Friday, December 1
Stretch Your Budget Christmas Sale ?
Old Stone Church,
159 Stone Church Road, Ballston Spa | 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Held also on Saturday. Shop for your Christmas Gifts for a donation and enjoy a cup of coffee, hot chocolate, and cookies. The sale is for families who need gifts for their own family. No dealers. Call 518-885-4034 Ann for questions.
Wreath Ceremony ?
Veteran’s Memorial, Low St., Ballston Spa | Noon
The Ballston Spa House & Garden Club will host the Wreath Ceremony. The public is invited to attend this solemn event to honor deceased veterans during the holidays. For questions about the ceremony, contact Marilyn Stephenson, at mcstephenson@nycap.rr.com.
Tea and Talk: Holiday Memories
Galway Public Library,
2112 East Street, Galway
3 – 4 p.m. | Adult program. Please bring your favorite holiday ornament or decoration, and be prepared to share a special holiday recollection. Tea and light refreshments will be served. Registration is requested at 518-882-6385.
Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting ?
North Side of Milton Avenue, Ballston Spa | 6:30 p.m. Brightly decorated floats, fire trucks and community groups will be parading through the village. Mr. and Mrs. Claus will arrive on the back of an Eagle-Matt Lee Fire Company truck to light the tree in Wiswall Park. Volunteers for the Toys for Tots campaign will be on hand to collect donations of new, unwrapped toys from spectators along the parade route as well as at the tree lighting. The Business Association is also hosting First Friday. Many businesses and shops will be open during the parade offering a variety of treats and activities such as hot cocoa bar, hot chowder, free parking and more.
Opening Reception: Near and Far
Spring Street Gallery,
110 Spring Street, Saratoga Springs | 6:30 p.m. | The public is invited to the opening reception for Artist Anne Diggory. Her exhibit includes recent Adirondack paintings and hybrid words along with paintings of Southern France. In a celebration of seeing and painting, she focuses on the magical and sometimes confusing juxtapositions of clarity and mystery in spaces that include the near and the far. For more information, visit the website at springstreetgallerysaratoga.org, or email springstreetgallerylist@gmail.com, 518-290-0660.
Saturday, December 2
Holiday Sale ?
Old Saratoga Reformed Church, Pearl and Burgoyne Streets, Schuylerville
8 a.m. – 2 p.m. | New and gently used Christmas items will be available for a donation. There will be a basket raffle, a bake sale, and much more. For more information, call the church office at 518-695-3479, 9 a.m. – noon, Monday – Friday.
Waldorf Winter Faire ?
Waldorf School, 62 York Ave., Saratoga Springs | 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. This event will be open to the public! This winter celebration will expand on our long-standing tradition of the Waldorf School Angel Room. There will be craft vendors, food, and ticketed crafts.
Holiday Craft and Vendor Fair ?
Come shop for those great holiday gifts this year at Saratoga Wilton Elks,
1 Elks Lane, Saturday, Dec. 2 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Many crafters and vendors will be on site. Free admission, raffles, food available. Crafters and vendors contact Holly at hldrew44@gmail.com to reserve a table.
Sunday, December 3
Fabric Memoirs
Temple Sinai, 509 Broadway, Saratoga Springs | 2 – 4 p.m. Fabric Memoirs, an in-person program featuring gifted artist Susan Rivers of Greentree Fiber Arts. Rivers will demonstrate the techniques to capture memories and tell your personal story in a hands-on workshop. Participants will learn how to transfer photographs to fabric and incorporate them into “no-sew” photo collages that bring memories to life. All materials will be supplied. Participants can bring digital and hard copy photographs and any textiles they would like to use, whether new or repurposed. Registration required; donations requested. Register at sjca.sjcf@gmail.com
A Community Christmas Music Concert ?
Old Saratoga Reformed Church, Burgoyne and Pearl Streets, Schuylerville | 3 p.m. Featured will be area choirs and local musicians. A free will offering will be taken, to benefit the community Caring and Sharing Program, which helps children in need in the Schuylerville School District. Refreshments will follow the concert. The church is handicapped friendly. All are welcome! For more information, call 518-695-3479.
Monday, December 4
Jigsaw Puzzle Challenge ?
Clifton Park Halfmoon
Public Library, 475 Moe Rd., Clifton Park | 6:30 p.m.
A two-hour Jigsaw Puzzle competition to see which team can complete a 500-piece puzzle the fastest. The library will provide puzzles and prizes! Recommended for ages 12 and up. Registration required. 518-371-8622. www.cphlibrary.org
Galway Preservation Society Program
Galway Town Hall, 5910 Sacandaga Rd, Galway | 7 p.m.
The December program will be given by Chris Carola, former Albany based Associated Press reporter and history buff on Saratoga County Veterans of World War II. Chris has done extensive research on the experiences of Saratoga County WWII veterans after discovering a scrapbook in the Saratoga Room of the Saratoga Springs Public Library documenting stories of local men and women who served our country during the Second World War. Our programs are always open to the public, free of charge. If you choose, annual family or household membership is available for $10 per year. Please join us to learn more about Saratoga County’s WWII Veterans.
Tuesday, December 5
The Catholic Daughters of the Americas Meeting
Knights of Columbus, 50 Pine Rd, Saratoga Springs | 5:45 p.m.
Court McLaughlin #422 Members gather for recitation of the Rosary, followed by refreshments until 6:30 p.m. when the meeting will begin. Members will be bringing donations for Toys for Toga. CDA is one of the oldest and largest organizations of Catholic women in the Americas. Please join us. Any questions? Contact our Regent Lucille Koch by phone or text at 516-319-4577.
Wednesday, December 6
Stuffed Shells Dinner Take Out
Saratoga-Wilton Elks Club,
1 Elks Lane, Saratoga Springs
4:30 – 6 p.m. | Take out only. Call Monday or Tuesday between 10 a.m. – Noon to place an order. 518-584-2585. Menu: stuffed shells, meatballs, sweet sausage, tossed salad, garlic toast. Cost: $15 per dinner. (Cash only).
Gavin Park Tree Lighting Ceremony ?
Gavin Park, 10 Lewis Rd., Saratoga Springs | 6 p.m.
Take pictures with Rudolph, Frosty, and Santa’s Elves as they roam the park. At 6:15 lighting of the tree and at 6:30 Santa arrives. Say hello to Santa and get your picture taken with him. Coffee, hot chocolate, cookies and treats will be provided.
Family Holiday Trivia Night ?
Galway Public Library,
2112 East St., Galway, 6 – 8 p.m.
Participants 12 years of age to adult are welcome to team up and shar their holiday knowledge for a chance to win a prize. Please register by calling 518-882-6385.
Pickin’s Session
310 Northline Rd.
Ballston Spa | 6:30 – 9 p.m. Open to the public, free admission, and ample free parking. Doors open 6 p.m. All acoustic musicians who enjoy playing country/western, folk, gospel & bluegrass are welcome to participate. If you don’t play, become part of the audience, and enjoy the music. Bring a snack to share. Beverages provided. Call 518-885-4229 with questions.
Poetry Reading
Caffè Lena, 47 Phila St., Saratoga Springs | 7 p.m. A poetry reading by James Schlett. An open mic poetry reading will follow. Doors open for sign-ups at 6:30 p.m. The host for the event will be Carol Graser and the cost is $5 general, free for students. The featured reading will also be live streamed. You can find a link for the livestream at caffelena.org. 518-583-0022.
Thursday, December 7
Cascading Caregiver Crisis
Saratoga Senior Center,
290 West Ave., Saratoga Springs
1 p.m. | Bob Semenza, whose wife, Marie, suffered from Parkinson’s disease, which he wrote about in his book, “Times with Marie…And Parkinson’s” will conduct a reading of a section of his book followed by a presentation of his personal caregiver journey, and the challenging issues which so many in a similar role will be, or presently are, facing. Limited copies of his book will be available for purchase.
Exhibit: Messages from Survivors
Ballston Spa Public Library,
21 Milton Ave., Ballston Spa
6 p.m. | One Family’s Holocaust Legacy and inspiration talk with Holocaust survivor, Ivan Vamos. The exhibit produced by The Memory Project Productions, Inc., is built on 40 years of filming a family of Holocaust survivors in the Bronx, Miami, and a bungalow colony in the Catskills between 1962 and 2016. The exhibit consists of six short videos that introduce the Holocaust through powerful personal stories of a family of Holocaust survivors. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, please call 518-885-5022 or visit bspl.sals.edu.
Retracing Our Steps: The French-American Joint Reconnaissance Tour in Winter of
1780-1781
Saratoga National Historical Park Visitor Center Theater, 648 Route 32, Stillwater | 6:30 p.m.
The French organized a joint reconnaissance mission to previous battlefields of the American Revolution under the initiative of François-Jean de Chastellux, an overlooked figure who played a crucial role as a liaison officer between the French and Americans, and in the logistical and strategic planning of the allied army. Dr de Rode’s discovery of his unpublished private papers, in the ancestral château of the Chastellux family in Burgundy, reveals numerous details about his role, especially on this forgotten reconnaissance mission, including an in-depth study of the battlefield of Saratoga. This program is free. Reservations are required by visiting go.nps.gov/saraevents or emailing SARA_info@nps.gov.
