August 23 – 29, 2024
Friday, August 23
Grand, Gilded and Glorious: A Saratoga Stroll
Saratoga Springs Heritage Area Visitor Center, 297 Broadway, Saratoga Springs | 10:30 a.m. – Noon. This 90-minute guided walking tour will entertain and enlighten both visitors and residents with the famed stories of this great city. Saratoga Springs was the playground of the rich and famous during the 1800’s and provides the stories of this wonderful, gilded period in our history. This unique and engaging tour will guide participants from the Saratoga Springs Visitor Center to Congress Park and will conclude with a complete tour of the elegant Canfield Casino. Tuesday – Saturday, 10:30 a.m. – Noon through October, $20 per person. For reservations, please call the Saratoga Heritage Area Visitor Center: 518-587-3241.
Saturday, August 24
Three Sisters Festival
Saratoga County History Center/Brookside Museum, 21 Fairground Ave., Ballston Spa | 1 – 4 p.m. Discover the Three Sisters: Corn, Beans and Squash. This is a drop-in event for the whole family, (bring chairs and blankets, and linger for a while). The celebration will feature story telling by Joe Bruchac, well-known local author and the current Poet Laureate of Saratoga Springs, who will also share tales of local Indigenous culture. An exhibit on Indigenous artifacts will be open for viewing. There will also be talks on native plants as well as garden tours and a bake sale. In addition, Balet Flowers and Design will have plants and bouquets for sale, with a percentage of the sales being donated to the History Center.
This event is rain or shine (it will be moved indoors), free to attend, but donations are always gratefully received and will be used for SCHC programs and further development of the gardens.
Sunday, August 25
Annual Classic Car Show
Lakeside Farms, 336 Schauber Rd., Ballston Lake | 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Adirondack A’s and Lakeside Farms’ Annual Classic Car show. Rain or Shine. Limited to stock appearing vehicles prior to 1975. Car registration fee is $5 on the day of the show. Spectator parking and admission is free. The Lakeside Country Store, Gift Shop and Restaurant will be open. No Pets Please. For further information see the Club’s website, Auto Show – Adirondack A’s – Model A Ford Club (adirondackas.org).
Summer Sunday Stroll: Post Time
Meet: Southeast corner of Nelson and Union Avenues, Saratoga Springs | 10:30 a.m. Explore the area surrounding the Saratoga Race Course during one of the most popular weekends of the Racing Season. This walking tour highlights the history of the Reading Rooms, National Museum of Racing & Hall of Fame, Oklahoma Training Track, and the Fasig-Tipton Humphrey S. Finney Sales Pavilion. Sponsored by The Springwater Bed & Breakfast. Tickets are $15 for SSPF Members and $20 for non-members and should be purchased in advance! Space is limited! For additional information or to purchase tickets to any of the upcoming strolls and events, visit www.saratogapreservation.org, call 518-587-5030, or email Sydney Hedge, Preservation & Programs Coordinator, at shedge@saratogapreservation.org.
Singer Songwriter Elizabeth Conant
The Wilton Heritage Society, 5 Parkhurst Rd., Wilton | 1 p.m. Elizbeth Conant is a well-known singer/songwriter from Greenfield Center. The program will be outdoors if weather permits. Bring a lawn chair. We will move indoors if it rains. Refreshments will be served during intermission and our Museum and Farm Annex will be open as well. Admission is free and all are welcome.
The God of Isaac
Congregation Shaara Tfille, 84 Weible Ave., Saratoga Springs | 2 – 7 p.m.
A staged reading, this comedy, in two acts, is a hilarious and heartwarming play by Chicago playwright and actor James Sherman. The semi-autobiographical piece centers around a young American Jew searching for his Jewish identity following the threatened 1977 neo-Nazi march in Skokie.
A $5 per person fee. Refreshments to follow.
Sounds of Summer
Brookside Museum, 21 Fairground Ave., Ballston Spa | 6 p.m. The Jazz Ambassadors as well as featured professional musicians from the local 506 of the American Federation of Musicians will be giving a free concert on the porch of the Brookside Museum. They will be playing under the baton of Dennis Searles, coordinator of Local 506 of the Music Performance Trust Fund. Please bring your lawn chairs and a picnic dinner and enjoy a relaxing evening of music.
Monday, August 26
Pickle for the Ponies
Legacy Pickleball Club, 4 McCrea Hill Rd., Ballston Spa | 3 – 6 p.m. We invite you to be part of an exciting and impactful event, Pickle for the Ponies, supporting Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga (THS) and the Permanently Disabled Jockey Fund (PDJF). This new event will offer a unique opportunity to enjoy a day of pickleball, connect with your community, and contribute to two wonderful causes. Play with and cheer on racing celebrities. Enjoy food from Neighborhood Kitchen, Meet and greet therapy horses, cash bar, silent auction. Tickets are $25 spectators and $50 Courtside ticket for final round, $250 to play. The event will have an open house/spectator-style format, allowing everyone to enjoy the matches, food, and fun activities. Playing pickleball, not required! To purchase tickets, visit https://thsaratoga.org/events/
5K Trail Series
Wilton Wildlife Preserve and Park, Parking Lot #1 and #2, 80 Scout Rd., Wilton | 6:15 p.m. Registration is $10 day-of. Children ages 0-12 are free; 13-18 are half-price. This is a low-key, all-outdoors event topped off by light refreshments and unusual raffle prizes. Please bring your own water. Proceeds benefit the Wilton Wildlife Preserve & Park. For more information, call Laura Clark at 518-581-1278 or email laura@saratogastryders.org or visit www.saraogastryders.org for more information and to sign up online.
Water Soluble Oil Demonstration
Clifton Park Senior Community Center, 6 Clifton Common Blvd. Clifton Park | 6:30 p.m. Demonstration by artist and NYS certified art teacher, Cheryl Bielli-Water. Hosted by the Southern Saratoga Art Society. Her work includes watercolor, oil and acrylic paintings, charcoal, pencil and pastel drawings, political cartoons, caricatures and sculpture. Saratoga Arts made this program possible through the Community Arts Regrant Program, funded by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. The demonstration is free, and the public is invited to attend. For more information, visit: southernsaratogaartist.com
Tuesday, August 27
Countdown to Kindergarten
Clifton Park Halfmoon Public Library, 475 Moe Rd., Clifton Park | 9:30 or 11 a.m.
Join us for stories, songs, and activities to help get ready for the first day of school. Activity stations will focus on cutting skills, writing names, crafting, and tying shoelaces, and information about library materials and early reader books. Kids can also get on a Shenendehowa school bus and meet a bus driver in the library parking lot. For children entering Gr. K, with an adult. Registration required; please register for one session only. 518-371-8622. www.cphlibrary.org
Saratoga Summer Concert Series
War Memorial in Congress Park, Saratoga Springs | 7 p.m. Gather your friends and family, bring your blankets and chairs, find a spot on the lawn, and enjoy some of the area’s favorite performers. This free, family-friendly concert series is a program of the Saratoga Springs Heritage Area Visitor Center in partnership with Discover Saratoga and the City of Saratoga Springs.
The featured concert will be Mostly Modern Festival – an international music festival dedicated to contemporary classical music.. Rain location is Heritage Area Visitor Center, 297 Broadway, Saratoga Springs. The Heritage Area Visitor Center, located at 297 Broadway, will be the concert rain location.
Wednesday, August 28
Baked Ham Dinner
Saratoga Wilton Elks, 1 Elks Lane, Saratoga Springs | 4:30 – 6 p.m. For curbside pickup only. Call Monday or Tuesday between 10 a.m. – Noon to place an order, 518-584-2585. Menu: baked ham, au gratin potatoes, vegetable, apple sauce, roll, tossed salad. Dinner $15 each (cash only).
Photography Club
Galway Public Library Community Room, 2112 East Street, Galway | 6 p.m. Our speaker this month will be club member Felice Druziak who will be giving a presentation on using the camera on your phone. We will also be reviewing photographs submitted for this month’s Photo Challenge: Happy, but Blue! Anyone interested in photography regardless of their level of experience is encouraged to attend these relaxed and friendly gatherings. For more information contact: Dave Waite at davewaitefinearts@gmail.com
Thursday, August 29
Herbal Mocktails Class
Cornell Cooperative Extension, 50 W. High St., Ballston Spa | 6:30 – 8 p.m. This 2 Class Series will be taught by Jessica Marcy, a clinically trained herbalist from Upstate New York. Learn how to make refreshing herbal mocktails that benefit the mind and body. In this class we will discuss basic herbal preparations, and specific herbs to take your mocktail game to the next level. Each Participant will receive: A booklet with tips, tricks, and recipes, a tasting flight of bitters, a tasting flight of tonics, simple syrup how to & sample, several classics made into mocktails. Next class is Wednesday September 4, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m. Call 885-8995 to pre-register three days in advance. Cost is $20.