Tioronda Garden Club Honors All Beacon Residents Who Have Served With Blue Star Marker Memorial

2019 marks the 90th anniversary of the Tioronda Garden Club. On this occasion, the garden club is proud to donate and present a Blue Star Memorial Marker to the City of Beacon, to honor all Beacon residents who have served and those serving currently to protect the freedom and safety of this nation.

Armed Forces Day - May 18

The ceremony will take place on Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 18, 2019, at 11 am in front of Beacon City Hall, One Municipal Plaza, Route 9D. Denise Van Buren, First Vice-President General of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and a Blue Star Mother, will officiate at the dedication ceremony and unveiling.

The Tioronda Garden Club welcomes and encourages the public to join in this extraordinary event honoring all the brave men and women from Beacon who have served, past and present, to protect and preserve this great nation.

Blue Star Marker Program

The history of the Blue Star Marker program began in 1945 when the National Garden Clubs (the Tioronda Garden Club’s parent organization) was seeking a suitable way to honor World War II veterans. In 1951, the program was extended to honor all men and women of service in the armed forces of the United States. Rhode Island was the first state to adopt the memorial marker program, followed within three years by 32 more states. The Blue Star Memorial exists now all across the United States.

The event in Beacon on May 18 marks the first Blue Star Memorial Marker dedicated in Dutchess County. The marker measures 41 inches high by 45 inches wide, with an overall height when erected of 7 feet, 6 inches. It will be installed by the City of Beacon Highway Department.

Music Events In Beacon Celebrating Pete Seeger's 100th Birthday This Weekend

Photo Credit: Jake’s Main Street Music

Beacon Sloop Club, near the Beacon train station.
Photo Credit: Jeremy Baum

You won't want to miss the Pete Seeger-inspired song circle happening down on the Hudson River at the Beacon Sloop Club from 2 to 4 pm. The friendly musicians from Jake's Main Street Music, who played with Pete many times, encourage everyone to come down and bring their instrument and/or voice to join in and sing by the river.

If you are new to Pete Seeger and his involvement with the Hudson River, and why there is a celebration of him, know this: He is one of the biggest reasons the Hudson River is being cleaned up. Carrying on his legacy helps ensure that the river stays protected and that cleaning continues even when corporations who caused damage want to pull out. Read this journalist's feature about Seeger that ran in Hudson Valley Magazine after he died.

The Beacon Sloop Club is down by the train station. It's on the west side of it, literally right next to the Hudson River. It's quite relaxing, so even if you don't sing, do go down and enjoy.

Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration at Towne Crier Cafe (Free)
Day: Friday, May 3, 2019
Time: 7 pm
Location: Towne Crier Cafe, 379 Main St., Beacon, NY
The Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration will feature many local, regional and national performers paying tribute to Pete's music and life. The roster so far includes The Costellos, Carla Springer, Jerry Kitzrow, co-hosts Thom Joyce and David Bernz, singer-songwriters extraordinaire David Massengill, Christine Lavin and Don White.
Information >

Celebrating Pete Seeger’s Centennial at the Howland Cultural Center
Day: Saturday, May 4, 2019
Time: 8 pm
Location: Howland Cultural Center, 477 Main St., Beacon, NY
Featuring David & Jacob Bernz, Betty & The Baby Boomers, The B2s, Carolyn Doctorow, Lydia Adams Davis with Annalyse & Ryan, Pat Lamanna and much more! $20 at the door, $15 in advance at peteseeger.bpt.me.
Information >

Pete Seeger-Inspired Song Circle at Beacon Sloop Club (Free)
Day: Saturday, May 4, 2019
Time: 2 to 4 pm
Location: Beacon Sloop Club, 2 Red Flynn Drive, Beacon, NY
Information >

Photo Credit: Jake’s Main Street Music

Several Sponsors Sign On To Support Rock Out 4 Mental Health Concert In Beacon In June

The Roundhouse of Beacon has signed on as the Title Sponsor for the Rock Out 4 Mental Health summer concert, happening on Saturday, June 1, 2019. This show of support for the first year of this event is a big help to getting T-shirts made and helping to make this event possible. One of the first events of its kind, Rock Out 4 Mental Health aims to remove stigma around mental health needs by bringing people physically closer to the resources and services that are available to them in Dutchess County.

Thank you to the rest of the sponsors who have come on thus far, including Gold Level sponsor Key Foods, and Bronze Level Sponsors Aryeh Siegel, Architect; Bob's Auto Repair in Wingdale, N.Y.; HealthQuest; Mid-Hudson Valley Federal Credit Union; Premier Medical Group; People USA; and Tin Shingle.

Only five more Gold Level spots are available, and a handful of Silver Level sponsor spots if you want to get your business behind this event! Click here for details.

Wellness Providers As Vendors At Concert

Vendor spots for wellness providers are still available, and the concert attendees need to know about you! If you are a wellness provider, you can book your spot online here. Food vendors are also welcome! This is a great way to meet new people. There are limited spaces, so do it now.

So far, you’ll be able to interact with the following groups: Astor Services for Children & Families, CAPE, Children's Home of Poughkeepsie, CoveCare Center, Dutchess County Department of Behavioral & Community Health, Empire Concessions, I Am Beacon, Innate Chiropractic (Wappingers Falls), NAMI Mid-Hudson, and People USA.

Getting closer to the big day! It has been a pleasure being on the Planning Committee for this event, and we’re looking forward experiencing the day.

Happy Independent Bookstore Day, Binnacle Books! Last Chance On Their Original Tote Bag

Happy Independent Bookstore Day Binnacle Books! It’s risky for any retail shop to open a brick-and-mortar store, but perhaps even more so for an indie bookstore! Many cheers to Binnacle Books for doing that in Beacon, and for connecting all of us with the printed page and for readings and other book 📖 based events.

It’s also really easy to order any book you want from Binnacle - just tell them what you want over the counter or the phone, they click up some magic, and 💥 BAM, you can pick it up in the store!

Binnacle Books has helped promote other indie bookstores by making available the Hudson Valley Book Trail Map, debuting today in their shop. Plus, this is your last chance to get one of their original tote bags - perfect timing for the plastic bag ban!

Says their newsletter: “Stop by to browse some fantastic recent releases, revisit old favorites, or get a recommendation for something new. If you spend $75 or more with us today, we'll throw in one of our original blue totes with your order. If you ever wanted one, now's your chance: after this run sells out, we aren't printing them again.” 

A Little Beacon Blog is honored to partner with all of our sponsors, but especially so when Binnacle approached us, wanting to sponsor our Shopping Guide. Thank you for having faith in us! Binnacle Books is a Sponsor, but this is not a sponsored post. It’s a “Celebrate Indie Bookstores!” post.

Go give Binnacle some love! Binnacle Books is at 321 Main St., Beacon, NY.

Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration - Honoring A Legend

There is a special event happening Friday, May 3, 2019 to celebrate what would have been Pete Seeger's 100th birthday. The event is FREE for the public to attend, but donations to Clearwater are recommended.

The following is the press release issued by Towne Crier Public Relations in full:

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Please join us on Friday, May 3 - the centennial of Pete Seeger's birth - for a spectacular evening of songs and stories honoring the Beacon songwriter, musician and activist. The Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration starts at 7 pm and will feature many local, regional and national performers paying tribute to Pete's music and life. The roster so far includes The Costellos, Carla Springer, Jerry Kitzrow, co-hosts Thom Joyce and David Bernz, singer-songwriters extraordinaire David Massengill, Christine Lavin and Don White - and the list keeps growing!

Admission is free, but donations are suggested to support Clearwater, the organization Pete founded and loved so well.

Born May 3, 1919, Pete Seeger was a legendary folksinger, musician and activist who called Beacon his home. He was a perennial supporter of the Towne Crier, too, having been one of our first performers when we started out in Beekman, and also played one of his last shows here at our Beacon location in November 2013, just a couple of months before he passed. He was a frequent visitor who also gave us our first food review in Beacon.

Days after his passing on January 27, 2014, we held a special Open Door tribute for Pete and drew the largest attendance in our history! So many wanted to share songs and stories of Pete; it was an overwhelming and emotional response to a beloved icon. He drew together diverse communities in the arts, environmental and activist circles, as well as the broader Beacon community.

Learn more about this event at The Towne Crier’s website.

New Summer Concert Unites Mental Health Resources With Community | Top Sponsor & Vendor Spots Available Now!

The “Rock Out 4 Mental Health” flyer. Room for sponsor logos if you sign up in time!

When Brandon Lillard, a founding board member of I Am Beacon, and best known by Beacon High School alums as the original “Mr. Beacon High,” asked me to be part of the planning for I Am Beacon’s second major awareness project for mental health, the ”Rock Out 4 Mental Health” Concert on Saturday, June 1, 2019 at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park, I said yes immediately.

As a mother of young children, I want to make sure they have a safe space to express their minds. As a new mother in general, I see and experience the mental health challenges that any parent faces. As a person living in Beacon, I have learned from my friends involved in mental health support about challenges that any person can face at any time. Removing the stigma about that is important to me, and as a blogger, I want to improve awareness of mental health support services that are available locally. That’s part of why I started A Little Beacon Blog - to get the word out about what is happening and available here.

The planning for this event would be fast, but we could do it. I Am Beacon’s first outreach project for mental health awareness was and continues to be the yellow ribbons campaign on Main Street, carried out with NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Mid-Hudson. You’ll be seeing those ribbons again this year.

Bringing Resources and People Closer Together Through Music

This concert was created as a vibrant and hopeful hub where people can get closer to organizations who provide a variety of mental health services. The aim is to bring these services to people who may not have otherwise known about them. Usually service events like this are at school functions on a random Wednesday night (I went to one!). Now, the whole family can come and enjoy being by the Hudson River rocking out to music, and getting to know these local services who have changed the lives of so many.

You’ll be rocking out to The Costellos, Noetic, Tony E., Dilson Hernandez, and Charge the Mound while your Co-MCs for the day, Reuben Simmons and Himali Pandya, Special Projects Manager for Astor Services for Children and Families, introduce you to the mental health resource providers who are available to meet during the day. (Insider scoop: Himali’s husband will be performing with his band at the concert)

Here’s Where Your Part Comes In

“Rock Out 4 Mental Health” is currently seeking the following sponsor and vendor opportunities, but time is limited. We will be putting sponsors on the flyer, then printing it and distributing it, so we need to know who’s in for sponsorship! My design agency, Katie James, Inc. and lead designer Allie Bopp designed the flyer, banner, logo and other branding assets, so I have a tiny say on when these go to print (but we can’t wait long!).

Title Sponsor: Only one spot available. The Title Sponsor gets their logo on the banner that will be hanging above Main Street as we get closer to the event, and on T-shirts. We can only print T-shirts if we have a title sponsor. Will your business be the reason we can make the shirts? Claim it here >
Must sign up within the week for print deadline!

Gold Sponsor: Only six available. These sponsors get their logos printed on the flyer, which will be distributed in Beacon and beyond. Logo also included on the event program. Claim it here >
Must sign up within the week for print deadline!

Silver Sponsor: More available, and includes logo on the event website. You have a bit more time on this one, since we are adding your logo to the “Rock Out 4 Mental Health” website. Claim it here >

Bronze Sponsor: Awesomeness. Great for businesses who want to show their support for Mental Health awareness and accessibility. Claim it here >

Vendor Opportunities: Food vendors are welcome, and businesses who provide a wellness-related product or service to people are invited to have a vendor spot down at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park. Only 15-20 spots available. Food and business vendors can register here. Nonprofit organizations can have a spot for free and can register here.

These community projects are what keep Beacon enriched with the depth of community it is known for, and keep Beacon an ongoing advocate for people’s well-being.

Thank you to the following sponsors and vendors who have signed on so far!

VENDORS:

Astor Services for Children & Families
Children's Home of Poughkeepsie
NAMI Mid-Hudson
CoveCare Center
DC Dept of Behavioral & Community Health
People USA
Empire Concessions
I Am Beacon

SPONSORS:

KeyFood
Premier Medical Group
MidHudson Valley Federal Credit Union
HealthQuest
People USA

Why This Concert? Why Now?

“When it comes to Mental Health, it is our belief that the Hudson Valley is ‘services-rich yet information-poor.’ Despite the valiant efforts of many organizations, there is a lack of awareness and knowledge which result in many in our community being left to suffer in silence. ”

— Mission Statement of Rock Out 4 Mental Health

One of the creators behind the event is Reuben Simmons, a founding board member of I Am Beacon, along with his sister, Brooke Simmons, and Brandon Lillard. Reuben grew up in Beacon, volunteering to clean up its streets in his youth, and co-created I Am Beacon to keep opportunities like this available to the people.

Says Reuben of the inspiration to create the “Rock Out 4 Mental Health” concert: “After attending the City of Beacon’s Workshop in December 2018 which discussed the opioid crisis in our area, I felt an obligation as a community leader to do more. I have attended many conferences all over the country in my time as a labor leader, and heard the opioid crisis happening in many communities all over. Hearing the same issues from professionals like Beacon’s Police Chief and Dutchess County’s Behavior and Community Department at the workshop got me to start brainstorming on what could be done to help. Help promote services, help end the stigma, help educate people.”

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Helpline For Everyone

“We hope to reach as many Dutchess County residents as possible to inform them about the many resources available for help and support. The Dutchess County Helpline and the Stabilization Center are available to residents 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is always someone available who can help,” says Jean-Marie Niebuhr, Prevention and Harm Reduction Coordinator.

If you take anything away from this event, or knowing about this event, know this: The Dutchess County Helpline. Available to anyone to use at any time, 24/7. Use it as an information center to find other resources: CALL or TEXT 845-485-9700.

Call or text any time to talk live to a qualified mental health professional. Regardless of the issue, the HELPLINE will provide counseling or link you to services.

Beacon's Egg Hunt In Memorial Park Canceled Due To Saturday Rain

This image originally appeared in A Little Beacon Blog’s Instagram Stories.

This just in from the Beacon Recreation newsletter:

“Egg Hunt at Memorial Park scheduled for Saturday, April 20, WILL BE CANCELLED.

“In keeping participant and volunteer safety and enjoyment our number one priority, we have made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s event due to forecasted weather.

“With no scheduled rain date, it is our hope to raffle bicycles and goodies later this spring at an event to be determined. Stay tuned.

“Happy Easter and Happy Passover.”

To get future updates from Beacon Recreation, you can subscribe to their free newsletter here. Updates include events, classes, After School Program registration notices, and Summer Pool signup alerts.

Common Ground Farm's Opening of the Fields Event

Common Ground Farm invites visitors for a contemplative walk through the early spring fields on Saturday, April 13, at 1 pm. The walk will be guided by Farm Director, Sarah Simon, with reflection and commentary shared from the faith traditions of food access partners and community leaders, including: Rabbi Brent Chaim Spodek of Beacon Hebrew Alliance, Lt. Leilani Rodríguez-Alarcón of Salvation Army, Pastor Ben Larson-Wolbrink of First Presbyterian Church, Pastor Bill Dandreano of Salem Tabernacle, and Sarah Capua.

Everyone Welcome To Celebrate The Growing Season

The Opening of the Fields walk is an opportunity to appreciate the potential abundance of the fields as well as to reflect upon the changes and uncertainty inherent in nature. Farming can be isolating work, and the farmers look forward to sharing the springtime activities on a Hudson Valley vegetable farm. Visitors can park by the red barns and meet the group by the picnic tables. Hot tea and snacks will be provided, and guests are welcome to stay and picnic afterwards if the weather is fine. The event is free and open to all. Common Ground Farm welcomes everyone to visit the farm and help celebrate the start of the growing season.

Farm Director Sarah Simon states, “Both hope and uncertainty shape the beginning of the growing season on the farm. The traces of last year's labor have faded, winter has claimed what was once green and lush, and the farm is just beginning to wake up again as the soil starts to warm and the sun begins to shine.”

About Common Ground Farm

Common Ground Farm is a community farm dedicated to food justice, and donates produce to six different local food pantries and soup kitchens each week during their growing season. This event is an opportunity for the farm’s valued community partners to visit the place where the produce is grown, and to see the fields that will feed their communities from May until November. Many of the soup kitchens and food pantries are organized by religious organizations, and for the event, the farm has invited the leaders of these churches, synagogues, and mosques to share blessings and teachings about nature, food and land from their traditions. There will also be nondenominational teachings and blessings shared by community members.

Common Ground Farm donates weekly to the following food pantries:

• Beacon Community Kitchen

• Fishkill Food Pantry

• First Presbyterian Church in Wappingers Falls

• New Vision Church of Deliverance

• St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Beacon

• Occasionally to: Salvation Army in Beacon, Dutchess Outreach in Poughkeepsie

Art & Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon At The Howland Public LIbrary

“How To Edit Wikipedia” is an event at the Howland Public Library to encourage women to make edits in Wikipedia, the content producers of which are traditionally men.

WHAT: Art & Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon
WHERE: Howland Public Library
DAY: Saturday, March 2, 2019
TIME: 11 am to 3 pm

Happening today is the (so far) annual Wikipedia Editing event at the Howland Public Library during Women’s History Month. The class is provided as a means to encourage women especially to come out and edit Wikipedia, the group-sourced encyclopedia of the Internet. This local event is organized by local library advocate, Ms. Rajene Hardeman, as part of the international annual Art+Feminism campaign. As of last year, only 9% of the edits or contributions made to Wikipedia were made by women.

This can change! Half of the battle is probably not knowing where to start with how to edit. This class aims to change that. A tutorial of how to enter Wikipedia to make an edit kicks off the day, and from 12 to 3 pm, an open edit session happens, where people can sit and edit.

All people are encouraged to attend, regardless of gender, and bringing your own laptop is encouraged.

Last year, our writer Catherine Sweet wrote about the event for A Little Beacon Blog, and explored the gender gap in who is making the edits in this globally used information center.

2019 Martin Luther King Day Parade and Events Rescheduled Due To Snowstorm

Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin

Due to the snowstorm, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration with the Southern Dutchess Coalition at the Springfield Baptist Church has been rescheduled to Saturday, February 16. February is also Black History Month, the Southern Dutchess Coalition has noted.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Springfield Baptist Church
Day: RESCHEDULED DUE TO SNOW:
Saturday, February 16, 2019
Location: Springfield Baptist Church, 8 Mattie Cooper Square, Beacon, NY
Times:
8 am: Community Breakfast
9:30 am: Ceremony and Annual Singing Parade and Civil Rights March.
Read the Poughkeepsie Journal article about last year's parade, with several quotes from participants.

Mid-Hudson Children’s Museum to Offer 2nd “Free Pizza and Play Night” for Families of Federal Workers Affected by Government Shutdown

The first free Pizza and Play Night from The Mid-Hudson Children’s Museum was appreciated by many. The museum has decided to host a second one. Local families of federal employees affected by the current government shutdown are invited to a second night of free pizza and play on Wednesday, January 16, from 5 to 8 pm. The first event, held on Thursday, January 10, was well-received. "Attendees at our event last week were very happy to see fellow employees, and meet others who are in the same situation,” said Lara Litchfield-Kimber, executive director of the museum. "We had some older children attend also. We had some STEM activities set up for them to do. Everyone had fun."

Those who participated in the museum’s first free night for federal employees are encouraged to attend again. New families are also welcome for a night of food and fellowship. A buffet dinner will be provided, including pizza generously donated by Chef Joel Trocino of Amici’s Restaurant, 35 Main St., Poughkeepsie.

Free admission to the event is for two adults (one of whom must be a federal employee) and their children living in same household. Couples, singles and seniors without children are also welcome to attend this event and join in for dinner, conversation and play. The event is free, but pre-registration is required. Tickets may be reserved online at http://bit.ly/MHCMFederalFreeNight or by calling the museum during business hours at (845) 471-0589.

The museum is located in the heart of the historic waterfront in Poughkeepsie, nestled between two city parks, just steps away from the Poughkeepsie Metro-North train station and fabulous restaurants.

40th Anniversary Celebration for Howland Cultural Center in May: Tickets & Sponsorship Opportunities

The Howland Cultural Center is celebrating its 40th anniversary, and you are invited to attend and participate. Ticket reservations and sponsorships are available now. The celebration is in honor of Florence Northcutt and the Howland Public Library for their many contributions to the cultural and social life of Beacon. The celebration will take place at the Roundhouse, 2 East Main St., Beacon, N.Y., on Wednesday, May 15, from 5:30 to 8:30 pm. Please call (845) 831-4988 or email information@howlandculturalcenter.org to learn about major sponsorship benefits.
Learn More >

The Howland Chamber Music Circle - The Musical Jewel Accessible To So Many In Beacon

Some cities have symphony halls. Beacon has a group of professional musicians who started meeting in someone’s living room, who now play regularly in the Howland Cultural Center on Main Street in Beacon, N.Y. The group is called the Howland Chamber Music Circle, and you have most likely attended one of their performances or kids instrument “petting zoos.”

“This is a great place to perform. It’s like being inside an instrument itself.”

— A Howland Chamber Music Circle Performer

For several Beaconites, listening to this amazing grade of music is an every Sunday afternoon kind of thing. We may not realize just what we have at our fingertips at the Howland Cultural Center, whose unique architecture has special acoustic advantages in which world renowned musicians come together to play. So we asked the Howland Chamber Music Circle to recall their history for our readers, so that we may better understand this group who is now popping up to perform in other locations throughout Beacon and the Hudson Valley. A board member of the Howland Chamber Music Circle, James Lichtenberg, researched and wrote this article for you:

The ‘Chamber’ of the Howland Chamber Music Circle Was A Living Room in the 1980’s

Gwen and Bill Stevens, Howland Chamber Music Circle (HCMC) co-founders.
Photo Credit: Howland Chamber Music Circle

The Howland Chamber Music Circle (HCMC), founded in Beacon, N.Y. in 1993, in the verdant valley of the Hudson River, began in the 1980s, appropriately enough, in a chamber… the living room of HCMC founders Gwen and Bill Stevens (sadly, they both passed away in 2018). Gwen was an accomplished musician, teaching piano at Vassar. Friends and neighbors would arrive to enjoy spontaneous performances by other artists whom Gwen invited to play on their two gorgeous Steinway grand pianos.

One of the more frequent attendees, Polly Gage, suggested to Gwen that they also promote house concerts for gifted young musicians. With the assistance of a friend and fellow pianist, Ed Loizides, and after contacting their respective alma maters, Yale and the Manhattan School of Music, they began the process of finding young talent, expertly aided by Robert Besen, then of the Concert Artists Guild. Besen was taken by Gwen’s enthusiasm and made it possible for her and an enthusiastic cadre of volunteers to learn the ropes of bringing exciting programs to a growing audience.

Howland Chamber Music Circle Outgrows The Living Room

Photo Credit: Howland Chamber Music Circle

As the number of attendees swelled, home venues grew inadequate. Gwen began to think about a venue somewhere in Southern Dutchess County to accommodate wider audiences. Among the considerations was a music barge in the Hudson River itself.

Then, in 1992, Gwen and Bill attended an exhibit of historic photos at the Howland Cultural Center, located at the far east end of Beacon’s Main Street. The Center’s building, a gothic jewel designed by Richard Morris Hunt, features walls of richly-carved wood beneath an open vaulted ceiling, and a space capable of seating 120 people. Not surprisingly, the two HCMC founders were struck by the potential of that space for chamber music.

First HCMC Concerts Start In Howland Cultural Center In 1993

Photo Credit: Howland Chamber Music Circle

The Howland Cultural Center agreed to produce a series of concerts under their auspices. The premier three-concert season in 1993-1994 featured the Meridian Brass Ensemble, the St. Lawrence String Quartet and a string duo of Ayako Yoshida and Semyon Fridman. As Besen remembers, “[If] a walk around the Howland Center (quite different from today) was…more than a little scary, the concert was well-attended. The venue was…magnificent…. Over the years I’ve booked 39 performances.”

“You can walk out of your house and hear world-class artists just a few blocks away.”

— One Beaconite

With the increasing abilities of the Stevens and their associates to secure talent, the growing annual programs became a staple of the Hudson Valley music calendar, with the unique venue a draw in its own right for both listeners and artists, who were only too happy to return to play in subsequent seasons. As one performer put it, “This is a great place to perform. It’s like being inside an instrument itself.” The sell-out audiences, standing and clapping for encores add, no doubt, to their pleasure. One Beaconite, also a musician, exclaimed, “You can walk out of your house and hear world-class artists just a few blocks away.”

Photo Credit: Howland Chamber Music Circle

With continuing success in the early years, it became evident that the “Circle” should be more formally established to ensure its future. In April 1999, it was incorporated as a not-for-profit membership corporation, independent of the Howland Center.

Twenty-five years later, its annual offerings have grown to include a 12-concert season, featuring four pianists and eight chamber music groups -- with Sunday afternoon performances (in the 2018/19 season) including the Juilliard and Brentano String Quartets, and pianists Jeremy Denk and Simone Dinnerstein. Along with its dozen formal concerts, the Circle also hosts a number of pop-up concerts in other Beacon venues, a Classics for Kids series, co-sponsored by the HCC, as well as music residencies in local high schools. To celebrate its founders on the group’s 25th anniversary, HCMC commissioned a beautiful string quartet by local composer Debra Kaye, performed in the spring of 2018 by the Voxare String Quartet.

The 2018/19 season also reflects the continuing aspirations of HCMC to take new paths and broaden its appeal, including this season’s “concertante” approach, adding soloists to the quartets, like the oboist James Austin Smith, who performed with the Telegraph Quartet, harpist Bridget Kibbey, who will join the Daedalus Quartet, as well as rising violinist Alexi Kenny, partnered with pianist Renana Gutman. In addition, there will be a break-out “living-room” performance by the So Percussion group, whom The New York Times called “exceptionally inventive with instruments galore!”

Established and applauded as it may now be, the Howland Chamber Music Circle is not content to rest on its laurels. Rather, it is dedicated to continuing the inspiration of its founders in finding ever new ways to bring broad and engaging programs of music to its supportive community in Beacon and beyond. The hills of the Hudson Valley are indeed alive with the sound of music.

Learn about and buy tickets to upcoming concerts, and learn about how to support the Howland Chamber Music Circle with donations.

Reel Life Film Club Presents: "Pete Seeger: The Power of Song"

The Reel Life Film Club for tweens and teens returns to Beacon on Friday, January 11, at 6 pm. The Howland Public Library will be screening the film, Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, a documentary about the life and music of folk singer, activist, and local hero, Pete Seeger. 

Q&A with David Berns & Jeff Haynes

After the film, there will be a Q&A with Grammy Award winners David Bernz and Jeff Haynes. David worked with Pete Seeger for many years producing his CDs, including the 2010 Grammy Award-winning Tomorrow's Children with the Rivertown Kids and Friends. David is also the co-owner (with his son, Jake) of Jake’s Main Street Music. Jeff Haynes collaborated with Seeger on his last project, the spoken-word record The Storm King, which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2013. David Gelber, creator of the docuseries Years of Living Dangerously, will moderate the discussion. 

What Is Reel Life Film Club?

Reel Life Film Club is an opportunity for middle-school students to view award-winning documentary films and talk about them with inspiring people. Now in its third year, the film series is a collaboration between the Beacon, Cold Spring and Garrison public libraries. A new film is shown each month, rotating among the three locations. 

All students in grades 6 and up are invited to the screening. Pizza will be served at the event and registration is encouraged to ensure there is enough pizza for everyone. To register to attend the January 11 screening of The Power of Song, email community@beaconlibrary.org.

Saturday: For Goodness Bake Fundraisers String Up Their Aprons Once More To Raise Money For A Family

The For Goodness Bake event is a Beacon staple, and has become an annual event throughout the years. Started by Kristen Pratt and Tara Tornello, the community-sourced bake sale raises money for one particular cause that has demonstrated an urgent need in the community (see below for info on how you can bake). This year, the highly anticipated bake sale is on Saturday, November 10, from 10 am to 3 pm at 145 Main St. in Beacon (aka Beacon Healing Massage and Create Space), near Bank Square Coffeehouse.

Say Kristen and Tara as to what inspired them to put on their aprons: “We wanted to raise funds to help keep a beloved Beacon family together. For 4 years, this local family (who must remain anonymous) has helped to nurture a little boy who needed a home. Now his future and their family are in jeopardy as they face a difficult fight for his rights within a legal system that consistently puts political interests above the best outcomes for children.”

How This Bake Sale Works

Bakers from around the Hudson Valley will join the fundraising efforts by donating a variety of sweet and savory baked goods. Pay-what-you-can beverages and coffee will be provided by Drink More Good and Trax Espresso Bar & Coffee Roasters.

Now in its sixth year, For Goodness Bake has previously raised nearly $15,000 for local causes, including the Beacon After School Program Tuition Assistance Fund, the Beacon Community Kitchen, Green Teen Beacon, and the Kids R Kids Feeding Program.

To learn more about the event or to get involved, call (845) 518-4194 or email forgoodnessbakebeacon@gmail.com.

To donate baked goods, sign up via this link: http://signup.com/go/jsTeNdH

INSIDER TIP! They are accepting baked goods up until the last minute. So if you have mad baking skills, use ‘em! I have done it (I am not a baker) and it was a wonderful initiative to be a part of.

Simply drop off to to Kristen and Tara tonight (Friday) at 145 Main from 6 to 8 pm, or Saturday from 7 to 8 am.

If you are reading this article after the bake sale has ended, but want to offer to bake for another one, email forgoodnessbakebeacon@gmail.com and ask to be added to their notification list.

Photo Credit: For Goodness Bake

Photo Credit: For Goodness Bake

Photo Credit and Baker: Raquel Verdesi

Photo Credit and Baker: Alena Morgan Brown

Photo Credit: For Goodness Bake