MILLERTON — On Oct. 12, American Legion Post 178 held its second Town Hall meeting to introduce the candidates running for the position of Dutchess County executive.During the Town Hall meeting, New York Assemblyman Marcus Molinaro spoke to a crowd of roughly two dozen people to explain his stance on several issues that are important to local residents.Molinaro’s opponent is Dan French, who participated in a Town Hall event at the Legion on Oct. 3. French and Molinaro will face off in the election on Tuesday, Nov. 8. The position of Dutchess County executive is currently held by William Steinhaus, who has held the role for 19 years.Molinaro began by giving the audience an overview of his political career, which he began at the age of 18. A year later, he became mayor of Tivoli, earning the title of the youngest mayor ever elected in the United States.He was elected as a New York State Assemblyman in 2006. He currently has 17 years of experience as an elected official.While serving as assemblyman, Molinaro co-sponsored the “Government Consolidation and Citizen Empowerment Act,” which pledges to do just as its name implies: consolidate government offices to improve efficiency and effectiveness and empower citizens to take part in their government.“I believe public service is a dignified duty,” he said while describing the piece of legislation. “We have an obligation to give back.”The themes of that piece of legislation infiltrated the responses he gave for questions asked by the audience.He said that if he becomes the county executive, he would work with the local governments to create a medium for dialogue so that the county and the municipalities can work together as partners to consolidate their efforts and services.He said that he will personally visit town hall meetings to better understand how and why the municipalities make their decisions.He believes that it is the perfect time to realign the government and ask the public what they expect from each level of government. Then it will be possible to evaluate what each part of the government does well and what it does not do well so that plans can be put in place to increase government efficiency and effectiveness while cutting out unnecessary practices.He said the government and the public need to engage in thoughtful dialogue about how things can be done better, even if the answer is walking away from some projects.“Elected officials have the responsibility to create the community that people want,” he said.Molinaro said the government isn’t always the answer for some services. He said that in some cases, charities and nonprofit organizations are better able to provide necessities that government programs like Medicaid, which he believes traps people within its rigid and ineffective system.Since Medicaid is over-burdening the government, Molinaro wants to create a system that let nonprofits pool their resources and contacts to save money and create a more efficient method to get services to those who need them.The other burden on taxpayers that Molinaro discussed was the MTA Payroll Tax, which he described as “a fiscal hostage-taking.”Molinaro stated that he believes it was wrong for the payroll tax to be instated in the first place, but acknowledged that it will be hard to walk away from that income.He said there are several ways to approach the MTA taxes. One way involves renegotiating with Connecticut to make the burden more equal. The other is phasing out the tax over five years.He also stated that an audit and restructuring of the entire MTA system are necessary.On the topic of local job creation, Molinaro said it is important to attract the big companies while also supporting the small and mid-sized companies.“Growing jobs is one thing, but sustaining those jobs over a number of years is completely different,” he said.He wants to find where growth can be sustained, then make the changes to the zoning to allow for it.To help this plan, he wants to use the Chamber of Commerce to help with economic development and ensure that people are ready to enter the workforce once the jobs are created.One of the current hot topics in Dutchess County is the outsourcing of prisoners to other counties who have more room available in their prisons.Molinaro explained that although Dutchess County is the leader in the state for Alternative to Incarceration (ATI) programs, if the well-behaved criminals are shipped out of the county, those programs are not reaching as many people as they could and are therefore not as effective as they could be.Molinaro said that retrofitting existing facilities is an option for solving the space issue, but the retrofitting will still cost a lot of money.He said that negotiating regional overflow with other counties is also a possibility, but will be very difficult to attain since the negotiations will reduce the revenue that is taken in by other counties.The audience did not ask Molinaro any questions about his stance on the Resource Recovery Agency or disposing of garbage through burning, which are hot political topics.Molinaro briefly addressed why he has chosen to move from the position of assemblyman on the state level to the position of executive on the county level instead of moving on to the senate. He said that while he enjoys being a legislator, that role is not as satisfying because it is more difficult to see the fruits of the labor. He believes that serving as county executive will give him the opportunity to put into practice all that he has learned throughout his political career.
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One systemic consequence of slavery is the loss and obscuring of the histories of those who were enslaved. Records were often not kept about where Africans had been stolen from or who they were related to. Families were torn apart, leaving nothing but the faintest traces of the past. The delineation point, where genealogists can no longer trace histories back, is refered to this as the “document wall.”
Today, 250 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence and more than 160 years since the Emancipation Proclamation, there is a growing effort to restore some of the history stripped from enslaved people and their descendants. Among the leaders of these efforts is Mills, president of the Alex Breanne Corporation, a nonprofit organization that works to identify previously anonymous Black Americans from history and connect them with their living relatives.
The work began with Mills’ sister, who started digging into their family’s past in the 1990’s and introduced him to this emerging world of genealogy. Through that process, the Mills family discovered their great-great-grandfather, Ned Mills, who had been enslaved in Texas. His last name came from his final enslaver and remains the family surname. Through their research, they found that the document wall directly affected their ancestor, who learned of his liberation on June 19, 1865, now commemorated as Juneteenth.
“For the first time,” Mills writes on his website, “American slavery wasn’t something that had happened to anonymous people in a history book. It had happened to my family.”
The discovery gave Mills a familial pride he had been missing for years. That pride fueled his desire to help others find their own history. In 2023, Mills received his certificate in genealogical research from Boston University. He has used his expertise to help descendants of enslaved people uncover histories they never dreamed of learning.
To do this, he uses a process called “reverse genealogy,” identifying a person from the past and working forward to discover their descendants. Along the way, Mills has found some remarkable people who fought for freedom on American soil, some of whom were never freed.
Pay Bill for Robin Starr’s service in the Continental Army.Courtesy the Alex Breanne Corporation
At the Cornwall Historical Society event, Mills will present the stories of four Connecticut families: Job Lathrop of Norwich, the son of Pirmus Armes, about whom Mills has published a book; Prince Mortimer of Middletown, also the subject of a book by Mills;, the three sons of London Wallace of Simsbury; and Robert “Robin” Starr of Danbury, who later lived in Cornwall and Sharon.
A few years ago, Cornwall Consolidated School social studies teacher Will Vincent reached out to Mills for research guidance on a local history project his students were undertaking. Together, they learned about Naomi Freeman of Cornwall. After purchasing an acre of land on Great Hollow Road in 1828, Naomi Freeman became the first Black female landowner in Cornwall.
The students petitioned the town to rename a road after the historic Cornwall resident In April 2025, Great Hollow Road was officially renamed Naomi Freeman Historic Road. U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes joined Mills and the Cornwall Consildated School students for a presentation of their research.
Since then, Mills has guided the students in their quest to learn more about Starr’s story. Starr was a Revolutionary War soldier who joined the Continental Army to earn enough money to buy his own freedom, receiving the Badge of Merit in the process. The stories of his descendents’ services are equally worthy of their own books.
In recognition of Mills and the students’ work, First Selectman Gordon Ridgway proclaimed Feb. 8 as Robin Starr Day.
Preregistration is required for the event at the Cornwall Historical Society. To learn more about Mills’ work, visit
alexbreanne.org.
John Mills speaking at Quinnipiac University.Courtesy the Alex Breanne Corporation
Stephanie Saetta runs Charlie Chicken Bones, a sanctuary in Salisbury.
Dogs have been at the center of Saetta’s life since childhood. She remembers going to the library to research different breeds and trying to convince her parents the family needed a dog. She had her heart set on an Irish Wolfhound, but she was more than happy when her mom brought home a West Highland terrier.
After college, she adopted Charlie as a puppy from a rescue on Long Island. He was a hound-shepherd-Rottweiler mix who suffered from intense seizures. Some veterinarians recommended euthanasia, but Saetta wasn’t ready to give up on him.
When Charlie would have an episode, she would sit with him, nose to nose, talking him through it. She learned to look for the moment he began to come around — when he could smell her again and his tail started to wag.
“You only get one or two of these soul connection dogs, so I do this in his honor,” Saetta said. “I like to think that all the dogs that come through are going to have that person that they connect with just the same.”
Through a network of women working to rescue animals in Texas, she learned about the desperate situations facing many dogs.
With limited space, some public pounds euthanize even healthy animals to make room. Limited access to veterinary care leaves sick dogs or unvaccinated puppies especially vulnerable.
Saetta saw that reality firsthand with a puppy named Gus, a Labrador mix she fostered who has since been adopted. Gus and his sisters had been dumped beside a road, where they were living under an abandoned car. People would leave food for them, but no one would take them to the pound.
“Even the people who rescue animals down there were like, ‘sadly, the best place for them to be is on the side of the road,’” she said. “That’s safer. Someone might actually help them that way.”
Saetta knows that there are far more dogs than any one person can save, but she also knows that helping one dog means one fewer on the street.
Stephanie Saetta,with her rescue dog George and Blue (left), a shepherd mix awaiting his forever home.Madi Long
Charlie Chicken Bone Sanctuary operates entirely through foster homes, a model that Saetta believes is best for the dogs and the humans hoping to adopt them.
Rather than moving directly from a difficult environment into a permanent home, the dogs have a chance to settle into a quieter setting. They can learn what it’s like to live with a family, sleep somewhere comfortable and receive affection without fighting for attention. Fostering also allows the rescue to really get to know each dog.
“As fosters, we’re honest,” said Saetta. We’ll tell you everything that’s been bad, everything that’s been good. What their temperament is and how they’ve responded to all the things they’ve experienced.”
A successful adoption is not just about finding a dog a home; it’s about finding the right home where the dog and family can thrive together.
Saetta is looking for more people willing to open their homes to foster dogs. She understands that the thought of growing attached and eventually saying goodbye can feel daunting. But she sees that goodbye a little differently.
Fostering means being part of a dog’s journey, even if only for a short time. It gives dogs a safe place to rest, the chance to trust again and the love they have gone without for much of their lives. And when the time comes for them to leave, it is not really a loss. It is the reward of knowing they are moving on to a forever home.
Blue, Saetta’s current foster, is hoping to find his perfect home.
Blue, a 7 year-old Shepard mix, is waiting for his forever home. Madi Long
Now around 7 years old, Blue spent most of his life wandering the streets of Texas. People sometimes left food out for him, but his mangy, dirty coat kept them from stopping to pet him. Today, he has a chance to experience something different.
Blue is still waiting for his forever home. Saetta believes he would do best as the only dog in a household or alongside another senior dog. He will need someone willing to continue working with him on his training and understand that a dog with his history needs patience.
But what he gives in return is a whole lot of love.
“He’s so enthusiastic, he’s so excited for life, he’s so friendly, and he’s got such a good heart, and he loves to cuddle,” Saetta said. “He’s a good, good, good dog.”
For more information on adopting Blue or how to foster, visit ccbsanctuary.org.
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