The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Chappaqua

Paying for College 101

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Scott-Kahan-200x300By Scott Kahan

As a financial planner who has worked with many clients over the years figuring out how to pay for college, and as a parent who has sent two Greeley graduates to college, January 1st was never a date to look forward to. Just the uttering of the term FAFSA will send many parents into a panic.

For high school seniors who will be entering college in the fall of 2017, the quest for financial aid is beginning and FAFSA is a term you will get to know quickly.

What is the FAFSA?

The short answer is that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid forms, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, are the forms that are filed each year to be eligible for financial aid. Many parents tell me that since their child will not be eligible for aid, they don’t need to bother with the forms. Assuming that you have saved enough for college and will not need to borrow money, then you may not need to file the forms. On the other hand, if you are like many families that will either need financial aid and/or need to borrow, you will still need to file the FAFSA forms to be eligible for some of the loans offered for both parents and students.

Big Changes Coming

The main reason for the struggle each year is that when you file the forms in January, you have not even filed your tax returns, let alone received your W-2s, 1099s and other financial information needed from the prior year.

At the start of the 2017-2018 college year, the FAFSA forms can now be filed as of October 1, 2016. The good news is that since this is a transition year, you will use your 2015 financial information. For those with returning students, you will again use your 2015 financial information that you used when you filed earlier this year. If this is the first time you file the FAFSA, you should already have all the financial information you will need from 2015.

Going forward, you will use the prior year information. For example, for the 2018-2019 school year, the forms will be filed starting October 1, 2017, using 2016 information.

Get started early and don’t panic!

Scott M. Kahan, is a Certified Financial Planner® professional and President of Financial Asset Management Corporation, a fee-only wealth management firm located at 26 South Greeley Avenue in Chappaqua. Call Scott Kahan at 914-238-8900 or write to skahan@famcorporation.com.

The Concert Across America to End Gun Violence

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From here in New Castle, to the Beacon Theatre in Manhattan, to the Top of the Standard in Los Angeles, and to Lola’s Trailer Park in Fort Worth, Texas, musicians are banding together for The Concert Across America to End Gun Violence on Sunday, Sept. 25th.

  • At Chappaqua’s First Congregational Church, Dave Bickler will be singing, Keith Robellard, Minister of Music at FCC will be playing, and other special guests will be performing and speaking. The concert, which is being co-sponsored by the FCC and the Upper Westchester Muslim Society, is free and open to the public. It will take place at 4 p.m. at FCC, 210 Orchard Ridge Road.
  • Producers of the main event at the Beacon Theatre include: Live Nation New York; Jerry Foley, former director of “The Late Show with David Letterman”; John Rosenthal of SHV, and Donna Dees-Thomases, the founder of the Million Mom March, Mother’s Day 2000–still the largest protest against gun violence in U.S. history.
  • Woodlands Community Temple in White Plains will host a participatory “Sing-In” from 4 p.m.-6 pm. Folk and contemporary song will be led by Cantors Ellen Dreskin and Jonathan Gordon, and other favorite singers: Kenny Green, Adam Hart, Ira and Julia Levin, Jenny Murphy and more. Free and open to the public. RSVP to wct.org/concertacrossamerica.

“I’m inspired by the organizers for the Chappaqua concert, whose hard work has made the message from the Lower Hudson Valley loud and clear: we cannot wait one more day for commonsense gun safety measures that are supported by the vast majority of Americans. I will continue fighting in Congress to keep our families and communities safe. And together, we will win this fight.” –Congresswoman Nita Lowey

Spearheaded by Massachusetts-based Stop Handgun Violence (SHV), Faiths United to Prevent Gun Violence, and dozens of other organizations committed to reducing gun violence, the concerts will feature a diverse array of artists performing at venues ranging from churches and school gymnasiums to honky-tonks and hotel rooftops. Artists are asked to perform at least one song that gives voice to the more than five million Americans who’ve been murdered by a firearm since the mass shooting at the University of Texas on Aug. 1, 1966.

Artists with pre-existing commitments can still participate with a social media shout-out on their own Facebook fan pages and on their Twitter accounts using hashtags, #ConcertAcrossAmerica to #EndGunViolence.

Chappaqua Summer Sidewalk Sale Days: July 21-23

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Chappaqua’s Summer Sidewalk Sale Days is New Castle’s decades-long tradition with shoppers visiting downtown Chappaqua from all across the region. Throughout downtown Chappaqua, it’s a chance to enjoy sales and discounts with savings of up to 60% from local merchants. Annual participants include ICD Contemporary Jewelry, Family Britches, Squires, Great Stuff, Petticoat Lane, Chappaqua Paint & Hardware, Eye Gallery, The King’s Scribe, House of 29 and Desires By Mikolay. A first time participant is Luxe Luxury Labels.

• Family Britches: savings up to 60 percent
• House of 29: savings up to 60 percent
• ICD Contemporary Jewelry: 30-50% off storewide, 50% off on items outside.
• Luxe Luxury Labels: 50% off. as well as clearance racks, 20% off regular priced items.
• Petticoat Lane: savings up to 60 percent, including great handbags and accessories

 FOR SALE UPDATES:     
Visit the Chappaqua-Millwood Chamber of Commerce Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/chappchamber

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A Time of Grief and Sadness Brings Community Together Again

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Article and Photos By Kelly Leonard

Color Guard awaits vigil.
Color Guard awaits vigil.

Chappaqua, NY, July 11–Four weeks after the Town of New Castle community gathered at its gazebo to mourn the loss of 49 souls gunned down in the Orlando Pulse nightclub terrorist attack, the community gathered again in shock from another week of violence in the U.S. This time we saw the lives of civilians and uniformed police officers taken during the past seven days, including the largest loss of police personnel in a single day in the U.S. since 9/11.

“A Community Gathering in a Time of Grief and Sadness” was held by the Town of New Castle for the community to express its appreciation for the brave individuals who dedicate their lives to law enforcement and to sustaining peace and security on its streets.

In addition to scores of community members, dozens of police and fire personnel came from across Westchester County to honor and remember the fallen including members of the Chappaqua, Millwood, Mount Kisco, Mount Pleasant, and Westchester County Police departments among others. All wore dress uniforms with their badges covered with black bands.

The Emerald Society Bag Pipes Band opened the ceremony followed by a presentation of the Town of New Castle Police Department Color Guard. Chappaqua Central School Board Vice President Victoria Tipp led the Pledge of Allegiance. Speakers included New Castle Town Supervisor Rob Greenstein, Westchester County Legislator Michael B. Kaplowitz, New Castle Chief of Police Charles Ferry, Police Officer Chad Glance, President of the New Castle Police Benevolent Association, Rev. Dr. Martha R. Jacobs, Senior Minister of the First Congregational Church of Chappaqua, Rabbi Jonathan Jaffe of Temple Beth El of Northern Westchester, and Khusro Elley of the Upper Westchester Muslim Society.

The names of the five fallen Dallas Police and DART officers–Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Michael J. Smith, Brent Thompson and Patrick Zamarripa–were read aloud.

The resonating themes of the formal remarks were loss, mourning, honor in service, disparity in justice, and gun violence. While the phrase, “we are not divided, we are united” was said by more than one speaker, at times the remarks underscored the raw emotion felt in the aftermath of last Thursday’s ambush in Dallas.

Town Supervisor Robert Greenstein expressed his outrage about all the lives lost. “Americans of all races and all backgrounds are outraged by police misconduct. It’s unacceptable. When one of us is victimized we all suffer. There’s no division there,” he said. And then added: “Americans of all races and all backgrounds are also outraged when police officers sworn to uphold the law are at risk. Police officers who are protecting those who want to exercise their right to free speech, even if that speech is directed at other police officers, should not be at risk of being murdered. Senseless, heartless, murder.

Greenstein continued: “Whether the event stems from terrorism, hate crimes or any other motive is irrelevant. Gun violence as a tool of hatred targeting race, gender, sexual preference, profession or for any other reason cannot be tolerated. We must say no to gun violence. Lives cannot be lost in vain.”

Chief Ferry spoke of how police departments have more militarized weaponry now in reaction to “the militarization of criminals” and expressed how he is tired of hearing his officers and officers around the country being called racists while they risk their lives to protect their communities. He noted, “Five officers were slaughtered simply for the fact they were police officers.”

Chief Ferry inside the Gazebo addressing the community.
Chief Ferry inside the Gazebo addressing the community.

During his remarks, Khusro Elley of the Upper Westchester Muslim Society said, “We mourn the unfortunate and unnecessary deaths” of the past week and “we are outraged by the killing of African American men and women.” One of the more striking remarks of the evening was when Elley stated, “I would rather be Muslim than Black in America.”

Rabbi Jaffe of Temple Beth El of Northern Westchester offered that gathering was an opportunity for the community to “join together in our feelings of mutual support.” He also quoted from Auschwitz survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, “The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.”

“I truly pray,” said Rev. Dr. Jacobs of the First Congregational Church of Chappaqua, “I am not standing here in another month for another vigil for another senseless act of violence.”

Rev. Martha Jacobs greeting New Castle police officers.
Rev. Martha Jacobs greeting New Castle police officers.

In closing the ceremony, the Emerald Society Bag Pipes Band played “Amazing Grace” as members of the Chappaqua Fire Department lit and released sky lanterns in memory of the lives lost in the Dallas ambush. The playing and singing of “God Bless America” brought the solemn gathering to a close while many lingered to watch the sky lanterns disappear into the evening sky.
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Kelly Leonard is the Founder and Principal Consultant of KLO Associates, LLC, a digital marketing boutique specializing in custom content strategy and influencer engagement for authors, publishers, local businesses and nonprofits. Previously she held senior management positions at Time Warner Book Group and Hachette Book Group.

Chappaqua Summer Writing Program for Girls

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A SUMMER ACADEMIC PROGRAM FOR YOUNG WOMEN AGES 14-17 WHO LOVE READING AND WHO WANT TO STRENGTHEN THEIR WRITING SKILLS OVER THE SUMMER.

Ages 14-17
July 11-July 22, 2016
2PM-5PM, Monday – Friday
Horace Greeley House
100 King Street, Chappaqua NY

The literature to be studied includes poetry, fairy tales, drama, and 19th-century novels. Modeled on the First-Year Writing Seminars at Princeton University, the program also includes elements designed to prepare students for the college application process, with half of each class meeting devoted to the study of literature and the other half to workshops and exercises geared at building critical reading and writing skills. Students will emerge from the course with a draft of a college application essay.

Meetings will be held in the Horace Greeley House in downtown Chappaqua. The program fee is $575 and enrollment is capped at 15. For enrollment information please visit chappaquasummerprogram.weebly.com or contact: chappaquasummerprogram@gmail.com or 914.314.7009.

The Chappaqua Summer Writing Program for Girls is directed by Keri Walsh. Dr. Walsh has taught at Oxford and Princeton University, and is now a professor of English Literature at Fordham University. She is the editor of The Letters of Sylvia Beach (the first publisher of James Joyce’s Ulysses and the owner of the Shakespeare and Company bookshop in Paris). Dr. Walsh is now completing an edition of Joyce’s Dubliners.

Chappaqua Girls Summer Writing Program poster 2016 jpeg