Community Calendar

Norman Rockwell: Illustrating Humor highlights selections from Rockwell’s most amusing artworks drawn from the Museum’s permanent collection.

Norman Rockwell: Illustrating Humor runs concurrently with What, Me Worry? The Art and Humor of MAD Magazine, this summer’s landmark exhibition of original art from one of America’s oldest humor publications. These thematically linked exhibitions juxtapose and illuminate two strikingly different veins of American humor, from the gently comical to the outrageously satirical. The underlying unity, however, is apparent in the brilliance of the illustrations and the successful intent to prompt viewers’ laughter and, perhaps, invite rueful self-recognition.

Fashionable Finds, Meaningful Impact: Cold Spring Thrift Alliance Announces The Spring Thrift Apparel Sale
Sustainable Shopping Event to Support Local Community & Promote Sustainable Fashion Amid Renewed Focus on Trump-Era Tariffs Impacting Fast Fashion Imports

The Cold Spring Thrift Alliance presents its Spring Thrift Apparel Sale, a bi-annual community event offering high-quality secondhand clothing, shoes, handbags, jewelry, and accessories for shoppers of all styles and sizes. The sale will take place at St. Mary's in the Highlands (1 Chestnut St., Cold Spring, NY) on May 3-4 from 10 AM – 6 PM, with a special Pre-Sale Party on Friday, May 2 at 5 PM for a community toast and first access to designer wear and cashmere for a $20 entry.

The Cold Spring Thrift Alliance’s motto, "Omnia Circularia" (All Things Circular), reflects their mission to re-circulate clothing while reinvesting in local services.

With all proceeds benefiting the historic St. Mary's campus and the Philipstown Food Pantry, the Cold Spring Thrift Sale is more than just a shopping event—it's a movement toward sustainability, ethical fashion, and community giving.

Thrifting for a Cause
Now in its fourth year, the sale has grown exponentially, keeping over 2,000 pounds of clothing in circulation annually and raising an average of $20,000 per year for local causes. The Alliance also provides vouchers for regional assistance groups, ensuring that clothing finds new homes within the community.
Beyond the treasure hunt of designer finds (Ferragamo, Oscar de la Renta, Gucci, and more) and staple brands (Chico’s, Eileen Fisher, LL Bean), the event addresses the wastefulness of fast fashion. "The clothing industry has hyped-up its marketing to all ages, not just teenagers lured by fast fashion on social media. Thrifting has been a popular antidote to an accelerated consumerism that harms the environment and exploits workers worldwide," said Dar Williams, founder of the Cold Spring Thrift Alliance and renowned singer-songwriter.
Community-Driven & Mission-Focused

The Cold Spring Thrift Alliance is powered by over 50 volunteers from throughout the Hudson Valley, dedicated to sustainable fashion and community support.

The founding team pooled their professional and civic talents to make the sale successful and appealing. The mending station is run by a former BBC costumer, sale curators include photographers, stylists, art restorers, artists, and the cash box is staffed by a retired executive at the federal reserve. “It’s a community touchstone,” Williams says, “Every time I’m out, someone points to a coat, sweater, or pants from the sale.”

This year, the alliance is expanding its advocacy efforts by showcasing documentary films throughout the sale, highlighting issues of waste and labor practices in the fashion industry. Films will be screened in the Saint Mary’s sanctuary and include Fashion Reimagined & The True Cost of Fashion, others soon to be announced (check the alliance’s website and social media for timing).

A Unique Shopping Experience
Shoppers travel from Brooklyn, Connecticut and the Catskills to experience Cold Spring's renowned thrifting scene, with its spacious venue, friendly volunteers, and well-curated selection. As one enthusiastic shopper off the train from Manhattan with a group of friends said, “This is the kind of thing we wish we had in New York!” In addition to the sale, visitors can enjoy:
A Mending Station – Expert sewers on-site to repair clothing, making fashion truly circular
A "Fancy" Room – Featuring vintage and designer pieces at affordable prices
Curated Shopping Tips – Helping attendees make the most of their thrift experience

Join the Movement
Do you have an idea for upcycling or sustainability? Interested in joining the alliance? Go to coldspringthriftalliance.org to get involved or donate.

Event Details:
Pre-Sale Party: Friday, May 2 at 5 PM ($20 entry fee)
Main Sale: May 3-4, 10 AM – 6 PM (Documentaries shown 12-5pm throughout)
Location: St. Mary's in the Highlands, 1 Chestnut St., Cold Spring, NY
(A ten-minute walk from the Cold Spring Metro-North station)

Free clothing voucher information: contact coldspringthriftalliance@gmail.com

Fashionable Finds, Sustainable Change
coldspringthriftalliance.org

Follow us at @coldspringallliance on Instagram and Facebook

Let’s kick off GoCoCo together!

GoCoCo is a brand-new website dedicated to helping people find their next favorite place in Columbia County.
For the first time, users will be able to filter all the county’s outdoor spaces by their favorite activities like fishing, hiking, hunting, or swimming or by amenities like ADA-accessible trails, picnic tables, and bathrooms. In addition to the handy search features, the site also includes a blog with useful updates about outdoor recreation in every season, tips for enjoying nature safely and respectfully, and information about volunteering.

During the launch party, folks are welcome to drop in at any time during the event to grab a tasty treat and a map with every public site in Columbia County. There will also be an opportunity to weigh in on the Countywide Conservation Plan!

In Flight's Flower Fair & Flea

Date: Saturday, May 3, 2025
Time: 11AM – 4 PM
Location: In Flight, Inc., 1351 NY 66, Ghent, NY

Join us for a fun-filled spring event at In Flight's Flower Fair & Flea!

Celebrate the season with a day of:

Plant Sales — Just in time for Mother’s Day!
Local Vendors — Unique crafts, art, and handmade goods.
Raffles & Prizes — Win exciting goodies while supporting a great cause!
Kids Activities!

All proceeds directly benefit In Flight, Inc. — a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that empowers people with intellectual and developmental disabilities by supporting their independence through innovative programs, vocational training, and residential services.

Interested in being a vendor?

Vendor fees are $75 or $50 with a donation to our raffle. 10x10 spaces available! Sign up by April 1st by emailing Jill Rodriquez at JRODRIQUEZ@inflightinc.org or registering online: https://givebutter.com/IFFFFVendor

Bring your family and friends for a blooming good time and help us grow support for a meaningful cause!

SUPER CUTE!!! In this stressful time we could definitely use a big dose of adorable energy. This group exhibition is the perfect way to bring that to life. Our artists' subjects range from puppies to babies, manga to bunnies, sparkles, unicorns, fuzzy creatures and more. We feature artworks that make you smile, giggle, and evoke that happy, weird, and super cute vibe. Whether through drawing, painting, photography, or sculpture, the goal is simple: to spread the feeling of everyday cuteness that is all around us. What do you find cute? How does something cute make you feel? Let’s find out. And remember, one person's cute may be another person's creepy. It’s all fair game.

The Opening Reception will take place in both of our gallery spaces on April 5, from 4-6pm. This exhibition opens April 5 and ends May 10.

A trove of daily weather recordings in New York State spanning 200 years has recently been rediscovered, and it offers new insights into our climate past, present, and future. On May 3, join acclaimed local ecologists Conrad Vispo, Anna Duhon, Kerissa Fuccillo Battle, and Anton Seimon for a presentation about this first-of-its-kind historical meteorological data. The program will be followed by a Q&A session to address the climate questions that continue to puzzle us.
After the presentation, Kerissa Fuccillo Battle and Anna Duhon will lead an instructive nature walk to teach others how to create a phenology trail, demonstrating methods to observe and record the timing of seasonal events in plants and animals, to advance our understanding of nature and help detect changes over time.

Join us on May 3 at 2 pm in the Great Hall of the Arkell Museum and Canajoharie Library as we present Byron Nilsson and accompanist Malcolm Kogut in Songs Along the Mohawk. Byron will take us back to the heyday of the Erie Canal through songs passengers, muleteers, and bargemen would have heard every day. Some of these songs are humorous, others a tad bawdy, you will hear familiar tunes and some that have been lost to time.

This is a free event and great for older kids and adults.

For questions, please call 518-673-2314 ext. 106 or email info@arkellmuseum.org.

CATSKILL CHORAL SOCIETY SPRING CONCERT

The Catskill Choral Society is proud to present masterworks of Mozart and Haydn in our Spring Concert, ‘A Classical Celebration,’ on Friday, May 2nd at 7:30pm, and then again on Saturday, May 3rd at 3:00pm at the First United Methodist Church at 66 Chestnut Street in Oneonta. Catskill Choral Society will sing Misericordias Domini by Mozart, Missa in Augustiis (Lord Nelson) by Haydn and Vesperae solennes de confessore by Mozart. Our 60-plus singers are under the direction of Dr. G. Roberts Kolb and are joined by a professional orchestra and soloists Laura Enslin, Danan Tsan, Casey Gray, and David Kolb. The concert will also include the Youth and Children’s Choirs under the direction of Ms. Cynthia Donaldson. For more information and tickets go to www.catskillchoralsociety.org/tickets
These concerts are made possible by the generosity of our community. Thank you to our lead sponsor — Five Star Subaru

The hit public radio series “Selected Shorts” returns to UAlbany at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 3, 2025, for an evening of captivating fiction that explores precious things that appear and disappear from our lives.

Host Jill Eikenberry ("L.A. Law") is joined by actors Brandon J. Dirden ("The Americans"), and Campbell Scott ("Billions") to perform stories that weave together moments of longing, discovery, and the magic that happens when what is lost finds its way back.

7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 3, 2025
UAlbany Performing Arts Center Main Theatre
1400 Washington Ave., Albany NY 12222
Ticketed event.

Bridge Street Theatre is thrilled to present Polishing Shakespeare, a razor-sharp, high-stakes battle between art and commerce, penned by acclaimed playwright Brian Dykstra and directed by Bridge Street Theatre Artistic Director, John Sowle. This critically lauded satire—delivered entirely in iambic pentameter—will be setting fire to the stage from April 17-27, 2025, at 44 W. Bridge Street, Catskill, NY. Performances will be held Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30 PM, with Sunday matinees at 2:00 PM.

A dot-com billionaire offers a struggling theatre company a massive financial windfall—but only if they agree to “translate” Shakespeare’s plays into more accessible, modern English. What follows is a fiercely funny and whip-smart three-way verbal showdown between an idealistic playwright drowning in debt, a pragmatic artistic director fighting to keep the doors open, and a billionaire convinced that he knows what the audience really wants.

Packed with rapid-fire wit, dazzling wordplay, and searing social commentary, Polishing Shakespeare is both a love letter to the theatre and a biting critique of the influence of money on art. This “exhilarating, entertaining rollercoaster” (The Edinburgh Reporter) has received critical acclaim from audiences and critics alike, earning praise for its “hilarious, finely wrought prose” (FringeFan) and “masterclass in precision iambic pentameter” (Get Your Coats On).

Directed by the Berkie-winning John Sowle, with a powerhouse cast led by Steven Patterson, Yvonne Perry, and, making her Bridge Street Theatre debut, Angelique Archer, Polishing Shakespeare is a must-see for theatre lovers, Shakespeare enthusiasts, and anyone who has ever grappled with the tension between artistic integrity and financial survival.

Don’t miss this electrifying production! Tickets and further information are available at our Box Office or at BridgeStreetTheatre.org!