The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

festival

Nothing Sweeter: The 82nd Annual Strawberry Festival

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There was fun anticipated for all on June 1; there’s also nothing sweeter than the sound of children of all ages enjoying carnival games and rides. And for 82 years, this time-honored tradition has been upheld in Chappaqua at the Church of St. Mary the Virgin’s Strawberry Festival. Live music, a petting zoo and vendors including those selling strawberry shortcake round out the fun-filled day. For so many area residents, it’s always a great way to start your summer fun and stock up on scrumptious strawberry jam.

Church of St. Mary the Virgin

191 South Greeley Avenue

Chappaqua

The Making of the Pleasantville Music Festival

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Managing ‘a zillion moving parts’ to create an all-day music extravaganza

Save the Date: July 13, 2019

When longtime Pleasantville resident Bruce Figler attended his first ever Pleasantville Music Festival, it was in 2005. That happened to be the inaugural year for the event, and Figler, who has been in the radio business, helped the original founders hook in a music station to be part of the all-day affair.

“I was perfectly happy sitting backstage with a beer hanging out with the radio station people, with the bands, going on stage introducing an act, hanging out with my family in the field for awhile,” Figler said.

“That was my life, it was a pretty easy life.”

Fast-forward more than a decade later, and Figler, who owns Creative Sound Works on Wheeler Avenue, is now the executive director of the yearly music festival that brings about 4,000 people to Parkway Field to hear a jam packed lineup of musical talent perform. His life is a little busier now than back in 2005 with months of planning going into the creation of the festival.

Figler works with an executive staff of about ten people and a volunteer base of more than 100 that live in the region (mostly Pleasantville and Chappaqua). Each year, he and staff members discuss what worked and what didn’t work that year with the desire to be more efficient the following year. A survey is also sent to attendees so Figler can receive feedback.

Once a review of the previous year is over, finding a new set of bands gets underway as early as December. Figler said he and the other staff members try to nail down different musicians that will please a wide range of demographics with Figler compiling a “wish list” of about 30 bands and musicians he’d love to go after.

ALL PHOTOS BY LYNDA SHENKMAN

But because the festival is a municipally run–rather than private–event, there are limitations Figler has to grapple with. Other festivals can offer more money to performers and some festivals have exclusivity rights, which means a band can’t perform within a certain radius within a certain time frame. He estimated that for every ten more prominent bands/musicians he reaches out to, seven reject him.

For the bigger bands, Figler said he tells them if they come to Pleasantville, it would be “an easier festival, it’s very manageable, you can be in and out pretty quickly.”

Additionally, because the festival is involved with a radio station (107.1 The Peak), that station supports the booked musicians which result in airtime for them leading up to the festival. A band could find a new base of fans in the suburbs, Figler said.

While the pursuit of big acts can be an arduous task, the festival also needs to find smaller bands and musicians, which begins two or three months before the festival.

Up and coming bands can submit through the festival’s website with staff members taking trips to hear different contending bands. “We’re becoming very diverse musically so I try to find something for everyone,” Figler said.

Pleasantville resident Jim Zimmerman, who founded the music festival in 2005 with Bernie Gordon and the late Lisa Wenzel, said the first year he helped put it together, it was like a second full-time job. Part of his motivation to start the festival was to give smaller bands and musicians a larger stage to perform. Some bands have gone on to bigger and better things, he pointed out.

“I had to develop all the systems and recruit so it was quite a project nevertheless,” Zimmerman said. “Everything had to be done by scratch.” Figler joked he doesn’t have to create the wheel like Zimmerman did, only keep it spinning.

While the music lineup is the most significant set to put together, Figler has to secure sponsors and vendors, many of which are eateries from Pleasantville and surrounding towns. There is also a push by a recycling group to ensure it is a zero waste event. Law enforcement and the department of public works are conferred with considering this is the largest public gathering in the small village each year.

The day of the event, Figler said weather is always an uncontrolled variable that has to be monitored. The last three years there has either been rain or a threat of a storm so the village recreational offices become a makeshift weather station. Said Figler: “There’s a zillion moving parts to this thing.”

Fun & Fitness at Jamie’s 5K Run for Love and the Annual Cider & Donut Festival

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PHOTO BY GARY MUI

Armonk residents of all ages gathered at Wampus Brook Park for the annual Jamie’s 5K Run for Love and the Cider and Donut Festival on September 23rd. The morning kicked off with the run, which had several toddlers racing in the Donut Dash. Older kids got to participate in the McIntosh Mile and runners ages 10 and up raced to the finish line in Jamie’s 5K Run for Love. The race was created in order to honor the memory of Jamie Love, a passionate runner and former member of the Byram Hills cross country and track & field team who died suddenly of a cardiac arrhythmia while attending the University of Vermont.

Every year friends from his former college participate in the race. Rafael Rodriguez from Bristol, CT was one of Love’s friends from college who studied engineering with him. “We were with him the week that he died. No one could believe it. He was like family to us and that’s why I run.” This year the race had 358 participants with some hailing from lower Westchester and others from as far away as Seattle.

After the race, festival attendees had plenty of activities to choose from. Slime making was a hit for the kids as well as the ever-popular train ride. Food trucks as well as fresh apple cider and donuts were enjoyed by many in attendance. Other activities included donut fishing, pie eating contests and listening to live music by Vinyl Countdown. The autumnal weather was the perfect setting for the fun-filled day.

“The Cider and Donut Festival has become a staple of the community,” commented Neal Schwartz, President of the Armonk Chamber of Commerce. Fresh apples and cider are an Armonk tradition, dating back to 1951, when Ed and Mary Schultz opened their renowned cider mill in town. In 1965, they added hot donuts, whose recipe has endured, even after their closing in 2002. Locals still hunger for those memories and get to relive them at the annual fall festival.

“The Armonk Chamber’s Cider and Donut Festival, which includes Jamie’s 5k Run for Love and the Byram Hills Pre-School Association Carnival, has grown to be a local favorite. We give our member businesses and local organizations a chance to interact with the community in a big way. It’s great to see so many families participating in both the races and all the activities. This is what small town living is all about,” noted Stacy Wilder, the Executive Director of the Armonk Chamber of Commerce.

Net proceeds from the event benefitted children’s programs at the North Castle Public Library, the Byram Hills Pre-School Association and the Armonk Chamber of Commerce.

PHOTO COURTESY OF EMILY BURNS BROWN
PHOTO BY GARY MUI
Four-year old Reed Bond of Armonk
won the Donut Dash
PHOTO BY SAMUEL PFEFFER

Memories Made during Huge Turnout at the 6th Annual Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival

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PHOTO BY BO SANDERS

The sixth annual Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival was held on Saturday, September 29th at the Robert E. Bell Middle School’s grounds. With a bright blue sky above, smiling faces all around, overjoyed kids playing and browsing their favorite books, the festival was a special and memorable day for the approximate 7,000 local book lovers as well as visitors from as far away as Boston, Albany, Maryland and New York City.

The goal of this year’s festival was to attract people from all backgrounds and expose children to authors and books about different cultures. The festival showcased a diverse group of 95 authors. The festival exceeded its expectations as the kids were quite eager to learn about the unique culture and diversity around them through the pages of books and conversations with the authors.

The event saw a huge turnout this year. Dawn Greenberg, the event organizer, said “The police estimated there were at least 7,000 attendees. Last year we had about 6,000. We worked very hard to get the word out throughout schools in Westchester County, lower Connecticut and New York City. Our goal was to have every child in the area attend and get a book.” The festival sold more than 9,000 books.

Rye Brook resident Michael Barnett attended the book festival with his two daughters. He stated “I’ve been to this book festival several times. This is the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen. We did notice a lot of books with characters of different races and ethnicities and I think it’s great.”

Inside Chappaqua asked several authors and illustrators “What does diversity at the festival mean to you?”

Torrey Maldonado, who was voted a “Top 10 Latino Author” and best Middle Grade and Young Adult novelist for African Americans, uses his students and his experiences in his work. He said “Being here at the Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival is amazing. I feel like I am more at an amusement park. Because every book is a different journey, different thrill ride.  You can get elementary, early childhood books or just enjoy something fun and thrilling at that level. I have met a lot of different people here from different places so it seems to be like the United Nations, but about books.”

Jerry Craft, an illustrator and author who has won five African American Literary awards, said  “It’s showing the crowd different kinds of books that they may not necessarily be familiar with. Whether it is boys having books that have female characters, African American characters or Latino characters. That’s something I always try to vary in my work.”

John Parry is an illustrator. “I think diversity represents all of us. For me, most of my book focuses on Latino culture or other different cultures.  Growing up, all my friends were from different backgrounds and different families and learning from each one of those families is so important. I think that helps to influence me in my work. Having the background I have is a very positive thing for me. So, I celebrate those things. Like diversity, the more the merrier, and everyone is invited to the party.”

Vivek Agastya is a Chappaqua resident who thinks it is important for his kids to be exposed to diversity in literature: “As the dad to two Chappaqua girls that are part of a minority community, I think it’s helpful for my kids to be able to experience literature that has a diverse theme. The diversity theme of the festival gives me a chance to expose them to that.”

MORE PHOTOS BY BO SANDERS

 

 

Armonk Outdoor Art Show Draws a Diverse Crowd of Artists and Art Aficionados

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Oil painter John Pompeo sat in front of his display of landscape and still life artwork, observing the adults and children who passed by his exhibit at this year’s Armonk Outdoor Art Show.     

“I want to put peace out into the world,” said the Philadelphia-area artist, who has attended the show for three years. “I like that my paintings make people happy.”

Pompeo is one of 185 juried artists who attended the 57th annual Armonk Outdoor Art Show, displaying their work for thousands of visitors on Sept. 29 and 30. Sponsored by the Friends of North Castle Public Library, this year’s show not only featured artists spanning from sculptors to painters, but also a wide range of food vendors, a family activities tent, live music, and hands-on art for kids and adults. As 22 rows of tents lined an open field on Business Park Drive, visitors came to purchase or peruse photographs, paintings, mixed media, printmaking, jewelry and sculptures during the two-day event.

An attendee at Carl Zachmann’s display, who is a second-year Armonk Outdoor Art Show exhibitor and a machine artist.

Greenwich, CT residents Kate and Jordan Shaner said they were happy to attend this year’s art show for the first time, joining thousands of attendees to view a wide range of art exhibitions. The couple came to this year’s show after Israeli artist and Armonk Outdoor Art Show exhibitor Yoram Gal invited them to browse his paintings.   

“We fell in love with his work in Jaffa, Israel,” said Kate Shaner on the second day of the show. “It’s great to see so many people in the community here to look at art.”

Not only did visitors enjoy this year’s event, but artists also said they appreciated the show’s atmosphere and the diverse selection artwork. First-year exhibitor Bruce Franklin said this event is his favorite show he has attended as a photographer, displaying photos from his excursions in Africa and the Bahamas.         

“I’m really impressed by the quality of the work that is here,”

Photographer Bruce Franklin at his booth

said the photographer, who mostly captures images of wild animals and plants. “I love the patrons and the artists, too. The best part is the people–art savvy people.”

And it’s not so easy to become an exhibitor at the Armonk Outdoor Art Show, which Franklin’s comments reflect. Debbie Heidecorn, Armonk resident and one of several co-chairs for the event, said an independent group of jurors who are members of the art community chooses from more than 600 applications as part of the show’s year-long planning process. Only artists who receive awards at the show are guaranteed a spot the following year.

Although the process to exhibit artwork at the art show is competitive, both artists and visitors found themselves at a friendly community event, filled with hundreds of volunteers who look to improve the show each year.     

“Every year we learn,” said Heidecorn. “It’s a learning experience because we only do it once a year. We are so happy that people are so easily adaptable to changes.”