Front Porch Realty

10/15/2026

New York isn’t just about skyscrapers. It’s about the water. 🌊

New York has a relationship with water that stretches far beyond the famous skyline.

Along Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, small towns, beaches, harbors, and state parks give people a chance to experience the Great Lakes up close. Along the Hudson River, waterfront parks and walking paths bring the river into everyday city life. And on Long Island, the coastline opens up to sandy beaches, fishing spots, and the Atlantic Ocean.

Each shoreline has its own personality.

The Hudson River offers historic waterfront towns, riverwalks, and views that change with every bend. The Great Lakes can look almost ocean-sized, with blue water stretching toward the horizon. Long Island brings beach days, lighthouses, boats, and salt air. Places like Niagara Falls remind everyone just how powerful water can be.

And then there are the quieter moments: watching the sun set over Lake Erie, walking beside the Hudson, spotting boats in a harbor, or finding a peaceful stretch of shoreline far from the crowds.

New York has mountains, forests, farmland, and busy cities—but its waters are a huge part of what makes the state feel like home to so many people.

The question is: which New York waterfront deserves more attention?

Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Hudson River, or Long Island’s beaches?

10/15/2026

10/15/2026

On the one-year anniversary of "Flip the Switch," we are excited to announce the next chapter for the Massena Schine Theater: A SeaComm Community Arts Center!

SeaComm is all in on the Schine and they are committing to support the theater by securing the naming rights through 2036! With this gift, SeaComm is ensuring that high quality programming will be happening at the theater for the next ten years.

SeaComm President and CEO, Scott Wilson recently said, “We are proud to continue investing in Massena. Our partnership from day one on this project to include the refurbishing of the marquee is an extension of what our Credit Union has done for the past 63 years through its ongoing support of the community in which we solidly began our humble foundation. We couldn’t be more pleased to see the next phase of the project move forward and to have our name affiliated with it.”

“SeaComm is celebrating more than six decades of doing business in Massena, and is committed to ensuring that organizations such as the Massena Arts and Theater Association are able to fulfill its mission. The Schine Theater, which at one time was the centerpiece of our downtown, will once again play a vital role in providing quality film, creative performances and events within its historic walls,” Wilson added.

10/15/2026

Our latest River Talk is online 🤓☀️🌊🛶⛵️
Click the link below and read all about TIA’s fall happenings.
https://www.thousandislandsassociation.com/

10/15/2026

10/15/2026

THE FAWN SHE PUSHES AWAY THIS OCTOBER ISN’T BEING ABANDONED. HIS MOTHER IS FINALLY TAKING HER BODY BACK.

All summer, he has followed her.

He has nursed.

Rested beside her.

Learned where to feed.

Learned when to freeze.

Learned when to run.

Then October arrives, and something changes.

The fawn tries to nurse.

The doe steps away.

He follows.

She blocks him again.

Sometimes she may even nudge him off sharply.

To us, it can look cold.

Like rejection.

But by fall, a white-tailed doe has already spent months paying one of the largest energetic costs of motherhood:

milk.

Penn State’s Deer-Forest Study notes that lactation is extraordinarily demanding for a doe. By about 10 weeks, a fawn’s rumen is functioning well enough that it no longer needs milk as its primary food, and weaning allows the mother to redirect energy back toward herself. deer.psu.edu+1

And in October, she needs that energy.

Penn State researchers describe autumn does as being intensely focused on feeding, especially females that raised fawns through summer. Those mothers have to replace body reserves lost during lactation while abundant fall foods such as acorns are still available. deer.psu.edu+1

There is another transformation happening too.

A nursing doe can actually be delayed in growing her winter coat.

Penn State explains that the high prolactin levels associated with milk production conflict with the hormonal conditions needed for autumn hair growth. Once lactation winds down, declining prolactin helps allow the winter coat to develop. deer.psu.edu

So ending nursing is not simply the mother deciding she is finished.

Her body is switching priorities.

From producing milk...

to rebuilding itself.

From raising a summer fawn...

to surviving winter.

Meanwhile, the fawn is not suddenly helpless.

By this stage, young white-tailed deer have been eating vegetation for months. Missouri wildlife guidance describes fawns beginning the weaning process only weeks after birth, with the young increasingly traveling and feeding alongside their mothers as summer progresses. Missouri Department of Conservation

The bond does not simply vanish either.

A fawn may continue traveling with its mother long after nursing ends.

They can still feed together.

Bed near one another.

Move through the same home range.

What disappears is the milk.

And that can create one of the most easily misunderstood autumn moments in deer behavior:

a young animal asking for something that was normal all summer...

and a mother finally saying no.

Not because she stopped caring.

Because continuing indefinitely would carry a cost.

Winter is approaching.

Her coat has to change.

Her body reserves have to recover.

And another breeding season is beginning.

Indiana DNR notes that the white-tailed deer rut occurs primarily during October and November. The doe entering that season is no longer just the mother we watched through summer; biologically, she is transitioning into the next stage of her annual cycle.

So if you see a fawn trying to nurse this October while its mother repeatedly steps away, the scene is not necessarily rejection.

It is something quieter.

The end of one phase of motherhood.

The beginning of independence.

And a mother whose body has spent months giving...

finally keeping enough for herself to make it through winter.

10/15/2026

🦌 **Feeding a deer feels like kindness. But sometimes, the kindest thing you can do is walk away.**

Every fall, people leave corn, apples, and other treats for the deer visiting their yards. They mean well—but a sudden change in diet can make deer seriously ill.

🌽 **Corn can be dangerous.** Deer are adapted to digest natural browse, and suddenly eating large amounts of rich food can disrupt their rumen and cause potentially fatal acidosis.

🦠 **Crowding creates another risk.** Feeding stations bring deer together unnaturally, increasing opportunities for diseases such as chronic wasting disease (CWD) to spread.

🚗 **There are other consequences, too.** Deer may repeatedly cross roads to reach food, overbrowse nearby plants, and become accustomed to people.

❤️ **Want to help instead?**

🍂 Leave natural foods, such as fallen acorns, undisturbed where appropriate.

🌳 Support healthy native habitat with suitable trees and shrubs.

🚫 Stop feeding wild deer and check your local wildlife regulations.

🛣️ Slow down when driving through areas where deer are active.

Wildlife doesn't need us to turn every encounter into a feeding opportunity. Sometimes, it needs us to respect its wildness.

**Real compassion isn't always giving food. Sometimes, it's giving wildlife the space to live naturally.** 🌲

Share this with someone who loves feeding deer. ❤️

10/15/2026

The Clayton Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce Sharon D. Bourquin as Clayton’s 2026 Citizen of the Year

CLAYTON, N.Y. — Sharon D. Bourquin has been selected as Clayton’s 2026 Citizen of the Year. The honor recognizes her longstanding commitment to the community and two decades of volunteer service helping preserve and share the history of Clayton and the Thousand Islands.

The annual Citizen of the Year Award recognizes individuals whose volunteer service and dedication have made a lasting, positive impact on the Clayton community. Bourquin’s contributions reflect that spirit through years of leadership, generosity and steady work on behalf of the Thousand Islands Museum and the people it serves.

Sharon began volunteering at the museum in 2006, drawn by her interest in genealogy. What started as one day a week in the Research Library grew into a commitment that often brought her to the museum five days a week, and sometimes seven during major events.

Over the years, Sharon has served as an unpaid museum director and helped with nearly every aspect of its operations, including exhibits, membership, volunteer recruitment, fundraising and community programs. She continues to volunteer three days a week, coordinating the museum’s Sunset History Boat Tours, a major fundraiser, and writing its weekly news column for the Thousand Island Sun, extending her efforts to share the region’s stories with a wider audience.

Sharon’s contributions have touched many familiar community traditions, including the Festival of Trees, the annual Decoy Show, the Holiday Craft Fair, community dinners and Veterans Day displays. She has also supported History at Noon and other gatherings that connect residents and visitors with the area’s past. Through these efforts, she has helped make local history accessible, engaging and meaningful to people of all ages.

Much of Sharon’s work takes place behind the scenes. She preserves newspaper clippings and family records, maintains research materials and helps people explore their genealogy. Those who nominated her praised both her knowledge of local history and her willingness to share it, whether answering a visitor’s question, helping a family researcher or welcoming a new volunteer.

In a joint nomination, museum volunteers described Sharon as the museum’s “heart and soul.” Their recommendation emphasized that her service has been freely given out of love for the community and its heritage. Other nominators similarly credited her steady presence and dedication with helping the museum remain a valued resource for Clayton.

Sharon’s community involvement extends beyond the museum. While helping care for her granddaughters, Ashlee and Andrea, she volunteered at their preschool, assisted with Antique Boat Museum educational projects at Guardino Elementary School and raised funds for their travel sports teams. Sharon’s commitment to supporting her family and community has carried through every stage of her life.

Born and raised in Clayton, Sharon graduated as salutatorian from Clayton Central School in 1964. She began her working career at First National Exchange Bank, later the National Bank of Northern New York, during her senior year. After seven years at the bank, she joined Wingerath Bros., where she worked for 34 years, serving as secretary and treasurer of the incorporated company and later handling accounting for its lumber business.

Sharon and her husband, Bob, have been married for 61 years. They have one son, William, two granddaughters and one great-grandson.

Sharon’s legacy of service is reflected in the records she preserves, the programs she helps bring to life and the people she welcomes to the museum. Her own words capture the purpose behind that dedication: “I love that I am helping to preserve the history of our amazing Village and Town.”

The Clayton Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a dinner honoring Sharon on Thursday, November 12, 2026, at the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel, 200 Riverside Drive, Clayton, NY. The banquet will also include a “Best of the Best” awards presentation and the presentation of the “Community Spirit Award” honoring conductor Rick Badour and the Clayton Community Band.

Reservations may be made online at https://www.1000islands-clayton.com/citizen-of-the-year/ or by contacting the Clayton Chamber of Commerce at 315-686-3771 or [email protected]. Reservations must be made by 4 p.m. on October 30, 2026.