Of the 9 Board members, one person voted against it: then Board President Anthony White, as first reported by Jeff Simms at the Highlands Current. At that meeting, Anthony stated: “that while he recognizes the district has work to do, he felt ‘the statement does not acknowledge the work that the district has already engaged in to address inequities,’” according to the article.
At the BOE’s July 1st re-organizational meeting, Anthony stepped aside as the President, a position he won re-election for a month prior. Former Vice President Meredith Heur was elected President, and Elissa Betterbid, a board member since 2018, was elected to succeed Meredith. Also at that meeting, Board member Michael Rutkoske resigned.
The Board Of Education’s Letter In Support Of Black Lives
The letter has been republished in full here for easy reading. Also find it here for original link. Signed by an 8-1 majority vote, the letter was authored by Board member James Case-Leal, who resigned this week “in order to open an additional space for John Galloway Jr. and Jasmine Johnson, two well-qualified candidates of color, to both be appointed,” according to his resignation letter.
We the Board of Education for the Beacon City School District are deeply moved by the protests and major shifts in the national conversation around race and racism in our public institutions in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and all other victims of institutional violence and discrimination.
We want to take this moment to reiterate our collective commitment to equity in our schools while also recognizing that we still have much to learn and change in order to fully address racism in our own institutions. We recognize that our schools have not always succeeded at this and apologize to those we have failed to serve.
We thank the many members of our community for their work helping to push this to the forefront of our attention. It is an emergency that we plan to address with the utmost urgency
We are scheduling a workshop on June 22 to discuss these issues and develop strategies in the near and long term to ensure that our schools live up to the promise of providing an exemplary education to ALL students. We welcome any input from our communities about how we can best accomplish this goal.
We stand in solidarity. Black Lives Matter.
Beacon’s Superintendent Matthew Landahl’s Response
After the meeting, Beacon’s Superintendent Matthew Landahl issued a statement to the Beacon community via his blog. This email was issued during the summer graduation of Beacon’s 2020 senrior class, and early days of how the district would reopen (has since reopened, and is one of the only districts to attempt the Hybrid in-person learning model).
The full letter from Dr. Landahl is below:
Dear Beacon City School District Community:
I wanted to take a moment to share a summary of my comments at the Board of Education meeting last night.
We Americans have all been witness again to the horror of racism in this country and its deadly impact on Black Americans. As the Superintendent of the Beacon City School District, I will work to put every ounce of my leadership efforts to fulfill the Board of Education’s goal to eliminate race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, and disability as a predictor of student success and to create a stronger Culture of Care for all of our students.
This is hard, tough work and actions are more important than words. There is much work to be done in our community, our country, and our school district to achieve these goals. I especially have much work to do as a leader.
Yesterday morning, I stood on the BHS athletic field and watched and clapped for many of our seniors as they walked across the stage. It was a profound moment because it was amazing to see their families celebrate their achievement but it also brought home to me once again how much we miss being with all of our students, especially now during such a challenging time in our country.
Our first action is to work to reopen our schools when it can be done in a safe and healthy manner. The reopening work needs to focus on the health of our students and staff but also needs to focus on establishing an even stronger Culture of Care for our students and community, so we can all feel welcomed, included, empowered, and engaged. I look forward to future conversations and actions and to work with the community on making us all stronger.
Working with the Mediation Center of Dutchess County to create either socially distanced or virtual “talking circles” for students and possibly parents to discuss race and other issues.
Adding students to the Equity Leadership Teams at district schools.
Issuing an equity report card by July 31 with statistics on the demographics of students, administration and staff.
Adjusting curriculum to make it “more affirming” and “more reflective of diversity” and social-justice issues.
This week, A Little Beacon Blog reached out to Dr. Landahl for comment about what has been done since declaring those directives, as well as to curriculum with Thanksgiving approaching. His full response is below:
“We worked with Dutchess Mediation, teachers, administrators, and groups of students from BHS and Rombout in a talking circle format this summer. They developed a plan to continue talking circle format this school year with more students and staff to discuss COVID-19, racial injustice, and finding more ways to be heard and involved in school. This work will be ongoing and continue throughout the school year. Dutchess Mediation also provides us with support and training in implementing restorative practices in our secondary schools as well and that will continue this year as well. In addition to this, we had an additional group of 25 elementary teachers from Beacon get trained in the Responsive Classroom model this year which helps teachers develop strategies on community and relationship building in the classroom.
”Working with Dutchess BOCES, we are working with Dr. Jevon Hunter from SUNY Buffalo to focus on curriculum development. He will work with ELA and social studies teachers at Rombout and Beacon High School to create a more diverse curriculum and to create projects that focus on social justice issues. He will also work with teachers to audit the overall curriculum later in the school year.
”We hit a technical snag with our equity report card this summer and we hope to have it up on the website very soon in the next week or two.
”Our school equity leadership teams will be incorporating some student representatives as they begin their work this year.”
On May 21, 2019, one of Beacon’s newest Board of Education members, Michael Rutkoske, ran unopposed for a second term, along with Meredith Heuer and Antony Tseng, who were also elected for the first time when Michael was. On July 1, 2020, Michael Rutkoske announced he would resign during a Board of Education meeting, citing work and other commitments, as first reported by Jeff Simms of the Highlands Current. By this time, the racial revolution started nation-wide, and was active in Beacon, with many young people, including recent Beacon alums, speaking out at open mic sessions after protest Marches in Beacon.
Michael Rutkoske was part of a new wave of Board of Education members for the Beacon City School District in 2016, which was a tumultuous year for the Beacon City School District (BCSD). During a decade where the turnover rate of Beacon’s Superintendent was almost yearly, at one point paying $398,000 to buy out contracts of Superintendents who did not stay in the position longer than one year (Poughkeepsie Journal, via FOIA request) parents in Beacon’s school district formed a strong push to remove the then Superintendent, Barbera Walkley, from her position. A petition (read in full here) was filed to New York State Education Department by attorney Melissa Rutkoske, wife of Michael, asking for Barbara’s removal, and the removal of the district’s attorney, Michael Lambert.
At the same Board of Education meeting where Michael announced his resignation, the Board needed to elect a new president - Meredith Hauer - who formerly served as the Vice President. The Board’s former long-time president, Anthony White, had stepped aside a month after winning re-election. Anthony had been the only board member to vote against adopting a statement in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, written on June 17, 2020 and sent to district families. The board voted 8-1 in favor of the letter, which was written by Board member James Case-Leal, who has this week submitted his notice of resignation “in order to open an additional space for John Galloway Jr. and Jasmine Johnson, two well-qualified candidates of color, to both be appointed,” according to his resignation letter submitted September 22, 2020.
Michael Rutkoske is the Senior Manager Capital Asset Program and Project Controls at Entergy Services Inc. for a fleet of 8 nuclear generating stations. According to his LinkedIn page, he is responsible for the development and implementation of the fleet capital portfolio utilizing a risk informed project prioritization methodology including development of strategies to address emergent and shifting project priorities.
To apply for a vacant seat on the Board of Education, download an applications from the District Office and on the district website. Forward applications to the Board of Education by email to bcsdboe@beaconk12.org or by paper application to Kelly Pologe, District Clerk, at 10 Education Drive. Click here for more information.
We did it! Beacon made it through the first week of school, being one of the few districts who is trying the Hybrid system of 2 days at school in person, and 2 days at home. Free meals for all children are prepared and provided by the district Food Services team (funded by the USDA through Dec. 31, 2020), and teachers are creating their own systems of working with their kids. Technological glitches happen, will always happen, and organizational systems will be reworked once they leave paper and are in practice.
Some families who opted for Hybrid changed their minds for health or logistic reasons to be 100% Home, and some families put children into different schools entirely.
As a community, and in the name of public school for all, we are figuring it out. So here is an all-caps HIGH-FIVE to those of you who are knee-deep in it. You deserve extra Retail Therapy this weekend!
THE RETAIL THERAPY GUIDE Edited and Written By: Marilyn Perez and Katie Hellmuth Martin
Restock The Tiny Food Pantries
Day: Any day Time: Open Hours of Library (or any time for the outside boxes at the Beacon Rec Center, or Binnacle Books) Locations: Library, Beacon Rec Center, Binnacle Books
The Tiny Food Pantries are in Beacon, and they are a grab-in-gostyle. No approval. No wait time. Two of them are outside, so are 24/7. But they are limited by who in the community stocks them. This one is in the Howland Public Library, and is bare! If you have un-openedsnacks like Girl Scout Cookies, simply drop them off here. Also toiletries like tampons and pads.
Story Screen Drive-In presents "Jaws" and "Jurassic Park"
Day: Friday-Sunday, September 18-20, 2020 Time: 7:15pm (Jaws), 10:15pm (Jurassic Park) Location: The Park at USC, 724 Wolcott Ave, Beacon, NY
Parking will be on a first come first serve basis. You can arrive up to 15 minutes before your screening's scheduled start time to be assigned a space. Please be aware that you must arrive no later than 15 minutes after your screening's scheduled start time to attend the movie. All admissions sales must be completed in advance by reservation on this site. Tickets sales end one hour before the start of the screening. There will be no tickets available at the Drive-In box office. Information >
Made by Hand Pop-Up Store
Days: Now through September 27, 2020 Time: 11am-7pm Location: 508 Main Street, Beacon, NY Near BAU, Vegetalien, near the mountain
The Made by Hand Pop-Up Store aims to support and showcase local, independent artists whose businesses were adversely affected by Covid-19 by offering them a temporary storefront, observing safe social-distancing protocols, where buyers can discover their work within a thoughtfully curated collection that promotes aesthetic values rooted in social justice, repurposing of materials, and handmade processes. Information >
EAT CHURCH
511 Fishkill Avenue, Beacon, NY Pop-Up Alert!!
NOODLES! Come get your slurp on with Eat Church this Friday and Saturday in their special Noodle Nice-Up Revue (we already ordered ours!). Menu items include:
Fat Guy - Phat Thai Wok (pork belly, shrimp, or veggie, rice noodle)
More Fun - Ga Bun Salad (double fried chicken or mushroom, rice vermicelli)
Big Joy - Khao Soi Soup (chicken coconut curry, wheat noodle)
Location: Marbled Meat Shop: 3091 Route 9, Cold Spring, NY Date/Time: Friday & Saturday September 18-19, 2020 - 4:00-8:00 PM. Information > Eat Church is an ALBB Sponsor!
BAJA 328 328 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Don't let the cooler weather stop you from enjoying a tasty and savory Mexican Gazpacho. Their food tastes so fresh! Some of Baja 328's recent specials also include Crispy California Roll Tacos, Pan Seared Salmon w/ Garlic Chipotle Pea Puree, and Sweet and Sour Chicken Wrap. Tuesday - Thursday: 4-9pm Friday - Saturday: 12pm-10pm Sunday: 12pm-8pm Follow on Instagram > Baja 328 is an ALBB Sponsor!
MEYERS OLD DUTCH
184 Main Street, Beacon, NY
At Meyers Old Dutch it's more than just mouth watering burgers. They got something for your sweet tooth too! Straight out of the oven, take your pick! They're open until 9pm. Did you hear that, Late Night Eaters? 9pm. You can also order online for take out or delivery via Toast. PS: If you order a salad for lunch, you can finish it with a cookie. More > Meyers Old Dutch is an ALBB Sponsor!
HOMESPUN
232 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Homespun is quickly becoming your destination for very special beer and wine. Once famous for their soups, you can also count on them for new craft beer discoveries. ‘Watermelon Glow Up’ is a Berliner Weisse style, a low alcohol wheat beer style that was very popular in Berlin during the 19th Century. Cloudy, sour, buzzy, happy.
Try it, and let us know what you think!
Also dine in Homespun's adorable parklet out front, or their garden in the back. More > Homespun is an ALBB Sponsor!
HUDSON VALLEY FOOD HALL
288 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Keep it spicy at Momo Valley inside the Hudson Valley Food Hall. Handcrafted Spicy Grass-fed Beef MoMo available for online or pickup orders.
Special for serious spicy food enthusiasts.
Thoughtfully sourced locally @marbledmeatshop
We love collaborations! PS: Do pick up a mango lassi to-go while you're there. Hudson Valley Food Hall is an ALBB Sponsor!
LUXE OPTIQUE
181-183 Main Street, Beacon
How about an accessory for your accessory? Like this eye-catching glasses chain by @emmanuellekhanh. Designing iconic eyewear since 1969, handcrafted in France & Japan. The precious mesh of the Creole chain combined with sunglasses with straight lines for an oversized look. Go Shopping > Luxe Optique is a Sponsor, thank you!
BINNACLE BOOKS
321 Main Street, Beacon
There is a continuous stream of new books being added to Binnacle Books. One visit isn't enough! Binnacle Books shares "We're grateful for our shop, and for you all, and for the staunch and persistent nature of reality which, despite fear and demagoguery, stands strong and belongs entirely to itself, bolstered by good will in wild dreams and cold, hard facts alike." Information > Binnacle Books is a ALBB Sponsor, thank you!
LA MÉRE CLOTHING AND GOODS
436 Main Street, Beacon
Who else is loving this Fummer weather? Don't know what this is? That perfect time between Summer and Fall. 🏻 You can shop online at https://lamereclothingandgoods.com/ 24/7. Wednesday- Saturday: 11am-6pm Sunday: 12pm-5pm PS: You'll find a Shopping Bar in the store, in case you needed a quick sip of wine while you shop. Information> La Mere is a ALBB Sponsor, thank you!
LEWIS & PINE
133 Main Street, Beacon
Stunning. Right? These little beauties are gravel post earrings, which are cast from real granite, preserving every detail and giving them a beautifully textured surface- A little fancy & a little badass. Available in Sterling Silver and 18K Gold Vermeil. Solid 14K yellow or rose gold are also available by request! Go into the store - only open on the weekend! Now is your time. Or shop online. Shop > Lewis & Pine is a ALBB Sponsor, thank you!
COMPASS ARTS
395 Main St., Beacon, NY Elements At Home Dates: September 21 to December 18 (no curriculum the week of 11/23)
For your home schooling needs. A self directed curriculum with guidance from the Compass Arts team. Information >
ANTALEK & MOORE INSURANCE AGENCY
340 Main Street, Beacon
Antalek & Moore's office is open for regular business hours, Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM for those who wish to make insurance payments. Continue to practice social distancing and masks are required for customers and staff.
They continue to offer appointments with their staff by phone or Zoom video conferencing. If you wish to speak to your insurance representative in person, please contact their offices in advance so they can prepare any paperwork that may be needed as well as ensuring the conference room is available to make certain we can practice social distancing.
Thank you for your cooperation and "we are grateful we are able to continue to provide the customer service you have come to expect while we all work through this together." Information > Antalek & Moore is a Sponsor, thank you!
TIN SHINGLE
Tin Shingle has launched a new initiative: "Leave A Review Tuesday"
Tin Shingle is ALBB's sister company, and teaches businesses how to get the word out. As we hear from our small business friends of all sizes, we hear how damaging - or heartbreaking - a scathing online review can be. It cuts to the heart. So every Tuesday, Tin Shingle encourages its newsletter subscribers and social media followers to pick 1 business and leave a good review for them. It's easy to rant and rave. It's hard to remember to speak with positive thoughts. PS: This Tuesday, if you have kids, email anyone in your district to say "Thank You. You're doing a great job. I know you are trying your best." Learn More >
KATIE JAMES, INC.
Designing a website is exciting and involves new possibilities. It can also be overwhelming to conceptualize. Katie James, Inc. wants to be on that journey with you, and wants to put together the puzzle that is your business or venture, so that people can experience it for a strong impression of your brand. Learn More >
CASTING CALL: Paid Gig: Documentary For Being Over 50 + Turning Your Dream Career Into A Reality
A documentary is looking for people aged 50+ who are pursuing their dreams for a year long documentary. The pay is SAG Union scale, and starts at $2670 for participation, and compensation is available for people who join your story. The casting agency NINA DAY is taking submissions now, and would love to hear from you.
PRO TIP: Record your submission on your phone as a video. NINA DAY needs your answers to a few questions. Because this is a casting call, they need to see and feel your energy! Say where you live; who you live with; what your dreams are; what your job is if you have one; or what early retirement has been like. Paint the picture! Job Details >
As families prepare for the first day of school on Monday, a new development was emailed to parents and caregivers from Karen Pagano, the Director of Food and Nutrition for Beacon City School District.
Big School Meal announcement! All Beacon City School Students will be eligible for Free Breakfast and Lunch meals for all school days through December 31, 2020. This can be very exciting for kids, as they see their old meals from school, like School Pizza and School Chicken Nuggets, which seem to have special properties that cannot be duplicated in store-bought meals. In addition to School Scooby Snacks, and other items that show up in the prepared meals, like fresh broccoli. The financial assistance this gives to parents and caregivers is a given.
Kids In Hybrid Schedule
Students in Hybrid schedule will have Breakfast and Lunch meals available in their School buildings on the days they are attending classes. To help with social distancing, kids will be eating meals in their classrooms.
Kids In Remote Learning Schedule (And On Home Days If On Hybrid Schedule)
Meals for kids during Remote Learning Days will be available for pick up at select schools by reservation only. A google form for Remote learning days meals will sent in a separate email.
The form needs to be completed by September 14th at 10am to be guaranteed meal availability on September 16th. Meal orders placed after September 14th will be processed for distribution the following week. Meals will continue to be prepared for you each week until the receiver cancels. There is a No-Milk option, if one wants to opt to not be given the cartons of milk. The milk is usually 1%, and if a family doesn’t drink that version (we drink Whole, for instance), a lot of milk goes down the drain.
Those who had applied for the program did receive a random financial gift on their P-EBT card. While this current extension of the Free Meals Program requires no application, people may still want to apply for the Free Meals Program for 2021, and just in case New York State deposits another $420 of grocery money onto the P-EBT card.
On September 1, 2020, in between sending out correspondence to the Beacon school community about how the Beacon City School District will be opening an unprecedented hybrid learning program during the time of the pandemic, Beacon City School District Superintendent Matt Landahl shared via his Twitter that his father passed away.
Dr. Landahl, who prefers to be called Matt, has young children in the Beacon City School District, and is wearing both hats as a father and an educator. He stated in his message: “Rest in Power Paul Landahl. What an amazing dad, grandpa, and man! I feel so blessed to call him dad and can't believe he is gone. Our last conversation was about how he was so good at striking the balance between family and work. What a lovely man!”
When the announcement of the free $420 food credit to be used at stores was announced by Governor Cuomo, ALBB blogged about it, and then reached out to Beacon City School’s Director of Food and Nutrition, Karen Pagano, to ask how this works with the school’s Free Lunch Program, which she was encouraging people to sign up for back in the spring of the pandemic. People did, who were unexpectedly unemployed due to the pandemic. As of today, 650 people are enrolled in the Free Lunch Program.
As the ReOpening has been happening, some people have returned to work, but not everyone. Can people still apply for the 2020/2021 Free Lunch Program? “Yes,” says Karen. Because government services can be a little complicated, we are going to let Karen explain how it works in her words:
Each District submitted to SNAP or NYS a list of Students enrolled as of March 15, 2020, that qualified for free meals in our district either with:
Income application
Homeless status
Directly certified through SNAP or Financial need based Medicaid.
We do not get notified if families have received the P-EBT cards, so if a family has questions about the card, they need to follow up with the numbers listed in your other article: NYS Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance at 1-833-452-0096 or by email at otda.sm.eisp.PEBT@otda.ny.gov
Meal eligibility for Income applicants from the previous 2019-2020 School year will continue until a new application is submitted, or until mid October 2020 with no new application submitted.
Meal applications for the 2020-2021 School year are available on our District website for parents to download and print a copy - fill out manually and send back to the Food Service Office either electronically or in hard copy. We will also be sending copies home with students on the first day of school if they are attending building classes. We are looking to do a mass mailing for those that are not attending in school classes to get the applications out.
We are in the works for setting up online applications through a program called myschoolapps (students and parents use this now to fill breakfast/lunch money on for their kids to use at school - it’s the digital form of “lunch money”) but we will not be able to have this up and running until likely the first week of September as the company supporting this function is at the moment overwhelmed.
Families should still apply for free meals even if they are not attending in-building classes as we will be preparing grab and go meals with distribution for those enrolled families through a drive-by-pick-up on Wednesdays at BHS and RMS starting on September 16th. Parents will need to sign up for this service through a new addition to MySchoolBucks platform and that sign up should be available by the end of August.
We will be preparing these grab and go complete Nutritious Breakfasts and Lunches for the 3-day Remote Learning coverage as well as 5-day for all remote learning eligible students all with Wednesday distribution, times TBD.
We have certified about 650 students for Free meals who qualify for SNAP for the 2020-2021 year and have sent emails or if no email is on file, hard copy notification to those families about their continuation of free meals in the School year.
We will continue to update this download from NYS SNAP recipients on a monthly basis to capture newly added students receiving SNAP and therefore automatically eligible for free meals.
How Will The Non-Free, Paying School Lunch Program Work?
Currently, the Beacon City School District uses MySchoolBucks.com to handle money on kid’s meal cards. Parents log in and make deposits onto the cards whenever they want to. But how will this work on the Hybrid or All Remote Learning plan for parents who do not qualify for the Free Lunch Program? Karen answers:
“You would pre-order each week - all or nothing. You get 3 or 5 breakfast and 3 or 5 lunches (this will depend on if your child is in school 2 days a week or all remote). If your child is in school 2 days a week, they can also get breakfast as a grab-and-go bring into classroom, and lunch which will be pre-ordered in the morning with choices for meals that will be delivered into the classrooms. Both are optional - both are free for free qualifying students and payment necessary again on account with www.myschoolbucks.com for paying students who do not qualify for the Free Lunch Program. No money at school please.”
Beacon City School Superintendent Matthew Landahl is hosting another presentation of the district’s reopening plan via Zoom on Monday night at 7pm. Details for the call is below. “This will be the same or a similar presentation as last week's presentations,” Dr. Landahl said in an email to parents.
Last Thursday, he delivered another similar presentation, which he says will be posted on the website soon. “We are also looking at doing a final zoom call later this week to update everyone on the state of the reopening plan.”
If you are also attending the regular Monday night City Council Meeting tonight, you could ask your child to Zoom in and report on what they learn, or have the school meeting zooming on your laptop, and the City Council meeting streaming in your earbuds from your phone (via YouTube).
According to Beacon’s Superintendent Matthew Landauhl, Governor Cuomo issued a press release on June 7th, saying he was extending the school budget vote until Tuesday, June 16 at 5pm, which means ballots by mail will be accepted until June 16. Ballot drop boxes are still allowed until Tuesday, June 9 at 5pm.
The person to contact about a missing ballot is the board clerk Kelly Pologe at pologe.k@beaconk12.org. Tuesday June 9th is the last day to get a ballot.
The Vote By Mail initiative for Beacon’s 2020-2021 School Budget has arrived today in the mail. Beacon’s Superintendent, Dr. Matthew Landahl emailed district parents and posted to the district website that ballots should be arriving in the mail this (Friday) afternoon. Details about a delay the district was experiencing in getting the ballots out to the public is described below the schedule published here.
You are encouraged to drop your ballot off in a Ballot Drop Box. The schedule is below.
All ballots must be received by mail or dropbox by 5:00pm Tuesday, June 9th.
Ballot Drop Box Locations and Hours
Friday, June 5 Beacon High School 11-5 Glenham Elementary 11-5 District Administration Building 11-5 Saturday, June 6 District Administration Building 12-4
Sunday, June 7 District Administration Building 12-4
Monday, June 8 Beacon High School 8-5 Glenham Elementary 8-5 District Administration Building 8-5
Tuesday, June 9 Beacon High School 6am-5 Glenham Elementary 6am-5 District Administration Building 6am-5
Ballots are due Tuesday, June 9 by 5:00pm.
The Delay In Absentee Ballots
On May 31, 2020, Dr. Landahl emailed the district about an expected delay in the ballots. The Howland Public Library also emailed their subscribe list with the news. Dr. Landahl explained:
“We contracted with a company named NTS Data to print and mail our absentee ballots to all of our registered voters. NTS Data is a company we have worked with on our elections for several years and many districts in New York State and the area have as well.
”On Friday, May 29, 2020, NTS Data informed us that they were having trouble with our ballot mailing due to an envelope shortage and supply chain issue. This is an issue that about 50 districts in New York are also having with NTS Data.”
This (Friday) morning, Dr. Landahl emailed again to let the public know that we should be receiving a ballot by this afternoon. For this writer, the ballots came. For some of our readers, they are reporting that they have not received it yet, but did receive the promotional postcard about voting. Keep looking in your junk mail. And cross your fingers.
At the request of one of our reader supporters, A Little Beacon Blog complied this easy list of fundraisers to contribute to whenever you want to. Some of these are date driven. Those will be posted to the top. This is a live guide, so refresh the page, and give when you can!
GOING ON NOW - LIMITED TIME
We don’t know of any super fast, limited time fundraisers going on at the moment, but if we missed yours, let us know about it here!
The fund will assist COVID-19 healthcare workers and first responders with expenses and costs, including child care. Donations can be made electronically at www.healthresearch.org/donation-form/ or by check, mailed to "Health Research, Inc., 150 Broadway, Suite 560, Menands, NY 12204." (For checks, the donor should specify the donation is for "COVID-19 NYS Emergency Response.")
Rombout Middle School PTO - Food For Local Front Line Workers
The Beacon High School Softball Program and the Rombout Middle School PTO organizations are organizing this. They are raising money to provide food to local medical workers. As a community, we want to thank them and make them smile! Additionally, 100% of the money raised goes directly to local families while supporting Beacon restaurants. Donate Here >
LIFE IN GENERAL
Beacon Mutual Aid
A group started by Beaconites, for Beaconites, to help with any need anyone has. If people are in quarantine and cannot get food or to the pharmacy, this group can help. People can email, text or call with their requests, and the problem or request gets figured out. Beacon Mutual Aid is also involved with getting people in need free groceries. Donations go towards these causes. There is no ask that is too big, and no one will ever be shamed for asking for what they need. Ways To Donate: Email beaconmutualaid@gmail.com, call 845-288-2559 or venmo: mutualaidbeacon Learn More (English) > or Learn More (Spanish) >
Beacon’s Farmer’s Market is managed by Common Ground Farms, and reaches a lot of people who want fresh food, and who live in economic hardship. They have accepted forms of payment from economic benefits programs including SNAP, and WIC and FMNP checks. During this time of COVID-19, two main setbacks have happened: 1. the open-air market closed and moved to an online ordering system, with delivery and pickup, and 2. the market is unable to take SNAP payments but is using a workaround to make that happen which you can read about here if you need to use SNAP. Donations made to the Beacon Farmer’s Market will help them continue making these leaps in technological advancements (they have already built 2 websites to take online orders), deliver to people in need, and give SNAP users money to use. You can also buy a load of produce for a family in need with allocation of your donation. Donate Here >
A Tiny Food Pantry is a 24/7 open air food pantry with a “give what you can, take what you need model.” Donate food to it by placing the food directly onto the shelves. Donate money to Fareground, who has these locations in their rotation of food security caretaking. Locations: Binnacle Books 321 Main Street; Beacon Recreation Center 23 West Center Street Donate Here >
Fareground, Inc., a charitable 501(c)(3), is a women-run food justice, anti-hunger organization, dedicated to nourishing the community by increasing access to healthy and affordable food by supporting and creating opportunities for delicious meals, education, and volunteer opportunities. They currently are part of the coordination and financial effort in making Free To Go Dinner Bags available for pickup on Mondays mornings at Beacon High School and South Avenue. These are bags of groceries designed to feed a family of 4. Fareground also delivers these To Go Dinner Bags to people who live in housing communities in Beacon. This is key, because families in housing communities sometimes cannot get out to food distribution sites if both parents are at work, or a single parent is raising the family, for examples. Donate Here >
Hudson Valley Eats was started by restaurateur Janet Irizarry, who is committed to making sure everybody eats. She is an expert in food waste and tries to connect people with food. She lists many donation ideas as they come.
A nonprofit organization that has been running a pet food pantry for 8.5 years helping Dutchess County residents feed their pets. They are also involved with the Beacon Barks Parade. Normally, the residents they assist have to meet an income requirement. However, many people right now are out of work due to the virus, and they want to temporarily help them. Pet food is available for pickup on Saturdays. Location: New address is: 1545 Route 52, Suite 8, Fishkill Day: Saturdays only from 10AM – 1PM How To Donate: 1. Drop off bags of cat or dog food during the pick-up hours listed above. 2. Write a check to Safe Haven Animal Shelter, P.O. Box 596, Hopewell Junction, NY 12533
SCHOOLS
Beacon High School Seniors
You can show your support for Beacon’s senior class with a yard sign. The proceeds go directly to the Senior class. Buy a sign for $20 and show it in your yard. Donate Now >
FARMING
Common Ground Farms
LOCAL BUSINESS
A Little Beacon Blog keeps track of fundraisers launched by businesses in our Restaurant Guide, Shopping Guide, and Business Directory. Please browse there, and the link for the fundraiser will be listed with the corresponding business.
The Beacon City School District has been supplying free breakfasts and lunches to any student in the district by way of grab-and-go breakfasts and lunches, picked up on Mondays and Wednesdays at South Avenue Elementary or Beacon High School. Lunches are prepared and bagged on Mondays and Wednesdays to be made at home over the course of the week. Meals have included pizza, chicken nuggets, baked chicken, broccoli and chicken, pancakes and chicken - lots of options.
As of today (4/27/2020), the Beacon City School District is preparing 9,500 grab-and-go meals per week, and has completed just under 50,000 meals so far, according to Karen Pagano, Director of Food and Nutrition for the Beacon City School District.
When and if school resumes, families who have lost jobs can apply now for the Free & Reduced-Cost Lunch School Meals/Milk program, Karen says. Families who have already applied to the Free Meal program and have been accepted do not need to re-apply.
“Once school resumes, the meal eligibility will be what it was before we closed schools,” Karen told A Little Beacon Blog by email. “But, if they apply now for Free Meals, their new application may then assist with their children’s meals at school for the remainder of this school year and 30 days into the next (2020-2021) school year.”
Karen points out that people who have recently lost income and had not applied before because their income did not qualify them for meal assistance might now qualify. “If they apply now while waiting for supplemental assistance - their income levels may qualify them for the Free Meal program. Therefore, now is the best time to submit an application.”
People out of work are still encouraged to apply if they had a large reduction in income but have started receiving benefits.
How To Apply To The Free Meals Program For Beacon City School District
Email the complete application to: moustakas.d@beaconk12.org.
Applications will also be available at the two current meal distribution sites - Beacon High School and South Avenue Elementary and can be returned to these sites as well.
Do not download the application if you have already applied and are already in the Free Meals program. Your work is done!
As of now (April 27, 2020) kids meals from the Beacon City School District continue to be free for all kids in the district while school is part of the New York PAUSE status, and no application is required to pick up a free meal. Details about pickup are here, and include delivery options.
During a press briefing early on Saturday morning, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that he had decided to keep schools closed through the year. The New York Post reported on the announcement, saying that the mayor characterized the decision as “‘painful’ but said keeping the schools closed is the way to keep the coronavirus from spreading.”
Reporter Jesse (we didn’t catch a last name) asked: “Are you saying it’s your legal authority to close New York City schools, not Bill de Blasio’s?”
Gov. Cuomo answered: “It is my legal authority in this situation, yes. That's why when we closed them, we closed them statewide. We closed at the same time the island, then the suburbs, and we coordinated all upstate.”
Important to Gov. Cuomo is connecting businesses opening with school opening. During today’s briefing, Gov. Cuomo said: “I think you have to coordinate the business with the schools. Schools do education. Schools also do daycare, effectively, for a large percentage of the New York City population. How can you say to people: I think you can go back to work in May, but schools are going to continue to be closed, so figure out what to do with your children during the day, but you're going to have to go to work.”
With regard to officials in New York City and the White House saying they want businesses to open in May, Gov. Cuomo’s response was in part: “I accept it. I hear it. I'm not prepared to act on it. I have talked to all the County Executives. Some people believe the businesses will open in May. [Cuomo added that it was the mayor of NYC who thinks this.] Some people think we open in two weeks. Some people until June. I hear it all. We'll discuss it; we'll coordinate it.”
The governor has given no indication that businesses will open in May, and in fact, chastised Broadway’s announcement that it would open in June. During a press briefing this week, Gov. Cuomo responded to a question from a reporter about Broadway: “I wouldn’t use what Broadway thinks as a barometer of anything.”
Whose Authority Is It, Anyway?
Reporters were quick to focus on the whose-authority-is-it angle, with several followup questions and subsequent articles, but the fact remains, New York schools are closed until Wednesday, April 29, at least.
Gov. Cuomo presented his regional school closure strategy: “At the end of the day, the decision must be at minimum for the metropolitan area, hopefully statewide, ideally regional, with Connecticut and New Jersey. That's my goal. Coordinate school and business.”
Melissa DeRosa, the secretary to Gov. Cuomo, explained to Reporter Jesse how statewide school closures work in the executive order: “When we did the executive order with the 180-day waiver,” she explained, “school districts need a waiver if they are going to have less than 180 days of school. We said we are setting them all at the same time. Everyone is on the same schedule. NY PAUSE is extended through April 29. Everyone is on the exact same schedule, and when we extend that, that’s when we extend the 180-day waiver.”
The governor went on to explain his rationale, that he is connecting school closure or opening with when businesses open, about which no decision has been made, now that we are in the apex that has plateaued, depending upon human behavior of maintaining social distancing.
If you want to make a prediction, like if a predicted snowfall is going to result in a snow day, you could follow A Little Beacon Blog’s snow day methodology, which includes keeping an eye on Ohio for weather patterns. Will COVID school closures follow?
Today (Monday) was a good day for those in Healthy Quarantine Life. The sun was shining in clear blue skies. Distance Learning has started for families, and the closure for school and non-essential businesses was extended to April 29, 2020 (CA announced its closure for the year, so is anyone really counting anymore?).
Parents faced Monday with a renewed sense of: “We can do this. I am going to try. I am going to get into the groove with that Google Classroom, and my kid is going to play less Fortnite today. I am going to tell my boss to have less Zoom meetings, because I have to balance this Distance Learning Life.”
This may have proved successful for some parents. Those whose kids go to South Avenue Elementary have Mr. Burke, the filmmaking librarian who produces his news show, The Morning News, every morning for the kids. Usually it is him with puppets and multiple versions of himself acting in different characters. Now that he is producing these from home, sometimes his dog is in the picture.
Mr. Burke did something big. He got all of the teachers to write signs to the kids, and put them in a montage set to music. Give it a watch. It’s OK if you tear up.
UPDATE 3/30/2020: The president issued a directive to extend social distancing to April 30.
Last week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo extended New York State’s PAUSE status to April 15, 2020. During his morning briefing, he stated that he is evaluating in two-week increments. This means many things, including that, “All non-essential gatherings of individuals of any size for any reason are temporarily banned,” according to the state website.
Family Dinners (Outside Your “Sphere Lock”)
On Sunday, Gov. Cuomo emphasized that this includes dinners and gatherings related to the upcoming religious holidays, like Easter and Passover. The Governor took Sunday’s briefing, 3/29/2020, to tell people how he does his normally large Italian Sunday Dinners at 2 pm - with “Mom on Skype,” he noted.
In this blogger’s house, we take the PAUSE to mean we go on “Sphere Lock,” a term we made up in our house. It means you only are within six feet of people in your house. If your family member lives in a different house, and you aren’t on the same social distance patterns, seeing the exact same isolated people, then it’s best to not get together for a big dinner or driveway house party, or to be close with people who don’t share your Sphere Lock rotation. We can be together, but we bring walkie talkies or phones in case our six-foot distancing becomes too far to hear each other.
The reminder of Sphere Lock is illustrated by this tragic story of the family who lost family members after a big dinner, reported on 3/20/2020 by CNN: “Coronavirus kills 4 family members and sickens others after a dinner in New Jersey.” Just because you are close friends or are in the same family, doesn’t mean the coronavirus will recognize that as immunity.
New York State Schools Extended Closure Until April 15, 2020
While New York City schools are closed until Monday, April 20, the rest of the state does not have that mandate. However, Mayor Bill de Blasio thinks that even April 20 is too early. As reported in Politico: “Our first attempt to reopen public schools will be Monday, April 20,” de Blasio said. “We may not have the opportunity to reopen them in this full school year.”
Reported last week by The New York Times was the “first known death” of a New York City public school staff member: Dez-Ann Romain. She was the principal of the Brooklyn Democracy Academy, and was 36. According to the article: “‘She was one of the most innovative school leaders I’ve ever worked with — her students just adored her,’ said Courtney Winkfield, a New York City schools official who mentored Ms. Romain.”
Beacon Superintendent Matthew Landahl also anticipates a later school reopening, and issued that expectation in a letter to parents issued March 18, 2020. In the letter, he gave two scenarios. The second scenario is the one he is leaning toward:
“Scenario 2- The Governor issues another executive order closing schools in New York State for an additional period of time farther into April. Based on the current state in New York and our country, this seems like the more likely scenario. We need to be prepared for a longer school closing than April 1. This is just my opinion.”
The Technical Usage Of PAUSE Pandemic Days
According to the superintendent’s letter: “The Governor ordered schools to use their remaining snow days, snow makeup days, and spring break during this closing. We have 4 unused snow days and 6 makeup days which includes 4 days of spring break,” he said. Beacon’s Spring Break would have begun on April 6, 2020.
Distance Learning To Be Developed By Beacon City School Teachers
This is the daunting, yet exciting part. A distance learning program does not yet exist. Parents are grappling with the feeling of needing to educate our kids, yet knowing that there is no curriculum at home to do this, while the teachers desperately miss our kids, and both teachers and parents are trying to figure this out. Coupled with the fact that parents are working the hardest they ever have at jobs they may still need to do, and doing this with all family members in the house at once. It’s the blind leading the blind, but right now, it is all OK. We’re in this together.
Dr. Landahl told parents in his letter that the teachers will begin to hunker down to develop a plan. Most likely this will be done with parent input, because the teachers don’t know yet what the assignments look like on the other side. For instance, one of our teachers was trying to connect with students to get signed up for a class. I didn’t even know what getting signed up for a class meant. I asked if she could call me, and she happily did. We fumbled our way through, came up with some ideas, and carried on.
In the letter, Dr. Landahl said that he is working with teachers to find “a common understanding of distance learning, develop professional development, and develop a plan.” Throughout this process, Dr. Landahl has quickly navigated to changes that happen at the state level day by day, such as the Meal Plan that is currently being distributed to all kids in Beacon.
As for the future of distance learning, he said: “We have about 100 more questions we need to answer about how we will pull this off, but we are committed as a district to making this happen. I will provide updates on this work on a regular basis throughout this time. A huge thanks to our teachers for dealing with all of the curveballs the last few days.”
Personally, I am excited to be part of the experiment in developing this new distance learning plan, which can hopefully be used by parents when they have kids who are the least bit sick, or when one kid is sick in a multikid house, and you don’t want to send the rest of your kids to school knowing that they might be carriers.
All year this year, my kids’ noses have been dripping with mucus. We had been nebulizing day and night. Now that we are on PAUSE, and are in our Sphere Lock, those noses are clean. We aren’t using as many tissues as I bought (so far). It’s good to look at upsides, wherever they can be found.
Free groceries have been made available for anyone who needs them. This is available to all people, not just people registered in the City of Beacon School District, confirms Helanna Bratman. "Yes! For all people! No age or location restrictions," she said. This is a collaborative effort between Cornell Cooperative Extension, Fareground, Mutual Aid Beacon, Food Bank of the Hudson Valley, Beacon City School District, and Common Ground.
DETAILS:
WHEN: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 LOCATION #1: Beacon High School 10 to 10:30 am LOCATION #2: South Avenue from 10:30 to 11:30 am Please only use one location.
Groceries will be pre-bagged and ready for pick up together with BCSD meals. However, for these groceries, you do not need to be registered with the school district.
DELIVERY OPTIONS
Need the groceries delivered? This can be coordinated with you.
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The City of Beacon entered into a contract with Legal Services of the Hudson Valley to provide increased access to Beacon tenants facing eviction. They may also be able to help with sources of rent arrears assistance. Call the paralegal, Steven Mihalik at 845-253-6953 to inquire.
Dutchess County Helpline. Open 24/7 to take your calls, listen, and give you resources.
