SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Federal is hosting a Family & Community Day to members and residents of the local community on June 10 from 12 to 4 p.m. Members of the community are invited to join as they kick off the summer season and another great year. Plus, receive a $25 Wind-Chill Factory Gift Card for opening an account. Enjoy a round of mini golf, lunch or ice cream, courtesy of Saratoga Federal.

Saratoga Federal staff will be onsite at the Wind-Chill Factory from 12 to 4 p.m. to answer questions and open accounts. There will be no minimum balance required when opening an account at the event.

Saratoga Federal has been providing financial services to the community since 1945 and is open to all individuals who live, work or attend school in Saratoga County. Details are available at www.saratogafcu.org/windchill.

MALTA — Caruso Builders have begun work on a new development of townhomes in Malta near the Malta Drive-In Theatre.

Located at 2782 Route 9, the development will be known as Sage Estates and will contain 34 lots for 68 units, said Anthony Caruso, president of Caruso Builders. Caruso said he was aiming to add a townhome community to his company’s portfolio and cited the convenient location of the development.

“We don’t have any type of townhome community in our portfolio, and it was really something that I was looking to do,” said Caruso. “I felt the location, in close proximity to Exit 13, SPAC, and Saratoga in general, had some really strong benefits.”

The company has completed a majority of site-clearing work, Caruso said, and plans to begin work on infrastructure in the coming weeks. He said the first model home from the development is planned to be constructed in the fall.

“So the direction we’re looking to go with this townhouse site would relate to the other homes that we’re building throughout the area,” Caruso said. “It’s not going to be an entry-level price, but we’d like to try to keep it under what you’d typically see for a product of this type a few minutes outside of Saratoga, or in and around the downtown Saratoga area.”

The development is located across from the Malta Drive-In and is roughly 10 miles south of SPAC and downtown Saratoga Springs. 

“Everything that we put into a single-family home plays a part in a townhome,” Caruso said. “It’s just a different product type and opens us up to the clientele that is really not interested in a single-family, and in more of a townhome and townhome community.”

Caruso, who is an area native and founded Caruso Builders in 2009, said it is exciting to continue to develop properties in his home region.

In 1948 Philly Dake had a simple idea — let people make ice cream sundaes the way they want them. Stewart’s Shops’ customers loved this idea and the Make Your Own Sundae was born.

The notoriety of the Make Your Own Sundae grew with the help of TV programs like Stewart’s Western Sundae and as an early advertiser on shows like Hopalong Cassidy, Hawkeye, and Whirlybirds.  This flagship sundae remains a customer favorite to this day, stirring a fond nostalgia with so many.

What is a Make Your Own Sundae? A Make Your Own Sundae starts with the ice cream of choice from the cone counter. Customers can then choose as many or as few toppings as they prefer. Toppings include chocolate sauce, strawberry sauce, caramel sauce, marshmallow topping and pineapple topping. Then customers can finish it off with chocolate or rainbow sprinkles, mini M&Ms®, fun chips and don’t forget the nuts, whipped cream and the cherry on top!

Stewart’s Shops invites all our customers to join the 75th Make Your Own Sundae Anniversary celebration on Sunday, June 11th! Stop by your local shop for $1.75 Make Your Own Sundaes all day.

President of Stewart’s Shops, Gary Dake said, “My Aunt Philly truly left her mark on Stewart’s Shops. She believed that ice cream should be an experience and the Make Your Own Sundae is one of her many legacies.”

About Philly Dake-

As the Executive Vice President of Stewart’s Shops and a key leader for 50 years, Philly Dake has made many contributions to Stewart’s Shops. She was the creator of Philly Vanilla ice cream, which remains one of the most popular half gallon and pint flavors. A natural philanthropist, Philly Dake was always finding ways to give back. Her generosity and passion for the arts and education supported many nonprofits including SPAC and the YMCA.  In 1999, she created the Make Your Own College Scholarship Program to help the children of Stewart’s Partners with college costs. This program has awarded over $6 million to over 1,500 recipients. 

Members of the LGBTQ+ community are protected from discrimination and harassment in the workplace under both New York State and federal law.  The New York Human Rights Law explicitly lists sexual orientation and gender identity as protected statuses, and the United States Supreme Court – in the landmark 2020 civil rights case Bostock v. Clayton County – found that Title VII’s prohibition against sex discrimination encompasses both sexual orientation and gender identity.  

New York’s law more expressly addresses issues relating to gender identity because of GENDA (the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act). Specifically, GENDA applied the protections of New York’s human rights laws to gender identity and expression, which are defined as “a person’s actual or perceived gender-related identity, appearance, behavior, expression, or other gender-related characteristic regardless of the sex assigned to that person at birth, including, but not limited to, the status of being transgender.”  

What does this mean?  Most of us are familiar with what it means to target someone because of their sexual orientation, i.e., someone’s physical, romantic or emotional attraction to another person.  Some of us are more recently learning about gender identity and what it means to be transgender, i.e., that someone’s gender identity is different from the one they were assigned at birth.  Individuals are also protected from gender stereotyping, i.e., you do identify as the same gender you were assigned at birth, but you don’t, for example, dress in the way one expects a woman or a man to dress and you are targeted for that reason. 

What is illegal? Anti-discrimination statutes prohibit employers from taking what we call an “adverse employment action” – like getting fired or not being promoted – against an employee because of that employee’s protected status.  Most employees are “at will”, meaning they can be fired at any time for any reason, so the sticking point in any employment case is demonstrating that the employee was targeted because of their protected status and not some other reason, even if we don’t agree with it. 

These laws also protect employees from harassment based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.  When harassment rises to the level of a hostile work environment and, in extreme cases, to the employee’s forced resignation, they can also have a claim under the anti-discrimination laws.  The law also encourages employees to complain about harassment, and those complaints – assuming they specifically raise the illegal reason – are protected from retaliation.  

What can I do if I am targeted?  Making an internal complaint to your boss or HR is always an option, and the law encourages this type of complaint particularly if the harasser or wrongdoer is a coworker.  Retaliation is always a risk, but this can be an opportunity for the employer to make things right.  You can also make a complaint to the EEOC (this is required to preserve federal claims) or to the New York State Division of Human Rights (this is optional).  Lawsuits are also an option and employees are allowed to make immediate claims in court under New York State law which, unlike federal law, does not require making a complaint to an agency first.  

This article is for informational purposes and should not be relied on as legal advice or in taking action at work.  Every situation is different and you should consult your employee handbook and consider speaking with an attorney to discuss your rights and options.

BALLSTON SPA — The Saratoga County Career Center in conjunction with the Greater Capital Region Career Centers will hold the following free virtual career workshops in June:

June 7 at 10 a.m.: Resume Development. This workshop presents the basics of a powerful and effective cover letter including formatting, tailoring to the job, and getting through the online application process to land an interview. Please have a rough draft of your resume with you. Facilitated by Rensselaer & Columbia-Greene.

June 13 at 10:30 a.m.: Interview Preparation. Learn how to articulate your strengths, what questions to expect, how to address difficult topics, and ace the interviewing process. Facilitated by Schenectady.

June 17 at 10 a.m.: Goal Setting. This workshop explores how goal setting works, why goals are important, and provides helpful resources to get you started to reach your dreams.  Facilitated by Washington and Albany.

June 15 at 11 a.m.: Completing Job Applications. Statistics show approximately 50% of mid-sized companies and almost all large corporations use an applicant tracking system to screen candidates for job opportunities. Learn how to prepare your online application to get the most visibility from hiring managers. Facilitated by Warren and Washington.

June 22 at 1:30 p.m.: Social Media. Your social media presence can make or break your ability to find a job. Learn how to use social media to your advantage in searching for a job and marketing yourself to land the job or career you’ve always wanted. Facilitated by Schenectady.

June 27 at 11 a.m.: Overcoming Barriers. Join an informal discussion about how to overcome potential stumbling blocks to finding a job. Whether you’re facing transportation needs, childcare needs, prior justice system involvement, inexperience, health concerns or more, this workshop will provide you with resources and strategies to help you meet your goals. Facilitated by Saratoga and Fulton-Montgomery-Schoharie.

Registration is required for all workshops. Visit thejoblink.org/calendar to register or call the Saratoga County Career Center at 518-884-4170 for more information.  The workshops are offered as part of the Saratoga County Career Center’s WorkPays! workforce education campaign.

GALWAY — Galway Public Library, 2112 East St. in Galway, will hold its annual budget vote and Board of Trustees election at the library on June 7, from 2 to 8 p.m. There is one vacancy on the board. Santina Florio is running to fill the seat she vacated. More information is available at www.galwaypubliclibrary.org. 

BALLSTON SPA — On Tuesday, May 23, Ballston Spa National Bank (BSNB) employees participated in an annual bank-wide Community Service Day.

BSNB locations across the Capital Region closed at 12 p.m., allowing employees to volunteer their time doing yard work and spring clean-up for Rebuilding Together Saratoga, LifeWorks Community Action, Brookside Museum, Adopt-A-Highway, Veterans & Community Housing Coalition, and Ballston Spa Village Cemetery.

“One of BSNB’S core values is to strengthen the communities where we live and work,” said Christopher R. Dowd, president and CEO. He said nearly 130 employees volunteered on Tuesday.

During the event, BSNB supports organizations that are making homes safe for homeowners in need; advocating solutions to end poverty; assisting in the preservation of local history; pledging to keep highways litter free; changing the lives of veterans; and caring for a historic cemetery.