Tweeting with the Citizens Foundation

We're always eager to find ways to keep connected with our Orange County citizenry and so thanks to Citizens Foundation Chair Noreen Fennell, we now have Tweeting capability. That's right, you can now follow us on Twitter at occfny - learn more about our upcoming events and initiatives as they happen!

Susan Beth Pfeffer Visits Local Students

Award-winning author Susan Beth Pfeffer visited students at the CJ Hooker Middle School on May 13th as part of the Citizens Foundation's Read All About It traveling cultural exhibit. The students had read one of Ms. Pfeffer's riveting science fiction novels earlier this year and were eager to learn more about the author and her work. Thanks to Kathryn Loughran, Library Media Specialist at CJ Hooker Middle School and Ms. Pfeffer for their cooperation.

Jeanne MacDonald and her silky sound

We're very fortunate to have Jeanne MacDonald performing in a benefit concert for us on Saturday night, May 30th. Jeanne has one of the silkiest, sexiest voices around and she's an incredible performer. Local elementary music school teacher by day and nationally-recognized cabaret performer by night, Jeanne lives in Bloomingburg and is donating her time and talent because she believes in the Citizens Foundation and our community. We're grateful to her and hope we get a fabulous turnout for what is sure to be a fabulous show. For more information and to reserve your seat (space is limited so do it soon!), visit our calendar page or call us at 845-469-9459.

4H Calf Auction

This weekend, OCCF Trustee Al Buckbee (Bellvale Farms) convinced me to attend a calf auction with my family to benefit the Orange County 4H Clubs. I had no idea what a fun and great learning experience this would be. The barn in Slate Hill where the auction was held was jam-packed with dairy farmers, their families, and 4H'ers looking for a good deal on a calf of their own. The farmer on my left traveled from Sussex County, NJ to pick up some good bargains. The bidding was based on precise measurements: what the calf's pedigree was, how much milk her mother had produced, her age, even the length of her neck in some cases (a long-necked heifer tends to produce more than a thick-necked one).

The food was fantastic and the silent auction, along with the live auction, was a lot of fun. Agriculture, like many of the calves on Saturday night, is alive and kicking in Orange County!

I didn't come home with a calf (thank goodness) but my kids are signing up for 4H as soon as possible.

Thanks to Lucy Joyce and her children, Kevin and Jasmine Lewis, for a pre-show introduction for my family to raising goats, chickens, and horses. What a great day!

Seligmann, Surrealism & Sugar Loaf

Last Friday (5/1), we held a joint reception with SUNY Orange to celebrate the accomplishments of approximately 15 students who took a course on Kurt Seligmann and Surrealism at our facility in Sugar Loaf. Professor Susan Slater Tanner taught the 5-week course and if the students learned half as much as we did from Professor Tanner, they all deserve A's (but I'll leave that up to the Professor). We hope that the course will be offered again in the fall and we really hope that the students who took the course this time around will help us turn our small tribute to Kurt and Arlette Seligmann into an interactive tool for Seligmann and Surrealist students around the world.