Latest / This Week in Westchester: The Podcast / TWIW 14: March 30, 2026

Transcript

TWIW 14: March 30, 2026 · This Week in Westchester: The Podcast

• 0:06
  Intro: Welcome to This Week in Westchester, the podcast, your weekly audio briefing from Westchester County Government.
• 0:13
  Intro: Each week, County Executive Ken Jenkins breaks down the decisions, investments, and initiatives shaping life across Westchester.
• 0:21
  Intro: Clear information, real progress.
• 0:23
  Intro: One place to stay informed.
• 0:26
  Intro: Now, here's this week in Westchester.
• 0:29
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Good afternoon.
• 0:30
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: I'm Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins.
• 0:32
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Today is Monday, March 30th, and this is this week in Westchester, the briefing.
• 0:38
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: You know, we want to start today by reaffirming the county's strong commitment to school safety and recognize the continued success of our school resource officer program.
• 0:49
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: We want to emphasize the importance of the partnership between the county and the local school districts who choose to use it.
• 0:56
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: School safety is not a talking point, it's a partnership.
• 0:59
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: If you walk into any school in Westchester that has a Westchester County School Resource Officer, you'll see what that partnership looks like in action.
• 1:07
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: You will trust, you will see trust and connection and a real sense of community.
• 1:20
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Recent comments at a Lakeland School Board meeting suggesting that the county does not support school safety through the SRO program is just simply inaccurate.
• 1:29
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And it's frankly offensive to the dedicated professionals or public safety officers who show up every day to help protect our children in the SRO program and the community otherwise.
• 1:40
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: School districts request the placement of school resource officers, and as part of that agreement, they are responsible for covering the associated costs, including salary benefits and health insurance.
• 1:52
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: The county, the Department of Public Safety, provides highly trained swarm law enforcement officers and oversees that supervision.
• 2:00
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Those costs are not arbitrary.
• 2:02
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: They reflect the reality of providing experienced, fully trained police officers in our schools and not security guards.
• 2:09
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: That distinction matters.
• 2:11
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Across Westchester, we have consistently expressed a preference for those trained law enforcement professionals in schools, individuals equipped to respond to emergencies, de-escalate conflicts, and build relationships that help prevent incidents before they occur.
• 2:27
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Protecting our children is one of the most important responsibilities that we share, and it requires the honesty, partnership, and respect and not misinformation.
• 2:37
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So Westchester County is going to continue to stand with our schools, work with those local school boards as they are managing through this process, and our families, our law enforcement professionals ensure that children and those students are safe and supported every single day.
• 2:52
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And we are going to continue to do that work.
• 2:54
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Again, it is an optional program that school districts opt into.
• 2:59
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So it's a number and it's a contract, and we just continue to move forward.
• 3:03
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And we look forward to continuing to do that in all those school districts that choose to do so.
• 3:08
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Today we have a municipal guest, is from the village of Hastings on the Hudson.
• 3:15
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And he is the new mayor.
• 3:16
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: He's not new now, right?
• 3:18
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Because you know, after March, for those people that are in March madness time right now, when you get to March, you're not a freshman anymore.
• 3:25
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um ask the friends at UConn.
• 3:27
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um but today we are here with Mayor Tom Drake.
• 3:30
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um he has been a strong voice for his community.
• 3:33
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um he's gonna share updates from the village, highlight key priorities, and speak to the work being done to support residents and strengthen the community.
• 3:42
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Mayor Drake, it's always great to see you.
• 3:44
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Thanks for being here.
• 3:46
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Thank you.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_08: Uh thank you very much, uh, County Executive Jenkins.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_08: I'm glad our friendship goes back pretty far and we're still remaining today.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_08: I do have my school-aged daughter with me today, uh, and and I too agree with your um your your words about school safety because I do work in school safety myself uh after retiring.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_08: Uh I am the proud mayor, my name is Tom Drake, and I'm the proud mayor of the village of Hastings on Hudson, and I'm very happy to be here to talk about my village today with all of you.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_08: Uh we are a village that's it's located along the Hudson River that's nestolated uh nestled between Yonkers and Dobbs Ferry, New York, and uh we are very active in this county and in our own community.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_08: Uh two things that I wanted to highlight today, one being our America 250 and what our village has been doing to celebrate uh our 250 years of this wonderful country and just some of the ideas that we have, and we've already planned some parties.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_08: We had a kickoff party that our Revolutionary Hastings uh partnered with with Westchester Revolutionary 250.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_08: Uh we had a kickoff party in June or January at Maud's Tavern in Hastings, where they had period actors and in uh in different types of music and drink as well, and it was a great event.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_08: But another thing I wanted to highlight is communities around the county, uh the country, and this whole nation, uh they display banners, and we all display banners on our light poles where we're honoring our veterans, our military veterans like myself and my father in our village.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_08: Um we we also honor Pride Month every June, where we we have Pride banners that are displayed honoring our LGBTQ plus community in the village.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_08: During that month, we also uh have a community group called Parents of Children of Color, Peacock.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_08: They share some of the light poles in our village, and we think it's just so important.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_08: We also honor Asian American Pacific Islander uh month, and we also honor Jewish Heritage Month and Little League and swim team signups in our school plays.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_08: And what I've been trying to think of as mayor is how can we bring all this together?
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_08: And I think 250 years ago, you would have seen the Founding Fathers on those banners, and you would have seen military, you know, generals and the higher levels of the military.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_08: But today, this is what we're seeing in our communities.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_08: This is what, this is just a cross-section or just a snapshot of who's in our community today.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_08: So in the month of July, I intend to fly several of the different banners all down in our downtown area, including the larger banners that we display, uh, right down in the middle of the village in Hastings on Hudson at the VFW Plaza.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_08: Uh, and and I will invite the county executive once we kind of kick this off.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_08: But really, I want everyone to see 250 years later, we're about a lot more.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_08: We are a lot about so much more, and this is something that we embrace as a village in Hastings on Hudson.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_08: So I appreciate the support from uh Westchester Revolutionary 250 as well, who's helping us with these plans.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_08: I skip to environmental and conservationism.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_08: Everyone knows Hastings is the leader.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_08: We uh have uh the climate smart community silver status.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_08: The only reason we don't have gold is because they haven't created the category yet in uh in New York State.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_08: Uh but we are so proud of the work that our Conservation Commission does, our Climate Smarts community does, and our Zero Waste Action Task Force as well.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_08: Uh we've partnered with the county on many different occasions and and projects, including reforestation of our woods in Hastings, where we're seeing deer has kind of decimated our woodland area.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_08: And then we're also working on grants uh from the county where we're beginning stormwater uh mitigation and management.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_08: We're replacing and repairing curbing, sidewalks, and then we're also going to major infrastructure and stormwater management in the Fenwick and the Zinzer area of the village of Hastings.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_08: And we can't do this work without our partnership with Westchester County.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_08: I think every small town or village in this county, uh, you know, our funds are not as great, and we always need help, and we know it is a difficult time for all levels of government uh when it comes to funding, but we greatly appreciate our partnership uh with the county on these efforts.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_08: We are also installing EV stations right now all throughout the village, and that is also uh a partnership uh with Westchester County that's making that happen.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_08: I close with a few things, just two things.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_08: Um last night we lost a longtime Hastings resident, uh, excuse me, Joseph Cohen.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_08: And um the reason why I bring this up, um, because County Executive Jenkins knows Joe's son, Stu Cohen, who died in the line of duty here in Westchester in 2007.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_08: So I want to honor him today with everyone.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_08: Sorry for getting choked up, but um his son was a narcotics supervisor for the Westchester County District Attorney's Office, where I actually retired from and died in 2007 serving this county uh himself.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_08: And his father passed away last night.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_08: I thank my fellow board members, Trustee Morgan Fleisig, Trustee Douglas Allygood, Trustee Samantha Merton, and Trustee Malika uh Sunberg, and my village manager Mary Beth Murphy, and my clerk Anthony Constantine, and all the other department heads of my village, and I thank uh County Executive Jan Jenkins and the County Legislator for our continued partnership and and their whole staff.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_08: Thank you very much.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you, Mayor, for those comments.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_01: I'm Joan McDonald.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: I'm the deputy county executive, and I'm gonna give you an update on where we are in the census world.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_01: New population estimates from the U.S.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_01: Census Bureau show Westchester County experienced the largest numeric population increase in New York State between 2024 and 2025.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_01: According to the newly released estimates, Westchester County's population has reached 1,015,743 residents, marking an increase of 6,578 people in just one year.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_01: That is the highest gain of any county in New York State.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_01: What this shows us is people are choosing Westchester.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_01: We like to call it, as the county executive always says, Bestchester.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_01: And not just to visit, but to live, build families, and invest in their futures.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_01: When we create housing opportunities and count neighborhoods, vibrant neighborhoods, people come and they stay.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_01: The jump underscores the county's continued growth and strength is a place to live, work, and raise a family.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_01: Overall, the county's population is now approximately 1.1 percent higher than its 2020 census count, signaling sustained growth over the past five years.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_01: These estimates released as part of the Census Bureau's annual population and housing unit estimates program track population changes from April 1, 2020 through April 1, 2020, through July 1st, excuse me, 2025.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_01: Each annual increase incorporates updated data on births, deaths, and migration patterns to provide the most current snapshot of population trends.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: We are truly blessed to live here in Westchester County.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_01: County executive.
• 11:06
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Thank you, Jonah.
• 11:08
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And those that was exciting news or here that the census numbers continue to grow for us here in Westchester.
• 11:14
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um up next, we're going to have our Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Facilities, Lou Vitrun, and Pete McCart, our Director of Energy Conservation and Sustainability, to talk to us a little bit more about compost ed.
• 11:33
  Lou Vitron: Thank you, County Executive Jenkins, Deputy County Executive McDonald.
• 11:37
  Lou Vitron: Uh Department of Environmental Facilities is really excited to announce three compost uh giveaway events to celebrate Earth Month in April.
• 11:46
  Lou Vitron: The first event is scheduled for Saturday, April 11th from 10 to 2 p.m.
• 11:51
  Lou Vitron: from 10 a.m.
• 11:52
  Lou Vitron: to 2 p.m.
• 11:52
  Lou Vitron: at Wilson Woods Park in Mount Vernon.
• 11:55
  Lou Vitron: The second event is Tuesday, April 21st from 4 to 7 p.m.
• 12:00
  Lou Vitron: at Glen Island Park in New Rochelle.
• 12:02
  Lou Vitron: And the third, the final event for April, is on Tuesday, April 28th at DEF's Sprout Brook facility on Albany Post Road in Cortland Manor from 4 to 7 p.m.
• 12:14
  Lou Vitron: Each visitor to these events will be given for free uh two one cubic foot bags of compost.
• 12:22
  Lou Vitron: All the compost is produced at DEF's Compost Ed facility on the Valhalla campus.
• 12:27
  Lou Vitron: Um the Compost Ed facility is a compost education and demonstration site.
• 12:33
  Lou Vitron: Last year, DEF hosted 10 of these events and we gave away 1,800 bags of compost.
• 12:39
  Lou Vitron: So they're extremely popular events, and because of that, you do have to register to attend these events.
• 12:46
  Lou Vitron: So I am going to read you the link to register.
• 12:52
  Lou Vitron: It's a little lengthy.
• 12:53
  Lou Vitron: I think uh our uh amazing communications team here is gonna uh also flash up uh a link that you can write down, but I'm gonna read it twice because it's a little long.
• 13:03
  Lou Vitron: It's uh environment.westchestercounty ny dot govresidentialpost, hyphen distribution, hyphen events.
• 13:16
  Lou Vitron: That was environment.westchestercounty ny.gov backslash residential, hyphen compost, hyphen distribution, hyphen events.
• 13:27
  Lou Vitron: Um I should also mention that if you can't make this event, we'll have several more um and for during the spring and also again in the fall.
• 13:36
  Lou Vitron: So there will be some uh additional compost giveaway events.
• 13:39
  Lou Vitron: Again, the compost is free when you register for the these events.
• 13:43
  Lou Vitron: And I also want to mention that we do provide tours of the compost ed facility.
• 13:48
  Lou Vitron: So if you're interested in learning more about the facility or uh or scheduling a tour for yourself or for your group, go to composted at wchestercountyny.gov.
• 13:58
  Lou Vitron: And Pete is gonna tell you more about that April 21st event.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you very much.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you, Lou.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, the um Rustat, as we call it, the residential food scrap transportation and disposal program is innovative and it's awesome.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_00: It's a great program.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_00: But to build on these efforts on the April 21st give back, uh that's at Glen Island, uh, we're gonna have at the same time and place uh uh the county is offering compost uh bins, uh rain barrels, and other accessories for sale.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um these are uh at very reduced prices, almost wholesale prices.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: Uh this is bulk purchasing.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: Uh the county doesn't make any money off of this.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_00: We do it out of the kindness of our heart and get everybody uh to compost at home if they can.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_00: Some people can't.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: That's why we got the Rufstadt program.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: Uh backyard composting helps reduce the amount of solid waste uh we send to our waste and energy facility while creating nutrient-rich material, obviously, for your gardens.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: The rain barrels help lower uh water costs, minimize local flooding, and provide a natural water source for plants and landscape.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um that's the best water you can get, right?
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: There are other accoutrements that are being sold on the site, in addition to the bins and barrels, uh, such as uh downspout um uh uh elbows, I guess what you call them, um, as well as verma composting, and that's uh using earthworms.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, there's also a lot of other information uh with videos on how-tos and all that that are on the site.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh my URL is much shorter.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_00: It's uh westchester.compostersale.com.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: Um I will say there are links going back and forth.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_00: There's a link to that to go to buy uh to buy the rain barrels and sales, and the same thing with this one, you can go to that one.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: So if you can't remember that long one, Westchester.compostersale.com and you can link back.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you very much.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: There you go.
• 15:59
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: That that was Lou Vitrone, our deputy commissioner of the Department Um of Environmental Facilities, and then Pete McCart, uh Director of Energy Conservation and Sustainability.
• 16:08
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um we're not doing it out of the kindness of our heart because we know that we only have one Earth, and that's why we're celebrating Earth Month.
• 16:15
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um, and we we were able to do so many different things um to be able to do that.
• 16:19
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So again, take advantage of those opportunities.
• 16:23
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um Up next, we're gonna talk a little bit about having some financial help and some exciting new opportunities that have come down.
• 16:31
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um we're gonna be joined by two leaders doing critical work to support the financial stability of our residents.
• 16:36
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um, and then we're gonna hear about a specific program that's happening in the great city of Mount Vernon.
• 16:41
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So we're gonna ask them all to come up now.
• 16:43
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So we have Tom Klein, our executive director of the Westchester Putnam Workforce Development Board, and then we're gonna have Ashley Britton, uh program manager for the Mount Vernon Empowerment Center, and her tag team partner.
• 16:54
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Come on up right now and let us know everything that's going on.
• 16:58
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um that's happening at the WIB down in Mount Vernon.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you, County Executive.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_04: Um and at the Workforce Development Board and our career centers, um, we link people with jobs, get them the training that's needed to get those jobs and work with our local businesses.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_04: But if our job seekers, if our customers of our Westchester and Putnam County residents are struggling to make financial ends meet, then that is an added burden uh that makes seeking a job difficult.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_04: So, what the city of Mount Vernon, which got a grant for this great program that you'll hear about in a moment, was able to do in collaborating with the County of Westchester with County Executive Jenkins and his predecessor, County Executive Latimer, was to locate something called the Financial Empowerment Center at our Mount Vernon Career Center.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_04: And it's a great opportunity for cross-collaboration.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_04: People who come to the FEC seek our career center services, people who seek our career center services have the opportunity to meet with the counselors at the FEC.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_04: And to explain a little bit more about what that means.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_04: Uh, Marlon Molina is the Deputy Commissioner of Planning and Community Development for the City of Mount Vernon, and Ashley Britton is the program manager for the FEC.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_04: So, Marlon.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_03: And thank you, County Executive, for inviting us.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_03: So, my name is Marlon Molina.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_03: I'm the government manager for the Mount Vernon Financial Empowerment Center.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_03: April is financial literacy month.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_03: So this is a very timely uh uh conversation.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_03: We invite you to visit our website so you can learn about the services which Ashley is going to uh describe in a minute.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_03: But first of all, I want to thank the county for partnering with the City of Mount Vernon.
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_03: Uh this is a national model uh developed by Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund, and it's operating about 37 uh centers across the country.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_03: In fact, the Mount Vernon Financial Empowerment Center uh with the partnership uh with Westchester County is the third uh uh financial empowerment center in New York State.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_03: Um uh Buffalo and Rochester are the other two.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_03: Syracuse, I think, is coming on board.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_03: And the what I want to emphasize is that this service is free and it's available if you are a Westchester resident or if you work in Westchester and perhaps you live outside of Westchester, but as long as you work or live in Westchester, it is available to you.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_03: Uh we invite you to visit our website, umverdonfvc.org, and and and and contact um the center so that you can book an appointment.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_03: Um the last service that was added is legacy planning.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_03: You can get a free will um that you can design on your own.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_03: So we definitely encourage you to engage with our uh highly trained staff.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_03: They're certified uh financial counselors, so you are getting a national model delivered locally.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_03: So thank you very much again.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_03: Ashley?
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, hello everyone.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_02: I am Ashley Britton, the program manager of the Mt.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_02: Vernon Financial Empowerment Center.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_02: And the one thing that I love about today is that we got to hear that April is Earth Month, right?
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_02: And um Financial Literacy Month.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_02: So two great things are happening at the same exact time.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_02: And the beautiful thing about the Mount Vernon Financial Empowerment Center is that we're offering the free one-on-one financial counseling services to everyone that walks through the Mount Vernon Career Center.
• 20:21
  SPEAKER_02: And that is via debt.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_02: That's in regards to savings, that's in regards to credit and credit guidance, that's in regards to banking solutions, and that's also about legacy planning and getting your affairs in order so that you can leave behind a legacy for those that are coming after you.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_02: And the beautiful thing is that while we talk talked about savings, the one thing that we realized today when we came into the office is that we had this beautiful milestone that was attained.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_02: And that is via being able to reduce non-mortgage debt by$123,000.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_02: We have been operational for one year.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_02: That means all of the clients that have walked through the doors of the financial empowerment center have committed themselves to being able to reduce their debt in regards to tax, back rent, whatever you call, even credit that you have built up on your history, right?
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_02: So what we're doing with our clients is being able to give them tools, strategy, and real insight in regards to how to manage their money.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_02: And that's what we're seeing actually happen in the day-to-day lives of all of those that walk through the financial empowerment center.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_02: So we have reduced that debt by 103, um,$123,000 and also increased savings by up to$19,000.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_02: So that means the lives of those that are walking through isn't just being able to experience a theory of being able to increase their wealth, right?
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_02: They're coming through to understand what it means to do it and actually how to do it and maintain it as well.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_02: So that's one thing that we're doing during Financial Literacy Month.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_02: And what I like to call wealth elevation month to be able to showcase to people that wealth isn't just an idea or a really nice way.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: What a word to hear, but being able to integrate it into their life and change their mindset about their money.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_02: So I really want to invite you all to experience what financial literacy month is through the different things that we're going to do for the month of April, that is starting this Wednesday, April, um, April 1st, actually.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_02: And we're doing something virtual to be able to do a kickoff so that people begin to start to have the real conversations about money.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_02: And then you're gonna be introduced into the life of finances as we go on this beautiful journey together.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_02: And another beautiful thing that we're doing at the Financial Empowerment Center, right, is something called FEC at work.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_02: And FEC at work is being able to partner with organizations, private employers, to bring the financial counseling into their actual workplace and making it available to those who work for them.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_02: So what we're doing is diversifying what this looks like and partnering with individuals and organizations to show that the companies that we're working with actually care about the financial lives by bringing the financial empowerment center into the organization so that steps are being able to be given to their employees.
• 23:07
  SPEAKER_02: And one last thing I'm gonna highlight is that we actually have a diverse staff.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_02: We have a bilingual financial counselor.
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_02: She is actually hosting financial counseling sessions in Spanish to be able to increase what this looks like and being able to diversify it so that people who are speaking Spanish can really understand money and have steps to move forward.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_02: So that's the Mount Vernon Financial Empowerment Center.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_02: We're empowering, we're giving strategy, we're seeing that our clients are commitment, committed to this work, and really seeing that consistency is breeding that beautiful milestone of$123,000 that has been reduced.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_02: And my hope is that by the end of 2026, I'm gonna just say it out loud and be bold.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna see$200,000 reduced, plus, right?
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_02: Maybe even$300,000.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna be bold right there, right?
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_02: And being able to say this is something that we're committed to and our clients are committed to seeing this actually take a new life of its own in their life.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_02: And that's it for me.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you so much.
• 24:11
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And and that was Marlon Molina and certainly Ashley Britain, and you know, the Financial Empowerment Month, you called it um no, you called it something else, but well wealth elevation month to connect and tie into um to Earth Month um and the things that are going on in our executive director down at the workforce, Westchester Public Workforce Investment Um Development Board, um Tom Kleiner was here to talk about that as well.
• 24:35
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So we are really, really happy to hear of that continued work um going into April, but um down at the Mount Vernon Financial Empowerment Center, and certainly our good friend Mayor Sean Patterson Howard and the team down there continue doing a fantastic job to try to do this.
• 24:50
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um coming up next month on May 6th, it will be the 2026 State of the County Address.
• 24:59
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um I'm gonna deliver that around 6:30 p.m.
• 25:03
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um the doors are gonna open at 6, so we're gonna start promptly at 6.30.
• 25:08
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And I'm looking forward to sharing the vision and the progress that we made, um, the challenges that we faced, and the vision for Westchester County's continued growth and success in the year ahead.
• 25:19
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: As always, you're gonna be able to tune in right here on the county's webpage.
• 25:23
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: You're gonna be able to stream right from the webpage or from Facebook, and we're looking forward to delivering that state of the county address to you on May 6th.
• 25:32
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um, for those that would like to come in person, you certainly always can sign up and then we'll see how things go.
• 25:37
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: But again, once again, May 6th, um, 2026, State of the County address that'll be delivered by downstairs in the eighth floor in the chambers of the Westchester County Board of Legislators.
• 25:49
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: With that, let's turn over to Joan McDonald, who will let us know everything going on in Parks.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_01: Joe.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you, County Executive.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_01: On Saturday, April 4th, from 10 a.m.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_01: to 11 a.m.
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_01: at Lasden History, Lden Public Gardens and Veterans Memorial in Katona, our urban naturalist Bruce Rosenberg will lead a walking tour that will focus on Lasden's history and highlights that is free for everyone.
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: Also on Saturday, April 4th, from 10 a.m.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_01: to 11:30, tea with the animals at Hilltop Hanover Farm and Environmental Center in Yorktown Heights.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_01: Adults and children, six and older, can join us for a mid-morning cup while you meet and learn about the animals on the farm.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_01: Participants will harvest and make some scrumptious treats for both humans and the animals to enjoy together for a party.
• 26:46
  SPEAKER_01: It's a$15 program fee.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_01: And lastly, on Saturday, April 4th, from 10 a.m.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: to 2 30 p.m., you can have a guided tour of the Terrytown Lighthouse at Kingsland Point Park in Terrytown, New York.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_01: The 45-minute interpretive tours are every Saturday from April 4th, so this is the inaugural Saturday, through June 27th at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 12.30, 1.30 p.m., and 2 30 p.m.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_01: They are free, but parking fees may apply at the park.
• 27:21
  SPEAKER_01: So that's what we have in parks this week, County Executive.
• 27:24
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 27:25
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Thank you so much, John, and letting everyone know what's going on.
• 27:28
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And that's this week in Westchester.
• 27:31
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um certainly the folks at the Nationally Accredited and Award-winning park system would remind you to make sure to download the parks app on your favorite Android or um iOS device to be able to download that and see all the things that are happening in the parks.
• 27:45
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: That was just a smattering of the many, many things that happen um in our parks, recreation, and conservation system.
• 27:52
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And many of those things are free.
• 27:53
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Sometimes they have a cost to it, and Joan McDonald let us know that there was one or two that had a cost involved.
• 28:00
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um as we wrap up today's briefing, I want to also take a moment to recognize that March is Women's History Month.
• 28:07
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And again, this is the end of Women's History Month, but everyone would tell us that women's history is every day, right?
• 28:14
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um but again for which is uh um for Westchester for March, it was a time to reflect on the impact, the leadership, and recognize the progress of women in our communities and across the country.
• 28:25
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Here in Westchester County government, that recognition is not just symbolic.
• 28:30
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: It's lived every day.
• 28:31
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: You know, we're proud to be an organization where women just don't participate in leadership, they define it.
• 28:37
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: From our department heads, our deputy county executive, policy leaders, communications, public health operations, women in our county government shape the direction in this county in meaningful, measurable ways every day.
• 28:51
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: That leadership works, and that leadership shows up in the work we do, the communities we serve, and the way that we approach challenges with collaboration, strength, and a deep commitment to making Westchester a place where everyone could thrive.
• 29:06
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So as Women's History Month comes to a close, we're not just celebrating history, we're gonna continue to build that.
• 29:12
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um we were glad to be here this week with the mayor from the village of Hastings on Hudson, Tom Drake, um, and reminding us all the things that are happening in Rev in the 250th year of our country and the things that they're doing specifically in Hastings and trying to make sure every the great diversity that happens in a a village like Hastings continues to be shown.
• 29:33
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: But he did wrap up and talk about the loss of Stu Cohen's father, Joe Cohen.
• 29:39
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: You know, Stu Cohen was a um an officer that was lost in the line of duty, and thank you, um Tom from Mayor Drake for breaking sure to bring that back up with us.
• 29:47
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um certainly having um our friends from environmental facilities, um Lou Vitron and Peter McCart, our director of energy and sustainability, to let us know everything that starts to happen in EarthMonth, and there's a lot more stuff.
• 29:59
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Make sure to go on the website.
• 30:00
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Little links are gonna be there, right from Westchester Countyny.gov.
• 30:05
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And then we wrapped up from financial help talking with Tom Kleiner, our executive director of the Westchester Putnam Workforce Board, as well as um Ashley Britton and um Marlon to be able to uh to continue to move forward in the financial empowerment center.
• 30:21
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So we're gonna continue to do that.
• 30:23
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: The last thing I wanted to take a time out and make sure that we continue um to recognize um that when we continue to work throughout Westchester County and be able to look around and the things that we have, we see that we have such a fantastic county and that we have so many things that are happening around that.
• 30:40
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: We have to take the time to make sure to recognize um when we have loss and we have um challenges and everybody that has to get together.
• 30:49
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um I took some time on Saturday evening um to stand with the Yorktown community as they memorialized and celebrated and recognized um Sarah Dyn Gordon, who was lost um in a heinous murder in Chicago.
• 31:03
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Right?
• 31:04
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: But she was a leader in the community of bright light and hearing from her mom and her dad, Jess and and Tom Gordon um Gorman to be able to hear that from the community with over 1,500, maybe close to 2,000 people out to celebrate her and make sure that they're recognizing and listening to the words of her mother at the end of the day that we work together and take a little extra time to listen to someone else and make sure that we're making a difference every day.
• 31:30
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: And again, we're gonna close today in memory of Sheridan Gordon.
• 31:34
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: So um thanks a lot, Westchester, for continuing to stand together.
• 31:38
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: Um we want to continue to show our support in family members like Sheridan Gordon and her family members up there as we all reach around, our hearts are around each and every one of them to make sure that we're moving forward together.
• 31:50
  Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins: I'm County Executive Ken Jenkins, and that's this week in Westchester.