Author: Saratoga TODAY

As a poignant hometown tribute on the 25th anniversary of the date when a Ballston Spa teen vanished without a trace, the hefty antique bell inside the tower of an historic village landmark will toll 25 times commencing at 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 2.

In respectful remembrance of BSHS Class of 1996 honors graduate Suzanne Gloria Lyall, who was 19 at the time of her March 2, 1998 abduction from her SUNY/Albany campus, Mayor Frank S. Rossi II has issued a proclamation encouraging residents to observe a moment of silence as the bell is rung 25 times from atop the historic red brick factory at the corner of Prospect St. and Milton Ave. 

The Center for HOPE (Healing Our Painful Emotions), a not-for-profit that was co-founded by Suzanne’s parents, Mary and Douglas Lyall in the aftermath of her abduction, is situated within the Civil War era complex where the commemorative bell ringing will transpire. Advocacy, education and prevention are cornerstones of the organization which has earned a reputation across the nation as a life raft for those struggling to cope with the unexplained disappearance of a loved one.

The Center for HOPE established the annual New York State Missing Persons Day and the Missing Persons Remembrance, a monument with an eternal flame on the grounds of the NYS Museum in Albany, that combine to provide families and friends of missing persons with support and opportunities for remembrance. The 2023 NYS Missing Persons Day will take place Saturday, April 15. 

Suzanne’s parents and Center for HOPE volunteers additionally helped to lay the groundwork for the NYS Campus Safety Act (now federal legislation called Suzanne Lyall’s Campus Safety Law) and a second piece of federal legislation titled Suzanne’s Law which boosted the age for those protected by The Center for Missing and Exploited Children from 18 to 21 and spearheaded efforts to introduce the Missing Persons Alert System through the NYS Thruway as well as having decks of Cold Case playing cards produced for circulation among inmates in county jails and Coasters for HOPE distributed for use in restaurants and bars.

Mrs. Lyall, who was widowed in 2015, is “grateful and honored” that Mayor Rossi has also proclaimed March 2 Suzanne Gloria Lyall Remembrance Day. Suzanne’s mother also expressed “heartfelt appreciation” to Michael DeFilippo and Bob Clous who have valiantly volunteered to venture up to the tower as dusk nears on March 2 so that the sound of the bell symbolically marking each of the 25 years that have passed since Suzanne vanished might resonate far and wide. 

To learn more, visit www.hope4themissing.org, email hope4themissing@yahoo.com or call 518-884-8761.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Bob Jillson retired from the Saratoga Springs Police Department on Feb. 17, after serving over 30 years in law enforcement. Jillson began his career at the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Department and eventually relocated to the city of Saratoga Springs, where he moved through the ranks to Assistant Chief.