By DAVID LEE
HUDSON–There was a celebration at the Hudson Area Library on Thursday, March 13 for the opening of the Unity Community Cabinet, a source for the provision of nonperishable food and personal hygiene products, all free to people in need. The cabinet is the result of the work of Hudson High School senior Daija Jones and junior Sebastian Dermott.
They are both participants in Operation Unite in Hudson, the organization that promotes values of community and culture among area youth. Director Elena Mosley is always on the lookout for opportunities for its participants. She alerted her group to a program called the Youth in Democracy initiative offered by The Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation (BTCF).
Students from each of the counties of Columbia, Berkshire, Dutchess and Litchfield that BTCF encompasses were invited to suggest a project. A competitive interview process followed and several projects were chosen ranging from a voter registration drive in Pittsfield, MA, to a drone tutorial for firefighters in Falls Village, CT.
The Youth in Democracy initiative is the inspiration of Paul Marienthal, dean for Social Action and Director of the Trustee Leader Scholar program at Bard College.
“BTCF came to me for ideas about how to get youth involved in their communities,” he said.
“For the students, it is about having the nerve to get out and talk to people and get involved in their town.”
Daija’s and Sebastian’s Unity Community Cabinet came after a process of testing several ideas that would fulfill the requirement that the project identify and address real community needs. Collaboration was an important component. The students visited potential sites for their cabinet, settling eventually on the Hudson Area Library, whose Director Emily Chameides was very supportive.
They contacted the Columbia County Department of Health to be sure they were in compliance with regulations. For the cabinet itself, they recruited a carpenter friend of Marienthal’s named Stephen Yoshen who was willing to help. The two fellows spent a day in Mr. Yoshen’s shop learning about fine carpentry. The result is a substantial piece of mahogany furniture that fits in with the character of the library.
The fellows enlisted Brenda Blanks of the Zion Food Pantry and Darcy Connor of the Hudson Salvation Army to help keep the cabinet stocked. Although product donations from the public are not asked for at this time, financial donations are welcome and can be made through Operation Unite.
