Students from the Albany Roots Academy attended the inaugural summer camp at Sugar Plum Farm last week. Founder Robin Malatino exposed the kids to animal care, entrepreneurship, and public speaking skills; the latter she says was integral to her late husband’s success. 

Robin and Tony Malatino purchased the land to Sugar Plum Farm off Union Ave in 2005. When Tony passed away in March last year, Robin created the Sugar Plum Farm Foundation in his honor. Tony immigrated to the United States in 1949 aboard the USS LaGuardia and attended the Roots Academy. In his professional life he would serve as a U.S. Navy officer before going onto a career in finance. 

Albany Roots Academy is a Title 1 school and most of its students, like Tony, are first-generation Americans. Robin says the foundation provides the children with opportunities beyond the classroom.

These kids come from “underserved communities, so I thought, what a perfect backdrop, our farm, to be a place for them to come and not only experience animal husbandry, but also to learn how to be an entrepreneur,” said Robin. 

Over the week each camper developed a business idea and pitched it to investors. The camp concluded with a trip to Saratoga Race Course where the kids explored the backstretch, met announcer Frank Mirahmadi, and visited the Winner’s Circle. 

“This is the first year, but I think it’ll be an annual trip for them,” said NYRA Community Affairs Manager, Robert Hines. 

Saratoga Arts is hosting a night of improvisational music inspired by poetry that explores autumnal transformation, moments of reflection, and the enduring strength of hope and community on Friday, September 25 starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door available at eventbrite.com.

Poems drawn from the works of Fenton Johnson, Walt Whitman, Sara Teasdale, and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, will evoke musical performances from an ensemble of master musicians known as “In This Moment.” Poetry is their springboard for improvised music that is natural, effortless, and willing to ride the freely flowing currents of spontaneity without set arrangements, roadmaps or conventional song forms.

Poetry will be read by Kristina Kulin, and will feature musical performances by Shiri Zorn, Mark Kleinhaut, Ed Green and Brian Melick.

Kulin has explored the art of performance as a dancer, actress, singer, public speaker, and musician. She is the founder and creative director of Lit Night, a series of literature appreciation events which she curates around a different theme each month.

Zorn is an innovative jazz vocalist whose fresh and intercultural sound reinvents the standard jazz repertoire as we know it. She layers American Songbook tunes with Middle Eastern influences and unexpected time signatures.

Kleinhaut is a guitarist who focused this past decade almost entirely on improvised compositional performance in small group and solo formats.

Green, on cello, brings musical wisdom from a lifetime of experiences beginning as a trombonist in New York City big bands and the pits of Broadway theaters to being a first call bass player in the Capitol Region to the intimate voice of the cello where Ed now finds his passion and expression.

Melick has been professionally involved in music for over 50 years,the depth and breadth of his experience as a percussionist, performer and recording artist provides a near limitless palette of rhythms, textures and bending of time and space.

The Tang Museum at Skidmore College presents Mark Thomas Gibson: We Are a Constellation, a solo exhibition in which the Philadelphia-based American history painter connects recent American history with the responsibilities of citizenship today. It will be on view from August 22 through January 3, 2027.

A recurring figure in Gibson’s work is the Town Crier—a stand-in for the artist who rings a bell and delivers urgent announcements to fellow citizens. At the Tang, the Town Crier will move beyond Gibson’s pen and paper into the gallery. At 2 p.m. each day the gallery is open, a Skidmore student will enact the role of Town Crier and deliver two announcements: news from that date 250 years earlier and news from the present day. Together, the performances will create a record of this important year while asking how history is remembered, narrated, and made.

The centerpiece of the exhibition is a monumental, three-part American flag that debuted at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 2025. Unfolding like the panels of a comic strip, the work features the flag transformed into choppy waves on one side and the Town Crier in the role of Paul Revere, sounding an alarm about threats to American democracy on the other. 

The exhibition takes its title from We Are a Constellation, a 2024 painting in the Tang collection that presents individual stars in the night sky connected to form an image of the United States. This symbolizes how we can be connected as citizens through voting.

“I’ve followed Mark’s work since Black Pulp!, the 2016 exhibition he co-curated with fellow artist William Villalongo,” said Ian Berry, Dayton Director and curator of the exhibition. “His art insists that history is neither distant nor settled, and I love that our students can become Town Criers each day, connecting news from the past with the events shaping our lives now. During the nation’s 250th anniversary and an election year, the exhibition asks us to be active, engaged citizens.”

On Tuesday afternoon community members gathered at Galway Nature Preserve for a mural unveiling on Saratoga Preserving Land and Nature’s (PLAN) stewardship resource center. The mural was funded by a grant from Saratoga Arts.

“We’re hoping to have both sides and the front to represent the three pillars of land that Saratoga PLAN conserves, which is woodlands, farmlands, and wetlands,” said Stewardship Manager, Magnolia Roosa.

Long time Galway resident Sallie Way was the commissioned artist for the project.

Last year Way painted the right side of the building to represent the woodlands, this year the front facing mural represents the farmlands of Galway.

Way started conceptualizing the mural last winter in anticipation of a renewed grant from Saratoga Arts.

“I looked into a lot of the archival photographs that the library has, the farmer is inspired by one of the photographs of James Donnan,” Way said.

The barn is inspired by Donnandale farm, a sixth-generation family farm founded by James Donnan. On the right side of the mural are Christmas trees representing beloved local business, Bob’s Trees.

“This was quite an undertaking, a little ambitious, but it really came together,” Way said. “I think I’m most happy with all the connections that I made throughout the process.”

Galway high school seniors helped Way paint the mural and local dog walkers and hikers stopped while Way and her crew were battling the august heat to complete the mural. One hiker even played his Guitar for the volunteers.

The Galway Nature Preserve is overseen by Saratoga PLAN and contains about two and a half miles of trails and almost 50 acres of conserved forest land. Check out the mural and trail system at 2519 Crane Road, Galway, NY. 

Ballston Spa— The Ballston Spa Farmers’ Market will celebrate summer with its Second Annual Peach Festival on Saturday, August 15, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Wiswall Park in downtown Ballston Spa.

The Peach Festival will feature locally grown peaches and a variety of peach-inspired foods and drinks, including pies, iced tea and other seasonal treats. Market shoppers can also find fresh produce, baked goods, handmade products, and other offerings from local farmers, food producers, and artisans.

The event will include live music and family-friendly activities throughout the morning, making it a fun stop for market regulars and anyone looking to spend a Saturday morning downtown.

The Ballston Spa Farmers’ Market is organized by the Ballston Spa Business & Professional Association (BSBPA) and is held every Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. through October 3.

“We’re excited to bring the Peach Festival back for a second year,” said BSBPA secretary, Steve Miraglia. “It’s a great way to celebrate the season, support our local farmers and vendors, and enjoy everything the market has to offer.”

The public is invited to attend the Peach Festival on August 15. Admission is free.

For more information, visit www.ballston.org or follow the BSBPA and Ballston Spa Farmers’ Market on social media at @BSBPA and @bspafarmersmarket.

(Photos Provided by Impressions of Saratoga)

Impressions of Saratoga is welcoming children’s book authors Bridget Farry and Margot Tohn on Sunday, August 16th, between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Both books and authors foster the love of dogs and the lessons they teach us in everyday life.

Local author Bridget Farry started Paw Print Books with a simple mission: to inspire young readers while giving back to the world we all share. Her award-winning debut children’s book, “Cooper’s Campervan Adventures: Montana,” is based on the real-life adventures of her rescue dog, Cooper. The story is packed with his fun-filled adventures from his time in Montana that teach us to dream big, be curious, and discover the magic in the world around us, with a gentle lesson to help protect nature. That mission extends beyond the pages of her books. Passionate about animals and the environment, Bridget donates a portion of every book purchase to animal rescue organizations and climate change initiatives, helping make a positive impact for future generations.

Joining Bridget is Margot Tohn, another local author. “Murray Goes to the Playground” invites young readers into the delightful world of Murray, a confident and lovable Sheepadoodle with a heart full of curiosity. In this debut picture book from The Murray Tails series, Murray and his beloved Lady, aka Margot Tohn, venture into a bustling New York City dog park, where Murray discovers the ups and downs of making friends. Through playful encounters with pups of all shapes and sizes, Murray learns that while not everyone may want to be your friend, there’s always someone who does. With vibrant storytelling and a gentle message of perseverance and kindness, this joyful tale is perfect for children ages 3–7 who are beginning to navigate the world of friendships.

Nowadays you can find Dave Powers sipping white wine on the back porch of The Olde Bryan Inn, a place he bought on a whim back in 1979. But behind the mystique is a story of an old life across the Atlantic Ocean, all revealed in his new book, “The Intrepid Spy.” 

Powers was a pilot for Pan American World Airways in West Berlin from 1985 through 1991. During his time in Berlin, Powers befriended an old-world aristocrat, Albrecht Graf von Hardenberg. Powers knew him as a Mercades-Benz salesman. 

But before Powers lived in Berlin, before he met Albrecht, and before Powers received a 2,000-page dossier on his friend by the East German secret police, Powers was 22 years old with a mountain in college loan debt. 

Like every other American male at the time, Powers received a draft notice in the mail after graduating from college. He fulfilled his military requirement by serving in the Air Force for five and a half years and was deployed in Vietnam during his tenure. 

Following his military service, Powers started his first stint flying with Pan American out of New York City. After six years in his new career, he was furloughed.

 Aimless, he decided to move back home to Delmar.

“I just didn’t know what to do with myself. I was not doing very well financially,” Powers said.

Right about that time he was driving around Saratoga when he came across an old building for sale by the Veitch family.

“I just love the civil war and presidency war era, and I saw that old building and a sign out front said for sale. So, I said geez, I’m going to stop in there, it looks like a beautiful old building.”

Upon entering Powers saw the drop-down celling and plaster and lath walls and quickly decided he was not interested; he didn’t have the money for it anyway. 

But like a lot of things in Power’s life, opportunities arose over a cold beer and a conversation.

Veitch and Powers bonded over familiar family friends and American history that evening. After a while, Veitch convinced Powers to take a look at the attic.

“It was the most incredible moment of my life. When I got my head up, I saw the original walls, I could see the beams, the mortis and tenons. And I remember shouting down,

‘You know you’ve got some fireplaces.’”

‘No, I don’t,’ replied Veitch.

‘You got three fireplaces. I can see the chimneys up here.’

I was interested right away,” recalled Powers.

Naturally Powers dialed up his friend from Broadalbin and convinced him to partner with him in buying the historic building with the vision of opening The Olde Bryan Inn. 

So, Powers embarked on tearing down the interior to reveal the original wooden structure, which dates back to the 18th century. 

There was just one problem: Dave Powers knew nothing about running a restaurant.

“About four months into this I was messing it up so bad, and this little fanny rooster comes up to me one day, Steve Sullivan, hand on his hip and says: 

‘Mr. Powers, you don’t know what you’re doing, do you?’

And I said, ‘No, I don’t.’ 

After about two days of him lecturing me, I said, ‘ why don’t you take over as manager?’”

At this point Powers was recalled back to Pan American and was appointed to work in Berlin. So, Powers proposed a deal with Sullivan; he would run the Olde Bryan Inn while Powers flew in Berlin. In exchange, Sullivan would obtain ownership in the business. Sullivan agreed, and Powers went over to Berlin.

Albrecht grew up in what was then East Germany, on his family’s multiple estates. The onset of Hitler’s rise to power saw the German government seize land and money from the aristocratic class.

However, the Nazi government could not capture land owned in foreign countries. Therefore, Albrecht’s father bought 8,000 acres in Denmark, far away from the imminent Nazi regime. 

During Powers’ time in West Berlin, Albrecht obtained a visa to East Berlin to write a travel book for West Berliners who hoped to one day be able to return to the East. 

This got the attention of the East German government. Stasi spy, Colonel Klaus Braun, was appointed to investigate Albrecht’s agenda. 

“Going back to the question I knew everybody was going to ask, Was he really a spy? I don’t know,” professed Powers. “But there’s certain things that led me to believe he was. For example, the day the wall came down, he disappeared for about two weeks. And his wife didn’t tell me where he was. Why? I mean I was his best friend in Germany.”

Albrecht passed away in 2010. 

When Powers returned to Berlin for his funeral, he was met with a different landscape. The wall that had separated a generation had disintegrated, and with it the network of international operatives and black-market profiteers it created.

Friends old and new were waiting to ambush Powers upon his decent into Berlin to mourn his late friend.

All in search of answers.

Who was Albrecht Graf von Hardenberg? Why was Albrecht writing a travel book to communist East Berlin? And to whom had the deed to the 8,000 acres in Denmark gone?

Pick up a copy of “The Intrepid Spy” at the Olde Bryan Inn at 123 Maple Ave to find out. 

All proceeds from the book will go towards the Tunnels to Towers Foundation, which provides mortgage-free homes, specially adapted smart homes, and comprehensive housing services to wounded veterans, Gold Star families, fallen first responders, and homeless veterans.