The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Just Between Us

Seeking a Committed Relationship

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Publishing in any new town is a little like dating. I’m courting an entire community and it’s impossible to tell exactly how things will turn out…

I can just put my best foot forward and hope for the best. But please know I’m looking for a long term, committed (publishing!) relationship right now!

Speaking of dating, about a dozen years ago, I had a first date in a quaint trattoria in beautiful Briarcliff Manor, just far away enough from Chappaqua, my hometown, for my comfort level. I’ve always been aware of all the great shops, eateries and amenities just a stone’s throw from where I live. There have been many workouts at the beloved Club Fit, and quite a few pieces of my wardrobe are from March Boutique, a perfect place to choose an outfit for date, and a local gem spotlighted as a first ‘lifestyles’ feature for this magazine.

Without a doubt too, Briarcliff Manor is also a vibrant community of families deeply committed to their schools, ‘the joy of school theater’ (see our end page ‘etcetera’ essay!), to a healthy and bucolic natural environment (as anyone who has ever visited the Edith Macy Conference Center can attest!), fascinating people (like “The Points Kid”) and as I’ll continue to communicate… to so much more!

I have been successfully publishing for 16 years. I’ve always been fortunate to work with a stellar team, talented contributors and continuous merchant support. I decided being empty nest, that it was time to introduce the Inside Press brand a little more widely. So, after launching first Inside Chappaqua, then Inside Armonk, then Inside Pleasantville, this shiny new edition of Inside Briarcliff & Ossining was born.

While I was conceiving it, I met with the head of the Briarcliff Manor Chamber of Commerce, Mike Milano, and we talked about the businesses along North State Road, ‘on the main drag’ on Pleasantville Road, and the challenges small businesses face in a digital age. I’m right in the thick of those challenges myself, and I look forward to working together to help small and medium size business thrive with both our print and online options at theinsidepress.com, and in social media! We aim to keep if fun and interesting, too.

I’m not a stranger to Ossining either. Over the years, I’ve enjoyed several wonderful dining experiences therewhether authentic Spanish fare, or at Ossining’s famous river restaurant, the Boathouse, and most recently, I’ve checked out the newest entry to waterfront dining, the 3 Westerly. I also consumed much coffee at First Village Coffee, taking breaks from my footsteps in pulling this first issue together! One time, I even discussed the possibility of running a pub together with a friend, who happens to be a karaoke dj. Ossining immediately came to mind. We’d call it Sing Sing, of course. We never pursued it. When I heard that the Sing Sing Kill Brewery had opened, I thought: great minds think alike and trust me that I’m ‘in’ for a night of enjoying karaoke or open mics as soon as I can create more down time!

Inside Tappan Hill Mansion to support the Ossining Children’s Center Gala

Ossining, I must say, is a barrel of Earthy fun, from its fabulous Earth Day festival to its festive and bountiful Farmers Market. I’m also very proud this debut issue spotlights the Ossining Children’s Center, its mission and fundraising goals to create a much needed new home. I also had fun meeting and listening to so many inspiring people at the OCC’s spring gala.

Please also note our ‘Gotta Have Arts’ coverage highlighting the cutting edge Westchester Collaborative Theatre, sharing news of the upcoming Ossining Jazz Festival at the Elks Lodge, and highlighting an upcoming June exhibit at the Bethany Arts Center–a place I’m looking forward to exploring further, too.

In short, I tried my very best to capture various happenings, slices of life– touch of the flavor, if you will–in each of your engaging towns. Feel free to tell me how we did! Let’s solidify our relationship! Please feel free to write to grace@insidepress.com.

 

P.S. June is my favorite month! It’s my ‘down time’ between late spring and back to school publishing and with all the great weather, I make the most of it!  Happy Graduations to all the new graduates; have two fairly recent ones of my own (they are 22 and 27, and I’ll think of them that way ‘till they turn 30!)  Happy Father’s Day to all the dads! My own amazing ‘Poppy’ recently passed away at age 96, so it is a first for me without him. I’m going to spend it honoring his memory on a long walk whether in a beautiful preserve, or perhaps now, along the river. Enjoy the edition, and June, too.

A First Father’s Day…

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I love being a publisher and editor and proudly covering a wide swath of Northern Westchester! But like most people, sometimes I do experience a bout of the blues, for any number of reasons. I also recognize that the reasons are circumstantial. In the last month or so, I lost my father, a 96-year-old Holocaust survivor, and grandfather of four. I simply miss him to pieces, especially as I approach a First Father’s Day with him gone. Nonetheless, I know the blues are not a medical diagnosis. They are a state of mind that can be helped whether by say, leaning on friends and family, keeping a journal or maybe taking long meditative walks. The more ‘serious’ depression and all its potential consequences continues to challenge scientists around the world. So I was glad to attend an event by the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation who make it their mission to support advances in this area; my report: https://www.theinsidepress.com/tipper-gore-breaking-the-silence-about-mental-illness/

But back to my dad. As I consider that he’s gone, I also understand that his legacy will never leave me, and I intend for it not to leave this world either. The dangers of silence are all too clear. I attended a May screening of the movie Complicit at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center. It was stunning in its revelations of what led to 937 terrified Jewish passengers aboard the SS St. Louis being sent back to Nazi controlled Europe–first by Cuba and then so sadly by orders of the state Dept. and President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Over 250 of the passengers aboard were later killed–but it was the ramifications which were far worse: The horrific rejection gave Hitler exactly what he wanted: a perfect opportunity to “prove” to the world that Jews were expendable. #NeverAgain

Everyone knows a survivor’s best revenge is a long and fulfilling life. I’m thankful that my dad with a life well lived offering inspiration to many. Please be sure to read our entire edition and all its amazing stories! I’m grateful for our team and contributors who ‘share the heart of your community.’ Wishing you all peaceful and love-filled graduation ceremonies, if there are any in your household, and of course, a Happy Father’s Day.

Goodbye to 2018; Why, Hello ‘Beautiful’

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Ok, I’m trying to stay positive. Still, it feels good to say ‘so long’ to what has been downright ugly. We have seen the impact of hate mongering and a gun epidemic across America, from the spike in hate and lethal crimes across the board, as was the case with the terror directed toward so many prominent individuals via U.S. mail, and immediately thereafter, the horrific tragedies via gunfire at the Tree of Life Synagogue and at the Thousand Oaks nightclub. Then disaster struck, as we sat back helpless taking in the massive wildfire in California and its accompanying death toll of nearly 90 people with hundreds still missing, And in our backyard, as we went to press, The Inside Press team was saddened to learn that a passionate community campaign to bring Armando Rojas back home, had not succeeded. A saving feeling prevails, however: There is great comfort when we all come together as a community to mourn tragedies and put our heads together on how to make our future brighter for all of us and future generations.

As the publisher of a magazine for communities that are off the charts charitable, I also know that behind all the bad news, there is much that’s positive and promising and beautiful on the landscape for our future, and so we will be keeping our eyes peeled for all that. As we head into 2019, via our team, we’re going to keep bringing what’s ‘beautiful’ in our lives to you, from the ‘Inside’ out, for certain. For our first edition in 16 years of publishing, a March/April 2019 book, please look for our ‘Beautiful’ theme throughout, and get in touch early to ask how you can support us. Please write to grace@insidepress.com.

Beautiful Gedney Park playground on a Winter’s Day. Photo by Grace Bennett

In the meantime, thank you to all the residents here ‘and beyond’ who read and share stories we work hard to produce. Thank you to all the generous sponsors who support  community print and online coverage. Wishing you and our families much warmth and joy and all things beautiful through the holiday season.

Why I Plan to Vote Blue on November 6

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If there is one thing ‘about me’ I’d want anyone to know about my politics, it is that while I have always been a registered Democrat, I am not hyper-partisan. I am loyal only to the truth. By now, many of you (I hope) won’t be surprised to hear that.

But given the ‘pick your side’ nature of American elections, being a Democrat has always felt more in line with values that include compassion and good will and a sense of generosity toward your fellow man and woman and child.

So let’s talk about what feels ‘most’ wrong two years post Election, 2016.

I feel with every fiber of my being that Trump has been such a big fat horrible mistake for this country. He is worse than the bad dream we envisioned. He is now more the nightmare we can’t wake up from as he has completely divided us, and consequently, we’ve now witnessed an unprecedented escalation of hatred and accompanying violence toward every population, it sometimes seems, except white men and women of privilege.

He has given the fringe, shrill anti Zionist set on the left a window of opportunity to exploit, and I won’t let up on that either. Not as a child of Holocaust survivors whose war-torn parents met and married in Israel, drinking from a Kiddush cup, celebrating their union and their survival against all odds. I will fight to challenge every single politician, blue, red or purple, to support Israel as we move toward 2020, and hope you will too.

For now, however, there’s a bottom line I have come to terms with: Voting for the enabling band of GOPers helps keep ‘him’ in office…and consequently:

* Our health care is on the line.
* Our personal safety is at continuous risk from gun violence and ‘activated’ alt right individuals and gangs.
* The fate of our air and ocean continue to be deeply compromised by this climate science denying bunch.
* The trauma on children inflicted at the border is completely unacceptable and will impact them for a lifetime.
* As a woman who celebrates the hard fought gains made for myself and my sisters, I will not sit back and watch this sexist gang make decisions that could roll back the clock for our daughters.
* I will stand up for my gay and trans friends who are under attack too.

We all deserve better. Much better.

First order of business, change up this very bad hand we’ve been dealt.

#VOTEBLUE on November 6th!

Please keep reminding our youngest voters, too. While I may veer away from making official endorsements, there are times for anyone who cares about our country’s future to speak up, and now feels distinctly like one of those times. I’m grateful I still have freedom of expression to share that thought and a forum in which to do so. There is so much at stake…

Imagining the Glorious Possibilities of ‘I Can’

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Can I do this? Yes I Can!

When you are Empty Nest and single, but still living in the suburbs, ‘Back to School’ feels more like an experience from the sidelines—I admit to being more observer, than participant. It’s also easy to fall into ‘missing my kids’ mode, and I so do. However, this year, I plan to celebrate their wings by approaching life with a hefty dose of joie de vivre.

Indeed, the possibilities are rather glorious. While I consider others’ September scramble for book supplies and finding out teacher assignments, and while I certainly wish our Chappaqua Schools a very happy 90th birthday at Greeley’s homecoming, in truth, my mind wanders a bit as I plot multiple ways to fill more ‘me time.’

Two words I’m saying more: ‘I can.’ I can get to the gym more. I can go to karaoke or a favorite musician’s gig (if I can take a nap first, that is). I can take more walks in our amazing ‘hoods and parks. I can sleep longer. I can meditate or schedule an occasional massage. I can write a novel or a movie, or start a new publication…yes, I think about that, if I can simply pull myself from social media a bit more! Or I can get over myself and accept however each day plays out!  I can volunteer. I can get more politically involved, as fraught with ‘issues’ that sometimes feels. I can binge on a hot TV series, wrack up movies at the Burns, and I can cook more or I can treat myself to lovely meals. I can hop Metro North more to take advantage of the amazing city we live a stone’s throw from. I can make a bucket list travel wish come true. One certainty: I can keep soaking up precious time spent with my 96-year-old Poppy.

I can… I can…

Fortunately, anytime I feel like stepping up Community life, I can do that, too. I’m ultimately blessed to live in an area where, in truth, fun opportunities abound at any life stage–our ‘Happenings’ section makes that clear–whether its stopping by Community Day, the Chappaqua’s Children Book Festival or Armonk’s Outdoor Art Show and Cider and Donut Festival–these are all on my I Can calendar too. Ultimately, I plan to do it my way, in Can Do…the world is my oyster…mode.