Beaconites!

First in a series. George Mansfield is the owner of Dogwood and a longtime council member. He talks about the crisis engulfing the city and the world, with focus on the impacts for business (his and others) and city government. 

Beacon Endurance was created in 2013 as a resource to organize training and racing for athletes in the lower Hudson Valley. Since then it has expanded into a supportive and inclusive group of 40 active members who support each other through health and fitness goals.  

Audra Kizina and Matt Harle, the electronic/experimental music duo known as AudraSonic, perform in studio and discuss their collaboration. Catch them live at Dogwood on Sunday, March 15.  

Stephen Clair is an accomplished singer/songwriter and the proprietor of Beacon Music Factory. In this episode he talks about his creative process, Beacon's expanding music scene and the evolution of his music school on Route 52. 

Donna Haynes is a longtime resident who, along with her husband Jeff, has raised three kids in Beacon. She works for Metro North in a tourism role and talks in this episode about the steady stream of day trippers and weekenders who keep the Beacon and Hudson Valley economies humming, among other topics.

Kelly Ellenwood is a driving force behind the Free Loop bus, Wee Play tot park and other Beacon initiatives. We talk about her journey from Lincoln, Nebraska to the Hudson Valley, her performing career and her steady work on behalf of Beacon’s local economy and the arts.

Ben Larson-Wolbrink was called to be Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church exactly 10 years ago, through 20 marriages, 31 baptisms, 40 deaths and 50 new members. In this interview, he describes his formative years, the life of his congregation and Beacon's interfaith initiatives. 

Meredith Heuer is a photographer and two-term member of the Beacon Board of Education. In this episode she talks about her own school days growing up in Detroit, raising two boys in Beacon and key issues facing the city's schools.

Daria Grace plays in a half dozen bands locally and in NYC. In this episode, recorded on her birthday, she talks about Beacon's expanding music scene and performs two songs on her baritone uke: “Night Owl,” popularized in the early '30s by Cliff Edwards (aka “Ukelele Ike”) and “Under the Milky Way” by Aussie rockers The Church.

Jean-Marc Superville Sovak creates art that speaks to the industrial legacy and artistic history of the Hudson Valley. Pieces from his series "a-Historical Landscapes" have been acquired by the Dorsky Museum at SUNY New Paltz and will appear in an exhibit opening on February 8.