AMENIA — A new tradition began this year, as the town of Amenia invited residents from around the region to enjoy a Memorial Day parade a half-hour before the Fountain Square ceremony, which is held each year in honor of those veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country.Councilwoman Vicki Doyle said the parade added a lot to the morning of Monday, May 30, when much of the town turned out for the Memorial Day events.“The parade is a nice new twist and a good tradition to focus on with the veterans as they march up the street with the fire company,” she said. “Everything looks so good and everyone worked so hard. It’s great to have a long-standing tradition continue, yet have a new twist symbolic of the town moving forward and growing.”The added recognition did not go unnoticed by those who attended the service, like veteran Howard Brusie Jr., a Millerton resident who was at the Amenia ceremony to watch his grandson march with the Cub Scouts.“I’m here because of the parade,” Brusie said, adding that his presence was as an “average individual” to honor fallen heroes. “There are no live heroes. To me, the word ‘hero’ is reserved for someone who has given it all.”Brusie added that Memorial Day is important to keep in the consciousness of today’s society, especially in such volatile times.“The day, to me, is to honor the fallen of all the wars and to keep in mind all of the active duty people who are keeping us free today,” he said.Town Supervisor Wayne Euvrard agreed, and reminded those present on Monday to never forget this nation’s, or the town of Amenia’s, fallen war veterans.“We cannot repay those who made the ultimate sacrifice, but we can remember them,” he said. “Today, on this most sacred day, we pause to reflect what has been given to us. Let us never forget.”VFW Post 5444 Cmdr. Rick Butler has conducted the ceremony at Fountain Square for many years; he did so again on Monday. He noted the turnout has remained strong over time, and that consistency means a lot to area veterans.“It means the community is honoring our fallen dead,” Butler said. “It’s nice to see young kids and families doing this today. It’s nice to see the nation come together as one.”
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Greg Fricke and James Boehmer, co-owners of Peggy Mercury in Kent, recently launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts.”
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Fricke and Boehmer are not there to stock their shelves with the same products customers find at standard makeup retailers. They’re there to help customers find what works for them. That usually means asking customers about themselves and learning about their beauty habits, skin, style and the way they like to present themselves. Fricke and Boehmer believe it’s their job to help customers bring out the qualities that suit them and determine what works best for their look.
So much of the Peggy Mercury world is about emboldening people to become more creative, and possibly bolder, versions of themselves. Some of this comes through the store’s creative collaborations with artists, designers and stylists.
It’s part of an ethos that encourages them and their friends to use the shop as a kind of laboratory, trying out new creative experiments without knowing how they might turn out. Whether in fashion, painting, fiber arts or photography, the projects almost always turn out marvelously.
A line of sterling silver charms they sell started as a small project by their friend Nolan Percival. In the beginning, the pieces were for close friends and loved ones. But Boehmer and Fricke encouraged Percival to get a little more serious about the project and create a whole line for the store. Today, it’s one of their top-selling collections.
Classic styles, bold colors, and creative concerts make up the “Imaginary Concerts” line at Peggy Mercury.Provided
“Imaginary Concerts” has the duo taking their own advice.
The project started as a way for Boehmer to connect with his mother, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Taking old concert shirts from his own collection, Boehmer and his mother began cutting out the graphics with the idea that they would make a quilt together. Unfortunately, she died before they could complete the project in 2025. The pieces, which were ready for production, were put on the back burner as Boehmer and Fricke dealt with their loss and the whirlwind of projects that never seemed to cease at Peggy Mercury.
But the harsh winter of 2026 presented an opportunity to take some time and focus on themselves. Part of that meant revisiting and redefining the concert T-shirt project. This time, instead of looking to the warmth and comfort of a quilt, they turned to another passion — fashion.
Taking a page from their own book, they wanted to create something that felt comfortable to them. They took two disparate loves — one rooted in simple preppy style, with clean lines and classic silhouettes, and the other in the nitty gritty worlds of punk rock and pop — and blended them together to create something entirely new. Pulling from the staples of vintage Brooks Brothers and Charvet collections, they applied the graphic elements with bold stitching reminiscent of punk jackets of the ‘70s and ‘80s, but with a much more sophisticated air.
But the remixing isn’t just the pairing of prep and punk. The pieces are not canon. They take liberties with the realities of concert tours, combining one band’s dates with another band’s logos, mixing them all up until the reality is lost and imagination is the only truth.
Shirts from Peggy Mercury’s first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts,” hang on display.Provided
Adding to the mix is an element of perpetual creativity. Art can be messy, both figuratively and literally, and many of Fricke and Boehmer’s artist friends carry evidence of their work on them at all times. As a nod to these tireless creatives, the duo added haphazard splashes of bright color, giving the line an even more distinctive feel.
For them, “Imaginary Concerts” passes the “Peggy Test.” The mythical Peggy Mercury is a fictional figurehead for the company, a character who thrives on creativity and change. The name, much like the clothing line, is a mixture of interests: Mercury is a planet, a deity and an elusive, transformative element, while Peggy is the wonderfully stylish and boundary-pushing Peggy Guggenheim.
Everything Fricke and Boehmer put in their store has to pass this test: Would Peggy Mercury approve? For their first collection, the answer is a resounding yes.
Peggy Mercury is at 9 Maple St., Unit 2, Kent.
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