Hello everyone. It’s Fran DeFilippi Kurpil on this beautiful sunny morning. It is cold but calm outside and as I was sweeping a light covering of snow off my sidewalk, the birds were singing loud and clear. Well, I thought they were singing? Maybe they were being verbal about the twenty degrees as they wait for Spring like the rest of us.

Lent: As we go through our Lenten season this year, the world is in a state of turmoil and our hope and prayers are strong. As the news centered on the situation in the Ukraine, I called a friend who I remembered had traveled there to visit family a few years ago. He said he spoke to his son who said, of course everyone is on edge.

Liberty Library: Marjorie Linko sent a great list of programs. Build A Buddy Program planned for young children (pre-K to 3rd grade) where they can make their own stuffed animals and hear some fun stories. Teen Board Game Day is after school on Monday, March 21st from 3:30 to 4:30. Grades five to twelve can drop in.

The Poetry Of Our Lives: A virtual workshop with Sullivan County Poet Laureate, Eric Baylin via zoom Thursday, March 24th from 7 - 8pm. Baylin says, “we will write poems from what we know best, our own lives”.

Senior Coffee Club starts back up on April 4th at 10:30 featuring Adrienne Jensen from the Human Rights Commission.

Cause And Effect: This book was written by Kathy Lynn Emerson who grew up in Liberty and is an LCS graduate. She now lives in Maine and will be zooming with us for our April Book Discussion. I read this fiction book and soon realized that Kathy had created an intriguing mystery murder that takes place in Libertyville or some such town. When I read a mention of Katz Bakery and Mr. Panebaker, I connected it but saw there was no factual relationship to the excitement she created. I don’t know how our Mayor feels about this book. Maybe it will inspire Mayor Stoddard to write her own mystery.

Parksville Priorities: There will be a meeting March 16th at 6:30 at the Senior Center w/zoom conference. There will be discussion on the Community Park Idea. The Silver Feather Grant deadline is April 1. Frank DeMayo, Supervisor and Nick Rusin have set up a series of workshops this month on upcoming Wednesdays. They have met with active Parksville folks and received some great ideas for the intended Park and surrounding area.

Liberty Village: I see great headway at the Theater Building and hear there is a lot of interest in store-fronts which I will follow-up. I know Krugs has had numerous inquiries and they will soon have a tenant. How beautiful and positive are Barbuti’s former store and Frankel’s as well as other new businesses. New Beer Store, up on Lake Street where Killian’s Transfer was and Chick-E-Ribs doing great at the Mall down by Hudson United Bank and the Pharmacy.

Advanced Air Mobility for NASA: A bill was passed by the U.S. House to study the fledgling industry of future Air Travel from Ventiports. The bill now heads to the Senate. NASA said there will be intense competition around the world and “America Must Win”. This means there will be greater focus on electric technology in the future. I’ll have to discuss this with my grandson, Dr. Andy Gieger who is in the Air Force and flies to hospitals around the world.

Code Enforcement: Supervisor Frank DeMayo, Sullivan Rennaisance and Village Officials met to discuss code enforcement and fines. Frank has some ideas as does Denise Frangipane and hope to come up with a strategy to deal with multiple code issues including the on-going problem of Absentee Landlords. I will see if there is progress?

Well…Onward. I was a bit lax last month with my column and, in fact, I actually had a phone call from Florida. When I answered, one of my readers said she missed my Column and had checked the Obituaries. I guess Mr. Stabbert has to line up a Liberty-ite, just in case…Ha. I’m alive and super-well. When you have four daughters and a son looking out for you…NO big worries (now that the ice is gone). If you have any Liberty information that you want to spread, send me an e-mail. Pray for our Country and the world.