Our Blog

We are incredibly lucky to live in a community with so many amazing independent businesses. Occupy Main Street is not a foreign concept, as most of us frequent village shops and restaurants instead of big box stores whenever possible. We understand the idea of supporting each other, businesses here have a face. 

This is the season of coming together to endure the cold and reflect—when families and friends can express their gratitude and appreciation for each other. Over the past months we’ve all undergone or seen some challenges with weather and economy, but together we thrive as a community of mutual support. We want to take this opportunity to thank our readers, advertisers, and contributors for helping our small business to thrive and grow.

As we get together this holiday season, let’s remember to appreciate the people around us. Let’s put our attention toward the things in our lives that bring us joy. This effort of intention, even in very small increments, can expand our ability to attract more and more wonderful things to our lives. Our community is made up of all of us, and the more we develop as individuals, the more strength we have as a community. We are grateful for all of you, for all of the support, for the family, and network of friends and businesses that feel like family, and for this beautiful landscape that we know as home. Working together within this community, to put it simply, is a wonderful way of life.

—Melissa and Jesse

A picture is worth a thousand words, and a video speaks volumes. Images help us remember things in rich, exciting ways. Local business owners working with VISITvortex reach out to the community to illustrate what they do with striking imagery, both moving and still. Community members or visitors seeking something to do in the area have the opportunity to take a glimpse through VISITvortex, either online or in the magazine.
VISITvortex is like a virtual meeting place. You can virtually meet the owners and enter their places of business, virtually take a hike, or tour a town. This makes you a more educated consumer or visitor so that your time and money will be best spent. We want to match up what you want with who or what can meet your needs locally. Let them know, “I saw you on VISITvortex.”

MY DAUGHTER MIRABAI RECENTLY ASKED, as we were driving toward Ellenville, “When is that Walmart opening here? I wish it was going to be like the Kingston Mall.” I started to tell her about what would happen to the community if the Walmart did open, or if there were a mall there. We spoke about how most of that money would funnel straight out of our communities into megacorporate pockets.
We spoke about the pride of small business owners, how much they care about their products or services—how they add value to a community in so many ways. We discussed the pristine surrounding farm fields and ridge views. We continued to drive and imagine all of the places that need local support to thrive. We noticed the tire shop, the little clothing shop, the locally owned market, and the little hardware store. We talked about why money stays in the community when we spend locally.
It’s all about where we put value. Do we value our people and our parks, our land and the ecosystem it supports? If we look to the Gulf we see a perfect example of misplaced priorities. But these ideas are so ingrained in us that it will take some effort to shift gears. Yes, Mirabai, I know you love shopping, so try to look at the big picture. Let’s support each other and our land in a way that lasts into the future.

As our business grows and finds its place in the community we are evolving to fill an important need. We are a guide to the great people and places of the Mid-Hudson Valley, and it seems that many of those great people are local business owners. The health of a community has much to do with its economy, so we are happy to be a forum for local small business owners. This sort of intimate look through video and photo imagery helps people to feel familiar with a shop or town, thus increasing tourism and helping locals to choose to spend locally instead of with big box stores. If we can go in and meet the owners, our buying experience isn’t just about getting something but about relationships. Every ad you see here is not advertising in the traditional sense (or at least that’s what we’d like to think). Each represents a life, a family, a member of your community who put their heart and soul into their business, their livelihood. Please tell them you saw them in VISITvortex.