Radio Chatskill

Legendary singer-songwriter Terre Roche—of the iconic trio The Roches—is coming to The Muse in Rosendale for a special anniversary concert with special guests Lisa and Lori Brigantino. 

Jason Dole spoke with Terre about her new album, revisiting her early work with sister Maggie, and what audiences can expect from this one-of-a-kind musical celebration.

Radio Catskill volunteer David Dann is an artist, writer, and designer whose work defies easy categorization—just like his newest exhibit, The Clock, on view at the Narrowsburg Union as part of this year's Deep Water Literary Festival.

A multimedia installation that explores time, transformation, and human reckoning, The Clock merges sculpture, storytelling, and symbolism in a deeply personal and universal meditation on the passage of time. 

Culture Reporter Valerie Mansi spoke with David Dann about the inspiration behind the piece and his unconventional artistic journey.

Hundreds of people gathered in the parking lot by the Read it Again bookstore in Monticello on June 14 as part of nationwide demonstrations called the ‘No Kings’ protests. The Sullivan County rally was part of more than 2,000 events across the country pushing back on what organizers describe as the Trump administration’s “escalating abuses of power.”

Radio Catskill's Kimberly Izar was at the local No Kings protest in Monticello and has this report.

On Saturday, June 21st, the hamlet of Smallwood, NY, will host Smallwood Porchfest 2025, a day-long celebration of community and Catskills musical heritage. Set around the shores of Mountain Lake, the event transforms porches, lawns, and driveways into intimate stages featuring more than 10 local musicians.

Myrna Marcarian from the Smallwood Civic Association and musician Cliff Westfall spoke about the walkable event, that’s as much about place and people as it is about performance. 

High-speed internet may be coming to your home or small business soon if you live in Sullivan County.

On Thursday, Sullivan County kicked off a $30 million broadband project under New York State’s ConnectALL program to bring high-speed internet to homes and businesses. For decades, the county's mountainous terrain in the Catskills has hindered broadband expansion.

Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar was at the kickoff in Bethel, New York and brings us this report.

Sullivan County has shown some progress in the fight against the opioid epidemic. Overdose death rates have shown a gradual decline in recent years, but health officials and local residents say now is not the time to dial back.

Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar attended Sullivan County’s Substance Use Task Force meeting at the Hurleyville Performing Arts Centre. The task force is a county-led effort to coordinate substance use prevention and treatment strategies. She brings us this report.

A listener’s note that this story discusses addiction and substance abuse.

As federal immigration enforcement actions escalate across the country, rural communities in the Catskills and Northeast Pennsylvania are feeling the ripple effects—prompting fear among immigrant families, disruption to daily life, and calls for organized resistance.

Juana Cortes-De Torres, Immigration Legal Rights Project Director at Rural & Migrant Ministry, says there's a growing anxiety felt by mixed-status families and an urgent need for legal education and community preparedness.

“We’re seeing national outrage, and that outrage stems from the randomness of the administration’s current immigration enforcement policies,” Cortes-De Torres said. “Our work goes into training mode when that happens.”

That training takes the form of “Know Your Rights” presentations in Spanish and other immigrant languages, covering everything from what to do when ICE agents come to your door, to understanding constitutional protections under the Fourth and Fifth Amendments.

Fear at Home, Disruption at School

For many families, the fear is deeply personal. With many households including both undocumented adults and U.S.-born children, the stakes are high.

“They’re nervous, they’re worried,” Cortes-De Torres said. “Kids go to school wondering if their parents will still be there when they come home.”

That fear, she explained, has real consequences—not just emotionally, but educationally and economically. “It’s a tremendous impact on children’s mental health. And it creates a chilling effect. People are afraid to go shopping. They’re afraid to go to the laundromat. They’re afraid to live.”

Local school districts are also taking notice. Some have issued policies guiding educators on how to respond if immigration enforcement agents enter school grounds—reaffirming schools as safe spaces for students.

Local Incidents, National Patterns

Recent ICE raids in the region have heightened the sense of urgency. Just two weeks ago, three individuals were detained at a pizzeria in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, while 20 to 30 community members gathered outside to document and peacefully protest.

Such incidents, Cortes-De Torres said, point to inconsistencies in federal enforcement. “We were told they’re targeting people with criminal records. But that’s not what we’re seeing. People being picked up have remedies in immigration court, but ICE takes them anyway.”

She emphasized the importance of recording these incidents, calling it both an act of witness and a potential legal tool. “If you see a raid, record it. It’s evidence. It’s history.”

Community Response and Legal Tools

Rural & Migrant Ministry is now preparing to launch a new toolkit, dubbed the “Menu of Hope,” designed to give allies and immigrant families step-by-step guidance on how to prepare for possible enforcement action—from gathering documentation to establishing child custody plans using official state forms like New York’s OCFS-4909.

Communities are also encouraged to develop Rapid Response Teams—local groups trained to respond to raids, support families, and coordinate with legal aid organizations. For those without a local team, groups like the New York Immigration Coalition and Immigrant ARC can provide assistance.

Cortes-De Torres also highlighted state-level efforts, including the “New York for All Act,” which would prohibit local law enforcement from sharing information with federal immigration authorities unless legally required.

“We’re on the Side of Justice”

After more than three decades of legal advocacy, Cortes-De Torres remains undeterred by what she sees as arbitrary and harmful policies.

“I’ve helped poor people my whole career—immigrant or not—and what keeps me going is that I believe in the law,” she said. “History shows us what a coalition of people who believe in justice can do. I’m never going to lose that hope.”

For families and allies alike, her advice is clear: be informed, be organized, and don’t lose faith.

“Preparation is key. We must protect each other. Their rights are our rights.”

More information at ruralmigrantministry.org.

This week, our resident science guy Joe Johnson dives into a trio of surprising and thought-provoking discoveries—from an ancient agricultural marvel buried beneath Michigan forests to the latest in space exploration, and even the mystery behind wrinkly fingers after a swim. 

LiDAR Uncovers Massive Indigenous Agricultural Site in Michigan

A new study published in the Journal of Science on June 5 has dramatically altered what researchers thought they knew about Indigenous farming in the Upper Midwest. Using advanced LiDAR technology, scientists mapped the terrain of the “60 Islands” area in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula—a site long known to be inhabited by the ancestors of the Menominee Nation.

What the team uncovered was astonishing: an extensive network of raised garden beds spanning 95 hectares—the equivalent of roughly 230 acres. The discovery points to a sophisticated and large-scale farming system that operated between 1000 and 1600 AD.

“These aren’t just remnants of subsistence gardening,” Johnson said. “This was a sustained agricultural operation.”

Researchers confirmed that the gardens were used to cultivate maize, beans, and squash—known as the “Three Sisters” in Indigenous agricultural tradition—as well as melons and sunflowers. Evidence shows that the Menominee enriched their soils with compost and wetland materials, demonstrating advanced environmental management techniques.

The study challenges long-held misconceptions that Indigenous people in this region were primarily hunter-gatherers. It also raises questions about the social organization and trade networks that may have supported such a large farming endeavor.

Notably, the village site where the farmers lived has yet to be discovered.

NASA’s Dragonfly Mission Takes Flight Toward Titan

In space exploration news, NASA’s upcoming Dragonfly mission has cleared a key development hurdle. The nuclear-powered rotorcraft is designed to fly across Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, and explore its surface and atmosphere.

Titan stands out among celestial bodies. It's about half the diameter of Earth but has just one-seventh of Earth’s gravity and a dense atmosphere, composed largely of nitrogen and methane. Surface temperatures are so cold that methane exists in solid, liquid, and gas forms—creating a weather cycle not unlike Earth’s water cycle, but with natural gas.

“Dragonfly will explore a world where rivers, lakes, and even rain are made of methane,” Johnson said. “It’s unlike anything we’ve seen before.”

The mission builds on data gathered by the Cassini-Huygens probe in 2005, which offered the first images of Titan’s surface and revealed strong evidence of subsurface oceans—potentially composed of water.

Because Titan may resemble early Earth, scientists are hopeful that the mission could offer insights into the chemical building blocks of life.

“There’s even speculation that hydrothermal activity could support microbial life,” Johnson noted. “If there’s heat, water, and the right chemistry—it’s not out of the question.”

Why Our Fingers Wrinkle in Water: A New Look at an Old Mystery

A study published in the Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials sheds light on a phenomenon familiar to anyone who’s taken a long bath: pruney fingers. But contrary to popular belief, the wrinkling isn’t caused by skin swelling—it’s the result of vasoconstriction, or the narrowing of blood vessels.

Known formally as Water-Induced Finger Wrinkling (WIFW), the phenomenon occurs when water alters the salt balance in the skin’s outer layers, signaling the brain to constrict blood vessels. This pulls the skin inward, forming wrinkles—particularly on fingertips and toes.

“What’s fascinating,” Johnson said, “is that this response is neurologically controlled. People with damage to the median nerve don’t wrinkle in water.”

The wrinkles, it turns out, are not random. In tests where subjects submerged their hands in warm water on consecutive days, the same wrinkling pattern appeared each time—suggesting consistent vascular structures beneath the skin.

Why do we wrinkle at all? Evolution may have the answer. The wrinkles improve grip in wet conditions, likely helping our ancestors—and us—better grasp slippery surfaces.

As food insecurity increases across the Hudson Valley, federal food assistance programs that serve as a lifeline for families are being slashed—leaving local food banks scrambling to fill the widening gap.

According to new data from Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap report, more than 355,000 people in the region lack consistent access to nutritious food. In Sullivan County, the crisis is especially dire: 14% of residents—and one in five children—are food insecure, the highest rate in the Hudson Valley.

“It’s a crisis, and the numbers are going in the wrong direction,” said Tom Nardacci, CEO of the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York, in a live interview. “Post-COVID, we thought the need would go down. It hasn’t. In fact, it’s ticking back up.”

The rise in need comes just as the federal government implements significant cuts to cornerstone nutrition programs, including the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Those reductions are already being felt in real terms.

“Our food bank alone is losing 200 tractor trailers of food—about 7 million pounds, or 8 million meals,” said Nardacci. “We’ve already had 27 truckloads canceled this year. That means fewer fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy, and proteins available for local families.”

What’s Driving the Crisis?

Food insecurity is often misunderstood, Nardacci explained. It doesn’t necessarily mean someone goes without food entirely—it means they don’t have reliable access to enough healthy, affordable food on a regular basis.

“These are mostly working people—single moms, older adults, folks juggling two jobs,” he said. “They’re coming to food pantries once or twice a month to fill in the gaps.”

In Sullivan County, the factors behind the high rate of food insecurity include persistent poverty, high unemployment, and geographic “food deserts” where affordable groceries are hard to come by. Inflation and the rising cost of housing and healthcare have only worsened the burden.

Cuts with Real Consequences

TEFAP, a USDA program, supplies food banks with large-scale shipments of produce, meat, and dairy sourced from U.S. farms and producers. During the pandemic, funding was boosted to meet skyrocketing need. Now, much of that has been clawed back.

“We used to get 400 truckloads of USDA food. Now, we’re getting half that,” Nardacci said. “That’s food that was going to every county in our region.”

SNAP, meanwhile, is still on the chopping block. If proposed federal budget cuts go through, Nardacci says the impact would be devastating.

“SNAP is proven to work. It keeps people out of food pantries. Cutting it would push even more people to rely on us—and we simply can’t meet that level of demand.”

Straining to Fill the Gap

To adapt, the Regional Food Bank has invested in new infrastructure, including a recently opened distribution center in Orange County, and is ramping up partnerships with local farms and grocery stores. They're rescuing food that might otherwise go to waste and expanding school-based pantry programs and senior deliveries.

Still, the math doesn’t add up.

“These efforts might help us make up 2 million pounds of food,” Nardacci said. “But we’re losing 7 million. We can’t close that gap without policy change.”

The food bank serves over 400 partner agencies across the region—most of them small, volunteer-run pantries and soup kitchens. Many are already stretched thin and bracing for shortages.

“There’s a lot of fear and anxiety,” said Nardacci. “These agencies are on the front lines, and they’re asking, ‘What are we going to do if more cuts come?’”

How You Can Help

Nardacci urged residents to get informed and get involved.

“Support your local pantry. Make a donation, drop off food, or volunteer your time. And reach out to your representatives in Washington. Let them know these programs matter.”

For anyone silently struggling with hunger, his message was simple: “You’re not alone, and we’re here to help. The system is challenged, but it’s not going away.”

More information can be found at regionalfoodbank.net.

Congressman Rob Bresnahan, six months into his first term representing Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District, has carved out a reputation as a business-first lawmaker—an approach that’s winning some local support while drawing sharp criticism from environmental groups and voters concerned about healthcare and party-line voting.

In a recent interview with The River Reporter's Liam Mayo described Bresnahan’s tenure so far as defined by “a strong business through line,” noting the congressman’s deep roots in private industry as the former head of a third-generation electrical contracting company. That business-minded perspective has informed much of his legislative agenda, including controversial support for expanding fracking in the Northern Pennsylvania (NIPA) region.

Fracking Push Draws Ire from Environmentalists

One of Bresnahan’s most polarizing moves came during a visit with Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, where the congressman framed fracking as a critical opportunity for economic development in the region. He specifically touted its potential to power energy-hungry industries like AI server centers and to spur growth more broadly in the local economy.

Environmental groups, however, have forcefully pushed back, echoing national criticisms that new fossil fuel development is unnecessary and environmentally hazardous. Critics argue that Bresnahan’s justification for fracking places business interests over environmental stewardship in a region where natural resource preservation has long been a key issue.

Storm Recovery Advocacy Amid Federal Uncertainty

Bresnahan has also made headlines for his hands-on response to severe weather events in places like Honesdale and Scranton. He was on the ground just days after stormwater caused serious damage in Honesdale, and he has actively advocated for federal funding to aid in recovery.

Of particular note was his effort to protect a FEMA grant program from proposed Trump-era budget cuts. Mayo reports that Scranton had been awaiting $2.5 million from the program, and Bresnahan authored letters and introduced legislation aimed at safeguarding those funds. While it remains unclear how effective these efforts have been in securing results, Bresnahan’s early responsiveness has been visible and vocal, according to Mayo.

Healthcare Stance Sparks Voter Backlash

Despite that local advocacy, Mayo says Bresnahan is facing criticism from constituents over his voting record on healthcare. He initially signaled support for Medicaid but later voted for a sweeping spending bill—referred to by some as the “big beautiful bill”—that included cuts to the program. Letters to the editor in The River Reporter have called him out for what many see as a betrayal of earlier promises.

In a statement defending his vote, Bresnahan claimed the changes would “secure Medicaid for those who truly need it” by tightening eligibility and requiring work for able-bodied recipients. But analysis from the Congressional Budget Office, cited by New York Focus, suggests the changes could result in 8.6 million Americans losing coverage by 2034.

Veterans Legislation Sees Bipartisan Progress

Mayo says Bresnahan’s most significant legislative success to date has been a bill aimed at streamlining the Veterans Affairs claims process. The bill passed the House and is now in the Senate. It would require the VA to contract with a federally funded research group to recommend simplified and more accessible forms for veterans and their families—potentially addressing a long-standing barrier to benefits access.

A Political Vacuum and a 2026 Battleground

The political landscape in PA-8 was shaken last week by the announcement from former Congressman Matt Cartwright that he will not seek re-election in 2026. Cartwright cited the stress of the job and a desire to make space for new voices as key reasons for his decision.

With Bresnahan having narrowly won the district in 2024—garnering just 50.94% of the vote—Mayo says Democrats may view the district as a key battleground in their efforts to retake the House. Cartwright described a “deep bench” of Democratic talent in Northeastern Pennsylvania, signaling a competitive primary and general election ahead.

Looking toward 2026, Mayo says the defining issue may be who controls the narrative around Bresnahan’s record: whether voters see him as a pro-business pragmatist fighting for local jobs, or as a party-line politician undermining environmental protections and public healthcare.