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Community Rallies Around Westchester Family After Father's Death Community Rallies Around Westchester Family After Father's Death
Community Rallies Around Westchester Family After Father's Death WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- A GoFundMe page has been launched for the family of Miguel Gil, a White Plains resident, who took his own life last week. As of Saturday morning, the page has raised nearly $5,000 by 80 people over three days.  "It was so unexpected," his daughter Angie said. " We couldn't understand why he would do something like this to us. We never thought we would have to imagine a life without our father." Angie said they are hoping to raise enough money to send him back to his native Dominican Republican where he can be buried with his parents and siblings and…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Animal Sanctuary Will Honor 6-Year-Old Sandy Hook Massacre Victim Animal Sanctuary Will Honor 6-Year-Old Sandy Hook Massacre Victim
Animal Sanctuary Will Honor 6-Year-Old Sandy Hook Massacre Victim NEWTOWN, Conn. — Six-year-old Catherine Violet Hubbard once caught a butterfly on her hand. As she set it free, she whispered: “Tell your friends that I am kind.” That one sentence is the inspiration behind the Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary, a tribute to the little girl who was one of 20 children and six adults who perished in the Sandy Hook School massacre on Dec. 14, 2012. It has been five years since that tragic day and family, friends and supporters of the sanctuary gathered this month to celebrate Catherine’s memory and raise more than $700,000 for the new sanctuary. “If …

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by Meredith Guinness
Neighbors
Mahopac Falls Volunteer FD Gets In Candy Cane Run Before Snow Arrives Mahopac Falls Volunteer FD Gets In Candy Cane Run Before Snow Arrives
Mahopac Falls Volunteer FD Gets In Candy Cane Run Before Snow Arrives The Mahopac Falls Volunteer Fire Department renewed a tradition Saturday that is now approaching a half century. As the snow began to fall on Saturday morning, Mr & Mrs Claus gathered their firefighter/EMS family for the 2017 Candy Cane Run group picture before heading out to visit the children of the Mahopac Falls Fire District, a tradition that is almost 50 years old.  With candy canes in hand, firefighters and EMT's got on board trucks pulling out of headquarters at 10 a.m. with lights flashing and sirens blaring 

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by Daily Voice
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Somers High School Students' Holiday Crafts Benefit Putnam Hospital Center Somers High School Students' Holiday Crafts Benefit Putnam Hospital Center
Somers High School Students' Holiday Crafts Benefit Putnam Hospital Center Isabella DeChico and Adelina Ademaj, two juniors at Somers High School, are selling crafts for a good cause. The two are selling holiday ornaments and pens made out of polyester clay to raise money for Putnam Hospital Center’s oncology department. “It is our local hospital so we wanted to help out,” DeChico said. Ademaj said she is interested in pursuing medicine and cancer research and DeChico is into making crafts. So the two combined their interests for the project. Customers can either purchase the ornaments for themselves or donate the items to cancer patients, the students said. Ad…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Mahopac Dancer Performs At Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Mahopac Dancer Performs At Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Mahopac Dancer Performs At Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade MAHOPAC, N.Y. -- Sofia Gristina had a lot to be thankful for her on Thanksgiving. Gristina, a Mahopac resident, got to perform in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, dancing with 34th and Phunk.  The 12-year-old, who dances for Epic Dance Studio in Mahopac, went out to Long Island to audition, having to learn a whole new hip-hop dance. She found out she got the part that day. "I was just in shock," Gristina said. "I didn't know what to do, I was excited." Gristina traveled all over the tri-state area to attend rehearsals, which wasn't so bad- some of the dancers would …

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by Sam Barron
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29-Year-Old Westchester Composer Is Behind New Off-Broadway Musical 29-Year-Old Westchester Composer Is Behind New Off-Broadway Musical
29-Year-Old Westchester Composer Is Behind New Off-Broadway Musical Bonnie Gleicher is all about celebrating one's differences. And now, thanks to her show "Addy & Uno," her passion for showcasing what makes us each special is being recognized -- off-Broadway.  The musical, just signed for an extended run at Theatre Row -- it had been at the 14th Street Y Theater in New York City for most of September -- uses puppets and upbeat music to highlight the struggles of a child with autism as he competes in his school's math competition.  It also focuses on other children with (and without) varying disabilities (such as ADHD, visual, hearing and phy…

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by Jeanne Muchnick
Neighbors
Not So 'Anonymous' Anymore: Westchester Professor Wins National Arts Award Not So 'Anonymous' Anymore: Westchester Professor Wins National Arts Award
Not So 'Anonymous' Anymore: Westchester Professor Wins National Arts Award A SUNY Purchase Associate Professor of Art+Design is one of ten recipients of a 2017 award by Anonymous Was A Woman. Nancy Bowen is in good company; among the other recipients is Amy Sherald, commissioned to paint the portrait of Michelle Obama for the National Portrait Gallery. Each year, the Award recognizes women over 40 who have made significant contributions in their fields to date, while continuing to create new work.  Winners are chosen from among a competitive pool of applicants recommended by a group of distinguished art historians, curators, writers, and artists who serve as anon…

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by Daily Voice
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Northern Westchester $5M Lottery Winning Couple Identified Northern Westchester $5M Lottery Winning Couple Identified
Northern Westchester $5M Lottery Winning Couple Identified It was easy for four Hudson Valley residents to offer up huge smiles when handed giant checks from the New Lottery making them the area's newest millionaires. The winners, Paul and Norma Fox of Cortlandt won $5 million playing the Mega Millions megaplier, and Katherine Lukin of West Nyack won $1 million on a Cashword scratch-off game, received their winnings during a ceremony Wednesday. Along with them was Anthony Vitolo of Wallkill in Orange County, who picked up his $10 million winnings from a luck $350 million Cash Spectacular scratch-off tickets. Lukin, who said she likes to play her f…

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by Kathy Reakes
Neighbors
Somers Leos Raise $25K For Special Olympics Somers Leos Raise $25K For Special Olympics
Somers Leos Raise $25K For Special Olympics SOMERS, N.Y. -- A group of Somers teenagers did not let the cold water stop them from raising money for a good cause.Thirty-six Somers Leos ran into the freezing cold water at Glen Island Park as part of the Special Olympics Westchester Polar Plunge Fundraiser, raising $25,000. Additionally, for his work on the Polar Plunge, Team Captain Brandon LaSpina was nationally recognized by Disney/ABC Television Group and Youth Service America with their “Be Inspired Grant” for kids and families making a positive impact in their communities. For more information, click here.

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Oh Deer: Buck Forges Westchester Waterway In Time For The Holidays Oh Deer: Buck Forges Westchester Waterway In Time For The Holidays
Oh Deer: Buck Forges Westchester Waterway In Time For The Holidays Deer are on their annual mating runs through Westchester, and a channel in Mamaroneck Harbor near Long Island Sound is no exception. Diane Eglauf of Mamaroneck captured a photo of one buck forging the channel at about 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 21. She lives in a building on the Sound. "Evidently the deer haven’t been seen doing this in quite awhile," Eglauf told Daily Voice. "Although we did see two deer a few months back waiting to cross the channel one night when we were out on our boat." "Unfortunately, I had to zoom the picture in order to see him and not the…

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by Jon Craig
Neighbors
Westchester Resident Makes Year-Round Giving Her Priority Westchester Resident Makes Year-Round Giving Her Priority
Westchester Resident Makes Year-Round Giving Her Priority At Thanksgiving, many take time to be grateful for their family, friends, and what they have. For Yorktown Heights resident Paula Miritello, Thanksgiving – and every day – is all about giving. Miritello has always been about helping others. She took care of her brother Vinny who had cerebral palsy until his death in 2000 at age 21 and then continued with charity work in her brother’s memory, raising funds for various causes from the Special Olympics to mental health groups to charities that help those with special needs.  "Although, he could not walk or talk he had the most beautiful p…

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by Vira Mamchur Schwartz
Neighbors
Cuomo Talks Turkey, Distributing Food For 32,000 Hungry New Yorkers Cuomo Talks Turkey, Distributing Food For 32,000 Hungry New Yorkers
Cuomo Talks Turkey, Distributing Food For 32,000 Hungry New Yorkers Just in time for Thanksgiving, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Monday that New York state is partnering with Walmart, Wegmans, FreshDirect and The Coca-Cola Co. this week to deliver meals to feed more than 32,000 people statewide. "New Yorkers have a long and proud history of helping neighbors in need, and Thanksgiving provides a special opportunity to give back and reflect on what we are thankful for," said Cuomo of New Castle. "I am proud to partner with these organizations to provide thousands of families throughout the state with a warm meal. I encourage all New York…

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by Jon Craig