Sunday, May 22nd, 2020

Most of us have never experienced anything close to the upheaval caused by COVID-19. It is as if 9/11 ran into The Great Recession, and even that doesn’t quite describe it.

Through this blog, Pattern will report on trends and share data relative to the Hudson Valley in an effort to do what we do best – keeping you informed. We are excited to expand into this new channel and will provide updates each week focusing on analysis and solutions for our communities.

This first post is guided by our observation of the events of the last few weeks and how we best fit in.

There are two things we strongly recommend:
– “Flatten the Curve” – follow the health advice of experts to slow COVID-19
– Listen to Governor Cuomo’s morning briefings (usually around 11:00 am on his website). For a more local perspective, listen to summaries coming from your county and business groups.

“Flattening the Curve” by staying at home and practicing good social distancing is not an act of “giving in,” it is in fact how each one of us can do our part to help with slowing the spread of the virus to allow for healthcare professionals to perform their duties. Fewer infections means fewer serious cases, and reduces the impact on our healthcare system. Also remember to monitor those more likely to contract the virus with significant symptoms – our seniors and those with pre-existing conditions. You know those in your community – they are your family and neighbors.

Listen to the Governor each morning. Listening and reading about the spread of the virus 24/7 is overwhelming. It is also not great for our mental health. The Governor’s daily half hour briefing should offer enough for you to know what is happening in New York and what to do about it. For a more local perspective, listen to summaries coming from your county and business groups.

We are practicing this advice, too.

Throughout this healthcare and economic crisis Pattern will use our staff to gather information about life in the Hudson Valley. Yes, it may be sporadic and choppy at times, but it’s what we do and how we will continue to serve you. I will be focusing on the general issues, Joe and Michelle will be looking at housing and real estate, Eric and Kate will be searching for data points and offering their planner’s perspective, and Robin will focus on community trends.

Then we will each try to provide a sense of the communities we live in. We will use our staff as trained “observers” on what we can report back to you. I will be focused on Sullivan County (where we are expecting 4-8 inches of snow tomorrow), Joe, Robin, and Michelle will be in Newburgh, New Windsor and Goshen, Kate will be in Beacon, and Eric in Poughkeepsie. We will do so while practicing good social distancing and trying to capture our communities in videos and pictures.

Pattern has also begun a new series that we are calling “Positive Patterns” – a look at the grassroots efforts that our local local leaders, businesses, not for profits, and community organizations are undertaking to support each other. We hope that these “Positive Patterns” will inspire you to offer creative solutions that may work in your community – you can find these on our social media channels(follow us on Facebook), and in a weekly e-newsletter that will be sent out each Friday – be sure to register for our email list.

Finally we need your help – the more comments about what is happening in your communities, the wider our net can be in order to present a more complete picture of the Hudson Valley. Pattern has several networks that we are going to activate to try and broaden the input while we all “flatten the curve”.- Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube to keep up to date with our research and important conversations we’ll be having about our communities in the months to come.

This is that moment where we all find out who we are. It doesn’t matter what previous relationship we had with others, as this virus has no political or social boundaries. We are only as good as our weakest link. Remind our young people they can get the virus and are carriers to the people they love. Keep your spirits up and there will be a day when we will be telling stories about “What did we do during the Great Pandemic of 2020”.


Written by Jonathan Drapkin
President & CEO, Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress