Rock Hill Comes Up Short In Quest To Win Gold

Last night Sullivan Renaissance held their annual awards ceremony giving out over $100,000 in grants and scholarships.  Having draw up the plans for Rock Hill's Category C project, I was watching the results closely, hoping the community would walk away with the Golden Feather award, and the $25,000 grant that comes along with it.  Sadly, that hope was not enough, and congratulations to Narrowsburg Beautification Group who walked away with the big prize of the night, with Liberty Community Development coming in second,  walking away with a $10,000 grant for future projects.

Not all is bleak for the hard working group over in Rock Hill.  As the person who drew up the designs for Rock Hill's project this year, was very pleased to see they did not walk away empty handed, winning the award for Best Planning and the $5,000 grant that goes along with it.  If you get a chance, head over to Rock Hill's new Farmers Market location, and appreciate the efforts put into this award winning project.

Congratulations to all of last nights award recipients...any one who participated in Sullivan Renaissance Projects was already a winner.

Sullivan Renaissance Judging Starts on August 9th!

It is that time of year again....Sullivan Renaissance Judging!  Who will this year's winners be, will Rock Hill win the Golden Feather Award with the design drawn out by Sherwood Martinelli...stayed tuned as there will be more information to follow.

Sullivan Renaissance Press Release:

JUDGES TO PICK FLOWER WINNERS

Awards Ceremony on Monday, August 13at SUNY Sullivan

Rock Hill Farmers Market Project

[BETHEL] – Teams of experts from outside Sullivan County will spend August 9 to 12 visiting 25 Sullivan Renaissance projects before selecting winners in three beautification categories and honoring one project for the best overall showing of flowers.  For the first year, judges will also recognize one of 11 long-time maintenance participants for the abundance of flowers in their community.

Judges will also acknowledge projects with stewardship awards for excellence in historical preservation and best design.  All participants will receive completion grants.

The eleven experts – all with past Sullivan Renaissance experience – include individuals with horticultural, planning, community and international knowledge.  This year’s panel includes: 

·         Ted Blowes – Communities in Bloom, Stratford, Ontario, Canada; Immediate Past Chair of the Communities in Bloom Program in Canada; has been a Renaissance judge since the program began in 2001.

·         Nicole Franzese – Director of Delaware County Planning Department since 2000 (with department since 1990); provides technical assistance on comprehensive plans, main street revitalization, zoning review, grant writing, SEQRA compliance, watershed management issues.

·         Donna Harrison – Has judged over fifty communities with Communities in Bloom in Canada, six years provincially and nationally starting in 2000; has also been involved in the judging of The Winter Lights initiative for several years.

·         Michael Newhard – Life-long resident and four-term Mayor of Warwick; artist and partner in Main Street retail store; is an advocate of community re-vitalization, historic preservation, farmland and environmental protection; Warwick was 2003 national winner of America in Bloom and is the 2010 international winner of Communities in Bloom.

·         Linda Onofry – Retired Montessori school teacher at the Homestead School in Glen Spey; grew up and resides in Port Jervis; a 21 year member and past president of the Garden Club of Orange & Dutchess Counties.  

·         Peter Patel – Horticulturist/arborist for the Orange County Arboretum in Montgomery; Certified Arborist – International Society of Arboriculture, Cert. Nursery/Landscape Professional, and member of the Tri-County Nursery Association; owns ArborHeights Designs, LLC.

·         Karen Schneller-McDonald – Ecologist and wetland specialist; Hickory Creek Consulting LLC, Red Hook, NY; provides natural resources planning, wetlands identification, and environmental impact assessment services to municipalities and specific projects.

 

·         Ann Smith – An avid gardener for over 35 years; member of New York Botanical Garden, Friends of Boscobel and the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation; past board member of Cornwall Garden Club; garden associate specialist for Devitt's Garden & Supply, New Windsor.

·         Deborah Sweeton – President and co-owner of Techni-Growers Greenhouses Inc.; published books in Common Sense Gardener series; past OFA board member; chairs Cornell Floriculture Advisory Committee; chaired Warwick in Bloom in 2004; won 1^st and 2^nd prize in Kathy Puhfal container competition at Cornell University in 2007 and the international challenge in 2010.

·         Michael Sweeton – General manager/marketing director for Techni-Growers (clients include Brooklyn Botanic Gardens); NYS Certified Nursery Professional; Town of Warwick Supervisor; President of the Orange County Association of Towns, Villages and Cities; serves on Orange County Citizens Foundation Board and Orange County Planning Board.

·         Tim Stoddard – Has a design degree and lived in Western Europe for years where he pursued an interest in architecture and landscape design; works on projects for the federal government, corporations, community and private homes; lives on Jersey Shore and heads his community Beautification and Landscape Committee. 

Projects are judged for aesthetic improvement, collaboration, youth involvement, permanence and an ability to be maintained. 

Winning communities will be announced at the Sullivan Renaissance Awards Ceremony on Monday, August 13 in the Seelig Theater at SUNY Sullivan in Loch Sheldrake.  Doors open at 6:00 p.m. with light refreshments; the program begins at 6:45 p.m. 

Communities selected as the most successful in completing their Category A and B projects will receive additional grants between $1000 and $10,000.  The Golden Feather Grant of $25,000 will go to one of four Category C projects.  Judges will also award separate grants for “Showing of Flowers” including a special prize to communities that received maintenance support.

Participants in all Sullivan Renaissance programs will be recognized, including: mini-grants, seasonal communities, and environmental initiatives.  Young people will be acknowledged for participating in the intern leadership program.  Scholarships will be announced by SUNY Sullivan Foundation and the Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan Counties.

Sullivan Renaissance is a beautification and community development program principally funded by the Gerry Foundation.  Sponsors include Bold Gold Media Group/Thunder 102, FisherMears Associates, Kristt Company, Robert Green Dealerships, Sullivan County Democrat, The River Reporter, Thompson Sanitation and WSUL/WVOS. 

For information, contact 845-295-2445 or www.sullivanrenaissance.org.

Lots of Choices This Weekend For Fun Activities

Mountaindale's Mark and Kelsey will be the headline entertainment this Saturday over in Rock Hill at the Rock Hill Farmers Market...the gazebo is taking shape, and as always there are some fabulous locally grown veggies, meats and other treats there...I highly recommend the yogurt.  The market is every Saturday from 10-1 PM across the street from the Trading Post.

Don't forget...Sunday is the Sullivan Striders fund raising run for the Mountaindale/Woodridge Rails to Trails...you can still sign up!...Meet up at the fire station here in our hamlet for a great run/walk for a wonderful cause....OUR TRAIL.

The new Trail Brochures are out...if you need some, contact Allen Frishman.

Don't Miss Barnfest!

Debra Winger

Ramsay Adams

INVITE YOU TO THE 4th ANNUAL CATSKILL MOUNTAINKEEPER BARNFEST on SATURDAY July 14, 2012 at 3:00 PM (RAIN OR SHINE)at HILLS RESORT IN CALLICOON CENTER, NY

Admission to Barnfest is FREE.  There will be an art auction, penny social as well as a vintage clothing collection.  And of course Catskill food for purchase and fun activities for the whole family.

 

Opening of Rock Hill Farmers Market Huge Success

The Full Parking Lot Says It All

Yesterday was the official opening of the 2012 Rock Hill Farmers Market, and saying it was successful would be an under statement.  The parking lot was filled to capacity, patrons were treated to a wonderful array of tasty, healthy, organic food and beverage products (including wine and hard cider), and there seemed to be something there for everyone as the new location took on the feel of a mini festival, a Farmers Market taken to the next level.

I came home with some serious yummies in my short visit there...amazing how a serious sun burn sends you back home for much needed rest.  My own favorite vendor would come down to A)  Tonjes Farm Dairy who makes some wickedly tasty organic yogurts....the Wild Blackberry and Raspberry are ummm ummm good if I do say so myself, and B)  artist and musician Deborah Anne Fisher...I picked up two really nice canvas pieces of hers that I will frame and hang up somewhere in my apartment.  

There was live music under a K-D canopy, and cannot wait till the new gazebo is on site.  There were homemade organic soaps, fresh raised organic meats and treats, even pony rides for the kids.  They say one picture is worth a 1,000 words, so rather than keep typing, let me share a few photographs of the grand opening event.  Make sure you visit every Saturday...it is a great way to support our LOCAL FARMERS.

Yes, Even The Kids Got In On The Act

Pony Rides...Some Need Convincing

Fresh Organically Grown Produce

Even Otto Was Having Great Time

Get Out And Garden Day ROCK HILL

Just reminding everyone that this Saturday, May 19, 2012 is the Sullivan Renaissance's "Get Out and Garden Day" and we are hoping many of you can come over to Rock Hill and give a hand on this year's Category C project at the NEW LOCATION for the Rock Hill Farmers Market which will be opening in June!

Sullivan Renaissance Press Release:

Volunteers Needed to Help in Communities on May 19

FERNDALE – Volunteers from many communities throughout Sullivan County will be “getting out and gardening” this Saturday, May 19.  Residents are particularly needed to help at work days in three communities – Woodridge, Wurtsboro and Swan Lake – but many communities have work days planned.  Residents are also encouraged to tend to their own gardens on this day.

“Some people don’t realize that most of the public gardens we enjoy throughout Sullivan County are maintained by volunteers, many who have been tending these flowers for over ten years,” said Sullivan Renaissance Director Glenn Pontier, “Now some of these communities need new recruits to help.  The benefits of volunteering include meeting your neighbors and that real sense of contributing to an endeavor that makes the community more attractive.” 

Sullivan Renaissance is helping to organize community work days from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon in the following locations:

• Woodridge: Meet at the gazebo in the Veterans’ Park at the corner of Green Avenue and Tabacynski Road
• Wurtsboro:  Meet at the Mamakating Library on Sullivan Street
• Swan Lake:  Meet at the cemetery on White Lake Turnpike (behind the firehouse)

While no experience is necessary, volunteers should bring their own gloves and tools if they have them.  The first ten volunteers to arrive in each community will receive free tickets to Thunder 102’s “Thunderbash” concert at the Monticello Casino & Raceway that evening.

Other Saturday gardening events include: Rock Hill Renaissance WorkDay from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., volunteers meet in the Trading Postparking lot in Rock Hill; and the Sullivan West Edible Garden Build Day from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Elementary School in Jeffersonville.

Sullivan Renaissance is also planning additional community work days in the coming weeks.  Volunteers are needed to help in Roscoe, Livingston Manor, and Jeffersonville on Saturday, June 2.  A community work day will be held in Woodbourne on Saturday, June 16.  Volunteers who help out at these work days will be entered into a drawing for tickets to see the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and fireworks show on July 7 at Bethel Woods.

Most of the communities are part of Sullivan Renaissance’s Maintenance Grant Program.

Sullivan Renaissance is a beautification and community development program principally funded by the Gerry Foundation.  Sponsors include Bold Gold Media Group/Thunder 102, FisherMears Associates, Robert Green Dealerships, Sullivan County Democrat, The River Reporter, Thompson Sanitation and WSUL/WVOS.  For information call Sullivan Renaissance at 845-295-2445 or visit www.sullivanrenaissance.org.

April Record Month For "Mountaindale After Dark"

Always like to thank our readers, even more so when a new record is set.  Thanks to visitors from 77 different countries around the world, many of them from right here in Sullivan County, "Mountaindale After Dark" blog reach some impressive goals during the month of April.  We went over 10,000 visitors earlier this month, and are fast approaching 13,000 visitors in our goal of reaching 15,000 visitors.  We also have shattered our previous best total traffic month of just over 2500 visitors.  With the last day of April still not over, our visitor count for the month stands at 3357 visitors.  

A very special thanks to everyone who has made this happen.  

Volunteers Doing Litter Pluck

For those who follow us, would like to also share with you a link to a new blog.  Last year, working with the folks at Mountaindale Community Development Project, we created the award winning Sullivan Renaissance Train Garden here in Mountaindale at the entrance to our "Rails to Trails" corridor.  I am sure that garden will be well taken care of, and this year I have moved on to other projects...one of those projects is the "Rock Hill Sullivan Renaissance Category C project over in Rock Hill.  If you would like to watch this new 43,000 square foot project, and new location for the Rock Hill Farmers Market, you can check out a blog put up just for the project here.

We will also be launching two other blog projects soon:

Woodridge-Spotlight on Litter

Save The Pond Eddy Bridge

Again, a very special "THANK YOU" to all of our readers who make it all possible.  If you would like to help us continue to grow, please Plus 1 your favorite articles, Tweet a link too articles, leave us comments, and if you have a blog of your own, or are on Facebook, please share a link to us.