles Vale; nieces and nephews, and a very sad Heidi. Visitation for family and friends was at the George J. Moylan Funeral Home Inc., 2053 Route 32, Rosendale, on Nov. 29. Her funeral service was Nov. 30 at the funeral home. The Rev. Arlene Dawber officiated. Interment followed at the Rosendale Plains Cemetery.
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December 3, 2021
Local money, local ideas
Page 13
The Last Bite hits its stride Thoughtful renovation, an enhanced menu and plans for expansion Chelsea Miller BSP Reporter The Last Bite has long been hailed as a breakfast institution in the hamlet of High Falls. Shuttered for most of the pandemic, with tell-tale signs of construction rotating on the front stoop now gone, the Last Bite is once again open and with a brand new look, menu and vision. When owner Scott Albright purchased the Last Bite in 2011, he said that what attracted him most to the venture was the strong community following. “I started as a patron but became friendly with the owner when I realized she was dating an old skateboarding friend from the NYC skating scene,” Albright said. “One night (I think we were all bowling) I offered to buy the business. She was ready. They were artists. They had this great idea with the Last Bite, incredible energy and amazing product, but the realities of running a business were different than the idea, and she was tired. The original owners had a growing and failing business all at the same time. What I saw as the most important deciding factor in making the offer to purchase the business was they had created an incredible community following, a place where people loved and felt at home.” After an initial renovation to shift the layout, Albright set about running the Last Bite and continuing the build of community support. When Covid hit business started to get slow, very slow. “Between March 1, 2020, and March 13, 2020 no one came in to the store,” Albright said. He was faced with a hard choice. Would people ever feel comfortable walking into a restaurant again? Leading up to the pandemic, the Last Bite had always been a bit of a hobby business as Albright’s main trade is as a builder and mason. “I was at a turning point: Do I keep going or shut down?” said Albright. “I was attached. I knew what the business could be and how important is was to the local community, so I decided to go for it. Really go for it.” Albright launched into the large-scale renovation that he’d been dreaming about for the past nine years. While the shutdown created a lot of trials and tribulations financially, it also afforded Albright the time to really do it right. “We were the Snugs of breakfast joints,” joked Albright, referring to a popular bar on New Paltz Main Street. “It was cool, but it was a little dingy. We were the dive bar of breakfast places, but people loved it. The most important part of the renovation for me was to keep it a locals place. I wanted to renovate, and I wanted it to feel like the Last Bite grew up and but didn’t forget its roots.” Over the course of the next year and some, Albright lovingly restored the entire space, making nearly everything you see or touch by hand. First up was dealing with the dropped ceiling that Albright estimates was added around the ’80s. The demolition revealed a gorgeous original ceiling, but unfortunately it wasn’t salvageable, so Albright had a replica of it tooled. Storage was added up high, and Albright made a sliding library ladder by hand for easy and aesthetically pleasing access. For the
Scott, Maffy and baby Rio in the newly renovated Last Bite
countertop, Albright used wood from a tree he chopped in his mother’s backyard, the copper countertop reflects hours of hand hammering, and all the of the finished wood is from an old barn that Albright took down in Kerhonkson in his mid-20s. Even the tables, chairs and benches are made by Albright’s hand, and the overall result is warm, modern, but still very decidedly Last Bite. “I didn’t want to look like Williamsburg had thrown up in High Falls again,” said Albright, “My biggest concern was I was going to renovate and the locals (whether old school or new) wouldn’t feel at home. We wanted it to be better and still Last Bite, a place where absolutely everyone felt at home” Albright hired a food consultant to reimagine the menu (don’t worry, the breakfast menu remains fully intact). Albright said the focus is on quality, homemade food. For example, Last Bite bakes all of its bread, and the lunch menu features sandwiches complete with house-made sauces. At print, the dinner menu is the same as the lunch menu due to staffing shortages, however that is changing in the coming couple of weeks. Friday night brings homemade Mexican night, Monday welcomes hamburgers of both the basic and couture varieties, and Thursday is Shepherd’s Pie Night, in both meaty and vegetarian incarnations. Popups are scheduled for the first Saturday of every month, kicking off with welcoming The Two Five on Dec. 4, when they will be taking over the kitchen and serving up Asian comfort food at its finest. The space and the menu are not the only aspects of
the business that evolved over the course of the pandemic. The business plan expanded in the process, and Albright’s wife, Maffy Malavar, became a key player in envisioning the future of the Last Bite. Albright met Malavar four years ago, after she had moved to Rosendale from Colombia. “She moved to Rosendale to learn English,” Albright said. “She just randomly picked Rosendale from Colombia. She wanted to go to a small town with a small Latino population so she could really learn English. She just got her citizenship a couple of months ago.” She met Albright when she inquired about an apartment he had for rent. She didn’t get the apartment, but the pair welcomed their first child, Rio, seven months ago. With a strong background in marketing, Malavar is in charge of the marketing and visioning for the Last Bite brand. Part of that vision includes a line of food products. Their first product is a pancake mix, available in both classic and turmeric chai flavor. Mohonk Mountain House was their first client for the product, and Albright and Malavar are in talks with several local grocery stores. Long-term, the pair aim to bring multiple products to store shelves nationwide. Albright said having a family has softened him. “My overall life changed,” he said. “All the cliché stuff people tell you about having kids before you have kids, it’s all true. I’m seven months into being a dad and it feels like 30 days. I’ve gotten so damn soft, I cry during a Disney movie now.” He continued, “Having a kid in general has driven me to be successful, truly successful. It’s harder, and easier, to get up and go to work in the morning. It’s harder because I just want to stare at him but easier because I know why I’m doing it.” Albright said that part of the joy is seeing how Rio has joined the vibrant community that makes up the Last Bite. “ I’m excited that Rio is growing up in our community. Customers whose name I don’t even know know Rio’s name. I love that he’s growing up with such a strong and diverse community who I’m thankful feel at home at the Last Bite. “ For more information on the Last Bite, visit www. thelastbiteny.com, or stop by the store, which is at 103 Main St, High Falls. The Last Bite is open ThursdayMonday, with plans to open on Tuesday coming soon.
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Page 14
Letters policy Please send letters to the editor to the BlueStone Press by email at bluepress@aol. com or send to P.O. Box 149, Stone Ridge, NY 12484. Include your name, hometown and daytime phone number. Letters should be fewer than 500 words and may be edited for clarity, brevity and taste. Letters won't appear in consecutive editions from the same author. The BSP hopes that, in the spirit of community dialogue, readers and writers in the letters section are respectful of a diversity of viewpoints. We err on the side of freedom of speech in our letters, and we hope that vigorous dialogue is more likely to produce an informed public than censorship, however well meaning. Call 6874480 with questions.
Your letters, views & ideas
December 3, 2021
Behold the male Cardinal A splash of warmth through the cold depths of winter
Real estate has plenty of ‘nice people’! To the Editor: Having participated in real estate for the better part of 20 years, I was surprised to find writer Karen Angel describing our industry as not “always attracting nice people,” since, in my experience, the defining feature of a successful career in real estate is that it attracts competent and nice people. I'm sure the same “not nice people” could be said about any industry, and I found the throw-away line in her article unnecessary. Let's be real – anyone selling a home for $1.6m has plenty of reasons to be joyful and nice. Chuck Petersheim Owner, Catskill Farms, Wurtsboro
Skate Time referendum issues To the Editor: Supervisor Michael Baden and the current Town of Rochester Town Board over the last few years have proactively addressed many of the community’s most pressing issues. This includes acknowledging that our current town hall and other town buildings no longer meet the town’s needs. I believe they have done an overall outstanding job. I was opposed to the just canceled referendum to purchase Skate Time. Many of you saw me near our voting stations on Election Day standing for many hours with a large sign indicating my opposition. It is important to note that both the Democratic and Republican parties were publicly opposed to the purchase of Skate Time. The voters in our township ARE more alike than different. We have much in common for which I and so many others are grateful. The most important reason I was opposed to the Skate Time purchase: There was no publicly available cost/ benefit analysis on the Town of Rochester official website regarding the referendum to purchase Skate Time. Further, the township website did not make available to the voters the proposed contract of sale. Without any of this essential information it was not possible to know if the purchase of Skate Time was a good solution to our building and space problems or a financial sink hole that would have led to greatly increased taxes in the coming years and decades. Supervisor Baden and the newly elected Town Board: Please continue to work on our infrastructure needs. Please think of putting together a working committee to address the infrastructure issue and to make proposals.
Please include a wide range of members of the Town of Rochester – Republicans, Democrats, Independents, the full cross-section of our community. Please have the committee look and explore a range of options and make proposals back to the Town Board. In the future, please come back early to the community with a new detailed proposal to address our ongoing building and facility needs. Please include us in the process from beginning to end. Please have open discussion and notify us about any discussion so we may participate. Finally, I strongly believe that the key to the voters supporting any future proposals will be including a detailed financial cost/benefit analysis of a range of explored options, thus allowing the voters to support any future recommendations on how to deal the town’s building issues.
Chaplain Stephen Roberts Kerhonkson
Keep the people informed To the Editor: On Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021, the Town Board, Town of Rochester, held its monthly audit meeting. Much to the surprise of all present, in an e-mail, Steve Apkon, et al, offered to cancel the contract for the Town to purchase the building known as Skate Time. Mr. Apkon offered a long statement for his reasons for canceling the contract, posted on Nextdoor Rochester. All of which were very “nice” for the community. However, any idea that this purchase could have been handled without a referendum is absurd! To the best of my knowledge as a councilwoman, no town board in any town could make a purchase costing the taxpayers $2 million-plus and procuring a 30-year bond without a
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vote of the people, a referendum. Perhaps another reason this purchase was canceled was because all parties involved, including political parties, realized after the Town Board Nov. 17 special meeting, where the public filled the room, taxpayers had had enough of nonsense regarding a 23% raise for the supervisor, as well as the looming referendum for the purchase of Skate Time. Although there was no public comment allowed, it was made clear to all, by signs held up by the taxpayers stating “3 percent no more” on the supervisor’s raise and the signs stating “VOTE NO on SKATE TIME” posted in the community and on the sides of trucks in the parking lot, the taxpayers were standing together to say enough is enough, no more money without our input. It is very disheartening to all that this meeting was not on video, due to an error on the part of Supervisor Baden. This gathering of the public was the wake-up call to all. As I complete my term as councilwoman, I hope that in the Town of Rochester, the supervisor and the Town Board have learned it is essential to keep the town’s people informed. They must keep the taxpayers in mind and “in the loop” with much better communication than has been demonstrated before they make decisions to spend major taxpayer money. Never again, even if Zoom meetings were to come about again, will the town’s people/taxpayers tolerate a lack of information on projects and/or laws being made without their input in person. Lastly, this Town Board should have learned that executive sessions used excessively by the board breed mistrust, contempt and disrespect.
Beatrice Haugen Depuy Councilwoman, Town of Rochester, Kerhonkson
BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 15
Omicron Dear Wally: Just days ago, I found myself panic-buying toilet paper. It was an impulse purchase driven by the news of the spreading new covid variant, Omicron. I felt a little ashamed, and honestly a little traumatized, as I clearly recall the empty shelves in the beginning of the pandemic and my part in that. And though I did it, hoarding is not me being my best me. But to be honest, since Omicron, there is already a serious shortage, so I’m not alone. We all must have some collective trauma. And I’ll just say it – I took what I could. Wondering what thoughts you may have on this? – Don’t judge …
Dear Wally
Wally Nichols
Wally replies: Dear Don’t (may I call you by your first name?): Let’s start here. Omicron. A mysterious and infrequently used Greek letter. I’m going to get to the toilet paper hoarding issue in a second, but first, the obvious question: Is the whole covid variant thing just a ruse by dark-hearted math and classics teachers to get the world to finally learn (and never forget) the Greek alphabet? The last time I had to think about these Greek letters in their proper sequence, I was in a pitch black, windowless room of my fraternity, and there may or may not have been a block of ice, a Martini olive between my butt cheeks, a blindfold, a paddle, and something else I have relegated to the sealed dust bins of my memory banks (where sits my sixth-grade locker combo).* *Thanks to Covid, sixth-graders no longer have lock combos to remember, nor do they even have lockers. So that’s one less thing on a heaping plate of crap at the Covid Cafeteria … Anyway, omicron is the 15th letter of the Greek alpha-
skipped as a variant name, and wisely so. Xi is virtually unpronounceable by most of America. And if that sounds snotty, sorry – just preaching the truth. Ask most of America to pronounce this, and it will sound like they are choking on a cat hair. Xi is a very common Asian surname. Just exactly the last thing that any Corona variant needs when global relations and Corona-origin suspicions are so fragile. One can easily see why the variant-naming entity steered clear of this serrated gaff. And another thing (a phrase which happens to be my other middle name), XI is also a roman numeral. (Still relevant thanks to the only organization still keeping Roman numerals on life support, to wit: The SuperBowl.) And as such, a third Covid variant that is, depending on your classics fluency, “11” or “14” or “3” or could be unfairly assumed to be from Asia, is a hard no. That leaves us with OMC (OMG divided by Omicron= OMC). Which takes to Aisle 12 of Walmart where there are 0 rolls of toilet paper left. And now I know who took it, Mr. or Mrs. Don’t Judge. Grrrrrrrr. Well, you are to be forgiven for having a little toilet paper PTSD. Or should I say TPSD? Who would have thought that toilet paper, once again, would be the Xmas gift that never stops giving?* *(Well, up to 1,000 quilted sheets, THEN it stops giving.) My advice? Charmin. It’s double quilted. Go get yourself some (more)! You’ll use it for the rest of your life (not to be too macabre…) – Wally P.S. See ya in the paper towel aisle (but I may stick out my foot and trip you). Got a question or confession for our advice columnist? Email him at cwn4@aol.com. He’ll get back to you after a brief and urgent shopping trip.
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bet, and yet, it represents now the third major variant of a series that started with Alpha. It was never called Alpha that I knew of, and maybe that was because wiser minds knew that, until we were a bit more acclimated to this pandemic death machine’s chomping maw, the idea of setting up a scalable nomenclature mechanism conveniently designed to expand indefinitely would rightfully induce (even more) panic. So, retroactively dubbed ‘Alpha’ because, ummm, there would be more. Then the blast-furnace, brushfire Delta. Then scorched earth and a hot moment to regroup and relax. Masks down. Thanksgiving turkey in. Boosters mostly poohpoohed. And … Wait for it … Skip 12 Greek letter spaces (Covid -The Board Game!) … pass ‘GO’ (collect $200 worth of home testing kits) and land right in the lap of polysyllabic Omicron, which, it’s worth noting, flows from our mouths like ball bearings embedded in molasses. Ohhhhh Ma Cron? Ahhhhh Ma Cron? Shouldn’t ‘croN’ be ‘croM’? M sounds better, but not by much. Damn. Why does EVERYTHING with Covid have to be sooooo complicated? The Covid Variant Naming Association skipped over the Greek letter Nu because it sounds (just) like “New.” And everyone can see THAT going fully sideways when we live in a country where we literally can’t agree on what day it is. “Do you have the *NEW* covid?” “No. I have the Nu covid.” “Wait, what?” ‘What’s on first.” “I thought Who was on first??” “Nah, Who’s on third …” Well, yay us! There’s a homophone on first, second and third … And as a nation, we are quite homophonophobic. Xi. This 14th letter of the Greek alphabet was also
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Kudos New Artist’s Corner opens at Emmanuel’s Marketplace The tradition of showing local artists’ works at Emmanuel’s goes back very many years. The new owners, Albert Rodriguez and Lisa Berrios, who took over Emmanuel’s two years ago, are happy to continue this heart-warming tradition. Following recent renovations in the supermarket, a new space near the cashiers as you exit – coined Artist’s Corner – has been created in order to display the art even better. The current exhibit, “Simply Food,” features 14 watercolors by Jacqueline Oster, all still-lifes depicting fruits, vegetables, or other common objects you find in the kitchen. The show is up until January 31, 2022. “Jacqueline’s touch is very distinctive,” says Sevan Melikyan, owner of Wired Gallery in High Falls. “She is able to generate a great amount of energy from inanimate objects. Eggs that are cracked suggests a recent impact; fruits showing their core suggest someone just bit on them; an off-centered skillet where a sunny side up is sizzling suggests … well, we better take it off the range or it’s going to burn!” And the subjects are perfectly fitting the surrounding environment; after all, you have actual fruits and vegetables just a few steps away. Wired Gallery’s plan is to install a new show every other month. Local artists who wish to be considered for a show need to email pictures to Sevan at thewiredgallery@ gmail.com. Emmanuel’s Marketplace is located in Stone Ridge at 3853 Main St..
Gander student musicians soar Six Rondout Valley High School band students have been selected to participate in one or more of the following festivals: Area All-State, All-State and All-National. RVHS students Julia Caster, Daniel Harkin, Ella Laskowski, Samuel Lever, Adrian Peck and Ellis Picuri represented the school district at the Area All-State Festival, which was held on Nov. 19 and 20 at Newburgh Free Academy. Up next is the All-State Festival, the New York State Music Association Winter Conference, where Caster, Harkin and Laskowski will be performing Dec. 2-5. This festival, which will take place in Rochester, is composed of top student musicians from Greene, Ulster, Orange, Rockland and Sullivan counties. In January, Caster, who plays the bassoon, will join other top student musicians from around the country at the National Association for Music Education All-National event. This event will be held virtually in January 2022. Participation in the All-State and All-National festivals is determined by solo performances, which are judged by a certified adjudicator. For more information, visit rondout.k12.ny.us or call 845-687-2400.
Rondout Valley High School 2021-2022 Period 1 honors
Artist’s Corner opens at Emmanuel’s Marketplace with Jacqueline Oster, all still-lifes depicting fruits, vegetables, or other common objects you find in the kitchen.
Logan Davis, Hayden Denick‑Fingar, Peter Dymitryszyn, Kaitlynn Gratis, Brayden Hanigan, Kylie Ivan, Leon Kellerhouse, Jacqueline Kennedy, Ian LaPierre, Annika Mahany, Adriana Marano, Aniyah North, Gavin Rosa, Lucas Russell, Conner Schwall, Charles Scully, Emil Weintraub, Nadja Welden, and Chase Yark. Grade 11: Austin Amato, Lauryn Anson, Faith Avello, Maria Ayala, Julian Browne, Makayla Chapman, Xaria Donnelly, Riley Dymond, McKenna Feinberg, Fiona Fraser‑Gross, Connor Hamm, Noah Johnson, Amelia Lamkin, Christopher Lennon Jr, Alyssa Lopez, Madeleine Malak, Michael Markle, Lexi McConnell, Landen Mesceda, Laila Rotella, Paul Scism III, Jessica Sedlak, Jacob Stange, Joshua VanLeuven, Michael Vanorden, and Liam Walsh. Grade 12: Jason Auchmoody, Hayleigh Beilman, Lia Berry, Alex Bollin, Olivia Bonelli, Matthew Campbell Jr, Adam Chase Jr, Lauren Countryman, Nicole Ellsworth, Megan Ferris, Jocelyn Gray, Olivia Jeter, Christina Lettieri, Juele Martinez, Elsa McBride, Aidan McNally, Lucas Ospina, Zackary Robbins, Aydin Robinson, Cameron Sands, Kyle Schoonmaker, Isabella Schwenker, Timothy Traver and Zoe Williams VanDunk.
Honor Roll Grade 9: Morgan Barcone, Kelly Casas, Sophia Clark, Grace Coonrod, Ethan Dean, Andrew Dingman, Violet Elder‑Rusciolelli, Kendell Erlwein, Nathanuel Favreau, Brian Henderson, Sophia Johnson, Logan Keller, Joleigh Kozack, Brooke Long, Nathan Nilsen, Miles Ouellette, Anthony Parisio, Flora Parker‑Myers, Justin Paterno, Brianna Portalatin, Joseph Soi, Millina Tully, Odin Vitek, and Julissa Vizcaino. Grade 10: Sydney Allen, Michelle Avello, Jesse Bayetis, Hunter Bober, Jonathan Chamberlain, Abigail Chorzempa, Aili Clark, Thomas Clark, Zola Coughlin‑Ebert, Jessica Daddio, Adeline Delessio, Alexandria Dennin, Rosendo Fontanez, Sumner King‑Barra, Siddhartha Lama, Caleb Leahey, Justin Nazario, Erin Parete, Thomas Rearick, Gabriel Schoonmaker, Jared Secore, Harriett Seubert, Nora Suszczynski, and Caleb Taszak. Grade 11: Nicole Appollonia, Desirae Baumann, Byron Bradley, Ryan Britt, Jaiden Buffong, Freyja Cross, Lucas Dee, Noah DeGraw, Elise Dymond, Gina Garofolo‑Goodman, Skylar Henebery, Taras Henza, Ryan Hornbeck, Chase Kiszkiel, Ella Kormondy, Jahara Maliha, Brady Morse, Abigail Naccarato, Miu Person, Makalah Quick, Sarah Roosa, Sierra Schwenker, Liam Sell, John Soi, Skyler Van Kleeck, and Solomon Zweig. Grade 12: Anthony Alaimo, Maranda Avello, Skylar Barringer, Daniel Birch, Nova Brodhead, Elizabeth Buley, Carter Cafiero, Marc Cathcart Jr, Emily Clark, Delaney Cole, Aaron Coston, Rocco DeAveiro, Christian DeGrote, Jonathan Deyo II, Una Flynn, Landen Frey, Michael Goodin, Ayden
Gray, Brandon Harned, Jaylen Hunt, Azure Jones, Ethan King, P Peter Knopf, Michael Lamaruggine, Hunter Lapp, Sophia Legnon‑Bozman, Lucy Lugo, Shea Malenski, Liam Martin, Ella Meoli, Halyna Nalywayko, Heather Nazario, Joshua Neumann, Sydney Nilsen, Braydon O'Connor, Eric Oakley, Oscar Resti, Korey Roeber, Lucas Roland, Shafil Sabbir, Jasper Schwartz, Taylor Steinhilber, Joleda Terwilliger, Eliza Thurst, Angelina Turner, Colin VanWagenen, Destiny Walsh, Kevin Walsh, Ava Wells, Jason Whittaker, Alexis Williams, Nicholas Winne and Edwin Yang.
High Honor Roll Grade 9: Sophia Bollin, Rowan Boyd, Grace Curran, Julia Deyo, Danielle Driekonski, Addyson Eck, Freja Ermer, Stori Gallicchio, Ryan Gillis, Vivian Gonzales, Nash Kennedy, Joana Koehler, Samuel Lever, Abigail McGuinness, Halle Meoli, Aidan Nolan, Domenic Palazzolo, Clara Samko, Kenneth Schade , Lauren Schoonmaker, InJolina Secreto, Gwenyth Tuscanes, and Anna Weber. Grade 10: Django Accardi, Merryn Arms, Jakob Baron, Shana Blandon, Christopher Cook, Jill Creegan, Victoria DeGraw, Amelia Dunphy, Trevor Gilliland, Chloe Goodin, Sadie Heagney, Sierra Hikade, Caylee Illa, Finnigan Kenney, Mica King, Luke Kotsides, Giada Labate, Nicholas Laskowski, Jackson Paley, Ellis Picuri, Maceo Pileggi, Hunter Ridgely, Mackenzie Snair, Sara Startup, and Olivia Waruch. Grade 11: Menena Baron, Emily Bartolone, Brooke Bogart, Cadence Cardinale, Alexander Driekonski, Kyle Fallaha, Gabriella Ferri, Evan Fraser Jr, Mackenzie Heyl, Holly Hrabovsky, Mackenzie Hubbard, Christopher Jordan, Andrew Kassian, Christopher Kay, Nicholas Kay, Isabel Kinsella, Veronica Kwiecinski, Jake Lawlor, Joseph Messina, Isaac Millrood, Audric Mondini, Kayla Oakes, Alexandra Olivieri, Riley Owens, Matthew Peck, Seneca Pharmer, Marley Pileggi, Asher Rosen, August Rubin, Jack Samko, Riley Schoonmaker, Aria Sickler Avery, Caitlyn Sindt, Alma Sutherland‑Roth, Abigail Tuttle, Reid Wogan, and Nikolas Zocchi. Grade 12: Stephen Barnum, Nickalos Campbell, Lindzy Carlson, Carmine Carlucci, Julia Caster, Laurel Cimino, Trey Cimino, Randy Collins, Erin Culwell, Mia Day, Lauren Dunn, Magnolia Flamhaft, Stevie Gabler, Emma Gillis, Eleanor Gonzales, Daniel Harkin, Hannah Hunt, Tye Keil, Ethan Koch, Gianna Koch, Christina LaFiandra, Ella Laskowski, Kya Lowery, Morgan Lydon, Emma Markle, John Mehalak IV, Clara Muck Dietrich, Colette Papin, Adrian Peck, Makayla Penny, Griffin Propeack, Stella Raponi, Katherine Reynolds, Naturi Romero, Sophia Schoonmaker, Silas Schwartz, Lili Vitek, Katie Vizcaino, Maximalian Welden, Dalton Wells and Dior Williams.
Merit Roll Grade 9: Alexander Acocella, Ramona Andersen, Addyson Auchmoedy, Carlo Bueti, Michael Cathcart, Gage Davis, Chloe Gabler, Devin Jimenez, Keara Johnson, Hayden Lazzaro, Colby Merck, Tyler Mitchell, Ava Seablom, Ryan Sheremetta, Aaron Smith Jr, Tate Suszczynski, Juliana Turner, Madelyn Tuscanes, Alexeah Walsh, Chloe Warren, and Abbigail Williams. Grade 10: Anthony Barringer, Farhan Bhuiyan, Clifford Bush, Garvey Chiarolanzio, Hannah Coddington, Grace Cutaia, Aidan Davenport,
Advertise in the BSP, call today! 687-4480 Rondout Valley High School student musicians representing the district, from left to right, Daniel Harkin, Ellis Picuri, Julia Caster, Ella Laskowski and Adrian Peck. Not pictured, Samuel Lever.
Page 18, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
Making magic wherever they go The checkered and glorious record of 3 little humans in December Chelsea Miller BSP Reporter “Wow! You have your hands full!” “How do you manage?” “God bless you.” “Are they all yours?” “Never got that girl, huh?” You see, every single time I head out into the world with my three young sons
in tow (who are, at print, aged 3, 6 and 8) perfect strangers have a lot to say about the subject. I am viewed with a mixture of marvel and pity – doubtful eyes wondering why one would elect to have not one, not two, but three young sons. Truth be told, we are happy agents of chaos wherever we go. I have a joke when someone asks me what it’s like to have three young sons: Imagine living inside a heavy metal Dave Matthews cover band. But in reality, that is only one tiny splinter of the truth of what it is like. There is so much more, so much more nuance, so many tiny, tender details that are too precious to give away to any old stranger in the grocery store. There are
so many delicate moments that contradict what is assumed of my rowdy crew. A few examples: Last summer my middle son found a millipede (who he named Mille) that he cared for in the most tender way. Mille passed after a few days, and I sat with my son as huge, fat tears rolled down his chubby cheeks, epitaphs were written, and big questions about what happens after you die were slowly and quietly discussed. My oldest son returns again and again to the ethics at play in the world, the weight of his choices (Should he eat that hamburger? Why do people have to go hungry? Why are there stray animals?) weighing on his small frame. Or my littlest,
who simply cannot watch anyone working without lending a hand – stacking wood, chopping vegetables and vacuuming right by my side – he cocks his head and looks at me, saying, “My powers help, right, Mom?” Yes, honey, yes they do. Between simply trying to harness and focus the sheer, nearly mythological power of these three little creatures combined, there are so many moments that remind me of the full breadth of who they are. Who all of us are, really: interesting, sensitive, funny as heck, complicated humans trying to make sense and learn about the world around them. None of us are any one thing; we contain universes. But how to convey all
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 19 this while trying to check out at Marshalls with three kids chucking dog toys into your cart like they are Mardi Gras beads or when they are darting around the bulk candy section of Adams acting like bank robbers who landed in a bank vault without security? I know I’m biased, but truly, the exuberance of three little boys bounding through the world is, quite frankly, breathtaking. So much energy! So much enthusiasm! So much penchant for mischief. They are Ray Bradbury’s Dandelion Wine come to life. They blaze into any scene committed to Truth with an almost Socratic zeal, ready to defend the small, champion the underdog, raise their voices in the face in injustice, make any situation fun, and view this life as fresh and full of possibility, wonder, and, magic. Last year, my now 8-year-old figured out that Santa wasn’t real. It was my first Christ-
mas as a single mom and I simply did not hide the presents well enough. That’s on me. While I was standing in the kitchen doing dishes, he brashly burst into the room, raised his eyebrows and stage whispered, “Mom. We’ve got to talk.” This was clearly a matter of importance, as evidenced by the fact that he had yet to blink his big blue eyes and his blond eyebrows continued to hover around his hairline. This was no petty feudal brother battle. I turned off the water, dried my hands and sat down at the island in the kitchen with him. “What’s up?” “I know,” he whispered cryptically. My mind raced. What did he know? What could he possibly know?! I said the only thing I could think to say: “You know.” He nodded solemnly. “There’s no Santa.
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You’re Santa. I found the presents.” I had options. I could lie. I could say something like how the presents were for family members and then rewrap every single one in different wrapping paper in the dead of night. But I have a theory: When you are at the beginning of life or very near the end of life you are imbued with a special gift to spot a lie a mile away. It’s only in the middle of life that we find the truth harder to suss out. “It’s true,” I said. “Mom, you LIED to me!” His eyes brimmed with tears. He was right. “You know, when you were first born your dad and I weren’t sure if we wanted to tell you the story of Santa because we never wanted to lie to you. But we decided that there’s a lot of magic to Santa and Christmas and we wanted you to have that as
long as you wanted it.” He looked visibly relieved that he’d been told straight. Ever the oldest, he said, “I can’t tell my brothers.” “Well, you could tell your brothers, but I also think it would be nice for them to still believe in Santa magic for as long as they want to believe.” He nodded. Inspiration struck. “You know,” I said slyly, “this means that now you get to be a Christmas magic maker.” “I do?” “Yep. That means you get to be the Mommy-Santa helper and help build the Christmas magic for the entire month of December.” His eyes lit up. His chest swelled. A grin broke across his face.
Page 20, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
All creatures great and small celebrate the holidays Jennifer Muck-Dietrich BSP Reporter The holidays are the time of the year for us to splurge a little (or a lot) on our loved ones. Americans spend about $1,000 over the holidays on gifts and festivities. What is not included in that total is the over $70 billion spent annually on our pets. Retailers are cashing in on sales of dog treats, cat furniture, pet-sized ugly sweat-
ers and many other items. The average gift for a dog is $36 and just under $10 for cats. You can provide your pooch with a personalized pet portrait statue, or their own personalized dog book. How about a hat for your gecko or a harness for your chicken? Don’t forget the Santa leg wraps and the hanging carrot ball for your horse. As a parrot owner, there is an abundance of toys for birds to choose from to keep them stimulated and enter-
tained. I reached out to members of our community to find out how their pets celebrate the holidays. The LaSalvia family of Stone Ridge has a wonderful rescue dog named Basil. He is just as much a part of the family as the humans are. Basil gets his own stocking with treats and a toy. Kerry LaSalvia says that Basil knows which gifts are his. He gets very
excited at present time and can’t wait to rip open the wrapping paper. Frank Macagnone has four boys – Luke, Leo, Cairo and Baghdad. Luke, a Golden retriever, is getting tennis balls this year. Frank says that Luke lives for balls and loves to fetch for hours. Leo loves to carry around stuffed animals in his mouth, so that it is his extra special gift that he will be getting Christmas morning. Cairo the cat loves toy mice. His version of hunting
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 21 is walking around the house holding his toy mouse in his mouth, meowing. Baghdad the cat loves running water so he will be delighted when he gets a new drinking fountain this year. Diane Silverberg has a companion named Sammy. He is a rescue cat with lots of personality. He will be receiving catnip mice for Hanukkah. The Papin family in Stone Ridge adopted their King Charles Cavalier, Hugo, 3½ years ago. Last year Hugo got a squealy toy, “Chewbaru,” to match the new car his human brother got. Hugo also received pajamas. He did NOT like them. He is more than content with having a dirty sock to chew. No word yet from Santa if he will be getting a new toy or token sock. Hugo has two feline siblings, Jasmine and Spats. They get treats
and catnip toys. Nicole Cagan has a menagerie of pets including two dogs, two sheep and a snake. The sheep, Franklin and Ellie, will be receiving a special bag of grains this year, and once Christmas is over, they get the tree for a snack. The dogs, Aspen and Archie, will be getting new sweaters and squeaky toys. The lucky dogs also celebrate Hanukkah and just got a new bed. What about the more non-traditional furry friends? I reached out to Lizz Truitt, marketing and communications director at the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary on Lucas Turnpike. “This time of year we like to treat our rescued residents to pumpkins! The pigs in particular love pumpkins. The pumpkin eaters are Ari, Marsha, Duke, Charlie and Molly. We also accept Christmas
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Page 22, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
A writer’s Christmas list Anne Pyburn Craig BSP reporter OK, Santa, here’s my personal wish list this holiday season: 1. Clarity. Clarity in words and actions is the preventive that avoids a multitude of train wrecks. It has to start with ourselves. If I’m making an arrangement or an agreement and a little nagging something in my gut tells me all isn’t well, nine times out of 10,
that little nagging something turns out to have a greater significance that I should’ve taken more care to explore at the time. Only when we’re clear ourselves do we have any right to expect others to be likewise, because without our clarity they’re operating without enough information. So please, Mr. Claus, grant me the sense and foresight to pay attention to those little nagging feelings before they turn into catastrophes.
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2. Charity. Knowing that I have enough to give and that it comes back around when I need it. This can be a struggle when you’re operating with limited resources, and who isn’t? We’ve all got the same 24 hours in a day. Our bank accounts and material comforts may vary widely, but they seldom feel like way too much; we usually have the resources earmarked for very real needs. But when I stretch myself to do that one extra kind thing, the boost to my mood and sense of myself is a
payoff that no medication could duplicate. And things really do come around nicely, surprisingly so at times. I found myself urgently in need of a major appliance last week without either the funds or the transportation method to pick it out and have it delivered, but I took the advice of a nice lady at a vintage shop. “Just ask the ‘Buy Nothing’ folks on Facebook,” she said. “People swap out refrigerators all the time. Give it a shot. Someone will help.” Within 24 hours of making the post, I had a
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 23 selection to choose from and someone helping me move my new-to-me fridge. Sure, I had given away a couple of random items of lesser value, but this was above and beyond. As my circumstances come together I look forward to being able to do more. 3. Patience. When somebody loses theirs with me, Santa, let me take the time for a deep breath and an evaluation of where it’s coming from. In the case of a loved one, there are usually reasons I can understand. In the case of a stranger or someone less close, there are probably similar factors in play that I’m just not aware of. Either way, a lot of the time, it’s about them and not about me. Unless of course it is about
child get hooked) and holler right back, guess what? At that point it becomes absolutely about me, justifying them in their initial wackdoodliness. And ain’t nobody got time for that.
me, and in that case that deep-breathing moment can give me the chance to assess that and own it, which is very useful. If I neglect to take that moment, if I react from my feelings of being disrespected (what a certain school of therapy used to call letting my not-OK
4. Confidence. My aforementioned not-OK child has always had a tough time with that one. People told me I was a good writer for a couple of decades before I found the ’nads to approach a nice lady named Lori Childers and ask for a tryout, and during that time I struggled and scrambled to support myself, feeling like an inadequate malingerer because the jobs I was attempting were a poor fit, relying way too much on others for emotional and financial sustenance. So Santa, this year
I’d like the faith in myself to go big with the same assurance I now feel in writing a BlueStone Press story and make y’all proud. So what do you want from Santa? I hear that even us naughty kids get listened to up at the North Pole, especially in tough moments and tough times, especially when we look within and seek out the intangibles that make the tangible possible, the gifts that will resound throughout our hearts and lives to benefit our loved ones and our world as well as ourselves. May each and every one of you, dear readers, get the joys you need and deserve. And thank you, all of you, for all you have given to me – it’s more than you’ll ever realize.
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Page 24, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
Be you for the holidays Donna Cohn Viertel Calendar of Events Editor Around this time of the year, we tend to worry more; this just in. But seriously, whether it’s seeing our family, constantly trying to impress them with all we are and all we do, or just the simple hustle and bustle to get everything done, from the holiday meals to the holiday gifts, we pretty much feel like we are so screwed up, like there is something wrong with us, how we do things and how we see the world. But I’m here to tell you, you are doing great, and it’s all good. And obviously, you’re not alone in your
insecurities. Recently I was compared to the guy from the series “You” on Netflix in the way I obsess, in my case by trying to make the world happy with food. Makes sense – my husband, David, and I grew up working in the hospitality industry. We both graduated from the Culinary Institute in Hyde Park and have worked in several different restaurants and organizations, in addition to running our own restaurant long ago. Maybe you remember it, the Clove Café and Mohonk Coffee Roasters in High Falls. Anyway, as a nice Jewish girl from Long Island, I know how to drag out a story, but to explain, I must start at the beginning.
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My mom, Lil Cohn, who was amazing, used to tell me the story of when I was in kindergarten. I actually remember my teacher, and how I wanted her to like me, so every day I would give her something I got from home, as a gift. Then, at the parent-teacher conference, she presented my mom with a big box of all the things I had given her, most of which was my mother’s jewelry. And do you know what? My mom didn’t get mad at me, she just said, “Donna, you don’t have to give people things for them to like you.” What can I say? It didn’t stick. Once I learned that I had a talent for cooking and baking, I began making things for everyone. Food
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 25 rant, I would not have become a part of the BlueStone Press, and after all those years, I still am, Kaynahorah. Point is, I’m not going to stop trying to make people happy with food. I always try to find out what favorite dessert or food someone likes, and when I do, I make it for them. When there is a special occasion, such as a new home, a new job or even a new addition to the family, I give a special package of gifts, an idea I got from the holiday movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.” In fact, I still remember, when the actress Uma Thurman came into our restaurant, she was pregnant at the time. I went over to her and said, “When there is a special moment or change in your life, someone is supposed to do this for you, so I am going to.” I presented her a bottle of nonalcoholic wine (as she was pregnant), “so life should always have good cheer,” a box of salt,
“so life should always have flavor,” a loaf of my homemade bread, “so you should never know the feeling of hunger,” and (my own additional idea), a bottle of hot sauce, “so life should always be, a little spicy and exciting.” She cried and hugged me. It made her so happy – and that is priceless. Lately, now, for birthdays and special occasions, I give my hockey puck fudge brownie that I bake in my mini springform pan that’s a little bit bigger than a hockey puck; or chocolate chip walnut cookies, or scones, or muffins, or something as simple as an apple, or a container of homemade matzo ball soup. What ever is your favorite, I’ll make it my goal to find out, and make it for you. And maybe that’s obsessive, maybe I want you to like me, or maybe, as my good friend Barbara told me, when I asked her if I was a freak, “You’re not a freak, you are a
Hockey puck fudge brownie topped with mini marshmallows and chocolate chips.
nurturer – that’s you! And it’s OK to be you.” I love my friend Barbara; this just in. Sharing my love of the holidays, I give you the recipe for my hockey puck fudge brownie. And if you can’t find the small springform pan to bake it in, no worries, it’s the perfect amount for the mini-muffin pans. Melt 1 stick of butter (4 ounces) in a small saucepan on medium-low heat. Add 1¼ ounce of cocoa, mix with a whisk over low
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heat to combine, add 6 ounces of white sugar, whisk to combine, then add 2 ounces of white flour, 1 egg, and ½ tablespoon of vanilla, stir to combine off the low heat until it comes together in a thick batter form. Pour into hockey puck springform pan that is greased with butter or spoon into buttergreased mini-muffin pan. Top with chocolate chips (or roasted walnuts, or marshmallows, or peanut butter or a sprinkle of coffee grounds and sugar, or crushed candy canes for the holidays), and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Let cool before unmolding. And note that center will have lava cake consistency, which is what you want. I always tell people that I give the hockey puck fudge brownie to, not to refrigerate it, or it will turn into a hockey puck! Happy holidays and lots of love.
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Arts, culture & entertainment
December 3, 2021
Little owl spells huge success for local author Children’s book author Gideon Sterer, a Rosendale resident, has a knack for finding the miraculous hovering at the edge of the mundane. Earlier works such as “The Night Knights,” “It Began With Lemonade,” “From Ed’s to Ned’s” and “Skyfishing” have drawn praise for the whimsical exuberance of his surreal plots that are nonetheless solidly grounded in hope and love. A graduate of Mountain Laurel Waldorf School in New Paltz and a lifelong nature lover, Sterer found himself inspired by a real life journey – that of a flesh-and-feather wood sprite, the tiny saw-whet owl who was discovered in the branches of last year’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree after a journey that, from the owl’s point Anne view, must have been surreal Pyburn Craig of indeed. And it’s the owl’s point of view that Sterer adopts in telling the tale with co-author Ellen Kalish, the wildlife rehabilitator who was tapped to rescue the owl christened Rocky – for Rockefeller, of course – and nurse her back to health at Ravensbeard Wildlife Center, the Saugerties-based rehab she’s been operating for injured and orphaned creatures for over 20 years.
Book Review
If you are hoping to get a copy of “The Christmas Owl,” though it is sold out at most major vendors, it is still available in some small bookshops and, as of noon yesterday, at Target online.
Rocky’s first perception of Christmas is that it’s scary and disruptive, and she’s not wrong; the tree she calls home is suddenly bundled up and dragged away to an entirely strange and not very owl-friendly environment. But when she meets a nice human named Ellen, who knows just what little owls need, her hope and joy are restored.
Sterer grew up knowing Kalish as his best friend’s mom, and inspired by the tender loving care she lavished on raptors. When she took in Rocky and nursed her back to health – fortunately, the young owl was uninjured aside from dehydration, hunger and a heck of a scare – he knew it was a story he wanted to tell. He tells it well, and an author’s note from Kalish tells it from a factual human’s point of view; the whole package, with adorable illustrations by Ramona Kaulitzki, is both Sterer charming and educational. Rocky’s survival story caught the world’s attention last year, and this telling of it has done likewise, becoming a New York Times bestseller in the children’s category. Sterer has appeared on “Good Morning America,” and director Ron Howard has optioned the movie rights. All this success apparently caught the publisher (Little, Brown Books For Young Readers) by surprise. When this reporter spoke to Sterer, the only place where the book had not yet sold out was Target. It has since sold out at the Kingston Target, but is still available in Newburgh and online. You can also purchase Rockythemed ornaments, gear and gifts at the Ravensbeard. org website in plenty of time for Christmas; all proceeds support the rehab center’s mission.
Decembers past in the Rondout Valley December 5, 1818 – New-York Evening Post For Sale, The well-known valuable farm called Rosendale, situated on the Rosendale creek, on the main road between Albany and New-York, seven miles from Kingston, in Ulster county; containing about 640 acres of land, consisting of wood, arable and meadow land, with a good orchard and garden. On the premises is a good dwelling-house of stone, together with barns, stables, and other outbuildings. The title to the above property is indisputable …
From the archives
March 8, 1837 – The Evening Post (New York, N.Y.) Proposals for carrying the mails of the United States from the 1st of July 1837, to the 30th of June 1841, Linda on the following post routes… Tantillo 577 - From Kingston by Marbletown, Stone Bridge [sic], Kyesville [Kyserike?], Accord, Wawarsing, Ellensville [sic], Phillips Port, Wurtsboro, West Brookville, Cuddebackville, Huguenot and Port Jervis to Millford, Pa.
70 miles and back three times a week in stages. Leave Kingston every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m., arrive at Milford next days by 12 m[idnight]. [This route followed the Old Mine Road, today’s Route 209.]
December 16, 1879 – Evening Gazette (Port Jervis) from The Rondout Courier Closing of an Era. Old Days of Stage Couches – What the Death of Eli Terwilliger Recalls The death of Eli D. Terwilliger marks the close of an era. He may be considered as representing the stage coach era of Ulster County … He represented communication between separated communities, and by his lines Ulster knew itself from the county seat to its remote frontier. His was the fastest means of travel of his day, and he passes away as a faster means has obtained a foothold. As Thomas Cornell comes in with the railroad, Eli D. Terwilliger passes out with the stage coach .... It is unfortunate that among the railroads that we have there is none that goes direct from Kingston to Ellenville, one of the most vigorous of the county’s villages, and the center of a great deal of political and
industrial action. If there had been a railroad from Kingston to Port Jervis for the past 30 years there would have been 10 more years of life in the Tuthills, Lyons, and Scoresbys, and others whose continual journeys over the long and weary road drew heavily on their physical resources …. They would have had less bodily aches and pains and more years to stay if they could have rolled easily thither in a luxurious car …
December 24, 1902 – Kingston Leader [reprinted in the Tri-State Union, Port Jervis] Kingston Celebrates the Arrival of Port Jervis – Band Played and Salutes Fired. 150 passengers. Welcomed by an immense crowd of people with flags flying, salutes being fired from Middagh’s clothing store and Miller’s Band playing at the store of the Herbert Carl Dry Goods Company, the first train of the new Ellenville and Kingston Railroad, due here from Port Jervis at 10 a.m. Monday morning, arrived 40 minutes late due to a hot box on one of the cars, happening soon after leaving Ellenville. [This train left Port Jervis at 7 a.m., according to an accompanying article.]
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 27
The private lives of white-tailed deer Early one morning a couple of weeks ago, I looked out the window and saw a doe walking delicately through the yard, the way they do, step … step … step, looking around the whole time. A half-minute later, I noticed a buck, the first buck I’d seen for a long while, shadowing her in the woods beyond the yard. Aha! I thought – it’s that time of year. Time to come together to strike the sparks of the next generation, so there will be fawns in the spring. The buck vanished down the hill, only to reappear in the front yard, nibbling on something evidently tasty on my hill of shrubs and wildflowers. I took his picture, and then went outside to chase Ann Belmont him off my hard-earned perennials. Much is written about both the beauty and grace of deer and what a damn nuisance they are, being one of the life-forms that is succeeding all too well in coexisting with humans. Predators such as wolves and mountain lions who could keep their numbers down are not a popular solution. This summer, however, deer in the Hudson Valley succumbed in appalling numbers to epizootic hemorrhagic disease, or EHD, a kind of deer brain-fever. However, I think the midges who carried that disease didn’t make it to my neighborhood in the lower Catskills, where the elevation is around 1,400 feet. Starting around the beginning of November, I began to see bucks often, usually either crossing the road right in front of my car or clearly considering it. The rest of the year, they keep a low profile, but in November they seem to lose their cool and get a bit reckless. They can't help it – they have got to find
ladies. Wayne Ward of Rosendale, who hunts every fall, says, “The bucks’ll come down to the meadows to go after the does,” and try to chase them up into the woods and to higher ground. (Come on, baby, let's go someplace private ...) That is of course why hunting season is timed to coincide with mating season. Human hunters have all sorts of advantages: rifles, deer pheromone spray (so unfair!), camouflage, deer blinds, and love- and battlecrazed bucks who aren't paying that much attention to danger. The deer, however, have their own advantages: supersharp senses of hearing and smell, and the ability to vanish into the woods in a millisecond. I grew up in Sullivan County, which has the Delaware River on its western border. New York and Pennsylvania have different starting dates for deer hunting. Legend had it that on the night before rifle season began in whichever
Horoscopes
is in poor aspect to Jupiter and Neptune. This may mean the necessity of adjusting to new circumstances at work, or a new job. The new Moon on the 4th finds you looking at the social scene around you and wanting to be part of the fun.
Wild Things
White tailed buck
The planets are beginning to move in a closer formation. Eight are now positioned in four months with only Uranus, retrograde in the sign of Taurus, separated from the other outer planets. Venus, the planet that brings us good news, is on station before it turns retrograde. It is also conjunct Pluto – possibly bringing negative events to the fore. The more beneficial planet Jupiter is now conjunct Neptune, assuring the continuation of negative events. The new Moon in Sagittarius promises a positive shopping season.
CANCER: 6/21 to 7/20: The new Moon on the 4th finds you working a full schedule when you really want to be out shopping and preparing for family fun time. However, you know the relative importance of your daily job and the income it brings. Let your creativity shine through by the way you decorate your home and the gifts you buy.
ARIES: 3/21 to 4/19: Mars, your ruling planet, is positioned on the cusp of your 9th solar house leading to a busy, possibly contentious time. You will also find time to return to a hobby not visited for a long while. Fortunately, the new Moon promises money from several sources, one of which the payment may be delayed for a short while.
VIRGO: 8/23 to 9/22: Mercury, your ruling planet, is positioned with the Sun in your 4th solar house of home and family. Home has become the center of activity for everyone during the holidays. The need for a wellstocked kitchen while the children are home, buying gifts for everyone, and enjoying the business of this party season are always remembered.
Your Zodiac Joanne Ferdman
TAURUS: 4/20 to 5/20: Venus, your ruling planet, is conjunct Pluto at your midheaven, promising a difficult time with your career. In addition, you may contemplate making a major career shift and begin a major investigation into different possibilities. The new Moon on the 4th suggests that you not forget to enjoy the holiday season as best you can. GEMINI: 5/21 to 6/20: Mercury, your ruling planet, is positioned in your 7th solar house conjunct the Sun and
LEO: 7/21 to 8/22: The Sun, your ruling planet, is positioned in your 5th solar house of children and creativity. The holiday season is when children receive the most attention – home for the holidays, gifts, and meals for everyone. The new Moon brings excitement to the normal routine.
LIBRA: 9/23 to 10/22: Venus, your ruling planet, is positioned in your 3rd solar house conjunct the Sun. Mars is about to enter this house to energize your interest in communication – your favorite pastime. Contacts with family and friends at work are especially important at the beginning of this holiday season. SCORPIO: 10/23 to 11/22: Mars, one of your ruling planets, is positioned on the cusp of your 2nd solar house of money, while your other ruler, Pluto, is conjunct Venus in your 3rd house of communication. This configuration may result in your being short of funds this season, result-
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state had the earlier starting date, large numbers of deer would leave that state and swim to the opposite bank. It would be fun to believe they had a magical psychic ability, but what hunters say is that when the deer smell an unusual number of humans walking through the woods and meadows, they start retreating to more remote territory. “In the fall, they move up in the mountains ... they feed on the acorns,” says Ward. “They pick certain areas to rut in ... you learn them over the years by spending time in the woods.” That explains why by now, as November slides into December, I haven't had to brake for any bucks, or even does. Here’s one thing I wonder about. Deer coats get thick and shaggy when the cold weather sets in, but what about their legs? Why don't they freeze? To the internet we go. From the North Platte Telegraph, March 10, 2019: “Hooves are basically toenails ... They do not require a good blood supply to the hoof itself, but the legs do. However, a hoof provides an excellent insulating layer between the lower leg and contact with frozen ground, snow or ice. “There is a physiological adaptation called countercurrent exchange. Animals like deer, elk, bison, cattle, horses, etc., have veins where the cold returning blood runs next to warm arterial blood moving down from the heart ... [it] has enough heat to keep tissue from freezing.” Furthermore, “their hair is hollow. Their fur is a great insulator and traps body heat close to the skin.” In fact, the insulation for deer is so complete that snow doesn't even melt when it falls on their backs. How can I fail to marvel at such a perfectly adapted creature? To feel the thrill when one turns and looks at me for a long moment, before vanishing away into woods as if it were never there. I know she'll be back, though, to chew on my elderberry saplings. ing in a creative use of the funds you do have available.
SAGITTARIUS: 11/23 to 12/21: Jupiter, your ruling planet, is positioned in your 4th solar house conjunct Neptune – concerned with home and family. Mars, the planet of action, is about to cross over the Ascendant, providing the incentive to accomplish your ideas, including money to pay the bills. If true, it should be a happy holiday season. CAPRICORN: 12/22 to 1/20: Saturn, your ruling planet, continues in your 2nd solar house of money. However, with Pluto and Venus in your 1st solar house, you may find it difficult to achieve your goal in time to finance the expenses involved this holiday season. Your ability with the creative aspects of your personality will more than help. AQUARIUS: 1/21 to 2/19: Uranus remains in your 4th solar house of home and family – making you feel responsible for the environment that surrounds your entire family, including financial security. However, circumstances behind the scenes may add a feeling of uncertainty at this time. Hopefully this will not stop you from enjoying this season. PISCES: 2/20 to 3/20: Neptune, your ruling planet, continues to be positioned in your 1st solar house of personality together with Jupiter – expanding your native talent. Now is the time to share your ability with those less able to create pleasant surroundings so they too will enjoy this season of the year. Joanne can be reached at 561-744-9962. She is available for private telephone consultations if you want more information relating to your personal chart. Treat yourself – and you will learn what to expect from the current transits and receive an overview of long-term goals. Remember to read both your Sun sign and your Ascendant.
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Page 28, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press
FOR THE FAMILY Little Ones Learning Center’s story time & trip to The Den of Marbletown The Little Ones Learning Center, a free early-literacy program held in the space rented from the Rochester Reformed Church, at 5142 Route 209, Accord, has reopened. Story times are held virtually, 10:30 a.m. Fridays on Little Ones Facebook page, and in person, 10:3011:30 a.m. Saturdays, at the church. Book borrowing is available 10 a.m.-noon Wednesdays and on Saturdays following story time. Story time will be traveling to The Den of Marbletown, at 1 Basten Lane, Stone Ridge, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 4. Join the group for bear-themed crafts, stories and activities, and don’t forget to bring a favorite bear, or purchase one from their gift shop. Little Ones Learning center will be closed for the holidays, Dec. 23-Jan. 1, and will resume their schedule the following Wednesday, Jan. 5. Cancellations or changes will always be posted on their Facebook page. Give them a “like” to stay informed about new stories, changes in programming, and special events. For more information, call Mary Lee, treasurer, Little Ones Learning Center, at 845-626-7249, and visit thedenofmarbletown.com. Free holiday wreath-making workshop with Stone Ridge artist Jill Obrig Stone Ridge artist and educator Jill Obrig will teach a free holiday wreathmaking class, 2:30-4:40 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Hurley Library, 48 Main St., Hurley. All materials will be provided. Participants are asked to bring their own clippers to cut branches and scissors to cut ribbon. Contact Hurley Library at 845-338-2092 to sign up. Ellenville Regional Hospital Auxiliary 30%-50% off Holiday Sale fundraiser This ERH event with six other vendors will be held 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at United Methodist Church, 85 Canal St., Ellenville. For more information, contact Helene Morris, Auxiliary buyer, at 845-210-7120. Stone Ridge Library Knitting Group The Stone Ridge Library Knitters meet 10 a.m.-noon Saturdays, in the activity room, at Stone Ridge Library, 3700 Main St., Stone Ridge, with upcoming gatherings on Dec. 4 and 11. All ages and experience levels can join, and drop-in knitters are also welcome. Bring your own supplies, do as much as wanted, and ask for help or advice if needed. Donations of yarn to the library get made into items for sale at the Library Fair and during the winter holidays for the benefit of the library. Some group members also knit things for local hospitals or for U.S. troops. For more information, visit stoneridgelibrary.org or call 845-6877023. Commitment to Kids cancels usual festivities due to Covid but continues toy distribution Although their usual holiday festival and parade have been canceled this year due to Covid-19, the toy distribution will continue. Commitment to Kids and American Legion Post 1219 Rosendale/Tillson are proudly celebrating their 27th Greater Ulster County Toy Extravaganza. Donations are needed and grouped by ages: infant, 1-2 years old, 34 years old, 5-7 years old, 8-11 years old and 12-14 years old. The hardest to shop for is the 12-14 group, so for that age group, board games are great, soccer balls, footballs, things of that nature. No cell phones or gaming devices, please, as it’s not known if the recipient would have the appropriate system. Collection of donations will be held 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5. Monetary donations can be mailed to: Commitment to Kids, P.O. Box 223, Bloomington, NY 12411. For more information, call 845-338-2794 on collection days, and/or 845-339-9209 all other days. Mossy Glen Meander at Minnewaska Laura Conner, environmental educator, will lead this 3.5-mile hike, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5, that will follow along the edges of the Peter’s Kill, a gently gurgling stream that runs through cool hemlock forests and perennially green rhododendron stands along the Mossy Glen Footpath. This trail does include some tricky footing, including potentially slippery rocks and exposed tree roots, but the other half of the route, which follows along the Lower Awosting Carriage Road, is an easy stroll. All unvaccinated participants are encouraged to wear face coverings and keep a minimum 6-
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Join the community as they illuminate the tree for this High Falls Civic Association annual holiday celebration on the green, at Sue Paterson Way.
High Falls Civic Association Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration This annual event will be held at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, on the green at Sue Paterson Way, with soup, songs, Santa, lighting of the tree, and hot chocolate and cookies
foot distance away from others who are not part of their immediate household. All visitors, regardless of vaccination status, are encouraged to wear a mask when inside buildings. Meet at the Lower Parking Area. Preregistration is required by calling the Lake Minnewaska Visitor Center at 845-255-0752. Writers group with Cathy Arra Two separate writers groups meet 4:30-6:30 p.m. on alternate Mondays at the Stone Ridge Library in the activity room, 3700 Main St., Stone Ridge, with a maximum of 10 participants in each group. The program is designed for those who are actively writing and publishing work and who want to participate in a structured, critical feedback process. Cathy Arra, a poet, writer and former teacher of English and writing in the Rondout Valley School District, facilitates the groups. Group 1 is meeting on Dec. 13 and 27, and Group 2 on Dec. 6 and 20. Email carra22@aol.com. Bonus Tuesday Trek: Scenic Rainbow Falls Loop hike at Minnewaska Join Laura Conner, environmental educator for a most scenic walk along Upper Awosting and Castle Point carriage roads and a section of the remote Rainbow Falls Footpath, 9:15 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 7. The 7-mile, round-trip route offers stunning views of Lake Awosting, the largest of the sky lakes, from a rocky, cliff-top ledge. The return trip along Castle Point Carriage Road has fabulous views out over the Wallkill Valley all the way back. Participants should come prepared to spend the entire day on the trail, wearing good walking shoes and bringing all the food, water and gear that they will need. All unvaccinated participants are encouraged to wear face coverings and keep a minimum 6-foot distance away from others who are not
at the Community Church of High Falls, after the illumination. Masks and social distancing are required. For more information, visit highfallscivicassociation.org.
part of their immediate household. Additionally, all unvaccinated visitors are required to wear a mask when inside buildings. Meet at the Lake Minnewaska Visitor Center, 5281 Route 44/55, Kerhonkson. Preregistration is required by calling Minnewaska at 845-255-0752. Mahjong, Tuesdays and Fridays at Stone Ridge Library The Stone Ridge Library hosts ongoing weekly mahjong at 10 a.m. Friday mornings (Dec. 10, 17, 24 and 31) and a beginner’s group, 10 a.m. Tuesdays (Dec. 7, 14, 21 and 28), in the activity room of the library, 3700 Main St., Stone Ridge. New members are welcome. No registration required. Just walk in. For more information, call 845-6877023 or visit stoneridgelibrary.org. Rosendale Seniors next meeting, Christmas party and upcoming trips The Town of Rosendale Seniors meetings are held at 1 p.m. every second and fourth Wednesday of the month, at the Rosendale Recreation Center, 1055 Route 32, Rosendale. Their Christmas party will be held noon Wednesday, Dec. 8, at Christina’s Restaurant, 812 Ulster Ave., Kingston, with a cost of $30 per person. Upcoming trips for next year include Hunterdon Hills Playhouse in New Jersey on March 22 for dinner and show to see “Sherlock Holmes Returns.” Cost is $78 per person. And a trip to Myrtle Beach is on Sept. 11-17. For more information, call Chickie at 845-658-2414 or Hal at 845-658-9020. Poetry with Rosemary Dean Join the community via Zoom, 1:30-3 p.m. every Thursday, with the next meetings on Dec. 9, 16, 23 and 30. This program is presented by the Stone Ridge Library. Contact Rosemary Dean at rmdeen@ gmail.com to join the group.
Blood drive at Marbletown Community Center Donate blood, 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, at the Marbletown Community Center, 3564 Main St., Stone Ridge. To schedule an appointment, visit redcrossblood.org. Santa tours the High Falls Fire District, plus Annual Holiday Food and Toy Drive Join the community as Santa tours the High Falls Fire District, 9 a.m.-noon, Saturday, Dec. 11, and come over to the Annual Holiday Food and Toy Drive the following day, noon-4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12, at the High Falls Firehouse, 7 Firehouse Road, High Falls. Donate a new, unwrapped toy at this event where hot cocoa and coffee with fresh, prewrapped baked goods to go will be served. Due to Covid, Santa will not be available for pictures. Donations of hams, turkey, and all the trimmings with any canned and dry goods, juices, personal health and beauty items, and monetary donations will also be accepted. Masks are required, and the hall will be set up to observe social distancing. For more information, contact Elisa at 845-687-0435 and leave a message. All donations at this event, sponsored by the High Falls Fire Company, will benefit the Rondout Valley Food Pantry. Holiday craft fair at Olive Free Library The Olive Free Library will hold its annual holiday craft fair, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, and 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12, at the library, 4033 Route 28A, West Shokan. A variety of vendors will sell locally made goods including plantbased handmade soap, wood benches, felted scarves, holiday decorations, handmade bags, wood bowls, handmade American Girl Doll clothes, decorative stones, aprons, jewelry, pottery, quilts and much more. The day will include a chance to win a portable generator or numerous other raffle bags, locally made items, music, and a cookie platter sale. All shoppers are required to wear masks. For more information, visit olivefreelibrary.org or call 845-657-2482. Scenic Meadows to Kempton Ledge Hike at Minnewaska Join Laura Conner, environmental educator, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12, for an approximately 4-mile hike on four historic carriage roads and one footpath. Starting from the Lake Minnewaska Visitor Center, 5281 Route 44/55, Kerhonkson, the group will hike a short section of the Lake Minnewaska Carriage Road and continue on the Upper Awosting Carriage Road until they intersect the Meadows Footpath. Then, participants will continue walking, meandering through sections of the former Lake Minnewaska resort’s apple orchard and golf course, until intersecting Castle Point Carriage Road, then continue south-southwest until arriving at Kempton Ledge, a scenic vista that overlooks the Palmaghatt Ravine. Then returning directly on Castle Point Carriage Road and around the east side of Lake Minnewaska Carriage Road to the starting point. All unvaccinated participants are encouraged to wear face coverings and keep a minimum 6-foot distance away from others who are not part of their immediate household. All visitors, regardless of vaccination status, are encouraged to wear a mask when inside buildings. Meet at the Lake Minnewaska Visitor Center. Preregistration is required by calling Minnewaska at 845-255-0752. Tuesday Trek: Mossy Glen Meander at Minnewaska Laura Conner, environmental educator, will lead this 3.5-mile hike that will follow along the edges of the Peter’s Kill, a gently gurgling stream that runs through cool hemlock forests and perennially green rhododendron stands along the Mossy Glen Footpath, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 14. This trail does include some tricky footing, including potentially slippery rocks and exposed tree roots, but the other half of this route, which follows along the Lower Awosting Carriage Road, is an easy stroll. All unvaccinated participants are encouraged to wear face coverings and keep a minimum 6-foot distance away from others who are not part of their immediate household. All visitors, regardless of vaccination status, are encouraged to wear a mask when inside buildings. Meet at the Lower Parking Area. Preregistration is required by calling the Lake Minnewaska Visitor Center at 845-255-0752.
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BlueStone Press, December 3, 2021, Page 29 Events continued from page 28 Rondout Valley United Methodist Church Holiday Cookie Sales Located on the corner of Schoonmaker Lane and Route 209 in Stone Ridge, Rondout Valley United Methodist Church will present its Christmas cookie sales, 2-5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 17, and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18. For more information, email rvmethodist@gmail.com, call 845687-9090, or visit rvumc.org. Rondout Valley Lions Club New members, men and women of all ages, are wanted and encouraged to join the Rondout Valley Lions Club, serving the towns of Marbletown, Rochester and Rosendale since Oct. 18, 1950. During this time, they have helped those in need, whether it is for sight, hearing, medical emergencies or any worthwhile cause. “We serve” is their motto, and this is what they do. For more information on being included in the club’s next meeting, contact Janet Sutter at janet.sutter@aol.com.
ARTS, MUSIC, BODY & MIND Jazz up the holidays with Marbletown vocalist Teri Roiger Marbletown vocalist Teri Roiger will be singing in a holiday concert with the Northern Dutchess Symphony Orchestra, and her husband, John Menegon, will be playing bass and sing vocals with Roiger on the song “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” The event will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Marriott Pavilion at the Culinary Institute of America, 1946 Campus Drive, Hyde Park. For tickets, visit teriroiger. com, ndsorchestra.org or call 845-6350877. Buster Keaton films ‘Sherlock Jr.,’ ‘Cops’ and ‘The Playhouse’ at the Rosendale Theatre This Sunday Silents screening of three Buster Keaton Films – “Sherlock Jr.,” “Cops” and “The Playhouse” – will be shown at 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5, at the Rosendale Theatre, 408 Main St., Rosendale, with live musical accompaniment by Marta Waterman. No film shows what made Buster Keaton great than “Sherlock Jr.,” a landmark film, widely regarded as one of the greatest in the history of silent comedy. Keaton plays a kindly movie projectionist who longs to be a detective. When his fiancée is robbed by a local thief, he is framed for the crime and unsuccessfully tries to use his amateur detective skills to break the case. Disheartened, he returns to his movie theater, where he falls asleep and dreams that he is the great detective “Sherlock Jr.” What follows is the famous Dream Sequence, which stuns viewers today as much as it did at the time of its release and still inspires modern filmmakers. Also shown will be two Keaton film shorts, “Cops,” an early masterpiece, and “The Playhouse,” an unusual and extremely creative short comedy that shows off both Keaton's technical and comic skills and is loaded with clever visual details. Most of note is the first 10 minutes, which are a breathtaking display of bewildering surrealist magic. For more information, visit rosendaletheatre.org or call 845-658-8989. Many local artists in Woodstock School of Art instructors exhibit at Lockwood Gallery The Woodstock School of Art is collaborating with the Lockwood Gallery, at 747 Route 28, Kingston, to showcase the work of its instructors. For over 50 years, the school has offered fine art instruction and exhibitions to the community. Some of the 36 local artists featured include, Savannah Baker of High Falls, Staats Fasoldt of Rosendale, Keith Gunderson of Kerhonkson, Wendy Hollender of Accord, Kate McGloughlin of Olivebridge and Marlene Wiedenbaum of High Falls. The exhibition is on view at the Lockwood Galley until Dec. 30, with gallery hours, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. ThursdaySunday. 25% of all sales from this exhibition will be donated to the Woodstock School of Art. For more information, visit thelockwoodgallery.com. Larry Arvidson photography at the Rosendale Café Triathlete, long distance runner and photographer extraordinaire Larry Arvidson will be showing his photography of Rosendale in December and January, at the Rosendale Café, 434 Main St., Rosendale. The longtime James Street resident turns his discerning eye on his hometown, showing the commu-
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Join the community for an afternoon of enchanting, festive dance, with live music and puppetry.
‘Into the Light,’ a holiday spectacular with Vanaver Caravan and Arm-of-the-Sea Theater The Vanaver Caravan, in collaboration with Arm-of-the-Sea Theater, will usher in the holiday season with the colorful pageantry of “Into the Light,” 2 and 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, at the Rosendale Theatre, 408 Main St., Rosendale. This unique holiday production celebrates and inspires diverse audiences of all ages through imagination and multicultural traditions. “Into the Light” is set in a northern coun-
try where a young girl named Lucia loses her inner light as the sun’s light diminishes with the coming of winter. Join the community for this enchanting, festive dance, with live music and puppetry, as a faithful Bear guides Lucia on a tour around the world together to see how light is kept glowing through the darkest time of the year. “Into the Light” celebrates the traditions of Hanukkah, Christmas,
Kwanzaa, Diwali (India), Sankta Lucia (Sweden), Winter Solstice and Yule. Tickets are $15 general admission at Rosendale Theatre and can be purchased at vanavercaravan.org. Rosendale Theatre requires proof of vaccination for audience members ages 12+. All will wear masks. For more information, visit rosendaletheatre.org or call 845-658-8989.
Shop locally for the holidays with Frozendale at the library The Rosendale Library will host the holiday celebration of Frozendale, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4, at the library, 264 Main St., Rosendale. Friends of the Rosendale Library have various raffle baskets, handmade quilts and knitwear, Using live original music, puppetry, visiting professional actors, local actors and volunteer “cast” members, the audience will have a chance to get in on the action in fol- all made in Rosendale, and a special story hour with holiday stories for the children lowing Scrooge's transformation as the performance moves around the theater. will be held at noon. Shop locally for items such as knitted hats, mittens, scarves, children's sweaters, small gift items and delicious cookies. A beautiful handmade queen-size quilt will Raise a few spirits with the Charles Founded in 2008, NYC-based theater be for sale, made by the Tillson quilting Dickens classic ghost story retold by NYC’s company No.11 Productions creates and group and donated to the library. No.11 Productions, in collaboration with tours new works and original adaptations Raffle tickets for the four featured gift the Rosendale Theatre Collective, in this as an ensemble. No.11 believes in the baskets for children, pets, family fun and theatrical staging of “A Christmas Carol,” energizing power of sharing stories full of a cuddle-up-with-a-good-book gift basket performed at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 17, and hope and teamwork and strives to engage will be drawn at 3 p.m., with all proceeds at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 18, its audience as collaborators in the act of at the Rosendale Theatre, 408 Main St., going to the library to continue offering storytelling. Rosendale. This interactive production is engaging programs and to improve its Directed by Ryan Emmons (Broadfor the whole family, with dancing and full way credits as associate director include facility. immersion into the timeless holiday story For more information, visit rosendaleli“Groundhog Day,” “Matilda the Musical” of hope and redemption. and “Ghost the Musical”), featuring Forest brary.org or call 845-658-9013. The Rosendale Theatre Collective is VanDyke as Scrooge, with Ann Citron, back. With renovations to the theater and Julie Congress, Steven Conroy, Alison lobby, a new dance floor, and state-of-theNovelli and Neysy Vicente. Original music art air filtration and ventilation system that and sound design by Enrico de Trizio, makes the building safer, the collective is with additional music by Nat Osborn with delighted to offer an extraordinary holiday lyrics by Danny Tieger. Puppetry and prop experience for the whole family. The updesign by Jen Neads and Danny Tieger. coming version of “A Christmas Carol” is an interactive retelling of the Dickens holi- Costume design by Kathleen Blanchard day masterpiece. Using live original music, and Julie Congress. The Rosendale Theatre requires proof of puppetry, visiting professional actors, lovaccination for entry for patrons over age cal actors, and volunteer “cast” members 12. Proof includes CDC Vaccination Card, from the audience, attendees will have a or a New York Excelsior Pass matched with chance to get in on the action in following a photo ID. Masks must be worn inside Scrooge's transformation as the perforunless eating and drinking. mance moves around the theater. Dance a Tickets are $20 general admission, and traditional Victorian line dance at FezziThis fabulous queen-size quilt, donated $15 for children age 12 and under. wig's ball. Enjoy holiday cheer, and dare to by the Tillson knitting group to benefit For more information, visit rosendaletake on the role of a young Bob Cratchit or the Rosendale Library, is available for sale at Frozendale. Tiny Tim in a safe and joyous space. theatre.org or call 845-658-8989.
Rosendale Theatre presents interactive ‘A Christmas Carol’ production
Page 30, December 3, 2021, BlueStone Press Events continued from page 29 nity the beauty of the village with new eyes. The Cafe is open 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday-Monday. For more information, visit rosendalecafe.com or call 845-6589048. Marbletown’s Mira Fink offers virtual holiday art sale Visit mirafink. com/gallery/gallery.htm and/or mirafink. com/prints/prints.htm to view to see the virtual sale of small works, new prints, greeting cards, jigsaw puzzles, pillows, tote bags and mugs. Browse the five galleries to see watercolors, acrylics/oils, landscape and still lifes, plein-air paintings and small works on sale. Paintings can be picked up at her studio in Marbletown or shipped. For more information, visit mirafink.com. Rosendale author Cathy Brown reading excerpts from her new novel via Zoom “Paul and Carol Go to Guatemala” is Rosendale author Cathy Brown’s newest novel. Part travelogue, part social commentary and part romance, the book chronicles a couple’s evolving relationship as they explore a country in the final throes of civil war. Brown will present her first Zoom reading of the new novel, 3-3:40 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5. A Q&A with the author will follow the reading. Meeting ID is 795 1181 9178 and password is e0g6jW. For more information, visit Cathy Gigante-Brown on Facebook and/or via email at cathybrown1059@ gmail.com. MaMA Sunday Gatherings continues virtually Marbletown Multi-Arts of Stone Ridge’s Sunday Gatherings provide meditation on various spiritual matters and issues, and continue virtually via Zoom, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. each Sunday, with upcoming sessions on Dec. 5, 12, 19 and 26. Newcomers are always welcome. For more information, visit cometomama.org or call 845-853-5154. Hanukkah Party at Congregation Ezrath Israel Chabad of Ellenville on Sunday Enjoy doughnut decorations and other fun activities for the kids at the Hanukkah party, 3-5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 5, at Congregation Ezrath Israel Chabad of Ellenville, 31 Center St., Ellenville. For more information, visit jewishellenville. com or call 845-647-4450. CCEUC annual meeting on building a people-centered economy in Ulster County “Building a People-Centered Economy: the Ulster 2040 Vision” will be presented at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s virtual annual meeting, 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 7. With Ulster 2040 Working Group’s facilitator, Tim Weideman, director of the Ulster County Department of Economic Development, the community will learn what CCE did in 2021 and how they are planning for a future. The meeting is free and open to the public. RSVP on the event webpage at ulster.cce.cornell.edu/annual meeting. Teatime book club group presents ‘The Summer Before the War’ by Helen Simonson Join the group, 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 8, in the Activity Room, at the Stone Ridge Library, 3700 Main St., Stone Ridge. For more information, visit stoneridgelibrary.org or call 845687-7023. Online Tarot Circle every Wednesday Shea in the Catskills (Olive Free Library clerk) will host a weekly online tarot circle, 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays, with the next sessions on Dec. 8, 15, 22 and 29 via Zoom, member ID 951525112. Whether a total beginner, a curious sort or an experienced reader, all are most welcome to join this circle to explore the tarot together. Bring a deck, a journal and questions. For information, email Shea at helpdesk@olivefreelibrary.org. Clio’s Muse, a history reading club, with ‘Presidential Courage’ by Michael Beschloss The group is reading “Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America, 1789-1989” by Michael Beschloss in their meeting, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 8, via Zoom. For more information, visit stoneridgelibrary. org or call 845-687-7023. Rondout Valley Business Association Holiday Party Join RVBA at their holiday party, 6-9 p.m. Monday, Dec. 13, at Stone House Tavern, 4802 Route 209, Accord. Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres are at 6 p.m., with dinner buffet at 7 p.m. Cost of $50 per person includes tax, gratuity and cash bar. For tickets and more information, visit rondoutvalley.org or call 845-687-4567.
Botanical art by Accord’s Wendy Hollender Rhythm and movement with featured at Stone Ridge café Hash For four years, Wendy Hollender, botanthe Krumville ical artist, illustrator, author and instructor, has teamed up with Chef Page and Shala Schoolhouse and Moll, owners of Hash, in featuring her botanical art at the café at 3928 Main St., more at Lydia’s Stone Ridge. “Shala visited my studio about five years Café ago because she had seen and was interested in my work,” explained Hollender. “She was familiar with the book ‘Foraging and Feasting: A Field Guide and Wildfood Cookbook’ that I illustrated and co-published with the local author and herbalist Dina Falconi.” When Shala visited Hollender’s studio, she asked about exhibiting her work at Hash. “I had just purchased a new fine art giclee printer and decided that large prints would look great in Hash's clean and bright space,” said Hollender. “I had a show of large prints at the U.S. Botanic Garden, so I used some of those for our first exhibit. One of our favorite prints was a Watermelon Radish, and – though we change all the other prints seasonally – that one has always stayed.” In the exhibit, currently on display at Hash, there are winter seed pods, amaryllis bulbs, root vegetables and anemone flowers. “These plants are here at this time of year. I also include some fruits just past but still a fond memory, such as paw paw, chestnuts, crab apples. And some soon to come, such as hellebore ( Christmas flower), and in May local pink lady slipper orchids.” And the meaning behind her magic? “I draw and study plants closely and am always amazed by nature and the beauty not always obvious or visible,” said Hollender. And how have things evolved in this, her
Botanical artist Wendy Hollender of Accord with Shala Moll of Hash
fourth collaborative year with Hash? “Before Covid, I would sometimes come on a weekend morning, set up a drawing table and draw so that people could see my process. I hope to be able to do that again soon. Many people have visited my studio to purchase prints for their own walls or to give as gifts. It always makes me happy to create these custom prints for people to continue to enjoy once they leave Hash. And I know Page enjoys looking out from his kitchen window as he cooks his delicious food and feels a connection to the plants that are exhibited in the restaurant.” Hash is open 7 a.m.-2:30 p.m. TuesdaySaturday and 7 a.m.-11:30 a.m. Sunday. For information, visit drawbotanical. com, email wendyhollender@gmail.com, or call Hollender at 917-607-7366, and take a visit to Hash, hashfoodny.com.
Master storytellers Verna Gillis and David Gonzales, ‘Tell it like it is’ Bevival.com presents Celebrating Aging©, a monthly series on imagination, creativity and change, with an exclusive pairing of master storytellers Verna Gillis and David Gonzalez in “Tell it like it is,” a special storytelling experience “for immature audiences,” Gonzales 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 12, at the Rosendale Theatre, 408 Main St., Rosendale. Gillis and Gonzalez will perform excerpts from their repertoires and offer insights into their creative Gillis processes. Writer, performer and author Verna Gillis, 79, says she is the oldest she’s ever been. “My niche is aging, and so am I,” she said. Her “Funny. Not Cheery” will be followed by “The Four Rivers Model,” a storytelling workshop that David Gonzalez, musician, poet and playwright, developed to help invigorate personal stories with vitality and communicative power. Now in its fourth season, the Celebrating Aging© monthly program at the Rosendale Theatre explores the aging narrative through the creative lens of arts, culture, gerontology, social sciences and academia. For more information, visit rosendaletheatre.org or call 845-658-8989.
Ebenezer Scrooge and Tiny Tim in “A Christmas Carol”
Interactive dinner-theatre performance of ‘A Christmas Carol’ This season, don’t just watch the story unfold, be a part of it during Theatre On The Road of Rosendale’s interactive dinner-theatre performance of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” Kick off the holiday season with merry songs, laughter and heart-warming nostalgia as actors and carolers bring the story to life at the Venue Uptown at the Best Western on Washington Avenue in Kingston. This event, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 8, features a sumptuous three-course meal following a reception where guests meet Ebenezer Scrooge, Tiny Tim, Nephew Fred and carolers in authentic Victorian costume. Audience members are encouraged to interact with the Dickens characters throughout the performance. Adapted from Charles Dickens’ classic, the production is a tribute to the spirit of a traditional holiday, with script written by Theatre On The Road founders Frank and Kristen Marquette. Admission includes dinner and the performance, priced at $55 per person (tax and gratuity included). For tickets and more information, visit murdercafe.net or call 845-475-7973.
Every Saturday night, Lydia’s Café, 7 Old Route 209, Stone Ridge, features live music from 7-10 p.m. Upcoming performances include the Pete Levin Trio on Dec. 4; Rhythm and Movement with the Krumville Schoolhouse, Dec. 17; Dance Party with the Haveners, Dec. 18, and New Year’s Eve Prix Fixe with Bob’s Your Uncle, Dec. 31. Call to reserve a table. There is no cover charge, but suggested $20 donations are always welcome. For more information, call 845-687-6373 or visit lydias-café.com.
Circle Creative Collective’s Holiday Makers Market at Willow Kiln Park Join the community for the fourth annual Makers Market and oh so much more, 11 a.m. -5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, at Willow Kiln Park, 5 Hardenburgh Lane, Rosendale. Enjoy a day of holiday shopping, community, great food (with Tilda’s Kitchen, Seasoned and Delicious, and Rosendale’s wonderful and diverse restaurants), hot cocoa, crafts, live music, the extraordinary puppets from the Redwing Blackbird Theater, and more – all curated by the Circle Creative Collective’s team for a day of true fun and inspiration. Celebrate local artisans and their work with open hearts and creativity. The schedule of the day includes the Makers Market, opening at 11 a.m.; Community Holiday Felting at noon; lanternmaking workshop at 3:30 p.m.; and lantern and puppet illumination walk across the Rosendale trestle, 4:30 p.m. Enjoy handmade gifts, warm drinks and sweet treats. For more information, visit circlecreativecollective.org.
Mahasukha, the great bliss of music with Steve Gorn and Andrew Forbes This musical conversation/performance with Steve Gorn and Andrew Forbes, 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 10, at Sky Lake Meditation Center, 22 Hillcrest Lane, Rosendale, is an experience of sonic awareness. Presenting Indian flute ragas and Scottish bagpipe music, Gorn and Forbes, with guitar accompaniment by Max Carmichael, will Gorn explore the outer, inner and secret elements of their music; the practice of “one taste,” where the continuum of space/ time falls away. For registration and more information, email steve@stevegorn.com or Forbes call 845-430-8507.
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