The Eastwick Press Newspaper

Eastern Rensselaer County's Community Newspaper

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Letter To The Editor – Preventing Misunderstanding

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To The Editor:

In the August 22 article of the Eastwick Press, S.O.S Seniors of Stephentown, on page 11, there are two sets of figures that need clarification in order to prevent misunderstanding by the readership.

The first is – we do not have, at this writing, forty active members. What we have is forty people who have stated to me, either in person or on the phone, that they wanted to become active members. In other words, to do things to be “active.”

The second is the reference to 18 to 24 seniors showing up at meetings. The number 18 to 24 refers to the number of people who have been to our temporary meeting place (our home), to talk over plans and voice their support for S.O.S. Some of the people came on our meeting day, some the day before and a few a day or so later, for their own various reasons.

I need to say that this jumble of information is not the fault of the writer of the article, David Flint. It was most likely the fast pace of the interview and my not being able to process the  wording of the questions clearly enough.

My reason for writing this clarification is to keep the Stephentown public in general, and our new members in particular, as correctly informed as possible.

Mary DeFreest

Pres. S.O.S.


Girls Raise Over $100 For SOCS

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Mkayla Sonnet, Lexi Martin and Brittany Poitras love animals. Together they organized a bottle fund drive and held a home baked dog cookie sale at Pawfection on August 23 to benefit SOCS (Support Our Canine Strays). SOCS coordinator and Pawfection owner Aimee Allen said, “These three girls took it upon themselves to put this event together.” They made signs, baked and spent from 9 am until 2 pm on Saturday, raising over $100. “They are great role models for other kids,” said Allen.

HFCS: First Day Of School

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At 8:30 am more than 600 students headed into the HFCS Elementary wing Wednesday morning for the first day of school. Earlier, at 7:30, students in grades 7 to 12 also went right to their home rooms. For the first time in many years no students had to report to a “bus room.” (Bea Peterson photo)
At 8:30 am more than 600 students headed into the HFCS Elementary wing Wednesday morning for the first day of school. Earlier, at 7:30, students in grades 7 to 12 also went right to their home rooms. For the first time in many years no students had to report to a “bus room.” (Bea Peterson photo)

Karen McGovern Memorial Co-Ed Volleyball Tournament

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The ninth annual Karen McGovern Memorial Co-Ed Volleyball Tournament will be held Saturday, September 13, at the Sand Bar, on Lyman St. in Hoosick Falls.

Registration will begin at 8 am, and play will commence at 9 am. A round robin format will be played for both Division A (competitive) and Division B (recreational) players. Engraved beer mugs and glasses will be awarded to members of the winning teams in both divisions, and the Division A team’s name will be engraved on the permanent plaque maintained at the Sand Bar.

The donation per team is $150 and non-players are asked to make a $25 donation to the fund. The fund has raised over $100,000 to help local residents battling cancer and other serious illnesses. Food, keg beer and music will be provided throughout the day. 

Call Matt Philpott at 802-384-0262 or Bill McGovern at 518-686-9371 to reserve a spot for your team. Join us for a day to remember our friend  Karen.

Chris’ Wish

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On June 10 at 3:30 pm Chris Luciano left work with a few friends and went to their regular swimming spot in North Hoosick. There they were jumping off a platform that had been built over the years and where many folks jump and dive into the river. This particular day was not Chris’ day. Somehow when he went off the platform something went terribly wrong, and he never made it to the water. Instead he hit rocks 35 foot below. The result is that Chris was left paralyzed from the waist down.  

Chris is a 19 year old HFCS 2007 graduate who loves being outdoors. He is a hard worker and has held a number of jobs over the last five years. Those jobs have included playing guitar in a couple of rock bands, fixing bikes at All Seasons Outdoor Sports, prep cooking at Helvi’s and a number of labor jobs. But his real passion was teaching snow boarding, which he has done every winter since he was 15.  He was recently nationally certified at Level II (a difficult feat) as an instructor. He had been toying with making this a major part of his career path, and he had a number of mountains recruiting him. While there is no reason that this dream cannot happen, it may be very different than what he envisioned. 

While Chris can no longer walk, his ultimate wish is to get out of the wheel chair and snowboard again. Project Walk (www.projectwalk.org) an organization in San Diego offers an opportunity to help get him out of this chair.  It is a boot camp designed to regain any movement. Chris and his family would like to send him to this program.

A committee has been formed to help raise money to send Chris and a trainer to San Diego to learn this proven methodology and to work on Chris’ legs with the hope of regaining some movement or feeling in his lower body. The first event will be a bottle drive this Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm.  Bottles can be dropped at the Rite Aid parking lot or at Nickel Back in Chris’ name. If you would like your bottles picked up, please call Karen Smith at 686-9036.   

If you would like to follow in Chris’ progress or find more information see www.eenable.net/chris.

HFCS Golfers Defeat Cambridge

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Hoosick Falls Golf team defeated Cambridge 4-1 at the Hoosick Falls Country Club on Thursday, August 28. Taylor Bellemare and Corey Callahan were co-medalists with 37.

Patrick Fisher (C) def Taylor Bellemare 1 up

Joe Wirmusky (HF) def Jordan Hastings 3 & 2

Corey Callahan (HF) def Logan Niles 4 & 3

Kevin Gorman (HF) def Chris Crucetti 2 up

Zack Hall (HF) def Phil James 3 up

James Lynch (HF) def Nick Jepson 4 & 3

 Hoosick Falls is now 3-0, and Cambridge is 0-2.

 The golfers will compete in the following matches this week:

Thu., Sept. 4, HOME vs. Tamarac

Mon., Sept. 8, HOME vs. Greenwich

Wed., Sept. 10, vs. Stillwater at Saratoga Lake (Saratoga) 

Thu., Sept, 11, HOME vs. Hoosic Valley

The Legacy Lives On! – Tribute To Football Coach Legend Baker To Be Shared By Rival Schools

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by Irene Baldwin

Longtime sports rivals and neighboring schools, Cambridge Central and Hoosick Falls Central, will begin a new football tradition on September 5 at 7 pm, a Friday evening under the lights on the football field on the campus of HFCS. The Indians and Panthers varsity football teams will face off and, as usual, play hard, the victors taking home a tangible reward for winning, The Ken Baker Jug. The Jug will remain on display throughout the coming school year inside the victorious school’s trophy case. Next year the KBJ may or may not make a trip up or down Route 22. Wherever the Ken Baker Jug holds court, the honor it represents will be a coveted one.

Although Coach Baker will not be physically present for the auspicious football match-up, his indomitable spirit, which has imbued the CCS and HFCS football programs since 1972, will surely be felt on this night by all who knew and loved him. Former students and players of Coach Baker are invited to assemble on the football field during the game’s half time to offer a solemn moment of silence in his memory. Ken Baker, a member of the State High School Football Hall of Fame, is known and respected as one of the best coaches Section II has ever produced.

Since the unexpected, untimely and sad passing of Coach Ken Baker in the spring of 2008, HFCS Superintendent Ken Facin and CCS Superintendent Dan Severson have collaborated to create a special and meaningful way to offer tribute to the man who was integral in creating success within both schools’ football programs. 

Coach Baker was the varsity football coach at Hoosick Falls from 1972 to 1986 and then at Cambridge from 1986 to 1995. Baker’s philosophy, which both schools continue to follow in their programs, is a simple but powerful one – respect your opponent; be physical; hustle.

The Jug, produced in the area over 110 years ago, has been donated by Jack’s Outback Antiques of Main Street, Cambridge. The large ceramic vessel features paintings of the two school mascots, a fearsome black panther on one side and a majestic Indian on the other, symbolizing two diverse but connected teams. Around the top of the vessel are emblazoned the words, Ken Baker Jug.

Each football player will be given a commemorative Route 22 Rivalry T-shirt featuring both the blue and white Panthers and the orange and black Indians. How fitting that Ken Baker’s love of healthy competition and positive play will be exemplified in the yearly awarding of The Ken Baker Jug.

HFCS PTA Kicks Off The New School Year

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The Hoosick Falls Central School Parent Teacher Association (PTA), a group of involved, caring and committed moms, dads, grandmas, grandpas, teachers, administrators and alumni, is underway with the new school year. The PTA has been active all summer preparing for the year, and they’re helping to ease students and teachers back to school at the open houses and other activities.

The PTA will continue to make a difference in 2008-2009 by giving $100 to each grade level for extra supplies, by hosting several family-oriented events such as Fall Festival, Family Fun Bingo, appreciation days, the monthly food coop and a holiday giftshop, by volunteering time and offering funding for countless programs and events.

The PTA holds business meetings seven times a year. Meetings this year will be held in the HFCS Elementary School Library from 6:30 to 8 pm on September 10, October 15, November 19, January 21, March 18 and May 20, with a year end meeting/celebration on June 10. The Executive Officers are excited about what PTA members can do for the school and the children in our school district, and want to remind people that although attending meetings is beneficial, having involvement away from the meetings is most important. Members who aren’t able to join the meetings help in other ways, too. They volunteer their time at events, donate gifts and supplies and are financially supportive with their $5 membership dues.

The team of officers leading with lots of enthusiasm this year is President Sherri Stevenson, Vice President Sharon Sigot, Treasurer Amy Jeskie, Secretary Rhonda Rosenberg and Teacher Representatives Gina Harrison (Junior/Senior High School) and Sarah Fleming (Elementary School).

If you’d like to become a member or to learn more about PTA and its programs, please attend the first meeting on September 10 or contact Membership Chair Heather St. Hilaire at 518-686-7649.

Twenty-Two New Teachers At HFCS

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by Bea Peterson

 

Friday and Tuesday HFCS was abuzz with excitement. Twenty-two teachers were learning what their responsibilities will be and what will be expected of them as they teach at Hoosick Falls for the first

New teachers in the Elementary school are (l-r front row) Jonathan Laurin (First Grade), Laurie Prendergast (ESL), Kelli Rounsville (Third Grade), Ann Marie Glover (Kindergarten) and (back row) Landon Nelson (Physical Education/Health), Andrea Bearor (First Grade), Jennifer Barron (Reading K-6) and Emily Bishop (Teacher of the Deaf and Hearing Impaired). (Bea Peterson photo)
New teachers in the Elementary school are (l-r front row) Jonathan Laurin (First Grade), Laurie Prendergast (ESL), Kelli Rounsville (Third Grade), Ann Marie Glover (Kindergarten) and (back row) Landon Nelson (Physical Education/Health), Andrea Bearor (First Grade), Jennifer Barron (Reading K-6) and Emily Bishop (Teacher of the Deaf and Hearing Impaired). (Bea Peterson photo)

 time. Mentors, long time teachers at the school, were on hand to be helpful. The high school and the elementary school have new principals. Students and teachers alike will be learning a lot this year.

New teachers in the Middle and High Schools are (l-r front row) Leah Jackhym (Business-Computer), Sarah Bender (Special Education), Laurie Prendergast (French), Devon Paterson (Reading) and Kerry Branigan (Reading). (l-r middle row) Eamonn DeGraaf (Technology), Mike McGraw (Business-Computer), Lynda Bilow (English), Darlene Kehn (Science), Landon Nelson (Health), Tim Stockton (Special Education) and Chris Farley (Social Studies). (l-r back row) Lisa Ferrannini (Physical Education), William Clairmont (Math), Bruce Bailey (Science) and Anthony Malikowski (Science). (Bea Peterson photo)
New teachers in the Middle and High Schools are (l-r front row) Leah Jackhym (Business-Computer), Sarah Bender (Special Education), Laurie Prendergast (French), Devon Paterson (Reading) and Kerry Branigan (Reading). (l-r middle row) Eamonn DeGraaf (Technology), Mike McGraw (Business-Computer), Lynda Bilow (English), Darlene Kehn (Science), Landon Nelson (Health), Tim Stockton (Special Education) and Chris Farley (Social Studies). (l-r back row) Lisa Ferrannini (Physical Education), William Clairmont (Math), Bruce Bailey (Science) and Anthony Malikowski (Science). (Bea Peterson photo)