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Westchester College Students Say 'Yes To The Mess' Westchester College Students Say 'Yes To The Mess'
Westchester College Students Say 'Yes To The Mess' WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- If you see two college-aged kids walking around your neighborhood going door-to-door, you may want to let them in -- or at least hear them out. Ben Walker of Mamaroneck and Jeremy Garber, of White Plains, have started their own business -- Ben and Jeremy's -- and have been in many a Southern Westchester cul de sac trying to drum up business. The name and accompanying logo-- yes it's a riff on the famous ice cream company -- are all about saying yes to any mess. As their flyer reads: "We can't clean up the mess our country is in, but we can clean up the mess your h…

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by Jeanne Muchnick
Neighbors
Westchester BFF's Compete On 'Fear Factor' Westchester BFF's Compete On 'Fear Factor'
Westchester BFF's Compete On 'Fear Factor' WESTCHESTER COUNTY,  N.Y. -- Two courageous Westchesrites are competing in a "Fear Factor" episode entitled “Once Bitten, Twice Trapped.” ' The show airs Tuesday, June 13 at 10 p.m.on MTV. Twenty-three--year-old Gabriela Fuhr, a feng shui consultant from Thornwood and her 24-year-old best friend, Danielle Hrotko, an internet startup associate from Hawthorne, will be challenged to get covered in Amazon creatures and conquer a mental mousetrap game.  In order to win $50,000, they must first face being dragged to the bottom of a deep water tank. They'll also have to deal with stunt…

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by Jeanne Muchnick
Neighbors
PGA CEO, Bedford Native Profiled In Westchester Magazine PGA CEO, Bedford Native Profiled In Westchester Magazine
PGA CEO, Bedford Native Profiled In Westchester Magazine Pete Bevacqua's rise from caddie to CEO of the PGA of America was featured in the June issue of Westchester Magazine. Bevacqua's love affair with golf began when he was 10 and his dad dropped him off at Bedford Golf and Tennis, he told Westchester Magazine. He worked there every summer through high school. After becoming a lawyer, he landed a position with the USGA as Chief Business Officer and was the first managing director of the US Open. He was hired as CEO of PGA of America in 2012, leading an organization of 28,000 golfers and helping to stage some of the sport's biggest events. To r…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Community Rallies Around Yorktown Mom Battling Ovarian Cancer Community Rallies Around Yorktown Mom Battling Ovarian Cancer
Community Rallies Around Yorktown Mom Battling Ovarian Cancer YORKTOWN, N.Y. -- Rosemarie Allouche-Gunning has always been a fierce advocate for her children. Now is she is in the fight of her life. Allouche-Gunning, who has lived in Yorktown with her family for two years, was recently diagnosed with Stage Four Ovarian Cancer. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family pay for her mounting medical bills. The money raised will go directly to the family. As of Tuesday afternoon, $4,750 has been raised from 30 people over six days.  Allouche-Gunning is married to Peter and they have two children, Jonathan and Thomas.  Jonathan was diagnosed with …

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Westchester Resident Arranged Iconic U2 Performance 30 Years Ago Westchester Resident Arranged Iconic U2 Performance 30 Years Ago
Westchester Resident Arranged Iconic U2 Performance 30 Years Ago GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- In 1987, Dennis Bell helped U2 find what they were looking for. Bell, a Greenburgh resident, put together a gospel version of the band's hit single "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," from their iconic album, "The Joshua Tree." Bell and his New Voices of Freedom Choir performed the song with U2 at Madison Square Garden in September 1987. The performance made it onto the album "Rattle and Hum," and on the band's recent re-release of "The Joshua Tree," on iTunes. U2's record label met with Bell and when they found out he w…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Nicky Is SPCA Pet Of The Week Nicky Is SPCA Pet Of The Week
Nicky Is SPCA Pet Of The Week BRIARCLIFF, N.Y. -- Nicky is looking for a good home. The SPCA is hoping someone will adopt Nicky, who has a lot of energy. Nicky is still learning his manners and how not to be so jumpy, the SPCA said. He would do best in an adult home with people willing to continue his training and he gets along well with other dogs, the SPCA said. For more information, e-mail trainer@spca914.org.

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Love, Greed & Dictatorship Are Headlined In New Novel By Westchester Author Love, Greed & Dictatorship Are Headlined In New Novel By Westchester Author
Love, Greed & Dictatorship Are Headlined In New Novel By Westchester Author SCARSDALE, N.Y. -- What happens in the land of samba, Carnival and Bossa Nova when a brutal dictatorship takes over?  If you're looking for a summer read, look no further than "Days of Bossa Nova," a family saga about love, music and greed, set in São Paulo. Scarsdale Author Ines Rodrigues grew up in the South American city and worked as a journalist there before landing in New York years ago. Now, her first novel, inspired by her native home, is being published Saturday, May 27 by Black Opal Books. Rodrigues teaches Creative Writing at The Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence Co…

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by Jeanne Muchnick
Neighbors
Yorktown Student Overcomes Cancer, Gets College Degree Yorktown Student Overcomes Cancer, Gets College Degree
Yorktown Student Overcomes Cancer, Gets College Degree YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, N.Y. -- A Yorktown Heights student who battled cancer recently received her college diploma.Diana Pernicano was one of 618 students who received their diplomas at the Mount Saint Mary College Commencement in Newburgh on Saturday almost four years after she was diagnosed with cancer. Pernicano found a lump in her neck during a hands-on lesson in a nursing class that she credits with saving her life. She began treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma and is now cancer free.  “They say it takes a village, and it took the help of a lot of people to get me well enough to continue at th…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Put Valley Girl Busts A Move On 'Ellen' Put Valley Girl Busts A Move On 'Ellen'
Put Valley Girl Busts A Move On 'Ellen' Bianca Busa, an 8-year-old Hudson Valley resident, loves to dance, no matter what the stage. Busa, of Putnam Valley, performed on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" Monday, dancing to Kendrick Lamar's song "Humble." "I started dancing since I was two and I remember when my sister was four years old, I used to always watch her dance and I used to always do her dance on the side with her," Busa said. Busa told DeGeneres that she dances six days a week and thinks of happy things when she dances...except for when she gets into her "fierce" mode. "When I ge…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Briarcliff Boy Is A Pokemon Whiz Kid Briarcliff Boy Is A Pokemon Whiz Kid
Briarcliff Boy Is A Pokemon Whiz Kid BRIARCLIFF, N.Y. -- When it comes to playing the Pokemon Trading Card Game, Sebastian Male-Diaz is a child prodigy.Male-Diaz,  a 10-year-old who lives in Briarcliff and is in 5th grade, is ranked 11th  in the country for his age group, regularly traveling across the country competing in tournaments.  He has been invited to compete in tournaments in Australia. He recently finished in 2nd at a tournament in Virginia and last weekend competed at a tournament in Toronto. In Pokemon, players use their Pokemon to battle their opponent with the goal of winning knocking out their opponents cards.  …

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Ossining Soldier Deployed In East Africa Ossining Soldier Deployed In East Africa
Ossining Soldier Deployed In East Africa OSSINING, N.Y. -- Drew Young, who graduated from Ossining High School, has served his country in the Army for more than 30 years. Young is currently deployed in East Africa about 100 miles from Somalia. This is Young's sixth combat deployment. He was recently awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal for his service as a Senior Counterintelligence Officer in the Horn of Africa.  Young got commissioned into ROTC after graduating from Ossining. He served in the Persian Gulf War and has been to Iraq three times and Afghanistan twice. This is his second deployment to Africa.  "I was d…

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by Sam Barron
Neighbors
Croton Actress Stars In New Short Film Croton Actress Stars In New Short Film
Croton Actress Stars In New Short Film Jennifer Jiles, a Croton-on-Hudson actress who grew up in Poughkeepsie, is ready for her closeup.  Jiles' stars in the new short film, "The Waiting Room." She plays Janet who is in purgatory waiting for her husband to join her. To Janet's surprise, when her husband joins her, he shows up with his new wife. The movie was written and directed by Debra Markowitz.  "Waiting Room is dramedy, which is new for me," Jiles said.  "It's really fun to make people cry. Last year at the Peekskill Film Festival, Jiles screened "Mother of the Week", a short film she wro…

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by Sam Barron