The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Briarcliff Cover Stories

“The Macy” Briarcliff’s Hidden Gem

by


While Savannah, Georgia might be where the Girl Scouts were founded by Juliette Gordon Low, the Edith Macy Conference Center in Briarcliff is considered by many to be the organization’s secondary birthplace. “The Macy,” owned by Girl Scouts of the USA, is a facility filled with a rich past that has evolved into a sought-after conference center attended by people from all over the world.

“You’re moved by the history” walking the 400 acre campus, according to Dorothy Forcina, Chief Marketing and Communication Officer of Girl Scouts Heart of the Hudson.  Yet few even know it exists.

University in the Woods

The Macy is named for Edith Carpenter Macy, chair of the Girl Scout National Board of Directors from 1919 to 1925.  Her husband, V. Everit Macy, purchased and donated land adjacent to an existing Girl Scout camp to build a training headquarters in her memory, said Briarcliff Manor-Scarborough Historical Society President Karen Smith. Since that time, the property known early on as the “university in the woods” was expanded in 1962 with construction of Camp Edith Macy featuring the Great Hall, and in 1982 a modern building of wood, stone and glass officially opened as the Conference Center. Four years later, the Creedon Education Center, containing meeting spaces and a living area, was added to the complex, which now houses more than 10,000 square feet of meeting space and 52 guest rooms.

“[Edith Macy] was very active in the Girl Scouts movement,” Smith said, “and the international aspect of Girl Scouting.  The Great Hall looks like the United Nations inside, with different flags.”  Indeed, in 1926, the site hosted the Fourth International Conference on Scouting, the first international Girl Scouting event held on American soil, attended by 56 delegates from 31 countries, according to Girl Scouts USA officials.

There haven’t been many changes to the campus since, but it has remained a consistent draw to corporations and organizations – not just Girl Scouts – for meetings, retreats and events, according to Sherri Hoy, Director of Sales and Conference Planning. The appeal – and credibility – of the Macy is that it is an International Association of Conference Centers (IACC) certified conference center in a retreat setting, she added, awarded the IACC Gold Level of Sustainability in 2009 per its website.

“To have IACC certification on 400 acres of wooded property is a huge draw to Girl Scout training and retreats,” Hoy said, adding that it is an invaluable resource for Scouts locally and around the country. Hudson Valley Girl Scouts are fortunate to have the Macy so close, Forcina added, noting the hundreds of girls who visit each year. Girl Scouts and organization leaders gain invaluable experience, bird watching, letterboxing, geocaching, and exploring the ponds, getting in touch with nature.

Harnessing the Past, Embracing the Future

The welcoming center fulfills Edith Macy’s dream of an instructional facility staffed and equipped to offer high quality training and guidance for Girl Scout leaders, according to Bernice Johnson, Vice President of Procurement, Vendor Management and Properties at Girl Scouts USA.

“Being in the space, surrounded by history yet poised to impact the future, I thought to myself Girl Scouts really do ‘make the world a better place,’” Johnson added, quoting a basic tenet of the organization.

The Macy campus is run by Benchmark Resorts and Hotels, a hospitality management company based in Texas. Several longtime employees have been critical to the center’s operations; Peter Stafford has been the Director of Operations since it opened in 1982, and Hoy has been with the center for 21 years.

“I love what I do, love the property, the people that I work with, my customers,” Hoy said. “I think the longevity of the employees says a lot for the property itself. They put their heart into the work that they do and they deliver the customer service that shows how much they care about the property and our guests,” she added.

Yet still many local residents remain unaware of the gem in their backyards.  Briarcliff resident and Chamber of Commerce President Mike Milano called the Macy a “hidden secret,” only learning of it when picking up a friend after he had lived in Briarcliff for several years.

“I had no idea it even existed,” Milano said. “When you think of conference centers in this area, they’re upright buildings, not tucked away in the woods. It’s obviously unique in that fashion. It’s got more character.”

Similarly, Briarcliff Village Manager Philip Zegarelli likened the Macy to a cabin in the mountains. He’s attended the conference center several times and always looks forward to it. “It’s just one of those little gems that takes you back to a different era,” he said.

Briarcliff “Points Kid” Jumps Miles Ahead

by

Vacation planning isn’t easy. Deciphering the complicated world of frequent flyer miles and credit card points, partner airlines and excursion fares with built-in stopovers seemingly requires an advanced degree. During his Briarcliff High School days, however, it was Rob Karp’s hobby. That hobby became a passion, and that passion turned into a thriving business before he was out of his teens.

On the Runway

Beyond balancing school, standardized tests, varsity soccer and the debate team, Karp (BHS ’15) had another commitment – leveraging airline and credit card points for free travel.  He had always loved flying, even as a young child.

“My true passion has always been planes and aviation; when other kids were playing on their Xboxes I was sitting on a computer being a virtual pilot on Microsoft Flight Simulator,” Karp recalled.

Fascinated with all facets of airline business, and aware of “these things called miles” which could be earned and used to pay for flights, he spent middle school Friday afternoons calling airlines’ customer service numbers with questions and poring over online blogs. Karp helped his father research business travel, and with his father’s accumulated miles got his entire family to Israel business class with a multi-day stopover in another country.

When area airports closed following Hurricane Sandy in late 2012, Karp succeeded in booking his family to Minneapolis for a bar mitzvah by routing them from Westchester County Airport, which opened first, through Atlanta. A relative was impressed and suggested he turn it into a business; three weeks later, a day shy of his 15th birthday, Karp Enterprises LLC was born.

Taking Off

Demand grew quickly as word of his miles and points wizardry spread.  Known locally as “the points kid,” Karp’s early success and decision to charge for services was largely due to word of mouth in the Briarcliff Moms and Chappaqua Moms Facebook groups. He spent up to 30 hours every week analyzing customers’ points and miles, intended destinations and dates, researching creative ways to book flights for no or drastically reduced cost. Eventually he used money earned as a soccer referee to hire someone to build a website.

Karp also familiarized himself with credit card “points” programs, offering paid consultations to help clients maximize point-earning potential based on spending habits. And he continued to immerse himself in the aviation business; for his BHS science research project, Karp worked with Delta’s Domestic Revenue Group, analyzing “hub” ramifications of airline mergers and interning for two summers at Delta’s Atlanta headquarters.

Word of the young entrepreneur’s expertise spread. He was featured by Bloomberg TV and Fortune.com, and as a BHS junior was named a “Westchester Wunderkind of 2014,” celebrating the area’s brightest young professionals under 30. By the time Karp graduated from BHS in June, 2015, Karp had worked with 100 customers, all on his own.

Spreading His Wings: Expansion during the College Years

Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration (“SHA”) was a perfect fit for Karp. After his BHS graduation, he rebranded his company “MilesAhead,” but shut down 90% of his business the first semester.

“I wanted to start college with no strings attached,” he said. “It was one of the best decisions I’ve made, because stepping away made me realize how much I missed the business.”

Late that first semester, he hired three students part-time who shared his passion for aviation to help him research and book flights. Shifting his focus to luxury travel, in January 2016 Karp partnered with large national agency Valerie Wilson Travel, a member of the Virtuoso network, which provided MilesAhead with access to special airline values and hotel perks. Karp forged his own relationships with travel vendors, his team now having visited roughly 300 properties.

“I saw an opportunity,” Karp said. “Customers whose flights I was booking were booking hotels elsewhere, but said that they would be happy to give me the business if I were to provide it.” Building industry connections allowed him to expand MilesAhead’s offerings to hotels by the start of sophomore year.

Through 2017, his team was mostly Cornell students working part-time; Karp eventually became busy enough to hire a full-time assistant and independent off-campus “contractors,” also aviation enthusiasts, he met via connections. MilesAhead developed a presence on campus, and this past year was the first student owned and operated company to exhibit at the Hotel School Career Fair.

Flying High: Growth and Customer Service

Even during his BHS days, Karp recognized the need to keep clients happy, for example driving out to JFK himself to resolve a ticketing glitch. “That was an early example of my company’s commitment to customer service.”

He wants to make things as easy as possible for clients, and finds that MilesAhead’s use of the AXUS itinerary management app is a “key part of the customer experience.” Clients can download AXUS to their phones and view multiple trips–all flight, hotel and excursion information–and get updates on changes.

Karp has grown his company considerably–this spring about a dozen part-timers–to cover customers’ travel needs before, during and after their trips. MilesAhead is now comprised of Advisors who build trips, the Concierge Team, which finds and books anything from private guides to dinner reservations, and the VIP Team, which deals with logistics such as check-in and boarding passes.

The Sky’s The Limit

As a college student, Karp managed to devote 50-70 hours a week to MilesAhead, but upon his graduation this month is poised to “hit the ground running.” He has secured Manhattan office space and will have six full-time employees, all with the company for over two years, as well as additional part-timers. MilesAhead’s growth has not gone unnoticed; Karp and his company have been featured in or on CBSTV, the Cornell SHA magazine, the New York Times, and Forbes.com.

“I’m a full-time business owner and CEO.  But it’s been one of the best learning experiences–being a student, a ‘college kid,’ and business owner all at the same time. I’ve learned to prioritize and what’s important to me,” he said, noting his evolving role. “Now my focus is building, developing and training my team and growth. We’re always looking for awesome new young talent, and have exciting and grandiose plans to keep expanding. We’re still savvy and thrifty,” Karp added, “but with building our luxury services, we have maintained our commitment to keeping that personal touch.” 

Former Chappaqua Family Opens Award-Winning FENCES Winery in Oregon and Expands Business

by

Deciding to move cross-country wasn’t an easy decision for the Lennon family. Jody and David Lennon had lived in Chappaqua for 16 years in a lovely house on Pond Hill Road and were busy raising their three sons, Spencer, Jeremy and Ethan. David worked as a commercial litigator in the city and Jody who also had a law degree had decided to take a pause from the work world to focus on raising her sons. They had many close friends and strong roots in the community.

David had a client who was based in Oregon and suggested that the family move out there for a simpler life but they were happy staying put. However, with David’s client roster becoming increasingly West Coast-based, the hectic lifestyle was beginning to take its toll. The Lennons would occasionally look at farm properties in Massachusetts and further north in the Hudson Valley as second homes but they never pulled the trigger.

Finally, in 2011 they decided to pack up their belongings and head to Oregon. As Jody says, “we flew across the country and landed on a vineyard.” The vineyard is in the Rogue Valley of Southern Oregon, an area close to the California border with green valleys producing high-quality wines. Their property contained eight acres of vineyards that had never been harvested before. With the advent of their first harvest they selected the name FENCES Winery, a name that is derived from the fact that they were feeling “fenced in” before their move.

An Education on Viticulture

“Timing is really everything but if you told me we’d be doing this years ago, I would have laughed,” says Jody, a self-proclaimed oenophile (Cabernet Sauvignon is her favorite) who handles a variety of jobs including sales, marketing, warehouse and delivery. David who still practices law focuses more on specific vineyard duties such as mowing, pruning and deciding which trellis system is best for the grapes to grow. “David really immersed himself in learning about the industry by reading viticulture course books from the UC Davis School where many leading vintners graduate from,” explains Jody.

The couple in the beginning also attended monthly barrel tastings. This is where Jody began to discover that winemaking is “really an art and science.” “It is amazing to me that from the time the grapes are harvested and then put into barrels, the winemakers can pretty much tell how it will taste in two years.”

She learned terms such as “barrel program” meaning that the type of barrel that the wine is aged in plays a large factor in the nuances of the wine’s flavor. For example, American oak barrels impart vanilla undertones whereas French oak barrels tend to add more spice, and even the “toast” of the barrel is selected to contribute different attributes to a wine’s flavor.

Ignoring the Naysayers

Besides having to learn everything about the wine industry from scratch, they also had a lot of naysayers who suggested that growing Cabernet Sauvignon was a mistake due to the climate in Oregon and that it would be best grafting over to a different varietal. But Jody exclaims with a chuckle that she was determined to “drink her way to happiness” with Cabernet Sauvignon. The grape is the last to be picked in the valley usually around the third or fourth week in October. Due to climate change, the weather has gotten warmer and they’ve been successful with their grapes.


Seven years later, they just grafted ½ acre to produce Sauvignon Blanc starting next year, and this May they debuted a limited release of 25 cases of Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon. But Jody insists that they will stay focused on Cabernet Sauvignon. “There are wineries here producing 28 varietals and I don’t want to do that. We want to make the best wine we can and doing that requires focus.”

Accolades for Their Wines

And clearly their focus has been paying off. Wine Enthusiast Magazine, a leading authority in the industry just rated their 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon a 90 and listed it as an Editor’s Choice in their upcoming August 2019 issue. Their Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon received a 91 in the same edition.

In addition, their 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon was awarded Best of Class at the 2018 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. The 2014 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon received a Silver Medal at the 2018 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, a Gold Medal from SIP’s Best of the NW, and then a Platinum in the Wine Press Northwest Wine Competition, where it was named “one of the Northwest’s top Cabs.”

Despite the success of their small winery, the Lennons still miss Chappaqua dearly. Jody misses simple things like getting lamb chops at the local butcher to more important matters like the strong emphasis on education in our community. While the family enjoys the slower pace of life in Oregon, they still consider Chappaqua as their home.

Jody recounts a very proud moment on one of her many trips back to the 10514 she took her cabernet sauvignon to Dodd’s Liquor Shop for a wine tasting. Although their products are only available online at www.fenceswinery.com, the wine buyer at Dodd’s was very impressed with the product and offered her recommendations for distributors who could help get the product into stores. “That was the ultimate compliment!”, she exclaims.

 

Taking Responsibility for our Planet at Ossining’s 9th Annual Earth Day Festival

by

Ossining High School’s Environmental Club advocates to clean up Ossining Beach at this year’s Earth Day Festival. Photo by Hannah Rosenberg

Participating in environmental causes has become more important than ever.

Ossining resident Kathy Puffer adjusted the lid of a solar cooker, preparing the device to transform kale leaves into chips. Even on a cloudy afternoon at Louis Engel Waterfront Park, Puffer said her solar-fueled device offers a more sustainable cooking method.

“These are simple things anyone can do,” Puffer said, a co-founder of Solar CITIES, a non-profit. “Anybody can get a solar cooker and use it to bake a cake, or you could start dinner in it.”

Puffer represented one of more than 100 vendors who promoted sustainability at Green Ossining’s ninth annual Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 27. Guitar strums and drumming from the festival’s live performers mixed with the chatter of thousands of visitors who

interacted with environmental advocacy groups, local organizations and food vendors. The festival also offered drum and ukulele circles, kid’s activities, and goods from arts and artisan vendors for those who attended this event by the Hudson River.

Suzie Ross, a chairperson and founding member of Green Ossining, said the event’s riverside location, combined with its easy access to Metro-North, is the reason it attracts people from as far as Brooklyn and from neighboring counties.

Photo by Hannah Rosenberg

“Being with community [is people’s favorite part of the event],” Ross said. “It’s a day outside, on the river, and that is the beauty. If we had this at a park, it wouldn’t feel the same way.”

While the Earth Day Festival serves as a community gathering, Ross said the event organizers also try to “sprinkle in educational opportunities” to inform visitors about the environment and sustainable practices. Signs along the waterfront poked through blades of grass that contained facts about the impact of current environmental practices, and organizations also hoped to educate visitors who passed by their stands.

Groups including an Ossining Cub Scouts pack encouraged visitors to develop “zero waste” practices. Mike Pavelchek, a cubmaster of Pack 83 Ossining, displayed trash, recycling and compost bins that he and the cub scouts filled with various types of waste, informing visitors how to properly dispose of items to encourage the reuse of materials.

“We’re here educating people that not everything is garbage,” he said. “Over the last year or two, there has been a real uptick in compostable materials. Things can either be turned into dirt or soil, or they can at least be recycled.”

Teaching attendees that not every item should be thrown away, this group of cub scouts also spreads the same message at the annual Ossining Village Fair in June.

Other organizations also encouraged visitors to adopt more sustainable practices and become more environmentally conscious. Several students from Ossining High School’s Environmental Club attended the festival, advocating to clean up Ossining Beach and to “spread good word about the earth,” sophomore Andrea Doble said.

Representatives from larger organizations also attended the festival, including second-time attendee Donna Sharrett, a Master Gardener Volunteer for Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE), which trains volunteers and brings information to communities in each New York county. She displayed handouts at her stand, including information on pesticide-free lawn care and the destructive impact of invasive plants.

“I came because Green Ossining does such great work,” she said. “I want to be a part of helping environmental issues—like creating better habitats and [providing] the best science information to the public.”

And, participating in environmental causes has become more important than ever, so much so that Ross said the event coordinators decided not to include a theme for this year’s festival. While a previous Earth Day Festival celebrated solar, and water became the theme another year, she acknowledged that there are many pressing environmental concerns.

“It’s not just about showing up for Earth Day, being with each other, having food and hanging out with your friends,” Ross said. “It’s really got to be taken seriously. It’s a moral imperative that we all step up and take responsibility for every action, because everything we do affects the planet.”

The Ossining Children’s Center: A Rich History of Celebrating Women

by

BY HOWARD MILBERT

Ossining Children’s Center has a keen eye on the future, but they are also celebrating their rich history–a history of women’s empowerment. The Ossining Children’s Center was founded by the women’s association of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in 1895 as the Christ Child Day Nursery and Bethany Home. At that time, Ossining was home to many widowed immigrant women who wanted to work to support their families, but “day care” did  not exist.

The story of Ossining Children’s Center began nearly 120 years ago as a response to the needs of working immigrant mothers. It is now a crucial resource for all families, providing nurturing and educational care for children 6 weeks to 12 years old.  Through the years, the community has generously supported our mission to keep high quality childcare affordable for working families.

We’ve aimed to support women of every socioeconomic status since our inception an we know that families and mothers have to make difficult choices regarding their careers and we do our best to provide an inclusive environment for all women.

OCC’s Fearless Females & Female Supporters

Edith Baker played a leadership role over the course of 60 years of involvement with OCC, in seeing the Center through difficult times and running pivotal projects in the Center’s history. She served as board president four different times. In 1948, Edith Baker was among the Board members who believed strongly that the childcare program was an important service to the community. Edith, herself, was a working mother and had served as treasurer of her father’s company for many years. When the existence of the child care program was threatened, Edith spearheaded the “Sponsoring Committee” which took over responsibility for running the child care center. A special campaign raised the needed funds, the Board of Education gave the use of space in Park School, and the Ossining Children’s Center was incorporated as a separate entity.  Although Edith passed away in 2004, her legacy lives on.

Jessica Yanqui-Zhinin found herself pregnant at 17. She wanted to finish high school and to go college. When she was accepted to SUNY Binghamton, she did not anticipate she would be able to attend, but Jessica didn’t want to be another statistic. Fortunately, she found the Ossining Children’s Center. At OCC, she not only found a village but an extended family. When Jessica dropped her daughter Nube off in morning, she knew Nube was in loving hands. The caring teachers gave Jessica constant support helping with everything. The office door was always open offering more shoulders to lean on. Ossining Children’s Center gave Jessica the stability and support to earn dual masters’ degrees. She is now a teacher at Ossining High School.

Left to right at OCC to kick off the capital campaign: Assemblywoman Sandy Galef; OCC Executive Director Howard Milbert; OCC Board Member and Campaign Co-Chair Marilyn Wishnie; OCC Board Member Vanessa Pairis; Westchester County Executive George Latimer; and Capital Campaign Committee Member Richard Wishnie

The Future is Female

Child care is a vital factor in a woman’s ability to be a productive worker, and thereby being able to improve her family’s economic security. For more than 50 years, the Ossining Children’s Center (OCC) has been in the forefront of advocacy for public funding for child care.

Thanks to advocacy by Ossining Children’s Center families who spoke at the Northern Westchester 2019 Budget Hearing, Westchester County recently re-opened the “Title XX” Child Care Subsidy Program, which had been closed to new applicants since 2016. Title XX makes child care subsidies available to families who make slightly more than the income ceiling* for the Low-Income Child-Care Subsidy Program.

Currently, two Ossining families have applied for Title XX child care subsidies from the Westchester County Department of Social Services to help them to keep their children enrolled at OCC.

Last month, we announced a $17.8 million capital campaign to build a new child care and education center at 32 State Street. The Center, which has raise $12.8 million to date, is seeking support from the community to reach their campaign goal. This facility will serve an additional 50 children and bring all of the OCC’s programming to one central location. Over 75 of OCC’s Children participated in the choreographed dance in front of a large banner featuring a rendering of the new space. It’s a privilege to work in a town that truly values children and families. If you’d like to learn more about the programs and services offered by the Ossining Children’s Center, visit www.ossiningchildrenscenter.org

Dancing for Child Care!

More than 75 children from the Ossining Children’s Center (OCC) joined together on April 24 in a choreographed dance to kick off OCC’s capital campaign to build a new child care and education center.

The festive and exciting kickoff event, which was held at OCC’s current location at 90 South Highland Avenue, was attended by local, county and state officials including Westchester County Executive George Latimer, NYS Assemblywoman Sandy Galef, Ossining Town Supervisor Dana Levenberg, Ossining Village Mayor Victoria Gearity and friends and supporters of the Ossining Children’s Center.

The campaign, which is titled Our Children. Our Future. The Ossining Children’s Center Campaign, is seeking to raise $17.8 million. To date, OCC has raised approximately $12.9 million. Groundbreaking for the new facility is scheduled for later this spring.

“It is a privilege to work in a town that truly values children and families,” said Howard Milbert, Executive Director, Ossining Children’s Center.

“It is so exciting that the children and teachers will have a facility worthy of the high-quality work of the Center,” said Campaign Co-Chair Rebecca Samberg.

“This new child care and education center will be a game changer for the entire community,” said Campaign Co-Chair Marilyn Wishnie.

Last August, OCC unveiled plans for the construction of a new 27,000-square-foot building that will enable it to consolidate its programs under one roof. Centrally located in downtown at 32 State Street, the new center will replace operations currently housed at two 120-year-old buildings OCC owns on South Highland Avenue, as well as space it rents at a nearby church.

The new 2.5-acre site at 32 State Street was acquired for $1.8 million and donated to OCC by a long-time generous benefactor. An existing building on the site has been removed. The new building will house all of OCC’s current programs while meeting the growing need for infant, toddler, preschool and after-school care in Ossining. The projected enrollment for the new facility is 200-222 children. OCC’s current enrollment is 148.

Designed by KG&D Architects of Mount Kisco, the attractive three-story building will include nine classrooms, five toddler and infant rooms, four outdoor play areas, staff and administrative offices, a multi-purpose room, conference room and kitchen. There will be 22 on-site parking spaces for parents, staff and visitors. Additional parking will be secured at a nearby off-site location.

The new facility will make childcare available to all income levels helping parents to maintain steady employment. Having the facility downtown will help anchor the State Street neighborhood, bring increased economic activity, and create job opportunities.

A new modern facility will also attract more families from a wide variety of income levels, allowing children from throughout the community to grow together, and enabling OCC to serve more families in need. For more information about the programs and services offered by the Ossining Children’s Center, visit www.ossiningchildrenscenter.org

*Income ceiling for families seeking a “Low Income” child care subsidy: $50,200 for a family of four. Income ceiling for Title XX: $55,475 for a family of four.

Howard Milbert, Executive Director of the Ossining Children’s Center, has spent his career advocating for children and parents, especially low-income working parents who are striving to improve their families’ economic situation. He is known throughout New York State as a public policy expert on and advocate for high quality child care.