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4/26/21
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Bright Hill Internship Open
Written By Editor on 4/26/21 | 4/26/21
Live Classical Music Returns to Schoharie County
Live Classical Music Returns to Schoharie County
They're back! After a year of virtual or postponed performances, The Upper Catskill String Quartet will return for a live performance in presenting a Masterworks Concert on May 15, 7:00 PM at the Cobleskill United Methodist Church, 107 Chapel St Cobleskill, NY. This is a free admission event open to the general public. Strict COVID safety protocol of masks, limited seating, social distancing and disinfectant use will be required.
Joining the UCSQ will be 5 additional professional string musicians to perform works requiring a larger ensemble of players in works by Grieg, Bach and Warlock.
The performance is made possible with funds made available through the New York State Council on the Arts Decentralization Program originally scheduled for November of 2020 but allowed to be delayed until now. In addition, the UCSQ is pleased to announce that they have also been funded in 2021 for Four Summer Free Concerts throughout Schoharie County and a Masterworks Concert to be performed in November of 2021. Schoharie County is supported for these funds by CREATE Council for Resources to enrich the Arts, Technology & Education of the Greene County Council on the Arts.
Schoharie Library News
Schoharie Library News
The Schoharie Free Library has recently expanded its Saturday hours from 10 am until 5 pm; we’re now open to visitors a total of 35 hours a week: Monday, Tuesday, and Friday, 11 am-6 pm; Thursday, 12 pm-7 pm; and Saturday, 10 am-5 pm.
On May 1st--based on guidance by the CDC and the Mohawk Valley Library System--the Schoharie Free Library will no longer be quarantining returned library items before checking them in and returning them to the shelves. For patrons, this means two important things:
(1) Beginning May 1st, you will be allowed to return items inside the library, though the outdoor book return box will remain open for your convenience, and
(2) While the quarantine was in effect, patrons were given additional "fine-free days" beyond the due date to accommodate the quarantine period. Starting May 1st, this grace period will be discontinued. Late fees will begin to accrue the day after an item is due, just like before the pandemic.
Our other COVID safety measures (including mask-wearing and social distancing) will remain in place for the time being, but this is an important and exciting step in our cautious, gradual return to "normal" operations.
The library continues to seek volunteers to help with specific projects. Volunteers aged 12 and above are invited to visit our online sign-up form at bit.ly/LibraryVolunteerList to answer a few questions about their interests. Possible volunteer opportunities include helping with clerical duties, reshelving books, collaborating on seasonal decorations and displays, working on the building and grounds, and assisting with programs.
All our regularly scheduled programs are currently meeting online via Zoom. Here’s what we have scheduled for the coming week:
At 10:00 am on Friday, April 30, Miss Heather’s Online Storytime will have a sing-along theme featuring children’s books with songs, and lots of encouragement for kids to sing, dance, and interact.
Our very active Writing Club will meet online on Friday, April 30 at 6:30 pm and again at 6:30 pm on Monday, May 3.
We’ll have a special online presentation at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, May 5. Local bluebird expert and retired SUNY Cobleskill professor Kevin Berner will host a program focused on changes in bluebird populations over time and how people can help to increase their population. Professor Berner will discuss his bluebird research and give suggestions on what you can do to increase the chance of attracting bluebirds to your nest boxes and help them nest successfully!
The UFO (Unfinished Object) Club will meet again at 10:00 am on Thursday, May 6 for conversation and work on craft projects.
For more information or to sign up for any of the library’s upcoming programs, contact JMosher@mvls.info or visit our Facebook events page.
4/21/21
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Word Thursdays at Bright Hill
Written By Editor on 4/21/21 | 4/21/21
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Frank Buonanno Scholarship Fund Launches
John Buonanno, co-owner of Black Horse Garage, will honor his father’s contributions to the world of
collector cars by launching the Frank Buonanno Scholarship Fund, which will provide educational
opportunities for students who seek careers in the automotive restoration field.
He said, “A business like Black Horse Garage is only as good as the people who work on the cars. Finding
good people is one of the hardest things about this industry because we need smart people with a strong
work ethic and a passion for what we’re doing. I know that helping someone young and up and coming is
going to mean a lot to my dad and be something special for him and for our family.”
John selected the Piston Foundation to manage both the fundraising campaign and scholarship award,
explaining, “The Foundation can take this fundraising campaign to a national audience, which means we can
raise what we really need to help these kids. Local, grassroots fundraising is a great start, but it doesn’t
solve the problem. With what the Foundation plans, we can give full rides and that means graduates who
will be able to do the restoration work that we
want done.”
Jeff Mason, COO of the Foundation, said, “We’re excited to bring the story of Frank Buonanno and the Black
Horse Garage to a national audience. Car enthusiasts will have a unique chance to connect with a very
interesting story at a critical time in car culture. Automotive technology continues to march ahead and, as
with any beloved pastime, the car culture community needs to engage new generations. The Frank
Buonanno story parallels the story of automotive restoration and how the practice of collecting cars has
evolved over the past 40 years at a time when we’re wondering what the future of car culture will be.”
“When my father started his career, there really wasn’t a restoration industry,” John said, “Now we see cars
treated like the other pieces of fine art that people have collected for hundreds of years. He’s been a big
part of that.
“The scholarship fund is going to make a real difference by sending young men and women to school where
they can fill the need for restoration specialists. Think of what that’ll mean to the industry and to our friends
who want to keep enjoying events, shows, races, and more.”
The Piston Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that promotes and supports trade skill careers
in the automobile service and collector car industries. More information about Piston Foundation is available
at PistonFoundation.org.
ID Plant, Tree Species At Hyuck Preserve
ID Plant, Tree Species
At Hyuck Preserve
Come learn to identify tree and plant species and detect the seasonal changes we monitor along our short, scenic Lower Falls Loop Trail to better understand some of the potential short- and long-term impacts of climate change at the Hyuck Preserve in Rensselaerville Saturday.
It is the first of three of the identifying events this year. The events are:
* Saturday, April 24 from 10 noon at the Preserve
* Saturday, April 24 from 10 noon at the Preserve
* July 17 starting at 10 AM via Zoom
* October 2 starting at 10 AM at the Preserve
Location: The phenology trail,
5052 Delaware Turnpike, Rensselaerville
Perhaps you will choose to become a
Phenology Trail Volunteer!
For in-person events, masks and physical distancing are required.
No bathrooms or other indoor amenities will be available; please plan accordingly. This series will only run with a
minimum enrollment of five people.
Suggested donation for entire series: $20 nonmembers; $10 Preserve members
Registration is required, and the event will be limited to 10 people to maintain physical distancing protocols.
Happy Roots, Happy Plants Lecture at Landis
April 24, Saturday, 10:00 -11:00 AM, on Zoom
Soil health is vital for plant health. Chris Cash will discuss soil types and help you understand what your soil needs to grow healthy roots and healthy plants. He will share techniques to evaluate your soil and help you to identify steps you might take to improving your soil. He will explain the role that mulches and fertilization play in soil management. Time will be allotted for questions. Click here to register online using PayPal (you do not need a PayPal account - you can use a credit card).
Location: Zoom: registrants will receive the Zoom link prior to the class.
Instructor: Chris Cash, professor emeritus of Plant Science at SUNY Cobleskill
Members: $5/person; non-members $15/person.
4/20/21
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Bright Hill Youth Arts Education Workshops
Written By Editor on 4/20/21 | 4/20/21
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NEW LANDSCAPE ART INSTALLATIONS AT THE THOMAS COLE SITE AND OLANA OPENING MAY 2
HUDSON, NY & CATSKILL, NY—
The Olana Partnership, Olana State Historic Site, and the Thomas Cole National Historic Site announced today that new landscape art installations by internationally renowned artists will be on view beginning May 2 for the 2021 exhibition season. Artist Jean Shin’s site-specific work, FALLEN, and artist Portia Munson’s Flower Mandala Memento Mori can be seen at Olana State Historic Site, and artists Mark Dion and Dana Sherwood’s site-specific work, The Pollinator Pavilion and Paula Hayes Bird Nesting House and Tree can be viewed at the Thomas Cole Site. All works will be on view from May 2 through October 31.
The outdoor works are launched in anticipation of and are part of the upcoming major collaborative exhibition, “Cross Pollination: Heade, Cole, Church, and Our Contemporary Moment,” opening at both sites on June 12. “Cross Pollination” was created by the Thomas Cole National Historic Site, The Olana Partnership at Olana State Historic Site, and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas. The exhibition tour is organized by Crystal Bridges.
FALLEN, by artist Jean Shin, memorializes the eastern hemlock trees (Tsuga canadensis) that once thrived in the nearby Catskill Mountains. Last year, a 140-year-old hemlock planted by Frederic Church on Olana’s East Lawn died of natural causes despite attempts by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation to save it. Instead of removing the tree entirely, The Olana Partnership commissioned artist Jean Shin to create a site-specific work featuring the hemlock.
FALLEN invites viewers to reflect on this tree’s life and the cultural history of the Hudson Valley region. The work refers to a period during the 19th century when hundreds of thousands of tannin-rich hemlocks were cut down to meet the commercial demands of the leather-making industry. “While reckoning with the devastating consequences of deforestation in local history, the project invites viewers to observe the natural surroundings more closely, witness nature’s struggles, and mourn what we have lost,” says Shin. Widely known for her monumental installations, Shin transforms everyday objects into elegant expressions of identity and community engagement. She has had numerous solo exhibitions and her work has been featured at more than 150 prominent cultural institutions. She lives in Brooklyn and Hurley, NY.
Artist Portia Munson will launch Flower Mandala Memento Mori, an outdoor installation series that honors the loss of bird, animal, and insect life due to human contact. The series addresses themes of environmentalism, ecology, and the stresses that the shifting climate, increased pollution, and industrialization have put on natural places and wildlife. With her meditative, elegiac compositions, Munson links art and science. Four works will be displayed at Olana along the historic carriage roads, including two new pieces, Cardinal and Cecropia Moth. Two other works, Sharp Shinned Hawk and Barred Owl, were previously on view at Chesterwood, the home and studio of sculptor Daniel Chester French in Stockbridge, MA. Portia Munson is a nationally recognized visual artist who works in a range of mediums including photography, painting, sculpture, and installation. She focuses primarily on environmental and cultural themes from a feminist perspective. Munson's work has been shown in major public and private exhibition spaces and she has had more than 20 solo exhibitions. She lives in Catskill, NY.
Internationally renowned artists Mark Dion and Dana Sherwood designed the site-specific artwork titled The Pollinator Pavilion, on view at the Thomas Cole National Historic Site. The artists created this interactive sculpture to provide sustenance to pollinators and a place of wonder for human visitors, who may encounter them up close, particularly the ruby-throated hummingbird, an important pollinator and the only hummingbird species native to this region. The open-air, 21 ½ foot high Gothic style pavilion features a living pollinator garden, feeders, original paintings by the artists, and seating for one guest at a time. Designed to attract pollinators and humans to share the same space, the Pavilion creates a radical decontextualization in which individuals can see themselves as part of nature and understand their own capacity to foster an environment of ecological balance. Sherwood and Dion have worked with living animals for years and their approach is to emphasize the animal as an individual that is best appreciated by an actual face-to-face encounter. The presence or absence of pollinators in different moments may illuminate the fragile but open doorways between humans and animals.
The Pollinator Pavilion calls upon the artist Thomas Cole’s (1801-1848) environmental advocacy as well as Martin Johnson Heade’s (1819-1904) series of paintings, The Gems of Brazil (1863-64), which are at the center of the forthcoming exhibition Cross Pollination. Heade’s jewellike and intimate series depicts hummingbirds in their natural habitats and demonstrates relationships within nature and his commitment to close observation of nature, through the intersection of art and science.
Also on view on the grounds at the Thomas Cole Site is a site-specific work by the artist Paula Hayes. Hayes is an internationally shown American visual artist and designer known for creating sculptures that form living artworks. This includes glass terrariums that contain small-scale ecosystems, large-scale gardens, and installations such as Bird Nesting House and Tree that provide new natural habitats. The artist worked with an ornithologist to design a bird nest tree specifically for bluebirds and has carefully installed it at the Thomas Cole Site to provide a safe habitat and shelter for nesting birds. This living artwork requires daily tending and interaction. It is intended to provoke thought and action about our stewardship of and our everyday interactions within the natural world. A major theme in Hayes’ work is the connection of people to the natural environment, and much of her work is about the evolving relationship to growing and maintaining large and small-scale ecosystems.
FALLEN has been generously funded by support to The Olana Partnership from the Novak-Ferber Exhibitions Fund. With additional support by the Faculty Development Fund of Pratt Institute. This exhibition was made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.
Support for the “Cross Pollination” exhibition and its national tour is provided by Art Bridges. Additional major support is provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
The exhibition is made possible through support from the Terra Foundation for American Art. The exhibition is supported in New York in part by The National Endowment for the Arts, Market New York through I LOVE NY/New York State’s Division of Tourism as part of the Regional Economic Development Council initiative, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, and the New York State Legislature; the Robert Lehman Foundation; The Bank of Greene County Charitable Foundation; Greene County Legislature through the County Initiative Program of the Greene County Council on the Arts; The Olana Partnership’s Novak-Ferber Exhibitions Fund, the Kindred Spirits Society of the Thomas Cole National Historic Site, Charina Foundation, The Stainman Family Foundation, Anne Miller & Stuart Breslow, Kristin Gamble, and Deedee & Barrie Wigmore. Support for the catalogue is provided by Furthermore: a program of the J. M. Kaplan Fund.
Both Olana and the Thomas Cole Site ask all visitors to help stop the spread of COVID-19 by wearing a mask and keeping 6 feet apart while visiting these outdoor installations. To learn more about the outdoor artworks and the many programs and events happening in conjunction with the installations, please visit OLANA.org and thomascole.org. For more on the upcoming “Cross Pollination” exhibition, visit: https://www.
$1.48 Million Grant Will Streamline Addiction Services, Increase Access to Care in Region
UTICA, NY – Addiction services providers in the region will soon receive a much-needed boost of funding to support their critical work in
addressing the opioid epidemic, thanks to a $1.48 million grant from the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS). The
Mohawk Valley Behavioral Health Care Collaborative and the South Central Behavioral Health Care Collaborative, soon to be one merged
organization, will use this funding to strengthen their prevention, treatment, and recovery care services throughout 11 counties: Broome,
Cortland, Chenango, Delaware, Fulton, Herkimer, Madison, Montgomery, Otsego, Schoharie, and Tompkins. In particular, this grant will help
local agencies Alcohol and Drug Abuse Council of Delaware County; Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Council of HFM; Beacon Center; Catholic
Charities of Herkimer County; Delaware County Department of Mental Health; Family & Children’s Counseling Services; Friends of Recovery of
Delaware and Otsego (FOR-DO); Leatherstocking Education on Alcoholism and Addictions Foundation, Inc. (LEAF, Inc.); and Otsego County
Community Services provide services to our neighbors in need.
“We strongly believe that regionally integrated addiction services will result in increased access to services, higher levels of care coordination,
and better care for our area’s residents,” said Kelly Lane, Director of the Mohawk Valley Behavioral Health Care Collaborative. “This significant
grant will allow clinical and other community-based organizations to work together, using technology and a coordinated approach across the
continuum of care for our clients.”
This initiative will focus on the following areas:
Prevention
Address gaps in prevention services by helping families improve communication, decrease conflict and learn how to deal with issues of
substance abuse. Prevention activities will also target employment settings by promoting workplace wellness and efforts to reduce
substance misuse among the workforce.
Treatment
Provide evidence-based treatment using the Pathways Hub model and a new web-based referral system that supports care
management by creating formal links between treatment providers and other community-based organizations.
Recovery
Provide infrastructure for a broader peer-support approach that helps justice-system-involved individuals and others return to the
workforce.
The two collaborating organizations have convened a leadership team with specialists from a variety of service provider organizations
throughout the region, including clinical and non-clinical community-based organizations. This assures that an integrated approach to addiction
services will also address social determinants of health, including food and housing insecurities, access to health insurance, access to childcare,
and employment services.
The Collaborative uses cross-systems partnerships to ensure individuals in its service area have access to well-coordinated, high quality,
community-based mental health and substance abuse services and supports, prevention, and other critical services. Using a data-driven and
patient-centered approach, the Collaborative reduces healthcare costs and improves the quality of care for all. For more information, visit
mvbhcc.com.
For more information about New York State OASAS, visit oasas.ny.gov/about.
Greene Co Offers Pandemic Compliance Resources for Businesses
As more and more New Yorkers are vaccinated and eager to gather, travel, and attend events & performances, NYS continues to issue specialized requirements for businesses to re-open safely. Businesses that serve or attract large groups of people must comply with specific NYS guidance that may be difficult for owners and operators to navigate. Businesses are required (by NYS ) to notify The Greene County Public Health Department five days prior to reopening or hosting events.
Therefore, in support of our local Wedding, Events, Entertainment and Performance businesses, Greene County has created a new on-line resource to help them comply with NYS requirements. A gateway web page on GreeneGovernment.com lists each affected business category, and links to the specific compliance requirements for each.
“Our businesses are very eager to welcome customers, guests and audiences back into their facilities” notes Patrick S. Linger – Chair of the Greene County Legislature. “Aside from the financial challenges caused by the pandemic, many owners and operators are experiencing difficulties finding and following the compliance procedures required by NYS. Greene County is applying extra communication and technology resources to help streamline the process.”
Businesses are required to read and affirm the NYS Department of Health Guidance specific to their safe operation. Owners and operators of Greene County businesses can download, read and affirm this guidance directly from these easy-to-follow web pages, and also submit forms to the Greene County Public Health Department as required for Weddings, Events, and Performances. Indoor Amusement & Family Entertainment businesses can download a fillable re-opening plan template and submit it to the county as required by NYS.
This resource will be continually updated as more guidance and requirements are issued by New York State.
Remember to follow Greene County Government and the Greene County Public Health Department for immediate updates on new information regarding the pandemic.
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