The Record-Review

Pound Ridge celebrates past with a bang-up book party

By EVE MARX

October 12, 2006

          Without doubt it was one of the biggest, busiest, most bustling events to take place in recent years in Pound Ridge. On Oct. 8 at 3 p.m., on a heartbreakingly beautiful afternoon marked by dappled light and streaming sun, several hundred people turned out for a book party held at the Hiram Halle Library in beautiful downtown Pound Ridge. They came by car, they came in droves. By 2:59 p.m., the parking lot was packed.

The book being celebrated (and almost giddily being bought up) was "Pound Ridge Past: Remembrances of Our Townsfolk," written by Pound Ridge resident Bonni Brodnick, with photographs by former Pound Ridge resident Fran Collin. The graphic design was done by Gina Federico, yet another Pound Ridger. A collection of more than 30 first-person interviews with the town’s elders, "Pound Ridge Past" is both a historical and personal document of life in Pound Ridge spanning from the 1920’s though the 1970’s. Old-timers recall such interesting artifacts as Albert Einstein being a guest at a gathering put together by Hiram Halle held at Aaron Wood’s mill on Trinity Pass, and that Emily Shaw’s Inn was the place where local kids gathered to watch crummy cowboy movies. Eleanor Roosevelt was influential in building the elementary school and it was mooing cows and screeching crows instead of alarm clocks that woke people up in the morning.
        Ms. Brodnick said it took between four and five years to write and photograph the book. Mr. Collin, who brought his mom to the event, was visiting from his home in Santa Barbara. "I think it took four or five years," he said, looking a bit dazed from so much meeting-and-greeting. "That’s what Bonni says."
        Mr. Collin¹s goal at the party was to get the signatures from as many of the people he had photographed as he could. He sat down on a folding chair right next to the book’s cover girl, Betsy Boone, and handed her a black highlighter. Asked how she felt about being on the cover, Ms. Boone, giggled. "It’s wonderful," she chuckled.
        Lisl Steiner-Monchek, a well-known, dare one say "character," in the community, is profiled in the book. Calling herself "a horsefly in Pound Ridge," in her section, she quotes Socrates, who wrote, "God has put me over this city like a horsefly on a noble stallion, to prick it and keep it alive." Ms. Steiner-Monchek was having a good time at the party, contributing a painting she made of Ms. Brodnick, nude, which she proposed hang in front of the deli. This raised a cheer from the audience, which caused Ms. Brodnick to blush.
        A great many of the people profiled in the book were in attendance, meeting and greeting and enjoying the cheese, fruit, wine and bottled water amenities. Anyone profiled was given a book free, a gift made possible by the Pound Ridge Rotary. One sad note was the missing Louis Pasciuti, co-owner of Poundridge Nurseries, who passed away Sept. 29 at the age of 82. A lover of both cows and cars, Mr. Pasciuti died at his home on the property of the nursery. A lover of travel, his family remarked at the time of his death that he always loved returning home to Pound Ridge. "There¹s no place more beautiful," Mr. Pasciuti said. Undoubtedly, had he been alive, he would have enjoyed the party.
        Charlotte Lyman, a longtime Pound Ridge resident who like Mr. Collin now lives in California, came to the party with her son, Dick, who is also featured in the book. "This is great," both Lymans commented, clearly having a good time. "What’s not to love here today? It’s thrilling."
        The author, Ms. Brodnick, has written for Glamour and House & Garden magazines and was for a time the "Talk of the Town" columnist for The Record-Review. At present she is the director of communications for the Brunswick School in Greenwich and editor of the Times of Brunswick. She and her husband and their children live in Pound Ridge.
        Fran Collin, the photographer, is an editorial, art and advertising photographer whose work has appeared in the The New York Times, "New York Magazine," "Interview," and many others. During his seven years living in Pound Ridge, he created and shot the "Scenes" photo-editorial for The Record-Review.
        Gina Federico, the graphic designer, was born and raised in Pound Ridge and lives there to this day with her husband and family. A graphic designer for more than 20 years, she owns and operates Gina Federico Graphic Design, whose client base includes multinational organizations, retail businesses, and not-for-profit organizations.
        The party’s over, but the book lives on. For ordering information, visit the Web site, www.poundridgepast.com, or send a check to "Pound Ridge Past: Remembrances of Our Townsfolk" at 217 Salem Road, Pound Ridge, NY 10576. Each copy is $30 and you must print out a U.S. Mail Purchase Form, which is available on the Web site. For more information, e-mail Poundrigepast@yahoo.com. Ms. Brodnick would like to let people know that if they ordered reserve copies of "Pound Ridge Past" but were unable to attend the book signing party last Sunday, their copies will be mailed to them.

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