Toy Drive Collections for Drop-Off Toy Donations In and Around Beacon

Pictured here is the 2018 toy collection at Beacon Pilates.
Photo Credit: Beacon Pilates and A Little Beacon Blog

Last Updated: 12/5/2019

Every year, community organizations fire up toy drives to help donate to kids in need. If you’re looking to donate toys to these drives, it’s best to mark your calendar for just before Thanksgiving, as that’s when these opportunities start opening up - some are even as early as October, like Toys for Tots. It’s good to get an early start too with Adopt-a-Family programs, which require more attention to detail in terms of what kind of toys you are purchasing for which family member. So mark your calendar for mid-November to return to this list to get a head start! And subscribe to our newsletter to get early advance notice.

If you missed a toy deadline and really want to give, consider a donation to the organization the toy is being collected for instead.

Things to know about Toy Drive Collections:

• Wish Lists: Generally, the organization provides guidance on what type of gift to give. They know their kids and what they need or want.

• New: Toys need to be new and in original packaging.

• Usually Unwrapped: Usually the Wish List will ask for unwrapped toys.

• No Guns or Other Violent Toys: Even if your kids love it, there is extra sensitivity for these kids.

BEACON PILATES

Beacon Pilates is collecting new toys for Children’s Home of Poughkeepsie.
Kids: 80 kids live in 11 facilities, ages newborn to 21 years
Wish List: Click here for the wish list and gift guidance. Juliet, the owner of Beacon Pilates, also has a list of individual wish list items. Email info@beaconpilates.com for more specific recommendations.
Location Drop-Off: Beacon Pilates, 18 West Main St., Beacon, NY (near Brett’s Hardware)
Times: 9 am to 9 pm
Deadline: Monday, December 16, 2019
The Children’s Home is dedicated to providing a safe and nurturing environment that improves lives and empowers at-risk children and families in the Hudson Valley and surrounding communities. The Children’s Home of Poughkeepsie provides residential care on the main campus in Poughkeepsie, in agency boarding homes or group homes off campus and apartments in the community. On any given day, over 90 children receive services in one of the home’s programs.

The STUDIO @ BEACON

The Studio @ Beacon is collecting new toys for Toys For Tots.
Location Drop-Off: The Studio @ Beacon, 301 Main St., Beacon, NY (next to Royal Crepes)
Deadline: Go now!
The basic mission of the Marine Toys for Tots Program is to collect new, unwrapped toys and distribute those toys to less fortunate children at Christmas. The primary goal of Marine Toys for Tots is, through the gift of a new toy, help bring the joy of Christmas and send a message of hope to America's less fortunate children. In order to better execute the program, in 1991 the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation was created at the behest of the Marine Corps.

BEACON’S SALVATION ARMY

The Salvation Army of Beacon is collecting toys via their “Angel Tree” at two locations with Wish Tags. Says Captain Leilani Alarcon: “We have toy wishes, and usually also like to get a couple of warm outfits, since most of the kids that participate are needy and their parents can’t afford to buy coats and boots, and such. Everything desired is on the tag. Wherever the tag is picked up, is a drop-off location, or people can bring them directly to our location in Beacon - the church. My email and cell information are on the tags for people to arrange drop-offs at our building.”
Kids: Captain Leilani Alarcon described to us the types of children they reach with this toy drive: “Most of the kids for our toy drive are from low-income housing (Tompkins Terrace), as well as needy families that have come all the way from Hopewell and Poughkeepsie because they missed sign-in dates at the Poughkeepsie Salvation Army. Kids also are sent from Social Services or from our Food Pantry Assistance for Families here in the church as well. We have decided not to set an age range, since most older children get forgotten by most programs, so we have kids from 0 to 16.“
Wish List: Select a tag from the Angel Tree. It will have an exact gif suggestion.
Location Drop-Offs:
Planet Fitness in Wappingers Falls: 1572 U.S. 9, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590
Hilton Garden at Fishkill: 25 Westage Drive, Fishkill, NY 12524
Salvation Army Church in Beacon: 372 Main St., Beacon, NY (drop-off only, the Angel Trees are at the above locations). The main entrance of the church is actually behind it, by their parking lot off of Fishkill Avenue. Tuesdays and Thursdays are best for dropping off toys or bringing a donation to their Food Pantry (even year-round), as that is when their receptionist is there. Or, you can email Captain Leilani Alarcon at Leilani.Alarcon@USE.SalvationArmy.Org to make arrangements for other days.
Deadline: TBA

LIBBY FUNERAL HOME

Libby Funeral Home is collecting stuffed stockings for Stockings For Soldiers.
Location Drop-Off: Libby Funeral Home, 55 Teller Ave., Beacon, NY
Deadline: TBA
If filling stockings brings you joy during the holiday season, and so does giving the stockings to someone who isn’t expecting them, then this holiday initiative is for you. Libby Funeral Home has set up a free stocking for you to take home, decorate and stuff to the brim with holiday cheer. You will receive a list of recommended items along with the stocking. Libby Funeral & Cremation Services will ship the stockings (at their expense) to troops abroad in time for the holidays.
Details >

GRACE SMITH HOUSE

Grace Smith House organizes an annual Adopt-A-Family program.
Deadline: TBA
During the holiday season, Grace Smith House opens its doors to countless survivors of domestic violence and their families. They need your help to provide holiday joy to the families who shelter serve. They are seeking items such as baby monitors (new), women's robes, women’s pajamas (all sizes), grocery store gift cards, gas gift cards, underwear (women, girls, boys), jewelry, makeup, shampoos and conditioners, body wash and spray, and more.
Details >

ALL SPORT HEALTH + FITNESS

All Sport Health + Fitness is collecting select gifts via a wish-list tree. To participate, go to the fitness center and take a wish off the tree. Fulfill the wish, and bring it back!
Location Drop-Off: All Sport, 17 Old Main St., Fishkill, NY 12524
Deadline: Go now!

LOVE HOLDS LIFE AT LEWIS TOMPKINS HOSE CO. #1 OF THE BEACON FIRE DEPARTMENT

The fifth annual Toy Giveaway in Honor of Carmen Viruet-Senato is being hosted with the help of Love Holds Life Children’s Cancer Foundation. They are collecting new and unwrapped toys for children ages 2 to 14 years old, to be distributed on Saturday, December 15, with Cookies and Cocoa with Santa at Lewis Tompkins Hose Co. #1. According to Southern Dutchess News, the event is in honor of Carmen Viruet-Senato, co-founder of LHL. The event is in memory of Leticia Dos Santos. Richard Senato, founder of LHL, said Leticia was 16 years old when she passed from Stage 4 bone cancer. She created the Cookies and Cocoa event with Senato and Viruet-Senato five years ago.
Location Drop-Off: 13 South Ave., Beacon, NY
Deadline: Donation deadline is Friday, December 7.
Event for any child to receive a free toy is Saturday, December 15 from 10 am to 1 pm. All are invited.
Love Holds Life helps children and their families financially battling cancer, on a national level from their offices located in New York's Hudson Valley region. Love Holds Life provides financial support for their medical treatments and expenses not covered by insurance. LHL’s ultimate mission is to ensure children with love and life. Their financial program consists of funding a child’s medical deductible, co-payment, co-insurance and prescriptions, along with travel reimbursement to and from treatment. Donations received from individuals, foundations, corporations and other local organizations help to fund each child and their family.
NOTE: To be a drop-off location for Love Holds Life, please contact their office at (845) 592-4544

GUARDIAN SELF-STORAGE

Location Drop-Off: 14 collection locations in Ulster, Dutchess, and Orange counties
Deadline: November 1-December 13
Donations will go towards Toys For Tots.

As we hear of more Toy Drive Collections, we will update this list. Keep refreshing the page!

How to Submit

If you are running a toy drive, please email details in the format matching the above listings to editorial@alittlebeaconblog.com. Thanks!

Grace Pumpkin Parade To Highlight Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Attendees of the 2018 Grace Pumpkin Parade march into Waryas Park in the City of Poughkeepsie. (Courtesy/Grace Smith House, Inc.)

Grace Smith House will be hosting their annual Grace Pumpkin Parade in Poughkeepsie on Saturday, October 19, from 11 am to 3 pm; lineup for the parade starts at 10:30 am. Go ahead and don a costume, march, build a float, or just enjoy the day’s festivities as you show the community that you reject family violence.

Parade Route

The parade begins at Pulaski Park, down by the Walkway Over The Hudson, and will make its way through the city up to Main Street, ending at Waryas Park. There will be plenty of spots to spectate and cheer on the ghouls marching to empower survivors of domestic violence.

What is Grace Smith House?

Since 1981, Grace Smith House has provided residential and non-residential assistance for victims of domestic violence and their children. They provide emergency shelter, counseling, transitional housing, advocacy, legal assistance, preventative education and more to residents of Dutchess County, NY, and surrounding areas.

Their crisis hotline is available 24/7 at (845) 471-3033. Visit their website at www.gracesmithhouse.org.

Slaterpalooza 2019 Happening This Weekend - Raffle - Benefits Firehouse

The people of Glenham may be familiar with Slaterpalooza, the annual music festival benefiting Glenham’s 100% volunteer fire department and local first responders in need, but you may not be! First of all, are you up on your Glenham trivia? Do you know why “Slater” is in the name? We highlighted a bit to give you more info as to how Glenham and Beacon work together.

Your Slaterpalooza donation starts at $10 per adult, but you can give more at the door. Organizers say that coolers are permitted with a designated driver, and they remind you that Uber, Lyft and multiple taxi companies are available. Pets, however, are not permitted.

The Musical Lineup for Slaterpalooza, Saturday, September 21, 2019

Seven bands will play across two stages for continuous music. Here’s the lineup (as we know it… Details are subject to change):

2 pm ESC
3 pm COLLEEN ROSE & THE THORNS
4 pm THROWN TOGETHER
5 pm LAST MINUTE SOULMATES
6 pm WHISKEY WAILERS
7 pm BOOMKAT
8 pm CIRCLE 65

The Raffle Prizes

Slaterpalooza will have many great raffle prizes from local shops and restaurants, including Hudson Beach Glass, Max's on Main, Joe's Irish Pub, Hometown Deli and more. They also raffle a Wheelbarrow of Cheer and have 50/50s.

Firefly Yoga Hosts Partner Yoga Workshop Fundraiser This Sunday With Irene Auma From Peace Within Prison Yoga

This Sunday, April 28, Firefly Yoga and Juice Bar in Fishkill, NY, will be hosting a special two-hour Partner Yoga workshop hosted by guest instructor Irene Auma, from Peace Within Prison Yoga in Kenya. Irene has been touring the United States, teaching special classes and workshops to raise money for the nonprofit she started, Peace Within Prison Yoga.

About Irene Auma

Irene became a certified yoga instructor through the Africa Yoga Project and is also a Baptiste Yoga certified instructor. Her inspiration to become a yoga teacher comes from wanting to “improve the lives of thousands of inmates who are in dark places and bring humanity, compassion, strength and humor to their lives. I stand as hope and may they have hope.” Hence her founding Peace Within Prison Yoga.

About Peace Within Prison Yoga

Peace Within Prison Yoga seeks to promote peace and reconciliation among citizens of Kenya by encouraging self-awareness and acceptance of individuals. The mission is to create a peaceful environment through yoga and meditation that transforms the lives of those within the criminal justice system. A majority of the persons in prison have low levels of education. For any offender, their status quo in society automatically changes once they get imprisoned. They are considered outcasts or outlaws. The reality after release is that life is much harder than it was before imprisonment.

Their goal is to bring yoga to prisons in Kenya, where Irene is from. She shares, “My team and I volunteer to teach to yoga in prison from one location to another, at Athi River Men’s Prison to Machakos Women's Prison once a week, and Lang'ata Women's Maximum Security Prison three times a week with each of these classes reaching 40 to 60 students per class! My goal is to continue to expand by adding prison yoga programs to all 147 prisons.”

About Partner Yoga

Partner Yoga invites openness, patience, communication, trust and balance into your yoga practice and relationships. You and your partner will help each other to relax physical, mental, and emotional tensions. When you are physically supported, not only do you experience a yoga posture differently, but you also begin to allow yourself to trust someone else. No previous yoga experience or partner is necessary; bring
a friend, a loved one, a sibling, a neighbor, or simply yourself.

The workshop will be Sunday, April 28 from 1 to 3 pm at Firefly Yoga and Juice Bar, 992 Main St., Fishkill, NY. You can visit their website at www.fireflyfishkill.com to sign up and get more information.

Firefly Yoga and Juice Bar is a sponsor of our Adult Classes Guide. It is with the support of businesses like theirs that A Little Beacon Blog can bring you coverage of news, local happenings and events. Thank you for supporting businesses who support us! If you would like to become a Sponsor or Community Partner, please click here for more information.

Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration - Honoring A Legend

There is a special event happening Friday, May 3, 2019 to celebrate what would have been Pete Seeger's 100th birthday. The event is FREE for the public to attend, but donations to Clearwater are recommended.

The following is the press release issued by Towne Crier Public Relations in full:

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Please join us on Friday, May 3 - the centennial of Pete Seeger's birth - for a spectacular evening of songs and stories honoring the Beacon songwriter, musician and activist. The Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration starts at 7 pm and will feature many local, regional and national performers paying tribute to Pete's music and life. The roster so far includes The Costellos, Carla Springer, Jerry Kitzrow, co-hosts Thom Joyce and David Bernz, singer-songwriters extraordinaire David Massengill, Christine Lavin and Don White - and the list keeps growing!

Admission is free, but donations are suggested to support Clearwater, the organization Pete founded and loved so well.

Born May 3, 1919, Pete Seeger was a legendary folksinger, musician and activist who called Beacon his home. He was a perennial supporter of the Towne Crier, too, having been one of our first performers when we started out in Beekman, and also played one of his last shows here at our Beacon location in November 2013, just a couple of months before he passed. He was a frequent visitor who also gave us our first food review in Beacon.

Days after his passing on January 27, 2014, we held a special Open Door tribute for Pete and drew the largest attendance in our history! So many wanted to share songs and stories of Pete; it was an overwhelming and emotional response to a beloved icon. He drew together diverse communities in the arts, environmental and activist circles, as well as the broader Beacon community.

Learn more about this event at The Towne Crier’s website.

Bake Sale Fundraiser For Pleasant Valley Library To Be Held In A Little Beacon Space

After the fire raged in the Pleasant Valley Library in November 2018 and destroyed nearly everything, A Little Beacon Blog was approached to host a bake sale fundraiser in our space (A Little Beacon Space, naturally) in the Telephone Building. The Beacon Teen Library Council is raising money to purchase books for Pleasant Valley’s teen Battle of the Books team, with any additional monies going directly to the fundraising efforts of the library. Dana Devine O’Malley, also known as 5 Hens Baked Goods, who teaches the Bakeology class for teens at the Howland Public Library, will also be volunteering to help organize the bake sale.

Says Michelle Rivas, of the Beacon Library’s Young Adults program, of the initiative: ”Knowing what Pleasant Valley Library was going through, we wanted to help. Participating in the Battle of the Books is a big part of the teen programs at our library. We wanted to make sure the teens in Pleasant Valley would still be able to participate in the competition even though the library was facing its challenges because of the fire.”

According to Michelle, they wanted to make the teens’ fundraising efforts more tangible and measurable by getting to see the books and help deliver them to Pleasant Valley. “When they see other teams compete,” Michelle said, “they know they played a part in making that happen.”

The bake sale will be on Sunday, May 19, from 11 am to 3 pm, at 291 Main St. in A Little Beacon Space inside of the Telephone Building. And it will be delicious. Those interested in baking donated goods can contact Michelle Rivas, at community@beaconlibrary.org.

Common Ground Farm's Opening of the Fields Event

Common Ground Farm invites visitors for a contemplative walk through the early spring fields on Saturday, April 13, at 1 pm. The walk will be guided by Farm Director, Sarah Simon, with reflection and commentary shared from the faith traditions of food access partners and community leaders, including: Rabbi Brent Chaim Spodek of Beacon Hebrew Alliance, Lt. Leilani Rodríguez-Alarcón of Salvation Army, Pastor Ben Larson-Wolbrink of First Presbyterian Church, Pastor Bill Dandreano of Salem Tabernacle, and Sarah Capua.

Everyone Welcome To Celebrate The Growing Season

The Opening of the Fields walk is an opportunity to appreciate the potential abundance of the fields as well as to reflect upon the changes and uncertainty inherent in nature. Farming can be isolating work, and the farmers look forward to sharing the springtime activities on a Hudson Valley vegetable farm. Visitors can park by the red barns and meet the group by the picnic tables. Hot tea and snacks will be provided, and guests are welcome to stay and picnic afterwards if the weather is fine. The event is free and open to all. Common Ground Farm welcomes everyone to visit the farm and help celebrate the start of the growing season.

Farm Director Sarah Simon states, “Both hope and uncertainty shape the beginning of the growing season on the farm. The traces of last year's labor have faded, winter has claimed what was once green and lush, and the farm is just beginning to wake up again as the soil starts to warm and the sun begins to shine.”

About Common Ground Farm

Common Ground Farm is a community farm dedicated to food justice, and donates produce to six different local food pantries and soup kitchens each week during their growing season. This event is an opportunity for the farm’s valued community partners to visit the place where the produce is grown, and to see the fields that will feed their communities from May until November. Many of the soup kitchens and food pantries are organized by religious organizations, and for the event, the farm has invited the leaders of these churches, synagogues, and mosques to share blessings and teachings about nature, food and land from their traditions. There will also be nondenominational teachings and blessings shared by community members.

Common Ground Farm donates weekly to the following food pantries:

• Beacon Community Kitchen

• Fishkill Food Pantry

• First Presbyterian Church in Wappingers Falls

• New Vision Church of Deliverance

• St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Beacon

• Occasionally to: Salvation Army in Beacon, Dutchess Outreach in Poughkeepsie

Puppy And Dog Yoga Adoption Event A Success - And The Pictures Are Adorbs

All Sport Health and Fitness has teamed with Compassionate Animal Rescue Efforts (C.A.R.E. of Dutchess County) to bring the community a special Puppy Yoga and Adoption Day and it was a huge success. “We had such a demand that we added a second session - that sold out, too! - and raised some funds for the C.A.R.E. of Dutchess County organization,” said Ashley Valitutto, marketing manager for All Sport. “We know that some lucky doggies found forever homes, and the day was full of smiles and puppy kisses.”

Puppy Yoga Programming

Puppy Yoga was led by Mind Body director Megan Wiley for two 30-minute sessions. The all-levels yoga class allowed participants to practice their downward dog pose while getting puppy kisses and seeing wagging tails. The puppies get some much-needed socialization, and attendees got a unique way to brighten up their day and exercise routine for the day.

More Animal Rescue Support Opportunities at All Sport

In addition to Puppy Yoga, All Sport will continue to have a table in their lobby all month long for collecting pet goods to support the animals at the rescue. Some of the items being collected are Purina Pro-Plan puppy food, puppy and dog toys, Wee-Wee pads, blankets, and other basic needs for operation. 

About C.A.R.E of D.C.

Compassionate Animal Rescue Efforts of Dutchess County (C.A.R.E. of D.C.) is a “No Kill” non-profit pet adoption agency formed in 2016. Founder Karen LeCain established C.A.R.E. of D.C. after many years of successful animal rescue and placement. Karen has dedicated her life to ensure that all animals are given a chance at life, whether they’re found sick and afraid, injured, or abandoned. She is takes great care in properly selecting the right applicants for the animals being adopted to ensure the best fit with the pet’s health, well-being, and happiness.

To learn more about CARE of DC, please visit their website at careofdc.org, or call them at (845) 240-4862. 

All Sport Health & Fitness is located in the Village of Fishkill. To learn more, please call (845) 896-5678 or visit www.allsporthealthandfitness.com. 

Photo Credits: All Sport Health & Fitness.

90 Books Is the Goal for Book Drive for Special Education English Classrooms at Beacon High School

With Get Caught Reading Month coming up in May, the writerly folks at Get Lit Beacon are sponsoring a book drive to bring “student libraries” to the Special Education English classrooms at Beacon High School. Says Flora Stadler, a writer and part of the team that runs Get Lit: "We wanted to give students easy access to books they would enjoy reading, and classroom student libraries seemed like a great option.”

Get Lit is working with Principal Soto and Assistant Principal Simms to start small libraries in the Special Education English classrooms. “The teachers put together a great list of books from diverse authors to get students excited and engaged with reading."

The goal is to provide 90 books to three classrooms. Author and Get Lit Beacon founder Julie Chibbaro will present the books to the school during Get Caught Reading Month in May.

3 Ways You Can Help Make This Happen:

• Go to Binnacle Books in Beacon to choose books from the teacher wish list, and Binnacle will order them for you.

• Donate money to the cause through getlitbeacon.com, and Get Lit will buy the books for you. They'll also match total donations, up to $300.

• You can also purchase books on your own and drop them off any time at Oak Vino Wine Bar in Beacon.

What Is Get Lit Beacon?

Get Lit Beacon is a literary salon founded by writer and teacher Julie Chibbaro. Get Lit Beacon is a way to invite writers out into the community where they can be seen and heard. The salon is a casual gathering where published and aspiring adult writers of any genre can hang out, have a drink and share their work. Usually, one or two professional writers are invited to join and discuss their work.

Get Lit Beacon meets on the Second Sunday of each month (mostly) at Oak Vino Wine Bar, 389 Main St., Beacon.

More Opportunities To Help Beacon Students

A Little Beacon Blog has dedicated a guide to ways you can help the kids and families in Beacon City Schools. This opportunity has been added to the Guide, under the Beacon High School section. Be sure to check that Guide periodically to learn of new opportunities to support BCSD, such as the Color-A-Thon happening for South Avenue Elementary.

Sponsorship is open for that Guide! So, if it’s important to your brand to contact people who care about our schools, please reach out to us if you are interested in sponsoring that Guide. We’ll include your logo and a shout-out!

40th Anniversary Celebration for Howland Cultural Center in May: Tickets & Sponsorship Opportunities

The Howland Cultural Center is celebrating its 40th anniversary, and you are invited to attend and participate. Ticket reservations and sponsorships are available now. The celebration is in honor of Florence Northcutt and the Howland Public Library for their many contributions to the cultural and social life of Beacon. The celebration will take place at the Roundhouse, 2 East Main St., Beacon, N.Y., on Wednesday, May 15, from 5:30 to 8:30 pm. Please call (845) 831-4988 or email information@howlandculturalcenter.org to learn about major sponsorship benefits.
Learn More >

The Highlands Current Needs Your Help! Seeking Fundraising To Continue Covering Beacon

The Highlands Current is a local newspaper you’ve seen around town, stacked in storefronts, and now in the blue boxes that keep popping up on street corners. The paper is a nonprofit organization, and while they do rely on advertising, they count on individual donations more - 75% of publishing costs come from donors! The paper, which is distributed for FREE, is in the final, heated days of their big fundraising appeal, and needs Beacon’s help! Beaconites are so important to the publication, that the paper has invested in an ad campaign here at A Little Beacon Blog to help them get the word out. And you know we love helping to spread the good word.

Years ago, the Highlands Current was launched and covered Cold Spring, Garrison, Nelsonville and North Highlands. In 2015, they expanded their coverage to include Beacon by dedicating at least two reporters, Jeff Simms and Brian PJ Cronin, to cover the Beacon “beat” (newspaper term), as well as Alison Rooney to feature stories on the arts, Michael Turton with some articles (he also delivers the papers all around town) and Pamela Doan, the editor of the Calendar section that includes Beacon events in their roundup. And now I too have joined the ranks as a columnist with my “Kid Friendly” column over there. If you attend City Council or Board of Education meetings, you stand a good chance of seeing Jeff or Brian in the unofficial “press box” (aka somewhere in the front rows).

Highlands Current Quick To Report On Important Issues

Thanks to this dedication, The Highlands Current is often the first to report on big changes coming out of our City Council - changes that impact your daily life here in Beacon. Also because of this investment, their reporters follow different events each week at these meetings, so are super familiar with the twists and turns the issues make, and often weave these significant details into their articles for better context. Because they print on paper, a newspaper doesn’t get to use as much space as a blog does, so often they have to select their words so carefully, and cram hours’ worth of events and pages of supporting documents into three tiny paragraphs!

The paper published this picture to show how two Beacon Reporters work from the Telephone Building through Beahive’s shared office space.

Beacon Newspaper Reporters Work From The Telephone Building

Little known fact to bolster your Beacon trivia base: The Highlands Current stations their reporters out of the Telephone Building in Beahive’s shared work space. A Little Beacon Blog also has our office in the Telephone Building! It’s fun to be in a communications hub like this.

Fundraising Opportunity - Double Match Going On Now ’Til December 31!

Thanks to a grant from NewsMatch and an anonymous donor, any contribution from $1 to $1,000 will be matched two times until December 31! Even if you gave just $10, it matters!

Yes, the dollars help, but new donors are equally important. New donors signal to the newspaper that you care, and you want their coverage to continue. If you have already donated to the Highlands Current this year, consider asking your spouse or best friend to also donate if they haven’t yet. #NewDonorAlert!

PS: If you are reading this article after December 31, 2018, you can still donate! Every little bit helps.

Christmas Trees For Sale From Beacon Engine Fire Company

Christmas trees for sale in the Beacon Engine parking lot.
Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin

Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin

In case you wanted more warm and fuzzy feelings about where you are getting your Christmas Tree this year, the Beacon Engine Fire Company has gotten their X-MAS TREES sign back out, and filled the lot with plump trees - all just waiting to be strapped to the top of your car.

The Christmas trees are sold from the Beacon Engine parking lot at 60 East Main Street, right next to Dogwood’s parking lot. A single rope divides the lots. Open hours are Wednesday to Friday, 5 to 9 pm, and Saturday and Sunday, 10 am to 6 pm.

Speaking of, you can make an easy night of it with dinner at any of the restaurants on the east side of Beacon, like Dogwood, Melzingah Tap House, or Sukhothai. See A Little Beacon Blog’s Restaurant Guide for more dinner ideas.

Looking for other places to get your tree? See our updated article, ”Where To Buy A Christmas Tree in Beacon NY.”

Share your pics of which tree you take home! Tag A Little Beacon Blog in your Instagram photo - we’re @alittlebeacon.

P.S.: While we’re mentioning the Engine Co., we should share an important public-service announcement: The City of Beacon Fire Department reminds you to not leave cell phone chargers plugged in! They are a fire hazard.

Fundraiser For Beacon High School's "The Beacon Players"

We love supporting The Beacon Players - Beacon High School Drama and Theater Arts organization - at A Little Beacon Blog. This group goes above and beyond when putting a production together for the community to enjoy. Fans of The Beacon Players will know that tickets to their shows are only $5 and would like to keep it this way. That’s why the group is asking all of us to support and check out their new Snap!Raise Fundraising page.

The Beacon Players are raising money for costumes, art supplies, set building materials, and advertising. Your support will help them offer a higher quality experience for all participants and is vital to the success of the program.  With a goal of $3,000, they are almost halfway there as of this write-up.

The next production presented by The Beacon Players will be A Chorus Line, one of the longest-running shows on Broadway, the weekend of December 7-9, 2018. You can purchase your tickets here.

Update on Fundraiser for New LGBTQ+ Center Opening In Newburgh, NY

In March 2018, A Little Beacon Blog was the proud sponsor of the Move It Baby, Move It family dance party and fundraiser for the newly formed Newburgh LGBTQ+ Center. We checked in with the fundraiser's organizer and author of this article, Phoebe Zinman Winters, to see how it all went!

This dance party fundraiser for the Newburgh LGBTQ+ Center tore up Quinn’s dance floor with some superstar DJs, raffle prizes and dancers that didn’t quit. Those dancing families raised $1,000 for the Newburgh LGBTQ+ Center, which helped the center open new doors.

Fundraising Opened the Doors To The Newburgh LBGTQ+ Center

Photo Credit: Phoebe Zinman Winters. The DJs are Decora and H2O.

We are so pleased to share such a great update from them! Karen Naimool from The Newburgh LBGTQ+ Center reports that they used the funds to rent space in Newburgh for a "pop-up office."

"We are able to go into this venture for three months and are looking for additional funding to help us keep the doors open,” said Karen. The office will be used for general operations as well as a place where resources and events can be offered. The Newburgh LBGTQ+ Center is involved in many events, education and trainings for community and board members; they also work on increasing their visibility in the community.

Fundraising Events Since Move It Baby, Move It

The Newburgh LBGTQ+ Center's Purple Rain Prince Tribute Dance Party and Drag Show Fundraiser was in June, and fundraising dancers laced up our dancing shoes again (or zipped up our dancing boots) and partied like it was 1999. It was an especially good time and the dance floor was overflowing with cuteness and love. 

Karen let us know about the results of the Prince Fundraiser: "It was an amazing success. Monies were raised by ticket sales, the GoFundMe, community member donations and local business sponsorship." Sponsors of that event included:
1. The Wherehouse
2. Shapiro's Furniture Barn
3. Blacc Vanilla
4. Black Lives Matter Hudson Valley
5. Millenium Tattoo
6. Hale's Hardware
7. Machu Picchu Restaurant
8. Liberty Street Bistro

The next dance party is a drag show happening during Newburgh's Last Saturday celebrations on August 25, from 10 pm to 2 am at The Wherehouse on Liberty Street in Newburgh.

How You Can Donate & Get Involved

The Newburgh LGBTQ+ Center set a fundraising goal in June 2018, and made it to $3,760.77! This funding will go towards programs (materials, advertising, etc…), stipends for organizers and further leadership development through trainings, retreats and workshops.

If you’d like to contribute to the center's current fundraising goals, you can donate at https://www.gofundme.com/5mprazs to continue to grow and support this valuable local resource in its mission to serve the needs of the community.

Stay tuned for more fabulous Move It Baby, Move It dance parties in the future, and if you have any great ideas for fundraising recipients, you can send them along to phoebe@alittlebeaconblog.com.

New Corn Bread Contest at the Corn Festival 2018

CORN FESTIVAL
When: Sunday, August 12, 2018
Time: Noon to 5 pm
Price: Free
Ages: Family-friendly

This year, enjoy a new flavor at the Beacon Sloop Club's Corn Festival, down at the Pete and Toshi Seeger Park (Riverfront Park) in Beacon, NY, on Sunday, August 12, 2018 from noon to 5 pm. The event is rain or shine, so pack a poncho just in case!

How To Enter the Corn Bread Contest

1.  Anyone can enter. The only rule is that the corn bread must be made from scratch.
2. Prize for first place is $25.
3. To enter, bring your corn bread to the Contest Tent before 2 pm. Bring your corn bread on a dish or plate, along with a card with your name, phone number, and recipe. Besides the name of your recipe, please include the ingredients used. Attach the card to the plate. If you would like your plate returned, please note that on the card.
4. The judging will start about 2:15 pm and consider such aspects as taste, appearance, and texture.
5. Winners will be announced from the tent at 3 pm.

About the Corn Festival

Fresh picked, ready‐to‐eat, local‐grown sweet corn on the cob is the feature of this festival down at Riverfront Park, now known as the Pete and Toshi Seeger Park for their decades of work to improve and protect the Hudson River. Enjoy cold drinks and other summer treats. Environmental displays will be set up, and fun activities for all ages will be available.

The sloop Woody Guthrie will give free public sails (weather permitting), and there will be lots of craft and food vendors. Two solar music stages will feature great sounds. Free admission.

Music on the Main Stage:

• April Mae and the June Bugs
• Caroline Doctorow
• Cosby Gibson
• Hank Woji
• Spook Handy
• The Offshoots
• The Roadhouse Roosters.

Music on the Children's Stage:

• Bindlestick Bill
• Lydia Adams Davis
• Miss Vickie
• Solar Sound
• The Hudson Valley Troubadors
• The Quahog Quire

Vendor Opportunities

Those interested in vending can email rmthomas99@yahoo.com or call (845) 463-4660. For more information, check out the Beacon Sloop Club's website - www.beaconsloopclub.org.