The Spirit of Beacon Committee presented the agenda to the City Council and the public tonight, September 11, 2023. Listen to it here.

Beacon's highly anticipated event, The Spirit of Beacon Day, takes place on Sunday, September 24th from 11am-4pm. This event was established in 1977 in response to racial tensions between Beacon's youth and the community. As a result, various community leaders from our local churches, library, police, City Council, and others came together to figure out what to do. A solution proposed was a community day. Said one of the original backbones of the Spirit of Beacon Day, Nan Whittingham, about the origin in the Beacon Evening News in 1986: "Everyone was in agreement that we, the community, should get to know one another better. It was agreed we should learn to know each other's likes and dislikes regarding conversation, feelings, entertainment, education and food."

Come to enjoy a variety of different foods from professionals, churches and organizations, as well as get to know services available at vendor tables. Music performances at 2 stages will be going all day at the Main Stage at Veterans Place, and the secondary stage at Cross Street. The big parade kicks off at 1pm and goes down Main Street.

The day starts at 11am, where Main Street is blocked off from South Brett Street (Key Food) to Teller Avenue (Yankee Clipper Diner). Both businesses are one of our sponsors this year, and we thank them very much. It is with sponsor support that this day can get produced. Sponsors this year include:

Beacon of Lights:

Key Food
The Roundhouse
The Station
Carter's Restaurant
For the second year in a row, Beacon Recreation Department where financing of Stage and Sound at Veterans Place Stage, and the Stage at Cross Street was provided.

Mountain Sponsors:
Remark Printing
Verplanck Auto
Faust Design Build

River Sponsors:
Hudson Valley Food Hall
Rabe and Co.
Yanarella Dance
Beacon Natural
Hudson Valley Credit Union
Dennis Vetrano Law
Bar Down Studio

Spirit Sponsors:

Last Outpost
The Pink Unicorn
Feeds R Us
JonCar Realty
Sara Mikulsky Wellness Physical Therapy
Supreme Pianos of NY
Kitchen Sink
District Social
M+T Bank
Beacon Digital + Main Office Co-Work Space

FOOD
We heard from the people, and the people wanted more street food. Last year, Beacon's restaurants were so happy because people ordered and filled the tables. This year, we dedicated more vendor tables to food choices, so come prepared to eat from:

St. Rocco's
Sons and Daughters of Italy
Beacon Boi hot dogs from Paul Yeaple formerly of Poppy's
I Am Beacon
BHS Class of 2025
Pat's Yard Vibes
St. Joachim - St. John the Evangelical
Coast 2 Coast
Beacon Light Tabernacle
The Mosque Masjid Ur Rashid
Tabernacle of Christ Church
Mama Mama La's Food for the Soul
Key Food grill
Key Food fresh Kettle Corn
Tommy Empanadas
Carter's Restaurant
Single and Hungry

MUSIC
Playing on the Main Stage at Veterans Place:
The Beacon Players
School of Rock Band
GG & the Shades
The parade will roll through, and then Bosco and the Storm will kick off followed by the Beacon Rising Choir and closing out with TonyE, returning all the way from NYC for us.

PARADE
Most importantly, who will we be seeing in the parade?
So many of you, and if you haven not registered yet, please do so now! Even if you march every year, please get into our spreadsheet.
The Rombout Middle School band will be marching and playing this year.
Yanarella School of Dance
Artists on the March
Passion The Adult Dance Studio
The incredible Marching Cobras are returning this year!
As are the Highlands Bag Pipe Band.
Slater Chemical Fire Company
Beacon National Honor Society
Ballet Arts
Beacon Girl Scouts
Beacon Light Hawks Pathfinders
And others.

For our Table Vendors, lots of awareness is coming to you, and we have saved tables specially for After School Clubs of the Beacon City School District.

We saved you a spot to come out of the school and onto the street so that everyone can meet you and see the effort you bring to the students in the district.

Students for Gender Equality have signed up, and we hope more do as well.

KIDS SECTION

The Kids Section this year will include activities from Compass Arts and Kumon.

PARKING
Please tell your friends to park in the free parking lots in Beacon. These include the DMV Parking Lot, the Police Station parking lot right here at Town Hall, and down at the Train Station. Dutchess County has agreed to consider running the free Beacon Loop to help bring people up from that parking lot.

VOLUNTEERS

As for volunteers:

We need a sign painter for 2 big wooden boards.
People to pass out flyers.
People to chalk yard signs with bathroom and parking lot signs.
Stay up to date at Spirit of Beacon's website: www.spiritofbeacon.org and follow at Instagram @spiritofbeacon and on Facebook @spiritofbeaconday

HELLO BEACONITES!!!

It’s the Spirit of Beacon Day Committee writing. We are BACK. We are back for Spirit of Beacon Day 2023, the 46th year of this day all because you made it happen last year. Yes you.

The City of Beacon has granted us the permit to once again celebrate this spirit on Sunday, September 24, 2023. That gives us the summer to reach out to you, hear from you, and plan for what you want to bring to the day.

The Committee

The returning Spirit of Beacon Committee members:  Katie Hellmuth (Chair), Jeana Pearl Fletcher (Secretary), Zayed Junior Dabashi (Board Member), and Ali T. Muhammad (Board Member) and our new treasurer Jennifer Garfield-Abrams! 

Nickeya Allen-Smith is now Spirit of Beacon’s contract bookkeeper, training our committee for passing the torch for future management. We are so thankful for her and the wealth of knowledge shared from past leadership to guide us into the future.

Last year we worked with volunteer Spirit Coordinators to produce the music and entertainment portion of the day. So far, we know that Goldee Green, Bosco Michael Faison, Kimberly Dei Dolori and Melissa Shae will be returning. We are looking for other volunteers and coordinators as programming opportunities open up. Please see how to get involved below!

The Mission

The mission of the Spirit of Beacon is to connect the youth with the community. There are ample opportunities for kids of all ages in Beacon. Our mission is to make sure they know about them and have more ways to connect with them. Read about the origins of this day. All parade and vendor table applications are weighed against our mission.

This year, we are especially looking for After School Groups at all of the schools to represent at their own table. Last year, we reserved a block for this. This year, with more time to get the word out, we hope these leaders of those After School Clubs are willing and able to make the time to set up a table, so that the parents, caregivers and kids can see and touch what goes on inside of the schools.

Registration For Parade and Vendor Tables Is Open

You can now register for a spot in the Parade and for a Vendor Table. No fee. A few things to remember:

Parade:

• Is for Beacon organizations and those who serve in Beacon.

• No politicking. Politicians are not allowed to sign up to walk as an individual.

• All parade registrations must be accepted after registration application is submitted.

• Businesses in Beacon can apply for and participate in the parade.

Vendor Tables:

• This is a time for connecting kids and adults with services that enrich their lives. Tables are prioritized for non-profit organizations after school programs If you or your business do not fall in this category, there may be space for your table. Please consider donating and centering your proceedings to a Beacon organization.

How Food Vendoring Will Work

We want your bellies to be full. We are opening food vendoring in a tiered system with deadlines in order to give our non-profits and Beacon businesses priority:

Fees:
$30 Dutchess County Department of Health Food Permit
$35 Spirit of Beacon Table Non-Profit and Beacon Business Rate for Food
$100 Spirit of Beacon Table Food Vendor Rate for Businesses Outside of Beacon.
Deadlines:
First come, first serve based on tier schedule. By the time your tier comes, there might not be space available. No guarantees.

• 1st Priority Tier: Non-Profits and Churches
  Selling food on Spirit of Beacon Day has been a fundraising opportunity for the non-profits, organizations and churches.
  Fee: $35 Table Fee
  Deadline: July 1 - July 31. Don’t wait.

• 2nd Priority Tier: Beacon Businesses
  Our restaurant business friends in Beacon also really need your business. Say all you want about the tourists who come in on the weekends, but very few establishments can survive on weekend traffic alone. With local Beacon not coming out every night of the week, our local restaurants do struggle. We do want you to order from the restaurants.
  This year, Beacon restaurants and businesses can apply for a table. If you are a business (like a barber) who wants to sell food outside your establishment, you can apply.
  Fee: $35 Table Fee
  Deadline: August 1 - August 16. Don’t wait. If space is available by then.

• 3rd Priority Tier:
  If we don’t fill up on food vendors with the first two priority tiers, then food vendors who are businesses and not on Beacon’s Main Street can apply.
  Fee: $100 Table Fee
  Deadline: August 17 - August 31.

Volunteer Opportunities

Throughout the summer, we will post different volunteer opportunities. Most of these will happen in September, as we get closer to The Day. This Committee operates mainly by text. We have lots of group text meetings. We have families and jobs and commitments that make meeting in person very difficult for us.

Right now, we are looking for a Spirit Coordinator for Social Media (in Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok). This person can be well versed in one of these platforms, or all. We can work with volunteers who are good in different platforms.

Register to be a Volunteer here.

Sponsor Opportunities

OMG. We had very little in the bank for 2022, and our business sponsors revived us. THANK YOU. Sponsorship for 2023 will open shortly. We need to do a big Thank You celebration post and social media celebration for our 2022 sponsors first.

The Logo Color

New year, new colors! Continuing with the Tradition. Kim Dei Dolori designed such a cool logo that you all loved and will be available for sale. Volunteers get their own shirts for FREE. Show up and show off Beaconites!

We are looking forward to seeing you on Sunday, September 24, 2023 for the 46th year of this day. We will be in touch with some of you sooner if you sign up for volunteer opportunities.

Look for more updates here at the Spirit of Beacon Day website!

Original Color T-Shirts and Hats Still Available! Limited Supply

Yes, the OG t-shirts are still for sale! Limited supply. Hats also. Click here to shop our store. Free local pickup available.

YES. Spirit of Beacon Day 2023 is happening!! We ducked under the water after completing the comeback 2022 for the first time, and we are opening 2023. Same Committee. Same Energy.

There will be new volunteer opportunities. New table opportunities. New food opportunities. And new colors of the logo!

Those who volunteer will have a new opportunity to get this exclusive Volunteer shirt. Thank you SO MUCH to our 2022 sponsors who made this possible. We could not have done it without you.

Finalizing the musical lineup for the Main Stage at Veterans Place with these two! Goldee Green has been an integral part of this Spirit of Beacon Day, pushing the planning details along every day with Katie James, Inc. and A Little Beacon Blog!

A reporter by nature (you’ve read her articles in the Beacon Free Press) she is the front woman for her band GG and the Shades, is a teacher, and producer. She was one of the first Spirit Coordinators we could pay this year for her hard work, thanks to our donors and sponsors.

Bosco we are blessed with to use his stage and tents as he has lent in years past. This year, the City of Beacon is paying him to rent the stage, tents and sound and Bosco will be running sound and performance transitions on the day. Bosco and the Storm will be closing the day with their energetic performance - despite the heavy lifting they are doing to set up the stage and keep everyone running smoothly!

Releasing the musical lineup to you soon!

Former Mayor Randy Casale has accepted the Spirit of Beacon Committee’s humble request for him to be this year’s Spirit of Beacon’s Grand Marshall of the Parade, for our 45th year!

Randy Casale is a Beaconite who served the City in various ways, including as Beacon’s Highway Superintendent for 16 years, City Council member, and as Beacon’s Mayor. Randy told a friend once that he always wanted to be the Mayor of Beacon. That is how deep his commitment to the city was and is. Randy will always let you know what he thinks, and while your debate with him may get spirited, you will both know where you stand. Next day, friends again. As Mayor, Randy may have pursued a direction, but after he heard from the public who attended City Council Meetings to voice their opinions during Public Comment sessions, Randy was known to change his position based on his constituents.

Today, Randy has not slowed down. He can be spotted walking all over this city, and currently works in the The Roosevelt Bar. We only took a minute of his time to get his acceptance as he was preparing for a Friday evening behind the bar, serving the weekend crowd. Thank You Randy!

Making the Table arrangements now! Jeana is using her landscape architecture skills to modify the Table Map, and has added color coding (joy) and porta potty locations.

She will be helping vendors on the day to find their spot. Vendors bring their own table, chairs and tents. Have you registered yet? We know! Time is ticking. Even A Little Beacon Blog hasn’t registered yet, but just did. Highlands Current was on it early. St. Rocco’s just registered, and Slater Chemical just register.

After School Clubs: we REALLY want you to have your own tables! Like Kaleidoscope, Drama, Textile, etc. Lets everyone see how awesome you are!

Yay to everyone who registered so far. Still open.

See you Sunday September 25, 2022 from 11-4pm

Met with the Chiefs of the City of Beacon (Police and Fire) and Lieutenant Walden and City Administrator Chris White to catch up on coordination for this Big Day — to visualize where the parade participants need to pull up on Wolcott.

The Police team were excited to use their fancy and fun Smart Board to pull up the Google Map. Felt just like we were in the elementary schools (have read to the kindergartners), who also love their Smart Boards for showing all the things.

We’re going to make you a map so that parade participants can see where to pull up! City Administrator tried to duck out of photo, but we got him! He was there!

Sunday, September 25th, 2022. Tell your friends!

Pictured: Chief Sans Frost pointing, and Lieutenant Jason Walden reinforcing street closure plans. Spirit of Beacon’s Treasurer and Spirit Coordinator Nickeya Allen is seated right, and Fire Chief Gary VanVoorhis is seated back.

Thanks team, Katie James, Inc., for making these detail maps!

Beacon’s Main Street in the fall, at the base of Mount Beacon.
Photo Credit: A Little Beacon Blog

With all of the new people moving to Beacon, and for the Beacon originals who were born here, moved away and returned, we felt that the time was calling for a revisit on what the Spirit of Beacon Day is, and why it started in 1977.

It is a day calling for peace by celebrating getting to know each other, after days of racial unrest occurred in 1977 between teens at the Beacon High School, and the community.

According to the History: “It was during the winter and early spring of 1977 that, for several days and nights, racial problems became severe. The Sheriff’s department was called into the community to help bring the situation under control. A community meeting was held at the Howland Library with the following present: Edward Schuler, local legislators, Dutchess County Youth Bureau, Mayor Robert Cahill, the Beacon City Council, representatives of the clergy and also agencies involved with youth. The evening was spent discussing the cause of the problems and ways to possibly prevent them.”

Meetings were held with different groups: “Victor Russo, a representative from the F.B.I.’s Community Relations, also attended the meetings and spent a great deal of time talking to people and youth on the streets of the community trying to discover ways that the problems might be resolved. At the smaller meetings, with representatives from the Mayor, City Council, Beacon School System, the Beacon Community Center (NSO), Howland Library, Chamber of Commerce, Dutchess County Youth Bureau, Concerned Citizens Group (Frances McNair), clergy and community people, lengthy discussions were held concerning the problem.”

And so, as a solution, the creation of a “Community Day” commenced. "This was to be a day to bring the City together, especially the children and youth. All were in agreement that the community should get to know one another better, learn to know what each other liked in conversation, feelings, entertainment, education and food,” according to the history.

The Theme For 2022: “The Origin Story”

Inspired by super hero movies and fairy tale shows that the kids have been watching, we thought this workable inspiration for the schools to design their floats or marches around, and for other groups to work this into their offerings as well.

Spirit of Beacon Day:
The Origin Story

When Gwenno James put the plea out for people to serve on the volunteer-based Spirit of Beacon Day Committee, the community rallied. Gwenno had accepted a job that required her to travel, and the rest of the committee was not ready to fill her shoes.

She emailed a press release to the media seeking help, and then made a presentation at City Council echoing her call. Katie Hellmuth Martin of the local media source A Little Beacon Blog saw the press release and presentation, and emailed Gwenno right away, to the effect of: “I am interested - but this is a huge time commitment and I need to think about it, but I’m very interested.”

Later, after A Little Beacon Blog published the article amplifying Gwenno’s search for a replacement, Katie emailed Gwenno with certainty that she wanted to fill the role, and asked for Gwenno’s consideration. Katie wasn’t alone in her desire to see the Spirit of Beacon Day through. Junior (Zayed) Dabashi of Key Food and Ali T. Muhammad, Community Organizer also wrote in, as did various members of the public for volunteer roles.

Gwenno accepted Katie’s offer, and Katie reached out to Junior and Ali to join the Committee as Board members, as well as to Nickeya Allen Smith formerly of Beacon and now in Poughkeepsie. Their work as a new Committee began with a presentation to City Council to announce the Committee and theme. Katie’s speech is below:

---

Gwenno, thank YOU so much for stepping up years ago when the former committed group stepped aside after years of service. They passed down a smooth process for you to follow, and you have give us that, with enhancements you made to it.

Thanks to your leadership, the Spirit of Beacon Day has a website, online registration, an Instagram and Facebook account, and spirit. During the height of the pandemic, you and your committee produced alternative versions of the day to keep the spirit alive, with the video and car parade, and honestly, that sounded like the hardest job.

During that time, when the pandemic blossomed into the racial reawakening across the United States and even in Beacon, NY, I started covering the protests down Main Street that marched to Memorial Park and Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park to listen to people's stories during the open mike sessions.

As a reporter, I got out of my comfort zone and spoke with neighbors I had never spoken to before, heard their stories about their lives in Beacon, and reflected.

In 2020, when September rolled around, I thought the Spirit of Beacon Day was the perfect time to kaleidoscope this. To shine the light on the origins of why the Spirit of Beacon Day was created in 1977.

According to the Beacon Centennial - which by the way was published by a committee of which Gwenno was the Chair and several Spirit of Beacon Day Committee Members also served on that publishing Committee -

the Spirit of Beacon Day started due to "racial overtones." I'll read from a Beacon Evening News article from 1986: "Nan Whittingham, the backbone of the Spirit of Beacon Day for a good part of its history, recalled how and why the event was initiated and how many community organizations worked together in an attempt to end racial problems in the city."

She said that "for a number of years, students from Beacon High School and the community were having some problems with racial overtones. It was during the winter and early spring of 1977 that for several days and nights racial problems became more severe."

As a response, several groups met to discuss the cause of the problem, and ways to prevent them. It was decided that having everyone get together to get to know each other was the best way to understand these tensions.

That is exactly what Beacon has been doing ever since, now more than ever. For September's 2020, I thought it a perfect opportunity to dive deeply into the origin story of the Spirit of Beacon Day, but we were mandated to not have parades. So the live parade took a 2 year hiatus.

But now that we're back, after initial talks with this new Committee, we bring to you the theme for this year - the 45th year:

Spirit of Beacon Day:
The Origin Story

Inspired by super hero movies and fairy tale shows that the kids have been watching, we thought this workable inspiration for the schools to design their floats or marches around, and for other groups to work this into their offerings as well.

When I volunteered to Chair the Spirit of Beacon Day, it was important to me to keep these roots alive and nourished. Part of doing that is bringing new people into new opportunities.

I am so humbled and excited to introduce to you the committee members:

Nickeya Allen Smith is our Treasurer. Doing business as Millennial Matriarch, she provides services to businesses and nonprofits in setting up their entities and maintaining requirements. She is a homeschooler, and now part of Little Water Prep, the first Charter School in Dutchess County. She is tapped into Black communities here in Beacon as well as Poughkeepsie. She's a member of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Wappingers Falls.

Junior Dabashi is our Board Member. He is the co-owner of the family-owned business Key Food and produces numerous business events for the communities he is in. He is tapped into Muslim communities in Beacon and Wappingers Falls.

Ali T. Muhammad is our Board Member. He is an organizer, advocate, and former City Council Member for Beacon. He will doing outreach and coordination for parade and vendor registrations, serving as a liaison with the Beacon Police as we maintain coordination, and will be helping to curate the musical lineup for the day. He is tapped into Black and Muslim communities in Beacon and Newburgh.

Rueben Simmons is not on the Board, but is serving an important role of helping us an advisor to the parade coordinator. Reuben works for the Highway Department of the City of Beacon, and was formerly its Highway Superintendent.

As for myself, I have been reporting on the Spirit of Beacon Day Parade for years, and as a Beacon resident of 12 years, I have been attending the parade. For the last few parades, I volunteered to lead the production of South Avenue Elementary's float when it was live, and the car version last year.

This gave me empathy for the parents who produce these floats. My job involved organizing little kids, an art teacher, and parents. Everyone had a great time. I also organized South Avenue's Trunk or Treat last year with 25 decorated cars for a very fun Halloween night.

At the school level, we appreciated the stipend Gwenno's Spirit of Beacon Day Committee afforded us for the first time to contribute to the float and person decorations, since the PTA and school budgets are limited, buying things for floats is necessary.

Here tonight in the audience is Brandon Lillard, serving as a documentarian of this year's production of the Spirit of Beacon Day. He is also a podcaster for I Am Beacon's "This Is Beacon," as well as A Little Beacon Blog's podcast "What What Is That?" Both podcasts are looking to interview people for their histories and stories of the Spirit of Beacon Day and this community, so please, those who are listening out there, reach out to us with yours.

Moraya Seeger DeGeare is here tonight in the audience. She will be one of hopefully many speakers who will open our memories up to life in Beacon throughout the past generations, as known to her through her life, as her grandparents are Pete and Toshi Seeger, and her father worked for the City of Beacon. She just produced a July 4th chalk-in protest event yesterday which also celebrated the upcoming Pete Seeger United States Stamp that she has been working to release.

One of the different things we are doing this year is to continue the lead from the last Committee to incorporate the Businesses more. When I had a storefront office on Main Street, and when I speak to fellow business owners, I see first hand that the businesses are on the front lines of dealing with kids of all ages. All of our kids. Helping in these relationships as their employers or if kids are buying from them, or just hanging out.

Our intention is not to commercialize the day, but to go out to speak to the business owners to get their feels on how to be better incorporated.

Important to us as a Committee is also helping the attendees experience the full Mile of Main Street. We hope to do this by having destinations open that aren't normally open, like the Beacon Farmers Market. I believe that in years past, contractually, the Beacon Farmers Market has had to be closed. I speak for Junior and the rest of the Committee to say that we very much would love to have the Famers Market open, to help the flow of people up that direction of Main Street.

Additionally, perhaps something on the other end of Main Street - the East End - would become available as well to help the flow of people go toward the mountain to experience the cultural there as well through the food, galleries, and boutiques.

We look forward to discussing these ideas with you.

Fundraising is vital for us right now. This day takes at minimum $10,000 to produce, and we have $1,000 in the bank. We are going to open a Go Fund Me, as well as add ways to donate onto the website. We would like to have a cushion, so that we are not at the bottom of the bank account at the end of the parade, and so that we can provide stipends to those in need.

Volunteer positions will have a signup on the website as well, and we will start coordination meetings and a newsletter to keep volunteers in the loop.

Everyone can stay in touch with the Spirit of Beacon Day through our website:

www.spiritofbeacon.org

Instagram: @spiritofbeaconday

Thank you so, so much for accepting our Permit Application, and for the City's help in years past with Trash Pickup and Police Presence to help us safely close the streets and keep the people safe.

And finally, thank you, City Council, Mayor, Assistant to the Mayor, and City Administrator, for all of the work, homework, and presenting that you do. I speak as a person who tunes in each Monday via your live YouTube stream. I value the live cast, so thank you for working out how to keep it.

We are taking our crews home after this, but once I get them settled in with snacks, I'll be turning back in to the live stream.

Have great evenings.

The Spirit of Beacon Committee has been meeting online during the Covid lock-down and discussing how we can show our community spirit and support each other in our community during this time. We are following closely all the health and safety guidelines from the CDC and governmental bodies.

We are also reaching out to folks across the city to hear their thoughts and ideas as we coordinate “Spirit 2020”. If you would like to share your feedback with us, please email : spiritofbeacon@gmail.com.

New volunteers have joined the Spirit of Beacon Day committee to carry the torch forward into its 41st year. Following an announcement made in 2017 that the Spirit committee would be stepping down after running the parade for many years, local residents have stepped up from across the community to continue the tradition.

A meeting was held at the Howland Public Library on March 8th to start planning for 2018. Present were honorary guests including members of the previous Spirit committee, who shared information and gave their support, alongside new committee members.

“We look forward to following in the footsteps of the Spirit of Beacon Day’s founding mission, which is noted as “A day to bring the City together, especially the children and youth....the community should get to know one another better, learn to know what each other likes in conversation, feelings, entertainment, education and food”, said Gwenno James, who has stepped in as committee Chair...”We are all so grateful for the dedication and efforts of the previous committee, who have organized this event for many years, we thank in particular Rose Story, Roy Cianncanelli, Diane Sedore, Tony Lassiter and Bob Outer.”