Author to Discuss Saving of Lower Hudson Valley June 17

     ENGLEWOOD - Author Barbara Hansen Cali will discuss her book "Steel & Grit", a history of the saving of the Lower Hudson Valley and construction of the Bear Mountain Bridge, on Wednesday, June 17, at 6:00 p.m. at the Woman's Club of Englewood Carriage House, 187 Brinckerhoff Court, here followed by an indoor picnic.

     All interested may R.S.V.P. to Natalie Beaumont at 201 658 8848 or nbeau8848@aol.com by Sunday, June 14, to attend. There is no charge for this open-to-the-public event.

     The book provides some background on the role that women (especial those from Englewood) played in the late 1890s/early 1900s in getting the legislation approved that formed the Palisades Interstate Park Commission. This was the beginning of the movement that saved the Palisades from destruction as well as the formation of the large network of parks existing today in the Hudson Valley. The Bear Mountain Bridge was built in 1924, the first Hudson River crossing south of Albany.

     Barbara Hansen Cali is a retired management executive with more than 30 years in the commercial real estate and construction industry, serving at various times as property manager and director as well as estimator and project manager for construction projects in the New Jersey market, often mentoring junior managers in the good stewardship of building maintenance and quality construction procedures.

     A lifelong resident of the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area, Cali resides in northern New Jersey. She is a member of the Orange County (NY) Historical Society and has published several articles in the "Journal of the Orange County Historical Society" as well as in the" Westchester Historian", the journal of the Westchester Historical Society.

     A lifelong advocate for children, she sits on the boards of two organizations dedicated to ensuring that all children enjoy a happy childhood.

     Event sponsor Woman's Club of Englewood and its founding members were instrumental in the saving of the Palisades, as well as helping to found Memorial House, predecessor to Bergen Family Center, Englewood Hospital and the Englewood Public Library.