I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday and your New Year is one of the best. Thank you to all the road crews who work day and night to keep us safe with the cold, crappy weather! 

I would like to thank the following community groups and businesses for decorating the trees in the Backyard Park for the holidays, showing great community spirit! The JEMS (Jeff’s beautification group), Ride -2- Survive, FFA (Future Farmers of America), Jeffersonville Post Office, the Small Town Country 4-H Group and the Solstice and Ash Mystic Shoppe. 

The Jeff Bank is selling WSUL Heart-A-Thon cards from January 5 - February 19 in support of the 48^th Annual Heart-A-Thon being held on February 20 at Resorts World Catskill. Buy a heart card and help support heart health in our community. Proceeds to benefit the prevention, education, and treatment of heart disease in Sullivan County.

On Saturday, January 17 the Western Sullivan Public Library (Jeffersonville branch at 19 Center Street, Jeffersonville) is holding the movie Superman (2025) at 11 a.m. Join them for a cozy family movie for the whole family that includes popcorn and good conversation! Free admission – registration is required. Call 845-482-4350.

The Delaware Youth Center (located at 8 Creamery Road, Callicoon) is having a Winter Blues Bash on Friday, February 21 from noon to 4 p.m. Pre-K through 2^nd graders are invited to dance and play from noon to 2 p.m. with classic favorites like musical chairs and other games. The 3^rd through 6^th graders takes over the dance floor from 2 to 4p.m. with DJ Mazz spinning the hits with crowd-pleasers like the Cha Cha Slide, Macarena and more! Lots of fun with a bigger & louder dance party this year that your kids will not want to miss. Admission is $5 per child (adults are free) or $10 that includes a hot dog, snack, and drink with your admission. Additional snacks and food will be available for purchase. So come on out for a great fun-filled family time! 

I had posted missing my wild birds last Summer, now I have lots of them including three pairs of beautiful cardinals (which are my favorite), chickadees, finches, nuthatches, lots of sparrows and others that I am not sure of their names. I also have lots of pushy blue jays and “my” gray squirrel that make a mess and eats most of the seed. For those of us that are going broke to feed the birds, remember black oil sunflower seeds contain around 40% fat - ideal winter fuel for them. Cardinals, chickadees, and nuthatches love and need these calories and suet, nuts, and unsalted peanut butter replace the insects they cannot find now too.

If a fox crosses your path, let it pass. I have had one at my house and lots of my friends say they have also had some. Remember, they reduce rodent populations that damage crops and spread disease. They are cautious, living solitary lives hunting in the cold, avoiding roads, noise, traps, and human reactions. So, if you see one watching, waiting, or crossing slowly, it is not stalking, it is surviving.