Popular author, social commentator, podcaster, magazine editor and musician Mike Edison of Barryville will be bringing his highly entertaining Gospel from the Garage show for the second annual Charity Concert “Old Time Religion and Rock and Roll Salvation” to benefit our local food pantries.

Mike will be returning to the Barryville United Methodist Church on Saturday, November 22 at 4 p.m., for his second annual Gospel Concert, a celebration of community, freedom and protest featuring folk, blues, spirituals, and traditional story songs—many of which were written over one hundred years ago and revived by artists like Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Odetta, and the Staple Singers.

Mike will be playing electric and acoustic guitar and piano as he changes up these classic songs with rock-and-roll energy and weaves in original compositions to create an inspirational and uplifting concert experience. Last year the Gospel from the Garage Concert was packed despite a raging ice storm.

According to Mike he is committed to the concert because “now more than ever, it is time to come together to raise up our spirits and lend a helping hand to our neighbors during these tough times.” A donation of $10 is suggested and all proceeds go to our local food pantries. Refreshments will be served.

You may want to check out Mike Edison’s music including his recent “The Devil Can’t do you No Harm” on Spotify and all streaming services. For more information about Mike and his multifaceted creative work, go to mikeedison.com. The Barryville United Methodist Church is located at 3405 State Route 97 in Barryville (the site of the Barryville Farmers’ Market).

Thanksgiving is an important way for all of us to celebrate over a traditional meal with friends and family and the gratitude we feel for the blessings of the past year, but for a variety of reasons it may not be possible for everyone to cook and be with their families at Thanksgiving.

Well, a quite remarkable woman, Kesia Labuda has you covered on this. For the past 12 years Kesia, her family and volunteers have been providing a wonderful traditional home cooked Thanksgiving dinner for anyone who would like a meal—all free of charge.

Every year these fabulous folks provide between 70 and 90 Thanksgiving meals for our local neighbors. The Thanksgiving Community Dinner will take place on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 27 from noon-3 p.m. at the Lumberland Town Hall, which is transformed into a beautiful dining room for the day with flowers, tablecloths, and decorations and lots of friendly servers.

The dinner is eat in or take out and consists of all the traditional fixings—salad, turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce, stuffing, dinner rolls and a choice of a homemade dessert. They ask for planning purposes that you RSVP by calling Kesia at 845-672-3896 by Sunday, November 23 and letting her know how many meals you need—although last minute walk ins are always welcome. The Lumberland Town Hall is located at 1054 Proctor Road in Glen Spey.

Another lovely new community Thanksgiving event is planned at the very beautiful Blue Fox Motel and Restaurant in Tusten. Sponsored jointly by the Tusten Social Club and the Blue Fox there will be a free traditional Thanksgiving Lunch on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday November 27 from Noon until 3 p.m. at the Restaurant. Space is limited so please call the Restaurant at 845-252-5200 by Monday, November 24. The Blue Fox Motel and Restaurant is located at 5670 NY State Route 97 in Tusten.