On Sunday, October 19 approximately 50 people attended the annual meeting of the Tusten Historical Society. Grace Johansen, founder, and leader since the inception of the organization over 15 years ago, stepped down as president, passing the gavel to Marge Janowski, a lifetime resident of Tusten. Marge’s first order of official business was to pay tribute to Grace for her dedication to the society. Grace was presented with a clock as a token of appreciation for her many years of leadership.

The meeting continued with an informative lecture by Arthur Hassis, educating listeners about aviation in Narrowsburg and the time when an airport and flight school existed at the current site of Lander’s Campground. Well-known pilots came to Narrowsburg, and we nurtured pilots who went on to make a name for themselves in the aviation industry. Imagine building your own airplane and flying it from Narrowsburg, no license necessary. It was truly a different world back then.

The Tusten Historical Society has a room dedicated to local history located in the Western Sullivan Public Library’s Narrowsburg branch. Members will assist you to find particular items of interest on Monday from 1 to 3 p.m and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The Narrowsburg Beautification Group (NBG) is in the process of planning its 2015 project with the hopes that it will once again be funded from a Sullivan Renaissance grant. The Sullivan Renaissance program began over 15 years ago and the NBG can boast receiving a grant every year, as well as several monetary awards as a result of its hard work. Its projects range from the planting of the white spring-flowering pear trees along Bridge Street to the stacked stone planters found throughout the hamlet. The recently adopted master plan for the hamlet now serves as a blueprint for the NBG to follow as they go forward with projects. We thank the members of the NBG for all their hard work through the years and look forward to the 2015 project.