by Bill Batson Although his death was not caused by COVID-19, the complications of our nation-wide shutdown contributed to the demise of Air Force veteran and artist Micheal Rogozik. Michael was the kind of person […]
Nyack Sketch Log: United Hospice
by Bill Batson The cruelest moment of social distancing during a pandemic comes at the end of life. Almost all of the 56,000 Americans (as of 4/28/20) who have been lost to the novel coronavirus […]
Nyack Sketch Log: The Other Pandemic, Domestic Violence
by Bill Batson Advocates from the Center for Safety & Change have witnessed a tsunami of domestic violence follow the public health earthquake that shook the world in March, 2020. Chief Development Officer Tracie McLee […]
Nyack Sketch Log: During COVID-19, Restaurant Mumbai Dreams Inspires
by Bill Batson I recently saw Nausil Kumandan, owner of the newly opened restaurant, Mumbai Dreams, in the parking lot of Montefiore Nyack Hospital. He was delivering donated food to frontline health care workers. A […]
Nyack Sketch Log: #Masks4All
by Bill Batson Our region has become the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic. By yesterday, April 6th, Rockland County had recorded 119 deaths and 5,700 cases. In the face of this tidal wave of contagion, […]
Nyack Sketch Log: Nyack Ridge Rehabilitation and Nursing Center during COVID-19
by Bill Batson On Wednesday, March 11, I showed up at Nyack Ridge Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, with flowers for my mother, Daisy. That same day, a world away in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Health […]
Nyack Sketch Log: Nyack Mask Makers
by Bill Batson On March 4, 2020, Business Insider warned that US medical workers needed 3.5 billion face masks if the coronavirus reached pandemic status. The country had 1% of that number then. On March […]
Nyack Sketch Log: Special COVID-19 Edition: Wash Them, Do Not Shake Them
People who do not follow pubic health guidance on social distancing and hand washing become the delivery system that COVID -19 uses to hunt down vulnerable victims: someone’s parent or grandparent. As of Monday, March […]
Nyack Sketch Log: Catnip Nation
by Bill Batson In America, feral cats need more than nine lives to survive. While concerned animal advocates seek to employ enlightened ways to manage feral cat colonies, municipal policies to protect discarded domesticated cats […]
Nyack Sketch Log: The Rock ‘n’ Rollers
by Bill Batson As generations of teenagers could tell you, there are few therapeutic interventions as powerful as a Fender guitar, a few friends, an amp and an audience. Music for Life’s Jeffrey Friedberg has […]