Valley Vines

Spiritual message to chamber members

Derek Green is joined by Capt. Glendon Fraser and Col. Charles Faro, Air National Guard 105 Airlift Wing, New Windsor.

A recent Orange County chamber breakfast was a bit out of the ordinary -- in fact, it was quite extraordinary. Derek Green, who is general manager of General Electric’s corporate air transport division, didn’t go into detail about his company’s profits and losses at the Dec. 4 meeting. Rather, he spoke about his own personal loss of longtime friend Michael Anderson in the space shuttle Columbia disaster. Both men were part of NASA’s team. Anderson was in the shuttle that fateful day and Green was on the ground. When the shuttle burst into a fireball, Green went to console Anderson’s wife. “I was amazed and humbled by her initial reaction: ‘It must have been part of God’s plan for my husband.’”

Green, who believes his faith is as much a part of his business persona as his credentials, says leaders should practices what they preach and business owners, no matter what their faith, can show strength of character to their employees when they live what they believe. Overall, it makes for a better life and a better workplace, no matter if it’s NASA or a retail job.

Fran Melder, CEO of Southwinds Retirement Home, was teary-eyed after Green’s presentation and asked if he would come speak to residents at Southwinds and share his uplifting message.

The attendees who braved the wind and cold got a heaping helping of compassionate advice from Derek Green along with a gentle reminder of the reason for the season ­ one Green would like to see last all year long.

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Going bankrupt in style

New U.S. District Bankruptcy Court in Poughkeepsie

Going bankrupt? Well, thanks to the vision Bert Gold and Joseph Tockarshewsky, you can now do it in style. Gold is a Poughkeepsie native who has hundreds of projects around the city bearing his signature style.

Gold and Tockarshewsky built and own the new court building. They bought the HSBC bank adjoining the new court in 1999 in an effort to keep it in the city’s downtown area. “We were able to get HSBC into a seven-year lease on the promise that we would improve the building.” The pair did just that, investing $4.5 million in the property.

When the U.S. District Bankruptcy Court on Church Street decided to improve its facilities, the builders made an application to them. “We kept it in the city of Poughkeepsie and the end result is a beautiful courtroom and a facility for the U.S. Marshall’s office; 30,000 square feet all told. We are also building separate offices for the trustees.”

“Unfortunately, HSBC has decided to leave the city and they will be moving out. Since they had a bilingual staff, it is a tremendous loss to our downtown area,” said Gold.

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Pampered pets

New home for Orange County’s oldest veterinary hospital

Love your cat, your dog, your rabbit? Well, Orange County Veterinary Hospital opened its new building on Route 17M in March and business is frisky. Not only do they offer diagnostic service, telemedicine, surgical and hospital care, there’s also a hotel and spa for the four-legged breeds. How about a pedicure, haircut or just a therapeutic treatment for man’s (or woman’s) best friend this holiday season -- or maybe a good going over with a toothbrush? Dr. Alan Shanker and his staff even cater to “seniors”-- dogs over the age of seven, cats over 10. Visit them at www.ocvh1.com

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Hanukah display at Rhinebeck holiday

Hannukah display at Rhinebeck Holiday parade

CAPTION: “Get out your harmonica ­ it’s time for Hanukah!” (Okay, so maybe we didn’t get the words to Adam Sandler’s song exactly right.) Kudos to the members of Rhinebeck’s chamber of commerce, who included a Hanukah float in this year’s celebration. Mazel tov, Rhinebeck!

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Five new business join our Hudson Valley community:

BedroomKeeper.com -- Do they make the bed in the morning too?

Concrete Menu ­ Where prices are set in stone.

Warwick’s Helpful Hand ­ Remember: don’t bite the hand that feeds you.

Top Quality Hay --For a quality romp, call them.

Ribbon Runners ­ A far cry from the rum runners of old.

 

 

 

 

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