Suspended Driver’s License Arrest

MARGARETVILLE — Sheriff Craig DuMond announced the arrest of a Margaretville man for operating a Motor Vehicle with a suspended driver’s license. 

On the afternoon of February 26th, 2025, while answering an unrelated call, deputies observed Ariel U. Devers, age 35, of Middletown, operating a motor vehicle in violation of the NYS Vehicle and Traffic Law.

Upon conducting a search of Devers license information, it was discovered that his NYS driver’s licensed has been suspended on several occasions for failure to answer traffic summonses and failure to pay child support. The active suspensions dated back as far as 2020.  

On the Afternoon of February 27th, 2025 Deputies located Ariel at the Middletown Town Court on an unrelated matter.  Deputies subsequently took Devers into custody and charged him with Aggravated Unlicensed Operation in the 3rd degree, a misdemeanor, and issued him a traffic summonses for unlicensed operator. 

Devers was subsequently released on an appearance ticket and traffic summonses directing him to appear in the Town of Middletown court at a later date to answer for the charges. 

Speaking on the arrest, Sheriff Craig DuMond remarked, “here I present you with another rock-star case as a clear representation of New York State’s failed Bail Reform Legislation.  Does anyone with any basic common sense believe this defendant will appear in court following his arrest for previously failing to appear dating back to 2020?.  Just another example of how out of touch Albany is when it comes to the lack of criminal accountability and the impact it has on our local communities”.

 

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Margaretville Man Arrested for Alleged Suspended License

MARGARETVILLE — Sheriff Craig DuMond announced the arrest of a Margaretville man for driving with a suspended license. 

On February 11, 2025, Sheriff’s Deputies while on patrol in the Village of Margaretville observed a vehicle being operated by an individual known to Deputies to have a revoked New York State driver’s license.  Upon investigation, Deputies confirmed the identity of the operator as 29-year-old David Piskacek of Margaretville.  Following a DMV records check, Deputies confirmed that Piskacek’s driving privileges were in fact suspended and revoked 25 times and that he was actively on probation supervision. Deputies released Piskacek at the time and directed him to respond to Delaware County Probation at a later date.

On February 19, 2025, while at Delaware County Probation, David Piskacek was arrested and issued traffic summons for aggravated unlicensed operator in the 2nd degree, operating a motor vehicle without a court ordered interlock device, and unlicensed operator. Piskacek was remanded to the Delaware County Jail on a probation violation warrant and was directed to appear at the Town of Middletown Court at a later date to answer the other charges. 

 

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Troopers Respond to Roxbury Crash

ROXBURY — On March 2, 2025 at approximately 8:05 a.m.,  a Trooper observed a vehicle off the roadway on State Highway 30 near County Highway 8 in the town of Roxbury.  

An investigation at the scene determined that a Jeep Cherokee was traveling west on State Highway 30 when the vehicle went off the roadway and struck a rock embankment.  The driver, Karen F. Tesi, age 59 of Grand Gorge, NY was transported by Margaretville EMS to Margaretville Hospital then later air lifted by LifeNet to Albany Medical Center.  

Her injuries are believed to be non-life threatening.  Roxbury Fire also assisted on scene. 

 

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Yellow Fine Arts Highlighting Local Talent

By Robert Brune

SHANDAKEN — This winter of 2025 has dampened the momentum of the thriving arts economy in the northern Catskills, but the blustery, ice laden roads, squall bursts and consistently frigid temperatures did not interrupt the local online art gallery of Yellow Fine Arts (YFA) owned and operated by artist Jerry Gallo. YFA online gallery was started by Gallo in 2014 from his home in Shandaken. It continues to provide exposure for artists from the Hudson Valley and Delaware County areas of upstate New York. Gallo reflects on when he started as an online art curator, “I couldn’t afford a brick-and-mortar gallery. This was a great opportunity to network with other artists and help provide them with more exposure to audiences.” The online curation of art from Saatchi Art and Artsy are a comprehensive platform for folks seeking art. YFA online gallery rarely features artists from outside of New York.

This winter, 1053 Main Street Gallery in Fleischmanns, Hawk and Hive Gallery in Andes, and Art Up in Margaretville, closed for the colder of the winter months. With uncertain economic times ahead, Delaware, Green, and Ulster Counties may choose to explore the option that Gallo has paved for artists.

The motivation of art buyers parallels the emotion that inspire artists to create their works. In a recent post by Heaven McArthur, Hawk + Hive gallery house photographer, she describes what it has meant to her to be able to express herself on Instagram. “This is my guiding beacon right now. Once upon a stone, this platform was my beginning voice, what moved me, my struggles, my insights, the magic. It was often scary but always an opening of rich human to human connections” This past summer Gallo had an exhibition at Art Up which opened the door to Gallo meeting photographer Aldo Gonzalez at several Delaware County art events. Their paths crossing led to Gallo asking Gonzalez to show his photographs on the Yellow Fine Arts website and on the YFA gallery Instagram page. 

Gonzalez is a long-term resident of Roxbury and a graduate of the School of Visual Arts. After an extensive career in the US Air Force and now working with a private contractor, this past summer Gonzalez began showing his amazing collection of photographs for the first time. Gonzalez says in the past he was ‘always the plus-one’ to his wife concerning cultural and community engagement. That has changed since last summer when he showed his photos at an exhibition at the Andes Academy of Art, and at the AMR Galli-Curci exhibition.  Street photography is Gonzalez’s passion, like the work of Vivian Maier with subjects of great character and deliberate expression. Traveling throughout the world including Japan, which happens to be a subject of his recent works, Gonzalez captures both cultural esthetics, and the human-to-human engagements not typically seen in most street photography. There’s a signature photo featured on the yellowfinearts.com website of a crowd of Japanese students spanning the edges of the photo with a young man, hands on hips, leering intensely as a young lady is pointing towards the camera. Gonzalez is grateful for his experience at the School of Visual Arts as it helped him in his military career, “I was able to complete projects a lot easier because I was concentrating on the task.”. The focus and more comprehensive perspective on a broader composition helped Gonzalez complete objectives more thoroughly. 

Street photographers often try to go unnoticed, but Gonzalez is drawn to that connection to his subjects. Tatsuo Suzuki and Masahisa Fukase are amongst the more influential photographers for the style and inspiration to Gonzalez. To get a feel for the creative nature of his camera preferences, it’s impressive to see the wide range of different styles of cameras Gonzalez uses. He labels his Instagram photos with the camera and film brands on Instagram photos @agstreetphotography. 

Gallo does a brilliant job of curation of artists, www.yellowfinearts.com. There will be a new artist on the website mid March. 

 

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Village Elections March 18 = Fleischmanns Seats Contested

By Mary A. Crisafulli

Village elections will take place on March 18 where multiple seats are on the ballot in Fleischmanns and Margaretville.

Fleischmanns

Fleischmanns Mayor Samuel Gil is running for a second two-year term contested by Gloria Zola-Mulloy who is running a write-in campaign. 

In deciding to run again, Gil said, "The Village of Fleischmanns could do much better and two years is not enough time."

During his first term, Gil was pleased to report several accomplishments - the village and code enforcement offices were relocated to a larger space by volunteers, clean up of the highway department garage, tennis courts, and much of the village parking lot, restoration of guardrails on Lake Street and Old Halcott Road, and Armstrong Park Road and portions of Ellsworth Avenue were paved.

If elected, Gil hopes to continue guardrail restoration along Lake Street and Armstrong Park, complete oil and stone of Wagner Avenue, repair drainage ditches and storm drains, and tackle parking concerns. During the summer months influx of visitation has caused parking concerns. "I'm working with DEP (State Department of Transportation) to allow us to use some of their land within the village owned properties," said Gil, "In exchange we will maintain their land (by landscaping)."

In conclusion, Gil said, "These are only some of the projects that we need to work on for the future."

Gloria Zola-Mulloy

“As someone who believes in having a choice, I am adding my name as a candidate for Fleischmanns Mayor,” said Zola-Mulloy. When she first moved to Fleischmanns over 20 years ago, Zola-Mulloy said there were many vacant buildings in the village. “My partner and I soon got to work to help property owners receive grants for rehabilitation of at least a dozen homes.” The couple has purchased and renovated several properties along Main Street which they still manage, she explained.

“As a former licensed clinical social worker, I know how to listen to and work with voters, professionals, and visitors alike to ensure that Fleischmanns will become an even better village in the coming two years,” said Zola-Mulloy.

Two trustee seats are on the ballot this year. Trustees Miguel Martinez-Riddle and Stewart Cohen are both seeking re-election. Local business owner Harold Kuhn will contest the seats. Cohen did not respond to several emails. Residents can vote at the Skene Memorial Library.

The following are responses from Candidate & Incumbent Miguel Martinez-Riddle:

What made you run for election?

As a village trustee I look through a fair and balanced lens, with a strong regard for the local residential community and encouragement for the amazing businesses on Main St and Rt. 28, as well as new ones to come. I was asked to run by Mator Gil, and re-appointed after resigning by Mayor Gil, who I respect tremendously and support.

What are you most proud of having accomplished as trustee?

I’m proud of my work to bring the Town, County, and Railroad together to try to fix a failing culvert that serves us all. I have represented Mayor Gil  many times at meetings for important village initiatives. I have never missed a board meeting. I have worked to prepare the village asset the Maxbuilt theater for sale so that we can fund village resources like the pool and infrastructure repairs. I assisted our Code Enforcement Officer when he became disabled. I am a member of the tennis committee and support local pickleball league play.

What makes you a good candidate?

As someone who is more conservative than many of my liberal friends, and more liberal than my conservative friends, I’m proud of my ability to speak to everyone, and relish my role as ambassador for our amazing village. Go Fleischmanns!

Martinez-Riddle has served on the Middletown Board of Assessors, village zoning board, Middletown Historical Society Collections Committee, and the Catskill Recreation Center Executive Committee. He is currently employed as a SUNY Studio Art faculty and serves as a New York State Code Enforcement Officer.  

Fleischmanns Trustee Candidate Harold Kuhn.

The following are responses from Candidate Harold Kuhn:

What made you run for election?

I’m running for Village Trustee because I love Fleischmanns and want to see it thrive. Over the past year, I’ve worked hard to bring new energy to the village—whether through organizing events like Trick-or-Treat Main Street and the Fleischmanns Holiday Extravaganza, revitalizing a long-shuttered storefront, or collaborating with neighbors to bring life back into the village. Fleischmanns has so much potential, but we need leadership that listens, takes action, and brings people together. I’m stepping up because I believe in this village and want to help shape a future that works for everyone.

What do you hope to accomplish if elected?

If elected, my top priority will be making Fleischmanns a more connected, thriving, and welcoming place. That means fostering community events, and ensuring the village government is transparent and responsive to residents’ concerns. I also want to focus on smart, sustainable growth—preserving what makes Fleischmanns special while creating new opportunities.  Most importantly, I want to bring a fresh perspective to the Village Board, working collaboratively to solve problems and build a stronger community.

What makes you a good candidate?

I’m not just invested in Fleischmanns—I’m all in. As a business owner, event organizer, and engaged community member, I’ve already been working to make this village a better place. I bring creativity, problem-solving skills, and a willingness to listen to different perspectives. I understand the challenges we face, but I also see the opportunities ahead. I’m committed to working hard, making thoughtful decisions, and ensuring that Fleischmanns remains a place where people want to live and visit.

Margaretville

There are two trustee positions on the March ballot. Incumbents Iris Mead and Sarah Hubbell are both seeking re-election unopposed. Trustee Mead did not respond to emails by press time.

Trustee Sarah Hubbell, seeking re-election as Margaretville Village trustee.

Trustee Hubbell has served the village for six years. "I first ran to be more active in the community and I felt the board needed to have some younger viewpoints and representation," said Hubbell. If elected, Hubbell plans to continue efforts for a new water tank for the water system and seek infrastructure funding to upgrade the water distribution system. "This year we will also be celebrating the 150th of the incorporation of the village," she announced.

 

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Obituary - Kevin George Roberts

 

Kevin George Roberts, 65 of Denver NY, passed away on Saturday March 1,2025 surrounded by his loved ones. Kevin was born on June 17,1959 in Margaretville NY, the son of Loren & Ethel Roberts. He was raised on the family farm where he was taught the meaning of farming the land, raising animals, gardening and all the tasks of farm life. After becoming an adult he got married and raised 4 children and held several jobs pertaining to farming (working on the Darling Farm in Roxbury where he learned a lot from the late Larry Darling), He did foundation work, construction and landscaping, he also worked for the Town of Hardenburgh. Kevin mowed the Denver cemetery and multiple lawns in the valley for many years. Every year for many years he would vacation with his family at Pecks Lake in Gloversville, which began when his parents took the family for annual vacation.Kevin enjoyed working with his hands but his life revolved around farming. In the early 1990’s he had the opportunity to purchase his family's barn and almost 10 acres of land. In 1990 he met his current wife and her son and they married in 1999. They purchased a manufactured home, where they built a foundation and placed their house on it and made it their home. Kevin enjoyed coaching his children and other children through soccer at Roxbury School. Throughout the early years on the farm he started milking his own cows and when that became too much, he raised milking goats, which eventually became his hobby. He continued raising mini goats, rabbits, chickens and ducks. In the past couple years his pastime was to sit by his living room window and watch his surroundings. In nicer weather he spent a lot of time sitting on his porch waving at everyone who went by. He also loved spending time with his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Kevin is well known to the community as “Big Kev”. Kevin is predeceased by his parents Loren & Ethel Roberts, Paternal and Maternal grandparents, brother Thomas Roberts. Nephew Thoms Roberts Jr., Brother-in-law Richard Hunter.Father-in- law Thomas Stratton. He is survived by his wife Kathryn Roberts of almost 26 years (together 35) children: Jeremiah of North Carolina, Rebecca (Anthony) Cortese: Nicholas (Melissa) Roberts of Hurley NY, Samanth Roberts, Ryan (Kathy) Sprague Summit NY. Grandchildren Anthony Cortese Vlll (Gia), Isabelle and Kathryn Cortese; Isiah Figueroa (Akyra); Noah, Zach, & Blake Roberts. Great Grandchildren; Raef & Rex. Sisters Aleta Hunter, Shari Robinson (Ricky), Ellen Stewart (Cliff), Charlene Roberts (Art ), Billie Jo Roberts (Fernando); Mother-in-law Lynda Stratton; Sister-in-law Lynda Fane, Brother-in-law Thomas Stratton (Iris) Several Nieces, Nephews, Aunts & Uncles, and cousins. He was especially proud of the community of Denver where he lived most of his life and the many people he grew up with, which is most of the valley. The boys and girls that helped during hay season, teaching to drive a tractor, milking etc. Kevin loved good food & a good time. He knows his family & friends could put together a gathering (there are a lot of good cooks) So we would like to invite you to bring a dish to celebrate his life, Saturday March 15th, 3 P.M. at the Carriage House in Roxbury, NY.

 

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A Conversation About: Lists

By Jean Thomas

“List” is a versatile word. Sailors know it as a verb describing a tilt to one side, often a problem. Gamers assemble their player pieces for combat into “lists”.

Lists as we know them, however, are a promise to ourselves to finish something, or a catalog of items that belong together in some kind of order. Bucket lists are popular, especially among those of us preparing to “kick the bucket” in the next few decades. I prefer to call mine a “decade list”. It’s more orderly, and if I don’t finish one, the Grim Reaper has to wait. (That’s a rule I invented.)

My current decade list is still catching up from the disruption of the pandemic, so the usual assortment   of goals is a little abbreviated. A list, as most of us understand it, is a short term goal. Grocery lists are meant to be polished off, usually, within a week. Preparation lists, whether for clothes or supplies, have a deadline. The change of seasons often inspires a flurry of list making among the orderly types.  We’re still postponing things on the winter lists, and starting to dread the lists to come for the spring. Errand running lists are designed to make as many stops in a single circuit as possible. Grocer, library, feed store, beauty shop/barber, dentist, bank. You get the drift.  The satisfaction can be exhilarating.

Project lists have a specific goal, like the annual seed starting adventure. These vary according to a lot of different criteria… is this a kid-oriented thing? Are specific ornamental or vegetable crops the goal? Are you maybe taking cuttings instead of starting from seed?   Is your list an outdoor thing? Pruning and cleanup are worthy of their own lists, among others.

There is another type familiar to school children, namely the “catalog” list. You don’t have to do anything but keep track of items in a given category. I found a list the other day that had been hanging on my refrigerator for several years. It includes recovered species and newly introduced species. I had observed, from my home, the recovered populations of American Eagle, bluebirds, fishers and ravens. Insects included deer keds (I had never heard of them until they showed up in my back yard). The list includes a lot of invasives that aren’t really new, but recent to my property. I guess it’s an attendance sheet for wild flora and fauna over the years.  This type of list has no chores. 

I like to think there are rules for a good list. In fact, I call it my list of lists. Here it is.                                            *1 .Have a minimum of three items; *2. Written preferably in order of finishing; *3. Entries are best written in pencil; *4. Check-offs made in pen, or, even better, in Sharpie; *5. Leftover items should be immediately used to seed the next list. 

There are hints for overachievers, too. Here’s my all time favorite for the days when I need a jump start. Write in a couple of things that are already done. Check them off right away and you feel like you’re already being productive. It’s all uphill from there. Or is it downhill? If you’re in the market for a new list, check out the native bare root plant sale at your county’s Soil and Water Conservation District. Each county has its own list and the prices are wonderful. Deadline is March 28th, and pickup is in April. The Greene County email address is gcswcd.com.

 

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Op-Ed - DiNapoli Warns Changing Fiscal Landscape Could Increase Budget Challenges for Local Governments

By Thomas DiNapoli, New York State Comptroller

The expiration of one-time federal pandemic aid, combined with state aid that has not kept pace with inflation and slower growth in local revenue may push some local governments closer to the edge of a fiscal cliff, according to a report released today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. The report provides an overview of these revenue sources and how they have affected local budgets in recent years.

“With pandemic aid coming to an end and uncertainty coming out of Washington, local governments need to shore up their fiscal foundations,” DiNapoli said. “By focusing on ensuring structural budget balance, using realistic revenue projections and multiyear planning, local governments will be better positioned to weather whatever financial challenges lay ahead. My office continues to support local governments by offering resources to help with financial planning and management.”

Federal Stimulus Aid

Local governments received federal pandemic aid through a variety of programs in 2020, 2021 and 2022. The federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020 provided nearly $1 billion in targeted aid to five counties and one town in New York state, and another $1.5 billion to New York City at the start of the pandemic. Local governments outside of New York City received a total of $4.8 billion in financial relief from the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) in 2021 and 2022, which they were required to obligate by the end of 2024 and spend by the end of 2026.

Although federal aid traditionally represents the smallest portion of overall revenue for local governments, it was the fastest growing source of revenue during the pandemic – increasing more than 50% between 2019 and 2023, from $2.8 billion to $4.4 billion. Outside of New York City, counties received the most federal stimulus funds in terms of overall dollars, while ARPA funds represented 14.4% of total 2019 (pre-pandemic) revenues for cities, 5.3% for towns, 4.5% for counties and 3.2% for villages.

Excluding New York City, twenty cities (32.7%) received their first installment of ARPA funding in an amount that exceeded 10% of their 2019 total revenues, compared to 5.4% and 5.8% of villages and towns, respectively. ARPA payments in 2021 represented more than 30% of 2019 total revenues in the cities of Utica and Buffalo.

With these federal funds ending, some cities are taking measures to close structural budget deficits, including overriding the property tax cap to increase their tax levies. Local governments are at a greater risk of having a structural budget imbalance if the one-time aid was used for recurring costs, such as paying for personnel expenses or ongoing programs.

Other Revenue Trends Impacting Local Governments

DiNapoli’s report identified where local governments are facing other revenue pressures in addition to the end of federal pandemic aid which may require adjustments to avoid budget shortfalls.

Sales Tax - For most of 2021 and in part of 2022, local governments outside of New York City saw double-digit year-over-year percentage increases in local sales tax collections after experiencing a 19% decline during the height of the pandemic. Local government sales tax collections outside New York City totaled $2.85 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024, a decrease of over $21 million (0.7%) compared to the same quarter in 2023. This decrease marks a stark contrast to the post-pandemic surge in local sales tax collections. As seen throughout 2023 and 2024, sales tax revenue growth has returned to levels of growth typical of the pre-pandemic period, with moderate year-over-year increases. Local sales tax revenue outside New York City grew 7.5% from 2021 to 2022 but just 2.3% from 2022 to 2023.

State Aid - The Aid and Incentives for Municipalities (AIM) program represents the largest amount of unrestricted state aid to local governments. The State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2024-2025 Enacted Budget provides $715 million in AIM funding for all cities, towns and villages outside of New York City, or approximately the same amount that was appropriated in SFY 2011-12. When adjusting for inflation, AIM funding has declined nearly 30% over that same period, and is now worth less to local governments than what they received in unrestricted aid in 2004-05, the year before the AIM program started. In addition, $50 million in Temporary Municipal Assistance allocated in the SFY 2024-25 Enacted Budget for all AIM recipients is proposed in the SFY 2025-26 Executive Budget to continue for just one more year.

Property Taxes – For localities, property taxes continue to be one of the largest and most reliable sources of revenue, totaling $13.6 billion in local fiscal year 2023. However, there are statutory limits to how much a local government can raise in property tax revenue. Under the property tax cap, local governments are generally required to limit the growth of property tax levies to the lesser of 2% or the rate of inflation. Although the rate of inflation has been decreasing, it remains over 2%, setting the property tax cap at 2% for municipality fiscal years beginning in 2025. In addition, counties, cities and villages are limited in the overall revenue that can be raised through the property tax in any one year by the constitutional tax limit.

After receiving federal ARPA aid, some local governments reduced the amount of property taxes they levied. Overall, counties reduced their property tax levy by 1.2% or $75.7 million from 2022 to 2023, while cities outside of New York City raised their levy by 0.3% or $4.1 million during this same period. Towns and villages maintained a steady increase in their property tax revenue before and throughout the pandemic.

A Failure to File Annual Financial Reports Leaves Taxpayers in the Dark

The number of local governments that have failed to file timely annual financial reports [AFRs] has been increasing in recent years. For the local fiscal year ending in 2019, 142 (9%) of over 1,575 counties, cities, towns and villages failed to file AFRs on time. For fiscal year 2023, 233 (14.8%) had not filed AFRs by Aug. 31, 2024.

If a local government does not prepare and submit complete and accurate AFRs in a timely manner, it may call into question the effectiveness of the financial management and standing of a municipality, reduces transparency, and diminishes accountability for how funds were spent.

Without a timely-filed AFR, the Comptroller’s office is unable to issue a Fiscal Stress Monitoring System (FSMS) score to assess a local government’s financial condition. Recently, both the Village of Washingtonville (Orange County) and the City of Dunkirk (Chautauqua County), which have had problems filing recent AFRs, both needed state legislation to allow them to issue millions of dollars in deficit financing debt, a sign of extreme fiscal stress.

Recommendations

DiNapoli’s report recommends local governments:

Ensure any ARPA funds are spent before the 2026 deadline.

Identify any one-time revenues that were used for recurring purposes and find alternative revenue sources where needed.

Communicate with taxpayers regarding the use of additional aid over the past few years.

Engage in multi-year planning to better understand the implications of current revenue and expenditure actions for out-year budgets.

Act quickly to ensure fiscal stability by continuously monitoring the current budget and adjusting as needed.

Access the Comptroller’s Division of Local Government and School Accountability webinars, management guides and other publications to assist in developing a budget and maintaining proper accounting records.

 

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THE CATSKILL GEOLOGISTS BY PROFESSORS ROBERT AND JOHANNA TITUS - At the Mills Mansion 6: A Statue of Limestone

The Mills Mansion offers tours of their grounds from time to time, and we have sometimes gone along. When you get down to the southwest corner of the estate they like to point here and there and relate how once, long ago, there were statues located in this vicinity. These are all gone now and were probably put into storage. We are not sure how many there once were but there is at least one statue left. It’s a short distance northeast of the mansion. That’s one that we are told is entitled “Diana, Goddess of the Hunt.” See our first photo. We have a few doubts about that. Statues of Diana are very commonplace and typically she is portrayed with a bow and arrow. This one does have a quiver of arrows, but she has a pitcher in one hand and is petting a dog with the other. Hunters don’t commonly carry pitchers or stop to pet dogs. But let’s assume that the title is accurate. That’s nice but it doesn’t make the story all that much better. You see, there is no record of who the sculptor was or even when it was carved. There is an inscription on its front, but we couldn’t read it. We can guess that the Mills family installed the statue, but when was that? It’s such a shame that we don’t know more.

                                                                      

So, we are hoping that we can fill in some of the blanks. The very first thing that we noticed is that this Diana is composed of limestone. That should have been an easy call for us, but this is an old statue, and it is encrusted with algae, moss and lichens. There is, however, enough bare stone to make a reliable ID. So, we had just started, and we were now one for one. But exactly what limestone was this? We were hoping it would be the famous Indiana Limestone. That’s a stone, famed for its beautiful, evenly white texture. It’s composed of uniformly fine-grained bits of ground up fossil shells. Sculptors love this stone; it carves well, and it has been used to turn out great looking statuary for ages. But – no; we searched Diana’s surface and found a few horizons rich in fossil shells. They show up in cross section, especially near the bottom of Diana’s pedestal. See our second photo. The Indiana Limestone does not display such fossils. Now we had dropped down to one for two.

We wondered what the age of this mysterious limestone was in the geological time scale but could not tell. If we could put some names on some of those fossils then we might well determine its precise antiquity. But none of them can be identified so we can’t figure out its age. Now we were one for three. We had tried but had not added much to the knowledge of this old statue. Again, what a shame. Maybe we could do better if we could see those other statues.

Contact the authors at randjtitus@prodigy.net. Join their Facebook page “The Catskill Geologist.” Read their blogs at “thecatskillgeologist.com.”

    

 

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Whittling Away with Dick Brooks - Priorities

As I sink slowly into the seas of antiquity, I find frequently that things of importance to me shift up and down on my priority scale.  Mirrors are a good example.  In younger days, I was concerned with things like—did the colors of my outfit coordinate, did I have wrinkles that needed ironing, was my hair in place, moustache trimmed neatly, and shoes shined?  I now no longer consider mirrors a necessity. I now choose my outfits not by color but by comfort which moves the older clothes in my wardrobe closer to the front of the closet.  Flannel shirts, sweatshirts and jeans tend to take on your body shape over time and hug you like an old friend when you put them on.  I now have more wrinkles than any of my clothes so they don’t concern me any longer.  My hair is always in place, I keep it in a small box in my sock drawer and moustache trimming occurs when I can no longer take nourishment because I’m having trouble finding my mouth.  Sneakers don’t require polishing usually so I don’t even know where the shoe polish is any more, I used furniture polish the last time I shined my dress shoes and it worked just fine.

Footwear has moved way up on my priority list.  I used to choose shoes by their looks as strange as that now seems to me now.  That was in the long past when my arches still had their youthful spring.  Their spring has sprung and my feet are now flatter than a main dish at IHOP.  

I’ve always had large feet but they really weren’t a problem until they went flat.  Walking barefoot now is like walking with a set of swim fins on.  It hurt to walk and then I found sneakers made by the Brooks Shoe Company that gave me back my arches and stopped my ankles from turning in.  They have become my favorite item of clothing even if they do look a little odd when worn with a suit.  I have a brand new pair hidden away in my closet though the pair I wear daily are still in presentable shape.  I ordered them because I have lived long enough to know that just when you find something that you like, they stop making it.  I have written to the shoe company complementing them on their shoes and how well made they are.  I even passed along to them a suggestion for a product that could make them a household word and successful beyond their wildest corporate dreams.  Dress sneakers!!  There are jazzed up sneakers out there and sneakers in different colors but no dress sneakers.  If you’ve been to any dress up function and watched the ladies start to walk painfully after a few hours in high heels, you understand the need for dress sneakers.  A shoe with comfortable non skid soles and with some dress fabric like silk replacing the usual canvas and rubber would be an instant hit.  Smart women today usually have a pair of sneakers hidden in those fancy suitcase sized bags they carry.  I know a lot of brides who had sneakers on under their floor length gowns.

They would be a big hit with seniors too.  They could replace those ugly orthopedic clunky things with the Velcro straps, we could be cool and comfortable as well.  It would be a good thing!

Thought for the week—“In my many years, I have come to a conclusion, that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm and three or more is a congress”.   –John Adams

Until next week, may you and yours be happy and well.

Whittle12124@yahoo.com   

 

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Local History - 1944 Election in the US and Schoharie County

By Wildert Marte

Below continues our look into local history through the pages of the Cobleskill Index by our student intern Wildert Marte. Send any ideas our way at mountaineaglenews@gmail.com.

SCHOHARIE COUNTY — The 1944 presidential election was one of the most critical in American history taking place in the middle of World War II. With millions of American troops still fighting overseas voters had to decide whether to keep Franklin D. Roosevelt in office for an unprecedented fourth term or elect Republican challenger Thomas E. Dewey the governor of New York. Roosevelt who had already led the country through the Great Depression and most of the war campaigned on stability and the promise of victory. Dewey argued that after more than a decade in power Roosevelt and his administration had become inefficient and that new leadership was needed to move the country forward​.

Roosevelt’s campaign emphasized his experience in handling both the war and the economy. His leadership had guided the country through some of its darkest times and many Americans trusted him to finish the job. Dewey on the other hand struggled to convince voters that a change in leadership would be beneficial during such a critical period. While he criticized Roosevelt’s handling of domestic affairs he lacked a strong foreign policy which was a key issue for voters. In the end Roosevelt secured a decisive victory winning 432 electoral votes to Dewey’s 99 and winning the popular vote by over three million votes. In New York a major battleground state Roosevelt’s support in urban areas especially New York City helped him maintain a stronghold despite Dewey’s appeal in upstate counties​.

Schoharie County mirrored national trends but with its own local political battles. While Dewey managed to win the county his margin of victory was significantly smaller than previous Republican candidates had achieved. This shift showed that Roosevelt’s leadership during the war resonated with many voters even in traditionally conservative areas​. One of the most closely watched races in the county was the contest for New York State Supreme Court. Middleburgh’s own F. Walter Bliss, a Democrat, sought re-election but faced a tough challenge from Republican Edward S. Van Voorhis of Ulster County. Despite strong local support Bliss ultimately lost as votes from other parts of the judicial district favored Van Voorhis​. Other local races were just as competitive. Grover C. Guernsey and Madison J. Hilts ran for State Senate and Assembly respectively gaining strong backing in Democratic-leaning areas but struggling to overcome the Republican majority. The district attorney race was another major focus with David B. Alford of Middleburgh running a well-organized campaign​. Voter turnout in Schoharie County was particularly high showing how engaged people were in both national and local elections. Cobleskill alone saw nearly 2,200 residents cast ballots making it one of the highest turnouts in the county’s history. This demonstrated that even in rural communities voters were actively shaping their government at all levels​.

The 1944 election reinforced the strength of American democracy even in the face of global conflict. Roosevelt’s victory ensured continuity in leadership during the final stages of World War II while local elections across New York determined policies that would shape communities for years to come. Schoharie County’s results reflected the balance between national concerns and local priorities showing that every vote mattered whether it was for the presidency or a seat in the state legislature. As the war neared its end the leaders elected in 1944 would be responsible for guiding the country into the post-war era. The decisions made in this election influenced everything from foreign policy to economic recovery. Schoharie County like the rest of the country, played its part in shaping history proving that even small-town elections can have a lasting impact.

 

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