Every once in a while we at the Ellenville Journal take time to look at a number of issues and events that ought to get a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Some noteworthy accomplishments have occurred recently that we feel certainly deserve to be cheered…except for one that warrants an old-fashioned jeer.

Cheers to the Ellenville Street Department, for making some much needed repairs on local streets, installing new benches in Village Square, and for putting out new trash cans on our sidewalks. The crew works hard to keep the village looking as sharp as it can be, and their preparations for the Hudson Valley Volunteer Firemen's Association Convention have been commendable over the past few weeks. The parade is going to be massive, and we will certainly benefit from our streets looking great when company comes to town.

Cheers to another successful Relay For Life in Pine Bush, which over four years has raised over $500,000 for cancer research and care. The event is not only a wonderful way for money and support to be raised for such a worthy cause, it's also a great way to bring a community together for fun and fellowship. Events like this truly show the kind of spirit areas all over the Hudson Valley are capable of, and why it's important to stick together when times are tough.

Cheers to the Shadowland Theatre, for a successful first production, selling out nearly every show. The Shadowland is one of our region's best assets, and by continually putting on great performances, we can all be inspired by their example to bring even more success stories to our hometowns and show the rest of the state…even the rest of the country, why living and working in the Hudson Valley is so great.

Cheers to both the Ellenville Blue Devils Track and Field team and the Pine Bush Odyssey of the Mind Teams. The Blue Devils triumphed at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Track and Field Championships in Buffalo, with students bringing home medals and breaking school records. Pine Bush's four Odyssey teams made their way to the World Finals at the University of Maryland, and performed astoundingly well in the face of worldwide competition, proving once again that at Pine Bush, creativity and thinking outside-the-box get you ahead in life.

And finally, we have to bestow a single, solitary Jeer to the distinctly human trait of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, in regards to the collapse of Roger Baker's field-art project that was to be the centerpiece of the firefighters' convention. Baker's piece would've really shown off our area and buoyed the spirits of our firefighters who have had to work overtime controlling the many fires that have threatened our safety in the area. Here's hoping that things can get worked out at some point in the future and that Baker will be able to go through with the project at a later date. Maybe then we can turn our frown upside down and have cheers all the way through.

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