The Hudson Connection 6.22

HUDSON

Man of Many Hats

Austerlitz

Photo by Molinski Photography

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Dear Neighbors,

This is the time of year when we hit fast-forward. For waiting out a long, grey winter and the fits and starts of spring, June is our reward. Now is a great time for reconnecting; call someone you’ve been missing, take a walk around town, wander into a new shop you’ve always passed by for lack of time. In this era of separation, it can be hard to take the initiative to reach out. This month’s issue offers many suggestions for soaking up the sun with family & friends; with a bumper crop of exciting events, as well as the month-long celebrations of LGBTQIA+ Pride and Juneteenth.

To add to the theme, our feature story stars a man many of you will recognize from his iconic venue; which thrived for ten years as a hub for fostering connection throughout Hudson and beyond. A local documentary, We Remember: Songs of Survivors also did a stunning job depicting the poignant and intense connections formed when Holocaust survivors in the community were paired with local songwriters to help tell their stories.

Local businesses are the lifeblood of a stable economy, and we would like to thank The Knitting Room, Marylou Knull (Be Healthalicious!), Florent, and Lake & Mountain Realty for helping us to provide a venue to introduce neighbors beyond the screen. A special thanks and welcome to Ackerman’s Appliance on Warren Street, joining us to sponsor the Hudson Connection’s Recipe Challenge! Check out the Recipe Section for this month’s featured ingredient, and get cooking for a chance to have YOUR award-winning recipe on display. (Psst- our Farmer’s Market guide is a great place to shop for inspiration and forge new friendships.) Hoping to see you all out and about. After all, “June is busting out all over!”

Your friends and neighbors, Sierra Shepard (Associate Publisher) & Jonathan Byron-Woodin (Content Coordinator)

By Jonathan Byron-Woodin Photography by Molinski Photography

Awell-recognized and highly regarded member of the community, Cameron Melville can often be seen on a nice sunny day, walking his buddy Shadow up and down the streets of Hudson. Being an approachable and charismatic individual, many stop to chat with him and nearly everyone asks the same question: “When will Club Helsinki Hudson reopen?!” This refers to the city’s world-famous restaurant and music venue, founded by Cameron with partners Marc Schafler and Deborah McDowell; a place that, until the historic shutdown of 2020, was a fixture of Hudson for nearly a decade.

Cameron comes from a family of influential figures. While his grandparents were conservative industrialists or “Republicans of their time”, both his parents deviated sharply from theirs and were thought of as liberal advocates working with the NAACP and ACLU fundraising for civil rights organizations. They also founded the Melville Charitable Trust, an organization dedicated to the eradication of homelessness. Cameron says it was “their cause for the last 20 years of their lives.” Both passed away in 2018, at ages 83 and 84. They are survived by their four sons (Cameron is the youngest), all of whom he describes as fairly politically active, stating “I sorta got that bug [from my Mother and Father], as did my brothers.”

After dropping out of 9th grade, Cameron started his career as a traveling musician. Already an accomplished piano and organ player, he began hitchhiking with touring bands and friendly strangers, making friends at every jam session along the way. By 1975 Cameron found himself in the Berkshires of Massachusetts, where he worked as a moving man with a local moving and storage agent. This led to a career as a truck driver. When an old friend bought an art handling company in San Francisco, every two weeks Cameron helped transport fine art for Artists, collectors, galleries and celebrities traveling up and down the California coast as well as cross country.

While still living in California, cross country travels carried Cameron back to Great Barrington, Massachusetts, where he was invited by good friend Peter Lindstrom to be a surprise guest host of a local music venue called Club Helsinki. It was there that he struck up a close friendship (and later partnership in 2005) with Helsinki’s owners, Marc and Deborah.

A couple years later, Cameron took on his largest moving project yet: translocating the club from Great Barrington to Hudson. “It took 6 years to build!” Cameron says. The partners were interested in Hudson for some time; they just needed a space large enough to hold their dream. “A terrific builder, among many other talents,” he continues. “Marc came up to meet me [in California]… We ate Dungeness crab and talked about what could be.” The three partners went back over to Hudson to look at a place they had purchased only the year before, an old factory building located on the corner of 4th

and Columbia street. “At the time I had just read a book called The Tipping Point, by Malcom Gladwell… the book had a huge impression on me.” Cameron talks about how much of a leap of faith it was to open a club in what was, at the time, a relatively quiet town. However as he put it, “The writing was on the wall… Something really big could happen here, and I believe it did.”

It certainly did. Since its opening day, the club has brought worldclass musicians to wake up the Hudson art community. Cameron, naturally, moved to Hudson where he operated as the club’s host and emcee. In addition to professional musicians, Club Helsinki also introduced an Open Mic Night that took the region’s local artists by storm. Not only could you play your ‘two songs or ten minutes’ on the same stage as legends, but you also practically received the same treatment; your own monitor mix from a dedicated sound man, your choice of amps, lights, even background musicians who often frequented the club.

In addition to Club Helsinki, Cameron has also opened a few other venues, including an artist and residency program in New Orleans and a large event center near downtown LA. He has hosted and participated in numerous fundraisers for musicians and artists as well as charitable and humanitarian causes.

While single now, Cameron is very proud of his two children: his son, Geoffrey Melville, age 40, and his daughter Shante Melville, age 18. Geoffrey is an accomplished artist, printmaker and silk screener from California; recently relocated to the Hudson Valley. Meanwhile, Shante will be graduating from Buxton School in Williamstown MA, and is headed for a two-year program in Boston. She will be following her father’s path off the beaten track to pursue a career in preservation carpentry.

And of course, who could forget Cameron’s newest family member: Shadow, age 2 (affectionately introduced as “this knucklehead here”)? “He is my pandemic pup and a pedigree mutt. His mother was a golden retriever and his father was a German Shepherd. They weren’t supposed to get together, but they did.” Cameron and Shadow were introduced by a member of Club Helsinki’s former staff. “He was one of 11 puppies!”

Presently, Cameron is putting his years of fundraising experience to good use to support sending medical aid to Ukraine. He works with friend, Malcom Nance who recently traveled from Hudson to Ukraine to fight for the cause in person.

Cameron is happy to be living in the Hudson area again. “I grew up [here], and spent the majority of my life in California. The two are very different.” He enjoys the four seasons of New York, as opposed to LA’s ‘fixed climate’, and he loves the local community. “Hudson is popping with all sorts of interesting folks” Cameron says. “We took a gamble and made a commitment to Hudson and to the process by building [Helsinki], and we’re very happy with everything that came about since - except the pandemic, of course.”

When asked what important message he’d like to share with his community, Cameron replies simply. “Although it’s stunningly difficult at times, try to stay positive”

We Remember: Songs of Survivors

By Sierra Shepard

Not Just Another Holocaust Documentary.

The transformative power of music has long been credited with the ability to help heal old wounds and redress old wrongs. Traumatic events can be stored deep in the human psyche for days or decades; and are often unlocked suddenly, the result of an unexpected brush. Since 2014, Rosendalebased organization SageArts has been pairing musicians, writers, and filmmakers with elders in the community to help tell the story of their lives. A partnership with Jewish Family Services in 2018 focused on Holocaust survivors, and was filmed by Big Chief Entertainment to produce a moving documentary which has been picked up by PBS and is airing nationwide.

The film centers around four Hudson Valley survivors, each hailing from a different country in Europe overturned by Hitler’s advance. Tibor Spitz, Friede Gorewitz, Tommy Wald, and Rita Schwartz were paired with singer-songwriters Kelleigh McKenzie (Rosendale), Elizabeth Clark (Elizaville), Michael Vietch and Jude Roberts (Woodstock). While the documentary respectfully addresses the terrible “memories [they’d] rather lose”, its footage mainly follows the collaborative process between each pair to celebrate the connections formed and alchemic change spurred by an unconquerable determination to rise from the ashes. In fact, the theme of change sang itself right into two of the resulting songs. Even at

age 93, as told by the final line of Friede’s Opera: “life is always changing”.

Tibor Spitz, the only elder still with us from the 2018-2019 SageArts project, survived in a makeshift underground shelter with his family for 200 days in 1944 Slovakia. In spite of what could only have been an immutably maddening experience, Tibor’s key tenet translated into the name of his song, as channeled through Kelleigh McKenzie: All Is Changing; We Are Witness, We Are Life.

Unlike other media produced about the mental and emotional casualties of the Holocaust, We Remember treats these events as a piece of the puzzle which makes up a mind; but does not default to considering them the most important one. Tommy Wald’s life was changed dramatically before he could remember – when Nazi forces knocked at the door of the shed where his family was hiding, and took away every relative except for the parents of the infant hidden in a drawer. While that one day and the knowledge of it would color his experience of the world, Tommy’s life was not defined by it. For Rita Schwartz, too, the documentary represented a symbolic unlocking. “I didn’t talk about it,” she said of the Holocaust. “There were years and years I didn’t talk about it.”

The resulting compositions range from epic, to defiant, to unexpectedly hopeful. Michael Vietch’s Above the Rain reflects Rita’s giving and optimistic spirit. Among

the most heart-wrenching moments of the film is overheard in a voicemail from SageArts founder Collette Ruoff, to inform songwriter Jude Roberts of his elder’s passing just weeks before the project’s completion. Roberts’ Suzanne was thus unveiled ahead of schedule; a tribute to the light of Tommy Wald’s life, bringing her in spiritual representation to his funeral.

We Remember: Songs of Survivors is a masterpiece; a tremendous gift offered by filmmakers Ilene Cutler, Tim Miller, and Tim Guetterman in partnership with SageArts to everyone who has chosen to become who they are, regardless of where they have been.

Please visit: www.weremembersongsofsurvivors.com for more information & where to watch.

June's Calendar of Events

Wed., June 1, 8, 15, 22, 29

Hudson Valley Tai Chi @Morris Memorial Building

On Wednesdays, come learn Tai Chi; a slow-paced, meditative exercise with masters Bobbie Kosnick and John McGowan. Time: 10-11am Cost: $15 hudsonvalleytaichi.com

Sat., June 12

Austerlitz Volunteer Fire Company Car Show

@Austerlitz Volunteer Fire Company

Come bask in the sunlight with a few classic beauties for a great cause. Food & refreshments, music, 50/50 raffle benefit to help defray expenses & raise funds for capital projects. Time: 9am-3pm Cost: FREE austerlitzfirecompany.org

Thurs., June 16

Outside Exposure @ Ooms Conservation Area Explore nature through the lens with the Columbia Land

Conservancy Photo Club!. Grow your night sky photography skills with a short hike in good company. Bring: Camera/smart phone, water, flashlight, appropriate footwear, picnic blanket Time: 7:30-9pm Cost: FREE clctrust.org

Fri., June 17

Friday for Kids!

@North Chatham Free Library

A supervised one-hour group get together at the library. Start with outside time to get those ya-yas out; channel some energy into craft activities inside, and wrap up ready to be read to by picking some books to bring home. Time: 4-5pm Cost: FREE northchathamlibrary.org

Fri., June 17

Farm Folks Meetup @The O Zone Know farms= know food! Connect with neighbors interested in building a sustainable local

agricultural system at the O Zone in Red Hook. Bring a dish to share over conversation, presentations, challenges & successes. Time: 5:30-6:30pm Cost: FREE; RSVP required theozonehv.com

Sat., June 18

Hudson Food Festival @Henry Hudson Riverfront Park Rain or shine! Time: 12-6pm Cost: FREE columbiacountytourism.org

Sat., June 18

Knit At Night

@The Knitting Room Come visit The Knitting Room in Windham every third Saturday of the month to knit, crochet, spin or just have a sip & a chat with our growing community. During the warmer months, we move outdoors and enjoy gorgeous views of the Windham Mountains. Time: 5-7pm Cost: FREE theknittingroomny.com

Wed., June 19

Juneteenth Father’s Day

Mon., June 27 - Fri., July 1

Leather Shoemaking Intensive @Free Columbia Hosted by Nathaniel Williams, this week-long course will focus on the lost art of cobbling; taught by a master & using the finest materials. Time: 3-4pm Cost: Sliding Scale freecolumbia.org

For the [____Superlative____] Dad in the World

Submitted by Jude Roberts

A Dad-lib Father's Day card to complete & give.

My dad is a [___adjective___] [___noun___]. He is the [___superlative___] dad in the whole [___noun___].

On [___noun___]'s Day, he [___verb___]s very early in the morning to [___adverb___] [___verb___] breakfast. Sometimes it's [___gross food___], but other times it's [___gross food___].

When it's [___gross food___], he says, "It's [___adjective___] for you!", and insists we [___verb___] it anyway.

This year for Father's Day, I decided to get my dad a [___adjective___] [___ color___] [___noun___], all the way from [___place___]. He is going to be so [___feeling___], he will probably [___verb___] his [___noun___]! He might even need to take some time to [___verb___]. I hope it won't take too long, though; I never sleep [___adverb___] unless he [___verb___]s me goodnight.

I love you, Dad!

[_________your name_________]

Jog & Jam

l By Jonathan Byron-Woodin

Ever find yourself tapping your foot, patting your lap, or nodding your head when a catchy song comes on the radio? Even if it’s not necessarily your favorite one?

makes us want to move. If it’s got a beat, we can’t help but join in in some capacity (even if that means running away from the exercise). Perhaps that’s why we expect some music to be playing at the gym, or while working out at home. I find it’s preferable to motivate myself with an optimal blood-pumping playlist. Press on!

Catskills Visitor Center Experience Recommends

By Kelli Huggins I Photos submitted by Kelli Huggins

As the Catskills Visitor Center’s Visitor Experience Coordinator, I am on a mission to read all things Catskills. I recommend Behind the Lie by Emilya Naymark (Crooked Lane Books, 2022).

Brand new thriller alert! Behind the Lie is the second book in a series taking place in the fictional, picturesque Hudson Valley town of Sylvan-- a place where there is something dangerous bubbling under the surface. After a disastrous neighborhood block party, PI Laney Bird is drawn into a mystery involving her best friend Holly, whose seemingly perfect life is a lie.

The majority of the book is set in the Hudson Valley, with a critical diversion taking place in the Catskills. Naymark's book is a fastpaced read with strong, complicated characters. Can be read as a standalone. Check out a new Catskills-set book pick every Monday on the Catskills Visitor Center’s Instagram and Facebook pages! Learn more about our work at catskillsvisitorcenter.org.

June Happenings

Eat Your Words

Among so many other hard lessons, the COVID-19 pandemic has served to highlight the critical importance of a strong local food system. Support your farmers, strengthen the local economy & supplement your diet deliciously by starting your shopping small; at one of Columbia County’s four Farmer’s Markets!

Kinderhook

Kinderhook Farmers Market

Village Green, Green Street, Kinderhook NY Saturdays 9am-1pm

Happy Pride Month! The adoption of June as LGBTQIA+ Pride Month dates back to 1969, and the cataclysmic Stonewall Riots that sparked the first Gay Pride Parade down Christopher Street to Central Park. While many victories have been won in the last 50 years, Pride Month remains a tribute to the struggles that have come before and those still to come; as well as a celebration of societal progress toward a world where no human being must live in the shadows.

Chatham

Chatham Farmer and Maker’s Market

Crellin Park, 2940 NY-66 Chatham NY Fridays 4:30pm-7:00pm

Copake/Hillsdale

Copake Hillsdale Farmers Market

Roe Jan Park, 9140 Route 22, Hilsdale NY

Saturdays 9am-1pm

Hudson

Hudson Farmers Market

201 Harry Howard Ave, Hudson NY Saturdays 9-1pm

Wednesday, June 1st through Sunday, June 5th marks OutHudson’s 13th Columbia County Pride Celebration. The eagerly-awaited Pride Parade will process down Warren Street from the 7th Street Park to Front Street, commencing at 2pm on Saturday, June 4th. 2022’s theme is truly Out of this World, featuring awards in categories including Highest in the Sky, Most Cosmic, and Most Nebulacious. Community awards will also recognize the Intergalactic Champion, Queerest Menu, and Most Gargantuan; so lace up your moon boots and get ready to get OUT!

Juneteenth

Juneteenth, celebrated on the 19th of June, has been in observance since 1866 in recognition of the date the last state of the Confederacy ended government-sanctioned institutional slavery. This final state (Texas) was the first to adopt Juneteenth as an official holiday in 1938, and celebrations have since spread beyond the borders of the United States; held also by the descendants of the Seminole tribe who escaped from slavery in 1852 to settle in Mexico. When Juneteenth became recognized as a national holiday last year, it was the first new federal observance since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted in 1983.

It is not the intention of the Hudson Connection to speak for or over anyone. We would like to provide this magazine as a platform for all the diverse voices in our community to tell their stories, their way. If you have any feedback or suggestions on how we can do better, please let us know.

Did we miss one?

Why You Should Invest in Digital Currency

By Adam Weyant

George Washington wrote to Thomas Jefferson on August 1, 1786, “Paper money has had the effect in your state that it will ever have, to ruin commerce, oppress the honest, and open the door to every species of fraud and injustice.”

We are in the midst of a transformation: from the industrial age to the age of information and digitalization. Our lives now not only exist in the three-dimensional world, but also in the digital realm of the internet. Everything from mortgages to real estate to works of art can be imprinted on a network and swapped and traded in real time. In February 2011, the price of Bitcoin was $1.00. At time of writing, the current price is $40,282.

Since the inception of the Federal Reserve System, which came into existence in 1913 and is responsible for creating the money in the United States, the U.S. Dollar has lost more than 97% of its value. This is through the means of inflation and what the government defines as “quantitative easing” -- which is just a fancy word for printing money from thin air. Inflation is a hidden tax on the consumer. When purchasing power goes down and wages stay

stagnant, we end up with the very situation we are in today. High prices at the pumps and the grocery store, more debt and a middle class that starts to dissolve.

Gold and silver are great commodities to physically hold. They can preserve your wealth, and in case of a crisis, can be used as a means of exchange for goods and services. The problem with gold and silver is that their utility is fairly low. You cannot walk into a store and shave off a piece of a gold coin or bar and hand that to the teller. Sending your friend in Nepal a few pieces of gold in hopes that they receive it safely is not a viable solution either. Digital currency solves this problem. As long as you own a digital wallet, you can own digital currency. Anyone, from anywhere, can send, accept, use, and sell it if they choose. The market stretches far and wide, and is still in its infancy.

Like all good things in life, using digital currency has inherent risks. The digital currency market is very volatile, and just like in all markets, you are susceptible to losses. However, with enough research and guidance, you can turn a small investment into a small fortune. The biggest mistake one can make is writing off a new technology due to misunderstanding its use. You do not have to fully understand why something has value in order for the value to exist. The free market determines valuation; and the digital currency market is still young. Now is the time to capitalize on it.

Quiche à la Nonna

By Sierra Shepard

This crustless quiche might not be considered strictly European – in fact, I’ll admit there may be Bisquick involved – but the woman who first melded these flavors together did hail from a country shaped like a boot. Starting in the spring, spinach will be in great abundance at our local markets and farm stands here in the Hudson Valley, so to kick off our first Recipe Challenge, I’m sharing the miracle that set my spinach stage from early childhood. This easy and versatile dish can be served at any meal, or as a snack; eat it cold, hot, or on the go. If your youngster has not yet caught on to Popeye’s secret to success, enlist their help in the kitchen to watch an innocent leafy green with a famously bad rap magically transform into a family favorite – all in less than 60 minutes!

Ingredients: 10 oz spinach (if using frozen, make sure it’s defrosted & drained)

1 cup crab meat (drained), or faux crab (chopped) 8 oz grated Swiss cheese ½ cup chopped onion 1 ½ cups milk (non-dairy substitutes will do; just make sure it’s plain!)

¾ cup Bisquick ¼ tsp nutmeg

3 eggs 1 tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees; grease your largest pie dish.

2. If using fresh spinach, heat in a covered saute pan with a drizzle of olive oil over a medium flame until wilted.

3. In a large bowl, mix spinach, cheese, onion, and crab. Place in prepared pie dish, distributing evenly.

4. In a blender, combine milk, eggs, Bisquick, salt, pepper, and nutmeg together on lowest setting. Pour over mixture in pie dish – take care not to overflow!

5. Bake for 35 minutes, or until set.

6. Cool for 10-15 minutes; serve, and enjoy! (Allow children to demonstrate incredible Popeye biceps to anyone within view.)

Next Recipe Challenge: Blueberries will be in abundance beginning in June: submit your best blueberry recipe with a picture to jbyronwoodin@bestversionmedia.com by 6/23 for the chance to see your masterpiece in print!