Bard President Leon Botstein on Thursday lamented the apathetic response of the American people to the Trump administration's attacks on higher education. (Photo by Athan Yanos) Bard College President Leon Botstein has stepped onto the national stage in recent months -- speaking, writing and offering interviews about the harmful impact of the Trump administration's policies on higher education in such national outlets as The New York Times, Bloomberg’s Wall Street Week, and the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.  But yesterday, he spoke to about 100 members of the local community for 90 minutes at Bard's Olin Hall, in an event organized by...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/at-bard-talk-botstein-laments-apathetic-public-response-to-trump-attacks-on-higher-education/

A new educational program designed to teach young children about agriculture and farming is hoping to open next spring at Greig Farm in Red Hook. But the project faces a challenge with the Town zoning code. On Monday, educators Anusheh Hashim Byrne and Samantha Nadal appeared before the Town of Red Hook Planning Board seeking approval to launch their agricultural education program, “the nest @ Greig Farm.” The program, they said, is designed to help young children in Red Hook build a connection to the land and to local food sources.  “There are elements of the farm life that we...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/new-early-childhood-agricultural-program-proposed-at-greig-farm-but-it-faces-a-zoning-snag/

Four young volunteers with a variety of intellectual, physical, and developmental disabilities stand in pairs on either side of a horse named Blossom, gently petting its neck. The four-year-old brown and white pony, traumatized from a life of abuse and neglect, was rescued from a kill shelter 18 months ago. The horse’s new owner, Kelsey Merrow, smiles widely as Blossom, eyes drooping, leans into the volunteers’ arms.   “She’s starved for affection,” Merrow explains to the volunteers. “I’m very impressed. You would never know she has the past that she does. ”  Blossom and the volunteers are part of Pony Up...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/at-tivolis-pony-up-rescue-kelsey-merrow-rescues-horses-connecting-disabled-people-who-can-love-them/

A seasonal community sauna business is coming to Upper Red Hook, the brainchild of the entrepreneur and environmentalist who launched The O Zone several years ago. Sauna on Koi Pond at Greig Farm received approval Monday evening from the Red Hook Planning Board to open in the Town’s Agricultural Business District.   The sauna will operate three days a week from November through March at a maximum capacity of six people at a time, with bookings open in three 90-minute sessions for per person. Upon request, private groups may also book the entire space. “[Using saunas] is a cultural practice...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/hot-news-red-hooks-first-outdoor-community-sauna-wins-planning-board-approval/

The Blériot XI, an original vintage plane dating to 1909, is airborne anew at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome. (Photo by David Trost) When Louis Charles Joseph Blériot guided his fragile monoplane across the English Channel on July 25, 1909, he made history. The 22-mile journey, completed in just 36 minutes, captured the world’s imagination and proved that heavier-than-air machines could connect nations. Last Saturday, more than a century later, at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome airshow, one of those rare early Blériot XI monoplanes flew again. In July 1909, Louis Blériot flew the Blériot XI from Calais to Dover, becoming the...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/the-oldest-aircraft-in-the-americas-bleriot-xi-soars-again-at-old-rhinebeck-aerodrome/

Police found this CO₂-powered tactical pistol following a dispute Tuesday night on Tobacco Lane and seek the public's help to identify men involved. (Photo by Red Hook Police) Red Hook Police are asking the public's help in identifying two men involved in an altercation Tuesday evening on Tobacco Lane. Following the dispute, a black revolver air pistol was recovered from the scene. Red Hook Police report that the men fled on foot at about 9:25 p.m. Red Hook Police, along with New York State Police, canvassed the area but were unable to locate anyone involved. The gun was determined to...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/after-gun-is-found-red-hook-police-seek-publics-help-on-tuesday-dispute/

Joshua Rubin has added to an Emmy-award-winning career writing video games a new career as a comic book author. (Photo courtesy Joshua Rubin) Joshua Rubin, 53, spent decades at the top of the video game world, writing for blockbuster action-adventure video game franchises like Assassin’s Creed II, Destiny, and The Walking Dead. In 2022, he won an Interactive Emmy for writing and producing Netflix’s You vs. Wild: Out Cold. But somewhere amid the deadlines and franchise demands, Rubin felt the creative spark dimming. He had just finished the biggest job of his career. He was a narrative director of a...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/after-gaming-blockbusters-emmy-winning-writer-launches-red-hook-sci-fi-comic-studio/

James V. Fulmer Jr., "Jim", 81, died on Oct. 6, 2025, at Northern Dutchess Hospital, due to a COVID-19 infection complicated by underlying health conditions.   Jim was born on Aug. 9, 1944, in Paterson, NJ. He moved to the Children’s Home of Poughkeepsie at age 6. He attended F.D. Roosevelt High School in Hyde Park, where he was a standout athlete, playing several years of varsity football and basketball. After graduation, he raced motorcycles, sponsored by Ed’s Service, at tracks such as Laconia and Syracuse. After receiving his associate’s degree from Dutchess Community College, Jim joined the US Navy...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/james-fulmer-jr-navy-vet-and-ny-state-trooper-dies-at-81/

A locked and rusted chain in front of what was once an active playground for young children signals the problem. “CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE,” a sign from the Village of Rhinebeck declares. Behind the fence sit two old tractor tires, two antiquated pieces of play equipment, and two benches, silent reminders of a happier time. This is the kiddie play section of the Lion’s Club Mini Park at the corner of North Park Road and South Parsonage Street. Once used seven days a week, it has a rich history of children’s play and volunteer stewardship. But today, more than two...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/playground-on-pause-as-rhinebeck-village-grapples-with-220k-drainage-fix-future-of-kiddie-section-of-mini-park-remains-unclear/

Editor's Note: In his latest update, our Ukraine correspondent, Pavel Kuljuk, again talks of plans to move to Western Ukraine to find work in a more peaceful home than Kramatorsk. He talks also of his small dacha in Malotaranivka, vulnerable as the Russian army approaches. Pavel Kuljuk again contemplates a move West as the Russian army bears down near his dacha. (photo courtesy Pavel Kuljuk) The final stage of our dramatic life in Kramatorsk has begun. For the first time in the war, the Russian army has come so close to us that I'm not sure I'll be able to...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/as-russians-bear-down-on-kramatorsk-pavel-again-contemplates-a-move-to-western-ukraine/