The 37-acre, 5-megawatt solar project proposed by RIC Energy received conditional approval from the Knox Planning Board last month as the town board works to negotiate a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement among the company, the county, and the Berne-Knox-Westerlo School District.

EAST BERNE — Priscilla Schaap of East Berne, a baker and cake decorator who loved her family, died peacefully on Friday, May 13, 2022, at St. Peter’s Hospital. She was 64.
She was born on Aug. 14, 1957, to the late Morris and Anna Willsey of Berne.

WESTERLO — Dennis C. McDermott, who enjoyed watching his grandchildren grow, died on Friday, May 13, 2022, at St. Peter’s Hospital. He was 74.
He was born in Catskill on Sept. 9, 1947 to the late Charles and Mildred Furman McDermott. He was raised in Knox, and then settled in Westerlo with his family.

KNOX — Robert H. Moons, longtime resident of Knox, died on Feb. 12, 2022, with his loving family by his side.

WESTERLO — “I tilt at windmills a lot,” says Bonnie Kohl-Laub.

When she and her husband, Leonard Laub, moved to Westerlo, they immersed themselves in local issues and made a difference.

Now they have sold their historic farmhouse and are packing to move to southern France.

Elizabeth Nicosia-Britton, Rensselaerville

Amie Burnside, Westerlo

As the world faces a food crisis in the not-too-distant future and is currently in the midst of a climate crisis, it would be wise to look at plant production as an alternative to animals for our nutrients.

Megan Bassler, a 2010 graduate of Berne-Knox-Westerlo, spent two years as a social worker after getting a master’s degree in that field, then went on to law school and passed the state bar exam last year.

Berne building inspector Jonathan Heigel is not qualified to issue building permits for construction projects without the approval of a code-enforcement officer, but granted some to the town and Berne Town Board member Albert Thiem anyway.