Hurricane Sandy battered the mid Atlantic coast Monday, October 29, into Tuesday, flooding coastal communities in its wake. Tropical storm force winds spread out 485 miles from the storm’s center, surging along Hudson River waterfronts and felling trees onto roads, power lines and buildings. The storm was responsible for extensive damage to a number of local homes, major power outages and road closures that paralyzed our area for well over a week.

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As always, we appreciate the volunteer efforts and donations from our community over the summer, most notably: Susan Nemesdy, Joyce Gavin, Bernie Doyle, Rubens Teles, Jim Signorelli, Max Seeger, Lynne Sandhaus, Roger Hooker, Judy Zehentner and Rich Rassmussen. Thank you to those Palisadians who volunteered at our Farmers’ Market Dinner in May: Fred Little, Joan & Dana Lehman, Liz, Scarlet & Bailey Ottley, John & Vienna Guzewich, Katey Plotkin, the Nelson family, Lynne Sandhaus, Helena Powers, Barbara Meyer, Dylan Keegan, Susan, Dominic & Greg Nemesdy, Oliver Graney, Ellie Kitman & Marjorie Galen, Nancy Levine, Elijah Kruger, Laura Murphy, Ted and Pam Alexander, Eileen Larkin and the PCC Board members.

Palisades Presbyterian Church
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Harvest Festival
Palisades Presbyterian Church will hold its annual Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 13 from 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm. The Festival will feature the sale of homemade soups, bread, pies, cakes and pastries. There will be a silent auction of goods and services. We will offer pumpkin decoration for children as well as face painting. Come and have a great time and benefit the programs of the Church.

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Building Improvements
The architectural plans for the next phase of the library expansion including improvements to the outside for the building and surrounding property have been approved by the Orangetown Planning Board, The Orangetown Zoning Board and the Historic Areas Board of Review. In October we plan to break ground on the two new parking spaces.

In May, approximately 25 neighbors attended an Orangetown Town Board meeting to yet again discuss the installation of a new Oak Tree sidewalk between Rt 9W and the Palisades Community Center. This is the 5th year and the 3rd Supervisor that we have gone before. Although last year the sidewalk was approved and money for the sidewalk was in the town budget, a new Board, a new Supervisor and new financial woes for the town, put up a road block to this project.

Cristina Biaggi
From September 29 through November Cristina’s recent work will be shown at The Outside In Piermont (249 Ferdon Avenue).
Hours: 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, Thursday to Saturday and 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm on Sunday, or by appointment (call 845-398-0706).

Our youngest reader

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In 1964, shortly after the Parish House was built, Edith and Jack Ryan organized a pancake breakfast for the Palisades Presbyterian Church as a fundraiser. Two years later in 1966, Bob Rasmussen, Donald Finck and Michael Shapiro joined them with Fred Griffing coming aboard soon after. When Jack Ryan passed away, Bob Rasmussen assumed the responsibility for organizing the breakfast. This past May, Bob, Donald and Michael celebrated their 46th year of pancake making. Rounding out the group are John Guzewich who started around 2002 and Jim Rubenstone, the newcomer, who joined in 2009.

Fred Griffing, Jim Rubenstone. Michael Shapiro, John Guzewich, Bob Rasmussen, Donald Finck
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On Memorial Day, Palisadians continued their time-honored tradition of gathering around the Flag Pole, once known as the Liberty Pole, to honor those fallen in war. Since the pole was erected in 1861 on a small triangle of land donated by Herbert Lawrence for that express purpose for all time, the Flag Pole has been the site of patriotic celebrations expressing the sentiments of our community.

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The Palisades Church Jr. Players will be performing Jonah and the Whale, written and directed by Diana Green, on May 20th during the 10:00 service and all are welcome.

Dear Residents of Palisades,
With spring 2012 in full bloom, I wanted to take some time to write this article in recognition and appreciation of the continued support our Company receives from the residents of our Fire District, in addition to making you aware of our progressive efforts as your local fire department in providing premier, professional service to our community. Our Department has taken, and continues to take, great steps forward in many areas, such as upgraded apparatus and equipment, new technology for emergency response management and pre-response planning, membership recruitment, and much needed firehouse improvements.

Building Improvements
The interior and exterior improvements are continuing at the Palisades Free Library as the process moves into Phase II. As of this writing, the architectural plans for these changes are to be presented at an April meeting of the Orangetown Zoning Board and then proceed on to the other boards, pending approval. Phase I, which included new lighting, renovation of the A/C system, carpet replacement and new seating, has been completed, and the two new parking spaces mentioned previously in 10964 have been rescheduled for Phase II. We look forward with anticipation to the addition of functional space and the benefits of improved energy-efficiency which will enhance the services provided by the library, all while maintaining its warmth and historical charm.

In the good old days Palisades dogs ran free, and few people complained. But times have changed; as a result of the growing population of both dogs and people, the situation has become much more complicated. One can understand why dog owners want freedom for their animals. Unfortunately, sometimes this freedom impinges on the property rights, safety, and peace of mind of other residents and their pets.

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Now that our ramp project has come to an end, again we thank the following community members for their generous donation or discount of services: Michael Tersigni, Shelly Cohen, Susan Nemesdy, Larry Buccarielli, Richard Rasmussen, Henry Ottley, Cellen Wolk, Dorian Tunell and Declan O’Dey. And to all those who made financial donations. We could have not done it without you!

Pictures of Dinny Price and her charges
Dinny’s relative Dana Bertomen writes, “I have pictures of Dinny and hundreds of pictures of the children that Dinny took care of. If any child or parent that had a child at Dinny’s would like to see pictures of themselves, they should contact me “Dana Bertomen” on Facebook. The pictures are there for all to see.”

“Trust Me” are the only two words that Tandoori Palace uses on their sign in the front window to describe their special of the day in the new hit film “Today’s Special.” This crowd pleaser of a picture tells the story of an aspiring Indian American chef who connects with his heritage, as well as, his own love of cooking when he’s forced by circumstances to run his family’s Indian restaurant in Queens. Based on Aasif Mandvi’s Obie winning play and directed by David Kaplan of “Year of the Fish” fame, the film is a simmering marsala blend of comedy, romance and drama.

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The desire to make our building accessible to all has been a goal for decades. We thank all those who made financial donations to our handicap ramp fund. In addition, we appreciate the expertise and dedication of the following people who made this ramp and yard work possible:

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PALISADES FREE LIBRARY
Member of the Ramapo Catskill Library System and ANSER Network
19 Closter Road, Palisades, NY 10964
845-359-0136, Fax 845-359-6124 www.palisadeslibrary.org

Hours: Monday to Thursday 11:00 to 9:00pm, Friday to Saturday 11:00 to 5:00pm, Sunday 1:00 to 5:00pm

Next Meeting of the Board of Trustees: Wednesday, April 11, 7:30 pm at the Library.
All meetings are open to the public.

Holidays: Closed Easter Sunday, April 8

Palisades Presbyterian Church 1900
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Palisades Presbyterian Church
117 Washington Spring Road
(845) 359-3147

Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm
Please check out our new website: www.palpresny.org
Pastor: Reverend Angela Maddalone
Pastor Drop-in Hours: Tuesday & Wednesday: 10:00 am, Thursday: 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm, Friday and Saturday by appointment
Sunday worship service: 10:00 am; Sunday School, 10:00 am
Bible study: Wednesdays 12:15 pm Parish House
Choir rehearsal: Thursdays 7:30 pm

The Hedgehog
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“All happy families are alike but each unhappy family is unique.” These words found in Anna Karenina also play an important part in forming the basis of a unique friendship between a widowed janitor and a recently arrived Japanese tenant in the new French film The Hedgehog. Freely adapted from the bestselling French novel, The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, this moving story is about love, life and the unexpected, brought to the screen by first time thirty-one-year-old director Mona Achache.

The next meeting of the Palis-Agers will take place on Thursday, March 22, at 1:30pm in the Community Room of the Palisades Presbyterian Church. Coffee and cookies will be served and we will have a chance to talk with each other about our lives and concerns.

In January 2012 Alice Gerard was appointed a member of the Rockland County Historic Preservation Board, which is concerned with preserving the county’s historic past.