Good Life: Positive achievements for July 3

New Paltz teen is awarded Parise gardener scholarship

Reminy Bacon, 17, of New Paltz, is this year’s recipient of the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s Master Gardener program’s Dominic Parise Master Gardener Scholarship. The $500 scholarship is open to any college or college-bound student in Ulster County pursuing a horticulture, agriculture or environmental biology degree.

Bacon graduated in June from New Paltz High School and will study environmental biology at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse.

Bacon was involved in the Environmental Club, French Club and served as the secretary for its Gay-Straight Alliance at school. She has received various awards, including the Thinker Award, Consistent Participation in Global History and the award for the Erudite Style in the Art of Writing. She volunteers at the Elting Memorial Library and on Student Ambassador trips to Ecuador.

The scholarship was established in honor of former Horticultural Assistant Dominic Parise, who played a critical role in revitalizing the program in Ulster County. Funds are raised by the annual Master Gardener Great Plant Swap held each June and the sale of plant markers.

The Ulster County Master Gardener Program consists of a group of trained volunteers who help educate and assist the community in a variety of horticulture projects.

For more information about Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s community programs and events, call 845-340-3990 or visit www.cceulster.org

Stone Ridge Library gets state grant for restoration

The Stone Ridge Library has been awarded a $7,730 grant from New York state toward the restoration of its historic buildings. The funding is part of the New York State Public Library Construction Program that has awarded grants to 186 public libraries .

The grant, matched with money raised by the Stone Ridge Library Foundation from private donations and public events, will be used to replace siding and insulate the north, south and west walls of the 19th-century clapboard addition to the 1798 stone building that has served as the community’s library since 1909.

For information about the library, visit www.stoneridgelibrary.org

Do you have good news to share? Email items to life@poughkeepsiejournal.com or call Bonnie Soto at 845-437-4886.