No-Cost Farmer's Market

This past weekend the AFF, along with many community partners, hosted a no-cost Farmer’s Market at the Red Hook Community Center. Here are some reflections on the event, from Director/Founder Nick, Class of 2018 Ambassador Brenna Dolen (RHHS ‘12), and Class of 2018 Ambassador Emma Donahue (RHHS ‘14).

Brenna, Nick, and Emma

From Nick: The wildly successful No Charge Farm Market this weekend was initiated & organized by two of our 2018 ambassadors in Brenna Dolen and Emma Donahue. What a production and what results they realized! As part of our month long Nourish Your Neighbor Food Drive the event provided nutritional local farm produce, fruits, and even a fresh frozen turkey to 75 families and individuals. A crowd of about 150 was delighted by Chef Larry Anthony's food demonstrations, enjoyed the music from Maggie Rothwell, were amazed by food science experiments from students through Bard's Center for Civic Engagement, painted some pumpkins, and picked up a few necessities from our Community Action neighbors. The produce, fruits, and other foodstuffs were donated by Montgomery Place Orchards, Migliorelli's Farm, Brittany Hollow Farm, Bread Alone, TOPS, Adams, and Hannafords. And our turkey giveaway was made possible by the generous offering from Sky High Farm and the use of a refrigerated truck from Erina at Farmer's Door was a godsend. We're grateful for the 25 or so volunteers from the RHFA, the Rotary Club, and Bard who assisted in staging the Community Center from 10am to noon yesterday morning and in creating the market atmosphere. We're so pleased to have had such wonderful Red Hook Community support in assisting and embracing those members of the area who are less fortunate. Kudos to Everyone who had a role in the Market's success! 

Brenna and Nick with Maggie Rothwell. We loved hearing her perform!

From Brenna: This community certainly has enough fresh food for everyone, it's just a matter of distribution of surplus and minimizing food waste. The donations we received from local farms were enormously generous, and I feel grateful that these community members came through with enthusiasm to support this event. This event would never have been possible without their support.

It is important to remember that the people receiving these donations may be the same people giving back a few years from now and vice versa. There was an immense amount of gratitude from community members, and support from our volunteers.

Between Maggie Rothwell's joyful voice, Chef Larry's food demonstrations, Bard CCE's chemistry activities, winter coat giveaways from Community Action, and pumpkin painting, the energy in the room was so positive. 

Chef Larry did some great cooking demonstrations for everyone!

From Emma: I never could have imagined what a huge impact this event would have on Red Hook's community.  As someone who has been lucky enough to afford fresh, local produce I was not aware of the prevalence of food insecurity in this area.  Coming together within the community has made me understand the wide gap that we worked toward bridging on Saturday.  Utilizing this farm market as a means to work together to decrease the connection between food insecurity and health was amazing.  Seeing everyone enjoying the delicious treats prepared by Chef Larry, chatting with individuals who were visiting the market, and feeling the sense of community that warmed the Red Hook Community Center was inspiring and gave me a glimpse into the possibilities for the future of food drives and steps toward bettering the relationship between food insecurity and health.  I am excited at the prospect of continuing these healthy, sustainable food drives as well as continuing the work with community partners, families, and individuals.

The Farmer’s Market may be over, but our Nourish Your Neighbor campaign is just getting started! This food drive runs until November 27th. Read more here.

Red Hook Community Center Gala

WOW - What a Night - A few directors, family members, and Nourish Your Neighbor (NYN) Food Drive partners shared a table, a little bubbly, a wonderful meal and delectable chocolate desserts at the 2nd Annual Red Hook Community Center (RHCC) Gala Fundraiser this weekend. Our intern Nick Fiorellini, ambassador Emma Donahue, directors Brittany Mosher, Ali Fraenkel, and Nick Ascienzo were joined by NYN collaborators Sarah deVeer and Erin Cannan from Bard's Center for Civic Engagement (CCE), and Darryl and Debby Mosher, who are assisting in food resourcing for NYN. Among the more than 140 people gathered, our team of party-goers enjoyed the sound provided by Paul Rivers Bailey and The Forefathers and the cuisine prepared by Savona's under the direction of Ali's dad, Chef Tony! 

Sara Ugolini, the Executive Director of the RHCC, and her board members hosted the fundraising celebration, complete with raffle packages (Brittany won one!) and donation opportunities to financially assist the RHCC’s needs. We have been a proud partner of the RHCC for the last two years - it has shown to be a vibrant hub of Red Hook activity, and many Gala guests spoke to the continued commitment to programming for folks of all ages. Our Red Hook community was in full view during the festive evening!

The Transportation Issue

Happy National Drive Electric Week! We have some exciting news to share- Red Hook has secured funding, through a NYS DOT grant, for electric passenger vans to provide transportation for seniors and differently-abled individuals. The Ascienzo Family Foundation wrote a letter of support for the grant, and is working to provide matching funds to help support this initiative. We look forward to working with the town and other community partners to implement this ambitious plan.

Transportation is vital for enabling senior community members to stay connected to social services, get to medical appointments, and stay connected with friends and family around town. In 2011 the Office of Aging surveyed seniors in the area and found that over 80% cited transportation as being one of the top five biggest problems for seniors. According to a study done by the Poughkeepsie-Dutchess County Transportation Council in 2015 “transportation is vital in keeping individuals that have disabilities engaged in the community. Whether trips are for medical appointments, work/day habilitation, shopping, or socialization/recreational opportunities, the provision for transportation affords those physically or cognitively unable to drive, a measure of independence, which is linked to a higher quality of life. Without transportation, individuals are reliant on others – usually family or other caregivers – for their transportation needs.”

Lastly, a note from our Director and Founder Nick Ascienzo: We’re encouraged that this initiative will lead to increased collaboration with community groups in the Red Hook area. Elder mobility to and from programs, appointments, and other venues were the underlying goals of our outreach, but an expansion of Red Hook transportation services benefits the entire community - integrating generations - their needs and activities, is the essence of community building.

Congrats to the Town of Red Hook for securing this grant!

Circle Camp- Grant Profile

A member of our inaugural class of ambassadors, Betsy Kirtland, has been active in advocating for grants on behalf of nonprofits since 2016. For the past two years, Betsy has advocated for Circle Camp, where she has volunteered as a counselor for several years. Here’s a short blurb from Betsy about that experience, and how the Foundation has played a role:

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“This August, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to volunteer for a week at Circle of Fleur de Lis.  Circle is a week long free camp that is for young girls ages 7-17 who have lost a parent. Although what brings all of the campers to Circle is their tragic loss, the traits that they all share that stand out most in my mind are their courage, strength, and resilience.

This year I was placed with a group of five 14 year olds.  On the first day, they told each other the stories of how they had lost their parent, and shared their feelings of anger, sadness, and confusion over what had happened.  Less than an hour later, though, they all were jumping in the lake and laughing at each other’s silliest dives off the dock. This duality is what makes Circle so special.  While the girls are at camp, they are encouraged to feel their grief while also feeling happy, to feel confused while also feeling understood, and to feel sad while also feeling safe.

Circle of Fleur de Lis cannot thank the Ascienzo Family Foundation enough for their generous grant this past year, which was enough to pay for six campers to attend.  Circle truly is an incredible week for the campers, many of whom would not be able to afford to attend a summer camp otherwise. Circle is by far my favorite week out of the year, and I know that most of the campers would agree with me - one girl even said that she was going to super glue herself to her bunk bed so that she never had to leave!”

Thanks for sharing, Betsy! (And thanks to Kelly Mosher, another Circle Camp volunteer, and Betsy for the photos).

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End of Summer Greetings

End of Summer Greetings & Happy Labor Day to All!

It's been a busy summer, and we're so excited to share some of our activity from the past months (and what's upcoming on our agenda). 

•  I (Director Nick) attended Community Partners For The Common Good, an inaugural symposium at Bard, sponsored by the Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) on August 15th. A range of community leaders & stakeholders met for a few hours to discuss aspirations for the broader region surrounding Red Hook and the challenges faced in reaching those goals. We were all assured that the “think tank” assembled on the 15th would continue and expand in partnership with culturally and politically diverse groups throughout the fall. My take on this Bard-focused study group is that the CCE is casting its net upon a wider community to accelerate communication, if not substantive change, for the benefit of all. As you are aware, in any progressive community there are underlying threads among public institutions, private enterprise, educational leaders, and non-profits. While at the time there may be no financial partnering that comes from this group, I suspect there will be action resolutions that the community will benefit from.

• You will all fondly remember the Recreation Park - there is a movement to secure a $250,000 bond and like kind funding for the Town to update the playground facilities. We are active in that effort, awaiting a grant application from the group Red Hook Plays to assist in that funding.

• Our Food Drive this year, titled Nourish Your Neighbor, is being chaired by two local ambassadors, Brenna Dolen & Emma Donahue, members of our Ambassador Class of 2018. A more nutritional and healthier campaign is being designed in collecting foodstuffs with assistance from Bard's CCE, the Rotary Club, and the Red Hook Faculty Association (RHFA). Like last year, we have set a goal of 10,000 items, and we will donate $1 per item & hopefully raise $10,000. The collectibles will be used in stocking local pantries and the funding money raised will go toward food vouchers for food insecure families during the Holiday Season. To kick off the campaign we will be sponsoring a no cost Farmer's Market for targeted families in need, to be held on November 10th. We're requesting from farm managers in the area donations of any surplus harvest from late October, early November. One manager has already been generous enough in pledging 70 free range turkeys! We're excited to be part of the planning and staging for both the nutritional collectible drive component and the non-perishable market component - endeavors that can only bear fruit (sorry, I couldn't resist) through the combined efforts of many community members.

• Our 25 Grant Initiative for this year is coming along with 6 applications already approved and 4 local requests coming up this month. Whether ambassadors have sought funding in any of our previous 3 grant cycles or have simply engaged through volunteerism in their own ways, we're excited to extend to them the grant opportunity. We've had an incredible run of good financial fortune - fully endowed in 2017 and presently maintaining a balance of about $1.22 million. We're  encouraging our networked partners to request funding that meets our mission goals. Last year the average ambassador grants was for $5000, with some topping out at $7500. Now, with over 30 ambassadors in our network, there is every reason to believe that our 25 Grant Initiative will be attained. 

Finally, a note to our ambassadors: the complimentary closing "Thinking of You" used in much of my correspondence with others is a conscious reality from day to day as I consider your ambassadorship, but more importantly your health and well being. To those of you whose personal or foundation contact has been frequent or even sporadic during the year you are each indeed more than a passing impulse to me - your drumbeat of daily routine, the push and pull of professional duties, the relationships and families you embrace, and even the downtime of chillin' are all part of life's stuff that I know you're experiencing. The calculus of personal growth is steeped in many tones - May yours be rich!

Thinking of you (all of you!),

Nick A., Ali, Brittany, Sophie, and Nick F.