Thank you!
Your support is sustaining the future of local news in our communities.

Changing attitudes on social isolation

If you’re a recent arrival in Dutchess County from busier areas downstate, you may be puzzled to see this scenario: a pickup truck driven on a rural road by an older man slows down and stops, as the driver recognizes an old friend approaching in his own pickup coming in the opposite direction.

“How’s the fishing?”

“Not bad up my way. You?”

Or it’s two older women stopping to chat at the supermarket. They might not even know each other but they’re having a conversation because they recognize a kindred spirit. After a while they realize you’re trying to get past them to get a box of ziti, and they strike up a conversation with you as well.

What is all this idle chit-chat?

It’s not idle, we’re learning. These people have an instinct for the value of social connections.

At the Office for the Aging, we’re just starting to learn the value of social connectedness, even though seemingly mundane conversations about the weather. The isolation of those older people who couldn’t get to the grocery store or their fishing spot was seen as just an unfortunate byproduct of getting older. Can’t do anything about it, we may have assumed, incorrectly.

We can all help reduce social isolation and the negative health impacts that come with it. Regular readers know about OFA’s fast-growing “Friendly Calls” program that’s been connecting volunteer callers with Dutchess County older adults at risk of loneliness. As the program grows, we’ve invited Friendly Calls participants not only to receive calls, but to become volunteers themselves.

“Friendly Calls” is open to all prospective volunteers over age 18. If you’re just beginning to explore volunteering but don’t want to overcommit, “Friendly Calls” is ideal. The orientation takes less than an hour, and the once-a-week calls to participants last 20-30 minutes.

Every participant in the program has agreed to accept calls; and before a “Friendly Calls” session can begin, the volunteer and participant agree on what time and day of the week the calls will be made.

To find out more, visit www.dutchessny.gov/friendlycalls, email ledgar@dutchessny.gov, or call OFA at 845-486-2555.

Golden Living is prepared by the Dutchess County Office for the Aging, Todd N. Tancredi, director. Email him at ofa@dutchessny.gov.

Todd N. Tancredi
The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Millerton News and The News does not support or oppose candidates for public office.

Latest News

The Millerton News - November 5, 2026

The Millerton News - November 5, 2026

Download directly

A Halloween scream with David Arquette

A Halloween scream with David Arquette

David Arquette, left, talks with moderator Victor Dandridge during “Behind the Scream” at the Warner Theatre in Torrington on Oct. 31.

D.H. Callahan

This December marks the 30th anniversary of Wes Craven’s “Scream,” one of the most influential movies in horror history. On Saturday, Oct. 31, David Arquette, one of the film’s stars, came to the Warner Theatre in Torrington for a Halloween screening and conversation billed as “Behind the Scream.”

“Scream” was met with critical praise when it premiered in 1996, with many noting its satirical, self-aware look at the horror genre without the usual trappings of camp or kitsch. Featuring a cast of mid-1990s A-listers including Drew Barrymoore, Matthew Lillard, Rose McGowan, Liev Schreiber, Neve Campbell and “Friends” star Courteney Cox, the movie was destined to be part of the cinematic zeitgeist.

Keep ReadingShow less
film

After 30 years, Dave Jones is shifting into lower gear

After 30 years, Dave Jones is shifting into lower gear


Now, 30 years later and in his late 60s, Jones is at the point in his life where he’s ‘figuring out how to land the plane.’

My husband and I first met Dave Jones in 2019, after we’d just moved into our house in Lakeville, a former auto repair garage with 14-foot-high ceilings that had been renovated into a residence. One day, when we woke up to a dead car battery, we called Lakeville Automotive, the nearest repair shop. Jones answered the phone a bit gruffly but then surprised us by showing up in half an hour to jump-start our car. We invited him inside for coffee, and looking around, he said with a grin that for 10 years, back in the day, he’d stored his Mazda Miata right in our living room.

Keep ReadingShow less
our community
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

A different kind of neighborhood bar

A different kind of neighborhood bar

Ryan Andrade brings his passion for inventive cocktails and neighborhood hospitality to Le Bar in Sharon.

D.H. Callahan

When Ryan Andrade moved back to the Tri-Corner region during the pandemic, he wasn’t looking to create a new kind of neighborhood bar. But by the time he connected with Robert Arbor of Le Gamin in Sharon, his vision was clear. In May, they brought that vision to life at a revitalized Le Bar.

Andrade grew up around Millerton, attending the Webutuck High School before heading to Western New England University, where he studied psychology. He’d been slinging coffee since high school but didn’t catch the cocktail bug until managing a cafe at the SoHo Grand Hotel, which, thanks to an international clientele accustomed to different time zones, had a morning bar service. It was there that Andrade discovered the seemingly infinite possibilities of the cocktail world. While there was only so much one could do with coffee, learning about the potential for cocktails, with their shelves and cabinets of curious ingredients, had Andrade feeling like a kid in a candy shop. It wasn’t long before he was seeking out mentors to teach him the industry secrets required of an innovative mixologist.

Keep ReadingShow less
business

Gretchen M. Studio opens in Salisbury

Gretchen M. Studio opens in Salisbury

Grethen Mol at her new studio in Salisbury.

Natalia Zukerman

The keys are hanging from the lock when Gretchen Mol comes to greet me at her new studio on Academy Street in Salisbury. The door is open, and so, it turns out, is she. Mol has the easy familiarity of someone you’ve known for years. And in a sense, you have.

The actress, known for her roles in “Boardwalk Empire,” “The Notorious Bettie Page” and, most recently, “Tulsa King,” is opening Gretchen M. Studio, a creative space and showroom for her small-batch clothing line, with an open house Friday, Nov. 6, and Saturday, Nov. 7.

Keep ReadingShow less
business

Harvesting experimental sounds at Hungry Reaper Farm

Harvesting experimental sounds at Hungry Reaper Farm

Hungry Reaper Farm founders and managers Will O’Meara and Jill Verzino

D.H. Callahan

On Saturday afternoon, Nov. 7, the farmers at Hungry Reaper Farm in Morris, Connecticut, will host the first concert at their new outdoor venue, The Three Hickeries, smack in the middle of a beautiful field on their farm.

Farm co-founders and co-managers Will O’Meara and Jill Verzino have always been interested in independent means of production. On the farm, that means growing organic produce on a small scale with a big impact. Their crops feed folks from Bridgeport, where Verzino runs a farmers market on Saturdays, all the way over to Millerton, where their vegetables can be found at Tri Corner FEED Market, the community-minded grocery store offering locally sourced food on a sliding scale.

Keep ReadingShow less
concerts
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.