Beaconites!

Sara MIlonovich had her professional debut at the age of 12. Along with her band Daisycutter, she's just released her seventh album, "Northeast." The songs are sad, yet instrumentally textured and uptempo "That's the bluegrass formula. You play horrifically sad stuff, but if you do it really fast nobody notices."

A gifted singer in church choirs, Sharlene Stout was recognized by Pete Seeger who recruited her to join his folk group. She toured with him for more than six years, from the age of 14 into her 20s. Later she formed the Southern Dutchess Coalition mass choir, an interfaith vocal group drawing from churches across the city. Sharlene shares memories of Beacon from the 1960s to the present.

This week on Beaconites, we hear from the two candidates running for Beacon city court judge in the upcoming primary: Tim Pagones, the three-term judge and lifelong Beaconite, and Greg Johnston, a public defender with 17 years' experience who has been endorsed by the Beacon Democrats. The primary takes place on Tuesday June 22. Vote!

Beacon's independent movie theater opened in 2019, but it's not only a theater. Mike and team have built a full-on community around the appreciation of movies. He talks about how the project took off and what his team has done to keep the business alive during Covid.

Edwin Torres is an accomplished poet who has published more than 15 poetry volumes. During the 1990s he was a member of the The Nuyorican Poets Café, a creative meeting place and cultural institution for the vibrant community of Puerto Rican artists living in New York City. This episode alternates between interview and readings.

Pastor Perez is a co-chair of Beacon's police reform committee. He talks about the work being done to transform how the force operates. His committee has recommended replacing some traditional enforcement tactics with alternatives like community outreach, mental health intervention and restorative justice.

Jennifer Clair is Beacon's foremost expert on food and cooking and the founder of Home Cooking New York, a culinary school founded in New York City. She is the author of a cookbook and has held many jobs in food-related media. In this episode: shopping for food in Beacon, why Jen would never open a restaurant, and how home cooks can overcome burnout.

Sember Weinman is the executive director of Common Ground Farm, which oversees the Beacon farmer's market. The market is moving to a much bigger location at the DMV parking lot, capable of supporting far more vendors. She talks about the change and the coming season at common ground farm.

Dogwood owner and city councilman George Mansfield was the last guest we had in studio before Covid shut everything down. He's reopening the bar this week and comes back on the podcast to talk about it. He also dishes on city business and what the summer might look like in Beacon.

After being shot, Richie left his career as a corrections officer to become a gardener. He worked his way up in the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation to become director of the Citywide Nursery. While there he cared for the Survivor Tree, a Callery pear that was crushed (but not killed) in the 9/11 terror attacks. In Beacon, he founded the Sargent-Downing Garden.