love

Blanketing the Town with Love

November 13, 2020 by Ronni Diamondstein

There’s Elf on a Shelf and there’s Mensch on a Bench, but we have a “Mystery Mensch” in our midst. Mensch is the Yiddish word for a good person. Our Mystery Mensch got busy crocheting colorful throws to keep her busy since March and quarantine set in. More than a dozen of these handcrafted gifts were sent by the Mystery Mensch who had lived in Chappaqua for 20 years before relocating to Virginia.

The Mystery Mensch doesn’t necessarily know all the people she crochets for. She asked friends in Chappaqua to recommend recipients. “They have to be a good human being who does good for the community. I would ask people who they thought I should make a throw and they threw out names to me. Cristina Lee was one of them.” The Mystery Mensch would contact the recipient and ask them to send her a picture of their couch and four of their favorite colors.

“I was very grateful to be chosen,” said Cristina Lee, a founder of the Tri-State Mask Making Group. “It’s a very special gift, especially because she made it with so much love during COVID. She did it for special people and I’m honored.”

Our Mystery Mensch has a history of performing acts of kindness. The former Westchester County parole officer organized a meal train for someone who was undergoing treatment for cancer whom she only knew from Facebook. She took her to the doctor and checked in on her regularly. She was a source of comfort to this woman who says she will be forever grateful to her.

When she moved to Richmond three years ago to be near one of her children she continued to do good deeds. Last year she made scarves for first grade children in a disadvantaged school in Richmond. “I don’t have the social life I had in Chappaqua,” the Mystery Mensch explains. “I needed something to do.” She plans to crochet scarves for the Kindergarteners in the school.

Two years ago, she got involved with another project. She joined a small group of people who would meet immigrants at the Richmond bus station coming from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala who were on their way north from Immigration camps in Texas.

The group of volunteers brought them care packages of food, clothing and drinks. “Many of my Chappaqua friends sent me boxes of food and treats and drinks. I couldn’t afford to keep buying things. It was my Chappaqua friends who stepped up and sent me stuff. That’s when collaboration became one of my favorite words.”

The Mystery Mensch also started what she calls “Bagel Thursday.” “I have been getting donated bagels and people come to my house and pick them up from my porch.”

Crocheting the multicolored striped throws was beneficial for the Mystery Mensch as well as the lucky recipients. “I don’t have much to do since retirement and not being able to socialize now because of COVID-19, I needed to keep busy.” She watches a lot of television while she crochets away. “I miss going out for coffee and lunch or dinner with friends.” Prior to COVID-19 she traveled a lot to visit her children and has been to South Africa since her retirement.

When asked what lessons she learned in life, she said, “I’ve learned to be humble.” That explains her wish to be anonymous for this story and sums up the Mystery Mensch quite well. An unpretentious person doing good for the pure joy of the deed. A real Mensch!

Love at the Engine Company

February 22, 2020 by Ella Ilan

When Debra Johnson (“Debbie”) walked into the Briarcliff Volunteer Fire Department with her friend Rachel Leihbacher in August 1982 intending to join as the first female members, William Johnson (“Bill”) didn’t think much of it. They sat down next to him and he talked to them. Soon, chaos ensued amongst members determined to keep these women out of the all-male company. Two men quit because of the perceived intrusion but the women underwent training and quickly proved to be valuable members of the department, running into burning buildings and taking every call they could.

Bill and Debbie became great friends going on calls together and seeing each other at meetings and drills. “I would look forward to seeing her on those calls,” remembers Bill. “By the annual dinner dance in May of 1983, we were dating. We married seven years later.”

Both born and bred in Briarcliff, they only got to know each other when they both joined the fire department. For Bill, a Westchester County police detective, serving the community was in his blood. Both his father Arthur Johnson Jr. and grandfather Arthur Johnson were Briarcliff police chiefs and firefighters. His grandfather’s brother Buck Johnson was the fire chief and his grandfather’s brother Charles Johnson was killed in the line of duty with the Briarcliff police department in 1927.

“My husband is the most amazing man in my life and such a rock star,” says Debbie. “He’s by my side for everything we’ve endured and he’s always doing for me.”

Debbie recently retired from nursing after 36 years at Northern Westchester Hospital, but remains an active volunteer in addition to her private duty nursing work. “I just love making a difference. The fire department gives me a sense of accomplishment and I love going to car accidents and helping the victims out.”

They often respond to calls together. When their two kids were young, they would swap off or Debbie’s mother would watch the kids.

One of Bill’s worst experiences was responding to an accident in the middle of the night while Debbie was working at the hospital and discovering that it was Debbie’s brother, badly injured, in the accident. He remembers showing up at the hospital to tell Debbie.

The couple has seen a lot of tragedy together, particularly in car accidents, and it helps that they can talk about it with each other.

These days, Bill keeps an extra eye out for Debbie when they’re at the scene of an accident. “Responding to auto accidents is not safe. EMS has been hit on calls because of distracted driving,” he says.

It’s pretty clear to me, however, that he always has his eye on his beloved.

Living in Downtown Armonk: Just Close Enough to the Action

February 21, 2020 by Christine Pasqueralle

Living in downtown Armonk affords its residents easy access to many points of interest including restaurants, shops and green spaces. The Kapur family calls the area home and has many reasons to love living there.

Leena, a stay-at-home-mom, Nick, who works in energy information and children Deven, age 8, Sareena, age 6 and Naya, age 4 enjoy all that their Armonk neighborhood has to offer. The family moved to the area 6.5 years ago after their second child was born. They were looking for more space than they had in their Manhattan apartment. “My family was in Long Island, Nick’s was in Connecticut, so Westchester was the perfect in-between for us. We had this idealistic view of living in a neighborhood where kids could ride their bikes and play with other kids in the neighborhood,” says Leena.

Fortunately for the family, that view became a reality when they found their Armonk home. As Leena says, “We instantly fell in love when we pulled into our street and saw all the neighborhood kids riding their bikes together – it was an unscheduled playdate which is so unheard of these days.” The easy access to downtown make the Kapurs neighborhood ideal for the family. “It’s an easy 8-minute walk from our house – and super friendly neighbors,” says Leena.

The neighborhood is also a hot-spot for Halloween celebrations. Each year, close to 2,000 trick-or-treaters and their families come for Halloween. Neighbors decorate their lawns and create a special atmosphere for all involved. And it’s not just the kids that get into the spirit, many of the adults wear costumes and the event has grown with each passing year. In addition, during the holiday season, families stroll throughout the neighborhood singing carols.

Living in downtown Armonk, there’s always something to do. Says Leena, “We have many impromptu play dates for the kids at the playground and usually plan neighborhood drinks with our neighbors every couple of weeks.” Luckily there are many local restaurant options within short walking distance.

On Being Thanksgiving Ready

October 26, 2019 by Grace Bennett

Love Rules… and Beautiful Table Settings Build Memories too

Before the food ever makes its ways to the table, there’s something exquisite about being ‘Thanksgiving ready.’ Maybe one or more of your kids have helped you set the silverware or the glasses, always especially fun with the littlest ones, a glorious parenting rite of passage, too. The excitement builds and hearts overflow with gratitude knowing that the house is soon to be filled with loved ones, coming from near and far, and some of whom you may only see once a year or another who may be having a health issue or getting on in their years; in between all the food prep and clean up scrambling, you take a deep breath and think to yourself of how precious the time really is, and how fortunate you are to be celebrating Thanksgiving again in your beautiful home. Whatever stresses your life may carry, there can be a feeling of time standing still in appreciation and anticipation.

I’m also drawn to the pride many hosts and hostesses feel over the aesthetics of their carefully, lovingly set tables; many are proudly shared on Facebook and Instagram well before the guests arrive, which frankly was the spark for this feature. I visited the Chappaqua Moms page to ask moms about their tables, and the pictures immediately flowed.

But do know… whether you’ve gone ‘all out’ as many of these moms have, or have kept it simple, we understand you. As a busy working mom raising two young kids, there were some years I pulled out the best china and took my time with my own finishing touches—usually a seasonal bouquet with autumn colors. Other years, I ran to the local party supply store the night before joining so many others scrambling to ‘pull off’ Thanksgiving; the basic themed paper felt like a godsend after the fact.

It’s ‘all good’ and the love that permeates the air is really always the story of the day. Nonetheless, a beautiful table dazzles, and we are delighted to share these and the pride these moms rightfully feel.

– Grace Bennett

Gratitude for Our Homes

October 26, 2019 by Stacey Pfeffer

I have a confession to make. I didn’t want to live in this town. I had my heart set on a town in southern Westchester. My priority was walkability of a town; at the time I wasn’t driving so I envisioned walking everywhere. It seemed like the perfect transition to the suburbs from the city as the main street was dotted with cute restaurants and boutiques.

We looked and looked for months and nothing was fitting the bill. We saw a ton of fixer-uppers that were charming but with two young kids the idea of putting sweat equity into a home wasn’t appealing to us. My husband who grew up in the suburbs of Miami came to the conclusion that we needed more property too. He craved more land and privacy.

Luckily one of his colleagues mentioned Chappaqua and on our first trip there up the Taconic we stopped at a gas station with a large convenience store so I could properly fuel up with caffeine before going to see a dozen houses that day. My first impression was “Wow, this kind of reminds me of the Catskills. I don’t know if I can do this.” After all, I grew up in Queens and had lived in the city for ten years.

We must have looked at 60 homes in this town throughout a six-month period and my husband and I could not agree on any of them. Some seemed too large. Others seemed too isolated. I didn’t want to have to scream to my neighbors with a megaphone. But then we found it in the nick of time.

We had decided that last weekend in April on our home search that if we didn’t find a home, we’d put a deposit down for my son for another year of nursery school in the city and stick it out–four people in a cramped two-bedroom apartment.

The minute we saw it, we both knew it was “the one.” It had great natural light, wide spacious rooms. I envisioned the kids running around the large backyard and could picture them growing up there. The large dining room abutted the kitchen and was large enough for my whole family to have holiday dinners. The staircase would one day make a perfect backdrop for prom pictures. We made an offer that afternoon.

This fall, it has been eight years here and I love it. Sure, there have been ups and downs and I’d be lying if I didn’t say it took adjustment- from learning how to drive again to figuring out what the heck an HVAC company is. Home ownership requires maintenance and sometimes we are on our game and other times we’ve let things fall by the way side like our doorbell which hasn’t worked for almost a year. I’m embarrassed to admit it but we’ve been relying on our dog to tell us if someone is at the door.

As the holiday season is right around the corner, I’m reminded of a saying whose author is unknown: “A house is made with walls and beams. A home is made with love and dreams.” As you read articles on holiday recipes and get inspiration for your Thanksgiving table settings, I hope your house is filled with warmth and all your dreams get fulfilled.

Happy Thanksgiving,