‘Recognizing the cost of freedom’ in Falls Village

‘Recognizing the cost of freedom’ in Falls Village

Emergency responders march through Falls Village on Memorial Day.

Patrick L. Sullivan

FALLS VILLAGE — People started filtering into downtown Falls Village an hour or so before the Memorial Day parade, which kicked off at 9:45 a.m.

Many brought baked goods to the soon-to-opened Off the Trail Cafe, where Liz and Howie Ives had coffee, lemonade and watermelon salad ready for post-parade refreshments. Liz Ives said the cafe will be officially opened in mid-June.

The parade came through, led by a band of percussion and brass instruments. It featured fire trucks, an ambulance, stilt walkers, classic cars and a couple of horses bringing up the rear.

At the town green, First Selectman Dave Barger greeted the crowd with a prayer.

Selectman Judy Jacobs noted that while Memorial Day is for America’s fallen military, several veterans participated in the parade, including Sandy Rhoades, Sergei Fedorjaczenko, Rou Jensen, Woods Sinclair, Loy Timolat, Eric Carlson, David Boyer, Bosco Schell, Jim Holcomb, Matt Gallagher, Hope Gallagher and Tony Testa.

Both the Gallaghers are Navy veterans. Matt Gallagher said Memorial Day “is about recognizing the cost of the freedoms we often take for granted.” Speaking of those who died, he said “Let us strive to be a nation worthy of their sacrifice.”

The selectmen honored Gail Allyn as Volunteer of the Year, and Dick and Donna Heinz received the Community Service Award.

Katelin Lopes sang the National Anthem a cappella, with the crowd of some 100 joining in.

Barger wrapped it up by saying “We must walk away knowing that these four things support the nation: the learning of the wise, the justice of the great, the prayers of the good, and the valor of the brave.”

Latest News

Ruth Franklin discusses ‘The Many Lives of Anne Frank’ at Beth David

Ruth Franklin and Ileene Smith in conversation at Congregation Beth David in Amenia.

Natalia Zukerman

Congregation Beth David in Amenia hosted a conversation on the enduring legacy of Anne Frank, one of the 20th century’s most iconic figures. Ruth Franklin, award-winning biographer and critic, shared insights from her highly acclaimed book “The Many Lives of Anne Frank” with thought-provoking questions from Ileene Smith, Editorial Director of the Jewish Lives series. This event, held on July 23 — the date Anne Frank would have turned 96 — invited the large audience to reconsider Anne Frank not just as the young writer of a world-famous diary, but as a cultural symbol shaped by decades of representation and misrepresentation.

Franklin and Smith dove right in; Franklin reading a passage from the book that exemplified her approach to Anne’s life. She described her work as both a biography of Anne Frank and a cultural history of the diary itself, a document that has resonated across the world.

Keep ReadingShow less
Prokofiev, piano and perfection: Yuja Wang at Tanglewood

Yuja Wang performs with the TMCO and Andris Nelsons.

Hilary Scott

Sunday, July 20 was sunny and warm. Nic Mayorga, son of American concert pianist, the late Lincoln Mayorga, joined me at Tanglewood to hear Yuja Wang play Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 16. I first saw Wang on July 8, 2022, when she filled in for Jean-Yves Thibaudet on the opening night of Tanglewood’s summer season. She virtually blew the shed down with her powerful and dynamic playing of Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1.

Nic was my guest last season on July 13, when Wang wowed us with her delicate interpretation of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. We made plans on the spot to return for her next date in Lenox.

Keep ReadingShow less