This past Tuesday was the last Village Board meeting for departing Trustees Barbara Berntsen and Mark Reimer. And the duo said goodbye to a crowded room thanks to the big showing for the veterans celebration ceremony. Both trustees lost their recent re-election bid.

The outgoing trustees’ years of community service were acknowledged by the village and county, which both board members worked closely with in their official capacities. Rockland County Legislator Doug Jobson awarded Berntsen and Reimer Certificates of Appreciation on behalf of the county and Mayor Carl Wright, the pair’s longtime colleague on the village board, made a presentation on behalf of the village.

In his last official act as Deputy Mayor and Trustee, Mark Reimer awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the village to President of the Ladies Auxiliary of American Legion Post 1643 Rita Cronk. Cronk was not only the very first president of the group, but its last. The group will disband after 50 years of service.

Upon receiving the award, Cronk reflected on all the many dinners the ladies prepared for legion events, and the many friendships forged in the long hours of volunteer service to Sloatsburg. Cronk remarked that the Ladies Auxiliary truly represented a time and way of village life that has passed.

“Fifty years is a long time,” said Cronk. “We did an awful lot for the Legion. We had a lot of suppers. We had Christmastime. We had music. We had a lot of fun. It was an honor to help the veterans of our town.”

Reimer served Sloatsburg as a trustee for 12 years and during his tenure worked to help retain Sloatsburg’s rural character.

Berntsen was presented with a Certificate of appreciation by the Commander of the American Legion Post 1643 John Patrick Miller, a Vietnam veteran, who said that Berntsen’s efforts on behalf of the legion were instrumental in helping to house the group.

During her tenure as trustee, Berntsen worked to revive historic and business renovation in the village’s central business district. She also served as a powerful preservationist voice in the community, working to help restore the Jacob Sloat House (Harmony Hall), where she now serves as president of the Friends of Harmony Hall.

New trustees Thomas Buckley, Jr. and Dan O’Leary III will be sworn into office Monday, December 3 at the annual Village Board reorganization meeting. The meeting sets the general Village Board operating rules and is also the meeting where appointments are made by the mayor, including agency commissioners, board chairs and members, as well as a new deputy mayor.