From our questionnaire – Fill it out if you haven’t.
Let us know how your loved ones are doing! Tell us about your family of origin (parents, any siblings) or family of choice, or your partner or spouse, or your kids, grandkids, sibling’s kids, or other special people in your life.
What Fills Your Time?
Share what you’re doing professionally, or if you’re not working and/or you’re retired, what passions keep you busy?
Is there something on your “bucket list” that you’ve checked off recently?
Tell us about it!
Rich Jaffe – Jericho, NY
Son Brandon graduated university of Colorado; daughter Skylar in last semester at Wisconsin. Im an attorney, a partner and owner of my firm Law Office of Cohen & Jaffe, LLP – Bucket list – love to ride motorcycles as much as I can. I have two Harleys.
Caren Cort – Ossining, NY
Married about 30 years- together about 40. Officially empty nesters. Son Asher (20) & daughter Talia (18) both at Binghamton SOM. Parents just sold NY home and are now full time Florida residents. My brother and family live in Boca Raton. I still enjoy teaching special education in an integrated co-teaching kindergarten classroom in Hastings-on-Hudson. I enjoy hikes with my Bernadoodle Bernie, exercising, gardening, listening to historical fiction books, trying new recipes, watching the sunsets over the Hudson on my deck and sipping wine… Now that the kids are gone I am adjusting and deciding what I’d like to do again! – Bucket List -I would like to travel more – maybe play pickle ball.
Julie Ryan (Westrate) – near Boulder, CO
My Dad passed in 2007, my mom and brother love near Asheville NC. My daughter Sadie, 24, is moving back to Denver soon and my son is living outside Chicago with his Dad and has been cancer free for 5 years. My husband and I have been together for a decade and have two granddaughters. We live near Boulder, CO. Travel, travel and planning more travel! – Bucket list – Retirement!
Karyn Joy Rivera (Archibald) – Raleigh, NC
My husband, Peter, and I moved to NC 15 years ago after our two adult children moved out and started their lives.
Our daughter, Fantasia (age 35) moved to Raleigh about a year after we did and has been here 14 years. At 28, she bought her first home. She is currently living with her fiance and we couldn’t be happier having them nearby.
Our son, Peter Jr., (age 34) just retired from the US Air Force after 16 years and settled into his new home in North Las Vegas, NV afyer moving home from Okinawa, Japan. He bought his home in August and we were fortunate to go spend a week with him this month.
We have two rescue dogs. Our retriever mix jjst turned 15 years old this month, and our Beagle is 4 years old. They are our furbabies now since we have been empty nesters for 16 years.
We love Raleigh and the area we live in so much….it was the best move ever!
Both of my parents have passed away. We all miss them so much.
My husband is a real estate agent, an FAA unmanned aircraft pilot (drones), and a dog trainer. He keeps busy! We just celebrated our 25th anniversary married (many more years together ❤️).
I have worked as an Executive Assistant for 25+ years supporting C-Level executives in numerous industries. Most recently, pharmaceutical and I love what I do!
My passions include entertaining family, friends and guests, cooking, exploring and traveling, and drinking great wines! I love binging suspense dramas too. – Bucket list – We have begun traveling overseas and seeing places we’ve always wanted too. Our next big trip will be next Spring as we embark on a Rhine River Cruise beginning in Amsterdam.
Jennifer (Eckels) Emory – Hayden, Idaho
Married to hubby, Michael, for 30 years. Two grown-ass adult sons: Caleb, 24 and William, 20. Caleb owns a successful painting company. Will is a welder and loves his trade. Mike and I will retire in June, so, after that, contact me by text or at itsmybiz42@yahoo.com, which I rarely check. I would LOVE to re-connect with people, especially ones not on Social Media.
I teach 8th grade US History and have been te4aching in the same district for over 28 years. I taught in Florida before that. I love my chosen profession and will miss it when I retire. Outside of work, I love to read, bake, and hang out with family and friends. – Bucket list – Last year, Will and I went skydiving which was OUT OF THIS WORLD! This summer, I learned to paddleboard and also got back into working out. Since COVID, I’ve lost half my body weight and am working hard to keep it off. I decided that I wanted to live lol
Susan (Goodbody) Murray – Stanford, CT
Mom is living in North Truro, where she and Dad moved in 2005 to live in a home they designed. Dad was diagnoses with progressive supranuclear palsy in 2022 and lives in a skilled nursing facility in Orleans on the Cape. It’s an AWFUL disease. Billy lives in Australia with his 2 boys (ages 22 and 20) and his 2nd wife (who is amazing)… My husband Graham is a financial advisor in Darien, CT. Hannah is sophomore at Bowdoin College, where she was recruited for softball. Zachary graduated from Villanova in May and is now working as an assistant to the special teams coach for the football team.
I am the VP and Chief Patient Experience and Health Equity Officer at Blythedale Children’s Hospital in Valhalla. Just passed my 30th anniversary there. I love true crime and scary movies, I’m a huge Stephen King fan, and Graham and I like to spend time in both Martha’s Vineyard and Maine.
Alison (Smith) Mitchell – Campton, NH
My dad died in 2014. Mom is living in a retirement community in Amherst, MA. We moved to Amherst in 1985 and she’s been there ever since!. She’s doing great – attending local classical music concerts, her monthly book group, gardening. My brother (Steve) and his wife have been in southern Maine for the past 11 years, after living all around the world for his work assignments.
My husband and I are enjoying our adult children. Matthew, our older child, lives in southern PA and works as the vocal music director at a 9-12 grade private boarding school. Claire, our younger child, lives in Boston. If you want to eat your way through Boston while learning its history, she’s your guide!
I’m an associate professor of social work at Plymouth State University in NH, and a licensed mental health provider in NH and ME. My husband is retired. We have 2 cats and currently 2 dogs (Labrador retrievers) that keep us active and amused.
John Jordan – Rockaway, NJ
A year ago, Mom moved out of Pleasantville and lives in a retirement community closer to us. My triplet boys are now sophomores in high school. When I’m not busy being Scoutmaster for my boy’s troop, I negotiate clinical trial agreements for Novartis Pharmaceuticals.
Bucket list – I finally visited New Orleans this summer, which I’ve wanted to do since reading Interview with a Vampire back in early high school. It was a delight.
Karen Brandt – Brooklyn, NY
Parents still alaive and living in same place on Highland Terrace! Two kids, 20 and 17. Arlo is a junior at American Univeristy and Nico, a senior is in the process of applying to college.
I recently stopped working full-time as a middle school principal. I spend most of my time playing pickleball, cooking, and whether permitting, gardening.
Bucket list – More travel! On my way to Spain to visit Arlo for his junior year abroad and to Scotland for my niece’s wedding.
Tom Rippstein – Pleasantville, NY
3 kids: son 25 lives in Madrid Spain and works for a bank there, daughter 24 works in Stamford, CT for a financial services firm and lives at home, daughter 19 is a sophomore at Providence College (dad’s alma mater). Wife works in Bedford Central School District. We’ve lived in Pleasantville for the past 13+ years. All 3 kids graduated PHS!
Work full time for Wells Fargo Bank as a Relationship Manager in NY.
Bucket list – About to run my first full marathon (NYC – Nov 1)
Oliver Noble – NY, NY
My best friend of 40 years and I share an apartment in Harlem. We watch out for each other, like a big sister, little brother dynamic. My brother Rocco and sister Laura live upstate. Joe, the oldest, lives on Long Island. I am closest to my nephew Nilton and his family. They live in Pleasantville. I love being a great-guncle during the holidays and other special occasions.
I supply interior designers with furniture at wholesale, and also work administratively for the manufacturer’s local sales reps. Outside of work, I enjoy photography, enjoying city parks, music, and technology.
Susan Thompson/Fierro -Katonah, New York
My mother continues to be my earth angel, going strong, working, traveling, living life fully in faith in God and in love. Two sons, 28/26, enjoying watching them grow into independent, kind, funny, faith-filled, adventurous men in this world. Husband is an amazing doctor who loves helping people and making their lives healthier and happier. Great golfer and loves taking care of the lawn and enjoys eating all the homemade food I make and tolerates my “interest piles.”
I fill my time in life with amazing interests, God, grounding, following Circadian rhythms, sun gazing, feeding the birds, meeting new friends and groups of people, nature, music, food, exercise, travel, many podcasts, meeting friends for an iced tea or walk, conversations, letter writing, reading Scripture, meditating, Lifewave making my own GHK Cu peptides no injections, journal writing, researching more nature, Fika, eating spring grass fed cultured salted butter on my food daily, eating oysters, Big Foot, loving my family, more birds, bees, flowers, herb society of america, volunteering, art, sourcing spring water, raw milk sourcing, outdoor showers, illustrating, farmers markets and knowing my farmer food sourcing, regenerative farming, Weston A Price foundation, biofield aura work, aether/plasma free energy exploration, discussing consciousness, listening to the night crickets and the spring peepers, making great yogurt, canning jams and fruits, re-educating myself, fasting, thrifting, hiking, composting, collecting seeds, playing cards and board games, Dominoes, making bacon at least 4 times a week, creating and caring for two meadows, creating Hugel mounds, having chats with strangers, attending a new church, connecting with friends learning about permaculture, creating hedges for firefly spawning grounds, traveling when I can, spending time with my mother and sons, golfing, playing tennis, taking Qi Gong Classes, reading books, checking in with close friends daily, preparing my coffee daily which is each day’s highlight, mourning our cat Sal who recently passed, laughing with my sons, sharing funny cat videos, enjoying other people’s joys and awakenings, cutting flowers and putting them in beautiful vintage vases, sourcing naturally dyed fabrics, wearing cotton, wool, linen, silk cashmere for health and resonance, walking and sprinting – not running, laughing, listening to sacred music, dreaming, opera, dancing anywhere there is a good song, storing seeds, clearing out my basement, playing ping pong in the garage in on an antique ping pong table I snuck into the house, working on my green thumb, loving people, attending Audubon lectures, exploring natural dyeing, developing friendships with very interesting, talented, skilled, wise people, …leaving me very little time things, people, events, activities that waste time in this life that God gave to me.
Bucket List – Thailand and Niagara Falls.
Todd Cropsey – Ridgefield, CT
My folks are living on the Cape, and 93 and 91! I have 3 boys all graduated from College. Work, Golf, Fishing and family.