WILTON — On Saturday, November 21 the Wilton Rotary Club volunteered their services to the Wilton Food Pantry in handing out nearly 80 Thanksgiving Holiday Bags and pies to nearly 453 people within our Wilton Community.

On hand to assist the Wilton Food Pantry were Rotary Club President Bob Lounsbury with his daughter Diana, Past President Don Wildermuth, Sargent-At-Arms Warren Weil and Treasurer Deb June-Miller and her husband, Club Member Ray Miller. Along with volunteers from the pantry, they distributed food, produce, baked goods and other items to those in need.  The pantry provides this type of event on a regularly scheduled basis to those in our neighboring communities.

If you are interested in joining the Wilton Rotary Club or even learning about the club, please contact Don WIldermuth at 518-430-8670. Also, if you interested in joining the Wilton Food Pantry or even learning more about the pantry, please contact Peter Maynard at 518-350-4566.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The “Take Home Double H Raffle Pack” benefit at Alpine Sport Shop was an overwhelming success.  With generous donations Alpine Sport Shop will be making a contribution of $1,500 to Double H Ranch Winter Adaptive Program. The raffle gift giveaways included four pairs of Alpine skis, helmets, goggles and more…  there were many happy winners! 

Alpine Sport Shop appreciates the participation of the giveaways suppliers, including Smith, Nordica, Tubbs, Snoskins, Rossignol, Giro, Obermeyer, K2, & Volkl.  With much to be thankful for, The Alpine Sport Shop celebrates 80 years in business and serving the greater Saratoga Springs community. 

For more details about Apline Sport Shop visit www.alpinesportshop.com. For more on Double H Ranch Winter Adaptive Program visit www.doublehranch.org/programs/winter.

BALLSTON SPA —Saratoga County 4-H, the Youth Development Branch of Cornell Cooperative Extension, has always had a focus on community service, and 2020 hasn’t changed that. In fact, it has helped bring 4-H’s devotion to the community and the people who live here to the forefront.

One of the more concerted community service efforts of Saratoga County 4-H in the fall and winter months is the “4-H Holiday Mitten Tree” which partners with area libraries and community centers distribute winter weather clothing including gloves, hats and scarves to members of our community in need. Collected items are placed on the Mitten Tree, this year at the Saratoga Springs Public Library. Items are also donated to local organizations including the Saratoga County EOC and Salvation Army.

Members of Saratoga County 4-H Teen Council recently participated in a new community service opportunity. Working with a local non-profit, #HicksStrong of Clifton Park, 4-H Teen members painted “Hug Mugs” which are distributed to active duty military members and veterans as a way to show appreciation and support for their service. #HicksStrong also connects members of the military and veterans to mental health services. More information about #HicksStrong can be found at hicksstrong.og.

Part of the 4-H Pledge is for members and volunteers to dedicate their “…hands to larger service.” 4-H members in Saratoga County go above and beyond to stay true to this pledge. If 2020 has taught us anything it is that we are all members of a larger community, and it is our responsibility to help care for members of this community when they are in need. The lessons learned by 4-H youth through community service will carry on into their adult lives, and help to reach 4-H’s goal of helping members become “competent, caring and contributing members of society.”

4-H Youth Development actively involves youth in opportunities that help them learn to lead, build their communities, connect with Cornell University, and connect with each other.  For more information about 4-H Youth Development of Saratoga County visit www.ccesaratoga.org.

SARATOGA SPRINGS – More than 150 vehicles took part in the 7th Annual Convoy for Tots charity drive on Nov. 8. Vehicles from area businesses, civic organizations and Emergency Services agencies traveled from the Ballston Spa school campus to the Saratoga Performing Arts Center as part of a convoy to help generate new, unwrapped toys for immediate distribution by Capital Region Toys for Tots this holiday season.    

Coordinated by the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office and iHeart Media – Albany, largely supported by area First Responders, Convoy for Tots is held annually to support the mission of Capital Region Toys for Tots who serves over 160,000 children annually in the Capital Region. 

The Saratoga Builders Association presented checks totaling $10,000 to Rebuilding Together Saratoga County and Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties. 

This was accomplished with the help of donations from the public along with the support of r sponsors and builders, as there were no ticket sales this year, which normally make up the charitable contribution. 

The “live” 2020 Saratoga Showcase of Homes tour was cancelled due to health and safety concerns regarding the pandemic. This year’s edition of the Saratoga Showcase of Homes was a “re-imagined” event in the form of a one-hour TV Show Special. 

The 2021 Saratoga Showcase of Homes dates, celebrating 25 years of exceptional homes, has been scheduled for Sept. 18-19, 25-26 & Oct. 2-3. For more details on the homes, builders, or to watch the TV Special, visit the website at: www.saratogashowcaseofhomes.com. 

The Saratoga Builders Association has donated nearly $1.3 million dollars to local charities from the new home tour event. 

About the Showcase of Homes: 
This annual community event is only made possible with the generous support of our corporate and media sponsors. Proceeds benefited two local charities – Rebuilding Together Saratoga County and Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties. Please mark your calendars—The 2021 Saratoga Showcase of Homes dates, celebrating 25 years of exceptional homes, has been scheduled for September 18-19, 25-26 & October 2-3. For more details on the homes, builders, or to watch the TV Special, please visit the website at www.saratogashowcaseofhomes.com

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SARATOGA SPRINGS —The Food Pantry at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church is open and well-stocked with many great items! St. Paul’s regular pantry hours are Wednesdays from 4:30-6 p.m. and Thursdays from 11 a.m.-Noon.

Thanks to the generosity of the neighboring community, congregation members, and the families of St. Paul’s Christian Childhood Center, a late-October food drive was a great success. Nearly 1,400 non-perishable food items were collected, and are now ready to be distributed.

While St. Paul’s Food Pantry is available year round, a special effort is made to provide “Thanksgiving Baskets” to anyone who is food insecure. Each basket contains stuffing, potatoes, vegetables, cranberries, sweet potatoes, desserts and more! Contact Deacon April Dreher at 518-584-0904, ext. 6 before November 11 to request a Thanksgiving Basket.  Baskets will be available for pick up at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church located at 149 Lake Ave., Saratoga Springs on Nov. 18 from 4:30-6 p.m.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — More than 630 vehicles wound their way through the drop-off stations to recycle or donate unwanted items at Sustainable Saratoga’s fourth annual Saratoga Recycles Day. 

“While we expected that the extra time spent at home this year due to COVID-19 would drive up attendance, we were still surprised by the record-breaking turnout,” said Margie Shepard, Co-Chair of Sustainable Saratoga’s Zero
Waste Committee. 

The electronics and clothing/textile drop-off locations were in especially high demand. Planit Waste, Recycling & Salvage and eLot Electronics Recycling collected huge quantities of batteries, electronics and scrap metal. Hundreds of TVs and monitors were dropped off, contributing to the thousands of pounds of electronics that will be responsibly recycled and kept out of landfills. Early estimates indicate a record amount of textiles and clothing were donated at this year’s event, which took place Oct. 24 at the overflow parking lot at SPAC in Saratoga Springs.

One important strategy for keeping things out of landfills is to extend their useful life. Every year, the list of partnering community groups who collect items increases. This year, participants included American Clothing, Shelters of Saratoga, B.E.S.T., Bikeatoga, Transitional Services Association, Saratoga Lions Club and Wellspring. 

Shelters of Saratoga collected 106 sleeping bags, 43 tents and 61 backpacks that will be used to help many people this coming winter. Around 60 large bags of men’s shoes, jackets and clothing were donated to B.E.S.T. to benefit the backstretch workers at the Saratoga Racetrack. Sustainable Saratoga collected over 100 bikes, and Bikeatoga took more than half of them to add to their winter project load. American Clothing collected several truckloads of donated clothing and textiles. Three large carloads of donated art supplies will be put to good use by the artists at Transitional Services Association. The Saratoga Lions Club collected buckets full of eyeglasses, and Wellspring received 342 cell phones. All of these items will be reused, helping both individuals in need and the environment.

VICTORY — Saratoga PLAN’s Next Generation Committee, hauled six bags of debris out of the Saratoga Siege Trail – a Saratoga PLAN partner trail in the Village of Victory. The trail is located just opposite the Schuyler House on Route 4, in the town of Saratoga.

The Saratoga Siege Trail is a flat, half-mile walking trail, which follows along the south side of Fish Creek.

The Next Gen Committee has been active for less than a year, during which they have explored how they can act as an extension of Saratoga PLAN. For five of their ten months as an active committee, the group met virtually and was still able to organize multiple stewardship opportunities–one being cleaning up the Saratoga Siege Trail. Items found during the clean-up included: a TV, old car parts, bicycle wheel, and plastic bottles.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Prayers, meditations and chants will be offered on behalf of those who have died in the past year, with special intention for victims of COVID-19, in a candlelight service at 5 p.m. Sunday Nov. 8, at Bethesda Episcopal Church, 26 Washington St. 

The service, which is open to the community, will be in observance of All Soul’s Day.  It will include a reading of names and prayers, as well as Gregorian chants, said the Reverend Charles Wallace, recently appointed priest in charge of Bethesda. 

“This year 2020 has been an especially difficult year. Many people have turned to their Creator for spiritual and emotional comfort.  Bethesda offers this service for people of all faiths so that we can gather as a community to commemorate all who have died, both known and unknown to us, and thereby renew our collective commitment to caring for one another,” said Father Wallace. 

The service, about 30 minutes in length, will follow the monastic Prayers for the Dead, a form with ancient roots. 

All wishing to attend and commemorate family or loved ones may register online with the Bethesda parish office at 518-584-5980, or go to the church’s website: bethesdachurch.org. 

The service will be conducted in keeping with all New York State protocols for religious gatherings. Masks will be required to be worn at all times, seating will be at distance and limited in number, and hand sanitizer will be available as people enter the church.  A free will offering opportunity will be available.

WILTON — Popular area country musician Phil Hoyt’s recent impromptu performance in – and around – Granville’s downtown park raised more than $5,000 for one of his favorite charities, Wilton-based Operation Adopt A Soldier (OAAS).

“When Phil handed over $5,025 at our October members’ meeting, everyone there either gasped or got a bit emotional,” said OAAS Founder/Co-chair Cliff Seguin. “We were so appreciative that Phil, with all the pandemic limitations, offered to perform a concert for us.”

The non-profit, all-volunteer OAAS uses donations to send free comfort kits to U.S. military personnel serving in areas of conflict. It also uses monetary donations to pay the $12-per-box postage fee and purchase goods when donated supplies dwindle.

OAAS’ temporary office at 891 Saratoga Road, Wilton, is open from 10 a.m. to noon Thursdays and Saturdays to accept donations, and by appointment for large contributions of non-perishable food, snacks and toiletries. A detailed list of acceptable items is posted on www.operationadoptasoldier.org.