Summer Reading activities have begun at the Berlin Library. Visit the Library to sign up for Summer Reading and please join us for the following activities:
• Friday, July 12, from 1 to 2 pm – “The Whirlwind” (from Bre’r Rabbit Tales) for ages 7 and up. Led by storyteller Deborah Green, participants will make instruments to join in an interactive storytelling project.
Tuesday, July 16, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm – Bedtime Stories (for ages preschool to 7). Led by Amy Montgomery, participants will listen to stories and have a visit from the tooth fairy.
• Thursday, July 18, 6:30 to 7:30 pm – Colored Flowers, led by Simon Carr. Participants will create flower drawings using color – open to ages 9 to adult.
• Tuesday, July 23, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. Bedtime Stories (for ages preschool to 7). Led by Lisa Flynn, participants will hear The Tale of Peter Rabbit and plant vegetables in Mr. McGregor’s garden.
• Thursday, July 25, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. Jody Scalise presents “The Motion Man,” a performance using mime and movement for all ages.
• Tuesday, July 30, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. “We Dig Bedtime” stories and songs for ages pre-school to 7 led by Martha von Schilgen.
• Wednesday, July 31, from 1 to 2 pm – “From An Acorn Grows An Oak” (for ages 8 and up). Led by Charlotte Neaton, participants will make a craft using acorns.
• Thursday, August 1, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm. Led by Lisa Flynn, for ages 7 and up, participants will make a hummingbird feeder.
• Wednesday, August 7, from 1 to 2 pm. Led by Charlotte Neaton, participants, ages 8 and up, will craft some crazy looking birds.
• Tuesday, August 13, at 6:30 pm – Summer Reading Closing Ceremony and Party. Children, family and friends, please join us for the presentation of Reading Certificates. We will have snacks and entertainment.
Local News
Wild Edible Plants And Medicinal And Practical Uses
A seminar on wild edible plants and their medicinal and practical uses will be held all day on Sunday, July 14, beginning at 9 am at the Buskirk Better Living Center located in the Buskirk Seventh-day Adventist Church, 2176 West Hoosick Road (Rt. 67 & County Rt. 103) in Buskirk.
The speaker will be Mike Lowe. He is the founder of Wilderness Way Adventures, Inc. and has been teaching outdoor skills professionally since 1980. He began his career in the U.S. Air Force Survival School and has worked with hundreds of men, women and children from all walks of life since then. Mike holds an AA in Wilderness Survival, an AA in Search and Rescue and is a certified survival and rescue technician and instructor.
Please bring your favorite books on wild edible plants, medicinal plants and wildflowers.
This seminar is offered on a donation basis. For more information call 686-4524 or 796-2210.
Kathleen Loveland To Wed TJ Green
Mr. And Mrs. Jimmy Winn of Berlin and Mr. James Loveland Sr. announce the engagement of their daughter, Kathleen Loveland, to TJ Green, son of Ms. Sheila Green and Mr. William Green of Manchester, Tennessee.
[Read more…] about Kathleen Loveland To Wed TJ Green
Hoosick Falls Girl Scout Day Camp
Any local Hoosick Falls girl in grades 1 through 6 in September are able to attend the Hoosick Falls Girl Scout Day Camp held August 5-9 at the Hoosac School Sports Center. Mystery Detectives is the theme this year. Crafts, games, hikes and singing are among the fun activities girls will experience. Camp hours are 9am to 3 pm, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. On Thursday a themed dinner is held for all campers with pick up at 6 pm. Girls in grades 4, 5 or 6 will enjoy an overnight camp out in the open fields, weather permitting. This day camp operates under Rensselaer County Health Dept. guidelines.
The cost is $50 per girl for the week. Registrations may be picked up at and returned to 63 Wilder Avenue, Hoosick Falls. Call Marion at 686-4576 with any questions.
All completed registrations are due by July 30 with payment.
Grafton Historical Society Meeting On Troy Draft Riots
The Grafton Historical Society will meet at 7 pm in the Grafton Town Hall on July 17. This month’s program is The Troy Draft Riots of 1863, presented by Michael Barrett.
What has been described as “the second most destructive draft riot in the nation” broke out in Troy on July 15, 1863. The bulk of the two to three thousand angry protestors in the streets were Catholics who worked in the city’s mills, factories and iron works. The Troy Draft Riots were violent disturbances that were the culmination of discontent with new laws to draft men to fight in the ongoing Civil War. The rioters were working class men, resentful, among other reasons, because the draft unfairly affected them while sparing wealthier men who could afford to pay expensive fees to exclude them from the draft.
Michael Barrett earned a B.S. in Criminal Science at Russell Sage College while working as a police officer for the City of Troy and presently is employed as Director of the Hudson Mohawk Industrial Gateway in Troy.
The program is free, and the public is welcome. Refreshments will be served. For more information contact 518-641-9660 or email historicgrafton@aol.com.
North Hoosick FD Kids Pool Dance
The North Hoosick Fire Department will be holding its Ninth Annual kids pool dance at the Town of Hoosick community pool on Barton Avenue in Hoosick Falls on Friday, July 12. Students ages 9 to 15 in the area schools are invited to attend the festivities which will begin at 7 pm. Students will be able to swim until dark and then dance to music until 10 pm. Tickets for the dance can be purchased at the door on the day of the event. A rain date of Saturday, July 13, has been set in case of inclement weather. Parents must sign their child out after the dance.
Rensselaer Land Trust’s Annual Hoosic River Paddle
Canoeist and kayakers are invited to join the Rensselaer Land Trust (RLT) for a leisurely paddle through the calming waterways of the Hoosic River on Saturday, July 13, starting at 9 am. Participants will launch at the NYS DEC public boat launch on RLT property at Eagle Bridge and take out downstream just before the Johnsonville Dam. In the past eagles, great blue herons and green herons have been seen along this stretch of coves and marshy backwaters. [Read more…] about Rensselaer Land Trust’s Annual Hoosic River Paddle
Upcoming Events At The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center
Pollination At A Glance
The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is offering a Junior Naturalist Program on July 16 from 1 to 3 pm. This program will teach Jr. Naturalists the ins and outs of pollination. Jr. Naturalists will learn the different parts of a flower and all about the different pollinators present at Dyken Pond Center. A short hike through Dyken Pond Center’s trails will also be on the agenda to look for different wild flowers indigenous to the area and a small take home craft will also be created. A $1 per child donation will cover material costs. Pre-registration is encouraged to help with planning but not required and can be done by contacting the Center at dykenpond@fairpoint.net or 658-2055.
Full Moon Kayak Tour
The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is offering a Full Moon Kayak Tour on July 20 from 7 to 9 pm. This program is limited to 12 boats so pre-registration is required and can be done by contacting the Center at dykenpond@fairpoint.net or 658-2055. Kayaks can be rented for $10, or you can bring your own.
Herpetofaunal Bio-Blitz
The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is conducting its very own Bio-Blitz on July 21 from 9 am to 12 pm. Please join us and survey forest and wetland ecosystems located around Dyken Pond Center on a search for as many different reptiles and amphibians we can find. This program is open to the public and is for all ages. Herpetofaunal identification keys will be handed out to help in the bio-blitz. Pre-registration is encouraged to help with planning but not required and can be done by contacting the Center at dykenpond@fairpoint.net or 658-2055. A $1 donation is suggested.
Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is a Rensselaer County Park located at 475 Dyken Pond Road, Cropseyville. It is open daily during daylight hours for hiking, fishing and non-motor boating. Canoes and kayaks are available for rent each day from 9 am until 3 pm.
A complete list of programs can be found at www.dykenpond.org.
Opening Reception At The Armory
Meet the painter Alessandro Keegan and Hoosick Falls Artists Guild artists and view their work at the Opening Reception on Friday, July 12, from 6 to 8 pm downstairs at The Armory, 80 Church Street, Hoosick Falls. Music will be performed by The Brewsters in The Owls Nest at 7 pm.
The 120Gallery90 is showing recent landscape paintings by emerging New York artist Alessandro Keegan in Gallery90 and an exhibit called “Seeing Through,” works on beveled glass panes, by Hoosick Artist Guild artists in 120Gallery. This exhibition, the Gallery’s fourth, will run from July 12 to August 9.
Luanne J. Stevens
Petersburgh – Luanne James Stevens of the Taconic Trail, Petersburgh, NY, died peacefully at her home on Friday, June 28, 2013, under the care of Community Hospice of Rensselaer County.
Born in Bennington, VT, on January 4, 1934, she was the daughter of the late Layton D. and Clara Wood James. She is pre-deceased by her husband of 50 years, Earl A. Stevens, her children, Judy Crandall and Gregory E. Stevens, her grandchildren, John and Jolene Bedford, and her siblings Betsy Kimball and Layton R. James.
Raised in the southwest Hoosick, NY, area, Luanne was a 1952 graduate of the Walter A. Wood High School in Hoosick Falls, NY. After raising her children, she attended EOC in Troy, NY, to become an office worker. She worked many years for Seagroatt’s Florist in Berlin, NY, before starting to raise her grandchildren. She enjoyed quilting and reading, and she loved to work on puzzles. She was a lifelong member of the Petersburgh United Methodist Church.
Survivors include her three children, Joan M. and husband Mike Hill and Laurie and husband Ray Broadwell, all of Petersburgh, and Jodi Hubbard of Grafton, NY, her best friend of 70 years, Eleanor Herrington, her daughter-in-law, Cheryl Stevens of Stephentown, NY, her nine grandchildren, Jason (of the second litter), Jeremy, Clara, Shandra, Natasha, Ryan, Christopher, Sara and Curtis, along with 15 great-grandchildren.
Special thanks goes to Pat Mace and Cindy Skrandis for all of their help through the years.
Funeral services were held on Sunday, July 7, at 3 pm in the Petersburgh United Methodist Church, Head of Lane, Petersburgh with Rev. Gaylord “Jake” Campbell officiating. A time of fellowship followed in the Church hall. Relatives and friends were invited to visitation at the Church on Sunday from 1 pm until the start of the service.
To remember Luanne in a special way, memorial contributions may be given to the Petersburgh United Methodist Church in care of Thomas M. Barber Funeral Home, P.O. Box 361, Petersburgh, NY, 12138.