Support Trails Funding

The O&W Rails to Trails linear park is a very valuable recreational asset for Mountaindale, Woodridge and the Town of Fallsburg. We are a Healthy Trails, Healthy People community, who has received funding and support from Parks & Trails New York. We have been advised that future funding may be in jeopardy unless we help to secure New York State’s federal funding for trails and bicycling and walking.  The new federal transportation bill allows New York State to opt out completely from the Recreational Trails Program as well as transfer half of the funds that can and should be used for trails, complete streets, and other bicycle-pedestrian infrastructure that supports active transportation to road building. 

Please join with scores of other organizations and local governments across the state by signing the letter below, asking Governor Cuomo to:

a.      Continue the popular Recreational Trails program – a program that has pumped more than $19 million into our economy, aided 280 motorized and nonmotorized trail projects, and leveraged $12 million since the program began in 1993.

b.      Preserve all eligible funding for trails and active transportation funding and not transfer any to road building

c.      Make existing, unspent Transportation Enhancement dollars available immediately to communities for another round of grant applications. 

We must make ourselves heard by August 15.  September first is the deadline for the Governor to decide the future of the Recreational Trails program. 

It takes two clicks

1.      Read the letter
2.      Sign on   (I just did)

Thank you for standing up for trails and active transportation!

Our Little Blog Reaches Milestone

Hello Everyone:

With this post our Mountaindale NY News blog reaches another milestone...we have officially put up 200 Blog Articles since launching earlier this year! This is our second major milestone, the first being reaching 5,000 visitors, a goal we attained back in August...the amazing thing is just how fast our traffic is growing, as we are about to cross over the 8,000 visits threshold as we strive to reach our goal of 10,000 visitors by calendars end on December 31, 2011.

So, to our regular readers, and our occasional visitors...THANK YOU! Without you stopping by to read our articles, without all the encouraging words we get from you, none of this would be possible.

Sullivan Striders Second Annual Rails to Trails Race/Walk Huge Success

This past Sunday, camera in hand, I was up and out of my camper at 6:30 in the morning heading into Mountaindale for the Second Annual Rails to Trails Run/Walk which started and ended in Mountaindale. The community was out in force to support the Sullivan Striders and the run, and a fabulous time was had by all!

The Mountaindale Fire Department was on hand, had set up cones to handle the traffic into and out of town, and the ambulanceman seemed like really nice folks. The Sullivan Striders had all their bases covered...great food on hand for their runners, plenty of water at the firehouse, and out on the trail, and more than adequate staff to handle the rush of people at the registration tables.

The race started a tad late, and for good reason...they were still registering people that wanted to run or walk our community's beautiful section of the trail that runs from Mountaindale to Woodridge.

Some of my own favorite highlights of the event included the students from Upstate Karate who seemed to have shown up in mass to participate in the event, all of them in their official Karate garb. Janet from Radiant Yoga leading those same students in some pre-event breathing exercises. Lastly, the awards ceremony, where it seemed like almost every participant received recognition, and a beautiful perennial plant from Manza Farm's nursery.

A lot of businesses sponsored the event, almost too many to mention, but one particular one stands out, deserves special recognition...Kohl's stepped up big time for the Sullivan Striders with five employees volunteering for the event, and the company making a very large donation to the event, so thank you Kohl's for being such an ardent supporter of the Sullivan Striders, our community, and the Rails to Trails.

All monies raised from this event are spent doing maintenance and improvements on the Rails to Trails, so thanks to everyone who participated! This year's Second Annual Rails to Trails event is over, but many of us are already looking forward to next year's event, are pleased that this event will be around now for decades to come.

Sullivan Striders Practice Run-Rails To Trails

First, a reminder...a week from this Sunday on July 17th, come out and be a part of it all as the Sullivan Striders host the Second Annual Rails to Trails Run and Walk. You can find more information, and print up the application form here.

Last night while working on this year's Mountaindale Beautification Project along the trail, we were fortunate to be on site when the Sullivan Striders showed up in force for a practice run for next week's BIG EVENT. Let me tell you, these people are serious about their sport, and I was amazed at how quickly they made the run.

Also pleased to announce, that they were the first group EVER to have their group picture taken in front of Mountaindale's new train as it takes shape, comes to life on the trail...thank you Sullivan Striders for taking a few minutes to let us capture the photographs we are sharing here! Looking forward to being there next Sunday to lend you a hand, and take photographs of your event. Again everyone, make sure to come down and be a part of the Second Annual Rails to Trails Run and Walk...proceeds to benefit improvements to the trail.

Manza Family Farm a Gardener's Paradise

I learned the joy found in gardening early on in my life, planting marigolds in the front of our house in Jeffersonville Indiana, carefully putting them in the holes my Mom had pre-dug for them, her following behind me righting whatever I did not get quite right. I remember with fondness going out with the hose to water her flower beds, feeling so grown up when she praised her little gardening man. All these decades later, looking back, gardening has been one of those constants in my life, a touchstone that has kept me grounded even when my life seemed scattered and in disarray. There is something magical about digging one's hands into the soil, a purity found in the simple pleasure of digging holes and planting seedlings that will grow up into beautiful plants with beautiful blooms that could have only been designed in the heavens above.

It is the life long love affair with gardening that has me serving as this year's Committee Chair for the "Mountaindale Community Development Project's" beautification project for Sullivan Renaissance, and that responsibility comes with certain rewards that one cannot put a value on. One of those rewards occurred this past Saturday when Barb Schmitt and I loaded into her mini van and headed East on Route 17 as we made our way to the Manza Family Farm in Montgomery, NY.

If you are into gardening, landscaping, if you love trees, bushes, shrubs and a rainbow of beautiful flowers, you have GOT TO PLAN A VISIT to this spectacular gardening center. The staff is there to serve you. They are friendly, knowledgeable, helpful, and PATIENT...trust me, me in a gardening center of this quality is like letting a kid loose in a candy store, and patience is an important attribute to possess, as I was jumping from pillar to post as this flower and that would capture my attention, my mind whirling at the possibilities, while another part of my brain was trying to get everything I wanted, while at the same time staying WITHIN MY BUDGET!

The employees took my enthusiasm in stride, traveled with me on my journey of joy through their stock, one of them making of list of everything I choose, while another one pulled out the plants, tagging each and every one, all the while, giving me the time I needed to see everything they had, answering my questions when they popped into my head. Imagine Barb and I in "Alice's Wonderland," each of us asking the other almost simultaneously, "Did you see this" or "Oh look at the colors of these Delphiniums" as we wrestled with important decisions, trying to find the perfect plants to give us that winning WOW FACTOR for our little project in Mountaindale.

We left the Manza Farm tired, happy, knowing our choices will be cared for until Friday when we can pick them up. As a man who has done professional landscaping, I left impressed for several reasons. First, I was impressed with the staff, appreciated them letting me think as I strode about their beautiful kingdom being dazzled at one of the best inventories of planting stock I have seen in years...not since I worked for Scarff's Nursery in New Carlisle, Ohio some three plus decades ago have I seen such a wide variety. Secondly, their stock is healthy, vibrant, lush, ready to make a statement in your garden this year, and for years to come.

If you and your family are planning a garden, or just looking for a few statement pieces to enhance what you already have, encourage you to take a drive over to Manza's Family Farm. You will be happy you did!

MANZA FARMS
730 Route 211
Montgomery, NY 12549
Phone: (845)692-4364
Fax: (845)692-4109

Thanks To Small Army of Volunteers, Flower Boxes Are Out on Main Street in Mountaindale

Despite the weekends iffy weather here in Mountaindale, our volunteers were out in full force on Saturday as we turned the soil, started planting our Main Street flower boxes.

We had volunteers from every age group, with our youngest volunteer supervising from her stroller...TALK ABOUT CUTE. Want to give all our volunteers from yesterday a VERY LOUD Shout Out for your hard work, and great conversation. Without all of you, your generous donation of your time, your efforts, so many of the special touches like our flower boxes that make Mountaindale the beautiful little hamlet that it is just would not happen.

Ken & Barb Schmitt
Aaron & Rachel Schmitt
Sherwood Martinelli
Tyler Buholz
Jenny Foster
Gina & Arianna Columbo (& Gianna)
Antonia Columbo
Adrian Alcala
Toni Burke

Everyone had a wonderful time getting their hands in the dirt, and one of our big maintenance projects can now be checked off our list as the flower boxes are both planted, and out on Main Street for everyone to enjoy. So glad the Schmitt's have a fork lift adapter for their backhoe, as I would not have wanted to carry all those boxes out and place them by hand. Everything looks beautiful, and cannot wait for the plants to fill out and get some size on them. Again, a hearty THANK YOU to everyone who showed up to lend a hand with some of the heavy lifting as Mountaindale rolls out our Summer Welcome Mat.

Just as a FYI, please mark your calendars for Saturday July 16th, as the Mountaindale Community Development Project (MCDP) is planning a gala fund raising event to benefit our 2011 Sullivan Renaissance Project...details coming soon.