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Gratitude for Our Homes

October 19, 2018 by Stacey Pfeffer

Tell me if this sounds familiar. You take a fun-filled vacation and it’s filled with great memories, exotic locales, scrumptious food and maybe even some quality beach time. But the second you walk in through the front door to your home, you are thankful to be surrounded by your belongings and happy to actually whip up a home-cooked meal. Maybe your house is a bit disheveled, maybe the bedding isn’t 3,000 thread count like the luxury hotel’s that you stayed at but it’s home and that in itself feels great.

I was reminded how thankful I am for my home this summer when I drove my kids back from sleep-away camp. As soon as our car passed the Chappaqua exit on the Saw Mill, my two older children started crying. Once I stopped by the traffic light on Quaker Rd, I paused and asked, “Why are you crying?” They replied in unison, “We are happy to be home.”

Nothing quite evokes gratitude for our homes like the upcoming holiday season. Thanksgiving is a time that I am especially grateful to be in my warm home surrounded with loved ones. If you are looking for a little inspiration for your holiday table, check out our Thanksgiving tablescapes articles for tips from local residents. After you’ve gorged yourself on the requisite turkey or tofurkey, sign up for one of the Turkey Trots mentioned in these pages.

For those of us with pets, I now feel like my home is empty whenever my beloved dog Arlo is at grooming or boarding. I’ve grown accustomed to him keeping me company while I type on my laptop (just as Ronni Diamondstein’s essay on Maggie Mae can attest to) and couldn’t imagine life without him even though his sock eating habit is thoroughly annoying. I’m embarrassed to say we’ve come close to losing him a few times and recently just installed a fence to keep him safer. If you are looking for ways to help curb pet loss, read Anna Young’s article on the subject.

As we head into holiday season madness, be sure to take a gratitude moment to stop and appreciate all that we have to be grateful for in our homes and New Castle.

Wishing you warmest holiday wishes,

Finding a New Spiritual Home at FCC

April 21, 2016 by The Inside Press

By Michelle Best

In the fall of 2010, my husband passed away three weeks after a cancer diagnosis, when the first dose of chemotherapy proved fatal. I found myself a widow, with six- and eight-year-old daughters. Since he was a building superintendent in Manhattan, our home was linked to his job; once he passed, the nuns from our church, which owned the building, gave me only six weeks to vacate our home, eventually serving me with eviction notices on Christmas Eve. My church no longer felt like home, and in my hour of need. Unbelievably, they even asked me to increase my volunteering. I needed comfort. I also needed help and to learn how to receive it. Fortunately, my community outside of what I had thought was my church family, surrounded me and took me into their arms. Manhattan is more neighborly than you might think.

Janet Girardeau, one of the most loving women I knew in my Midtown neighborhood, suggested that my girls and I accompany her to her friend’s “marvelous church” in Chappaqua. Knowing that I was Catholic, she said that I would not even have to attend the service, but that I would “really enjoy the drive and it will do you some good to get out to the country and see the fall foliage and breathe some fresh air.” Smiling, she described a playground for my kids where “they can climb a tree and play out in the fresh air; it’s simply beautiful.”

Needing the spiritual boost, I accepted, and we set out from Times Square towards Chappaqua. Decompressing with each mile, I began to breathe as I took in the trees, golden and red and orange. An hour later we pulled into the giant parking lot of the First Congregational Church. I attended the service and was welcomed without any pressure. It felt familial and warm. Very low key, as though I’d stumbled into a meeting of people who genuinely knew the secret of how to live, and how to be kind. And a miraculous thing happened; my children had a great time at church!

Later, they begged me to return. “Can we please go back to that place? It was fun!” We returned the following week, and afterwards witnessed the most beautiful thing. An elderly parishioner was dying, in his last months or even weeks. At coffee hour after the service, his family and friends, even his hospice nurse, were welcomed. The men of the church, his closest friends, honored him, memorializing his name while he was still alive to hear it.

Getting it “Right”

They stood with a microphone and told stories of their years together, remembering the things he had done for the community, for the building we were in, for the world. A living funeral. These people, this church, was getting it RIGHT! They were honoring his life, right to him. Not waiting until it was too late to tell him about all that he had meant to the congregation.

I had found a new church community at FCC. And its sole mission was to make people feel good by doing good for one another. Even my children could see and feel that simply doing good for and with a group of people is the best medicine for a broken heart. We had found healing, in people, in this beautiful place, with beautiful nature. It became our spiritual home for good.

Years later, this remains our church. We don’t make it up to Chappaqua every week, but when we do we are welcomed and feel like we’re home. People at FCC don’t judge when life interferes with churchgoing; I always feel good when I walk through the doors, whether it’s been a week or a month since my last visit. At FCC everyone shares their thoughts, everyone is involved, and even during “the homily” (as we called it in my Catholic church) we are encouraged to raise questions and discuss our role in making the world a better place.

After a wild night of trick-or-treating and a sleepover, I was willing to let my kids off the hook one Sunday morning. To my surprise, it was not to be. My 12-year old convinced her friend to come with us. “Don’t worry, it’s not like a regular church, it’s actually really fun…the only thing we do is really fun things and then it helps people and you get to play and run around and it’s awesome.” My 14-year old, normally only interested in Snapchat, added that “we get to make backpacks for poor kids who can’t afford school supplies and we put together packed lunch for homeless people, and we had a car wash and stuff, and we get to sell Christmas trees to people, too.” Their friend was excited to join us, and left FCC having had the promised fun.

FCC gets things right: the world can use a spiritual place for good. Everyone, even kids, like to help other people–it just feels good. The more people we have the more good we can do, for ourselves and for one another.

Michelle Best is a writer, director and actor living in Manhattan.

For more information about the First Congregational Church, please visit: fcc-chappaqua.org

Pets Make a House a Home

March 6, 2016 by The Inside Press

Kristen Rice, Executive Director of Adopt-A-Dog, a pet rescue, shelter and adoption agency in Armonk, with Petey, one of the dogs currently available for adoption. — Kristen Rice, Executive Director of Adopt-A-Dog, a pet rescue, shelter and adoption agency in Armonk,
with Petey, one of the dogs currently available for adoption.

Article and Photos by Marianne A. Campolongo

Nothing is better after a long day at work or school than coming home to a pet at your door. Whether it’s a dog wagging her tail and waiting to join you on a walk outside or a cat purring as he rubs against your legs waiting for you to pick him up, when you have a pet, coming home is always a treat.

Whether you have a dog or a cat, exotic fish or birds, or some other creature, your home is never empty when you have a pet.

Pet ownership has “a number of benefits,” according to Dr. Mary Padilla, a veterinarian who has owned North Castle Veterinary Hospital in Armonk for more than 30 years. “For some people, it’s companionship; for some people, it’s structure. It’s an easy relationship. There is not as much emotional stuff going on. It can be an undemanding, non-judgmental situation,” she said.

She said that pets are great for children as they both tend to be more “in the moment.” She added, with a laugh, “It’s someone else to blame when something is broken.”

Dr. Padilla said, “Research has been done about the benefits of touch. For some people, it’s the only contact that they have,” she added, stressing that the calming aspects of touch provide both physical and emotional benefits for those of all ages.

“We are an animal ourselves. They [pets] make a family complete.” –Jim Dempsey

Besides treating all kinds of animals in her daily veterinary practice, Dr. Padilla has a small menagerie at home. In addition to two cats, DD and Ludie, she has a small flock of finches in a flight cage, a large piece of furniture filled with plants and birds. It allows them to really stretch their wings. “Birds are social. They like to be with other birds,” she said. Adding to the mix, her husband has two large tanks filled with tropical fish.

Kristen Rice is the Executive Director of Adopt-A-Dog, a non-profit rescue and animal shelter that began in Greenwich, Connecticut in 1981, but has been housed in Armonk since 2002. Though the shelter has housed and found homes for cats as well as dogs in the past, it is currently home to about 35 dogs of all ages seeking homes. “I’m very blessed to have a job I don’t dread going to. I love my work, being around dogs and people who love dogs too,” she said.

Owning a pet “is an opportunity for parents to teach their kids about being kind and respectful, being able to enjoy the presence of someone else in the world,” Rice said. Echoing Dr. Padilla she continued, “There’s no judgment, just natural play. They have a lot of fun together and they’re also buddies.”

Rice has three senior dogs, ages 14-17, that she adopted from the shelter: Kirby, Jillian, and Rusty.

Tyler Zuckerman owns Pleasant Grooming of Armonk with his father, Stu. His dog Nike, a Golden Retriever, comes to work with him each day, greeting customers and acting as the store’s mascot. In addition to grooming, they sell accessories, run a dog training school, a doggie day care, and also connect customers with dog breeders to help them find the right pet. His father has a Cockapoo which he rescued eight years ago. All-in-all, Tyler has had nine dogs over the years, one of whom used to pick him up from the bus stop. “It was a good thing growing up with dogs,” he said. Despite taking Claritin daily due to an allergy to dogs, he wouldn’t be without one in his life.

Armonk resident Jim Dempsey is the editor and publisher of Pet Gazette, a pet magazine he and his wife have published in Armonk since 1998. They now publish four editions of the magazine in Westchester, Long Island, Fairfield, and New York City.

Dempsey said that bringing a pet into your home “is a connection to the natural world. We share the earth with them. We are an animal ourselves. They make a family complete. I’ll never forget watching my cat give birth. I was probably eight years old. Wow! That taught me more about life. That’s just unbelievable. Having a pet in a family allows a family to understand caring for something other than themselves. For a child to understand that in life, it’s important. Especially these days, a pet forces you to put that technology down.” Currently, Dempsey gets his pet fix by playing with a neighbor’s dog. “I just lost the best dog I ever had,” he said. “I’ve had every pet–birds, cats, dogs, bunnies.” He is considering getting a pair of Great Danes, but needs time to mourn the loss of his dog. Pets truly become a member of the family, and their loss can be difficult due to the depth of the bond between human and pet.

This bond is one of the great benefits of bringing a pet into your home. “The beautiful thing about Great Danes–they have a short lifespan–I’m 60 now so since we’re in a transition period I’m thinking about how long I’ll be able to chase after a dog,” said Dempsey.

Dempsey, Rice, and Zuckerman all stressed that people need to think about finding pets that are suitable for their stage in life, their children’s ages, and temperaments. “Because I work so much, having older dogs is good,” said Rice. They sleep all day and just need a shorter walk. I can give them a nice quiet place to spend their golden years. For my lifestyle an older dog is great. If I had kids and was home more, I’d look into a younger dog.”

Adopt-A-Dog always aims to have a mix of dogs of all ages, Rice said, to meet the needs of those looking to adopt. Zuckerman said, “We locate dogs for people from various breeders around the country. Do they have kids, how many, are they active, do the kids have allergies? There’s a lot of different things to look into. They become part of the family.”

When you bring an animal home, said Rice, you will receive “a lifetime of unconditional love. The companionship is unparalleled in my opinion. It’s not just a pet, it’s a member of your family. For me coming home to my dogs makes me happy. It’s just an amazing experience. Overall the experience is just one of happiness.”

Marianne Campolongo is a freelance writer and photographer from Chappaqua. She has had six cats, two dogs and a variety of fish in her life. Having recently lost two cats after 14 years, she gets her pet fix enjoying her daughter’s two new kittens. Visit campyphotos.com.

Sunshine Children’s Home

March 6, 2016 by The Inside Press

Our happy home probably looks a little different from yours. When you’re nudging young sleepy heads awake, we may be lovingly checking vital signs on ours. When you’re serving your kids breakfast, we may be administering a life sustaining IV to ours. When yours are enjoying bath time with bubbles and toys, we may be giving a sponge bath to keep ours clean and dry. Yes, our happy homes look different–but they’re the same where it counts. For a child, home is wherever you can feel secure that your needs will be met–all of your needs, every single day. sunshinechildrenshome.org