Collections of photos from community events and happenings in February taking place in Bedford, Lewisboro, Pound Ridge and Mount Kisco. This page will be updated throughout the month as new photo galleries are added. ICE’s actions draws more protesters Photos by Rob Cummings January 10 — Over 600 people swelled the Saturday protest in Mount Kisco from its usual 100-150 weekly participants. The Saturday protest has been ongoing in Mount Kisco since it started as a Tesla protest over federal spending cuts in February. This week, many carried signs decrying the fatal shooting of a Minnesota woman by an ICE officer.

Rescue Right/Northwind Kennels was the scene of a fire that destroyed one building in December. Bedford fire department photo Kennel operator can’t own or rescue animals for one year By JEFF MORRIS  The years-long court case against Penny Berk, owner of Rescue Right and Northwind Kennels in Bedford, appears to have finally come to an end. In Mount Kisco Town Court on Thursday, Jan. 22, Berk appeared shortly after 6 p.m. with her attorney, Anthony Siano, before Judge Mark Farrell, and agreed to an “Order and Conditions of Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal.” The agreement stipulates that “if the defendant fails to comply with the terms and conditions,” the matter will be “placed back on the regular calendar for further proceedings.” Under the terms of the agreement, Berk must, within 90 days, remove any and all rescue animals which are still housed in the facility of Rescue Right in Bedford. “Failure to do so will be considered a violation of the Agreement,” it said. “Defendant will be allowed to place for adoption any and all animals which are still housed, as of January 22, 2026 at Rescue Right, which is owned by the Defendant.” The agreement goes on to state that for one year, “the defendant will forbear accepting or procuring by any means any Rescue Animals, including and not limited to Dogs and Cats.” It says she will not own any rescue animals or place any for adoption for a period of one year, and Rescue Right will be inspected “by members of the Agriculture & Markets Agency throughout the one-year period.” Berk had been on two dockets, as a result of having been arrested twice on a total of seven counts of animal cruelty. The agreement states, “Both of the Dockets will be placed on the Court calendar every 90 days for control purposes. If there are no violations of the agreement within the first 6 months of this agreement the People will join in the Application for a 6 Month Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal. All terms and conditions will remain in effect during the period of the Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal.” After being asked by Farrell whether she agreed to each of the stipulations, Berk answered “yes.” She then signed the agreement. Deputy Bureau Chief Philip Mellea of the Westchester District Attorney’s Office said that as long as they have proof of compliance, there is no need for Berk to appear in court April 23, which will be the 90-day control date. She doesn’t need to appear again until six months is up, in July. This was accepted by the defendant, and the session came to an end. It was all over by 6:15. The quick resolution was in stark contrast to the amount of time it took to reach it.  Berk was charged by the SPCA Westchester Humane Law Enforcement Unit with five counts of animal cruelty in July 2024, and with another two counts in November of that year. The charges traced back to the discovery of a Bernese mountain dog and five of her puppies, all suffering from distemper, in October 2023, and the discovery that same month of two cattle dog/Australian shepherds also suffering from distemper. All of the animals had to be euthanized. In all cases, it was alleged that the dogs could have been saved if they had received proper medical treatment in a timely manner, but that Berk had failed to provide such care. The SPCA investigation took months before charges were brought, and delays, postponements, a change of venue and a town justice’s recusal followed. It was at a May 1 appearance that the District Attorney’s Office proposed a deal, under which Berk would plead to a count on the five-point docket, with the other docket being dismissed. She would receive one year of probation, and would have to divest ownership of both Northwind Kennels and Rescue Right within nine months. Siano requested time for his client to review the offer; court dates were then scheduled and again repeatedly adjourned, though Siano said he did not request the delays.  The agreement that was finally agreed to is noticeably different from the one originally proposed. Most noticeably, it does not mention divesting ownership. The last adjournment came in December, just days after a two-alarm fire destroyed a Northwind Kennels building, forcing the relocation of a number of rescued dogs.  That incident was illustrative of a palpable divide within the community that has persisted between Berk’s supporters and her detractors. Berk posted on social media on the day of the fire, saying they had a total of “44 dogs between rescue dogs and boarders.” But others posted that her count was inaccurate, claiming there were many more dogs.  People have also made allegations of abuse and neglect online, but others defended Berk, recounting her generosity and their good experiences adopting pets from her. That divide was on display after last week’s court date, as a group of Berk loyalists, gathered around her car in the court parking lot, were heard being confronted by a man emerging from court who shouted, “Shame! Shame!” He was met by shouts from the group, calling her critics “weirdos” and “cross-dressers.” One allegation that has been made is that Berk was falsely claiming donations to Rescue Right were tax-deductible. Documentation on the IRS website shows that Rescue Right was granted tax-exempt status on March 6, 2020, but that the 501(c)(3) status was revoked on May 15, 2021, and was never reinstated.  In an email sent to a Bedford resident in November, George Hlapatsos, Westchester’s Chief Assistant District Attorney, said he was able to advise “that the Attorney General’s Office very recently confirmed to the DA’s Office that its investigation into some of Ms. Berk’s financial activities is continuing independently of the proposed disposition of the pending criminal charges and remains active at this time.” The Recorder has made repeated attempts to learn the status of any investigation by the state Attorney General’s Office, but the response has been that they are “aware and reviewing the matter” and “don’t have anything to share at the moment.” Editor's note: This story was updated to remove "plea deal" from the headline. Berk did not enter a plea and might have the case dismissed if she follows the terms of an agreement.

Blind Charlie’s in Scotts Corners is opening as the Brunch House. THANE GRAUEL PHOTOS Brunch House owner Leon Nokaj. By THANE GRAUEL A Scotts Corners mainstay for pancakes, eggs and burgers has flipped. Leon Nokaj, who runs an eatery about 20 miles northwest in Mahopac called the Brunch House, said he bought Blind Charlie’s Cafe late last week from Billy Fortin. His family has wasted no time reoutfitting the space for its second location of the Brunch House. On Wednesday, tarps covered tables and the smell of fresh paint was in the air. They hoped to be open again by today, Friday. Nokaj’s son, Tim, was running the restaurant last week, still serving the old menu until the shutdown for painting and minor remodeling. He let customers, who have 24 years of memories at 74 Westchester Ave., take home the now-outdated Blind Charlie’s ceramic mugs as keepsakes. People are often sad to see a regular spot close down, but Nokaj was reassuring. “A lot of good stuff,” he said of the new menu. “They’re gonna love it.” The Brunch House in Mahopac offers eggs of all kinds including Florentine and Benedict, a wide variety of pancakes, crepes, omelettes, fried chicken and waffles, and some vegan choices. The Nokaj family might be new to Pound Ridge, but their regulars in Putnam County left dozens of posts on the restaurant’s Facebook page with well wishes and congratulations.

Julian Pedreyra of HG/JJ and Hank Hearon of Fox Lane chase after the puck. Henry Millhon of HG/JJ scores in close against Fox Lane’s Gavin Willman. Fox Lane’s Greg Soderberg and HG/JJ Riley McMahon collide at center ice. Jim MacLean Photos By JIM MACLEAN  One look at the benches for the start of the Horace Greeley/John Jay vs. Fox Lane ice hockey game Saturday, Jan. 31, at the Brewster Ice Arena, and you could tell it could be a long night for the Foxes. Horace Greeley/John Jay (HG/JJ) came in on a roll, having a great year with only two losses, and the team was fired up for senior night with a full lineup on the bench. Fox Lane has struggled to get its full lineup on the ice, and the Foxes had just five extra skaters on the empty bench. That depth made the difference as HG/JJ put on a team effort with eight different players scoring a goal to pull away for an impressive 11-4 victory to improve to 11-2 on the season. “A good team win, we stayed out of the box, got to play all our lines, everyone played well on defense, our goalie played well, we have a lot of people scoring the last few games, a good balanced attack,” said HG/JJ coach Alex Lichorat. “They were short on numbers, they’re a better team than the score indicated. They played Pawling to a one-goal game, so they were definitely missing players today. Our seniors stepped it up on senior night.” It didn’t help that Fox Lane had played the night before and suffered a one-goal loss against Pawling, a team that defeated HG/JJ earlier in the season and is one of the top teams in the sectional standings. The back-to-back games against two strong teams with an empty bench took its toll on the Foxes. “We’ve played much better than our record shows,” explained Fox Lane coach Tom McGinn. “We had our entire roster last night and it was a very different game. We took a lead into the third period against Pawling and ended up losing by one. Then we go to this game and we had 10 skaters, it’s exhausting. I give a lot of respect to our kids. They were skating, keeping their heads up, they played with pride and heart, they play classy hockey. End of the day we can be proud of ourselves when we leave the rink.” Fox Lane actually came out strong and took the lead as Greg Soderberg scored off an assist from Hank Hearon, but then Riley McMahon and Bredan Asta took over the rest of the first period for HGJJ. McMahon scored to even it up at 1-1 off assists from Asta and Sebastian Marinucci, and a minute later McMahon scored again off another assist from Asta to give HG/JJ the lead. Asta then scored off assists from McMahon and Gio Pelosi to make it 3-1, and Austin Llewellyn scored off an assist from Asta to make it 4-1 at the end of the first period. In the second period, HG/JJ got three more goals from three different goal scorers as Julian Pedreyra, Freddie Gross and Andy Ji each scored a goal to make it 7-1 heading into the third period. Henry Millhon opened the third period with an unassisted goal to make it eight-straight unanswered goals for HG/JJ, but Hearon was able to score less than a minute later for Fox Lane to make it 8-2. Millhon was just getting started as he scored the next two goals to complete a hat trick in the third period alone, with Asta recording his fourth assist of the game on Millhon’s third goal. Ryan Marcus then scored to make it an 11-2 lead for HG/JJ. Fox Lane kept skating and the Foxes finished strong as Frank Mieras and Calvin Metzger each scored a goal to make the final score 11-4. Less than 24 hours before the loss to HG/JJ, Fox Lane was on the ice at Brewster against Pawling and almost pulled off the upset before the Tigers prevailed with a 4-3 victory. Alek Shkeli had a big night for Fox Lane as he led the way with two goals. Shkeli scored the first two goals of the game to give the Foxes an early lead, and Hearon added the third goal. McGinn credited goalie Dylan Motilal for a big game in net to keep the Foxes in it until the end. “We played possibly our best game of the season, came out full swing, the kids were fired up and ready to play,” McGinn said of the Pawling game. “We played a good, smart physical game of hockey, a competitive game the whole way through. Hank has been our leading scorer the last two years and he’s just very consistent for us, and Dylan stands on his head and gives us an opportunity to be in every game.” For HG/JJ, it was the fifth-straight win and the team has been on fire scoring 52 goals in those five victories, but Lichorat knows this is a big test ahead facing Rivertowns on Feb. 6, Brewster/Yorktown/Somers/North Salem (Bisons) on Feb. 7, and then Pawling on the road Monday, Feb. 9. “We’re playing well, but next week is a really big week,” said Lichorat. “Three really good teams in four days, and the Bisons and Pawling are the two teams that beat us.”

Kathryn Becker of John Jay gets off a shot in semifinal victory. Jim MacLean photo Marcie Maurice of John Jay controls for the Avalanche. Violet Fishlin of Fox Lane clears for the Avalanche. By JIM MACLEAN  Almost an hour after the puck first dropped, it was finally decided, an overtime thriller to decide the Section 1 girls ice hockey championship between the top-seeded East Green Wave and the second-seed North Avalanche on the ice Friday, Jan. 30, at Sport-o-Rama in Monsey. Unfortunately, someone would have to go home as the loser and one team would be crowned as champion, and that was the East Green Wave made up of girls from southern Westchester County. It was a tough loss for the North Avalanche, including a trio of girls from John Jay and Fox Lane, but the team left it all on the ice in the title game. The Avalanche won the title last year, so the girls know what it feels like to be on the winning end, and they knew it would be a tough challenge this year against the East Green Wave, a team they had lost to three times already. They were the underdogs, but they played one of their best games of the season and almost pulled it off. John Jay freshman Marcie Maurice has been a two-year starter on the team and was busy in the finals on defense against a strong East Green Wave attack. John Jay junior Kathryn Becker is an alternate captain and another key contributor for the Avalanche. Fox Lane junior Violet Fishlin also contributes and was part of the championship team last year. The two teams met again in the first round of the state tournament with the East Green Wave pulling away for an 8-1 victory as the Avalanche closed out the season after playing a tough schedule against teams from upstate New York and Connecticut, and five games against the Section 1 champs. “We always play a tough schedule against the top teams in Connecticut, and playing at that level helps us grow each and every game,” said Avalanche coach Stacey Wierl. “Marcie is such a talent, we are so lucky to have her for the last two seasons. As equally as talented as she is, she’s just a wonderful person. Kathryn, as our only junior captain, she brings a level of leadership, a never let down mentality, she raises our level of play and just keeps the team together in the locker room.” To get to the championship game, the North Avalanche hosted the Rockland Rockies in the semifinals on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at the Brewster Ice Arena. The Avalanche cruised to an 8-0 victory behind a strong team effort. “We really wanted to get back to the championship game,” said Becker. “We definitely had a tough schedule this year, but I think we showed a lot of growth. Playing the same teams we played earlier in the year, our scores kept getting better. The team was really starting to gel.” Becker had an assist in the semifinal win, while Maurice had some fun playing on offense as she scored a goal and had an assist. Maurice provided a highlight play as she won the puck in the defensive zone and carried the puck up ice, feeding a perfect pass to Francesca Brucato for the goal. Brucato and River Salisbury each finished with two goals to lead the Avalanche to the victory. “It felt great, so much fun to make a connection like that with my teammate,” Maurice said of the play in the semifinals. “It all starts in the locker room, we’re so close and it’s so fun to play on this team and get to know the girls from different schools. I just love the sport, my two older brothers and my dad all play, so I spent my childhood at the rink and love every minute of it.” While winning is nice, it is more than the wins and losses as the team provides an opportunity for girls in Northern Westchester and Putnam County to play high school hockey. Fishlin summed it up as the Fox Lane junior expressed her feelings about competing with the Avalanche. “It’s so amazing, such a supportive environment on and off the ice,” Fishlin said of the season. “I’ve made some of my best friends in the world on this team. They support me through everything and I love them so much, such an amazing team to be a part of.”

Left, Will Broghammer fires a pass for Fox Lane. Right, Janak Bain drives to the hoop for the Foxes. JIM MCLEAN PHOTOS By JIM MACLEAN  Defense leads to offense, coaches often preach that to their team, and hard work and hustle often pays off. Fox Lane senior Janak Bain provided a perfect example of that in the fourth quarter Friday night as the Foxes played on the road at Brewster on Jan. 30. Bain came up with a block in the lane on the defensive end, and he raced down the court to finish off a fast break with a lay up on the other end. A sort of exclamation point as the Foxes pulled away for a convincing 61-35 win over the Bears. The Foxes were hustling all night long, a team effort taking control in the first quarter and finishing strong to close out the win. Bain is one of several Foxes who missed time with injuries earlier in the season, and now the roster is at full strength with leading scorer Arthur Shevick leading the way. “I’m back, and I was feeling great tonight,” admitted Bain. “We had good ball movement the whole game. They were in a zone, so we just kept finding the open man and running the floor. When they smother Arthur, we’ve just got to keep moving and keep hustling and find the open shots.” Two days earlier, the Foxes cruised to an 80-39 win at Carmel, making it two-straight wins on the road as Fox Lane improved to 8-7 overall. It was a good sign of what the Foxes are capable of doing with the full line up working together as they hope to finish strong after taking some tough losses in December. “We’ll take it, we’ve had a tough schedule and we’re slowly getting better every game,” said Fox Lane coach Mike Tomassi. “A great group of guys, working hard, battle tested and we’re finally healthy and the guys are hungry.” Shevick once again led the team in scoring finishing with a game-high 20 points, but he wasn’t the only one as Bain finished with 16 points and Ethan Mayers was also in double figures with 13 points. It was Bain early on leading the way as he scored 12 points in the first half. The Foxes trailed 10-9, but Bain scored to give them the lead and Shevick finished off the first quarter with a pair of 3-pointers to make it 17-10. The Foxes carried the momentum over into the second quarter as five different players scored. Joe Cerone opened the quarter with a hoop with Mayers, Bain, and Shevick each adding a basket for a 16-1 Fox Lane run to take charge. Chris Sanchez hit a 3-pointer, and Mayers nailed a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Foxes a 35-18 lead at the half. Sebastian Getz started off the second half with a hoop for the Foxes, but Brewster then went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead down to 37-26, but Mayers hit another 3-pointer and Shevick scored 8-straight points as the Foxes closed out the third quarter with a 51-33 lead. The Foxes shut the door on defense holding the Bears to just 2 points in the fourth quarter, and C.J. Killian closed it out with a 3-pointer for the Foxes. “Our record doesn’t really showcase how good we can be,” explained Tomassi. “We want to be a good team in February and we’re trending towards that now. We’re more balanced, we’ve got five or six guys who can really play and teams are starting to see that. Early on we were beat up and teams didn’t see our full roster.” Fox Lane hoped to carry the momentum forward with five games left on the regular season schedule. The Foxes were set to travel to Walter Panas on Feb. 4, and then host rival Horace Greeley on Friday night, Feb. 6. “One day at a time, we have to win our next practice first,” Tomassi said

(left to right) Andrew Acocella, Aidan Polese, Matija Novakovic, and Spencer Grayson had reason to smile after winning the final relay event to lead Fox Lane/John Jay to the League 3 championship. Jim MacLean photos Henry Dauterman swims breaststroke. Andrew Acocella leaps from the starting block on his way to victory in the 200-yard freestyle. By JIM MACLEAN  They saved the best for last, one final highlight to cap off a big day in the pool for the Fox Lane/John Jay combined swim squad as it pulled away to win the final event of the day in the 400-yard freestyle relay. And then the team celebrated as the final team scores were announced and Fox Lane/John Jay was officially crowned as the Section 1 League 3 champions Saturday, Jan. 31, at the Ardsley Middle School pool. In the 400-free relay, Andrew Acocella started it off and took the lead, followed by Aidan Polese and Matija Novakovic, with Spencer Grayson swimming the anchor leg and touching the wall in first place with a time of 3:19.4, a full 12 seconds ahead of the second-place finishers. “We wanted it pretty bad, and we’re pretty happy with that time,” admitted Grayson after the race. “Our best time by almost nine seconds, so we feel pretty good going into sectionals and I think we can make the state cut, just missed it by a second.” Ryan Loveless takes off for the start on his way to victory in the backstroke. It wasn’t just the final relay coming up with a big swim, as the Fox Lane/John Jay team piled up a final score of 424 points overall, far ahead of second-place AHEDI (Ardsley, Hastings, Edgemont, Dobbs Ferry and Irvington) with 388 points, and the rest of the eight-team field. “It was an amazing meet, we came in thinking we would get second, but the boys came up with great swims from a lot of kids and it all adds up,” said John Jay coach Suzanne Guziek. “The focus was just make the cut for sectionals, so this was an amazing surprise, and the team is so excited. The relays came up big and those points really add up.”  Spencer Grayson competes in the Individual Medley Fox Lane coach Laurie Kelleher agreed that it was a full team effort to get the job done against a strong AHEDI squad that had defeated them during the dual-meet season. “I’m actually shocked, AHEDI beat us by a lot in our dual meet,” said Kelleher. “Spencer is our professional anchor, he has a way of bringing it home for everybody. That relay was a great finish, but it was a real team effort, kids getting points here and there, it was a great day.” The relay wasn’t the only first-place finish for the FLJJ team as the team had a pair of individual champions. Senior Ryan Loveless was able to win the title in the backstroke finishing first with a time of 54.87. “A great swim and I was very happy with the time, the backstroke was near the end of the meet, so I knew those points would be big to help us get first place,” said Loveless. “As a team, we’re super ecstatic, we were expecting to come in second, so winning the title by that much was just a great effort from everybody. We all put it on the line and performed great.” The highlight of the meet for FLJJ was a 1-2-3 finish in the 200-yard freestyle event. Acocella led the way in first-place as the sophomore touched the wall first with a time of 1:47.65. Polese was right behind in second-place, and Loveless was third. “I just took it out as hard as I could and held on to the end, didn’t think about the pain,” Acocella said of the 200-free victory. “We were pretty stoked for the relay, just missed the state cut, but we can get it at sectionals.” FLJJ started off the meet with a second-place finish in the medley relay as Loveless, Henry Dauterman, Jack Tsai and Grayson teamed up for second with a time of 1:40.9. The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Tsai, Novakovic, Dauterman and Polese also finished second. Grayson was second in the 100-yard freestyle, leading a trio of FLJJ swimmers in the top 10 as Polese was fourth and Carlos Fonseca was eighth. Acocella was second in the 500-yard freestyle with Ethan Sorial in sixth and Liam Bree in eighth. Bree was also 10th in the backstroke to earn points towards the team score. In the 100-yard breaststroke, Dauterman led a trio of FLJJ swimmers in the top ten as he finished third, with Andrew Cosetti in seventh and Sorial in eighth. Jack Tsai was third in the 100-yard butterfly, with Novakovic in sixth, Kevin O’Donnell in 10th and Kyle Berk in 13th place. In the 200-yard Individual Medley, Grayson was fifth, followed by Dauterman in seventh, Cosetti in 11th and O’Donnell in 12th place. And in the 50-yard freestyle sprint race, Novakovic was fifth and Fonseca was eighth to earn points for FLJJ. Now, the FLJJ team will be sending a lot of swimmers that qualified to compete in the Section 1 championships to be held on Feb. 9 and 10 at the Felix Festa Middle School pool in West Nyack.

Collections of photos from community events and happenings in February taking place in Bedford, Lewisboro, Pound Ridge and Mount Kisco. This page will be updated throughout the month as new photo galleries are added. Muscoot in the snow Photos by Rob Cummings Believe it or not, spring is six weeks away. Clockwise from top: a Scottish Highlands cow, the farm's bell, starlings and other birds atop a frozen tree and beehives in hibernation.

By MARC WOLLIN Not a day goes by that I don’t have a suspect phishing email in my inbox. While most get snagged by the built-in filters and wind up in the junk folder, invariably one or two make their way through. Usually it’s because sometime in the past I had interaction with a site or service, but gave up on them long ago. Subsequently they were hacked, their client info hit the dark web, and my identity fell into the hands of a scam center in Cambodia. The approach from them is usually in the form of a ham-handed strongarm. It might threaten to delete all my photos if I don’t contact them to update my account. Or freeze my credit card if I don’t confirm my phone number. Maybe cancel my auto insurance if I won’t verify my bank information. The tells that these are bogus are numerous: weird fonts, misspellings and old email addresses are the most obvious. That, plus the fact that the return email from PicturePerfect.com is bradxx720467@rus.ex Not suspicious at all. They all get deleted without a second thought. Experts tell us that that level of suspicion and caution is good, the correct way to view any email that we have concerns about. But it raises the question: If we view everything as a potential fake, how do we know if it’s real? That was the issue I encountered when I got an email from my bank. Or was it? It had a real-looking header and logo, along with a reference to the last four digits of one account. It said that they needed to talk with me to clear up some information, and provided a long reference code that started with “KYC,” as well as a phone number. I had two weeks to call, or else they’d have to restrict my account. Couldn’t sound more scammy if it tried, so I deleted it without a second thought. A week later a strange number popped up on my phone and I let it go to voicemail. The message in a foreign sounding voice reiterated the same request and provided the same information. Hmmmmm. A single scammer by email or phone is hardly unusual, but twice with the same info? Might it be real? Some online research was hardly conclusive, with half the people saying it was a scam, half saying it was legit. Even our vaunted AI helpers said the same: “It is highly recommended that you treat this as a potential phishing attempt, even if the number appears to be from your bank. Scammers can make their caller ID show any number, including official bank lines, and a ‘KYC update’ is a common pretext for scammers to ask for sensitive data.” Still. I decided to check by calling not the number provided, but the one on the back of my ATM card. The person on the other end asked how he could help. I told him I had no idea, they had reached out to me. He said he would check, but needed to verify my info. But now we had a sort of Mexican standoff. Even though I was the one who had called, I was leery of giving him anything, and he couldn’t help me until I did. I told him that they had my email, my phone and the last four digits of the account in question, so work with that. He suggested he text me a code, and if I read that back he could verify me. That worked, and so we were “in.” There was nothing flagged on my account, and so he transferred me to another department for more help. That associate also saw nothing. But when I read out the reference code, she jumped in: “You said KYC, correct?” Turns out that means “know your customer,” a regulatory framework whereby financial institutions need to verify account info to guard against money laundering and the like. Eventually I got to those folks, who reviewed my info, found no major issues, and bid me good day. It all begs the question, how do we know anybody? What proof is there that we are we, and they are them? In 1993 The New Yorker published Peter Steiner’s famous cartoon with the caption, “On the Internet, nobody knows you’re a dog.” Turns out that these days it’s not so easy to know if you’re a bank either. Marc Wollin of Bedford tries to keep his info safe. His column appears weekly via email and online on Substack and Blogspot as well as Facebook, LinkedIn and X.

BEDFORD Tip jar thief  On Thursday, Jan. 29, at 7:47 p.m., a restaurant in Katonah reported a customer stealing money from a tip jar. The customer was observed reaching into the jar and removing cash after placing his food order, which he paid for in cash. The store owner preferred to not press charges but said the man could not return. Police recognized him and went to his home in Bedford Hills where he confessed and returned the money.  Monday, Jan. 26 4:09 p.m. — A Bedford man called the police thinking someone was inside the house. Police spoke to his spouse who said medication the man is taking has caused him to hallucinate. They checked the home to assure him no intruders were there. She said they had a medical appointment the next day and would address the issue to avoid unnecessary police visits.   4:34 p.m. — The owner of a Sierra pickup parked on Bedford Road,Bedford Hills, reported a small portion of her back window was broken during a snow removal operation. A report was made for insurance.    Tuesday, Jan. 27 3:05 p.m. — A private plow operator reported a public works employee who he said yelled at him for pushing snow into the roadway in Bedford Hills. The plow operator maintained he was pushing the snow across the road, not into it. The public works employee was no longer on scene. A report was made to document the argument.   Wednesday, Jan. 28 8:58 a.m. — Bedford firefighters responded to an activated fire alarm in a lavatory at the Hunting Ridge Mall, Bedford. There was no fire. Police said the alarm was set off in human error after someone smoked something in the restroom. 4:09 p.m. — Responding to a license plate reader tip, police looked for a black Ford Explorer seen in the vicinity of Bedford Center Road and Succabone Road; the operator is wanted on a Port Chester warrant. Police were unable to locate.   6:54 p.m. — Police went to a residence on Nightingale Road, Katonah, after a woman reported her boyfriend wouldn’t let her in the house. The boyfriend said he was an “ex” and showed police paperwork for her eviction dated November 2025. The woman claimed she didn’t know she’d been evicted and asked permission to enter to collect her belongings. This happened and she left. A New York state domestic incident report was completed for him.  Thursday, Jan. 29  11:09 a.m. — Police were unable to locate a dog reportedly struck by a car on Bedford Road, Katonah.   5:25 p.m. — In the company of the principal of Mount Kisco Elementary School, the Bedford school resource officer went to the home of a young student for a welfare check. The child appeared fine and the principal said they would be following up with the school district who requested the check.  7:04 p.m. — A Bedford Hills woman came to headquarters to report her former fiance and child’s father became angry and yelled at her over separate plans they’d made with their child following a school event they both attended. She said he followed her home and threatened to take their daughter. He did not respond to police calls or texts. A voicemail was left for him and a New York state domestic incident report was completed on her behalf.  Friday, Jan. 30    5:08 p.m. — A male, 63, from Rye, was safely released after being stuck in an elevator at a dental office on Bedford Road, Bedford Hills. Police found him stuck on the third floor. Bedford Hills firefighters arrived and released him.   7:58 p.m. — A Bedford Hills man came to headquarters to report his former girlfriend who remains his current roommate. He said for several months she has been going through his phone and has been contacting his ex-girlfriends. He expressed concern about ways she might retaliate if forced to move out. A New York state  domestic incident report was completed and he was provided with resources to remedy the situation.    Saturday, Jan. 31 3:56 p.m. — A caller in Bedford Hills reported no water was flowing from their faucets. The water department was notified.   3:16 p.m. — A caller in Katonah reported sandy grit and dirty water coming from their faucets. The water department was notified.   6:25 p.m. — The loss prevention officer at Kohl’s in Bedford Hills reported a man who stole a hoodie and a pair of sneakers from the store and left on foot. Police looked for him but didn’t find him. The store said it didn’t care to press charges. A report was made documenting the incident.   Sunday, Feb.  1 1:46 p.m. — A woman brought to headquarters documents she found in a plastic bag inside the trunk of a car she’d recently purchased from a private seller via an auto auction. Police said the documents included fraudulent passports, three fraudulent driver’s licences, five credit cards and five checks. All items appeared consistent with identity fraud. The documents were logged in as found property.   4:59 p.m. — A brown Labrador type of dog was reported running in and out of traffic on Long Ridge Road. Police looked for it without results. LEWISBORO Surprise package  8:55 a.m. — On Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 8:55 a.m., police received a call regarding a suspicious package delivered to the doorstep of a home in South Salem. An officer spoke with a woman who said nothing showed up on the home security cameras and the package was there at least overnight. It was determined the package was a gift from the homeowner’s workplace and there was no cause for alarm.  Monday, Jan. 26 8:30 a.m. — A Mark Mead Road woman who had a conflict with her next-door neighbor about where his plower put snow brought police to intervene. While it seemed a solution was in place, police were back to the complainant’s residence five hours later when she showed them snow in front of her residence causing concern for how she would retrieve her mail without fear of falling. She expressed other frustrations with her neighbor. Police advised her these were civil matters.  9:20 p.m. — A South Salem man, 36, was taken to Northern Westchester Hospital by the Lewisboro Volunteer Ambulance Corps for a bleeding situation.  Tuesday, Jan. 27 7:30 a.m. — A South Salem man, 71, was taken to Westchester Medical Center by Westchester EMS after he fainted and fell in the bathroom.  12:37 p.m. — An elderly woman who caught her finger in her garage door at her home in South Salem, severely lacerating it, was taken by ambulance to Norwalk Hospital.  Wednesday, Jan. 28 4:00 p.m. — A school bus and a van collided when the van operator attempted to pass a bus pulled over to the side of Avery Road, Cross River, and got too close, grazing the closed stop sign on the bus driver’s side. The bus wasn’t damaged and no students were injured. Police said the only damage was to the van’s mirror.  Thursday, Jan. 29 7:50 a.m. — Police went to a home on Mohawk Trail, Katonah, for an activated burglar alarm. They were met by the homeowner who said the alarm malfunctioned.  Friday, Jan. 30 11:16 a.m. — Police went to a home on East Street, South Salem, after a young girl playing with a phone dialed 911. No further information was provided. Saturday, Jan. 31 7:30 a.m. — Police assisted a resident of  Kitchawan Road who fell out of her chair. The woman refused further attention and said she was fine.  7:45 p.m. — A fire reported on Adams Hill Road and Route 35 turned out to be unfounded.  9:20 p.m. — An officer went to check on a woman in Goldens Bridge after she posted on social media a request for someone to check on her as she was ill with the flu. She was awakened by a police officer who spoke with her for a while. They noted she appeared “under the weather.” Police returned in the morning to check on her again as her sister posted on social media a request that they do so. On their arrival they learned the woman had a friend drive her to Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla.  Sunday, Feb. 1 4:42 p.m. — Police went to the parking lot at the high school in Cross River after a woman locked herself out of her car, her young child inside. The child was unable to assist her mother as she couldn’t undo her safety seat. Mom gave police permission to open the car door. The child was fine and warmly dressed. No further action was needed.  10:33 p.m. — Police went to Conant Valley Road, South Salem, after an Amazon delivery truck was stuck in snow. A tow was called.  MOUNT KISCO Sunday, Jan. 25 6:12 p.m. — Officers responded to a report of domestic dispute on Carpenter Avenue. A man dropping off his daughter following a custody visit began screaming and cursing at the child’s mother, causing her to feel afraid and call police. The man reported he became angry when the woman would not come down from her apartment to help him with the child’s belongings. Officers verified that the dispute was verbal in nature only and allowed the man to leave. A lethality assessment form was completed and referred to domestic violence advocates for follow up. 11:07 p.m. — An officer responded to Pine Street to assist a woman who was injured and bleeding after falling. The Mount Kisco Volunteer Ambulance Corps responded to take over care and transported the woman to Northern Westchester Hospital.  Monday, Jan. 26 8 a.m. — An officer responded to Brookside Avenue on a report of a deceased man in his 70s. The man’s family was present and they and caregivers advised he had been under hospice care. The death was deemed to be of natural causes and the Medical Examiner’s Office permitted the release of the body to a funeral home. 11:37 a.m. — An officer tended to a woman who was injured in a fall on Park Drive. The Mount Kisco Volunteer Ambulance Corps also responded and took the woman to the hospital. 11:57 a.m. — A noise complaint was received regarding a woman in a West Street residence yelling and stomping in her apartment. The condition was corrected. 2:53 p.m. — An officer responded to Main Street on a report of a man sitting against a building and complaining of chest pain. The man told an officer he had been shoveling snow for much of the previous 16 hours. The Mount Kisco Volunteer Ambulance Corps responded and took him to the hospital for evaluation. Tuesday, Jan. 27 12:52 p.m. — An officer helped a man who was observed to be intoxicated on Green Street. EMS was requested to respond. 2:42 p.m. — An officer responded to Target on North Bedford Road on a report of a shoplifter detained by store security. A 45-year-old Carmel man was accused of trying to leave the store with $47 worth of merchandise for which he did not pay hidden among items he did pay for at a self-checkout lane. He was booked at the Green Street precinct on a charge of petty larceny, a misdemeanor. He was released pending a Feb. 12 appearance in village court. 3:03 p.m. — A representative of a church in the village came to the Green Street precinct to report attempted check fraud. In two recent incidents, checks mailed by the church were stolen and altered to change the name of the payee and the amount owed. In both instances, banks identified the checks, which combined for more than $30,000, as suspicious and refused to cash them. A report was prepared and the matter was turned over to detectives for continued investigation. 9:26 p.m. — A welfare check was requested on a man who was found unconscious in a rear room of a laundromat on Main Street. Officers found the man was nonresponsive and immediately began CPR. Westchester EMS responded and took over CPR and other lifesaving efforts. The man was then taken by the Mount Kisco Volunteer Ambulance Corps to Northern Westchester Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 10:23 p.m. Medical personnel reported that there were no signs of trauma to the man’s body. A review by detectives of several hours of video from the laundromat shows the man on the premises and shows no evidence of an assault or altercation among the parties present at that time. Autopsy results are pending. POUND RIDGE Wednesday, Jan. 28 8:55 a.m. — Two cars were involved in a collision on High Ridge Road. Police said one person was injured (but not taken for care by ambulance) and one car was towed.  5:35 p.m. — A driver on Salem Road was issued tickets for failure to obey a traffic device, operating a car with no valid license and no registration.   Thursday, Jan. 29 1:59 p.m. — A single-car crash on Salem Road resulted in a car being towed. No injuries were reported.  4:16 p.m. — One person was taken to Norwalk Hospital by Pound Ridge Volunteer Ambulance Corps after a two-car collision on Stone Hill Road. The other driver refused medical attention.   9:55 p.m. — A driver on Salem Road was issued two summonses for speeding 80 mph in a 30-mph zone and no insurance.  Friday, Jan. 30 10:42 p.m. — A driver on Westchester Avenue was given a ticket for speeding, travelling 54 mph in a 30-mph zone.  1:00 p.m. — A man was taken by ambulance to Northern Westchester Hospital for an unknown medical issue.  3:05 p.m. — Police assisted a man back into his chair after he fell out of it. He declined further attention.   6:30 p.m. — A caller reported ice and snow conditions on Old River Road. The highway department was notified to address the dangerous road conditions.   Saturday, Jan. 31 6:19 a.m. — A man, age and condition unknown, was taken by ambulance to Northern Westchester Hospital.  11:12 a.m. — A driver 50 mph in a 30-mph zone was ticketed on Westchester Avenue.  10:30 a.m. — Three summonses were issued to drivers on Long Ridge Road. One was for an unregistered vehicle; two more were for using mobile phones.  5:00 p.m. — A domestic incident was reported on Great Hill Farm Road. No further information was provided.  6:09 p.m. — A woman, age and condition unknown, was taken to Northern Westchester Hospital by mutual aid.   9:00 p.m. — Three summonses were issued to drivers during a radar patrol on Westchester Avenue. Two were for speeding at 47 mph and 49 mph in a 30-mph zone, and one for unregistered vehicle.   This report was made from official records provided by the Pound Ridge, Bedford, Lewisboro and county (Mount Kisco) police departments. Mount Kisco is compiled by Martin Wilbur, all others by Eve Marx.

By MARTIN WILBUR Mount Kisco’s unassigned fund balance has been markedly reduced the past two years to help pay for assorted capital projects but the village remains on solid financial footing, its most recent auditor’s report found. While the end of fiscal year 2025 fund balance stood at $2,656,087, a little more than half of the nearly 17% level that the Government Finance Officers Association recommends for Mount Kisco, there were no major red flags, said Carl Widmer, a CPA and partner at the accounting firm Drescher & Malecki, which conducted the annual audit. Mount Kisco’s fiscal year runs from June 1 through May 31. By comparison, at the end of fiscal year 2024, the village had more than $7.8 million in its unassigned fund balance, about 27% of that year’s budget, and roughly $9.9 million in mid-2023 when that year’s fiscal cycle ended, around 41%.  Widmer said the village consciously drew down its general fund to help pay for one-time projects, a strategy many municipalities use. In the fiscal year that ended May 31, 2025, the village used about $4.9 million in fund balance, all but $200,000 of which was dedicated to capital projects. The village also has lent money to the library, water and sewer funds when work in those areas needed to be done, he said. This is the first time that the village has had an unassigned fund balance fall below the GFOA recommended guideline of having two full months of operating expenses on hand, Widmer said. “Operations are going well in here,” Widmer said. “We didn’t find any major problems that we need to report on.” Village Manager Ed Brancati said new debt is soon scheduled to be issued to replace the last haul of debt that needed to be taken. Also, the upcoming 2026-27 fiscal year will see the completion of the debt service on the library, which costs the village $670,000 a year, he said. There was also water fund debt that expired. The long-term capital projects plan established in 2018 factored in extensive use of fund balance to help with the financing of a slew of projects throughout the village in recent years, Brancati said. These past two years were forecasted to have a robust use of fund balance, temporarily drawing down the available money. “Forty-one percent was a very high percentage of operating in an unassigned fund balance,” Brancati said. “So, it was intentional to drop that over time to minimize the impact on taxpayers because we knew the debt is going to drop off, and when it does, we start to climb back up, we start building back fund balance. So this has always been the plan and this is where it’s at.” Despite the lack of alarm, Mayor J. Michael Cindrich called on Brancati and village Treasurer Alexandra Graniero to compile a report for the board that tracks the capital expenses and fund balance expenditures since the capital projects over the past decade. “We’re going to deal with my concern over using capital reserves to balance the budget for the next fiscal year,” Cindrich said. When asked by the mayor about whether Mount Kisco’s financial position will affect its bond rating, Widmer responded that the ratings agencies will make that call and the village’s bond counsel will be able to shed more light on that assessment. They typically look at several factors, including fund balance, debt load and willingness to increase the tax levy when needed. “They will be studying this report. I’m sure they have a checklist of things when they’ll thumb through this report that goes into the bond rating of the village,” Widmer said. Before the end of March, Brancati will be presenting Mount Kisco’s proposed budget for 2026-27.

By JEFF MORRIS  Fans of the TV series “I Love Lucy” may be aware that, at the height of that show’s popularity, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz also starred in the 1954 film comedy, “The Long, Long Trailer” about a pair of newlyweds who buy a trailer home for their honeymoon and experience a series of mishaps as they travel from California to Colorado.  Flash forward to 2026, and the length of that trailer could be matched by the length of the discussions about where such a recreational vehicle might be parked in the town of Bedford. At its Feb. 3 meeting, for the third straight month the Town Board considered an amendment to town code, “to prohibit certain size Recreational Vehicles in a list of other vehicles that are prohibited from parking on any public street or right of way in Residential districts and in certain Town parking lots.”  Supervisor Ellen Calves said the measure had been updated to remove the need for a permit, and to increase the size of vehicles in the definition to be the larger RVs that are difficult to see around or drive around. The vehicles will be prohibited on town roads in residential districts, and will be allowed in Commuter Lots 3 and 2 in Katonah, and Railroad Avenue in Bedford Hills, following the posted rules in those lots, paying the $10 parking fee during regular hours, with parking free on weekends, holidays and overnight. The meeting ended with the proposal again being adjourned, this time with Calves saying, “Hopefully one more go around.” All of this stemmed from complaints lodged last year by a number of Katonah residents about an RV in which someone had been living and parking in their neighborhood for months. According to board members, the person in the RV had rejected offers of any kind of services, and the presence of the oversized vehicle on the street was a safety hazard. Under the latest proposed revision, no commercial or industrial vehicle except for one “parked temporarily for the purpose of delivering or picking up goods, wares or merchandise, or rendering services” would be permitted to park on any public street or town right-of-way in a residential district, or in any town public parking lots without first obtaining a parking permit — provisions that are already in place.  The code would specifically prohibit RVs over 20 feet long or over 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight from parking in residential districts, while allowing such RVs “to park for no more than three consecutive days in Town Lots 2 or 3 or Town Commuter parking on Railroad Avenue in accordance with posted regulations.” Such RVs would not, however, be permitted to park in any other “town-owned, operated and maintained public parking lot.” A public hearing opened on Jan. 20 was continued, and as at the last hearing, Sally Corbett-Turco, the executive director of Stepping Stones, was the first speaker. She said the revision was “greatly improved” and thanked the board. She received assurances about RVs being able to park in commercial areas and the Railroad Avenue lot. Scott Whalen of Bedford Hills said he owned a smaller RV that would not be affected by the law, but was worried that he could be affected if he upgraded in the future. He also was concerned that because there are various classes of RVs based on different body types and number of wheels, someone could find a way to get around the law. Board member Stephanie McCaine said she was happy that the revision incorporated her earlier concerns. She wanted to be sure that the parameters were “covering what we want to cover without being overly prohibitive,” and board member Tom Catoliato said, even though he would “love to close the public hearing today,” he would do further research on classes by size and number of wheels. That information will be provided to town Attorney Eric Gordon as he further revises the law. “I would love to get to a place where we’re going to land on this,” Calves said. The board agreed to include a provision giving the supervisor the ability to grant an exception in special circumstances, and adjourned the public hearing again until their next meeting.