Fallsburg, NY – After accepting the challenge to spend a night in one of New York City’s public housing developments, Mayoral Candidate Bill Thompson got on the road for a well coordinated trip to the Catskills early on Sunday morning.

Mr. Thompson chose the busy weekend of Shabbos Nachamu to travel the extra mile – over 100 miles -upstate, visited throngs of NYC voters who make the upstate region their summer destination.

Arriving in Monticello to throw out the first pitch at an Orthodox Jewish Baseball league game, an exuberant Thompson was thrilled to greet the ball players including old friends like Met Council’s Willy Rapfogel on the grassy field. Easily transitioning from softball to morning prayers at Ichud and Lapidus Bungalow colonies, Mr. Thompson donned a yarmulka out of respect for the houses of worship and was invited to enter the various Shuls, bustling with morning minyanim.

Mr. Thompson was greeted warmly by voters many still clad in their Tallis, who seemed genuinely happy to see him. From one town to the next, he cut across the Catskills, stopping at bungalow colonies, summer home developments, local businesses, Shuls and camps in Monticello, Fallsburg, Woodbourne and Woodridge. Walking and talking with friends and activists, Mr. Thompson looked upbeat with the granted opportunity meeting voters, breaking for a slice of kosher pizza, shaking hands and posing for pictures with delighted city residents. .

With 50 days to go to one of the most important Democratic mayoral primaries, on September 10, Mr. Thompson decided to spend this valuable July Sunday connecting and reconnecting with many friends and supporters in the Jewish community and brought his campaign directly to the thousands of Orthodox voters who are vacationing in upstate Sullivan County.

“I’m impressed you made the effort to come so far, you know the country is not around the corner,” one onlooker told Mr. Thompson, during a stroll on Woodbourne’s Main Street. “I realized that when we hit the Thruway,” Mr. Thompson replied with a smile on his face. “But this community has always been important to me and I thought people should know that,” he added. “Well, you just got my vote,” the voter said in return.

(Jacob Kornbluh – YWN)