SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Gardens at Yaddo have reopened for the season and will welcome visitors through Oct. 13, 2024.
The sanctuary, located on the public access grounds of the artists’ retreat at Yaddo, invites the public to immerse themselves in the gardens.
Open Hours: Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., as well as Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Guests entering on weekends are asked to use the East Entrance. Limited parking is available, with additional guidance provided on yaddo.org/gardens/.
The Yaddo Reads Lending Library, a micro lending library stocked with books curated for children and young adults is accessible during Garden Open Hours and is freshly stocked with new titles for young readers.
Programs: The Art of Wellness series returns, with yoga classes held in the gardens on select Sundays through October. The Wine & Roses series pairs live music with vintage selections in the gardens. The Nature of Art features talks and readings exploring Yaddo and the region.
For those considering wedding ceremonies or photography sessions, the gardens are available for reservations, with a suggested donation.
The main gate of the Yaddo estate is located on Union Avenue between the racecourse and Exit 14 of the Northway. For more information on public events, visit https://yaddo.org/event-category/public/.
ALBANY — Six Capital Region public housing authorities (PHAs) have been awarded a combined $10,762,770 in federal grant funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Congressman Paul Tonko announced.
The funding will allow the local agencies to make needed investments to build, renovate, and modernize public housing in our Capital Region communities.
“The major grant awards announced this week will pay significant dividends for our Capital Region by funding needed repairs, enhancing sustainability, and ensuring that each and every one of our neighbors has a safe place to live, work, and raise a family,” Tonko said in a statement. “I’m grateful to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for this important investment, and I’ll continue working to build strong, sustainable, and inclusive communities across our region.”
The grants announced for Capital Region public housing authorities includes $796,911 for Saratoga Springs Housing Authority.
The funding is part of $3.17 billion awarded to 2,756 public housing authorities across the nation through HUD’s Capital Fund Program – which offers annual funding to all public housing authorities to construct, repair, and modernize public housing developments in their communities.
WILTON — Climb an authentic fire tower without having to climb a mountain. Get a treetop view of Wilton Wildlife Preserve & Park and visit a re-created fire ranger cabin complete with a vegetable garden. It will be open from 10 am to 3 pm on the weekend of June 15 and 16. The tower will be closed in inclement weather.
Parking for the historic Cornell Hill Fire Tower is in Parking lot #3 on Scout Road. Children under the age of five are not permitted to climb the fire tower. The Historic Cornell Hill Fire Tower is owned and maintained by the Town of Wilton and is staffed by volunteers on behalf of the Town.
For more information, call the Wilton Wildlife office at 518-450-0321 or email info@wiltonpreserve.org.
Bob Semenza, author of “Times With Marie and Parkinson’s,” will be at the Saratoga Senior Center at 2 p.m. on Monday, June 24.
SARATOGA SPRINGS —According to the U.S. Census bureau, by 2034 there will be more Americans past retirement age than there are children under the age of 5. America is aging, becoming a nation of caregivers, one that requires a new system of support.
Caregiving is hard, relentlessly demanding work, but through acceptance, commitment, and love, it can be a rewarding experience – as it was for Bob Semenza, whose wife, Marie, suffered from Parkinson’s disease, which he wrote about in his book, “Times With Marie and Parkinson’s: a caregiver’s fulfilling journey of love and commitment, loss, renewal.”
Their story is also included in the new book, “When You Care: The Unexpected Magic of Caring for Others,” written by journalist Elissa Strauss and recently published by Simon & Schuster.
Semenza will conduct a reading of a section of his book at the Saratoga Senior Center at 2 p.m. on Monday, June 24, followed by a discussion of his personal caregiver journey, and the challenging issues which so many in a similar role will be, or presently are, facing. Copies of his autographed book will be available for purchase at the event.
The Saratoga Senior Center is located at 290 West Ave., Saratoga Springs. Phone: 518-584-1621.
BALLSTON SPA — The Saratoga County Career Center in conjunction with the Greater Capital Region Career Centers will hold the following free virtual career workshops:
June 20 at 11 am: 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 21 at 10:30 am: Networking. Networking is your strategic tool for cultivating lasting relationships, fostering professional growth, and unlocking opportunities. Join us for an approachable journey to understanding networking. Facilitated by Warren and Albany.
June 25 at 11 am: 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 Fulton-Montgomery-Schoharie.
June 25 at 1:30 pm: 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.
Registration is required for all workshops. Visit https://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.
The Saratoga County Department of Workforce Development provides comprehensive training and employment services to residents through its Career Center and works with local businesses to attract and retain the local workforce.
WILTON — Town of Wilton Community Day will be held 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 22.
The event takes place at Wilton Recreation, located in Gavin Park 10 Lewis Drive, and will include food trucks, bounce houses, contests, beer & wine tasting, and live entertainment.
Taking place now is a presale of Brooks BBQ for $15 per dinner at Gavin Park or Town Hall. For more information, go to: https://townofwilton.com/.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Eleven unique gardens in Saratoga Springs and Ballston Spa and Wilton are featured on the 29th annual Saratoga Soroptimist Secret Gardens Tour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 14.
Purchase $25 advance tickets at www.soroptimistsaratoga.org or at Northshire Bookstore, Cudney’s Cleaners, Faddegon’s Nursery or Adirondack Trust Co. branches.
Day-of tickets for $30 will be sold while supplies last from 9:30 a.m. to noon outside the Saratoga Springs Visitor Center, 297 Broadway.
Garden descriptions and suggested driving directions are provided with purchase. The tour supports programs and individuals benefiting women and girls, including Wellspring.
Seattle Slew.. One of the immortals who took the Belmont Stakes and later left his mark at the Spa..
The Belmont Stakes is without question one of America’s greatest horse races. It has gained its prestige for many reasons. Let’s take a look at them.
The race, although long associated with Belmont Park, had its origins prior to being held there. The race actually dates back to 1867. It made its debut at Jerome Park. The track was owned by August Belmont Sr, the agent for the Rothschild families holdings on this continent and Wall Street financier Leonard Jerome. Of note, Jerome also was one of the original co-owners of Saratoga racetrack. The first running of the race was at 1 5/8 miles and won by a three year old filly named Ruthless. She lived up to her name when she romped home against her male opponents in the Travers Stakes here later that summer.
The race was run at its present distance of 1 1/2 miles for a short time beginning in 1874. In the following years it was conducted at distances from 1 1/8 to 1 3/8 miles. With the closure of Jerome Park in 1890, the race found a new home at nearby Morris Park.
When the Westchester Racing Association opened the original version of Belmont Park in 1905, the race became a permanent fixture there. Some of the early winners include the likes of the great unbeaten champion Colin in 1907. Sir Barton entered the winner’s circle in 1919. He is considered to be the first winner of The Triple Crown, although that term did not originate until the 1930s. The one and only Man o’ War strutted his stuff a year later in 1920. America’s greatest racehorse walked home in spectacular fashion, eased up twenty lengths clear of the field.
In 1926 the race was lengthened from 1 3/8 to its present distance of 1 1/2 miles. Belair Stables Gallant Fox became the second Triple Crown champion and the first to navigate the longer distance in 1930. Since then a Who’s Who of American racehorses have competed for the exquisite Belmont Stakes Trophy. Many have reached out to immortality in taking the race. The thirteen Triple Crown winners lead the way. Then there are the likes of Native Dancer, Nashua, Gallant Man, Sword Dancer, Damascus, Easy Goer, A.P. Indy and Point Given. They showed their mettle and tenacity in winning the “The Test of Champions.”
Belmont Park was rebuilt during the early 1960s. The makeover would close the venue for five years. During that period the race was moved to Aqueduct Racetrack.
This created a dilemma. At Belmont the circumference of the track is 1 1/2 miles. Aqueduct on the other hand is a 1 1/8 miles oval. The same can be said of Saratoga’s configuration. The NYRA top brass at the time made the decision to keep the race at its historic distance. This meant that the race would start close to the far turn leading into the stretch, and then once around the Aqueduct oval. For five years beginning in 1963 the plan, though not ideal, worked with no mishaps. Belmont re-opened in 1968.
There were no changes made to the race until the dreaded Covid 19 made its appearance in 2020. Like everything else the racing world was turned upside down. The race was run at a distance of 1 1/8 miles and complicating things further, preceded both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.
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There was an eerie feeling on race day as patrons were not allowed to enter Belmont Park for the event.
Four years later Belmont Park finds itself being reconstructed for its second rebirth. “The Test of Champions” has the perfect temporary home here at Saratoga. This weekend all roads will lead to the Spa for a spectacular four days of racing loaded with an abundance of high caliber stakes races highlighted by the Belmont Stakes.
NYRA has decided to run the race at 1 1/4 miles, the same distance as the Kentucky Derby and the Travers Stakes.
These are different times than the five years that Aqueduct kept the race at its historic distance. Surely there are concerns that the start off of the turn may cause a mishap that would put the horses and jockeys in peril. The thought had crossed my mind that lengthening the race to 1 5/8 miles for the two years might have been a better remedy.
The race would start midway down the backstretch taking any problem on the turn out of play.
To get a definitive answer, I reached out to Ed Bowen, a prolific writer and historian with decades of familiarity with horse racing.
He answered it this way:
“I think the idea has some appeal, but there is a countering point in my mind. That is, since 1 1/2 miles is regarded today as such a test of stamina for a three- year- old in June that going even farther is worrisome as perhaps too much. All things are generalizations, whereas horses are individuals, of course, but as a point of stewardship of the well- being of the horses I think that going to 1 5/8 miles is a negative.
Enough has changed since the 19th Century phase when the Belmont WAS run at 1 5/ 8 miles that I don’t think that phase is a precedent easily applied today.”
There you have it. That being said, the race is still at a formidable distance. American racehorses are accustomed to the most important races being run at 1 1/4 miles. The lone exception is the Belmont Stakes. It is still a daunting task when considering the fact that these racehorses are stretched to their outer limits going serious distances three times in five weeks.
The time has come. Belmont at Saratoga is here. Saturday at approximately 6:30 PM the horses will prance on to the track. The crowd will go silent as the voice of Frank Sinatra belts out the Belmont theme song “ New York, New York.” Ten minutes later the contestants will enter the starting gate. They’re all in..and they’re off for the 156th running of the Belmont Stakes!
