SARATOGA SPRINGS — Stewart’s Shops President Gary Dake will personally thank customers and shop partners for their support of the Holiday Match campaign by getting behind the register.
Dake was at the Stewart’s Shops at 208 Broad Street in Schuylerville on Jan. 31 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. This location was one of the top collection shops for the Holiday Match program, collecting $9,780. He will also be at the Stewart’s on 322 Ushers Road in Ballston Lake on Feb. 6 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Ushers Road location grew their collection by 94% over the previous year.
The 2022 Holiday Match program has raised over $2 million for local children’s organizations. From Thanksgiving Day through Christmas Day, Stewart’s customers donated over $1,011,000 to the program. Each individual donation is matched penny for penny by Stewart’s Shops. There are no administrative costs, and 100% of the funds benefit local, non-profit children’s organizations.
Over 1,700 nonprofit organizations received funding from last year’s Holiday Match campaign. The program has allocated nearly $36 million since 1986. All local children’s charities are encouraged to apply for funding annually from the Holiday Match Program. A listing of all the charities that received Holiday Match funding last year is available at stewartsshops.com.
Time is running out for children’s charities to apply for Holiday Match funding. The deadline is January 31, 2023. Organizations can easily apply online at stewartsshops.com. All groups applying must be locally based, benefit children under 18, and be a qualified, charitable 501c3 organization.
CATSKILL — A 44-year-old man serving a prison sentence for forcibly robbing the main branch of the Adirondack Trust Company in 2017, has been sentenced to 17 years to life in prison for strangling to death his cellmate at a state prison in Greene County.
In December 2017, Anthony J. Paradise, who had been staying short term of Ballston Spa, was taken in to custody by Saratoga Springs in connection with the bank robbery in which Paradise was charged with forcibly stealing in excess of $3,000 from the bank.
As reported by the Times-Union on Jan. 31, Paradise strangled Delmus Tanner with a bedsheet in November 2018 while the two were incarcerated at Greene Correctional Facility, according to District Attorney Joe Stanzione. Tanner, who was serving a five-year sentence for attempted drug sale, died four days after the attack.
Paradise is eligible for parole in 17 years, and could be released in 2040, provided his behavior behind bars is good, according to the Times-Union.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Springs will joining other cities across the United States in declaring the first week of February as National Gun Violence Survivor Week, Mayor Ron Kim announced Feb. 1.
“By early February, more people are killed with guns in the United States than are killed with guns in any other high-income country in an entire year,” the mayor said in a statement, explaining the significance of the chosen date.
The majority of American adults, or someone they care for, will experience gun violence in their lifetime. This includes gun suicides, gun homicides, domestic violence situations involving guns, shootings by law enforcement, and unintentional shootings, according to a release from the city.
Harvard Medical School researchers reported that gun violence cost Americans about $557 billion annually. National Gun Violence Survivor Week is an initiative of Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
“It’s imperative we continue pursuing all avenues available to us to keep firearms out of the hands of those who are a danger to themselves or others,” Kim said.
Kevin Zacharewicz, a member of the Saratoga Central Catholic School Safety Committee, speaks at a meeting at the Holiday Inn on Monday, Jan. 30. Photo by Dylan McGlynn.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — A plan by Saratoga Springs city officials to establish a homeless shelter on Williams Street has been met with backlash from parents and community members at Saratoga Central Catholic School, who say the shelter could create safety concerns for the school’s students.
On Monday, Jan. 30, a large crowd attended a meeting held at the Holiday Inn in Saratoga Springs to discuss the shelter. The homeless shelter would move into 5 Williams St., a building that is currently occupied by the Saratoga Senior Center. The building borders Saratoga Catholic’s athletic fields.
The Senior Center will be relocating to the Saratoga Regional YMCA at 290 West Ave.
Kevin Zacharewicz, a member of the Saratoga Central Catholic Security Committee and parent of an SCC student, said that community members are not against the existence of the homeless shelter itself, but specifically its location near the school.
“I don’t want anybody thinking that we’re against the shelter,” said Zacharewicz. “We’re religious people, we are for helping, we’re for charity. We’re against the location. I have to get that out there, I have to make that straight. We do not like the location; we do not want this on our back doorstep.”
Other parents said they would question re-enrolling their children in the school if the shelter goes into place. Jan VanDeCarr, who has a daughter at SCC, said, “It’s not a good recipe” for the shelter to be located near the school.
The current shelter is located on Adelphi Street, with the lease expiring on April 30. It is anticipated the shelter will move into the space on Williams Street in the spring. The Saratoga Springs City Council unanimously passed a resolution approving the new location of the shelter on Oct. 18.
In a statement released Monday evening, Albany Diocese Superintendent of Schools Giovanni Virgiglio said Diocese officials met last week with officials from Saratoga Catholic, Saratoga Springs Mayor Ron Kim, and Public Safety Commissioner James Montagnino.
“Mayor Kim assured our group that no plans have been finalized, agreed to meet with our school community to listen to concerns, and committed to an ongoing dialogue to ensure that any considerations would not compromise school safety,” Virgiglio said in the statement. “The safety and well-being of our students and SCC community guides our decision-making and that is clearly our intention with this situation. At the same time, we cannot forget that care for the most vulnerable among us is a cornerstone of what we believe and teach as a Church.”
Some community members raised concerns about the possibility of the shelter receiving a ‘low-barrier’ designation, which could mean it may not require background checks, drug screenings, or other verifications.
“Pedophiles can go into a low-barrier shelter. There’s no background checks,” said Zacharewicz at the meeting.
It has not yet been confirmed whether the Williams Street shelter will receive a ‘low-barrier’ designation.
“All we have to do is bring awareness to this, because any reasonable person is going to agree with us that this is a very poor placement for a homeless shelter,” said Sara Nucera, a member of the SCC security committee, at the meeting.
Several parents also said there has been a lack of transparency and communication from city officials, with many parents on Monday claiming they were unaware of the plans for the shelter until recently. VanDeCarr said he wished the city had hosted a public hearing to allow residents to discuss the shelter.
“At this stage, there really should be some effort in that regard,” said VanDeCarr, who noted he was unaware of the plans for the shelter until roughly a week ago. “This is an adult problem. It should not be made a problem for kids at the school. The adults have to get together and figure out a solution.”
Duane Vaughn, executive director of Shelters of Saratoga, delivered a presentation to the city council on Oct. 18 in regards to the shelter, and the council engaged in a discussion before voting unanimously to pass the resolution to approve the shelter’s location.
Vaughn said at the Oct. 18 meeting that moving the shelter to the Williams Street location would allow more space for beds, and allow for other organizations such as RISE and the Salvation Army to possibly utilize the space as well. He said the Adelphi Street location has 60 beds.
A petition on change.org urging for ‘Safety for SCC Students’ has received over 1,300 signatures as of noon on Wednesday. The group is organizing a ‘Solidarity Walk’ to be held every Friday at 2 p.m. at the school.
Parents and community members were also encouraged to attend the next Saratoga Springs City Council meeting on Feb. 7 at 7 p.m.
Amber Cook (left), Paige Cook (middle), and Rachel Wilbur (right) qualified for the 2023 National 4-H Shooting Sports Championships in Grand Island, Nebraska. Photos provided by Kim Wilbur.
BALLSTON SPA — Three local teens are heading west in June, competing at the National 4-H Shooting Sports Championships in Grand Island, Nebraska.
Amber Cook, Paige Cook, and Rachel Wilbur, members of the 4-H Program of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Saratoga County, all qualified for the National Championships after competing at the New York State 4-H Shooting Sports Championships. Amber Cook will compete on New York’s Shotgun team, while Paige Cook and Wilbur will each compete on New York’s Archery team.
Paige Cook said it is “overwhelming, but exciting,” to clinch a spot at nationals.
“Yeah, it’s definitely overwhelming. But we’re all definitely blessed to have this opportunity and be able to experience this,” Wilbur added. “Very excited. We’re all working pretty hard at everything.”
The girls are also the first group from Saratoga County to even compete at the state championships, much less advance to nationals. Wilbur and Amber Cook competed at the state level in 2019, and all three girls competed in 2021 before qualifying for nationals at the 2022 State Championships.
“(In) 2019, we were the first ones to go out to the state competition, and now we’re the first ones from Saratoga County to go out to nationals,” said Amber Cook.
Kim Wilbur, mother of Rachel, said she is “so proud” of the girls, a sentiment that was echoed by the Cook’s parents. Renee Janack, mother of Amber and Paige Cook, pointed out that the girls are competing in fields that have been traditionally male-dominated.
“Proud just keeps coming to my mind,” said Kim Wilbur. “It’s exciting to see what the future holds.”
“It seems like such a cliche, I just keep saying how proud we are,” said Janack. “Not only are they the first going from Saratoga County, they’re young women. … It’s very male-dominated, so it’s thrilling to watch them grow as a team.”
Wilbur and Paige Cook both qualified for nationals at the New York State Championships in September. However, neither were certain they would make the cut.
“I didn’t think I was going to make it,” said Paige Cook.
“Honestly, I didn’t think I was going to make it either,” added Wilbur. “I really just went in there with an open mind, like, ‘Whatever happens, happens.’”
Of course, both qualified for nationals, with Wilbur finishing second and Cook third overall.
Amber Cook, however, initially qualified for nationals in May 2022, but didn’t discover this until after her teammates had clinched their spots.
“I didn’t find out until after they did, in September. I was very surprised,” said Amber Cook. “I really did not think I was going to qualify, so it was just very exciting and I’m very proud of myself for being able to.”
Amber Cook will be joined on New York’s Shotgun team by qualifiers from Dutchess and Chemung counties, while Paige Cook and Wilbur will compete alongside a qualifier from Wyoming County on the New York Archery team.
Competitors will be scored individually, with their scores added up to generate overall county and state scores.
“We all go out there and shoot individually,” said Wilbur. “So we’re scored individually, and then all together as a team at the end.”
The group is currently in the process of fundraising for the trip, with Wilbur saying it will cost about $3,000 per girl for the travel alone. The National 4-H Shooting Sports Championships will be held from June 25 to 30 in Grand Island, Nebraska.
“(We’ve been) getting together and just making sure everything is very precise, so we can go out to different stores and even just individual people and do group fundraising,” Wilbur said. “We’ve been in the process of that for a few months now. It is a lot of work to do fundraising, especially this big.”
“It’s a long process,” added Paige Cook. “We’re mostly preparing to start in the next couple weeks, because getting the names and the emails and all that has taken quite a long time.”
The girls’ parents are also chipping in any way they can. Jeff Breedon, father of Amber and Paige, is an instructor at Saratoga County 4-H along with Janack and Kim Wilbur.
“Every one of us brings a different strength to the team,” said Breedon. “That’s how we’ve succeeded, I think, so well. If something needs to happen, one of us knows how to do it.”
And the time spent in 4-H has also helped the trio become closer, which Janack emphasized as one of the strengths of the program.
“That’s the beauty of 4-H, it’s a county-wide thing,” Janack said. “You have youth coming from all over who would have never met each other, would never have known how awesome their friendships are going to be. This is truly going to be a lifelong friendship between these three.”
Wilbur agreed, saying that while the girls knew each other before joining 4-H, the club has “really sparked that friendship in all of us.”
“I don’t even consider them my teammates, they’re just my family now,” said Wilbur. “That’s what 4-H has brought to us. It’s definitely a blessing.”
WILTON — The Town of Wilton is looking for volunteers to serve on the Wilton Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals. The Wilton Planning Board meets every month on the third Wednesday except for the month of August when no meeting is held.
The Zoning Board of Appeals meets every month on the fourth Thursday except for a combined November/December meeting date which will be decided by the board.
If you are interested in serving on a board, please email resume to: Susan Baldwin, Town Clerk at sbaldwin@townofwilton.com or mail to 22 Traver Road, Wilton, New York 12831.
AMSTERDAM — William “Bill” Blake Jr. passed away on Saturday, January 21, 2023, following a recent stroke. He was 83.
Bill was born in West Burke, VT on May 7, 1939. From an early age, he loved to fish and hunt. He dreamed he’d grow up to be like singing cowboy Gene Autry or Brooklyn Dodgers first baseman Gil Hodges. Although he never mastered yodeling, he did hit over .400 playing first base in high school. But his ambitions soon changed the first time he saw his father’s harness horse race in Montreal. The thrill he felt watching that horse go from last to first over the course of a mile was like watching the Dodgers beat the Yankees in 1955, but it happened in 2 ½ minutes! He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to be sitting behind that horse, guiding it to victory. Over the span of 50+ years, Bill got to experience that feeling himself repeatedly, having driven and trained countless horses into the Winner’s Circle.
After serving his country in the Army, Saratoga Harness became Bill’s home once he met Barbara LaRouech, who groomed horses for her father. The two were married in 1966 and raised four daughters as they worked alongside each other with the horses until her passing in 2000. Having already been inducted into the Saratoga Hall of Fame in 2006, glaucoma forced Bill to retire in 2016. Otherwise, he would’ve still been training horses. That’s who he was. Hard-working. Humble. Dependable. He’d give you the shirt off his back in the middle of winter and say he was hot anyway. To his family, he was their anchor. No matter how turbulent the sea got, he kept things grounded. He was as steady and as decent a man as you will ever find, and he will be deeply missed.
Besides his wife, Barbara, Bill is predeceased by his father and mother, William and Lila Blake; his brothers Bernard, Clifton and Wendell; his mother and father-in-law, Elizabeth and Clyde Revier, and his father-in-law Fred LaRouech.
Bill is survived by his daughter and son-in-law, Darcy and Steven Alheim of Moreau, daughters Laury Blake and Shelley Blake of Saratoga, daughter and son-in-law Billie and Anthony DeLuca of Greenwich; sisters Wilma Fournier and Marylyn Blake of VT, sister-in-law and brother-in-law Carol and Edward McNeil of Ft. Edward, brother-in-law Fred LaRouech of IL; grandchildren Rachael and Kenneth Ricks, Nicole and Amanda Malfer-Compton, Tyler Hendrickson, Brennan DeBates and Rylee DeLuca, five great-grandchildren and many beloved nieces and nephews.
Relatives and friends are invited to call from 3-5 p.m. on Monday, January 30, 2023 with Military Honors bestowed at 4:45 p.m. at the William J. Burke & Sons/Bussing & Cunniff Funeral Homes, 628 N. Broadway, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. A Celebration of Life will be held on May 7, 2023. Donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association or The Glens Falls Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Online remembrances may be made at burkefuneralhome.com
MALTA — Marilyn A. Heggen, 91, passed away on Sunday, January 15, 2023, surrounded by her loving family. Marilyn was born in Troy on September 3, 1931. She was the daughter of Charles J. and Frances V. (Geiger) Meehan. Raised in Latham, she was a graduate of Vincentian Institute in Albany. She worked for several years for the State of New York and the County of Saratoga.
Marilyn met her husband Arne E. Heggen when they were members of the Albany Single Ski Club. They were married for 53 years. Marilyn volunteered with many organizations, including as a religious education teacher at St. Mary’s in Ballston Spa, delivering Meals on Wheels, and with her children’s activities. She treasured her friendships, especially with her exercise and bridge groups. She also enjoyed many years of skiing and camping with her family and friends. She was a regular attendee at her grandchildren’s activities, games and events.
In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her husband Arne E. Heggen, her son Arne C. Heggen, her brother Charles J. Meehan and her sisters Betty Murphy (the late James) and Frances Casserly (the late James).
Marilyn is survived by her children Karen A. Heggen (Peter S. Klotz, Sr.) of Malta; Mark E. (Jennifer) Heggen of Malta; Katherine (Thomas) F. Burke of Ballston Spa and her daughter-in-law Julie Arel (the late Arne C.) of Essex Junction, VT. She is also survived by her grandchildren Jacqueline Burke (fiancé Cory Adams), Meghan Burke Cochran (Quin), Andrew Heggen, Sophie Heggen, Matthew Heggen and Daniel Heggen, her sister-in-law B. Jane Meehan (the late Charles) of Latham, her longtime friend Elizabeth F. Kmen of Glenville, NY, and many nieces and nephews.
Services were held Wednesday January 18 and Thursday, January 19, 2023. Memorial contributions may be made in Marilyn’s name to St. Mary’s School, 40 Thompson Street, Ballston Spa, NY 12020. To light a candle, visit us at www.mevecfuneralhome.com
