New funding for Pike County nonprofits

MILFORD, PA — Nonprofits headquartered in Pike County and that were impacted by COVID-19 can apply for up to $25,000 in aid.

The Pike County Commissioners have announced the creation of the Pike County Nonprofit Recovery Fund. It will provide 501(c)(3) organizations that have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with up to $25,000 that can be used for operating expenses, capital improvements, or fundraising activities.

Organizations exempt under 501(c)(4) are not eligible.

The commissioners expect to provide a total of at least $150,000 to local nonprofits through this program.

Applications are due on Saturday, April 30 at 5 p.m.

More information about the program is available at www.pikeforward.com/nrf.

Questions about the program can be directed to ​​Robert Ruiz, executive director of Pike County Human Services. Call him at 570/296-3434 or send an email to RRUIZ@pikepa.org.

Soil and Water Conservation committee to meet

ONLINE — The New York State Soil and Water Conservation committee will hold its next meeting on Tuesday, April 12 at 10 a.m.

The meeting will take place online. To access the meeting, visit https://bit.ly/3wXK6NH.

You can also call in at 518/549-0500, access code 1614 27 9711.

If applicable, meeting materials intended for discussion during the meeting will be available at https://agriculture.ny.gov/soil-and-water/about-soil-water-conservation-committee.

A recording of the meeting will be made available after the meeting at https://agriculture.ny.gov/soil-and-water/about-soil-water-conservation-committee.

Students at the Cooke School raised money for the Sullivan SPCA.

Totaling up generosity. Students at the Cooke School practiced acts of kindness and raised money for the Sullivan SPCA.

In Ms. Ruston's second-grade class, students practiced math and generosity.

Kindness can be spread further when people work together. The kids brainstormed a way to make that happen, and created “kindness jars,” which they gave to the district’s transportation staff to thank them.

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Lighting sparks of kindness

MONTICELLO, NY — Students at Monticello’s Cooke School have been learning to leave kindness in their wake.

Elisa Mendels, the school’s social emotional wellness facilitator, visits each classroom once a week. Recently she showed students a video from Kids For Peace USA, outlining the impact that acts of kindness can have on their families, friends, communities and the entire world.

The video ended with an invitation for students to join in on the organization’s Great Kindness Challenge—an initiative that aims to encourage children all over the world to spread positivity.

What does kindness look like? How can kids spread it around?

You tell a joke and make someone laugh. You tell someone how great they are. You make a decorated heart and leave it to be found.

Kindness can be spread further when people work together. The kids brainstormed a way to make that happen and created “kindness jars,” which they gave to the district’s transportation staff to thank them.

“It was a beautiful sentiment,” director of transportation Robin Sklar said. “The drivers and monitors were very appreciative and moved by the gifts.”

Each classroom also set out its own jars to collect “kindness coins”—monetary donations to benefit the Sullivan County SPCA.

During Jennifer Ruston’s second-grade class recently, students each received a handful of coins from the classroom’s jar and set to work sorting them out into dollars, quarters, dimes and pennies. Aside from learning about kindness, the activity also served as a math and history lesson, as students learned the value of each coin, while also identifying the presidents featured on each.

Ruston’s class raised $32.50.   

Mendels estimates that between all of the classes they have raised approximately $1,000 to help the animals of Sullivan County.

For more information about the Monticello Central School District, visit monticelloschools.net.

Brookfield Renewable: Restricted generation schedule for trout season

HAWLEY, PA — Brookfield Renewable will operate on restricted generation at the Wallenpaupack Hydroelectric  Plant during spring trout season. The new schedule started on April 2 and will continue until Saturday, June 18.

Generation will be suspended on Saturdays and Sundays from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and three hours before and one hour after sunset on  Fridays.

The modification of generation is to keep anglers safe on the Lackawaxen River and to accommodate springtime fishing, according to a news release.

Anglers should be aware that the schedule may change due to certain weather conditions and lake elevation maintenance. The thermal release program could still take place during this timeframe, given the applicable weather conditions that would warrant such a release.

For information on water levels, visit safewaters.com/facility/wallenpaupack.

For more information and for questions, contact Inquiries.PA@brookfieldrenewable.com.

Pike County cancer survivor raising funds for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

SHOHOLA, PA — Tim Sohn, a 15-year survivor of chronic leukemia, is raising funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as part of the nonprofit organization’s Man & Woman of the Year philanthropic competition.

So far, Sohn and his team have raised more than $6,000 and the goal is to raise $50,000 by May 18.

In December 2021, Sohn found out that he is cancer-free, and he is focusing on helping other cancer survivors and their supporters.

“The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has provided much-needed help to me and my family over the years, and I wanted to give back. The society has family support groups, does important research, provides funding for medication and treatments, education and so much more,” said Sohn.

Sohn and his team will host a 12-hour livestreamed fundraiser on Friday April 22, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. It will include cancer stories shared by survivors, musicians and a raffle.

To learn more about leukemia and lymphoma, visit www.lls.org.

Donations can be made any time; you don’t have to wait for the fundraiser. To donate online, visit donations.perspectivesoncancer.com. To donate by check, make it out to LLS and mail it to Tim Sohn, 120 Kara Ln., Shohola, PA 18458.

To learn more about Sohn’s cancer journey and find cancer resources, visit Showed Up: Perspectives On Cancer, on YouTube.

Subzero Heroes ice jump raises nearly $60,000 to fight Alzheimer’s disease

HIGHLAND, NY — On March 13, the Alzheimer’s Association held its 12th annual Subzero Heroes ice jump at Berean Lake in Highland. It was the first time the event had been held in person since its 10th anniversary in February 2020.

Braving a frigid morning with temperatures in the teens, 16 teams jumped into the lake.

They had raised nearly $60,000.

While this was less than the amount raised in 2020, it was nearly double what it raised in 2021, when it was held virtually with a “Jump Everywhere” format.

As always, the top fundraisers were presented with trophies and given the honor of taking the plunge first. The top fundraising team was the Ulster County Firemen, followed by Team Strike Out Alz in second place and Team Sal in third.

“We were so glad to see everyone at the lake in person again,” said event manager Lauren Voorhees. “The enthusiasm of the participants at this event is always so inspiring, and many of them were already talking about how it’s going to be bigger and better next year.”

Subzero Hero and Culinary Institute chef Scott Swartz was on hand with his students to serve gourmet hot chocolate and butternut squash and apple soup to participants. Coffee and hot cider were also available.  

The winner of the costume contest was Team I Iz Incredible, led by team captain Brittany Miller; they all wore matching red T-shirts bearing a customized design.

Donations to Subzero Heroes will continue to be accepted through June at subzeroheroes.org.

Petersheim fund at Greater Pike fund to benefit youth, scholarship services

MILFORD, PA — A local businessman with a history of charitable giving recently made a generous donation to a fund he established with Greater Pike Community Foundation. The fund will help him focus his philanthropy on building capacity in the community for future generations, a foundation spokesperson said.

Local businessman and Milford resident Charles Petersheim, who writes for the River Reporter, said he hopes his latest donation of $100,000 to the Petersheim Fund will allow him to take his charitable giving to a new level.

Youth services and scholarship are areas that Petersheim has been exploring for his more focused giving plan.

“I was giving consistently to a wide range of organizations, but switching to a donor-advised fund with Greater Pike gave me a more mindful and satisfying experience,” he said, noting that he has been contributing to various arts, cultural, beautification and community initiatives for the past few years. “I knew I wanted to be more thoughtful and establish a way to have long-reaching effect and impact.”

 Petersheim continues to contemplate the best and most effective means of giving and is exploring nonprofit organizations that provide much-needed services to children and youth in the community.

“Years from now,” he said, “I want to be able to look back and see that we made a difference and that our contribution is sustainable into the future.”

Creating a fund helped in more ways than one. “My advice to others is that if you find yourself giving to multiple organizations but feel you are unfocused and doing yourself a disservice” consider working with Greater Pike, he said.  

To learn more about the Petersheim Fund or to make an online donation to the fund, visit https://greaterpike.org/fund_list/. Scroll down to the fund name for the link.

For more information about Greater Pike, visit www.greaterpike.org.

Streamside acquisition program helps local communities

REGION — The Catskill Center’s streamside acquisition program (SAP) aims to protect water quality in streams in the northeastern Catskills through the purchase and protection of streamside lands. By doing that, the SAP also helps to mitigate future flooding, which has devastated parts of the region in recent years. The SAP only purchases eligible properties, and only if the property owner is interested in selling.

A recent fact sheet includes criteria for eligible properties, such as that lands be within the drainage basin of the Schoharie Reservoir. Another important part of the program is that the SAP focuses on lands outside of areas formally identified by municipalities as areas intended for future growth. The SAP will not reach out to landowners in these areas unless invited to do so by the municipality through a formal resolution. Honoring community goals is important.

Besides helping to ensure community flood resilience by keeping undeveloped wetlands and floodplains from being developed, the SAP preserves the tax base, as the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYC DEP) pays property taxes on lands acquired through the program. The SAP focuses on properties that make the biggest difference in protecting water quality: floodplains, wetlands and lands within 300 feet of streams. SAP staff encourage landowners to keep their more developable lands in private hands.

The Catskill Center runs the SAP in partnership with the NYC DEP. It is one of many programs required by regulators, such as the New York State Department of Health, to help protect the city’s drinking water at its source. The SAP furthers the mission of the Catskill Center to protect and foster the environmental, cultural and economic well-being of the Catskill region.

For more information, visit catskillcenter.org.

CAS Kids hold spring break session

LIVINGSTON MANOR, NY — The Catskill Art Society presents the annual CAS Kids Spring Break session.

The arts education session for kids takes place during spring break from Monday, April 18 to Friday, April 22. Workshop times are 9 a.m. to 9:45 a.m for ages four to seven and 10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. for ages eight to teens.

It takes place at the Laundry King, 65 Main St.

CAS Kids helps children develop creative thinking, emotional intelligence and cooperation through painting, drawing, collage, sculpture and pottery.

This season’s session will center around the practice and work of Derick Melander, CAS’s Artist in Residence. Melander will introduce children to a variety of projects utilizing fiber and textiles.

There is no charge to attend.

Registration is recommended in advance, as space is limited. Call 845/436-4227 or email info@catskillartsociety.org for more information.