Radio Chatskill

On Saturday, Damascus resident Jean Kogut will complete the 2.5-mile swim from Nevis to St. Kitts in the Caribbean to raise money for Tusten Social, a community organization that offers programming for youth and seniors. Radio Catskill reporter Marin Scotten spoke to Kogut about why she wanted to do the swim and the challenges of training for the event.

Pennsylvania voters will elect a new attorney general this November, but Democrats and Republicans first must pick their candidates this spring in their primary on April 23.  The attorney general represents the interests of the state and the public and defends Pennsylvania’s laws in court. In recent years, the office has defended the results of the 2020 presidential election against numerous attem...

Retired Port Jervis science teacher and Radio Catskill volunteer Joe Johnson is back with some of the fascinating science stories that have caught our eye, including the solar eclipse, black holes,  Iceland volcanoes, and the limit of the periodic table and revising the concept of the “island of stability” with recent advances in superheavy element research.

The Borscht Belt is the nickname for a collection of resorts and vacation bungalows across New York’s Sullivan, Ulster, and Orange counties that attracted crowds of Jewish visitors in the mid-20th century and left an indelible mark on American comedy, cinema, and culture.  More than half a century later, almost all of the formerly prominent hotels are out of business and are now derelict and dilap...

Manor Ink is Sullivan County's award-winning, youth-driven community newspaper and its April issue is out now. The cover story is about the local immigrant experience. Tim Bruno spoke to Manor Ink 's Editor in Chief Angie Hund about the challenges that Sullivan County’s new arrivals face.

The Master Gardeners of Cornell Cooperative Extension Ulster County are presenting an all-day gardening extravaganza, on Saturday, April 6, featuring 16 classes taught by dedicated Master Gardener Volunteers. The keynote Address will be delivered by Marc Wolf, Director of Horticulture and Environmental Stewardship at Mountain Top Arboretum.  Marc’s address, titled “Catskills Native Plants: Inspira...

Anglers across New York hit the banks of creeks, streams, and rivers this morning for the opening day of trout fishing season. Among them was noted local angler Judy Van Put who spoke to Tim Bruno on Radio Chatskill just after her "first cast." 

Did you know that Liberty is now home to Sullivan County's first and only all-female Scout troop? Originally established as an all-boys troop over a century ago, everything changed in 2019 with the official transition of the Boy Scouts of America to Scouts BSA. This pivotal moment opened doors for girls to embark on the same scouting journey. But what drove this historic change? What inspired the...

A fire swept through one of the buildings on the former Nevele Resort property last week. On March 19, The Winter Lodge building at the Nevele Grand Hotel in Ulster County caught ablaze. Local officials continue to seek the cause of the fire. Thanks to firefighters from Ulster, Orange and Sullivan Counties, flames did not spread to the main high-rise building on the 463-acre property, but The Wint...

On March 29, NACL in Highland Lake is hosting Transforma Theater, which will offer a public workshop in Media and Tech Literacy.  Participants will also have the opportunity to interact with Chat GPT-4 via an avatar. Brett Keyser, NACL's Director of Public Engagement, and BRETT KEYSER Brett Keyser, and Tjaša Ferme, Co-founder and Artistic Director of Transforma Theatre, spoke to Tim Bruno on Radio...

Most people easily navigate public spaces; however, for those with disabilities, a lack of adult changing tables and similar accommodations turns these simple activities into major challenges. That could change in New York with new legislation called the Traveling with Dignity Act. Deborah Worden, Executive Director for Action Toward Independence spoke to Tim Bruno on Radio Chatskill.

A bill that would extend the state’s ban on natural gas fracking is heading to Governor Kathy Hochul’s desk after the State Legislature acted recently to prohibit using liquid carbon dioxide to extract the gas from shale rock.  It’s one of several measures that lawmakers are considering to combat climate change.  From the New York Public News Network, Karen DeWitt reports. 

Former Port Jervis science teacher and Radio Catskill volunteer Joe Johnson joins Tim Bruno to discuss some of the most fascinating science stories of the week, including stars "eating" planets, a fossil named after Kermit The Frog, and smelly teens. 

Several research studies have found evidence that writing or reading poetry can be therapeutic. Poetry can provide comfort and boost mood during periods of stress, trauma, and grief. Its powerful combination of words, metaphor, and meter can help us better express ourselves and make sense of the world and our place in it. As part of its Winter Wellness Series, Bethel Woods Center for The Arts is o...

Think about the pets we typically have at home – cats, dogs, maybe a bird or two. But have you ever considered what it's like to share your space with not one, not two, but five lizards?  Radio Catskill's Leying Tang sat down with Wendy Townsend. She is a writer and an Iguana Specialist, deeply passionate about lizards and committed to their conservation.  Her journey with these creatures began at...

The "Knit-a-thon" is a 12-hour knitting marathon to raise funds for hunger and food insecurity. 100% of the money raised will be equally divided between Feeding America, World Central Kitchen, No Kid Hungry, and Meals on Wheels. Leila McCullough, owner of Wool-Worth yarn store in Callicoon, will be knitting for 12 hours on March 23 during the marathon. She spoke to Tim Bruno on Radio Chatskill.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned doctors this week about an increase in measles cases that in a little more than three months has equaled all of the U.S. cases last year. There had been 58 confirmed cases of measles in the U.S. in 17 states, including New York and Pennsylvania  this year, the CDC said, compared to 58 in all of 2023. Tim Bruno spoke to Dr. Jodi Galaydick, Garne...

There's an old story that goes back centuries: that the Haudenosaunee (Six Nations) trace their origins back to a solar eclipse.  Ahead of next month's total eclipse, we hear from a member of the Onondaga Nation about the tale, that a solar eclipse nearly 900 years ago led to the unification of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Onondaga Nation Council Member and teacher at the Onondaga Nation School...

Local astronomer Irene Peas is known as the "Friendly Neighboorhood Astronomer" and she’ll be at the Mamakating Environmental Education Center for a talk on everything folks should need to know about the upcoming Solar Eclipse in April. She’ll cover some basics of the moon's cycle and phases, mechanics of lunar and solar eclipses, and specifics of the 2024 eclipse, including the path of totality a...

Local Narrowsburg artist, Claudine Luchsinger received an MFA from The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art and a BFA from Marywood University, with an emphasis on drawing and painting. Her latest exhibit —-"Quantum Entanglement" --- is an experimental art installation on view now through May 20 in the Union Digital Gallery at Narrowsburg Union  Culture Reporter Valerie Mansi spoke to her. 

Noah Kalina is an artist and photographer based in Lumberland, New York and he is holding a workshop at the Catskill Art Space in Livingston Manor called "Why we photograph with Noah Kalina. Starting on April 6  This class will discuss why people take photos, what happens to photos after they are taken, and why taking photos is important even when everyone is doing it.  Noah is an accomplished pho...

It’s budget negotiation season in New York, and environmentalists are looking to Albany to see what the budget proposals may mean for some of their climate priorities. From the New York Public News Network, WSKG's Rebecca Redelmeier reports.

Nearly a decade after New York passed its controversial fracking ban, the debate over resource extraction in the state has returned. A Texas-based company’s proposal to use carbon dioxide to extract oil and gas gets around the hydraulic fracking ban. From the New York Public News Network, WSKG’s Rebecca Redelmeier has more on the reaction from landowners and legislators…and how this moment echoes...

The Sullivan County Chamber Orchestra performs a free concert, titled “The Evolution of the Double Bass” in Narrowsburg Sunday at the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance (DVAA); and again in Monticello on Monday, at St. John’s Episcopal Church. Radio Catskill's classical contributor "Classical Kit" spoke to Andrew Trombley from the Sullivan County Chamber Orchestra.  

Throughout 2024, curators from the Museum at Bethel Woods are traveling the country and across New York State to capture unique Woodstock stories …with an overall goal of collecting 4,500 stories from the people who attended the festival. That is only 1% of those who found their way to Yasgur’s Farm. Yet this archive will be the most significant collective memory of the Woodstock Music and Art Fai...