MILLERTON — With thousands upon thousands of readers throughout New York (by conservative estimates), it is not surprising that the Great Give Back 2020, an event organized by a number of libraries, is once again anticipating a strong response from those who make a special effort to show their generosity through the program.
Although Saturday, Oct. 17, is the official celebration of event, according to NorthEast-Millerton Library Director Rhiannon Leo-Jameson, the library is expanding the program by encouraging its patrons to give what they can throughout the entire month. Donations will support the Millerton Presbyterian Church’s Food Pantry and the library’s own two-pronged Little Free Grocery program.
The third element of the Give Back is the Red Cross Blood Drive, scheduled for Friday, Oct. 9, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex, 28 Century Blvd. Donors will also have their blood tested for COVID-19 antibodies and will be notified of the results. To make an appointment, go to www.nemillertonlibrary.org or search for the code NEML on the Red Cross app.
In addition to hosting the life-saving blood drive, Leo-Jameson noted the library chose the other options because, “food insecurity is a serious problem for many in the area, but during the COVID-19 crisis, the situation has become even more critical.”
Both financial contributions and unopened, unexpired food and household items are urgently needed. Requested items include: cereal, instant oatmeal, graham crackers, granola bars, macaroni and cheese, peanut butter, jelly/jam, canned tuna fish, canned soup/stew, 100% juice boxes, canned vegetables, microwaveable popcorn, individual packages of cookies, crackers, puddings, cat and dog food, cat litter, shampoo, body wash, soap, toothpaste, feminine hygiene products and toilet paper.
Those who would like to donate items but who would prefer to shop at home may access the library’s Amazon Shopping List at www.nemillertonlibrary.org, which will allow items to be delivered directly to the library. If Amazon shoppers do so through the Amazon Smile program, a small portion of the purchase price will be given to the library.
The Little Free Grocery program began in Veterans Park at 51 Main St., back when one of the Little Library boxes was converted to Little Pantry — a source of shelf stable goods where residents can “get or give” pantry items.
Recently, thanks to a grant from the Foundation for Community Health, it grew to include to the Little Free Grocery, which allows residents to select specific items they need, which they can then pick up at the library. Shoppers may call the library at 518-789-3340 or choose items through the link on the homepage at www.nemillertonlibrary.org.
Leo-Jameson said the library began the program because with no grocery store in town, some people have been unable to obtain the food or household items they need — especially tough during the pandemic. Everyone is welcome to take part in the program. There is no cost for the program, and no library card is required.
Leo-Jameson added that unlike last year, when donations could be used to defray library fines, she regrets that this year that cannot be done due to the expenses and limitations imposed by the COVID crisis.
Financial donations may be made through the library’s website or mailed to P.O. Box 786, Millerton, NY 12546.
NORTH EAST — Habitat for Humanity of Dutchess County will conduct a presentation on Thursday, May 9 on buying a three-bedroom affordable home to be built in the Town of North East.
The presentation will be held at the NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex at 5:30 p.m.
Any first-time home buyer interested should attend the information session.
The application for this pilot program home-buying opportunity must be made between May 1 and June 10.Minimum household income for the pilot program is $55,000 while maximum income is determined by family size.
Applications are available at the North East Town Hall.Habitat for Humanity describes itself as a nonprofit with global reach, working across the United States and in approximately 70 countries.
‘Migration Collage' by ransome
If you claim a single sobriquet as your artistic moniker, you’re already in a club with some big names, from Zendaya to Beyoncé to the mysterious Banksy. At Geary, the contemporary art gallery in Millerton founded by New Yorkers Jack Geary and Dolly Bross Geary, a new installation and painting exhibition titled “The Bitter and the Sweet” showcases the work of the artist known only as ransome — all lowercase, like the nom de plume of the late Black American social critic bell hooks.
Currently based in Rhinebeck, N.Y., ransome’s work looks farther South and farther back — to The Great Migration, when Jim Crow laws, racial segregation, and the public violence of lynching paved the way for over six million Black Americans to seek haven in northern cities, particularly New York urban areas, like Brooklyn and Baltimore. The Great Migration took place from the turn of the 20th century up through the 1970s, and ransome’s own life is a reflection of the final wave — born in North Carolina, he found a new home in his youth in New Jersey.
‘Square Quilting painting' by ransomeAlexander Wilburn
Map fragments of North Carolina feature heavily in a large collection of eight-by-eight collage and acrylic paintings, sold individually but together mounted on Geary’s wall resembling the stitched patterns on quilts, like the quilts by the late Black American artist Arlonzia Pettway. Along with artists like Annie Mae Young and Mary Lee Bendolph, Pettway was a renowned artist associated with the quilts of Gee’s Bend, generations of women in the town of Gee’s Bend, Alabama who preserved African American culture in beautiful and vibrant textile art with bold combinations of stripes, textures and colors. The influence is also wonderfully clear in ransome large-scale collages and acrylic paintings like “Square Quilt painting” on display at Geary. It’s a powerful symbol of Gee’s Bend’s legacy continuing on, even under a new artistic medium.
In the smaller works, called “Migration Collages,” painted portraits are combined with pieces of floral and pastel paper, evocative of the tradition of “Sunday Best” splendor worn in Black churches in the South. “The women elders at my Baptist church often greeted each other that way on Sunday mornings when one hat was more elaborate, colorful, or wider brimmed than another,” New York Times veteran Lena Williams wrote in her 1996 essay, “In Defense of the Church Hat.” “It was traditional to put on one’s newest finery for church, and in many historically black churches, the wearing of fancy hats by women carried both spiritual and cultural significance.”
“The Bitter and the Sweet” is on view at Geary through Sunday, June 2.
Hospitality, ease of living and just plain fun are rolled into one for those who are intrigued by the leisure-time Caravana experience at the family-owned Four Brothers Drive-in in Amenia. Tom Stefanopoulos, pictured above, highlights fun possibilities offered by Hotel Caravana.
The month-long process of unwrapping and preparing the various features at the Four Brothers Drive-In is nearing completion, and the imaginative recreational destination will be ready to open for the season on Friday, May 10.
The drive-in theater is already open, as is the Snack Shack, and the rest of the recreational features are activating one by one, soon to be offering maximum fun for the whole family.
Tom Stefanopoulos, the second generation helping to guide the Stefanopoulos family’s recreational complex, brings a deep understanding of hospitality and business sense in support of the multi-faceted enterprise, begun in the 1970s, that is now a mainstay of the town of Amenia, located on a corner in the heart of the commercial district. He paused for an interview on Friday, April 26.
Two luxury camping trailers, each with an attached wooden deck and fire pit, make up Hotel Caravana, and each offers a different fun vibe, Stefanopoulos explained. The larger of the two, offers a California lifestyle, retro to 1967, although its modern where it should be. It can sleep four.
The smaller Caravana sleeps two and offers a lifestyle of the future dating to about 2041. It’s a brand-new Airstream, Stefanopoulos noted. It also has an attached deck with firepit.
“We get a lot of New York City people,” Stefanopoulos said when asked what sorts of people are apt to be attracted to Hotel Caravana. “They want to experience the upstate life,” he added. The idea of sitting out on the deck while watching an actual drive-in movie appeals to them, as does room service offered by the restaurant.
The lobster rolls prepared by the Snack Shack, are served on brioche hot dog rolls, either Maine-style or Connecticut-style, and the lobster can be topped with caviar. Four Brothers version is praised by customers for the generous portion of lobster in each, and the price is competitive.
Caravana guests may book for a single night, or maybe two, or even longer, taking advantage of the bicycles to pedal along the nearby rail trail, a local amenity, Stefanopoulos noted.
“We make our guests feel like movie stars,” Stefanopoulos said of the hospitality. And, if they like miniature golf, it is just a few steps away from their Caravana deck.
Asked how and why the Caravana idea began, Stefanopoulos recalled that as the drive-in theater grew in popularity, people were traveling from greater distances away. The last film of the night might start at midnight, he said, so the idea grew that Four Brothers might be able to offer an accommodation to stay the night.
In addition to Caravana, Four Brothers offers an alternative of two or three tent camping sites.
Future plans may include a third Caravana, Stefanopoulos said. Also, there is a giant mastodon skeleton, presently in storage, that should be on display, he said.
“It’s pretty big,” Stefanopoulos added.
The playground might be enlarged in the coming seasons, and perhaps an old-fashioned arcade added for retro amusement.
The community that surrounds Four Brothers remains important to the Stefanopoulos family as they offer substantial summer employment opportunity. Stefanopoulos said that a goal is to contract locally for business needs, such as musical entertainment and advertising. The drive-in also schedules occasion fundraisers to benefit local organizations, including the Amenia Fire Company and area schools.
