Programs - 2023
Aging Well - A CAN Town Hall Jan 13, 2023 Click to open, click to close
We had a very engaged discussion about aging well. We began with the question, "What has surprised you about getting older?" I have been able to capture a few of the remarks members made. Alicia noted that during the years when she was working, she had to maintain a very strong professional persona, but after she retired, she was able to let go of that persona, feeling relieved to just be herself and get to know herself as she truly is. She loves being retired and meeting life on her own terms. Leontine remarked that she did not think about aging until she became 90. She realized that she can still do those things she wants to do, but she does at a slower pace. For her, the slower pace is an advantage because she can take her time and not feel rushed. And being older gives her the freedom to decide what she wants to do, and to feel no obligation to do things that don't interest her.
Nora said, "I cannot understand how "old" became so negative. We value old books, old manuscripts, old artwork and antiques. In other cultures, older people are revered, but not in our youth-centered society. Idolatry of the young is ridiculous!
Aging, as they say, is not for sissies. Some worry whether their memory problems are normal or are the start of dementia. Others are concerned about what inflation is doing to their fixed income.
We also talked about wanting to continue to move forward and look ahead, while also enjoying sharing stories of our younger days through memoir writing. Mimi Hoffman told us about a program called Storyworth that can provide you with prompts for telling your stories. Here is a link to their website if you want to explore a bit: https://welcome.storyworth.com/.
I also asked the question, "Did your own parents age well, or not? How has their experience affected how you approach this time of your life?" I know that in my case, my dad lived a vigorous life to the end, continuing to exercise and be an avid walker, as well as being engaged with his community as a problem solver. My mother never walked nor did pay attention to what she ate. She lived to be 98, but for the last eight years she lived in a nursing home, slumped in a wheel chair. My choice was clear!!
For me, one of the most helpful comments from our November meeting on Aging Well had been, "It is helpful to stay present and have gratitude for aging instead of looking at it as if it is a curse." That same idea was reiterated here by Jan Cohen who urged us to focus on the present moment, exercise, eat well, and practice self-care. Good advice!
Harry Vetter sent me the following thoughts about aging well. I know you enjoy reading what he has to say.
My Thoughts on Aging Well
Harry Vetter
What does aging well mean to you?
Society sometimes attaches a negative connotation to aging, implying something ‘handicappy’, restrictive, old-fashioned, not with it. The best metaphor for aging well is a a good bottle of wine, if stored properly. Take care of yourself, if you can, show interests, learn new things and appreciations, appreciate more depth, less rush-rush — that is what aging well means to me.
What has surprised you about getting older?
That certain things don’t matter quite as much. Having lost my hair that I was protecting for decades, has turned into a non-event and in a way, is a convenience now. I find that I move slower and that is ok.
There are many stereotypes and assumptions about aging in our society. Which stereotypes have you found to be completely off base? Please explain:
The expectation seems to be that one is stuck in one’s old way. I try to remain open for new things and thrive when exploring “stuff” or being immersed in a hobby or two. When sharing about my life experience with a younger generation I am aware that it sounds like ‘Oh gee, there he goes again with his (same) old stories”. I try to convey a relevance to the new as well.
What advice about how to grow old well or about what it means to grow old would you give to the next generation?
Only because you’re older doesn’t mean you can’t take part in things you used to get a kick out of. Case in point: I still go to Indie rock concerts in all sorts of City clubs about a dozen times a year. I have no qualms about that whatsoever. Few people pay much attention to having a geezer in their midst, hopping and singing along. There’s a fair amount of aging boomers still feeling and acting the same way. Besides, if you have Mick Jagger (79) hopping and prancing and going crazy on stage — people go nuts and pay big money. Do what feels right, pay attention to what stirs your heart, be good to yourself and others, and enjoy.
Nora said, "I cannot understand how "old" became so negative. We value old books, old manuscripts, old artwork and antiques. In other cultures, older people are revered, but not in our youth-centered society. Idolatry of the young is ridiculous!
Aging, as they say, is not for sissies. Some worry whether their memory problems are normal or are the start of dementia. Others are concerned about what inflation is doing to their fixed income.
We also talked about wanting to continue to move forward and look ahead, while also enjoying sharing stories of our younger days through memoir writing. Mimi Hoffman told us about a program called Storyworth that can provide you with prompts for telling your stories. Here is a link to their website if you want to explore a bit: https://welcome.storyworth.com/.
I also asked the question, "Did your own parents age well, or not? How has their experience affected how you approach this time of your life?" I know that in my case, my dad lived a vigorous life to the end, continuing to exercise and be an avid walker, as well as being engaged with his community as a problem solver. My mother never walked nor did pay attention to what she ate. She lived to be 98, but for the last eight years she lived in a nursing home, slumped in a wheel chair. My choice was clear!!
For me, one of the most helpful comments from our November meeting on Aging Well had been, "It is helpful to stay present and have gratitude for aging instead of looking at it as if it is a curse." That same idea was reiterated here by Jan Cohen who urged us to focus on the present moment, exercise, eat well, and practice self-care. Good advice!
Harry Vetter sent me the following thoughts about aging well. I know you enjoy reading what he has to say.
My Thoughts on Aging Well
Harry Vetter
What does aging well mean to you?
Society sometimes attaches a negative connotation to aging, implying something ‘handicappy’, restrictive, old-fashioned, not with it. The best metaphor for aging well is a a good bottle of wine, if stored properly. Take care of yourself, if you can, show interests, learn new things and appreciations, appreciate more depth, less rush-rush — that is what aging well means to me.
What has surprised you about getting older?
That certain things don’t matter quite as much. Having lost my hair that I was protecting for decades, has turned into a non-event and in a way, is a convenience now. I find that I move slower and that is ok.
There are many stereotypes and assumptions about aging in our society. Which stereotypes have you found to be completely off base? Please explain:
The expectation seems to be that one is stuck in one’s old way. I try to remain open for new things and thrive when exploring “stuff” or being immersed in a hobby or two. When sharing about my life experience with a younger generation I am aware that it sounds like ‘Oh gee, there he goes again with his (same) old stories”. I try to convey a relevance to the new as well.
What advice about how to grow old well or about what it means to grow old would you give to the next generation?
Only because you’re older doesn’t mean you can’t take part in things you used to get a kick out of. Case in point: I still go to Indie rock concerts in all sorts of City clubs about a dozen times a year. I have no qualms about that whatsoever. Few people pay much attention to having a geezer in their midst, hopping and singing along. There’s a fair amount of aging boomers still feeling and acting the same way. Besides, if you have Mick Jagger (79) hopping and prancing and going crazy on stage — people go nuts and pay big money. Do what feels right, pay attention to what stirs your heart, be good to yourself and others, and enjoy.
ASK - Allow Someone's Kindness - Susan Travis Jan 27, 2023 Click to open, click to close
The goal of the workshop that Susan led today was to have us brainstorm together to find ways to reframe how we look at "asking" so that we can make asking more possible to do and help us feel more comfortable in the process.
What are some of the reasons why people – even you – are uncomfortable about asking for help? These were some of our responses:
1. We need to feel independent. We feel we should be able to do it ourselves.
2. We feel that asking is a sign of weakness.
3. We feel the person we ask will judge us. We fear that we would be turned down and rejected.
4. We feel that if we ask for help, we will be a burden. We don't want to inconvenience anyone.
5. We don't want to give up our own sense of power by leaning on someone else.
6. We are in denial that we need help.
7. We don't want to feel obligated to someone else.
Think of something – or things – you could use help with. Write them down:
Ask yourself, "If I wasn't uncomfortable asking for help, who would I ask?" List the person or people.
If you are actually uncomfortable asking these people, write the reason(s) next to each person on your list.
How can we reframe the way we think about and emotionally experience "asking" for help? How can we transform something uncomfortable into something comfortable, do-able and even joyful?
Here are some examples.
“For it is in giving that we receive.” (Francis of Assisi). Could it also be true that “in receiving we give?”
Think of ASK in a new way – Allow Someone's Kindness
What are some of the reasons why people – even you – are uncomfortable about asking for help? These were some of our responses:
1. We need to feel independent. We feel we should be able to do it ourselves.
2. We feel that asking is a sign of weakness.
3. We feel the person we ask will judge us. We fear that we would be turned down and rejected.
4. We feel that if we ask for help, we will be a burden. We don't want to inconvenience anyone.
5. We don't want to give up our own sense of power by leaning on someone else.
6. We are in denial that we need help.
7. We don't want to feel obligated to someone else.
Think of something – or things – you could use help with. Write them down:
Ask yourself, "If I wasn't uncomfortable asking for help, who would I ask?" List the person or people.
If you are actually uncomfortable asking these people, write the reason(s) next to each person on your list.
How can we reframe the way we think about and emotionally experience "asking" for help? How can we transform something uncomfortable into something comfortable, do-able and even joyful?
Here are some examples.
- If you knew the person you asked felt good about helping.
- If you knew that your asking gave others the courage to ask.
- If you knew your asking allowed others to use their gifts and talents. Your asking is simultaneously giving.
- If you knew that it’s okay to ask because it shows someone you trust them. You trust they will say yes if they can help, and will say no if they can’t help, or don’t want to. If you can trust people to be honest you don’t have to worry about imposing. This is a joyful gift of an honest relationship!!!
- If you knew that everybody deserves to be helped. Everybody has a right to ask for what they need. “You are important enough to ask. You are blessed enough to receive back.” Wayne Dyer.
- If you knew there was the joy of self-awareness in asking.
“For it is in giving that we receive.” (Francis of Assisi). Could it also be true that “in receiving we give?”
Think of ASK in a new way – Allow Someone's Kindness
Yoga – Paula Heitzner Feb 10, 2023 Click to open, click to close
Paula Heitzner, who is a wonderful yoga instructor as well as a CAN member, led us in gentle chair yoga. She began by explaining a bit about what yoga is:
And with that, Paula began leading us in gentle stretches and movements to help us feel the connections and interplay between various parts of our bodies, from the tip of our head to our toes. We felt taller and more limber by the end of the session. It was a lovely afternoon.
- Yoga is a process of confronting, embracing and owning your own limitations, thus making change possible.
- Yoga is a way of transforming the quality of your energy so that you can generate more energy to enhance your body’s condition and your quality of life.
- Yoga is teachings that introduce us to “balance” – being able to balance physically, as well as helping us find the emotional balance between control and surrender – between pushing and relaxing. Paula noted that in our society “surrender” is seen as retreat, giving up. But in yoga, surrender means letting go, fully relaxing.
- Yoga shows us the art of living with grace, and maturing and developing with consciousness, richness and joy, instead of closing down and aging.
- Yoga is a philosophy regarding “appropriateness and paradox.” And it is a tool to greater depths of understanding and sensitivity.
And with that, Paula began leading us in gentle stretches and movements to help us feel the connections and interplay between various parts of our bodies, from the tip of our head to our toes. We felt taller and more limber by the end of the session. It was a lovely afternoon.
CAN Members on The Secrets of Longevity Feb 24, 2023 Click To open, click to close
Leontine Temsky, Irene Sopher, Mary Borkovitz, and Don Monaco
Irene Sopher
What does it feel like to be 90 years old? It feels terrific! I couldn't wait to reach 90. I attribute my longevity to good genes, good health, good luck, exercise of mind and body, socialization, staying busy, tenacity, and vanity.
I was a fat little kid from a dirt poor immigrant family. Fortunately, Mom believed in education, so I went to college and became a teacher. Then marriage, three kids, a house and a job kept me too busy for anything else. I joined a gym at 50 when one opened up three minutes from my house – no more excuses. Doing 8 leg lifts was tough, but I'm compulsive so I kept at it.
When I retired at 65 I worried about how I would fill my time. I learned to play canasta and mah jong, joined a discussion group, a movie club, an opera group and anything else I could find. Now I could exercise in earnest and started going every morning taking classes and learning to weight life. The gym became my new job. At 70 I learned to spin in my latest gym. After 5 minutes I thought I might throw up or die, but I kept at it and can now ride for 1 ½ hours. I became friends with several co-gym enthusiasts. We formed a book club, a movie club, celebrated holidays together, went to the theatre, dinner, and so on.
With our children grown, my husband and I enjoyed a very full life with more travel time. Unfortunately my luck ran out when my husband developed Alzheimer's and many of my friends moved or died. But my Nyack bridge friends kept teling me to move to Nyack. I was resistant until they told me about a new place being built. I looked at the apartment plans, especially the plans for apartment 305, and I was hooked. I moved to Pavion April 2, 2020 at the start of the pandemic when we were quarantined. I had to get out and get moving! I went out walking everyday for ten miles. I got to know the streets, the friendly dogs, and some friendly people. I was lucky enough to meet Denise Hogan and through her, Dorothy Whitton. They saved me because they picked me up and took me to a different restaurant every other week, and they encouraged me to join CAN.
And now I have the Pavion ladies. They have become my friends and family. We meet daily in the afternoon, celebrate birthdays and holidays, attend CAN activities together, have a book club, and frequently go to dinner together. So now I have a whole new life. We go dancing when there's a DJ at a restaurant. Life is not over at 90. It's a whole new beginning. Lucky me to be so blessed.
Don Monaco
Don Monaco had some excellent advice for us: Look back at the decisions you have made in your life. Don noted that at each point in his life when challenges arose, he moved on. That is the lesson we all need to keep learning: Move on. Don't stop growing. Don't become passive, waiting for what might happen. It is in your hands.
Don said, "At one point my wife and I went to a retirement home on Oak Tree Road for a short time. A woman there who seemed to be waiting for something in the commons room said, 'Why doesn't he take me?' She had given up her choices."
When faced with a difficult time, each of us has said, "What am I going to do?" We have made choices. None of us has stood still. Honor yourself. It is in your hands. Decide to do something. We shouldn't be frightened to age. As John Donne wrote, "Ask not for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee." The choice belongs to you, not to anyone else.
Mary Borkovitz
Mary said, "I spent the first half of my life finding out who I was." She lived outside Philadelphia, married, and raised three children. She had taught music, but that was not for her. In her 40s she decided she wanted to be a presenter. She started a concert series for the hundreds of gifted musicians who are seldom heard – people from the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, from Juilliard in New York and from local colleges came and played in these concerts. And so Mary became the impresario that she is.
When her husband's health became fragile when he was 85, they moved to Rockland to live near their daughter. Here she found CAN. "It was the best thing that happened to me." She found lots of new friends and extraordinary people here.
"I think what each of us here who is 90 has in common is that our basic lives have not changed and our desire is to keep doing what we love to do. I try to wake up with goals for the day." She loves to attend a play or a good concert or movie, take a class, or have lunch with friends.
"And even though the world is complicated and scary, I still want to keep up with what's happening."
She finds that she does get tired, and it surprises her, but she reminds herself that she's not 80 anymore. Because of her husband's needs they now live in a retirement facility. She notes, "Every day you realize that good health is so important to aging well."
Recently her son did a search on Ancestry, and submitted his DNA, only to find out that he has a half-sibling. Mary's husband had had a brief relationship with a woman when we was in the service out west. He never knew that there had been a baby. She was born in 1956, before Pete and Mary met. Adopted at birth, Nancy had a wonderful childhood. She is now 66 years old and has been married for 42 years. They have 3 grown kids and multiple grandchildren. Peter is delighted to find that he has another daughter! She is planning to come east in March to meet her dad. The families are pleased and excited to be united!
Very recently, Mary's great-granddaughter Olivia was born. What joy! Mary will see her in just a few days. There is still so much of life ahead!
Leontine Temsky
Leontine is Brooklyn born and bred. She graduated from college at 19, and married at 20. For a couple of years they lived in The Bronx, which Leontine said is just something a Brooklynite does not do. In 1968 she and her husband bought a house in Nyack, and Nyack has been her home ever since, even as she divorced and remarried.
When the Claremont apartments were built, Leontine soon moved there and loves her peaceful home where she can look out over the Hudson River. An art historian by training, she taught until she was 75. Whenever she has had free time, she has explored all of the organizations and opportunities available in Nyack. She became involved with literacy volunteers, befriended Florence Katzenstein who started the Historical Society of the Nyacks. When the Hopper House was in danger of being torn down, a group came together to turn it into the art center it is today. Leontine was involved with that work from the beginning. In the 1980s she joined women's groups at the start of the Women's Movement. She also joined the Friends of the Nyacks, the Shakespeare Group, and did 30 years of yoga with Paula Heitzner.
Leontine never thought about aging – she was too active. But once she turned 90, she decided, "I don't have to do anything I don't want to do." But of course, she still does so much! In addition to the activities that she continues because she is so interested in them, she enjoys reading, being quiet, and seeing the water in all sorts of ways.
What does it feel like to be 90 years old? It feels terrific! I couldn't wait to reach 90. I attribute my longevity to good genes, good health, good luck, exercise of mind and body, socialization, staying busy, tenacity, and vanity.
I was a fat little kid from a dirt poor immigrant family. Fortunately, Mom believed in education, so I went to college and became a teacher. Then marriage, three kids, a house and a job kept me too busy for anything else. I joined a gym at 50 when one opened up three minutes from my house – no more excuses. Doing 8 leg lifts was tough, but I'm compulsive so I kept at it.
When I retired at 65 I worried about how I would fill my time. I learned to play canasta and mah jong, joined a discussion group, a movie club, an opera group and anything else I could find. Now I could exercise in earnest and started going every morning taking classes and learning to weight life. The gym became my new job. At 70 I learned to spin in my latest gym. After 5 minutes I thought I might throw up or die, but I kept at it and can now ride for 1 ½ hours. I became friends with several co-gym enthusiasts. We formed a book club, a movie club, celebrated holidays together, went to the theatre, dinner, and so on.
With our children grown, my husband and I enjoyed a very full life with more travel time. Unfortunately my luck ran out when my husband developed Alzheimer's and many of my friends moved or died. But my Nyack bridge friends kept teling me to move to Nyack. I was resistant until they told me about a new place being built. I looked at the apartment plans, especially the plans for apartment 305, and I was hooked. I moved to Pavion April 2, 2020 at the start of the pandemic when we were quarantined. I had to get out and get moving! I went out walking everyday for ten miles. I got to know the streets, the friendly dogs, and some friendly people. I was lucky enough to meet Denise Hogan and through her, Dorothy Whitton. They saved me because they picked me up and took me to a different restaurant every other week, and they encouraged me to join CAN.
And now I have the Pavion ladies. They have become my friends and family. We meet daily in the afternoon, celebrate birthdays and holidays, attend CAN activities together, have a book club, and frequently go to dinner together. So now I have a whole new life. We go dancing when there's a DJ at a restaurant. Life is not over at 90. It's a whole new beginning. Lucky me to be so blessed.
Don Monaco
Don Monaco had some excellent advice for us: Look back at the decisions you have made in your life. Don noted that at each point in his life when challenges arose, he moved on. That is the lesson we all need to keep learning: Move on. Don't stop growing. Don't become passive, waiting for what might happen. It is in your hands.
Don said, "At one point my wife and I went to a retirement home on Oak Tree Road for a short time. A woman there who seemed to be waiting for something in the commons room said, 'Why doesn't he take me?' She had given up her choices."
When faced with a difficult time, each of us has said, "What am I going to do?" We have made choices. None of us has stood still. Honor yourself. It is in your hands. Decide to do something. We shouldn't be frightened to age. As John Donne wrote, "Ask not for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee." The choice belongs to you, not to anyone else.
Mary Borkovitz
Mary said, "I spent the first half of my life finding out who I was." She lived outside Philadelphia, married, and raised three children. She had taught music, but that was not for her. In her 40s she decided she wanted to be a presenter. She started a concert series for the hundreds of gifted musicians who are seldom heard – people from the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, from Juilliard in New York and from local colleges came and played in these concerts. And so Mary became the impresario that she is.
When her husband's health became fragile when he was 85, they moved to Rockland to live near their daughter. Here she found CAN. "It was the best thing that happened to me." She found lots of new friends and extraordinary people here.
"I think what each of us here who is 90 has in common is that our basic lives have not changed and our desire is to keep doing what we love to do. I try to wake up with goals for the day." She loves to attend a play or a good concert or movie, take a class, or have lunch with friends.
"And even though the world is complicated and scary, I still want to keep up with what's happening."
She finds that she does get tired, and it surprises her, but she reminds herself that she's not 80 anymore. Because of her husband's needs they now live in a retirement facility. She notes, "Every day you realize that good health is so important to aging well."
Recently her son did a search on Ancestry, and submitted his DNA, only to find out that he has a half-sibling. Mary's husband had had a brief relationship with a woman when we was in the service out west. He never knew that there had been a baby. She was born in 1956, before Pete and Mary met. Adopted at birth, Nancy had a wonderful childhood. She is now 66 years old and has been married for 42 years. They have 3 grown kids and multiple grandchildren. Peter is delighted to find that he has another daughter! She is planning to come east in March to meet her dad. The families are pleased and excited to be united!
Very recently, Mary's great-granddaughter Olivia was born. What joy! Mary will see her in just a few days. There is still so much of life ahead!
Leontine Temsky
Leontine is Brooklyn born and bred. She graduated from college at 19, and married at 20. For a couple of years they lived in The Bronx, which Leontine said is just something a Brooklynite does not do. In 1968 she and her husband bought a house in Nyack, and Nyack has been her home ever since, even as she divorced and remarried.
When the Claremont apartments were built, Leontine soon moved there and loves her peaceful home where she can look out over the Hudson River. An art historian by training, she taught until she was 75. Whenever she has had free time, she has explored all of the organizations and opportunities available in Nyack. She became involved with literacy volunteers, befriended Florence Katzenstein who started the Historical Society of the Nyacks. When the Hopper House was in danger of being torn down, a group came together to turn it into the art center it is today. Leontine was involved with that work from the beginning. In the 1980s she joined women's groups at the start of the Women's Movement. She also joined the Friends of the Nyacks, the Shakespeare Group, and did 30 years of yoga with Paula Heitzner.
Leontine never thought about aging – she was too active. But once she turned 90, she decided, "I don't have to do anything I don't want to do." But of course, she still does so much! In addition to the activities that she continues because she is so interested in them, she enjoys reading, being quiet, and seeing the water in all sorts of ways.
Gadgets, Gizmos, and Devices for Saavy Seniors March 24, 2023 Click to open, click to close
This event focuses on gadgets that are intended to make tasks of our day-to-day life simpler and easier, enhancing our mission of aging in place. Our focus is not on devices for medical conditions nor on those assistive devices aimed at cognitive decline. Today, Rosemary Amabile, Lee Temsky, and I introduced each of these 21 gadgets that are on display and Gail Monaco demonstrated as needed. We were glad to see that several members brought favorite devices and shared them with us. – Marti
Leontine
1. EZ PIK Reaching and Grabbing – https://www.ezpik.com/
2. Kitchen Mama – https://shopkitchenmama.com/
3. Alazco Ring Pull Opener – https://www.alazco.com/search?type=product&q=Ring+pull+opener
4. EZ Door Grips – https://ablelifesolutions.com/product/ez-doorknob-grips/
5. EZ Prescription Bottle Opener – https://www.maxiaids.com/the-ez-prescription-bottle-opener
6. Slice Manual Box Cutter w/ Ceramic Blade – https://www.sliceproducts.com/
7. Slice Auto-retractable Slim Pen Cutter – www.sliceproducts.com/products/auto-retractable-pen-cutter
Rosemary
1. Curve Talking Alarm Clock – https://www.maxiaids.com/curve-talking-clock
2. Dual Handle Mug – www.easycomforts.com/buy-double-grip-mug-347050
3. Hoan Original Bagel Guillotine Universal Slicer – https://www.walmart.com/ip/Hoan-Dishwasher-Safe-Bagel-Biter-Guillotine-in-White/22230527
4. Fanwer – Button hook/ Zipper pull – https://www.fanwer.com/products/zipper-hook-puller-by-fanwer
5. Vin Fresco Wine Opener with Charging Base & Foil Cutter – https://www.walmart.com/ip/VinFresco-Electric-Wine-Opener-with-Foil-Cutter
6. FDK-Talking non-contact Infrared Thermometer (English and Spanish) – https://www.maxiaids.com/search?q=talking+thermometer
7.Nail Illuminating Magnifying Clippers – https://www.hammacher.com/product/nail-illuminating-magnifying-clipper
Marti
1. Anywear Neck Light – www.walmart.com/ip/EZ-Red-NK10-ANYWEAR-Neck-Light/366918203
2. Zeba Hand Free Sneakers (you can put them on without bending) – https://zebashoes.com/
3. Ispuoocti walking stick/cane – www.amazon.com/ispuoocti-Walking-Telescopic-Adjustable-Purposes
4. Byojia Portable Automotive Door Assist Handle – Walmart Byojia Automotive Door Assist Handle
5. LuisLadders Safety Step Ladder – https://www.vingli.com/collections/step-ladders
6. EZ-Riser – https://www.easyrisertools.com
7. Techamior Yzol Portable Combustible Detector (Gail will demonstrate) – https://yeezou.com/product/gas-y201/
Thank you, Gail, for your many demonstrations!
Some Gadgets from CAN Members
Arlene Leventhal showed us magnifying glasses that clip onto your regular glasses to help with close-up needle work, beadwork, etc. Note that these come in various strengths. The link shows classes at a high 5.00 power https://www.amazon.com/Magna-flip-Magnifiers-Converts-Distance-Computer/
Jody Richards showed a sock aid that helps you easily pull on socks without bending over to your foot. These are also available through Rite Aid, Walgreens, and CVS – https://www.myrmsstore.com/collections/sock-aids
Mary Mathews demonstrated a gadget for grabbing a hot oven rack and putting it forward: the Ironwood Oven Rack Push/Pull – https://seasonandstir.com/products/season-and-stir%E2%84%A2-ironwood-gourmet-oven-rack-push-pull
Dorothy Whitton showed us that she uses non-adhesive shelf liner to help open jars. You probably have some of this material at home as shelf liner or rug pad. It keeps things from slipping. Dorothy cuts a circle and uses it to help open jars. I am including a link just so you can see what the shelf liner looks like –https://www.amazon.com/Tonws-Non-Adhesive-Cabinets-Kitchenware-Tableware/
Ann Morgan suggested that the black spaghetti server you have in the kitchen also make a wonderful back scratcher, so get another one for the bathroom – https://www.oxo.com/oxo-gg-nylon-spaghetti-server.html
Leontine
1. EZ PIK Reaching and Grabbing – https://www.ezpik.com/
2. Kitchen Mama – https://shopkitchenmama.com/
3. Alazco Ring Pull Opener – https://www.alazco.com/search?type=product&q=Ring+pull+opener
4. EZ Door Grips – https://ablelifesolutions.com/product/ez-doorknob-grips/
5. EZ Prescription Bottle Opener – https://www.maxiaids.com/the-ez-prescription-bottle-opener
6. Slice Manual Box Cutter w/ Ceramic Blade – https://www.sliceproducts.com/
7. Slice Auto-retractable Slim Pen Cutter – www.sliceproducts.com/products/auto-retractable-pen-cutter
Rosemary
1. Curve Talking Alarm Clock – https://www.maxiaids.com/curve-talking-clock
2. Dual Handle Mug – www.easycomforts.com/buy-double-grip-mug-347050
3. Hoan Original Bagel Guillotine Universal Slicer – https://www.walmart.com/ip/Hoan-Dishwasher-Safe-Bagel-Biter-Guillotine-in-White/22230527
4. Fanwer – Button hook/ Zipper pull – https://www.fanwer.com/products/zipper-hook-puller-by-fanwer
5. Vin Fresco Wine Opener with Charging Base & Foil Cutter – https://www.walmart.com/ip/VinFresco-Electric-Wine-Opener-with-Foil-Cutter
6. FDK-Talking non-contact Infrared Thermometer (English and Spanish) – https://www.maxiaids.com/search?q=talking+thermometer
7.Nail Illuminating Magnifying Clippers – https://www.hammacher.com/product/nail-illuminating-magnifying-clipper
Marti
1. Anywear Neck Light – www.walmart.com/ip/EZ-Red-NK10-ANYWEAR-Neck-Light/366918203
2. Zeba Hand Free Sneakers (you can put them on without bending) – https://zebashoes.com/
3. Ispuoocti walking stick/cane – www.amazon.com/ispuoocti-Walking-Telescopic-Adjustable-Purposes
4. Byojia Portable Automotive Door Assist Handle – Walmart Byojia Automotive Door Assist Handle
5. LuisLadders Safety Step Ladder – https://www.vingli.com/collections/step-ladders
6. EZ-Riser – https://www.easyrisertools.com
7. Techamior Yzol Portable Combustible Detector (Gail will demonstrate) – https://yeezou.com/product/gas-y201/
Thank you, Gail, for your many demonstrations!
Some Gadgets from CAN Members
Arlene Leventhal showed us magnifying glasses that clip onto your regular glasses to help with close-up needle work, beadwork, etc. Note that these come in various strengths. The link shows classes at a high 5.00 power https://www.amazon.com/Magna-flip-Magnifiers-Converts-Distance-Computer/
Jody Richards showed a sock aid that helps you easily pull on socks without bending over to your foot. These are also available through Rite Aid, Walgreens, and CVS – https://www.myrmsstore.com/collections/sock-aids
Mary Mathews demonstrated a gadget for grabbing a hot oven rack and putting it forward: the Ironwood Oven Rack Push/Pull – https://seasonandstir.com/products/season-and-stir%E2%84%A2-ironwood-gourmet-oven-rack-push-pull
Dorothy Whitton showed us that she uses non-adhesive shelf liner to help open jars. You probably have some of this material at home as shelf liner or rug pad. It keeps things from slipping. Dorothy cuts a circle and uses it to help open jars. I am including a link just so you can see what the shelf liner looks like –https://www.amazon.com/Tonws-Non-Adhesive-Cabinets-Kitchenware-Tableware/
Ann Morgan suggested that the black spaghetti server you have in the kitchen also make a wonderful back scratcher, so get another one for the bathroom – https://www.oxo.com/oxo-gg-nylon-spaghetti-server.html
What to Do with Your Stuff April 7, 2023 Click to open, click to close
At this CAN Town Hall, members wanted to talk about what to do with the things that have filled our lives. This extended beyond memorabilia to furniture, records, and all the stuff that fills our homes.
Debra Banks suggested that it is important to honor things that you have an emotional attachment to. Take a photo of the hutch you cannot keep longer, the vase, the thing that has been special to you but that you don't need any more. You can keep the photos, and let go of the things. Declutter a bit at a time rather than feeling you have to go through everything at once.
Jan Cohen recommends the book Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana White. White urges us to think of spaces from rooms to bookcases to drawers as containers. Put your favorites in the container first. When the container is full, let the rest go. White make a distinction between decluttering and organizing. This book is about getting control of the clutter.
Harry Vetter has lots of photos because photography has long been a particular interest of him (and he is a very fine photographer!). He has saved many of his favorite photos to photo books that he has made through Shutterfly.
Mary Mathews and others talked about having your children choose what things they like best in your home, so that you can parse them out over time.
Donna Nye told us that she and Debbie had had sixty records that they would not be able to take with them when they eventually move, but she did not want to put them out on the street. She found a record store in Westwood that was happy to buy all sixty of her records. Here is the information: Music Merchant, 157 Westwood Ave., Westwood, NJ. Phone: 201-666-7777. The owner's name is John.
Susanna Willingham talked about how some things that may no longer be of use to us can be transformed by someone with the imagination and skill. She had some chipped vases and other items she no longer wanted, but she knew that Susan Travis works with mosaics. She took the items to Susan, and from the pieces that Susan broke into pieces, she made a beautiful new vase for Susanna.
Alicia Edelberg does not like to buy new things, but she does appreciate things that other people have taken care of and used, so she enjoyed using the app called BuyNothing. There you can ask for what you want, or post things that you no longer need.
Debra Banks suggested that it is important to honor things that you have an emotional attachment to. Take a photo of the hutch you cannot keep longer, the vase, the thing that has been special to you but that you don't need any more. You can keep the photos, and let go of the things. Declutter a bit at a time rather than feeling you have to go through everything at once.
Jan Cohen recommends the book Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana White. White urges us to think of spaces from rooms to bookcases to drawers as containers. Put your favorites in the container first. When the container is full, let the rest go. White make a distinction between decluttering and organizing. This book is about getting control of the clutter.
Harry Vetter has lots of photos because photography has long been a particular interest of him (and he is a very fine photographer!). He has saved many of his favorite photos to photo books that he has made through Shutterfly.
Mary Mathews and others talked about having your children choose what things they like best in your home, so that you can parse them out over time.
Donna Nye told us that she and Debbie had had sixty records that they would not be able to take with them when they eventually move, but she did not want to put them out on the street. She found a record store in Westwood that was happy to buy all sixty of her records. Here is the information: Music Merchant, 157 Westwood Ave., Westwood, NJ. Phone: 201-666-7777. The owner's name is John.
Susanna Willingham talked about how some things that may no longer be of use to us can be transformed by someone with the imagination and skill. She had some chipped vases and other items she no longer wanted, but she knew that Susan Travis works with mosaics. She took the items to Susan, and from the pieces that Susan broke into pieces, she made a beautiful new vase for Susanna.
Alicia Edelberg does not like to buy new things, but she does appreciate things that other people have taken care of and used, so she enjoyed using the app called BuyNothing. There you can ask for what you want, or post things that you no longer need.
Reflexology - LuGene Be´ May 5, 2023 Click to open, click to close
Reflexology is a science based on the belief that each area on the bottom of the foot, and also the hand, corresponds to a specific part of the body. This is a unique method of relaxation therapy that involves applying pressure with the thumbs and fingers on reflex or acupressure points on the feet as well as the hands and even ears. A single session can stimulate more than 70,000 nerves and trigger points that correspond to your glands, organs, joints and other bodily systems.
Through reflexology, stress and tension as well as pain and inflammation are reduced, and crystal deposits which block the body’s natural pathways are broken down. Reflexology also helps remove toxins from your body. The body uses the circulatory system, digestive system and lymphatic system to remove waste products, and reflexology can improve the flow and movement of these systems by decreasing the stress held within the body and allowing the body to function at its full potential. Afterward your body can respond with increased energy and an overall feeling of wholeness and wellbeing.
My interest in Reflexology began over 10 years ago and I wanted to add it as a service to my small natural health and wellness business. I was already certified as a C.N.H.P. (Certified Natural Health Practitioner) and H.C. (Health Coach) at Trinity School of Natural Health in Indianapolis. I studied and became certified at Body Wisdom School of Massage in Urbandale, IA. I learned I loved doing reflexology, and my clients also really liked it. They loved the results and relaxation of reflexology, so it became a main service I provided.
I grew up in Grinnell, Iowa and attended the University of Iowa as a music major. After getting married the first time, we lived on Long Island for about 1 ½ years and then moved back to Iowa to begin raising our children. I lived in the Des Moines, Iowa area for the past 35, and my two adult children and two grandsons still live in the Des Moines area. Last year I moved to New York with my new husband, Kenneth Bé, for his new position at the New-York Historical Society Museum. We were married last November in Nyack at the Community Center! Other Nyack connections are Kenneth’s sister, Shirley, lives in Nyack, I’ve done yoga with Paula, and have a hair stylist in Nyack!
LuGene then explained Reflexology in more depth through graphics of the hand, foot and ear zones, and through her own personal experience. If you are interested in learning more, contact her at lugenebe@gmail.com. She is offering sessions to CAN members at a reduced rate.
Through reflexology, stress and tension as well as pain and inflammation are reduced, and crystal deposits which block the body’s natural pathways are broken down. Reflexology also helps remove toxins from your body. The body uses the circulatory system, digestive system and lymphatic system to remove waste products, and reflexology can improve the flow and movement of these systems by decreasing the stress held within the body and allowing the body to function at its full potential. Afterward your body can respond with increased energy and an overall feeling of wholeness and wellbeing.
My interest in Reflexology began over 10 years ago and I wanted to add it as a service to my small natural health and wellness business. I was already certified as a C.N.H.P. (Certified Natural Health Practitioner) and H.C. (Health Coach) at Trinity School of Natural Health in Indianapolis. I studied and became certified at Body Wisdom School of Massage in Urbandale, IA. I learned I loved doing reflexology, and my clients also really liked it. They loved the results and relaxation of reflexology, so it became a main service I provided.
I grew up in Grinnell, Iowa and attended the University of Iowa as a music major. After getting married the first time, we lived on Long Island for about 1 ½ years and then moved back to Iowa to begin raising our children. I lived in the Des Moines, Iowa area for the past 35, and my two adult children and two grandsons still live in the Des Moines area. Last year I moved to New York with my new husband, Kenneth Bé, for his new position at the New-York Historical Society Museum. We were married last November in Nyack at the Community Center! Other Nyack connections are Kenneth’s sister, Shirley, lives in Nyack, I’ve done yoga with Paula, and have a hair stylist in Nyack!
LuGene then explained Reflexology in more depth through graphics of the hand, foot and ear zones, and through her own personal experience. If you are interested in learning more, contact her at lugenebe@gmail.com. She is offering sessions to CAN members at a reduced rate.
Food for Longevity - Eliza Conn, Dietitian May 19, 2023 Click to open, click to close
Eliza Conn, MS, RDN, CDN – Dietitian, Rockland County Office for the Aging
Longevity not only means a long life in years, but it also implies quality of life, maintaining an active life style. The main factors that determine our life span are genetics, environment, and lifestyle. Genetics account for 20 to 25% of the chance that you will have a long life, but your environment and lifestyle count for 75 to 80% – and those are things you are able to modify.
By delving into the principles of the MIND diet and by drawing inspiration from the Blue Zones project, we will uncover powerful insights for enhancing longevity.
The MIND Diet:
The MIND diet, designed specifically for brain health, is associated with longevity and reduced risk of age-related cognitive decline. It is a plant-based diet that includes whole grains, healthy fats, red and blue berries, omega 3 foods, and limits processed foods and red meat.
The Blue Zones Project:
Inspired by six regions in the world with exceptional longevity rates, the Blue Zones project explores lifestyle and dietary habits associated with longevity.
It highlights plant-based foods, emphasizing the consumption of vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains, which provide essential nutrients and antioxidants, is linked to overall well-being and longevity. In addition to discovering the wise dietary habits of people with the greatest longevity, the Blue Zones project found that people who tend to live fully and live long had these other habits in common: Move naturally throughout the day, know and nurture your sense of purpose, take steps to manage stress (including meditation or relaxing with a glass of wine), nurture your spirituality, join a club or group (like Creative Aging and our small groups!), and get plenty of sleep.
Both the MIND diet and the Blue Zones Project have main factors in common, including:
Longevity not only means a long life in years, but it also implies quality of life, maintaining an active life style. The main factors that determine our life span are genetics, environment, and lifestyle. Genetics account for 20 to 25% of the chance that you will have a long life, but your environment and lifestyle count for 75 to 80% – and those are things you are able to modify.
By delving into the principles of the MIND diet and by drawing inspiration from the Blue Zones project, we will uncover powerful insights for enhancing longevity.
The MIND Diet:
The MIND diet, designed specifically for brain health, is associated with longevity and reduced risk of age-related cognitive decline. It is a plant-based diet that includes whole grains, healthy fats, red and blue berries, omega 3 foods, and limits processed foods and red meat.
The Blue Zones Project:
Inspired by six regions in the world with exceptional longevity rates, the Blue Zones project explores lifestyle and dietary habits associated with longevity.
It highlights plant-based foods, emphasizing the consumption of vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains, which provide essential nutrients and antioxidants, is linked to overall well-being and longevity. In addition to discovering the wise dietary habits of people with the greatest longevity, the Blue Zones project found that people who tend to live fully and live long had these other habits in common: Move naturally throughout the day, know and nurture your sense of purpose, take steps to manage stress (including meditation or relaxing with a glass of wine), nurture your spirituality, join a club or group (like Creative Aging and our small groups!), and get plenty of sleep.
Both the MIND diet and the Blue Zones Project have main factors in common, including:
- Calorie Control: Maintaining energy/calorie balance promotes a healthy body weight, contributing to longevity. Eat whole grains rather than highly processed grains that have had nutrients stripped away and are higher on the glycemic index. Fiber is a component of complex carbohydrates. Eat until you are 80% full. It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to know you are full, so give yourself time to eat slowly and stop before you feel full. Practice portion control and mindful eating to help manage caloric intake.
- Antioxidants: Consuming foods rich in antioxidants, such as berries, nuts, and vegetables, helps combat oxidative stress, inflammation, and chronic diseases, supporting longevity.
- Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Including sources of omega-3s like olive oil, fatty fish, flaxseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts in the diet supports heart health, and brain function, and reduces the risk of cognitive decline.
- Limit the amount of animal protein you eat. Choose fatty fish, some chicken, beans combined with a complete grain such as brown rice.
- Hydration: Adequate hydration supports cellular function, organ health, cognitive performance, physical activity, and disease prevention, promoting longevity. Drinking water is better than other drinks that need to be processed more by your body for you to gain the benefit of hydration.
- Limit red meat, hard cheese, fried food and fast food to no more than once a week.
The Nyack Opera House June 16, 2023 click to open, click to close
Presented by Mike Hays, President of the Historical Society of the Nyacks
The Nyack Opera house was the key entertainment center in Nyack from the 1870’s through the first decade of the 20th century. Today few people in Nyack even know that it ever existed, and fewer could tell you where it was located.
1870s Building Boom
In the 1870s, Nyack was experiencing a building boom. The first train to Nyack arrived in 1870. Grace Church was built in 1869; St. Anne’s Church was completed in 1870. Commercial buildings such as the Onderdonk Block of stores on Main Street was completed in 1870, and the Commercial Building was built in 1873. The large, elegant Prospect House on High Avenue beyond the current Nyack Middle School was finished in 1872.
The New Opera House
Louis Hoffer envisioned bringing a hotel and entertainment to the expanding community. Born in Germany in 1829, Hoffer came to Nyack in 1860. In 1870 he built a 28 room hotel at the north-east corner of Franklin and Depew (where the Nyack Plaza apartments are now), conveniently located very near the new Nyack Train Station.
Three years later he added the Opera House. The building housed several commercial spaces on the first floor such as a barber shop, a bakery, and a meat market. The theater, located on the second floor, could seat 600 people in a 40’ by 70’ space. It became the center of entertainment for decades.
The Array of Performances
Many of the shows featured professional entertainers of the day – magicians, humorists, singers and clairvoyants were popular. There were also plays such as Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and On the Train, as well as operas and operettas.
Sometimes the entertainment was presented by local, amateur performers putting on concerts, dances, balls, plays, and musicals. Some of these were socials put on by local organizations such as the fire houses.
Professor G.D. (Grenville) Wilson became an important figure in the life of the Opera House and in the life of Nyack. He was a composer and musician who had come to Nyack in 1872. One of his most famous compositions was “Moonlight on the Hudson.” He eventually became a South Nyack Trustee and was an important force in the development of the Nyack Library.
The performances at the Opera House reflected both the positive and negative values of the times. In addition to the shows noted above, the Opera House also hosted minstrel shows. These performances by white men in black face denigrated black people through cruel stereotypes. They had developed during Reconstruction and the days of Jim Crow, a sad time in our history. It is part of the ugly side of Nyack’s history as well as American history.
New Technology
The Opera House was also a place to showcase some of the new technologies. The first demonstration of the telephone before an audience took place at the Opera House in 1877. In 1897 the first moving picture show was presented at the Opera House using an Edison projector. Moving picture shows in those days consisted of projecting things in motion such as a bull fight, a runaway horse, bathers at the beach. These moving picture shows must have seemed like magic to audiences who had never seen motion pictures before.
The Demise of the Opera House
Eventually the Opera House was damaged by a series of fires. In 1906 an explosion in the bar of the attached hotel led to a fire – and to the mysterious disappearance of all the liquor, though the firemen to a man said they did not know how it vanished. In 1909 an early Sunday morning blaze destroyed the whole interior of the theater on the second story of the Opera House, requiring that the walls be demolished, though the first story with its shops was saved. The attached hotel was also saved.
In subsequent years the hotel fell on hard times and was further damaged by a series of fires in 1941, 1948, 1959 and 1961. In 1965 the hotel and any remaining parts of the original Opera House met with demolition and urban renewal.
The Nyack Opera house was the key entertainment center in Nyack from the 1870’s through the first decade of the 20th century. Today few people in Nyack even know that it ever existed, and fewer could tell you where it was located.
1870s Building Boom
In the 1870s, Nyack was experiencing a building boom. The first train to Nyack arrived in 1870. Grace Church was built in 1869; St. Anne’s Church was completed in 1870. Commercial buildings such as the Onderdonk Block of stores on Main Street was completed in 1870, and the Commercial Building was built in 1873. The large, elegant Prospect House on High Avenue beyond the current Nyack Middle School was finished in 1872.
The New Opera House
Louis Hoffer envisioned bringing a hotel and entertainment to the expanding community. Born in Germany in 1829, Hoffer came to Nyack in 1860. In 1870 he built a 28 room hotel at the north-east corner of Franklin and Depew (where the Nyack Plaza apartments are now), conveniently located very near the new Nyack Train Station.
Three years later he added the Opera House. The building housed several commercial spaces on the first floor such as a barber shop, a bakery, and a meat market. The theater, located on the second floor, could seat 600 people in a 40’ by 70’ space. It became the center of entertainment for decades.
The Array of Performances
Many of the shows featured professional entertainers of the day – magicians, humorists, singers and clairvoyants were popular. There were also plays such as Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and On the Train, as well as operas and operettas.
Sometimes the entertainment was presented by local, amateur performers putting on concerts, dances, balls, plays, and musicals. Some of these were socials put on by local organizations such as the fire houses.
Professor G.D. (Grenville) Wilson became an important figure in the life of the Opera House and in the life of Nyack. He was a composer and musician who had come to Nyack in 1872. One of his most famous compositions was “Moonlight on the Hudson.” He eventually became a South Nyack Trustee and was an important force in the development of the Nyack Library.
The performances at the Opera House reflected both the positive and negative values of the times. In addition to the shows noted above, the Opera House also hosted minstrel shows. These performances by white men in black face denigrated black people through cruel stereotypes. They had developed during Reconstruction and the days of Jim Crow, a sad time in our history. It is part of the ugly side of Nyack’s history as well as American history.
New Technology
The Opera House was also a place to showcase some of the new technologies. The first demonstration of the telephone before an audience took place at the Opera House in 1877. In 1897 the first moving picture show was presented at the Opera House using an Edison projector. Moving picture shows in those days consisted of projecting things in motion such as a bull fight, a runaway horse, bathers at the beach. These moving picture shows must have seemed like magic to audiences who had never seen motion pictures before.
The Demise of the Opera House
Eventually the Opera House was damaged by a series of fires. In 1906 an explosion in the bar of the attached hotel led to a fire – and to the mysterious disappearance of all the liquor, though the firemen to a man said they did not know how it vanished. In 1909 an early Sunday morning blaze destroyed the whole interior of the theater on the second story of the Opera House, requiring that the walls be demolished, though the first story with its shops was saved. The attached hotel was also saved.
In subsequent years the hotel fell on hard times and was further damaged by a series of fires in 1941, 1948, 1959 and 1961. In 1965 the hotel and any remaining parts of the original Opera House met with demolition and urban renewal.
The elmwood playhouse June 30, 2023 CLICK TO OPEN, CLICK TO CLOSE
Presented by Kathy Gnazzo and Carol Napier. Kathy Gnazzo has been a member of Elmwood since 1987 and has served many roles in the playhouse. She has directed, produced, and choreographed several shows, including A Doll's House, Part 2; Broadway Bound; The Boys Next Door; Ragtime; and Jekyll & Hyde. Carol Napier is pleased to have performed in twelve shows at Elmwood since 1992 including Blithe Spirit; Six Degrees of Separation; and Standing Room Only. She has also served in various roles including producer, backstage crew member, opening night party committee member, and recently as board secretary.
Mission & Vision
Elmwood Community Playhouse provides a local, intimate setting for live theatre (with only 99 seats!) – a place to share the stories that connect our lives. It provides quality theatre in a local setting at a reasonable price. It also provides opportunities for creative expression. We also enjoy collaborating with other local organizations such as Music for Life and ARC.
Our Facility & History
Founded as the Rockland Community Theatre in 1947, we bought the building on Park Street in 1957. The Elmwood Playhouse theater complex consists of 4 buildings that include a 99-seat performing space, lobby and hospitality center, 3 rehearsal studios, dressing rooms, green room, multifunction rooms, a large scenic shop and storage rooms for sets, lighting, costumes and props. These buildings were once a church – which is our main stage, a taxi office, a beer distributor, and a hairdresser shop among other things. If you go on our website, you can get the entire history of Elmwood
Productions
We are currently in production for Sherlock Holmes: A Showcase that opens on July 14th. Next season we will be featuring Dracula, Claybourne Park, Italian-American Reconciliation, Fun Home, and The Play That Goes Wrong.
There is opportunity to volunteer at Elmwood not just onstage but backstage and in the production elements such as set construction, lighting, costumes, running crew and the like.
The People
We are an intergenerational group with volunteers and members that range in age from high school to retirees and all ages in between. This gives people of various life experiences the chance to interact and learn from each other.
We are also a laboratory for people to hone their skills and craft and we have “graduates” that have gone on to professional careers … Peggy Eisenhauer, Luba Mason, Peter Gregus and others who had professional careers and came back to work at Elmwood again.
Here is the link to Elmwood's website: https://www.elmwoodplayhouse.com/
Mission & Vision
Elmwood Community Playhouse provides a local, intimate setting for live theatre (with only 99 seats!) – a place to share the stories that connect our lives. It provides quality theatre in a local setting at a reasonable price. It also provides opportunities for creative expression. We also enjoy collaborating with other local organizations such as Music for Life and ARC.
Our Facility & History
Founded as the Rockland Community Theatre in 1947, we bought the building on Park Street in 1957. The Elmwood Playhouse theater complex consists of 4 buildings that include a 99-seat performing space, lobby and hospitality center, 3 rehearsal studios, dressing rooms, green room, multifunction rooms, a large scenic shop and storage rooms for sets, lighting, costumes and props. These buildings were once a church – which is our main stage, a taxi office, a beer distributor, and a hairdresser shop among other things. If you go on our website, you can get the entire history of Elmwood
Productions
We are currently in production for Sherlock Holmes: A Showcase that opens on July 14th. Next season we will be featuring Dracula, Claybourne Park, Italian-American Reconciliation, Fun Home, and The Play That Goes Wrong.
There is opportunity to volunteer at Elmwood not just onstage but backstage and in the production elements such as set construction, lighting, costumes, running crew and the like.
The People
We are an intergenerational group with volunteers and members that range in age from high school to retirees and all ages in between. This gives people of various life experiences the chance to interact and learn from each other.
We are also a laboratory for people to hone their skills and craft and we have “graduates” that have gone on to professional careers … Peggy Eisenhauer, Luba Mason, Peter Gregus and others who had professional careers and came back to work at Elmwood again.
Here is the link to Elmwood's website: https://www.elmwoodplayhouse.com/
Poetry July 14, 2023 CLICK TO OPEN, CLICK TO CLOSE
Poetry Reading by CAN Members
Judy Ryan, Leontine Temsky, Jane Berkowicz, Gabri'El Stollman, and Marie Thorpe
Monet Refuses the Operation
by Lisel Mueller
read by Leontine Temsky
Doctor, you say there are no haloes
around the streetlights in Paris
and what I see is an aberration
caused by old age, an affliction.
I tell you it has taken me all my life
to arrive at the vision of gas lamps as angels,
to soften and blur and finally banish
the edges you regret I don’t see,
to learn that the line I called the horizon
does not exist and sky and water,
so long apart, are the same state of being.
Fifty-four years before I could see
Rouen cathedral is built
of parallel shafts of sun,
and now you want to restore
my youthful errors: fixed
notions of top and bottom,
the illusion of three-dimensional space,
wisteria separate
from the bridge it covers.
What can I say to convince you
the Houses of Parliament dissolve
night after night to become
the fluid dream of the Thames?
I will not return to a universe
of objects that don’t know each other,
as if islands were not the lost children
of one great continent. The world
is flux, and light becomes what it touches,
becomes water, lilies on water,
above and below water,
becomes lilac and mauve and yellow
and white and cerulean lamps,
small fists passing sunlight
so quickly to one another
that it would take long, streaming hair
inside my brush to catch it.
To paint the speed of light!
Our weighted shapes, these verticals,
burn to mix with air
and change our bones, skin, clothes
to gases. Doctor,
if only you could see
how heaven pulls earth into its arms
and how infinitely the heart expands
to claim this world, blue vapor without end.
Lisel Mueller, "Monet Refuses the Operation" from Second Language. Copyright © 1996 by Lisel Mueller. Reprinted by permission of Louisiana State University Press.
_____________
she being Brand
by e.e.cummings
read by Jane Berkowicz
she being Brand
-new;and you
know consequently a
little stiff i was
careful of her and(having
thoroughly oiled the universal
joint tested my gas felt of
her radiator made sure her springs were O.
K.)i went right to it flooded-the-carburetor cranked her
up,slipped the
clutch(and then somehow got into reverse she
kicked what
the hell)next
minute i was back in neutral tried and
again slo-wly;bare,ly nudg. ing(my
lev-er Right-7/14
oh and her gears being in
A 1 shape passed
from low through
second-in-to-high like
greasedlightning)just as we turned the corner of Divinity
avenue i touched the accelerator and give
her the juice,good
(it
was the first ride and believe i we was
happy to see how nice she acted right up to
the last minute coming back down by the Public
Gardens i slammed on
the
internalexpanding
&
externalcontracting
brakes Bothatonce and
brought allofher tremB
-ling
to a dead.
stand-
;Still)
_____________
I Met a Man
by Judith Rose, a talented Nyack resident
read by Gabri'El Stollman
You see, I met a man
Who claimed he was vegetarian
But in the darkness of night
He ate heart.
He would curl up
All cozy-like
In the fist of my left ventricle
And there he would sit
Sipping slowly
Ever so slowly
On the nectar of my life
Through a straw.
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
His name was Don
(That should have been telling enough)
And he forswore rib- roasts
And coats of fur
But he dined on the heart-meat
Of women.
Never losing a moment to be circumspect
He prided himself on conviction
Arterial fiber
Gelatinous mass
Auricular tissue
Ventricular trash
He lovingly, sacredly composted
(For the meat of the heart is organic).
His commitment to vegan
Ovi-lacto and un-
Was impeccable
Fully upstanding
He honored the fish, the fly, and the fowl
The hare, and the quail, and the pheasant
He shunned sashimi and chicken francaise
And goulash, and meat-sauced linguini.
But late at night
When the vegetables slept
And the moon hovered over the garden
He would take out his straw
Slide down to the spot
And dine on the heart-meat of women.
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
You see, I met a man
Who claimed he was vegetarian
But...
_____________
ANNOUNCEMENT
written and read by Gabri’El Alice Stollman
The phone rang at seven AM. My husband was dead.
I howled like the wind rounding a corner.
Electric fire. A lightning strike seared my insides.
My mouth and eyes were dry.
An arid desert. Still. motionless.
Cactus spines threatening me.
I could hear my eyes blink.
No tears? No saliva?
Would I shrivel in shock?
Be a desiccated tumbleweed blown along the way?
“Mom, I’m going to get his things. You stay here.”
FUNERAL
How did we get to the funeral home?
He was dressed in his suit. I forgot the belt.
He manufactured belts.
I brought one and they threaded it through the loops.
Ritual was by the clock to be ready for the next one.
Eulogy. Poetry. Rabbi’s comments.
Some were late.
Cortege to the cemetery.
BURIAL
A sunlit November day to lower him into the dark earth.
Presentation to me of the American flag. Korea.
Bugler
Day is done, Gone the sun,
From the lake, From the Hill,
From the sky. All is well, Safely rest,
G-d is nigh.
Prayers, Kadish, incantations.
“No more Sorrow.”
UNVEILING
Spring.
Unveiling the headstone.
Leaden clouds were our soft ceiling.
No rain predicted.
My children were scorched in pain.
We sang. We prayed.
“The song is ended but the melody lingers on,”
Carved in the pink granite stone.
Mockingbird alighted on a tree branch
And serenaded with a passionate aria.
I thought his breast would split open with fervor.
A wide oval opened in the grey sky above us.
Streams of radiant sun beams like a giant maypole
Descended toward us.
G-d is nigh.
_____________
Digging
by Seamus Heaney
ready by Marie Thorpe
Between my finger and my thumb
The squat pen rests; snug as a gun.
Under my window, a clean rasping sound When the spade sinks into gravelly
ground: My father, digging. I look down
Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds Bends low, comes up twenty years
away Stooping in rhythm through potato drills Where he was digging.
The coarse boot nestled on the lug, the shaft
Against the inside knee was levered firmly.
He rooted out tall tops, buried the bright edge deep
To scatter new potatoes that we picked,
Loving their cool hardness in our hands.
By God, the old man could handle a spade. Just like his old man.
My grandfather cut more turf in a day
Than any other man on Toner’s bog.
Once I carried him milk in a bottle
Corked sloppily with paper. He straightened up
To drink it, then fell to right away
Nicking and slicing neatly, heaving sods
Over his shoulder, going down and down
For the good turf. Digging.
The cold smell of potato mould, the squelch and slap
Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge
Through living roots awaken in my head.
But I’ve no spade to follow men like them.
Between my finger and my thumb
The squat pen rests.
I’ll dig with it.
Seamus Heaney, "Digging" from Death of a Naturalist. Copyright 1966 by
Seamus Heaney. Used by permission of Farrar, Straus & Giroux, LLC,
https://us.macmillan.com/search?searchType=products&q=Seamus+Heaney+Death+of+a+Naturalist. All rights reserved.
_____________
A Small Needful Fact
by Ross Gay
read by Judy Ryan
Is that Eric Garner worked
for some time for the Parks and Rec.
Horticultural Department, which means,
perhaps, that with his very large hands,
perhaps, in all likelihood,
he put gently into the earth
some plants which, most likely,
some of them, in all likelihood,
continue to grow, continue
to do what such plants do, like house
and feed small and necessary creatures,
like being pleasant to touch and smell, like converting sunlight
into food, like making it easier
for us to breathe.
Copyright © 2015 by Ross Gay. Reprinted from Split This Rockʼs The Quarry: A
Social Justice Poetry Database.
Source URL: https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/small-needful-fact
Other poems that were read today include. These can easily be found on the web. Search by title and/or author:
Barbie's Shoes by Hilary Tham
FaceTime by Clint Smith
The Song of Wandering Aengus by William Butler Yeats
Walking in Monet's Gardens at Giverny by Barbara Crooker
Judy also suggested these poetry sources:
Poets.org - Find poets and their poems. You can search for a specific poet, or scroll through. You can sign up to receive a poem by mail each day. Receiving a poem each day will introduce you to a wide range of poets. If you especially like a poem, search out more by that poet.
Poetryfoundation.org - an equally good source of poets, poems, and an opportunity to receive a poem daily by email.
The Poetry Research Guide at the College of Staten Island offers a list of “credible poetry websites.”
Scroll the internet – asking for a poet by name, asking for an audio of work (or a
specific work) by a poet, asking for an interview or a reading by a specific poet. https://library.csi.cuny.edu/c.php?g=917899&p=6614933
Your library, of course! Nyack Library knows that many of its members are poetry lovers.
Browse bookstores, audiobooks, e-books.
Judy Ryan, Leontine Temsky, Jane Berkowicz, Gabri'El Stollman, and Marie Thorpe
Monet Refuses the Operation
by Lisel Mueller
read by Leontine Temsky
Doctor, you say there are no haloes
around the streetlights in Paris
and what I see is an aberration
caused by old age, an affliction.
I tell you it has taken me all my life
to arrive at the vision of gas lamps as angels,
to soften and blur and finally banish
the edges you regret I don’t see,
to learn that the line I called the horizon
does not exist and sky and water,
so long apart, are the same state of being.
Fifty-four years before I could see
Rouen cathedral is built
of parallel shafts of sun,
and now you want to restore
my youthful errors: fixed
notions of top and bottom,
the illusion of three-dimensional space,
wisteria separate
from the bridge it covers.
What can I say to convince you
the Houses of Parliament dissolve
night after night to become
the fluid dream of the Thames?
I will not return to a universe
of objects that don’t know each other,
as if islands were not the lost children
of one great continent. The world
is flux, and light becomes what it touches,
becomes water, lilies on water,
above and below water,
becomes lilac and mauve and yellow
and white and cerulean lamps,
small fists passing sunlight
so quickly to one another
that it would take long, streaming hair
inside my brush to catch it.
To paint the speed of light!
Our weighted shapes, these verticals,
burn to mix with air
and change our bones, skin, clothes
to gases. Doctor,
if only you could see
how heaven pulls earth into its arms
and how infinitely the heart expands
to claim this world, blue vapor without end.
Lisel Mueller, "Monet Refuses the Operation" from Second Language. Copyright © 1996 by Lisel Mueller. Reprinted by permission of Louisiana State University Press.
_____________
she being Brand
by e.e.cummings
read by Jane Berkowicz
she being Brand
-new;and you
know consequently a
little stiff i was
careful of her and(having
thoroughly oiled the universal
joint tested my gas felt of
her radiator made sure her springs were O.
K.)i went right to it flooded-the-carburetor cranked her
up,slipped the
clutch(and then somehow got into reverse she
kicked what
the hell)next
minute i was back in neutral tried and
again slo-wly;bare,ly nudg. ing(my
lev-er Right-7/14
oh and her gears being in
A 1 shape passed
from low through
second-in-to-high like
greasedlightning)just as we turned the corner of Divinity
avenue i touched the accelerator and give
her the juice,good
(it
was the first ride and believe i we was
happy to see how nice she acted right up to
the last minute coming back down by the Public
Gardens i slammed on
the
internalexpanding
&
externalcontracting
brakes Bothatonce and
brought allofher tremB
-ling
to a dead.
stand-
;Still)
_____________
I Met a Man
by Judith Rose, a talented Nyack resident
read by Gabri'El Stollman
You see, I met a man
Who claimed he was vegetarian
But in the darkness of night
He ate heart.
He would curl up
All cozy-like
In the fist of my left ventricle
And there he would sit
Sipping slowly
Ever so slowly
On the nectar of my life
Through a straw.
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
His name was Don
(That should have been telling enough)
And he forswore rib- roasts
And coats of fur
But he dined on the heart-meat
Of women.
Never losing a moment to be circumspect
He prided himself on conviction
Arterial fiber
Gelatinous mass
Auricular tissue
Ventricular trash
He lovingly, sacredly composted
(For the meat of the heart is organic).
His commitment to vegan
Ovi-lacto and un-
Was impeccable
Fully upstanding
He honored the fish, the fly, and the fowl
The hare, and the quail, and the pheasant
He shunned sashimi and chicken francaise
And goulash, and meat-sauced linguini.
But late at night
When the vegetables slept
And the moon hovered over the garden
He would take out his straw
Slide down to the spot
And dine on the heart-meat of women.
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
Sip, sip
Aaaaaahhh…
You see, I met a man
Who claimed he was vegetarian
But...
_____________
ANNOUNCEMENT
written and read by Gabri’El Alice Stollman
The phone rang at seven AM. My husband was dead.
I howled like the wind rounding a corner.
Electric fire. A lightning strike seared my insides.
My mouth and eyes were dry.
An arid desert. Still. motionless.
Cactus spines threatening me.
I could hear my eyes blink.
No tears? No saliva?
Would I shrivel in shock?
Be a desiccated tumbleweed blown along the way?
“Mom, I’m going to get his things. You stay here.”
FUNERAL
How did we get to the funeral home?
He was dressed in his suit. I forgot the belt.
He manufactured belts.
I brought one and they threaded it through the loops.
Ritual was by the clock to be ready for the next one.
Eulogy. Poetry. Rabbi’s comments.
Some were late.
Cortege to the cemetery.
BURIAL
A sunlit November day to lower him into the dark earth.
Presentation to me of the American flag. Korea.
Bugler
Day is done, Gone the sun,
From the lake, From the Hill,
From the sky. All is well, Safely rest,
G-d is nigh.
Prayers, Kadish, incantations.
“No more Sorrow.”
UNVEILING
Spring.
Unveiling the headstone.
Leaden clouds were our soft ceiling.
No rain predicted.
My children were scorched in pain.
We sang. We prayed.
“The song is ended but the melody lingers on,”
Carved in the pink granite stone.
Mockingbird alighted on a tree branch
And serenaded with a passionate aria.
I thought his breast would split open with fervor.
A wide oval opened in the grey sky above us.
Streams of radiant sun beams like a giant maypole
Descended toward us.
G-d is nigh.
_____________
Digging
by Seamus Heaney
ready by Marie Thorpe
Between my finger and my thumb
The squat pen rests; snug as a gun.
Under my window, a clean rasping sound When the spade sinks into gravelly
ground: My father, digging. I look down
Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds Bends low, comes up twenty years
away Stooping in rhythm through potato drills Where he was digging.
The coarse boot nestled on the lug, the shaft
Against the inside knee was levered firmly.
He rooted out tall tops, buried the bright edge deep
To scatter new potatoes that we picked,
Loving their cool hardness in our hands.
By God, the old man could handle a spade. Just like his old man.
My grandfather cut more turf in a day
Than any other man on Toner’s bog.
Once I carried him milk in a bottle
Corked sloppily with paper. He straightened up
To drink it, then fell to right away
Nicking and slicing neatly, heaving sods
Over his shoulder, going down and down
For the good turf. Digging.
The cold smell of potato mould, the squelch and slap
Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge
Through living roots awaken in my head.
But I’ve no spade to follow men like them.
Between my finger and my thumb
The squat pen rests.
I’ll dig with it.
Seamus Heaney, "Digging" from Death of a Naturalist. Copyright 1966 by
Seamus Heaney. Used by permission of Farrar, Straus & Giroux, LLC,
https://us.macmillan.com/search?searchType=products&q=Seamus+Heaney+Death+of+a+Naturalist. All rights reserved.
_____________
A Small Needful Fact
by Ross Gay
read by Judy Ryan
Is that Eric Garner worked
for some time for the Parks and Rec.
Horticultural Department, which means,
perhaps, that with his very large hands,
perhaps, in all likelihood,
he put gently into the earth
some plants which, most likely,
some of them, in all likelihood,
continue to grow, continue
to do what such plants do, like house
and feed small and necessary creatures,
like being pleasant to touch and smell, like converting sunlight
into food, like making it easier
for us to breathe.
Copyright © 2015 by Ross Gay. Reprinted from Split This Rockʼs The Quarry: A
Social Justice Poetry Database.
Source URL: https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/small-needful-fact
Other poems that were read today include. These can easily be found on the web. Search by title and/or author:
Barbie's Shoes by Hilary Tham
FaceTime by Clint Smith
The Song of Wandering Aengus by William Butler Yeats
Walking in Monet's Gardens at Giverny by Barbara Crooker
Judy also suggested these poetry sources:
Poets.org - Find poets and their poems. You can search for a specific poet, or scroll through. You can sign up to receive a poem by mail each day. Receiving a poem each day will introduce you to a wide range of poets. If you especially like a poem, search out more by that poet.
Poetryfoundation.org - an equally good source of poets, poems, and an opportunity to receive a poem daily by email.
The Poetry Research Guide at the College of Staten Island offers a list of “credible poetry websites.”
Scroll the internet – asking for a poet by name, asking for an audio of work (or a
specific work) by a poet, asking for an interview or a reading by a specific poet. https://library.csi.cuny.edu/c.php?g=917899&p=6614933
Your library, of course! Nyack Library knows that many of its members are poetry lovers.
Browse bookstores, audiobooks, e-books.
Tai Chi with Richard Iannuzzi July 28, 2023 CLICK TO OPEN, CLICK TO CLOSE
Ann Morgan
Richard Iannuzzi, an instructor with the Long River Tai Chi Circle, has been studying Tai Chi for over twenty years. Richard teaches classes in Nyack at Grace Church, in Memorial Park, at the Piermont Recreation Center, and in New York City. I have been studying with him for four years, first learning the 18 Therapies, and then, just as Covid struck, learning the 37 Step Form first on Zoom, and, after several months, continuing to learn outdoors with Richard.
I have found Tai Chi to be a wonderful form of exercise. It is graceful and relaxing, and it helps with balance and stability, posture, leg strength, and cognition. Doing Tai Chi with others give one a strong sense of community and an awareness of others and of group energy.
There are many different form of Tai Chi that you can find online and with other instructors. The Tai Chi that Richard teaches is loose, calming, and deceptively simple, without any unnecessary force or tension. Because it is simple on its surface and complex as one learns to go deeper in understanding the form, it remains an interesting and gratifying practice. The movements become part of one's way of being in the world.
Explore his website to learn more about Richard and about Tai Chi: http://www.longrivertaichi.org/piermont/richclasses.htm . You will find lots of information there, including instructional videos. Or to explore the benefits of tai chi in more depth: http://www.longrivertaichi.org/piermont/richWhyTaiChi.htm
You are welcome to contact Richard if you are interested in learning more – email: longriverrich@gmail.com and phone number 845-893-7151.
Richard Iannuzzi, an instructor with the Long River Tai Chi Circle, has been studying Tai Chi for over twenty years. Richard teaches classes in Nyack at Grace Church, in Memorial Park, at the Piermont Recreation Center, and in New York City. I have been studying with him for four years, first learning the 18 Therapies, and then, just as Covid struck, learning the 37 Step Form first on Zoom, and, after several months, continuing to learn outdoors with Richard.
I have found Tai Chi to be a wonderful form of exercise. It is graceful and relaxing, and it helps with balance and stability, posture, leg strength, and cognition. Doing Tai Chi with others give one a strong sense of community and an awareness of others and of group energy.
There are many different form of Tai Chi that you can find online and with other instructors. The Tai Chi that Richard teaches is loose, calming, and deceptively simple, without any unnecessary force or tension. Because it is simple on its surface and complex as one learns to go deeper in understanding the form, it remains an interesting and gratifying practice. The movements become part of one's way of being in the world.
Explore his website to learn more about Richard and about Tai Chi: http://www.longrivertaichi.org/piermont/richclasses.htm . You will find lots of information there, including instructional videos. Or to explore the benefits of tai chi in more depth: http://www.longrivertaichi.org/piermont/richWhyTaiChi.htm
You are welcome to contact Richard if you are interested in learning more – email: longriverrich@gmail.com and phone number 845-893-7151.
helping our environment August 11, 2023 click to open, click to close
Things We Can Do to Help Ourselves and Help our EnvironmentPresented by Harry Vetter and Marcy Denker
Harry Vetter:
Harry Vetter is Chair of the Upper Nyack Green Committee and a CAN member. Here is a link to information about Upper Nyack Climate Action .
We recently had a little get-together in the Upper Nyack Green Committee because it was our fifth anniversary.. The two founding members of this group were none other than our own Judy Ryan and our fearless leader & tireless advocate, Ann Morgan. The environment and longterm sustainability, in my opinion, is the most important issue of our time.
Let’s bear in mind: The Earth will survive for a long, long time, what’s at stake is the quality of life for us humans, our kids and grandkids, and all other life. But we cannot let issues overwhelm us. No one human, no one group, no one President can make a difference all on her or his or their own. It’s fine to do little things or start out with tiny steps. They add up. With combined forces, we all can make a difference. (If others — people or countries — behave kind of like jerks, we can’t control that; let’s focus on what we can do.)
I’d like to highlight just 3 (or so) areas in this forum – call it Creative Action-Taking in Nyack.
One
Our power grid tends to get overwhelmed during times of peak demand. Especially during hot summer days the power company O&R, is under severe strain to keep the system running. During such peak demand periods they may have to resort to using dirty, antiquated, expensive power supply from so called peaker plants. There’s a company, Meltek, that works with the power company to get the word out before the next extreme surge is expected. They are the only company registered in Rockland to provide this service. All you do is sign up or enroll with your phones or your computer. They need your address and your O&R account number. There are no strings attached. It's a win-win. The idea is to reduce your electricity usage during peak events. Here is how it works: you get an alert prior to anticipated peak demands so that you can power things down in your household for a little stretch of time. Don’t use certain appliances at that point, unplug the TV or your laptop for a little while, turn on a fan, set the AC a few degrees higher — anything you can think of to reduce the pressure on the system. There’s usually ample warning beforehand, and it’s okay to pre-cool your place. You’ll share in the benefit by reduced expense and gift cards based on your cut in consumption during peak times. This opportunity to help drive down peak demand in the past was offered to commercial enterprises only, but for the first time now it is offered to regular
consumers as well.You can register at: https://meltek.io/ or app.meltek.io .
Two
Consider doing your laundry in cold water. About 90% of the energy the washing machine uses goes into heating the water. According to the Sierra Club, every
household that switches to cold water washing could eliminate about 1,600 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Plus it saves clothes, leaves colors vibrant without bleeding. Some premium detergents advertise they work better in cold than bargain brands in warm or hot water.
Three
Lastly, I’d like to give just a handful one-liners to consider:
Marcy Denker
Marcy Denker is the Sustainability Director in the Village of Nyack. With Marcy's hard work and leadership, Nyack became the first community inn Rockland County to achieve the status of Bronze certification in the Climate Smart Community program run by New York State that encourages communities to take important steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to a changing climate.
The Nyack Climate Action Plan has three primary goals that apply to all of us, no matter where we live in 10960. These are:
1. Transportation: In order to lower green house gases, we are encouraging people to purchase EVs, electric vehicles, when they are ready to purchase a new car. To make EVs a more practical choice for people, we need to encourage building more charging stations.
2. Waste Management: The Food Scrap program makes it possible to compost all food scraps including meat and oily objects you would never put in a compost bin at your home. "Food Scraps are the single largest component in the Municipal Solid Waste stream (MSW). Decomposition of Food Scraps in a landfill produces methane, a greenhouse gas 20 times more damaging than CO2. Food Scraps are valuable materials that if properly collected and composted can help reduce pollution and improve overall quality of life. Your Food Scraps will be processed into beautiful nutrient rich compost instead of heading to the landfill that is over 320 miles from Rockland County" (source: Orangetown Food Scrap Recycling website). Soon the Food Scrap Compositing Program will expand so that it will be available to us all. Within weeks, Nyack will have a drop-off spot, but you must put your scraps into the bags designed for this purpose. They are available at the Nyack Library.
3. Natural Resources: Planting tress is an important way to mitigate against climate change because trees absorb greenhouse gases, provide cooling shade and have strong roots that help prevent soil erosion. The Nyack Tree Program has planted 350 trees, now with support from the Village of Nyack. Also, because climate change and chemicals can threaten bees and other pollinators, we want to plant pollinators such as butterfly bushes and the milkweed that sustains Monarch butterflies. Here is a website all about pollinator plants: https://www.monrovia.com/be-inspired/best-plants-for-a-pollinator-garden.html
In order to achieve a more sustainable environment, it is important that we choose green energy sources for our electrical power. Rockland Community Power is the consortium of communities that have come together to provide green energy through Community Choice Aggregation. It is Rockland Community Power that finds a green energy supplier that will give our communities the best rates. The green energy through this plan comes to us at the same rate each month. The negotiated rate will not go up over the life of the contract. At the meeting today people asked how they would know if they were in this plan? On your O&R bill, turn the first page over and look for Your Supply Charges. in that section look for Your electricity supplier. If it is Constellation New Energy, then you are on the plan that Rockland Community Power found for us - green energy at the best rate.
But then we need to try to use electrical power instead of oil and gas. That means we need to begin to move away from gas stoves, gas water heaters and gas or oil furnaces.
So many of these positive actions have happened because citizens have stepped up, made their voices heard, come together with others to work for change. It is the outreach by volunteers that makes change happen. Sometimes it can be small steps, but they make a difference.
The Village of Nyack's website has lots of good information about what the Village is doing to help create an environmentally sustainable future. https://www.nyack-ny.gov/departments/Sustainability Here is a link if you want to sign up for email alerts from Nyack, https://www.nyack-ny.gov/newsletters. You don't have to live in Nyack to benefit from getting their news, since we are really one community.
Harry Vetter:
Harry Vetter is Chair of the Upper Nyack Green Committee and a CAN member. Here is a link to information about Upper Nyack Climate Action .
We recently had a little get-together in the Upper Nyack Green Committee because it was our fifth anniversary.. The two founding members of this group were none other than our own Judy Ryan and our fearless leader & tireless advocate, Ann Morgan. The environment and longterm sustainability, in my opinion, is the most important issue of our time.
Let’s bear in mind: The Earth will survive for a long, long time, what’s at stake is the quality of life for us humans, our kids and grandkids, and all other life. But we cannot let issues overwhelm us. No one human, no one group, no one President can make a difference all on her or his or their own. It’s fine to do little things or start out with tiny steps. They add up. With combined forces, we all can make a difference. (If others — people or countries — behave kind of like jerks, we can’t control that; let’s focus on what we can do.)
I’d like to highlight just 3 (or so) areas in this forum – call it Creative Action-Taking in Nyack.
One
Our power grid tends to get overwhelmed during times of peak demand. Especially during hot summer days the power company O&R, is under severe strain to keep the system running. During such peak demand periods they may have to resort to using dirty, antiquated, expensive power supply from so called peaker plants. There’s a company, Meltek, that works with the power company to get the word out before the next extreme surge is expected. They are the only company registered in Rockland to provide this service. All you do is sign up or enroll with your phones or your computer. They need your address and your O&R account number. There are no strings attached. It's a win-win. The idea is to reduce your electricity usage during peak events. Here is how it works: you get an alert prior to anticipated peak demands so that you can power things down in your household for a little stretch of time. Don’t use certain appliances at that point, unplug the TV or your laptop for a little while, turn on a fan, set the AC a few degrees higher — anything you can think of to reduce the pressure on the system. There’s usually ample warning beforehand, and it’s okay to pre-cool your place. You’ll share in the benefit by reduced expense and gift cards based on your cut in consumption during peak times. This opportunity to help drive down peak demand in the past was offered to commercial enterprises only, but for the first time now it is offered to regular
consumers as well.You can register at: https://meltek.io/ or app.meltek.io .
Two
Consider doing your laundry in cold water. About 90% of the energy the washing machine uses goes into heating the water. According to the Sierra Club, every
household that switches to cold water washing could eliminate about 1,600 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Plus it saves clothes, leaves colors vibrant without bleeding. Some premium detergents advertise they work better in cold than bargain brands in warm or hot water.
Three
Lastly, I’d like to give just a handful one-liners to consider:
- Take an interest in who’s running for office. We can’t afford elected officials who don’t list climate as a priority issue or who just pay lip service.
- BYOB: carry your own water bottle. Minimize new plastic as much as you can.
- Turn the lights off in rooms you don’t need them. Turn your printer on only when you print.
- Put on a sweater, wear a tank top when in the house depending on time of year to help with temperature control.
- Use up the food you buy, take part in community composting or, if you have a backyard, consider getting a compost bin.
Marcy Denker
Marcy Denker is the Sustainability Director in the Village of Nyack. With Marcy's hard work and leadership, Nyack became the first community inn Rockland County to achieve the status of Bronze certification in the Climate Smart Community program run by New York State that encourages communities to take important steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to a changing climate.
The Nyack Climate Action Plan has three primary goals that apply to all of us, no matter where we live in 10960. These are:
1. Transportation: In order to lower green house gases, we are encouraging people to purchase EVs, electric vehicles, when they are ready to purchase a new car. To make EVs a more practical choice for people, we need to encourage building more charging stations.
2. Waste Management: The Food Scrap program makes it possible to compost all food scraps including meat and oily objects you would never put in a compost bin at your home. "Food Scraps are the single largest component in the Municipal Solid Waste stream (MSW). Decomposition of Food Scraps in a landfill produces methane, a greenhouse gas 20 times more damaging than CO2. Food Scraps are valuable materials that if properly collected and composted can help reduce pollution and improve overall quality of life. Your Food Scraps will be processed into beautiful nutrient rich compost instead of heading to the landfill that is over 320 miles from Rockland County" (source: Orangetown Food Scrap Recycling website). Soon the Food Scrap Compositing Program will expand so that it will be available to us all. Within weeks, Nyack will have a drop-off spot, but you must put your scraps into the bags designed for this purpose. They are available at the Nyack Library.
3. Natural Resources: Planting tress is an important way to mitigate against climate change because trees absorb greenhouse gases, provide cooling shade and have strong roots that help prevent soil erosion. The Nyack Tree Program has planted 350 trees, now with support from the Village of Nyack. Also, because climate change and chemicals can threaten bees and other pollinators, we want to plant pollinators such as butterfly bushes and the milkweed that sustains Monarch butterflies. Here is a website all about pollinator plants: https://www.monrovia.com/be-inspired/best-plants-for-a-pollinator-garden.html
In order to achieve a more sustainable environment, it is important that we choose green energy sources for our electrical power. Rockland Community Power is the consortium of communities that have come together to provide green energy through Community Choice Aggregation. It is Rockland Community Power that finds a green energy supplier that will give our communities the best rates. The green energy through this plan comes to us at the same rate each month. The negotiated rate will not go up over the life of the contract. At the meeting today people asked how they would know if they were in this plan? On your O&R bill, turn the first page over and look for Your Supply Charges. in that section look for Your electricity supplier. If it is Constellation New Energy, then you are on the plan that Rockland Community Power found for us - green energy at the best rate.
But then we need to try to use electrical power instead of oil and gas. That means we need to begin to move away from gas stoves, gas water heaters and gas or oil furnaces.
So many of these positive actions have happened because citizens have stepped up, made their voices heard, come together with others to work for change. It is the outreach by volunteers that makes change happen. Sometimes it can be small steps, but they make a difference.
The Village of Nyack's website has lots of good information about what the Village is doing to help create an environmentally sustainable future. https://www.nyack-ny.gov/departments/Sustainability Here is a link if you want to sign up for email alerts from Nyack, https://www.nyack-ny.gov/newsletters. You don't have to live in Nyack to benefit from getting their news, since we are really one community.
office for the aging Oct 10, 2023 Click to open, click to close
Presented by Martha Robles, Director of the Office for the Aging
The Office for the Aging was established January 1, 1975. There are now more than 70,000 people in Rockland over the age of 60. The Office for the Aging is committed to addressing the needs of the senior population and the care givers through an array of services for older adults. Our primary goal is to serve Rockland County by providing comprehensive and coordinated Systems that foster an environment in which the older population of Rockland maintains optimum health and wellbeing and maximize life satisfaction. We hope to be able to help older adults remain in their homes as they age. Advocacy for and by the elderly is our primary activity.
Our Mission
To foster an environment in which the older adult population of Rockland County maintains optimum health, well-being and maximum life satisfaction.
• Strive to empower older adults to make informed decisions to maintain their health, well-being and maximum life satisfaction.
• Assure caring professional staff are committed to the mission and vision of our department.
• Strive to collaborate with community partners to provide a comprehensive and coordinated system of needed services.
Programs
The biggest program we provide is assessment for in-home care. That assessment determines which services will be provided through the Office for the Aging. Many but not all of these services are provided without cost to individuals who meet certain income levels. Programs include Case Management; Health Insurance information, Counseling & Assistance (HIICAP); Nutrition Education and Counseling; Transportation Programs, and Telephone Reassurance. You will find much more information about programs on the Office for the Aging website, http://rocklandgov.com/departments/aging/
Contracted Services
The Office for the Aging provides a variety of programs either through its own efforts or through sub-contractors. These services include providing caregiving support groups and caregiving counseling, the foster Grandparent program, home delivered meals, CHORE services such as grab bar installation, in-home contact and suport, personal care, respite care, transportation, senior centers for recreation and education, and social adult day services.
Contracted Agencies
We work with many agencies with whom we contract for services. When these agencies provide services through us, the Office of the Aging pays for the services. For example, we pay about $1,000,000 to Meals on Wheels to support the Senior Centers and home delivered meals for our clients, but the broader work of Meals on Wheels is supported by donations from individuals.
Funding
The services provided by the Office or the Aging are funded by the federal dollars from the Administration for Community Living, support from New York State, and support from Rockland County. Private donation are also welcome.
More Space Soon
The Office for the Aging is currently located at 50 Sanatorium Road, Building B, Pomona, NY. Soon they will move to a larger facility in Building F where they will have more space for their work, as well as a wellness center where they will have yoga, chair yoga, tai chi, and space for groups to meet.
The Office for the Aging was established January 1, 1975. There are now more than 70,000 people in Rockland over the age of 60. The Office for the Aging is committed to addressing the needs of the senior population and the care givers through an array of services for older adults. Our primary goal is to serve Rockland County by providing comprehensive and coordinated Systems that foster an environment in which the older population of Rockland maintains optimum health and wellbeing and maximize life satisfaction. We hope to be able to help older adults remain in their homes as they age. Advocacy for and by the elderly is our primary activity.
Our Mission
To foster an environment in which the older adult population of Rockland County maintains optimum health, well-being and maximum life satisfaction.
• Strive to empower older adults to make informed decisions to maintain their health, well-being and maximum life satisfaction.
• Assure caring professional staff are committed to the mission and vision of our department.
• Strive to collaborate with community partners to provide a comprehensive and coordinated system of needed services.
Programs
The biggest program we provide is assessment for in-home care. That assessment determines which services will be provided through the Office for the Aging. Many but not all of these services are provided without cost to individuals who meet certain income levels. Programs include Case Management; Health Insurance information, Counseling & Assistance (HIICAP); Nutrition Education and Counseling; Transportation Programs, and Telephone Reassurance. You will find much more information about programs on the Office for the Aging website, http://rocklandgov.com/departments/aging/
Contracted Services
The Office for the Aging provides a variety of programs either through its own efforts or through sub-contractors. These services include providing caregiving support groups and caregiving counseling, the foster Grandparent program, home delivered meals, CHORE services such as grab bar installation, in-home contact and suport, personal care, respite care, transportation, senior centers for recreation and education, and social adult day services.
Contracted Agencies
We work with many agencies with whom we contract for services. When these agencies provide services through us, the Office of the Aging pays for the services. For example, we pay about $1,000,000 to Meals on Wheels to support the Senior Centers and home delivered meals for our clients, but the broader work of Meals on Wheels is supported by donations from individuals.
Funding
The services provided by the Office or the Aging are funded by the federal dollars from the Administration for Community Living, support from New York State, and support from Rockland County. Private donation are also welcome.
More Space Soon
The Office for the Aging is currently located at 50 Sanatorium Road, Building B, Pomona, NY. Soon they will move to a larger facility in Building F where they will have more space for their work, as well as a wellness center where they will have yoga, chair yoga, tai chi, and space for groups to meet.