Fascinating, funny, and poignant interviews and “Postcards to Rosendale” are the heart and soul of our citizen-led town planning project. For over two years, we gathered them at markets, festivals, meetings and at random encounters everywhere, until we reached over 15% of our community, collecting a diversity of voices that are the citizens and residents of our sweet town.
With guidance from the Community Heart & Soul model, our small-but-mighty volunteer team carefully transcribed these conversations and got to work—literally cutting and pasting your words into categories of insight, opinion, and inspiration.
Now we’re thrilled to share the Rosendale Heart & Soul Statements—a reflection of what matters most to our community, in your own voices.
Nature & Outdoors
We appreciate the rare combination of free access to nature, outdoor amenities like the Rosendale Trestle, Wallkill Valley and O&W Rail Trails, Joppenbergh Mountain, the Rondout Creek, and spectacular scenery, which we find restorative and improves our quality of life.
Leah & Peter: ”I’m a cyclist and I’m up on Joppenbergh every day, with my dog. Rosendale has this reputation for being gritty, and that’s fine.
Small Town Charm
We treasure Rosendale’s diversity with our quirky, small-town charm, our shops and restaurants, and our peaceful, friendly vibe, which gives us a sense of connectedness, enrichment, and wholeness.
David & Amanda: “One reason that I love Rosendale so much, you know, I moved here and it became my home and I feel like I’m part of this large ever-growing, ever-changing, creative and loony and wonderful family .”
Arts, Culture, & Events
We are delighted by our unconventional home-grown culture, which includes museums, music, theater, visual arts, unusual architecture, history, local farms and festivals celebrating community spirit. Together we create an inspiring and vibrant shared identity.
Cultural life flourishes at the Rosendale Theatre, Redwing Blackbird Theater, the Muse, Snyder Estate and Widow Jane Mine, the Vanaver Caravan, and the Women’s Studio Workshop—home of the popular Chili Bowl Festival. Beloved events like the Rosendale Street Festival, International Pickle Festival, and Frozendale bring the town together year-round.
Billy Bobb: I think Willow Kiln is a great little gem, and I feel that Rosendale is like a diamond, and has many facets. Main Street is the heart of Rosendale.
Local Institutions
Rosendale takes pride in its vibrant local institutions, including the Recreation Center and pool, Youth Center, Rosendale Library, volunteer fire departments in Rosendale, Tillson, and Bloomington, as well as the Police Department, Town Supervisor, and Town Council.
Community groups such as the Rosendale Improvement Association Brass Band, Lion’s Club, Women’s Club, VFW, the Wallkill Valley Land Trust, and the Rosendale Rumpus are vital to town spirit. So are the Rail Trail Cafe, Farmers Market, and local gems like Town Historian Bill Brooks, St. Peter’s Church, Sky Lake Lodge, and Lifebridge Sanctuary.
Along with all of this, our public art, architecture, and our blend of rural and urban character combine to unite Rosendale in an extraordinary, unmistakable sense of WOW!
Victoria: ”I love knowing who my neighbors are and who are the movers and shakers and who are the professional volunteers. I like how kooky it is! The Street Festival and the Pickle Festival. I love the local history. I love having my business here. The trestle. And the Widow Jane Mine. The string of Binnewater Lakes. I think all of those things are really valuable.”
Community & People
We love Rosendale’s friendly, kind, neighborly warmth. We are welcoming and accepting, grounded in family, and full of innovative and distinct traditions. We have a supportive community spirit which provides a sense of safety for our residents and visitors alike.
Katie: “What gives our lives meaning is how we connect to other people, and often we’re connecting around something that’s important to us, like supporting the arts through the theater, or supporting all of the things that the library provides, or recreation… I really feel that Rosendale is special in terms of the connectedness of people, and the way that people are willing to step up and help out, and so I really just hope that that will continue to flourish.”