Words cannot capture the feeling in one’s gut as an acrobat steps climbs onto a board that teeters atop a stack of blocks and cylinders that wiggle in all directions, nor can they fully convey the joy of watching a dog leap over his tumbling master or ride a scooter like a biped. Circuses are designed to invoke emotions and stimulate all the senses, down to the hair raising on the back of the neck and the tongue salivating for cotton candy. None of the children admitted free to this circus have ever attended one in New Paltz before, but given the welcome it received, organizers seem hopeful that it won’t be that long a wait to see one again.

Peotter began the process of coordinating the efforts of the New Paltz Climate Smart Task Force by doing “a deep dive into research,” she notes, learning what the certification process was all about. She got some help from a few SUNY New Paltz interns, and “together we all learned a lot and then got rolling.”