TAKE FIVE!

January 05, 2021

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Hi, I’m Meaghan Mullally-Gorr. Welcome to Sullivan 180 Presents Take Five!. Our guest today is Carmela Hugel, beautification program manager with Sullivan Renaissance. Welcome Carmela. Thanks so much for being here.

Carmela Hugel:
Thank you for having me.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your role at Sullivan Renaissance.

Carmela Hugel:
Sure. My name is Carmela Hugel and I’m the beautification program manager for Sullivan Renaissance. I have the pleasure of working with communities throughout Sullivan County to help them beautify the area. It’s really an awesome position I have. I get to go out and work in the garden and work with some amazing people.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
That is awesome. Can you tell us about the 2021 beautification grants that will soon be available to our community residents, organizations, and groups. And if there are any other grants available in 2021?

Carmela Hugel:
Sure. So the beautification program has a group of grants starting with the mini grant, which is available for first time participants. And then for single site locations, we have a garden grant and a maintenance grant and for community-wide beautification or more than one location, we have the community beautification grant. We also have a business assistance grant for the businesses, and then there are a few other grants that your best bet is to go onto the website and check out what is available.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Okay. That sounds like a good plan. So Sullivan Renaissance is taking their annual Get Ready to Renaissance Conference online this year. Can you tell us some more about this event and how people can join?

Carmela Hugel:
Sure. It’s our winter symposium, which is on Wednesday, January 13th, and the forum opens at 5:30. The program will start at 6:00 PM. Sims Foster, the owner of Foster Supply will be our keynote speaker and he’ll discuss the impact of community transformation and its importance in attracting interest in our County and to register simply go onto our Facebook or Instagram accounts or our website as well.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Okay, great. And people should do that soon, right. Because it’s coming up.

Carmela Hugel:
Definitely do it soon. And if you have any questions, you can always go to the website, but you can reach any one of us at SullivanRenaissance.com to find out more about it.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Okay. Perfect. A huge component of Sullivan Renaissance is volunteerism. Can you let us know how people can get involved in local projects and, or become a Sullivan Renaissance volunteer?

Carmela Hugel:
Sure. So we have two ways you can join the Sullivan Renaissance Volunteer Corps, or you can be a project, or a community volunteer, a Sullivan Renaissance Volunteer Corps member. You offer assistance in a variety of beautification projects and Sullivan Renaissance initiatives. Your best bet to join the Sullivan Renaissance Volunteer Corps is to call a program or volunteer program manager. And then if you’re interested in a group or a project out there you can become a community volunteer member. This is where you work with a specific beautification group at a certain location. And again, you can reach out to either Ann, Louise, or myself for that information.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Great. Can you please tell us how people can get in touch with you and/or Sullivan Renaissance?

Carmela Hugel:
Absolutely. You’re more than welcome to give me a call at our office or email me at any time. And your best bet is to go onto our website that has all our information, and it will tell you how to contact myself, or anyone in the office. It will give you all the grant information. It will give you all the information you need to know.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
And Sullivan Renaissance is also on social media so people can stay up on the news there, right. Facebook.

Carmela Hugel:
Yes, absolutely. And follow us on both Instagram and Facebook. You know, you’ll be kept up to date throughout the year.

Meaghan Mullally-Gorr:
Well, thanks again for joining me today. And we look forward to Get Ready to Renaissance and all the new projects for 2021.

Carmela Hugel:
Yes. If anybody has a thought for beautifying an area, please reach out to us. We’d love to hear your ideas and thank you.