The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Alexa Troob

About Alexa Troob

Alexa Troob is a senior at Horace Greeley High School. At school, she is on the Women’s Varsity Soccer Team and is an editor for The Greeley Voice. Her other hobbies and interests include running, yoga, nature, and of course, writing.

Making a Difference, Brightening Someone’s Day: Do Something’s Zoe Harris

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The Do Something Club at Byram Hills High School undertakes simple projects to make a substantial difference. Started last year by Zoe Harris, a current junior at Byram, the club has already conducted numerous campaigns that spread smiles, increase climate awareness, connect the school community, and more. The club is part of the national organization, DoSomething.org, that is committed to “fueling young people to change the world.”

Zoe’s involvement with Do Something began in middle school when she was homebound due to a mystery illness. She was suddenly unable to walk unassisted, sleep, or partake in almost any normal activities, but rather than allowing this to remove her from the communities around her, it inspired her to get involved. “Even though she could do ‘nothing,’ she still wanted to do something,” shared Zoe’s mom, Heather Harris. And thus, she found the organization Do Something. “Do Something allowed me to help others without needing to walk and helped me connect with my community when it felt impossible to do so,” says Zoe.

Zoe held her first Do Something campaign, “Jeans for Teens,” in seventh grade, where she collected jeans to donate to teens in homeless shelters. Before she knew it, she had collected almost 500 pairs of jeans. After being home and feeling disconnected for so long, Zoe was able to help herself by helping others. Amidst COVID, the importance of helping those around us became even more apparent, and Zoe continued her involvement, “excited to be feeling part of something,” shared Heather. When she was in eighth grade, she collected toiletries and created bags to deliver to people living in transitional shelters. She started small, asking neighbors and family members for any extra products they had in their homes and ended with around 250 bags for donation; small steps led to a big difference.

A Club ‘Accessible to Everyone’

After seeing the impact she could have through Do Something, Zoe was determined to incorporate the organization into her high school. Last year, she began the club alongside Ms. DeRosa as club advisor. Ms. DeRosa teaches students with learning differences, and Zoe was determined to make the club accessible to everyone: “I approached Ms. DeRosa about starting the club because I felt this club would allow her students to help others like it had helped me when I was unable to walk. She agreed and the rest is history,” said Zoe. Heather also explained that Zoe “wanted to work with this particular population of students to show that we can all make a difference. Every single one of us can make a difference.” By helping others, the kids in the club are able to feel more confident, connect with their community, and value themselves as changemakers.

The club’s campaigns address a variety of social issues with a large focus on mental health. Last year, through the campaign “Bubble Break,” they created bubble bags for children in homeless shelters to teach them how to use breathing as a tool to help with anxiety. They held the “Mirror Message” campaign during the weeks of finals, APs, and regents, leaving inspirational notes on all of the mirrors in school bathrooms. “It’s the littlest things, but they have an impact,” says club advisor Ms. DeRosa. Zoe was touched when she “even heard someone say that they really needed to see that because they were having a bad day.”

Many of the club’s projects are also environmentally focused. Last year they held an “Unplug It” campaign to teach about energy waste. They hung up sticky notes around the school with facts about how much energy is wasted by leaving unused appliances plugged in. Ms. DeRosa noted that this seemingly small initiative sparked conversations and habit changes around the school as teachers in the faculty lounge shared that they now unplugged their coffee pots and toasters each morning!

The Do Something Club at Byram Hills High School shows each and every student that they can brighten someone’s day, make a real difference in their local communities, and, ultimately, change the world.

Chappaqua’s Summer Sale Beckons! July 27th – July 29th

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By mid-summer in Chappaqua, things can begin to feel a little slow. Anticipation and excitement have subsided, and town residents are left searching for new activities to bring a change of pace to their daily routines. 

Luckily, they need not look any further. 

Chappaqua’s Summer Sale taking place townwide always seems to arrive at the perfect time, bringing life and action to the town!

From Thursday, July 27th through Saturday, July 29th, various local businesses will present their merchandize at never seen before prices, we are told. With over 20 merchants participating, there will be everything from clothing to jewelry to home goods — making this the perfect event for any shopper eager to take advantage of great discounts and one-of-a-kind items all while supporting local shops.

Some stores, including Desires by Mikolay, even offer special VIP preview days — this year on July 25 and 26: “This is a wonderful chance for insiders to shop early, getting the first chance at coveted items with record breaking pricing,” shares Tara Mikolay, co-founder and designer of Desires by Mikolay, who helps launch the event each year, together with many other favorite downtown shops and restaurants and eateries working in tandem with the local Chappaqua Millwood Chamber of Commerce and the Town of New Castle.

While browsing, residents can also enjoy food, music, and the general vibrancy of the atmosphere. Desires will serve a sweet treats dessert bar daily and complimentary gourmet hot dogs by the famous Chez Lenard https://chezlenard.com/ on the final day (amongst other dining options for everyone to enjoy); they will also be providing a DJ on Thursday to add to the good vibes. 

With the town gathered, collectively enjoying the Summer Sidewalk Sale and all it has to offer, the event allows residents to socialize, connect, make the most of their summer, and, of course, shop!

“It’s a chance for the community to come together, support local businesses, and enjoy the Summer weather and incredible deals!” says Mikolay. 

 

A Meaningful Tour & Case for Saving Buttonhook Forest

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The Case for Saving Buttonhook Forest Following a Guided & Meaningful Tour

Leon Sam Briggs, Elder, Hawk Clan,Tonawanda Seneca who visited Buttonhook Forest with Tyler Chase. Chase is producing a documentary film about preventing cultural erasure of Native American History.
Photo courtesy of Tracey Bilski and Friends of Buttonhook

Walking through Buttonhook forest, I was immediately taken aback by the beauty of it all: the native plants, sunlit trees, vast amount of contiguous open space, and, of course, sacred indigenous stone structures. On a guided tour led by the Friends of Buttonhook Forest, I learned about not only the land’s diverse ecosystem, but also about the history of Native Americans in a way more interactive and meaningful than I had ever experienced.

Friends of Buttonhook Forest (FoBF), led by Tracey Bilski and Victoria Alzapiedi along with their tireless team of both long-time and new residents of New Castle, is a local non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the 20.3-acre Buttonhook forest that is currently owned by the Chappaqua Central School District (CCSD), who has been looking to develop the land.

Initially, the fight to preserve the forest stemmed from environmental concerns. When CCSD put the property on the market for sale in 2019, Alzapiedi and former Chappaqua resident and environmentalist Haley Ferraro started an advocacy effort in the hopes that the community would purchase the land from CCSD to preserve the forest.

“It was unthinkable that our community would intentionally cut down a forest – a precious and rare climate sink that helps clean the air that we and our families breathe – especially during a climate crisis.  We wanted to save these trees that are home to countless birds, beneficial insects, and other animals – who would be displaced if bulldozers come to cut down this forest. Advocating to save this land just seemed like the right thing to do. The just thing to do. The ethical thing to do – to save this forest from being cut down to build luxury homes,” says Alzapiedi.

Saving Wildlife & Addressing a Climate Crisis

How could Chappaqua, a community that always seemed to value the importance of sustainability, choose to actively contribute to deforestation, biodiversity loss, and water and air pollution? “We’re in a climate crisis. It’s not anymore that you can just sit by and let things happen,” says Maxine Margo Rubin, member of Friends of Buttonhook Forest (FoBF).

Buttonhook forest is home to thousands of creatures such as bobcats, foxes, coyotes, flying squirrels, box turtles, bats, many species of amphibians, hawks, owls, and migratory birds that would all lose their habitat if the forest is destroyed. “We have to help the animals that can’t talk for themselves,” Rubin adds.

But the animals are not the only living creatures at risk: CCSD’s construction plan calls for 676 of the 1400 trees residing in the forest to be cut down, all of which sequester immense amounts of carbon dioxide, maintaining a healthy air quality and curbing the speed of climate change. Since the school district bought the land in 1973 to build an additional school (a project that was never put into action), these trees were left untouched, growing, thriving, and holding carbon, for nearly 50 years. Evalyn Bladstrom, FoBF member, believes that we must “not just think short term, like the next 20 years, in terms of getting as much as we can monetarily, but long-term, the next hundreds of years, thinking about our own evolution as a species. What is sustainable, and what can we really expect when we remove nature?”

It was not until 2010 that CCSD decided to sell the land, hiring an engineering firm to subdivide the land into six lots for the construction of six $2 million homes. The plans received Preliminary Approval from the New Castle Planning Board in 2019 and CCSD put the land on the market for $3.5 million. After about a year with no bids on the land, it was taken off the market in 2020 during Covid, and returned listed at $2.5 million during the summer of 2021. CCSD eventually accepted a bid of $2 million from a developer in August 2021 subject to them receiving necessary approvals by March 2022.

Happening Now

Since the streams on the sides of Buttonhook forest lead to the Gedney Brook, which leads to the Croton reservoir, approval from the NYC Department of Environmental Protection is necessary before construction can begin. Despite persistent efforts, the school has been unable to receive the necessary NYC Stormwater Approval, which caused their initial contract with the developer to fall through last spring. So, the property went back on the market last summer, and FoBF saw this as the perfect opportunity to make a bid and secure the forest’s protection.

By this time, the fight for preservation had become even more critical as various elaborate and carefully crafted stone structures on the land had been confirmed by various archaeologists and indigenous leaders to be not at all random, but rather an entire complex of prayer stones, turtle effigies, and water markers laid by the Native Americans who once lived on this land. Now, saving this forest will not only preserve a diverse ecosystem, but also a sacred historical site for indigenous people who have time and time again had their history destroyed.

Lessons about Indigenous Culture

The Ramapough Lunaape Nation stated in a letter sent to the New Castle Town Board and Council that “Prayers and intention set years ago will be broken, if even one stone is moved.” Our community has been given a momentous opportunity to right our history’s wrongs, and to set a local example of how to respect and teach about indigenous culture and history. Tracey Bilski, leader of FoBF, reflected upon the minimal information she was taught about who lived here in the past, and how her journey has served as a learning process for her: “we can use this as a case-study,” she shares.

To respect the value that this land holds for Native Americans, FoBF partnered with numerous tribes in order “to make sure that [they] are hearing them right and doing what is best for the earth and the animals, as well as the original caretakers,” shares Lynn Trotta, a local nature-mentor and member of FoBF.

And when the school opened a public bid on the land in June 2022, Friends of Buttonhook Forest partnered with Brothertown Indian Nation to place a bid for which they are still waiting to hear a response. They have extended the bid for review until May 2023, and until then, they remain hopeful. In the meantime, they are holding a fundraiser on April 25 at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center to “celebrate Earth Day and showcase the importance of thinking globally and acting locally,” as stated on their website.

As a junior at Horace Greeley High School, currently studying United States History, I know firsthand that the district encourages students to learn from the mistakes of the past and apply what we have learned to injustices today. Throughout the year, we have learned about far too many massacres of Native Americans, forced removals, and destruction of their land, resources, and culture. Often, I am left feeling lost in terms of what I can do to help make up for this heart wrenching history of oppression: how can one begin to right thousands of years of wrongdoings?

Saving Buttonhook forest is where we can begin.

Land acknowledgements only mean so much: our words become worthless when they are not backed by action. Preserving this historical site is the perfect opportunity to put truth behind our promises of social and environmental justice, and to make a difference right here from our backyard. Because, as Rubin shared, “what we do local, goes global.”

Local Experts Share Strategies for Being Happy in your Relationship

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With 40-50% of marriages in the United States ending in divorce, it makes one wonder about the reason for that shockingly high statistic, and what can be done to keep a marriage happy and healthy.

Michelle Obama’s book The Light We Carry focuses on navigating relationships, sharing what she has learned from her own marriage. In an interview with National Public Radio, she continuously highlights that all marriages take work. She refutes the common philosophy that a marriage should be 50/50 at all times. Instead, emphasizing that at any given moment, it is more than likely that one person will be giving more. Over time, these compromises should go both ways, but it is unrealistic to expect an equal share of work to be a constant. Michelle Obama’s vulnerability opens the discussion of what a genuine long-term marriage looks like and what skills are vital in preserving a healthy relationship. She fears that by avoiding this discussion, it causes people to bolt the instant they face a period of discomfort. So, let’s talk about it. Because a marriage can never be perfect, but there are mindset shifts, skills, and tools that can be utilized to try and help make it work.

Cartoons by Michael Gyory

Jane Winfield, a clinical social worker at Repose, which has recently opened an office in Pleasantville, shared her insights on how a happy marriage can be sustained. First, she shared the importance of not running from conflict, and letting go the common misconception that anger is a negative emotion. In reality, anger is inevitable, so avoiding it will only increase tension.

“Healthy and happy couples are just as likely to get angry at each other. It’s more about what we do with anger. Are we able to remain respectful, supportive, and loving? Are we able to maintain our closeness and intimacy even if we’re angry?”

And when anger and conflict do arise, which they will, Winfield highlighted that it is not about “looking at the content of the conflict as much as the process of it. So, it’s not about what we are arguing about; what’s more important is how are we arguing. Are we arguing in ways that are gentle, that are respectful, and that make our partner feel heard and seen?”

Winfield also often recommends that each member of a relationship should see their own individual therapist before embarking too deeply in couples’ therapy. In individual therapy, couples can explore how their own past is bleeding into their current relationship. For example, they will examine the types of conflict they experienced in their own households as “people have often learned a lot of unhealthy communication patterns growing up.” By examining old wounds from past relationships, it helps each individual heal so that “those wounds don’t just keep getting replicated in the present.”

Sharon Okun, life coach and energy healer in Armonk, also spoke of the importance of caring for yourself “to more effectively show up in your relationships.” Okun “helps people calm down, get centered, and be present in their bodies.” When we slow down, breathe, and try to find little moments of joy throughout our days, we are happier, calmer, and less irritable. If we don’t take the time to assess our own emotions, we are likely to take something personal out on our partner before we have even had the ability to process it. By teaching people how to get grounded, Okun therefore helps them be calmer in their relationships as well. After all, we must be able to show up for ourselves before we have the capacity to show up for someone else.

Perhaps a bottom line is that to have a happy and healthy relationship with another person, one must also have a happy and healthy relationship within themselves. Jodi Baretz, a psychotherapist and mindset and relationship coach in Chappaqua, says that it is vital that each partner maintains their individuality and personal life for a marriage to be sustainable. “When you rely too much on the other person it puts too much pressure on them. You need to have your own friends and your own life because one person can’t be everything to you,” explained Baretz. She provided the example that if you really enjoy traveling, but your partner does not, you can find a friend to travel with rather than either forcing your partner to go with you or abandoning your passions–both of which would only lead to resentment for the other person.

Baretz also suggests prioritizing making time for each other and having fun together: “It’s not just about the to-do lists and the kids. “Try doing an activity together where you laugh together and just have fun,” she said. And this may require a couple to expand their horizons past a dinner date, and rather try something new and exciting.

Baretz also spoke on the importance of acceptance of the other person. She often finds people coming to her complaining about their partner and how they wish that they would change. Trying to change someone else to be happy in the relationship is most often unachievable–and will only build resentment. Baretz explained that “true power isn’t controlling the other person, but being able to control your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.” If we focus on what we can control, like how we respond to the other person, it can in turn shift their behavior.

Indeed, when we stop fixating on someone’s flaws, it also allows us to truly listen to what they are saying. Throughout Baretz’s experience helping people with their marriages, she has found that a common theme amongst struggling couples is someone not feeling heard, or seen. She shares that “one of the quickest ways to get a relationship back on track is to really acknowledge, appreciate, and validate the other person.” And the only way to make your partner feel heard, is to genuinely listen, and more importantly, to listen without becoming defensive. Rather than rushing to justify your actions when your partner talks about how what you do is making them feel, accept that the behavior you are being accused of is probably not something that they are making up out of thin air. When we take our ego out of the equation, an argument with a partner can be productive, serving as a clue as to why the relationship is having issues.

When you check your own behavior, you can evaluate how you can be a better partner before placing blame on the other person for the relationship’s faults. Baretz advises that anyone in a marriage should ask themselves: “would you want to be married to you?”

About our cartoonist: Michael Gyory is the third of three only children reared in the idyllic woods of Katonah. He graduated from John Jay High School and holds a Master’s degree in Communication from U. Penn. He is the son of Hungarian survivors and proudly serves as Chair of the Holocaust and Human Rights Education Center. Michael currently lives in Irvington, and has one son who, he says, is a much better artist.

#JUSTBEYOU Builds Awareness of the ‘Inescapable Bullying’ on Social Media Platforms

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Final Stop for the Random Farms Kids’ Theater Production #JUSTBEYOU is November 3 in Armonk

The Challenges of Growing Up in a Digital World Come to Life in the Cautionary Tale of ‘InstaPop’

Armonk, NY — In 2008, Random Farms Kids’ Theater began their Anti-Bullying Tour, visiting hundreds of schools to teach about the importance of being true to yourself and accepting others. The tour ‘s original show was called The New Kid and had been running successfully for 12 years before it got shut down in 2020 due to Covid. When starting the program back up this year, Random Farms decided to produce a new show with a continuing and strong anti-bullying theme reflecting today’s digital realities: #JUSTBEYOU.

As the internet and social media rapidly grow and evolve, bullying transforms right alongside it. Despite the many benefits of living in an interconnected world, this growth of technology comes with many new struggles for adolescents. Eric Webb communication manager at Random Farms and the writer of #JUSTBEYOU, along with composer Stephanie Bianchi, says that in many ways social media can create an inescapable bullying platform: “It used to be like if you got bullied at school, you got bullied at school. You know, it’s like you left school and it was over, but now they have access to you at all times.”  In recognizing this major shift in the avenues for bullying, Random Farms commissioned a new show: #JUSTBEYOU.

Ben Wohl as Jordan in #JUSTBEYOU

The new script is centered around a “geeky”, “unpopular” middle-schooler named Jordan who is part of the Comic Crew. When the new social-media app “InstaPop” comes out, everyone at the school is invited except for Jordan and his friends. “InstaPop”, a make-believe app, is essentially a combination of various social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok; however, this app allows you to like and dislike people, not just posts. Rather than staying true to themself, Jordan sees this as an opportunity to rise in popularity, losing their sense of self along the way and becoming a bully to their own friends. However, in the end, the kids are able to work their way towards realizing the toxicity of this app and the importance of staying true to themselves. 

The part of Jordan is played by eighth-grader Ben Wohl who attends HC Crittenden Middle School and has been acting since he was only four years old. Ben shared that he looks forward to teaching other kids about “the dangers of cyberbullying, social media, and bullying in general.” For elementary and middle schoolers struggling with identity and fitting in, this show will provide valuable lessons as well as a sense of comfort in knowing that they are not alone. “Theater’s a great avenue for a lot of things. It entertains, but it’s a great chance to educate… and give audiences a chance to see themselves on stage in many different ways,” shares Webb.

When kids are taught through theater, it allows them to engage and actually retain what they are learning. Ben discussed how he felt that a play performed by kids was one of the most beneficial ways to teach about such a pressing issue: usually “someone might come to their school who’s older and give a speech for like 30 minutes about bullying, but instead we come as kids their age… and we perform our musical with singing and dancing… so instead of them waiting for the assembly to be over, they don’t want the assembly to end and they also gain something from the experience that hopefully they can keep with them for the rest of their lives.” 

#JustBeYou has already been performed at schools in East Chester, Hastings, and Greenwich, and, as expected, the reception was phenomenal. Webb shared that he “got to go see one that was in East Chester and… kids seemed to really be responding to it.” The tour makes its final stop for the fall at Wampus on Thursday, November 3. After taking a break for the winter season, they will return in the spring to perform four more shows, continuing to spread their impactful message. 

As kids struggle with the difficulties of growing up in a digital world, it is important that they learn at a young age how to be kind to others and embrace each individual’s uniqueness. #JustBeYou is teaching children exactly that in a fun and exciting way.  For more info, please visit https://www.randomfarmsny.org/