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The Lakeville Journal and The Millerton News follow a financial conflict of interest policy to ensure that the organization’s decisions are made solely in the interest of promoting the quality of our journalism, and to protect the interests of key employees, members of the Board of Directors, financial advisors, and legal counsel (“representatives”) when the organization considers any transaction, contract, or arrangement that might benefit or be perceived to benefit the private interest of a person affiliated with a board member or key employee. The policy includes the following:
- Each representative must be faithful to our nonprofit mission not permitted to act in a way that is inconsistent with the central goals of the organization and its nonprofit status.
- Representatives cannot accept gifts or favors, either above $250 a year in value, or that could compromise loyalty to the publications, or personally accept gifts from a party having a material interest in the outcome of the organizations’ actions. Cash payments may not be accepted, and no gifts should be accepted if there are strings attached.
- The organization may not loan to, or guarantee the personal obligations of, any representative.
The following are examples of conflicts of interest which must be promptly disclosed to the Board of Directors:
- A real or apparent conflict of interest between a representative and donor, or a representative and the subject of a Lakeville Journal or Millerton News.
- A representative’s ownership of an equity interest in a person or entity that is or will be the subject of report.
- The failure to disclose relationships between the subject of any publication or report and any representative or close relatives of the representative.
Conflict Procedure:
- If a representative or party related to a representative has an interest in any contract, action or transaction of the organization, a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest exists.
- Any representative having knowledge that such a conflict of interest exists, or may exist, will advise the Board of Directors promptly, and include the material facts as to the relationship or interest in the entity proposing to enter into a contract, action or transaction with the organization.
- The Board of Directors may authorize any committee appointed pursuant to the by-laws to act in lieu of the Board of Directors in determining whether an action, contract or transaction is appropriate.
- At any time that a conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest is identified, the President of the Board, or a Chair of the applicable Committee, will ensure that the conflict is placed on the agenda for the next meeting of the Board or the Committee, and will send a description of the conflict of interest matter to be discussed. By notice before the meeting or at the meeting, the Directors on the board or the Committee, will be advised that a vote will be taken at the meeting and that, in order to authorize the relevant contract, action or transaction, an affirmative vote of a majority of disinterested directors present at the meeting at which a quorum is present will be required and will be sufficient.
- Reasonable effort will be made to share the material facts concerning the relationships between the individuals and the organization which create the conflict prior to the meeting to enable the directors to arrive at the meeting prepared to discuss the issue.
- The Board of Directors or the Committee will invite all parties to the conflict of interest to attend the meeting, and to make presentations and to be prepared to answer questions, if necessary. The Board or the Committee will also invite outside experts if necessary.
- At the meeting, provided a quorum is present, the conflict will be discussed to ensure that the attendees are aware of the issues and the factors involved. The interested directors may be counted for purposes of a quorum, even though they may not take part in any vote on the issues.
- The Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, must decide, in good faith, and reasonably justified by the material facts, whether the action, contract or transaction would be in the best interest of the organization at the time it is authorized or approved. All interested directors must abstain from voting and, if necessary, leave the room when the vote is taken.
- The Board of Directors or the Committee, as applicable, will maintain a written account of all that transpires at the meeting and incorporate such account into the minutes of the meeting and disseminate it to the full Board of Directors. Such minutes will be presented for approval at the next meeting of the Board.
- To the extent that the conflict of interest is ongoing and the contract, action or transaction goes beyond one year, the foregoing notice and discussion and vote will be repeated on an annual basis.
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Sava Marinkovic
From Aug. 9 to 11, residents and visitors of “Connecticut’s Greenest Town” gathered to celebrate Cornwall Days — a weekend-long festival dedicated to “Cornwall and all its eccentricities.”
The townwide occasion, staged at a scatter of Cornwall institutions and green spaces across the town’s wooded sprawl, featured live music, theater, film, art, food, shopping, and more.
Spanning all three days and providing the weekend’s structural and cultural backbone was the enduring Rose Algrant Art Show, now in its 65th year and hosted at the Cornwall Consolidated School. Born in Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), Algrant emigrated to New York in 1940, shortly afterwards settling in Cornwall and fomenting a local artistic scene of writers, painters, illustrators, and printmakers.
The Rose Algrant Show filled Cornwall Consolidated School with art all weekend.Sava Marinkovic
“Rose was quite the character,” said exhibit organizer and artist Ellen Moon. “She was small, but fierce,” — a fitting patron for the tiny but energetic town of Cornwall, which produced 51 artists for the show out of a population of less than 2,000.
“This year, we have even greater variety than usual,” continued Moon. Paneled display boards hung paintings, drawings, and photographs from around the Northwest Corner, rendered in a slew of styles and media, forming a thematic throughline that bound together many of the works. Also on display were sculptures, ceramics, furniture, puppets, shoes and jewelry creating an eclectic array of forms and disciplines very much in the spirit of Algrant’s ecumenical vision.
As the art show continued to draw out, other events around town were getting underway.
Although Friday’s family movie night, to have screened Disney-Pixar’s Toy Story outdoors at the Trinity Retreat Center, was postponed to Thursday, Aug. 15 due to inclement weather, live music continued at The Union in West Cornwall. As wind and rain rattled shops and residences in the neighborhood of Cornwall’s iconic covered bridge, patrons cozied up to weather the storm with guitarist Ava McCoy and pianist Maddie Rubin.
On Saturday, skies opened and cleared the way for a Taste of Cornwall on the Village Green, which Parks and Recreation Chair Michelle Shipp called a “highlight of the best things Cornwall has to offer.”
Grain Thief plays the Village Green, Aug. 10.Sava Marinkovic
The main event, a farm-to-table tasting buffet, sourced ingredients from local growers, ranches, and dairies. Upon being outfitted with a glittering purple bracelet and handed an introductory slice of bruschetta, tasters were free to meander between colorfully-tented tasting tables at their leisure—so long as they followed the injunction to wait for seconds until after time was called.
And seconds certainly tempted from among the local fare: saucy ground beef tacos with meat and vegetables from Birdseye and Tanner Brooks Farm, Coltsfoot Farm, and Ridgway Farm; hot, sweet pigs in a blanket from Maple Hill Farm; macaroni gooey with cheese made from Calf & Clover Farm dairy; sweet and sour meatballs assembled with meat, jelly, eggs, and produce from Hurlburt Farm & Forestry, Coltsfoot, and Ridgway; and various salads courtesy of the aforementioned, as well as Buck Mountain Herbs.
Between tastings (or perhaps to wait out the service lines that began to curl across the green), visitors enjoyed placing bets in the quintessentially country cow chip raffle, playing lawn games, and browsing local vendors from among the event’s 36 sponsors—all Cornwall businesses. Drifting over the festivities was music performed by Americana string band Grain Thief, whose repertoire includes bluegrass, fiddle tunes, and old-timey interpretations of country classics. Redoubling the fair’s rustic ambiance, a small contingent of line dancers formed, broke, and reformed as tunes coursed from lively to somber and back again.
Come Sunday, the weekend concluded with rounds of live music and family theater.
Grumbling Gryphons Children's Theater performed at The Wish House Lawn on Sunday, Aug. 11, to a receptive audience.Sava Marinkovic
Up first, the Grumbling Gryphons Traveling Children’s Theater performed a colorful adaptation of West African folktale Anansi, the Trickster Spider at the Wish House in West Cornwall.
Calling on the tale’s African roots, Director Leslie Elias welcomed the crowd with a hearty Swahili “jambo, to this village and our global village!” Invited to “sing nice and loud and enjoy the show” by performer Daniel Saed, audience members roared, signed, buzzed, and mimed their way through the whimsical fable of a conniving spider-turned-folk hero.
After the show, Arieh and the Lions animated the Wish House lawn with their danceable pop and rock covers before DIY indie outfit Ruby Leftstep took the stage at Cornwall Market to close out the evening, the sun finally setting on Cornwall Days.
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Gregg Osofsky
On the evening of July 30, Congregation Beth David in Amenia became the epicenter of a deep dive into one of history’s most profound and politically charged scandals. Maurice Samuels, a distinguished professor at Yale University and the director of its Program for the Study of Antisemitism, captivated a full house with his insights on the Dreyfus Affair, drawn from his latest book, “Alfred Dreyfus: The Man at the Center of the Affair.” The event, skillfully moderated by culture writer Laura van Straaten, opened a deep and complicated discussion into how historical events like the Dreyfus Affair continue to offer valuable lessons, illuminating the challenges and stakes of our own times.
After a brief welcome by Rabbi Jon Haddon, spiritual director of Congregation Beth David, the event opened with an introduction by Ilene Smith, editorial director of the Jewish Lives biography series and a member of the congregation. Smith described the series of biographies, for which Samuels was commissioned, as a “remarkable opportunity to curate deep and interesting biographies about influential figures with a real legacy.” There are now 70 books in the collection all of which “ask the question: What does it mean to be Jewish?” Smith explained.
Samuels and Van Straaten met in Kindergarten in Chicago and have been lifelong friends, so the conversation flowed easily and seamlessly throughout the evening. To provide context, Samuels began with a succinct summary of the Dreyfus Affair. In 1894, Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish officer in the French army, was falsely accused of spying for Germany. With scant evidence, Dreyfus was publicly humiliated, stripped of his rank in a degrading ceremony, and exiled to the brutal penal colony of Devil’s Island. For five years, he endured inhumane conditions, while back in France, his family, particularly his wife, Lucie, fought tirelessly to prove his innocence. The affair divided France into Dreyfusards (supporters of Dreyfus) and anti-Dreyfusards, leading to widespread riots and political turmoil. Dreyfus was eventually exonerated in 1906 and restored to his military rank.
Samuels highlighted the complex socio-political landscape of France during the Dreyfus Affair, noting that despite France being the first European country to grant Jews full civil rights during the French Revolution, antisemitism was rampant by the late 19th century. Dreyfus, a patriotic and wealthy officer, became a scapegoat amid rising antisemitic sentiments. “Half of France committed to believing a lie,” said Samuels. “Even after it was proven that Dreyfus was innocent, people still opposed justice for Dreyfus.” He went on to explain that “France is a paradox in some ways, a kind of conundrum for scholars of antisemitism because it was the country where Jews had achieved the most, where Jews were the most integrated in the world by the 1890s.” But Jews, Samuels explained, were associated with all the changes brought on by modernity, “And by modernity, I mean, the rise of modern industrial capitalism, liberal democracy, and then all the social changes that go along with that. The people left behind by these changes became antisemitic.”
Also deeply examined was the significant role played by intellectuals like Emile Zola whose famous open letter “J’Accuse” accused the French military of a cover-up during the Dreyfus affair, igniting public outrage and prompting a re-examination of the case. In fact, said Samuels, “people say that the modern use of the term intellectual to designate someone who has a cultural position but who takes a stand on political issues, dates to the Dreyfus affair. The most famous one we can talk about is Emile Zola, the novelist. But many writers were anti-Dreyfusard including Jules Verne, for example, the science fiction writer.” The case also caused a divide amongst Impressionist painters with Monet and Pissaro, who was Jewish, being pro-Dreyfus and others such as Degas, Renoir, Rodin and Cezanne who were anti-Dreyfus. This polarization also filtered into the media landscape of the time, which Van Straaten noted bears striking similarities to today’s media environment. “I found myself thinking about how divided our country is culturally and socially again and again,” said Van Straaten “and how one of the most fascinating arguments that you make is about the way in which the trials, the imprisonment, and the fight, the affair itself, which endured 12 years, 130 years ago, became and remains a dog whistle, a cultural moment like today in terms of our divisions.”
Samuels added, “I think that you could argue that the Dreyfus affair was a battle in a kind of ongoing war between left and right which is still playing out.”
Samuels also took care to emphasize Dreyfus’s resilience and heroism and the ways in which he emerges as the true hero of his own story. Surviving the harsh conditions of Devil’s Island required immense personal fortitude. Dreyfus’s determination to clear his name, despite being unjustly convicted twice, played a crucial role in eventually bringing the truth to light.
Before opening to questions from the audience, the conversation shifted to the complex process of national healing after deep political divisions with an emphasis on the resilience required to confront and heal from deep-seated injustice. Samuels, reflecting on France post-Dreyfus, emphasized the ongoing struggle to reconcile differing visions of society and how historical events like the Dreyfus Affair offer crucial insights into the modern parallels and challenges we face today. The evening wasn’t just a history lesson; it was a mirror reflecting many of our current societal fractures, leaving the audience pondering the enduring relevance of the Dreyfus Affair, the vital lessons it holds for our times and, indeed, what it means to be Jewish.
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