I must admit, upfront, that I am a bit biased in this matter... but I was delighted with the decision of Chautauqua Institution to hire Mark Johnson as its new President. He will be undertaking these new duties in the coming year. I first knew Mark as a kid growing up in Jamestown when we ...

Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month makes me think about how much stigma I carried for a long time. I believed what a lot of men are taught — that you’re supposed to be tough, suck it up, push through, and handle everything on your own. That needing help meant you were weak somehow. ...

Every May I drive to Lexington, Massachusetts to celebrate my grandson’s birthday and decorate our family graves. This year was special. Malcolm was also graduating from high school and the family gathered – even more of us than usual. His grandfather drove up from New York City with ...

CHAUTAUQUA—Progress often comes in steps rather than all at once. One encouraging step at Chautauqua Institution is particularly worth applauding. A few years ago a visitor came to Chautauqua other than by being invited by the institution. Shortly thereafter, the visitor was critical ...

Albany Democrats do not favor the redistricting rules in New York, that is no secret. However, the whole truth is that they never did like it. For years, they have been trying to undermine those rules and create more favorable, partisan maps. This is another example of the negative ...

Editor’s note: Marcy O’Brien is in New England with family graduation festivities. Parts of this column have appeared previously. Memorial Day was a particularly important day of remembrance for my mother. Every year, she made sure we wore commemorative red poppies to honor her youngest ...