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A Message from Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger
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Dear Friends,
The month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and our message is, no one should struggle alone. Mental health care is essential to our overall health and well-being, just as physical health care is. In this newsletter you'll find resources available in our county, including a crisis support center operated by our partner, People USA, at the Ulster County Center for Well-Being in Kingston.
Also in this issue, great news to share about broadband access in Ulster County, a new children's center at Family Court, a policy on gender-based violence and the workplace, fast EV chargers in Ellenville, and a special spotlight on the work of Ulster County Historian Eddie Moran to connect Ulster County with the descendants of the tribes that once called these lands their home.
Happy Spring!
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Recent News & Events
May is Mental Health Awareness Month!
The month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month. We want to share some of the important resources available to the community: ulstercountyny.gov/services/mental-health.
Ulster County Health Leaders Honored at Statewide Public Health Conference
 Congratulations to Ulster County Public Health Director Dr. Eve Walter and Environmental Health Director Tim Rose P.E., who were both honored at the New York State Public Health Partnership Conference last month! Dr. Walter received the Outstanding Contribution for Public Health Service Award for her innovative use of data to advance public health initiatives, including the County’s interactive 2025 Community Health Assessment. Tim Rose received the Environmental Health Leadership Award for his dedication to protecting public safety and collaborative approach to addressing issues like water quality, food safety, and environmental hazards.
We are incredibly lucky to have leaders like these two protecting our health in Ulster County!
Ulster County to Close Gaps in Broadband Service to Unserved Areas
 Take a look at that map! Ulster County has secured the largest investment in fiber optic service — the gold standard in broadband — through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, which will bring service to all 1,293 unserved locations in remote areas of the county.
As part of the statewide awards announced last week, Verizon — Ulster County’s BEAD-participating ISP – will receive $17.3 million in federal funds and will commit $41.7 million of its own investment to build out a fiber network to these locations. Of the 14 counties receiving Verizon-related BEAD funds, Ulster’s share amounts to 31% of the total — more than any other recipient.
Reliable broadband is a basic necessity for education, work, health, public safety, and everyday life, and we will now be getting the service we need in the most underserved areas of Ulster County. Thank you to the Ulster County Comptroller’s Citizens Commission for Digital Inclusion and its Chair, Jenny Lee, for their invaluable contributions to this process, as well as the partnership of New York State and Verizon, which made this possible.
New Children’s Center Opens in Ulster County Family Court
 We’re happy to share that Ulster County Family Court has opened a new Children’s Center for parents appearing in court, providing a safe and welcoming place for kids to read a book or play a game during what can be a stressful time for families. The Center, operated by the non-profit organization, Family Services, is dedicated to long-time Family Court employee Kathy Lasko and retired Appellate Division Justice and Family Court Judge Karen Peters, whose passion for the well-being of children inspired this invaluable service.
New Report Finds Opioid Overdose Deaths in Ulster County Down by Over 50%
 A new report from the Ulster County Department of Mental Health found that the number of reported opioid-related overdose deaths in Ulster County dropped from 28 in 2024 to 12 in 2025. Overall opioid-related overdoses declined from 346 to 281 over that period. Thank you to the Department of Mental Health, Ulster County Sheriff's Office ORACLE program, and our community partners for all their work to help those struggling with substance use and save lives.
Celebrating Cinco de Mayo at Las Camelias
 A great celebration of Cinco de Mayo yesterday at Las Camelias restaurant on Broadway in Kingston! Restaurant owner Verónica Martínez shared authentic Oaxacan food and treated the community to traditional mariachi music.
Thank you, Las Camelias, for bringing people together and enriching the cultural fabric of our community, and happy Cinco de Mayo to all who celebrate!
County Unveils New Fast EV Chargers at the Trudy Center in Ellenville
 Ulster County’s Trudy Center in Ellenville now offers rapid charging for electric vehicles! The charging hub will be a magnet for EV-driving visitors, who can get a full charge while enjoying a nice lunch at Gabby’s, some babka and coffee at Cohen’s, or a tour of the Borscht Belt Museum!
Over the last decade, the County government has installed a total of 92 EV charging plugs at 16 locations around the county for public and municipal use. These investments not only make good climate sense – they also make good taxpayer sense: The EVs in the County fleet saved $165,000 on fuel and maintenance costs last year, alone, compared to our gas-powered vehicles.
Earth Week around Ulster County
 Pictured above are just a few of the many events around the County celebrating Earth Week in April. These included a ribbon-cutting for the new solar array at the Mohonk Preserve, which will meet most of the Preserve’s electricity needs; the Woodstock Earth Week Expo, which included a spectacular “plastics” fashion show; and a discussion between County Executive Jen Metzger and Beyond Plastics President Judith Enck at the Orpheum Theatre in Saugerties, focusing on Enck's new book, “The Problem with Plastic.”
Join us at the City of Kingston's Earth Fair this Saturday, May 9, at TR Gallo Park! For info: kingston-ny.gov/earthfair (Every day is Earth Day in Ulster County. <3)
UlsterCorps Service Summit Highlights Work Addressing Food Security Around Ulster County
 Last week, County Executive Metzger joined UlsterCorps for their 16th annual Service Summit, where panelists from County government, the Benjamin Center at SUNY New Paltz, and local non-profits and businesses discussed the challenges of food insecurity in our County and region, and the work being done to meet the need here in our County. There’s so much great work happening in our area, and volunteers are always needed. UlsterCorps can help connect you with all kinds of volunteer opportunities. Get involved at ulstercorps.org.
Recognizing RVGA Scholarship Recipients
 Congrats to Rondout Valley Growers’ Association scholarship recipients Addisyn and Sedric! We're proud that these two Rondout Valley High School students are going on to college to pursue careers in agriculture-related fields — Addisyn in veterinary medicine at Iowa State and Sedric in plant science at SUNY Cobleskill. Both are members of the Rondout Valley High School Chapter of Future Farmers of America (Addisyn is Chapter President!), and we also honored Rondout Future Farmers of America Advisor MacKenzie Lawrence for her great work guiding and nurturing the next generation of farmers and agricultural professionals in our county.
Thank you to RVGA for this great scholarship program, and to Kelder’s Farm for hosting the ceremony. Best of luck to Addisyn and Sedric!
Congratulations to Our April Veteran of the Month
 Congratulations to Bert Van Demark of Saugerties, our April Veteran of the Month. Born and raised in High Falls, Bert enlisted in the U.S. Army after high school during the Vietnam War, following the example of his father, a WWII vet. During his service, Bert was wounded by shrapnel during a major attack and was awarded the Purple Heart.
Returning to civilian life in High Falls, Bert worked with the Emergency Employment for Vietnam Veterans program, raised a family, earned a bachelor’s degree from SUNY New Paltz, and served 30 years as Program Coordinator for Day Treatment at Ulster/Greene ARC. In retirement Bert has been deeply involved in veterans’ organizations: he is a life member of the VFW and DAV, a member of the American Legion, and serves with the Kingston Veterans Association Honor Guard, performing numerous burial details and ceremonies each year.
Please join us in thanking Bert Van Demark for his service to our nation and his continued dedication to the veteran community!
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Last month, Ulster County Historian Eddie Moran traveled to Ontario to meet with several federally recognized Native American tribes whose traditional homelands include modern-day Ulster County. In today’s spotlight, we’ll talk about the history and budding partnership between Ulster County and these native tribes that the County Historian, along with County Clerk Taylor Bruck and County Archivist Jonathan Palmer, are working to build.
 (Photo c/o Costa Boutsikaris)
War and Peace Between the s and the Esopus
To understand where we are now, we need to look back at the complex historical relationship between European colonists and Native Americans in the place we call Ulster County. From 1659 to 1663, colonists in Kingston and members of the Native Esopus tribe fought two wars before reaching an uneasy peace.
In 1665, representatives of the new English colonial administration signed the Nicolls Treaty with the Esopus: a formal agreement of peace, trade, and partnership between the Kingston colonial and Esopus Native governments. The treaty included a mandate for the Esopus and the people of Kingston to renew the peace annually. At one of these renewals in 1678, the Esopus gifted the Kingston government a wampum belt, made of quahog-shell beads, as a symbol of friendship and satisfaction with the continuing peace. The Esopus and the Kingston government, which later became the Ulster County government, renewed the treaty numerous times in the years to come, even as the Esopus and other Native groups were forced to sell most of their land and were pushed west through the Catskills.
By 1776, the Esopus tribe and the County government had joined different sides of the American Revolution. The two groups found themselves on the battlefield in other parts of the state, but the Esopus sought to renew the treaty in 1777 to ensure mutual safety in the County. George Clinton, a revolutionary leader of Ulster County and New York State Governor, refused, breaking a hard-won peace that had lasted for over a century.
Brutal fighting ensued between the revolutionaries in Ulster and the Esopus tribe and their allies. With scorched earth tactics, the revolutionaries forced the Esopus across New York past Buffalo into what is now Ontario. The Esopus are now located in Ontario as part of the Six Nations of the Grand River, a confederacy of Haudenosaunee tribes from Northern and Western New York. Other local Lenape tribes were forced out of their homelands as well, and now live in Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Ontario.
The Treaty and Wampum Belt Today
The original, signed Nicolls Treaty and the gifted wampum belt have both been preserved by the Ulster County Clerk’s office since 1686 as centerpieces of one of the oldest municipal archives in the state. County Historian Eddie Moran, appointed in 2024, has been working alongside County Archivist Jon Palmer to ensure that our County archives are compliant with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), a federal law that protects and returns remains and culturally significant objects to the Indigenous Tribes to whom they belong.
NAGPRA reviews are conducted by federally recognized tribes, which are considered by the U.S. government to be sovereign tribal nations. The NAGPRA review of Ulster County’s collection was conducted by the Stockbridge Munsee, now in Wisconsin, because they are the federally recognized tribe most closely related to the Esopus tribe that still lives within the United States.
Many North American wampum belts held in museums and archives around the world have been separated from their original cultural context through theft, misguided collecting policies, and looting. Uniquely, because Ulster County’s belt was given as a gift during a treaty renewal, the Stockbridge Munsee determined that the County should keep it, provided that Ulster County make good faith efforts to build relationships with the federally recognized tribes who once inhabited our area. The eventual goal is to renew the Nicolls Treaty with the descendants of the Esopus.
 (Photo c/o Costa Boutsikaris)
Doing That Work
Until last month, representatives from Ulster County and the surrounding area had not visited these tribes where they live. County Historian Eddie Moran and a small group of local scholars and educators were invited to two Lenape reservations in Ontario – the Munsee-Delaware Nation and the Delaware Nation at Moraviantown. Eddie and the other visitors met with community members from both reservations, other federally recognized Lenape tribes, and the Six Nations of the Grand River.
This visit was an opportunity for these communities to share their history, culture, and lives as they are today, including the foods they eat, traditional dances, and practices like dip-net fishing, which is unique to the Native communities of the area. They discussed how the societies and cultures of the Lenape, Haudenosaunee, and Ontario-native Ojibwe tribes have intermingled over time, and the work the tribes are doing to preserve their language and culture into the future.
One special moment from this visit: A Munsee-Delaware linguist confirmed the meaning of Ulster County’s wampum belt, which had been the subject of debate for over a century. Our wampum belt is a friendship belt symbolizing a sibling-like connection between two communities. By working to rebuild a relationship with the tribes who used to live here, we hope to truly restore that meaning to the belt, making it represent a real, meaningful connection between our communities.
Learn More
We’re extremely grateful to the County Clerk’s team and the federally recognized tribes originally from our area for the work they do to preserve Ulster County’s history, and their work to turn our historical connection into a positive relationship today.
If you want to learn more about Ulster County’s Native history, members of the federally recognized Lenape Delaware communities will be returning to Ulster County for Historic Huguenot Street’s New Netherland Marketplace on June 13 & 14. You can also learn more about many aspects of local history at the Matthewis Persen House, a museum run by the County Clerk’s Office, and the Nina Postupack Archive Gallery in the County Office Building. You can also book a tour of the Hall of Records (where the treaty and wampum belt are kept!) The County Historian Facebook page also shares lots of upcoming historical events, including frequent talks he gives across the County!
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NAMI Walks
NAMI Mid-Hudson is hosting their annual NAMI Walks event to raise money and awareness for mental health. Participants will come from both sides of the Walkway Over the Hudson and meet in the middle for an uplifting ceremony. Registration begins at 10:30 AM on Saturday, May 16. The walk begins at 11 AM, the ceremony is at noon, and the event ends at 1 PM. Learn more and donate at namiwalks.org/mid-hudson.
📅Saturday, May 16
🕕 11 AM — 1 PM
📍Walkway Over the Hudson
Ulster Entrance: 87 Haviland Rd, Highland
Dutchess Entrance: 61 Parker Ave, Poughkeepsie
OFA Derby Day
The Office for the Aging is hosting their second annual Derby Day at the Ulster County Senior Hub! Come dressed in your finest derby wear, place some non-monetary bets, and win some prizes! Seats are limited, so contact the OFA at (845) 340-3456 to RSVP.
📅 Friday, May 8
🕕 1 — 3 PM
📍 Ulster County Office for the Aging Senior Hub, 5 Development Ct, Kingston
UCRRA Compost Bin Sale
 Happy Compost Awareness Week! The Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency (UCRRA) is hosting an annual Spring Compost Bin Sale! Orders must be placed ahead of time on UCRRA's online store before Friday May 8. Pickups are ONE DAY ONLY at UCRRA's Main Office in Kingston on Saturday May 9 from 9 AM — 1 PM. Learn more and order your bin at ucrra.org/event/spring-compost-bin-sale-2026.
📅 Pre-order before Friday, May 8. Pick up on Saturday, May 9.
🕕 9 AM — 1 PM
📍 UCRRA, 999 Flatbush Rd, Kingston
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Ulster County “I Voted” Sticker Contest Open Now!
Ulster County’s world-famous “I Voted” Sticker Contest is now open for 2026! Artists ages 9 to 18 are invited to submit their designs! Designs must include the words “I Voted” and will be shrunk down to a 2-inch diameter circle, but otherwise are up to you! You can use any medium, physical or digital, and can submit as a photo, JPEG, or PDF. Send your artwork to elections@ulstercountyny.gov before June 30.
The Board of Elections Commissioners and a panel of artists and educators from the Arts and Culture Advisory Council will select five finalists, and the public will vote on a winner this summer. The winning design will be the official “I Voted” sticker for Ulster County in the general election this November!
For more info call (845) 334-5470 or visit voteulster.com. We’re so excited to see this year’s submissions!
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Ulster County is Seeking Social Services Attorneys
Ulster County is hiring! The Ulster County Department of Social Services is looking for attorneys. Apply for this job and more at ulster-portal.mycivilservice.com.
UCAT is Looking for Drivers!
UCAT is looking for full & part-time drivers! If you have a Class B commercial driver's license, apply to be a driver! Starting pay is $25.32/hr, with a stable schedule. Full-time drivers also receive benefits like health insurance and a retirement plan!
Don't have a CDL? UCAT bus driver trainees can get paid to get their CDLs!
Learn more and apply for jobs with UCAT at ucat.ulstercountyny.gov/careers.
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Job Openings in Ulster County
Ulster County is Hiring! Consider a career in public service and earn a living by making a difference. Visit the civil service portal and apply today to join our team.
The Ulster County Government strictly adheres to the principles of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act and Americans with Disability Act.
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