Dr. Michael Aaron Spitzer, 83, died on July 11, 2025, in Mooresville, North Carolina. Born on June 23, 1942, Dr. Spitzer graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School and continued his education at the City College of New York, Wagner College, and NYU College of Dentistry. He served in the U.S. Navy and Navy Reserves beginning in 1968, including aboard the L.Y. Spear in Norfolk, Virginia. In 1974, he opened his dental practice in Rhinebeck, where he served generations of patients with compassion and skill until his retirement in 2018. Mike was a member of the 9th District Dental Society and...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/dr-michael-aaron-spitzer-dentist-mason-and-rotarian-dies-at-83/

Alexis A. Hermance, 69, died on July 27, 2025, after battling illness following a double lung transplant. She was born on October 5, 1955, in Rhinebeck. Alexis married Michael Hermance in 1984 at the Red Hook United Methodist Church. Alexis began working at a young age and is remembered for her work ethic and dedication. She worked at a pie factory and later as a certified nursing assistant. She operated her own cleaning business and then worked for an art dealer in Milan, NY, until her retirement.  After retiring, she and Michael lived in North Carolina, Hyde Park, and Lake...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/alexis-a-hermance-cna-and-art-gallery-assistant-dies-at-69/

When immigration agents grabbed Gerson Turcios outside his Rhinebeck home earlier this month, the 23-year-old Honduran immigrant was at last seeing the benefits of years of hard work.  His landscaping client base was growing. He had recently invested money in new equipment and hired his first employee. It had been a long journey, but he was steadily achieving his dreams. “The second he was stable and on his feet—ready to prosper—this happens,” said Brendan Dougherty, a close friend. Turcios had arrived in Rhinebeck just before he turned 18—a quiet teenager from Honduras with no money and limited English. His biggest...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/dreaming-big-in-a-new-land-how-gerson-turcios-built-a-landscapers-life-in-rhinebeck-from-scratch/

It was supposed to be an easy train trip south to Manhattan from Rhinecliff for Linda Hemphill, a 71-year-old retiree who had just visited her sister in Elizaville and her 97-year-old mother at Brookmeade. With a broken toe and three bags in tow, Hemphill opted Tuesday afternoon for the elevator at the Amtrak Rhinecliff station rather than face the 41 steps to the platform. What followed was 45 sweltering minutes trapped alone in a filthy, malfunctioning elevator — with no alarm intercom, no cameras, and no air circulation on a 97-degree afternoon. “It was something,” Hemphill said Wednesday, safe in...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/sweating-and-stuck-amtrak-passenger-keeps-her-wits-for-nearly-an-hour-in-a-broken-rhinecliff-elevator/

On Friday, July 18, agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Gerson Turcio, a beloved Rhinebeck landscaper and Rhinebeck High School graduate. The Daily Catch explains it for you and takes you inside the courtroom where Turcio's case was first heard last week. The transcript is here. Listeners can find the podcast here and on all major podcasting platforms. The Catch-Up is produced in partnership with Radio Free Rhinecliff. Apple Spotify You Tube 

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/the-catch-up-episode-16-ice-makes-an-arrest-in-rhinebeck-and-a-community-reacts/

The Town of Red Hook is seeking a 0,000 state grant to help build a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Saw Kill tributary, a long-planned project that would connect the Cookingham Farm trails to Recreation Park East and complete a vital link in the town’s off-road trail network. The Town Board voted Tuesday to authorize submission of the grant application to the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. If awarded, the funds would support construction of the bridge and accompanying boardwalk as part of the “Saw Kill trail link,” an effort to connect the town’s...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/red-hook-applies-for-30000-grant-to-connect-new-cookingham-trails-via-pedestrian-bridge-to-the-rec-park/

The Town of Red Hook is taking a major step toward extending sewer infrastructure along Route 9 south of the Village, submitting a [post_excerpt].25-million grant application to help finance a new wastewater system for its Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND) district. But even if the grant comes through, the Town will need to float a bond, to be repaid over a 30-year term by the users of the new Sewer District No. 1. Unless other grants are found, the bond would fund just under million of the .6 million project. Town Supervisor Robert McKeon said the Town may tap the...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/red-hook-town-applies-for-1-25-million-grant-to-launch-long-awaited-sewer-expansion-along-south-broadway/

The Village of Red Hook is moving forward with the next phase of its long-term effort to replace backyard septic systems, improve water quality, and expand its sewer, applying for million in state funding to add sewer service to 170 additional properties, including the planned RUPCO affordable housing project due north at Cookingham East. The proposed project, considered Phase 2 of the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and sewer system upgrade, is part of a multi-year plan to protect drinking water supplies and support future housing and business growth in the village, Mayor Karen Smythe told The Daily Catch. It...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/despite-objections-by-environmental-advocates-red-hook-seeks-10-million-grant-for-sewer-and-wastewater-plant-expansion/

The Red Hook Public Library this week unveiled its new five-year strategic plan that aims to reimagine the role of the library as a hub for connection, literacy, and sustainability.  The plan, developed through community surveys and focus groups, outlines new programs and services designed to meet the evolving needs of residents. It focuses on four priorities: culture, community, early literacy, and sustainability. Library Board Chair Anna Greig, an attorney trained at Columbia Law School, said the library has already begun work on some of the action steps in the plan, like hosting a staff training in "Spanish for Librarians,"...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/red-hook-library-lays-down-new-five-year-plan-with-more-outreach-to-vulnerable-communities/

After five months of debate, the Rhinebeck Town Board indicated Monday they will move ahead with a proposed parking plan for Rhinecliff that will allow parking regulations in the hamlet, add more than three dozen parking spaces in the Town lot and on public streets, and bar parking on several streets. The proposed parking plan, on which the Board has not yet taken a formal vote, would carve out 22 parking spaces on public streets and 16 spaces in the Town lot at Shatzell and Charles streets. Three-hour parking limits would apply on Shatzell Avenue and two sections of Kelly...

https://www.thedailycatch.org/articles/rhinebeck-town-board-cites-safety-liability-risks-as-it-advances-new-rhinecliff-parking-regulations/