Author: Saratoga TODAY

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Caffè Lena announced last Friday that it had received a $1 million gift from an anonymous donor, marking the largest single contribution in the storied music venue’s 65-year history.

In a statement, Caffe Lena said that the “transformational donation will strengthen the organization’s long-term stability as it continues expanding its mission-driven work in live performance, music education, and community outreach.”

The donor, who has attended performances at Lena for decades, shared their reasons for making the donation.

“Folk music has always been an integral part of my life, and in my opinion the Caffè is one of the most venerable institutions supporting folk music in the Northeast, and that includes New York City and Boston,” the donor said. “The work that the Caffè’s staff and board have accomplished over the past decade under Executive Director Sarah Craig’s leadership to both improve the Caffè’s performance space and expand the Caffè’s outreach to the Saratoga Springs community while staying true to the mission of the Caffè originally established by Lena Spencer is what inspired me to make this donation.”

The donor added, “In light of the uncertainty of future grants to the Caffè from private foundations given the shift in the priorities of these foundations to help not-for-profit organizations that are materially impacted by the substantial reduction in federal grants, I am pleased to be able to provide some financial stability to the Caffè so that it will be able to continue fulfilling its mission for the indefinite future.”

Executive Director Sarah Craig responded to the donation with her own statement. “From its earliest days, Caffè Lena has been sustained by countless acts of generosity—from the musicians, the audience, the volunteers, and the wider community creating a place that belongs to all of us,” Craig said. “This remarkable donation is in keeping with that history. It affirms the ongoing value of a community space where people gather, create, listen, learn, and work together to bring the joy of music to all. We are deeply grateful for the trust and faith that this gift represents.”

Lena said that the funds will be placed in strategic reserves dedicated to preserving the venue’s long-term stability and enabling uninterrupted service to the community. The funds will help sustain day-to-day programming (which includes more than 300 concerts per year); music education programs; partnerships with three dozen social service organizations that help deliver music to underserved people; and free events for youth and adults.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Caffè Lena and Putnam Place will present a special Jazz at Caffè Lena performance featuring pianist Chuck Lamb with The Dylan Perrillo Orchestra on Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. The concert will take place at Putnam Place to accommodate the full 16-piece orchestra.

The event brings together Lamb’s contemporary jazz approach with the Perrillo Orchestra’s focus on early American jazz traditions, offering audiences an opportunity to hear two distinct musical perspectives in conversation.

Lamb has been the pianist for the Brubeck Brothers Quartet for more than 20 years, performing internationally and contributing original compositions influenced by jazz, fusion, classical, and world music.

The Perrillo Orchestra, based in Albany, performs arrangements inspired by the music of the 1920s through the 1950s. Their ensemble includes six horns, violin, rhythm section, and vocalist, creating a sound rooted in classic jazz and swing.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Writers Edward L. Bowen and Ray Kerrison and pioneering photographer Charles Christian “C. C.” Cook have been selected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor.

Bowen (1942-2025), who was inducted into the Hall of Fame this year as a Pillar of the Turf, enjoyed a prolific career as a racing journalist and historian for more than 60 years. An editor-in-chief of The BloodHorse magazine and the author of 22 books on horse racing, Bowen also served 24 years as president of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. He was the chair of numerous committees at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, including the contemporary Nominating Committee for 38 years, beginning in 1987.

“Ed contributed to the betterment of racing in so many ways and the historical record of his outstanding writing will live on forever,” said Brien Bouyea, the Racing Museum’s communications director. “Ed built a reputation on integral reporting and captivating storytelling. He loved horses and horse racing and that passion shined through in his vivid work.”

Cook (1873-1954) was one of American racing’s first and most influential photographers. He worked as a photojournalist for newspapers in Chicago before becoming a freelancer around 1900. His images of animals in the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago and the Barnum and Bailey Circus attracted wide attention. Cook began his association with racing photography at Washington Park in Chicago in the late 1890s. He was one of the first photographers in the United States to specialize in horse racing photography, as well as portraits and scenic images at various racetracks. 

When racing was banned in his home state of Illinois, Cook relocated to New York. Beginning in 1906, he worked for New York’s Globe newspaper and later as a staff photographer for The Morning Telegraph, the sister publication of Daily Racing Form. For decades, Cook was a commercial photographer at tracks in Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, and New York, among others. He also spent time as the official track photographer at Florida’s Hialeah Park.

Kerrison (1930-2022) wrote for the New York Post from 1977 through 2013, serving the paper as both a news and horse racing columnist. He covered 32 editions of the Kentucky Derby and numerous other major races, including Breeders’ Cup events. He edited the National Star, Rupert Murdoch’s first U.S. publication, in the early 1970s, then was hired by The Post in 1977 to cover horse racing. In his first year at The Post, Kerrison uncovered a racing scandal in which one horse raced under the name of another at Belmont Park. The betting fix involved the switching of the identities of the horses, Lebon and Cinzano. For this reporting, Kerrison was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. A couple of years later, Kerrison and fellow racing writer John Piesen broke the story of the biggest race-fixing scam in New York history. “Racing’s Darkest Hour” was The Post’s headline. Kerrison’s reporting played a key role in uncovering the scandal that led to charges being brought against jockey Con Errico, mobster Anthony Ciulla, and more than 20 others. Along with his racing writing, Kerrison reported on many other major news events during his career, including Martin Luther King’s assassination in 1968, the first moon landing in 1969, and the Munich Olympics tragedy in 1972.

“Ray was smart, kind, dryly witty, and as committed to his craft as any journalist I’ve ever known,” Bob McManus, The Post’s retired editorial page editor, said after Kerrison’s death in 2022. “He was a man of unshakable principle, which was obvious in his writing, but also a fellow who respected his readers’ intelligence. His goal was to persuade, not to lecture, and while his work could be controversial, it always was honest.”

The National Museum of Racing’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor was established in 2010 to recognize individuals whose careers have been dedicated to, or substantially involved in, writing about thoroughbred racing (nonfiction), and who distinguished themselves as journalists. The criteria has since been expanded to allow the consideration of other forms of media.