Little Chapel on the River

This is a recent email and photo, reprinted with permission from Jim Donnery , one of Guinan's regular parishioners and the man who inspired the name of the book: "Little Chapel on the River." The shot here is where the old bar and Coca-Cola beer cooler once stood. The proposal to create a new restaurant and store in the spot where Guinan's once operated was turned down by the board of the Garrison Station Plaza based on what it said was inadequate financing for the project. The board is planning to move ahead with renovations to include office space. From Jim Donnery: "I had been home this past weekend to attend a funeral for a family member and had some time for goofing off before a dinner engagement in Cold Spring, so I bought a few beers and went down to sit on the rocks by the Boat Club to admire the sun setting on "the river that flows both ways". Old memories brought me over to the Chapel entrance and I peeked inside the front door past the plyw...

This piece of artwork was created by Andrea Marie Highsmith of Raleigh, North Carolina. She calls it: "Little Chapel on the River and my fascination with Van Gogh's 'Starry Night' sky." She rendered it using Gouache , a type of paint consisting of pigment suspended in water and some oils as well. Andrea is a recent graduate of East Carolina University. You can see this and more of her artwork on Facebook . Pretty neat stuff. Thanks Andrea.

Congratulations to Kelly Guinan Preusser and Ed Preusser for the birth of their daughter, Aurora Faye Preusser . She came into the world on February 9th at 8:20 p.m. weighing 6 lbs, 14 oz and stretching a full 20 inches. Aurora has the pleasure of slumbering in the same crib as her father, Ed, his father Ed , her uncle John and several cousins, Daddy reports. The history continues ...

From Betsy Hays : "Here is a painting I did of Guinan's back in the 70s (when I didn't know it was Guinan's or even that a bar was in the back of the country store where I used to occasionally stop on my way up to see friends who lived on a lake up in that general area. I fell in love with the look and feel of the building...little did I know that its fate would come back into my life decades later! ... The original is hanging in my kitchen and has been coveted by many but never given away."

...Nights like tonight, when a cold beer's sweat and good conversation in a tight space could cut straight through this humidity, make me wish again it still did. (photo taken circa 2004. all rights reserved.)

Christine Guinan D'Onofrio , Jim's youngest daughter, recently shared these two compelling photos she took. The first she shot last year when her father had returned to the Hudson Highlands for his son John's funeral . While there, Jim went down to #7 Garrison's Landing to see his old home again. The image speaks for itself. The second is a single flower that Christine found blooming unexpectedly on an old family rose bush at her home in Florida after she arrived there from her father's funeral in April of this year. There had not been blooms on the bush for a couple of years. Christine says she took this single flower as a sign from her Mom, Peg , that Jim had arrived to his wife safe and sound in heaven.

This nice photo comes from J im Donnery . Pictured: John Guinan and Mike R. Mihalik on St. Patrick's Day, 2006.

Photo taken May 24, 2008 by Roy Gumpel. All rights reserved.

This photo of the "high priest" himself, Jim Guinan , was taken on Guinan's Day 2005. We're lucky to have Jim back in the Hudson Valley for the High Holy Day 2009. He heads back home to his daughter Christine and son-in-law Mike 's in Florida soon after a good long visit with his daughter Margaret . Jim will be out and about in town tonight with some of the parishioners and his granddaughter Kelly ...maybe even singing Danny Boy. (Hint: somewhere on Main Street in Cold Spring) So shhhh..... All rights reserved on photo.

Neil Bloch sends these photos from last Saturday’s party and says thanks to Jennifer O'Toole, club manager, and to Eric Gabrynowicz , executive chef, at Highlands Country Club . Neil says highlights of the event included the playing of 13-year-old harpist Alexandra Dow and the singing of countertenor Nicholas Tamagna (both pictured here with Olivia Wade ) as well as the huge pile of gifts that were donated to Toys for Tots .

Thank you all for your emails asking for a report on Team Guinan . We are all back safe and relatively sound, except for a few knocked up knees. It was a rain-soaked 3 days coming from Gettysburg to NYC -- a pretty far cry from last year and our sun-filled 275-mile Braking the Cycle ride. Everyone rode long and hard, despite the soggy conditions, and we were supported by Quinn Chastant in our Team Guinan sweep van. This photo was taken at the end of Day One, after a 92-mile stretch. We are sporting mustaches in honor of John Guinan -- they were given to us courtesy of Mary Ellen Yannitelli . That night, BlackWatch Productions played an emotional video tribute to John after dinner. BlackWatch's Monica Anderson and John Anderson also provided arm bands with John's photo for every rider. The leaders of Braking the Cycle designated John as the honorary Rider Number 1. From left to right are Team Guinan members: Chris Robinson, Dean Bradshaw, Kelly Guinan Preusser, Ed Preusser,...

This is the outside of now-closed Guinan's Pub & Country Store yesterday, where flowers, dolls, photos and even a bottle of Harp are being laid in honor of John Guinan who died Tuesday night. While the store has been gutted and is empty inside, it's still filled with the stories and souls of the people who loved it and the family who kept its doors open nearly 50 years. Today, we will gather to honor John Guinan both in church and later on the shores of the Hudson near the store where so many of us first came to know him. Photo by Christine Ashburn

Yesterday, most of art went up on the walls at the Garrison's Art Center for the Guinan's Art & Photography Show , which opens today with a beer and wine reception from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. I had a chance to see everyone's work, and it's absolutely fantastic. There's something for everyone whether you know and love Guinan's from near or afar, or if you're just interested in beautiful photography -- and have never heard of the place. Christine Ashburn's chair series conveys an incredible sense of home, while Kelly Guinan's unflinching eye has captured architectural and other details of Guinan's that will be missed the most. Mary Ellen Yannitelli has created a sculpture that's an homage to the family and volunteers who helped keep Guinan's going in recent years, while Ed Preusser hand-crafted a wooden shamrock sign that's surely going to start a bidding war. I have a few images of Guinan's regulars going about their daily rout...

Not long after Little Chapel on the River was published, Ed Preusser crafted some signs to show newly curious (and lost) patrons how to find Guinan's. He did such a good job, someone stole the signs once or twice and they were often photographed by people making a journey to Guinan's. Now he's making a more elaborate, special version to sell at the upcoming Guinan's Art & Photography show . WHY ED CHOSE THIS WORK: "I did the shamrock sign because the original neon one in the window was always a feature everyone remembers from their visits (in addition to the one made of brass in the fireplace hearth). This one, unlike the wooden signs, is a true hand made, one of a kind." Photo courtesy of Cathy Seeber.

Christine Ashburn is one of the featured photographers in the upcoming Guinan's Art & Photography show this Sunday. She has chosen "the chairs and stools of Guinan's" as her main theme. I've seen many, and they are lovely. Speaking of chairs, here's one filled with none other than Jim Guinan. Christine shot this last August during "Guinan's Day," where we raised money for Team Guinan . A minimum of 50% of the sale of each piece from this upcoming show will go the Guinan Family and Team Guinan's 2008 ride. WHY CHRISTINE CHOSE THIS PHOTO: "This image of Jim Guinan is my most favorite photo of Guinan's. It is a simple photo that depicts Jim sitting, laughing, and enjoying a beer; encapsulating what Gunian's meant to me. This photo was taken last August during Guinan's Day."

Russ Cusick -- "the tile guy" -- has visually captured a wide gamut of moments at Guinan's in recent months, many of which he's given away to the regulars or sold with a portion of proceeds going to Guinan's. He has helped lead the organization of the upcoming Guinan's Art & Photography show where he will exhibit and sell some of his work. Again, 50% or more of proceeds from the show will go to the Guinan family and Team Guinan's 2008 ride. WHY RUSS TOOK THIS PHOTO: "I took this Photo (series of photos) on Feb 4th, '08..........because I love Guinan's (and the Guinan Family,) I also love the Hudson River and the two are a combination that I've never as a photographer been able to resist. On this particular morning....I was was both sad and pissed-off that I couldn't walk into the store and see a friendly face and get my cup of coffee."

Don't forget the Guinan's Art & Photography show that opens this Sunday on Garrison's Landing. This week, I'll post previews of some of the artists' work that will be for sale. A minimum of 50% of the sale of each piece will go the Guinan Family and "Team Guinan's" 2008 ride. These two pieces are from Kelly Guinan , Jim Guinan's granddaughter. WHY KELLY CHOSE THESE PHOTOS: "I chose these because they represent those little things about Guinan's that I miss. Those little things that were part of the everyday of being at the store and you would never see anywhere else. My photos for the show will all be those little things, the register, the coke cooler, the candy counter, the fireplace, the bar back - there are lots! It was hard to choose!"

Please save the date for this very special upcoming event: "Guinan's Pub and Country Store Remembered in Art and Photography" Artwork will be on display March 16th-19th at the Garrison Arts Center. A a reception will be held at the Garrison Arts Center from 3pm-7pm on March 16th. Jim, Margaret, John and other members of the Guinan Family will be in attendance. The show will feature work from local artists and photographers including Kelly Guinan, Jim's granddaughter, Christine Ashburn and Russ Cusick who creates beautiful tiles from images, like the one above. Please put this date on your calendar...we look forward to seeing you on March 16th.

The following are excerpts from Eric Gulley's "Guinan's Story": "My Guinan’s story is a childhood memory story. My folks bought a small summer place in Garrison in 1960, the year after Guinan’s opened. I was three years old at the time, so as far as I was concerned Guinan’s was always in existence.... What I remember most was a hulking freestanding wooden retail case with a glass front that resided about two-thirds of the way to the back of the store. It had rows for candy bars on top, which as I recall took a number of years for me to be able to reach, but it didn’t matter because kids were allowed to walk around to the back and make selections from inside the case, then bring the goods up to the counter to pay. Thinking back, the products I found so enticing were awful stuff, mostly.......candy dots on strips of paper, boxes of Cracker Jax and Good & Plenty, baseball playing cards packaged with cardboard-like chewing gum, and of course, candy cigarettes -- ...

Even though snow is still on the ground, Team Guinan -- led by Kelly Guinan -- is preparing for next year's Braking the Cycle ride. Several of us have attached our bikes to trainers inside so we can pedal through the winter. Our fund-raising, the hardest part of this ride, just got a great kick start thanks to Russ Cusick who is selling Guinan's tribute tiles and donating 25% of the proceeds to Team Guinan . Each rider must raise $3500 to participate; team proceeds are evenly split between riders. Thanks for your support!