The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Just Between Us

Wide Wings

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Editor’s Note: May the memories of lost loved ones be both blessing and call to action. My poem is dedicated to all the courageous survivors in the March For Our Lives movement.  — Grace

 

We give our kids roots

So that they can grow wings.

After teaching them first

of important things.

Guess we didn’t know

How far kids can fly

After growing up watching

Small children and peers die.

Their wings spread wide

And views heard across the land

We watch in awe

And also, extend a hand.

We prefer their teen years

Be ones of learning and calm

Preparing for college

Nurturing friendships

Enjoying the Prom.

Hey corrupt politicians

Entrenched in D.C.

Taking NRA dollars

With winks and more glee

You’ve heard our kids’ cries

They were loud and clear

Will you work toward change

Or mock & disregard all fear?

If it stays the latter

It doesn’t matter.

We’ve got these kids’ backs.

You will be remembered

In the dust heap of history

As evil political hacks.

But I’ll end this poem

In gratitude to the children

Who bravely shared visions

of a world

So many hope to live in.

 

Haiku addendum:
 
No words to describe
The pride and hope kids revive
These will have to do.

 

 

 

Choosing a Necessary Focus

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Photo by Andrew Bordeaux

I was planning a personal reminisce about 15 years of publishing for this 15-year anniversary edition.* Instead, my mind has been squarely focused on the massacre that took 17 precious lives at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida on Valentine’s Day. I’ll save going down memory lane for some other day.

In the week that followed, I visited a rally in White Plains quickly organized by Indivisible Westchester, Up2Us and Million Mom March, northern Westchester chapter. Erin Fuller, a 30-year-old survivor of the Oct. 1, 2017 Las Vegas massacre which killed 58 people, and injured nearly 500 more, spoke to hundreds gathered. Our story about the rally can be found online here.

More recently, I attended a roundtable of local teens (including ones from Greeley, Pleasantville, White Plains, among others) who joined several police officers to meet with Congresswoman Nita Lowey. To hear our kids grappling over what can be done was both heartening and heartbreaking.

 

Rep. Nita Lowey with a group of Westchester students and several law enforcement officers following a February roundtable.  https://www.theinsidepress.com/westchester-students-voice-their-ideas-to-tackle-the-challenge-of-gun-violence/

Heartening–in that we are giving our kids a platform to voice their concerns and ideas.

Heartbreaking–in that it was a poignant reminder that it is KIDS who are on the front-lines, and too often, the victims of these shootings.

I asked a reporter to contact a group of area Superintendents for statements about campus safety and to speak with some of our students too; our story will be here at theinsidepress.com too as I try to stay current and share info into social media. 

On March 14, high school students throughout the County will have an opportunity to express themselves–for 17 minutes to honor 17 lives. On March 24, many more will be advocating for overdue change too all around the county. Please visit marchforourlives.org for more info.

15 years ago, before Sandy Hook, before Las Vegas–before the reportedly 18 school shootings just this year–I was not, I must confess, preoccupied with these issues. I am now, however. So many are, including many who have not ‘stepped up’ before. A dear friend noted recently, “The winds are changing.” I believe that’s true, too.

The weather is turning soon. With more sun, comes more brightness and reason for optimism, too. Enjoy the edition! So much hard work went into it, and always appreciative of that.


P.S. A special congrats to our newly sworn-in town officials! At a historic and packed ceremony at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center, President Bill Clinton presided, speaking of ‘A New Beginning,’ and the positive aspects of that.

*Fortunately, we have a terrific compilation of 15 major milestones in the community since 2003 on page 24 of this edition already, so do take a glance! The story is on our home page, and you can always download the entire magazine edition from there too.

On Love and Caring in the Age of Trump

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You know… as a local publisher, I have received assorted criticism from both sides of the political aisle.
 
For not doing enough with my press and my time even at the local level to counter the age of Trump. When I try, it can feel like a Herculean task as I try to keep up with community coverage, press deadlines, paper work, etc. This local publisher gig is frequently a full time job, and then some.
 
From others: for being ‘too political’ with my press.
 I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer. And navigating these tugs and pulls from both directions can feel somewhat exhausting as I ride this see saw, still. I maintain my independence so that I’m not pulled too much in either direction, actually.
 
Whether I’m doing enough, or not enough, whether I miss the mark, or am on target, I always try to convey: that while love lost a round, its power is unbeatable, and I’m confident it will win at the end. And that I appreciate and am grateful for all the activist efforts, too.
 
As erratic as I can be, I  always, always try to strike a note that conveys that at the very least, I am awake, and that I CARE.
 
I CARE about the environment, and supporting real science.
I CARE about women’s hard fought for rights under siege and protecting choice.
I CARE about the aggressive accumulation of wealth in the hands of the few.
I CARE about supporting a vision of a Rainbow over America, and compassionate leaders who would never marginalize any one group, resort to hard core exclusionary tactics, or consider one group more deserving than another.
 
Well, you get the idea.
 
Happy Valentine’s Day, with love and care.  — Grace

Savor Each Page

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Photo by Andrew Bordeaux

Summer and the living is preparing residents and visitors alike for different fall downtown events and fundraisers both as official ‘media sponsor’ and/or as a community-friendly ‘hyperlocal’ and merchant supported/reader coveted pub. We’re ‘all over the net’ too at theinsidepress.com and largely on Facebook. Keeps us on our toes, especially while also gathering so many additional, equally compelling profiles around our back to school theme. Grateful to Stacey Pfeffer, our new editor for both editions for writing and producing several stories in both editions (all while getting her feet wet in her new role! Bravo!)  There are so many fundraisers we are promoting both in story and/or in a sponsor spot, so be sure to savor each page and ‘Save the Date’ for whatever strikes your fancy or piques your interest.
Readers, please feel free to let us know when you visit or call a sponsor or attend an event because of ‘what you saw’ in our pages. And sponsors, likewise, please do let us know about a happy customer or two, and we’ll happily publish your experience some time, and voila, more press for you. Drop a note at my new email: grace@insidepress.com. In the meantime, summer’s fading fast. Get outdoors (if you enjoy cycling, maybe first check out our Biking story?), and enjoy! I plan to.

Strong Starts

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By Grace Bennett

For the March/April ’17 Spring edition, I focused on ‘strong starts’ in different community arenas—in particular with a special cover story on area libraries written by past Inside Press Editor Beth Besen and photographed by Gary Sapolin. I so admire how our libraries rose to the ‘virtual world’ challenge with a hyper-focus on programming to become safe, nurturing havens for human contact and lively exchanges.

Another strong start includes Habitat for Humanity’s amazing efforts in Chappaqua, so I’m grateful for Janine Crowley Haynes’ interview with the devoted Jim Killoran, too.

Spring cleaning efforts are always a strong start to the season; I think you’ll appreciate the E-tools Dana Wu suggests we consider toward that goal.

We even tackle the topic of marriage! After pondering her own experiences, Miriam Longobardi offers different experts’ advice on navigating a ‘marriage in limbo,’ while, on our final etcetera page, Danika Altman, Ph.D., shares sound marriage-saving advice. And, there’s the usual ‘more!’

Just Between Us again, as time permits, I keep up with political posts and assorted other stories ‘in between editions,’ at theinsidepress.com, and in social media on Facebook, primarily, at Inside Chappaqua and Inside Armonk Magazines (on both our ‘business’ or ‘group’ pages) which link to Twitter; you can follow my tweets on Twitter https://twitter.com/TheInsidePress . Many insiders also follow my general ‘Grace Bennett’ Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/InsidePress. These posts combined (a single one striking a chord can reach thousands upon thousands of ‘viewers,’) I hope portray many neighbors’ resolve for staying true to ourselves both at home and outside our community.

For such posts (and other news that doesn’t make it into print), please visit the New Castle News, Inside Thoughts and other links at our (I’m proud to say) newly re-designed Inside Press site which you’re in right now, of course!  🙂  Examples include stories on Up2Us sponsored events, including that of a meeting at New Castle Town Hall where several gun violence protection groups met with Congresswoman Nita Lowey to strategize. http://theinsidepress.com/gun-violence-prevention-groups-promote-coalition-building/I assigned the Habitat story to Janine following our social media coverage of a Habitat for Humanity fundraiser which was attended by both Hillary and Bill Clinton for a wonderful jazz night with Daniel Lauter, et al, performing at Chappaqua Station. See pics below!

Online too: my interview with Susan Chatzky who chaired a Planned Parenthood Comedy Night fundraiser; Kelly Leonard’s story about a teenage, interfaith effort on Martin Luther King Day–the teens packaged humanitarian aid to send to Syrian refugees; Up2Us Dawn Evans Greenberg’s profile of the Hudson Valley Justice Center which provides legal guidance to immigrants http://theinsidepress.com/hudson-valley-justice-center-describes-impact-of-trumps-policies-on-immigrant-communities/and a story about a Chappaqua graphic artist, Alex de Janosi, whose anti Trump ‘No’ logo has taken off. http://theinsidepress.com/chappaqua-artists-no-logo-graphic-strikes-a-chord/http://theinsidepress.com/chappaqua-artists-no-logo-graphic-strikes-a-chord/

There’s also nothing quite like the energy and conviction in young people voices, so particularly firing up our site recently were essays by Greeley sophomore Julia Bialek,  http://theinsidepress.com/thank-you-mr-president and Aemilia Phillips, HGHS, class of ‘12 and Harvard class of ’16 http://theinsidepress.com/greeley-grads-passionate-plea-to-reject-choice-of-trump-national-for-senior-prom/

Three New Castle young men and a young lady spoke eloquently at a late winter rally organized by the town’s Inclusion and Diversity Committee to protest the travel ban. Town Supervisor Robert Greenstein, Dr. Rev. Martha Jacobs of the First Congregational Church, and Temple Beth El’s Rabbi Jonathan Jaffe, each addressed hundreds gathered around the Gazebo. Footage from that inspiring event can also be found on the aforementioned Facebook pages.

And of course, there will be much more appearing online from the time I’m writing this ‘for print.’  Chappaqua is my home, where I raised my children, so I’m proud to and love feeling its vibe and monitoring its pulse. 

Shortly before press time too, I was gearing up to moderate a panel of esteemed journalists on March 3 called “Separating Truth from Fiction in the Age of Trump” in a Left of Main Street sponsored forum at Town Hall. Coverage is online now!  http://theinsidepress.com/the-fourth-estate-covering-the-trump-administration/

Note too: a non-partisan forum, “Media and Politics: The Impact on our Democracy,” sponsored by the League of Women Voters of New Castle, will take place at the Chappaqua Library on April 6th, 7-9 p.m.

I will continue to embrace community activism and outreach in my heart and in my soul. On a most personal level, that’s a strong enough start for me.  -Grace

Bill Clinton and Jim Killoran

 

 

Photos by Grace Bennett