The Row of Honor that has lined the shore of Lake Gleneida in Carmel every Memorial Day and Veterans Day for nearly a decade was installed Wednesday to recognize and give thanks to our everyday heroes – the healthcare workers and first responders who put themselves at risk to help fight the COVID-19 outbreak, Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell said. “Even in the best of times it is not easy to leave your family and rush out to take care of sick people, or answer an emerg

Earlier this month Pawling schools were closed in response to the ongoing quarantine measures aimed at stopping the spread of Covid-19. However, these restrictions have not hampered the efforts of a small group of teachers, volunteers, and district personnel who have remained committed to providing valuable services for students. In recent weeks, food service employees and a team of volunteers helped to provide food for students in need who are quarantined in their homes. Me

On Friday, March 27, I was a guest on The Leonard Lopate at Large show on 99.5FM WBAI in NYC along with Dr. Douglas Tallamy, a professor in the Department of Entemololgy and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware. The conversation was centered on Dr. Tallamy’s newly released book Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard published by Timber Press. This book is a sequel to his previous book Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wil

Pawling Resident Lisa Payne Wansley was recently honored by City and State New York Magazine in recognition of women who have put forth tremendous effort to positively impact society through their work in non-profit and public sectors. She is the Vice President of Environmental Justice and Sustainability at the New York Power Authority, and has proudly called Pawling home for the past three years. People. Community. Justice. These words best capture the essence of Lisa Payne

Join the JCC in Sherman for an evening of jazz on Saturday, March 14 at 7:00 p.m. with Connecticut’s jazz band The TJ Thompson Trio. The band will be playing soul, jazz, and blues of New Orleans, Mephish and more. The T.J. Thompson Trio has been active since 2014 performing in various clubs and pits in musical theaters throughout Connecticut. Winner of the IMEA Jazz Artist of the Year for their recent album Take Two: The Sound of Playing, this group plays a combination of ori

Helleborus orientalis is also called Lenten Rose. In horticulture circles it’s well known that you can’t rely on common names to reveal the true identity of a plant. Hellebores send a mixed signal because they are not in the rose family, but they do bloom during the Lenten season. In our part of the country that makes them early spring bloomers! Hellebores are a herbaceous perennial meaning their soft stems die back in winter but come back in spring. Their leaves are consid

Rock band Death Cab for Cutie to Headline County Executive Marc Molinaro, in partnership with Radio Woodstock 100.1, Dutchess Tourism, Inc. and Dutchess County Parks, has announced the inaugural Hangout on the Hudson Music Festival will be held on Saturday, August 1st at Dutchess County's Bowdoin Park in the Town of Poughkeepsie featuring alternative rock band, Death Cab for Cutie in their first ever appearance in the Hudson Valley. Tickets are on sale now at Hangoutonthehuds

I randomly opened a book and read a passage that provided me with a message. The book is by Paulo Coelho and these are his words: “It is said that all people who are happy have God within them. And that happiness could be found in a grain of sand from the desert, as the alchemist had said. Because a grain of sand is a moment of creation, and the universe has taken millions of years to create it. ‘Everyone on earth has a treasure that awaits him,’ his heart said.” Days before

The world is going through a difficult time. But I would like to be able to bring a little joy to people while also documenting the current Covid-19 Crisis. I will be offering free portrait photography sessions in my community as a way to give back and share our stories of this time. Please direct message me on FaceBook if you wish to take part in the Putnam Lake on Pause project. At this time you must live, or run a business, in Putnam Lake, NY to participate. It takes no mo

As I sit facing the backwoods, I enjoy nature – a welcome respite from haunting thoughts about the dark threads of my life. Musing now; I never gave it much thought when younger. Here, in the winter of my years, it seems important. Threads we all have. Some are light and colorful, but it’s the dark ones that hold my attention in this moment. Thinking back, dark threads were there from my earliest recollections. I was born on one, and have sadly chosen, it would seem, to trave

I saw you, because you let me. You were right there by my side, until you let go. You didn’t tell me, and I didn’t look back, Until I was too far out of your reach. I was thrilled. I was furious. I trusted you. I felt you let me down. It took just a moment to go from a trike to a two-wheeler, But all of these years to understand, and let go of the anger . . . Of the confused jumble of mixed feelings which made me so independent – so furious. It took until today, when it becam

Video calling is really stepping up to help us make it through the pandemic PAUSE. Doctor “visits,” online classes, virtual meetings, and calls to distant relatives on lock-down are making us all video stars. Of sorts. If you’ve seen yourself in a video call and feel like the picture isn’t quite right; here are a few tips to help with that. They can’t help with the haircut, but they’ll help a little. Video call tip #1: It’s a Conversation. Comport your sensibility, and yourse

Back in March my company Womanswork invited readers of our newsletter to write stories for our online Story Bank about how they, as gardeners, were processing the events of the pandemic. In their stories from Florida, California, London, Boston and even Pawling, we have seen apprehension turn to resilience and optimism. The warming weather and ability to get into one’s garden has a lot to do with that! Recently a reader from Nashville wrote "My gardens are beautiful this sp

With the Pawling Library closed due to the state-wide government response to Covid-19, Brian Avery, Library Director, has his team working behind the scenes in many ways and on many projects. “Since the time when we closed, the staff and I have been primarily focused on becoming a better library when we re-open. The part-time staff has been doing professional development courses via Universal Class (free to all library card holders) and the full-time staff has been doing a co