The Eastwick Press Newspaper

Eastern Rensselaer County's Community Newspaper

Local News

Joan deLeon

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Berlin – Joan Beatrice (Nelson) deLeon, 80, of Green Hollow Road, Berlin, NY, died on April 4, 2014, at home surrounded by her loving family, after a courageous battle against cancer.

Born on July 28, 1933, in Brooklyn, NY, she was the daughter of the late Ruth (Hinsch) and Eric J.W. Nelson. Joan was a 1951 graduate of Huntington High School on Long Island.

Joan had the deepest love for Ralph deLeon, her adoring husband of 62 years. They married in 1952 and lived their early years in Greenlawn, NY, where Ralph ran a business and Joan raised their family. In 1969 Joan and Ralph moved their family to Berlin. In 1970 Joan returned to nursing school, receiving her Licensed Practical Nursing certification. She worked for the next 17 years for Dr. Henry Richmond in Bennington, VT. Joan left nursing to assist Ralph in running the family businesses.

She was active in the Berlin Methodist Church and the Berlin Republican party. She previously served on the Board of Trustees for the Berlin Town Library. She also enjoyed being a long term member of two book clubs.

Survivors, besides her husband, include their five children, Renee Williams and husband Richard of Pownal, VT, Ralph deLeon of Schenectady, NY, Robin Cipperly of Berlin, Richard deLeon and wife Colleen of Berlin and Roger deLeon and fiancée Victoria Calaban of Latham, NY. Joan is also survived by seven grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. She was pre-deceased by her sister, Carol Kirchner, and one grandchild, Rachael Williams.

A celebration of life gathering will be held Saturday, April 12, at 12 noon at the Berlin United Methodist Church, 13 South Main Street, Berlin. There will be a reception at the Berlin Fire Hall at 1 pm following the Church celebration. In lieu of flowers the family is requesting donations be made to the Rensselaer County Hospice or the Berlin Free Town Library. For on-line condolences please visit www.TheRiverviewFuneralHome.com.

Elwin W. Stevens

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Hoosick Falls – Elwin W. Stevens (Steve), of Troy, NY, died in Tulsa, OK, on April 3, 2014. Elwin was born in Hoosick Falls, NY, on February 21, 1923, and was a graduate of the Walter A. Wood High School in Hoosick Falls and Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute, Class of 1945. He served as Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy on the U.S.S. Sampson during WW II and was in charge of damage control. Elwin taught at R.P.I. until 1952 when he became the University Architect for the State University of New York System until his retirement in 1990.

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Hoffman’s Fate In Hands Of Jury

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by Thaddeus Flint

The fate of Brendan Hoffman, the 22 year old Stephentown man accused of manslaughter and homicide charges, as well as leaving the scene of a 2012 accident, now lies in the hands of the jury.

The trial, which began on March 25, wrapped up with closing arguments at the Rensselaer County Court House in Troy on Wednesday.

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Discussion Begins On Berlin Transfer Station Contract

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by Alex Brooks

A joint meeting of the Petersburgh and Berlin Town Boards on March 27 began with Supervisor Rob Jaeger of Berlin asking Supervisor Siegfried Krahforst of Petersburgh what the Petersburgh Board wanted to discuss. Krahforst replied that they wanted to meet to renegotiate the contract for the use of the Berlin Transfer Station. He said the sticking point is the monthly rent of $1,000.

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Outdoor Expo Offers View Of World

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by Bea Peterson 

On Friday, March 28, 800 HFCS students, from elementary through high school age were bused to the Armory for the 6th Annual Outdoor Expo. Programs werxae presented and students were able to talk to folks about their outdoor interests and touch many of the pelts and other items on display.

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Maple Weekend: Syrup Season – Finally!

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by Bea Peterson

Maple syrup making can start from early to mid-February and can last until the end of April. It is all weather dependent. Perfect maple syrup making weather requires nighttime temperatures in the mid-20s and daytime temperatures in the mid-40s. As everyone in this area knows, we haven’t had many warm days, and the nights have been colder than usual.

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Community Rallies For One Of Its Own

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by Bea Peterson

Sandra Bass Carter was born and raised in Hoosick Falls. She lives with her husband Ron and family in North Carolina now. Her parents and her siblings still live in the area. In December Sandra was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. With radiation treatments and chemotherapy Sandra is hopeful she will go into remission. If she does, then she will be eligible for a stem cell transplant. She won’t be cured, but the transplant may allow her to live for many more years and perhaps see a cure found for her disease.

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Berlin FCCLA Students Attend Leadership Conference

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FCCLA students across the New York State were mesmerized by speaker Jacy Good as she told of the tragic loss of her parents and her miraculous recovery from a car accident caused by a teen using a cell phone.  Another speaker, brought to the group by the National Safety Council, was Marianne Angelillo from Skaneateles,  NY, author of ”Sharing My Stones,” who talked of turning her grief into a campaign for awareness for teens and parents trying to prevent underage drinking.

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Public Meeting/Forum On Open Meetings Law And FOIL

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submitted by Colleen Teal, New Lebanon Town Clerk

A Public Meeting/Forum will be held at the New Lebanon Town Hall on Tuesday, April 29, at 7 pm on Open Meetings Law and the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).

Robert Freeman, Executive Director of the Committee on Open Government, will be directing a public forum, open to everybody, to talk about and answer questions regarding public access to government information in New York State. This is your opportunity to get your questions answered regarding local government, including but not limited to your Town Board, Zoning Board and Planning Board, access to Town minutes and FOIL requests.

This public forum will last as long as is necessary as Robert Freeman is dedicated to staying to answer questions until no more questions remain.

Hoosick Grange March 2014 News

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It was another stormy Wednesday night on March 12. We had to cancel our meeting and move it forward one week to March 19. We had some very daring Grangers who attended that meeting. We had the Photography Contest. Berta Burr took first place in the Scenery Category; Martha Babbitt won first in the People Category, and Corrine Philpott won first in the Animal Category. We also had the Apple Pie Contest, and Corrine Philpott came in first. These winners will go on to the Rensselaer County Pomona Contest If their photographs win there, they will go to N.Y. State Grange to be judged. After the contest we all enjoyed apple pie and ice cream.

The March 26 Meeting

What a surprise – March 26 was good weather. We had a covered dish supper, and it was delicious. We had our program right after supper.

The Lecturer announced who our speaker was, David Filkins. David has been a teacher for sixteen years. He taught GED, General Educational Development, in the Schenectady School System. When a person doesn’t have a high school education, they could get a GED. David told us the first thing the student did was take a test of twenty-five questions to see “How Are You Smart?” All these tests are published by McGraw Hill. They also publish all the books to study for the test. In 1978 they revamped the test. David said the Grange was a big push behind this program. They revamped again in 1988, 2002 and 2013. The 2013 test is a test on getting ready for college. The test consists of fifty questions and an essay at the end. This test is given all over the U.S.A. and Canada, in English, French and Spanish and Braille. Many famous people have taken the G.E.D. After a person passes the GED, you get a Certificate of Employability. David has taught in many unusual places, like the jail. He said he felt very safe there. He answered questions. The Lecturer thanked David for a very interesting program.

Our next meeting is on April 9. Marion and Omer Brenenstuhl are in charge of the program. They are having Paul Davendonis from the Rensselaer County Sheriff Department as speaker. The Refreshment Committee is Marion Hynick and Berta Burr.

Don’t forget – we are having a food drive or money for the HACA  food closet.