Vol. 69, # 18 75 cents
Fishkill, East Fishkill, Wappingers Falls, Town of Wappinger, Town and City of Poughkeepsie
Community leader 'Tree' Arrington remembered for loving, helping children
Artist Nestor Madalengoitia completed the above mural at 281 Main Street in Poughkeepsie within only 36 hours of the passing of Theo "Tree" Arrington. - Photo courtesy of Peter Leonard
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Southern Dutchess News
By Rich Thomaselli Theo "Tree" Arrington never ran from his past. Instead, he used his upbringing - a prison stint and being illiterate until learning to read at the age of 30 - to show kids in the city of Poughkeepsie what could be, not what could have been. Arrington moved on and earned his General Equivalency Degree and, later, a Masters Degree before becoming a mentor to a generation of youths in the community, including founding and serving as Executive Director of the R.E.A.L. Skills Network Relationship Empowerment Affirmation Leadership, hosted under the auspices of the Family Services' Family Partnership Center, including after-school and summer programs. That community is now mourning as Arrington passed away last week. "Often, a teacher's message is not immediately appreciated nor understood, though ultimately we come to recognize its profound value. Such is the case with Tree and the gifts he delivered-messages of love and justice," said Brian Doyle, the CEO of Family Services. "For the children, the message was love. While adults were sometimes mystified by Tree's complexities and our own blind spots, the children he touched
Tree's big spirit lives on in mural With a heavy sadness still fresh in the community, artist Nestor Madalengoitia started a mural of Theo "Tree" Arrington within hours of his death. The life-affirming, spirit-lifting public tribute, at 280 Main Street in Poughkeepsie, was completed within 36 hours. R.E.A.L. Skills Network board member Peter Leonard took the photograph above moments after Madalengoitia completed the work, and it already showed - through the young woman walking her dog on the right - that life was continuing in Poughkeepsie, with Tree as an knew instantaneously that his love was reflected in his unmitigated, though, sometimes tough love for each of them." City of Poughkeepsie Mayor Rob Rolison called Arrington "larger than life." And he was. Arrington had a big frame, big voice, big persona and big heart. "You simply can't replace people like Tree," Rolison said. "Tree understood that some youth need extra care to navigate
enduring part of it. Madalengoitia placed the giant portrait of Tree's head right next to a work he had done before of Nelson Mandela, the South African human rights champion. It makes clear that Tree's inspiring and relentless work with Poughkeepsie's young people, which was never without a racial justice element, was tied to universal values. Leonard and Bettina Gold are presenting a two-part discussion of the life of Arrington on iHeart Media at the following link: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/481-petera n d - t h e - p o e t - g o l d 30383287?cmp=ios_share&pr=false&autoplay=true. through the various societal systems, to develop better skills and social values. Tree had a way of connecting with youth, and he led by example." And no child was too young to command his attention. Sakima McClinton, an Iraqi war veteran who graduated from West Point and is another highly regarded community leader Continued on page 6
Local soup kitchen, pet food pantry are seeking food donations By Kristine Coulter In Care Of’s Beacon Community Kitchen, in the City of Beacon, continues serving the community during these hard times. Safe Haven Thrift Shop and Pet Food Pantry, in Fishkill, is taking donations to help local families in need take care of their pets. “So given the current situation the number of guest and days we serve have increased from serving up to 20 to 30 plus six days a week including some home deliveries. We added another two days,” explained Candi Rivera, with Beacon Community Kitchen. Beacon Community Kitchen, 483 Main St., is open to serve community members from 10:30 a.m. to noon. All are welcomed Rivera noted. “We’re serving take-out and as a result we have an added expense,” explained Rivera. She explained, donations that are received will be used for, but not limited to:
- Take out trays with three compartments - Plastic bags (case) - Desserts - Drinks -Perishables (bulk meats, fish, vegetables, butter, etc.) - Non-perishable foods items and goods “If people care to donate any of these items they should email me first as we have limited storage space,” remarked Rivera. Some of the chefs and sous chefs who have been working during this time are: Twinkle Burke, Brad Hubbard, Lissete Cheresson, Ryan Cheresson, Michael Shebonie, Corrine Rubiere, Tommy Pantano and Ryan Blake. Some of the chefs and sous chefs named came out of the collaborative effort between In Care Of’s Beacon Community Kitchen and Mutual Aid Beacon. Regular volunteers are: Trish Dangelo, Nubia Gomez, Cindy Gould, Tina Kelliher, John Kleinfeldt and Sarah Plog.
A few of the Beacon Community Kitchen volunteers, from left, Twinkle Burke, Brad Hubbard and Candi Rivera. -Courtesy photo
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• HEALTHY LIFESTYLES SUPPLEMENT INSIDE•
April 29 - May 5, 2020
COVID-19 UPDATE
Molinaro touts progress, hails volunteer efforts By Kate Goldsmith As of Sunday, Dutchess County had 2,542 confirmed cases of COVID-19; of those 2,021 are active cases. Hospitalizations were at 74, down from the previous week; 35 individuals have died from the disease and 486 have recovered. Testing was up from the previous week, at 13,037. In his virtual Town Hall on April 22, County Executive Marc Molinaro said the county has tested 4 percent of its residents, which he called a sizable number. He said about 2.5 out of 10 individuals test positive and cited that as a relatively low rate of infection. While hospitals some upstate counties were given the green light to resume elective surgeries, restrictions remain in place in Dutchess. “We’re not there yet,” said Molinaro on the statistics that would ease the restrictions in Dutchess, adding that the county communicates daily with the local hospitals. Molinaro spoke of the county’s response effort during the pandemic, noting a hotline (845-4863555) staffed by volunteers and county personnel. He praised the Dutchess Responds initiative that has raised tens of thousands of dollars in donations and has linked volunteers throughout the county with those in need. He thanked the many volunteers who are participating and asked for others to join the cause. Visit www.dutchessny.gov and click on the Dutchess Responds icon at the top of the page to volunteer, donate and learn more. The county executive commended the Dutchess County Department of Emergency Response and Commissioner Dana Smith on procuring PPE for healthcare providers and first responders. While acknowledging that getting these essential items was an ongoing battle, he noted that the county had distributed thousands of face-masks and shields, gowns, bottles of hand sanitizer and more. As always, the big question from those viewing the Town Hall was “when will the county reopen?” Molinaro said, “When we’re ready,” explaining that decisions need to be driven by data, and testing must increase. Dutchess County Government continues to provide residents the most current information on its COVID-19 Community Impact Dashboard, as well as guidance on its website, dutchessny.gov/coronavirus, its Coronavirus hotline, 845-486-3555, and its Facebook and Twitter accounts. In brief: -In honor of National Volunteer Week, Molinaro expressed enormous gratitude to everyone who has donated their time and efforts to supporting Dutchess County’s coronavirus efforts. Through #DutchessResponds or the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC), county residents have volunteered thousands of hours of time to support their community. Prior to the Continued on page 3