CORNWALL — It’s an extraordinary story. Completely without warning, on Saturday, July 17, CBS News correspondent Richard Schlesinger’s habitual brisk morning walk was brutally interrupted by cardiac arrest, dropping him to the pavement on Cogswell Road, not far from home, alone —a situation termed “unattended cardiac arrest” that has an extremely low survival rate.
What followed was a confluence of seemingly coincidental events, all contributing like clockwork to an outcome with a nicely recuperating patient and gratitude to an exceptional community.
An actual ‘perfect’ storm
A conversation with Cornwall’s EMS Captain Elizabeth Ridgway on Thursday, July 29, provided details of the heroic life-preserving efforts of volunteers and medical experts who responded to the scene. Although she was not on scene herself, she assembled the reports of those who were.
Schlesinger had been walking along Cogswell Road near the bridge, three-quarters of a mile from home. He was near the end of his walk that morning.
In what his doctors now assume was within a couple of minutes after his collapse, a motoring couple came along and rushed into action. Fortunately, the woman (who was found and identified on Monday, Aug. 2) knew CPR. Drawing upon her training, she began chest compressions while her husband dialed 911. That there was a cell phone signal at that spot was an added gift.
Within one minute, State Trooper First Class Roy Dungan from Troop B in North Canaan, who was near Cornwall Consolidated School at the time, responded and initiated rescue breathing using a bag valve mask.
Soon, more trained personnel were on the scene, including Schlesinger’s neighbor Ian Ridgway, who had completed Emergency Medical Technician training earlier in the year. He took over the chest compressions.
Joyce Hart, who is one of the select trained personnel who happened to have a defibrillator kit in her car, arrived on scene. By EMS policy in Cornwall, such kits are deployed in Volunteer Fire Department members’ vehicles as part of their jump kits, to provide quick response from scattered locations. Schlesinger’s doctors were amazed that someone happened to have the device handy.
Using Hart’s kit, the Cornwall Ambulance crew collaborated to shock Schlesinger’s heart twice, once as the ambulance arrived, and then again.
The ambulance had its LUCAS machine on board to begin mechanical compressions. It was an extremely hot day, Captain Ridgway recalled of the working conditions.
LUCAS is a state-of-the-art machine purchased just a year ago with fire department funds at an investment of about $15,000, Ridgway noted. Having a LUCAS is not mandated, so not every department has one, she added.
For the first time at that point, a pulse was detected, according to Ridgway.
The important task of notifying Schlesinger’s partner, John Guenther, who was en route to Cape Cod, fell to Dave Williamson, a neighbor and long-term member of the Volunteer Fire Department. Ridgway said that Williamson willingly volunteered for the task, bringing to it his friendship and compassionate nature.
Meanwhile, according to Ridgway, the Northern Dutchess paramedics arrived on scene. Although they are based in Millerton, they were returning from another assignment in Goshen, not far away. They were qualified to administer advanced life support, including connecting an IV line and dosing stabilizing medications.
A LifeStar helicopter had been summoned. The Cornwall Ambulance sped Schlesinger to Sharon to meet the helicopter at Sharon Hospital’s landing pad for the flight to Hartford Hospital for emergency treatment and, ultimately, quadruple-bypass surgery.
The extraordinary power of community
Having persuasively agitated for early release from Hartford Hospital, Schlesinger was up for a conversation on Monday, July 26, eager to express his appreciation to emergency personnel and the Cornwall community at large.
“The beauty of this experience is that these people gave up their time to give me back my life,” Schlesinger said. He admits he slept through the whole episode. He said that he knows that there were 12 people helping on the scene, all of whom he knew.
“The rescue people in Cornwall are more than amazing,” he said. “I wave to the Cornwall people every day, and all of a sudden, they are saving my life. It redefines neighborliness.”
“I love Cornwall,” he said, and he meant it.
Schlesinger noted with deep gratitude that this was happening on a Saturday morning when all of these people probably had other things to do on their day off, but still they kept on.
“I am not giving up,” one man was heard by the crowd to say as he continued his compressions. No one can identify that person, but Ridgway said it defined the intensity of the effort.
“They refused to give up,” Schlesinger said, returning to that thought throughout the conversation. “They worked on me.” And they had a LUCAS machine, he marveled.
Seeking
the Samaritans
One mystery persisted until this week for Schlesinger: He did not know the identity of the Cogswell Road motorists who came along first.
And then on Monday, August 2, he spoke with the woman who saved his life by performing CPR on him. He had asked the State Police for her identity; the trooper phoned her to get her permission, which she gave.
Her name is Elizabeth Jakobsen and her husband is Siguard Knippenberg. They were visiting Kent Falls from Maryland and had read that Cornwall has a covered bridge, so they drove up Route 7 to see it. A child in the car with them wanted to go swimming. They determined that there is a town beach in Cornwall; Google directed them to take Cogswell Road to the beach.
Although Jakobsen had been trained in CPR, she had never used it. This was her first time using CPR for real.
Schlesinger said that what strikes him is the randomness of the most direct route to the Cornwall town beach, and all of this led to saving his life.
“These people are heroes,” he said.
With the episode behind him, Schlesinger said that he is pleased to be at home, propped up on pillows. He said it still hurts to laugh, so all jokes about his situation will need to wait.
The doctors in Hartford told him to expect to feel like he had been hit by a truck, twice. He said that he now feels as if he has been run over by a truck — but only once.
Schlesinger’s current regimen calls for a required walk outdoors three times a day. During such walks, neighbors might come out to applaud — and with good reason.
“The community saved him and the community has continued to support us, and that’s enabled us to get through this,” Guenther added. “We are filled with enormous gratitude.”
There is more positive reaction to the incident. Locally offered CPR classes are attracting unprecedented interest.
Ridgway said the currently scheduled sessions are filled to capacity. Training is scheduled for Aug. 5 and 12 and a third date is being determined.
For information or to register for future CPR training sessions, email Ridgway at emscaptaincornwall@gmail.com.
“We prepare for the worst but hope for the best,” Ridgway said, crediting poet Maya Angelou for the EMS motto. In this case, the worst happened and so did the best. “We are so pleased that our hundreds of hours of training paid off in such an important way.”
SALISBURY — Joseph Robert Meehan the 2nd,photographer, college professor and nearly 50 year resident of Salisbury, passed away peacefully at Noble Horizon on June 17, 2025. He was 83.
He was the son of Joseph Meehan the 1st and his mother, Anna Burawa of Levittown, New York, and sister Joanne, of Montgomery, New York.
He is predeceased by his wife, Elsie Lynn Meehan who passed away in November of 2023.
He leaves behind a son, Joseph Cortese, of Upton Massachusetts, his wife Mary and grandchildren, Michaela (Cortese)Donabedian, her husband Sevag and his great grandson, Ari, of Hopkinton, Massachusetts.
His grandson, Joseph Cortese, of Barrington, Rhode Island, and his granddaughter, Jaclyn Cortese of Tamworth, New Hampshire.
He also leaves behind his daughter, Kathleen Cortese Zito and husband Dominic, their three children, Michael, Alessandra, and Mathew Zito of Broomall, Pennsylvania.
After teachingpsychology at Dutchess Community College in Poughkeepsie, starting in 1968, his40-year career in photography started in the mid to late 70’s and has included assignment work for a wide variety of commercial and editorial publications. Over a thousand of his photographs have appeared in newspapers, books, magazines and on web sites for clients such as Nikon, and Hasselblad cameras, SanDisk memory cards, Tiffen Filters, Fujifilm, Eastman Kodak, the U.S. Army, National Geographic, the Smithsonian Museum and the U.S. Department of the Interior.
His work ranged from the beauty of the Salisbury areato an expedition photographer for arctic animal studies in the high Canadian Arctic, photographing Inuit hunters in Northern Greenland to landscape work in other extreme locals such as Death Valley, California.
Portfolios of his work have featured in such magazines as Outdoor Photographer, Shutterbug, Rangefinder and Popular Photography and his style has been characterized by the New York Times as “…alive with color and sparkling with light.”
He also served as the technical editor of Photo District News for over a decade, writing about new technologies and products and was the former editor of the Photography Yearbook. He has authored over 20 books on photographic technique many of which have received “best book” awards and have been translated into several languages.
Born in New York City, he was a 1959 graduate of Levittown High School, Levittown, New York.
He received his baccalaureate degree with honors from Columbia and a Master of Arts degree from Manhattan College. He has taught photography on the college level in the U.S., England and at the National Academy of Arts in Taiwan and gave workshops at the Palm Beach Photographic Centre in West Palm Beach, Florida.
His eye always saw the beauty of the Salisbury area through alens and he captured those images in an area that he and his wife Lynn loved.
When they were not on/in and around the lake, he and Lynn didn’t miss any of their grandchildren’s big events.Joe took great pride in photographing all these memorable events.
His beautiful images will always be here for all to appreciate.
Funeral services are under the direction of Newkirk-Palmer funeral home and a graveside service will be held this Friday, June 27, 2025, at 11 a.m. at St. Mary’s Cemetery, 18 Cobble Road, Salisbury, Connecticut.
STANFORDVILLE, New York — It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Florence Olive Zutter Murphy, who went home to be with the Lord on June 16, 2025, at the age of 99.
She was born in Sharon, Connecticut on Nov. 20, 1925, and was a long time resident of the Dutchess County area.
She was a devoted mother, loving wife to James Francis Murphy, who passed on Oct. 11, 1971, and a dear friend to many.
Florence, who was also known as Flo, managed a dairy farm for many years on Carpenter Hill Road in Pine Plains, New York. She is remembered for her delicious home cooked meals.
After raising her children she became an avid square dancer, racketball and tennis player. She then discovered her love for bike riding. She enjoyed embarking on bike tours well into her mid 80’s. When Flo wasn’t out riding her bike she could be found taking care of her property. She loved gardening, clearing the woods and building rock walls one stone at a time.
Florence was an amazing woman of great integrity, strength and tenacity. She was adored, respected and greatly loved by her family and those who knew her.
Florence is survived by her seven children — Bonnie June Chase, James Albert Murphy, Donna Sue Strauss, Jackie Lynn Merwin Disher, Glenn William Murphy, Lori Lee Mora and Clint Evan Murphy as well as 16 grand children and 20 great grand children.
She will always be remembered and greatly missed.
The Kenny Funeral Home has care of arrangements.
Chore Service hosted 250 supporters at it’s annual Garden Party fundraiser.
On Saturday, June 21, Mort Klaus, longtime Sharon resident, hosted 250 enthusiastic supporters of Northwest Corner’s beloved nonprofit, Chore Service at his stunning 175-acre property. Chore Service provides essential non-medical support to help older adults and those with disabilities maintain their independence and quality of life in their own homes.
Jane MacLaren, Executive Director, and Dolores Perotti, Board President, personally welcomed arriving attendees. The well-stocked bar and enticing hors d’oeuvres table were popular destinations as the crowd waited for the afternoon’s presentations.
Jane MacLaren, Executive Director of Chore Service, and Mort Klaus, host of the Garden Party eventBob Ellwood
The Garden Party is Chore Service’s only major fundraising event of the year, so it was not only a wonderful social activity, but a vital support mechanism to keep our most vulnerable residents in their homes.
First to present was MacLaren, who underlined the organization’s mission, thanked all caregivers for their important work, and said, with gratitude, to all donors, “Our accomplishments are your accomplishments.”
Ellen Ebbs, a Litchfield resident and Chore client, delivered a powerful and deeply personal testimony, sharing how the organization’s services transformed her life after a serious fall left her “disabled, dependent, and depressed.” Her story resonated with the audience and highlighted the vital impact of Chore’s work.
Priscilla McCord, outgoing Board Chair of Chore Service and Patrick Roy, incoming Chair.Bob Ellwood
Patrick Roy, high-energy incoming Chair of the Board, as well as First Selectman of Roxbury and Chief of its police force, told the crowd of his “Fragile List” — those in the community a step away from losing their independence, and how he ensured that this group was adequately taken care of. Priscillia McCord, outgoing Board Chair after twelve years of unstinting service, asked for donations for Fund the Cause, urgently needed to support the recently-expanded transportation services before funding runs out in September. As Patrick Roy said, “In rural towns like ours, our clients depend on us for basic services — to get to their medical appointments, go grocery shopping, as well as life-enhancing activities like going to the library and getting a weekly lift to visit family and friends.” Both Roy and McCord emphasized the area of greatest current concern — that of an upcoming decrease in federal funding, something we will learn more about in August.
Chore Service supports the towns of Cornwall, Falls Village, Goshen, Kent, Litchfield, Morris, Norfolk, North Canaan, Roxbury, Salisbury/Lakeville, Sharon, Warren, and Washington.
For those interested in accessing services or providing them, please contact Chore Service at (860) 435-9177. To learn more about the organization or to donate, go to www.choreservice.org.
Sally Haver has lived in the Berkshires, on and off, since the mid-’70’s and her horse lives in Amenia.
The mission statement of the Berkshire Bach Society (BBS) reads: “Our mission is to preserve the cultural legacy of Baroque music for current and future audiences — local, national, and international — by presenting the music of J.S. Bach, his Baroque predecessors, contemporaries, and followers performed by world-class musicians.”
Its mission will once again be fulfilled by presenting a concert featuring Dane Johansen on June 28 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 29 Main Street, in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
Terrill McDade, Executive Director of BBS, said, “Dane is a supremely talented musician and a musical poet. Audiences will hear his cello speak in three different musical dialects: those of Bach, Gaspar Cassadó, and Benjamin Britten. They will experience and be able to find the idiom that means the most to them. The music is classical, contemporary, and modern. It is contemplative, energetic, lyrical, rhythmic, and, in the end, philosophical. The audience is in for that rare musical treat of an intimate recital of profound music interpreted by a solo player who gives them something to think about —whether consciously or sub-consciously.”
McDade added, “Berkshire Bach believes it is very important to present live performances of a variety of Baroque music throughout the season, especially in this time in our society. Music has restorative power, and when played by fine musicians, can provide moments of respite and reflection that do us good.”
Johansen’s recital on June 28 is a case in point. The sound of the cello — so close to that of the human voice —makes us feel better somehow — refreshed in our spirit, hopeful, better able to carry on in difficult times,” said McDade.
Johansen grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska. He graduated from Juilliard and is a member of the Cleveland Orchestra, which he joined in 2016. He has performed all over the world as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician. He was a member of the Escher String Quartet and a BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist.
The concert will conclude Berkshire Bach’s thirty-fifth season, which opened with the film “Strangers on the Earth,” also featuring Johansen as he walked the Camino de Santiago — the ancient 600-mile pilgrimage route extending through France and Spain — with his cello strapped to his back in 2014. He stopped in towns along the way and played the six Bach Cello Suites in local churches.
The concert will begin at 5pm. Tickets are available at: www.bershirebach.org/events.
