BALLSTON SPA — The Ballston Spa Business & Professional Association has announced the 8th Ballston Spa Chocolate Fest will take place on Friday, February 3 from 4-8 p.m. throughout the village of Ballston Spa.
Area restaurants, bakeries, and chefs are all welcome to compete to showcase their talents and tastes by preparing small, sample-sized chocolate offerings in 3 categories: Dessert (Sweet), Savory, and Chocolate Beverage. These treats will be judged by Chocolate-fest goers.
While savoring chocolate treats, visitors will enjoy a variety of First Friday activities going on throughout the Village, including live music, artist demonstrations and special promotions just in time for Valentine’s Day. A complete list of events can be found at Ballston.org.
In 2020, over 21 “Sweet Spots” were featured throughout the downtown area, and counted more than 1,500 visitors to the Village for this annual event.
Welcome, Timothy Barnes of Corinth! Photo provided.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Capital Region’s first baby of 2023 — Timothy Barnes — was born at 12:19 a.m. Jan. 1 at Saratoga Hospital, a member of the Albany Med Health System.
Proud parents of the healthy boy are Sarah and Jesse Barnes of Corinth. Timothy weighed 7 pounds and is 21.5 inches long.
Welcome, Timothy! And, congratulations, parents Sarah and Jesse.
For information about Saratoga Hospital visit: www.SaratogaHospital.org
Greenfield Elementary School teachers Kelly Brennan & Erin Flores with their students and a few of the many boxes of goodies they collected for the Adopt A Soldier donation drive. Photo provided.
WILTON — Operation Adopt A Soldier welcomes donations year-round at their Wilton location. Members box and mail items weekly to U.S. military members serving away from home to remind soldiers they’re not forgotten. The group also includes hand-written cards, notes, & student art with each package.
Greenfield Elementary School was the top school for the holiday collection.
BALLSTON SPA —Saratoga County History Center members are invited to our inaugural Saratoga History Happy Hour at the Real McCoy Beer Company in Ballston Spa. The Saratoga History Happy Hour is a series of three happy hour vibe programs at which local historians or experts weigh in on a variety of historical topics, share their insights, answer audience questions, participate in a trivia contest, and enjoy libations from a New York State craft brewery.
The program takes place at the Real McCoy Beer Company, the historic birthplace of Major-General Abner Doubleday in Ballston Spa. The Real McCoy Beer Company is located at 28 Washington St. in the village of Ballston Spa.
The agenda of the series is as follows:
Jan. 26 – Real Life Crime is the focus with Waterford Historian Russ VanDervoort and SCHC Director of Education Anne Clothier; Feb. 9 – The Hamiltons and the Schuylers is the focus with Saratoga National Historical Park’s curator, Christine Valosin; March 16 – Saratoga Style Baseball, including the story of the Abner Doubleday House and Lefty Mulligan with town of Saratoga Historian Sean Kelleher and others.
The programs start at 6 pm. Tickets to the Saratoga History Happy Hour are $15 each and come with a craft beer or non-alcoholic beverage. These events are limited to Saratoga County History Center members. Advance purchase of tickets is required by visiting brooksidemuseum.org/2022/12/saratoga-history-happy-hours/
Membership in the Saratoga County History Center starts at $25. Visit the link to explore different membership levels: brooksidemuseum.org/support-schs/new-individual-membership-page/
The Ice Queen leads an in-person class during the holiday break in Glens Falls. Photo provided.
GLENS FALLS — ‘The Ice Queen’ has become a staple of the Charles R. Wood Theater Holiday season over the past few years, starting with a special guest cameo at a Frozen Holiday film screening in 2019 and evolving into an interactive art class during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year, the Ice Queen will lead an in-person class art class, taking place at 11 a.m. – on Wednesday, Dec. 28, and again on Friday, Dec. 30.
For $5, all participants will have an art station with all the supplies they need to create the two projects led by The Ice Queen, played by Wood Theater box office manager, volunteer coordinator, and mixed-media artist Shelley Fairbanks.
Tickets to the class are available at www.woodtheater.org/icequeen or at the Box Office or by phone at 518-480-4878.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Rosa Royal is a member of the Saratoga Senior Center. Since April she has been crocheting hats for seniors in need, and to date has handmade 111 hats. The hats are displayed at the Center and have added a festive look.
While she lives in Glenville, Rose regularly visits the Senior Center in Saratoga Springs. She’ll spend her day playing bingo, helping as a volunteer, having lunch and is a mainstay in the Wednesday Knit & Crochet group.
In addition to the hats, the Senior Center is spreading holiday cheer through their Adopt a Senior program, caroling with The Giving Circle, and several other events.
The Adopt a Senior program, coordinated by the Center’s Senior Support Services office, has gathered wish lists from almost 50 seniors in need. Volunteers have shopped to fulfill those wish list and are delivering wrapped gifts to the Center. The gifts will be delivered to the seniors in the week before Christmas.
Senior Support Services is also working with The Giving Circle. Together the two organizations will be caroling on Sunday, December 18 around Saratoga Springs. The carolers will visit some senior housing locations as well some individual seniors in need of holiday cheer.
Upcoming holiday events for Senior Center members:
Friday, December 16:
11am Member Meeting & New Building Update
Saratoga Senior Center Executive Director, Lois Celeste will give an update on the Center’s upcoming move to their new home on West Avenue, attached to the Saratoga Regional YMCA.
12-2 p.m. Holiday Gift Wrap
Bring in your gifts and get them wrapped for you!
1:30 p.m. Holiday Lunch Buffet – $10. RSVP required. Call the Front Desk at 518-584-1621.
2-3 p.m. Decorating
Holiday Cookies
Wednesday, December 21
1:30-3:30 p.m. Member Holiday Party – Buffet lunch prepared by Prime at Saratoga National. Live music by Jay Yager & Chris Dollard. Guest appearance by Kelsey Dodd and Santa Claus. Sponsored by Aetna
Friday, December 23
1:30-2:30 Holiday Sing-Along with Garland Nelson
For more details on upcoming events and information about Saratoga Senior Center visit saratogaseniorcenter.org.
Some images on Broadway captured during the Victorian Streetwalk tree lighting ceremony on Dec. 1, 2022, featuring the carriage arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Photos by Thomas Dimopoulos.
Firefighters, in red uniforms, battle police, in blue uniforms, on ice during Charity Hockey Game Nov. 19 at Saratoga Springs Ice Rink. Photo provided.
SARATOGA SPRINGS —A near capacity crowd watched the Saratoga Springs Police Finest defeat the Saratoga Springs Bravest 6-2 on Nov. 19 at the Saratoga Springs Ice Rink.
The Saratoga Springs Firefighters IAFF Local 343 hosted the Saratoga Springs Police PBA in the annual Saratoga Springs Fire & Police Holiday Hockey Classic, played to benefit the Franklin Community Center’s Holiday Assistance Program. The program is essential in providing local families assistance during the holidays, and both toy and monetary donations were secured for the cause, including more than 16 contractor size bags of toys and over $1,000.
On Friday, the city’s fire and police departments will be delivering the toys to the Franklin Community Center.
BALLSTON SPA — The Ballston Spa House & Garden Club (BSH&GC) and the American Legion Auxiliary Unit #234 will host a Wreath Ceremony at the Veteran’s Memorial at 12 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10.
The public is invited to attend the solemn event to honor deceased veterans during the holidays. The Veteran’s Memorial is located on Low Street, adjacent to the Ballston Spa Library.
The Ballston Spa House & Garden Club is a member of the Federated Garden Clubs of NYS. One of its missions is to promote civic beautification of the Village of Ballston Spa.
Contact Marilyn Stephenson, BSH&GC at mcstephenson@nycap.rr.com or Melanie Edwards, Auxiliary President, at number41@nycap.rr.com with questions.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — For four upcoming evenings, you can hear area children on the air telling Santa what they want for Christmas, as Saratoga’s Star Radio presents The Talk Live with Santa Show.
This year’s holiday programming will air 6- 8 p.m. on Dec. 12, 13, 15, and 19. The Talk Live with Santa Show can be heard locally on 93.3FM, as well as globally via a mobile app and online stream at starsaratoga.com.
“A Star Radio Saratoga tradition, Talk Live with Santa offers a heartwarming glimpse into the pure exuberance this time of year holds for children,” said Fran Dingeman, General Manager of Saratoga’s Star Radio, in a statement. “The conversations simply make you feel good.”
